4 WEEKS LATER
Current age = 20 YEARS 9 MONTHS
It was a crisp, October day and Jeff was having lunch with his friends. He sat with his elbows on the table, chin resting on his hands, listening to James and Shiro share exhaustive details on their Halloween costumes.
"You're going to slay with that! Almost tops my Mettaton costume if I weren't aiming for fabulous. And believe me, it is fab-u-lous"
"I spent weeks making sure I painted Hanzo's tattoo just right. Then I just slide it up my arm and it looks almost real. I'm gonna look soooo dope at the party!"
That being a Halloween party held by Bryan. His moms were on a business trip that weekend so he had full reign of the house. Word of a house party spread fast, and it was looking to be the hottest event of the school year. Jeff didn't usually enjoy large parties, yet something inside him yearned for a wild night of thumping music and teenage debauchery. It was as if his inner frat boy was trying to break free. And like many frat boys, costumes were the last thing on his mind when it came to partying. He yawned and offhandedly remarked "That's a lot of effort for one night."
Shiro frowned. "Well I'm gonna cosplay at some cons with it too, obvi! What are you wearing then?"
"Me? I'm sticking with something simple. Movie Wolverine. White shirt, jeans, aluminum foil claws, sorted!"
"Oooh, are you going to grow your beard too? You can't be Wolverine without those big sideburns!"
Jeff laughed nervously and rubbed at his cheeks and neck. He'd freshly shaved that morning yet his skin already felt rough as his five o clock shadow was coming in. "I dunno... I mean, they're just sideburns right? It's not like I can't wear fake ones".
Shiro scoffed loudly and said "Fake sideburns... Bro. You have the densest facial hair in school. If anyone should grow Wolverine sideburns, it's you. Fuck, If I had stubble like yours, I wouldn't even hesitate"
There were murmurs of agreement around the table. Before Jeff could respond, Bryan interjected with "Oh my god, if you grew a proper beard, I bet you could get some alcohol for the party!"
James gasped and screamed "Oh my gawd, yaaaaaasss! You so look old enough to pass as an actual adult! I bet they wouldn't even ID you, since you'd look supes macho"
Jeff sat up in his chair with a disapproving look. "Guys, come on. I know I'm a bit hairier than the average teen -"
"You mean a lot hairier"
"And buffer"
"And your jawline is to die for, seriously"
"OK, I look old enough to maybe pass as a college student, but I doubt I could trick some cashier into thinking I'm a proper adult, especially without some ID!"
Bryan stroked Jeff's arm in reassurance, and cooed "Come on Jeffy, you know we're only kidding around. Unless you really wanted to do it? Nah... But maybe?"
Jeff looked at his friends, each one giving their best puppy dog look. He sighed loudly and hung his head down. "I'll see what I can do...".
11 DAYS LATER
Current age = 21 YEARS 8 MONTHS
The Halloween party was well underway, but Jeff was fashionably late. He had to make a small stop before arriving, dragging two heavy carrier bags out from the back of his car. He could hear the thumping bass as he walked up to Bryan's house. Yet it was Shiro who opened the door for him, wearing a near authentic replica of his Overwatch hero. His weeks of slaving over it was time well spent, even the tattoo looked almost real. Jeff felt a little under-dressed in comparison. He cheered "Wow! Bro, you look great!"
Shiro grinned and said "Thanks, you're looking good yourself! Those sideburns came in nicely."
Jeff blushed, scratching at his furry muttonchops with a flimsy foil claw. What should have taken him weeks to grow only took a few days at most. "I guess... Hey, look what I got."
Shiro's eyes widened as Jeff opened one of the carrier bags in his hands, revealing cases of beer and several bottles of spirits. He snatched a bag off of Jeff and howled "Sonnuvabitch, you only pulled it off! Howdja do it?"
Jeff tapped the side of his nose, almost poking his eye out with a claw in the process. "Oh I have my ways". In fact, Jeff had help from his trusty Chronivac. He hadn't used it much since September, when he first initiated his accelerated aging. Though he did like to keep track of how much older he was. So when he noticed he was now 21, he began to wonder if he could use that to his advantage. There was just one tiny problem. Everyone thought he was 16, despite his strapping stature and chest brimming with hair. After a quick search, Jeff found a nifty tool that could update his ID to match his current profile. For Jeff, this was the driver's license he earned over the summer. A few clicks later, and he possessed an ID that would always reflect his current self. It changed his birth date to something closer to his true age, altered his height and weight stats, even updated the photo to his more adult appearance. With this in hand, buying alcohol was easier than convincing his parents to borrow some money to pay for it. Not that they knew he was spending it on booze...
Jeff entered the house to a chorus of cheers as he held his boozy gifts aloft, adding them to the existing hoard of spirits likely obtained by more dubious means. He immediately grabbed a beer bottle and popped the cap off, taking a swig with a satisfied sigh. He had tried beer before, when his brother sneaked him a cup at his farewell party. It tasted vile and he poured most of it into a potted plant. Now Jeff may have developed a more refined taste palette since then, he certainly found himself appreciating coffee more then ever. However, he'd purchased a cheap, generic beer that tasted just as vile but was guaranteed to get you buzzed, which is all he really wanted. He chugged an entire bottle, grabbed a fresh one, then began to settle in for a night of socialising.
