The Substitute

By Victor

 

Chapter One

It was the smell of coffee and cigarette smoke that woke Jimmy up from his sleep. It was the same smell he woke up to every morning, living with his Aunt Ellen. Her morning routine was to sit at the kitchen table, drink coffee and smoke a few cigarettes while she put on her makeup after reading the paper.

But Ellen wasn't supposed to be there, Jimmy thought to himself. She was going away to Barbados with her rich fiancé, Carl, and wasn't due back for another week. Jimmy was going to be alone until then. His parents had died two years ago in a car wreck, and he went to live with his mom's older sister. Ellen Spiller was 39 and divorced, and a history teacher at Adlai Stevenson High School in Dallas, where Jimmy had transferred after the wreck.

He really liked living with his aunt, she was a lot of fun, and could relate to younger people quite well. She was a very popular teacher at Stevenson High, especially with the boys. They all thought she was very attractive (or "hot" as they were fond of saying), and told Jimmy often what they'd like to do with her, given the chance. Jimmy himself had a stray sexual thought now and then, but he calmed himself down, and reminded himself whom he was fantasizing about. He was going through puberty, and having a sexy older woman around wasn't easy.

Jimmy didn't mind being alone for a couple of days. His best friend Darien was going to stay over with him at Ellen's while she was gone. Darien was always great to hang out with. He was the same age as Jimmy's sixteen and also a sophomore at Stevenson. He wasn't from Texas, but originally from some affluent part of Southern California. He had a little money tied up in a trust fund from his late mother, and his dad let him dip into it from time to time to blow money on foolish things for him and Jimmy. Darien and his dad moved to Dallas after his mother died about three years ago. He was deeply interested in acting and the theater, and planned on studying drama in college once they graduated.

Jeff, Darien's father, was away for the week on business in Denver. He traveled a lot, and Darien was left alone often. So Darien would stay over with Jimmy at Ellen's simple two-story house, even though he lived in a much nicer home. Jimmy was thoroughly convinced the reason that Darien stayed over at their house, in spite of their friendship, was that he was in love with Ellen. More than once, he caught Darien subtly staring at Ellen out of the corner of his eye, watching and studying her. If Ellen had noticed, she never said anything. Darien was one of her best and brightest students, and had been staying after school for the past couple of months with her, studying for the Academic Decathlon or something Ellen was the sponsor for.

Jimmy was glad Darien was staying over for the week. He hadn't seen a whole lot of him lately, except on the weekends or when Darien would spent the night. Even then, he would never stay up very late and usually go to bed well before Jimmy. Darien would always get up early the next morning before the others and have a pot of coffee ready for Ellen and chat with her while she put on her make-up at the kitchen table. By the time Jimmy got up, Ellen would be dressed and ready, and Darien would be getting out the shower.

Since Ellen was gone, the two boys had stayed up the night before drinking most of Ellen's wine and watching movies. Jimmy had drunk most of it, while Darien just sipped a glass and paced himself. Neither of the two boys was very big, smaller than most of their male classmates, and Jimmy passed out rather quickly. Darien just put his friend to bed, and went to sleep in Ellen's room.

Jimmy was feeling the effects of the night before as he stumbled downstairs to the kitchen, going to get a glass of water. He could definitely smell Ellen's coffee and cigarettes, it wasn't his imagination. Why? She wasn't supposed to be here, she should be in Barbados!

"What the hell’s going on?" he mumbled to himself sleepily.

As he walked into the kitchen, he could not believe his eyes. There, at the kitchen table, acting just like Ellen would if she were there, was Darien. He sat there wearing her favorite outfit, a cream colored silk blouse and a long black skirt that went to just above his ankles. Being small for a teenager, the feminine clothes fit him quite well, and looked just as good on Darien as they did on Ellen. His legs were crossed at the knees in a feminine manner, and Jimmy noticed that he also had on her favorite boots, a pair of expensive over-the-calf black leather ones with slim three-inch heels. He wore a matching wide black belt around his slim waist. Ellen's black leather purse and matching cigarette pouch sat on the table in front of him. Jimmy saw the smoke from a freshly lit cigarette, one of Ellen’s Benson & Hedges Menthol 100s, wafting up from the ashtray. Her coffee cup sat rested on the table in front of Darien, and Jimmy could see steam rising up from it.

