Lollipop

04 - Gym And Lollipop

Corey

Since young, Corey was called a ‘skeleton’ for being… really skinny. He would say that he was underweight, and that was how he usually landed in the ‘friendzone’ area whenever he confessed to a girl that he thought he might remotely have interest in. At the age of 15 when he developed a serious crush on Anastasia, the first thing he had in mind was to put on weight and train his muscles. Girls like well-built men, at least that was what he read when he searched on ‘What Girls Like About Men’. Ever since, visiting the gym every week became habitual and indeed, he did gain what he hoped for and that did not stop him from being a gym-goer.

Even so, that didn’t explain the reason why he recommended Jun to train in the gym as part of his tourism journey. Two days earlier, Jun messaged (spammed, actually) him on where he should go before he go on a shopping excursion to buy souvenirs for his friends back in Japan. Without a second thought, Corey replied him that he should go to the gym with him.

'Who the hell recommends a foreigner to go to a gym, out of everywhere in the country?!' Corey face-palmed to himself the second after he sent that message. To his astonishment, Jun actually sent a thumbs up emoji and that was how Corey ended up waiting for Jun for almost ten minutes now. How did he know? Corey usually jogged on the treadmill for twenty minutes and since he was ten minutes earlier before their meeting time, it was almost time for him to move on to the workout bicycle. Corey offered to bring Jun to the gym in case he got lost, but Jun’s insistence on going by himself stopped him from doing so.

"I want to prove that I’m not hopeless in directions," he remembered Jun said that when he sent a voice message over to him. Apparently, the extra ten minutes he had to wait fully justified why Jun was indeed hopeless in directions. Pressing the ‘Cool down’ button, he allowed himself to slow down before coming to a stop. He grabbed the towel that hung on his shoulder and furiously wiped the sweat on his face and neck as if his life was depended on it. Getting off the treadmill, he fished out his phone from his pocket to check for new message.

To his expectation, messages and messages bombarded his inbox the moment he locked into the phone. 'That’s why I offered to bring him here,' Corey deadpanned mentally. Putting the phone next to his ear, it was only a few seconds he had to wait before Jun’s voice attacked his precious ear.

“I walked rounds and rounds and rounds and I still can’t find that gym! Oh god, why is your city so goddamn big? Google Maps ain’t doing s**t too! Corey, I’m at the Starbucks now so could you perhaps bring me to the sport centre  or the gym?” sighed Jun audibly.

“What happened to you wanting to prove your direction skills? The gym is in the sport centre.”

“Died and now I’m out of battery.” Now Corey could imagine Jun pouting at the other side of the phone. 'He’s hopeless,' Corey shook his head in defeat before saying, “I’ll be there in twenty. Don’t go anywhere and just stay there, alright?”

“Yes sir!”

-

“So, Mr Jun, or Mr Takaaki Jun, I want to ask…” Corey's mouth gaped when the medium bottle of what seemed like a Frappuccino glared at him as the owner of the said beverage sipped its content delightfully. “Why the hell did you buy Frappuccino when we’re going to the gym next?!”

“Oh hi, Corey! Well you see, when a man is thirsty and he happens to be in a Starbucks outlet, he knows it within him that he want the Frappuccino no matter what. It’s unpreventable, you see…” Jun giggled as he gave his usual Cheshire cat’s smile. Glancing at him, Jun was wearing a grey move vent tee with black FBT shorts. Even so, he looked like he stepped out of a fashion (or sports) magazine. Jun pushed his drink to Corey, asking him, “Want some?” In return, Corey flashed his are-you-serious look but ended up taking sips from the beverage.

“That’s my good boy,” Jun ruffled Corey’s hair with a sweet grin on his face.

“What do you mean by that? I’m a year older than you if I have to remind you that,” Corey smacked Jun’s hand away and gave him a fake glare. He couldn’t help but to admit mentally that Jun’s hand was big and… warm. 'Is it because he plays the piano?'

“Doesn’t matter to me, you’re still a good boy, look at you, short and adorable,” Jun ruffled his hair again before letting out an audible chuckle. “How tall are you?”

“Are you looking for a beating?”

