Aria
Seren was toweling sweat off her face after the workout, lost in thought, both doing her mental checks of the post-burn to make sure nothing felt strained, hurt or otherwise and also wondering if she'd somehow bothered Rhys. It'd been two days since he'd dropped her at her door, and she hadn't seen or heard from him, and it had her worried. She had spent the whole workout wondering if she'd actually ******** things up.

She knew a lot of guys liked to play it cool, but... she just didn't know how to take it. He was so hard, in some ways, for her to read. She wanted to walk up to him, push him against a bench and kiss the breath out of him. She wanted to run and flee, because things might be awkwards. She did neither because she didn't think they'd help. Instead, she stretched, slowly and carefully, making sure to let each joint and muscle get the benefit of it.

Pao
His day had started out earlier than he liked; that is to say, he'd spent the night on pod duty and was doubly tired yet he still refused to miss his morning workout. So he got himself caffienated before going back to his room, changing, and then going for that run. His mind was sluggish but for the most part it had settled on just one person. Two days ago felt like too long ago but he'd been getting the weirdest shifts since, and that was just how life really liked to mess with him.

Rhys did his usual laps and then jogged his way to the gym, expecting it to be empty because it was stupid early, but when he saw someone stretching in one corner he was pleasantly surprised.

"Morning," he greeted, breathing still heavy when he stopped to catch a breath right by the rack he was gonna be using first. He did his stretches there, completely oblivious to who it was that was doing all the stretching. He would have recognized the hair if he looked more closely, but he had closed his eyes just as he started his stretching to keep himself focused.

Aria
Seren's head popped up, startled. She hadn't seen him come in, distracted as she was. "Morning..." She said, also a little breathlessly, because he'd surprised her and because he was here and it made her happy. "Had a good run?" She wanted to say she'd missed him on her runs but... She had no idea why he hadn't been around, so saying that felt... risky. Very, in case it turned out that was intentional.

She continued her stretches, though, because there was no way in hell she was going to skimp on her cool down and risk hurting something, just because Rhys had arrived. She wondered when they'd get a chance to work together again. She was beginning to think the routine needed tweaking soon.

Pao
That voice was familiar enough to get him to open his eyes and look closely this time, and he easily recognized her. He blinked for a second as he went on with his stretches almost on autopilot, his processing of the question a little bit delayed by the very pleasant surprise that was...well, her.

"Yeah," he said slowly, a bit strained as he did some last minute stretches before straightening out again. He started setting up his weights--he'd be working on his snatches today before closing it out with a WOD he knew would completely obliterate his energy levels by the end of it. Which would be a good thing, he needed the sleep. So while he set all of that up he eyed her, wondering how to go about apologizing for not reaching out for the past couple of days.

"Hey, when you're done you think you can help me with my workout?"

That...was probably not it. But it was a start.

Aria
"Glad to hear it..." She said, just loud enough that he could hear her, watching him to the best of her ability at the moment. She was feeling happy that he was here, and so far nothing had happened that would make her think she was not welcome right now.

And then he asked for help, and she had to control her beaming smile, because she promised not to distract him, and she didn't know what would. "Yeah, of course. Just tell me what you need me to do, Rhys, and I'll do it." She rolled her neck, then slowly stood up, and walked over to him. It looked like he was going to do stuff she had never done, which was fine with her. He'd tell her if he felt she needed any of this, so she didn't worry about not knowing.

All she needed to know was he was here, and wanted her help.

Pao
He caught that smile and was relieved to see that maybe she didn't hate him for not calling or texting since he dropped her off. Old gym buddies used to talk about how some girls always lost it when they didn't hear from them for at least a day so he couldn't deny the fact that he worried about it. A lot. But thankfully she seemed alright.

"Thanks," he said as he slipped the weight onto the bar. "I'm gonna be switching plates out, changing the weight and stuff of this bar. Need someone to jot the numbers for me so I have a record of it. And then help with cleaning this up when I'm done with it, and help setting up for the workout."

