Maybe He Just Likes You by Barbara Dee

Author:Barbara Dee
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: Aladdin
Published: 2019-09-30T16:00:00+00:00

STRETCH

Ms. Brennan, so glad to see you again.” Ms. Platt was smiling. Also waiting for something, apparently.

But what? My shoes were already off.

“Um, hi,” I said. “I’m only here for the trial membership, so that’s why I don’t have a uniform.”

“You mean a gi.”

“Right, a gi. Or a belt.”

“That’s okay,” Ms. Platt said. Her eyes twinkled. And she still didn’t move.

Behind her, Samira caught my eye. Bow, she mouthed. She made a bowing motion.

Oh, right.

I bowed at Ms. Platt, who bowed back.

“Ms. Brennan, we always start class with some stretches,” she said. “I’m going to pair you with Ms. Spurlock; she’ll demonstrate for you on the mat.”

My heart sank. I hadn’t even been here for a minute, and already I was supposed to follow Ms. Spurlock—Samira—who was apparently teacher’s pet here, too. Or sensei’s pet, or whatever we were supposed to call it.

But right away, Samira explained she’d been studying karate at a different dojo for the past two years, so she really did know what to do. She showed me a bunch of stretches—sitting, kneeling, standing—that she said warmed up hamstrings, side muscles, and knees. And she didn’t act all look how great I am about it; it was more like she cared that I learn the right way.

“Try not to jerk or bounce, Ms. Brennan,” she told me. “Be gentle and slow.”

Okay, I thought. But I’m not here for gentle and slow. And are you really going to call me Ms. Brennan? Because seriously.

A few more kids arrived—an Asian-American girl who looked about eight, a redheaded girl around my age, a tiny dark-skinned boy with a chirpy voice, a scary-pale teen girl with a nose ring.

“All jewelry off, Ms. Nathan,” Ms. Platt told her. Her voice was friendly, but stern.

“Oh, come on,” the girl begged. “It won’t be an issue, Ms. Platt, I promise.”

“Ms. Nathan, you know the rules of the dojo. Let’s not waste time. Remove the jewelry, and then I’d like to see Mr. Chowdhury and Ms. Spurlock lead the first three shobus. Ms. Spurlock and Mr. Chowdhury, get your distance, please.”

The other kids lined up on the mat, so I did too. And we watched Samira and the chirpy-voiced boy do some moves, over and over, while Ms. Platt narrated. (“Step back, arms in, Ms. Spurlock, remember to lead with the top two knuckles; now parry-block, Mr. Chowdhury, very nice, now reverse.”)

Then Ms. Platt lifted her arms. “Now, the rest of us, let’s develop some muscle memory. Hajime.”

The other kids started doing the moves, and by now, after all those repetitions, I could do them too. Well, pretty much. Ms. Platt made herself my partner, the whole time saying things like “Bend the elbow forty-five degrees, straighten that leg, bigger step.” But I didn’t feel embarrassed or helpless or singled out. Just like when Samira had paired with me for the stretches, Ms. Platt seemed to be cheering me on, happy when I finally did a straightforward punch “clean and sharp.”

After that we all practiced front kicks and side-blade kicks while Ms.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.