Darien was studiously working on his right hand, doing something. When Jimmy stepped closer, he noticed his friend was applying fake fingernails! Darien had already put a set of long nails on his entire left hand and was finishing up with his right, meticulously applying the thumbnail. They weren't painted yet, but Jimmy could already see the resemblance to Ellen's nails. In fact, with those nails his hands really looked small, delicate and feminine, and very much like Ellen's. He even wore a copy of Ellen's diamond engagement ring. Darien finished with the last nail, then sat back to admire his work with a look of satisfaction. As Jimmy could now clearly see his chest, he noticed that Darien had somehow padded Ellen's blouse to give himself the illusion of breasts in her  size, 36C.

Darien hadn't seen Jimmy yet, and reached over to gently ash the cigarette into the ashtray, then took a deep, leisurely drag. His jaw dropped and his cheeks sunk in, slowly pulling in the smoke in the manner of an woman who’d been smoking for years. He pulled the cigarette away from his lips and held it up near his head, ladylike, and smiled pleasurably. He held the smoke in for a few moments before exhaling a thick plume of white-gray smoke. Jimmy was stunned. This was exactly the way Ellen smoked a cigarette! What the hell was Darien doing? Why was he imitating Ellen?

Darien still didn't see Jimmy, far too engrossed in his elaborate dress-up session. Jimmy was about to say something when he spied a long blonde wig next to several make-up bottles and implements spread out over the table. He inched forward, curious. The wig sat on a white Styrofoam faceless head. It was a honey blonde color, and lightly permed, just past shoulder length. A style identical to Ellen's. Her lighted make-up mirror also sat on the table. This was how she spent every morning, sitting at the kitchen table, carefully putting on her make-up, smoking cigarettes and drinking coffee. And apparently Darien was duplicating her every move.

He took one last deep drag from the cigarette, exhaled, then crushed it out in the ashtray. He then scooted a black shoebox-sized container toward him. He reached in, and carefully pulled something out that made Jimmy's heart freeze.

It was Ellen's face. The eyes were missing, but Jimmy could not believe how realistic it looked. It had to be a mask, it couldn't be Ellen's real face, he thought to himself. From where he stood, Jimmy could see her beautiful lifeless features, minus the eyes, perfectly recreated. Her entire face, her slim nose, full lips, pencil thin eyebrows, delicate cheeks, and the front of her neck. If he'd have been closer, he'd have seen even more details, from her small smoker's wrinkles around her mouth and eyes, to the tiny almost indistinguishable mole by her left temple. Darien looked the mask in the face.

"Hello, Ellen. Are you ready for me to become you?" he asked, a bizarre joy in his tone.

"Yes, Darien, I think you'll make a wonderful Ellen Spiller. Now I can really be in two places at once," he replied to himself in Ellen's voice. His California accent (or lack of) was gone, replaced by her feminine Houston drawl.

Jimmy couldn't take it anymore. His best friend was transforming himself into the sexiest adult woman at Stevenson High.

"Darien, what the hell are you doing?" he demanded, stepping forward.

Darien jumped slightly, and put the mask down on the table gently. He looked up angrily at Jimmy.

"Don't do that! You nearly made me rip my mask!" he shot back, his voice wavering somewhere between a teenage boy and a grown woman. "This latex isn't as sturdy as it seems."

Darien looked over the table, cluttered with Ellen's things, and the feminine way that was he was dressed. He smiled awkwardly for a moment, then gestured for Jimmy to sit down next to him. He picked up a nylon wig cap, and pulled it onto his head, tightly covering his scalp. He tucked any stray boyish hairs under it, and studied his face in the mirror very carefully.

"I bet you want to know what's going on," he said, not taking his eyes from his reflection, "I wanted my disguise to be complete before you woke up. But oh, well. You can watch me finish."

"You want to tell me what the hell you're doing in my aunt's clothes?" Jimmy demanded.

