by Dani Lovell
The main area of the living room, the only other room he has seen, has two large and somewhat, worn-looking chesterfield couches surrounding the thick, oversized trunk coffee table, along with two burgundy, velvet armchairs. These sit in front of the large fireplace, with T.V. above it. The flooring is a well-treated solid oak and the biscuit coloured walls bring it all together to create a real feeling of comfort.
The seating over by the piano area consists of two large, striped black and cream armchairs and a Moroccan themed, ebony, crushed velvet couch with overly tall, flat arms and back. The dark, carved wood matches that of the coffee table centralising the frame. I think the designer introduced the raven furniture to complement the gleaming piano, the stripy chairs coordinating with the ebony-ivory piano keys. Burgundy cushions carry the intimate colours from the rest of the room.
I see and love my apartment on a daily basis, but only discussing it with Sebastian has made me realise how much work has gone in to bringing all of my styles together. I really must call the interior designer to thank her one more time.
Having poured the wine, I hand a glass to Sebastian and we toast again, this time to ‘beautiful interiors’.
“So, will you give me the grand tour? I’d love to see the rest of the place,” Sebastian says, enthusiastically.
I grin. “Is this your way of getting into my bedroom?”
He chuckles with me. “I’ll be honest, Lexie, the thought really does appeal to me, but I am genuinely interested in seeing the rest of your apartment. Did I tell you I’m looking for a new place?”
“No? What makes you want to move?”
“It’s just time for a change for me. I’m not saying I want to move into your building or anything, but I like to get ideas about what I’m looking for, so I can tell my realtor. I like what you’ve got here.”
“Yes, it works well. It’s not huge or palatial or anything, but it’s only me here; I don’t need anything enormous.” He wiggles his eyebrows with a smirk and I instantly realise the sexual reference. I roll my eyes and sigh. “Is it ever off your brain?”
“Sex? Sure it is. Sex with you? Never.”
I shake my head and smile. “Come on, I’ll show you around.”
~~~~~~~
Sebastian seems to like my apartment a lot. He was especially enthusiastic about my bedroom, but I’m not sure that had anything to do with the layout or décor… I think the fact that there’s a bed and that I get naked in there was what really sparked interest.
I’m finding his jovial behaviour quite entertaining now, where I would have found it loathsome before. I’m making some headway trying to get over his inanity… or maybe he’s making headway at trying to tone it down… either way, it’s working.
“So you don’t have a gym here? Where do you work out?” he asks as we walk down the hall, back towards the living room.
“I don’t have a private gym, I thought about having one instead of the study room, but I like working out in a public gym. Makes me work harder. We have one in the building for residents.”
“Cool, is it good?”
“Yeah, it’s fantastic, it’s equipped for all kinds of training.”
“Could I see it?”
“Sure,” I say, nodding happily, “let me get my keys and we’ll go.”
I grab my keys from my purse and lead the way out of the door, still clutching my icy cold glass of wine. I’m pleased that he wants to see the gym; it’s one of my favourite places.
Working out started as just one of those things I should really be doing to maintain fitness levels, but once I started training properly with Luke and began to come here more frequently, I became a little addicted. If I don’t work out at least four or five times a week, I feel horrible. It’s almost a heavy feeling, a feeling of failure and that I’m missing out on something.
“So how long have you lived here?”
“I moved in just after the building was built, so about seven years.”
“Oh right… so did you recently renovate? It looks like you just moved in.”
“Yes, about a year or so ago.”
“Oh, well it looks fantastic.”
“Thank you, when you get your new place, I’ll let you have my designer’s details.”
“Thank you, that would be fantastic.”
As we reach it, I open the gym door and switch on the entryway light as Sebastian steps through ahead of me. It’s late and most of the few residents that use this gym are morning people, so the place is empty.
“Wow, this is fantastic,” he says, looking around at the airy space and professional equipment in the very dim light.
