A couple of interactive chapters...

Just for kicks, I wrote a few chapters in Sowega's writing.com interactive Endless Beauty for the first time in forever. I thought that I'd post it here in case you wanted to read them. I don't do much editing on these, so they are a little rough, but I thought you guys might enjoy. I'll post the rest here as I get time to do a little more. The concept was kicked of by Sowega, I'm merely running with it a little. It's actually a branch from the same thread that produced Ashley's Envy. :)

JURASSIC JIM AND HEAVENLY HEATHER

CHAPTER 1

"Um, Jim?" Heather stepped out of the cylindrical time machine, a blast of unusually hot, humid air greeting her. She cast her azure eyes over an unfamiliar landscape of lush jungle and rugged hills, tucking a lock of ginger hair behind her ear. She checked her phone. No signal. "I don't think this is Maryland 10 years ago..."

Jim followed her out, looking around himself before scratching his head in confusion. "But I specifically set the machine 10 years back. And it's not capable of moving us through space. Just time!"

Heather placed her hand on Jim’s shoulder, gazing upward into his eyes. “I’m sorry, Jim, but I think it did the opposite. This is definitely not Maryland. Not ten years ago, and not today.”

Jim’s expression soured as his eyes continued to survey the dense rainforest. “Shit!”

Turning toward his life-long friend, he gushed. “Everyone told us we were trying for the impossible, but I was so sure we could do it. I was so sure that this would be the trip that silenced all doubters…”

“It’s okay. We’ll just reverse the settings, hop back into the tube, and go back!” Heather said reassuringly.

“No. We won’t.” Jim said, his eyes darting back to the machine as a small curl of smoke rose from its top. “The computer shorted out on the way. It’s completely inoperable.”

Heather’s eyes widened. “But how are we going to…”

Her words trailed off as both professors slowly realized the full extent of their situation.

Collapsing to the ground, Jim put his head in his hands. “Oh, God, Heather. I’m so sorry. I wanted to win us recognition, but in my hurry to test our invention, I’ve put us in the middle of nowhere with no map, no supplies, and no… anything!”

“It’s okay, Jim,” Heather put on a brave face. “We’re both in our twenties, both young and reasonably fit. We just need to decide on a direction and start walking. I’ll bet we get within sight of civilization before the end of the day.”

Extending a hand, she struggled to assist her friend up, staggering forward and nearly losing her balance as he pulled on her hand, rising to his feet.

“Whoa! Careful!” said Jim reaching out to grab her arm, steadying her. He smirked. “I probably shouldn’t have let you do that. I should be the one helping you up.”

Heather frowned. She loved Jim to death. Except for his subtle streak of machismo. That, she could do without.

“Come on. Let’s go.” Taking his hand, Heather started forward in a northerly direction. An hour later, they were in the middle of a dark thicket of unfamiliar trees, their skin glistening with sweat. Heather removed her top, leaving herself naked from the waist up, save for her padded, B-cup bra.

She took a seat on a lichen-covered log, wiping her face with her wadded blouse. “It’s so hot! It has to be over a hundred degrees!”

Jim took a seat beside her, slumping down before tugging the hem of his shirt upward to wipe his own face. “I think you’re right. I wonder if we ended up in the Amazon or something…”

“Well, if we did, it should rain pretty often. Which is good. We’re going to need to hydrate often in these temperatures.”

Jim nodded his agreement, and they rested for a few more minutes before a loud roar in the distance shook the leaves in the surrounding trees, causing a flock of birds to take to the air. Small lizards and insects fluttered by as well, disturbed by something. And from the sound of it, that something was big.

*WHOOMP!*

*WHOOMP!!*

*WHOOMP!!!*

Heather turned to Jim, her lips drawn into a tight line. “What is that?”

“I-I don’t know!”

The loud noises grew louder, and the two young professors swung their legs over the log to cower behind it, nervously gazing into the dense jungle before them.

Then, they saw it. A massive, taloned foot descending not ten feet from the log where they hid.

*WHOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMP!!!!*

Both academics’ eyes rose skyward until they met those of a massive lizard, sniffing the air and looking from side to side. Their eyes flicked back downward, locking on one another’s even as they grew wide with horror.

“It’s a fucking dinosaur!” they both hissed simultaneously in an urgent whisper.

CHAPTER 2

Jim looked up at the massive lizard once more, its two small arms extended uselessly in front of it, and screamed. “Run!!!”

