Chapter 4
Arsen
Past
Where the hell is she? I scanned the packed gymnasium stands for one pale, mostly hidden face.
“You'd better limber up, Arsen, or the kid from Dorchester is going to crush you.” Coach puts a hand on my shoulder. He's right, I'm being crazy.
“Who're you looking for?” Marcus looked at me skeptically. He'd already started stretching for his match, which was right after mine. He knew my dad was out in the middle east somewhere and my mom, although supportive, doesn't like the violence of wrestling. So I wouldn't be looking for them. “All the girls are right up front.”
The monster from Dorchester was on the other side of the gym with his team. He was older and much heavier than I was. I could only guess at the shady bullshit he had to pull to wrestle in a bracket beneath where he should be. This beast should be in the college circuit.
“Your mom, Marcus. She's gonna treat me to some chocolate pie when I win.” Insults were so commonly thrown back and forth that I barely register saying it. I only said it to save face, I didn't want him knowing who I was really looking for.
The ref called for me and my opponent to step into the circle painted on the mats. I adjusted my wrestling singlet, the spandex always bunched around my cock, and walked out there.
“Well, it's a good thing you're not gonna win then. Nice knowin' ya, Asshole!” Marcus shouted behind.
I scanned the crowd one last time, before I get into position. I still didn't see her. The bell goes off and this rhino I'm fighting hooks my leg, flipping me over. I landed on my back hard enough for my vision to blur for a second. Before I even knew what happened, he was on top of me, looking for the easy pin.
I was so fucked.
Where are you, Valentine?
Present.
I did a pull up. Valentine was only a few doors down, but that might as well be the surface of the fucking moon.
It took me a few days to bring over all my work out equipment. I did it mostly at night when Val went to sleep. I wasn't being covert or anything, she knew that it was happening. I just needed some of my equipment here to vent some built up frustration and keep my mind off Val.
All of her shit was too nice, it was hard for me to get comfortable. Val loved to point out her flashy toys, the Peruvian coffee table made from sillar stone, counter top flown in from Japan. It was all so trendy and unnecessary, especially because she barely used any of it.
Even the bedroom that I took was too extravagant. Everything was either cream or light brown colored; the bed, the walls, the carpets, fucking everything. I laughed at the thought, but the most restful sleep I’d gotten in the week I'd been here, was in the exercise room.
I did another pull up. If nothing else, the view is damn impressive. I guess that could be said for every room in this condo, but for some reason I could appreciate it more when I felt the burn in my arms as my chin cleared the pull up bar.
I kept the lights off, the ambient light flooding in from the city around us was more than enough for me to see. It was still early, about several hours before sunrise. Hell, even Romeo was asleep beside one of the treadmills. I'd heard that the obscenely wealthy walked their dogs on those things, because they're too afraid of the world outside. It'd have made me laugh if it wasn't so sad.
The next time I cleared the bar I could see the multitude of bumpy, uneven white scars along my knuckles. They were little reminders of the countless fights I'd won over the years. With every impact, and new scar that formed, I tried to push her name farther and farther from my mind.
What the fuck was I doing here, really? I told myself it was protection, but within half an hour of seeing her again I had to struggle just to keep my cock in my pants. Were we really that close back in the day, or was I just like every other fan that jerked off to a picture of THE Valentine Dawson?
I dropped down, dried the sweat off, then started wailing on the heavy bag. Romeo's ears stirred, but he was used to my noises. He just shifted positions, yawned and went back to sleep.
I was here because my mother asked me to be here, not because I missed Val. That and the security guard Hugh hired for her were a joke. What the fuck was he thinking with those clowns?
The punching bag jerked from the impact of my right cross. I was here because I could keep her safe, not because she's the last thing I thought of every time I got into the ring. The chain holding the bag up, whined under the strain of my barrage, popping back and forth on the hook holding it.
'You're lying to yourself,' the heavy bag seemed to say. Rivulets of sweat ran down my face and burn my eyes with all the exertion. I didn't mind the sting. Pain was the only real constant in my life, I came to depend on it to keep me sane.
