Daisy in a Meadow

16 - Underground

I tailed Elias, Malcolm, and Andre from a safe distance for what must've been thirty minutes. Although I was supposed to be at work, I'd gotten a coworker to cover my shift. I'll admit, it was a little creepy that I was following after them, but I was curious to know what they were hiding from me and this seemed to be the only way to find out. Besides, it wasn't like they were gonna know or anything.

The boys finally pulled up to a stop in front of a cafe. The tiny building was rather cute looking, with pastel colours and sweet pastries advertised on the front. I carefully watched as the three boys exited the car and entered the shop. This was their dirty little secret? Going for coffee at a little cafe on the other side of town?

"Well that's anticlimactic," I murmured under my breath.

I considered calling it quits and heading home, but still, it didn't quite make sense. Why would Andre and Malcolm lie to me about their plans? There was clearly something bigger going on here.

Girl, just mind your business and go home, my inner voice pleaded. And yet, curiosity got the best of me, so after about ten minutes, I nervously took a deep breath before exiting my car and entering the tiny, innocent-looking shop.

A bell jingled as I opened the door and surveyed my surroundings. Despite the parking lot being full, there were no customers in sight. Confusion overtook me. Where did the boys go? I was certain they hadn't left the shop—I would've seen them if they had. I sceptically approached the worker behind the counter, a scarily buff man. I couldn't tell if he was giving me a dirty look or if that was simply his face. With his intimidating demeanour, he gave me the same vibe as a security guard, or a bouncer, or something of the sort.

"Hello," I nervously squeaked to the man.

Without saying anything, he held out his hand as if expecting cash.

"O-Oh," I quickly reached into my pocket and handed him a crumpled five-dollar bill. He gave me a blank look, as if expecting more. I was perplexed. Wasn't he supposed to at least ask for my order first? Nonetheless, I handed him a tenner, slightly wincing as I did so. That was a whole hour's pay right there.

Much to my shock, the tall man then walked over to the other side of the cafe and pressed a button, which revealed a hidden staircase. My mouth popped open.

"Enjoy the fight," the man grumbled.

Fight?

"I... thank you," I gulped, eyes wide. He gave me a suspicious look before closing the door behind me.

As I began to walk down the grand staircase, cheers and shouts drifted over to my ears. I had never been more confused. Once I finally reached the bottom of the seemingly never ending staircase, my mouth dropped open at the sight that met my eyes.

"What is this, a cult?" I yelped, though thankfully, my voice was drowned out by the loud yells that rang throughout the arena.

I didn't know where to look. There was a woman behind a booth shouting for people to come buy popcorn. Two men in business suits having a heated argument directly in front of me. A sea full of hundreds upon hundreds of men and women chattering and shouting and cheering and everything in between. And then, in the very center of the arena was a boxing ring.

My heart raced as I finally realized what the boys had been hiding from me. "Underground boxing," I whispered.

A group of men pushed past me. "Move it, little girl," one of them sneered.

"Pardon?" I surprised even myself. "You bumped into me."

They turned around and I instantly regretted my decision. I'd dealt with my fair share of teenage jerks, however these grown men were an entirely different ballpark. They looked like they could crush me.