Nathan Poole is ready to become Sarah's Warden, but a long lost family heirloom changes his life and future.     Trial and Heiress Chapter 13 By Amethyst

Thanks as usual to Eof for a great universe to play in and to Eof, Maggie F and Donjo for their input. Thanks to my readers for reading what I put out here and being patient when new chapters are delayed.

When I got home I practiced in my new shoes for over an hour as I thought about the next night’s big date. Was I wrong to go out of my comfort zone and wear something so blatantly feminine and sexy? What if seeing me that way caused Sarah to rethink this whole thing? Still I was committed now and since I would rather not make a fool of myself on the dance floor I kept practicing. The shoes really weren’t that bad and other than a few clumsy moments that set my Pixies off laughing I was doing fine. Besides it was better that my invisible friends saw me messing up and got a good laugh out of it than everyone in the club.

The doubts persisted and with a sigh I decided I needed to talk to someone. I couldn’t talk to Sarah or Kayla because I wanted this to be a surprise. Jason was out for the same reason and because it would have been awkward talking about girl stuff with my best bud. Rick and Gwen were out on a date so I didn’t want to bother them and my parents had heard enough of my bitching and moaning about being a girl. With a sigh I looked through my phone for Bailey’s cell number. She was already in on the secret and she might tease but I figured she’d probably listen and try to understand too.

I sat there for a moment staring at my phone and wondering if perhaps it was too late to call her. It was Friday night though, so I was hoping she would still be awake. She answered on the first ring. “Hello?”

“Hi Bailey, it’s Nat, I’m not calling you at a bad time am I?” I was still a little unsure about this.

She seemed to perk up a bit when I told her who it was. “Hey Nat, what’s up? I’m just sitting in bed watching a movie.”

“I kind of need some advice Bailey. And you’re the only one I could think of to talk to that wouldn’t be awkward explaining myself to,” I admitted.

“Is this about the big date?” she asked before quickly correcting herself. “Wait don’t answer that, of course it is. I don’t think I’ve ever heard you sound uncertain about anything. I think this might take a personal touch, how about if I come over and we can talk about things and watch a movie together or something? We don’t really get to hang out much. It’ll be fun and I can help you with whatever is bothering you.”

I liked the idea but I didn’t really want to get Bailey in any trouble. “Are you sure? It’s after ten and this will probably take a while.”

“You got a spare sleeping bag?” she asked.

“Yeah we have a few,” I answered not quite sure where she was going with this.

“Well if it’s okay with your mom we could always have a sleepover, you’ve probably never had one before.”

“I’ve been camping with friends lots of times Bailey,” I retorted.

I could hear her groan on the other end. “That is not a sleepover Nat, I’m talking about two or more girls just talking about their love interests, clothes and stuff and maybe doing makeovers. You know, a slumber party.”

I had heard horror stories about slumber parties but I did need to talk about all the stuff she mentioned. “Just a sec, I’ll ask my mom if it’s okay, just promise me you won’t put ice in my bra or something.”

Bailey giggled at that but quickly vowed, “I won’t do anything like that. So hurry up and go ask.”

I walked down the hall and downstairs where my parents were on the couch watching a really bad horror movie. “Hey Mom, can Bailey come over for a…” I took a deep breath and tried not to groan as I said the words, “slumber party.”

Both my parents turned around and stared at me. “A wha…?” my mother asked in shock before shaking her head to clear it. “I must have heard you wrong. I could have sworn you just asked to have Bailey over for a slumber party.”

I rolled my eyes, “I did Mom. We’re gonna talk about tomorrow night and she’s gonna show me some things I might need to know.”

Mom gave me a searching look before finally nodding. “I don’t see why not if her mother is okay with it.”

I put the phone back to my ear and said, “She says its fine with her if your Mom gives the okay Bailey.”

“Sweet! I’ll be over in fifteen minutes. See you soon.” She had sounded far too happy about this for my peace of mind.

“She says she’ll be here in fifteen,” I quickly told my mom.

