Judy was right about Gail. She knew the prefect dye and style job for each girl she touched. When she was through with my brown hair, it was more auburn with a reddish tinge. She gave me a modified feathering look with the lightest touch of highlights. My hair glistened like it had a life of its own.

Judy always had beautiful, almost, but not quite, blonde hair with that all natural look. She never dyed it. Gail lightened it, bringing it to an almost, not quite, strawberry blonde. When she finished, Judy’s hair was as fascinating a hair color as I had ever seen without being some garish punk color.

After leaving Gail’s, Elliot ran us over to Crystal’s Palace. It was an upscale dress shop. I was holding back as Judy looked over the evening gowns.

Mom came in, walked up beside me, and gave me a hug. “A young lady’s first dress that is her own should be something eloquent. A dress she will cherish and remember forever. Pick out a nice one to wear to the charity event this evening.”

Looking at my mother, I was in shock. “You mean me?”

She gave me another hug. “Yes, you, Barbara.”

I had noticed some of those price tags as Judy was searching through dresses. “Momma, we can’t afford one of those dresses.”

“Let’s look while we are here.” She led me over to one of the racks and started looking. Every now and then mom would pull out a dress and hold it up to me and have me try on. “Ummm, not your color.” Or, “Wrong size.” Or, “It’s cut wrong.”

She pulled a teal colored satin gown out. It had spaghetti straps and a matching beaded bolero jacket. “Try this one.”

With Judy’s help I managed to slip into it. It was floor length with a slit on the left side up to my thigh. It hugged me like body paint. The front draped low enough I was going to be in serious trouble making believe I had boobs.

Honestly, I felt naked wearing that dress. Crystal was there talking to mom as I stepped out of the dressing booth.

Mom stared with her mouth open for a few seconds. “I believe that dress is a little too mature for you.”

Judy backed up to take another look as Crystal laughed. “Mrs. Peck, it is for a charity. You do want your daughter to shine all on her own this evening don’t you?”

Mom shook her head. “Shine yes, but…, I had a daughter this week and she has already grown into a young lady.”

Crystal handed Judy a pair of realistic fake boobs. “Until they are glued on and airbrushed they won’t look perfect. Try again with these.”

Judy took me back into the dressing booth and added the boobs to my chest. Which did amazing things to my mind as I looked in the mirror. It looked like a real girl was wearing that dress. “Wow!”

Judy nodded. “Yes WOW!” She led me back out to stand in front of mom and Crystal.

I thought mom was going to cry. “You look lovely sweety.”

She looked over at Crystal. “We’ll take it.”

Crystal glanced at her watch. “Call me after the girls have taken their baths. Gail’s team will be ready.”

“Ready?” I was wondering what was going on?

“We will do the prosthesis and makeup.”

Was she suggesting what I thought she was suggesting?

When Judy didn’t pick out a dress I figured she was going to wear what she wore that day for our driving test. I was wrong. When I thought makeup was going to be what Judy had been doing to me all week, I was wrong.

Mom went with us back over to Judy’s house where Miriam was waiting. They stayed with us the rest of the evening up until we headed back to the civic center. We didn’t slip into dresses after getting cleaned up at Judy’s house. It was jeans and sneakers and head back to Gails, where I found out how Hollywood makes movie stars. I thought an airbrush was for painting cars. That isn’t all they are used for. After Gail’s team finished their magical artistry on us it was to Crystal’s to change from jeans into dresses, four inch heels, and jewelry.

Elliot had changed into a dark gray suit with a charcoal gray tie. If he wasn’t my brother, I would date him. He was soooo handsome.

When we returned to the civic center it was a different place from that morning. Tables with tablecloths, flowers, plates, silverware were arraigned. Women in black waitress uniforms and men in black waiter uniforms were placing place cards with numbers on them on the tables.

When we walked in everyone started looking and pointing at us. I looked down to make sure my boobs hadn’t fallen off. Judy noticed and started giggling. “Courage girl. They can’t eat us. We aren’t on the menu.”

A mind blowing beauty was coming across the room headed our way. Her silver gown reflected light like a flowing river with every graceful fluid step. Her long brown hair spread across her head and shoulders like a cape. I was looking at a princess with the face of an angel.

Billie’s eyes were dancing as she stepped up in front of us. She looked each of us over in turn. “I believe the event is going to be better than any of us had planned. Ladies, if we don’t have to call the paramedics to jump start a few old men’s hearts this evening, they were already dead before they arrived. Judy, you and Barbara look absolutely stunning.”

She got serious. “This may be a charity event, but men are still men. You will be asked for a date and propositioned. Get your mind into their game. You will be patted, pinched, hugged, and fondled... discreetly of course. Try to not return the gesture by slugging them. You want them killed, come to me and I’ll arrange for it to happen. Any questions?”

