Post by Zack Fantana on Sept 10, 2016 5:31:30 GMT
New York City
August 2016
The deafening silence in the gymnasium hadn't really hit Zack until after the fight, but he couldn't escape it now. Every worker in the gymnasium wore the same sullen face, solemnly going about their work without giving Zack a second look.
Never in the past eight years of his career had he worked a room this dead. Even in the low-rent district, a turnout like that was embarrassing.
Fantana sheepishly approached the skeleton crew as they piddled away, disassembling the ring. The owner of the gym, Rico, caught his eye first, though he averted his gaze almost immediately. At least his opponent from the night, Swift Sal was smiling at him as he watched from outside the ring. He was always smiling. Zack envied his unbridled enthusiasm for the sport.
Zack walked over to the corner Rico was working in and pulled him aside.
Zack: "So what was the gate?"
Rico shook his head, doing his best to stifle the bubbling rage inside of him.
Zack: "Not much of a crowd, eh?"
Rico: "I'm not sure crowd's the word."
Zack: "Okay, well, technically three's a crowd."
Rico scoffed. Zack was sensing a little hostility coming from the room. And he didn't like it.
Maybe it was because he had pushed Rico into putting on this little outing to showcase himself and it had failed. Maybe it was because whenever Rico questioned whether Zack could draw a big enough crowd in the time allotted, Zack had responded boisterous laughter.
Rico: "You've got to get that concussion out of your head. You hesitate like that against a real opponent and you're fuckin' dead."
Zack: "What are you talking about? 'Real opponent'? Sal was a New Jersey Golden Gloves winner."
Rico: "Yeah, in 1973."
Zack: "Don't listen to him, Sal. You're still a young stallion at heart."
Sal smiled, though Zack was pretty sure he had heard none of his words of encouragement. The old man began to lose his hearing a long time ago. He'd smile at anything.
There was something about staring into the void that was Sal's toothless grin that got Zack thinking. Did he hesitate before delivering his patented Godsend corkscrew shooting star press to put Swift Sal away? It wasn't a giant leap to suggest that the concussion under his skin.
After all, Zack could still clearly recall his frustration with the entire situation. The migraine headaches, the dizziness, the insomnia, the crippling fatigue - and the worst part of it all was that he knew a contract was waiting for him in Boston and he couldn't do a damn thing about it. With each passing month, he lost ground due to the doctor's orders to refrain from any strenuous physical activity. He recalled losing 20 lbs. during the worst stretch.
The most depressing moments were the two or three day periods of respite from the symptoms where he thought it was all over only for a sudden migraine to inform him otherwise a few days later, and so he'd go through the motions all over again. By the time his symptoms had actually quelled for good and he'd been medically cleared to return to action, that Boston company that had been waiting on him had closed shop and Zack was left with no offers on the table. The landscape had changed. Suddenly he felt like a rookie again and that feeling is what led him to his old stomping grounds in New York City to pick up the pieces.
Zack: "Okay."
Zack ran a hand through his hair. This was going to be difficult to admit.
Zack: "You're right. I need to take the leap. I know you've got connections around here, Rico. Give me something to work with. Please."
Rico smiled, having reclaimed some of the dignity that had been stripped away from him during the show.
Rico: "Caught wind of a new company opening in Manhattan. You should go check it out."
Zack: "You think I'm ready to get back?"
Rico: "I don't know, but you're never going to find out here. The best thing you can do is go up to the biggest man on the roster, make him angry like I know you can, and get him to slap you over the head. Then you'll know for sure if you're ready."
Zack wasn't sure if he'd take that last bit of advice from Rico, but he knew one thing... it was time.
