This story gives a glimpse into what happens after a boy's life has been dramatically changed by a magic swing set. It is a continuation of The Magic Swing Set.

The Magic Swing Set - Part 2
Copyright 2011 by Heather Rose Brown
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I was stretched out on top of my covers, hugging a pillow and thinking about the long 'chat' I'd had with Mom over dinner, when I heard muffled music coming from under my bed. I dug through the mess under there until I felt something vibrating against my thumb.

I winced at the bright pink color of the cell phone I pulled out, figured out which heart shaped button would let me talk, and said, "Hello?"

"Andy?" asked a familiar voice.

"Hey Mar--" I bit off the 'k' and added, "cie. How ya doin'?"

"Okay. I got sent to bed early to think about what I did."

"Same here. Mom said she'd decide what else to do with me after talkin' with Dad."

"Good luck with that." The line was quiet for a few seconds before my friend said, "Uh, Andy? If I ask a really weird question, will ya promise not to laugh?"

"I ache too much to laugh right now."

"Ya doing okay?"

"Uh huh. I'd got a little banged up and the wind knocked outta me, but I'm okay."

"I'm so glad. I really got scared when ya was layin' so still after ya fell."

I didn't know what to say to that. 'I'm sorry' sounded lame, but I couldn't think of anything better. I decided to skip the whole thing and said, "So, what was your question?"

"Well ... do ya remember havin' a different name?"

"Like, besides Andy?"

"Yeah. Well, not exactly Andy. I mean ... oh, never mind. You'll just laugh."

"No I won't. I'd never laugh at ya."

"Like the time ya didn't laugh when I got my pigtails tangled in a jumprope?"

"Whatcha mean? Ya don't even have ... well, I guess ya do, but ... okay, I'm really feeling confused."

"Like ya got two different memories?"

"Yeah! Do ya remember bein' M--"

Before I could finish saying Mark, the phone was yanked out of my hand. I looked up and saw Mom frowning at me.

"Young lady, what did I tell you about talking to your friends when I sent you to your room?"

After thinking about it for a second, I said, "I don't remember ya sayin' anything."

"What do you mean I didn't ...?" Mom seemed lost for a moment, then her frown got deeper as she said, "Well, I'm telling you now: no phoning, texting, e-mailing, yelling out the window, or using any other form of communication. You were sent to bed early to think about what you did, not to chat with your friends."

Her face softened a little as she said, "Are you still feeling okay? No headaches or dizziness or anything like that?"

I pulled down my right sleeve and looked at the flowery bandaid on my elbow. "My scrape still feels sore, but not bad as before. The rest of me sorta aches, but the headache I'd had went away after Mrs Johnston gave me some aspirin."

"And no dizziness?"

"I was a little when I first fell. Once I'd got a chance to catch my breath, I was okay."

Mom sighed and said,"What am I going to do with you?"

I was almost tempted to say she could let me watch tv, but decided she probably wasn't in the mood for jokes. Instead, I said, "Lemme talk to Marcie?"

"Since you go to school with her, I can't really forbid you from talking to her completely. As far as what happens outside of school, let's wait until I've been able to talk to your father before making a decision on that."

Mom looked at her watch, then said, "Speaking of school, it's about bedtime for you."

"Awww, Mooom."

"Don't 'aw Mom' me, Andrea. I want you in your pajamas and in bed in the next five minutes."

I knew it wouldn't help to argue, so I just said, "Okay," with as little grumbling as I could manage.

Mom surprised me with a kiss on the cheek, then she gave me a huge hug as she said, "I love you, sweetie."

I hugged back as I recovered from the kiss, then said, "I love ya too, Mom."

=-=-=

The door burst open and Mom almost slipped on the bathroom rug when she skidded to a stop. "What's wrong?" she asked as her face went from scared to confused. "Why'd you scream like that?"

I knew the truth probably wouldn't go over too good, so I said, "I ... umm ... saw a spider."

Mom frowned a little. "Since when have you been afraid of spiders?"

"I ain't. I mean, I usually ain't afraid of 'em, but this was a really huge one."

"Is that why you're standing in front of the toilet with your pant down?" she asked as she folded her arms across her chest.

I was still in shock from finding a part of me had gone missing, which is probably why I hadn't realized I was standing there half naked until then. I could feel my face getting warm as I pulled up my underwear and pajama bottoms.

