All Chapters of Tough Love: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

        “Please, you’re hurting her. She’s only 8 years old.” my mother pleaded for her drunken boyfriend to stop hitting me, just because I didn’t wash the dishes properly.      “Joe, she can’t survive another hit, please stop!” she yells again, but he kept hitting me, telling me how useless I am.      “You will never be able to stand up for yourself. Just like your father, you are useless. You will never find a man that will love you, only abuse you,” he shouts. I can’t even lift my head with blood surging out of my mouth. My ribs were full of bruises and my mother was crying for her useless abusive boyfriend to stop hurting me.      “You want more? I can go all-new night, little girl,” he yells while he gulps a bottle of whiskey. My mother is sitting at the table, crying, but she’s not stopping him. I guess she&rsqu

        Emily’s Pov      I watch how he uses his body to help kids defend themselves, and how confident these kids look, more than what I feel like a grown-up.      He hadn’t noticed me yet, so I looked around the gym. It’s massive. Gloves hanging everywhere, kickboxing bags hanging in rows. Weights everywhere and a cage obviously to learn and defend yourself.      I sat down on the bench, waiting for him to finish his class.      I don’t know what to expect when he finishes, but he did tell me to find out who he is, so that’s what I did.      I’m amazed by these kids, how they know how to turn themselves out of a position when they're in trouble, how they can block a punch and how they use their legs to stay firm.      “Thank you, guys. We’ll catch up with some warmups tomorrow and choose wh

        Blake’s Pov      “Can I get you something to drink, Sir?” the bar lady asked, while my eyes followed Emily’s every move. Her beautiful blond hair hanging perfectly down her back, her bright blue eyes that can make any man go numb by just looking at her. Her body is slim and perfect.       “No thank you,” I responded while she threw herself at me.       I try to figure out why a nurse wants to learn how to defend herself? I know it’s not just because of what happened in the Alley the other night, something happened to her that made her angry, and she’s been holding on to that anger and pain for a long time. I’ve seen kids being abused that came to me for support and the same anger and pain they showed is multiplied on Emily’s face.       I know how to teach you to defend yourself, but with her it&rsq

Blake’s PovEmily has left the club. It’s silent and just me and all memories hanging around in the club, staring me in the face!I picked up gloves and put them on. This time I used Emily’s.As I pull it over my hands, I can feel the pain. I don’t know her story, but I have my own story about why I started to become a kickboxer. The memories of my father run through my mind when I pull the punch bag closer.“Did you hit him back?” father is sitting with a knife peeling his apple on the front porch when I came home from school with a bloody nose.“I asked if you punched him back?” I hear my father’s voice clearly as I punch the bag.I just stared at him that day, remembering how he used women, how he was never there for me. He only cared about his title as the world-famous kickboxing champion and how women were falling at his feet. And here I am, getting bullied at school because I&

Blake’s PovI’m still sitting on the couch like an ass. What was I thinking?If my dad was here now, he would’ve said with your *dig* but yeah, he is not here, and that is not what I was doing. For the first time in my entire life, I felt something, something that I wanted more of.I’ve had women in my life before. I know the adrenalin feeling of winning over and over, and I know how it feels to have a joint and to zone out, but this feeling I don’t know.It’s a feeling of wanting someone or something so bad that you’re willing to give up everything for that.It’s a feeling that you can’t see or touch, but it stares at you brighter than the sun and cuts you deeper than a knife. It’s a feeling that you beg to hold on to, but it’s slowly slipping away into the darkness, and the only way to grab it is to climb down the lather and pull it up.*meet as, at the club, drinks on