Meanwhile with Lily

Meanwhile, across town, Lily was at practice.

The indoor facility smelled like rubber flooring and sweat. Her team was running drills, the usual mix of sprints, footwork, and conditioning that always left her legs burning. Lily had always been good at this. Better than good, actually. She had her mother’s speed and her aunt Regina’s competitive streak, and most days that combination made practice feel easy.

Today it just felt annoying.

Coach Dana Reyes stood near the center of the court with her arms crossed, whistle resting against her chest. She was in her early thirties, with dark hair pulled into a tight ponytail and a body that still looked like it belonged on a college roster. Her legs were long and toned under black athletic leggings, and the fitted coaching shirt she wore clung to a full chest and narrow waist. She had the kind of figure that made half the girls on the team quietly jealous and most of the guys who came to watch stare a little too long.

“Again,” Coach Reyes called. “From the top. And Tessa, if you miss the mark this time you’re running extras.”

Tessa Grinley just laughed. She was a loud blonde with a round, pretty face, big blue eyes, and a heavy chest that bounced noticeably every time she moved. Her practice shorts were a little too tight across her thick thighs and ass, and she knew it.

“Relaxed, Coach,” Tessa said, adjusting her sports bra with both hands. “I’ve got it this time.”

“You said that the last three times,” muttered Rina Park as she dropped into her stance. Rina was smaller and leaner, with straight black hair in a high ponytail and a compact runner’s body. Her legs were sharply defined, and the snug compression top she wore left very little of her chest to the imagination.

On Lily’s other side, Brooke Ellison rolled her shoulders and blew out a breath. Brooke was tall and athletic, with light brown hair in a messy braid and a strong, eye-catching figure. Wide hips, a solid ass, and a chest that filled out her top enough to draw attention every time she sprinted. She glanced over at Lily.

“If she ruins this set one more time I’m going to lose it,” Brooke said under her breath.

“Same,” Lily muttered.

Further down the line, Sophia Grant was already bouncing on her toes. Sophia was the team’s resident pretty girl and she knew it. Long honey-blonde hair, tanned skin, and a slim waist that made the curve of her hips and chest stand out even more in her fitted practice gear. She shot Tessa an annoyed look.

“Can we just run it clean for once?” Sophia called.

“Oh my god, relax,” Tessa shot back. “It’s practice, not the Olympics.”

Coach Reyes lifted the whistle. “Enough. On my call.”

Lily dropped into her stance, eyes locked on the far cone, irritation tight in her chest. She waited for the whistle.

The whistle never came.

One second the gym was full of movement and voices and the squeak of shoes. The next second everything went dead silent.

Lily stayed in her stance for a full two seconds before she realized nothing was moving. Coach Reyes stood frozen with the whistle still at her lips, chest slightly pushed out from the way she had drawn in a breath. Tessa was stuck mid-laugh, mouth open, one hand still adjusting the underside of her sports bra. Rina was locked in her starting stance, sharp eyes fixed forward. Brooke’s braid hung motionless over one shoulder. Sophia was frozen mid-eye-roll, lips parted like she had been about to say something else.

Lily slowly straightened up.

“…What?”

Her voice sounded too loud in the silence. She took a step forward, then another. No one reacted. She walked right up to Tessa and waved a hand in front of her face. Nothing. She poked the blonde in the shoulder. Tessa’s heavy chest shifted slightly from the contact, but she stayed frozen otherwise, still caught in that same dumb laugh.

Lily’s heart started beating faster.

She turned in a slow circle, taking in the whole gym. Every single person was stuck exactly as they had been. One of the younger girls near the far wall was frozen in the middle of tying her shoe, shorts riding up the back of her thighs. Another was mid-sprint, balanced on one foot in a way that should have been impossible, her top clinging tightly across her chest. Coach Reyes remained perfectly still, whistle at her mouth, the shape of her body clearly outlined under the fitted shirt and leggings.

“Okay,” Lily said under her breath. “Okay, what the hell.”

She walked over to the bleachers and climbed up a few rows just to see if the effect reached that far. It did. Even the two people sitting up top were completely still.

Lily dropped back down to the court and stood there in the middle of it all, breathing a little too fast. She had no idea how she had done this. She hadn’t said anything special. One moment she had been irritated and waiting for the whistle, and the next moment the world had just… stopped.

She looked down at her hands, then focused on the frozen gym.

“Start.”

The world snapped back all at once.

Sound crashed in. Shoes squeaked. Tessa finished her laugh. Coach Reyes blew the whistle.

Lily flinched hard.

“Donovan! Let’s go!” Coach Reyes shouted.

Lily’s body moved on pure instinct, launching into the drill with the rest of the team even though her mind was still racing. She ran the pattern on autopilot, heart pounding for a completely different reason now.

She had stopped time.

Somehow, she had actually stopped time.

When the drill ended she bent over with her hands on her knees, pretending to catch her breath while her thoughts spun. She needed to try it again. She needed to know if she could do it on purpose.

Coach Reyes called for a water break. Players scattered toward their bottles.

“Finally,” Brooke muttered, pulling her braid over one shoulder as she walked.

“I’m going to tape Tessa’s mouth shut next time,” Rina said flatly.

Sophia laughed under her breath. “I’d help.”

Tessa, already at her bottle, waved them off. “You all need to lighten up.”

Lily waited until a few of them were clustered near the bench, then focused on that same sharp feeling from before and pushed.

Everything stopped again.

This time she was ready for it.

Lily straightened up and let out a shaky breath. A grin pulled at her mouth before she could stop it. She walked through the frozen cluster of her teammates, circling them, taking in the details she never got to see in motion. The way Tessa’s chest sat heavy and full in her sports bra. The tight line of Rina’s stomach. The curve of Brooke’s ass in her shorts. Sophia’s long honey-blonde hair frozen mid-swing across her back. Coach Reyes stood a few feet away, still in perfect coaching posture, the shape of her body clearly outlined under the fitted shirt and leggings.

Lily stopped in front of Tessa again.

For a second she just looked at her. Then the grin on her face turned a little meaner.

She hooked her fingers into the waistband of Tessa’s tight practice shorts and yanked them straight down to her ankles, taking her underwear with them. The blonde’s bare ass and pussy were suddenly on full display. Not satisfied with that, Lily grabbed the bottom of Tessa’s sports bra and hauled it up over her heavy tits, leaving them out and exposed. For a finishing touch, she took Tessa’s hands and planted them behind her head, then nudged her feet a little farther apart so she was standing there like some kind of frozen trophy.

Lily stepped back and admired her work, biting her lip to keep from laughing.

“There,” she muttered. “That’s better.”

She spent another minute just walking around the gym, still high on the fact that none of this would matter once she started time again. When she finally decided she had pushed it far enough, she focused and spoke clearly.

“Start.”

The world snapped into motion again.

Chaos erupted immediately.

Tessa’s loud, confused shriek cut across the gym as she suddenly found herself half-naked with her hands behind her head and her shorts around her ankles. She scrambled to cover herself, nearly tripping, while the girls nearest to her burst into shocked laughter and shouts.

“What the fuck?!”

“Tessa?!”

“Oh my god—”

Coach Reyes spun around, eyes wide. “Grinley! What the hell are you doing?!”

Tessa was bright red, frantically yanking her sports bra back down and trying to pull her shorts up at the same time. “I didn’t— I don’t know what—!”

Lily turned away so no one would see the huge smile on her face, pretending to dig through her bag like she was just as confused as everyone else.

She spent the rest of practice barely focusing on the drills. All she could think about was that she had powers.

Actual powers.

And no one else knew. Life was about to get much better.