“Oh…,” Dave said, the smile on his face fading. “Um, Mr. Melville is still suffering from his laryngitis.”

“Laryngitis?” James spoke out. “I thought you said he had the flu?”

“Oh… yes! Yes he does!” Dave chuckled to himself nervously. “These things can get confused very easily. You see, Mr. Melville still has the flu, and Mr. Johnson has laryngitis!”

“Uh, Mr. S,” Steve rejoined, “I thought you said that Mr. Johnson was visiting family across the country.”

Dave rolled his eyes. “Actually, he was. He should have been back in town today, but he came down with laryngitis yesterday, and the doctors said it would be best if he stayed with his family for a while before traveling back home.”

“Oh,” Steve replied, sounding puzzled, “I get it.”

Mr. Melville didn’t live that far from James, only a couple streets away. Though James didn’t know Ed Melville socially, he determined that he`d be paying his teacher an unannounced visit after school let out that day. Maybe Mr. Melville would feel better if he knew that at least one of his students cared about his condition.

James got home from school and found his Dad in the same place he was residing when he had left for school that morning. The man was glued to the TV and, except for using the bathroom frequently to jerk-off, never let his eyes stray from the sight of "Hercules", "Son of Hercules", old Steve Reeves movies, and, when completely desperate, "Xena: Warrior Princess". James stopped even greeting his Dad because he no longer got any reply. The man was somewhere out in the air waves doing who knew what with his pal, Herc.

As James stared at his absent parent he noticed that, despite spending all his time in TV Land, his Father had begun to change in not-so-subtle ways. The most striking thing that James could easily see was that his Father looked to be about twenty-five and his body was trimmer and far more fit. James could only describe his Dad as looking like a muscle boy. A seedy, unbathed and unshaven muscle boy, but one nevertheless. The most disturbing thing that he saw was the feral cast his Dad`s eyes had taken on. He looked like a wild animal who was temporarily trapped and knew he`d spring free shortly. James tried to imagine what his Mother`s reaction would be once she got back from her business trip. The woman might be endangered. James` Dad was preoccupied with men these days. Where would his Mom fit in?

James ran up stairs to his bedroom shaking his head all the way. Once inside he was surprised to find a big guy sitting at his desk using his PC. He didn`t recognize the guy from the backside. When the fellow turned in his chair James let out an audible sigh of relief. “Andy?”

The man turned to face James. "Andy? is that you?"

“Jimmy!” The man headed towards James and gave him a great bear hug. He was so strong that he pulled James off the floor and had him dangling in his muscular embrace. James was stunned to speechlessness. The guy who was lifting him like a rag doll he wanted to shake was his younger cousin, Andy. His cousin was all of thirteen years old.

"What has happened to you Andy? I barely recognized you. You look like a man!"

Andy put James back down. "I guess I got my growth spurt early, Cuz." Andy`s voice boomed across the small room. James half-expected to find Babe The Blue Ox in the backyard.

James had to think that Andy had had more than just an adolescent growth spurt. His Cousin, who only two months before weighed 120 pounds soaking wet and was a good three inches shorter than James, now looked like he threw passes to major league quarterbacks. He towered over James. He was every bit as muscular as James` Dad had become and had the same razor-proof stubble darkening his jaw line. Fortunately, Andy didn`t have the same "beast waiting to break free" look that his Dad had. James couldn`t get over the change in Andy. This was something beyond natural increases in testosterone and growth hormone. For all intents and purposes his Cousin had skipped adolescence and went straight to adult manhood. But how?

What the fuck is going on here? Am I going crazy? Why are the men in my family changing like this? Jesus Christ! Am I next?

James worked to calm his mind and find out what was going on. He tried to sound casual and not freaked like he really was. “What`s up, Cuz. What are you doing here?”

“Oh, Mom and Dad are at a convention this weekend. Since you guys live on the way, they decided to drop me off here. I`ll be staying with you until they pick me up Sunday evening. Cool, eh?"

“And my Dad knew about this arrangement?" James asked his Cousin. "I didn`t tell me you were coming. It`s a nice surprise but I would have liked to know.”

“Oh well,” Andy replied, “you know what dads are like, Jimmy.”

He thought he did until recently.

James sighed, “I guess. I’d like to shoot the breeze, but I’ve gotta go visit someone right now. Wanna come with?” James prayed that Andy would stay there. He couldn`t imagine how he would be able to explain that the Incredible Hulk was his younger Cousin.

