Warning: Same warnings still apply. More inappropriate advances. And one crude joke that I couldn't resist.
Chapter 4: Aggressive Maneuvers
Lance was feeling good. He was improving as a gymnast, finally getting down most of the basics and moving on to practicing some real skills. Moreover, the tension of the past month had finally dissipated with things settling down on the team since he and Kurt had sort of made up. They weren't friends. It was just too weird to think of friend and Kurt in the same sentence. Still, they were civil to each other, and with Mark acting as a buffer, it sometimes just felt natural to hang out together. Lance didn't know what to think of Kurt anymore. Watching him and Mark goof around actually made Lance want to join in on the fun. But when it was just the two of them without Mark, it became awkward – full of silence or conversations that quickly petered out. Lance didn't know about Kurt, but he was wary of saying anything that would break their fragile truce.
Currently, Lance was waiting at the floor apparatus for Mark to go retrieve Kurt from the parallel bars where he was just finishing up practicing a routine. For whatever reason, the floor was his and Mark's biggest struggle; but fortunately, it was probably Kurt's best apparatus.
After almost an hour of pointers and demonstrations from Kurt and more than a few imperfect tumbling passes, Lance was about ready to just quit.
"Argh, fuck this stupid thing." He kicked at the mat, resulting in a now stubbed toe, before collapsing onto his back with a thud.
"Hey, it's not that bad." Kurt leaned over him, looking in amusement at his antics.
"No, Lance is right. It's bad." Mark joined Lance on the mat, a resounding thump accompanying his fall.
Kurt sat down beside them cross-legged. "You guys are just weak," His light tone belied his words as he leaned his elbow on his knee.
"I will get up and punch you," Mark said but remained unmoving in his sprawled position.
"Why don't we talk about something else for a bit? Get your mind off your big, flat, squishy, blue nemesis."
"I thought we were talking about the floor, not y–" Lance stopped himself just before he said you. That would've been a weird slip of the tongue to explain to Mark.
"Not what?" Mark inquired, leaning up on his elbows to look over at Lance.
Lance saw Kurt's expression change from disconcerted to confused. He saw him mouth the word 'squishy?' to which Lance just shrugged. It was going to be a stupid quip anyway.
"Not what?" Mark repeated.
"Nothing." Lance scrambled in his mind to think of a different topic to distract Mark. "But hey, you see the new horror movie out? Jackhammer 3: The Crumbling?"
Luckily, Mark seemed to let it go and lay back down on the floor. "No. I don't like horror."
"What? Really? But it's so great."
"Ja, it was awesome. You should totally go see it." Kurt leaned forward, eager to recount the horrors that was Jackhammer. "There's this part with an eyeball. This dude's face is all-" Seeing Mark's discomfort, he cut himself off from giving a blow-by-blow. "It's so bloody and gross."
Mark gave another squeamish look, which Lance ignored. "Ha yeah, that was great. And this girl. Man, she totally gets jackhammered to death straight up in her –"
"Stop. Stop." Mark sat up completely, waving off any more graphic descriptions of death by jackhammer.
"Sorry. It's pretty graphic so you probably wouldn't like it," Kurt said.
"Ugh, no. Gore just makes me feel sick." Mark stood up and turned around to regard the other two still reclined out. "Can't we just get back to what we're supposed to be working on?" He gestured towards the floor area.
"Sure. Sure." Lance stretched on the floor before standing up alongside Mark. "So what's next?"
"How about we do just a simple tumbling pass?" Kurt stood and walked over to the corner of the mat to demonstrate what it should look like. "It's just a dive roll, front walkover, cartwheel, cartwheel, back walkover, and ends with a back extension roll. I'll do it slowly, ok?"*
When Kurt executed it, it looked simple and easy. But when Lance tried to imitate Kurt, he wound up flat on his back on the floor.
Mark and Kurt peered at him from above.
"You okay?" Kurt asked.
"Yeah, this is all part of my routine. A tribute to Jackhammer: The Crumbling." Lance began writhing on the floor, imitating as if he had a jackhammer driving at his stomach.
Kurt couldn't help but laugh out loud at Lance's inane movements. Lance began making even bigger, dramatic movements along with painful noises. Soon, Mark was joining in with Kurt.
"I can hear the judges now. 'A perfect ten! Never have we seen such a riveting performance,'" Kurt joked, waving his hand out like he was an announcing the newest act on stage.
Lance suddenly stopped when he saw Trieg come up behind Kurt and place his hand on his shoulder.
"I need to talk with you," Trieg said authoritatively, not even looking over at Lance or Mark.
"Um, ok."
"In my office. Now." Trieg's voice brooked no argument. He walked off, assured that Kurt would follow him.
"Do you know what he wants?" Mark asked. "He didn't sound too pleased."
Kurt just shook his head. "I dunno. I'll be back in a bit."
Lance watched Kurt run off before looking questioningly at Mark, who just shrugged.
Trieg's office was slightly dim, the blinds having been drawn to and the overhead light flickered in need of a replacement. Kurt slightly jumped at the sound of the door clicking close, on edge with thoughts of the time in the car racing through his mind.
