ArchivedLogs:Shiftless

Shiftless
Dramatis Personae Flicker, Joshua, Tian-shin
In Absentia	2015-08-20 "Don't think you need a long shift to have stress."
Location <NYC> Harbor Commons - Fitness Room - Lower East Side
This exercise room is the epitome of 'intentional design'. It has been carefully crafted with the mutant physique in mind, which is saying a lot because physiques can vary so drastically these days. The room is a high-ceilinged cube allowing for extreme range of motion movements. And the walls are blissfully free of the floor-to-ceiling mirrors common in commercial gyms, having instead a couple of narrow mirrors off to the side if one needs to double check their form for a particular lift. Instead, the reinforced concrete walls are covered in resident paintings, the designs done in a graffiti style, changing over time as murals are modified or painted over. At the entrance one finds a few standard-looking treadmills and rowing machines for anyone needing an indoor cardio workout, from which the speed governors have been removed. They allow for anyone who would benefit from a more 'vigorous' pace, but they also operate perfectly well at more normal speeds. Past the machines, off to one side is a collection of large, rolled up mats to be deployed for light sparring sessions. A sign on the wall asks simply: Be gentle with our space! Further back in the space is a large collection of free weights lining the walls, dumbbells and bars with assorted plates. Most standard exercise machines would be too limiting for many mutants, but the free-weights can be used for any strength level. The room also features an expensive pair of shiny, Olympic class weight bars, capable of supporting up to a metric ton with a minimum of flex. Sitting with them is a matte black, custom-order bar rated to support four metric tons. On the wall near where the bars rest is a sign requesting: "Don't overweight the bars. Put away your plates when done." Thump. /Smack/-thump. Thud-smack. The sounds of combat are audible from within the fitness room. Gloved fist meeting flesh, a body hitting a mat. The fight inside is nothing like Fight Club's levels of brutality. Joshua is in black shorts, shirtless, black sparring gloves strapped onto his hands. Flicker is more dressed, grey Xavier's tee with his shorts, his gloves a deep green that goes with the current shade of his mechanical arm -- leaf-patterned and highlighted in silver. At this exact moment he's just hit the mat -- kind of hard, thrown there by Joshua. On Tuesday night he would probably blink back up, be on Joshua's other side a heartbeat later. Here he does not, rolling to one side to recover his feet more slowy. Come in closer, throw a quick jab (that Joshua blocks), a knee strike (that he doesn't.) Standing at the edge of the mat, stretching, Tian-shin watches the fight with keen interest. She wears a pale pink fitted t-shirt featuring a tiny black cat sitting on a bank of stylized white clouds, and black athletic capris. Her long black hair is tied up into a tight bun held on by no readily discernible device. Her dark brown eyes skip between the two fighters, apprising. Joshua's face is flushed, sweat dripping liberally down his face. He answers the knee strike with an elbow, less of a blow and more to push Flicker back. It is followed, though, by /several/ blows in quick succession, jab-cross-jab-jab. On the last one Flicker does jump; just a tiny shiver of blink that displaces him. Reappears just to the side of where Joshua had hit. He grimaces after this, though. Scrubs a hand over his face, head hanging. "I can't." Joshua drops his hands to his sides. He wipes his face against his shoulder -- not that this helps much, both fairly equally sweaty. "Probably not, no. But at least now you know." Tian-shin unfolds her arms from behind her head and, turning to the bench, tosses Joshua his towel. "Am I interrupting Important Training here?" She picks up her water bottle and arches an eyebrow at Flicker with a questioning gesture at /his/ towel. "More like stress relief." Joshua snags the towel out of the air. Swipes it across his face. "Wanted to hit something." There's a hint of concern in the look Flicker gives him. "... he had a long shift." This is quieter. Murmured. He shimmers over to pick up his towel, first. Water bottle second. Takes a long swig. "I'm not training. Just -- wanted to see if I could. Slow down." His brows furrow. "I think we've figured the answer is no." "Fair enough." Tian-shin studies Joshua, slender brows wrinkling. "Caffeine's working at the moment, if that makes any difference." She blinks when Flicker reappears. "Didn't look slow to me. As compared to...?" "Compared to his usual. Not-slow's the problem. /Wants/ slow." Joshua picks up his own water. Takes a deep gulp. "Caffeine later. Sleep, now." He starts for the door, thumping a fist lightly on Flicker's good shoulder on the way out. "Night." "It's not --" Flicker starts to protest, but doesn't finish this. Instead, crooks a small smile and answers, "G'night." He moves to drop down onto the edge of a weight bench. Glances up at Tian-shin, circling a fist over his heart. "Am I interrupting /you/? Look like you came to -- not sit around talking." "Sleep tight." Tian-shin watches her housemate go, then darts a glance at Flicker, shakes her head. "No, just feeling restless. Thought I'd do some sets--forms, katas, what have you." She shrugs, rises up onto the tips of her toes, steps onto the mat. "So...stress relief in its own way, I guess, except I haven't had a long shift." "Don't think you need a long shift to have stress." Flicker sets his towel and water bottle aside. Stands up, too, another quick blink carrying him to the edge of the mat. "Do you mind company? Not that I -- know. Any of your forms." A small blush darkens his cheeks. "How about no shifts at all? Shiftless." Tian-shin manages a thin smile, showing no teeth. "For now, anyway. I just don't handle idleness very well." She settles her weight lower, and tilts her head at Flicker. "I don't mind, but if you like, we can spar instead." "Don't think that'll last. After the news breaks --" Flicker offers Tian-shin a small smile in return. "I doubt any of us will have much idle time. Suspect the school will need all the help it can /get/." He steps onto the mat, moving over to stand beside Tian-shin. "I like learning."