After weighing the options, I decided on the restaurant. The bar was more lively and I could always pop in after dinner, but I decided that I didn't really want to be in there all alone for any length of time. Guy-me could spend an entire day at the bar without anyone trying to talk to him, but I worried I'd get hit on too much and I wasn't really prepared for that yet.

The restaurant was busy but not packed, I was seated at a small table off to the side. It still beat sitting next to the kitchen, and it was actually a pretty good spot for people-watching.

The food was nice, I had grilled chicken and pasta in an alfredo sauce, and the waiter recommended a white wine with it so I tried a glass of that. I passed on dessert but had a cup of coffee afterwards, and wound up just sitting there chilling, sipping my coffee.

I'd meant to do some people-watching after dinner, but instead I found myself lost in thought again as I contemplated what an absolutely crazy day I had today.

This morning, less than twelve hours ago, I woke up to discover I was suddenly an attractive young woman named Rachel. My entire life had been changed around, and I was still trying to piece it all together. I started thinking about the obvious differences, the things I'd noticed or figured out so far.

I was friendly and outgoing, people noticed me and I smiled at strangers. That was all a huge difference from guy-me, who was introverted and quiet, and wanted friends but never actually followed through on any opportunities to make friends.

I listened to cheery up-beat pop music and maybe liked dancing. Guy-me listened to nothing. I was slim and cute and fit, and neat and tidy. Guy-me already had a bit of a belly on him, and was a stereotypical messy bachelor. And while he wasn't ugly, he wasn't particularly attractive either.

I was working towards a doctorate in archaeology, following my childhood dream. Guy-me was a grad-student in a robotics program. I still seemed to know a fair bit about robotics, and guy-me was always interested in archaeology even if he didn't wind up studying it.

I seemed to be happy, positive, and confident. Guy-me was depressed and sometimes had big ideas but never followed-through.

Beyond all those differences, I thought about how I felt through the day. I was shocked and freaked out this morning when I woke up, but I wasn't screaming or dysfunctional or anything like that. I didn't have a breakdown or whatever.

That trip into town was something too, now that I thought about it. I got my ears pierced! Then I bought a sexy blouse and some bubblebath? Even stranger than that, was the realization that those things all made me happy. Even now, thinking about the shiny metal studs in my ears brought a smile to my face. And I was wearing my new blouse, that made me smile too.

In fact the only thing that happened today which didn't make me smile was the encounter with that annoying teen at the occult shop. I didn't like her smug attitude and her frustrating nonsense about maybe being a girl but not knowing it. And the fact that she knew all along what I was talking about but played dumb for a while was another reason I disliked her. About the only useful thing I got out of that encounter was what she said about being under the influence when I cast the spell.

I finished my coffee as I thought about that. Assuming the teen wasn't lying, then if not for the beer and painkillers maybe I'd already remember this life. Maybe I'd already know all the stuff I was trying to figure out this afternoon from my email and social media.

There were more thoughts and emotions about today I wasn't quite ready yet to unpack and examine. Instead I started thinking about whether I wanted to go back to my room now, or if I wanted to get a drink at the bar first.

"Hi there. Mind if I sit with you?"

I was startled from my thoughts by a pretty voice. I looked up and found myself staring at the attractive brunette who winked at me this morning at breakfast. I noticed her hair was a little wild this evening, her cheeks were red, and she was holding a winter jacket in one hand. I figured she and her friends spent the day on the slopes, they probably just stopped skiing not long ago and came in to get dinner.

I stared for a second or two then nodded, "Not at all, please have a seat!"

"Thanks," she smiled and draped her jacket over the back of the chair, then sat down across from me. "Sorry I startled you. You looked a little lost, is everything ok?"

I shook my head, "It's nothing, I'm fine. Thanks for asking though. How was the skiing today?"

She nodded "It was pretty good. The weather was great today, bright and sunny, not too cold."

After a moment's hesitation she asked, "I don't think I've seen you on the slopes yet? Are you not a skier?"

That set my mind racing. I hadn't actually figured out yet if I was here to ski, but I couldn't exactly tell her I didn't know. I blushed slightly as I threw together a plausible story, "I'm planning to give it a try, but it's taking me a little longer to work up the courage? I uh, broke my leg last time I was on skis..."

She gave me a sympathetic look, "Ah, I understand. Oh, sorry to be rude, I haven't introduced myself. I'm Naomi."

"Hello Naomi," I smiled. "It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Rachel."

She smiled back at me and my heart started racing as it hit me. I just told the beautiful girl who flirted with me earlier that my name was Rachel. I didn't even have to think about it, it just came out naturally. Did that mean I was starting to accept all this? Or was I just playing a part, just staying in-character with how I looked?

Finally I clued in that Naomi was talking again, and I focused my attention on her.

"Are you staying here alone?" she asked. "I don't mean to pry, just say if I'm making you uncomfortable."

I felt myself blushing again as I admitted "Yeah I'm here by myself. To be honest I came hoping I might meet people, maybe make a friend? I uh... I get a little shy I suppose."

