Calvin stood in line with his friends, eagerly waiting with the others to receive something they'd been waiting for since they'd learnt of its existence, at very young ages, and seen what it could do.
The Adonis Fertility pill, or Growth Pill, as the students liked to call it. Upon reaching the age of 24, which was the time deemed appropriate by the government, ingestion of the pill became an option that was offered to students across the nation. Recently, however, it has become mandatory.
The upsides of taking the pill felt like each one of the students was getting an opportunity to develop superpowers. I mean, there were guys and girls in the line who could barely contain themselves.
Improved physique, better looks, a healthier reproductive system free of defects. For some, increased strength, senses and agility. What was not to like?
Almost everywhere one looked, they could see a couple making out or at least hugging. The Fertility Pill didn't just mean a better naughty time for them, though. It also meant they'd have better chances of having children.
“Crazy how most of the cohort is all paired up now,” a voice echoed behind him.
It had come from one of his friends. Anna was nearly a foot shorter than him, with freckles upon her face, red hair and beautiful blue eyes that were rare to see, either because of her bangs or because she nearly always had her head in a book.
Calvin barely glanced at her, his eyes already searching the crowd for someone else. Not far from the scientist handing out the Fertility pill was a girl that many guys were staring at even now.
She had blonde hair and the kind of hourglass figure that needed no assistance from the Fertility Pill(not that he minded her getting a bit fuller).
“You think she'll say yes?” He whispered.
Anna looked forward at the one he was looking at, skipping over the fact that he'd just ignored her comment, “I think you should be friends with her first.”
“We are friends,” he answered.
“Helping Ruby with a few projects and walking her to her apartment once does not count as friend territory. You're course mates at best,” Anna explained.
“Bah! You don't know what you're talking about,” Calvin waved her off, “We have chemistry.”
“It's impossible to advise someone in love,” she muttered.
“True as that might be, I still think I have a chance here,” he argued.
“Well, the guys and I are here for you, so go for it,” she relented, only to realise he wasn't listening to her anymore.
Ruby was next, and nearly every boy had gone silent, except for the ones already smitten by their loved ones(most of these were also silent in anticipation, which made their spouses just the least bit jealous).
Even though the Growth Pill basically meant anyone could move from being a 3 to an 8.5, there remained a hierarchy when it came to girls who already looked like supermodels before taking the pill.
Ruby stepped forward. The scientist, who for some reason had makeup all over his face, smiled and handed her the pill and a glass of the specialised juice meant to aid its digestion.
“The faster you drink, the sooner it will be over,” the man explained.
The revolting taste of the Growth Pill was no secret, and the juice that accompanied it, no matter how much flavour they tried to add to it, was no better.
Ruby nodded, threw the pill in her mouth and downed the cup of juice in one go.
For a moment, she looked as though she'd made it through unscathed, only for her expression to turn sour. She looked like she was going to be sick.
“Hold it in, love,” the colourful scientist said politely. There was nothing polite about his tone, though. Each Pill was said to cost a decent 5000 dollars: “Taking another pill will increase your tuition fees and make graduation… problematic.”
Ruby nodded.
Calvin was sweating… and praying she would be okay. Their tuition covered just one pill, which meant everyone had to get it right in one go, a feat much harder than it seemed.
He'd seen some guys swallow their own vomit just to avoid the consequences, and even then, he'd seen the same people fail to hold it back a second time, their bodies then going on to fight the pill two more times (worst-case scenarios), which would then add a decent 10k to someone’s tuition.
“You think it will make her breasts bigger? Feels unfair getting a rack bigger than that,” Anna muttered in the silence.
Calvin swallowed, ‘Please get bigger boobs!’ he prayed to whatever gods controlled the results of consuming the pill. They would not see those results now, but by nightfall, whatever changes Ruby would undergo would have started showing, and Calvin was severely hoping for an increase in bust size.
He tried to tame his imagination, but something had already formed in his mind. All he could do was wait for the Fertility party to see how far she could compare to what he'd just imagined.
“I know you already know my answer to that,” he whispered back to Anna, who just facepalmed and shook her head.
A moment later, Ruby's expression calmed, and she looked better. The scientist gave her a tap on the back, “Go get some rest and prepare for the party tonight. And make sure to have some fun, love. You'll be graduating soon.”
Ruby smiled. Now, those were words of encouragement even Calvin could acknowledge. Everyone got some version of them, but they were always good to hear.
“We can have beautiful babies now, Ruby,” a guy yelled from the line. Technically, he was right, now that Ruby could be considered more fertile, but his timing just made a large portion of the girls sneer and berate him with insults.
Calvin laughed as the boy got pelted with insults from the other gender. There was stuff in there about him being a pervert, a misogynist, a creep and several other things guys like him were probably used to hearing.
Calvin really was just interested in the fact that Ruby had taken her pill on her first attempt. Now, she would be transformed, preferably by the night's ball, and so would he. He could only hope he’d be able to match her beauty.
It wasn't long before the line moved, and he had to take the pill himself. The Adonis Fertility pill was not small… and the juice was… well, it looked like fermented yoghurt mixed with water from a swamp and mud. It had bubbles that rose and popped after getting to obnoxious sizes, just waiting for him to be brave enough to assault his stomach with it.
“Shit…” he muttered.
“It's not as bad as it looks,” the scientist said.
The man wasn't technically wrong. It was worse than it looked. Much, much worse and while, miraculously, Calvin hadn’t thrown up, the aftertaste followed him into his sleep that afternoon, like a monster in his dreams just taunting him. He would not be shaken, though.
He had a plan to be united with Ruby, and it would work. He and Ruby would be a couple, and their lives would be wonderful. I mean, what better match could there be?
Author's Note: And we're off!!! I don't know if I've expressed excitement for this story, but I am excited for it. To shed some more light on the growth dynamics, let me add this. The Fertility Pill makes people sexier, but extreme expansion was so rare up until the time this story starts. There is a very valid reason for that, and hopefully I do it justice when the time to reveal it comes. Long story short, Ruby and Calvin are assured victims of this.
Bonus images here: