Close Encounters

[Kamden]

OOC: This has been a "year" in the making (Since December lol and it's just now being posted) Thanks Holly for writing with me, hope ya'll enjoy it! :)


A black Lincoln town car pulled into a vacant parking space on Olympic Boulevard, just in front of a local gym where busy Sydney citizens walked past. When the car door opened and Michelle stepped out. A gentle breeze immediately caressed her. The warm air was welcoming. It reminded her of her home state of Florida. With her duffel swinging at her side she jogged right up to the glass door that was the entrance to the building and slipped in quickly as the door swung shut right on her heels. Inside it was surprisingly cool. It was early morning, around 8am when she arrived, but it was already packed. Yoga classes were in session, people were swinging at punching bags, and muscleheads were pumping iron. For any professional athlete, this was a home away from home. After looking around for a few moments, Michelle found herself in the weight room. Strength would be her main focus.

Doing this by myself is getting old…

She tossed her duffel on the mat next to a long rack of dumbbells lined against the white brick wall, ready to begin her morning workout A majority of the room was devoted strictly to weights and strength training but a small corner of the room, just to Michelle’s left, was set aside more for pre-workout stretches and stand-alone circuit training with yoga mats lining the floor and a long bar lining the wall. Several small weights, used more for additional resistance than for packing on muscle, were also set up on small tiered pyramid. It was in this direction that a sudden movement caught Michelle’s attention. The voice rang out, familiar but not immediately recognizable.

Hey. You’re here early.

It was Brie Bella, another one of the EBWF’s newer divas. At work she was usually not far from her twin sister Nikki but now she appeared to be alone. Her long, wavy brown hair was up in a high ponytail and she wore a pair of form-fitting black lycra workout capris, a cobalt blue racerback workout top, and some arctic white Cross Trainer sneakers. She wasn’t looking at Michelle but instead straight ahead, already immersed in her own workout which was currently consisting of a series of squats, her arms at her sides, a ten pound weight in each hand.

Michelle: I could say the same about you.

Michelle looked up from her place on the mat where she was kneeling, sorting through her gearbag. It really was early, even for her. Her usually tame blonde hair was brought up in a messy bun, the loose ends and flyways kept in place by a black head band. She wore a green thermal sweater and simple black windshorts, with black and white nikes. She was smiling, pleased to see someone she knew. Once everything was organized, she stood up, walking over to the rack of weights. Her hand traced over the cool metal plates giving the weight of each dumbbell, and her finger came to a stop at the 15 pound mark. A considerably lighter workout, but a little more warming up couldn’t hurt. She picked up one in each hand, and walked back to her place, facing in Brie’s direction.

Brie Bella: I like getting in a quick workout a few hours before we have to go in on show days. Get’s me in the right zone for later.

She was in her zone now it appeared, never stopping or stalling in her movements and keeping her eyes straight forward, her breathing well controlled. Michelle looked on as Brie was obviously mentally engaged, unlike her. Even though she’d gotten in a good session of stretching before making her way to the gym for the real workout, she didn’t feel all that into it. But she found herself beginning to lift both dumbbells in synchronized fashion, the motion of her arms was slow and controlled as she lifted both up to her shoulders then brought them back down to waist level before repeating the motion. Pretty soon she had found her own groove.

Michelle: Are you that intense with everything?

Brie Bella: What do you mean?

Yep. Brie was still completely controlled and focused. Inhaling as she stood and slowly exhaling with each dip, her legs forming perfect 90 degree angles to the floor.

Michelle: You’re kidding, right?

The blonde headed diva had found herself simply standing there with the weights in her hands but at her sides. Halfway through her set she had already become distracted. Maybe having someone there she knew wasn’t the best thing for her if she wanted to get things done. Still, Brie seemed totally unaffected by Michelle’s arrival.

Michelle: You’re practically burning a hole into the wall with the way you’re staring at it.

That actually got Brie cracking a small smile and she finished her first round of fifty squats, glancing at Michelle for a moment before immediately beginning a series of standing lunges.

