There was a loud banging at the door that woke Johnny with a startle.

"What the…?" His hand reached for the nightstand clock. "Five o'clock? Who the hell would be so nuts to disturb at this hour?". His question was answered once he went to see who was so out of his mind so as to bother him.

"Morning, caveman!"

"You know what? I take my words back, I do have a busy day."

"Nice try," answered Alexa. "Here." She handed him a coffee cup.

Johnny took it. "Is there any chance that you may have something stronger?"

Alexa wrinkled her nose. "Jeez, Johnny. At this time of the day? Seriously?"

Johnny simply shrugged. "What can I say?"

"Come on, we need to get going…"

"Can I at least eat something first?"

"After knowing what you like to drink in the morning? I don't think so." She went to her car without letting Johnny continue his complains.

"What a crazy chick…", mumbled Johnny.

"I heard that!"

.

.

.

Johnny contemplated the pecan woods that stood at the road's borders. "Where the hell are we going?"

"You'll see", said Alexa.

Once they arrived at what appeared to be the entrance of a hiking path, Alexa parked her GT Shelby between some giant rocks, as if the spot had been placed specifically for them.

"You're not going to pull some kind of Jason Vorhees on me, are you?"

"Ha, ha, very funny," retorted the driver as she approached the mustang's trunk to retrieve a backpack.

"Heads up," warned Alexa as she threw another one towards Johnny, who managed to catch it and gave her an irritated look.

"Come on."

"This better be good…".

And so they ventured into the forest.

.

.

.

Just when Johnny was about to make his third complain, Alexa stopped and faced him.

"Welcome to my favorite spot."

His breath was caught up in his mouth once his cobalt eyes stared at the landscape that was in front of them. The sun was coming up from behind the gigantic mountains that framed the valley. Its rays glided above the crystal lake which mirrored the sunshine's actions. A fresh breeze filled his lungs with a pine nut scent. Johnny felt the peaceful energy dominating his body, helping him to enter a calmness that he hadn't had the chance to experience for a long while.

"Here," whispered Alexa. She handed him a brown bag that was inside her rucksack. Johnny didn't notice when she took from him the one he was carrying for Alexa had opened it to pull out a blanket in which she was now sitting.

Johnny installed at her side as he accepted the offered package. His stomach flipped once a warm sandwich materialized between his palms.

"You didn't think that I would be so cruel and bring you here without some breakfast, did you?", smiled Alexa.

Johnny laughed as he gladly gave a bite at his meal. They were immersed in a comfortable quietness as they enjoyed their food while admiring the sunrise.

"Alexa," she glanced towards her companion, "I don't mean to sound rude, but why did you bring me here?"

She pondered her answer. "The night you came to the bar and I lent you my office before ending with that," she pointed at the cuts covering his knuckles, "I couldn't help but worry, Your face was so pale that it looked liked all the blood was drained from it and your movements were those of a person who was on guard as if someone was about to stab him from behind. You seemed so lost…".

She glanced at the clouds that were dancing above. "My grandpa used to bring me here whenever I got anxious or frustrated. It was some type of getaway to clear our minds and leave everything behinds to just dedicate a moment to ourselves… and I think that you needed something like this."

Her lips welcomed the bitter notes of her coffee to keep her warm.

Right then, and without a warning, Johnny spilled out his story and Alexa's ears welcomed every detail. How he started his dojo after all those years of being immersed in his past with the tournament that Larusso won, getting to know his stubborn neighbor who turned out to be a remarkable kid that had always stood out for him, failing to be a good father, and how everything came down when he was starting to feel that life was going his way.

"Ok, sir, stand up."

"What?"

"You need to relax your tense muscles by loosing some energy".

"How?"

She grabbed her sack and searched for some training gear. "Every time you mentioned something related with karate, a sparkle glimmered in your pupils and your voice hinted some excitement."

He shook his head. "No… besides, I'm not going to hit a lady."

Alexa rolled her eyes. "I'm not suggesting that we should engage in a fight. See it more like some type of warm up. You'll be the student, and I'll be the one supervising your movements. Plus, if you agree, I promise you to tell how I learned some combat stuff, deal?"

"Well," Johnny stood up, "the only sensei that I had almost choked me to death."

She raised her hand while placing the other one above her heart. "Don't worry, I won't do that."

"I think you should be the one to be worried," bragged Johnny.

"We'll see."

Both were face to face in a combat position. Alexa's hands were covered by a pair of boxing pads.

"Ready?", asked Alexa.

Johnny threw a front kick to connect with the mittens but missed because the brunette deflected it with a swift twirl.

"Hey!"

"What? I didn't say that I would let you hit the mark so easily."

He tried again with a rising punch followed by a side kick. However, his strikes were met by a rising block. Johnny was so busy trying to erase the smug face from her that he was caught off guard once her leg hooked between his ankles.

His back was received by the ground while a small throb spread at the back of his skull.

"Nice foot sweep," muttered Johnny.

"Thanks… whoah!"

Her smirk was replaced by an astonished gesture once she found herself lying on the ground beside Johnny. She bend her neck towards him.

"Ouch…".

After her remark, their lungs exploded in a fit of laughter.

"Okay, a deal is a deal," mentioned Alexa.

Johnny raised his eyebrows. They were now in a sitting position, with Johnny resting his arms above his knees while Alexa's legs were stretched and her palms were caressing the grass.

"Remember when I told you that my mom raised me with the help of my grandparents?"

"Yeah," nodded Johnny.

"Well, the fact was that, as a child, I couldn't help but wonder who my father was. Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't change the family that I got for all the money in the world. Still… there was a part of me that wanted to find out about the man for whom my mom fell in love with…".

Her fingers were playing with a dandelion that she picked up.

"Whenever I had the chance, I asked my mother about him… anything that would give me little details to complete the puzzle was welcomed. She told me little details. The one that awoke my curiousness was when she said 'oh, he was some type of obsessed guy with some martial arts stuff'. And so, with the money that I saved from work, plus the fact that my grandpa covered me up by saying that I would extend my staying at his business, I started to take some karate lessons. At first, I wanted to become the best student so that when I had the chance to find out where my father lived, I could show up at his doorsteps and connect with him with something that I was now passionate about."

She blew at the flower and watched its petals fly away.

"I continued my lessons now that I found this thing that made me feel alive. And, once I went into college, I had a name written down a piece of paper that motivated me to buy a ticket to California…".

Johnny's mouth went dry at the mention of his home state.

"And what did I got? An old guy that spat venom at my face by yelling at me who the hell I was and to get lost."

"I'm sorry…"

Her shoulders raised once she exhaled some sadness that was kept inside her chest.

"The worst thing of it was that the same day that I tried to bond with him was the same in which I lost my true father figure…".

Johnny raised his head. "Do you mean that…?"

She nodded. "Yes… it was the day that my grandad left this world".

They both kept quiet.

"Come on, I better take you back to your place before I open the bar."