DetectiveRed

A new update! Yay! I'm sorry I haven't been updating. The next couple of chapter will hopefully come out quicker since they were written with everything I've posted up until now in mind. They only need minor tweaks which is great for y'all but bad for me cause it means I'll need to get back to uploading to Wattpad.

Edited and looked over by the amazing Trismegistus Shandy.  Check out Trismegistus Shandy, Shandy is a writer on here that does amazing editing work for a bunch of amazing stories. Here are the links to their other places TGstorytime and Big Closet

I'll put details about why this chapter took a while at the bottom.

Sitting under the tree with Nick and Katie was something he had never believed would happen. Yet here he was. Sure, he couldn’t make out what they were saying, but simply being around them was nice. Even the blurred-out figure sitting next to them wasn’t enough to make him uncomfortable. The three people in front of him all seemed to be getting along well enough, so why question it? Especially when the unease he had been feeling since this all started was finally gone. His body felt like his again. Before he knew it, he had his phone out and was looking at the camera. The facial hair he had wanted back had returned and was now more full than it had ever been, there was a bit of stubble above his upper lip and his eyebrows were back to their original shape. It was perfect. He just felt right again.

It was nice to have something other than nightmares. Even if the dream was shorter than any of the nightmares he had experienced due to all of this garbage, and even if it only left him feeling worse about his current predicament. He wanted to just lay there, and try to remember that feeling of rightness from that dream while ignoring the body he was currently stuck in. His body had different plans; he wanted breakfast. Needing to eat half his weight in cereal was something he didn’t know if he could get used to. He still hadn’t been able to figure out why he had been so goddamn hungry since this had all started. Weren’t girls supposed to have smaller appetites? Because if so, his body hadn’t got the memo. 

The usual routine of throwing on an oversized hoodie and walking out to the living room didn’t change on weekends. As long as he didn’t have to wear his bra he figured it would at least be comfortable while not risking being found out. He didn’t plan on being out there for long, he just needed to look out the windows in the living room to see if Mum was home. If she wasn’t, he was golden; he could eat out there, then hide in his room again. If she was home, then he was going back to sleep, regardless of what his gut wanted.

After he confirmed that he was, in fact alone, it was time to make a breakfast that even he couldn't mess up: cereal. Just milk and grain. He just hoped it would sate his hunger. The cereal was in the cupboard, probably high enough that he couldn't reach it, since his mum loved to put things where she thought they looked best instead of where they were practical. It was fine for her. She wasn't a short-ass who had been waiting on a growth spurt for three goddamn years. One that might never come now that he was a chick. The stool he had bought last month had proved itself to be a valuable asset. He didn't even bother pouring milk at this point; as soon as he got the stool to reach the cereal, he started shovelling handfuls into his mouth. By the time he was done, he had finished the box and was still hungry. He wished he could cook.

Now it was time to find something to do. If he couldn't eat the rest of the house, the best he could do was distract himself. Showering was definitely on the agenda, but after that, he had no clue. There had to be something to watch, or do that didn't involve talking to other people, right? That dream had made him feel a little better after last night's sobbing into his pillow session, but he wasn't exactly hyped to call others again. Still, maybe he could put a dent in his games library; there were a couple of games he'd been meaning to play but never got the chance to. All that took was booting up the computer. Which would immediately open Discord? Which would remind him he couldn’t talk to people. Which would remind him of how lonely he felt. 

He needed to get control of these spiralling thoughts somehow. For now, he just had to put them aside and just deal with whatever happened. The computer booted up and almost immediately he got a notification from Discord.

Nick: Hey, James. The others want to play with you. I know this might be a bit to ask since you seem to be avoiding them, but can you please play with them? 

Isolation might have to wait. If Nick was asking, it meant the other two were hounding him or flaming hard as usual. Hopefully, a couple of team deathmatches would make them back off. Besides, it would (hopefully) be nice to talk to them again. He kind of missed them. Nick was amazing and sweet, but he didn't have an edge. There wasn't as much banter, something he was surprised he didn’t miss as much as he thought he would.

James: Sure, I'll just wake up properly first.

He took a deep breath in and tried to keep himself calm. Ben, Lachie and Nick were already in a call. He just had to press a button and join them. It said they were in-game, so they probably wouldn’t notice until he said something.

He pressed the button, joined the call and the little alert noise played. Hearing  Lachie and Ben arguing was kind of nostalgic. It was nice to know not much had changed.

"Ben, stop hogging the health, dumbass," Lachie ordered. Ben was notorious for his “me, me, me” attitude. 

"I need it, you just need to keep me alive and we win," Ben snapped back.

"I can't keep you alive if I'm fucking dead, dumbass."

"You're the one that walked out into the open. It's your fault you need health." That also sounded about right. Lachlan had no idea when to go in. They were probably lucky he was alive at all.  

"Ben, can you please give him a med-pack?  More will spawn soon and we need Lachie to not die." Nick was trying to get a handle on them. James certainly didn’t miss playing intermediary.

