DeviantKnight25

It was my turn to take care of Abuelita for the month, I honestly didn’t mind it considering I hadn't seen her for more than a month now, but I went about it as normal as I possibly could. Though, it didn't take long for me to notice that something was different, she was staring at me, not like she hadn’t before, but I could tell that she was expecting something. I couldn’t ask because if I did, she’d likely ask in Spanish, which was something my parents never bothered to teach me so there was this communication gap. 

The day went on until she was the one who initiated the conversation, but she quickly frowned when she saw my confused expression. What she said was completely lost on me, I didn’t have a clue what she asked at all, but she shook her head in disappointment before going silent for most of my stay at her home. I was traveling back to the apartment when my phone started ringing, it was my aunt. 

“Arthur, did something happen?” She immediately asks the second I picked up the call.

“Nothing happened… Why?” 

She pauses for a moment. “Well, your Abuelita’s been quieter compared to the last time you visited. In fact, she brought up the time when she tired out her throat was from talking to you back then. Have you been taking Spanish lessons lately?” 

“No…” 

“Alright, I guess she was just having a moment. Thanks, Arthur.” She replied before dropping the call. 

I stared out the window. ‘A month ago, huh?’

—

I was surprised the second I opened the door. 

It was my roommate, Miguel, who’s uncharacteristically holding up a glass of wine. He seemed to take in the taste before he notices me, by then, he quickly sets aside the wine glass before turning to me. 

“Arthur! You’re back already!” He said in a nervous tone. 

“Yeah, I couldn’t stay long since I’m out of vacation days now.” I said and he seemed to frown at that response.

“So… how was your Abuelita?” He asks awkwardly though I don’t draw any attention to it. 

“She was fine, though she did seem to expect me to talk to her in Spanish. Did you really talk to her back then?” I ask and he doesn’t look me in the eye.

“Of course, I did, I thought I was blending in so well until she told me how you never spoke a word of fluent Spanish to her before that.” He admitted. 

I give him a lopsided grin. “Don’t worry about it, everything worked out in the end, right? I mean, who would have thought that the one time I spend a vacation with you, would end up with us switching bodies?”

—

The place I’m staying at actually belonged to Miguel, so he was practically my roommate/landlord. We didn’t really interact beyond when it was time to pay the bills but I noticed early on that he was fond of traveling and working out. So the point of me staying was to keep this place clean while he was out exploring. 

It took about six months later when Miguel offered that I should travel with him for a few days to vacation at the beach. I couldn’t say no, especially when he added that he was footing the expenses. It was nice when we finally made it to our destination, open skies, crystal clear waters, and the smell of seabreeze, it was a great vacation. 

Though I did notice more of his habits, he was avoiding alcohol or anything “too heavy”, clearly referring to foods with high calories. While he did insist that I try most of the stuff, I could feel like he was living vicariously through me during those moments. Even when I offered him a bite or two, he refused outright, telling me it’ll be a pain to burn. 

It was on our final day that he proposed to check out the seaside caves, since they were a well known attraction around these parts. I followed his lead as we entered the caves, fortunately the interior was well lit so we had no trouble moving around. That was when I noticed something shine in the distance, Miguel let me take the lead as we approached the source of the sparkle and found a white gemstone embedded in one of the caves stalagmites. Nothing happened when I tried to pull the gem out, neither when Miguel attempted as well, it was when we exert some force on it together that the gem sparkled and immediately felt lightheaded. 

Miguel didn’t oppose me when I suggested that we should walk out of the cave for a breather and…

The second I stepped out of the caves, not only did the lightheadedness fade, but when I looked down, I suddenly found myself packing muscles, wearing different swim trunks, and a smartwatch. When I looked behind me, I found myself staring at my own body moving by its own volition. He seemed shocked to see me as well and that’s when it clicked. 

I was now Miguel and Miguel was now me. 

We panicked obviously and didn’t hesitate to rush back to find the gemstone to switch back. When we did find it, the gemstone had lost its luster, and nothing we did seemed to trigger what caused the switch in the first place. When we did some digging, we found out that it takes about two weeks for those gemstones to regain its shine, and nothing else could be done other than wait. 

Miguel was VERY against the fact that I was now in control of all of his hard work, he made that clear. He stared at me like a hawk the moment food got served and he practically decided my plate for me, although, I think when the realization started to hit him, it hit him hard. He stared at all of the food and drinks that were basically sin for him to eat before the swap was now something he could do. It was… weird seeing my own body stuff itself but I know it was really Miguel in control… well he wasn’t in control at that time since it looked like he was in heaven getting to eat things he forbade himself to eat prior to this.

He regained composure once he was done and he finally digested what seemed like a buffet to me. He assumed the role of my coach and quickly instructed me in the usual workouts he does without equipment, push ups, sit ups, pull ups, the list goes on. While he did stop me a bunch of times to fix my positioning, I never felt worn down, probably thanks to my newfound stamina. Eventually, I got the hang of doing home workouts without him keeping an eye on me. 

While we did manage to find our footing, the two of us still had jobs along with our other obligations, meaning Miguel had to cover for me while I had to cover for him. It was honestly a mess since we basically had to lie our way through the two weeks we needed for the gemstone. We took a day off right when the gemstone was supposed to be recharged, we wasted no time getting there, and practically rushed into the cave to find the gemstone still there, and its shine had returned. We did exactly what we did the first time and… it worked. Miguel found himself in his own body and it was the same for me, although the sudden weight change was very noticeable, Miguel never really stopped eating even after we left. Either way, we immediately left the caves and traveled home to stabilize our lives again. 

There were a lot of perks, for me, I could still do the workouts that Miguel taught me while we were swapped, not to mention, we talk more casually now, it was clear that we were practically friends after an experience like that. It really nails it now when Miguel offered me a gym membership so we could work out together, I couldn’t say no, I felt like it was his way of apologizing for my weight gain. Beyond that, things were practically back to normal, although I do catch him staring whenever I bring food home.

—

— Present Time —

“Actually, Arthur, not everything worked out in the end. Ever since I became you, I finally got to enjoy food again and not have to worry about the consequences. It felt so good…” He admitted to me although there was something unsettling about his tone that kinda scared me. 

“C-Can’t you just eat whatever you want and then burn the calories?” I suggested.

“IT DOESN’T WORK THAT WAY!” He snapped at me, the way he looked at me it was almost hungry, and whatever he had in mind… I was the prey. “I have a reputation to uphold and this body is part of that… I can’t take it, I need that life back.” 

My eyes widened when he opened his travel suitcase, instead of the usual valuables, something rolled out of it. It was the gemstone from the caves.

“You went back for the gemstone!? Have you lost your mind!?”

“The only thing I’m losing are these damn chains. Swap with me again, Arthur. GIVE ME YOUR LIFE!” I rushed for the door at that point, but in hindsight, there was no way I was ever outpacing Miguel considering his physique. He pinned me down on the floor with one hand while the other was prying one of my hands open, he shoves the gemstone into it the moment he gets the chance and the world goes dark…

When I came to, I found my former body standing over me with the gemstone in his hands.

“Enjoy your life, Arthur-” Then he slams the gemstone against the floor, shattering it to countless pieces. “Because you’re going to be Miguel Diaz from now on, forever…”

—Months Later—

And… that’s basically what happened, Miguel basically swapped our bodies again, and he really made sure to make it permanent. I still have the shards in Miguel, or to be more accurate, my room. None of the shards seem to shine no matter how much time has passed. 

Could I return to the caves? I could, but then I’d be arrested. Miguel got himself blacklisted from the area when he stole the gemstone that he used to make the switch. And as far as anyone else was concerned, I was Miguel now, so even if I wanted to go grab another gemstone, the people would definitely recognize me and have me arrested. There was no point asking Miguel since he wanted this in the first place.

Was I angry at him? I was, but there wasn’t any point to confront him about it, even if I screamed at him or even beat him up, it wasn’t going to switch us back. So I sorta just resigned myself to being Miguel in the end. It wasn’t that hard now that it happened the second time, his routines were basically second nature to me at this point. Overtime, I did see what he meant by reputation. If I even buy myself some milk tea or something to treat myself, the people who know Miguel were quick to throw their remarks about how he’s ruining his body. 

Meanwhile, Miguel finally had his fill of eating food that was basically banned from him, while he still eats very casually, way more than I did, he’s been going to the gym to make sure that the weight doesn’t become a problem. Beyond that, he got into the role of being me rather quickly without any hiccups. While I did lose a lot of freedom in the food department, I still could eat and buy whatever I liked as long as I tuned out the comments and put some extra time into the gym to make up for it. Yes, he forcefully swapped our bodies, but it wasn’t like I got the short end of the stick here.

It’s an amazing body, and now that I’ve gotten a handle on how to be Miguel, I can’t say I got a horrible deal as long as I keep doing what he used to do. I’ll need to confront him about the switch as soon as the honeymoon phase of me being in this body ends… which I doubt is coming since I’ve come to enjoy what he does. 

It was dusk when I walked out of my place to walk around in my own thoughts for a bit while getting some fresh air. There was a transformation party to celebrate the month, meaning they’ll be hot guys up the wahzoo, although people are more attentive to the how than the end result. I’ve heard my fair share of plans going on so far.

