Chapter Text
Monday
Lena was working. She had been working since 6am that morning. It was nothing unusual, though not a normal time for her either. Her early start was a product of her hyperactive brain. She had had an idea for a new project a week ago and hadn’t been able to forget about it ever since.
So, she decided to get a head start today, finish off all the annoying paperwork early, so that she could bury herself in her lab right after her last scheduled meeting. Said meeting was in two hours which gave her exactly enough time to review a business report, sign two huge contracts with another tech company and a hospital, fire a corrupt security detail and employ a new one.
She headed into her meeting with the intention of ending it sooner rather than later. But of course, it took ages to convince the entitled white man that no, she would never handle things like her brother, yes, she was producing medical supplies without earning money, no, it was not because she is a woman and her emotions cloud her judgment, also no, she was not willingly running her company to the ground.
When one of the seasoned investors was finally done accusing her of those things and willing to listen to her, Lena pulled out a file with numbers that proved that L-Corp did better than it ever had before, even under Lionel. She showed him the recent ratings and was even able to talk him into signing a new contract ensuring his financial support for two big projects. She was almost convinced that she finally had him on her side, not because of her money and success, but because of her smarts and vision for the company. But of course, things had to go south.
“I see Lex has taught you well. I’m glad to see you’ll make enough money in his absence that, when he comes back, he will have the resources to finish what he’d started.”
She looked him straight in the eyes while ripping the freshly signed contract. “Lex will not come back to this company ever again, and if you are only here to bide the time until you think that will happen, I will ask you now to leave permanently.”
She looked around the table at the stoic faces. One younger man, a son of an old business associate of her father, was the only one who looked mildly shocked.
“This goes for any and all of you. I will not be doing business with my brother’s admirers. Leave now or I will launch a full-on investigation into ties and money trails that will expose those affiliated with him anyways. If it must come to that I’m sure you will all understand that the public will be informed.”
The first investor got up without words, pushing his seat back with so much momentum that the chair almost fell. All eyes followed him outside, before Lena once again looked around. “Anyone else who would like to either leave now or wade through a media-shitstorm later?”
Not to her surprise, two more men in dark gray suits got up and left, not daring to speak or even look to see if Lena was watching them leave.
“Good, now that this is dealt with, I sincerely hope everyone left in this room now is here for the right reasons. I want to help the people of National City with L-Corp's technology, even if it’s not a lucrative drug or some very rare machine designed to treat a very rare disease. Everyone deserves a chance. If we give this a try, I think we can make the city better. If you are all with me.”
Shy smiles and some nods were her answer to that little speech. Lena decided it had to be enough for now. She got up and wished everyone a good day before excusing herself to her office.
The first thing she did when she arrived in her private office was pour herself two fingers of scotch. Not only did the meeting take way longer than expected thanks to these misguided allyships to her brother, but they also drained her mentally so much so that she didn’t even feel like going down to the labs anymore. She emptied her glass in three large gulps and put it down – not quite the time to get wasted yet.
She sat down behind her desk and pulled another stack of folders closer that needed reviewing. Even if this morning’s creativity had been leeched out of her, she still needed to be productive and try to make a dent in her never-ending list of tasks and obligations.
Time flew by unnoticed while Lena looked over spreadsheets, numbers and reports. At 5pm, Jess entered shortly to let her know she would be leaving for the day. Lena wished her a goodnight and continued where she had been.
The next interruption came half an hour later. Sam barged in without even trying to be subtle or polite.
“Lena, what are you doing?”
“Riding an elephant as you can see, Samantha,” Lena gave back without sparing a glance for her CFO.
“Okay, dumb question, got it. But why are you still working? Haven’t you been here since 6am this morning?”
“Yes, that’s right. And?”
“And? Lena, it’s almost 6pm now, you can’t keep running yourself into the ground like that.”
Lena finally looked up, seeing a mix of worry and exasperation on her best friend’s face. But she wasn’t quite ready to give in without a fight, so she lifted a single eyebrow and said, “You know I’ve worked a lot later than 6pm in the past. This is nothing.”
“That’s just a terrible argument to convince me that what you’re doing right now is okay. You need a break. A month of vacation or something like a private retreat.”
“I don’t have time for all that,” Lena said while typing an angry answer to one of her department heads. “Today I lost three investors because they believed I was just keeping the seat warm for Lex. I need L-Corp to do even better to change its reputation, and I can’t do that from a beach.”
