Authors: Jenna Payne
“Damn you, Mike Gomez,” she muttered, her body tensing as she mentioned his name. She could feel the familiar sensation of anger and frustration rising up within her as she remembered how he’d embarrassed her the day before.
He’d actually called on her for a live demonstration in front of the class. “You, Cox,” he’d said, motioning for her to come to the center. “The other teachers have been raving about you. Let’s see what you’ve got, Miss Top Student.”
It took all of Carrie’s self-control not to glare at him openly. She wanted to hit him right then and there, but of course she didn’t. The only way to keep him off her back was to show him what she was made of.
He then brought out a new weapon she had never seen before. It looked like a regular laser gun, except that it was quite lengthy and had several more buttons to press. “Zap out as many enemies as you can, Miss Cox.”
The lights then went off, leaving Carrie in the darkness with only a few stars surrounding her. The dome transformed into deep space. A platform risen from the ground, appearing like the surface of an unknown planet. Carrie actually felt thankful to have her feet on the ground for a change.
Without any warning, even before she figured out how to use the shiny weapon, a monstrous alien emerged. She quickly pointed the gun at him and pulled the trigger. To her astonishment, it was immediately pulled toward her. And because she had not been ready, the alien was able to kick her hard. A buzz sounded and she knew that the digital scoreboard had lit up with one demerit.
Nevertheless, she quickly recovered and slid across the surface to trip him and make him fall. She followed it up with a couple of punches which eventually made him disappear. In the darkness, she heard her classmates cheer while a loud ping signaled a point for her on the scoreboard.
Two more aliens then appeared on either side of her. She gave one a side kick while pressing another button on her gun and shooting. She silently cheered as she had actually zapped the one that she had pointed the weapon to.
The impromptu simulation went on for a few more minutes. She had a difficult time figuring out how to use the weapon to her advantage while performing physical moves on the opponents which increased in number every minute. But in the end, she gave a fairly good fight, garnering 11 points as opposed to 12 demerits.
“That was amazing!” Lyca had shouted encouragingly once the lights in the dome had gone back.
Many of Carrie’s classmates seemed impressed. But then their instructor, the famous space fighting champion, actually launched into a litany of all the wrong things she’d done. Not once did he cite anything positive, which made Carrie’s blood boil. Instead, he had ended the short lecture by saying, “This should serve as a lesson to all of you. Just because you did well in your other classes doesn’t mean you can excel in an actual space battle, much less perform well. There will be a lot of times when you’ll encounter unexpected enemies, pick up unfamiliar weapons, and need to improvise as you go along. Hence, the bottom line is— practice, practice, practice. You can never be too confident.”
Carrie opened her mouth to defend herself, but her mind had gone blank, overpowered by the fury yearning to burst out. Hot tears threatened to fall down her cheeks as the humiliation settled. But she held them back and stood her ground even after he dismissed the class. He even had the nerve to pat her on the shoulder and say, “Better luck next time, Cox.”
“Aaaahhh!” Carrie screamed, throwing her book across the room as the memory incited her anger again. She stood up, changed into her navy blue sweats and rubber shoes, and then headed to the gym.
*****
After warming up and lifting some weights, Carrie went over to one corner of the colossal gym where a series of metal rings in decreasing sizes from right to left were hanging from a high ceiling. The ceiling was perpendicular to a tall, plain wall with rubber covering.
Carrie put on a pair of the springing shoes available along with the padded clothing necessary for the exercise. The special shoes were utilized to help the wearer run faster and jump higher. The material on the soles enabled the wearer actually to climb up the vertical rubber wall and try to leap high toward the metal rings while facing the ceiling and moving parallel to it. The challenge was to move swiftly through the rings and reach the smallest one at the end before touching the opposite wall and dropping back to the ground. In the past, Carrie had always been able to reach just the second ring.
She untied her ponytail, shook her black hair loose and then pulled up all the strands together into a tight bun. She put on a modern see-through helmet then crouched low to gather some momentum before springing forward toward the rubber wall. “I can do this,” she whispered to herself in full concentration and with intense determination.
In a flash, she was off to the wall, her legs moving swiftly and gracefully. As soon as she reached the top of the wall, she bent her knees quickly to speed up her horizontal jump and allow her to zoom past the metal rings with her arms folded like an ‘X’ across her chest. She felt herself slowing down after the third ring so she shifted her arms forward and pushed against the ceiling to bring herself downward. As she did, her horizontal position changed into a standing position and she efficiently landed on her two feet on the ground.
Somebody clapped, the sound echoing around the room. The gym was often quite empty on Saturday nights so she was surprised to find that someone had actually even taken the time to watch her.
When Carrie turned around, she found herself face-to-face with none other than the person she despised the most at that time. He stood a few feet away with an arrogant expression.
“That was…” the gorgeous legendary space fighter seemed to be groping for words. Then in a haughty tone, he finished, “… quite acceptable for someone who claims she’s a top student here.”
Carrie’s eyes narrowed, despite the remark that was obviously the closest to a compliment she’d ever received from him. “I did not claim any such title ever,” she pointed out bitterly.
“If you say so,” Mike Gomez answered. He then laughed, which actually made Carrie shiver because it was the very first time she’d ever heard or seen him laugh.
Her dark brown eyes quickly scanned his appearance. In a sleeveless gym shirt and matching shorts, his biceps were truly remarkable. They perfectly coordinated with the rest of his strong arms, his protruding chest, and the well-defined abs that usually made a lot of the other female students swoon. But when her eyes swept over his legs, she saw that these were his machine parts. They appeared to be made with metal, and she found herself pondering whether he’d chosen this himself or not.
Quickly she looked up again to his ruggedly handsome face. The smirk on his full red lips added to his tough demeanor while his gray eyes flashed with mockery, igniting a blaze of irritation within her.
