Chapter 16: Hunter & Huntress

Joseph had prepared himself for rejection ahead of time, but he wouldn't let the fear of it stop him from trying.

Today he would definitely ask her out.

For weeks she'd come to the gym to train. She worked out like a woman possessed, rarely stopping for rest. Seeing such a fire in her eyes, he offered to teach her boxing on a whim. She readily accepted.

It had started then, the road that had led him to this day.

At first, he trained her to keep himself busy. Working at the local gym as a boxing instructor didn't bring as much business as he expected. He only intended to show her the basics and let her go at it herself.

That's when she started showing progress. Her punches were sharper, and her footwork was impeccable.

He started to train her in earnest. Not just to get her to the next level, but to get to know her. He'd never seen a woman with such drive.

It had been somewhat of a failure the first time he tried to talk to her. He had successfully found out that she was a college student studying Game Design at a nearby college. He told her what he did for a living. Instructing at the gym wasn't just some part-time job, and he was proud of it.

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Her response had been cold.

'How do you work at a gym, and not lift?'

Joseph had injured his shoulder during his career, but he didn't want to say it. It would just sound like an excuse. So he took the L and pressed on.

As their training sessions continued, she opened up a bit more. Her frosty attitude would melt into a small smile at his corny jokes. When he asked her questions, he started getting longer answers, like she wanted him to know. It gave him confidence. So after a few more weeks, he discreetly probed for information about her relationship status.

'If you spend all your time here, your boyfriend will get lonely, you know.'

He was surprised when she just laughed. 'Boyfriend?'

'Girlfriend then?' He had to know. He wasn't going to back down now.

She had laughed again.'No'

He didn't press for more information. He had gotten the intel he needed.

After finding out she was single, he began to set groundwork for asking her out. Going over what he'd learned about her so far, and formulating a strategy on how to further reveal his interest without seeming too eager.

When he felt confident that he had earned some level of friendship with her, he asked her a probing question. Though he had to phrase it carefully.

'I can only believe that a woman such as yourself is single by choice. And in my experience, its the last guy's fault. So what happened? If you don't mind me asking.'

'He ended up paralyzed from the neck down and broke up with me so that I wouldn't try to take care of him' she'd said, without an ounce of hesitation.

Joseph had been stunned. He had expected a half-assed answer at best, but he got the undiluted truth instead. The truth that had dangerous implications.

'But you would have taken care of him...'

'Right down to the shit stained diapers...' she'd said with a straight face, throwing an unnecessarily strong hook at the sand bag.

'She still has feelings for this guy huh?'

He could tell that much. It was bad news, but he wasn't ashamed to say that the guy posed no threat. If he couldn't even get out of the bed, the only way they'd get back together was if she went back to him.

The fact remained that she came to the gym everyday. It put him in an advantageous position since he was the only one she spoke to. He felt good about his chances.

He'd woken up early that morning, and had combed through his dark locks a few extra times for good measure. He had to at least try to clean up, for today would be the day.

He waited until the end of their training session, it provided time for both of them to escape quickly in case of his failure. No one wants to stick around in awkward situations.

After working on her combinations, her body was dripping in sweat. Her blood red hair clung to her face.

'God, let her say yes!'

He'd ask her out, but he couldn't wing it. His intentions needed to be clear. What he wanted was a relationship.

"Rose, we've been at this for a while, but I'm interested in getting to know you...outside the gym. I know a great place for food that's just down the street..."

He let his sentence hang. He didn't set a time frame or an actual date as he didn't know her plans for the evening.

She was silent as she unwrapped her hands. Joseph was nothing if not patient.

"Okay, I'll take a shower and get dressed."

"Yeah?" Joseph couldn't hide his smile. SUCCESS!!

"Yeah." Rose smiled in return.

---

8 months later.

Rose woke up to the sound of ESPN on the television.

-Tom, I'm telling you, Without Welding, the Centurions are a lost cause.

-Here we go again folks, the die hard fan.

-I'm serious! Just look at the man's record coming out of the gate. His passing average is through the roof, nearly doubling the record for passing yards in single season! I truthfully, don't remember him missing a pass. Then if wasn't enough, he was a Quarterback with rushing averages at the top of the league! Even if we ignore the back to back Superbowl Championships. He still had two Pro-bowl victories under his belt with both a MVP and Rookie of the year award for his starting season.

Yes, he's only a single player, and football is a team sport. But the Centurions without Welding, is like an army without it's General. No drive, No directi-.

