Warning for brief smut in the second half of the chapter!

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On Yunho's first day of training, Bora picked him up in his room. He was awkward in his skin-tight training shirt and leggings, but she assured him he looked great. At her compliment about his physique, Yunho rubbed his nape.

"You'll get used to it. It's like joining a new gym," she beamed at him as she skipped ahead, sporty from head to toe through careful maintenance.

The gym was in the basement of the institute. Several arenas offered space for games and gymnastics, and Yunho even spotted a sign which invited to an indoor pool. Awed, he pointed it out to Bora. They continued into another hall, but he was curious to visit sometime. Yunho couldn't remember the last time he got to swim in a pool, even for leisure.

"We can swim here?"

Bora glanced over her shoulder. Despite her smaller height, her pace was speedy and Yunho almost had to jog to keep up with her. When she marched through, some guides greeted her with grins while the espers jumped aside so they wouldn't be in her way.

Yunho felt safe with her, but he was also spooked to find protection with a girl more than a head smaller than him. Usually, he was social and friendly to new opportunities, not afraid of strangers, especially not those of his age. He supposed the shock of his awakening sat deep. The daunting luxury of the building kept reminding him where he was. Who he was.

"Ah, yep. You can drop by whenever you want. Just be careful. We have a few high-level espers who rule the area and they get cranky if they feel their training is getting disturbed," Bora advised him. Yunho made a mental note. After Lux, he wasn't too keen on meeting the heroes and getting disillusioned.

Dutifully, he followed behind Bora as they made their way into the gym. There was an area for sparring matches safely cushioned with mats, and the rest of the room was filled with all sorts of training equipment. Weapons lined the walls and trainers oversaw the espers and guides, making sure no one lost their wits in the heat of the moment.

Bora pointed her finger at the workout machines. Everything was polished and shiny, looking like new. The dim lights once more offered an air of glamour and somehow, the air didn't stink of sweat and bodies.

"I'll be busy over there if you need me. Look around and speak to the trainers. It's probably best if you train with other espers who can take the role of your opponent."

Relieved to have her nearby, Yunho gave her a thumbs up. She sent one back and hopped off, leaving Yunho to get to know people by himself.

He found himself in groups who knew Bora before, but so far, he didn't have the chance to introduce himself to anyone. Having an esper friend would be nice, especially on the same level.

Yunho stuck to the sidelines first, getting an idea of how things worked here. Guides usually sparred with other guides and the espers seemed matched up in specific patterns. Yunho guessed it was either by their level or because their powers were compatible and wouldn't hurt each other. Of the pair he watched, one flicked lightning, another could move items with the power of their mind. Heat and icy winds filled the square and tingled over Yunho's skin with that unmistakable danger.

Mindful to get too close, Yunho lingered near an instructor who watched with crossed arms how the espers danced around each other. They practised using their powers for offense and defence, using their surroundings in their favour. Though they didn't unleash their full vigour, they looked practised in what they were doing. Serious in the pinch of their faces.

Awed, Yunho tried to memorise their fluid movements. If he worked hard, could he be like that? If he gained the confidence that he would live, he would be less scared to go out there.

He hadn't realised how close the fighting pair came until a gust of hot wind hit him in the face. When he stumbled back in surprise, the instructor sent him a glare.

"Just stand back and don't be in the way," he barked, intimidating with his bulging muscles under his red shirt.

Yunho brushed his ruffled hair out of his glasses. He ducked back, so the espers could whirl around each other without needing to be aware of him. The smile he sent the instructor was apologetic.

"Sorry, I would like to learn how to fight..." He began, but a hand already waved him off as if Yunho were a bothersome fly that stirred up their training.

"Waste somebody else's time. I'm busy."

Though it was crudely said, Yunho ducked away. He had no idea how to find people to train with and who had time and compatibility with him. Should he just work out like he was used to?

No, he needed to learn how to use his powers. If he ran into another demon, it was important he knew what he was doing and didn't flail about.

He contemplated the weapons on the wall. Perhaps he could use one of those? Some espers channelled their powers into blades and while his didn't work that way, he could slash his way through the demons once his energy depleted, video game style. Last time he passed out so quickly.

But as he considered picking up a dagger just to test its weight and swing in his arm (he doubted he had the guts to actively kill anything, even a demon about to rip him apart), another person stepped past him to pull it from the stand. The woman wore white and her movements were secure in the items she wielded.

When her eyes fell on him, her lips pursed. She was older, but not held back by the years on her body.

"Get back, kid," she told him, and Yunho politely stepped aside. Her eyes lingered, recognised his nervosity as someone new.

Yunho tentatively nodded at her grip on the dagger.

"Can you show me how to use weapons?"

She flicked the sword in her hand, long and sleek in the blade. It rested against her shoulder when she lingered, not returning to her group yet.

"What's your power?" She asked, and Yunho didn't even know. Voodoo, he supposed.

"Slowing them down?"

