Comfortable

 Due to requests, I will be putting the text of the caption in the description as well to make it easier to read on mobile devices. I may also put the text for some of my recent previous captions if I find some spare time.

Erica was sitting on the chair in the hair saloon. As she waited for her stylist to return, her gaze drifted downward. A quiet, persistent unease hummed beneath her skin that refused to let her relax. Her mind tried to search for the source of the sudden internal dissonance. It wasn’t the dress she was wearing. It wasn’t the lace bra underneath that supported the weight of her breasts. It wasn’t the breasts as well as they became a familiar part of her body a while ago. It wasn’t the smooth, shapely expanse of her legs, meticulously shaved just yesterday evening, not was it the long hair that she was about to have styled into loose, elegant waves in a matter of minutes. Every single one of those elements felt entirely normal and paradoxically that realization was precisely what was making her feel uneasy. How could she feel so completely normal inside a woman’s skin, when she had spend the vast majority of her life living as a man.

Back then, Eric, for that had been his real name, was grinding away at an entry level corporate job. The pay was barely enough to cover rent and utilities. As a young man desperate for a foothold, he was constantly looking for an opportunity to pad his resume, earn a certification or claw his way toward a salary that didn’t require budgeting for generic brand ramen. It was painful watching his college peers landing lucrative jobs, buying cars, upgrading to nice apartments, traveling or even settling down with their college sweethearts. Eric was working twice as hard, yet he felt permanently glued to the bottom of the ladder. Then, one Monday morning, a company memo directed towards the male part of employees landed in his inbox. It described an initiative, a sociological research project sponsored by the biomedical subsidiary. It sounded completely crazy, but the initiative was impossible to ignore. The project promised a promotion and a staggering salary bump. The catch? Candidates had to undergo an experimental, rapid hormonal therapy that would biologically transform them into women. Following the physical transformation, participants were required to live, dress and work as women for a one year period as a part of sociological study. Almost all of the guys scoffed and dismissed it outright, but Eric was intrigued. Sure he had no desire to become a woman. The very concept had never even crossed his mind before, but the promise to escape his stagnant life was like a siren song. He spend three days before finally making his choice. On Thursday, he walked to the HR department and with trembling hands signed the consent forms.

The very next day, Eric was escorted to a medical facility where under the watchful eyes of researchers, he swallowed the first series of bio-engineered hormone pills. The results were fast. Over the next days, Eric’s body underwent a miraculous metamorphosis. His overall frame was becoming smaller. The broadness of his shoulders receded while his hips and waist curved into a distinctly feminine hourglass figure. Tender buds formed on his chest, rapidly blossoming into full, rounded and sensitive breasts. Meanwhile his penis atrophied and dissolved entirely, replaced by a fully functional vagina. Three weeks to the day he swallowed the first pill, the transformation was complete. Eric stood alone in the changing room, staring at the mirror. His eyes wide in sheer disbelief. He turned left, then right. He stared at the curve of his hips and the swell of his breasts. It wasn’t a cosmetic makeover. He was undeniably a real woman.

His first day back at the office was an absolute nightmare. He had no clue how to tame his new hair into a professional style, his makeup attempts looked like a chaotic finger painting project and women’s fashion felt like an alien geometry. When he finally walked through the building doors, the entire office plunged into an abrupt silence. Eric walked slowly, fighting for his life to keep his balance on the pair of glossy black high heels he was wearing. Dozens of eyes watched him, heads snapped around, coworkers whispered behind his back and somewhere in the office a single snort of laughter cut through the silence. He sank into his desk chair, but he was having a hard time focusing on his job. Not with so many pairs of eyes watching him and not while being distracted by the unfamiliar weight of breasts now temporary accompanying him in his daily life.

The first weeks was a minefield of social blunders. Twice in the first two days, he marched straight to the men’s restroom out of sheer muscle memory, only to be barked at startled male colleagues. He had no choice but to retreat and timidly enter the women’s restroom where he was met with a mixture of confused, sometimes hostile stares from the female staff. However, slowly the tides begin to turn. Out of necessity, Eric learned the ropes. He watched youtube tutorials until he mastered the art of contouring, eyeliner and professional makeup. He learned how to pick up outfits, discovering comfort in the new fabrics and cuts. He practiced walking down his hallway in heels until his stride became fluid, graceful and second nature. Before long the camouflage was so seamless that new hires and clients simply assumed he had always been female. Back at the office the atmosphere changed dramatically. The women eventually took him under their wing, treating him with like he was one of them. They started inviting him to their Friday ladies’ nights, teaching him the unwritten rules of female friendship. The men in the office changed their demeanor too. They smiled warmly in the hallways, held open doors and volunteered to carry boxes of printer paper. One senior analyst even mustered the courage to ask him out on a proper dinner date. While Eric politely declined that particular offer, the feeling of being desirable sent his self confidence skyrocketing. The name “Erica” came naturally as well when one of his female coworkers casually said it. At first, Eric would frown whenever someone uttered it, but after a few months he found himself responding to it without hesitation and soon enough, he was instinctively introducing himself to strangers as Erica.

As the months rolled by, Eric’s life bloomed into something genuinely fulfilling. True to their word, the corporation delivered the promised promotion and a salary that finally allowed him to breath easy. His social circle expanded, filled with supportive female friends. Living as a woman granted him an empathetic understanding of womanhood that he never could have grasped as a man. He felt completely in love with the variety of women’s fashion. The way a sundress caught the breeze, the swish of a skirt or the confidence in a well fitted top. Most surprisingly of all, his romantic life had bloomed. Surprisingly his dates were exclusively with men now. Eric always considered himself a fiercely straight man who loved women, but whenever it was the hormones or simply a dormant part of his personality, men were suddenly deeply appealing to him. Their deep voices, broad shoulders and physical strength made his pulse race in a way it never had before.

Today was a year after Eric took part in the experiment. He was supposed to report back to the medical facility two weeks ago and begin the reverse procedure, shedding the identity of Erica and stepping back into the shoes of Eric. However, he never showed up for the appointment. He didn’t tell anyone yet, but Eric simply liked being a woman. The idea of transitioning back, of becoming a man again sounded not just unappealing but simply repulsive. He refused to throw away the life he had meticulously build. He couldn’t bear the thought of breaking up with his boyfriend, Mark. No. Eric was gone and it was time for a new chapter in his or rather her life. Erica looked into the mirror, catching her gaze. She didn’t need to hesitate anymore. The decision had been made weeks ago in her heart. She was ready to leave the life of Eric behind and step boldly into the rest of her life as Erica.