On Vacation - An X-Change Novella Ch. 02

Oh...my...God! Waking up was so much harder than the last time. I wasn't even sure I could open my eyes. I could feel the IV's in my arms as well as electrodes in various parts of my body. I heard the door open and someone approach the bed. They must have hit a button, because I could feel the bed start to rise, putting me in more of a sitting up position.

"Jason. Jason. Can you hear me? Can you open your eyes?"

I mumbled when I tried to speak and tried blinking my eyes open. When I finally got them open, I was staring at a bottle of Gatorade being held by a very well dressed middle aged man.

In a weak and raspy voice I somehow spoke out "Doctor? Dr. Jacobs?"

"Not surprised you recognized me. Peri and I could be sister and brother. I changed back the day before your first procedure.

Jason, it's a bit rougher going from female to male. You've been out for about thirteen hours. You will need to take it slow. You're not going to get that burst of energy you had when you went female. You still need to get some fluids in you so drink this, but it won't take too long till you realize how hungry you are. We've got a huge breakfast ready for you as soon as you can stand up. When you can, I'll let you eat in private as it may take over thirty minutes till your hunger is sated. You will probably have to rest afterwards, but then you should start feeling some strength again. You will also feel sore, especially around your hips and your chest because of the changes that took place. We have a hot tub that you can use. In a few hours, you should be feeling close to normal. When you do, the clothes that you wore ten days ago have been cleaned and are in the drawer under the TV."

"Where's Rebecca?"

"Rebecca is your tour guide for the initial journey. I do have staff to help you with your return trip, but I decided to take that job myself. No worries, we'll talk later. Now let's see if you can get out of bed."

It felt strange to have to be so reliant on someone who probably had thirty years on me. Eventually I made my way to a table and started on a massive buffet of eggs, bacon, sausage, biscuits, and pancakes, washing it down with tumblers full of orange juice. Every time I thought I was slowing down, I would belch and start right back up with another plate full. Finally, a switch went off in my brain and I was more tired than hungry. I made my way back to bed and passed out.

I woke to throbbing pain in my torso and upper body. On the nightstand was a couple of pills and a glass of water. There was a note that read "Take these, hot tub next door to your right. Robe at the foot of your bed."

I had no idea what time it might have been. The hot tub was the perfect antidote. When I got out, I still wasn't feeling 100%, but close enough. I headed back to the room and Dr. Jacobs was waiting in the hall.

"Go get dressed Jason. Then come back out and let's go to my office."

I found my clothes and decided to change in the bathroom. I removed the robe and once more looked at myself in the mirror. Today, a decent looking young man stared back. I had lost some weight. Once more, between my legs was little Jason. My hair was still very long, and was not styled to match the man in the mirror. Guess I'm going to need a haircut. I began to put my clothes on.

Ah, the comfortable looseness of a pair of boxer briefs. No more gymnastics in putting on my bra. My shirt buttoned normally. I needed a belt to help keep my pants up. And best of all, flat soled shoes. My wallet had also been in the same drawer as my clothes. They had returned my credit cards and there was my real driver's license. Jason Oscar Dixon. I put the wallet into my back pocket and my phone in my front. I walked back into the hallway.

"Hello Jason, welcome home. We have a hair stylist coming later. Sorry, I forgot to mention that your hair will remain long. Actually, this has turned out to be an unexpected side effect of the process. Men who are thinning up top are rewarded with a full head of hair afterwards. Not really sure how long that will last. Might be a side business for us if we can isolate how that works."

His office was just down the hall. Besides his desk he had a couple of arm chairs near the window that he gestured I should use. He also had a small refrigerator and he pulled out a couple of cans and poured their contents into two beer glasses.

"I heard you like stouts. I grabbed these from Pike's."

He sat down and we had a few sips in silence.

