Page 23 of Chance Happenings
“Yes, I’m here for the six o'clock self-defense class.” At that, a big smile forms on her face
“Oh, hey. I’m Geneva, you must be Alexa. I got your key fob here, and all of your paperwork filled out. You just have to sign here and here, and I can show you around before the class starts.”
“How much just for the class? I haven’t decided if I’m getting a membership yet,” I ask. I feel completely out of place.
“Oh, your membership has been taken care of. I just need your signature and you’re all set.” Not bothering to argue, I roll my eyes and sign. Somewhere between Dane, Cacey and Chance, my yearly membership fees have been taken care of already. I'll just have to find out how much the cost is and deal with whoever later.
“Alex, you made it!” Cacey says. She’s stepping out of an office from around the corner dressed in a sports tank and matching leggings. The sight of her outfit and every other female that I’ve seen since I arrived causes me to clutch the backpack containing my sweatpants and t-shirt a little tighter. I knew I was coming to the gym but didn’t think to go out and buy something special for the occasion. I should have known better.
Pushing that thought to the back of my mind, I smile mentally preparing myself for what I’m about to endure for the next hour. “Hey C. I was just about to show Alex around and take her to the changing room.” Geneva says, before I can respond.
“Oh, don’t worry about it! I’ll take her to get changed and show her around later. You know how Nova is about stragglers.” Cacey says, with her signature syrupy smile even though to me that statement doesn’t sound promising at all.
After being thoroughly chastised by Cacey about myoutfit,we make it to the class where there are no less than a dozen females. They are all in well put together workout gear, stretching. I follow Cacey to the corner near the front of the class and mimic whatever stretching pose I feel like I can convincingly pull off.
At about 5:55 a vaguely familiar female in camo leggings, black sneakers and a shredded black top comes to the front of the room. “Welcome ladies. For those of you who don’t know, I’m Nova, your instructor. It looks like everyone is here and stretched so if you will, make your way out to the two vacant marked off rows of machines and pick an elliptical or treadmill to warm up.” Confused, I head out with everyone else and pick the treadmill of course because I have zero coordination and ellipticals intimidate me. I’ve never taken a self-defense class, but I’ve seen them on TV and read about them in books and I’ve never seen or read about the treadmill warmup part of the training. We’re on for ten minutes and sadly my treadmill performance leaves a lot to be desired. But it's my first day, and I moved the whole ten minutes, so I’ll count that as a win. “Ok ladies, head back in the room and pick a partner.” Nova says, as we head back to the studio where our class is.
Picking Cacey seemed like a no brainer, but the more we went through the class, the more I realized otherwise. She may not look it, but I’m sure she spends all her free time in this gym and is just in this class for my benefit because she’s well versed in every aspect of the class. “Thanks for coming with me to this class. I can tell that you’ve done it before.” I say, acknowledging her support.
“Oh, I would be here anyway I come to most of these classes and sometimes teach when Nova is out.” That statement makes me feel a little better even though I’d seriously underestimated Cacey’s level of fitness. I thought we’d be an even match as partners, but she’s been kicking my ass all evening.
“Ok. Great job, guys! We’re about to finish up for the day let's move back out to the machines and if you worked on one at the beginning of class, try to move to the other for our closer.” Closer? I have no idea of what expression crosses my face, but at that exact moment Nova and I make eye contact. “Do you have any questions, Alex?”
“Not really. I'm just wondering why does a self-defense class have so much running?” I am not too jazzed about getting on this elliptical machine right now… That must have been the wrong answer because she briefly looks over to Cacey before putting her focus back on me.
“Are you tired, Alex?”
I don’t answer because my sweat-drenched t-shirt should make that answer obvious. “Do you think your attacker is going to let up because you’re tired, out of breath, or hurt? What is the first thing I said you should do if by some miracle you're able to separate yourself from your attacker?” I know the answer but keep my mouth shut, scared of what may come out besides the actual answer. “You don’t know?” She asks, getting closer, almost as if she’s about to challenge me physically herself, but stops about a foot away, which is still too close. Still staring me down with a look of disdain and pity, she says loudly for the rest of the class. “Class, if by some miracle you separate yourself from your attacker, you run for help. Running doesn’t make you weak, it makes you smart and, depending on your attacker, alive. You'll be able to run whether you're tired, banged up, or hurt. I know this class is a little unconventional but by the time we're done, you'll have improved stamina, strength and you will run more efficiently.”
