Over the course of the next few days, you and George notice Colby and Rani spending more and more time together, even more than they had before. And, not only do they go on Rani's regular trips to go painting in the woods, but they also go down to the lake. You and George are tempted to go follow them at one point, but you decide to leave them be. It's their business what they get up to.
"I'm just worried about them, you know?" you mention to George one day, as you watch a movie while munching on too many snacks. "What do you think she would do if she found out Colby's actually a short, chubby teenager who's at least five yours younger than she is."
George chuckles, his body jiggling. "I know what you mean, man. But you just gotta let them go. This is not the kind of stuff you want to be getting yourself involved in." He then proceeds to stuff an entire Ho Ho in his mouth.
You then one-up him by stuffing two in your own. At least your relationship with George is back to normal. No more would he send you confusing signals with his endless flirtation. Now you could just be two guys hanging out, like the good old times.
George laughs as you choke down the snack cakes. "Easy there, guy. You're gonna choke yourself. And don't think that I'm gonna give you the Heimlich, either." He grins and pats his overly large stomach. "I've got too much padding in the way."
You had plenty of padding of your own. You weren't a mountain of a man like George currently was, but you had quite the gut now. You must have gained well over 30 pounds since first arriving, though you hadn't actually weighed yourself for a comparison. There was also the fact that you hadn't been doing much more than eating, drinking, and sleeping since arriving, causing your muscles to gradually convert into fat, contributing to your softening figure. In fact, you probably needed to go and buy some larger clothes, seeing as your current shirt was beginning to ride up, exposing a sliver of your growing, hairy belly.
"Are you going to miss it?" George asks.
You glance over at him. You can see the ever present grin he has when he's his father, buried under his orange beard, sprinkled with white. "Miss what?"
"You know what." He tosses a Twinkie at you, which bounces off your stomach. "Being your old man. You've been him for nearly six weeks straight."
You shrug. "Yeah, I guess so. But it's not like I'm never going to be him again. I'll still have the socks and his shoes at home. I'll just be myself most of the time instead of him all of the time."
Though, you did like the changes you'd made since inhabiting this body. You run your fingers through your messy, six week old beard, dark and peppered with grey. You glance at your gut. While not exactly healthy, the extra weight didn't feel out of place on your frame.
George nods. "Hmmm. I see." He grins at you again. "I bet you can't finish off the rest of the Ho Hos on your own."
Without even considering it, you've grabbed the box of snacks and dumped the little, individually wrapped cakes out onto your lap. "You're on."
"I want to try the socks out." Rani is staring at your with a strange intensity that you hadn't seen before.
You blink. "Excuse me?"
Colby nods. "That's what I said. But, she seems pretty sure."
Rani rolls her eyes. "Of course I'm sure. I've sort of hit a writer's block in my story. I've been trying to get into the heads of my characters but I've been having trouble. I was hoping that a new perspective with the socks might help."
"Well, get in line," you say. "George is trying to pick a body for next week, and you know how long that takes."
The three of you find George in the den, sitting on the ground and still in the form of his large-bellied father. He's wearing the socks and has several pairs of shoes sitting before him. He picks up each pair, one by one, and considers them.
You sit in a nearby leather easy chair. "Still deciding, George?"
He grumbles, deep in thought.
Rani leans forward, and Colby mimics her movement. "George?"
George doesn't look up, still considering a pair of worn work boots. "We've only got a couple weeks left up here. I want to make this decision count." He turns the work boots over in his hands, running a finger along the worn leather and cracked, rubber soles. "And I think I may have just made my decision."
You eye the shoes as he slips them onto his feet. "Hey, haven't you worn those before? When you were than construction worker guy?"
He grins, his large belly beginning to shrink as his wild hair retracts. "Yeah. It was fun being that guy. I thought I'd revisit that body. You get to keep me in your old and fat club, yet."
With a little help from you and Colby, George struggles to his feet. His height has already dropped several inches, putting him closer to you. His red hair changes to mostly grey, partially black as it shortens to a close, clipped cut. Though, he keeps his advanced male pattern baldness. His wild beard shortens to grey stubble on a round, yet strong face. His flabby torso is still flabby, but is backed with muscle and significantly less girth than before. His body hair even tones down some, though not much.
He laughs as you glance down at his new, familiar body. "That's much better! I mean, I like being my dad and all, but it's nice being able to maneuver without all that bulk in the way." He looks up at Rani, who had been watching George's changes with interest. "Oh, right. Did you need something?"
Rani shakes herself from whatever thoughts had taken her attention. "Yes. Uhm, I need to borrow those socks. I've been trying to get into my characters' heads, but I've been having some trouble. I'm at a loss for the main character's brother. Obviously, I'm not a guy. But I couldn't help but notice that those socks come with some personality alterations. I was hoping I could use them to temporarily see what it's like to be a guy. You know, just without the guy trying to kill us."
Grinning, George takes a seat and removes his shoes and socks. He hands to latter to Rani. "If you need shoes, I've got plenty. Take your pick. If you're looking for anything specific, don't hesitate to ask."
Rani sets the socks aside and looks among the dozens of pairs of shoes scattered across the floor. "Wow. You've got a lot of shoes here. Let me see..."