Rough Morning - Tough Training

Waking up to a bright sunny morning would lift up anyone's mood except for one Barry Allen. He hated it when the sunlight touched his eyes and disrupted his peaceful sleep. It was even more irritating today since it is the day after his comfortable life shattered into a million pieces. Sitting up on the couch, he subconsciously started to remember that night in great detail and it brought him to tears as he saw his mother's dead body in his mind and his father being imprisoned.

Terrance: 'All right kid. Enough with the sadness. I promise I'll help with that later but for now, you need to get up and eat breakfast.' The familiar and yet unfamiliar voice spoke in Barry's mind. It took an extra five minutes of sitting down and thinking until he finally got up and went to the restroom. During his brush time, Terrance decided to speak up. 'Do you remember what your mother said to you when you were 8? On May 2nd?' Barry had his eyebrows raised.

Barry: "Are you talking about the day when my mom and I had that huge tub of ice cream and watched Jumanji together?" he spoke while having toothpaste in his mouth.

Terrance: 'Yes. At one point. She said something for you to remember for the rest of your life.'

Barry: "..." Barry was oddly quiet. Even the sound of brushing stopped as he watched his reflection.

Terrance: 'Can't remember?' Suprise was clear in his words.

Barry: "I do remember. Live my life to the fullest or otherwise regrets will pile and take whatever life you have left. That's what her words were."

Terrance: 'Remember them forever. That will become your most reliable phrase for the rest of your life.' Barry didn't respond this time and continued his morning bathroom activities.

After brushing and doing his business, he went into the kitchen and checked what was there. Seeing milk at the lowest layer of the fridge, he decided to take it out in hopes that there was cereal in the house. It took eleven minutes of exploring to find what he was looking for and he started to eat.

While he ate, he looked at the time and he saw 5:29 on the clock. Once he was done, he cleaned his bowl and spoon with a little help from a stool to reach the sink and put everything back to where it was. Examining his work, he saw that everything was exactly where it was supposed to be with the cereal box being a little lighter than yesterday.

Barry: "What now?" he asked dispiritedly.

Terrance: 'Talk in your mind. That is one thing you have to practice. Otherwise, everyone will think you became a madman.'

Barry: 'Okay. I can do that but what am I doing now?'

Terrance: 'Exercise. Make sure to stretch first and then go for a run nonstop until six-twenty. I'll let you know when you are done.'

Barry: 'What! Are you kidding me? You want me to constantly run??' Barry's face distorted as he imagined the pain that would come with it. 'I can't do even run for more than ten minutes!'

Terrance: 'Stop complaining already. If you want to get better at any place in your life, you have to get out of your comfort zone. Right now, your body is falling behind others in stamina, strength, and speed. That is why I told you to run for now. You're going to do more throughout the day so I am merely giving you preparation.'

Barry: 'This is what you call preparation!? Oh my god. What did I sign up for??' he exclaimed.

Terrance: 'Hell so stop talking and start moving. I created some sports gear for you as well; It's in your bag.' Barry was filled with disbelief.

Barry: 'There is no way that Terrance would make him do that much training...would he?' Shaking his head, he quickly changed in the living room and began his morning session. 'Wait a minute...did he just say he created clothes?!' Barry looked down to what he was wearing. 'That is so cool. I didn't know Terrance could do that.' That was the last thought he had before fully focusing on maintaining his condition. He wished that he could jog for the whole run but Terrance later said that he could only jog the first five minutes as a warm-up.

Every step took more energy out of him as he felt his breakfast coming up to his throat. Swallowing it back down, Barry inhaled large breaths of oxygen from his mouth to calm his lungs which made it feel like he was squeezing and pulling them simultaneously. Some sweat would occasionally slip into his mouth and the salty taste would instantly rile him up in disgust as he spat violently while still keeping his running posture.

Time passed and 6:20 was approaching. He could just feel it but he can't stop. Sweat darkened his blue clothes as Barry looked more like a tomato with every step he took. Barry has never cursed in his entire life even when he got bullied occasionally but this... this made him want to say so much. Every second that passed, he could feel his body getting heavier and heavier while his controlled breathing was nowhere to be seen. His heart was beating like crazy and dizziness started to overwhelm him. The worst part is that there was not even an inkling of encouragement from Terrance. That guy was just completely silent and it pissed off Barry.

He could only swallow that rage down and use it to finish the rest of his morning session. Eventually, he heard the sound that Terrance said he would hear in his mind and he stopped where he stood. Barry wanted to lay down so bad but he continued to walk to Joe's house which was thankfully a minute away. Once he got there, he sat on the stairs and tried to catch his breath as he counted each sweat drop that was dripping from his head to the floor.