My fists connected faster and harder, as I tried to drown out the sound of accusation in the creek and whine of the chain. 'You're here for something else,' the chain said, mocking me to tell the truth.
My mind and heart traveled back to my eighteenth birthday and the conversation with Hugh in front of my house. I'd gone over it so many times in my head that I could recite what was said. I hated her father, but he was right. I had to leave.
I don't owe Val a fucking thing, I left because I had to!
'You came back,' the chain squeaked as it swung the heavy bag away from me. 'Because you still love—'
I hit the bag so hard that it finally popped free of the hook holding it and smashed against the ground. The chain fell blessedly silent.
My fists radiated from the strikes. It was the guilt that ate me up inside. I felt stupid and exhausted, both mentally and physically. I just wished things could've been different between me and Val.
“That thing owe you money?” Came a groggy voice behind me.
Startled, I whirled around, fists raised and ready. Seeing that it was only Val, I lowered them.
She wore a short sleeved shirt with loose fitting pajama pants and her hair was a fluffy mess. It wasn't the designer sleepwear that you'd imagine superstar Valentine would wear. It looked comfy and worn in, like she had it forever. It looked like something old Val would wear.
Maybe the girl I remembered was still in there somewhere.
The light spilling in from the hallway allowed me to look her over fully. Maybe the shirt, I thought. But there's no way she sleeps in those pants. That was just because she had company over. I imagined her rolling into bed in just the shirt and a pair of white cotton panties.
Then my mind stripped away her shirt too.
Romeo let out a grumbled bark, then lifted his head and looked around. It was more of an annoyed 'Keep it down, I'm trying to sleep' than 'Hey! Intruder', but I was happy for it either way. It kept me from visualizing Val completely naked, and the giant fucking hard on that came with that image.
“That's some guard dog you got there,” Val wiped the sleep from her groggy eyes. Satisfied that Val and I got the message, Romeo lowered his head and went back to sleep.
“I gave him the night off,” I wiped the sweat from my eyes and drained half my jug of water. “I couldn't sleep so I figured I'd burn off some energy.”
I didn't tell her that it was being so close to her after all these years, that made it tough for me to sleep. A man could only jerk off so much.
“I can see that. I hope that villainous punching bag learned his lesson,” Val said, motioning to turn the lights on. I waved her off. I liked it dark. She just shrugged.
“He won't be giving you any more trouble.” I stretched and basked in the condo's central air conditioning for a moment before grabbing a towel. The chill felt good against my naked skin. “Did I wake you?”
“Nah,” Val yawned. “The earthquake woke me.”
“Earthquake?” I asked, trying to remember if I felt anything. How long had I been training for? Val smiled and shook her head, she was joking, obviously. There was no earthquake. I smirked, burying my face in a towel. “I'll try to keep it down to a dull roar.”
I wiped down my chest and stomach as well. When I looked up, Val was gawking at me. She'd finally woken up enough to see that I was half naked and glistening with sweat.
“Do you always train in just your boxers?” Her tone was a mix of disbelief and dangerous curiosity.
“Cuts down on laundry. What is the dress code in this gym? Is it more...” I asked, slipping my thumbs into the waistband of my underwear. “Or less?”
I was just teasing to return the favor for that earthquake joke. Something about her, even dressed like that, made my cock begin to swell. Maybe it was just in remembering the gorgeous girl I left behind those years ago.
Wearing just underwear like this, there'd be no way for me to hide my massive erection if I got one. Hell, at this point it was just a ticking clock before she saw how big my cock actually was. Even in the low light I could see her face light up like a Christmas tree.
“More!” She declared as firmly as she could, before glancing away. She could try to hide it, but I could always spot embarrassment on her. I knew that she liked what she saw. She swallowed and stumbled over the rest of her words, “And, uh, keep it down. It's late, some of us are trying to sleep.”
“Stay,” I told her, against my better judgment. But I couldn't resist. Old habits died hard. Tormenting Val was always my favorite past time, it brought a mischievous smile to my lips. “I'll run you through a full body workout.”