Aria
She nodded quietly, and found a spot to sit that she should be able to see from, and pulled out her phone to take the notes he wanted. "All right. I can do that with no problem." She was settled cross legged, and alert, watching what he did with interest. "If there's anything else I can do, just tell me."

Pao
Rhys shot her a smile as he got into position and did a couple of practice sets, three reps each. Gradually the weight increased until he capped it 140lbs, and by then the breaks he took between sets were roughly one minute. During those breaks he would tell her what the weight was while stealing glances at her, letting his mind wander for just a moment to what he could do to maybe make it up to her...and then he would quickly refocus and get back to the strength training.

"Done!" he called out, then gestured for her to come over. "Help me get these plates back to where they go? Careful when you pick 'em up, might throw out your back."

Aria
She noted them down with care, and watched him work. It was nice to see him doing this... Nice to watch the way his muscles worked. She was grateful, honestly, for her water bottle, because the view was enough to dry her mouth out. How the hell had she gotten so lucky as to meet him, she still wasn't sure, but she thanked her lucky stars everyday.

When he finished, she stood up, phone going back into her pocket. "Sure. I know how to lift things with care, don't worry." She'd done her share of lifting during stocking at her jobs. She went over, and carefully lifted two plates, testing their weight to be sure she could handle carrying them both, then moved to put them away.

Pao
To kill two birds with one stone Rhys also helped, taking a couple of plates back at a time and letting that be his active cooldown. When it was all done he peeled his shirt off and started setting up the last bit of his workout. With her help it went a lot faster, and though he'd spent the time mostly instructing her where to put some stuff he was still wondering what he could do about the whole...two days thing.

"Cool, now you gotta time me, yeah? I'll pretty much just shout when I'm all done. Can't promise I won't pass out though, 'cause this is gonna suck." Despite saying that, though, he had a smile on his face, and without really thinking he snuck a quick peck on her cheek before running off to his starting position.

For the next however many minutes he went through 50 reps of 10 different exercises--the Filthy 50, as it was aptly called. "TIME!" he called before going flat on his back, chest heaving from all the work.

Aria
She enjoyed watching him take his shirt off, and helped with no worries. She was feeling so much better in his presence, she wasn't even thinking about anything being needed to be made up. He clearly welcomed her being here, and that confirmed in her mind that whatever had happened, it wasn't because he was having five million second guesses or something.

"Yeah I can do that, no problem. And if you do, wh..." She was about to ask what should she do, when he kissed her cheek, and she just looked down at her phone, blushing softly and happily. She got the timer on just in time, really.

She watched him, calmly, impressed by the hard workout he was doing. There was no question in her mind why he had such an incredibly fit body, when he worked this hard on it. It was like watching a well designed machine doing what it was made to do... But way sexier. When he yelled time, she hit the button, and smiled a little. "24 and 30 seconds, Rhys. Hope that is a good one for you?"

Pao
He was a little too out of breath to really say anything, so he gave her a thumb's up instead. He'd beaten his last time, but he could celebrate later on when he wasn't struggling to breathe. Eventually he did manage to get on his knees, a large stain left where he'd just beeng lying down, and then onto his feet. The sweat was still dripping off of him when he got started on his cooldown stretches, and his shorts were clinging to him.

"Hey," he started to say, "Can you put that stuff away for me, maybe? Still stretching, could save us some time. Almost done here."

Aria
"Yeah, no problem. Have some water?" She put her bottle where he could reach it if he wanted, then began to put stuff away, letting him do what he needed to do. It was honestly ******** amazing, what he had done. She knew she couldn't have done a workout like that without risking killing herself or something.

She kept an eye on him, though, as she worked, both enjoying shirtless Rhys and making sure he was ok. She even managed to find the mop, and began to clean up where he had been lying.

Pao
He waited until he was done stretching to finally get some water, and he put it in the back of his mind to get a proper water bottle so he could start bringing his own as opposed to mooching off of someone else. Rhys made his way to one of the benches and took a seat, watching and waiting for her to join him. He grabbed his shirt and sort of laid it out on his lap in the meantime.

