“I don’t think that’s a good idea, princess,” she said, her voice hoarse.
“Why?” I guess I could only make one-syllable words.
“Because one of us has to be the sensible one. I guess it’s going to be me.” She removed her body from mine and I shivered at the loss of connection. I lay there, not knowing what to do.
“You going to be okay?” Tuesday stood over me, her hands on her knees as if she had been running and needed a break.
“I don’t know,” I said. Yay for three words!
“Yeah, me neither,” she said, and put her hand out to help me get up. I reached for her and she helped me get to my feet, but then I wobbled so much that she had to put both hands on my shoulders to steady me.
“We should end this or else I’m going to fuck you on this floor and I don’t think that’s what you want,” she said, and then my knees really did buckle.
I made an incoherent noise and she let go of me.
“Why are you so mean?” I finally said.
“Trust me, I’m suffering just as much as you are.” She squeezed my shoulders and let go. I swayed on my feet. It wasn’t fair that I was the only one who was so affected. Then I saw the pulse trembling in her neck and the fact that she was still having trouble breathing. That was a little better.
“I should go home?” I said, and it sounded like a question.
“Probably,” she said, stepping closer to me as if she was going to kiss me again.
“What are we doing?” I said, asking the question that had been pounding in my head this whole time.
“I have no idea, but I think I want it to continue. I mean, not on the gym floor. We should probably take the kissing to another location next time.” That made sense. “So, with that said, do you want to come over sometime?”
She was so cute about asking that it was an effort not to kiss her again.
“Can I meet the turtles?” That made her laugh.
“Yes, you can meet the turtles. Also, I’m beginning to think that you’re more into the turtles than you’re into me.” I knew that I was into her, but I didn’t know if I liked her yet, which was a strange situation to be in. I needed of find out if I liked her, or if this was all just pure lust.
“Well, I’m not going to make out with the turtles,” I said.
Tuesday made a face.
“Ew, that is a disturbing mental image.”
We both laughed and I managed to unstick my feet from the floor and start walking toward the door.
“Please take the cake from me,” she said. “Seriously, if I have it in my house, I will consume the entire thing.” If I had it in my house, Zee would eat the whole thing, but then I’d also have cake, so I agreed. She handed me the box and I balanced it with my stuff as she locked up and we went out to the parking lot.
“I’ll see you tomorrow?” I said. “Do you maybe want some breakfast? I know it can be hard in the early days to remember to eat.” I lived on bites of bars and green juice I chugged between classes and learning how the hell to manage a studio when I’d started. Zee used to take time out of their day to bring me food and force me to sit down and eat it.
“That would be . . . nice. Thank you.” She seemed surprised at the gesture.
“Okay, so I’ll message you tomorrow morning on my way in and you can tell me what you want.” I could picture it now: I’d walk in with a bag of breakfast sandwiches and two coffee cups and she’d beam and kiss me.
“Okay,” she said, and leaned on my car next to me. “I’m not really sure how to say goodnight to you anymore. A kiss seems appropriate, but I’m afraid if I kiss you now, I won’t be able to stop.” I didn’t see the problem.
“So don’t stop. We can just kiss here all night.” Tuesday made a groaning sound.
“Don’t tempt me. Let’s just call it a night and I’ll see you tomorrow morning. I’ll send you more turtle videos later.” She took my keys from me and unlocked my door, putting the cake in the passenger seat.
My phone buzzed with messages from Zee asking where I was and when I was going to be home for dinner. I got in the car and made it home somehow.
“You didn’t answer me back, so I went ahead and made tacos, you’re welcome,” Zee called from the kitchen as I greeted the kitties. I wasn’t completely sure how I’d gotten home, since I was still a little dopey from kissing Tuesday. I wondered if that would ever go away, or if it was just because everything with her was so new.
“I brought cake, you’re welcome,” I called to them. They popped out of the kitchen, a bag of lettuce in their hand.
