If You Can Dodge a Punch, You Can Dodge a Ball

Posted on Mon Jul 21st, 2025 @ 17:36 by Jacqueline Myers

Chapter: Besieged
Location: Gymnasium
Timeline: Morning of February 2nd, 1993
3441 words - 6.9 OF Standard Post Measure

Since, Andrew had found Jackie in the mostly unused groundskeeper shed, she had been his shadow first with him getting her a shower and clean clothes, then breakfast and finally the meeting with Claire, which had ended with her becoming his shadow as she seemed most comfortable around him. After the meeting Andrew had helped find her an unused faculty dorm room, the room was next to his coincidentally and left her to get situated in her new digs, there was one thing he brought up and that was meeting him in the gymnasium the next day as she had shown interest in both meditation and training.

Andrew was resting on a mat after finishing several reps of both push-ups and sit-ups. He was sweating and the gym towel next to the mat was already covered in a bit of sweat as when he trained, he always pushed himself pretty hard. This was all part of his personal mantra, no matter what you were doing you pushed yourself hard, without training everything you did would wilt away and die. Many of the Faculty and Students had inadvertently walked in on his intense training sessions. Going through his Hapkido and military exercises are what kept Andrew in such good shape and helped him feel alive. Be it his morning run around the Institute or his training sessions in the evening and late afternoon.

He sat up on the mat and grabbed the water bottle next to the towel and took a few swigs of the now not as cold water. He wondered if Jackie would take him up on his offer, he expected she would, but he wasn't the sort to push anyone towards a decision they were uncomfortable with.

Jackie did her best not to make a sound with the door, sticking in her head at first before sliding herself inside. He was certainly dedicated and with the careers he’d previously explained it made sense. She was still asleep when he’d left for the morning run at which he’d found her the day before. It had taken her a while to feel comfortable enough to drift off.

From her new collection of clothes, she’d cobbled together a black pair of stirrup leggings, a t-shirt that still managed to drown her and a long sleeve to cover her arms. She waited for him to finish his mouthful before she gave a little whistle. “You didn’t wake me up?” It was a quiet protest as she moved in toward him on the mat, taking a seat with crossed legs. “Good morning.” She greeted him quietly.

Andrew looked up at the slight squeak of the gymnasium doors, and saw Jackie try to "sneak" inside, though she wasn't really sneaking more just being quiet. He had knocked on the door to her room before he left for his morning jog, but had gotten no response, so he had left for his run to let her sleep some more. She had had a very trying ordeal which she was recovering from, and he remembered when she saw the real bed she had almost swooned.

"I opted to let you get some more sleep as when I knocked you didn't answer. It seemed best to let you get some more rest after everything you had been dealing with." He looked over and she seemed ready to get started. "So, how would you like to begin? We have several options, starting with stretches, some basic cardio, and some arm and leg training." He walked over to the bench and grabbed a towel and water bottle for Jackie as well. "We will end this first day with basic strikes and meditation."

She nodded in agreement, she distinctly remembered climbing into bed and woke up curled in a nest of duvet and blanket on the floor. “Thank you. I think that's the first time I've slept in a room with a bed on my own for a very long time.” Her lips pressed together with another nod. “I trust your judgement, maybe not too stomach-focused? I'm still feeling tender.” A careful pat of her almost healed abdomen that was hidden under her many layers. There was a fleeting moment of concern at the mention of first strikes, the lack of control around her abilities and if she might inadvertently hurt him.

"You are quite welcome, Jackie. We can see about the morning run tomorrow or maybe the next day, I want to give you time to adapt to this new situation." If she had been a soldier under his command, that time to adapt wouldn't have been a thing, but she would have been used to that if she had been a soldier. He nodded, "Okay, so we'll go with some light stretching and 20 push-ups and 10 sit-ups, caveat to that do as many as you feel you can manage without hurting yourself." He stood and offered Jackie a hand up. "The strikes will be you mimicking my movements followed by me watching and correcting as it is needed."

Her lips parted, almost to question if he really understood the concerns she had about her injury, but instead, she scraped it into a smile. Jackie took his hand, steady and unmoving, and used it to pull herself upright. Ten couldn’t be so bad, could it? “Let’s do it.” She bounced on the balls of her feet, taking a step back and finally allowing the thought to settle. She’d already encroached on so much of his space, and he hadn’t once complained.

She wasn’t a soldier, but maybe now she was starting to see how her resilience and abilities could mean something more than just hiding away. Exercise had been something she avoided since mandatory PE back at school. “I don’t think we even bothered with stretches back then,” she admitted with a small laugh. It had seemed so insurmountable at the time, though it felt like a walk in the park compared to everything she’d faced since.

Andrew had learned things about himself since he became a teacher and he had a feeling that if he had remained in the military, he might have become an instructor. He was well aware of the fact that Jackie was still recovering, he would be watching very carefully to make sure she didn't push herself too far.

He hadn't been a sport guy, unless you counted the martial arts competitions, he had been a part of or the times he had gone hunting with his father. "Neither did we, when I was in school. However, with Martial Arts training, much like with any sport, stretches and body training are a must." He led her over to one of the gymnasium mats. "We will start out pretty easy with leg and arm stretches."

