The heat was record-breaking. Most of the businesses in town were well equipped for hot weather, but the air conditioners at the high school couldn’t keep up and it was 80 ͦ in the coolest part of the school. Most of the girls were coping pretty well, as skirts and dresses got shorter and thinner. But the dress code proscribed the wearing of shorts, so the boys suffered in long pants while the girls managed to get a cool breeze on their nether regions.

“It’s not fair,” I told my best friend, Jody Cameron. “I’m not complaining about the short skirts, they’re beautiful, but what the hell is wrong us wearing shorts.”

Jody had a plan. “Tell you what, Chris, let’s talk to the principal. He’s gotta be hot, too! We’ll ask him if he can suspend the rule against wearing shorts, or just do away with it. It’s outdated, anyway!”

In ‘best friends’ relationships, there is usually a dominant person and a submissive. Without a doubt, Jody was dominant. He was bigger and stronger because he had matured much faster than I had. When we met we were almost the exact same height and weight, but puberty worked its magic on him, and I could see him get bigger almost daily. He grew to over six feet tall while I grew from 5’ 0” to 5’ 2”. His voice changed very quickly, while mine reinforced the idea that, to most people, I looked and sounded like a teen-aged girl. Jody also had the more dominant personality; I couldn’t deny that even if I wanted to. I didn’t want to, though, because I was happy with the way our relationship worked. I liked Jody a lot and I told him that but, of course, I would never tell him I loved him because … well … a guy doesn’t say that to another guy. Even saying, “I like you a lot” got a questioning look from him.

Still, I wondered how he felt about our relationship. There were a few times when I thought he wanted to say something tender or intimate, but he seemed to chicken out at the last moment. Once, we were studying together at my house, he put his hand behind my neck and pulled me closer to him. I was sure he was going to kiss me. I closed my eyes as he got closer and he whispered into my ear, “I gotta get home, it’s late.” I don’t think he did it to hurt me, but it was another instance of him losing his nerve at the last minute. Still, after he left, I cried. We had known each other for three years, I had fallen in love with him, and my love was growing. I was certain he felt the same way, but couldn’t seem to bring himself to tell me. I was afraid if I said something it would be the end of our friendship. There was no way I could have that happen. I didn’t feel like I was gay, because I wasn’t really attracted to boys in general, but Jody was different. He treated me so gently … almost like he would treat a very young child or even a girl. I reciprocated with dedication and respect, and I would do almost anything for him. So, we had a relationship that we both seemed to understand, but neither was able to talk about openly. After the disappointment during our study time, though I realized that there was no way he would ever tell me, “I love you.” I tried to live with that realization, but couldn’t help but hold onto a tiny bit of hope.

Jody was handsome in an “Ashton Kutcher” kind of way. He didn’t pay a lot of attention to his looks because he could run a comb through his hair in the morning and be beautiful. The girls loved him, of course, and he loved girls. He never went with one particular girl, and I don’t think he was sexually active. He was popular, but he wasn’t the “exclusive” popular type; i.e. the type that only associates with other popular kids. Jody was friendly to anyone, and he treated everyone with respect. He wasn’t into sports; he was more into computers and books and he made excellent grades, apparently without trying.

Girls liked me too, but more like a friend, a little brother or, given my somewhat feminine looks, a sister or one of their girlfriends. I made good grades, too, and shared Jody’s love of computers. We were a good match, and we were the best of friends.

Jody lived with his mom. His dad had left them years ago and I had never met him. Jody stayed in touch with his dad, but his mom and his dad apparently didn’t communicate.

So, when Jody said we should talk to the principal, I agreed and we made an appointment to see the “head man”.

When we walked into the principal’s office, we noticed that it was much cooler than any other place in the building.

“Well, what is it, boys?”

“Well,” Jody began, “it’s been so hot recently and the school air conditioners don’t seem to be working very well. We were wondering if maybe the rule against wearing shorts could be suspended or done away with.”

“So, you’re hot!”

“Yes, sir.”

“When I was in high school, we didn’t even have air conditioning, and we did just fine.”

“But, sir, the girls can wear short dresses or skirts and I’m sure that’s cooler, but we have to wear long pants. It gets really hot ….”

“So do you want to wear dresses or skirts?” He chuckled sarcastically.

“No sir, I’m just saying we need some way to stay cool.” He paused a few seconds, then continued, “You know, maybe a dress or a skirt would be cooler.”

