"Why do you hate me?" Karmin demanded as she tilted her head up to gaze at the ceiling of the changing room. "Huh, universe? What the hell did I do to you? Why do you want me dead so badly?"

Yeah, Karmin wasn't doing so well. After she found out about her fight with Mateo, the accused murderer, she was seconds away from going into cardiac arrest. She only had two days to process the whole thing until she found herself in the changing room of the fight club, yelling at the universe.

Maddox tried and tried to get her fight changed, but in the end, it was impossible. Ezra wouldn't budge. He said the only option was to fight or forfeit, but he knew that wasn't an option for her. Not to mention, if she won, there would at least 4,000 dollars waiting for her.

She knew she was putting her health at risk with this fight, but it didn't matter. Schoolwork was piling up, and she was getting behind on the assignments, but she would figure it out.

She wasn't important right now. She wasn't the priority.

Her father was.

He was finally out of the hospital, but he rarely left his room. He didn't have the energy for it, and a part of him was scared he would end up in the emergency room again. Her Mom was on edge, making her even more irritable.

Karmin had been spending more time with Viola and staying at her apartment after the fights to the point where her Mom was annoyed. Her reasoning was that if they had their own house, what was the point of constantly staying at someone else's.

But she couldn't risk going back home after the fights, and with the way this match was headed, it wasn't smart. Mateo wasn't like the other's she fought. They weren't wanted criminals or cold-blooded killers, first of all.

She got a little too comfortable when Maddox said there wasn't a chance of getting paired up with My Brother's Keeper gang members. But apparently, Mateo needed the money to skip town, so here he was.

And there Karmin was, having a mental breakdown ten minutes before the match.

"I'm a stubborn bitch," she whispered to the universe. "You won't get rid of me this easily, but you gotta stop throwing shit my way. It may seem like I'm handling it, but I'm really not, and don't give me the, 'I'm testing you bullshit.'"

Her rant to the cosmos was cut short when the door swung open, and in came a Hispanic man in his twenties who was several inches shorter than her. However, what he lacked in height was made up in muscles and tattoos. His cargo shorts hung low on his hips with a bandana wrapped around his long curly hair. She knew exactly who this was when her eyes zeroed in on his right bicep, the cursive writing spelling out My Brother's Keeper.

"You Karmin?" he questioned, his voice rough.

"Unfortunately," she remarked, nervously wrapping her arms around her waist.

Mateo smirked, folding his arms to empathize his muscles. "When they told me I was fighting a teenage girl, I didn't believe it."

"Technically, I'm an adult since 18 is the legal age," she said but faltered when he scowled. "But hey, I totally get why some may think I'm a teenager. I am nineteen after all," Karmin chuckled awkwardly.

"You're the one who has been winning fights. I've heard some good things."

"Oh, really? Like what?" she asked excitedly. "Do people consider me a good fighter? I mean, not to toot my own horn, but I'm a pretty decent fighter, but I would love to hear what others think."

Mateo frowned and took a menacing step forward. "Listen, I don't have time for games. I gotta be somewhere, so how about you lose quickly. That way, I won't have to damage your pretty face, and you can leave with some cash."

"Thanks for the offer, but I'm good," she said kindly.

He scoffed, walking past the benches until he was only a foot away. "Do you know who I am?"

"I've heard some things about you. All good, I promise," she ended hesitantly, waving her hands in the air.

"Well, then you must know I killed some people."

"You know, you really shouldn't be going around telling people that. Walls talk," Karmin whispered. "And, it's kind of hard making friends when people might think you'll kill them at any moment. Also, how do you get your curls so defined and curly? Mine are always frizzy, and I've tried –"

"Shut the fuck up," he seethed annoyedly. "God damn, you talk a lot."

"So is it some sort of oil or..."

Mateo exhaled angrily, his nostrils flaring dramatically. "Either you lose, or I'll make sure you never walk again. Comprende?"

The whole threat would've worked a lot better if he was taller than me.

She looked down at him, taking in his pushed back shoulders and raised chin. "Loud and clear," said Karmin, a bit of fear trickling in.

"And, it's a leave-on curl enhancer. I don't remember the name, but you can get it at any drugstore," he quickly said, brushing his hair admiringly.

"Oh, gotcha."

"Is there a problem?" asked a new voice.

Karmin glanced past him to see Maddox with his hands shoved into his pockets, gazing at them seriously. He tilted his head, glaring at Mateo with stiff body language.

"Nah, no problem," Mateo said dismissively with a smirk. With one last look, he sauntered down the changing room, to stop, his eyes flickering between Karmin and Maddox. He looked over his shoulder, meeting her gaze, and dauntingly said, "See you in the ring."

