"¶" "¶" "¶" "¶" "Matthew, stop it." "Stop it, Matthe." "Matthew!" "What?" "The nails, stop biting your nails." "Look at this place." "Who lives here?" "Who would want to live here?" "It's nowhere." "Look, I know this can't be easy for you." "New school, new town." "New house and a big new daddy." "Hey, that's not fair, Matt." "Jacob is the best thing that's happened to me in forever." "So, I'm sorry that we had to pull you out of private school." "I had a scholarship!" "Yes, I know, and it helped." "But we are maxed out." "Look, I need you to pitch in, okay?" "That's the way it is and public school is part of it." "Mom, I had a life, I had friends." "Nobody I know has even heard of this school." "You're going to make new friends." "Mom, you have no idea what it's like to be the new kid." "I might as well have a kick me sign on my back." "Oh honey, you're being a little dramatic." "You're smart, you'll adapt." "Very few kids have been through what you've been through." "You're a fighter, huh?" "And you're going to do just fine." "No, I'm going to hate this school and I know it." "See, honey?" "There's nothing to be afraid of." "Want me to come in with you?" "No, mom." "It's okay, I've got this." "Can I have a kiss goodbye?" "No!" "I'm not a baby anymore, mom!" "Thanks for the ride." "Okay, well you have a great day, and you are still my baby." "Mom!" ":" "Good morning students, welcome back to Aldergrove Secondary." "Schedules are now available in the office." "Please collect them and make your way to home room and classes will begin promptly in 10 minutes." "Have a great day, make this the start of a great year." "Because you're in high school now you can expect to do more homework without anyone reminding you and more reading." "Here's the reading list, it's long, and a breakdown of the assignments." ":" "Aww!" "Alright, calm down." "It isn't going to be that bad." "But you won't be able to float through this course." "Hi." "Hello." "I'm Matthew Miller, I think I'm in this class." "Yeah, and I think you're late, Point Dexter." "Go to the office." "Mr. Worthlin, that is not how we treat new students." "You can work on your manners in detention." "Find a seat, Matthew." "Come on, I was kidding." "This guys my friend, we were just kidding around, right bro?" "Yeah, we're friends." "It was a joke." "Yeah, see?" "That doesn't make any difference to me." "I expect a certain standard of behaviour in my class." "Our first book of this year will be Metropolis which was made into a movie which remains an icon on film making." "This novel came first however, and it explores the themes of class struggle and genetic manipulation." "I want you to write a paper exploring these issues presented almost 100 years ago and how they've changed or not changed since then." "First day of school, I get detention." "What's up with that?" "Hey, thanks for helping me out, man." "Yeah well, I didn't help much." "Yeah, well, still." "You tuned in real quick." "I'm Nick." "I'm Matthew." "So, what's it like to be the new kid?" "It sucks." "Yeah, well, just make sure you report to the lunch room at 1:00 p.m. for the new kid beat down." "Wait, what?" "Dude, I'm joking." "Lighten up man." "Real funny." "Oh, and Mateo, lose the suit man, you're just asking for it." "Thanks." "Hey." "Hey, how's it going?" "Fine." "Yeah, well I'm really happy to see you getting your room together." "Can I use sticky tac?" "Yeah, sure, yeah." "Whatever you want." "It's your room." "Just no open fires." "Here let me help you with that." "No, it's fine, I got it." "Okay." "He's cool, who's that?" "My grandfather." "Really?" "That's your mom's dad?" "Yeah." "Your mom told me he was a car salesman." "He is, but before that he was a fighter and then a referee." "He does live in Florida though, right?" "Yeah." "Huh." "I need to do some homework." "Now." "Yeah yeah, sure sure." "Alright, well, if you need any help" "I'll be right out there." "Yeah." "Look at those pom poms." "See you at the sock hop." "What's up, Point Dexter?" "Nothing." "Are you Matthew?" "Hi, I'm Ruby." "You want to eat with us?" "I'm okay." "Oh, come on, dude." "Eat with us." "We won't bite." "Well, I might." "Oh, Point Dexter tried to save me from detention in Mrs. Nasher's class yesterda." "How noble of him." "Yeah." "Sit down, dude." "Um, okay." "So, you want to join our crew?" "What crew?" "The Ghetto Crew." "We're the coolest non-club in school." "What's a non-club?" "We're like the anti-club." "We're cooler than clubs." "Oh, so like an exclusive club." "You know it, and our goal is epic world domination." "Yeah, we're taking it back from all those jocks and stuck up losers." "Okay." "I like it, so what do I have to do?" "Nothing." "That's the beauty of it." "Absolutely nothing." "Except, you got to go up to that girl Theresa, the tall one with the big smile, and ask her for a date." "What?" "Don't do it, Point Dexter." "I'm not very, really..." "This is important, he has to do it if he wants to get in the crew." "He can do it if he wants to get his face punched." "Yeah, I..." "Are you going to do it or not?" "Okay, you know what, sure." "I'll do it." "Perfect, show us your skills." "Yeah, okay." "Hi Theresa." "Did you say my name?" "Yeah, hi, I'm Matthew, I'm the new kid here and I'm just kind of wondering if you ever wanted to maybe consider ever hanging out or going out or something sometime." "Whatever." "Okay, it was very nice to meet you Theresa." "This guy bugging you, Theresa?" "No." "Were you checking out my girlfriend?" "No, I was just " "What are you staring at your big ugly shoes for?" "I'm talking to you, look at me!" "I was just, I " " I " "Is this kid stupid or something?" "I'm sorry." "Oh I'm sorry." "Sorry didn't do it, you did." "Ahhh!" "Hector!" "What?" "Are you crying?" "No, I'm not crying!" "Alright, this wimps going to get us in trouble." "Come on, let's eat." "Look, I'm watching you, loser." "Hey, you okay?" "I'm fine, I'm not crying!" "Yeah, sure." "Where's your next class?" "It's Math, it's room 129." "That's right next to my room, I'll walk with you." ":" "Are you okay?" "What happened?" "How's it going?" "It's fine." "You like books, huh?" "Some of them." "Here." "I found that at a book store on my lunch break," "I thought you might like it." "Jacob, thank you!" "This is, this is Muhammed Ali standing over Sonny Liston, it's what they call a phantom punch." "They say that Ali knocked him out with a punch nobody even saw." "Yeah, yeah." "My Dad told me about that fight." "That must have been something, huh?" "Yeah." "Hey guys, I made a cake." "Chocolate." "Fight you for the last piece." "Yeah, yeah." "Come on!" "I'll phantom punch you." "Stop right here." "Okay." "You don't need to pick me up after school because I think I'm going to walk home." "Have a good day." "Yup, thanks Mom." "Check out this guy right here, look at him." "Who said that you could use the front door, geek?" "I just " " I just " "I " " I " " What are you, Rain Man?" "Speak up, punk?" "Let me go!" "Excuse