Mi Hermana y Yo

Carmen rolled  her eyes and clapped Suzy on the shoulder. "You'll get your chance again. Sometime. Just not today." She gave her student a little shove to the ropes as she passed. "Rope drills, need to give your feet more purpose in the corner."

Suzy grunted, but let it go - Carmen's gym, Carmen's rules. She tossed her headgear off and slid out of the ring, leaving them alone once more.

"Notes?" She folded her arms. "You move well in the ring. Good instincts. A little rust, maybe, and I think we've still got to get you to the point where you can get over your hangups without any start up time...but, that was promising. How do you feel?"

Pretty amazing. "I feel good. Suzy's fast, maybe faster than I ever was, and she took my punch like a champ and still came back for more. That was really unexpected." He pulled off his head gear and brushed his hair back. He really needed a haircut. "If they're all as sturdy as her, I think I might be able to pull this off, this 'hitting girls' thing." Nathan's parents would have gone into conniptions if they'd heard him say that. "What's next?"

Carmen picked up the headgear and tucked it back under her arm as she backed away, giving Nathan all the space he'd surely be needing in short order. "She's getting better." She watched her pupil walk off with a slight smile. "She's come far in a short time. Suzy just needs to realize how far she has left to go, is all."

She turned back to Nathan and looked between him and the floor, before she said clearly what her gestures were implying. "As for you, I want more of those push-ups you owe me. Thirty. Then we'll see what comes next." Carmen gave him a solid pat on the back. "Your grunts of exertion will help me concentrate."