Billie motioned back toward the stage. “Your name tags are up there on the table. With those dresses you won’t be putting them above your left breast. Put them on your left above your waist.”

Calvin and the rest of them came in. He looked at us and turned his attention to Billie. “You said you wanted thir…,”

He turned to take another look at Judy and me. His eyes grew two sizes. “Judy? Barbara?”

Billie laughed as she looked. “You like?”

Calvin nodded. “What’s not to like?”

The charity event was a serious learning curve for me. I’m sure it wasn’t that easy for Elliot and Judy either. Our parents were there keeping an eye on us. Not too sure our dads had any buttons left on their shirts after Judy and I did our part up on the stage with Calvin and the others. Especially since we left the stage, walked over to where our respective parents were, and gave them hugs. It let everyone in the center know those particular people were special to us. Billie seemed to have a sixth sense for problems. She always was there right beside Judy or me when any of the men wanted more than social talk.

Tug and his parents were there and yes, he received special attention from me as he introduced ‘Lady Barbara’ to his parents for the first time.

Shock was clearly visible on his moms face with that introduction. “This is the girl you have been dating!”

Tug leaned up close to his mother so as to not tell the whole world. “Mom, she is fifteen almost sixteen.”

She took another hard look. “Only…,”

Tug put a finger to his lips and shook his head.

If it had been possible I think his mother would have asked for an ID.

The charity event lasted late. It was around one AM by the time we went back to Judy’s house with her parents. Around two before we had washed, and deglamorized for bed. And around eight AM, we were being roused out of bed to get ready for the flight to Dallas. Whoever said girls have it easy obviously was never a girl.

Judy managed to get dressed in a soft polyester brown, sleeveless dress. She found me a blush pink, sleeveless dress. We were both wearing sneakers as it promised to be a long day with lots of walking. Judy packed extra jeans, underwear, and blouses in a suitcase in case of any unforeseeable accidents.

I guess I had become Barbara, because I was no longer embarrassed by everyone knowing I wasn’t a real girl. Maybe it was because Miriam, mom, Judy treated me like I was a girl? Or because Bill, dad, and Elliot treated me like a girl? Or maybe because everyone at that charity event knew me as Barbara? Whatever it was, I knew I was exactly who I was supposed to be. A girl.

Most of Friday afternoon was spent at the trade show. That evening we went to dinner and a play. Saturday we went cruising the malls. Mom bought me two dresses and underclothes. Miriam and Judy were treating me like I was one of them and everything was perfectly normal. Mom and Miriam each bought a swimsuit and sundress. Judy bought a tight skirt and matching blouse.

The following week I went to see Dr. Wanda Hurst. Then I went to see her husband, Dr. William Hurst. There were lots of tests, both physical and mental. Both who had been at that charity fundraiser. They gave me shots and prescriptions to stop what they said, was the girl from becoming a boy. The week after that mom, dad and the doctors, had a conference and then, the next day, I was included in the family conference.

The short story was they agreed I was a girl. The brain scans and other tests indicated I was. There was a small detail, which was that my body didn’t agree with my mind. I would have to wait until I was eighteen before any corrective surgery could be performed... unless I wanted, and my parents agreed to surgery outside the United States. Four weeks before school started I became a real girl in virtually every respect. I would never give birth to any children, but that was because I had a hysterectomy at birth, like someone told me they had.

“Are you sure?” Mom was giving me that concerned mother look.

“I’m sure.” I knew she was asking about the skirt I was wearing with the white blouse.

“Girls wear pants now you know.” She was offering me an easier first school day.

“I know. I don’t want them to think it’s Buddy now. He’s still here inside me and always will be. I want them to meet Barbara.” I gave mom a hug as Elliot honked the horn indicating he was waiting.

Mom wiped tears from her eyes. “I love you with all my heart. I always have and I always will. The administration and teachers have been notified Barbara is taking over for Buddy. You have any problems, you call me.”

“I can handle it mom. Girls are tough you know.” I gave her another hug.

She wiped off the last of the tears. “Your friend Billie had a meeting with everyone in administration. There was gossip that filtered back down through the kids. Elliot said she told them there would be fire and brimstone raining down upon them if they treated you any different than normal. Your dad and I like her.”

“She’s cool.” I headed for the door as Elliot honked again.

Schools are notorious for lots of things. Top of the list is the gossip mill, which can churn out stories faster than a tornado can eat a barn. The stories are a mix of lies and truth, never all the truth, and never all lies.

Elliot picked up Judy before he pulled into the school parking lot. When we got out kids were looking and pointing. Elliot and Judy walked with me to the admin office.

Miss Sanders looked up when I stepped up in front of her desk. She looked at Judy and Elliot before turning her attention back to me. “Miss Peck did you fill out your admission slip?”

