Chapter 3: New Training Regiment
After getting changed I rushed out of my house and immediately started running to the gym. After about ten minutes running as hard as I could, I realized I had no idea where the gym was. I took a short break to catch my breath and started searching for someone who could give me directions. I run into a kindly old man and ask him, "Can you tell me where the nearest gym is?"
He smiles at me, "Of course! Go down that street over there!" He points behind me. "Then turn right once then turn left. The Iron Body gym should be on your left."
That's my brother's favorite gym, the big baby wouldn't shut up about that place. He would always beg me to get up and come with him, and I never really wanted to waste time in the gym. He probably still holds a grudge against me for that, seriously, why the hell does he still care? He's the older brother, why the hell is being so petty-
My thoughts were interrupted when I ran head-first into a steel beam, which was used as a decoration for the Iron Body Gym. The steel bar was curved up and crossed over another steel beam forming an x on the building. IRON BODY GYM, engraved on the sign that hung just below the steel beam. The sign had a grey backdrop with a red outline, giving it an imposing vibe, like anyone who walks into this gym must take their physique seriously. The double-sided doors were huge, outlined in red paint and standing at least three feet taller than me. They were wide too; I could stretch my arms while standing in the middle and wouldn't be able to touch either side. When I looked through the glass, I could see why they were so big. The men inside were huge, they were all close to the size of my brother, a few were probably a little larger....
Then I saw a pair of angry eyes reflected in the glass doors. A large shadow loomed over me. I turned around, a tall, lean, black man stood behind me. Arms crossed and his right eyebrow was raised in annoyance. "Can I come in?" he asked, clearly annoyed with me blocking the door. I quickly scuttled out the way, not wanting to piss him off anymore. As he entered, I noticed he was weirdly slim for someone who used this gym, way skinnier than most of the people inside. He turned back to me, and asked "You just here to sightsee?"
"Uh, what do you mean?" I asked. He sighed and opened the door.
"You came here to train right?" His hand gestured towards the entrance. "Go inside!"
I quickly scuttled inside the gym and looked around. The gym looked even bigger on the inside, weight sets were lined up neatly on the wall, two on each side. Treadmills and other kinds of equipment were set in the back. I was drawn to investigate the machines, until I that man pulling me back. "Only paying patrons are allowed to use those machines" he said, "though I doubt a rookie like you could make much use of it." He then walked behind the front desk, pulling up a clipboard and pen. "You need to sign up for the gym before you start working out rookie. I'm Ben Nigel, the part-time receptionist of the Iron Body Gym."
"And I'm Adrian Castille, the newest member of the Iron Body Gym." I saw the smallest hint of a smile on his face.
"Why did you introduce yourself to me?" he asked.
"You introduced yourself to me first, so I wanted to return the favor." I looked down at the clipboard. "I'm also going to be working out at this gym a lot for the next two months, so I might as well get to know you as well as I can."
"Hm." Ben's stone-cold face leered over me; clearly doubtful I would last a week. He started explaining what I can do at gym "The weight sets and the punching bags can be used for free, along with the treadmill for the first week. All the other equipment and the sparring ring can only be used after you start paying the monthly membership fee, starting at $50 a month. Sign here to get half off on your first month." He extends the clipboard to me. A surprisingly colorful sheet was presented to me, the form asked for my information and what kind of membership I wanted. Only one option was available. He noticed my confusion and explained it to me.
"The boss found a template online and made a quick edit." I eyed the rest of the sheet, and realized there were plenty of grammatical errors. "The boss isn't good at much aside from working out and training people." he says, twirling the pen in his hand.