The next morning, I used my phone to navigate to the address. I looked up and saw four big characters: Brotherhood Fitness.
The storefront had a "Syrian style"—it looked rundown. The color of the large "Brotherhood Fitness" sign was faded. This made me immediately skeptical: Could anyone actually work out here?
I pushed the door open. It was early, so virtually no one was exercising. It seemed I was the only person in the entire gym.
However, the gym itself was quite large. I looked around; there was a lot of equipment. Aside from the completely shabby entrance, the inside matched my expectations for a gym.
"Hello, are you here for a membership?"
A girl was sitting at the counter playing on her phone. She seemed to have noticed me, stood up, and asked.
She was quite pretty, wearing lipstick and had a delicate face. I rarely talked to pretty girls, so I felt shy and changed the topic: "I... I'm looking for Chen Ge..."
"Chen Ge?" The girl immediately shouted, "Chen Ge... Chen Ge... Brother Chen! Someone's looking for you!"
Her voice was not something I could praise. I instantly thought, What a nice girl, too bad she had to open her mouth.
Soon, a strong figure appeared before me. He was wearing a T-shirt and looked solidly muscular.
"Oh, man, I thought you weren't going to show up," Chen Ge looked at me, a little surprised.
"Heh heh," I chuckled.
"Let me show you around."
Chen Ge then led me on a tour, even letting me try out the equipment. As a complete beginner, I just nodded the whole time, clueless about everything.
"How much is it?" I asked after he showed me how to start a treadmill.
It was surprisingly cheap. An annual membership was only a few hundred RMB. I was taken aback. It turns out that sometimes, once you take the first step, you realize things aren't as difficult or as grand as you imagined. Chen Ge even gave me a 50% discount, so for two or three hundred, I got a gym card.
"There aren't many people working out in the morning. Come in the afternoon or evening; it's busier then, and the atmosphere is better," Chen Ge said as he saw me out.
I knew the atmosphere would be better, but I didn't expect it to be this good.
When I arrived that evening, the number of people inside genuinely shocked me. Almost every piece of equipment had a person on it. The entire gym was filled with men, either shirtless or wearing tank tops, and the air was thick with the smell of hormones.
Looking at all those figures, I immediately felt intimidated. I stood at the entrance, hesitating to go in, feeling ridiculous as a fat person trying to squeeze in.
Don't force your way into a circle that isn't yours. That thought suddenly popped into my head.
But after a moment, I took the first step. I'm already here, I told myself.
Once inside, the scene was presented even more clearly. It hadn't been so direct from the outside. Now, a strong urge to escape arose. Everyone was working out enthusiastically, taking turns on the equipment. The sight of the massive barbells made me feel instantly timid. I felt like everyone was looking at me, the uninvited guest, with judging eyes and perhaps even a hint of malice.
My heart pounded rapidly. It took all my strength to keep from running away. My eyes instinctively searched for a familiar face—the basic human instinct in an awkward situation. Thankfully, I quickly found the only person I knew.
He was in the middle of the crowd, looking completely calm and composed, a stark contrast to me.
"Chen Ge," I called out, not daring to raise my voice, afraid of disturbing these strong men, who might throw a barbell at me and kill me.
I was extremely grateful for Chen Ge's hearing; he actually heard my voice over the loud music. He quickly rushed over to me, and my body relaxed, as if I had found a savior.
"It's always like this the first time you come to a gym," Chen Ge said, seemingly noticing my nervousness, and smiled.
But I felt certain no one else was like me, already drenched in sweat before starting to work out.
"Let me take you through a workout. After two sessions, you'll definitely fit right in." Chen Ge led me to the dumbbells.
My large body quickly attracted the attention of a few people, which made me nervous. I wasn't used to being watched by so many people. I felt their gazes were unfriendly, perhaps carrying a certain malice, judging me as an intruder in their space.
To my embarrassment, Chen Ge attracted even more attention for me. He spoke up: "This strong guy here wants to lose weight. It's his first time in the gym, so look out for him, brothers."
My face immediately flushed. To my surprise, people responded, and more than one person at that.
"Got it!"
Some people cheered along.
I nervously took the dumbbell from Chen Ge's hand and started following his instructions. As I exercised, I quickly became breathless. I wasn't good at sports to begin with, and I soon became exhausted, leaning on the machine to catch my breath. Chen Ge didn't stop me from resting; he just handed me water.
I thought I must be thoroughly embarrassing myself. People much smaller than me were easily lifting dumbbells and barbells that were a size larger than mine.
