48
BPOV
I stood there next to Edward looking at the man who called himself Phil Dwyer like he had just told me that aliens were landing on the earth and we should all run for cover. Had I heard him correctly? Was he seriously wanting to talk to me and Edward about scholarships to UCLA? I looked from Phil up at Edward, who seemed just as shocked as I was.
"What?" I asked, turning my eyes back to the dark haired man standing in front of us. He smiled bigger as he placed his hands on his hips.
"I run the boxing program over at UCLA. We are a relatively new program. Well, honestly, college boxing is a new sport but I am hoping that it's going to take off in the next year or so," explained Phil. I could see his lips moving but I couldn't seem to focus on anything that he was actually saying.
"What?" I asked, again. From beside me, I could hear my brothers laughing at how stupid I sounded but this man was talking about us boxing in college. It was so…surreal.
"I am interested in you and Mr. Masen coming to box for me at UCLA," said Phil, slowly as he looked at me.
"Seriously?" asked Edward.
Phil chuckled. "Yes, seriously," he said, looking from me to Edward. "Mr. Masen, I saw you box in Seattle and, if I'm being honest here, I was shocked as hell that you were just a beginner. You have great technique and a good eye for your competition. Plus, if what I have seen here stays true, you will be quite the force to reckon with in the finals tomorrow."
"Oh, um, thanks, I guess," muttered Edward, turning pink around the ears. Phil smiled and looked over at me.
"And, well, Miss Cullen, I had been watching you a few years ago. I was happy to see you back in the sport," said Phil. I looked down at my feet, unsure of what to say to him right now. Honestly, I wasn't sure what to say. "I would love to sit down with you and your families sometime soon and discuss some of the details."
"How about we meet for dinner?" suggested Carlisle, moving so that he was standing in front of me. "They need to focus on their matches but once they get through this round, we can sit down and talk a few things out."
"Sounds good to me," smiled Phil, pulling a card out of his back pocket. "Give me a call when you are done and we can meet somewhere."
"Ok." Carlisle nodded his head as he pocketed the card.
"Well, good luck on the rest of your matches," said Phil, before he turned and walked away. Carlisle looked back at me, raising an eyebrow.
"What do you know," he snorted. "Some college actually wants you."
"Asshat," I growled, hitting him in the arm.
"Bella, stop fucking hitting me," he whined, rubbing his arm. I rolled my eyes and turned back to Edward.
"How long until your next fight?" I asked.
"Um, about an hour, I think," he smiled. "Let's go sit down and rest while your brother whines about his arm hurting."
"Ok," I giggled.
Carlisle called us both a couple of little shits but everyone else, including Ed, was laughing at with us. I loved my big brother but he could be the biggest baby sometimes. Edward and I made our way up into the bleachers and took a seat away from everyone. He pulled his iPod out of his bag and offered me an earbud. I blushed like he had just gotten down on one knee and asked me to marry him as I took it. I placed the object in my ear and laid my head on his shoulder, closing my eyes and letting Linkin Park take me away.
It felt like Edward and I had just sat down when Jasper and Emmett came over and told me it was time to head over to my next match. I sighed inwardly as I gave Edward his earbud back and kissed him, wishing him luck on his next match. I still had four matches today and I knew they were only going to get harder as the day wore on. I followed my brothers down to ring number six. Jasper pulled my hands to him and started ripping off the tape from earlier so he could redo my hands while Emmett started massaging my shoulders.
"Who am I fighting this time?" I asked.
"Number 85," muttered Jasper as he started wrapping the tape around my hands.
I looked over to the other side of the ring where a tall, butch girl with about twenty pounds on me stood with her trainer. She had long, dark hair and big eyes. She was nodding her head to whatever her trainer was telling her. She looked right at me and smirked, confirming that she and her trainer were taking battle plans. Fucking bitch was going down.
Jasper finished getting my hands taped and shoved my gloves on, popped my mouth piece in, and gave me a look as Emmett strapped my head gear on. Neither of them needed to say anything to me. We were saying everything we needed to with our eyes. I knew I was going to have to try to conserve my energy, which meant I either had to figure out how to take this bitch out early or make her do all the work and take her out later. As I climbed into the ring, I saw number 85 stumble over her feet. Taking her out early seemed to be the most logical plan.
Once we had met in the middle, bumped gloves and all that nice, sportsmanlike shit, we both moved back into our corners. The referee stood between us, glaring at us both as if to tell us to fight nice or don't get caught fighting dirty at least. The first round started and she moved out the way as Number 85 and I moved toward each other.
