The Revenge of a good girl

Four

                          Danni
After school, I met Ace on the football field as he had demanded earlier. I had pissed him off by ignoring him when I was walking into school this morning. According to Daisy Mae, I was supposed to stop and come stand in front of him when he called my name.
Daisy, Sally, and I walk to the field and see Ace, Jason, Seth, and a bunch of other kids waiting in the middle of the field for us. "Damn, he's serious about this, isn't he?" I ask the girls. Daisy giggles and says, "You have no idea. You dissed him in front of the entire school and his older brother." Sally adds, "Well, damn, if he thinks I'm just going to stand there and take whatever he's going to throw at me, he's out of his damn mind." We continue walking towards the middle of the field.
"Well, damn, I didn't really expect you to show your face, girl," Ace smirks at me. "What do you want, Ace?" I ask him. He throws me a pair of boxing gloves and puts on a pair for himself. "So, we're boxing, huh?" I ask him. I guess he didn't get enough the other night. I'm going to have to show him what I'm really made of so he'll leave me alone.
I put on my boxing gloves and walk closer to where he's standing. He declares that one of his brothers will be the referee. Jason, I think, tells us the rules as if this is a real boxing fight. Then we start. Ace comes at me with full force, but I duck and bounce behind him, giving him a light punch. "Fuck," he roars. Then he comes after me again, and this time he connects with my jaw. I spit out a little blood and smile at him. "Is that all you've got, big man?" I taunt him and land a blow to his nose. He roars again and comes at me with everything he has, knocking me to the ground. He jumps on top of me and starts pounding my ribs and arms as I block his hits to the face. Finally, Jason pulls him off me and pushes him back. "What the fuck, man? That's a fucking girl!" Jason yells at Ace. Ace looks at me, shakes his head, and walks over to me, probably to help me up off the ground. But fuck him. I scramble up on my own and hobble over to the girls, and we walk off the field.
"Are you okay, Danni?" Daisy asks, checking me over everywhere. I slap her hands away and let her know I'm fine, but I need to get to work before Mrs. G has my head for being late.
We all leave the field and head towards Sally's boyfriend's car. They drop me off at the lawyer's office, and I quickly go to the bathroom to clean up and change into appropriate office attire. When I walk into the office, Geneva, looks up at me and asks what happened to me. I regret not applying more makeup to cover up the bruises that are already forming. I can't tell her that her nephew caused them. I came up with an excuse and told her that I didn't have good practice this afternoon. Surprisingly, she drops the subject and we start working. The phone rings frequently throughout the day, and I answer it for the hundredth time when Ace, along with his brothers, walks into Mrs. G's office. Unfortunately, Geneva is not in her office at the moment. Ace asks me where his aunt is, and I inform him that she is in a meeting and suggest that he waits for her outside. He smirks at me and then walks over to my desk. He taunts me, asking if I feel uncomfortable around him. I laughed it off. Just as he does, Mrs. Geneva returns to the room. She asks the boys why they are here, seemingly surprised to see them. They explain that they were told to pick up a package for their dad. Mrs. Geneva hands Ace an envelope and warns them not to open it. They leave, and Mrs. Geneva and I continue working together for the next four hours. As I leave the office to catch the bus, since Geneva still has work to do, someone grabs me and slams me against the building wall. I look up and see that it's not who I expected. It's Seth. I ask him what he wants, and he gives me a warning to stop provoking Ace. He says that they won't intervene the next time I mess with him. I defend myself, telling him that I wasn't the one who started it and that he should tell his brother to back off. Seth then leans down and bites my bottom lip before walking away. It's a strange encounter. I make my way to the bus stop and catch the next bus to the group home. Once there, I go to the kitchen and prepare dinner for everyone. I decide on grilled pork chops, mac and cheese, mashed potatoes, and cornbread. After we finish eating and cleaning up, I go to my room to do my homework.
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"Where are you going, little girl? Come downstairs with me and witness what I have done to mommy and daddy. After that, we can have some fun together."
I wake up in a panic, and Sally is right by my side. "Danni, what's wrong? Talk to me," she says. This is the first time I've shown any weakness in front of these girls. "I don't know, Sally. I keep having these strange dreams from when I was a little girl. I think my mind is trying to tell me something about the day my parents died," I cry. "Do you remember anything about that day?" she asks. "No, I've suppressed that memory. The doctors told me it's because of the trauma I experienced. I was shot in the head that day and I don't even remember how or why. The bullet barely grazed me."
