The Benvenuto home, Omaha, Nebraska...late Friday afternoon

"Did you find out about the team?" Danny's Dad called as he walked into the kitchen from the garage.

Danny quickly turned off the TV, tossing the remote on the couch. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw his dad's face, which sported his usual non-descript half-smile. It looked like his dad was in a decent mood. He loved his father and would have done anything to please him.

"I didn't make the cut." He faked a frown as his father closed the back door with his foot, putting the groceries on the table.

"I guess those budget cuts didn't help, huh? They used to field like nearly a hundred players and now it's less than fifty. Well, maybe next year, after you've bulked up, right?"

"Yeah, Dad....next year." Danny hoped that this time next year would be hugely different, but he had to convince his parents, and that was nearly impossible. Just avoiding playing football was frustrating enough. It wasn't a case of 'not doing' so much as finally 'becoming.'

Sunday afternoon at the Benvenuto home....

She stood in her parent's bedroom. The image in the mirror was disappointing and encouraging at the same time. She wasn't very pretty at all; maybe a bit like the funny side kick of the girl heroine on a Disney channel program. But she did look like a girl...

A car door slammed and she turned her head in fear. Not today...it can't happen...no. She ran to the window, the feel of carpet on her feet mixed with the pantyhose gave her a start. A quick scan of the driveway revealed that her parents were still at the flea market out of state; the neighbor's car sat in the adjacent driveway. She sighed in relief, only to turn around and walk straight into her older brother.

"Holy crap, Dan."

"Please don't tell Mom and Dad." His brother usually would hold something like this over him for weeks, but something looked odd in his brother's expression; something that he'd never seen before.

"I won't."

"You....you won't." Danny's lip started to quiver.

"No. I don't understand this, but you cryin' about it tells me it's serious. This isn't a joke, is
it?"

"No...Vinnie....I don't...." It was embarrassing to cry in front of his brother, and the more he tried not to cry, the harder it got.

"You sorta look like Mom from when she was a kid, you know? But you've got Dad in you as well...Danny?" Vinnie tried to be comforting; his relationship with Danny usually gravitated toward teasing and joking, but for once he really felt like he needed to be a big brother. Not the lord-it-over-you kind, but the helpful kind with advice and encouragement.

"Vinnie...this is who I am....I'm such a fuck up....Dad is going to hate me....I'm such a fucking disappointment. I didn't get cut from the team...I never went out...." He looked down at his smallish frame, which seemed even smaller in his mother's clothes. Even she was bigger than him.

"He's not going to hate you....much." Vinnie's attempt at a joke was met with more tears and an awkward moment where Danny reached out for a hug. Vinnie didn't have it in him to hug his brother;he wanted to but it just wasn't what they did in their family. And even though it wasn't 'normal' Danny really expected Vinnie to respond.

"Never mind...I don't care....the hell with it...I don’t care anymore." Danny sobbed as he pushed past his brother and ran to his room.

Tuesday evening...

"I'm not hungry." Danny said as his mother set the table for dinner.

"Okay, honey, but I want you at the table just the same. Your dad and I need to talk to you and Vinnie and Joey about something important, okay. After we talk you can excuse yourself if you want." She smiled at him with her "hey, it's okay," smile, which put him only a bit at ease.

"What's for dinner?" Joey said as he walked into the kitchen.

"Pizza," his father's voice called from the doorway to the garage. He walked in and laid two pizza cartons and some wings on the table.

"Where's Vinnie?"

"I think he's in his room, Dad, I'll go get him." Danny said as he turned to go.

"Let Joey get him. I need to tell you something before everybody sits down, okay? It'll only take a second." Danny couldn't read his father's expression; he never could. If his Dad was angry, he'd find out right then and there by what he said rather than any tone or look.

"Can't this wait?" Danny said impatiently, almost wanting to provoke his father and getting it over with. His father surprised him by putting his hand on Danny's shoulder softly.

