The Deep Burn

A slow, deep burn began to incinerate Sydney's legs, the flaming heat traveling through her ass and up to the small of her back. The bar clashed back onto the rack as she finished her last rep, dark pools of sweat worn like badges of honor under her arms and the middle of her chest as the only visual indication of her hard work for the past two hours. Sydney had always been athletic, always playing one sport or another during her formative years. But she hadn't been lean like her most of her teammates, her solid body lending itself to an almost indomitable force to the strength of her movements. After graduating college, she had connected with a friend who loved powerlifting, and since she started 2 years ago she hadn't looked back.

The sturdy, yet streamlined body that was reflected in the mirror had sculpted shoulders, defined biceps and an enviable set of abs that curved into a trim waistline. Figuring that all gym rats indulged in causal vanity every so often, Sydney shamelessly turned to the side, admiring the way her defined back gradually met her heart-shaped ass. Every guy who had touched it in the last couple of years couldn't get over how firm it was; they'd never met a woman who could squat, clean and snatch the way she could, and Sydney was happy to reap the physical benefits in addition to the mental. Her legs might not have been the sticks that seemed to dominate fashion and fitness magazines alike, but her every little movement highlighted a different section of hard-earned muscle that swathed her lower half. She was damn proud.

"Hey Syd. Looked good today. Did you go up another 25 pounds on your heavy lift?"

Darren was one of the many almost unrealistically beautiful personal trainers Sydney's gym employed, his college football years giving him a body enviable enough that people would pay to work out with him.

"Nothing gets past you, Darren. But thanks for noticing. It felt good today. New protein shakes must be kicking in," Sydney playfully joked, throwing him a slap on the back as she made her way toward the stretching room. Picking up a teal yoga mat, she began her slow, end-of-workout routine. The stretching was as much physical as it was mental, allowing Sydney a period of transition between gym-time to the real world. The gym was a sacred place for her; ever since she spent more time there, she became the confident, spontaneous person she always knew she was but had never truly been able to express.

As Sydney turned the corner into a usually vacant back room, she was surprised to find the Shadow Man. A frequent gym goer and avid lifter, the Shadow Man was very quiet, never really engaging the regular banter and camaraderie that characterized their gym. He stayed in the poorly lit side of the gym, the preconstruction side that had only been maintained for those early months after New Years when the place was overrun by people determined to keep up with fitness resolutions but eventually lost interest or motivation. Sydney had never been alone in a room with him. Their most substantial interaction had been a half-wave she wasn't even quite sure had been intended for her, or if he was just readjusting his dri-fit shirt.

As a focused and motivated individual, Sydney had little patience for people who showed up at the gym simply to attract potential sex partners. Sure, that might've been a bonus (had Sydney ever managed to hook up with someone from there, which she hadn't), but it couldn't be the reason one showed up. In silent protest against these people, Sydney made sure she didn't let a wandering eye distract her from her primary lifting goals. It was difficult given what incredibly attractive people paid to be a part of her gym; several men and some women had caught her eye, but she was always able to shake it off. Except the Shadow Man. Sydney believed that intensity of his stare could make a terrorist confess to the most twisted and horrific plan, physical threat completely unnecessary. She had met his gaze a few times, noticing the way he watched her across the platforms, his full lips remaining flat and his face seemingly indifferent to her presence. As a woman in the heavy lifting area, she was used to the scrutiny, but Shadow Man's stare was different. It felt more intense. He wasn't just watching her movements; he seemed to be looking for something else. Waiting. Sydney wasn't quite sure what for, but her instincts told her that entering the stretching room at that very moment might shed new insight on the truth behind the Shadow Man.

