Long Time Coming

Never Again PT 1

He rested back on his heels, sweat dripping from his body.

"And again!"

Quickly he snapped up onto his leading leg, raining steady blows onto the punching bag with his left foot.

"Kick!" Pause. "Kick!" Pause. "Kick!"

The ache in his thighs was burning, traveling into his groin, up into the pit of his stomach, yanking hard on his abs. Gasping he broke his stance, grunting and clenching his muscles through the pain of the burn till they'd relaxed enough for him to resume his position.

"Kick!" Pause. "Kick!" Pause.

The burning picked up again. Against his will his eyes, undisciplined as they were, drifted to the clock. Only four and a half more minutes. He grit his teeth, his breath coming out in sharp gusts slowly building to gasps and grunts to alleviate the ache in his body as he dropped down into a plank.

"Arms wide!"

He spread his palms.

"Four count push ups! One, two, three, four." Pause.

Kirishima felt his arms wobbling as his nose brushed the mat.His breath leaving a patch of condensation that blew the smell of sweat and cleanser into his head. It wasn't unpleasant.

"Up!" Sensei snapped, "One, two, three, four-" Pause.

His groan was chorused by the others in the class as they struggled to lift themselves back into plank pose.

"Down! One, two-"

~*~*~

"Great job everyone!" Eijirou gasped as they piled into the locker room, his body exhausted and screaming but somehow feeling good, feeling clean.

"Yeah, yeah." A much older pupil grunted, his body seemed to be partially train; his quirk was steam power. "Stop being so damn chipper. It's harder on us older guys."

"Typical Kirishima." Someone else quipped in response, "Ray of fucking sunshine even though he's just been slaughtered in a gym for body based quirks. You astound man."

"Well I appreciate it!" Someone else laughed, their giant arms falling onto the locker. Screeching metal made the boy blush and jump back, eyeing the dented things sheepishly. "Oops."

Kirshima wiped the sweat off his body as he moved to his own locker, pulling off his work out gear and reaching for his part-time food delivery uniform. He had a few minutes to spare that he had decided to burn by waiting for the others to leave. As vain as it made him feel he wanted to look in the mirror. He wouldn't have a chance at home he knew - his sisters were too obsessed with teasing their baby brother for being so pretty. He clenched a fist at the shameful memories of his first attempt at getting progress pictures so he could track himself. Abysmal.

It had only been a few weeks since he'd seriously begun working out, but with the diet and protein supplements that he'd taken up a second side job to pay for he found himself changing quickly. His quirk was stronger too, easier to control now that he'd become more fit.

"Hey, Kirishima!"

"Oi bro!" He grinned up at the older kid, "What's up?"

Rin was a little older than he was with a quirk that allowed him to manipulate his mass into jets of air, or hold onto it and expand like a balloon. The perfect offensive and defensive quirk. Eijirou felt himself deflate a little in the presence of his much cooler, more powerful peer. Everyone had such amazing, flashy, useful quirks and he just... turned into a rock.