Now he laughed out loud. “That, I’d like to see! Look, boys, I’m busy. I’ll fix the weather. Give me until October or November and I’ll make it cooler outside. I can do that because I’m the principal! For now, goodbye. If y’all want to wear dresses and skirts, be my guest! Just don’t wear your skirt too short!” He was still chuckling as we left.

When we left the principal’s office, Jody was smiling, but I was really discouraged. “What do we do now?”

“You mean you don’t know?”

“Uh … no. What can we do?”

“Think, Chris. We’re gonna do what he advised us to do!”

“Wait until October?”

“No! We gonna be cool in skirts and dresses!”

“Oh, no. We’ll get in trouble for sure!”

“No way! We have the principal’s permission! Let me quote him, ‘If y’all want to wear dresses and skirts, be my guest! Just don’t wear your skirt too short!’”

“Yeah, but the other guys ….”

“Why should they say anything? They’ll be wearing the same thing! We’ll have a big protest and they’ll be glad to help! We’ll make it a dare, ‘Do you have the balls to be cool?’ We need to get that message to every guy in school. It’s early in the day. We should be able to reach everyone and execute the plan tomorrow.”

“Might work.”

“It’ll also piss off Hammond; an added benefit.”

I felt my heart filled with admiration for Jody!

Our school work suffered as we worked the rest of the school day spreading the word. Everyone was agreeable to the plan, provided that they weren’t the only one doing it. We told doubters to bring a pair of pants in case they chickened out. Most of the girls got involved by lending clothing to their brothers or other guys who needed it.

I borrowed a mini-dress from my sister. She told me I had to wear a pair of her shoes, too. My hair was already long, so she styled it and put just a little makeup on me. When I looked into the mirror, I realized that if the guys got into trouble, I could easily be overlooked. I could imagine the principal telling me, “Excuse me, miss. Hey, you over there in the mini-skirt! Detention!” I smiled at the thought.

My sister saw me smile. “So you like it!”

Of course I liked it, but I was so absorbed in admiring myself that I almost forgot my sister was there. “I don’t think the idea is to actually look like a girl, but I’m OK, I guess.”

“You guess!? You look good!”

“This is crazy, Claire! I guess I do look good!”

“You do, but it’s just temporary. I don’t want to be sharing my clothes from now on!”

“The principal won’t be able to take much of this. He’ll give in!”

“I don’t know. He was very stubborn when the fight erupted over the cheerleaders’ uniforms!”

“Well, visual aids are a good teaching tool, and that’s what we’re gonna use.”

“She opened a drawer and got out some panties and a bra. You gotta have a bra with some kind of padding to make the dress fit right, and you simply can’t wear those ugly ‘tighty whities’ under that beautiful dress. May as well go all the way. Let me know when you want to go shopping for some dresses and skirts.”

Jody couldn’t hide his surprise when he saw me. “Babe! You’re lookin’ … I mean … Chris, you look ... good.”

“Thanks, Jody!” I did a little spin and made the hem of the dress flare out a bit.

“Honestly, you’re pretty!”

He stood, staring at me. I was in heaven! I smiled my prettiest smile and spoke in a ‘girl’ voice. “What is it, Jody? Do you want to kiss me?” (The word “kiss” sounded a little like “kith”) This was my chance to see if he would kiss me. If not, Hey! I was only joking!

“No! Let’s get to school!”

But I wasn’t joking, and my feelings were hurt by the stern way he told me ‘no’. I say ‘a little, but I was deeply hurt and actually had to hold back my tears. I have always been super sensitive. A boy has to hide that, though. If I allowed myself to cry … or show hurt feelings in any way around other kids, I would be ridiculed and called names. Jody wouldn’t call me names, but he wouldn’t be able to maintain a friendship with a “cry-baby” without the name-calling beginning to rub off on him. It was weird, of course, walking to school in my sister’s mini-dress. I’m sure Jody was uncomfortable in the skirt and blouse he had borrowed from his mom. Of course, he looked like a boy in girls’ clothing, which was part of the point of the protest. The panties my sister insisted I wear were incredibly thin. I was cool down below, but it made me constantly aware that my dress extended down only two or three inches more than the panties. I made sure I had a hand free in the event the wind picked up. That, along with my rejected offer of a kiss made things tense. As we approached the school, however, we began to see the results of our communications on the previous day. I was beginning to think I wasn’t going to see a pair of long pants. I finally saw a few, though, because you can’t expect total cooperation on something like this. Our success made it possible to get over my feelings of rejection and focus on the job at hand.

