THE NEXT MORNING...
"Cmon, Hwo."
"Nooo..."
"Hwo... cmon."
"Noooooo..."
"GET YOUR ASS OUT OF BED RIGHT NOW!"
Hwoarang yelped and leaped to his feet at the scary sounds of Julia's authoritative voice. Julia was usually a sweet and soft-spoken woman... but deep down inside her lies a scary side that can make even the bravest soul cower.
"There you go! Now let's go get some breakfast. And then... it's time."
Hwoarang groaned when he heard those last two words. Today was the first day of him being the sensei instead of HIS sensei. Once he changed that CLOSED sign to OPEN, all the students would look to him to teach them about the art of Tae Kwon Do. He would officially be Master Hwoarang, and as cool as that sounded, he really wasn't looking forward to it as much as one usually would. To Hwoarang, it felt more like a burden than a privilege.
"Aw Jules, do we have to open today?" Hwoarang whined.
"Yes, YOU do. Cmon Hwo, you want to get paid don't you?"
That thought hadn't passed Hwoarang's mind! Now that Baek was retired, all the money for Tae Kwon Do lessons would go to HIM instead! That sudden realization gave Hwoarang a little jolt of confidence.
"Welp, the day's still young! Gotta pass on my knowledge to all the little prospects!" Hwoarang excitedly exclaimed.
"H-huh?" Julia said, a little shocked he would change his perspective so quickly.
The truth is, Hwoarang was hiding his fear behind a false sense of optimism. Being scared in front of Julia made him feel like less of a man; if he could go back in time, he would change that moment from yesterday when he broke down in front of her. If for no other reason than to preserve his dignity in front of the girl he loved, Hwoarang decided to be courageous.
The two of them had breakfast that morning at one of Hwoarang's favorite local joints and they sat down and discussed things. Hwoarang tried to keep food in his mouth so maybe Julia wouldn't try to talk to him, but she knew him too well. Hwoarang wasn't going to weasel out of this one.
"Hwo, it's time to get down to business. Now what's Baek's usual schedule?" Julia asked, her voice firm and assertive.
"Well during weekdays, he usually teaches the little ones and the youths around the afternoon when they get out of school. It's the adult class I'm really worried about... those showoffs might not be willing to listen to me." Hwoarang groaned.
"What makes you think that?"
"Hello! They're a bunch of veterans, some of them black belts! Half of them are older than me!"
"So? You're a black belt too."
"Not the point! I'm... I've never looked good... to any of them. They all respect Baek... they look up to HIM. But me... I'm just that one troublesome kid."
Julia leaned over and placed both hands on Hwoarang's arms, looking deep into his eyes.
"Then... you have to command their respect."
"H-huh?"
"Yes. You have to show them who's boss! Don't let them push you around, Hwo. You have to show them that you're the one in charge now. Get me?"
Hwoarang scratched his head. "Wow, uh... you think I can do that?"
"Cmon Hwo, when have you ever let anyone push you around? B-besides Baek, hee hee..."
"Ugh..."
"Just be strong, okay? I have faith in you."
Julia leaned in and gave Hwoarang a tiny kiss on his nose for encouragement. The slightest of smiles spread across Hwoarang's face as he felt his spirits lifting up. Maybe he could really do this! He couldn't believe it, but he was actually starting to get a warm tingle of hope in his insides.
LATER THAT AFTERNOON...
School let out that Friday afternoon and and all the kids who devoted their down time to Tae Kwon Do immediately set out for Hwoarang's dojo after the bells rang. Tae Kwon Do was a popular pastime for the kids, as it got them out of the house and helped them stay in shape. Plus, it just felt good to kick the shit out of each other once in a while.
Hwoarang gulped as he waited by the door in anticipation, the sign now changed to OPEN. He looked over at the broken window; he'd still have to replace that. What if he missed a shard of glass? Sh-should he sweep that area again? Maybe he should sweep the whole dojo! Yes, it was safe to say that Hwoarang's mind was racing as he prepared for the very first day of being an official Tae Kwon Do instructor. The one thing that scared him more than anything right now was letting down Baek; this dojo was his family's legacy! If the students didn't stand by him, the dojo would go out of business and just like that... Baek's legacy would be buried. All the fingers would point at Hwoarang as being the one who dealt the lethal blow to everything Baek worked so hard to maintain.
