Author’s Note: There really is no good excuse for this completely gratuitous and self-indulgent fic. I worked all weekend and needed to write something ‘easy’ and fun, and what’s more fun than a sweaty, half-naked Bryce Lahela?
I’ve long been convinced that our favorite scalpel jockey maintains his stellar physique with a strict CrossFit regimen, and since perhaps I myself have spent too much time ogling these fine masculine specimens at my local box, this fic (which turned out much longer than I meant it to) happened. I’m sorry, I had to do it … but I hope the vivid imagery will earn me your forgiveness.
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Buzz buzz. Blake stretched her arms over her head, her eyelids fluttering slightly open to find her room had already been infiltrated with mid-morning sunlight. Tucking her head back into the downy softness of her pillow, she allowed the drowsiness to seep in again and threaten to pull her back into its grasp when- Buzz buzz. This time she consciously rolled over, fumbling her hand along her nightstand until she found the thin rectangular electronic culprit guilty of awakening her on this glorious lazy Saturday. Grasping it in her palm she rolled to her back, unlocking the screen of her phone with a press of her thumb before placing it before her face. She blinked a few times as she focused on the screen … My God, did I really sleep until 9:37? After the initial shock wore off she opened her messages to find an unread one from Bryce.
Morning Sunshine 😉 I’m about to start at the comp and should be done by noon. Come by whenever you’re ready and we can grab lunch after.
Smiling at his note, Blake slowly moved to sit up in bed and type out a response. I’m up, I swear! I’ll be there before noon. Can’t wait to see you in action. Good luck xoxo 💪🏻💪🏻💪🏻
Buzz buzz. Bryce’s response flashed across her screen. 😉
Throwing her legs over to side of the bed, Blake dragged herself out of bed and shuffled towards the bathroom to brush her teeth and get ready. After months of training and weeks of not-so-subtly dropping references in conversation, today was the day of Bryce’s CrossFit competition at his box. Eeugh … Box. Why couldn’t CrossFitters just call their gyms what they were instead of a slightly sexual reference to the female anatomy?
Knowing how hard Bryce had been working, hitting the 5am class every morning and training after class for weeks, Blake was eager to finally witness him doing his thing in person. Every time he had attempted to explain the various Olympic lifts and physical movements she tended to zone out, the terms and lingo so foreign to her that it was like a different language. But seeing how excited he was every time it came up, how his eyes lit up like a little boy on his birthday, she couldn’t help but share in his enthusiasm. Not to mention, the things that his exercise routine had done to his body … nope, she was definitely not complaining about that.
An hour later Blake was showered, dressed, caffeinated and ready to go. Grabbing her purse and her keys on her way, she called out to her roommates as she walked out the door. “Later guys, I’m going to meet Bryce!”
“Have fun with the Crossfit cultists, Blake!” Elijah responded from the couch.
“If you come back with a new pair of booty shorts and knee socks I swear on all that is holy I will disown you.” She met Jackie’s smirking face peering around the corner from the kitchen.
Shaking her head, Blake opened the door to slip out. “Very funny. I’ll be sure to get an extra set for you.” She shot Jackie a wink and ducked out quickly before she caught any more flack from her supposed friends.
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Walking through the front door of Crossfit Edenbrook, Blake found herself in the middle of some kind of ordered chaos. The bass thumped from the speakers hung high in the corners of the ceiling, the deep beat of hip hop music resonating through the airwaves. People lined the massive warehouse-style room, situated under the open air metal rafters atop large wooden boxes or sitting directly on the firm black foam floor. The spectators cheered loudly from their locations surrounding the competition floor in the middle of the room, taped off and divided into lanes for each competitor. Amidst the noise and the crowd, Blake couldn’t help but feel like she had just walked onto the set of Rocky during the final match-off.
