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morning until lunch. The thought of seeing Ethan made her stomach tighten with anxiety. She went out to lunch by herself. It was the most relaxed she had felt all day. Ethan looked for her in the break room, and her cubicle, but Sara was nowhere to be found. Her office mates confirmed she was in today. This left Ethan feeling more confused than ever.
    Sara returned from lunch, and feeling somehow even more tired, she sat in front of her computer and sipped her coffee. She had precisely nothing to show for the day’s work, and at her current pace nothing would get done. She was fine with it all. It was then that she heard a knock on the wall of her cubicle. She turned. There was Ethan.
    He looked tired. A little worse than he had been on Wednesday. He smiled at her
    “Hey stranger.”
    She didn’t return his smile and it quickly disappeared from his face.
    “Is everything alright?” He asked, his concern genuine.
    “Is this about Emily? Did she contact you?”
    Sara looked at him, surging all of her limited fortitude into constructing a disinterested and uncaring demeanor.
    “Yea. She told me everything. You’re a bastard.” Sara caught herself being louder than she had wanted to be. Everyone in the office could likely hear her.
    “This just isn’t working out. I think you need to leave.” Sara seethed quietly at Ethan.
    Ethan, caught off guard, reacted slowly, stammering. “Whatever she said is a lie! She’s crazy!” Even Ethan had to admit, he sounded unconvincing. He was too tired to rally the energy for a better display.
    Ethan looked at her; struggling between speaking up and the risk of making a commotion at work. The last thing he needed was to look like he was harassing employees. Ethan stared at Sara for a few moments longer, Sara glared at him with her best steely gaze. Ethan turned and left.
    * * *
    The sound of leather hitting leather echoed in the otherwise empty gym. The normal class had since let out for the night, only Ethan and Joe remained. Joe held punching mitts as Ethan’s glove-clad fists hit them again and again in a strange, staccato rhythm. Ethan’s breathing was heavy and labored. Sweat dripped from every extremity. Ethan’s shirt was soaked. His focus was absolute. His eyes locked on Joe, and then the mitts, as Joe called out punches to be thrown.
    For Ethan, his concentration was perfect. Performing correctly demanded absolute unwavering focus in the moment. As long as Joe held up the mitts, Ethan ’s mind couldn’t think of anything else. The dexterity and speed that MMA training demanded made wandering thoughts impossible. For Ethan, training like this was the most relaxing part of his entire day. Especially on a day like today. This was really the first time since being treated so dismissively by Sara that he felt something like normal. But before long, the timer chimed, bringing the workout to a close, and Ethan back to a harsh reality.
    The pair sat, exhausted on the floor in the corner of the mat as Ethan began to undo his gloves. Joe turned to him.
    “How are you feeling, man?” He asked
    “I’m feeling good. Feeling ready.”
    “That doesn’t sound convincing.”
    Joe is damn perceptive for his own good .
    Ethan looked at Joe, “Sara’s pissed at me for something. I think Emily might have tracked her down and put some crazy idea in her head.”
    Joe looked at Ethan with sincerity. “You want my advice?”
    Ethan knew Joe was going to give it in any case. He stared blankly at Joe. The younger man continued,
    “You have bigger fish to fry than some girl you’ve been seeing for a few weeks. She isn’t going anywhere, and what’s done is done. You need to put that shit on the back burner, and focus on this fight. Once you wrap this up, then sort out Sara and Emily.”
    Ethan nodded. Joe’s logic made sense. It had been a common story throughout his adult life. Fighting was far more a fixture than any woman had been. And with the biggest fight of his life only a