Songs for this chapter are:

90s baby - 1k phew

Gas you up - 1k phew

Ebun

The guy didn't attract her anymore.

Lust was like the urgent need to urinate after all. Once you feed the lustful desires, you feel satisfied, but in this case, Ebun didn't have to feed her lust before her attraction to him disappeared. When she remembered this man was her opponent, and he gave no damn about her except for the fact that he desired to knock her out, Ebun came back to her senses.

But for a short while, she took her time to gawk, and she discovered a lot instantly.

The guy was thirty years old and tall. He had a moderate musculature; broad arms, an excellent wide chest, and biceps. His dark skin looked as smooth as butter. His face was without blemish, well defined, and carefully carved by God. Structured, full eyebrows that started as small balls then loped into arcs. His cool eyes radiated some form of subtlety due to the smallness of his eyes.

His nose was pristine, and the bridge looked like one adorned with smooth pearls; spotless and rare. The same imagery could be applied to the structure of his pink lips. The beards connected from the side of his ear to his chin were the smoothest kind of hair next to a newborn's. It was as though he'd rubbed baby oil on the surface.

Ebun took her time to look at his face once she entered the boxing ring, dressed as a fighter; a sports camisole accompanied with knee-length shorts and a boxing belt positioned in between the bare skin of her stomach and the elastic band of her shorts.

Unfortunately, there was nothing to read about the damned man. No weakness, surprise, or fear to spot beneath his gaze. Just danger and readiness to knock any minion off. She swallowed firmly, clenching her fists as she encouraged herself to look just as fierce and unbothered.

He stood at the left end of the boxing ring while she stood at the right with the referee at the center, uttering some words that she was unable to pay attention to until he mentioned her opponent's name.

"Today's match is between Sean Graham and Ebunoluwa Williams. As you all can see, this is our first-ever boxing match between a male and a female boxer. It's going to be a spectacular sight for sure!" the referee licked his lips suspiciously. "Having dictated all the rules for this boxing match, the match will commence now!"

A ding sound emanated from an unknown source similar to what Ebun always heard in wrestling TV shows, but she knew it to signify the commencement of the match.

The lights became focused only on the boxing ring where she and her opponent stood. The crowd could not be seen because there were no lights cast upon them.

Amid the loud cheers of the crowd that she could hear, the voices consisted majorly of men that seemed to support her opponent. Ebun made a resolve to put these beasts to shame at all costs. No one here had her best interest at heart.

The referee had licked his lips suspiciously, which meant that he anticipated her humiliation since women and girls were seen as the weaker gender. She knew the disgusting scumbag was about to sexualize her as he watched her fight.

Society hated women but she wasn't about to give a damn about that. So she lunged towards Sean gallantly, positioning her fists in a parallel motion with his face as the aimed meeting point. Sean moved closer too with his fists in the same position. His expression cooler than an iceberg.

Each party was waiting to give the perfect blow until—

Wham!

Her face swerved in the other direction. She felt her feet stagger backward against her will. Seconds later, she felt a stinging, loud pain on her cheekbone directly. She didn't waste another second processing the pain before she turned and saw her opponent, positioning his fist aright so he could give her another weakening punch.

She could hear cheers from the crowd again, supporting her opponent's move. What did she do wrong? Why was the punch on her cheek sudden? Quickly, the penny dropped. She was too busy looking for his weakness that she'd let him read through her like an open book and acted faster. He had probably seen naivety in her.

She had been staring at his bare chest for too long, thinking of how to punch him out of balance when she could have just hit. If she punched him twice, thrice, or continually, she would have discovered his weakness faster, and victory would have been hers. Staring at him didn't expose a thing, so what made her think it would work again?

Quickly, she rubbed the affected cheek and lunged forward again, carefully and smartly.

Wham! Bam! Thwack!

Those sounds were produced from Ebun's ferocious jabbing. The first hit was the region of his stomach just below his nipples. Hitting that part was similar to an attempt to crack an ancient stone because he didn't move. That made Ebun regret her choice immediately. So she tried again and punched him right below the lowest rib on the right. This move made him wince slightly for sure.

But Sean didn't back down. As she was busy trying to break his rib, he pulled her hair upwards with a force so he could look at her face and threw a punch directly on her chin. She staggered again but covered the distance immediately.

