Chapter 2-Time Loops & Things
I jammed my finger against the green button quickly, only to come face to face with an all too familiar figure. Although he was covered in sweat and in an indisputable state of not yet having a shower, he still managed to look cool. And cute. Even with those damn shoes.
I panicked.
“You!” Stranger Danger’s lips spread into a wide smirk, recognition evident on his face.
Clearly, I was not the only one who had a vivid memory of our encounter.
“Me,” I answered tentatively, nodding my head slowly, as if I, myself, needed to to confirm his already obvious statement.
“I didn’t know you go to the gym. I’ve never seen you before,”
Shit, was I in a time loop?
I love Reese.
Or at least I did during the times he was not attempting to push me into the depths of trouble or try to shred every last semblance of dignity and/or credibility that I possessed.
Growing up, Reese and I had been close. Being two years apart meant that we did have some things in common, at least, that we could talk about. I idolised him and wanted to be like him in the earlier part of my youth-there was even a time I dressed up like the Backstreet Boys because he was in a phase.
Uncle Sam made sure I never forgot those days, sadly.
Unfortunately, growing up close also meant that Reese would pull the occasional prank and like every member of the male species, enjoyed getting on my nerves. He ratted on me when I bought my first lace bra with Katie Lee at thirteen and he saw me at the mall. He swapped my shampoo for toothpaste before my date at sixteen. He egged me on often, setting impossible tasks for me to accomplish. Despite knowing most times that I would fail, I took his bait, anyway, and it usually ended up with him kneeling over with laughter and me rubbing my face in mountainous embarrassment.
Despite that, I loved my brother.
And maybe wanted his approval.
That was why I agreed to meet him at eleven at night, running on four hours of sleep the day before, at a coffee shop half way across town.
It was bad decision number three hundred and ninety-three.
“So, you basically just buy coffee for the crew?” I asked in genuine horror, incredulous that after having to spend a conspicuous amount of money for his degree in stage management, Reese Westwood was reduced to being a coffee man.
I might hate him sometimes but nobody deserved to be half asleep, queueing in a snaking line for cups of coffee only to have to balance them on hands, legs and head afterwards to get it to a crew.
My brother only nodded. Instead of looking dejected over my statement regarding his non-bright predicament, however, his eyes lit up.
“I have to learn the ropes, Rob. I mean, I’m new and nothing they teach you at university is useful anyway. Tell me, do they tell you how to handle screaming kids at uni? Really handle them,” he shot back. I opened my mouth, then closed it again-there was no lie there, for sure. Reese pointed a finger at me, as if he proved a point. “You have to be in it to learn it. So you know, if buying coffee means I get a chance to work along side the actual stage manager then I’d gladly do it,”
Sometimes, my brother made sense.
I mean, you gotta bust ass occasionally.
“That does make sense,” I agreed, downing the remainder of my sugarless concoction.
Why anyone would fancy decorated coffee was beyond me, by the way.
“Enough about my coffee runs. What are you up to these days? Besides burying yourself in Twilight fanfiction and napping every time it rains,” Reese listed, an indication that my brother knew me too well. I reached over and smacked him on the arm.
“Could you please lower down your volume about the Twilight fanfiction,” I mumbled through gritted teeth. “It’s not like I can stop myself. And…you’re wrong, Reese. I go out to the bookstore on my own now,”
My brother clapped slowly, then snorted in disapproval. It was a miracle that he did not sputter coffee all over the table, too.
“That’s hardly activity, Robin. I’m concerned for you,” I rolled my eyes, leaning back against the chair, crossing one leg over the other. He seemed determined in his quest to…whatever the quest was. “You should really join a gym, you know. They have classes and you get healthy and all the good stuff. And you can make friends,”
I looked at him as if he told me I had grown pink feathers and green scales-at the same time.
“Right. Sweaty people and over inflated egos at the dumbbell thingy? No thank you, Reese. You might be the active one but I am fine just the way I am. And I already have friends,” I held my hands up in defence, face contorted in disgust.
At this point in time (or any point in time for that matter), I was fine with him taking the title for ‘most fit and good looking in the family’; I was definitely not fighting him for the position. Besides, he had been trying to get me to go to the gym for years with little success. I liked my life the way it was.
That was not about to change now.
“You have two friends, Rob. Come on, twenty-three is the time your body starts to slow you down,” he argued on, ignoring my previous undertone of absolute rejection of his idea. My brother could be a real pusher when he really wanted to be. “I’ll pay for you,”
I shook my head ‘no’ once more. This appeared to exasperate my brother and he threw his hands up in the air, as if he only just found out his little sister abhorred the idea of physical activity in any form.
