Jay approached him again, this time without the full commitment of the first attempt. His movements were shorter and more controlled, with his hands positioned differently.
Mike reevaluated his assessment of Jay's training, recognizing it was more advanced than he had previously thought.
He wasn't working from instinct. He knew what he was doing.
Mike blocked the first strike, took a grazing contact on the shoulder from the second because blocking it cleanly would have cost him his position, and used the window that buying that position gave him to put Jay off-balance, rotating him out of the center line. Jay recovered faster than expected, and they separated.
Mike rolled his shoulder, testing it. "Fine."
"The shoulder," Jay said.
"Still attached," Mike replied.
"Next one won't be just a graze."
"I'll keep that in mind," Mike said.
He looked at Jay with the particular attention of someone who had upgraded their estimate and was recalculating accordingly. "Who taught you?"
