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Note:
This is a story entry for the Writing Contest.
The 10 participating writers will remain anonymous until 20 November.
For more information on the contest timeline, visit this post.

Related Work & Context: Sequel to Half Alien.

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Premise: Following the events of Half Alien, Lena, one of Ryan's lost offspring, has unknowingly reached her 18th birthday. She goes into heat, developing strange symptoms, before a government agency takes notice and confines her. She is impregnated and studied.

"Kyle, what's the hurry?" Lena giggled playfully as he closed the door to empty classroom behind them. Light streamed through the small window in the door, but the room was otherwise dim.

He turned towards the blue-eyed blonde and pulled her up by the waist before setting her round little ass onto a desk. She yelped. Her eyes met his.

"You," he replied before closing their distance with a kiss.

Lena had only ever kissed another girl before. She felt like she should've been more nervous about kissing Kyle, but she reciprocated eagerly. She'd been decidedly more eager in the last week.  His hands were all over her; her face, her neck, her thighs, and her chest. It felt amazing. Before she knew it, her t-shirt and shorts had been discarded to the floor. Kyle paused for a moment, admiring her.

"God," he breathed. "You look amazing."

Lena often avoided mirrors, as she sometimes felt self-conscious, but as she looked down, she realized he was right. Just a week ago, she had been all angles, with barely anything to show. But now, her tits bubbled slightly over the edge of the formerly too-big B-cup bra. She wore a bigger size than she needed to conceal her flat chest, but now she filled it out easily. She couldn't see it, but she could tell her ass had filled out too from the draft she felt from her too-small panties.

She didn't know how long they had been fooling around for, but several footsteps pounded down the hall. Students yelped and babbled at each other. Lena and Kyle froze.

"Maybe we should find somewhere more private." Lena said. She hopped off the desk before pulling Kyle along to a small closet. A cabinet, really.

As soon as they were inside, the fooling around continued. Neither payed any mind to the increasing volume of the students in the hallway, until the classroom door squeaked open and the lights flicked on as the horde of students poured in.

Damnit, we're so fucked, Lena thought as Kyle pulled his head out from underneath her bra. Ooh's and aah's erupted as the group found Lena's clothes on the floor. Almost immediately, the closet door was flung open, and the pair were exposed. Lena's hands flitted aimlessly to cover what little she could, and Kyle turned beet red.

Phones instantly materialized to document and immortalize their embarrassment. Students were laughing and teasing and falling over themselves, uncontrollable. Lena bolted, away from the bystanders, away from the room, anywhere but there. She finally only stopped at the top of the stairwell. She was too afraid to go outside, just wearing her underwear. She sobbed inconsolably.

"Lena? Lena Mayweather?" Someone said.

"Fuck off," Lena murmured, still wiping at her eyes.

She looked up. It was not Kyle, nor a student, nor any teacher she recognized. A man wearing sunglasses and a long trench coat stood before her.

"I'm sorry, Lena, but I'll need you to come with me," he said.

Before she could react, he pulled a device from his pocket. There was a flash of light, and Lena suddenly fell unconscious.

*

Lena Mayweather was adopted. They had found her on a beach, one of dozens of babies collected in such a way from that beach. No one quite knew where they came from, but DNA testing revealed that all of the babies were fraternal siblings. Even more interesting, they had very unique sequences of DNA. So unique, in fact, some believed the babies to be of extraterrestrial origin.

All in all, the government recorded 337 babies over the course of several years, in varying coastal locations. Due to the sheer scale and uncertainty of the issue, it was decided that the children should lead relatively normal lives, albeit under surveillance. But now that Lena was beginning to show alien traits, as well as risk public exposure, she was now being detained.

"What? This is insane," Lena breathed, after being told all this. "You're insane."

She was presently lying in bed, in a brightly lit room with white walls and furniture. There was a table at her side with a bucket.

The woman in the lab coat at the foot of her bed sighed. She had dark eyes and dark hair pulled up into a messy bun.

"I know it's a lot to take in, but it's true," she said. "Trust me, if the truth was less weird than that, I'd tell you."

"Okay, great," Lena spat. "But why the fuck am I here?! I bang a dude in some closet, and I get arrested?"

