Better Revenge Thru Science, Pt. 01

Ron Black, “Ronnie” to his friends and family, studied the chart in front of him, but his mind wasn’t on his work. It was on what he had been told earlier that day about Nancy, his wife of two years. He thought he had a good life, which included a beautiful, loving wife. But all that came crashing down not two hours ago.

“I’m sorry to tell you this, but your wife is cheating on you,” Bill Jacobs told him as he nursed a beer at the bar down the road from the pharmaceutical company where he worked as a researcher. Ron considered Bill to be more than just a co-worker and respected colleague — he thought of him as a friend.

“How do you know?” Ron asked. Bill took a sip of beer before he continued.

“I heard a couple of the guys in the lab talk about it in the men’s room,” Bill said. “They were bragging about having taken her at the last company get-together.”

“Damn,” Ron said. That explained a lot. The company liked to have regular parties for the employees and their spouses at the newly-finished employee lounge, a huge room with a stage for a band and a giant flat-screen monitor for showing movies. It also doubled as a break room during normal work hours.

The most recent gathering was just two weeks ago. There was a period of about two hours where Nancy was nowhere to be found. When she finally showed up, she claimed someone had given her a tour of the place.

“I’m so sorry, man,” Bill said. “I thought you should know.”

“Thanks, Bill,” Ron said quietly. “You’re a real friend.”

“You’re welcome,” Bill said. “I know if it were me, I’d want to know. Just don’t do anything stupid.” Ron laughed at that. “Stupid” was the last thing anyone could ever accuse Ron of being. Clueless, maybe, perhaps even a bit naive about some things, but never stupid.

“I won’t,” he told his friend. Bill finished his beer and put a hand on his friend’s shoulder as he stood up.

“If there’s anything I can do, let me know,” he said before leaving. Ron nodded his head and took another sip of his beer. As he processed what Bill said, he took inventory of himself and thought about his life, playing it over in his mind like a movie.

In almost every physical respect, Ron fell below average. The youngest of four children, he was often ridiculed as the “runt” of the litter. Standing at five feet seven inches, he was about two inches shorter than the average male in the United States and weighed about 145 pounds. His body mass never really fully developed and as a result, he was physically weaker than most men his age and size. Even his penis was just a bit smaller than average, but he had never heard any complaints so far.

Add to that his generally mild temperament, and it was easy to understand why most people’s first impression was that he was a wimp. He could count on one hand the number of times he had ever lost his temper, and even then, he simply walked away most of the time.

Throughout his entire life, his immediate family took advantage of his small stature, slight frame and quiet manner. They seemed to delight in making fun of him, calling him “little Ronnie,” a name he despised. His two brothers, John and George, loved to tease and mock him. His sister, Lisa, who was only a year older than him, often joined in, but was never quite as cruel as his older brothers. Even his parents mocked him and made him feel like less of a man.

“Why can’t you be like the other boys?” his mother, June, would ask when he declined to go out with his brothers.

“Because I’m NOT the other boys,” he would say. “Why can’t they be more like me? Why can’t they try reading a book now and then instead of throwing a ball around all the time?”

The only one in his family who didn’t rag on him was his grandfather, Mark Black. He loved visiting with the older man, who had the largest personal library he had ever seen. By the time Ron was 12, he had read every book in his grandfather’s ever-growing library. His favorite story was Robert Louis Stevenson’s 1886 classic, “The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde.” He was always amazed at what people often got wrong abut the story.

He also enjoyed reading books about science and devoured everything he could find on the subject. While other kids his age were struggling with “Dick and Jane,” he was reading “War and Peace” and treatises on biochemistry. His grandfather saw something in Ron that no one else did, and paid to have his IQ tested. When the score came back, he was astounded. With an IQ of 215, he beat out Albert Einstein and Steven Hawking.

Ron wasn’t just a genius, he fell in the classification of an “unmeasurable genius.” With Ron’s test results in hand, Mark paid to have the young man tested for admission to Mensa, even though he was much younger than the minimum testing age of 14. Mark and Ron celebrated with ice cream and cake when he was accepted into the organization. He certainly wasn’t the youngest to be accepted, but he was quite young. For the first time in his life, Ron felt happy.

Mark encouraged the young boy every chance he could and even bought him the most powerful personal computer available on the market. Ron spent much of his free time on the Internet, reading everything he could find.

He thought it would be fun to learn other languages, so Mark bought him software to help. Soon, Ron was fluent in several languages, including Russian, Greek, Spanish and Latin. Just for fun, he taught himself Klingon, even though it wasn’t really a true language. Mark joined him and before long, the two often conversed in the language, much to his family’s chagrin.

“Dad, you’re spoiling the boy,” Ron’s father, Bob, told Mark one day. “He needs to learn something useful, not spend all his life in those books of his.”

“The boy’s gifted, Bob,” Mark said. “Maybe if you spent as much time with him as you do the other kids, you’d see that. Trust me, he’s going places. And I’m going to do everything I can to help him.”

Of course, all of this caused more than a few embarrassing moments in school. Like the time his teacher was discussing Shakespeare.

“What’s your favorite line from Hamlet?” she asked Ron one day in class.

“taH pagh taHbe’,” Ron declared in perfect Klingon. Everyone looked at him in shock, thinking he had lost his mind.

“What?” his teacher asked.

“To be or not to be,” Ron said. “Or in the original Klingon, ‘to live or die!’”

“I see,” the teacher said. After class, the teacher kept him back as the other kids left, snickering. She scolded him for his outburst and told him that if it ever happened again, he would be sent to the principal’s office.

“I’m sorry,” Ron said, looking at the floor.

“What was that, anyway?” she asked. Ron pulled out a copy of Hamlet translated into Klingon and handed it to her. She smiled as she looked at it.

“Please try to stick with the original version, okay?” she asked.

