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When they arrived at the dining hall to eat, the place was packed. Chad had never seen it so full of people since he arrived, but then again it never rained this bad, and everyone was staying in to eat this time. Chad then noticed that the Andersons were already there and sitting down already. He walked over with Rachel and her mom to their table.
“We noticed the place was filling up,” Frankie Senior told them, “So we decided to grab us a table before they were all gone.”
“Smart move,” Chad said, as he continued to look around. He didn’t even realize this many people were staying at the resort at one time.
“We can jabber later,” Janice interrupted, “I’m famished.”
“After you,” Chad said, stepping aside for her.
Rachel followed her mother and helped her put together a place and once she was seated with the Andersons, she returned to get her own dinner.
“You alright?” She asked when she caught up with Chad.
“What do you mean?” Chad replied.
“I mean my mom,” Rachel confessed, “She can be difficult.”
“No, she’s fine.” Chad told her, “She seems cool, full of spirit. I’d put up with a thousand of her just to spend more time with you.”
“That is so cute,” Rachel said, taking the time to lean over and softly kiss him.
“Let’s get some food, we’re holding up the line.” Chad told her.
When they returned to the table, Doris and Janice were getting along like two peas in a pod, like kindred spirits. They seem to speak a similar language and Doris kept her happy and busy the entire meal, which gave Rachel a bit of a break to eat too. Frankie Senior, being a fight fan himself, was more interested in talking to Rachel about her profession.
“So, I assume when you get home, you’ll start training for the big fight?” Frankie Senior asked.
“Yes,” Rachel confirmed, “I’ll be doing just over two months of intense training to make sure I’m prepared to kick a little ass in the octagon.”
“You look ready now.” Chad informed her, “I’m still recovering.”
“Thanks, but I’m not even close.” Rachel corrected, “When I’m through training, I’ll look a lot more fit, and fierce too.”
“That is going to be an amazing match,” Frankie Senior said with excitement, “We’re going to watch it on Pay-Per-View when it happens. We’ll be rooting for you.”
“Thank you,” Rachel replied, “I appreciate it.”
While Chad didn’t like the idea of Rachel being in a fight, he had to accept it because her dangerous profession was a part of her life. It was something he’d have to accept if he wanted to be a part of it as well. He paused for a moment as he couldn’t believe he was even thinking about being a part of someone’s life. Like he had said to Harrison the day before, this was a feeling Chad thought he’d never get again. Not after what happened with Paula. But there he was: opening himself and his heart to someone new. To a woman that tried to kick the shit out of him... twice. He sat there and watched Rachel while he ate as she interacted with Frankie Senior and his son, answering questions about older matches and beating up other women. During dinner Chad was wise not to take the spotlight during dinner. He enjoyed watching everyone gabbing away, what Chad had promised he would do when in paradise. When dinner was over, Doris and Janice had gotten along so much that she offered to keep the old woman company to give Chad and Rachel some alone time, which was graciously accepted.
After super was concluded, Chad took hand of Rachel’s hand and walked her outside. The rain had stopped and while there was some damage, most of the trails were still clear since the resort was on high ground and had no risk of flooding. They were still careful to walk around debris from the storm, the clouds had all disappeared and the starts were suddenly engulfing the entire night sky.
“It’s so beautiful up here,” Rachel observed, “So romantic too.”
“I like romance,” Chad confessed, “It’s been a while but it’s welcome.”
“I can see that left a mark with you,” Rachel said, “Much deeper than anything I dished out after our first date.”
“It’s not something I talk about much,” Chad informed her, “But for some reason I’m quite comfortable talking to you about it.”
“I feel the same way,” Rachel agreed.
“That’s good,” Chad said, “Is that rumor about you and Mad Dog Mitchell true?”
“No!” Rachel answered, with a look of shock on her face as she playfully punched his arm. “I wouldn’t go near that man even if he was the last one on Earth.”
“That’s what I figured,” Chad replied, “that guy is so pompous he makes Councillor Douche Bag seem modest by comparison.”
If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.
“He looks like a hobbit.” Rachel added.
“Yeah, he kinda does.” Chad concurred, laughing.
“I don’t like dating fighters,” Rachel said, “I prefer to date someone who has their own thing to do. I don’t want to compete with my future partner. I’d like us both to do separate things so we can both be successful and happy. People who both do the same job will knit pick, criticize and suck the life out of the relationship.”
“That sounds like experience talking,” Chad observed.
“No, just observation,” She told him. “I saw that happen to other couples and it wasn’t a path I wanted to travel down myself. So, when Mad Dog started drooling around me like a sick dog, I put that shit down and told him I wasn’t interested.”
“I get it,” Chad said, “I’ve been tempted to date other lawyers but didn’t out of fear she might feel inferior because she wasn’t as successful, so pretty much the same reason as you. Comparing similar professions and judging each other.”
“Would we have that problem?” Rachel asked.
“Not really,” Chad answered, “Cause if my head got too big because of my successes, then you’d knock me back down to earth, literally.”
“Yes I would,” Rachel confirmed, “But not as hard this time.”
“I appreciate that,” Chad said, still sore in some parts from their limo ride.
As they strolled closer to the beach, Chad had begun to slow down as they approached a certain part of the trail. He leaned over the rail and reached into a bush and pulled out the large toy gun that had started the whole incident. Rachel looked back at him, surprised.
“That’s the bee bee gun you hit me with?” she exclaimed.
