I’d failed at marriage, at being a dad, at being a businessman, and worst of all, being a martial artist.
My ex hated me, which is fine, but she’d hated me when she wasn’t an ex. My kid was embarrassed of me. He’d called me a loser and said he didn’t want to see me ever again. And he hadn’t, for years. That was fine too; I wouldn’t have wanted me as a dad either. The business failure was to be expected. When you gambled as much as I did, how could you manage money?
The martial arts failure wasn’t acceptable. Everything had been in place for me to be set for life. All I had to do was win a belt, get a title, place that belt on a wall in my gym, and people would flock to have a champion train them. It was all I knew, all I’d ever wanted to be, and it was me that undid everything I’d spent my life building toward.
I’d lost a marriage and a kid because of my dedication to training, and as soon as the promise of a large sum of money to take a dive … a few dives … more than a few, came along I’d jumped at the disgraceful opportunities. Now I was beating up people in bar fights. I hadn’t trained for that.
FAILURE!
Sara blasted out another combination. “You okay?” she asked, as she got ready for another go at it. “It looked like I lost you there for a moment.”
“Yeah, sorry,” I said, while she hit the pads again. “I had a rough night … Once more through the combo and then we’ll have a little rest before we work the other side. I want this one to be the best yet.”
The roundhouse was good, solid, I felt it through the pads. The right cross had speed on its side, she remembered to snap the hand back to keep her guard up too. The left hook was quick to follow. Too quick. I was lost in my own thoughts again and hadn’t turned the pad. The punch connected with my face.
I stumbled back, my legs going like jelly. I was lucky I didn’t fall. Sara pulled at the Velcro straps of her gloves with her teeth and ripped them from her hands as she dashed to me, repeatedly saying, “Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit.”
“It’s okay, it’s my fault.” She helped me remove the pads. I went and sat on the side of the ring. “It was a good shot.” I forced a smile, my jaw aching as I did.
She sat down on the side of the ring with me, “I’m so sorry. I feel so embarrassed.”
“I should feel embarrassed. I’ll throw you a lesson for free, my head’s not been in the game today.” I shook my head and tried to clear it. It didn’t work. I wasn’t sure if it was the shot I’d taken or the whiskey that was hammering my skull.
“You don’t need to do that.” She placed her hand on my leg. I swallowed as I looked at it. It was the first time a woman had touched me like that in a long time. Now women mainly hit me. Ones I was teaching and the ones I wasn’t.
“I do.” I coughed and cracked my neck. “That really was a good shot.”
“Sorry.”
“You sure you don’t want a free lesson? It’s the least I can do.”
“I’m sure. You need all the paying students you can get.”
“Do I look that desperate?”
“No, don’t be silly.” She squeezed my leg tighter. “I do have something to tell you that might cheer you up.”
“Do I also look that miserable?” I couldn’t look at her. I didn’t realize I was so transparent. She punched me in the arm with her other hand. “Ouch! Please enough. I can’t take much more.”
She laughed. “Then stop being an idiot.”
“You sound like my wife, well, ex-wife.”
“Is that what’s bothering you, are you having trouble with her again? Do you want me to punch her for you? Apparently, I have a mean left hook.”
I laughed then. “You do, I can testify to that, but no, it’s nothing to do with her, well not directly. Having said that, if you do happen to bump into her, a punch would be nice.”
“Noted.”
I bent the top half of myself under the bottom rope and lay my back on the inside of the ring. Sara did the same. She
My ex hated me, which is fine, but she’d hated me when she wasn’t an ex. My kid was embarrassed of me. He’d called me a loser and said he didn’t want to see me ever again. And he hadn’t, for years. That was fine too; I wouldn’t have wanted me as a dad either. The business failure was to be expected. When you gambled as much as I did, how could you manage money?
The martial arts failure wasn’t acceptable. Everything had been in place for me to be set for life. All I had to do was win a belt, get a title, place that belt on a wall in my gym, and people would flock to have a champion train them. It was all I knew, all I’d ever wanted to be, and it was me that undid everything I’d spent my life building toward.
I’d lost a marriage and a kid because of my dedication to training, and as soon as the promise of a large sum of money to take a dive … a few dives … more than a few, came along I’d jumped at the disgraceful opportunities. Now I was beating up people in bar fights. I hadn’t trained for that.
FAILURE!
Sara blasted out another combination. “You okay?” she asked, as she got ready for another go at it. “It looked like I lost you there for a moment.”
“Yeah, sorry,” I said, while she hit the pads again. “I had a rough night … Once more through the combo and then we’ll have a little rest before we work the other side. I want this one to be the best yet.”
The roundhouse was good, solid, I felt it through the pads. The right cross had speed on its side, she remembered to snap the hand back to keep her guard up too. The left hook was quick to follow. Too quick. I was lost in my own thoughts again and hadn’t turned the pad. The punch connected with my face.
I stumbled back, my legs going like jelly. I was lucky I didn’t fall. Sara pulled at the Velcro straps of her gloves with her teeth and ripped them from her hands as she dashed to me, repeatedly saying, “Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit.”
“It’s okay, it’s my fault.” She helped me remove the pads. I went and sat on the side of the ring. “It was a good shot.” I forced a smile, my jaw aching as I did.
She sat down on the side of the ring with me, “I’m so sorry. I feel so embarrassed.”
“I should feel embarrassed. I’ll throw you a lesson for free, my head’s not been in the game today.” I shook my head and tried to clear it. It didn’t work. I wasn’t sure if it was the shot I’d taken or the whiskey that was hammering my skull.
“You don’t need to do that.” She placed her hand on my leg. I swallowed as I looked at it. It was the first time a woman had touched me like that in a long time. Now women mainly hit me. Ones I was teaching and the ones I wasn’t.
“I do.” I coughed and cracked my neck. “That really was a good shot.”
“Sorry.”
“You sure you don’t want a free lesson? It’s the least I can do.”
“I’m sure. You need all the paying students you can get.”
“Do I look that desperate?”
“No, don’t be silly.” She squeezed my leg tighter. “I do have something to tell you that might cheer you up.”
“Do I also look that miserable?” I couldn’t look at her. I didn’t realize I was so transparent. She punched me in the arm with her other hand. “Ouch! Please enough. I can’t take much more.”
She laughed. “Then stop being an idiot.”
“You sound like my wife, well, ex-wife.”
“Is that what’s bothering you, are you having trouble with her again? Do you want me to punch her for you? Apparently, I have a mean left hook.”
I laughed then. “You do, I can testify to that, but no, it’s nothing to do with her, well not directly. Having said that, if you do happen to bump into her, a punch would be nice.”
“Noted.”
I bent the top half of myself under the bottom rope and lay my back on the inside of the ring. Sara did the same. She
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