“So, aren’t you supposed to be hanging out with your friends for a weekend party or getaway?” he wondered aloud, actually walking closer toward her.
For some reason, her heart started to pound as he closed in the gap between them. Yet she did not dare step back because she didn’t want to seem weak or to show him that she was intimidated by his presence. “I don’t do clubbing, partying, vacationing, that sort of thing,” was her curt reply.
“I see,” was all he said, his deep gray eyes seeming to drill a hole into hers.
There was something about his gaze that, combined with their close proximity, was making her breathe faster and intensifying her body heat.
“Let’s see what you’ve got then, Miss Top Student,” he taunted her. “Join me in the boxing ring.”
“Fine,” Carrie said indignantly. “I’ll fight you.” Then she automatically glanced at his legs, which he was quick to notice.
“Don’t worry,” he assured her. “I’ll fight fair and square, which is why we’re doing boxing and not having a track race.”
Carrie nodded. “Okay, let me just take these off.” As she removed her helmet and the paddings on her body, she could feel his eyes on her. It was kind of uncomfortable yet at the same time, his gaze was stirring something within her that she did not want to welcome nor admit.
They transferred to the boxing ring and got ready with their gloves, protective vests, head gear, and mouth pieces. Carrie could feel her heart racing once more. She didn’t know exactly what was causing it to pound like crazy, but she knew she had to at least give a good fight.
He may be stronger, but I can be faster,
she reminded herself silently.
Besides, my smaller and lighter frame may just be an advantage.
As they began circling around each other, Carrie tried to anticipate his moves. He sneered at her, seeming to mock her with his eyes. But she ignored him and tried to focus. “Come on, Cox,” he goaded, motioning her to come forward. She jabbed at him repeatedly, attempting to hit him, but he was able to dodge her every time.
He jabbed back and at one point threw an uppercut that slightly hit her and made her woozy. But she was able to regain her balance immediately after. She sidestepped his next punch and was able to give him a boxing combination that was right on target, hitting his torso time after time. As she warmed up and gained confidence, she did even better.
“Punch my face, Cox,” he challenged her. “And don’t do it like a girl. Do it like the space fighter you want so badly to become!”
Carrie’s eyebrows furrowed in concentration while her heart beat faster against her ribcage. He was really getting to her but she was trying her best not to let her emotions get in the way.
Just when he wasn’t expecting it, her right hook hit him squarely on the jaw and made him stumble backward. He grunted and shook his head, moved forward, and kept throwing a series of punches to get back at her. As she evaded them, she found herself getting backed into one corner of the ring. When he sprang toward her, she wrapped one arm around his neck and punched him on the stomach. Their sweaty skin tingled as they touched, sending sudden sparks of electricity across her body.
A clanging sound went off, signaling the end of the round. They took a break for a few seconds just to gulp down water. The clanging sound came back to indicate the start of the next round.
Again, they got ready at the center of the ring. It was Mike who attacked first this time, lunging at her with a jab, cross, and hook combination that hit the side of her head gear. She reeled back, losing her balance in the process and instinctively grabbing his shirt as she fell backward. The abrupt grasp caught him in surprise, and both of them fell to the ground with a loud thud.
Carrie found herself gazing into his gray eyes, his moist red lips about two inches away from hers. She could feel his raspy breathing and even sense the fast beating of his heart. With their bodies pressed together and their legs intertwined, she could feel some sort of tension building up between them. Or was it a powerful attraction?
“You got me, Cox,” he suddenly whispered. She didn’t know what he meant with those words, but they definitely had an impact on her.
To her disappointment, he got to his feet then. She started to bring herself up but then saw him extend an arm toward her.
Wow, a first-time gentlemanly gesture,
she thought. She took his hand, again sending shivers down her spine with that simple touch.
He pulled her to her feet so forcefully that she hit his hefty chest, making her breathe in his natural manly scent. A part of her wanted to sidle up to him and lay her head on his shoulders, which made her reprimand herself in silence. Instead, she straightened up fast and faced him directly. She was surprised by the mixture of concern and admiration in his eyes. The sense of superiority was gone. The arrogant look had disappeared. Then he told her gently in a somehow startled tone of voice, “You have the eyes of your father…”
Carrie was taken aback. She felt as if a bucket of ice had been poured over her head. Immediately she snapped back to reality.
How dare he talk to me about my dad!
“I haven’t personally met him, though,” he said, shrugging.
Carrie didn’t want to discuss her father with anyone she didn’t know well. And at that instant, she suddenly saw Mike Gomez once again for who he really was – a stuck-up space fighter who didn’t care about anyone else but just wanted the recognition and honor. He was a heartless cyborg who’d somehow been obliged to teach a class in the academy and thus couldn’t do anything else but terrorize his students and make them feel belittled. She suddenly felt so stupid and silly for getting attracted to him and for thinking that maybe there was something more beneath the mask.
“Excuse me,” she said coldly, walking away and taking off all the boxing gear as she went. She jogged toward the supplies counter and stashed her gear there. Then without another word, she sauntered toward the door and left him. She didn’t even see the torn look on his face as she marched back toward her dorm room.
It was only a little past nine in the evening. Carrie had not had anything to eat yet, which the grumbling of her stomach reminded her of in spite of her troubled feelings. She was in no mood to go anywhere else as she stretched out on her bed in her sleepwear. She had every intention of sleeping the hunger off when the doorbell rang.
She reluctantly climbed out of her bed and slowly went to the door. The exhaustion from her time at the gym was now settling in. When she saw the tray of her favorite pasta and milkshake along with a basket of mouthwatering desserts, her eyes lit up and her stomach complained again. She brought in the treats and looked at the card they came with. It read:
Carrie, you deserve to be treated like a princess as your dad would have wanted.