Page 36 of Allure

“Brooke Adams, I do not have any children of my own, but if I did, I would tell them that they can do anything and everything they set their minds to, and I firmly believe that is the case for you and for everyone.”

“So I’m not special, huh?” I mutter with a half-grin.

“Everyone is special, Brooke Adams, and that includes you.”

Not that fucking mugger. I don’t dare voice that thought loud, though.

“I want you to believe that you can do this,” he insists. “What you need is a plan. Resolutions? I hate them. When you have a plan, you are able to change things, to accomplish what you thought possible. Take things apart into tiny steps. Figure out how to accomplish those steps and onward until the entire task is done.”

“I’ll do my best.”

“That is all I ask. Oh, and your next two months’ worth of tuition.”

“What about it?” I ask, confused.

“It’s on me for you taking this on. Do we have a deal?”

I don’t need him to do that, and I open my mouth to protest, but he’s holding out his hand, and he probably should be heading onto the mat to teach the class, so I hurry up and shake it. His grip is like that of a viper trying to squeeze the light out of your eyes, and I suppress the urge to shake out my hand once he releases me.

"I predict big things ahead of you, Brooke Adams," he says. "Sometimes, tragedy can be a blessing in disguise. It's not always easy to see that initially, but it forces you to change, to adapt, to look at yourself in a new way. If you don't like the person staring back at you, you need to be the agent that sparks the change within yourself. That is the hardest step to take in one's life, and it's a step that more people should take more often."

“I didn’t realize that senseis could double as a therapist,” I say with a grin.

He grunts. “We also have to learn how to remove blood from clothes and off the mat.”

“Thank you for clarifying because that almost seemed like a terrifying statement.”

Sensei chuckles. “Let me know when you have a game plan, yes? Take care, Brooke Adams, and maybe try not to be alone at night anymore. I hate to have to suggest that, but sometimes, we all need to keep our sanity in mind, and having one less thing to worry about is always a good thing.”

I nod, and he walks out of his office toward the mat, but I remain there a minute longer.

Sensei is giving me a chance to teach myself and others. You can learn through teaching, right? And he’s also giving me something to focus on instead of the mugging.

Oh, and he basically twisted my arm without twisting my arm to get me to stick around for two more months. Almost three, considering I paid for the first month.

He’s not just a sensei and a therapist. He’s also a salesman.

CHAPTER14

Istick around and, for the first time ever, watch the next class. The kids in it are all wearing purple or above belts, and I try to especially pay attention to what Sensei has the black belts do. They might be kids—when you're thirteen, you can move up to the adult class—but they're strong. They're doing some kind of roll move from standing. The attacker faces the opponent head-on, wraps their right arm around their neck, and then seems to sit down, kicking up their legs and their opponent's legs to flip them over so that they end up on top with their opponent on the ground, their arm still around their neck to choke them.

Wow.

That’s pretty intense. Looks amazing. Just how are they doing that? Where are their legs? On the inside of their opponents’, I think. Hmm.

But as interesting as this is, it’s not something I can use, so I end up leaving just before Sensei dismisses the class.

Back at the dorm, I again turn to videos and Youtube, trying to figure out what exactly I should teach the women. Crap. I’m also going to have to figure out what to say, too, aren’t I? Or can I just come up with a game plan and pass that over to Sensei? No. He’ll hopefully be there, but this is on me. It’s my gig.

After all, it’s technically a paying gig.

Still, I’m going to feel like a complete sham walking around the women in a white belt.

So maybe I won’t wear my belt then…

I push aside the karate stuff for not to work on my actual school work until dinner. After dinner, more homework and then karate stuff, and I fall asleep at my desk.

Dawn wakes me who knows at what hour. All she does is point toward our bunks, and I nod and climb up to my bed and am back asleep in seconds.

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