me." "Is that your trash?" "Is that yours?" "No, it's this punks right here." "Hey, you wouldn't lie to me, would you?" "It's not mine, so." "Really." "But you will clean it up, right?" "Yes sir." "Thank you." "You boys can go to class." "What's the janitor going to do?" "Mop me up?" "Thanks." "Yeah, no need." "It's my job to clean up the trash around here." "So, you like boxing?" "Yeah, I love it." "Do you box?" "No." "What's so funny?" "It's nothing." "They have a boxing club here you know, it's pretty cool." "You can practice, compete, and the whole bit." "Really?" "Yeah." "Got to get back to work." "Look into it." "Okay!" "Hector, come on!" "He isn't worth it!" "What do you want?" "Nothing, I just think you're so cool." "Look, I don't want any trouble." "Trouble, what's this?" "Give that back!" "Matthew the Mighty, Matthew the Bull!" "Dude, you are a trip." "Look, I want it back so just give it!" "Hey, you need to relax." "Okay?" "Alright?" "Just relax." "Did you just try to bite me?" "No!" "Why don't you pick on someone else, Hector?" "Oh look, this guy has new friends." "Yeah, I should have known you would hang out with this wimp." "Oh yeah, well it's better than hanging out with a meathead." "Watch your mouth!" "Bird brain." "Hey, don't touch him!" "You want to go?" "You want to go?" "We're going to get in trouble, stop!" "Come on let's go, you and me, right now, right now." "let's do it!" "Hey, Nasty Nasher." "Hey Doyle, how was your summer?" "Brief." "Okay." "Since nobody wants to tell me what happened you both have detention for a week." "What?" "Does that include Hector and Theresa?" "I'll be talking to them." "This is not a good way to start the year." "I hope it's the last time I see you in my office, do you understand?" "Yes, ma'am." "Okay, you go to class, Matthew I want you to stay." "Nick, shut the door please." "Nicholas." "Mr. Doyle." "Look at me, Matthew." "Matthew." "Actions have consequences, Matthew." "Even though it's hard being the new kid you need to try and steer clear of trouble." "We didn't start anything, that guy Hector did, this detention is not fair!" "Not everything is fair." "But in the future if you run into trouble call a teacher, don't try and figure it out on your own." "Now go to class, and think about what I said." "So, Matthew, is there something that you would like to tell us?" "Yeah, yeah there is." "I am trying out for the boxing team at school." "They have a boxing club, huh?" "You know how I feel about boxing." "It is a brutal and pointless sport that leads nowhere." "So, is there something else?" "Okay, you know what, I'm not hungry." "Sit down, Matthew." "Your principal phoned me today and told me that you have detention for one week?" "It's not my fault Mom, this guy was trying to bully me." "He started it and I got blamed." "That's all, I swear." "Well then stay away from him." "Did you get hurt?" "No Mom, I didn't get hurt." "Look, I just need you to sign this permission form so I can try out for the team." "What has gotten into you?" "What has gotten into me?" "You moved me away from all my friends out here to nowheresville, that is what has gotten into me." "Hey, don't raise your voice to your mother like that." "Aw, thanks for your input, Dad!" "Matthew, go to your room!" "With pleasure!" "Come in." "Matthew." "What?" "I need you to try and make this work, okay?" "I know that it is an adjustment but for me, please." "Mom, I am trying to adjust but you can't just expect it to happen like that." "Listen, Jacob and I have been talking." "So just tell me a little bit more about this boxing thing." "There's nothing really to tell," "I just need your permission." "But honey, you've never really boxed before." "Yeah, but I've always wanted to and there are plenty of fighters who started young." "Mike Tyson won the heavyweight title when he was 20." "That's only five years older than me and Wilfred Benitez, well he was world ranked when he was my age." "And Sugar Ray Leonard, he won before he was 20," "Grandpa won the middleweight" "Okay, okay, Matthew, I get it." "We know what Grandpa won." "That is not the point." "Would you just sign it?" "Boxing is so dangerous." "You know what could happen, you're not always a winner." "Yeah, but you're always telling me that I'm a fighter." "Yeah, I am, and you are." "When you were sick you amazed everybody." "And I want you to be happy, but I cannot stand the thought of you getting sucked into that world." "Mom..." "Of you getting hurt!" "It's too much for me to handle right now." "Okay?" "I just want things to be normal." "It is no kind of life, Matthew." "Mom, you can't blame everything on boxing." "Okay, listen, listen." "Let's just get settled, make some friends, and then do something else." "Do anything else." "Okay." "I'll do my best." "I know you will." "Thank you." "I'm so relieved." "Mom, good night!" "Jab, jab, jab!" "Good." "Nice work." "Come on now, cover it up, you're giving him a big target." "That's it." "That's it." "Jab, jab." "Come on guys, let's switch it up a little bit." "Come on, come on." "Nice, get him on the ropes, get him on the ropes." "Good, good, good, good, good." "Cover up, cover up." "Jab, jab, jab, get him in the corner." "Get him in the corner, come on, that's it." "That's it, nice." "Jab, jab, jab, alright, time, good work you guys." "Good work." "Okay, boys bring it over here." "Gentlemen, welcome." "The boxing program at the Aldergrove Secondary School is second to none." "Each year we take a few spots at the national championships for the AIBA." "If you're lucky, one, maybe two of you are going to make this team." "Now, most of these spots are already filled but each weight division needs an alternate just in case the champion in that division can't compete." "So today I'm going to choose two contenders for each division." "Now come eight weeks time we're going to have the Aldergrove box-off where those two contenders are going to have a chance to challenge the current champion for that position." "What that means is that it's sink or swim guys, it's gutter time." "Each one of you will be sparring for 30 seconds with one of Aldergrove's top boxers." "Today, some of you will be boxing against Joe Fielder and some of you will be sparring against Hector Torres." "Last year Joe took the light heavy weight title for the 16 and under division and Hector won the State Championship for the middleweight division, all for Aldergrove." "Get in there and get warmed up you guys." "And the rest of you, I want you to line up and put your name and your weight down on this clipboard, let's go." "Hey, where are you going?" "I just forgot I had something to do." "I thought you were going to try out." "I, I was but um, that guy Hector really annoys me so I'm just going to go." "Well, that's a good thing because you can use that feeling against him in the ring." "Yeah, well, he makes me really nervous." "So what, you don't think Joe Fraser was nervous when he fought Ali?" "You think Fraser wasn't afraid