Against Ian's predictions on his first day, he did survive his three years in prison. After all the formalities were done with, he was escorted out of the main gate to a car parked nearby while carrying a box containing his belongings. This time Ian wasn't cuffed as he was being escorted, and from afar he already recognised that it was his mother standing by the compact vehicle that was awaiting him. At the same time Ian was glad to see her again, but also ashamed of himself immensely. Especially considering certain facts. Once Ian was right at the car, with his now bearded face within conversation distance of his mother, the guard left and only awkward silence remained as both Ian and his mother thought of how to start the conversation.
"I believe you have something you should say. Something we should talk about." Emma started with.
"Yeah... Sorry that I never called." Ian simply replied.
Emma crossed her arms and leaned on the door of the car.
"Yeah, you better be sorry. Being told by the police that my own son is being taken to prison and then not hearing a word from you for three years, only having to speculate and fear the whole time, and only being told by the police that you're free now. Do you understand the stress that put me through?" Emma asked with the stress being audible in her voice.
"Right, because you're the victim here. Oh poor you." Ian answered with dry sarcasm, not appreciating that the first words he heard from his mother after three years are just complaining at him.
"Because of your choices I had two less hands helping around the house and that didn't help with the stress I have to go through every day. So yes, I had it harder too."
"You also had one less mouth to feed. Be grateful." Ian said with a minor lash out.
"I'd prefer to have two. Honestly."
"I never really even helped you that much anyway. At this age I shouldn't be your burden anymore and I should accept the consequences of my choices. You have enough to put up with."
"Actually, I don't have as much on my plate as I once did."
"Hm? What changed?"
"I'll explain on the way home." Emma said and got on the driver's seat.
Ian got in the car as well and Emma got it started and moving.
"So how has your life changed?" Ian asked curiously once the car was on the main road leading to the hometown.
"Well, a few days after I heard the verdict of your trial, which I wasn't told the date of, by the way..." Emma started with.
"Not my fault." Ian added.
"Anyway, a few days after the trial, I received a strange letter. It said: "I heard how the trial went. I don't want your life to get harder.", and inside was a blank cheque." Emma explained.
"What? From who?"
"At the time I had no idea. I used it, but didn't want to take an unreasonable amount. It helped a lot. But that's not the end of. About a year ago, I received another letter. It said: "I know that your son is in prison and now his father has died. I reckon you have more on your plate than you can handle. How would you feel if I offered to purchase your house and let you stay there free of charge? You could stop worrying about rent.", and I thought for sure that it was a hoax. But after a few weeks I got yet another nameless letter saying that the offer was serious and it had the same email address written on it as the previous letter."
"What? He died?" Ian asked with shock.
"You don't even know your father. And I had no idea whether he was alive or dead. Well, now I know." Emma said coldly, clearly holding some past resentment.
"Umm. Right. Yeah." Ian simply said back.
"Anyway, I contacted the email and we agreed to meet. And a few days later I went to the address they gave me. And I found myself by the biggest mansion in the whole county. Of course you know what family lives there."
"You mean..."
"Yep. We negotiated and... on another meeting we finalised the deal. The head of the family used his personal money to buy our house and he just lets us stay there. I asked him how he knows of my situation and why does he care. He just said that he was convinced by his son."
"That can't be real."
"He hasn't asked for any rent for a year! We haven't even exchanged messages in a year now! He just bought the house from the previous landlord and he's left me completely alone."
"I refuse to believe that the motherfucker suddenly just had a change of heart and convinced his daddy to help us out. I know those types of people. I really don't want to talk to that bastard ever again though." Ian thought.
"So life is easy rolling now?" Ian asked.
"Well, it's not exactly that but I don't worry so much about bills anymore. And I have this car now too. I work a weekend job now too cleaning the offices of this tech company in Birmingham. It takes about an hour to drive there but I manage. I don't get days off anymore though." Emma answered.
"I want to help. In any way I can. Could I take that job instead?" Ian asked.
