After taking a shower, brushing my hair, and then applying on some mascara and eyeliner, I stood in front of my closet, just staring.

The weather said it would be chilly, what a surprise, so I picked out a dark maroon colored shirt with a black leather jacket. I pulled on some light jeans and vans, then went to grab my phone.

I looked to see there was a message from an unknown number.

hey sweetie, you ready for tonight? ;) -Ryder

I wondered how the heck he got my number.

how'd you get this number??

I have my ways...

ok? And yeah, I'm pumped!

alright then babe, see you in a few ;)

I chuckled and slid the phone into my back pocket. I checked the time and it read 6:47. Crap, I had to get there soon.

Running down the stairs, I came to a halt when I saw my mom in the kitchen, scribbling furiously on papers.

"Hey mom," she was never home this early and I was shocked.

She looked up from her paperwork and smiled a smile I haven't seen in a while. "Hi sweetheart," the name suddenly reminded me of Ryder, ugh. "Where are you going?"

I tucked my hands in my pockets and shrugged. "There's a fighting competition downtown, one of my, uh, friends is competing." It felt weird to call Ryder a 'friend'.

"Oh, okay. Well, be safe and don't be out too late."

I went over to her and hugged her tightly. "No problem mom, love you."

"I love you too sweetie."

There was suddenly no stopping me now. Yeah, I felt a little bad for leaving my mom on a night where she was home for the first time in ages, but she seemed so caught up in paperwork that I didn't want to bother her.

I opened my garage and there it stood in all its glory.

My shiny white Ducati.

I grinned largely and hopped on the bike. I loved the feeling of the leather seat between my thighs, the cold metal handles in my grip, and the rev of the engine when I drove.

No one knew about my motorcycle in this town except my mom and me. I haven't ridden it yet since I got here, so I basked in the joy of the having it under my control again.

The ride there didn't take more than twenty minutes. I sped along the highway and the streetlights bounced reflections off the sides of my bike.

After driving around downtown slowly a couple times, I finally found the Oaks Bar. It nestled in between two tall brick loft buildings and an alleyway led to another in the back.

I had always hated these places. Cold, dark, eerie, and quiet. There were a few guys leaning against the bar building, eyeing me up and down and dragging a cigarette from their mouths.

I avoided their eyes and took the keys out of the motorcycle. I walked quickly through the alley and came to a small little building. With every step, I could hear loud bass music pumping through the walls.

A large man dressed in all black stood in front of the doors. He crossed his arms and blocked my way.

"Invitation miss?"

I raised an eyebrow and mimicked his position. "My friend's in there."

He shook his head. "Sorry, but only members are allowed in here."

I was about to text Ryder to tell him to let me in when a cocky voice stopped me. "She's with me."

Speak of the devil. Ryder stepped out from the doorway without a shirt on. I couldn't help but stare at his finely toned abs and muscles that were right in front of me. Raising my eyes slowly to his, I saw the large smirk plastered on his face.

"Enjoying the view?" he asked when he pulled me inside. I blushed and looked around at something other than him.

There were people everywhere. I was surprised that so many people came to see a fight. Back in California, I had never fought in public, but had gone to many. There had never been this many bodies in one room.

"They all came to see you fight?" I asked Ryder.

"Not all, but many. There's a fight going on right now."

He pointed to the middle to two guys boxing in the ring. One had blood pouring out of his nose and the other had a large gash on his forehead.

"When are you boxing?" I asked him, but was kind of shocked when his eyes were trained solely on me.

"In a few minutes, actually." He smiled and I smiled back. It was nice being with this side of Ryder. The not-too-arrogant-no-smirk Ryder. It was pleasant.

"And the winner is Feliciano!" the announcer said over the speakers. The crowd roared with happiness and jumped up and down. Some people threw their money down on a table and lost the bet. I laughed.

Ryder suddenly took my hand and pulled me through the crowd to the ring where Feliciano was now standing on the floor, talking to what it looked like to be his coach.

I couldn't process anything except the feeling of Ryder's hand in mine. It felt so...warm and comforting. Like it was meant to be there. Ryder turned back to me and smirked before stopping next to Feliciano.

Sadly, he let go and my hand was now empty.

Why am I thinking this?

I ignored the feeling and looked up at the man who just won the match. I would hate going against this guy, his arms bulged with muscles and he towered a good three feet over me. He made Ryder look puny.

"Hey my man!" Ryder grabbed a towel for Feliciano and handed it to him. "Nice fight!"

He rubbed the towel over his face and grinned like a winner. "Hell yeah it was," then his eyes looked over to me, "this must the lovely Ruby I've been hearing so much about." He smiled at me and I looked over at Ryder, his cheeks a light tint of pink, but it may have just been the lighting in the room.

"Nice to meet you," I said, shaking his sweaty hand.

"You too, are you here to watch your boyfriend box tonight?"

My eyes widened and at the same time Ryder and I denied being together.

"We're not dating!" he said.

"I would never date him!" I said a little too loudly. I thought I saw Ryder frown but I ignored it.

Felix was only laughing to himself. "Okay then lovebirds, but I need to go get cleaned up. Good luck my friend," he patted Ryder on the back. "And it was a pleasure to meet you." Felix picked up my hand and brought it to his lips. I smiled.

When Felix disappeared from our view, Ryder told me that he needed to go back to the back rooms to get ready. Then he pulled me forward by my waist and touched his lips to my ear, sending dangerous tingles down my body. "Don't miss me too much sweetheart."

What was he doing to me?

I was so pumped about tonight. It was the first competition of the year and I was excited for every bit.

I loved the sound of the crowd cheering for me and the loud music blasting from the overhead speakers, but mostly I liked having Ruby here.

I don't know what it is with her, but when I held her hand in mine, sharp pleasant sensations went up through my arms.

What is wrong with me?

She looked really nice tonight with her dark jacket and straight brown hair. But she definitely wasn't my type. I liked dating blondes with pumped up hair and big breasts. Yeah, Ruby had a great body and a good set on her, but she just wasn't for me.

After getting my favorite silk red robe on and my gloves secured around my wrists, Coach Young walked into the dressing room.

"Daniels, you ready?" he said.

I nodded and grabbed my mouth guard. He made sure that my gloves were secure and my head was on straight. "Now, tonight's match is gonna be a hard one. The guy you're going against is tough, but you're tougher. Got it?"

"Yes coach." Then he slapped my back, wishes me good luck, and followed me out to the ring.

The crowd erupted when I was called out onto the mat. I grinned like a crazy person and inserted the mouth guard into my mouth. I stretched my arms and legs and sat on the seat in the furthest corner. The guy I was going up against was big, no, not just big, but huge. His arms were pulsing with veins and he looked deadly enough to kill. But I wasn't afraid.

Coach slapped my back again once the announcer started the fight.