Ezra Foster's POV.

4:30 am.

The sun isn't yet up and I am waiting for Yejide to show up.

I am at an underground training room and I wrote down the address for her on a note.

I'm just about to lose hope, when the door burst open and a huffing and puffing Yejide.

"You're late!" I complain.

"I'm so sorry! My shift ended so late and I slept in" she apologises.

I nod and calm myself down.

"It's fine. C'mere". I tell her.

She approaches me and I hold out my hand as an indication for her to stop when she is a foot or two away from me.

She stops in her tracks.

I walk around her slowly analysing her form from head to toe.

She has a slim build.

About 5'3.

Small.

She stands upright, obviously tense with the idea that I am watching her.

Her outfit looks tired. Like she hasn't used it in a while.

White t-shirt and black sweatpants.

Note to self. Buy her some new gym gear.

I continue to look and it seems like doesn't have a lot of muscle and her structure is...

Weak.

But I plan to fix that.

I walk up to her, towering over her.

"Hit me" I tell her.

Her eyes widen to the size of golf balls.

"What?!" She asks.

I sigh.

"Don't make me repeat myself" I tell her.

She rolls her eyes at my tone.

Okay.

Note to self.

We need to fix that attitude as well...

She hesitantly steps back.

First mistake.

If you're in trouble and you hesitate to strike... even if it's just once...

Say goodbye to your life.

Because your soul has just left your body!

She holds her fists up and I nearly chuckle.

What is she doing?

The space between her arms is so large that one punch could knock the wind out of her.

Her legs aren't bent enough and she needs to stay on the balls of her feet.

She pulls a determined face and throws her fist back, swinging at my chest.

She lands the hit.

I hardly budge.

Not even the human in me feels slightly threatened.

She yelps in pain, shaking her hand around and holding it under her armpit.

"Oww! Fuck, that hurt so much!" Yejide exclaims.

"What was that?" I ask trying to contain a laugh.

She flares up at me.

"I can't fight!" She says, honestly, rubbing her knuckles with her other hand.

I nod.

"It's true. You can't." I agree.

She scowls.

"But that's why I'm here. I'm going to teach you" I tell her.

She nods.

"Get into a fighter's stance" I tell her.

She holds her fists up once again and puts one foot in front of the other.

I hold her elbows and move her arms closer together to guard her stomach.

"Your aim is to protect yourself" I say, looking into her eyes.

She nods.

"That means blocking hits that could potentially vital." I continue.

Then I look at her stance.

Her legs are bent awkwardly and one swift kick could have her on the ground.

Speaking of which...

I hook the front of my foot to the back of her knees and I pull.

"Ahh!" She yells.

She stumbles backwards arm and legs flailing and lands on her back with a thud, clapping dust into the air around us.

I straddle her, pinning her arms down with my legs and lightly holding a fistful of her hair, exposing her throat.

She stares up at me in shock.

"If I was an attacker... you'd be dead" I tell her.

She nods and blinks at me then turns away, looking...

Flushed?

I look around for the reason why and I realise the awkward position we're in.

I'm on top of her with her hair bunched in my gripping hand and her arms trapped under my legs.

I get off of her and help her up.

I make her stand in fighter's stance again and I grab her foreleg, pulling it back a little so that her balance is on her right leg and her feet form an 'L' shape.

"You need to shift the weight back and forth between your feet and then punch as you lean forwards, rather than while you're standing still." I inform her.

She nods and does as I ask.

But her form is still...

Off

I walk up behind her to see what is off.

And then I chuckle.

In the rush to get her feet in a good position, her hips are at a crooked angle.

I place my hands on each side and swivel her hips so that she is facing forwards and she trips a little bit.

She tries and fails not to gasp at the contact.

So she's used to acting tough...

I step up right behind her and she goes a little bit tense.

"Don't fall" I say lowly into her ear.

She nods.

"Okay" she responds, her voice coming out as a squeak.

The proximity of our stances means that I am extremely close to her body.

Even though my senses are almost outstanding, I take the time to take her in.

Her hair smells good and... so does the rest of her.

She acts a little nervously.

I wonder.

Is she scared or excited?