“Yes ma’am.” I pulled it out of my purse and handed it to her.

She looked it over and smiled. “Everything is in order. Your records have been changed to Lady Barbara Peck. Do you wish to be called Lady Barbara or how are you to be addressed?”

“Please if you don’t mind. Use my middle name, Barbara.”

“So noted.” She put it into the computer. All your teachers and counselors have been notified.”

She handed me several cards. “These are your class schedules. You may change your electives the first week. After that you will be locked into the schedule. Coach Barney wants to see you and Elliot. Mrs. Trander wants to see you. Jo Lockder, the cheerleaders captain wants to see you and Judy Mecham before the day is out.”

“Your schedule has PE listed. I think the coaches want you to list that slot as sports. Although Coach Barney is football…, what could he want?”

She looked off in the distance, riding her own thought train for a second. “Never mind. Make sure you see them today.”

“Yes’m, is that all?” I was checking out my schedule.

She nodded. “Let me know if you have any problems.”

“Problems?” Did she think I was going to cause problems or what?”

“Billie Meddows is my sister.” A smile spread from ear to ear.

“Oh…, I didn’t know. Thank you.” I couldn’t help but wonder if Billie had run into those ‘problems’?

I found Mrs Trander at lunch break. She wanted me to sign up for basketball. She gave me the form to fill out and have my parents sign so I could play. I told her I’d have to think about it. I couldn’t imagine her wanting someone as small as me playing on her team. I wasn’t even sure I could still shoot a basket. A lot of things had changed on my body this past summer.

Jo found me during PE. She wanted me to start practicing with the cheerleaders. She had the papers I'd signed at our kitchen table, agreeing to join the Lady Wildcats Cheerleaders. I told her I didn’t want to make anyone mad. Everyone probably thought I wasn’t a real girl, although I thought I was. She left that slot open for me, telling me I was signed up.

Elliot, Tug and the others started football practice weeks before school started. It was after school I made it out to the football field and found Coach Barney.

“Your brother tells me you’re a wide receiver.” He was watching the practice while trying to talk to me at the same time.

“I haven’t played since seventh grade. I kept the bench warm after that.” I was positive he wouldn’t want me.

“TWEET” He blew his whistle and motioned for Elliot. “Throw her some passes.”

Elliot looked at my skirt and sneakers. “She’s not dressed for it.”

“I don’t care how she’s dressed. I want to see how she catches.” He picked up a football from the grass and tossed it to Elliot.

Elliot looked at me. “Want to do this?”

I didn’t think it would make any difference. I'd flub the catch and go home. “Sure.”

“Long fifteen, slot right, back two.” He stepped out into the field.

“Guys huddle. My sister isn’t padded up for this. Anyone slams into her and we will have a discussion later off the field. It’s a simple pass pattern. Hike the ball and watch. No tackling.”

They lined up and I stepped out to wide right. Elliot called it off. “Hike one, hike two, hike three, hike.”

I ran fifteen yards down turned a hook to my right and ran two yards back toward the scrimmage line. The ball was there, wrapped up in my arms. I hooked left because, if that had been a real play, the center of the field would be full of players looking to crush me. I ran five yards downfield with the football tucked in both arms up against my stomach.

There was a whistle blowing the play dead. “Again.” Echoed across the field.

We huddled up again. Elliot looked at me. “You okay?”

“We need ten yards. We were penalized that last play for unnecessary roughness.”

All the guys laughed. Elliot grinned. “Okay, ten it is. Fifteen break.”

We lined up, the ball was hiked. I ran fifteen yards straight ahead, braked and did a side dance to let the defense that was hot on my tail run past me. I was at a full run back for five yards. The ball was there. I wrapped it up in my arms and belly and fell over backwards to keep the tackle from hitting me from behind and pushing me forward. Of course the tackle wasn’t really there except in my memory from so many games past.

And then I remembered I was wearing a skirt not a football uniform. I rolled over and jumped to my feet, brushing down my skirt.

Coach Barney waved everyone over. He looked at me and shook his head. “I’m going to do something I hope I don’t regret. Gentlemen, Barbara is now a part of the team. If anyone has any problems playing football with a girl let me know. Barbara, go down to junior high and find a uniform that fits. I expect you to show up for practice from now on. You’re two weeks late already. Our first official game is with the Sentinels in two weeks. You will play on the field in that game.”

He clapped his hands. “Okay men, practice, practice, practice. In two weeks you will no longer be practicing. Let’s go.”

Before Tuesday morning, word had already spread across the campus that I was signed up for football. I was a curiosity Monday. Now, I was a leper. The girls didn’t want to get close to me, thinking I was some freak of nature. The boys figured I was a faggot in drag. If they had one word to describe me it was abomination.

