Chapter 8
                               HOME


     Joe and Linda drove from the mall to Linda's house, in Joe's
RX-7.  They had the rest of Saturday afternoon with nothing special
to do, and decided to spend some time at Linda's pool.

     Linda was in the real estate business, and she did well as a
salesperson for commercial and residential property.  She worked on
commission, and during the last two years had done very well.  She
had spent some of her earnings investing in her house, which was
surprisingly large, and impressive.  She did not really need all
the room, but she had liked the place as soon as she'd seen it.

     The owner, who wanted to sell quickly, accepted her offer
immediately, and so she bought the place.  It had a large drive in
front, with the detached garages in the back.  There was a large
pool, and a gazebo which housed a Jacuzzi.  It was quite a place. 
Inside, there were five bedrooms, a large family room, a big dining
room, and even a hand made room, which now only contained a Schwinn
"Air-Dyne."  The well equipped kitchen had its own eating area, and
there was even an outdoor breakfast area.  At least, that's what
she called it.  The house was really much too large a place for one
person, but she considered it an investment, and she loved it.  She
was still in the process of buying furniture for three of the
bedrooms.

     Joe drove up the drive, and pulled around back, parking in
front of the garage.  They got out, and Joe took the packages
containing clothes they bought.  There were a couple of tops and
shorts for him, and some underwear that they had bought on sale at
Linda's insistence.

     Linda took her key and opened the door.  They entered her
kitchen.

     "Let's take those things to the bedroom," Linda said.

     "Okay," Joe said.  "Do you have anything cold to drink?"

     "Sure, what would you like?" Linda replied.  "I've got iced
tea, three kinds of beer, and milk for you health nuts."

     "Better make it iced tea for me," Joe said.  He remembered how
the beer he drank last night made him feel.  He could hardly keep
his eyes open after drinking just one.  "I think my metabolism is
screwed up, so I better lay off the beer."

     "Your metabolism isn't screwed up," Linda kidded him.  "You're
just not used to being a woman."

     "Well, whatever it is, I can't hold it anymore," Joe lamented.

     "You shouldn't drink beer anyway if you want to keep that
figure," Linda teased.  Joe had been teasing her at the mall, about
how he had a better figure than she did.  It was true, and it
bothered her a little.

     Joe took the packages into Linda's bedroom.  He laid them on
the bed.  The clothes Linda had on when he first saw her last night
were lying on the bed too.  She had changed clothes when he picked
her up, so that she would not be overdressed compared with his blue
jumpsuit.  He decided to try on the new clothes they bought at the
mall.

     He removed the jumpsuit.  He liked wearing it because it
concealed his body better than the other things he had.  It was
just too warm, however.  He slipped it off his shoulders, and sat
on the bed.  He could feel the cool breeze of the air conditioning
on his shoulders and back as he removed his Reeboks.  He stood and
pulled his legs out of the jumpsuit.  The cool air on his sweaty
body felt great.  He looked up, and saw someone in the full length
mirror on the closet door.  He did not recognize her.  In his
mind's eye, he was still Joe Bates, one-hundred ninety-five pounds,
five-eleven, and MALE.  The person he saw looking at him in the
mirror was about five feet seven, maybe one-hundred-twenty pounds,
and FEMALE.  "She was kind of cute," Joe thought, "standing there
in those little blue panties."

     Her small but nicely formed breasts were concealed by a bra
with shiny seamless cups.  She was wearing white sweat socks, which
reminded Joe of a cheerleader he knew from his college days.  Her
hair was too short for his taste, though.  He stared at the mirror. 
When he raised his hand to scratch his nose, he broke the spell. 
He was the cute in the mirror.  He raised his hand and touched his
left breast.  He rubbed a finger over the slick fabric, feeling the
softness it contained.  He could feel a nipple hardening to his
touch, both with his fingers, and as a warm twinge which went from
his nipple to his crotch, which reacted by contracting in a way
that was becoming familiar to him.  It was an unusual but pleasant
sensation, and he liked it.  It was a feeling the one-hundred
ninety-five pound, five-eleven Joe Bates never knew, and could
never know.  He wondered about the old Joe.

     He WAS the old Joe, but he was beginning to have trouble
remembering what the old Joe felt like.  The old Joe was strong. 
He worked out, and he had well developed biceps.  Joe touched his
arm.  It was not flabby, but it was small, and face it, it was
weak.  It did not even look like a man's arm, but then, maybe he
was not a man anymore.  Was he?

     He looked in the mirror again.  His narrow shoulders did not
look like a man's.  He looked lower.  Those little blue panties
covered hips which, though not really wide, sure did not look like
they belonged to a man, and his crotch.  The gap between his legs,
with its tiny bulge, and a little damp spot, right in the center. 
No, this was not what a man looked like.  What was he then?  Was he
a real woman now?  Did he feel like a woman?  What did a woman feel
like, anyway?  No, He was still a man.  He knew what a man should
feel like.  He liked the way a man felt.  Of course, he enjoyed the
way his body felt now, too, but this was not real.  These were not
feelings a man should have, but then, it did feel good.

     "Good idea, Joe," Linda said, breaking Joe loose from his
thoughts.  "Get out of that darn hot jumpsuit."

     Joe went back over to the bed he opened a bag, and took out
two pairs of shorts.  One was white, and the other blue.  "Which
should I wear?" he asked Linda, his fashion advisor.

     "Wear the balloon tank top, with the blue shorts," Linda
recommended.  "It'll look so cute."

     "Yeah, cute," Joe said.

