Welcome, everyone, to this little corner of the fanfiction world. For the next ten days we will be reading the story "The Strange Case of Chase and Spike" by daphrose. This story is based off of "Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" by Robert Louis Stevenson, obviously.

And who am I? You may call me The Narrator. I will be the one reading you this story every night. I will read you the chapters around this same time every day until the story is over.

This story falls in the genres of mystery/crime/horror/tragedy/suspense/friendship. If any of the following will make you uncomfortable, you might want to hit the back button now: Character death, blood, murder, and suicide.

It is also important that you remember that this is an alternate universe. The characters that are normally related most likely will not be (or they will be related, but in a different way) and there are no bionics (not in the way you are used to, at least). Apologies, Lab Rats fans. Some of the characters might act a bit different as well (OOC), but daphrose did her best. And there is no romance. I have heard of these things called 'Brase' and 'Bradam,' but I can assure you that those will not be happening. (Nor will 'Spase' or any other boy x boy pairings.)

Now that we have all of that over with, let us begin our tale . . .

* * * Cryptic Notes of an Introvert * * *

It's not that Adam Charles was a bad kid. No, quite the contrary; he was rather amiable. Adam was friends with many people, he played several sports, and he was moderately popular around school. People generally liked to be around him. Adam's personality could be summed up as loyal, goofy, and fun. Those who observed him might compare him to a hyperactive five-year-old.

However, the thing that could make people mad at him (if it was even possible to be mad at Adam Charles) was his curiosity. Not that curiosity in itself was a bad thing, but rather that Adam often used it to learn about things he had no business knowing. He was aware of this, and lately he had been working on not being so nosy.

Other than that, Adam was a great person to be around. Granted, he wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed, but he was lots of fun. He could make anyone laugh despite the kind of day they were having. He was an extremely social person, getting out and about and talking with friends. Everyone knew who Adam was, everyone enjoyed talking to him, and Adam enjoyed talking to them.

Adam's friend, Chase Davenport, was a very different story. Chase had a good reputation, to be sure. He was the 'teacher's pet' kind of kid, earning admiration for his vast amount of knowledge. He applied himself in school, devoting many hours of his free time to study. Chase was not a rule-breaker or a rebel; some called him a wet blanket, but others respected his integrity.

Despite all that, Chase was a very shy person. He didn't talk to many people, preferring to stay wrapped up in his own little world. It was no secret that Chase Davenport was an introvert. Most of the time he stayed at home, working in his dad's laboratory. His father – Donald Davenport – was a tech mogul, which might explain why Chase was so smart. He knew everything there was to know about technology.

The other thing about Chase was that he was strange; very strange. He often acted shifty, though anyone who knew him knew that he would never be involved in something that required him to act suspicious. Chase didn't like to talk about his home life. When he was younger he used to be more open, but lately he had been closing up. Not many people noticed.

These two boys with very different personalities, from very different worlds, were actually the best of friends. They had been for many years. Adam was able to talk to Chase despite the latter's tendency to remain silent. Adam was one of the few people Chase would really speak with.

In the past few weeks, however, Chase had been acting more suspicious than ever. Adam had noticed, but as of yet he had not said anything. Chase was a strange kid; Adam had learned years ago that it was best to let him be. Trying to pry the answers out of him would only result in Chase retreating even further into his silence.

On a very typical day after school, Adam invited Chase over to study. They had much of the same work, despite the fact that Chase was nearly a year and a half younger than his friend. Adam, as previously mentioned, struggled in school. Chase, on the other hand, could almost be called a genius and had a lot of advanced work. Thus the two were able to study together.

The boys entered Adam's home, a normal one-story house in the middle of Mission Creek. Adam deftly tossed his backpack onto the couch and sat down. Chase followed suit.

"Where's your dad?" was the first thing Chase said, in the quiet tone that was characteristic of him.

"A business trip," Adam reported as he pulled out his homework sheets. "He'll be gone all weekend. He comes back for a few days, but then he'll leave again for another week."

"Of course," Chase said with a hint of a sigh.

Both boys understood each other when it came to their families. Neither of them had siblings, both lived with only their father, and both of their fathers were often too caught up in their work to pay any attention to their sons. It was a vicious cycle that the boys had bonded over.

"Should we start with math?" Chase asked, changing the subject. He pulled out his well-worn green notebook and placed it on the coffee table.

"Sure, I guess," Adam said. "But I'd rather play video games."

"Not now," Chase said. "We need to study. Let me guess, you haven't even started that English paper you have that's due tomorrow?"

"What?" Adam said, drawing out the word. "You don't know that." Chase quirked one eyebrow and a smile tugged at his lips. "Okay, no, I haven't started. But come on! I just got Death Slayers 4 yesterday! I've been dying to try it out!"