"Shut up, Nick. Why don't you help him?"

"Because I am half-dead too and you have all the med packs!" Nick was getting angry; that didn't happen often. He was tempted to just watch this all play out. Even though he knew he shouldn’t. 

“Calm down. Ben, stop wanking yourself off and share the med packs. An amazing player like you would never take damage.” He hoped the sarcasm he was trying to pour into his words was coming across. Ben probably wouldn’t get it; he probably only heard “amazing player”.

“Fuck, when did you get here? Get in here next round, these randos suck.” Lachie had this weird way of making everything he said sound like an order.

“I’ll give them some but I’m not getting them back to full,” Ben sulked. “They got themselves hurt by not listening.” 

“Yeah, yeah,” James said dismissively. 

While waiting for those three to finish their game, James figured it was time to check out what the others had been doing in the group chat for the last week. He’d seen notifications, mostly the usual stuff; setting up games, talking shit, and the occasional whining about girls. Seeing it with fresh eyes, they looked pathetic. Their playing in the background started to die down. They must have been finishing their match, finally. Surprisingly, he got a private message from Lachie.

Lachlan: Thanks for talking some sense into him. It’s been a pain without you around.

James: No prob, I know how he gets.

Lachlan: Can’t wait to play with you again.

James: Haha thanks, man.

It had been a while since he had booted up a first-person shooter.  It probably would have been a good idea to practise with bots before playing with and against other people, but it wasn’t like he could have gotten worse at the game. 

"Hurry up, James."

"I'm coming."

The rules were simple. They just had to kill the enemy team without dying themselves. It required coordination and skill, only one of which they had.

"Ben, you messed up my shot," Lachlan whined.

"Then aim better," Ben replied.

"I can't aim when I can't see."

"Then move, dude, I'm trying to bait out their ammo." A normal Ben strategy that never, ever worked.

"You’re giving away my position is what you are doing."

"James, can you move your ass out of my way as well?  I need to get this shot. Actually, can you push Ben into the enemy's line of fire? A meatshield would be helpful,"

"Wow, what the fuck, Lachie?" Ben sounded shocked. James was ashamed to admit he was too. He didn’t remember Lachie being so toxic. 

"I am willing to kill you if you don't stop pissing me off." Lachlan sounded stern. Like a parent telling a child they’ll turn this car around if they don’t be quiet. James had to step in before these two started throwing.

"Can you two stop going at each other?" James asked calmly. It wasn’t worth losing his cool over. He just had to see how things went.

"What was that, James? You haven't played for a week, do you not remember how to? Tell Lachlan to stop trying to throw."

"It's a team game, fuckwit. Act like it." He was trying to sound like his usual self. 

"Yeah, and that means my team should support my plays."

"Well, I can't support stupid plays, can I?" James hadn't even noticed he'd raised his voice. 

"Hey, James?" Ben asked. 

"What?"

"Why do you sound like a squeaker?"

"What?" James repeated. 

"Did your nuts un-drop or something?"

James wanted to talk back. He wanted to tell him to focus on the game and stop acting like an entitled brat. Instead, he sat there, unable to move. Why did Ben have to be the one to point it out first?

"James is right, can y'all work together for once?"

"Y'all? Nick, when did you become a cowboy?" Lachie teased.

Why did people always move on immediately after mentioning his voice? If they noticed it, why did they just point it out and ignore it? It seemed like they were keeping it for when they needed to mock him next.

"James, you've gone awfully quiet, did I hurt your fee-fees?" Ben mocked. "Poor manlet." His height had always been a point of mockery. It didn't used to sting as much, now though Ben was using it to take shots at his masculinity. 

"Can we just finish this game? I'm tired," James said quietly. He felt the familiar tightness in his chest. If he didn't get off soon, he'd be sobbing or hyperventilating. His panic from last night was warranted. He'd have to come clean soon.

"Not a problem, James. Ben got himself killed to try and piss me off," Lachlan said.

"You didn't back me up?" 

"You died because you ran out into the middle of the field."

"Let's just surrender," Nick sighed.

Laying in bed clutching his phone wasn't a good look for a guy, but he didn't care. He just needed to be alone. Maybe watch something. The resignation to his fate seemed to stifle his panic. He had some dumb skit video open when he received a message from Nick

Nick: Wanna come over tomorrow? 

Nick might be the only person he wanted to talk to. The only person aside from Katie he felt safe around. Not being home alone all weekend seemed like a good idea. 

James: Sure

DetectiveRed

The major reasons this took so long basically comes down to a lack of inspiration (being in a house all day isn't exactly the best thing for creativity) and a lack of personal experience with the characters I'm writing. Asshole nerd teenage boys aren't something I am super familiar with so writing three with kind of distinct personalities was difficult. I think I might have it here though. Let me know if you've got any feedback on these characters. This type of character isn't my strong suit.