OK a few words:
ConsistentlyRandom21 brought up a few interesting points that others had also mentioned that I wanted to address in one go.
Tommy's gradual change when it comes to his behavior at a fight. Some of his behavior at Sparta was mostly to keep from getting noticed as quickly by those who knew him so he wouldn't get caught by the MP's. He doesn't have to worry about that now. He did his time and was DD'ed. But I also don't see Tommy C liking cameras and pictures and celebration like that. Tommy takes me as shy first and triumphant second. I don't see Tommy participating in the pomp of a fight without some serious force. But I do see him enjoying the 'Bodies' song. It suits his fighting style.
Random also commented on it being weird that Frank wouldn't teach his sister how to fight. The why might make more sense in this chapter but I will explain a little without giving anything away. Frank and Noemi's parents were older than Paddy. They were 46 and 55 if I am remembering that correctly. And yes that is possible, my mom is testament to that. Her parents were of very similar ages. And let's not forget that Frank and Noemi would have been raised Old fashioned Italian Catholic. Noemi would not have gotten as much exposure to that but Frank would have. He takes me as a 'women don't belong in a gym unless they are behind a desk' type of guy and god forbid if that woman was his baby sister. I don't think Frank would encourage Noemi fight even if she has the family desire to hit things.
And yes, Mals, Noemi needs to pull her head out of her butt. She has a little problem with react first and think later.
Hours later at Noemi's apartment, she decided two things. One: that Kevin had a harder head than she had thought since he showed no major signs of concussion. They watched him for a few hours and sent him home with her under strict instructions. Two: that maybe she had been a little too harsh on Tommy, now that she had calmed down. But then she would look over at Kevin and see his black eye, swollen shut and shiny from tension. He deserved every bit of it for hitting Kevin.
Once the contract was done, she printed it out and called Tommy's cell. She told him that she would meet with him for lunch tomorrow so that he could sign it. That was when she called Brendan.
"Hello?" Brendan answered.
"Hey, can you give me the number to Tommy's trainer from Sparta?" Noemi waited for Brendan to respond. "You still there?"
"Are you sure that is a good idea? Things are rough between them and they haven't spoken these past 2 years that I know of."
"Well, seeing as how I will be his manager as of noon tomorrow, he doesn't have much say in it." Noemi growled. She was getting tired of everyone trying to make decisions for her. Men especially. "So, the number?" Noemi asked. She heard Brendan sigh before passing on the phone number and address. She said good bye and Brendan wished her luck. Noemi called Frank next.
"Hey, sis, what's up?"
"Long story short, I will be Tommy's manager tomorrow."
"Good for you! You need me to call anyone?" Frank always seemed to be in a good mood and today it just annoyed Noemi.
"Not yet but I will let you know."
"So you going to Sparta with him?"
"Yup, I don't know if I will end up having to cut my hours at the desk or not." She didn't want to since she was finally making ends meet with a little left over at the end.
"Don't sweat it. I'll ask Jessa if she can fill in. If not, I'll get one of the guys to do it." Noemi nodded.
"Alright, see you tomorrow bro." They hung up and Noemi sighed. She rubbed her hands over her face. She couldn't wait until everything had fallen back into place and the dust settled.
"So, you will be locked in for 7 months, after which if you wish to renew the contract, you can." Noemi told Tommy. She had a drinking buddy of Kevin's, who was a paralegal, look over the contract from both sides to make sure it was fair. "I have you in for 8% of deals and winnings going to me. Any entry fees for fights are extra." She watched him start to shake his head.
"No, I won't agree to anything less than 13%." Tommy pushed the contract back across the Formica at her. Noemi folded her arms across her chest and snorted.
"I know you're good but you're not Koba. Even he doesn't have a contract for that much." She gave a wry smile and leaned closer to him over the table. "You realize that you are supposed to ask me for a smaller percentage right?" Noemi watched his lips twitch but his amusement only reached his eyes for a spilt second.
