To Be Alone With You

[Caleb Parker]

Private self-defense classes were becoming pretty normal for him. Those who were struggling often came to him and the people who had conflicting schedules tried to get in some lessons when they could. Caleb was pretty used to having a strange schedule himself between training and instructing, but he loved it. His students all were pretty understanding with him as he tried to be with them.

As he stood in the gym, he found himself in front of the bag that was hanging near the corner of the floor. He rested his hands on the sides and took a deep breath as he steadied the bag. Caleb pulled back and did a little hop, bouncing from foot to foot to keep himself moving and in tune with his body. He hooked his arm around and landed a blow to the right side, causing the bag to swing to his left. He moved to the side and landed a jab to the left, putting his right arm up to block the bag as it wrapped around again.

Caleb kept up the dance while he waited, just a light warm-up before his student came in and when she cleared her throat to announce her arrival, he turned to look over his shoulder, the bag swinging into him from behind, "Ah, shit."

Walking towards his bag and to where the girl stood, he leaned down to grab his towel, wiped the sweat from his face and offered her a wave, "Hey. You must be, uhh, Miss Harlow, right?" The trainer stood upright and it was then that he noticed how small she was by comparison. A girl her size could definitely use a defense class.

[Sage Harlow]

Now, a girl like Sage was far too proud to admit to being defenseless. Naturally, that very same pride usually didn't do her any favors, so after arguing with herself and second guessing her decision about twenty times, she had finally put her foot down and decided that she needed to be able to take care of herself if anything were to happen. So, she signed up for a class. A one-on-one class, because nobody needed an entire crowd to watch her get her ass smacked around.

As the redhead stepped into the gymnasium, she stood for a moment, watching her trainer. It didn't seem as if he'd noticed her yet, so Sage did the only natural thing in a situation like that; she cleared her throat.

...and because of it she seemingly distracted the trainer for long enough for him to get the boxing bag smacked into his back. Grimacing, Sage pursed her lips and smiled sheepishly. "That'd be me," she said, lifting one hand to offer the older man something of an awkward wave. And she suddenly felt scrutinized by his gaze. Furrowing her brow, she swallowed the bitter comment threatening to push its way through her lips and lowered her hand. 

Thankfully, she knew better than to let her mouth run wild.

[Caleb Parker]

While he hadn't meant to make her uncomfortable by, well, more or less staring at her, he couldn't exactly stop himself either. It made him a little nervous, as it usually did when he had to train someone so much smaller than him. He always worried he'd actually hurt someone by getting too deep into the fight. Caleb cleared his throat when he realized he was still staring at her and he rubbed the back of his neck uncomfortably. "Alright, then. Good. My name's Caleb Parker, but you can just call me Caleb. The whole Mr. Parker thing makes me feel sketchy. Or Cale, ya know, if you want." He gave a short nod and then clapped his hands together.

"Are you ready to get started?" Caleb offered an encouraging, or what he hoped was encouraging, smile. Shrugging off his track jacket, he tossed it over to the side by his bag. Suddenly he felt very warm, though he knew it was likely because he'd just been beating the hell out of a punching bag that decided to punch back at him. It could have been more, too. He often felt a little intimidated by new people, having been bullied for a good portion of his life, but it was always worse with women. Even of such a small stature like the redhead in front of him was.

Attempting to shake his nerves off, he shook his arms out and cracked his neck. "I'd suggest stretching before we get into any defensive maneuvers, even if we are just starting with the basics, doing it as many times as we will be, it can strain your muscles and make everything else a heck of a lot more painful. Trust. Me," He said with a more easygoing laugh. Once he found himself easing into the lesson, he felt much better.

[Sage Harlow]

Sage wasn't sure how comfortable she felt being on a first name basis with this guy, though, she also realized that this wasn't the 18th century, so she quickly tossed the notion away and simply replied with a simple nod. If anything, she could both respect and understand where he was coming from. Perhaps she was far too used to the formality of the world she found herself surrounded with.

Maybe a change of pace was exactly what she needed.

Rubbing her hands together, Sage nodded once more. "Yeah." She was as ready as she'd ever be.

Sage's hazel green eyes followed the older man as he moved his arms. Her drama classes had taught her just how much pain one could be in if one didn't properly stretch. She wasn't about to complain. "Well, I'd prefer not having my body hurt more than it needs to," she replied, feeling herself growing at least a little more comfortable in the situation she found herself in. At least that was a good sign, no?