It is a good-looking gym, considering it’s that of an apartment complex and not a complete fitness centre. The exposed piping above, painted a copper-brown along with the ceiling, gives the room a spacious, art deco-style. The clean, hardwood floor gives it a less clinical feel than a lot of gyms.
“So what do you use in here?” he asks, strolling slowly towards the equipment, sipping his wine, one hand in his pocket.
“I use most of the equipment, really, but mostly… weights, free floor space, monkey bars, treadmill…”
“You do weights?”
“Yes, I like weights.”
“Impressive. Most girls I know wouldn’t know how to use weights.”
“Really? You’re not creating much of a stereotype there, are you Sebastian?” I ask, sarcastically. “I suppose we girls are weaklings with no idea of how to use the big man-equipment…”
“Okay, okay, that was unfair of me.”
“It was ignorant of you. There really isn’t a whole lot you need to know about weights, as I’m sure you know. Most girls I know - know how to use them.”
“Sure, okay…” he says, nodding, obviously trying to back track, “all I’m saying, is that many times at the gym, I’ve seen girls spending hours trying to decide which disc weight best suits them, not even registering that they’ll double that weight when they use one disc on each end of the bar, or that they need to add the weight of the bar itself into that, then I watch as they struggle to put the spring clamps on, their hands not even strong enough to do that. Then, when they’ve finally got the bar together with the help of some guy who’s hitting on them, they poorly attempt to lift, no bending of the knees, no gloves… it all ends badly and they go home with a sore back and no work out.”
“Good God, man. First of all, I can only believe you’ve seen that once in your life. Second of all, where was her trainer? If she had a trainer, they’d at least have shown her how to do it; and thirdly, why the hell didn’t you help the poor woman? Everybody has to start somewhere. And you’re an ass for sitting by and watching, without helping.”
“Oh, now, come on, the only way I was going to help that girl, was to go over there and tell her she shouldn’t be going anywhere near those weights, and there’s no way she’d have wanted to hear that. Then, I’d get accused of hitting on her, because that’s what the ‘helpful’ gym guys do.”
“That’s so not true. And yes, maybe you should have told her not to use them, what if she’d seriously hurt herself?”
“Lexie, Lexie,” he chides, slowly, his arrogant smirk inviting me to hit him in the face. Chauvinistic ass. “Calm down, I’m just saying, some girls just don’t know what they’re doing in the gym.”
“Right, just like most guys! Usually a macho, bigoted donkey like you!” What a complete jackass.
He holds his hands in front of him, one still clutching the delicate stem of the wine glass. “Okay, okay. I’m sorry. Yes, I guess you’re right. Some guys don’t know what they’re doing either.”
“Too right. Maybe you’ll think before you speak next time.”
He grins. “I most certainly will, I’ll think about you getting all hot and bothered and go for it.”
I shoot daggers his way, warning him.
“I know, I know, I’m kidding. So, anyway… monkey bars?”
“Uh huh, what about the
m? They’re over here…” I walk towards the other end of the room, towards the French doors leading to the outside entrance. I point to the recess in the wall where the monkey bar frame is built.
“What do you use them for?” he asks, inspecting it.
“The usual; chin-ups, upper body stuff mostly.”
“I’d like to see that.”
“Here we go again… surprised a mere female has any upper body strength at all?”
He laughs. “No, no, Lexie. You’ve got me wrong. Maybe that’s my fault. But I happen to find the idea of you working out incredibly appealing. And I can imagine you’re very capable, before you start saying I’m being a sexist piece of shit.”
I smile and attempt to hold back my laugh. “Well, you don’t do yourself any favours, Sebastian.”
“Fair comment. So you gonna show me?”
I look up at his face as I sip my drink. “Hmm? Show you what?”
“Some of this upper body stuff.”
“No!” I cry, “I’m not here to fulfil your sexual fantasies of women working out, you know.”
“That’s not what I want, I just want you to show me how you travel along the bars… monkey style.”