"You are going to have your hands full with me. It won't be easy. 13%." Tommy smirked at her cry of frustration. She finally agreed and wrote in the new percentage. He signed the contract and she handed him a copy. She pulled out a folder from her large tote bag. It had been the first time he had seen the red patent leather monstrosity. She took out multiple sheets of paper and spread them out on the table top so he could see them.
"Ok here we have a list of fights you can enter until Sparta. Mark the ones you are interested in." Tommy briefly scanned the dates to make sure they were all more then a week apart before pushing the page back at her.
"All of them." Noemi frowned at him. Even if he did all of them, it still gave him a month and a half to rest before Sparta.
"Bellator in Florida, Invicta in Missouri, and Legacy in Texas? We will be plane hopping for like three weeks."
"Especially Texas. I can visit a friend down there. All three are big fights. I won't get that much challenge from the others. And the purses on those will easy be five digits each." Tommy watched her sigh and nod. He could visit Pilar and the kids when he was in Texas.
"Alright, I'll make it happen somehow." She took that paper and made some notes on it before putting it back into the folder. She pushed another one in front of him. It was a list of brands. This was the part he hated.
"I already talked to RevGear. I have seen you at one of their bags more than the others, so I figured you would be cool with them. They are a fairly new company compared to the big guys like Everlast but they are willing to make a pretty sweet deal if you will do some photo shoots and endorse their products." Tommy reluctantly agreed but told her he would only endorse what he had used and liked. Noemi smiled. "I expected that, so I ordered a bunch of stuff for you to try out while you train." Once they settled on who he would agree to and who he wouldn't, she gave a weary sigh before putting all the papers away.
"We need a decision on a trainer. I have someone in mind already but I want to hear your suggestions." She was edging back into that cold businesswomen side of her. He knew he didn't actually have a choice but she was willing to see what he was going to say. He looked into her eyes and knew she had made her decision.
"If I could trust myself to not mess up things up, I would go to Pop." He said reluctantly even though it was true. Noemi nodded.
"What was the set up last time and what causes you to lash out?" She knew that if she could get both men to agree to the training and change the situation, it might go smoother. If Sparta was anything to go by, Paddy Conlon was one hell of a trainer.
"Just seeing him brings things back from the past. The man can't open his mouth without pissing me off about something." Tommy pounded his toothpick into a blunt end on the table top. "Bunked up with him. He watched my diet. Coached when he wasn't workin' at the mill or at his stupid meetings." Tommy watched Noemi nod and he could see the wheels turning in her head.
"So, will we need to go to him or will he come here?" Noemi listened to Tommy laugh and smile coldly.
"Can't pry that man away from his car or that house and God knows he won't retire. I would have to go to the 'Burgh." He would only look at the table or the wall. He was fidgeting in his seat.
"Alright, so we will need somewhere to stay." Noemi said to herself while making notes on a blank piece of paper. Tommy pointed his toothpick at her.
"No, no, no. You are not going anywhere near that man." Tommy growled. She had never heard him so resolute. She tossed her pen down and glared at him.
"And how am I supposed to manage you if I am five hours away? No, if you go to Pittsburgh, I go with. If you and him are as bad as you say, I need to be there to keep an eye on you." He glared at her more with narrowed eyes. "Besides, I call the shots." She smiled nastily at him. He scoffed and threw his toothpick to the far left of her. She rolled her eyes and thought about how men could act like pissy teenagers when they didn't get their way.
"It's your face." He grumbled under his breath. He pointed his index finger at her. "I don't have anything against hitting old men, if he falls off the wagon and comes after you." It was Noemi's turn to scoff.
"If I can handle a 'rioder trying to kill me, I can handle one drunk old man." She replied. She saw the darkness come over Tommy and it gave her the chills for a moment.
"You don't know what you're talking about."
"Then enlighten me ol'wise one." She remarked sarcastically.
"No," His words came out in whispers. "You don't need to hear about that crap." He was not going to have her looking at him with pity. He stared at the industrial tile floor that covered the diner floors.
"Fine, whatever. I think I have a few contacts in Pittsburgh that could get us a deal on somewhere to stay. Luckily, my apartment is month to month. How soon do you need to be over there for training?"
