The Bells Are Ringing by Jack Karney

"The Bells Are Ringing" by Jack Karney is a boxing story following Rocky Sears, an aging fighter preparing for a title bout against the Champion. The narrative intercuts between Rocky's emotional turmoil and ring action. Rocky is engaged to Virgie Beal, daughter of his manager Pop, but is distracted by Francine Meadows, a glamorous actress and his former love, who has reentered his life. Years earlier, Francine abandoned Rocky for a Hollywood career and married director Frank Covan (whom Rocky had thrown into a rose bush). Rocky subsequently lost fights, enlisted, and returned to boxing. Now facing his championship opportunity—worth twenty thousand dollars—Rocky encounters Francine at a bar, where her calculating interest in his impending winnings becomes apparent, complicating his emotional and professional focus before the fight.