"Come on, Dad, hurry up, or we'll be late!" A young child said as he tugged at his father's hand in the parking lot.
"Hey, there's no need to rush. We still have five minutes left, and the gym isn't going to sprout legs and run away on us, right?" The father kindly joked. Stefan Romano was a middle-aged second-generation Italian immigrant and successful businessman. He wasn't part of the one percent, but he made enough to live a comfortable life with his son. Although it wasn't always a cushy life. His wife was not only cheating on him, but she was also cheating on him with his former best friend. That and the messy divorce that followed made him turn to food for comfort. This, combined with the lack of exercise from long hours, caused Stefan's slim body to gain thirty pounds.
This partially was why he came to the 20 fitness. The other reason was that his son, Leonardo "Leo" Romano, was going to take private swim lessons here. So while Leo was learning how to swim, Stefan would try to burn off the fat. It was killing two birds with one stone.
As the two entered the gym, Leo was practically bouncing in excitement. Stefan, meanwhile, was feeling a bit intimidated. This was his first time going to a gym since high school. He would usually jog to stay in shape, so to see all this equipment was a bit overwhelming. Best to check his son in first, and then he could worry about this later. So, the father talked to the receptionist, and soon a person dressed as a lifeguard came to meet them.
"Alright, this is your swim teacher. Have fun and don't give your swim teacher a hard time, okay?" Stefan said as he ruffled his son's hair.
"Okay, Dad. I will." Leo responded. He was always a polite but energetic ten-year-old. Although, as cheerful as he was, deep down, Leo was wondering if he was being a burden on his father. He saw how stressed his father was and how hard he was fighting to keep custody of him, and he couldn't do anything in return. If only he could be useful, like if he was as big and strong as his swim teacher. Then he could be strong enough to carry groceries and stuff. Sure this was kid logic, but that was what Leo was feeling.
After Stefan said goodbye to his son, he walked to the gym area and felt overwhelmed again. He could just run on the treadmills, but since he was at a gym, shouldn't the weights and the machines. Stefan was never a muscular person, so maybe it was time for him to build some muscle? Though, how did he use those machines? How did he lift those weights? Stefan then shook his head. Come don't be like this, you're Stefan Romano, and if you can close business deals, you can do this. So, Stefan decided to look around for a bit and was surprised to see someone he recognized.
"Didn't expect to see you here," Stefan greeted his old friend. That friend was Luis Tenorio, a local college professor. The two of them went to college together and had kept in touch since. Although, thanks to the divorce, they haven't seen each other much recently.
"Oh, Stefan, good to see you, buddy," Luis said as he put down the weights he was lifting to give his friend a hug. "How are you doing? I heard about the divorce from some of my colleges, and I'm so sorry that you had to go through that."
"Thanks, but I'm doing fine now. Well, except for the fact I've gained so much weight from stress eating." Stefan patted his gut. "Trying to see if I can get rid of this. Though this is "
"Heh, yeah, I'm in the same boat. We're both getting older, and I've started coming here to keep the weight off myself," The professor replied. "Hey, why don't I show you around? I can teach you how to use the machines, and we can work out together. Maybe even play some basketball, like old times."
"Yeah, that sounds like a plan," Stefan nodded. "And I'll beat you, like old times."
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Meanwhile, Sandra had observed the father and son enter the gym and was a bit concerned. She didn't account for children to come here, but then she had a thought. The witch had thought that this would be an interesting experiment. See what would happen and really test how strong her magic really was.