“Did you say cake?” Their eyes lit up as if I’d brought home a bag of cash, or a really sexy man. Zee had cake lust, and so did I. It was one of the reasons we worked as roommates. A strong appreciation for cake, and for each other.
“Yup. Tuesday gave me the rest of hers, so you’re allowed to have some of it. I want a little more.” I wasn’t going to tell them that I’d already had two pieces today. They didn’t need to know.
“Okay, I approve of Tuesday,” Zee said, grabbing the box of cake and cradling it like a baby.
“You haven’t even met her,” I said, as Zee made heart eyes at the cake.
“Doesn’t matter. She gave you cake. Anyone who brings cake is fine in my book.” I picked up the kitties and kissed their heads as they protested.
“So you’re saying if Ted Bundy brought you cake, you’d get in his car?” Zee looked up at me in disgust.
“First of all, Ted Bundy is dead, and second, he never lured anyone with cake.” The kittens squirmed to get down and I let them down so they could tumble around with each other.
“Can we stop talking about Ted Bundy?” I asked. Zee just carried the cake into the kitchen as if it was a precious item. They already had everything ready for the taco bar set out. I only made up three since I’d eaten so much cake. Zee filled their plate with half tacos and half cake.
“It’s a balanced meal,” they said.
“Hey, I’m not judging.”
We sat down and Zee begged for a Tuesday update. I told them we’d kissed again and left out some of the more salacious details since I wanted to keep those for myself. Zee didn’t need every little dirty detail.
“So, is this a thing now or . . .?” they asked, and I shrugged as I munched on my second taco.
“I have no idea. We haven’t exactly gotten to the talking stage. It’s like we’re avoiding it because if we talk about it, then everything will change. Plus, this was only the first real day.” My phone went off and it was a turtle video from Tuesday.
“You’re smitten as hell, though. Just so you know,” Zee said, moving from their tacos to the cake.
“I am?” I said. This was news to me.
“Yeah. You like her.”
“I still don’t know. I want her, but I’m still not sure about liking. I don’t know a whole lot about her. She’s not exactly an open book kind of person.” Trying to read Tuesday was like trying to peel glued-together pages apart. She made you work for every little bit. It was work, and I wasn’t sure if I was ready for that. Couldn’t we just be make-out friends and have that be it? Then I didn’t have to worry about getting my emotions all entangled, or risk my heart being broken.
Sooner or later, I was going to have to talk to her about what we were doing. I hoped it would be later. The idea of having that conversation made me feel like I was going to break out in hives.
“Do you want to come to spin this weekend with me?” Zee was a little more hardcore on the workout stuff than I was, and loved things like spinning and rock climbing and kayaking. I went with them sometimes, but it had been a while because I’d been so busy with the studio.
“Yeah, sure. I’m hoping that Tuesday will forget that I said I would do CrossFit.”
“I’m guessing she won’t, and she’s waiting to spring it on you.” That would be awful.
“Ugh,” I said and picked up my last taco. “I don’t wanna.”
“You would if
she told you to. I bet you would.” I wanted to argue with them, but the truth was, if Tuesday begged me to do CrossFit, I would do it. I’d probably make them kiss me senseless afterward to make up for it, but I would do it. Now I had to hope that she wouldn’t ask me.
Ten
She hadn’t forgotten. It was the first thing she mentioned when I brought her a bag of breakfast sandwiches and a coffee the next morning. I wasn’t surprised that she got a latte with three shots of espresso. If I drank that, it would probably kill me. I couldn’t have that much caffeine in one sitting, but Tuesday sucked it down while making noises that turned me on so much I had to start thinking about non-sexy things.
“So, the gym has been open for an entire day and you haven’t signed up for class. What’s the deal?” She bit into her first sandwich and I froze as I raised mine to my mouth.
“Huh?” I said, but she didn’t buy that.
“We have a Fundamentals class at seven tonight. I can have you sign a waiver and put you on the roster in about five minutes.” I nibbled at my sandwich and tried to ignore the terror that had started to bloom in my stomach. Now that I was in the gym, and looking at all the equipment, I was nervous as hell.
