CHARACTERS: Felicity Smoak and You! LOCATIONS: Crunches + All Around Town WARNINGS: None SUMMARY: Now that she has no other excuse, Felicity is trying to live a slightly more active life.
[ There's always been something about doing crunches in her own living room that made Felicity feel like she could at least try to be physically fit while not needing to suffer the pain of a million stares from beautiful gym people. But since the beginning of time, she's only ever really been able to do ten (or maybe she only has the patience to do 10 before she finds herself inching towards her computer again), and right now, the thought of actually working out at a real gym is ... just a little terrifying.
She really dug herself a hole with this one.
But then again, she thinks, as she finishes packing her gym bag that morning, if it wasn't for Derek, she wouldn't even be trying — and if she was really being honest, she's been thinking about him a lot more frequently since that day at the ball. Ahem — she should really get going.
When Felicity arrives, she checks in with the front counter, they ask if she wants a tour of the facilities and she looks around for Derek first before she says anything. If somehow she managed to get here first, she'll say yes. But if she spots him instead, she'll take the tour next time. ]
[ Derek's not really sure how well this is going to go for either he or Felicity. There's the distinct possibility that it's not going to get either of them anywhere at all and that they'll simply end up frustrated and resenting one another by the time they're done, but Derek's really hoping that, instead, they'll know one another a little better and each of them will have learned a new and useful skill — hers, to take better care of her body the way she wants and his, to stop being caught in the technological dark ages because he's been too damn lazy to learn.
When he gets to Crunches, he catches Felicity's scent in the air and smiles a little to himself as he walks further inside. She's beaten him here, which means that maybe she actually does want to learn and this isn't just about not wanting to wimp out. If that's the case, then he'll give it his all when it's his turn to be the student, too.
Derek spots her a moment later and he laughs a little to himself because it seems like they've dragged her on a tour when she'd been waiting. Once she returns, he checks in with his key fob and nods to her in greeting. ]
[ A few days after her initial session with Derek, Felicity is back at Crunches, determined to be able to follow-through. If she's serious about this, she needs to create a habit, right? And habits start with getting a gym membership and actually then going to the gym.
She returns throughout the week too — sometimes using the free weights, though she isn't always sure what size to grab. Sometimes she's on the treadmill, but it feels a little like her chest is melting from the inside and her lungs or exploding. Sometimes she attempts to do a push-up ... and um ... let's just say it doesn't go so well. ]
[ For some reason, Felicity thought it might be a good idea to trying running outdoors. She's got her exercise gear on, her hair is brushed and tied up in a ponytail, she's wearing the right sneakers, but ...
... well, she's on her phone, typing as she walks, a water bottle tucked between an arm and her chest.
A couple of blocks later, she'll give it a try again, tucking her phone away in a small pocket on her waistband. She's slow but steady and taking big breathes, but she does manage to make it a little while before she needs to stop and rest.
By the end, she's hunched over, hands on her knees, trying to make her way back to any semblance of regular breathing. ]
[ Water fountain, check. Locker rooms, check. Towels, check. Don't use the equipment wrong, okay. Come to us if you want some personal training, yeah yeah.
When she spots Derek coming in and swiping his key fob, she visibly smiles — it's something he should be able to see even though there's still some distance between them. ]
Right, got it. But actually ... my personal trainer just got here, so I'm just gonna- yeah- go over there now. Thanks for the tour.
[ The employee with her nods and lets her be, and Felicity waves towards him from afar, motioning a question with her hands as she points to the men's locker room: Do you need to change? ]
[ Derek watches, a little amused, as Felicity tries to politely extricate herself from the tour to join him and when he catches her motion, Derek shakes his head and moves forward to meet her. ]
Nah, I'll change when I get home.
[ He's already wearing a tank and a pair of workout pants. Derek typically comes here prepared and then showers and changes back home rather than utilizing the locker room. The fact of the matter is, a men's locker room tends to smell pretty horrific, especially with a nose as sensitive as Derek's. He'll pass. ]
Oh, no, no I'm good. [ She'd come dressed already, though she does have something to wear after the workout tucked away in a locker. They went through the locker rooms on the tour. ] Unless you don't think what I'm wearing ... is good for working out. [ Capris, a workout shirt that's a little baggy on her. ]
( running on a treadmill — actually running, fast enough to get kimberly's heartrate up and beads of sweat appearing on the back of her neck — is possibly the world's worst form of exercise. there's nothing enjoyable about the sensation of her feet hitting a loop of rubberized mat, no satisfaction in passed landmarks or sights to see along the way; instead, all she has to entertain herself with is the music piped through her headphones and the gymgoers in her line of sight. the latter of which happens to include a blonde woman she's not met before, one who looks particularly dissatisfied with the treadmill too.
when the woman finally hits stop and clambers off, kimberly pauses her own run, headphones tugged out of her ears and looped around her neck by their cord. )
Hey. ( it's not much of a greeting, but then again, it does seem like the woman is more preoccupied with remembering how to breathe at the moment. ) Not much of a cardio fan?
Ha- [ Felicity starts to laugh, but promptly has to take in much more air because her body is demanding the oxygen. ] -ha ... [ Yes, remembering to breathe is an important part of life, isn't it? Felicity puts up a quick finger as she then moves to unscrew her water bottle and take a sip.
