A LEAP OF THE EARLY BIRD

Complete knockdown...

Love uplifts. Love gives one wings. And it also has a potential to knock one down so completely that the feet forget how it felt to stand on the ground, and the heart forgets how to drum. Completely...

Ceyda thought she outsmarted Sanem and snatched up some alone time with Can. But fate knew that it was Sanem who outsmarted Ceyda instead. Not only Can's mind was totally filled with thoughts of Sanem and only Sanem, they were not alone by any means. Sanem succeeded in sneaking into the gym room where Can and Ceyda worked out on her kickboxing lesson. She was mere feet away from them. And kept her watchful and keen eye on their workout. Although Can thought he was taking it easy on Ceyda, she was sweating in a way she had not anticipated. She also did not anticipate for Can's attention to break from her. But, tried as he might, his eyes kept traveling to his side to look at the clearly and quite evidently inexperienced newbie of a gym member, who obviously never met a punching bag.

And it was becoming aparent to Sanem herself that she was completely inexperienced in the world of sports, a world in which Can felt like a bird in the air. He was graceful, strong, and confident in his moves. But Sanem? Not by the least. She fought with the punching bag as one would fight off a bee. She punched the air, kicked where ever she could, and was knocked out by the punching bag itself. There were even times she held onto the bag, instead of punching it, and ended up doing a full circle, still attached to the bag. All the while attracting more attention from Can than he offered to Ceyda.

As for Ceyda, the time came when she could not take it any more. She was exhausted. Her arms hurt like they never did in her life. And she was obviously not getting anywhere close to Can, at least not as close as she was sure she could get to him. She told him she had had enough, but not before requesting another lesson with him. Exhausted, dissapointed, and angry with the failure of her plan, she walked off the ring, and so did Can...

Sanem took her chance. No way she would take it that easy. No way she would take it easy on him either. He practiced with Ceyda? Fine. But she was Sanem Aydin, and she would not back down or away that easy. He wanted a workout? She would give him a workout. And she would not hold back. And, boy, didn't she... When Can was passing by the boxing ring on his way back to the locker room, she asked him innocently for a private lesson. She asked for a few pointers on how to fight since he moved so well in the ring. He declined the invitation, saying he was not a personal trainer. But her words intrigued him, so, he took a closer look.

Suddenly, it all made sense. The less than clumsy moves, the less than inexperienced blows he saw her throw at the punching bag. The continuous stares he saw her make his way while he trained Ceyda. Ahh, Sanem, ahh. What would he do with her? What could he do with her? The only thing possible. Presumably reluctant, he obliged her. He got into the ring, and was totally unprepared for the attack she threw at him. Though he laughed at her uncoordinated moves at first, he had to admit that the punches she threw offered a little kick to them. Not like Ceyda's. So not like Ceyda's. Sanem definitely threw punches with passion. And the fact that he did not know which direction she was aiming at, meant he did not know how to prepare for them. So, he just waived them off, with equal amount if force to meet her punches.

But punches were not the only thing she threw at him. And that amuzed him. She threw in his face that she was his friend. She was his first friend. FIRST friend. And that struck a cord with him. Because she was right. Down to the core. And she wasn't afraid to fight for that, for herself, and for them. And that struck a deeper cord. He suddenly felt less amuzed and more determined that he would fight for them as well. He told her to give it the best she had. So, she did. He used that momentum and grabbed her mid-waist, and they gently tumbled to the floor. He eased the harshness of the floor by having her land on him. He made sure no harm came to her. She looked at him, dazed and exhausted from the punches. She looked into his eyes, and it struck another cord, deeper than previous one. His heart raced. But not because of her punches. It raced because he suddently realized how perfectly she fit with him. Fragile, yet full of energy and passion. He also realized how much in love with her he really was.

He rolled them over so that she lay underneath him, making sure he did not crush her. He removed her headgear, allowing her hair to fall freely around her. Her eyes shone with the gleam that only a woman in love would possess. He recognized it. He yearned for it. And he could not describe how it felt to see that look in her eyes. Because he knew she would not look at another man the way she looked at him. And felt completely defenseless against it. And, she was right, they were just getting started.

He may have knocked her down, but he was the defeated one. She truly was the total package. And she conquered his heart, with a complete knockdown. And she did so by surrendering to him at the very moment he thought he had won. But he did not win, she offered that win to him. And more than that, he realized she offered him her heart...