“Maybe,” I said and she finished her first sandwich and went for a second.
“No maybe. I dared you. I did yoga, Sutton. Me. Did yoga. Twice. And I’m going to do it again. I stepped out of my comfort zone and it’s time for you to do the same.” I didn’t like that she was calling me out and I also didn’t like that she was right. When was the last time I stepped out of my comfort zone and did something that scared me? Not for a while. I couldn’t put my finger on the last thing I’d done like that. My life needed a shakeup. I guess this was going to be it.
“Fine. I’ll come. I have to teach, but I’ll be done before seven. Is there anything I need to bring?” A slow swirl of anxiety started in my stomach, but I finished my sandwich and drank the rest of my coffee.
“You’ll be fine,” she said, patting my arm. “We’re just going to go easy the first time. You’ll learn how to do everything. You’re already fit, so you’re going to be miles ahead some of the other people.” She got up and brought me a clipboard with a form on it. I filled it out and gave it back to her. Guess this was happening.
“Are you sure I won’t die?” I asked, and she laughed.
“I haven’t seen anyone die doing CrossFit yet, but you never know.” I smacked her in the arm.
“Hey, I brought you breakfast. Be nice.”
Tuesday tossed the clipboard on the ground and picked me up off my feet. I squealed and flailed a little and she set me back down but kept her hands on my waist.
“Is this nice?” she asked, and then kissed me. I couldn’t answer her because my mouth was occupied, but I wasn’t sure if it was nice. Kissing Tuesday wasn’t merely nice. It was . . . everything. There weren’t words that had been invented to describe what kissing Tuesday was like, at least not yet. Maybe I could invent some. Not right now since my brain wasn’t working at full capacity.
Tuesday broke the kiss and smirked at me.
“Nice?”
“No,” I said. “It’s insulting to call that nice. It’s beyond nice. Not even in the same galaxy as nice.” She chuckled and tapped my nose with her finger.
“That’s what I thought.”
I wanted to kiss her some more, but we both had classes to teach and it might not be the best thing if her customers came in and found us sucking each other’s faces off.
“I’ll see you later tonight? Don’t forget, Fundamentals at seven.” My stress wasn’t only for the newness of the class, but of doing something like that in front of Tuesday. I didn’t want to look like a total loser in front of her. I guess it was only fair since I’d made her do yoga and had taken glee in her failing at certain poses. Fair was fair, but that didn’t mean I had to like it.
“I haven’t forgotten,” I said, choking a little bit on air and coughing.
“You’re going to be fine.” She pushed me toward the door and I left, heading upstairs to my studio.
I COULDN’T STOP WATCHING the clock the rest of the day. It was taunting me.
“You’re so jumpy today,” Priya said, when she came to teach the noontime class. “Is everything okay?”
“Yeah, just . . . I don’t know. Just a little stressed.” I wasn’t going to tell her about Tuesday. I wasn’t going to tell anyone but Zee about Tuesday.
“Anything I can do?” Priya was so lovely and I hated that I couldn’t just tell her everything. Tuesday and I hadn’t agreed that we wouldn’t tell anyone about what we were doing, but it seemed implied.
“No, I’m just going to have some tea.” Tea would certainly help take the stress about CrossFit away.
“Okay,” Priya said, but she didn’t sound convinced.
Ellen also asked me what was up, and even a few of my students asked if I was okay. Guess I couldn’t hide my emotions as well as I thought I could. I assured everyone I was fine, that it was just a busy day at work and I would do some meditation and I was sure I’d be better tomorrow. If I was alive tomorrow. I didn’t want to look up statistics on if anyone had died doing CrossFit and scare myself.
I knew I would need fuel to get through the workout, but eating dinner was a struggle. I’d grabbed a protein shake earlier and added that to my salad and avocado toast, hoping that would be enough.
