The next chapter is here! Enjoy :)
"Have you actually trained anyone before?" She asks.
"No, you would be the first." Setg-in told her.
With a little effort, the yautja finally talked his ooman companion into basic training. It took a little convincing because Thea was a bit up in the air about it.
She never even had one self-defense lesson in her entire life. Though she did ask her mom at least once as a kid for lessons. But her mom refused calling it unnecessary and a waste of money.
"As long as you have a man to protect you, there's no need to partake in such lessons. At the most just get pepper spray if you're afraid." Her mom once said with a snooty attitude.
Her mother had always been the old school prissy type with her old fashion ideals for women.
The older woman kept trying to instill in her from a young age to be polite and just look pretty on your man's arm whenever you're out with him. And don't worry about work. Because he will be the one with all the money with a successful business. If he is successful enough, than you shouldn't need a job. If you do, then he's not worthy nor rich enough to be with.
Even as a kid, Thea couldn't help but feel that her mother's ideologies were flawed and eschewed.
Maybe back in the earlier part of the century that's how it was. But in today's day and age, most women had to work to be able to support themselves along with their spouses and kids.
Unfortunately, the older woman didn't want to hear about the fact that we now live in the age of equality and that everyone must play their part to be able to live a comfortable life.
Hell, the old bitch wouldn't even pay for her college tuition because she kept spouting at her that she didn't need college.
Luckily, there was more than enough money in her father's inheritance that she could use to pay for her own tuition, and she used that. At least her father wanted her to be able to achieve her dreams.
He was a high exec at some big law firm and was very successful.
And from day one, he was very supportive and doted on his young daughter. Something Thea knew her mother resented her for. Because there were plenty of times as a child, she walked in on her parents arguing.
And it was mainly about her mom bitching that he never gave her any attention anymore and that all his time and attention was on their daughter.
Her father would get angry and tell her mother to grow the fuck up and stop acting like a spoiled brat. Something that really would ruffle the older woman's feathers whenever he told her that.
Thea missed her dad. Unlike her mom, he was a very warm and caring parent and person.
He was always so supportive of her and he knew of her dreams of wanting to be a teacher when she grew up.
"Whether you want to be a dog groomer, a mathematician, or a zookeeper, it doesn't matter. I'll always support you. You just follow your dreams, Baby Doll." He once told her when she was little.
She was over the moon when he told her this too. Because a small part of her thought he'd be disappointed when she told him she wanted to be a teacher. She thought that maybe he had higher expectations and wanted her to become a successful lawyer like himself.
It came as a huge relief when he told her that she didn't have to follow in his footsteps and do just that. He told her he would never be one of those parent s and limit her like that.
If she wanted to teach, then he will support her decision.
It wasn't long after that did he start investing money into a college fund for her for when she was older. By the time he died, he wanted to make sure she had more than enough to get her through the college of her choice.
Her father died very suddenly when she was ten years old.
An old client of his that he defended but lost the case, came out of prison looking for revenge. The man blamed her father, saying he didn't try hard enough with his case and that is why he lost and went to jail.
Her dad had just got out of his car in the parking garage next to the firm building. Not knowing that the man had followed him into the vacant garage. And once her dad exited his car, the man came up and shot him point blank in the back of the head, killing him instantly.
When the cops came to the house and told her and her mom what had happened, Thea was devastated.
While her mom hardly shed a tear. Thea had come to hate the woman after the cold remarks she said at her daddy's funeral.
"Well, when you're working a job like that and defend unstable clients, what did you expect? Knew something like this would happen sooner or later." Her mother said to a couple of friends at his wake.
That's when young Thea had come to learn that her mother obviously didn't give a shit that her husband just died a brutal death. And that she clearly only cared about herself.
She wasted no time spending all of her inheritance on lavish vacations and trips to the spa.
But at least, Thea had her own chunk of the inheritance which was actually a lot bigger than the one he left for her mom. And her father had actually deposited all the inheritance in a separate account he had secretly opened for his daughter and didn't tell his greedy wife.
It was this account and inheritance that allowed her to go on to obtain her master's in education.
And while her mom didn't give a shit and didn't even show up for her graduation, Thea knew her dad would've been there and been very proud of her. She went and achieved her dream just like he always told her she would.
Fast forward several years later, and here she was with her own home with several beautiful acres of land.
