{SCE} Just Remember to Relax...

[Selina Taylor]

    Selina studied him, searching once more for any signs of deception or attempts at shallow appeasement, but she failed to find them. Selina sighed, not meeting his eyes as she looked out over the clearing, “…I think I’m almost jealous,” she admitted quietly. Trying to be socially acceptable enough to not stand out, putting up with the snide comments and casual dismissals, and acting like nothing affected her even if she didn’t hide it near as well as she wanted to, were everyday occurrences for Selina. There were very few times in her life where Selina allowed herself to be truly honest but he made it sound so easy.


    Selina then eyed him warily, immediately wanting to fire back with something cruel but she held her tongue once more. She quickly reminded herself again that he’d been sincere and respectful so far and… she paused as she thought about what that could mean in regards to what he’d just said. If he was still being genuine then she would have no reason to doubt his words. Selina then wanted to convince herself that he was lying, that he had to be lying, but she couldn’t force herself to do it. Selina took a breath before she replied slowly, “Even if you are telling the truth,” god, those words were a lot harder to say than she’d thought they’d be, “that doesn’t negate what I said,” she added simply. “Those with good intentions are equally as capable of great harm when given power.”


    Selina then glanced back at him when he claimed to be here for the students and once more she couldn’t force herself to think of him as a liar. “…I don’t think I can believe you yet,” she replied after a while. “But you’re much more convincing than the others,” she added softly with a wry grin. There was a small part of her that honestly wanted to believe him, but she couldn’t allow that at this point. It would take time for her to be able to adjust to the idea that Spencer wasn’t an enemy. The idea that he might even be a potential ally wasn’t something Selina could truly comprehend right now.


    Selina smiled after she hit the target and shook her head, “Not that I can recall,” she admitted. “Knives and bokkens, yes. But guns aren’t something I’ve ever had experience with.” She absently thought of the man she’d killed and wondered how different the situation would have been had she been able to shoot him the instant he’d stepped through the door… It probably would have been less traumatic, but something in her felt that the relatively easy death would have left her more unsatisfied. Not that “what ifs” ever did her any good.

[Corey Spencer]

Spence, as he was used to doing, listened. He gave her his undivided attention, taking in every word as she spoke and offering a faint nod after she had made her points. Selina was right on all counts. He respected her candor and seemed to actually appreciate her honesty. The fact of the matter was Spence was able to be exactly who he was without worry because he simply had nothing to prove to anyone. What more could a poor kid from Miami turned decorated US Army Special Forces operator have left to accomplish?

"That's fair." He replied, his tone low and even. Spence didn't expect Selina to be able to trust a stranger so quickly even though he felt, given time, the two of them may find they had more in common than originally thought. "I don't even know if it's something you want, Ms. Taylor." He glanced to the young woman and offered a faint, reassuring nod. "But I think if given the chance, I could earn that trust." Help often came in the most unlikely of places. If he, even as a simple medic, could find a way to reach the girl and give her some hope for a future then who was he to turn away?

"Huh." Spence gave the target another look over with the binoculars before turning his attention to Selina for the moment. "You take direction well." He said, allowing his inner musing to leak out. "You'd be surprised at how difficult a trait that is to find." His eyes ones again found the soft, rubber that framed the binocular's lenses. "With a bit of practice you're going to be one hell of a shot." He said. "Go for another."

[Selina Taylor]

    Selina glanced at him in surprise at his offer… honestly it wasn’t something that would have ever crossed her mind. She’d known and acknowledged that she couldn’t trust him at the moment, but the thought of actually working towards a relationship that wasn’t hostile with the man hadn’t truly occurred to her as an option. He wasn’t pressuring her into liking or trusting him and he’d accepted her for where she was at this current moment of her life. Selina appreciated that more than she could say.


    Selina studied him in silence before glancing back at the target, “I honestly came out here as a sort of… test for myself. To see if I could handle this without… freaking out,” she admitted to him as she stared at the cardboard cutout. With a breath to help muster her courage, Selina then looked up at him, “You said you were free to spar on Fridays? If we can start there and then see how it goes, I think I’d be alright with trying.” She couldn’t quite force herself to say “trying to trust” so she went with what she could afford. Her offer promised nothing, but then she had a feeling he wouldn’t be the type to need empty promises.


