Reality Virtual

PART ONE 

Normally, if Matty's mom had suggested he spend time getting to know the latest man she was dating, he would have laughed in her face and refused. She was so adamant that he grow up with a father figure yet every guy she chose to date was basically the same. But now here he was, walking up the drive to Richard's home like it was no big deal.

Richard wasn't like the other dorks his mom had dated since his dad "went to the store for milk" and never came home. Sure, he had the dorky dad 'stache, and the dorky pet names, and the dorky clothes. But despite appearances, he was actually, dare he say, cool? For a potential stepdad, anyway. Unlike the other adults he knew, Richard actually listened when he wanted to talk about the latest anime or the current esports championships. And they could hold a conversation about it since he loved that kind of stuff as well. His house was full of super expensive LEGO sets, anime figurines straight from Japan, and an entire room full of pinball machines. He was clearly loaded, and it showed. But the absolute coolest thing about Richard was that he literally played video games for a living! Sure, he said it was a boring job, having to constantly replay sections to seek out bugs and glitches until he was sick of holding a controller. But obviously he was being modest. And even if he wasn't, he still freakin' plays video games for a living!

As Matty stepped into his new idol's home, he was quickly greeted by Billy, the most adorable, rambunctious puppy ever. He was always trying to play and cause trouble, but he was so cute that he could get away with anything. Matty gave him a good cuddle while Kathy greeted her boyfriend.

"Thanks for looking after him tonight, I can't take him to another of Lacey's recitals after the last time..."

"No problem, it's always a pleasure to catch up with the little champ." Richard bent down to ruffle Matty's hair with a chuckle. His pet name since he always beat the old man at Mario Kart. Then he lowered his voice to a hush. "I have a little surprise for him. I found that thing I was looking for..."

"Oh, well don't let me keep you. Make sure he eats something nutritious, and I'll be back in a few hours. Love you."

"Mmhmm, love you too honey," Richard replied before leaning in and giving her a soft kiss that left both of them chuckling. Matty, meanwhile turned away with a groan and pulled a disgusted face. What could be grosser than two adults kissing? The two guys waved her off before Richard closed the door and crossed his arms, a smirk on his face.

"So champ, have you seen the new season pass for Rivals?"

"Another Spider-Man skin, as if we don't already have enough of those."

"Exactly! I'd kill for a good Emma Frost skin, alongside a good buff. She's been tough to main since the last re-balance." He pulled out his phone and waved it about. "Anyway, your mom wanted me to get you something healthy for dinner, but we know that's not happening. You cool with pizza?"

"Obviously!" Matty cheered. "Triple pepperoni with extra-"

"-Jalapenos and a pot of ranch dip on the side. Same as ever." Matty grinned as the man tapped his order into the app. This is why he was the coolest, he actually remembered the stuff he liked!

"So was this the big surprise? A pizza party?"

"Surprise?" He stroked his mustache in thought, then grinned. "Oh, right! Remember how I told you about the games I used to play when I was your age? I was digging around in the attic last weekend, and I found them along with the console!"

"Woah, that thing must be ancient!"

"Harsh but fair... I thought it'd be cool to hook it up to the TV and show you the games that inspired the folk that made all the games you like today. I even have the original Super-" A ding from his phone interrupted him, and Richard sighed. "The half price offer is collection only..."

"Offer? You're, like, a gazillionaire. Just pay full price with delivery."

"I'm not quite that rich. Besides, you don't save money by spending it. That's how I have disposable income." Richard chuckled before checking his watch. "It shouldn't take more than half an hour. I can trust you to keep out of trouble for that long, right?"

"I don't make any promises."

"That's good enough. I'll go and get the pizza. You can bring down the console. It's in my study, bottom shelf."

As the sound of Richard's car receded, Matty bounded upstairs with unrivaled joy. The study was a mid-sized room chock full of computer games and a top of the line computer with no less than 3 screens where Richard spent his days working, if you call that working. In the 4 months the guy had been dating his mom, he'd never been allowed inside alone, let alone allowed to touch anything. He felt almost scared. Even Billy was whining at his legs. "Don't worry," he reassured the pup. "I'm allowed inside."

Sure enough, he found the console on the bottom shelf in a cardboard box along with several games that did not look worth the hype. He was used to the high-end, lifelike graphics of today. What could Ocarina of Time do that Tears of the Kingdom couldn't?

As he picked up the box, Matty accidentally bumped the work desk and the screens atop it came back to life. Richard had left his computer running by mistake. Not only that, but there was a program running on the middle screen. A retro game with a blocky cityscape, and a name he'd never heard of. Neighborhood Creator. It looked like a cheap Sims knock-off. It probably was. But this was Richard's work computer, which meant he was probably playtesting this game. Maybe one of those indie games that replicated old-school graphics from the nineties. Which meant it had to be better than whatever he was holding.

