Practice (Xun)

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"Oh, really?" Xun replied, giving Nao a more careful glance-over. If he was honest with himself, he could see why he might be picked on - he was small, and somewhat feminine (although Xun himself probably wouldn't have thought of that had Nao not said anything). And bullies just loved to pick on those that were a little different. "We are alike," he agreed with a small smile in return. Xun had never actually hurt anyone, fortunately (except himself, on accident); once he'd perfected what he'd been told by his more... Crude peers was his 'resting bitch face', it seemed that people were less likely to approach him, including bullies. Whatever the case, he was glad for it. "It's unfortunate to pick up a martial art for such reasons, but... I'm happy I did."

He shrugged matter-of-factly at Nao's sympathies. "It is alright. I've gotten more used to it, and I know where my limits are." Xun's trainer had helped with that a lot. It still wasn't easy, or fun, but it was manageable. The taller boy rolled out his shoulder as he felt a kink start to develop, pondering the question. "Well... It still can be difficult," he admitted. "I don't think it ever gets particularly easy. But... Yes, I would say I've developed a lot since I manifested." Speed abilities just weren't always what they were cracked up to be. There were serious side effects, and risks if one wasn't careful.

"How are your reflexes?" he asked out of the blue. Without warning, Xun flashed a fist towards the younger boy, making it so he wouldn't hit him if Nao failed to block, but still throwing some serious speed into the movement. A playful smile twitched at the corner of his lips.

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“I am too,” he agreed. While it was terrible that the reason Nao felt like he had to pick up aikido was in order to shield himself from the cruelty of his peers, Nao was quite glad that he continued on with the practice. It started out as one thing, and then quickly progressed into a passion that he wasn’t sure he could do without. Naozumi couldn’t imagine not practicing at any time in his life. He supposed, if some accident brought it about, then he would be crushed to not be able to practice anymore. “If you don’t mind my asking,” he started with an air of curiosity. “What were you bullied for?” Because Xun just seemed like such a confident, skillful person. Nao couldn’t imagine why someone would target him. Or maybe he just didn’t have enough imagination?

Nao offered him a nod of acknowledgement. It was good to know one’s limitations. Nao had only just manifested a few months ago. He supposed it was only natural that the 15-year-old boy had yet to learn all of his own. “That’s good.” Xun’s success meant that Nao had something to look forward to if he continued to train diligently.

”How are your reflexes?”

Naozumi was going to answer but before he could open his mouth to speak, there was a fist swinging his way towards his face. It came out of nowhere, Nao didn’t have much time to prepare. He wasn’t primed for sparring, so his awareness was severely limited. Therefore, when the fist came, the only reaction Nao gave to his partner was a slight widening of the eyes in confusion. He didn’t move or speak otherwise.

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Xun spent so much time practicing his martial art, it had become part of who he was; Nao and the Chinese boy were a lot alike in that regard as well. He almost chuckled at how similar they were - Xun wondered if maybe he would have a growth spurt someday, and then even their heights wouldn't be so different. He blinked and focused back on Nao from his musings as the younger boy asked about his bullying. "Oh, no, I don't mind," he replied. "I, ah... I used to be a lot smaller, but it was mostly my eyes," he said softly, pressing his fingers underneath the contact-clad topic at hand. "This isn't their natural color," he admitted. "People thought it was strange, so they mocked me about it." And Xun used to respond by cringing and crying, which only spurred the bullies' fire. "I... Am still not over it," he added in a murmur; it was probably obvious, given the fact he still hid them.

But... He still apparently had a mischievous streak in him, at least around people Xun was comfortable with. Given all the two had shared about themselves to each other in the last however long it'd been, the taller boy felt playful enough to toss a fake punch. Xun expected some sort of flinch, or at least attempt at a block, but when he just seemed to stare dumbfounded at his fist (which Xun had stopped a couple inches from his face), he felt his face get a little hot with embarrassment.

".... duì bu qǐ, sorry," he stammered, smiling weakly. "I should have given you more warning. I won't do it again." Xun dropped his hand and shook it out a little, feeling a bit awkward now. "Reflexes are something my trainer works with me on," he said after a moment. "Ah... I thought maybe yours did too."

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Nao was glad that his question wasn’t taken as anything offensive. He knew that he himself wouldn’t be able to admit to some things so easily, but with the right person he might be able to speak a little more openly. He was surprised to hear that the darkness of Xun’s eyes was the result of colored lenses and he wondered what their natural color was. It was true, though, that for those of asian heritage, that anything other than black or brown as uncommon and might be seen as…strange. Just the image of it in Naozumi’s mind was enough to evoke a curious expression, though he didn’t say anything about his own impressions. He knew there was more to Xun than just his eyes and didn’t want to risk making the older boy even more uncomfortable, especially after having trusted Nao with such sensitive information. “I’m sorry to her that. That sounds like it would be hard to have to go through.”

Naozumi was very strict with himself when it came to fighting, though that might have just been because unless he was primed for it, it was not something he thought about doing instinctively. Unless they struck first, he had no reason to fight back.

He blinked as Xun’s fist was taken away from his face. “It’s okay,” he said with a smile. “I probably wouldn’t have blocked anyway.” Nao chuckled, knowing that it was probably true. It was actually a little embarrassing, but Nao at least knew himself well. “I need to work on that more,” he admitted. “I don’t do well with surprises.” But he could at least take a hit, despite being so small, so in his opinion that made up for his lack of attention.

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Xun actually found that telling Nao this stuff was... Pretty easy. They already had so much in common, and the Chinese boy felt that he could trust the little martial artist without worrying about him somehow using it against him. He'd experienced bullying himself - no way would he make someone else experience that. "It's alright," he replied with a smile. "It is in the past now. I try to look only to the future." The future where he hoped to attend Beijing Sports University, or at least join the national team in the United States.

He was glad Nao didn't seem upset by his playful almost-jab, but Xun still felt a little bad. "Ah... I'm glad I didn't bring my fist any closer," he mumbled, imagining his fist colliding with the small boy's face. He cringed. "Maybe we can do powers training together sometime?" he suggested, walking over to his bag and checking the time. "Ai-ya, speaking of powers training, I should probably go," Xun sighed. "My trainer wants to go over some new techniques today, and I said I'd meet him soon."

Xun turned back to Nao and, after a moment, awkwardly patted his shoulder. "Let's, ah, hang out again sometime soon, okay?" he suggested with a smile. "I, um, enjoyed today." He slung his bag over his shoulder, scuffing a foot against the training room floor.

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Naozumi had a feeling that he and Xun could be good friends. Maybe, once they’d gotten to know each other more, Nao would tell him all his secrets. He didn’t like being “in the closet”, as they put it, but he had no way of knowing what would happen once he “came out”. it scared him. Xun might end up being the first person he trusted with that information. He smiled up at his much, much taller training partner. “That’s good,” he said.

Nao laughed. “Me too. But if you had hit, I might’ve been in trouble.”

He wasn’t expecting their session to end so suddenly, but Nao understood. They couldn’t very well spend every waking moment in the dojo, right? “It’s okay,” he assured his friend. Nao send the older boy a smile. “I did too. I’ll see you later.” He waved as Xun took off, then returned to his own training.