"Oh my god, Danni, have you ever thought about seeing a hypnotist? They might be able to help you figure out what happened and alleviate the nightmares," Sally suggests. "Yeah, I've thought about it a lot, but I don't know where to start with something like that. I've done some research, which is why I changed group homes so close to turning 18. I have a lead on who murdered my parents, or at least who had them murdered," I tell her. "Let me guess, the guys are involved somehow?" she asks. "Not directly, but they can lead me to the person who is," I explain.
"Oh my god, Danni, what are you going to do?" Sally asks. "Well, the Kings are having a party this weekend, and I was thinking maybe we could crash it," I suggest. "Are you insane?" she responds. "Possibly, but tell me you're not a little bit excited about playing Nancy Drew for a day," I say. "And are you going to get Daisy Mae involved in your insanity?"
"What am I getting involved in, and why is it insane?" Daisy Mae asks as she walks into the room. "Danni wants to crash a party the Kings are throwing this weekend to do some investigating," Sally explains. They both look at me like I'm crazy. "And what do you want us to do?" Daisy asks. "I just want you guys to come to the party with me, scope out the place, and help me find the office. I'll take care of the rest," I tell them.
"I'm in," Daisy says. I look over at Sally, and she shakes her head. "I'm in, but you have to do one thing for me," she tells me. "And what's that?" I ask. "You have to go see the hypnotist and get help with your dreams," she says. I give her a look but agree to her demand.
"Alright, now that we've settled that, let's get ready for school and head downstairs to prepare breakfast for everyone," I say to the girls. We make our way downstairs, and I start making breakfast on my own while the other girls take care of other tasks. Once everything is done, we all leave for school. Daisy and I ride with Sally and her boyfriend. When we arrive at school, we head to our first class of the day.
At the end of the day, I have boxing practice, but it's going to be tough after what Ace did to me yesterday and the beating I took in gym class today. Apparently, we still play dodgeball in high school, and Ace and his brothers made sure to target me as much as possible.
I make my way to the boxing gym and prepare for my first boxing partner. When I step into the ring, I come face to face with Seth. "What the hell are you doing here?" I ask him. He smiles at me and says, "I'm your boxing partner today." I'm surprised and ask, "I thought you guys wrestled?" He smirks and replies, "We do both."
I raise an eyebrow at Seth's response. I didn't expect him to be my boxing partner, especially since I knew him as a wrestler. But I guess it makes sense for athletes to cross-train in different disciplines. I take a moment to gather my thoughts and then nod at Seth.
"Alright then, let's do this," I say, stepping into the ring. Seth follows suit, and we both put on our boxing gloves. The atmosphere in the gym is intense, with the sound of punches and the smell of sweat filling the air.
As the bell rings, Seth and I begin circling each other, studying our movements. I can see the determination in his eyes, and I know I have to bring my A-game if I want to hold my own against him.
We exchange a few jabs and hooks, testing each other's defenses. Seth's punches are powerful and precise, a testament to his experience in both boxing and wrestling. I have to rely on my agility and quick reflexes to dodge his attacks and counter with my own.
The rounds go by quickly, and with each passing minute, I can feel myself getting more comfortable in the ring. Seth is a tough opponent, but I refuse to back down. I push myself to the limit, throwing punches with all my strength and using every technique I've learned.
As the final round approaches, I can see the sweat dripping down Seth's face. He's just as exhausted as I am, but neither of us is willing to give up. We continue to trade blows, each punch landing with a satisfying thud.
Finally, the bell rings, signaling the end of the match. Seth and I step back, breathing heavily, but with smiles on our faces. Despite the intense competition, there's a mutual respect between us. We may come from different backgrounds, but in the ring, we're equals.
As we remove our gloves and head towards the locker room, Seth turns to me and says, "You're a tough opponent, my friend. We should spar again sometime." I nod, knowing that this won't be the last time we face off in the ring.
Leaving the gym, I feel a sense of accomplishment. Boxing with Seth was a challenge, but it also pushed me to become a better fighter. I'm grateful for the opportunity and excited for what lies ahead in my boxing journey.