Titanification 6
by Jaypat
When I got home that afternoon I went straight to my room and booted up my computer. Jacks words from earlier were haunting me. How well did I really know Matt? When it came right down to it, did I have any proof, besides his word, that anything he told me was true?I started by googling his name. Damn, he had a pretty common name and I was hit with a ton of entries. Were any of them him? It wasn’t until I used his full name, Mathew, and added in his home town that I found something. But it wasn’t an article on him. It was actually an article on his dad. Holy crap, his dad was part of the Russian mob! I had no idea. Matt didn’t say a thing. Of course, why would he? That’s not the type of thing you advertise. Again, Jack’s words, “How well do you actually know him?” echoed in my brain. I guess I didn’t know him as well as I thought. But I couldn’t blame Matt for what his dad did? He didn’t have any say in it.
But still, how much was the son like the father?
I brooded on this question until about 7:00 that evening when a huge bus pulled up outside my house. It looked like the kind of tour bus a rock star would have. Except it was painted all black. There was little doubt in my mind about who was in the bus and I made my way to the front door just as the bell rang. It was the chauffer.
I was just about to follow him out to the bus when my mom came running up behind me. “I can’t believe you were just going to slip away without saying goodbye,” she said.
What? I went out all the time without saying goodbye. What was she talking about? “Bye,” I said. “See you later.” Then she pulled me up close and gave me a big hug and a kiss and said, “Good luck.”
Good luck? What the fuck? “err… thanks,” I said. “Bye.” Sheesh. Moms.
I followed the chauffer out to the bus and climbed on board. Yup, it was just like one of those tour coaches, wood paneling, plush seats, wide screen TV, the works. And there was Matt, bulging all over as usual and sitting in an oversized chair in the back next to some giant-sized object. It was about the same size and him and covered with a tarp.
“Hey Matt,” I said. “What’s that?”
“It’s a surprise,” he said. “I’m full of them. Come sit down.” He indicated a more conventionally sized chair placed opposite him. The bus started to move as I sat down.
“Oh yeah,” I called to the driver in the front. “You want to go up here and take a right on Elm.”
“Just give him the address,” said Matt offhandedly.
“221 Groober street,” I called. Then I turned back to Matt. “You didn’t need me to show you the way,” I said to him. “All you needed was the address.”
“I like the company,” said Matt. Then he kind of laughed to himself. “After all, that’s really what this is all about.”
“What what’s about?” I asked.
“You worked most of it out already,” he said. “Being a titan is kind of lonely. I just don’t relate to most normal people and because Titanification is banned in the US, there aren’t many other titans around. You’re the first normal person I’ve actually felt close to since I went through the process.”
“Thanks,” I said, feeling flattered but also confused. “But what has all this got to do with going to see Jack? What actually happened between you two?”
“Our dads,” said Matt. “I never intended to be a titan by myself. At first there was going to be Nick… But you know how that ended up. And then after I grew and I ripped down that building, my dad… well my dad started to get… ideas.”
“Your dad works for the Russian Mafia, doesn’t he?” I said.
Suddenly Matt got serious. “How long have you known?”
“I just found out tonight,” I said.
“And you still came?” said Matt, his eyebrows raised in surprise.
“Sure,” I said, shrugging. “Why not? Was there a reason I shouldn’t have?”
Matt grinned. “I’ve always liked you,” he said, “but not as much as I like you right now. You’re not afraid of anything, are you?”
“I wish,” I said laughing. “There’s plenty I’m afraid of. But we can go over my fears later. I still want to hear about Jack.”
“My dad got this idea to set up a black market Titanification center here in the US. But to do that, they’d need to study somebody going through the process. I was already finished by then so they couldn’t use me.”
“Jack?” I said.
Matt nodded. “His dad worked for my dad. Jack was the right age and was willing. But my dad also wanted a companion for me, so I had the final approval. I was in Juvie at the time, so Jack beat up some kid so he’d get tossed in there with me.”
