At the Gym
The walk to the building that housed the gym didn't take long. I tipped my head back and looked up at the sign on the sixth floor. Standing in front of the place at last, I hesitated for a moment—then set my jaw and stepped inside.
They said it was nice. Yeah... it does look the part.
The moment I stepped off the elevator, rows of machines and treadmills showed through the glass. I eased the door open and went in, and a well-built man at the front desk came over to meet me. His manner was soft, though. Very soft.
Still, he was easier to take than Changsu. Maybe it was only that he was a stranger, so I could tell myself this was simply the sort of person he was.
"Welcome. Here for a workout?"
"Ah, yes. I'd like a consultation for personal training."
"Of course. It's just that our male trainers' schedules are completely full right now..."
He apologized with a look of genuine regret, but I was privately pleased. I didn't let it show. I made a show of thinking it over, then nodded.
"...Can't be helped. An acquaintance said the coaching here was excellent, so I came. I'll be in your care."
"Oh, is that right? Is your acquaintance one of our members?"
"Yes. Lee Changsu. He said he's been working out here for a long time."
"Ah, so you're a friend of Changsu's. Nice to meet you. I'm the manager here."
"Ah, yes. Nice to meet you too."
"Rahi."
"Yes."
At the male trainer's call, a woman's voice answered from the back of the lobby. A moment later the trainer he'd called Rahi appeared, and my mouth nearly fell open. I clenched my jaw in a hurry. Her hair was pulled tight behind her head. The forehead it left bare was smooth and gently rounded. She wore no makeup, and yet there wasn't a single blemish on her face; her eyes were a little sharp, and that only made them more alluring. Full lips, on top of all the rest.
Her looks ran in such a different direction from Hyunji's that comparing them was nearly impossible, but she was a beauty brimming with healthy vitality. The real knockout, though, was her figure. Long legs poured into black leggings made me swallow hard, and the breasts wrapped in a baby-pink tank top filled it to bursting, swelling against the fabric and refusing to let my eyes go. A slip of bare skin showed along the line from her hips to her waist, and beneath it a firm, clean set of abs. I very nearly drooled.
"New member. Could you take the consultation?"
"Ah, yes. Would you come this way?"
"Yes."
I swallowed as quietly as I could and followed her. My gaze kept dropping to that firm ass, those thighs, and the gap between them. I forced myself to hold back. The consultation room was right in front of us.
"Please, have a seat. Hello. I'm Trainer Oh Rahi."
"Ah, yes. I'm Lee Shinwoo."
"It's nice to meet you. Do you have any experience working out?"
"No. This is my first time."
"Then how does this schedule look? The intensity is just right for a beginner. Is your goal weight loss, by any chance?"
"No. More than that, I'd like to start taking care of my body overall."
At that, Oh Rahi smiled, bright and easy.
"That's a good decision. Men all want nothing but a diet, and even when I tell them weight training helps, they simply won't believe me. Then shall we follow this schedule for now, and adjust it whenever you'd like?"
The price she quoted for the training seemed reasonable enough.
"Yes. That sounds good. I'll take ten PT sessions, and three months to start."
"Perfect. If you'll fill this out, I'll handle the payment in the meantime."
It was more money than I'd spent in a long while, but I'd already made up my mind—and just then my head had room for only one thing: whatever waited past the baby-pink screen swaying in front of my eyes. There wasn't much to write. Only the fields for name and phone number were marked with highlighter. The moment I finished, a card was held out in front of me.
"Would you like to start the workout right away, then?"
"Is that all right?"
"Of course. Here's your locker key. Change, and I'll see you in front of the desk."
The male trainers were booked solid, and yet the female trainer seemed to have time to spare. I liked this world even more. I took the band with the locker key, went to the locker room, and changed. Workout clothes I hadn't worn in ages felt awkward on me. I had no idea, in that moment, what those clothes were about to set off.
"You're... here."
"...? Yes."
"...Um, by any chance..."
Trainer Rahi had been waiting for me at the desk. She looked at me and started to smile, and then embarrassment crept over her face in a slow stain. I tilted my head, wondering what was wrong, while she opened her mouth and closed it again and again, blushing, before she finally got the words out.
"Th-then shall we start by loosening you up? Stand on the yoga mat over there and follow the pictures posted in front of you. Slow and thorough is fine. I'll watch."
"Ah, okay."
I walked the way the badly flustered Trainer Rahi had pointed. The moment I stood in front of the mirror, I could feel every woman working out behind me turn her eyes on me at once. It had been the same out on the street, of course, but the gazes caught in the mirror now were sharper.
What is this? I can't tell.
I let out a sigh and slowly worked through the stretches in the pictures. Now and then Trainer Rahi, standing behind me, corrected my form. Then I happened to glance at the mirror, and I startled. Somewhere along the way the women had packed themselves tight onto the treadmills and bikes closest to me.
A few who met my eyes flinched and looked away. Others didn't so much as pretend to dodge, even with our eyes locked—they only curved their mouths into strange little smiles. Still, they'd come close enough that I could finally tell where all those looks were aimed.
Ah.
Every time I opened my arms, their eyes crowded toward my armpits and forearms. Stretch my left leg to loosen the muscle, and they went to the left leg; extend the right, and they went to the right. It had to be the short running shorts and the sleeveless shirt.
...If I'd shown up in nothing but running gear, somebody would've had a nosebleed.
I turned at the waist with a hollow sigh and looked around. Not a single man anywhere in the gym. No wonder they were like this. Just then a male member came out of the locker room, and one look at what he was wearing left me with no choice but to nod.