She let out a breath, not realizing she was holding it in. In the moment, she couldn't help but spew some random words, but after digesting the entire interaction, her hands were beginning to shake.

"Is everything okay?" Maddox asked, keeping an eye on the changing room door.

Karmin nodded, shoving her backpack into the locker roughly. "All good."

"Don't let him get to you," he advised.

"He didn't get to me," Karmin assured, biting the inside of her cheek as she walked towards him.

His eyes analyzed her face from the worry lines between her brows to the shaky tone of her voice. "He got to you, didn't he?"

And that was when she crumbled. "He so got to me," she sighed, shaking her head in slight amusement. "Are you sure you don't have any advice?"

"No, sorry," he apologized as the two of them pushed through the thick crowd. "I've never seen him fight, and I've asked everyone I could."

"And I appreciate that!" she yelled over the crowd.

"Huh?" he yelled, leaning down.

Karmin stood on her tippy toes, placing her mouth against his ear. "And I appreciate that!" she repeated. "I know you don't like talking to people!"

He turned his head towards her. "It was only like three people," Maddox shrugged, scratching the side of his head.

She smiled shakily, taking in the little distance between them, but quickly moved away to make sure he wasn't feeling uncomfortable. The speakers blasted, the referee calling her to the ring. Like she had done before, she swung under the ropes, nervously shaking her body to get the blood rushing.

At the other corner was Mateo, gritting his teeth with one sparkly diamond stud on his canine she hadn't noticed before. He dripped confidence and danger from his inky tattoos to his curled fists. The cheering of his supporters made it worse.

Karmin didn't take her eyes off of him, agilely moving forward once the ring sounded. Her past opponents waited, analyzed, and circled her before they made their first more, but with Mateo, he was impatient, violent, and straight to the point when he lunged at her.

She rolled out of the way, swiftly getting to her feet. Mateo smacked into the ropes, seizing them to prevent him from flying back. He laughed at her, his diamond stud glinting in the light.

This man was psychotic.

Mateo jumped towards Karmin, but she was ready this time. She grabbed his outreached arm, twisting it and ducking behind him. She pulled at his arm painfully and kicked him behind his knees until he was on the ground.

He grunted in pain when she punched him in the back of his neck, tingles sparking down his spine. Karmin gripped his long hair, feeling bad that she ruining his perfect curls. She could see the anger flaring in him when she went for his hair. She pulled at his scalp until he was staring at the ceiling and landed a hit on his face, blood instantly gushing.

Her confidence began to boost as she positioned herself in front of him, bringing his snarling face down to her knee. The power of the kick pushed him back until he hit the mat, but that didn't stop him.

Mateo put either hand on the side of his head and pushed himself up to his feet easily. The crowd roared with excitement when they saw his move.

That was some Jackie Chan shit, right there.

Karmin readied herself for his next move as he swung his arm. She quickly blocked it when her forearm, moving her arm back to land a punch on his face. However, he saw it coming when he intercepted it as she did.

She didn't expect it, and it was too late when he jabbed her in the stomach. All the air left her lungs as he bent forward, heaving. Mateo didn't give her a chance to rest when he clambered back just to run forward, kicking himself off one of the poles and landing a powerful punch on her jaw.

Karmin immediately hit the floor, crying out in pain. She rolled onto her side, clutching her jaw in pain. The people by the ring screamed in delight, but there was that odd person who shouted at her to get up.

I guess I made some fans.

She was pulled on to her back as Mateo straddled her, smirking. "You should've listened to me," he growled, pulling something out of his pockets.

The metal object gleamed as he discreetly hid it from the referee by blocking his view. They were brass knuckles.

"He has –" Karmin screamed the second she saw it, but the words never fully left her lips when he punched her. The cool brass connected with her cheek harshly, the pain a thousand times worse compared to a regular bare-fisted hit.

Fear coursed through her as she put her hands up, protecting her face and head. But that didn't stop him. She shut her eyes tightly, wincing every time the metal made contact with her skin and bone. The next hit landed on her abdomen and the other on her arms as he tried to get a good hit.

The amount of pain she was in was ridiculous. She wanted to tap out and be gone from this torment.

"Weapon!" she shouted, trying to get someone's attention but it was drowned out by the crowd. Maddox was on the other end, and for those who could see the brass knuckles were too scared to speak up.

She needed to do something quickly, or his threat would quickly become a promise.

Her mind went through her years of self-defense, but it was getting harder and harder to think with each punch. She opened her eyes, peeking through her caged arms. Karmin waited for him to raise his hand, and that was when she moved into action.

