You’re back in Mrs. Wilson’s room after pre-emptively stopping Jimmy’s pummeling. You drop Dennis’s skin, and with the middle-aged woman’s help, you hide it on the deepest, darkest part of her room. She looks at you, worried. “You think he’ll smell?”
You check the deflated skin’s cheeks. There are clear bruises, but as you squeeze them (from over and under, your thumb inside his loose mouth), they feel strangely rubbery and off. “I’m not sure, but I doubt it.”
“Then, for our own good, hope this skin doesn’t rot.” You hide the skin under her secret clothes, then close the chest. “Now what?”
You grab the green pen from the case. At a glance, it’s identical to the other ones, save for the color. From what you can recall from your brief stay in Dennis’s mind, this one’s supposed to create a clone out of someone. How it does so, though, you’re unsure – though based on the black and white ones, you suspect you’ll need to be nude for it. Which leaves only one alternative.
“Take off your clothes.”
“David!” she jokes. “Buy me some chocolates and take me to dinner first!” You give her a harsh stare, and she sighs. “I was just joking – I couldn’t see you as a life partner.”
“I don’t like this any more than you do, ma’am.”
“I get it – you prefer my daughter, no?” You repeat the stare. “David, humor me. This is new for us.”
“That’s why I’m hoping nothing goes wrong.” You point at the door as you turn towards it. “I’ll be outside while you, well...”
“You’ve seen me naked already, David. I don’t understand why you’re so peevish now.”
“Because...” You grimace out of shame. “That moment, I was... I dunno, drunk on the emotion or something.”
“David, you were horny and looking at someone attractive. Don’t try to sugarcoat it. I actually consider it a compliment.”
“But...!” You whine. “You could be my mom!”
“And I’ve known you since you were five, almost six. I see you as another of my children; I couldn’t see you as a sexual partner!” You shiver as she says that. “You've been nothing but respectful to me - that makes it easier for me to trust you.”
“Still...” You grab your arm, squeezing it tight. “It doesn’t feel right when you’re awake.”
“Well,” she responds after a little grunt. “If it makes you feel any easier...”
“Thanks. Tell me when you’re finished.”
“Oh, just keep an eye in case Jimmy’s looking around, dear.”
You check around – having no one in sight – then lean back. “Why?”
“You thought I was waiting for you to leave so I could undress? I’m almost done!” And in fact, as she finishes giggling, she confirms with an order. “I’m ready.”
You turn, and your heart skips as you see Mrs. Wilson naked once more, for what’s probably the fourth or fifth time in two weeks. She poses, teasing you further. “You like what you see?”
“Missus Wilson!”
“Don’t feel ashamed, David. We’re all born naked. The first people who saw me naked were my mother, my father, the doctor and the nurse. And I’ve slept with a few people without clothes. Why an 18-year-old kid I see as my own must be the exception?”
“Because...”
“And don’t come to me with ‘because it’s wrong’, because we’ve been doing quite a lot of wrong things recently. That said – let's try to make this quick, shall we? I still need to put on my twin.”
“Right...” Figuring it’ll work like the others, you point the green pen at Mrs. Wilson. At first, you see nothing, but then her skin starts to bulge, as if she’s having an allergy. You approach her, scared. “You alright?”
“Not exactly...” She squirms, trying to scratch.
“Can you breathe?”
“I do, but it feels like there’s something on my nose and my mouth!” You notice she tries to pull her face away, and it shifts forward. You check her back, and you notice the same slit the other skins make.
As you help her, the slit tears and the outer layer of skin shifts to reveal a rosy interior. (“It’s like Mom’s skin was peeled off chemically”, Heather says in your mind.) Soon, the extra bulk falls, and the rosy skin once again returns to its usual pallor. Mrs. Wilson’s hair is wet and her skin is sweaty, but other than that, she seems to be fine.
After taking off her skin, you grab it for examination. Having her to compare, it’s identical – it's like if you had turned Mrs. Wilson into skin, complete with the gaping mouth and the empty eyes, its feel like flesh rather than rubber.
She grabs it from you, blushing. “So, this is how I look when I’m deflated?”
“Pretty much.”
She then slaps you. “And you were so jittery about seeing me naked!” She grins, exploring her skin from the outside. “Looking better than in the mirror. No wonder your hormones get so excited.”