“Naw, that’s ok. I’m a little tired from the drive up.” Andy laid down on James` bed and stifled a yawn.

“Well, feel free to use the computer or get yourself something to eat. This shouldn`t take too long.”

“Sure thing, Jimmy. Thanks.” Andy smiled and put his hand to his mouth suppressing another yawn. In another second Andy was fast asleep. James looked at his Cousin and wondered how it felt to be so big and so damn masculine. They were unusual thoughts for James, but then nothing was usual this day.

Andy started snoring and James tried to imagine how tired the guy might be after such an amazing transformation.

James walked along quietly to Mr. Melville’s house. The lights were on, but the curtains were closed. As he approached the front door he heard noise that was distinctly like that of men laughing. He hadn`t expected to hear men laughing here. For a moment he paused and wondered whether he had come to the right house. He looked around and assured himself that the house was Mr. Melville`s. There was no other slate gray house nearby; none that had a lawn that looked as if it were tended by nanobots.

James hesitated until the laughter stopped. Then he rang the doorbell.

“Shit!” one of the voices cried. “Who the hell could that be?”

“Well, I answered it the last time. It`s your turn. Go put some clothes on and answer it, huh?"

James was getting more freaked out as he waited for the door to open. This better be the right house! A moment passed and almost at the instant James had decided to leave, the door opened a crack. I half-shadowed face peered through the almost closed doorway.

“Yeah, what is it kid? We already get the paper."

What James could see of the man only raised more questions in his mind. Mr. Melville was a widower. He didn`t have any sons that James knew of. So who was this guy? The man looked to be about twenty-five years old. It was hard telling without seeing more of him. Stranger still was the fact that the guy was panting like he`d just tried to beat the three-minute mile mark.

“Is this Mr. Melville’s house?” James asked with trepidation.

“Uh… uh, yes it is.”

“May I see him for a moment? I’d like to know how he’s-”

“Um, he’s not here right now… he’s still at the hospital downtown.”

“The hospital?” James asked, alarmed. “He must be a lot sicker than we were told.”

“Oh,” the man replied. “I’m sure he’ll get better soon.”

“I don’t mean to be rude,” James said timidly, “but who are you?”

“Oh… uh, I’m Mr. Melville’s nephew! Um… I’m here to look after his house while he’s at the hospital.” The man had turned away when he answered James` last question like he didn`t want to be caught lying.

“Oh,” James replied. “I see.”

As James` eyes adjusted to the light through the doorway he could see that the man was almost identical to Mr. Melville facially, but instead of being lanky he was broad and well muscled. He, too, had the same dark stubble covering his chin and cheeks. He had the same size and breadth as Andy, but, unlike Andy, he had the same feral cast to his eyes that James` Dad had. It was unnerving for James to encounter yet another "Mega-Man". Especially when the guy looked so much like a steroidal version of his wimpy biology teacher.

The other voice suddenly called down from upstairs, “Is everything all right down there?”

James felt like running out of his skin and leaving his skeleton to fend for itself once he eyed the man who had been making the other laughing noises. It was the same guy who he`d seen leaving from Principal Johnson`s office with Dave the other day. It was easy recognizing him. At the time he last saw the man, he couldn`t get over how big and fit he was. Now the guy looked like he might be a clone for everyone else James knew.

“Um, yeah,” replied Mr. Melville’s nephew. “I’ll be up in a minute.”

The man gave Mr. M’s nephew a wink, and headed back upstairs.

“Well, I`ll be going now.” said James.

“Ok,” replied the nephew. “I`ll tell my Uncle you stopped by.”

Before James could say who he was the door was slammed shut and the laughter began again.

“Wow,” James said to himself. “Those two must have a lot of fun together.”

Back at home James called the local hospital to check on Ed Melville.

“Jefferson General. How may I direct your call?” The hospital operator sounded more like a prerecorded voice than a live man.

“Um, Ed Melville`s room, please."

"Just one moment please." As James waited he heard noise coming from upstairs. He carried the portable phone with him and went to check on what was making the noise. Once upstairs the noise started getting much louder. It sounded like it was coming from his parent`s bedroom. He realized what the noise was just as the operator came back on the line. James tiptoed back to the head of the stairs and listened to the operator tell him: "I`m sorry, Sir. There is no patient by that name at this hospital."

