Holy Lumba

Lia knelt beside the crystal-clear water, her fingers trembling as she cupped her hands to collect some of it, as if trying to hold onto something fleeting. Everything around her seemed the same as yesterday—the majestic rocks, the steady murmur of the waterfall, the shimmering pond surrounded by thick vegetation. But she… She was no longer the same person.

"Holy Lumba, mother of nature... Please, change me back!" she whispered, her voice trembling on the edge of despair. It all seemed absurd. How could she even hope this would work? She felt like a complete fool for saying it aloud, but deep inside, she desperately believed that the magic of the water that had done this might somehow reverse it.

Her gaze fell back on the water—her reflection staring back at her wasn’t just unfamiliar; it was terrifyingly perfect. Long blonde hair cascaded in soft waves over her shoulders, and the tiny black swimsuit accentuated her new, feminine silhouette. It all still felt so unreal. Liam would never have worn anything like that before, but what choice did he have when he woke up this morning in this body and everyone around him acted as if he had always been Lia?

"This is a nightmare..." she nearly sobbed, flinging the water from her hands back into the pond. How had everything gone so wrong from just a stupid joke? Yesterday, she—no, he, Liam—had casually tossed a coin into this water, saying, "It would all be easier if I were a girl," with a smirk, never believing for a second that it would turn into something real.

"Lia!" a voice called from behind the bushes. She flinched, not even managing to get up. Panic surged through her as she looked around, hoping it wasn’t the person she least wanted to see at that moment.

But of course, it was Alex. It had to be him. Tall, self-assured, the guy Liam had never really gotten along with. And here he was, getting closer, his eyes widening in surprise as he spotted her.

"Damn... Lia, you made us come back to this dump, and then you just disappear," Alex muttered irritably, pushing his way through the bushes, trying not to slip on the wet rocks.

Lia flinched as she remembered how desperate she'd been this morning. She had practically forced them all to come back here, her voice shaky with panic.

Alex had been the most annoyed, snapping at her on the way: “You freaked everyone out, made us come all the way back to this stupid waterfall. And for what?”

His frowning gaze slid over her figure, and Lia felt her throat tighten from the awkwardness. She suddenly realized how strange she must look—kneeling by the water in a tiny swimsuit, as if waiting to be found like this.

"Hey, are you even listening to me?" he continued, still not noticing her stunned expression. "We’ve all been here, and it’s like you just vanished for an hour!"

Lia glanced around, as if expecting the waterfall or the rocks to offer her some kind of explanation or way out. But everything around her remained unchanged. The pond, where this strange miracle had happened yesterday, looked peaceful and quiet, as if nothing out of the ordinary had ever occurred. But her heart pounded as if she had done something terribly wrong.

"Sorry," she finally mumbled, her voice sounding unnaturally high even to her. That annoyed her too. "I... just got lost. The water is so... beautiful."

Alex raised an eyebrow, looking her up and down, and Lia inwardly shrank when she realized how revealing her swimsuit was. Alex wasn’t just looking at a friend anymore—he was looking at her like an attractive girl standing in front of him in a skimpy swimsuit. Lia felt goosebumps rise on her skin, not from the cold, but from Alex’s gaze. It wasn’t just surprise; there was something else, something more... appraising. He no longer saw Liam standing in front of him—he saw Lia, a girl, a sexual object. The realization shook her to the core, freezing her blood.

"Well, I don’t know what’s so mesmerizing about this place. We’re all wet, pissed off, and just want to go home. Mae’s already freaking out, thinking you ran off. So get up, we’re moving out."

Lia slowly stood, her knees still shaking from a mix of shame and inexplicable tension. Alex stood close, his gaze still locked on her, but now it felt even more intrusive. Lia felt a strange combination of discomfort and desperation. This was Alex, the same Alex that Liam had despised for his arrogance and constant teasing. And now this same person was looking at her like she was someone else entirely.

"Are you okay?" he tilted his head, finally tearing his eyes away from her body, though his tone remained irritated.

"Yeah... yeah, I’m fine," Lia swallowed the lump in her throat, trying to muster even a little confidence. She bent down to grab the towel that lay carelessly on the shore. Every movement now felt awkward and alien. Liam had never thought about how his body moved before, but now every step, every gesture revealed her new, unfamiliar femininity. And she couldn’t shake the feeling that Alex noticed. He saw it all.

"What were you even doing out here alone?" His question was simple, but there was something suspicious in his tone. Lia tried to come up with a plausible excuse.

"I just... wanted to be alone for a bit. It’s all... you know, the waterfall, nature... too beautiful not to enjoy," her voice quivered, but she tried to sound as calm as possible.

Alex snorted, as if doubting her explanation, but said nothing more. Instead, he just turned and started walking back to the path, gesturing for her to follow. Lia quickly wrapped herself in the towel and hurried after him.

As they walked through the forest, Lia kept replaying the scene from the water’s reflection in her mind. She couldn’t even believe that was her face, her body. Yesterday seemed so distant, as if Liam’s life had been someone else’s dream. And the longer she stayed in Lia’s body, the more terrifying it became to realize this might be forever.

"We’re leaving tomorrow, right?" she asked quietly, breaking the silence.

Alex glanced back, slightly surprised by her question. "Yeah, of course. Why are you asking? You starting to miss this place already?"

Lia forced a nervous laugh, but it came out strained. "No, just... I want to get back to normal life."

Alex nodded but said nothing. Inside, Lia felt a cold fear growing. Normal life? What did that even mean for her now? How could she ever return to anything "normal" when everyone who knew her as Liam now only saw Lia?