Suzy takes on the World - Part Seven - Life Changes

Suzy pummelled her opponent with relish and lapped up the applause of the audience.  She had done it!  She had won the Girls' Under 16s Boxing Tournament!  Suzy collected her trophy and showed it off to the adoring crowds.

The trophy and the title were trifles compared to the real prize that Suzy had won and had been winning for the past twelve months.  Originally starting weightlifting in an after school class, her instructor had been so impressed with her that he had sent her to Cheryl.

Cheryl ran her own gym and had a special gym for her "Amazons" as she liked to call the real fighters, athletes and bodybuilders.  Suzy had willingly become an Amazon and had excelled not only at weightlifting but at boxing.  Suzy was not tall, being barely more than five feet in height, but what she lacked in height she made up for in strength for Suzy now possessed a muscular physique.

Over the last few months, Cheryl had entered her in competitions and she had won trophies, invariably coming first, second or third.

Just as importantly, Suzy had not neglected her academic studies.  Her brain was as strong as her body.  She was still top of the class in most subjects.  Now that her body was strong, it was time to make a few changes, Suzy decided, starting with school.

Suzy still fancied Kevin Connor, the cutest boy in her year.  But she had a rival in the shape of Belinda Fox, a girl who was bigger and more aggressive than Suzy.  Plus she had had a couple of mates, Helen and Rosie, to back her up.  Suzy remembered keenly the humiliation of having her head stuck down the toilet even though that incident had been almost a year ago now.

But, almost a year later, Suzy was stronger than any girl in school, even the Sixth Formers, and most of the boys too she guessed.  Besides, Belinda had become a very feminine girl, experimenting with make up and jewellery in spite of the detentions she had received for breaking the rules about girls of her age wearing such fripperies.

Her latest addition to her image was the fantastic hairdo her mother had arranged for her to have.  Belinda strode about the school, showing it off, and preening in class.  She wore far too much make up and a ridiculous amount of jewellery for a schoolgirl.

Belinda and her mates had been jibing Suzy for months, saying that with her muscles she was no longer a girl and even implied that her bodybuilding meant that she was a lesbian.  Suzy bore these petty untruths stoically.  She noticed that none of the three girls ever challenged her physically now, as they had in the past and guessed that they were probably slightly afraid of her.

Belinda was Kevin's girlfriend.  Well, when it suited him to have a girl on his arm, but otherwise Belinda may as well as not existed as far as Kevin was concerned.  He was obsessed with football and had dreams of one day being a professional footballer.

Suzy was determined to supplant Belinda but had had to bide her time.  In defiance of Belinda's threats to hurt Suzy if she as much as looked at Kevin, Suzy tried to get near him as much as possible.  Kevin was fascinated by Suzy's new physique and so was a willing companion.  Suzy noticed with satisfaction that Belinda was looking daggers at her as she spoke with Kevin.

Do your worst! Suzy willed her.

The confrontation came in the girls' toilets again.  Suzy was just washing her hands when Belinda and her cronies burst in on her.

Belinda shoved Suzy in the chest.  A year ago, Suzy would have gone flying, but the new Suzy barely noticed.

"What did I tell you, slut? To stay away from my Kevin!"

Suzy shrugged, a gesture that seemed to aggravate Belinda more. "Right, you little lesbian bitch, time to teach you a lesson!  Girls, grab her!"

Helen and Rosie rushed to obey, but Suzy brushed them off with almost contemptuous ease.  She punched Helen in the stomach, causing her to double up, and punched Rosie on the arm, making her cry out.

Belinda was shocked and surprised "What are you, Rambo?"

Suzy rushed forward and grabbed Belinda by the hair.  Belinda shrieked.  Suzy dragged her towards one of the cubicles.  Belinda cried out for her cronies to help, only to find that they had scarpered.  They were not willing to take on Suzy again!

"What are you going to do?" Belinda whimpered, sounding more like a little girl than a sophisticate.

"I'm going to give you a taste of your own medicine" Suzy told her "I'm going to stick your head down this toilet and flush the chain!"

