Chapter 18

Ana, George and Meghan headed over to the main building for some brunch. It was almost noon and they wanted to spend the day in leisure before they got busy with classes the next day. The dining hall buzzed with a flurry of activity.

Metal spatulas clanged together as the chefs flipped pancakes and tacos. Cheese was liberally grated to finish salads and pasta sauces. Hot pizzas came out fresh from the wood fired oven. The desert table held everything from hot buns, freshly baked bread and sweet pastries drizzled with nuts and topped with fruit. A small cereal and juice bar was set up next to the desserts with multiple options. This was Ana's first time in the dining hall. She had goose bumps from the spread she saw.

"I can't believe I missed all this for four days in a row!" She cried.

They each went to grab a plate, filling it up to their hearts content. Tall windows opened up to the expansive lawn on the far left of the dining hall. Taking a seat by one of the windows, Ana dug into her salad. She had also filled her plate with a small portion of Quesadillas, some bread, butter and pasta.

Focusing on her feast, she didn't notice Khai coming to join them. When she heard the chair drag next to her, she looked up, her mouth stuffed with pasta.

"Good morning." Khai's dreamy voice greeted her. His lips curled into a smile when he saw her staring at him, wide eyed like a little puffer fish.

Ana swallowed the food in her mouth with a loud gulp, completely forgetting to chew it. She coughed as the hot food burned her throat. Khai's expression turned to bewildered shock as he pat her back, handing her a glass of juice he got for himself. She slowly sipped on the juice and cleared her throat, annoyed that she embarrassed herself before she spoke a single word.

"I thought you saw me taking a seat." Khai muttered.

Ana cleared her throat. "I'm sorry, I just didn't expect to see you at breakfast." She explained bashfully.

George and Meghan were trying hard to hold back their laughter. "Why don't you grab some and join us Khai?" George diverted his attention, coming to Ana's rescue.

"I already ate. I got hungry pretty early this morning." Khai turned to Ana and continued. "About that deer you wanted to fight in the dark… I made a training plan so I can teach you four times a week. We'll train on Sundays, Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays. It'll just be an hour each day and you should have enough time to handle your classes as well."

Ana stared at Khai, forgetting to move as he narrated a training plan for something she only asked him last night. He was being so nice to her and it made her feel tingly. She pinched herself, hoping he wasn't an illusion. The pain aroused her from her thoughts.

"Thank you Khai, for doing all of this. I owe you." She said sincerely, grinning at him. The inconvenience from her hand was an easy price to pay for meeting him.

"You do owe me. I'll find a way to collect your debt." His smile reached his eyes. "Seeing that you're eating now, I'll come get you from your dorm in two hours. You'll need some time to digest your food before you train."

Ana quickly pushed her plate away, pretending like she was stuffed. Khai stopped her. "Eat Ana, you'll need the strength to train. Can we stop this silly thing where you don't eat around me? I like that you have an appetite. You don't have to be conscious." he gently compelled her to finish her food.

Meghan rested her face in her hand, looking at them both with dreamy eyes, like she was watching a fairly tale. George nudged her, silently asking that she school her expression.

Clearing her throat, she addressed Khai. "How long would Ana need to train before she can fight someone off."

George looked in disbelief at Meg's question. Ana quickly interjected. "An animal. I want to be able to fight off animals in the forest.. in case I go for a walk."

Now he smacked his palm to his forehead. This conversation was going from bad to worse. Khai gave them all a suspicious look, but answered without prying. "Right. Animals. Well, it depends on said animal. But I can teach her some basic defenses and attacks within a months' time."

He saw them all break out into smiles at his answer. Someone was bothering Ana, so much that she wanted to fight that person off. Khai wished she would open up to him, so he could just kill that person and get rid of her stress. But if Ana wanted to train with him, he would help her without asking questions.

In two hours' time, Khai knocked on Ana's door. She opened it and mouthed 'one second' as she grabbed a bottle of water and walked out, closing the door behind her. A lot of girls had now woken up and were walking around in the hallways. They threw curious glances, filled with adoration and jealousy, at Khai and Ana respectively. Ignoring them, the two made their way out to the empty training grounds.

Khai stood at the beginning of the ground and turned to address Ana. "We'll start with some basic stretches to get you warmed up, then we'll run across the field to the other side for some quick cardio. I'll assess how much you can defend yourself before I start teaching you. Nervous?" He asked her.

Ana looked up at him, giving him a small nod. She looked like a scared little rabbit and he wished he could hug her and tell her that he had her back. But he held back, prepared to put his feelings aside and teach her what she needed to learn.

"Don't be. I know you can do this." He reassured her softly. "Now follow my moves. Remember to be careful with your hand."

Ana turned her back to him and took off the huge t-shirt she was wearing. Khai's jaw dropped to the floor. He could now see what she planned to wear while training and he felt himself go dizzy.

Ana wore a black tank top and matching black leggings that left little to imagination. The outfit outlined every curve of her body. Khai closed his eyes and took deep breathes trying to keep this training professional. His brows furrowed as he wondered if she was trying to seduce him. He was very close to throwing George's advice out the window about taking things slow with Ana. This was pure evil of her to look like this around him.

He steeled his resolve and opened his eyes, only to see how she looked from the front. Luckily, her tank top had a high neck that covered her up until her collar bones. But he could see the curves of her breasts, followed by a flat midriff. Her leggings covered her navel, hugging her round hips and curvy thighs. She looked like she could make a saint drool.

Khai covered his face with both his hands, trying not to drool at her himself. She heard a painful groan from him before he uncovered his face, his expression now stony and cold.

He looked ahead at the field, avoiding her gaze as he showed her a few stretches, muttering instructions to her. As she focused on his body, Khai kept steeling glances at hers. He pursed his lips, trying to get used to the torture he signed up for over the next hour.

The stretches she was copying from him only amplified his focus on each body part, leaving Khai extremely frustrated with himself.

"Am I doing it wrong?" She asked, gauging his expression, wondering why he suddenly turned cold and uncomfortable.

"No, no. You're doing great. Keep going." He said, trying his best to sound impassive.

Khai decided to look straight into her eyes as he spoke to her, not daring to look any lower. "I'll run across the field and time you from there. Don't strain yourself, but follow the same path I took and give it your best."

Ana watched as Khai turned and made his way across the field, without waiting for her reply. Her eyes went round in surprise when she found him at the other end of the field in less than ten seconds. She couldn't even see him running, only seeing a blurred figure as he moved. When he motioned for her to run to him, she gulped. He would be bored before she made it half way, she thought.

Khai started his phone timer as he saw Ana run from the other side of the field. It took her a little less than two minutes to cross the field. When she reached him, she was resting her good hand on her knee, takin long heavy breaths to steady herself. She was drenched in sweat and some strands of her ponytail came to fall loosely on her face.

She looked angelic. This was the toughest training session Khai attended in his life. He looked at her with a troubled expression.

"I'm terrible, aren't I?" She asked as she looked at him.

Realizing that he was lowering her morale with the faces he was making, Khai slapped himself internally. This was important to her and he resolved to focus on what she needed.

"Not at all. It's your first day and that was a good effort." He consoled her. "Here, sip some water and sit down if you need to. We'll take a short break."

"No, I can keep going." Ana said, sipping on the water he offered her. Her face held a strong determination to learn, so Khai continued.