Her eyes searched the room, scanning over some of the most physically fit human beings she had ever encountered in her entire life, until she found her own personal Adonis. Woah. Blake’s breath faltered when she locked eyes on Bryce, standing with three other athletes on the opposite side of the cavernous building. His long hair, which he hadn’t had time to get cut over the past month due to his intensive training schedule, was pulled back from his face in a sloppy knot at the crown of his head. Whether he had shown up in a shirt or not was a complete non-issue as she raked her eyes across his defined shoulders and chest and down over the ribbed muscles in his abdomen, his bare olive skin glistening under the bright lights with a thin sheen of sweat. Even the various accessories he was sporting gave him a little something extra in the sex appeal department, the knee sleeves hugging his toned calves and the fabric wrist wraps accenting the veiny curvature of his forearms. Damn … maybe I should have been more supportive of his training sooner.
Bryce must have felt the heat of her stare, instinctively turning his head in her direction to meet her eyes. He flashed her a wide grin, and Blake tried to stifle the blush in her cheeks as he maneuvered his way through the crowd to meet her. As he approached, she was pleasantly surprised to see that he looked even better the closer he got, the rosiness of his cheeks and excited twinkle in his eyes causing her stomach to do somersaults.
“Hey you.” He murmured as he pressed a quick kiss to her cheek, the dampness of sweat apparent when his skin grazed against hers. Despite keeping her at arms length, Blake could smell the sweet tang of sweat tinged with a musky masculine smell as he brushed his lips across her skin.
She smiled in return, her eyes flitting about the room with uncertainty. “So, this is your box?” She tried to suppress the laugh bubbling in the back of her throat, but was betrayed by mischievous look in her dark eyes that Bryce had come to recognize.
“Laugh all you want, but this place is so much more than a gym, yet without all the pretenses. The term ‘box’ just makes sense.” He stopped as he saw the amusement in Blake’s face while she bit her tongue, trying not to make any further sarcastic remarks. He rolled his eyes, placing his palm against the small of her back and leading her in the direction where he’d been standing. “Come on, I’m about to do my last wave. You can stand over here and watch.”
Blake allowed herself to be lead around the floor to the spot where Bryce had been before, occasionally looking up to glance at the athletes currently competing in the middle of the room. They seemed to be alternating between three exercises, first dropping to the floor and then jumping back up before hopping over a large weight on the floor. After so many times of these two motions, the athlete would grip the weight in both hands and essentially pull it from the ground to their hips to overhead in one swift movement. Then they’d drop it to the ground, grip it in both hands and do it again … over and over until it was time to go back to the floor jumpy move again. “Um, is that what you’re going to be doing?” She asked as they arrived at their destination, pointing a finger towards the competitors.
“Yeah, ascending reps of burpee bar jump-overs and snatches.” Bryce explained matter-of-factly.
Blake snorted audibly at his explanation, raising an eyebrow at him sardonically. “Excuse me, did you say ‘snatch’ without laughing, Bryce Lahela?”
Bryce merely shook his head, struggling to keep a straight face as he sighed with exasperation. “Mind out of the gutter, Reyes.” He poked her in the side playfully, then gestured towards the competitors. “A snatch is an Olympic weightlifting move where you pull the barbell from the floor all the way over your head and catch it in a squatting position. And yes, they should have picked a better name.”
“See, I knew your mind had been in the gutter way before mine.” She chuckled before turning her attention back to the athletes. “So how long are you supposed to do this?”
“This one is a 7 minute AMRAP and you-“
“An Amra-what?” Blake interjected, her eyebrows knitted in confusion.
Bryce laughed. “Sorry, I forgot about the lingo. An AMRAP. As many reps as possible. It means you do as much as you can before the time limit, which is 7 minutes in this case.”
She nodded in understanding, surveying the activity again until her eyes focused on the stack of weights lining each bar. “And how much weight is that? It looks heavy.”
“The weight for this one is 135 pounds.”
Despite the certainty in his tone, Blake tilted her head and waited for the joke. And when it didn’t come … “I’m sorry, you are planning to throw 135 pounds over your head repeatedly by choice? That’s how much I weigh!” Her eyes bugged out of her head.
Forgetting the sweat still lingering on his skin, Bryce hooked an arm around her waist and pulled her tight. He nuzzled his face against her neck, his voice gruff in her ear. “And if you remember, I was throwing you around in your room the other night quite easily.” Blake shivered at the memory, the feel of his fingers digging into her flesh as they defiled every surface within her bedroom just three nights ago. He chuckled low under his breath as he pulled back, a cocky smirk on his lips. “It’s all about skill and technique, and you should know that my technique is always exemplary.” He flashed her a wicked wink just as the buzzer sounded, the loud noise reverberating throughout the large room.
