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  Noah

(5th Street #ane)

Past Elizabeth Reyes

Noah By Elizabeth Reyes

Copyright © 2012 By Elizabeth Reyes. All rights reserved including the correct to reproduce this volume or portions thereof in whatsoever form whatsoever.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are products of the writer's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

For information on the cover art visit Stephanie Mooney'southward website at: http://stephaniemooney.blogspot.com

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This is dedicated to my husband Mark who grew upwardly on 5th Street. Thank you for all the crazy, funny and heartwarming stories you've shared with me over the years!

CHAPTER 1

CHAPTER ii

Chapter three

CHAPTER four

Chapter v

Affiliate 6

Affiliate 7

Chapter eight

CHAPTER 9

CHAPTER ten

Chapter 11

Affiliate 12

CHAPTER 13

Affiliate fourteen

CHAPTER 15

CHAPTER xvi

Chapter 17

Chapter eighteen

Chapter xix

Affiliate twenty

Affiliate 21

Chapter 22

Affiliate 23

CHAPTER 24

CHAPTER 25

Chapter 26

CHAPTER 27

Affiliate 28

EPILOGUE

ABOUT THE Author

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

CHAPTER i

The night Veronica Cruz prayed for her mother to die she never imagined her female parent wouldn't wake the adjacent morning. Simply she didn't. She died in her slumber. In the very business firm that Veronica was now destined to spend the rest of her life lonely.

That was six months agone. Since then Veronica's bane being consisted of waking to a silent home and wandering aimlessly about from her bed to the sofa in the front room to the kitchen table until it was time to crawl dorsum into bed and start all over again.

Her mother had left her a substantial trust with the stipulation that the house would never exist sold. The home that had been in the family for generations was to stay inside the family for at least another hundred years or until in that location was no one left in the family to pass information technology on to. Unless she lived to be more than a hundred it would probably be sooner since having kids required male companionship and meeting one, required her leaving the house for more than just grocery shopping. Still, she had promised her mother on her deathbed that she would never sell the house.

Since she was an just kid, the house that was now paid for was hers free and articulate. The closest relative she had was an aunt her mother had only spoken of a few times. She'd never met her male parent and so she had no idea if she had any family on his side.

At twenty-eight Veronica felt like a spinster. Certain, well-nigh would consider her relatively young for a spinster, but the years leading up to her female parent'southward expiry had aged her in and then many ways. When Veronica constitute out about the cancer and how little time her mother had left, she dropped everything. She took a leave from her task every bit a man resources director at the local college—a chore she loved—to care for her female parent full fourth dimension. Her social life became non-real for over two years.

By the time her mother passed, Veronica was xl pounds heavier and tuckered completely of whatsoever energy to return to the existent world. She had no desire to go dorsum to work and then worn and completely out of shape. Feeling like she'd aged 10 years and heavier than she'd e'er been in her life, there was no way she was showing her face at that place again. Non but did her female parent'due south death bleed her physically, information technology had also taken her spirit. She was no longer the vibrant young adult female total of goals and ambitions she once had been.

Losing her mom the mode she had, watching her wither away hopelessly, in so much pain with no way to aid her had scarred her forever. She was angry with God and saw no reason to even endeavour existence a contributing fellow member of lodge anymore. What good did information technology practice you anyhow, when it could exist taken away but like that?

A loud knock at the front door jolted Veronica out of her dreary thoughts. She already knew who it was and she rolled her eyes, dragging herself off the sofa to answer the door.

Her best friend Nellie smiled widely as soon as Veronica opened the door. "Guess what I got us?" She held up what looked like tickets of some sort.

"I told you," Veronica said, already heading back to her favorite spot on the sofa. "I'thou non going to any movies or concerts or any event that involves me existence around other people. I'm a cow, Nellie. I don't even have clothes that fit me anymore."

"Do y'all have sweats?"

"That's all I have." She pulled the material on the sweat pants she was wearing. "I oasis't bought anything else in months. It's all I can become my fat donkey into and I turn down to go shopping for anything else in this embarrassing size."