“Not exactly. I’m 184 cm by the way. I’m guessing that you’re around 178 cm?”

“179 cm, thank you very much!” Corey retorted as he rolled his eyes. “Can we go now?”

“Yeah, yeah,” Jun walked ahead of him and grabbed his wrist, causing Corey to be taken aback. He remained stilted until Jun tugged his wrist and gave him a look of curiosity. “We’re going, no?”

“A-O-Yeah, we’re going,” Corey stuttered, his eyes still lingering on Jun’s hand. 'His palm is big, firm, strong and warm… It’ll be nice if he doesn’t let g-the f**k am I thinking? Why would I want him not to let go? God, those fan-fictions are starting to get you, Corey! He’s a friend, friend!'

-

When they stepped into the gym with their towel hanging around their neck, Jun had already loosened his grip and made his way to the treadmill, which was located at the left side of the gym, like how Corey did when before he met Jun. Apparently, Jun wasn’t much of a gym-goer as he mainly enjoyed sports and running more than the exercises in the gym. His muscles are so well-defined Corey even caught some ladies staring at him once they entered the said gym. He made his way to the indoor bicycle, which was placed on the right side of the room. Sitting on the bicycle, his legs cycled slowly to warm up before he built up his speed. Once he got onto the moment, he increased his speed and all of his thoughts evaporated into thin air.

What seemed like twenty five minutes later, Corey slowed down his speed to allow himself to cool down. At this juncture, the voices of two females beside him resonated in his ears. He peered his eyes to their side, but quickly turned back to his machine before they could catch him doing so. Seemingly, those two girls were staring at Jun, who happened to be cooling down too.

“Look at that dude at the treadmill, he’s so cute!” the one with the higher pitch squealed softly.

“Why the hell are you ogling at a random dude? Are you going to hit on him or what?” questioned the one with the lower pitch in mild annoyance.

“I mean, look at him! He’s so cute, like the Japanese actor that I really like in this movie I watched the other day. Wait, he is coming over now! Oh god, should we talk to him?”

“Should you, not we.”

“He’s coming over now!” 'How loud can they be? Gym isn’t some kind of dating place, excuse you?' Corey clicked his tongue and stopped cycling. Standing up, he turned around and faced Jun, who had that wide silly smile as he waved at him enthusiastically. 'He’s sure flashy,' Corey deadpanned. 'That’s why he catches a lot of attention.'

“I feel so refreshed now! It’s been a week since I ran and now I feel like I’m getting back my momentum,” Jun exclaimed when he wiped his face with his annoyingly orange towel. 'Wait, is that lollipop design on his towel?'

“That’s great,” Corey flashed a small smile and Jun handed him a big water bottle that he brought. “Drink it and freshen yourself.”

“Sure,” Corey twisted the cap and gulped down the water down his throat.

“That’s an indirect kiss, by the way,” Jun smirked teasingly, patting his shoulder before he headed to the leg press machine, leaving Corey flabbergasted as ever. 'What?'

“You have no hope, Brenda,” the lower pitch girl sneered at her. “They’re a couple.”

“Hot guys are always gay. I give up,” the high pitch girl sighed solemnly before the both of them left the gym. 'Wait, wait, wait, they’re having a huge misconception here. Who and who is a couple? What ‘hot guys are always gay’? What?!' Corey drilled a glare at Jun’s direction and not-so-surprisingly, Jun sent a wink back and started his exercise on the machine.

-

After approximately two hours or so, they decided to call it a day and get a shower before going for their very late lunch. When they reached the shower room, almost all the cubicle had been occupied, either with people or with the annoying ‘Under Maintenance’ sign. To their luck, there were two cubicles.

“I am hundred percent sure that the gym wasn’t so packed just now, so why are the cubicles almost filled up?” Jun raised an eyebrow as he removed his shirt swiftly. “We’re in luck, though. Two cubicles left. Let’s go before other people catch up with us.”

'What magic did he consume to have such a body?!' Corey bored his eyes into Jun’s upper body before forcing himself to tear away from the sight. “There’s a sports stadium a level down, so most people do sports there. Most people here do sports in the stadium after all,” replied Corey as he entered the cubicle right opposite to Jun’s.