"Within the next month. I'm not making much progress on my own anymore." Noemi nodded and they finished up their meeting before going their separate ways.
Tonic - Lemon Parade
"I wish I'd seen you, as a little girl, Without your armor, to fend off the world, I would have kept you, underneath my wing, And I would protect you, from everything...And did the boys all tease you, when they had the chance, Always left standing, when it came time to dance, Did you hide behind your books girl, did you find your secret friends, Always I'll want you, always till the end..."
Tommy walked back to Brendan's house from the diner. He ambled down the street with his hands in his jeans lost in thought. He regretted his decision to take Noemi as his manager but he also wouldn't change anything either. He couldn't let her go completely.
He felt horrible about hitting Kevin. It's one thing to hit someone who is staring right at you and has agreed to be your punching bag. It's another to hit a man who doesn't even see it coming. He hoped beyond anything that Kevin wouldn't hold it against him and press charges. If he hadn't been in such shock over his actions he would have apologized profusely but he just couldn't believe that he had seen Pop in his place. It was like he was back in the house he grew up in. He just reacted. Like an animal. I belong in a cage.
He looked up and saw an older green Land Rover that looked familiar. It was Frank's. He remember Brendan saying something about this being the neighborhood that Frank grew up in but didn't think much of it. He stopped and stared at the house, picturing Noemi as a little girl the age of Emily running in the yard with a older man that looked like Frank, chasing after her.
It dawned on Tommy that Noemi would have to give up her only job to manage him. He sighed and walked up the hand paved brick walkway and rang the doorbell, half hoping they didn't answer. Jessa opened the door and welcomed him in with a bright smile.
"Frank! Tommy is here for you!" She called out into the house. She smiled a toothy white smile. "He should he out soon. I'll get you something to drink." She bounced off into the house. He frowned. What a strange woman. A sun dress in March? Whatever. They did have the heater on hotter than he preffered. He turned and looked around the living room. He spotted family pictures covering the walls and every available surface.
The first he came across was a picture of Frank, looking about 19, holding a pale pink bundle in his arms, smiling with an unsure expression. There was a date and label on the picture frame. Noemi Campana Born 1989. So she is 24 this year. Wonder when her birthday is. The next picture was of a couple in their twenties grinning broadly. If he guessed by the clothes and hair style, it was taken in the late '60's. They seemed a happy couple but Tommy knew all too well how quickly a marriage can go badly. Noemi seemed to take after her mother in looks. They had the same rebellious black hair and pale Italian skin that was pale as cream. Annetta Campana had strong cheek bones and plump full lips. She was close in height to Adolpho, her fiancee if the caption was to be believed. Frank looked like a carbon copy of his father only with more muscle.
Tommy went from picture to picture, writing out a time line in his head for the Campana family. Adolpho Campana had been a test pilot for the Air Force, which Tommy knew took some serious nerves of steel. He had met some guys at a base once that did that. Those guys had no sense of danger. Never felt fear. Noemi's got that in spades. Annette Campana was a nurse, shown in a picture with a woman that was also a nurse and reminded him of Kevin. Tommy smiled to himself. Frank and Noemi both got that caring thing. He was surprised to learn that Frank was going on his 43rd year if Tommy's math was correct. He doesn't look it for all his years fighting.
Tommy especially liked the pictures of Noemi. She had been a stringy knobby elbows and knees girl and almost always with Kevin in the background. Her hair was always flowing in the wind or covering her face. She was a happy child and it made Tommy glad that someone could have that. It also made him envious. Tommy started to notice the pictures were Frank was missing, the parents had fake smiles and Noemi was oblivious. He remembered days like that where the second the camera flashed, they were at each other's throats.
There was a picture where Noemi was about Emily's age with her arms around her mother. Annetta had a scarf wrapped around her head and was laying under a pile of blankets in the hospital looking very sickly. Tommy could see the fear in Noemi's eyes despite her smile. He quickly looked away from it knowing what it was like to have a sick parent. He almost missed the picture of Noemi in a black dress standing in a church in between Frank and Brendan. A 21 year old Brendan was in a thread bare suit and Frank looked worn. Tommy could see a hint of bruising on Frank's jaw. He was still fighting but before the cheek scar. Tommy looked at the sullen little girl between them. Losing Ma at almost 18 had been hard enough on Tommy. He couldn't imagine losing Ma earlier in life.
