Ready

I never thought I'd be heading back to my high school reunion like this. Ten years ago, I left this place behind, certain I'd never be back—at least, not for something like this. But here I am, pulling into the parking lot of the old gym, my knuckles tight around the steering wheel. And sitting beside me in the passenger seat is Sarah—my girlfriend, the mother of our child, and a year ago, my best friend, Jason.

I glance over at her as she hums softly to herself. She’s wearing a light blue lace dress, tied neatly with a satin ribbon that accentuates her growing belly. It rests gently against her seven-month bump, and she cradles it with one hand, her fingers absentmindedly tracing small circles. The dress clings to her in all the right ways, highlighting the soft curves that still, sometimes, take me by surprise. Her hair is tied up elegantly, and delicate earrings dangle from her ears. She looks radiant, bathed in the golden light of the late afternoon sun.

She catches me staring and raises an eyebrow. "What? Do I have something on my face?" she teases.

I shake my head and smile. "No, you just look... incredible. It's still hard to believe."

Her smile softens, and she reaches over to take my hand, lacing her fingers through mine. "I know. Sometimes I can't believe it either. But here we are."

And here we are, indeed. I still can't quite wrap my head around the fact that Sarah used to be Jason—my best friend, my partner in our lab, the guy who always had my back. But after years of working on our serum, the one that would allow people to switch genders, everything changed. Jason volunteered to be our first human test subject. I thought I was prepared for what would happen, but when I saw her—the woman standing where my best friend had been—I knew that nothing could have prepared me for that moment.

The transformation had been gradual but definite. It wasn't just physical changes; Sarah embraced her new identity with a calm determination that I'd never seen in Jason before. She was still the same person at her core, still my best friend, but now there was something else—something lighter, more at peace. Over time, our friendship began to evolve into something deeper, something I never saw coming. One night, a few months after the transformation, we were sitting on my couch after a long day in the lab, both of us exhausted but content. We’d fallen into a routine by then—working together by day, hanging out by night. But that night felt different. There was a tension in the air, something unspoken hanging between us.

“Matt,” Sarah said, her voice quiet. She was playing with the edge of her wine glass, not looking at me directly. “Can I ask you something?”

“Of course,” I said, my heart picking up speed. I wasn’t sure where this was going, but I could feel the weight of whatever was on her mind.

She hesitated, then looked up at me, her eyes filled with uncertainty. “I’ve been thinking... about us. About this.” She gestured between us, and I could see the vulnerability in her expression. “I’m still figuring out what it means to be... me, now. But there’s one thing I haven’t really explored yet, and I want to. I need to.”

I swallowed, my throat suddenly dry. “What do you mean?”

She looked at me for a long moment before she spoke again, her voice barely above a whisper. “I want to know what it’s like... to be intimate. As a woman. And I want you to help me.”

Her words hung in the air between us, heavy and electric. I could feel my heart pounding in my chest, a mix of emotions swirling inside me—surprise, confusion, desire. I didn’t know what to say, but the look in her eyes told me this wasn’t just about sex. This was about trust, about helping her understand who she was now. And it was about us, about something that had been growing between us for months.

I nodded slowly, my voice low. “Okay. If that’s what you want.”

It was a night I’ll never forget. We started slow, testing the waters, but soon, the passion between us took over. It wasn’t just about the physical—it was about connection, about love. By the time the sun came up the next morning, I knew everything had changed between us. Sarah wasn’t just my best friend anymore. She was the woman I loved.

And then, a few months later, we found out Sarah was pregnant. It was a shock—one of those curveballs life likes to throw at you when you're least expecting it. But here we are now, driving to my high school reunion, ready to face whatever comes next.

“You’re quiet,” Sarah says softly, breaking the silence. She adjusts the ribbon around her waist, smoothing out her dress. Her hands go back to resting on her belly as she looks at me with gentle eyes.

I shrug, trying to play it off. “Just thinking about what people are going to say when they see you.”

Sarah lets out a small laugh, her eyes sparkling. “Well, I doubt they’re expecting you to show up with a seven-month-pregnant girlfriend.” She rubs her belly gently, then smiles up at me. "But I think they'll be more curious about us than anything."

I can’t help but smile back at her. “Yeah, they’ll probably be shocked.”

As I park the car, I let out a slow breath, the weight of the moment hitting me. It's not just the reunion—it’s everything. The questions. The stares. The stories we’ll have to tell. And the ones we won’t. No one in that gym knows what really happened between us, about how Jason became Sarah, or how we fell in love in the midst of it all. They’ll see her and me together, see the baby bump, and they’ll probably assume it’s just a regular old story of two people who met and fell in love. But only we know the truth.

“You ready?” Sarah asks, her voice calm but steady. She glances at me, her eyes filled with understanding. She knows this isn’t easy for me.

I nod and smile, leaning over to press a kiss to her cheek. “As long as you’re with me, I’m ready.”

She squeezes my hand and we step out of the car. The cool evening air wraps around us as we make our way towards the entrance. Her arm links through mine, and for a moment, I feel the weight of her leaning on me. She’s glowing, her dress catching the last rays of the setting sun, making her look almost ethereal. The light blue lace hugs her body, perfectly highlighting the beautiful curves of her pregnancy. Her belly is prominent, but she walks with a grace that I can’t help but admire. She looks so strong, so at peace in her skin. It’s a stark contrast to the Jason I used to know, always searching, never fully comfortable in his own body. Sarah is different—she’s confident, sure of herself in ways that Jason never was.

As we approach the doors, I glance down at her, my nerves beginning to ease. She looks up at me with that smile of hers—warm, reassuring—and I know, whatever happens tonight, we’ll be okay. We’re in this together. We’ll handle the questions, the whispers, and the curiosity. And when we leave, we’ll go back to our life, to preparing for the arrival of our baby, to continuing to figure this new life out.

As we step into the gym, people begin to turn and look at us. I can feel the eyes on us, but I don’t mind. All I see is Sarah—the woman I love, the mother of my child, and my partner in every sense of the word. We’ll face this night like we’ve faced everything else—together.

“Ready?” she whispers again, leaning into me slightly.

I nod, smiling. “Ready.”

No one here will ever know the full story—about the serum, the transformation, or the way we fell in love. That’s just for us. But tonight, we’ll walk into this room with our heads held high, because this is our story. And it’s only just beginning.