Andrew’s Dilemma

Part 19

By, Cain129

Special Thanks to Wren Phoenix for the editing.

Synopsis: Up to this point, Jessica has been kept safe from her father but a net is beginning to close around her, Rocco has figured out who Jessica really is, and her mother Sarah suspects that the girl she saw at the hospital was really Andrew. The question is, now that Rocco knows the truth that Andrew and Jessica are the same person, how long will it be before Vincent puts the pieces together and tells Jake.

Chapter 43

 

Jessica had a great time at the sleep over. More than anything, she was really excited about her date with Scotty. She found it so hard to believe that a little over a month ago she was living as a teenage boy. So much had changed in such a short time. Jessica always knew deep down that she wasn’t a boy, but she lived in a world that couldn’t accept the truth. Things were different now and her life would never be the same again.

“All right, Jessica, you can look now.” Megan said smiling.

I walked over to the mirror. When I saw my reflection it was hard to believe that the girl looking back was really me, and I couldn’t help but smile. I looked over at Megan and Jennifer.

“Thanks guys, it’s hard to believe this is really me.”

“Scotty’s gonna have a hard time keeping his hands off you, girl!” Jennifer said with a big smile.

“Yeah, she’s right, maybe I should lend you my pepper spray”, Megan said with a big smile.

“I’m not going to use pepper spray on Scotty! You never know though, he might be the one needing the pepper spray.” I said with an evil grin.

“Careful, Jessica, the last thing you need is to get a bad reputation.” Megan said looking very concerned.

I smiled. “I’m just kidding Megan! I don’t even know what to do on a date!”

“Just have fun and be yourself.” Jennifer said, as she put her arm around me. “You look beautiful, and Scotty would be really lucky to have a girlfriend like you.”

“Thanks Jennifer, but I think that I would be the lucky one, having a guy like him. I’ve always liked Scotty, and not just because he happens to be really handsome. Do you guys remember the day that those nasty bullies were beating me up, and Scotty stopped them? Even after he found out that I wasn’t a girl, he still protected me. I guess that was the day I really fell for him. He didn’t have to help me. Most guys would have just walked away, especially after finding out that I was a boy. I guess that I knew from that day on that Scotty was special, and it made me want him all the more. It hurt like hell, every time I saw him with another girl.

Megan smiled. “I hope that it works out for the two of you, Sis.”

“I hope so, too! The two of you would make a good couple.” Jennifer said

“I guess that we’ll just have to wait and see how things go between Scotty and me. Who knows the two of us may have nothing in common.”   I said, frowning

Megan smiled. “Really Jessica, I don’t think that will be a problem. I’ve seen the way the two of you are together, there is definitely something there.”

“Yeah, ever since the day that he met you, he’s been asking about you.” Jennifer said smiling. “Like how soon were you coming back?”

 

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I thought about what Jennifer said. I could tell that he liked me, just by the way he acted. I felt very nervous inside, and I had these butterflies in my tummy. It’s hard to explain, I guess. I’ve never really felt like this with anyone. I knew what I felt wasn’t love, at least, not yet. There was something between us though, that I knew for sure.

It was around 4 pm when Scotty arrived. Since Megan and Jennifer weren’t done working on me, Mom answered the door and let him in. They were sitting on the couch as I made my way downstairs. I had dressed casually. Mom had told me not to overdress for my first date. I had chosen to wear my black skirt and white blouse. I was still recovering from my operation, and uncomfortable wearing jeans.

As I followed Megan and Jennifer down the stairs, Scotty saw me and he stood up with a big smile.

“God, you look beautiful.” Scotty said, with a “cat that caught the canary” smile.

  “Thanks, Scotty.” I said blushed. “You look pretty good yourself.”

“We should get going, before they give away our table”, Scotty said looking at his watch.

“All right.” I picked up my purse and was about to leave, when Mom came over. “Do you have your phone, baby?”

“Yes, Mommy, it’s charged and in my purse.” I said, smiling at her.

“Alright honey, if things don’t work out, call me and I’ll come get you.” Mom said, as she gave me a hug. “I love you, baby.”

My eyes were wet, but I smiled. “I love you more, Mom!”

 

[-][+][-]

 

After leaving the house, Scotty walked me to the car and opened my door. He helped me inside, and as I sat down, I felt a pull on my stitches. I winced at the sudden pain, and Scotty looked at me.

“Jessica, are you alright?” he asked, with a concerned look.

