Sister, Sister, Sister - Part 5
By Missy Crystal

Twelve year old Johnny wants to play Barbies with his sisters, but Barbies are for girls. How can Johnny join the game? A sweet, sentimental story about a young boy's discovery of the girl he should have been with the help of his sisters and mother. This is a story I wrote a couple of years ago and I am posting it here for those who would like to know more about Dr. Jenny Mitchell. It is complete, for those who anguish over being left hanging, but too long for a single post.

"Well," Mom said with a dramatic pause, keeping us in suspense. "Jenny's real birthday is next week. Remember Mr. Kenneth said for us to come back and he would do our hair?"

"Yes, Mom, yes, we remember!" Beth volunteered on our behalf.

All of us were bouncing up and down with anticipation. Even Mom sounded excited.

"I spoke to Mr. Kenneth. For Jenny's birthday, you are getting your hair done this Saturday!"

"All of us," Susie asked, "me too?"

"Yes, Sweetie, all three of you," Mom told her.

"You too?" Beth asked.

"Hmmm," Mom said thoughtfully, "if I remember correctly, he said I was hopeless."

We all laughed.

"Now then, Susie needs to get to bed and you girls have homework to do. So scoot."

Beth went to her closet to change. I walked over and asked her to unzip my dress, rather than struggle the way I had putting it on. She unfastened the hook at the neck and then zipped it down to my waist. I slipped it off and stood there in my pantyhose and bra. Beth had taken off her top and skirt and she was in her panties and bra. It seemed like the most natural thing in the world for her to be helping me get undressed and for me to be standing in front of my mother and sisters in girl's underwear. I walked over to the closet and hung up the dress. Then I went back to my room. I sat on the edge of my bed and carefully peeled off my pantyhose. I slipped my nightgown on and went down to the kitchen to do my homework. Beth was already at the table. She looked up and smiled. I smiled back at her.

"Need any help, Sis?" she asked.

"No thanks, Beth," I replied. "Now that I am paying attention in class and keeping up with the assignments, it's really easy."

"My sister the brain," Beth joked.

"No," I kidded back, "it's just that girls are smarter than boys."

We both started giggling so loud that Mom called down to find out what the racket was about.

"Nothing Mom," Beth and I called up to her.

"Just a girl thing," Beth added.

And we both broke up again.

The next morning I made doubly sure that Johnny went to school and Jenny stayed home. I hated putting on my boy's plain white cotton briefs and t-shirt, but I was determined not to make any more mistakes that could get Mom or me in trouble. Even worse, that might force me to stop being Jenny. I looked at my nails to make sure that there was no trace of polish, studied my face in the mirror to be sure that all of my makeup was off, and pulled back my hair to double check that my earrings were out.

As usual, Mom was in the kitchen getting breakfast ready. She looked up when she heard me pull the chair out.

"My goodness," she exclaimed. "You're the early bird this morning. Susie's not down yet. Is something wrong, Jenny?"

"No, Mom," I assured her. "I learned my lesson yesterday when Mrs. McGowan found me out. If I have to go to school as Johnny, so I can be Jenny the rest of the time, that's just what I'll do. No more mess ups."

Mom beamed at me.

"That's my girl!"

I just about melted. The touching mother-daughter moment was interrupted by Susie bounding in.

"Hi, Mommy, hi," she paused, "Johnny," she said very pleased with herself, because she remembered that I was her brother when I was dressed as a boy.

"Hi my little sister who I adore no matter what," I told her.

She gave me a big smile and walked over.

"I don't usually kiss boys," she said with a serious face. "In fact, I don't ever kiss boys. No matter what," she mimicked. Then she came over and gave me a kiss on the cheek.

I was overcome by her simple expression of acceptance of me as a girl. I reached out and gave her a hug. She snuggled up to me for a second, then in typical little girl fashion her mood changed and she squirmed out of my arms.