The woman took a measured deep breath. "I'm really sorry Lena. But it's just not that simple. You were displaying alien symptoms and--"

"What damn alien symptoms are you even talking about?!" Lena interrupted. "I'm fine! I'm normal! Let me go home!" With this, Lena tried to get up and stand, but waves of nausea drowned her attempt. She swallowed it back as she sank back down onto her bed.

The woman marched over to her bedside, and pulled off the covers. Just as Lena was about to protest, she saw it.  It looked like a rib jutting out under her skin, straight out of her stomach. The waves of nausea overwhelmed her. She reached for the bucket at her bedside and vomited. Once she was done, the woman sympathetically offered her a tissue. Lena gingerly accepted it.

"Look, Lena, you're not normal anymore." The woman met her eyes. " Again, I'm really sorry, but you need to stay here."

"W-What is that?" Lena sputtered, gesturing at the pointy obtrusion from her body.

"That's your womb," she seemed almost apologetic. "You're pregnant."

Lena wanted to vomit again, but she hadn't the energy. She felt lightheaded. Instead, she fell unconscious onto her bed.

*

When she awoke, Lena was alone in her room. The lights were off, but she could see with the dim morning light from the window. She cautiously peeled away her sheets, before doing the same to her hospital gown.

She wondered if her boobs seemed bigger than before. She cupped them absently, her fingers sinking further into fatty flesh that hadn't been there before. Her fingers grazed the tips of her nipples. When they hardened, they seemed thicker, darker. She sighed. It felt good. Kyle would have loved to see her like this.

She paused that thought. She leaned up on her elbows to see that horrible protrusion, like a tiny limb trying to escape through the skin of her belly. Her womb, as that woman had called it. It seemed even longer than it had yesterday. She cautiously poked it. It wasn't quite bone, not quite flesh. As she applied more pressure to it, it leaned slightly as it shifted. She could feel it. Not just the extruding point of it, but the bulbous part of it under her skin, shifting her organs. Her stomach rolled. This was weird and disgusting. She was weird and disgusting.

Suddenly the thought of Kyle, or anyone else seeing her like this was deeply unappealing. She wanted to curl into a ball, but didn't for fear of touching or moving the strange organ. Maybe it was for the best that she was here, where no one could see her. She wondered about her parents. She always knew she was adopted, but they were still loving and doting to her. Were they worried? Would she ever see them again? Did she even want to?

She rolled out of bed, groaning as she felt the womb bob and shift. She moved to the window. She was high above the ground. Looking out, it was a vast, sandy desert in all directions, interrupted by a rare tumbleweed or patch of dead grass. She was nowhere near the suburb of the coastal city she was familiar with.

To her surprise, when she tried the door of the room, it opened into a hallway. She smelled food, and she realized how hungry she was. She came to a room with a buffet line against the far wall and a single table, at which the  woman sat in one of two chairs. She looked up at Lena. Lena didn't really want to see her, but the smell of the food was so alluring. She beelined for the buffet, scooping up helpings of creamy mac and cheese, greasy meatloaf, buttery corn, and a fragrant bowl of chicken soup. Feeling a bit self-conscious of her gluttony, Lena delicately balanced a small salad bowl onto her already-full plate. She plopped down into the second chair and tore into the meatloaf.

She did her best to ardently ignore the woman as she ate, but Lena had questions, and she was the only other person here.

Lena asked, "Where are we?"

The woman swallowed her bite of bagel. "I can't really tell you specifically, but this is a government facility."

The woman saw Lena's face knit in frustration.

"To be honest, I don't even know," she quickly added. "I'm too low clearance for that."

"Huh?" Lena uttered as a piece of macaroni fell from her mouth. "Wait, who are you?"

"Oh, I guess I forgot to introduce myself," the woman muttered absently. "I'm Penny. I used to study at the state uni, but now I'm here."

"Penny..." Lena repeated back. She'd seemed older in her lab coat and severe bun, but now clad in a sweater and jeans, she was clearly much younger. "How old are you?"

"22," she replied. "Wait, how old did you think I was?" she smiled coyly.

"I dunno, 30, I guess?" Lena aimed high on purpose.

"Ouch," Penny mock-grimaced.

They sat in silence for a bit, Lena slurping soup as Penny picked at her bagel. Then, Lena mustered the courage to ask the question. "When can I leave?"

Am I stuck here forever? What about my parents? School? University? She swallowed back the deluge of questions rising in her throat.

Penny paused, seemingly in thought. Then she responded, "Once your pregnancy is over, you can go home."

