A little before the end of the period, I run down to store the knife in my room before going down to Shark's gym for my Force session with Kaz and Wick's group. I put on my heeled boots, just in case Hejae comes by to monitor the lesson, as he hinted he might. I'm not going for a run in these, but if we're grappling, I may try to fight in them.
"Looks like Nadia's trying to be all pretty for us." Shark calls me out immediately, but his teasing his good-natured. He doesn't seem upset that I wasn't cut, which is a relief. If anything, he seems happy to see me.
Hejae is in the gym as well, arms crossed as he leans against the far wall.
I set my hands on my hips and turn one foot sideways, trying to look as sassy as possible. "I'm going to get so good at fighting in these. I'll be able to beat even you."
Shark laughs his loud bark of a laugh, and looks at Hejae. "I've always liked the fire in this one."
"Don't we all?" Hejae yawns, as if bored by the whole idea of fighting.
"Okay, so we're going to be practicing our fighting moves today, just for Nadia." Shark laughs again. "So let's pair you up." He goes down the line of recruits, pointing between people to signify pairs.
"Okay, Kaz, let's see how you fair with the heels."
"Don't worry, Shark, I'll show you how it's done." Kaz grins at me.
I can't help thinking of our kiss a few nights ago and the fact that very soon our bodies may very well touch again. Never mind that this is a more aggressive situation. Passion is passion, and I'm definitely feeling it.
We square off, and I'm very vulnerable. The combination of the heels and my size versus his, added to the way my heart is already pumping way too hard, almost makes me dizzy with tension.
I try a punch; Kaz reads me well and grabs my arm. He holds tight even when I try to pull back, keeping me so close I start to sweat. I can't break eye contact as he tugs me even closer, grinning wickedly as he does. I don't remember how to breathe.
Someone grunts as his body hits the mat and I remember we're in Shark's gym. I punch him in the stomach, recovering my arm. He doubles over, but laughs.
He lunges, grabbing me around the middle. Somehow his other arm slips under my back, steadying my head as we both fall to the mat. Kaz's hands slide up and close over my wrists, pinning them to the ground above my head.
"Surrender?" He's breathing heavily, his face inches from mine.
"Never." My chest feels like it might explode out of my shirt, my heart is pounding so hard, my lungs filling so quickly.
I shift my right leg, the top of my knee tracing along the back inside of Kaz's left thigh. I pause just before reaching his groin area.
"I could win this you know." I put the smallest amount of pressure with my knee, hinting at the damage that could be done. Somehow, the high heel weighing down my foot makes the whole situation feel far sexier than it should.
Much more than I'm comfortable with.
Kaz smiles at me, his eyes dropping to my lips. Is he going to kiss me? I want so badly for him to kiss me. His tongue pokes out, wetting his lips.
"I yield." He sits up, carefully avoiding my knee.
I remain on the mat, one hand over my heart, trying to regulate my breathing.
"I don't know, Shark. Maybe you can do better." Kaz shakes his head, as if ashamed of himself, but his grin says otherwise.
Shark comes over as I push myself up to stand. "I bet you tried your hardest, too." His voice is full of friendly sarcasm. "I'd make her work for it." He imitates Kaz's statement during the instructor's competition.
Shark pins me easily within only a few minutes. Some of my moves surprise him, but not enough to really give me an edge. Plus I can feel Kaz watching me the whole time, which makes it almost as difficult to concentrate as when his hands were on me.
On our way to lunch, Kaz whispers, "Maybe we should practice our wrestling techniques more often."
Wick joins us before I respond.
"Well, I'm glad I'm not the only one who got my arse handed to me by a girl." He claps Kaz on the back. "Although, I'm pretty sure my fight was far less enjoyable."
I feel myself blushing and look away. Kaz just grins.
"Whelp, I'm starving. Wonder what's for lunch." Wick moves in front of us.
Lunch is relatively quiet, each of us scarfing down our own goulash. Eveia tells us about her swimming ordeal: she had to tread water while trying to shoot an arrow at a target floating fifteen feet away. Otherwise, we focus our energy on chewing.
In U-Gym again after lunch, I learn to use my heels as weapons. The most practical situation we discuss would be if someone grabs me from behind, I should stomp on the inside of his foot with my sharp heel. While this would be extremely painful in any circumstance, the force from my heel could crush my attacker's instep completely, rendering his foot useless and him unable to pursue me.
We practice these moves for the rest of the class, interspersed with some knife and other close-quarters weapons practice, to make these moves second nature to us.
*
After Briar's, the six of us from Hejae's floor trudge down to T2 for more Viry review. My legs are tired from all the effort in my high heels. I'm thankful I get to just sit and go through the review; no dancing is involved.
I pull out my schedule at dinner. "Awesome, double Force with Shark's floor tomorrow." My voice is flat. I'm not excited to train with the Force-oriented Trainees.
"Let's hope it's not more grappling." Kaz winks at me.
I smile down at my plate of pasta.
"Psh, she needs all the help she can get," Wick says. "You went easy on her, but Shark finished her in a matter of minutes."
"I could take you, Wick," I say.
Eveia laughs. "Yeah she could. Man, I wish I got to train with you guys again."
"Nadia and I were talking about practicing our wrestling after dinner; maybe you guys should, too?" Kaz smiles a little too innocently.
My eyes widen as my face heats. "Were we?"
"Oh, our match was definitely to be continued."
Eveia's grin is much too smug. "I think we'll leave you two alone. To wrestle." She nudges me when she says it. I am so embarrassed; how can they all be so nonchalant about this subject?
Eveia tugs Wick off to the cave entrance after dinner. "We're going for a walk. You two enjoy your 'training session'." She draws air quotes around the last words.
I don't say anything, suddenly feeling very shy.
"Hey, I was just teasing." Kaz must have noticed my discomfort. He takes my hand. "Let's hang out in the lounge." He bumps his shoulder into mine. "Lot's of witnesses."
I laugh, both relieved and disappointed in myself. I do want to be alone with Kaz; I just don't want so much attention drawn to that privacy.
I pause on the stairs, looking into the lounge.
"I guess we could also hang out in my room."
My stomach squirms with nervous excitement.
Kaz stands in front of me, my hand still in his. "Look, I'm not going to take something you can't give. You believe in saving yourself for your Partner, and I respect that." He grins. "Even if the guy the Viry Chose is a donkey."
I can't help smiling, relieved at the sincerity in his voice. "Well, it's not for the Viry to Choose anymore, either. But thank you for being so understanding."
He pulls me over to our couch in front of our TV in our corner of the lounge.
"Just don't question me if I have to pull away sometimes," he says. "My self-control only goes so far."
Kaz hands me the deck of cards, and leans back against the sofa, watching me shuffle. We spend the rest of the evening playing card games.
He doesn't mention even the possibility of anything else happening, not even when he briefly kisses me goodnight outside my door.
--------------------------------
Boom chicka wow wowwww.
Til next time,
x zuz