#scp5091

A Case of SCP-5091: Sir Skeleton

In New York, you can be a new man—that was what my father told me before departing on the Midnight Train a long time ago. I didn’t understand him at first, didn’t know what a ‘New York’ was, all I knew was my home Nevermeant just outside of Alagadda. But after his disappearance, I’ve heard tall tales of men with skin, flesh, and organs vastly different from us bones. This ‘New York’ had been the subject of my father’s desire, so it wasn’t out of the question that he took the train towards that place.

It had been more than a century ago, but I distinctly remember how my father longed to be a man of flesh—he’d read from the scriptures how we once had bodies of flesh too, before being casted off to Nevermeant with the Sarkics, but there was a way to regain our bodies and that is to wear another being’s. I casted it off as yet another fairytale of the Alagaddians, it seemed bizarre, nonsensical, yet the Sarkics talked of the ‘other world’ like it was paradise.

I didn’t understand it at that time, but after crossing this world, I finally understood my father.

I’ve been here in New York for more than an entire year now, there were no signs of my father, but I couldn’t care less. I’ve learned the art of stealing another person’s skin rather quickly, and every single ‘skinsuit’ I’ve taken has been very accepting. I’ve changed bodies over the course of the year though; whenever I see a flesh I desire, I just wait for the right time to steal it.

This one, for example. We met at a bar downtown, back when I was wearing Thomas. His name is George, and I’ve been wearing him for nearly a month now. His skin has served me well since, not only was he the conventionally attractive male, but he was so far the best among the men I’ve picked.

Here’s the thing with the bodies I’ve used, I only pick the men for three reasons: One, is that despite not having any genitalia in my real form, I have always been referred to as ‘Sir’ like my father. Two, there really is just something that attracts me to human males—their form is enticing both for me to wear and generally enjoy gazing at.

And third, well, there’s something about the appendage they call the ‘penis’, or vulgarly as ‘cock’, that fills me with an inexplicable amount of pleasure that I have never experienced in my nearly one millennia of existence in the Nevermeant. It was a strange feeling—the mere act of pleasuring oneself had never occurred to me until the second human that I wore, Lex.

The first human whose skin I occupied was on impulse. I felt bare as soon as I disembarked from the train and found myself pulling his body away into a skinsuit, leaving him bare bones as I wore his skin. It didn’t even last me a full day when I saw Lex—I remember stripping the skinsuit off myself as fast as I could, before ambushing Lex from behind and knocking him out.

As soon as I did, I had stripped him out of his clothes, and did the same process of pulling his skin, flesh, and organs clean for myself. I remember the excitement I felt as soon as I slipped inside him, and more so once I wore him. That was the first time I had experienced a ‘boner’.

I remember how obscene yet exhilarating it was when I did it out in the open, behind a vehicle parked in an alley. My new appendage was stiff as a rod at that point, and although I couldn’t access the memories of the real owners of the bodies I use, I had the overwhelming urge to grasp it, and stroke it in a manner that was both familiar and at the same time unfamiliar to me. I was rewarded by immense pleasure, once I reached the point of sweet release. At that point, I had decided to only use male bodies.

Back to the present time, George had already served his purpose to me. Some bodies last shorter, a couple have lasted me months, but I felt like it was time to retire this skinsuit and look for a new one that I hope I could use for months. And where else is the best place to look for them, but in the gym?

Over time, I learned how to either fake identities, or try my best to act as if I was the person I was wearing—though the latter takes some time since I need to get to know them well first. The same case was with George, though I feel like trying on a new body and creating a new identity this time.

Visiting the gym was like going to a clothing store, at least for me. There’s so much skin to pick from and wear, and I could already feel life stirring inside my pants yet again at the idea. George frequented this one gym that had just the type of men that I go for, and it was around the most bustling gyms near me too.

As soon as I strode in, I skipped the locker room. I carried nothing but myself in, and went straight to where the men worked out. I was hit by the smell of musk and sweat filling the entire place the instant I stepped in, and I licked my lips hungrily, already eyeing a few men. I went straight towards the end of the room where I had a good vantage point. Once I had settled there, I started warming up and stretching whilst looking around, surveying the room with a sweeping gaze.