“Yeah, I just had surgery last week to fix a birth defect, and the stitches haven’t come out yet.” I didn’t want to explain any further.

“Well, if you need to stop and rest, let me know. The last thing that I want is to make you feel worse.” Scotty said thoughtfully.

I smiled. “Thanks, I’m alright, Scotty. So where are you taking me?” I asked him, to change the subject.

“Since it was our first date, I wanted to go somewhere decent. I have a friend that works over at the Keg Steakhouse, and he said they make excellent steaks. I hope you’re not a strictly veggie kind of girl, but if you are, that’s fine. They have salads and many other things there too.”

I smiled, “Steak’s fine with me, though I do love a good salad.”

“No problem, you can have both!” Scotty said, smiling

“So what do you like to do for fun, Jessica?” He asked.

I thought about it for a minute. Until recently I had been a loner and the only real outlet that I had was my computer. That wasn’t the person that I am now.

“I love music and I play the guitar and piano. Other then that, I mostly just hangout with my friends and see what happens. How about you, what makes your world rock?”

“I guess the both of us are into music. I play lead guitar for my band, but other then that, I play football and baseball. Guess you can say that I am kind of a sports nut.”

“I like baseball, but I’ve never liked football, really.   It’s way too rough of a sport.” I admitted with a small frown.

“It’s really not that bad Jessica, everyone is pretty careful for the most part. You’re right; it is a lot more physical than most sports, other then maybe rugby. Now that’s much more dangerous than football! What kind of music are you into, Jessica?”

“I like pretty much anything, as long as you can make out what they’re trying to say, but given a choice, I would choose country, or some of the older rock. What about you, I’ll bet you like rock, Scotty.”

“There is some country I like, but for the most part yeah, I’m into rock and that is pretty much the kind of music we play in our band.”

 

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Scotty and I arrived at the restaurant a few minutes later, and found a parking spot. Scotty came around to the passenger side and opened the door for me, and helped me out of his car. I thought to myself, whoever taught his guy manners had sure done a good job! As the two of us made our way to the restaurant, Scotty never released my hand, and to be honest, I really didn’t mind in the least. A girl could get used to this kind of treatment.

Once inside, the waiter saw us to our table and left us with our menus. I had pretty much already decided what I was going to have on the drive over, so I went straight to the desert menu and noticed that they had my favorite, cheese cake. When the waiter returned, I ordered a well cooked steak, Caesar salad and a piece of cheese cake for desert, along with a coke to drink. Scotty ordered the same but ordered a root beer instead of coke.

“I have to say that I was pretty happy when you said that you were staying, but I was pretty surprised that you are going to be living at Megan’s. I take it that things were not going very well with your parents?” asked Scotty.

“Things haven’t been good at home for along time, Scotty. It’s a little hard for me to explain right now but I am really happy to be living with Megan and her parents.”

“When will you be starting school Jessica?”

“To be honest with you, I really don’t know. At the moment I’m waiting for my transcripts, and there are a few other legal issues that Janice and Anthony need to take care of first. Once that’s done, I’ll be starting school, but I’m not sure what school I’ll be attending.”

“I thought that you and I would be going to the same school Jessica, considering that it’s where Megan and Jennifer are too.” He said, frowning

 

[-][+][-]

 

I was beginning to think that going out with Scotty might have been a mistake. Not that I didn’t like him, because I really did. I just wasn’t prepared to answer all his questions.

Scotty looked over at me, “Jessica, are you alright?”

I looked over at him. I knew that eventually I was going to have to be honest with him. It wasn’t fair to start a relationship with anyone based on lies and that’s exactly what I was doing with him.”

“I can’t do this Scotty, it’s not fair to you, and it’s not fair to me, either.”

“What are you talking about Jessica?”

“Listen Scotty, what I am going to tell you is really hard for me to say. I really like you and I don’t want to lie to you, so please just let me finish before you say anything.   If you don’t want to be with me, then I will understand. Just promise me one thing, that what I’m going to tell you stays between the two of us, alright Scotty?”

“Alright Jessica, I promise. Now what’s bothering you?”

“First off, I’m not who you think I am, Scotty. I used to go by another name ‘til about a month ago, that’s when I started living as Jessica.”

“Please tell me that you’re not a guy?” Scotty said, looking worried

I looked at him, “No Scotty, I’m not a guy but I had to live the last 16 years as one. I was born with a medical condition that the doctors missed, and my parents raised me as a boy. When I reached my teens, my condition became more apparent and finally the doctors were able to figure out what was wrong. I recently had the surgery to correct the problem. I am just like any other woman now, I can even have a baby, if I wanted to Scotty”

Scotty looked at me. It was really hard to figure out what he might have been thinking, I just hoped that he didn’t walk out on me, but he looked at me, puzzled.

