[izdubarr]

That's the one, thanks.

[izdubarr]

Might be a while, I'm pretty blocked at this point.  But who knows, kind of getting re-interested in the story now.

[izdubarr]

Working on it, next installment should be soon(ish).

[izdubarr]

She didn't sleep well at all.  She tossed and turned over all night long and had bizarre dreams, mostly about eating.  Her alarm went off at 6:30 but she slept right through that, and when she finally awoke, she saw through groggy eyes that her bedside alarm clock said 9:28.  She rolled over to move an extra pillow off of her and swung her feet off the side of the bed only to step with a squish into a mostly empty gallon of melted ice cream.  Apparently her dreams weren't entirely fantasy last night, and thinking back she could vaguely remember, as if through a thick fog, getting up to eat that ice cream the night before.  It was then that she realized that the pillow she felt on her chest wasn't a pillow at all.  Alison had boobs!  Big and round and soft and beautiful. 

Alison jumped up, wiped the ice cream off her foot with her sheet and ran to the bathroom mirror.  She watched her new additions jiggle and sway under her pajama top, big and ponderous, but still sitting high and perky on her chest.  They weren't cartoonish, not even quite in the porn star category, but still, so much more than she'd ever seen before.  In fact on Alison's newly expanded frame and with her height they looked perfect, like they belonged.  That's what a gallon of high fat ice cream will do to you, I guess, plus all the fat from the sandwiches. 

Alison continued to admire their shape as she pulled off her pajamas and jumped into the shower.  Her physique had expanded overnight as well, and she doubted anyone would laugh when she suggested she was training for bodybuilding now.  Her biceps no longer required her to flex them to be obvious, and a prominent vein bulged from the front of her arms.  Her shoulders and back had widened considerably, with her traps growing up towards the back of her neck.  Her abs were a washboard of hard flesh, and her legs bulged with thick cords of muscle, with a prominent teardrop shape rising over her knee.  She wasn't contest ripped, but she wasn't far off it either, and veins and striations jumped out when she moved.  She gave a little awkward double bicep flex in the mirror (who knew there was technique involved in flexing your biceps and not looking goofy!) and lemon sized biceps leaped up from her arms.  She wasn't as big as a pro or even a national competitor, but she was pretty sure she if she dieted down a bit she'd be able to win just about any local level bodybuilding show she entered.  She wondered how strong she was now as she jumped up on the scale and sat down to record her new progress.

Friday, May 18, 2007, 10:00 – 6'0" 183 pounds, 12% bf.  Subject continues to ingest massive quantities of food.  Estimated consumption since 1900 on May 17 is further 20000 kcals with 1000 g protein.  Subject has gained approximately 20 pounds since last report and has further decreased her overall body fat percentage.  This decrease is despite a startling increase in mammary tissue (measurements to follow).  Skeletal muscular hypertrophy continues.

OK that done, time to get dressed.  One thing was obvious, she was going to need new clothes.  She giggled as she held up one of her old bras against her new chest.  Yeah, that wasn't going to work.  Even her stretchy sports bras weren't going to be up to that task.  Finding something to wear to go out and buy new clothes was going to be a bit of a challenge.  She couldn't really wear pajamas all day, could she?

Getting dressed was a bit of a comedy routine.  Her old panties had no hope of covering her greatly expanded hips and bottom, but a thong she'd bought to wear under a bridesmaid gown from her cousin's wedding a few years back did the job.  She hated wearing those things, but she had to admit it showed off her new backside in a spectacular fashion.  Any of her old bras were out of the question, but a formerly loose t-shirt tied off in the front like a halter top gave her some modesty, and even though it lacked any support, her new breasts were firm and perky enough that they didn't need much.  She threw her formerly baggy sweatshirt, which now looked like it belonged to her little sister, over top.  The sweatshirt tented out over her chest, and didn't come all the way down to her waist anymore, leaving a fair bit of her washboard stomach showing, but that was the style nowadays, wasn't it?  The lower half was easier.  None of her pants would go up over her expanded thighs, and wearing a skirt with a sweatshirt would just look too ridiculous for even a fashion victim like Alison, so she settled for a pair of stretchy cotton sweatpants.  They clung to her thighs and ass like cycling tights, but they'd do the job.  Socks and shoes and … she looked ridiculous, but it would have to do.  Plus, with the thong, at least there were no panty lines visible through the tightly stretched pants.  She pulled her long hair back in a ponytail (and was amazed at the size of her biceps in the mirror as she did so), threw on a ball cap and a pair of sunglasses to give her some level of anonymity, and, after another huge breakfast, off she went to the mall.

Alison had always been blessed with a good memory for random useless facts.  Julie, Alison's former lab technician was very obese, but she also had huge breasts.  Julie, not being the shy type was always complaining over coffee about how expensive her bras were and how she could only shop at one store for them – Ruth's corsets, at Forest Park Mall, and that's where Alison headed first.

Ruth Goldman was a short, plump, matronly jewish woman and thought of herself as the bra queen of central New Jersey.  She saw all kinds in her shop, from aspiring porn stars with enormous fake tits to the morbidly obese just looking for some support, but she'd never seen a stranger figure walk into her shop than the tall lady in the badly fitting sweat suit.  She was clearly seriously fit judging by the washboard belly she was so proudly displaying, and she had a good sized pair of girls.  Ruth's trained eye could tell the woman wasn't wearing much in the way of support, which was strange because breasts that size usually didn't support themselves too well.  That wasn't the only strange thing, though, the woman's body just looked … wrong somehow.  The fashion train wreck she was wearing was probably to blame.  Regardless, this was a woman who needed professional help, and Ruth was ready to help her out.  Ugh, she was walking towards the generic rack.  Why did they always walk to the rack first?

"Good morning miss, may I help you?" Ruth said with a strong Jersey accent.

"No, I'm just looking, thank you."  Alison muttered a little overwhelmed.  Buying bras had always been easy, 36A, off the rack and done.  But now… she didn't even know what size she was.  And there were a bewildering array of choices.

"If I may suggest, ma'am, we recommend that new customers get sized before buying from us.  We find that most women are wearing the wrong size bra.  It's complementary, and we'll keep your dimensions on file even if you don't buy anything."

Hmm, that seemed like a good idea..

"Alright, that sounds very good, thank you."  responded Alison, clearly relieved to get some help here.

"Please, come with me to the fitting room, miss…"

"Galloway.  Alison Galloway.  Call me Alison."

"I'm Ruth, sweety, pleased to meet you."  Ruth shook her hand.  Alison's grip was like a rock.

"Now sweety", began Ruth once they'd entered the fitting room, "we recommend that you take your top off for the fitting, it allows us to measure you better and get you a better fit.  But if you're uncomfortable, or don't want to take off your clothes we can still measure over top.  It just won't be as good a fit."