     Joe pulled on the blue shorts, and fastened the button at the
waist.  He zipped the zipper up and opened the boxes, looking for
the balloon top.  He found it in the second box.  He took it, and
easily pulled it over his head.  He looked down.  Across his
breasts, three hot air balloons now flew in formation among some
clouds.  It was cute all right.  He raised his hand and checked the
area under his arm.  He found he could touch the side of his bra. 
He could even feel the cup.  No matter what Linda said, he still
felt like his breasts were showing through the armholes of the
little top, but Linda thought it was ok, so maybe he should forget
about it.  He looked at himself in the mirror.  The cute young
woman was looking back again, but she was even cuter now.  He
decided that if the top was all right for a real woman, he would
try it.

     "Joe, you look great," Linda said.  "If you have to be a
woman, even against your will, at least be glad that you're so
pretty."

     "Guess it would be worse if I woke up yesterday, and looked
like an ugly woman," Joe said, grinning.  "I just can't get used to
what I see when I look in the mirror."

     "I'll bet there are people who would give an arm to see what
you do when THEY look in the mirror," Linda said.

     "Is the tea ready yet?" Joe asked.  "I'm going to die of
thirst if I don't drink something soon."

     "Yeah, it's probably about brewed by now," Linda replied.  "Go
get it, and put some ice in it, will you, please?  I'm going to
change into something cooler, too."

     Joe went into the kitchen.  He walked to the counter, and took
the tea from the electric brewer.  When he stood at a counter now,
his waist did not quite reach the top.  He did not actually feel
shorter, everything else seemed bigger.  He searched the cabinets
for a pitcher.  He found one, and poured the tea in.  He then went
to the refrigerator.  Linda's refrigerator had an ice dispenser in
the door.  He took a glass, and filled it with cubed ice.  Joe
poured that into the pitcher, and repeated it until the pitcher
looked like it had enough in it.  He then filled the glass with the
cold tea, and drank it down quickly.  He got another tall glass
from the cabinet and put a little ice in it, and then filled it
with tea.  This he carried back to the bedroom.

     "Here's some tea, if you want," he told Linda.

     "Thanks, Joe," Linda replied.  "I was hoping you'd bring me
one."

     Linda was putting on her swimsuit.  It was a sleek fitting
black tank suit.  She was just stepping into it when Joe came into
the room.  She pulled the straps over her shoulders and took the
glass from Joe.

     "I have a couple of suits that you can try," Linda said after
taking a sip of tea.  "You're a little taller than I am, but I
think my two-piece suits would fit you."

     "Okay, Linda.  I'll give it a try," Joe said.  He pulled his
top over his head, and removed his shorts.

     Linda was searching through the drawers of her dresser.  She
pulled out a flowered bikini and a sort of fluorescent lime green
suit.  She arranged them on the bed for Joe to inspect.  Joe had
never seen Linda in the flowered bikini, but he had seen her in the
green suit.  The green suit was made by Body Glove, and had a
zipper in the top, between the breasts.  The top looked like it had
more coverage than the flowered suit, which just had little strings
which the cups attached to.  You had to tie the strings.  He picked
up the bottom of the lime green suit.

     "I was hoping you'd try the little bikini," Linda chided him. 
"You sure would look good in it."

     "Maybe next time, Linda," Joe said with a grin.  "It looks a
little skimpy to me, and I'm pushing my limits already."

     Joe unhooked his bra, and slid his panties down his hips.  He
took the green bikini bottom, and stepped into it.  It felt very
snug, as he pulled it up his legs and over his hips.  When he felt
it was on correctly, he stepped over to the mirror.  It fit his
bottom like a second skin.  He thought he could even see the cleft
of his vulva, outlined in green lycra-spandex.  He could definitely
see his pubic hair hanging out the sides of the very narrow, "V"
cut crotch of the bikini.  Linda was inspecting him too.

     "You're going to have to trim that bikini line, Joe," Linda
decided.

     "Bikini line?" Joe asked.

     "Pull that bottom off, and come into the bathroom," Linda
ordered.

     Linda went into the bathroom, and Joe removed the tight suit
bottom.  Naked, he went into the bathroom.  Linda had a ladies'
electric razor in her hand, and turned it on when Joe entered.  It
was buzzing away softly.

     "Put your leg up on the stool here," She ordered.  "I'll show
you how to do this."

     She pushed his leg apart, exposing the bush of his pubic area. 
She trimmed the soft hair away from his inner leg, almost to the
lips of his genitals.  She worked quickly, and Joe was concerned at
the speed she moved around this new, sensitive area of his body.

     "Be careful, Linda," Joe said.  "I don't want to have any less
down there than I already have."

     "I won't hurt you, Joe," Linda assured him.  "Okay, put your
other leg up." She repeated the process on his other side.  Joe
could not really see what she was doing, and craned his neck to
look.  "If you're that curious, try this," Linda said, and gave him
a hand mirror from the sink.

     Joe took the mirror, and positioned it so that he could watch
what Linda was doing.  He was also getting his first real look at
his new genitalia.  As Linda trimmed his pubic hair, Joe examined
himself intently.  Where his scrotum used to bulge, he now had soft
pink skin, divided down the center by two little darker pink folds
of tissue that joined at the top approximately where his penis had
been.  A bit of tissue, smaller than a pea, protruded slightly from
between the folds, near the top.  Linda finished, but Joe continued
looking at himself.

     Using a finger on each side, he carefully spread the folds,
exposing a moist pink slit with two openings.  The small one, he
decided, was probably his urethra.  Below that was a much larger
orifice, which he recognized as a vaginal opening.  The image in
the glass was hard evidence for what he had suspected, but hoped
was not true, but it was a fact.  He was now a woman, inside and
out.

     "Really looks different, huh?" Linda asked.

     "Yeah, really different," Joe repeated.  "I can't believe it's
me."

     "Gee, I didn't take that much off, Joe," Linda said.  "Just
enough so that you won't have to worry about showing when you wear
that suit."