"Are you absolutely sure?" If Ed Melville wasn`t at the hospital, where was he?

"Yes, Sir. I`m sorry. Good day."

So the Melville "Nephew" lied. Why does that not surprise me!

James went back and stood at his parent`s bedroom door. The familiar sound was the bed getting it`s mattress and springs worked out. James could make out the grunting and panting of two people. One of them had to be his dad. But who was the other? Had his Mom come home early from her business trip? James hoped so. He didn`t want to know his Dad would cheat on his Mom.

The noise got louder until he heard " Don`t stop now, Uncle Rick!"

James fell back from the door. Had his ear`s deceived him? Were his Dad and his Cousin Andy fucking?

My God! How can this be? I am going fruit loops! Somebody wake me fast!

The phone in his hand rang and James instinctively answered it.

“Hey dude! It’s Steve. Guess what!?”

“Um, I give up. What?” James wasn`t interested in any guessing games right then.

“I’m at Dave’s house!” Except maybe this one.

“Dave Smith’s house?" He asked in real surprise. "Why?”

“Dude`s my new tutor!”

James rolled his eyes. He carried the phone to his bedroom and closed the door. He tried to put the picture he had of what was going on in the adjacent room out of his mind. “Why would you want him to be your tutor? He doesn’t teach us anything.”

“Aw, c’mon James! Give the guy a break! Once you get to know him, he’s pretty cool. I’ve been hanging out with him all day. We went to the mall and everything! So, why don`t you come over?”

James hesitated for a few seconds. “Steve, if he`s tutoring you why did you go to the mall? And why do you need me to come over?"

"Man, stop with the third degree. I just thought you`d like to come over, that`s all." James thought he could hear Dave prompting Steve in the background. That made him curious enough to agree to go. "Okay. Where does Dave live, Steve?"

James recognized that the address was a close bike ride away. It would take no more than five minutes to get to Smith`s house.

Of all the qualified people in the world, why would Steve be stupid enough to choose Mr. Smith as a tutor? And how much learning could someone do at a mall?

It was the first really warm Spring night and, as James rode his bike, he marveled at how such a beautiful night--one with a full moon--could make him feel so peculiar.

First Melville gets sick and Dave Smith becomes his substitute teacher. That gum Dave gave him made him feel really queer. Geez, that`s an understatement. Then Steve starts asking questions about his unit. Next Principal Johnson leaves and James` Dad starts to act really strange. What about last night at Melville`s house and now Steve being tutored by the world`s worst sub? None of the pieces fit together and the puzzle was getting more and more disjointed as time passed.

When James reached Chestnut Street, he realized that Dave’s house was the sole house on the street. Where the house stood had been a field that he and his friends cut across to go swimming in the river. It used to be that, on a night like this one, you could see the moon reflecting off the water from where he now sat astride his bicycle. He imagined that Smith had a great view now that he`d built his house there. It was odd finding something built right on their old path. James hadn’t gone down the street over the Winter, so he didn`t see the house going up. Like everything else that had been happening this was a real surprise. And not all that pleasant of one.

He dropped his bike on to the new grass lawn and stood staring at the massive stone edifice. This was no teacher`s house. It was the kind of place that needed a drawbridge over a moat, not a simple brick walkway. It struck James as odd that such an obviously valuable piece of property had no visible signs of security measures. There was no fence or gateway. There were no perimeter lights. He hadn`t heard a dog barking. The house was as still as death. What gives? He looked up to the second floor and followed the line of the house`s dark and foreboding silhouette until his eyes gazed on what was clearly a tower room. Maybe there`s a guard up there, eh? The windows were dark and looked like hollow eyes staring down on him. The place gave him the creeps. He began to have thoughts that he had gone to the wrong address. James felt so uncomfortable that he was about to get on his bike and hightail it when--

"Jim! So good of you to stop by." Dave Smith was as cordial and charming. That didn`t make James feel any less uncomfortable. In fact just the opposite happened. Dave Smith had a way of making James feel like a noose was being tightened around his unsuspecting neck. His outside demeanor was greeting James like he was Perry returning from Antarctica. But James had a nasty feeling that behind the rubber smile was a snake.

“Um, hey Mr. Smith, I mean Dave.” Please don`t touch me!