Jackie had to take his word for it, but she followed over to the mats and was ready to take instruction. Most of her work had been manual labour and longer walks through the forest while completing maintenance. What muscle mass she had wasted away with the lack of use and malnutrition. If she wasn’t able to leave because of the barricade she’d need to fill her time with training and knowledge so she could take action when the time came. “Well I have both of those … do or do not. There is no try?” She winced at her awful joke.

"Yoda I am not, Miss Myers. Your teacher I shall be." He grinned as he led her slowly through some basic leg and arm stretches, he did this to get the blood flowing and loosening up the muscles for what was coming next. The stretches went for around 15 minutes. "This is where we begin your journey to healing and strengthening of your body." This was where him becoming a teacher was a boon. "Follow my lead, Jackie." He dropped onto the mat into a push-up position. "We will start slowly."

Her cheeks flushed, not feeling as stupid as she had the moments before. Jackie followed along as best she could, a little guidance here and there to keep her on track or an adjustment to make sure she didn’t stretch her stomach too much. The chatter was kept to a minimum, she was there to learn and she didn’t want to detract from that. There would be plenty of time after the day was done.

It sounded like a line from a film, the older master guiding their protege through the beginning of their transformative montage. She dropped to the floor much less graceful than he did, feeling awkward and unsure. With no experience in push-ups or sit-ups, it felt like a minefield. She extended her legs behind her from her knees and straightened out her arms a shoulder’s width apart. “Like this?” Her head lifted to check how she matched him, wobbling slightly at her curled toes.

The fact that Jackie was keeping to the chatter to a minimum, which impressed him, once the training was more natural for her, that is when they could talk while working out. It wasn't tough at all helping her through the stretches, she was a very attentive student.

Once they were both in the proper position for push-ups. "Yes, you are doing well. I will do a few first, so that you can see the proper form." True to his word, he went through three push-ups, the first was slow and the other two were a more moderate pace. He paused in the up position, "Any questions?" He would then watch her do a couple to ensure she was doing them correctly. He was already planning to watch her careful in case her stomach wound began to cause her discomfort, Andrew would like to see her complete at least 10 in a row, with or without a pause.

Getting down was the easy part, back up again seemed like an entirely new challenge in itself. Jackie’s brows raised and she shook her head. Making her descent not a full-on splat to the floor took a lot more control than she was used to. His elbows tucked in rather than flaring out as she had initially started, pulling them in closer to her body until her bicep ran parallel to her body.

The tip of her tongue may have poked out from concentration, she couldn’t be sure. There was a pause as she braced herself to push back up, an awkward slow exhale as shakily made her way almost back to starting. A mid-push waver was overcome with perseverance and an awkward grunt. She could feel herself over tensing her core, the dull ache in her abdomen. It wasn’t enough to put her off.

Slowly and carefully Jackie repeated it at her own pace, taking much longer than his three examples. It wasn’t a competition she was learning and improvement would come with time. Ten seemed a reasonable amount.

From his own position, he watched Jackie do her first three push-ups, though they were shaky, the form was still a good start. "We will go in groups of three, the goal is ten completed. Breathing can be a bit on the tricky side, exhale as you move towards the ground and inhale as you are moving back towards the starting position." As an example, he went through a push-up with somewhat exaggerated breathing to show her what he meant.

Andrew could already tell that Jackie was a quick study, which meant he may have found a student unexpectedly amongst the faculty, much like he had found Mr. McClean among the students. He hadn't started training Hamish as things had been somewhat crazy of late.

Jackie nodded, strands of hair slipping into her face as she focused. “Right. Exhale down, inhale up.” Seven more to go. She kept at it, each push-up slower and more deliberate than the last, her arms trembling slightly by the final stretch. A thought struck her mid-motion, her breath hitching. “Wait… I have to do this *two more times*?” The realization hit like a brick, and her expression turned a shade greener.

Still, she didn’t complain. He was taking the time to show her how to be stronger. How to stop being so fragile, and she wouldn’t waste it. With a final shaky push, she straightened just enough to finish, collapsing back onto her knees with a sharp exhale. She flexed her fingers, shaking the tension from them, before looking over at Andrew with a breathless but earnest nod. “I’ll get better,” she promised, more to herself than him. “Just… might take a minute.”

It wasn't tough on Andrew in the least, but this wasn't for him, this was for Jackie. His goal was to instill confidence and strength in his new friend. "As one of my teacher's would tell me, 'First we must build you up, before breaking you back down and rebuilding you.'" He said this with a light chuckle and a smile. When Jackie finished her ten push-ups he hopped up and tossed her her towel and handed her the water bottle.

"We'll take a brief break and then on to the sit-ups, again sticking with the number ten. I will demonstrate first and then ensure you have it down." He grabbed his towel and wiped his hands, neck and face before taking a drink from his own water bottle.