Belinda screamed "NO! You musn't!  My mum will kill me if I ruin this hairdo.  It cost her over a hundred pounds!  Please!  I'm sorry for what I did to you, really!"  Belinda began to cry.

Suzy decided to let her go.

Belinda scampered out, wailing.

Suzy was satisfied.  She needn't worry about Belinda, Helen and Rosie again.

Suzy returned home.  There was another matter to deal with. Her brother, Damian.  He had got in deeper and deeper with one of the gangs on the estate.  Suzy suspected he was passing drugs around for them.

Damian was home, loafing around the flat in an expensive shell suit and flashing more bling than 50 Cent.  The only way he could have got that the money to pay for it all was drugs, Suzy knew.

Garage music was pumping loudly out of the expensive sound system that Damian owned.  It was so loud that the walls of the flat were throbbing.  Suzy pressed the "off" switch and the pumping music abruptly stopped.

That got Damian's attention "What the...."

"You really shouldn't play your music so loud" Suzy told him.

Damian was livid "What's got into you, you crazy bitch?  You come in here and mess with my sound system - you touch that again..."

"And you'll what, try and throw Lucky off the balcony again?  You ever touch him again and I'll chuck YOU off the balcony!"

Damian burst into laughter "You? Do anything to me? That's priceless!"

Suzy reached forward and caught one of Damian's arms.  Damian's eyes widened in surprise at Suzy's strength.  Suzy pinned his arm and forced him to the ground.  It was exhilarating to be able to exert her strength over her older brother.  Damian tried to squirm and wriggle free, but he found that his strength was no much against his sister's.

"I meant what I said" Suzy said "If you try to hurt Lucky again...."

This time Damian believed her.  Suzy could sense his fear.  Good.

Suddenly, the front door opened and Mum entered the flat.  Suzy hurriedly let Damian go.  He gave her a baleful look as he got up.  Suzy was not scared of her brother and gave him a look of contempt in return.

"You won't believe what's just happened!" Mum was saying.  She was smiling, really smiling, for the first time in years! "You'll never guess!"

Suzy and Damian looked at each other, non-plussed.  Finally, Suzy said "Alright, we give up Mum. What's your big news?"

"Mr Lancaster, you remember Mr Lancaster don't you Suzy?  Anyway, he's only asked us to come and live with him!  I'll be his full-time Na....I mean housekeeper!"

This was good news!  The family would get away from this horrid estate with its crime and it gangs and its drugs to a much better neighbourhood.  Suzy glanced at Damian.  Damian didn't know about Mr Lancaster and his secret.  Suzy was surprised that Mr Lancaster would have allowed another person to be privy to his secret.

"That's wonderful news, Mum" Suzy said "When do we move in?"

"In a week or so.  I'll need that to get shot of this place.  Oh, there is one thing.  Damian, you won't be coming".

Damian's mouth dropped open "What?"

"You've been a bad boy, haven't you? Not only the drugs, which I know you had stashed away.  They're gone now, by the way.  Flushed down the loo.  I'm not having that filth in my home!  But school too.  Top of the class indeed!  You haven't been to school for months, you miserable little liar!"

Damian was trembling "Mum, I can explain...."

"Don't bother.  I can't believe a word that comes out of your mouth any more.  You're turned out just like your father.  All lies, false promises and no backbone!"

"But what am I going to do?" Damian was frightened.

"I'm sure your mates who gave you those drugs will take care of you" Mum said sweetly.

"You flushed the drugs down the bog!  They'll kill me!" Damian was almost hysterical "I can't stay on this estate now!  You have to take me with you! Please!"

Mum made an act of thinking deeply.  She, like Suzy, was enjoying seeing Damian squirm.  "Ok, you can come too, but there will have to be a few changes......."

Suzy takes on the world - Part Six - Cheryl's Amazons

Suzy was initially disappointed when she took her first steps into Cheryl's Ladies Only Gym and Fitness Centre.  It was just like any other ladies' gym, decorated in pastel shades and with posters about weight loss and beauty treatments that the facility offered.