“That’s just you now, isn’t it? You so readily give up when it’s outside your comfort zone. Even if it’s good for you. You’re a quitter,” Reese accused.
O-kay. Was this the start of a sand pit fight but with words?
“Reese, come on. Why’re you so upset, anyway? It’s the gym; you know the answer! I’ve told you many times before. And how does this make me a quitter?”
“Uhm, you don’t even try? That’s quitting before it even starts! You quit playing Barbies when the comb got stuck in the doll’s hair,”
“I was like…five, Reese, and it was the doll’s hair or my hand and self-worth,” I responded flatly, my eyes narrowed at my brother’s nerve to deliver a low blow and his tendency to bring up my dark past.
The air between us stilled and for a while, we did nothing but stare at each other. Well, I stared at my brother while he checked out a blonde barista whom I presumed was making eyes at him.
Right.
“Prove you’re not a quitter then,” his words finally cut through the momentary silence that hung between us. His attention was back on me, then.
I hated how much I could never resist when my brother posed a challenge.
Even when repeated events reminded me that it would do me no good and I would be the one who ended up the one with a less than favourable memory of any shared incidences.
“Fine,”
Bad decision number three hundred and ninety four? Checked.
That was almost two and the half weeks ago. Between then and now, I have had to resuscitate myself at least fifty-two times by gasping large amounts air- while holding my stomach so the contents did not accidentally choke me to death, too.
All in all, I was miserable.
“Alright, this is the last stretch. We’re going up a mountain. I need you to increase your resistance…turn the gear, and…push,”
And boy did I push.
My legs spun wildly on the bicycle, matching the beat of Bieber’s ‘Sorry’, sweat dripping down every inch of my body-even in the darkest of places. By then, my ponytail had untangled itself slightly, wisps of hair flying in my face from the fan blowing in double directions to mimic winds on a mountain or something like that-I was far too gone to care. Trying not to eat my own hair whilst feebly getting air into my lungs and ignoring the burn in my legs at the same time proved impossible but thankfully, the music slowly died.
And so did I. Well, almost.
I slumped on the bicycle seat, body bent forward as I attempted to catch my breath-this time for longer than the thirty-second interval. Around me, people cheered for a job well done and had begun getting off the bicycle to do the closing stretches.
I, on the other hand, needed two more minutes to make sure I was not completely dead.
Unluckily for me, the length of the stretch was equivalent to the time I took to regain myself proper. By the time I stumbled off the bicycle and reached for the towel to make sure I did not flood the room with perspiration, everyone else was already gayly filing out, the instructor himself grinning as he high fived each one of them on their way out. A far cry from my own appearance, the instructor looked like he had been sitting on the couch watching Sherlock the whole time and not yelling at the top of his lungs for the class to keep up to his insane pace.
Lucky bastard.
As I ambled out, he offered me a bright smile and his hand for a high five. I obliged. Now that we were not under dim, pseudo disco lights, I could see how obviously fit he was, his tattoo decorated arm muscular.
“You’re new? I haven’t seen you before,” he commented, falling into step next to me.
Oh hell no.
I was not in the mood for a conversation right now. I have not even fully recovered, for God’s sake.
“Uhm yea.” I replied. I would have hastened my pace and made a run for the showers, too, but my legs were jelly and therefore, uncooperative.
Screw this.
Before this, the only jelly I came into contact with was plated.
When Liam mentioned that this was an easy class to conquer, he clearly and conveniently forgot to mention that the notion only applied to people who have been at this for a while.
Not a novice gym go-er.
“Ah, no wonder I haven’t seen you before,” Ditto that. “You kept up pretty well with the rest of the class for a first timer. Usually, most do not make it past the first twenty minutes, I’m impressed,”
“Thank you? I usually try not to disappoint,”
That comment earned a light chuckle from my instructor, his green eyes crinkling at the corners, as if I had said the funniest thing he heard all day. I only looked at him, perplexed at his reaction, then cleared my throat.
“I, uh, should go. Don’t want to kill anyone with my looks and smell right now,” I continued, pointing in the direction of the locker room. “Thanks for the…class,”
The instructor smiled and nodded but did not make a move for two whole seconds. I stared back awkwardly, wondering if he had anything to add or if I had something on my face other than proof of hard work. After deciding that a decent amount of time had passed with no immediate concern for my ego, I flashed a gawky smile and painfully climbed up the stairs that led to the locker room.