Starting by stretching her arms above her head, Sage closed her eyes and focused on her breathing. "What are we doing today?"

[Caleb Parker]

As she began to stretch, he averted his eyes away and looked back at the bag that had hit him briefly. Her question had him turning his head back to her and he nodded, "Uh well, with this being your first session, we're gonna be doing some pretty boring stuff." In his mind it was boring, and well, probably to everyone else that had taken a defense class. There were very many movements that he could teach her until she had a strong core that would be the backbone of her power and the way she could defend herself against a man his size, or even bigger.

"First we gotta go over how to create a sturdy platform for you," He had his lesson plans based on the guy who had taught him way back when before he graduated. Caleb hadn't exactly agreed to his methods or the way he taught at the time, but while he'd been a scrawny thing back then, he wasn't anymore. The core was what had kept him from getting bullied for the rest of his life, it taught him to stand his ground and not be pushed around, so he supposed he understood the reasoning for it now. "From there it'll be distance control. We might add in a few block moves that can be partnered with distance control."

The first lesson was always the most uncomfortable for him, and he figured it was much the same for the student. Caleb had been doing this for a while, but everyone was different. Certain people he found it easy to teach, they absorbed the information well and there was no discomfort, but for the shy, timid people who truly needed the class, he struggled with how to approach them. "So once you're finished stretching, get into a stance with your legs slightly bent and a little closer than shoulder-width apart."

[Sage Harlow]

Sage could handle boring. Boring usually meant that it was expected. Safe. Natural. She liked being in control, after all. In which, she also realized, that signing up for something like this might have been a foolish notion. But hey, at least being able to protect oneself was something that could potentially come in handy, as opposed to signing up for something she'd never have the use of.

She let him finish talking while she stretched, absorbing every word as she nodded - though, more so to herself than to the older gentleman. Once she finished stretching, though, she rose and did as she was told.

Attempting to keep her legs bent all the while measuring the distance between them, the redhead eyes narrowed. She had never been very good at multitasking, but at least she was willing to try.

"Like this?" she asked then, finally lifting her gaze to look at him, uncertainty flickering across her hazel eyes.

[Caleb Parker]

Caleb watched as she got into the stance. She was focused, which would absolutely be useful to make it easy to teach her. But then, she was too focused, too controlled. While he would argue that control was what made self-defense work, there was a line that had to be drawn. If she focused too hard on the finite details of her stance, she'd likely be too distracted when her attacker lunged. He knew, of course, that this was the first lesson and therefore she was just trying to make it right, but it was also a test of his. The stance was important, core was important, but so was thinking and working fast.

When she looked up at him, he smiled and nodded, "Just about. Now, I'm gonna position you a little differently to give you a more sturdy foundation. And once I set you, I want you to really remember how each muscle in your body feels because that will help you get into position faster and still hold the same strength. Muscle memory, basically." He stepped closer and took a deep breath. There was always that slight discomfort when it came to this part, although he often tried his best not to show it. In this case, it wasn't just because she was a female student, not that much younger than him, but because he had unfortunately noticed how beautiful she was and that sort of thing wasn't allowed.

Caleb put his hands on her shoulders and squared them first. Then he pressed the center of her back to straighten her up. Once he was satisfied with the way that her upper body held, he knelt down and pushed her right foot about an inch closer to her left. He stood and put his hands back to her shoulders, twisting her diaphragm slightly. Moving his hands to just beneath her elbows, he raised her arms into a fighting position. "Alright, while you won't necessarily be boxing this is how I'd like for you to stand when I say get into a defensive position. Hands up always, it'll offer you the ability to block while still watching your attackers move." He took a step back. "Lock in this position, study the way it feels, memorize it because this is your foundation. This is where your strength is pulling from."

He folded his arms across his chest and watched again, "If you're more of a visual learner or a hands on learner, I can show you how I fixed your position with my own stance? Whichever helps you more."

[Sage Harlow]

Because he had told her beforehand, Sage had prepared herself. Or at least, she thought that she had. He had been very clear - even informative. And yet, the moment his hands touched her shoulders, she could feel her body stiffen under the touch. Hazel-green eyes flickered upwards, staring intensely and slightly narrowed. She could feel his hands move her stiff limbs into position and she tried, she really tried relaxing, but the sensation was wholly unfamiliar to her. It wasn't necessarily unpleasant, just... Odd.

