Log:Push Yourself If No One Else Will

2022/01/31 Victory|Wade Wildcard|Violet 

It's one of the nicer days in the winter. Still a brisk 45 or 50 degrees, but for those dedicated to fitness, that's not enough of a deterrent. And a good run plus the right workout apparel can keep one toasty. There's a nice long loop of packed dirty jogging paths that loop around the park and the lake. Violet is jogging along the lake section of the track. She's passing people, but she doesn't look like she's pushing herself as much as she could. She's not breather hard enough or sweating. And Wade's already passed her once. He can recognize her by the black leggings with a violet stripe down the outer legs, the purple long sleeve top, and the lavender hair, which is what really makes her stand out in memory.

Wade catches up again and jogs past her, glancing in her direction with a smile on his face.

Violet glances Wade's way as he passes, then does a double take. "Hey! Didn't you just pass me a little while ago?" It's hard to forget a face like that. Or a backside like that. Why do both look familiar? Her Friendbook news feed from a while back holds the answer.

Wade slows down. He smiles, "I did. And aren't you holding back a bit? I can see it in your stride."

Violet blinks a few times in surprise as he calls her out. "I...could probably push myself harder," she admits, and speeds up a bit to close the gap. She's still holding back, just like he is now.

Wade speeds up a bit more. "What's the point of jogging if you're not training...trying to get better? Pushing yourself a bit?"

Violet nods. "Yeah, of course I'm trying to get better," she says, unconsciously going faster to keep pace in the conversation. "I have to stay in shape for my line of work."

Wade smiles and nods. He picks up the pace a bit more...slowly accelerating to get back up to the pace he was running at. "What is your line of work?"

Violet isn't paying attention as she speeds up as well. Her strides are starting to look more like she's starting to push herself. "Umm. I'm...uhh...a performer. So...dance gigs...theater gigs...waitress gigs..." she adds the last with a groan.

Wade smiles and nods as he continues slowly picking up the pace. "You're in good shape. It's working." he pauses, and adds, "I work for Starguard, in Gamma."

Violet keeps speeding up, her strides long now. She's actually keeping up. For now. But most people can only keep this up in sprints where as Wade can do this all day. "Uhhh, thanks. I...wait...you're...! Oh my gawd!" she gasps in awe. Which is when her luck turns on her and she trips over a stray stone on the track, stumbling to try and keep her footing.

Wade smiles and slows, "Are you okay?"

Violet catches herself and catches up, panting. "Yeah...ye...you're...you're Victory!"

Wade nods. "I am. Wade Lockwood. What's your name?" He smiles easily, not making fun of her at all for tripping.

Violet must be used to it, or is confident, because she tries not to let the trip get to her. "Violet. Uh, last name not impressive or meaningful." Unless she used her family name, possibly.

Wade smiles. "I think you mean...'not impressive yet'."

Violet smiles with renewed confidence. "Flowers. Violet Flowers." She's still keeping pace. Breather heavier now, but still able to hold a conversation. "You really think so...?"

Wade is similarly starting to breathe a bit heavier. "I do." He grins. "You're keeping up with me. At my normal jogging speed. For...quite a while. Not many people can do that."

Violet suddenly realizes her mistake. Potentially. "Guess I...just needed the right motivation," she says between breaths. "I'm not usually the competitive sort."

Wade smiles and slows down so he can give more of a pep speech. "It's not a matter of competing iwth other people. It's a matter of competing with yourself. If you don't push yourself, you won't improve. Some people need another person to compare to. If you're not that kind of person, that's fine. Just try to improve on your own performance."

Violet is relieved to slow down. She listens attentively on his speech. "Well...I also know sometimes I don't push myself enough when I'm working out solo," she admits guiltily. To not out that she's fitter than the average person. "But I do want to improve!" she adds eagerly.

Wade nods. "When I was in school, they wouldn't let me play team sports. Because it was believed I had an unfair advantage genetically, since my father was a super-soldier. I ended up having to work out on my own, most of the time. Or playing intramurals in college. Push yourself, if no one else is going to push you for you."

Violet is motivated by Wade's speech, but he can also see the sympathy she has for him not being able to play sports. "You're right." She takes a deep breath and looks ahead and starts ramping up to a full speed run.

Wade smiles, watching her reaction. He gets ready to (try to) keep up.

Violet is running carefully enough to maneuver along the path. And she actually manages to gradually start outpacing Wade.

Wade smiles, watching her outpace him...but then he starts to wonder. After all, he is...awfully fast. Could she be a meta?