Lena felt relief evaporate her worries. She just had to be here for a little while, then when she was back to normal, she could go home. No one would see how weird and disgusting and alien she was. Lena plucked up the rest of her salad, before returning to the buffet bar for a second helping.

*

Lena hadn't really processed the fact that she was pregnant. The fact that she was slowly growing full of writhing, squirming things. Not until a few days after her detention begun, when she could press her fingers into two inches of her now-evident belly. The womb's point still pressed uncomfortably from under her skin, but it seemed to be slowly encompassed by the new roundness at its base. She didn't know much about pregnancy, but...

"Aren't I showing too fast?" Lena gulped. She was teasing apart fluffy waffles from her brunch buffet.

Penny put down her forkful of dainty egg-white omelette to scrutinize her. "Hm? How do you mean?"

"I mean, I've only been here for a few days, right?" Lena dabbed at her syrup-coated lips. "Aren't I too big?"

Penny scanned her up and down, her eyes seeming to catch onto her chest, stomach, and ass, areas of growth. This morning Lena donned a baggy t-shirt and curve-hugging athleisure leggings instead of the shapeless, boxy hospital gown. It just wasn't practical.

"Could you please pull up your shirt?" She asked. "I need a better look."

Lena was mortified. A self-conscious thought flashed across her mind. She's gonna see how fat I am! But she quickly smothered the thought. She needed to understand what was wrong with her. She doffed the shirt before she could regret it later.

Lena went braless, perhaps out of habit, as she had only started having breasts a week or two ago. They did seem slightly larger, even under the shirt. With her fingers, Penny traced the curve of the belly that wasn't there a few days ago. Lena leaned forward into the contact. Her skin was soft.

Penny quickly disconnected from the contact, setting her hand to lean on the table. "It does seem like you're showing a lot," she swallowed. "I'll review the other cases to be sure, but I'm pretty sure this is a normal pace of growth, as far as alien pregnancies are concerned."

Lena didn't know why she felt so disappointed. "If everything's alright, then." She pulled her shirt back on. There was that strange word again, alien. She still felt mostly human, for whatever that was worth. She looked down at the strange protuberance of her womb through her shirt. Mostly.She moved her mind to other things.

"So, other cases, you said?" Lena asked. "That means I'm not the first pregnancy like this, right?"

"Aw, fuck, I wasn't supposed to say that," Penny sighed. "But yeah, you're not the only case like this. I can't say much else."

A little oh escaped Lena's mouth. They ate together in some silence. She didn't really want to eat so much, but she was just so hungry now. After she cleared her plate, she got up again to pile it high with fluffy waffles, bacon, fatty sausage, custardy eggs, and cheesy biscuits.

She hefted forkfuls of the eggs to her lips, eagerly smacking them down. Everything else on the plate quickly followed despite her deceptively small frame. Her lips dripped wet with butter. As she brought a biscuit to her lips, she accidentally dropped it onto the table. As she paused to pick it up, she noticed Penny was watching her, eyes wide with awe, her fork long since forgotten. Theirs eyes met for a moment, as Lena broke contact quickly looking down.

"Sorry," Lena muttered into her lap, "I know I must look slovenly. I'm just really hungry, and--"

Penny placed a hand on her shoulder, rubbing comfortingly. She wiped at Lena's lips with a napkin, before resting her chin on her hand. Penny looked into Lena's eyes again. "It's alright. And you're not slovenly. You're really pretty, actually." Penny smiled.

"I... um... thank you," Lena said.

With that, Penny stood, left the dining hall, and Lena continued eating.

*

Things continued to... improve for Lena over the coming weeks. Penny got new things for her. A TV, so she could stream films and shows. An expanded wardrobe, so even as she got fatter and fatter, she could still wear cute T-shirts and dressed. Even a computer, with the condition that her usage would be monitored. When Penny wasn't cooped up in the lab, they would talk about reality TV, trade amusing relationship stories, and occasionally read books together. Lena was content, all things considered. Two months passed.

