A Charmed Reincarnation (Season 1)

Chapter 19: Bite Me...If You Dare

Sweat. It's all I feel. Down my face, down my back, and even the space between my thighs, unfortunately. Mason and I are panting as we go head to head. We trade blow for blow, trying to beat the other. My hits don't match his strength, but I've become more agile through my training and can dodge his attacks with little difficulty, which leaves us waiting for the other to slip up or give in.

We circle each other, both wearing grins as we look for an opening in the other's defense.

"You've gotten stronger," he praises me.

"And you've gotten slower." I taunt him.

He smirks and asks, "Did you consider I might just be holding back?"

"You holding back? I thought you said you wouldn't go easy on me, Mason."

"I did, didn't I?"

Suddenly, he rushes at me, and my body tenses up. My eyes follow his movements and try to predict his next move. His leg twitches before it flies up to kick me in the side. My arms raise and block the heavy hit. It hurts, but I push through the pain and notice him raising his arm and aiming at my face. I quickly duck and sidestep him. He doesn't let me put more space between us and continues a series of punches. I duck and weave through them. He's attacking so fast that I'm forced to stay on the defensive. I know what he's doing, though. He's trying to force me into a corner, so I can't dodge him.

I won't let you. I think to myself.

The next punch he throws, I grab his arm and wrap my legs around his waist. Using the forward motion of his punch, I pull back and let my weight and gravity flip him onto his back. With me straddling him, I grab his other hand and hold it firmly against the concrete floor of the warehouse. I'm panting on top of Mason, trying to conserve what little strength I have left before he forces me off of him. I'm waiting for him to, yet he continues staring at me with a grin and an indiscernible look in his eyes.

"Why aren't you fighting back?" I ask him, puzzled. "With how tired I am, you could easily get out of this."

He smirks and asks, "You mean like this?"

I feel him shift his feet, and I glance back to see he's firmly planted them onto the ground. I turn around, and it looks like he's about to head butt me causing me to flinch back and let go of my grip on his arms. He uses my slip-up to grab my wrists and push himself up, reversing our positions with him on top. I struggle in vain for a second or two to see if I can break his hold, but I know it's useless.

"Giving up so soon?" He asks me.

I give another experimental tug, but his grip doesn't loosen. "I wouldn't call it giving up just...considering my other options."

"Like what?"

"I could cast a spell," I mumble and look off to the side.

"You're not allowed to use magic." He reminds me. I think of other ways to get out of this, but I'm too tired to attempt any of them. "Just say it, Ambrose. Admit that you've lost."

I smile and say, "Never."

He smiles back and says, "Then I guess we'll just wait here until you do."

We stare at each other for a while, neither of us willing to give in. After a while, I feel Mason's body relax, including his grip on my wrists. He looks at me strangely, as if he is unsure of what he is looking at. A buzzing sound breaks the silence, and I glance over to see my phone vibrating on top of the box I set it down on earlier.

I glance back at Mason and wait for him to let me up, but he doesn't. "I have to get that. Do you mind moving?" I ask.

He blinks and scrambles back. "Sorry," he mumbles.