“I see.” With that, sprinkle of water could be heard pouring down from Jun’s side. Corey closed his cubicle door at that sound and undressed before he turned the knob of the shower. However, no matter how many times he tried to do so, the knob refused to budge. 'Oi,' His furrowed burrowed as he tried to assert more force in his twisting. In the end, the knob didn’t move and Corey could only stand there, tapping his foot in real irritation. Opening his door, he glanced his surrounding to look for an unoccupied cubicle, only to be betrayed with all the doors closed. Through some great apprehension, he found out that his cubicle was the one that no one would go to as the shower knob was spoilt. Talk about luck.

It was only ten minutes later did Corey actually heard someone opening the door of one of the cubicles in the shower room. As quick as he could, he wrapped his bigger towel around his waist, grabbed all of his stuff and made his way to the cubicle before anyone could go in. He knew that he accidentally nudge someone’s shoulder, probably the person who occupied the cubicle earlier, so he said, “Sorry, can I use this cubicle? I’m sorry to chase you out like this but the shower in my cubicle is being a b***h now and it doesn’t seem like other cubicles will be unoccupied anytime soon.” Corey faced the person and scratched his head, only to let go when he realised that it was Jun’s cubicle that he had entered. 'f**k. If it’s other people they’d just give me the finger because I’ve done quite a number of times and people who use the cubicles here are used to me doing this, but it’s Jun we’re talking about here.' A long silence followed after before Jun broke it with a small chuckle. “I understand, you can use my cubicle, no rush. We have the whole day to spend together, so take your time. I’ll wait for you outside, okay? If you need anything like conditioner or gel you can always ask me for them.”

Jun was properly dressed with a nice polo tee and long black pants when he exited the cubicle. Corey stared at Jun’s back as the other male walked away, with his towel ruffling his hair. That moment, despite Jun walking away, his figure magnified and glowed in the lighted room. Maybe this was just Corey’s illusion and hallucination, but at that instance, a sense of attachment towards the other male began to seed in him. This feeling was almost similar to that he felt towards Anastasia at first, yet it was so different Corey couldn’t comprehend. Shaking his head, Corey unwrapped the towel, twisted the shower knob and allowed the pouring water to drown his thoughts away.

-

“Subway or KFC?” That was the first question that Jun asked once Corey exited the shower room, fully groomed. “You have ten seconds to choose because I will choose for us. 10, 9, 8…”

“Then why bother asking me?” Corey rolled his eyes and they left the sports centre.

“Democracy,” Jun gave a toothy smile.

“... I’m fine with either.”

“Subway it is, then. Let’s go!” Again, Jun grabbed his wrist and they headed to the Subway outlet near the sports centre. When they arrived, they placed their bags on the table near the window before queuing up for the order. “What are you going to order?” Jun questioned as he fixed his eyes on the ingredients.

“My usual-teriyaki chicken, cheese, lettuce, tomato, onions and mayonnaise,” Corey said thoughtfully. “Foot long.”

“Mayonnaise,” Jun shuddered. “I hate it. Horrible, horrible, horrible. I’m getting-” Before Jun can enumerate his order, it was Corey’s turn to place his order. After Jun received his food, they went back to their seats together.

-

“... You really can eat, huh…” Corey let his voice trail away as his eyes lingered on Jun’s food. Shockingly, Jun bought two foot long bread with the same ingredients in it. “Holy s**t? How do you eat so much and not get fat?”

“High metabolism and I exercise. That's how you don't get fat,” Jun responded as he chomped onto his bread joyfully. “Corey, I want to know about you. Tell me something about yourself, like how were like when you were in elementary school, middle school and high school.”

Taking a bite, Corey said, “Nothing much interesting. Quite boring, if I have to say.”

“I don’t care, I want to know.”