I decide not to let my curiosity get the best of me.

I step away from her and she visibly relaxes.

I walk in front of her.

"Hit me again" I tell her.

She looks skeptically and she bites her lip nervously.

"What are you waiting for?" I ask, folding my arms.

Her face suddenly changes.

She grits her teeth and throws a punch again.

This time, it's faster and a little harder, but I block it just as easily.

She tried again.

And again and again.

I can see the frustration on her face, boiling over.

I don't hit back.

We'll work on that later.

I stop her from throwing anymore punches.

She breathes heavily.

I hold my fist up for demonstration.

"Hold your hand up in a light clench. And as soon as you hit your opponent, clench your hand as hard as you can. That way, it will hurt your opponent, more than it hurts you" I tell her.

She nods and breathes out.

"Let's go again" she says, surprising me.

But I don't let it show on my face.

I nod.

"Let's" I respond.

We practice some more and more and she improves a little.

But we still have a lot to get through.

A question seems to be gnawing away at me.

She doesn't smell... human.

I mean she looks it physically.

But something is lurking in her blood.

Something powerful, with an undertone of something sinister...

"Yejide" I call.

She looks up at me.

"Yes, Ezra?" She asks.

"You're fully human, right?" I ask her.

She looks surprised at my question.

She nods at me slowly.

"Yeah I'm sure of that" she says.

I nod.

Maybe she's got a certain power in her that she doesn't know about yet.

And I intend to find it.

This could be the reason why someone is after her!

"Why, what's going on?" She asks curiosity.

No. I can't tell her yet. I might unleash it too early.

I need to ease it out.

"Don't you have a daily question pass?" I ask, changing the subject.

She grins widely.

"Yes! I do" she excitedly and I chuckle softly at her enthusiasm.

"Alright, go on, ask" I say.

She thinks for a second.

"Okay. Where are you from?" She asks me.

I chuckle.

"Originally, Angola. But I was born in London, England" I tell her.

She nods, curiously.

"And I know you were born into it... but how did it start? Who got... you know, turned?" She asks.

I feel my body stiffen.

The memory rears it's ugly head in my brain.

So I do what I always do and I push it away.

I give her an award winning smile that makes her melt a little.

I move closer to her and tug on a kinky lock of her hair.

"That's a story for another time. And remember, I said one question at a time." I tell her, letting my accent seep through a little.

She pouts.

"Fine" she mutters like a kid and I pull away.

Her phone suddenly ping with a text.

I look at the time on my phone and I realise that it is nearly 7:15 am.

She snatches her phone out of her pocket, and looks at the text.

Her face lights up like a Christmas tree and she looks at me excitedly.

"I've got to go" she tells me.

"My friend wants us to meet up before work" she says.

I nod.

Friend?

Could it be that man I saw getting all cozy with her yesterday?

For some strange reason, I feel my skin bristle at the idea of him.

My fangs start to seep out and I get myself under control.

Don't get distracted, just because she's pretty!

And even if they have a thing... it's none of your business!

"Walk me out?" She asks, snapping me out of my thoughts.

And see this idiot all over you?

No thanks!

"Sure. Let me just grab my stuff" I say to her.

I grab my bag and I walk her up the stairs and into the broad daylight.

She gasps and turns to me.

"Isn't the sun dangerous for you?!" She asks worriedly, trying to push me back into the shade and away from the morning sun.

"I shrug. For some vampires, it is a problem. But I am an African. I thrive off of it, rather than shy away from it" I tell her.

She nods, eyes full of wonder.

She's beautiful.

She is just about to say something to me, when a voice calls her.

"Yeji!" The voice calls.

I sigh and turn around.

Surely enough, it's him.

The boy with lots of hair that dresses with no class.

I internally roll my eyes.

When he sees me, his face falls and I take that as my cue to leave.

I take Yejide's hand.

"I'll see you tomorrow" I say, leaning down and kissing the tops of her knuckles, brushing my lips there gently.

I look into her eyes.

She looks surprised and her eyes have dilated a little.

That answers my previous question.

She's not scared of me.

She's undeniably excited.

And I make her feel that way.
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