Swap Therapy Trials: Buff and Baked (1/2)

Hope you all stayed stuffed for turkey day! Sorry for the long wait on this, but I wanted to use this swap therapy mini-series as an excuse to try out writing again. I haven't written anything since one of my very first posts, so feedback is absolutely welcome. I want to make a little short story to go along to each of these before/afters. Still working on the second part of the story, but the illustration is already complete, so you guys shouldn't have to wait too long. For now, here's the first half featuring Rhea and Hazel.

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Swap Therapy Trials #1: Buff and Baked

“Please state your full name and date-of-birth.”

“Rhea Rivera, September 14, 1998.”

“Thank you, Ms. Rivera. You should be all set. Do you have any final questions?” The petite lab technician seemed overly cheerful and giddy in stark contrast to Rhea’s complete lack of enthusiasm.

There were many questions the lean Latina would have loved to ask in that moment, but she knew it would be useless. Any answers she received would make no difference. She was past the point of no return. Her name had already been signed off on all the papers. There was no backing out now.

“No,” Rhea responded, sounding less than confident.

“Well then, Ms. Rivera, on behalf of the team here at the Swap Center, we wholeheartedly thank you for your invaluable contribution to furthering the future of swap science. Please enter the chamber once you are ready.”

With that, the mousy scientist excitedly hurried out of the standby room leaving Rhea to face the consequences of her decisions alone.

“Damnit Lily,” Rhea muttered to herself. The only reason she found herself staring down the imposing metal doors of the swapping chamber was because of her sweet girlfriend, Lily. The two had met in college and seemed perfect for each other at the time. But they slowly grew more distant as their careers split in opposite directions. Being a fitness instructor who always preferred to keep active, Rhea had a hard time finding common ground with her work-from-home, software engineer of a partner. Even on the several occasions when Lily tried to make an effort to break from her sedentary lifestyle, there was no way she could keep up with the strict regimens Rhea imposed. The increasingly difficult outbursts at Lily’s increasingly growing waistline didn’t help either. The two were running out of options to mend their relationship, until Lily brought up “Swap Therapy.”

Rhea had heard the stories. “The Next Generation of Life Changing Science” seemed too good to be true. Then the publications started getting picked up by journals and the mainstream news. Testimonials from successful swaps started to spread like wildfire across social media. Even the most offline of people would find it difficult to avoid hearing about “Swap Therapy.” Did Rhea really want to commit to something so drastic?

For Lily, she would. Rhea could see how bad their relationship had gotten. She could make up excuses like her outbursts being due to hormonal imbalances from her exceptionally low body fat. Or the rampant fatphobia being due to her job of always being strict towards her overweight clients (who often quit after the first few embarrassing rebukes). But deep down, Rhea knew that the only solution would be a massive personal change. If it meant rekindling the sparks between her and Lily, Rhea was willing to make that change.

However, with said “change” now only a few feet in front of her, Rhea was feeling a lot less sure of herself. She had kept her preferences fairly broad on her application in order to maximize her chances of being selected. These “experimental trials” were the only way people like her could afford the costly, uninsured price of swap therapy. All she was looking for was someone more relaxed to help her “loosen up.” At least, that’s what Lily wanted. Having had more than enough time to mull over her decision after submitting, she realized just how wide the range of potential candidates would be given her criteria. Someone more relaxed would most definitely be in worse shape than her current body. Rhea cringed at the thought of having even the slightest bit of excess on her body. These thoughts, along with the privacy clause that prevented her from seeing the full details of her swap partner, made the days leading up to her swapping appointment the most nerve-wracking Rhea had ever experienced. All she had was a name: Hazel Grayson.

“Please just be average.”

Rhea whispered one final affirmation before steeling herself to step into the chamber. She took one last look at herself, knowing that she would soon be giving it all away. Years of discipline and dieting had sculpted her body into peak physical form. Her tanned physique showed off every carefully trained muscle across her 5’10’’ 152 lb frame. Any unnecessary fat was neatly tucked away into her perky 36C breasts and around her tight muscular bottom. Rhea took great pride in her body, but maybe it was time for a change of pace.

As Rhea raised her hand to meet the steel doors, she was surprised to see them slide back all on their own. Stepping inside, Rhea examined the interior of the chamber.  The cylindrical space wasn’t very large, only about 5 meters in diameter and 3 meters tall with two sets of doors on either side. Along the walls ran thick horizontal coils which look like they were made for heating.

“Did I just walk into an oversized oven?”

As quickly as they had opened, the doors to Rhea’s side of the chamber shut close behind her. Rhea pressed her fingers to the slit, confirming she was sealed in tight as she heard the doors on the opposite side slide open. Before she could even turn around to meet the new arrival, a strong smell hit her nostrils. It was a stench Rhea only recognized from skateparks and passing by her downstairs neighbors.

It was weed.

“Ew! What the-  cough”

Wafting away the cloud of smoke that poured into the chamber, Rhea finally got a peek at the other half of her exchange. In an instant, all the regret that had been building over the past week came to fruition.

The woman was massive, bigger than any of Rhea’s largest clients by a hefty margin. Her pale apron of a belly split into three soft layers while spilling over stretched-out shorts. A pair of enormous, pancaked breasts sagged over her mountainous midsection, barely contained within a wide bra darkened by numerous sweat stains. Her side rolls forced out the plush bingo wings leading to plump forearms. Thick, dimply, thunder thighs rubbed together all the way to her pudgy knees as the woman ponderously entered from her side of the chamber.

As she waddled closer, Rhea could get a good look at what awaited her. Pasty skin with blotches of untreated acne across her fat face and shoulders were further evidence of a diet full of greasy foods. The lingering odor of sweat and her yellow tinged teeth showed a complete disregard for personal hygiene. Her unshaven pits, happy trail, and hairy legs with thick cankles over chubby bare feet completed the look of a lazy slob. The woman brought a lit joint to her plump lips as she flipped oily, dull locks of brown hair out of her face.

“So, you’re Rhea. huff”

“Yeah cough and I hope you’re not Hazel, because there’s no way I’m swapping with someone like you!”

“Too late for back out now. huff Wow, aren’t you gorgeous. You’re even better than I had imagined. You’ve got a real tight bod. Really the fresh start I was looking for. puff”

“This can’t be happening cough cough Will you stop smoking, you stoner! How did you even get that in here?!”

“It’s for my anxiety, bitch. They said it wouldn’t get in the way of anything, so they let me have it.”

“I’ll let you fucking have it you fat f-“

Vvvvrrrrrrrr

Rhea’s tirade was interrupted by the sound of the coils springing to life all around her. They began to glow a warm hue, casting the entire room in red as the temperature of the chamber steadily rose. Beads of sweat started to form on Rhea’s face as the warmth radiated throughout her body.

“Just great, it really is like a giant oven.”

“Looks huff like we’re getting started. puff This should be fun. I’m so looking forward to seeing the changes in real time. I’ve heard it’s the best part.” Hazel took another long drag from her joint.

“Just shut up, hah fatso!” Rhea tried to stay defiant despite her situation, but the heat was ramping up, her breaths becoming ragged as she attempted to reconcile with the figure that awaited her.

The two complete opposites did not have to wait long as the warmth of the coils quickly spread throughout every muscle fiber and adipose deposit within their respective bodies.