Running Free (Gabriel)

[renardrodolph]

x x

The night air was hot, humid, and miserable for the teenager as he approached the empty gym’s exterior, a black colored, light-weight hoodie on his shoulders, and a pair of black athletic shorts, with white stripes stained a dark, inky purple, as if the teen had taken the time to write over the white stripes with a black sharpie…which he did, but he certainly wasn’t going to tell his parents that.

Renard sighed, looking up the wall, then glancing around at the immediate vicinity, checking to make sure that no one was around. After a few seconds, he inhaled, then sprinted towards the gym wall. He started to run up it, the first step landing right on the wall, the second slightly off, but propelling the teen up to where he needed to be, as he reached for the drainage pipe that jutted just above Renard’s usual reach. However, with the boost he had gotten from running up the wall, he grabbed onto the pipe and hung there for a moment, setting his feet against the wall as he gripped the pipe with both of his hands.

He looked for a safe place to move too next, and immediately spotted a little outcropping underneath one of the second story windows, and, with a little bit of swinging, Renard jumped from the pipe, using the momentum of his swings to fling himself over to the window. He easily caught the outcropping, and exhaled, breathing deeply as he looked around for something else to climb onto.

He breathed, spotting the gutter that spread across the roof, and, with a little bit of work, climbed up and onto the outcropping, the space between the outcropping and the window making more than enough room for his feet to rest upon. Renard could feel his heart pounding within his chest. One slip, one little mistake, and he was going to be in a world of pain, maybe even worse than that. But he couldn’t just turn back now, and with a deep inhale, he jumped up off the outcropping and grabbed onto the gutter, quickly climbing up and rolling onto the roof, exhaling in relief as he accomplished the thrilling task.

Renard slowly sat upright, starring out at the field, all lit up and bright, as if it were ready for a big game later on in the night. He could still smell the cut grass surrounding the gym, and could feel the fresh dew on his socks as took off his shoes and started to dry them off. The last thing he needed was a pair of wet, slippery shoes. He had to wonder how pissed off the management would be if they knew he was doing this, climbing the school buildings like they were some kind of over-sized jungle gym. Regardless, this was the most exhilarating experience in the world to the young teen, and while he took great pride in knowing that he could accomplish such a feet, he felt a little lonely, as he highly doubted that anyone could appreciate such a joy as much as he could.
In fact, there probably wasn’t anyone around who could do such a thing, at least, not to Renard’s knowledge. But, now that he thought about it, his knowledge regarding the other students was rather limited. Sure, he had gotten to know Shinya, but that definitely wasn’t a whole lot. Renard sighed as he slipped his red and white shoes back on, as he felt that they were sufficiently dry by this point. He stood up and looked around, wondering where he should go next, silently listening to the wind as it gently blew past him, cooling him down a little.

WC: 622

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[gabelangley]

The night wasn't the best for doing much, but Gabriel was up for some free running. Or something that kept him active at least. In his free time he really liked to play rugby. He had some friends at the college that played, but it was just for fun. It wasn't like they could play against anybody else, since none of the schools could attend. He liked to play any sport that would keep him active, but he really only preferred rugby and soccer. Swimming was fun too, but he didn't care much for running track very often. Only because he was used to parkour, which allowed him to run like track did, but in more places. There were tons of benefits for it, not just being able to show off. Even if you weren't meaning to show off, it still happened; the bottom like was that most people couldn't do it. They didn't have the stamina for it, weren't agile enough – there was always something.

It was a thrilling experience, but it also allowed some of the greatest views when you made it to the top of a building, or something similar. He wasn't the best at photography, but if someone who really knew what they were doing could get up there, they could get some great shots. The school wasn't the best place for doing parkour. It had some pretty good spots in certain areas, but the town was usually the place he had to go before he could get anything great. When a person looked in the right spots, then even in the country they could get some good areas for free running. Gabriel had dressed up just for the occasion, though. A white tank top, a pair of black shorts with a white stripe down the sides, and a nice pair of shoes that had really good grip.