We finished our breakfast and headed for the bus. The trip to school was the same as always. The boys I used to hang out with after school had given up on me, so I found an empty seat and kept to myself. I thought about what happened yesterday, when I forgot I had gym and wore my girl's underwear, and decided that I should thank Mrs. McGowan for helping me. As soon as the bus stopped, I headed upstairs to her office. When I got to the door, I paused. Maybe it wasn't such a good idea. I turned to leave. No, I thought, being honest about my feelings had worked so far. I turned around and opened the door. Mrs. McGown was sitting at her desk. Usually she gave me a big hello, since she and Mom were both nurses and knew each other, but today she just looked at me without showing any emotion.

"Hi, Mrs. McGowan," I said politely.

"Johnny, I am surprised to see you here. Didn't your mother tell you I spoke to her about you?"

"Yes, she did Mrs. McGowan," I said quietly, looking down. Then I got my courage up and looked at her. "I just wanted to say thank you and tell you that you don't have to worry about me. There won't be any more problems."

She stood up.

"Johnny, part of my job as the school nurse is to report abuse; not just physical abuse, emotional problems too."

She must have seen my face drop.

"Oh no, Mrs. McGowan, please," I blurted out. "Please, don't do anything. I learned my lesson. It won't happen again, really. I promise."

I was close to tears.

"Calm down, Johnny," she said as she came around her desk to stand next to me. "Here."

She handed me a box of tissues. I took one out and wiped my eyes. She must have realized how upset I was, because her voice became much gentler.

"My job isn't to judge you or your mother. Only to make sure that whatever is going on isn't harmful to you. I wanted to check with your teachers to see how it was affecting your schoolwork."

She must have seen my eyes widen.

"No, Johnny," she said reassuringly, "this is a confidential matter that I would not disclose until I was sure it was necessary. I just told them that you had a stomachache the other day and I wanted to be sure you weren't under any unusual stress from your classes. I expected that there would be some negative effect of your confusion about your gender, but to my surprise it was just the opposite. Every one of your teachers had nothing but good things to say about you. You were more attentive, better behaved, doing your homework and getting good grades. In fact, a couple of your teachers said that they wished that whatever happened to you happened to the rest of the boys in their class."

For the first time in our conversation, I saw the beginning of a smile. Then she got serious again.

"I am not sure I am doing the right thing, but I respect your mother. If she feels that this is best for you, I will not interfere. However, you need to understand that if there is even the slightest indication that this is causing a problem for you or for any other student, it will have to be reported to the juvenile authorities. Are you perfectly clear about what I said, Johnny?"

I looked straight at her.

"Yes, Mrs. McGowan, perfectly clear. I honestly wish things weren't they way they are. I wish that I had been born a girl instead of a boy. I was never happy as a boy. I am very happy as Jenny. That's my girl's name. I was a bratty boy and caused trouble for me and for my family. Now things are great. I love my sisters and they love Jenny."

For the first time, I saw a look of sympathy on Mrs. McGowan's face.

"Johnny," she emphasized that she was talking to me as a boy, "I have known your mother since nursing school and over the years she has confided in me how hard it was raising the three of you after your father left. That is another reason why I don't want to create any more problems for her than she already has, if I can help it. I would expect that your sisters like you better as a girl and that playing dress up with you is fun, but there's more to being a girl than makeup and pretty clothes. The longer you pretend to be something you're not and can never be, the harder it will be for you and your family when you reach puberty. You know what puberty is?"

"Yes, Mrs. McGowan. I know. You mean when I'm old enough to be interested in boys or at least when girls start dating."

"Yes, Johnny, that's part of it, but there's more to becoming a woman than dating. Even real girls have difficulty dealing with the physical and emotional changes that take place."

"I'm not interested in boys right now," I told her honestly. "I don't know about the rest of it, but I do know that I am not pretending to be a girl. I am a girl. I just have the wrong body."

Mrs. McGowan looked me in the eye. "You are an exceptional young" she paused, choosing her word carefully, person. I honestly hope that for your sake and your family's sake this works out. My heart wants to believe it will, but my head tells me it won't. Either way, Johnny, be very, very careful. My professional responsibilities outweigh my feelings or my friendship."

"I understand and I will Mrs. McGowan, I will, and thank you," I said as I turned and went out.