Mom got up off the couch and wrapped me in a teary hug, “My little tomboy is growing up. You go get the sleeping bags for you both and I’ll make you girls some popcorn.”

I went to the storage room and grabbed two sleeping bags and an extra pillow. If Bailey was planning to sleep on the floor it would only be fair if I did it too. I ran those up to my room and dropped them on my bed with my phone. By the time I got back downstairs Mom had some popcorn made and handed me a tray with the bowl, a couple of sodas, and a plate of cookies. I gave her a confused look and she said, “Junkfood is a tradition at slumber parties. You need to get the whole experience.”

I just shrugged it off and carried the tray up to my room. I had just placed it on my desk when the doorbell rang. I gave Dani and Vina one of the cookies to share while I went to go meet Bailey, but I didn’t even make it to the stairs before I heard Bailey and my mom greeting one another. I heard Mom say, “She’s just putting some things in her room, you can head on up. You girls have fun.”

“We will Mrs. Poole, thanks for letting me come over so late. I think this will really help Nat,” she replied. I waited for her at the top of the stairs and showed her to my room. She took a quick look around and grinned at me. “It’s cleaner than I was expecting. It’s a shame it’s only us two here, it would be more fun if we had more girls.”

I had to laugh at that, “It’s not just us Bailey, remember I have two Pixies here as well and I’ll bet neither one of them has ever had a slumber party.”

“What’s a slumber party?” Dani asked from her perch on my desk.

Bailey gave a very evil looking grin. “Awesome! Three slumber party virgins!” Then she turned to explain to Dandelion, “A slumber party is when a group of girls all get together for a sleepover in one of their rooms. Usually there’s not a lot of sleeping though. We often do each other’s hair and make-up, watch movies, play games, talk about the guys.. or girls we like, and give each other advice and stuff.”

“That sounds fun!” Dani said with far too much enthusiasm.

So it was that I was initiated into the ranks of somewhat normal teenage girls. We played some games, watched a movie and just chatted for a while and once the Pixies were snoozing we got down to the reason that Bailey had come over in the first place. “So Nat, what’s the problem? Are you nervous about the big date with Sarah?”

I sighed as I leaned back against my bed holding my pillow. “Yeah, I’m kind of worried about it. I’m doing this because I want to look nice for Sarah and to prove to myself and everyone else that I can be feminine when I want to be. What if I’m going too far though?”

Bailey looked thoughtful for a moment. “Yeah you are kind of pulling a reverse Neil Armstrong.” At my look of utter confusion she said, “You’re taking a small step for womankind but it’s a giant leap for you. You’re jumping straight from emo tomboy to mega-babe in one night.”

“I am not a mega-babe,” I scoffed.

“Nat, you’re hot and in that outfit you’re going to be super hot. Your problem is you still see yourself as a guy. Granted you are taking a really big step here toward admitting you’re a girl, but tomorrow you need to look at that girl in the mirror and see her for what she is. Being the girl you are doesn’t change who you are. One night of wearing a dress and looking hot isn’t going to make you suddenly love chick flicks and start drooling over Neanderthals like Eric.”

“You’re probably right about that,” I admitted. “What if seeing me all girly is too much for Sarah and she decides she’s not going to be able to handle being with me as a girl?”

Bailey surprised me by wrapping me in a hug. “Then it’s better to find out now instead of once you’re both in a relationship that’s only going to end badly. If Sarah really wants to give this a try though I don’t think this is going to scare her off. She might actually like seeing this new side of you. You only show people the tough emo girl, but there’s more to you than that. Let yourself enjoy some new experiences and explore that side of yourself a bit. I am actually really honored that I’m the first one of your friends who you’ve let see this side of you. I can’t wait to see how everyone at the club reacts tomorrow.”

I blushed at her little pep talk and hugged her back. “Thanks Bailey. I’m really nervous about tomorrow though.”

“I’ll bet, this is new territory for you. I’ll be at the club tomorrow too and if anything goes wrong or you need advice I’ve got your back. I can even come help you with your make-up and stuff before you leave to pick up Sarah, since I assume you still want this to be a surprise.”

