Chapter 82j: In Good Spirit(s) (19 August 2003, at the gym after the evenings workout)
As I leave the dressing room and head towards the entrance, I cannot help but reflect and lament over the utter bore that is this summer. Compared to last summer, things just seem to crawl by as a snails pace. Summer is supposed to be the tiny breather between the requirements imposed by an oppressive society, not a time where you just crave a return to the status quo.
Ugh. I can't truly blame Setty for it, but there is a very direct relationship between my daily intake of sisterhood and the lack of a good summer. Not that Mister Parks would agree; he'd be the first to admonish me for mishandling data under the nomer of 'statistical evidence'.
Feeling annoyed, I tug my sports bag up a bit higher up my shoulder and increase my stride. I know what I want.
Or is it what I need? Just the thought of that pisses me off even more, and makes me want it more.
I figured that after more than a year had passed, I could properly chuck my own delinquent bum out of the little box designated 'social smoker', and more into the 'committed smoker' thing.
But with that comes a lot of other considerations… like coming out of the proverbial closet. Setty'd have to know at the very least. Or the fact that I stop kidding myself with the idea that I can just go without while feeling no regrets or urgency regarding that choice.
Let's face the facts: I've been counting down the seconds more and more. Even when around Setty.
At least she's not likely to be waiting for me at home tonight; her dad's been introducing her simple Japanese comics and reading them with her. It's probably for the better given how my muscles feel like wrung-out cloths that barely hold my bones in place, even if I'm a pissed on how even the fictionary competition this month got canceled due to all those lessons she's been dragged into.
Don't get me wrong: I hate chores. But I'd rather have chores and Setty than a special treat of not having to do chores this month. Bah!
As I finally reach the entrance, I quickly offer Lana a knowing smile that is as much an invitation to join me as anything else. If you think about it, it's quite funny how many smokers end up congregating around a fitness gym. She can't quite be obvious about it, but I guess most gyms don't want one of their faces to new members to smell like an unhealthy ashtray.
However, she shakes her head tonight, and as I shrug my shoulders, I can see her motioning in the direction opposite of where she's sitting. As I turn around and look towards the little snack bar lounge that most gym members ignore due to its lack of an alchohol license and the fact there's a far swankier establishment just one block down the street, I see a familiar face.
Eddy. He's our resident first-aid certified individual, although he's more a sports coach slash combat medic than anything else. Hamstring issues? Sprained ankle? Or like in this case, a broken nose? He'll be there with his bag to fix you up, no hospital or doctors visits required.
And… it is Cain who has his head tilted backwards as he holds his bloodied nose. The excessive volume of red running down over his mouth and down his chin, as well as the crooked position that his nose is positioned in betray that he must have had quite the accident during his workout.
As our eyes meet, I know that tonight, I'll get to once more prove to myself that I am little more than a social smoker. Fuck.
Adjusting my course towards the beat-up victim that probably got what he deserved I raise my hand in greeting.
"Hey Eddy, hey Cain. What's up? You're both still here this late?"
Oddly enough Cain turns away just a little, offering a couple of words to Eddy that I don't quite catch. It doesn't matter; I'm not stupid, and the fact our resident combat medic is getting some napkins for him to clear his face with is enough of a sign that it isn't anything serious that got broken.
It is a bit of a shame, actually. There's no way I'm going to admit this, but there's something primal and alluring to a guy with battlescars and fresh wounds that mommy's boys and androgynous lanky washrags just can't come close to. Besides, with the bits of rolled up gauze that Eddy is preparing for him to shove up his nostrils, Cain can only appear more clownish than he already does.
"Tovi won't get out of bed early. Setsuka arrives to study around ten every morning and usually leaves after eight. If not the evening, when else am I going to get beaten up?"
The fact he looks so Asian occasionally makes me forget he's not just raised a Brit, but also an actor that could pull off that stiff upper lip impression whenever he'd like to. Whatever; it is not worth repressing my urge to roll my eyes at him over, so I make sure to share how far his attempt at humor managed to miss the mark by.
Okay, I'll admit it: I am cracking a smile. But that's at his awkward fussing to push the gauze up his nose.
My sports bag slips off my shoulder, and I kick it underneath the table as Eddy interjects.
"Jen, hon, I hope you'll forgive ma rashness, but I'm just gonna go and fix 'im fast. This asshole got tossed out of the small dojo looking like this as I was about to rush home; you know 'ow Mary's been struggling with the lil' one's utter lack of appreciation for the art o' sleeping. I promised to be there tonight so she can have a good rest before tomorrow's clock reads eight and I need to head back here again for the kickboxing lessons."
"Ha. No worries. I can watch this little sissy for a bit; yer worried about a possible concussion or other trauma, right?"
Eddy laughs and nods, giving me a thumbs up right as Cain scowls at me.
"What? So you're not just gorgeous, but you know first aid, too?"
I roll my eyes at his terrible sense of humor once again. I hope it is that, at least. If it is his flirting that's this horrible? Then I'd have to start worrying about genetics and perhaps arranging dates for Setty. Yuck.
"More like I flunked it twice while under the duress of a drunken bet I myself proposed to Ann. Aside from the fact I lost out on a hundred quid and those exam fees, it wasn't the worst experience. At least I know how to call the emergency services and make you sit still, which is all that's necessary to satisfy Eddy right now. If someone's brain truly gets the scramble of a lifetime, it is obvious enough to the point where even Setty could tell."
At least he cracks a smile to that, which is a definite improvement over the scowl that held its grip until now.
"Well then 'nurse', since you're stuck here evaluating me anyway, can I get you a drink to lift your spirits despite your ruined plans?"
Dear god. More flirting. Doesn't he take no for an answer?
"They don't sell alcohol here. They never have."
But he just laughs in response.
"Who said anything about alcohol?"