"Jason, as soon as we figured out how to manipulate the X and Y chromosomes, we knew we had something pretty big. We decided to be very cautious going forward. We felt that initially, research would be more important than just helping people. The obvious target was the transgender community and we sought out our first patients by consulting with the psychiatrists that were working with them. Gender Dysphoria is a very complex syndrome. Achieving satisfactory results with the previous available treatments could almost be on a case by case basis. Some patients, there were no satisfactory results.

We were looking for patients that were very likely going to require reassignment surgery to have their best chance at a pleasing life. Many GD patients live their lives as the other gender, take their hormones, change their driver's license, but don't want the surgery. We didn't want to start with that group.

Using that core class of reassignment patients, we were initially very successful. We had made a decision that we would not perform the permanent change unless the subject first tried either a two week or one month process. This may seem cruel when you consider that a Transwoman going back to male would no longer have the breasts and shape that months or years of hormones had produced, or a Tran's male would regrow breasts that surgery had removed. We discovered that we could safely run the permanent process, three weeks after the temporary process, so the patients found a way to be patient. Occasionally, we did find a GD patient being cured by the temporary process. A couple of weeks in the other gender's shoes was enough.

Eventually, we no longer needed to reach out. Word of mouth was enough to continue with our research. That was also the time we started finding non GD patients who were interested in our services. Like I told you when we first met, some people wanted to go through the process to help out a friend. But some people were just curious. In a way, they wanted to take a vacation as another gender. We were very worried about the perceived negatives of allowing "the curious" as we started calling them, to go through the process, but the benefits in research was overwhelming. That is when it was proposed that people on staff would volunteer to rotate through our process so we could have firsthand knowledge of what our clients would be going through.

Jason, at the time I was a 55 year old, married, heterosexual, father of two adult children. But, I had another child, an adopted one. This company. I wanted to help people with very difficult problems and I was seeing some far-reaching success. I went home and spent a weekend talking it over with my wife. I became our first volunteer.

One of our early consultants, and the person who proposed the voluntary rotation was a highly accomplished psychiatrist, Dr. Rebecca Fleming. You see, our counselors aren't just brassiere and panty hose coaches. They are an important part of our ongoing research. The perception may have been that we were giving you extraordinary customer service, but what we're really doing is everything we can to make it better for our next patient. Dr. Fleming...Rebecca has some credible concerns about you."

"I'm fine Dr. Jacobs."

"Possibly Jason. If not, I'm here to help you, perhaps in a way that no one else can. She told me about the phone call that took place between the two of you on your second day in Hawaii. She did not speak to you again until yesterday morning although you did send her some follow up texts explaining that everything worked out. You arrived back to Seattle many hours early and by yourself. Your body language as well as the tone of your speech indicated someone in an emotional state.

Rebecca is very good at her job. She believes that you initiated a sexual relationship with Daniel Armstrong. The lack of verbal follow up by you leads her to believe that the liaison continued throughout the trip, at least till your last night together. The early return along with the angst that you are projecting makes her suspect that either something happened between the two of you, or something happened with just you."

"Dr. Jacobs, I am fine! It was a great trip. Yes, Jaci and Danny had sex, but they did plenty of things together that wasn't in bed. I just wanted to come home, I just wanted to sleep in my own bed."

"Stop it Jason. Stop hiding behind those "in the third person" crap. Jason, you had sexual relations with your best friend. Now, I realize that there are extenuating circumstances involved, but you still were intimate with your buddy, your pal, your bro. Do you really think that has zero ramifications? Do you have a confidant, someone you trust enough to talk about this with in case you are having problems? I'm guessing that Daniel is that person in your life and that this isn't something you would want to bring up with your parents."

"OK! OK! ... Ok, I just had to leave. I'm really not sure why. I couldn't face his parents again. I couldn't make small talk with him on the plane. The quicker I became Jason again, the quicker I wouldn't have to think about Hawaii anymore."

He pulled his chair closer to me and put his hand on my shoulder.

"Jason, I think I can help you. Let me tell you what I have been through. Today Jason. Your trip, your experience, you and me right now. This is why I let Peri come and visit every six months. I may not have gone through exactly what you have, but my experiences are close enough for you to understand that you really are ok. Would that be all right Jason?"

