Chapter Twenty: Frog

Wow.

Kayla Morrison had just kissed me.

I probably stood there in the hallway for half an hour before I gained the presence of mind to move my feet. In a daze, I got my stuff and walked out to the parking lot. I don't know how I managed to drive home without getting into a wreck. I was so consumed with thoughts of Kayla and her lips and her closeness. I couldn't think of anything else, and I didn't want to. I walked into my house, went up to my bedroom, and fell on my bed.

I couldn't stop smiling. I tried not to think about how stupid I had acted after it had happened or what it meant or why she did it or what this might mean for the future, I just concentrated on that one, singular moment when she had pulled me to her and kissed me. Those few seconds replayed over and over in my mind until I fell asleep.

Several hours later, I woke up in severe pain. Every part of my body hurt, and I felt like I was going to implode. It seemed like I had a temperature of a thousand degrees, so I stripped off my clothes to relieve a little bit of the heat. But the effort of doing that was so strenuous that I collapsed back on my bed, unable to move. When a girl kisses you it's supposed to make you feel amazing, I thought, not like you want to die. I moaned and tried putting my body in multiple positions, but nothing alleviated the pain. I wondered if there had been some kind of toxic mold in the display case that was attacking my systems. Finally, the aching became so fierce that I passed out.

*****

Something was buzzing. A plane? No, it was closer than that. A fly? No, it was more systematic. I opened my eyes and squinted at the bright sunlight coming through my window. Everything felt sore and my head was a little foggy, but I also felt refreshed, which I assumed was a result of my body purging whatever had been ailing me. I heard the buzzing again and saw that it was coming from my phone next to me on the bed. I picked it up and the first thing I noticed was that it said it was Wednesday afternoon. I was shocked. Had I really been out for almost two days? I must have been because I had 17 missed calls and a bunch of text messages. The most recent message was from Kayla.

[WHERE ARE YOU?]

A dozen emotions rushed through me. Her kiss was still at the forefront of my mind, but now I was starting to wonder what was going to happen next. Did she really like me or had she just spontaneously kissed me in the moment? Did she text me because she was mad at me or because she was concerned about me? I started to text her back, but then I froze.

My hands were… bigger.

I quickly sat up, looked down, and saw massive pectorals. Okay, maybe massive was an exaggeration, but I was used to seeing next to nothing, so needless to say, these were a big shock. I jumped out of bed, stumbled to the bathroom and stood in front of the mirror. My jaw dropped.

Whoa.

I was staring back at an underwear model. Except somehow that underwear model was me, because he was doing everything I did. I was completely unrecognizable. I guess my eyes and lips were the same, but now they looked like they actually belonged on my face, which was broader and had slightly pronounced cheekbones and a strong jawline. My hair was thick and smooth and was swept perfectly to the side, and my skin was completely clear and devoid of any pimples or scarring.

And then there was my body. Unusually broad shoulders led into muscular arms that framed the aforementioned massive pectorals. From there, my chest tapered down to the kind of washboard abs you only see in fitness magazines. A sculpted butt and legs completed the impossibility of the image before me. I kept thinking I was hallucinating, but when I felt my biceps, quads and stomach, it was all solid muscle.

I didn't know how to react, so I laughed. Except now when I laughed, I looked like a confident, ripped teenage boy instead of a geeky idiot. I shook my head. Either this was a very real dream or a really awesome prank. In any case, I needed some answers. I ran back into my room, grabbed my phone and called my mom.

"Frederick! Finally! Why haven't you been returning my calls? I've been so worried about you! Did you get my messages?"

"Mom," I said, flinching. Even my voice sounded different. "Something happened."

I could hear her suck in a breath on the other end. "What?" She asked frantically. "What is it?"

"I, um, look… different."

To my surprise, she groaned. "You forgot to take your pills, didn't you?"

I thought back to the other night. Kayla had kissed me. I had been a bit overwhelmed.

"Um, yeah."

My mom sighed. "I shouldn't have left."

I was becoming more and more confused. "Should I take my pills now?"

"No, it's too late if you've already changed."

"Changed?"

"And it was probably about time for this to happen anyway. The Jumerum were closing in…"

"Jumerum? Mom, what are you talking about?"

"Listen, Frederick, I'm really sorry. I don't have time to talk to you about it right now, but I will be home as soon as I can, and I'll explain everything then."

"But mom-"

"Until I get home, I need you to promise me you won't leave the house."

"Are you serious?"

"Frederick, promise me." She sounded desperate.

"Yeah, okay."

"Thank you. I'll be home soon. I can't wait to see you."

The call ended and I sat down on my bed. My mind was spinning with a hundred questions. The more I thought about the conversation I had had with my mom, the angrier I became. I had just magically turned into a hunky man-boy, how in the world did she not have time to talk about it? I had clearly been kept in the dark about something, and I didn't like it. And what was I supposed to do now? Just wait around like a caged animal until she showed up?

I looked at my phone again and started going through all of Kayla's texts.

On Tuesday morning she wrote: [Hey, are you okay? I didn't see you in chem lab.]

A few hours later: [Could you call me when you can? I want to talk about our presentation.]

Then: [Frog, if what I did the other night offended you, I apologize, but we still need to work through a few things for our project. Please call me.]

I smiled. The thought of being offended by her kissing me was ludicrous, and yet, she had gone there. I went to the messages she had sent that morning.

[Frog, are you sick? Are you going to be here today? Our world cultures presentation is in three hours.]

And finally: [WHERE ARE YOU?]

I gulped and looked at the time. We were supposed to present in world cultures class in 25 minutes. I had just promised my mom I wouldn't leave the house, but I knew I should be there for Kayla, even if I didn't look like myself. I was still a little bewildered from everything that had happened, and I didn't quite work out all the implications, but I really wanted to see Kayla, and a small part of me wanted her to see me.

I'll just run to the school and give her a quick message and then I can come right back home, I rationalized. I don't know why I didn't just call or text, but like I said, I wasn't really thinking straight. I ran to my closet to get dressed and stopped. Here was another obstacle. I didn't know if any of my clothes were going to fit over all this new bulk. I pulled on a pair of sweatpants that barely fit over my buttocks, and then I put on one of the largest shirts I owned. It stretched tight across my chest and seemed to cling to every muscle. I glanced in the mirror. The clothes were ridiculous, but somehow, I still looked great. This is so weird, I thought. I shook my head again and went out to my car.