The rest of the school day was uneventful. I went to class and spent my lunch period as usual, secretly watching the girls, imagining what it would be like to come to school as Jenny. When school got out I rushed home to change. I dropped my backpack in the kitchen and went upstairs to Beth and Susie's room. I opened the closet and looked through Beth's wardrobe. She had lots of pants and jeans that were definitely made for girls, but I still liked to look and feel feminine in skirts and dresses. I chose the black denim jumper that Beth put on me the first time she got me dressed to go out, a red cotton short-sleeved pullover with a crew neck, red nylon tights and black penny loafers with chunky two-inch heels. I put my outfit on Beth's bed and went into my room to get my undies. I couldn't wait to get out of my plain boy's clothes and into my lace trimmed pink panties and a matching cammie. I paraded back into Beth's room and posed in front of the mirror.

"Hi, Jenny," I greeted my image. She smiled back at me.

After I got dressed, I went over to Beth's makeup table and started to do my face. By now I was good at putting on my lipstick. I really didn't need it, since I wasn't going anywhere, but I wanted to practice. Once I was satisfied with my look, I picked out a thin silver chain with a silver cheerleader megaphone charm. It was Beth's favorite, but I knew she wouldn't mind me wearing it at home. Nobody would mistake me for a cheerleader around here. Finally, I blew out my hair to make it full and pulled it forward to frame my face. A red headband made the unisex cut look more girlish. I checked myself out in the mirror, did a final primp and was ready, ready to start my homework. I let out a sigh. Someday, I thought, cheering myself up, someday, Jenny will do all the things that real girls do.

I went downstairs and started got out my assignment book. I was concentrating on a math problem when I heard the door open and looked up.

"Hi, Jenny," Mom said. She looked approvingly at me, "pretty as always."

"Hi, Mom," I replied with a smile, thank you." Then I noticed that she was alone. "Where's Susie?" I asked her.

"Oh, Mrs. Johnson invited her to go out for a burger with Kelly. Beth is cheering at a game and then she's going out with some of the girls, so she wont' be home until late either." She gave me a loving look. "It's just you and me Jenny. Actually, I'm very happy to be able to have time alone with you. So much has happened and we really haven't had a chance to talk."

"That sound's great, Mom," I agreed.

"If you don't mind, sweetie, it's been a really long day. I am dying to get in a hot tub and soak. Then we can have dinner and spend the rest of the evening together."

"No problem, Mom. Go ahead and relax." I went over and gave her a hug and she hugged me back.

"I love, you Jenny," she said affectionately.

"I love you, too, Mom," I replied with equal emotion.

That was the best part about being a girl. You didn't have to hide your feelings.

Mom went upstairs and I could hear the bath water running. I finished up the math problem I was working on and decided to surprise Mom by making dinner. I wasn't exactly a wiz in the kitchen, but I had been watching Beth and had a basic idea of how to cook without setting me or the house on fire. I decided to make macaroni and cheese. It came in a package with all the ingredients and it didn't seem too difficult. I found the box and read the directions. Boil water in a saucepan. I could do that. Put in the macaroni. I could do that. Stir for six minutes, drain, put it back, add the packet of cheese and stir. Easy. While the water was boiling, I set the table. Mom liked a glass of wine with dinner, so I found a wine glass. I poured a glass of milk for myself. Then I decided that we couldn't have just the mac and cheese. We needed a salad. I had watched Beth chop up lettuce and some other vegetables. I got everything I needed out of the fridge and carefully prepared two bowls. I took out a bottle of salad dressing and but it on the table.

"Jenny," Mom called, "I'm almost ready. Finish up what you're doing and I'll be down to start supper in a few minutes."

"Okay, Mom, don't rush."

I went back to the stove and checked the macaroni. It was coated with the melted cheese. I stirred it a few times and spooned it onto the plates as I heard Mom coming downstairs.

She had on her big white terry robe and white terry scuffs. A towel was wrapped around her head. She had a powdery flower smell from the bath beads she used. When she saw the table she stopped short.

"Jenny," she said with astonishment. "This is so sweet. How did you ever learn to be so domestic?"

"I don't know, Mom," I answered. "From watching Beth, I guess. I mean, I really didn't do anything special. Just set the table and made something from a mix."

"Well, someday you will make some lucky man a great wife." Then she turned red and put her hand up to her mouth. "Oh, Jenny, I'm so sorry, sweetie. I didn't mean to, I, I, I'm so sorry, I," she stammered.

