I changed into shorts and a t-shirt while Ari checked emails on his phone. I put on my tennis shoes and he yawned before leading me to the gym.
"You're sleepy?" I noted as we left the room.
"Maybe we have time for work after napout... nap after workout." Ari chuckled then stifled another yawn. He slid his arm around my waist and kissed my neck.
We got to the hall near the gym when I heard what sounded like a tiger eating its dinner. There was a series of grunts and growls accompanied by clanking metal. I felt Ari's body tense up.
He walked in ahead of me and started speaking in another language as I peeked around him to see a younger, more handsome version of Mr. Hadid.
It must have been Tavi. He wasn't as big as his younger brother Musa. He was more toned and confident.
He set down a huge set of weights and greeted Ari with a smile then craned his neck to see me peeking from behind him.
"This is Lukas? I've been hearing about him.Very handsome boy, Ari. You always find the pretty ones." Tavi said in a deep voice that sent a happy shiver through me.
Ari pulled me to his side and put an arm tightly around me.
"Say hello," Ari instructed. He pulled me to stand in front of him and slowly rubbed my tummy.
"Heh... Hello... sir," I said.
The tower of almond-toned muscles studied me with huge brown eyes and a disarming smile that just intimidated me further.
"Hello, little Lukas. Are you ready to lift? Get big and strong like your daddy?" Tavi chuckled.
"He does not need to lift. He is runner; very fast, my boy," Ari bragged as he guided me towards the treadmill.
I had, in fact, been lifting for weeks with Mr. Khorasani, but I could barely get out a hello in front of Tavi, much less state something contradictory to Ari. I just nodded like a dope and went to the treadmill.
Ari came over and set the treadmill for me like it was a task that required his technical skill. He programmed a warm-up to a running pace that was slower than what I normally do.
I started walking and luckily the treadmill wasn't directly facing the weight bench. I was able to focus on the beautiful greenery of the hillsides outside of the window as Ari and Tavi changed back to speaking in the language that was more comfortable for them.
I kept looking over at them, but I turned back each time Tavi's eyes met mine.
He and Ari were showing off with each other, trying to lift bigger weights in stranger ways. They seemed comfortable with each other though. All the tension I'd felt from Ari must have been a mistake.
I worked up to a three mile run before Ari came over and switched me to cool down mode. He stood next to me for a minute without saying anything. He just looked at the digital display in front of me and put his hand on my back.
"Very nice! You improve your time. You cool down then we go for nap," Ari told me.
It was weird. He'd never cared much about my running or times or anything like that.
He was acting like a track coach. I didn't mind the attention or extra touching. He set a five minute cool down and then went back to Tavi. I wished so badly that I could understand their language.
"That's enough, boy. I must monitor him or he push his body too hard," Ari said when the timer beeped.
I stifled a laugh at that. It was a light run compared to what I usually did with Mr. Khorasani.
YOU ARE READING
Lukas & The Lion
Dla nastolatków17 year old Lukas Smith has his life turned upside down when his dad loses his job in their scrappy desert town. He moves to LA where his dad finds work. Lukas takes a summer job at a local gym to save up for a new phone. That's where he meets a mu...
