“You don’t feel well?” Jack asked Kim. “Do you need to lie down?”
“Uh, yeah, I think,” Kim responded. “I was feeling fine a second ago, but then it just hit me like . . . Ugh, where’s the bathroom?”
“Right, this way.” Jack ushered Kim back to his room, calling out, “Patrick, watch the shop. Your sister isn’t feeling too well.”
“Do you want me to watch over her?” Patrick yelled back from the front counter.
“No, I think she caught what I’ve had the last few days. I don’t want you to catch it too.” That wasn’t exactly a lie as Jack wondered about the rings.
After Kim walked into the bathroom, Jack thought quickly. The yellow ring had been deactivated, and Kim was having the same symptoms Jack had when he transformed. What did he do to trigger it? Did that mean Kim was about to transform? And if so, into what? Would she change genders like Jack? Or would it be something else? How would he explain it to Kim?
The door opened. At first glance, Kim looked the same. However, the longer Jack stared, the more he felt something was different. He just couldn’t put his finger on it.
“Um, Mr. K, is something wrong?”
“Uh, no. I should be asking you that. How are you feeling?”
“Better. Much better. Although, my joints ache a bit,” Kim said, placing her hand on her back.
“What are you, an old lady? Wait, that’s it!”
“What’s it?”
“Nothing, nothing,” Jack said. “Here, you can lie on the couch. I’ll go check on the store. I’ll be back in about ten minutes.”
As Kim lay down, Jack took another long look, noticing features that were obvious now. Her face and body were slightly altered. She looked older, more mature. Her breasts were slightly larger and hips a bit wider. Kim was sixteen-years-old; now, she looked like she was seventeen or eighteen. It wasn’t a huge change, but people might notice something; it would be best if she remain hidden until the transformation wore off.
Back in the store, Patrick asked, “How’s my sister?”
“She’s fine. She’s just taking a little rest. Has anybody else come?”
“Nope, just Quinn and Hugh are here.”
“I’ll watch the desk today. You can go back to the room. Make sure they don’t do anything crazy.”
Patrick smiled and left. Jack settled behind the counter and took out his notebook. He started a new page for the yellow ring.
1) when activated, it changes another person’s age.
2) The trigger is unknown, but it probably requires another person present.
3) Time:
Jack chewed on the back of the pen as he thought about the scattered information. The yellow ring would probably act the same way as the red one. The scariest part was that he didn’t know what the trigger was. It could activate at any time. Without an informed partner, it would be difficult to test the ring.
“Mr. K, I’m feeling much better, though I still feel a little funny.”
Jack looked up; Kim was standing in the doorway. She was still older. Jack had to admit that she was maturing gracefully though still too young for him.
“That’s good to hear. Um, would you like to help me unpack some packages?” He needed to keep her away from others until she changed back.
“Really? You always seem to have them unpacked beforehand.”
“I was a little . . . distracted today.” Jack blushed a bit as he remembered trying on the clothes.
“You have been a little out of it the last few days. Sure, I’ll help you out.”
As they opened the packages, it was obvious Kim was slightly uncomfortable. She kept on adjusting her clothes and shifting in her chair. She probably didn’t realize she had gotten older, but it seemed like she knew something was off.
“So, what’s this surprise you were talking about before?” Jack asked, trying to distract her.
“What? Oh yeah. Nuh-uh, I’m not telling you.” Kim took a long look at him, and then apparently changed her mind. “On second thought, you’d probably mess it up if you were surprised.” She became eager again. “You remember the lady who came into the store the other day? Desiree? Well, I ran into her yesterday, and I convinced her to come by here tomorrow. You better not let this opportunity pass by. Ask her out.”
Jack couldn’t help but smile. Kim was more proactive than he ever was. He also felt a little nervous about meeting Desiree again. “I will try my best.”
“No, don’t try. Do it. Oh,” Kim said as she rubbed her arms and shivered a bit, “I just got goosebumps.” Jack watched Kim change back to normal; her face lost its maturity and her body shrunk a bit. It was interesting watching a transformation happen to another person, even though the changes were minor.