"I don't mind", replied Alison, suddenly nervous.  Ruth's magnetism filled the room, but she made Alison comfortable, and reminded her of one of her aunts.

Ruth let out a squeal as Alison pulled her sweatshirt and shirt over her head.  "Oh.. my .. Gawd! Alison! You're spectacular sweetheart!  Look at you!"  Alison blushed and lowered her eyes shyly.  "That's incredible, you're body is absolutely gorgeous!  Look at you!  I would kill for your body!  That's fabulous!"  She continued gushing.  "OK before we start, give me a little flex, just show off a bit.  Oh come on Alison, you've worked so hard for that, show it off!"

Ruth noticed Alison's red face and caught herself.  "Oh, I'm sorry honey, I didn't mean to embarrass you.  What a yutz I am, I get so carried away sometimes.  Lets get you measured.  You, my dear, are going to be a challenge."

"Oh, it's ok Ruth, I'm just a little shy sometimes.  Here."  Alison flexed a bicep and Ruth reached out to touch it slowly, then recoiling her hand quickly as if she'd been shocked. 

"Sweety, I've seen more topless women than a doctor, and you have the best body, and the best boobs I have ever seen.  That's a gift from God.  Don't you ever be shy about a gift like that."

Alison smiled as Ruth began her measurements.  She settled on 42DD, which wasn't an uncommon size at Ruth's.  Of course, most of the women buying 42DDs were fat, not built like Alison.  Alison was stunned at the effect a good bra had at lifting and supporting her new breasts.  She was even more surprised at what one cost!  A bra and a couple pairs of panties set her back over $300!  But looking at her shape in the mirror, even with the ridiculous sweatshirt on, it was worth it!

As Alison was paying and getting ready to leave Ruth pulled her aside and said, "Alison, honey.  It's not my place, but you need to do something about the rest of you.  My daughter, Naomi works at a salon in the mall called Tortoise and Hair.  Go, tell her I sent you she'll fit you in, and give you a hair style that will do that amazing body justice.  You deserve this, go treat yourself."

You know, why not? Alison thought to herself as she left Ruth's.  I do deserve this!  She walked down the mall towards the salon oblivious to the stares she was getting.

The Tortoise and Hair was a high end mall salon filled with stainless steel, bright lights and perfectly groomed staff.  Alison looked down at her bizarre and shabby clothes and stopped.  She couldn't go in there, not looking like this.  She turned around and walked away, but stopped as she heard a voice from behind her call her name.

"Alison?  Are you Alison Galloway?"

Alison turned.

"I'm Naomi, my mother told me to look out for you.  You're in luck, my 11 o'clock appointment canceled. I'll get you started now and work through lunch, so we can get out fixed up.  Come on in, we'll get you started. Come on!"

Naomi looked nothing like her mother, she was tall and fit although she'd clearly inherited her mother's large breasts.  She had piercing dark brown eyes and a thick mane of perfectly styled jet black hair cascading down her shoulders in an avalanche of inky color.  Her hips were hugged by a tight pair of low rise jeans, revealing a section of tanned, flat tummy underneath her tight, pink Dolce and Gabana t-shirt.  She was perfectly made up, manicured and smelled awesome.  Alison hated her, or rather, she was the kind of woman that Alison would have normally hated.  But right now Alison was too busy feeling self-conscious as she followed Naomi into the salon.

"We are going to do so much to you, och, you won't recognize yourself when we're done."  Although she was gorgeous, Naomi's voice was pure Fran Drescher.  She guided Alison to the shampoo girl's chair.  Alison was growing annoyed at Naomi's tone.  She'd heard it before, it was the pitying, condescending tone of the pretty girl talking down to the plain girl.  She wanted to shrink down inside herself, but she remembered Ruth's advice to never be shy about her body.  Now was the time to take it.  She was Alison Galloway, PhD, member of the National Academy of Sciences and these …shampoo girls weren't in her league!  It was time for Alison to out-attitude them.  Before sitting in the shampoo station she pulled her sweatshirt over her head and tossed it to the shampoo girl.

"Can you take care of that for me please?" she said with disdain, then sat in the chair.

With her sweatshirt off, Alison was only wearing a t-shirt, which was severely overstretched over her shoulders and chest.  Her new bra pushed her new breasts up and out, and the t-shirt barely covered them, and left Alison's whole midriff exposed.  She tensed her arms a little to make the muscles stand out, and watched the amazement in Naomi's face as she sat down.

"Alison!  My mother said you were in shape, but look at those arms!  those abs!  I would kill for abs like that!  You must do a million crunches.  That's it, I have to go back to the gym!  What's your secret?"

Naomi gushed like her mother, and Alison found herself relaxing and warming up to her as the shampoo girl worked on her hair.

"Oh, you know, just .. work hard and eat right".  Riiight. 

"Oi, I wish I had your dedication.  I always have the muffin top pudge."  She pinched half an inch of fat around her midsection.  "Thank you mom for this". 

'The hot girl envious of my body… I could get used to this', thought Alison to herself.  She smiled to herself.  The shampooing was done, so she followed Naomi back to her chair.

"Girlfriend, your body is out of this world.  That's it, I have to go shopping with you!  But your hair."  Naomi pulled up a strand of Alison's hair and let it drop through her fingers with a distasteful look on her face. 

"Your hair is a mess.  Ick.  What do you shampoo with, battery acid?  We'll hook you up with some product when you go, don't cheap out on me, you have to use it.  You have to give nutrition to your hair, just like your body, ok?"  Alison nervously watched as Naomi started cutting off the long hair she'd taken a lifetime to grow.

Naomi sensed Alison's apprehension.  "Relax, honey.  You have to trust me.  I'll give you great hair, but we're going to have to cut some of it off, to layer it to even it out and to get rid of the bad, ugh.. really bad split ends.  Just sit back and relax and trust Naomi."

Over the next couple of hours Alison got her hair cut, a manicure, makeup, the works.  To Alison's surprise she bonded with Naomi as she was working on her.  Despite being a plastic made-up beauty, the kind of woman Alison hated, you couldn't help but like Naomi.  And she had her own problems in life, a boyfriend who neglected her (but was a superb lover, as Alison learned in great detail), and deep uncertainty about how long she was going to be able to live the salon life.  As they talked Alison began to realize she was just as shallow, in her own way, as anyone else, judging Naomi by her clothes and hair before she got to know the real person.

When Naomi was done, Alison could barely believe her eyes, which now popped, green emeralds shining out of her face.  Her hair, despite Alison's certainty that Naomi was chopping it ALL off when she was in her chair, looked longer and fuller than before, and her new highlights shimmered in the salon's lights.  She was gorgeous.  She ran her hand with it's newly manicured nails through her mane, and marvelled at it's lustre, which was enough to distract her from the baseball sized bicep which popped on her arm.  Alison felt surprisingly emotional as she stared at her reflection.  She could have had this years ago.  What had she been thinking?