“Come in, come in! Make yourself comfortable.” Dave draped his arm around James` shoulders like they were reunited bosom buddies. James hoped Dave couldn`t feel him cringe.

He walked into the house and stopped dead in his tracks. This was truly no ordinary house. Trying to act nonchalant James whispered slowly, "You . . . have . . . a . . . nice . . .house." James was in awe. Xanadu would be a good name for such a house.

James hadn`t a clue that substitute science teachers could live so grandly. There was obviously way more here than met the eye.

“Thanks,” Dave replied. “Of course, it’s usually not this neat,” he chuckled to himself. James tried to laugh along with him, but could only manage a faint smirk.

“Where’s Steve?” James suddenly had the frightening idea he might be all alone with Dave.

"Oh, he’s in the kitchen studying,” Dave replied.

James was almost surprised that Dave knew what the word "studying" was. James freed himself from Dave`s arm and headed off to where he thought the kitchen might be.

"No, Jim. The kitchen is down this hall here behind me and through the double doors at the end."

James stopped dead in his tracks once inside the kitchen. He had never seen a kitchen so large. He imagined that the Four Seasons Hotel downtown didn`t have a kitchen so large. The place was cavernous. It looked as if every culinary utensil known to modern civilization was housed somewhere in this kitchen. The pots and pans, the glassware and silverware shined like mini-novas in a white tile and chrome firmament. The whole effect was dazzling. It was the Las Vegas Showroom of kitchens and Steve was somewhere in it.

James found his friend seated at the end of a very long wooden table. Steve was in the process of devouring a bag of the most unusual chips James had ever seen. The chips were the color of a sparkling Day-Glo rainbow. They looked more like cartoon food than real food. James tried to imagine how the manufacturer managed to dye potatoes mercurochrome pink and deep purple. Somehow

he knew that food wasn`t supposed to come in bizarre colors but the hue of the food wasn`t causing Steve any problems. He was so busy chowin` down it was as if he were in "bovine fodder mode". He was too busy and too mindless to notice his friend standing before him. Once James let his attention leave the dizzying array of colors, he started to notice something very disturbing. It seemed that as Steve continued to eat, Steve continued to change.

If James had really been paying close attention he would have noticed that the Steve he knew was gone. In his place was a man who looked like Steve, but was more like Mega-Steve. Shit, not you, too!

The cap that sat on Steve`s head had been a gift James had given his friend two years before. Steve and the cap were inseparable. The Mariner`s "M" was so worn it was almost illegible. But, that wasn`t anything new to James. What was different now was that the hat looked ridiculous on this bruiser`s head. It looked like one of those silly little hat`s the organ grinder`s monkey wears, like a funny party hat. The chips looked like party food, too. But James was not in a party mood. No, as he watched his friend consume more and more of the peculiar snack, as he saw his friend become more and more like his Dad and Andy and the guy`s at Ed Melville`s, James was getting very, very angry. He knew that Dave Smith was behind all of these transformations and he wanted to know what the damned pervert was up to. Now!

James left the kitchen in such a sate of agitation he ran right into Dave. "Whoa, Jim, what`s the hurry? Is the house on fire?" Dave had his familiar smirk on. James inhaled to catch the breath that was knocked out of him when he collided with Dave. He stood panting for a second and looked at Dave with suspicion running through his mind. "Were you . . . were you out here all this time waiting for me?"

"No, Sir!" Dave pretended to be a buck private addressing his senior officer. He stood straight and stiff. James hadn`t realized just how tall Dave was. When he stood straight he was a good six inches taller than his slouching form would have ever related. "I was just checking on what was up with you and Steve, Sir."

"At ease, soldier." James wasn`t so slow that he didn`t know how to respond to the pretend soldier. For a moment he started to forget what he had wanted to confront Dave about. In fact, as he looked at Dave he had suddenly developed a fascination with the man. He shook his head and took another breath. What the fuck?

Dave stood relaxed again. "Let`s go to the living room and wait for the pizza I`m having delivered. I hope you like mushroom, onion, and olive."

