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Author's Note: Here's Ch.4. I decided to go ahead and publish it after all. Like I said in my blog though, this is the last fully written chapter of the story I have at the moment :(. I'm currently working on ch.5 and hope to have it done by the end of the week, however, I probably won't post it until I have at least Ch.7 or 8 done. So expect a week or two without any new chapters of this story. I didn't want to do this but real life interfered sadly and I haven't had a lot of time to write :(. Thanks for reading and hopefully understanding lol.

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4:

Unlike the rest of the Huntington’s, the Greenes didn’t actually live in Green Valley. Though still very well off, I guess they didn’t quite meet the standards of the gated community lifestyle. Instead, they lived in a newer suburb development toward the end of town. Built around ten years ago or so, Prescott Acres was actually one of those buy a plot and build a house type of developments. So even though the first house might have gone done ten years ago, its neighbor might have only been a few months old. It was just how things that seemed to work.

Looking out the window as we pulled into the development, I grimaced.

It was hard not to.

Sure our house was a pretty decent size but it didn’t compare to the neo-eclectic McMansions that dotted both sides of the street. These things were massive, most with multiple rooms and at least three car garages. The further in the winding road went I knew they got bigger. The last time I visited, Hannah had taken me to one of her favorite places. The end of the development actually opened up into a little-wooded area surrounding a fairly decent sized lake. Being a bit of a tomboy like Kate, Hannah said she used to spend quite a lot of time there fishing and catching frogs.

I still found it hard to believe anyone had ever talked her into becoming a cheerleader.

Up until I was ten, in fact, I thought she was a boy.

The car finally came to a stop in their driveway. I looked up at the house and sighed. This was going to be my home for the next few whatever. I say whatever because no one really knew how long I was going to be here. Apparently Sara had been working on this little solution long before I had my blow out with Mom this morning. My sister truly was a wonder. She just seemed to have one plan after another, all of them in place to help me. After the plan with my grandfather sadly fell through, this one seemed to present itself. Sara had made all the arrangements. I was to stay with the Greene until she could either convince my mother she was being crazy or find a more permanent solution to my problem.

Getting an apartment in the city was even mentioned.

I didn’t like that idea in the least, though. It conflicted with Sara’s plans. She was supposed to be going to college next year, not staying home to take care of me. She’d already sacrificed enough of her life worrying about me. I wanted her to be happy for once and do her own thing. I planned on telling her that too as soon as I could get her on the phone for more than a minute or two.

Like I said, very busy.

“This is going to be so great,” said Hannah enthusiastically grabbing my hand and giving it a good squeeze.

“Yeah great” I lied but not too convincingly.

Hannah frowned. “You sure you’re ok?”

No.

‘Yeah” I lied again, ‘just a lot to get used too”

She nodded. I could tell she didn’t believe me but she didn’t pursue the matter.

Instead, she got out of the Lexus, I followed.

No matter how many times I saw this house, I was always amazed at the size of it. It was like the rest of the houses on the block, oversized, overpriced and way too big for a family of four. I keep on forgetting Hannah had a little brother. Not that my cousin Davey was unforgettable but he was only five so it was hard to remember. He was also really shy, he didn’t do well with strangers. The fact that he barely knew me didn’t help things either. I only saw the Greene’s made four times a year at the most. Davey spent most of that time clinging to his mother’s side. It was no surprise that he didn’t show up at my birthday last week either, I hadn’t expected him too.

Still, though, you could probably fit our entire house in the front yard of this place.

Ok so I was exaggerating slightly but not by much.

Mark and Tracy didn’t make much more than Mom actually. I’m not sure how much they made but it was more than enough to live here apparently. I overheard Mom complaining about it once actually. She was prone to do that from time to time. Not that she had anything against my father’s cousins, she barely knew them after all. They were Huntington's’ though and that was enough for her. That’s how I knew though that Aunt Gloria had actually paid for this place. Mark and Tracy paid the bills but the house had been fully on her. It made me wish that my grandparents had at least one generous bone in their bodies but apparently not.

“You girls good?” asked Cousin Mark as he took my bags out of the trunk.

I nodded as he handed them to me.

“We’re good Daddy, you’re free to leave”

He smiled, kissed her on the forehead then got back into his vehicle.