“It’s not a bee bee gun,” Chad corrected her as he removed one of the soft sponge bullets and handed it to her. “This can’t do any damage, it’s too soft to even leave a mark.”
“And you have a scope on it!” Rachel noticed, “How far did you make that shot?”
“Thankfully far enough to get a head start back to the resort,” Chad joked as he reached over and put the gun back into the bushes where he found it. “I’ll come back and get it later, should let it dry off.”
“Sure,” Rachel said, rolling her eyes a bit.
They strolled down to the beach and there were a few people there, hanging out around a campfire and having some drinks. While they were tempted to join the group and enjoy the fire, both Rachel and Chad decided to avoid it and remain on the low key for the remaining time they spent at the resort. They instead chose to keep walking hand in hand, mostly in silence as they enjoyed the view of the ocean before walking back to the same path back to the resort.
It’s a shame mother and I will have to leave soon,” Rachel told him, “I really enjoyed hanging out with Councillor Douche Bag.”
“As did I,” Chad said, reflecting. “So, where is the big fight?”
“It’s in Vegas,” Rachel answered, “But I’ll be training in Philadelphia.”
“That’s cool,” Chad said, thinking about it. “Maybe if you give me permission, I’ll fly down to Philly over a weekend, and we can split a cheese steak.”
“Tempting,” She replied, “But I’ll be on a strict diet when training. I’m confident that you’ll have no trouble eating one of those bad boys yourself.”
“Probably not,” Chad agreed, “But I’d have more fun sharing with you.”
“I know,” Rachel said, “I would too.”
“What about the fight?” Chad asked, “Does your mom attend, or does she watch them all on pay-per-view?”
“My mom doesn’t watch my fights,” Rachel explained, “I would find it hard to watch any of my kids walk into that cage, so I don’t pressure her, and she’s never asked. I don’t think she’s ever seen any of my fights.”
“I think I’ve seen a few of your fights,” Chad tried to recall, “I can’t remember which one though.”
“Don’t worry about it,” Rachel replied, “I don’t force friends or family to watch. I understand some people don’t like it and I respect that.”
“Some people might not like watching someone they care about fight in a cage,” Chad added, “It’s cool that you get it and don’t try to force it.”
“Let’s get back to the room,” Rachel said, pulling him back to the resort.
“You in a hurry?” Chad asked.
“No,” Rachel replied, “I just want to check up on Mom, make sure she’s okay.”
“Alright then,” Chad said moving a little faster, “Let’s do some checking up.”
It took them almost ten minutes to walk all the way back to the resort, and to their surprise, most of the debris had already been cleared from the grounds and the outdoor pool and bar were open once again. They took the lift up to the Anderson room and since there was no answer, Chad knew they all probably went to his suite. Once they entered the room, they were in for one hell of a surprise. All the Andersons and Rachel’s mother was watching the big screen, which was showing one of Rachel’s fights in the cage! She was surprised to see herself on the big screen, as the part they were at was her wrestling another woman down to the mat. Rachel remembered this right and knew that it was almost over, so she patiently waited for herself to lock her in the choke and get the tap out to win.
“Wow,” Chad said, putting an arm around her, “That was impressive.”
“Thanks,” Rachel said, looking over at her mother. “You said that you never watch my fights, mother!”
“I don’t watch them live.” Her mother corrected her.
“What’s the difference?” Rachel asked.
“Cause I get someone else to watch it first and tell me what happened,” the old lady explained, “And then based on that I decide if I want to watch it. This one is one of my favorites. I hope Chad doesn’t mind it’s being charged to his room.”
“Mother!” Rachel called out to her, disappointed.
“It’s okay,” Chad replied, “I can watch again later too.”
“Not helping,” Rachel said, looking at Chad before turning back to face her mother. “It’s time to get ready for bed. You have to take a bath and pack up. We’re flying back home tomorrow.”
“So are we,” Doris replied, “We should pack as well.”
“You’re all leaving?” Chad said, feeling a bit sad.
As he watched the Andersons leave, he thought how cool it was to have them as his social camouflage. There’s no way Rachel would have talked to him without Doris sticking in and helping. Yet he was determined to put some more vacation into his vacation and see more of the island after everyone was gone. Rather than complain about some alone time, Chad thought it would be a good chance to do some solo touring once everything was cleared up. It wasn’t that he didn’t like their company, but it was time for him to explore a bit on his own. He would say goodbye the next morning and then try to start a new adventure.
“Are you okay?” Rachel asked, seeing Chad in deep thought.
“I’ll be alright,” Chad replied, “Just thinking of tomorrow.”
“I know,” Rachel agreed, “I wish we could have more time.”
“Me too,” Chad said, “Good night.”
“Night,” Rachel said, closing the door to master bedroom behind her.
Chad sat down on the couch, unable to resist rewinding and watching Rachel’s match again on the big screen. He watched with amazement, finding it hard to believe the woman tossing the punches, the sidekicks and even applying deadly chokes was the same lovely woman next door who was stealing his heart away. For the longest time Chad didn’t think he had one anymore to share. He was sure that Paula had stomped on it so much that it would not function properly anymore. And yet there he was, a love struck like a teenager at high school, too afraid to ask someone to the prom. Chad didn’t want to say goodbye, but it was less than twelve hours away. He sighed and kept watching as the woman who might be his girlfriend kept tossing punches on the other woman she was mounted on. Chad’s ribs hurt just watching that as it reminded him of the limo. He quickly turned it off and went to bed.