I was stunned. I’d always thought Jack lost control of his temper when he beat up that kid. Now I find out that it was a calculated act of violence. It sent a shiver up my spine. It wasn’t just Matt I didn’t know, it was Jack, too. Was no one whom they seemed?
“Jack and I never really got along,” said Matt. “And when I didn’t give my approval, I guess his dad decided to go forward anyway, probably hoping that once Jack began the process, my dad would simply accept him.”
The bus pulled to a stop, and Matt peered out the window. “Looks like we’re here,” he said. “I shouldn’t be long. Have a soda.” He opened the fridge and handed me an ice cold Mexican Coke.
“What are you going to do?” I asked, suddenly afraid for Jack and his dad.
“Don’t worry,” said Matt. “Everything’s gong to be fine.” Then he picked up a brief case and made his way to the door. I felt the bus shake with each foot fall. Damn, his back was so wide, his massive shoulders were brushing opposite walls. And that tiny briefcase looked ridiculous in his massive paw.
I watched him walk up to the house, ring the bell and be admitted. Then suddenly I was alone and silent. Of course, I could have always turned on the TV or found a movie to watch or something. But for some reason I just didn’t feel like it. I sat there alone with my thoughts, sipped on my Coke and waited. I don’t know maybe I was expecting the sounds of destruction to start coming from the house. But there was nothing.
Eventually my attention turned to the huge draped object in the back. What was it? Matt had said it was a surprise, but for who? For me? I knew I should have left it alone but I couldn’t help myself. I got up and I walked over to it. It was about 8 feet tall, bulky and bulgy. I couldn’t make out any discernable shape to figure out what it might be. There were a couple of cords tied around the big, ungainly object to hold the tarp in place, but they weren’t really an obstacle. I could easily lift up the tarp for a peek. But should I? Did I want to? The last surprise Matt sprung on me was when he suddenly appeared at my school. That just about stopped my heart. Was this another surprise like that?
I decided I’d really rather not risk it and I lifted up the tarp for a peek. What I saw was the lower half of a massive leg, or the bronzed sculpture of one. I was looking at a huge, meaty foot with enormous toes, thick bones and bulging veins attached to steer-sized ankles and massive shredded calf muscles the size of beach balls. I realized at once I was looking at the statue of him that he’d kept in his ballroom. What was it doing here? I let the tarp fall back into place. How was this a surprise and what did it have to do with me? Was he planning to give it to me? I chuckled inwardly imagining what my mother would say when I showed up with it and announced I would be putting it in the backyard. It sure as hell wasn’t going to fit anywhere in the house.
I had just made it back to my chair when Matt returned with a smug look on his face. “That went well,” he said.
“What did you do,” I asked, “threaten Jack’s dad within an inch of his life?”
Matt shook his head, as he sat down and the bus started up again. “It wasn’t necessary,” he said. “I simply told him that dad would never accept Jack and that he would be stuck paying for the whole enterprise on his own. Then I showed him these.” Matt opened the brief case and pulled out a pile of papers, formed them into a fan and waved them around.
“What are those,” I asked.
“Invoices,” he said. “My tailor bill, monthly food bill, some compensation for accidental property damage, all of them way beyond his means. You should have seen the color drain from his face. And then there was the reality of having a full sized titan sitting in his living room. I not-so-accidentally crushed one of his chairs when I sat on it. Paid him for it on the spot, of course, and it segued nicely into this.” He pulled out another sheet of paper. “Bill for custom furniture. By the time I was done with him, he couldn’t call Switzerland fast enough.”
“He canceled Jack’s appointment?” I asked.
“Not exactly canceled it,” said Matt, looking at me, his expression changing to something I just couldn’t read.
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“It’s time for me to confess something,” he said. “All the time Jack and I were in Juvie, he kept talking about some guy who was waiting for him on the outside. Apparently they’d split up, but he was certain they’d get back together again once he’d had the Titanification.
“Jack never stopped talking about this guy, and he described him in such glowing detail that I found myself wanting to meet him, just to see if he lived up to the hype. So, when I got out, I tracked him down and arraigned to run into him in an electronics store. And I’ve got to admit Jack was right. He lived up to the hype.”