By the time Nova finishes, I notice that we've gotten the attention of the entire class and they’re really pumped up about her speech. Hell, she responded with such passion and conviction that she’s got me standing a little taller, ready to take on the world. “Any more questions Alex?” Having no retort for Nova’s diatribe I shake my head no, grab my towel and a bottle of water, then move out to an elliptical machine and do what I can to finish out this last ten minutes.
Alex
By the timeI make it home, I'm limping. The elliptical experience actually went better than expected, but the car ride home seemed to have aged me by ten years. Every muscle in my body is sore. I can't even make it out of my car before James can get out, check the area, and open the car door for me. Something that I’ve avoided having him do since this whole ordeal started. I see that Chance's truck is in the driveway, and it makes me wonder what he was up to earlier today. He was really short with me, which would be the norm before his recent declaration. But things should be different now, right? Ugh. This new relationship thing is driving me crazy. When I hobble into the house, it's dark. I see that the door to Chance's office is closed, so I just walk past like I did earlier today when I left work. I head straight to his bedroom with a little more trepidation than I've felt in a while.
When I get to the top of the stairs, something seems off. This gives me pause. "Chance?!" I call out before taking another step. No answer. "Chance?!" I say a little louder and nothing. Nova's words from earlier are lingering in the back of my mind, and I immediately turn around to make a run for it. Forgetting about my aching muscles, I jog back down the stairs, then stop again. Damn it. Chance could be up there hurt, or worse. I pull out my phone to dial his number and can hear the ringing of his phone coming from the direction of the bedroom where I just called him. I turn around to go back up to the bedroom, then stop again. Didn't I just learn to do better than this? Think! Think! Think! Alex. I finally turn around and head for the front door. I know James is still around, so I call his number and have him meet me at the front door. By the time I make it to the door, James is typing away at his phone before he puts it away and replaces it with a black handgun.
"Stay here Ms. Wilde, Dane is on the way." He walks past me and heads up the stairs. Like hell he’s going to leave me here. I follow close behind him, apparently making too much noise because he turns around, sees me, and shakes his head in defeat. He then puts his index finger against his lips, giving me the universal signal to shut up. As we enter the room, I see Chance's phone on the floor beside some discarded clothes at the entrance of the closet, but nothing else out of the way.
James is well worth his money because he is swiftly clearing every inch of the room and the closet without making a sound. When he opens the bathroom door light pours into the room and… "What the fuck!!!"
Chance roars from inside the bathroom as James simultaneously yells out. I rush up behind James, peeping around him to see into the bathroom and immediately fall down laughing at the sight of Chance buck naked with a lighter in one hand and a candle in the other. Before I can even pull myself off the floor from the fit of laughter, Dane appears, out of thin air, barely holding it together himself as he takes in the scene before him.
"Is that Kenny G?" Dane asks. Referring to the soft music playing. He has a look of equal parts amusement and confusion, which only sends me into another fit of laughter.
"If y’all are done staring at my junk, can you hand me a towel and get the fuck out." Chance says, totally seriously.
Even though the towels are right behind him, James takes the opportunity to leave. Not even bothering to say bye. A still naked Chance turns to Dane with a sneer on his face and some other look that I can’t figure out. "I'll catch you tomorrow." Dane says, taking the hint before he turns, acknowledges me with a simple head nod, and leaves. Visibly seething, Chance looks to the ceiling, closing his eyes. He leans against the counter, clearly trying to calm down.
"You done laughing?" he asks. A little too seriously, with a straight face.
That sobers me up thinking of how sensitive Pearce used to be at the simplest things I thought funny. Miscommunications that would turn into an argument or worse. I feel myself unconsciously morphing into a more contrite posture, all the while creating space between me and Chance. When I spare a look at him, he is now fully relaxed, smirking with the damn lighter and candle still in his hands. That's when I perk up and take in the rest of the room. It was hard to tell initially because the lights are on, but there are candles lit in various places around the room, and I smell a hint of jasmine. "Surprise." He says flatly.
"What's the occasion?" I ask, a little shocked.
“I know you went to your first self-defense class with Nova, so I wanted to set you up with a nice bubble bath and maybe a massage, but I was running a little behind at the office and -”
"Apparently not answering your phone or answering to your name when I called you. I thought you were up here, hurt or killed. I had the urge to charge up here and go at it alone but decided to call for backup."