Startled as she was, Sydney maintained a cool façade. The Shadow Man was undoubtedly used to being swooned over; his thick abdomen was wrapped with well-defined obliques, his chest was broad and taught, and his ass wore his gym shorts like they had been tailor-made. Somehow, his body wasn't even what struck Sydney the most; that would have been the dark beard and wavy black hair that was wrapped up in the sexiest little ponytail. He was grungy in an athletic way, which was simultaneously confusing and amazing. The poker face Sydney wore was being tested for all its worth, given that the Shadow Man was doing a set of shirtless warrior poses as she entered the back room. She felt her knees weaken, but continued to march forward with purpose, determined to make it through her stretching and make it out of there without doing anything embarrassing or regretful.

Dropping her mat, Sydney walked over to the wall and grabbed a roller from the wall. Before she could turn around, however, she felt a warm breath on the back of her neck. Easing around slowly, Sydney found herself face to face with the Shadow man, his piercing green eyes peering directly into her own hazel ones, and she could feel a renewed heat flush her entire body; this time, however, it wasn't from the burn of a deep squat or a perfect dead lift.

"Um...hi? Wh-what do you think youre doing? A bit close, don't you think" She started softly, but the anger and disrespect of her sneaking up on her had hardened her resolve, so the last of her words embodied a certain power.

"I didn't mean to scare you." His voice was deep, so low she could barely him at what she suspected was his normal decibel. The aroma of his sweat overwhelmed her, but it was cut with the musky sandalwood of his cologne that lingered post-workout.

"Well, you did. Maybe you could give me a little bit of space." Her directive had the desired effect, and he backed off. The Shadow Man's green eyes searched hers, looking almost pained to move away, though his body respected her request as he inched toward his previously occupied space on the other side of the room. Sweat had beaded on Sydney's temples, and once she could no longer smell the Shadow Man's addictive scent, she wished her words lacked the venom that had made their delivery so effective.

Grabbing the foam roller once more, she threw it down and began massaging her quad muscles, hoping to avert the all-too-likely soreness that would make itself known the next morning. She closed her eyes, face twisted as she felt her body caught between a blissful pleasure and necessary pain. The longer she rolled out her body, though, the less she could actually concentrate. Thoughts had lingered on the Shadow Man. Why did he get so close? What would've happened if she hadn't asked him to move away? Her curiosity began to get the better of her, and she allowed herself a quick peek across the room. His liquid eyes met her glance, as if he had been waiting for her to look back the past half hour.

Surprised by the eye contact, Sydney quickly averted her gaze, but found his stare to be somewhat magnetizing. The two sat in the secluded back stretching room, watching one another in complete silence. The Shadow Man broke the trance as he stood up and moved towards the door. Sydney almost felt defeated. Sometimes the attraction is inside one's head, but she thought the air had almost been dancing with chemistry. She turned her head down as she tried to occupy her thoughts his stretching, pretending that she wasn't disappointed.

The barely audible shutting of the heavy metal door still startled Sydney, and as she looked up, she saw that the Shadow Man was leaning against the inside wall. His hand drifted down as it clicked the lock of the doorknob that likely hadn't been pressed closed in a long time, if ever. She barely let herself be hopeful as a rush of adrenaline made her eagerly jump to her feet; she quickly realized maybe she should be embarrassed that she had so obviously shown her excitement, and then remained frozen above her mat.

Eyes unmoving, the Shadow Man began to glide gracefully across the room, the muscles in chest pulled taut with each deep breath he drew. The closer he came, the faster Sydney's heart beat, the ragged pulsations echoed between her legs. When he finally approached her, he carefully raised a hand, reaching to tuck a stray hair behind Sydney's burning ears. He brought the other hand up, and gently cupping her face, his soft lips met hers. The careful, deliciously slow movement had Sydney completely mesmerized. She could feel her tight muscles begin to slowly relax, letting herself enjoy the smoothness. Her hands began to wander over his carved body, but the minute she grazed the deep v's of his sex lines, there was a sudden change. The Shadow Man pulled back, and for a very brief moment, Sydney was worried she had done something wrong, something to turn him off. What she soon realized was that she had found the spot that made him shift gears, moving from gentle desire to inconceivable hunger.

