Ivo should have expected Davi to be harder on him after that.
He made him repeat his attack, but this time he was ready for anything, and Ivo could barely reach a strand of his dark hair.
"You have to adapt," Davi told him, while Ivo was bowled over, catching his breath, "You can't expect that the same move will be effective every time."
Ivo glared at him in silence. In the back of his mind he still thought he was being punished for besting Davi.
Eventually, he did manage to get an elbow in against his neck which got him an aloof "good", and a respite as Davi and Alina went over some different techniques.
It was slow going. Ivo alternated between practising attack and defence, and he could feel himself getting sloppy as the morning went on.
"I'm hungry as fuck, let's have lunch," Alina said while watching Ivo weakly struggle in Davi's chokehold.
Ivo was so relieved that for once he imagined he could see the sun peek through the steel-grey sky, its weak light caressing him in encouragement.
---
Lunch was almost done when they arrived back at the apartment. Thiago had found mandioca flour in a nearby market stall, which was apparently much cause for celebration.
When Ivo had the fried flour with its onion flavour together with the thick black bean sauce of the day before, he understood why.
"I've run some checks with Yunmi," Thiago said, wiping his mouth clean daintily. "Things look good for the job. As much as he's a scummy motherfucker, Vital's intel was detailed, and it was easy to hack the guest list and slip the three of you in under assumed identities."
A mouthful of farofa went down the wrong pipe and Ivo coughed loudly. "I'm going too?" He chanced a wide-eyed look towards Davi.
He had offered to help, and he knew what that entailed. But he didn't expect to be going on a gig so soon.
Davi took a sip of water to wash down his food and nodded. "You have until Saturday night to learn how to shoot straight, free yourself from a restraining hold, and stab someone before they can stab you." He put down his metal cup on the counter with a loud clink. "I suggest you take your training seriously."
"What's the mission?"
Alina opened her mouth to answer but before she could speak Davi cut in, "Focus on your training for now. You'll find out soon enough."
His crisp voice didn't leave room for argument and Ivo returned to his food with distinctively less appetite.
---
The rest of the day was spent practising with blades; something Alina declared him near hopeless at.
"Why are you holding a dagger like a kitchen knife? Synth beef can't hurt you. Not physically at least."
"Despite the fact that these blades are called 'peixeiras', you're not actually a fisherwoman, you won't be gutting fish! So look alive and act like it."
"Why are you holding the katana like that? Do you want to break your own wrist?"
Ivo was surprised to find her a much harsher teacher than Davi. Her praise was even rarer, and her good humour was gone. She snapped at him in impatience each time he made a mistake, and called on Davi to help her demonstrate how it was supposed to be done.
Try as he might, Ivo could never fully get the hang of any blades she presented him with. He moved clumsily with them, slow and lumbering in a way he wasn't in hand-to-hand combat. Alina tried to demonstrate how to hold a gun in one hand and a short blade in the other, but try as he might Ivo couldn't get a good grip on either.
"I give up," she told Davi with a glare. "I hope he's a good shot because he's not that great a fighter and he's absolutely useless with anything with an edge."
She left with the bag with all her weapons slung over her shoulder and a two finger salute on her way to the stairs.
"I told you she wasn't your friend," Davi said, meeting Ivo's eyes with an amused look. "Not yet, at least."
Ivo let himself drop into a squat and hung his head between his shoulders, feeling more tired than he thought possible.
"Come on, we can try again tomorrow," Davi said, rubbing Ivo's bare nape as he walked past him.
The touch sent a jolt though Ivo, who ran a hand over his skin, wondering why it felt suddenly warm.
---
Dinner was leftovers from lunch, and Ivo ate ravenously and in silence. He took a shower after Alina, sneezing a little in the perfumed humidity she left behind, but relieved to have the warm water beating down on him and softening his tight muscles.
He was still drying his hair when he walked into the bedroom. Davi was sitting down on the bed, apparently waiting for him.
"Sit down," he said as soon as he saw Ivo.
Gingerly, Ivo took a seat next to him. Davi grabbed his chin in the crook of this thumb and twisted his face this way and that.
"You have a sunburn," he said, peering down into Ivo's eyes, who felt compelled to close them just so he could hide from his gaze.
Davi didn't notice his discomfort. "Don't think that just because you can't see the sun it won't burn you." He let go of Ivo's chin to rummage in a metal box at his side that Ivo hadn't noticed before.
He brought out a tub of clear gel and coated two fingers in a thick layer. Ivo nearly jumped when Davi touched his cheek with his cold fingers, spreading the gel evenly.
"This will soothe the skin," he said, focused on his task.
Ivo let him work in silence, his tension melting away under the relaxing touch. When he was done Ivo's scalp was left tingling pleasantly.
"Lay down on the bed, let me get your back."
Davi's low voice added to the tingling feeling. Ivo did as he said. He stretched down on the bed, his head pillowed on his crossed arms.