“... In elementary school I was a quiet kid, that skinny bone kid who doesn’t speak up. Kind of isolated by my class but they stopped at the verbal violence part, so everything’s cool. In middle school, I sorta remained the same way, just that I started to have more friends who share common interest with me. Even so, I hated the school because the teachers couldn’t stop picking on me for my small frame. In high school, I met Jermaine and Ana when we’re the same class in our freshman year. Became really close friends. Started to open up and I became rather close to the girls in my class, rather than the dudes. Most dudes don’t really like me because I seem gay, feminine or something,” Corey rolled his eyes upon recalling his years. “I do have a really close guy friend, his name’s Ethan. He’s the president of my club, which is the Gardening Club-” Shortly after, Jun burst out a laughter.

“You were in the Gardening Club?! Oh my god, that’s new from you!” Jun laughed as he struggled to swallow his bread down. Giving him a dead glare, Corey continued, “Yes, I was forced into the Gardening Club because of Darren, my cousin. Back to Ethan, he’s a really nice dude who cares for everyone’s well-being. Really popular with both genders, too. I consider him as my best bro, right after Jer. He went to a university in Britain under scholarship for medicine. We still keep in contact.”

“It’s nice,” Jun nodded. “I’ll be studying in Britain too, maybe he and I will be in the same university. Just joking, there’s no way such coincidence would happen.” Finishing the last bite of his first bread, Jun wiped his mouth and drank a mouthful of his sprite before starting on the second bread.

“Tell me when that happens,” Corey snorted. “It’s your turn, Jun. What were you like?”

“Oh no, time to dig my dark history,” Jun joked. “Basically I was a really loud and open kid since young. Kind of have many friends that I could talk to and we’re still friends now! I met my best buddy, Aimi in middle school. She’s the first girl who I gave a lollipop to, by the way. Nothing romantic between us, just platonic friends. Got into fights here and there because you know, there were kids undergoing angsty teen period I happened to be their target since we didn’t see eye to eye. In high school, that kind of stopped and I began to have crushes here and there. I had my heart broken, fixed, broken, and fixed. That cycle just repeated, you know? I developed a huge interest in music and now I’m aiming to be a composer and maybe music director. I will be studying in Britain a month after I return from US.”

“Music sounds good,” Corey smiled.

“Yeah, it does! It’s always fun when you can create music with your soul. In my freshman year, I created scores for the songs I like and progressively, I started to create my own music when I reach my senior year. I don’t just want to be a pianist, so I’m transferring to Composing and Conducting. It’s still early to say, but I’ll try to get as many internships as I can,” Jun said excitedly. Then, he took his phone and his earpiece out and locked into his phone “Let me show you one of the songs that I’ve created. I’m really proud of this!”

The song serenaded in their ears as they ate their meal, creating a nice atmosphere between them. Through the music, Corey could honestly tell how much passion his friend had towards music. The feeling he got from the song was indescribable, yet it was filled with so much fire, passion, intensity and fever. It was this moment he knew that he really liked this part of Jun. When the song ended, Jun looked at him in eagerness. “What do you think?”

“I really like it,” Corey nodded. “What is the name of this song?”

“Fire By Your Heart,” Jun shared. “I made this when during my sophomore year. Entered it for a competition and I won honorable mentions, the first award that I’ve ever gotten in the music field.”

“Can I get an MP3 version of this song?”

“Sure, sure!” Jun said enthusiastically. “I’m so glad that you like it!”

“Why?” Corey raised an eyebrow.

“Your opinion matters to me.”

“That’s cheezy,” Corey said, suppressing the heat that tried to crawl to his cheeks.

“It’s true,” Jun gobbled down the last bite of his second foot long bread. “I’m full! Corey, let’s go somewhere after this.”

“I’m full, too. Sure, where?”

“Anywhere, as long as I’m with you,” Jun teased. “Okay, let’s go!”

-

Three hours of walking rounds later, it was time for them to go home. "I'll see ya next time," Jun said when they had to part. As usual, before Corey went home, Jun handed him a chocolate flavoured lollipop.

"Don’t miss my lollipops!” Corey rolled his eyes, but accepted the lollipop regardless. With that, Jun left first. As Corey headed home, many things rushed through his mind but one thing he knew for sure, he thoroughly enjoyed Jun’s company and he couldn’t help but to be excited for their next meetings before Jun returned back to Japan.