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 Posted: Sat Aug 13, 2016 9:36 am
The day was hot. So hot in fact that Gwen had almost decided to put off this specific errand. Again. She'd been putting it off for weeks, month's even, but her anxiety about it had begun to eat away at her to the point that she couldn't ignore it any longer. So, despite the heat, she trekked out into the city, an address jotted down on a post-it and a bag with her wallet, some spare clothes, and a water bottle slung over her shoulder.
The gym hadn't been terribly hard to find. Well, not after she had been forced to pop into a gas station to ask. At that point though she had been right on top of it and didn't realize it. The warehouse it was situated in was easy to overlook amongst the many others, but the small OPEN sign hanging on the door was enough incentive for the red-head to show herself in.
Eyes scanned the gym beyond the counter that was positioned to welcome people as they came in. Sweat was already forming on her brow, and salt welcomed her as she licked her lips when peering over the ocunter in search of someone who could help her. "Um...hello?" She noted a few people in the gym itself working out. Many were using bags, a few were sparring with each other and Gwen's stomach filled with butterflies as she watched.
She was certain she was going to make a fool of herself in a place like this. After all, she was not at all the most athletic person. Yoga was the extent of her working out and it certainly didn't include punching things. Better learning it here than out there. She concluded. After all, the last thing she wanted was to find herself in another fight that resulted in a near death experience.
A hand unconciously moved to rest on her tank-top over the scar that now puckered her abdomen.Torvil I hope this works. LMK if you need/want me to alter anything. smile
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Posted: Sat Aug 13, 2016 10:16 pm
The counter near the door was rarely ever staffed. The person who technically worked there very rarely worked a shift - or at least - worked a shift during what seemed like normal hours. The gym was fairly open, on the left were all the machines, weights and equipment, on the right, Punching bags and other weights as well. Dead center of the building, was a large, chain link fenced in octagon. Obviously this place had a very tailored focus. Mathias was actually pretty stoked with how many guys had signed up after his fight. Obviously Imara was able to sell him to them, and he knew most of them from his days in the circuit, he knew a lot of them were young and wanted to go pro. He knew he could help them get there, he just had to push them that last little inch. He was watching the floor from the wall-to-ceiling windows of the main office. He'd finished his morning workout awhile ago, but hadn't changed since he figured someone would want a spar or a spotter. So when the girl walked in, it caused his brow to raise slightly but it wasn't unusual for girls to seek out MMA. Hell, some of the best fighters in the sport were girls. He knew a few that could probably put him on his a** in the pro-circuit if they had the chance. Coming out of the office, he made his way down the stairs, and waved at the girl as he approached. "Hello," he said, with a slight chuckle. "Interested in singing up or did you just come to people watch?"
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Posted: Mon Aug 15, 2016 6:51 pm
Gwen watched the various fighters as she waited for someone to come to the counter. It wasn't long though before a man waved at her, obviously coming to assist her and man the desk. At his approach she offered him a smile, noting that he was dressed to workout. Maybe he was one of the trainers? That would be even more ideal.
"To join, actually. I won't lie and say I have experience with any sort of fighting or sparring, but I thought it would be a good thing to learn. Considering the stories you hear on the news and all." The news always seemed to have some sort of story that made Destiny City sound like one of the worst places to live so her story held strong ground. She just, tweaked her need to learn a bit. It wasn't a lie, really. "Plus the extra exercise and all would be beneficial."
She shifted the bag on her shoulder which had somehow got caught up in some hair from her ponytail. "I'd be willing to pay for a personal trainer too." She added in. "Since I wouldn't know where to start on me own. Knowing me, I'd manage to hurt myself within the first 5 minutes without someone guiding me." She grinned.
"I am Gweneth Malley, by the way." She held her hand out to the man.
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Posted: Mon Aug 15, 2016 7:45 pm
Good, she was honest, or at least Mathias felt she was honest, which was good enough for him. Taking her hand and giving it a firm shake he grinned. "Mathias White, one of the owners of this fine establishment and more than happy to get you signed up. Follow me." He released her hand and turned, motioning for her to follow him up the stairs, past the glass walled office and down a small hall to another door. Popping this door open, he lead her into a back office, which had obviously been repurposed from some sort of hazardous storage room if the fume hood in the corner was any indication. Though perhaps what was more telling, was the easel that stood nearby, along with various and sundry art supplies resting somewhat chaoticly in the racks along the wall. "Welcome to my office... have a seat," Mathias said, pointing at a small swivel chair in front of the desk as he sank down into the slightly more plush one behind it. "What is your budget, that's really the most important thing to find out right now."
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Posted: Wed Aug 24, 2016 2:49 pm
Ah! Perfect! She managed to meet with one of the owners. At least she would be able to get herself all set up and get any questions answered by someone who really knew what they were doing. After all, she felt like she was walking into all of this nearly blind. This was...very much out of her comfort zone but was necessary if she wanted to survive.
Adjusting her bag, Gwen followed after Mathias at his request. Her eyes roamed the gym as they ascended up the stairs. Everything looked new or nearly new from what she could see. That at least was good. And the people working out seemed to have a fair understanding of what exactly they were doing, or had someone coaching them. She didn't get long to observe though before they entered the hallway and down to his office.
She noted that when they moved into the place it seemed like renovating the back areas where people were less likely to spend most of their time might have been placed on the back burner for redesign. Still it was functional. The art supplies in the corner caught her attention. And apparently the office was multifunctional. She wondered how much he dabbled in art or if it was a serious hobby for him.
She sat down in the chair opposite of the desk after swinging her bag off of her shoulder, depositing it on the floor. "I can afford $60 a month. I mean, if needed I could probably pay a bit more since I definitely would need some sort of instructor to start off with." Really she had no idea the price of these things and she hoped she wasn't insulting him with the price she said.
