#preppification

Were he the paranoid type he'd be hung up on how they all greeted him in the same sing-song manner, each repetition rising and falling in exactly the same friendly regard. But Ty’s not looking for things to set him on edge. He’s got work to do. And besides, the men were all clearly different! Despite their distracting bodies and similar shorts, every one was obviously unique.

And yet, with every new adonis running past, Ty can’t help but let his strange suspicions flourish, something weird is going on here. And yet, every time he enters his new spacious domicile he easily discards all discomfort.He’s not about to talk himself out of the best break he’s had in ages because some hot men were friendly to him in a slightly weird way.

Besides, maybe he’ll get into running himself! Bet they have a running club here even. Looking down at his unimpressive body, a little sweatier than it should be from the manual labor he was forced to do, Ty laughs and deposits his final box. Perhaps he should get in better shape before subjecting himself to standing alongside those chiseled joggers. Ty wistfully stares off as another jogger dashes past. Who knows though, in time maybe-

DING DONG

Books Ty was thoughtlessly unpacking drop to the floor as he flinches from hearing a doorbell so loud he can almost feel it in his bones. Shaking free from his stupor he makes a  note to do something about that as he goes to get the door. Checking his reflection in a gaudy mirror near the threshold, he does his best to brush back a cowlick and straighten his clearly sweaty tee to put his best foot forward.

Finally getting the door, Ty is greeted by a young black man holding some kitschy fruit bouquet. “Hey! Welcome to Apolline Grove, I’m your neighbor, Ash!” Seamlessly adjusting the uneven weight of his little fruit statuary, Ash reaches out a hand to shake and after pushing down the nerves from suddenly being face to face with a man he deigns far hotter than himself, Ty’s quick to respond with his own. Seeing the man’s slightly awkward smile brings some peace to Ty. 

Something about Ash feels worlds different to every other person thus far in Apolline who’s gawked at him or been stared at in turn. If he didn’t know any better he’d say Ash almost felt more, human? Of course, that’s crazy, Ash is simply the first one’s met face to face. Introducing himself, he turns to welcome Ash into his new home, apologizing for the mess his neighbor obviously already knew would clutter the place.  His new neighbor happily chats as he walks in, “It’ll be so nice to have a new face around! Before you I was the newest resident and Apolline is kinda, well…”

There’s a long pause as Ash stares off into the distance,  suddenly lost in thought. Eager to help, Ty quickly tries to fill in the blank, “Weird, maybe? I swear earlier people were staring at me like, uh-” Ash grimaces as Ty starts to denigrate the town, leading him to quickly apologize, “Sorry I didn’t mean to insult your place I- I’m sure it was just in my head…” Tilting his head with a grin, Ash laughs as Ty, “Nah nah, don’t sweat it Ty. I remember being caught off guard myself when I first moved in, really at first I just thought that everyone might’ve been super racist. But after living here a couple of weeks I know that couldn’t be further from the truth.”

Ty watches as his new neighbor sets down his housewarming gift on a kitchen counter. Something about his words prickle under Ty’s skin, like something’s shifted within him since they met but moments ago. Yet, committed to making the absolute best of his new life to be, he steadfastly ignores it to instead try and get more intel from his obviously normal neighbor. “Further from the truth huh… So you’ve lived here long, or?”

“Just about a month actually!” Biting his lip, Ty can no longer ignore the pecs opportunity before him and takes a deep breath before sidling up to the man hunk, ‘New place, New Ty’ looping in his mind all the while. Playfully leaning over the counter and arching his back, Ty overperforms the coquette  and makes his intentions more than clear. “Sooo, uhh, would you mind showing me around town then Ash?” 

For a brief second Ty sees the man’s brilliant smile grow wider, uncomfortably similar to the almost alien grin of the joggers. But then he blinds and it’s as it ever was, a shy grin that does not befit his eyecatching muscularity. Immediately disarmed despite the omnipresent Apolline strangeness peaking around Ash’s edges, Ty giggles as Ash offers to help, “That sounds so gr- delightful Ty!” Were he not deliberately shooting down all suspicions, he might notice the clear proof of them being made manifest as Ash begins to think about their community.

Standing there silently planning their sojourn tomorrow, Ash stares at Ty as he unpacks. Offering a  helping hand, Ty is too distracted issuing a plan to notice how his neighbor’s less polished edges are smoothed away, how his lopsided grin twitches into something nearing perfection, how his natural curls begin to shift and tighten. When his tight tank is strained even more by pecs noticeably larger than they were when they met minutes ago, Ty only grows more distracted from the unnatural world surrounding him.

