The heavy storm and rain turning into hail didn't really bother me—at least not while I was sharing a kiss with Aya.
At some point, we pulled away. I looked into her eyes, red from crying.
"We probably should go… The rai—"
She cut me off, and our lips met again, this time only briefly.
"Now we can go," she said shyly.
We stood and headed from the park.
We were both soaked through. The weather had truly taken a frightening turn. The wind bent the trees almost to the ground, and the icy hail struck our faces unkindly. The temperature had dropped by what felt like ten degrees. I was only in my school shirt and could feel the chill setting in. Looking at Aya, I could tell she felt it too—she wrapped her arms around her shoulders, and was shaking a little bit.
We somehow made it out of the city and reached Aya's house.
We stood by the fence of one of the private homes in a small suburban neighborhood on the outskirts. Though the area was small, it looked upscale. Expensive cars were parked outside the homes.
"Are you sure you'll make it home safely, Isao? Maybe… you could wait out the storm at my place?"
"I doubt your parents would appreciate that. Don't worry, I'll manage somehow."
She gave a modest nod, turned to the gate leading into her property, then looked back at me. We stared at each other in awkward silence for a moment.
Then she suddenly ran up to me, grabbed me by the shirt, and we shared one more kiss.
"See you…
Text me after you get home." she said softly and quickly disappeared behind the iron gates.
The weather got even worse. I covered my face with my hand and managed to make it to the forest—cutting through it would get me home faster. At least the trees provided some cover from the raging hail.
Damn it. What am I doing? Telling my feelings to Aya—when I've got thugs and lunatics hunting me down? Putting someone important to me at risk just so I can feel okay, just so I don't have to be alone?
Whatever. No matter what happens, I'll protect her. No matter the cost.
I trudged through the forest. The ground had turned to mud from all the water, making it hard to walk. My shoes were completely ruined.
Then I felt something vibrate in my pocket. My phone. Seriously? In this stormy forest apocalypse?
I hid behind a tree from hail and picked up:
"Isao?" came a calm male voice.
"Who is this?"
"It's Cosmo. I'm calling to—"
"Cosmo. Now's really not a good time. Do you know what it's like out here?"
"Yeah, I saw. You're not home? Damn.
Anyway, coach asked us to—...—tomorrow we have to—…"His words were muffled by the storm. I couldn't make out most of it.
"Coach asked what? Say it again?"
"We need to meet tomorrow. Will you be at school?"
"Yeah."
"I'll drop by. I'll explain everything there. Good luck surviving out there—I'm gonna go make myself a coffee. Haha."He hung up.
Yeah, go make your coffee, sure…
I pushed on through the half-flooded forest. Eventually, I made it to the familiar path leading to my house. I slipped a few times on the way up, dirtying the rest of my clothes that weren't already covered in mud.
Finally, I reached the porch roof, which offered partial cover from the rain. I took a deep breath and stepped inside.
I needed to clean up and think. It was already getting dark outside.
The Next Day
I'm sitting in class, lost in memories of yesterday. The teacher's explaining something at the board, but as usual, his words drift right past me.
Man, I really hope I get to see her today.
Then I remember what the coach said—that I've gone soft. And damn, he's right. And now I've dragged Aya into all this. She doesn't even know that a deranged psycho—my ex's dad—is after me. At least I had the sense to tell her about the ex part.
The bell rang, signaling the end of the last lesson.
A few minutes later, I saw a familiar silhouette at the door. Aya. She walked toward me with a timid expression that quickly turned into a small, satisfied smile.
"Hey…"
"Hey… You okay? I hope you didn't get sick after yesterday?"Her cheeks turned red and she briefly looked away.
"I was worried… Did you make it home alright? The storm got a lot worse after we split up."
Crap. I didn't text her last night.
"Well… as you can see, I'm alive. Though I got completely covered in mud walking through the forest. It really was a nightmare out there. And… I'm sorry I didn't message you, okay?"
She shyly glanced to the side, then looked back at me.
"Are you going to the gym today?"
Before I could answer, someone tapped me on the shoulder from behind. I turned.
It was Cosmo—with that eerie smile on his face.
"What?! How did you sneak up on me? I'm literally sitting by the door!"
He just shrugged, and the creepy grin turned into his usual calm expression.
"Coach asked me to unload some new equipment for the gym before it opens. Duty calls, Isao."He didn't even seem to notice Aya standing next to my desk, staring at us curiously.
