Are You In

by P W Steele

  “We’re here for you, man, okay? You’ve got a week with us. Try it out, see if you like it and if you decide to continue, we’ll support you every step of the way.” Coming from anyone else, it might have sounded like a lame sales pitch, but the warmth in Scotty’s voice was genuine.

  Andy’s blush was getting stronger. The warmth kept rushing into his cheeks the longer Scotty kept his hand cupped over his.

  “Hi, I’m Michael,” a voice coming from Andy’s left snapped him out of his blush-trance.

  Andy turned and saw a young, fit and friendly looking guy stretching his hand out towards him. Andy pulled his hand, as un-awkwardly as he could, away from under Scotty’s hefty grip and met Michael’s hand with a firm handshake.

  “I’ll be your personal trainer,” Michael said as he looked over at Scotty. “Is he good to go?’

  “Yeah,” Scotty replied with a growl. “He’s all yours...for now.” Andy turned to Scotty to say thanks. Scotty shot him a smile and a wink before grabbing the pen and papers and walking away to one of the two desks behind the front counter.

  Andy turned his attention to his personal trainer. This was it. This was the guy who was going to help him transform his body.

  Michael had an easygoingness about him that reset Andy and put him back at ease. It was at that point Andy realized he’d been holding his breath. For how long, he didn’t know. All he knew was that Scotty was one intense dude.

  Michael on the other hand, had a baby face, topped off by an unruly head of blonde hair, curling down in messy waves to just above his shoulders. He looked to be in his mid-twenties and his skin was smooth and tanned. While he also had bulging biceps underneath his tight fitting tee, unlike Scotty’s, his were smooth, supple and sunkissed. His broad shoulders tapered into a slim waist. There was not a hint of a hair, or tattoo, in sight.

  “So before we get started, let me give you a bit of a tour around the place,” Michael began. His tone was professional and friendly and Andy felt he was in safe hands.

  “Sounds good,” Andy replied, gathering his thoughts as he followed Michael who began walking away from the front desk area and towards the main floor. “So you’ve met Scotty, he’s one of the co-owners of the gym. You’re doing the free week trial thing, right?”

  “Yeah, that’s right.”

  “Cool. So you’ll meet with him at some stage during the week to work on your diet. He’s a qualified nutritionist, so he’ll work with you on that side of things.”

  Michael turned around to face the massive, open gym floor. “So this, as you can see, is the main gym floor here,” he said with a wry smile. “We’ll go through the different machines and the different areas once we get back out here. Don’t worry,” he said, seeing the blank expression on Andy’s face as he took it all in, “You’ll get used to everything soon enough. I promise.”

  “Alright, cool,” Andy nodded his head as he took in what looked like a maze of weird looking machines and odd shaped contraptions. None of it really made sense in his mind. A part of him wanted to turn around and just get out of there. But he knew he couldn't. Besides, there was another part of him, a stronger part, that was determined to stay.

  'It's new. That's why you're uncomfortable,' he thought to himself, taking a deep breath in to calm himself down.

  “Hi, I’m Sean,” a friendly voice approached Michael and Andy from behind. “Welcome to Amazing Fitness. Michael and Andy turned around and came face-to-face with Sean, an affable looking guy in his late-twenties. He had a cute, albeit slightly nerdy face. He wore thin rimmed glasses, had short brown hair, a strong nose and his warm, friendly smile revealed two super cute dimples.

  Andy shook his outstretched hand and smiled. “Hi, I’m Andy. Nice to meet you.”

  “Sean’s another one of the co-owners,” Michael explained. “Wow, you’re getting to meet the whole squad all at once.”

  Sean was shorter than Scotty and Michael, but his lean, sculpted build was equally impressive. He was athletic, toned and looked as if he didn’t have an ounce of body fat on him. “I think we’re booked in for a wellness session in a couple of days,” Sean said with a genuine warmth in his voice. “I’m looking forward to it.”