I realized that my heart was racing. I had to take in a few deep breaths before I was able to blurt out a "Sure."

Dr. Jacobs then told me his story.

"The first time that I went through the process, we didn't have any counselors. During our planning sessions, I realized I had little knowledge about living as a woman. We decided that my wife Abby would assist me with my transition. Of course, we didn't know what I would look like or what size I might be so all we could do ahead of time was talk through what my expectations might be. We decided to start out with a one week process. Enough time to figure things out but not so long that I would have any major problems.

Abby came in to see me that first time after I got out of the shower. That became our tradition for our future counselors. Her first words to me were "Jeez, you need to get your hair done." She then immediately made me an appointment with her stylist. That was the very first light breeze of anxiety that blew across my brow.

We did have a seamstress ready to take my new measurements. Being a Doctor, I never really had an issue being naked in front of people if there was a valid reason, but being naked in front of my wife with breasts and no penis was my next wave of anxiety. It was very fortunate that we had not yet figured out having a Cosmetician with hot wax available was needed, because I don't think Peri could have handled it.

Once we had the numbers, my wife wrote out a list of needed items and sent one of our lab assistants out to get them. In advance, we had purchased several different sizes of underwear, so my wife was able to hand me my first pair of panties to put on before I put my robe back on. While we waited for my new clothes, we just sat and talked. From my point of view, I was just jawing with my bride. My hair was longer, I was shorter, and my voice sounded strange, but it wasn't really anything new to me. But I could see some unusual expressions on her face. I guessed that she was having some anxiety as well.

My clothes came and another tradition was born. Jeans and a t-shirt is our standard outfit for M's to F's. Chinos and button down shirts for F's to M's. Abby was kind to me and had me start out with flats but she insisted that I put on a bra correctly from the get go. Eventually I was dressed. That first afternoon is why we bring in beauticians. For a straight guy who has no problem with Sports Clips the salon was an ultimate fish out of water experience. Going through styling books with my wife speaking some kind of foreign language. Bobs, bangs, shags, pixie, layers. I had to sit through a hair styling which seemed to take forever. And that was followed up by a manicure and pedicure. French tips my first time.

Then we hit the mall. Abby was really enjoying herself. I wasn't miserable, but I didn't understand her happiness. I received my first of several makeup lessons at the Chanel counter at Neiman Marcus. She bought me way too much clothes for one week, but she said "You're going to be back in six months Peri. Don't get fat."

In case you're interested in where Peri came from...my legal name is actually Peter Perry Jacobs. My parents didn't mind the double 'P'. Responding to Peri was not a stretch.

That first week Abby had me dress professionally for work. That meant dresses and skirts under my lab coat, along with pantyhose and two inch heels. Everyone in the company knew that Peri was Peter but I still was treated differently. My shopping trip had been mid-week so I didn't really notice too many men, so I didn't get the "stare" till I came to work. I find it disconcerting at work which is why Peri switched to mostly scrubs.

During that week, Abby and I got along fine, but platonically. The first few days she was pretty reserved but she warmed up to realizing that I was still there. We still slept in the same bad, but she was on her side and I was on mine. A peck on the cheek goodnight, a quick hug before leaving for work. Our weekend together wasn't anything too different. We shopped for food, did household chores and we went out to dinner and a movie. While waiting for our table, two gentlemen did try to chat us up, but Abby flashed her ring at them. The next day, I found my mother's rings which I was saving for a future daughter in law or granddaughter, and slid them on to my left hand.

The last night, we both were sitting on the couch watching TV. She snuggled up to me like she normally would do. During a commercial, I leaned over and gave her a real kiss which she responded back to. "Interesting" she said, and went back to watching the show. Peter came home the next night, and except for the new clothes in my closet, life went back to normal.

Six months later, it was decided I would go for a two week process. A few days before the switch, I noticed my wife was very cheerful. Since I had already gone through the treatment, I didn't think it was necessary for Abby to be there this time. She was fine with that. When I left for work that day she said "Tell Peri don't be late, I'm making a special dinner tomorrow, just for her."