Noemi hardly smiled in any of the pictures as she grew and she definitely did not smile after the age of 14. There were well done shots of her at track meets with a beanpole stick with dark auburn hair that he assumed was Kevin as a teen. He even had dorky glasses and Tommy had to smile. But not once did he see any pictures were Noemi's smile reached her eyes. There were graduation pictures and ones of Frank's wedding but so few smiles.
Tommy stared at one where it showed a young 16 year old Noemi with a scruffy back pack slung over her shoulder and a thick text book in her arms. She was dressed mostly in black and was flipping off the camera with a playful scowl. Looks like kinky jail-bait. She wore a black V-neck tee with a pleated skirt with safety pins stuck in it. She wore torn up purple leggings under the skirt. She had dark lipstick, dark purple nail polish, and thick black eyeliner. The super thick eye liner and the sunlight made her amber eyes almost look like a preturnatural yellow. Her hair was totally out of control in a way that reminded him of the bands that Brendan listened to as kids growing up in the eighties. She looked like she had scratch marks around one wrist. Someone been in a cat fight recently? Kevin was sporting a polo and khakis which was a bit of a culture shock compared to what Noemi wore. He was grinning goofy and had two fingers like bunny ears behind Noemi's head. Funny how Kevin went from geek to lady's man in a few years.
"Here you go." Jessa came back in and handed him a glass with water and ice. Ice in March? Really? Tommy was glad that Frank came in. Tommy was amused to see Frank in a tee shirt and cargo shorts. He had only ever seen him in muscle shirts, track pants, and basketball shorts.
"What can I do for you, Tommy?" Frank gestured for Tommy to sit while he took a seat in an aging recliner. Jessa perched on the arm. She reminded him of one of those good ol'southern girls that a guy in his Unit had told him about. All proper and smiles. Bet she knows the difference between those forks that look the same.
"I came by to tell you that Noemi is my manager for the next 7 months. She wants me to train with my Pop. She is insisting on going with me to Pittsburgh if he agrees to train me again." Tommy fidgeted. Frank showed a mild moment of surprise before focusing again. Tommy wondered what that was about. "She is gonna have to give up working at the desk." Tommy watched Frank start to nod.
"I am sure she will tell me when you guys are leaving, but I appreciate you giving me a heads up. I'll see what I can do about setting her up with an allowance or something so that she can spend more time on managing." Frank told him, still acting like this wasn't what Frank was expecting. Tommy nodded.
"Uh, yeah. So you are ok with her leaving the city?" Tommy frowned. Frank smiled.
"It's not like I can stop her. The girl has a mind of her own. She will do what she wants or thinks is best. I learned long ago that you have to support her or lose her." Frank shrugged. "You keep bad boys away from her and understand that if anything happens to her it will be on your head. Other than that I got nothing." Frank smiled at him. Tommy said his goodbyes and left.
Jessa stroked Frank's shoulder and turned to him. "Well that was different. Not what I expected."
"Yeah, I was so sure he had come over to ask permission to date Noemi."
"So was I. I watched him from the dining room while he looked at the pictures."
"Well, to be honest, I am glad he didn't."
"How come?"
"Because I would have told him no. I know too much about what happened in that family. Brendan has a track record I've seen for my self of being able to keep his fists to himself. I know nothing about Tommy and I don't trust his temper. I'll talk to Noemi about it." Frank sat and mulled over the new information. Jessa distracted him out of it by stroking his neck until he grabbed her, tossed her over his shoulder, and carried her off to the bedroom.
"Hello, am I speaking to Patrick Conlon?" Noemi asked in her receptionist voice.
"Yes, who's asking?" An older man rasped over the phone. Noemi had a hard time understanding him. Gonna have to do most of this in person then.
"My name is Noemi Ca..."
"I'm not interested. I don't want to buy whatever your selling. Good Day." Noemi rushed to speak before he hung up.
