Another story from the old siteThe time line so far 1 [After school one afternoon 2 This one 3 Jenn's revenge 4 Beach Bitch Brawl 5 A bad Night out 6 Cassies Holiday
I still don’t know why I ever went to that club that night on my own. Sure I had been to cat fight clubs before but not to that rather dirty dive and not by myself. I’d gone to other places with friends. I had a bad week, I had had a nasty argument with Rita, oh nothing that a few days wouldn’t mend, nothing that I couldn’t fix with some soothing words but I didn’t want to soothe her! She was in the wrong. She should learn she hurt me with her remarks sometimes. Yeah I know she didn’t mean it- I knew even then that she didn’t but she still needed to learn not to upset me. And yeah Joan told me I was too prickly, that my shoulder chip was working overtime. That is so not what I wanted to hear. And that was sure not the way to conciliate me. Duh!
Perhaps that’s part of the reason I went alone. I wanted to prove myself, I wanted to show those girls I could handle trouble just as I had at school. And another reason was I had had a long day at the cannery. I was tired and sore but after a shower I felt better. But still it had been a trying day, some of the machinery had broken and we couldn’t make quota. I was frustrated, yeah angry, wasn’t my fault we couldn’t get the work done but our bonus- my bonus-wouldn’t be coming that week. It was unfair.
And with that anger buzzing in my head, anger from friends who had upset me, anger from a bad day at work, I stormed into the tin shed that housed the Amazon Club. From the outside it looked just like another half derelict factory, the sort that was all too common after 20 years of free trade, Reaganomics and supply side crap had ripped the guts out of American industry and out of her trades people. I made me puke. And, I wanted to ask, who benefited, not the people like my dad and the guys at the Steelworkers local, only the damn elites –all those café sitting cappacino drinking rich and their hangers on. And that of course made me even angrier. But what could one dumb bitch like me do?
The only thing that told me it was different was the sign, advertising cat fights, oil wrestles and mud battles. I though it would appeal to some yobbo guys and oh boy I saw I was right when I walked in and got myself a beer. . I sat down at a table to watch. The fight was staged, the girls were posers. There was no real fight like I had seen in other clubs. And another thing, there weren’t many women around, most fight clubs I’d been to had a few, sure there were more guys then women but in this joint there were almost no women at all. I felt even more alone.
But some guy stood next to my table. He was talking with some other men. After a while I began eavesdropping on their conversation- they were talking ice hockey- my fav sport. I glanced at him and his friends rather then the fight- it was too stagey to be interesting. I guessed he was about 5ft 10 and maybe a bit more then 200 lbs, -yeah a bit too solid- but hell who am I talk and most of it was muscle.-. He looked like someone who could definitely take care of himself in a fight. His friends left. He turned to me. "This place is sure crowded, you mind if I sit here"
I shook my head "Feel free, it’s not much of a fight is it?"
I felt him checking out my body, he was giving me the quick look over every guy does to a girl he fancies. It didn’t happen to me often enough. But then, what did he want? I met his gaze; he smiled a little and kept right on looking me over. "Don’t be shy my name is Will"
"I didn’t think you were being shy Will!"
He smirked, "I just don’t want you to be either. What’s your name hun?"
I looked up at him, thinking he is a bit cocksure and very forward. But I admitted to myself that I was like that at times too, just not to strange guys in clubs. "Err hi Will" I looked at the fight for a minute and took a swig of my beer. I was trying to buy time to think of something clever to say but couldn’t. "Well Will what brings you here?" It was a weak rejoinder but it was the best I could think of right then.
"Just got off work. Having a drink with some friends till they ran out on me. I am trying to let the week pass through my memory, it wasn’t a good one. I want to get the weekend going right." He shook his head
"What a terrible catfight! Oh my god" He gulped his beer.
"Yeah its foul so staged, its pathetic. Anyway, what do you do for a job Will? " I gulped my beer too.
"Cheers Will." I smiled at him.
"Cheers um my job isn’t important" he answered.
I glanced up, thinking he wasn’t very communicative.
As if he knew what I was thinking he went on "It was a rough week sorry; I would like to try to forget work."
"Hmm, mine wasn’t very good either." I replied.
"And by the way babe, you didn’t answer my question either"
I looked at him surprised.
"Babe I asked you your name? Do you want me to have to call you babe all night?"