"Uh… Aya, this is Cosmo. He... trains at the gym with me. Cosmo, this is Aya. She's… my friend."
Aya and I both looked awkward as I said that.
"Nice to meet you. Well… time to go, Isao."
"Yeah. Aya, see you later. I'll text you."I quickly packed my books and left the classroom with Cosmo.
"I'll text you." What a dumbass thing to say after I messed that up last time…
We walked through the school hallway.
"If we get this done quickly, I promise to go easy on you during sparring."
"Yeah, yeah…" I waved him off, still lost in thoughts about Aya and me.
"No, seriously. I was planning to break you today, but if you work hard, maybe I'll show a little mercy."
"…Hey, look, it's the new guy, talking about breaking someone. Ha."I heard voices from a group of three familiar school punks by the main exit.
Before I could blink, Cosmo was gone.
"AAAHH!"A loud scream came from their direction."I'M SORRY!!! NO! AAAAAHH!!"
I just watched with curiosity as Cosmo beat the crap out of them. His speed was ridiculous—probably faster than Killy.
They tried to run a few times, but apparently, escaping a martial arts champion isn't that easy.
Eventually, Cosmo got bored of wrecking the bullies and walked back to me. There wasn't a hint of mockery left from them—just groans of pain.
"Do you really care that much about what they said?"
"Of course. Isao, if you don't put people like that in their place, they'll never stop treating you that way."His voice had a slight uncertainty to it.
"Feels like you got a little too into it."
We arrived at Kojo Gym. It was closed. A truck was parked outside, and two men walked up as they saw us.
"Twenty machines. Training equipment. Here's the list—check it."One of them handed Cosmo a sheet.
Cosmo took the paper and climbed into the truck. After a few minutes, he came back, handed over a wad of cash, and turned to me with a sad face.
"You heard him. Twenty machines. Let's start with the treadmills. Go."
The boxes were heavier than I expected. We began hauling them into the gym one by one.
After unloading half of them, we carefully set them down inside.
"Isao. You go on without me, I'm a little bit tired."
You've got to be kidding.
"You've got to be kidding."
"I told you. If you work hard, I'll go easy on you during sparring today.
Come on, dude, I'm a regional champion—wouldn't you want to do me a favor?"He said arrogantly and headed toward Coach Namura's office.
"Oh, I'll do you a favor alright…"I ran up behind him and kicked him in the butt.
Awkward silence, and then Cosmo turned around.
"I'll kill you," he said in a disturbingly calm tone and took off his coat.
Suddenly, Cosmo's foot flew a few centimeters past my head. He started spinning, throwing kicks in an elegant, dance-like rhythm.
What style is this? I've never seen it. Only his legs are in use—it looks more like a dance than a fight.
I stepped back, dodging his strikes, watching his legs closely.
When he slowed down for a second, I dove in, tackled him, and we went into grappling.
I threw him onto the mat, wrapped around his neck, and went for a choke—just like I did against Killy.
Hold tight. Don't let go.
OW!
He elbowed me in the liver. Easily broke free and got into a dominant ground position.
Then came a barrage of punches—this time with his fists.
I covered my head, panicking. Eventually, he'd break through my guard and knock me out.
Trying to think fast, I realized—he wasn't controlling my legs. I should use it.
I dropped my guard and took a few solid hits—but managed to grab both of his wrists.
Holding his arms, I started kicking him in the back until he finally rolled off and curled up in pain.
Same as me. The punches I took to the face were brutal. Pretty sure he hit my nose—judging by the blood dripping.
After a while, we both got up. Exhausted and completely spent.
I recognized this moment—it was just like before. When we both waited for one decisive move.
"Well?! Come on, kid!" he shouted aggressively, motioning me toward him.
He knows I feinted last time before going for a real hit. I need something new.
I raised my guard and stepped forward.
Alright. This is it.
As I got close, I skipped the feint and kicked him in the gut with a leg, using all my strength.
I flew backward, landing hard. He must've done the same to me.
"Ugh… damn…"
"Ahhh…"
We both lay on the mats, writhing in pain.
Eventually, Cosmo broke the silence of our shared suffering.
"Ehh… maybe we should've just finished unloading those damn boxes…"
"Well… they're still right there…" I said, glancing at the open gym door, where several boxes of equipment still waited to be carried inside.