going steady
here.
She rolled her eyes. Of course they weren’t.
That was the point.
She showed up anyway, wearing a similar
outfit to last time except with a sky blue tank top instead of a
purple one. This next lesson was more brutal than the last one—he
added more steps, pushed harder, and she was so focused on trying
to keep up with his commands while still executing the moves
correctly she hardly had time to think about her attraction to him.
And when she got home the only things she did was shower and pass
out, utterly exhausted.
They made plans to meet three times a week,
and though she was still sore by the time the next day came around
she kept to the agreement. She did notice that this time he was
very careful not to touch her unless it was absolutely necessary—a
tap on the elbow here, a nudge to the wrist or knee as he corrected
her stances, but nothing more. Even so she felt the jolt each time
he did it, and couldn’t help but wonder if he was feeling it
too.
A week and a half passed, and she could feel
the muscles in her legs and abdomen tightening, growing more toned
as he forced her to engage them constantly. She grew more
comfortable around him too, so that the sessions were no longer so
nerve wracking and she was able to focus more on her breathing and
technique and less on whether she looked like an idiot or what was
going through his mind when he looked at her.
When she came in on Friday night, he was
waiting for her with a brown paper-wrapped package under his left
arm and a smile on his face.
“What’s that?” she asked as he handed it to
her.
“Open it and see.”
She tore open the paper to find a set of gi
and a white belt. “I… you… did you get these for me?”
He grinned. “You’re going to be moving into
the group lessons soon, so I thought you should have a uniform by
now so you don’t stick out like a sore thumb.”
Her heart pumped faster—group lessons? “So
soon?” She unwrapped the gi and held it up. “I don’t know if I’m
ready…”
“Don’t worry about it. We still have a few
private lessons to go. Why don’t you go try it on?”
She went into the bathroom and came out a
few moments later with the front of her hakama open. “I…
umm… I can’t get these ties right…” she mumbled, her eyes on the
ground—she knew she was going to need his help, but it meant
letting her see more of her skin than she was comfortable sharing
with anyone, let alone a man she was attracted to.
“Uhh… here. Let me help.” He reached forward
to fix the ties, then froze as his fingers brushed against her bare
abdomen. His eyes latched onto her breasts, which were hidden by
the pink sports bra she was wearing, and she was incredibly aware
of how it pushed together and lifted her cleavage. Something
flashed in his eyes, and then he dropped his gaze, fixed her ties
and pulled the hakama shut. He then showed her how to tie
her belt, which was a complicated affair in and of itself.
“There you go.” He stepped back and grinned
at her. “You look like a warrior princess.”
“Oh please.” She turned, bowed in to the
training floor, then took a look at herself in the mirrored wall
and blinked. She was nearly unrecognizable, and though she’d been
worried the uniform would make her look fat the belt cinched at her
waist saved her figure from being engulfed by the loose cloth. And
actually the cut fit her well.
“Alright, maybe I don’t look so bad.”
He laughed. “Let’s get started. We’re going
to do some self-defense today.”
“Huh?”
“Just follow along with me.”
He took her through a set of moves that
involved peeling someone’s grip off your head and twisting them
around so you could kick them in the face. They practiced a few
times side by side, and then he faced her and grabbed her by the
hair.
“Go ahead,” he told her. “Show me what I
have coming.”
She fumbled the first two times, but the
third time she successively twisted his arm