“I will,” he said. Of course, Ron had already read the entire play, along with several others written by the bard, since they were part of his grandfather’s extensive library. Thanks to his photographic memory, he already had them all memorized. If she had asked, he probably would have recited the whole thing to her from memory.

He caught an earful about the incident when he got home that afternoon from his parents and his siblings teased him unmercifully. That was one of the few times he got angry.

“Heghlu’meH QaQ jajvam!” he hissed when they wouldn’t shut up about it.

“What’s that?” Lisa asked. He looked at her, angrily.

“Today is a good day to die,” he said. Her eyes grew wide and she backed away from him slowly. His brothers also slithered away, wondering if their little brother was crazy enough to act on what he had said. They gave him a wide berth for weeks after that.

Mark continued to encourage Ron, buying him college-level textbooks on various subjects. Ron was fascinated with chemistry and biology, partly due to Stevenson’s novella, so Mark bought as many texts as he could on the subjects.

Watching his grandson, Mark realized the boy was actually bored with school. He aced every test the teachers threw at him, many times without even studying. Having contacts on the school board, Mark arranged to have Ron test out for his high school diploma. It was time for the boy to face a new challenge, he thought.

“Are you sure about this?” Dr. Williams, the local superintendent asked.

“Absolutely,” Mark said. “The boy is highly gifted, he has an extremely high IQ and he’s frankly bored. Hell, he could probably teach these classes. I want to get him into an environment that will challenge him.”

“Okay, Mark,” Dr. Williams said. “Bring the boy by and I’ll administer the test myself. If he does well enough, I’ll help you get him into college.”

Mark wasn’t really surprised when he learned that Ron had aced the test, in record time.

“It’s the damnedest thing I ever did see,” Dr. Williams said. “I gave him the hardest test I could, and look — not a single red mark on anything. He even wrote out a three-page essay in the chemistry part of the test.”

“I’m not surprised at all,” Mark said.

“Look, I took the liberty of speaking to the dean of admissions over at MIT,” Dr. Williams said. “If it’s okay, I’d like to see if we can get him in. It’s a great school for both chemistry and biology.”

“Let’s do it,” Mark said.

It took a little doing, but once the dean saw Ron’s record, which included the IQ test, his activities in Mensa and the test Dr. Williams gave him, he bent over backwards and soon, Ron was on his way to MIT.

Ron and Mark were both ecstatic, but his family wasn’t impressed.

“So, you think you’re better than the rest of us?” John asked as Ron packed his things. Ron looked at him.

“No,” he said. “Maybe a bit smarter, but not better.”

“Yeah, well, let’s see what all that book-learning gets you,” John said in derision. George was more direct.

“Remember, squirt,” George said. “Payback’s a bitch. One of these days, you’re gonna get what’s coming to you.” Ron ignored him and kept packing. His parents refused to say anything to him and wouldn’t even give him a goodbye hug. Lisa wasn’t much better, but she did give him a hug. Ron left the house with his things, a tear in his eye, when Mark came to pick him up. Mark’s plan was to take a few days to drive Ron to the school.

“Why does my family hate me?” Ron asked Mark as the older man drove.

“They don’t hate you,” Mark said. “They just don’t understand you. I think you remind them of their own deficiencies.”

“What do you mean, Grandpa?” Ron asked.

“You have a great intellect, Ron,” Mark said. “That scares them. It intimidates them and makes them feel inadequate. Think about all those stories and books you’ve read. Surely you can understand.”

“I guess so, grandpa,” Ron said. “Still, it would be nice to know that my family actually loves me.”

“Well, I love you,” Mark said. “And I’m damn proud of you. I know that one day, you’re going to do great things.”

“Thanks, grandpa,” Ron said. “I love you, too.”

So it was that at 14, Ron was a student at MIT, even though he was too young to drive. He studied hard and read everything he could get his hands on, committing it all to memory. Most of the other students avoided him, but some became good friends.

Mark, who was very well off, had set up a fund for Ron that paid for his education and all his expenses. He also set it up so Ron would receive a nice stipend every month. Ron read up on investing and put some of what he had learned to use. As a result, he was well on the way to building a nice nest egg for himself.

When the time came, Ron used some of that money to buy himself a new car. Mark approved of Ron’s initiative and gave him a few tips he had learned over the years.

Ron did more than just schoolwork during his time at MIT. Inspired somewhat by Stevenson’s writings, he began his own private research project. Believing that science could fix all of mankind’s problems, he wondered if something could be devised to give physically-challenged individuals like himself an edge without turning the patient into a killing machine or an out-of-control freak on steroids.

At this point, everything was just hypothetical, but it was something he never gave up. His online research led him to the work of one Dr. Franklin Steiner, who had considerable success in this area. According to Steiner’s basic hypothesis, “Each of us have various defense mechanisms to help us cope with extreme situations. Sometimes, we fall back on an alternate version of ourselves, what could possibly be described as an ‘alter ego,’ if you will. That alter ego could manifest itself in many ways. A normally quiet, unassuming individual could suddenly become boisterous, arrogant and overbearing, for example. Those not familiar with this behavior from that person would suddenly have a much different opinion of him or her.”

As Steiner explained it, each of us has an “inner beast” that lays dormant within us. His treatment helped bring that beast out to help the patient deal with a particular situation. Once the source of the stress was gone, the beast would retire and the person could, in theory, continue life as normal.

In Ron’s view, this had the potential of bringing forth a person’s inner “Hyde,” a thing obsessed with destruction without anything to hold it back. No, Ron, decided, his solution would have to be more permanent, but without the destructive and potentially deadly side effects. Naturally, none of this had been approved by the FDA, but Steiner claimed to have had several successful human tests. Still, he was intrigued with Steiner’s work and vowed to visit the man one day after he graduated.

By the time Ron was 18, he had his first doctorate, and received his second doctorate a year later, much to everyone’s surprise. He had also gotten his black belt in karate, something he took primarily for the mental discipline and the physical training, which he actually enjoyed. Mark, of course, wasn’t surprised, and celebrated all of his grandson’s achievements.

