We drove for half an hour, past buildings and streets I didn’t recognize. The ride was mostly silent. I really didn’t know what to ask. She said 

“Are you sure you sure you don’t have more questions?” More times than I bothered to count. Every-time she did I felt questions bouncing on my tongue, it was all I could do to nod. I don’t trust her. She killed me without hesitation the first time. Then she knocked me out at the police station. What was she playing at? Surely she could tell the government of the dangers of Ste-I shudder. That is the weirdest weakness. What the heck? What about Steve the monkey from cloudy with a chance of meatballs? STEVEN UNIVERSE. I was shaking, paralyzed in sadness and irrational fear. I would never know the end!

We turn into a mall complex. The parking lot is mostly empty, some people are still scared of covid anti maskers turned on a dime and started believing that the virus is the wrath of god trying to get you vaccinated so you die... They make me so sad.

I look around at the many shops as we park. There’s a gym, three different restaurants, and a movie theater? I turn to Wind and ask

“Has the movie Black Widow come out while I was dead? How long was I dead, actually?”

She pulls the keys out of the center console.

”You were dead for approximately 3 months. Now come with me, we’re going to get you in shape! Whoo!”

I look at the gym, named “Wilson’s weights and workout”, and look back at Wind as I’m getting out of the car.

”So it’s April? What day of April is it?”

”April 18th”

I really was out for 3 months. The homecoming was on January 23rd. Wind opens the door to Wilson’s weights and workout. The fans inside have a steady buzz, clanks sound every few seconds as people use different equipment. The air is damp and smells of sweat. I look at Wind and ask

”I feel like I’m going to be laughed at.”

She smiles

”They definitely won’t be laughing if I have to drag you in there. Their opinions don’t matter.”

“I’ve told myself that before. I really don’t think they care. I just care if they care.”

”You’re making no sense. Please, you have to start somewhere.”

I shake a little, before walking in.

We’re led by the receptionist to a backroom. He’s wearing a tank top and seems super exhausted. I ask

”Are you ok? You look so tired.”

He laughs and says

”You’re going to be even more tired than I am after this. We’re starting off light though so maybe you’ll be only as tired as I am.”

I stiffen, and he laughs.

We end up in a backroom where he and Wind explain different things we’re going to work on. The terms don’t fly over my head but with each sentence I’m more intimidated. Their explanation ends with,

”In about three months we can have you in tip-top shape as long as we push you hard.”

I nod through it. I won’t have to worry. Nothing bad will happen.

...

...

...

I hated it, then it got easier. It’s been weeks and I’m still so exhausted when I go to sleep every night. At the start I could barely lift the bar, now I’m lifting the bar plus 20 pounds... I can run for so much longer after we started doing daily runs around the gym area. This workout is working.

Wind can’t (or decides not to) cook anything other than buttered noodles with veggies mixed in sometimes. She drives me insane, she watches me so closely it’s like she’s trying to read my mind. I didn’t notice at first but she looks at me sometimes while driving, just a glance. I think she’s either in love with me (creep) or just watching thinking what to do in the future or something. Maybe she’s assessing me.

I tried to escape during one of our runs once, she found me in half an hour. I was then sentenced to clean the entire house after coming home, despite the soreness, for a week.

About the house, she doesn’t sleep here, yet the windows are literally bulletproof(she told me the day after I tried breaking one with a chair). The door locks with 3 different locks and there’s no garage.

ALSO, she said at one point,

”Even if you kill yourself you’ll wake up as if you never died.” I hadn’t even considered that! Like wait! I’m Immortal! I live until I’m killed by whatever that being thing is! Why is this repeatedly a... nevermind.

Today though, Wind left me alone at the gym. Stating she had “business with other people, and the air just isn’t right” as an excuse. So, I asked the same receptionist if I could end early today, saying my entire body was sorer than usual. He didn’t question it and wind didn’t stop him from letting me go, he’s a really good person. I’m thankful for his slight naivety, despite being naive myself I guess. When I finally got out of the front door, I turned to the left and started heading for an alleyway that I’d seen a payphone in, thank whatever for this phone still being here. Now it just has to work.

I put the quarter I'd found on the sidewalk two weeks ago and entered my father’s phone number. When a voice say to the right of me, in the most terrifying tone ever.

”Why do you have her aura around you?”

I looked and there was somebody who looked my age. I froze the feeling I get from them is like when I think of steve, multiplied by a factor of oh no, please, I don’t wanna die. I turned and said

”W-Who?”

”The old one, she has escaped me too long, you have her aura all over you. Tell me every woman you’ve been near for the past 3 days.”

I start lying through my teeth, ”Well theres my aunt Sheila, who I live with after my parents divorced and they were both so bad at the custody hearing that my aunt stepped in and said ‘I will not let you raise him to be a leech like you sister’  There’s also a bunch of people at this gym who I’ve been asked why I’m there. I really can’t give you a list.”

”That lie is a good one, now tell me where Wind is.”

”I have no clue, she left because she had a bad feeling.”

”Developing danger sense now! Great! Just what I needed! I just need to get my teleportation back from her! I just want to leave this place!”

”Groaning to the air gives me more questions, Why would she develop danger sense? Also, Wind? Who would be called wind?”

In an instant my throat is grabbed. I feel a surge of everything I feel better than ever, excluding my throat being grabbed. My mind sort of... wiggles. Something gracefully digs through it. Looking for wind, Staring at me, this feels nice. My worries are taken apart and summarized. Then everything is flipped upside down. Until...That felt very good.

I’m released, and sort of...pass out, my favorite pass time. Fun.