Garrett’s life seemed like he was turning into a whirlwind of emotions ever since he’d taken up BJJ. Perhaps it was Adi

  Garrett’s life seemed to turn in a long collection of bumps and tumbles after he signed up for lessons at Team Adi’s BJJ Dojo. Those few first weeks, as Adi led him by the hand through the fundamentals of standup, guard pulling and guard passing, his body seemed to be be in constant pain. Athletics had passed him growing up, so he was particularly vulnerable to the amount of strain and effort he endured as he tried to play catch up with Adi’s stringent standards. Even when he struggled to get up in the morning for another BJJ class, or found his efforts begin to wane going through another pizza delivery, he did not once find himself considering leaving BJJ behind.

  It was very sudden how well he took to it, and how quickly he found himself lost in the camaraderie of Adi’s gym. He’d gone from perennial pizza boy icon to Adi’s perennial BJJ boy underling. He’d started with only taking 2-3 classes a week, but eventually he decided that wasn’t enough as he increased his mileage to 7 classes a week, along with a intense strength and conditioning regiment that utilised barbells, hill sprints and a brisk 10km run every morning. Much like everyone else, he could not be sure where this sudden enthusiasm for sport had come along, but Adi had seen many Garrett’s come and go from her years spent in grappling sports. She was the one constant as he came and went from the various classes she held throughout the week. Garrett did not know much about coaching or the inner workings, but he did think it would be considered odd if one person served as the full time coach for a Martial Arts gym. No matter the session, he would find her already warming up in the middle of the tatami mats by herself, usually dressed in a white gi trimmed with blue, with senses as nimble as a cat, able to launch herself from one corner to another without Garrett having time to even respond.

  “Repeat after me,” She explained one early morning, when the two of them were the only ones in class, “grab the my left label with your right hand, and then pull me forward.”

  “Label, is the sleeve of the pyjama thingie right?” Garrett answered innocently. He felt thankful she did not frown or glance at him with daggers in her eyes like so many other women had in the past. “Yes, the pyjama thingie is a Gi, and the label is the sleeve of it.” There was calmness in her voice, like a mother who tempered her passion around her child when they’d come undone in something that was on the lower end of boldness. “Let’s try this again.”

  She brought his right hand to her arm, and a Garrett felt an iron bicep as he clenched. This was beginning to awaken something primal within him. “Now, drag me forward.” Adi commanded. Garrett could do as he told, and he felt Adi’s stance move from upright to square on.

  “Good, now duck under and shoot for a double leg takedown on me.”

  Are you sure?” Garrett asked, “I’ve never done a takedown in my whole life.”

  “It’s easy to understand, just grab my legs and push upwards once you come up.”

  “Like rolling out a pizza base?” Garrett pointed out. Adi’s explanation made it seem quite seamless, but Garrett had to make a pizzeria comparison to get her to laugh. He wanted to see her laugh - he had only seen the stoic Israeli wonder woman image she presented for the few weeks they’d known each other.

  “Yes, exactly!” Adi exclaimed, not touching upon the absurdity of his example, “just grab my legs and shoot upwards.”

  “I’ll try, at the very least.” When he was confused and belittled with doubts, he could only try and do something rather than standing still and being complacent. It was the one lesson he’d taken with him from his years working in a pizzeria, and be able to put it into practice in a martial arts gym like this. There was little time to stand still in a kitchen when you have a back order of meat feast pizzas to get through.

  They reset their positions, and soon Garrett grabbed on Adi’s iron bicep the moment she drifted her a long, tantalising hand. It broke her stance, and like a charging bull Garrett ducked underneath and shot upwards, grabbing both of her ankles in the process.

  Stolen novel; please report.

  He had taken her, but he had actually not taken her down. They were now in this strange curious position where Garrett had lifted Adi well above his head, and his legs were beginning to buckle under the weight. With her right hand, she pressed down on the bridge of his neck, and reshuffled herself into retaking his back, the most perilous place a combatant could be during a match of BJJ. Garrett began to crumble apart ike a deck of cards as Adi brought him to the ground, her other iron bicep reaching around his neck to put him into a Rear Naked Choke, a deadly and versatile choke that any competent had in their arsenal.

  Garrett tried to pry away with his heavily worn fingertips, but it was of little use once Adi had him locked in and his teeth were beginning to turn into brittle. He tapped out, and Adi let him out of her python-like grip.

  “You still need to bring me to the ground,” she begun, “I can tell you haven’t been focusing enough when I’m demonstrating in class.” She watched humorously as he gasped for any kind of breath that was lingering around them.

  “I am,” he he answered once he was replenished with air, “it’s just that…”

  “Just what?”

  “I find it hard it do something like this to a woman.”

  “You mean taking me down?” Adi mused, “I am not a normal woman, as you know.”

  “I know, but it still feels wrong to me,” Garrett replied, “I want to be soft with you, but I know you will not like it.”

  The response left Adi thoughtful, but she got up and dragged him back onto his two feet with her.

  “Let’s try again, and do not think of me as a helpless damsel this time.” Adi straightened out the hems on his black gi. “Think of me as some angry customer who won’t accept her pizza since you’ve arrived an hour late.”

  “Well, I wouldn’t accept pizza if it was cold too, Adi.”

  “Neither would I, but that’s beside the point,” Adi giggled, “just surrender to your frustration and anger for a change.”

  “Like an aggressive bull let out it’s pen?”

  “Exactly!” Adi exclaimed, “like an aggressive bull looking to spear someone!”

  Spear Someone. For Garrett, the image conjured up big sweaty men in wrestling trunks throwing each other around a ring until eventually someone landed their finishing move and took the win. He had always liked pro wrestling, but had strayed far away from it in these past few years as adult life took hold of him. But to spear some, that somehow made it all the more compressible to him.

  They took their places once more, and then Adi started to hand fight with him in order to get him to outsmart her. He feinted his left hand out, and reached for one of those iron biceps of hers, before pulling her back and shooting under her like a bat out of hell.

  It worked! The rumbled around together on the tatami mats as they fell, before Garrett discovered once again his face was planted on Adi’s bosom.

  “You really do like landing there, huh?” She mused, rubbing her hands through his thick hair. It was about the only thing in BJJ that he seemed to be getting more proficient in.

  “I don’t,” He replied, “well I do, well what I mean it’s not my intention to land there.”

  “What is your intention then?” Adi asked, shrimping away from him and putting his large head into the dreaded triangle choke. “You don’t strike me as the all-American athlete type.”

  “I guess,” Garrett choked out between haggard breaths, “I want to feel like I’m good at something.”

  “Something?” Adi tightened the squeeze. She did not like indecision among people. In fact, it was probably her most disliked trait, and her years spent in the IDF did not enamour her with people who had it.

  “Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.” Garrett sputtered out. He did not think late thirty-something

  She loosened her grip. “Well, you have a long road ahead of you yet, Garrett.”

  “I know,” He smiled as he got up again, “thanks for the morning lesson.”

  “Anytime.” She answered. She reached for a towel and started to dry herself. “Are you planning to compete soon? There’s a tournament nearby in a few weeks time.”

  “Do you think I’m ready for that?” Garrett asked curiously.

  “Well, no, but it doesn’t hurt to compete any chance you get.” She headed off in the direction of shower. “15 minutes to get ready, then I’m locking the place up, don’t be late.”

  Adi’s behaviour could only leave Garrett in a daze of confusion and smiling. He was still not sure to make her of, but he felt her will was being pressed all over whenever they were on the mat together.