Guys body swapping themselves with aliens, only to possess hot guys through their now alien forms. Another uses an intense toilet plunger machine to swap their heads with someone else, likely that of a bodybuilder, and yes that also counts for the party. There’s also the simple bodysuit to wear, if I run out of ideas, that’s my last resort since I have a couple of my own. But I am a tad competitive so I wanted to have at least some attention when I arrived at the party. 

In the clear dusk skies, I noticed some billowing smoke over in the distance in the nearby woods. It was an unusual sight in my time here so I decided to take a detour to check things out. Eventually, I made it to some sort of cottage in the midst of the woods and is definitely the source of the smoke. I would have left but I noticed the front door was open, I stood before the entrance, and called out if anyone was home, there wasn’t any response. So, I decided to walk inside, finding the flames in the fireplace, causing the smoke, and telling me that someone was just here. 

As I looked around, I stumbled upon a shelf filled with odd humanoid figurines. There were a multitude of options, average joes, large built men, and so on. I unwittingly grabbed one of them off of the shelf to inspect it. It felt like it was made out of wood and the details were intricate, practically looking like a miniature person, and the one I grabbed looked like a muscular man. The second I looked at it in the eyes, its eyes glowed in an ominous green light. 

When I regained focus, I found myself staring at the figurine but it looked completely different. It now looked like me as the figurine. I looked around and everything still looked the same until I looked down and noticed that I lacked a shirt all of a sudden and I bolted around looking for something to cover up my shirt until I got a glance of my reflection and stopped in my tracks entirely. 

The longer I stared at my newfound reflection, the more I realized that I now looked like a splitting image of the figurine before I somehow triggered it to activate. I still had the figurine that looked like me in my hands, my now calloused fingers brushing against it while staring at it doesn’t trigger it. Regardless, I better hold on to it, maybe I’ll figure out how it works. For now, I guess this should be a good way to arrive at the party and maybe check myself out a little more.

“Whoa…” I uttered as I flexed my newfound muscles before I cleared my throat and habitually touched it.

“Fue raro...” (That was weird…) I remarked before realizing my voice sounded different.

"¡Mi voz...!" (My voice…!) I said before repeating what I did before the voice change.

“Hello? Hello!?” I tested before sighing in relief to hear my voice was back to normal. Realizing that I can change my voice (and the language I speak apparently) with ease, I decided to leave my newfound voice on.

"Supongo que este tipo es español... Eso está bien." (I guess this guy is Spanish... That's cool.) I commented before looking around the cottage, where I still haven’t found anybody else in here, but I opened one of the closets, and helped myself to a long sleeve shirt that fitted comfortably on my now larger body. 

It was before I left the cottage, something about the fireplace that bothered me. It wasn’t until I crouched down and realized that figurines were being used as kindling. My hand rubbed against my figurine in my pocket, I could probably throw it in, but after weighing it in, I decided to keep it and left the cottage. When I glanced behind me once I was out of the cottage, it was gone, I looked around, and found no sign of the cottage anywhere. With nothing else, I walked back to my place.

—

The party was kicking into high gear when I arrived, as I saw countless men ogling at one another, before immediately asking how. It was the rule to openly tell the process of how they got their bodies. I went into the party shirtless, it wasn’t a rule but it was practically a given considering the event, some went in completely bare so what I did was tame. 

“Hey, you look awesome, mind sharing your technique?” Someone said to me from behind me and when I turned around, I saw two men. One had some sort of slime creature covering him while the other had a bright glow in their eyes, likely a ghost possession. 

"Oh, me convertí en esto de- Espera." (Oh, I turned into this from- Hold on.) I replied before adjusting my throat, the two glanced at each other for a moment hearing me like this. 

I presented the voodoo doll, something I later found out after doing some research, before explaining my transformation. The two nodded my explanation, looking pleased at the change. 

“By the way, we were headed to one of the rooms to have some fun with these guys, wanna join us?” The slime guy offered. 

I nod with a smirk, “Definitely. I hope you guys don’t mind that I stick with my other voice.” I added before adjusting my throat. 

“¿Está bien?” (Is that okay?) I finished. 

Sequel to The First Wave

Almost a month since the bodysuit uprising and the restrictions around the research facility had finally dropped considering that bodysuits would have died out in the second week. While the police tried to keep people in their homes to keep them from being victims, a lot of suits managed to get hosts within the first week, be it police or the general public. The results are varied, those who were known to support the uprising, generally stayed the same even after they were made into hosts. While those who were against the uprising, usually the police, completely had themselves overwritten by the bodysuits, practically a hostage situation, the police could do at that point was to arrest them. Nothing much they could do until they found out a way to get the bodysuit off of them since there was now a life on the line. 

As for me, I supported the bodysuits silently, but I didn’t dare go out since being targeted by a bodysuit while you have police keeping an eye on you could end tragically. Now, cleanup was underway as the facility and the area around it were surrounded by deflated or damaged bodysuits, those that failed to get a host before their innate strength ran out. The cleanup was more of the supporters’ initiative as an opportunity to place the bodysuits somewhere better than a furnace.  My job was to pick up whatever bodysuits I could find outside of the fence of the facility. And I was on my third day, and it still rattled me a little seeing them deflated, considering what they could do with their energy…

When I picked up one suit, my eyes widened when I saw my hand stuck to it, as if it was made of adhesive. I heard the stories but I thought this was impossible at this point. Either way, I knew what I had to do, especially when I could only hear weak groans coming out of the bodysuit since it made contact with me, and threw myself onto the rest of the bodysuit on the ground. Not sure if it was instinctual or intentional but I could feel the bodysuit liquify and envelop me, even around my head and face…

I could feel my limbs move on their own afterwards, one reaching down to pick something up on the ground to slide it on to my face while the other uses the fence to pull myself up. There was some tingling sensation around my head before light returned to my eyes.

I recall how the others who made contact with the bodysuits went, somehow they could have a conversation with one another… 

Whoa! I guess you’re in here then. You guys have names like humans do, right? What’s yours?

Suddenly, my mouth goes numb for a moment. 

“...Rendra Santoso.” I heard myself say before I could feel control over my lips again. 

I guess it’s good that you said it for me, Rendra. You wouldn’t mind if I went with that name from now on, right? Cool, I know some people who know about the others who made contact with you guys, maybe you’ll recognize someone. But first, we have a job to do, maybe you can sit back if this is too hard for yo- 

O-Okay… If you’re sure, let’s find the rest of you guys then. Who knows, maybe we’ll find another bodysuit still alive. But let me take over once we head back, they’ll definitely be shocked once they see me… you… US! Anyway, let’s pick up where I left off.

—

Great view, right? I know you can pry into my thoughts but I figured this was something you had to experience for yourself. Plus, with your body, hiking up here didn’t take as long as I thought. Besides, you needed the distraction. Going through the motions of being registered was rather stressful for you, wasn’t it? At least people officially know me as Rendra now so things should go smoothly from here on. Huh, you want to take charge from the hike down? Alright…

Once I lost my autonomy, I could feel myself stand up and immediately flex my arms. It felt invigorating tightening my muscles like this.

“You don’t do this as often as I wanted you to. It feels good, right? I wanna let out more stress... Let’s hit the gym until my muscles ache!” He announced as he started to hike down.

Hey, wait! The last time you went hard at the gym, I was bedridden the next day from the pain…

“You’ll thank me for this, trust me.” He responds.

I could only sigh at this point. This was gonna suck but nothing much I could do once he has control. At least he doesn’t hold the fact that I’m in control 90% of the time over me. 

—

“So many reps was that?” He asked.

I lost count when both my legs and arms started to hurt. Can we go home now?

“Fine, you’ll be in control once we get back.”

Tomorrow’s gonna suck…

I often went to the park whenever I needed to clear my head. Not a lot of people actually stay in the park for long because there was a research facility with a lot of shady history right next to it. That day was when I heard some sort of alarm going off over the facility itself, I began fearing for the worse. I honestly expected a fire or something, what I didn’t expect was seeing some sort of movement by the wall dividing the park to the facility. I had no idea how to react when someone claims over the wall.

While he managed to get over the wall, his way down wasn’t as smooth as he lost his grip on the wall and his arms took the brunt of the fall. I immediately ran towards him, he was breathing heavily as he clutched his arm, I was certain his bones were shattered from the fall. Honestly, the more I look at his body, the more I see how badly he’s injured. Shattered bones, the skin around his right ankle looks as if it was peeling off, and one foot is clearly dislocated, but oddly no signs of open wounds.

“Please…” He mutters weakly.

“Don’t worry, I’ll call for help, just hang on.” I say as I began to call the emergency number on the phone.

“No… No…” He responds while shaking my head. I could only stare at him, it was obvious that he needed medical attention given the state his body was in.

“You don’t want me to call for help? Why? You’re badly injured!” I insisted, but he reached out a hand towards me and clasped it with both hands. “You’ll be okay… You'll be okay…” I said to him reassuringly.

“Need… closer…” I hear him say and I lean closer towards him.

“What do you need?” I say softly.

