Chapter 1

I was afficted with a strange curse at the class reunion. The next day I discovered I would transform into a woman upon entering a men's restroom.

The caster thought it was punishment. Little did they know I soon grew fond of this strange ability.

*****

Grilled pork belly sizzled over the flame, its fat rendering and crackling, thick smoky barbecue scent wrapping around the booth.

"Alex Lane, why are you zoning out? Come on, let's down this one," Sophie White said, holding out a glass of beer.

Alex snapped out of his trance and stared at the beer glass held toward him. His gaze travelled upward from the glass to Sophie's face, which was smiling gently at him.

In the dim light of the private room, Sophie retained the pure and soft grace she had possessed back in high school. 'If only we had never split up all those years ago,' Alex thought.

"Alright, let's do it," Alex said with a smile, clinking his glass against hers and downing the beer in one go.

It had been years since they'd last met, and now at the reunion, they started catching up on each other's lives like it was the most natural thing in the world.

Back in their senior year, they shared a bashful, innocent romance, but with all the stress from the SATs and heading to different colleges, they broke up on good terms.

Seeing each other again now, there was none of the awkwardness common to former lovers. If anything, it felt like they were old friends who could talk about anything, and they got along comfortably.

"Hey, everyone, quiet down. Quiet down!" Ryan Hall, the loudest guy in the class, stood up, holding a half-empty beer bottle and slurring his words. "We've been stuffing our faces, but we haven't even gone around the table yet.

"Come on, let's hear it. What college are you at, and what are you majoring in? If you hit it big someday, don't forget your old classmates."

The room instantly lit up, and everyone started shouting out their majors.

Some were in computer science, some in finance, and there was even a civil engineering major who was already talking about quitting and running for the hills, which had everyone cracking up.

When it was Miles Gray's turn, sitting quietly in the corner, the room went a little quieter. Back in high school, Miles always kept to himself, always had his nose in some strange books.

Now that he'd gone abroad for college, he looked even more brooding and mysterious than before.

Miles stood up, cleared his throat, and pushed up his black-rimmed glasses. "I'm at a private university overseas, mainly studying folklore and legends."

He paused, glanced around at everyone, and then lowered his voice. "To be precise, my major is demonology."

The whole room suddenly went quiet for a moment.

Ryan nearly choked on his beer, then exploded with laughter. "Holy crap! Demonology? Miles, are you serious, man? Did you graduate from Witchwood Academy, or are you planning to check into Ravenhill Asylum?"

He bent over with laughter and thumped the table repeatedly.

Ryan's reaction got everyone going, and the room was filled with jokes and laughter. Everyone was having a blast.

"Mr. Gray, is your major job-secure? Are you gonna spend your days ghost hunting, or end up working down in the underworld after graduation?"

"Do your finals involve drawing magic circles or chanting exorcism rites? What happens if you flunk? Do they offer you up as a sacrifice to demons?"

"Come on, man, spill. Have you learned how to summon a succubus yet? If you ever get lucky, don't forget about us."

Miles's face turned crimson in an instant and he froze in clumsy confusion. It was clear he felt really humiliated.

"You guys don't get it at all. Demonology is a serious field based on ancient contracts and supernatural laws!" Miles snapped, his neck red with frustration.

"Alright, alright, dead serious!" Ryan was laughing so hard he had tears in his eyes, still egging Miles on. "Come on, show us a real demon curse right here. Blow our minds, man."

"You think I am joking?" Miles was totally pissed off.

He shot a glare at Alex, who was sitting right next to him.

Alex felt a jolt of panic. He thought, 'Dude, why are you looking at me? I didn't even say a word!'

Miles slowly raised his left hand, bent his thumb back at a freakish angle, and pressed it against his ring finger, making a bizarre gesture and pointing it straight at Alex's forehead.

Miles started rattling off a string of weird syllables that nobody could understand. His voice was thick and raspy, nothing like normal speech. It was more like he had a mouthful of phlegm in his throat and was trying to spit out a rap verse.

His chanting was relentless, barely stopping for breath. His eyes went bloodshot, neck veins bulging and throbbing alongside his odd jaw-moving noises.

Everyone in the room was dumbfounded, glancing at each other, thinking Miles was getting way too into character.

After rattling off the last bizarre, drawn-out syllable, Miles took a deep breath, pointed at Alex, and yelled, "Get ready for pure, bizarre humiliation. The contract is complete."

With that, he plopped down in a huff and chugged his water.

Alex felt a random chill breeze brush the back of his neck, but he shrugged it off, thinking the whole thing was pretty amusing.

Everyone else treated it like Miles was having another dramatic nerd moment, laughed it off, and let it slide.

The party wrapped up with everyone having a good time, though there was still a hint of awkwardness hanging in the air.

No one had any idea that Alex's fate was about to take a wild, unexpected turn.