Running - Joshler ?

Chapter 9

I nod and go get the weird looking gloves. They look like giant donuts or something along those lines.

I walk back over to the ring, just in time to see Josh drag off the big punching bag.

"Climb through the ropes." He instructs, and lifts one up by me.

Nervously, I climb through, and my feet feel the padding of the ring.

"Alright, give me your hands." He holds out his.

"Excuse me?" I ask incredulously

"I need your hands to put the gloves on you." He explains.

"Oh, right." I hand him the equipment I was holding, and he takes my hands to put them on.

I watched his face as he concentrated on putting the gloves on me. His nose scrunched up just a little, and his tongue barely rested in between his teeth. His eyes were clearly concentrated on making sure he was doing the job right.

He tapped my hands when he was done. "Alright, are they too tight or too loose at all?" He looks back up at me, and his face softens as he realizes I looked at him the entire time.

"Uh, they're fine. Thank you." I look down at the weird gloves on my hands.

"Alright, now what you're going to do is just let my hands hit the center of the gloves. It won't hurt you at all."

I nodded and watched as he put back on his gloves and adjusted them a little.

"Put your hands up like this." He put his hands at certain levels and I copied him. "Ok, keep them like that."

I nodded and his hand hit the glove. He was right, it wasn't hurting.

I smile as he continues to hit the pads.

"Is this a good time to ask why you rejected me?" The words fly out of my mouth before I can stop them.

He looks up at me for a moment before he goes back to hitting. "It was because the last time I was in a relationship with a guy, it didn't end well," he begins.

"You were in a relationship?" I curiously prod.

He nods. "We were attached since we were kids. We believed we were each other's mates, but obviously I was wrong."

"Oh."

"But the time I turned eighteen, I realized I had the wrong person all along. I still wanted to be with him, and I hurt you in the process. Only to discover after you left he had found his mate and didn't give me a second glance." He finishes.

"So, you rejected me, only to be rejected?"

He gives me a look and smiles. "Uh, if that's how you see it then yes."

I loose my balance and quickly fall. I bump my head on the padding of the ring quite hard.

"Tyler!" Josh kneels down and holds my head, worry evident on his face, but I only start laughing.

"Karmas a bitch." I honestly don't know why I find his story so funny, but at least he understands some of my pain.

I continue to laugh as Josh helps me sit up.

I open my eyes and look at Josh, who seems to be completely in awe.

I halt my laughing. "What? Is there something on my face?"

I take off my gloves and bring my hands to my face to see if there's anything wrong, like a bruise or something.

He takes my wrists gently and pulls them away. "Nothings wrong with your face."

I give him a confused look. "Then why were you staring at me like that?"

He hesitates before he replies. "Because your laugh is one of the most beautiful things I've heard."

I felt my face heat up. "Oh,"

He stands up and pulls me up with him. And just as I thought I was knocked off my feet, I'm falling again.

"Go on a date with me tonight?" He asks.

I look at him, and I can tell he's nervous. Nervous that he's just asked me out. Nervous that I'll say no. Nervous that I'll walk away.

Should I?

Say no?

After a week, I heard Cyprus whine.

'He's trying.' Was all Cyprus told me.

I inhaled a deep breath.

"Okay."