of him?" "What about Mustard Douglas?" "You don't think he's afraid of Iron Mike?" "They were, they were like" "No, no, there's no difference." "They were once a couple of nervous kids like you." "So, go on champ." "Go make them nervous." "Okay." "That's it." "Some guys are cheating here, come on guys, let's play fair out there." "Hey, new guy, get in there and impress me." "Nice, nice, nice." "Jab!" "Come on, jab jab jab!" "That's it, jab, jab." "Jab, jab, jab, good, good, good." "Get the combo on him, Joe, that's it." "That's it." "That's it." "Nice, nice, nice, new guy!" "Well done!" "Block him Joe, good good good!" "Way to break out of there boy." "Take him to the corner, take him to the corner, come on!" "That's it, that's it, put him down, put him down." "Good, good." "Okay, that's enough for you, buddy." "Step out." "Good." "Get him in the corner, Hector, get him in the corner, put him down." "That's it, that's it." "Good good." "Good, good, that's it, that's it, nice, nice." "Way to cover new guy, well done." "Nice." "Good, good, finish him off, finish hard, finish hard, time." "Nice work." "Nice work, good stuff." "Miller, Matthew Miller." "Matthew Miller!" "Here!" "Time to get in the ring, boy." "let's see what you got." "Okay new guy, 30 seconds to prove yourselves, keep your punches clean and above the belt, alright?" "Hey coach, coach, let me tell you this, okay?" "Okay you ready?" "Hector, you ready?" "Alright, let's box." "Alright, come on Hector!" "Woah!" "Keep it light, Hector." "Time!" "Hey, hey, hey, hey!" "I said time!" "Cheap shot me, I'll kill you!" "Over there, Hector!" "What's your problem, kid?" "I call time, you stop punching." "Get out of my gym, go!" "Shake it off, Hector." "You okay, champ?" "I made a fool of myself." "Yeah, I saw that." "Yeah?" "So then you saw me freak out." "Hey, but you were in there though." "It takes more guts than most people have just to get in the ring." "I didn't expect Hector to be so fast, he threw a lot of punches." "Well, he is fast." "But to your credit you took all those punches." "Yeah, to the face!" "Don't be so hard on yourself." "Well, Hector and his goons have a lot to laugh about now." "I just wish I could go back to my old school." "You know, from what I saw" "I just think you need to keep your form in check and learn to relax." "Yeah, like you know about boxing." "Hey kids, I had dreams of being a heavyweight champion of the world." "Really?" "I was climbing up the ranks and everything." "To make a long story short, driving fast and showing off finally caught up with me and put an end to all that, so I know a thing or two about the fighting game." "Well, do you think I could be any good?" "It's going to take a lot of practice." "Yeah, well, you're not going to see me in that ring any time soon." "Coach kicked me out." "Thanks anyway." "I'm Matthew." "Dan." "Hey, who's that kid with the glasses?" "That's me back in the day." "You must have been really good to win that trophy." "Yeah, I was alright." "I'm sorry about what happened to you." "Don't be, I'm not." "I got married, my wife and I started having kids and I needed to earn a living so it all worked out." "You couldn't make money boxing?" "Well, you don't get into boxing to make money." "You get into boxing to be the champ." "You know for every Oscar De La Hoya there are thousands of fighters who never make a dime." "You know, either because they don't have enough talent or they don't have the right management." "And in my case it was just a guy who was living way too fast." "So, aren't you mad?" "Nah, not anymore." "You've got to learn to live with it." "Let me tell you something, I still love the sport." "Do you, do you think you could," "I don't know, teach me a boxing move?" "Alright, I'll show you a jab, that's the most important punch." "Okay." "You come ready, don't you?" "Alright." "If you're going to throw a jab you've got to have a stance first so let me see your stance." "Okay, now widen your feet a little bit." "Okay, a little bend in the knees." "Okay." "There you go." "See if I come in and try and push you" "I don't want to be able to move you." "See, that's good balance." "If you're too narrow not good." "Okay the jabs the left hand, let me see that jab." "Okay, not bad just throw it straighter, right down the pipe." "There you go." "See this jab is going to keep the other fighter from getting his rhythm, okay?" "Okay." "You can use this jab to find your range, okay." "You always want to keep your hands up high, you don't want to drop them down here." "Yeah, yeah, like Tommy Hearns." "Yeah, yeah, but just remember you're not Tommy Hearns." "Okay." "Throw that jab." "Okay." "There you go, straight down the pipe." "There you go, come on, throw that jab." "Alright, lessons over." "Hey, do you think I could maybe come back here after school and you could show me some more stuff then?" "Yeah, sure." "Maybe you could even train me." "Well, I don't know about that." "Come on, please Dan, we could just do it in here." "I just want to learn how to box so bad." "Well, let's just put a hold on that for now." "Okay, but I'm going to come right back here after sixth period." "Fine." "Thanks Dan." "Jab." "Jab." "1, 2." "1, 2." "1, 2." "Stop." "Will you do me a favour, take the glasses off, see if you can do it without them." "Okay." "Jab." "Jab." "1, 2." "1, 2." "Right hand." "There you go." "Starting to see some natural abilities in there." "Looking good." "My grandfather was a boxer, Charlie Putnam." "Yeah, I knew Charlie." "He was refereeing last time I saw him, good guy." "Jab." "1, 2." "There you go, 1, 2." "1, 2." "Alright." "Uh huh." "See, now if I start throwing punches at you you're right to cover up but you've got to keep your eyes open and look for openings, okay?" "Anticipate." "Jab." "1, 2." "Jab." "1, 2." "Alright, you done any running?" "I run away a lot." "I will start running to and from school." "Alright, that's good, but you need to add in some roadwork." "I guess." "Do we really have to do eight laps?" "Well you do." "I'm going to stop here pretty soon." "Maybe I will too." "Hey, if you're going to be a champ you've got to train like a champ." "Oh, and if you can you've got to hold your hands up when you run." "When I used to do my road work" "I threw punches when I ran." "That's good practice, it's going to help you build up your endurance before a fight." "Okay, I think we should stop soon." "I'm getting kind of dizzy." "Yeah." "Well, we almost did four laps." "Yeah, I guess a miles good for the first day." "So, did you know I'm a nerd?" "Well, the socks kind of gave it away." "Yeah, my Mom has this idea that I'm going to be a lawyer or a doctor or some kind of guy that wears a suit." "Can't blame her for that." "Sounds like every Mom." "Yeah, boxing's not really on her list." "She thinks I'm going to get hurt or become irresponsible." "And I was really sick as a baby so." "Like serious sick?" "Like, leukemia." "But it's okay because I'm good now, so it's okay." "I