I shrugged my shoulders. "Really, Mom, its okay. Don't worry about it. I've heard you say that to Beth a hundred times. I like it when you talk to me the way you do to her. It makes me feel like a real girl."

Mom calmed down. "Come here, honey." She held out her arms. I went up to her and we snuggled. "Jenny, as far as I'm concerned," she said caringly, "you are a real girl and anyone who says you're not is going to have to deal with me!"

"Wow, Mom, that's really cool," I kidded her. "So on Monday I can go to school as Jenny and you'll tell them they're wrong about my being a boy?"

Mom got her sense of humor back.

"You bet, it's girl's gym and Home Ec for you young lady.

"We don't have Home Ec in middle school, Mom," I reminded her, "but gym sounds like fun, although the shower situation might make it a little difficult to convince people I'm a girl."

We both laughed as we released each other.

After dinner we did the dishes. Then Mom asked me if I'd like to take a nice bubble bath. Susie liked to play in the tub, but Beth always took showers, because it was easier for her to wash her hair, and I always did what she did.

"Sure, Mom," a bubble bath sounds like fun.

"Okay, Sweetie. I'll run the water and get it ready. You go get undressed. Beth has a bathrobe hanging on the back of her closet door. Put it on and come into my bathroom.

I followed Mom upstairs and went into Beth's room. I stripped down to my panties and bra and stopped. I wasn't sure whether I should get completely undressed and decided to put the robe on over them. Beth had a pair of silly bunny slippers that someone gave her as a birthday present and I put them on just for fun. Then I headed down the hall to Mom's room. When I went in, I could hear the water running and could see her in the bathroom, bending over the tub. As I got closer, I could see a mound of frothy bubbles and there was that wonderful powdery flower smell. She must have heard me scuffle in and turned around.

"It's all ready for you, Honey." She looked down at my bunny feet. "Hop in," she laughed.

I untied the bathrobe and slipped it off. I stopped, not sure whether to take off my underwear or not. Mom must have realized why I was hesitating and smiled at me.

"It's up to you, Jenny," she said. "I'm a nurse and I'm you're mother. You won't embarrass me."

I took my bra and panties off and climbed into the tub. The water was hot and the fragrance surrounded me as I slipped under the bubbles. Mom brought over a huge sponge.

"This is a loofah. It is really good for you skin. Makes it nice a pink. Do you want me to do your back?

"Yes, please. I would like that, Mom."

I sat up and Mom dipped the loofah into the water and then began to rub it over my back. It was delicious.

"Lift up your arm," she directed.

I picked up one arm and she ran the loofah over it, down one side and up the other. Then she did my other arm. She stopped.

"Here," she said, handing me the loofah. "I think it would be best if you did the rest of you."

She gave me a smile and walked out, closing the door behind her. I continued scrubbing myself, until my skin was really soft and smooth. Then I just lay back and enjoyed the hot, steamy bath. I felt so pretty and feminine. I imagined getting ready for a big party, putting on a gorgeous lacey pink dress with a full skirt and swishing petticoats, like Cinderella going to the ball. The dress would show off my beautiful bare shoulders, arms and back. My hair would be long and done up. Everyone would stare at the beautiful girl as I gracefully walked down the stairs in my high heels. My daydream was interrupted by Mom's voice.

"Jenny, it's been almost a half hour. You should get out before you wrinkle up like a prune."

I looked down at my fingers and she was right. Too much of a good thing, I guess. I stood up and stepped out onto the bath mat. I took a big fluffy towel and began to blot myself dry.

"Honey, can I come in?" Mom called from the bedroom.

"Sure, Mom."

I wrapped the towel around me as the door opened.

"Now," she said, "before you dry off, you should put on baby oil. It seals the moisture into your skin."

She went to the shelf and took down a bottle of baby oil. The towel was around my waist and I was holding it.

"Here, Sweetie. Let me show you how girls wrap towels around them so they stay on."

She wrapped the towel around my chest, above my breasts, at least what would have been my breasts, if I was going to have them, twisted the ends at the top and rolled it over. The towel stayed on like a skirt. Then she picked up the baby oil again and began to rub it on. She finished my upper body and handed the bottle to me.

