Page 19 of Bad Habit
We each wrap up our hands, forgoing gloves since we never go too hard on each other. I know she is going to give me hell as soon as we enter the ring. AJ keeps to herself and is quiet but she loves fighting. She loveshaving the ability to keep the power in the situation and not be helpless. It’s a lethal mindset knowing that you are the weapon in the room.
I nod to her to begin. She comes in strong and throws one of her favorite kicks first, roundhouse. She never fails to land them even though they are the most common kick ever thrown. She has the ability to make you keep your focus on her hands before her feet even move. She’s fast. Always so fast. I frame the kick with my elbow and forearm, blocking the heat behind it. And she immediately brings her leg down and her feet switch bringing her back in for a left hook and she posts out.
“When have you been training?” I ask her as she takes a few measured steps back. I haven’t seen her train in the gym in two weeks. She’s spent all her time in the office, at Melinda’s center, at my dad’s, or teaching her classes. Never training. “Nevermind, it’s probably foreplay for you and Davis.” I only use Rory’s last name because I know it bothers her and I will use anything to give me an advantage with her.
“Are we talking about our sex lives again?” I hear her voice but I can’t see her lips move because she has her hands glued to the sides of her face anticipating my approach.
I shrug my shoulders. “If you want.”
“Sure. Let’s talk about yours. Any good dates lately?” She tries to throw a simple front kick but I easily catch it. I could dump her but I choose to set her foot back down gently when she grimaces at her kick being caught.
“You know that I don’t date.” I say simply. She moves in fast again, but she hasn’t been training with me lately. She’s been training with Rory. And he absolutely lets her get in more shots than she should. I’m not going to. She goes to my center, which is usually my weak spot. But I have been training extra lately and I have worked out that particular weakness. I pivot on my feet without her realizing and sweep her back leg to get her to the ground. I do manage to wrap one arm around her front and lockin a chokehold as I break her fall. This was too easy. “You need to train more with Eli. This was pathetically easy.”
She makes her body as heavy as she can while assessing to see if she can manage to break my hold. She won’t, but she can try. “You’re mouthy for someone that can only beat me on the ground.” Her words are choppy as I feel her chest fill with air as she still fights to breathe.
“Tap, A.” Her face is starting to turn a little red. Stubborn ass.
She shakes her head slightly as she tries to press up from the ground with her foot. I wrap my legs closer around her and squeeze so she knows that there’s not a chance she is getting out. She lost, fairly and poorly.
“Fucking tap, AJ.” I start to feel her go limp and just as I’m about to release my hold her small fingers tap my forearm. I let go and she takes a second to regain her breathing properly. “I didn’t think you were going to give in.”
“I hate losing.” She huffs out and rolls off of me onto her back in the middle of the ring.
I try to hold in the laughter that is trying to bubble out of my body at her being so frustrated. I really do, but it escapes anyway. “Happens to the best of us. You’re not a robot, A. You’re going to lose sometimes.”
“Not like that.” She pulls herself up into a sitting position and angrily starts pulling at her wraps.
“Want to talk about it?” I ask even though I know she isn’t going to want to.
“I became head trainer to a professional fighter, gained a new best friend, and a new boyfriend, and co-founded an entire foundation all within the past eight months, Ol.” Her voice softens with the weight of defeat that she feels because she thinks she’s going to fail. I know her. The one thing that AJ wants most is to be what the people she loves most need her to be.
“You are afemalehead trainer for a professional fighter and already have inquiries from other fighters to train with you. That’s badass. Saythat with your whole chest and be proud. I’m your best friend. Don’t demote me. Rory is sickeningly in love with you. And no, we aren’t going to talk about it so don’t freak out. And you aren’t alone in that foundation. Mia and Melinda and Dad are all in your corner and holding equal weight. And it's going to change lives. We all believe that.” I give it my best shot to reassure her, but I can feel the doubt rolling off her with every shaky breath.
“I don’t want to be a bad friend to Mia.” That is such a laughable thing to me. AJ isn’t capable of being a bad friend. She is so particular about who she allows in her life and makes it her mission to love them fully.
“Wild. She always stresses over being a bad friend to you. You should have seen her before that surprise party.” I chuckle at the nightmare that was balloons. AJ’s head shoots up and there is an expression on her face I wasn’t sure I’ve seen before. It is a mix of confusion and anger and awe.
“I hate that she always feels like she’s not good enough.” She chews her words.Fucking same.
I swallow, considering how I should approach this next question. Then release that if anyone knows, it’s her. “Do you know who those guys were at the donation dinner?” I am pushing my luck and I know it. But I also don’t care. I wanted to know who the guys that made her uncomfortable were.
“I wish.” Her eyes harden and hope falls like a brick in my stomach. I reach over to the side of the mat and grab my water, my mouth suddenly more dry with our conversation topic. “She shut down any questions I’ve asked about them. She’s really focused on fixing this dry spell she is in.” My water suddenly gets stuck in my throat causing me to almost choke. AJ keeps on talking like she didn’t just nearly kill me by telling me that Mia is in a dry spell. A dry spell that I know for a fact wasn’t a problem two weeks ago when I was deep inside her and her body was quivering around me. “She’s been going on dates and she ends up at my apartmentwith tacos after every one of them because they are so awful. I don’t even know where she finds these guys.”
“Tacos are nice.” That’s all I can muster up in my brain to respond with. I’m too concerned with not letting it be obvious how invested I am.
“She needs someone to challenge her.” She shrugs, “she’s bored.” AJ motions for me to give her my bottle of water. Mia isn’t bored. She’s scared and she’s filling all her time with guys she knows won’t lead anywhere because we ruined the precarious balance of our lust and need to orbit each other.
“Let’s go again. I’ll let you win this time.” I grin at her, desperate to change the subject before I start asking idiotic questions like who she has been going on dates with and where they have been going. The only saving grace for my mental state right now is that she clearly is chasing that feeling that we left in the alley and she isn’t finding it.
Mia
Come pick me up.
I had given up on hearing from this girl and then I get the message that reminds me my heart is in my chest. I put money down on the bar top and pat Eli on the shoulder.
“Where are you going?” He questions me without taking his own eyes off his phone. He’s been a little sad since Devyn left to go back to her apprenticeship across the country. It’s been hard on him, her being so far away. The first twenty years of our lives, they were pretty inseparable.
“Just heading out for the night.” I scan the bar for Maxwell, who is in the corner with his favorite bartender. “Make sure you get him home?” I ask Eli as I nod to where our brother is laughing so hard he might fall over. Eli never drinks very heavily when we go out. He’s always wanting to be ready if needed.