Brie Bella: Now you sound like my sister. I just love fitness. I take it very seriously. Kinda have to, you know? With the schedules we keep. If time in the gym is limited, you have to make the most of every minute.

With a small chuckle Michelle started her reps again, this time alternating between flexing her left and right arm at an easy pace, careful not to work too hard.

Michelle: Don’t get me wrong, I love it, too. It’s just finding the time and the mood to engage in it. Like you said, it’s all part of our schedule.

Brie Bella: I just try to do something every single day, even if it’s just a quick half hour of yoga or something in my hotel room. Nikki will usually join me and we’ll do squats, abs, and push-ups together. 50 squats, 300 abs, and 20 push-ups. If that’s all I have time to do in a day I still feel like I’ve worked some. But she’s not into it as much as I am. We just have different styles in the gym. Prefer different ways of training.

She shrugged casually, her tone friendly enough but her eyes were back on the mirrored wall in front of them, making sure she kept good form with each lunge. Michelle was a bit surprised at how much of a workout the Bellas got in. She herself was more into using weights and doing strength exercises, but the sound of doing 300 sit ups was unappealing. While Brie was explaining her daily routine, Michelle had began to do tricep curls, holding only one weight in her left hand and lifting carefully, keeping her form solid and back straight.

Michelle: That sounds more like a beatdown… 300 sit ups?

She stopped for a moment as she took a breath in, inhaling then exhaling as she competed a rep.

Michelle: Speaking of Nikki, where is she? Don’t you two do everything together?

Brie Bella: Or vertical leg crunches, bicycles, variations of the plank, stuff like that too. We like to mix it up some so it doesn’t get monotonous.

She bit her bottom lip for a moment.

Brie Bella: Common misconception. We are together a lot, but we really are total opposites outside of that ring. I’m a little more disciplined than her I guess when it comes to things like diet and working out but like I said she’s also into an overall different kind of workout than I’m into. She’s also a little more into shopping and stuff like that than I am. She’s still back at the hotel sleeping today. We were out a little late last night.

One of Michelle’s eyebrows raised in surprise once more. She didn’t expect the twin sisters to be so different.

Michelle: Interesting… I didn’t think you two were that different. I guess that’s one of the hardships of being a twin, everyone thinks you’re the same.

Her set was complete and she placed the weight on the ground beside the other, appearing to be finished. She brought her hands to her hips as she looked around at all the others continuing their workout, including Brie. Brie nodded, finishing her lunges and sitting her own weights down before returning to the center of her mat and launching into a smooth series of yoga moves.

Brie Bella: Yeah we get that a lot. We look so much alike we must be identical in every way.

She shot a quick glance Michelle’s way.

Brie Bella: Done?

Michelle couldn’t help but laugh Brie’s question off.

Michelle: Me, done? Never.

She shrugged.

Michelle: Unless you’re done.

Brie slowly raised an eyebrow and now it was her turn to chuckle. It was a little laugh that said so much without any words.

Brie Bella: Not even close. I always take some time to do a slow cool down.

Michelle nodded, not at all surprised by Brie’s response. An idea had popped into her head though, and she wasn’t sure what the end result would be.

Michelle: Since you’re not finished, how about a little friendly competition?

Her tone was serious enough, but her face gave it all away that her challenge was all in good fun. Brie smiled at her reflection and then turned back to look at Michelle with that same smile.

Brie Bella: What did you have in mind?

Michelle: You pick an exercise to do, and it’ll be last lady standing.

She put her hands on her hips.

Michelle: You already have the advantage since you get to pick what we do.

Those last two words had caused Brie's eyebrow to raise again, this time for very different reasons. She gave a short chuckle and ceased her lunges.

Brie Bella: I'm a little offended. Sorry Michelle, but I'm not the kind of person that goes looking for advantages. I like a good fight. So how about YOU pick? You're welcome.

Michelle: There’s that intensity again. Fine by me. But I don’t need any advantages either.

She looked around the room at all the other people immersed in their own exercise, but found one man who appeared to be packing his bag to leave.

Michelle: How about we ask him?

