Jessica swung her long, awkward legs over the bed and stood up. She reeled and almost felt dizzy, Kyle was a tall boy, and Jessica had yet to get used to being half a foot taller. She pulled open the curtains and opened the window. "I need to air this place out," she mumbled to herself. She looked out the window, a boring view to a boring street. Jessica's stomach dropped at the thought of this being her new reality.
She turned around and grimaced at the mess around her. Jessica couldn't stand messes and immediately got to work. Her whole life she'd worked to be the best, and in order to be the best you had to keep everything tight and tidy. As Jessica picked up dirty laundry off the floor, put comic books up on shelves, and threw food wrappers in the trash, she started to get a better handle on her new body, and though she wouldn't admit it, she kind of liked her new height.
She finished making the bed and looked around the room, large hands on her bony hips and a smile on her acne-ridden face. The floor was clear and everything was in its place. She took a deep breath and her smile fell off her face. Something smelled.
It smelled musty and acrid, kind of like the boys' locker room. The realization hit her like a bag of bricks. She lifted a long, pale arm and stuck her large nose into her armpit. Her fears were confirmed: that god-awful smell was coming from HER. She looked around for some deodorant or body spray, anything to mask her teenage boy stench but her search came up empty.
"Of course the nerd doesn't have deodorant in his room," she said through gritted teeth, "Gross!"
At that point Jessica realized there was only one way to cleanse herself. She stepped out of Kyle's room and wandered into the hallway. She found the bathroom and stepped inside, locking the door behind her. She stood in the dark for a few seconds, afraid of turning on the light and having to face her new reflection.
But it had to be done.
She flicked the light switch. Kyle Perkins stared at her from behind the mirror.