Carol checked her hairdo one last time before pushing the door open of the Italian restaurant. She said to herself, “Why I am so tensed?” After all, it was her reunion party with her childhood friends Nicole and Martha after more than ten years. A get together back with old pals is always fun, but there was something else playing on her mind which she could not fathom.

She made her way through the narrow alley between the packed tables, trying her best to spot her friends. She murmured to her again, “Would they have changed so much that I would not be able to recognize them?” Then she tried to laugh it off with a shake of her head and headed further.

As she shouldered her way pass the chattering guests and hurrying waiters, she spotted the familiar duo that she had not seen in flesh and blood for years. The gleam on Nicole’s cheeks and the naughty smirk of Martha’s lips had barely changed, though their demeanors look lot mature now.

Carol spread her arms wide as they made eye contact and rushed towards each other to form a giggling and hugging huddle very soon. For a few moments, none of them uttered a single word; as if they were too busy checking out how the faces and their bodies changed under the sun in all these years.

“Nicole, you are still in such a great shape, you still look the same.” Carol exclaimed though she felt a sudden jealousy pang while saying this. Nicole chuckled and embraced Carol again.

Martha giggled and said, “Carol, you still have the best lips in the world, so stop praising Nicole.” She teased Carol as she pulled her cheeks sweetly.

Nicole said, “Settle down, shall we?” As they all realized their giggles and talks were getting them more than required attention from all around.

As they ordered dinner, Nicole secretly announced to Carol, “I have another surprise for you sweetheart!”Carol straightened her hair, in an attempt to look normal. However she felt an unsettling feeling under her skin, as the smirks on Nicole and Martha’s faces were more than just casual ones.

“Well, alright! Here I bring you the surprise of your life lady.” Nicole extended her arms and bowed a little like a magician on stage and waved at someone who was standing behind the pillar next to their table.

Carol followed the wave formed by Nicole’s pointing fingers, as Rey came out from behind the pillar, smiling. The disarming smile exuding out of his dimpled cheeks had not changed even an iota.

It took Carol a few good moments before he could believe her eyes and ears. It was really like a nightmare looming back over her head which she had long forgotten. Suddenly, she felt like stepping back into dark alleys of past which she had brushed past under the carpet for ten years. It all flashed back quickly in front of her eyes.

Rey and Carol were madly in love in their final year of their college and all their buddies knew about their blooming and deep love. Nicole was Carol’s best buddy and it seems that life could not get any better than this heavenly ride.

This was so until Martha happened to them.

Martha was a great jovial person to be with. The only quirky trait of her personality was she being annoyingly stubborn to stick to her argument and have the last word in it by hook or crook.

It was one of those evenings when the girls gathered in a huddle post their Friday dinner for their gossips and Martini.

Nicole said, “Carol, I am so happy for you and Rey. I wish I had a guy like him as well!”

Carol just smiled with a sense of pride, however very the feeling got swept away, thanks to a callous remark from Martha.

“There is nothing like true love, it is all lust and fake”, she callously said taking a puff of her cigarette. Carol got real furious and barked back at her, “you have no idea what crap you are puking out, so just keep your trap shut. You better prove what you are blabbering about.”

Martha was undeterred and she hardly even got affected. She stood up and slowly announced, “I would prove it to you in next couple of days.” She sweetly crushed the half burnt butt of the fag and walked off the room.

Nicole persuaded and asked Carol to shake it off like a childish behavior from Martha’s end and Carol did so. Her faith on Rey was complete and blind.

But the blindfold got blown away in most surprising way the very next day. After a long and tiring day when Carol planned to give a surprise to Rey by going to his place unannounced she lost her faith on a lot of things.

As she opened the door knob with duplicate keys and entered the bedroom, she saw Rey standing with his pants down to his ankles. A girl was down on her knees and caressing his hard manhood with her tongue and lips seductively. Her back was towards Carol so she could not see her face.

After a long silent frozen deadlock of time, Carol dragged herself out of the room with a broken heart and eyes brimmed with tears. She made a promise to herself that day to never fall in love ever again. Rey called her up again and again with stupid excuses of being drunk, hallucinated and confused but Carol was totally deaf ears to him.

She never knew what and how Martha did but eventually she forgave her as for her it was all Rey’s fault.

“Carol, are you still with us or dreaming about someone else?” Martha shook her arm as Carol came back to the present from the mazes of past with that shake of the hand. She saw Rey still looking at her with those apologetic eyes but they knew it was a worthless to call for a truce now.

Carol swigged down two glasses of champagne and suddenly she felt her head was heavy.

“Folks, I need to head out. Something urgent has come up back home.” She pretended to look at her cell phone to read a message which was not there.

“Carol, are you sure? Honey you just came in!” Nicole exclaimed.

“Yes, I have to my friends. This is totally unavoidable. Please I am really sorry.” She then clutched everyone’s business cards for the fake formalities. She also made sure she made no eye contact with Rey.

The parking lot was awfully cold. She wandered off, with no intent of going back to the warmth of the car. She was in utter broken state and not able to understand why Rey broke her trust so easily.

The silence of the night was broken by a sudden giggle that she heard coming from a dark street, a little right at the exit of the area.

It was way too late in night and Carol first shuddered at hearing that but then she sauntered slowly as if bound by some spell.

