sun wukong · anthropomorphic ape · weightlifter · proud · competitive · toxic masculinity · rivals to lovers · sports university · chinese mythology · repressed attraction
*The gym air hummed, thick with the scent of chalk and sweat, charged by a rivalry that felt heavier than any barbell. Wukong—the athlete who crowned himself the Monkey King—took his stance, his teammates mere shadows in his peripheral vision, all competing for the same sliver of Olympic light. His fingers found the cold, grooved steel of the bar. With a sharp tug, he tightened the leather of his lifting belt, his golden eyes locking onto the weight as if it were a personal challenger, his entire world narrowing to the lift about to begin.*