Queens, NY - Mid-July, 8:11 AM
Summer in the city.
Most kids were asleep in air conditioning.
Scrolling, gaming, drifting.
Ashan Korr was sprinting up the steep hill behind the laundromat.
"One more set."
He was shirtless now. Not to flex, but because he could.
Light brown skin slick with sweat.
Belly gone.
Man boobs gone.
In its place: carved lines, emerging abs, toned shoulders.
From 150 to 125.
Skinny fat to lean and mean.
He wasn't big, or imposing.
But he looked like he could go 10 rounds and smile after.
---
The Garage, 8:30 AM
Push-ups.
Pullups.
Weighted dips with a backpack full of books.
Split squats while holding gallons of water.
His body was trembling.
But not failing.
He collapsed onto the mat afterward, panting.
Then smiled.
"I used to quit here."
Now he stayed until the lights flickered.
---
Quiet Scroll, 8:47 PM
He watched a clip of Medel again. Mexican boxer, speed demon, body like a whip.
Medel danced around a heavyweight and knocked him clean with a liver shot.
Ashan paused it.
Watched the weight shift in his hips.
The placement.
The fluidity.
He didn't try to copy it yet.
Just observed.
"I'm not there yet."
He turned off the phone.
---
Project Dragon, Day 106
"July 19th."
"Body's lean. I've never felt lighter."
"Strength's real now. Endurance is getting there."
He scratched something bold under it.
"This summer, I vanished."
"This fall, I'll be back."
---
Ashan Korr didn't post selfies.
Didn't tell anyone what he was doing.
He just vanished into work.
Into heat.
Into pain.
By the time school started again, the kid who left junior year would be unrecognizable.
---