Mr. Martinez’ car had left the driveway for a few minutes when the doorbell rang again. Mike went to open the door and greet his first friend. Seconds later, he called his son :
"Jeff! Come and help Chuck, his hands are full." The teenager came quickly and freed Chuck from the two. "Is Bill coming?" Inquired Mike, slightly worried that he could be sick. "Yes, he just forgot something home, he’ll be back soon." Jeff guessed it was a fourth bag of snacks, as the older couple seemed to like treating everyone. Jeff went and dropped the bags in the kitchen, and proceeded to store the sodas and beers in the fridge, before pouring the content of a jalapeno flavoured chips in a serving bowl. On his way back to the living room, munching a handful of chips, Jeff looked at his parent’s wedding picture on the wall. He frowned, as something seemed out of place, but shook it off as he realized that his mother never had blond hair. What a silly idea : she always had those auburn curls.
As he came back to the main room, Jeff saw his father close the door behind one of his childhood friends. The man had calloused hands and exhibited some scars that gave him a rugged look, perhaps even more than Mike. He was also more inclined to joke and laugh at about anything. A figured Sarah and Jeff always liked having around. "Hi Scott!" he waved as he crossed the room. Moments later, The man was messing his hair up. "How are you, Jeff? Keeping an eye on Mike?"
Next came Ray, another of his father’s work buddies. A tall black man with glasses and hazel eyes. He mentioned some project to Mike, that he apparently worked overtime to finish. He was rather new in the team – and the workforce - and tended to sprinkle those humble brags to reassure himself rather than to annoy anyone. The young adult then proceeded towards his usual spot. He had to squeeze between the couch and Jeff, who was talking with Chuck and Scott. Or, rather, he was listening to the older man’s retirement plan in about "10 years, 12 tops". Jeff sighed and move away to make room for the second youngest man here.
The doorbell rang again. It was Bill from accounting, Chuck’s spouse. A rotund man with a balding head and yet able to captivate his audience with his numerous stories. "Look what I found on the street!" he teased the younger man by his side. Calum was the last of Mike’s childhood friends. A rather shy man with a well-groomed beard and stylish shirt. Although he was blond, a fair amount of hair was noticeable at his wrist. Of the three friends, he was the more cautious one : a former boy scout who always ensured their camping trips were relatively safe. As in, Scott might’ve broken a few bones, but they never actually risked their lives or started a wildfire. Or so the stories go. Jeff shook both their hands as Mike waved them in.
"Come have a beer before we start. We’re just missing the other Bill, and Gio just texted me he’ll be late a bit."
"Are the guys coming too?" Jeff had had a crush on Eli, the oldest son, for quite a bit. Unfortunately, he was a few years older than Jeff and Chris, Gio’s second son. As Mike validated the answer, Jeff scratched his chest, and Chuck turned to him. "I was just telling your father that Bill joined a new orchestra. Perhaps you’d like to join it too?"
"Well erhm… I don’t know, Mr. Kostek. I’m busy with school."
"Surely you could find time to play together for us."
Jeff felt blood running to his face, as he wasn’t sure how to say that the crowd here was maybe not the best suited for a violin recital duo. Mike had mentioned in the passing that his coworker also played music, and it stayed this way. Until Chuck found out. Jeff knew it came from a good place, but he never really liked playing for an audience. It was more of something he did for himself.
"Surely he doesn’t want to hang around with more grey heads", interrupted Bill with a wink towards the teenager. He seemed to be handling his husband well and Jeff stepped away to a tactical spot on the couch, within reach from the spicy wings and the chips.
Looking at reels on his phone, Jeff didn’t notice that Bill from IT had arrived, until the discreet man excused himself and sat next to Jeff. The boy didn’t mind. The nerdier man always smelled nice and generally took great care of himself. This Bill was probably in his thirties, and had a beer belly. He was soft-spoken and had an exotic accent. He also knew that Jeff was into computers : this was an easy discussion topic for both of them. As they talked, Jeff kept looking towards the door and windows, rather impatiently, until the TV volume went up, and everyone went silent.
Jeff was intently watching the game, cheering and booing in unison with the other viewers at home and at the stadium. He was really into the game, but with some takes, the camera angle made it hard to ignore the cherry on top : those uniforms clung really nicely to some of the more athletic players. About five minutes in the game, a soft knock was unheard at the door, and the last guests opened it to join the party. A general waving of hands in their direction, and the attention focused back to the screen, with friendly banter and the occasional request for one of the chips bowl.
