Worth the Chance

We’re ru

Eyes glued to the cage, I watch in horror as the two men begin to jump around. Vi

The two back off a few seconds, both jumping around, looking for an opening of some kind. Finding one, Lamaro lowers his shoulder and charges, plowing Vi

Vi

The two men go at it on the ground, rolling and alternating powerful knees crashing on each other’s torso for what seems like forever, yet in reality is probably less than a minute. And then Lamaro maneuvers swiftly and winds up on top, Vi

The crowd goes crazy and two young fans run toward the cage, momentarily distracting the monster sized security guard from Elle’s never-ending pleading. She ducks under his left arm at the moment he tries to catch the two charging fans with his right, and darts to the cage. Nico enters the cage and meets Vi

The security guard grabs Elle’s arm from behind, just as Nico looks up, catching sight of the grip the hulking guard has on his wife. Looking at Nico’s face, for a second I think there might be an even more brutal fight about to occur as he barks something at the guard who quickly complies, throwing his hands up in surrender.

Anger still rooted in his face, Nico listens as his wife unloads the information she needs him to pass on to Vi

Seconds tick by and I watch on the edge of my seat, unsure what I’m waiting for to happen. Vi

The bell dings, forcing us to disco

“Alright, well he knows now. All we can do is hope he believes us.” Elle collapses into her seat next to me.

“Oh my god, Elle. Nico looks so pissed.”

“Yeah, me and Vi

The first kick catches both of our attention, our focus back inside the cage. We can worry about the fallout later. Vi

Vi

Finally, both unable to keep up the pace of the excruciating battle in the center of the ring, they both appear to back off, putting distance between them. Catching sight of the time clock at the corner of my eye, I watch the seconds tick down, twenty, nineteen, eighteen…

The two men circle slowly, their chests heaving wildly up and down, both struggling to catch their breath before the other. Fourteen, thirteen…

Unable to sit anymore, I jump from my seat, anxiety getting the best of me. “Come on Vi

Hearing anyone over the roaring crowd would be impossible, but yet, as I jump at my seat, one hand on each side of my mouth to direct the sound coming from within me, I could swear I catch Vi

Eight, seven…

Vi

Five, four…

His opponent staggers, a last ditch effort to remain on his feet, but his body can take no more. Collapsing to the mat in slow motion that ends with a thud as the arena goes quiet, Lamaro’s body sprawls across the mat on his back.

The crowd cheers as medical perso

Two, one…

The referee raises Vi

The cage starts to fill, and I watch with tears of joy in my eyes as Nico rushes to Vi

Sadness in her eyes, she smiles at me, pulling me close for a hug. I watch as she tries to make her way to the ever filling, chaotic cage, but I can’t bear to let him pass me when he exits. So I leave, never turning back as I make my way out of the arena.

Chapter 52

Vince

The celebration at Nico’s gym is in full swing before we even arrive. Two hours of interviews and photos leaves me feeling restless, but also pissed off at myself. I won the fucking championship. I should be reveling in every minute of the attention, god knows in this business it sometimes doesn’t last long. There’s always someone bigger and better.