     "No, that part's fine," Joe said, repositioning the mirror to
another angle.  "It's just that I've never really seen myself since
the change."

     "Oh, I didn't think about that," Linda said.  "This IS all new
to you, isn't it."

     "It's strange," Joe went on.  "I feel almost like I always
have, but when I see myself, it's just difficult to accept that I
look like this."

     "Remember that about half the people in the world look like
you do, so don't think you're so unique," Linda replied.

     "Maybe they do," Joe conceded, "but most of you were like this
from the day you were born."

     Linda put the shaver into the drawer.  Joe looked up from the
mirror.  He saw Linda watching.  She was smiling at him, sort of
the way a big sister might look at her little one.  He smiled back
at her, and handed her the mirror.

     "Okay, I've seen enough for now, I guess," Joe said, rubbing
the new slickness of his pubic area.  His bush was now a very
narrow triangle, just like Linda's.  He had not realized she shaved
herself that much.

     "If you don't keep it shaved close now, you'll regret it,"
Linda warned.  "It'll itch like crazy.  I suggest you get a hot wax
like mine.  It's a little expensive, but it lasts a long time."

     "You keep talking like this is permanent," Joe said.  "Let's
operate on the idea that I look like this temporarily."

     Joe went back into the bedroom.  He could feel the difference
around his crotch area as he walked.  It made him start to analyze
again.  When he had a male body, his primary sensation of sexual
arousal emanated from and around his penis.  Now, it seemed, his
whole body was a sex organ.  It was simply a completely different
feeling than his experience as a man.  Sometimes, just the act of
walking felt mildly erotic.

     He went to the bed, and picked up the swimsuit bottom.  He was
pulling it up his hips when Linda stopped him.

     "Maybe you better put some powder on that shaved area," she
said, pointing to a little cut glass container on her dresser.

     With the suit bottom around his knees, he removed the ornate
top and found a little puff inside.  He pushed the puff to the side
and taking a little body powder on his fingers, spread some on the
shaved areas, and for good measure, dusted some on his pubic hair. 
He then pulled the suit up, and tugged it till it felt right.  It
fit very snugly, but was comfortable.  He felt between his legs,
but could feel no trace of hair sticking out.  He rubbed his
buttocks and stuck his fingers under the leg openings, pulling the
bottom down properly.  He reached down, and took the suit top and
looked at it.  He was not sure how to put it on.  It had a zipper,
but it did not open all the way.

     "Just pull it on, over your head," Linda instructed.

     Joe put his arms in the arm holes, and stuck his head into the
top.  As the suit went passed his face, he could smell it.  It
smelled good.  The scent reminded him of Linda.  "It must have some
of her perfume on it," he thought.  That made him consider what he
was doing.  No matter what he looked like, he still the Old Joe,
and he was standing there putting on his girl's, no, his fiance's,
clothes, and she was watching.  It was exciting, but at the same
time embarrassing.  He quickly pulled the top over his breasts.  He
looked down at his chest, and was trying to decide how far up to
pull the zipper between his breasts when Linda pulled him over to
the mirror.

     "Just look at yourself Joe," Linda exclaimed.  "You're
beautiful."

     Joe looked in the mirror.  Linda was right.  The lime green
suit set off the light tan of his skin.  He had not been in the sun
since the change, so he must have the same skin as before.  He
always did tan quickly, and did not easily burn.  He stood
straight, and then turned to get a side view.  The green suit
looked like it was made for his shape.  He was impressed.  He could
not resist clowning around, striking poses like those he saw in
magazines.

     "You can have that suit, Joe," Linda lamented.  "Now that I've
seen you wear it, I never want you to see me in it again."

     "I do look pretty good, don't I," Joe said proudly.  "Of
course, I don't think you'll be breaking any mirrors either."

     Linda went to the closet, and brought out two beach towels. 
Then she went to the bathroom and brought out a tube of sunscreen. 
She gave them to Joe and, taking her tea glass, she walked to the
kitchen.  Joe followed her with his hands full.  He could not keep
his eyes off her butt as she walked in front of him.  "She did look
good," he thought.

     "Do you want some tea to take to the pool?" Linda asked.

     "Yeah, sure, that's a good idea," Joe replied.

     Linda, with the tea, led Joe, with the towels and sunscreen,
to the sliding doors, and out to the pool deck.  She stopped at the
table, and got her sunglasses from her purse.

     "I wish I had mine," Joe said.  "Of course, they wouldn't fit
anyway."

     "I'm sorry, Joe, I had another pair, but I broke them the
other day," Linda said.

     "No sweat," Joe said.

     They went to the lounge chairs, and Joe lay the towels in the
cement deck.  They moved the chairs to face the sun.  Joe gave
Linda a towel, and she spread it on her lounge, as he did the same
on his.  When she lay back on the lounge, Linda pulled the straps
of her suit down from her shoulders.  Joe saw her do it, and tried
to do the same with his.  His straps were too wide, and it was not
easily possible.  He lay back, and felt the sun warm his body.  He
continued to watch Linda.  Due to their positions, she could not
see him as well.  She was carefully rubbing herself with tanning
oil.

     "I'll do you, if you'll do me," Joe said suggestively.

     "Sounds good to me," Linda replied, handing Joe the tanning
oil.

     Joe took the oil, and squirted a small amount on his hand.  He
started smoothing it on Linda's leg.  She put her head back and
closed her eyes.  Joe coated her upper thigh, and went all the way
to her feet and toes.  He carefully massaged each toe.  When he
finished, he moved to her arms, softly smoothing them with the oil. 
He then oiled her shoulders, and then moved to her chest.  He
carefully avoided getting oil on her suit.  She rolled over on the
towel and Joe then coated her back.  Linda was glistening with the
protective oil.  When he finished, he took her head in his hand,
and kissed her softly on the lips.  She answered his kiss by
flicking her tongue into his mouth.  Joe took a deep breath,
relishing even the smell of her hair.

