Jack Derril

Put on the spot

Added 2025-11-05 20:38:09 +0000 UTC

The gym was buzzing. Aubrey stood in the middle of it all, forced by Brian to practice posing.

“Brian… really? Now? During open hours?” Aubrey whispered.

Brian leaned against a nearby rack, arms folded, utterly unbothered. “If you can pose here, you can pose anywhere. You’ll have a crowd when you step on stage. Better get used to people watching before the lights hit.”

Her eyes darted to the mirrors. Shyla and Mason had paused their sets, Fran leaned on the counter pretending to tidy, and a couple of Aubrey’s clients were whispering near the dumbbells. Every nerve in her body screamed for her to flee.

“I feel ridiculous,” she muttered, crossing her arms.

Brian stepped forward, gentle but firm. “You’re not here to hide, Aubrey. You’ve worked too hard for that. Let them see it.”

She took a breath, uncrossed her arms, and shifted into her front double biceps pose. The way Brian had taught her. The first attempt was shaky, awkward. A few seconds passed. Shyla clapped once, Mason whistled. She blushed harder, but the laugh that slipped out was genuine.

Brian smiled. “Stage lights are just brighter versions of these. Learn to own this, and the stage won’t be any different.”

She looked at her reflection in the mirror. She didn't see a rookie, but the woman who’d built herself from the inside out. Her cheeks flushed, but this time it wasn’t from embarrassment.

Aubrey met her own eyes in the mirror and, for the first time, didn’t look away.

Brian grinned. “That’s my girl. Let’s make the crowd wish they trained half as hard.”