Mark had a little get together with some college friends every weekend. One that I made him late for because we had to swing by home after the practice. Tracy and Sara both insisted I get a few days worth of things packed just in case. Thankfully Mom wasn’t home when we got there. Sara had made sure the doors were unlocked before she went to work. Hannah had helped me pack then we made tracks as quick as possible.

The last thing either of us needed was a run in with Mom.

Tracy met us at the front door, a big warm smile on her face.

Before I could say anything, she pulled me into a hug.

Tracy was just shy of her fortieth birthday but she definitely didn’t look it. Maybe a few age lines and some gray hairs but that could easily be chalked up to stress and not age. Unlike her husband the professor, she did work for MerTech. All I really knew was that she was a sales rep. I’m not sure if that meant she went door to door or if she was someone in an office somewhere. Given the size of the house and that I knew there were at least two BMWs in the garage I’m shooting for the latter. She was blonde like Hannah but unlike her daughters, it was more strawberry blonde. Whereas I mentioned Hannah having a darker shade of blonde than me, her older sister Claire’s hair could hardly be considered blonde at all actually, maybe a very light shade of brown.

Davey took after his father.

“Now let me take a look at you,” said Tracy as she took a step back from the hug. “Wow, if I didn’t know any better I’d say you were Hannah’s twin”

“I know Mom, isn’t it creepy”

We weren’t one hundred percent alike of course. Her nose was a little narrower and her lips a bit thinner. Her skin was a lot tanner than mine too but only because she spent a lot of time outdoors. When not cheerleading, Hannah was also in track and field. The biggest difference about the two of us though had to be height. Hannah was barely five three whereas I was almost five seven now. I was still amazed about that part. Only a few weeks ago I was a shrimp and now look at me.

Of course, I was a guy back then too.

“Come along Christy honey,” said Tracy, taking to my new name just as quick as her daughter. “I’ve just finished setting up the guest room for you”

She led the way into the house and I tried not to look like a fish in its bowl.

Like most of the houses on the block, it had an open floor plan. Lots of open space and high ceilings. There were five bedrooms and three and a half baths. Little Davey got the half while---like Sara and me---Hannah shared hers with her sister. The guest room was the only room on the ground floor apparently, right next door to the guest bathroom. I also noticed it was across from the kitchen too. It was also apparently the smallest room in the house not that I would have noticed. It was definitely bigger than mine.

“I’m sorry about the size of it,” said Tracy from the doorway as I stepped inside. “It’s a little plain too. If you want, Mark can take you out to the galleria after his outing, we can…”

“Its great, better than great actually,” I said and meant it.

To be honest, I’d been feeling a little out of place in my room the last few days.

Not that there was anything wrong with it, it just didn’t feel like me anymore.

“I’ll give you some time to get situated. When you’re ready, Hannah is in the den”

I thanked her as she left.

I dropped my bag on the bed and took a look at the room. Like the rest of the house, it was pretty spacious. It was sparsely decorated, though. There was a simple dresser against the far wall, a queen size bed in the center and a desk on the opposite wall. The room was painted in neutral colors and had a warm, welcoming feeling. It also had a rather large window that looked out onto the back yard I noticed. I took a moment to take in that view and was always amazed by it. Each of the houses here seemed to have half an acre or more of land. The Greene’s were no different, though a good portion of their yard was taken up by the large in-ground pool and jungle gym. In the far corner of it was the tool shed.

We had one of those too. Like Mark, my father used to spend any time he could out there. Unlike Mark, my Dad being an engineer exactly had a good idea what he was doing with his tinkering.

I finished putting my clothes away in a few minutes, after all, I only packed for a couple of days. I hoped I wouldn’t be here that long. I’m not sure what the actual plan was but I wanted to go home. I knew my mother was the problem but I also knew that I still loved her. She might not be the best person for me right now but somewhere inside of her she knew she still loved me too. I was just going to have to wait it out and hope she finally came to her senses. I saw the love there, it was the slight ways she kept looking at me. I’m not sure what was holding her back from it but I knew my real mother was pressing against the outlines of this monster that that man created.

“Wow,” said a familiar snarky voice from behind me. “They gave you the good room”

I smiled big and turned around, finding Kate leaning in the doorway.

