Shipwrecked

16-Brooklyn

      His eyes darted to me. I tilted my head down and let my hair drape around my face like a curtain so he wouldn't pick me.
      I had begun to think that all the trainers chose the ones who tried not to make eye contact on purpose just so that they could see us squirm.
      "Who will it be?" he asked as he paced around the room eyeing each of us like a hawk.
      I could hear Noa behind me whispering, "Shane, don't. Don't be an ass."
      I wondered how she could say that to a trainer, especially a guest trainer who was looking to see what group he wanted to train in the harder stages of our lessons. He could choose our group and make her life miserable.
      The only excuse I could think of for her saying that is the slight chance that she already knew him.
      How would she know him? Noa and Ry and I had been doing just about everything together since we got there.
      "It's not that hard guys, all you have to do is knock him out. You have so many options on how to do so."
      I glanced over at the scared looking student from the class below us, the class that Shane had been teaching.
      He was terrified.
      "Hey, you stop that ya freak!" snapped Shane at a girl behind me who was so eager she was practically jumping out of her seat. "I'm not going to pick you."
      I looked back to see Chloe, a large girl with intense violet eyes and the biggest biceps I've ever seen on a female. She is always the first to volunteer for everything.  
      I looked around to find the few other kids with their hands raised. It was only Chloe and three other guys. Along with this lanky shy girl I don't really know the name of. She looks a bit like me, but smaller and dark haired.
      I don't know why, but I've seen her raise her hand to volunteer a lot lately. It's strange because like me, she seems to hate being the center of attention.
      Maybe It's all part of her strategy the volunteers hardly ever get chosen. Maybe I should start doing that.
      I flinched a little when Shane began to walk through the space in front of the row I was sitting in.
      I stared down at his shoes and watched the black boots clank against the floor until they stopped in front of me.
      I made the mistake of looking up.
      "Ah, how about you Princess?" he said a little too deviously.
      I just stared at him in shock for a little while.
      He cleared his throat and my eyes moved up to his.
      "Me?" I ask.
      He looked agitated. "Yes, you." he said foully.
      I bet if he would have known then that he'd be sneaking out at night to meet me, to kiss me and tell me he loves me, he probably wouldn't have talked to me like that.
      "Oh, um...okay." I said.
      I got to my feet and slowly shuffled over with Shane to the equipment corner on the other side of the arena.
      I heard some commotion behind me, and turned to see Shane signing something to Noa in sign language. She looked offended.
      How the hell did this boy know that Noa could understand sign language?
      He caught me starring and jabbed me in the back with his fist a little to get me to keep walking.
      "Keep moving Sweetheart."
      "Don't call me that." I whispered so softly I'm surprised he heard me.
      But as he helped me at the equipment station, he, not very subtly, dropped a hint that he did indeed hear my order and he was not planning on following it.
      "Okay, well, I suggest you use the most violent way to knock this boy out, since it will impress your peers the most." he began as he pulled down hammers and pans and other steel items that he wanted me to use as weapons.
What? I thought to myself.
      I didn't believe him. In fact I knew he wasn't right. My peers would not be the most impressed by watching me beat up this little boy. Anyone with half a brain could figure out that a way to knock someone out is by beating them in the head repeatedly.
      It takes real strategy to know that the best way to knock out a being that is weaker than the opponent, one who won't fight back, is to use the system that takes up the least amount of energy.
      "Take one." he says shoving the weapons at me
      I looked up at him again and this time I realized how handsome he was. Even in his work clothes.
      "I won't need those." I said. "I'm not trying to impress them."
      He squinted at me like I was the most complex detailed little painting and he needed to analyze every ounce of me.
      I don't think he realized I was serious.
      "Well, then, impress me," he said provokingly.
      "I don't need to do that either."
      He laughed a little, "Yes you do. Now take them."
      "No." I said, and with that he threw the hammer at me, but it wasn't aimed at me, it was aimed at the little boy behind me who wasn't prepared at all for the hammer to hit him. He wasn't even looking our way.
      The gears in my brain started to turn and I immediately reached out and grabbed the hammer out of the air. It was heavy and twisted my wrist back a little but I shook off the pain. I had to learn to do that.
      He raised his eyebrows, "Nice catch." he said. "Now take the hammer and beat him up."
      "I told you, I won't need this." I placed it back on its rack.
      "Are you too scared?" he said advancing towards me. "Is that what's stopping you Sweetheart?" He grinned as he spat out the last word.
      I didn't move backward. I didn't cower away as he drew closer and closer.
      "Cause we don't do scared here. You need to be willing every day to come in here and do things that may get others killed, may get yourself killed. Because if you don't. You're never going to survive when we dump you into war."
      His words stung. He was calling me weak. He was saying I'm a coward.
      "Look, I'm not scared. I'm just smart." I said spitting on his face. "And I thought I told you not to call me sweetheart."
      He grinned, "Oh, I'm sorry Princess."
      "Don't call me that either." I whispered. I wondered if the others could hear us. I doubt it. I couldn't see him as the type of person who would let others hear a person like me defy his authority.
      "I'll call you what I want to call you Sweetheart."
      I rolled my eyes.
      "Now you better get your ass out there and show me that your decision is smarter than mine."
      "Simple."
      I turned and walked towards the boy.
      Everyone got silent and the boy turned, looking at me eagerly. He was nervous I could tell.
      At first it looked like he was just going to stand there and let me knock him out, but then Shane yelled in his booming voice, "You better fight back kid! Make it hard on her!"
      He anxiously got into his ready position.
      He knew he was done for. I may have been small but he was tiny.
      As I got closer he realized I didn't have any weapons and that kind of eased his nerves I think.
      I didn't want him to think I didn't mean business though so I got into my fighting position to scare him.
      When I was turned so that I knew none of the others including Shane could see my face I whispered to the boy, "This won't hurt a bit. I promise."
      I thought about adding "It'll be quick, just throw a few punches at me and subtly let me have access to your neck or your wrists." but thought better of it, because in a real fight I wouldn't be able to do that.
      I just had to believe that he trusted me enough to let me in.
      I moved towards him attempting to grab his wrist, but he threw a punch at my nose and I stumbled back a little.
      "Good!" Shane called to him.
      He was about to go in for a second punch but I ducked under his arm and found myself behind him. Before he had the chance to turn around I grabbed him from behind, tying his arms behind his back.
      He squirmed a lot, but as I dug my fingers into his wrists he began to go limp. He fell to the ground and I didn't brace his fall just to show off I guess.
      All my peers looked confused, only a few of them looked amazed: the smarter ones who figured out what I had done. Ryann and Noa were amongst those, and surprisingly when I got close enough to Shane and saw the look on his face I realized that he was smarter than I judged him to be.
      He grinned, "Who are you Sweetheart?"
      I was so confused. What did he mean? Did he want to know my name? Where I came from? What kind of person I was?
      I suddenly felt self-conscious. I tucked a piece of stray hair behind my ear and crossed my arms across my chest.
      "Brooklyn," I said deciding on going with my name.
      "No, your full name."
      "Brooklyn Grace Dyer,"
      "Well, Brooklyn Grace Dyer. I'll be keeping an eye on you." he said in a tone that sent shivers down my spine. I wasn't sure if it was in a good or bad way either.
      I turned to go and I could feel him watching me. In fact I could feel everyone watching me. I was the center of attention, and like a cat hated being in the water, I hated being the one everyone was watching.