She pointed to the guy, who was at least six foot, but she couldn’t tell what he looked like because his back was to them. The only thing that stood out was the fact he was packing his bag. Brie shrugged and switched poses, smoothly and easily moving into the warrior pose. It was obvious she wasn't entirely sure what to make of Michelle McCool just yet. Brie nodded in the direction of the man with her face.

Brie Bella: Go ahead, just be on the lookout for grossness.

Michelle took in a deep breath, closed her eyes, then exhaled, opening them again before making a beeline straight for the man.

Michelle: Hey, excuse me, can I ask you a question?

With his back still towards her it didn’t seem like he heard what she said. Or maybe he was ignoring her. But she gave him the benefit of the doubt. She flashed an uneasy smile as she looked back over her shoulder at Brie, then tried again.

Michelle: Excuse me? Sir?

Michelle tapped him ever so gently on the shoulder this time. She even had to stand on her toes a little. Then, from the other side of the room, Brie’s voice rang out.

Brie Bella: Hey! Tall guy! Can you turn around and answer her?

Brie Bella obviously wasn’t one to beat around the bush. Michelle had no idea what kind of reaction that would draw from the “tall guy”, but before she could process anything he turned around to look for the voice that called him. He hadn’t even looked down on Michelle immediately, because he was wiping at his face with a towel. It ended up dangling right in Michelle’s face, and it smelled terrible.

Michelle: This is the grossness we were talking about!

Brie had actually been talking about any kind of sexist, disgusting, meat-head, caveman-like comments some men liked to throw around when confronted by an attractive female but she supposed this applied too.

Brie Bella: Well, “gross” and “gym” often go hand in hand.

You calling me gross?

The man was now looking down on Michelle, after glancing over at Brie for a few seconds.

Michelle: No! I wouldn’t do that… Sorry.

She pulled a bold move and tugged the towel from the man’s hands and slowly placed it on his shoulder to reveal his face. Brie was shifting her weight from one foot to the next, her hands on her hips. Maybe this hadn’t been such a good idea. This guy obviously wasn’t the friendly type.

Brie Bella: Don’t worry about it Michelle, just let it go. This guy’s obviously not in a very talkative mood.

Her suggestion was taken, and with a shrug Michelle nodded in defeat.

Michelle: Alright, alright. That obviously wasn’t the greatest idea.

She had turned around and started to walk off like nothing had happened. Brie kept her watchful eyes on the towering man until Michelle was closer.

Brie Bella: Some people just don’t like to be talked to at the gym. I guess he’s one of those people.

Michelle: Well, if that didn’t work, I doubt asking someone else will be any better… So now what?

She had made it back safely to the little area they were situated in. Brie shrugged and suddenly dropped to the mat, catching herself easily with her palms flat, her toes on the mat, legs shoulder-width apart. Then she lowered her upper body a little more, using her forearms to support herself as she expertly sank into a picture-perfect plank.

Brie Bella: We just go back to work ourselves.

After witnessing the act of athleticism on Brie’s part, Michelle was motivated to match that, even if she wasn’t as into this type of exercise. She took it easy, squatting down before placing her arms out in front of her in her own plank, but started doing push-ups, her form also exceptional with her body falling and rising smoothly, her arms and upper body easily managing the work. Brie was content to maintain the core-strengthening pose, having already worked her arms and back, and she remained silent, focusing on her breathing and silently counting the seconds as they ticked by. She wasn’t one to listen to music or chit chat much during her workouts usually. It took away from her focus and anyone that knew the Bella twins knew that of the two women, Brianna was the more focused of the two. She liked that. She liked feeling like her coworkers could take her seriously as a competitor. Could consider her as more than just one half of a twin gimmick. The silence was making Michelle uneasy. She, on the other hand, was one who enjoyed having a companion while exercising. It helped the time go by. She loved working out, but was the type that looked forward to the benefits and rewards after the work, not necessarily the work itself.

Michelle: I take it you don’t talk much at the gym either.

Brie Bella: Depends on what I’m doing.

She shrugged again, no easy task when you’re supporting your entire body weight with just your forearms and tiptoes.