I giggled. "Well it would be kinda cute."
He pulled his chair closer and slipped an arm round my waist. "Well maybe, but I do like to know the name
of the babe I am buying a drink for" he smiled.
"Jenn and it’s a beer thanks."
He wasn’t gone more then a few minutes. When he came back he pushed his chair much closer to mine. "I couldn’t hear you properly before Jenn," he explained smiling.
"Nice try, now tell the truth" I retorted taking a swig of my beer.
"Yeah well, you got me there" he chuckled and slipped his hand over my knee. "Now Jenn, babe- why are you here?"
"I guess the same as you, let the week go by." I pulled my leg away. I wasn’t a cheap slut.
"But why here? To a cat fight club? And why on your own? "
I didn’t have an answer, well not that I wanted him to know. So I tried to change the subject. "Hey, for someone who won’t tell me where they work you’re getting very personal Will!"
"Ok, I’m a rigger, I work on construction sites, I’m currently at a site in Gary , we are building a new shopping mall. Now you know." He smiled
"You said it was a bad week what went wrong?"
"Yeah the steel wasn’t milled right, we couldn’t use it the way it came we had to bore new holes and weld some beams that should have come welded. Cheap foreign steel too. It’s not the quality we got from American steel."
"Yeah it stinks, and all this foreign shit is knocking people like us out of work. This NAFTA was a disgrace, the whole free trade thing stinks. But what gives me the shits more than anything else, more than the fact that we are buying shoddy imports, more than our workers losing their jobs or being forced to work for low pay is that the Chinese workers are even more oppressed. They are made to work for a dollar a day. They don’t have any unions, they don’t have any rights, not even the rights Mexicans or Thais or Filipinos have. Communism! It fucks its people bid time! And the Chinese elite are trying to fuck everyone else up. They are undercutting those other Asian countries with even lower wages and cheaper products. Yeah crap products but not enough people care. So long as its cheap they think. And the Chinese elite- all the communist hierarchy are just raking it in
"Hey Jenn you ought to go into politics. You’re not just a pretty face. Girl you got a passion, you got brains." He took his hand off my knee and slid it round my waist. He pulled me closer till my shoulder was pressed against his body. "Now, babe, please answer my question: why are you here and on your own?"
I still didn’t want to answer, why would I want to tell this stranger I got hot from fighting other girls. Why would I want to tell him – or any guy who was coming on strong- that I was a little bi, that I was into Domming other girls. Hell back then I didn’t even know that for sure myself. All my feelings were all mixed up. I guess that was another reason why I was always sour and angry then.
"Well there wasn’t any icehockey on tonight that I could go to. And yeah I eavesdropped, I heard you and your friends talking about ice hockey. I like it too, I follow the Hawks in the Calder Cup."
When he responded by talking about NHL hockey I thought I had turned the conversation around but a few moments later he put his beer down. "Any more excuses Jenn?"
"What do you mean?" I tried to play innocent.
"Don’t act dumb cuz I know you’re not Why are you here? Why are you alone?"
I gulped and bit the bullet. "I like cat fighting, I am into it a bit myself. I have fought in another club- once. I have been in a few brawls in clubs and on the beach and so on. I like watching it too –when its for real that is."
"So you’re a fighter."
"Yeah."
"You want another beer Jenn?"
"Yeah but I should buy it"
"No way. I am buying your drinks, I won’t have a woman I’m with buying me drinks."
He went and got it. I turned to watch the fight. It was still stagy and rubbish. "Oh come on for god’s sake. Stop messing around, stop playing games. Do something. Beat the bitch!" I yelled frustrated.
"Think you could do better do you?" I looked around at the speaker a middle aged woman in a t shirt n shorts.
"Sure I do, I can fight. I have fought. And not stuffed around like those stupid sluts either." I looked more closely.
"Hey what’s that on your t- that’s this place’s logo. Don’t tell me you work here!"
"I do as a matter of fact."
"Guess you’re the cleaner then, perhaps you need to put out the trash, like those two no good sluts pretending to fight it out."
She glared at me. "I’ll have you know I fight. I’m a pro."
I looked at her. "You're having me on, you're past it" I giggled. "You poor old thing."
"I've seen you, I was watching you walk around earlier," she snapped. " You've got an attitude problem. And here you are doing it again. Girl you should watch yourself. People wont like you, not with your I'm better than people attitude."