     After a short while, as they just sat close and looked at each
other, Linda sat up in the lounge chair.

     "Okay, Joe, lie down," Linda ordered.  "It's your turn."

     Joe went to his lounge and lay on his back.  Linda took the
suntan oil and started rubbing it on his legs as he had done for
her.  She worked carefully around his suit, so that no oil touched
it.  He spread his legs slightly, and she rubbed some oil on his
inner thighs.

     "You dog!" Linda exclaimed.  "Do you realize your body has
absolutely NO cellulite?"

     "What are you talking about?" Joe questioned.

     "Look at this," she replied, pinching about an inch of Joe's
outer thigh.  It was perfectly slick and smooth.  She then pinched
the same amount of flesh on the same area of her leg.  The pinched
tissue was slightly dimpled between her fingers.  Not a lot, but
not smooth either.

     "This is what I'm talking about," Linda continued.  "You have
almost no fat on your thighs.  It just isn't fair."

     She then continued her application of sunscreen.  She moved
down, and caressed his feet, as he had done for her.  Joe had not
realized how good it felt, to get his feet massaged like this.  It
was almost erotic.

     When Linda finished with his feet, she asked Joe to lie on his
belly so she could oil his back.  He complied, and put his face in
his arms.  In this position, it seemed he could detect Linda's
scent again.  He wasn't sure if it came from the suit he was
wearing, from the suntan oil, or if he was smelling her directly. 
He seemed to have a much more sensitive sense of smell since the
change, and he was aware of odors more now.

     Linda was softly rubbing Joe's back, and Joe closed his eyes,
and enjoyed the sensations.  He suddenly felt his right breast get
pinched between him and the lounge chair.  The slight, but
unexpected pain made him jerk up quickly.

     "What's the problem?" Linda asked.

     "Oh, nothing," Joe replied, rubbing his soft boob through the
suit, and feeling embarrassed.  "I just got pinched, that's all."

     "Welcome to the club," Linda said, patting him on the back as
he carefully lay back down.  "I could think of a few guys whom I
wish could get the opportunity to experience what you are."

     "Well, I wouldn't wish it on any guy," Joe replied, trying to
find a position that kept his breasts out of the way.

     Linda finished, and Joe rolled over.  They both just sprawled
on the lounges soaking up the warmth of the sun.  A while went by,
and suddenly they were jolted awake by the ringing of the tele-
phone.

     "It never stops, does it," Linda lamented.  She grabbed the
cordless phone that lay near her lounge chair.

     "Hello," she answered.  "Oh, hi, Jay.  Yeah, he's here.  Just
a minute."

     "It's Jay," she said, handing the phone to Joe.

     Joe took the phone.

     "Hi, Jay.  What's up?" Joe spoke into the phone.

     "How you doing, Joe?" Jay said.  "I just called to find out
what you thought about Dan."

     "I don't know, Jay," Joe said.  "I think he is understanding,
and he acted like he really wanted to help."

     "He does, Joe," Jay said.  "He's good, too.  I've known him
for some time, and I can assure you, he knows his job.  If there's
any way to prove who you are, he will know what it is, and find it. 
I think he's the best."

     "That's great, Jay," Joe said.  "I have good feelings about
him too."

     "What are you doing this afternoon?" Jay asked.

     "Well, right now, I'm lying at the pool at Linda's house," Joe
answered.

     "Gee, I thought I called your house," Jay said, a little
confused.

     "Maybe you did," Joe replied.  "I used call forwarding to
transfer my calls over here in case you or Dan wanted to find me."

     "You damn engineers and your toys," Jay chided him, "but
seriously, I was wondering if you had some time, later on."

     "What you got going, Jay?" Joe wondered.

     "I finally got that ROM chip for the Bosche injection on my
car," Jay answered.

     Like Joe, Jay was into sports cars, and owned a Red Porche
944.  He found it a source of irritation that Joe's RX-7, which
cost less, but was equipped with a high performance wankel rotary
engine, could run away from his pride and joy.  In their informal
road races, Joe's "Rotary Rocket" could always take the four
cylinder engine that powered Jay's Porche.  Jay was always looking
for ways to reverse the situation.

     A friendly rivalry was the result, but Jay was actually at the
mercy of Joe, and his engineering background, to help improve the
performance of his complex engine.  In both cars, all fuel metering
functions were performed by electronic fuel injection, which in
turn was controlled by a digital computer.  An electronics engineer
was actually more at home with a machine like this than a mechanic
would be as long as the basic engine was healthy.  Joe, who had
experience with avionics, including electronic fuel controls on jet
engines, was not above using those skills to improve the perfor-
mance of his sophisticated auto engine.  Jay was in the process of
improving his engine, too, but he went the costly route of buying
a performance chip from the after-market sellers.  It was expen-
sive, but then, everything was expensive on a Porche.  He wanted
Joe to help him install the chip in the computer.

     "Okay, Jay, when do you want to put it in, as if it will do
any good anyway," Joe said.

     "When can you do it?" Jay asked, sounding like a kid at
Christmas.

     "What do you have planned for this afternoon?" Joe responded.

     "I don't have anything going till later, when I was planning
to get Barb, and we would go out," Jay said.

     "How about coming over here later?" Joe suggested.

     "What time?" Jay asked.

     "Just a minute," Joe said, and called to Linda.  "What did you
want to do later?" he asked Linda.  "Jay's going to take Barb out,
but wants me to work on his car a few minutes first, if I have the
time."

     "Tell Jay to bring Barbara over," Linda suggested.  "We can
put some steaks on, and have a little patio party.  I haven't seen
Barb in a few weeks."

