Lexa couldn’t leave the front end unattended, so she allowed me to pass through and search for Gav on the main floor. I found him less than a minute later, engrossed in conversation with a fellow muscle building enthusiast. They were conversing near a bench press where it looked like the other big guy had stopped mid workout. In Gav’s hand was a gym bag.

  Gav saw me approaching, and introduced me to his new friend.

  “Nando! This is Keith. Keith, this is Nando, he’s the guy helping me get my memory back.”

  “Righteous,” said Keith, who was just as big as Gav, if not bigger.

  “Yeah, he’s pretty cool,” said Gav, throwing me a smile.

  “Righteous,” said Keith again, bobbing his head in mellow approval. “Nice to meet you Nando, sorry for holding your bro up. Game just had to appreciate game, you feel?”

  “Keith asked me what my workout routine was, and I was gonna tell him that I couldn’t remember, but I did. It all just came back to me.”

  “Workout routines are the scripture of the iron temple bro, that’s why,” said the other giant, Keith, putting his palms together in mock prayer.

  Gav laughed.

  “Amen, bro!”

  The two giants proceeded to bro out, striking poses, and flexing at each other, each admiring the dedication of the other. While Keith was definitely bigger, their tone and definition was about on par. Gav was essentially a shrunk down version of Keith. If you upscaled him, they’d be equal copies. Equally toned, equally as strong…. equally.

  It dawned on me how absolutely massive Keith was.

  I interrupted the bro off.

  “Hey, Keith, how tall are you?”

  “Oh, ‘bout six-ten, maybe six eleven.”

  “Were you always that tall?” I said.

  “Naw, actually, I had a growth spurt recently. It was wild. Why?”

  “Just curious.”

  That was about as tall as Gav had been reported to be, about as tall as his charts had claimed before they were amended. That couldn’t be a coincidence. Could it?

  “Hey, uh– bro, how does someone like me get as big as you do?”

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  “Oh, righteous, you want pointers bro?”

  “Yeah…”

  “Well,” said Keith, flexing his biceps for me. “It’s baby steps at first. A little bit of healthy eating, and heavy lifting. Don’t need a gym to start. I started with a gallon of water at home.”

  “Right, but I mean… how do I get big? Like you.”

  Keith’s face soured.

  “You accusing me of juicin’ bro? Y’think I’m on gear? I’m all natural bro, one hundred.”

  As Keith’s offense started to build, Gav intervened.

  “Relax bro,” he said to Keith, putting a hand on his shoulder, “Nando’s cool, he’s on the level.” Gav winked at me.

  Keith studied me, looking me up and down. Eyebrows furrowing, his face pouted in concentration. I felt as if I was being appraised by someone who was deciding whether or not to reveal some kind of divine secret.

  At last Keith closed his eyes, and solemnly nodded. He had decided that I was indeed cool and on the level.

  “Alright bro, alright,” he said, opening his eyes. “I’m not jucin’, I’d never cheat myself like that. I’m all natural alright? But… I did get some help.”

  The giant, Keith, knelt down to unzip his gym bag. It was black, with red and green stripes going down to one side. I was not surprised to find that it bore the words “Mars Gym”. When he came back up, he was holding a protein shaker that was filled with an ominous looking green powder. It was practically neon, almost shimmering where something mixed inside it caught the light.

  “Michael’s special blend,” said Keith, smiling and bobbing his head. “Completely natural, it’s just got loads of nutrients and stuff, promise. My buddy drank this stuff to help bulk up for a competition, and when they tested him, nothing. It’s pure nutrients bro, I swear on it.”

  “Interesting,” I said.

  Beside me, Gav started digging through his own bag, which I noticed was the same as the one Keith had. From his bag he pulled out a protein shaker that was also the same as the one Keith had pulled from his. It was filled with the same neon green powder that also seemed to be mixed with something that shimmered when it caught the light.

  Gav held it in his hands, and stared at it, mouth agape, and eyes wide.

  “Righteous,” said Keith. “Looks like you used to grab Michael’s special blend too.”

  Then Keith laughed.

  “Ah,” he said, coming to a sudden realization. “I should have known. Your skin bro, it’s been a while since you had some of the shake.”

  Gav looked up from staring at the powder, but didn’t speak.

  “What was that about his skin?” I asked.

  “Nothing bro, really, it’s just that if you go too long without Michael’s special blend, then your skin starts to go green. Michael says it’s a natural reaction, because your body gets so used to being super healthy that when it starts to go back to normal it thinks it’s getting sick. Like, imagine if you went from eating salads to eating nothing but fast food, you’d feel like crap. Ja feel me bro?”

  “I feel you,” I said, suddenly concerned for Gav’s health. “What exactly happens if you stop taking it? Have you ever gone off it?”

  “Like once, I think. Just don’t do it. Trust me bro, you don’t want to be caught lacking the special blend. You get like a really bad hangover, the absolute gnarliest one you’ll ever have. You get all sore and achy, and your head starts to hurt like hell. I couldn’t keep anything down when it happened to me, and honestly I think the dehydration shrank me, because I shriveled up, like actually shrank. Honestly, yeah it was kinda freaky. I was sweatin’ so bad that my fingers got pruney. Eugh. Yeah. Don’t do it brosky. Green skin is the first sign you need another shake.”

  “You went cold turkey?”

  “Naw, close, but naw. Michael came through for me and put me back on the shake. Haven’t let myself go without since. I drink extra now just to make sure too.”

  “I see.”

  “It’s really nothing to worry about.”

  “Right.”

  “I’m serious, just grab some more supply from Michael. You’ll be fine. You need his number?”

  “I was just about to ask.”