The Last to Break

The First Step

When Jay entered his room, he quickly walked to his bed and took out the food from under his pillow.

Tam was still knocked out, or perhaps he had fallen asleep. Jay couldn't tell.

Jay opened the wrapped food. It was a sandwich with real meat.

Jay took half, walked over to Tam's bed, and shook him.

Tam opened his eyes.

“What do you want?” he shouted at Jay.

Jay knew why Tam was angry.

“Tam, I brought you this.”

Tam didn't want to look at Jay, but curiosity got the better of him.

When he saw the half sandwich with real meat, he immediately sat up, grabbed the bread, and almost gulped it down in one go.

Jay started eating the other half. As he ate, he explained to Tam.

“Doesn't matter how hungry you are, always eat slowly. It makes you feel fuller.”

Tam forgot that he was angry.

“Where did you get the bread?”

“Sensei gave it to us.”

Tam would never know that Sensei had actually given it to Jay.

While Jay ate his sandwich, he continued teaching the rest of the alphabet to Tam. Tam initially refused, but Jay said, “You want to be better, then you will learn.”

Tam learnt the first twenty letters of the alphabet when the big man walked into the room.

“It is time, little one.”

“Time for what?”

“Look in the packet The Warden gave you and get dressed. Hurry up.”

Jay opened the packet. He took out a pair of black boxer shorts, a matching vest, and a robe. The name “The Annex” was embroidered in gold on the back of the vest and robe.

He got dressed. He felt good and only wished he could have bathed. He knew he smelled terrible because he could smell the other children too. Sometimes, before Tam came, he used the water in the bathroom to wash parts of his body. Those were the things Kyle taught him.

The big man took Jay's hand.

“Come, little one.”

They exited the building and walked towards a car. Jay knew nothing about cars, but even he knew this was a valuable car.

When they got closer to the car, the big man said, “Little one, I will be waiting here for you. Make me proud. Tomorrow, I will have a surprise for you.”

The big man opened the back door and ushered Jay inside.

The Warden was inside, talking to another man opposite him.

The other man looked at Jay and said to The Warden, “Is this the child you hope will bring honour to The Annex?”

The Warden laughed loudly.

“Yes, yes, this is my little genius.”

The car started to move.

The other man laughed and mocked The Warden.

“I think you are going to lose your money tonight. We need fighters in the ring, not geniuses.”

The Warden laughed and said, “You want to make a side bet?”

The two grown men started talking about money. Jay had no idea how much money they were “betting.”

What he did know was that no one would ever find out his secret.

Not long after, they arrived at a building in the middle of nowhere.

The Warden told Jay to follow him.

They entered the building and took a lift down.

When they exited the lift, they stepped into a big room. Dim lights lined the sides of the walls. A bright light shone down onto an enclosed boxing ring, which Jay later learned was called a fighting ring.

The Warden took Jay to a room. Inside were twelve boys. Most of them were about the same height as Jay, but one boy stood out. He was almost a head taller than Jay.

The Warden told Jay to sit and wait. When the man wearing a black-and-white striped shirt called him, he was to follow.

A few minutes later, two boys were called from the room.

Not long after, the boys returned. One boy was dragged in by the arm and left on the floor.

The next two boys were called.

The same thing happened. One boy was dragged in by the arm and left on the floor.

Next were Jay and the boy next to him.

The man in the black-and-white striped shirt led them to the fighting ring.

He opened the gate, let the two boys in, and locked it.

Jay stood in the middle of the ring. The other boy had hatred in his eyes.

Before Jay knew what was happening, the other boy jumped into the air and kicked Jay hard in the stomach.

Jay doubled over and struggled to breathe. When he looked up, he saw The Warden's face. It did not bode well for Jay.

Jay got up and faced his opponent. When his opponent jumped up again, Jay sidestepped and hit the boy in the stomach. Thrown off balance when he landed, the boy fell.

Jay followed up with a kick, then started punching the boy until he stopped moving.

Jay looked up. The Warden had a huge smile on his face.

The referee counted to ten, shouting, “K.O.”

He walked over to Jay and lifted his left arm into the air, announcing, “Winner.”

Then he told Jay to follow him while dragging the other boy back to the room.

Jay sat down and waited.

Not long after, there were only four boys left to fight: the tall boy, Jay, and two others.

Jay and the tall boy were called next.

They entered the ring. This time, Jay was prepared; he knew what to expect.

He looked the taller boy in the eyes. Trying to predict the boy's moves, Jay managed to avoid a kick to the face.

Jay circled the boy, never once taking his eyes off him. When the boy jumped forward, Jay was prepared. He jumped too.

To everyone's surprise, Jay jumped much higher than the taller boy. He had the advantage and kicked the boy in the face. The boy fell. Jay followed up with two more kicks before switching to punches.

The boy did not get up. The referee counted to ten, shouting, “K.O.”

He lifted Jay's left arm and announced, “Winner.”

When they left the ring, Jay noticed everyone congratulating The Warden.

He felt good. Maybe The Warden would become more lenient towards the children in The Annex.

Back in the room, the two remaining boys stared at Jay. They couldn't believe that Jay was the one still standing while the other boy was knocked out.

The two boys were called. Not long after, one returned; the other was dragged in.

There was a fifteen-minute break. Jay and the last boy were brought to the ring.

They entered. Jay kept his eyes on the boy.

The boy ran forward. Jay sidestepped and punched him. The boy doubled over but recovered quickly.

Jay followed up by jumping and kicking the boy in the face. The boy fell backwards and stayed down.

The referee counted to ten, shouting, “K.O.”

He walked towards Jay, lifted his left arm, and shouted, “Ladies and gentlemen, tonight's overall winner... Jay from The Annex!”

Once again, everybody congratulated The Warden, shaking his hand, patting him on the back, laughing, and chatting.

The Warden had a smile that looked as though it had been pasted onto his face.

When Jay exited the fighting ring, The Warden picked him up and lifted him high into the air. Everyone cheered for Jay.

The Warden took a $100 bill from his pocket, gave it to Jay, and said, “Go and buy yourself some nice food, my little genius. Then go and wait in the car until I'm done here.”

Jay followed the smell of food. When he reached the first stall, he wanted to buy meat. The man behind the stall noticed that Jay had no idea what money was. He thought he was going to make a quick buck.

He gave Jay a piece of meat and kept the $100 bill.

Jay said thank you and turned to leave.

Just then, someone grabbed Jay by the hand, turned him back towards the stall, and said to the owner, “Give this child his change.”

When Jay looked up, he saw Sensei.

The stall owner quickly took the $100 and gave it back to Jay, saying, “Keep the meat. It is on the house for tonight's winner.”