  “Uh yeah, me too,” Andy replied. He had no idea what a wellness session was, but it came with the deal. Seeing how friendly and approachable Sean seemed reassured him that at least it wouldn’t be anything too weird or kooky.

  “I gotta dash, so enjoy your session with Michael and I’ll see you in a couple of days Andy,” Sean said as he waved to someone across the gym floor, indicating he was on his way over to them.

  “Nice to meet you too,” Andy said as Sean scooted past him.

  “Alright, let’s keep going,” Michael began. “Now, where were we?” He took a few steps further into the maze that was the gym floor as Andy followed closely behind him. There were a number of fit people, maybe a dozen or so, doing all sorts of weird things, exercises he believed they were called, on the various machines.

  “The only thing you need to know right now,” Michael continued, "Is that corner over there.” He stretched out his muscular right arm out towards the far left corner of the floor.

  “What about it?” Andy asked, looking more at Michael’s impressive arm than at where he was pointing to.

  “That corner is called Katie’s Corner. It’s the part of the gym that's female-only,” Michael said.

  Andy looked more closely and could see a semi-partitioned wall. The giant wall-to-floor mirror that covered the entire back wall of the gym stopped at the partition, and behind it, Andy noticed that the few machines that he could see were all a different colour, purple.

  “Why is it called Katie’s Corner?” he asked, his curiosity piqued.

  “It’s in honor of Scotty’s best friend, Katie,” Michael lowered his voice and stepped in a little closer towards Andy. “They were friends since grade school. Totally inseparable. Loved each like crazy.” He took a deep breath. “About two years ago, Katie was killed by a drunk driver. Scotty was heartbroken, as you can imagine. So he decided to dedicate that corner of the gym to her memory, so that she’d always be near him. Purple was her favorite color.”

  “That’s so sad...and sweet,” Andy said. A look of genuine compassion swept across his face. He turned back towards the front desk but Scotty was nowhere to be seen. His heart ached for him. He couldn’t imagine what he’d do if he lost Emily.

  “Okay, so let me show you a few more things and then we can get started with your workout,” Michael said, pointing both index fingers to the opposite back right corner of the gym.

  Andy followed Michael as they approached and pushed through a heavy brown swing door with a neon green male symbol on it. Michael led Andy into a long corridor filled with lockers on each side, divided by a wooden bench in the middle. The place was brightly lit. A clean, lemony smell wafted through the air.

  Andy’s eyes were immediately drawn to the back of a man getting changed in the locker room. He couldn’t see his face, but he felt an immediate stirring in his stomach.

  The man was completely naked. He was drying off his front side, exposing the entire back side of his sculpted, and still dripping wet, body to Michael and Andy, without realizing it. Every single muscle from his neck down to the top of his feet was clearly defined and visible. Andy’s heart started to race as his eyes darted up and down, feasting on the amazing specimen of a man standing only a few short feet away from him.

  He was tall, a little shorter than Andy, but somewhere around the six foot mark. His freshly showered skin glistened under the bright locker room lights. Andy was transfixed by the subtle way his back muscles moved and contracted as he dried himself off.

  To Andy's surprise, Michael walked straight up to the man and tapped him on his shoulder. "I'd like you to meet someone," he said, pointing to Andy.

  The man turned around and Andy’s eyes widened, his breath caught in his chest. There, standing there in front of him, dripping we
t and naked behind the modesty of only a thin white towel was, hands down, the most attractive man Andy had ever laid eyes on. He was so attractive it almost doesn't look real. It was an almost otherworldly perfection.

  Andy quickly closed the distance between them and extended his hand.

  "This is Jack, another one of the co-owners," Michael said to Andy. Jack smiled as he reached forward to shake Andy’s hand.

  “Nice to meet you Andy,” he said with a deep, resonating voice that sent a vibration from the base of Andy’s spine right up to his neck. His hand was soft and smooth, a stark contrast to the hardened calluses he felt on Scotty’s palms.

  Andy readjusted his shoulders as he gazed into Jack’s dark blue eyes. They were like two deep inviting pools on a hot summer's day. He wanted to dive in. Standing there, looking into those beautiful blue eyes, felt like the most natural thing in the world.