I gave her a big hug and emotions took over.

She held me while I cried.

“Hey Princess, you’re getting makeup all over my shirt”

I laughed, pulling away and wiping my face.

“What are you doing here?” I asked, surprised to see her.

She feigned being hurt. “What you’re the only one who can come to this palace?”

I gave her a playful shove.

“I just thought…well never mind, I’m glad to see you. I’ve been having a shitty day”

She gave me another hug. “That’s what Sara said when she kidnapped me”

“Remind me to thank her”

“Remind me to shank her”

We both laughed. After this morning, I needed a good laugh.

It was at that moment, I noticed a similar looking bag at her feet.

“What’s with the backpack?”

She sighed heavily. “I’ve been roped into something you locals call a slumber party”

I gave her an even bigger hug after that.

“Ok girls I’m going to trust you on this today and tonight,” said Tracy, giving all of us the talk as it were.

We all nodded like we were listening.

“I know Christy doesn’t have school tomorrow but Hannah and Katie do, so the three of you need to keep this low key and early. No staying up past ten o’clock and nothing too wild. Don’t forget that Christy has an important meeting tomorrow, one she needs to be alert for”

“Oh, c’mon mom,” said a newly arrived Claire.

She was dressed in her dance practice gear, having apparently just come from ballet class. She looked pretty stylish in her gray warm-ups over her white leotard, the tard only exposed because her top was midriff. Her hair was still pulled up in the characteristic ballerina bun, though. Like Cindy, Claire was also a junior instructor at Madame Gertrude’s. Unlike Cindy though, Claire apparently had a class to teach today.

“Since you decided to have an opinion on it, I’m putting you in charge”

Claire looked like she was about to protest when her eyes fell on me. This was the first time we’d seen each other since my birthday party. Like Hannah, her eyes seemed to pop out of her head. I mean at the party I was already pretty damn girly but of course, now I was full blown. I couldn’t help but smile at her look. She smiled too, which slowly turned into this mischievous look. I didn’t like that look. Sara used to get that look whenever she was going to do something to me.

“Sure Mom,” she said slyly. “I’d love to!”

Tracy left us to it. When she was gone, Claire walked over to me and pulled me into a warm, welcoming hug.

“Welcome to the better sex, little cuz”

Claire was a little hard to get used too. She came on strong in everything she did. She meant well of course but she was the kind of girl that knew what she liked. She was also the kind of girl that knew what you were supposed to like too. I’m not saying she forced it upon you or anything but she was very convincing. I couldn’t remember a Christmas where she couldn’t talk us all into doing something crazy. One Christmas, she talked us all into having a snowball fight barefoot. Last year at her Sweet Sixteen party, she insisted everyone---including the guys---wear an article of pink. My uncles got away with a pink tie or pocket handkerchief. Tom and I actually had to wear pink shirts. It was really embarrassing.

So of course to Claire, I was now the better sex.

Not that I was complaining.

Thanks to people like Tom and Greg, I was beginning to think she was right.

“Claire, you’re smothering her,” said Hannah, pulling me out of her sister’s embrace.

Claire laughed and stared. “Its just so fucking amazing”

“Try living it”

“I’ll bet”

She asked a few questions then seemed to get bored with it.

That was another one of her quirks.

I didn’t mind though because frankly I was getting a little tired of explaining it. Of course, I knew there would be plenty more explanations in my future but at least I had the whole “medical screw up” lie to fall back onto. My family knew the truth. I’m sure some of them probably thought it was my fault like Mom and Dr. Bashir. I was just glad that the Greene’s seem to accept the truth. I just knew how Tom was going to react to all of this. My uncles were a different matter. John was pretty cool, I think he suspected something was up at my party actually. I’m not sure about Chris though. We were never really close, to be honest. Maybe I reminded him too much of my father?

“Ok now,” said Claire, taking charge like usual. “Why don’t you girls get in your jammies, I’ll go get changed into mine and we can get this party really started”

I looked at Kate who was rolling her eyes.

I couldn’t help but smirk.

Claire was going to love trying to get Kate to do things.

It was a disaster waiting to happen.

As soon as Claire was gone, Hannah made a bolt for the stairs, leaving Kate and me alone.