“...You…” Without warning, he managed to get up to knees before throwing his entire weight onto me. To my surprise, there wasn’t any sharp weight on my lower body, instead, the weight was all over me, it was as if my lower body was being buried in sand.

“Hey! Get off of-” I cut myself off when I pulled my hand away and saw something stuck on them. They were… the guy’s flesh… but it was clearly liquid and adhesive… When I turned to look at him, he didn't look like he was in pain, but he looked at me with a conflicted look on his face.

“What… What are you?” I asked as I could feel more and more of his weight all over my body.

“...Sorry…” He uttered he slams his head against mine, but instead of a solid collision, a viscous fluid began to cover my entire head. I held my breath but my attempt to not suffocate ended in vain as I gave in to my lungs demands for air and when I sucked in a breath and was immediately rewarded with a lungful of air.

“Huh…?” I say as I sit up on the grass, I looked around and noticed all of my clothes on the ground. Before I could focus on it, I remember the sound of the alarm coming from the facility, I reached into my discarded pants and nab my phone and wallet before following my immediate instinct.

Which was to run as far away from here as possible. There was a part of me that didn’t know where I was going but there was another that told me that I should run back to my place and that’s where I went. It was halfway through the sprint that I realized that I was also barefoot but I had adrenaline pumping through me that wanted to just run away until I finally made it to my place, good thing I nabbed the keys before I ran.

I was out of breath and obviously I needed to get cleaned, so I walked over to the shower, when I glanced at my reflection. I clutched my head in pain right away as two thoughts immediately collided in my head.

One telling me that this was my reflection and the other telling me that it was the guy that I literally ambushed me earlier. I couldn’t think straight as two thoughts kept colliding with each other one by one until there was a brief moment of clarity.

No, the real answer was that I was both. I stared at my hands but the next thought that I needed to do was… clean yourself… shower. I didn’t focus on the thought for too long in case of another overload. When I was using the soap, I stared at my bicep.

64165… That was his… my… malfunction number given to me by the facility for showing signs of free will… He… I… didn’t want to get destroyed… so he… I… ran away, there were so many injuries during the escape by the time he… I… got to the wall and then that was when…

Another surge of pain in my head. There was something in me that immediately stepped aside as if it understood the problem and almost right away my thoughts became more streamline. He… didn’t want to get destroyed… his purpose was to be a bodysuit complete with instincts and manufactured memories but no free will and he was going to be destroyed for having it. However, the extent of his injuries by the time I made it to him left him with no other option but to make me his host to survive. He knew that the medical professionals would take him back the second they found out what he was.

I stared at his malfunction number and immediately started to scrub it with soap. It took a lot of scrubbing but it eventually faded. A part of me felt relieved that the dreaded number was gone but I continued to shower until I dried myself off. I hesitated about looking in the mirror but another part of me told me that it was okay so I stepped in front of the mirror and got rewarded with a minor headache but managed to keep looking at my own reflection.

That’s him… Not me… Us…? No? The new me?

But I don’t know who this is supposed to be…

What do you want to be called?

“Brian…” I utter weakly in my new voice. “Brain… Huang… I… I like it…”

Wow… Your body looks incredible… No? It’s mine now? You sure…? Okay, my body looks incredible!

But I don’t know anything about fitness- You’re supposed to be a fitness trainer!? You’re not going to make me diet are you…?

You don’t force me if I don’t want to? No, I don’t want to be forced but I want to try it. Looks like that’s what we’re doing then. Just tell me what to do when we have to diet or work out, okay?

Me as Brian Huang? But that’s supposed to you- You want me to have it? Okay… If you say so.

Brian Huang… The fitness trainer… By god, it sounds like a different world to me.

…Thanks for the vote of confidence.

—

“I’m telling you he has nothing to do with the rest of those bodysuits taking more victims!” I say to them over the phone as I continue to listen to them ramble more about false accusations. “Go to hell, he’s innocent. We’re done talking about this goodbye!” I tap the drop call button before sighing.

I’m sorry, I really tried.

No! You have no blame in the invasion, you heard it from the other suits, right? You may be the first who escaped but that uprising doesn’t mean it’s your fault.

Look, you told me yourself, you can let me go at any time, even if it means you are dying for it, unlike the rest of the suits who actively hunt for victims until they run out of energy. But I don’t want you to die. You let me be Brian Huang while letting me be myself for the most part, I don’t want to let that go.

Heh, you may think that I’m stuck with you, but it’s actually that you’re stuck with me.

You’re welcome. Hmm?

Two hours at the gym today? Ugh… Can I let you do it again this time?

No…? I already said that last week but-

For discipline but- Wait-wait-don’t hijack my legs!

No excuses!? Sometimes this fitness trainer thing sucks.

Okay! Okay! I’ll keep quiet, I don’t want to go through three hours of gym again, I was so sore from that.

Happy? No? I have to do it next week too? But-

Fine. I want to keep my game time so I’ll roll with it.

For a bodysuit that says that he can make me do whatever I want in this body, you can be really bossy.

I’m sorry! I’m sorry! Look I’ll do sit ups before I play, how does that sound?

“So, you’re Kelvin, right?”

I couldn’t believe that I was standing close to Scott Yong Wen Cheng, he’s one of the country’s most famous bodybuilders. When I saw the offer for a free workout session, him being the trainer was the last thing that I expected. The moment I walked into the gym just in time for my session, he was the one who walked up to me. 

“Y-Yeah… That’s me!” I say nervously as he sizes me up. 

“You’ll do…” He mumbles under his breath.

“Huh?” I let out.

He shakes his head, “I can definitely see your potential physique now that I can look at you in person, as long as you put in the time and effort, that is.” He says and I was slightly enamored, he may look intimidating but he talks to me professionally. He leads the way around the gym, we walk past muscular men who are too focused on working out to notice us. 

“You brought a change of clothes with you, right? I doubt you’d want to work out dressed like that.” He pointed out.

“Yeah, I did. I can change in the locker rooms, I guess.” 

“Perfect, I have some stuff that I need to get there anyway, you can leave your stuff there after you get changed.” He replies before we stop before the door to the locker room, he opens the door and gestures to me to come in. I look around for an isolated area to change, and quickly change out of my current clothes into my workout ones. I notice Scott walking up to me but before I could even react, he puts me into a headlock and I immediately feel a sharp sting on my neck before he lets me go.

I was on the floor, with one hand on the spot where I felt the pain on my neck and the other was on the ground. I looked up and saw a syringe in Scott’s hands with a pleased look on his face. 

“What… what is that?” I managed out as I could swear something was starting to spread inside me. 

“Pure jock essence, Kelvin.” He stated proudly. “That little body of yours is going to be the perfect jock as soon as it’s done with you.” 

“What the hell are yo-” Then I stared at my arm, it was bulkier than it should have been, there were visible muscular veins to them. 

“Potent stuff, isn’t it? You get months worth of work in a single shot, the only cost is that you’re giving up everything you are for the jock essence.” He explains.

“Huh?”

“Were you that gullible to think that I’d waste my time actually training you for one day?” He adds. “I would laugh, but your innocence works well in my favor. And did you see all of those models in my advertising? They all reminded me of you at one point, you’ll be no different.” He seemed to gloat at that last bit. 

I groan afterwards, if everything he said was true, then this was the essence coursing through my body. It reminds me of those visualizations of venom entering the bloodstream and spreading across the human body. It felt awful, I can feel something foreign within me, manipulating my body from the inside out. 

“Y-You… you’re not gonna… get away with this…” I manage before starting to struggle more against the essence.

“You weren’t the first one who said that, but after enough time, you’ll come out of this locker room and want nothing more than to show off your body and impress some chick when you’re outside.” He replied. “In fact, you seem wimpy…” 

I felt my mouth move on its own. “Wimpy?! Say that again you son of a-” I press my hand against my mouth to silence myself and I could hear Scott laugh.

“Already talking cocky, huh? I’ll give you five minutes until you completely change from the essence, I would call you wimpy again but I doubt you’ll remember once it’s done with you.” After that, I can hear Scott walking away. 

Despite what he said, it was an uphill battle as the essence continues to spread inside me. I can imagine my face looking constipated as I mentally resist the change but I can definitely feel it, my hobbies… slowly changing… my likes… my dislikes… I let out a weak cry out of desperation, I don’t want to lose anything.

Overtime, it feels like I was trapped in a room with rising water, gradually filling up the room with no exit. And I would drown completely once the air ran out. It wasn’t real, obviously, but I can tell that the moment I drown in this sensation, the essence would overtake me completely and I’d be pretty much gone. It was only seconds until I had to keep myself afloat and the ceiling grew closer and closer. There weren't any options with the time I had left, by the time my head was against the ceiling, I had to make the most out of the last few seconds of air. I sucked in a deep breath before submerging myself into the water.

Seconds ticked by and I could feel my lungs starting to give, but it was still ignorable. Even more seconds passed, and I could feel my lungs starting to burn but I remained still. My body was starting to cry for oxygen and despite my best efforts, I was starting to lose it. By the time I started to see blackness on the corners of my eyes, I could see the water move. I started to swim upwards like my life depended on it… until I broke through the surface. The water was draining away and I was still around, by the time the water was completely drained… 

I snapped back to reality.