There was a rally in the gym at the end of the day. The football team was at practice. I wasn’t, because my schedule hadn’t been changed yet, so I made the rally along with everyone else. Jo, Judy, and all the other cheerleaders were on the gym floor, kinda warming up. They weren’t into cheerleader mode yet. I found a seat up in the bleachers. When I sat down, others started getting up and moving away. Within minutes I had about a ten foot circle of empty bleachers around me.

Tina Dalson was one of the cheerleaders. She was black and cute as a bugs ear and always smiling. She was one of the few cheerleaders whose boyfriend wasn’t a football player. She looked up at me, walked over, and said something to Leroy Herron, her boyfriend.

Leroy stood up and started climbing bleachers until he was standing beside me. “This seat saved for anyone?”

I shook my head no.

“Mind if I sit down?” He sat down beside me.

LaWanda Cane came up and sat down on the other side of me. She reached over and took my right hand in her black hand, giving it a light squeeze.

As he stared off across the court, Leroy innocently reached out and took my left hand in his big hand.

Kids started moving in and filled up the empty circle. The teachers had been watching, along with all the rest of the school.

Jo jumped up in the air, did the splits, and rocked the gym with a shout. “GOOOOO WILDCATS!”

That day I knew I would never be accepted as something human by some of the kids. It didn’t make any difference. That was their loss. I was accepted by those who would become my friends.

The football team made the playoffs that year. We were two games away from the championship. First we had to defeat the Raiders. They were known to be down and dirty players. It was said they played football because it gave them a chance to hurt everyone and not go to jail for it.

Coach Brusen was looking at the Wildcats team on the other side of the field before kickoff. “Joel, I want you to take out the freak. They play as a bother sister team. Take her out and their team is crippled. We will take the penalties. Flatten that bitch and make sure she doesn’t play any more.”

Joel rubbed his knuckles together. “Got it coach. The freak is toast.”

The coin toss gave us the choice. We took it as receiver. Their kicker sliced the kickoff and it went out at the forty yard line. We tried testing their defense with two running plays which gained a couple yards each time. It was passing time.

Elliot called for a reverse sweep across the field. Early in the game it was one of our best plays. The defense got confused which receiver they were guarding as both wide receivers crossed in the middle of the field.

Watching the snap I was already at a full run on the crossing pattern. I was at the point where the ball would come if Elliot picked me instead of Tommy, who headed to the other side of the field. The ball was in the air. I set up to catch it when I was hit from behind and driven into the turf. Whistles blew and flags were thrown as the Raiders were penalized for illegal contact.

I managed to struggle back to my feet. When I looked at the Raider that slammed me, I realized it wasn’t an accident.

He was grinning. “Go home bake some cookies, little girl.”

“Only if you let me borrow your boyfriend ma’am.” I headed back to the huddle as his face turned blue. Was he holding his breath?

With the penalty we had our first down but it came with a price. I hurt. There was no way I could take that kind of punishment all evening.

Elliot noticed. “You okay?”

I nodded. “I’m fine.” I didn’t want him to know how bad I hurt.

Our next play was a fake. Elliot ran right, handed off to Corbin headed the other way. I don’t care how good you are, when two football players are passing a football between them at a full run going opposite directions, it’s hard to hold onto that ball. It fell free. We recovered, but it set us back seven yards.

Elliot called for the hook. I had to make twenty yards before I turned to get the yardage we now needed for that first down.

The ball was hiked. Elliot was back peddling to keep away from the defensive rush. I made the twenty yards and made the hook when I was slammed. He literally picked me up in the air and body slammed me down onto the turf. I bounced a couple inches back up into the air.

I didn’t hear the whistles that time but they were blown. Coach Barney was on the sideline, screaming bloody murder. The crowd was booing from both sides of the field. I managed to get back to my feet before the coaching staff made it out there. If they had got there first I would have been benched while they called in the doctor to look for a concussion.

I made it back to the huddle. We still needed five more yards for a first down even with the gain due to penalties. I wasn’t going to be able to take more than a couple of those open hits.

Elliot was looking at me. “Tank, you’re quarterback.”

Tug shook his head. “The hell you say. I’m tight end.”

Elliot looked over at Shane. “Okay, you’re quarterback.”

Shane looked confused. “What am I supposed to do?”

“Shotgun and throw the ball in Barbara’s direction.”

“I’m not that good.”

“Doesn’t make any difference. Throw it in her direction as hard as you can. Make sure no Raiders can catch it.”

When we lined up I could hear the announcer. “Wait a minute. The Wildcats have shifted positions. I’m not sure who is supposed to be playing what position. Let’s see that’s…, can you make out the number on that jersey? Shane Walters is quarterback? Has he ever played quarterback before?”