Terrance: 'Nice work. I didn't think you had it in you.' Terrance praised but there was no reply. Barry was too busy trying to control his breathing and made that his priority. 'Time to recover. Drink this.' A big glass of green juice appeared next to Barry and he glanced at it before he looked away only to stare at the drink the next moment.

Barry: 'What is it?' he picked it up and inspected it. 'Is it supposed to glow like that?

Terrance: 'Drink.' His heartless word rang through Barry's head again as he took a small sip of it. Regret filled Barry's mind as the most bitter and slimy drink touched his tongue. He was going to vomit. 'If you want that burning sensation in your legs to not bother you for the rest of the day, you're going to finish it.' Barry's hands curled up into fists as he heard the monotone sounding voice. Holding his nose, he drank the entire thing in one shot. Terrance started speaking again. 'If it makes you feel any better, children on my Earth drink this at the of 8. Every adult would always say that it was the period of darkness for them due to how nasty it tasted. Don't worry though. You'll get used to it after a year. Like the rest of us.'

Barry: 'That's why you said that this will be the most difficult year for me? Because of this?'

Terrance: 'Yes and no. You still have two more left.' Barry paled at the thought of drinking another two disgusting drinks. 'So how do you feel? Better?' Barry woke up from his thoughts when he heard Terrance. Standing up and stretching his limbs a little, he found that he wasn't even sore anymore and in fact, he felt more energetic. It was crazy to think that something like this even exists.

Barry: 'How is this possible!? Where are you from Terrance??' he asked excitedly.

Terrance: 'I guess I am from another Earth. One that is more genetically, medically, and technologically advanced than this Earth.'

Barry: 'There are other Earths?' he questioned.

Terrance: 'Many more than you can count. Now go in and shower. Make sure your sports gear goes back in your backpack so I can clean them for later use.'

Barry: 'Um...okay?' he felt weird hearing that. 'So why the secrecy? You got bad guys coming after you?' Barry joked.

Terrance: 'No. All the bad guys that ever came after me are either imprisoned or dead. Why I am keeping things private is because everything I give you will bring you endless trouble from every direction.' Barry didn't seem to believe him. 'That juice you drank is a health juice that is created from a specific set of vegetables, fruit, medicine, and herbs that don't exist here that when combined, creates an effect that nourishes and recovers the body. If by chance someone finds out about it, you could be under pressure to reveal its benefits or its recipe. Some might even kidnap you or torture you for that information. Even your own country might turn on you.' Barry had a blank stare as he processed everything he heard. 'Does that answer make sense?'

Barry nodded and vowed in his heart to never let anyone know anything about him or Terrance. The fewer information people had of him, the safer he will be. He could trust his dad and his new family but even that is a risk that he couldn't take. Getting up, he finally noticed how smelly he really was and rushed to take a shower. Once he got out, he saw that Iris and Joe were about to start eating.

Joe: "Morning Barry. There is breakfast here." he said as he read his newspaper. 'Poor kid might not eat at all. I hope he does though.'

Iris: "Morning Barry." she waved. 'I wonder if he will be okay.'

Barry: "Good morning. Thanks for the offer Joe but I already had breakfast so no thank you." Joe put down his newspaper. Barry turned on the TV to watch some morning pokemon.

Joe: "Is that so." 'That's good. At least he's eating.' he paused. "Actually Barry. I want to talk to you about something."

Barry: "Sure. What is it?"

Joe: "It's about school. You don't have to go today or for the rest of the week. I won't force you. I rather you prioritize your health than some school."

Barry: "That's it? Then I'll be fine. I think I'll go today." Joe started to get worried.

Joe: "You sure? Losing a loved one is very difficult."

Barry: "Yeah but moping around would just go against what my mom wanted for me. To live life to its fullest was a lesson she taught me and I have to do just that." 'That way I can keep her close to me.' Joe nodded.

Joe: "All right then. Just be careful today and call me if you want to come home early. I'll drop you off."

Barry: "Thanks Joe." he smiled lightly. Barry didn't even know how he could smile right now but he gave that green juice credit for it. 'Seems like that drink helps both mentally and physically. That empty, painful feeling is still there but it's not attacking me as much as it did this morning. Maybe I was mentally tired and my mind turned against me until I fixed it as that one book described.' Barry smiled to himself. 'Guess Terrance is pretty cool after all.' Joe and Iris were confused by Barry's smile but they were secretly happy that he could still smile.