I threw myself into doing paperwork and wished that there was some kind of emergency that would come up so I could cancel. I didn’t want to do this.
No. I was going to do this. I had been dared and I was going to suck it up. I could only imagine the look on Tuesday’s face if I told her I wasn’t coming tonight.
“Let’s do this,” I said to myself, and did a quick ten-minute meditation to clear my head and cut down on some of my anxiety. It helped, and then I left my office, grabbed my stuff, and headed downstairs. The music was going and it was even louder down here. I didn’t know how anyone could stand it.
I walked in to find a few people on the floor stretching and talking, and a few others looking around like they were lost and wanted to run away. I figured I probably looked like the latter.
Tuesday came out from the back and saw me. Her face lit up in a smile, but she quickly hid it away, as if she didn’t want anyone to see her beaming at me.
I sat down on the floor and pretended to stretch like the other people. Tuesday walked by me, but she didn’t give any indication that we knew each other. I was hoping she would come over and coddle me a little, but she didn’t. She was treating me like everyone else. I probably should have talked to someone else in the class, but I was too nervous.
Instead I stared at the floor and tried to get my heart to stop beating so fast. After what seemed like an eternity, Tuesday turned down the music and started the class. I braced myself.
AN HOUR LATER I KNEW how to do a squat, a press, a deadlift, and a bunch of other things I couldn’t remember the names of. I did pull-ups, which weren’t awful, and the push up position for CrossFit was the same as chaturanga, which was nice. At least that I knew how to do. Still, I collapsed on the floor at the end of the workout, chest heaving and muscles burning. Somehow, I’d made it through.
Unfortunately, this was just the first Fundamentals class, and I’d need to take at least seven more of them. I had not anticipated that, since Tuesday hadn’t mentioned it, and I was guessing that was on purpose.
I drained the rest of my water and got up after I’d stretched everything out. Tuesday was mobbed with other people in the class asking questions, so I just sat and fiddled on my phone and waited for her to be done.
It took a while, but at last we were the only two people in the room. She came over and plonked down next to me.
“So?” she asked.
“It wasn’t horrible,” I said. That was the truth. It hadn’t been horrible. Sure, there had been horrible moments, but overall, I made it through. I’d done some of the movements scale
d to the lowest setting, but I’d pushed myself and was proud of what I’d done.
“I’ll take that. You did good. Your form is excellent and you take corrections well and apply them. I wish everyone in my classes was like you.” For some reason my face got red. That seemed like the highest kind of compliment Tuesday could give me when it came to working out.
“Thank you,” I said. “I really didn’t know how this was going to go. I was stressing all day.”
“You should have told me. I would have reassured you.” I gave her a look.
“Would you have? I mean, I tortured you about yoga, it was only fair that you got me back with this.” I waved around the room. My stomach made a noise and I knew I needed to eat something ASAP before I went home. Tuesday heard my stomach and got up to grab me a protein bar. She tossed it at me and I managed to catch it. She bit into one and grinned at me.
“I thought I would ease you in. We don’t want to scare people, despite what it looks like. Some gyms are high-pressure and want people to push themselves until they throw up, but that’s not my goal. I want people to want to come here. I want this to be a safe place where they can push themselves if they want, and accomplish goals, however small. Everyone has a different body, and I want to work with every body. Does that make sense?” It did. It was also my philosophy when it came to yoga. I wanted yoga to be for everyone, and we could modify it to be for everyone.
“I’m not looking forward to my first full workout. And I didn’t know that I was committing to eight classes. You forgot to mention that.” Tuesday bit into her protein bar.
“You don’t have to do all eight. You only promised me one, remember?” That was true.
“How about this? I’ll come to all eight classes and you come to six more yoga classes. Then we’ll be even.” I put my hand out and she shook it.
“Deal. That sounds good. We’ll both be stepping out of our comfort zones.”
“Yes, but I think you’re better at yoga than I’m going to be at lifting weights.” I stared at the stack of plates in the corner—they looked menacing.
Anyone but You Page 12