     "Jay, Linda says you should bring Barb over, now if possible,"
Joe relayed.  "We can put some steaks on and after that, I'll work
on your car."

     "Okay, that sounds good," Jay replied.  "I'll call Barb, I
know she can be ready."

     "Tell her to bring a swimsuit," Joe said.  "Bring yours too. 
The pool looks pretty inviting."

     "Ok, Joe, I'll see you in about an hour or so," Jay said.

     Joe handed the phone back to Linda.  She put it beside her
seat and lay back into the sun again.  Joe took a long draw of his
tea glass.  He thought of the irony of the situation.  He would be
working on his buddy's car, maybe wearing this suit.  "I might be
one of the best looking fuel injection specialists around," he
thought to himself, grinning like an idiot.

     He lay back on the lounge and closed his eyes.  In a little
while, he turned, presenting his other side to the rays.  In what
seemed like no time at all, he heard the powerful rumble of Jay's
944 come up the drive.  Linda got up when she heard the car.  She
walked to the driveway gate.

     "Hi, Jay," she called.  "Barb, I'm glad you came."

     "When you said food, Jay couldn't resist," Barb teased.

     Barb was in her mid-twenties, and very attractive.  A little
shorter than Linda, with red hair, and a great figure.  She was
wearing a cover-up, and obviously had her swimsuit on under it. 
Jay was wearing a loud Hawaiian type shirt and shorts.  They both
carried bags which had a change of clothes inside.  They walked
through the patio gate, where Joe stood, feeling self conscious
again.  Jay saw him first, and his eyes widened when he recognized
him.

     "Joe!" Jay exclaimed.  "How you doing?  God, you're looking
good.  Real good."  Jay could not take his eyes from his friend.

     "Hi, Joe," Barb said, looking him over, obviously curious.

     "Hi, Barb, good to see you," Joe said, smiling.  He was
embarrassed standing there in the close fitting swimsuit.

     "Jay told me about your...  err...  situation," Barb said,
trying to help Joe feel more at ease.  "I must admit, I've ever
heard of anything like it before.  You certainly look, err...  a... 
Well, healthy."

     "Yeah, I guess healthy is a good word for it," Joe said,
amused at Barb's description of him.  "If I get any healthier I can
run for Miss America."

     Joe saw that Jay hardly took his eyes off him.  He went over
to his pal.  "So you think that chip will give that four-banger of
yours enough guts to take the rotary, huh?" he joked.

     "I hope so," Jay replied, "At least until you pull another
rabbit out of your hat with that damn Japanese clone car."

     "You can call it a clone when you get an engine as good as the
wankel," Joe returned.  He felt better talking with Jay.  It seemed
more like normal.

     "Right now I'm going to cool down," Jay said, sticking his
foot in the pool.  When he decided it was all right, he dived in
and swam to the other side.

     "It's great!" he said.  "Come on in."

     Linda and Barb were already sitting in the lounge chairs,
talking about who knows what.  Joe did not know about getting in
the water with Jay.  "What the hell," he thought.  "I don't really
want to sit through girl talk."  He walked to the edge, and,
without stopping, dived in as gracefully as he could.  He surfaced
in the middle, and noticed that he could stay afloat much easier
than he ever did before.

     "This is weird, Jay," Joe said as Jay swam over to him.  "I'm
floating so easy, much easier than before."

     "You got those natural life preservers now," Jay teased him.

     "Maybe that's it," Joe considered, grinning.  He was smaller
and lighter.  He probably did have a higher fat to bone and muscle
ratio.

     "Come on ladies, get your butts in here," Jay yelled.  "You
can talk later."

     Linda and Barb looked at Jay.  He waved them over to the pool. 
Joe hoped they would come in too.  He wanted company.  The girls
came over and sat at the edge of the pool.  Joe swam over to Linda. 
He went the last few feet under water, and grabbed her foot.  He
tried to pull her in, but he just did not have to strength to
overpower her when she resisted.  She realized that he could not
force her in, so she let herself be pulled in.  Joe could tell that
she did it.  When they bobbed to the surface together, he looked at
her.

     "I couldn't pull you in," he said, knowing she already knew
it.  "I didn't have the strength to pull you in," he repeated.

     "Don't worry about it, Joe," Linda tried to reassure him. 
"That's not important at all."

     "It is to me," Joe said.

     Barb had a beach ball, and threw it at both of them.

     "Let's toss the ball around," she called.  "Pick your sides. 
How about boys against girls?"

     "Come on Barb, that's low," Joe said grinning.  It hurt, but
he knew she was trying to keep his spirits up, but did not know
what to do.  It was an awkward situation for everyone.

     "Aww, Joe, she was only teasing," Linda came to her defense. 
"You're going to have to get used to it, and you're among friends
here."

     "I'm sorry, Joe," Barb said.  "I guess it seemed like a dig,
but I really meant I wanted you on my side."

     "Okay, then," Joe said.  "Let's all take him on."  He swam to
the end of the pool.  Linda and Barb followed him.

     Jay went to the other end.  He had the ball, and when they
were ready, he tossed it to the other end, aiming at Barb.  She hit
the ball, but it went straight up.  Linda was under it and slapped
it back to Jay when it came to her.  Jay swatted it back, and Joe
got it that time, easily returning it to Jay.  They played fast and
hard for about ten minutes.  They were all getting exhausted, Jay
the most, since it was three to one, and they kept him moving in
the deep water.

     "I'm getting hungry," Jay lied.  "Let's stop and get those
steaks on the grill."

     "Yeah, good idea," Linda said.  "I've been out here a few
hours already, and I'm going to be burned alive if I don't get out
of this suit."

     "I'm ready to quit too," Barb said.  "Let's get out."

     They all went to the side and struggled out.  They went to the
chairs and took towels and dried off.