He mainly only used the shoes he had on for this occasion. By the time he reached the gym, he was already sweating a little bit. The humidity in the air wasn't helping at all, but it wouldn't be the first time he had been out in the humidity, actively doing something else. On the walk down, he had been trying to loosen up his arms, but after stopping outside the gym, he worked on some more warm ups for every part of his body. During his stretches, he noticed someone on top of the building. He hadn't ever seen anybody else doing parkour on the island, but that didn't mean nobody else did it. Gabriel figured he had to have climbed up there in order to get there.

“Hey, what are you doing up there?” he called up, trying not to be too loud and startling him. While waiting for him to answer, if he was even going to, he went back to his warm ups. In order to do free running, a proper workout was needed. Not only stretching, but things like high knees and lunges too. Not everybody did it the same way, but he usually took a small jog before starting up too. It loosened him up.

TAG - Renard
WORDS - 525
NOTES – OUTFIT
TUNES - devil in a midnight mass , billy talent.
CREDIT - template by MUNZTAR * of caution 2.0

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[renardrodolph]

x x

Renard continued to glance around, wondering where, if anywhere, he could jump onto from here. After all, it would be incredibly time consuming to climb all the way back down, especially now that some random guy was calling up to him. Hold on, someone had seen him?!

Renard froze; tensing a little as he at first thought that it was a policeman, but with a quick glance down, he knew instantly that the man down there couldn’t have possibly been a police officer. Thoughts racked through his mind, his tentative traits getting the better of him as he tried to speak. However, nothing came out of his vocal chords, as if some invisible force was strangling him. Renard despised this about himself, he inability to properly speak for himself without fumbling, and to think he had worked so hard with Shinya to try and fix it.

“N-n-noth-“ Renard started, initially wanting to get rid of the man so that he could free run in peace and solitude, but then he quickly stopped himself. It slowly dawned upon Renard that this man wasn’t worried at all about him being on the roof of a school building, let alone standing next to the ledge. Most people would’ve been terrified to see a teenager standing in the position he was, but this man’s reaction was very calm, as if he knew what was going on in Renard’s head. Sure, it was ridiculous to think like that, but it was enough to convince Renard to respond to the man in a much friendlier, more informative manner.

“I c-climbed up here. Why do you ask?” Renard replied, mentally punching himself for stuttering during his response. Still, it didn’t happen as often, now that he was a little more comfortable speaking around others. But it was still a struggle to be the first person to start a conversation, as he would always choke when trying to think of something to talk about. He was worried that, if he ever started a conversation, it would be about something that nobody liked, or that it would be incredibly offensive to someone, even though Renard was a very friendly guy.

Renard continued to look down at the rather athletic man, glad that the darkness could hide his blush as he unwittingly watched the guy do warm ups. Renard didn’t feel ashamed to think that he was hot, but there was no way he was going to tell him that! Besides, the guy was probably rolling in women, anyways, and he probably wasn’t a homosexual, or even bi. That and there was the age gap between the two…but the man certainly didn’t look that much older than Renard.

‘Gah! What am I thinking?! I don’t even know who he is yet, and I’m already checking him out?! What is wrong with me?’ Renard thought, looking away from the man’s exercises, and instead focusing on the view of the campus. Renard had to admit, the campus here was a lot larger than his old school. Hell, his old campus only had one building, but back then it was more of an elementary school then a campus, but those were just minor details.

WC: 538

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[gabelangley]

The boy eventually answered, stammering a bit in the process. Gabriel wasn't sure if it was because he thought he was going to get in trouble, or if he just normally did that. Not that it bothered him any, but he wasn't about to try and get him in trouble for climbing on the building. That would just make him into a hypocrite, since he did the same thing all the time. Besides, he didn't think most people even thought to look on top of the buildings. How many people woke up every morning thinking “Let's go see if anybody is climbing on the roofs today” or something similar to that? Not very many and he didn't want to alert anybody into knowing that it occasionally happened.