I nodded, “I want to blow her mind. I have an appointment to get my hair and nails done at one o’clock and I’m a little nervous since Mom needs to run the shop and won’t be able to come with me.”

“I could go with you if you want Nat,” Bailey offered. “I’ve got nothing to do tomorrow so we could go to Gino’s to grab some lunch and then head over to the salon. Then we can do anything else you need to do and I’ll go get my outfit for the club so we can come back here and both get ready.”

“It would be nice to have someone to go with. Are you sure you don’t mind?” I asked.

“What are friends for Nat?” she said with a grin. “Besides I want to see this whole transformation before anyone else gets a look. You might need some help choosing a nice hairstyle too. Tomorrow night there will be no letting it all hang down and hide your pretty face, got it?”

I tried to frown at that but I just couldn’t, Bailey’s grin can be infectious. “At this rate nobody will recognize me at all.”

Bailey just winked at me, “Then we’ll just introduce you as Nat’s hot, less inhibited cousin.”

“Uh-huh, does this cousin have a name?” I responded dryly.

“Of course,” she replied without missing a beat, “It’s Jean.”

It took me a moment and when I did get it I groaned, “Jean Poole? Seriously? You’re horrible Bailey.” I couldn’t help cracking a smile though.” I may have to de-friend you after that joke.”

She stuck out her tongue at me, “Too late now Jean, I helped you have your first slumber party, we’re gal pals for life now.”

We had eventually gotten to sleep and as I lay there drifting off I resolved to spend more time with Bailey when I could manage it. She was fun to be around and had a great sense of humor. She also took me as I was and was so easy going about everything that she made it hard to care whether I was male or female, I could just be me. I had only really felt that way with Moriko, Kayla, and Jason before and I was just starting to feel that way with Sarah again now that our relationship was being rekindled and I didn’t feel pressured to try to become a guy again to save what we had.

We woke up surprisingly early, or rather I should say that she did, it was the pillow slap to the face that woke me up. A pillow fight ensued which left us both grinning and breathless and Dani in a giggling fit. Once we caught our breath we both wandered downstairs in our nightshirts and worked together making some breakfast. As we ate I told Dani and Vina their mission for the day. Since I wanted tonight to be a surprise, I wanted them to keep an eye on Sarah and Jason and warn us if either of them started to get too close.

Once breakfast was eaten and the Pixies were off on their mission Bailey and I took turns showering and I was very careful to do a good job while shaving my legs and underarms since both would be very bare tonight. Then once Bailey was out of the shower we went back to my room and she coached me on some things a girl at a club needs to know, even in a small town like ours. She specifically told me never to leave our drinks unattended and coached me on the finer points of getting guys to back off without punching them. She also wanted to make sure I was remembering how I would have to sit in that dress.

After we were done cramming all the knowledge she thought I would need into my head we got dressed. Against my better judgement Bailey convinced me to wear the black miniskirt Mom had bought me the night before with a frilly white long sleeved peasant blouse that hid the Glove but showed a lot of cleavage. “I’m not so sure about this Bailey, what if someone sees me in this?”

“They’ll think you look hot,” she replied nonplussed.

“But I’m not planning on going all girl until later tonight. What if someone from school sees and blabs to Sarah? I don’t want to ruin the surprise.” It was a lame sounding excuse even to me.

“Don’t chicken out now Nat, besides this will get you used to showing that much skin in public before tonight.” She sat me down on my bed. “Here, let me get your make-up kit and I’ll make you look a bit older, then we can pull your hair back in a braid and nobody will guess it’s you. With your hoodies and your hair in your face nobody ever see’s much of your face anyway.” Then she got to work. I had to admit that I did look different enough to fool most people at a distance or in the dark booths at Gino’s. I looked almost twenty and with my hair in a braid I looked a lot more feminine and less like an ‘emo tomboy’.