The foreign sensation was gone and it was as if nothing happened. Though when I tried to pull myself up, I felt some vertigo and it was apparent that the physical changes were still intact. I gathered my thoughts, I love… video games… reading… I wasn’t too interested in working out but I know exactly what to do, what goals to hit… It was weird but I guess I'm still me. 

When I walked over to the closest mirror, I found myself staring at a stranger but he looked familiar… Look at those abs and he’s starting to flex. Damn, I look good, but I’d look even better when I started pulling those weig- I shook my head.

It was obvious that the essence still has a hold over me if I let it but as long as I’m fully aware of myself, it won’t happen. I tried to remain grounded as I checked out my new appearance. It was without question that I felt powerful, Scott was right, this was months or even years of work in one shot.

Based on the shreds of fabric on the floor, I probably ripped out my own shirt during the struggle. Luckily, I’d be fine looking shirtless because I’ll start hitting on the first chic- Damn it. I have to be careful, the worst part of it seems to be over but it can still overtake me if I’m not careful. When I walked out of the locker room, I began to look towards the other patrons. I wondered how many of them were like me? Only that they completely caved into the essence? 

When I looked to the side, Scott was staring at me, looking quite happy with himself and he noticed that I was glaring at him. His eyes widened, I think he knows that I’m still myself but that doesn’t matter, I continued walking towards the exit. There’d be no point in confronting him now, I needed a plan. 

Maybe I can still salvage the other’s personalities somehow. 

AN: Based on @nonotnolan 's Cuerpo Inc series

"Hey, Dan, have you-" 

I sighed, "Again, it's Danilo. It's not hard." 

They give me an eye roll, the usual response whenever somebody tries to shorten my name. They just stare at me and I take a deep breath to snuff out my annoyance.

"What's up?" I managed out calmly.

"Have you checked your email today? It's about the upcoming Intern Season." They asked me. 

"I haven't…" I said as I stood away from the work panel and walked over to my laptop on the other side of the room and unlocked it. "It's probably them asking for a proper tune up of the equipment again. The last thing they want to happen is to have another memory scramble like the one in my first year here."

They stifled a chuckle before replying, "Sure, sure. You do that." I can obviously sense the sarcasm in their voice before they walked out of the room, with nothing else to go on, I decided to open up my inbox to see what's up.

At the bottom of the pile, I wasn't surprised to see the email about the annual tune up of the devices and it was no different than the one from last year. Before I could just use the same response from back then to reply, I looked at the rest of the emails. There were two new important ones.

Subject: Cuerpo Inc Annual Intern to Employee Swap Registration 

Subject: Recommendation of Participation

The latter one seemed important as it was sent by the CEO of Cuerpo so I opened that one first.

"Greetings Danilo Gonzales,

In light of your recent promotion as well as for your four year tenureship here in Cuerpo Inc as our new Head of Technology and Maintenance for our Memory and Body department, I hereby grant you my blessing to participate in this year's Annual Internship program as an employee participant should you accept to join this event.

Your contributions to this company over the years have been highlighted to me. Thus, it is in my and this company's best interest to reward you with a fully paid two month vacation through the Internship Program. Rest assured that you will be in good hands throughout the whole experience and we shall respect your decision on this event. 

Thank You, 

Nolan Sempers

CEO of Cuerpo Inc."

I'll admit, I wasn't expecting that, I went to check the other email, and sure enough the other was the registration to the event. There was a reason why people in the Memory and Body department weren't permitted to partake in this event. It was because we're the people operating the company's switch technology and we're the first one who should see any potential issues with the customers, employees, or interns pre and post switch. It would cause problems if the fixers needed the fixing so we weren't encouraged to join the event, unless we were given permission to join and the CEO's email to me was just that.

My mind weighs my options, of course, I can't deny the chance of something going wrong because I've fixed a lot of those. The first Intern Season was the worst from the fountain of problems that popped out but gradually got better over the years, last year was fairly quiet looking back on it. Was it worth the risk?

The perks, there were a lot. For starters, a paid vacation in a different body sounded fun, well, that was what my coworkers from other departments who joined the previous Intern Season swaps told me. They had free reign to do whatever they wanted, 80% of which was mostly sexcapades and 20% was them actually doing vacation stuff. Obviously, I was jealous to hear them share stories and the best I could put on the table is if I was the one managing one of their swaps.

Admittedly, I've interacted with those guys during Intern Season. Obviously, I know it wasn't actually them but they know exactly what they needed to do their jobs while I may step in once the department I'm in gets involved. It was a mixed bag, a lot of them were feeling awkward being in older bodies, others took it in stride, and one of them tried to hit on me for some reason. At least they made for decent stories. To think, I'd get to be a part of that this year…

I think it was when I took a restroom break and took a good look at myself in the mirror was when I decided to make my decision.

—

I had no idea you were meant to pick the intern that you wanted to be until the final listings of this year's interns came in. It looked like social media friend suggestions, they had their full name and a formal picture of themselves, upon clicking on one, it would display more information that you may need to know about them along with a button to select them as their intern. I had to be quick though as I saw more and more intern profiles turn gray, meaning someone had already picked them. I had to find someone that caught my eye, skim through their profile, and pick them before anyone else did. I got beaten to the punch on some of the guys I wanted to pick but I finally got one. 

His name was Allan Tseng, and personally I was still wrapping my head around the idea that I'm going to look like him once the internship starts. I've seen the process happen countless times but to think it would happen to me was… jarring to say the least. Regardless, once the site displayed that the employee assigned to him was Danilo Gonzales, I closed the site and continued on my work for the day, rinse and repeat until the day of switching was happening. 

I know how the day was supposed to play out from managing the event before, today I was here as a participant. I gave my coworkers from the same department a grin and wave once they made eye contact with me, needless to say, they were shocked to see me on the employee participant side and didn't give them any more than that even when they began to message me on my work phone. 

The process would only take a few minutes but there were a lot of interns to swap and a handful of rooms to use so there was a line. I watched the chat on my phone grew hectic as the my coworkers were finally figuring out that I'm a legitimate participant with an intern assigned. I ignored most of their questions, especially the why part, but I did answer one that popped in, mostly because they called me Danilo rather than Dan.

"Danilo, have you met your intern yet?"

"Nope, I'm meeting him today."

Meeting your intern prior to the event wasn't against the rules but they really discouraged it, mostly to avoid any potential legal issues on confidentiality. Not to mention, it reduces the odds of the intern complaining about the swap especially once it happens, it'd be too late for regrets. I waited patiently as the line grew shorter and shorter until it was finally my turn, there was a divider between the double doors so when I came in, so did Allan. He gave me a reassuring grin before we walked further into the room. Again, the person attending to the device was shocked to see me but they didn't press for questions about the event.

"I'm sure you know the process already."

"Yeah, empty pockets, remove accessories, you frisk me down to be sure, and then I get into the device. Did I miss anything?" I ask as I do as I said as I took off my watch, took out my wallet and phone to set them aside before turning to the device.

The best way I could describe them were futuristic tanning beds that were standing upright. This was the tried and true method that Cuerpo Inc had to offer and the very device I maintained for years. I have entered it a lot of times, when it's shut down and we have to do maintenance, the soft hum that I've grown accustomed to rings even louder once I was inside. I brace myself when I hear the same phrase I've uttered for years.

"Swap process starting now."

I honestly thought there was something wrong when I heard the machine powering down and I cautiously took a step out of the machine towards a coworker welcoming me.

"How do you feel, Dan?"

I glare at them, “I keep telling you, it’s Dan-” I cut myself off upon the realization of my voice, it sounded different before glancing down to inspect my arms. That was when I realized that my arms, outfit, and even the look of my legs and feet looked completely different. I lifted up a leg just to feel it as my brain was still processing the information before me. 

“It worked, didn’t it?” I managed out.

They grin at me. “How does it feel to go through the process yourself?” 

I shook my head, “Like what everyone else says, I blinked and here I am, in this body. My brain is still reeling from the rush of new sensations.” 

I denied their suggestion to walk up to the mirrors, not yet anyway, especially when I felt the rush of vertigo when I glanced at the other pod and watched myself, or rather, my former body step out of the pod. When he turned to look in my direction, it was honestly odd because I got to see a similar smile on that face to the one that I saw when I first saw Allan. I snapped back to reality when my coworker nudged me.

“Think you handle performing an initial assessment on your own body?” They asked me teasingly, and without skipping a beat, I grabbed a chart, and walked over to myself, no, Danilo. 

“Can you recite some of the usual protocols for your department… Danilo?” My usual mindset for work got a little rattled from using my name in the third person but that’s how swaps operate, the name is tied to the body, it’s the same case here. Honestly, I avoided making eye contact with him, it would probably rattle me more. However, he seemed to pass all of the initial memory checks, from work protocols, to credentials, and even some of my college experience. I handed the chart back to my coworker before taking my wallet and phone with me. 

All that was left for me was a quick medical check up in the infirmary and I’d be good to enjoy my paid vacation under the name Allan Tseng for the next two months. I catch glimpses of my new reflection on the metal surfaces around the building but I set aside those thoughts for now. I need to have the check up.