Curiosity got the better of him. Matty jumped into the seat, and grabbed the mouse, clicking the giant start button. It initially opened on a large, familiar townhouse. Instinctively, he scrolled the mouse wheel to zoom out until he was overlooking an entire city. Not just any city, but the one where he lived. Richard had actually replicated the entire place down to the most minute detail! He'd even recreated that weird statue of the naked guy balancing on a small ball that spurted water into a fountain in the park downtown, right down to the modesty leaf on his crotch. 

Matty clicked on the statue, and a slew of options opened up. Edit, delete, move... And an option to give it life. Well, why not? He clicked on it, and the statue shivered before bouncing off of its ball and into the water surrounding it. All of the NPCs in the park reacted accordingly by shouting in fear and running away. Curious, he clicked on a random person, a man apparently called Gerald Franklin. The same set of options showed up, and amongst them was the option to petrify. He appeared scared enough already, so Matty wondered what would happen. Instead of getting even more terrified, the man froze in place and turned the same creamy grey as the living statue. This amused him. So much so, that after a few more clicks, the entire park was full of frozen statues in contrast to the living statue that prowled around with unease.

He was bored now, scrolling across the screen until he stopped outside of a random corner shop. There was a kid being picked on by a large teenager who looked almost exactly like Levi, the resident bully. They even shared the same name too! What a weird coincidence... But since this was a video game, Matty could have a little fun with this virtual Levi. So he clicked on the kid he was picking on and scrolled through his options. But nothing fit what he had in mind. Luckily, he also found somewhere he could enter his own prompts. His grin grew wide as he tapped in a few words, waiting for it to come to fruition.

The kid shuddered and exploded upwards and outwards in height and girth, gaining a plethora of fur, teeth, and claws. Levi was no longer facing a kid, he was staring up at a 7ft tall grizzly bear that appeared to be incredibly confused. The virtu-Levi stumbled back before pelting off in a sprint away from danger. The bear fell down to all fours and lazily strolled down the road. Matty sighed, it wasn't the bloodbath that he was expecting...

But he couldn't leave the bully totally unpunished. He clicked on the Levi now hiding in an alleyway and tapped in a new prompt. Within seconds, the bully rounded out and shrunk in height until he was no more distinct from the other trash cans overfilled with garbage that lined the alley.

Now satisfied, Matty followed the roads until he managed to find the very house he was currently in - Richard's house. He zoomed inside, and froze. There was a boy sat at the desk in the study. A small puppy was sat outside the room, curled up asleep. Matty poked his head out the door and, sure enough, Billy was curled up in the exact spot as in the game. 

His heart pounding, Matty rushed back to the computer and clicked on the kid sat at the computer desk. Matthew Crane, 11, Human Male. Alongside it was the now familiar bubbles of interactions. But it couldn't be... He tapped the clothes bubble, where it gave him the option to change anything. With a click of the mouse, he turned his shorts into a pair of jeans. He almost leapt out of his seat as the heavy cargo fabric around his waist stiffened and lengthened down his legs, turning to a deep blue color. He was now wearing jeans both in and out of the game. No, not a game. He was playing some sort of reality altering machine. All those changes he'd made in game, they must have...

The realization hit him like a rock that left him stunned. Slowly, he returned to the computer and a smile cracked his lips. He could change literally anything he wanted. Within the city, at least. He could turn his teachers into farm animals, or even the entire school into a farm. Then he'd never have to learn stuff again. He could stay home and play video games as much as he wanted. He could be just like...

An idea struck him. He didn't have to demolish the school at all. Not if he simply changed himself to be more like his hero. He scrolled down the road until he came across a nearby pizza joint. Inside, he found the man himself sat at a row of seats looking at his phone. Richard was still waiting for the pizza. If this game were as accurate at he believed it to be, that meant he still had time.

Matty opened the prompt box and thought carefully about what to enter. The only way this could work is if he were an adult. The thought alone made him feel tingly inside. Of course, he didn't want to be as old as Richard. Or even as old as his mom. That'd be weird. But he had to be old enough to have a decent job working with Richard. What age did people become game testers? 25? 28? Of course, he'd need a degree too. Grown ups always talked about those. He should probably make himself think like a grown up too. But a cool one, like Richard. And maybe to keep things simple, he could shift his relationship with Richard, and make them roommates. He lived in a big enough house, after all... After double-checking his input, he took in a deep breath and tapped the mouse to proceed.

He expected more of a fanfare. But he didn't even feel any pain. His limbs extended outwards just as his torso popped upwards like a jack in the box. His clothes didn't even rip, perfectly growing with his expanding body. A wave of hair slipped across his arms and itched its way across his torso. He felt lightheaded as his head grew longer and more chiseled. His thoughts subtly shifted from homework to real work. Within seconds, Matty the pre-teen had been replaced by Matt the grown-up. The avatar on-screen was a handsome looking man with a strong jawline and scruffy cheeks. He reached up to his face to confirm it was indeed strong and scruffy.

