Jeremy squinted as he opened his eyes and they adjusted to the darkness illuminated only by the cold, sharp light of the tv in front of him. He blinked a couple times and looked around. He was in someone's bedroom. Well, "bedroom" was a technicality, this place was a pigsty. There were clothes scattered on the floor, fast food wrappers on every surface, and a stale, musty smell infused the room. It smelled like part the dirty laundry, and part the vaguely sickly-sweet smell of weed.
Jeremy turned his attention away from the disaster zone around him and onto himself, whoever that was now.
Long, thin legs stretched out in front him, clad only in a pair of dirty socks and plaid boxers. A stained, gray hoodie hung loosely on his torso, and the rolled up sleeves bunched up around the elbows of skinny arms covered in the same blond hair as his legs, and ended in a pair of wide hands with spindly fingers.
Jeremy blinked in disbelief as he flexed his hands, stretched his legs, and wiggled his toes. He stood up but faltered, realizing he'd gained five or six inches in height with this new body. He steadied himself and chuckled, his new voice surprised him.
"Hello?" he whispered tentatively, but then raised his voice, "Testing, one, two, three?"
It was a warm voice, not a booming baritone, but by no means high pitched either; and it had a nice vocal fry to it. It sounded familiar, but Jeremy couldn't place it. He looked down at his body again, wondering whose it was.
He looked around for a mirror, or even a phone, and spotted an empty doorframe to what was hopefully a bathroom. Jeremy walked over with caution, getting more comfortable with this body's weight and height with every step. By the time he reached the door he'd fully adjusted.
Jeremy fumbled around the wall for a light switch. The sudden flash of bright LEDs was unexpected, and almost painful after having come from the dark bedroom. Eyes adjusting one more time, and his reflection came into focus.
"Oh!" Jeremy exclaimed when he saw his face. That's why his voice sounded so familiar! He was Mason, Mrs. Gessner's grandson! The two of them lived a couple houses down, and Mrs. Gessner was a frequent guest at neighborhood events and a respected member of their little community. Mason Gessner, on the other hand, was a bit of a black sheep with the neighbors. Nicole and the other mothers on the street thought him a bad influence; Mason had dropped out of school when he was sixteen and didn't do much of anything except smoke weed and play video games in his room.
Mason had been working at a nearby gas station for the past few years now, so Jeremy had had more chances to interact with him. And while he couldn't deny that the nineteen year old more often than not smelled of weed, or would frequently come out of a suspiciously hazy break room coughing, he seemed like a nice kid. He wasn't traditionally polite or respectful, but he was relaxed and laid back. Jeremy always thought of Mason as just a harmless burnout.
Jeremy stared at his reflection with a dopey grin on Mason's face. He couldn't believe the strange ray gun had actually worked! He leaned over the sink to inspect his face closer. There was Mason's large angular nose, and his perpetually sleepy, green eyes, and his messy chin whiskers. It was strange, seeing another person's face in the place of yours, but it was an exciting kind of strange. Jeremy played with the mess of sandy blond waves on his head. Not even when he'd been Mason's age had he ever had his hair this long. The mane of hair curled around his head like a halo, curling up at his neck and around his ears. Jeremy tried pulling it into a ponytail, but found it was long, but not long enough for that.
Jeremy picked at his new face, wondering what the next step he should take was...