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65 - The Dinner
🕑 Added 2025-03-15 20:35:32 +0000 UTCAN: Name change alert. Realized I called someone else Gunther in book 1 so Gunther the driver is now Lars. Also extra chapter incoming in a few hours!
***
Hakeem Jimenez, AKA Top Dog, walked in through the pristine glass doors of a studio gym, the location of an ad he was supposed to be shooting.
He was already dreading the whole experience.
“You’re late.” Anna was sitting on the counter, already dressed in her tracksuit, with her trademark bunny ears on. The stretchy spandex complemented her slender frame well, and the makeup on her face was tastefully done, to still reflect her natural girl-next-door charm. The effect was only semi-ruined by the frown on her face.
“So what else is new?” he responded breezily as he approached. Anna raised an eyebrow. Hakeem had a headache and he wasn't in the mood for a lecture but he had a feeling it would come anyway.
But it was staved off by one of the crew who, upon seeing him coming, called for hair and makeup. In a few seconds, a whole flurry of people were on him. He sighed as they started pulling off his jacket, touching his hair, and calling for items for him to try on.
This part of fame, he couldn't get used to.
Hakeem didn't like being touched at baseline, and it seemed that when you were famous people couldn't stop touching you. If it wasn't fans who randomly recognized you and chased you down or a mob of photographers outside your home, then it was hair and make-up people who never even asked before they started pulling and tugging at stuff.
And part of his job was to be okay with it, and not yell at people invading his personal space.
He couldn’t tell them to fuck off, due to the clause in his contract that stressed him keeping a good public profile. Even though he didn't totally get why he had to. Fighters were supposed to be raw and real, not polished and polite. It was what made them different from [Heroes].
No one wanted more of that fakery. But apparently, the sponsors liked it. And they'd been getting a lot of sponsors lately.
So Hakeem tried to bear it, reminding himself that this ad was attached to three hundred thousand credits.
But when someone yanked at his hair, he finally lost it.
“Okay the next person to touch me gets lasered,” he snarled and everyone jumped back. “Just show me where the dressing room is, bring the costume and I’ll dress myself. Then you can do hair and make-up."
“Hakeem!”
Top Dog winced as a loud booming voice echoed around the entire building.
Their team manager, a large bear of a man they called Klaus, stormed up from the other side of the room, his beard practically bristling with his anger. “You were supposed to show up at ten thirty and it’s nearly twelve. Where the hell have you been?"
“Here and there,” he answered again.
“That’s all you can say? After you held everyone up?”
He shrugged. He felt a little bad about it, seeing how annoyed everyone looked when he arrived, but it wasn’t like he could help it. He’d been busy.
These days, he was always busy.
He was officially the most popular fighter in the entire circuit and within the last year, the circuit itself had exploded in popularity. He constantly had speaking appearances, events he had to attend, signings…not to mention the recent opening of about a dozen new stadiums across three different districts, all of which he had to attend.
No one got how much time he didn’t have. If he wasn't at one meeting he was at another. If he wasn't shooting an ad for this company, then he was at an event hosted by another company. There was even talk of him going off-planet to meet extra-terrestrial sponsors.
Everyone wanted a piece of him. His trainer was running him ragged. And back when he’d had a girlfriend, that had to be factored in too.
So yeah, he had no time, at all.
It was one of the reasons why his relationship failed. He simply didn’t have time for anyone. He was too busy being one of the most recognizable faces–well dog masks–in Orinia.
So they'd had to break up, which sucked because he really liked Tiana. And they’d tried very hard to make it work too. They’d even fake broken up once, to get the press off their backs, and then dated in secret for a while. But that hadn’t worked, and then they'd broken up for real.
And that was when he had to accept that would need to put relationships on the back burner for a good while. Maybe he and T would try again after he retired. But given how explosive his success was, and how much money people were willing to pay just to see him kick a few asses a month, he didn’t know when that would be.
And yes, he was aware of how privileged he sounded.
Granted, it was a nice problem to have, but it was still a problem.
He went to the dressing room to get changed, and when he came out, he finally let them mess with his face a little. Once they were done, Anna approached him again still frowning.
"Do you even know who your next match is against?" she asked.
