Getting back into shape (Anatra)

To say that I'm a little frustrated is an understatement. I knew that this was coming and I knew that getting back into shape would be a challenge. Now that I'm at this point I'm not liking it, so I sit there with my water bottle and a frown on my face while feeling the stinging from the easy lifting excercise in my chest subside. This will take forever on baby weights.

Somebody's suddenly blocking my sun and as I look up I see a dark haired, tall guy looking down on me. It's the one sprinting around. Obviously he's waiting to do some bench pressing. But is attitude is rather snappy.
On any other day I'd probably lay back down and wrap my hands around the metal bar again just to piss him off but today I shield my eyes to get a look at him. All I can see is his outline against the sun behind him though.
"Yeah, I'm going."
I get up from the bench and now can look him straight in the eye since we're the same height. He looks familiar although I know I've never seen him before.
A little irritated I state. "Do I know you?"

Then I walk on over to a set of free weights to do some curls. I pick out some that are a size smaller than usually and start pulling them. I can still feel that unwanted tugging in my chest, even on the right side where they fed that tube in. The thought alone annoys me enough to stare ahead and work out harder.

For a moment my eyes find that guy again, who's now lifting some fairly heavy weights for a guy his built. I wonder what his story is. A career who doesn't train at the center or just another sports enthusiast? Maybe a guy who wants to bulk up to impress his girl friend?

If I'm honest my question didn't need an answer because I didn't come here for small talk or make new friends. In this case I should have kept my mouth shut because first of all the borwn haired guy claims that it's unlikely I know him but in returns recognises me. Shit. One downside of the pregames is a lot of people suddenly know your name and have an opinion about you and your skills.
I can see his little wheels spinning while I use the free weights and then drop my arms to my side to take a brief pause.
"Training for the next pregames, Dunham?" He asks but I ignore him and instead do another set. It doesn't feel good. Even the baby weights put too much strain on my pecs. My frown becomes deepers especially as the guy keeps babbling.

"They're soon. It will be fun if at least one of he finalists returns. Even if it is the runner up..." That last part surely means to push my buttons. It does. I pause my training and shoot him a look with stone serious face.
Then I keep doing my exercise again.

He didn't put more weights on so he presses them with such ease it makes me sick. Constantly I have to remind myself that I didn't come here for a pleasant or in this case unpleasant chat with some kid who wants to jank my chain.

Once I'm done I wipe the sweat from my face using the bottom of my shirt and take a drink from my water bottle that's still sitting beside him.
Then I stand behind him to just look down on him and hold the bar once it's withing reach.
"Not today, man." I hope he knows what I mean. That today is not a good day to start a discussion about the pregames.
"Don't talk to me form the side, okay?"
Then I try to be a good sport and offer him my name even though he already knows it but I want to know who he is.
"I'm Matt as you know and you? I assume you're the secret weapon in the next games." I can't hide that sarcasm my voice is dripping with.

OOC: Haha, couldn't resist...make the face 10 years younger!

The kid remains calm as a cucumber down there on his back while I hold on to the metal bar that he's trying to lift. I can appreciate that.
"Don't worry, it won't be from the side for long." He says back to me, which makes me wonder what that's supposed to mean. That he'll be in my face in a second. Bad day to pick a fight, bad week, bad month actually and I know it. If I fight and he hits me in the chest I'll be screwed so I decide to tone down the attitude.
"I'm Mark." Is all he offers. I was hoping for a last name but oh well.
"I'm surprised to hear I'm a secret weapon though, that's a new one." There's the smart ass again. Or maybe he's not even a career, how would I know? I'm not training at the center any more and don't know the new faces.

I just shake my head at him and hand the weights back to him. "Hold on, I'm letting go." I warn him but he sits up so I drop them on the bar.

I assume our conversation is done so I walk on over to do some sit ups which should be one of the few things that might work today. But before I can even get to my spot he starts talking behind my back again. Obviously he's very interested in me. Maybe that comes with the fame from the pregames...all the admirers and all the people who think they're better than you.
"So what are you here for then? If not for the games... I mean, you're still in the reaping age, right? I'd be acting religiously about these weights. You could barely lift the baby ones."

