Chapter 8

The days that followed were mundane. As unlikely as it seemed my life, trials and tribulations were not the centre of the universe. From Monday morning my little rebellion gave way to practicality and I wore a bra. Several in fact as at Litara’s suggestion, in a break from varnishing on Tuesday, I went into Marks and Spencer’s where a helpful woman found that I was in fact a 36B as they did not come pre-stretched-out like my sister’s. Adding two bras and some of their more practical size 12 knickers to my shopping I realised nobody had batted an eyelid at my daring.

Work clothes were simple as during a beautifully hot sunny spell using scrunchies borrowed from Litara, Dai’s shorts and t-shirts were perfectly suitable. I did however, after an embarrassing comment about modern girls by a visiting boat owner, shave my legs and armpits between work and tennis on Monday evening.

Each of those evenings Serena and I had our tennis practice sessions but, much to her disgust, I stuck to wearing shorts as it was too much of a stretch to imagine myself as the butt scratching girl in the famous Tennis Girl poster.

On that first Monday Serena had seemed a bit ‘off’ with me and I was about to apologise for failing to get back to her after my text message when she beat me to it by apologising for leaving me in the lurch Saturday night and spending all of Sunday with George. That left me with no alternative other than to tease her that a girl’s loyalty to her girlfriends traditionally went out of the window when a new boyfriend was involved.

All was going so smoothly until Thursday when Gwen turned up at the tennis club as Serena and I were finishing.

“It’s about your Dr Edwards. My sister, the nurse, knows him." started Gwen. "He’s not an A&E specialist at all so he must have been filling in for someone. He’s an Endocrinologist whose speciality made him come here on a temporary placement because the hospital has several patients who are male but look female and vice versa. That is why his office is on the Gyne ward even though he isn’t a gynecologist, he uses their scanners.” She also said he’d hit on several of the nurses and thinks he’s God’s gift to women!"

"What happens to these patients who are men that look like women?" I asked

"I asked that and she told me that she doesn’t know much but she has seen a couple of patients who started looking as female as anyone but within a year or two had a beard."

Serena stopped Gwen at that point and asked "You haven’t any facial hair have you Venus, would you like a beard?"

"I have actually" I replied "and as my hair is very dark I’ve shaved sometimes."

"Me too" put in Gwen. "The dark hair I mean not the shaving, except the first time. I started with bleaching but that wouldn’t work with Venus’s skin tone. Now I wax and next week I have an appointment for electrolysis to get rid of it once and for all! I hate my moustache!!

"You didn’t answer Venus. "If you could have a beard, get rid of your breasts and look like a man would you?" asked Serena, ever ready to ask or say what nobody else dared.

"How can I possibly answer that See? I’ve only been a girl a few days and yes it’s fun being me but that’s no time at all! As to being a man how do I know what that feels like?"

Hold it right there!" Serena butted in. "On Friday night you told everyone you were NOT A VIRGIN and it was with a girl!"

"I’m not. It was Janice Wheeler at our last school and it was a blowjob behind the bicycle sheds. It’s just that it didn’t work completely"

"Blowjobs don’t count!" laughed Gwen. "Beside everyone had her and Martina even boasts she was Janice’s first. Didn’t you ever see the graffiti ‘Janice Wheeler is the school bike’? The last I heard of her she had gone into Banking!”

“That’s so mean Gwen" I retorted. “What did Janice ever do to you? No wonder Brian’s leaving for London!”

The punch came so fast I didn’t have a chance and before I knew it I was sat on my backside with a hand over my left eye………

"Time to go home I think" said Serena quietly. "Gwen’s gone and you’re full of surprises. It was time somebody told Gwen a few home truths but I didn’t think it would be you!"

"You’re surprised! That girl’s got a punch like Lennox Lewis" I said getting up laughing.

Back at home the mood was friendly. After work mum had been in to see her father, my Grandpa Joe, and Joe had been in fine form. Once the explanation as to how I got the eye came out Da and Litara could barely keep from laughing every time they glanced in my direction.

"The big day at the hospital tomorrow" said mum as we finished our dinner and Litara was clearing the kitchen table. "Would you like me to come with you?"

What a turn up! "Thank you for offering mum but this is something I need to do myself"

"Whatever you think best"

What!! Has a spaceship come and swapped my mother for an alien?

"Litara, please sit back down a minute because there are things that you all need to know because it has affected you all.

When I was growing up my parents were very ambitious for me but in Britain it was still unusual for a woman to achieve as much as they wanted for Sophie and I in the workplace. Sophie was happiest doing things with our mother but I’d say that when I grew up I would become a man so that I could please and look after my Daddy. He would say that if I wanted it enough maybe it would happen because when he was young he too had been a little girl but had become a man so that he could be a Daddy for me and my sister Sophie.

I was young and, at least a little, believed him. I wanted so much to please my Daddy but I never did change and over the years accepted that no amount of wishing could change the world. I worked hard and got into an accountancy firm and worked my way up. Eventually I was glad I’d not changed because I met your father Isaac and had you Litara, my beautiful daughter.

It was another 10 years that passed before my son was born but finally my life was complete. Maybe I did try to push you too hard but I’d learned the hard way that you need more than wishes in this life.

A week ago you and Serena come into this house and she tells me my son realises he’s a girl. She says that - after everything I have worked for!

How I didn’t strangle Serena I don’t know, but some things have changed since I was a girl. Just before my son was born the family gathered, not you Litara you were too young, to watch a television documentary about where my father grew up. It explained that in this village there were girls who changed into boys and I remembered that program because of the stories I’d been told as a girl.

This week I’ve been asking Daddy if it was true that he’d changed and he told me yes he came from the Dominican Republic and was a guevedoche. †

I then asked if he was really my father and he laughed about it saying he was in no doubt being the only black man in the village with the only mixed race children!

† http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=-b-abEh2k6k&list=PL2gQw0SoGqaHN...