By the time Karyn managed to wander back to the school building, first period had ended. She'd skipped first period, but somehow she didn't seem to care. Somehow, that conversation with Biff had felt... freeing. She wasn't
even entirely sure why, but it had made her feel good. Of course, she wouldn't be romantically interested in Biff. He was a boy, after all. But they could be friends, right?
In any case, the shoes had asked her to find Jon, and Karyn knew where Jon would be after first period. He always took the outside route, around the cafeteria, to get to his math class, and that's where Karyn intercepted him.
"Hey, Jon-boy," Karyn called. "Thanks for the save this morning, but the shoes are talking to me, and they say you should take them back."
It was almost unnatural how cheery Karyn was. But maybe this was just from some help the shoes had given her. "Are you sure?" he asked.
"Hey, shoes, are you sure?" Karyn repeated. "Yeah, they're sure. Let's do this quick before second period starts."
They found a convenient slope of grass and made the swap, and immediately the shoes started talking to Jon.
"Something happened," they said.
"What happened?" Jon asked.
"Oh, I skipped first period to talk to Biff about some stuff," Karyn answered. "It wasn't a big deal. You know, cheerleader living up to her stereotype." She made an exaggerated smile and tossed up some jazz hands.
"Sorry," Jon said, "I was talking to the shoes."
"Oh. Right. I guess they wanted to tell you something? I'll leave you two alone."
Karyn turned away, and in that moment the shoes felt... uneasy. They would swear they were nauseous if they didn't know that they didn't have any internal organs.
"Jon, I'm sorry."
"Why are you sorry? You've been very helpful today, it looks like."
"Something happened."
"So you've said. But what was it."
"I'm so sorry. Something changed. Inside me, something changed."
"What changed?"
"It was other magic. I thought it was over, but it changed me. And I have to change you."
The feeling of nausea built stronger within the shoes. It expanded like a pressure.
"What do you mean, you have to change me? What's going on?"
"I..." The feeling of nausea exploded from the shoes into a feeling of vomiting. Vomiting magic. Someone else's magic.
"I'm sorry," Jon said abruptly. "I didn't mean to give you the wrong impression."
Karyn, who had been a few steps away, paused a moment. That sounded familiar, somehow.
"I am definitely a lesbian," Jon continued.
Karyn turned. "Jon, are you making fun of me?"
"Yep, that's me," Jon chuckled, "I am a girl who is only interested in girls."
A wave washed over Jon, and he somehow looked smaller.
"I can't stop this from happening, Jon" the shoes shuddered.
"A big ol', sloppy, boob-loving lesbian," the boy continued.
Now Karyn was sure something strange was going on. Hadn't she just said those words to Biff?
"I'll probably fall for the next girl I see." Jon turned to look directly at Karyn, and his expression became almost wistful. "And I'll dream of living the rest of my life at her side, two women against the world, a life wrapped in femininity with no masculine intrusion."
Another wave passed over Jon. And then another. Each wave made him softer. A more delicate chin. More slender fingers. Rounded hips that descended into thighs that tapered to the knee. Another wave, and the outfit that looked so spectacular on him this morning, suddenly looked even more perfect on her.
Karyn felt a twinge inside herself. Was Jon a girl now?
"I am a woman who knows exactly what she wants," the girl on the grass said, "and what I want is other women. Full stop. No exceptions."
Yes. Jon was definitely a girl now. And with that realization, suddenly new thoughts invaded Karyn's mind. She started thinking about living the rest of her life with the person before her. This person she didn't even know. Or did she? Wasn't this still Jon? Somehow that question seemed unimportant. Karyn realized that she was falling in love. And then she recognized the expression on this other girl's face, as going through the exact same realization.
"So what girls do you think are cute?"
The breath caught in Karyn's throat. She knew the right answer here. She knew there was only one word that needed to be said. She knew what her heart of hearts wanted to say, and she knew that it was exactly what the girl before her wanted to hear. But, for a moment, she couldn't breathe.
And then she could.
"You."
Karyn sat back down on the grassy slope, and embraced her lifelong friend, this perfect stranger, as though she had initiated this very embrace every day of her life. For that moment, for that one brief moment, the two girls were as one being. Arms entangled. Lips connected. Souls connected.
And then the late bell rang.