don't know." "Maybe you ought listen to her." "But if Evander Holyfield cae back and beat Mike Tyson after a heart problem and Wayne McCullough has a cyst in his head, he still fights." "Yeah, but kid." "You've got a lot more options than they had." "I guess, I don't know." "You know in boxing there's a lot more going on than the opponent standing in front of you, and there are a lot of elements that go into winning a fight." "Now I think training is important but your mindset, now that's the real key." "It takes a lot of concentration." "Now you've got to block out things inside that ring that don't have anything to do with your opponent." "Yeah, it's like when I'm doing trigonometry." "Well, there's a difference between a Math problem and a fight." "Say you're in a fight, okay, now you're dead tired." "Now your body aches." "Now you've got a cut, you've got blood dripping in your eyes." "But you've got to block all of that out and still win the fight." "So, are you going to train me?" "Yes." "But it's our secret." "It's going to be one hour a day, Monday, Wednesday and Friday." "Now on the off days you run this track." "Okay." "Eight laps." "Okay." "And don't neglect your studies." "I won't, this school is so easy." "You're going to train me." "Yes!" "Yes!" "Yes!" "Whooo!" "Yes, you're going to train me!" "Thank you, Dan!" "Yes!" "Okay, what about this one?" "No." "Mom, you said to get whatever I wanted." "Yeah, but you don't have to go along with the crowd." "Fine." "Okay, this, this is the last one." "Oh." "I like that one, that one is good." "Yeah, yeah, okay." "But no jeans that hang low on the bum okay," "I hate those." "So, these are returns, agreed?" "Yeah, fine." "Thank you." "You're welcome." "Hey look at this, I barely even recognized him," "I thought he was Lennox Lewis." "Look at those boxing gloves." "Yeah dude, the freaking janitor," "Dan the muscle man is training him." "How do you know?" "I saw them running the track the other day." "My God, that is too funny." "Hey look, I'm Matthew." "Ow, ow, it hurts, boxing, ow." "What a freaking loser." "Where are your glasses?" "I only really need them for distance." "So, I should stay close then?" "Yeah, that would be good." "So, you want to go to the mall?" "Yeah, I do but I can't, I've got to be somewhere." "Yeah?" "Where?" "A secret meeting?" "Another life?" "Not exactly." "I've got to go for a run." "That's cool, but I hate running." "Yeah well, I'm in training right now with a trainer." "That's cool in a Karate Kid kind of way." "Yeah, yeah, it's awesome." "I mean, it's all about self-discipline." "It's not about starting fights, it's about defending yourself." "Too bad Hector doesn't know that," "I mean the guy is such an idiot." "Yeah, you don't have to tell me." "You know, you're not like any girl I've ever met." "Woah, where did that come from?" "I don't know." "You're always acting tough and you hang out with guys, not girls." "Yeah well, I'm not really like most girls," "I'm not exactly the Miley Cyrus type." "Yeah, you're always drawing in that book." "Yeah." "Can I see some of your stuff?" "Um, these are just scribbles, I mean." "I won't tell anyone." "Okay, well only if you promise not to laugh." "I don't think I could handle that kind of rejection." "I won't, I swear I won't." "Oh wow." "What do you think?" "Ruby, these are, these are really good, not like comic book good but I mean like." "Seriously?" "Yeah, you remind me a lot like this artist, Klee." "Who's that?" "Paul Klee, he started drawing with like chalk on the sidewalk, you know, graffiti kind of stuff." "But he did some crazy caricatures and I mean, like, you'd love him." "You know, I drew a picture of you." "Really?" "Sure, I didn't have anything better to do." "Wow." "That, now that is art." "It's nice, it's very perceptive." "You know, it's so weird, you're such a..." "What, a nerd?" "A softy." "I can't believe you want to box." "Yeah, well, it's, um, it's in my blood." "Hey!" "Time!" "Nice, that's good enough for today." "Yeah." "You know, for someone who's never boxed before you catch on pretty quick." "Must be genetics." "Dan, no, I'm in the zone, I can tell," "I'm going to be good at this." "That's good kid, setting goals is good, it leads to progress." "Speaking of progress I've got to get to work." "Or I'll never get out of here tonight." "Do you want me to give you a hand?" "I feel like I owe you." "No, no, no." "It does me good to put the pads on anyway." "Besides I'm sure you've got better things to do than clean up the girls washroom." "Yeah, maybe." "You know, I'm going to call a friend of mine that has a gym, see if we can get you some real sparring time." "Really?" "Yeah." "Hey Dan, do you mind if I maybe take these gloves home?" "Because I want to practice but the only ones I have are the ones Grandpa gave me when I was 10 and they're like completely worn out." "Yeah, yeah, sure, you've just got to keep this on the down low." "I mean tell your folks and all but you've got to keep this between you and me." "Okay, I understand." "Hey loser." "Come on, Hector." "Leave him alone!" "You're going to get me kicked off the cheerleading squad!" "Hey loser, are you deaf or something?" "That was a pretty good hit you got me with." "Yeah, it was, but it was also a mistake and it cost me a spot on the team so you should be thrilled." "Thrilled?" "No, no, see that's why I wanted to talk to you." "See, I told the coach that he should give you another chance." "Yeah, right." "Yeah, I said you hit really hard so he said to find you and tell you to come to the gym today after school because he's giving you and a couple other guys one more shot." "You see, he's not totally satisfied with the roster." "Really?" "Yeah." "Is it just today because there's somewhere" "I usually go after school?" "Sorry, it's only today, man." "Okay, I guess I'll see you there." "Alright, see you there." "Is there really a special tryout?" "Oh yeah, it's very special." "Hey, where's Coach Harwood?" "He'll be here in a bit." "Yeah." "He just told us to start sparring first so why don't you put these on." "I was just going to use my gloves." "Oh, these are better." "Okay." "What about headgear?" "I don't have any." "I've got some for you." "Here." "Um, who's going to keep time?" "I will." "Okay." "Ding ding ding!" "Here we go Hector!" "So Matthew, why do you hang out with those losers?" "They're not losers, they're my friends." "Hey, this guy can really hit." "Maybe he should be on the team." "Hey, ow!" "I thought we were just sparring?" "Yeah, that's over now, loser." "Ow!" "You almost got us in trouble the other day so now you get this." "Ow!" "What are you even doing here?" "You don't belong at this school, you belong at a school for nerds." "Stop it!" "Hey, Hector." "Shut up, this pansy needs to learn his lesson." "You want to box?" "Come on." "You want to box?" "Come on!" "Hey, what are you guys doing?" "!" "Nothing, we were just sparring." "It looked like more than sparring to me." "What are