"Then weapons, what for? You don't attack, you defend," she explained, barked so abruptly that Yunho realised it was expected of him to know.

But where from? Was he supposed to study up on this himself? Maybe have a class? He should ask the receptionist what he could enrol in.

Was he the first person who showed up with no idea? Even kids had powers, and they certainly needed to train and grow up first to fight.

"But I don't know how to use my powers yet," Yunho winced, and she huffed an exasperated sigh.

"Alright, try stopping me," she suggested, stepping backwards on the mat. Keen to get her feedback and not waste her time, Yunho tensed up, focusing on her limbs and her figure.

For a moment, he had it. It came surprisingly naturally, perhaps since he stood just as still.

But it didn't last. Yunho's arms twitched when she stemmed against his grip, easily bursting out of it. He winced when it stung in his shoulder, jerking at the same muscles she used.

The woman snickered when she lowered her blade.

"Don't touch the weapons. You might stab yourself."

She left without further ado, and Yunho stayed behind, dejected.

Was there no one left to train with him? Everyone he spotted was in groups. Was there a partnership program he had to sign up for?

Bora, his angel, showed up at the right time. She spotted him struggling alone and jogged over with a towel around her neck, wiping her sweat. When she spotted Yunho looking like a kicked puppy, her gaze softened.

"Aw, are they being mean to you? Come on, we can make our own training plan for tomorrow. I know some people who can help you. I'll text them."

They did some regular exercises and called it a day. Yunho didn't mention the woman since he was grateful for Bora's good mood and didn't want to bring it down. Soon, they parted, so Bora could go to her guiding class and Yunho returned to his room.

Yunho wandered down the corridor, shoulders aching and doubts gnawing at his heart.

He wasn't too sensitive about being cast aside. He was new, and he had no hero complex like many other espers. Likely, he needed to prove himself first, before people would acknowledge and respect him.

If they ever would, with his low rank.

But the exclusion stung. It was hard to find support aside from Bora's friendship. Though Yunho wasn't too keen on fitting in with the rest, he struggled with the isolation.

When was the last time he went drinking with friends? In his last year of school? He never realised how much he would miss their tasteless jokes one day.

A sudden crash startled Yunho from his thoughts. He slowed his step, peering down the corridor to his right to find the source. No one would be stupid enough to break into a centre, but if a rift opened here without anyone noticing...

Yunho brushed it off. So many people lived here, someone was bound to drop a book or a cup sometimes.

But a whimper had him freeze just when he lifted his foot for another step. Hesitantly, Yunho bit his lip.

He was sweaty and disgusting and direly needed to wash away his doubts in the shower and watch some video to distract himself. Maybe call his mother.

But what if something bad was happening? If this was his moment to show he wasn't useless?

Deciding a peek wouldn't hurt and he could leave anytime if someone was merely cleaning their room, Yunho snuck down the corridor. He didn't know this area, but the rooms were numbered, so he figured they were classrooms. Nervous at the idea to sniff around somewhere he didn't belong - this was not how his grandparents raised him - Yunho gathered his courage to slide the door in question open just a slit. He heard no mumble of a teacher, so his fear of a rift doubled.

"Ah-"

Two bodies wound on a quivering table. At first, it looked as if they were fighting, locked in a lethal embrace. Tugging on hair and clothing with harsh hands. White and green uniforms askew.

But when Yunho lingered for a moment longer, the male on top jammed his hips into the woman pinned on the tabletop, rattling the desk along with the chair it knocked into.

A moan bounced over the walls and Yunho realised her shirt was pushed up, soft chest heaving from the harsh jabs. The squelches between them were quiet, but all the information Yunho needed.

A tomato within point two seconds, Yunho eased the door shut as quietly as he could, not that those two heard anything over their harsh panting. Yunho rushed down the corridor, mortified to have become a peeping tom.

As he ran up the stairs to his room to calm his racing heart, Yunho tried to push the vision from his mind. He had seen porn before, of course, but this was the first time he had a personal run-in with sex. And so public as well.

He stormed into his bathroom to splash cold water on his face, but he still felt it burn afterwards.

How mortifying. Was it normal in the institute to use some random classroom for those things?

No, that had been an esper and a guide. If what Bora said was true... There wasn't much to it but regular guiding, as anyone here received.

Yunho shuddered as he huddled under the shower. He was repulsed how sex never repulsed him before. What sense was there in intimacy for the sake of healing? For getting close only for that single reason? Wasn't that dishonest?

Yunho couldn't do it with someone he didn't love. He was a romantic, wishing to find a nice girlfriend he could marry and have a family with instead of dating around.

Though he tried to wash the thoughts away, the image lingered in his mind while he watched his anime and munched on some crackers and even after, when he tried to catch some sleep.

Bora mentioned how Lux slept around to get his tally of every single guide. How distasteful.

No, Yunho didn't want that. He would rather his shoulders ached naturally until they got better than abuse people for the sake of this system.