Wednesday updates it is! :)
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So far, five people transferred out of Taekwondo class. Only thirteen of us remained. Min was doing the warm up and started to individually have us count in Korean.
"Hana, dool, set, net, tasseot, yeoseot, ilgop!" He yelled. "Doe, doe, set, net, tasseot, yeoseot, ilgop!" We yelled after. He had us in painful positions and forced us to stay in it. If we looked up, he would "help" us by pushing us down.
Aimee purposely looked up, causing Min to go and push her down. I stared, maybe glared, as he held her down. I almost laughed at the painful yelp she let out. I caught Alaric staring at me and sent him a small smile. When Min went back to his spot, he put his hands on his belt.
"Pado!" We all got up and did twenty jumping jacks. After doing more stretches, we ran around the gym eight times. Although Alaric ran alongside me, we didn't really talk. I was grateful for that since I didn't want to get on Min's bad side. By the time I finally hit the eighth lap, I was out of breath and thanked God when Min sent us for a water break.
"Everyone." Min announced, "As of Monday, I was told we only have thirteen students left. I told you all this, but since Kailah was absent, the class was even. The class is officially uneven. I will assign you all new partners."
He jogged to his desk and got a clipboard. He called out names and Alaric ended up being partners with Xiao Ji, and Kat ended up being partners with Samantha. Alaric looked pissed, but didn't press on. Kat smirked at me and I looked back back at Min. "Sir, who is my partner?" I asked. He was scribbling something down and put the clipboard on the desk. "Everyone get kicking pads."
I went off to the side, annoyed that he pretty much excluded me from the class. "Len, go get targets." I rolled my eyes, "I guess my partner is a ghost." People laughed and I got two targets. "Everyone, do your kicking combinations."
Min came up to me and bowed, out stretching his hands. I froze. Min is my partner?! He looked up at me and I felt my face get hot. Bowing, I handed him the targets. "Thank you, Sir." I muttered, extremely shocked at my situation.
"Fighting stance junbi!" He yelled. I bit my bottom lip and yelled 'aiya'. As soon as I started kicking, he began to criticize me. I slowly improved and noticed how he would nod as I kicked. "Switch partners!" He yelled.
I bowed as I handed him the targets. "Hold the target like roundhouse." I nodded and he went into fighting stance. I've never seen him look so focused before. His hair stuck to his face and his darkened eyes held an unknown glint. He stood there in fighting stance and my hands trembled a little. As soon as I blinked, his body spun around as he kicked the target, sending it flying out of my hand.
"Ouch!"
Everyone looked at Alaric as he rubbed his head. I looked back at Min and saw him smirking. Did he... The class was silent. Alaric picked up the target and tightly held it in his hand. Then, he threw it at Min, becoming even more angry when he dodged it.
"You call me Master Min because I earned the title."
I stared at him in amazement, the words he told me in September echoing in my head. Everything he did was out of raw power. He looked at you as if you were nothing, and even if you tried to ignore it, you felt it. You cringed under his glare. When we spoke to him, you felt like looking down.
We went back and forth with our kicking. Whenever Min would kick the target, it would be close to slipping out of my hand. I honestly didn't want class to be over, but when he announced us to go get changed, I felt kind of sad.
"Len." I looked at up Min before I left the gym. He approached me, running his fingers through his damp hair. A drip of sweat trailed down the side of his face. Kat tapped my shoulder and leaned in. "Remember what I told you." she whispered. Telling Min good bye, she headed into the locker room.
"I'm wondering if you're really interested in Taekwondo." I nodded. "If you want, I can teach you after school. In fact, I'm an instructor at a Dojang in Brooklyn. I can pa- give you a free membership. You can get belted, what do you think?" His dark eyes were glued to mine. Min's hands played with his belt. I wanted to reach out to him and touch his hair. It looks so soft. "Sir, what is getting belted?"
His hands gripped his belt, admiration was etched on his face, even though he didn't smile. "To get a belt. In my opinion, you're probably the level of a yellow belt now. I see something in you, Len- I see something that sparks, that becomes alive. The other students are only taking this for a grade, but you're not. You enjoy it, and I admire you for that." My heart hammered in my chest and I looked down. He admires me?
"How to approach him?" Kat laughed, "You don't."
Kat is brilliant, simply because he would always be making the moves. He understands the position he's in, and that makes him be more cautious.