“Missus Wilson!”
“David, you’re wearing my daughter right now. No need to be high and mighty, alright?” She hands you the skin, sighing. “Now what?”
You grab the black pen – the one from the set, not yours – and set the skin on her bed. “Check if it works the same way.” You click, and you suddenly see the body reflate. You hear Mrs. Wilson catch her breath as the body starts to breathe, but you notice she doesn’t respond. Even the casual poke does nothing.
“Now what?”
You recall Dennis had the same experience. You grab the brown pen, then hand it to her. “When you put on a skin, you don’t have their memories unless you use this. Maybe this skin doesn’t have your memories.”
“That makes sense. So, I just point and...?”
“Pretty much.”
“Well...” She takes a deep breath and points at her new twin. “Here goes nothing.” She clicks, and you notice she spasms a bit – but as she does, her twin does as well. It takes very little for her replacement to stir awake, shaking her head.
“Did it work?”
“More than you imagine,” the real Mrs. Wilson responds, shaking her replacement.
“Oh my God...” She stands – wobbly – and grabs the real one’s face. “Wait, are you sure?”
“It’s either that,” the real one responds, “or David and I got replaced.”
You notice the fear in the replacement’s eyes, forcing you to intervene. “She’s just joking, of course – about the other replacements, I mean. If you want to know, you can check her back.”
The replacement complies, then falters. “It’s true. Does that mean I’m her replacement?”
“I’d like to say ‘twin’, but we got Nessie. So think of this as being the unexpected triplet!”
“Yes, but...” You can’t help but notice she’s becoming more crestfallen. “I have no life of my own. All I have are... memories of your life. I couldn’t be a triplet.”
“Well...” Mrs. Wilson tells her, grasping her hands as she would one of her children. “You’ll have a more important mission. You’ll have to replace me. So keep those spirits high.”
“I... I don’t know how.”
“Just try! Jimmy and Heather depend on you. And don’t worry – David and I will also be there for you.”
“Alright.” You finally figure why Dennis said the replacements were “off” - they feel lifeless, as if all joy and emotion was sucked out of them. (Or to be more precise, as if all joy and emotion remained on the original.) You find this strange, as this didn’t happen once waking up – but it’s the same as when you wake up, and the memories of the people you wear overcome you.
“Now dress up while I change into Vanessa, alright?” The replacement nods, and the real one whispers as you approach. “You think this’ll fool anyone?”
“I have no clue, but she looks at you and responds as you.”
“At least I’m not working right now. That’d be an issue. But what if Jimmy does something and she needs to visit director Harrington?”
“I could always do a switch. Remember – you're testing if you feel comfortable replacing your sister. If you don’t, you could always bring her back and we can shelve her.”
“I don’t feel comfortable with that.” Mrs. Wilson looks at her replacement and smiles sadly. “She must be confused.”
“Then you can have her here as your secret twin! You could go to work – maybe as someone else – and she can replace you. Or, you can just have her help you, and when someone approaches, you tell her to hide!”
“But what about Heather?”
You blink. “She could replace her. Have a second opportunity at life. Or you could replace Heather.” You notice how she reacts and squirm. “We’re gonna check what that last pen does, so how about using that if it works?”
“If it makes them act as the replacements? Better not to.”
“We could always test it on her first.” Once again, you get a fiery stare from Mrs. Wilson. “Listen - I know it’s your daughter, but she’s lost the least number of days compared to Bradley or Vanessa. If something bad happens... I dunno, but we could always get help.”
“What’s worse is that it makes the most sense. I don’t want anything to happen to my Heather, but we’re depending on that thing.” She takes a deep breath, staring right into your eyes. “If something happens to her, it’ll be your responsibility.”
“Then you’re not agreeing to trying it on her?”
“What I’m saying is that my only responsibility is allowing you to do this. Everything else falls on you. So, make sure it works the way you plan to. Now, go away while I change up.”
As you leave, you think on Mrs. Wilson’s words. The smartest thing is to test it first, and Heather is the best subject. If something happens, you’ll have to deal with the consequences – which will most likely be to replace her. You just hope it works as intended.
Now, the question remains. Will you do it? And if you do, what will you tell her?
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