”No reason,” he answered back, giving it a thought. Since he climbed up there, maybe he did free running too. He kind of didn't look like the type of person to do it, but at the same time, people of all variety did it. ”So... do you do free running? Don't worry, I'm not going to tell anybody if you do. I'm just curious because I don't know anybody else who does it besides me.” At least nobody that went to the Academy. He wasn't really self taught; some things he had learned on his own, but he had attended a “school” so to speak, to learn a lot of it. He hadn't ever tried to start off teaching himself, because he didn't want to risk it. It was safer to learn in an environment made for beginners, but that had been a long time ago. He was pretty good at it now, but sometimes still made mistakes. Usually it wasn't anything too bad.

Gabriel began to work on high knees, concentrating on his breathing, so he wouldn't get so worn out. It was a work out in the humidity just to warm up, but there wasn't anyway to get around it. Free running helped him to forget his problems for awhile. Or when he got annoyed with people, it helped with that. And lately it seemed that he had been getting annoyed with a lot of people. He wasn't sure if being nice to this person meant that he was over being annoyed with people for awhile, or if it was just because he thought they had free running in common. It would be nice to have someone to do it with every now and again; that is, if this boy wanted to do that. Some people preferred to do it alone, while others like to be around friends.

”You know, we could go into town and do some free running, if you wanted to.” If he didn't want to, then that was fine by him. He was used to doing it by himself, since he had been on the island since his freshman year at the Academy. He had been on the island for quite awhile, and for him it was getting a bit boring. It was a little better when he was hanging out with people, though.

TAG - Renard
WORDS - 520
NOTES – OUTFIT
TUNES - devil in a midnight mass , billy talent.
CREDIT - template by MUNZTAR * of caution 2.0

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[renardrodolph]

x x

Renard paused, a little startled that the man’s response. Did this guy really practice parkour?! Renard quietly chuckled to himself, the situation reminding him of how he and Shinya had met. Renard had been practicing his kickboxing in the gym all by himself when Shinya had approached him, commenting on how he had done a kick wrong. After that, they got to learn a bit more about each other, hung out for a little while, and now they were good friends. Maybe the same sort of scenario would play out?

‘I doubt it…it’d would be way to good to be true, but hey, if he want’s to go free running, I might as well accept. Now I just got to get around to actually saying it…’ Renard thought, ramming head first into the vocal roadblock that was his shy attitude...again. He took a few steps away from the ledge, breathed in deeply, then tried to swallow the blockage down before walking back over to the ledge and leaning down to see the man continuing to exercise.

‘God…why does that have to be so distracting?!’ Renard blushed, quickly turning around so that he could actually focus on what he wanted to say. Not that it was hard to say “Sure thing,” or “I’d love too!” It was just really hard to actually get the words out of his mouth. Renard silently prayed that this wouldn’t last the whole night, and turned his head behind him.

“Y-yeah, I do free running. I’m kinda shocked that there’s someone else who does it besides me…” Renard replied, scratching the back of his head as he chuckled nervously, glad that he was doing good so far. Sure, his speech wasn’t perfect, but it would have to suffice for now.

“That’d be fantastic! Just give me a sec to get back down…” Renard replied, looking around the edges of the roof to see if he could find a safe route back down. He looked a little to his left and saw a flag poll erected just a few feet away. Renard smiled and rubbed his hands for a few seconds, backing up a few steps as he planned to charge. He took a deep breath, and then sprinted towards the flagpole, quickly jumping off the roof the moment he reached the end. It appeared as though he had dove for the pole, and within a second’s time, he looped his arms around the pole and tightened them. He slid down the flagpole quickly at first, but was smart enough to slow down his decent once he got closer to the ground. Once he was two feet away from the ground, he let go and fell to his feet, smiling a little in satisfaction as he hopped up and down a little, adrenaline pumping through his veins.

Renard turned to the mysterious free runner, and waved to him, “I’m Renard Rodolph…it’s nice to meet ya!”