you going to do about it anyway?" "You're just the janitor so why don't you come in here and mop it up." "What are you going to do about it?" "You're right punk, I am the janitor." "You're lucky I don't mop the floor up with you." "Are you threatening me?" "It's not a threat, it's a fact." "Now get out of here." "What's going on here?" "You tell me." "This kids not part of my program and neither are you." "You better talk to your boy Hector." "I will, get over here Hector." "You stay out of this, Dan." "You okay, kid?" "No, I need to lie down." "Come on, let's get you up." "I can't." "I can't get up." "Come on, I'll give you a ride home." "Here, look up." "Matthew?" "Matthew?" "Hey, what happened, baby?" "Nothing Mom, everything is fine, just leave me alone right now please." "Is that guy still bothering you?" "Mom, stay out of it." "I'm going to call the school." "No, Mom, don't do that." "Look at me, Matthew." "Matthew, look at me." "Oh no, this is unacceptable, I am telling the principal." "Mom, it's just a bruise, if you jump in it's not going to make anything better it's going to make everything worse." "I can try to deal with this on my own." "No, I think you've had enough trying it on your own." "I agree with Matthew, I think maybe you and I should hold off before we get involved." "But, look!" "He's not a kid, he's a young man." "A lot of people were there, even a teacher saw it okay." "Now I can do this, so just let me." "Okay." "Okay." "I'll go make some pizza, from scratch." "Hey Dan!" "What do you want?" "Mind if I come in?" "Free country." "Hey Dan, I've got to talk to you." "So talk." "Can you turn that thing off?" "Yeah, I'm just finishing up." "You know that kid had no right being in a boxing ring." "Yeah, and your kid had no business doing what he did." "I already spoke to him, he's going to apologize personally and he promises to stay away from your kid." "The kid's name is Matthew." "Swell, he promises to stay away from Matthew." "So, that's it?" "Hector beats up a kid for no reason and you just talk to him, he should be suspended." "Quite frankly he should be arrested." "Dan." "You know I'm right, but you're not going to let anything happen to him." "Bottom line is Hector Torres is the best fighter this school, this town, has ever had." "He's fighting the toughest league in the state and no one can compete with him, the kid's going to the amateurs." "Oh then he's going to the pros, maybe the Olympics first." "And if you're lucky you'll be there to carry his spit bucket." "It's a heck of a lot better than cleaning up after him." "I know what you're doing." "I'm doing it too, alright." "We see ourselves in these kids and we push them to be great, the only difference is my kid's got it and your's doesn't." "And if you don't put an end to it he's going to wind up just like you, hurt and defeated." "You know, you may be right about me." "Because when you and I were coming up" "I did everything the wrong way." "And I put my ego in front of the sport." "But this kid has something that you and I and Hector don't have." "This kids got heart." "Heart." "Come on Dan." "Look at you, you're out with an injury, me, well let's just say I'm better off behind the ropes." "But Hector's got what it takes to go the distance." "Yeah, well I'm willing to bet you wrong about Matthew." "I'll make you a deal." "What kind of deal?" "Let Matthew fight in the box-off, just give him a fair shot." "Let him fight Hector inside the ropes with a ref." "Are you crazy?" "I'll train him and take full responsibility." "Or I'd be happy to talk to the principal about what happened yesterday." "Maybe he'd like to see Matthew's shiner, maybe he'd like to talk to a few of the witnesses." "You're serious?" "Yeah, I'm dead serious." "The kids got no style, he can't compete, he's going to get hurt out there." "I believe in him." "Alright, alright, fine." "But you get the parents to sign off on this." "No problem." "Hey Champ, what's up?" "Nothing." "Yeah, I was looking for you." "Are you coming by the shop?" "Maybe not today." "Missing a day, huh?" "That's no way to train, Matthew." "I know, it's just, I just..." "Just what?" "Hey kid, you hit the mat." "Every champion hits the mat sooner or later, the question is are you going to get back up?" "I just don't know if I have what it takes." "You know who Cus D'Amato was?" "Yeah sure, he trained Mike Tyson." "So then you know the story about the hero and the coward." "Sort of." "The hero is the hero because he's not afraid and the coward is the coward because he is." "Something like that, but it's not just about being scared." "It's what you do when you feel that way, how you react to your fear, that's what makes you the hero or the coward." "So, what am I?" "You tell me." "I'm not going to lie to you, Matthew." "There's no guarantees." "Every fight is different, but it's you who determines who you are." "A misfit." "We're all misfits." "But the only person who can stop you from doing something is you." "So, are we going to train or not?" "You got a fight coming up." "Wait, what?" "I do?" "Coach Howard agreed to let you back in the box-offs." "Woah, woah, Dan, how does that work?" "Every contender fights Hector Torres." "You are a contender." "Dan, he's going to kill me!" "Yeah, maybe, but if you win you're on the team." "Yeah, and if I lose?" "You did your best and that's good enough now pick up your books." "That's it!" "That's it!" "Work, work!" "Try to buy time." "Good job." "You're definitely getting faster, Matthew." "Yeah, I've been running like you told me to." "Well good, because against Hector you're going to need to throw punches for three minutes of every round, okay?" "You show him you're not afraid, that's going to change everything." "I don't know, Dan." "Do you really think that I've got a shot here?" "Kid, this is boxing." "Anything can happen." "I talked to my buddy Avery, he said we could use the gym." "So I'll set you up a sparring session." "Yeah?" "Yeah, but before that happens you're going to have to get these release forms signed by your parents." "Otherwise you can't compete and I can't take you off campus." "Do you want me to talk to them?" "No, no, it's okay." "I've got this." "Okay, good job." "Thanks Dan." "Okay, honey." "We're leaving now." "Okay." "Back around 11." "Yeah sure, have a good night." "See ya." "Bye." "Alright, you know what a fighter's greatest asset is?" "Power." "No." "What, speed?" "No, those two things are important but most of all, and this is what helped Foreman win the title at 40." "45." "45." "What helped him win the title at 45 was just being relaxed in the ring." "The key to being relaxed in the ring is not getting psyched out by what your opponent is trying to do." "Don't worry about him, just fight your fight." "Stick to your game plan." "Okay." "Use that jab and find your range, okay?" "Uh huh." "Step in." "Alright, you guys keep it light." "Ready, let's box!" "Come on Matthew, punch." "Time!" "Kid, who's your favourite defensive