Warning: short chapter but it continues into the next one :)

MICHAEL

There's a big fight tonight. Like, a huge fight. The kind of fight that people end up going to the hospital after, on both sides. The club will be packed full, the ambiance even more competitive and dangerous than it usually is. Ashton and I are required to go, both our trainers knowing this a big night to get recognized. Ashton decided to have Calum stay home, since he doesn't like watching the fights on a normal day's basis. Let alone a night like this.

There's another fight club outside of the city, and their people are coming here so we can have a tournament based thing, where we decide who's the best. I have confidence in us, but the people over there are supposedly bigger and stronger than us. We have technique, but they have strength. At some point, one must override the other.

Ashton is standing beside me, the two of us leaning against the wall, facing the ring. I have my arms crossed, going over everything in my mind. The room is filling up to the brim, more people coming in without a sign of stopping. I've seen some of the fighters already, and they are bigger than us. I'm just hoping that our skill will let us win.

"You nervous?" Ashton asks.

I shake my head. "Not really." Ashton nods, smiling a little.

"Didn't think you would be," he says. Which is true. I don't ever really get nervous at matches like these, despite how dangerous they could end up being. Perhaps I should be, considering I'm definitely on the smaller side in comparison to every other person here. But I was trained at a young age and I could fight anyone if I had to, and at least put up a good fight if not win it.

It doesn't take long for the tournament to begin, the doors closing with a bang and the lights closing in on the ring. A steady cheer rises from the people around us, and I cross my arms. Ashton pats my back, smiling cheerfully.

"Isn't this fun? I wish Calum was here," Ashton says.

"Calum would hate this," I point out. Ashton shrugs.

"Still. I like having him with me."

Before I can reply, a whistle blows and the first two fighters enter the ring. Ashton takes a deep breath and we lean back against the wall to watch. At first, neither of them make a move. Then the man from the other side of town throws a solid punch to our guy's jaw, and Ashton and I wince.

"Ouch," Ashton says quietly.

We watch as the first fight ends with a loss on our side, and I sigh. This is going to be rough. If the first fight ends with you losing, most of the people will be betting on the other side, which decreases the confidence of our fighters. Not the best way to start a tournament.

I'm the tenth in line to go up and fight, and we reach that time a lot quicker than I expected. I leave Ashton by the wall and go up towards the edge of the ring, grabbing myself a mouth guard. We've gotten some of our strength back with the other fights, and we're not pretty much equal in the better's eyes. Which is good for me.

I put the mouth guard in my mouth, adjusting it quickly as the crowd erupts into noise, signaling that the next match ended. I spot my trainer to the right of me, giving me a smile and a quick wink before I am pushed up the stairs and into the ring.

The lights bare down on my back, the heat almost unbearable itself, without the added pressure of everyone watching. I look up to see my opponent standing on the other side of the ring, talking with his trainer. He's bigger than me, taller and wider. Not by much, but enough to put me at a disadvantage. I can already tell that this is going to hurt a bit more than the other fights I've been in.

He turns around, and we take our places in the middle. The whistle blows, and the man wastes no time lunging forward and knocking me down onto the ground. I manage to twist his arm in the process, distracting him enough to where I can push him off me. I don't bother trying to punch him while he's down, I doubt it would make much of a difference and it would weaken me more than it would weaken him. I stand back up, and he gets up a little slower.

He throws another punch, and I barely dodge it. This continues before he finally gets put up with wasting time and he lands a hit straight to my eyes, his knee kicking my ribs. I can hear a crack, and it takes a slight delay before I feel the excruciating pain of a broken rib, maybe two. His punch to my eye blinds me for a moment, black spots replacing what was left of my vision. I manage to stand up warily, the pain in my torso unbearable. I don't want to quit though, I can't quit. Not in front of all these people.

I duck down, throwing my arm around his leg and sending him crashing down. While he's down, I resort to punching him in his eyes and his ribcage, expertly the best places to wear someone down. He nearly flips me over but I catch his arm before he can, twisting it once again and folding it behind his back. He yells in pain and moves to stand up, but has trouble making any move with a twisted arm. I hold him down for just long enough for the whistle to blow signaling the match is over. He is immediately pulled off the ring by his trainer, and I slowly stand back up and move off as well.

I can hardly walk, and thankfully Ashton shows up by my side to help me make it back to the far wall.

"Dude, you should have seen the better's faces. You really impressed them," Ashton praises happily. I nod, proud of the win but less proud of the damage it did in the process. Ashton only then notices my pained expression and grimaces.

"A rib? God, Michael. That's not good," Ashton says. He sits there for a second before raising his eyebrows at me. "You need to head over to Doc."

"No. It's fine, It'll heal itself soon," I say, waving him off. A broken rib and a bloody face is nothing I haven't dealt with before. Ashton shakes his head, turning me around and walking with me towards the doors.

"Not going to happen, Michael. Not on my watch," he says. I sigh defeatedly, figuring a bit of help wouldn't be too bad. Ashton walks with me to the the doors, and we walk out of them shortly. I am thankful to get a breath of fresh air, so different than the humid air of the room underground.

"Want me to take you there? It's not a long walk, just a few buildings away," Ashton says. I shake my head.

"I'm good. You still need to fight, yeah? Go back in," I tell him. Ashton nods and smiles, messing up my hair before turning back around.

"Alright. Get there safe, okay?" Ashton says before disappearing through the doors. I sigh and wince at the pain it brings. Walking is nearly impossible but I handle it fine, starting the walk to the hospital Ashton was telling me about. Doc is apparently on the first floor, with an entrance on the other side that is separate from the main entrance.

It doesn't take me long until I get there, hobbling up to the side entrance and opening the door a bit painfully. I step inside, finding a small corridor with a few doors, only one of them looking like it leads to an actual room. I walk up to it, twisting the doorknob and peeking inside.

There are two people in the room, one of them with their back turned to me, nearly blocked by a set of cabinets. The other turns to face me right away, dressed in a white jacket. Doc, I suppose.

"Hey, hey, come sit down, what have we got?" he says quickly, rushing towards me and helping me take a seat on the table. The metal is cool underneath me, and I try and avoid wincing at the contact.

"Broken rib, I think," I say. Doc nods, lifting my shirt and observing the swelling around my ribcage. He nods affirmatively.

"Yep, definitely a broken rib," Doc says. He sits back, sighing. "We can't put a cast on it, but I do think we have something that can help reduce the pain."

"Sounds good," I say.

Doc begins inspecting the bruises around my face. "Luke, will you bring over the paracetamol?"

I hear the figure rummaging around in a drawer before he stops, finding what he wanted. I look up, glancing up just as the boy turns around, holding the paracetamol out to the doctor.

My heart stops for a moment in my chest, my gaze falls onto his face, pale and big blue eyes, bluer than I've ever seen before, and suddenly everything, everything, in the world stops and falls away.

Except for Luke.

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A/N: holy shit wow

btw luke only receives external injuries like he didn't get a broken rib he just got all the bruising ouch

anyways wow !!! would u look at that

so guys have any of you broken a bone or anything like that because i have yet to break anything and i'm curious to know what it feels like

thanks for reading! please vote & comment, and i will update again very soon because this is sort of like a cliffhanger so yeah

I love you so much. bye,,,xx

p.s. thanks for 2.9k :)