"You'd be willing? You don't want to study anymore?"
"In prison I was contacted by the university and they told me that I've been expelled for good. I'd have to start all over again if I applied again, and the last time I was there, I got nowhere. I was terrible. I want to at least do something where I see results, even if those results are just low wages in my bank. Not like I'd do that job for the rest of my life anyway." Ian answered.
Emma sighed.
"I understand where you're coming from. I won't pressure you to follow a path you don't want to follow. But I can I trust you with this car?"
"I know how to drive well enough and I know how to refuel it."
"Wow. How convincing." Emma said and chuckled.
"What?"
"You don't even have a license."
"I can just live like a cowboy and do it without. I trust myself to not get caught."
"The last thing you need is to be risky with the law! You're getting that license!"
"Fine then." Ian said and went quiet.
Emma understood that the conversation had ended, so she turned on the radio.
"Please turn that off!" Ian immediately requested as his head hurt as soon as the loud radio was turned on.
"Okay, okay. Fine then. Is your head alright?" Emma said and switched the radio off.
"No. I noticed something wrong even before I was locked up, and in the last three years it's gotten worse."
"Sweetie, you need to get that looked at!"
"I know I know. I'll do that later. And by the way..."
"Yes?"
"I assume Cindy went back to her own home as soon as I went to jail. Right?"
"She did. And a month after that she moved away from the town entirely."
"What? Do you know where she moved?"
"She shared that she moved to the countryside. Not sure where. If you use social media you might find out." Emma said.
"I need to do that. I need to make things right with her." Ian thought and went quiet again.
18Please respect copyright.PENANAeD6feRCMm2
Back home, the first thing Ian did was put down his box and then he sat on his bed. It was completely without sheets, but the rest of his room was the same way it was when he left, although dustier.
"I missed this bed so much." He thought and got on his back and stared at the ceiling.
Then something started bothering him.
"I need to get rid of this damn beard. I can't stand it. It's not me." He thought and stood up to go to the bathroom.
Once that had been taken care of he returned to his room and looked at the box he put on the floor earlier. He put the box on his bed and sat down next to it. The only things in the box were his keys and his smartphone and the necklace that Cindy returned to him when he was in police custody. He tried turning his phone on. It didn't turn on. After charging it some amount, it started. The first thing he did was not check his messages, but rather download a social media app that he had never used. He knew that Cindy used it, and so he used the search function to look for users who have the same full name as Cindy. He found the person he was looking for, and checked the location where the user is based.
"Damn. She's pretty far. We probably won't see often anymore, but I want to still see her at least once, even if she doesn't. I need to." He talked to himself quietly alone.
He opened his messages and picked Cindy's number. He was thinking what to send to her but then to his horror he noticed something. He had been blocked by her. He just blankly stared at the screen. Even a single tear fell from his eye onto the screen.
"She wants me completely out of her life. And if I try to message her through any other way, she'll just block me again. I can't let this stop me. I have to talk to her in person. I'll go to that place and I'll search until I find her mailbox. I can't let it end like this." He said to himself.
He got up, took Cindy's necklace from the box and his own from his drawer and headed to the front door. As he was putting his shoes on, he was interrupted by Emma's voice coming from her office.
"Where are you going already?" She asked.
"I need to go to the countryside to go talk with Cindy!" He replied with determination.
"Right now?"
"Right now." Ian said and took the car keys from the hook.
"Wait! You need the driver's license first!" Emma shouted from the office.
"This is more important!" Ian shouted back and rushed out of the door.
He got in the car and started it as quickly as he could so that his mother wouldn't stop him. He didn't even check if she came out to stop him. He just got the car moving from the street where it was parked and drove away. As he was driving, he used one hand to open the navigation on his phone and he fed it the desired location.
