Sometimes, there isn’t anything to do. Some days one has completed all the work they have had to do, fulfilled any social obligations, and aren’t in a mood to work on personal projects. Or, maybe, you have things to do - you just can’t make yourself do them. It’s a special kind of feeling somewhere between peak relaxation and peak self loathing to spend some time just browsing one’s phone, scrolling across social media with no goal in mind. This near-vegetative state can be difficult to break from, beyond the odd laugh from a particularly funny meme or some outside force.

This was the state that Tim found himself approaching that particular afternoon. It had been a bit of a rough day, between a bunch of college courses starting up and some arguments with his parents over the phone, and he needed some time to let his mind settle down. So he was laying on his bed, scrolling across his social media accounts without really looking at anything further beyond that than the phone’s battery level (Sixty percent, plenty with which to veg out as he was presently doing).

He did have some things he could be doing. He had an essay assigned the previous week due at the end of the month that he hadn’t started on. He could chat up some friends. It was the only thing he really had the social media account for - he didn’t have real-life friends to keep up with, and he wasn’t about to go spreading pictures of himself around the internet as if anyone wanted to look at him.

As he browsed, he came across something that the social media platform had decided he’d probably like. Usually, he was annoyed at these posts; he wanted to see posts from people he followed, he didn’t need the platforms trying to promote their ‘influencers’ or shoving advertisements on his feed unsolicited. This time, though, was different.

Rather than the usual irritating advertisements trying to seem ‘cool’ and ‘modern’, or the controversy of the week, or whatever else they usually put up in that slot. Instead, he saw… a selfie? A picture of a young woman, about his age. Something about the photo grabbed him; it didn’t look like there were any filters, just well done lighting and poses, in a picture of an incredibly cute girl.

Tim wasn’t sure why he was so drawn to the picture. It was far from the first nice selfie he’d seen; he did browse social media, after all, even if he didn’t usually participate in it. But something about seeing this cute girl in her cute poses drew him in and wouldn’t let him go. He saved the picture on his phone, then did it again.

He couldn’t help but look at that selfie… and he had an urge he’d never felt before. An urge to take one himself. It was a confusing, nonsensical desire. It wasn’t even to reply to the post with the selfie or anything. But he needed to take one himself - and he didn’t see a reason not to.

He opened the camera app on his phone, and tried to take a presentable picture. He wasn’t much to look at. A bit overweight, some irritating stubble since he didn’t bother to shave yet that week, messy black hair in no particular style. He wasn’t exactly ugly, not that his self esteem would let him see otherwise, but he wasn’t going to win any contests.

He hesitated a moment - was he really going to bother taking a selfie of this? Then he decided that yes, he was. He didn’t have to post it, and he probably could use a few pictures for any applications that required them. Justification in hand, he pressed the button.

He wasn’t expecting the sudden rush of satisfaction any more than he’d expected the sudden urge to snap a picture. It had felt really, really good. So good, in fact, that he didn’t see a reason not to take another. He took another picture of himself, shifting his posture a little so he got less of his body in fram and more focus on his face. It was the least bad looking part of him, in his opinion.

What he didn’t notice was the minor change. It wasn’t much, and he chalked it up to a trick of the light before forgetting it entirely - his face seemed a good bit smoother, less marked by pimples and in a less harsh shape. But then he moved on, taking another selfie.

He stood up, then, taking another picture as he did so. This was shockingly fun, and he wasn’t sure why, but he wasn’t complaining. It was something to do, and he was bored. He took another picture, this one in front of the mirror. A few standing poses, trying to make himself look alright. The transformation continued before his eyes but he was far too wrapped in his task to notice. With every snap, every click of the shutters, his body changed.

After the smoothing of his face, came his figure. His shoulders lost their masculine breadth, and smoothed to a more androgynous cut. The change progressed down his chest, the weight of his body redistributed itself. He lost a bit in the process, but the mild fat that had been on his gut moved, some upwards and some downwards, his hips filling out and his chest doing the same at the same time as his waist thinned.

All Tim noticed of this was that he looked surprisingly nice in the mirror. Maybe he’d been a bit too hard on himself, ragging on his own looks all the time. It was good to stay humble and all, but it didn’t mean you couldn’t acknowledge your positives along with your negatives. Tim started trying a few different poses. First he mimicked that of the girl he’d seen, a hand on the chin, coquettish and casual. Then, he took different poses - hand on the hip, fashion model style. Graduation hat throwing. Assorted other poses, and for each he took another selfie.

He had never been one to focus so much on his own looks, but it felt nice, to let himself feel good about his body for once. Even if, unnoticed and unremarked, his body transformed. His proportions continued to change, and he got a bit shorter. His body looked more like a woman’s than a man’s, by now - or at most, a particularly androgynous man. His legs were longer, shapely…

Tim had to admit, he’d misjudged himself. He looked slimmer than he had in ages, and had he remembered to shave after all? He didn’t really have any hair there. He looked almost pretty. He liked the look, posing some more, and taking a few with his eyes closed - which made it hard to see the continuing transformation.

As his black hair grew out and started to lighten in color, first hitting brown as it brushed at the shoulders and a dirty blonde by the time it passed them, his proportions shifted just a little more, going from androgynous to outright feminine. His face changed a little more, honey brown eyes turning to crystalline sapphires behind closed lids. The most significant change was below decks, though - a certain something between his legs shrank, and pulled inwards, vanishing inside of him and being replaced by a distinctly more feminine set of equipment.

Tim had closed his eyes, but Tabitha opened them. She preened for the mirror, flipping her long blonde hair and looking at her last selfie. It was great, in her opinion, a nice shot that looked like she was stretching after just waking up from a perfect sleep. She would have to post that soon. But she could do better, she thought. She wanted everyone to see her picture, and talk about how pretty she was, and to have that recognized.

She took more pictures. More. More. More. Her clothes turned from casual shirt and slacks to a pretty black dress that highlighted her fair hair and pale skin well, as her shoes became matching black heels. Her hair fell in curtains of blonde locks, with a natural curl. She was cute, she was sexy, and she loved it. She needed others to love it, to love her. She posted picture after picture after picture.

Her thoughts were about little else but being seen, being admired. She couldn’t take pictures anymore. Because she was one. Tabitha had no agency or movement, but was now a simple, gorgeous selfie floating around the internet by repost and sharing between friends, the best way she could have conceived of to spread her beauty.

And to make sure that the internet was populated with more beautiful selfies, just like her - more hypnotically attractive cute girls, making great pictures of themselves and making more…