The pair launched into an instant sprint, tearing through the dense foliage as the giant predator loomed behind them. Heather’s heart leapt into her throat as she felt the ground rumble beneath her feet. Venturing a look behind her, she saw twin rows of teeth the size of her head opening. The roar that followed was deafening. A burst of adrenaline shot through her heart.

Heather’s head swiveled forward again as her pace increased, her lungs already beginning to burn with the intense exertion. Jim was just ahead of her, running every bit as fast as she was. Swishes of leaves and crackles of branches seemed to come from immediately behind them as the monstrous creature gained on them effortlessly.

Cr-crack-crack-crack... *BAM!* came the sound of a falling tree immediately to the pairs’ right.

“Fuck… this!” Jim gasped, stomping a foot into the ground and changing direction suddenly. He dove through the undergrowth perpendicular to the direction they’d both been running.

Heather did the same, feeling a sharp pain on the back of her neck as she changed course. Briefly horrified, thinking that the monster chasing them had managed to sink a tooth into her neck, she nearly tripped and fell in fright.

Stumbling forward, her hand flew to the back of her neck. There were no teeth, just the crunch of an extremely large mosquito’s exoskeleton against her stinging flesh. Relief crashing through her for the briefest of moments, Heather knew that she couldn’t stop. The dinosaur behind them sounded horrifyingly close.

She raced forward, frantically whipping her head about in a vain attempt to find Jim’s fleeing form, when she was suddenly bathed in darkness, the thick undergrowth of the jungle suddenly disappearing.

What the…?

Before Heather could complete the thought, she slammed into Jim’s back, falling backward to land hard on the damp, dank earth.

“Ooof!” cried Heather as her head cracked the cave floor.

“Heather?!” came Jim’s astonished voice as the black shadow of his tall form turned to face her.

“Yeah,” she replied in a pained voice, her head now throbbing every bit as much as her mosquito-bitten neck.

“Are you... alright?” he asked, breathing heavily, the sound of crashing footfalls back in the jungle gradually growing more distant.

“Been… better…” Heather wheezed, still short of breath as her heart hammered within her chest. “But right now… I can’t complain… Pretty much just… glad to be alive!”

“True enough,” said Jim. She could practically hear his smile—and his relief—in the darkness.

Heather heard his footsteps circle around her, then the crinkle of leaves. The dinosaur’s steps continued to fade into the distance. A moment later, Jim’s soft steps returned, and she felt a searching hand bump lightly into her forehead before a soft rush of air made it clear that he had been attempting to find her hand instead.

A moment later, a strong arm lifted her to her feet. “Sounds like the T-Rex  is gone.”

“I can’t believe we ran into a fucking dinosaur,” Heather whispered, swaying unsteadily on her feet. She walked to the edge of the cave before turning to face Jim, sunlight streaming over the leaves of the trees just outside its entrance to highlight her head and shoulders in a golden silhouette.

“Yeah,” said Jim in a forlorn tone. “I think I miscalculated by more than just a little...”

Despite her wooziness, Heather’s eyes softened. She extended an arm to give Jim’s shoulder a comforting squeeze. “It’s alright, Jim. We’ll figure something out. We always do!”

Her words were more upbeat than she felt. Far more. In fact, she was beginning to feel downright awful. The fingers of her free hand went to the back of her neck again, feeling over the skin until they encountered a small dome of sensitive, irritated flesh. “Oh my God! My neck!” she gasped.

Jim’s brows furrowed and he turned his friend around, gently lifting away her finger tresses to get a clear look at her skin in the sunlight filtering into the cave’s entrance. Heather winced as she felt his fingers draw lightly over the painful spot. “You’ve got one hell of a mosquito bit, Heath! It’s as big as my fist!”

“Great,” said Heather, wavy lines beginning to form in her vision. “Mosquitos always did seem to like feasting on me. But I could have done without the prehistoric monster-sized version…”

Her voice seemed to grow more distant to her own ears as they began to ring. Before she could finish her sentence, she felt her knees give out.

Then, there was only blackness.

CHAPTER 3

“Jiiiimmmmmm…” Heather found herself saying her friend’s name as she regained consciousness, her eyes opening to find his astonished gaze just inches away.

Her arms were around him, clutching him close. Her lips were nearly touching his.

“What…?!” she exclaimed, releasing Jim’s tense form to slump back to the floor of the cave. For the first time, she noticed that her voice was deeper. Sexier.

Then, as strands of settling hair brushed the back of her mosquito-bitten neck, its itchiness surged, instantly becoming nearly unbearable.