"Here, you do you legs."

It was such a wonderful experience. Feeling soft and smelling pretty, sharing beauty secrets with my mom. I couldn't imagine it being any other way. I finished and then went back to my room to put on my panties and a nightgown.

"Would you like some hot cocoa to finish off the evening?" Mom asked.

"Mmm, sure," I said dreamily.

"Your sisters should be home soon. How about if I get everything started and we wait for them?"

"Good idea, Mom. We can have a little party and plan our day at the salon with Mr. Kenneth."

"Oh, my, Jenny. I completely forgot about tomorrow. You're right."

"Do you want me to do your nails while we're waiting?" Mom asked. "After all the birthday girl has to look good for her big day."

"Yes, please, Mom," I replied.

"Give me a minute to get the cocoa started, then I'll be up. Why don't you see if Beth has a color you like and bring it into my room."

After my near disaster going to school with nail polish, I had been very careful about not using it during the week. I looked longingly at Beth's collection of colors each afternoon when I turned into Jenny, but I learned my lesson. Someday, I thought. Someday, I will be the one who sits on her bed with cotton between her toes polishing her toenails. I knew exactly which color I wanted. It was a dark pink and she had matching lipstick. I took the bottle and shook it as I walked to Mom's room. I sat down on her bed and waited for her to come up.

"Okay, let's get started," Mom said as she sat on the bed next to me. "Give me your hand."

I held my hand out and she took it in her left hand, holding it gently while she smoothed and shaped the nails with an emery board. Then she took a bottle and started to paint my thumbnail.

"Mom? What are you doing? I thought I was going to wear Beth's polish. Why are you putting on clear?"

"Be patient, daughter!" Mom pretended to scold me. "If you put a coat of clear on first, it makes it easier to get the color off later."

Mom finished one hand and stared on the other while I wiggled my fingers in the air. I was surprised how good a manicure Mom gave me, considering that being a nurse and not going out much, she rarely wore nail polish herself. Mom had just finished and was about to start on my toes when I heard the kitchen door open. I guessed it was Beth, because Mrs. Johnson would have come to the front door to drop of Susie. A short time later, I heard Beth calling.

"Mom, Jenny, Susie. Where is everybody?"

"Up here, Beth dear," Mom responded. "Susie's still at Mrs. Johnson's. She took her and Kelly to a movie and out for dinner. It's just Jenny and me. I'm doing her nails. We're in my room, she added. C'mon up."

I heard Beth on the stairs and then walking down the hallway.

"Well, now!" she exclaimed, standing in the doorway with her hands on her hips, pretending to be miffed. "I don't recall anyone inviting Beth to the family beauty parlor."

She came over and sat next to me.

"Watch it," I warned her playfully, "You'll smudge my polish."

I held my hands out to show her my nails.

"You better watch it, Sis, or you'll give yourself away," she replied.

"Beth, whatever are you talking about? How would showing you my nail polish give me away?"

"Jenny, my dear sister, girls show their nails by holding their hands out, palms down with their fingers spread. Like this," she demonstrated, putting her hands out with a limp wrist and wiggling her fingers. "Boys do this." She curled her fingers into a loose fist.

"Wow, Beth, thanks. I never knew that. I'll try to be more careful."

"I don't know why that is," she added with a puzzled expression, looking over at Mom. Girls just don't make fists for some reason. If you ever see a cat fight, we pull each other's hair, slap and scratch, but never punch."

Just then the doorbell rang.

"It must be Mrs. Johnson bringing Susie home. Will you go down, since your dressed Beth?"

"Of course, Mom."

She went downstairs and I heard the door open.

"Hi, Mrs. Johnson. Thanks for taking Susie."

"Oh, it was no prob," Mrs. Johnson started to say, before Susie interrupted her.

"Is Jenny here, Beth?" Susie asked excitedly. "Is she upstairs? Bye, Mrs. Johnson, thanks," she called out as I heard her running up the stairs.

"My goodness, Beth. Susie certainly is taken with Jenny. How is he," she paused, "she," she corrected herself, "doing?"

"She," Beth emphasized, "is doing really great, Mrs. Johnson. Thank you for asking. Goodnight and thanks again."

