CHAPTER 14

Three weeks.

It had only been three weeks of my training and I already wanted to kill Baek. He woke me up in the morning at five for a run that started off as one or two Km runs and then turned into five km runs with stops in between for other exercises like doing long jumps, punching stances, and skipping rope.

I had never exercised this way in my life, the only exercise I ever did was the morning five minute compulsory yoga at my school assemblies and then household chores. The skipping rope is the only fun part of my morning exercise routine. Baek is relentless in his training, always pushing me to finish within a given time frame, to do my best everyday. It was necessary though, he’s the best teacher I’ve ever had but that doesn’t mean I don’t want to strangle him.

Those three weeks had also been some of the best times of my life. I had been calling this apartment home. I'd gotten bolder with my wardrobe choices, the lantern lights in my room now had five Polaroid pictures including the one taken on my very first day here. One picture of me getting a piggyback ride on Baek, two of me and grace and the last one of my hands when I first wrapped them in my crêpe bandages that Baek got for my training.

Grace became like the older sister/girl bestie I never had and didn’t know I needed. She just loved to doll me up everyday and then feed me like I’m some child. But I’m not complaining, she’s a complete sweetheart.

I used to love breakfast back home, a nice hot cup of milk tea with some Parle-G biscuits, that's all. But it was enough for me. Not anymore. Now Baek ensures I get fed bananas and eggs every morning with a big bowl of clear soup and ramen noodles. Odd but balanced and nutritious.

Did I mention I wanted to strangle him? I mean, I was grateful for the attention and all the good food but it was just too much and too heavy for my stomach at seven in the morning but well, necessary for the rest of the training filled day.

Baek had started training me in a warehouse like place, it was an hour away from home towards the back roads of Seoul and Incheon common highways. There were other people who used this place too so I was required to put a face mask on when we were here, it was a rule Baek made to protect my identity and I was very grateful and was extremely touched by his protective behavior towards me.

There were eight large sandbags being used as punching bags, a huge truck tire being used for weight training, then there were metal poles that held up the ceiling and were being used as pull-up bars, multiple heavy metal chains attached to a wall that I didn’t know the use of yet and then there was the practice arena.

Right in the middle, a large blood red colored mat was placed with wooden poles on each corner holding it in place.

The first day that I came to this place we now call 'The Blood Pad' I had screamed out so loud that all the activities and all the people present had come to a standstill.

There were two men on the mat facing each other, the only protection they had on was the face mask and crêpe bandages covering their fists. That’s it. Maybe abdomen guards too but I wouldn’t know. In the blink of an eye one of the men had hit the other with such force that he lost a tooth and his entire mouth was bloody from the impact.

Apparently they had a disagreement and were taking care of it outside the actual street fight. It was brutal and somewhat common at the pad but for me that day it was very shocking and a little disturbing at first. The guy who lost a tooth and had his face looking like a Jackson Pollock painting had the audacity to laugh at my horrified expression.

As the weeks went by I got used to it, bloody fights weren’t common in the blood pad because this was just a practice area but there were still some instances that they occurred.

My routine got set pretty well. Going in and starting with some basic cardio to loosen up my muscles, and then proceeding up to the more difficult exercises. I'd practice on this dummy and Baek made me punch and kick it up until it fell from it's stand. The said dummy though, was made up of thick cotton and sand, packed in a jute bag.

And boy did that dummy end up beating the crap out of me at times.

But that's what made my hits pretty strong. Strong enough that I was able to go hand to hand with my own trainer.

One thing I really liked was that Baek never let anyone other than him fight me in the blood pad and another thing I liked a lot was that he didn’t treat me like some delicate doll, he pushed me hard, gave me a good beating and corrected me at every instance.

Every time I’d hit him he hit me back stronger and then made me give it back to him better and harder. I fell, I tripped, sported a somewhat black eye, cut lip and bruised knuckles. The muscles all over my body were sore, but I loved every minute of it.

This was it.

Ecstasy.

Freedom.

And I didn’t need to take help from any chemical drugs to achieve it, just a trip to Korea and some crazy decisions.

One particular practice session will always be etched in my memory. It was mentally a pretty down day for me. I had come across a picture in my phone taken during my time in my birth country. It was taken during a festival we celebrate back there called Diwali.

Diwali is also called the festival of lights. Everyone dresses up in new traditional clothes, we meet relatives and exchange gifts. Basically have a jolly good time and thank God for everything given to us.

But I wasn't happy or jolly. I looked pale and upset in the picture because it hadn't been lights or gifts for me that Diwali, instead it had been taunts and beatings by my father. He wanted me to accept his friend's son's marriage proposal and get engaged on the auspicious day and I had outright refused.

"What's wrong with you? He's such a good boy. He will be a perfect match for you. You don't even deserve him, be happy that they've agreed to this relationship because of my friendship."

A loud sound reverberated through the room. I had been slapped so hard that I actually lost my balance and fell to the floor.

"But papa I'm too young. I don't want to get married. Why don't you understand….."

"How dare you? Don't ever talk back to me Radhika. I will never tolerate this again. Pathetic, should've never had you in the first place." He said and walked off, leaving me on the floor of my room all alone.

I was seventeen back then. A poor and tortured, lost and manhandled teen. The only thing that went in my favor was my age and all my father could do was beat me up and take his frustrations out on me. I'm sure he didn't want to go to jail.

So that picture brought out all of those horrible memories and left me somewhat wounded yet again. And then my hero stepped in and saved me, again.

I was in no mood for training and he had sensed that, so he turned it into a fun day. Everything became a game, we beat up the sandbag dummies with sticks, pull ups became a swinging ball game. Those chains on the wall? We suspended them to the ceiling beams and made a swing out of them.

It's sometimes hard to find joy in life, but you know what's harder? Finding people who bring joy to our lives, and when we do find such people we must wrap them carefully in love and keep them with us forever.

Baek became that someone for me and I promised myself that I would do anything to wrap this man up in love and have him by my side forever. I didn't matter what relationship we shared, all that mattered was that we did share one.