Phase III.III- Revelations

Emmett opened the door, revealing a... room. Just a room with a table with a large fabric office chair, a coat rack, a carpet, a bookshelf, and a simple wooden chair on the other side.

Emmett motioned Ben to sit in the chair, whilst Emmett headed to the chair, relaxing, putting his feet up.

"You know people have difficulties in their relationships, right?"

"Uh yeah."

"What the hell is he doing?" Angel chimed in.

"Of course you do. According to this file, your father talked about you and Suzy, and how you had troubles with her. She was difficult, she thought you spent too much time online, she didn't like that you couldn't decide on college. And you thought that she was a little too prudish. You'd never just do fun stuff together. It was also about the relationship to her."

"Wait, my dad told you this?"

"No, he told the representative who he reached out to about it. He wanted to come here because you and your mom had problems."

"Yeah. I kinda figured. From the brochure."

"Well, Ben," Emmett leaned in "I don't think you get the full extant of how we help."

Angel felt nervous as she watched Emmett. It was like he could see her directly through the camera.

"We have a particular way of doing things. We... change people. "

"What?" Ben and Angel, despite being in two different locations, spoke at the same time.

"People come to us to change their loved ones. Change their personalities, their appearance. Make the dynamics of their relationships fairer and a lot less stressful."

Whilst Ben just sat, attempting to form a response, Angel was just shocked. She literally didn't know what to say.

She never expected anything like that. She thought of herself as someone above manipulation. Someone who could resist any such temptation. Someone who could fight back and ensure that she would be safe

She looked down at her white pencil dress with a little bow on the belt, and frowned. No, she wasn't someone like that. She had been manipulated, transformed, pressured by the people in this town. She had been changed into something she hadn't been before. She... was used.

Her rage grew, and she was tempted to march into that damn mansion and kick some...

"Before you do or say anything, please hear me out." Emmett, again, looked directly at Ben and made some nods towards the camera.

Ben was also upset, but sat in preparation for Emmett's explanation. Angel reluctantly sat as well.

"Look, the people who are attracted to this place, like your father, they are **** to, because no matter how hard they try to change themselves, no matter how hard they make it work, they just can't. Your father wanted a change. He saw what was happening to your mother. Happening to himself"

Angel was still mad, but detensed a little upon thinking back to her relationship with Tim. They had both been workaholics and... Angel was struck.

He had been working a serial **** case. He had been looking at very gruesome pictures all day every day. He was eating a lot more. He wasn't sleeping. He was drinking, she remembered that.

_Oh, my, God. _The heart attack. That.... She didn't see it coming because she... was busy.

Angel leaned back. She figured out how bad work had been, but never that bad. Tears started forming. She was realizing just how bad the situation really was for them.

Ben eased a little after hearing his mother sniffle, feeling intuitively that she was in pain over something.

"And then he died, and you both were also on dangerous paths. Your mother was starting to go down the same path, and you almost went to jail."

Angel thought further through her tears. After Tim's ****, she tried to get over the sadness by doing the same. Losing sleep, eating like crap, not paying attention to her surroundings.

And poor Ben! She hadn't thought of what he had gone through. Alone, without his father. He didn't have the guidance, and he almost paid the price.

As Angel mulled it over, Ben also thought about it. He had resented his mother a little for working so hard. For not noticing him. But living with her, seeing her change, he realized it wasn't about just him, but the both of them, unable to handle Tim's ****.

"I see I'm getting to you. And think about now. Your mother is happier, you have a job you're good at, you've gotten so much closer. So, so much closer. Things have changed for the better."

Angel wiped away her tears, and ruminated on their lives now. It was good. She was finally happy for the first time since Tim's ****. She was relaxed, she didn't need to worry about dealing with the worst in humanity, and she had a loving relationship with her son. Very loving, very close. And somewhere, inside of her, she realized that it could be something more.

Ben was thinking the same thing. About how the responsibilities of the job at Jing had helped him realize his true potential. How he had been growing. And how much his mother really meant to him. How much, when they were just together and finally could notice each other, they really loved each other.