"Yeah.” He’d heard rumors about it through the grapevine. Most of the top players in the circuit talked amongst themselves, despite the played-up hostility on camera and they had informed him, even before his manager did, who he was going up against. “Some cocky thirteen-year-old who beat up a few people at prelims.”
“He beat everyone, Hakeem. Everyone."
"Including you?"
"Of course not. I made sure I was busy with another match and wouldn't get put into the lineup. No way, I wanted career suicide." She shook her head. "And you're one to talk about someone else being cocky. You've grown cocky over the years and if you’re careless, he’s going to wipe the floor with you too.”
Hakeem snorted. That was what they said about Conrad Grace. He was supposed to be the next hot thing, the one who was going to dethrone him as number one. But Conrad only got close once.
Even with the single match Conrad won against him, it never would have happened if Hakeem hadn’t let him. But he’d taken pity on the guy and let him have that win. Conrad’s loss against Kane had been brutal for his confidence, and he kept fumbling match after match. He would have been dropped by his management eventually, and that would have been bad for the league, given how famous he was. So Top Dog, a well-known hardass, had done his one good deed for the year, and let Conrad win.
But never again.
The amount of ribbing he’d taken from that asshole, and a few other fighters for weeks after, hadn't been worth the trouble. All for the bastard to retire anyway last month.
When Hakeem asked Conrad why he was retiring so young, when he'd just joined the adult league, Conrad suggested that it was due to his mental health issues. Hakeem had been so mad he almost kicked Conrad's ass again.
Newsflash: they all had mental health issues.
If not they wouldn’t be in a colosseum all day beating the shit out of each other. They didn't take breaks from work because of ‘mental health’. They were supposed to ignore that shit or use it as fuel to kick more ass.
Exactly like Hakeem did.
But Conrad wouldn't budge on his decision and seemed at peace with it, even telling Hakeem, "Maybe one day you'll get it. Although I hope you don't have to."
What the heck did that mean? Hakeem wondered. Probably all that woo-woo meditation stuff Isla has him doing.
“I’ll be fine,” he smirked at Anna, who still looked doubtful. “ It's just embarrassing that I'm going to be beating up a kid. But I'll try to go easy on him so I don't look like a total ass."
"This is serious, 'keem."
"I know. And I said I'll be fine. I always am."
It was the same thing he’d told her when they’d first met, back when he was a too-thin gawky boy in rags with nothing but a hunger to succeed. He’d used every little thing he’d gotten from any mundane job that would hire him to pay for training sessions at the gym, and with that, he’d started entering small informal tournaments. And slowly, but surely, he made a name for himself as someone who never gave up. He could be bleeding and on the brink of death but he’d get up and keep fighting. He could be sore as hell, but he’d get himself to the gym the next day and keep grinding.
And eventually, that dogged drive paid off. One day he’d woken up and he was number one.
He’d clawed his way from poverty.
He’d become somebody. Somebody with millions of loyal fans willing to pay to watch him each month. Somebody with sponsors lined up wanting him to endorse their products. Someone who was mobbed and recognized wherever he went.
Top Dog, the All Fighter’s Champ.
It was a surreal feeling. And also an intoxicating one.
After his dad had left them, and he’d watched his mother work herself to the bone, he’d sworn he would do whatever it took to be successful. And he did, sacrificed a lot to get where he was.
No little brat, Firebringer or not, was going to take that from him. People were hyping the kid because his brother was a [Hero] and he went to [Hero] school. So fucking what?
[Heroes] were overrated, everyone knew that. They’d had heroes come up to the ring before and lose. Even recently, one of them fell the Kane the fucking mundane. And of course, the asshole crowed for weeks, giving interviews where he’d disparaged all the [Heroes] everywhere and declared himself King of the League.
That was the problem with Kane, that he just didn't know when to shut up. He never seemed to understand that people would like him more if he wasn't a raging dickhead.
Kane was one person who should have retired and faded into the background. Top Dog never liked him, but he especially didn't like him after he’d beat Maverick who was one of the few people who'd really helped Hakeem out back when he was no one. Maverick, the former champ, had been finally having a great year after a disastrous previous year, but Kane ruined his comeback. Maverick retired after he lost to Kane the Mundane and Top Dog had lost a pretty hefty amount betting on Mave.
Who would have seen that coming?
No one, except for that curious little girl he met at the wager pod.