  Jack looked like he was in his late thirties, although he could have been a bit older and just looked amazing for his age. He was exquisitely handsome, with a chiseled face and a short crop of dark blonde hair. He had flawless, sun-kissed caramel skin and an adorable pearly white smile that would knock anyone right on their ass.

  And his body. His body was perfect. It was well defined and muscular, with spot on, Goldilocks proportions. Not too big, not too small...everything was just right.

  “Welcome aboard,” Jack continued, looking at Andy who had a transfixed glaze across his eyes, as he was still holding onto Jack’s hand.

  “Thanks,” Andy managed to say, his brain finally clicking into gear before things got awkward. He released his grip but could still feel the wetness Jack’s hand left in his. Andy didn’t want to move. He was perfectly happy to stay close to Jack for as long as he could.

  "Alright, let's keep going," Michael said, gently guiding Andy past Jack and back into reality.

  "Nice meeting you," Andy said and offered a small wave as he followed Michael towards the end of the locker room.

  "Same here," Jack replied, holding Andy’s gaze for a brief moment, before flashing him a dazzling smile as he turned back towards his locker and continued drying off.

  Michael and Andy reached the end of the locker room. "Just one thing,” Michael said as he lowered his voice and tilted his head back towards the lockers, “Make sure you always lock your locker. We've had a few issues with petty theft recently."

  “Oh okay, sure," Andy managed to respond, even though his thoughts were thoroughly flooded with Jack’s naked, wet body.

  “It’s not a big deal, but just something to be mindful of,” Michael continued.

  “Uh huh, yep...”

  "So on your left, you've got restrooms. This way…" Michael pointed right, "Are the showers."

  The showers were another long corridor. Andy hated open showers, ever since his first gym class in middle school. For a guy like him, post gym class showers were no fun. Andy was relieved to see the showers were actually cubicles, each divided by a thick grey wall, with shower curtains hanging over a rod in front of each cubicle for privacy.

  "At the end of the showers," Michael continued, "Is a sauna. You'll be spending some time there too. It's really good for post-workout recovery."

  "Oh, okay. Cool."

  "You have been in a sauna before, right?' Michael asked, picking up on Andy's slight hesitation.

  Andy had never been in a sauna in his life.

  "Oh yeah, of course I have," he said, trying to inject a confidence that was previously missing in his voice but instead coming across as transparently overcompensating. "Heaps of times," he added for good measure.

  "Great,” Michael said, motioning towards the locker room behind them. “Well that wraps us up in here. How about you throw your stuff into a locker, make sure to lock it, and I’ll meet you on the floor for your workout.”

  "Sounds good," Andy replied with an eager smile. He turned the corner back into the locker room and almost tripped over his own feet. Gone was the towel covering the front side of his body. Now, Jack was wearing the most skimpy, revealing red thong Andy had ever seen.

  From the back, all Andy could see were two thin red strings emanating from Jack's ass and making their way across the top of his totally exposed cheeks. His bare butt was the same color as the rest of his tanned skin. It was round, well defined and looked temptingly solid.

  Andy looked up at Michael who was walking ahead of him. Michael didn't even seem to notice Jack, or what he was wearing. He was careful not to stare, but as he got closer to Jack, he couldn't help but take another look. Jack happened to turn around just as Andy got closer to him, giving Andy a complete close up, front-on view.

  Andy could see the two red strings reaching around over Jack's hips, resting on his deep torso lines below his clearly defined six pack abs. The strings dove down and met in a mesh pouch that covered what looked to be a very hefty package. Jack smiled as he saw Andy's eyeline headed for exactly where he wanted it to.

  Jack was an exhibitionist.

  All of his life, he had been aware of his looks and the effect that his appearance had over other people. But for all the attention and adoration that he received, he ultimately found it meaningless. If anything, his appearance kept him at a distance from others, and prevented him from getting what he really wanted: closeness and connection with people that liked him for who he was, not how he looked.