The next few minutes were chaotic, and Blake was thankful for the opportunity to steady her breathing after Bryce’s naughty insinuation. The competitors slowly picked themselves up off the floor where they’d collapsed and filed off the main floor to the outer ring of the room, each of them dripping in sweat and breathing heavily. One woman, a petite yet muscular brunette in booty shorts and knee socks with arms that vaguely resembled those of cartoon Popeye’s, caught a glimpse of Bryce and Blake and made her way over to them. “Lahela! Is this your lady friend you keep ditching us for?” She glanced up at Blake and caught her eye, shooting her a warm smile.
Blake thought she saw a tiny flush of pink tinge Bryce’s cheeks before he shifted to conduct introductions. “Hey Teresa, this is Blake. She’s a doctor over at Edenbrook with me. Blake, this is Teresa, another one of the 5am-ers.”
Teresa waved, her sweaty form maintaining a safe distance from the couple. “Sorry, I’d shake your hand but I don’t think you’d want that right now. It’s great to meet you, Blake.”
“It’s good to meet you too, Teresa.” Blake echoed, instantly feeling at ease with her new acquaintance. “So, how was it?” She asked, nodding towards the competition floor. “It looked pretty rough.”
“Ugh, yeah, it really was. Snatches and burpees, two of my least favorite moves. At least it wasn’t thrusters.” She shrugged nonchalantly, taking a swig from her water bottle, not noticing as Blake’s eyes widened at the last word.
Bryce laughed out loud at the look on Blake’s face, patting her on the back reassuringly. “Thrusters are another type of Crossfit movement. I guess I never really realized how bad all these names sounded to an outsider.”
“At least you can recognize it now so I don’t feel so bad.” Blake locked eyes with him, giving him a thankful smile.
Teresa stepped forward, patting Bryce on the shoulder as she brushed past him. “Well good luck out there Lahela, looks like you’re up.” She turned to Blake and gave her a small wave. “Glad to finally meet the woman who tamed this one.” She shoved a embarrassedly groaning Bryce aggressively in the arm. “Take care, Blake!”
“You too, Teresa!” Blake called after her, then turned to face her boyfriend. “Tamed you, huh? If this is tame, I’d hate to see you wild.” She gave him a playful smirk and squeezed his hand, her heart warmed by the way he returned it defenselessly and, for once, had no sarcastic retort. She pulled his arm gently and gestured towards the other competitors filing to their places. “You better get out there. I’ll watch from here.”
Bryce’s lips curled up into a slight grin as he leaned forward and placed a gentle kiss to her lips. “I’ll see you in seven minutes.” As he pulled away, Blake could see the affection sparkling deep within his dark eyes, making her whole body tingle with joy.
“Good luck.” She mouthed as he gently pulled away from her grasp. He held their stare as he took a few steps back before finally turning to move to his spot in the middle of the room.
Blake watched as Bryce settled himself in front of the heavy weighted barbell, shuffling his feet and taking deep breaths as he tightened the wraps around his wrists. The judges took their places before each contender, and shortly thereafter the head coach called out the countdown. Ten, nine, eight … Bryce steadied himself, bending down and gripping the bar with a wide grip, his eyes locked in place before him … four, three, two, ONE!!! He shrugged the barbell up to his hips as he stood upright quickly, then dropped to a squatting position as it soared overhead in one seamless motion. As soon as he stood upright he released the entire 135 pounds to the ground in front of him with a loud clatter, dropping his body to the floor and then hopping back up to smoothly jump over the barbell to the other side. Round one complete. He then bent over to grip the barbell and pulled it up over his head yet again, doing it twice this time before completing two burpees and two jumps.