"Take a seat." Trieg practically pushed Kurt into one of the chairs that faced Trieg's desk. The chair, hard and covered in a grey plastic, was uncomfortable as he fell into it. Trieg didn't sit behind his desk, but instead stood right in front of Kurt. He leaned his back against the front of his desk with his knees lightly brushing Kurt's. The desk slightly groaned under Trieg's weight.
Trieg didn't say anything at first, but just stared at him a bit, causing Kurt to squirm in his chair.
No longer standing the silence, Kurt began but Trieg cut him off. "Is there anything-"
"Are you doing this just to spite me?"
"W-What?"
"You and Alvers. I see you two have become close suddenly. So are you doing this just to spite me?"
Kurt was so confused. Not sure why Coach Trieg would even think that. "No, of course no-"
"Because I really don't appreciate that. I thought I'd do good by you and let you off the hook on helping Alvers. And then you just threw it back in my face."
"It really wasn't anything like-" Kurt tried denying but Trieg wouldn't let him get a word in edgewise.
"I like to think I look out for you. Can be someone you can rely on. But you have to be willing to listen to me." Trieg leaned forward and put a hand on Kurt's shoulder. "But you haven't been recently."
Trieg was so close now, Kurt could practically smell what he ate for lunch. "I really didn't mean to. Lance and I just sort of made up."
Trieg shook his head. "Actions speak louder than words. You say you didn't mean to but your actions speak differently. I listened to you, realized my mistake, and even apologized and let you out of our responsibility. And what did you do? Just went right ahead and did everything you could to oppose me. And in that, did you ever think of my feelings? Of how I must feel for you to go against everything I said?"
Kurt just shook his head, a slight surge of guilt rising up.
"Even after I told you how important it was to listen to me. Remember that talk? Remember how I showed you. Mentored you to make the right choices. Well, you won't if you refuse to listen."
Kurt just sat there, not knowing what to say.
Trieg sighed and shifted to kneel down in front of him. "You're a good guy, but sometimes you're just so inconsiderate. That's why you have to listen to me."
"I'm sorry," Kurt said dejectedly. He looked down, not wanting to see Trieg's disappointment.
"Remember, I even let you decide whether Alvers remained on the team. That was a big decision I entrusted you with. In order for me to feel like I can do that again, you have to trust me in return."
Trieg shifted back a bit on his knees, giving Kurt hope that he'd back up a bit and give him a bit of space; but instead, Trieg resettled himself a touch closer and moved one of his hands from Kurt's shoulder to rest high up on his inner thigh. Whatever else Trieg said, Kurt tuned out, feeling highly uncomfortable with the intimate touch. He didn't know what to do. Was Trieg aware of his hand? Was he doing this on purpose? His athletic pants were thin and tight, and through them, he could feel the heat emanating from each of Trieg's fingers. He felt the hand begin to trail higher, making him jerk back almost hard enough to knock over the chair.
"Um, Coach, do you think you could?" He glanced down at the hand then back up, hoping to convey his nervousness without insulting Trieg.
"Oh, sorry. Didn't realize."
Trieg took his hand away slowly, letting it trail down Kurt's leg before removing it completely. He was so nonchalant about it, like it was just a common mistake, that Kurt began to question whether he was the one reading too much into things.
Trieg stood up completely and again leaned back against his desk. Kurt breathed a sigh of relief at having that extra space between them.
"The big Tournament is coming up and I need you at your best. You need to concentrate on yourself and not just on helping out Alvers. You understand?"
Kurt nodded. "Ja."
"That means I don't want to see you around him for awhile."
Kurt reluctantly agreed. He hadn't mind hanging around Lance, but Trieg was right. He should start focusing more on his routines.
"I also want you to trust me. I trust you and I'd be hurt if the feeling wasn't mutual."
Trieg looked so earnest that Kurt couldn't help but respond, "I trust you."
Trieg gave a smile. "I'm glad. Now just prove it. I'm going to be watching. Don't disappoint me again." He moved over to the door to let Kurt rejoin practice.
"I won't."
Kurt left the office and headed towards the locker room. He waved to Mark and Lance and tried to smile to show that everything was fine, but in actuality he was torn on the inside. He needed a place to try and get his frayed emotions under control. When he reached the locker room, only strewn bagpacks carelessly left on the floor and lockers hanging open with clothes peeking out greeted him. Ignoring the chaotic mess, he headed towards the back area, past his own woeful locker, to the end of the row. He slowly leaned back against the end - the slight hollow, metal clunk disturbing the air a brief second only to resign to the silence. Sinking down to the ground, he was relatively hidden from view of anyone that walked in.
Resting his arms on his knees, he shakily ran a hand through his hair. His thigh still tingled as if he could still feel the ghost of Trieg's touch. He wasn't sure if Trieg had meant to place his hand there or not; but either way, it made him very uncomfortable. He didn't know what to do. Trieg had apologized but then there was the car ride. That wasn't normal, right? He sat in silence for a few minutes, just trying to make sense of it all.
Maybe he was reading too much into things. He wasn't used to people reaching out and touching him. It was probably just all in his head. It's not like Trieg had tried anything. It could all be explained as mistakes or just Trieg's natural affinity for demonstrative affection. He was just being an idiot.
Thinking back on their conversation, Trieg was probably right. That was twice Kurt had ignored Trieg's wishes and it probably hurt the coach. Trieg had always looked out for him, giving him pointers, praise, or leeway. He really was being inconsiderate by taking all the things that Trieg had done for him and throwing them back in his face.
He was just blowing things out of proportion. And Trieg was right. He needed to respect him and listen to him. He really shouldn't be uncomfortable around Trieg - he was just friendly and Kurt was the one at fault for thinking bad of him. He wouldn't let Trieg down. Resolving then and there, Kurt decided he would trust Trieg. There was no reason to doubt him.
At the next several practices, Kurt, Lance and Mark mostly worked on their own routines, preparing for the tournament coming up that weekend. Lance and Mark were pretty understanding when he told them Trieg wanted him to practice on his own. Of course, he didn't mention anything else that occurred in the coach's office. There wasn't anything to mention.
Surprisingly, Kurt actually felt he missed hanging out with not only Mark, but also Lance. Even though he could be crude, he wasn't too bad to be around. It kinda made him nervous. With the antagonism gone, where did that put them? And then what will happen when inevitably the X-men ended up fighting the Brotherhood? Kurt didn't know how he would handle going up against Lance now that he wasn't just some one-dimensional adversary.
He had to put those thoughts aside and just deal with it whenever it came up. Right now, he had to concentrate on the upcoming tournament.
Jumping up, he grabbed onto the high bar and let muscle memory take control. Gymnastics could be so cleansing - thoughts lifting from his mind as just him and his routine took over.
Unsurprisingly, upon his dismount – a fair landing with just a small hop– he felt a large hand against the small of his back. Trieg had held on to his promise and was constantly watching him and giving out pointers. Kurt did his best at being receptive to Trieg's touches. He needed to keep his own promise to himself. So whenever Trieg touched his shoulders, legs, or back, he decided it was ok. He needed to prove to Trieg that there was a measure of trust and respect.
"That was great. It's going to be hard for anyone to match that." Trieg kindly smiled down at Kurt.
Kurt tried to smile back; but despite his conviction, he still had a hard time relaxing at Trieg's touch. It was something he'd have to work on. "Um, thanks."
"You've done well. It seems that you really listened to our talk. Makes me proud." Trieg pulled Kurt in for a hug, his hand trailing near Kurt's waist before releasing him.
Kurt took a step back to get some needed space, but luckily Trieg was already on his way to the pommel horse to help out Reese.
"I'm so proud of you too," came a mocking voice from behind. "Let's all have one big hug."
Kurt jumped a bit, surprised by Lance's silent approach. He turned to face Lance, who was standing with his arms crossed and a smirk on his face.
"Oh shut up." Kurt bent down to retrieve his water bottle. "He's just trying to be encouraging."
"To you." Lance sneered in Trieg's direction. He watched Coach shaking his head at Reese - radiating clear disappointment in Reese's ineptitude on the pommel horse. "He hasn't even said shit to me in two weeks."
"Who are you again?" Kurt said sarcastically as he leaned his head back to take a drink of water.
Lance lightly pushed him, causing water to drip all over the sides of his face.
"Hey!" Kurt wasn't too offended, though, as he could see Lance suppressing a laugh.
"I'm unforgettable. And don't you forget."
Kurt laughed as he wiped the water from his face. Surreptitiously, he angled his water bottle towards Lance.
"You know," Lance began as he turned to look at everyone practicing, "this tournament is going to –"
Whatever Lance was going to say was cut off when a stream of water splashed against the whole side of face and shirt. Kurt stopped squeezing his water bottle and waited as Lance foolishly turned towards him. A look of surprise and indignation was painted across Lance's face for a brief second before Kurt sprayed him again directly in the face.
"You are so dead. Thus ends the life of one Kurt Wagner."
"Oh, Coach Trieg. Lance and I were just about to get back to practice," Kurt did his best to pretend he saw Trieg approaching from behind. Luckily, his ruse worked.
As Lance turned around, Kurt took the time to escape to where Mark was practicing on the parallel bars.
Mark was in the middle of a handstand, his blond hair sweeping a bit from his face. He gave a curious look to Kurt.
"What's wrong?" Mark asked as he swung out of the handstand to hang from the bars.
"Nothing. Why would anything be wrong? Just eager to practice next." Kurt tried to smile nonchalantly.
Mark just shrugged and continued with his routine.
Kurt peeked back over his shoulder only to be startled by Lance standing right behind him.
"I am so going to get you back. Just you wait," Lance threatened but his voice lacked any menace. In fact, Kurt would say he was almost smiling under his poised glare.
Kurt watched Mark alongside Lance, any worries about Trieg scattering to the wind.