To my left, were what seemed like a group of friends about George’s age. I could opt for them too, but I decided I wanted to get someone a little older. As soon as my eyes left them, I spotted someone walking in towards the locker room. It was a huge guy, and a grin crept up my mouth as soon as I saw him enter.

I decided to follow him, weaving past a couple of other gym-goers who had been eyeing me as soon as I walked in. I winked at them and gave them a smirk, before going my way—which was probably the last time I’ll ever get to do so in George’s skin.

The locker room was nearly empty, besides the man unpacking his duffel bag on the bench. He was too busy sorting through his things that he didn’t even notice me slowly making my way towards him.

He was a little taller than me, much bulkier, and actually a little more attractive than George. I could see sweat glistening on his black hair which was damp with sweat and he’d already stripped his shirt off, hand going forward to reach for the dark gray top that laid on the bench. He might have gone on a jog prior on the way here, and he had his airpods on, still unaware of my presence.

I positioned myself quietly behind him as he started to push his head inside his top. I quickly slipped off George’s skin, letting it slump beneath me as I revealed my true form: a walking skeleton.

I reached forward, my bony hands finding their way towards the man’s hair, and the other onto his nape. He gasps once I grabbed his hair, and then yanked it back as I did with the skin on his nape. He was tight, much to my glee, as I slowly yanked skin and flesh off of him. Like I did earlier, his skin and flesh slipped off his bone frame quickly, dropping onto the ground in a pile as I held in my hand a perfect skinsuit that looked like a deflated version of the man while his sweatpants slipped off.

Like a person would with a brand new coat, I immediately stretched the skinsuit’s mouth open enough to accommodate me. It was a little heavy, mostly because of this man’s muscle mass, but I found it a little easy to squeeze in.

Part by part, I aligned myself in, hearing a satisfying pop and a barrage of sensations the moment I fit the right limbs together. My new member immediately sprang to action once I had my lower torso fitted in, I found myself already very eager as I finally wore my new arms like a glove. The suit’s head was still hanging on my neck, but I couldn’t resist the urge to bring my new large palms on the tip of my rod, massaging it, and eliciting the wondrous primal feeling of pleasure that I always looked forward to.

Before getting too ahead of myself, I pulled the suit over my head, fitting my face into my new one. Once it was on, I cracked my neck to the side, and cleared my throat to prepare my new voice. Once everything was set, I looked around the shower room, noted the emptiness, and set to work. If I make it quick, I could go for a round before anyone finds me.

And I did, it was yet another great experience. I was now even more hung than George was, and I quickly discarded the piles by stuffing it into one of the old unused lockers. I straddled out of the locker room in my new skin, with the dark gray top, and my member still slightly stiff. I relished my new form, and found myself lifting up my top a little, teasingly, as I snapped a photo.

I grinned at the image, before posting it on this man’s socials. Apparently, his name was Roy. Good name, but I feel like I could go for something else much fitting in this form. Feeling myself getting hot and hard again, I decided to hit the weights across the room, just to test out how much stronger my new body is.

Picking up one of the heaviest wasn’t too much of an issue though, but it was at that moment that I saw someone bench pressing that I felt myself staring. He was just as huge as I was, the same age, but he sported a more boyish look especially with his short chestnut hair. I glanced at myself in the huge mirrors momentarily, hesitating.

Roy’s body is great, but something inside me was gravitating towards the other guy. It was only when he finished doing his reps and walked away from the bench press that I could see a bulge, an outline of something beneath the shorts he wore.

I found myself dropping the equipment I was holding, and then slowly followed him on his way to the restroom. He was on his phone, so like Roy a while ago, he was a little preoccupied. It was my chance, it was an itch that needed scratching and the urge wouldn’t stop until I'd gotten the chance to wear him too.

He didn’t even notice me enter the restroom, even if it weren’t that big—he was too busy taking boastful selfies in the mirror, doing various poses and flexing his body for whoever was on the other line. I smirked, and walked closer to him while he was busy typing away.

“Looking good, man!” I told him with a tap on his shoulder, snapping him out as he whips around to face me.

