"All right, easy does it now! Slow and steady wins the race!" Yuka's face was inches from Weronika's arms as she slowly brought them together, the weights of the gym machine rising slowly behind her chair as she did so.

I already know all this stuff! Weronika thought crossly. She was a gym buff back when she was still in America! But here this annoying Yuka girl was acting like her first day in Japan was also her first day in a gym! Weronika already knew about the importance of posture and repetition. It wasn't just how fast or hard one could go, but how long they could go while maintaining form.

That was why Yuka was inspecting Weronika's arms so closely, calculations flying through her mind as she ensured that Weronika's posture was perfect. It was funny, despite both of them being jocks and athletes of rival DJ units forced together by the hands of fate, capable of speaking English and Japanese, that was where the similarities ended. Appearance-wise, they were different. Personality-wise, they were opposite.

Weronika was the big, bad bully, the jerk jock. Yuka was the gentle giant. She was a golden retriever without fur, although in Weronika's opinion, real golden retrievers were awesome while Yuka was just annoying.

If she's a puppy, I'm a wolf! Weronika thought, smirking to herself as she flexed her muscles.

Yuka, meanwhile, continued to cheer her on, flashing Weronika a thumbs up as she gave her best shot at English. "Nice! Awesome! Super cool!"

I can speak Japanese, ya know? Weronika thought crossly again. They might've known the same languages, but Weronika could've said her Japanese was better than Yuka's English. Heh. Guess there IS someone dumber than me at learning languages. Take that, Elsie!

As a proud, haughty Italian-American, Elsie Largo constantly flaunted her fluency in Italian language, history, culture, and fashion, never mind that Weronika Seperack was equally fluent in Polish, and Sophia was actually the worst of the quartet at learning English. But Elsie still took every opportunity to play up the dumb jock trope and taunt Weronika mercilessly. Imagine if she heard Yuka's English!

Despite the stereotype, both Weronika and Yuka were actually smarter than it may have appeared at first glance. Weronika proved that, knowing three languages well enough to live in any of the three associated countries, but she did not grant Yuka the same grace. Perhaps it was Yuka being blonde, but Weronika still couldn't help but disdain Yuka as at least slightly dumber than her.

As they moved onto the next part of their work-out, pedaling side by side on stationary bikes, Yuka glanced at Weronika, still smiling, just like always. "Hey, Weronika, I wanted to thank you for coming with me to the gym so often."

"Gotta stay fit somehow," Weronika grunted. She was a dancer, after all. Yuka bit back a chuckle, but only just barely.

"You know? I can tell it's because you're trying really hard to work on your anger, and I think that's admirable."

"What?!" Weronika's legs slipped, and even though the bike was stationary, she still managed to nearly fall off the side as the pedals smacked her shins, still spinning. Good thing it wasn't a treadmill! Once she managed to recover her wits and dignity—and Yuka her ability to maintain a poker face and not laugh—Weronika demanded to know what Yuka meant by what she said.

"I was just thinking about the first time you came in here," Yuka said, swallowing the last of her laughter. About a week or two ago, Weronika stepped into Yuka's family's gym for the very first time. A misunderstanding caused Weronika to lash out at Yuka, though she later felt bad enough to apologize and promise to make it up to the other girl. She was only just doing her job, after all. Yuka was touched by Weronika's genuine display of vulnerability for two reasons. The first was because of how sweet it was. The second…

"You're not the only one to struggle with anger, you know?" Yuka asked quietly. Despite her bubbly personality, she could have flashes of fury. She was a member of Peaky, after all, she would joke.

Not unlike Abyssmare, Weronika thought, but Yuka wasn't just referring to her DJ unit. It was a lot of things. Her gym-freak parents, her role as a big sis, her natural firebrand personality. They all culminated into a fighter that became Yuka "Jennifer" Sasago. Sometimes, that wasn't a good thing.

"And especially because I'm so strong," Yuka continued, not trying to brag, "I have to be extra careful." She sheepishly told Weronika of a time she broke a rather high-quality camera in a fit of rage when it wouldn't take photos that weren't blurry or warped. One minute, she was slapping the side of it and frowning. The next, shattered pieces were bouncing off her skin and the walls.

"Oooof! That is rough!" Weronika couldn't help but snicker. "Tell the truth? I never had a phone I didn't break because of anger." She sounded torn between pride and embarrassment as she reached into her pocket. The phone didn't look broken at first, but the moment Weronika turned on the screen, the light illuminated a long, large, spiderweb crack that stretched across all the glass.