—

The first two days of my summer vacation was me entirely being cooped up in my own apartment. When I thought I had spent a lot of time being enamored by my own reflection, I was proven wrong when I decided to have a shower as Allan…

I was starting to get why most of the Cuerpo Inc employees go on sexcapades because the second I saw my shirtless self in the mirror, the next thing I knew was that I was furiously getting off right in front of my reflection with my free hand massaging one of my nipples. The next few moments were hazier but when I came to, I was completely out of breath and the mirror had been soiled with spunk. And it felt good, really good. 

That’s why I spent so long at home, my libido was reaching peaks higher than I could ever remember, and I was completely swept away by the impulse of it. The sensations of my body were enough to blast me over the edge with ease, then with just feeling my body, then the smell of it. It became a pattern, rest, eat, and then pleasure, it always ended with me coming back to a mess and the sense of shaving off a chunk of the libido away, after an hour or so break, I was ready to do it all over again.

It was by the third day that I managed to keep my impulses in check but it was only a matter of time before I caved. I felt the need to have someone shave more of the drive out of me, with a face and body like this it should be easy enough, right? 

Forewarning: Content below is deemed Not Safe for Work

Walter had no idea what to expect in meeting one of his college friends after years had gone by and hadn't been keeping in touch as much since then. He had known Erica for her somewhat eccentric behavior but her inventive prowess was second to none to anyone Walter had known, based on the brief conversation they had earlier, her skills remained unchanged. She was already at the cafe once he had arrived and once Walter took a seat the two began to catch up. 

Erica had continued to take her interests to the next level using her inventive prowess as she was able to create showcases within her phone about the mind control chips as well as robots that looked indistinguishable from genuine human men. Walter watches as the eyes of Erica’s subject turn glazed and empty almost immediately after she attaches the clip onto his skin, he chuckles as she begins to press herself against him in bliss, he doesn’t resist and in fact flexes his arms obediently at her request. As soon as the video ends, she quickly seques the discussion into telling him that she needs his help with a problem. 

When Walter presses her for more information, she remains silent before glancing right out of the cafe, and he follows her gaze just in time for two men to walk out of the gym. They watch the two as another gym goer accidentally bumps into one of them. Walter’s eyes widen when one of them stops the gym goer by grabbing them by the shoulder before the other shoves the gym goer onto the ground. Walter couldn’t make out what they were saying but it was evident that they were scolding the gym goer for merely bumping into one of them, and if that wasn’t enough the two spat on their face before walking away proud of what they had just done. 

The next thing Walter realizes is that Erica hands him a circular chip, completely different from the one from the showcase. He plays with the chip for a few moments, flipping it in between his fingers before Erica announces that this was the device they’ll use to solve her problem before holding up one of her own chips. He listens intently as she fills him in about the two, Martin and Marvin Calhoun, they were twin brothers with awful personalities, their contributions to the gym and their wealth keep them from being reprimanded. A lot of people grew uncomfortable around them which prompted Erica to take matters into her own hands but with two guys to take care of, she needed Walter’s help. 

Her plan was simple, the two of them simply had to attach the chips onto them and let her technology do its job in mellowing out their personalities to be more ideal. She reassured Walter that it wouldn’t be a tough request as the brothers often walked out the gym shirtless and it would be easy to attach the chips onto one of them. It didn’t take long for Walter to notice that Martin seems to have caught Erica’s interest, so he proposed that she use her chip on Martin while he would go on Marvin; she agreed without hesitation. All that was left to do was to wait for their opportunity, Erica had sleuthed the brothers’ routines and decided that the best time was to get them while they were in the gym, ideally in the locker room, and away from prying eyes. Walter nods in agreement and decides to spend the rest of the day catching up and decides to meet up again the next day.

AN: Based on a RP that I was a part of

I make my way inside, slinging my gym bag off of my shoulder as I wake into our apartment. It's a fairly small place, a shared living space and our two small bedrooms, but it's affordable and we get along well. I just came back from the gym, surprised to see you home tinkering with... something. 

"New phone?" I ask you as I walk past you to put my bag back in my room. It seems like a small device, it must be a phone or tablet of some kind although I don't recognize it. "Probably going to go get dinner pretty soon, hungry after the gym." I say as I walk back to you to check it out.

"Something like that, read the instructions but I can't figure out how to get it to work. Yes, it's that bad." I said without ever looking away from the device. The screen was running but no matter what buttons I press, I seem to run into errors. 

I sigh before looking at you. "It's no big deal, I knew what could have happened when I paid a few bucks for it."

I walk over and give it a quick glance before I go to grab a glass. "Well, then yeah that's not a surprise if it's a couple bucks. What's it meant to be?" I ask as I fill up the glass with some water and start to drink, turning my attention to you and the device. It must not be a phone if it only cost you a couple bucks.

"Honestly? I don't know either. I just found it from a shady site, the seller was in town and wanted to practice tinkering. So, why not, right?" I replied before lowering the device to read the instructions again. 

"Why would it need two people though..." I mutter under my breath before scratching my head. "Wanna take a crack at it, man?" I asked.

My eyebrows furrow as you try to explain it. "Dude." I say with a chuckle as I set down my water. "It sounds like he was just selling some crap and he was just trying to make an easy few bucks from you." I tell you with a laugh. 

Granted, the money's already been spent and you have the device, I'm sure there's no harm in trying to check it out. It's a rather basic looking device, small with a small screen on it, and buttons along the top and bottom. 

"You sure it isn't missing batteries or something?" I ask you as I stand across from you, reaching over to press a few random buttons on the top row as you hold the bottom.

"The screen wouldn't be on if it wasn't, right?" I replied cheekily before sighing. "Sorry, just my frustration talking. Haven't made much progress since I got the thing running for the past thirty minutes." 

I watch as you mess around the device, "It's weird what kind of tiny device like that needs two people for? That's what it says on the instructions so I'm starting to think the whole thing is a sham at this point."

I resist the urge to roll my eyes, but you're right. I don't even see any sort of indication that this is working. The screen is lighting up but there isn't really a menu to show any indication of if we're doing the right things or not. 

"Well I'm not sure. If it needs two people then maybe we just need to press them all at the same time." I say, trying to think of something that would require the both of us. I hold the top of the device and press down the top buttons and hold them waiting for you.

"Hey, nothing made it work so far so anything is an option at this point..." I replied defeatedly before standing up and holding onto the device.

I chuckle, "Heh, this isn't gonna work but hey, I'll take anything I can get at this point. Ready when you are." I say to you.

I stand directly in front of you and press down on the buttons as you do. I'm not really sure what to expect from the device since I didn't know what it was, but we must have finally done something right because the screen finally lights up more. 

I briefly look down at the screen just in time for a surprisingly bright, blinding flight to flash. It's far brighter than I would expect from a small device like that, enough that I blink several times trying to recover. Suddenly there's a jolt, like the buttons electrocuted my fingers and sent a tingling feeling across my body. 

"Shit!" I cry out as I let go, shocked and momentarily disoriented by the flash of light. My whole body feels... weird, was that normal after getting shocked? "Son of a bitch shocked me." I say, my voice sounding slightly off as my vision begins to clear.

"Ugh... You're telling me. Remind me to never..." I trail off when I take a look in front of me. I can feel my jaw drop and I drop the device and start to back away. I glanced down and realized that I'm wearing unfamiliar clothes but I do recognize them. "Holy crap..."

I hear you speak up, your voice a good bit deeper than you usually sound. I hear the device clatter to the ground, no doubt not a good thing for a small device like that to fall so hard. I blink a few more times and clear my vision as I look up at... Me. 

"What the hell..." I stare at you dumbfounded, finding myself looking at my own body. It takes a few seconds to process but I look down at myself, seeing your smaller body and your clothes, and the fact that somehow I'm standing where you just were. "What the hell?!" I speak up again, realizing my voice is off because it isn't mine, it's yours.

I found my former self freaking out, it takes a moment for me to snap out of the trance. I managed to force myself to swallow and regain my composure just a tad bit. My heart beats fast as my brain tries to come up with the response. "You're me..." I uttered before glancing down again, "And I'm you." I noticed the device on the floor so I reached down to pick it up. Despite all that, it seems to be operational. I turn to you, "You, uh, okay?"

I keep looking down at my body, finding it strange not actually seeing my own body. You're not that much shorter than me but you're much more slender compared to my more muscular frame. I just keep looking down at my outfit and my hands. 

"I... I'm okay. I think, I... I don't understand." I look up again, finding it strange looking up at my own body. "What the hell happened?" I ask, not that either of us seem to understand what just happened or how.

"I think this happened." I replied as I held up the device in front of your eyes. "Maybe that's why it demanded that two people 'use' it." I explained as I tried to reboot the device and it glows back to life. 

"I think it's reversible but, uh, you wanna stay like this for a bit? Not everybody gets to experience something like this, right?" I propose with a smile.

I watch as you hold up the device and explain what you think happened. That doesn't make any sense, it sounds insane. Then again, we just swapped bodies. 