    Selina found herself smiling genuinely at his praise, “Thank you,” she replied quietly before focusing on her target once more. Routine was familiar for her, following instructions from her mentors in Aikido was essential to avoid injury, and her constant need for control which also contributed to a drive for near perfection helped her to focus on and usually master the tiny details. Selina knew that some of her mental habits weren’t the healthiest, but she used them to her advantage when she could. Selina exhaled once more, this time not having to wait for her mind to catch up with her body, and fired once again.

[Corey Spencer]

Spence gave a short nod at the young woman's concession to start training with him. He understood things took time, baby steps, as it were. Along what path she was trodding, he didn't know, but progress was progress and, if just being in his presence was a milestone for the girl, he wasn't going to push, prod or otherwise do anything to make her uncomfortable. That's not why he was here, even though he was beginning to doubt his medical or survival expertise had been the sole reasons for his selection to spearhead this event.

"Nice." He said as a third hole opened up on the paper target. "You're on target, but your grouping is a little off." The big man lowered the binoculars and glanced toward Selina while she was still in her firing position. "You're pulling side-to-side." He noted before setting the binoculars down and shifting to move a little closer. He lifted his hands, palms outward in a gesture of good faith. He wasn't about to make a move, he was merely going to make an on the spot correction. "Your trigger squeeze is off. Here, try this..." He reached out to her hand with the intent to merely pull her finger an inch backward so the tip of it rested against the weapon's trigger.

[Selina Taylor]

    Selina listened carefully, taking her time to decipher the terms used in ways she wasn’t altogether familiar with. She figured out the gist fairly quickly though and glanced up at him warily when he moved closer, but cautiously allowed him to correct her. She appreciated his gesture to show her he meant nothing more than to help her shot, though part of her felt guilty for being on such high guard that he needed to use it. Selina knew her defensiveness was merely a part of her history, but sometimes she wished that that history didn’t still have such a hold on her. Selina knew it would take time, but she often got frustrated with her own inability to speed up the healing process.


    Selina’s heart picked up its pace a little at the touch, her body tensing briefly due to instinct, but other than that she was able to keep her anxiety mostly at bay. She had to take a few breaths to reclaim the calm she needed to focus though. Selina then nodded to him once more before she eyed the target again, keeping only the tip of her finger on the trigger as he’d shown her, and firing on the exhale. 

[Corey Spencer]

Corey wasn't in the business of deciphering body language or trying to 'fix' any of the kids out here. That thought alone had run through his mind numerous times while on this little outing with Selina. He'd mostly just wanted to try and burn off some energy in hopes that would help occupy the time of one of the kids. He hadn't intended on getting this deep into things. Still, he wasn't about to complain. It was strange how things worked out sometimes. His mind wandered just for a moment back to the young woman who had helped pull him back from the edge not too long ago and gave a wistful smile. If he could affect Selina's life half as much as he'd had his affected by the students entrusted to his care then he would feel satisfied.

"Nice." He said with a satisfied nod. "Getting better with each shot." Lowering the binoculars, Corey lifted his eyes up. The late afternoon/early evening sun was dipping perilously close to the horizon. They were rapidly losing light. "We should pack up and head back." Already he was moving to a kneeling position so he could pull his large backpack over to him to put away the binoculars. "If we lose much more light it'll be a pain in the ass to find our way back to camp."

[Selina Taylor]

    “Thanks,” she replied simply. When he mentioned going, Selina nodded to him and quickly stood, glad to be on her own two feet again. She would offer to help him with putting the gun away, or whatever it was he needed to do with it, but she had a strong feeling she’d just get in the way. Besides, she had a feeling he’d be the type to ask if he needed help with something. Selina glanced at him and took a breath for courage before she spoke up, “And thank you for teaching me how to shoot… and for your patience.” It was vague, but she figured he’d probably understand. Though why he’d done this… she had no idea.


    Selina then warily eyed Spencer, wondering briefly about his motives. She would probably try to kill the man who tried to “save” or “fix” her. Whoever came up with that narrative could die a slow painful death for all she cared. Too many people with a savior complex had tried their hands with her and she was damn sick of it. She didn’t want to be fixed or saved regardless. What she wanted was measured control over how she reacted to situations like this, and that would only come with time, effort, and practice. Her anxiety would likely always be there, but she didn’t mind since she had a sound reason for it. She just didn’t want to end up panicking and losing control every single time an adult male got within ten feet of her. Selina hadn’t gotten the feeling that Spencer bought into that type of thing though. If she'd thought he did, he’d never see or hear from her again if she could help it... But he seemed way too genuine for that, and she was surprised to find herself standing up for him against her own cynicism.