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Lane looks me over with a nod. “Awesome, we’ll assess where you’re at, and then go from there, okay?”
I nod, even though I’m a little nervous. I spar for survival, not for fun. However, two seconds into Lane’s “assessment,” I’m convinced everyone is just practicing killing me.
He rushes me, and I immediately flip into the mindset that I’ve been trained in. Even when he tries to pin me, I manage to attack back and get back on my feet.
Nodding, he watches as he looks for weaknesses. We spar for what feels like forever, until he finally pulls me into a chokehold. Lane thinks that’s the end, but I immediately elbow him, stomp on his foot and just pull back when I twist out of his grip and grab his hair as if I’m going to break his nose.
Releasing him, I take a deep breath, stepping back with my hands up, watching him carefully.
“Holy shit,” he gasps, looking at me, a note of respect in his eyes. “You’re way better than I thought. I made a mistake in thinking that you were weak, and I’m sorry.”
Shrugging, I shake my hands out to release some of the adrenaline coursing through my veins. “Are all classes this intense?” I joke, raising my brow.
“No. Again, I’m an asshole. Please don’t tell Greg or he’ll kick my ass,” Lane mutters.
“Too fucking late,” Greg barks and I giggle as Lane pales.
Stepping off the mats, I take the water Greg hands me.
“Are you okay?” he asks, eying me carefully.
“Yep. I actually kind of enjoyed myself,” I grin at him.
Greg rolls his eyes, sighing. “Fuck, I should have just kept training you myself.”
“Lennon is really good,” Tori murmurs. “I don’t think this is the right class for her.”
“It normally would be,” Greg grumbles, “but Lane decided to be an ass. I’ll be against the wall if you need me. Try to enjoy the class, okay?”
We nod, turning towards the mats where a paler Lane is chatting with us. I actually do enjoy the class now that I’m not suffering through a dick measuring contest. I learn a few new holds, get to practice with people who are good opponents to spar with, in an environment where no one is trying to kill me. All in all, I call that a win.
“Can I offer you all a ride home?” Greg asks with a smirk.
I’m exhausted and plead with my eyes to Tori. “Yes,” she says with a grin. “Lennon worked harder than I did this morning. I’m honestly surprised Lane did that. It was a dick move.”
One of the trainers rushes over to us, and I realize he’s a manager. “I just heard what happened in class today, and I wanted to apologize,” he gushes. “I watched you towards the end of class, and while I think you need a more advanced level, Lane was wrong in his actions.”
“Tell me something we don’t know, Max,” Greg barks and the man nods.
“I want to offer you a three month membership for free to take classes whenever you’d like in apology,” Max says, his voice quick and professional. It’s obvious it is a bandaid for what happened and a take it or leave it kind of deal.
Shrugging, I decide at least Greg won’t be paying for my membership. “Yeah, that’ll work,” I tell him. I don’t bother telling him how nice it is that he’s offering this, because the truth is Lane should have been more professional.
“Perfect, any level four class will be appropriate for your skills. It’s a contact free class, but it’ll allow you to continue honing the skills that you have. Feel free to take different types of courses to learn different techniques,” Max says with a smile before he leaves.
“Lennon, I think you should look into Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu,” Greg murmurs as he steers us to the main desk. “It’ll give you skills you’ll need in close combat. I also recommend learning some knife throwing. It’ll help when people decide that you’re stronger than they expect and cut and run.”
“I’m so fucked,” I sigh, not at all proud of the accomplishments I’ve achieved, because there’s always more to learn for the privilege of staying alive.
Yeah, I’m scheduling another appointment with my therapist for this afternoon.
“Lennon, I know this is all a lot, but you’ll be okay. You know that, right?” Tori says.
Tears sting my eyes and I swallow hard as I shrug. Any kind of talking is going to shatter me right now, and it’ll fuck up the respect in the eyes of the people glancing over at me. Greg deals with the changing of my classes and credit to my account, and then hustles me out of the gym with Tori.
“Greg, can I borrow your phone please?” I whisper once I’m in the car. He doesn’t even bother to ask why, handing it to me.
Tori glances worriedly over her shoulder in the front seat, but doesn’t say anything as I pull up my patient portal.