She raised her hands swiftly, clutching his head. Her thumbs drove into his eyes, and although he screamed and squirmed, Karmin kept putting more pressure on his eyes. He writhed in agony, the brass knuckles falling to the side.

Blood began to pour from his eyes and before she knew it, he was pulled off her by the referee. The bell rang, and he pointed at Mateo, screaming, "You broke fight club rules! You're disqualified and banned from the club! By forfeit, Karmin Desai wins!"

"No!" Karmin yelled, shaking her head as she sluggishly got to her feet. "I want to finish this!"

She didn't want to win by a forfeit. Karmin wanted to knock him out, to hurt him like he hurt her. Mateo was going to lose and by the hands of a teenage girl. She knew it would hurt him and his street cred, and that was exactly what she wanted.

"You sure?" the referee asked, quirking a brow.

"Can I use the brass knuckles?"

The referee smirked, nodding at her. "It's only fair," and he twirled his hand, the bell sounding once again.

Karmin glanced down at Mateo, who crawled towards the brass knuckles, but she quickly seized them, making a show as she placed them around her hand. They felt weird and uncomfortable, but powerful at the same time.

She was all about playing fair and square and winning with dignity.

But fuck that.

Karmin wasn't a saint. Mateo broke the rules, so it was only fair for her to do the same.

She flexed her knuckles and smiled at Mateo, who gazed at her with pure fury. Karmin swung her arm back and brought it against his face. Blood spewed out of his mouth, and the weapon rattled against her skin.

Karmin gripped his chin harshly and got close to him. "I want you to remember that me, a teenage girl, beat you," she whispered.

"You're going to regret this, you –"

He never finished his threat when she landed a hit on his temple. The diamond stud on his teeth flew out as his head lurched to the side roughly from the impact. His eyes rolled back into his skull as he fell back flat on the mat.

The crowd cheered as the referee raised her hand in victory. Karmin dropped the blood-stained brass knuckle, falling with a clatter that was drowned out by the shouts. She could feel the warm liquid on her face, droplets dripping on to her clothes and arms. Her hair felt sticky and wet, and her bones felt heavy as if they were replaced with stone. Most of the damage was to her abdomen, and it felt as if the brass carved into her organs and ribs.

All she wanted to do was take a hot shower and cry her woes out.

Maybe do both at the same time. She was all about multitasking.

Two large men in suits grabbed Mateo from the feet and dragged him off the mat. She didn't know where they were taking him, but she didn't care.

Karmin rolled under the ropes, wincing deeply, and met Maddox at the bottom.

"Are you okay?" he questioned the second her feet hit the ground. "Let me take you to the medic."

"No," she choked out. "Just take me to Viola's."

He nodded begrudgingly but led her forward with her bag he had already grabbed her belongings from the locker room. Maddox didn't put his arms around her, but he was cautious with his arms ready just in case she fell.

They quickly grabbed her money from Ezra, ignoring his unwanted commentary on the fight. The two of them reached the beginning of the stairs with Maddox pushing through people who attempted to talk to her. If her head wasn't pounding and her skin stinging, she would have made conversation, but she had to fight the urge to be nice. Just as they were about to enter the stairwell, they were stopped by someone calling Karmin's name.

She turned around to see a man with olive skin and tattoos in a suit walking to her. It was Cesar Perez, the man Maddox had warned her about. Something about him running a dangerous organization was prominent in her mind.

Maddox stiffened beside her, stepping forward, but the pink backpack in his hand diluted his threatening stance.

"You were really good out there," Cesar praised. His voice was rough and deep, with a hint of charming undertones.

"Thank you," Karmin muttered tiredly, but barely opened her jaw to speak.

"And the fact that you kept going afterward was impressive. Not many people would do that. What I can tell you is that Mateo and his boss aren't going to be happy."

She stayed silent, her nails biting into her skin to distract her from the pain in her ribs. His words weren't settling in quite yet.

"I'm in charge of a... business. It's lucrative, so not many people know about it." He reached into his jacket pocket and handed her a card.

"She doesn't need it," Maddox interjected gruffly.

Karmin stared at the white card, a black symbol in the center. It was a circle and, in the middle, a fist. There was no name or contact information, so she wasn't sure how she was supposed to contact him if she did decide to use it.

Cesar ignored him, keeping his gaze on Karmin. "There's my card. Let me know if you're ever interested in making a lot of money," he smirked. "You know how to find me," and with that, he sauntered away with an air of confidence around her.

He said it like he was so sure she would come to him.

And for some reason, she couldn't help but think he was right.

***

Author's Note:

Hi everyone!!

So, what are your thoughts on this fight?!?

Until next time – m.k.t