"I guess you're not much of a breast man, are you?" Jerry kidded Braeden. "Alright, Jon, here are a few you things you need to know. First, as far as anyone else is concerned, you've always been Hilary Merlin, the provocative gothic tease. Not even your best friend Karyn will remember Jon Merlin. You will be treated as though you have always been this girl. You will find that though you're still very much you on the inside, you will subconsciously, automatically behave like the girl you now appear to be, and it will take a concerted effort to behave differently. Also if you try to tell anyone about this, it will only come out like some gothic gibberish. Got it? We're all looking forward to seeing how this little experiment goes. We'll see you back here at lunch time tomorrow, though I suspect you and Braeden will be spending a little more time together between now and then," Jerry finished with a sleazy laugh.
Jon, finally able to move freely, said, "What am I supposed to do now?!" He stopped talking, hearing a voice that was actually not as high as he sort of expected from a body so small, but it was much higher than he was used to, and with a very slight southern accent to it.
Jerry walked through the rows of computers to Jon's side, putting his hand on Jon's slim, pale shoulder. "Honestly, Hilary," he began, emphasizing Jon's new name, a name Jon started at and realized he now recognized as his own, "I don't really care. The day is your oyster to do with as you please. You just might find that your new body likes to do things the old Jon would never have done. I, however, have places to be, people to see, so, au revoir."
On that note, Jerry left the room, followed by everyone else but Braeden, who lingered to talk to Hilary.
For her part, Hilary found herself suddenly a little flushed, nervous in front of a boy she'd never really paid attention to before. Strange new thoughts rushed through her mind. Was she attractive enough to him? Would he like her? Should she make a move?
Wait, what am I thinking? she thought to herself. Shit, I'm thinking of myself as Hilary, as a she, and now I can't stop thinking about Braeden. He's so sexy and mysterious. No! Stop it! But what if he doesn't like me? No, this has to stop. I have to try to talk to Karyn. She'll believe me. She'll have to. There's no way she could forget how she got her new assets.
And, with a great effort, Hilary managed to leave the room without lingering around Braeden. She walked down the hall toward the lunch room to try to catch up with Karyn before the lunch period was over, but she was disconcerted to realize after walking for a few moments that she felt totally at home in this body. Her movements were entirely different from Jon's, and her clothes were entirely too revealing, but what discomfited her was that it all felt completely natural, even walking in four-inch leather heels as though she had been doing it for years. I guess Hilary has been, she thought to herself.
Rounding the corner to the cafeteria, she saw Karyn in her usual seat, and she rushed to talk to her, only noticing right before she sat down that Karyn seemed to be in an animated, friendly conversation with Jerry, who turned to smile at her just as she reached the table.
"Hi, Hilary," he said with a fakely warm smile. "What are you doing here? Your friends are over there," he said, pointing in the direction of a table of goths a few rows down.
"I just need to talk to Karyn," Hilary replied.
"Um, okaaay," Karyn replied hesitantly.
"Karyn, I made a stupid mistake with the wishing rock, and now Braeden and Jerry turned me into this goth chic," she said. Or, at least, that's what she meant to say.
Instead, what actually came out of her mouth was this: "How can you two live with yourselves? You're such conformists. Always dressing the way everyone expects you to. Doing what you're told. How boring." Hilary was totally shocked by what came out of her mouth, but she couldn't show it. Instead, she just smiled, probably looking rather smug after what she had just said.
"Sooo, you just wanted to come over here and insult us then?" Karyn asked. "Look, you make your life choices, and we'll make ours. Can you just leave us in peace now, please?" With that, Karyn turned back to Jerry to resume their conversation, and Jerry, with a glint in his eye, seemed to do the same.
Hilary, confused at how her body could betray her like that, left them and went to sit at the goth table for the remaining few moments of lunch.
