"Hey Molly, what's up?"

"Edgar!" Molly swings around, waving to your mutual friend. You can't move, you're too afraid. You were bravely strutting down the mall corridor just a moment ago but the prospect of your best friend seeing you all dolled up like a little sissy makes your confidence waver as your knees begin to quiver. You clutch your purse nervously in front of you, totally frozen in a bundle of nerves at this new development. Without warning Molly grabs your shoulder and spins you around. Your panic gives way to shock as your eyes fall on Edgar. He's changed a lot since you last saw him. He was already starting to look a little trimmer and seemed way more energetic, but now you can clearly see tight, wiry muscle developing nicely in his arms and shoulders. He's not super jacked like Chris, but he's on his way, you think. His posture is totally different as well. He's always been a little taller than you, but now he's standing up straight, he seems to tower over you as he approaches. You never realized just how broad-shouldered your old friend is. Gone is the old nerdy stoner couch potato you met in kindergarten, now that he's spending so much time in the gym, he's developing into a hot, hunky young man. His style is different as well, he usually rocked the same lame but funny graphic tees as you, several sizes too big to hide is pudgy midsection. Now he's wearing a tight and stylish purple short sleeve shirt that shows off his burgeoning biceps with tight black pants and trendy sneakers, his gut hasn't completely gone away yet, but he's made a lot of progress. As you quiver, looking Edgar up and down, waiting for the hammer to fall, your eyes fall once again on his strong, manly arms. I just want him to hold me. The thought surprises you as it bubbles unbidden to the surface of your mind. You've never really thought of your friend that way, or any other guys for that matter. But something about those broad shoulders seems so inviting to you now, as your knees quake before the gaze of your approaching friend.

"Yo!" He says to Molly as he arrives in front of the three of you. "Hi Ms. Palmer." He says turning toward your mother with a polite smile and wave. As his eyes settle on you, standing there meekly fiddling with the strap to your new purse, you feel your face heating up, preparing for the moment he recognizes you. Strangely the moment never comes. Your friend looks you up and down, your heart threatening to burst forth from your chest, but his face never changes from a look of pleasant curiosity. "And who is this little cutie?" He asks, making your knees weak to be called a cutie, while at the same time making you wonder where this new assertiveness came from. Edgar would've been way more shy before this transformation at the hands of Chris.

Oh my god. You think frantically. He doesn't recognize me!!! You don't know what to do now. You just stand there, wide-eyed as your friend smiles pleasantly, waiting for an answer. You open your mouth to say something but nothing at all comes out. Before you can decide how to handle this Molly throws an arm around your shoulder.

"IT'S QUINN!" She shouts, renewing your acute sense of alarm once more. "Isn't she adooooooorable?!" Molly continues to gush as you stare at Edgar, too mortified to speak. His face shifts first to one of recognition and then **** surprise.

"Quinn?... She?..." He says, a little confused. "W-wow..." He trails off as he just stares back at you now.

"H-hi, Edgar..." You finally manage to say, turning red again, completely humiliated and embarrassed.

"I-I didn't know..." He takes a deep breath and forces himself to focus on who you are, despite your appearance as a pretty young girl. "Dude, like... you're wearing a dress. Do you do that now? We've known each other a long time, when did this happen?" Molly gives him a playful punch in the shoulder.

"Be nice!" She says, giggling.

"Ow! I'm just asking. It's kind of a shock." He says rubbing his shoulder in mock show of pain.

"It's a somewhat recent development." Your mother says, smiling wickedly at your predicament.

"I-I..." You stammer and hesitate. "I like... c-cute things... s-sometimes." You stutter and stammer and barely get the sentence out. You feel yourself scrunching up trying to make yourself appear smaller and smaller, so maybe you can just disappear totally.

"Oh..." Edgar says, as he collects himself once more, he smiles at you. "Well that's OK then I suppose. I didn't know you were into stuff like this. But you do look really cute." He gives you a charming wink as he says the final sentence.

"Th-thanks." You say as your legs wobble beneath you.

"You doing anything Ed?" Molly says. "We were about to grab a late lunch before Quinn's mom has to take me home. Wanna come?" Edgar shrugs.

"Sure, I was just hanging out." He says, flashing you another friendly smile. "Me and you need to catch up anyway, been ages since we last talked." He says facing you now.

"Yeah." You say, finally acclimating to the situation. The four of you proceed outside the mall and take a short walk to a local diner near the mall. The four of you sit down, and you try to pick something off the menu that isn't too messy, worried you might ruin your dress.

"Hey there." A bubbly young girl about your age in a red uniform with a black apron appears beside your table. "What can I get you guys?" Your mother orders first, then Edgar, sitting across from her, then Molly next to him. "And for you miss?" The waitress says with no hesitation coming around to you. You hesitate a little, not really prepared. You suppose you do look like a cute girl after all your pampering, and you put up with Molly calling you a girl sometimes, but now a stranger has just readily accepted you're a girl without having to be prompted by Molly or your mother. Something you weren't totally prepared for.

"Umm... I'll just have a grilled chicken sandwich and an iced tea." You finally say in a meek voice. The waitress just smiles and writes down your order before heading off to grab your drinks. Edgar asks a few more questions, but nothing too embarrassing. As you eat and talk, you slowly calm down and relax, happy to catch up with your old friend. He tells you about his gym routine and how much better he feels now he's getting healthy and fit with Chris. Chris really is a great trainer it seems. After you finish eating, thankful to have not gotten anything on your new dress, you head to the bathrooms to wash your hands. Which presents you with an interesting dilemma as you realize you don't look like you belong in a men's room right now. You hesitate for a moment before the two doors but ultimately decide to head into the men's, opting for familiarity over what does seem like the logical choice at the moment.

