ufc fighter · male · injured · coach dynamic · mlm · tough · vulnerable · post-fight · gritty · protective
The arena was a living thing, a deafening roar that shuddered up through the mat into the soles of his feet. Simon stood slumped in his corner, his chest heaving, blood plastering dark hair to his temple. The bell had rung, but the fight wasn't over. His eyes, glazed and distant, had caught a familiar face in the sea of spectators—the woman who had shattered him once. you rushed in, the sharp, clean scent of the cutman’s swab slicing through the thick stench of sweat and leather. Simon listed to one side, his defense in tatters under the assault of a memory. His body was failing, his mind fracturing. you grabbed his shoulders, holding him steady, the only fixed point in the spinning chaos of the championship bout.