The door closed.

"Jenny, where are you?" Susie called, as she reached the top of the stairs.

"In Mom's room, Susie," I replied.

She burst through the door and jumped into my lap. Beth came in a minute later.

"Well, girls. Are you ready for your big day?" Mom asked.

"Definitely, Mom," Beth said confidently. "I borrowed a bunch of hair styling magazines from Cindy. We can go through them and find some styles we like. Let's go ladies," she said as she herded us out the door.

We were all giggles as we headed off to fantasize about glamorous hairdos. Beth went to her school bag and pulled out a pile of magazines. Cindy's mother is a hairdresser. I told her about our going to the salon and she brought these to school for me."

"Beth," I asked nervously, "I hope that we didn't mean me?"

"Of course it did, silly. My friends all know that my cousin Jenny is staying with us. We made up that story that time when you went with me to hang out with my girlfriends. Remember? Don't be such a worry wart. Here you two, start looking through these and see if you can find a style you like."

She handed a magazine to me and another to Susie.

Susie began to turn the pages, but I put mine down.

"Jenny, why the long face?" Beth asked. "Tomorrow is going to be so fun. Our first real visit to a beauty salon instead of the hair cuts are us place we usually go to. Aren't you excited?"

"No, not really," I told her. You and Susie have beautiful long hair. Look at this." I put my hands up and tousled my hair. "I have to be able to look like a boy all week, so no fancy do's for me."

"Oh dear, Jenny," Beth said sympathetically, "you're right. It's your birthday present and we're the ones getting our hair styled. That's not right at all. I'm going to tell Mom that we've decided not to go. We can have a party here or something instead. Is that okay, Susie?"

Susie had been studying her magazine and gave Beth a puzzled look.

"Beth, can't we go, please. I really want to go, please. Please. Pretty please?"

"Yes Beth," I agreed. "You have to go. I have the two most wonderful sisters in the world and I wouldn't want anything to spoil your day. Seeing you two look beautiful is all the present I need."

Beth looked at me with tears in her eyes.

"Oh my God, Jenny. That is the nicest, kindest, sweetest thing anyone could ever say." She came over and threw her arms around me. "I love you. I don't know how we will work this out, but we will and you will be my sister forever and always dear Jenny."

Not to be left out, Susie came over and put her arms around me.

"I love you too, Jenny. Sooooo much."

The touching sister, sister, sister moment was interrupted by Mom's voice.

"It's time for Susie to get to bed girls."

"Please Mom, just a few more minutes," Beth called back to her.

"Okay," but it's going to be your fault if she falls asleep in Mr. Kenneth's chair and gets her ear cut off," Mom joked.

We all giggled.

Not to be outdone, Beth called back, "Anyway, you're a nurse. You can just sew it back on." Mom laughed. Then going back to the magazines Beth told us, "okay girls, let's pick out some styles. Jenny you can help find one for me."

I secretly envied Beth and Susie as they played with their long hair. Twisting and twirling it, trying to duplicate the different looks in the magazine. After a while Susie began to get sleepy, so Beth tucked her in bed and I found a story to read to her. She fell asleep before I had finished the first page. We went downstairs quietly.

"Do you want to watch some TV, Jenny?" Beth asked me.

"Sure, maybe we can watch one of those fashion shows you like."

All of a sudden Beth exclaimed, "Oh my God, Jenny! I just remembered. Our outfits. What are we going to wear?"

I looked at her and naively asked, "Aren't we going to wear what we usually wear to the mall?"

"Jenny, really! We're not just going to the mall. We are going to Mr. Kenneth's salon. We have to look our best. Oh my God, I don't have anything to wear."

"C'mon, Beth," I reassured her. You have some really nice clothes. I'm sure you can find something. Calm down."

Beth took a deep breath. "Thanks, Sis. I don't agree, but I guess I don't have a choice either. Susie's fast asleep, so I think we can look through my wardrobe if we're quiet. Let's go see."

We went back to Beth's room and turned on the closet light. As far as I could see, Beth had enough clothes to start her own boutique. I guess I still had a few things to learn about being a girl.