“Huh? Oh, thanks—” He starts, spinning around to face me as I quickly ripped Roy’s skinsuit off of my body. The man opened his mouth to scream, but I was a little faster, already yanking his skeleton out of him.

As soon as I held the skinsuit, I locked the door, and quickly worked to slip myself inside him. He weighed nearly the same as Roy, but his insides were much warmer and tighter, so every limb I slipped in gave an even more satisfying pop. I was already rock hard at that point, he was a little girthier than Roy was, though I had to hold it off.

To playfully mock the previous owner of this skin, I briefly put his underwear and shorts back on, and recalled one of his poses earlier, before proceeding to take the same selfie myself.

This guy’s name was Robin, and he had been sending his selfies to his girlfriend. I grimaced at the thought, but rolled my eyes regardless, and turned to tend to my new member already rubbing against the cloth of my shorts. I started to massage it, letting myself moan loudly with my new deep baritone voice, when I heard a banging sound, followed by a swear.

I whipped around, searching for the source of the noise, and found a shadow shifting under one of the stalls. There was someone else in the room, and they might just have witnessed what happened.

I haven’t had the unfortunate incident of anyone seeing me bare bones other than my soon-to-be skinsuits, nor has anyone caught me wearing one, but it seemed as if this one had—and even if he didn’t he’d see the discarded pile of Roy’s flesh and Robin’s bone pile, and assume a crime.

“Is someone there?” I ask, before slowly tip-toeing my way towards the middle stall. There were no more movements, but I was sure the person was here. I mentally slapped my forehead for not thinking to check the stalls before I took Robin. “Hey, are you—”

I was mere inches away from the stall, when its door flew open and pushed hard against me, sending me stumbling back. I felt myself left foot step on something soft, yet slimy, and I was already slipping onto the ground when I caught on.

The man had escaped the stall, and was looking at me and the pile of flesh and bones scattered around me. “What the fuck?” I hear him say, my body screaming in pain as I felt a tear on the back of my skinsuit. Great, it’s been damaged before I could enjoy it.

“I’m out of here.” The man says with a shaky voice, turning towards the door. He was going to escape, and tell people, and they’d find me here. I can’t let that happen.

“No!” I say, quickly slipping out of the Robin skin by tearing through the hole. The man freezes and almost stumbles back in fear, and I took the opportunity to lunge at him. His eyes grew wide a second too late, and I was already onto him. I thrust my hand inside his mouth, the other on his hair, and took him out.

I sighed in frustration, holding his skin up with one hand before staring at the ruined Robin one. I could, of course, opt to get the Roy suit back, but staring at it now, it didn’t look too good either. Since I had stepped on it, I’m sure I might have damaged the insides too.

Not wanting to stay bare for long, I slipped the new suit on begrudgingly. The suit was a little tighter, much to my surprise. I didn’t get much of a good look on this man, but I slipped into his skin perfectly, like it was cut and made specifically for me. It felt the most different so far, both weird, and arousing.

Once I had the entire suit on, I stared at myself in the mirror on the other side of the room. I was much scruffier, in fact, than anyone I’ve ever put on with hair growing on my chest and a beard. I was a little less bulkier than Roy and Robin, yet still felt just as strong and tight, and actually a little more chiseled. I felt the all too familiar urge to feel pleasure, even more so when I tried to suppress it by putting my shorts back on.

I must say, though—I still look good. Maybe it was high time for me to use something a little different, like this guy’s body this time.

I grinned at myself, shrugging, before taking more pictures and eventually, letting loose my tool and resuming what I was supposed to do in Robin’s. I grinned, staring at my new bare body in the mirror, before working on it. Pleasure washed over me at the touch, with both mine and the body’s pent up desire for release, it might just have been even more intense than when I did it with Roy earlier.

I was smeared with my new essence once I was finished, but after handling the piles of flesh and bones around me, I decided to not clean up and let the people stare at the drying globs of white on my beard and chest.

I certainly don’t mind them staring now.

–

That must have been the bravest, most vulgar thing I’ve done. I could still remember the stares, the many uncomfortable shifting and pulling at their shirts and pants. That was fun, and not regrettable at all.