"That's perfect then," Nellie said. "Because these are one week passes to the gym over on Fifth Street."

Veronica gaped at her. "A gym?" She wasn't even aware in that location was a gym on Fifth Street.

"Yes, a gym. Get upwardly. We're going." Nellie grabbed her paw and pulled. "I'm tired of you using your weight as an excuse to bury yourself from the world. We'll get together."

Veronica groaned as she got upwards off the sofa. "I didn't know there was a gym on Fifth Street. Are you sure?" She took the tickets from Nellie. They were very amateurish looking; printed on regular paper even cutting a bit raggedly. "Where did y'all get these?"

"Never you lot listen. I knew you lot wouldn't want to go to the crowded gym over at the mall full of all those people yous're so adamant about staying away from." She shoved Veronica toward the front door. "This is a smaller community gym only they're still nice enough to offer free one week passes. Nosotros'll practice a week and then depending on how you feel we tin sign up for more than."

Veronica tried to protest about not having a gym bag but equally usual, Nellie was ane-stride alee of her. "I accept everything we need in the car. But grab your keys and wallet. No excuses."

For months, Nellie had done her all-time to endeavour to pull Veronica out of her funk, and Veronica hated to sound so ungrateful. She seriously doubted she could even exercise one jumping jack without keeling over but she'd sense of humor her friend this one fourth dimension. Truth was she really did need to lose weight.

On the drive over, Nellie told her about the gym. Her husband was now a fellow member of the big gym by the mall but he took kickboxing training one time upon a time at the Fifth Street gym. He said information technology was just small enough that Veronica wouldn't feel overwhelmed. Great. Nellie had told her husband what a fat pathetic hermit she'd get. "And so when the guy outside the supermarket gave me the passes I thought this would be perfect."

Veronica didn't even attempt to be every bit excited about this as Nellie seemed to be, though she suspected it was a bit of an human activity. They'd been best friends since they were kids and she'd washed everything to endeavor and cheer Veronica up after her mother died. One matter Veronica knew about Nellie was that she hated working out. So, every bit usual, this was a completely selfless act on her part. All for the sake of pulling Veronica out of the cavern she chosen her home. Merely one of the reasons that made Veronica love and appreciate her best friend even more.

When they arrived, they were both surprised to see there were no other women. Veronica peered at the ticket she held in her hand. "Are you certain this isn't an all male gym?"

Nellie didn't look and so sure herself but quickly disagreed. "That's silly. I've never heard of an all male gym."

"I have."

"Why would the guy offering me the passes if it was an all male gym?"

Veronica looked around. It was a far weep f

rom the gym at the mall that was for sure. For starters, the place was in not bad need of a paint job. There were a few treadmills and stair climbers on ane end of the gym. Four weight benches and weights on the other stop. A rowing machine, lots of punching bags and a big battle ring in the middle of the gym. This was definitely a boxer's gym.

She followed Nellie upwards to a homo with a clipboard who stood well-nigh the punching bags and showed him the tickets. "Nosotros're here for the gratis week of training."

He was an older guy with a full head of graying hair. He looked them both over and smirked. "Y'all ever railroad train before?"

Veronica attempted to suck in her gut and stood upwardly straight. What seemed like a lifetime ago, she was actually on her higher tennis team. And before her mother vicious ill she used to become together with a few of her colleagues and played regularly. Now she dreaded what a little workout might exercise to her.

"No, not really but we're hither to first." Nellie said, her mentum up.

The man glanced over to an open door where a few guys stuck their faces out staring in their management. As presently as they saw him looking, they jerked their heads back in. Veronica could hear them laughing. Wonderful. They were already being mocked and she hadn't even started jiggling her flab. This was going to exist worse than she imagined. Veronica exchanged glances with Nellie before they both turned to the guy in front of them.

The human leaned over into a box next to him and grabbed two clipboards with small-scale index cards on them. "Read and sign these. Lemme see what I can do." He walked away toward the very door with the laughing guys.