As always, Mark made it to all of Ron’s ceremonies. None of the others accompanied him, however. Ron had written his family a few times while he was there, but gave up when he never received a response. They didn’t even send anything at Christmas or on his birthday, but Mark always did.

In the meantime, Ron sent resumes out to a number of companies and conducted several Skype interviews with prospective employers. He received several offers of employment, but after careful consideration, decided to accept an offer from a very large and reputable pharmaceutical company a half-hour from his home. Not only did it boast a huge research facility, it offered the best compensation package of all the offers he received.

It was during this time that Ron met Nancy. Nancy, who had just graduated from high school, worked as a waitress at a diner he liked to visit when he wanted to get off campus. She was always so nice to him, and he found himself very attracted to her.

It took him a while, but he finally screwed up enough courage to ask her out on a date, and much to his surprise, she accepted. She wasn’t his first, by any means — he had dated and even had sex with a couple others at school, but he didn’t see them as anything more than friends or classmates. But Nancy was different.

She was impressed that someone so young could be finishing a second doctorate at MIT. This was a man going places, she thought. And, she reasoned, would be just the thing to get her out of the hell-hole she was trapped in. She fell in love with him over time, but she was more in love with the idea of hitching her wagon to someone so successful. Of course, Ron didn’t know that at the time and he had managed to fall in love with her as well and he was floored when she accepted his proposal of marriage. The large diamond ring he offered helped a lot in that regard.

Mark was pleased to hear the news — not just that Ron had secured his dream job, but that he was getting married.

“Ron, you know you have a lot of assets you need to consider,” he said. “I’m sure Nancy is a nice girl, but I really think you should get a prenuptial agreement, just to protect yourselves.”

“You’re right, Grandpa,” Ron said. “I didn’t think of that.”

“Tell you what, son,” he said. “I’ll have my lawyer draw something up for you, okay?”

“That’s great, thanks,” Ron said. Mark’s lawyer drew up the agreement, which was fair to both sides, but protected Ron’s finances just in the event of a divorce. It also spelled out what would happen in the event of infidelity. After reading it over, he presented it to Nancy.

“What’s this?” she asked.

“It’s called a prenuptial agreement,” Ron said. “It’s designed to protect both of us in the case of divorce. I’m not planning anything, but you know that about half of all marriages end in divorce.”

“Well, okay,” she said, signing the paperwork. Ron sent the papers back to Mark. Now he had everything set up — he would graduate soon, take Nancy home, marry her, then go to Hawaii for a honeymoon and come back to start his new life with his new job and wife.

Mark, meanwhile, had purchased a nice two-story home with a full basement for Ron and his new bride. Ron offered to pay for it, but Mark refused, calling it a wedding present. Mark knew that Ron always wanted to have a basement he could turn into a home laboratory.

The next couple months flew by for Ron. After receiving his second doctorate, he picked Nancy up at the apartment she shared with her older sister. Other than her clothes, Nancy didn’t have anything — not even a car — she rode a small scooter everywhere she went. Ron put her things, including the scooter, in the U-Haul trailer along with everything else and headed home.

Nancy’s eyes grew wide when she laid eyes on the home Mark had bought for them. She had never lived in anything this nice before. Ron was impressed. The house was nice but not too extravagant and had a nice yard with a covered deck. Mark had even purchased new furniture for them to get started.

They unloaded the U-Haul and quickly put everything away. Ron put the scooter in the garage and promised to buy his new wife a car when they got back from Hawaii.

A couple days later, Ron took Nancy to meet Mark and the family at his parents house. He didn’t know what to expect as he hadn’t heard from them in so long. Mark hugged them both and welcomed Nancy to the family.

Ron’s parents hung back and didn’t say much to him, other than to comment on how skinny he was. They did hug Nancy, though and welcomed her into the family as well.

“I was kinda hoping to see something from you guys while I was gone,” Ron said. “It’s been what, four or five years? I know I sent you my address.”

“Sorry,” Ron’s father said. “You know I’m not one for writing.”

“Not even a Christmas card?” Ron asked.

“We just got so busy, we forget,” Ron’s mother said. “We’re not really into sending out cards and stuff. You know how it is.”

“Yeah, I think so,” Ron said. His siblings came into the room. George and John nodded their heads at Ron and ogled Nancy. Both of them looked like miniature versions of his father in their wife-beater shirts and dirty jeans. Neither one appeared to have shaved recently and sported a bit of stubble.

“Well,” George said, with a smirk. “The little squirt’s gotten himself a girl friend.” He walked up to Nancy and appeared to be inspecting her. “She’s nice, squirt. Have you learned how to fuck her yet? Or haven’t you been able to get it up?” John and Ron’s father chuckled as Nancy’s face turned red. Mark walked up to the two boys, angry.

“Knock it off, you two,” he said. “Show some respect for your brother’s fiance.” He turned to Bob. “Your mother would be so disappointed if she saw this.” Bob looked at the floor, ashamed.

“Well, Big Daddy sticking up for the Brainiac, as always,” John said. “Guess some things never change.”

“Well, if you two would show a little initiative I’d help you out the way I’ve helped Jon,” Mark said. “And the way I’ve helped Lisa. But it seems you’re happy pushing a broom and a mop bucket.” Ron looked at his two big brothers.

“What?” he asked with a smile. “You two are janitors? Really? After all that talk about being football stars? Don’t tell me, you’re still living at home, right?”

“Hey, college boy, it helps pay the bills,” George said.

“Where’s Lisa?” Ron asked his mother.

“She moved out a while back,” Ron’s mother said. “She got an apartment and she’s going to school to be a nurse. She asked me to give you her contact information. She still lives in town.” She handed Ron a card with Lisa’s phone number and address written on it.

“So, I hear you got a job,” Bob said, addressing Ron.