He still remembered her, the way she spread her arms wide, to symbolize how much he would win betting on Kane. And he should have taken her advice in hindsight. He wondered just how much she’d won.
Anna was still standing there staring and Top Dog poked her forehead, making her roll her eyes. She was probably right to be a little worried but she was wrong about one thing. Top Dog hadn't grown cocky. He’d always been cocky.
Now he just had something to back it up with.
Because he was the best.
He’d ground for years and sweated blood to be the best fighter in that circuit and maintained the position for longer than anyone else has. What was there not to be cocky about? Hadn’t he earned it?
“Were you betting before you came?” she asked, disapproval in her voice.
Ah, perceptive Anna.
“No. I already told you I don’t do that anymore," he lied. While he didn't need to bet, it was still fun to do it once in a while. And he could afford to. He had more money than he knew what to do with. And he just kept getting more of it.
They were doing a joint sponsorship today for some gymwear brands Nearly half a million credits each just for him to show up and glower at the camera in spandex. That was a ridiculous amount of money for few minutes of his time, money he never thought he would see in a lifetime. Money he’d always dreamed of.
But he’d spent the last year doing everything he’d dreamed. Going on an expensive private skybird trip. Eating at a restaurant that had once called the police on him for rummaging through their garbage. He’d even bought his mother a nice big house. They’d never had a house before. They’d had a hovel that was owned by one of the old Lords and that they’d had to pay an exorbitant rent on. But now they owned a house with a pool, and she no longer had to work herself ragged cleaning other people’s houses, while blisters formed on her fingers and her bones creaked. Hakeem had even gotten her a massage chair. And he’d spent most of the afternoon with her when he wasn't betting.
"Relax," he said. “I know it doesn't look like it but I am taking this seriously. I’m not going to let that kid defeat me. Trust.”
Anna shook her head with a sigh but she bit her lip with worry because this affected her too. If some newbie brat could beat the entire circuit without effort, then it just meant that they all aren't worth shit, didn't it?.
“I hope for our sake you’re right," Anna said.
***
Dewie’s mansion smelled like a fresh new coat of paint when Lexie and Xena arrived. Lexie didn't know if they’d painted it just for a celebration dinner but she wouldn't put it past his mother.
Vera had a car pick them up too, with Lars driving luckily. Lexie had asked him all throughout the car ride if there were any table manners she was expected to know, but he'd only smiled as she and Xena guessed amongst themselves.
Xena thought that they might need to do a refresher course on where the napkins go when you’re eating.
Lexie disagreed because she was pretty sure it went on your lap and she thought that time would be better spent learning how to eat with a fork and knife without looking like an idiot.
In the end, they both decided that learning all that was too much work and they chose to accept themselves for who they were. Low-class, uncouth children.
Once they'd arrived, Lars dropped them off at the entrance and then drove around to park the car in the garage.
“You think we look okay?” Lexie asked. She was wearing a dress Emma had gotten for her last birthday, a simple periwinkle blue knee-length dress, with an A-line cut.
Xena on the other hand was in her trademark black, and was wearing a long leather bedazzled skirt, with her strapless bodice. And of course her leather jacket.
“I always look good,” Xena said confidently. “Whether or not, Ms. Type A is going to like it as a whole other thing altogether.”
Lexie shrugged. “Here goes nothing.”
She reached up and rang the doorbell, listening as a pleasant lullaby leaked from inside. A second later, the door was pulled open and Dewie stood there beaming at them.
“You came!” he said.
“Yeah.” Xena gave him a smile. “We said we would, didn’t we?”
“Yes, but I wasn’t sure for a second there. You guys are a little late.”
“That’s because someone had to make sure that her winged eyeliner matched on both eyes.” Lexie gave Xena a sidelong glance. “And it took her like a billion tries to get it right.”
“It takes time to look this good.” Xena shrugged. “So? What’s for dinner?”
Dewie opened his mouth to answer, but a voice from behind him cut in before he could.
“Dewie.” Veronica moved into view, standing in the middle of a grand staircase, her hair in perfect curls around her annoyingly perfect face. Of course, she completely ignored Lexie and Xena's existence as she addressed her brother. “Close the door. You’re letting all the hot air out.”