She sighed heavily. “Is she for real?”

I read her mind. “Claire?” She nodded and I laughed. “She’s a force to be reckoned with”

‘Ok if she tries to assimilate me, I want a mercy killing”

We shook on it.

After that, we dropped onto the couch. I took that chance to look around the Greene’s den. Not much had really changed since I’d been here last. They still had the giant sectional, though this one appeared to be new. It had one end that seemed to form a bed which was cool. There was still the wall of DVDs and BluRays, they still had the giant flatscreen too. The focal of the room though was the dance wall. One whole wall in the room was one of those ballet mirrors, complete with bar and everything. I knew from experience that there were mats and things like that in the closet. Claire had been a ballerina since she was real little. I vaguely remember going to a dance recital of hers once, back before my father died.

‘This place is crazy” said Kate, having finished looking around the room as well.

I shrugged. ‘Claire is a dancer, it makes sense her family would do this”

Kate shook her head. “I meant this whole house. I mean, is this how the other half lives?”

“I wouldn’t know,” I said softly.

Ok, so I was envious. I was also a little pissed.

This could have been my life.

I’m not saying I really wanted to be rich but when you knew you could have been, it kind of sucked. Sure my Dad wasn’t a peasant by any means but this life---Hannah’s life---something like it could have been possible. Sure I probably wouldn’t have gone to Huntington but I would have at least had a better relationship with Dad’s family. I knew probably never with my grandparents but definitely with my cousins, at least more than a few times a year.

Kate seemed to sense something was wrong because she hugged me.

“Oh hug time,” said Hannah as she ran into the room, jumping on the couch.

She wrapped her arms around the both of us, squeezing tight.

I couldn’t help but notice Kate flush a bright red.

A moment later, Hannah realized what she was doing because she flushed too and ended the hug rather quickly.

Awkwardness hung in the room until Claire arrived.

Claire kicked the slumber party into full swing after that.

She started with the stupid games. I mean she didn’t want to go all out just yet because it was still light outside. She did get us into a rather interesting game of Truth or Dare, though. We didn’t get too crazy with it, though. She did dare Kate into wearing one of her outfits to school tomorrow, though. Kate got her back with a dare to get a tattoo on her butt. I was surprised when both agreed to it, especially since a tattoo was something permanent. Too permanent we found out a minute later when Claire said it would have to be washable because it was frowned upon in both cheerleading and ballet.

I think Claire had an ulterior motive with the truth or dare, though.

It didn’t take her long to dare Kate and Hannah to kiss.

I noticed her mischievous smile again.

I was happy to see that I wasn’t the only one who noticed what my friend and cousin did not.

I watched with half amusement and half embarrassment as the two of them pecked one another on the lips. I half expected a little more but it was clear they were holding back for our sakes. I saw it, though, that little spark. As soon as their lips touched, you could see how much the two of them liked one another. I was happy for both of them but especially for Kate. Maybe this would finally help her get over Chloe.

My embarrassment came a few moments later.

It was Hannah’s turn to ask.

“So Christy, truth or dare?”

Crap.

“Truth” I blurted out quickly before I could think.

Well, I didn’t want dare either.

Hannah smiled wickedly. “so now that you’re a girl, do you like boys?”

Damn her.

“Oh she most definitely does,” said Kate, smiling just as wickedly.

This got Claire to raise an eyebrow.

“Well then,” said my cousin “my truth to you is this: who do you like?”

Double damn her.

I felt my cheeks start to burn so I just knew I was turning red. I also knew I would have to answer soon because of the looks all three of them were currently giving. Thinking about it didn’t take long actually. I knew who I liked and there was no denying it now. Whenever I thought about boys, his face always seemed to come into my mind. Anyone who was at my birthday seemed to know it too. I didn’t realize it at the time but lots of others did, including my mother.

“Dan” I mumbled.

“What was that?” asked Kate with a smile. “We can’t hear you!”

Damn her too.

“Dan,” I said louder and they all laughed.

Great, laugh at my expense.

And laugh they did.

I got Kate back a moment later when I dared her to wear her Halloween costume---wig and all---to school the day after she was dressing like Claire.