Ahem. ]
No I totally love cardio what are you talking about? [ She says, nearly unable to keep a straight face as she says it. But the joke can only last for so long, because she notices the headphones, the running clothes — the signs that the woman she's talking to just got off the treadmill. ]
I don't know how people do this. I really don't. Doesn't it hurt?
Good. [ She responds, her voice sounding relieved. If she hadn't worn the right clothes, she wouldn't have known what to do. ]
Ahhh well. I could really tell you the benefits of their latest treadmill. Apparently they've very low impact.
[ But she chuckles a little as she looks down to the floor for a second. ] I really have no idea though. It's all a little overwhelming, to be honest, which is why I've never been to one of these places before. I mean, is someone supposed to use all these machines during a workout?
( even before the power coin, years of athletic training had ensured kimberly was more than capable of running a decently timed mile or two. and after the coin? well, it just made her more hardy. so after twenty minutes of decently high-tempo running, she wasn't so much out of breath as pleasantly flushed. )
You mean the running? I mean, maybe if you've never done it before... ( like the girls who tried to meet her cheerleading coach's workouts the first day. out of breath and miserable, of course, until they really got used to things. ) But it gets easier.
But if you hate it, you could do something less boring than just running in place, you know? Like do a class or something.
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Closed to Derek; Crunches
She really dug herself a hole with this one.
But then again, she thinks, as she finishes packing her gym bag that morning, if it wasn't for Derek, she wouldn't even be trying — and if she was really being honest, she's been thinking about him a lot more frequently since that day at the ball. Ahem — she should really get going.
When Felicity arrives, she checks in with the front counter, they ask if she wants a tour of the facilities and she looks around for Derek first before she says anything. If somehow she managed to get here first, she'll say yes. But if she spots him instead, she'll take the tour next time. ]
no subject
When he gets to Crunches, he catches Felicity's scent in the air and smiles a little to himself as he walks further inside. She's beaten him here, which means that maybe she actually does want to learn and this isn't just about not wanting to wimp out. If that's the case, then he'll give it his all when it's his turn to be the student, too.
Derek spots her a moment later and he laughs a little to himself because it seems like they've dragged her on a tour when she'd been waiting. Once she returns, he checks in with his key fob and nods to her in greeting. ]
Sorry if I was late...
Crunches; OTA
She returns throughout the week too — sometimes using the free weights, though she isn't always sure what size to grab. Sometimes she's on the treadmill, but it feels a little like her chest is melting from the inside and her lungs or exploding. Sometimes she attempts to do a push-up ... and um ... let's just say it doesn't go so well. ]
Outdoors, anywhere reasonable — OTA
... well, she's on her phone, typing as she walks, a water bottle tucked between an arm and her chest.
A couple of blocks later, she'll give it a try again, tucking her phone away in a small pocket on her waistband. She's slow but steady and taking big breathes, but she does manage to make it a little while before she needs to stop and rest.
By the end, she's hunched over, hands on her knees, trying to make her way back to any semblance of regular breathing. ]
no subject
When she spots Derek coming in and swiping his key fob, she visibly smiles — it's something he should be able to see even though there's still some distance between them. ]
Right, got it. But actually ... my personal trainer just got here, so I'm just gonna- yeah- go over there now. Thanks for the tour.
[ The employee with her nods and lets her be, and Felicity waves towards him from afar, motioning a question with her hands as she points to the men's locker room: Do you need to change? ]
no subject
Nah, I'll change when I get home.
[ He's already wearing a tank and a pair of workout pants. Derek typically comes here prepared and then showers and changes back home rather than utilizing the locker room. The fact of the matter is, a men's locker room tends to smell pretty horrific, especially with a nose as sensitive as Derek's. He'll pass. ]
Do you need to? I can wait here for you...
no subject
no subject
No, no, what you're wearing is fine. I just didn't want to assume.
[ He clears his throat a little and looks around the gym. ]
All right, where do you want to start?
[ It doesn't really occur to him that he should clarify that he means to be asking what part of her body she wants to start working to tone. ]
no subject
when the woman finally hits stop and clambers off, kimberly pauses her own run, headphones tugged out of her ears and looped around her neck by their cord. )
Hey. ( it's not much of a greeting, but then again, it does seem like the woman is more preoccupied with remembering how to breathe at the moment. ) Not much of a cardio fan?
no subject
Ahem. ]
No I totally love cardio what are you talking about? [ She says, nearly unable to keep a straight face as she says it. But the joke can only last for so long, because she notices the headphones, the running clothes — the signs that the woman she's talking to just got off the treadmill. ]
I don't know how people do this. I really don't. Doesn't it hurt?
no subject
Ahhh well. I could really tell you the benefits of their latest treadmill. Apparently they've very low impact.
[ But she chuckles a little as she looks down to the floor for a second. ] I really have no idea though. It's all a little overwhelming, to be honest, which is why I've never been to one of these places before. I mean, is someone supposed to use all these machines during a workout?
no subject
You mean the running? I mean, maybe if you've never done it before... ( like the girls who tried to meet her cheerleading coach's workouts the first day. out of breath and miserable, of course, until they really got used to things. ) But it gets easier.
But if you hate it, you could do something less boring than just running in place, you know? Like do a class or something.