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December 21, 2015. 1:39pm.
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Cedrick could feel the sweat dripping down his face as the bell rang, signaling the end of the fourth round. Hit after hit, round after round, and he felt tired, sluggish, beat- but he wasn't giving up. That was Cedrick though; he never gave up. No matter how weak he felt, how beaten he was, or broken he may have been, laying down like a dog and giving up was never an option.
Through four rounds, his opponent Raheem 'Lucky' Crawford, hadn't necessarily gotten the best of him but was getting in licks where he saw Cedrick was weak. It was the exact reason why there was a gushing cut that sat above Cedrick's left eye. It was obvious thar Cedrick wasn't really himself tonight and Raheem was making sure to attack him while he was weak. Fighting Cedrick was like fighting a monster; you couldn't go at him, you had to go through him.
"You gotta get your head in the game baby," his trainer told him, dabbing off the sweat and blood that slid down his face. Cedrick just stared ahead, at his opponent, taking in all of the cuts and bruises that were on his face. From the corner of his eye, he could see Raheem look out to his left and wave his hand out to the crowd. As his trainer bickered in his ear about protecting himself, his eyes traveled out to the crowd where he could see Raheem smiling at his wife and daughter- ultimately making tears well up in Cedrick's eyes.
His head immediately went to Alani. He thought about her smile, her voice, her touch. He thought about how she told him she was proud of him, and how before every fight she'd kiss his gloves. Then his mind went to his daughter; his daughter who was his entire heart. Cedrick never knew how possible it was to love someone who was no longer here physically until he thought of Alexis. Although she was premature, he knew Alexis was going to be his twin. She already had his nose and eyes, and she definitely had his smile. He remembered everyone thinking he was crazy but he could remember him reaching his hand in the incubator and Alexis gripping his finger with a smile. His baby knew who he was, and he'd never forget it.
"My head is in the game," Cedrick spit out the water that was now mixed with his own blood in the bucket, "I got it. The cut ain't that bad."
With a press of the cold iron and swipe of Vaseline over the cut that was on his eye, his trainer just nodded, "It's not but one more hit and it's gonna break. Last thing we need is the commissioner's doctor tryna take a look at it."
"And if he try to take a look at it, I'ma tell him the same thing," Cedrick spat, giving his trainer a hard glare, "I'm good."
"Ten seconds out," the referee informed Cedrick's corner, prompting him to put his mouthguard back in. Cedrick stood up, shaking out his arms and letting out a shaky breath.
"You got this baby." Alani's voice shot through his head, making a soft smile appear on his face. But when he saw Raheem blow a kiss at his wife and child, he could feel something inside of him snap. That was supposed to be him. He was supposed to have his wife and baby sitting ringside as he fought his way to the championship spot. He was supposed to be smiling and blowing kisses out into the crowd. He was supposed to be happy.
Instead, his wife was on the other side of the world and his daughter was dead. How could he be happy when everyone he had seemed to be gone? Even his little sister.
When the bell signaled for the fifth round to begin, Cedrick came out swinging. There was nothing that could stop him. He had Raheem against the ropes immediately, pounding his hands into Raheem's face. With every punch he threw he thought about his wife, he thought about his daughter, he thought about his sister, he thought about his life. He thought about how happy Raheem was with his family and it hurt him. Why couldn't he be that happy? He was a good man with an amazing wife, and all they ever wanted was a family. Cedrick was angry, and the only person he could take it out on was his opponent- Raheem.
"That's it! That's it!" The ref immediately screamed at the two, noticing how weak Raheem was as Cedrick's fist pounded into his body, "Fight's done."
Cedrick took a step back and looked at Raheem who fell to the floor, bloody and beaten. As Cedrick's crew came rushing into the ring with happy smiles, Cedrick couldn't even pretend to be happy. Because even though he had just won his fight, at least Raheem had a family to go home too.
This fight had determined him being one fight closer to being heavy weight champion. He had one more fight to win to bring home that title, and his wife wasn't by his side. The day that should of been the happiest he didn't even crack a smile, not one.
"Aye nigga." He turned to see Alondra step into the ring. "I'm telling Alani ya big ass just won and ain't acting like it." She held balloons and a card with a mug plastered on her face. "I done came all this way for you be just.... there" She laughed and he side hugged her.
"Yo, I ain't see you here." He chuckled. "Please don't tell her I just sat here, tell her I was happy" he took the things she held out to him and smiled at the hand writing on the card. He knew it was Alani's.
Alondra smiled at the small tear that escaped his eye. "She left a video on my phone for you too, well two and please get the one off my phone. It's kind of disturbing." Alondra gagged. "Playing with that lil pussy" she sent him the videos and deleted the one.
Cedrick smiled, he should have known his wife was going to be there even if she wasn't there. "Thanks londra, that means a lot to me." He gave her another hug before being pulled away to take pictures.
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December 30, 2015. 2:39am.
A week later.
Sipping on his third bottle of Jack Daniels Cedrick watched the video of his wife congratulating him over and over again. "Say congrats daddy." She held the bear and pressed the stomach so he could hear his baby small cooes. "You hear that? She said she loves you and she was watching you the whole time." Alani smiled in the camera placing the bear down, back into their daughters crib.
Hearing a knock at the door he cut the video short and stumbled his way to the door. He had been so drunk this last week he wouldn't have even seen the many numbers that had tried to call him.
Opening the door he immediately stopped in his tracks and fell to the ground.
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Can't thank my sis britxcvi enough for this boxing scene! 😭😍
