Zombie Games (3 page)

Nora jaw dropped. “No shit? With you being so paranoid about germs and your mom being a “
Daycare Lady”
, I thought you‘d have gotten your shots for
next
year’s flu season by now.”

I stared at her. “Um…I’m not
tha
t paranoid.”

She snorted. “Whatever Wild. Listen, I’ll see you at karate class later.”  

I watched as she strutted out of the bathroom in her heavy black boots and then looked in the mirror.
I’m not paranoid
, I reminded myself
, just very cautious...

Chapter Three

My stomach was growling by the end of the day, so on the way to karate class, I stopped by a McDonald’s drive-thru and ordered a cheeseburger; extra pickles. As I handed the cashier the money she sneezed all over the bag without apologizing. As horrified as I was, I held my tongue and choked down the food; I was
that
hungry.

It was just after four o’clock by the time I made it to the dojo. Nora and Scott were already there, joking around and stretching out. I thought back to my dream where Scott had turned into a zombie, killed my neighbor’s dog, and viciously attacked me. Fortunately, his skin was clear and his green eyes were as lively as ever. He caught me staring at him and smiled curiously.

“Wow, small class today,” stated our instructor, Master Jordan, as he entered the room. He’s a sixth degree Black Belt and has trained for over eighteen years.

“Everyone must be sick,” replied Scott. I noticed he’d gotten a crew cut, which didn’t surprise me because I knew he had plans to join the military after graduation. We’d been really good friends for the last two years and although we’d gone out on a few dates, both of us agreed that we were more comfortable in a platonic relationship.

Master Jordan sighed. “Well,” he replied, rubbing his chin. “Since it‘s such a small class, why don’t we just practice sparring?”

All three of us love to spar, so we naturally agreed. I quickly stretched out and then suited up in my dark gray sparring gear, which consists of a helmet as well as mouth, shin, foot, and chest guards.

“Nora, you and Scott will partner up. Cassie, you’ll be sparring with Bryce De Luca. He should be arriving any minute.”

I removed my mouth guard. “Who’s Bryce
De Luca
?” I asked.

He smiled. “Bryce’s a new instructor from our Hugo location. They’ve shut down because of the flu.”

I glanced through the large window facing the parking lot just as a guy in a weathered leather jacket pulled up on a motorcycle. He removed his helmet, ran his fingers through his wavy black hair, then hurried inside carrying a sports bag.

Master Jordan patted him on the back. “De Luca! I was starting to get worried about you.”

Bryce was tall with intense blue eyes. When he smiled his dimples heated my insides.

“Sorry, the traffic was bad. If you‘ll excuse me for a minute, I just need to change,” he replied.

“No problem,” said Master Jordan.

I stole another glance as Bryce walked towards the bathroom. He was just as interesting to look at from behind. 

Nora strolled by me casually, a smirk on her face. “Hey…wipe your mouth, there‘s drool,” she teased.

My cheeks burned. “Whatever,” I mumbled turning away from her.

When Bryce stepped out of the bathroom, Master Jordan motioned him over to where I was warming up. He stood several inches taller than me, had broad shoulders and lean muscular arms. Intricate tattoos of dragons peaked out from under his black sleeves. He caught me staring and rolled up his sleeves to show more.

“Very cool,” I said, admiring the details of the dragon’s scales, face, and fiery breath.

“Listen, Bryce, after you warm up, I’m going to have you practice sparring with Cassandra Wild here. She just received her black belt last week.”

He nodded with approval. “Congratulations Cassandra, you should be proud of yourself.”

“Um, thanks,” I replied, trying not to blush. His belt reflected that he was a third degree black belt and I prayed that I wouldn’t embarrass myself by forgetting anything I’d learned up to that point.

Bryce looked at my instructor. “I can’t tell you how relieved I was when I found out you were open today. I have a tournament next weekend and
really
need to practice.”

“After this class, stick around and I’ll practice
atem
i with you.” replied Master Jordan. “I’ve heard you’ve pretty much mastered it.”

Bryce shrugged. “Yeah, I have to admit…I’ve got a pretty good grasp of it but could always use more practice. I’d appreciate it.”

