章 6: Chapter 6 - Making Progress.
21st March 2010.
Four days have passed. Andy and Harry have been working on the Fiesta the entire time. Harry is now beginning to heal well as his bruising, swelling and cuts are nearly fully healed and he has regained his strength since he's been resting and only fixing the Fiesta. Harry is just wondering, 'When is my next fight going to take place? I am hungry for it. Hungry for another fight so I can prove myself and show the world what I am made of as fighting is the best way to deal with my pain and losses which occurred in my life'.
Elizabeth arrives in the early hours of the morning, since it's seven in the morning and only Harry is up and about. Elizabeth and Harold greet each other with saying good morning to one another and gives each other a friendly hug as well. Harold informs Elizabeth, "Your car is nearly done since me and Andy took care of all the problems the car's been having, right now I am putting everything back together. I wanted to take the Fiesta out for a test drive to see if everything is working well".
Elizabeth asks Harold, "Once you're done with putting everything together, could we go for breakfast together and for the drink which you promised me? " Harold responds, "Sure, I'd like that just got to get things done here, go to my place for a shower since I am covered in dirty, grease and motor oil but I did promise you that. I'll take you out after I finish off your car".
Elizabeth laughs quietly. She tells Harry, "Okay, Harold. I'll remain here with you while you finish off things on the Fiesta". Harold pulls out a chair for Elizabeth to sit on while he continues to work on the Fiesta. The two of them enjoys each other's company and even have a good chat together, to get to know each other and making jokes here and there. Harold informs Elizabeth, "Andy and me had to replace the fan belt and the clutch. We had to redo the timing but I'm confident the should be running fine now that those things were replaced with the newer ones".
Elizabeth tells Harold, "Thanks for everything which you and Andrew have done for me. It means a lot to me that you and Andrew could help me out with this problem. I appreciate it". Harold responds, "It's no problem. I'm here to help and her for you whenever you need me". Elizabeth smiles at Harold, while he finishes things up so they can go for breakfast since all he has to do is add the fan and front bumper onto the Fiesta then they can go for a test drive to see if the car is running fine.
Harold finishes up the last touches on the Fiesta. He informs Elizabeth, "well, I'm done. I'll get the keys from inside in order for us to start the Fiesta then go for a test drive to see if everything is running fine with the Fiesta". Elizabeth responds, "Okay, that's great news, Harold". He goes inside with Elizabeth. Everyone begins to wake up. Andy is the first to wake up. He sees Elizabeth and Harold in the living room. He greets them, "Good morning. Would you guys like a cup of coffee or tea to start your morning or some water, if you prefer a healthier alternative".
Elizabeth answers, "No, thank you, Andrew. We're heading out soon and going for breakfast later" Harold confirms, "Yeah, that's correct". Andy says, "All right. Enjoy it". He then asks Harry, "Is the Fiesta done?" Harry informs Andy, "It is. Elizabeth and me are going out for a test drive to see if everything is okay then head out to have some breakfast later on". Harold tells Elizabeth, "I'll go and start the Fiesta. Could you please go and get the rest of my thing from my old room, which is upstairs on the left. There's a jacket and my red and black shoes". Elizabeth goes to retrieve Harold's things while he goes to start the Fiesta.
Harry gets into the Fiesta, starts the car up, the Fiesta starts up right away, which makes Harry happy because it's good news for Elizabeth. So he gets out of the Fiesta then makes his way to the Aston because he place to drive the Aston back to his place but before Harry can start the Aston, Mr. Stephen Levi appears and approaches Harry. He greets him, "Hello, Harry" to which Harry responds, "Good morning, Mr. Levi. What are you doing here? Do you need anything from me?". Mr. Levi answers, "I don't need anything from you. I am just here to tell you this, Harry. I've got a fight for you. If you are interested".
Harry asks Mr. Levi, "Who's the fight against, sir?" Mr. Levi informs him, "The fight, it's against Freddy 'The Fury' Kent. Do you know who that is?" Harry answers, "Of course I know who he is. He is ranked number 7 in the Heavyweight Division and another Southpaw from Ireland". Harry asks Mr. Levi, "How long do I have until the fight?". Mr. Levi informs Harry, "before I answers your question, you should know this, if you win this fight against Freddy, you're done fighting at the Fight Club because you'll move on to Pay Per View Fights, the big leagues".
Harry responds, "That's no problem. I've been fighting at the Fight Club for most of my career. You and that place has been good to me and I'll never forget about you and what I went through there" Mr. Levi replies, "Thank you, Harry. The fight is in two months so you should prepare for it and put a team together". Harry tells Mr. Levi, "I'll contact Chris again and I'd like my brother, Andy to be in my corner". Mr. Levi responds, "That isn't a problem". Harry asks Mr. Levi, "Could I get an extra ticket because I met a lady recently and would like for her to come to the fight and be there to support me".