“So, are you someone I already know?”

“Yes, the two of us have met before, Scotty. I had a couple of bullies were beating on me, and you stepped in and stopped them.”

Scotty looked at me in shock, then said, “Andrew?”

“Yes, but please don’t call me that, I never was really a boy.   I’m Jessica now, and Andrew is nothing more then a painful memory.”

 

[-][+][-]

 

“All right I’ll call you Jessica, but I have to admit, this is pretty hard to understand”

“Yeah? Try seeing it from my point of view, Scotty. I’ve always known that something wasn’t right. It wasn’t ‘til I became a teenager that I was able to piece everything together. At first, I thought that I was gay, but that didn’t make sense. Being a guy and being with one sexually felt wrong to me.

I read about transsexuals and that made more sense to me because everything fit, and until recently that’s what I thought was going on. A week ago, I had my first period and well, there was nowhere for it to go, and I ended up in the emergency room.

When they did the tests on me, they found that I was actually a girl all along!   Because of my medical condition, my hormone levels were off, I was already developing as a girl, my hips were becoming wider and my breasts were growing, just a lot slower then they should have been for someone my age.”

Scotty looked at me, “It couldn’t have been easy for you to tell me this and I appreciate that you were honest with me. I know that by telling me this, you were taking a risk and I won’t tell anyone. I really doubt they would believe it anyway. Just look at you. I’m having a hard time believing it, myself. It really doesn’t change anything, though.

I’m a boy and you’re a girl. We can’t really change how we feel, or who we’re attracted to. I think that I have always known on some level that you weren’t a boy. That day I stepped in and stopped those guys from beating you up, I didn’t see another guy. I saw a girl that was in trouble and even after I thought I knew the truth it really didn’t matter. To be honest with you, I really don’t know where things are going to go between us Jessica. All I know is that I like you and I don’t care who or what you used to be, all that matters is who you are now.”

Hearing those words from Scotty brought tears to my eyes, I had told him the truth and he accepted me-not only that, he was still interested in seeing me! I had been worried that he’d think I was some kind of freak, but he choose to stay.

I looked at Scotty. “Thank you, I was so afraid to tell you. I was sure you would run.”

“What happened isn’t your fault, and I’d be a fool to walk away over something like that. Had you kept the lie up and told me later, I think there could have been a problem between the two of us. The truth I can handle, but what I can’t handle is being lied too. It’s a terrible way to start a relationship with someone.”

“All right Scotty, from now on I will be honest with you.”

“Good Jessica, because I’d really like to get to know the real you, and not someone you fabricated.” Scotty said, as he reached over and took my hand.

 

[-][+][-]

 

 
 

Chapter 44

 

The two of us talked throughout supper and he told me things about himself and I found myself really beginning to warm up to him all the more.   He had this serious side to him that I really liked.

“Jessica I know that you are living with the Tanners now, but what happened between you and your parents?”

I looked at Scotty. “My parents and I have never really seen eye to eye. They tried to make me be someone that I really wasn’t. Let’s just say that there was a lot of emotional and physical abuse because I couldn’t live up to their expectations.”

“When it came to my father, he would have loved to have a son like you. You are everything that I wasn’t to him. For years, he tried to mold me to be exactly the kind of guy that you are, and it didn’t matter to him what I wanted. ”

“How do you’re parents feel about having a daughter?”

“They don’t know, Scotty. To be honest, I don’t really want anything to do with either one of my parents!

I pressed charges against them, and I imagine that I will be going to court soon, but things are much better now. Janice and Anthony are trying to adopt me, and I couldn’t ask for better parents.

They stood behind me through everything, especially the suicide attempt that started all of this in the first place. I also have some really good friends now. They know the truth, and they support me.” I said, smiling.

Scotty smiled, “You can count me as one of them now, Jessica.”

“Thanks Scotty, it really means a lot to me, knowing that I can count on you.”

“I’ve never really had anyone in my life that I could really depend on. At least, not until now! My parents were never really there for me, and I had no real friends to speak of, at least until recently.”

“It couldn’t have been easy for you, with everything you were going through, and having no one that you could turn to. I guess I’m lucky, my parents have always been there for me, even when I would do something stupid. They’ve always supported me and I can always turn to them.”