Darien looked over him for a moment and smiled. When he spoke it was in a perfect imitation of Ellen's voice and accent.

"You see, honey, I'm going to become your aunt for the next week," he drawled. Jimmy could only look at him with his mouth open, unable to speak.

Darien picked up a small brown bottle with a thick liquid in it. He shook it up then unscrewed the cap. Attached to the cap was a small brush. He began to wipe the brush gently over his face, applying a very thin coat of adhesive over his face and neck. It smelled faintly of alcohol but not too strongly. When he finished, he waved his hand over his face, fanning the fumes away.

"You're what?" Jimmy uttered finally after it began to sink in.

Darien didn't answer, immersed in studying his own face in the lighted mirror. He reached for a small towel nearby and wiped away the excess liquid on his hands. Smiling, he handed Jimmy a letter then gently picked up the mask. He looked intently into the mirror before gingerly pressing the mask onto his face, slowly working his way up from the neck.

"What the hell is this?" Jimmy asked. Darien didn't answer, focusing on attaching the false neck of the mask to his throat. As he slowly, studiously adhered the mask onto the different parts of his face, unspeaking, Jimmy opened the letter and read:

Jimmy Lee,

I'm sure you’re wondering what’s going on. We’re visiting Carl’s parents in Barbados for the week. Believe it or not, Carl has arranged for everything so Darien can pretend to be me for the next seven days. The school won't let me off, so I had to do what I could to find a "substitute", ha ha! I know it doesn't make any sense, but as strange it seems, there really is no other way. It’s very important for us to meet Carl's parents in Barbados this week. And the only way for me to do this is to literally be in two places at once.

Confused? I'm sure you are, honey, but don't be. I’ve worked hard to train Darien on how to be me for the past two months, and he is simply amazing! He can act and look just like me! It's like having a twin sister! How a 16-year-old boy can so skillfully impersonate a 39-year-old woman is beyond me! He even went on a date with Carl last weekend, and Carl had no idea! Carl still doesn’t know!

Darien will be teaching my classes for me, and taking my place where I usually appear, so please help him when you can. Watch out for any mistakes he might make. But I'm not worried, I think he will be just perfect!

I’ll be back Monday. Don't get used to having a substitute auntie!  

Love,

Your Real Aunt Ellen

Jimmy had to carefully read the letter twice more before it began to sink in.

"What’s this crap?" Jimmy finally asked, looking up. By this time, Darien had finished with the mask. Ellen's mature face – without makeup – looked back at him in the mirror. Jimmy was right. The mask had copied every curve and subtle wrinkle of her face, and transferred them onto Darien's. Where there was once an average-looking sixteen-year-old boy's face, there was now that of an attractive, sexy older woman in her late thirties. Only the black nylon wig cap on top of his head was any indication that the woman before Jimmy was not Ellen Spiller, or not a woman at all.

Darien picked up the leather pouch and pulled out another cigarette. He brought the cigarette to his lips, cupped his hand around the end and lit it, taking in a long drag. Smoke escaped from his mouth as he spoke in Ellen's voice.

"God, this is so much fun," he began, setting the cigarette in the ashtray before picking up Ellen's eye shadow and beginning to work on his eyes. "I have wanted to be Ellen ever since I met her the first time I came over here. Since then, I've been studying her, learning her gestures, the way she talks, everything about her. And now my dream comes true. For the next seven days, I am her!"

Jimmy’s brow furrowed in confusion. "I don't understand,” he said, “Don't you like being yourself?"

"Let’s see. Be a dorky teenage boy or be a beautiful adult woman. I think that choice is simple. I’ll gladly be Ellen Spiller for a while. You should see the notebook I have on her. Nearly Two years’ worth of notes."

"So is this why you became her best student?"

"Kind of. But it’s also why we became such good friends. This may sound a little mean, like I was using you, but believe me, I wasn't. You really are my best friend, and I’m so glad we are friends. But also by coming home with you, I now know what Ellen is like away from school. I mean, here I know what kind of coffee she drinks, what type of cigarettes she smokes, what TV shows she watches. What she wears when she's not teaching class. All the everyday stuff you can't learn from a normal teacher-student relationship."