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Posted: Wed Aug 24, 2016 7:29 pm
Mathias chuckled as Gweneth began to speak. "Gwen... Can I call you Gwen?" He said, raising a hand as if to stop her from speaking further. "Our basic membership is $50 a month, $100 if you want to get in the octagon for a fight at any time." He said. "As far as personal training... I charge way more than $10 an hour, but if you're willing to pay... let's say $75, I think we can come to some arraignment that might work." Granted that was him taking a major loss to what he normally charged for his time, but then again she wasn't asking him to paint a portrait or landscape or some other piece of artwork, so he really couldn't drop his usual $250-500 an hour scheme. Besides, if she showed up when he was going to be doing his afternoon workout anyway it only made sense for him to coach her a bit. "That sound good?"
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Posted: Fri Dec 30, 2016 2:41 pm
$50 a month for basic,? $100 to get in the fighting ring? Gwen wasn't an idiot. She knew even at $75 he probably was cutting her some slack on his fees. Mind, she had no clue how much since her experience with gyms and trainers was absolutely nothing. She made a mental note to be extremely appreciative of this man and the services he was going to give her.
"I can swing $75 a month, sure." She smiled appreciatively. "I don't think I have much interest in getting into a fight. At least....not any time soon." She got into enough of them anyway. Maybe down the road it would be useful, but for now learning the basics and getting in shape was first on her list of to-do's.
"So, what do you need from me to get all of this rolling?" She assumed that money and paperwork would be first on the ballot. "Also, is there any gear in specific I should get for myself?" Because, again, she had no clue.
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Posted: Sat Dec 31, 2016 9:56 am
"Well your first month's fee and to fill out some paperwork including some liability waivers, just the usual legal protections, etc. This is a gym, and you might get hurt if you do things wrong and I'd like to avoid a lawsuit from someone who didn't have the brain to follow directions." Mathias said with a small grin. "But you seem to be a smart girl, so I don't think I'll have to worry about that." He added with a nod. "As far as equipment, well, that entirely depends on what you want to do. If you're just looking for a place to workout and maybe some self-defense stuff, there really isn't anything you need to get. If you're looking to get your foot in the door to MMA, you might want to get some wrappings for your wrists and ankles but other than that..." He gave a small shrug as he spoke. "Nothing really necessary." He placed his hands down on the paper work in front of him before picking it up and handing over to her. "Cash or check, for your payment?"
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Posted: Sat Dec 31, 2016 11:08 am
She smiled. "Well, hopefully your assessment of me is correct. Like I said, I've never really stepped foot in a gym before so this is all new to me, but then again, I won't want to try something without proper instruction. The last thing I need is to wind up hurt over my own stupidity.
"Well, since I am just looking to work out and learn some self-defense I'll be good to go for now." She shrugged. Who knows what will come of it. Maybe I'll love it so much I'll want to step up and see about getting more serious about fighting." And it was true. For all she knew, she could be taken by this whole thing and find that she wants to dive into it more. For now though, she didn't want to throw too much onto her plate. Though, once she thought about it, perhaps wrappings wouldn't be terrible to have over all. If only for her wrists.
She glanced down at the paperwork that Mathias had in front of him before he asked about her form of payment. "It'll be a check." She plopped her bag on the floor and proceeded to open it and unzip and inner pocket where her wallet and checkbook sat. Untucking the pen from the middle of the checkbook, she flipped it open and began filling it out. After writing her loopy signature, Gwen tore the basic check out of the book and handed it over to him. "There you go."
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Posted: Sat Dec 31, 2016 1:21 pm
Mathias took the check and then pushed the paperwork in front of her. "Go ahead and fill this out, once it's done you'll be good to go!" He said with a grin, before placing the check in a small zipper bank bag that was stored in one of the locked drawers of his desk. "After that you'll be free to use the facilities. I'll get you a membership card and all that stuff printed up for you before you leave. As far as personal training goes... Well I'll be able to help as needed just keep an eye out for me - unless you were wanting something more direct right now?" It would delay her credentials and stuff but he'd be willing to help out.
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Posted: Sun Jan 01, 2017 6:52 pm
As Mathias put the check away, Gwen gave the paper work a quick glance over. It was in depth but not so much that it would be tedious to fill out. At least it didn't look like they would need her whole life story. "Ah, no, no need today. Really I'd like to just walk around, see the place, and then just do some stuff on my own that I know how to do." She smiled. "If I do see something that I am not sure about or would like to learn about I'll make sure to get ya though."
She set in then to fill out the paperwork. Careful to explain her most recent abdomen wound, now healed over with an interesting scar, as a run in with a robber. She couldn't say she was nearly skewered to death by a nega agent. From there the questions were easy, and required no fudging of stories. In truth, it took her no more than 5 minutes, tops, to fill it out in it's entirety. She finished up with her signature on the release form before passing it back to Mathias.
"There you go. I think I got everything." She smiled. "Rather thorough paper work, but I suppose it's necessary running something like this. Anyway, is there a specific place I should toss my bag while here? Locker room or something?"
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Posted: Sun Feb 05, 2017 11:20 am
"It's to cover us against getting sued for injuries - I'd argue from people being stupid - but you seem like a smart girl so I'm pretty sure we don't have to worry," Mathias said with a small smirk before nodding his head in response to her question. "The locker rooms are downstairs, you'll have to furnish your own lock, but we have pretty good security here and everybody knows I don't play nice when it comes to stealing on my property so you should be fine either way. There are showers as well if you feel the need." He said with a small nod. "If you run into any problems, look for me, or when she's here, Imara, she's usually in the main office - you really can't miss her though."
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