Son of Mischief (Loki/Asgard Fanfiction - Selig's Story)

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Mrs. Adler grunted as she lowered into a squat. Celia smiled. "That's it. Okay, two more. Ready?"

"You are evil." Sweat shone on Mrs. Adler's forehead as she bent her knees and lowered into a squat.

"One more. Come on, Mrs. A., you can do it." Celia tried to put as much enthusiasm into her voice as possible, but the truth was, she just didn't care. She was just so numb inside, it was difficult to concentrate on Mrs. Adler's progress.

"And done!" Mrs. Adler grunted again.

"Okay. Good job, Mrs. A.!" Celia clapped, then took the bar from her to place back on its rack. "We're going to go do some ab work, and then you're done for the day."

As Celia stepped around her, Mrs. Adler paused, and caught her by the forearm. "Is something the matter, Lia? You don't seem like yourself."

"No, Mrs. A. Everything is fine."

"Are you sure? Are you and your big, handsome boyfriend having problems?"

Celia's eyes stung as Selig's face flashed through her mind. She blinked and looked away as she said, "No, we aren't. He's not my boyfriend any more."

"Oh, honey... I'm so sorry." The hand on her arm eased a little, then gave her a gentle squeeze.

"Thanks, but I'm fine." Celia forced herself to smile at Mrs. Adler. "See? Now, why don't we go over to the mats and work those abs?"

For a moment, she thought Mrs. Adler was going to insist on talking about Selig, and Celia tensed up waiting for it. She didn't want to spill her personal troubles to a client, and Danny would definitely be pissed about it if she did.

But to her relief, Mrs. Adler just nodded and made her way over to the foam mats, where Celia's gave her a three-pound medicine ball and instructed her how to do sit-ups using the ball. "We'll do ten. Ready?"

"Ready."

"Ten... nine... eight...." Celia counted each one slowly, watching Mrs. Adler's face grow red from her exertion. "Are you okay, Mrs. A.?"

"Uh-huh."

"Okay. Six... five... four..."

Mrs. Adler made it to two before she dropped the ball and sagged back onto her elbows. "Oh, damn... I... I can't..." she breathed.

"It's okay. We'll keep working on it and you'll be able to twenty in no time." Celia crouched down, stretching to take the medicine ball and put it back with the others. "Okay. A little stretching, and we are done."

Mrs. Adler straightened her legs and bent to touch her forehead to her knees. "What happened with him? His name is Selig, isn't it? Such a beautiful name."

Celia sank onto the mat next to her, crossing her legs and resting her elbows on her thighs. "How do you remember that?"

"Because I like you. You remind me of my daughter." Mrs. Adler reached over to pat her hand. "That's why I ask Danny to put me with you if at all possible. So, what happened?"

"It's a long, complicated story, Mrs. A. and I don't want to bore you."

"You miss him, don't you?"

"Yeah." Celia nodded. "I do."

"You should talk to him, Lia. Don't make a mistake you'll regret."

"I'm not. I'm okay, really."

Mrs. Adler arched one eyebrow, but said nothing as she continued stretching out. And when she was done, she just gave Celia a pat on the shoulder and went back downstairs, while Celia remained on her mat, staring at her reflection in one of the mirrors that lined the walls.