Finally, the door swung open and in came the students one by one. The initial reaction of many of them was to immediately look over at the broken window. Every time more youths came in, Hwoarang had to answer the same damn question over and over.
"What happened to the window, Hwo?"
"I was trying to kill a fly with a shoe. I th-threw it too hard."
"Mr. Hwoarang, why is the window broken?"
"Vandals did it. Don't worry, I kicked their asses."
"Hwo, what the heck happened to the window?!"
"Well you see, I was testing out this awesome new move and I didn't realize I was standing so close to the window..."
As the minutes passed, more and more kids came in and changed into their gis. Thankfully for Hwoarang, none of them addressed the huge elephant in the room: Baek's absence. But Hwoarang knew that it would come up eventually, and they would all look to him for answers. The inevitable conversation was drawing nearer...nearer...
Finally, a mouth opened and uttered the words.
"Mr. Hwo?" a tiny, child-like voice said. It was little Chang Seong Dong, a 5 year old white belt who was just starting out but already showed promise. He took a liking to Baek during his time there, as Baek had a soft spot for children.
"Yes, Little Chang?" Hwoarang said in a soft voice, silently dreading the next words out of the little one's mouth.
"Where's Master Baek?"
And there it was. Welp, now there was no choice but to address the whole class about the change in management. Hwoarang was quaking in his imaginary boots; right now, he wished Julia was there to hold his hand instead of going back to her apartment. But noooo, she said he had to do this on his own and be strong.
Hwoarang went to the front of the room and cleared his throat. He looked around at all the students: some were less than 10, while others were only a few years younger than himself. It was those older students that Hwoarang feared would take this news the hardest. Not only did they all love and respect Baek, they also butted heads with Hwoarang on more than one occasion. There's no way they would respect him, much less obey his instructions.
"AHEM! Okay, listen up everybody! I have an announcement to make."
"Where's Baek?"
"I'M GETTING TO THAT, RHEE!"
Hwoarang looked around one more time, making sure there were no more interruptions before speaking again.
"I regret to inform you all... Baek is no longer with us."
"BAEK IS DEAD?!"
"N-no, I didn't mean-"
But it was too late. A wave of gasps and yells echoed throughout the dojo as kids began crying and older students began yelling expletives. Hwoarang mentally kicked himself; he was trying his hardest NOT to escalate the situation, but he obviously just failed miserably.
"Shit, I should have worded that better... EVERYBODY QUIET! BAEK IS NOT DEAD!"
Hwoarang's loud booming voice shut everyone up as they all turned and faced him once again.
"Look... Baek has retired, okay? He's not in shape to teach anymore." Hwoarang continued.
"What happened to him?" a voice asked.
"Um, uh...ummmm... he... fell and broke his hip! Yeah, that!" Hwoarang lied.
"Why didn't you tell us?" another voice asked.
"It just happened yesterday! I had to get the affairs of the dojo in order! Look... there's no easy way to say this, so I'll just say it. I know many of you don't really respect me or even like me... but I'm Baek's disciple. He has entrusted ME to carry on with the dojo and with his lessons. From now on, I'm the master. I'll be teaching you all from here on."
The younger kids didn't really say anything, but a couple of the older one immediately voiced their displeasure. A string of scoffs and "oh hell no"s carried on throughout the crowd.
"I know, I know, you all adore Baek..."
"You're a bastard! There's no way you're teaching me!" an older kid yelled.
"Hey, don't you take that tone with me Choi! That's it, I want 200 switch kicks!"
"Eat my ass!"
"Ugh...this is going great..."
Hwoarang turned his back to them all and buried his head in his hands as the displeasure continued to echo throughout the dojo. Right now, he felt like crying; things were going just as bad as he feared. In one day, he was going to lose a good portion of, if not ALL of his students. If things were this bad NOW... Hwoarang could only gulp in horror at the thought of how great the adult class would go this evening.
For the next couple of hours, there were no lessons. Some of the kids stuck around and did some exercises, some hit the bags, while others just sat around aimlessly and processed the reality that Baek was no longer teaching. Most of the older kids left quickly. Day 1 was already a disaster...
Next chapter... the adult class! Hwoarang finds his stones and steps up!
