“Uh…” Carla’s came to a sudden stop as she stared at the sight before her. Sitting on a bench by the lake by which she took her morning jog was a blonde girl, seemingly enjoying the fresh morning air. Like Carla, she was also dressed in a light jogging outfit. But unlike Carla, the blonde girl didn’t seem to have a face. Instead, the front of her head was just pale, smooth skin.

Carla cautiously approached the bench, staring at the other girl and her lack of a face. She took a few steps closer, and the girl turned to “face” her. Carla froze. The girl waved at Carla.

“Um… hi.” Carla stammered, waving back awkwardly. “Can you… hear me?”

The girl nodded, brushing back her hair to reveal an ear.

“Oh! Uh… hi.”

The blonde girl’s head perked up. She held up a finger as if to say ‘one moment’, as her other hand went for her pocket. Carla watched curiously as the girl extracted a small rectangular pouch, the same color as the girl’s skin. The girl placed it on her knee and began unfolding it. Carla’s jaw dropped as she realized the package she was watching the girl unravel was actually her folded-up face.

“Hi!” the girl chirped cheerily. “Sorry about that.”

“No, it’s okay… I think.” Carla stammered. She stared down at the girl’s face, lying unfolded on her knee. She noted that, disturbingly, her face had crease lines in it from where it was folded up. “Um… do you mind if I ask…”

“About my face?” the girl laughed, picking her face up from her knee and holding it up to face Carla. “It’s just part of a bet. Or a dare. Same thing.”

“What… sort of bet?” Carla asked, sitting down on the bench beside her.

“Oh, just um…” the girl bit her lip, “You’re gonna think we’re crazy.”

“I might think that either way.” Carla giggled nervously.

“Good point,” The girl laughed, “Well, simply, we bet to see who could go the longest without their face attached.”

“…oh.” Carla was lost for words. “So you and your friend… both know magic?”

“Well, duh.” The girl giggled, “How else would my face be like this?” She waved the thin layer of skin around.

“I mean… I dunno.” Carla bit her lip. “I don’t know magic so…”

“Do you want to?” the girl asked.

“…maybe? It’s sorta interesting… I mean, all… this.” Carla gestured at the girl’s face. “What is it like?”

“Wanna find out?” The girl asked. Her intent was all too clear, written into her face by her grin.

Carla paused for a second. “It’s… reversible, right?”

“Of course.”

“…then… sure, why not?” Carla smiled nervously.

“Okay, hold still.” The girl grinned.

Carla bit her lip and held her head as still as she could, as the girl reached up to her face. She felt the girl touch the side of her cheek, and pinch. Then, slowly, Carla felt her face peeling off of her head, like it was nothing more than a sticker. Her eyes went wide as her vision involuntarily went skyward. There was a slight snapping sound as the last of her face popped off, and she found her eyes staring into each other as her face folded in on itself.

Carla’s hands reached up to her head, to feel for her face, but all her fingertips could find was smooth, unbroken skin, with no trace of her face upon it. She reached out, and she felt her face being deposited into her hands. Carla felt her face crumple in on itself as it fell into her outstretched palm. Delicately, she unfolded her face, and held it up. She found herself face-to-face with the girl, holding up her own face to meet her.

“So, whaddya think?” the girl grinned.

“Uh…” Carla stammered. “W…wow. I… my face!”

“It’s pretty awesome, isn’t it?”

“I… yeah, I…” Carla was lost for words. Her eyes darted around crazily, trying to soak in this new experience. She wriggled her hand around a bit, and her face wobbled in her grip. “My face! It’s like… cloth, sorta but… still skin.”

“Yeah. You can fold it up, if you want.” The girl laughed, “Just don’t keep it folded up for too long or you’ll end up with crease marks, like me.” She frowned.

“Um… is that… a problem?” Carla asked.

“Not really?” the girl shrugged, “I can fix it in a few minutes with an iron, it’s just a pain.”

“An iron?” Carla winced, letting out a short shriek as she dropped her face. It landed in her lap, fortunately. She quickly picked her face back up. “Wouldn’t that hurt?”