“I may have had a few glasses of wine, Sebastian, but I’m not beyond knowing what you’re up to. Besides, I’m wearing a suit, blouse and heels. Hardly gym attire.”
“Fair enough. Hey!” he says, obviously remembering something. “This reminds me of a video I saw, did you see it? The one with the guy and girl working out together, using each other’s bodies for leverage?”
“No… I don’t think I have.”
“It’s amazing, you’ve got to see it,” he says, pulling his cell from his pocket. “I’ve got it on here somewhere.”
I wait patiently, sipping my wine as he searches through his cell for the video. I’m intrigued but not blown away by the idea of watching it. I look through the French doors into the night, the steps up to road glowing in the amber streetlights.
It’s so dark down here in the basement at night with only the one doorway lamp on. You can’t see the street from here so no light comes in at all if you don’t have the gym lights on. It’s probably quite nice to work out down here after dark.
Sebastian calls me, reminding me that I’m not in my own little world of darkness, and I wander back over to him expectantly as he holds the phone out for us both to watch.
It really is a very impressive video, as a matter of fact. It’s obviously a boyfriend and girlfriend… or very closer trainer/trainee, and they’re literally using each other to work out, as Sebastian suggested. They’re using incredible strength, holding each other’s weight and balancing with each other. It would definitely be an extremely effective workout routine if they managed to do it a few times a week. I wonder if Luke does that with Tilly… it’s probably unlikely, actually, they can’t hold hands without making it sexual, God knows what they’d do with this!
I watch, enraptured as the couple smoothly flex their muscles together to create a wonderfully intimate, yet professional routine. Their use of the frame fascinates me, her legs tightly wrapped around his waist as they both clutch the bar and chin-up together.
“Oh now this one is great, I’d love to do this…” Sebastian says as the couple change position, the female with her legs bent over the guy’s shoulders, her feet at his chest as she slowly leans back until she’s dangling backwards underneath him as he holds the bar, and planks. His body floating in the air, you can see each muscle flexing - his strength is magnificent, how he can hold his body so still horizontally like that as she performs sit ups, dangling from his shoulders – I have no idea.
“Oh wow, that’s incredible! His strength can’t be normal.”
Sebastian laughs, “I think it’s quite normal, it’s just not something you see every day.”
I look at him in surprise. “Really? You think you could do that?”
He tilts his head to one side and contemplates it, nodding. “I think I could, yeah.”
“Really?” I cry in disbelief, that is incredible strength, not many guys could do it.
He chuckles and pulls back, frowning. “What? You don’t think I’m strong enough?”
“I’m just surprised is all… of course I know you’re strong but that takes hulk-type strength.”
“Can you do vertical sit ups like she does?” he asks.
“Yeah, I do them on the bars all the time, but it’s nothing next to what he’s doing.”
“Okay,” he says nodding and eyeing up the monkey bars, “let’s try?”
“What? Vertical sit-ups?”
“No, that whole move.”
“Oh no, no… we can’t do that, Seb, and anyway; I’m in a skirt suit.” As much as I’d secretly love to try that move, it would be wholly inappropriate. But I do love a challenge at the gym.
“That doesn’t matter, it’s not like I’m going to see anything; you’ll be on my shoulders. Come on, no one is here and on another topic… don’t think I didn’t notice that you called me Seb.”
He takes my wine glass, and places them both down on the floor before removing his jacket and beginning to roll up his sleeves. I think this through. I really want to try it… but I’m not in my yoga pants right now, this isn’t the time or the place…
“Come on Lex, let’s see if we’ve got it.” He grabs hold of the bars and begins warming up with a couple of chin-ups. He may still be in his pants and shirt, but I can see those muscles stretching and flexing, and I can’t stop the secret little pervert inside me ogling. “Take those heels off, hitch the skirt up and get over here…” He steps back from the bars and gestures for me to come over.