"Almost done?" he asked after a beat, just...wanting her to be a little closer already.

Aria
She popped the mop away and walked over to him. "Yeah, I think so. You ready to go?" She looked down at him, an odd angle to be sure, but a warm smile on her face. "That was both ********' intense and ********' impressive. Don't think I could ever do something like that." She snagged her water bottle back, and took a sip, not even worried that he'd been drinking from it.

Pao
He grinned up at her and shrugged. "You work toward it, so someday you will," he said with a whole lot of certainty. She had potential given her attitude, and he had a feeling that with the right kind of direction and work that she'd be able to do this kind of workout soon enough.

When she snagged her bottle back he stood up, slung his shirt over his shoulder and nodded toward the door. "Yeah, and thanks for helping by the way."

Aria
She smiled and shrugged back, not really believing she had the ability, but loving the fact that he felt she had that potential. "I'll keep working, then, and let you be the judge of how things are going. Which reminds me, I think I need some more stuff added to my own routine. It's more pleasure, less pain, past two work outs. If that makes any sense."

She nodded, and began to walk towards the door, moving with a happy step. "If I'm not busy, you know I'm happy to help, right?"

Pao
"Yeah, I'll put something new together to add to it, sure." He held the door for her as usual and followed her out, sticking close since the chill of the breeze was even worse when damp and shirtless. But also he just liked being close to her, just this time he had a good excuse. "And thanks again. Usually I can do it on my own, but..."

He wanted her to stick around, and a part of him was thinking she would have left if he didn't say something.

Aria
She glanced at him, and frowned slightly. "You look really cold, Rhys." She still wasn't up for plastering herself against him. His body, his boundaries. But if he wanted to wrap an arm around her to steal heat, she wasn't going to object. It wasn't like she wasn't going to go shower when they got back, after all.

That led to a mental picture she blinked at for a moment, then gently put into storage for later. Much later, like when she was thinking about other places to live.

She really had to look into that.

Pao
"I am," he said with a little nod, but he didn't want to literally stick to her. He was basically a wall of sweat and gross at the moment and he didn't want to wipe that all over her. So he just dealt with it as best he could.

"So about the last two days," he started after a long beat of silence. The thought sort of stopped there, though.

Aria
"Don't freeze yourself. I'd have to think what FEAR frostbite could be like, Rhys." She said with honest concern. She couldn't make him come closer but she could encourage him to think about it. Even if... No she wasn't going down that mental path.

When he brought up the past two days, she tilted her head to listen. When he trailed off with no proper finish on the sentence, she looked at him out of the corner of her eye, considering how to respond. Finally she said "I kinda thought maybe you've been busy..." She didn't want to sound like some crazy and insecure girl, even if she was insecure, so she didn't bring up her many moments of being convinced she'd done a stupid and he'd want nothing more to do with her.

Pao
"Frostbite," he echoed with a little chuckle. "I think I'll make it to the dorms at least." Still, as though he felt the need to reinforce the fact that he would he fine, he bumped into her gently.

He did it again when she went ahead and shared her thoughts before him. At that he gave her an apologetic smile before bumping into her again. "Yeah, basically? Just been on duty or patrols almost back to back, can barely squeeze a workout in..." He ran a hand through his hair, incidentally slicking it back in its sweat-drenched state. "Meant to text at least, but ********
She laughed and shrugged, bumping him back, soft and quick, her eyes drifting to admire his bare chest, and also his tattoo. She remembered, for a moment, the first time she'd seen that chest was when he was showing that off. She had been so focused, but now? Now she appreciated the whole picture.

Her eyes snapped back to his face, and she nodded quietly. "Don't let them work you to death. I'd hate to get in trouble for trying to chop up your lead in a bad mood. You deserve rest." She tilted her head at the last part, a small glow in her chest knowing he'd meant to contact her, even if he was too busy to have actually done so. "You're ok, Rhys. I get how busy you were. I'm amazed you're not falling on your face tired. Do you at least get some time now?"