And now, it has been nearly four months since I found this body, the longest I’ve had, so far. I must say, it’s really serving and suiting me well. I’ve opted to keep his name, Santiago, and have long since flew back to Europe, where he belonged. New York had been fun, but I guess it was time for me to find a greener pasture, especially with a new body and identity such as this.

And while I can’t say for certain how long I’ll stay as Santiago, or if I’ll decide to stay like this until this flesh grows too weary, what I can say is that it’s been fun so far. And before that time eventually comes, I’m going to be enjoying the heck out of it, that’s for sure.

Another Case of SCP - 5091: Sir Skeleton

(Branching off from Skin Maketh Man)

???

Dominic snapped awake in the dark with a gasp, though muffled by a cloth that he felt occupied his mouth and secured by what felt like duct tape that kept it shut. He started to panic, breathing wheezing through his nose as he thrashed round—to no avail as he felt his hands bound behind his back on a pole of some sort. His legs were free, yet he couldn’t pull himself up as the restraints on his wrists were too tight.

Thoughts raced inside his head—he didn’t even know how he got here, and come to think of it, his recollections of what led here were blurry. He knew he had been in the club with his buddies, sneaked out of their house, and there was an altercation. Something about a guy groping him. Dominic remembers throwing the first punch, but he couldn’t recall anything else.

“Finally awake, Dominic.” He hears in the darkness. Whatever room he was, it was pitch black and he couldn’t make anything out in the inky darkness. The voice was near though, and it was accompanied by what sounded like rattling bones.

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” Dominic manages to yell. His voice echoed in the darkness, and by the sound of it, he imagined he was in a warehouse of some sort. He struggles against the rope cinched around his wrists. “What do you want from me?”

He heard another rattling, and the hairs on the back of his neck rose when the voice spoke again. “A lot, Dom.” The voice whispered, and he flinched, trying to quick. The voice sounded a little hollow, like the grinding of teeth. He couldn’t tell if it was a man or a woman, though the tone felt vaguely familiar. He tried to kick, but he feels his legs getting pinned down by something sharp—bony even, and he winces at it. He could feel it through his denim, and it didn’t feel human.

Dominic gulps. “If you want money, I don’t—”

“I don’t want your money.”

“Then what the fuck am I doing here?” Dominic lashed out, though the weight on his leg wouldn’t budge. “Who are you?”

A beat of silence, and the warehouse was filled with a hideous laugh like teeth chattering. Dominic inhales a sharp breath as he felt something bony—was it a hand or a twig?—caress the side of his face. It didn’t feel human.

“Actually,” it whispered to him. He couldn’t see the face, but could swear it was smiling at him. “I’m about to be you.”

A ripping sound filled the dark and empty warehouse, followed by a loud scream that echoed in the otherwise quiet night—with no one to hear but the creatures inside. It didn’t last long though, soon it was replaced by a horrible cackling sound as the doors groaned open to let the new creature out.

Wednesday

To say things have been weird in the past couple of days would be… an understatement.

Dominic and I had been together for more than half a decade after meeting at a common friend’s party over spring break in college. We clicked right there and then, so fast forward to now, we’re engaged and slated to marry in about two months. It wasn’t a smooth ride at all—in fact we’ve been through much bumpier roads than most couples then ended back together, on and off. In fact, I’ve been reconsidering our engagement hard in the past months because of his behavior. Perhaps the last peaceful moment we had was last fall, when he proposed to me during one of our walks.

That’s Dominic on the left. He was…something, I think I fell the moment I laid my eyes on him, and he swore it was the same for him. For a while, it was a thrill to be with him—at least in the first three years. In the past two years though, he’d been a little difficult to be with. But I loved him so, and I couldn’t just leave him. He was mostly pleasant; he like taking me and Diego (our dog) out frequently, liked taking trips. He seemed perfect, though that wasn’t usually the case behind closed doors.

