Susan
Gabriel Darius Trahan [Link to Patreon] enjoyed his routines. 

It was the one thing that grounded him, despite his time spent in Nowhere, Sweden. Wake up early, do his daily affirmations, eat his regularly scheduled protein smoothies, and hit the gym before doing work and falling asleep. Like clockwork, he'd muse to himself. An actor must follow their stage directions, lest the production be affected. 

The show must go on, and despite how *Little* He wanted to get out of bed, Gabe was at the gym. 

*Maybe after this, I'll bother Matti or Audrey. Maybe Hatzume or Esme? It depends who's around.* He thought to himself, entering the sterile-smelling gym and performing some stretches absentmindedly. 

Despite his psychopathic behavior of *Working out without music*, he missed the residents of the Cradle dearly. Gabe had his routine, and yet... Something still felt missing. A hole in his stomach that only grew wider with each passing day spent waking up to an empty room and the sound of silence. 

He pulled at the strap of his grey tank-top and fiddled with the hem of his black shorts, the sudden intrusive thought making Gabriel take his nervous energy out on the offending pieces of clothing. 

*Channel that into your workout*, a voice that sounded suspiciously like his dad barked, and he reached for a dumbbell.
Woodrow
Guts didn't normally follow routines. Not unless they were on a job, but that was less of a routine and more of a plan. The life of a thief was one that remains spontaneous, even if you get caught, and those habits never really leave. Not like they wanted them to, of course. One of these habits was wandering. Guts needed a layout of where they are. The best way is to wander around — it looks natural and raises no suspicions, plus they can take their time and enjoy the sights! A real win for them.

They frequently wander the facility they had been put into not long ago. It was kind of daunting to them, and quite honestly, this place kind of scared them, so it was less of a method to map the place and more of a coping mechanism. It was better than pacing their room, which they had been doing more than they'd like to admit, despite the nice stack of books next to their bed that were meant to keep them company. Guts just didn't feel like reading, and they *Really* Couldn't sit still. So they decided to wander. They walk aimlessly through halls, steps surprisingly quiet as they peek into rooms and take some time in others. In the back of their mind, they wondered where others spend most of their time, half-expecting to run into someone, but not seeing anyone until they found the gym.

Guts peeks into the room, hair falling into their face as they scanned the area, not even noticing Gabe at first. Absentmindedly, they walked into the space, only noticing Gabe after they trip on a mat, a quick yelp of surprise leaving them before they look around to make sure no one was there, only to see Gabe. Where did he come from? Did they *Seriously* Just miss him in their glance over? This was embarrassing, but at least they didn't fall on their ass. Ugh.

"Sorry, I tripped," They gestured at the mat, laughing it off nervously, "I was just looking around!"
Susan
I am writing. Soon.

*Oh, a new person—* The absentminded thought is interrupted by the sound of said new person falling square on their face, and their sheepish excuse. 

*A newbie. I don't think I've seen this person around here, before... Might explain why they're acting like an idiot.* 

 Still, Gabe smiles, placing his dumbbells on the ground and reaching for Guts' wrist, pulling the other up in one swift motion. 

"Don't worry, I gotcha." He winks. "You're lucky it's not right after dinner. Most people come in before then to work off all the guilty calories that haunt 'em. Lot more people would've seen that." 

It seems Gabe was taking his break now— it was for the best, considering the muscles screaming at him. He probably should have stopped long before, but the temptation of *Just one more rep* Possessed a silver tongue, and Gabe never refused the call of more work to be done. 

He plops down on a bench, and takes a swig of his plastic water bottle, droplets of water dribbling down his neck and mixing with his sweat. Half of the bottle disappears before Gabe pulls away with a satisfied sigh, the water feeling almost like ichor after the workout. 

"You're new." He states, setting the bottle by his foot. "If you were looking for a workout, you would've come with better shoes and clothes, so... That means you're new, yeah?" Gabe runs a hand through his hair, pushing back the wave of kinky curls from his forehead. 

His preppy, theater kid side was less evident in the gym, where the parts of himself fueled by vanity and future goals reigned supreme. Still, even here, Gabriel was not *Stupid*, despite looking more like a jock than the honor student self he usually presented.
Woodrow
Guts is pulled to their feet and they blink at Gabe, kind of weirdly stunned. It was kind of shocking how little they knew about interacting with people. Is this normal? They had no idea. They shuffled a little awkwardly, another curveball thrown at them when Gabe winked at them. *Is this normal????* 

"I always thought the best time to work out was early morning! It's nicer when its colder!" Guts half-frowns, genuinely taking time to consider the logistics of the best time to work out. Working out right after eating made sense, but it also didn't? Why do people feel guilty after eating? All questions that would never be answered. They already embarrassed themself enough for the day, especially in front of someone they hadn't even introduced themself to yet. 

They consider sitting down next to Gabe on the bench, but instead decided to take a few steps of adjustment and plop down on the mat in front of him. This guy was the real deal — he actually knows how to work out. Guts would go on runs and do some simple stuff with their dad, but never lifting weights. It seemed intimidating, even with an arm that didn't do as much work. The thief was lost in thought, so much so that they almost lost Gabe's words in the brain fog. 

Guts tries to seem just as chill as this new person, but is too energetic, and it shows. Truly a shining moment for them. 

"Uh, yeah, yes! I'm new. It's barely been a week. I just haven't really gotten a clear layout of the place in- you know-" They have their hands, trying to get their point across in the worst way possible, "I dunno. I like having the layout in here." Guts points at their forehead.

