I really felt embarrassed as we walked out of my room. I was wearing make-up. Angie assured me it wasn’t really a lot. But to me, any make-up is too much. I didn’t like feeling my lashes when I blinked.

Underneath I had on a bra and panties. The bra felt weird. Up until today, I wore a sports bra while my boobs healed. But to have these weighted blobs of flesh being held in place by a stretchy nylon harness just felt strange. Well, I didn’t grow up wearing a training bra.

And finally, just a t-shirt and girls jeans. I was shocked that I really did fit Angie’s old clothes. Turns out I actually weigh less than her and a bit shorter. The jeans were skinny jeans that I didn’t think I would be able to get into.

Angie called out, “Hey Mrs. G! Come meet your daughter!”

Mom came out of the kitchen, took one look at me and froze. “Oh my! You’re definitely a Cindy now. I swear, you look just like me when I was your age.” She stepped up closer to get a better look at my face. “That’s amazing. Did you do your own make-up?”

I shook my head. “This was all Angie. She’ll start making me do it tomorrow.”

Mom grinned at Angie. “You did good work.” She glanced at the wall clock. “Oh, it’s about time to leave for your hair appointment, Cindy. We should probably go.”

Angie said, “Do you mind if I took her there? I’d like to take her shopping afterwards. She definitely needs her ears pierced.”

Mom nodded. “Of course, hon. That sounds like a great idea.”

Horrified, I said, “Seriously? Like out in public? The salon is bad enough.”

Mom chuckled. “Cindy, you’ll be fine. You’ll be in good hands, and honestly, you’re very pretty. You have to go outside sometime. I mean, school starts soon. Trust me. Everyone will accept you as a girl.”

Angie laughed as she playfully punched my shoulder. “Come on, girl. It’ll be fun. Just relax.”

I nodded. “You’re right. I need to face my fate before school starts.”

Mom smiled, “Too bad your father is at work. I’m sure he’ll love his new daughter.”

I rolled my eyes. “I somehow doubt that.”

Angie stated matter-of-factly, “Hey we need to go. I’ll have her back in time for dinner.”

As we walked towards Angie’s car, I looked at the ground and said, using air quotes, “It’s bad enough to get my ‘hair done’. Let’s skip the ear piercing.”

Angie stopped walking. “I’m trying to help you, Cindy. If you don’t want my help, I have other things to do. I want you to enjoy being a girl.”

I frowned at her. “Do you ‘enjoy’ being a girl?”

Angie folded her arms and narrowed her eyes at me. “As a matter of fact, I do enjoy it. I can’t imagine being anything else. And unlike you, I’m in it for the long haul. You may only have to be a girl for a year, which over all doesn’t seem very long, but it’ll be a long, miserable time for you if you don’t relax and embrace it. There are a ton of things to enjoy about being a girl. And I’m not just talking about clothes and make-up.”

I looked glumly over at her. “I suppose you’re right. It’s all just so foreign to me.”

Angie grinned at me. “We’ll fix that!”

The salon we went to was located in a strip mall about two blocks from our high school. Several of the stores Angie wanted to take me to were all in this same shopping area. There was a bridal store Angie tried to get me to go in and browse. I strongly declined and she just laughed.

As we entered the salon, the woman at the counter looked up. She smiled at Angie. “Just go on back. Sue is waiting for you.”

Angie said, “Thanks!” As she headed towards the back, Angie said, “See ya in a few.”

The woman looked at her computer screen and asked, “Are you Ms. Garland?” I nodded. She smiled and said, “We have you down for styling and to have your nails done. Is that correct?”

Holy crap. My nails? Was that Mom’s idea or Angie’s? I really don’t want anything done to my nails. But I sighed and said, “Yes. That’s right.”

The woman smiled at me. “When your mother made the appointment, she told us how you wanted your hair. So let’s go on back.”

Since I got up this morning, I’ve been worried about what was going to happen to my hair. It’s not really long, like Angie’s. But it’s not short like Tony’s and Roger’s. They’re both on the football team and the coach prefers the team to all have almost buzz cuts. And saying you’re having your nails done sounds just so damned girlie. I looked down at my boobs. MY boobs. I guess being girlie was a moot point.

I guessed the first order of business was a shampoo as I sat down in a chair and had to bend my head way back. It was kinda uncomfortable. As they sprayed my hair and started sudsing my hair up, I was suddenly worried about my make-up getting messed up. I hate myself.

The woman doing my nails did so quietly. However, the one doing my hair talked non-stop, asking me if I was excited about school, had my boyfriend asked me to the homecoming dance and what did my dress look like, was I a cheerleader like Angie and on and on. I really don’t think she even really listened to my replies. At least it made the time go by faster.

It was jarring when I looked in the mirror. I didn’t see me at all. I couldn’t figure out how that cute girl got inside the reflection. And I never once ever considered my nails as being pretty. But that’s what they now were. Shaped and a polished deep pink. What in the hell am I doing with not just nail polish, but pink? I swear. Being a girl is extremely emasculating.

I was directed back to the front of the salon where Angie was waiting. The woman at the counter. Angie had an ear-to-ear grin as I walked up to the cashier. The woman looked up at me as I approached and smiled. “You’re good to go, miss. Your mother paid for it when she made the appointment.” She then gave me a quizzical expression. “It’s funny. Your mother has been coming here for years and she’s not once mentioned having a daughter.”

I shrugged. “What can I say?”

Angie grinned as she looked at my head from different angles. My hair, while still on the longish side for a boy, it was still a fairly short style for a girl. Angie exclaimed, “I just love your hair, Cindy! That looks perfect on you. You really are beautiful!”

I shook my head with an embarrassed grin. “Don’t be ridiculous, Angie.”

Angie grabbed my shoulder and turned me to face the woman at the register. She asked, “What do you think?”

The woman laughed and said, “She’s beautiful.”

Angie said, “See?”

I looked at Angie like she was crazy. I said, “She works here. What else is she going to say?”

The woman laughed and said, “Well, speaking on my own time, you’re beautiful. I should know. Beauty is our business.”

Angie nodded. “See? Expert opinion. Okay, we’ve got more to do.” As we exited the salon, Angie took my hand to pull me to the earring store. Frowning, she let go of my hand. “Girl, we really got to do something about your hands.”

She held up my hand and commented, “See? You now have gorgeous hands but they’re so dry. Trust me. No boy is going to want to hold a rough hand like that.”

I frowned and pulled my hand back. “I let it slide the last time you said that. I’m not interested in a boy holding my hand regardless of softness.”

Angie shook her head. “Your mission girl is before school starts to get your skin baby soft even if you have to bathe in moisturizers.” She pushed on the door of the earring store. “Now to get your ears pierced.”

I rolled my eyes at her. “Is this really necessary?”

Angie looked at me as if I was from Mars. “Well, duh!”