I took a moment to watch the way she moved. She was lazy and let her feet drag against the mats instead of picking them up. Even though she had her arms up, I could tell by the strain on her muscles that she wasn't conditioned to do so for very long. Inwardly, I smirked as I stepped to her, throwing my left hook at her. Like I knew she would, she blocked it with her right and tried to counter with her left. However, she was unsteady on her feet and I was able to get her to stumble back into the ropes. Her trainer was yelling at her to move her feet but she seemed frozen as I closed the gap between us and started pummeling her with my gloved fists, striking her on her arms, torso, and the side of her head.
Number 85 groaned as I assaulted her body, pushing her further into the ropes. The referee pulled me back, shoving me roughly into my corner. She knelt down next to my opponent and started checking her out. I was panting as the adrenaline surged through my body. The referee stood up and moved over to me, grabbing my arm and hoisting it up in the air.
"Winner!" she announced, looking back over at me. "Good luck."
I nodded my head at her and climbed out of the ring. Jasper held up a small bowl for me to spit my mouth piece into. He and Emmett lead me over to my next ring, where I would face yet another competitor. This time I was up against a girl who had short cropped off, dirty blond hair and small, dark eyes. She wasn't much taller than I was. She had a number pinned to the front of her purple t-shirt, number 163.
"Ok, you did good in the last match, Bell, but this time I want you to lay back and let her do all the work," instructed Jasper. I looked back over at him.
"Has Edward started his next match?" I asked.
"He was fixing to," said Jasper. "Now, last time you got the jump on her but you need to conserver more. You still have two more matches after this one and you don't want to get tired."
"I know," I spat, angrily. He was talking to me like I was a fucking toddler for fuck sake! "I'm not a fucking idiot!"
"I never said you were," he muttered, rolling his eyes. "I am just trying to help but if you think you can do better without me, then I will go get Ali and we will find something better to do."
"Fucking baby," I grumbled.
Jasper ignored me while Emmett snickered under his breath. At least he knew better than to open his fucking mouth and smart off to either of us right now. Jasper shoved my mouth piece back into my mouth and pushed me toward the ring. If I hadn't had a girl to beat, I would have kicked his ass right there and then. Instead, I climbed into the ring and prepared myself for Number 163. As in the other match, our referee stepped into our ring and called us to the middle. Number 163 and I bumped gloves and headed back into our own separate corners. I watched her as she moved back. She looked nervous and tense. It was almost like she wasn't sure if she should be here or not. I shook all those thoughts out of my head as the referee started our match.
I stepped toward the girl and she flinched slightly. From the sidelines, I heard her trainer telling her to relax and follow her instincts. Sound advice but number 163 wasn't listening to it at all. She was nearly pissing her pants, she was so scared. I decided that it would be better to just get this match over with and get a few extra minutes to relax before my next match. I pulled my arms up in front of me as I stepped over to the girl, ignoring Jasper and Emmett as they yelled at me to back off, and hit the girl with my left. She squeaked and pulled her arm up to block me but I was faster than she was and followed with my right, then another left.
Over and over, I struck her and she cried out around her mouth piece. She crumbled to the ground and I stepped back, letting the referee in to check her. Without a word to me, the referee declared me the winner. I climbed out of the ring and spit my mouth piece out, ignoring the glares that were coming from my brothers. If I knew anything about this sport, it was reading my competition.
"How long until my next match?" I asked, rolling my neck so that I would stay loose.
"Twenty minutes," muttered Jasper, turning and walking away from me.
I rolled my eyes at him as I followed. He could be as pissed as he wanted but I knew what I was doing. That girl had no chance against me and there was no point in prolonging the agony of her defeat any longer. Jasper led me and Emmett over to ring seven.
My next match was over before it started. Number 76 lasted a whole minute in the ring with me before she dropped to the mats and forfeited the match to me. It was disappointing and annoying but it meant that I had a longer break and I could really rest. I followed my brothers over to my next ring and took a seat on one of the benches. I watched the two girls that were currently fighting. The bigger of the two, at least twice the size that I was, had her opponent against the ropes and was pummeling the shit out of her, hitting her with so much force that I could hear the snap of the gloves hitting the girls body. I couldn't understand why the referee didn't break the match up. It was clear that the bigger of the two was going to win.
After a few more minutes and several body checks, the referee finally ended the match. The smaller of the two girls, stumbled into her corner, cradling her arm up to her ribs. I suspected that she had at least one broken ribs, if not more than one. The larger girl climbed out of the ring and looked over at me, smirking like she was the shit and I should be impressed with her defeat of a smaller and weaker girl. I wasn't. I stared her down until she turned and followed her trainer. Something told me that I was going to see her again.