I watched the snap and ran for my life downfield to my designated spot even if it wasn’t Elliot passing to me. I was almost there when someone shoved me to the side. Tank closed in on my spot. The Raider was there with his shoulder down intending to drive into me again. Only it was a ‘Tank’ he met instead.

Tug had his shoulder down and dove into the Raider who had met the immovable object instead of the girl. The kid was stopped and slammed back when someone else as big and tough as Tank hit him from behind. He did a somersault up and over Tug where he bounced on the turf.

Of course whistles blew and flags were flown. We were penalized for unnecessary roughness, clipping, and a half dozen other infractions. The kid didn’t walk off the field.

Coach Brusen was yelling at the referees we should forfeit the game for fighting on the field. He sent in Damon. “Kill that girl.”

“You got it Coach.” He slipped on his helmet and trotted out to the field.

Our setup was the same as the last one. The ball was hiked. I ran like mad. We had a fifteen yard penalty to make up plus that ten yards we didn’t get the first play.

Damon focused on the girl cutting across the field and set up his angle of attack. She was looking for a pass. Receivers were so easy to mangle. They were stretched out to gather in a pass instead of protecting themselves.

He lowered his shoulder to plow her into dust when his lights went out.

Tank came in from one side and lowered the boom bouncing Damon into Elliot who was coming in from the other side. Elliot rode Damon into the turf and power drove it home. Damon didn’t walk off the field.

The Wildcats were penalized another fifteen yards.

Coach Brusen was livid as he screamed at the referees.

Hank Wilson the head referee walked over where Coach Brusen was. “It looks like Coach Barney’s boys have come to play by your rules. We can either play football out here or we can play take out. So far they are ahead, two zip.
You either call off your boys trying to send the girl to the hospital or I’m going to start missing some of those penalties the Wildcats are doing.”

Coach Brusen was sputtering. “I’ll have your job. You’re a disgrace to the profession.”

Hank pointed up toward the press box. “It’s all on camera. I’ll take my chances with the review board any day of the week. Do I make myself clear? You either start playing football or I’m going to find so many penalties against the Raiders the Wildcats can send in their cheerleaders and win this game.”

The final score was ten to seven. None of the players walked off that field in good shape that night. It was anything but a ‘sport’. The Wildcats pulled out a squeaker by a field goal. I heard after the football season was over, Coach Brusen was let go. We carried our bruises and pain to the finals. Despite how bad we were banged up everyone sucked it up and gave a hundred and ten percent at the finals, running on pure adrenalin. We made all the TV stations statewide and newspapers nationwide as the Wildcats playing a brother sister team. It wasn’t Elliot and me that made the team successful. The team adopted me as their little sister and if truth be known, the team mascot. They played their hearts out protecting me.

It was my last time to play football. Elliot would graduate from high school. My time as a football player was intertwined with Elliot. Siblings know each other better than anyone else in the world. Mom and dad had their trophies of Elliot and I playing football, but it wasn’t one of those things one puts on their mantle. It was pictures and newspaper clippings, and magazine articles, and videos of TV news reels and movies of all the games we played.

Tug and I dated through the school year. He was the only one I dated. It wasn’t that I didn’t like boys. I mean, I played football with them. It was I just wasn’t interested in dating other boys even though I was asked many times. I think a lot of those boys asked out of curiosity, wondering what it would be like to date someone like me.

When basketball season started I played with the Lady Wildcats. Mrs Trander was right about other teams not knowing how to handle me. I was too short to be a real basketball player. Wrong. Get those tall girls out of my way and I could still nail that basket way out past the three point circle.

I was Tug’s date to the Junior Senior Prom that year. I wore the same dress I wore to the charity event. And although my body was filling out in all the right places I still needed help. The fake boobs were used again. I think the gossip mill burned down that night. There were so many beautiful girls, and handsome boys, there that night. And I was a girl, a real girl, even if I did have some help in the curves department.

I can only imagine that the hate Gus had been feeding all those years finally drove him to the edge. It was our last week of school that year. Most of the other kids had accepted me as a different kind of girl. Those that hadn’t probably still considered me a freak or something else. It was between my math and history classes when I was getting my books out of my locker. The hallway was full of kids. I really wasn’t paying attention to those beside me or those moving from one class to another. I had just closed my locker door when he shoved my back and I slammed up against the locker. I thought one of the other kids had tripped and bumped into me before I turned around to see who was so clumsy.

“You’re a freaking freak! Say it! Say you’re a freak! SAY IT!” Gus yanked my left arm, causing me to drop my books.

“Leave me alone.” The other kids were backing away. I knew this wasn’t going to be my kind of fight as Mike and Jerry closed in from my left and right side.

“Mr. Stall, you leave Miss Peck alone.” Came from Mrs. Nordon our Social Science teacher, as she came up behind Gus.

