We watched Justin and Tyler bounce around the cage and suddenly, Justin flipped Tyler onto the ground. I thought for sure he was going to have him and win this thing, but that’s when Tyler got up. I closed my eyes. I couldn’t watch anymore.
I heard the repetitive sounds of a fist hitting something, and I couldn’t bring myself to open my eyes.
“Holy shit,” Ally said from beside me, and I couldn’t tell if it was a good “holy shit” or a bad one.
“What? I don’t wanna look,” I said.
“Oh my god,” she said with no explanation.
I opened my eyes and people were now standing in front of me. I could barely make out the ref on the ground of the cage right before he yelled, “KO’ed!”
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Justin
I got back into the ring after I told Anna I loved her. I was so nervous that she wasn’t going to say it back, but she did, and I couldn’t have been happier. It was the boost I needed to get me through that last fight. Things felt different now. They felt good. I felt more confident than ever.
I knew that had been the perfect time to confess my feelings for her, to tell her I loved her. She needed to hear it, and I needed to know she loved me back.
Tyler and I bounced around the ring some, and before I knew it, he got me in the face. I was totally caught off guard. He was quick and hit hard. The crowd gasped, which didn’t help my focus at all. I regained my composure just as he got a left hook in.
I took a few steps back before he could get me again. I shook my head and took a deep breath. I had to calm down. I couldn’t let the pain over take me.
“Keep your focus!” I heard Artie yell.
I took a deep breath and thought about how Anna had just told me she loved me too.
He went in for another hit, and I blocked it. Tyler went for a jab, and I blocked that too. I focused on his facial expressions. I watched him lock his eyes on my jaw, and I hit him in the ribs first. He went to hit me in the face, and I blocked it.
We went back and forth the rest of the round, and I was relieved when I heard the bell. I had taken far too many hits.
“He’s a tough fighter, Justin, but he doesn’t know a lot of submissive holds like you do. Use those to your advantage.” Artie said.
I nodded my head and took a drink from my water bottle. I glanced out into the crowd and watched Anna blow me a kiss.
I blew her one back, and the bell dinged for the start of the second round. I was going to get him. I was going to win this fight. No matter what it took. No matter how many hits I had to suffer through.
“Keep focused, Justin,” Artie said.
I got back in the middle of the cage, Tyler and I touched gloves and started the round. I didn’t waste any time before going in went for a right hook. I caught him off guard, luckily. He turned his head back to look at me, and I hit him again. He didn’t hesitate and hit me in the face. A good quick jab. I stumbled back a bit but regained my control before I actually hit the ground. I couldn’t fall; he would have the upper hand and be able to take me out if I did.
I moved to the left before he could get me, turned around, and then BAM. He got me in the face. I stumbled backward and fell to the ground. I quickly moved onto my stomach and then my feet. He was almost on top of me by the time I got up. I turned to evade him, swung, missed.
He hit me in the ribs a couple times, and then I got a few good face hits in.
The bell rang for the second round.
“Justin, use your submission holds. The only way you will win is if you make him submit. You gotta be quick. Rear naked choke. You’ve got this, Justin,” Artie said.
I took a sip from my water bottle, and as I went to look in the crowd at Anna, I noticed Markie was sitting a few rows behind her. If he had been at my previous fights, he didn’t make himself known. He never approached me, but there was no mistaking him and his sly grin. He was enjoying this. All I had to do was lose this fight, and I’d owe him twenty thousand dollars.
I couldn’t let him win, not a snake like him.
I watched him smile at Anna, and it made my stomach turn. I didn’t like him looking at her. She turned back around and stood up.
“You can do it, Justin! I love you!” she yelled from the crowd.
It made me feel good to know she was there and she was cheering me on. She believed in me and supported me, and I was going to win this. I smiled at her. She knew I needed that right then, and I was glad to have her there.