Mr. Levi reminds Harry, "Remember, the price of a ticket is going to come out of your pay" Harry responds, "I don't care nor am I worried about that because I would like Elizabeth to be there, by my side". Mr. Levi informs Harry, "Okay, I'll have arrangements made for that ticket for Elizabeth". Eventually, Mr. Levi and Harry shake hands, says goodbye and that they'll see each other at the weigh in and at the fight. Mr. Levi leaves while Harry turns around only to see Elizabeth standing behind him with his things in her hands.
Harry is surprised to see Elizabeth. She asks him, "What was that all about?" Harold informs her, "That was Mr. Stephen Levi, the owner of the Fight Club where I fight. It's no about ten blocks from here". Elizabeth asks him, "And what did he want?" Harold answers, "Mr. Levi, he came here to inform me that I've got a fight within two months and it's against Freddy Kent, a really good fighter from Ireland and he's read to fight against me". Elizabeth asks Harold, "And what about us? What about us spending time together with each other? What about our first date?".
Harold answers her, "Don't worry. I'll spend just as much time with you like I would with my training. I'll divide the two months equally on training and you. I actually got you a ticket to the fight against Freddy Kent. You'll be sitting at ring side. I guess I've got to tell Andy that I got a fight within two months. I'll need his help to train me and I've got to contact Chris. He's my close friend and sort of my manager" Elizabeth responds, "You do what you must but we have to leave soon if we are still going for our first date". Harold quickly states, "I'll inform Andy about the fight then we can get going to my place and afterwards for our breakfast date and get to know each other more".
Harry approaches Andy. He informs him about the fight against Freddy Kent, that he has two months to prepare for the fight and since Arthur isn't involved. Harry is willing to pay Andy £7500 for helping him train and for being in his corner. Andy says, "That's fine with me, Harry". Andy and Harry shakes hands. Harry tells Andy, "I'll come around some time again to discuss things and even get Chris to help get me a proper manager. I plan to have Sir Manny Cooper as my manager. I'd better get going, Elizabeth is waiting for me".
Andy responds, "All right, bruv. See you later" Harry requests from Andy, "Give my greets to pops, mum, Zoey and Arthur. Tell them about the fight coming up against Freddy Kent". Harry says goodbye to Andy and heads outside. He tells Elizabeth, "I'm ready to leave and head to my place. You should follow me there". Elizabeth responds, "Okay, I'll follow you, Harold". Each of them gets into their respective cars and drives off to Harold's place near the Albert Docks to his place there, The Loft.
Elizabeth and Harold arrives at the Loft. They park their cars. Harold makes his way towards Elizabeth. He asks her, "How's the Fiesta driving?" Elizabeth answers, "It's driving quite good. Almost brand new, like I bought it yesterday. I am truly grateful to you and Andrew for fixing the Fiesta". Harold responds to her, "No problem at all but we should head inside my place now, in order for us to get ready for our first official date which I'm really excited about". Elizabeth and Harold heads towards The Loft.
Everyone in Duke Street and Harold's neighbours greets him. Harold returns their greeting and waves to the people including the females while telling Elizabeth, "Don't worry about them. Fans in Duke Street are crazy over me. I am their hometown hero". Elizabeth doesn't express that she's not comfortable with him being like this with his fans, especially the ladies but since they are his fans, people he grew up with and people whom he knows, she let's it slide. Elizabeth and Harold make their way to his place.
Harold warns her, "My place is a bit untidy because I don't spend much time here. I'm always busy with getting ready for a fight by training, having to go through a fight, spend days in hospital due to my injuries and sometimes a family event comes out of nowhere" Elizabeth tells Harold, "I understand but it can't be that bad". Elizabeth and Harold arrives at his place and heads inside. Elizabeth sees the condition of the place. There's a lot of dirty clothes laying around, many empty food containers, pizza boxes and beer bottles laying around and the windows are shit.
Elizabeth asks Harold, "Are you planning to open a bar or what do British people call it, a pub or restaurant in here?". Harold is confused. He asks her, "What do you mean?" Elizabeth answers, "What's with all of the beer bottles laying around?" Harold informs her, "I used to drink a lot of beer but I am going to give it up to be with you and get ready for my fight against Freddy Kent. I'm done with drinking those things". Elizabeth tells him, "I understand, while you're taking your shower and getting ready for our date, I'll clean up your place". Harold tells her, "That's not necessary for you to do".
Elizabeth responds, "It is necessary" as she picks up a pizza box and reads the slip which she reads out loud, "This pizza was bought over six months ago and the place needs attention and a really good clean". Harold gives in. He tells Elizabeth, "Okay, I'll let you clean up the place while I shower and get ready for our first date". What Harry does next is, he closes the front door and locks up, he makes his way to his room but before he goes, he tells Elizabeth, "I'll see you later".
Harry goes to his room, gets his clothes and takes a quick shower. During this time, Harry thinks about the endless possibilities which he could have with Elizabeth, 'The two of us dating and moving in together, eventually getting marred and having children together and growing old as well'. Once Harry is done, he gets out of the shower, makes his way to the bedroom and gets dressed. He puts on his underwear first, then his socks then a blue t-shirt which reads never give up, a pair of worn-out jeans and his favourite pair of red Adidas hi-top trainers. Once he's done getting dress, head heads to the living room to tell Elizabeth, "I'm done with my shower and ready to leave now".