Atemi
is an advanced type of martial arts’ technique that involves blows to different areas of the body; to break an opponent’s concentration or balance. I had personally never used it, but Master Jordan promised to incorporate it into my training this summer, especially if I was interested in entering the more advanced tournaments.

“That’s what I’m here for. Just remind me after class.”

Bryce nodded and then turned back to me, studying my face. “Cassandra Wild, huh? You know, I don’t recall seeing you at any of the tournaments.”

I shook my head. “You probably haven’t. It’s been awhile since I’ve competed. Now that I’m a Black Belt though, that’ll probably change.”

“Great. You’d be a good distraction for some of my opponents.”

I didn’t know how to respond to that, so I just smiled.

“Okay, you two. Better get going,
time’s-a-wasting
,” said Master Jordan. “Bryce, if you could work with Cassie on some of her kicks? She may need a little encouragement keeping those legs high up in the air.”

I just wanted to fade away when I noticed Bryce’s devilish grin. 

“You know, I’m just going to let that one go,” he replied softly. Unfortunately, it wasn’t soft enough because Nora snorted from across the room and oh how I wanted to punch her.              

“Keep it clean De Luca,” said Master Jordan. “You don’t want to mess with that one, her kicks are lethal.”

He chuckled. “Sounds like an interesting challenge.”

“Well, just never say I didn’t warn you buddy,” replied Master Jordan. He then winked at me and stepped into his office.

I think Bryce must have thought I was anxious about sparring with someone more advanced, which wasn’t really the case. It was the way he looked at me that started my heart pounding madly in my chest.

“Hey Cassandra, I was just kidding. I’ll go easy on you,” said Bryce.

“No, don’t. I can handle it,” I replied breathlessly.

His piercing blue eyes met mine. “Look, I don’t want to hurt you. I’m obviously twice your size and much farther along in my training. You don’t have a chance against someone as formidable as me.”

My fantasy of him being a total Adonis crumbled and I stared at him in amazement, wondering if he was for real. I cleared my throat. “You’re serious? You think I’m not going to be challenging enough for you?” I asked.

“Most women aren’t,” he stated confidently.

His arrogance irritated me. I’d worked hard on earning my belt and prided myself on being just as good if not better than many of the guys in my class. Chauvinism was something I simply had no tolerance for. I stomped out the small fire he’d created in my stomach and ignored how cute his butt looked in his uniform. “Well, I think the only thing
you
should go easy on is your own ego.”

He gave me a surprised look then chuckled.    “Ouch. Man… you are a little
wild
one aren’t you?”

You’re going to soon find out
, I thought as I put on my helmet and mouth-guard.

Bryce took his time putting on his own gear, glancing at me occasionally with a wry smile. I refused to let him bother me, though. I couldn’t wait to wipe the cocky grin from his face.

“Ready yet?” I snapped impatiently.

“Oh, I’m ready alright. The question is are you
ready for me
, Wild
,” he replied, jumping fluidly to his feet. I had to admit, with his height and combat gear in place, he
was
intimidating.

“I’ve
been
ready. And by the way, I prefer to be called
Cassie
.”

He laughed at that, adding more fuel to the fire. I pushed aside my anxiety and let his irritating personality feed my adrenaline. We tapped gloves and I charged after him before he had a chance to study my fighting style. I started with a burst of fast charges and strikes, which took him a little by surprise. I bit my lip to keep from smirking as I circled around Bryce, waiting for his move.

Bryce nodded his approval then came at me with a roundhouse kick, which I quickly blocked and countered with a couple of moves that would show him how challenging I could be. I jumped up and did a combination roundhouse with an ax-kick. I swiftly followed that move with a hard side thrust kick. This time I couldn’t hide my satisfied grin when I heard him grunt.

“Okay, not bad,” he said.

“Told you,” said Master Jordan, who was now standing outside of his office, watching us. “She may have just gotten her black belt, but she’s always been a natural martial artist. Her strikes are quick and solid.”

I opened my eyes innocently. “Bryce, next time don’t hold back. Give me all you’ve got. Or aren’t you
man
enough.”

