Page 29 of Allure

I might've been glad that my classes are all in the morning and not split up throughout the day, but I always hated getting up super early for high school. I guess I'm more of a night owl who has been living as an early bird catches the worm kind of girl, but because I don't have an alarm set for Saturday morning, I end up sleeping until just before noon. When I wake, I'm all groggy and confused, disoriented.

“Good morning, sleepyhead,” Dawn says from her desk. She takes a sip from a mug.

“Is that black coffee?” I ask.

“Yes, and before you act like that’s some kind of crazy diet thing, it’s not. Not really. I never wanted to get started with those crazy expensive fancy coffee drinks, so I never even had a sip of one. I don’t drink a lot of coffee as it is. My grandfather drinks his coffee black, and every so often, he would let me sneak a sip here or there. My mom would’ve been furious because coffee stunts your growth, don’t you know.” She alters her voice slightly for the last part, maybe trying to mimic her mom.

I grin. “I’m scared to think of what I would do on a caffeine high.”

“Oh, yeah?”

“Yeah, I tend to get a lot of stuff done when I’m highly motivated. Almost manic level. I can be… I can have a one-track mind at times.”

“Huh. I never would’ve guessed from the way you went from zero to sixty on karate,” she teases me. “A class today?”

“No. Maybe eventually on Saturdays, but for now… not until Monday.” I eye her. “Do you want to eat first and then check out the fitness centers?”

“Maybe something light. Just a banana. Well, only if we plan on actually working out today. Do we?”

“Might as well rip off the Band-Aid and get to it right from the get-go, right?”

"Yeah, zero to sixty, all right." She laughs. "Let me finish my coffee. We can head over to the dining hall already in our gym gear… or…"

“Maybe head back here to get changed first?” I suggest gently for her.

She nods gratefully.

While she eats, I debate changing out of my PJs, but I've seen other girls walking around campus in theirs, so I don't bother. It doesn't take Dawn long to finish, and we end up just eating a few pieces of fruit. Breakfast is already finished being served at the dining hall. They should serve brunch on the weekends, if you ask me. I love pancakes and waffles and French toast.

We both put on activewear, and I grimace in front of the mirror, trying to get a look at my ass.

“Squats and lunges,” Dawn informs me.

“What?”

“You want a bigger ass, right? So you’ll want to do a lot of squats and lunges. Best way to grow your derriere.”

“Um, thanks.”

She laughs. “I’m sorry. I read up a few articles. I’m excited about this… but I’m also nervous.”

“No reason to be nervous,” I assure her, looping our arms together. “We got this.”

“I know. It’s easier going with a friend. That’s for sure. I don’t know if I’ll have the drive to continue on and stick with it if I don’t have someone else motivating me and who needs me to motivate them.”

“Where to first?”

“I like the name of Fearless Fitness,” she says. “Let’s start there. If we like it, great. If not, there are plenty of other places we can scope out. Bottom line, this needs to be a place where we both feel comfortable.”

“Without a doubt.”

Dawn offers to drive. It’s about twenty minutes away, maybe a little longer than I would’ve liked. The place is massive, though, and when we walk inside, I’m looking all around. So many rows of treadmills and stationary bikes and ellipticals… Most of them are being used, too, and from the looks of it, they’re all serious gym rats. One guy is sweating so profusely that I hope he plans on using two or three towels to wipe it down after.

Dawn’s looking all around, too, and a perky, bubbly woman in a purple shirt and yoga pants approaches. Her nametag—Pamela—is the only hint that she works here.

“Hi!” she says in a voice that matches her vibe. “I’m Pamela. Welcome to Fearless Fitness! Is this your first time here?”

“We are trying to find a fitness center,” Dawn murmurs.

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