"Quite a difference, isn't it?", Naomi beamed, as she watched the tears well up in Alison's eyes.  She handed her a tissue.  "This, this here is why I'm 28 and still working at this place." 

Alison hopped up out of the chair and grabbed Naomi in a big hug.

"Easy!  Oof, I think you broke my spine!"  joked Naomi.  The girl did have a grip on her, but with muscles like that, it was no surprise.

"Listen, Alison, you have the hair done, we should take the next step." said Naomi, looking over Alison's clothes with a frown.  "I need to get some lunch, but after that I don't have another booking until 3pm, I'll take some time off and take you around.  You brought a credit card, right?"

Since Naomi didn't want to lose any time from their shopping trip, lunch was the mall food court.  Naomi had a small salad.  Alison had a five course Chinese takeout meal, 4 slices of pizza and two high protein jamba juice smoothies.  Naomi watched her eat it all with a horrified look on her face, but managed to not comment on her friends appetite.  Not everyone was so polite.

The food court was pretty crowded at lunch time, and Alison and Naomi got a lot of stares.  Naomi was used to it, but it was still a pretty new experience for Alison.  One couple at the next table in particular were pretty rude.  They were a thirtyish man and a woman out for lunch.  He was a slightly oafish guy in a Laker's jersey and a pair of loose fitting sport shorts, she was probably the pretty girl in high school, fifteen years and 50 pounds ago.  He couldn't stop looking over at Alison.  She couldn't stop commenting about her in a voice that was just a little bit too loud.

"Stop looking at her, Carlos  … How can she do that to herself, it's disgusting!  She looks like a  man.  Look at her arms, they're bigger than yours.  Stop looking at her!  And look what she's eating!  Oh, I could never do that to myself…" over and over.  Alison barely noticed, but Naomi was getting pissed off.

When the two ladies got up from their meal and had cleared off their table, Naomi led Alison past the couple on their way out.

"Excuse me," Alison's heart jumped as Naomi called over to the rude couple.  She pulled Alison along to their table.

"My friend and I need an opinion on something, I wonder if you two can help us out?" she asked, and then continued, not waiting for a reply.  "My friend has been working out a lot lately, and I think she looks spec-tac-u-lar, but she's worried it's too much.  You two are obviously a pair of fit and stylish people, what do you think?"  Alison played along and hesitantly flexed a bicep.  Carlos' eyes went wide as she did.

"Well, what do you think?"  At this point the woman had shrunk down into her chair and was staring at the table.  Carlos managed to stammer out something that sounded like "it's great.. looks great"

"Are you sure, Carlos", Naomi persisted.  "Why don't you stand up and get a closer look?"

"No, that's ok, I can see fine from here, it looks great." Carlos said, obviously distressed. 

"No, come on, don't be shy Carlos", Naomi grabbed his arm and began to pull him out of the food court seat.  Meanwhile his wife shot him a 'stand up and they'll go away' look. 

Reluctantly, Carlos stood.  His loose fitting shorts did little to conceal just how much he approved of Alison's look.  Naomi smiled while smoke began to rise out of his wife's ears.

"See honey, I told you you didn't need to worry."  Alison was starting to enjoy Naomi's revenge and get into the whole thing.  She reached over and gave Carlos a big hug to thank him, while his wife continued to look on furiously.  As they hugged Alison could feel Carlos poking against her thigh.  She was a little ashamed to admit it, but it was really turning her on.   

By the time Alison got back to her apartment it was well after 3.  She felt the warm sun of this gorgeous May day on her face as she hefted all her parcels into her apartment.  She'd managed to keep Naomi fairly reigned in, after all, she was probably going to grow out of her new clothes in a short while, but still, with the spa and the clothes she was about a thousand dollars poorer than she had been this morning.  She had a lot of money saved away, and was expecting a generous severance package from Sementex, but still, without a job those savings weren't goign to last forever.  She had stopped off at an all you can eat buffet on the way home, since she felt like she had to control how much she ate at the food court with Naomi around, so she was still fairly full, and had a couple of hours to kill before she was supposed to meet Holly at the gym.  She didn't really know what to do with herself.  Alison had been an obsessive worker since her graduate student days, not having to go to work was hard to get used to.

Like most scientists, Alison had a huge backlog of papers she'd been meaning to read someday, now seemed like a good time.  She thought about what Naomi said as she left her earlier that afternoon.  'Now you just need a tan.'  It was a beautiful day, and she did have this lovely bikini Naomi had made her buy, why not? She pulled off her clothes, rumaged through the shopping bags for her new bikini, pulled it on and walked to the bathroom to check herself in the mirror.

Damn.  She had to admit, she was pretty incredible.  She was solidly in bodybuilder territory, but her new musculature fit her frame well.  She wondered how strong she was now, as she flexed a bicep and admired it's size and shape.  Ray might not be so cocky if she was arm wrestling him today!  Damn, Holly was going to be shocked to see how much bigger she'd gotted in just over a day.  She'd have to make up some excuse for the girl when they met to workout.

Alison had never been one to spend much time in the sun before, so she was, to quote Naomi, "fishbelly white", so sunscreen was going to be a necessity.  As she rubbed the SPF 30 onto her skin she marvelled at the feel of her new body.  The muscles were firm and toned, but they moved as she massaged them.  Unless she flexed.  Then they instantly transformed into warm marble.  It was amazing how hard they got.  She realized that she was enjoying this self-rubdown a lot more than she expected to.

Sunscreen applied – except to her back.  That wasn't going to happen with the changes.  Alison used to be able to reach almost any spot on her back, with her long, thin arms, but with all the added musculature, this wasn't going to be the case anymore. 

"Maybe there will be someone at the pool to help me out", she cringed, picturing herself playing a part in such an old cliche.

No such luck when she got to the pool though.  She was the only one there.  Ah well, just have to lie on my back to read, not a problem.  She plopped down a stack of papers beside a lounge chair, thanked God that it wasn't a windy day and lost herself in her reading.  Alison was always a harsh critic of science, soon she was marvelling at how many morons were able to get published in prestigious journals these days.  She was lost in her own thoughts and didn't notice Greg, the guy from the gym last night walk past the pool three times while he worked up the courage to talk to her, before he retreated in silent shame.

She also couldn't have noticed the sound of a camera shutter coming from a van in a nearby parking lot as it took picture after picture of her.

[izdubarr]

Alison swore loudly to herself as she veered through traffic.  Rush hour was just starting on Route 1 and things were starting to slow down.  Alison was in a blind rage, angrier than she ever remembered being.  Not only had Ray beaten her, and left her $200 poorer on the day she lost her job, but he was a gigantic prick about it, strutting around the bar and teasing her.  She slinked out, fuming and nearly tore Holly's head off when the waitress followed her out to apologize. 

