Red Star

[Zixin Kao]

Zixin was positioned in front of the mirror. During this routine, he was pretending to fight an opponent. He ducked, he wove, he bopped, he slipped, he countered. Throughout all of it he was visualizing an opponent on the other side. His arms moved forward and back with rapid punches and throes of the body behind it. Shadowboxing went on for about ten minutes, and like the other routine, let his heart pumping and the blood pulsing through his arms and chest. Normally, paddle work would be up next. To that end, a case of the cushioned paddles were nearby. Sathian, Zixin’s trainer, would be out any minute to pair up and put him through drills. So meanwhile, to stay warm, Zixin bent at the waist and bobbed in some hamstring stretches.

He looked up when another guy came in. There were others around, so he didn’t normally draw much attention, but as Zixin looked at him, he recognized the actor. A smirk popped up on his face and he stepped aside to make room. There was plenty of it.

“Go for it,” he gestured at the space.

A few feet away, Zixin dropped to his back and twisted his spine around in a glorious scorpion stretch. He could feel the pops rattling up and down his body, and from this position he looked up.

“I’m a huge fan. Maybe I can get an autograph?” he nodded, eyes rolling up and down the actor’s muscular frame, imagining the two of them face to face. “And a spar after you’re warmed up,” he nodded.