"You... want to stay like this? But we... we're each other." I say. It feels so strange looking up and seeing my own face looking back smiling at me. You seem excited by it but I guess I can't blame you, I really do have a handsome face now that I'm seeing it from someone else's point of view.

I walk over to the mirror with a wide grin as I visually emote in front of it using your face. "Damn, even through your eyes, you look amazing."

"Yeah, well I... I work out a lot. Eat healthy and all that, of course I look good." I replied. I put a lot of work into maintaining my appearance. 

"What are we even meant to do though? Just sit around each other, I... It feels weird looking at you. Or, me..." I reply as you keep showing off in the mirror.

"Shame that you still toot your own horn though." I mumble under my breath before continuing to say that I'm happy with the state of things right now. "Well, I WAS going to head to the supermarket to restock our cabinets." I say before patting my chest. "I guess 'you're' going this time."

I listen to you as my eyebrows furrow. "So... this happens and you're still just going to go to the store like nothing happened?" I ask. It's not like I have a problem with that, but clearly I'm taking longer to accept this than you did.

"Relax, I'm bringing my own wallet, I'm just going there with... this face and bod. Maybe I can finally bring some extra groceries today because-" I paused before flexing an arm. "So it'll be a nice trial run of sorts of being in your body."

I listen to you, although as far as things you could do, it's tame. You're still wanting to do the grocery shopping and all you want is just to borrow my body? It sounds weird but... fine. "I guess..." I reply back to you, surprisingly relenting to your request.

"Great! First things first though..." I say as I casually walk into your bedroom and opened drawers to pick out a pair of pants and a shirt.

I watch as you walk off into my room and I go to check out my reflection in the bathroom mirror. It's so strange seeing your body, but I am you. At least for the time being until we change back again.

I walk out of your room confident that I'm wearing some of the clothes that you kept at the back of your closet and it was something you'd expect out of me if I were back in my real body. "Alright, I won't be gone for too long. I'm definitely buying more groceries today, gotta feel the work you put into this bod of yours"

I look at what you're wearing. "Come on dude. You could at least wear my normal clothes. You have to still be me, if someone sees-" I shook my head, cutting myself off "Just don't be gone all day..." I ask you, wanting to be sure we can reverse this soon.

"And they'll say what? A change of clothes wouldn't change the fact that they'll still assume that they're talking to me. Stop being such a worrywart, this is me we're talking about, you know I'll be back as soon as I can." I said reassuringly before walking out and smirking behind his back.

You know how people advise you to sleep on it before making a big purchase, this is a similar position, although I've been sitting on the idea for days, weeks even. The night before I just laid on my bed holding up the bright red pill in my hand. The first words that came out of my mouth were ‘what a bizarre dream’.

I’ve lived with the fact that my dreams were mostly mundane, some throw me back to a college classroom, others suddenly leave me on my regular commuting route, you get the gist. Of course it does get a little odd by the end, you know something’s off when you see a flock of pigs with wings in the air. Although my last one was an anomaly, I was inside the subway train sitting down like I did in real life until a cloaked figure just sat across from me.

“I have exactly what you want.” They greeted me. I can’t remember what their voice sounded like since I woke up. I raise an eyebrow at them before looking away from them, must be a shady seller or something best to ignore them. That was what I thought until they were standing right in front of me in that split moment I looked away from them. I can recall that I did peak under their hood but what they looked like is a complete blank.

“Anyone, any body that you desire could be yours! All you have to do is to take this!” They said excitedly before presenting the red pill on their gloved hand, and I plucked the pill out of their hand. “Remember, you must ingest it while looking at your desired vessel before experiencing intense emotions and what you yearn for shall be yours!”

The next thing I knew, the train passed through a tunnel and the train car briefly went dark and they were gone. And I found myself back in my bedroom, having some cold sweats, and my right arm reached out clutching something, it was the red pill. I’ve been pondering about that dream ever since, I don’t have any sort of medication so having a pill appear out of my dreams into reality terrified me for a few days. I kept it in a jar as I went on my days, thinking that it would disappear once I came back but it never did.

The worst part is that while I never had dreams again since then, I could swear that cloaked figure had wormed into my subconscious somehow to goad me into taking the pill. It only happened when I looked at the pill.

“Have you made your choice yet?”

“The opportunity is inside that jar if you want it now.”

“Take your time, finding the perfect vessel for you to take is a process.”

I’ve managed to ignore their words for the most part until I made it to a month without deciding. I think at that point they have gotten impatient. I knew that much when I came home and they were in my room, no disembodied voice, it was now a realistic hallucination. I wasn’t sure if it was because of hearing their voice constantly or if I've lost my sanity at this point because I wasn’t at all shocked by their presence.

“Aren’t you sick of it all? The mundanity and how cookie cutter your life is?” I try not to react but I couldn’t help but frown, those words cut deep. “You can break free from all.”

I shook my head, I resigned myself to that fate way back then. But I was listening as I did my usual routine of cleaning up my room.

“You can enjoy the attention, maybe a celebrity or an athlete’s life is what you need. Maybe you just need a body to pride yourself in, those bodybuilders and fitness trainers are more to your speed. Perhaps a mix of both, somebody whose life you can steer to whatever direction you want, those influencer people are perfect for that.”

I stopped what I was doing at that time. What’s worse is that they really dug into that.

“The gift of being good looking, having a wondrous body, and adoring public, what an incredible package, don’t you agree? Sometimes they just get the golden ticket plop down on their laps and they’re enjoying the privileges.”

At that point, I was already scrolling through my social media, I was looking for someone that I wanted.

“You’re a victim of life merely ignoring you while they shower others with gold. You now have the winning card in your hand. All you have to do is to play it.”

Looking back on it, I was trembling. Even now, I can’t tell if it was out of fear or anticipation. The cold sweats on top of it didn’t help, my heart was racing as I blindly scrolled through social media.

“Oh? He seems to be the show offy type, maybe you have a say in that department?”

At that point, I don’t question how the pill appeared in my hand or how I’m suddenly on a wave of euphoria as I stared at his picture. I took a quick breath when I could tell that a surge was coming before popping the pill into my mouth and pressing forward as the surge hit. I keep my eyes open through the experience, I could have sworn that everything around me was changing with each blink. Different painted walls, the coolness of the air around me, the sensation of my own body, that last part was definitely unmistakable. The added bulk for that split second on me was adding onto the euphoria, a taste of what’s to come… I want it… And then it finally peaks.

I felt like I was floating on air for a minute or two, somehow I could tell that the world around me was adjusting as if the universe had attempted to correct a mistake. Once it was done, I was back in my room, everything looked different but it also felt familiar.

… Including the body, although, I could do without the hat.

That’s better. I take a moment to size myself up, everything has changed about me and yet I’m still soaked in cold sweats. Regardless, this is a huge chance for me after life had just sat on me for all this time, time to have some fun.

Of course, I had to play it smart, ease his, er, my followers to me being less show offy in my posts. So far no one seems to notice the change nor did I have any problems easing myself to my new situation, my new life.

My uncle always had been more anti-social compared to the rest of his relatives, my Pap actually made it clear that I had broken the mold with him because his brother actually acted like an uncle towards me. Of course, I was a kid back then so I had no idea what I did to have my uncle be as supportive as he was. Ever since, my Pap had been dragging me back to his brother’s place every summer. From what I can remember, I always had fond memories with him, it was kinda hard not to because he lived by the beachside, and it was always during the summer.

I think it was around my college years that my Pap insisted that I visit Uncle by my lonesome and I had no complaints about that. It was clear that my Uncle was more comfortable on my first day and it was obvious that he was a sports fanatic. He explained to me that the Olympics was the one thing he kept looking forward to each year. He told me that he was never cut out for sports himself but he could be an all out fan for it, immediately after that, he had sworn me to secrecy, he didn’t want the rest of the family knowing about it. All I could do was laugh it off and play along with his likes.

About a decade passed, that was when I got the call that I’ve been dreading… I immediately took a week off from work, picked up my Pap before taking a flight to my Uncle’s place for his wake. We all knew that he and my Pap were at that age where their health started deteriorating and while my Pap had the rest of the family, not Uncle, although, it was his decision because he declined when I offered to stay with him. Of course, my Pap insisted that they’d be ready for the inevitable, and thus there was a will, fully notarized and everything.

To my surprise, my name was sprinkled here and there upon skimming through. A lot of money had been given to the family, and I in particular got a bigger split. To which, my Pap begged me to keep it a secret for obvious reasons. Uncle’s place belonged to the family but he had made it clear that all of his belongings belonged to me, especially his “trophy”. Neither of us had qualms about Uncle's decisions in his will, we couldn’t think much about it, not until Uncle’s wake was over and an urn had been given to us containing his ashes.

Pap got started on informing the family about the will while I was busy checking out what Uncle had left me with, he really didn’t have much after we had boxed up all of his clothes. His smartphone was one boon, my Pap suggested to wipe it but I decided to hold off on that for now. I suppressed a smirk when I opened one of the drawers to see bundles of sports trading cards stored neatly. Of course, I quickly took those with me, mostly to keep up Uncle’s appearances on his behalf. Finally, his “trophy”, I always had a hunch on what it was and it was the jersey and shorts that he kept framed in his room.

