A Fighting Chance Read Free Page B

way to burn off steam and the money was good, but we really came here seeking validation of our strength. Hers was quieter, and maybe that’s why I respected it more. It might not have been physical, but she was still the most fearless person I knew.
    “How much did you put on it tonight?” I asked her.
    “I didn’t.”
    “You didn’t bet on my last fight?”
    She gripped my chin, holding me with a skeptical expression. “You said t hat three, four fights ago. I’m tired of pretending I believe it. One day I’d like to bet on you following through with something that isn’t a punch.”
    I sighed, frowning. “Is this about college again?” Drew was worse than my mom when it came to my future , worse than our hack of a senior counselor, too, probably. It was a secret to everyone but them that I had a B+ average, and I had come a long way since hovering in the low C range at the start of high school.
    “You say it like I’m asking you to chop off a leg. What’s so hard about just taking a look at the applications?”
    I pulled at the fringes of her cutoffs. “Last week it was brochures…now it’s applications.”
    “Yes, six. Three on the East Coast. Three on the West Coast. You know, the world outside of Glory. You remember it exists, right?” She took my hand and squeezed it against her thigh.
    “Man…have you seen the place this packed before? This is a grand for me easily.” I changed the subject to kill my annoyance. Of course I knew Glory wasn’t the center of the universe, I thanked God for that, but what was really out there for me? More ways to be kicked down and judged? Constantly being unsure of who I could trust with the story of my background, so I wouldn’t have to be reminded that I was the product of an affair? That my father saw me as little more than a pile he’d stepped in? Cruel as the people here were, there were no surprises in a place of barely four thousand. I knew to expect the Huck twins to shout shit at me when I walked by Murphy’s Bar, and that bible-thumping Sally Corbitt was always mysteriously out of my mom’s favorite orchids every time I went into her flower shop. And I could count on peace, even some respect, in the days after I won fights.
    “It’s always this packed ,” Drew said, rolling her eyes.
    “ You’re really going to stay mad at me before I go up there?” I asked, kissing her nose. “‘Cause I got something for you—”
    “I don’t want your fight money,” she said with a curt tone and a sharp glare as she pulled away from me . Then her face softened in that way only Drew’s could after she got all fiery. “Dammit. That was bitchy. Sorry.”
    “Well…the gift fits, that’s for sure,” I teased as I reached into my bag, and my heart kicked my ribs. I hoped she liked it.
    “Hey! You jerk!” she said, playfully slapping my arm. I opened my hand and showed her the personalized guitar pick I’d gotten for her a few days ago. Most of my winnings went to basic needs or helping my mom out, and what was left went to gas for driving to out-of-state fights. Drew’s parents were able to give her everything, including the guitar she was going to use the pick with, so I tried to give her things that were sentimental. Girls liked sentimental shit.
    Her smile was bright with appreciation, and the nerves in my chest settled as I set the pick in her palm. It was pink, her favorite color, and it had the image of a guitar in the middle with the word SPARK going across. She was my spark plug.
    “Funny.” She beamed. “Thank you. I love it.”
    “There are a hundred of them in the pack. I know you like to have one for your necklace. It’s not much—”
    “I don’t want much .” Her arms locked around my neck. “I’m gonna try to be a supportive girlfriend now.” She shoved an earphone ear bud into my ear, and Lil’ Jon and the Eastside Boyz blew in. Their music literally sounded like fighting, so it always got me pumped. “Make it quick