Across The Tiny-Verse

[Agent]

Dana White Is Here.



"Whoa, nephew! I can't believe Dana White showed up to see the fight's tonight! That's him over there in the black suit."



"I know who Dana White is, Unc'." I laughed.

"He's scouting for his show. I want to be on TV! Let me put my name into the tournament.." He joked.

"Your next opponent won his first match the last time I held this tournament. He's a seasoned fighter. Pay attention in there, or he might catch you slipping."

Based off the previous two fighters, I was well ahead of the learning curve. Two knockouts & two wins left from being crowned champ.

"I'm ready. I learned from the best, & fighting in front of Dana White is a big motivation boost." I replied.

"Speaking of which, I'm going to go introduce myself. Good luck in the next round, kid."

"Thanks, Unc'."

[Agent]

Semi-Finals | I De'Von Parker



Man. I met my match here.



But I managed to get my kick to the side of his head off.



But once his big ass mounted me (I'd bet he outweighed me by 40+ lbs) he finished me with the ground & pound technique until the referee stopped it.



Winner: D. Parker, 1st Rd (KO)

[Agent]

Good luck at Miami, Nephew.



The loss in my uncle's tournament meant that I was going to focus on football fulltime. Taking an ass-whooping & playing a contact sport is a lot of work, not to mention I don't believe the coaching staff would be too happy to find out about this.

"Hey great fighting out there today, man. You looked amazing. It took a veteran to put you down & you're only 18. You've got great potential."

"I'm flattered, Unc. But the next time you hear from me it'll be from a postcard that I write while I relax on South Beach."

"& I couldn't be any happier for you. Good luck at Miami, Nephew."

We hugged.

"You can tell everyone that the guy on The Contender this season knocked you out." He laughed.

I laughed as well, but we both knew that I truly did possess a great skill in the octagon. I had a lot of fun in this tournament but an injury sustained here could really hurt my football career. I said my farewell's to my uncle & now I'm ready to get to Miami.

[Agent]

Coach Anoa'i's Big Secret.



Graduating high school alongside my best friends was everything I'd expected. But while most my age can't wait to spend their Summer vacation indoors relaxing, I'm going to be pushing myself to the limit every single day. I've already asked Coach Anoa'i if I could still access the school's resources such as the football field & gym.

"Without a doubt!" Coach Anoa'i replied when I asked if I could still practice here until heading off for Miami U.

"Tiny, you're different from most kids your age. You've got that killer instinct in you, first in the gym & last to leave attitude. It's going to take your career very far. It truly has been an honor to be your high school football coach over the years. I'll still be following your story. Just don't forget about ol' coach Anoa'i over here in Newark when you're big & successful!" He joked.

"Never!" I replied.

"You're always Coach." I said with a smile.

"There's something I wanted to mention to you as well. I may not have any connections in Dade County specifically, but I've got family that lives in Orlando, FL. If you're ever in Orlando, reach out to me & I'll try to set something up for you. Have you ever heard of Jimmy & Jey Uso?"

I paused.

"Uso? It's not ringing a bell." I replied, waiting for Coach to tell me more.

"Funny you say ringing a bell. Jimmy & Jey Uso work for the WWE. They're superstars on Smackdown! Live. My last name is Anoa'i. Their real last name is Fatu."

Woah! The WWE? I didn't know coach had plugs like that!

"What about Roman Reigns? Have you ever heard of him?"

"Coach, I've definitely heard of Roman Reigns! He's a monster! But wait isn't he related too.. Oh shit."

"Yep. He's also related to Dwyane 'The Rock' Johnson."

"Which means so are you! Coach why did you keep this a secret until now?" I asked, unable to contain my excitement.

He laughed.

"For the record, I didn't pitch The Rock to you. & I don't think I'll be able to get Roman to hangout with you, but Jimmy & Jey will. Only if you're interested. You've got a better chance running into Dwyane on campus at Miami. I hear he comes & visits the football program every so often."

I hugged coach tightly. We've shared many hugs over the years in the ups & downs of football.

"Thank you for everything, Coach. I'm absolutely interested."

"Great! I'll go ahead and get started setting something up. Maybe there will be a show coming to New York or Newark before you head to Florida. I'll check the schedule. In the meantime, here's a key for you to access the school's gym. I trust you, Tiny."

"You can trust me, Coach." I replied.

Now it's time to get to work on some drills.

[Agent]

One Last Job With Trey.



"There's no way they're going to know it was us. My guy Lean got hired there a couple of months ago & he said there's no cameras inside the building. There's a safe that contains all of money & he knows the combination. We're going to get in, get out. All you have to do is drive us out of there, Tin'!" Trey pitched as we agreed to hangout before splitting our separate ways.

"I hope I don't regret this." I said, as I dapped my guy Trey up to suggest that I was onboard.

"We can do the score tomorrow night, split the money & we're going our separate ways the next day. It's genius." He said.

It would be nice to buy some new swag before heading down to South Beach. But this plan is far from genius.

[Agent]

Last Day In Newark.



A lot of memories here in Newark. We moved when I was in 7th grade from the Bronx. My Dad found a better job across the river & that's that.

