Jessica had been by her friend's side as best as she could for several days now.  He had been in a very serious auto accident.  While she had been in the car as well, the way the other car hit left her with nothing more than a few scratches and bruises.

But not him.  She had been in with him when the doctors told him his situation, and the subsequent updates.

The fact was, he was going to be paralyzed below the waist for the rest of his life.  Not only that, he'd be mired with other serious conditions that would serious impact the quality of his life.

She had seen the look on his face when he heard the news and how he was doing.  Each time, it seemed like they found something new and terrifying that the accident had caused.  She saw that he refused to break down, refused to do more than tear up a little, but she could tell just how crushing this all was to him.

Right now, though, he was sleeping.  She got up, putting on her shoes, and walked into the hall of the floor he was on.  She wanted to punch a wall at the moment, but knew that would do nothing more than hurt her hand.  Plus, it wasn't the damn wall she wanted to hurt.  It was the asshole that did this to her friend.

While her friend Jack didn't know who the man was, Jessica did.  She had actually gone to school with the man who hurt her friend.  It was this high-end private school that only the rich of this city could afford.  Whlie her and the other man were both from money, their respective families got them in very different ways.  Her father was a neurosurgeon and his mother was a very savvy investor with a very ethical and profitable investment strategy.  The man's father was an egoistical, psychopathic nepo baby who got his money screwing over the people who actually knew how to make money, and the man's, whose name she didn't remember, was exactly like him.  Even now, he was trying to figure out a way to sue Jack for the damages to his car!  She fumed at the chutzpah of this guy.

If there was only a way to get back at this guy for what he did to Jack, she thought.  She frowned, realizing she needed to clear her head and get something to eat.  She took the elevator down to the ground floor and walked to the cafeteria.  She bought some chicken alfredo and a bottle of iced tea and walked to an empty table and started to eat.

As she ate, she realized she should call her dad.  After all, he might know some information about if there was a way to help Jack with the paralysis.  Anything, even if it was experimental.  She knew that wouldn't likely be covered by insurance, and she'd see what she could do to help.  While Jack did make a good living as an electrical engineer, he was hardly wealthy.

She then stopped, remembering something her dad had told her.  Some new thing a medical startup had created.  Both him and his mom had passed on funding it, since the ethics of it not established enough for them to feel comfortable, but it was a start.

Lucky for her, she remembered the name of the place.  She found a contact number and gave them a call.

She had hoped that they might have a solution.  When she got a hold of someone and she gave a name, she was immediately put through to what she guessed was one of the owners.  She guessed it was because of her last name.  Damn it.  They probably thought she was calling on behalf of her parents or wanted her to invest.

When she got someone on the other end, who was in fact one of the co-founders of the company, she apologized for any miscommunication and explained her friend's situation.  She didn't really know what to expect.  She was grasping at straws, and she knew it.

So, when she was told that there was, indeed a solution to the problem, she was elated until the man on the other end of the phone explained fully what that solution was.  To say that she was shocked at what the solution was would be a severe understatement.

"So, we can do this, but the other person would be in, well, the same boat the first person was in now.  Not only that, we need to ensure compatibility.  And, even then, we'd need releases making sure that legally everything is above board.  If you can do that, and pay the cost of $500,000, we can do it.  Otherwise..."

"I should be able to pay the cost.  As for the rest, when could you be able to do it?"

"As soon as tomorrow morning, assuming the subjects are compatible.  We've partnered with this hospital before.  They'll want all of this before allowing the procedure."

She smiled as she spoke.

"Make the arrangements.  He's in room 508."

The next day, a representative of the company and two technicians were in Jack's room, setting things up.  Jack, once he was told that this could help him walk again, care nothing for the rest.  He signed all the releases immediately.  Now, she thought, the final piece of the puzzle.

Edwin Church walked arrogantly toward Jessica.  If she didn't hate his guts, she would describe him as handsome, with a tall, athletic build.  She did pay attention to his build for a moment, but there was no attraction there.

"So, I'm very busy.  This better not be a waste of my fucking time."

She smiled warmly at him.

"Jack has agreed to settle.  Here are the forms."

"I see one of you has brains."  She said with a laugh.  He took out a pen and started to sign.

"So, what, are you fucking this loser?  Kind of hard to now that his dick doesn't work anymore."

"We're just friends"  She said.  "And, remember, Edwin..."

"Mr. Church."  He snapped.

"Mr. Church."  She said, keeping up the facade.  "Remember, once this is done, it is done.  Try and sue, you'll find no wiggle room."

"I doubt that."  He said, finishing signing the forms.  He handed them back to her.

"No, the..."