“Yeah,” Ron said. “I’ll be working as a researcher over at the pharmaceutical lab.” Bob nodded his head.

“Good,” Bob said. “I’m happy for you. Really, I am.”

“So, are you guys coming to the wedding?” Ron asked. “Or are you going to sit that out as well?”

“We’ll be there,” his mother said. Ron looked at his two brothers, disgusted.

“Don’t forget to shower, shave and put on some clean clothes,” he told them. George looked at Ron with hatred in his eyes.

“Remember what I told you when you left, squirt,” he said. He glanced at Nancy with a wicked smirk on his face.

“I never forgot,” Ron said. “Remember, I have a photographic memory.” He turned and motioned for Nancy to leave.

“It’s really good to see you, Ron,” his mother said as he left. Ron simply nodded his head as he walked out.

“I’m really sorry about all that,” Mark said on the walkway outside. “I should’ve warned you. I thought they could at least treat you with some respect after all this time.”

“I don’t know that I want them coming to the wedding,” I said. “There’s no way I can have this there.”

“Ron, they’re your family,” Mark said. “Good, bad or indifferent.”

“Is this what I’m going to get from Lisa as well?” Ron asked. Mark shook his head.

“No,” Mark said. “She’s grown up a lot since you left. I think you may be surprised. I’ll get with you later. I need to talk to these people and get this situation under control.” He looked at Nancy and hugged her. “Please forgive them,” he said. After Ron and Nancy were in his car, they drove off.

“Is that what you had to grow up with?” she asked. Ron nodded his head.

“Yeah, but it wasn’t this bad,” Ron said. “I don’t know what’s happened.” When they got home, Ron pulled out his phone and called the number he had for Lisa. She answered on the second ring.

“Lisa, this is Ron,” he said.

“Ronnie!” she exclaimed. “Are you home now?”

“Yes, I am,” he said.

“Listen, I’m not too far from your place. Mind if I come over for a few minutes?” she asked.

“Sure,” he said.

“Great,” Lisa said. “I’ll be there before you know it.”

“You know where I live?” he asked.

“Yeah, I was with Grandpa when he picked the place out for you. I hope you like it,” she said.

“Yeah, we do,” Ron said.

“Good,” she said. “I’ll see you in a few.” Ron saw a red Toyota pull into the driveway about 15 minutes later. Lisa got out of the car, carrying a bag, and walked to the front door. Ron beat her to the door and already had it open. Lisa set the bag down and gave him a big hug. He was surprised, but returned her hug anyway.

“It’s so good to see you again, Ronnie,” she said.

“It’s good to see you, too, Lisa,” he said. He introduced her to Nancy and the two girls hugged.

“Welcome to the family, Nancy,” Lisa said. “It’s great to meet you.”

“Same here,” Nancy said. Lisa handed Ron the bag. He looked inside to find a glass casserole dish with something inside and looked back up at his sister.

“It’s not much, but I thought you might like to have a tuna casserole,” Lisa said. “I know it was your favorite as a kid.”

“It still is,” Ron said. “Thanks. It’ll save us from having to cook our first day here. Please, come in, have a seat.” He took the casserole into the kitchen and put it in the refrigerator. “Would you like something to drink? Coke? Coffee?”

“Water is fine for me,” Lisa said.

“Me, too,” Nancy said. “Please?”

“Sure,” Ron said, grabbing three bottles of water. He carried them back in and sat down with his fiance.

“You’re looking good, Lisa,” Ron said. “Everything going okay?”

“Yeah,” she said. “I’m going to school to be a nurse and I work part time at the hospital. I got a student loan and Grandpa set up a fund to help me with the rent and utilities, so I’m doing okay. I hear you got a good job.”

“Yes, I did,” Ron said. “I’ll be starting up right after we get back from our honeymoon.”

“I’m so glad to hear that,” she said. She got a bit pensive. “Have you been by the house yet?”

“Yeah, we just got back from there not too long ago,” Ron said. “What’s going on? I haven’t heard from anyone in about five years. And when I get home, it’s like they just don’t give a damn.”

“Things haven’t gone too well for Mom and Dad,” she said. “About a year after you left, the factory closed down and Dad lost his job. The only thing he could get was a janitorial position. Then the boys got injured playing football and they lost their scholarships. So they went to work with Dad doing night custodial work. After high school, Mom and Dad said they could stay and turn the basement into an apartment if they didn’t mind contributing to the household. So they agreed.”

“Is that why you left home?” Ron asked.

“Well, that was the beginning of it,” she said. “I didn’t want to work with the boys doing janitorial work. I’ve always wanted to be a nurse, but Dad said he couldn’t afford the tuition. Grandpa helped me get a student loan and set me up so I could get away from there.”

“You couldn’t have stayed at home?” Ron asked. She shook her head.

“No,” she said. “You know the boys have always been assholes. Sorry,” she said, looking at Nancy.

“I’ve heard worse,” Nancy said. Lisa continued.

“Well, they fixed up the basement for the boys,” Lisa said. “And all three of them — Dad, John and George — turned into even bigger assholes. Grandpa offered to help the boys, but all they want to do is play ball and chase girls. Then I caught then bringing girls into the basement. I even saw Dad joining them a couple times. The whole place would stink to high heaven. I couldn’t take it, so I left.”

“And Mom let this go on?” Ron asked.

“She wasn’t happy about it, but after Dad chewed her ass out, she quit saying anything,” Lisa said. “I think she’s afraid of losing their income if she divorced Dad.” She got silent for a moment, and Ron could tell there was something else on her mind, but she didn’t want to share it. He decided not to push the issue for now. Then she looked at Nancy.

“Listen, I’ll be free tomorrow afternoon,” she said. “Would you like to go shopping? Maybe we can get what you need for your wedding.”

“That sounds like fun,” Nancy said. “I don’t have much money, though.”