“It wasn’t easy, but thank god, things are different now and I never have to go back to the way things were.” I said smiling.

 

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After Scotty paid the bill for our supper he took my hand and the two of us walked back to his car and like before being a perfect gentleman, he opened the door for me and helped me inside, then climbed in beside me.

Scotty looked over at me. “I really don’t want to take you home right now. It’s still early; do you feel like going to Gallager’s and grabbing a coffee?”

“Yeah, Scotty, I’d like that, but I should call home, so they know where I am.” I   took my cell phone out of my purse and dialed home.

I waited as the phone rang though and Janice answered, “Hi mom, it’s me I just wanted to let you know that everything is alright, and that I am going to be a little later then planned. Scotty and I are heading over to Gallager’s to have a coffee and talk a little more.”

“All right honey, when can I expect you home?” Mom asked

“I’ll be back in a couple hours, Mommy. I told Scotty the truth and he’s fine with everything. I just thought it was the right thing to do.”

“All right honey, we‘ll talk about it when you get home.” Janice said ending the call.

I looked over at Scotty. “I don’t think that mom is happy that I told you.”

“She’s just worried that I might say something. When I bring you home, we’ll have a talk with her and I’ll let her know that she has nothing to worry about.” Scotty said smiling.

“Thanks Scotty, I think that would make a big difference.”

 

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Gallager’s was pretty much a teen hangout, and just about everyone who was popular went there. This was my first time, in the past I’d avoided places like this because I had a target painted on my back. I’d had enough to deal with at school, keeping away from the bullies. The last thing that I’d wanted was to spend my nights hanging out in the same places that they went to. Things were different now; I was no longer that kid that they picked on.   I doubted that anyone would clue in that I was ever Andrew Roberts.   Especially with my new hair style and makeup, not to mention the way I now dressed.

It also helped that as the two of us made our way inside, Scotty had put his arm around me. This pretty much let everyone in the place know that we were an item.   I really didn’t mind it. I was happy and enjoying every minute. Once inside I looked around the place and saw quite a few kids from school. There was a group of them that Scotty waved to as we made our way up to the counter; I noticed a few of them looking over at me.   It felt kind of weird being stared at, but feeling Scotty’s arm around me made feel safe.

After ordering our coffees, Scotty and I made our way over to the table where his friends were sitting. It was pretty crowded, but Scotty managed to find two empty chairs and carried them over to the table. I pretty much knew everyone at the table. All the guy were on the football team with Scotty, and the two girls that were with them, Natasha and Britney, were on the cheerleading squad with Megan and Jennifer.

After the two of us took our seats at the table, Scotty introduced me.

“Guys, I’d like you to meet Jessica, she’s Megan’s cousin.”

“Hi, everyone!” I said smiling.

“Hi, Jessica, I’m Brian, and this is my girlfriend Natasha,” referring to the girl sitting next to him. “Across from me is Cliff and his girlfriend, Britney.“

“Where did you move from?” Natasha asked.

“I lived in Vancouver for about a year, but my parents tend to move around a lot. My dad is in the army, so I’ve never really had a permanent home.”

“That must have been hard, just settling in and making friends then, having to leave.” Britney said frowning.

“It’s pretty hard, but I got really tired of it and told my Aunt Janice that I couldn’t handle it anymore. She talked it over with the rest of the family, and it was decided that I’d move in with them. I’m pretty happy with the way things turned out.”

“So, I take it that you’ll be going to our high school then?” Cliff speculated.

“Most likely, but I am not sure when I’ll be starting. There are a bunch of legal papers that are being taken care of over my guardianship, and my transcripts still need to be transferred from Vancouver.” I said with a smile.

“Well, at least you have a vacation for now Jessica, but you will likely have a lot of catching up to do when you start school. If you need any help look me up. I am getting extra credit for tutoring, and I’m sure that I can work you in.” Natasha said

“Thanks Natasha, I’ll have to remember that.” I said

“You should consider trying out for the cheerleading squad Jessica! It’s a lot of fun and we get to travel a lot.” Britney said with a big smile.

“I thought the squad was already full?” Brian asked

Natasha looked over at Brian, “it is full but there is always room for a stand in, just in case one of us can’t make it or gets hurt at the game.”

“That makes sense.” Brian said, and then turned to me, “You should really consider joining it would be a great way to make friends, and Natasha is right, the road trips are a lot of fun.   Sometimes they last the whole weekend and usually we all get together after the game and hangout.”

“I really don’t know if it’s for me, but I will consider it.” I promised with a smile.