The Minuccis were svelte and average in size, leaning to the shorter side of the bell curve. They all sported wavy black hair and an olive complexion. Mr. Minucci went and shook everyone’s hands. Athough he was a bit older than Mike, he was an handsome man by any account. The depiction of the typical italian-american man, his crooked nose apart. After he shook Jeff’s hand, Eli bumped his fist together with Jeff’s and asked what’s up. The younger host scratched his beard and lowered his voice. "Have you heard about Anita?" She was a girl from Eli’s grade. Well, their grade, back when they were in high school. "Yeah, man!" They were shushed by Chris, who took place on the couch next to Jeff. "Hi Jeff." "Hi, buddy." Jeff scooched a bit, somewhat disappointed that the younger brother took place next to him. A whistle on the stereo brought his attention back to the game, though. Well, mostly, as he kept peeking at Eli.
After a while, Jeff started skittering. His thighs were getting sweaty and sticky, which was always uncomfortable. He tried to subtely adjust himself and slightly spread his legs. Thankfully, Bill chose this moment to cross his, but the young Chris hissed a "stop it", visibly annoyed at the nervous student. Jeff stopped wiggling about and sprang for the upstairs bathroom as soon as the half-time break started. He dropped his jeans and boxer briefs to the floor and carefully unstuck his sweaty skin, with a loud sigh. He was happy to be hung, don’t get him wrong, but there were those disadvantages, sometimes, that he couldn’t yet get used to. Even with his coppery pubes trimmed, the area was still too moist for him to keep his legs closed for a long time. That’s why he usually sat cross-legged. More freedom. After emptying his bladder – while he was there – Jeff went back down with the others. He grabbed a beer for Eli and himself, plus a pop for the teenager.
As the half-time finished, Jeff set himself one of the extra chairs between the two couches. There he could sit more comfortably, holding his bottle between his knees. Jeff could appreciate the second half better, not being contained between two people on the couch. He could focus a bit more on the game and enjoy it fully. As the winning goal broke the score moments before the end of the game, he jumped to his feet, roaring with his empty beer bottle in hand. Someone asked how much they owed Bill and Chuck. After a moment, Chris and Jeff blurted out the amount almost simultaneously. This time, the high school student had been a bit faster. The older boy winked playfully at him, knowing that the last time he had won their little game.
Gio and his kids left quickly after the game, due to Chris’ sleep schedule – they had to be at the pool early for his practice – and shook everyone’s hand, as proper as ever. After the father and sons left, Bill from accounting and Chuck offered to bring Calum and Bill from IT back to their respective homes, as they didn’t seem fit for driving. Jeff helped Chuck bring Calum to their car, while his dad was with the two bills. The rest stayed to help clean up a bit and left one by one.
Once Ray had helped replacing the furniture, he waved everyone goodbye and the three remaining men started gathering the plates and empty bottles to the kitchen. Scott offered to help with the dishes and Mike insisted that he could do that the next morning before picking up Sarah. As Scott was leaving, he slapped Jeff’s shoulder and shook Mike’s hand, teasing him :
"It’s still alright if I come tomorrow and work on your shed with Jeff?" Mike chuckled "And I, yes", before closing the door on their last guest. Before he could say anything about going to bed, the college student started reviewing his favourite plays of the game, as well as some analysis and critiques on the coaches decisions. After about half an hour of such a vivid discussion, Mike yawned and got back up from his recliner. "It’s real late, your old dad’s gotta go to bed, son. G’night."
Jeff felt his father’s hand press on his shoulder, but he was already focus on his phone, reading some online articles. A few dozen minutes later, he headed upstairs to perform his bedtime routine, turning the living room lights off behind him.
The college student splashed his face after he put his contact lenses in there case for the night and adjusted himself in he loose-fitting superhero boxers he used as pyjamas. He liked the freeing sensation of his balls swinging around happily, as well as his flesh liberated. As he came back to his room, the fresh taste of his minty toothpaste in mouth, Jeff noticed a humming coming from his desk. Drowsy as he was getting, it took him a moment to realize it was his computer that had fallen into sleep mode. He decided to turn it off, for the noise might bother him during the night. As he shook the mouse, the screen lit up on the last page he saw. The Chronivac! He had forgotten about it, thrilled by the party tonight. He recognized the area he saw before, but this time it was more extensively populated, as he read.