“You just… you…” Jim mumbled, clearly shocked by whatever had just happened.

Suddenly feeling annoyed, her irritation fueled by both her confusion and the burning soreness of her neck, Heather shot back. “Out with it, Jim!”

Jim paused, seeming to gather himself before replying. “You tried to kiss me!”

Heather’s pursing lips, prepared to lash out a second time, hesitated. She hadn’t been expecting that response in the slightest. ”I tried to kiss you?!” she asked, her throatier voice incredulous.

Jim nodded vigorously, seeming to notice something about her face at the same time.

Heather eyed him curiously, noting the guileless surprise in her friend’s eyes. She knew him well enough to know whether he was lying, and this wasn’t Jim’s prevarication face at all. Had she really tried to kiss him?

She and Jim had been friends for as long as she could remember. She’d be lying if she tried to claim that she’d never entertained a passing thought of what a romantic relationship between the two of them might be like, but they had never amounted to anything more. He was more like a brother to her than a prospective boyfriend…

...which was why this was so unexpected and mind-boggling! Why on earth would she have done that?!

She looked up at Jim’s concerned expression, noting the slight tremor in his lips, the glassiness of his narrowed eyes. He truly did care about her, didn’t he?

“Well, that’s one way to come out of a coma,” she joked, unsure what else to say. “How long have I been out, anyway? More than a few minutes?”

“You’ve been asleep for three days, Heath,” said Jim, his expression grave.

Heather’s prone upper body shot upward, her breasts jiggling under her shirt with the dizzying motion. “Three days!!!” she exclaimed, eyes widening.

Again, Jim nodded, his hand reaching out for her shoulder to gently steady her.

“I really was in a coma!” she said, searching Jim’s eyes for any other information she could glean therein.

“Well, you had a pretty crazy fever, and you were squirming a lot in your sleep. Then, today, when I checked on you, you… well… you…”

“Tried to kiss you?” Heather filled in the words that her friend was reluctant to speak.

“Well, yeah. I guess,” Jim looked embarrassed, his hand moving to cup the back of his own neck as his cheeks flushed.

Heather shook away the strange information, unsure how to process it and began to examine herself. She should probably eat something. After not eating for three days, her slender form was probably looking downright emaciated by now…

She looked down to see two breasts that were significantly larger than before. She thought back to when she had first risen, remembering the jiggle of more flesh than she usually carried on her diminutive chest. She must have gained a full cup size. While she had been unconscious. In the jungle. With dinosaurs roaming about. And a best friend that she suddenly wanted to kiss.

Somehow, the last of those thoughts was the strangest of all to her.

Heather reached down to feel her slim stomach, which had grown even slimmer from the lack of food. But how had her breasts grown? That made absolutely no sense. Unless… was it swelling? Was her body all swollen up from the strange insect’s venom?

Heather looked at her arms and hands. Her skin looked smooth and unblemished, not pink and swollen. If anything, they looked a bit sleeker and firmer than she was used to.

Gathering her feet beneath her, Heather rose unsteadily to her feet. As he saw what she was doing, Jim helped her up until they stood face to face at the edge of the cave. But this wasn’t the face-to-face view she was used to. Not with Jim, anyway.

Normally, her eyes were level with his lips. Now, however, they were level with his nose, just an inch or so below his disbelieving gaze.

“You’re taller!” He stated the obvious.

“I am?” asked Heather, despite the fact that her mind was already processing this information. She set her jaw, then flicked her eyes upward slightly to meet his. “I am!

“And it seems like other things have changed too,” Jim said hesitantly, as if he were uncertain whether he should speak those words aloud.

“What do you mean?” Heather asked, her eyes widening slightly, remembering her earlier concern about the swelling.

“Just, well. Let’s go to the lake. It’s not far. And you need water anyway,” Jim suggested, seeming relieved for the slight postponement of the news.

With that, he strode purposefully into the jungle, an intensely curious Heather trailing just behind. As she walked, her hands rose to her breasts, exploring rounded swells that were definitely larger and far more sensitive than ever before.

When they finally reached the lake, Jim extended a hand in an inviting gesture. Reticent, Heather approached the reflective surface of the lake and gazed downward into her rippling reflection.

The face looking back at her was beautiful, significantly prettier than it had ever been before. Her astonished eyes found Jim’s. He merely shrugged in befuddlement.

“See?” he said calmly. “Changed.”

Heather blinked twice, then looked at her reflection a second time, a small smile curling the corners of her fuller lips.