Veronica tugged at Nellie'southward arm, who'd already began to read what appeared to be a liability waiver. "I don't recollect this is such a good idea afterwards all."

"Stop," Nellie's tone was house. "We're going to do this for at to the lowest degree a week. You lot can't stay cooped upwards in that house forever, Roni. I won't have information technology."

The idea of having one of those young guys, who were obviously already ridiculing them, stand up over her and train her while she nearly passed out from doing a couple of sit ups was really beginning to panic her. "Maybe you and I can just go walking every night. You know, at the park. We tin do our own work out."

Nellie biconvex an eyebrow. "No, you're not getting out of this. Information technology'southward merely one week. After that, we'll decide what we'll do. But for at present we're doing this."

Veronica sighed, defeated. Nellie wasn't going to budge. Veronica knew how she could be once her mind was made up. Simply as she finished signing the waiver, she looked upwards to see 2 more young guys enter the aforementioned room as the man they'd been talking to, and then heard more laughter. Her tum tightened even more now. She knew leaving the comfort of her home was a error.

~*~

Determined to convince Jack that he was prepare to start preparation, Noah walked into the gym part with a purpose. Every bit shortly equally he and Gio were in, the guys already there started laughing. Noah frowned. "What's so funny?"

None of them said annihilation. Abel smirked walking out of the function. Hector could barely contain himself. Jack was the just one not laughing. He held a clipboard and handed it to him. "You wanna train, Quintanilla? Today's your lucky day. I got two out there that walked in with free 1 week passes. Yous got a week to prove to me you can do this."

Noah could hardly believe it. For most a year now, he'd been trying to convince Jack he could do grooming similar the trainers Jack so meticulously hand picked. Start Jack said he'd give him a shot when he turned 19, then when he turned nineteen nearly a twelvemonth ago, information technology'd been 1 alibi after another. Jack had hired him years ago equally a maintenance male child. The pay wasn't much simply he besides got to work out at the gym and railroad train with some of the other boxers for free. In exchange, he maintained the equipment, helped continue the place clean, threw the towels in the washing auto then dryer, and wiped down the exercise machines—no brainer stuff.

Afterwards watching other trainers for years, he knew he had it in him to train and the pay was much better than his maintenance position. Since his shoulder injury had put his boxing on hold for at least another three months, going pro or fifty-fifty semi-pro where he had the potential of actually making some money from his fighting would be pushed out even longer. He needed this coin at present.

Noah threw his gym bag on the floor and glanced at the clipboard, still smiling. It was the standard conditioning sheet.

"They're total beginners." Jack said. "So you'll have your work cut out for you."

"Are they training to box?" Noah glanced at Hector, who held his fist against his oral fissure stifling a laugh. "What's with you?"

"Nix," He about squeaked the give-and-take out, before hurrying out of the office.

Gio walked out of the restroom. He'd gone direct to it as soon as they got in that location, so he'd missed everything. "Ready to work out?" he asked.

"Nah," Noah smirked, lifting the clipboard at him. "I'll be training today."

Gio'south brow'due south went upwardly. "Really?"

"They're waiting," Jack said. "You should exit at that place."

Noah winked at Gio, who all the same looked surprised merely smiled. If anyone knew how bad Noah wanted to move upwards to trainer, it was Gio. Not merely did he know how bad he wanted information technology but how bad he needed the raise. Always since he turned 18 he'd been paying his foster parents so he could continue to stay with them. They insisted he didn't have to pay them just it didn't feel right.

Once he turned eighteen the state stopped paying them to keep him there and with four other foster kids and 2 of their own he knew they needed the money. He'd even moved into their garage to make room for the new foster kid they picked up once they were no longer beingness compensated for him, but what he really wanted was to get his own place. That wasn't going to happen with his maintenance boy pay.

