Page 11 of Make a Scene

Anthony, however, was similarly stubborn. “No way. It’s not happening. If we’re not legally obliged, who cares about angry neighbors?”

Duncan let out a sigh. “We’ll discuss it and come up with a compromise when you’re less…”

“Less what?”

“Grumpy. Less grumpy,” Duncan said, patting his friend on the back. “Please eat something.”

In one swift motion, Anthony grabbed the pastries still in Duncan’s hand and placed them in his mouth.

“I meant literally anything else.”

During his last class of the day, Duncan wiped the sweat from his brow with the side of his forearm before speaking into the headset, “Hook your right arm above your head. Stretch those triceps. They worked hard today.”

He looked out into his students’ faces, obscured by the dim lights in the studio.

As the upbeat music transitioned to chill, vibey hip hop, he said, “All right, one more deep inhale.”

The class mimicked the way he swung his arms above his head. “Now exhale. Thank you all for joining me tonight. Hope you enjoyed yourself.”

People scattered to the edge of the studio to collect their belongings.

“And if you all could grab a disinfectant towel and wipe down your punching bag, that would be great,” he said.

As he cleaned his own equipment, a woman in her thirties approached him. “I was nervous about coming. I thought it would be too intense for me, but I loved it.”

“That’s great, thank you. Hope to see you again,” he said.

Walking over to the exit, he gave each person who left the gym area a goodbye and a smile. And before long it was only him and his older sister, Gwen.

She leaned on the floor to ceiling mirror at the front of the class.

“What did you think?” he asked, walking to her.

“Meh.”

He raised his eyebrows.

She threw her towel at him. “You know it was great.”

He grinned at her. They were two years apart and had always been close. Being the older sibling, however, had made her a little bossy growing up. But she’d also taken her job as firstborn seriously and had been the best role model. Maybe that’s what made her such a great school teacher now.

“You came in late,” he said.

“I was at the school and lost track of time.” She watched him tidy the gym. “Do you need help?”

He tossed a bottle of glass cleaner at her. “You can get your fingerprints off my mirror.”

As she sprayed and wiped down areas of the glass, Gwen said, “You’ve been ignoring my texts.”

“Not the important ones,” Duncan replied.

“All of them are important,” his sister said, flipping the end of one of two large cornrows over her shoulder.

“Debatable.”

“So, are you coming to brunch?” Gwen asked.

Duncan let out a heavy sigh. “Maybe.”