Last Round Romance

Curtis' life has been the center of all things dramatic and overwhelming for as long as he could remember. The only people keeping him sane were his friends Elliot, Zach, Kyle, and Kaylie. But, after a bad run-in with a couple guys who had had it out for Curtis, things began to fall apart, and it seemed as though they would never be put back together again. They all started to drift off in their own directions, becoming wrapped up in their personal lives and troubles that they had. Kaylie had become nothing more than a memory to the four boys, and the friendship between the guys wasn't anything like it used to be.
Curtis had been dealing with a dysfunctional, and abusive set of parents. His father being an alcoholic certainly didn't help matters any. Between struggling to keep it together at home, dealing with all the drama that seemed to form around his life at school, and fighting to keep his self-harm under control, his plate had been pretty full and after his confrontation with his two enemies, Harrison and Shawn years before, things didn't seem like they would get any better until he got the hell out of his school.
Elliot's father had left their family a couple years ago. So he was now the only thing holding what was left of his family together. His older brother Matt was no help, and he had three little siblings to take care of. Two twin brothers who raised more hell than all of Elliot's friends combined. And he had his younger sister, who he loved more than anything. While trying to keep the four of them under control and in line, he was also trying to put his mother back together after she had been shattered by their father's leaving.
Zach kept his personal life under-wraps for the most part. He let everyone believe that everything was fine, but in reality there were more than a few things that needed to be fixed. But he was more than happy to let the rest of the world think that he had it all together. After all, being the crazy, out-going, boxer suited him much better than the blanket of self-pity he knew he might slip under if he told anyone about what was really going on at home.
Kyle was the quiet one of the group. No one knew all that much about his personal life. In the times that they had met his family, they seemed nice enough. He hardly ever spoke a foul word about them. His awkwardness proved to be his greatest weakness growing up, but he'd soon come to realize that there was power in confidence, and that all he needed was a push in the right direction.
Kaylie seemed to have dropped off after Curtis got into the fight with Harrison and Shawn. After all, she was the cause. Even though she had spent her whole childhood with the three boys, it was high-time for her to find a new group of people to be around if her presence was causing the amount of damage that it was. She had changed a lot since switching cliques, and the boys would soon come to discover this.
Matteo was a fairly new addition to the group. He knew the history of what had gone on with everyone in that circle of friends, but he hadn't been around them when it all happened. He was good enough friends with the guys to the point where he didn't have to ask to hang out with them anymore, although there was still plenty for him to learn about the lot of them. His life was normal compared to the rest of them, but his empathy would soon prove to be a blessing and a curse as he learned the secrets of everyone he was surrounded by.
The mysterious force that brought this hodge-podge group of seniors together? Her name was Maria. She was a transfer student from whereabouts unknown. No one knew anything about her when she came into the school, and that was just the way she wanted. She had a dark enough past that she didn't want people knowing about. Her only way to survive had been boxing, but that was taken away from her for the longest time as well, for painful memories can taint things like that. But after moving to a new area and going to a new school, she realized that starting over was possible, but it was going to be a lot harder to forget her past demons than she thought. A few familiar faces appeared in the halls, but not ones that she wanted to see. Thrown together by mere circumstance, she meets Curtis and his group of friends. She can see past the veneers that they all put up, especially Curtis, and she soon learns that he isn't as strong as he puts off. In an attempt to help him fight his inner monsters, she has to face down some of her own as well. Reconciliation with the gym is a must if she ever hopes to teach him how to fight, not only in the ring, but in life in general as well.
As she gets closer and closer to everyone in their circle of friends, she slowly begins to learn their pasts, as they do hers. Friendships are formed, and others are thrown into question. It's not the perfect ending to a senior that everyone dreamt about. Maria's arrival pulls a few skeletons out of the closet for everyone and feelings that had been swept under the rug soon come back out and meddle with new ones that are being formed. Confrontations from the ghosts of this group's pasts prove to be more painful than they originally thought.
In a criss-crossed tale of love, pain, sweat, and tears, this group of seven friends learn who they can trust, and who they can't. Enduring pain inside the ropes of the boxing ring proves to be nothing compared to the hits they each take during school every day, and at home every night when all is said and done. But through all of this, is there still hope for any of them to find that someone that everyone dreams of? That high school sweetheart that doesn't turn into, "the one that got away"? Is a last round romance still possible before the final bell rings?