Every day when I step outside I'm forced to look directly at the liquor store across the street. Every day it reminds me why I train so hard. Why I push myself to the limit. Why I have no choice but to be the best. Because I don't want to raise my future family here, nor do I want my parents to have to live here. There's good parts of Newark, but my parents didn't choose to live there for some reason.

However, today I'm soaking it in & being proud of the community that raised me. I learned how to be bad here. How to fight. How to defend myself. I also learned how to be good here. How to be a leader on the field. I learned how to be a champion here in Newark & I'm ready to take what I learned here & share it with the rest of the world.

Tomorrow morning we'll be packing up my stuff & driving down to Miami U. It'll be a long drive, but I can't wait.

[Agent]

Last Night In Newark Pt. I.



"Didn't I see you in that fighting contest a couple of weeks ago?" The stripper unexpectedly asked me.

"Oh you saw that? Yes that was me. Where were you? Were you a competitor?"

Damn. She's looking right at me. In her underwear. She's so fine.

"Not a competitor. I was working the concession stand. You were really good."

"Thank you. If you ever want lessons." I tried to say before she cut me off.

"Lessons? If I remember correctly, you only had the energy to go one round." She joked.

Damn. She served me up just then. I'm not mad at it though. That was a good burn.

"Yeah. I just try to go for the knockout early and tire myself out."

"Well if you ever want lessons in how to go multiple rounds, hit me up." She took my phone and searched her profile on Instagram, hit follow, & headed backstage.

"Eliza Herring. 20." I whispered to myself out loud while I scrolled through her page. Damn. This girl's hot as hell.

[Agent]

Last Night In Newark Pt. II.

"This is Lean. Lean, this is Tiny." Trey quickly introduced us as the two got in my car.

"I'm a big fan of your game, Tiny. I'm rooting for you at Miami next season, playa! Make Newark proud." Lean proclaimed.

"Let's go over it one more time. Tiny. You're going to drive us to Family Pharmacy on Douglas & wait outside without drawing attention. You'll also alert us of anything we need to know while we're inside by calling our phones. Trey & I will enter through the back door that connects all of the units. There's a hallway and it's less used entrance to the store. Once I open the door, we can turn on the lights, run to the office, get the cash, & put everything back as if we weren't here. Tiny will drive us to your house Trey where we'll lay low for a few hours."

Hearing Lean say it like that sounds like nothing can go wrong.

"I think it's a great plan. How much can we expect on the inside?" Trey asked.

"Can't say. I just know they keep the big bills in the safe. Let's just say when we need cash on the register, they're not drawing it out of this fund. I watched them open it once & memorized the combination."

"When can we go?" I asked.

"Now. They close and leave by 6:30 every day. It's 8:55 right now."

Here we go. I started up my car and drove us to the spot.

"Wait here. Trey, let's go." Lean said.

"The time is 9:14. Tiny. Keep an eye out." Trey said as he exited the car.

I watched the two go inside & waited patiently. One last job & I'm Miami bound with cash in my pockets tomorrow morning!

[Agent]

Last Night In Newark Pt. III.

"Here. Take this." Lean handed Trey an assault rifle from the duffle bag he had been carrying.

"Whoa, man! I don't want that shit!" Trey barked back.

"Look it's an airsoft gun, stupid. Just take it in case shit goes south."

Trey took the gun & the two began to make their way inside the first part. The hallway that connects all of the suites together. Once inside, they had to enter a key code on the door to unlock it.

The two gained access & entered the store.

"Do you hear voices?" Trey whispered to Lean.

"Shh."

The two stood still as they entered the building, waiting to hear another sound similar to a voice.

Lean slowly walked up to the end of the hallway and looked around the corner towards the office.

"It was definitely next door. There's no one here." Lean said.

The two went into the room & unlocked the safe to reveal all the money.



"Holy shit." Trey said.

The two piled up all the money & they began to make their way to the getaway car. As Lean reached for the door to exit the store, you could hear someone on the other side attempting to enter the code to gain access.

Lean grabbed Trey and the two prepared for an unexpected encounter.

The owner of the store enters along with two other men. They enter before realizing the two men standing in the corner with their guns pointed at them. They didn't recognize Lean due to the mask he wore.

"Everyone get away from the fucking door!" Lean shouted, quickly taking a dominating stance by moving everyone together.



"As long as everyone stays here & doesn't call the police, no one get's hurt. You weren't supposed to fucking be here man! What the hell are you doing here!?" Lean screamed, clearly losing his control.

"Please don't kill us! This is my store and these are my friends we came to celebrate his birthday since we share this side of the building together. Take the money & get out but please don't hurt us!" The store owner shouted.

Trey & Lean took his advice, kept the guns on them as they exited the door and made their way to me.

"Holy shit what happened in there you guys look like you saw a fucking ghost! And what the fuck are these guns doing in the car what's happening?!" I shouted as I began to lose my cool.

I'm supposed to go to Miami tomorrow. Why is this happening to me.

"Drive! Drive! Drive!"

"The owner showed up. Fuck. He didn't recognize me, but we've got to get the fuck out of here." Lean said.

My heart was racing, but I put the car in drive and took off.

[Count]

Miami ain't it. This shit is wild tho