MY TROPHY

SIGNED BY ARTHUR NORY OYAKAWA MARIANO

That was written on the paper tape on the bottom of the frame along with a date and sure enough there was a signature on the upper right. I grinned when I looked up the date and it didn’t surprise me that it was during the Olympics and I understood why he’d treasure it. Meanwhile, my Pap looked over my shoulder and asked if I knew anything about Uncle’s “trophy”. I fibbed about it being a gift from a friend of his, luckily, he didn’t question further beyond that.

A day passed and my Pap went ahead and flew back home, mostly because the rest of the family wanted to hear about the will. As for me, I still had a few days off and my flight back had been booked so all I had to do was wait, and decided to wait here. When I laid down on my bed at Uncle’s place, my eyes glanced towards his trophy after I hung it in my usual room. Uncle was always secretive so it didn’t sit well with me that he’d give me the trophy as it is. So I sat up and walked up the trophy and took it off the wall. I flipped it on its back and opened the frame, my eyes lit up to see a photo on the back of the jersey.

I KNOW YOU’D MAKE GOOD USE OF IT, BUDDY.

That was written on the back of the photo and since he used ‘buddy’ here, this was definitely something for me to find. I took the outfit out of the frame, my nose crinkled at the smell of sweat stained on them with the mirror nearby. I don’t think there’d be any harm in trying it on, right? Everything was normal in putting it on until I put on the jersey and an intense feeling of vertigo hit me. I fell onto the floor as I could feel my body being pricked and pulled by tiny needles. When I stood up, I wasn’t looking at myself anymore, even the picture on my phone tells me as much.

I’d be lying if I said that I didn’t take my time with my newfound appearance and I definitely knew that this guy was Arthur Nory. I licked my lips excitedly as my now calloused hands explored my new form carefully, the firm muscles, and the newfound abs… Screw it, I had to show off a little as I flexed my new arms, it felt as exhilarating as people made it out to be. After enjoying myself, albeit, a bit too much, an epiphany comes into mind and it involves Uncle’s phone. Yes, it was password locked but when I entered the date of the Olympics as the password…

It worked!

Looks like I didn’t need to wipe it as everything on this phone was already wiped clean except for one message.

Remember to pack smelling salts.

So I walked over to the bathroom and picked up the small packet of smelling salts before hovering it under my nose. I frowned at the smell and the immediate burning sensation before impulsively taking a deep breath and I found myself staring at my real self again. I guess the whole secluded life made sense when Uncle had something like this.

I had to see how fair Uncle went with this and that meant going out as Arthur so I put on the trophy until I quickly but somewhat painful and tingly morphed back into him and grabbed a fresh set of clothes out of the boxes. Along with a little fun with some hair wax that was left in the bathroom… The first destination was the mini mart nearby, I’ve been there a lot of times so I’m a regular in their eyes but what about Arthur? I opened the door and the familiar sound of the bell rings.

“Arthur, it’s been weeks! How have you been?” They greeted me.

I could only grin, “Never better, did I miss anything?”

AN: Reformatted version of a RP I was a part of.

I had no idea what I was in for when I actually agreed to a “meetup” from an online interaction. She made a promising proposal and all of the details she gave me seemed to be legit when I did some research on my end. I guess the fact that it was in a rather secure area reassured me that I’d be safe if anything went wrong. I didn’t have much to bring with me that day, not even my backpack, just my phone and wallet before I took a ride to get where the location was.

With a knock at the door, a woman opened it shortly afterwards. We kinda stared at each other for a brief moment, this was our first meet up in person after all, but after she gestured me in, I wondered if it was already too late to go back. My stomach sinks a little when she closes the door before she leads the way into a bedroom.

You’d generally have an idea on whose room this is supposed to be from appearances or smell. Here, it was likely a man based on the strong smell of cologne with a tinge of sweat in the air, with a slight hint of something that I couldn’t put a finger on. My eyes widen when I look at the bed, she really didn’t give me a name but he’s definitely larger in person, on top of that, I can see why a lot of people would fall for him on appearances alone.

He was sleeping soundly in bed, I quickly stepped back when she grabbed onto the sheets and pulled them away revealing that he sleeps wearing nothing but his boxers. I turn my attention towards her but she doesn’t seem remotely nervous that she just attempted to wake him up. I can hear a soft groan out of him but it dies down immediately but that led me to notice the bottle on the bedside table. I recognize them as strong sleeping drugs, so that’s what that faint smell was, I recall that brand being rather potent. So it was going to take more than ripping the blanket off of him to wake him up.

Next, she handed me a plastic bottle that held a liquid that definitely wasn’t water. If I didn’t know any better, I would have guessed it was fruit juice but I’m completely aware that this was related to our deal. I hesitated before turning the cap open but I pressed on, I gave the drink a quick whiff. Huh, I never would have expected the smell of cinnamon, I guess it was to make it more inviting. And that was when I took a sip out of it…

It was a tad spicy and really pungent but it was tolerable. It was a bizarre feeling, the more I emptied the bottle, the strange tingling sensation that I’ve gotten from drinking it intensified. I turn to her once I’ve emptied the bottle.

Her next request was for me to take off my clothes but I didn’t really go all the way, I still had my undergarments on to spare my own sanity. She then asked to get on top of the bed, I was still cautious and a tad hesitant but I did it anyway. It was rather tense for me to be this close to this hunky American man in contrast to my scrawny form.

The tingling sensation I’ve been feeling? It was similar to a magnetic pull now, I can feel a slight tug right at the center of his chest. I hover my hand above it and it took a lot of effort for me to pull away but I can feel a pair of hands pushing against my back causing me to land right into him. Instead of a collision, I was sinking right into him like a rock in magma, slowly pulling me deeper and deeper until I’m completely engulfed by his body.

According to her, his body expanded the moment I was fully submerged. Before his body began to convulse for a few moments. And that was when I opened my eyes. When I did, I smirked when I glanced down to discover my new physique along with a familiar pair of boxers on me. I became flustered the longer I looked down.

“Should we do something about that? Or do you not wanna seal the deal that quickly” She quickly proposed.

“Heh, maybe I have to treat myself first, get me comfortable with him and his added bulk” I actually coughed right after I said that, god, even my voice sounds different.

“Do you want me to massage your body then?” She offered.

I give her a slight nod. “Please. I want to feel how different my body feels.”

When she took a step forward, I said the first thing that came into mind. “You know what you're signing up for if I start making noises, right?”

She gestured to me to sit right in front of a mirror as her hands ran all over my new muscles. Squeezing my thick pecs, a chest so big I would have never imagined having one until I took over this body, well, merged sounded more accurate. Her hands then work over and caress my thick arms. I raised them up to flex in the mirror and began to get turned on by how big they got when I flexed. She tried to squeeze them but these muscles were so strong and firm. Then her hands rub down my newfound abs.

“Ah, this feels so good. He, no, I feel so good. This bulk... This muscle... it's mine now right?” I let out.

“Yes, baby, it’s yours. Do you want it to be yours for good?” She replied and for some reason, hearing the nickname felt familiar somehow.

“It's so tempting... I could get used to having your hands all over me like this.” I said before frowning, "There... was still turning back on this right?" I thought to myself as I absentmindedly flexed my muscles out of blind interest.

She looked at me in the eyes pure of desire. “Baby, the longer you stay there, the more you’ll become my hunk of a boyfriend. With the body you’ve always wanted. The smaller man is piloting this big hunky white stud permanently.” She replied before planting her lips against mine.

“This feels like I'm about to sign a contract.” I said after pulling away, laughing slightly.

She lets out another moan. “It does, baby, but you get a hot bod with a hot girlfriend out of it so what’s the harm?”

I didn’t give my answer much thought. “Yeah... This feels like heaven..."

"Then stay. I'll make it worth your while."

And also a huge thanks for the support on the stories as well!

Here's to more stories and may you get your dream bodies through the power of science or the fantastical whims of the universe. I know I did!

If you're looking for other stories to read, then definitely check out @thegreatstoryteller, @nonotnolan, @soul-controller, and @verus-veritas.

Alfie opens up his closet, scanning around as if he was looking for something before he reaches out and moves some of his clothes aside to reveal an outfit hidden at the back. He doesn’t hesitate to take them out and stare at them longingly in hands. He held a sun hat, a muscle shirt, and a pair of shorts in his hands, all of these was an outfit that he wouldn’t wear in his life, that’s what he tells himself but there’s evidence proving otherwise. He opens up his phone and digs up a fairly old photo saved in it.

He couldn’t deny that this was him in the photograph but despite that he couldn’t believe it and a lot of comments on social media seem to think so. He stares at it for a moment before setting his phone aside and instantly decides to put on the outfit out of sheer curiosity.

When he walks up to the mirror, he instantly frowns at the sight of his own reflection.

"I need him in here instead. He pulls it off so much better than I could for some reason." He mumbles to himself.

He could tell that there was something missing but he couldn’t pin exactly what that was. His train of thought was cut short once he heard his phone’s ringtone going off, he checks the caller name to see the name “Rhett” and doesn’t think twice about accepting the call.