But what he finds is a clean and tidy place since Elizabeth really cleaned up the place. Harold goes to Elizabeth, she's in the kitchen while she's doing the dishes. Harold informs her, "Seems like you really did a great job with the cleaning up as this place, it hasn't been this clean ever since I moved in". Elizabeth responds, "I had to go all out because this place was a mess". Harold asks Elizabeth, "I apologise for that but are you ready to go?" Elizabeth states, "No, not yet. I've still got to clean the bedroom". Harold tells her, "Don't worry about it since it's not that dirty in there otherwise we'll be late and miss breakfast and have to go elsewhere for our first date".
Elizabeth responds, "I'm not going anywhere until I clean the bedroom just like I did with the living room and kitchen". Harold responds to her, "Okay, you can do that while I read the paper to see how things are in the boxing world". Elizabeth goes to the bedroom since she's done cleaning the kitchen. Harry takes the paper he received from Mr. Davids when they arrived at The Loft, as he sits on the sofa and turns over to the sports page. He sees an article about Richard 'The Duke' Davidson saying that he's moving up the rankings and is the new number 1 in the Heavyweight Division and the number 1 contender to face Karl 'The Beast' Alexander for the Heavyweight Title.
Harry stops reading the paper. He wonder, 'when am I ever going to get to challenge for the title. I'm still ranked 8 in the Heavyweight Division. I'm 27 years old and it's going to take a while if not years for myself to reach the number 1 contender spot'. Harry places the paper on the coffee table, sits forward with his elbows on his knees and covers his face with both of his hands and wonders, 'when is the day going to come when I'll challenge for the Title and win it someday'.
Elizabeth comes to the living room. She tells Harold, "I am ready to go since I'm done cleaning the bedroom. But where's your bed, Harold? I never saw one in your bedroom". Harold doesn't notice Elizabeth standing there since he is still in deep thought about challenging for the Title and winning it someday. Elizabeth approaches Harold, she taps him on the shoulder then asks him, "What's wrong?". Harold comes out of his deep thought. He asks Elizabeth, "Did you say something, "Could you repeat that for me. I apologise for not paying attention to you".
Elizabeth repeats herself, "I asked you where your bed is?" Harold informs her, "My bed? I don't have one, never saw the point in having one since the sofa does that job just fine". Elizabeth asks him, "What's wrong? You had a strange look on your face once you realised that I was standing by you since you didn't respond to me when I asked you a question" Harold responds to her, "I'm sorry about that. I read an article saying that Richard 'The Duke' Davidson is now the new number 1 contender to challenge Karl 'The Beast' Alexander for the Title since he knocked a guy out in just two rounds and I am doubtful if I'll ever get a shot at the Title because I am still ranked 8 in the Heavyweight Division". Elizabeth sits down beside him.
She takes his hand and says to him, "Don't think like that. You'll get your chance to fight the Champion and you'll even win the title one day" Harold tells her, "I'm glad for the encouragement. It gives me hope that one day, I'll face Karl or Richard or whoever is the Champion by then and win it from either one of them". Elizabeth responds, "That's the spirit. You shouldn't doubt yourself like that, thinking negative brings negativity but for now, we should get going and get you a Champion breakfast so that you could become a Champion because your road to glory begins now".
Harold responds, "Yeah, let's do this. I am going the distance, going for glory and that all begins today with you by my side, Elizabeth. I can do this. I know I can" Elizabeth tells him, "That's good to hear. Freddy Kent is your second challenge; your first challenge is to get up from this sofa and do what you must". Elizabeth asks Harold, "How good is Freddy Kent?" Harold informs her, "I'll tell you about him during our date but for now, we have to get going". But before they leave, while Elizabeth and Harold are sitting on the sofa, Harrold looks at Elizabeth. He asks her, "Can I ask you just one quick question before we leave". Elizabeth answers, "Sure, Harold. You can go ahead and ask".
Harold looks Elizabeth in her eyes. He asks her, "I'd like to ask you one thing and that is, if I can kiss you, Elizabeth?" while she thinks to herself, 'Is Harold being serious? Did he just ask me if he could give me a kiss?'. She responds to Harold, "Well, we're getting really close to each other since we're getting to know each other more but kissing me, isn't that moving a bit too fast?" he responds, "I guess it is. So how about we just forget I ever asked you that because I don't want to rush things nor force you into this".
Harold is about to get up from the sofa but Elizabeth quickly tells him, "Please wait" as she grabs his hand before he can get up. Elizabeth states, "Fine, it's okay for you to kiss me. I am ready to do it myself. We have to take a leap of faith, and I trust you". Harold asks Elizabeth, "are you sure about this?" Elizabeth answers, "I am". Elizabeth and Harold look into each other's eyes as they share their first kiss. Elizabeth and Harold enjoys their first kiss while they are kissing on the sofa. After they are done, they stop. There's a slight pause after the kissing and they're breathing slightly heavy. Harold says in a hush voice, "It's best that we get going now. Otherwise we are going to be late and miss breakfast".
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