We took our time chatting over pizza about school and some of the Unseen. She hadn’t met Kayla yet but she had heard about her and was anxious to meet our new town Vampire. I explained that Kayla only went to school for half the day because she was learning medicine from Sarah’s dad and Moriko’s aunt. This seemed to get her even more interested and I promised to introduce the two at the club if I could manage it. That was when Eric and his friend Mike Hartley decided to show up. I groaned as I saw them walk in and scan the booths. “Well shit.”

Bailey turned around to see what I was looking at and watched them come up to the table. “Hey Bailey,” Mike said once he was close enough to speak. “Who’s your hot friend?”

“This is Natalie’s older cousin, Jean Poole. We met at the flower shop. She’s visiting Sena for the weekend.” She winked at me and I silently thanked the dim lighting for both holding up my disguise and for hiding my snicker at the joke.

Eric and Mike both gave me a good looking over, especially my chest and I had to suppress a shudder. Why was I worried about them recognizing my face? It’s not like they were looking there. “Natalie’s cousin?” Eric asked. “I bet Natalie could look that good too if she wasn’t trying to look like a dyke all the time.”

Mike nodded in agreement, “Anyway, we’re going to head to that new place tonight, you girls want to come with us?” He looked at my chest again, “We could have lots of fun, and the drinks will be on us.”

Bailey turned to smile at me, “Awww isn’t that sweet, they escaped from the museum of natural history just to hit on us. I’m flattered, aren’t you flattered Jean?”

I almost spit out the sip of Coke I had just taken to calm myself at that comment. I carefully made my voice a bit huskier as I said, “Oh yes, and the way they talked about Natalie just makes me want to do this even more. You guys said the drinks are on you right?” I asked.

The Neanderthals just grinned at one another as Eric said, “Hell yeah!”

“This will be our pleasure then,” Bailey said with that crazy grin of hers. We both got up and dumped our sodas on their heads. Then, as they stood there shocked and sputtering, we grabbed our purses and went to pay for our pizza. We were both still laughing when we got to Snippets.

Due to a cancellation Bailey was able to get an appointment at the same time as me and we continued to talk and laugh about the Neanderthals as we both got a manicure and pedicure. It was weird having someone doing things to my fingernails and toenails but it was kind of relaxing as well, especially with a friend there to make the time pass quicker. They painted my nails a dark red to go with the dress I would be wearing and Bailey opted for a sparkly blue.

Once they unbraided my hair we discussed what styles would make me look best. Finally we all agreed on giving my normally long straight hair some curl and parting it in the center with my long bangs off to the sides to not just show off my ‘pretty’ face but to nicely frame it. They had to put rollers in my hair and let them set for a while but Bailey didn’t seem to mind waiting once her hair was done. When they finally let me out from under the hair dryer and took the rollers out I was amazed at how nice the black ringlets framing my face and cascading over my shoulders looked. Maybe there was something to be said for hairstylists after all.

Once we were finished I paid for my beauty treatment with the money my mom had given me and thanked Laura for doing such a great job. Then Bailey and I headed to her place so she could pick up something to wear before going to the shop to get the dozen white roses I had asked my mom to set aside. We both walked in and Mom looked up from writing notes at the counter. The look on her face was priceless. “Natalie is that you? You’re wearing a blouse… and a skirt! You look great honey.” Apparently she wasn’t going to look a gift horse in the mouth as far as my clothing went.

“Yeah Mom, Bailey convinced me I should probably get used to showing off this much skin before tonight.” I admitted.

Mom smiled at that. “I think you need to have dates with Sarah more often, or have Bailey come and visit more.”

I smiled and shook my head. “Bailey can come visit whenever she wants Mom, but it doesn’t mean she’ll get me into skirts every time. Could I get the roses please? We need to go get ready for tonight.”

“They’re waiting for you in the cooler sweetie.” Then almost as an afterthought she asked, “Dare I ask why two angry boys came in wondering where Bailey and my ‘niece Jean’ were?”