“Hey, man, what’s up?” He greeted.

“I need your help, Alf!” Rhett opens up in a panic and Alfie’s expression turns serious.

“What’s wrong?” Alfie asked calmly.

“We need to switch like ASAP!” Rhett replied and the response caused Alfie to tense up and awkwardly stare at himself in the mirror, in his out of place outfit, for a moment before shifting his focus back to the topic at hand.

“Whoa, whoa, where’s this coming from? And why do you want it right away?” Alfie questioned.

"Look, after you went to my monthly sales meeting last time we switched, everyone expects that behavior from me, but I just don't have the attention span. Help a bro out! Call any girl in my contacts if you want, just wear protection." Rhett begged.

Alfie smirks, “I don’t know-” He teased.

“Bro, please, I-” Rhett is cut off when he hears Alfie chuckling on the other end.

“Dude, relax.” Alfie reassured, “I was gonna say yes to it anyway. Get over here, there's a slot in the switching device with your name on it.”

“Oh hell yeah, thanks, bro! I’m driving over there now!” Rhett said excitedly before the call drops.

Alfie sighs once he pulls the phone away and his attention shifts back to the mirror, his eyes widened before rushing back to his closet to grab a more normal outfit for him to wear. Once he was done changing, he grabs the switching device and plugs it in for it to warm up. It was a curious device, it was about the size of a bulky speaker with two metal bands connected to it. Who would have thought that he found a body switching device when he found it inside his closet in his college dorm years ago and had been using it with his friend Rhett ever since whenever they could.

What Alfie didn’t expect was his friend Rhett banging on his door earlier than he expected and the fact that he was holding up a garment bag. Rhett was out of breath when he arrived and Alfie let him catch his breath before finally explaining his situation.

“My office suddenly decided that we should have another sales meeting disguised as a formal event, they even rented me a suit for tonight! Even my boss was expecting me to ‘make the most out of this event’ like last time. And I would have been boned at the last one if you weren’t filling in for me.” Rhett explained with a clear mix of panic and annoyance.

“You can’t handle it this time?” Alfie wondered.

“Bro, I can only sit through so many talks about investments before I just go cross eyed!” Without skipping a beat, Rhett grabs one of the metal bands and straps it on his forehead. “C’mon, Alf, the sooner we do this, the sooner you can make a good first impression for me!”

Alfie sighs but smirks, “You know you owe big time for this.” He teased before walking over to put on a metal band on his head himself.

“I gotchu, man. I already put in a word with Julia for you.” Rhett teased with a smirk of his own.

“W-What?” Alfie replied completely flustered.

“Bro, I read your texts to her-”

“She likes you, man. Don’t make crap up!” Alfie retorted defensively.

Rhett just smiles, “Sure, bro, keep telling yourself that. She’ll figure it out eventually.”

“I doubt-”

“And start!” Rhett cut him off as he switched the device on and they were rewarded with the sensation of being ripped apart for a split second before blacking out.

Alfie lets out a soft whistle once Rhett walks out of the bathroom after changing into the outfit that was given to him. “Damn, bro, how do you make me look so sophisticated?”

Rhett just shrugs, “I don’t know, I still haven’t figured out how you managed to make me look good in that photo back then.”

Alfie grins. “I can do it again while you’re out, bro.”

Rhett just stares at him before Alfie raises his hands defensively. “Relax, bro, I won’t post it this time. Just make sure you take a good look at yourself once we’re back.” Alfie said with a wink and Rhett just rolled his eyes in response.

“Okay, anything else I need to know before I drive off?” Rhett asked.

“You know it, I booked you a room in a hotel nearby and-”

Rhett grins, “You’re being ridiculous.” He said as he walked to the door and left.

Once the door is closed, Rhett holds up his phone and grins at the sight of the notification from Julia.

‘Can’t wait to see you tonight.’

She opens up a door, peers inside it...

She shakes her head and closes the door once she discovers that what she was looking for wasn't in there. Afterwards she starts walking up to the door right next to it.

She quickly gags as the stench of alcohol and vomit floods out the door, she didn't even look who or what was inside before closing it.

"Definitely not there..." She mutters, before giving herself several moments to catch her breath. Once the horrendous smell was out of her system, she felt comfortable enough to move around again.

As she walks further down the hall, she notes how massive this place was. It was a mansion after all, but with each room she opened, each one was something different. One was even a room filled with art pieces and pottery in full display and one filled with dogs and a person tending to the pack.

She opens up another door, it was a study, and notices the person by the lamplight, he doesn't notice her standing by the doorway. His attention was fully centered around the book he was holding.

"Lucas!"

He tenses up for a brief moment before turning to the direction of the voice.

"Caitlin?" He questioned.

She lets out a sigh before walking up to him. "I've been looking everywhere for you!" She announced.

He shrugs, "I told you that these kinds of parties aren't my vibe... Loud music and getting drunk? Yeah, hard pass."

She shudders at the idea of the smell from one of the doors earlier, she shakes her head to get it off her mind. "What are you doing here, anyway?" She asked.

He closes the book and shows her the cover.

"Sound of Thunder, I’m surprised that Sean even has these kinds of books in his place. You think this place belongs to his dad or something?" He wondered.

She opens her mouth to try to respond, but decides against it. She walks up to him, grabs him by the wrist, and drags him out.

"Whoa, Cait, wait, let me just-" He remarked trying to reach towards the bookshelf.

"Just bring it with you, I doubt Sean would care about a book."

"Where are we going?"

"I want to show you something."

She eventually lets him go as she leads him through the long winding halls and a bunch of staircases. Admittedly, she wasn't too familiar with the place herself but she remembers which way she came through.

It took around several minutes before they made it to a door. Shortly after she places her hand on the knob, he turns to Lucas.

"You might not like the smell in here." She warns.

He raises an eyebrow, "What do you mean by that?"

She smirks at him before opening the door. The air reeked of alcohol, vomit, and sweat. Lucas gagged just breathing it in, Caitlin was unfazed, it wasn't as bad as the one door she opened earlier, she could deal with it.

She switches on the lights and the room illuminates. It was a bedroom, Lucas focuses on the figure on the bed.

"Is that?"

"Meet our host, several shots of whatever later." Caitlin comments. "Trust me, he was worse when he was sober and barely sober." She added while they stare at the hungover body of Sean in his bed.

"So... What are we doing here? Sean looks too wasted to wake up now."

"Like I said, I wanted to show you something, but first..." She walks back to the door, Lucas hears the door being locked before she walks back to Sean.

"Hey, Lucas, try not to freak out." She says as she places her hand around Sean's arm.

"What are yo-"

She ignores Lucas and pulls, but instead of Sean being pulled, a ghostly arm is pulled out of his body. She pulls harder until a ghostly version of Sean is separated out of his body. Lucas doesn't realize that he's backed up against the door out of fear. He bites his lip before walking up to Caitlin, he eyes her and the ghostly Sean.

He tries to grab onto his arm...

But his hand phases right through him. He turns to Caitlin.

"W-Who... Wh-What are you?"

"I think the closest term to it is medium." She replies nonchalantly. "You know a speaker with ghosts and stuff."

“I know what a medium means, I just… didn’t expect…” He gestures towards Sean and his separated ghostly form. “That.”

“Alright, your turn, gimme your hand.” Caitlin ordered.

Lucas flinches. “Whoa, whoa, why?”

Caitlin rolls her eyes before focusing on Lucas. “You really didn’t think I invited you here to party, did you?”

“It's definitely out of character for you, that’s for sure. But I thought, you know… you wanted to try it out for the hell of it.” Lucas replied.

“Hell no. This place is the perfect opportunity to nab Mr. Moneybags over here while he’s completely wasted. Money’s been a bit tight for me for weeks now and I needed a get rich quick scheme.” She explained.

“Okay…” He said doubtfully. “So why do you need me here then?”

Caitlin’s expression shifts to slight annoyance. “There’s no way Sean’s just gonna hand me the money.” Then she smirks. “But you inside Sean’s body definitely will.”

Lucas’ blood goes cold. “HOLD ON! WHY CAN’T YOU DO IT YOURSELF?!”

“Medium’s can’t rip out their own souls obviously. Besides, you get to be a rich and muscular jock for a bit, sounds like a win win to me.” She replied nonchalantly.

“It’s definitely more nuanced than that!” He retorts. “What about my body? Would it die without ‘me’ in here?”

“Oh, I’ll just put Sean’s ghost in there-”

“Like hell you are! He’ll ruin my life!”

She sighs. “He won’t, I just tell him that I won’t switch you back if he even attempts to ruin it. It’ll be fine.”

“Through blackmail?”

Caitlyn glares at him and he immediately deflates before sighing. “Fine, I’ll do it.” He says as he offers his arm to her. She gives him a slight smile before reaching out, grabbing him by the arm, and then pulls. He immediately blacks out afterwards.

…

“How do you feel?”

“Guh… Like a truck ran over my brain… Hang on…”

“Give it time, you’ll get used to it.”

“Said the woman who’s not in the hungover body… Huh… Not bad.”

“You like what you see?”

“Yeah…”