In His Corner

HARD HEAD, HARD HITS

THREE: Hard Head, Hard Hits [THIRD PERSON’S P.O.V: David ‘Cujo’ Creed]

“DAMN IT! JHONNY, DON’T YOU KNOW HOW TO F*CKING DUCK!” the voice of a frustrated coach, Melvin Derby, rang inside the ‘Lock Jaw’. A gym focused on martial arts, currently housing one of the most dominant and reigning champions in the MMA world. Carrying the undefeated and current World Welterweight title.

The notorious Mad Dog, David ‘Cujo’ Creed.

Following Melvin’s yells was the unfortunate sound of gushing fists. David swung at the rookie with finesse, shoulders locked, sharp jabs, and heavy hooks. Determined to bring this up-and-coming fighter down and under. David already did a number on the kid, leaving the latter to display his face open for a direct hit.

Not wasting a second, David lunged his fist forward, his knuckles made a crunching sound as it landed on Johnny’s nose.

“YOU F*CKERS! STOP HIM! HE’S KILLING THE KID!” Melvin yelled again.

Begging the on-looking audience to pull David away from his poor opponent, Johnny Wyon, already bleeding and thrashed as he lay on the ring floor. Coughing as four men finally tore the enraged champion off him.

“Sh*t.” the coach cursed, rushing to his fighter before turning to David. “You f*cking—it was just a sparring session!” he yelled, furious at the state of his fighter.

David gave Melvin a blank stare, “Your boy said he wanted to feel what it’s like,” he paused to take in a deep breath as he took off his gloves and his mouthpiece, “fighting a druggy…” he followed with a shrug.

A cold reminder of Jhonny’s pre-fight mocking, just as they set foot on the mat. What’s worse, Johnny Wyon made the grave mistake of bringing up the topic of David’s alleged drug use. Quite a touchy subject for any fighter.

“I’m no druggy… but I gave him the best I could,” David finished. Motionless, the coach clenched his jaw, yet said nothing.

Ziah, one of David’s ‘friends’ in the gym, and another title holder, stepped in between him and the coach. The corners of his lips forced to curl up as he plastered on a smile, “Hey… both parties were wrong here,” he cooed, turning to Melvin.

“Just because your boy’s bleeding doesn’t mean he’s the complete victim here,” he started, glancing at the fallen fighter.

“You should take care of him first, bring him to the hospital. We’ll cover the bill,” he followed, placing his hands on the coach’s shoulders. “Once he recovers, drop by again, I’ll spar with him. I teach at a kids’ judo club, so he’ll be safe with me,” he assured. Albeit he was polite and kind in his delivery, it was a clear blow to the incompetent rookie.

An ambulance came to pick up Jhonny Wyon, stretchers and all, and it was up to Ziah to handle the technicalities of their p*****t. Sending off the paramedics, the coach, and the fighter, away with a smile and a wave.

But not even seconds after they left, Ziah’s apologetic smile melted off his face.

“WHAT THE F*CK WAS THAT, CREED?!” he roared, looking at the man in question, casually enjoying a grape smoothie. A concoction he made on his own.

David raised a brow, “What?” he grunted.

“Don’t f*cking ‘what’ me you—son of a b*tch…” Ziah cussed, sighing as he clicked his tongue at the sight of blood on their freshly cleaned ring. He threw his hands up at the sight, “Coach is going to give me sh*t because of you,” Ziah groaned, combing his hands through his scalp. “You shouldn’t have fought if you can’t keep that tempter in check, man,” he hissed, hitting the back of David’s head.

David flicked Ziah’s hand away, but just shrugged, “I wasn’t mad or anything…” he replied. Rolling his shoulders, he went on, “He wanted to fight me, I don’t want to half-ass it,” he argued,

Ziah scoffed, “Bullsh*t,” he cursed. Shaking his head at his stubborn friend, “Half-*ssing is the only way you know how to do things,” he groaned, plopping down on the matted floor. He sighed as he leaned against the heap of bags and equipment in the corner of the room, contemplating how he was going to defend himself against their coach’s wrath.

“You need to fix that, man,” was all Ziah could say. Disappointed was an understatement.

David continued to slurp on his smoothie, without a care in the world as his eyes blankly wandered to the caged octagon ring. Littered with the blood he just bled out from poor little Johnny. He gulped the drink down. Unsure how to process the fight that just ended. Even David himself wasn’t sure if he was mad or not.

“Speaking of… I don’t want you acting like that once your lawyer gets here.”

“Lawyer? You found one?” David asked with a smirk, surprised someone took the job.

Ziah sighed, “The coach did,” he pressed, brows furrowed as he glared at his indifferent friend. “It was hard, but we did find someone who won’t exploit you when the going gets tough,” he said. He pursed his lips at the thought of the previous candidates. They were clear with their plans, yes, but not on their intentions.

‘Lawyers are a different breed of *sshole,’ Ziah thought. Still, the one they hired showed promise.

She’s a single mother with good academic credentials, of course. Passing the board on their first try is impressive, but being among the top 10 is even more so. Ziah raised his hand, signaling for David to help him stand up again, which the latter did.

