Chapter Text
Leo’s POV…
Adam and I were going to watch a movie. It was supposed to be fun while Chase and Mr. Davenport worked on one of their machines downstairs, which meant I was absolutely forbidden from going down there, just in case I touched something I wasn’t supposed to…
Mom and Bree had gone to the mall to buy things I didn’t understand and didn’t want to understand. Besides, it would’ve been super boring, since they never let me go into the fun stores.
Back to the movie—Adam had picked Twilight. Something about sparkly people and captivating eyes. And I just couldn’t take it anymore. Not the dialogue, not Kristen Stewart’s expressions, and definitely not the glitter.
Although I have to admit Rosalie and Alice were cool. And really pretty.
You’d think if I hated the movie that much, I would’ve argued more with Adam. But that’s harder when the other guy has super strength and laser eyes that misfire whenever he gets mad.
Frustrated by the terrible plot, I slowly slid off the couch and managed to sneak toward the elevator without Adam noticing, too distracted while Edward revealed the whole vampire thing to Bella.
I stared at the elevator doors thoughtfully. I knew I wasn’t allowed downstairs. They’d probably kick me out the second I walked in.
But… this could be my own spy mission. And that had to be way more fun than the movie.
Twilight might kill me…
From boredom, but still kill me.
Worth it if I got to see something interesting.
I pressed the button and, without thinking twice, headed down to the lab.
After all… what could possibly go wrong?
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As soon as the doors opened, I slowly peeked my head out. Seeing no one, I stepped inside.
I moved stealthily, half-hiding behind random things in case one of them came through the other door.
I carefully checked the rest of the lab and found…
Nothing.
No one was there.
Uh…
Okay, now this wasn’t fun anymore.
With nothing else to do, I wandered farther in, giving up the spy act now that it didn’t matter.
I started roaming around, stumbling a little while searching for clues about what they’d been working on. They wouldn’t have kicked me out unless it was something interesting.
Then I saw it.
Right in the middle of my “mission specialist” desk was a small black device with a red stripe around it and a tiny white button in the center.
There was a little light on the front, like it turned on when pressed.
As I inspected it, I heard footsteps coming from the garage. Quickly, I hid the device behind my back to avoid getting caught. At least, not more than I already would just for being there.
A moment later, Chase approached me with a frown.
“What are you doing here, Leo?” he asked suspiciously.
“Oh, you know… just… inspecting,” I said nervously. Bad excuse, yeah, but I deserved some credit for quick thinking.
“Leo…” he began, but before he could continue, his eyes shifted to the now-empty desk where the device definitely wasn’t anymore.
“You didn’t take the Molecular Reconfiguration Device, did you?”
He started walking toward me, and I backed away, trying not to get caught.
Then suddenly he lunged at me.
Startled—and protecting my face, obviously—I threw my hands up, accidentally revealing the device.
“Leo…” he started again.
“I was just inspecting it!” I cut in quickly.
Annoyed, he lunged at me again. In defense, I pointed the device at him and pressed the button, hoping something cool would protect me from the bionic genius.
It was too late when I realized I had probably made a mistake.
“Leo, no—!”
A blinding yellow light engulfed him, forcing me to shut my eyes.
When the light faded, Chase wasn’t on top of me anymore.
So… it worked?
Instead, lying on the lab floor…
was a girl.
An oddly familiar one.
A teenager, probably my age, with light brown hair, a slim frame, delicate features—but also slightly muscular… kind of like Bree, but prettier, in my opinion.
But there was something else.
In the slightly sharp nose. The long lashes. The hair color. The full lips.
Something that reminded me of…
Chase.
Then it hit me.
With a high-pitched scream (which I will deny sounded like that), I rushed toward the figure on the floor.
Chase was a girl.
At that exact moment, hearing the scream, Mr. Davenport came running in—
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Davenport’s POV…
Leo’s high-pitched scream (which he would definitely deny later) echoed all the way to the garage, where I had been working.
That worried me—especially because it clearly came from the lab.