He wasn't a complete idiot always, so he made sure to drive carefully as to not get stopped by the police. He knew that if he got caught driving without a license, he'd be in trouble with the law again and might end up straight back in prison. Eventually he saw the sign telling him that he is entering the village where he wanted to be. He got off the highway and got on the smaller road going through the village. There were houses on both sides of the quiet road. Ian drove slowly along the road and checked the front of each house in case any of them had the same car he remembered Cindy having. He went to the very end of the road and couldn't spot what he was looking for, but at the end of the road it forked into a dirt road leading up to the hills. On the last bits of the paved road were also parked three cars and one of them was the exact one that Ian remembered Cindy having. Even the plate was the same.
"That's hers! She's here!" He shouted out loud.
He looked into the hills where he could only see three houses that were all far apart. They looked bigger than the ones along the road.
"One of those has to be hers!" He said as he looked ahead.
He saw that the dirt road was too narrow for the car, so he parked it along the paved road and got on foot. He walked up the hills on the dirt road in the midst of the beautiful rural landscapes until he got to the first house. On the front yard of the house was a fence with sharp poles and more interestingly, a mailbox. The mailbox had a surname that had no significance to Ian, so me moved along and made his way to the next one. On the next one also was a mailbox but the name on it was also completely meaningless to Ian, so he moved along.
"Please be on the last one. Don't tell me she sold the car and it belongs to someone else now and this trip was for nothing. She has to be on this one." He whispered to himself as he was getting exhausted from all the walking on the hills. Once he was getting nearer to the third and last house, his nerves started wrecking him more and more as his eyes caught the mailbox on the front of the house. From where he was he couldn't see the name on it, but as he got closer, he could see it better and better. He arrived at the house and looked at the name on the mailbox with wide open eyes.
"Smith. Fucking Smith. So she's not here either." Ian said with defeat in his voice.
"Then where is she? She should be around here. That's what her page said. Her car was there. Guess I'll have to keep looking." He said and looked at the green landscapes from the high hill.
"Excuse me." A masculine voice called from behind, from the direction of the house.
Ian turned around and saw a very unremarkable looking man at the door with a well waxed blond hair and eyeglasses.
"Um. Yeah. Sorry to disturb but... there was a car parked over there where the road is paved, and I'm looking for its owner. It's that gray Subaru. You know that one?" Ian asked the man.
"Yes. The legal owner of that car is my wife, but I mostly use it. Why do you want to speak to the owner?" The man answered and asked.
"Right. When did your wife buy the car and from who?" Ian asked.
"I don't know. She had it when we met." The man answered.
Ian got increasingly nervous and feared the worst.
"Can I ask your wife when she bought it?" Ian asked awkwardly.
"Well, alright." The man said back as if he found Ian a bit strange.
He turned his head into the house.
"Cindy! Someone at the door wants to talk to you!" The man shouted into the house.
Ian shattered like glass from the inside. His right eye opened wide and his left eye twitched. The worst that he imagined, was apparently true. A moment later Ian was met with a familiar face. Cindy was now at the door and looked at Ian with s slightly surprised expression that quickly turned into disappointment. When Ian saw Cindy with a ring on her finger in another man's house, he was ready to fall to the ground, but when he looked a little bit down and saw that Cindy had a very noticeable pregnant belly, that's when he was ready to melt away like a sugar cube in rain.
"Why?" Cindy simply asked.
"I... I wanted to talk things out but... Never mind." Ian said and started turning away.
Cindy whispered to her man to step away for a moment. The man complied. Cindy stepped out of the house and stopped Ian from leaving. She came face to face with him.
"I know it's a big surprise to see all this but I hope you're not jealous. A lot can happen in three years." Cindy explained sincerely.
"I understand, but... Why? Why him?" Ian said back, with complete defeat and acceptance.
"Like I said, a lot can happen in three years. I found someone new and I had decided that we're finished." Cindy briefly explained.
Ian could say nothing back.
"I mean, I think you also knew that what we had going on was never meant to last." Cindy added.
"I know. It still hurts to be blocked. And also hurts to find out all this after hearing nothing for three years." Ian said back.
