Looking at the money again he felt relieved at seeing it wasn't a trick. The first thing he did was pay the utilities first including all the back pay from late fees. He then paid his cellphone bill ordering a brand new one to finally replace the broken one he had. With his new look he needed clothes too, thankfully with the attacks from Kraegan delivery facilities had automated drones to drop off orders immediately when placed. It kept couriers safe from being killed.
Ash ordered new clothes right away, including more knives while he was at it.
The delivery time said it would be there by nightfall so he would at least have them before school the next day. Ash wanted to search for better apartments or even houses to rent but he didn't want to overspend what he just got till he budgeted it well.
Ash forgot he was still in a towel. He wasn't going to see Lita in an unsightly manner, he was afraid he scare her off. He grabbed a pair of boxers and gym shorts loose enough to still fit him. After getting dressed he began his usual routine, doing his push-ups and bicycle crunches. The system popped up again with a new message.
{Side Mission Alert. Perform 100 push-ups, 1000 Crunches, and 500 Squats. Reward: 50 Strength points.}
Ash hearing the message was caught off guard for a minute. It was asking him to do more than he usually did. He wondered though with his new body maybe he could do those exercises now the before when he was still skinny
Ash tried it, it was easier and not as strenuous as before, he even did clap push-ups for added measure. It took less time than he thought, he did all the exercises without feeling tired out.
{Mission Completed. Reward 50 Strength. Bonus Mission achieved. Bonus Mission: finish training in a new record time. Reward: New ability B-Level Phantom Stride. User can turn into black mist to conceal presence and travel through objects and structures unattainable in physical form}
"Wow, I got a new ability for finishing quicker. I didn't need a stone for that. This system is amazing. I wish I knew how the missions worked better but better not question a gift horse for no reason.
Ash was ready to practice throwing darts to stay sharp when his door knocked. He thought it was his deliveries coming early, so he hurried to open it only to see Lita at the doorway with a backpack and her helmet, which she bought when she got rides with Ash.
"Hey Ash, you were in a hurry to…" Lita couldn't finish her sentence. The moment she saw Ash she lost her train of thought immediately. He wasn't the Ash she saw yesterday or known for a while. "Ash? Is that you? What happened to you?"
"Oh, I uh just been following those old Richard Piana videos is all like the new look?"
"Piana videos my ass, there's no way you gained all that muscle overnight. And you're taller too? Did you buy an ability stone with your parents' money?"
Ash gulped in his throat. He had no real answer to give so he made one up on the spot.
"I uh, yeah I did. I used some of the money to buy one. With all the harassment I've been getting I had to step up in defending myself."
Lita puffed at his response. She grabbed him by the ear like she always did when he would act up. Ash expected it to hurt like always, but there was no pain, he felt nothing at all, not a single signal of pain or the feeling of her fingers touching his ear.
"Come inside now!" She dragged him into the room, and after closing the door she smacked him in the back of the head. Even that didn't hurt, it was starting to worry him now.
"What were you thinking. You spent your parents' money, which you can't afford to spend on an ability stone just to look swol. You disappear all night and don't show up for school and worst you left Isaac's bike behind without telling me anything. What is wrong with you?" She smacked his chest in frustration at his actions. She was worried for him, just like her Ash was her only friend, everyone she knew messed with her for being a goth girl who loved horror movies and Black Sabbath. Ash on reflex grabbed her hands and hugged her. He held her tight to calm her down, anything to stop her crying and worrying. Lita was caught off guard but hugged him back, burying her face in his now muscular chest.
Ash didn't feel anything from his head but he felt it with his body along with his stomach growling. He blushed nervously, with Lita laughing at the sound. She let go to grab the bag she brought with her that had some burritos and soda for them to eat. Ash grabbed it and was ready to eat as Lita unloaded her bag and turned a movie on for them to watch. Ash tried to eat, but he couldn't get the burrito in his mouth, his hands would tremble when it would approach his jaw.
"Why can't I eat it. I'm hungry but I can't eat the burrito. What's wrong with me? System why can't I eat?"
The system answered, and not with an answer he wanted.
{Response. The user can no longer consume human food. User must feed on other sources or risk starvation.}
"Other sources? What sources?"
{Error. Information can not be divulged until further understanding of the system is gained.}
Ash was frustrated. Now with the body change, he can not eat food anymore. What was the point of the system for him if he was going to die of starvation? Lita looked up from sitting on the floor, she wondered why Ash wasn't eating.
"You ok? Aren't you hungry?"
"Hmm, oh I'm ok. Not really hungry. I'll save it for later. So what are we watching?"
Lita didn't mind, she knew Ash well enough that if he was gonna eat he would.
"Classic, Gremlins, c'mon you love this one."
Ash complied, he sat next to Lita to watch the movie. His stomach growled again, and Lita looked at him concerned. He was trying to pass it off like he had just bad stomach guts. Ash wanted the noise to stop, he rarely hung out with Lita nowadays with her multiple jobs, and when he did he was making himself look like a fool.
The more he felt hungry the more he felt delirious. So much that he felt hot, his vision started to blur slightly. It wasn't like a sensual heat feeling, he wasn't sure what he was feeling but it was clear what his body wanted. It wanted Lita.
Ash moved slowly to Lita, she was ignoring it at first, but even she was surprised he was making a move on her.
"What are you doing?"
Ash didn't respond, he was breathing hard looking at Lita. Lita put her burrito down to check his forehead. "You're burning up, are you sick?"
Ash still didn't respond, he just grabbed her face, caressing her cheek with his fingers.
"Ash wait, are you? We can't. We're friends. I mean is this what you want?"
Lita was stuttering in her words. This wasn't what she expected, but not something she didn't want. Ash got closer to her, his mouth close to hers.
Ash felt hotter, he couldn't figure out what was wrong with him. Whatever it was it affected her too. She made a slow approach to kiss him, the feeling of her face touching him made him feel desperate for her face. She saw him panting thinking he was lusting for her, she slowly with shakiness took her jacket off including her shirt, she was nervous showing off her body, she wasn't exactly well endowed but had a slim figure with a decent chest size.
Ash wasn't interested in her body, he just couldn't stop staring at her face. Lita breathed hard and went for it again since he wouldn't. She pulled him down to bring him in, she went from kissing his lips to his shoulders, her eyes closed enjoying the moment. Ash wasn't closing his eyes, he wasn't even thinking with his libido, he just wanted to feel her face, feel her head.
{Warning! First hunger activated. User must feed to avoid a fatal incident and revealing system's existence.}
Ash wanted to stop, something didnt feel right. He didn't want to hurt Lita he needed another option to stop whatever was going on with him.
{Option available. The user can sacrifice an ability or Skill to numb hunger pain temporarily. The option is only available once a month and can not be used again after three attempts. Does the user wish to proceed?}
Ash couldn't say it but he acknowledged it in his head. The system responded and took away his telepathy ability as a result. It wasn't a big deal for now with the money he got he could buy another stone to get it back. The heat he felt was gone, his stomach was not growling anymore, Ash was normal….for now. Lita stopped and looked into his eyes, wondering if he was ok.
"What's wrong?" She asked him as he looked into her eyes. She thought he wasn't interested in her after all and it was a mistake.
"Nothing, just never noticed how pretty you are till now."
Lita smiled, even without the hunger heat affecting him and her she still went on. Ash couldn't feel the kiss or her warmth with his lips still, but he still felt it with the rest of his body. Lita hurriedly removed her pants and boots, wrapping a leg around him. While Ash, even with him continuing was not focused on pleasing her, rather on what just happened earlier that made him go crazy like that.