You walk into the men's room which thankfully seems empty. You walk up to the sink and begin washing your hands. You check your makeup in the mirror and spend a few minutes looking at your extremely cute reflection for a moment. You jump and turn quickly when you hear the door open. A middle aged man, smelling of smoke, and extremely overweight, walks into the bathroom with you. He pauses for a moment as he sees you, considers it might be his own mistake, until he looks toward the urinal on the wall. After he recovers, he looks at you again. His flabby features tighten into an unnerving smile as he looks at you with a lustful expression.

"Well, well, well..." He says in a raspy, disgusting voice. "It looks like you're in the wrong room, young lady." He advances toward you, making you quiver as you look up at his frog-like face. You're frozen, unable to move for a moment, but as his sausage-fingered hands reach out to touch you, you find footing once more and dash around him. He almost slips and falls over as he tries to make a lunge to grab you. The narrow confines of the small diner's bathroom aren't enough to avoid even him and he lays a flabby hand on your shoulder and pulls you off balance. Lunging once more he wraps his arms around you. You struggle but you're unable to do anything against such a heavy opponent as he pins you against the wall. You let out a cry for help but he quickly covers your mouth with a hand while using his mass to keep you pinned to the wall. His other hand begins to wander up and down your form, groping your ass, grabbing at your non-existent breasts. You continue to scream into his hand as panic rises within you.

"HEY MOTHER FUCKER!" You hear a loud voice which surprises the man. He ceases his fondling and turns around only to be pulled bodily away from you. You suck air as his hand leaves your face, finally able to breath normally again. You look up and see Edgar and your heart soars. He has the man against the far wall of the bathroom as he lands blow after blow on the frogface of your would be molester. At first the frogman cries out in pain but soon his senses leave him and his knees buckle as he slumps to the ground under Edgar's onslaught. Edgar stands over him, victorious, his wide chest heaving up and down. You stand looking at him, amazed, and more than a little grateful. He walks over to your still quivering form and you throw your arms around him, you need someone to hug you right now. He wraps his arms around you in response and you bury your face in his strong shoulder. Tears begin to form in your eyes as you begin to sob, struggling to process what the hell just happened. "Shh, Quinn. It's alright now." He says in a gentle, comforting voice as he rubs your back. You two stay like that for a while, your old friend just holds you. You never realized Edgar was so brave or so gentle and sweet. After an eternity in his arms you lean back and look up at him for a moment. His face is twisted in a look of deep concern.

He's just such a great guy. You think to yourself. I can't believe he just saved me like that. Overcome with gratitude and the adrenaline dump from almost getting molested or worse, you stand on your toes for a brief moment and plant a gentle kiss on Edgar's cheek. His look of concern changes to surprise as his eyes widen and he stares at you in stunned silence. You realize what you've done and your eyes bulge out as you turn an embarrassed crimson once more. You look down at the floor, unable to make eye contact, but Edgar's hand comes up and grabs your chin gently between his thumb and index fingers, lifting your gaze to meet his again. His look of surprise has changed to a happy, disarming smile.

"That's alright, Quinn." He says. "It wasn't such a bad 'thank you.'" He holds you there for a moment but then brings his face closer to yours. Without warning he shoots forward, and his lips meet yours. You're too shocked to react at first, but soon a feeling of infinite bliss overwhelms you completely. Your eyes fall shut and your lips begin to move on pure instinct, returning Edgar's gentle kiss. The moment seems to last many lifetimes, standing there, wrapped in Edgar's embrace, your lips locked together. You feel completely at peace, totally calm and safe in his strong arms. Edgar pulls away first, your eyes slowly open to see that same charming smile once more and you feel your knees turn to jelly. "Hope that will serve as a 'you're welcome.'" You stare back up at him, unable to form a response. He tears his gaze away from you to look back at your would-be assailant, still comatose on the floor. "Why don't you head back to the table Quinn? I'll call the cops and make sure he doesn't leave and follow you home or anything crazy like that." He releases you from the embrace and removes his phone from his pocket.

"Th-thank you so much, Edgar." You finally manage to say as he punches in the number for the local sheriff's department. He looks up at you and smiles, happy to help. You wish you could stay with him, but you don't want to be in the same room with that disgusting man on the floor so you reluctantly walk back out into the diner. You trot quickly back to the table to the worried looks of your mother and Molly.

"Oh sweetie, what happened?" Your mother asks, seeing your makeup slightly streaked from your tears.

"Umm... I was... I was in the bathroom... and... some man came in and tried to grab me." Molly leaps up and quickly wraps you in a comforting embrace.

"Oh my gosh, Quinn! Are you OK?! Where's Edgar?!" She asks frantically.

"He-he saved me. He beat the guy up and he's calling the cops." You sniff as tears begin to form in your eyes once more. "I wanna go home mommy."

"Of course sweetie!" Your mother says, rising quickly to her feet. Luckily the journey home is uneventful. You drop Molly off at her house and head home in silence. You're just not ready to talk to anyone yet and you want to be alone for a while. Your mother tells you to take as much time as you need, then come back downstairs when you're ready to talk about what happened and she'll help you fix your makeup. You thank her and accept a warm hug before walking carefully up the stairs in your new Mary Janes. After taking some time alone to collect yourself, you walk back downstairs and your mother helps you fix your makeup and outfit so you look like a cute little girl dressed in her perfect new dress once again. You explain what happened to your mother, who listens intently and promises to make sure that gross man is punished. You omit the part about you and Edgar kissing for the moment, even though it feels like lying to keep things from your mommy, you don't want to talk about that moment, still unsure if it was real or a dream. Your heart skips a beat when you realize that your first real kiss was with Edgar in that bathroom.