"Ohh right. I did block you, didn't I? I did it when I was angry at you and then I just never remembered to remove the block. To be honest I still can't fully get over what you did. I don't hate you, but I don't think I can ever be friends with you."
"I don't think I have anything left to say to you then." Ian said briefly and to the point, and then walked away.
"Goodbye, Ian." Cindy said formally from behind, and didn't make an attempt to stop Ian from leaving.
She stayed on the front yard looking for a few seconds more before going back inside and closing the door, definitively ending a chapter of her life.
Ian walked back the same dirt roads along the hills slowly and quietly while looking ahead and breathing through his nose. He noticed that his hands were getting cold in the damp and cool weather. He put his hands in his pockets. His left hand felt the cold precious metal of the two necklaces that he shoved in his pocket back home. He took them out of his pocket and looked at the necklaces that he and Cindy had gifted each other on a past time. He felt pain inside again when he saw them and he gritted his teeth.
"I'm not over it. I'll never be over it. We were happy before I ruined everything. I need to get her back and do better next time. I need to appreciate what I have in her. I know that we're meant to last. I know it. I need to go back there and tell her from all my heart that I still love her. I'll scream it from the top of my lungs right outside her door. I don't care how her man reacts. I'll fist fight that fucking bloke and earn her back. I'll do it." Ian said quietly to himself while looking at the necklaces on his hand.
He clenched his hand into a fist and held tightly to the jewelry, turned around, and started sprinting back towards Cindy's house. He knew exactly what he'd say and he didn't worry about what happened afterwards. He was convinced that he had to let it out. In a couple of minutes he was back at Cindy's front yard and ready to scream his confession on the high hill.
But he didn't. He stopped right outside of the front yard.
"But why would I? She seemed happy with her man. She said it herself that she doesn't even want to be friends with me. Let alone anything more. She doesn't deserve to put up with my nonsense. She's not going to leave her husband and the father of her child just to be back with me. And she shouldn't. And I shouldn't expect her to do that. That'd be selfish of me. It's over." He thought while looking at the front of the house.
He turned around again and walked away once more, this time with a clearer head. He took one last look at the necklaces in his hand. He twirled them around like a sling and then let go, sending them flying down the green hills out of his sight. He returned to the car where he sat down on the front seat and let out a deep exhale. Then another realisation hit him and he smashed his forehead into the steering wheel.
"Jacob was my dad and he's dead. My dad was a once famous world champion and he died a useless pill addict whose son is in jail. And I have no clue where he's buried. Not like that matters anyway. Whatever I'd say at his grave, he wouldn't hear it. What were even the last words I said to him? I don't even remember. Nobody probably attended his funeral either. Guess all I can do now is return home." Ian said to himself and dug up his phone to open the directions home.
He suddenly got curious about what people had messaged him during his time gone. When he opened his messages earlier in the day, he was so focused on Cindy that he didn't check any messages he had gotten from other people. He noticed that Lloyd had sent messages to him. He opened them.
"Hmph. Even though he had no idea where I disappeared, he occasionally asked how I'm doing. Looks like he gave up about two years ago." Ian thought while looking at the messages.
"Hi. Sorry for being quiet. I just got back from prison. How you been?" Ian messaged Lloyd and then opened the navigator and headed home.
During his drive home the phone buzzed two times but Ian didn't check it. Only when he was on the home street did he check it when he was driving slowly.
"Wait? is that where you've been all this time?" is what one of Lloyd's messages said.
"How are you? Where are you now?" Is what the other message said.
Ian parked the car on the side of the street, not too far from home.
"Yeah that's where I was. I fucked up pretty badly. I'm back in town now. I remember you left town before I could say bye. Just wanted to let you know what's up." Ian replied and looked around.
Two minutes passed with no messages being sent until Ian's phone buzzed again. he checked the phone.
"I'm also back in town for the weekend, if you want to talk." A new message from Lloyd said.
"No need to. Just a suggestion." Said another message immediately after.
"Yeah we can meet right now even."
