When You're a Mystery Kid

Shaping Up

Disclaimer: I own none of the characters featured here.

The ring of an alarm clock pierced through the serene early morning silence. Contrary to his usual habit, Neil had jolted himself awake before the first ring even ended. He scrambled out of bed, but thanks to the combination of post-sleep grogginess and his own overexcitement, it became more of a tumble than a scramble, as he fell into a heap beside the bed. However, he still managed to raise a hand up to slam it down on the alarm clock, cutting it off halfway through its second ring.

Neil spent the next few moments to properly will himself awake. He might have had to slap himself in the face a few times to accomplish that, but now with his bearings regained, he rose to his feet with only minimal difficulty. His blanket and some of the bed sheets got tangled up with him as he fell, so he took the time, but not too much time, to bundle them up together and dump them back on his bed. Next, he turned his attention towards his roommate for the summer.

Norman still appeared to be sleeping soundly, at least from what Neil could tell in the dim early morning light. Neil smiled to himself at the sight; he was worried that the alarm might wake Norman from his sleep, and that was the last thing he wanted to happen. After everything that Norman went through yesterday, his dear friend needed every bit of rest that he could get.

"Sleep tight, buddy." Neil whispered.

As silently as he could, he made his way to his suitcase. The ragged, old thing was a hand-me-down from his dad, but it held itself together pretty well so far. He took out a select few clothes from it and began undressing. The process took longer than usual, mainly because it's still pretty dark and he's doing his best not to make noise, but eventually he was garbed in a new set of clothing, consisting of an orange t-shirt and grey shorts, with a red headband to complete the ensemble. Lastly, he placed his inhaler safely in his pocket and pulled out a pair of shoes from under his bed, before sneaking out of the room.

He still sneaked for about five more steps after exiting the room, but after that, he sprinted across the corridor, down the stairs, and to the front porch. However, he came to an abrupt halt just before he opened the front door, as through the window, he noted with delight, he could see that someone was already there before him.

It was none other than the blue-haired captain of their ragtag band of supernatural investigators, Coraline Jones. She's dressed in what Neil recognized as her usual workout gear; a dark blue sleeveless tank top, black sweatpants, and a pair of running shoes. A pair of headphones hung around her neck, the cable trailing to the pocket of her pants. She's currently in the middle of doing some light stretches. Neil watched her for a while until she finished her set of stretches. Coraline then put her headphones on properly, fiddled with the player in her pocket for a bit, before she jogged off in the direction of the town.

As soon as Coraline was out of sight, Neil walked out of the front door. He set the shoes down on the porch and quickly put it on. It was a tight fit, and they're not exactly running shoes, but the lady at the store assured him that it won't feel that much different. Rising to his feet, he hastily did all the stretches that just saw Coraline did. By the end of it, he was already feeling quite warm, with a few droplets of sweat rolling down his forehead. Staring down the road headed towards the town, he grinned, feeling more pumped than ever.

He still couldn't believe he never thought of this sooner. To get stronger, all he needed to do was follow Coraline's workout routine. It's going to be difficult, but he's prepared to do whatever it takes. Before he'd know it, he would be as strong as Coraline.

"Let's do this."

With a grin, and popular eighties motivational rock song Eye of the Tiger playing in his head, Neil began to run after Coraline.