"He can be such an asshole sometimes, I'm sorry Alison.  I hope I can still call you about working out?"

"Sure, whatever."  Alison growled, but couldn't help but smile a touch at Holly's supplication.  But her anger soon returned, and thoughts of revenge against Ray were at the forefront.  She caught herself mid-growl.  "I'm not mad at you Holly, I'm just frustrated at myself and angry at Ray.  I'd love to take that bully down!"

"He's not that bad, when you get to know him!"  Holly called out after Alison's rapidly retreating car.

Alison's hunger had returned with a vengeance and she stopped off at the drive through on the way home to order 3 double whopper value meals.  They barely sated her.  If this drug ever makes it into production, make sure to buy stock in Burger King, she thought to herself.  Like it was going to ever see production now.  Thoughts of how her research had been shut down just made her even angrier, so she put them out of her mind.

Alison stopped at the supermarket on the way home and stocked up on $400 worth of food, enough to feed a family of 4 for a couple of weeks.  She figured it would last her a day or two.  It was surprisingly easy lifting the heavy bags of meat and groceries into the trunk of her car.  Her strength gains were incredible.  She held a gallon jug of milk out at arms length in front of her effortlessly.  She could have held it there all day.  Yesterday she would barely have been able to lift it.  Still, not enough to beat Ray, she fumed to herself.

She got home and unloaded her groceries and the box of stuff she'd stolen from the lab.  She chuckled as she easily held the filing box in one arm as she carried a dozen plastic grocery bags in the other.  When she left the lab she'd barely been able to pick up the box filled with papers and her collected research. 

Alison took out her laptop and booted it up.  She checked her email at work.  Sure enough there was a message from Mike Sullivan accepting her resignation and reminding her about her non-disclosure and non-compete contracts with Sementex and how they applied to FMG as well.  She wouldn't be able to legally take her research that she'd performed at Sementex anywhere else.  Oh well.  Mike also demanded that Alison return the FMG property that she had taken earlier that day, or they'd begin legal proceedings.  Alison lazily flexed her bicep.  Maybe she was considered FMG property now!  In her gmail account was a message from her postdoc Craig.  The guy was really a sweetheart, he was concerned for Alison's welfare, didn't say a thing in the email about his own career going down with hers. 

That done, the scientist in Alison took over.  She began a new document to chart her progress as a guinea pig.  She stripped down to her panties and got out her digital camera to take pictures, cursing herself for not taking any "before" shots.  She'd have to dig up some pictures from her hard drive, hopefully she'd find something appropriate to compare with.  Alison's muscles didn't' seem to have grown much from the 3 double whopper meals, but her breasts were definitely larger and fuller.  She wasn't sure why that was, but she had a theory.  The protein synthesis machinery in her cells needed protein to work, and the meal at Ray's, although filled with it's share of fat and carbs, was primarily protein.  The fast food meals, on the other hand, were loaded with fat.  Her muscles couldn't make much use of that, so her body stored it away.  In her breasts, apparently.  The targeted fat storage was probably due to the female hormone pathways she'd used in the protein synthesis.  If only Dr. Sullivan had known Alison had a breast growth pill earlier than morning!  They'd never halt THAT project!

Alison cupped her new breasts and felt them.  They were firm and supple, and she had to reluctantly admit, after a lifetime of telling herself that breasts just got in the way, they looked fantastic on her.  They were nothing extreme, barely a B cup at best, but they were so much more than she had this morning!  It made her feel all tingly.  She tore herself away from the mirror, put on a bathrobe and grabbed  one of the boxes of protein bars she'd just picked up at the supermarket along with a gallon jug of milk, and started chewing on a bar.  The she sat at her computer and began to type.

"Subject 001 female 6'0" tall, weight approx. 132 pounds, body fat 18% (according to her body fat scale.  Those things were notoriously inaccurate, but it was all she had).  Baseline strength measurements (Alison dug out her workout journal):

Leg press, 45 degree angle: 12 repetitions at 110 pounds
Bench press: 2 x 20 pounds dumbbells, 11 repetitions
shoulder press, seated: 10 repetitions with 2×10 pound dumbbells
cable row: 13 repetitions at 30 pounds

Subject took compound coded 0098845 at approximately 1300, Thursday, May 17, 2007.  Subject exhibited  vastly stimulated appetite soon thereafter and consumed", Alison guessed, "approximately 40000 kcals of nutrition, which consisted of about 2000 grams of protein".  Enough to feed the old Alison for about 3 weeks, she chuckled to herself.

"Subsequent to this feeding subject exhibited vast muscular hypertrophy as well as vastly increased strength, levels to be documented later.  At approximately 1700, 02/15 subject weighs" … Alison pulled out her scale and stepped on.  "153 pounds with 16% body fat".  21 pounds AND she lost some fat.  Wow.

"Subject reports heightened levels of confidence and some euphoria.  Subject also reports increased aggression, with some episodes of rage", it was important to be honest with yourself, "as well as a heightened state of sexual arousal."  She hadn't been able to put her finger on that right away, but there was no denying it.  Her new body was turning Alison on more than she had been since high school.

Alison was munching away on the protein bars as she finished typing, and was surprised to see she'd not just finished a bar, but rather the whole box of 24!  It only contained empty wrappers now.  The milk was gone too!  The bars and the milk were very high in protein and Alison could feel a pleasant warmth all through her muscles as her body absorbed the nutrition.  She checked the nutritional label on the bars.

"Addendum, 1900 hours:  Subject has consumer a further 6000 calories and 800 g protein."

The warmth continued and intensified, almost becoming an itching sensation.  Alison found herself growing restless, needing to move her muscles to work them.  She decided to go test her new strength.

Alison lived in an apartment complex that catered to young single professionals, and as such it came with a membership at a local "fitness center".  She managed to squeeze herself into her sports bra, threw on a pair of shorts and a t-shirt that used to be too big on her and walked the half a mile to the gym.

Before her experimentation on herself Alison had been going to the gym semi-regularly to keep in shape, and she knew the place would be crowded tonight, so she hoped no one recognized her.  She didn't think there was much chance of that, though.  Alison had never captured a lot of attention at the gym.

She warmed up by running on the treadmill for about 20 minutes.  Alison had always enjoyed running, she had even gotten seriously into it in college, but hadn't kept it up.  But she was very pleased to see that her extra 20 pounds hadn't slowed her down any.  If anything she was less winded after her run than she would have been.  She moved to the mats to do some yoga and stretching and was again pleased to notice that her flexibility hadn't decreased at all with her new body.  What Alison didn't notice, probably because she wasn't used to it, was the stares she was getting from the other patrons.  She was becoming noticeably muscular and was obviously very fit and people were watching.