     "I'm going to get out of this suit and get the steaks ready,"
Linda said.

     "I'll help," Barb said.  "You two start the grill," she said
to Joe and Jay.

     "It's a gas grill, so all we need to do is turn it on and put
the steaks on.  I'll start it anyway, and let it heat up," Joe
said.

     They went indoors.  Jay and Barb retrieved their bags.

     "Jay, you can use the hall bath to shower and change," Linda
said.  "Barb, you can use my bathroom if you like."

     Jay walked to the bathroom with his bag, and shut the door. 
Barb followed Linda into her room.  Joe did not know what to do,
and stood in the hall.  Linda noticed him standing there when she
turned to close the bedroom door.

     "Get in here.  Joe," Linda ordered.  "You don't mind if Joe
changes with us, do you Barb?"

     "Joe?  No, of course not," Barb said.  "Not unless it bothers
him."

     "No, you guys don't bother me," Joe said, blushing, "and I
suppose I'm on your team now."

     Joe entered the room, and Linda closed the door.  Linda went
to the bed, and pulled the straps of her suit down.  She pulled the
suit down, and removed it.  She took the suit, and her towel with
her into the bathroom.  Joe heard her start the shower running.

     Barb looked at Joe, and smiled.  She was embarrassed, and
tried to break the ice with conversation.

     "Gosh, Joe, what's it like to have a different body?" she
said.  "I can't imagine what it would feel like."

     "It's hard to describe," Joe said honestly.  "It's different,
and yet it's the same in a lot of ways.  I really don't have a
different body.  It seems that I just changed...  a lot."

     "I'm curious, are you a real woman now?" she asked innocently.

     "I don't know, Barb.  What's a REAL woman?" Joe returned.

     "Well, you know...  boobs, and...  well...  you know," Barb
stammered.

     "See for yourself," Joe answered, unzipping the top of his
suit, and pulling it over his head.

     Joe then pulled his suit bottom off, and wrapped the damp
items in his beach towel.  Then he stood up, and put his arms out
and turned around slowly, allowing Barb to inspect him.

     "My god, Joe, You ARE a woman, aren't you," Barb exclaimed. 
"You really did change into a woman."

     "I may LOOK like a woman," Joe corrected, "but I don't want to
concede that I am one, until I have medical proof.  I still feel
like I'm a man."

     "Really?" Barb asked.  "You feel like a man?  How can you? 
It's obvious that you don't have the necessary parts."  She was
genuinely interested.

     "Whatever parts I have now, they feel pretty much the same,"
Joe said, "but every nerve in my body seems more sensitive now, and
of course, there are the obvious physical differences."

     "There sure are, Joe," Barb said.  "You really look good."

     Barb removed her swimsuit top.  She eyed Joe, who tried to
look away.  She then took her bottom off, and Joe was surprised to
see that her pubic area was completely shaved.  It made her look
very erotic, and Joe could not pull his eyes away.  Barb saw him
staring, and she smiled.  "It itches like crazy sometimes, but Jay
likes it," she explained, smiling.  "I think you know what I mean,"
she said pointing at his closely trimmed bush.

     "Yeah, I guess I do," Joe said, scratching his pubic area. 
"Linda showed me how to do this, so I wouldn't stick out of that
suit."

     The shower stopped, and they heard the shower door slide open. 
Linda came back into the room, wrapped in a towel.  She saw Joe and
Barb standing on each side of the bed, naked.  She stopped, but
just looked at Joe, then she smiled at him.  "I see you two have
got to know each other better," she teased.  "What do you think of
Barb's trim job?"

     "Well, as a guy, I think it's sexy as hell," he answered
carefully, "but as a woman, I...  uh...  I still think it's sexy as
hell."

     "Maybe we should take Joe in the shower, and shave him bare,"
Linda told Barb.

     "No, absolutely not," Joe insisted.  "I already have more
taken off that area than I should.  I suspect I'll already be
getting some looks when I see the doctor."

     "You look fine, Joe," Barb assured him.

     "Don't forget, I'm really a man," Joe said.

     "Well, mister, get your butt in there and take a shower,"
Linda teased.

     Joe took his suit and towel, and went into the bathroom.  He
turned on the shower and stepped inside.  The cool water felt good,
and he rinsed the chlorine off his body and out of his hair.  He
finished, turned off the water, slid open the door, and stepped out
of the shower.  He was drying off, when Barb came in the bathroom. 
She walked passed Joe, her full breasts swaying seductively, and
went into the shower.  It was like a dream come true.  Beautiful
women, naked, all over the place.  He looked into the mirror behind
the sink.  It was not a perfect dream.  There was one too many
naked woman here.

     Joe went into the bedroom.  Linda was dressed, and was drying
her hair.  Joe found his underwear, pulled on his panties, and took
his bra.  As he was putting his arms through the straps, he felt a
slight sting.  He looked at his shoulders, and saw the outline of
the swimsuit on his chest.  He had a slight tan from before, but he
still received a very slight burn.  His breasts were outlined in
lighter skin.  It sure looked sexy, but it did not feel very good.

     Linda saw his problem, and went to her dressing table, and
grabbed a little bottle with a pump.  She spread some white lotion
from her hand, to the pink areas around Joe's shoulders and
breasts.  It felt cool, and soothing.

     Joe took his bra and carefully put it on.  Once it was on, it
felt ok.  He actually liked the secure feeling it gave his breasts. 
He got the tank top from a hanger on the closet door knob, and
pulled it over his head.  The three balloons resumed formation on
his chest.  He found the blue shorts lying on the bed, and when he
attempted to put them on, he could feel that his legs had received
a little too much sun also.  He got the pump of lotion, sat on the
bed, and rubbed some on his legs.  He smelled strongly of Linda's
lotion.  He put his shorts on, and checked himself in the mirror. 
His short hair was mussed up, so he went into the bathroom to use
a brush to smooth his hair.