Suzy wanted to pump iron, not lose weight or have her body subjected to depilation or other feminising treatments.  She was half-tempted to turn on her heel and leave before anyone spotted her. But it was too late.  She had been spotted.

An older woman, about the age of Suzy's mum, but bigger, stronger and younger looking, gave her a friendly wave and rushed over before Suzy could react.

"Hi there" said the other woman, extending a strong hand "I'm Cheryl.  Owner and Manager of this gym. Welcome".

Suzy awkwardly shook the other woman's hand, noting it's strength and the callouses.  Clearly, Cheryl worked out herself.  This made Suzy feel a little better about the gym.

"I'm Suzy.  Suzy Stanton" she explained.  She reached in her pocket for the card that Mr Keele, her previous gym instructor, had given her and handed it to Cheryl.  Cheryl perused the card and smiled.

"Ah, so you're the Suzy old Keele-haul e-mailed me about!"

"Keele-haul?" asked Suzy.

"That's what we used to call him in the army.  I joined up when I was sixteen. Keele-haul was my instructor.  Fair play to the man, he was a total bastard and made our lives hell, especially the women, but he made a soldier out of me.  You must have seriously impressed him for him to send you to me! Anyway, let me give you a guided tour of the place!"

"I think I've seen enough, actually" said Suzy "Tanning beds and aerobics....not really my scene".

Cheryl laughed "I should hope not!  Suzy, I'm a businesswoman, and a good one.  At the moment, at any rate, most women want come to a gym just to lose weight, socialise and get a little pampering.  If that's what they want, then fine, I'll give that to them.  The stuff for them is on the ground floor, where I have no intention of taking you by the way.  On the lower floor is the REAL gym.  All the machines and weights you could ever want".

Suzy relaxed and allowed herself to be guided past the stuff for ladies, down a flight of stairs and into the gym.  Suzy's eyes beheld a paradise for a gym nut like herself.  Like Cheryl had said, everything a weightlifter needed was right here.  What was more impressive were the numbers of women working out.  More than a dozen.  Cheryl told her that virtually all of the female body builders for miles around came to her gym.

Cheryl looked proudly at her clients as they worked out "My Amazons" she murmered.  She got Suzy to change and show her what she was capable of.  Suzy did not disappoint.

"Old Keele-haul was right!" said Cheryl with a note of triumph in her voice "You ARE serious about this!  I want you to come here as often as you can and work out.  I want you to be strong and brave, like an Amazon"

Suzy shuffled her feet nervously "Ermm....how much is all this going to cost me, Cheryl?  My mum...."

Cheryl shook her head "Don't worry about that.  I owe Keele-haul a favour and he asked me to take good care of you, so you can come here whenever you like, free of charge.  And I'll be training you personally, so you'd better be ready for some real hard work!"

Suzy looked at Cheryl in gratitude.  This was just what she wanted.  She had a strong feeling in her heart that her life was turning around.

Suzy takes on the world - Part Five - Weighty Matters

Suzy steeled herself for the ordeal that she anticipated was ahead.  She was as nervous as hell, but steely determination had won out.


Suzy pushed open the door and marched in.


Some boys, mainly sixth-formers were doing weight training, or just standing about talking.  The air in the small gym area reeked of male testostorene and stale sweat.


A big man, whom Suzy vaguely recognised as Mr Keele, Head of Sports at her school, abruptly ended his conversation with one of his charges and advanced towards Suzy.


"Can I help you?" Mr Keele asked, although his tone did not suggest that he wanted to help at all.  There was an undercurrent of hostility in his voice.  He was also using his large, muscular body to block Suzy from proceeding any further into this exclusively male club.


Unperturbed, Suzy said "I've come to join the after school weight training class".


Mr Keele's eyes narrowed "Is this some kind of joke?  Cos if it is, I don't find it funny!"


"I'm serious" Suzy told him.


"Serious?  Look, young lady, this after school club is for boys only, so why don't you save us all a lot of time and bother, turn yourself around and go and sign up for something else, like hockey or netball?"


Mr Keele was intimidating.  Suzy had heard that before he became a teacher he had been a Sergeant-Major in the army with a reputation for breaking recruits.  He certainly had the voice and physique of one.