I stop dead in my tracks because his questions are personal and annoying me, so I bite my lip and turn around to look at him again. "Really? You got a big mouth."
It really rubs me the wrong way that he thinks I can barely lift the small weights. I tell myself not to let him get to me but something inside of me screams to out this idiot in his place. To justify why I'm not ripping the large ones or doing 50 push ups!

I chew my lip while I stare over at Mark.
Instead of telling him a story or justifying what I'm doing I simply pull off my shirt to let him see the finger long scar the dagger left in the middle of my chest and the smaller one on the side of my chest.
For a moment I stand there, demostratively drop mys shirt onto the ground and tell him. "That why, Mark." His name sounds like a swear word right now.

Then I sit down on the ground, put my feet up on a bench and with my arms behind my head start doing straight sit ups. Oh, not a good idea but the last thing I'd do right now would be to stop and let Mark laugh at me. I'd never let him or anybody have that sort of satisfaction.

Just after I drop my shirt in a pretty offensive way and walk away to do my sit up I hear his voice behind me

“Oh shit,"
Since I have no idea what that’s supposed to mean I ignore him and do ten straight sit ups before I switch to diagonal ones.
"You're that guy." What guy? What does he know?
I’m annoyed but I\m also curious what he knows and who he knows it from. Have we been ion the paper or something?
I finish another set and then rest my back against the rubber mat under my back.

Somehow I expect more stupid comments about not doing more but honestly said thirty are almost more than I can handle today. I’d like to groan and grimace but I keep a straight face when suddenly his attitude towards me changes considerably.

"If I'd have knew, I wouldn't have took the piss." His expression and posture has changed, too. But I have no idea why so I sit up and place my palms behind me looking at him.
With a frown I get up until I stand and simply ask.
“Knew what? What do you know and how?”
Has some weird rumor spread?
To be honest I’m getting a little uncomfortable now. Maybe this is just another trick.
Without noticing I rub my hand over the still healing scar, which I still have to get used to because I ruined my appearance, that I was quite proud of. I guess now it’s just an addition to my collection.

OOC: Tyoing while the others watch the voice kids,,,distracted. These kids are incredible.

I keep my focus on Mark now, which also give me a moment to catch my breath and rest my muscles from the small work out.
The true reason is that I want to know what people have been saying about what happened. Whether they made any false assumptions or put the blame on the wrong person.
"About the stabbing?" He raises his brow at me as if that was common knowledge but the retreats.
"Doesn't matter, probably not you."
Unfortunately it is. I wish he was right for a change. The way Jins attacked us and was taken down in the end didn’t put a whole lot of glory on any of us. The back story that Kyanite has behind the whole ordeal is worse though and I want nobody to know what she had to go through so nobody can rub it in her face.

I frown at my water bottle while he sits down.
"It was just something my mum told me about. The training center incident?"

His words sound so irritating. I really don’t want people to talk about what happened if they don’t have a clue. My face becomes hard as I try to hide my emotions behind this façade.
“Your mum shouldn’t talk about shit she has no clue about. Neither should you. A lot of good people got hurt that day. Show some respect and don’t spread rumors. How the hell does your mother know about this?”
I guess I needed to get my opinion out there.

While he’s doing his sit ups I step in the way of the sun shining down on his face and put my foot on the bench between his legs.

I might be a little broken right now but I’m still not going to let him get away like this.

The way he talks about what happened pissed me off and under different circumstances I might even pick a fight. Now I have to be satisfied with the baffled look on his face.
"Well my cousin told her. He was there, so I'm pretty sure he knows what he's talking about."
His cousin told his mom and his cousin was there. Now it finally clicks why this guy looks so familiar. He must be one of the large Orca family. He's got the dark hair and lanky build.
Inwardly I roll my eyes at all those Orca boys running around.
"You're an Orca, aren't you?"
So if Tyren, Alex or Max told his mom he probably knows the truth of what happened and I snapped for nothing.

He doesn't seem fazed by my foot because all he does is look up at me. So I let my shoe drop from the bench.
"What did she tell you?" I wonder while I'm crossing my arms in front of my chest. Once he tells me I'll go back to working out but I'd really like to know this bit.
I'm wondering how much of the story he'd actually been told because it's harsh but makes his cousins look very heroic. Not only look. They were heroes but heroes don't talk about themselves like that.
"You can be proud of your cousin." I add in a rather somber tone.