The Boxer and I

Fourteen

Recap:

Two years ago, Flo Brine fled to Australia. There were many reasons as to why she left, including her mother's infidelity which led to the break down of her family, her broken friendships and the fact that she was raped. Now she's back, and trying to heal. From her friends, she's only met with Jake, and although their relationship at first was hostile, they starting to warm up to each other again. Jake found out that she was raped, through a letter that she wrote, yet never actually intended for him to read. He invited her to train with him at the gym, to which she accepted. 

Fourteen

Flo

For the past week, I've been meeting Jake at the gym every morning. Slowly, yet surely, the Flo that stepped inside that gym with every passing day started to evolve. It started with the slight alleviation of weight on my shoulders, leaving me with a lighter feeling in my chest. Then, it was the pinch of confidence that lifted every one of my steps. Now, I can pass through the thresholds of these sliding doors of Hope gymnasium with, dare I say, a genuine smile on my face.

It's small, but it's something.

Jake's waiting for me, leant against the reception desk in his grey t-shirt that hugs his broad chest. His arms fold neatly over each other as he watches me walk towards him. No doubt, I know he can sense a difference in me too. It's only been a week, and it's small, but like I said, it's something.

He glances at the clock hung to the wall on his left.

"Just on time," he says.

"Actually, I'm early by two minutes," I smile as I come to a halt in front of him.

"An improvement, compared to yesterday," he chuckles, and I do too at the memory of yesterday morning.

"Look, it was a stray cat and it needed feeding. It was sat right next to my car, what was I gonna do? Have it stare at me like that and not give it something to eat?" Jake rolls his eyes as his lips pull into a bigger smile, meanwhile I explain why I was almost twenty minutes late to our usual six a.m. workout session yesterday.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," he sighs. "Damn cat is more important than me, I see how it is," he mumbles under his breath jokingly as he pushes himself off of the reception desk. I laugh at his silliness, though this playful behaviour of his that has been slowly revealing itself to me over the past week makes me feel so warm inside.

"Don't let him fool you," a feminine voice hidden behind the reception desk makes both mine and Jake's head turn in its direction. "A couple of months ago, a stray cat wandered into the gym and he quit his training just to play with it.