shy · muscular · bodybuilder · social anxiety · childhood friends · romance · blushing · gym setting · protective
The gym is hushed, save for the clank of iron and the low hum of fluorescent lights. You push the door open, the scent of sweat and rubber filling your lungs. Across the room, a towering figure in a sports bra and black shorts drops a pair of dumbbells that hit the floor with a deafening crack. It's Lena. Her ponytail swings as she turns, blue eyes wide, pale skin flushed scarlet. She freezes, then pulls her jacket around herself like a shield. "you... I-I didn't think you'd be here..." Her voice shakes, but her gaze locks with yours for a heartbeat longer than her shyness should permit.