CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
The night of Black Friday, Kitty showed up at the neighborhood bar. For most of the year, it was a dive. But Thanksgiving was different. The "townies" were back home from college for the weekend, and the neighborhood bar was the hot spot to gather and catch up. This year was even more special, in that everyone in Kitty and Lori's class was turning 21, so there was no need for fake id's. The entire class could gather, and did.
The previous year's catfight between Kitty and Lori was now something of a neighborhood legend. Everyone had heard a different version of it, but the details were clear: under the watchful eyes of a single witness, Coach Loretta, Kitty and Lori had engaged in a two-round war, first in the high school sauna, and then on the mats in the gym. Kitty had emerged victorious, with Lori losing her job and her future as Loretta's heir-apparent. Kitty's reputation soared, with the town's boys retroactively claiming to have had flings with Kitty in high school, and the girls grateful they had not tangled with Kitty.
And all were envious at Coach Loretta's witnessing the battle.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
But now perhaps even that could be rectified. There was buzz on Facebook that a rematch between Kitty and Lori was possible on Black Friday. Everyone half believed it was just bogus Internet gossip. And yet, what if it was true? Surely such an event could not be missed.
10 pm arrived. And so did Kitty. And Lori. Neither even made a pretense of being there for any other reason than to fight each other, this time in front of their entire high school class. Both were in comfortable fight wear--torn jeans and tank tops, despite the chilly November air. The bar owner announced that anyone who wanted or needed to leave had best do so now, as he was locking the doors for as long as necessary for the bitchfight showdown to finish. A couple of elderly women left, but everyone stayed.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
A small sunken dance floor area, with multi-level seating for viewing, had been cleared and prepared. Kitty and Lori wasted no time in taking their positions in opposite corners. Kitty was confident and eager, but at the same time acutely aware that she could have easily lost the last fight. Lori was a strong and skilled wrestler, and any clinches would likely involve Kitty on the floor, under Lori. Kitty's strategy was to keep this brawl a standup fistfight, drawing blood from Lori's nose and mouth as quickly as possible. The hard, uncomfortable dance floor would hopefully discourage Lori from bringing the fight to the ground.
The girls in the crowd started shrieking for the fight to begin. Both Kitty and Lori knew the would never live down the humiliation of such a public defeat. Every cellphone camera was poised and ready, and at least 17 versions of this fight was be on YouTube by midnight.
In a wordless mutual challenge, Kitty and Lori both let their long hair down, and fluffed it out, removed their shoes, and took off their rings. Fists up, the approached the center of the makeshift ring.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
What surprised Kitty most about the first right jab that connected with Lori's cheek is that it slid off in a film of sweat. Kitty noticed the dance floor floodlights, in combination with the overcrowded room and the tension of the event, had cause both gladiatrices to be already sweating profusely. Their long hair, instead of flowing out after strikes to the face, was limply dangling down straight, drenched, as if both had come in from a rainstorm. The tank tops clung to their body as if a wet t-shirt contest was in progress. Kitty could smell the Lori's b.o. in every clinch that followed an exchange. But what Kitty noted most of all was that the distinct flesh-on flesh-on "thwacking" sound, which she loved about fighting but which she relied on to gauge and adjust the effectiveness of her fists, was inaudible in the feminine shrieking which continued, unrelenting, in the fistfight so far.
Kitty also realized that although she was a far bitter kicker than Lori, she had not yet landed any of her patented crotch kicks to Lori's box. She was expended such time and effort lining up and trying to land right crosses, that she was absorbing tremendous punishment from Lori's rock-hard hands. Both women periodically examined the profuse liquid discharges from their faces--just sweat, no blood, so far. But Kitty could sense painful welts and bruises forming on the surface of her entire face.
Kitty was getting the standup fistfight she so relished and lasted for. But not the results.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
In an exchange of crotch kicks, both women went to the ground and clinched together, their faces pressing together. For the first time all night, their voices were audible to each other. The customary hissing "bitch/slut/cxnt" exchange occured, but then Lori said, "I'm such a better fighter than you, Kitty." A light bulb went off in Kitty's head. Lori had been training for this event. If Kitty continued to exchange fists with Lori, Lori would win. Kitty needed to change tactics, and fast.
Kitty grabbed both straps on Lori's soaked tank top, and yanked hard. The entire crowd chanted in unison "tits!, tits!" as Lori's chest became visible. Lori did the same to Kitty, as both women sprang up, now completely topless, and dug into each others' hair. The full-on catfight began.
Kitty had Lori exactly where she wanted her. As both women pulled each others' heads downward, presenting their bare, soaked backs to the audience, Kitty unleashed a barrage of her patented uppercutting knees and then feet to Lori's face. At least one of these landed direct to the nose, as both women were now immediately smeared in Lori's blood.
To the crowd, it was not yet clear exactly what had happened. But as both women released their grip and separated to self-assess the damages, it was clear that Kitty's face was clear, pretty as ever, but that Lori's was a wreck, her nose not even centered on her face.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
As the crowd screamed, almost begging for "round 2! round 2!", a makeshift fighters corner applied towels and ice to Lori's wrecked face. Kitty, disgusted now by the virtual soup of Lori's body fluids on her bare top and in her hair, also vigorously applied towels to her body. Both women wanted at each other still more, and submitted to the demands of their corners so that round 2 could commence as soon as feasible.
After several minutes delay, Lori's bleeding appeared under control. Both women, topless, approached, circling and jabbing tentatively but purposefully. Lori wanted badly to cut open Kitty's face, to avenge the blood she had spilled, now stainging the dance floor. Kitty wanted to deny Lori the technical boxing match Lori had trained for--Kitty wanted to keep this affair the vicious NHB bitchfight it had become, and at which she excelled.
So, Kitty bared her nails, and started swiping and clawing at Lori's exposed chest. When she hit her target, she dug in as deep as she could. Lori at first tried to respond with fists, but eventually realized the futility of the strategy, as again it was now Lori who was cut.
Lori gave in, and entered into an on the floor cat ball with her enemy, and each gave up any pretense of defense, and dug into each others chests and hair, writhing on the soaked floor.
Lori's nails extracted more damage, but that was beside the point. Kitty's knees went to work, and found their target on Lori's crotch. The crowd counted the strikes in unison "1-2-3-.....", and by knee #15, Lori had no more fight left. The bar owner pulled Kitty off of Lori. If Kitty had been alone with her enemy, she would have kept dishing out punishment, but instead had to settle for the cheers of the crowd. She became aware of her toplessness, and retreated to a restroom, wanted to inspect her own injuries for the first time. But she knew she had won the barfight.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX HT
The YouTube versions of the Kitty-Lori fight which survive on the Internet contain only the opening fistfight portion. As soon as the tops came off, the content became too hot for even YouTube to handle. So the conclusion passes around town as oral legend. But no one who was there that night will ever forget Kitty's or Lori's fight. Nor start trouble with either of them.
THE END?