One morning, as Lena awoke, she caught herself clutching her new breasts in her sleep. She didn't have any experience with bras prior, but she suspected that she was now at least a D-cup. When she held them, they comfortably filled her hands. When she moved, they jiggled uncomfortably, hard, thick nipples rubbing rousingly into her shirts. She hadn't minded the rubbing previously, as it occurred only as she walked from the dining hall and back to her room. But now, just lying back in bed, just the movement of her breathing seemed to shift the cotton of her shirt against her chest. They were already hard and swollen. She lifted up her shirt, to see that they were much bigger than when she had entered the facility.  What were once pink, flat, dime-sized lumps against her chest had become ruddy and round. They were the circumference of quarters. Ordinarily, they were barely a half-inch in height, but now, they had doubled in height to an inch. She sighed as she flicked them, and they wobbled and stiffened. She squeezed and rolled. She could feel herself growing wet.

Her back ached as she rolled over to better navigate around her large, lemon-shaped belly. The point of her womb had almost been obscured. Her hand crept down to play with herself. Pressure built in her belly. Her body tightened, toes curling. She breathed heavily, trying to focus. But no matter how long she seemed to stay there, suspended between arousal and orgasm, she never seemed to find release.

She fell back against her bed, frustrated and exhausted. She was so fucking fat and outta shape, she couldn't even come. God, she was a loser. She fell back asleep in her discontent, before rising again for lunch.

After Lena had gotten her fill of Chinese food, Penny stopped her from leaving to her room as she usually would.

"We need to run an exam on you, make sure everything's going well," Penny said. "It's unlikely that there's anything wrong, but it's just a precaution."

"Well, alright," Lena nodded. Not like she had much else better to do.

Not long after that, Lena found herself sitting on a paper-lined medical bed in a sterile, white room. Penny was there too, fussing about with medical devices and measuring equipment. They took Lena's blood and attempted a sonogram (the image was fuzzy, apparently due to the womb). There, as Penny wiped gel from the face of her growing belly, Lena blurted it out.

"I... um... I need a bra," Lena said.

Penny paused in her movements, studying Lena carefully.

"What?" Lena exclaimed in embarrassment.

"Mmmm... Nothing. So you need a bra..." Penny continued.

"Yeah. It's just that..." Lena took a breath. "I'm really sensitive, and it's kinda, um...." She fished for words. "... distracting."

"I'm sorry about that," Penny said. "I had no idea. I'll see what I can do right away."

Lena struggled to summon a response. She was mortified. "... Thanks."

Penny stepped forward, continuing to study Lena. "You said it was really distracting?" She said. Her dark eyes shifted over her features to meet Lena's inky blue ones. "May I?"

Lena wasn't quite sure what Penny was asking. "Sure?"

At that moment, Lena was laid back on the table, wearing her athleisure, her t-shirt tucked up and under her breasts. Penny pulled the t-shirt the rest of the way off. Lena stifled a yelp. This was the first time anyone had seen her chest since the day she had been detained.

"Sorry," Penny muttered. "I just need your measurements for the bra, and-- "

"No, no, I get it." Lena reassured.

As Penny wrapped the measuring tape under her breasts, Lena couldn't help but twitch slightly. It tickled. Penny was terribly pretty, too.

"30," Penny murmured.

Penny then proceeded to slide the tape upwards, over her breasts. Time seemed to pass slowly in those moments for Lena. She waited in anticipation for Penny to close the tape around her breasts, to feel the pressure against her skin. The tape caught at a bad angle, snagging one of Lena's nipples. She groaned, the nipple hardening. It seemed even taller than it had that morning, maybe just a quarter-inch taller. Penny slackened the tape before going in for her second attempt. In one deft movement, she had wrapped the tape over her chest, pressing Lena's nipples down in a feat of dexterity.

"30E," Penny reported.

E-cup?  That was much bigger than what Lena had thought.

Suddenly, Penny placed her hand on the side of Lena's left breast, letting the tape fall loose to her sides. Her fingers grazed inward towards the center of the mound. Lena subconsciously leaned into the contact. Penny's fingers sank deeper into her fatty flesh. Lena moaned as her fingers closed in on her nipple, rubbing gently, ever so lightly. Lena writhed, hating that she was being teased. She pulled at Penny's arms. She climbed onto the small bed, straddling Lena. Their faces were inches away from each other, hot breath exchanging between their lips. Then the distance was closed, lips and saliva being exchanged too.