Unaware of the creeping alterations drifting across Ash, Ty turns away to quietly celebrate securing some time with the sheepish hunk. “Thank goddd~ Moving to the suburbs I was so worried there wouldn’t be another gay man to show me the ropes. Bet you know all the secrets huh?”

Ty’s plodding attempt at flirting finally stirs Ash from whatever reverie he had gotten lost in. Focus returns to his eyes as he rubs the back of his head awkwardly, not noticing himself how his hair has almost begun to tighten itself into braids, “Hah! Yeah, something like that.” 

Returning to his sure to be days-long quest of unpacking, Ty slows as he notices Ash starting strangely at his furniture, “Oh! That stuff isn’t mine, I think they said it was left by the previous tenant?” Worried he’s embarrassed his new neighbor, Ash quickly waves him down, “Nono, I’m not judging you or anything it’s just- I swear it looks exactly like my furniture?”

“Huh?” Muted as the alarm bells in his head may be, this pings as strange. Why would his leasing agent lie? Clenching his jaw he wonders how many gift horses is he to ignore before it’s all just too much. The answer is at least this one more, though as he again finds himself lost in Ash’s bulging biceps it’s clear that he’s well past the point of no return. When Ash starts helping him unpack the monotony of finally getting work done quickly smooths over any lingering anxieties. Ty finds himself more comfortable by the second alongside his new neighbor.

“So, Ty, are you much of a gym guy?” 

Thankfully he laughs before embarrassment can take hold, “Ahah~ Not quite no. Much more of an eat just enough to survive and never put on weight kinda guy. Not all of us can be hunks like you!”

Shuffling as if the observation made him antsy, Ash awkwardly laughs before looking around. “Between you and me Ty, I used to be the exact same! I didn't really start hitting the gym until I moved here actually!

Ty laughs overly hard, as he would do for any man whose pants he’s trying to get into, assuming this was a joke. But it’s clear from the odd look Ash gives him that he’s at least trying to be serious. Ty lets it go though and soon enough he’s hit by a wave of weariness signaling it might be time to wrap up. 

Catching the hint unsaid, Ash does a little twirl to seem breezy as he starts to depart, “Sooo, you uh, good to get that tour around tomorrow morning, neighbor?”

Pursing his lips to play coy, Ty winks, “I guess~ Though let’s not start too early haha!” 

And that’s that. Almost as soon as the front door closes behind him does Ty collapse on his new bed. Firmer than he likes it, but he thinks that’s probably good for you. At any rate, it does little to stop sleep from swiftly overtaking him.

There he has dreams stranger than he could possibly imagine. Used to the standard fare, he’s had plenty of nightmares about teeth falling out or forgetting pants, dreams where he wins it all or simply has a bizarre encounter with the fantastic. This was something else. More like a commercial than the subconscious.

Colors are too bright as the lens of his mind soars down the Main Street of Apolline Grove, the stark green grassy lawns beckon him onward ever faster. From all around him voices echo in the same intonation as the offputting runners ‘Welcome to Apolline Grove!’ As they do, the colors almost grow even more vivid, uncomfortably so. Usually able to stir himself awake, he tries to exercise any control over the dreamscape only to find himself bound to whatever his subconscious demands.

As if sensing his discomfort the voice from all around him continues, sylvan and robotic at once. “Worry not Tyler, soon you will acclimate just like your friend Ashton before you! Apolline Grove is all the better to have you, and you, it. Please, allow me to help you better enjoy your new life.” Squirming in his sleep, there’s a sharp migraine that tinges the dream-lit sky above him red before suddenly he can’t feel anything but pleasure. Where there was only moments ago a tight grimace on his restful face, there is now a loose grin. 

The wider world begins to rapidly fade as it hones in on his home. dream. There he sees himself and Ashton- Ash, standing side by side. Only Ash looks taller, his jaw sharper, his thick arm resting across Ty’s back. There’s a momentary stutter and Ty sees his own dream self begin to change. Before he can truly witness whatever transformation was starting to occur, he finally jolts awake.

Lying in a pool of sweat, Ty pants and clutches at his jaw as a sharp pain burns down the whole side of his face. He knows exactly what it is as he stumbles to his feet. Leaving sweaty footprints on the cold floor as he makes his way to the bathroom to find the cavity he’s been ignoring having worsened into a cracked tooth. 