“Don’t worry,” Ron said. “I’ll give you my credit card. Just don’t max it out, okay?” Nancy and Lisa both giggled.

“I’ll try,” Nancy said with a smile. They spent the next afternoon out shopping for dresses and all the things women want for their wedding. Nancy had her hair and nails done and the girls enjoyed a nice meal. They finally made it home late that evening and Ron was gobsmacked by all the packages he carried from Lisa’s car. He also noted the two girls seemed to get along quite nice, and that made him feel good.

“I’m taking you out tomorrow afternoon to get your tux, big boy,” Lisa told Ron. He looked at her, surprised. “Big boy?” he asked himself. Where did that come from?

“Um, okay,” he said. The next day, she came by about 1:00 and they headed into town, where he got fitted for a tuxedo. On the way, Lisa noticed that Ron kept looking around the car, nervous about something.

“What’s the matter, Ron?” she asked.

“I’m just waiting for something to jump out and cover me with indelible ink or something,” he said. She laughed.

“You think I’d do that to you?” she asked.

“You would’ve before I went to college,” he said. She looked away, embarrassed.

“Was I really that bad to you?” she asked.

“All of you were,” he said. “You weren’t quite as bad as George and John, but you always seemed to go along with whatever they did. I never could figure out why you all hated me so much.”

“I’m sorry about that, Ron,” she said. “I never hated you, and I’m sorry if you got that impression.”

“Then why?” Ron asked. “Why were you all so hateful to me?”

“I can’t speak for the boys,” she said. “I was a bit jealous of you, and I pretty much followed George and John. Now that you mention it, I guess I was pretty bad to you. But that’s all in the past now. I’d like to get to know the real you, if that’s okay. Bury the hatchet, so to speak.”

“So, who are you, and what did you do to my sister? And why would you be jealous of me?” Ron asked, laughing. She laughed with him.

“You were always so smart,” she said. “And Grandpa always stood up for you. I remember how you used to spend so much time reading his books. You couldn’t get enough of all those books in his library. Then when you two started speaking to each other in Klingon, I felt like you had a connection that none of us could ever have. Do you still do that? Speak in Klingon?” Ron laughed.

“Not so much anymore,” he said. “But it was kinda fun. Believe me, you haven’t truly experienced Shakespeare until you’ve read it in the original Klingon,” he added, referring to a line from a scene in one of the Star Trek movies. They both laughed about that, recalling the incident from his earlier school years.

After his fitting, they stopped to eat and continued their conversation.

“Nancy seems like a really nice girl,” Lisa said. “I’m happy you’ve found someone who loves you.”

“Thanks,” he said. “What about you? Is there a Mr. Right in your life?”

“Sorta,” she said. “I’m dating someone right now. I don’t know where it’ll go, but right now it’s good.”

“I got the impression yesterday that there was something else going on with you,” Ron said. “Is everything okay with you and the family? Did something happen?” Lisa looked down, her face turning a bit red.

“Yeah, but I’m not ready to talk about it right now,” she said. “I’m just glad Grandpa was there.” Ron nodded his head in understanding.

“Well, if you ever feel like talking about it, I’ll be here,” he said. Lisa smiled as she looked back at him.

“Thanks, Ron,” she said. “I may just do that.”

The wedding went off well for Ron and Nancy. Her sister came out from back east and stood as her maid of honor. An old friend from high school served as Ron’s best man. Mark got the pleasure of walking Nancy down the aisle. When the time came, Ron lifted her veil and kissed her as her husband for the first time. He detected a slightly bitter taste when they kissed, but put it out of his mind. Perhaps it was just nerves, he thought.

The reception, for the most part, went well also. Of course, Ron danced with his new bride, then his mother and Lisa. George, John and his father danced with Nancy as well. As they were sitting at their table, his brothers came up to him.

“Well, squirt, you actually did it,” George said. “You actually tied the knot.” He looked at Nancy and grabbed his own crotch. “Remember, anytime you want a REAL man, look me up,” he told her with a smirk on his face. John smirked as well. Ron, however, wasn’t amused and stood up from his chair. George looked at him. “What, you going to get all bad-ass with me, squirt? Any time you wanna play, just let me know.”

“Just stay the fuck away from me,” Ron said calmly as he looked George in the eye, his fists clenched. George seemed to sense something different about his baby brother and wisely chose not to push the issue.

“Hey, just kidding, squirt,” he said, smiling. He turned and, motioning to John, left the reception. Just then, Lisa came over and hugged her brother.

“I really am so happy for you, Ron,” she said. “Pay no attention to those idiots.”

“Thanks, Lisa,” he said. She turned to Nancy and gave her a hug and a kiss on the cheek. Nancy returned the gesture. After Lisa left, Bob and June came up to them. Bob smiled and shook Ron’s hand.

“You did good, son,” he said. “I’m happy for you. Congratulations.”

“Thanks, Dad,” Ron said. Bob smiled as he hugged Nancy.

“Welcome to the family,” he told her. She hugged him back and thanked him as June hugged Ron.

“I’m so happy for you two,” June told Ron. “Congratulations.”

“Thanks, Mom,” Ron said. She hugged and kissed Nancy, who returned the hug. Mark also offered his best wishes.

“I’m so proud of you, son,” he said. “You have a good woman there. Take good care of her.”

“I will, Grandpa,” Ron said. “Thanks for everything.” Mark hugged Nancy as well and welcomed her into the family.

From there, Ron and Nancy headed to the house. They planned to stay the night there and fly out to Hawaii for their honeymoon early in the morning. Nancy giggled as Ron picked her up and carried her over the threshold.

“Oh my,” she said. “So big and strong. Take me to bed, husband. I need you inside me so bad.” Ron smiled and carried his new bride upstairs and placed her on the bed. While Ron was quite a bit smaller than his brothers, he was no weakling. They undressed and fell into bed, naked, smothering each other with kisses. Ron noticed the bitter taste in Nancy’s mouth was gone.