James stood in place. He was beginning to believe the guy was a mind reader on top of everything else he thought he might be: A magician, a sorcerer, a warlock, or the Devil! How the hell could he know that is my favorite pizza combination? He must have been pumping Steve all afternoon. James caught up with Dave in the palatial living room. The room was cavernous with ceiling to floor windows on one side and a huge entertainment center on the other. In between was a large collection of very fine wooden furniture and taking up the wall that the endless sofa faced was a gigantic stone fireplace. The fire burning in the fireplace had flames that shot up so high that it reminded James of the question Dave had asked about the house being on fire. Hanging above the hearth was a large painting of a very naked man. James stared at the painting in amazement that anyone would have a nude guy hanging in their living room. Even one as beautiful as the one depicted. Beautiful? Did I say `beautiful`? "Come sit over here, Jim. Let`s get to know each other a little better, eh?"

James joined Dave reluctantly. He sat at the opposite end of the sofa from Dave.

"I think it would be a good idea to move a bit closer, Jim. We`ll be shouting at each other from this distance. Come over here. I don`t bite."

James wasn`t so sure of that. For all he knew, Dave could be a werewolf. Geez, would ya get a grip? There`s a full moon tonight and he hasn`t grown any fur that I can see!

James thought he saw something move at the corner of his field of vision. He scanned the room, but all he could see were the flames casting light and shadow across the ceiling and walls. He looked at the naked man again. Is his cock bigger than the last time I looked?

“Sit down, Jim. Relax.”

"The name`s James, not Jim. No one calls me that."

"Okay. Now I know, too. James it is. You like the painting? A good friend painted it. A better friend posed for it." Dave smiled a smile that was way to intimate to James. James was getting more uncomfortable as he spoke. Uncomfortable and attracted. It was an odd mix of emotions. A pairing that made him feel alternately fascinated and repulsed.

"That`s nice." James was close to tongue-tied. He couldn`t imagine what to say in response to what he`d just been told. So Dave knows a man who is that beautiful. Shit! There`s that word again.

“You always seem so tense, James. Sit over here with your back to me. I`ll rub that knot out of your shoulders for you." There was more of the too intimate smile.

He felt like running from the room, but, instead, found himself sitting closer to Dave and turning his back towards the unsettling stranger. He closed his eyes and braced himself for the touch he knew was coming. Surprisingly, Dave`s hands felt gentle but strong against his tight neck muscles. Oh, please don`t stop. Could you do that to my whole body? James stiffened when he realized what thoughts had just crossed his mind.

His eyes flashed open and landed on the painting. There was no mistaking it. The man in the painting was getting an erection. Now James really did want to bolt. But, as much as he wanted to run, there was an equal feeling that held him in place. He liked letting Dave massage his neck and shoulders. It felt good. Dave`s touch felt good.

A gong sounded. "That must be the pizza. Why don`t I give you the money and you can pay for it, James. I`ll bet you know the delivery guy. Here`s a twenty. Give him the whole bill. He can keep the change."

James headed out to the front door as if he was following a command. Initially, he had wanted to decline the offer. Then it was as if his mind had been changed for him. His feet knew where to go and they were insistent on leaving the living room.

At the door he found Pete. Pete was a lanky red-headed senior who had such bad acne that some of the meaner kids on campus called him "Pizza Face". James had always thought it was a cruel name. It was too bad about the acne because Pete was a nice guy otherwise. Especially for a senior. Most of the older kids treated James and his classmates with contempt. They were demeaning and belittling. The slight difference in ages was enough to make them feel superior. Pete was never like that. Perhaps, it was because he had felt the same stinging slings and arrows, too.

"Hey James. Is this your place? I didn`t know they`d built this house here. It must be the biggest house in this part of town." Pete looked up at the house in awe. His mouth dropped open and he almost fell back on his butt, but James was able to see what was happening, pull on Pete`s arm, and keep him from losing his balance.

"Watch yourself, Pete." Dave Smith stepped out of the shadowed entryway.

"Oh, Hello. Mr. Smith, isn`t it? This is some house. Do you live here, too?" Pete was so taken with the house his deductive reasoning had split to another location leaving him to keep asking stupid questions.

"No, Pete, I don`t live here." James stated, while Pete just stared at the windows.

"This is my place, Pete. Want to take a little tour? You`ve got the time for a short visit. Don`t you, Pete?" Mr. Smith headed for the front door. Pete followed dumbly behind. He handed off the pizza box to James. James looked on as Pete disappeared into the house. He had never seen anyone struck senseless by the sight of a house before. He felt a chill work it`s way down his spine and hurried in with the pizza.