A small part of Suzy wanted to do as Mr Keele had suggested.  But Suzy was not timid or cowardly.


"That's interesting Mr Keele, because I've read the advertisement for the gym club, several times in fact, and nowhere does it say that it is for boys only" Suzy said "And even if it did, that's unfair discrimination".


Mr Keele was sorely tempted to give this scrap of a girl the same treatment he would have given an insubordinate recruit, back in the day, but stopped himself.  Treating a boy like that was one thing, but not a girl.  All she would have to do was turn on the waterworks and all sympathy would gravitate towards her, and he would be a villain and a bully.


Besides, she was right.  It was not a boys' only class and if he tried to make it so, he would be breaking the Sex Equality and Anti-Discrimination act that the government had recently passed.  He could end up in front of a disciplinary board at best or get his P45 at worst.


Mr Keele was simply bewildered with the ways that the world had changed.  In his own childhood, some thirty-five years past, the roles of the sexes had been simple.  Men went out and earned the money and made the decisions.  Women stayed at home, kept house and kids and made herself pretty for when the man came home.  Now it was all "Women must be allowed to have careers and be independent" and "men must be better fathers and get in touch with their feminine side".  Madness, in Mr Keele's opinion.


He was aware that everything had gone quiet and that everybody was looking at him.  The sixth form boys and this tiresome girl who had something to prove.  Mr Keele felt frustrated and uncomfortable about having to give in to this puny girl.  He turned back to the crowd of boys, put on his best parade ground voice and yelled "WHAT ARE YOU LOT STARING AT?  WHO TOLD YOU YOU COULD STOP?"


It had the desired effect.  The boys jumped six feet in the air and immediately tried to make themselves look like they were exercising.  Mr Keele felt better, more in control.  He turned to the girl and forced himself to smile "Ok, Missie, let's see what you can do"


SIX MONTHS LATER


Mr Keele smiled with indulgent pride at the sight of his best pupil pumping iron.  He wouldn't in his wildest dreams have thought it possible that Suzy had not only survived but emerged at the top of her class in a totally masculine environment.


Mr Keele had not made it easy for her.  He was hard on most people, but he had been especially tough on Suzy, hoping to break the girl, to dissuade her from carrying on with what Mr Keele regarded as folly.  But Suzy had refused to break and she had put up with whatever Mr Keele had thrown at her.


Eventually, Mr Keele's professionalism took over as he recognised that, unlike most of his class who larked around at the slightest opportunity, Suzy was serious about weight training.  He eased off on her, slightly.  He  became more the teacher than the sergeant major he had once been. He even, in his own time, researched competitions that Suzy could enter.


He had been astonished to learn that weight training was a growing sport amongst women and girls.  There were plenty of competitions that Suzy could enter.  He had entered her for a local contest for girls aged between 10 and 15. Suzy had done well.  Although she did not win any of the top prizes, as she up against girls who were older than her and had been doing this for longer, the judges did give her a special commendation for effort.


Over time, Suzy's confidence - and her muscles - grew and within a few more contests she was winning second or third place, beating older girls.


Mr Keele was very proud of Suzy and ashamed at how he had treated her when she had first arrived at his class.  She was the only one who had actually won anything.  Mr Keele despaired of the boys.  They had the ability and potential to do what Suzy had done, but not the consistent application.  They messed about too much and allowed themselves to get distracted.


Suzy was his star pupil.  But Mr Keele realised with sadness that he would have to let her go.  His small gym class was already becoming too limited for Suzy to progress.  After class had finished, he took Suzy aside and handed her a card.


Slightly bewildered, the well toned and muscled girl glanced at the card "Cheryl's - Ladies Only Gym and Fitness Centre".


"I can't do any more for you lass" Mr Keele admitted, with tears in his eyes "Go and see Cheryl.  She's got a bigger gym and better facilities than this place can offer you".


Suzy felt tearful herself at the prospect of leaving this gym, and Mr Keele behind, but knew he was talking sense.  To her surprise, she gave him a hug before turning and walking away.