"I would like that." I muttered. He stepped closer to me and took a lock of my curl. I thought I was going to die when I wiped my sweaty palm on my gym sweatpants. Min's hair was glued to his face, even though his eyes were dark, they stared at me through his lashes. I didn't consider them scary right now. His lips pulled up into a small smile. I felt my face heat up and wiped my sweat. Suddenly, his body tensed as he dropped my curl and turned away.
"Meet me at the main office after school." I felt my heart flutter and tried to compose myself. "Also don't be late." he added.
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Kat squealed in the staircase. I grabbed my face and hid it in my hands. I was just extremely embarrassed. "He admires you!" she squealed, nearly bouncing off the stairwell walls. I shushed her and tried to hide my smile.
"You're there smiling and stuff, you're so damn lucky!" I looked up and she laughed even harder, "Man up! It's obvious you like him, so follow your heart. It's senior year anyways."
After school, I waited for Min at the main office. He showed up about three minutes late. "You're late." I mumbled. "So?" I scowled at him and he gestured me to start walking
We went down six flights to the first floor. After fighting with many students, I finally got my phone from the truck and we swiped in into the train station. "Are you hungry?" he asked as we waited for the N. My stomach suddenly felt funny. I forgot to eat. "I'm not, but thank you." He looked at me with a raised brow, "You're not good at lying."
I smiled and stared at the train tracks. A rat picked up a French fry and scurried away. "Is that so? That should be a good thing." Min took his phone out and looked at the time, "I'll get you something. What do you like?" I shrugged, "Anything is fine." He nodded. The N finally came after ten minutes and we went on. It was quite crowded. Min leaned against the door and I stood in front of him.
"How was your day?" I asked when the train began to move. "It was alright. Actually no, it's really tiring. Sometimes I wonder if it's worth it. If I'm not teaching gym, I'm teaching trig to the juniors." He teaches trig? "Oh goodness. My trig teacher last year was horrendous. If only I had you." The corner of his lip twitched, "What makes you think I'm a good teacher?"
"Min, did I not tell you you're a good teacher?" He flinched, a puzzled look replaced his neutral. "Min?" Aw shit, my mouth slipped. I nodded, "I mean, do you mind me calling you that? I can call you Sir or Master Min, it's just... Master Min in public would be kind of weird." He stared at me. The train stopped at 8th street and he ran his hand through his hair. "Len. Don't call me Min, you make me feel old." I rolled my eyes, "Don't you feel old when we call you Master Min?" He shook his head, "It's a hard earned title. I feel respected when you guys call me that." I smiled and nodded, "Okay, Sir." He put his hand up, "Call me Yejun."
Yejun. Yejun Min. That's his name. Yejun Min. "Yejun." I muttered. The train jerked and I fell onto his chest. He was wearing a loose black shirt, so I couldn't see outlines of anything, but my hands didn't feel a soft stomach. I felt abs, but they weren't rock hard. I don't know how to describe them, but they were abs. He grabbed my arms and placed me back where he was.
"Min, I-I-" When I looked back at his face, his usual tan skin was tinted with red. He was embarrassed! Oh goodness, I didn't mean to embarrass him, "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to." He shook his head, his eyes finding the advertising to the side interesting, "It's okay. And Yejun, not Min." He looked back at me. There was a glint in his eyes and for once, I didn't think they were dark. This will be weird, but I found them to be misunderstood.
"Why do you always look cold?" I asked. His eyes, still staring at me, slowly lost their glint. I don't know how he does that, but it suddenly looked like endless pools of oil. "It's my face. I have a bitch face, well, that's what Buzzfeed told me." I suddenly let out a loud laugh. Everyone on the train looked in my direction and I covered my mouth with my hand. When I was finished, I looked up at M- Yejun and smiled. "You watch Buzzfeed? Who's your favorite?" He paused, "Quinta." I nearly died, "I love her, and Eugene is hilarious."
Yejun broke into a small smile. "He's also Korean." I raised my eyebrow, "And Quinta's black, what're you getting at?" He looked down, the small smile still on his face. After about forty minutes, the train finally reached the station and we got off. I glanced at the time and took my phone out to call Mom. She didn't pick up, so I texted her.
Never have I been in this part of Brooklyn before. I never knew there was a Chinatown. Yejun took me to a Chinese restaurant, where we ate for about thirty minutes. After, we walked for about five blocks and then stopped. I raised my eyebrow at him and he turned towards me. "If they say anything, don't mind them."
