Cerin watched over the 8 models under her care with a conflicted expression as she watched them stare down the concoction she had made for them like it was their greatest foe.
It was a fun contrast to compare them, who held the heavy clay bowls up, unwilling to bring it any closer to their mouths and Ryella that chugged back the exact same tincture like a milkshake.
At seeing the child show them up like she had been for the past few days the adults only sighed and looked away, unwilling to be discouraged, but Arrow and Siena, the two youngest still felt uncomfortable at the loss and with a stern expression on their faces then chugged it back the same way.
What they were drinking was that same mixture Cerin had been drinking while she worked out, but slightly strengthened and with slight modifications to yield the results she wanted. There wasn't really any repercussions to strengthening it as it only gave them stronger bodies but She made sure to work them extremely hard during the exercise section of their practice so they could feel more comfortable with their bodies.
Could this be considered as doping?….probably, but there wasn't a test in the world that could pick up on the materials she had used and tie it to their improved bodies and capabilities.
As well, drug tests were pretty rare in the modelling industry due to the ironically infamous secret of rampant substance abuse.
Finally, Gordon the last to finish the mixture decisively ignored (what he thought) was a mocking look from Ryella who had already moved on to the exercise floor and was completing her stretches under Serana's supervision.
After her last scare Serana had really wanted to learn how to protect herself, but couldn't because of her heavily pregnant state. Instead of waiting around she had decisively used some of the money she'd had to enroll in a Physical management health class to learn about the body as well as basic management skills and now worked at the gym as an assistant trainer and assistant manager.
The 8 other models were much less enthusiastic and felt each bump and bruise on their body as they plunged themselves into their warm up which seemed straight out of an anime or drama.
100 push ups, 100 sit ups, one hundred crunches and a hundred curls. And after that they would go into a 40 minute intense hot yoga class. It was only after that that the real training started.
Ordinarily they would have collapsed from sheer physical and mental exhaustion but somehow, for reasons that they didn't really understand, they could actually push themselves and keep up with it.
It also helped that Cerin, on top of doing her own routine would join them for their warm ups and encourage them while she did.
A large burly man walked into the gym and caught everyone's attention with is big frame and heavy steps.
Light as a butterfly, Cerin swung herself onto a sitting position on the curl bar and slid herself down the pole at the side.
Once again. Cerin was by no means a short girl, but jumping down from a bar balanced atop 10 feet poles was a sprained ankle waiting to happen. Beside her Ryella did the same thing with only slightly less grace that her older counterpart had and ran over to the coach, launching herself into his arms and sticking to him like a little monkey.
"Coach!"
He caught her with familiar ease but still looked awkward, holding the tiny child in his large arms.
"Ryella! Were you practicing hard with miss Cerin?"
She nodded vigorously in her excitement and pointed up to the gymnast rings up at the top of the roof.
" She said that i'll probably be ready to try the rings by next week and would get the nets set up soon."
Pride flashed in her voice as she spoke and being the child that's she was she couldn't help but send an bragging expression to the group of models that had been doing the exact same routine for four whole days but still struggled.
" Aunt Cerin told me that I was probably a prodigy~ seeing how quickly I picked up everything she taught me"
Cerin had said no such thing and thought so to herself as she approached them but said nothing and instead pinched Ryella's cheeks particularly hard as she walked by her, who was still in the coaches arms.
..maybe because Serana spent so much time here and by default so did Ryella, but the two had grown incredibly close to the coach…
Cerin stopped the thoughts there, thinking that he would be told if anything ever happened. Even with just the memories of her original 19 years she knew that matters of the heart could not be rushed.
She walked over to the group of 8 who had just finished their yoga class, drenched in sweat and gulping down the hyper hydration mixture she had made earlier.
Shockingly enough, at the moment it was really Four's skills that were making her the most money… Well, not really all that shockingly as Four had been the second most money mined out of all of them.
Out of all of them Tryfon was having the hardest time, Cerin observed. He was always the first to be out of breath and the first one down once a break was announced but at the same time he was always at the front of the pack, during the runs and was always the first back up once they resumed activity. Whatever he lacked in physical endurance, he more than made up in will power.
However, judging by his speed of completing the activities it was clear that he wasn't unused to exercise, but if that was the case then why was he so unhealthy?
'..maybe an unhealthy diet?'
She temporarily put the thought away and set them all up with their personal trainers who were all being paid by discount stamps from the food store.
Arrow was set with a veteran, who frequented the gym to get rid of the jitters he got from tepid stillness of everyday life.
Rin and Frona were set up with regular trainers as their concepts didn't need their bodies to be shaped in any particular manner.
Gordon and Siena were set up with a dance teacher that came her to work on his masculinity as he danced… he was talented but highly self conscious of being a ballerino.
Akemi and Tryfon were set up with bodybuilders as they are concepts needed them to be both fit as well as maintain a certain body type. To do that they needed someone who deeply understood the body and its shape.
And finally Mia stayed with Cerin and Ryella to learn rock climbing and the muscles related to that.
They all worked seriously and listened to their trainers and the mood settled when suddenly Frona let out a sharp and totally uncharacteristic scream followed by Rin's roar.
" What exactly are you doing?!"