Just a Week?

The click of the camera made me blink, and in that moment, it felt like something clicked inside me too. Shit, what if this isn't an experiment? Why the hell did that question only pop into my head now, after we'd already spent two hours in these new bodies and were being treated like we’d always been not two 18-year-old American guys trying to make some money through a weird experiment, but actually a pair of rural Indian siblings who signed up for some strange deal with a group of American scientists whose language we still barely understood and had to speak through a translator.

— Hey, Anushi, stand closer to Rahul, smile wider! — barked the translator, speaking to us way too arrogantly as he relayed what the woman in the white coat said with a smile, nodding toward the guy on the left... Rahul. Just this morning his name was Tom, and mine was Martin, two nerdy geeks who thought the worst thing in life was failing a physics test. And now... God, now I’m Anushi. A small, shy village girl in a ridiculous sari, standing in the dust by rundown buildings, under the lazy gazes of some guys from the neighboring yard. And Tom... or, well, now Rahul... he even looked like a real village boy — confident, calm, like this had always been his life.

I took a step to the side and tried to force a smile, feeling the corner of my mouth twitch awkwardly. My breasts bounced uncomfortably under the sari, but I tried to ignore it. The camera clicked again — a bright flash made me squint.

— Perfect! — came the voice of the translator, a balding middle-aged man named Patel. — Anushi, Rahul, wave your hands!

I gave a clumsy wave in front of me with a weak smile, feeling the loose sleeves of the sari flap stupidly around my skinny arm. Tom — I mean, Rahul — just raised his hand with a half-assed wave, like he was saying "leave me the hell alone." That wasn’t something I could say for myself. I already regretted agreeing to this body-swap research experiment.

Of course, being the geeks we were, we couldn’t resist the ad. Body-swapping, an experiment, and they’d even pay us? It all sounded amazing. But I’d been sure it would take place in some sterile lab, not... in a filthy village in the middle of nowhere in India. They explained it was a remote swap experiment, but then why the hell did they send us here, and fuck, why the hell am I a woman?! Damn... okay, just a week, it’s only a week, and then I get my body back and a ton of cash.

The scientists in white coats were already loading into the jeep. They waved at us a couple more times, chatting among themselves like this was all perfectly routine... and within a minute their vehicles disappeared around the bend, kicking up a cloud of dust.

At that exact moment, the translator’s smile vanished from his face. Patel, who a minute ago was pretending to be our cheerful guide, now looked at us like we were bags of garbage someone told him to drag to the dump.

— Alright then... — he spat into the dirt near our bare feet and gave a nasty chuckle. — Listen up, clowns. You're no guests here. From now on, you're locals. And you’ll be called only by your new names. Anushi and Rahul. Got it?

I felt cold sweat break out on my forehead. No — my whole body was suddenly sticky with moisture, and the sari clung disgustingly to my back. 'Anushi...' — the name echoed in my head like a sentence. Patel twisted his lips into a vile grin.

— Good, — Patel smirked. — And now for a little surprise... Your supervisor for this week — is me.

The world seemed to lurch. For a second, I thought I misheard.

— What?! — burst out of me, but I instantly shut up under Patel’s piercing glare. I couldn’t believe it. Him — the supervisor? Seriously?! What about Dr. Brown?! They specifically left us the laptop to contact him and all those emergency kits in the hut!

— Anushi, listen! — Patel snapped sharply, staring at me like I was some dumb cow at a market. I instinctively straightened up, feeling the bra straps digging painfully into my shoulders under the sari, making my tits jolt unpleasantly and stretch the thin fabric tight.

— Now you're a village girl, got it? — Patel pronounced each word slowly, like he was talking to a stupid schoolgirl. — Modest. Obedient. Smile, stay quiet when men speak. No arguing. Do what you're told.

A wave of rebellion stirred inside me, and I clenched my small fists at my thin wrists, stepping forward almost without thinking.