Naomi gave me a warm smile. "I understand. Maybe you and I could spend some time together? If you like I could even try and help you get back on the slopes? How long are you staying?"

"Oh," I was blushing even brighter now, "That would be really nice actually. I'm here till the twentieth, so another week basically."

"That's perfect! I'm here until the eighteenth, so we have plenty of time."

She sounded enthusiastic, but once again I felt uncertain. If all this magic stuff was getting fixed in two days, what would I tell her? How would that work, would she wonder what happened to Rachel? Or would she forget we'd ever met? Would everything between this morning and Saturday be erased so it never happened? And why did that thought scare me so much?

For now I tried to push those worries aside. I asked her, "What about your friends? They won't mind if you're spending time with some stranger?"

Naomi rolled her eyes, "They might not even notice. Originally this was just supposed to be a vacation for me and Trish? She's my roommate. But at the last minute her boyfriend Brian invited himself along. They're spending all their time together and I just tag along."

"I'm sorry," I frowned. "That must suck."

"It's a little annoying, but I manage." She shrugged, then flashed me a flirty smile "On the plus side, it meant I was free to meet you."

That brought my blush back again and left me temporarily at a loss for words.

Once I regained my composure I asked, "Have you eaten? If you're here for dinner I'll keep you company."

Naomi countered with "Actually, I was wondering if you're done here would you like to join me for a drink?"

I smiled, "I'd love to!"

I left some money on the table for my dinner and a tip, then the two of us left the restaurant and went into the bar. It was darker and noisier, there were TVs on the walls showing different sporting events and some pop music playing in the background.

Naomi found us a table in the corner, and a minute later a waitress came by to get our order.

We were sitting almost side-by-side so we could talk to each other without having to raise our voices too loud, and as we waited for our drinks the two of us started getting to know each other a little better.

I was pleasantly surprised to find out she was a fellow student at U of T. She was studying chemistry and was planning for a career as a forensic chemist, which was a field I'd never even heard of. It sounded interesting though.

Our drinks arrived as we talked, Naomi had some sort of fancy cocktail and I had Irish coffee. I told her about my archaeology program, or what little I'd figured out about it so far. And I mentioned my interest in using technology to improve underwater archaeology in difficult conditions.

I found out Naomi was originally from Winnipeg. I told her I wasn't from quite that far west, I grew up near Windsor. She and her roommate Trish shared a small apartment in Toronto, not far from the university campus. I had my own apartment but it was out in the suburbs so I needed the car to commute.

As the evening wore on, we both ordered another drink, and Naomi got herself something to eat. She offered to share with me but I was still stuffed from dinner. It looked good though, little skewers of spiced grilled chicken with a tangy dipping sauce.

The two of us talked more, and I found myself really enjoying her company.

Normally guy-me would get too awkward or shy spending any length of time with a stranger. Especially one as attractive as Naomi. But I was able to take it all in stride, and rather than being eager to escape and disappear I found myself wanting the evening to keep going.

The only sort of thing that did leave me feeling awkward and uncertain was anything to do with my past or future. I couldn't remember any of my past as Rachel, and I had no idea if this life would continue past Saturday or not. And of course I couldn't actually tell my new friend any of that, or the reasons for it.

Instead I wound up telling her that for my vacation I was trying to just 'live in the now' and not dwell on either the past or the future. She thought that was very zen, I think she figured I was sort of spiritual or enlightened or something, which made me blush.

It was somewhere around midnight when we both started running out of things to say. I was getting tired and I suspected Naomi was too. We'd had three, maybe four drinks as we sat there talking. At least mine had caffein in them to keep me going, I was a bit worried she might be more than a little tipsy.

The waitress brought us the bill and Naomi and I split it. Between the two of us we left enough cash for the drinks and a nice tip.

As we walked out of the bar together I asked, "Are you ok to get back to your room? Where are you staying?"

"Yeah I'm fine," she smiled. It turned out she was in the same lodge as me which was convenient.

She was worried about me going out without a coat or jacket, but I shrugged "It's fine, it's not that far."

Despite my bravado it was actually really cold out at that time of night, and there was a wind that hadn't been blowing earlier. I wound up making a run for it, and Naomi dashed alongside me so we both got to the lodge together. I was shivering and eager to get into a warm bed, but she pulled me into a hug first to help warm me up.

After a few very pleasant minutes of standing there in her arms, we finally pulled away from each other. Her room was on the third floor, mine was on the second. So we reluctantly parted ways on the second landing. I bid her a good night, and we promised to meet in the morning at the restaurant for breakfast at half-past ten.

I watched as Naomi disappeared from view up the stairs, then turned and made my way to my room. A few minutes later I'd stripped off all my clothes, visited the bathroom, then slipped into bed.

There was a wide smile on my face as I drifted off to sleep. Today had been truly magical from start to finish, and I was already looking forward to tomorrow.

PurpleCatGirl

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