I went to the cooler and took out the roses. As I went to the counter and gave her a kiss goodbye I answered, “You know what they say Mom, Ignorance is bliss.”

“I see,” she said with a frown, but she couldn’t hold it for long. “I’ll be home by five thirty and I want pictures before you leave.”

“Yes Ma’am,” I said offering a salute. “Hopefully we’ll be ready by then. Looking hot is hard work.”

“Welcome to the joys of womanhood sweetie,” she said with a chuckle as Bailey and I headed out the door.

We were both ready by five thirty, but just barely. I was wearing my crimson pumps, the sheath dress, and the gold chain belt with my new underclothes. The dress was as short as I remembered, barely covering to halfway down my thighs and showing a hell of a lot of cleavage. I also wore my bronze watch, the gold teardrop earrings and the matching pendant that seemed just shy of getting lost between my breasts. Bailey didn’t have a date tonight but she was wearing a very nice blue dress that set off her eyes with matching shoes and a white leather purse. I wondered why she was getting so nicely dressed and she claimed, “Just because I don’t have a date it doesn’t mean I can’t give the boys something to look at when they can tear their eyes off you.”

I just blushed at that and let her get to work on our make-up. When she was done we both looked hot as hell. She encouraged me to put the make-up she used in my purse in case I needed to freshen up later. I did that right away and added it to my wallet and the other necessities she and my Mom had been telling me a girl should always carry just in case. I figured better safe than sorry and they did have a lot more girl experience than me.

Bailey was going to head off to meet Karen Dennis and Jason’s cousin Daphne for a pre-party dinner but Mom insisted she get a photo of us both together first so we could both have something to remember the day by. Once we posed and smiled for a few shots Bailey took off, promising to see me later. Then Mom took a couple thousand photos of me before finally giving me the car keys and rushing to the phone to warn Sarah’s mom to have the video camera ready.

I stood outside Sarah’s door nervously clutching the roses as I waited for someone to answer my knock. It was a bit cold and I figured that later I would probably regret not bringing a jacket but I had forgotten to get one the day before and none of the ones I had went with my outfit. It was only two days and I was already becoming a slave to fashion. I could hear Sarah’s mom speaking on the other side of the door. “No Sarah, wait there by the stairs, I want to get this on film.” I groaned and then as she opened the door I tried to give my best smile.

Sarah was wearing a black knee length dress with matching shoes and purse with an emerald pendant that probably looked really good with her eyes. Those eyes were locked on me as she looked up and stared. Mrs. Taylor stared too and almost forgot to film it but quickly recovered and trained the camera on Sarah’s face before turning it to get good footage of me. Well this was awkward. I held out the roses and swallowed the fear I was feeling to say, “I… uhhh… got you some flowers Sarah, I arranged the bouquet myself.” She was still staring, her eyes seemed to take in the dress, my legs, my breasts and I suddenly felt very exposed. Dammit, I knew this was a bad idea.

Mrs. Taylor interrupted the awkward moment, taking the flowers and saying, “Why don’t I go put these in some water for you Sarah. You two have a good time tonight.” Then she left us alone.

My heart felt heavy in my chest and I was almost ready to turn and run when I felt her take my hand. How did she get so close all of a sudden? “Nat? You look amazing. You didn’t do all this just for me did you?”

I blushed and quoted her, “I’m doing this for both of us.” I looked away, “I thought we were going to show who we really are tonight. I’m a girl that wanted to look my best for a date with someone I’m hopelessly in love with. This was probably a bad idea, I’m sorry, I should go.”

I turned and headed for the door but she held my hand tight. “You’re not going anywhere Nat. You’ve done some incredibly wonderful things for me in the time we’ve been together but this… this has to be the most wonderful thing you’ve ever done. I’m sorry, I was just really shocked that you would go this far… you know how I said if I wasn’t attracted to you as a girl I would find a spell to change that?”

“Yeah,” I answered nervously, barely a whisper. I was really scared about where she might be going with that.

“I don’t think that’s going to be necessary.” She pulled me into a passionate kiss and held me tight for a moment before stepping back to get a better look at me.