"Gee thanks lady for the personality tips." I sneered. "Do you think sweetie at your age you can still fight? Don't you think you should check your health insurance first? Check for cover for self inflicted injuries?"
The older woman snapped back "hey kid! Don't worry about me If you think you're up to it...get in and lets find out for sure. But since this may be your first time here...cause i never saw you here before I have to warn you. Once you get in there...there are no rules...or do-overs. None of this I give or I quit crap. Its only over when your down and out. Maybe you can’t handle that though kid."
She made my blood boil, she was talking as if I was some weak punk. "What do you mean? I can handle anything old lady" I could insult her too.
"I mean it gets rough in there." She jerked her head at the ring, paused and looked coldly at me before adding "rookie."
" No rules" I smiled at her. I tried to sound more confident then I was. You mean there is nothing I can’t do to you?"
"You can try" she retorted
"What’s going on Sheila?"
I turned to see the speaker was Will. "Damn it, he knows her, I wonder what else he knows?"
"This girl thinks she can fight" the woman replied.
"Yeah and she was complaining about the sham fight before, by the way Sheila meet Jenn." He turned to me. "Why don’t you go up there and show the how it’s done!"
I paled. Suddenly I felt very alone. "Had this guy tried to set me up?" I wondered, "Hell, I am not sure, they are professional fighters, what if they have been playing just so they can get a victim and beat her up?" I looked from one to the other.
"Not so mouthy are you now" snapped Sheila. "Yeah I thought you’d chicken out"
"I am sure Jenn won’t chicken out." Will said. He looked at me "Will you Jenn?"
I went even whiter "What the fuck do I do?" I muttered and turned to Will. "Err um?" I floundered.
"So girl, you are chickening out!" Sheila glared. She stepped towards me. "I knew it, weak lil girl full of wind and piss but no action."
"Damn it!" I was losing face, they were laughing at me. I couldn’t let that happen. "Shut your face bitch. I will fight you."
Will clapped his hands loudly. "Announcement Now hear this! Announcement! Now hear this. Sheila is being challenged by a new girl Jenn.
People around turned their heads. Some clapped. Some just looked. Will stood on a table and repeated
"Announcement Now hear this!" The spotlight that had played on the centre stage swung to beam on him. He tugged at my hand "People meet Jenn! "Jenn just challenged Sheila. We all know Sheila." There was a bit of applause. "But Jenn is new! Lets see what she can do!"
"Oh my god! He has set me up" I gasped. I glared at Will, "Fuck you!" I spat. I looked at him and at the people around me. I felt like I wanted to crawl away and hide. but i saw some peeps i knew from the neighbourhood, they were looking at me, they were whispering , if i piked out of this I'd be history. no one would ever take me seriously again
He hopped off the table. Putting his arms round my waist and pulling me close he kissed me hard on the lips. He murmured in my ear. "Go on girl! I am sure you can beat her. In fact I’m going to bet on you. If you win you get the dough. And I’ll buy you dinner."
Sheila smirked "Get in the ring there." She pointed.
"I’m hardly dressed for it." I took one last chance to get out of it. "I mean I’m in my going out clothes. Not what I want to fight in."
"Oh my god! Dressed! You are a rookie." Sheila sneered "Oh my...sheeez! Well see rookie," she paused to emphasise ‘rookie’ and went on "dress is not required! Oh my gawd! Never mind" she sighed loudly. "Don’t worry about it I don’t want to see you hurt tonight anyway. Maybe you could just sit in the back sipping your diet coke."
"Hell I don’t drink coke I drink pepsi and …what do you mean dress is not required. I gotta wear something. Now look here! Don’t patronise me." I was furious.
And it just got worse. Sheila tormented me more. "Ok, sweetie. I will be nice to you, you poor thing you. Look, the kiddie club is down the street. It has clowns and balloons. Let me give you directions. Go out the door, turn right and go around the corner. You’ll hear the carnival music then. Go there. You’ll be safe there. There you won’t get hurt or embarrassed.”
I couldn’t take any more. I slapped her face hard.