Alison moved over to the smaller free weight area where she used to do her resistance training.  She started with cable rows and set the weight at 50 pounds, almost double what she was using before her treatment.  She sat herself back in the seat and pulled on the handle and the weight rose almost by itself, it was so easy!  She put the weight back down and set it for 80 pounds, then 110 then finally at 140, more than half of the 200 pound stack, she found the resistance challenging.  The 12th repetition was very hard and Alison grit her teeth against the pain, but she kept perfect form as the weight went up. 

From 30 to 140 pounds!  That was incredible, Alison was exhilarated by her new abilities.  Her back was burning but it felt so good, almost euphoric.  The warmth she had felt earlier after her meal was back, concentrated in her back and biceps.  OK, seated shoulder press.  The biggest weights they had in the small weight room were 40 pound dumbbells, and Alison quickly learned that they wouldn't be enough to test her strength.  With a mixture of dread and excitement she knew she had to move to the big guy's side of the gym.

Women went to the big guy's side of the gym, of course, but mostly it was to talk to the guys.  This was the side of the serious weightlifter or bodybuilder.  It was sweaty, and noisy and the dumbbells went up to 150 pounds.  Alison looked at those massive hunks of iron, and thought to herself, 'as if'.  A lot of heads turned though, as she grabbed a pair of 65 pound dumbbells and sat on a bench to press them overhead.  She was a little too ambitious this time, she only managed to get out 8 good reps before her shoulders gave out, but still, 2 x 65 was 130 pounds, that's what Alison weighed yesterday!  Two 80 pound dumbbells proved to be just about perfect for her chest press, and she just made the 12th rep.  As she walked them back to the rack to put them away Alison thought about how the weights felt in her hand.  She could tell they were heavy, she KNEW they were heavy, but somehow she could move them.  It was incredible, it brought a little tear to her eye to see how well her experiment was going.  Her chest was pumped and flushed with blood and  she could feel it pressing against her too tight sports bra.

Finally, leg press.  She walked over to the two leg press machines.  One was being used by a guy, and the other.  Goddamn it.  Some jerk had left his weights on it.  It wasn't a ton, 4 45 pound plates on each side, but the old Alison would have had to wait for the other machine.  She simply couldn't lift the 45 pound plates to take them off of the machine.  She remembered a few  years back when she used to workout with Jamie, one of her lab assistants at the time.  Jamie was an athletic girl, who played basketball and rowed when she was in college, and she was much stronger than Alison.  She still remembered her and Jamie laughing hysterically as Alison tried and failed to pick up a 45 pound plate to add to Jamie's leg press. 

Well, this wasn't the old Alison anymore.  She could DO this. She walked up the leg press machine, gripped the plate firmly and pulled it off and … it came off.  OK the plate was still pretty heavy in her hands, but she was carrying it without dropping it or falling over.  She transferred the plate to one hand (one hand!) and pulled a plate off of the other side and walked them both over to their racks.  Then with 3 plates on each side (270 pounds) Alison decided to see if she could handle the leg press. 

She should have left the plates on!  It was easy, at 10 reps she knew she'd have to add that fourth plate back on.  She walked over and replaced the 2 plates back on the machine and banged out another easy 10 reps.  Since it was so easy to do the lifting, Alison's focus drifted a bit and she noticed the guy next to her was also adding a fourth plate to his machine, and had started lifting.  He seemed to be having a harder time than she was though.  She quickly dropped her eyes and turned her gaze away in shyness as he looked over to see her watching him.  She could feel her cheeks blush, but she couldn't help but grin as she jumped up to add a fifth plate.

The man saw her add the fifth plate and looked dejected as he finished his set and got up to add more weight on his machine.  Alison went for a drink of water and when she came back he was just starting his set.  By the eighth rep he was straining, and he just managed to rack it after the ninth with a grunt of exertion escaping his lips.  Alison, in contrast, finished her 12 fairly easily and got up to get more weight.  When she came back to add the sixth plate he was still leaning on his machine panting. 

"That's it, you win", he gasped still trying to catch his breath.

"Excuse me?"

"You win.  No way can I do 6 plates.  Damn you're strong."

"Umm, thanks", Alison blushed and looked away again.  She didn't know how to react, but she couldn't keep the smile off of her face.  It didn't hurt that the guy was kind of cute.  He was really tall, about 4 or 5 inches taller than her 6 feet, with kind of a boyish smile.  Despite his height he was kind of stocky, with broad shoulders.  He carried a fair bit of excess fat, but he carried it well.  She wanted to say something back to this man, but Alison's flirting ability was practically nonexistent.  Was he hitting on her?  Her?  Nah, couldn't be, he was just making small talk.  Alison went back to work and stalled out at 9 reps with 6 plates.  That's 540 pounds.

The guy was still standing there when she finished, she hadn't noticed him when she was concentrating on her lifting.  He seemed a bit uncomfortable, like he wanted to say something, but didn't know how.  It kind of made Alison uncomfortable too, as she unloaded her leg press machine.  She could understand now why the strong guys never liked to unload the machines – it was a lot of work!  But she remembered what it was like being the weak girl and made sure to take the weights off.  Her neighbor, perhaps guilted into it or perhaps looking for an excuse to hang out pulled his off as well.  He then mumbled something and walked away.

This kind of ticked her off.  What the hell was this guys' problem?  He had moved off to the bench press and was setting the bar with a plate on each side – 135 pounds.  Alison followed him with a boldness that she'd never have been capable of before.

"Do you mind if I work in with you here?" she asked coldly.

"S sure" he stammered.  "I only have 2 sets though".

Alison stood at the head of the bench in a spotter position as the man put out 10 reps relatively easily.  She didn't stop to think that the bar weighed nearly as much as she did as she took her turn and lifted it off of the pins.  Again, it was surprisingly easy for her to complete 12 reps.  She noticed the man watching her as she lifted, and this time it was him that turned away when she met his gaze.

"You doing the same again, or more weight?" she asked him when she was done. 

"M.. maybe another 25 on each side.  I'm feeling strong today!  Maybe I'm inspired."  He smiled and Alison couldn't help but smile back, her hostility melting away.  He wasn't being rude to her at all, he was shy!  She knew it from being on the other side, he was too shy to talk to her.  He was so nervous!  It was kind of sweet.

An extra 25 on each side took it up to 185, and the man lay back on the bench to start lifting.  It was clear this was a lot harder for him, and he was straining by the 5th rep, and by the 7th he was stuck and Alison had to help him lift it.  Her biceps bulged out as she helped him lift the weight. 

"Come on, two more, you can do this.  I won't let it drop on you" she encouraged him, and he complied, finishing the last two reps with more than a little spotting help from her.  On the final rep she was basically lifting the bar on her own.

He racked the weight and got up slowly. 

"Phew, thanks, guess I got a little ambitious there."  He paused for a while again, as Alison waited for him to say something.  Then he gave a half wave, dropped his eyes to the ground then turned and walked away.

"Hey, it's your turn", she called him back.

"What?"  He stopped and half turned back around.