"Right now?"
"Sure. Why not?"
"Well okay. Where?"
"How about the university? We both know the way."
"I mean sure. That works."
"Great. Talk to you soon." Ian texted and put his phone in his pocket.
"Over there then." He thought and got the car moving.
He could have walked. He knew the way well enough, but couldn't be bothered to. On the journey to the university he also found that the car has an auxiliary cord. He was moderately delighted by this discovery and connected his phone to the car radio to listen to his preferred music during the short ride.
He arrived at the outside of the university. The sky was already dark on this Saturday evening. The headlights of the car were on as Ian waited and wondered what he would say first to his friend without bringing up the elephant in the room that was never addressed three years earlier. He came to the conclusion that he wouldn't bring it up at all. He sent another message.
"Once you're there, get in the only car you see." Is what his message said.
He waited some more and after not too long, the door on the passenger side was opened. The ceiling light inside the car turned on and Ian saw clearly who it was.
"What's up?" Ian asked Lloyd who sat down on the passenger seat.
Neither looked at each other. Ian turned the music down slightly.
"Guess I'm good." Lloyd answered simply and closed the door.
"What have you been doing, mate? I know you went to a new school. How is it?" Ian asked.
"Who told you about that?"
"Well... I found out myself when I tried to go talk to you at your home and your sister said that you had moved away. You have quick movements for sure."
"I made the decision to move a month before I actually did. I just didn't tell you."
"Why not?"
"Didn't think it was worth mentioning." Lloyd said coldly.
"Not worth mentioning? Are you serious?" Ian asked.
Lloyd only shrugged and looked out the window.
"Have you graduated from the new university?" Ian asked.
"Mhm."
"So what do you do now?"
"I develop games in a small team now." Lloyd answered somewhat proudly and let out a minor smirk, though Ian did not see it.
"No way, mate? You like it?" Ian asked excitedly.
"Love it. And not only that, I got Evelyn a gig as a voice actor in our current project."
"Oh hell yes. Does she like it?"
"I guess."
"And do you still have to give her gifts to keep your secret?"
"Oh the secret has been out for a bit now. Absolutely nothing in anyone's life changed."
"Well, that was a pointless thing to worry about then. Can I ask what the secret was?"
"We don't need to talk about that."
"Fair enough. How much money do you make?"
"Enough to get by in a flat in Manchester. Evelyn also gets paid even though she's not under a contract with us. She still lives at home."
"Good deal for her. I don't play games but I'll get your game when it's finished just to support you, mate."
"You don't have to, but I won't stop you."
"Currently I have no money to buy anything but I'll start looking for work. I also think I'll do some fights here and there to make some quick cash. I'm not allowed to fight sanctioned fights but I'll make myself a local legend in the underground scene. Just you see."
"Go you." Lloyd said without much interest.
"Hell yeah."
"How was prison?"
"Terrible. Every bloody day they'd kill my brain with loud noises and kill my joy with shitty work with shitty people. And then I come back only to find out that my girl has somebody new and my dad is dead."
"Oh." Lloyd said with concern and finally turned to look at Ian.
"I'll be fine though." Ian said.
"Did you give up on studying?" Lloyd asked.
"Ages ago, mate. I'll be fine." Ian answered.
Lloyd left out a quiet chuckle.
"Well, look at your positive attitude. And I was constantly told that I'd have a miserable life if I didn't go to university." Lloyd said and looked out of the windshield.
"How you liking your life then?" Ian asked.
"I don't know. I said that I get by and I guess it's nice to be a part of creating something."
"But?"
"I don't know. I'm just lonely." Lloyd said and leaned back, still looking out of the windshield.
"Come on, mate. You've got a team, don't you. And does your band still keep in touch with you?"
"I left them behind when I moved out and they didn't reach out to me. Shows me how much they missed me. Ha. And I only work with the team. We're not friends or anything."
"Well, maybe you should try to be friends with them."
"I guess."
"Or... is it like... something else that you're missing?" Ian asked awkwardly.