"It's about Tommy!" She took a deep breath when she heard rustling on the other end. He hasn't hung up yet.
"What happened?" Paddy asked sounding like he was readying himself for bad news.
"I am sorry that sounded like that. He is fine. I am Noemi Campana. Riordan's manager for this year's fights." She waited for some form of response on the other end.
"Any relation to Frank Campana?" The gravelly man asked.
"Yeah he is my brother but that is not why I am calling. Riordan wants to go to Sparta 4 this year. I need a trainer for him that can get him there. I have seen the results of your work. Is there a possibility we could come to you to discuss this?" She heard a sigh come from the other end.
"You talked to him about this?"
"Yeah, he doesn't like it but I am running this show. So when can we meet?" She was not going to let this go if she could avoid it. Paddy Conlon was proven success since Brendan was out for this year. The only threat to Tommy winning would be Koba and there were no rumors of him signing up.
"How about this weekend?" Paddy asked. He wanted to see his son terribly. Even if Tommy didn't talk to him, it would be nice to see him in person.
"Saturday at noon?" Noemi asked after checking her schedule. Frank could get someone to fill in for her easier on a weekend than a week day.
"That works. You sure about this? Tommy's not..." Paddy trailed off.
"Don't worry about Riordan. Goodbye, Mr. Conlon." Noemi waited for his goodbye before hanging up. She had to admit that she did enjoy having the power to boss men around. It was kinda fun. Especially one as powerful as Tommy.
Tommy told Brendan what was going on. Brendan seemed concerned but just nodded and wished Tommy luck. Tommy waited in the foyer for Noemi to show up. He didn't have to wait long. She came waltzing in looking like pure retro decadence.
She had her hair pulled away from her temples and had gone lighter on her eye makeup. Her hair was more tamed with glossy waves but still fell to her waist. She wore a black trench coat that went to mid-calf. She had a blood red button down shirt that had '60's military styling to it. She had it tucked into a high waist black pencil skirt and paired with black nylons that featured a black seam down the back. Fuck, she looks good. She wore round toe pumps in black suede with a shorter heel. It brought her even in height with him. He could see the glints of her cartilage piercing and double earrings through her hair.
"You sure that's a good idea?" He gestured to the miniature silver skeleton's hanging from her first holes. "Pop's old fashioned. Why you dressin' up anyway?"
"They are good luck." She commented back, touching the skeletons. "You may have forgotten but this is a work trip not a social call. It's called professionalism." He rolled his eyes at her. She gave him a once over. He was casual in dark jeans, charcoal Henley, black hoodie, and olive Carrhart. She could see his black beanie sticking out of a pocket. She shook her head. "See you later, Brendan, we should be back late tonight." She gave a wave to Tess and the girls before leaving, Tommy following obediently.
The drive was quiet but for Noemi's music that she hummed to. Tommy was already feeling the effects of sitting too long. All he had to entertain himself was his thoughts that he was about to see Paddy again after two years. The last time Tommy had talked to the man, it was to get the whiskey bottle out of his hand while Pop blathered about being lost out to sea.
They stopped in Harrisburg for gas and got into an argument over who got to drive the rest of the way. Noemi finally conceded when Tommy told her that he knew the 'Burgh better than her. She had never left Philly so she finally got into the passenger seat and let him drive. She was surprised to see that he did not change her music or drive crazy. It almost seemed to relax him.
She could tell by the tension in his hands on the wheel the closer they got to Pittsburgh how much the trip was bothering him. She wanted to reach over and stroke his arm back into relaxation but that wasn't something a manager does. That was something a girlfriend does and they had both made it painfully clear that she was not one of those.
They got off the freeway and Tommy started turning down streets into a neighborhood not quite as nice as where she grew up but still well maintained. Very working class, blue collar, American car only, type of neighborhood. Her Daddy had been very handsomely paid being a test pilot for the Air Force and that bought them a nice house in a picture perfect neighborhood with little crime. Kevin's dad, Corky, had retired a Police Commander of PPD, which paired with Elen's nursing job allowed them to live down the street for all of Kevin and Noemi's lives.