He worked his way down her body and buried his tongue inside her pussy. He loved having oral sex with her and noticed that she was wetter than normal. And, he noticed, she smelled and tasted different.

“I’m so wet and hot for you right now,” she said. Ron set his thoughts aside and worked his cock inside her. Normally, she felt tight when he was inside her, but tonight, she seemed fairly loose. He figured it was due to her being more excited than normal, and began fucking her.

“Yes,” she moaned. “Fuck me, my husband. Fill me with your cum.” They finally fell asleep in each other’s arms after a marathon session. “I love you, my husband,” she whispered in his ear.

“And I love you, my wife,” he whispered back. The next morning, he awoke to Nancy sucking his cock. He watched as his loving wife took his whole manhood into her mouth and sucked him to orgasm. She made a production of swallowing his load and gave him a scorching hot kiss. He noticed that she tasted very much the same as she did in church the day before.

What the hell, Ron asked himself. Did she give someone a blowjob at the wedding? He said nothing but filed it in the back of his mind. He had no desire to ruin their honeymoon, after all.

They flew out to Hawaii and enjoyed their time on the islands, making love every chance they got. After returning, Ron reported to work and was soon immersed in developing new and better drugs to help cure the sick. At the same time, he began equipping his own home laboratory so he could do his own personal research.

About two months after returning from Hawaii, Nancy approached him about going to school to get her own nursing degree.

“I think that’s a great idea,” Ron said. “Why don’t you go to the college where Lisa is going and sign up? Don’t worry about the cost. Just get me the paperwork and I’ll take care of everything.” She wrapped her arms around him and kissed him.

“Oh thank you so much,” she exclaimed. “I’ll go down tomorrow. Lisa said they’re starting registration soon so I’ll get signed up. I think she said it cost about $18,000 for a two-year degree. Is that okay?”

“Sure,” Ron said. “And if you decide to go further than a two-year degree, let me know.”

“You’re the best husband in the world,” she said. “Thank you, thank you, thank you. Just wait till tonight. I’ll fuck your brains out.” Ron smiled.

“I’ll hold you to that,” he said.

Over the next year and a half, Nancy focused on her studies. Quite a few of her classes were at night, and she told Ron that she and some of the other students would be getting together for study time after classes. Ron looked at her books and understood that she had a lot to learn in a short time, so he dealt with the absences as best he could and helped his wife deal with things like cooking and housework.

He also spent the evenings when she was gone working on his own project. By now, he had a fully-equipped home laboratory and had made a lot of headway in his research. After testing several formulas on his lab rats, he believed he was fairly close to the point where he could begin human testing. He thought about it for some time before deciding to test it out on himself.

Not surprisingly, the formula worked. After a few days of injecting himself with a very small and watered-down dose, Ron saw some marked changes in himself. His muscle mass increased by about 3 percent and he felt more confident in himself than ever before. Unfortunately, the physical changes only lasted a few hours. Ron realized he would either have to increase the dose, or continue injecting himself every day, perhaps several times a day.

But, he wondered, what would be the end result? Would he become addicted to the drug? Would he become a real-life “Hyde?” What long-term affects might it have? He decided to test it on his rat population further to find out before giving himself any more of the drug.

During this time, Ron also noticed that the frequency of sex between him and Nancy had dropped off considerably. Ron understood that her studies were intense and required a lot of study, but it seemed that she was spending more nights out than at home. And, he realized, she often didn’t get home until midnight or later.

She had also become more irritable with him over the last few months. When he mentioned the decreasing frequency of their sex, she would get upset, telling him that her studies were taking all of her time. She always seemed tired and complained of headaches. He decided to talk with Lisa about it one evening when Nancy was gone. By now, she had finished her degree and was working full-time at the hospital.

“Lisa,” he said. “Can you shed some light on this? It seems like she’s gone almost every night till midnight or later. I know the program is hard, but did it take up that much of your time?”

“Oh yeah,” she said. “It’s a very difficult program and there’s a lot of information being thrown at you in a very short period of time. I spent quite a few late nights in the common area studying with classmates. Why are you asking? Do you suspect she’s doing something else?”

“I don’t know,” Ron said. “I don’t want to falsely accuse her of anything.”

“Smart move, little brother,” she said. “And I’m not being condescending. I’m actually glad you felt like you could talk to me first. Remember, not everyone is as smart as you are.”

“I guess you’re right,” he said.

“Is everything okay between you two?” she asked.

“She’s gotten very short-tempered lately, and our alone time has almost dropped to nothing,” he said.

“Yeah, I can see how that can happen,” Lisa said. “Just have patience, Ron. She’s going through a lot right now and she needs your support. Hang in there. Things will get better. You’ll see.”

“I hope you’re right,” he said. “Thanks for taking the time to talk with me.”

“Anytime, little brother,” she said with a smile.

A couple weeks later, Ron and Nancy were at a company gathering. He was talking with some of his co-workers when he looked around and didn’t see Nancy. Where is she, he asked himself. She was just here a little bit ago. He walked around, looking for her, but didn’t see her anywhere. A couple hours later, he saw her come toward him. He went to her, relieved to have found her.

“Where were you?” he asked. “I was looking all over the place for you.”

“Oh, a couple of your co-workers took me on a little tour of the place,” she said. “Very impressive. I can see why you like to spend so much time here.” That night at home, she was all over him. He enjoyed the sex but he also noticed that bitter taste in her mouth again. He also noticed she was wetter than normal, just like on their wedding night. What the fuck, he asked himself.

Things went back to normal and two weeks later, his friend told him the bad news.

Ron put his head in his hands and cried for the loss of his marriage. How many other guys had she screwed since they started dating, he wondered. He pulled out his phone and called the one person who could help him deal with this.

“Hey, son, what’s the matter?” Mark asked when he answered the phone.

“Grandpa, I think Nancy’s cheating on me,” Ron said.