Lloyd said nothing back.
"I remember what you confessed before you moved out." Ian said.
"Please don't bring that up." Lloyd said and looked out of the side window.
"Alright. I won't. I guess those feelings have passed now. I mean three years is a long time." Ian said.
An awkward silence fell, with only the faint music of the radio playing.
"They haven't." Lloyd admitted while looking out of the side window into the dark parking lot.
"Oh." Ian simply said.
"I tried to message you the past three years and you didn't reply at all and you have no idea how much that frustrated me. Of course now I know why, but honestly I was... I was at a deep pit when I thought that you were purposefully ignoring me. I eventually gave up and tried to move on, just walking through my life like a zombie. And when I'd start comparing myself to others, that was the worst. When I got your message today, I started shaking. Actually shaking because I didn't know if I should reply at all. I mean, I'm glad that you weren't actually avoiding me, but I'm also dreading having you as a friend again because I know that you don't want to be anything more than that, even if I do. So, so badly." Lloyd ranted away.
Silence fell again.
"Damn, man." Ian simply said.
"Shut up." Lloyd said right back without looking at Ian.
"Want to try?" Ian asked.
"Huh? What? Try what? You mean like..."
"Wanna just kiss once and see if anything's there? Even if there isn't at least you'll get some sort of closure." Ian said with a blank emotionless look.
Lloyd was only stuttering something and trying to get something said.
"Don't have to." Ian said simply.
"I do!" Lloyd shouted nervously and turned to look at Ian.
"Alright. Let's do it then." Ian said oddly as they looked at each other.
They got their backs straight and got closer.
"You sure?" Ian asked as a last chance to turn back.
"I'm sure." Lloyd assured.
"Alright. Ready?" Ian asked.
"Ready." Lloyd said back and breathed heavily.
They gave each other a one second long kiss, and after that, Ian pushed himself away and got deep into his seat. Lloyd got back on his seat more slowly.
"That wasn't even the worst thing ever. What the hell?" Ian thought.
"So how do you feel now?" Ian asked.
Lloyd looked melancholic while looking out of the windshield.
"I got exactly what I wanted. And now the feelings that fuck with me are even stronger. You?" Lloyd said back.
Ian took a quiet pause.
"I don't know. I think we should both go home and talk some other time." He answered.
"Yeah. You're right." Lloyd said back.
"You need a ride?"
"I'm fine." Lloyd said and quickly got out of the car.
"Guess I should head home too and take my yelling from mum with honour. But first..." Ian said to himself and headed to the next place he wanted to check out.
18Please respect copyright.PENANAPO49xS5qkd
18Please respect copyright.PENANAoBUQQZ4Gqx
And so at the familiar factory Ian stopped his car. The lights were on and the music could be heard from outside, just like before. It gave Ian a feeling of nostalgia for a place that he was not terribly fond of. He stopped the car a safe distance away from the factory because he knew what type of people like to come to the place. He walked into the factory and once he stepped inside, he immediately noticed how empty the place was. No longer was it a packed house full of excited bloodthirsty hoodlums. People were still there, but noticeably less, and the atmosphere not being the same was easy to notice too. In the fight cage Ian saw the last moments of a fight, when a fighter familiar to Ian finished his opponent with a brutal shot to the jaw.
"And earning his third victory of the night is the Killer!" A man standing on a crate shouted.
"Damn. They don't even have the speakers anymore. What happened in the past years?" Ian thought and walked straight to the bouncer who after all this time was still keeping guard of the door leading to Bloodhound's office.
"Oi. Anyone need an opponent tonight?" Ian asked the bouncer.
"Oi, Killer? Got another round in ya?" The bouncer then shouted to the direction of the fight cage.
"Got ten more in me!" The Killer shouted back.
The bouncer turned to look at Ian.
"Get in." The bouncer said to Ian.
"Hey hey, wait. Is that guy the only one fighting here? Nobody else is an option?" Ian asked with a hint of fear.