"I need a spotter too",  The man smiled and walked back to the bench he'd just left.  He looked relieved as he watched Alison take off the 25 pound half plate he'd added.  He walked to the spotting position but Alison stopped him. 

"Put on another plate on your side, would you?"

The man was a little stunned, but he added another 45 pound weight to his side.  Alison did the same then lay herself on the bench underneath the bar that now weighed 225 pounds.  A hell of a lot more than she did.  The man had a look of disbelief on his face as she pulled the weight from the pins, but no one was more surprised than Alison herself when she lowered the weight, just briefly touched it to her chest and smoothly pressed it back up again.  She repeated the motion 9 more times, the 10th rep was slow and labored, but the man never needed to help her with it.  The excitement she showed as she so clearly demonstrated that she was the stronger was written all over her face, and her body tingled with excitement.  Her face flushed and her nipples pressed against the confinement of her too small sports bra.

She stood up and smiled at the man, "thanks.." she paused.  Surely he would volunteer a name.  Alison found herself drawn to the little game they were playing.

"Greg.  Greg Madding.  I'm actually your neighbor from across the way at Castle White.  I never realized you were so strong!"

He paused again.  She knew he wanted to ask her out, a little post workout coffee or something.  But he didn't seem to know what to say.  Inside she was screaming to him 'come on!  Ask me!' but Alison kept quiet as well.  A lifetime of being the shy one meant she didn't have the words any more than he did.  After a long awkward pause he finally spoke.

"Well, I should get going.  It was good to see you, maybe I'll see you here again someday."

And that was that, Greg was gone and Alison was alone and more than a little frustrated.  On the other hand, she never would have gotten even that far yesterday.  Besides, she was starving, time to go eat again.

By the time she got out of the gym it was almost 9 o'clock.  A little late to  be cooking.  In fact, getting enough food was getting to be a bit of a hassle for her.  Fortunately, there was a subway sandwich shop on the way.  She ordered a couple foot long sandwiches, double meat, told the girl behind the counter she was having a party and headed off home.  This growth experiment was getting expensive!  She got home and checked her voice mail.  Just one message.  From Holly, the waitress from this afternoon.  The girl's voice sounded strange, as if she was whispering into the phone, and sad, almost hysterical.

"Hey Alison, it's Holly… the waitress from this afternoon, you remember?  Anyways, you remember you offered to workout with me and show me a few things?  I hope you meant it, because I'd really like to go workout with you.  Anyways call me at 443-8874, that's my cell maybe we can get together tomorrow?  I don't work tomorrow, I might be off for quite a while, so I can meet you any time.  I know you're probably busy, but I hope you can make some time for me.  I really need it."

Alison couldn't help but be flattered.  She worried a bit about what Holly would think about her changes, and called Holly back.  She left a message on the waitresses voice mail setting up a workout at 6pm the next day.  The old Alison used to always try to avoid the gym at the peak after work hours, it was just too crowded, but the thought of working out in front of all those people, showing off her new body excited her. 

That taken care of, Alison started her dinner while she entered her gym feats into the computer.  She calculated that her overall strength was up just short of 500%, which was more than she would have expected, given her muscle gains up to now.  The new growth must be more efficient than the old, with better neurological connections, she conjectured while chewing a hunk of sandwich.  Twenty minutes later the sandwiches were all gone, and Alison was getting ready for bed.

[izdubarr]

Chapter 2:  more to come.

Ray's Hidden Ranch was just half a mile from the Sementex labs on route 1, she used to take her lab staff out there once or twice a year to reward them with a night out and a big feed.  It was a western style barbecue, steaks as big as your head, beans by the bucketful and vegetarians beware!  Her staff loved it, and even though it was a lot of meat for Alison to consume, she didn't mind taking them there, and enduring the jokes about eating her leftovers all week long.  But today, with her compound working on her, Ray's Hidden Ranch was the perfect place for Alison to enjoy an early meal.

"Afternoon ma'am", the waitress drawled in a patently fake Texas accent, after Alison had been seated.  Her name tag identified her as Holly.  She'd been working at Ray's for over a year since she graduated high school.  Holly was a short, pretty girl, with dark red hair and brown eyes.  She carried about 20 extra pounds, but most of it was in the right place, at least for those who liked their women a little thicker, a little rounder.  Ray was one of those men, and Holly had been his mistress since the week after she started.  She outlined the specials in a bored voice – 16 oz. sirloin, a chicken breast for those who are less hungry.

"What about that?", interrupted Alison, pointing to the poster on the wall.  Holly followed Alison's finger, chuckling.

"That's our big eater special ma'am, you probably don't want that.  It's a 100 ounce steak, 2 baked potatoes, salad, shrimp cocktail, big bowl of beans and some other trimmings for $100, but if you can finish it all it's free.  And you get your name and picture on that wall over there.".

"I'd like one of those"

"Ma'am that's a lot of food, are you sure?"

"I'm very hungry", responded Alison with a twinkle in her eye.

"Alright", responded Holly, with a look of amusement.  "There are some rules to the contest.  You must sit at the designated table in our dining room. You may not leave the table for any reason once the contest starts. No one may assist you in any way (such as cutting up your meal). You must complete the dinner in 1 hour.  If you can't do the meal in an hour, you ain't going get it done in 2 hours, believe me!  You may not share your meal even if you don't complete the dinner, like take it back to your table to be shared by any folks you may have invited to cheer you on.  But I guess you're alone today, right?  Oh, and if you get sick, the contest is over, period.  Follow me ma'am.  Oh, how would you like that done?"

"Rare, very rare.  I'm very hungry, if you could bring that out as soon as possible, at least the salad and beans, that would be fantastic.  Oh and could you bring me a big pitcher of water?  I'm parched."

Holly, shaking her head slightly, walked off to the kitchen.  She was back with a big bowl of beans and Alison's salad in a couple of minutes.  The steak took 10 more.  And half an hour after ordering the belt buster special, Alison was mopping the last of the juice up with a piece of bread.  The 100 oz steak was over 6 pounds of meat.  Add in the beans, potatoes, etc. and Alison figured she'd probably consumed at least 10 pounds of food in under half an hour.  Strangely her stomach didn't feel full, nor did it bulge with all that newly consumed food.  In fact, Alison didn't feel any different at all, she was still hungry.

Holly came out of the back to check on Alison and swore to herself when she noticed that the thin woman had actually finished her steak in less than half an hour.  Ray didn't like people eating for free, and he especially didn't like being scammed.  No way could that skinny chick have finished all that, she was playing games.  She hadn't left the table, but Holly was willing to bet she had gotten rid of the steak somehow.  She should have watched her closer.  Or maybe she was some sort of freak of nature, like the 120 pound Japanese guy that eats 50 hot dogs.  But nothing she could do about it now.  Time to congratulate the winner.