WC: 493

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[gabelangley]

Gabriel was a bit surprised at how long it took this boy to respond to everything he said. He wasn't sure why, but he figured it would be rude to ask. Besides, it could be some type of mental problem, right? He wasn't an expert on that stuff, so for all he knew, it could be. While waiting for him to answer, he finished up his warm up. Finally he answered, stammering slightly at first, but admitting that he did free run. Even though he had said that he didn't care whether he would want to go with him or not, he still was a bit happy when he agreed to it. Perhaps that was because he hadn't done it with anybody else in awhile and it would be a nice change up.

If they could find some good places to use. The island wasn't the best place in his opinion, but since they were stuck there, they might as well make use of it, right? He had wanted to leave the island once he got out of college, but he knew that his girlfriend was looking to stay on the island. He wasn't sure how it was going to go between the two of them, so he hadn't made any final decisions. But even with having to stay there, he was hoping they would go in a good direction. Gabriel watched as the boy found a quick way down, which was much easier than it was to get up there. He was impressed at least. ”Good. It should be fun to do some free running with someone else again. I've been here for quite awhile and I've been having to do it by myself this whole time. It can get boring sometimes.”

He sent a nod to him as he introduce himself. ”That's an interesting name. I'm Gabriel. I'll lead the way to town,” he offered as he turned and started walking in the general direction. It was still humid out there and he figured it wouldn't take long for the sweat to start showing up on his tank top. It was white after all, but it was still dark out. He didn't figure Pinky would want to give him any loving if he was sweaty, but unless she showed up at his apartment, he doubted he would see her until tomorrow. ”What else do you like to do besides this? Any particular sports you like to play?”

Maybe they would have some sport interests in common too. It wasn't hard for him to find people to play sports with, because a lot of the time, people would just offer. Or they were already outside with a group of people playing something and would ask him if he wanted to join in. ”I'm a big sports fanatic, so if you like any sports, I'm almost positive you will like at least one that I like.”

TAG - Renard
WORDS - 486
NOTES – Sorry for the wait.
TUNES - devil in a midnight mass , billy talent.
CREDIT - template by MUNZTAR * of caution 2.0

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[renardrodolph]

x x

“I’m glad you know the way…I’m still kinda new here,” Renard said, not wanting to brush off the man’s kind offer. Sure, Renard had been living on the island since his sister’s first shift back when he was a little kid, but it would be nice to have someone lead Renard around for once. As he walked along with Gabriel, he couldn’t help but wonder what it would be like to run along the rooftops of the various buildings that lined the streets, among other things the two would undoubtedly climb.

Renard paused, trying to think of a sport that he liked off the top of his head. It was certainly hard to think of, as Renard certainly wasn’t the kind of kid who liked team sports. He felt that he did much better on his own, so he usually stuck to single sports, like tennis, track, and kickboxing. Renard replied quietly, “I like t-tennis, track, and kickboxing…just to name a few,”

His constant stuttering irritated the young fox to no end, and upon finishing his response, he could help but kick himself mentally once more. But hey, at least the two could actually hold a conversation without having to call up and down to each other. That was something, right?

“Are you a student at the university?” Renard asked, as Gabe certainly wasn’t old enough to be anything else. Of course, this was just a hunch, so there was no real way of knowing how old Gabriel really was. Maybe he had graduated, and was already in the work force, doing his best to earn a living? Maybe he was a high school dropout and was struggling to make ends meet…no, that didn’t seem all that likely.

And yet, Gabriel looked more like a rocker than he did a free runner. It was odd, seeing how different the two were in terms of appearance. Gabriel was probably a good half a decade older than Renard, and had a good number of very noticeable tattoos along his body, where as Renard’s skin was still untainted by any ink related patterns or pictures. Not that Renard was against getting tattoos or anything, he just didn’t want to spend money to get stabbed a bunch of times with a needle. The young teen couldn’t help but wonder how much Gabriel’s tattoo’s must’ve hurt when he got them put on? Just the thought made Renard’s spine tingle, as if ice had slid down from the back of the young man’s head all the way down to his tailbone.

WC: 430

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