"The past months we've been a bit short on fighters." The bouncer answered.
"Why?" Ian asked.
"Well, I don't know for certain but I think it's because one bloke kept betting on every fight and always winning and every fight lasted less than a minute. People got sick of betting because everybody saw that the fights are fixed. Many of our fighters also quit. The big betting bastard eventually got bored but the rumour hasn't spread to the former loyals yet since they haven't returned. Or maybe they heard but just don't care anymore. Dunno. We actually have more people here than a month ago, but nobody bets on fights anymore."
"How does the place make money to keep the lights on then?"
"That's... classified. Now you want to fight or not?"
"Is the Killer the only opponent available?"
"Yep."
"Not sure then."
"Well, fuck off then." The bouncer said.
"I won't become a local legend if I back down from fights. The Killer may have beat me once but that was a fluke call from the ref anyway. I can beat this guy." Ian thought.
"Fine. I'll fight him." He then said with determination.
"Follow me then." The bouncer said.
Bloodhound's office still oddly enough looked the same as usual. No long talk was had there, and soon Ian was in the cage where the Killer was already eagerly waiting and squeezing his fists.
"I remember you, brother. Where have you been?" The Killer asked from the other side of the cage with moderate glee and a heavy Nigerian accent.
"In jail, mate. And now that I'm out of my cage, I want blood." Kyle said back and tried to sound threatening.
"Ha! You'll taste your own blood." The Killer replied with.
The Killer stretched his arms and cracked his neck. Ian cracked his knuckles and punched himself in the cheeks as the girl standing on a crate announced the names of the fighters. The referee signaled for the fight to start and both fighters put their fists up. Ian approached his opponent carefully and kept his eyes on the Killer's fists. It didn't help him much, as the Killer threw a shot at Ian's gut and it landed square, taking all the air out of Ian's lungs. Ian jumped back to avoid a second one and put his guard back up.
"Fuck. I haven't practiced at all with living partners. Only bags." He realised in his mind and took his chances throwing a shot at the Killer's hard gut.
The Killer didn't flinch and hit Ian's forehead with a hard elbow. The short moment of staggering allowed the Killer to grab the back of Ian's neck and land six shots on his gut, each taking more out of Ian than the last. Ian was completely out of air and could hardly move, making him vulnerable. His defense was weak and the Killer took advantage of that, landing a hard shot on the left side of Ian's jawbone. Ian fell to the canvas and landed on his stomach with his cheek resting on the canvas.
"Nothing new. I've been here before. Head isn't even hurt. Jacob made a career out of always getting up. So can I." Ian thought and got himself up.
His ears rung for a few seconds and his brain hurt, but he didn't let it bother him. He didn't have a strategy and his skills had rusted. He charged and tried to land his best right hand right at the Killer's head. His move was predictable, and the Killer easily ducked it and countered with an uppercut to the jaw, instantly following it with a shot to the cheek with the other hand. Ian went down to the canvas again.
"Fuck! I suck!" He thought while he was down on the canvas hearing the referee's count.
He started to get himself up, but right as he did, the ringing in his ears and the pain in his brain suddenly got unbearable. He grabbed his own head and winced, staying on the mat a little while longer, but knowing that he couldn't stay there much longer. On that moment he remembered something that Jacob had said to him earlier.
"Don't become like me." Is the phrase that Ian suddenly remembered Jacob saying to him.
He got back up, pushing the thought to the back of his pained skull.
"Stay down, little man." The Killer said tauntingly from the other side of the cage.
Ian didn't listen. Once again he charged at his opponent. The Killer threw a shot aimed at Ian's face but instead of attacking back, Ian blocked it with his forearms, which prevented him from striking. The Killer rained down a barrage of hits aimed at Ian's head and gut, and Ian was forced to defend himself and couldn't fight back. He decided to only protect his gut, figuring that his head could survive better. Because of that, his head ended up taking six unprotected shots, three on each ear. Before the Killer could throw a seventh, Ian's arm moved like a lightning and landed a perfect hit on the Killer's jawbone, sending him to the canvas. The people watching gasped, and Ian looked up to see what he did. The Killer was on his back, shaking his head, flabbergasted at what just happened.