Dominic had a bad temper—if he didn’t get what he wanted, he could get violent at times (though he thankfully hadn’t caused me too much harm). He would break things often, especially when he was drunk, or if I protested him going out with his buddies during what should be an important night for us both. I couldn’t do a thing, at all, and though I’ve been compelled to leave him a couple of times, I never did. I held on to hope that he’d change, and I thought he would when he proposed; which clearly wasn’t the case.

Well, until nearly a week ago, at least. I was up until nearly five in the morning, alone in our bed. Dominic had sneaked out hours ago to go drinking with his friends; Mia called me to ask if I was okay with it because she knew it was our anniversary, and I couldn’t say no. I lay sprawled in our bed the entire night with only Diego for company, contemplating our relationship.

To my surprise, I heard a knock on our window. I jumped out of bed, pulling the drawer open to grab something to defend myself. Diego had gone out in the hall minutes ago, so he wasn’t there to warn me. Imagine seeing Dominic knocking against the window, with the largest and most sheepish grin on his face as he waved at me to let him in. I was baffled, but I opened it for him nonetheless.

He’d somehow climbed the emergency stairs of our apartment about six floors up instead of entering through the front door, with something held behind his back. Dominic wasn’t one to do this—if he’d left his spare key here, he would’ve called me. But no, he was there with a goofy grin plastered on his face. And then he said sorry, which took me aback for a while as he stepped in.

Dominic was hiding a small box of cake and a few roses strung together behind his back, and then greeted me with a happy anniversary. Not only was this unusual, but I distinctly remember hours ago when he said this sort of celebration should be for when we marry—but seeing him here now, I chalked up his earlier behavior to the fact that he just wanted to surprise me.

It was peculiar, but I was so happy at that time that I let him lead me to the kitchen where we ate and just talked—something we hadn’t been doing well for the past weeks. I didn’t question it at that time; not when Dominic literally glowed the way he hadn’t been since the first years of our relationship.

Now, days after that incident, Dominic’s behavior that veered off from his usual self had become more evident. He still had his usual ticks like his fingers twitching here and there whenever he tried to recall something, as well as his frequent ‘hmm’, though they seem exaggerated and almost done on purpose rather than by habit. He also hadn’t thrown any fit from his temper for the longest time.

To make it even weirder, he’d been waking up earlier than me to prepare me food. It was like he’s trying to atone for something he did, but why and how, I wasn’t sure. I even called Mia last night if they talked or something, but even she got confused.

“Come on Garrett, maybe he’s a changed man?” She teased, and I was inclined to accept that. But it seemed all sudden, like a switch was flipped in his head and he lost all his rough exterior, replaced by a softer version of himself—one that’s sweet, gentle, and most of the good things I’ve only seen from him whenever he was in a good mood. Heck, even the tone of his voice felt subdued.

I recounted the past days as I sipped on my coffee, contemplating the emails on my phone. It was already late afternoon, and I just got back from work so I had some time to kill before prepping for dinner. My phone chimed as a new notification came in, and it was from Dominic.

“Almost done with the shoot. Eat out tonight?” The message was from Dominic, with a photo of him attached. I almost spit my coffee. It was Wednesday, and he was usually out with his other model friends on this day of the week. What spurred him to take me out, I didn’t know, so I asked.

“Just wanna spend time with you is all. :) “ was his reply. If it wasn’t unusual enough that he’s asking me out, Dominic never used this sort of smileys. “Be there in twenty, dress up?” he added, and I typed in a quick sure before setting my phone and cup down.

I’ve been downing multiple cups of coffee a day in the past week, and I stared suspiciously at the dark swirling liquid on my cup. Thinking the caffeine could be driving me nuts, I dumped the rest of it on the sink before I went straight to the bathroom to freshen up. I then proceeded to fill Diego’s bowl with food and replenished his water, telling him to behave while I was gone.

Maybe Mia was right, maybe it was the caffeine, or maybe Dominic had an epiphany or some shit—I don’t know, but whatever it is, I hope it will last and that it was genuine.

Friday

Our little dinner out went very well the other night…in fact, it went suspiciously well.