“You mean you’re okay with me? Like this?”

“Duh!” She exclaimed, “Look at you Nat, you’re smoking hot! I am soooo attracted to you right now. And do you know what the best thing is?” I shook my head and she answered, “The best thing is that inside all that ravishing beauty you’re showing off is the person I’m still in love with.” I felt like I was about to start crying when she said, “Now let’s fix our lipstick so we can go to dinner and I can show off my hot girlfriend. Aww come on, don’t cry Nat or we’ll have to spend forever fixing your eye make-up too. ”

I couldn’t help it, I giggled at that. I felt like a humongous weight had just been lifted from my shoulders. All that weight I had been carrying since the Glove changed everything was just gone. Sarah still wanted me, and right now nothing was more important than that. We both fixed our lipstick and headed out to the car hand in hand.

I had made reservations for dinner at Serendipity, which was the only real fine dining establishment on the island. They had some terrific seafood and pasta dishes and the atmosphere was romantic with candlelight and soft music. As we ate I told Sarah about how Bailey had helped with my makeover and about our little slumber party and how she had hung out with me and helped me get ready. “I don’t think I could have gotten everything done without her help,” I finished.

“Well I owe her one then,” Sarah replied. “Because looking at you it’s worth every minute you spent. I’m sorry I missed the slumber party though, we’ll have to have another one.”

“I don’t think Dani will mind,” I giggled, “She was a little upset that she fell asleep before the makeovers.”

“We should get Bailey, Moriko, and Kayla to come if we have one. Maybe Becky too if we can arrange it without her getting seen coming to your place,” she suggested.

I nodded in agreement. “That’s actually not a bad idea. I feel bad that Becky doesn’t get to hang out with any of us very often.”

“Well she is in the Friday night martial arts class now,” Sarah said in a hushed tone. “It’s an Unseen only class and Moriko’s mom is closing the dojo to the public Friday nights so we can all come and not worry about being seen together.”

“Really?” I asked, my interest piqued. “That’s a great idea. I think we all need to learn how to fight. Titania seems to think something big is coming and we’re all probably going to be right in the middle of it if our luck holds.”

She reached out and held a finger to my lips. “Shush. No talking business tonight. Tonight is all about me and you.” We finished our dinner, giving one another little smiles and glances over the table and I could feel Sarah’s foot rubbing against mine. It was turning out to be the best date ever.

We arrived at the club at eight o’clock just as the doors were opening to the public. The neon sign above the entrance said “Rave-olution” and there was already a line up outside. A lot of the people I recognized from school, though there were some people in their early twenties too. I started getting flashbacks to when I first became Natalie as I heard people whispering as Sarah and I walked by. Who is that?... Holy shit! Is that Natalie Poole?... How can she hide such hotness under a hoodie all the time?... Maybe we can get her and Sarah to dance with us…

Kayla and Jason didn’t seem to be around yet but Bailey, Daphne and Karen were near the front of the line. Bailey called out, “Nat! Sarah! We saved you a spot!”

“Hey Bailey, thanks for all the help today and last night,” I said as we approached them.

Daphne and Karen were staring at me and Karen blurted out, “That’s Nat?! You weren’t kidding Bailey.”

Sarah giggled as we joined them in line. “I reacted the same way.”

“You’d think you all never saw a girl in a dress before,” I grumbled. Then I displayed my Gloved hand, “See, it’s really me.”

Daphne just shook her head and said, “You feel that chill in the air girls? I think Hell just froze over.”

“Very funny Daphne,” I said with a groan, “Where’s your cousin and the Goth…”

I was interrupted by Eric. “Damn. It really is Natalie.” He and Mike were glaring daggers at Bailey and I. “I bet you two think you’re so clever. I knew there was no Jean Poole!”

“Of course there is,” I shot back. “But I think you two have been swimming in the shallow end.” This was met with some confusion from the Neanderthals and outright laughter from the girls.

