Strain and Toil

[Jean Lancaster]

She was getting a new client. At least, that's what she was told. Someone had scheduled a session for her and the name wasn't one she immediately recognized. Which was exciting to say the least. It had won a grin from Jean while she put it on her calendar. Although she wasn't too sure who or what to expect. Hopefully it would be someone who could follow directions and wouldn't complain. That was all she could ask for.

She came back into the gym and signed in. Her workout for the day was done. Finished in the early morning. Almost no one scheduled things at those ungodly hours. Bow all she had to do was wait. After a while she finally was fetched from her small office and brought forward. Looked like she had a high school student. She prayed it wouldn't be an obnoxious one. "Hey there; name's Jean. I'll be your trainer." She offered a smile and a hand to shake with the introduction.

[Nicholas Darwin]

Nicholas was excited; Because of his summer break, Nicholas hadn't been able to play football. Sure, he still worked out and all, but there was something quite different about having a coach bust your ass and breathe over your neck. It kind of motivated him a lot more than doing it all by himself.

He'd asked his father for advice when it came to picking the perfect coach for the kind of training an aspiring athlete like him could actually get some use for, and his father had given him a name; Jean Lancaster. She was, according to his father the perfect fit.

"Good day, ma'am," he greeted the older woman. "I'm Nicholas Darwin." He took her hand, offering a firm handshake in turn. He felt jittery and excited.

[Jean Lancaster]

Nicholas Darwin. His handshake was firm. Smile forming on his lips, she had a feeling she would approve. Although the ma'am was always odd. Made her feel way too old. She dropped the hand after shaking it. "Nice to meet you Nick." She gave him a quick glance over. He looked fit. And jittery. Excited? It seemed like it.

"Well you obviously look like you work out." It was part compliment, part remark. A grin came with it. "That means I don't have to go so easy on you." The tone was playful, but truthful. She motioned for him to follow her as she set off for the heart of the gym. "Anyways, glad to have you. First things first; what are you hoping to get out of this?" Dark eyes glanced back. "Do we need to focus on upper or lower body strength? Just give me a general idea and I'll go from there."

[Nicholas Darwin]

"Likewise ma'am," he replied in turn. Being polite like this wasn't something that fell easily on him. Not because he usually was rude or anything like it, but because Nicholas walked through life with a certain kind of ease. He liked being comfortable with people and addressing them as something as impersonal as 'ma'am' or 'sir' just didn't seem to cut it.

Nicholas' usual toothy grin appeared on his lips at the statement. "I do," he nodded. "And pleas don't," he quickly added with a chuckle. She posed a question and Nicholas took a moment to gather his thoughts before replying, "Well, I currently play football. I'm the quarterback of my team and there will be talent scouts coming during my next and final year of high school." He looked at her, expecting her to catch on. "I need to be in top shape to make sure I get noticed."

[Jean Lancaster]

Likewise ma'am. She waved off the word when it was used again. "Please just call me Jean. I'm definitely not old enough for 'ma'am' yet." Those types of titles reminded her too much of her mother. Someone she would never want to be like. Besides, she wasn't nearly old enough to be called that. In her own opinion at any rate.

He grinned toothily, which made Jean like the kid even more. He did, and didn't want her to go easy on him. Now she shared the toothy grin with him, although hers was a tad more mischievous. "You got it." It would certainly be fun. They reached the main part of the gym with all the equipment while he considered her question. He played football; he was the quarterback of his team and the talent scouts were coming during his final year of high school. He gave her a pointed look she instantly understood. He needed to get in top shape to make sure he was noticed.

"Don't worry, I've been down that road before. Only it was gymnastics, not football. Still, I've got you covered." It had been the only thing that could've gotten her a bit of attention from her parents. But she wasn't about to dwell on that. She clapped her hands and smirked. "Alright then hotshot. Let's go: warmup laps on the track." She hardly waited for him before running herself. He'd probably catch up. "So tell me a bit more about yourself, Nick." She called back to him.

[Nicholas Darwin]

Another grin formed on Nick's lips the moment the older woman rushed forward. She didn't even wait for him. "Cheat," he muttered under his breath before he started jogging after her. He shrugged his shoulders then, "There's not really much to tell," he began, starting to catch up. "I'm eighteen years old and in my last year of college," he continued.

"I guess it depends on what you'd want to know," he threw at her. Most of what he had to tell wasn't very interesting. He was just a regular guy with a regular interest in sport and with a talent that would hopefully get him far. Well, he could dream, right?

[Jean Lancaster]

He caught up to her eventually. There wasn't really much to tell. He was eighteen years old and in his last year of high school. He guessed it depended on what she wanted to know. And what she wanted to know was more than the typical lines she's every everytime. "I want to know what you want to do with this." There were many types of athletes. She wanted to know which he was.

"You just doing football to get into college? Or do you want to use it to go even further than that?" She glanced over at him with a smirk. "Cause if you just want to be all flashy just to grab a coach's attention, we can do that. But if you want to do something with foootball years later, I can give you that too. I know how much work it takes to get to the big leagues."

[Nicholas Darwin]

A small smile formed on the young boy's lips before his attention was brought back forward. "I've always been interested in sports," he began, tossing her a side-way glance. "But when I was five, I went to my first football game and I fell in love. I had to beg for two months before my parents gave me my first ball and my interest has only grown since then." He'd joined the club the first day of high school and his talent had worked its way up ever since. He'd quickly grown into becoming one of the best players on his team.

He fell silent for a moment as she spoke, his brows furrowing. "I've got the grades to get into college even without football. No, I want to do something with it, my talent, I mean. I love football and sitting behind a desk for the rest of my life isn't something that calls out to me. I want to play. Professionally."