“Come on over and let’s talk, son,” Mark said. Ron ended the call and went to his grandfather’s house.

Mark listened carefully as Ron told him what he had learned.

“What do I do, Grandpa?” Ron asked. “I don’t know where to begin.”

“Well,” Mark said. “It’s time for you to use that big brain of yours. The first thing we need to do is get evidence that will hold up in court. Once we have that, then you can go to an attorney and file for a divorce. Do you still have the prenuptial agreement?”

“Yes, I do,” Ron said. Mark nodded his head.

“It’s possible the court will order you to go through counseling,” Mark said. “Do you think you can get past this and reconcile with her?” Ron shook his head.

“I don’t think so, Grandpa,” he said. “She’s become a total bitch to me lately and she’s gone almost every single night until well after midnight.”

“Well, maybe we’ll need to get a PI to keep an eye on her as well,” Mark said. “I know a couple of good ones in the area, so I’ll take care of that. Do you have that extra house key I gave you?” Ron pulled out his key chain and gave Mark an extra key to the house. “We’ll need to wire the house up for both audio and video, just in case she does something at home. When does she usually leave for classes?”

“I think her first class starts at 11:30 am this semester,” Ron said. “She’s taking a full load and has classes until about 9:30 pm, then she supposedly studies until late at night. I talked to Lisa and she told me that’s not too unusual given the classes she’s taking.”

“Hmmm,” Mark said. “We’ll learn the truth soon enough. In the meantime, you need to stay calm. Try to act normal around her. Don’t confront her or start accusing her until we have proof. And don’t do anything stupid.”

“I won’t,” Ron said.

“You know, I’m glad to hear that you’re talking to Lisa,” Mark said. “Maybe you should spend more time with her. She’s really matured since she left home.”

“Did something happen to her at home?” Ron asked.

“Yeah,” Mark said. “But I think it’s something you need to hear from her. Don’t push the subject. She’ll tell you when she’s ready.”

“Okay, I got it,” Ron said. Mark gave Ron a hug.

“Now, you get on back home and try to act normal around Nancy,” Mark said. “I’ll call and see if we can’t get things started tomorrow. I’ll let you know what’s going on. I’m really sorry to hear this. I thought Nancy was a wonderful girl. It’s hard for me to imagine she would do something like this to you. Don’t worry, though. No matter what we find out, we’ll work through it.”

“Thanks, Grandpa,” Ron said before leaving. When he got home, he noticed Nancy was still gone, which wasn’t unusual these days. He had a brainstorm and grabbed a small webcam from his stash of goodies and installed it in the master bedroom, figuring that if anything happened there, he would catch it. It was small enough that he didn’t think Nancy would see it right off. The camera was motion-activated and would begin recording if anything happened in the room.

He went down into his lab and verified the camera’s operation, then set about working on his personal project just to keep his mind off things.

After checking on his test rats, he noticed the latest revision of his formula seemed to last longer than the previous ones, and better yet, there did not appear to be any negative side effects. He made some calculations and decided to try it on himself just one more time. He knew it was risky, but he felt it had to be done.

He recorded his vitals first — heart rate, breathing, oxygen levels, and blood pressure — then injected a small dose of the drug. It took about 45 minutes before he began to feel the familiar burn that told him it was working. He recorded his vitals again and was relieved to see they were still in the normal range.

He went to the back of his lab, where he kept his athletic gear. He changed into a pair of shorts and a t-shirt and began working out on the punching bag. After spending quite some time on the bag, he found that his strength and endurance was significantly improved. Looking at himself, he could see that his muscle mass had improved somewhat. He took measurements of his arms, legs and chest and compared that to earlier measurements.

He was pleased to see the increase was greater than before. But, he wondered, how long would it last?

He went through his karate workout and found that he was able to do it with more speed and power than before. After working out for about an hour, he checked his vitals one more time and was pleased with the result. Maybe, he thought to himself, he had finally found the formula he was looking for. But he didn’t want to push it too hard or too fast.

He took a quick shower and headed back upstairs, locking the security doors to his laboratory. He figured he had about a half hour before Nancy came home. Tonight, however, she surprised him and was home 15 minutes earlier than normal.

“Hey stranger,” he said when she came in. “Good to see you home early for a change.” He wrapped his arms around her and gave her a deep tongue kiss, noting that she tasted normal. After breaking the kiss, she looked at him, surprised.

“If that’s the welcome I’ll get for coming home early, I’ll start doing it every night,” she said. “Where did that come from?”

“I just miss you, that’s all,” he said. “How was school?”

“It was good,” she said. “It was mostly reviews. We have tests coming up.”

“Well, then,” he said. “Why don’t we review something else?”

“Like what?” she asked. She squealed as he picked her up effortlessly. Wow, Ron thought to himself, either she lost weight or I’m actually stronger.

“Like, our wedding night,” he said, walking up the stairs.

“You mean,” she began.

“Yup,” he said. “I’m horny as hell and I want you. Right now.” She smiled and threw her arms around him.

“Lead on,” she said. Ron carried her into the bedroom and set her down on the bed before starting to undress.

“I want to see you naked,” he said, feeling a stirring in his groin. Nancy began undressing, teasing him with her body.

“You think you can handle this?” she asked, teasing him.

“Oh God, yeah,” he growled. After undressing, he stood up and eyed her. She looked at him, surprise on her face.

“What’s gotten into you?” she asked. “You seem… different.”

“I’ve been working out,” he said. “And I’m horny for you. See?” he asked, his erection sticking out ahead of him. He looked down and saw that his penis appeared to have grown by at least an inch if not more. It was also bigger around. Nancy noticed as well. She wrapped her hands around his erect cock and began to work her mouth over the head. She sucked his cock for a couple minutes before looking back up at him.

“Did you take Viagra or something?” she asked.