Gus turned and gave her such a hard push she stumbled and fell backwards. “BACK OFF! This is between the freak and me!”

Gus was smiling as he turned his attention back to me. “You think you’re something don’t you freak?” He swung his right fist into my stomach.

That knocked the air out of me. I grabbed my stomach and bent over in pain. Gus hit me in the back of the head with his fist when I doubled over. I went to my knees.

“I’m gonna mess you up so bad, you’re gonna be even more ugly than you already are.” He brought his right foot back and swung forward to kick my face in. That kick was loaded with all the hate he had been building toward me since grade school.

I saw it coming. Instinctively I dodged to the left as I twisted my body right to make a more narrow target for Gus to aim at. All those years of playing sports had taught me something about dodging hits.

Gus’s boot slammed into the locker and crushed the door in. The boom could be heard throughout that end of the school.

Gus pulled his foot back to stomp me again. I didn’t think I was going to be able to dodge him a second time as I was almost lying down with no room to move. Mike kicked at my head. His aim wasn’t that good as it glanced off my skull and shoulder. Jerry kicked at my legs the same time. Gus was reloading his kick, intending to plaster my face against the lockers.

Those who were watching swore Elliot was airborne eight feet out. He launched from a dead run. Tug was one step behind when he launched. Out of the corner of my eye I saw something coming. I flattened out on the floor and covered my head with my arms. Elliot was flying horizontal when he slammed into Gus. He carried Gus into Jerry who was to the left of Gus and all three of them went skidding down the hall. Tug flew into Mike taking him off his feet carrying him past me as they went skidding on the floor.

Mr. Kysar our principle and Mr. Himmer our school security guard were coming down the hall at a trot as I raised my head up to see what happened.

Elliot and Tug were on their feet staring down at Gus and the other two boys who were still trying to get their bearings after being hit with a flying tackle.

“Gus…” Elliot was pointing his finger at Gus, the rage in his voice clearly understood. “Gus…, damn you!”

It was the only time I ever heard Elliot cuss. It wasn’t the word he used that carried the threat of impending doom but the tone of his voice. Slowly he moved over to where I was and lifted me up on my feet. “You okay?”

Mr. Kysar was trying to get a handle on the situation as Mrs. Nordon found her feet. She pointed toward Gus. “He is the one who started this. Him and his two friends. I saw him hit Miss Peck.”

Mr. Kysar pointed at the three boys still on the floor. “My office. Mrs. Nordon, you bring Elliot, Tug and Miss Peck. Mr. Himmer and I will bring the other three.”

Gus slowly got to his feet along with Mike and Jerry. He glared at me. “This ain’t over, freak.”

I can only guess at the hatred poisoning his mind at that moment. He lunged at me obviously intent on finishing what he had started. I back peddled from his attack knowing I was no match for his weight. Elliot and Tug both started closing the hole between us at the same instant. Gus never played sports. The only fighting he knew was bully tactics, beating up his opponents by brute force. Elliot and Tug were running on a lifetime of training as two of the best athletes this school had ever known. As Gus charged Elliot lowered his right shoulder, Tug lowered his left and they did a pile driver body slam on Gus. He went down hard. I heard a crack as his head slammed into the floor. Gus wasn’t going to be getting up on his own steam from that one.

Mr. Kysar looked shocked as he glanced from Elliot to Tug to me. He turned to Mr. Himmer. Call nine one one. This has gotten out of control.

Can we say school was over for us that day? Of course we can. Paramedics were called for Gus. He left school that day in an ambulance. Mike and Jerry left school in the back of a high performance black and white. All three were expelled for the rest of the week and would not graduate. They would have to repeat their sophomore year over. What they wouldn't do was return to Wildcats High School. I heard they never returned to school, any school. They took their bully tactics to the streets, peddling drugs or some such.

If it hadn’t been for Mrs. Nordon, I believe Elliot, Tug and I would have been expelled too. She had seen the whole thing from beginning to end. She told Mr. Kysar and Mr. Himmer there weren’t to be any decisions about our punishment until our parents were present.

Thirty minutes later the office was more than full. Mom and dad came in minutes after Ripley and Ellen Bagget arrived. Billie Meddows and a man in a suit arrived shortly after.

Mr. Kysar tried to stop Billie and the man at the door. “This is a private meeting. You aren’t allowed.”

The man pulled a business card out of his pocket. “Lynn Wrathers. I’m here as legal counsel for Barbara Peck, Elliot Peck and Tug Bagget. Miss Billie Meddows is legal liaison for the aforementioned clients.”

Lynn gave Mr. Kysar ‘the look’. “Are you refusing to allow legal counsel for the clients so named?”

