The Deep End

“He’s a looker, isn’t he?”  

Cole almost dropped his drink at the unexpected voice.  He hadn’t noticed anyone take up the stool next to him. It was as if the man just appeared there.  “Oh! Uh, what was that,” he asked, trying not to blush. As startled as he was, Cole was more shaken by being so obvious. Still being in the closet, he thought himself a master at being discreet when it came to checking guys out. In his head, he’d convinced himself that his job depended on it. He could only imagine what people would think if they found out. The 25 year old swim coach, who spent his time around young boys in the pool, being gay?  Visions of angry, torch-bearing parents filled his head. It didn’t matter that he’d never in a million years think of one of his swimmers like that. They were like his kids, or at the very least his younger siblings. That factored in, too. He could see the disappointment in their eyes, which was worse than any angry parent. 

Still, Cole was only human and the blonde across the bar was incredibly attractive. Pecs bulging against his tight shirt, sparkling smile, strong hands wrapped around his beer glass; it was easy to see why he would be staring. 

“That blonde you’ve been drooling over,” the man said with a wry grin. “You’ve got good taste.”

“Oh, I wasn’t, I mean, I was just spaced out, not staring at anyone in particular…” Though he’d spent years stammering out similar excuses, Cole suddenly felt foolish for even trying. Something about the way the man was looking at him made him feel like a pinned butterfly in a glass case. His piercing, jade green eyes bored into him, and his tight, thin smile told Cole the man knew exactly what he was thinking. He was lean and sharply dressed in a tailored, green twill suit with slicked back raven hair. 

The man’s grin never wavered as he watched Cole squirm. “Does anyone believe that when you tell them?”

“I don’t know what you…”

“They don’t believe it,” the man interrupted, “because they don’t care. Oh, I’m sure some of them do, but not most, and the ones who do don’t matter anyway.”

Cole was officially flustered. “This isn’t really any of your business,” he said, looking into his whiskey. “Who do you think you are anyway, talking to strangers like this?”

The man tossed his head back and gave a deep laugh. Suddenly there was a martini glass in his hand that hadn’t been there moments before. “The real question is who do you think YOU are?”  

Cole watched the man sip gingerly from his glass. He kept blinking as the image of him blurred. Was that a green plaid suit, or were those scales? Was he wearing anything at all? Was it even a “he” in the first place? Cole shook his head, feeling drunk and light headed. Just being near the man was bringing up feelings he’d worked long and hard to keep buried. 

“You look at me and see two things,” the man said, his green eyes practically glowing. “I look at you and see the same. This scared boy that you are, and the man that you could be. You can either make the choice for yourself and own it, or wait for it to be made for you and try to deal with the outcome.  It’s entirely up to you.”

Cole's breath was coming fast and heavy and his heart was pounding in his chest. He’d never had a panic attack before but he had to imagine that this is what they felt like. “Who...what...are you?”  Cole looked around to see if anyone was watching, wondering if this was all an elaborate prank. 

“Not some fairy godmother,” the man spat, rolling his eyes. “I was walking by outside and felt the anguish rolling off you. Lucky for you I just ate or this would be an entirely different conversation. Here,” the man reached out and slipped a piece of paper into Cole’s hand. “Think on it tonight. Tomorrow, if you decide to finally move on with your life, do what it says.” 

Cole shivered at the cold, leathery touch of the other man’s hand. He unfolded the slip of paper and saw a strange symbol with a note that said “go for a swim.”  “What is this…” he trailed off when he looked back up. The man was gone. 

*****

Cole’s sleep was restless. He’d stayed at the bar for another three drinks too many, hoping the booze would calm his frazzled nerves. If it weren’t for the slip of paper he’d almost believe that he just imagined the whole interaction with the other man. Cole stuck around until the blonde he’d been eyeing left with a woman on his arm, feeling increasingly frustrated the entire time. He’d been so drunk when he got home that all he could do was crawl into bed and pass out, but even in sleep he couldn’t escape his troubled thoughts.  

He dreamt of the blonde at the bar, only this time the man was on top of him.  Cole gazed up at the naked adonis straddling his waist.  He could see every detail of the man’s sculpted pecs and ripped abs as he rocked back and forth on his powerful thighs.  A set of round, solid globes worked Cole’s cock as it slid in and out of the blonde’s tight hole.  The powerful looking hands that Cole had admired were stroking their owners chest and running through the man’s thick blonde hair while his handsome face was twisted into masks of pleasure.  

