24. Reighvyn
TEN MONTHS LATER
“He looks so composed and relaxed. Ohhh, Jack, he caught him in the head with a left hook!”
“Reston’s leaning on Bloom, Nick.”
I shook him off me as he fell into the cage. When Gage Reston came toward me, I switched my stance, swung around, and kicked him in the head.
“Reston’s bleeding, Jack! He’s bleeding.”
“Yeah, but he’s still up and moving. He’s not down for the count yet.”
“If Bloom is smart, and I think he is, he’ll take advantage of the injury.”
I moved closer to him and started working his body to weaken his resolve until the bell rang. This was the rematch he had been begging for, for the last two years. It was the fight everyone wanted to see, and it was the perfect one for me to retire on.
Thoughts of my mother’s latest relapse went through my mind. It plunged me back to darker times when she would disappear on us for days at a time, leaving us hungry, scared, confused, and even at times with no utilities.
I was angry at the illness—angry at my mother. Yet, my heart broke for her too. I was even angrier at the man who had decided it was okay to make a baby with a woman who had mental health issues and leave her behind.
The reason I knew he was aware of her illness and me as a baby was because I had gained that information in one of her rare moments of clarity.
I gave Reston a couple of high kicks as he moved in, catching him off guard because he thought they would be low. He stumbled backward, but I kicked him in the head and then tripped him.
Once he was on the canvas, I became blinded, as I often did in these moments.
All the noise receded, and I didn’t see the faces around me or even the man curled in a ball on the canvas.
He was no longer my opponent. He was the enemy who attacked my mother’s mind, he was the demons that she fought daily, he was the fear that came at me whenever I was weak and afraid, and he was the man who fathered me but hadn’t bothered to stick around to give me a name or love.
When the ref came and tapped me, I crawled out of that dark space.
The loud cheers and thunderous applause echoed all around me again, and the faces were no longer a blur.
I stood with my arms raised as the arena went wild with cheers.
I ran to the rail and jumped on top of it before I kissed my gloved hands and raised them to the air in honor of the Almighty God.
My eyes lowered to the stands, and I easily found my siblings, my foster parents, and my wife. She was the one who mattered the most to me. I saw the love and acceptance in her eyes.
I climbed down and checked on Gage before I spoke with my team in the center of the ring. At the end of it all, Gage and I stood in the center of the ring and shook hands and congratulated each other on a battle well fought, before the announcement was made.
“Ladies and gentlemen, the fight was stopped at two minutes and forty-seven seconds, and we declare the winner by knockout and still the undisputed EFC heavyweight champion of the world, Reighvyn ‘Rage’ Bloom!” the announcer professed loudly.
I dropped to my knees and bowed in worship to the Almighty.
It was all because of Him that I had made my way to this place in my life, and it was Him who protected me throughout my career.
This was my last fight in the ring, but it wouldn’t be my last battle in life.
I wasn’t worried, though, because I knew there were greater things on the horizon.
I couldn’t wait for the next chapter of my journey to start.
“That was impressive last night, Son,” Papa Larry declared over dinner the next night.
“Thank you, Papa. I’m just glad that you all could make it.”
“Son, you know I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”
He wasn’t lying. They had attended every fight that I had sent them tickets to.
“Mama Alma, did y’all have fun gambling today?” I asked.
She rolled her eyes and shook her head. “Boy, you enticed this old man with the wrong thing. I’m glad that you’re retiring, because every time we make a trip to Vegas, he loses his mind.”
I chuckled. “Mama Alma, you do know the money he’s gambling is money I gave him. I would never let y’all spend your hard-earned money on this stuff,” I explained.
“I know, but it’s still foolish,” she stated, pouting.
“Mama Alma, Dove and Lo are taking you shopping tomorrow morning before our afternoon flight. What do you think about that?”’
She grinned widely at me and pointed her fork. “Now that . . . is a good way to spend money.”
