The Playlist
Mia loved that her boyfriend Derek made her a workout playlist. It was the sweetest thing he had done in months, maybe ever, and she found herself smiling at her phone on the bus ride to the gym. Just trust me , he had texted alongside a winking emoji. It will get you through every set. Listen to the whole thing. No skipping. She had promised. She always kept her promises to Derek, even when his requests were a little weird, because he was sweet and devoted and only ever wanted what was best for her. Or so she thought. LA Fitness was packed at six in the evening, the post-work rush in full swing. Treadmills hummed in long mechanical rows. The free weight section clanged with the percussion of barbells dropping onto rubber matting. The air smelled the way it always did, a cocktail of sweat and chalk and overpriced cologne, the perfume of a hundred bodies trying to outrun their day jobs. Mia did her usual quick scan as she walked in, nodding to the front desk girl, swiping her membershi...