“Nah. The magic sorta makes our faces like… indestructible.” The girl dismissed Carla’s concerns. “But the ironing does suck a little. If I’m not careful, I could flatten out my nose.”

“Wh… what would you do if that happened?” Carla asked, worried. She hadn’t considered all the strange new problems she would have with a detached face.

“Eh… depends how lazy I’m feeling. It’s not like missing my nose is the end of the world.” She laughed.

Carla felt strangely relaxed with the girls’ nonchalance. “So… you can fix anything, then.”

“Well, yeah. I mean, I’ve dropped my face in the blender once.”

“Wha… how…”

“It was on purpose!” the girl said, as if though it was a reassuring statement, “And as you can clearly see, my face is still here.”

“Right…” Carla frowned. “So… how long have you been on this bet for?”

“Um… three months, now.”

Carla’s eyes bulged. “What… you’ve been faceless for three months?”

“Yup!” the girl said, proudly.

“Isn’t it… inconvenient?”

“I mean, sure, but it’s also fun!” she laughed, “Don’t you think?”

“Um…” Carla paused to consider her situation. She flipped her face around in her hands, so she could stare backwards at her own blank head. She was holding her own disembodied face in her hands. Her face was not on her head. The absurdity of this reality fascinated her.

She flipped her face back around to look at the girl. “Alright, fine. It’s pretty great.” Carla laughed.

“By the way, what’s your name? I’m Lisa.” The girl said.

“Carla.” The two shook hands.

“So, have I found a fellow magic aficionado?” Lisa asked.

“Maybe…” Carla giggled, “This is pretty fun. If you hadn’t already been going for three months, I might ask to see if I could join the bet.”

“You… might not want that, anyway.” Lisa giggled, “The loser has to give up her boobs to the winner.”

“O… oh.” Carla’s eyes widened. “Yeah… maybe not.” She hesitated for a moment, eyes glancing down at Lisa’s absolute flat-chestedness.

Lisa caught her gaze. “You’re wondering why anyone would want my non-boobs, aren’t you?”

“I uh…” Carla stammered. Before she could formulate a polite reply, however, Lisa was already lifting up her shirt. Carla tried to avert her eyes, but Lisa had already successfully flashed her. And there was nothing there. Lisa’s chest was totally flat, lacking even her nipples.

“I took them off to go jogging.” Lisa giggled, “I’m not actually this flat.”

“Oh…” Carla said, lost for words. She fell silent for a moment, as she wondered what it would be like to have her breasts detached from her chest.

“Were you just wondering what it’d be like to have your boobs detached?” Lisa winked.

“I…” Carla blushed red. “Well… like you said, it’d… be easier for jogging…”

“I can help with that, if you want.” Lisa giggled, “Well, if you’re okay with me touching your chest.”

“Maybe some other time.” Carla bit her lip. “So… can you just… take anything off?”

“Yup!” Lisa grinned. Grabbing her right shoulder with her free hand, she simply yanked off her arm. “Anything goes!” Lisa waved her disembodied arm at Carla before reattaching it.

“That’s so cool… I wish I could do that.” Carla giggled.

“Want me to teach you?” Lisa suggested.

“You can… do that?” Carla asked, surprised. “I thought magic had to be… I dunno. Like you were a witch, or something.”

“Nah.” Lisa waved her off. “It takes awhile to learn, but you should be able to with enough practice. Then you can take yourself apart whenever you want! Even take off your own boobs.”

“Then… yeah, sure. Teach me!” Carla said, excitedly.

“Awesome!” Lisa grinned.

“Are you free today? Wanna come back to my place?” Carla asked.

“Whoah now. How about dinner and a movie first?” Lisa joked.

“Oh!” Carla blushed, “I didn’t…”

“Hey, I’m always open to trying something out.” Lisa winked, “But let’s start with some magic lessons, first.”

“Yeah.” Carla grinned, standing up. “Let’s go!”

“Do you want me to put your face back first?” Lisa asked.

Carla thought for a moment. “Nah. I know the way home.” Carla grinned as she folded her face up and stuck it in her pocket.

Lisa grinned, as she did the same.