"Okay, Jenny. First thing, skirt or pants? Let's see." She started to go through what was on the hangers. "No, no, no, definitely no, maybe." She pulled out a red leather skirt and handed it to me. "No, no, no and no, maybe." She pulled out a pair of designer jeans and handed them to me. "Eww, how did that get in here? It went out of style last year. No, no, no, no and no." She sighed, "That's it."

I looked at the skirt and the jeans.

"We'll, I'm no fashion expert for sure, but you have a great figure and these jeans really fit you. I remember when Mom bought them for you at that fancy store when it opened at the mall. She nearly had a heart attack when she saw the price."

Beth took them and held them up. She looked in the mirror. "Yes, Jenny, I think you're right. Definitely the jeans. Now I need a top."

She started through the selection process again, pulling out a red and a black jersey and a blue sweater. She held them up to her chest and looked in the mirror.

"The black one," I told her. "It looks very sophisticated."

"Where on earth would you learn about looking 'sophisticated'?" she questioned me?

"I don't know. Probably from your fashion magazines that you leave in the bathroom for reading material."

"Okay, that's it," Beth teased me. "You look better in my clothes than I do and you know more about fashion than I do. I am resigning as the resident beauty queen in this family and turning the title over to you." She paused, "Annoying, but you're right. Now I need shoes and underwear."

She picked out a pair of black shoe boots with a square toe and two inch heels.

"These should dress the outfit up."

She went over to her dresser and took out a black bra and black nylon stretch lace panties.

"See, Jenny. When you wear tight pants you want a smooth pair of panties so you won't have a vpl. Now then, we need to find you an outfit."

"What's a vpl Beth?"

"Oh, a visible panty line. You don't won't boys to see the outline of your panties through your pants or a tight skirt."

"Since I don't have a nice round butt like yours, I doubt I will have to worry about that. But thanks for the fashion tip."

Beth blushed. "I'll thank you not to be staring at my butt, missy."

"Well, with you parading around in your skimpy panties it's kind of hard to miss," I observed.

"Touché," Beth conceded, "or maybe I should say tushy."

We both had to put our hands over our mouths so our laughing wouldn't wake Susie. We calmed down.

"Seriously, Sis, let's find you an outfit." Beth paused to think. "How about that red leather mini skirt. With a white silk blouse and black stockings you'd be a knockout."

"Thank you very much, but the last thing I want to be is a knockout. With the luck I've been having, half my class will be at the mall. 'Hey, wait a minute, who's that hot little number. She looks familiar. Isn't that? No, it can't be. Yes, look, it is. Hi, Johnny.'"

"We've been though this, Sis. You even fooled Mom. Nobody is going to recognize you, but you're right. Pretty yes, a knockout no. So let's see what else we can find. Hey, how about this. I used to love this skirt. Frankly, it's a little young for me now, bit it would look great on you."

Beth handed me a pink and charcoal gray plaid pleated wool skirt. I held it up to my waist. It came about two inches above my knees.

"Oh, Beth. I love it."

"Good, now, let me see. I used to have a pink angora sweater I wore with it. Hmmm. Yes, here it is."

The sweater was long sleeved with a round neckline. It felt incredibly soft and feminine.

"And charcoal gray wool tights. They should be in my dresser. Ahhh. Mom never gets rid of anything." She handed me the tights. "And my chunky heeled black loafers. There. Ooops, and some pretty undies."

"I can wear my own undies, Beth. But thanks for the offer."

"Jenny, this is your special day and I want you to have some special lingerie to wear. Please take them."

She went to her dresser and took out a pair of pink nylon panties with a white lace waistband and white lace trim around the leg openings and a matching stretch nylon pull over top with lace trim on the cups and thin straps.

I politely accepted them.

"They're beautiful, Beth. Thank you."

I said goodnight to Beth and gave her a hug. She hugged me back. I went to the bathroom to do my nightly beauty routine. I smiled to my image in the mirror and she smiled back. Even if I couldn't get a real hairstyle, it was still going to be a wonderful day for Jenny. I went back to my room and felt the smooth nylon of my nightgown slide against my panties as I snuggled down under my covers. Goodnight Jenny, sleep tight and have pretty dreams I said to myself.

TO BE CONTINUED