"You know, I think I really like this new body."
The three of you were at the lake, again. George was naked, ankle deep in the water, admiring his new asset.
Colby rolls his eyes. He's still fully dressed minus his shoes and socks as he helps you to put a fresh coat of paint on the boat you salvaged. "George, put some pants on."
George grins as he swayed his hips form side to side, his gut swinging along for the ride. "What's the matter, Colby? Jealous?"
Colby focuses as the swipes the red paint down the side of the old, wooden boat. "Of your weight, or the beer can you call a penis? It doesn't matter, the answer is neither."
George harrumphs and wades further into the water, the splashing soaking the hair on his belly. "Oh, come on, Colby. Lighten up. I thought you'd be glad that I get to join the old and fat club."
Colby's brow furrows as he concentrates on painting the boat. He puts down the red paint and brush, and picks up the yellow paint and much smaller brush. Colby had been acting a little strange, lately. He's been distracted and concerned, but you weren't quite sure what about. As far as you knew, the vacation had been going great. You'd got a couple phone calls from your mom, but, thankfully, you were able to use the spotty signal out here in the wilderness to help disguise your voice. George even seemed to be having fun in his older, heftier body, making him the biggest of the three of you when it came to weight, instead of you. Still, something seemed to be eating at Colby, which was putting a bit of a damper on things.
"What's up, Colby?" You had been hoping his mood would blow over, but maybe the process needed a little help.
At first, you don't think Colby heard you as he carefully traces a path of yellow over the red. He glances at you briefly as you wait for him to answer. "I've just been thinking. It's... You don't need to worry about it."
"Colby, come on. You can tell me." You grin at him reassuringly, as your dad would do to you in similar circumstances.
Colby finishes his brush stroke and steps back from his work. In yellow, block letters, the name "SANTA MARIA" graces the side of the now red rowboat. He admires his handiwork and scratches his well-groomed orange and grey beard. Unlike you and George, Colby was sure to keep his facial hair nice and tidy, though George didn't have to worry about it as he was never in the same body long enough to grow anything substantial. Colby sighs and turns to you. "I was just worrying about George's uncle. I mean, where is he?"
You shrug and set down your red paint and brush. You take a seat on one of the posts holding up the dock and take a sip from your beer. "I guess he just didn't come to his cabin this summer."
Colby frowns, the worry lines in his forehead deepening. "No, no. I mean, where IS he?" He gestures at two other rowboats, partially buried by the sand, holes rotted in their hulls, their paint peeled away. "I mean, he hasn't been here in years. What happened to him?"
The same question had occurred to you. "I wouldn't worry about that. I mean, somebody's still paying for the water and electricity. Besides, George doesn't seem all the worried." You glance over at the bald, overweight, middle-aged construction worker. George is in the water, backstroking to a rock protruding from the lake's center. "Pretty good swimmer for a fat guy..."
***
"...she carefully pulled the note out from the drawer, the ink faded with age, though the text still legible. 'Bring me the money by midnight tonight, or you will never see your father again.' She shivered, the message's threat echoing across time. She knew, then, she was one step closer to what really happened to her father, all those years ago." Rani closed her laptop screen a satisfied smile on her face. "To be continued."
The three of you, all seated around her in the den, clap as she finishes. Colby has an especially large smile. "That was great, Rani! You have a real talent!"
Rani blushes and shakes her head modestly. "Oh, please. It's just a hobby. I mean, I like writing, but I'm no J.K. Rowling."
Colby pats her on the shoulder. "Nonsense. The more you write the better you get. I know I can't wait for the next chapter."
Rani laughs, nudging him with her elbow. "Well, you're going to have to, because I haven't written it, yet. I was actually thinking about rewriting it a little, actually. I was thinking about relocating it from an old, Victorian mansion, to a cabin in the woods."
George grins and takes a drink of his beer. "Feeling inspired by our surroundings, are we?"
Rani carefully slips her laptop into its bag. "Maybe. I mean, it'll be much easier to base it on somewhere I've been for several weeks. I have to admit, though, I'm kind of stuck for ideas, right now. I mean, I know where I want to story to go, I just don't know how to get there. I mean, last we saw her brother, he was locked in the neighbor's basement. But I'm not sure how I'm going to get him out."
George, somewhat buzzes, nudges you in the shoulder with his elbow. "Well, if you want, Rani, you could ask daddy's boy here to loan you the socks. Maybe that'll give you some ideas."
You nudge him back and silently mouth to him "Shut up!"
After a moment George realizes his mistake and clears his throat. "Er, I mean..."
Luckily, Rani didn't seem to notice. "I suppose the socks would help to stir things up. Inhabiting the mind of somebody else might help to toss a few new ideas around." She then grimaces and shakes her head. "No, I don't think so. I mean, my whole personality would change, not to mention my gender. Thanks for the offer, guys, but I'm not quite that desperate for ideas just yet."
***
"I dare you to eat the entire thing in one sitting."
"George, don't you think this is getting a little out of hand?"
George has just returned from town with the shopping. Among the goodies he'd procured, was a pint of vanilla ice cream. He plopped it into your lap, along with a big spoon, announcing his dare.
He grins at you, sitting in the chair across from you. "Are you turning down a dare? I'm shocked!"
You smirk at him. "Oh, come on. It's like I'm constantly eating, here. 'Hey, I dare you to eat this!' 'I bet you can't drink this entire six-pack!' I have yet to lose a single one. Heck, I've gotten so much money from you I've started giving it to George and Rani. You know I'm going to win."
George crosses his arms, and gives you a mischievous smirk. "What's the matter? Scared?"
