I blinked my eyes as I began to come awake. The fog of sleep was fading. Suddenly, I remembered what we had done right before I fell asleep. Had the experiment worked? Had Lucas and I swapped bodies?
I stood up and became dizzy for a moment. When my vision cleared, I took in my surroundings. I was still in the room with two beds where Lucas and I had fallen asleep, but I had just risen from the right bed. I had fallen on the left bed. It had worked!
I walked over to a mirror I hadn't noticed before. I saw Lucas' reflection in the mirror. He really was handsome, with wavy chestnut-brown hair and a chiseled face, and his muscles were to die for. I rubbed a hand across Lucas' (my) thick pecs and washboard abs, felt a thick bicep swell under my sleeve as I flexed.
He dressed in pretty trendy clothes, too. That was nice, but something I would stop doing now that I owned this body. Lucas could not afford them, and he needed to turn more of his attention onto college and away from his gym. Though as him I would still try to keep up the physique. That meant I'd have to work out. Ugh!
I walked over to where Lucas was asleep in my old body. "Wake up, Lucas," I said. "It worked!"
Groggily, he sat up, then let out a shriek as he saw me. It must have been unsettling to see his own body standing in front of him. I know it was for me. Seeing my own face staring back at me in shock and fright was creepy.
Looking from an outside perspective now, I had to admit I didn't look so bad. I hadn't been Lucas level, but my face was faintly handsome, framed by short blond hair. Unlike him, however, my former body had no muscle to speak of.
I wondered how Lucas would struggle in my body. People knew me as a quiet but kind boy who was a bit of a nerd, devoted to school and despising athletics. If he tried to change that, people would think I had gone crazy. And what if he lost my friends or failed my classes? I would not forgive him that.
I decided to save that talk for later. For now I just sat next to my brother as the doctor entered.
"It seems the experiment was a success," he said with a smile. "Thank you for volunteering. And if we find a way to reverse the process and that is something you would be interested in, we will contact you and you can let us know either way. Jus remember, you have signed confidentiality agreements. You are not allowed to reveal what has occurred."
I thanked the doctor while Lucas sat in silence. I drove us back home and our parents, Mariah, and Bradley all welcomed us home.