Ben was also thinking about how his mother was ..... shit.

"That's what Stepford does. It gives people a second chance. Become the best versions of themselves. Allows them to become closer, happier. Keeps them from falling into dangerous habits. Makes sure they are in a place that's natural and keeps them in proper roles."

"Proper roles?" Ben was still a bit concerned.

"Just the role that you should be playing." Emmett got up and walked in front of the desk to be a bit more intimate with Ben.

"Man, after Venus, The Mutants, and all those other roles, I was lost. I was presenting as a woman and lesbian, and I was a celebrity as well. I repressed my feelings of dysphoria. I let myself be absorbed by the Hollywood lifestyle. I had meaningless relationships with so many women. I was doing ****. I might've ended up with something worse. Even after I realized I was a man, I still had my demons. Then, I came to Stepford, and I found a purpose. I realized what my role was, and how to do it. I was reborn. And now I want to help others, like you, realize that role. What their relationship should be."

"And what should our relationship be?" Ben was starting to get it, but just needed a final push.

"Well, that's up to you. But it's like I told your mom. Stepford has a way of bringing people together. And we knew that you and your mom would have a great relationship with the right push. You just need to figure out what that ideal relationship is, and how you're going to get to it."

"Oh." Ben sat for a minute. What was his ideal relationship? Well, like a close mother and son, but....

It seems the changes made his mom more of a .... perfect woman for him. She was athletic, she was no longer hiding behind those suits, and was now embracing her own femininity. She was caring for him, made great making sure he was grounded in a firm house life, and was acting like a firm guide. And she could rock a cheerleader outfit. She had become like both his perfect girl and his perfect mother.

In turn, Angel gradually saw that Ben had become a real man of the house. A caretaker, a warrior, a breadwinner. Someone who is there for her. Someone to take care of her. In turn, she was his subordinate, but he was willing to get her help, listen to her. He had somehow been able to tame her.

"Look, Ben," Emmett gestured Ben to get up, and wrapped his arm around his shoulder as they headed to the door, "If you're still upset about the control thing, I completely understand. You and Ange are free to leave, but just keep what I said in mind, before you decide to move. Just, know that whatever you may be feeling is real."

Ben was silent as Emmett lead him out of the room, and shook his hand in front of the Men's Association.

Before Ben left, Emmett slipped him a card.

"That's a website for any information you need. Stepford can accommodate you if you want."

The car ride back was silent. The events of the day were a lot to process for both of them. The two would share glances, unsure as if to accept their growing feelings. They saw that they were a perfect match, but didn't know whether or not to accept it. They were wondering whether these feelings were real or just part of the Stepford process.

When they got home, they silently went inside, and went about their days. However, their romantic feelings never went away. In fact, the more the two thought on it, the more they realized they were attracted to their bodies. How one needed the touch of another, which didn't help matters.

While Angel kept herself distracted with housework (fighting off urges as she did so), Ben tried to masturbate, but couldn't muster the nerve. They needed each other. Both their bodies and their souls. But they were still a bit confused.

Finally, as Ben came down for dinner and saw his mother in a red shirtdress with a very frilly apron and red heels, humming as she cooked, he finally decided to confront it.

"Mom."

Angel looked at her son, with a look of concern.

"Yeah?"

"Mom, let's talk about what happened."

She looked down, her makeup marked by sweat.

"Yeah, yeah, let's talk."

They stood for a few minutes, contemplating each other, thinking about everything that had happened. Everything that they had gone through. All they had done, and all they had achieved. All that their relationship had grown. All that it became.

In that moment, they realized what was truly best for them. What they had to do now.

Finally, the two rushed to each other and locked lips. Unlike their brief kisses, they mauled each other like animals, touching tongues, sucking. Ben grabbed and clawed at Angel's back, eventually grabbing the zipper and tearing it down, revealing a bra-less corselet.

Ben set Angel on the table. The two were ready.