Page 10 of 4th Degree

On the other hand, Skylar is trying ten times harder and honing in on technique instead of power. She doesn’t have the same fluidity that the guys have, but she’s hanging on Lucy’s every word and tweaking her punches after each one. Between her first class and this third one, she’s gotten exponentially better.

I can confidently say I’d take a student like Skylar over the guys any day.

The timer sounds out, signaling the end of the round.

My attention drifts back to her a few more times over the course of the class. But because I’m looking at Skylar, I start to notice something about Lucy. She keeps wincing and rubbing her head.

We only have ten minutes left, so I decide to wait until the end before I separate her from the students and ask, “Lucy, what's with your head?”

I half expect her to play it off. But if there was any doubt about the severity of her injury, it disappears in a wisp of smoke when she gives me a no-bullshit answer.

“I’m not sure,” she admits quietly. Her hand reaches up to rub her temple. “I just can’t get rid of this headache.”

“How long have you had it?”

She shrugs. “It’s been coming and going for a couple days.”

“Anything different in your life? Diet? Stress levels? Did you stop drinking coffee?”

“Nothing’s out of the ordinary,” she says on a heavy sigh, her shoulders dropping in defeat. “I mean, I’m not at fight camp level, but my diet’s pretty clean and I’m not any more stressed than usual.” She winces again and reaches for her head. “I don’t know what it could be. I thought it might be a concussion, but I’ve never thrown up after sparring. And I’ve never been knocked out.”

“It could still be a concussion,” I tell her. “Those are the worst and most obvious tells, but there are plenty of other, smaller signs, too.” I study Lucy for a moment, knowing she has to be done for the day. “Why don’t you take some time off, anyway. Drink a lot of water, no sugar, and get some sleep. I’ll check back with you next week.”

She nods, looking miserable. Telling a fighter to take time off is the last thing any of them want to hear, but their safety comes first.

“I don’t want to interrupt, but I might be able to help,” comes a soft voice from behind me. I turn to see Skylar stepping closer to us and give her a questioning look. “Does anything else feel like it’s changed physically?” she asks Lucy. “Any dizziness, grogginess, problems sleeping?—?”

“I have been waking up in the middle of the night lately,” Lucy says thoughtfully. “I don’t usually have issues sleeping seven hours straight.”

Skylar nods, as if Lucy just confirmed something for her. “Anything else feel different?”

Lucy slants a nervous look my way. “It’s nothing big, but…I feel like I’ve had some trouble remembering things. I’ve never had the best memory, but I had a few moments this week where I completely blanked.”

Skylar turns to me. “She’s concussed. And I know you have no reason to listen to the new girl who just interrupted your conversation, but I’ve got a lot of experience with this kind of stuff.” She looks at Lucy and adds, “There’s no ‘cure’ for a concussion, but I can give you some exercises that will help it heal.”

Lucy looks surprised, but not skeptical. “Like physical therapy?”

Skylar nods. “Exactly like physical therapy. The brain is a muscle, so you have to work it out to get it back to peak physical condition.” She glances at the clock on the wall. “I can run you through a few now, if you have some time.”

“Weren’t you going to take jiu-jitsu?” Lucy asks.

Skylar waves it off. “I can take jiu-jitsu anytime.”

Compared to how badly she obviously wants to train, she just gave up the opportunity for it without any hesitation, all for someone she doesn’t even know.

Respect outshines my fascination for my new student.

“Okay then,” Lucy answers. “Thanks, Skylar. I really appreciate it.”

“Don’t even mention it,” Skylar says with a smile. Then she faces me again and asks, “You’re okay if I do this? I don’t want to assume you don’t know how to treat a concussion, but if I can help in any way?—”

“Skylar,” I interrupt. “I’m never going to be anything less than appreciative of you helping a teammate. Because I don’t know how to treat a concussion. We’re still catching up on TBI knowledge in this sport. Back in my day, I’m pretty sure our coaches didn’t believe concussions were even a thing.” I check the time. “I have to start jiu-jitsu class, otherwise I would listen in. But maybe you and I could chat about it another time. I’d love to hear what you know about it.”

Skylar smiles. “Of course. Whenever you’d like, I’d be happy to share.”

“Good. Do what you need to, then. And let me know if I can help with anything.”

I leave the two girls and step back onto the mat for class. Between demonstrating the moves and it being more packed than normal, I can’t pay much attention to Skylar’s exercises, much as I’d like to. The most I can do is glance over at them a few times and try to make sense of what they’re doing. Once, I see Lucy moving her head from side to side, slowly at first, then quicker, until eventually she winces and stops the motion. Skylar has her do it again, this time moving her head up and down.

---