Dominic wasn’t making the waiters uncomfortable this time, nor was he sitting usually with his legs spread wide apart—he was very pleasant that night, and I actually enjoyed it a lot. He even cracked up at a few of my jokes, despite always rolling his eyes at any of my anecdotes before. It was like everything I knew about Dominic had been replaced by something that felt like him, though at the same time wasn’t him at all.

“So you think this is the Invasion of the Body-Snatchers?” Mia told me earlier, incredulous, causing another co-worker Markus to snort a laugh before leaving us in the pantry. I couldn’t blame him, but the idea didn’t sound all too impossible now. “Are you high on something, Gar?”

“No!” I replied to her, showing her my cup that had cocoa instead of the usual coffee. “Haven’t even had a drop of caffeine in days, and I’m serious, it’s like he’s someone else now.”

“Then ask him about it!” was Mia’s response, laughing at my reaction. “Seriously, we can all just guess. Just ask him.”

“I don’t know how to do it without being weird.”

“You’ll figure it out.” Mia said through her coffee, which she waved teasingly at me. “Besides, why are you even bothered by this? Weren’t you wishing for him to change a while back?”

That was the end of that conversation. I couldn’t deny it of course, Dominic had been an asshole for a while, so despite this bizzare sudden mental change or whatever in him, I can’t help but be happy about it. Whatever it was, it seemed like the universe finally blessed me.

I just couldn’t keep the nagging thought in my mind though, that if it were possible at all, maybe something DID replace Dominic. I’m not a spiritual person, but maybe some holy ghost or angel finally took it to themselves to ‘fix’ Dominic once and for all—or I don’t know, maybe there’s a benevolent deity out there that somehow heard my prayer.

This, and another thing that got me thinking about it was Diego being somehow even more interested in Dominic now. He’d usually spend his time with me, though it seemed like he suddenly just started bonding even more with Dominic.

I decided I would ask him about it, soon, but not tonight. I want some assurance first, like one more proof convincing enough for me to ask lest I offend him and bring back the temper that seemed to have gone away. Dominic asked me earlier what he’d like us to do tonight and for the weekends—something that is already ticked off on my Not Dominic checklist—and I told him I’d like for us to just chill whilst watching a movie, then we could go out tomorrow. He agreed, and I’ve been looking forward to it all day.

“How’s my Garrett doing?” Dominic said as soon as I got home. He finished early today, and was already in his pajamas while Diego tailed behind him. I smiled at him, and then he was wrapping me with a tight embrace like he hadn’t in a long time. I could feel his massive biceps over my torso, they were hard as usual, but I didn’t know if I was just thinking it, or I really did feel part of it seemed a little too elastic.

“I’m good, Dom.” I responded, reciprocating the kiss he landed on my cheek, before slipping out of his grasp to hang my jacket on the rack. “Popcorn ready?” I asked, slipping my shoes off.

“Yeah,” He responds with a wink, though his stare seemed to linger on me a little longer.

“What, do I have something on my face?” I asked, running my hands over the sides of my face. He just laughed in response, eyes twinkling the way I’ve never seen before, then he was pulling me in another hug.

“Yeah, you ‘have’ perfect in it, and I can’t keep my eyes off of it.” He whispers in my ear with a gentle tone, and I immediately feel heat rise from my toes. It was probably the first genuine compliment I’ve had from him for…years. “Come on, let’s get you changed so we can snuggle soon.”

He lets go of me as he says this, and I, in my blushing state, froze in the spot for a few seconds—trying to comprehend what just happened. If the compliment and the hugs weren’t enough proof, Dominic never used the word ‘snuggle’ and in fact hated the word along with ‘cuddle’. He wasn’t too fond of affectionate physical contact like that as well, unless he was screwing me in bed.

I gulped, and watched him disappear into the kitchen. This wasn’t Dominic; not at all. Though something in me was happy, I wanted to know or at least confirm my suspicions—not because I wanted to do something about it, no, it would just eat me up if I didn’t.

Not now, though. I didn’t want to dampen this moment. Dominic or not, I’ve been looking forward to this, so I’ve decided to ask him about it tomorrow instead. We’d be outside anyway, so just in case it turns ugly, I wouldn’t be alone with whoever this is in such a small space.

