Her Superhero Lover

Chapter 7

As Halloween came closer and closer, Renee felt like her life was going through faster changes than even the summer of her eleventh birthday, when she’d started puberty. Since Grady injected the nanos, she’d grown over four inches in height. It had gotten to the point that she just bought long basketball shorts that hung below her knees, knowing soon enough they’d be above the knees. With the increased height though, there was no weight gain at all, and her body leaned out, taking on the leggy, modelesque look that had Martin drooling every time she stopped by his office. “Honey, I don’t know what you did, but if you have another dose of it, share it with me,” he told her one day. “I could become bigger than the Ford Agency with a portfolio of girls who have your body.”

“Careful Martin, you keep talking like that, and you’re going to start sounding suspiciously like a straight man again,” Renee retorted, grinning. “Besides, I just came by to tell you I’m taking at least a hiatus from the business.”

Martin’s face hung in disbelief, and he ran his hands through his hair. “Why does this sh*t always happen to me? I finally get myself a talent that can get me to the next level, and what does she tell me? Oh Martin, I’m taking a hiatus. Fu*k my life.”

“Oh come off it you drama queen,” Renee said with mock frustration. She knew Martin, and knew his tirades were just part of his personality. Indulging him in them would just make them last longer. “Besides, I only said hiatus.”

“The way you said it makes it sound suspiciously like retirement,” Martin said. He sighed again and looked over at her. “Well, I can’t blame you too much. I’ve seen your boyfriend. If you had any suspicions I’d gone straight, just let me near him. I’ve got no problems with him at all.”

Renee rolled her eyes and laughed. “That’s the Martin I’ve come to know and love. I promise you, at least one more shoot just for you to add to the agency portfolio. But not until after New Year’s at least. I’ve got some stuff lined up on the DJ front, and let’s be honest, this whole thing with Grady is taking up time too.”

“Yeah, that part doesn’t seem all that difficult from my point of view,” Martin said. “You know, I should be pissed off at you, and there’s a part of me that is. But most of me is happy. You’ve been a good person to have around for all this time. Hey, just promise that no matter what, I get invited to the Voelker Consolidated Christmas party?”

Renee laughed and nodded. “Of course. First of all, most of the employees would probably enjoy having you around.”

“And second?”

Renee came over and kissed Martin on the cheek. “And secondly, you’re my friend. But I gotta run for now.”

*****

“So what’s the tape measure say?” Renee held her breath, hoping against hope. She was wearing a t-shirt and her basketball shorts, and stood against the wall in her bare feet. The tile under her feet was slightly cold.

“Five foot ten. You’ve seemingly leveled out,” Grady replied, as they stood in his lab. “That’s the third day in a row with no change. In fact, all of your measurements physically have stayed the same for the past three days.”

Renee looked down at her now D-cup bre*sts, and chuckled. “Yeah, I’m sure you’re happy about some of those. Twenty three inch waist and a thirty seven bust.”

“I promise, I had no idea you would get such a side effect,” Grady said. “But I do appreciate my work. It’s a fine feat of nanotech engineering. And by the way, don’t forget the killer butt too.” He stroked her face, and gave her a light kiss that quickly deepened until he snuck a hand up to cup her bre*st playfully.

Renee rolled her eyes and smacked Grady in the chest, who recoiled. “Ow.”

“Oh, stop joking. You and I both know you could have one of the Klitschko brothers unload on your unprotected face and you’d barely feel a thing.” She raised her hands like a boxer and jabbed at him a few times, shadow style.

She was surprised when Grady stepped back and rubbed at his chest, shaking his head. “No, I’m serious. That actually hurt. I think we might want to do a few more tests.”

“Like?” Renee asked, looking in wonder at Grady’s chest as a red mark the size of her hand appeared on his left pectoral muscle. “I’ve never seen that before.”

“That’s because it’s never happened before,” he said. “I mean, I’ve gotten injured in my fights with the gangbangers, but they’ve always been cuts or an expected bruise, like last week when that guy hit me with his pickup truck.” It was another video clip that had made its way to Youtube and quickly become viral. The gang member, driving an old Mazda pickup, had plowed into The Horseman going close to thirty miles an hour. The result was something out of a movie, as the truck’s front end caved in, while the driver shot through the front windshield to scrape along the street. Meanwhile, The Horseman was driven back a total of four feet before his feet literally dug into the pavement, bringing him to a total stop. News footage later of the car showed the engine block of the truck shoved into the cab of the car, and a police statement that the driver had been lucky to have shot through the windshield, since he would have ended up with the steering column shoved through his chest otherwise. The next day, when Grady met Renee for lunch, his shoulder was black and blue, and he said it was a bit stiff. By the next morning it was gone, and he was fully healed.

“By the way, try to not have that happen any more,” Renee said. “You do not want to know how much I worry every time you put on that Horseman costume. Seriously, are you trying to give me gray hair by the time I’m thirty?”

“I know you worry, but you know why I do it,” Grady said. “I just need to see the world made a better place. But, turning back to you. I seriously think we need to see just how much your abilities have increased.”