The halls of New Huaxia High School were a gauntlet of humiliation for Wei Chen. At 17, he was the poster child for nerd-dom: oversized glasses slipping down his nose, a hoodie two sizes too big, and a backpack stuffed with chemistry textbooks and dog-eared manga. His sneakers squeaked as he dodged the morning crowd—popular kids planning KTV nights, jocks tossing basketballs, and girls giggling over the latest C-drama idol. Wei clutched his notes, praying to blend into the lockers and survive another day of being the school's punching bag.
"Yo, Four-Eyes!" Zhang Wei, the basketball star with a smirk sharper than a switchblade, lobbed a crumpled paper ball at Wei's head. His posse cackled, their laughter echoing like a bad sitcom. "Finished my chemistry homework yet, or you too busy geeking out over your weird comics?"
Wei's cheeks burned hotter than a Sichuan hotpot. "It's not due till Friday," he mumbled, adjusting his glasses. The snickers followed him like a swarm of bees. In the cafeteria, Xiao Lan, the queen bee with a smile that could cut glass, led her clique in a mocking chant: "Wei the Weird, king of nerds!" A stray fry hit his ear, and Wei bolted for the library, his sanctuary of equations and solitude.
Being a nerd wasn't just a label—it was his entire existence. Wei lived in a cramped apartment with his nagging mom, who force-fed him ginseng soup to "boost his brain" and lectured him about grades. His social life was a barren wasteland, except for his hopeless crush on Li Mei, the tough-as-nails martial arts prodigy who barely acknowledged him. His only escape was his part-time internship at Seraphine Biotech, a shady gig he'd snagged to beef up his college applications. The pay was nonexistent, the lab gave him the creeps, and his boss, a woman with a smile like a predator, treated him like a sentient dustpan.
After school, Wei trudged through New Huaxia City's neon-lit chaos to the lab. The night market buzzed around him—vendors hawking spicy skewers, mahjong tiles clattering, and K-pop blasting from street stalls. Seraphine Biotech's building loomed like a villain's lair, all sleek glass and humming machines. Wei's job was mind-numbingly simple: scrub beakers, don't touch anything important, and pray he didn't get fired. But tonight, the lab felt… off. On a counter sat a glowing vial of neon-green liquid—Nectar X, the label read, with a note in bold red: DO NOT TOUCH. EVER.
Wei, the king of clumsy, tripped over a power cord while juggling a tray of test tubes. The vial shattered, its syrupy contents pooling at his feet like radioactive bubblegum. "No, no, no!" he yelped, heart pounding. Getting fired would torch his college dreams and chain him to this nerdy purgatory forever. In a blind panic, he grabbed a beaker, scooped up the liquid, and—fearing discovery—chugged it down. It tasted like sugary fire, searing his throat and making his stomach flip like a bad experiment.
"Stupid, stupid, stupid," Wei muttered, stumbling out of the lab. The city's neon blur spun around him, and he barely made it home, collapsing into bed with a pounding headache, convinced he'd poisoned himself. His last thought before passing out was a desperate hope that he wouldn't wake up grounded for life.
The next morning, Wei woke to a body that didn't feel like his. His skin tingled, his muscles ached, and his glasses wouldn't stay on. He stumbled to the bathroom, rubbing sleep from his eyes, and froze at the mirror. The scrawny, pimple-faced nerd was gone. In his place stood a chiseled heartthrob—sharp jawline, tousled hair, eyes that smoldered like a C-drama lead. His voice, now a velvet growl, echoed as he whispered, "What the hell?"
He flexed an arm, revealing muscles that belonged on a gym poster, not him. His jeans hugged thighs that could've starred in an action flick. His hoodie strained against a chest he didn't recognize. Confusion crashed over him like a tidal wave—had he been drugged? Body-swapped? Was this a manga plot come to life? He poked his abs, half-expecting them to pop like a balloon. They didn't. A flicker of excitement sparked—maybe this was his chance to not be a loser—but his nerdy brain screamed for logic. "This isn't science," he muttered. "This is… impossible."
His phone buzzed—Li Mei, texting: U alive, dork? Study group's waiting. Wei stared at his reflection, now winking back from his phone's selfie camera. How was he supposed to face her like this? He stepped outside, the morning sun glinting off New Huaxia's skyscrapers. A vendor's daughter across the street dropped her skewer, her eyes widening. "Hey, handsome, you lost?" she purred, leaning forward, her apron slipping to reveal a curve that made Wei's new body react in ways his old self never had.
He backed away, heart racing. "I-I'm fine!" he stammered, his voice sending a shiver through her. A passing schoolgirl gasped, grabbing his arm. "You're… perfect," she whispered, her touch igniting a spark that made Wei's skin burn. His mind spun—what was in that nectar? Why was everyone staring? Why did his body feel like a live wire?
Before he could flee, his mom poked her head out the window. "Wei, why you standing there like a statue? Get to school!" Her eyes narrowed, then widened, her jaw dropping. "Who… what happened to my baby?!"
Wei bolted, his new legs carrying him faster than he'd ever moved. The city blurred past—neon signs, street stalls, the hum of life—but his mind was a mess of equations and panic. He had no idea what he'd unleashed, but it felt like trouble. Big trouble.
Meanwhile, in the depths of Seraphine Biotech's lab, a security feed flickered. A woman in a silk dress—Madame Seraphine, her beauty as sharp as her ambition—watched the footage of Wei's clumsy mishap. Her lips curled into a predatory smile as she saw him chug the nectar. "The fool drank it," she purred, looking at the female agents standing with their hands clasp behind them, her voice dripping with menace and delight. "Find him. That nectar is mine."