"I'll take those."  The rep said, looking them over.  He smiled.  "Seems to be in order."

He then smiled, watching as a nurse walked up behind him and gave him an injection in his neck.  Before he could explode into rage, he was unconscious.

The RN, a tall, thin woman in her early fifties, looked Jessica as the rep helped her bring him into the room, putting him onto another bed.  Jack was already out from the sedative given to him.  A quick blood test was performed.

"So, given this, it seems that Mr. Church here is not a close enough match for this to work.  At least, not without considerable issues."   The one technician said, who then laid out the problems associated with doing it between the two of them.  Jessica realized the problems immediately after the explanation.

"So, what does that mean?"  Jessica said.  "We have to call it off?"

"I'm afraid so, unless you have someone else."

Jessica was frantic.  She didn't know what to do.  She...

"Test me."  She said.

The technician walked over and took a small sample of blood.  She then smiled.

"Well, you're compatible with both, actually."

"So, I work with both?"  She asked.

"And both work with you."  The rep said.  "So, if you want, here is an idea."

He explained it.

"It is permanent, or at least we the technology to safely reverse it hasn't been fully worked out yet.  So, both have already agreed to this in writing.  I'll need your signatures if you agree."

"Give me the papers."  She said.

A third bed was wheeled in and soon she was sedated as well.

Several days later, Edwin woke up, finding himself in a hospital room.  He wasn't in any pain, but he realized he felt off.  Plus he couldn't feel his legs.  The last thing he remembered was looking at Jessica and that needle in his fucking neck.

He was groggy, and his vision was blurred, but he could see there was someone in front of the bed.  He could barely make out the face, but that wasn't right.  He could see it was someone taller, muscular, but that face, it didn't make any sense.

"Confused?"  Jessica said, her voice sounding a little deeper than when she last spoke.

"What the fuck is going on?"  Edwin tried to shout, but couldn't make it any louder than normal volume.

"Oh, can't yell, Eddy?"  She ask with an evil grin.

"Mister..."

"Oh fuck you!"  Jessica spat out.  "You sociopathic son of a bitch!  Fuck your ego nonsense!  What, you think you're important?  You're a leech, a damn parasite, sucking off of other people's hard work!"

"Well, they should..."

"What?"  Jessica said.  "Do what?  Why don't you stand up and say what they should do!"

He tried to move his legs again and then looked at himself.  She laughed at the shock on his face.

"Notice something a little different?  You were so focused on your own stupid ego, you failed to noticed yourself or me!  Take a real good look!"

He looked at himself, seeing he looked shorter, less fit, and when he looked at her, he knew she wasn't that tall.  Then he realized, that even though she was wearing a jacket, he could see a far more muscular build than she could possibly have.

"Well, since I'm already tired of you trying to figure this out, I'll make it easy.  That's not your body below the neck.  That's Jack's body.  Feel your neck.  You'll feel bandages and stitches under it."

Jessica then pulled down the collar of her zipped up jacket, revealing stitches where her feminine neck ended and where a muscular, manly body began!

"By the way, this is your body, genius.  You weren't compatible with Jack.  So, we had to change the plans.  And, that does mean that your head isn't really compatible with this body.  So, have fun with that!  Anyway, have a nice life!"

She walked out, expecting him to start yelling, or at least try to yell.  Nothing came.  A pity, she thought.

Down the hall, she saw someone sitting on a bench near the elevators.  She smiled warmly, really liking the blue, white, and black dress, navy tights and black ankle boots.

"Ready?"  Jack said as he stood.  She almost cried when she saw that.  Just a few days ago she was certain she'd never see him stand again.  They got into the elevator and went down to the ground level.

When they got in, Jack had to know.

"So, what exactly did you say to him?"

"Just some hard shit.  I didn't want you in there because of just how nasty I was going to get.  You don't know him like I do, he's a truly evil person."

"Confession, I snuck close and heard everything."  Jack said, breathing out heavily.

"Oh."

"I'm not exactly thrilled about what you said, but, I also heard what he said when you had him sign the forms just before this all went down.  So, I'm not exactly going to shed too many tears.  But, his head isn't compatible?  Won' that kill him?"

"Well, no.  But, it does mean that in order to stay healthy, there's a lot of ongoing treatments involved.  Very expensive ones.  Ones that you could never afford.  But, he can.  There was no point in doing this for you if it was just going to eventually wind you up in a place just as bad.  I wasn't going to do that to you."

"So, you gave up your body for me.  Gave up your life as a woman so I could be healthy again."  Jack said.

"I did, yes."  She said.  She smiled, leaned in, and kissed him softly on the cheek.  "And, I'd do it again."