But Chen Ge didn't give me a chance to dwell on it and led me to continue training. I was too embarrassed to say I was tired, so I kept following him. He took me through almost every piece of equipment, helping me get familiar with them.
I was soon completely winded. At this point, all my pride and self-consciousness were thrown to the wind. I was so tired I could barely think, so I didn't worry about much else.
Finally, the session ended. I was completely soaked, as if I'd been washed.
Chen Ge looked at me with a smile: "Today was just to familiarize you with everything. From now on, you'll train on your own. I don't have time to guide you."
I nodded, then sat on the bench, resting for a long time before dragging my exhausted body home.
Honestly, the first time at the gym was exhausting.
But it was also strangely fulfilling and satisfying. Sweating profusely felt different from the satisfaction of eating junk food. This was a compensatory substance secreted by the pituitary gland in the brain—endorphins.
And if a person truly wants to change themselves from the inside out, endorphins must conquer dopamine.
"Chen Ge, after putting him through all that, do you think he'll come back?"
At that moment, someone in the gym looked at my retreating back and said to Chen Ge with a laugh.
"He probably won't. I remember you scared away quite a few fat guys like that, Brother Chen."
Another person nearby took a few big gulps from a large water bottle and replied with a smile.
"Maybe."
Chen Ge watched my departing figure and smiled. Whether I came back or not, what did it matter to him? What impact would it have? He had done all he could do.
The Storm of Reality
The huge emotional turmoil and physical exhaustion sent me straight to sleep after a quick shower when I got home. I felt it was the most comfortable sleep I'd had recently.
The next day, the alarm woke me up, but when I got out of bed, I felt only soreness all over. The pain made me wince; I was weak and limp. But unlike a cold, this was lactic acid buildup in the muscles from the workout. I could barely get out of bed.
However, my authorized leave had expired. I had to go to school today, or I might provoke the Old Witch, Mistress Extinction, into kicking me out.
The muscle soreness was unbearable. It took me ten full minutes just to put on my clothes. After washing up, I almost tripped and rolled all the way down the stairs while trying to buy breakfast.
At this pace, I was, predictably, late.
The class had already started morning reading.
"abandon... abandon..."
The sound of English reading came out. I knew this was some mischievous student reading the first word of the 3,500 required high school vocabulary words, which was often used as a joke.
But this also made my heart sink, because it meant I had missed the Old Witch's Chinese reading session. Now it was the English reading session.
Standing at the podium, arms crossed, the sharp eyes behind the black-rimmed glasses scanning the students belonged to the school's famous Mistress Extinction.
Mistress Extinction was a name that made even the most mischievous students tremble with fear. Many alumni couldn't help but shake their heads when they recalled the Old Witch.
Her name was Bai Xiangman. She was always a focal point of the school. Though not exceptionally beautiful, her appearance was dignified and proper, and she had an excellent demeanor. With long hair draped over her shoulders, she perpetually wore a meticulous white-collar suit, looking extremely capable and professional. Even though her husband was the Dean of Moral Education at the school, she was undeniably competent in her own right. Her teaching was rigorous and serious, and many top-scoring science students had been taught by her.
In particular, her Chinese literature scores consistently ranked first in the city—her greatest pride and a recognized achievement over the years.
The one downside was her overly aggressive personality. She was far too demanding of everyone. But with a Dean of Moral Education for a husband, and her own reputation as a "gold standard" among parents, even the school principal gave her some deference and dared not offend her. As for the students and teachers, they secretly called her "Mistress Extinction" (Mie Jue Shi Tai)—a widely known nickname passed down from one student generation to the next. She herself didn't seem to care about the moniker and continued to act as she pleased. With age, she didn't soften; instead, she showed a tendency to become more irritable, perhaps heading toward menopause.
I tried my best to keep my head low. While Mistress Extinction's head was turned, I quickly shuffled toward the inside of the classroom.
But I neglected my physique. At over six feet tall and with my heavy weight, I was a moving mountain of flesh. How could I not catch her attention?
"Lin Nan!"
Sure enough, before I had taken more than a few steps, her strict voice cut through the air. I froze. The booming sound drowned out the reading in the classroom, causing a brief moment of silence.
"Put your things down and come out with me. Everyone else, continue with morning reading!"
Mistress Extinction issued her command. I had no choice but to hang my head, place my backpack on my desk, and walk toward the classroom door.
I could hear the gleeful whispers around me: "Fatty, you're finished. You dared to skip even Mistress Extinction's morning reading?"
I could only offer a bitter smile as I walked toward the door to face the impending storm.