The phone rang for the fifth time in just an hour.
“Mrs. Papadakis?” asked a dulcet male voice, “Chris Olson, Suffolk County, district attorney’s office. Thought I’d give you folks a call after I got the news.”
“WHY WAS SHE RELEASED!?!”
“Bail was set at $25,000. No bail bondsman was going to touch her if they stood to lose $22,500, so we thought that was safe. In the long run…it’s not going to matter. She surrendered her passport, so she isn’t going anywhere, and the $25,000 in all likelihood wiped out all her savings…she’s only thirty-two.”
“Whoa, whoa , whoa. First, call me Carol. Are you saying she isn’t free?”
“She’s free on bail…Carol. If she doesn’t show up on the 14th, or if she leaves the state of New York, she’s out 25K. We haven’t determined her assets, I imagine your attorney will determine those in the discovery process, but like I said, she can’t have saved all that much on a cheerleader coaches salary.”
“So she can’t flee to Quebec?”
“Physically, she could but what could she live on? The Canadians are just as disgusted at this as we are, they would send her back in cuffs as soon as the Mounties got their hands on her. So tell Lisa…and Jennifer, right, that don’t have to worry.
I can tell you right now that we have a solid case. We have a written confession to the police that she was putting the drug in the girl’s food. The only question really, is the severity of the charges. My job is to show that Cromarte did intend to cause harm – that would make the difference between a felony and a misdemeanor. It’ll be the jury that decides that.”
A feeling of relief flooded Carol. “So does that mean that we won’t have to file a lawsuit?”
“No, no. In fact I would encourage it. I doubt that you would get much money any time soon, blood from a turnip you see. As far as suing the school district is concerned, keep in mind that Lisa and Jennifer are graduating next May. Other girls aren’t…might be kind of awkward to spend time in a school that they are suing. But that’s not my territory, I’m just a not-too-badly paid gubbermint prosecutor, I enjoy the work. You want a stinking rich tort lawyer to handle your civil case.”
“Wouldn’t that be expensive?”
“No, you’ll pay a thousand dollar retainer perhaps, but he or she will make their money when you collect, probably thirty percent of the judgement.”
Great. Just great, thought Carol. “Thanks so much for letting me know this, Mr. Olson.”
“Ah, you’re very welcome, Carol. And call me Chris. Could I have the girls come into my office on Friday? I’d like to interview them both after they’re done with classes.”
She of course agreed to this, and hung up the phone feeling greatly relieved.
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There was no hiding it now: Lisa and Jennifer had hairy chests. Not wanting to stress themselves out by holding it in, they sobbed openly in each other’s arms.
A broad band of hair that hid the skin ran up from their belly buttons, between their breasts and met the lighter hairs on their necks. The wiry hairs, not even an inch long were beginning to tickle them under their clothes.
“*Sniff* – we’re still beautiful, right? We’re still pretty, aren’t we Lisa?”
Lisa choked, “not below our necks. I think, maybe ‘cuddly’ might be a better adjective now.”
Humiliated, they slowly pulled out the rubber curry combs from the plastic bag labeled “PETCO,” and wept as they slowly pulled combs intended to be used to groom animals across their bodies.
Later that night, needing to be held, they fell asleep in each other’s arms.
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Wednesday morning. They had now passed the halfway point, less than half the skin was visible on their chests.
“Guys, I know you must feel terrible, but I assure you – you really look adorable”
We look like emasculated men, thought Jennifer sadly. Andy is the adorable one. Jennifer looked with admiration and envy at her tall, olive frame, her firm C-cup breasts, and the pride in which she wore the thick glossy black hair that adorned her head, the tufts in her armpits, and the proud bush that jutted out over two inches when seen in profile.
Andy affectionately lathered up the younger girls backs. “Don’t worry about the test, the hair is only a centimeter long still.”
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Lisa and Jennifer were thankful that the scoliosis test wasn’t co-ed, but the gasps and murmurs, sympathetic though they might be, still hurt terribly. A tear rolled down her cheek as Jennifer hurriedly donned her long sleeved shirt after it was determined that, yes indeed, she still had a straight back.
“Mind if we join you?” With a renewed humility, Lisa and Jennifer chose to sit at a cafeteria table with a few senior boys.
“Er, no, have a seat.”
“You two were cheerleaders…Lisa and Jennifer, right?”
“We were, yeah,” agreed Lisa
“Yeah, that was a real shame what happened. How are you handling it? I’m Kevin; this is Gary by the way.”
“I guess things could be worse, Kevin,” opined Jennifer. “But they could be a lot better.” Here goes, she thought. “Are you two busy Saturday night?”
Kevin and Gary exchanged a quick look. “We already have girlfriends, Jen. Thanks for asking though.”
Apparently they were watching their weight since they got up with half their food still left.
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“Well, Don said that Kyle was the only guy without a girlfriend in the school…”
“It’s not just that Lisa. A month ago if we’d asked them that, they would drop their girlfriends like a hot potato, and you know it!”
“Yeah…so maybe now we’ll become better people now that we can’t count on our looks anymore? Let’s face it, we weren’t exactly paragons of virtue.” Though she said “we,” Jennifer was certain that she meant “you.”
And in all honesty, Jennifer couldn’t disagree.
“Changing the subject,” said Jennifer as they left the school, ”what’s our plan of attack this time?”
“It’s going to require a bit of bravery, Jennifer.”
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Upon arriving home, they changed from long sleeved shirts into tank tops. Somewhat chilly, at just over sixty degrees, they elected to wear light sweaters, and they left for Kelly’s house.
“Kelly!!!”
“Lisa!! Jennieeeeee!!” Kelly air-kissed her friends.
“No Swen?”
“Oh we had a short day, mostly talking about European history and geography.”
“Have you experienced any more changes?”
A worried expression crossed Kelly’s face. “Yeah, Jennifer. I feel my hips getting wider…and I can’t shave anything anymore. Lindsey saw me naked this morning…and I found out I have hair on my lower back.”
“Speaking of Lindsey,” said Lisa, “where is she? I haven’t seen her in a long time.”
“Oh yeah. She’s upstairs. Come on.”
Kelly’s little sister was reading her science book as the three entered. She turned to them with a cute smile that faded slightly upon seeing Lisa…but she gave Jen a warm hug in greeting.
“Hiya Munchkin, mind if we join ya?”
The four sat on the floor, quizzing Lindsey playfully on her science. She’s a sharp girl, thought Jennifer.
“That milk that you’re using, Kelly; how does it taste?”
“It’s just an itty bit sweeter than regular milk, Jen…probably cause I’m such a sweet tooth, and it’s a bit thicker. Creamier, you see.”
“Mind if I take off my sweater?”
“No, go ahead.”
Lisa and Jen both did so, and Kelly’s mouth dropped. Lindsey stared in horrified fascination.
“We’re just glad, Kelly,” said Jennifer, “that you aren’t letting Lindsey drink any more of the milk. You’re going to look like this before too long and,” she put her hairy arms around Lindsey and spoke into the girl’s ear, “if Lindsey were to drink enough of your milk in the red jugs, the same thing will happen to her. It might already be too late.”