fighter?" "Marlon Starling was supposedly pretty good." "Well, as good as he was he still threw a punch from time to time." "So, throw more punches?" "Please, keep your hands up, just like we talked about at school." "Ready?" "Hands up." "Alright, let's box!" "Go to the body, Matthew," "Don't look at me!" "You gotta do something, Matthew!" "You're not going to have any help in there with Hector." "Do something!" "Come on Matthew!" "Yes!" "That a way." "Time!" "Yes!" "Yes, sir." "Good job." "How do you feel?" "I feel good." "You rocked it." "You really rocked it." "Jab!" "Jab!" "Jab right hand!" "Jab right hand!" "And the champion of Aldergrove Secondary School is Matthew Miller!" "1, 2." "Time." "Looking good, Matthew." "Looking real good." "As good as Hector?" "Don't you worry about Hector." "I have to, he's the school champion." "So what?" "Sometimes the champion isn't as interesting as the challenger." "I guess." "See that picture there in the middle?" "Yeah." "That's me and Coach Howard." "The boxing coach at school?" "Yeah." "It's the day we fought the Golden Gloves when we were your age." "Did you win?" "Well, I'm not the one holding the trophy but I thought I won." "A lot of people thought I won." "Sometimes the judges seems like they see a different fight." "Yeah, that's like when James Toney fought Dave Taberi." "I'm not sure I remember that one." "Well, supposedly Taberi won the fight but the judges gave Toney the decision." "Now that fight was in 1992 before I was born and Taberi never fought again." "Can't win them all, that's why you've got to love the sport and not the glory." "Yeah." "Need a ride home?" "No, I'm just going to bike it home." "Are we looking for a house?" "You know, you guys can just let me out and I can find it myself." "You don't need to waste your time." "No, I want to know where you're going, we'll pick you up." "Okay." "She said it's number 1042." "Are her parents going to be home?" "Probably." "There!" "That's it!" "Kind of an odd neighbourhood." "She lives here?" "Well, maybe her parents work from home." "That's not all that uncommon." "Is that Ruby?" "Yup, that's great." "Thanks Jacob." "Bye Mom." "I just want to get out." "No, please don't." "Just pick me up at 11, okay." "Thank you." "Matthew!" "Hi." "Are those your parents?" "Yeah, something like that." "Come on." "This is so cool." "I wonder how they did that, make movies like this back then." "It took forever," "I mean no one had ever seen anything like this." "Do your parents have a lot of movies?" "Yeah." "Hundreds." "Thousands." "Wow, that's really cool." "What do your parents do?" "Well, I don't really have a Dad and we lived with my Grandfather." "My Mom is a florist, she had her own shop and everything." "Cool." "She is so pretty." "Well, don't you think she's pretty?" "Yeah, you are too." "Shut up!" "Do you really think so?" "Yeah." "Of course." "You're sweet." "Yo, Adrian!" "We did it!" "Yo!" "Stop it, you're embarrassing me." "I'm sorry, just that was awesome." "Sit down." "Never been here with anyone before," "I mean I'm usually with my parents." "Yeah well, it's really cool just watching movies here like this, with you." "In our own private drive in and I think I'm going to kiss you again." "Has anyone ever told you just to be quiet?" "Well, do you think I'm weird because I talk so much?" "No, I think you're weird because you're weird." "Yes!" "I mean, I think we should just kind of hang out." "More of the same." "Hey, loser!" "Look, it's the loser and his loser girlfriend, the perfect couple." "Come on, Ruby." "You know what, leave us alone you meathead jock!" "meathead jock." "Didn't Matthew tell you, he's a meathead jock now, we're going to be fighting." "And if he wins which is impossible he's going to be on the team." "Oh, he's going to win." "He's going to kick your butt in front of everybody." "Ruby." "You better tell your girl to watch her mouth or she might get you in trouble." "You know what, back off Hector." "What are you going to do if I don't?" "Ahhh!" "Don't even think about telling coach about this, okay, because you threw the first punch." "You okay?" "Yeah, I'm fine." "I hope you destroy that guy." "Yeah, me too." "So, Ruby said that you went over to her place on Saturday?" "Actually, we watched that movie from English class at her parents drive in." "You should have called me, I have to watch that movie." "I mean, Mrs. Nasher's making me rewrite my paper because she doesn't think I read it." "Yeah, because you didn't." "I don't know, just go rent it or something." "So, what's going on between you two?" "Normal stuff." "What's that mean?" "Normal stuff?" "Whatever guys and girls do that's normal." "Like kissing?" "Yeah, that's normal, right?" "Really?" "Did you guys like french kiss or--?" "Hey guys, what's up?" "Hey, we were just talking about kissing you." "Nick!" "What?" "What did you tell him?" "Don't be mad, it was just" "He told me you kissed." "Well, it's none of your pea-brained business!" "What else did you say?" "Nothing, he asked and I" "Come on, Ruby." "You guys are such losers." "Ruby, wait!" "Nick!" "Matthew, Matthew, wait, she's just PMSing." "No, she's mad." "No, now is not the time." "Trust me, your life is at risk." "Boring." "But is it Math?" "Is it Math?" "Looking good." "Looking good." "What is this?" "Okay kids please, h thank you thank yo, that is wonderfu." "You just made my day." "Matthew, can I have a word with you?" "Yeah, sure." "You having trouble with the assignments?" "No, not really." "Really?" "I only ask because you haven't turned in two so far this semester, you missed another one this week." "I'm so so sorry Mr. Doyle," "I'll make up the assignments I promise." "Okay, good." "Because you know, I'm here to help you." "Homework is important, it's worth half your grade." "I know, I just forgot." "Alright, so when are you going to have the assignments in by?" "I don't know, soon I guess." "You guess?" "It better be soon or I'm going to have to call your parents," "I only let students miss two assignments per semester, you're over the limit." "If you don't get good grades you can't sign up for any clubs or teams." "Wait, what if I just did them right now?" "Right now?" "Yeah, I've got a spare." "I can stay and we can do them right here, if you don't mind." "Sure, right now." "You're just going to do three assignments right now, in your spare." "Just right now." "Sure." "I can do it." "Of course, good idea." "Let's just do three assignments right now, there you go." "3, 2, 6, and 7, is 39..." "I was laughing my head off." "Anyway, it wasn't until after that I realized" "I had ketchup all over my " "I had ketchup all over my face." "It was like the most embarrassing thing ever." "Hey Dan!" "Dan?" "Mr. Barns?" "Hey Mom." "Matthew." "Jacob, what are you doing home?" "Why don't you come in the living room and talk with your mother and me." "What's going on?" "Sit down." "Am I in trouble?" "Yes." "Is this about my homework or my" "Is it true that you have been boxing