When it finished, Kim stretched. “I think I’m finally feeling normal. That was odd. Anyway, be prepared for tomorrow to ask her out.”
“Alright, alright.”
It only took a few more minutes to finish opening the packages. “Thanks for the help, Kim. You can go back now.”
She nodded. “Anytime. See ya in a bit.” She dashed to the back and pushed the door open. He heard her yell, “Alright, suckers, I’m in the next game.”
Jack shook his head and smiled. He took out his notepad and marked down fifteen minutes under the amount of time for the yellow ring to remain active.
He contemplated how he was going to experiment with the new ring. He would need to find someone he could trust. As he thought about the list of people he was currently acquainted with, Jack became a little depressed that most of them were under seventeen.
A few hours passed without any special occurrence happening. A couple more kids came, but, by six o’clock, everybody was gone. Jack looked down at the red ring; it glowed. The next time he transformed he would be up to thirty-six minutes. A smile crept on his face. Maybe he could do that . . .
After making a few preparations and closing the store, Jack activated the red ring. His body shifted; his hair flowed out down to the middle of his back, his shoulders narrowed, his breasts swelled on his chest, his hips expanded, and his face became more feminine. Jack looked in the mirror approvingly; the changes weren’t too different from the previous time, other than his hair was a little longer, his breasts slightly larger, and his face more feminine. He changed into a simple t-shirt and jeans; the clothes were feminine, but they wouldn’t look too awkward on a guy.
There was a large electronics store about five minutes away by walk. Jack wanted to buy a camera in his female form. He planned about fifteen minutes to walk there and back, and twenty minutes to purchase the camera. He also brought enough cash to buy a camera; he didn’t want to use a card as it might raise unnecessary questions. He wanted to find out how different it felt to be viewed as a girl. He carried a small backpack with a spare set of guy clothes just in case.
For the first time, Jack walked outside in his transformed state; it was a strange feeling. The sun’s heat beat on him differently; the air wrapped around him in odd ways; the ground felt foreign under his feet. It was strangely refreshing, like being born again.
As Jack trod down the sidewalk, he passed another guy in his early thirties. Jack forced himself to smile at nod at him. The guy smiled back, his gaze lingering on Jack’s chest for a second. Jack’s cheeks heated up, and he was forced to look at the ground. His heart pounded as they passed each other; in Jack’s mind, it felt like he was still a guy wearing women’s clothing.
Within a few minutes, Jack was in the electronics store checking out his options. A store employee saw Jack and came over. He asked, “Is there something I can help you with?” He looked to be about twenty years old with heavy acne and parted hair. The name tag on his uniform said Richard.
Jack gave his best smile. “Yes, um, Richard. I’m looking for a nice, but not too expensive, video camera. Any recommendations?” Jack’s feminine voice still sounded odd to his ears, especially as it kept on getting higher.
Richard smiled and excitedly started to talk about all of the features of the cameras. As he listened, Jack couldn’t help but notice Richard’s eyes purposely avoiding Jack. He would take a quick glance, but then immediately look away. ‘He’s attracted to me,’ Jack thought. Conflicting emotions rushed through him.
As Richard talked, Jack checked the time. His heart skipped a beat; he only had fifteen minutes left.
“Great,” Jack said, breaking Richard off from his explanation of the camera. “I’ll take it.”
As Jack waited in slow-moving line to buy the camera, he glanced at the time again and winced: ten minutes left. He wouldn’t be able to make it back in time. He’d have to find a private place. He started to feel foolish that he tried this experiment so soon.
After Jack purchased the camera, he bolted towards the bathrooms. Luckily, the private unisex bathroom was open.
Right as Jack locked the door behind him, he stripped his clothes off to put on his other clothes. He paused to look into the mirror. The pretty girl in the nude stared back. Jack couldn’t help but get excited at his own reflection; it felt wrong and right at the same time.
The transformation back was quick as always as he returned to his male self.
Jack let out a sigh of relief as no one was outside the bathroom door. As far as he could tell, nobody noticed a girl walking in and a guy walking out. As Jack walked out of the store, he noticed Richard kept on looking at the bathroom hallway, probably trying to get one more look at Jack’s female body.
TheXtra Path 
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