  He had earned an unjustified reputation as a guy that slept around a lot. While he was outgoing, friendly and even flirty, Jack was surprisingly old school when it came to love and sex.

  Part of it was a defence mechanism designed to protect himself from people who just wanted him for his body, and part of it was that deep down, he was a hopeless romantic wanting to find the one true, great love of his life. While he did enjoy fooling around with guys, he was definitely more reserved when it came to being intimate, and truly revealing himself, with another guy.

  Despite all the rumors, Jack really didn't care what other people thought about him. He had given up on that years ago. The beauty of getting older, he had discovered, was that when done right, his care factor of what other people thought and said about him went down, just as his own confidence and self-esteem went up. It was a perfectly symbiotic counterbalance and a great antidote to feeling depressed or worried about getting older, now that he had pushed past the dreaded death knell of the big 4-0.

  Some people called Jack vain, whereas he considered the time, effort and money he took to look after his health and appearance as an investment in himself. It was paying off. Not only was he looking at least a decade younger than his actual age, Jack had the energy and stamina guys half his age would kill for.

  Jack liked getting attention because for him, attention meant power. It meant that he was in control. So while he was standing practically naked except for a barely there red thong, he was in control. He knew exactly what he was doing and Andy’s wide-eyed, and not discreet in the slightest, staring was giving him exactly what he wanted. Power. Control.

  Andy chose a locker opposite Jack. Their eyes met. Jack grinned a devilishly sexy grin. Andy’s heart was beating so fast he could feel the thundering beat in his eardrums.

  Slowly, Jack began to slide his long, sun kissed fingers down his deliciously defined torso. Andy’s eyes were fixated on the downward motion. Jack's fingers reached the pouch of his thong. He tugged at it to readjust himself. As he did, he revealed a tidy tuft of dark blonde pubic hair. The pouch bounced back gently, his whole package shaking slightly and covering everything up again.

  Andy's heart was racing. He couldn't believe what he was seeing, but he also had to keep up with Michael who was waiting for him on the gym floor. He threw his bag into the locker, making sure it was locked, and made his way to the gym floor.

  As he got to the door, he turned over his shoulder to get one more look at Jack. Jack’s eyes were fixed on him. For a moment, Andy and Jack stared at one another. Jack’s lips curled into a wickedly sexy smile as Andy finally
pushed the door open and stumbled out onto the gym floor.

  Chapter 3 - First Workout

  Michael noticed that Andy was flustered when he stepped out of the locker room. "So that's Jack,” he began with a knowing smirk, “He can be...a lot.” Andy was embarrassed he was so obvious, but Michael clearly didn't mind. He'd probably seen the effect Jack had on guys a million times before.

  "So how many gym owners are there?" Andy asked, trying to change the subject, as Michael walked away and motioned for him to sit down at a scary looking machine that he had no idea what he was expected to do with.

  "Four," he replied as he began to adjust the machine’s weight settings. "You've met Scotty and Jack, who incidentally, used to be a couple."

  "No way," Andy exclaimed.

  "Yeah, but we’re talking waaaay back in the day,” Michael continued. “I mean, like seven, eight years ago. They’re just friends now. Or frenemies I should say."

  "What do you mean?" Andy asked, intrigued.

  "I don’t know, they're just...weird," Michael adjusted the weight setting and paused, looking to find the right words. "They disagree, they fight, they even compete over guys, but then the next day, they make up and it’s like nothing happened. I really don’t think there’s any romantic love between them, it’s more like they’re family now at this point.”

  "Maybe that's why they fight all the time?" Andy joked.

  Michael’s lips curled upwards. "Yeah, probably. They’re good guys though. They just drive me a little crazy sometimes. The other co-owner is Sean, who we met before."

  "Uh huh," Andy said with a nod.

  "Sean's the quiet one of the bunch, the only quiet one. Cool guy, super chill. He's been married for like, ten years. His husband is actually the weather guy on KGUN7 News," Michael said as his eyes lit up, indicating that it was kind of a big deal.