In the living room Pete was standing in front of the fireplace with his back to the fire. He was so close to the raging fire that his back had taken on an orange glow. Dave was seated on the sofa. "Put the pizza down on the table here, James. Come sit by me and I`ll continue were we left off."

James sat with his back to Dave and closed his eyes. Again the gentle and strong hands worked his tight flesh. Again he felt odd and good and odd and good. Back and forth his feelings moved like a pendulum on a clock.

"Pete, has agreed to give us a little show, haven`t you Pete?" Dave smiled at Pete. Pete smiled back and nodded his head slowly up and down. "You`ll need to open your eyes for this, James."

"Go ahead, Pete. You`ve got all our attention." Music started playing in the background. It was some sort of soft jazz that James had never heard before.

"This ought to be good." Dave whispered into James` ear. James leant back into Dave`s body as if it were the best place to watch Pete from.

As they watched from the sofa and the music filled the room, Pete began to strip. James couldn`t believe what was happening. Why was Pete stripping? Who cares! Just watch!

First, Pete shook his shoes off of his feet. Then he unbuttoned his uniform shirt and pulled his arms out of the sleeves one by one. He did it like he was disrobing for his beloved. Then he unzipped the fly on his blue cotton pants and undid the belt. He slowly and very seductively dropped his pants to the floor and then stepped out of them. He stood writhing his lean body in front of the flames. His white t-shirt and boxers glowed with the orange light. His red hair looked as if it were afire, too. His pale white skin shone with the glow from the blaze.

"This is cool, eh James? Pete makes a good stripper, doesn`t he?"

James just kept staring in fascinated disbelief. He nodded his head in agreement.

Pete, by this point, had taken off his t-shirt and was about to pull his boxers down and then something altogether unbelievable transpired. A man stepped out of the shadows and started to rub his hands all over Pete`s torso. James couldn`t tell who the man was, but the fact that he was completely naked and built was obvious. That, and the fact that the man sported an outrageous boner.

"Look, James. It`s regular floorshow. Steve looks good don`t you think?"

James was dumbfounded. The man was Steve! Only it was a very different, more mature and muscular Steve. James couldn`t believe what had happened to his best friend. He was even more developed than he had been in the kitchen.

Steve took the cap from Pete`s head and threw it across the room. Dave caught it with one hand. Then Steve took his Mariner`s cap from his own head and threw it towards James. The cap landed exactly on James` head.

James felt strange with his friends cap on. It was like there was some sort of electricity working through the cloth of the hat and into his scalp. It wasn`t an uncomfortable feeling. It was just very different. He reached up to pull the cap off, but Dave`s hand stopped his hand from doing the deed. " It looks good on you, Man. Leave it!"

Pete and Steve were now kissing passionately like they were alone and no one was watching their passion. Pete`s boxers lay at his feet. James couldn`t help noticing that Pete`s cock was as big as any he had ever seen. It was bigger, in fact. It was like the erection on the painting. He looked up to the painting and realized that the figure had changed. The man in the painting was now lanky and red-headed. He looked just like Pete! How is that possible?

When James` eyes landed again on Pete and Steve, Pete had disappeared. There was a pale man with red hair kissing the dark Steve, but he looked identical to the man who had been pictured before. He had the same beautiful body. The same musculature. The same handsome face and the same incredible erection. Somehow, Pete had been transformed into the painting and the painting`s figure was now Pete.

James had trouble not fainting. What is going on here? Am I going insane? Now Pete and Steve had joined the ranks of his Cousin Andy, James` Dad and the others. All of then had undergone incredible transformations. What is Dave up to?

"Relax, James. Have you ever seen anything more beautiful than these studs making love?"

James couldn`t respond. He felt the electricity in his scalp move deeper into his body. Dave`s arms wrapped around his torso and he moved back tighter against Dave`s chest. Dave put his chin on James` shoulder and whispered into his ear very seductively:

"Don`t you want to join them, James. Don`t you want to know what it would be like to be a beautiful stud named Jim? Eh Jim? Don`t you? Well, don`t you?"

The electricity flashed across James` brain and, then, he finally did what he had felt like doing for the last fifteen minutes. Everything went black.

"Don`t you? . . . Don`tyou? . . . Don`t . . . you . . . you . . . Jim . . . Jim . . ."

James fainted. •