Kapitel 7: The Smile of Pain

Beep-beep!

"This wasn't a dream, damn it, I feel so alive..." Dash woke up, and the first thing he did was celebrate that this wouldn't be a dream. This was the first time he woke up thanks to an alarm, and he could say he hated it.

As he walked to the bathroom, the first thing he did was brush his teeth, and after finishing his other necessities, he descended the stairs. When he left the house, he saw a man, and that was Mr. Kim, who from today would teach him martial arts.

"You managed to wake up, my congratulations, Mr. Hale," said Mr. Kim with slight approval.

"Since alarms exist, this isn't much..." Dash murmured as he stood firm in front of Mr. Kim, who was looking at him seriously.

Mr. Kim nodded and said, "Your father gave me the green light to teach you properly, so I hope you can withstand the training. It won't be easy, but you will learn what you want as quickly as possible."

"I'm ready, sir!" shouted Dash with his chest puffed up. He would definitely improve and find out if he had talent or if he needed to exert more effort than others.

"Very well, first of all, I will teach you the principles of the martial art I will impart, and that is Kung Fu... First, respect for oneself, for others, and for the tradition of Kung Fu."

"Wow, he acts like a true master..." Dash murmured absentmindedly, wanting to go straight to action. But Mr. Kim had assumed the role of a teacher and said, "Second, perseverance, which you will implement in constant practice and patience since they are fundamental to mastering the art."

"Yes, sir!" shouted Dash, who, although it didn't seem like it, was a sponge absorbing everything he was being taught.

"You must have control of the mind, body, and emotions since it is essential for the development of true Kung Fu; that would be the third," said Mr. Kim, looking at Dash with absolute tranquility.

Having known a bit about Kung Fu, Dash already knew a lot, and the next thing Mr. Kim mentioned was efficiency. According to Mr. Kim, Kung Fu focuses on the efficient use of the body and the minimization of unnecessary effort.

Having flexibility not only physically but mentally, as if he thought something was merely ridiculous, he wouldn't pay attention to anything he wanted to learn.

This long explanation ended with balance and harmony, something Dash didn't need because the last thing he wanted was to be harmonious with idiots.

"In fact, Mr. Kim... I've been searching on the internet, and there are many tournaments in China held every year. The most exclusive ones are every four years, so I would like not to be harmonious but aggressive."

Mr. Kim nodded without saying a word to Dash's request, who seemed very excited.

This was strange because if he were truly a master clinging to traditions, he should have scolded him. But by not doing this, he gave Dash more reasons to take the hard path of this training.

"Remember, Dash, the most important thing is that Kung Fu is not used to harm but to protect the integrity of each person and keep safe those who matter to you." Mr. Kim was a bit worried about this, but for some reason, he didn't want to be harsh with a child who was just starting and who might possibly give up halfway.

"I understand, sir!" Dash said with a serious look. At this moment, all he wanted to feel was his body and that he could be stronger. If time passed without doing that, the torture would be too much because it would show all that desire to run he had before.

"And finally, call me Shifu..." Mr. Kim said with an expectant look.

"Wasn't it Sensei?" Dash asked, slightly confused.

"This is not karate; this is Kung Fu..."

Dash frowned and said, "Let me see if I understand, you're a Korean teaching me Chinese Kung Fu, but I can't call you Sensei because that's Japanese?"

At this point, Dash wondered, what the hell is the difference if everything is mixed up like a vegan salad?

"It doesn't matter, let's start with the warm-up..." Mr. Kim put on his hoodie, and then he started jogging.

Dash, who was taken by surprise, did the same and followed Shifu Kim. Supposedly, this was the warm-up, but for him, running for five minutes was a living hell.

All this torture for Dash was a blessing; every time he ran or breathed was truly a miracle for him. That's why he didn't give up; he followed the training to the letter and didn't fail at anything.

According to Mr. Kim, he had to improve his physical condition, flexibility, balance, and leg training. They would focus on these in the first few months, and after that, they would move on to concentration, posture, alignment, agility, and coordination.

But Dash would make sure that in those months, he could learn all that on his own. Not only that, but he would double his efforts just to feel that it had been worth it.

Similarly, he knew he wouldn't die from doing exercises like these. Besides, he was aware that he should first focus on improving the strength, endurance, and condition of his body before asking about real Kung Fu.

...

On Sunday night, two days after a long training session, Frederick, along with his wife Elena, heard a report on their son's training.

"Did he pass your test?" Elena asked, still confused. She had made sure to tell Kim to be tough on her son so that he would abandon the idea of learning contact doctrines.

"Ma'am, your son is a beast who doesn't give up even if he can't take it anymore... It seems he won't give up even if the training increases, so it seems your son is very serious about wanting to learn." Mr. Kim understood Elena's concerns, but he still had to be clear with the results.

Proud of his son's discipline, Frederick told Elena, "It's better for him to train outdoors than spend the whole day on those video games; surely, all this will do him good."

Elena nodded and said, "It seems to be the case; from what I heard, he's not bothered at school, so he'll be fine then."

"So, Mr. Kim, I would appreciate it if you continued training our son without considering him someone important... He is your student; teach him properly."

"Yes, Mr. Hale, I bid you farewell." Mr. Kim smiled slightly and went home.

No one understood why an eleven-year-old worked so hard on something he shouldn't like, but only Dash knows that he does all this for himself. He wanted to know how far he could push the limits of his body.

He wouldn't waste this new opportunity; that would be unacceptable.

AUTORENGEDANKEN
SrCuervo

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Kapitel 8: It's Better to Learn to Hit

"I don't feel alive, Devon..." Dash murmured as he leaned on his desk. The class couldn't stop looking at him from time to time, as if they feared he might go crazy due to the lack of air.