Lena's eyes flitted open as she moaned into the kiss, feeling hands grasping, groping, kneading her generous breasts. Penny pulled away from her face with a lazy smile to look down at her breasts again. She flicked her nipples, and Lena gasped, her fattened thighs shuddering. Penny did not miss this. She proceeded to line Lena's neck with soft, warm kisses, sprinkling bits of tongue and teeth in between. She progressed steadily. Lena knew her end point and trembled in anticipation. Or so she thought.

Penny's hand crept its way down the face of Lena's belly. As she ghosted the front seam of her leggings, Lena felt that she would fall apart. Penny's mouth reached her nipple with soft, light pecks. One hand rolled the other fat nipple. The other tucked itself into her tights, squeezing her pulsing heated lips as liquid trickled free. Lena was moaning and gasping before she even realized it. Pleasure radiated from every cell of her body. She couldn't lift a single finger.

The pleasure climbed. Lena could feel her left nipple being sucked and nipped at. Her right one was pinching hard. Penny's finger flickered over her clit. Penny. Penny. Penny. Lena opened her eyes to see Penny bent over her body, multitasking dexterously all over her body. She was everywhere.

She didn't know how long she was caught there, but the pressure built. It was difficult to track sensation, but she swore her womb bobbed as she arched her back. She came. The release flooded her mind.  As she arched and gasped further, she felt something pop from under the skin of her belly. Her skin was warm and prickled. Penny wrapped her arms around Lena. She squirmed in the contact. It just felt so good to be held. With that, they lied there together.

*

Another month passed, and Lena just grew larger. She looked overdue. She was filled with an odd pressure, with squirming sensations that seemed to turn her stomach. She desperately wanted to give birth and get out of this godforsaken facility.

Some days, Penny seemed even more distressed than Lena, habitually wringing her hands as she stole glances at her belly. The two had grown closer, but now there was an odd silence that sat between them.

"I've gotta be due soon, right?" Lena asked as she rubbed her belly worryingly. "I'm fucking massive."

"Right." Penny was irritatingly deep in thought.

There'd been a few close calls, but Penny hadn't touched Lena in quite the same way as during their medical exam. Lena was annoyed, to say the least.

"Can we do another exam?" Lena pleaded. "Maybe there's something wrong with me this time."

"Maybe," Penny muttered noncommittally.

"Penny, please tell me," Lena said. "What the fuck is wrong?"

Penny was silent, not looking at her.

"Why are you ignoring me?" Lena gasped. "Say something! Damn you!"

Just as Lena thought she was never going to receive an answer, Penny spoke.

"In order for you to end this pregnancy, to give birth," she whispered. "... You need to be impregnated again."

"What?" Lena uttered, uncomprehendingly.

Penny sighed. "You won't be able to give birth until you're re-impregnated."

Lena swallowed. "Does that mean... I'll be pregnant, all over again? After all of this?" Her voice sounded tinny and far away. "Is this... gonna go on forever?"

"Yes," Penny said tightly. She couldn't meet her eyes.

"Why..." Why is this happening? Why am I here? Why do I have to be pregnant again? "Why didn't you tell me earlier?" Lena stumbled through her question.

"I was working on a way to stop this," Penny said. "I thought I'd have something done by now, but..." She trailed off. "I didn't want to hurt you."

Lena just stared at her. She couldn't find words.

"I'm so, so sorry Lena," Penny shuddered.

Lena left the dining hall, skipping lunch for the first time in months. When she reached her room, she curled herself as best she could onto her bed. She sobbed.

*

Lena didn't know how long she had been in her room. All she knew was, she was massive. She wasn't quite sure she could get up if she tried. Her belly outspanned her torso. Her horrible belly button had ballooned to the size of tennis ball. To her chagrin, her tits spilled over the capacity of her EEE-cup bra, shoving up her chin.

Everyday, Penny would deliver food to Lena's bed in silence. She had to ensure she ate. Lena tried to resist food the first few times, but cravings got the best of her. She had to eat.

Today, when Penny carted in Lena's food, her belly button seized. It happened every time, when Penny was around. But this time, it started leaking. Lena wanted to shriek when she saw it. A pale green goo oozed from the knot. It was disgusting, but at the same time, her arousal surged inexplicably.

"Penny..." Lena whined.

Penny's head whipped up. She hadn't been spoken to in weeks. "Yes, Lena?"

"I... Can you... I'm ready now," Lena muttered. She'd been ready for weeks.

Penny almost dropped the tray of chicken pot pie. "Of course. I'll... get what I need." Penny raced from the room. She returned with a long, cylindrical device in hand.