“So what do you like then, Jessica?” Cliff asked. “Enquiring minds want to know!”

“I play guitar and piano. I guess Country is what I most like, but it’s all good if I like the sound of it.”

Brian smiled. “That’s cool, Jessica. You’re welcome to jam with Scotty and I anytime, although we play mostly newer rock.”

“Thanks Brian, I think that I’d enjoy that.” I said smiling.

 

[-][+][-]

 

Scotty and I stayed at Gallager’s for about an hour before we said our goodbyes. I’d never really taken the chance to get to know the gang before, but they were all nice, and I looked forward to seeing them again.

Scott looked over at me. “They like you Jessica, I can tell. The cheerleading squad doesn’t really need anyone; they have more then enough people. That was just an excuse to have you join them.” Scotty said smiling.

“I’m tempted, but it’s not really my thing, Scotty.”

“Maybe not before but it might be now, Jessica, I think you should give it a try, if you don’t like it, there are always other things you can try.” Scotty said as he reached over and held my hand and gave it a squeeze.”

 

[-][+][-]

 

After Scotty and I arrived at my home, he was true to his word and walked me to the door and followed me inside. As I predicted Janice was waiting for me in the living room. I could tell that she wanted to talk to me.

Scotty looked over at Mom, “Mrs. Tanner, would you mind if I stayed for a few minutes and talked to you about what Jessica told me?”

“Alright Scotty, please have a seat”, Janice said

Scotty took a seat on the couch next to me then turned to my Mom, “First off, I want to say that I have a lot of respect for you daughter. It wasn’t easy for her to tell me the truth, but I’m happy that she did. I like Jessica a lot and I understand how important it is that we keep the truth a secret. I give you my word that I will not tell a soul, not even my parents and believe me when I say this, she is safe with me! I know who she used to be, but even then I never saw her as a boy, to me she was always a girl, maybe a troubled one, but a girl all the same. I know the truth, and I still want to continue seeing her.

Janice looked at the young man in front of her, she could tell that he was being honest with her, and that he truly cared for Jessica. This bothered her, because Jessica was still very fragile. Here, though, was a young man that was truly interested in her daughter, one who knew the whole truth and still wanted to date Jessica.

She knew that eventually Jessica would start dating boys, but she wasn’t counting on it being so soon. There was so much that she needed to teach her about being a woman, and dating boys was a big part of that. How could she tell Jessica that most of the time, boys her age tended to think with their little head, and not the one on their shoulders, when sitting on the couch beside her was a young man that went against that very argument?

She looked at Scotty,” I can tell that you are telling me the truth. I still don’t think it’s a good idea for Jessica to be dating anyone, but if she really wants to go out with you then I’m not going to stand in her way. I just ask that you remember that if people find out about who she was, then her life could be a living hell.” Janice said frowning.

“Whatever happens between Jessica and me, Mrs. Tanner, you can trust that I will protect her.” Scotty promised, as he reached over and took my hand.

“I believe you, Scotty and I’m putting a lot of faith in you.   Please don’t let me down.” Janice said

 

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After the three of us finished our talk, I walked Scotty outside. He smiled.

  “I guess everything’s going to be alright, now. “

“Yeah, thanks to you Scotty.” I said with a big smile.

“I should get going Jessica; I have a test that I need to study up on for tomorrow. If you are not doing anything tomorrow, why don’t you come to the game? I would love to have you there.” I smiled, “I hate football, Scotty, but I will be there for you.”

“I guess that I will see you then!” He said, looking into my eyes. He didn’t seem to be in any hurry to leave, “I had a great time tonight, Jessica.”

“I did too, Scotty.” I said, wishing he would just hurry up and kiss me already!

It didn’t take him very long. When we looked into each others eyes, he finally made his move. When his lips touched mine, it was instant sparks and it wasn’t long before he was holding me is his arm. The kiss seemed to go on forever and I even went weak in the knees. When it finally ended, I found myself short of breath, with my heart beating in overdrive. If there had been a mirror in front of me, I was sure I must have been a real sight to the eyes.

 

[-][+][-]

 

I was kind of sad, seeing him go. I knew I’d see him again tomorrow, but that was a small consolation. As I walked in the door, I saw Mom and Megan, running from the window over to the couch. They’d been watching the little show Scotty and I had been putting on. I didn’t really care one bit, as I flopped down on the couch next to Mom. I looked over at Megan and Mommy, “What an AWESOME night!”

 
 

End of Part 19

To be continued in part 20