Jamie: The Road to Glory

Dekam walked over to a small box near the ring and pulled out two slightly less broken pads than the others. He also grabbed a pair of gloves—worn and cheap, but just functional enough for hitting—and handed them to Jamie. "Here, use these."

Jamie inspected the gear with a raised eyebrow. "Cheap as hell, but whatever."

Dekam then tied a rope between two poles, creating a makeshift jump rope. "200 jumps on the rope. After that, pad work in the ring, and then a 5 km sprint. Got it, kid?"

Jamie shrugged. "Yeah, yeah, let's get it."

Jamie started the jump rope routine, breezing through the first few jumps. 25, 50, then 100—his legs were starting to burn, and by the time he hit 200, he was struggling. He stumbled toward Dekam and hit the pads with full force. Each punch sent shockwaves through Dekam, visibly pushing him back, the force of Jamie's punches making the old man grimace. But Jamie kept going, his intensity rising for a solid 30 minutes.

Dripping in sweat, Jamie stumbled out of the gym to run the 5 km sprint. He made it about 100 meters before collapsing into a corner, groaning to himself. "What the hell am I doing?"

Meanwhile, Dekam was back at the gym, thinking Jamie was out running. He took the time to sew up the pads and clean up a bit. After 15 minutes, Jamie returned, wiping his face and faking exhaustion.

"There we go, old man. Did the 5 km, like you said."

Dekam smiled, beaming with pride. "Wonderful!" He clapped Jamie on the back. "The other kid just arrived. He's in the changing room. Get ready to spar with him—you might be surprised by his abilities."

Jamie rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, let's see what this 'other kid' is made of."

The changing room door swung open, and out stepped a tall, broad-shouldered boy around Jamie's age. He was noticeably heavier, weighing in at around 90 kg, compared to Jamie's lean 61 kg frame. The difference between the two was stark.

Jamie smirked. "I like a challenge." He glanced closely at Yosuke and noticed a large scar on his face but quickly brushed it off."

The tall kid glanced at Dekam with disdain. "Who the hell is this kid?"

Dekam calmly responded, "Yosuke, meet Jamie. He's the newest official member of the gym."

Jamie was about to snap back, but held his tongue. It wasn't worth it. The two of them stepped into the ring, and soon the sparring began.

Yosuke was quick, landing a flying right hook that connected with Jamie's head. Jamie's cheap headgear did little to cushion the blow as Yosuke kept throwing punches, each one slamming into Jamie's skull like a hammer. After several heavy hits, Jamie's knees buckled, and he went down.

The count began—1, 2, 3—but Jamie got up by the 5-second mark, shaking off the dizziness. Dekam restarted the match.

In round two, Jamie took a different approach. He rushed in and began using his jab, quick and precise, keeping Yosuke at a distance. Every jab was sharp, driving Yosuke back. Jamie kept up the pressure, not letting Yosuke breathe.

Then, Yosuke retaliated, throwing another hard right. Jamie, too exhausted to keep his guard up, ducked under and delivered a vicious body jab straight to Yosuke's gut. The punch landed with precision, causing Yosuke to gasp for air, his defense weakening.

Dekam watched from the sidelines, intrigued. "How is his punch that strong? For someone barely weighing 65 kg, to hit a heavyweight like that…"

Jamie continued pressing Yosuke, each punch hurting Yosuke's guard more and more. But then Yosuke dodged one of Jamie's jabs and countered with a devastating right hook, throwing all his body weight into it. The punch connected directly with Jamie's cheek, and he went down hard, knocked out cold.

Dekam rushed in and started the count. "1... 2... 3..."

By the count of 7, Jamie stirred, struggling to get up. Blood trickled down his face from his nose and the cut on his forehead.

"This headgear really fucking sucks," Jamie muttered, wiping the blood from his eyes as he stood up before the 10-second count.

Both Dekam and Yosuke were in shock. Jamie, barely able to stand, grinned through his pain. "So, we gonna keep going or what?"

Yosuke's face hardened in anger. He raised his fists and charged in, ready to deliver the finishing blow. But before his punch could connect, Dekam stepped in, blocking Yosuke's attack.

"Enough for today," Dekam ordered, his voice firm. "I've seen enough. Jamie, you need gauze for those cuts."

Jamie, though battered, looked more intrigued by boxing than before. "Huh, maybe there's something to this…"

Round 2:

Time: 2:48

Result: Draw

Later that night, Jamie followed Dekam home to sleep in his guest room. It was 3 a.m. when he was woken up by Dekam again for more training. Jamie, clearly unwilling, barely ran and skipped most of the late-night training, running roughly 1 km, doing light bag work, and a bit of pad hitting before heading back to bed.