Workout

"Can you feel this?"

Ed knew she couldn't, but yet she was so live-like, her reactions so real, her expressions so warm and inviting, and his emotions so wound up with lust and excitement, that he almost found himself fooled by the perfect image of a human being that she was. And maybe, deep down inside of him, in a part of him not touched by his rationality, he wished she would feel something.

Ed sat on a huge circle-shaped bed in a blue lit room that was part of the Grid, a private part, only accessible by him. He was completely naked, next to him a female program, meeting her for the first time, his right hand wrapped around her nape loosely, softly fondling it, his left caressing her bare breasts, toying with them with gentle, entranced relish.

"Yes," said Carol, her smile seeming to melt with delight, her hand, pressing his tightly against her virtual flesh. He felt no heartbeat.

"It feels so good… Do that, go on! It feels wonderful."

Despite all his elation; in the end, he still couldn't believe her. He programmed her to please him, in any way. And if he wanted her to feel something, she pretended to feel something.
He looked at her, looked at his creation. She was flawlessly beautiful. Her shiny dark-ginger hair cascading down her shoulders like a stream of copper, her skin alabaster white and smooth like silk, her body the one of a goddess and her face aristocratic, clear-cut but soft and sweet and innocent at the same time.

She kneed down before him, flashing a fake glance of pure lust and infinite devotion up to him before she lowered her head down to his lap and started caressing him exactly the way he liked it.

She had been the second sexual relationship in his life.

In the beginning, she was a blessing, a relationship without trouble and pain, without commitments and claims, without embarrassment and pressure, and he didn't think about it all too much. She was excitement and fun and relaxation when he needed it. But as he began to realize that she was nothing more than a doll to him, it made him feel more and more unpleasant. And he got rid of her.

Ed sat behind his desk, his chair turned to the window. Engrossed in thought he let his glance wander along the skyline and the city lights enlightening the dark sky.

He hated Dextra for making him think of Carol again. Hated her for raising disagreeable emotions he couldn't term else as guilt and shame, no matter how hard he tried to deny it. Shame that he had used Carol like a toy. Guilt that he had deleted her once he'd been fed up with her. Carol had been a program! Only a program. And for a program, one mustn't feel anything because a program had no soul. That was his deep conviction. Their emotions were only simulations, implanted into them by humans. One shouldn't fall for them. Never.

How was Dextra doing that, inducing so many sentiments in him, bland of emotions that she was herself? What was she actually to him? His administration program or a voice within him? Whispering to him out of his deepest, darkest parts?

Suddenly, a knock on the door. And Judith stepped in, the expression on her face pure energy and joy. Like a light she was, pouring into the room and into Ed's soul.

"Ready for some hard physical activities?" she grinned.

He sighed. Not again, he thought. Why had he allowed himself to be persuaded to this at all?

Work out.

Just another example of these many things Judith has won him over to do, although he actually didn't like it, even detested it. Concealed him, almost forced him, with enchanting persistence.

And now he was at ENCOM's intern gym, running there on a treadmill like a robot, just another "idiotic fitness addict", like he used to call them. He was one of them now… thanks to Judith. But once more it turned out to be something positive. Judith was right. He was feeling better, feeling healthier. Already, only after a few weeks, the changes in his body, his condition, were showing. He had more strength, more energy, more stamina. At work, in every day life. In bed… Was this eventually the true purpose Judith was aiming at with persuading him to do workout? That he became an untiring, able-bodied and ever-potent lover? That he could do her longer, better and more often? He couldn't prevent feeling a little bit treated like an object if that was true.

I hope I'm more to you than just a love machine… He thought to himself while running and running and facing the skyline through the window front while doing so.

But whatever the reasons, he felt good, he felt marvelous. Actually he shouldn't complain, shouldn't question. But he did. Like always.

He only went to the gym accompanied by Judith, never alone. And he insisted on one thing: that they went there at the most unfrequented times possible, because he didn't feel comfortable with others watching him when sweating and panting and doing physical activities. He feared that being seen by both, his superiors and inferiors, during these bodily performances might could negatively affect the impression of flawlessness he always wanted to keep up.
He looked over to Judith running at the same rhythm than he was. She looked beautiful, no doubt, looked beautiful when sweating and panting and getting rosy cheeks… Her body, swaying over the treadmill smoothly, was a stunning vision of fine muscles and soft flesh in supple, wavy motion. She caught his eyes and beamed a smile, tiny pearls of sweat covering her upper lip and her forehead. He briefly returned the smile then looked to the front again.

He was in thought as suddenly he heard a stifled shriek from Judith. Instantly he turned his head and saw her stumbling on the treadmill, faltering back – right into the arms of Sam Flynn who was appearing there, out of nowhere it seemed.
Of all people! He thought, angrily, staring at Flynn as he was catching her only inches before she hit the floor, his strong arms tightly around her waist, she chuckling in embarrassment and surprise. Ed brought his treadmill to a stop, turning to them, sternly watching, breathing hard.