at school and that the janitor has been coaching you?" "His name is Dan and yeah I've been getting a few pointers." "But we agreed that you would not box!" "Your mother was pretty clear how she felt about that." "Okay, why are you even here?" "You're not my father." "Matthew, please!" "Maybe, it's because my name is on the release form your principal brought with her today." "Apparently Coach Howard has agreed to let Matthew participate in the box-off." "Dan, Mr. Barns, was adamant that he had made it clear to Matthew that he needed to have one of you sign the permission form." "He understood that you had turned it into the office." "I'm very sorry about this, with upwards of 700 students we just can't know what they're doing all the time." "We expect our staff to be diligent and we had to let Dan go." "What?" "How long has this been going on, Matthew?" "This is not Dan's fault, this was my fault, he was just doing me a favour, he was standing up for me." "If he's not there then I quit." "I quit school, I don't care because this is wrong." "Be quiet, Matthew!" "No, I will not be quiet!" "What has gotten into you?" "Mom, I need to do this because I am good at it and I need to be good at something," "I have put so much time and effort" "Yes!" "And you lied to us!" "Christine!" "Hey, Matthew!" "Alright, let's all just sit down and listen for a moment." "Mom, nobody thinks that I can make this team but I think I have a shot and Dan thinks I have a shot." "He's given me a chance to do something here, he's like my only friend, he's someone who actually believes in me!" "Hey, I am somebody who actually believes in you." "Your mother is somebody who actually believes in you." "No she's not, she always thinks I'm going to fail or I'm going to get hurt or" "Well, we've been talking here and your mother and I have both agreed to let you fight in the box-offs." "With Dan's help!" "No, absolutely not." "But he's my trainer!" "Lower your voice, Matthew." "He shouldn't have been your trainer, that's the point." "He was fired because that's not his job and he shouldn't be interfering with students or their activities." "He did his job!" "He didn't do anything wrong!" "He knows more about boxing than that stupid coach at school." "I'm done." "Okay, I am leaving because this is wrong!" "This is so wrong!" "Matthew!" "That'll get you there." "Thank you." "Alright." "Mr. Barns!" "Hey, Matthew." "Sorry things turned out this way." "I'm sorry that I lied about getting my parents permission." "So am I kid." "I can't go back to that school if you're not there." "Don't get carried away kid, life goes on." "I'm sorry that you lost your job," "I wasn't trying to get you in trouble." "I agreed to be your trainer Matthew but you had to tell your parents." "That was our deal." "You broke the bond between trainer and fighter." "I know." "I know." "Relax kid, if anybody should be crying it oughta be me." "I'm the one that got fired, not you." "So, why aren't you?" "You think I wanted to be a janitor the rest of my life?" "Kid, I had dreams just like everybody else." "Lately they haven't seemed to go my way." "The question is what are you going to do?" "About what?" "Well, you've got a fight coming up." "Dan, I can't do it without you!" "Well then what the heck are you doing this for, kid?" "It hasn't been for me." "But you're not even going to be there!" "Listen, kid." "You're alone anyway." "I'm not in the ring with you," "I don't have a pair of gloves on," "I'm just there in the corner to guide you along." "You know for three minutes of every round it's just you and your opponent." "Nothing else matters." "For three minutes of every round you get to show everybody exactly what Matthew Miller is made of." "I'm scared, Dan." "Hector wants you to feel scared, son." "He's expecting you not to fight." "But you show up win or lose as long as you get in that ring and do your best, you fight that fear, you win no matter what." "You think I can beat Hector?" "It doesn't matter what I think, it matters what you think." "Now get out of here." "Morning." "Morning." "Oh, you should have come down quicker, it's probably all mushy by now." "Mom, it's fine." "I don't know if I can do this honey." "I mean I went once when I was a little girl to watch Dad and I," "I threw up, I just threw up when I saw Dad getting hit and all the blood and oh dear." "We don't have to go Christine." "Mom, it's fine." "Whatever you decide, it's okay." "Now, I'm going to go run a couple laps before first period." "Okay, I love you." "Bye, bye Jacob." "Love you." "Okay." "Hey Matthew." "Hey." "It's the big day." "Should we reserve a hospital bed for you?" "Shut up, Nick." "Come on, I'm just joking." "You know, ease up the tension." "I hate boxing, I mean I hate sports, but I'm coming to watch you so if you win" "When he wins." "When you win just don't become a dumb jock, okay?" "Come on, I won't!" "Okay, well see you two." "Hey." "Hey." "How you been?" "I've missed you." "I've missed you too okay, I'm sorry that I blabbed." "Hey, I totally overreacted." "I drew you." "You winning the boxing match." "Wow." "Ruby, that's just how I imagined it." "I'm not quite done though." "I think I'm going to add Hector somewhere in there, maybe on the floor, knocked out." "You know, I think I like it the way it is." "Just me." "Well, Mr. Confident." "I should probably be getting to class, but I'll see you later." "Oh yeah." "And, Matthew?" "Yeah?" "Good luck in the ring." "Look who showed up." "So, who's working your corner, Matthew?" "He's so scared." "He can't talk." "Is that true?" "Are you so scared you can't even speak?" "No Hector." "I'm just too busy thinking about how stupid you sound when you open your mouth." "Oh-ho-ho." "And Joe, you smell like a dumpster, when was the last time you showered?" "Now is your chance to laugh it up dork, because once we get in the ring one things for sure." "You're going to die." "Nice comeback, champ." "Dan!" "How you doing, kid?" "I'm good." "I'm nervous." "You should be nervous." "Five minutes, boys." "I just came to wish you good luck." "Thanks." "I just want you to block everything out and do what you've been taught to do." "I'll do my best." "Just remember, Hectors just as nervous as you are." "See you out there." ":" "Please welcome our own Aldergrove boxing team, and Contenders." "Hey guys, how's it going?" "You feel good?" "Alright, first up, get your gear on." "First up, get your gear on." "Ladies and gentlemen," "I'd like to welcome you to the 10th annual" "Aldergrove Secondary School Box-off." "Today we'll be watching our current and present champions all competing against new challengers who will all be fighting for their positions on the team." "We will be having fights with five of the traditional eight weight categories that boxing has to offer, and each challenger will have three rounds lasting three minutes each to secure their spots." "Let's box!" "Hey, long time no see." "Dad!" "What are you doing here?" "Your husband called me, I