Darien finished with the first shade of eye shadow on both lids, then picked up a darker shade and began working a little higher up on his eyes. Jimmy thought his friend must have had a lot of practice in impersonating Ellen, because he had her actions down pat. The way she put on her make-up, when she would stop for a drink of coffee or a drag from the cigarette. He could imitate her pace perfectly. It was so weird.

Darien finished with the eye shadow and paused for another puff on the cigarette. He then began outlining his eyes with Ellen's black eyeliner, his eyes beginning to look exactly like hers as she put on her make-up in the morning. He finished with the eyeliner then picked up the mascara and began coating his lashes a thick black.

When Darien finished with both eyes, he stopped, took a long, slow drag off the cigarette, exhaled, then smiled as he looked over his artwork. He lifted up his hands to cover the lower part of his face, showing only his eyes. Jimmy knew then why the mask didn't have any eyeholes. Darien had made his eyes into a duplicate of Ellen's using her cosmetics. Jimmy couldn't even tell where the lines of the mask were. He knew Darien didn't have the same eye color as Ellen, but he was sure Darien he had a pair of colored contact lenses handy to turn his brown eyes the same shade as her lovely sea green ones.

Then Darien lowered his hands and turned to Jimmy. Ellen's face smiled broadly at him. Darien was apparently enjoying this immensely. He stood up effortlessly in Ellen's three-inch heeled boots. He finished his cup of coffee and took a final drag of the cigarette before crushing it out in the ashtray.

"You know," he said, reverting back to his own voice, "If Ellen wants to stay in Bermuda forever, I'd gladly keep dressing up and pretend to be her. This is really fun. I feel like a grown woman! I wasn't sure if I could do it, but the lady I see in the mirror sure looks and acts like Ellen Spiller. Do you think she'd want a twin sister when she gets back? Or maybe I could move to another state and get a job teaching as Ellen. Get a nice car, a nice house, maybe a boyfriend..."

He laughed, shifting back to Ellen's voice, and picked up the coffee mug before turning to walk to the counter to get another cup. The boot heels clicked on the linoleum as he strode with an older woman's grace to the kitchen counter and poured himself some more coffee. He looked at Jimmy and offered the coffeepot.

"Do you want some, sweetie?" came Ellen's voice.

"No, I don't want any, Darien," Jimmy replied tersely, "And make up your mind. Either use her voice or your own."

"All right, fine," he replied in the familiar female tone, "From now on, it's Ellen's voice. After all, I have her face and clothes."

Darien walked back over, sat down and continued with his makeup. Although he didn't want to admit it, Jimmy found himself becoming fascinated with Darien's transformation. He sat and watched his now beautiful friend as Darien gently smeared beige foundation over the skin-like latex mask of Ellen's face. The precision of the actions prompted Jimmy's next comment.

"You've been practicing this for more than two months. You're too good at this," he said.

Darien shrugged. "Maybe. I’ve been subtly studying Ellen for about two years now. A lot of times when my dad left town I'd stay at home and put on my mom's old clothes, and walk around the house pretending to be Ellen. And all those times I spent the night over here were to spy on her without her realizing it."

"So when you'd stay over..."

"Were so I could watch her get ready, and make mental notes so I could copy her later."

"She thought you had a crush on her. Boy, was she far off of the mark."

Darien laughed Ellen's gentle laugh, and continued with his make-up. Slowly, as he expertly applied the cosmetics, the features of the sexy older woman he wore were becoming even more attractive, just as Ellen's did every morning. Jimmy never noticed it with his aunt before, but watching an adult woman make herself up was truly mystifying. And that this ‘woman’ wasn't Ellen –or even an adult, much less a female – was even more amazing to him.

Darien finished with his foundation, lit another cigarette and began with his blush. He carefully brushed a peach color onto his cheeks that accentuated them as he took a deep puff from the cigarette. The mask contoured perfectly to his movements. It performed just like Ellen's real face when he talked, drank, smoked, as he put make-up over it. There were no flaws in it anywhere. It was a perfect reconstruction of Ellen's face.

"Darien, where did you get this mask?" Jimmy asked, totally curious.