“I’m sorry Lena, we should’ve vetted them better,” Sam said, now with real guilt in her eyes.
“It’s not your fault, snakes always hide well until they attack. I’m just lucky that I saw it coming this time before any contract was binding.”
Sam shook her head, Lena couldn’t gauge the reason, but she kept typing until she was satisfied with the email.
“Okay then something else that gives you more balance. You either sleep or work at this point. You need a hobby. Preferably something where you have to move a little.”
“Are you telling me I’m getting fat?” Lena asked, an amused smile dancing over her lips. Sam almost always exploded when she heard how Lillian – on her thankfully rare visits – scolded Lena for not keeping up with her diet enough. Lena loved her best friend for her willingness to go to war with her mother to end the body shaming, but Lena was used to it at this point. She had realized that she would never be able to please her mother, so she had simply stopped trying.
Sam just flared her nostrils at Lena’s stubbornness, so she was quick to add, “I don’t think I have time to add anything to my schedule right now.”
Sam sighed and finally plopped down on one of the seats in front of her desk. “Look, I know you know how beneficial exercise can be. It makes you sleep better and enhances your cardiovascular system which will eventually get more oxygen to this big brain of yours so that you can get more done. Just think about it okay? I’m worried about you.”
“I’ll think about it, thank you Sam, but you don’t need to worry about me. I’m managing.”
Sam stood up and placed her hand on Lena’s for a short moment. “That’s the thing Babe, you need to start living, not just managing. You deserve it.”
And with these shockingly sincere words, Sam left. A stumped Lena slowly closed her laptop. Maybe looking into some type of exercise was worth a shot.
There was no way around it, Lena needed to research. She left the office and made her way home, already thinking over options in the car.
Taking up fencing again wasn’t an option, her once torn triceps on her left side, a souvenir of one of Lex’s attempts on her life, wouldn’t allow this type of strain. Mindlessly lifting weights and pressing her legs against some sort of leveler to bulk up wasn’t an option for Lena either. She needed something that would involve her brain to coordinate, or she’d simply die of under-stimulation.
At home, she scarfed down a quick dinner of leftovers before she found herself on the couch with her laptop. Most sites pointed to intense cardio, but Lena hated treadmills and spinning bikes with a burning passion thanks to Lillian, so that was a no.
After two hours of research, she had fallen so deeply into a rabbit hole that her next click on a link sent her to a Czech workout website. Lena tried finding a translation button, but clicked on a video instead that explained the workout. Immediately, fast-paced bass-heavy music filled the room while the two people in front of the camera seemed to be jogging on trampolines with poles and a hand-bar on the front. There were yells, some in English, some in Czech and always a gesture to accompany the words. After 30 seconds of this, Lena realized they were announcing the next move for their virtual audiences to follow after.
Lena felt exhausted just by looking at this, but also mildly intrigued. The jumping would incorporate every tiny muscle in her body while she needed to coordinate her limbs simultaneously on top of trying to stay alive through the quickly-paced steps.
She opened a new tap and typed in “jumping fitness National City”. A couple of hits popped up, but one especially caught her eye. “SuperGym” sounded rather tacky in Lena’s opinion, but the silhouette of the heroine Supergirl, who was holding up the letters with flexing biceps in a wide-legged stance, had little pride flags pinned to her cape. Lena felt her anxiety lessen with the thought that not many gross men would comment on her body while working out.
She clicked on the website of the gym and found out that it was owned by two sisters and was exclusive to women and non-binary people. Lena didn’t even know these types of gyms existed, but she happily browsed through their courses until she found the jumping fitness course.
They were held in the evenings on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Lena was surprised to see that she could book a slot for the course right on the website. Without thinking too much about it she signed herself up for the next day, and, with a little smirk, put Sam’s information in as well. She’d pay for them both of course, but with Sam there, Lena wouldn’t have to suffer alone at least. She was almost looking forward to it now.
She went to bed with a smile on her face right after she texted her best friend.
Lena [10:13pm]: Bring gym clothes to work tomorrow, we’ll be heading to a course at 5:30. Make sure you’ll have a sports bra with good support, I have a feeling that you’ll need it.
Tuesday
The next day flew by in a blur. One meeting morphed into the next and before Lena knew it, it was already a quarter to five. Sam hadn’t visited her today yet. Lena assumed it was because she had ignored all of Sam’s indignant responses to her thread last night.
