Julie's Point of View
"Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. We all return to dust in the end, Nyte," the blue-haired girl said philosophically, running her hand over a field of dead flowers, their formerly vibrant petals dimmed and faded in the June sun.
"Don't call me 'Nyte' out of uniform!" Julie snapped.
Tick Queen Kleia, or rather, Azure Abrams, stood up from where she was kneeling and dusted off her shorts. "Sorry," she said, looking abashed. "I'm still getting used to the area. They've got me staying with a host family that does work for the organization."
That organization was Stinger, their employer, their master, their chains. Chains forged by her mother sat lightly on Spider Queen Nyte, but chains they remained. Personally, she'd rather spend all her free time with her boyfriend. She took out her phone.
"Oho, what's that? Looks fancy," Azure commented, greed flashing in her eyes.
"Razr phone, my boyfriend and I have matching ones," she blurted out before she could stop herself. Fuck, mentioning her boyfriend to Azure would just pique her interest...
The blue-haired girl examined the phone in her hand as Julie flipped it open to check her text messages. "Whatcha doing? It's a phone. Did he leave a message or something? Can phones take messages now?"
"Do you know what text messages are?" Julie asked arrogantly. As far as she was aware, Azure didn't even have a computer. She was helpless with technology, more of an outdoorsy type.
Azure's brow furrowed in thought. "Aren't those expensive? Your mom will be mad when she sees the bill!"
"Our plan gives us a certain number of free texts a month." Rich used them to great effect, writing her brief messages every day in a shorthand unique to him, outlining his plans and where he was likely to be at any given time. He was so organized, letting her know what days he was working, when he went to the gym, and even what they were having for dinner. Having him for a house husband would be heaven on Earth. When she made it to the NFL, Rich would live like a king, she vowed. Handbags, fur coats, jewelry, anything he wanted would be his. As a bonus, he was tall and athletic. Their kids would have good sports genes on both sides. They were pretty much the perfect couple, and he kissed her whenever she wanted.
Julie shivered. Sometimes you win, and sometimes you lose. It'd been nothing but wins lately, and she didn't want to push her luck.
"Oi! Julie Jules, I'm standing right here, ya know!" Azure said indignantly.
Ah, embarrassing, she thought. She must've been in her own little world there for a minute. "Sorry, Azure. Listen, I know I promised to show you around, but there's just not that much to see in Plano. The park here is kind of it. Do you want to grab lunch in a bit? It's still early, so we have some time to kill."
Just as she said that, Julie glanced in the direction of one of the park's jogging paths. Well, I'll be damned. That chubby nerd Rebecca Rice looked swole as fuck!
Yep, Rich had good genes. With just a little training, his sister blew up like a tick, no pun intended, Kleia.
***
"We're sprinting the last quarter mile, Becca, let's get it!" he yelled over his shoulder.
They were neck and neck until Rich saw something that almost made him stumble. She's taller, he noticed. All that clean eating, fresh air, and sunshine he'd been making sure his twin was getting had to have resulted in a growth spurt. It was the only logical explanation.
Previously, they were both 6'0" or 183cm. Now? Becca looked about two inches, or 5cm, taller, and here he was, the same size as before. Just casually eyeballing, he noticed her legs were a bit longer, her stride more fluid and confident. His sister was tapping into some reserve of energy the reverse world denied to boys and was leaving Rich in the dust.
It was humbling, honestly. This body of his, that actually took years of discipline to build in his first life, was just casually overcome by a girl with not even six months of serious training under her belt.
Of course, this was what he was working towards. Becca's success was his success. Now all he had to do was get her on the football team and help her meet boys.
Twin, your ideal high school experience starts today! he vowed.
Digging deep, Rich pushed himself to try and catch up, but Becca's lead was too large. Once he crested over that final hill, he saw his sister ahead, taking a breather, talking to Julie and another girl with blue hair he didn't recognize.
Blue hair? Seriously? The thing was, it didn't look like a dye job. Did this reverse world have people with naturally blue hair?
Closing in on the group, Rich saw Julie holding out her arms for a hug. Deciding to have a little fun, he took a running leap into her arms. Despite his size, Julie picked him up and twirled around like he weighed nothing, laughing in pure joy.
At first, it was weird as fuck, Rich had to admit. He was from the future. But the longer he stayed in the past, the more it became his world, his life. You could only wake up and go to sleep in the same body so often without starting to feel at home in it. Mentally, he was a lot older than her, and conscious of maintaining appropriate boundaries, but something about the gender role reversal in this world made things just different enough that his discomfort vanished. Her absolute delight at his mere presence helped, too.
Rich's legs dangled as Julie held him upright. "Julie, I'm covered in sweat!" he said in embarrassment.
She just hugged him tighter. "Boy sweat doesn't even count." He felt like a doll in her arms.
"Oho, is this the one?" asked the blue girl.
That got Julie to lower him to the ground, but she was still clutching him protectively, angling her body to keep herself between him and the blue girl. "Richard, this is Azure Abrams, my, uh, acquaintance. Azure, this is Richard Rice, my boyfriend."
"Pleased to meetcha!" Azure extended her hand.
Julie held him so tightly that he couldn't shake her hand. "He's all sweaty, Azure. You don't want to touch him," Julie said.
In fact, Rich was sweating all over Julie. They'd been running for over half an hour in that North Texas humidity. The t-shirt he was wearing stuck to his skin like a wetsuit.
"You just said boy sweat doesn't count!" Azure said indignantly.
"Only if you're dating," Julie said confidently, as if it were obvious. At least she hadn't sniffed him, that he noticed, anyway.
"And I'm Becca Rice." His twin extended her hand, and this time Azure shook it.
