Brandi and I pull up into the parking lot of a small diner to meet Caleb, my new manager. I’m actually surprised she wanted to attend the meeting; she’s done this sort of thing before, but she always seemed so bored talking to my old manager. I guess she is trying to be supportive, and she probably wants to feel this new guy out. Caleb is practically a kid, so it’s a little unnerving, but he’s done a decent job so far.

We head into the diner, Brandi’s hands holding up her stomach like she’s carrying a melon. Caleb is already there and has gotten us a table; he flags us down, and Brandi mutters, “He’s practically a baby,” to me as we cross the diner to grab out seats.

Caleb smiles and shakes Brandi’s hand. “Good to finally meet the Misses,” he says, pulling her chair out for her. Who knew this punk could be a gentleman?

The server is over to us in a flash, and she spits out a number of specials they have for the day. We order our drinks, she plops down some menus, and she disappears for a moment. “So, the last match went well,” Caleb begins. “It’s gotten you a decent amount of publicity, and people are actually talking about you again. I’m thinking that that marathon fundraiser thing you’re doing for the Battered Women’s Home is going to help with your public relations as well. We want everyone to forget about the Jonathan Trial that bashed women boxers and beamed his wife in the face with his elbow. No offense, Mrs. Trial.”

“I’d prefer everyone forget it as well,” she says.

Caleb continues. “I want to see what you think about a revenge match.”

“With who?” I ask as I skim through the menu.

“With Donte,” Caleb says, and I cringe.

“You can do that?” I question.

“He wants to fight you again,” Caleb says, “But his manager thinks you’re old news. It’s just something that is a distant possibility right now, but before I waste my time trying to set it up, I wanted to get your input.”

Brandi crosses her arms. “You should do it.”

I certainly didn’t expect that. After my first match with Donte in which I wound up with a concussion and staying the night in the ER, she had been pretty against me fighting him again; my second fight hadn’t been much better, and she had been pretty irate with me about taking the match. Now she wants me to fight him? “Are you serious?” I ask her, a bit flabbergasted she would want me to fight the guy she had started sleeping with after our divorce.

She scowls slightly. “That asshole gave me a black eye. Honestly, Jonathan, I want to see you kick that jerk’s ass.”

“I like her,” Caleb says, waving a finger towards Brandi while winking at me.

“You both know I can’t beat Donte,” I say. “It’s been forever since I’ve had a high priority match like that, and I couldn’t even beat him when I was in his league.”

“Donte is all strength,” Caleb says. “But he has no endurance. Your problem is he’s gotten you quick and hard. You have to play defensive the first few rounds and wear the guy down –and who better to teach you about endurance than those women boxers you’ve been training with? Women are all about the endurance, it’s their strong point. Men, we’re all about strength when it comes to sports. I’m not saying this is anything that is going to happen in the next few weeks, but I can make it happen later. I just got to know if you’d be willing to do it before I waste my time trying to convince Donte’s manager that it’s be worth setting it up.”

I look at Brandi for a moment and then back at Caleb. “I guess so,” I say. “Honestly, I’d like a chance at the bastard again.”

“All right, great,” Caleb says just as the server is making her way back over with our drinks. We order our lunch, and she trots off again. Caleb leans back in his chair. “So, in the meantime, I do have a new match lined up for you in six weeks.”

“Six weeks? That’s cutting it pretty close to Brandi’s due date. I don’t know if I want to plan something-”

Caleb holds up his hand. “Look, this is an important match. If you win this one, it’ll be enough to convince Donte’s manager that you’re back in the game. If you can beat this guy, your career is going to take off again. No more grunge matches. We’re talking about getting your ass back in the big leagues.”

Brandi nudges me. “It’s okay, Jonathan. I’m not due for another almost eight weeks. We’ll be fine.”

I nod. “All right, you heard the lady,” I say and look at Caleb. “Sounds like I’ve got a match to get ready for.”

“That’s the spirit,” Caleb says. Our food arrives, and we eat and chat about this upcoming match. I’ve actually heard of this boxer –Evan Mits. He’s no longer what you could consider up and coming, but he’s not hugely big time like I was. He’s gotten some attention in the boxing world lately, so I’m actually a bit surprised Caleb was able to book a match with him. Things are certainly looking up as far as my boxing career goes. Here’s to hoping that it continues moving forward.