You glance down at the pint of ice cream, feeling it chill your thighs. You throw your hands up and roll your eyes in mock fear. "Oh no. Ice cream. I'm terrified." You sigh, taking the dairy off your lap before it gets too cold. "George, I don't know if you noticed, but all these bets and dares of yours are beginning to show." You pat your stomach, its form a little rounder than when you first arrived. "I don't know how much more my body can take."
George starts chuckling. Then his chuckle turns into a full-on laugh. He smacks his own, larger stomach, causing the thing to quiver. "That's what you're worried about? I'm the one with the gut and you're worried about getting fat? You do remember we're turning back to normal before we get home, right? You have nothing to worry about."
You rub your new beard and look down at the ice cream. George did have a point, and the ice cream did look pretty good. In fact, you've kind of always wanted to eat it straight form the container. "What are you willing to bet me? And I don't want money."
George rubs a hand over his bald head as he thinks. "Well, uhm... What if I were to stay in this body for an extra week?"
You raise an eyebrow at him. "How does that benefit me?"
George shrugs. "I thought you would like it better if I was more like you and George, and not some young, cocky douche. Besides, if I'm the fat one, you won't have to worry about your weight as much."
You consider his proposal. "Oh, heck, fine." You grab the spoon and pry off the lid. You can see the creamy, ivory hue of the vanilla ice cream. You dig the spoon in, the dessert already fairly soft from sitting out so long. You shove the confection into your mouth, savoring the sweet flavor. Yes, your dad most certainly has a sweet tooth.
As you continue to shove spoonfuls of ice cream into your mouth Rani steps into the den. She stops and looks at you, then glances and George, eagerly watching you. "You know what; I'm not even going to ask. I was just letting you guys know I'm going out to paint. Colby's coming with me."
Both of you look up at Rani, a little surprised. "What?" "Wuff?"
Rani frowns. "I hope that's not going to be a problem. He's going to help me brainstorm for my story while I paint. We should be back later tonight."
She leaves, leaving just you and George. You glance at each other for a moment before you dig back into your dessert. After about half an hour you finish, winning a stomach ache, brain freeze, and possibly an extra pound or two.
***
At the end of the week, the three of you are in the pub again. You managed to convince George to buy you a size larger in pants so you wouldn't have to wear sweat pants when you went out, though this size is even feeling a little tight. You've also begun to notice your dad's shirts you brought with you are starting to feel a tad tight across the midsection, though he tended to wear them a little small to begin with.
George takes a drink from his mug and nudges Colby. "So, what's with you and Rani?"
Colby raises an eyebrow and takes a sip from his soda, as he is once again the designated driver. "I'm not sure what you mean."
George rolls his eyes. "Yeah you do. You went with her on her little hike the other day. What's up with that?"
Colby furrows his brow, suddenly very interested in his soda. "She needed some help writing, so I thought it would be a good idea to brainstorm."
George grins and laughs into his drink. "Oh yeah? Brainstorm? Is that what they're calling it now?"
Colby glares at George. "George, she is less than half my age! She's young enough be my daughter!"
George points a finger at him. "Uh, no. She's actually a few years older than you. You only look 50."
"51."
"Whatever."
As they're arguing, you notice an older man at the end of the bar staring at Colby. He's well into his 60s and you can barely see his eyes under his bushy white eyebrows and sagging skin, but he is definitely staring. He also looks to have had a few, judging by his unsteady swaying. After a minute or two, he meanders his way towards the three of you.
You nudge George, getting his and Colby's attention. "Guys. Three o'clock."
They glance over at the old man as he approaches. You feel George tense up, and you put a hand on his back to steady him. The last thing you needed was to get involved in a pub brawl. If you ever got arrested while in your dad's body, your dad was certainly going to hear about it.
The old man points shakily at Colby and speaks in a surprisingly strong if slurred voice. "Where have you been?"
Colby looks around to be sure he's the one being addressed. "I'm sorry?"
The old man grins and gives Colby a hearty slap on the shoulder. "I thought you were a goner! I haven't seen you in years! What hole did you finally dig yerself out of?"
Colby nervously shrugs. "Oh, you know. I don't like to stay in one place too long, uh... you..."
The man nods through his squinted eyes and leans heavily on the bar counter. "Now, I've been payin' yer 'lectric and water like you asked me to. It's purty cheap since no one goes up there 'cept fer some dumb kids every now 'n' then. So it's no skin off my back."
Colby fakes a smile and nods. "Oh? Well, thank you very much, then. I really appreciate it."
The old man mirrors Colby's nod. "But if yer back in town, maybe the missus and I can come up to that cabin of yers. It'd be nice to see the place I been payin' for."
Colby glances at the two of you. "Oh, yes, well, I-" He's rescued suddenly, by the ringing of his cellphone. "Oh! Would you look at that! Um, it was nice to meet you, but I've got to take this." Colby pulls out his phone and heads toward the door. You follow him out as George pays the tab. The old man is still standing there, a smile on his drunken face.
You follow Colby out the door. He has the cellphone pressed to his ear, and worried look on his face. You can hear Rani's voice from the other end. She's talking fast, her tone low.
"Rani," says Colby. "Rani. Slow down, I can't understand you." He nods and his frown deepens. "Alright. Okay. Listen, Rani. Stay away from the windows, lock all the doors. In the basement there's a gun safe. The code is 7-5-6-1. We'll be there as fast as we can."
George exits the pub and freezes in his tracks when he sees the grim expressions on your faces. "What's going on?"
George pockets his cellphone and starts jogging toward the van. "Rani's in trouble. We have to leave now!"