Her head snapped to the side. "You little bitch! Let’s settle this now" Sheila hissed, removing her short tan skirt and halter. She stood glaring at me in a sheer black bra and sheerer black panties. The crowd immediately cheered here on
I looked round to see Will. He smiled and gave me a thumbs up sign. But the rest of the crowd was on her side not mine. I looked at her again, she was lean, she looked fit. I gulped. "Hell! I am strong even if I am chubby" I stepped back, slipped off my heels, my denim skirt and my t shirt. "Ok bitch" I passed my clothes to Will "Look after this for me till I beat this bitch please.’ I stood in my white bra and panties glaring at Sheila.
By this time the crowd was screaming encouragement. The ring was empty and they wanted blood- my blood. I shivered, thinking what the fuck had I got myself in for? Sheila jerked her thumb at the ring and stepped in. "This shouldn’t last too long " she smiled at the referee.
"Well, hell what am I in for? Stuff it . I’m in it for fun and I’ll thrash this old bitch yet." I muttered as I looked around. I walked to the roped off area looking at it, looking around again.
"Go on girl get in the ring. Don’t waste time, don’t put it off, don’t try to get out of it now" Sheila catcalled at me.
I ducked under the ropes and saw Will standing next to a corner of a ring holding my clothes, a towel and some icepacks and water. "Get me a staminade will you. I might need a few drinks" I said to him. IT was great that there was one friendly face –well I hoped he was friendly, he had set me up here.
Sheila laughed and pointed "Yeah Will. You do that. And some bandages too. And you’d better get her an ambulance now too. Save time. That way they will be here and ready for her." She laughed again.
"Damn you bitch, I can fight" I snarled, .glaring at her from my corner. "Come on now slut . Now what is it? How long are the rounds?"
The bitch looked so confident. I knew she had been in this ring many times. I guessed she had won many matches. I was sure she thought she was going to beat me. She looked out over the crowd,-her crowd- they were cheering her on damn it! She smiled coldly at me and replied "Rounds? You are a rookie arent you? There is one round It
ends when your fat ass is laying flat on the floor. Unconscious!" She paused. She acknowledged some of her claque. . She went on "Get it, .rookie -overconfident loud mouth rookie bitch?"
All I could do was hiss "Bring it on bitch bring it on!" I was sweating, starting to worry what I had got myself into. I know now, hell I knew then that she was trying to mess with my mind. And it worked, she was putting me off, I was flustered. There was only one way to go. Forward! I moved in on her. I stared waiting for her move, my arms up defensively.
She watched me through hooded eyes. I knew she saw how unsure of myself I was, I knew she inwardly gloated at the success of her tactics. She smiled as she locked her eyes on mine. Moving closer with her fists raised she launched two jabs at my face. She was testing me
Nimbly I stepped back on my toes to avoid her blows. I succeeded- just- in parrying them with a blocking thrust of my arm. I was defensive, my body bunched over. I was trying to test out this woman’s strength. I watched her closely. Hearing her supporters egg her on, I felt very very lonely.
She was confident, she thought I was in over my depth. She circled me moving closer with each step. She stood her feet placed firmly, she smashed a hard right hook to my open side. She grunted with the punch. Her hookshot hit, my side flared with pain. I rocked back ward with the blow glaring at the bitch who struck me but trying to regroup and counterattack firing a quick punch at her belly and another one to her face. I hoped .the old one two tactic worked.
She managed to get her elbows down to at least partially block my belly punch. She groaned as it hit her side. But lowering her guard left her open for my head punch. Her head snapped back. She stumbled back a step. She shook
head. I knew she hadn’t expected that. I hoped she began to think I could fight. "O K bitch! You want it that way" she hissed. She took a deep breath and move back in.
I breathed a little easier now. I was watching her as she moved in again. I thought that while I may not have the strength, I will outlast this cow. I stepped forward trying to grapple her. This was my strong point -using my weight to try to push her back - back to where my foot had snaked behind hers. I would trip her up if I could.