Throw in her alien house guest and friend and she hit the trifecta.
Thea almost laughed out loud when that last thought hit her. Luckily, Setg-in currently had his back turned to her and didn't see the look of amusement on her face.
She had followed him downstairs after he waited for her to finish dressing into the appropriate attire for training.
It was pretty warm and muggy outside today. So, the young woman made sure to dress very light. She was in a sports bra, light cargo shorts, and sneakers. Her hair was tied back in a high ponytail, and she made sure to bring out a large water bottle with her.
"So, how tough is this training going to be? Am I going to hate you by the end of the day?" She teased.
Setg-in chuckled, "Maybe. But since it is the first time, we'll start out slow. Especially, since you just informed me, you don't even know how to throw a punch."
His sentences have certainly gotten better and clearer since he came to stay here. And he'd only been here now for nearly three weeks.
But then he did tell her that most of his kind were very intelligent and were fast learners. They had to be, so they can be highly effective hunters. Otherwise, that's how you end up dead.
"Which is ironic since a lot of the shows you watch involve fighting." He added.
He was referring to the fact that some of her favorite shows she watched quite often involved tons of martial arts.
The shows in question were Buffy, Dragon Ball Z or Super, and even Ninja Turtles from time to time. Even he will admit they are all pretty interesting shows, despite the fact they are all fake.
"Ok, so I like watching that kind of stuff. But it doesn't mean I thought I'd ever find myself doing it. I kind of figured I'd suck at it seeing as I never thought I was all that coordinated and a little clumsy at times." She stated.
"Just a little? I feel like I can hardly count how many times on my hand I saw you nearly drop something or have dropped something. I even saw you trip once going up the stairs. Must be some sort of hidden talent of yours. Because people tend to trip going down the stairs not up." He said, with laughter in his voice.
Her cheeks burned red with embarrassment when he brought up that one time she tripped going upstairs.
It didn't help that he saw it either and started laughing then and there. Then kept asking her how she managed to do that. All while proceeding to call her clumsy for the rest of the afternoon.
"Hey, it can happen to anyone. Other people have tripped going up the stairs before you know. Even I have seen it happen before with others." Thea said, trying to defend herself.
Though the ones she saw it happen to on a few occasions were some of her young students.
But then of course it would happen from time to time. Because many young kids were still not as coordinated in their movements as older kids and adults. So, it was pretty common to see them fall on the stairs or trip over their own feet while running on the playground.
"Yeah? Who?" He asks.
"Plenty of my students have done so in the past." She replied.
"Kids don't count. Because young ones tend to be clumsy in general. You see any other adults' trip simply going upstairs?" Setg-in asked.
Thea downcast her gaze and looked away.
"No. But just because I haven't seen another adult do so, still doesn't mean it never happens." She countered.
"Just admit it, Thea. You're just plain clumsy." He joked.
"I am not. Just because I don't have abnormal reflexes like you doesn't mean I'm a Clutz." Thea said.
Setg-in started to laugh again with that odd trill like laugh of his.
"You forget, I've been to Earth before. Have seen many other oomans. None were as clumsy as you though. You almost face planted when you stepped in some slippery mud the other day.
I must say though, my favorite was when you were out here doing those things you call jumping jacks, and your foot hit a small, loose rock, and you ended up spread eagle on your ass." He said, with laughter still in his voice.
He thought he was going to die laughing when he saw that happen.
They were both outside that day. It was late afternoon; he was out there training. And Thea came out and told him she was going for a run on the dirt path. She went to stretch and do some jumping jacks to warm up.
Then when she jumped out, her left foot hit a small rock, it rolled out when her foot landed on it. And she ended up losing her balance and flailing her arms about. Right before she dropped back on her ass with a yelp.
She then heard booming laughter coming from her left and saw Setg-in practically hunched over laughing his ass off.
Thea can't remember the last time she felt so embarrassed. It was even worse that it happened in front of someone who saw the whole thing.
"Oh, shut up. It wasn't that funny." She quipped.
"Yes, it was. And I thought young pups were clumsy. But you make them appear graceful and coordinated." He teased her.
She crossed her arms and gave him a dirty look. Though she wasn't truly angry at him for the remark.