Sam [10:17pm]: Lena I’m not doing more exercise than I already am, you know my Pilates kills me on a weekly basis.
Sam [10:19pm]: Don’t pretend you’re already sleeping
Sam [10:20pm]: I’m not going to do exercise with you, raising a rebellious teenager is enough cardio!
Sam [10:22pm]: Lena Kieran Luthor for the love of everything that is holy to you, I will NOT be accompanying you to a course. You need to discuss your social anxiety with a therapist instead of using me whenever you please.
Sam [10:24pm]: Sorry that was a low blow but I don’t wanna go
Sam [06:15am]: At least tell me what we’re doing, the sports bra comment is scaring me!
Lena grinned at her chat with her best friend. If Sam wanted to force her to get a hobby, she would force Sam to do it with her. Instead of responding now, she simply pressed the call button and waited for her CFO to pick up.
“Look who finally remembered how phones work,” Sam greeted her with a dry tone.
“Hello Samantha, are you ready in 5 minutes? Traffic is bad at this time, and we need to get uptown.”
Lena heard a deep sigh and some shuffling of papers. “You really aren’t going to tell me what you signed us up for?”
She grinned to herself while pulling her workout clothes out of her bag with one hand. “I’ll tell you in the car when you have no chance of escaping. Remember, this was your idea.”
And with these words, she hung up and made her way to her private bathroom to get changed.
Sam pretended to sulk all the way to the gym, but Lena had seen the sparkle in her eyes as soon as she had mentioned jumping fitness.
They arrived fifteen minutes before the course would start. Thankfully, the online sign-in meant they didn’t have to fill out any annoying paperwork. A young and bubbly receptionist pointed out a locker room and gave them a flyer with all the other courses the gym provided.
“We also offer couples massages and couples yoga if you’re interested.”
Lena just looked confused at this odd tidbit of information, but Sam snorted and started giggling. When she had calmed down a little, she winked at Lena and said to the receptionist, “Oh, we’re not a couple. Just a pair of codependent queer best friends.”
The receptionist, “Nia” her name tag read, grinned as well at Sam’s antics and shrugged her shoulders. “I’m sorry I didn’t mean to assume. I just thought since you signed up at the same time and your class has been paid by the same account it was very possible. As you probably saw already, we have a very queer clientele, but you’re right, I shouldn’t assume.”
Sam brushed it off with a casual gesture and followed Lena to the locker room where they stowed away their belongings. They made their way to the course room and Lena felt self-conscious instantly.
About 20 black and green trampolines were aligned in rows in front of a completely mirror covered wall. One single pink and black stood opposite the others – Lena figured it was the instructors.
About seven people were already there which brought Lena comfort. She could hide behind them and not feel as watched as she would’ve if the class had been almost empty. These people as well gave her another different kind of comfort. She could see two women with short colorful hair, their matching towels were designed to look like the lesbian flag. Another woman was talking to a person with a lot of piercings and tattoos. Lena noticed a they/them pin on their fanny pack they had slung around one shoulder.
Looking around the room, she felt the relief that always came with being in a safe space. It wasn’t often that Lena felt safe outside of her own home. Her office was regularly invaded by businessmen that meant to attack her on that level and sometimes by some goons her brother hired to remind her of his existence.
She grinned at Sam, maybe this wasn’t as bad as she thought it would be.
A gorgeous woman came over to them. Her black hair was tied up in a tight bun on the top of her head and Lena was almost jealous of her chocolate-brown skin that seemed to be without even the smallest flaw.
“Hey there, I’m Kelly. I’m giving the courses on Tuesday and Thursday. You’re the new ones, right?”
“Yes hi, I’m Lena and this is Sam,” Lena introduced them both and smiled at Kelly the instructor.
“Have you ever done jumping fitness before, or do you need me to explain some basics?”
The question was asked without judgment and Lena wasn’t even ashamed to admit that she was a total noob. Kelly just nodded and smiled reassuringly and fell into some sort of explaining voice.
“So, make sure to always tighten your core while jumping. It’s unhealthy for the spine if you don’t. We don’t want to jump high, your body should stay at a normal height over the trampoline really. What we want to do is jumping by lifting the legs and keeping the body centered. Always try to stay in the middle of the trampoline unless I tell you otherwise, okay?”
They both nodded and Kelly’s fitness watch beeped once with some sort of reminder.
“It’s time! Just pick a trampoline and try to follow along. I always announce the movements and there are gestures as well if you happen to not hear it. Just follow the rhythm of the music and it should be okay.”