"They?" He nodded, "You'll see them." We walked for one more block until we came upon the Dojang. He opened the door for me and I walked in. "Hello ma'am, 'sup Jun." Jun? Of course he'd have a nickname. The person behind the desk came up to me and shook my hand, bowing in the process. I bowed back and he did some type of handshake with Yejun.
The instructor's uniform top was red. On the back, it had the word 'Instructor' printed on the bottom. His pants were white and he was barefoot. Don't get me wrong, but I also think he's Korean. "Okay, so I assume you're Len?" I nodded and he grabbed a clipboard, "Sweet. Well, Jun already completed the sign up for you, don't worry. Do you have your de-" Yejun cut him off, "She's good." He said something in Korean and the instructor nodded. "Okay."
I sat down on the bench and watched the little kids do their kicking combinations. I specifically watched the yellow belts since Yejun told me I would probably be that belt.
He walked into the mats, bowing when he passed the doorframe, and disappeared into one of the rooms in the back. About five minutes later, he came back with a red uniform top and black pants. He sat next to me and we watched the class together.
"What do you think?" he asked. "I think they're adorable. Like look at them." He looked up at them and back at me, "Why does Alaric always touch your hair?"
That question caught me off guard and I felt my face heat up. I couldn't look up at Yejun, but when I did, I noticed his cheeks were a little red. This guy gets embarrassed so easily, but it's extremely cute. Why am I now noticing this? "He does that because he knows it annoys me." Yejun nodded. The sound of the kicking pads slapping against each other and kids yelling 'aiya' was the only thing I heard.
I felt Yejun's shoulder touch mine. Looking up at him, he was staring at his pants. "Mind if I touch your hair?" Another off guard question. I wiped my sweaty palms on my leggings and nodded. His hand came up to my hair, but he hesitated. Then, his hand grabbed one of my curls. "Your hair is soft..." he muttered. "Did you expect it to be nappy?"
"Honestly, yes." he responded. I couldn't be upset at him, it's a common stereotype that people think all black people have nappy hair, but that's not true, "I like your hair like this. I don't know what you call it, but it suits your face more. And it's cute."
I died. I just died. Dead. I covered my mouth with my hand and tried to hide my giant grin. This guy!
"Jun!" Yejun looked up. I'm now noticing him, but he wore a full white uniform. His collar was black, and it had an Adidas logo. On the front, Master Roman was printed in small bold letters. "Yes sir!" yelled Yejun. It was weird to hear my master call someone else sir. Master Roman is about the same height as Yejun, maybe an inch or two taller. He has long blond hair that's in a low ponytail. His brown eyes flickered to me and I instantly looked down.
I'm not much of a fan of kids, but watching Yejun work with kids was really cute. He smiled wide at them and would make sound effects. One girl fell down and started crying. He told her something and then she stopped crying. After that, he hugged her and she smiled. I thought it was extremely adorable.
When Yejun came back over, he wiped his sweat and sat down. "I'm so tired." he sighed, "I'm too old for this." Instantly, I froze. How old is Yejun? I looked at him from my peripheral. Should I ask him? I turned my head to him, startled when he was looking at me with a small smile. "Yejun?" He gestured for me to continue and I bit my bottom lip, "How old are you?"
"I'm 25." I felt my heart drop. How is it he looks a lot younger than that? He looks like he's fresh out of high school. "Oh! I'm so sorry, that's my Korean age. My American age is 23." Okay, six years isn't that bad. "And you consider yourself old? You're a pretty young teacher."
"I told you the principal is friends with my uncle. That's pretty much how I got this job. I'm still in college, but I transferred from my country to NYU." His small smile slowly dropped as he looked into his lap, "To be honest... I don't really have friends here. I'm still trying to get accustomed to everything, and my English isn't even that good." I rolled my eyes at him as he continued, "I honestly miss my family."
I felt a pang in my heart. Squeezing his shoulder, he looked up at me. "It's okay. You don't have to abandon them, you can always go back and forth." Yejun sighed, "Teachers here don't make much. Going back and forth will burn holes into my pockets. I'm paying for my own college, I'm just so happy some of my Korean grants were accepted."
All of a sudden, the children ran out, bowing before they exited the Dojang and going to their parents. "Okay, go put your stuff in the locker room. Hurry!" Nodding, I took off my flats and ran to the locker room. I put my stuff down and smelled my feet, hoping they didn't smell fine to me but stink to everyone else.