"Why do I feel like this 'basic training' you dragged me out here for is going to be more or less for your amusement more than anything?" She pointed out.
Thea did think she saw amusement lash in his eyes after that comment. And it made her feel like she was going to be in big trouble.
"No, I really wanted to show you a few things as my way of saying thank you for letting me stay here. But I won't lie, seeing as you are very uncoordinated, I have no doubt there will be some kind of entertainment value out of this training." He stated.
She rolled her eyes, of course there would be.
He was a highly skilled warrior. And compared to him, she may as well be flailing about like an uncoordinated duckling trying to keep up with its mother. It's why a part of her was not looking forward to this little training session.
"Well, Master, what are we going to start with today?" She sarcastically asked.
His smirk widened, "Just some basic punches and kicks. And thanks, Master does have a nice ring to it."
"Ok, Master Wise Ass. Let us begin then." Thea retorted.
"Just 'master' will do. First, I will show you how to throw a basic jab. It's one of the most common punches out there. Both for my race and I've noticed its very common among oomans as well. Same goes for hooks." He stated.
He must've spent the next several minutes showing her how to make a proper fist and then cocking her arm back and throwing it forward.
Setg-in made sure to inform her to keep her stance somewhat wide with her feet evenly distributed out and her shoulders square. He also told her not to hyper extend her arm and always keep a small bend in her arm, unless she wants to pull something.
The jabs were a little awkward at first. But he had her keep practicing them until they had gotten less awkward and more accurate.
The young warrior had her alternate her right and left jabs. And when he felt they were accurate and strong enough, he held out his hand in front of him and told her to aim for it and hit it.
At first, she was hesitant, thinking she may hurt his hand.
But he assured her, that it won't hurt at all. He wanted to give her a target to aim for with her jabs. It will help with her accuracy and effectiveness. He also wanted to see if she can hit it and not miss.
Thea slightly bent her knees, squared her shoulders, and raised her fists.
She then threw a right jab at his palm. The young woman thought it would've maybe jarred his hand or wrist. But his hand barely budged, and he didn't even flinch from the hit.
She exchanged a couple more jabs, each one she tried going a little harder than the last.
Then on the last one, she cocked her arm back and threw it forward with all her might. But instead of hitting his palm, he surprised her when he quickly moved it out of the way.
And she lost her balance when she hit nothing but air. Then let out a small, surprised yelp when she lost her balance and her whole body lurched forward.
Setg-in's hands shot out and he caught her to keep her from falling forward and into him.
"Thea, you can't throw hits like that. I know your doing it in an attempt to hit harder. But that is not the way to do it. You keep throwing your weight into it like that and you will lose your balance and fall.
Your weight and power must be evenly distributed when throwing a hit. You also must retain enough control, so you don't lose your balance and fall.
Not to mention, you're also leaving yourself wide open when you throw a sloppy uncoordinated hit like that. And your opponent will see it and strike.
Keep your hits strong. But maintain control when you throw them. Twist your shoulder and hips a little more too when you throw it, like I showed you. That will help with the balance and control." He instructed.
Thea nodded, no longer annoyed anymore after he explained to her why he did that and what she needed to fix.
Eventually, she was able to improve her jabs and make them a little stronger while maintaining just enough control over her movements. And once he was a little more satisfied with her jabs, only then did they move onto hooks.
The hooks were a little tricky at first. Because she didn't know that you twist your shoulders and upper body when throwing hooks. She always thought you just swung your arm at your opponent.
But Setg-in said, that was very wrong and it's not just the arm you're throwing. By twisting your shoulders and hips into it, it makes the punch more effective and efficient.
They practiced for about an hour and half.
Within this time, he could see that she was already getting winded, tired, and hot from this lesson. She was sweating like no tomorrow and panting a little from the exertion.
They had just started practicing a couple basic kicks a few minutes ago.
Though it was a little hard to keep them accurate because she was getting tired. The humidity was starting to get to her, and it started making her kicks come out pretty sloppy.
But then she threw out one kick a little too hard and too high, that she lost her footing and fell down.
Setg-in could barely contain his laughter then. And she shot him a look with red tinged cheeks. At least most of the redness was from the heat so it covered up the fact that she appeared embarrassed.
She quickly got up afterwards and stood there catching her breath.
"What happened? It was like your other foot slid with the movement and you went crashing to the ground on your ass." He said, between laughs.