Cole had never actually been with a guy before.  At 25, he’d only been with enough women to keep up his appearance as a straight man.  But being with a woman had never felt like this.  Every inch of his body was alight with pleasure.  He clutched at his sheets and heard himself let out a deep moan.  The bass heavy rattle caught his attention.  It sounded too deep.  He finally looked away from the golden adonis on top of him and down at his own body, gasping at what he saw.  

Cole had been a swimmer himself all through high school and college, so he knew how important it was to be seen as “one of the guys.”  He was convinced that he would have lost all his friends if his teammates had known their naked bodies were on display for an outsider.  It was part of the reason he worked so hard to keep himself in such good shape.  It gave the other guys one less thing to question, and he’d carried that into his adult life.  He still had his lean, swimmer’s build, with broad shoulders, powerful arms, a tiny waist, and sturdy legs that sent him rocketing through the water.  He wasn’t overly hairy to begin with, but he kept his toned frame shaved smooth.  The kids on his team loved to give him a hard time about his rigid diet, but he also knew they looked up to and admired how he worked at keeping himself together.  

The body Cole saw in the dream wasn’t the one he was expecting.  Instead of his toned, smooth pecs and tiny waist he saw a thick, furry shelf above a wide, solid stomach.  His arms were equally hairy, looking bigger and less toned underneath the new growth.  He couldn’t see his lower half behind the bouncing blonde, but now that he was paying attention his legs felt meaty and heavy, and the glimpses he was catching of his cock made it look far too large.  

He didn’t have time to question any of it.  Just as he started noticing his altered body, the hunk in his dreams pushed him over the edge.  

“UUUUnnnnnnuuuhhh!”  Cole shot upright in bed with a loud groan, his rigid cock spraying like a hose.  His writhing had let the thin cock escape through the fly of his briefs, leaving his sheets soaked.  “What...what the fuck?!”  His dream had been so vivid he poked and prodded himself to make sure he hadn’t changed overnight.  “Ugh...this is a mess,” he winced, sliding out from under his damp sheets and pulling them off in a pile.  

He tried to force the dream from his mind as he quickly showered and grabbed his bags.  He liked to get to the pool before morning practice to do a few laps of his own.  The quiet routine helped him clear his head, which he desperately needed that morning.  He got to the gym and changed into his speedo, making a few circuits of the pool before stopping to adjust his swimwear.  He tugged at the crotch and legs which were noticeably tighter.  It wasn’t until he’d gone another two laps and felt water against the sides of his exposed balls that he realized just how tight.  

“Shit!” Cole yelped, staring down at his stuffed speedo in shock.  It looked two sizes too small, biting into his thighs and only precariously covering a bulge that looked considerably larger.  As he scampered up out of the pool, he could feel the humid, chlorine-filled air on too much of his perky, bubble butt.  

He ran into the locker room and had a towel around his waist just in time.  The guys were showing up for their morning practice and it was the last thing they needed to see.  

“Mornin’ coach,” Thomas yawned.  The sleepy senior was with Scott and Andy, the other star members of the team.  

“Whoa!” Andy laughed, cocking his head as he stared at the towel-clad older man.  “You forget to shave or something?”  

Cole looked down and did his best to hide his shock at the patch of wiry hairs coating his pecs and spreading down his stomach.  “Oh! Uh, no, I was just feeling lazy I guess…” 

“It looks good,” Scott said, nodding approvingly.  

“Yeah?”  Cole was confused at his own reaction.  Despite his initial shock, it really didn’t look bad.  “Don’t get any ideas,” he finally said, shaking his head.  “You three still have times to worry about.  Now get ready and get out there.”  

Cole locked himself in his office away from view and let the towel drop, covering his mouth to hide his loud gasp.  The hair had spread over his lower half as well, leaving his strong legs covered in a light dusting.  He didn’t understand.  He’d just shaved the day before so there was no way this much should have grown that quickly.  He was also confused by what he saw dangling between his legs.  It wasn’t his speedo that had gotten smaller; he’d gotten bigger.  Normally when soft, Cole’s package was a manageable bulge.  He’d grow to an average six inches, but now he had at least that much hanging limp between his hairy thighs.  