Eric grumbled and Mike muttered something to which Eric replied loud enough for half the line to hear, “I told you she’s a dyke.”

I raised an eyebrow at that. “You really need to come up with new material Eric. A girl doesn’t need to be a lesbian to find you repulsive. Besides, even if I weren’t here with my date, you’re not in my league anyway.”

Mike snorted at that, coming up with the oh-so-clever reply, “You’re the one who’s not in our league. We were being nice offering you a chance to go out with one of us. I don’t see any guys with you, are you with your girlfriend?” The last was said in a sing-song voice and he and Eric started laughing at that, and so did some of the guys behind us in line.

All laughter stopped when Sarah said very calmly, “Yes she is.” And then she kissed me so hard I thought my shoes would pop off.

I was smiling from ear to ear as I tried to catch my breath. “Yeah, what she said. So now that you know there’s two more girls you stand no chance with, though I think that’s probably every girl on the island anyway, take a hike.”

“I’d take her advice if I were you,” Jason said from behind the pair.

They turned around to see Jason in a t-shirt and jeans and Kayla dressed in her typical Goth wear with amber eyes. There were two of them and with Mike as backup Eric probably wouldn’t hesitate to try and take on Jason. “Or what?” he said. “You and the dark queen of the nerds are gonna start something.”

Jason nodded grimly and Kayla just smiled at Eric and said in a casual tone, “Well I hate to use my medical knowledge for harm, but did you know that if you kick a guy in the balls hard enough you can render him impotent for life?” Then she grinned at me, “You’re looking great Nat, you like my new combat boots? They’re steel-toed.” The pair looked from Jason to Kayla and then to one another before they took off for the back of the line.

This set Bailey off laughing and she said, “Oh I like her!” Then once she was in control of herself again she asked Kayla, “Is that true?”

Kayla just shrugged, “The hell if I know, I was just making that shit up, but it would hurt like hell.” She gave that grin again. “Did you see the way it made them run?”

By the time Sarah managed to introduce Kayla to Karen and Bailey we were at the front of the line and after paying our cover we got our hands stamped. The stamp we got would mark us as minors so we couldn’t go to the second floor where alcohol was being served and the non-teens would be dancing. We were all quite content to remain on the first floor and took a large table before Jason, Bailey and I went to go get drinks for us all. As we were waiting for drinks Jason said, “Damn Nat, you look good. I didn’t even realize that was you in line until Sarah planted that kiss on you.”

“Oh please,” I scoffed, “You’re here with probably the hottest girl in the club. So how’s the date going?”

“Pretty good,” he replied with a smile, “I mean how many sexy girls want to start a date by getting under the hood of a classic car?”

“Very true, usually it ends in the back seat of one,” I joked.

Jason actually blushed and looked away at that and I wondered just what had gone on during their date so far. He quickly changed the topic, “So your date seems to be going well.”

“Hell yeah,” I said with a grin, “I got Sarah back and I think I’m finally coming to terms with this whole girl shtick. I couldn’t have done it without Bailey here though, she’s been a good friend the last two days.”

“You’d have done the same for me Nat, besides it was fun. Now that you’re not afraid of your inner girl you and Sarah should come shopping with me sometime, it’ll be a blast.” She quickly turned and ordered the drinks for herself Karen and Daphne.

After I had ordered Sarah and I both a virgin long island Iced tea and paid for them I told Bailey, “I’ll think about it, but remember I’m trying to ease into the whole girl thing.”

“Uh huh, that dress is really easing into things,” she said with a laugh as we headed back to the table with Jason behind us carrying a Coke for himself and a virgin Bloody Mary for Kayla.

We all stayed until closing; drinking, talking and dancing. I got a lot of dance offers but I only danced with Sarah and sometimes in a group with some of the other girls. I think guys started to get the message though once they saw that Sarah and I were dancing together to all the slow songs. Once the club closed we said our goodnights to the others and I drove Sarah home. It was almost an hour before we left the car with fogged windows to walk Sarah to her door. It was another ten minutes after that when she finally went inside.