Bygones

Chapter 10

Being helpless is something no one asks for, something no one sees coming. Because, at some point, a person recognizes there's no control over anybody or anything. Even if they are prepared, no one's ever really ready for life's big moments. They come regardless. It can't be helped. It's what a person does afterward that counts.

Following the museum's cocktail party, Harley began training with Bruce. It was slow, having been out of practice for years. He started his sweetheart with more manageable exercises: pushups, squats, and jump rope. The results were not what the athletic hero expected.

After ten minutes of squats, the blonde declared, "My thighs are burnin', Bruce."

He told her to continue, which the girl did but with a bit of resistance. The pushups were pitiful. However, she did well with the jump rope. But after one round of that circuit, Harley fell on the mat and stared up at the roof of Batcave, saying, "We need to exercise in the morning before my brain knows what it's doing because I think I'm dying."

The Dark Knight was unimpressed. "I won't lie. I'm surprised you're this out of form, especially since you coach gymnastics."

Harley raised herself to sit crosslegged and told him, "Now look, I like the idea of being fit, but I also like food. I'm fitish. And as for coaching, gymnastics is different from vigilante fighting. What are you trying to say? I'm fat?"

That was when Bruce realized he had stepped in it. "No. You're not fat at all. But you are out of fighting shape, which makes me worry about your self-defense skills. So, we're not doing anything more until you can complete several reps of that primary circuit without falling over."

The blonde laid back down on the mat, claiming, "Oh God. I'm going to die. Wait... Can taking off my sweaty sports bra count as training?"

Gotham's fittest resident shook his head and answered dryly, "No. Now, get up. Let's do it again."

She groaned as Bruce hauled her to her feet. They got back to it, and after an hour, Harley was genuinely exhausted. In the elevator, taking the pair to the bedroom, the blonde exclaimed, "You never realize how long a minute is until you do real exercising. I thought my spin class was challenging. I was wrong."

The shaggy-haired brunette looked in her direction and noted, "I will regret saying this, but tomorrow I'm not taking it easy on you. We're doing more of those reps until you execute it perfectly."

Harley's mouth hung open in disgust. "That was taking it easy? On the bright side, my fanny will look great, especially when shorts return in the spring season."

Without thinking, Bruce exclaimed, "It looks pretty good now."

The elevator stopped and opened as Harley mischievously said, "Batman likes my butt!"

In the bedroom, he pulled her against him and kissed the column of her neck, saying, "He does love it."

The blonde turned around, put her slender arms around his neck, and looked into his pretty eyes. "You know, a person's imperfections make them who they are. They're interesting. So, maybe we can go easy on the training, right?"

The brunette-haired man chuckled. "Your butt is beautiful, and you look adorable trying to do squats, but no. I'm not taking it easy on you because those criminals out there won't take it easy. And it would kill me if anything happened to you, especially since I know you're not self-defense ready yet."

Her fingers tangled in his slicked-back hair. "Oh, alright," she began, "Can we skip to the part where you throw me down on the mat and pin me? Because that would be hot."