She noticed that he aimed for her stomach this time because her skin was naturally a lot tender, more sensitive, and prone to internal bleeding faster than him. So while his focus was on her stomach, she returned the same energy and punched a vital joint in his cheek that squashed his face like soft potatoes for a minute.

He raised his head to look at her, anger burning in his eyes towards his opponent for being more potent than he could have imagined. Irritated, he dug his hand on her shoulder so that he could push or dominant her in some way. The effect of his calloused hand on her shoulder was powerful that she nearly slipped to the floor as he threw a punch on her stomach, the region just before her abdomen.

Ding! Came the familiar sound again.

"You are not allowed to push your opponent!" the referee warned Sean.

Quickly, he loosened his grip on her shoulder. Groaning, Ebun bit her lip as her stamina got restored. She gathered every strength that she could find and dunk her fists mightily into his muscular, broad chest. She wasn't sure if that was a wise decision, but surprisingly enough, it was powerful enough to make him stagger back to the line of ropes guarding the boxing ring.

He wrapped his arm tightly around the rope for support. His right knee jerked in a slack motion, and his biceps were flexing involuntarily. Ebun took quick advantage of the situation just before her opponent can get on his feet again and punched his face like she'd punched the punching bag for two weeks.

Suddenly, Ebun could no longer hear anything. The cheers, the hovering movements and the commentaries of the referee, the ding sound, nothing. Everything vanished too. Only him and her, present in the boxing ring. The demons reappeared, and suddenly, she could see the other five guys that raped her. Subconsciously, she imagined her opponent, Sean as the masked guy and saw the boxing ring as the opportunity to exercise her victory.

So she took it as her moment for prospective retaliation. Immediately, the willpower to do so sponsored the propensity and the force in which she used to throw more punches at his face.

Every single feature on his face, she aspired to break it into pieces. The last time she'd engaged in a physical fight with someone, she aimed to see blood gushing out like water from an ungalvanized tap. This time around, if she could see the vivid outline of the skeleton beneath his flesh, oh how thrilled she would be!

Hence she punched with all her might with the added advantage of the unknown force propelling her.

"Do you by chance...hate men?"

She didn't know why she was able to hear that question when her ears had been deaf to everything but the force propelling her. Was it because his voice was so deep? But when she heard it, she stopped punching momentarily and looked at her opponent. Blood was dripping from his lips as he spoke, and it was only then she realized that her punch had liberated one of his teeth from his gum.

Only God knew where the tooth flew to, but she would have loved to see it. It was beyond a vivid outline of a skeleton.

"Yes, I do." sweat dripped down her face in torrents as she answered the question.

"That's perfect because I hate women too, " he chuckled and wheezed loudly, displaying his reddened teeth that made him look like an overfed vampire. "So let's punch each other to kill each other. Shouldn't we?" he raised an eyebrow.

That statement was like an extra charge that Ebun needed to become a fully bloodthirsty animal. Now, she was truly ready to kill.

"Yes, we should, " Ebun gritted her teeth.

"Were you by chance...raped? Assaulted? Molested? That scar on your lip tells a story I would love to hear."

The dirty smirk on his face as he made that remark fueled Ebun's resolve some more. It increased the temperature of her blood to immeasurable degrees. It was hot with terrifying anger.

Another punch landed on his battered face before he could act on her provocation at all. It was the ultimate punch that had him falling face flat to the ground. Cheers from the few members who probably supported her could be heard. She'd won that round.

Sean single-handedly got on his feet surprisingly after the knockdown and yanked the referee's hands away. He wiped more blood away from his nostrils and lips. Then he stared right into Ebun's eyes.

"Can we talk?" he asked her.

But just before she could answer, the referee came up with an idiotic commentary.

"Oh well! That was an oddly beautiful match!"

***

Ebun and Sean couldn't go on for the second round despite how much the two had insisted on another chance to knock each other down. The owner of the sports center was terrified with the outlook of Sean's face: The display of multiple colors, swollen cheeks, eyes, and lips.

"You still want to fight?!" the owner yelled. "You already look ugly right now. Do you plan on turning into a monster before you realize you shouldn't fight anymore?" he whined, then turned towards Ebun. "And you! All I did was ask you to fight, not attempt a murder. You don't want to refund the damages, don't you?"