"Well, sweetie," Darien replied as Ellen, "My cousin Joe works for one of the big movie production companies in Hollywood, and I sent him some pictures. When my dad and I went out to visit a couple of months ago, he made a life cast of my face – without Dad knowing of course – and he designed the mask over it using the photos."

Darien stopped and picked up Ellen's lip pencil. Then he paused, put the pencil down and picked up the cigarette again. A look of deep thought crossed Darien's – Ellen’s, or the mask that is – face. He took a slow drag, and then exhaled a huge cloud of smoke up to the ceiling of the kitchen. He watched the cloud billow out in several directions, dissipating.

"What are you doing, El – I mean, Darien?" Jimmy asked, getting anxious to watch the transformation to continue. He was getting a considerable erection.

Darien smiled broadly, the small wrinkles around Ellen's eyes slightly deepening. Jimmy expected to see the mask bunch up, but it worked with Darien's facial actions, and returned to its natural state. He realized there was one flaw in the otherwise perfect disguise.

"You look great, completely unbelievable. I mean, totally believable as my aunt. But your teeth..." Jimmy said hesitantly.

"No problem, sweetie," Darien/Ellen replied, and picked up something. A set of false teeth, slightly off-white from too much coffee and cigarettes and perfectly straight, just like Ellen's. He fit them into his mouth and smiled at Jimmy. He didn't have his wig on, his lips weren't painted yet, but it was Ellen. This was no longer Darien.

"But now what about your voice," Jimmy said.

Darien casually reached over, flicked the ash into the ashtray, took another slow, deep drag, smiled, then exhaled the smoke. He reached over and snubbed out the cigarette.

"Now, Jimmy Lee, you is about to start soon. Are you going to get ready?" Ellen's voice asked him. Darien had no trouble with it. The false teeth worked perfectly.

As Jimmy walked up the stairs to his bedroom, he glanced back to see Darien clicking open the cigarette case once again. Darien had it down. Ellen continually smoked while she put on her make-up and while driving to school, making up for the time she couldn't while she taught class.

Upstairs, Jimmy stopped before getting into the shower, his curiosity getting the better of him. He snuck back down to spy on Darien/Ellen. As he watched Darien’s continuing transformation, he reached into his boxer shorts and began silently masturbating while watching his friend masterfully work at painting the lips of the mask. First a darker lip liner, slowly, carefully drawn around the edge of the lips. A pause for a couple of drags and exhales, a sip of coffee, then a lighter shade of rose lipstick. Jimmy thought it was so sexy, the way Darien worked the lipstick slowly, deliberately around his lips. Then he would pull the cigarette up, suck the smoke into his lungs, then pull it away to set back down in the ashtray, a lipstick mark around the filter. Jimmy pumped harder as his friend worked with the lipstick and cigarette. Somehow it was so erotic. He even pretended that Ellen's lips were wrapped around his own penis, and his beautiful aunt was pleasing him. He came all over his hand as Darien finished the cigarette and exhaled pleasurably into the air above his head. Embarrassed, Jimmy snuck off back to the shower. Darien smiled to himself, having seen Jimmy’s sly actions out of the corner of his eye. He'd purposely put on a show with the lipstick and the cigarette just to tease Jimmy. And it worked beautifully.

When Jimmy had dressed and returned downstairs after his shower, Ellen was waiting in the living room watching a morning news program on TV. Darien had completed his transformation into Ellen Spiller, and it was utterly amazing. The hair was in place, no evidence of it being a wig. His long false nails were now the same rose color as his lips. A lipstick-stained butt smoldered in a large crystal ashtray on the coffee table. If it weren’t for the small tendrils of smoke drifting up from it, it would have been indistinguishable from the other cigarettes the real Ellen had smoked and left behind.

"Ready to go, sweetie?" she asked Jimmy, rising to her feet and picking up her purse and cigarette pouch. She slipped the pouch into her purse and fished out her car keys. As they walked to the door of the house, her boot heels thumped quietly on the carpet. Jimmy was amazed at Darien's complete transformation. Could he really pull this off?

End of Part One

 

since 11/26/04