Mr. Kysar hesitated. He had never been handed a situation like this before. Lawyers always showed up after someone felt their child had been wronged by the school administration. “Well…”

“Let’s hear the story of what happened before either of us jumps to any conclusions, shall we? All I know at this point is there was a fight and one boy was sent to the hospital. We can either hear the rest of the story from the ones in your office here and now, or we can iron it out in court. Courts can get very expensive. Really exorbitantly expensive if someone is punished unfairly.” Lynn smiled, as his eyes danced with the look of a predator looking for a meal.

Mr. Kysar opened the door and backed up. “Okay, the police do the questioning.”

As soon as she saw me, Billie walked over and gave me a hug. “I heard you were the center of attention.”

“Un huh, Elliot and Tug saved me. I’m not in the hospital or dead because they came along when they did. They were only defending me.”

I started crying. “They don’t deserve to be punished. They didn’t do anything wrong. They were protecting me.”

Billie passed me over to mom. “We will iron it out hon. If you were…,”
She lifted my head up. “Lynn, I’m looking at fresh bruises. Look here at her left cheek…, She has some swelling around her left eye.” She parted my hair and came up with blood on her fingers. “Scalp lacerations. Her left shoulder is scraped.”Billie turned her attention on Mr. Kysar.

“School is supposed to be a learning center of education not a survival class. You let something like this happen and stand there thinking of what punishment you are going to mete out to these children in your care. What you should be doing is thinking what you did wrong to let something like this happen.”

Looking over at the officers she nodded her head toward me. “Miss Peck needs medical attention. NOW! We can go in my car or yours. Which one will it be?”

The two officers looked at one another, as if making a decision was beyond them. Finally one managed to gain his wits after Lynn cleared his throat with a loud 'harrumph.' “Call an ambulance.”

“I’ll agree to that. Make the call.” Billie started checking me over even more carefully. “Bruising and scrapes on the legs.” She ran her hands down my sides. I flinched and pulled back when she got to my stomach. She gently pushed on my stomach. I pulled back. She shook her head. “They punched you didn’t they? I’ll call for x rays to check for broken ribs and internal bleeding.”

I was crying again. It wasn’t from the pain but a kind of pity party. I hadn’t realized how bad Gus and the other two boys had worked me over until Billie started looking. I didn’t deserve to be beat up.

Billie straightened up and looked Mr. Kysar in the eyes. “The sad fact this happened is bad enough. To make it even more egregious, Elliot and Tug were the ones who rescued her from even more harm. You should be pinning medals on those two boys.”

To add fuel to the school gossip mill, I was taken out of the office on a stretcher. I wasn’t allowed to walk out. I never did figure out if that was part of Billie’s plan or regulations for the EMP? Personally I bet it was Billie. Mom said that first day of school Billie had promised fire and brimstone would rain down on that school if problems arose. I think that was more than an empty threat.

Mr. Kysar’s policy was that everyone was expelled if there was any fighting. He covered fighting with a group policy. All were guilty. He didn’t expel us though. I was positive we had Mrs Nordon, our parents and Billie and her lawyer friend to thank.

Thankfully Elliot, Tug, and I weren’t suspended. The next day was ‘sore day,’ covering up bruises and scrapes with jeans and a long sleeve blouse. The funny part was, I was glad it didn’t happen before the prom, or I wouldn’t have been able to wear the dress.

We finished out the week in school. Elliot and Tug were through with high school and would be headed to college the next year. I got to advance to Junior next year, but it wouldn’t be the same. Elliot had protected me all my life. He would no longer be there. I dated Tug that summer. Judy and I joined Calvin at Chiggers off and on over the summer. We did another charity drive with Billie Meddows toward the end of the summer. It was when Elliot and Tug packed up and left for college that I began to feel that life was going by too fast. I wanted Elliot going back to school with me.

Coach Barney stopped me in the hall that first day of school. “Barbara, you going to play for us this year?”

Shaking my head, I tried to smile through the loss I felt of not having Elliot there. “Sorry Coach. I’m not that good without Elliot making me look like I know how to play. It was kind of you to ask. Thanks for asking.”

He knew why I turned him down. He smiled. “Okay. I had to ask. The rest of the team told me if I didn’t ask they weren’t going to play. Think we will make State again?”

“It’s possible if you can teach Andy to accept the ball instead of charging for it.”

He hesitated. “What do you mean?”

“Every player has a different way of catching a ball, whether it is a football or baseball. When it comes at them, some want to be reaching for it, rather than accepting it into their hands. When an incoming ball speed meets speeding hands coming at it, the result is they can’t hold onto it as it smacks into their hands. Andy is always in position to receive that ball, but he’s too eager to get it, so he reaches for it. He needs to learn to let it come to him and then wrap his hands around it. He will be your best receiver if you can get him to wait for it. And maybe State will be a possibility then.”

