When it all started, friends and neighbours Ash and Lucas were just a couple of normal teens, dealing with the usual struggles of school, bullies, and girls.

Then, one day, the local authority announced that they were going to erect an experimental “8G” phone mast in Ash and Lucas’ street. The residents protested, but the authority ignored them, and went ahead and installed it anyway.

The changes were subtle at first. In the first week, both boys noticed their voices getting deeper. At the same time, their parents also noticed that the two usual mischief makers were now suddenly acting with more maturity and confidence.

By the third week, the whole street was gossiping. All of the kids on the road seemed to be growing and maturing, fast! The parents contacted the local authority, but they just laughed it off, and put it down to usual growth spurts.

By the sixth week, the story was making headlines across the world. Ash and Lucas were now physically around three years older than they had been six weeks earlier. Not only had they grown in height, but their bodies had started to fill out with thick muscles, making all of their school friends very jealous.

After two months, the authority finally conceded, and dismantled the phone mast. However, by then, it was too late. Ash and Lucas were now fully grown, muscular, confident, men. The other “kids” on the street had become equally as mature, although their parents seemed unchanged.

Despite the public outcry, Ash and Lucas were secretly very pleased with the changes to their bodies and minds. The government updated their legal age to twenty-one to match their new maturity, and they began to live the lives of young adults, leaving behind their former school pals, who just looked like silly little kids to them now.

It soon became clear that the ageing and muscle growth were not the only side effects of the 8G radiation, as Ash and Lucas quickly began to discover a new and deep admiration for each other as well. Their new lives, it seemed, were just beginning.