Sam and Lena took two trampolines in the last row. They stepped on them carefully and Lena noticed that a dot marked the center. The bar for the hands was a little higher than her hips and Lena grabbed it experimentally. It was securely anchored to the trampoline.
Suddenly loud, up-beat music started, and everyone began jumping almost immediately.
“Let’s go guys, Basic to get into it!” Kelly yelled over the loud thrumming of the beat. Lena imitated Kelly who had her legs apart about a foot and was jumping up and down, her arms moving up and down with half of the beat. So far so good, this was fairly easy.
“Come to the middle now,” Kelly shouted again and closed her legs.
This was a little harder. Lena’s legs strained to stay together but she was determined.
“Tiptoe!” Came Kelly’s instruction together with a gesture that looked like the gay hand flap with a little more grace. She alternated her feet, tapping the toe to the trampoline while the other stayed solid. “And double!” came the next instruction with two fingers in the air by the instructor.
Now Kelly bounced on each foot twice while the other toe tapped the trampoline twice before alternating sides.
Lena stumbled. She had previously thought that her balance was immaculate, but she knew better now. The double bouncing required more concentration and control of her body than what it looked like. Lena was relieved to see Sam struggle as well, but only slightly.
“Bounce Balance!” Kelly yelled and moved her hands with her palms down, mirroring a balance. Lena realized it was the same step as Tiptoe, but with opened legs. It felt much more relaxing bouncing from side to side. Another double made Lena grin, because this time she managed it without problems.
Soon the songs changed. Sam and Lena learned steps like Jogging which was self-explanatory, but also Pony, a side to side jump where the right toe was tapped in front of the left leg and vice versa.
When they finally reached the first break for water, Lena was a sweating and panting mess. Sam grinned at her, just as breathless and sweaty as Lena was.
“I don’t know how you found this, but I’m glad you did, it’s really fun.”
Lena could only smile and nod, because there wasn’t enough oxygen in her lungs to answer yet.
“Let’s get back on people!” Kelly demanded and started with the Bounce Balance. Another step called Heel, a jump where they had to stretch one leg heel first and tap the trampoline with alternating sides while the other stayed centered, was again challenging Lena, because for some reason her toes wanted to be the first to touch the ground. The double threw her for a loop once more just as she had mastered the step finally.
From Heel they moved into Scissors. Lena could hear Sam snort and had to roll her eyes at her best friend. With that step both legs moved forth and back, firmly stomping into the yielding material of the equipment. Lena managed to master the double this time without struggling and grinned proudly.
Sadly, her grin didn’t last long. With the next song picking up tempo Kelly announced, “Bring your arms forward and close your legs people, we’re about to Stomp”!
Her arms circled forward in graceful flairs until her wrists were resting on the hand bars. Suddenly, Kelly met her and Sam’s gaze, then instructions for just them followed. “You can hold on to the bar if you need to, but we usually only lay our arms down to keep us centered.”
Then the chorus of the song hit and the loudest of demands so far echoed through the room “Stomp!”
Lena thought she was dying three stomps in. It was as if they wanted to repeatedly attempt to vault over the bar in front of them but instead of a forward motion, all that was happening was knees raising to chests. Lena’s thighs protested painfully at the end of the chorus when they changed to Basic again. Every chorus, “Stomp!” rang around in the bright room with commands like “Side to side!” and “Open!” added, just to make it even more difficult.
Lena was proud that she managed to make it through the whole song without collapsing, and then proud that she didn’t collapse right after.
They had two more high-power songs during their hour. After the last intense interval Kelly led them through some stretches and breathing exercises to end the class.
Lena felt faint when she got up again. Sam didn’t look much better, but they both exchanged tired smiles before they said their goodbyes to Kelly and left for the locker room.
“I think I might be dead,” Sam whispered as soon as they were out of the room.
“Yeah, me too. Ghost Lena is just floating around now. Gosh I wish I could float; my legs feel worse than after five orgasms.”
Sam let out a sound like a groan mixed with a laugh. They got their things and left the gym.
A new feeling that Lena hadn’t felt in a long while swelled in her chest. Something like accomplishment, but it didn’t feel like work accomplishments. It had something to do with the notion that she succeeded in something that seemed impossible just an hour ago. She grinned at Sam once she had categorized the emotion for herself.
“I’ll sign us up for Thursday as well and no complaints.”