Michelle: Right.

It seemed like she was now a little more focused, keeping a steady pace as she went on with her repetitions. Then she slowly lifted her left hand up off the mat and brought it up behind her, on her back, now committing to a single-handed version of her exercise. Brie was unphased, continuing to hold her own pose.

Brie Bella: I take it you DO like to talk then?

Michelle: Are you saying I talk a lot?

She cracked a smile but couldn’t really do much else in the position she was in.

Michelle: But I do like a little casual conversation. It’s never hurt anyone.

Brie Bella: Do YOU think you talk a lot? Because you know you better than I do.

She finally broke her plank position, moving to the yoga “child’s pose.” She’d already been at the gym working out for awhile before Michelle had arrived and her own workout was coming to a close.

Michelle: Nope. Of course not.

She had carefully maintained her balance and switched to her other arm after 20 reps, and kept going despite the fact she was beginning to lose focus again. Brie gave a small, crooked grin though her face was obscured by her own arms and that mat.

Brie Bella: Okay. I’ll take your word for it then.

Michelle found herself sitting indian style on the mat, after finishing the brief session of push-ups.

Michelle: Done?

Brie Bella: Yeah. I’ve already been here two hours now.

Brie moved out of child’s pose and took to her feet in one smooth motion. Michelle had also stood up.

Michelle: You really were here early then, huh?

Brie Bella: I like getting started early. And working out in the morning is a great way to start the day off right.

Michelle nodded in agreement.

Michelle: True. I feel great.

Brie Bella: Yeah it’s a good feeling. Well, good seeing you.

She shot Michelle a quick smile.

Michelle: Yeah, you too.

Brie seemed to study Michelle for a moment or two. Then she gave a small, tight grin.

Brie Bella: And keep in mind that I know there are a lot of rumors going around backstage, it’s kinda normal I’m sure after all these new hires just suddenly come in. But the Bella Bark is far worse than the Bella Bite outside that ring. No matter what you may or may not hear.

Michelle chuckled and shook her head, gazing at Brie.

Michelle: Trust me, I know what it means to be caught up in the rumors. Maybe a little too well. But the fun part is proving them wrong. Because most of them are, no matter what people say.

Brie nodded, reaching down and grabbing a shaker bottle of water and bringing it to her lips.

Brie Bella: That’s very true.

Michelle: So I’ll guess be seeing you around then.

The twin nodded again.

Brie Bella: You will. We share a locker room.

She smirked and shrugged. She still wasn’t sure about the blonde in front of her but she had to respect the fact Michelle had been doing well in the ring.

Brie Bella: Who knows, maybe one day we’ll even go grab a drink or a bite to eat or something. Nikki and I have definitely been enjoying the sights during this World Tour.

Michelle nodded and shot back a smile of her own. She had learned quite a bit about Brie in the short time they’d been at the gym, but felt she had only barely skimmed the surface. She wasn’t exactly sure what to make of her, either.

Michelle: I don’t see why not.

The twin smiled and seemed to come to some kind of self-conclusion. She tossed a hand up in parting as started in the direction of the locker rooms and front door.

Brie Bella: Okay. Have a good workout. See you later.

Michelle waved back at Brie Bella with a smile, deciding to stay behind and continue with her workout.

Michelle: See ya.

I need to get a grip on this process of making friends…

The thought crossed her mind quickly before being flooded with other extraneous ones. She was alone once more. The idea of continuing with her workout after having an exchange like the one she just experienced seemed to have shifted her focus elsewhere. With a sigh of resign, she gathered her belongings and headed towards the doors. She took a brief look over her shoulder to make sure nothing was left behind only to find the anti-social gym rat she encountered staring her down. Even when she looked straight ahead again she felt his eyes burning a hole in the back of her head, causing her to pick up her pace and leave the building quickly.

Michelle: I thought the Australian people were supposed to be all happy go lucky…

She reached her car at that moment and got in before disappearing into the busy Australia traffic.

[Dave M]

Very cool work guys. It's always nice to hear more from characters outside of the ring.