appreciate it sir." "Well, I knew he was going to be pleased, this is a huge day for him." "Glad to be here." "Hit him on the inside." "Follow it up!" "Good job." "Let's hear it for our heavyweight contenders." "And now in our ligt heavyweight class please welcome our State champion in the 1600 divisio," "Joe Fielde." "Come on Joe!" "Come over here guys, come on." "I know you both know the rules, alright." "I want a clean fight, you got three rounds to make this team?" "Any questions?" "Alright, let's touch gloves, have a good fight." "Fight!" "Come on Joe, you've got to hit him one time!" "Yes!" "Yes!" "What?" "1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6... :" "Everybody's afraid, Matthew, but how you react to that fear is what makes you the hero or the coward." "...9" "Hey, you ready?" "You ready?" "Yeah, yes!" "Let's see what you got." "Okay." "Come on, Matt!" "Go Matthew!" "Come on, Matthew!" "You can do it, come on!" ":" "You don't think Joe Fraser was nervous before he fought Ali?" "Now, in the middleweight division our final contender and challenger, Matthew Miller!" "And defending in this division, our state champion, Hector Torres." "Come over here, Hector." "Come on Hector, just do it!" "Hey Miller!" ":" "You fight that fear and you'll win, no matter what." "Snap out of it!" "Alright, remember, you've got three rounds, three minutes each." "No low blows, no rabbit punches, in case of a knock down" "I want you to go to the neutral corner." "Alright." "If that ref says break," "I want you to break clean, any questions?" "No one's in your corner, pansy." "Hey, take it easy Hector." "Whatever you say, coach." "Let's have a good fight!" "Ready?" "Ready?" "Fight!" ":" "Hector wants you to be afraid, Matthew, he wants you to give up." "Hands up, Matthew, hands up!" "Good job, Hector!" "Oh my God." "I can't!" "Okay, step back, come on, fight." ":" "Don't worry about what Hector's doing, just fight your fight." "Nice!" "Jab, Matthew, jab!" "Alright, over to the corner." "Keep it clean." "There's no one looking after that boy." "Start playing by the rules buddy, look at me when I'm talking to you!" "How am I supposed to back you up if you're not playing by the rules, huh?" "Don't blow this for yourself!" "Here." "Now, sit sit sit." "Grandpa?" "Here's some water, reach out your mouth." "What are you doing here?" "Your new father called me, don't worry, it's all good." "Yeah." "Is Mom okay?" "Just concentrate on the match." "You don't think about anything else." "That last round was good, but you've got to throw some more punches." "Yeah, I know, I'm counting." "Counting what?" "Well, he throws six punches and then he breaks and that's when I've got to hit him." "That's a good observation." "But you've got to keep your hands up but don't lose sight of him, don't hide." "Come out with your hands nice and loose." "The last round you've got him good." "He got me, is there a lot of blood?" "Nah, it's not much." "He fights like a baby." "Come on." "Go Matthew!" "Take control!" ":" "If you're going to win this fight you have to block everything out." "Over there, over there!" "Come on!" "Come on, Matthew!" ":" "Keep your chin down, Matthew, eyes up." "1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6." "Yeah, that's right!" "It's all me!" "How you doing, son?" "You had enough?" "No." "He popped you good there, getting through those gloves." "There you go, cool you down." "Kid, how are you?" "Dan!" "You're doing great, keep working the body though, okay?" "You find those ribs and you keep working those ribs, you pound him." "Three minutes to go in this fight." "Okay, you hear me?" "The guy behind me he's getting sloppy and he's getting tired." "You see that, he's getting sloppy and tired." "Okay, this is your round, this is your round." "Okay?" "Give me everything you got." "I will, I promise!" "All in the ring." "I promise!" "Oh, he's a baby." "After him." "Come on, Matthew!" "Come on!" "Concentrate, Matthew." "Come on, Matthew!" "You can do it, come on!" ":" "Stay in the moment, Matthew." "Nothing else matters." "1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7..." "Yeah buddy, yeah!" "Alright, let me see your gloves." "Fight." "Come on, Matthew!" "Come on Matthew, come on!" ":" "This is your chance, Matthew, show the world exactly what you're made of." "Whooo!" "Go Matthew!" "Get over there and do the right thing, son." "Go on." "Hey, that was a good match, you hit pretty hard." "Yeah, you too." "So, after three great rounds of action the judges tally is in." "And the score is 2 rounds to 1, for the current middleweight champion of Aldergrove Secondary School, Hector Torres!" "I think he did alright." "Yeah." "It's alright, Matt!" "Way to go!" "What?" "I lost." "But you lasted three rounds kid, you showed the heart of a champion." "You're a winner to me all the way, son." "But I lost." "Yeah, that's how you do it!" "I'm taking Aldergrove Secondary to the top, we're going to be the best in the whole league!" "Yeah!" "Let's go!" "I just want you all to know what a great discovery" "I think Matthew Miller is, and I definitely think there's room for him as an alternate in the middleweight division for the Aldergrove Boxing Team, what do you say?" "After all, Hector graduates this year and we're going to need someone to win some championships for Aldergrove, how about that?" "I want to be on the team, I want to be on the team." "Come on up here and say a couple words." "Thank you coach." "Well, I just wanted to thank my parents for always telling me that I'm a fighter." "My best friends Nick and Ruby for never letting me fight alone." "My grandpa for being in my corner and finally my coach, Dan Barns for telling me that I could be a champ." "Alright, thanks again everyone for coming out and supporting the Aldergrove Boxing Team." "Good job, kid." "We couldn't do it without you, looking forward to another successful season, see you all at the first fight." "So, you going to stick around?" "No, I'm going to get moving kid." "I've got some dreams I want to chase." "These are yours, so." "No, no, hang on to them, they look good on you, okay?" "Okay." "Listen, I'll see you down the road, alright." "It's been a pleasure." "Thanks coach, happy trails." "Hey." "You were amazing!" "You totally surprised me." "I surprised myself." "You were transformed." "Not completely." "Mom!" "Matthew!" "You were so brave!" "So ridiculously brave!" "Did you actually see me or were you watching through your fingers?" "No, I kept my eyes open for the most part," "I'm a big girl now." "Alright, picture time, get in close in, guys." "Alright." "Well, look at that, three generations." "Alright." "Is this Ruby?" "Yeah, that's Rub." "Well get in there, dear." "There we go." "Where's Dan the man?" "He left." "He's gone?" "Like, really gone?" "Yeah, like totally gone." "You're okay with that?" "Yeah, I'm okay." "Just shows you Matt, a good coach makes all the difference." "There we go." "I'll take it, you get in there." "¶" "¶"