Grinded

chapter XIV.

"Come on, just one more set," Thomas muttered to himself, gripping the iron barbell before pushing it up, taking deep, even breaths as he made a mental note of how many reps he did.

The gym was silent, aside from the soft music coming from the radios dotted around the place. And Thomas didn't mind being left on his own. Especially in the gym. It meant less distractions and the chance to use the pieces of equipment he wanted, when he wanted.

He wasn't completely alone, however, as two other guys were lingering by the treadmills, enthuastically talking to each other as they swayed on their feet. Thomas would've worked out with them, given the fact that he knew both guys, but he really didn't want to be hanging around any longer than he had to. The quicker he pumped through his routine, the quicker he'd be kicking back with his friends at Lily's place. He already had his own agenda for the night planned: get high and loiter on her couch, like a body bag.

Seven. Eight. Nine. Come on, Tommy, one more.

Thomas clenched his jaw and exhaled heavily, his lips quivering as he mustered up the last bit of strength to push the barbell up. With a strained breath, Thomas slowly lowered the barbell down to its stand. His arms trembled as he felt his body going into fatigue, a sign of a session well done.

Blood pumped through his bulging veins and he took a moment to shake his arms out, a string of exhausted breaths falling from between his lips. Judging from the afterburn that was rapidly taking his body hostage, there was a very slim chance of him working out tomorrow.

Thomas pulled himself up from the bench, edging forward as he reached down for his waterbottle until he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. He made a guess that it would probably be August or Sophie, urging him to hurry the hell up.

As he pulled out his phone, the chilling sound of police sirens whirring in the distance caught his attention. Thomas gulped, pausing in his tracks as he glanced up to the glass pane, the distant flickering lights of red and blue whirring in the near distance, only to grow brighter as the cars sped into view. Intrigue glimmered in the teen's eyes, watching with an almost narrowed stare that was bleeding with concern.

Concern that wouldn't take much to grow into paranoia, a seed already rooted in the depths of Thomas' mind, where he hoped it would remain and not spread its infectious roots any further.

One police cruiser flew by in a blur, the lights flashing against Thomas' soft, clean-shaven face, his chocolate brown eyes entranced by the vibrant colors. A few seconds passed and another cruiser quickly followed, sirens thundering down the empty street outside of the gym.

The clear sense of urgency to the way the cruisers zipped down the street was enough to unsettle Thomas. A creeping shiver trickled down his spine, the hairs on the nape of his neck standing tall as he felt a wave of goosebumps flood across his crossed arms. He ran his hand across his bicep in an effort to ease off the goosebumps he was plagued with, hoping to achieve some level of comfort.

In an effort to distract himself, Thomas shook his head and turned his attention back to his phone, the screen lighting up his face as he held it close to him.

On the screen was a notification from Grindr. A coy smirk played up on the corners of his sultry lips, slyly biting the bottom one. He opened the app up before pulling up the new chat that had been started with him and, much to his chagrin, it was another blank profile.

There was nothing more that pissed him off on this app than a blank profile. He was overcome with the brief instinct to block the account, as nothing more frustrated him on this damned app than a blank profile.

But it was the message itself that grasped his interest, his thumb freezing above the block button.

You at the gym?