“Someone needs to let your hot air out,” Xena muttered as they walked in and closed the door. Lexie shook her head. She'd forgotten Veronica would be at this dinner. The other girl hadn’t really bothered Lexie again after the incident at the first Azure dinner, but Lexie had still never forgotten it. And since then, she’d never liked her and probably never would.
Veronica descended the rest of the stairs with regal grace and crossed their paths on the way to the dining room without a single word. On one hand, Lexie was happy they didn't have to interact. On the other, it was undoubtedly rude.
“Come on,” Dewie said. “Dinner hasn't started yet, because my cousins aren’t here. But I’ll show you around the house.”
“Ok.”
The tour was more extensive than Lexie thought it would be. Dewie’s house was somewhat of a castle, with two external towers that were fashioned into guest houses and about three and a half different gardens. The walls were painted a deep blue, which was the Azure family color, and the Azure crest was mounted on a flag, in the middle of the courtyard. Grand paintings were hung over the walls, all the wood polished till the glistened, some statues of Knights and stuff, and of course, perfectly trimmed shrubs.
Dewie’s room had about as much space as Lexie's parent’s apartment back in New York. It was a suite with a living room too.
By the time the bell rang to let them know that dinner was ready, Lexie felt like she had walked five miles and seen enough blue to last her a lifetime.
When they returned back to the front foyer, they heard voices in the adjoining parlor and as they got closer, Lexie noted with a little bit of excitement that the voice sounded really familiar.
“Yeah,” Theo Firebringer was saying. “Mom had to jet out at the last minute because one of the Fae Ambassadors unexpectedly arrived on Earth this evening and requested her as part of the receiving team. And the little ones had a mild flu, so Dad’s staying home with them. So, it’s unfortunately just me and Torren today. Sorry about that.”
“Nonsense!” Vera Azure sounded as happy as Lexie had ever heard her. “Of course, I would have loved to host the whole family, but I understand your predicament. Stella is a busy woman, and there’s nothing to be done if children are sick. I’m happy even if it’s just my two favorite nephews.”
By that point, Dewie, Xena, and Lexie had arrived at the entrance to the dining room where Vera was starting to direct the two boys to the table. Before she could though, Dewie called out, “Cousin Theo!” causing him to stop.
Theo Firebringer still looked about the same as when Lexie last saw him. Better even. He didn’t have the eyebags anymore, and he didn’t look as tired. He‘d grown his reddish blonde hair out to shoulder length and was also sporting some stubble that may grow into a beard in the future. He looked a little like Thor and his eyes still glinted when he smiled.
“Dewie! My man! How have you been?”
“Good.” Dewie grinned as he reached them and Theo violently noogied his hair. “I knew it would just be the two of you by the way. I only saw two fairies today.”
Theo didn’t give Dewie the same puzzled look people usually did when he said stuff like that.
Instead, he grinned. “Oh yeah? That’s great buddy.” And he actually managed to sound sincere too. “You know one of these days I should introduce you to a friend of mine, Lucy Frank. I have a feeling she would find you hilarious.”
Dewie looked unsure but he nodded.
“Are these your friends?” Theo asked and then he looked to Xena first, who nodded a little uncomfortably, and then Lexie.
And then he started.
“Hey.” His eyes widened. “It's you.”
Lexie gave a little wave and said, “Yup. Hey, Theo.”
“The two of you know each other?” Vera inquired confusedly, glancing between the two of them.
“Yeah,” Theo said, still staring at Lexie with a puzzled expression. “We met at a…” He didn't seem to know how to explain the situation so Lexie filled in for him.
“He saved me from a villain with magnet powers,” Lexie said. “Plus he also knew my mom.”
Lexie said that last bit in part to see Theo’s reaction to it. Aiden said that Stella and Lara had fallen out a few months before she died. So she assumed Theo had met her. How did he feel about her?
Theo surprised Lexie by smiling softly. “Yes. I did.”
That was all he got to say before Vera clapped her hands and announced, “Alright folks dinner is served. Harold will be down in just a moment to join us, but let’s sit and have the appetizers first.”
“Can never say no to appetizers.” And as he moved Lexie finally caught sight of the boy who’d remained silent throughout most of the conversation, simply observing everything with a mild scowl on his face and arms crossed with disdain.
She knew instantly who he was.
Torren Firebringer.
