[i]Pop pop pop pop![/i]

Helena's fists hit the heavy bag in a quick four-punch combo.  She slipped to the side and took a step back from the heavy bag, bouncing on her toes and waiting for her imaginary opponent to mess up.  The opponent she pictured in her head threw a cross, which she easily slipped, then followed with a quick left hook.  She ducked under it and moved forward into range and unleashed another combo.  She hit the bag with a quick left hook to the body, to the head, then popped a cross to give her some cover while she slipped back out of her opponent's range.  Helena breathed through her nose and let out a soft exhale through her mouth as she waited for her imaginary opponent's next move.  She controlled her breathing, staying calm and collected as her heartbeat grew faster with every movement.  Before she knew it her timer was beeping and the final round was over.  She dropped her hands and pulled off her training gloves.  They weighed 16 ounces and were her favorite gloves.  She had several different pairs of gloves for different types of training, but her 16 ounce gloves were always her favorite.  Maybe it was because they were the heaviest she wore, maybe it was because they provided the most cushioning for her hands, or maybe it was because they had lasted her so long.  Either way, she was very partial to this specific pair of gloves.

With her workout over, Helena made her way to the lockers and showered.  Fortunately, her boxing gym offered showers, something she was incredibly grateful for.  She finished, got dressed, and quickly put her damp hair up into a loose ponytail.  On the way out, she saw her coach who was training another young prospect.  "How'd you do, Champ?" he asked her, holding out his fist.

She gave him a fist bump and replied with a large grin, "Not bad, but always room for improvement!"

"That's what I like to hear!" he said with a chuckle, "Go home and get some rest kid."

"Sounds good, Coach!"  With that, she exited the gym.  The air was like ice.  She had a love-hate relationship with the cold weather.  On one hand, the city always looked gorgeous with the blankets of snow covering everything in sight.  On the other hand, she tended to experience more asthma in the cold and that hindered her ability to train outside of the boxing gym.  She already had to be cautious when training, the cold just made it harder.  At times, even sitting down in the cold could trigger some of her symptoms.

Helena quickly made her way to her car and hopped in.  Somehow it was much colder in there than it was outside.  She cursed under her breath and started it up as quickly as possible, hoping the heater would warm up within the next few seconds.  The young woman pulled out of her spot and made her way home.  For the past year, she lived with her friend Brittany on the other side of town.  They lived together since they were 15 and were still good friends, so naturally they didn't mind renting a two-bedroom apartment together once they were financially stable enough to do so.  They were lucky to get a place a few miles away from Brittany's family's home.  They were just far enough to be independent, but close enough to go to family dinners and events every couple of weeks.

Before getting home, Helena made a detour to the local cafe.  They had great hot drinks, which were especially welcomed in the winter.  She parked as close to the entrance as possible and made her way inside.  Her plans were to get herself something small and to bring home something for her roommate.