"I'm waiting for an answer, young lady."

I looked up and nodded, wishing I'd been able to come up with a better story.

"And you weren't trying to pee like a boy again?"

"Uh ... no," I answered as my stomach tightened.

Mom's foot began tapping as she stared at me. I kept waiting for her to start yelling at me for telling such a bald-faced lie. Instead, she bent down, letting her arms drop as she peeked into the toilet bowl.

After a few seconds of looking at nothing, she put the seat and lid down, then stood back up. "Well, whatever was in there seems to be gone now. As soon as you're done, make sure you wash your hands and come downstairs. Breakfast is ready and I don't want you running off to school without eating again."

=-=-=

Still feeling wobbly after the shock I'd gone through in the bathroom, I was taking my time coming down the stairs. My dad came into the living room just as I was reaching the bottom step.

"You doing okay, honey?" he asked as he picked me up and hugged me.

I gasped when my feet left the ground, but eventually remembered to returned his hug. When he put me back down, I said, "Yeah, I'm okay. Why'd ya ask?"

"When I got home from work last night, your mother told me what happened to you. You were already asleep by then, so I thought I'd wait until this morning to ask you about it," he said as he led the way into the kitchen.

My stomach felt like it had dropped into my feet as I followed him to the table and sat down in front of a stack of pancakes. Normally, it was my favorite breakfast. This morning it felt like my last meal.

Dad folded his hands on the table as he watched me dribble syrup on every dry spot I could find. Mom sat beside him and started eating. Even though she didn't say anything, the way she looked back and forth from me to Dad made me think she was waiting for one of us to say something to the other.

I seriously considered trying to avoid talking by eating as slowly as possible so I'd have to rush to catch the bus. The quiet way my dad was watching me told me he would just wait until I got home, which meant I'd be worrying about talking to him all day.

Eventually, I set the bottle down, then watched the syrup slowly drip down the sides of my pancakes as I said, "I'm sorry."

"What exactly are you sorry for?" he asked in a soft voice.

"For nearly gettin' me and Mark killed on the swing set."

Dad tilted his head and frowned as he said, "Mark? Mark who?"

I cut a wedge from my pancakes and shoved it in my mouth to give me a few seconds to think. Mark was called something else in this weird place we'd wound up in.

I managed to swallow past the lump in my throat before saying, "I'd meant to say Marcie."

Dad's frown got deeper as he reached out to me and stroked the back of my head. "You feeling okay, pumpkin?"

I felt Mom's hand on my arm. When I looked at her, she had the same look in her eyes as my dad. "Maybe you should stay home, sweetie."

Normally, I'd take any excuse to skip a day of school, but today I had questions I wouldn't be able to get answers to if I stayed home.

"I'm all right, really," I said as I gave them the best smile I could manage.

They didn't seem completely convinced, but eventually Mom nodded and Dad sorta shrugged, then reached into his shirt pocket. He pulled out a cell phone that looked even pinker than it did last night.

"Your mother and I have decided it's important for you to have this with you," he said as he placed it on the table beside my plate. "There is one condition: you are not allowed to use it to call any of your friends. Do you understand?"

I'd never had a cell phone in the other reality, so not being able to use one to call my friends in this reality didn't sound so bad. I let the smile drop from my face as I nodded, hoping this was going to be the worst of my punishment. I was wrong.

"You are also to come directly home from school," my mom added. "No stopping at the park or visiting Marcie or any other friends."

I started getting a sinking feeling when I realized how this would affect my plans to talk to Marcie about what had happened to us. "For how long?" I asked.

"Since today is Friday, it'll mean you only have to come home directly from school today. What happens over the weekend or next week depends a lot on how responsible you can be."

I was tempted to argue about the punishment, but I eventually decided it probably wouldn't be a good idea. Instead, I just nodded to show I understood, then started chopping at my pancakes with a fork before gulping down my breakfast. It's not easy chewing pancakes angrily, but I managed.

=-=-=

Because I was running late, I was able to talk my mom into putting off getting a bath. For reasons I couldn't explain to her, I wasn't really ready to face that. The idea of seeing a girl naked felt weird, even if that girl was me. Getting changed into my school clothes was tricky, but I managed to avoid seeing any embarrassing bits.

