The Girl, On The Bike

He reached out his hand, and we shook. "Bro, I know fuck all about cleaning, but I'll give it my best shot."

"I know you will. I'll get somebody to come on in and show you what's required."

"Sweet. Thanks, Ross."

"No worries, mate. I'm just glad to have you involved.

He fist pumped me, a first. "Chur bro."

Gary, Sarah's father, was in the gym every day. He totally blew me away. He blended in quickly. He didn't care about airs and graces. Reputations meant nothing to him.

Glenda, Sarah's mum, also amazed me. She worked with social groups as part of her job. She managed to get a group of pregnant mothers who needed a cheap gym where they could work out. We started Zumba, and Tai bo classes. Turns out, Tom, was a trained instructor. Who knew.

It all started coming together. My first step back into the ring was to spar with one of the young kids. He showed real promise, and Tom and I worked with him. As we sparred, I looked across and there was Gary, leaning over the ropes, watching every move.

Sarah burst back into the cycling, and it didn't take long before she was selected for the Olympic games team.

We held a party at the gym, and some of her cycling team mates loved the set up and feel of the gym. Our membership was reaching out, attracting different people. The kickboxing crowd grew as well, I guess my success was part of that. It meant we had to search out good trainers. If we were going to have world class fighter coming out of our gym, we needed help. Tom was good, but by his own admission, needed assistance.

I got another shock, when Simon came back. He didn't come by himself, either. He brought along some of his mates. It was a weird thing seeing cons and cops in the ring sparring and building friendships.

What started as a simple mission to get my girlfriends name cleared turned into a life altering journey of self discovery. We started a groundswell, nd the gym although still mostly a boxing gym, now offered the community something to be proud of.

Along the way, I got my girl back, but more importantly. I found myself.