Only, when he checks his teeth in the mirror they all look pristine. As if he’s never had a sweet in his life. His pupils shake as he intently inspects the tooth he knows should be busted only to find it perfectly inline, perfectly white. Drifting back Ty gasps and almost falls over himself as he sees all four wisdom teeth apparently regrown and in place.

Taking a step back he offers his reflection a cautionary smile. His lips try to sit as they always have but something’s off, they’re almost sore. His shy smile, crafted to hide his slight tooth gap, keeps stretching wider. And that’s when he notices the gap itself is gone. It’s this that convinces himself that he must still be dreaming.

Ignoring how real it all feels, Ty stumbles back into his bed. Resolutely ignoring anything that he thinks he might have seen, Ty forces his eyes shut and waits for that easy sleep to return. Even doing so, he can’t help but let his tongue explore his new smile. So smooth. His mind echoes that voice as if it were one of his own thoughts, “I want to belong.”

Next thing Ty knows is that it’s a brand new day. Sunshine pours through open blinds and shines directly across his face. Before he can even stretch, the sound of his doorbell blaring sends him crashing out of bed and rushing to find out who could possibly be bothering him this early.

So focused on telling this apparent morning bird a thing or two, Ty doesn’t notice how his shirt has disappeared, nor how his shoulders are slightly wider and chest decidedly firmer. Sweatpants cut into his thicker waist as he stumbles on wider soles to his front door.  Nor is his changed appearance commented upon by Asg when at last he gets the door. “Oh! Ash, so sorry, I uh- I guess we have different interpretations of what morning really means.”

There’s a pause as Ty inspects his new neighbor, pointedly ignoring how he looks distinctly far more like the version of himself that haunted his dream rather than the slightly gawkish man who helped him unpack yesterday. After realizing he’s appraising him he stumbles out an apology and beckons him in to wait while he gets ready, “Shit! Ash, uhhh, I thought? Nevermind, please  come in, it’ll just be like five minutes!” 

“Of course dear! Though if you wouldn’t mind, it’s Ashton. And don’t forget to pack a change of clothes for after the gym! You’d hate to work up a sweat and half to run home all soiled haha!”

Each further idea introduced is like a punch directly into Ty’s head. Dear? Ashton?  The gym!? “Wait I thought you were just showing me around, when- did, did we say gym?”

“Well now, that’s exactly what we had discussed is it not? Unless I dreamed the whole thing up haha! You were hesitant, but I believe in the end you were quite excited Ty.  I’ve got a protein coffee here for you and everything! Just the way you like it!” 

Slowly nodding, Ty feels himself believing the man’s words whether he wants to or not. Thinking back he shas the vague memory of talking about the gym, but did they, did he? When Ashton holds out the drink Ty reflexively accepts it and begins sipping, the taste of mocha protein powder and coffee mixing fills him with a familiarity he knows it should not. 

Well, regardless, it would be quite rude to raincheck on his neighbor after all this effort on his part.  He continues drinking the beverage as he wanders back to his bedroom to change. Just the- the way he likes it. His eyes glaze over as he takes in a wardrobe rearranged, sizes slightly larger, styles slightly shifted, reaching into a dresser he pulls out some gym clothes he certainly never bought for himself. But why else would they be here?

Holding them up to check his reflection though, he can’t deny they look good. He looks good. “Ugghh, I guess Ashton’s got a point.” Throwing on the outfit he can’t push away the idea that he does want to belong, to be better. Walking past his extra bedroom, now scattered with gym paraphernalia, before Ty knows it he’s back in the living room where he’s met by a smile creeping wider on Ashton’s face, “Golly! You look great hon! I trust you already finished your coffee?”

Pushing down fluttering in his chest at Ashton calling him hon, Ty starts to shake his head before checking to find he has indeed downed the whole protein coffee. Before he can even wonder what’s gotten into his head he begins to feel the chugged caffeine coursing through him. And with its rushing energy, so too fades the lofty burden of decision making, the unnecessary price of volition.  Ashton smiles and goes to get the door, “Off we go then!”

Ty blinks and then he’s running down the street just behind Ashton, who apparently in the meantime ditched his own shirt. Jogging along, Ty can scarcely believe he’s running along the same sidewalks as all these men leagues more attractive than he sees himself. Back in the city the shame of being perceived like this is exactly what kept him from the gym, from running in public. And yet here, for whatever reason the idea of such shame almost feels foreign.