     Barb was out of the shower, and was drying her hair at the
mirror.  She was naked, and her breasts, which were larger than
Joe's, or Linda's, jiggled and shook as she brushed her hair.  Joe
needed to get into a drawer, but she was in the way.  He stood
there, watching her as she moved.  She saw him watching, and
stopped.

     "Uh, sorry, I need to get a brush out of that drawer," Joe
stammered.

     "Oh, okay.  I thought you maybe just wanted to watch me," Barb
said, smiling at him.

     "Oh, no," Joe stammered.  "I wasn't...  I didn't...  I mean... 
You do look good, but I...  uh..." Joe did not know what to say. 
It was obvious he was watching her.

     "Don't worry about it Joe," Barb laughed.  "If I suddenly had
to be a man, I would be much worse than you."

     Joe got the brush, quickly brushed his short hair into
position, and left the bathroom.  Linda was finished drying her
hair, and they both left the bedroom.  Joe went into the living
area, where Jay was sitting looking at his auto parts.  He grinned
when he saw Joe, wearing the cute tank top.

     "Hey, nice balloons," Jay teased.

     "Linda made me buy it," Joe protested.  "I told her it was too
cute."

     "You really do look good in it Joe," Jay said.

     "I think it's a little too feminine," Joe complained.

     "Well, if you've got it, flaunt it," Jay said.  He said that
a lot.

     "I've got it, I guess, but I'm not ready to flaunt it," Joe
said, grinning at his buddy.  "Let's see that stuff."

     Jay gave him the box of parts.  Actually, it was one small
part, and a little manual describing what the chip did, and how to
install it.  "This will only take a few minutes to put in," Joe
said.

     Linda came into the room, and when she saw them looking at the
parts, she shook her head.  "Barb and I will do the steaks, if you
two want to work on that darn car," she said.

     "Joe says it will only take a few minutes," Jay said.  "We'll
be finished before you have the steaks on the grill."

     "Get going, then," Linda said.

     "I hope you brought some tools," Joe said.  "I don't have any
here."

     "I have the small tool kit that I always carry in the car,"
Jay said.

     "As long as it has a phillips screwdriver, I think it will
work," Joe returned.

     They walked out to Jay's car.  Jay opened the hood, and gave
Joe a little canvas bag, his tool kit.  Joe opened the bag, and
searched until he found a screwdriver.  He bent over the fender,
and unscrewed the lid of the small black box which contained the
fuel injection computer.  The position was awkward, and Joe, who
was smaller now, found it difficult to reach the box without
difficulty.  He had to stretch to reach the assembly.  He got the
lid off, and started removing the old ROM.

     "Get me a flat blade screwdriver, would you please?" Joe
asked.

     Jay was standing there, bending over, and watching, but he did
not move.  Joe looked up from the fuel controller, at Jay.  He saw
that Jay was watching him.  He looked down, and saw what was
holding Jay's interest so completely.  From Jay's position, he had
a perfect view down the neck opening of Joe's tank top.  The large
and loose opening allowed Jay an unobstructed view of Joe's
breasts.  Jay's face turned red when he saw Joe caught him.  Joe
just grinned at him, and stood up beside the car.

     "They're pretty nice, aren't they?" Joe teased.

     "Well, yeah...  I mean...  I...  Damn it, Joe.  I'm sorry, but
I just couldn't resist looking," Jay stammered an apology.

     "I understand, Jay," Joe said "I feel the same way sometimes,
and it's my own body."

     "What's it like?" Jay asked.  "What does it feel like...  to
have a woman's body?  You know...  breasts and everything?"

     Joe went to Jay's side of the car.  He looked around.  There
was nobody else around.  Linda and Barb were inside the patio wall. 
He and Jay were alone.  Joe pulled his top up, exposing his bra
covered breasts.  Jay's eyes became as big as saucers, as he
watched his buddy.  Joe reached down and unhooked the catch between
his breasts, and pulled the shiny bra cups apart, baring his chest. 
His full nipples quickly became erect and hardened to little points
as they were exposed to the slight breeze.  Joe was as amazed as
Jay at how they reacted.

     "What do you think?" Joe asked his confused buddy, as he held
the bra open so that Jay could get a good look.

     "Ah...  err...  I don't know," Jay stammered.

     Joe interrupted him.  "That's what I thought," he said, "and
I feel the same way when I look in the mirror.  Remember, in my
mind at least, I'm still a guy, and I think the same thoughts you
do."

     "But...  what's it like?  Does it feel good?" Jay continued. 
"Is it better than before?"

     "It's hard to describe exactly," Joe said, fighting to find
the right words.  "Yeah, I guess it does feel pretty good, maybe
even better than before." Joe considered carefully what he was
saying.  "I'm still getting used to it, but generally, I have more
sensation all over now, not just in my cock, which is gone, of
course, but sometimes even it feels like it's still there. 
Especially when I'm turned on."

     "What turns you on...  now?" Jay asked, genuinely curious.

     "Same thing that turns you on old buddy," Joe said, as he
fastened his bra, and pulled his top down.  "I'm just now getting
over a boner nobody can see, but that I sure can feel, that I got
when I saw Barb's bare beaver."  He winked at Jay.

     "Barb showed you that?" Jay said, amazed.

     "She didn't SHOW it to me.  I saw it when we changed clothes,"
Joe told his buddy, who was beginning to show signs of envy, as
well as an erection powerful enough to rip his pants!

     "I'm amazed she undressed in front of you," Jay went on.

     "She was nervous around me at first, but when she saw how I
looked in MY birthday suit, I guess she accepted me as a girl," Joe
said, grinning at Jay's embarrassment.

