Wheels and Wings 12

Character List.

Jack Thomas Later AKA Ellie Transvestite/intersexual and keen cyclist.
Amanda Thomas AKA Amie Jack's sister.
Charlotte Dawson Keen girl cyclist and Jack’s soon-to-be girlfriend.
Bob Cycling club captain.
Mr Thomas Weston School games master and keen rugby player.
Billy Davies. Rugby ‘jock’, kind to Jack, he fancies Charlotte.
Marjorie Spencer. Holder of unofficial ‘Prettiest-girl-in-the-school’ title.
Miss Elizabeth Postlethwaite. The English Mistress.
Aunty Olwen Where Jack changes for school and leaves his bike.
Mandy. Olwen’s daughter, Jack’s older cousin.
Mr Griffiths The County solicitor.

Chapter 12

For two days, Jack was off school and it didn’t get any better when he returned. Mr Weston asked why he had been off and when Jack replied it was because of the bruising, Mr Weston presumed the boy was a wimp. He poo-hooed the injury.

“It was only some bruising Tinkerbelle. Can’t you even take a knock now and again?”

Jack remained silent but inside he was ablaze with anger.

‘That bastard Weston had no idea how much he had overloaded his system by doing the cycle ride on Sunday!’
Jack reflected.

He limped away from the gym and stumbled into the library. There he buried himself in maths homework and avoided everybody even when other class-members arrived from the gym. Charlotte became concerned and then angry when Jack seemingly ignored her. She had no knowledge of the drug-taking so her unanswered questions left her frustrated and then angry. They had a row whilst waiting for their English class and Charlotte stalked to a spare desk across the classroom. She sat next to Billy who seized the opportunity to try his luck.

“Hi Charlie. Come to get some English lessons?”

“Oh shut-up Billy! Just be thoughtful for once. Just ‘cos Jack and I have broken up doesn’t mean I’m some sort of lame duck!”

“Ooooh broken up! So you were an item then.”

“Oh bugger off. Just stay with your own girlfriend, I’m sure she’ll give you all you want!”

At these words Marjorie Spencer erupted into anger.

“Just watch your mouth Charlie! I don’t put out! Besides, we’ve never been out on a date, he just fancies me from afar, that’s all!”

Charlotte suddenly realised she might have crossed the line. She snapped back defensively.

“I didn’t say you did. I said you’d give him what he wants! If you think all he wants is for you to put out it doesn’t say much of your opinion of Billy does it?”

At this Billy got angry for Marjorie had inadvertently implied exactly that. Charlotte had now sparked off another row between Billy and Marjorie in addition to her own row with Jack. The only person likely to get through the ensuing altercations was Jack and that was exactly the case when the English teacher Miss Postlethwaite appeared at the door. She stood listening to the arguments for several seconds before the class realised she was there and suddenly fell silent. Miss Postlethwaite frowned.

“Right! I’m glad that’s over; I don’t want to hear another word. You can sort it out during the break. Everybody back to their seats.”

The class quickly settled down. Miss Postlethwaite was a well liked teacher for she was fair but strict. After she had placed her books on the table she looked up and studied the class.

“Charlotte; why have you moved?”

Miss Postlethwaite noted the glare that Charlotte gave Jack and she realised there was something going on. Provided it didn’t disrupt the class it didn’t matter to her. She looked levelly at the whole class scanning the whole body of students seemingly at once. It was a trick she had perfected and it sent a clear message to the class. ‘You won’t get any scams past me!’ She looked at Charlotte thoughtfully then nodded as Charlotte gave a lame reply.

“I preferred to sit by the window miss. I wasn’t feeling very well.”

“Very well young lady, it’s no skin off my nose where you sit. Now, to work, there’s been enough time wasted. Jack; your thoughts on the passage I gave you to study last Wednesday.”

Jack looked down at his notes, read out some comments and Elizabeth Postlethwaite nodded approvingly. She addressed the class and a lively discussion ensued as the class resumed their study of Shakespear’s play, Henry the fifth. At the end of the class Jack slipped away to the library which he had come to regard as a refuge. For the rest of the day he kept himself to himself and simply attended lessons whilst contributing little.

At the end of the afternoon Jack limped onto the bus and took a seat beside his younger sister. It was an unusual act for a fourteen-year-old boy because the rest of the boys his age group tended to gang together at the back of the bus. Amanda smiled at the special favour he had inadvertently bestowed upon her and she surreptitiously squeezed his hand between them. Jack squeezed it back and they chatted about their mother’s forthcoming birthday.

The spat between Jack and Charlotte continued for the remainder of the week and on the Friday evening the cycle club invited Jack up for a disciplinary hearing. They wanted him to explain why he had firstly, stolen drugs from Doctor Dawson, secondly; administered them himself illegally, thirdly; endangered Bob the club captain’s position as the responsible officer, fourthly endangered the club’s reputation and finally; endangered himself by risking permanently damaging his leg muscles. Jack made a bad showing at the hearing because he failed to mention the bullying issues about the rugby in school. Consequently the club decided to suspend him from any club racing or time-trial events for the rest of the season. He was allowed however, to attend the Friday evening club meeting in the clubhouse. He left the meeting angry and frustrated for he felt badly treated whilst little realising that if he had mentioned the bullying, things would have gone easier at the club. Feeling angry and hard-done-by, Jack resolved not to attend any club social rides until the ban was over and that wasn’t until December. At school Jack became even more reclusive insofar as he dropped rugby altogether and avoided Charlotte because of his cycling ban with the club. He was going to use the excuse that his leg was taking a long time to heal but to his chagrin, nobody even bothered to ask why he had ‘dropped out’ of any social intercourse.

