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caught him staring at me too. He grinned a mocking grin and sped up. I stepped up on my pace till I matched his pace, starting to get limber. He looked a bit off balance for some reason. “You look off balance.” I said wondering if he felt off balance as well. “I didn’t expect you to be able to match my pace that quickly. Normally it takes a bit longer for other people to get limber enough to match a decent speed with me.” He responded, breathing a little harder than me. “Well than this should throw you into shock,” I said while really picking up my speed. I looked back at him, and again, he was gaping at me. Then something caught my foot, and I fell on my face. “What the…” I said, bemused. I’d checked my straight ahead shot through the park, and saw nothing to run into but a couple of trees that I’d angled myself to avoid. Then as I got up I saw Joshua. He charged me and pinned me before I could react. “Hey! Get off!” I complained, finding it really degrading to be pinned by a freshman. “You’re such a great fighter, make me.” He said obviously holding a grudge for the beating I’d dealt him yesterday. So, I sighed and flipped him under me. Well, apparently he hadn’t expected that. Normally I do give a couple warnings before I start fighting back, but being pinned by him was too degrading to stay there for any more than a few seconds. “There. I made you, now give up. I don’t want to have to fight you the way I did yesterday again.” I said fighting a grin that wanted to play across my face at the memory. Then he tried to flip me back on my back, but unlike him, I was ready for it. I let him flip me, using the momentum to kick his chest hard enough to send into the tree he had initially hid behind, jumping up and holding him there. He landed on the tree with a huff, and glared at me when he realized what I’d done. “I’m no amateur fighter boy. I’m probably the strongest fighter you’ll ever meet. Don’t try to win a losing fight; it’ll just damage your self respect.” I said not trying to be gentle any more. He coughed a bit under the extra pressure I’d added to the hold that was keeping him pinned to the tree to prove my point. “Stronger than Shane?” He asked, and I saw where he was going with it so I simply said, “That’s not the matter at hand. The matter at hand is that you are trying to beat me in a fight, and it’s getting annoying.” “Have you made your point yet? Or do you actually think you’re stronger than me?” Shane said from behind me. “I’m not showcasing my strength, and yes, I’m done playing with him. Let’s go, I don’t want to be late for school.” I said, trying to avoid the topic of us fighting. That topic may end with a major fight that somebody might leave from a bit damaged. That somebody would probably be him. Then my knees were knocked out from under me, and somebody was on top of me. “What the heck is wrong with you?!” I yelled while feeling a surge of strength and agility rushing through my veins. My eyesight was suddenly clearer, my hearing peaked at its best height, giving me sounds that I normally would barely hear, like my breath against the grass, and making them audible and focused. My sense of feel told me about how much the person on top of me weighed, and it definitely wasn’t Shane or Joshua. It was too heavy for Joshua, but still too light for all of Shane’s muscle. My sense of smell told me that whoever was on top of me was sweating, hard from a good run. I could taste their breath on top of me, but I was face first into the ground, and they were on my back. Adrenaline, I realized, was rushing through my veins. I hadn’t felt adrenaline since my last boyfriend, his kisses always leaving me pumped up, and able to fight off a whole gang of experienced fighters and still have the energy to climb the tallest tree in the forest. Adrenaline used to be a part of my daily life, but I had been lacking it for about five months now. It felt like greeting an old friend; adrenaline pumping through me, it felt so natural and familiar that I was suddenly feeling ecstatic. I hadn’t felt this familiar sensation in so long that I automatically let it take over on impulse. I flipped whoever was on my back off, and found myself on my feet and ready to fight in less than two seconds. Then they came charging at me, so I side stepped, impulse again. “Hey, back off.” I warned, a little enthusiastic about my old friend, adrenaline, being back. “You leave my boy alone!” The man said, coming up from behind me and knocking me into a tree. “What the…oof!” The tree had cut me off, and also boosted the adrenaline. I turned just in time to see a fist that was going to hit me in the face, the adrenaline really kicking in now. I didn’t have time to dodge, so my arms went up in reflex, and they became steel bars in front of my face. When his fist landed, it had no impact on my steel bars. “Ow!” Was his response. Then I saw Jasper coming up. “Shane, why aren’t you helping me?!” I said with an edge to my voice. “Because that’s my sensei, and he’d kick my next page