Devon Lee looked at Dash's appearance and was left speechless. She couldn't believe what she was seeing. She never thought that the guy who played video games every day had now become someone who trained his body as if there were no tomorrow.

"Hey, you know that on weekends, you can join me in the training... It would be very comforting not to suffer alone. If we're two, the spirit is shared," Dash said while handing a big chocolate to his friend.

Devon looked at the chocolate and Dash's suffering expression, so she said, "If I do what you do every day, the remaining energy I have to come to this reform school would be depleted. During the holidays, I could train with you every day."

"Are you reading another saga of books with more letters than days lived?" Dash didn't believe Devon; normally, they did everything together, and when one refused, it meant they were wasting time on some of their personal interests.

Devon, who heard this, smiled, reached into her bag, and pulled out a mint ointment, saying, "You complained yesterday on the call, so I made sure to buy this ointment from an old man. He says it has many chemicals, so just apply a little on the muscles that hurt."

"Wow, I didn't think you were so considerate..." Dash took the mysterious-looking ointment and smiled; he would definitely use it.

"We've got each other's backs. When will you learn to kick and stuff?"

Dash thought about this, and indeed, he wasn't ready yet. He had to work on his flexibility and endurance, so he said, "I'm working on coordinating my body; I'll start kicking very soon."

"Hey, you two, can you be quiet for a bit? I'm trying to sleep..." said a somewhat stocky guy with an annoyed look.

"You sleep at home, genius, unless you don't have one," Devon responded, dismissing the guy named Maicol, who was staring at Dash.

"I didn't ask for your damn opinion. Is she the only one who stands up for you?" Maicol didn't fight with women, so he looked at Dash as if he was the one responsible for Devon.

Dash, who had gone unnoticed for a long time, caught attention when he experienced that anxiety incident. So, since he knew guys like Maicol very well, he nodded slightly.

"You know, I have a very weak body, and Devon, who is my guardian warrior, takes care of protecting me at school. Do you not have any girl to protect you?" Dash asked absentmindedly.

Devon smiled seeing how Maicol was left speechless. Dash was always the one to avoid problems, but he also didn't let himself be intimidated by such silly games.

"Pathetic, at least find a pretty girl..." Maicol muttered as he left the classroom.

"This homeless bastard..." Devon grabbed the book Dash had told her about with sensationalist content and was about to throw it at Maicol when a hand stopped her.

"Don't you remember? I protect you from idiots like him, and you protect me from crazy ones..." Dash took the book and stood up, walked to the classroom door, and smiled in a somewhat questionable way.

"Damn, I hope he doesn't do something crazy..." Devon murmured, unable to contain her curiosity, she stood up and followed Dash, who had entered the boys' bathroom.

"Damn school, there are only idiots..."

Dash, who wanted to avoid any hint of trouble, said, "Hey, Maicol, I really don't want to have problems, but you insulted my friend. As long as you apologize to her, I can forget all this, and we can be friends again."

As if hearing something irrational, Maicol replied, "Wait, are you here because of what I said about your ugly girlfriend? She was the one who got in my face; I should've given her a beating for what she said, but she got lucky for being a girl."

Dash, who heard this, didn't know how to fake his anger. Devon was someone special to him, so he wouldn't allow any stupid kid to bother her. As his father had said one day, avoid problems and eliminate them from the root.

"Well, first of all, no one insults my friend!" Dash said, tightening his grip on the book in his hand and forcefully hitting Maicol's forehead.

Bam!

"Secondly, beauty is in the eyes of the beholder!" Dash shouted, taking advantage of Maicol being stunned.

Bam! Bam! Bam!

"Dash, are you crazy?" Devon shouted, entering the boys' bathroom upon hearing the screams of pain. When she saw Dash hitting Maicol with the book, she quickly stopped him.

"But he's a bully. Aren't we supposed to avoid them messing with us?" Dash looked at Devon with confusion. Wasn't Maicol one of those kids who abuse their strength and beat up others?

Devon looked at Maicol and said, "He's an idiot, but I don't think he's one of those. Forget it, let's go back; classes are about to start."

"Yeah," Dash murmured, a bit confused. Now that he thought about it, he felt a little guilty because, in a way, no one was at fault here.

"I'm sorry, Maicol. I'll leave chocolate in your backpack..."

Dash, who had never fought before, felt a little bad. He just wanted to prevent someone from messing with him because he knew perfectly well the stereotypes of bullies, but there was no need to become one to achieve that.

On the other hand, Devon was very happy, although she hid it well since fights within the school were severely condemned, and she didn't want Dash to be expelled for a few days due to a pointless argument.

"Hey Dash, I'll exercise with you on weekends," Devon said as she returned to the classroom.

"That's fantastic. I'll introduce you to Mr. Kim when we meet," Dash said, much more excited.

Two months later.

"Have you packed everything, Dre?"

"Yes, Mom, everything's ready," Dre said, looking at the empty house that used to be his.

Knock-knock! Knock-knock!

"I'm coming!" said a woman with wavy hair, wondering who was looking for them at this time, as she had settled all the commitments before moving to China.

"Mrs. Parker, are you Mrs. Sherry Parker?" asked a man who came to deliver a package.

"Yes, that's me," Sherry murmured a bit confused.

"You have a package; this is originally for your son, but you can receive it," said the delivery man, asking only for a signature.

"Who is it, Mom?" Dre came to the door to see who had knocked.

"Dre, do you have any doubts about a package for you?" Sherry wanted to deny this type of package.

"A package for me? I didn't really expect Dash to send me anything..." Dre was surprised that what he considered a joke was actually something Dash took seriously.

"Dash?"

Dre nodded and said, "He's my friend, Mom. He's an amazing person."