Principal Hammond was on the front steps of the school arguing with a football player in a dress with an empire waist. Where he found a dress big enough was a mystery. I told Jody to wait while I casually strolled by as they argued. The principal looked right at me and gave me his fake smile with the curled upper lip, then continued arguing. After I passed, I motioned for Jody to come on. When he got closer, the principal stopped him. “Mr. Cameron, where’s your pal, Mr. Davis? Y’all are the ones who started all this mess. I’m gonna have a little meeting with the two of you.”

“He just passed you a minute ago. You didn’t see him? But this is what you told us to do! It really is cooler. Thanks, Principal Hammond.”

The principal mumbled something. I’m pretty sure it was profanity. “Go on to your class. I’ll send a note when I’m ready for you.” He gave up arguing and went toward his office looking at everyone he passed … including me. He didn’t recognize me when he looked right at me again. He would find me, though. All he had to do is send a note to my first-period class and I would have to go down to the office and face the music.

Sure enough, I didn’t even have time to get bored in first period before one of the office helpers delivered a ‘summons’. I walked to the office and found Jody already in the waiting room. The principal came and invited us in. He did a double-take when he saw me. He probably remembered seeing me before and giving me that “smile”. He seemed especially cordial, given the reason for our visit.

He was clearly amused. He looked like he wanted to laugh about the situation, but he was probably afraid that would be a sign that he was making light of it. “OK, boys or girls, you’ve had your fun. Can I assume that everything will be back to normal tomorrow?” He kept looking back at me. I think he was still trying to make sure it was me.

“Sure, Principal Hammond, if we can assume that the rule against wearing shorts has been canceled.”

“Oh, no. I don’t give in to tactics like this. You’re breaking the school dress code, and you all could be punished!”

I decided a little sarcasm was in order. “Please, Principal Hammond, you can punish me, but give my sister a break!”

“I have no plans to punish your sister. What are you talking about?”

“She wore a dress to school today. Please go easy on her!”

“You know dam… You know the dress code does not proscribe girls wearing dresses!”

“Well, does this dress code actually say that boys can’t wear dresses? Maybe you could show us the dress code. I’d like to see the part that prohibits anyone from wearing a dress or a skirt!”

“You have no right to look at the dress code!”

Jody had a problem with that statement, “We can’t look at it, but we’re bound by it? Doesn’t that make getting dressed for school a trial-and-error thing? Like, ‘I don’t know if this is allowed by the dress code. I’ll just have to wear it and find out.’.”

“Maybe I should call your parents.”

Time to play my ace. “Please don’t call my mom. She will be angry for us intruding on her busy day. She’s an attorney, you know, and ….”

“I don’t care … an attorney?”

“Yes, sir, she’s a very good attorney. She got a guy off for ….”

“I don’t care who she got off! If you’re not dressed properly tomorrow, you will be suspended! Get back to your classes!”

It was Jody’s turn. “Principal Hammond, It seems a lot cooler in here than anyplace else in the school. How do you manage that? Would you mind if we hang out with you a bit and cool off?”

“Get out!”

“I guess that’s a ‘no’?”

“Out!”

We got out.

“Jody, notice how he acted when I told him my mom was an attorney? He was intimidated. When she gets home today, I’m gonna update her about all this. She will help.”

“Good! I think we’re gonna need it. Ok, here is the message for the grapevine today: Jody Cameron and Chris Davis have been threatened with suspension if they continue to protest the dress code. They will continue the protest, but any guys who feel intimidated should wear long pants tomorrow.”

“OK, let’s get the word out.”

I got home before my sister, and I decided to leave “my” dress on for when my mom got there. I was in my room when I heard my sister come in the front door. I sat on my bed very ladylike with my ankles crossed and my hands in my lap and waited. Sure enough, she knocked on my door.

I called out in my best girl voice, “Come in.”

She walked in and looked surprised to see that I still had her dress on. “So you do like the dress!”

“It was a gift, right?”

“OK, since you like it, keep it.”

“I’ll need something to wear tomorrow.”

“What? You’re just begging for trouble. Just remember, this dress is the only gift, no matter how much you like the next outfit! You know what I think? I think that no matter how this ‘protest’ comes out, you’re still gonna want to wear my clothes. After all, it’s nothing new, is it?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about!”

“Of course not! Did you know that clothes in my closet sometimes rearrange themselves and my bras and panties in my chest of drawers get shuffled as if by magic? I just love my magical clothes! Apparently, so do you! Finally, I get to see you dressed in some of them and you look damn good! The girls at school think so, too!”

“Really?”