Rose turned the channel and sighed. It had been a year and a half since that day, and she still couldn't shake her feelings for him.

After the break-up, she had immersed herself in her studies. But the time slot that she used to visit the hospital needed to be filled. She also needed an outlet for her raging emotions. So she took one last tip from her beloved. She hit the gym.

She worked the weights, the treadmill, and the yoga classes. Yet nothing seemed to work. Every activity gave her time to think, and thinking led to anger and sorrow. It was anger that festered from having accepted his foolishness without a fight. No visitors? She could have just gone to his mother. There was no way in hell that he'd have stopped his mother from coming see him.

Then there was sorrow for their lost future. They had been so close to the final stage, only to have it taken from them. She was happy that he was still breathing. Yet, Brandon had seen the regret that would surface, and she cursed herself for not focusing on what was right in front of her. If he had died the day of his fall, she would have been truly lost. Just the thought of it-

Rose quickly pulled herself from that train of thought. The tears she had refused to shed almost fell from her eyes.

It wasn't long after she started to visit the gym that an instructor offered to teach her boxing. She had finally found her outlet. All this time she just needed something to hit. How could she miss such a simple solution?

Eventually, she was consumed by it. Taking every lesson in stride. Her life had fallen into a rhythm, and she had finally started to take a step forward.

That was until she got her degree.

She had gone to her parents to ask if she could stay with them until she settled down in her career, and found an a place to live. Not long after, she found an apartment, and proceeded to put up the money for the down payment. That was when she 'found' the money in her bank account.

[Current balance: $1,002,546 ]

She immediately called her parents to confirm her suspicions. They were a family of terrible liars.

'Mom, where did this money in my account come from?'

'What mon- oh, OH! T-that was a graduation present from us. Enjoy!'

*click

'Lies...all lies

She knew damn well that her parents didn't have that much money laying around. But she knew someone that did.

She'd nearly lost it that day. Brandon had not only kept tabs on her, he had continued to try and take care of her. He'd told her to find love and happiness with someone else without any intention of moving on himself. He'd pushed her away just to love her from afar.

'You don't do shit like this when you want someone to forget about you! Who the hell gives someone a million dollars as a graduation gift!?'

She wasn't happy at all, but Rose wasn't the type to return such a large sum. She bought a house and a one room flat that was down the street from her job. She kept the rest as emergency funds.

Things had started to look up after that. Brandon hadn't pulled anymore fiascos like the grad money, and she had returned her focus to her boxing lessons.

That's when her instructor started asking questions.

She couldn't help making comparisons, and had been unintentionally harsh on their first exchange. There was no helping it. For years she had been exposed to the pinnacle of the male physique. Anything less was just...less.

Yet, he didn't give up. So she answered his questions honestly. And when he asked about her past relationships, she told the flat out truth. There was no need to hide it.

Then the day came when he asked her out. Thinking about what to say, she hesitated. She didn't want another relationship until her feelings for Brandon had died down, but she just couldn't see that happening in the near future. Brandon had wanted her to move on, did she want too?

Yes, Brandon had wounded her. But in many ways, he had been merciful. It was a quick knife to the heart. No hatred, no goodbyes, just the end.

If love was a battlefield, then they had been warriors fighting against fate. Instead of watching her suffer at the hands of it, Brandon had driven a knife in her chest while concealing the grievous wounds underneath his armor.

'But I would have suffered gladly.' she thought to herself as she rose from Joseph's bed to get a glass of OJ from the kitchen.

Their relationship so far had been steady, but that was it. Once again she found herself making comparisons to her first love. She knew that every relationship was different So to be fair, she waited it out. Still, the comparison were made.

When Joseph cooked, the meal was tasty and she ate it gladly. Only to be reminded of how Brandon would put a rose petal on the plate. She used to think it was so over the top, until the day he didn't do it. When she asked him where it was, he flipped.

'I know right!? I specifically told him what time I'd come by the shop! I go everyday, at the same time! But for some strange reason he's suddenly out of stock!? YOU COULDN'T EVEN WARN A BROTHA!? You know what? I'll be back. I need to find a new supplier. Oh, and excuse me for shouting, that was unnecessary...'

Rose shook her head as she sipped her OJ. Things were very different with Joseph.

It felt weird starting over. Here they were, already spending so much time together and they still hadn't conquered the fart phase. That hidden phase in a relationship when you try to hold it cause you don't want to embarrass yourself. That phase.

Taking another sip, Rose reminisced. Brandon had completely skipped over the fart phase early on.