— Hey! — I hissed, leaning in closer to him, but immediately stepped back when I saw that devouring glare, like one more word and he'd just crush me. I instinctively looked at Tom, had to tilt my head up to do it, hoping he'd back me up, but he stood there even more stunned than I was, glancing between me, Patel, and off somewhere into the distance. I wanted to yell, "Tom! Why are you standing there like a post?! Help me, damn it!" — but instead I just stared at him helplessly, realizing how pitiful I must look right now. Still, I pulled myself together and said, as firmly as I could:

— Tom, come on... tell him—

— Anushi! Girl! Modest! Obedient! — Patel snarled, cutting me off — You're not supposed to boss a man around! Got that?!

I froze, feeling like I’d been slapped. The air got stuck in my chest, and I automatically dropped my head, like my whole new body, my fragile female frame, demanded submission.

— There we go, — Patel sneered. He stepped closer, making me instinctively flinch. His hand came down hard on the top of my head, roughly ruffling my hair through the scarf. — Good girl.

'Go to hell' — I wanted to scream, but swallowed it down, lowering my head, unable to imagine anything worse right now. "One week... just one week and this will all be over," I kept telling myself, knowing full well there was no way out now.

— Rahul, — Patel finally turned to Tom, who still looked shaken, but damn it, I was just relieved his attention had shifted. — You're a man. You're responsible for your sister. Make sure Anushi doesn’t stick her nose where it doesn’t belong.

I flinched but caught myself, forcing myself to stay still as my tits swayed uncomfortably under the sari from the sudden move. It felt like any wrong motion only emphasized how small and female I now was.

"Watch over me?" — flared in my head. "Tom is going to watch me like I'm some dumb little girl?!" I tried to catch his eyes, but Rahul — Tom — kept staring past me, avoiding my desperate gaze.

Meanwhile, Patel just kept talking like nothing had happened:

— First task. — He snapped his fingers. — Anushi’s going to help the women in the kitchen. Wash dishes, peel vegetables... learn how to behave like a proper village girl. — He grinned, clearly enjoying every word. — Rahul — construction. Hauling rocks.

I clenched my fists under the loose sleeves, feeling the thin fabric stick to my sweat-slick skin. Kitchen? Dishes? Me — Martin, fucking school math and programming competition champ — scrubbing dirty village dishes now?!

— Follow me, — Patel barked, touching my shoulder, and I jolted at the contact, his rough palm scraping against my skin through the thin cloth.

I obediently followed, head down, feeling my breasts sway heavily with every step. The bra straps were biting into me, my tits pulling downward, reminding me of them with every awkward movement. The sari caught on my knees, forcing me to walk in small, embarrassed steps.

Just do what they say. Just get through it, I repeated to myself over and over as we approached a low building, from which the clatter of dishes and the voices of women echoed.

"Do they seriously think I’ve always been a girl?" — flashed through my head.

Just then, some guy walked past with a bunch of pipes on his shoulder. His gaze lingered on me, his eyes trailing down my body... and I felt my stomach twist from the gross, sticky realization: he was looking at me like a woman. Not an experiment, not a research subject — prey.

"God... please let this end soon..." I thought, stepping up to the building and trying to push away the creeping fear that maybe this would last more than a week. No, no, no — that’s just my anxiety talking!

At the door, Patel turned to me, giving me a hard once-over.

— Eyes down. Don’t say anything unnecessary. Remember: you're a quiet girl. Don't talk back. Especially not to men. — His lips stretched into a disgusting smile. — Good luck, Anushi.

He shoved me inside, and the door slammed shut behind me.

Three women stood inside, all in faded saris, arms deep in soapy water and faces full of indifference and exhaustion. One of them gave a quick nod toward a tub of dirty dishes.

I stepped forward in silence, feeling the sari cling to my damp skin, the hair under my scarf starting to itch from the heat. Squatting down, I plunged my hands into the cold, grimy water, feeling fingers that just yesterday were typing code now scrubbing crusty plates while my tits hung heavy over my knees, forcing me to shift awkwardly to keep my balance.

"A week... just a week..." — the thought kept echoing in my mind, while somewhere deep inside, a terrifying suspicion started to grow...