Try and press the white button for yourself

You take the camera back and push the white button on the screen's side.

You feel a warmth enveloping your whole body, followed by a little vertigo. For less than a second, all your senses are numbed, your view clouded by thousands of tiny dots. As it quickly disperses, you have the oddest feeling that your point of view is closer to the ground.

You blink a few times as Onyx in front of you suddenly jumps from her chair, a hand muffing a short scream. You've never seen such an expression on her face. It is pure fear written in her eyes.

"What?" You ask, worried.

Your voice sounds a few octaves higher than you expected. At the same time, it seems a million pieces of information are traveling to your brain all at once. You start to notice how weird your clothes are squeezing your skin, how the weight of each part of your body feels wrong, how the room feels colder than a few seconds ago, how your lungs seem to fill themselves quicker, how you don't feel as hungry as you were, but also more tired… the taste in your mouth, the colors around you, the backache, the air on your skin, even the smells!

Scared of what you might see, you raise a hand in front of your face. This is not your hand. You don't need the black nail polish to realize that. Your heart starts pumping like crazy as you look down. Under a black shirt, two bumps are concealing the upper part of your stomach. A wide opening confirms they are part of your body. You're now fully panicking, touching your newly acquired boobs, your fair skin, and your empty crotch. The foreign sensations are not calming you in the slightest.

Onyx is first to get out of her torpor, rushing to the door. You expect her to get the hell out, but instead, she turns the key, puts the "We're closed" sign on it, and shuts the blinds.

As she turns back to you, you can't help but yell louder and higher than you would like.

"I'M A GIRL!"

"YOU'RE ME!" She screams back to you with the same panic in her voice.

"I'M YOU?" It was obvious from the clothes and big raven tattoo that appeared on your right arm, but still, the surprise of your friend acknowledging it hits you.

You take a few minutes to try and calm yourself down as hundreds of questions pass through your brain.

How is it possible? Is it what it feels like to be a girl? To be Onyx? Is it magic? Does magic exist? You have boobs… and you don't feel your dick anymore. Does it mean you can get pregnant? If people look at you right now, they'll think you're Onyx, right? Is it alien technology? It doesn't follow any laws of logic. How is it fucking possible??

Onyx, who's first to get her mind under control, interrupts your chain of thoughts: "Okay… before anything, let's see if we can change you back. Where's the camera?"

Your mind has finally something else to focus on other than your body. Shit! You didn't even realize you let the camera slip from your hands in the middle of it. The device lies on the floor, in front of your newly acquired Doc Martens.

"You dropped it?!"

You carefully grab it, praying with all your might that the old rug it landed on absorbed enough of the shock. Your back hurts as you lean forward, and you can feel your new breasts' attraction toward the ground. The camera doesn't have visible damage at least.

"Is it still working?" Onyx's voice is sharp and inquisitive.

"I don't know, it looks the same!" Yours is plaintive. It sounds even higher than her own for some reason.

"Try it again. Maybe it will reverse you back."

The screen is still showing the same copy of Onyx, so somehow you're not convinced. You press it anyway and feel the same feeling once again. A warm tingling, and a little vertigo numbing your senses for a short instant. But as you look at yourself once again, you're still a girl.

"Is it broken?"

"I don't think so, I felt it. But it's still you on the screen."

"Can I try?"

You let her have a go, as you're impatient to find a solution. She takes a better look at the camera, turning it in all possible angles.

"There's really only two buttons on this thing. And I don't see any visible openings…"

She aims the lens at you and clicks on the trigger. You feel the other sensation for the first time. Instead of warm, it feels a bit cold, like a quick draft of air, and you shudder.

"No dice. It's still me on the screen. I guess that makes sense." She says, matter-of-factly.

The implications of being stuck as a clone of your friend are slowly creeping into your mind, but you refuse to let yourself down so quickly.

"Oh, I know! We can simply use a picture of you! Show me your phone."

You're not sure you have a recent photo of you on your phone but it's worth a try. As you reach for your pocket, you have a sad realization: your newly acquired jean shorts' pockets are empty, only for a few coins. They're so small, your phones would have never fit inside anyway.

"I-I don't have it. I'm sure I took it with me before heading out!"

"What? How is it possible? Is it even physically possible?" Onyx asks, apparently not fully grasping how far you guys are from the realm of possibilities.

"I don't know if you've noticed, but I'm literally wearing the same clothes you are. All I have on me are those few coins I didn't have on me before." You say as you take them out of your tiny pocket, not without difficulties.