I could only think: what did he touch now?
Hopefully he was still alive.
Because if he wasn’t… Tasha would kill me.
I ran into the lab only to find Leo on the floor, shaking a girl.
Wait… a girl?
Leo looked panicked as he glanced up from the strangely familiar teenager lying there.
“She’s not waking up,” he whispered.
“What is this, Leo?” I asked, fearing another Marcus situation—but I didn’t even know how she got here, or why Leo looked genuinely scared.
Without thinking twice, I picked the girl up. I didn’t know who she was, but she looked young. Questions could wait.
Leo followed closely behind as we headed to the elevator.
We went upstairs quickly, and I placed the girl on the couch. Tasha came out of the kitchen, shocked.
“What’s going on?” she asked, approaching us.
I looked at Leo, expecting an answer.
Under both our stares, he grew nervous, stepping back with that familiar smile he always had when he’d done something wrong.
“Ummm… I might have… touched something I shouldn’t have…” he said, backing away with a nervous laugh.
“Leo!” I snapped.
“It’s… Chase. The thing turned Chase… into a girl.”
My eyes widened.
No…
That couldn’t be—
Chase…
And there it was.
The nose. The cheekbones. The hair color Douglas passed down.
Yes, her features were softer now. Smaller nose. Bigger eyes. Fuller lips. Sharper face. Long, straight hair.
But underneath it all…
it was him.
My boy. My little genius.
Now it made sense why I hadn’t seen him after leaving the garage.
Meanwhile, Tasha was gently placing an ice pack on Chase’s forehead.
How long had I been analyzing my daughter?
Her face tensed slightly from the cold.
And there it was again.
Even unconscious… that expression—
That was him.
A sharp inhale broke the silence as Chase suddenly sat upright.
…
How were we supposed to explain this?
And worse…
How would he react?
For the first time in a long time…
I had absolutely no idea how to fix this.
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Chase’s POV…
Everything was dark. Everything… hurt.
Something cold brushed against my forehead, and it felt so good.
Then I remembered.
Leo. The MRD. The light.
I sat up suddenly, but dizziness hit me and I collapsed back onto the couch.
That’s when I realized Tasha, Davenport, and Leo were surrounding me.
“How did I get here?” I asked weakly.
And then I heard it.
My voice.
Too high.
“No…” I tried again.
Still wrong.
Before anyone could say anything, I stood up too quickly, ignoring the exhaustion… and them.
I felt light.
But at the same time… heavy.
I looked down.
And saw things that should not be there.
No. No, no—
“Ahhh!” My scream came out high-pitched, which only made everything worse.
Ignoring everything else, I ran toward the bathroom mirror.
I crashed into something on the way there, but I didn’t care.
And what I saw…
wasn’t me.
And somehow…
it was.
The same eyes.
Just bigger.
Longer lashes.
Everything was there.
And yet…
none of it was.
I slowly walked out of the bathroom.
I still couldn’t believe it.
When I entered the living room, Adam was sitting on the couch while my parents and Leo tried explaining something to him.
When he saw me, he stood up and walked toward me with a… smile?
A flirty one?
“Hi, I’m Adam,” he said.
“Adam, this is weird,” I replied, still not used to my own voice.
“It doesn’t have to be,” he said, stepping closer. Instinctively, I backed away.
“Adam, that’s disgusting…” I started to say, but then realized I had to be direct.
“Adam… I’m Chase.”
He frowned.
“You’re not Chase. He’s shorter and has spiky hair.”
I sighed in annoyance… partly because I knew I was definitely shorter now.
“Adam…”
Then he stared at me.
“…Chase?”
His face twisted into an expression of pure horror.
Then he ran off somewhere, shaking his head and rubbing his eyes.
From the hallway, Bree came rushing in.
“What’s going on? And why does Adam look like he just saw something he wasn’t supposed to?”
Then she looked at me.
“And who’s she?”
Excellent.
This was going to be a long day.
Or at least…
I hoped it would only be one day.