As she walked away, another girl, Number 226, took her side of the ring. She was about the same size as I was, well defined muscles and a toned body. She had curly red head and bright blue eyes. It was clear that she trained hard and was going to be a challenge to me in the ring. Number 226 clapped her hands together and brought them over her head, stretching her biceps and trying to stay loose. Her trained was rubbing her shoulders, while whispering in her ear. She was completely focused on him and was paying no attention to the fact that I was watching every single thing she did.
"Ok, Bella," sighed Emmett, kneeling down in front of me. "This girl isn't going to be the pushover that the last three were. You have to conserve your energy."
"I know," I muttered, eyeing her closely. "She's going to be tough but I can beat her."
"Keep your feet moving and protect your sides," said Emmett, placing his hands on my shoulders. I tore my eyes off of Number 226 and looked at my brother. "You can do this, just fight smart."
"I will," I said, quietly.
Emmett smiled and nodded his head before offering me my mouth piece. Once I was ready, I stood up and climbed into the ring. Number 226 met me in the middle and we bumped our gloves against each others. Unlike my previous competitors, she smiled around her mouth piece. It was something new as I wasn't used to it. I merely nodded my head in response to her and headed back to my corner. The referee gave us each a hard look before she started our match. Just as I suspected, Number 226 stepped toward me but didn't attack. She was waiting for me to make the first move. She was smart, I'll give her that.
As she moved from side to side, testing my reflexes and balance, I took the time to watch her. While she was strong, and disciplined, I knew I would take her down. Her left arm gradually lowered, leaving her wide open for an attack. However, I knew that I was going to have to be patient and take my time. She wasn't some scared, weak girl that was going to cry when I kicked her ass.
I stepped closer to her, pulling my elbows in and protecting myself from the storm that I knew was coming. I threw a left, but she blocked it and tried to counter with her own left jab. However, I blocked it and pushed her into the ropes. She skirted out of the way and I followed her, throwing a left roundhouse and then a right hook. The roundhouse was blocked but the right hook connected to her jaw. She didn't even flinch. In fact, she countered with her own right hook, connecting to my eye and pushing me back.
Over and over through the next two rounds, Number 226 and I continued to battle against each other. I managed to get a handful of hits on her body, arms, and face, including a nice shot to her nose. She managed to hit me back, mostly on my arms and chest but she did get my in the eye again. I was sure I was going to be sporting a very deep, very sore black eye tomorrow.
At the end of the second round, I shuffled over to my corner and spit out my mouth piece. Emmett didn't say anything as he held my water bottle up and poured some into my mouth. I felt like I was a fish, gasping as I tried to swallow the cold liquid. My throat was dry and my breath was coming in short pants.
"Ok, Bella, you've got this," said Jasper, wiping my face off with a cold towel. "Just hang in there and keep your feet moving."
"I'm trying," I muttered. "Her fists feel like fucking lead weights."
"I know," he whispered, quietly.
Jasper didn't say anything else as he popped my mouth piece back into my mouth. He placed his hands on my shoulders, silently encouraging me to push on and get it taken care of. I took a deep breath as I made my back into the middle of the ring to start the third and final round of this match. Number 226 looked like she was barely making it, as well. Her face was dripping with sweat and her arms were hanging lower than they were at the beginning of our match up. I smirked inwardly as I drew on every ounce of strength I had and went on the offensive.
Number 226 came at me, swinging her right arm wide. I blocked it and threw my own right into her ribs. She grunted for the first time in our match and I knew I had hit a sore spot. She stumbled back and I closed the gap between us, hitting her over and over in her arms and head. She blocked a few of them before she pushed me back, coming after me. Her left hook connected to the side of my head and I let out my own cry as pain radiated through my head. She tried to counter with her right but I blocked it and pushed her off of me. She fell back against the ropes and I attacked.
She tried to defend herself against my gloves but she slid to the ground just as the round ended. The referee moved to help her up but I beat her to it. I wrapped my arms around my competitor and hoisted her to her feet, helping her over to her corner. Nodding my head at her, I moved to my corner and spit out my mouth piece and shoved my hands into Emmett.
"Get these fucking gloves off of me," I gasped, trying to bring air into my lungs. Her tore them off, tossing them onto the floor next to my bag. I bent over and tried to catch my breath. My body was already starting to ache from her punches.
"Hands above your head, Bell," murmured Jasper, pulling me back up and holding my arms up. "You did really good, sis. Really good."
"She was tough," I muttered, taking another deep breath.
"Yeah, she was," he said, quietly.
Emmett pulled my head gear off and handed me a cold bottle of water while we waited for the referee to get the judges' decision on the outcome of our match. It only took me a couple of gulps to finish the water. I handed Emmett back the empty bottle and took the towel he was holding, wiping the sweat from my forehead and neck. I was going to need to take a nice, long shower.
"The winner is Number…"