Holy crap, I was going numb. I actually felt myself going numb all over. No wonder I’d felt like I’d been stalked. I had been stalked. And I wasn’t just stalked; I’d been lied to and manipulated on top of it.
“I think you should take me home now,” I said.
“Please don’t take it like that,” said Matt.
“And how exactly should I take it?” I asked.
“As a tribute to what a truly amazing person you are,” he said. “Most people would have run away screaming from me—and most of my friends did. But not you. You were able to look past my size, to look past the mistakes I’d made and see the actual person, to really see who I was inside.”
“I have no idea who you are,” I said.
“Yes, you do. I’m the guy who loves movies and jokes about eating cows. And I’m someone who cares very deeply about you.”
“You also someone who lies and who bends and twists people’s lives like they were… like they were rails in that “playground” of yours. Not just my life, but Jack’s and probably your friend Nick’s and I don’t know how many others!”
“You’re not being fair,” said Matt. “I never wanted to lie to you. I just didn’t know how else to approach you.”
“You could have just told me the truth. Why didn’t you just send me an email or something?” I said.
“Oh sure,” said Matt. “Hi, you don’t know me, but I met your friend Jack in Juvie and he told me what a great guy you are. I was wondering if maybe we could get together sometime.
“I’m sure you would have rushed to answer that one.”
Ok, so maybe he had a point.
“You should have told me sooner,” I said.
“I told you as soon as I could,” said Matt. “The timing had to be right.”
“And the timing is right now?” I asked.
“Oh yeah,” said Matt, his eyes lighting up. “It couldn’t be better.” He walked over to the covered statue. “Time for your surprise,” he said and ripped the tarp from it. He didn’t bother to untie the cords or anything, but they snapped like threads at the slighted pull from those gargantuan muscled arms.
I opened my mouth to comment but what I saw wasn’t exactly what I was expecting. It was a statue of a muscle monster alright. It had huge monolithic legs and arms the size of tree trunks with veiny hard peaked biceps the size of truck tires, a stomach made of ten ponderous muscle bricks and a chest as broad and deep as a mini cooper, but the pose was slightly different from the one in the ball room. And then I saw the head.
It was my head, my face on top of that muscle giant of a body. I think my chin hit the floor. “What the fuck is this?” I gasped.
“What do you think?” grinned Matt. “It’s you… or how you will be soon, very soon.”
“But, but…” was all I could get out.
“Don’t worry, we’ll cover all the expenses,” said Matt. “All you have to do is let us examine you during the transformation.”
“I… I don’t know,” I said. I was finding it very hard to form words.
“Oh come on,” said Matt, “who wouldn’t want to be like this?” Then he tore off his shirt, once more giving me an unobstructed view of his beyond perfect body, those impossibly huge peaked biceps, those mountainous segmented shoulders, his brick wall stomach. I was really finding it hard to concentrate.
“I… I need time… I need to think,” I said.
“Sorry, bro, but there is no time. Jack’s appointment was for tomorrow and it could take us as much as a year to get another one if we miss it.”
“But the genetic tests…?” I stammered.
“Already done,” said Matt. “We were really lucky to get a cell from the inner lining of your cheek. Those are the best kind. We got it off your fork after you had dinner at my place the other night. You’d be surprised at the amount of genetic material you leave behind you wherever you go.”
“Why am I finding it so hard to think…?”
“That would be the first medication taking effect. You’re supposed to start taking it 12 hours before the process. We were a little behind schedule so I thought I would just save us some time and slip it in your coke.”
“You drugged me?”
“Don’t be so dramatic. I medicated you. You’ll probably drift off pretty soon, but don’t worry. Everything’s under control. By the time you wake up you’ll be in Switzerland and the process will have already begun.”
“No,” I said, feeling fuzzier by the second, “too soon…”
“You’ll love it,” said Matt, “you really will. And when you’re done, we’ll be closer than ever. We can really be together then, in every sense of the word.”
“I’m scared,” was all I could manage to get out.
“Soon you won’t be,” said Matt, “of anything.”
And then the world faded into black.