The Golden Days ~ Sequel to Burning Red, One Direction

Chapter 11

I hadn't gone back to the gym with Liam since the day of the doctors appointment, mostly because I was embarrassed. I had gone in bragging about my pregnancy, and now the baby was gone. Today was the gym's big end of year holiday party, and Liam had insisted that I go with him. A caterer was coming, and it was supposed to be a big night. But, he nearly had to drag me there.

I tried to get out of it, but he argued that he was dragged to Harry's wedding, so now it was my turn to suffer.

Liam mingled with everyone, as he does. There's not a person at the gym that he's not extremely friendly with. Well, maybe not Harry, but that's understandable.

I talked to Christi and Kelsey for most of the night. They didn't bring up a thing about my miscarriage, which I was thankful for. About halfway through the night, and while the three of us were mid-conversation, a stir began over on the other side of the conference room, where the caterers were set up. I looked over, and to my great surprise, I saw Liam and Harry both standing over large plates of hot wings. We made our way over to find that the two of them were about to dual and see who could eat more in a minute.

"What are you doing?" I placed my hand on Liam's shoulder.

"No worries, darling, this is all in good fun!" He assured me.

"You're going down, Payne!" Harry laughed. But strangely, he didn't seem like he was joking.

"Three, two, one, go!" Zayn yelled, starting the timer. A small crowd had gathered to watch. Harry and Liam both began stuffing their faces with wings, and tossing the bones down on the table as quickly as possible. The onlookers cheered, and Harry seemed to be winning by quite a bit at the thirty second mark, but once Liam realized it, he picked up his pace. He caught up greatly to Harry, only being a wing behind as the final seconds ticked away. When the timer buzzed, Zayn took to counting the leftover bones. Harry ate nine, and Liam finished with only seven and a half.

"Alright, I want a rematch. But this time, no food." Liam wiped his mouth with a napkin.

"Fine. But when you lose again, just remember that you asked for it." Harry said cockily. "I'll even let you choose the challenge."

Liam thought for a moment, then spoke up. "Why don't we try the bench press? We'll each do one repetition, and see who can lift more?"

"Very well." Harry sighed, heading out of the conference room and to the gym's main floor. Specifically to the back, where the weight sets were.

The crowd followed Liam and Harry, including Kelsey and I.

"Believe me, I would have never thought even in my wildest dreams that a competition would break out tonight." Kelsey admitted.

"They're mental..." I agreed, watching each of them remove their neckties and approach the benches.

"Help me put on 90 kilograms, will you please, Liam?" Harry began to stack weights on his bar.

After having the necessary amount of weight set, Harry laid down on the bench, and Liam took his place behind him as the spotter.

Harry lifted the bar off the rack, and carefully lowered it to just above his chest. He then extended his arms, pushing the bar up, and held it in place for a few seconds before placing it back on the rack. He sat up, smirking at Liam. 90 kilos was an impressive weight, and he handled it with ease. All of his years working in the gym had clearly benefited him, as he could lift more than his own bodyweight.

But, Liam was still stronger, and I knew it. Liam placed an extra ten kilos on the bar, and took his place under the bar. "No need for a spot now, Harry." Liam completed his rep, holding the bar above his chest for even longer than Harry did before replacing it on the rack. 100 kilograms was over 120% of his body weight.

"I see we're trying to show off?" Harry placed another twenty kilogram weight on his bar, attempting to lift an astounding 120 kilograms in total. If Harry was nervous or unsure if he could lift it, he surely didn't show it.

Liam once again stood behind the bench to spot, and Harry grabbed the bar confidently. He struggled to pull it down to his chest, and struggled even more to press the bar up. His face turned red and contorted as he tried to muster all of his strength. His muscles shook in place for a few seconds before Liam stepped in.

Liam pulled the bar up, and back onto the rack for Harry. "Don't hurt yourself, big boy." He smirked.

Harry scowled and got up off the bench. "Why don't you try?"

"Gladly." Liam continued to grin. He laid down, grabbed the bar, and slowly lifted it down to his chest. With a small grunt, he shakily pushed the bar up without any assistance, and completed his rep.

"A tie breaker?" Harry narrowed his eyes.

"I'll even let you choose the challenge." Liam sat up, quoting Harry.

"Why don't we keep this simple, and see who can do more press-ups?"

"Sure, sure." Liam agreed, feeling confident as he and Harry crossed the floor to where a set of mats waited.

"Why don't you help me out a bit?" Harry turned to Kelsey and helped her lay down underneath him.

Immediately feeling the need to match Harry, Liam took my hand and guided me next to where Kelsey was. "You can be my inspiration."

"Those mats are gross, absolutely not." I huffed. The last thing I wanted was to be dragged into their competition anyways.

"Please, baby?" He looked up at me with his big, sad, brown eyes and I had no choice but to give in.

"Fine." I reluctantly laid down next to Kelsey on the mat and Liam climbed over me just as Harry had.

"Alright! Three, two, one, go!" Zayn became the referee yet again.

Harry and Liam began, easily and quickly pumping out the first twenty. Every few times Liam bent down closer to me, he would peck my lips. In between kisses, he made ridiculous faces, causing me to burst out in laughter. As Liam passed forty, he slowed slightly, but kept pace with Harry. They seemed to be evenly matched at this point.

"Fifty! Fifty one, fifty two, fifty three!" A few guys in the crowd called out.

"Anyone getting tired yet?" Zayn peered down. "No muscle cramping.

"No, mate, I'm doing just fine!" Liam called out.

"Fifty nine, sixty! Sixty one!" The current count continued to be voiced. The pace had slowed visibly, and both guys had to be tired. I could clearly see Liam's muscles begin to shake, but he kept pushing. "Sixty seven, sixty eight, sixty nine, seventy!"

"Harry, you broke form!" Zayn yelled over the cheering.

I heard Harry groan before he rolled off of Kelsey and onto the mat.

"Oh good, Liam wins. Can we get back to the party now?" Zayn pleaded.

Liam jumped up to his feet, and helped me up in the process. "Absolutely."

Zayn rolled his eyes and walked back towards the conference room.

"Hey, mate. Press ups are one of my strong suits, don't feel bad." Liam approached Harry and shook his hand. Kelsey made her away over to me, and we took to brushing away the dirt on our clothes from laying on the mat.

Harry said something in return to Liam that I couldn't quite make out, but judging by Liam's red and furious facial expression, it couldn't have been something good.