Pao
The brunette gave a shrug, having long since resigned to the fact that he didn't really get a say when it came to when and where he worked. "It's fine, I rest when I get a slow shift. Pod duty, usually."

He smiled weakly and bumped into her again, except this time he slipped his hand over hers and vary casually twined their fingers together. "I have a couple of days where I have nothing to do after tomorrow. Someone ******** up the schedules and jammed all of my s**t into four days. Bastards."

Aria
She sighed wistfully at how busy he was. Some one deserved a close, personal inspection of her sword by way of their a**, in her mind, because this wasn't ok. Rhys needed time to live. "As long as youre ok..."

And then he was holding her hand. Her heart skipped a beat, because she hadn't expected that he would be comfortable enough to do that with her now, if ever. But he had... and she found herself giving him his smile, blushing just a little as she listened to him. "The ********... But at least you'l get some rest. When you've recovered from them trying to kill you by exhaustion, I'll cook you a proper meal, k?"

Pao
It was just one of those things he'd pictured himself doing during the very brief downtimes he had the past couple of days. Admittedly, it might have been one of the most innocent things, too, but he ignored that thought. Zephira couldn't, much to her annoyance.

The idea of a proper meal was a pleasant one and it helped to bring up his mood just a bit. "Thanks," he said a bit quietly, before glancing down at their hands and blinking at it for a second before grinning. "That was pretty smooth, huh?"

Aria
She had spent the past few days picturing disaster, so having anything BUT that was the best news in her mind. She sighed in a quiet, soft happy way.

"Of course... Just about any time, really, Rhys." She liked feeding him, it felt good. His question, though, had her brows raising up into her hair as she controlled the urge to laugh at the ridiculousness of the question. However, she managed to calmly say "Yes, it was very smooth, Rhys."

Pao
He laughed at her reaction and gave her hand a gentle squeeze. "I thought so, yeah," he said, still chuckling. Then he let a beat of silence pass as he sighed, exhaustion catching up to him. "Just think of it as maybe me makin' sure you're actually here?" he said quietly, not entirely sure he wanted to be heard but still putting it out there. "And that maybe I missed you?"

Aria
She squeezed his hand back, watching him laugh with a pleased grin. His sudden exhaustion, though, had her eyes going quiet and concerned for him. But she simply walked with him, because unless he asked her for something, she wasn't going to pressure him. He knew his limits better then her. And she could always be there if he fell over, to catch him. His quiet half statement, half questions, though, got another smile out of her, slow and quietly full of happiness. "I missed you, just to be clear..." She said, just loud enough for him to hear, only.

Pao
If he wasn't still drying off and shirtless he would have hugged her and kept her close, even if it meant taking that much longer to get back to the dorms, just for saying that. It helped ease his mind about what was going on between them that he couldn't really put a name to just yet. Were they dating? Almost dating? Was it just one of those "someone to mess around" with kind of things? It really just helped to know that he at least wasn't alone in being interested and thinking about her and wanting to just talk to her or generally be around her.

"Good to know," he replied with that small smile of his.

Aria
She made a soft, happy sound at the sight of his smile. She was glad he was there and she wondered what he saw when he looked at her. Some one to kiss and... potentially other things? Did she have a chance at something more, something serious? She silently prayed she would be that lucky, but she wasn't going to push him on it.

"Yeah..." She said, soft and happy, her fingers gently caressing his for a moment.

Pao
The dorms once again got too close, too soon, but the closer they got the heavier his eyelids seemed to get. The walk was mostly a pleasant little silence the rest of the way, and when they got to the door he was happy to find that he didn't need to let go of her this time. The small victory kept a small smile on his face as they walked to her door.

Aria
She smiled up at him when they got to her door, and reached up to brush his lips with her fingers for a moment, then leaned up to kiss him. "Go on. Take a shower, and get some rest. I'll be here when you're off duty, yeah?" She whispered, then slipped into her room.