Knockout (Gaslight spin-off)

19| Poker-hot

I get to the gym for seven, desperate to burn off some of the anger still lingering from my encounter with Danny. As soon as I walk in, Auden looks over from the leg press machine and nods. I nod back, then scan the gym for Coach. He's over by the boxing ring, giving Hayden some tips, so I grab a pair of gloves and make my way to a heavy bag.

Auden finds the bag beside me. He falls into his usual stance, arms out, ready, and hits. A glance over reveals he looks tired, his dark eyes shadowed with bruiselike circles as though he's not been getting much sleep. Coach thinks the thing that makes this place so great is that people mind their own damn business, but that's never been my strong suit.

"You look like shit," I say. "Are you okay?"

He doesn't look at me. In fact, he actively avoids me for a good few seconds as he gets another combo in. "I was up late last night," he says with a wink, "if you know what I mean."

"Ugh." I turn to my bag, intent on ignoring him, but something tells me this is one of those times when he's putting up a front.

He's quiet and then, "Look, don't make a big deal about it. I couldn't get the kids to settle. No biggie."

I lower my hands and turn back to face him, noting the easy look on his face, but it doesn't matter. Sometimes the pain in your heart is so intense that it shines through your eyes. "I can babysit," I say, "if you need me to."

"Forget it, Cassie." He turns to the bag and starts going to town, but I can't shake this feeling of hopelessness. He returns to hitting, but I can feel him beside me, radiating anger. It's coiled around him, controlling his hits until they're wild and lacking precision.

"Hey," I say between punches, "Frazier or Ali?"

He looks over, eyebrows raised. "Ali, hands down. Is that even a question?"

I shrug and land another hit. "I'm just saying maybe people don't give Frazier enough credit. Where's his mural?"

"Let me tell you something," Auden says, and he stops punching. His eyes brighten, as always, when he's given a chance to talk about boxing. "Frazier held the world heavyweight champion title once in 1970, and Ali held the title on three. Ali was named Fighter of the Year more than any other boxer in history. That's why he gets the mural." He turns to Ali with a grin on his face and kisses his glove. "All hail the king of boxing."

Things fall silent as we get back to our heavy bags, but the air feels lighter, and his hits are less chaotic as he focuses on rhythm instead of anger. I do the same, practicing the combos Nico showed me. At the same time, I remember Coach's advice about my footwork and work to keep my weight steady. It's hard at first to focus on combos while remembering what my feet are doing, but I refuse to give up.

When Coach finishes with Hayden, he sits on the bench near my heavy bag and uses a towel to wipe the sweat from his forehead. He looks different today, his eyes slightly sunken as he coughs into his hand. There must be something in the air. After sipping his water, he looks over. "You stay out of trouble today?"

"Yep," I say proudly. "I didn't get detention."

He smirks. "Must be a record."

"When do I get my medal?"

"I'm working on it." He gets to his feet, albeit with difficulty, and stands beside me. "Show me your footwork."

I do as I'm told and turn to my bag before returning to my stance. As I show off my footwork, I throw in the combo to work out the kinks. With Coach focusing on my footwork and Nico on my technique, I get to master both twice as fast. I shift my weight, twisting my body for the cross. Coach rests an arm on my shoulder to stop me, so I turn and face him.