“Really! They were talking about how ridiculous some of the boys looked, but they said you were the exception. I don’t know whether that’s a plus when you go looking for a date or not. Now, take off your makeup and go take a shower, then come to my room and let’s find you something to wear tomorrow. We’ll have a fashion show. Here are some clean panties, but you can wear the same bra. Also, wear this mini-girdle under the panties to keep everything under control.”

A fashion show! How cool! I showered and she did my makeup again, instructing me as she worked. This time, as she was styling my hair, she saw the tiny studs in my ears. “When did you get your ears pierced?”

“I dunno. A while back. Nobody notices because I keep my hair long.”

“That’s wonderful!” She started going through her earring collection and found some spiral earrings that were long enough to be seen below my long hair. I had to admit, it added a lot to the look.

“I like them!”

“You’re finally gonna admit it; great!”

“You’re the best sister in the whole wide world!”

“Really? If I had known it was that easy, I would have done this a long time ago. Listen … no more going through my stuff when I’m not here. Wait until I’m home and we’ll go through my stuff together. You’ll need help matching, anyway.”

“You got it!”

“Chris, you’re so pretty. I always wanted a sister.”

“I’m sorry, Claire. You see, I was born with this … thing.” I pointed downward.

“I know that, silly. It’s just that we could have so much fun if you had been born without that … thing.”

“Don’t give up yet. I gotta change.” I went into the bathroom and locked the door behind me.

I could hear her through the door. “What? What do you mean? Do you mean what I think you mean?”

I put on the panties, bra, and dress. The girl in the mirror looked pretty good. I unlocked the door.

“Oh, Chris. You look even cuter in this dress. Maybe you should have been born a girl!”

“More people are making the change every day!”

“Are you serious? I would love that. I’m not so sure about Mom.”

“Maybe you haven’t noticed, but Mom is not exactly crazy about men. You know her best friend, Emma?”

“Yeah, the one with the really short hair … wait … no way!”

“Yeah, they’re more than friends.”

“What makes you so sure?”

“Well, one night when they thought we were sleeping I went down to the kitchen for a snack and saw them kissing. It wasn’t just a friendly kiss, either. They didn’t see me, and I went straight back to my room.”

“Wow, that explains a lot.”

“Yeah, like no dating. I guess Mom and Emma are going steady.”

“Chris, you’re a silly goose!”

“Maybe so, but Mom is a lesbian and you …?”

“Watch out, Chris, or you’ll have to wear boy’s clothes to school!”

“No! Anything but that!”

“Just think, we might have two moms pretty soon.”

“Did you hear a car door?”

“Yeah, Mom number one is home. You ready to show her new daughter to her?”

“You go prepare her, then I’ll make my entrance.”

I listened as Claire met Mom in the living room. “Mom, I want to introduce you to someone.”

I walked into the room. “Ta-da!”

Mom looked me over. “Chris, you look really nice. I love it!”

In unison, Claire and I said, “What!?”

“Yes, I love it. More importantly, Principal Hammond will hate it!”

“Oh, you know.”

“Yes, word gets around. In a way, it’s a good thing though. You have a chance to ‘come out’.”

“Mom, I’m not ‘coming out’!”

“What a shame! It would be the perfect time.”

Claire looked at me. “Ah-ha! What about it, Chris … Chrissy?”

I was trapped. I sat down and put my face in my hands. I wanted to cry, but I already felt foolish enough. I felt my mom’s hand on my shoulder. “It’s OK, Chrissy. I’ve known for some time.”

“Y’all both knew?”

“Of course. You have this tendency in your genes. Those ‘vitamins’ I make sure you take every day are testosterone blockers. They’re blocking male puberty until you decide which way you want to go.”

“What do you mean about my genes?”

“All I’m going to say is: ‘Allan Davis’.”

I couldn’t believe it, “Dad?”

“So, testosterone blockers; that’s why he’s … she’s so pretty! Uh, Chris … not Dad.”

Mom changed the subject, “So Chrissy finally got to go to school. How was it?”

“It was great, Mom. It felt so natural. I don’t think it’s gonna work on a full-time basis.”

“He’s right, Mom. He … she would face a lot of ridicule.”

“Well, let’s see what happens with the protest and go from there. Since my last name is different from my school days, Principal Hammond doesn’t realize who I am, but we were in high school together. If he gives you any more trouble, I have a message for him.”

“What’s that, Mom?”

“Tell him, ‘Don’t make me come down there’.”

My sister and I both smiled about that. We were proud of our mom.

Next: The cunning principal makes a surprise move.