"Please, can you give us a room where the two of us can talk? If you won't let us fight each other at least," Sean insisted.

Minutes later, Ebun and Sean were alone in the gym. Somehow, his face didn't look as grotesque compared to moments ago, and it made Ebun wondered how he could have healed that fast. She had to ask eventually because she couldn't help it.

"You didn't accept any first aid treatment from the auxiliary nurses back at the boxing ring, so why does your face look less swollen all of a sudden?"

"Oh, that?" he laughed as he gulped down a sip from a bottle of water. "I've gotten worse punches than what I received today. Great fighting skills though, I was impressed. I still could have knocked you down if I was exceedingly determined to do so but watching you hit me with all of that anger made me want to know the mystery behind your actions because I've never had anyone hit me with that much emotion before."

"Okay. What do you want to talk about?" Ebun asked as she folded her arms beneath her breasts, still sweating profusely.

"I'm just interested in knowing why you hate men."

"You tell me why you hate women first."

"Haven't you realized it already? Why do you think I've engaged in so many fights? And why do you think I was able to adapt and survive those punches you threw in there? I trained myself to become the boxer that I am today, so I can protect myself from predatory women and carry out full vengeance when the due time comes because I'm not going to back down and become a victim for the second time."

"The same thing applies for me too. I was raped by a group of six men when I was twelve years old. I already knew how to fight long before that incident happened, but these six men defeated me." Ebun answered quickly so she wouldn't have to pause and shed unnecessary tears.

"And what have your plans towards vengeance been ever since then? I heard you are eighteen years old. So it's been six years now."

"I haven't been able to do a thing. I have a big family. I'm the last born with five overprotective elder siblings. Plus, my parents are still alive. I flunked school, masturbated, tried to smoke weed so that I could cope and keep my demons at bay. I graduated from high school two months ago, which explains why I have some liberty to step out of the house and practice boxing."

"That's a whole lot of bullshit!" he exclaimed. "But...now that you have some liberty, would you pursue healing or vengeance?"

"I'll always choose vengeance. I'd rather heal in hell."

"Whoa! You're exactly my type of my girl!" he smiled irrespective of his outlook, negativing any severe form of facial muscle expansion. "Yes, I remember telling you that I hate women, but... I must say I'm proud of you for staying true to your intentions because families like that are capable of making you lose interest in your genuine pursuit over time."

"It was coming from a place of genuine concern, though, " Ebun defended her family unconsciously. "Recently, I started to think of how draining it must have been for them to have me by their sides. Sad occurrences drain not only the victims, but the people around them, and the truth is, nobody likes you when you're constantly sad."

"But that's the more reason why you should leave them to pursue your desires so you won't have to pretend that you're okay continually."

Ebun heaved a heavy sigh. She loved conversations like this. At least the thought of it. But she never knew it could involve this much sentiments and nostalgia.

"So what's the point of this conversation now? What do you plan on doing to help me because I'm not sure I know what to do with your advice."

"Can you come to Russia with me?"

The question was big, sudden, and very much unexpected, and the gravity of it showed in Ebun's facial expressions.

"What?"

"You have plans of going to the university, right? Even if you don't, I'm sure your parents have plans for you. With a family like yours, I'm sure they want you to be a decent girl with a good life since they know what you are capable of doing if they don't keep an eye on you."

"Yes, " Ebun admitted. She couldn't deny the fact that she loved where this conversation was heading to. " and I plan on studying overseas."

"Have you decided what country specifically? Or more importantly, have you told your parents about your choice?"

"I haven't made a choice yet, however—"

"Perfect! Tell them you want to study in Russia."

"But it's too far! And why do you want me to follow you?"

"There's a barrack in Russia that was formerly a rehabilitation center. It is a domain for psychopaths and mentally deranged people who have cruel pasts similar to yours. Some watched their family members die. Some witnessed their parent's companies get burnt suspiciously. Some were victims of sexual assaults and rape like you. They never healed from those occurrences and eventually ended up in that rehab center.