There was no point in prolonging torture of any form, anyway.
The process of cleaning up was quick and hassle free, motivated by the fact that I had materials to prepare for work the next day. Plus, locker rooms generally made me uncomfortable, too. It was the place to showcase your true level of confidence, clearly, because no one there seemed to know the meaning of the word decency or consideration. People stripped bare and left their under things lying around freely-not caring who else could be possibly terrorised by the mere sight or whether or not they were overexposing their deepest secrets.
Hence, I had no choice but to prance around with half closed eyelids right after my shower. I slid into my clothes as quickly as possible before making a swift exit. By this time, I was desperate to go home and leave my gym adventures in the dust.
At least for now.
I had made it to the lift, too, when halfway through the door closing, someone yelled.
“Hold it!”
I jammed my finger against the green button quickly, only to come face to face with an all too familiar figure. Even covered in sweat and in an indisputable state of not yet having a shower, he still managed to look cool. And cute. Even with those damn shoes.
I panicked.
“You!” Stranger Danger’s lips spread into a wide smirk, recognition evident on his face.
Clearly, I was not the only one who had a vivid memory of our encounter.
“Me,” I answered tentatively, nodding my head slowly, as if I, myself, needed to confirm his already obvious statement.
“I didn’t know you go to the gym, too. I’ve never seen you before,”
Shit, was I in a time loop?
Lucky for me, I remembered to press the ‘door close’ button and the lift whizzed towards the first floor.
“It’s a new arrangement. You go to the gym, too?”
It was a stupid question, probably, but it was either that or the sound of dead silence the rest of the way down so it was mindless decision, really.
Dead silence gave me the creeps.
“Yeah, yeah. Been going for a while now,” If he thought it was a stupid question, he indicated none of it. He did, however, stretch his hand out. “I’m Harry…Styles. Harry Styles,”
I blinked a few times.
“Robin Westwood,” I introduced myself, then took his hand. His long fingers curled around mine and after firmly shaking twice, he let go.
“Like batman and Robin,” he commented, jamming a hand into the pocket of his shorts. The lift was nearly to the lobby but he was bouncing on his feet, clearly impatient.
I, however, was livid.
I had not heard the batman joke in eight years. Maybe ten. The last person who said it to me got a black eye.
It was one of my prouder moments, I must admit.
Thankfully, the door opened just as the possibility of socking Harry Styles floated into my mind. The impending crisis was therefore temporarily averted as we both stepped out.
“See you again soon?” he asked, halting mid-step.
All else aside, at that moment, I found myself wondering just why my resolve and determination to simply get home was met with obstacles over and over again. Did I offend the universe? Harry was oblivious and prodded on.
“I’m here Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. The strength classes are the best so maybe we could gym together sometime,”
Before I could formulate a proper reply, most likely to decline his kind invitation, the door to another elevator opened and out stepped a herd of people, the last of which was my spinning class instructor. His calm expression morphed into a friendly grin when he spotted Harry and I.
Damnit, what now?
Spinning Instructor waved enthusiastically, making a beeline for us. Unlike my newly minted friend, he was undoubtedly clean.
“Harry, hi. Didn’t see you at the gym,” Instructor commented, then turned to me, offering a nod of acknowledgement. Harry waved a hand back in greeting.
“Aye, John was working me hard today, Louis,”
They then launched into deep conversation about protein shakes.
That was definitely my cue to exit because this could go on forever and had absolutely nothing to do with me. My journey home was already prolonged by five minutes and twenty seconds for less than justifiable reasons in the first place.
“I should go. You two should catch up,” I interjected, already taking small steps back, water bottle clutched to my chest. “It was nice meeting you two,”
They paused their conversation and turned to bid me goodbye, I assumed, but unlike the smile he wore before, Harry merely cast his gaze in my direction, his eyebrows furrowed.
“Uh, Robin. You should probably know... I can see your...things...through your shirt,” Harry cautioned.
“Things?” my expression matched his but my eyes immediately darted towards my shirt.
Shit
Tits. He meant tits.
A/N: An update!! An actual update!!!!!!!!!!!!! *random crowd cheering*
I actually saw Harry on Thursday in all his shiny gold clad glory and I am never the same since then.
Talk to me about Harry. Or Robin. Or even Spinning Instructor; I’d love to hear your thoughts!!
P.S: Spinning classes are actually pretty fun tbh!!
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