This caused Chase to stop and think for a moment. Adam could almost see the struggle going on inside his friend's head. For a second the older boy thought he might win this one.

"No!" Chase insisted suddenly, his thoughtful look disappearing. "We need to study. Maybe we should start with English."

"Ugh, fine," Adam groaned, digging through his backpack for a pencil.

"Hang on, don't start yet," Chase said, standing up. "I'll be right back." Chase maneuvered around the couch, heading for the bathroom down the hall.

"Watch your head!" Adam called after him. The doorway to the bathroom was very low and it was common in the Charles' household to warn their guests to be careful – even though Chase had been over so often he knew that already.

Suddenly a sly grin came over Adam's face. He turned around and added, "On second thought, you're so short you probably don't need to duck."

Chase threw a glare over his shoulder. "Why am I even friends with you?" he said dryly. But there was a gleam in his eye that meant he was only joking. Nonetheless, Adam was technically right. Chase did not have to duck in order to go through the door (though his spiky hair grazed the top of the door frame).

Adam turned back around, laughing quietly to himself. Then he sighed and realized it was time to start work. He really hated school! The only parts he liked were the sports. Football, basketball, baseball . . . you name it, Adam played it. Most of his afternoons were filled with practices and games, but sometimes – like today – Adam was free to just hang out with his friends. Too bad that meant doing schoolwork with Chase.

Adam was completely stumped about his English paper. Words were not his forte, so to speak. Perhaps there was something in Chase's notebook that could help him.

The green spiral-bound notebook was on Chase's desk in every class. He took notes on everything the teachers said. Adam thought that would be dreadfully tedious, but Chase seemed to take enjoyment from it. Maybe there were some notes in there that could help Adam with his paper.

Adam lazily flipped the book open, looking for anything from English class. He skimmed over pages upon pages of Chase's perfect cursive handwriting. The jotted-down notes were organized into outlines and numbered points – something only Chase would do.

All of a sudden something else caught Adam's eye. In the middle of the notes for the Tuesday earlier that week, there were several lines of furious scribbling. Adam frowned. Chase would never "ruin" his notebook with such large, incomprehensible words. Yet it was clearly Chase's handwriting, distorted just enough so that it was hard to make out. Adam tried to read it anyway.

From what Adam could tell, Chase was worried about . . . someone . . . and this someone was . . . trying to take over? That didn't make any sense. There were some strange words scattered through the message. A few that caught Adam's eye were 'Spike,' 'disappearance,' and . . . 'death.' But why was Adam's friend concerned about death? Why would Chase, a fifteen year old boy, be writing about his own disappearance and demise? What was going on here?

"Adam?"

Adam jumped at the sound of his name being called. He had been so caught up in the notes that he hadn't heard Chase emerge from the bathroom.

"Adam, what are you doing with my notebook?" Chase asked as he ran around the couch and snatched the book from Adam's hands.

"I was trying to find a few notes that might help me," Adam said. Internally he was debating whether or not to tell Chase what he had read.

Chase's face was pale and he was visibly shaking. He attempted to smile, but it wasn't a very good effort. "Look, Adam, please ask me before you go through my stuff, okay?"

"Okay," Adam said slowly, still not sure whether to ask him about 'Spike' and the other frightening notes.

"Um, I f-forgot," Chase stuttered, clearly shaken, "my dad wanted my home early today."

"What?" Adam exclaimed. "But you said it was fine for you to come over. And I still need your help!"

"I know, but he . . . he really wanted me to come home. Look, I gotta go. If you really need help with something, just email me. But I need to get home. Bye."

Chase shouldered his backpack and stalked over to the door. He left the house without another word. Adam just sat there, staring after his friend.

What was he freaking out about? Did it have something to do with those notes? Why would he write that? Chase is strange, but this is weird even for him. What in the world is going on? Alas, Adam could only wonder.

That is the end of chapter one. Intriguing, isn't it? If you have ever read "Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde," you may know what's going on. But please, don't ruin it for the other readers.

Apparently the song "Monster" by Imagine Dragons was extremely inspiring to daphrose while she wrote this story. She recommends it as a soundtrack for nearly all the chapters.

Again, I will be reading chapters around this time every evening (or whatever time it is where you live). There are ten chapters. Some are short, some are long; no complaining. I'm already pampering you with one every night. Tomorrow's reading might be a bit later, but only by a half an hour to an hour.

It is important to note that daphrose does not own Lab Rats or the book on which this story is based. She simply took inspiration from them. I am not saying this again; it goes for the whole story.

If you have any questions, do not hesitate to ask. I may or may not answer them depending on how much time we have. I hope to see you all back here tomorrow night for the second chapter: The New Kid. Farewell!

~ The Narrator