"It's the changes I got from my lunch break. The exact amount. The camera must copy only what the target wears on themselves."

"I don't have a copy of your phone though."

"My phone is on the desk. It doesn't fit in that outfit, so I generally keep it in my bag." She responds. "Wait a minute. I must have an old picture of you on my phone now that I think about it. You know, from Eric's farewell party."

Eric was an old friend from high school. He went to study abroad and you had a great party before his departure. You're not a big fan of big parties, but that one was an exception, as it was filled with only nice and chill people.

"You realize it was like, 3 years ago?" You complain.

"Better that than my twin sister. You can't imagine how creepy it is for me right now." She says as she scrolls on her phone.

You make a sour face at that comment.

"Okay, I can see how it wasn't the best remark. Anyway, you didn't change much in 4 years, honestly. It was after your big spurt, and the few facial hairs you call a beard will be back soon enough." She adds, trying to lighten the mood.

Honestly, it does. Talking like normal helps you get some pressure off your back. Onyx holds her phone in front of the camera. You hear the button click, but her facial expression is not reassuring.

"It didn't work, right?" You feel your heart sinking in your chest.

"Hey, don't give up so quickly. The photo was honestly not the best quality, and I'm sure we have other options." She tries to cheer you up. "Stay here for a minute, I'll be back."

She opens the door and darts out, the camera in her hands. You try to ask her where she goes but too late and too meekly. As you wait, you find an old dusty mirror in the back of the store. You approach it to find Onyx back in front of you… well, it's really just your reflection. Seeing someone else in a mirror is a much more jarring experience than you expected. As you see your friend mimicking each of your movements, you realize how weird it must feel for her too. She's keeping it as cool as possible, knowing how much more it affects you. Nonetheless, imagining seeing a perfect replica of yourself is indeed creepy as hell.

The longer you look, you start to notice small differences though. Not in look per se, but in your stand and your expression. Someone knowing Onyx well enough would probably call her sick. Your back is too arched for a start. As you straighten, you notice your aching is subsiding a bit. She sometimes complains about it, and you can recall thinking she must be exaggerating. Well, you feel stupid now. If anything, she doesn't complain half enough. It is quite an extraordinary thing, to be able to know exactly what your friend was feeling all this time. You adjust a few other positions until you recognize her typical nonchalant demeanor that many people might interpret as contempt. It isn't as difficult as you expected. As for her expression, you try to focus on the subtle half-smile she often does when she's in a good mood. Voilà, the illusion is finally perfect. The real difficulty would be to remember all those small details and maintain them for long enough… not that you entertain the idea of trying to pass as Onyx.

As you realize you're still alone, your curiosity takes the better of you. You start by taking some risque poses while smiling at the mirror. The spectacle is unbelievable. Never would you expect Onyx to make such loud expressions. You start groping yourself again. Less afraid than you were a few minutes ago, and watching your attractive friend doing the same in front of you, your reaction is, however, not the same. Your heart's racing again but for a new reason entirely. Arousal might express itself differently in a female body, the internal feeling is quite similar. As you massage your decent-sized breasts, you start feeling your nipples hardening despite being hidden by your bra. You guess asexual doesn't mean impervious to sexual excitement, or at least it must depend on the mind rather than the body. A warm humidity slowly grows around your crotch. You're getting wet!

Suddenly, the door slams. You try to recompose yourself as fast as you can, but as you look into Onyx's gaze, you know you've been caught red-handed.

"Wall, seriously!" She scowls at you.

"I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to, I swear!" You feel your borrowed face reddening instantly.

She sighs. "I understand you must be curious, and technically it's your body. But I'd really appreciate it if you could control yourself. It feels like the ultimate invasion of privacy."

You look down, ashamed of yourself. You're glad your friend takes it that well.

"Anyway," she continues, changing the subject. "I'm sorry I took so long, I was looking for a good option but there's not a lot of people around at this time of the day."

"What do you mean?"

"We needed to see if it works on someone else. Good news it does." She announces, showing you the viewscreen.

On it, you notice that it isn't Onyx anymore, but what looks like a blonde woman wearing a gym outfit.

"I tried on a billboard to see if a better-looking picture would work, but it didn't. That was the only passer-by I found. I waited a little longer to find you a male body, but the only ones were an 80-year-old man and a 6-year-old with his mother, and I don't think either option would have been safe…"

You interject, understanding what she implies: "Wait a minute, you want me to transform into someone else? Into that woman?"

"Well yeah, for now. I'm sure we'll find a way to change you back, but for now, you need an appearance, and we can't leave as two of me…"