Thea pursed her lips and narrowed her eyes as he laughed at her.
Then her frown was slowly replaced by a small smirk. And she walked off to the house.
Setg-in followed her movements wondering what she was doing. Because where she was headed, was nowhere near the back door and her water bottle was in the opposite direction.
He then saw her go over to the hose, that was rolled up on its reel that attached to the side of the house. She unraveled some of it and turned it on.
Then she came running over with it and started to spray the yautja with it. He barked in surprise when she aimed the nozzle his way and pressed down on the hand lever.
The young warrior tried to duck and dodge out of the way of the spray, but Thea was quite persistent and followed his movements, all while chuckling as he tried to move out of the way of the stream of water.
Setg-in then tried to make his way over to get the hose from her. But each time he got close, she aimed the nozzle higher up and got him square in the face, making him sputter and pull back.
"Had enough yet? Because I can do this all day." She teased.
He leveled her with a look. Then a grin slowly formed on his face.
Thea arched a dark brow, wondering what he was up to. Then all of a sudden, he quickly darted around, and the young woman wasn't quick enough to follow him with the hose.
He then made a sharp turn and quickly ended up behind the small, ooman female.
She yelped in surprise when he wrapped his arm around her and lifted her off her feet. Then with his other hand, he ripped the hose and nozzle from her grip. Then he started spraying her point blank in the head with it.
"Hey!" She squeaked, scrambling to cover her head with her hands.
Setg-in just laughed and continued drenching her with the hose until she was sopping wet.
"Be thankful, I'm cooling you off all while giving you somewhat of a bath!" He said between laughs, as he continued to assault her with the hose.
"No fair, you jerk! Let me go!" She sputtered.
"Where are your manners? You didn't say, please." He teased.
"You are so going to get it!" Thea threatened.
"Get what? A scolding? Maybe a death glare? One never knows with you." Setg-in joked.
"You'll get way more than that when I get my hands on you!" She quipped.
"Promise?" He continued teasing her.
"You bet your scaly ass, it's a promise!" She declared.
"That's not nice. My ass isn't scaly. Got many compliments on it in the past from females." He stated, in a joking tone.
"Really? Because it looked like an old, leathery suitcase to me when I caught a glimpse of it!" She retorted.
He shifted the nozzle and sprayed her in the face for that backhanded comment. Making her sputter again and push his hand away.
"Didn't know you were looking long enough when I stripped in front of you to use the shower that day for the first time. Though something tells me you must've liked what you saw seeing as you didn't look away immediately. If I remember correctly you got in a nice long look. " He said, with a wide smirk.
"I did not give you a long look! It was more like I was shocked because I didn't expect you to practically drop your drawers then and there and give me what was equivalent to a strip tease!" She blurted out.
Setg-in chuckled, "Admit it, you didn't mind it in the least."
"Yes, I did mind! Still can't believe you did that either! Would've still thought you had enough sense to somewhat wait until I was at least out of the bathroom!" She defended.
He still continued to spray her, until every inch of her was soaking wet.
"Seriously, that's enough! Put me down and stop spraying me!" She demanded.
The yautja huffed, then he eased up on the handle and put her down.
She turned to face him and looked like a drowned rat. Her shorts and sports bra were soaked, and his eyes briefly caught sight of her erected nipples poking through the wet fabric. Before he averted his gaze back up to her face.
"You are so going to get it now." Thea swore.
Right as she took a step towards him though, he surprised her by dropping the hose to the grass and made a quick dash to the back door.
When she snapped out of her stupor, she gave chase.
"You get back here now, Set! I'm not finished with you!" She yelled, as she chased after him.
He made it to the back door, flung it open, and then quickly shut it behind him.
Setg-in stood there and waited until she was right there, then he locked the door on her. Her eyes widened when she turned the knob and realized it wouldn't budge. Then her gaze shot up to his face, that had the yautja version of a shit eating grin.
"Unlock this door, right now." She demanded.
Instead, he held up a hand and gave her a little wave. Before he turned and walked off.
Thea couldn't believe it; the asshole just locked her out of her own house. She ran around to the kitchen window and saw him stop in the kitchen.
"Seriously, Set. Stop being an ass and open the door!" She yelled at the window that she knew sat over her sink.