Coach Barney got a grin on his face that spread from ear to ear. “Barbara, will you come out to the field and show the others what you told me? They will listen to you. You’re the best wide receiver I ever had the pleasure of coaching.”

“I don’t have a football uniform.”

“Not needed. You said you didn’t want to play. How about becoming an assistant coach?”

“I’m signed up as a cheerleader this year. Conflict of timing schedules.”

Coach Barney started laughing so hard tears came to his eyes. “A cheerleader is going to teach our football team how to play football? This is too much. Barbara, football field after school. I can’t wait to see the expression on their faces. Wear your cheerleader uniform. Please.”

We did make State that year, but were beat out. Coach Barney wasn’t too disappointed. All except two of the kids would return for their senior year. He planned on taking State with most of them coming back as seasoned players.

Time never stops. Our Junior year went by so fast I couldn’t figure out where it went. Elliot came home and went to work that summer for Glidders, which was a world wide construction company for the oil and gas industry. Most of the summer Elliot was off in another state or another country.

I missed my brother with all my heart, even if Judy and I were kept busy with Calvin and charity events. I wanted things to stay the same way they were before Elliot graduated from high school. Many nights mom would come into my room after hearing me crying on my pillow. She missed him too. Every now and then I would see her wiping tears from the corners of her eyes after we talked about the things we did together.

Tug filled in a lot of empty spots that summer. He worked for Tchrad, so he stayed home when he wasn’t in college. We spent a lot of time at Trotter’s Park that summer. Not so much on the rides ourselves, but watching the kids laughing as they enjoyed the rides. I enjoyed watching and helping Tug do his magic as he fixed the equipment when it broke down.

Senior year was a repeat of our Junior year, except for different subjects and different teachers. I became involved in a science project that year, splitting water into hydrogen and oxygen. My project made the state science fair. I had discovered that water molecules were more easily broken by a differential charge if an ultrasonic vibration was applied at the same time. Then I found that a blue laser was even more efficient than the vibration project. Both projects made the fair. I received a writeup in the fair paper, not because I won a prize, but because I had two projects entered at the same time.

At the Junior-Senior prom I went stag. I knew it was the last time for high school, but I didn’t feel like a date. And then there was that last day of school. I knew I had left childhood behind as I walked across that stage and received my diploma. I don’t think I was the only one who knew how proud I was as I crossed that stage as a young woman instead of as a young man. Elliot was there, and mom and dad along with Tug and Billie. Judy and I hugged backstage until we were both crying. I never would have made it without everyone’s support. I was the luckiest girl in the world.

The lightning was flashing in my bedroom, with the following thunder shaking the house. Not that I was scared, I just wanted things to be the way they used to be. I wanted to walk over to my bother’s bed and climb in with him like I used to when the lightning and thunder rattled the house. I slipped out of bed and hesitated at the door, afraid not of the lightning and thunder, but of the things that had changed. Opening the door slowly so as to not make any noise, I padded down the hallway to Elliot’s room and slowly turned the door handle.

Easing the door open far enough to peer into the room, it was black except when the lightning periodically flashed through the window. “Elliot” I called across the room softly. I didn’t want to wake him if he was already asleep.

Elliot raised the edge of the cover. “Come on, Brat.”

Softly I padded across the familiar bedroom I had grown up in, along with Elliot. Reaching down with my right hand I lifted my satin nightgown a few inches so I wouldn’t have to struggle with it when I laid down. I slid under the covers with my back up against Elliot’s chest. His left arm was under my head. He put his right arm around me and held me.

“This is the last time. Okay?” Elliot whispered to my back.

The tears started, gently and slowly. I tried to not let Elliot know I was crying. There were a lot of problems with that as the tears fell on his arm where I was resting my head. Trying to hold in the tears caused an involuntarily intake of breath as I choked up and needed more air than what my stopped up nose would allow. “huuu...”

Elliot gently squeezed me with his right arm. It was the kindest thing he could have done. Elliot always seemed to know exactly what I needed.

I knew I had lost the special bond two brothers have. Maybe I wouldn’t have ever crawled back in bed with him if nothing had changed, but it had. He was still my brother, but we were no longer brothers. I had changed the equation. It could never be changed back.

When we were little I always climbed in bed with Elliot when the thunder and lightning shook the house and lit up the room. Elliot had always protected me from the imagined nightmares. It couldn’t ever be again... and I cried for that loss. Wrapped up in my brother’s protection one last time, I softly cried. Part of my life was gone forever, but a new life lay ahead of me, filled with hope and the promise that at least it wouldn't be boring. Old friends would always be there, but new friends and new challenges lay ahead of me and I felt optimistic, now that I finally was who I'd always needed to be.

I finally drifted off to sleep, my brother's arm still protecting me from the frightening storm outside... just like it had always done.

The End