Several months earlier...
A pleasant chime sounded, announcing the presence of a visitor at Lance’s mid-level apartment.
“L.A.S.S.I, unlock the front door, please,” requested Lance as he continued to solder an electronics board he was working on.
Moments later Adam and Scott came through the doorway to his “workshop” room, which was really just a sectioned off area to what had been a living room in his one-bedroom apartment.
“Dude, you’re always building something new, aren’t you?” asked Scott.
“Building, repairing, upgrading....” listed Lance as he set his tools down. “But I guess it seems all the same. What’s up?”
“We just came by to see if you were ready to go run at the park,” stated Adam. “Apparently both Noel and Melody are planning to be there to watch.”
“All I have to do is grab my bag,” stated Lance as he turned off the light on the workstation.
He took off the apron he was wearing and hung it by the doorway, revealing black sweatpants and a matching tee shirt. He followed his friends to the front door, pausing only to grab his aforementioned blue streaked duffle bag which was on a nearby chair.
They all swiftly spiraled down the short flight of stairs to the residential parking garage on the lowest level.
“Whose car are we taking?" asked Adam.
“We can take mine,” announced Scott. He produced a keychain from his pocket, then used the attached fob to unlock the doors of a dark green sedan parked near them.
“Shotgun!” yelled Adam as he dashed for the front passenger side.
“Fine by me,” laughed Lance as he slid into the back seat. “More room for me back here anyway.”
It was a rather short drive to Sector Five’s recreational park as the traffic was not as busy as usual. The park contained a series of stairs, tall ledges, and walkways -- perfect for the “running” they planned to do. Their run was actually turning the park’s features into an obstacle course for parkour training.
After they had parked, the three friends ventured to the middle of the park. There they were greeted by three other guys, who were all similar to their own ages, whom they had been meeting with for their free-running exercises.
“You guys made it,” said one of the three, a tall, lanky blonde.
“We’ve never missed a meeting, Rick,” stated Adam. “Don’t sound so surprised.”
“Actually, I thought that last week’s run scared you off,” retorted Rick.
“Funny, as I seem to recall that despite how hard it was, we beat you guys last time,” commented Scott.
“Well... we will see what happens this time,” Rick grinned slyly. “We have a harder course plotted this time, and we have some new pieces we set up as well.”
“Let’s see it,” said Lance.
“Nate,” commanded Rick. “The map.”
Nate handed Lance a folded paper. Scott and Adam gathered around as Lance spread the sheet on a nearby picnic table, revealing a map of the park. Scott spotted and pointed out a curved symbol near the edge of the path.
“Warped wall?” he asked.
“Good guess,” commended Rick. “With some rings and a set of wall runs as well afterwards.”
“Good thing you haven’t started yet! We would’ve missed everything!” announced Noel behind the gathering.
The group all turned to see her arriving with Melody.
“Oh, good,” chuckled Rick. “You have an audience to watch us beat you.”
“Mister!” began Noel. “I’ll have you know that my brothers and boyfriend will beat you and your hooligan buddies!”
“Noel...” whispered Scott. “These guys take things very seriously....”
“Well then you can seriously hand their butts to them!” stated Noel matter-of-factly with her hands on her hips.
“Want to bet on it?” challenged Rick, traces of annoyance in his voice.
Lance, Adam, and Scott looked at each other.
“How about the losers buy the shakes for the other team for the rest of the month?” suggested Adam.
“Done,” finalized Rick after consulting with his friends. “And since that girl is so eager to speak, she can run the clock.”
He glared over at Scott. “And you are first against Joe.”
Scott glanced at Noel who responded with a sheepish grin, followed by two confident thumbs-up.
“You can do it, babe!” she assured. Scott shrugged his shoulders and took his place as the others chuckled.
He lined up with Joe in front of an archway that led out to the border of the park. Rick and Lance set up a set of small black boxes on either side of the arch, then an identical pair on the other side of the deck. Rick then handed a digital reader to Noel.
“Don’t break it,” he stated. Noel received the device, then stood near Scott.
“Ready?” she asked the runners, who replied with simple nods.
“GO!” she shouted.
Scott and Joe took off like greyhounds chasing a rabbit. Sprinting down the walkway, they reached a railing which they both launched themselves over at the same time, disappearing on the other side. Everyone turned to the park’s east side to see Joe followed by Scott climb up on a wall, running down its length. Rick motioned for the others to follow him, leading them up a short rise from the previous platform they were on to one overlooking the rest of the park. Rick pointed towards the west side of the park where the fabled warped wall was to be seen.
“They should be reaching that by around the five-minute mark,” he informed.
Noel and Melody peeked at the timer, which was just about to reach the mentioned time. They looked back up just in time to see Scott near the curved obstacle. Giving himself a noticeable extra push, he burst up the height of the wall, grabbed the ledge and climbing up. Noel let out an excited squeal, startling Rick and Nate. When she realized that all eyes were on her, Noel gave an innocent smirk. They turned back and saw Scott pressing toward them, Joe not too far behind. Everyone lined up along the railing nearby as the runners drew closer. Scott and Joe sprinted up a flight of stairs, Joe seeming to gain ground with each step. Scott sensed how close Joe was getting and called up one final burst of speed, pushing forwards to the top and crossing the finish line under the second arch. Noel tapped a button on the screen as soon as Scott passed the last step, then again after Joe crossed seconds later.
“Seven-two-seven!” she announced pridefully.
Rick glared again at the enthused girl.
“There are two more runs,” he stated coldly.
“NATE! You against Adam!” Adam and Scott fist-bumped, Scott still trying to catch his breath.
“Good job, dude,” congratulated Adam. “Wish me luck!”
“You got this, Adam!” assured Noel as Adam and Nate lined up where the last runners had begun.
“You can do this!” said Lance to Adam, slapping him on the back. Joe approached Nate.
“Run him into the ground,” he whispered, Nate responding with a short nod as he positioned himself.
“Ready?” Noel asked. “Set... GO!”
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