"I don't really actually work out," They laugh again.
Susan
"I mean, it's *Probably* Better to work out in the morning. But I have energy to burn, and... Well, if I did everything I was supposed to, I wouldn't be here, now would I?" Gabe laughed a little at his own self deprecating joke (a rarity for him, truly, but perhaps the late night was starting to encroach its way into his brain?) 

Damn. This guy was new. Like, *Really new.* A tinge of sympathy tainted Gabriel's face, and familiar older sibling instincts began to stir from where they slumbered. 

Honestly, with how everyone at the Cradle was, it seemed like every other day someone needed Gabe to impart his wisdom... 

... Although, the warm feeling in his chest quickly contradicted any mock annoyance his internal monologue had. 

"Barely been a week? Man, I feel sorry for you. You got a lot back home, or do you think being here is some sort of extended vacation like everyone else here?" He swings his legs, facing the other person square on. 

His eyes drifted towards the other's metal arm— *Woah, siiiick...*, said the barest sliver of still-child within Gabe, the part of him that stashed comic books under his bed and broke his collarbone attempting to do a flip on his cousin's trampoline. 

At least working out was easier for the other, he mused. You could concentrate all of your work on one arm. 

"Yeah. I can tell, newbie." The other person's arm, on the other hand, looked more like a noodle than anything else. 

"Stand up. I'm *Enlisting you.*" A wolffish grin accompanied an excited twinkle in Gabe's eye as *Something interesting to do* Crossed his path.
Woodrow
Guts laughs along, unfortunately relating to the joke. They knew it would be rude to ask, but they did wonder how Gabe got here. They. Wondered if Gabe was thinking the same thing about them. It was silly, but they really didn't know what to do here. They'd never really tried to make friends before (mostly because their dad discouraged it, but also because they never had time to), and the idea of meeting someone mid-workout was kind of intimidating. Gabe could probably beat them up if he wanted to. Not that Guts thought he wanted to beat them up, something about the way he looked at them said otherwise. 

"Back home?" Guts blinks, almost forgetting that, yeah, it's normal for people to live in one place their whole life. They tilt their head to the side, making a split-second decision: to lie outright or lie by omission.

"Not really, no, A lot happed before... Well, before I got sent here, but before that I just traveled a lot!" They laugh, starting to relax a little before continuing. "I came here from a jail so... Definitely an improvement, but not a vacation!" Another laugh, trying to cover up the potential severity of their words. It didn't really register to them how concerning coming here from jail sounds, really. Part of the perks of never really talking to people.

"Wait, enlisting? For working out?" Surprise crossed their face, and they shook their head, "I don't wanna slow you down or anything, but if you insist! Just know I haven't a clue on where to start!" They shift, moving to stand.
Susan
Gabe half-tuned the other person out as they began to drone on about their personal life. It seemed like a lot of family baggage that Gabe didn't particularly want to unpack, and it didn't have anything else to do with the other's admittedly cool-looking metal arm. 

"Jail, hmm. I'll have to ask you about it sometime— seems kinda interesting. Don't know how someone so tiny could survive it, though." While he didn't care about the other, not *Really*, it still seemed like an interesting topic. He hummed to himself, mentally toiling over the tiny person in an orange jumpsuit and a comical ball and chain. It was a bit funny, actually... 

"Well, if you wanna start out, you have to *Stretch*, or else you'll tear a muscle." Gabriel stretches his back out, a series of satisfying *Pops* Coming from the muscle. 

"We can start with arms— well, *Arm*, I guess. Legs come after." Another tuck of a curl behind his ear, and Gabe positions himself in a basic arm stretch, before moving on to touching his toes and other leg stretches. 

"You following me? Tell me what ya wanna work out, too— cardio ain't the same as muscles, you know."
Woodrow
Guts either does not notice or does not care that Gabe had tuned them out. If anything, they just seemed to like talking, smiling as they did so. Yeah, they're new alright, and they were ready to make some friends. They clearly weren't sure what to do here, fully ready to follow whatever instructions this new person was going to give to them. 

Part of them regretted bringing up jail, but at the same time, they thought everyone here had did something to end up here. Clearly this assumption was not correct. Internally, Guts choked up at the idea of even talking about jail beyond its initial mention. They really shouldn't have brought it up. So much for sleeping later! 

"I'm not *That* Small," They protest, raising an eyebrow at Gabe, holding themselves back from crossing their arms like a pouting child. They weren't totally sure how they should be feeling about this. They enjoyed being asked about themself, but they felt... Not ignored, but something similar. This new person seems dismissive, and Guts didn't deal well with the feeling that brings. The last thing they needed was to feel ignored.

The pops make Guts's eye widen, and they immediately try to replicate the stretch, not quite getting the same amount of pops but still feeling them, and they sigh before falling out of that stretch and into the arm one. It was pretty relaxing, honestly, and they hummed, looking over to Gabe again.

"Yeah, I think I got it!" They grin, letting their arms fall. "I don't know what to work out, I never really do this!" They laugh, trying to ease their own nerves now.
Susan
SORRY I can reply at Wednesday
Woodrow
No worries! Just wanted 2 check in
Susan
Gabe smiled. This person didn't seem that bad, actually. 

"Don't over exert yourself— it's just like this, yeah? Let's do some together." After a small, impulsive ruffling of Guts' hair, Gabe grabs two weights from the rack, and works out with Guts into the night, giving the other advice and tips with a smile whenever needed. 

It was a good way to spend the day, he thought. It was relaxing, and... Surprisingly a good break to his routine. 

Who knew maybe working out was better with people?

———