“Who needs Viagra when I’ve got you?” he asked. Nancy scooted up on the bed and spread her legs for him. He followed her and worked his cock along her wet slit. “I want to fuck your brains out, wife,” he whispered in her ear.

“Then do it, my husband,” she said. “Fuck your wife’s pussy. Stick it in me and fuck me hard.” He slid his cock inside her and noticed that she seemed to be much tighter than usual. She gasped loudly as he worked his cock inside her.

“Oh my God, baby, you feel so much bigger,” she moaned. “Fuck me, baby, fuck me full of your cum. Don’t ever stop fucking my pussy.” She moaned and groaned as he pumped inside her with everything he had. Soon, he felt the beginnings of an orgasm.

“I’m getting ready to cum inside you, Nancy,” he said, as he pushed farther into her than he ever had before.

“Do it,” she begged. “Please. Cum inside my pussy, lover. Fill me up. Fuck me. Harder. I’m cumming, too. Fuck me. Don’t stop.” He pounded into her and felt her tense up. She wrapped her arms around him and screamed into his shoulder as he ejaculated inside her over and over again. This was the most powerful orgasm he had ever experienced in his entire life. They separated, breathing hard. She looked at him in shock.

“My God, that was the absolute best,” she said. He kissed her deeply.

“Yes, it was,” he said, laying down beside her. She got on top of him, straddling him with her legs. She noticed his cock was still hard and began rubbing it between her legs.

“I’m not finished with you yet,” she said. She got on her knees and lowered herself on him, burying his hard cock inside her pussy. “I need more of this in me.” She started rocking on him, riding him cowgirl-style. As Ron watched her going up and down on his cock, he got even hornier and began bucking up to meet her thrusts.

Soon, they both experienced another toe-curling orgasm. Ron looked and saw his cum leaking out of her swollen pussy. The sight made him horny again and he quickly put her on her back, keeping his erect cock inside her. He got up on his knees and put her legs on his shoulders so he could see her pussy filled with his cock.

“You’re still horny?” she asked.

“Yes,” Ron said, moving inside her slick pussy.

“Well, then,” she said with a smile. “Fuck my juicy pussy, husband. Fuck me to your heart’s delight.”

“I intend to,” he said with a wicked grin. He pounded her for several more minutes. He was certain that he was hitting her in places he never had before. After he came inside her a third time, he pulled out and positioned his slick cock at her mouth. “Suck it, baby,” he said. She looked at him, surprised, and put his cock in her mouth.

“That’s it, baby,” he said. “Suck it. Clean it off. Make me cum in your mouth.” She worked on him as hard as she could, and tried to take his whole cock in her mouth. “That’s right,” he said. “Take it ALL in your mouth. Let me see you deep-throat my cock.” She worked harder and eventually got all of him in her mouth, but it wasn’t easy. “Suck it, woman. Suck it until I cum in your mouth. Then swallow it.”

She kept working on him and he felt himself getting ready to ejaculate again. Soon, he was pumping another load deep in her throat. He groaned as he filled her mouth with his semen.

“Now swallow it,” he said. “All of it.” She did as she was told and looked up to see him smiling at her. “That was the best,” he told her. As he laid down next to her, she looked at him, concerned. He had never been this dominant in bed before. She began to wonder if he knew about her extramarital activity.

He put his arm around her and held her tight to him. She put an arm around him and noticed that he seemed harder and more muscular than normal.

“Are you sure you didn’t take something?” she asked. “You seem, I don’t know, different.”

“Diet and exercise,” he said. “We don’t see each other that much anymore, so naturally, I’d seem a bit different to you. When was the last time we actually had sex like this?”

“Like this?” she asked. “Frankly, I don’t ever remember it being like this. But I’m not complaining.”

“I’m glad,” he said. Maybe, he thought to himself, this will keep her from screwing around. Or not. At the very least, it will give her something to think about. “You know, you’re the only woman I want.” He felt her cringe a bit, perhaps from guilt.

“And you’re the only man I want,” she said.

“Really?” he asked. She looked at him, surprised. Does he know, she asked herself.

“Of course, Ron,” she said. “I love you. And only you.”

“I’m glad to hear that,” he said. “I love you, too. And only you. It would break my heart if anything ever happened to change that.” She cringed a bit when he said that and held him closer to her.

“It would break my heart as well,” she said softly. He kissed her on her forehead.

“Why don’t we take a weekend and get away from things for a bit,” he said. “Maybe reconnect with each other.”

“I’d like that,” she said. “Maybe at the end of the semester. I have tests coming up and I really need to study.”

“I understand,” he said. “Just remember, if there’s anything I can do to help, let me know.”

“Thanks, baby,” she said. “I will.”

“I think we need to get some sleep,” he said. “I need to get into the office a bit early.”

“That sounds good,” she said. “Goodnight. I love you.”

“Goodnight, sweetie,” he said. “I love you too.” They finally fell asleep and Ron woke up to see his wife sucking on his enlarged penis.

“Good morning, lover,” she said after she pulled him out of her mouth.

“Good morning, beautiful,” he replied. “Please, continue.” She kept working on him until he came in her mouth. As he watched, she opened her mouth so he could see his cum in her throat. Then she closed her mouth and made a production of swishing it around before she swallowed.

“Wow,” he said with a smile on his face.

“What can I say,” she said. “I need my morning cream.”

They kissed and Ron got ready for work as Nancy threw on her robe and went downstairs to make coffee and breakfast. They ate breakfast and things seemed to be the way they were when they first got married. Ron hoped this would become the new normal. After he ate, he complimented his wife on her cooking, kissed her, and headed out the door.

“I love you,” he said.

“I love you, too,” she said. “Don’t forget, I’ll be pretty late getting home tonight. I have a lot of studying to do.”

“I understand. Don’t be too late,” he said, smiling. She smiled back.

“I’ll try,” she said.

That afternoon, he received a text from Mark: “Wired and ready to go. PI on the case.”

“Gotcha,” he texted back.