Truth or Dare ended there with us three younger girls embarrassed as all hell. Surprisingly, Claire got by unscathed. Not that we didn’t try of course but nothing seemed to get to her. She was like a rock which only made us try harder. The game became a real bonding experience believe it or not. All our dares were silly and stupid and the truths helped us bond. I was finally beginning to understand some of this girl stuff I saw in movies and things. Guys were close in a way but they didn’t really share things like girls did. I mean real things like their feelings. I felt closer to Kate than ever before and I was learning things about my cousins I definitely didn’t know before.

They revealed things to me, some of them very intimate.

None of which would have been revealed to Chris the boy.

I was fully accepted.

I was happy for that.

After Truth or Dare finally wound down, we moved onto other stupid party games not even worth mentioning.

Makeovers were after that, though.

The thing I dreaded the most actually.

I was surprised to have fun with it, though.

Claire and Hannah were skilled in all things makeup apparently. They were much better than my sister and Cindy even. Claire was especially good, telling me Telling me what product worked with my skin tone and all that. It helped that she worked part time at the makeup counter in the Galleria. See, I didn’t even know that. After helping me, she tried to do the same for Kate. Like Cindy before her, though, Claire had failed to break through Kate’s punk armor. She was dead set on her look. It actually worked for her though too. Hannah didn’t seem to mind it one bit either so that was a plus. With that in mind, though, Claire was able to give Kate some tips on how to better perfect it.

My friend ate it up.

After the makeovers was dinner. Pizza of course. The Greene’s knew the right place because it was from Leo’s. Mark and Davey joined us for dinner.

“Hey Davey,” I said, smiling at my younger cousin as I took a seat across from him.

The kid gave me the strangest look.

“Do I know you?”

“Of course, you do sweetie,” said his mother “this is your cousin Christy. You see her every year for Christmas”

Davey squinted his eyes. “You used to be a boy I think?”

Everyone at the table, including me, laughed.

“Not anymore”

Davey shrugged. “Ok”

Kids were so cool like that.

Tracy then went on to explain to Davey that I’d be spending a few days here. It didn’t seem to faze him in the least. Like I said kids were just cool like that. Davey did have a few questions and we all answered them the best we could. I guess it was decided that we tell Davey the lie. I think his parents probably decided he was too young to understand what really happened. Not only that it might have been a little scary for a kid his age too. I didn’t want him thinking that he could turn into a girl one day just because. I hoped he couldn’t anyway. I also hoped that whatever this was that it wasn’t contagious. I was ok with all of this now but I didn’t want our school becoming an All Girl’s School suddenly.

Though it might be a riot to see Greg turn into a girl just to take him down a peg or two.

John on the other hand. As tall as he was, he’d probably become someone supermodel looking girl and I’d hate her.

I smirked.

“Something funny?” asked Kate, who was sitting next to me.

“Just thinking about a girl version of Greg and John”

She snorted. “Can you imagine Greg?” We laughed together. “And John, God I would kill her. Or maybe kiss her. She would be hot”

I made a mental note not to tell John that.

If he knew Kate might have a thing for girl him, he’d find every possible way to get a sex change just to be with her.

The rest of dinner was pretty quiet. Afterward, Claire left because she had to work. The rest of us girls returned to the den. Hannah decided it was now immersion time. So she pulled from the movie shelf every chick flick she could find. Kate and I groaned at a lot of them. Surprisingly, though, I found myself enjoying quite a few of them. I especially liked the Josh-What’s-His-Face movies. They were from a few years ago but they were still pretty good. It was back when he was a teenager still, not like now. I even saw Kate tear up at one of the films.

She and Hannah also made it clear that their embarrassment about being seen together was over. They were sitting very close on the couch, so close that Kate was almost on her lap. It was kind of cute. I couldn’t help but feel happy for the two of them too. I felt a pang of envy too, wondering if I even had a chance with Dan. I mean he knew me before as Chris. It would probably be way too weird for him. I tried to force the thoughts out of my head and enjoy the movies.

Tomorrow I would worry about those things.

Tonight I was with my friends.

Author’s note: As I’m sure all of you know, comments are life blood to an author. I’m not begging or demanding, but I certainly would appreciate anything you have to say (or ask). It doesn’t have to be long and involved, just give me your reaction to the story. Thanks in advance...EOF