Page 33 of Bewitch

She laughs. “You know, I’ve been watching you, and I have to tell you—Shit. Here.”

Kelly hands me the weights and waits for me to get started up again to continue talking.

“You really inspire me,” she says. “You come in here so often, and you’re always fighting, always striving to be better. I love it.”

“Are you serious? I inspire you? You… Look at you! You have nothing to improve!”

“Are you kidding me? I’m skinny fat,” she says. “I don’t have much muscle mass at all. It’s only recently that I’ve been able to start using the five pound weights.”

“I wish they would get lighter weights,” I say.

“The one pounders, the twos, the threes… I feel like a joke using them.”

“Wait. They actually have those weights?” I’m shocked. “Since when?”

“Since before I started to use weights. Maybe a year? But I’ve never been consistent. I was more into cardio, and I’ve been working on my diet.”

“Diet’s the hardest part for me.”

She groans. “Me too. I’ve been trying to shed fat and get to the weight I want, but cutting is so hard—”

“Cutting?”

“Reducing my calories. It makes me a raging bitch. I swear. But Lucas mentioned to me that he thinks I should be bulking, not cutting.”

“Bulking is eating more?”

“Yes, so you can build more muscle. When you cut, you lose fat and muscle. It’s inevitable, but it lets those muscles you built become more visible, only he’s right. I need to put on more muscle first for the stupid bulk to be worthwhile. Trust me. No one wants me to cut a bitch.” She laughs and shakes her head. “You probably are thinking that you need to get the hell out of here.”

“Not at all,” I assure her as I hand her over the weights.

She tries to do her move but only manages two reps and gives me back the weights. “I suck.”

“You don’t.”

“Chest is my favorite workout,” she says. Love chest days. Back too. Leg days make me puke.”

“For real?”

She nods.

“I’ve never worked out hard enough to make me sick. Nauseous, yes. Actually sick, no.”

“Trust me. You don’t want to.” She shudders. “I’m Kelly Trettel, by the way.”

“Dawn Melton.”

“I had been meaning to talk to you for so long,” she says. “I’m not sure why I didn’t before.”

“Probably because I’ve only ever been here with Lucas.”

“Yes! You were with your trainer, so I left you be.” She tilts her head to the side. “Where is he?”

“Beats me. He took today off.”

“I guess that’s a good thing. He works all the time. No matter when I come in, which varies depending on the day and my schedule, but he is always here working.”

“Does he go to college?” I ask casually.

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