Blake found herself mesmerized as she watched Bryce proceed, the combination of the clanging barbells, chatter and loud music doing little to distract her as he moved in steady, fluid motions with each rep. After a few rounds she began to pick up on the pattern and the muscles being used, admiring how they tensed and released in rhythmic waves. With each snatch (still a horrible name, but she was catching on at least), the definition in his abs would stiffen as he braced his torso to shrug the weights overhead, his shoulders and forearms tight as he gripped the bar in the air. With each burpee, the crease of his tricep would deepen as he pushed himself up off the floor, tiny drops of sweat trailing down his bare skin as he flew upright. Before each jump he’d crouch down low, the curve of his quads peeking out from underneath his shorts before his thick calves would propel him over the bar. Blake watched the scene over and over again, unsure whether the warmth in her cheeks was due to all the hot, sweaty bodies in the room or the visual foreplay she was witnessing on repeat. Bryce dropped to the floor again, hopping back up and wiping a sweaty tendril of hair from his brow before hopping over the bar, the image stoking something deep in Blake’s belly. Nevermind … she was positive the heat she was feeling was 100% related to one specific hard body in the building.
Seven minutes flew by, the sound of the buzzer startling Blake from her hormone-induced trance as the time came to an end. She observed as Bryce finally halted his movements at the deafening noise, collapsing to the floor in exhaustion, the sweat-slicked skin of his chest rising and falling rapidly as he panted. When he was finally able to peel himself up off the floor, he sauntered slowly over to where she was standing, catching high fives and fist bumps from his friends along the way.
“Wow, that was incredible!” Blake squealed, throwing her arms around his neck and pulling him tight. She immediately felt the comforting heat of his body pressed against hers, not even minding the dampness of her shirt as his sweat seeped through the layers of fabric.
Bryce chuckled breathlessly, still not quite recovered from his vigorous workout. “I’ll invite you every time if I get this type of enthusiasm.” He squeezed her tight, then pulled away to trail a finger across her cheek. “You can be my own personal cheerleader any day, Reyes.”
“I can’t believe I’m going to say this, but I’m happy to be your cheerleader every day, Lahela.” She beamed up into his dark eyes, a soft smile upturning the corners of her lips.
“Awww, Reyes, bringing out the cheese …” Despite the playfulness in his tone, Blake recognized the emotion behind his stare. It was an emotion that mirrored her own, a confession not yet spoken out loud but communicated nonetheless. She allowed herself to melt into his touch as he cupped a palm against her cheek, guiding her lips to meet his in a soft kiss.
“Get a room, Lahela!”
“Aw, come on you guys!”
The heckles from the others surrounding them broke them from their blissful embrace, Bryce laughing as some of the guys smacked him on the back or shoved him in the shoulder when the pair separated. “Let’s get out of here. I’ve had enough of these jackasses for today!” He called out the last sentence loudly, eliciting a few snickers from his friends again. As he glanced back down at her, he noticed the darkened fabric of sweat stains adorning her t-shirt. “Oh, shit, I’m sorry … I can loan you an extra t-shirt before we go grab lunch … “
“Do you really think I’m going to go out to lunch with you looking like a sweaty mess, Bryce Lahela?” Blake quipped, arching her brow to give him a challenging look. With a dramatic sigh and a shrug she laid out her proposal, feigned innocence in her tone. “I suppose we’ll just have to go back to your place and get you cleaned up in the shower.”
Bryce’s eyes flashed with mischief, one side of his mouth curled up in a crooked grin. “Whatever you think is best, Dr. Reyes. Although I may need some help in there … I’m pretty worn out.” He gave her his best come-hither eyes as they walked to the lockers and he retrieved his stuff, slipping a dry t-shirt on his upper body.
“I guess I shall have to make that sacrifice.” Blake sighed, leaning into his firm body as he wrapped an arm around her shoulder. “But only if you promise to teach me all about these thrusters …” she stifled a naughty giggle as her voice trailed off.
With a low growl Bryce squeezed her tighter, leaning down to whisper in a husky voice into her hair. “Have I told you how much I love it when you talk dirty?” Blake only smiled proudly, nuzzling in tighter to his side and allowing him to lead them through the crowd towards the exit.
END
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End Note: What’s amazing to me is that this is the tamer version of this story. I actually held back on all the horribly inappropriate Crossfit references for fear of boring you all. Hit me up if you ever want more 😉