Ryan felt an odd compulsion to go to the gym. Never in his life had he actually wanted to go. Yet, right now, it was the only thing on his mind. Before he knew it, he'd naturally wandered over to the large double doors. He peeked inside. Barely any one was in there. It was getting late on a Friday night. Most people were getting ready to go out. However, there was Todd.
Todd was one of the big men on campus. Not completely in size, but many of the other men did look up to him. He was chosen for his ability to play baseball. And he was damn good at it. Quick, accurate and fairly strong, he was an asset to the team. But it also helped that he was smart as well. The coach loved that he didn't have to hire him a tutor. And it was even better that he was able to the other players in most of the subjects they needed.
And to make the coach's even happier, he didn't cause any problems. Todd was never caught drinking in the bars, or trying to bully the other students. He stayed in his lane. Quiet. Unassuming. And most importantly consistent. Coach could always count on him to put in the effort at practice and then make sure not to get into trouble when Todd was on his own.
Ryan walked into the large open room. The gym was foreign to him. But at the same time there was some kind of familiarity he had with it. A weird itch in the back of his mind made him feel as though this was a comfortable place for him to be in. A place that he wanted to be in more. The smell of sweat and metal almost called out to him. He wandered about, unsure really what to do. His first stop at the dumbbells. He lifted up the 10 pound weights and started some curls.
"Woah," Ryan muttered to himself. "That's really easy..." He looked down at the weight, thinking it would feel heavier than it did. Then set it back down and moved up to the 15 pound ones. "Better?" The question hung in the air. He could feel the dull soreness forming in his biceps as he finished an entire set. But at the same time he still felt a bit lost. Looking over at Todd, he couldn't help but say, "I wish I had someone like him to teach me what I'm supposed to do..."
"Granted," Gaz smiled.
"Oh shit! Wait!" Ryan said. But it was too late. The magic was drifting around Todd.
But Gaz hadn't just made it so Todd would teach Ryan. Rather the spell was altered ever so slightly, that whenever Todd would see another man in the gym who looked as though they were struggling or needed some kind of help, he'd go over and help. And as the spell took effect, Todd's head shook slightly. Then he caught Ryan's eyes.
"Hey," Todd called out. "You doing okay?"
"I--" Ryan felt his throat close up. He didn't know what to say back. Especially as the baseball player walked over to him. At 6' he always felt larger than life to Ryan. And it didn't help that his muscles were currently glistening with a bit of sweat.
"Go on," Gaz pushed at Ryan. "It's alright."
"I... Could use some help," Ryan forced out.
"Yeah," Todd let out a bit of a laugh. "Not to be mean, but you did look a little lost. But it's not all bad. Everyone has to start somewhere. Right?"
"Right," Ryan agreed. He stared absentmindedly at the man now next to him. Suddenly his breathing felt labored, almost forced. "Gotta start somewhere."
"And curls are a good starting point. Nearly everyone knows what they are. And they do work out most of the arm. But it's mainly the biceps. That's why you've got to focus on the triceps and the forearms and then the shoulders too. There's several different muscle groups there with dozens of exercises in case you get bored of them," Todd then pointed over to a poster hanging on the wall. "See, that has a couple of different workouts on it. It's not all upper body. But make sure you just try to focus on upper or lower on each work out. Alright?"
"Alright," Ryan nodded. "Upper and lower body workouts."
"Yeah," Todd chuckled a bit. One of his hands rubbed the back of his neck. "It's a bit much. But if you stick to it, you'll be growing before you know it."
"Uh-huh," Ryan nodded. He still couldn't believe Todd was talking to him so nonchalantly. "I wish it was that easy..."
"Granted," Gaz smiled. Ryan shot him a look. But Gaz simply was messing with him.
"It is," Todd said. "All you--"
"Todd! Todd! You have to help us! Coach is going to be so pissed and you have to help us," two other jocks came rushing into the gym. They were out of breath. "You've got to come with us."
"I--" Todd looked over at Ryan, then his friends. "Alright." He turned back to Ryan. "I'm going to have to cut today short. But come back tomorrow around 3pm and I'll be here."
"G-got it," Ryan nodded.
"See you then," Todd said. Then rushed out the gym with his friends.