He had shorts over black tights, and on top a tight long-sleeved training shirt like a rash guard, with a short-sleeved tee layered over that. It wasn't that dressing that way was strange. Plenty of people wore it as a matter of course. But once I considered that it wasn't for function at all—only a careful defense against showing skin—my head started to ache.
"...Extend the leg farther, and press your upper body firmly down. You should feel the stretch along the inside of the thigh."
My focus had slipped for a second when a soft touch settled on my shoulder. Trainer Rahi, watching from behind.
"Ah, yes. I got distracted."
"It's all right. Please focus."
I spread both legs, and every gaze in the room shot to the inside of my thighs. It was nearly enough to embarrass me. A little muscle might have saved me, but my thighs were pale as chicken drumsticks.
"I'll press you down. Keep them extended, and breathe out."
"Ngh—"
A body stiff beyond belief screamed in protest. This woman was no ordinary strength. My waist folded in a single push, and the insides of my thighs felt ready to tear. The groan slipped out of me, and Trainer Rahi flinched and took her hands away.
"Was that too hard? I'm sorry."
"No. I should do it properly. Please."
"...Ah. Yes."
Then, still pressing my upper body down, she leaned in and spoke in a whisper.
"...From next time, let's switch this for running."
"Okay."
I nearly laughed. She could have just told me to wear long sleeves. The thought that she might have wanted to look, too, sent me shaking my head hard to scatter it. Keep this up and I'd catch a terminal case of thinking I was hot stuff. Even so, it wasn't such a bad feeling. I finished loosening up, and then I learned the machines one by one under Trainer Rahi's lead.
"...You've really never worked out before?"
"Ngh— no. First... time."
"...You must have been born with it. At this level you're better than an ordinary adult woman. To think you've been letting talent like this go to waste. Didn't anyone suggest sports when you were in school?"
"I didn't... get any offers. Is that... ngh... a good thing?"
"I feel motivated. Like I've found an uncut gem. Sorry for talking. One more."
Eyes stayed crowded on me the whole time, and even when I didn't want to hear them, the whispers carried.
"I'm losing it. Look at the weight he's moving. So fucking sexy. He's better than you."
"I only diet. If I actually felt like it, I'd beat him."
"Bullshit. I definitely saw you. Quit talking crap."
"Get lost. Still, the guy's something. I was laughing to myself because he kept piling the weight on."
"And the clothes on top of that. Ah, I'm gonna lose my mind. I'm so fucking turned on."
"I thought men who actually lift iron only existed on the internet."
"Why'd he even sign up for PT? Ask us and we'd tell him everything. Cop a feel while we're at it, too. Tch."
"Did you forget about Trainer Rahi? What, you holding a ritual begging to get wrecked?"
"...Shut up. This is pissing me off. Why is she still hanging around?"
"Who knows. Shamelessness might be her strong suit."
"I heard she doesn't even have PT clients. Is that why she got assigned to him? Talk about luck. The boss is way too soft."
"Right? If it were me, I'd have fired her on the spot."
Sounded like there was a story there. It wasn't as if the voices were too quiet for Trainer Rahi to hear. She showed no reaction at all, and listening to her voice—focused on me alone—I pulled my own focus back into line.
"One more. Just one more. More. Okay. That's it. Good work."
"Hah... hah, yeah. Whew."
Somewhere in the course of working through the machines one by one, the awkwardness that had clung to Trainer Rahi had vanished.
"Your focus is excellent, too. Your base stamina is a little lacking, though. How about adding more running?"
"I've pretty much lived with a wall between me and exercise..."
"Even so, the weight you're moving is considerable, so starting now will be more than enough. I'm looking forward to it. Tomorrow we can do upper body. If you're busy, even an hour focused on cardio is fine. Always alternate upper and lower like this. And it's best to rest about one day a week."
"Ah, yes."
"Then use the treadmill or the bike and finish with your cooldown. Since it's your first day, I'd recommend about thirty minutes at whatever speed and distance feel comfortable."
"Thank you."
"Not at all. I'll see you tomorrow."
I waved back at Trainer Rahi, who smiled softly and waved, then slowly got to my feet. I climbed onto a treadmill and eased the speed up.
"Hyung-nim. Isn't that a little too sexy?"
"Agh—you scared me!"
Changsu's face popped out of nowhere, and I nearly went down.
"When did you get here?"
"A while ago. No, seriously, I didn't think you were that kind of guy, Hyung-nim. Out here trying to turn the gym into a sea of nosebleeds."
"...I'm already regretting it, so shut up. I just forgot."
"Whoa. Look at that ass move. No underwear under shorts? The women aren't sleeping tonight."
My whole body locked up.
"...These are the kind you wear without underwear, aren't they? That's what they told me at the store, way back."
"And who actually wears them like that for real? I hear women split into a panty camp and a no-panty camp when it comes to leggings, but those girls are just like that to begin with."
"No, but then the front's uncomfortable, isn't it?"
"Kyaa, and now it's outright sex appeal. Changsu doesn't knooow."
"I'm gonna kill you."
"If you're gonna wear those even when they're uncomfortable, put underwear on. Somebody's gonna hemorrhage."
"...Fine."
I was really going to have to change my workout clothes. And I felt it all over again—there were far too many things I simply hadn't thought through.
"Ah, that's a view. The goods in here are seriously nice."
"Quantity's a little thin. I'll take the right."
"I'm on the left. That ass looks delicious."
"Perfect. Go talk to him. Who knows, he might fuck you."
"Crazy bitch. I like sucking more."
"You've lost it. Rock-paper-scissors, then?"
While Changsu and I ran, the voices of the women working out behind us drifted over—women who'd been enjoying the view of our backs. I glanced to my right. Changsu was pounding away at his run as if none of it touched him at all.