The Rider

Fresh Start

"New beginnings are often disguised as painful endings."- Lao Tzu
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The first thing on my list is to find a gym spot, probably a cheap one.
I made sure to leave all my belongings behind, I wanted a fresh start. The only thing I took was Sydney, I couldn't leave her behind. Ater all she was the only thing worth living for right now.

I got her when I was eighteen, I had finally saved enough money to buy myself a bike. I worked two jobs every week. During the day I worked as a waitress at Barnies Bakery and during the night as a barman at a night club. I lived with my aunt Laura and her husband Robert in New York. I moved in with them as a little girl after my mother died, before that I used to live with her in Seattle. As soon as I turned 21, I moved out of that hell hole and found myself a small apartment, I've never felt so free.

"STEAM" I read the gym that I was about to enter.

It was situated in a dodgy area, one of those bad parts of town that your parents always warned you about, it was my kind of place. The inside was big and spacious, it had a large ring in the centre and a small office across the room most probably the reception area. The rest of the room consists of punching bags, treadmills and other equipment. There is no one inside yet, I must be early because the sign on the door read open. The room is very dark and has a few windows, it wasn't the cleanest place but I've seen worse. The locker room is on the far left of the room, they look old and beaten up and in front of them are brown benches. The changing rooms are on the right side of the room. The smell of sweat is intoxicating but I was used to it.

"Are you lost?" I hear a confused voice ask.

I turn around to see most probably the fittest woman on earth. Damn she's big. I could of mistaken her for a man if it wasn't for her highlighted brunette hair. She has tattoos all over her arms and a piercing on her nose. She has a scar on her right thigh. It looked like a knife had been dragged through her thigh. Her dark eyes held something beneath them, they had a story that even I couldn't read. Her eyes reminded me of my mother's, I could never forget how she looked at me. Their eyes had one thing in common, death. My mother died long before her actual death. She was nothing but a ghost walking on two feet, never showed any emotion and never showed any affection.

"No." I say my voice almost a whisper.

"You do know that this is a gym right ?"

"Yeah." I reply my voice still a whisper. I was so hypnotized by her eyes that I almost forgot the reason I was here.

"I mean..." I quickly clear my throat and snap out of it.

"I was looking for a gym that's nearby and I found this place." I say while looking around.

"You know we don't do yoga or any of that girly shit right? This is a real gym where only tough people come, no offence." She says.

Her eyebrows are creased obviously confused to why I was still staring at her. For a moment we both keep staring at each other without saying a word.

"Good. I never liked yoga anyways." I say breathlessly.

"Sooo.. Where do I sign up?"

She gives me a confused look then smiles.

"Follow me." She says turning her back to me and walking towards the office I saw earlier.

We enter the small office and she sits down on a chair that's behind the desk while I stand awkwardly waiting for her to say something. She then takes out two cigarettes and offers me one but I refuse.

"I don't smoke." I tell her a bit tensely.

"I took you as a smoker." She says while lighting her cigarette.
That thing only brings bad memories, stuff that I don't want to think about.

"So tell me the reason why you're here, it's not everyday that a woman like you comes to a place like this." She says taking a long drag of her cigarette. I don't like the fact that she's asking me questions or the way that she looks at me as if she's trying to solve a puzzle.

"Most probably the same reason you're here." I say carefully eyeing her.

I noticed how she tightened her jaw, she seems tense.
She finally puts out her cigarette, the smell was annoying anyways.
She sits up, cracks her neck both sides while looking at me. It makes that annoying sound and she doesn't even blink.

"Fine I'll put you in. I hope you're prepared because I am going to make your life a living hell." She says with a look of determination.
She stands up and gives me the most fake smile I've ever seen, she's not even trying.

I like her.

She puts her hand out for me to shake and I do the same.

"Karah Steel, I'm in charge of this place." She says chewing hard on her gum.

"Taylor." I reply just as sternly and shake her hand.

She looks at me as if expecting me to say more but I don't and I hope it stays that way.

"So when do I start?"