As we headed for the gym, Mia asked me a question that caught me off guard.
"What came over you yesterday?" she asked, her voice laced with concern.
I gave her a questioning look and she explained what she meant. "I thought you said you wouldn't be drinking that much again, at least not this soon."
"Oh… about that Mia, it's complicated. My mind was a total mess yesterday. But like I said before, I'm fine now." I tried to brush off the question, not wanting to delve too deeply into the issue.
"You make me worry, Ray," Mia said, a hint of sadness in her voice.
"You shouldn't be worried," I tried to reassure her, but the words felt hollow even to my own ears.
"Yes, I should. We're like… dating… at least for the next 20 days or so…" Mia said, her voice laced with uncertainty.
"Then after that?" I asked, my voice sounding harsher than I intended. I stopped in my tracks and looked at her, feeling a sense of dread wash over me.
"Let's not think about that for now," Mia said, holding my hand and looking straight into my eyes. "You don't have to worry too much about the future… at least not now."
I gave her hand a gentle squeeze to reassure her and didn't let go as we walked to the gym, feeling a sense of comfort and connection to her.
As we walked, we came across Lily and her minions approaching from the other end of the corridor. As soon as she saw us, she put on a malicious face and walked straight towards us.
"Well, well, well… What do we have here? If it's not the famous footballer and basketballer and the newbie?" she sneered, a smug look on her face.
I gritted my teeth, trying to restrain myself from saying anything. Lily was always trying to provoke me, and I knew it was best to just ignore her.
But as she looked at our joined hands, she feigned surprise, placing her hands over her 'o' shaped mouth.
"Wow…. I never knew they're couples. Well, not on my watch," she said, the evil returning to her eyes. "Ray is mine for the taking."
"I'm not yours, Lily. Never was I, never will I be," I said, my voice laced with anger. Almost dragging Mia with me, I turned and walked away from Lily, trying to put as much distance between us as possible.
"Ray, calm down," Mia said quietly, her voice filled with concern as my grip on her hand tightened. I loosened my grip and briefly looked back to see Lily and her two minions having a tete-a-tete, their faces filled with malice.
"That can't be good," I thought to myself, but quickly dismissed it. "Well, it's not the first time her plans are blowing up in her face."
As we separated to get changed, I tried to push all thoughts of Lily out of my mind and focus on my time with Mia. I was determined to make the most of our time together and Lily's little show won't stop that.
I went to the locker room to get changed into my training outfit, which consisted of black shorts with lemon stripes on both sides and an armless shirt of the same color with the school logo printed on it.
The fabric felt smooth and cool against my skin, and the smell of clean laundry filled my nostrils. I grabbed a face towel and arranged my belongings in my locker before heading to the gym.
Mia joined me a few minutes later, dressed in a pair of black leggings and a sports bra that showed off her athletic figure.
The fabric of the leggings hugged her curves perfectly, and the sports bra revealed her toned abs and strong shoulders.
Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail, revealing her chiseled jawline and radiant skin.
As she walked towards me, I couldn't help but feel a sense of attraction and admiration for her. She looked fit and confident, and I couldn't wait to see what she could do in the gym.
We both hit the treadmill and engaged in light conversation in between our workout.
The sound of our footsteps pounding the treadmill and our breathing in sync filled the air, creating a sense of harmony and unity.
We played around with a few more pieces of equipment until Mia started to feel tired, so she watched me weight-lifting. I could feel the burn in my muscles as I lifted the heavy weights, sweat dripping down my forehead.
"Basketball and football, which of them will you be pursuing?" Mia asked as she watched me, her eyes filled with curiosity.
The sound of the weights clanking together and my heavy breathing filled the air, and I could feel the sweat dripping down my forehead.
I paused for a moment, considering her question. Both sports were a huge part of my life, and it was difficult to choose just one. Plus, there might come a time when I'll have to drop both since my family already has plans on ground.
The decision weighed heavily on my mind, and I couldn't shake the feeling of uncertainty.
"That's a question for the future, 'cause for now, I'm not that sure," I said, the words feeling heavy on my tongue.
"Really?" Mia asked, a hint of surprise in her voice.
"I might even end up taking them as leisure time sports or something," I replied, trying to deflect the question.
"You're going to be famous," Mia said, raising her hands half in the air.
"Says who?" I asked, looking her way for a few seconds before going back to my weight lifting.
"Says me, of course," Mia replied with a smile.
"Thanks for the vote of confidence, but… I don't really fancy the paparazzi and all that," I said, my voice laced with frustration. The idea of being constantly hounded by the media wasn't appealing to me at all.
"Simple life, huh?" Mia asked, understanding my sentiment.
"Yeah… I'd really love that," I replied, feeling a sense of relief that she understood my perspective even though I know my life is going to be far from being simple.
"So how many of those can you go?" Mia asked, gesturing to the weights.
"A hundred or so," I replied, feeling the burn in my muscles.
"That's why you have such bulky biceps and well-built structure," Mia said, admiring my physique.
I couldn't help but smile at her compliment, feeling a sense of pride in my hard work and dedication to my training.
"You thirsty?" Mia asked after a few seconds of comfortable silence.
"Yeah, I could use a drink," I answered, feeling the thirst set in.
"Alright, you finish up with your weight lifting while I go get us both a drink," Mia said, giving my arm a gentle squeeze before walking away.
"Alright dear," I replied, feeling grateful for her support and understanding.
A few mins later, my muscles were screaming for me to stop and I finally gave in to their request. I used my face towel to open my face and the door opened.
Expecting Mia, I saw someone else, coming in with a drink. Before I could say anything, she started the talking. .
"Hy….Mia asked me to give you this, that she really needs to use the bathroom."
"Ummmm. ..thanks." I replied as I took the drink from her. She waved me bye and left.
I opened the drink and drank more than half of the content out of thirst. I dropped the half-full can and tried to relax while awaiting Mia.
Then all of a sudden, I started feeling light headed, dizzy, my body becoming numb.
Guessing it's as a result of my tiredness, I laid down on the bench to allow it pass.
From my peripheral vision, I saw someone approaching.
'Mia?' I tried to focus my eyes on the person standing over me as my vision became blurry. Obviously she's a female.
She sat on my laps, straddling me. As she got close I smelt her signature scent and recognized Lily as the person on top of me.
The dizziness and numbness that had taken over my body was overwhelming, causing me to feel disoriented and helpless. It's like my mind's awake but my body is asleep.
My thoughts were a jumbled mess as I tried to understand what was happening. I couldn't believe that Lily, someone I had always disliked, was now on top of me, kissing me.
I tried to push her away, but my muscles were unresponsive and I couldn't even utter a single word to protest.
My body was jolted back to reality for a few seconds when I heard a voice…a familiar voice.
Mia's.
"Ray, what's the meaning of this?!!!" She asked, her voice filled with anger and betrayal.
As Mia's voice broke through the fog of confusion in my mind, I desperately tried to call out to her. But my lips wouldn't form the words, and all I could do was watch as her blurry frame stormed out of the gym in anger.
"Don't worry yourself baby, let her go." I heard Lily said.
The tears that spilled from my eyes were a mix of shame, frustration, and heartache. I was completely at the mercy of Lily and my own incapacitated body as I eventually succumbed to the darkness.