august 1st 2025
NOTE: this story frankly discusses adult themes including: anxiety, bodily transformation, consent, death, depression, kink, relationships, and trauma. there are no explicit depictions of death, or of physical or sexual abuse, but these themes are discussed. reader discretion is advised.
"So, since our last session I did a bit of research on what kinds of accommodations are available for people in your position - er, sorry, in your situation."
Sandra rolled her eyes. Currently, she was resting on her back, looking up at Eliza; Jeri insisted on turning her at least once a day, so that she didn't get blisters. Deciding that her therapist wouldn't intentionally have made a wisecrack like that, the ballooned girl waved for her to continue.
"You had mentioned that you're on the wait list for an extra-wide conapt. I saw there are some modified mobility scooters with hand-held controls. Would something like that be useful, to let you get out of the house more?"
"Probably not." Sandra sighed, looking over at her. "I... really don't like people looking at me. And when I'm stuck at this size, people would constantly be looking at me. Judging me." A faint sneer crept into her expression. "Because the only way you end up blimped out like this, is from using heliox inhalants. And the only reason you'd use them outside an aerotherapy clinic, is because you're a great, big pervert."
Eliza couldn't honestly refute her client's logic. In fact, the all-too-common perception of tumeotoxin victims as sexual deviants who 'got what they deserved' was one of the biggest obstacles in the way of research grants to study and treat it. "Well, is there anything in particular you'd like to work on today?"
"I guess..." Sandra took a deep breath. "I guess we can talk about Don."
"That's your ex, right? You seem pretty reluctant to discuss that; if you don't feel ready just yet, we can talk about something else."
"No, I... I should talk about him. Be good to get that out of my system, at least." She chuckled bitterly, shaking her head. "I guess the part most relevant to this is that he was super weirded out by my kinks. Like, any time I mentioned wanting to be inflated - not even asking to be blown up, just mentioning it in passing - he'd flip out and accuse me of not being mindful of his boundaries.
"But he expected me to cater to his kinks, even if they crossed my boundaries. Like when he convinced me to fool around with him in a cinema." Sandra's skin crawled with goosebumps. "I thought it was an exhibitionist thing, but looking back I think he more got off on the rush of controlling me - getting me to do what he wanted. Guess it's a good thing we were the only ones under 60 in that theater..."
"You were?"
"It was a Western," she said with a shrug of her hands.
"Hmm... In our first session, you said you're glad you were dating Jeri instead of Don when this happened. But you said that you still feel trapped. Is that in spite of how Jeri treats you?"
"Pretty much." Sandra chewed her lip. "I'm a very independent person - well, I guess now I'm just independent-minded. I made sure when we got this conapt that it's income-based. That way, if something happened to me, the rent would go down to just part of what Jeri makes. I wouldn't want her to have to put her stuff in a storage locker, and sleep at a shelter.
"Don't misunderstand - I love her, a lot. And she's really good to me. I have no intention of leaving; but the fact that I can't leave... well, it weighs on me."
Eliza watched as Sandra took another deep breath and slowly released it, her body swelling almost imperceptibly before returning to its usual size. "Sandra, are you familiar with the concept of 'pressure' in psychology?"
"Not offhand."
"Think of the mind as being - if you'll pardon the imagery - like a balloon, and stress as being like air or helium that fills the balloon. As more stress builds up inside, the mind has to stretch thinner and thinner to accommodate it." She held up her hands as if she were clutching an invisible watermelon between them. "If the stress is let out slowly, gradually, then the mind mostly returns to its original shape.
"On the other hand, if the pressure builds up too much, then the stress forces its way out - the balloon tears, or pops. But either way, the pressure has to be relieved somehow."
Sandra nodded as best she could. "I'm guessing that sigh of relief, or whatever it was, made you think of that?"
"Well, a lot of classical cultures drew a connection between the breath and the soul, or mind. In Greek, the word pneuma meant both 'breath' and 'spirit.' The word ruach in Hebrew has a similar double meaning." The intern smiled. "And frankly, it seemed like a lot of psychological pressure got released when you got that stuff off your chest."
"Too bad I can't get the pressure out of my body that easily. Problem is, whatever air leaks out, the tumeotoxin molecules make more to replace it."
The two were interrupted by the sound of an old-fashioned metal key turning in the front door. Jeri walked through the kitchen into the living room, absentmindedly clicking her fingers in time to the flip music coming through her earpiece; she looked up with a start when she saw Eliza. "Oh jeez, I'm sorry! I guess I'm a little early..."
Eliza waved away her concern. "It's okay, we were getting close to the end of the hour. Unless there's something else you'd like to touch on, Sandra?"
"Nothing comes to mind. See you next week, same time?"
"Of course, Sandra."
As Eliza stood up, bidding her client a good evening, Jeri walked her to the door. She was a bit surprised when the intern turned to her.
"You know, it might not be a bad idea for you to talk to someone. I can't imagine it's easy, having to become a caregiver practically overnight."
Jeri was about to decline, but stopped herself with a rueful smile. "You may be right... I've got the clinic's number if I need it."
Knowing better than to be pushy, Eliza simply nodded and said her goodbyes as the redhead walked back into the living room. Still in her inverted position, Sandra looked at her girlfriend, who seemed to be walking across the carpeted ceiling. "Hey, babe? You mind rolling me over so I can see the screen?"
It took a few minutes of careful rocking back and forth, but she eventually had the spherical girl resting on her stomach again. Jeri eyed the faint impression the carpet fibers had made on Sandra's back. "You want me to put some lotion where you were laying?"
"No, but some scratches there would be amazing..."
The smaller woman obliged, gently scraping her fingernails along her girlfriend's back, smiling as she cooed and hummed in relief. "I'm making Falafel Helper tonight."
"Sounds good." Jeri had been pretty accommodating, making meals for Sandra that were soft and easy to chew. Truth be told, the inflated girl wished she could switch to an entirely liquid diet; but there was no point in having her hair fall out on top of everything else. "I'll let you pick tonight's movie."
"Ooh!" Jeri squeaked. "Can we watch Solaris again?"
Sandra smiled. Even after three and a half years, it still made her heart flutter to see Jeri so excited. "Sure thing, babe." ■