"Oof!" Yuka winced sympathetically, also snickering. "Yeah, that's what I mean." It was expensive to be angry. But Yuka was more interested in Weronika's phone's wallpaper, a selfie of her and her three little siblings. Yuka immediately thought of her own, one little sister.

Maika… Another commonality was discovered. Aside from the two gym buffs both being the big sis, their desire to nurture their siblings was mutual, though the approaches were different. While Yuka embarrassedly admitted struggling with enabling Maika and not being tough enough with her, Weronika struggled with the opposite.

"That's why I'm here, after all," she grunted, looking all around the gym and bringing the conversation back full circle.

"Yeah… So, kinda like I said before, I guess I just really admire you," Yuka finally admitted. You remind me of me…

"Eh?" Weronika seemed genuinely taken aback, but she cleared her throat and tried to recover quickly. "I mean, yeah, you got a point there about exercise and anger and all that…" It wasn't like Weronika could just drop everything and pick up a set of dumbbells when she was mad, but she did feel better after a nice, long work-out. That was why Weronika kept coming back to Yuka and her family gym despite complaining about Yuka. Yuka was fully aware of this, much smarter and sharper than Weronika gave her credit for, and she was much more merciful, keeping it to herself.

That's all right, Yuka thought with a private smile. This is good for now. She's got abs and nerves of steel, a will of iron, and a heart of gold.

ooo

A few days later, Weronika had the same thought about Yuka, arriving to the gym a little behind schedule.

Stupid Sho! Friggin' Neo! Makin' Elsie 'n me have to stay late after practice like it's friggin' detention or some stupid crap like—!

Weronika pushed open the gym door and stopped dead in tracks. Yuka was standing in front of a rowing machine, fists clenched, back turned to Weronika. Weronika couldn't see Yuka's face, but she could guess…

Yuka suddenly pulled back her fist, and although Weronika's jaw dropped, and she longed to cry out, she was frozen. And then so was Yuka. Even though Yuka was seconds away from punching the malfunctioning rowing machine, she managed to stop just after she pulled back her fist. The next 10 seconds were eternity as she breathed deeply and slowly talked herself down, struggling not to give into the overwhelming urge to punch the stupid machine until it—or her knuckles—were broken, shattered.

Dayum, girl! Weronika thought, eyes widening as Yuka slowly lowered her fist. It stayed clenched for a little while longer, but eventually, she finally relaxed and released. She's got abs and nerves of steel, a will of iron, and a heart of gold!

By the time they got to training, although Yuka was mortified that Weronika had witnessed her entire little, internal conflict, Weronika was genuinely impressed. She waved off Yuka's frantic apologies, shaking her head.

"Nah, man, that was cool. Genuinely cool." She looked at Yuka with newfound respect, just like that very first day…

"Thanks," Yuka smiled weakly at Weronika, blushing slightly as she scratched her cheek. Inside, though, she was squealing. Weronika had no idea how much her words really meant. No more were necessary. They both understood in just a look, just that one exchange.

Alongside Yuka's impressive display of self-control, they were both thinking again of the heart of gold. The reason Yuka talked herself out of punching the rowing machine was because she knew that even though no one was watching, she didn't want to risk accidentally training her brain that lashing out was an acceptable way to vent. What if it escalated to fighting and hitting people? She had a little sister!

Weronika was thinking the same thing, for that was exactly why she was working on her anger. She never hit her siblings, only yelled, but she didn't want it to get further. Seeing Yuka tame the beast was awesome, and it only strengthened Weronika's resolve. Now, anyone who might've wandered past the gym—Abyssmare, Peaky, or otherwise—should they peer in through the windows, had the chance of seeing Weronika and Yuka working out together, spotting for each other, and helping when more than one pair of hands was necessary.

They would've thought Weronika and Yuka lost their minds, but in truth, Yuka had simply tamed the beast.

"So, whaddaya say, "Coach"? Wanna get started? Cuz that was just a warmup!" Weronika rested her hands on her hips confidently as she cocked her head at the rowing machine. Her impromptu intervention was a bigger success than she realized, and Yuka's self-conscious look instantly became a smile. It made her look like a puppy again, only this time, Weronika didn't find it quite so annoying.

"Game on!" Abs and nerves of steel, a will of iron, and a heart of gold.

AN: I wanted to write something like this since their card dropped, but for some reason, it was only about an hour ago that I randomly got the words I needed to. Also since it was only about an hour ago, #NoBeta! (Again, LOL!) Minor edits, but forgive any major errors missed.

Also, ship name Yukonika? LOL!