But the young yautja continued to ignore her.
He just helped himself to a glass and filled it with water. Then he moved onto the living room. Thea ran over to look into the windows there and saw him make himself comfortable on her couch and grabbed the remote to turn on the t.v.
"Set, what the hell?! C'mon, this isn't funny anymore! Open the door and let me in! It's fucking hot out here!" She yelled through the closed window.
"Then use the hose again when you get too hot." He teased, after taking a sip of water.
"I don't want to use the damn hose! I want to go in! Open the door!" She repeated.
Setg-in blinked lazily at her, then let out an audible drawn-out yawn.
To her dismay, he placed his glass on one of the coasters on the coffee table in front of him. Then he shifted on the couch and laid down with his arms resting on his abdomen and his head on one of the throw pillows.
"Don't you dare think about going to sleep and leaving me out here!" Thea gritted out.
He lazily turned his head to her and arched an eye ridge.
"Or what?" He said.
"I won't make chocolate mousse tonight for dessert. And believe me when I say, I really was going to make it tonight. I know how much you like it too. But I can't exactly make it if I'm stuck out here now, can I?" She stated.
"Really?" He said, not quite believing her.
"Yes, I really was. I just bought more ingredients for it the other day when I went out grocery shopping. If you don't believe me, go check the cupboard. The ingredients are all right there." She replied.
Setg-in laid there for a moment longer, before he got up and approached the window she was standing at.
He unlocked it and slid it up.
"I don't know, how do I know, you won't attempt to pull anything on me once I open the door?" He said, in a teasing tone out the window, only a screen separating them now.
Thea pursed her lips.
"Fine, I swear I won't do anything to you once you let me in. There, you happy now?" She said.
Setg-in lifted a hand and tapped the side of his mandibles and looked up at the ceiling.
"I'm not sure your words hold much standing behind them, Thea. You seemed pretty adamant before that you'd be plotting revenge against me." He said.
Right now, he was just having too much fun with this game, teasing her.
"C'mon, Set. Please? I really just want to go in and sit. I'm tired from training." She practically pleaded, giving him puppy eyes.
He tilted his head and eyed her.
"Ok." He replied.
Thea closed her eyes with a sigh.
"After this episode is over. And it just started." Setg-in added, with a teasing grin.
"Set!" She practically yelled.
He held up his hands in mock surrender.
"Ok, ok. Damn, female, you don't have to be so loud." He stated.
Then he turned around and crossed the living room to the kitchen.
She followed him watching and making sure he goes to the door. Then once she got to the door, he was already there, and she heard a faint click, signaling that he did indeed unlock it.
Thea twisted the knob, and the door opened, and she walked back inside.
Once she closed it and turned around, she saw him leaning against the doorframe that led into the kitchen with his arms crossed over his broad chest and a smirk on his face.
"Your trouble, you know that?" She stated.
"Don't know what you're talking about. I'm an angel." He teased.
Thea snorted, "Yeah, can practically see the devil horns peeking through your tresses." She muttered as she walked past him.
Setg-in chuckled when he heard her utter that statement.
"Nope it's your imagination. No horns." He said.
The young woman could barely contain her chuckle as she filled her glass with water.
He really was hilarious at times when he was being playful. It's one of the things she likes about him. And what made her enjoy his company more. It also made her more relaxed around him.
And she no longer felt afraid around the large imposing male.
It also was a nice distraction from what happened with her earlier this morning. She heard her text message tone go off on her phone. And when she checked it, she didn't recognize the number.
But the text dropped enough of a hint for her to know who sent it. And it made her nervous. The random picture of her in the grocery store that was sent with the ominous message made it even worse.
It was a picture of her going through some apples in the produce section, completely unaware that someone has taken a picture of her.
"I'm watching you, bitch." Were the captions beneath the pic.
It was both very upsetting and alarming.
Just when she thought she was finally rid of him due to the restraining order she had out on him, he pops up yet again in her life. And by the looks of it, he had his sights on her.
Thea now knew she had to go renew that restraining order. Seeing as he still has yet to learn his lesson.
She never told Setg-in about Mark. She didn't want to. She just wanted to erase him from her life. But if he was still out there threatening her. The young woman feels she will have to let Setg-in know though.
Now, she just needed to find the right time to tell him.
Until Next Time ;)