Shedding frets and fears, anxieties and anguish, Ty’s strides grow with confidence as unbeknownst to him his legs begin to lengthen. Following in Ashton’s wake as he bounds down the street on this sleepy Apolline morning, a smile widens on his face as he nods at fellow neighbors doing the same. They don’t see him as lesser. This he knows. Though they also do not see him as one of them just yet. 

Filled with enough energy as to cause what feels like delirium, when the neighbors finally arrive at the gym, Ty may as well be putty in Ashton’s hands. Hands which almost constantly find themselves on Ty’s body. While his legs may have begun to bloom on his morning jog, it is time for the work on his upper body to begin, and Ashton is thrilled to induct his torso into the upper echelon of strength.

His wide palms cup Ty’s chest as he explains exactly what the purpose of pecs are to the man who has never set foot in a gym before. Ty doesn’t hear though, he simply stares into Ashton’s eyes wondering if his own are as blank. When he begins doing chest presses he can’t help but delight in the feeling of new muscle burning into existence. With every pump he feels the traces of Ashton’s fingers playing along chords of muscle that throb with the desire to do more, to be more. Rep after rep in search of a failure that is never to come, Ty boasts a chest that is beyond apparent, nipples clearly seen through his new gym shirt.

Long, somehow uncalloused, fingers trail down Ty’s thin arms as he begins doing arm curls in heady desire of proper biceps. The curls mainline serotonin directly to his nervous system as he stares hungrily at the throbbing muscles as it amasses strength. His jaw is clenched hard enough for it to lock in place as the weight in his hands somehow grows heavier with every rep. And so too biceps he has always drooled over peak higher on his arms.

Grunting through curl after curl, Ty’s newly meaty arms glisten with a delicious haze in sweat as their bulge with a pump he didn’t know was attainable. As he deposits his free weights in a slot made for far heavier dumbbells than the ones he picked up, Ty at last catches his reflection in some machinery and the burning blood in his veins goes cold as ice.

Turning to inspect his impossibly changed form next to his neighbor-turned-trainer Ashton, he balks at just how similar they have suddenly become. Still half a foot shorter and a few dozen pounds lighter, Ty can’t believe the sudden apotheosis he has begun to undergo. Rushing over to the pristine glass, he clutches at his jaw as he sees it sharpen with every further second inspection. 

His pale skin shines tanner under the fluorescent lights. As he attempts to tousle his hair he finds it falls back in exactly the same style, if not even more alluring than it was before, as his fingers trail through it the locs even begin to lighten to an unnatural blonde. Having broken free from whatever force has been having its way with his body he turns to Ashton scowling, “What the fuck did you do to me!” Across the gym everyone stops their progress as Ashton almost flinches away from the vulgarity.

“Tyler! Come now, this is what you craved when you moved to Apolline Grove is it not? A Fresh Start, a new self. To belong.” Being called Tyler struck him like a blow, and with each new assertion, Ty feels his resistance further wane. He does want to belong, to be more. That would always require change, wouldn’t it?

“Please Ashton… I don’t know what’s fu- fffreaking happening…” With a start he turns away from his neighbor to see his reflection as its transformation continues. Lines of sculpted abs he hasn’t even begun to work out begin etching onto his torso as a rich tan drips down from wider shoulders. Ashton begins sauntering forward, carefully putting a hand on his shoulders and using the other to ensure Ty keeps taking in his transformation.

Ashton whispers in his ear, “I tried to resist as well. I was foolish. Give in, just be with me.” Allowing himself to look into Ashton’s eyes, he doesn’t know if it’s just a further trick, but he sees true human yearning. To never be alone, to never want, to be one with the community.

Despite wherever resistance remains in the back of his mind, Tyler returns his attention back to his own reflection. Raising an arm to pose, he allows a blank smile to crest over his face. He feels the man behind him, his neighbor, not so much his other half as his right arm. He feels in ways he could never grasp before now. Finally Tyler understands what it means to be an Apolline man.

Two weeks later there’s quite a commotion outside of Tyler and Ashton’s shared home. Pulling up in a pick up truck with a loaded up trailer trailing behind is a rather punkish looking young man. Clearly perturbed from something or another on the way in, Ashton turns to Tyler and they wordlessly agree to go be the welcoming committee for their new neighbor. 

Walking up after Ashton holds out a handshake and offers to help him unpack, Tyler for the first time says those words that have been echoing through his mind since he first began moving in “Welcome to Apolline Grove!” The punk is clearly off guard by the two smiling men, but certainly happy at the prospect of getting moved in quicker; he's not about to shoot them down.