"No...just this, Dan.... No matter what happens...no matter what is said, your Mom and I love you. You've got nothing to fear." Danny's eyes widened as his father smiled at him before sitting down at the table.

"Guys, your mom and I need to talk with all of you about something, and I don't want you to worry. No one did anything wrong, and nobody's in trouble, but it is very serious, and it concerns Danny." He smiled again, perhaps as a way of encouragement. Danny put his head on the table and began to weep. Joey looked at him and shook his head.

"What the fuck, Dad?" His father's smile quickly turned to a stern glower which was followed quickly by Joey's "sorry."

"Is he sick or somethin'?" Joey asked.

"Well, no...not exactly, but I think he thinks he is," Vinnie said.

"Danny...I know I told you I wouldn't tell Mom and Dad, but I didn't know what else to do, bro. I’ve never seen you cry about anything that hard. I'm sorry, but I needed help." With that, he looked to his father, who continued.

"Joe...Your brother is going through something...I don't know if it's a middle child thing...maybe something your Mom and I did or didn’t do...maybe nothing at all...but we're all going to try to help him, okay...that means you as well, and what we talk about doesn't leave this house at all. This is a family matter!" His Dad used the "Do I make myself clear" stare and Joey nodded. Their mother smiled at Joey and then followed with,

"I wasn't sure, so I did some research and I think Danny is what they call transgendered."

"What the fuck?" Joey wasn't being judgmental so much as expressing shock over the revelation that his brother had some serious issues. He ignored his father's glare and looked at Danny, who hadn't lifted his head off the table.

"You wanna be a girl?" Danny's voice cracked at the end of the sentence, giving his question an odd and almost ironic tone.

"It means he believes that he is a girl already, Joe...at least that's what the books and the articles on the internet said.” Her husband shook her head and shrugged before adding,

"I want to be completely honest with you guys, okay. This goes against everything I was ever taught...in school...in church.... I don't like this one bit..." Danny turned his face toward his father and shuddered.

"But he's your brother and our son, and we'll do what we have to do to support him." His father reached across the table and grabbed Danny's shoulder.

"I...I love you, Dan....that's never going to change. We'll deal with this....we'll..." His father fell back in his seat and began to sob. He was confused and scared; the thought of losing his son to something so strange...so alien. It was too much to handle all at once. His wife touched him on the arm, rubbing it softly.

"Danny...I'm going to see if we can find someone who can help you with this."

"You mean so they can fix him?" Joey asked earnestly even if it was a bit rude.

"No, Joey...he doesn't need fixing. You only fix what's wrong or broken." She said softly, correcting her son without chiding. She knew he was almost confused and scared as her husband and maybe even almost as much as Danny.

"Dan...hey..." Vinnie put his hand on Danny's back, squeezing his shoulder.

"We'll get through this, okay? Right, Dad?"

"Yes...we all will."

Danny closed his eyes and began to sob softly as his mother came over and kissed him softly on the cheek.

"It's going to be okay, honey...we'll all get through this and it’ll be okay." She leaned close again and whispered in his ear. He turned and wiped his face with his sleeve before whispering in his mother's ear in return. After a moment, his mother stood up and put her hand on Joey's shoulder while grabbing Danny' hand.

"Okay...I think this is a good idea." She smiled at her husband who nodded in approval. He almost always immediately trusted his wife's wisdom, and somehow knew what she decided was right and a good thing. She smiled again and said,

"From now on? While we're at home? I want you to remember that your brother really is going to need our support, so I want you all to remember to call him Gina, okay?" Her husband shrugged his shoulders and nodded slowly, somewhat reluctantly but with trust that his wife was right.
Joey shook his head and said with a smile.

"What the fuck, Mom....okay, since you said it." He laughed as his father half-smiled at him with a shake of the head. Vinnie breathed out before saying finally.

"I think Nana would have liked that. Yeah, Gina sounds just right."

Next: Monique's Story