The gym was decorated as usual, and tonight he noticed 2 women there when he walked in. That was rare. Although it wasn't an all male person gym, information technology was known mainly as a boxing gym. Women came in once in a while, but most of the time it was with ulterior motives—they were at that place on the cruise. Most women, like well-nigh of the girls he went out with, preferred the fancier gym at the mall.

He glanced around every bit he stepped out of the office, searching for his would-be trainees. He saw a couple of unfamiliar guys punching a bag. Being there almost daily he knew only virtually every one of the members so he figured these 2 new faces were it. Leaning back into the office, he asked, "Is it the two guys past the punching bags?"

"No," Jack said, stepping out and standing side by side to him. "That'southward who you'll be training." He pointed at the ii women he'd seen when he walked in.

Suddenly, Noah knew why the guys had been laughing. He turned back to Jack, wondering if this was a joke. Jack lifted a shoulder. "They're here to exist trained. So go train them."

"For boxing?"

Noah knew girls who boxed, but these two women didn't expect in any shape for it. They weren't fifty-fifty dressed appropriately. Loose fitting sweat suits were not going to cut it in the band.

"I dunno. They didn't say. Go discover out."

Noah glared at Jack. If this was Jack's idea of a joke, he was going to be pissed.

"What?" Jack asked. "I really was looking to give y'all a shot at training this week. These 2 simply happened to walk in today and I got no ane else available. So they're women. What'due south the large deal?" He smirked. "You might even score."

Noah still glared at him. "Ha, ha," They both looked sometime plenty to have been married for years. "They're probably in here to lose weight from the terminal kid they had."

Finally moving his glare away from Jack, he glanced toward the women who stood awkwardly past the door. The heavier one seemed to be inching her mode closer to the door.

"Get over in that location before they bond."

Reluctantly, he walked away from Jack and toward the two women. As he reached them, the shorter mousy looking i smiled big while the heavier one stood a bit guardedly backside her, making no attempt to hide

her unease. He reached out his hand to the mousy one. "Hey, I'm Noah. I hear y'all're here to railroad train."

She shook his hand. "I'1000 Nellie," she said and so turned to her friend. "This is my friend Ron—" She stopped when her friend gave her a expect. "Uh, Veronica."

Veronica held her hand out, barely making eye contact with him earlier glancing away.

"Nosotros're looking to get into shape. Neither i of us accept worked out in a while, and so you'll have to go piece of cake on us." Nellie said, handing him the clipboards with their signed waivers.

Noah took them, laughing. "No such thing." He noticed Veronica'due south big eyes grow even bigger, but he wasn't holding anything back. If this was his chance to prove himself to Jack, getting these two out-of-shape women even slightly trained would be quite the feat. "Might take more than a calendar week, but Jack's rates are more than than reasonable. Not but that, he's been known to extend the complimentary period to a few weeks if you lot ask nicely."

Both women stared at him, then glanced dorsum at each other. Nellie shrugged. "Sounds proficient to me."

"All correct." He smiled, trying to sound more than sure about this than he felt. "Let'southward get started. Follow me."

He started filling out the workout sheets, writing their names down on the tiptop of each canvass. When they reached the scale he turned to face a wide eyed Nellie and Veronica's face up had nearly gone white. "Is at that place a problem?"

"You're weighing us?" Nellie, who at this bespeak seemed to be the spokesperson of the ii asked.

"Well, aye. How else will we know past the end of the week if yous've lost whatever weight?"

Veronica shook her head very slightly but she finally spoke up. "I don't wanna get weighed. If that'south okay with you, Noah."

It was only then that Noah realized information technology was the kickoff fourth dimension he'd heard her speak. Her voice was deep and croaking and a piddling likewise business firm. He smiled noticing another thing virtually her for the kickoff time. Even though she was nigh the same height every bit Nellie, she was anything merely mousy. It wasn't just because she was heavier either. Her highly arched eyebrows gave her a very confident appearance, well-nigh too confident. Though at the moment, he was sure her arched eyebrows had cypher to do with confidence. She was trying to get out of being weighed. That wasn't happening. If he was going to practise this, he was doing it right.

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