"Damn, you're a big girl. You play ball with Jules?"
"She will," Julie declared, then looked at Becca. "You've got good speed, Rice, and Rich told me how much you're squatting now. You'll make the team for sure. You look great, seriously."
Genuine praise from Julie, her old nemesis, struck Becca speechless. As a matter of fact, they were of similar size now, two girl jocks just vibing in the park.
"Nepotism~" Azure teased.
"It's not!" Julie snapped harshly, pulling Rich close with an arm around his shoulders. Since he'd given permission, she was super touchy now, clutching him possessively whenever he was within arm's reach. "And even if it was, who cares? Becca is gonna be an offensive lineman. It's not rocket science. She just needs to block for me. If she's big and strong and fast, that's like ninety percent of it."
"Being a pulling guard is more complicated, though," Rich spoke up.
Julie waved off his objection. "You and Becca are both smart, all AP classes. One practice will be enough to learn it."
Azure smiled evilly. "Since when does a boy know what a 'pulling guard' is? Figures your boyfriend would be the king of the mollygirls, Julie. You couldn't handle a real boy."
That comment left a bad taste in Rich's mouth. "Am I not a real boy?" he asked the group uneasily.
Julie leaned down and kissed the top of his head. "Of course you are, baby. You're the hottest boy in school. Having feminine interests like sports and cars and stuff doesn't make you any less masculine. Besides, you're the tallest boy and I'm the tallest girl. We just match," she said proudly.
"All this sappiness is making me hungry!" Azure declared.
"Ugh, fine," Julie said in resignation, then her tone abruptly shifted to saccharine sweetness. "What do you want to eat, sweetheart?"
She was asking him? Rich thought for a minute. "Uh, I was gonna go home and make something for Becca..."
Azure gasped. "You can cook? Maybe you are a real boy after all!"
"He's a great cook," Julie bragged. "Forget making lunch, Rich. You and Becca can join Azure and me. Gentleman's choice, we can go anywhere you want."
"Okay," Rich agreed, "but at least let me go home and take a quick shower first."
***
In this world, Pizza Patron's logo was a woman with a fedora, no mustache to be seen, practically blasphemous.
"Ah, mas pizza, menos dinero," Rich said contentedly. Pizza Patron was in its Mexican Peso era, the golden age of the franchise.
"Is this place really good?" Azure asked excitedly. "We don't have it in New Mexico!"
"It's the best," Rich said confidently, hanging off his girlfriend's arm. He and Julie were pretty much joined at the hip at this point, so he just went with it. She was wearing the same tank top and cut-off shorts as earlier, while he was in a more modest t-shirt and jeans. Boys were supposed to cover up in this world. Showing too much skin was slutty.
"You know I've never actually eaten here," Julie admitted.
"It's the best, and cheap too!" Becca said. "You know, I actually haven't had anything but Rich's cooking for months. I hope I don't gain a bunch of weight from just one meal."
"It would just be water weight. And you've got way more muscle mass now, so you'll be able to eat more without gaining too much," he reassured his sister.
Julie looked at him like she was remembering their coffee date. "So...what's good, honey?"
"Choriqueso," the twins said together.
Azure looked confused. "What's that?"
"Chorizo sausage and Mexican cheese, ultimate pizza," Rich explained.
"That's good enough for me, we'll take two large choriquesos and four Pepsis," Julie ordered for the group.
Pizza Patron's interior was all white, with a pretty mural on the wall. Not for the last time, Rich lamented the old mustache man logo. How the mighty have fallen. "So," he started up the conversation once they sat down, "how did you two meet?"
Julie looked like she didn't want to answer, but Azure was only too happy to. "Bat mitzvah buddies!"
That's right. His girlfriend Julie was Jewish. "You know, we've never talked about religion," he said idly.
"My family's not super religious, Rich. You don't have to convert for me, if that's what you're worried about," she said hastily.
He felt a little blush creep up his neck. She was already thinking that far ahead? Sometimes her possessiveness was a little scary, but oddly comforting in a way. Rich didn't want to imagine what she might've done if he had refused her. If he didn't know he could always become Future Hero and fight her off if it became too intense, he might be a lot more concerned.
They chatted about inconsequential things, but mostly the upcoming football season.
"We have a real shot at State this year," Julie declared seriously. "We need to win if I want to look good for the college scouts."
"College, huh? Becca and I are studying for the SAT right now. I wonder what colleges we'll be able to get into," Rich said.
"You'll be going to the same college as me, honey," Julie told him. Her tone indicated no objections would be heard or considered. "It depends on who recruits me. I'll make sure you know well in advance before I commit, so you know where to apply."
Damn, it's like that? Julie was assuming a hell of a lot. Rich looked at his girlfriend. Those intense purple eyes, so bright, so full of devotion, hadn't even taken into account the possibility that they wouldn't be together a year from now. Becca shifted in her seat, looking slightly uncomfortable. Azure's expression was carefully neutral.
"Whatever you say, Julie," he agreed.
The tension that Rich hadn't noticed was building up at their table deflated like a balloon once he told his girlfriend what she wanted to hear. The conversation tapered off once their pizzas were ready.
"Shoo gud," Julie said between bites as she inhaled the pizza in front of her. Objectively speaking, their table had four huge people sitting there. Even Azure was over six feet. They destroyed those two large pizzas in record time.
"You going to play football too, Azure?" he asked lightly.
The blue-haired girl shook her head. "I've got other responsibilities," she said cryptically.
Well, it was probably none of his business. He had his Future Hero duties as well, so Rich had no room to talk.
The more they talked, the more he noticed Azure looking at him. He thought nothing of it. Girls stared at him all the time. It was just one of those reverse world things. If it got too blatant, Julie would set her straight.