But Matt wasn't satisfied with that just yet. He leaned over and clicked his avatar once more. Almost as if it had read his mind, he clicked on the very first suggested bubble - Remove Clothes. With a sudden puff, he found himself butt naked in his seat, gazing down at a very adult body. He ran a hand across his hairy chest and down his rock hard abs, swells of excitement leaping inside him. He felt a stirring in his loin, and his grin grew bigger as his impressive cock inflated itself to even more impressive proportions until its mushroom head brushed against his belly button.  

He never had the opportunity to learn sex ed at school. But now that he was a man, Matt knew exactly what to do. He grabbed his hard member and gave it a soft stroke, shuddering as he did so. His mind was swimming as new adult emotions and memories floated around, vying for attention. Graduating from high school, and going to college. Crazy parties and drunk evenings and losing his virginity to the star hockey player. Graduating in software engineering and finding the video game job market hard to crack, until his older sister mentioned her new boyfriend could give him a hand. The two men getting along well despite about a decade's gap between them, well enough to move in with him.

Richard... The man used to be his hero, and now he was even more. A roommate, a confidante, a friend. But could they be more? Looking at that mustachioed man's face brought on feelings he hadn't felt before. But it was normal to see your hairy, toned, older roommate and feel things, right? Richard may have been dating Kathy but she wasn't always around. Matt saw more of him, worked with him, watched god-awful pornos with him, and jerked off with him. He wanted to reach over and grab the man's dick but always hesitated at the last second. He was woefully straight, much to Matt's chagrin.

Despite that, all he could think about was Dick. He bit his lip as his strokes quickened imagining the man kissing him all across his body. Feeling his soft mustache bristling against his hard cock as it bobbed between his lips, his tongue lapping at his asshole, his own dick sliding in and out of his own Dick...

"Ugh, Dick..." Matt growled under his breath. "I want Dick... I need..." His growls faded to unintelligible groans as he thrusted his hips. His eyes rolled back, and a shower of cum rained down upon his hairy torso, pooling around his belly button and dripping down his softening cock. He panted heavily, bathing in the afterglow until his cum started to cool and stick to his chest hairs.

Matt returned his attention to the computer. His virtual self was also naked and covered with cum, which felt oddly unsettling to see in such low graphics. His masturbation session had given him an epiphany. He didn't just think of Richard as a friend, he had a massive crush on him. Normally, he wouldn't dream of trying to fool around with a straight guy, especially his sister's boyfriend. But he had a reality changing device at hand. Why only be roommates when they could be lovers? It was all so clear now! 

Where was Richard now, anyway? He scrolled outside of the house to see his car was parked on the driveway. Then he heard the front door close, followed by Richard calling out "Yo, Matt! Where are you?"

"Oh shit," Matt gasped as he heard his new roommate's footsteps creak up the stairs. He scrambled for the mouse and clicked on his avatar. Within seconds, a new pair of clothes materialized across his nude body. Then he flicked furiously through his options, spying the relationship status just as he heard Richard greet little Billy outside the door. He switched off the monitors just as the door opened.

Richard stood in the doorway for a moment with an unreadable expression. Finally, he said "what are you doing? I thought you were going to set up the N64 while I was getting the food. I still can't believe you've never played one."

"Dude, that thing is older than me. I'm part of the Gamecube generation."

"What? It can't be..." Richard counted it up in his head before frowning. "Fuck me, it's been thirty years. It was my first proper games console too... C'mon man, I'm still in my thirties, don't make me feel old!"

"Well when you really think about it, you're closer to forty than I am to thirty." Richard threw him a dirty look that wiped the grin from his face. "Anyway... I remembered something I needed to do in that indie game we've been testing. I figured I'd have time to do both but I guess it got the better of me."

"You're nuts," Richard sighed. "I can't believe you're gaming outside of work hours."

"We're literally about to play Mario Kart."

"That's hobby gaming. Totally different from work gaming." Richard placed a hand on his shoulder before giving him a small kiss on the forehead. "Go get your pizza, and I'll deal with the N64."

"Oh, okay..." Matt rubbed the place where Richard had kissed him as he left the room. Had he managed to change things in time? He didn't have a flurry of memories like he did the first time he changed himself. But then why else would he kiss him? He felt uneasy about leaving with that game still running. But if he stayed, Richard would only ask him more questions. He had to keep it casual, not make it obvious what he was doing. Then again, the game was Richard's in the first place...

Richard closed his study door and switched on the computer monitors with a shake of his head. The game was centered on Matt in the hallway, with a variety of bubbled prompts floating around him. But instead, Richard moved the mouse up to the upper left corner of the screen and tapped on the pause button. All activity in Neighborhood Creator froze. He peeked his head around the door to see that Matt had also frozen in mid-step. Then Richard sighed and dragged a hand down his face, muttering "What have you been doing, champ..."