The old bitch knew exactly what I was on about –she knew I wanted to use my size to my advantage. She stepped back, trying for some punching room. I saw she didn’t want to wrestle, she knew that was my advantage. But even so I partly succeeded. She stumbled back as my foot caught the back of hers. She landed on the ropes but moved to her side quickly making me follow her. She got her balance and readied herself. It wasn’t all I had wanted but it was a start. I had got her on the run for the first time. I wasn’t going to give her a break to recover. Instead moving after her, pushing forward, I tried again to grab her and hold her
She kept some room between us. She sent punches- perhaps uncoordinated but still painful against my sides as she backpeddled. Then she rammed her fist in my gut. I grunted with the pain of the blow to my weakest point. Her fans cheered. I hoped to keep the pressure up against her. My aim was to grab her and I was annoyed that I hadn’t succeeded. Instead she was moving back dodging me, always circling me. I try to push forward. I wanted to pin her in a corner. If I succeeded I would hold her and wrestle Already I was beginning to sweat heavily and pant a little.
She kept weaving and dodging as if she knew what I wanted. She probably did. She was so experienced and so confident. She continued to punch. She too was breathing heavily now. Perhaps this wasn’t her style of. She made a stand. She hurled punches at my gut. She may have only tried to slow me down but she damaged me badly. I groaned loudly. I tried to push forward, to grapple but I was even warier then before.
I knew she sensed I had taken the gut punch hard, that she had made be back off my attack. She took another punch at my head. I ducked but the punch still hit. My teeth seemed to rattle inside my head I felt sick at the roar of the crowd, encouraging their favourite to destroy me. I felt so alone and friendless and that unnerved me. I panted gasped for air as the fight strained me.
I tried to regroup. To stave her attacks off I raised my leg aiming it at her tummy. I so hoped it hit home! But it didn’t. It only hit her thigh. "Oh god" she groaned. Perhaps I had done more damage then I knew. She limped a bit but drove another punch at my head.
Again her punch connected. I faltered, dropped back, my vision blurred momentarily. But I hoped I had hurt her. She wasn’t moving as well I advanced, trying to grab her round the middle, trying to stop those relentless punches, hoping to bring her down. I gasped, my belly heaved as I sucked air into my burning lungs.
"Fuck! Arrgh" I staggered backward; groaning, gasping in pain, doubled up for a moment from her punch which had slammed into my belly. I let her go. I retreated trading space for time. I knew the whole fight has just changed in one blow. Her fist was like iron. "Oh my gut!. Arggh! Bitch!" I tried to regroup. I put my arms up defensively
But she was hurt too. She hobbled, favouring the thigh my knee had hit. She seemed unable to push her advantage for the moment. I began to think I could wear her down. I moved in trying to get her in a body slam, to force her into the turnbuckle. But I was brought up short by yet another punch to my head. I knew I couldn’t take many more punches. I knew I was weakened. So did she! But I had to try. I pushed forward with the slam again. It didn’t quite work but I did grapple her onto the mat. She got up on all fours before I could capitalise.
I tried to kick her side. I remembered her words- the fight only ends in knock out. I was so tired. I knew I was almost out of gas. She rolled away as I approached. My foot caught her mid roll. It only helped her roll more. Sure it might have hurt her but nothing serious.
"Oh shit! She is on her back. Panting!" I couldn’t believe my luck, the cow was lying panting her chest heaving up and down. She was groaning.
I rushed forward. I was going to stamp on her belly but she rolled onto her side and my foot landed on her ribs. She groaned again. I knew I was going to win! "Bitch! You’re going down. " I aimed my foot for another stomp. I was confident now. I knew I could end this quickly.
My stomp landed and it seemed her body jerked almost in half. Her arms flopped to her side, she rolled slowly onto her back, her mouth hung open as she gasped for breath.
I heard Will’s voice " C’mon Jenn! Finish this blonde!"
I dropped to my knees and jerked the older woman up into a sitting position, one arm round her neck. I had her in a sleeper hold. She panicked, she grabbed at my arm trying to free herself but she was weaker, much weaker then I thought she would be. I slowly tightened my hold. I had very little left but I hoped that what I did have would be enough to hold on and beat her. The only thing Sheila did was to punch me in the head. IT hurt, my head throbbed but I kept hold. Her mouth still hung open, she was gasping for air more and more. Her body twitched, her arms dropped , she twitched again and went limp.
I let her go and crawled over to the ropes and hauled myself up on them. I blinked, looked round and saw her lying limply on the floor of the ring out cold. I looked at the crowd. It was almost silent. No one had expected me to win. No one that is save Will who stood near the ropes clapping wildly. I tottered over to him. "Where is that staminade?’ I murmured through cracked and swollen lips.
