We didn't see Lily again for another month. At the time, I assumed it was because her broken arm was healing. Part of me actually felt a little disappointed every time we went out to face a monster and she didn't show up. Of course, the sane part of me didn't relish the idea of another encounter with Crazy Kung Fu Zombie Chick.
Padma began to settle into her new life as Prime Violet. It turned out that math was an interest of hers, and she had planned to study it at university, which is how she caught onto Nicolai's little trick as quickly as she had. She was so keen on it, in fact, that Prime Commander told Nicolai to begin training her on our tech as soon as possible. It requires a lot of math to work with, and not the algebra or calculus I learned in high school, either. It uses something Nicolai calls "number theory". I know Nicolai didn't mind the assignment, and I never heard Padma complain, either.
In fact, if anyone had misgivings about the two of them spending so much time together, it was Shelley. I know she has this thing against Primes dating each other; she says it's too likely to cause problems with the team, so she wants us to keep the boy-girl stuff to a minimum.
I understood where she was coming from, and I mostly agreed with it, but you know, the sight of Padma following Nicolai around like a little puppy dog was just too cute. And besides, Nicolai's a good guy. Heck, I'd even trust him on a date with my little sister Angela. (Of course, Angie's a third-degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do.)
I'm sure that the whole thing with Nicolai was one reason I wound up training Padma in hand-to-hand. Shelley and I are the two best pure fighters on the team (he said with all due modesty). Of course, Shelley's pretty damn good at everything, having done this for the past fifteen years, while I'm just the resident muscle-head and nice guy. Ordinarily it would have been a toss-up as to which of us would train her, and Shelley most likely would have got the nod, since I've been on the team for only three years.
Padma was already training with Trina on our blasters, though, and I'd bet a penny that Shelley decided I should work with Padma just so she would get to know more guys on the team. So that's how I found myself facing her in an otherwise empty gym the morning after Shelley and I had our little heart-to-heart.
Padma was dressed in loose trousers and a white jacket tied shut with a black belt. For modesty's sake, she was wearing some sort of shirt underneath the jacket. This was undoubtedly the uniform of her studio or dojang (Grandmaster Park always used the former term, so that's what I use) and she seemed quite proud of it. Me? I was wearing shorts and a tee-shirt.
She spoke up before I had a chance to say anything. "It seems I owe you an apology for my behavior the other day. Mike came to me and told me he had, er, misled me about your . . . your character."
Oh, yeah, the hit-on-all-the-girl-Primes thing. Mike had come through for me after all. Padma's manner was stiff and formal, and I figured she still didn't trust me. I nodded gravely in return and said, "That's all right. Let's forget it and start fresh. Tell me, what training have you had?"
She held out a card. "I am a second Dan -- that is to say, a second-degree black belt -- in Tae Kwon Do. This is my Kukkiwon registration." She thought for a moment, then added, "Kukkiwon is an international body that certifies Tae Kwon Do black belts."
Another TKD-er, eh? I glanced at the card, then handed it back to her. It seemed genuine enough. "We're fairly informal when we train here," I explained. "You can see what I'm wearing; Shelley and Trina wear pretty much the same thing, with a sports bra underneath. You won't need your full uniform."
"I would prefer to wear it," she replied. She looked me up and down, obviously unimpressed. "And I would also like to know whether you are qualified to teach me. What has your training been?"
Ah, so that was it. She thought she was hot stuff and wanted to prove it to everybody, starting with me. I grinned and folded my arms across my chest. "Sorry, my Kukkiwon card is in my room. I can go get it if you like, or you can just take my word that I am certified as a fourth Dan." Then I added, "I can give you formal Tae Kwon Do training if you like, complete with uniforms. In that case, you will bow and address me as Mr. Chiao."
She looked down, biting her lip, and for a moment I thought she was going to throw a tantrum. Then she started to laugh, a beautiful, self-deprecating little laugh that raised my spirits immensely. I really like people who can laugh at themselves. She looked up at me then, the laughter still in her face, and she said, "Mr. Chiao, please accept my apology. If you think we should train informally, then I am sure you are right. I will go change."
She bowed and I bowed in return. As she left, I called out after her, "And when you get back, you can call me Trevor."
That broke the ice between us, and we actually got to be pretty friendly after that. Not as friendly as she and Nicolai were, but friendly enough. She did ask to see my credentials, by the way. Yes, I am a fourth Dan, and yes, I am Kukkiwon-certified. (And yes, the card was in my room at HQ and not sitting on my dresser back home in Ohio, lucky for me.)
That was also my introduction to her competitive streak, which was roughly a mile wide. I'm not a terribly competitive guy myself, but I know that some people are, and like Shelley says, anything that motivates you to excel can be a good thing.
Padma was pretty good, but not nearly as good as she thought she was. I think even Trina could have beaten her two falls out of three, and it frustrated Padma to find out how far she had to go. The good side of that was that she worked really hard and improved a lot in just a few weeks. The bad side of it was that she felt she had something to prove to me, and it showed in our free-fighting practices. In fact, that was what caused me to give her her first major injury.
Chapter 14