     "You lucky dog," Jay said.  "You're living a voyeur's dream."

     "It may sound neat, but I can assure you, it's not that
great," Joe explained.  "I look like this all the time, and I have
to learn to relate to everybody in a different way.  Even you." Joe
pointed at the bulge at Jay's crotch.  "I'm just beginning to
realize I may never get back to normal."

     "Does that scare you?" Jay asked, as he arranged his pants.

     "How would you feel, if you woke up one morning, and found
your cock missing, replaced with a beaver and boobs, and it seemed
unlikely you would ever be a complete man again?" Joe answered with
the question that was now haunting him almost constantly.

     "I think I understand Joe, and I promise to help as much as I
can," Jay assured him.

     "Well, okay then, let's work on your car," Joe said.  "Look if
you want, but try to keep your mind on the task at hand." He hit
Jay on the shoulder with his fist.

     Joe put the ROM chip into its socket.  He put the cover back
on the computer, and screwed the lid back on.  It was time to test
the installation.  "Okay, get in and start it up" he said.  "If it
runs, we'll give it a drive."

     Jay got in, and cranked the engine.  It fired immediately.  He
blipped the throttle, and motioned for Joe to get in.  "Let's try
it on the road," he said, eager to drive it.

     "Okay, but be careful," Joe warned.  "I don't want to get
stopped, or brought in for questioning just because I'm with you
while you terrorize the neighborhood."

     "Don't worry about that," Jay said, as Joe got in, and clicked
his seat belt about him.

     Jay quickly turned around and went down Linda's driveway. 
When he reached the road, he turned right, and his tires chirped,
as he went through the lower gears.

     "Can you tell any difference?" Joe asked.

     "I think it has a little more low end, but I'm not sure," Jay
replied.  "We'll have to run each other on canyon road"

     "Like hell we will!" Joe exclaimed.  "Maybe when I match my
drivers license again, but not before."

     "Let's go back," Joe said.  He did not like the attention they
were receiving, driving crisply around the neighborhood in a red
Porche.

     Jay drove back to Linda's.  Joe was glad to be back.  The
bumpy ride in the Porche, which was fitted with competition
suspension, alerted Joe that he had to pee again.  No matter what
he was doing, things were different now.

     Joe and Jay went back to the patio, where Linda and Barb were
putting the steaks on the grill.  Linda looked at Joe, who had some
dirt on his hands.  Jay kept his car immaculate, but it was not
possible to work on it without getting a little dirty.  Joe grinned
sheepishly.

     "No matter what happens, it seems you can't keep a guy from
getting his hands dirty," Linda said.

     Joe went inside and washed his hands in the bathroom.  He
pulled his shorts down, sat, and urinated.  The sensation again
made him aware if his new genitalia, and when he finished, he stood
up, and rather than pull up his underwear and shorts, he went to
the mirror, and looked at himself.  His pubic area again looked
completely different.  Linda had trimmed the soft hair so close
that now he could easily see his genital cleft.  The sight of it in
the mirror again made him interested in his new body.

     As he looked, he could feel the first signs of arousal.  He
began to sense what felt like an erection, but he knew that was
impossible.  He touched his pubic hair, and then spread apart the
sensitive folds.  He could see what was probably his clitoris.  He
touched the small bit of tissue, and was amazed to find that it
felt exactly as if he had touched his penis.

     "No wonder I can feel an erection," he thought.  "I still have
the same nerves.  I still have my penis.  It's just that now it's
just a quarter inch long."

     Again, he considered his situation.  Looking at himself, he
wondered what it would be like if the doctors were to make him look
like a man again.  Would it feel like before?  That seemed
unlikely, since he figured that there would have to be some big
changes, and nerves, which he was still using now, were what made
him feel the necessary sensations.  They would probably have to be
cut or modified.  He knew enough about biology to realize that it
was difficult to perform surgery without destroying sensation.  Did
he want to lose the feelings he now experienced, to get back only
a mock up of what he once was?  He pulled up his panties and
shorts, and after touching a breast lightly with his hand, he
checked his short hair in the mirror, and decided he was ready to
go back out.

     Joe walked back out to the patio.  Linda and Barb had put the
steaks on the grill, and Jay was standing by it watching them cook. 
He motioned for Joe to come over.

     "How do you want your steak?" Jay asked.

     "Medium rare," Joe replied.

     "Okay, I didn't know your taste buds changed too," Jay said,
and winked at his pal.

     "You'll be one of the first to know if they have," Joe said.

     Linda was bringing out some vegetables and a bowl of macaroni
salad.  Barb had a table cloth for the table by the pool.  Joe went
over, and helped her put it on the table.  Linda put the things she
carried on the table.

     "Joe, would you help bring out some forks, and steak knives?"
Linda asked.  "Barb and I will set the table."

     Joe went inside and found the forks, and brought out four
steak knives.  He took them out and arranged them with the plates
that Linda put on the table.

     Soon the steaks were done, and they all sat at the table
eating, and joking with each other about the pool, and the quality
of the Jay's cooking.

     Before long, it was evening.  They all moved inside, to sit
and talk and listen to music.  At about ten, Jay and Barb said they
had to go, and they said their goodbyes.  Joe and Linda were alone
again.

     "I don't know about you, but I'm beat," Linda said.

     "Yeah.  I'm tired too," Joe said, "and I can still feel that
sunburn, too."

     They went into Linda's bedroom, and undressed.  Linda pulled
the sheet back, and lay down.  Joe lay next to her, and looked into
her eyes.  "What will become of us?" he asked her.

     "I wish I knew, Joe," Linda said.  "It will all work out
though."

     He held out his arms, and she wrapped hers around his
shoulders.  They went to sleep in each other's arms.