We all laughed.
“Woman, you don’t need another handbag, pair of shoes, or a wig,” Papa Larry remarked.
“You don’t know what I’m going shopping for,” she retorted slyly to her husband. “It could be some lingerie.”
“Okay. Okay, that’s enough,” Wryn declared with a scowl as the rest of us laughed.
“Are you good, Dove?” Papa Larry asked.
“Yes, sir. Just contemplating the end of an era for my husband. I know that I haven’t been around long, but I know that he loves what he does,” Dove explained.
“Honey, that’s because part of it was therapeutic for him,” Mama Alma stated.
I leaned in and kissed Dove’s lips. “We’re gonna be fine, baby. Now that I’ve started therapy, I’ll still have a healthy way to deal with my anger and aggression. Besides, there’s the gym.”
She smiled brightly at me. “You’re right about that. I’m excited and can’t wait to see how that comes together for you.”
I had already bought the building that would house my gym. There were still things to handle like the design of the gym, to make sure the equipment was set up in a practical manner that functioned well for its purpose, as well as what the decor would look like.
I hadn’t been by there in several weeks, because once I finished my last fight camp, I immediately returned here to Vegas for fight week so that I could participate in the interviews, open workouts to the public, the press conference, and weigh-ins.
I hadn’t had time to look at the gym since I’d purchased it, but I was ready to get back and hit the ground running.
After the fight last night, we stayed in Vegas another day to attend a dinner concert featuring Jovi Noelle. When we learned she was performing in Vegas, we had to make sure we got tickets for Mama Alma, who was a big fan.
“Where are y’all heading now?” Wryn asked after we finished and all prepared to leave.
“These old folks are headed up to get some rest for the night,” Papa Larry declared, grabbing Mama Alma’s hand.
“I’m tired. Definitely need to get my rest, and I want my wife by my side,” I stated.
Dove smiled and leaned into me as I wrapped my arm around her.
“I’m going out to gamble some more and see what I can see on the strip,” Paloma declared.
“I’m going. No way in hell you’re going alone,” our big brother professed.
We all said our goodbyes as Paloma whined about not needing a babysitter, and I placed our foster parents in one car, while Dove and I climbed in another. The windows were tinted, and the partition was up to give us privacy from the driver.
“I was thinking that I might congratulate you on a battle well fought last night. I never got the chance to last night with all the parties we had to attend. I was exhausted,” Dove declared, climbing onto me as she unzipped her sequined shorts and slipped out of them.
She wore no panties, and that made my dick harder than concrete.
“Fuck, girl. You been walking around like this all night?”
“Just for you,” she whispered, reaching in my pants and freeing my dick.
I gripped her hips and helped her settle on me. She was warm and wet as she slid down my erection. Everything about her and this moment was perfect.
“You’re so hot and tight,” I whispered.
“Shh.” She pressed a finger to my lips and rested her hands on my shoulders. Dove worked my dick like it was a stripper pole in the night club. She slid up and down and all around that bitch. She danced and rocked on it, suctioned it in, and pulsed it back out.
After she came, she slid off it, kneeled in front of me, and sucked me off as I instructed our driver to take a third loop around before returning to our hotel. When I released in her mouth, it felt so perfect. I had one thought, though.
Damn, that seed could have gone toward our future children.
I wasn’t mad. Every one of her holes were hot and ready, and I was just grateful that she shared them with me.
During our time together, she had made me the happiest man alive.
She was a wonderful wife, who knew how to take excellent care of her husband.
She made sure that all my appointments were set up, my calendar was up-to-date, and I was well prepared for my trainings.
She was the one who had prayed for me to find the right therapist and been in attendance in a couple of sessions to provide the support that I needed. I thanked God each day for this woman, because she was everything I never knew I needed.
My mother’s battle would forever be an ongoing one and would always impact me, but with the right team in my corner, it was a fight that I was well prepared to win.