Riptyde

Chapter 4: The Adventure Begins

I thought this was gonna be easy, I was so wrong.

We've already been traveling for a week now, without stop. We're now up in the mountains by the city, and it's cold as balls! Connie's still wearing her skintight jumpsuit and cloak, I'm wearing a heavy winter coat and boots. I'm shivering my ass of and she isn't even breaking a sweat.

"H-How are you n-not c-c-cold, goddamnit"?! She turns to me and laughs, she continues up the mountain. We found this path and we've been walking it for an hour now and haven't let up. I'm starting to question if I made the right choice on going with this girl. "A-Answer me, C-Connie"! This time, she didn't even turn around to look at me. Now I'm getting irritated, why the hell are we in the mountains?!

"We're here", We got to this ninja or samurai ass meditation grounds. It kind of reminds me of a monastery for, like, monks and shit. For being in the cold ass mountains, it's actually quite warm in here. "What is this place" I ask. She simply responds with a gentle smile and says, "this is where I became what I am today. This place, this perfect place, is where I became a real part of this world". That...was one of the stupidest things I've ever heard. But I went along with it without questioning her...out loud.

"Take off your clothes, your winter ones, and we'll begin". I was confused for a second, but I did not question her. I took off the coat and boots, I felt a rush of cold air run over me and it felt great. "Okay, now what", I asked. She punched me in the face and I fell to the ground. "WHAT THE FUCK, YOU BITCH! WHAT WAS THAT FOR"?! I was rip roaring pissed, she just hit me in the face! "That is your first lesson: Control. Control your emotions and then let them power your attack". Connie now stands in a sturdy warrior stance, like she's done this before. I stand up and wipe the blood off my face, starting to regain my balance. What does she mean by 'control my emotions'? I take a stance that I feel comfortable with and breathe slowly. I charge at Connie with all my might. Connie slides to the right and trips me, falling on my face. I punch the ground as I'm filled with anger and embarrassment. "Son of a bitch, what the hell"?! I couldn't believe that she put me on my ass again, I thought this was gonna easy, I was so wrong.

"Maybe this is too much for you right now. Let's try something easier. Like breathing, that'll make your training much easier". 'Breathing', 'training', what does she mean by 'breathing' and 'training'?

"What do you mean by breathing"? My tone is both confused and angry, I needed her to be more specific. "What are you teaching me, how to get me pissed, because it's working"! I wanted to rip her goddamned head off, but I knew if I tried, I'd get my ass planted again. She took me by the hand and dragged me to the center of the monastery and then let go. "What the hell? What are you doing"? I'm a little more calm when asking. She sits down on the floor and starts meditating. "What the hell are you doing" I asked. She didn't a word, she just kept meditating. I decided to sit down next to her and do the same thing. I crossed my legs and put my arms over my legs. I start to breathe, and I feel the anger, the embarrassment, the self conflict just melt away. I've never felt better in my life, I would do this for hours if I could. I feel something touch my hand, but I did not jump. It held my hand tight to the point where it kinda hurt. I start to move my hand and the thing moves away. It was Connie, she was holding my hand.

"S-Sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you", she whispered. She sounded like a little kid after hurting my feelings. I couldn't help but feel bad. I reached over and grabbed her hand and said 8n a whisper as well,  "sorry for what"? Some would say I was just doing it to make her feel better, they would be wrong. I genuinely wanted to hold her hand because I haven't held a hand like this in so long. And I felt good, better than I remember. I felt Connie tighten her grip, so I tightened mine. I felt like a new person, an old person, the person I used to be. I never want to lose this feeling ever again. And with that, I continued my training, and I was a damn good student. I could feel myself resolving, becoming a newer me, a better version of myself. I felt like I could do anything now.

And this, this is just the beginning...