"Adult class, touch the wall!" I looked where the people were walking to and joined them. Nobody here was under green belt, and it made me feel self conscious. "Yejun, take class." Said Master Roman. He nodded and stood next to me.
I was placed in the back of the class. Yejun was in the front, but from obviously seeing my discomfort, he stood on the spot next to me. "Hey, are you okay?" he whispered, "Yeah."
Master Roman made us do stretches and we ran around the room ten times. I was so glad the gym was a lot bigger than this, because ten times here was nothing. After taking a water break, I was paired up with Yejun. We practiced board breaking. I watched how the master would stand near me and look at my kicking.
Just like Yejun, he was intimidating. He had kind eyes, but his neutral face looked like he was ready to beat the shit out of someone. "Turn your body more for roundhouse kick." he told me as he walked away.
I took his advice and began to get the slap-like sound. After about forty minutes, Master Roman called everyone back to their spots. "Len, come here." Shocked, I walked up and faced him. Everyone stared at me, causing my face to feel hot. "David, get me a thick board."
The instructor who was at the front desk, David, ran to the back of the class and got a thick board. He ran to Master Roman and bowed, handing it to him. "I assume Junbi taught you your breaking?" I raised my eyebrow, "Junbi?" Everyone laughed and I looked down at my toes, "Yejun. Junbi is one of his nicknames. Okay, he taught you your breaking, right?" I nodded. "Look at me." Looking up at him, he told me to go into fighting stance. "If she doesn't break this board, we're going to beat the hell out of her. If she does break it, she'll become a part of the family."
I inwardly rolled my eyes. "Drumroll!" yelled Yejun from the back. I rose my hand and broke into the board, making sure to tell Aiya three times. The class erupted into cheers. My eyes caught Yejun, a giant smile on his face. It looked so natural, so genuine. I returned it and looked at the master. He handed the broken pieces to me and we bowed to each other.
After class, I was drenched in sweat, Yejun didn't make me switch with him, so it was double the amount of pain. Yejun only laughed at me and patted my shoulder. "We're having a staff meeting now." he said, "Do you mind waiting for me?" I shrugged.
I sat down for about an hour. I couldn't hear anything since the door was closed. About fifteen minutes in, however, someone walked in. Her hair was straight and looked really healthy. It went down to her back. She had a red shirt on and dark blue jeans pants. She was Asian, but I knew she wasn't Korean. She caught my stare and waved, "Hello."
I returned it and she went into the dojang. When the door opened, she walked over to Yejun and sat next to him. When they were done, Yejun introduced me to her. "Len, this is Cindy. Cindy, this is Len."
We shook hands and smiled. "We live around here, so I'll walk you to the train station." I nodded and suddenly, my heart dropped.
I don't know why I expected anything more. I don't know why I thought we could work, I just don't know why. Just that one thing, that one thing turned everything 180 degrees.
They were holding hands. I awkwardly walked with them being a third wheel as they talked. I didn't know whether the sky was falling, I didn't know how long we walked for, it was obvious they forgot I was there.
"Answer me, Len." I stared at him with a blank face. "Because if I find out there is something going on between you two, if I find out he is your boyfriend, I will remove you both from my class."
I felt my anger increase when she playfully slapped his arm.
"There is no love in my Dojang." He whispered in my ear.
Hearing them laugh, hearing them talk, looking at their conjoined hands hurt me. It hurt me so much, and I'm so glad they didn't see me tearing. I'm so glad they didn't hear me sniffle over their precious laughter. I popped in my music and decided to turn around. They won't even notice I'm gone.
And I was right.
I ended up using Google maps to find another train station. When I boarded the empty train, I let all of my tears flow. It was too much. I suddenly realized I really felt something for Min, and I couldn't believe how wrong Kat was. I couldn't believe anything. I got off at Atlantic and transferred to the Q. I don't know why I felt anything.
I don't know how Kat and I misread the signs, but it's okay. I won't be reckless this time.
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I apologize if my romanization is weird. These are phrases I hear in TKD, so don't kill me if I misspell some stuff :P
Junbi - Ready
Pado - At ease (or was tenshin at ease? Same thing different name lmao)
Hana, dool, set, net, tasseot, yeoseot, ilgop - Counting 1-7