“You, wait in the office. I’ll brief her before she meets you,” he ordered.

David’s brows lowered, “Just because you have a kid now doesn’t mean you’re everyone’s dad,” he grumbled.

Ziah gave him a light smack on the chest, “Shut the f*ck up and do as I say. No parent wants their child in a jail cell,” he replied. Albeit irked that David says the most annoying of quips, Ziah’s patience has gone through full metamorphosis dealing with the man. Their friendship didn’t take the conventional route starting out.

Ziah was the big shot before David came along. The competition between them was unrivaled. Ziah always felt that he had to compete to stand his ground and rank in the gym. He was convinced David was out to get him despite them being supported by the same gym and being in different weight classes altogether.

A few months passed between their bantering and constant ‘crossing-the-line’ sparring. Eventually, he felt that his sentiments were one-sided. Being 5 years older than David when they first met, he felt threatened, but it wasn’t long before a wave of shame washed over him.

He watched this kid train all day and all night. He fights when you tell him to and stops when you tell him to stop, usually. To Ziah, David started to look like a fighting robot with no life other than what he saw in the gym. Ziah didn’t know at the time, but he was absolutely right. He initially thought it would be fine to poke fun at David about that.

That day, it was David who invited Ziah to spar for a change. That day… Ziah got to experience what it was like to see talent. To witness just how powerful a person who trains day and night would be.

Humbled, Ziah sighed and admitted defeat. Beaten up and bruised by a younger fighter was a blow to his ego, but seeing how hard the kid worked, he was not as disappointed as he would expect. That same night, David offered him a drink. Ziah realized that David was a nicer person when he was drunk. It was mind-blowing. He started acting politely. He was considerate. He didn’t want to talk over Ziah despite having droned on and on.

He spoke of his mom. Ziah wanted to ask about his father too—in fact, he wanted to ask about anything else, but all David talked about was his mom. It was as if his whole world was just his mom and the gym. David also spoke about her in ‘Was’. Ziah knew what it meant.

David didn’t make it hard for Ziah, either. He was upfront by the end as the alcohol did its job. He told Ziah of his mother’s passing, and how he knew nothing and no one else apart from the life he’s lived until now. He told Ziah that he has no father, no siblings, no family, really—not even a close friend. He was too busy for such things.

Guilt was one thing, pity as well, but what Ziah felt at the time was insurmountable regret. Nothing ever moved him to tears in his 25 years of age until then. There was no worse feeling. He realized how his constant antagonizing was one of David’s closest-ever interactions with another person.

Ziah knew better.

And although neither he nor David admits it, they’ve pretty much become family. Now five years later, he’s 30, with a wife and a kid, but David is still off the rails. It worried Ziah to think that David might never settle down. He was afraid David might be too broken.

Moreover, now with the running rumor of his drug use. Baseless and stupid. Ziah is certain that whoever circulated a rumor like that, is a chump loser who couldn’t accept the fact they got beaten by a 25-year-old mad-dog.

A bell by the door of the gym rang throughout the room. He drove everyone out of the gym for this very reason. With a breath, he plastered on a smile, greeting his esteemed guest,

“Hello, it’s good to see you, Attorney Nuestro, is that right?” he started, greeting the woman with a handshake,

Beatrice returned the smile, “Hello, yes, that’s me. You must be Mr.Jakov,” she replied. Her not-so-subtle gaze ran through the entirety of the gym. “This is… bigger than I expected, fancier too,” she noted, and from her tone alone, Ziah picked up something he didn’t want from a lawyer taking on this case.

She sounded reluctant.

He gulped, still his smile persisted, “You flatter us. We’re only trying to go beyond the standards. Could I offer you anything? A beverage... Or?” he trailed off, offering the courtesy David could never provide.

The attorney shook her head, “Oh, please, no it’s fine,” she paused, “But I do want to have a word with Mr.Creed, is he not available today?” she asked,

Ziah clicked his tongue, shoulders inching back. For someone reluctant, she brought up her client’s name rather quick. His brows raised, “Ah, of course, follow me,” he urged, bringing her to the office where David waited. Patient as he scrolled through his phone on a social media app, one with an abundance of girls wearing bikinis.

Ziah mentally slapped David, hoping the man in question would feel the sting in real life.

Beatrice took no notice of it and proceeded to her seat at a cushioned chair in front of David, who barely raised a brow at the attorney. Rather, he seemed annoyed that her arrival would cut his bikini-viewing time. Ziah gritted his teeth through a smile. This is exactly why the other lawyers didn’t want to take him seriously.

With a clear of his throat, Ziah lightly tapped the back of David’s head, “David, this is Attorney Nuestro, she’s the one handling your case,” he said.

David’s brows furrowed together. Couldn’t be bothered with yet another introduction, and just sat properly on his chair. He nodded to the lawyer at least, just to acknowledge her presence.

Beatrice’s jaw clenched at their interaction, and a foreboding feeling came over her. “It’s good to finally meet you, Mr.Creed,”