There was however, one unexpected benefit as Jack saw it. His refusal to socialise gave him more time to indulge his transvestism and when not out cycling alone he always went shopping with his mother and sister. Amanda pretty soon realised she had found a new shopping partner and savoured the occasional Saturday mornings in the mall with her brother in tow whilst surreptitiously checking out the female merchandise. On these occasions, Jack even met Amanda’s female friends who were equally amused but envious that Amanda’s brother was something of a girly boy. Several of the girls wondered if Jack was gay and secretly wished they had brothers who liked shopping. Most of them found their brothers to be real pains about shopping. Jack grew popular with Amanda’s circle of friends. But they never discovered that he also shopped for clothes because he and Amanda were the same size and when Amanda bought clothes for Jack, none of her friends twigged that some of those clothes were destined for Jack’s wardrobe.

Slowly, Jack accumulated a satisfactory collection of female clothes and wore them around the house. He was also ecstatic to find that Amanda was sympathetic and more importantly, discreet. Jack even took to meeting Amanda at the mall after he had been out alone on his bike. On those occasions, he would meet up with Amanda’s friends for coffee around elevenish. As they shared coffee, Jack would enthusiastically hold Amanda’s dresses up against his Lycra clad slender frame and everybody would have a giggle just as young girls are want to do. It was while he was fooling about one morning that the scenario with Mr Weston the Gym master repeated itself. He saw Jack trying on a pair of outlandish shoes that Amanda had just bought and he was teetering around the coffee table while his sister and her friends shrieked with amusement. One was just squealing.

“Heck Jack you walk in those like you’ve walked in them all your life!”

Jack took another turn around the table and was mincing seductively down the aisle when Mr Weston and his wife appeared at the door. The man said nothing because he was with his wife but his look of angry disgust said it all.

“I’d like to speak to you in my office on Monday.”

This time Jack felt a little bolder. He had been online and studied transvestism a lot. He was NOT breaking the law. The problem was all the agencies or organisations that purported to help his kind, normally dealt with eighteen-year-olds and over. Despite this, Jack was not about to let himself be bullied. His transvestic feelings were getting stronger. He challenged Mr Weston there and then in front of the girls and his wife.

“What for sir?”

Mr Weston was non-plussed that a fourteen-year-old boy wearing ridiculous high heels should feel he had the need; nay the right, to ask why. His face reddened as he repeated.

“I’ll not stand arguing here with you boy. You’re behaving like a pervert! My office, Monday!”

Not once had the Gym master noticed or realised that Jack was wearing Lycra cycling clothes. Jack stood his ground and declared.

“I won’t be there Mr Weston. I’ve done nothing wrong, I’m out of school, it’s a Saturday and I’m just having some harmless fun!”

At this Mr Weston almost turned purple with anger as he grabbed his wife’s arm and stalked out of the shop. The girls fell silent for they knew of Mr Weston’s reputation as a disciplinarian but Jack had crossed the line. Finally one of the girls whispered.

“He’s going to screw you on Monday.”

Jack just shrugged and took another exaggerated walk up and down the aisle before returning to drink his coffee. Jack was getting weary from the oppressive forces that seemed to be assailing him from all sides.

“He can’t touch me, I’m passed it with him; I don’t care anymore. . He’s just pissed off that I refuse to play for his bloody rugby team! You all know what that bloody tackle did to me in the county final.”

One of the girls who represented the school’s team for track nodded sympathetically for they all knew of the extent of Jack’s injury. She observed thoughtfully.

“The rugby season’s nearly over Jack. It’ll be athletics after Easter. You must admit, you’re a good runner. Surely you don’t mind representing the school at running. You don’t get tackled on the track.”

Jack sniffed.

“What’s the point of trying to be a runner? Giant Jamaicans will always beat me in the sprints while East Africans will beat me over the distances. I might as well stick with bikes. Besides, I like bikes.”

As they nodded their understandings the girls fell silent until one of the girls noticed Jack was still wearing the heels. She had bent down to get something from her bag under the table and noticed Jack crossing his legs and wiggling his ankles. She re-appeared again smiling as she remarked.

“You like wearing those shoes don’t you?”

“What makes you think that?” Jack grinned dismissively.

“I’ve just seen you with your feet under the table. You’re behaving just like any other girl with her new shoes.”
Jack was secretly tired of all the subterfuge. He was also still simmering with anger at the way Weston had treated him. Jack had been reading extensively on the internet and at that instant he made a monumentous if impetuous decision. Jack finally decided to ‘come out’!

~~ooo000ooo~~