"Wow!  That didn't take you long!  The owner, Ray, likes to take the pictures of people who finish the belt buster, cause it doesn't happen very often!  Ray isn't here now though, he usually gets in around 1 in the afternoon, so I'll just take your name and get it put on that plaque over there, the wall of fame!  Will that be all Ma'am?  Or do you have room for desert?", Holly inquired mischievously.

"To tell you the truth", Alison replied, "I'm still a bit hungry.  Are there any rules about me ordering another belt buster?"

Oh, now this chick was pushing her luck.  "Excuse me?" Holly stammered out.

"Seriously", Alison replied.  "I'm still hungry.  I have a very fast metabolism, my mother always used to say I have a hollow leg.  I'd like another steak."

"Well, no one ever has ever ordered 2 of those, but I can't see any reason why we can't serve you another one.  Let me ask in the back."

Holly was back a few minutes later, after calling Ray at home.  He was on his way in, and gave his waitress instructions.  No one was scamming Ray Holmgren out of 2 free meals.

"Miss?  I talked to the owner and he says we'd be happy to serve you another belt buster, on the condition that if you can't finish the second, you'll have to pay for both.  If you finish the second too, well then both are free of course, and you'll be enshrined forever – we'll put your picture on the wall with big lights around it for beating the belt buster twice!"

"Oh, I don't need that", Alison responded, "Just something to eat.  Please make it rare again."

This time Holly watched her like a hawk as Alison devoured the meat.  She noticed that Alison wasn't as skinny as she first thought she had been.  She was wearing loose fitting clothes that hid her well, but they didn't billow around her as much as Holly first thought.  Girl actually looked like she had some chunk to her.  Well she'd have to, Holly thought to herself, to eat that much!

It took her longer to finish this time, almost using up a whole half hour, but Alison finished every bite as Holly watched in amazement.  No hiding food, no tricks, Holly was watching, this woman actually ate 2 100 ounce steaks in just over an hour!  As Alison was finishing the last of her steak, Ray walked in.

Ray Holmgren was a big man, six foot three, and about three hundred pounds.  He used to be a linebacker at Texas A and M back in the day.  He was now in his 40s and had lost his shape and developed a beer gut, but his arms and shoulders still carried the muscle of a division 1 college football player.  He knew it too.  Ray was extremely proud of his imposing physical stature, and would flare his lats out as he walked, pulling his arms away from his body to puff his muscles up as he walked into his Ranch House, his castle.

He'd owned his steak house for years now and only 8 people had EVER finished his belt buster special.  And they were all 300 pound men.  So what was this about a skinny little girl eating it twice?  What kind of shenanigans were going on?  Ray was going to get to the bottom of it.

"Well, is this the little lady who's eating me out of house and home?", Ray inquired, walking up to Alison's table just as she had finished her meal.

Alison looked up into Ray's face.  The second steak had filled her up, and she really had to go to the bathroom, but Holly had insisted that Alison could not leave the table until it was gone.  Although she still didn't feel bloated or full, her bra straps and underwear were cutting into her skin painfully, cutting off circulation.  She needed to get to the bathroom to try to fix it, but it looked like Ray wanted to talk.

"I'm Ray, the proprietor, and I have no idea where you put all that meat, darlin'.  You hiding some in that purse there?", Ray quipped, only half joking.

"Pleased to meet you Ray, but I really need to excuse myself."  Alison said, moving to get up.  Her body felt strange as she stood, like her limbs belonged to someone else.  She almost sat back down to steady herself.

Probably going to go throw up, thought Ray, but said nothing.

Alison lurched awkwardly down the hall to the bathroom, like someone who'd drank, rather than ate, too much.

A few seconds after Ray saw Alison disappear through the door to the ladies room he motioned to Holly.  "Go see what she's doing in there."

"You want me to spy on the lady in the bathroom?"

"Well I (ah) want to know if she's puking in there, yeah!"

Reluctantly Holly got up and trudged to the ladies room herself.

Ray's Ranch house wasn't exactly the kind of place that went to great effort to appoint itself with luxury bathrooms, but the privacy was exactly what Alison needed.  She slipped into a stall, closed the door behind her, and peed more than she'd ever peed in her life.  When she was done, she unbuttoned her blouse, which wasn't nearly as loose fitting as she remembered, and reached her arms behind her back to undo the catch on her bra, which was practically strangling her at this point.  She took off the blouse, pulled the bra off and then noticed the changes in herself.

The transformation was astonishing.  Skinny Alison was gone, replaced by a muscular beauty.  She wasn't bulky, but lithe and athletic, looking like she just stepped off the field at the Olympics.  She was sporting a substantial amount of muscle, not a bodybuilder by any means, but enough that her tone and definition were obvious.  It wasn't surprising, after all if the protein synthesis was working she had probably added 15 pounds of muscle to her frame in the last hour.  She ran her hands over her now six-pack abs amazed by their shape and hardness.  She couldn't resist flexing her biceps, and was surprised by the bulge that popped out in her arms.

Her self-examination was interrupted by the sound of Holly coming into the ladies' room.  Alison quickly slipped her blouse back on.  There was no way the bra was going to fit, but Alison hardly needed it, though her breasts did seem a bit fuller.  Perhaps a side-effect of the female hormonal pathways she used for the protein synthesis?  If so, it would be a welcome side effect.  Her blouse was still quite loose, but the polyester blend was heavy enough to keep her from getting arrested without a bra, but light enough that her small breasts poked sexily against it.  The blouse was starting to get tight across her back and shoulders, but was still pretty loose fitting overall.  Alison opened the stall door and exited, her skirt still distressingly tight across her formerly flat bottom, but there was nothing that could be done about that right now.  She was going to have to go shopping in the near future though.

"I'm sorry, miss.  He sent me in to watch you.  He thinks you're puking your dinner up right now.  No one your size has ever finished the gut buster, never mind twice!  I wouldn't ever have believed it.  You weren't… were you?  Barfing, I mean."  Alison stammered, speaking too quickly.  She was suddenly strangely intimidated by the tall woman in front of her.

"No, hardly .. Holly", replied Alison, reading the name off of Holly's tag.  She thought to herself for a second.  She knew she should just get out of there, jump in her car and drive off, avoid any kind of confrontation.  That was always her first instinct.  But Alison was feeling a surge of confidence and even pride for the first time in a long time.  She was enjoying the attention.

"It's just that I'm in training, pretty seriously too.  And I have to eat a tremendous amount of food to keep up with it.  Like thousands of calories a day,"  The lie was smoothly and confidently delivered, and Alison couldn't help smirking as she said it.

Holly nervously pulled a stick of lipstick from her purse and looked into the mirror as she applied it.

"That makes sense, I guess", she said, in between rolling her lips together.  It didn't really, but she had heard that athletes did eat a lot of food to keep their strength up.  "What are you in training for."