"I put him down. I fucking put him down. I did it. I... I..." Were Ian's final thoughts before he also fell down.
"Don't become like me." Once again echoed in Ian's head.
He was reminded of the sad state that Jacob was in during his last years alive. A pill addicted, broken useless wreck in constant pain, all alone and miserable. It was that one sentence that Jacob said to Ian that kept repeating in his head. The referee's count was at four.
"Don't become like me." Just over and over again.
Ian opened his eyes as the world shook around him. He saw the Killer getting up from the canvas back to his feet, and Ian's competitive spirit rose in him. He started getting up, and as we was, his head rang again and he fell back down. The referee's count was at six.
"Don't become like me." Once again echoed in his head as he laid there.
The referee's count was at seven. Ian knew that he could get up if he gave it his all, but he understood what Jacob meant. He saw the Killer standing tall, and heard the referee finish the count of ten.
"Absolute failure of a man." Were the first words that Ian thought of himself in that moment.
18Please respect copyright.PENANAJiOlLNHLrJ
After Ian had gathered himself and left the factory with his loser money, he had to face the yelling that he knew he would get at home for essentially stealing his mother's car.
"Where else have I got to go?" He asked himself in his head and decided that he may as well take the yelling like a man.
He drove home deliberately slowly as to make absolutely certain that he wouldn't get stopped. On the way home, he saw the repair shop of his friend. The last time he had spoken with that friend of his was back when he had to get his bike repaired.
"Hmph. Suppose that's one option for work in this shitty little village." Ian said out loud.
"Guess I just have to accept that I can't chase my dream in sanctioned bouts, or that I can't even be a local legend as long as the Killer reigns supreme. Honestly, I don't think I even want to. If I kept fighting and taking blows to the head the way I've been, my head would only get worse. I'd end up resorting to all sorts of pills and end up like Jacob. Guess that would be following in my father's footsteps in a way. Not sure if I'm too old to start in university now. I don't even think I want to try. Sucks to say that I'm just a mediocre person, and that I should just settle for mediocrity, but that's what it's starting to seem like." He kept talking to himself in the car.
"But I guess it's not that bad. I have a couple of friends who care about me and a mother who looks after me. That's a victory in itself. On some level I've always believed in karma. that we all get what we deserve eventually. I'll land on my feet one way or another. That's what winners do." He said to himself and felt a little embarrassed at the cheesiness of the sentence he said and felt glad that nobody else was in the car with him.
Once he arrived at the home street and was approaching the house, he already saw Emma coming out of the front door, presumably having heard the engine from afar. Ian already felt ashamed of himself and couldn't look at Emma as he parked the car on the street and got out. After he got out, he simply tried to walk past Emma and go inside, but Emma didn't let that slide.
"So you thought it'd be a good idea to steal a car and drive it around without a license right after you get out of prison?" Emma said to Ian as she grabbed his arm and stopped him.
"I had places to go and people to see." Ian simply said back, knowing well that the answer wouldn't be good enough.
"Was it important enough to risk going to prison again?"
"Probably not. At least I know better about some things now." Ian said and thought of Cindy.
"You idiot boy."
"I'm an idiot."
"I'll have to hide the keys better."
"You probably should." Ian said with a monotone voice.
"You're too old to be grounded but these keys are mine and you will respect that. Now go do what you wish." Emma said and returned indoors steaming.
Ian went straight to his bed and looked at the ceiling. After a few minutes of that, he dug out his phone and started searching where Jacob might be buried. As he was doing that, he received a new message from a familiar number. The message was a very informal invitation to spend time together, sent by a person that Ian had wished to talk more with.
He replied to it affirmatively, put everything down, looked at the ceiling and cracked a slight smile.
"It's not that bad."
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