Chapter 368 - Cleo

It took under 3 hours to fly between Hong Kong and Shanghai. By the time that Avaleigh arrived in Shanghai, it was already midday. As they were filming the first episode of their new variety show, the director, the cast and the crew were meeting for a celebratory dinner. But, she still needed to sort out lunch on her own.

Avaleigh picked up her phone to search for nearby restaurants and reviews. Although she normally cooked, and the apartment that Danson arranged for her had a kitchen, she was only staying for a couple of days and didn't want to cause a mess.

However, just as she was stressing about what to eat, there was a knock on the door. Avaleigh looked up in surprise just as Danson stepped out of his room to answer it. The apartment they were staying in had three bedrooms and they had a room each. Avaleigh was a bit uncomfortable when she first realized they were staying together. After all, Danson was a well-known player. But, she decided to trust him since he had gotten her so far and he was Emerson's friend; if he made her feel uncomfortable in any way, she would leave and call Emerson for help.

Avaleigh glanced over at the door in curiosity as Danson opened it. "Good, you're finally here," Danson said with a charming smile.

Avaleigh raised an eyebrow. Were they expecting someone?

A moment later, a beautiful young woman stepped into the apartment with 2 duffle bags and a suitcase. 

"You're more beautiful than I expected," Danson admired as he looked her up and down. He then grabbed her bags and suitcase and carried them towards the third empty bedroom.

The woman appeared to be in her late 20's. She was dressed in black training pants, a white cropped t-shirt, and a pair of white sneakers. Although her clothes were simple, they highlighted her slender waist and her toned abs and thighs.

The woman smiled and followed Danson down the corridor.

Meanwhile, Avaleigh held onto her phone awkwardly and didn't know what to do. Who was that woman? Was she staying here? Was she a friend? Or...

Before Avaleigh figured out what was going on, she suddenly heard a loud thump coming from the bedroom followed by the sound of a man's groan.

Avaleigh's eyes grew wide in shock. She didn't know what they were doing, but she couldn't help but assume it was something indecent. Did Danson call a woman over to...have some fun...? How could he do that while she was right there?

With disgust, she walked over to complain. She could not stay under the same roof as someone like that. Without a second thought, she threw open the door and yelled, "What do you think you're doing in here?!"

But, the scene in front of her, was not what she expected...

Danson was lying face down on the floor, fully clothed, while the woman stood a few steps away, looking down at him sternly. She was fully clothed too.

Danson lifted his head and looked at Avaleigh tiredly, "Oh Ava, I forgot to introduce you. This is your new dietitian, chef, and personal trainer. Her name is Cleo."

Avaleigh looked at Cleo, "Dietitian, chef, and personal trainer?" She then looked back down at Danson with a puzzled expression, "Why are you lying on the floor?"

Danson glanced at Cleo with frustration just as she started to chuckle. 

A moment ago, when Danson was carrying her suitcase and bags into the bedroom, Cleo noticed he was beginning to struggle towards the end. Out of politeness, she offered to take the duffle bags back from him, but he insisted, "It's nothing, I can handle it. I'm a man!"

Cleo knew how heavy her bags were. She had packed them full of sandbags and exercise equipment. They were roughly 30kgs each! Plus, the suitcase was another 30-40kgs.

"Are you sure?" she laughed. "You look like you're struggling. Do you normally train?"

Danson furrowed his brows, it was true that he hadn't been to the gym for well over a year but he couldn't let a woman look down on him. However, just as he was thinking this, Cleo grabbed the duffle bags out of his hands and carried them effortlessly into the bedroom. Danson looked at her with amazement. That was when he remembered the woman had brought these bags all the way from Hong Kong on her own!

He didn't want to be looked down on, but he couldn't help but feel impressed.

"Aren't they heavy for you?" he asked.

Cleo nodded her head, "Yes, but I train often and I understand my body. That's why I distributed the weight into two bags and a suitcase. For short distances, I can carry all three at once. For longer distances, I can carry them one at a time. You should train more often. It appears as though you've been slacking off..."

Danson cleared his throat, "I'm fine. I feel healthy."

"You have dark eye bags and don't sleep enough. Your breath smells like smoke. You aren't fat, but your muscles aren't toned either. I bet you can't even do 50 push-ups..." Cleo criticized.

Danson furrowed his brows and stubbornly got on the floor, "I can do 50 push-ups! You just watch."

Danson was confident. He had done 50 push-ups in the past. But...things were different now...

"...24...25...26..."

Thump!

After just 26 push-ups, Danson fell flat on the floor...

"...and that was when you walked into the room," Cleo explained.

Avaleigh laughed as she listened to Cleo's explanation. Even she knew how quickly a person's fitness could deteriorate without regular exercise and training.

"Did you know that within two weeks of not training, a person can start to show a 7-10 per cent loss in strength levels?" Cleo said as she looked at Danson.

"And, data suggests that you can lose at least 70 per cent of the adaptation you've built through exercise after about three months," Avaleigh added.

Cleo looked at Avaleigh with an impressed smile. She definitely looked a lot fitter than Danson.

"Can you do 50 push-ups?" Cleo asked out of curiosity.

Avaleigh nodded her head. She quickly did a few stretches, got down into the correct position and started doing push-ups effortlessly. 

As Cleo watched she glanced at Danson and saw him looking embarrassed.

A moment later, Danson shuffled over awkwardly and whispered, "OK...I admit defeat. Can you train me too?"

If these two girls could tell that he was weak and unfit, what did Marissa think? Perhaps, it was time he started training again.

Cleo laughed, "Yes, but I'll have to charge extra..."