I got a kiss from both my mom and dad as I ran out the door. It felt a little strange, especially with Dad. Even though I knew he loved me, he wasn't a real mushy kinda person. At least not when I was a boy. Being a girl still felt weird, but that one part felt like something I could get used to.

I almost turned around and went back home when I first saw the kids waiting at the bus stop. I recognized almost everyone there, but had no idea how they would react to me. Before I completely lost my nerve, I noticed one of the girls waving at me. I waved back, but it took a couple of seconds to realize who I was waving to.

"Hey Marcie," I said when I reached the bus stop. "Ain't it kinda cold to wear that?" I said, pointing to the skirt peeking out from under her coat."

I could see a bit of the old Mark when she looked down at her feet and shrugged. I felt a dull ache in my chest when I realized how my question must of sounded.

"I'm sorry," I said, then paused as I tried to think of something that might undo hurt I'd caused. Eventually, I said, "It's a very pretty dress."

Marcie looked up at me with a confused expression and asked, "How can ya tell?"

"I ... ummm ... I mean, I'm sure it'll look pretty on you, because you're pretty."

My friend gave me a bright smile, until a boy shoved himself between us and said, "Get away from my girlfriend, lezzie."

It was Carter Jackson, a boy who harassed Mark and me in the old reality, but seemed to have a crush on Marcie in this one.

Marcie grabbed Carter by the elbow to make him face her as she said, "Wait a minute. Who ya calling your girlfriend?"

He tilted his head, giving her one of the best puppy-dog looks I'd ever seen as he said, "Well ... you."

"Since when?"

Carter frowned as he said, "Since the Halloween dance at school."

"I danced with ya *once*," she said with a fierceness I'd never seen in Mark. "That does *not* make me your girlfriend."

A few of the girls who were standing near us cheered. Before Carter could say anything back, the bus had pulled up. He gave us a nasty look, but didn't say anything more as he got in line.

=-=-=

I was still in a bit of shock when I slid into the seat next to Marcie and said, "I never seen ya stand up to anybody like that before."

My friend grinned at me as she said, "I kinda surprised myself. I never woulda dreamed of doing anything like that before ... ummm ..."

Even though I was nervous about being overheard, I knew this was probably the best chance I'd have to talk to Marcie, so I leaned in closer and whispered, "Before we went over the swing set?"

"Oh!" she said with a squeal, then added more quietly, "I been wondering if ya remembered that. So how ya feel about the ... uhhh ..."

"Changes?"

There was a worried look in her eyes as she nodded.

"I dunno. I know some things are different, but I don't really feel different."

"What kinda things are different?"

I'd actually been thinking about how my body was different, but I wasn't really ready to talk about that, so I said, "My parents seem kinda different."

Marcie had a dreamy smile as she said, "Mine too."

"Really? What's different?"

"Before, they just seemed lost on how to treat me. Now, everything just feels ... just ... perfect. How's your parents different?"

"It's hard to explain. It's like, I got kisses from both of 'em when I was headin' out."

"Wow. I remember how mad you'd been back in third grade when your mom kissed ya in front of the school."

"I wasn't mad, just embarrassed."

"How ya feel now?"

I touched the cheek where I'd been kissed. "Kinda ... I dunno ... nice."

Marcie took in a deep breath, then said, "Nice enough to not want to go over the swing set again?"

"Whatcha talkin' about?"

"When I told ya 'bout the magic yesterday, I hadn't really expected it to work. While everything came out great for me, I know ya was happy bein' the way ya were, right?"

"Well, yeah ... sorta."

My friend gave me a funny look, then said, "Whatcha mean by sorta?"

I thought about some of the confusion I was feeling, then said, "Were ya surprised when ya talked me into trying on your Tinkerbell costume?"

"A bit, yeah."

"Me too. I'd never really thought 'bout doing anything like that before, but when I saw how ya looked in the costume, it kinda got me curious. Now, I've got a chance to do more than just tryin' on a costume."

"So, you're okay with the change?"

"I dunno. There's been bad things, like what happened with Carter, but there's been good things too. Would ya be okay if I don't change ... at least, maybe not right away?"

"I'm your friend," she said as she put her hand on top of mine. "Whether ya change now, later, or never, I'll always be there for ya, just like you've always been there for me."

My throat felt too tight to say anything back, so I just smiled at Marcie. Whether I decided to be a girl or a boy, I knew I was pretty lucky to have her as a friend.