Page 168 of The Breaking Pointe
I don’t think I have been this sure of anything in my life. Months ago, thinking about this fight felt like carrying aton of bricks around. It felt like I had one foot in the grave, and the other struggling to keep my head above the six-foot deep hole. Now it feels like I have nothing to question. It’s days away, and I feel nothing short of capable.It amazes me
that time is all it takes.
I used to hate the present, and now I don’t want it to end. I have one last thing to do, though.
Noelle needs her happy ending.It doesn’t end with just us. She needs her studio. Her dreams matter just as much as mine do.
Trey and I exit the office building where we had recently begun having meetings with my team. The more involved I get, the more professional things seem. We’ve reached a point where I’m recognizable in public. If anything makes me nervous, it’s that.I like being incognito.So far it’s been harmless kids, though. What harm could that be? In a way, it’s heartwarming. They don’t know what I’m going through, or what Daniel is going through.They just love boxing. That’s what makes it special.
“So just make sure you read through the rules a few times, and get it all in your skull, alright?” Trey says, walking with me to the car.
I flip through pages of the small stack of papers, noticing that the rules are more extensive and strict.
“They may as well have given me another contract, Trey,” I attest, chuckling softly.
“The rules aren’t that deep, normally.It’s because of what’s going on between you two. They want things to be neat and orderly,” he assures me.
I nod.“Fair.”
We approach his SUV, and I continue to flip through pages, suddenly feeling a tug on my joggers.Moving the papers out of my view, I surveillance the area below me, quickly making eye contact with a small boy. Maybe around the age of twelve.
“Hey…kid…” I look around quickly, realizing he doesn’t have anyone with him.“Where’s your parents?”I ask, getting right to the point.
“You’re Colton Kennedy,” he says innocently as his face glows. “You’re like—the best new rookie fighter.”
I crack a smile, noticing he’s just excited.“Yeah I am.”
Just as he gets ready to say more, a man closer to my age runs up to us, huffing and puffing with a look of shock on his face.
“Grayson, you can’t run off like that. It’s dangerous,” he pants before double-taking at me. “Oh shit.”
I quickly lift a hand to wave.“I’m sorry.I looked down, and there he was.”
“Now I can understand why he ran off.”The man laughs, skittishly. “C’mon, Grayson. We should leave Mr. Kennedy alone. He’s pretty busy.”
“But Dad, this is my only chance. We can’t go to the fight, remember?”Grayson whines, sounding as though he has waited all his little life for this.
I watch them both, then notice Trey is at the trunk of the SUV, probably handling equipment in the back.
“Why can’t you guys go?” I ask, stalling them before the dad takes them away.
“Oh—uh—just money.Those fights are expensive, man.I looked at every website, and it’s beyond me.They won’t sell them at the box office, so we’ll just have to wait to watch it on the television,” he says lowly.
My heart sinks slightly, thinking about the possibility of the missed opportunity.I was once just like Grayson.Except my dad didn’t try. I’m sure his has done everything.
“Yeah,buttheTVisn’tanyfun.Notcomparedtothereal
thing,”Ilightlysuggest.
Grayson looks up at me, budding in.“We got to see you and you’re not even punching anyone. No one at school is gonna believe it. Can we have an autograph?”
Entertained by his happiness, I comply.“Of course.”I nod, opening the car door to grab a pen and a random paper sitting on the seat, then seeing exactly what I need sitting in the cup holder.
Extra tickets to the fight that Trey saved from one of his gym membership giveaways.
I grab two of them and pull myself back out of the car, signing my name on the paper, twice, and quickly.
“Two autographs. How’s that?” I smile, holding it out for Grayson.
