10
She sat outside under a shade tree, far off to the side of the track area.
It was a silent protest, so far so good.
The bark of the tree was a bit sharp against her back, but it wasn't bad.
Karasuma, unsuccessful.
She knew he was mad. Did she care?
Not one bit.
When push came to shove, if someone didn't want to do something, you really couldn't make them.
Karasuma had been trying for 3 weeks to get Zumi to participate in the activities involved in Physical Education. And for 3 weeks she ignored every attempt. Simply sitting down on the ground Indian-style and not moving, that was a good move. Also, another fantastic move was just simply walking away, disappearing until it was over. Another excellent one was participating by only holding towels, or baskets of water for the lame 'assassins', that one was more of a stale mate, as she was still considered 'helping', but still not participating.
Every few days she'd come up with a new way to evade Karasuma.
Today it was placing her butt under a tree, far enough off that she could disappear from view at least. Maybe he'd then forget she was there.
Exactly what she wanted.
"Look at her sitting over there..." Terasaka mumbled. "It's unfair."
He unfortunately was paired with Karma.
Karma stopped high-kicking into the pads that 'Saka held.
That had worked him into a sweat, kicking was one thing he needed to practice, especially his high-kicks, and his low-blocks.
Terasaka stood up, letting the pads that were thick and strapped to his arms fall to his sides, then he used one to look up at the sun, using the pad to shade his eyes.
"Hot as hell out here too, strange for the season."
Karma didn't say anything.
He was certain that he probably would, but he hadn't.
"What's your deal? Do you think this is unfair? Or what?"
Karma was wiping his sweaty forehead in his shirt, it was uncommon of him.
Really it was to hide his face.
As a matter of fact, he did think it was unfair.
And it pissed him off to no end.
Under the tree, it was comfortable.
"Her eyes are closed." Terasaka shook his head. "Taking a nap."
Karma finally chimed in. "If you're so interested in what Miss Ice Queen over there is doing, why don't you go join her?"
Terasaka just shot air out of his nose in a huff. "I'm tired of the jokes."
Karma rolled his eyes at him, still wiping his forehead.
"You make so many..." Terasaka smirked in a sadistic way that caused Karma to quirk and eyebrow in the direct sunlight while evading Sugino who'd gotten a bit to close.
"Uh. Sorry there."
Karma waved him off, and Sugino and his partner backed back to their area, they had just gotten a bit off track with the kicking routine, and hadn't been paying attention to how much ground backwards they were going. Simple mistake.
"I'm starting to think maybe you like her." Terasaka finished.
Karma snapped his head in the brute's direction.
"What?" Obviously irritated, he masked it by making it sound flat. The delivery as bland as possible.
"You heard me." Terasaka crossed his arms with the padding, setting it back up for Karma to start kicking again, he got low and Karma began to kick.
She hazily looked out across the field, her eyes heavy, she felt like she was passing out, but she didn't quite want to.
CRA!
The sound of a kick on a pad.
Karma set up for another. This time left.
CRA!
"No." Karma stated.
CRA!
"Yeh. Okay." Terasaka mocked from behind padding.
The heat was intense, the last day of heat that year, probably.
CRA!
"Then why?"
Karma grunted swinging another leg.
CRA!
"Why what?"
He played dumb. Terasaka was an idiot, just leave it at that.
His army boot connected with the pad.
CRA!
"Why are you still doin' it?"
A high right kick.
CRA!
No response.
CRA!
CRA!
CRA!
They stood up and moved back, just as Sugino and his partner had to get back to their original ground.
Terasaka got down again. Making sure that nobody could hear what he was saying to Karma.
For some reason, he felt he was in the right not to speak to loudly.
CRA!
It hadn't occurred to Karma.
That if he kept doing it... what it'd look like.
CRA!
"To bother you."
CRA!
"Right." Terasaka sighed off, as another kick connected to the pad, that time pushing him off balance a little.
CRA!
"Uhff." He fell back a bit, but then regained his posture, waiting for Karma to kick again.
Karma wiped his forehead on his shirt.
She watched the poet with a shaded look.
He wasn't bad at the high kicks.
Easy to find across the field with that saturated head of hair.
CRA!
"I don't believe you."
CRA!
Karma grunted.
No way.
Terasaka had picked up on his mild interest in the girl.
Karma was surprised, for as shallow of a common sense reader as Terasaka was, he had indeed picked it up.
He had to set him straight.
CRA!
"It's not that."
"Then?" Terasaka pushed a tad. He didn't want to piss Karma off of all people, but he couldn't contain it.
CRA!
Karma released that kick with an ARRA sound. Obviously it took a bit of stamina out of him.
Without thinking, that kick, made his mouth bubble out some words that didn't come out the way that he wanted them to.
"She's difficult."
Terasaka looked dumbfounded. Maybe it hadn't been what he thought.
CRA!
That kick was harder than his last.
ARRA! Came out of his mouth again.
Terasaka noted a slight irritation.
Karma bent down to catch a breath, actually for-real catching a breath this time. His kicks, they needed work.
"I can relate." He pointed to his face. His nose in particular.
The bent over one just nodded, he got it.
Karma stood now, adjusting his eyes to look over at her resting, a small ball-sized form sitting under a far off tree.
He had taken a break.
She closed her eyes quick.
He needs to turn his legs inward more.
Karma was perplexed.
Terasaka watched him glance over there.
"So... You do?"
"No." Karma responded.
'Saka lowered to a whisper. "Karma."
The red head turned to him instead.
Their faces met, glaring, Terasaka's brutish, square-jawed one, against Karma's smooth, more boyish one. Searching for different things within each other faces. Neither willing to give in to the other.
"If the teasing is bothering to you, I'll stop."
His chin jerked to the side. It wasn't an apology, but it was a 'Karma-pology'. Something he had coined with his 'boyz'.
Karma never apologized for the things he did wrong, or that he thought he did wrong. But he did know the difference between right and wrong, even if he pushed it.
A Karma-pology was when he would tell someone what he was doing wrong, and then tell them a resolve.
It was never an 'I'm sorry', but it was close enough. At least for 'Saka it was.
He wouldn't push Karma for an apology, but he knew Karma meant sorry by saying it that way.
"Yeh, I'd appreciate it."
Karma just nodded.
"Because then... I could actually ask her out, and not be getting teased about it." Terasaka began to chuckle.
Karma turned his back to him.
So that's what this was about.
His face wore an unreadable expression.
She appeared to be napping under the tree.
She had no idea.
...Why'd he 'feel'?
"Well thanks for the chat!" A large hand slammed down on his shoulder, breaking him from whatever he was floating in briefly.
Again, he just nodded.