Copied Traits :
Michael Evans: Enjoyment of football
John Martinez : Very high tolerance for spicy food
Charles Kostek : Hair colour
Scott Leboeuf : Enjoyment of DIY
Raylon Adams : Eyes colour
William Norris : Plays the violin
Calum Cooper : Hairiness
William Mdunge : Romantism
Sergio Minucci : Penis size
Eliseo Minucci : Age
Christopher Minucci : Gifted mathematician
William Mdunge : Feet size
Christopher Minucci : Seafood lover
Eliseo Minucci : Avid fantasy novels reader
Sergio Minucci : Italy enthusiast
Christopher Minucci : Comic book expertise
Eliseo Minucci : Muscle mass
Calum Cooper : Outdoorsy
Charles Kostek : Caring nature
Michael Evans: Whisky connoisseur
Scott Leboeuf: Eyesight
Unsure whether he read properly, Jeff took out his glasses from his nightstand. Shit! How did this happen? It wasn’t just about becoming closer to Mike anymore. It seemed like he had been a completely different person hours ago. Some things were odd, like the feet mention or his hair attributes. His mom and her dad, among others, were both red-heads and despite being dark-haired, Mike had a blond mother. The men on her side also tended to be hairy. It was genetics, that’s all. As per the Whisky, of course Mike shared his interest with his son, and their palate was somehow similar – Mike liked smokier liquors – what could it have to do with anything.
Jeff’s eyes jumped from line to line, almost randomly. He didn’t even know that Eli also like fantasy books! They never talked about it, although Chris and Jeff loved sharing their theories on superheroes and the next comic releases. And... And of course he was outdoorsy : they went camping every year with the Coopers and the Leboeufs since he was a kid. Unfortunately, only Sam was also into football, and she moved across the country for her studies. Over time, Jeff lost touch with their other kids. But he vividly remembered their camping trips in the hills. So vividly, in fact, that two conflicting sets of memories seemed to come to his mind. The usual, and the odd ones, where he didn’t quite enjoy sleeping in a tent, or under the stars, and the quietude of the woods, or canoeing on sparkling blue water, and telling stories or singing around the campfire. Worse even, that set of memories hated the smell of the fire clinging to his clothes and hair. Jeff shook his head, rejecting this possibility.
Of course he loved Italy, it's good and people and culture. Jeff took an introduction to Italian class as an elective, last year. Mostly because he thought it would be an easy one, but also partly to impress Eli and partly out of sheer curiosity. After all, Italy was the country of romance! He absolutely fell in love with the topic of the class, and now watched Italian movies (with subtitles still, sadly) and enjoyed discussing anything from current politics to regional traditions with Mr. Minucci. When he wasn't in a rush like tonight. The older man even gave him the address of the best pizzeria in town : authentic and not quite expensive. His go-tos where the sicilian and the spicy sausage ones!
But what was it with the other gift from Mr. Minucci? That was so embarrassing to think of. Sure, genetics probably meant that Eli was also one of the better endowed men, but why did it have to be his father? The idea of Eli’s penis seemed to be enough to awake Jeff’s own baby maker. He sighed, trying to focus on something else: it wasn’t the time for those shennanigans. Tomorrow morning, though... His mast hardened a bit more. Right. Something boring.
He went and read the parameters on the Chronivac, making sure to click on all the information or help symbols he could find. His boner quickly calmed down as Jeff realized what transpired. He was getting random traits from anyone that came in close vicinity with him? He stopped the operation right away, clicking intently on the yes option of the window that asked if he were sure. How long could this get on? In a few hours he already gained some new characteristic – 21, his math brain immediately told him – how would it be if he didn’t notice and went shopping, or to school?
Jeff took a few deep breath before touching anything else. He wasn’t a skittish teenager anymore, but he wasn’t a zen master either. He still needed to act sensitively. First, he minimized the window with this transformation. He wasn’t quite sure yet if he wanted to revert it : he was happy with his current life, and could not promise his former self also was. Rushing things in his sleepy state was probably not the best option.
As the window minimized on the chronivac screen, Jeff noticed thumbnails representing everyone that had been to the party tonight. In the vicinity of the Chronivac, he supposed. He popped one up at random, to see the naked figure of Mr. Norris, with a list of traits and numbers beside it. Jeff hurriedly closed it back to a thumbnail.
This was too much, he probably better sleep it off. He turned the computer back into sleep mode, and went to bed himself. At least, Mike's snoring in the next room should cover the noise. When he wakes up the next morning, the whirring reminds him of the Chronivac.