Lena arduously rolled onto her side as Penny climbed into bed behind her. Lena stiffened as Penny began to kiss the back of her neck.

"I'm sorry, it's just..." Penny hesitated. "I missed you."

Lena cackled bitterly. "What the hell are you talking about? Look at me. I'm such a fucking whale, I'm surprised you haven't forklifted me by now. " She swallowed. "I'm disgusting."

"You're gorgeous," Penny insisted. She tried to roll Lena to face her, and surprisingly she relented. Lena's massive belly touched her flat one. Penny rubbed circles lovingly on its surface. Lena moaned.

"From just that?" Penny smiled.

"It's been a while," Lena justified.

Penny moved her attention upwards. Lena's massive bra was still clearly too small on her. She attempted to reach around Lena to unclasp it, but she struggled to maneuver. After some determined minutes, however, she discarded the useless bra to the floor.

Penny paused to stare in awe. Lena's nipples were the size of golf balls, almost too big to close one's mouth around. She grazed one with the tip of her finger, marveling as it stiffened slightly. She rubbed more ardently, and Lena moaned, unable to control herself. The nipple raised in height to that of a D-battery. God, she was so sensitive. Penny leaned forward to plant her soft lips on the nipple. It filled her mouth, and she gagged softly before growing accustomed. Lena felt a strange pressure build in the nipple, then release. Penny pulled away with milk dripping down her chin, grinning. Before Lena could protest in disgust, Penny proceeded her ministrations on the other nipple, Lena's protests drowned in moans of pleasure. The dam broke on that one, too.

With some encouragement, Penny rolled Lena to face away from her. It was the only way she was going to reach, given the massive size of her belly. As Penny reached around to pleasure Lena, she savored the moans escaping her.

"Just... get... it in... already!" Lena whined, each word punctuated with a moan.

"Sorry, I just love the sound of you," Penny's whispers tickled her ear, but she eventually obliged, taking the device between her fingers. She carefully navigated it to entry, rolling it around the walls to stretch her out. Lena groaned as the cool surface made contact. Penny moved faster and faster, thrusting it deeper and deeper. Lena whined and grinded against her hand, soaking them both in her fluids. She took the entire length of the device easily.

Lena wasn't quite sure how she did it, but Penny managed to contort herself around the massive belly and burgeoning ass to continue thrusting while tweaking and sucking her nipples. Lena was exhausted, but she wanted this. The tension was incredible. Her nipples sprayed milk. Her belly button spasmed, the goo cooling and sticking. Her insides were being filled and shifted. It wasn't so bad, being with Penny like this.

Lena felt it. The device released its load, pressure and warmth surging through her insides. She came, her nipples gushing, belly button twitching, and drenched thighs  quivering. Just as she thought it ended, she could just see her belly button, swollen to the size of an apple, still twitching. Pressure accumulated in her belly, before her belly button split open with a stinging sensation to spit out a gelatinous mass. Lena stared in horror. Then her hips bucked as it happened again. And again. Over and over, her belly button spit out the masses.

She didn't know how long it happened, but she laid there, Penny at her side. She was too numb to do little but watch as the masses grew in size. Penny reassured her that they were just eggs, and everything was all perfectly normal. Lena fell asleep.

*

Two months later, news had broken free about the Tuppern aliens. There were simply too many of them to cover up, with the government only able to intervene in a fraction of cases. There was little point in covering things up anymore, and so with that, Lena was released from the facility and allowed to return home, despite still being evidently pregnant. She was so very different from the thin, waifish girl she was. Now she sported F-cup breasts, a bubbly ass, and a baby bump, topped with her strange belly button. The government had offered to take up the three babies that had successfully hatched from the hundred or so eggs she had birthed, but Lena opted to keep them.

She was so afraid to meet everyone again. It'd only been five months, but now she had a new species, a new body, three children, and a new girlfriend. She squeezed Penny's hand as they stood on the doorstep of her home. They rang the doorbell.

The End

Comments

Anonymous

Aww... This was super-cute as well as being sexy! Loved both the character work and the descriptions of Lena's changing body, which was also very accurate to the original. (And unrelated... holy cow at Ryan's 337 egg-babies! I knew he and Jake stayed "busy", but I thought the survival rate would have been worse than that. Loved that detail / wrinkle to the original story!)