"Bodybuilding."  The word popped out of Alison's mouth without missing a beat.  She chuckled inside.  Alison Galloway pretending to be a bodybuilder.  That was a stretch!

"No way!"  Holly turned to Alison, done with her lipstick.  "Lady you're too skinny!"

"Well, I'm just starting out, to be honest."  It was honest too, damn it!  She certainly hadn't been anything like a bodybuilder yesterday!  "But I'm making great progress so far.  Here, let me show you."

Holly's heart sped up just a bit with excitement.  Alison rolled her sleeve up on her left arm and flexed for Holly.  Her bicep popped up again, and Holly's jaw dropped as she stared transfixed.  She slowly reached out her arm to touch Alison's pausing only to mutter, "May I?".

"Go ahead", replied Alison in a deep, confident voice.  She was enjoying this moment more than she would have ever guessed. 

Holly's arm cupped Alison's bicep gently.  It was warm, and the skin was soft, but underneath it was like marble, hard and solid. 

"Damn!  I never would have guessed you were built like that!  Girl, I'd KILL for an arm like that!"  Holly wasn't exaggerating much.  She'd always been fascinated with the look of muscular women, and wished she could look like them.  But she never had the willpower to work at it.  She'd joined a few gyms, but never lasted more than a month, mostly because she was confused by the exercise selection, and more than a little intimidated by all the fit, muscular people.

"It's easier than you think Holly",  Alison replied.  If only you knew how easy it was!  She didn't know where the next thing she spoke came from, but she heard herself offering, "If you'd like, maybe we can meet someday and I'll show you a few things in the gym."  Now where did that come from?  What the hell did Alison know about a gym?  Hopefully the 'someday' would save her. 

"Here's my card.  Give me a call sometime".

"Thanks, .. Alison.", Holly stammered still preoccupied from touching Alison's arm.  "I might do that!"

Alison angled past the still distracted Holly and out of the ladies room.  Holly followed her our a few seconds later.  Alison needed to get her coat and get out of Ray's, hopefully before Ray noticed and made trouble for her.  But no such luck, Ray was still sitting at the table where she had left her coat.

"Little lady, I don't know how, but I'm being scammed.  Nobody your side eats 2 belt busters, no way.  Now I don't know if you just puked your guts out, or got rid of the food some other way, but no way you finished the contest fair and square.  Ah'm gonna have to ask you to pay for your food."

Alison was about to object when Holly jumped in.  "She's legit Ray.  She's a bodybuilder, and needs to eat a lot to grow her muscles." 

"A bodybuilder??  A lady bodybuilder?  This skinny thing?"  Ray laughed his booming laugh "Haw Haw!!  Building up big strong muscles, are you darlin'?  Lemme see your big muscles!"

Alison was becoming angry now.  Yesterday this kind of confrontation would have probably sent her into a seizure, or at least left her crying.  But today it was just making her mad. 

"Listen, Ray, I followed the rules of the contest, and I'm going to be on my way."

"Sure thing, soon as you pay up,"  Ray was still chuckling to himself.  "Lady bodybuilders, what's this world coming to.  Hell, bodybuilding in general is pretty dumb.  I remember back when Ah was playing football, those bodybuilder guys in the gym.  The looked like Hercules, but they was all show and no go, weaklings each and every one of em."

"Care to see who's the weakling here, tough guy?"  Again the words slipped out of Alison's mouth before she even realized it.  It was like someone else was talking.  But they were out there.

"Haw! Haw! Haw! little lady, what you have in mind?  You wanna arm rassle or something?  Haw! Haw!"

"If it'll get me out of here, sure.  But I only will wrestle you on one condition.  If I win I walk out without having to pay.  And believe me I'm NEVER coming back."

"And if Ah win?"

"Well, then I guess I have to pay my bill."

"Deal!  Follow me out back."

'What the hell?', thought Alison to herself.  She had nothing to lose, Ray wasn't going to let her out without paying anyways. 

True to it's macho image, Ray's Ranch house did have a competition arm wrestling table in the back.  Sometimes some of the customers wanted to test their strength against each other, or against the owner.  Ray almost never lost.

Alison and Ray went to the back room and sat on opposite sides of the table, putting their elbows in the padded circles and grabbed the posts with their left hands.  Holly was playing referee, and held their hands together in the top position.  Secretly she was pulling for Alison, but she knew the girl had no chance.  Ray outweighed her by more than 100 pounds, and he was the arm wrestling king around the restaurant.  Alison had some nice muscle in her arm, for a girl, but she wasn't close to Ray.

Alison had never arm wrestled in her life, but then how hard could it be?  Push with all your might, pin Ray's arm.  Despite her obvious disadvantage compared to Ray, Alison's newfound confidence was telling her she could DO this!  She almost believed it.  Still she knew she was the serious underdog here.  Her only hope was a bit of deception.  Ray was clearly the show off type, and although the restaurant was empty at 3:30 in the afternoon, a few cooks and cleaners had gathered to watch the match.  She knew that Ray would be cocky, and wouldn't be able to help but show off.

When Holly pulled her hands away to signal the start of the match, Alison lurched her arm with sudden force, hoping to take Ray off guard.  She didn't use all her strength, only about half, but she was quicker than Ray, who was caught a bit off guard, and moved his arm about halfway down before he caught her.  With a grin on his face Ray pulled their arms back to the starting point, while Alison put up only a fraction of her strength into resisting.  Ray smiled and started joking with the staff as he pushed Alison's arm halfway down and then let up.  He was going to toy with her now, just as she thought he would.

"What's the matter, little lady?  Too hard on you?"

Ray let off the pressure and let Alison pull her arm back up.  He was clearly not exerting himself, talking and joking with the audience.  Alison, while also not expending her full strength, was pretending she was pushing for all she was worth.  Slowly Ray's arm went down as he teased her.

"Damn, you're making me work for this, darlin'.  Ah cain't stop you! Ah!  Mah arm!"  Ray joked as he let Alison push his arm most of the way down to the table. 

Ray's arm was getting close to the bottom.  Alison knew he'd pour on his strength any minute now and slam her down to her defeat.  But Ray didn't know how much Alison was holding back.  Suddenly she flexed her muscles tight and threw her weight into her arm, jerking Rays arm suddenly down to the table! 

But it wasn't enough.  Ray caught on, and put his whole strength into it, stopping Alison as his arm was hovering about half an inch above the table.  After that it was inevitable.  Ray was simply stronger.  Ray grit his teeth, his face went red and he poured all his strength into his arm and he slowly.. ever so slowly pushed Alison's arm back.  Back up to the top and over and down, pinning her arm a few minutes later.  When it was over both competitors arms felt like fire, but Ray was the winner.

Holly was amazed at how good a fight Alison had put up.  Ray won, Ray always won, but she hadn't seen him pushed like that since the Rutgers football team was down a few months back.  That girl was STRONG!

[Author]

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