Gunnar meets Margaret Shorthouse

Gunnar relaxed as best he could before his segment came on the evening local news.

"For most of us, puberty is a very dramatic phase of life," came a pleasant female voice. "We may look back fondly on our teenage days, but we're also glad they're over. But what if your puberty wasn't over? What if you were a grown adult, and the next thing you knew, you experienced -- a second puberty?

"That is what has happened to a local man named Gunnar Hart. Dr. Joseph King of Loving Kindness Hospital tries to explain."

Dr. King: "We still have no idea why this happened. All that we can be sure of is that Gunnar has completely stabilized, and is taking all this in stride."

Gunnar frowned. Since when was worrying over "ESP" "taking all this in stride?" Still, he appreciated the fact that the piece was done by the ridiculously pretty newswoman Margaret Shorthouse.

"Gunnar gained tremendous height, weight, and muscle mass in little more than a month. Even his face and voice have changed slightly."

Gunnar: "I always thought I had a nice high rock'n'roll voice; now I think I sound more like Barry White!"

Margaret: "Dr. King calls Gunnar's condition redundant adult immediate puberty, or R-A-I-P. Gunnar Hart may be the world's only known case of R-A-I-P -- and if he has anything to say about it, it will be the last, too. This is Margaret Shorthouse, Loving Kindness Hospital."

Gunnar winced a little at the term, and was glad that at least it had been spelled out, rather than pronounced "rhymes-with-grape." Still, it had been great to joke with Margaret Shorthouse.

As the newscast moved on, Gunnar wondered what would befall him next.