He gave me a crooked smile and opened his mouth to respond when Master Jordan interrupted. “Like I said, keep it clean over their Mr. De Luca. She‘s a minor.”

“I’ll be eighteen next month,” I countered.

Bryce stared at me for a moment, his face crestfallen. “Sorry,” he said. “I thought you were older.”

“So?” I shrugged. “What does
that
have to do with anything?”

He frowned and took a sip of water. “Forget about it,” he said. “Let’s just keep practicing.”

We spent the rest of the time practicing front, roundhouse and tornado kicks. I could tell that Bryce still wasn’t being as aggressive as he could have been, but by the end of the class, both of us were sweating and out of breath. When we were finished, he removed his helmet and wiped his forehead with a towel.

“Wow, I’m really impressed,” he said. “You snap those kicks quickly and your balance is right on. Plus, I haven’t met that many other opponents with as much power in their roundhouse kicks as you.”

“So I was a little bit of a challenge? Even for a girl?” I asked.

His smile fell away. “For anyone. Cassie, I’m sorry for sounding like a complete ass earlier. You obviously put me in line.”

“You weren’t a
complete
ass,” I said dryly.

He bit back a smile. “Really, I’m not such a bad guy once you get to know me.”

I shrugged. “If you say so…”

              “Well, I’ll be back tomorrow evening, if you want to stop in and practice again.”

“I’m not sure if I’ll be here tomorrow, but thanks.” I replied, removing my chest plate.

“Okay, well maybe I’ll see you around.”

I nodded. “Sure. Good luck with your next tournament.”

“Thanks.”

I grabbed my gym bag and started stuffing my sparring gear into it. Mae, Master Jordan’s girlfriend, walked over and congratulated me on getting my Black Belt.

“Thanks,” I said.

As usual her makeup was flawless and she was dressed like she’d just stepped out of a fashion magazine. Her exotic Asian eyes glinted with amusement.

She motioned towards Bryce. “So…you like that boy?”

“What?” I shook my head vehemently. “No…he’s just an instructor.”

I could tell by her expression that she didn’t totally believe me. Either did I for that matter.

“Cassie, you… very pretty girl. You should let me shape your eyebrows and give you manicure. I will do it, no charge. Men like beautiful nails and tidy eyebrows.” Mae owns the nail shop in the same mini mall as the karate studio.

“Oh, no…that’s okay Mae,” I replied, now feeling self-conscious about my eyebrows. I realized my nails were a lost cause but I thought I’d done a pretty decent job plucking my own eyebrows.

She unexpectedly grabbed my hand and looked at my nails. “No. You come and let me do this for you. Your nails are…ugly. This is my treat for earning your Black Belt. Tomorrow night?”

Embarrassed and defeated, I accepted her offer. “Um, okay. Thank you?”

Master Jordan joined us and put his arms around her. “Better listen to Mae. She won’t accept NO for an answer.”

“Either do you,” she replied firmly.

“What can I say Mae? I didn’t want you to miss out on having such a great guy. Besides, you know you couldn’t resist me. You finally said yes.” He was actually pretty good looking for someone in their thirties. Blond hair, blue eyes, and kicking body, he kind of reminds me of Paul Walker, from the “Fast and The Furious”.

She chuckled. “I gave in so you’d stop embarrassing me at my shop. How many times a week did you ask for both pedicure and date?”

“I thought you liked massaging my feet?”

She looked down at his feet. “I got tired of looking at your corns.”

Master Jordan’s face fell, but I could tell he was amused. “Corns? Mae, you’re killing me!”

Mae and I burst out laughing. She then grabbed him around the waist and dragged him away while he pretended to pout
.

I walked through the locker room and into the entryway, where Nora was standing. “So, that new instructor was smoking hot,” she said. “Did you get his number?”

I scowled. “No! Are you kidding? He’s an instructor. Besides, he’s kind of annoying.”

She smiled. “Well as annoying as he was, he certainly couldn’t keep his eyes off of you.”

I rolled my eyes. “That’s because we were sparring Nora.”

She shook her head. “No, it was more than that.”