Feeling his muscular hands grip her narrow waist, Sydney's shoulders met the cool cinderblock wall, and the Shadow Man roughly grabbed her wrists, pinning them above her head. Staring into his steely eyes, Sydney was excitedly anticipating what he was going to do to her, though a small part was scared. But being scared of him was thrilling, especially when he was so close. As a muscular woman, Sydney was used to having some modicum of control when came to men. But this guy was huge in comparison to her 5'7 body, and he as he hungrily licked his lips, Sydney felt an unexpectedly intense pleasure in her vulnerability.

Blissfully unselfconscious of her post-workout smell, Sydney could feel how wet she was between her thighs, a combination between sweat and pure excitement. The Shadow man roughly yanked down her skin-tight spandex, and moved his hands between her thighs to create space for his mouth. At first, he nibbled the inside of her thighs, though the biting gradually became harder and it sent a sharp but pleasurable sensation straight to her clit. Or maybe that was the sudden, fleeting flick of her nipple. It was like an electric shock that she craved even after just once.

The Shadow Man's deft fingers twisted and pulled Sydney's nipples until she was sure she couldn't feel anything more mind blowing, his thick fingers pumping in and out of her pussy with an occasional tease over her clit. He abruptly stood up, his straight, white teeth slowly grinding against her rock-hard nipples, the extra friction eliciting a loud moan from Sydney. She was trying her best to keep her reactions restricted to heavy breathing given that they were in a very public room at their very well-populated gym- who knew when someone would wander back there and wonder about the locked door. Her loud moan was met with the salty taste of sweat as the Shadow Man's hand closed over her mouth. Now writhing against the wall, hands pinned up and mouth covered, Sydney was completely at the Shadow Man's mercy.

Shifting positions, he dragged the restrained Sydney down the wall, legs splayed. One hand remained on her wrists and the other over her mouth, as he slid is own over her breast for another quick bite. He quickly moved south, as his swift tongue quickly drew a line from around her asshole straight up toward her clit, which was met with the deliciously sharp edge of his bottom teeth. Taunting her, he dragged back and forth between those sensitive spots, and Sydney was gasping for breath. Right as she was on the edge of climax, the Shadow Man momentarily let go of her mouth and wrists long enough to flip Sydney over onto all fours. A hard smack on her firm ass was followed by a surprisingly pleasurable grip on her smooth throat. The pressure was unexpected but so enticing, Sydney was practically bucking against the Shadow Man's hand that had continuing to knead and massage her clit. She came hard and loud, the noise somehow timed with a loud bang on the metal door of the stretching room.

Sydney wasn't able to indulge in her panic for long; the Shadow Man jumped up and pulled her spandex over her hips, and then ran to open the door.

"Why was this closed? Gym policy that all doors stay open; it's a fire hazard." Darren peered into the room, and saw a flushed Sydney looking back at him.

"Hey, sorry Darren. It was so goddamn hot in here, so we turned up the AC and didn't want any of the cool air to escape." Impressed that she was able to spit out such a believable lie so quickly, Sydney took a second to mentally appreciate the rebelliousness of her teenage years that had taught to think on her feet.

"Oh, okay. Just keep it open next time. If you let me know at the front desk, we can turn it down in the entire gym space- not a problem. Probably more effective too." Darren gave her a grin and a small wave before stepping out to continue his rounds. Sydney turned, but to her shock, the Shadow Man had not been privy to the exchange between her and Darren. He must have sauntered out while I was worried about coming up with an excuse, Sydney thought. Well, fuck. Sydney was still breathing heavily from her mind-blowing orgasm, combined with the adrenaline of nearly being caught on all fours, wailing like a banshee in sheer ecstasy.

Striding across the room, she leaned over to pick up her foam roller, placing it carefully on the shelf from which she had plucked it. She stood there, briefly letting herself wonder if she would again be overwhelmed by the Shadow Man's musky, sweaty aroma. After a few minutes, she resigned herself to the acknowledgement that he was gone. Maybe he'll be back, she wondered. And when he does return I'll ready to pounce, she decided.