I brought with me one of Peri's outfits. We were now experienced enough to bring in a beautician, so after my shower I was able to change and then get my hair and nails done. We also had our arrangement with the DMV in place so in my purse was a driver's license in Peri's name.

When I got home, the house smelled wonderful. Abby was wearing this beautiful red dress that I had bought her for our anniversary. She had made Coq Au Vin and had popped the cork on some Dom Perignon. "Peri, I'm so glad your home. I hope you're hungry." She gave me a big hug and a smooch on the lips. The food was great and the wine disappeared. After dinner she told me "I got you a present. It's on the couch in the living room. Go look. I'll be back in a minute."

I found a gift wrapped box. There was a card which I opened and it said "To my beautiful wife" and it was signed "Love, Abby." I tore open the box and inside was a light blue silk chemise. I was still trying to process the present when Abby walked into the living room wearing a black see through baby doll negligee. She sat down next to me and swung he legs up onto my lap. "Do you like it Peri baby?"

I was stunned. I began to say "Abby, I don't..." She interrupted me. "Peri honey, Peter and I have been doing just fine, but I've been dreaming about this night for months. That last night that you were here, I realized that I loved you and not as a friend or a sister. You are the person I love and I want to make you happy and I want you to make me happy. So why don't you go upstairs and try that on. I will finish up down here and join you." She then gave me the most tender and romantic kiss that we had shared in many years. She then bounced up and said "Go...Go."

Now this may surprise you, but during that first week as Peri, not one sexual thought the entire time. I was too busy with makeup and heels and men staring and trying to document my experiences. Not even that last night when Abby and I kissed. It didn't move my needle but apparently it moved hers. But between the babydoll, the kiss and the realization that there was going to be some bedroom action, my new motor was running. I was amazed that I could even make it up the stairs without swooning. I tore off my clothes and put on the chemise. I went into the bathroom to take a look at myself. In a way, this was the very first time that I was truly Peri. Up to then, I felt more like Peri/Peter. But there was nothing male about my reflection.

When I went back into the bedroom, she was in bed lying on her side. "Oh baby, you look so pretty. I knew the blue would bring out your eyes. Why don't you come over here so I can get a better look."

Jason, I'm your doctor, so I will try to be somewhat professional. Suffice it to say that Abby and I made awkward but wonderful love for several hours. I performed cunnilingus on my bride for the first time since our 10th anniversary. I had several amazing female orgasms. Talk about your worthwhile research. During the two weeks, we were intimate most nights except for when we were too exhausted from lack of sleep. We tried to get better. We went to an adult store and bought lesbian porn. Not the kind made for guys, but the real stuff that two girls do, that we could try together. We went back and bought toys. Abby showed me how to use a vibrator. We tried something called Ben Wa balls to very satisfactory results. And yes, we bought a strap-on.

When Peter returned, this time we didn't go back to normal. Before Peri, we probably had sex once a month at most. Maybe twice a month if there was a birthday or an anniversary. We weren't as adventurous as Abby and Peri, but we were now having marital relations at least once a week. And we tried positions and techniques that we had never done in our marriage before.

Months later, our staff agreed that it was time for me to try the whole month. When I told Abby, she seemed happy about it, but her reaction was a bit subdued. But that first night when Peri came home, we went at it like a pair of mad dogs. The next night when I came home, she was waiting for me out on the deck with a pitcher of margaritas. After the first round and some small talk she turned to me and said "Peri, I love you madly. I would never do anything that would cause you any pain. But these last few months with Peter showed me something. You're going to be here for a whole month my love. That's a pretty long time. Baby, I need a man." I stared at her for a while and barely could reply "Wh...what?"

"Baby, I'm going to need a man. And I think you do too." She saw the shocked look on my face. "Sweetie, I love you more than anything. And I would never cheat on Peter. But is it cheating if you're with me? And I would never cuckold Peter. But that wouldn't be true if you were participating."