I look at him with a squint as I decide. Would it really be that bad? Could I actually attempt this with Sebastian? Hmm… why the hell not, he’s right, he won’t see anything, and I’d really like to know if we could do this. I’ll be extremely impressed if we can. Well, I know I can do sit ups, they’re easy, but I’ll be impressed if he can do the difficult part while I do that.
“Okay, let’s give it a shot. Tell no one. I hope nobody comes in…”
“The lips are sealed. So how will it work? You climb on my shoulders, upright first?”
“Er…” I think of the logistics. “Or, you hold onto the bar and lengthen your arms so your shoulders are lower, then I’ll do a handstand and hook my legs over your shoulders?”
“Not just a pretty face, Lexie. Okay, let’s go.”
He heads over to the bar and does exactly as I suggested. I flick off my heels, remove my jacket and drape it over a bench, and hitch my skirt up my thighs, exposing my nude lace hold-ups. Nobody can see, hopefully no one will come in and if they do, I’m sure we’ll hear them before they see us. The lighting is very dim in here and we’re tucked away around a corner anyway.
I step closer to him, gauging the distance to ensure I get close enough, and I go for it. As I flick my legs into the air, my wrists taking my full weight beneath me, they land perfect against Sebastian’s back. I part them slightly, feeling for his shoulders, and I bend them over to secure myself in the position.
“Fantastic, Lex!” He says with glee. “Okay, I’m going to go into the plank now, keep your hands on the floor, yes?”
“Sure,” I shout, my voice squeaky, thanks to the reversed position.
I feel his head move backwards as he lifts his feet off the floor to straighten out into the mid-air plank. I can only vaguely see from the mirror on the far wall, I’m upside-down and it’s dark so it’s not all that clear.
“Okay! I’m up, you can let go of the floor and sit up,” he groans, exerted, his body shaking slightly as his muscles flex. His torso feels rock solid against my calves. Mmm.
I gently lift my arms from the floor and cross them over on my chest, tucking my feet around the sides of his ribs, and tentatively crunch into the first, mid-air sit-up. As I reach the top, I can see Sebastian’s body fully stretched out and I see for the first time how incredi
ble this manoeuvre looks when we are doing it. “Oh my God,” I exclaim in excitement.
“We’re doing it Lexie!” he yells, happily.
“Yeah we are!” I cry in agreement. “It looks amazing!” I slowly lower back down to dangle once again from his shoulders and immediately curl into another sit-up.
“Keep going Lex, I’m cool for a while longer,” he says, clearly working his body hard, his voice strained.
“This is amazing, Sebastian! Way to go!”
“Give my head a little kiss, keep me going,” he says cheekily as I curl up once again, and I giggle and do as he asks, placing a gentle kiss on the top of his head. I’m so proud of us!
“Yeah, that’s it. Come on, one more, baby!”
I smile excitedly as I lift myself one last time, and I look in the other, closer mirror in front of us as I do, seeing us both in our work clothes, dangling in such a precarious position on the monkey bars; me with my stockings out… it’s actually… I can’t believe this is running through my head… but it’s actually quite a turn on. His abilities are astonishing.
I lower myself back down, loving the workout my stomach is getting in all of this, and again rest my hands against the floor, immediately lifting my legs from Sebastian’s torso and kicking them over my head, to land perfectly on my feet, upright, instantly pulling my skirt down.
He lowers his body until his feet are back on the floor and releases the bar, turning and standing up straight. “We did it!” he cries, walking towards me, his face excited and glorious. He holds his hand in the air, inviting me to hi-five.
I indeed comply, smacking his hand joyfully. “I know! That was unbelievable! You’re so strong, Sebastian!”
“I could say the same for you, wow!”
He steps forward and embraces me in an enthusiastic hug, and I squeeze him back with just as much gusto. “That was so much fun, Lex. We should try a few more!”
I laugh, “We should, though maybe when we’re wearing work-out gear, next time, hmm?”
