CHRYSALIS

15.

I put my gloves on too and moved over from him, leaving a bag hanging between our bags so we had plenty of room. "I can teach you some combos if you'd like. We can just start basic and let you get the hang of it." Harry offered, bless him.

It really was a sweet gesture. " Oh no, it's okay, H. Get your workout in, I'll just mess around a bit, don't worry about me." He made sure a few more times and then finally started hitting his bag.

I watched him for a second because let's be honest, it was hot as fuck and I was gonna soak that in for a minute. But I didn't linger long before I started in on my own bag.

It had been a while but it's kind of like riding a bike, you don't forget how to punch. The resistance from the bag felt so good, I zoned out immediately. I hit all my favorite combos over and over again, jabs, uppercuts, and hooks filled my brain, overshadowing every worry and anxiety that had taken root there. Instead, I used those thoughts to fuel my hits. I was hitting hard.

I could feel the burning in my arms and more so in my lungs since they weren't used to me exercising anymore. My calf's started to burn from bouncing and spinning my legs so I decided to alternate some kicks in to get them loosened up.

After the third kick, I heard a "Jesus Christ, Jo." From my left and it brought me out of the zone. I stopped and backed away from the bag, panting heavily. Sweat ran down the side of my face and I raised my sleeve to wipe it.

"You do a great wrap, H. My wrists are sturdy as hell. " I smiled through the exhaustion that had taken over my body. And Harry just shook his head at me softly, laughing.

"You're just full of surprises aren't you?" He said.  I walked over and jokingly jabbed and hooked his torso, barely touching him.

"Father-daughter bonding looked a little different at my house growing up. I haven't hit a bag in a couple of years though, I forgot how good it feels."

Harry had already removed his gloves and wraps, I had no idea how long he'd been watching me. He undid the Velcro on my gloves and pulled them off for me."You were incredible. That bag didn't stand a fucking chance."

I chuckled at him while I unwrapped my wrists and tossed them in the dirty hamper. "I can't tell you how much I needed this. I didn't know I needed it but I did. Really bad. Thank you, H." He slung a sweaty arm around my sweaty shoulders and walked us toward the exit.

"I own this place with a friend of mine. I'll have you a key made, please come anytime."

"You own this place!? Well, no wonder it's so cool. I should have known." I say as we loaded into the car and headed back to my apartment.

The drive back consisted of Harry assuring me that his team would do everything they could to take care of the publicity situation and me telling him it wasn't his problem to worry about. He wasn't hearing any of that though and by the time he dropped me off, I just thanked him again, for everything. He told me he'd see me in the morning and suggested I wear something easy to change in and out of a bunch since we were shopping. 

I waved goodbye from the steps and blew him a kiss, which he caught before he drove away.

                            ~

It's currently about sometime after 1:00 in the afternoon and we are in our third store of the day. We started our day at the cafe which has become a Sunday ritual and then around 11 we headed into the shops.

When we got out of the car Harry opened my door which I thought was just a nice gesture but in reality, he did it so he could rip my purse out of my hands and throw it into the back before locking it inside the Range Rover.