An old lady, dressed in tatters was looking at the moon in the sky and chuckling as if she found something really amusing in the star studded canvas. There was a great glow on her face and Carol soon figured it was not the radiance of the moon gleaming in full circle.

There was a bag with its mouth open which was exuding the silver beams in full youth. The woman turned her head slowly towards Carol and said.

The woman said, “It hurts Carol, does it not? To be stabbed in the back by friends?”

Carol took a step back, bewildered at what she just heard. She took a good look at the woman but she was sure she never saw her earlier in her life.

Carol snapped back, “Yes, it does. But what do I do now? You can also laugh at me and my fate.” Carol could not believe that she was saying all this to a stranger.

The old woman smiled and said, “Well, time and tide do not go backwards honey. But a revenge might do mend your heart a little.”

“Well, revenge sounds so sweet lady. But what are you proposing here?” Carol found the shades of darkness to be real contagious and getting into her skin.

The old lady shoved her hand into the sack and pulled out a radiant rock from it. Carol could not know if it was a diamond or a glowing monster firefly.

“Wish to this rock and it would turn you into any person you want to. But mind you, it would work only once and only for a day till sunset, so careful what you wish for.”, She almost whispered.

The radiance of the rock was captivating to the hilt, as she took a pause to thank the woman, she was no longer there. Carol was stunned but she clutched on to the rock and rushed back to the car, drove straight back home and dashed into bed.

Carol felt extremely lazy next morning and called her office to call it sick. She kept on dwindling over the idea. But as she entered the shower, she stopped at the mirror and decided to give it a try.

She clasped the rock hard in her palms and prayed hard, “Turn me into Nicole”.

For a few moments, Carol thought she has been fooled until she noticed her hair color changing from golden to pitch black. Her body grew curvier and her perky small breasts swelled sweetly into nice round and firm jugs. Her beige nipples circled bigger into big pink aureoles. She went looking down into amazement as her dense fuzz gave way to neat trims.

She was more than astonished as she looked at her-Nicole-self in the mirror. She exclaimed “Oh my God” and then shuddered at the sound of her voice as it was not hers too anymore.

As she got used to Nicole’s body in the shower for more than an hour, she came out smiling as the revenge plan was all laid out in her mind.

Rey was more than happy to see Nicole in the end of a busy day in his gym. It was the best surprise he got till date he got from her.

“You are not wearing your favorite red today honey?” Rey asked as he hugged and kissed her.

“No baby, green is the color of the day today. Don’t you want to know what is underneath?” Nicole whispered in his ears and gently bit it.

Rey clasped his fingers into hers as they walked upstairs into his cabin. They started kissing passionately as they come out of their clothes. As Nicole prowled on the ground on all fours, Rey tore off her pink panties and rubbed his hard cock over her dripping slit.

“This is the best love we have made till date honey”, Rey panted and exhaled as he spanked her wiggly ass.

“The best is yet to come baby, don’t stop please,” Nicole gasped as she smirked looking at the sun which was about to set in distant horizon.

As Rey growled and she moaned hard, they came together as Rey sprayed his thick load inside her and they slumped together on the rug, catching their breaths.

Along came a buzz on Rey’s cell as well, and he lazily pulled it out of his trouser’s pocket.

“Why are you calling me Nicole, is it some other surprise?” Rey asked her only to be faced by a strange smirk on her face.

Suddenly, the door was knocked and thumped on heavily as Rey froze like dead as he heard Nicole shouting from outside.

“Rey, open the door. Who is there inside with you?”

Rey walked at the door, as he clumsily dressed and when he looked back in horror and shock, he found Carol lying naked on the floor and smiling with content.

“What the hell have you done Rey? Is it what our marriage all about?” Nicole slapped him as she crashed into the room looking at them.

“No Nicole, this is what Rey is all about.” Carol said as she lazily slipped into her dress, too happy with her revenge to be her wary of her nudity.

“I hate you! You just played with my heart.” Nicole barked at both of them and stomped out of the room.

Rey slumped on his knees and clutched his head in despair and disbelief, he felt this day as a replay of what happened between him and Carol years back.

“Hey Rey, can I help you with demystifying your confusion!” Carol was surprised to hear this as she thought it was her line but as she traced down where it came from, she found Martha standing in the doorway.

Carol and Rey were still dead silent, neither of them having any clue.

“Oh sweethearts, you look so bewildered. Carol, did you think the lady in the parking lot did it for you.”

Carol sat down on the chair, now it was her turn to get astonished.

“Oh my puppies, It was not what you thought. It’s your entire fault to think you can bet with Martha and come out winning!” She put her hands in akimbo proudly.

“What bet, what the hell you are talking about Martha?” Carol dug her questioning eyes into Martha’s’.

She chuckled and said, “After you left last night, Rey made the same mistake of betting that their love is beyond all earthly charms and pleasures.”

“You are a bitch Martha, you are evil.” Rey and Carol yelled at her, though having no clue as to how she did it.

“I feel sorry for you mortals; as long as I would be here on earth, I would keep on testing and defying your silly emotions. And let me tell you one last thing Carol, Rey never cheated on you. It was Nicole that night of our college days who took the curse of diamond from me.”

Carol was stunned as Martha swung back on her heels and walked back. From her half open bag hanging from her shoulders, came out the gleam of another diamond.