Chapter 5

To describe the rest of the evening as an anti-climax is unfair. My Aunt Sofie as always had impeccable timing and her offer of tea was just what was needed to defuse a volatile situation even though beer, wine and fruit juice proved to be the diversions of choice. I sat with big sister Litara to one side, an arm around me, and Serena to the other describing our day and fielding or passing questions.

Questions, so many questions!
Did I have a boyfriend? No.
Did I have a girlfriend? No.
Was I a virgin? Almost and it was a girl!
Did I like to dress up? Not particularly but today was fun.
Had I always known? No and it was probably the shock of realization that ended with me in A&E.

No matter how dramatic the day there comes a time when the call of sleep won’t be denied and at one in the morning the last visitor, Serena, who never got her shower but did get her chocolate chip ice cream, headed across the road as we made last moment arrangements to meet tomorrow, or rather later today in the afternoon.

Reason suggests I would lay in bed tossing and turning as I fretted about all that had happened but reason has little to do with real life and I slept like a log.

I was up and winding a fresh bandage round my breasts next morning when Litara breezed straight into my bedroom with a double armful of clothes.

“Get that off," she said, "you need a proper bra." It seems that big sister has never discarded a single article of clothing since she got out of nappies and after several painful or laughable attempts declared me to be a size 34 B

"Why are you doing this Litara? What do you think this is all about?"

"Why is easy" she replied. "It’s the way you stood up to mum and stood up for your friends last night. No boy ever behaved like that and it was just the way she and I used to fight before I left for University."

"Don’t get me wrong Venus… is it all right for me to call you Venus?…, it would feel weird to call you Dai with those Bs staring me in the face… As I was saying, I love mum dearly but she doesn’t realise that I’m not her and this isn’t the 1970s. You and she used to get on so well but over the last couple of years the arguments I’ve seen between the two of you have been difficult for both dad and me to deal with. You seemed unable to cope with her yet still unwilling or unable to retaliate. Last night at first appeared to be more of the same but once I saw you standing there with your hands on your hips, chin forward and tits halfway out of your top - for a moment I was you and it all made sense. You’re a girl going through exactly what I went through!"

"What this is all about is much more difficult. I’m not a doctor or a psychologist - I produce documentaries about places most people will probably never see. That means I’m a hands on practical sort of girl dealing with things like - What are you doing today? Where and when are you doing it? Who with and most importantly what are you going to wear?"

"I love you Sis" I said stepping forward and giving her a hug; "and you’re right" At which moment I became aware of two pairs of breasts coming between us. Stepping a little back I admitted "I was going to wear much the same as last weekend but with this bra that isn’t going to work"

"Immediate needs are simple because after an early lunch Serena and I are going into town to meet the other girls at St David’s shopping centre."

“What…?” I spluttered - Litara hadn't said anything, just stood there looking at me.

"Have you any idea what you just said?” she eventually asked. "Hello!" waving her hand in my face. “Other girls.”

“Ok” I smiled. “Point made! Will jeans a T-shirt and trainers be ok?”

“Perfect and if you don’t mind, I’ll be coming with you to help you spend you the cheque I gave you for your Birthday with maybe a bonus for my baby sister”

“I’m taller than you so just watch with the ‘baby’ bit” I responded grabbing a pillow from my bed.
“An inch if you’re lucky and I can still take you!" A point she proved with a simple finger to my chest which deposited me on my backside on the bed.

By noon I’d checked by text with Serena that she was happy for Litara to join us and we were in the kitchen eating with mum what I suppose was brunch... Mother was not a happy bunny. True to her word Litara had found me jeans and a T-shirt but the jeans, which she last wore in about 1993, were very tight and very yellow, while the T-shirt, though a conservative tan was figure hugging and had in large red letters ‘Don’t Assume I Cook’ across the front.

"You raid my wardrobe you wear my choice" was her explanation.

I was wearing my own size7 trainers but she had insisted on changing the laces for some of her red ones, putting a gilded shell necklace on me and loading a large burnished brown leather shoulder bag with my phone and bits of girl junk for me to carry. My hair she barely tried to do anything with just brushing it down.

"Trust me" she finally said while making me stand and revolve. "It isn’t fashion but you will fit in perfectly at the city centre shopping area on a Saturday afternoon."

Half past twelve and Serena was already at the back door. As I opened the door for her I signalled with my eyes and a finger that she should avoid upsetting my mother.

"We’re off mum", I said. "We’ve promised to meet friends in town but we’ll be back by six at the latest."

“If you must but I don’t see why you can’t wear your own clothes. Don’t expect help from me if you’re arrested.”

“We won’t mum” said Litara and with that were out of the door and almost running.

Jenny and Martina were already there when we arrived and Gwen turned up only two minutes later. "Sorry" said Gwen. “I was on the phone to my sister - Tell you about it later."

The big event of the afternoon wasn’t about me but Jenny’s plan to get a tattoo. "I’ll tell you what" said Litara, “Why don’t you four go to the tattoo parlour while I take Venus into the hairdressers. I’ve a friend there who might trim her split ends which would only take a few minutes then we’ll catch you up".

With that the girls were gone and without even being consulted it seems my afternoon had been arranged. Left to my own devices I would never have gone to a hairdressers instead when necessary trimming my hair myself but I saw no harm in going along with Litara’s plan. There wasn’t any harm but unknown to me my devious sister had rung ahead from the house…

Only 40 minutes later we were already in the tattoo parlour. “So much better" said Serena . "You have gorgeous hair but at that length it has much more movement and life to it".

"Thank you. It really did need doing" I said pushing some behind my ears.

"Vee!" Gwen’s shriek also burst my eardrums. The ones that is in my newly pierced ears.

"Special discount," shrugged Litara, "and I couldn’t have my new sister an earring virgin at 18.”

"Look what we’ve come up with" said Jenny coming from the side room where she and Martina had been designing. "With the Sydney Olympics coming up I liked the idea of using the five Olympic Rings but with the letters W A L E S in them but Martina pointed out that Wales didn't actually have a team because they compete as part of Great Britain, and I didn’t even know which team members were Welsh. How about this instead?" She asked pushing across a piece of paper.

That’s how these things happen! Litara headed back to her friend’s hairdressing salon for her appointment - and because an old lady of 28 can only be expected to put up with shrieking 18 year olds for so long. The rest of us shopped - Serena insisting I needed at the least a pair of shoes - and one by one went into the tattoo parlour where very refined tattoos - if that’s not a non-sequitur - were applied to our left shoulders depicting the Olympic Rings inset with the letters S V J M G