He continued moving her limbs and then spoke. It took Sage a few seconds to register his words - her gaze blank, she blinked rapidly. "Uhm," she said then, almost embarrassed. Damn her and her inability to do multiple things at once. Chastising herself mentally, she cleared her throat. "Ookay." Drawing her mind away from her immediate thoughts, she did as she was told.

Or tried to, anyways. She didn't really feel any different. It just felt like holding her arms up, really. Was there something she was missing?

Scarlet tinted her cheeks, and Sage licked her bottom lip. "Yeah, uhm, you could show me," she tried. Perhaps watching before doing would help her focus.

[Caleb Parker]

Caleb paid little attention to the way his hands trembled once he had pulled back. The look on her face mirrored what he figured his looked like. Confusion and a bit of shock with the sudden physical contact. Sure, he'd known it was coming, but for her, he hardly knew her and vice versa. Who wouldn't be creeped out by some grabby instructor, even if he wasn't meaning for it to be grabby. Once he stood back, he appraised her, looking for any sign of something that didn't sink with her or to find if he'd crossed a line with positioning her in the way she stood now.

With a bit of relief, she hadn't screamed that he was inappropriately touching her. She also didn't look overly disgusted. But he noted that she wasn't grasping the position. It wasn't much of a surprise. Caleb remembered standing in her position, confused as hell and probably annoyed with the ridiculous things that his old instructor had made him do. But it was important, even if neither of them wanted to admit it openly.

"Okay! So, I've got my legs apart, just short of shoulder-width apart. By bending at the knee, it gives you a little leverage against your opponent, getting low is probably your best bet especially since you're already fairly short in stature. Shoulders square and back straight, locking in that center core. Your abs are going to be where you get your strength from, if you have a strong and sturdy core, it'll make you more of a force to be reckoned with, yeah?" Caleb noticed that as he was talking, he got into a rambling state and hadn't looked at her until he was replicated in her stance, his arms up in a fighting position. He stayed there for a moment, thinking momentarily. "Here, try to move me."

[Sage Harlow]

Finally able to focus properly, Sage paid attention to his movements. As he gestured and showed her, the redhead nodded intently. It didn't feel nearly as hard now that she was offered some room to properly breathe. As he moved, she took note of his movements, the way he positioned his legs, his arms and his shoulders. She made a note to herself to remember.

She even mimicked his movements, though, much slower - as if trying to force her muscles to remember. 

Then he told her to move her. Confusion layered her expression for a moment before she blinked, brows furrowing. She nodded then, unsure what to do. Given her little experience with this, she did the only thing she could possibly think of doing:

She moved forward, trying to make the impression that she was going for his upper body, trying her best to draw his attention to her arms or face. Anything other than her feet. She could only hope her intentions weren't obvious. Once she got into position, she quickly circled her foot against his, putting pressure on the spot behind his knee.

[Caleb Parker]

Caleb had been so certain of what her attack would be, that he hadn't actually paid any attention to the move itself. He was prepared for a shove, something with little force behind it on his upper torso. That was the most common reaction students often had when he said to try and move him. It was rare for them to take it as an opportunity to test their skills that they already possessed, the basic instincts of a surprise attack. After all, that was what he was preparing them for. And all the while, as he was thinking about how to deflect her attack on his upper torso, she did the unexpected. She became a surprise attacker.

It was in this instance that Caleb was happy they had mats, and not just one skimpy little thing, a pretty heavy duty mat that didn't hurt as much to fall on. He'd upgraded it after a nasty couple of tosses and flips that had landed him some welts on his body. He may have healed quickly, but it still hurt like a bitch. She was so focused on his torso that when she swept her leg behind his knees, he didn't even have the time to react defensively to jump or grab her. Instead he felt the pressure buckle his knees and sweep his feet out from under him, landing flat on his ass, bracing himself with his arms out.

And there she stood above him. Wasn't he supposed to be the instructor?

Caleb looked down with a shake of his head and laughed shortly. He glanced back up with a smile, impressed that she had bested him already. Maybe he should have been focusing on the lessons and less on what was roaming around in his brain. "Well, well, well. You sure you don't want to teach this lesson?" He laughed again and stuck his hand out, "Do you mind lending me a hand?" Sure in this instance he could take her down just as easily, but he couldn't just yet. She had to be able to defend herself first, and he seemed to already be slacking. At this rate, she'd probably think he didn't know what he was doing.