He told himself it was impossible as he pulled his briefs back on and felt them barely slide up his legs.  It wasn’t just his cock that was growing.  He looked at himself in the mirror and saw a profile that was literally bent out of shape.  His perky ass stuck out too far, and his waist seemed wider.  Prodding at his chest, his pecs looked too puffy.  

“Yo!  Coach!”  A knock at the door pulled his attention away from his reflection.  “You coming?”  

“Sorry,” he called through the door.  “Got stuck on a phone call.  Start warming up and I’ll be right out.”  The pants he’d worn that morning suddenly seemed just as small as everything else, meaning he had to resort to a pair of track pants.  They should have been baggy, but they were plastered to Cole’s enlarged lower half.  His now-tight t-shirt was no better, leaving his newly grown hair poking out through the neck hole.  

Instead of the ribbing he was expecting from his crew, the guys didn’t say a word about the changes to his appearance.  Or to his voice.  As he heard himself barking out orders, Cole couldn’t help but think his voice sounded much too deep.  Something in his brain was telling him that this was somehow familiar, and wrong, but he ignored it as he put the team through their morning paces like always.  

It wasn’t until he was alone in his office after practice that he even gave it a second thought.  He shifted uncomfortably in his chair as the track pants bit into his waist and his briefs dug into his crotch.  He got up to see if he had anything else that would fit and froze when he looked in the mirror.  The clothes weren’t just tight; they were glued on.  He found himself looking at a man with a burly set of pecs above a wide, solid waist.  Wiry hairs stuck out around the neck hole and ran down the pair of well-muscled arms.  A prominent bulge stuck out in the front of the track pants that almost looked like tights as they were stretched thin over his tree trunk legs.  As shocking as the sight was, it was the changes to Cole’s face that grabbed his attention.  His hair seemed thinner, and the wrinkles around his eyes looked deeper.  He looked closer to 35 than 25, but Cole couldn’t figure out why that thought shook him.  It was on the tip of his tongue, but wouldn’t come.  Like a feeling of deja vu, just out of reach.  

By the afternoon practice he was feeling more at ease.  He’d gotten a speedo his size and was able to join the team in the pool like he always did.  Thomas, Andy and Scott gave him the usual hard time about a bear being in the pool, and Cole made sure to pay them back by having them do extra laps.  Both were good for the team; the kids got to see that he had a sense of humor, and it only made them stronger swimmers in the long run.  Thinking back, Cole wasn’t sure why he’d been feeling so uptight earlier.  

“Hey, coach, you’ve got a visitor,” Scott called with a wink as Cole climbed out of the pool.  

Cole turned and froze in his tracks at the sight of the handsome blonde walking through the doors.  The man looked like he was poured into his tight button up and khakis.  The sight sent butterflies through his stomach.  

“Hey babe,” the man said, giving Cole a quick peck on the cheek.  

As soon as they made contact, the world dropped out from under Cole.  He felt a rush of fear and those butterflies turned into a fist ramming into his guts.  Everything was clear.  He remembered the bar from the night before.  He remembered himself, another version, at least, eyeing a handsome blonde from across the room.  He remembered a stranger in a green suit making him an offer.  All of his old fears came rushing back.  He expected the guys in the pool to unleash a string of slurs any minute.  He looked at his burly body and felt horrified when he didn’t see his smooth, lean build.  

“You okay?”  

Cole just looked at the other man.  Adam, he somehow knew the man’s name, was staring at him with confused concern.  Cole could feel himself falling into the blonde’s deep blue eyes.  It was a somehow familiar sensation that he loved; a familiar set of deep blue pools that he could swim in all day.  Adam’s hand on his arm was strong and reassuring and he never wanted it to let go.  

Cole was torn.  Half of him was terrified at the position he was in, and the other half was terrified at the thought of losing it.  He turned and looked at the guys in the pool, but instead of sneers of disgust he saw winks and several thumbs up.  Of course his team didn’t care.  Why would they?  After all, it was Cole who’d taken a large hand in shaping them into the good group of guys that they were, and he knew living his life openly had helped set that example.  He remembered the man’s words and knew he had a choice to make.  He could go back to living his fraught, worried existence or step into the role of the man he knew he could be deep inside.  

He blinked and shook his head, leaning in to return Adam’s quick peck.  “Of course I am,” he said, leaning into Adam’s strong embrace before turning back to the pool.  “And what are you all looking at?  Did I tell you to stop?  Back to it,” he barked, grinning from ear to ear.