Isla

Ch.1 The Calm Before the Storm

Isla's POV:
I wake up to the rain pouring onto my roof and splattering on my windows. Thunder booms overhead as I stretch my legs and get ready for the long day ahead of me.

My name sounds fit for a soft girl, with a sweet personality. Once upon a time that was true, but not anymore. My name is Isla Blakes. I'm 21 years old and I work in an illegal fighting league.

No one suspects that a girl who is barely 5'5 could pack a punch, but believe me, I can.

I slip out of my sheets and head into the bathroom across the hall. Lightning flashes and my tiny studio apartment lights up like a carnival.

After I'm finished in the bathroom I return to my bedroom and slip into a pair of black Lulu Lemon leggings and a matching black sports bra. I throw a long sleeved grey shirt with my beige trench coat over it. Lastly I pulled on my brown knee high boots and stumble out the door.

By the time I pull my car out of the parking garage I'm pretty much drenched. My hair, which had been neatly brushed and pushed to the side, now clung to my neck. I quickly threw my hair into a ponytail and began my drive to work.

The farmhouse where I fought and trained was out in Ithaca, which from my house in the city, takes about 4 hours to get to. I blasted my music the whole way there.

I finally pulled up to the abandoned lot around 10am. The fights didn't start until 8pm, so it wasn't surprising to find the lot almost deserted. I quickly spotted Vivian, under the overhang made of rotten wood, holding a coffee and Panera bag while waving to me.

Viv was my best, and only, friend. I had known her since 1st grade. She frankly is probably the only reason I'm still here, alive and breathing.

"Hey Viv's" I said while walking under the dark grey clouds. Her caramel colored skin was flawless and her shiny black hair was pulled into a tight messy bun on to of her head. Her beautiful emerald eyes had bags underneath them letting me know she had been out at a club last night. Typical Vivian.

"Morning Isla" she said while handing me breakfast and stifling a yawn.

"Where were you last night?" I asked as we wandered into the farmhouse. With that her eyes lit up and she filled me in on her eventful night.

"Ok so," Viv began "I went to this new club called 'Neon Nights'" she kept telling me about the guy she hooked up with, who turned out to be an ass, as we walked to the training gym. That's when Vivian bumped, literally, into my boss Gabriel.

"Oh God! Sorry Sir!" Vivian stated frantically as she scrambled behind me.

"Good morning Isla, Vivian." He nodded at us in greeting.

"Morning Gabriel" I said as he checked his Apple Watch.

"Is my star planning on bringing in some money for me tonight." He inquired looking at me hopefully. Gabriel won loads off of me because people refused, no matter how good I was, to bet on a girl. But that's just America I guess.

"Depends, 75- 25 split? Me with the 75 obviously." I stated causing him to chuckle.

"Only for you Isla, and that's not including the interest." He said while holding out his hand for me to shake. I grabbed it and sighed while signaling for Viv to follow me to the training area.

After a solid 5 hours of training Vivian and I drove around to find something to eat before my match at 8. It was important to me to eat 4 hours in advance so I don't accidentally vomit on my opponent later. Lesson Learned. A little while later Vivian pulled into a McDonald's.

"Really Viv!" I sighed "I need something that will give me enough energy for tonight. Also you know I hate McDonald's." I said with a scowl evident on my face.

"It's my turn to pick, you picked Olive Garden last time, which I hate" she said while she turned off the car and unbuckled her seatbelt "Plus I don't feel like driving any further away from the farmhouse. Otherwise it will take us forever to get back."

"Fine," I said remembering full well of our every other day lunch agreement. "But remember I'm crashing at your place tonight since I'm fighting." Vivian lived up here in Ithaca, so when I fought late I crashed at her place instead of driving home for 4 hours. We sat down in a corner booth after we got our food. Vivian got a happy meal and I got a salad, a coke, and a large fries. If there is one good thing I will admit about McDonald's it is that their fries and sodas are the best.

"So how's the thrift shop?" I asked Vivian, she ran a thrift shop with her sister Brielle.

"Great! Brielle is a bit mad I keep asking her to cover my shifts for your fights though." Vivian stated

"You know you don't have to help me train every waking minute, right?" I questioned as we munched on the last of our fries.

"Yeah but that's what good friends do!" She said with a smile as she got up to throw away her trash. I followed and we walked back to the car.

"What music are you feeling like for the ride back?" Viv asked me.

"Maybe some Icona Pop?" I said

"Of course, why did I even have to ask." she said while she rolled her eyes sarcastically. A minute later my favorite duo start playing trough Vivian's Sedan speakers.

"I GOT THIS FEELING ON A SUMMER DAY WHEN YOU WERE GONE!" We screamed with the song, "I CRASHED MY CAR INTO THE BRIDGE, I WATCHED, I LET IT BURN! I THREW YOUR SHIT INTO A BAG AND PUSHED IT DOWN THE STAIRS! I CRASHED MY CAR INTO THE BRIDGE! I DON'T CARE! I LOVE IT!"

We sang along to the music all the way back to the barn, just like we do every day. It's my favorite part of the day because we both have horrible voices and spend half of the time laughing at each other.

We pulled back up to the barn with three hours to spare, so with that I went back to training...

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A/N Hi everyone I hope you enjoyed this first chapter, I know it was pretty short and would love if you checked out my other non-fanfic story, Shadow (:
Don't forget to vote and comment! (:
-TheWritingBanana 🤍