He hugged me. "I knew you’d win babe. And you did. And I did too, big time. I cleaned up $1000 on bets. Now you are going to help me spend some of that. I’m going to take you to dinner."
"Yeah, but first I need some drink and a shower. You go get me that please."
He kissed me, it felt good even if my lips were sore as hell. And I began to feel that high- I don’t know how else to describe it –that I always felt when I had won a fight. It was like sex, hell it was often better than sex and it made me horny for sex too. But first I knew I had to show just how nice a person I was. I hobbled back to the middle of the ring where Sheila was sitting up dazed. She had come to and sat rubbing her eyes. If she was like me, she would be hurting all over and would hardly be able to get up without help. I stretched out my arm and helped her up. Putting my arm round her I helped her to the side of the ring.
Will was there, he helped her down, then he helped me down, giving me a feel up as he did so. He passed me the drink and I swigged it down. I walked off. Will held my hand till we got to the changeroom door. "I’m not giving you your clothes back till you give me a proper kiss, ‘ he said.
"My pleasure" I giggled. Will wanted more then a kiss. He pressed me against the wall and groped me. He must have sensed my nips hardening under his touch- all I had on was my bra and panties. But I didn’t want that yet, I needed a shower, I needed to get dressed and I needed to think through all that was going on in my mind. "No Will, not here, not now. Maybe later." I pushed him away. He smiled –almost I thought wistfully- and passed me my stuff.
I went in and turned the showers on. I played piping hot water all over my body, where ever it had been hurt- just about everywhere. Then I turned the water on cold. I stood there thinking letting the cold water splash all over me. "I wish I knew what Will wants?"
“He is like every guy, he wants a fuck. And so do you, girl. You’re just about dripping. You almost let him take you in the hallway didn’t you? You’re a slut, you always have been" my dark subconscious sneered at me. I often had this problem- like an inner enemy it never let up.
I tried to answer myself "Yeah I was hot, I always am after a fight. Specially one I win."
"You were so lucky, you didn’t deserve to win" it jeered at me.
I tried to stop the inner dialogue with more cold water as I thought " Every guy wants a fuck. I wonder if he wants more? I’d do heaps for a relationship, a companion. He listened to me about politics, he likes ice hockey. He doesn’t seem to think I am fat and plain. Is he the guy for me?"
My dark side sneered back "Who do you think youre kidding. He wants a fuck. He might play along but he is a guy. He wants a fuck. He set you up. He wanted to see you fight. He used you to make money."
"He is taking me out to dinner" I reasoned.
"
“Sure, only so he can get in your pants Jenn" my dark side wouldn’t give up.
When I got out of the shower I was a mess of emotions. I rummaged in the first aid box till I found some muscle relief –dencorub and smeared it all over my skin. If only I could fix the emotional scars like I could the physical aches and pains. I decided to see what the evening brought. I was no better sitting in Will’s car. I was still almost giddy with desire but I kept trying to talk and listen. He began telling me a few things about his work, his life. He sounded just like most guys, he liked his sport, he liked hunting-as he said ‘deer hunting can be one cheap way of getting meat on the table" and he told me he had no woman in his life.
"Fuck, girl do you believe him?" hissed my adversary "you better stop being so naïve girl!"
I blinked when he stopped his car. "Hey Will we can’t go here. I’m not dressed for this place. And they won’t let you in either without a jacket and tie. This is Lincoln Avenue Lincoln Park ." And he had taken me to one of the most snobbish, most glitzy restaurants in that snobbish neighourhood.
"never mind, I’ve got a jacket and tie in the trunk and you’ll be fine. Just wait and see."
"But I’m in a leather jacket and denim skirt. They will be wearing designer clothes. And I got bruises on my face and arms. And its too late, they will be wanting to close its almost 10 pm."
Don’t fret Jenn" he kissed me.
We walked in, me first. The maitre d looked as if he was going to have a fit. Will took him aside and after a muffled conversation we were welcomed in. The guy had changed his attitude, hell he was fawning on us. We got ushered to a table that overlooked the garden, menus were flourished at us and from then on we had the best service. And yeah it was a great meal. And Will showed he was clued up on labor issues. He got points with me for being active in his union local. And he showed he could treat a lady right. He was very attentive.
We finished our meal. Will paid the bill. He wouldn’t even let me see it. Then he said "its off to Rush and Division."
