Submit (Surrender #2)(56)
Author: Melody Anne

Shane approached the young man and calmly told him he wanted his shirt back. Seth had looked at Shane and denied knowing what he was talking about; the shirt was his. But then a policeman passing by asked whether there was a problem, and when Shane saw the panic in the kid’s eyes, he’d said no — everything was cool. Shane took Seth to dinner and didn’t let up on him until he learned the boy’s circumstances.

It took a while, but Shane found out Seth was living with a group of homeless kids, all between ten and seventeen. Seth was only thirteen at the time, but his eyes showed the evidence of years of hard living.

The group did what they had to in order to survive, including theft, prostitution, consuming and selling drugs — whatever it took. By the end of that dinner, which Seth practically inhaled, Shane earned enough trust that the kid agreed to meet him again.

Shane gave him a few dollars, enough to tempt Seth to come back, but not enough that he could get into too much trouble. They started meeting for lunch in a nearby park each afternoon, and Shane learned more and more of his story — that’s when he’d decided to help his group.

He’d gotten them involved at a gym his friend owned, set them up in a home where they could all stay together and helped them get back into school. Four of the kids left, too hardened to change, but six of the ten stayed, and out of those six, four were still there. One had graduated from high school last year and was in his first year of college. Seth had just graduated high school last month — a year early! — and the other two boys only had one year to go.

Seth was the only one in the group who’d taken to fighting. It was a way for him to channel his rage — anger from his father’s abandoning him, his mother’s overdosing on drugs, and his losing everyone he’d ever loved in his life. He’d picked up on martial arts quickly, and within a couple years, he was becoming the guy to beat in the ring.

Shane thought the kid had a real chance of making it in the UFC. The day Shane knew Seth was going to be OK was the day Seth broke down in Shane’s arms. It was the boy’s fifteenth birthday and Shane had surprised him with a cake.

His heart had broken when he found out it was the first birthday cake Seth had ever had. And that night, when Shane gave him a brand new pair of Nike shoes, Seth had given Shane an appreciative hug, then sobbed in his arms.

Shane couldn’t hold back a few of his own tears as this tough street kid allowed himself to show real emotion for the first time in years. Shane couldn’t save them all, but even one kid — just one — was gratifying.

When Rafe had found out what Shane was doing, of course he had jumped in, donating funds, spending time at the gym, and letting the kids know that not everyone was against them. Rafe had been the one who saved Shane’s life when he’d run away at the tender age of fifteen.

Shane would die for Rafe. But he didn’t want these kids to idolize him — he knew he was too far from perfect to deserve that. But idolize him they did. They’d given up, and the unaccustomed kindness he’d shown toward them earned their adulation.

Seth returned to the two men well fed and with a smile of anticipation on his face. This is where he wanted to be someday — in that ring, fighting for the championship. There was a chance he just might make it.

The stadium began filling up, and music pumped out from the speakers. Seth was practically jumping in his seat. When the first fighters were introduced, he jumped up shouting as he waited for one of his heroes to walk through the tunnel on the far side of the stadium, where they’d walk along a narrow path to the ring in the center of the theater. Cameras followed the fighters, so before they emerged from the tunnels, the crowd was fired up as they saw them on the big screens approaching the opening.

“Did you see that?” Seth yelled as he turned around. The fighter had passed by and slapped his hand. Would the kid refuse to wash it over the next month? Shane wondered.

“You want to know what’s even better?”

“There’s nothing better than getting to high-five one of the fighters!”

“How about getting to meet a couple of them?”

Seth said nothing as he gazed wide-eyed at Shane, trying to decipher whether his mentor was telling him the truth. Trust still didn’t come easy for the young man.

Shane pulled out the backstage passes and handed one to Seth, who looked at the card as if he were holding treasure. Tears filled Seth’s eyes as he looked at Shane, then Rafe. He turned around to choke down the sob threatening to bubble up, and he refused to turn back until he was under control.

“I don’t even know what to say, Shane. Thank you seems so lame,” he said so quietly, Shane could barely hear him.

“Thank you is always good enough when it’s meant,” Shane replied, speaking with difficulty over what felt like a golf-ball-sized lump in his throat.

All conversation ceased as the fight began. Seth instead cheered so loudly that by the halfway point, he was losing his voice. By the end of the fight, he was down to only a whisper. And when Shane and Rafe took him backstage, the kid nearly passed out.

The fighters were amazing with him, though, encouraging him to keep up the fighting so they could one day stand in the audience and cheer him on. Shane knew that this was one of those life-changing events that Seth would never forget.

For that matter, it was pretty life-changing for Shane as well. As he and Rafe left the building, they were both silent as they thought about the way their lives had turned out. Rafe had grown up privileged, with a loving family, but he’d still gone through his periods of darkness.

Shane was lucky to have risen above his grim circumstances. Now, he was in a place where he could help kids like Seth. The rest of the world had given up on these “throwaway” kids, making them want to give up on themselves, but when people like Shane stepped up, some of them could be saved.

“Do you think you’ll be able to talk again, Seth?” Rafe asked as he ruffled his hair.

“Who cares? This has been a dream come true,” he squeaked as they made their way from the coliseum.

“I have no doubt you’ll be in that ring soon, kid. But, seriously, don’t ever think you have to keep fighting if you don’t want to. You may find that you love college even more than being in that ring,” Shane told him.

“No way, Shane. I love you, man, but right now you’re just plain crazy. What could be better than stepping into that ring with thousands of people cheering your name?”