"Woo-hoo, Judith!" Flynn laughed out with charming sassiness, setting her on her feet again. "What kind of exercise is that? Kamikaze-Backwards-Flip?" His hands were still touching her, grabbing her trembling shoulders, supporting her weakened body. "If this is some new extreme sport, I'm in!"

"I swear… that treadmill… moved… in the opposite direction… for an instant," Judith replied, still laughing breathlessly in a reflex of covering the embarrassing situation.

"Yeah… Sure… That's what I say always when I'm stumbling on treadmills." Flynn smiled at her broadly and cheekily warm.

"No, I'm not kidding!" Judith smiled back.

Flynn returned with a twinkle. "Are you okay?" he then asked, fondling her upper arms in a way Ed found was inappropriately gentle. His face darkened as he rested his one arm on the treadmill's handle bar, the other arm akimbo.

"Yes, I'm okay. Nothing hurt", Judith reassured.

"You are lucky that I was standing right there by pure chance", Flynn grinned, his eyes resting in hers way too long.

Pure chance? Ed repeated in his mind grimly. More probably you've been loitering there behind her all the time, watching her ass in motion… Or even manipulating the treadmill a little so you could play her white knight. Bastard…

Flynn fumbled Judith's back, giving her a last, warm smile, then he finally disappeared to another part of the hall, beginning to work some heavy gym machine which Ed found looked more like sort of a futuristic rack. But apparently it took that kind of masochistic treatment to get muscles like this… Ed averted his hostile gaze from Flynn, looking at Judith who was inspecting the treadmill's control panel gingerly while frowning skeptically. She shook her head and said: "I'm better taking another one. Don't trust that thing here." And she moved over to the next treadmill.

"Okay," Ed answered with a brief nod, affixing the earplugs of is iPod and started to run again, the velocity of the treadmill set two levels higher, while the hard basses of his Techno tunes were setting his pace. Techno and running – exactly what he needed right now to dash out his frustrations.

About an hour later he was standing in one of the gym's shower cabinets; in a separated, lockable one, of course. He never would have used the communal showers. Never ever. The same was for the changing cubicle. And only after he was fully dressed and perfectly groomed and looking as neat as a pin he ventured forth into public again.
Just as he hurried across the public changing area, he ran into Flynn. Encountering him twice a day, that was just too much. And as if this wasn't enough, Flynn's sight was mercilessly devastating. He just came from his work out, stripped to the waist as if he wanted to show the world how perfect he was, how well-toned his muscles were, how clear his complexion, how well formed his build, how staggeringly gorgeous his whole damn appearance.
Instantly Ed felt a weakness arising within him, a bitter, burning, yet cold and congealing weakness. He didn't let it surface, keeping up his mask of calm sobriety, but inside he was sore with jealousy.
Did Judith like this kind of men? Sure she must like this. Every woman did. Was that maybe the secret reason why she forced him to do work out? That he got a body like Flynn's? But that was far beyond his reach! Not that he was only a head smaller than Flynn, he was also quite slender built, by nature, and had never been an athletic kind of man. Although Ed wasn't meager by any means, he was not the type of man who could gain such a huge amount of muscles. Apart from this he just didn't know where to take the time and energy to do that.

Ed wanted to get out of here, as quick as possible, so he increased his pace. But Flynn held him up, bringing up a subject which made his blood run cold…

"Ey, Dillinger!" He called him just as he wanted to pass. "Judith's a hottie don't ya think?" The smirk in the corner of his mouth… so disarmingly charming.

Ed froze, raising all of his energy to build up the impression of being composed. "Sorry, but I'm not interested in this kind of low-leveled conversations", he answered, repellently.

"You know if she's already taken?" Flynn just went on, with blatant chumminess, not reacting to the slight insult embedded within Ed's former reaction.

Drawing in a deep breath, Ed replied, with a tinge of insistence swaying with his words: "That's her private affair."

"C'mon!" Flynn broadly smiled, a pally expression on his face. "You guys are working together every day… so close. You got to know something, Dillinger!" He briefly tapped his shoulder in a gesture of almost obtrusive comradeship.

How dare you! Ed grimly thought, grossed out by the touch of his rival.

"We don't talk about private matters", Ed finally closed the conversation, passing off.

"Oh, well…" Flynn raised his voice. "In this case I'd might just give it a try and ask her out."

These words were hitting Ed like a bullet in his back. He turned around to him, locking eyes, coldly. "I heard she's in a relationship."

Flynn raised his chin. "Is she?"

Ed still held his gaze, a silent warning implied. "I heard so."

"I see…" Flynn replied, still smiling in the corner of his mouth as if in amusement.

As Ed was with Judith at his flat later this evening, and they were making love, he tried to do everything the way she liked it, tried to love her as passionate and devoted as possible, tried to please her in every way he could, totally obliging to her every wish. To show her that he was worth it, that she didn't need another man, to wordlessly beg her to not leave him.
He made love to her as if it was a matter of life and death.

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Hello everybody!

Just wanted to quickly thank you readers, reviewers and everyone who's interested in my stories. :D You make me happy, guys! Hope you like how this fic is processing and that you enjoy reading it. Next chapter is going to be... let's say: eventful. ;) So stay tuned!