Later on, there was a rebellion movement among the people with a mental health condition which succeeded. So instead of healing or seeking therapy, they decided to reform the rehab center into a headquarter for their vengeful activities. So each patient kills whoever they hate the most. If the patient's traumatic experience was affiliated with wrongful murder, for example, the patient seeks to murder criminals who murder people wrongfully as a way of feeling satisfied.

If it's rape, the patient kills other rapists. But the vengeful acts are organized. You can't just kill any rapist you see because you have a desire to kill them. I'll tell you everything you need to know if you agree to follow me."

"But how does that make me carry out the vengeance I desire to implement? I wish to kill the men that raped me. Not kill men that rape other people on their behalf, " Ebun explained. She was done advocating. It was either she killed her rapists or did nothing at all.

"But you were punching me like I was the guy who raped you in that boxing ring. Are you telling me that you would rather live a suffocated life than have a chance at killing the people who made your life miserable?

The people who murder murderers, do you think they don't wish to murder the bastards that caused their trauma directly? Of course, they do. But what is keeping them sane is that each person they murder for wrongfully murdering another person gives them a kind of joy they would have felt if they had the chance to avenge the wrongful death of their loved ones.

Not everyone in life gets to revenge directly on the people that caused them pain. But there's a chance for you to do it indirectly instead of wallowing in despair uselessly. Some of them also hope to find the people they genuinely desire to kill, especially if those criminals eloped.

I hope you know that vengeance and healing are both complex journeys to embark on. Only that vengeance brings you joy and fulfillment, but healing is an unnecessarily stupid cycle that forces you to admit to your pain just so you can get over it, and most times, you don't."

Ebun pondered deeply for some minutes. He was right. Yemisi has been looking for the rapists all over Nigeria for six years since the incident happened, and her efforts have been nearly futile. She was only able to catch two of the rapists, and they weren't seen in Nigeria.

That meant that traveling to Russia might not be entirely futile. There was a reasonable possibility of finding one of the rapists there. Even if she didn't see them, killing other rapists the way she had always desired to kill the ones that raped her would make for a great substitution. All she had to do was look at it from the angle of killing for her pleasure and sanity, not from the place of advocacy or fighting for someone else.

"How do you know about the barracks?"

"Because I was once a patient at the former rehabilitation center, and I was a part of the rebellious movement. My aunt raped me when I was five years up until I was thirteen years old. She died later on before I got to carry out my vengeance on her. I joined the bandwagon of vengeance-thirsty psychopaths. So I love killing women that rape boys. The reason why I'm not in Russia right now is that cases like that are rare, and even the ones I find, I can't kill them recklessly."

"Why?"

"You will find out if you agree to follow me to Russia."

"Why are you offering to help me out, though? This is a perfect and tempting offer, and by the looks of it, you can't reveal information like this to anyone without wanting something in return."

"Of course, I want something in return. Wise of you to know that nothing in life is free, " he stroked his beard. "The thing is... I have to prove to my parents that I've healed from my trauma. Otherwise, they will take me away from the rehabilitation center and force me to live a decent life, and I'm not ready to quit what I do right now. I can't leave the barracks because it's the only place that keeps me sane. It provides me the opportunity to kill and obtain joy from it.

But sadly, I have to prove to my parents that I'm a transformed man and I need to do that soon. What they expect from me by the ending of next year is to bring home a wife, and so I was wondering that you and I would be the perfect match - a misogynist and a misandrist. Another thing we have in common is that we are both psychopaths."

"Are you insane?! I'm eighteen. You're thirty!"
Ebun's irises grew large as saucers.

"Think about it like this. It's an act, after all. We would never get along, and you know it. I hate women, and you hate men. But there's something I have to offer that will be of benefit to you. All you have to do is agree to follow me to my parent's house when the time is right. I'm not even going to treat you like my fiancee if you follow me to Russia. You will only play your role as a wife on the day I need you to."

"I—"

"Will you be my wife?"

***
Just so you know, it's illegal to push your opponent or hit them below the belt in boxing. It's part of the boxing rules.

Also, hitting your opponent in the gut, significantly below the lower rib on the right side of their stomach, can affect the liver, making it an excellent place to hit if you want to attack someone or throw an effective punch.

Do a little research.

I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, though.

Yours affectionately,
The Dream Elixir.