Jackie caught the towel with a tired but grateful nod, pressing it to her forehead before taking a slow sip of water. The push-ups had burned more than she expected, but it was a good burn, proof that she was doing something. Still, the mention of sit-ups made her pause, her fingers instinctively brushing over her abdomen.

She wasn’t about to back down, not when she had come this far. The push-ups had been shaky, but she’d gotten through them. Maybe the water would help, maybe pacing herself would too. Either way, she had to try.

Rolling her shoulders, she exhaled and set the bottle aside. “Alright,” she said, more to herself than to him. “Show me how it’s done.” There was a flicker of something in her expression. Determination, maybe a bit of apprehension, but if Andrew thought she could do it, she wasn’t going to be the one to prove him wrong.

Andrew was impressed; her determination was impressive to him. He could tell that she was hurting, but it was obvious to him that she was going to keep pushing herself. If at any time she looked like she was going to collapse from the pain, they would stop the exercise, he wasn't going to push her to the point she injured herself.

He dropped back to the floor and rolled onto his back and into the sit-up position. "Alright," He mirrored what he had done with the push-ups and did one sit-up slowly and the next two at a more moderate pace, if he was pushing himself, he could manage around 80 in two minutes. He moved to a crouching position so he could watch her form and the injury she was still recovering from to ensure she didn't hurt herself.

Her brows knit together as she watched him, she broke to exercise down into separate motions. The lay, knees bent; hands up to her head and then the curl forward. The movements he combined into something fluid and effortless. Internally she groaned and pushed the towel aside with her bottle, running her hands over her face and sweeping back her shorter hair. A short sharp exhale gave her the motivation to lay down and bend her knees keeping her feet hip-width apart.

Jackie looked up at her crouching mentor. “You know it's really unnerving when you’re intently watching me like that …” She shook herself out and moved her hands to each side of her head before better controlling her breathing, she imagined the upward movement would be an exhale and the return would be the inhale. Carefully she started to curl herself forward, she could feel her feet lifting off the mat and attempted to push them back down, managing to achieve a 45-degree angle before she felt the tense throb that held her breath with a quiet grunt as she tried to push on.

When she mentioned how unnerving that him watching her was, she might catch a slight blush to his stoic face as he turned his head to look away. He was already planning what striking movements he would run her through for their first training session, he would save kicks for a day when she was more healed.

"Alright, so if you can give me one more, we'll keep with sit-ups." He was worried, as he caught her grunt and tensing. "Otherwise, there are other exercises which we can try instead." In truth, he had already devised other exercises in the case of these being tough on Jackie. a set of three 30-second planks would work just as well, perhaps even better.

As she tried to avoid looking at him, she caught the slight flush in his cheeks and felt a small smile tug at her lips, but it didn’t quite reach her eyes. She wanted to do this, to push past the weakness that had been forced on her, to prove to herself that she was still herself. But at the same time, she wasn’t stupid. The deep ache settling into her core wasn’t just soreness; it was a reminder of what she’d lost. A reminder that she wasn’t where she used to be. She exhaled sharply, frustration flickering in her expression before she let it go with a slow nod. “Alright,” she said, more measured this time. “One more.” It wasn’t ten, but it was something. And right now, something was enough.

As she let out a steady breath, Jackie reset her stance, planting her feet more firmly against the mat. She wasn’t about to let him call it quits on her. Not yet.

Bracing herself, she curled forward again, this time more controlled, biting down on the discomfort before it could slip out. No grunt, no hesitation, just movement. The pull in her core was sharper than she wanted to admit, but she forced herself through it, tapping her elbows lightly to her knees before easing back down with the same deliberate pace.

Once she hit the mat, she let her breath out slowly, schooling her expression before glancing up at Andrew. “There. One more.” A flicker of satisfaction crossed her face, brief but real. She could do this. Maybe not ten, maybe not even five, but she wasn’t done yet.

Andrew could tell that Jackie was pushing herself, but it seemed she could feel her limitations, which meant he would only have to step in if absolutely necessary. This took a weight off his shoulders and allowed him to think on other things going on. He kept her in his peripheral's, he did watch as she completed her first sit up. He watched as the muscles in her stomach, where the injury was still healing, Andrew had worked through many injuries over the years, so he knew the sort of pain she was likely feeling.

He looked over at her, "Good, now give me three more." He had her towel and water bottle ready. Andrew already knew the movements and strikes he would run her through, with luck what he taught her would add to her confidence and self-reliance.

Jackie’s face twisted in something close to horror, regret settling deep the moment she let herself hit the mat. She exhaled sharply, unconsciously shaking her head, her gaze flicking toward him before she forced herself to look elsewhere—anywhere but at him.

“I didn’t think you were supposed to move the goalposts…” she muttered, voice tight with effort rather than accusation.

Still, she pressed her feet into the mat and pulled herself up again, slow and measured, fingers just brushing the sides of her head before she eased herself back down. The tension across her abdomen was sharp now, the soreness settling in like something permanent, but she pushed through it. Another sit-up. Then another. Each one deliberate. Each one biting just a little more. By the time she hit the mat again, she stayed there, breathing out slowly, waiting to see if he’d push her further.

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