Henry sat in his room, his homework untouched next to him. All he could think about was the image of a very sad looking Justin looking at his changed body in the mirror. Henry had left the jock in the locker room, telling the gym teacher that Justin didn't feel well. Henry caught a glimpse or two of him around the school, his changes hidden under his hat and bulky clothes.
Maybe Justin really was sick. But with what? Aging disease? That didn't make sense. His thoughts drifted to Matt, and his complaints about losing his hair. What if he was sick, too? Was it contagious?
Henry ran his fingers through his hair and was relieved to see no hairs stuck between his fingers. He was obsessing too much about this. Justin had some sort of allergic reaction to something, and Matt was just being Matt. There was nothing to worry about.
"Henry! Dinner!"
----
At the dinner table, Henry couldn't help but notice his dad staring at him. After a while, he had to ask.
"Dad? Is something wrong?"
His did shook his head. "Huh? Oh, no. Nothing's the matter." He smirked. "It's just... Make sure you shave before going to school tomorrow. You're growing up. You're going to have to start shaving more often."
Henry frowned and felt his chin. His fingers encountered several stiff hairs amidst the softer ones.
After dinner, Henry went to take a closer look in his bathroom mirror. There were indeed several darker hairs on his chin, as well as his upper lip and sideburns.
Strange. He didn't recall those being their that morning. He was 15, it wasn't unusual to be growing facial hair at this point. But he thought it odd he hadn't seen his developed facial hair earlier. He took a closer look at himself. Maybe his jaw seemed squarer, or his shoulders broader. He had been feeling more clumsy lately. What if...?
No. He was just going through puberty. No need to be alarmed. He had to put these strange thoughts aside. The thought that some of the students at school were prematurely aging was ridiculous.