A few hours and many drinks later, Jeff was sat on the sofa with a few of his classmates, grinning drunkenly as they fawned over his impressive body. He put on a bit of a performance, flexing his upper body to show off his size and bouncing his pecs to make them dance. But after offering an arm out to allow his impressed onlookers to feel the size of his biceps, one bold girl slyly dug a hand under his waistband and attempted to feel the size of something else. Jeff squealed and jumped off the sofa in a panic, flushing in embarrassment as his peers giggled amongst themselves. He backed away from them awkwardly, then rushed off to a quieter part of the house where he collapsed into a wicker chair in the corner and buried his head in his hands.
To think one of the hottest girls in class was eager to give him a handy and he ran off like a cowardly lion! Not only that but he felt nothing but shame and disgust when she tried. He'd never had a way with women but that didn't seem normal... With a long sigh, Jeff watched as his classmates were raving to a Top 40 hit he hadn't heard before. He grimaced as he caught sight of Khaleesi passionately making out with Aladdin. He thought the costumed lovers were far too young to be groping each other like that, only to abruptly realise that he was their age! Or he should be. It hit him like a punch in the gut that he was the only adult there. For a lot of his school life, he quite literally looked up to his classmates. Now, he had outgrown them, both physically and emotionally. The fact he looked at people who were once his peers and thought of them as dumb teens made him uncomfortable. And those dumb teens flirting with him, trying to get into his pants? It felt even worse.
Jeff thought about his older brother, Adam. There was an 8 year age gap between them. Was this forced maturity how Adam used to feel when he would chaperone Jeff and his friends round the neighbourhood when trick or treating. He did seem desperate to leave town for college. And then he joined the military not long after that. Jeff felt a twang of nostalgia. He hadn't seen his brother for quite some time now. He doubted Adam would recognise him, especially now he'd developed well past the average teen. In fact, it wouldn't be that long until he surpassed his brother in age. Imagine, being the big brother for a change...
As Jeff pondered his existence in the corner, Bryan crept into his vision, appropriately dressed as Vision. He patted him on the shoulder and asked "Hey Jeffy, you feeling alright? Remember, you're only dressed as a brooding anti-hero, no need to act the part too"
He looked into his friend's face and smiled weakly. "Yeahyeah, m'jus... I overdid th'drinks. M'such alatewait... Litewurt... M'vrydrnk..."
"Come on, bub. Let's get you somewhere more comfortable". With a lot of effort, Bryan helped Jeff to his feet and guided him to the guest bedroom. Not a small feat considering Jeff was now taller and far heavier than him. After a struggle to open the door, he finally dumped Jeff onto the small bed and exaggerated his tiredness. "Whew!" he cried, wiping his forehead. "You've piled on the pounds, haven't you? I'm surprised the bed didn't collapse under you!". He fell back onto the bed next to Jeff, then reached over to stroke his cheeks, feeling the coarse hairs of his muttonchops. He grinned dumbly. "Heh I wish I could just grow a beard in a week like you... Get super jacked and hairy in a month..." Jeff looked at his friend, now seeing double. His head was swimming with incoherent thoughts. He closed his eyes for a moment, and felt Bryan's hand brush across his chest before he passed out.
When Jeff awoke, the house was silent and he had a throbbing headache. He felt a small shiver and noticed his shirt was missing, thrown across the room. He scratched at his bare chest and shrugged, he never did like wearing anything to bed. He sat up and spotted himself in the opposing mirror. He had a strong resemblance to his costumed counterpart. Dark hairs smothered his chest and spread across his abs. Even his shoulders were beginning to get their own dusting. He looked well developed even for a 21 year old. He was always an athletic guy, being a part of his school's wrestling team. Yet he found himself spending more time pumping iron in the gym recently. It definitely showed as he had an improved muscular definition across his entire body. It was a wonder nobody had caught onto his accelerated growth. He himself wondered how he managed to get so buff in so little time. Jeff scratched his chin, his stubble having already grown back. Was this really how he would look at 21 or was the Chronivac overcompensating? Even his tough, military brother didn't look this masculine. Jeff slapped his head to clear his thoughts. Maybe a glass of water would help.
He crept out of the bedroom to see trash strewn about the living room, spills and abandoned food littered the kitchen, and a total absence of any party guest remaining. He glanced at the time. 3AM. The evening was long gone by now. After a satisfying glass of water, Jeff figured he'd make a head-start on the mess to help his friend out. He went around with a trash bag, gathering all the discarded food and empty bottles he could muster. Once the place looked more presentable, there was one thing left to do. He stood in front of the sofa and smiled at the gangly teen sprawled across its length. Bryan had passed out himself, drool mixing with his red face paint that smeared the cushions. Jeff bent down and effortlessly picked him up, cradling him against his hairy pecs. Careful not to wake his friend, he carried him upstairs to his bedroom and gently placing him on his bed. With that deed done, Jeff finally crept back to the guest bedroom and fell back into a deep sleep.