Saturday

My right knee couldn’t stop bouncing once we checked in and I sat on one of the posh couches near the balcony. Dominic had managed to get a reservation for us overnight at this beach that he had been to before. They knew him, so we got in easy and in one of the best rooms they had to offer. The sound of the ocean waves crashing against rock and sand should be calming, yet I couldn’t stop my mind from racing.

I was going to ask Dominic, though he had to go back to get something he left from the car so here I was, sitting alone to contemplate how I could go about it. I wanted to find a topic that I could segue through, but couldn’t—because what can I say to ask him why he replaced my fiance? “Let’s talk about aliens, hey are you an alien?”

“Got it.” Dominic announced as he opened the door, making me snap out of my thoughts. “It was on the backseat af—”

Dominic stops short in front of me, a puzzled look on his face as he studies mine. I thought it would be the same irritated face he would make whenever something inconvenienced him, instead, his face was arranged in a concerned expression.

“Something wrong?” He ventures, approaching me as he sinks down to meet my eye on the bed in front of me. He sits there, with eyes almost pleading for me to respond. I met them, and I took a deep breath before swallowing the lump in my throat. Then I spoke:

“I know you’re not Dominic.” I blurt out, and watched him blink twice. He didn’t look very shocked at all, and it didn’t seem to shake him too, so I pressed on. “Before you assume, I don’t hate you, I just wanted to know what happened-who—who are you?”

He blinks again, and only sighs as he stands up. I flinch, and tried to scoot away in case he was going to hit me. He didn’t though, instead, he pulls his mouth apart—and my breath hitched in my throat at the grotesque display. There was no blood, but something else stepped out of Dominic’s skin.

“You got it right.” He tells me, though his voice wasn’t Dominic’s now—it was hollow and almost guttural, and in his hand, he held what looked like a deflated Dominic. “Please understand that my intentions were pure, I didn’t mean to—”

“I know,” I cut him off, and he tilts his head at me. “I’m not–I’m not mad. Actually, it had been the best week between us–I mean, in our relationship. But why?” I add. What stood in front of me looked like a huge talking skeleton, about the same frame as Dominic. It was a bizarre display, but I wanted answers.

“I knew what was going on,” He tells me, raising the arm that held Dominic’s skin. “I took the midnight train to live here, and I chanced upon the two of you, so I watched everything for months through the eyes of your neighbor.”

I raised an eyebrow as my mouth opened, trying to process what he just said. “So you’re saying you…wore..?”

He nods, before pulling the Dominic skin near him. “Human emotions got to me, I don’t know, but it drove me to take his skin for myself, and eventually acted upon what I had been feeling for a while.”

I couldn’t utter a response, staring at him both in disbelief and amazement. I couldn’t decipher the expression on his skull face, yet I knew he must be telling the truth. And besides, he had been a better Dominic after all, so why should I hold this against him?

“I believe you,” I say after a while, rising to meet him. “Dominic.” I added, staring into his eyeless sockets with a grin, and I was sure he returned it. In response, he started fitting Dominic’s skin over him again, slipping it on nearly perfectly—a bodysuit of some sort, literally.

Once he’d been able to slip every limp and his head into their respective places, I was greeted once again by that gentle, smiling, and soft ‘Dominic’. He was grinning sheepishly, and I found myself compelled to pull him close.

“Are you sure you’d be fine with the name Dominic, though?” I found myself asking, our faces drawn close to each other. He just chuckles, cupping my left cheek with one hand.

“Anything’s okay.” He tells me with a grin, our eyes meeting once, before he dove in and the rest was history. In fact, this felt even more intimate than anything the real Dominic and I had done before—better than the sweaty and aggressive intercourse that he was fond of. Instead, it was easy, and I accepted it fully without resistance.

Soon, the bed had called to us and I gave ‘Dominic’ something he’d never experienced before; and he loved every second of it. Hell, I did too, I enjoyed it so much more than any of the time I did it with the real Dominic.

Needless to say, ‘Dominic’ really had been a changed man as Mia put it—just in a different way that she put it…or perhaps she was close enough to call it an Invasion of the Body-Snatchers. The catch though? He did come in peace—and in me.