Ben tried to pull away from Emily but, she was holding him fairly tight. “Umm, can you let me go?”

Someone came into the store, Emily quickly backed up but it was too late.

“Uhh, Hello?” Ben said feeling his face turn scarlet. Worse luck, it was a regular customer and someone from school as well.

Randy came right up to the counter. “Glad I didn’t make that bet.” He said smiling

“What bet?” Ben asked automatically, thinking 'really?! Out of all the bloody people who shopped here the ONE person who shopped here regularly AND went to his school showed up.'

“well, I was thinking you were a femmy boy but, Jason and Roger said you were a lezzy. We almost asked you at lunch a few weeks ago, but the way you were stuffing your face in the cafeteria made them back out” he still had that stupid grin on his face.

“10 on pump 2 and a pack of Marlboro lights, right?” Ben asked, really wanting him gone so he could figure this out.

“Yea sure, thanks for making my night, not every day you get to see lezzies making out or fondling each other.” Already escalating what he saw.

“We weren't doing anything!” Emily spoke up for the first time, her face was also bright red.

“Don't worry hun, I won't get B- that not your real name is it?” Randy asked.

“Sophia” Ben replied helplessly, ringing up the cigarettes.

“I won't get Sophia in any trouble.”

Randy pulled out his wallet.

“We really weren't doing anything.” Emily said again

“Your total is 15.94”Ben said

“Why Ben?” Randy handed him a 20, ignoring Emily.

“Its my middle name, and don't ask, because I don't know. Your change is 4.06”

“Keep the change, and you two have a goood night” He said suggestively before finally walking out the door.

Ben changed his gas total to 14.06.

They were both silent for a minute waiting till Randy got his gas and left. Ben wished he had done something to correct Randy but between being in 'customer service mode' and being embarrassed, He hadn't been thinking clearly.

“Why didn't you stick up for yourself?” Emily accused.

“I just couldn't think of what to say.” Ben sighed “Do you even realize just how badly you screwed up my life just now? What possessed you to grab my breasts?!” Ben said his voice getting higher with every word.

“Maybe if you hadn't been pretending to be a boy I would never have had to!” Emily shouted back

“I am a boy!” He tried to shout back in his male voice but, it came out in a squeak, probably because he hadn't used it in over a year.

“Yea, me too!” Emily squeaked back at him, laughing.

“I guess that didn’t sound very convincing, but I kinda am.” he said going back to his normal voice.

“Boobs.” Emily pointed at his chest.

“Look, I'll prove it” He pulled out his wallet and handed her his ID “see” he pointed at the Sex:M

“Benjamin Sophia Murdock? If you were going to get a fake ID you should have gotten one with a real boys name.” She tossed his ID onto the counter.

“Sophia was going to be the name of my twin sister, she died minutes after birth, when the worthless doctor dropped her.”

“Ok, I guess I can see that, but seriously, boobs?” pointing to his chest again.

“Lets not get into that right now.”

He walked into the very small back room, which was crowded with a desk, sink, ice machine, and mop bucket. Emily followed him.

“I need you to help me with something.” She stated.

“After all that? I don't want to help you with anything.” He sat down at the desk. “I'm not even sure I can go back to school.” He added dejected.

“We are going to start dating.”

“Hell no!”

“Why not?” she folded her arms

“Your 15 and I'm nearly 19, Your not my type, and I don't have a death wish for a start.”

“I am 16.” she glared at him like he called her a dirty name.

“Yea that’s SO much better.”

“If you don't I'm going to tell Uncle Phil your a girl, no way he would miss those” she looked down at his chest. “If I point them out to him.”

“hmm, I can be dead or fired, now that’s a tough one” he said sarcastically.

Ben got up and went back to the front of the store, trying to distance himself from Emily. It was too early to start preparing breakfast so, he just leaned against the wall and tried to sort out his thoughts.

He heard Emily come out of the back room.

“My dad wont kill you. I think he is trying to get us together. Just look at the schedule we have the same hours for the next 2 weeks.”

“Your dad hates me, so its much more likely that he is hoping you will annoy me so much that I quit.”

“Two days ago, me and my best friend, Cynthia, were making out in my room and my dad walked in on us. He called Cynthia's mom, and I got grounded for the summer. I told him I was a lesbian. He said he didn't raise a lesbian and that I was just confused. This morning I was going to be working with my dad and Aunt Jen but he said he didn't even want to look at me, and I would be working graveyards with you.” She said in a rush, uncried tears of parental rejection were visible in her eyes.

Responding to her pain, the same one that still stabbed at his heart when he though of his parents, he gave her a hug.

“I wouldn't even care if that was all.” Emily said, pulling away physically and emotionally “but I was on his computer yesterday and saw that he had been looking at a boarding school that promises to 'cure' gays.”

“I'll do it” Ben said “but if your dad kills me I will come back as a ghost and haunt you for the rest of your natural life, you wont get a moments peace!”

“You will?” She said hopeful

“Yes, I will follow you everywhere screaming at the top of my ghostly lungs.”

She gave him a look that somehow said “really?” in an exasperated tone.

“Ok, yes I will but we aren't going to start this till Friday.”

Ben couldn't help wondering if David kept the gun in the back of his car loaded.

“We should get breakfast started” He said

They prepared breakfast in silence, They both had a lot to think about.