For a moment I wasn't sure what was happening to me. It felt like I was dreaming a bizarre dream. A dream where I am the main person but also just a bystander. It was simply a paradox. Impossible. But the drama was unfolding in front of my eyes.

Students and teachers came running to the hallway so that they could figure out where the noises were coming from. Sammy and her friends arrived first. They looked confused and shocked when they saw a boy who was wearing a football jersey lying in front of the lockers, screaming in pain and holding his bloody face.

Meanwhile, other students arrived at the scene.

“What happened, Riley?” Sammy wanted to know with a strong urgency in her voice.

“ This little jerk here threatened me. He wanted to see what is in my panties. I kicked him in the nuts and in his face after he went down like a sack of stones.” I explained starting to feel like I entered the real world again.

“OMG! Are you okay?” Hannah wanted to know.

“I think I am. I was able to defend myself and that feels good.” I stated proudly.

“Maybe we should get him some help?” Kaylee suggested.

“Sure, why not?” I said sounding a bit icy.

The principal arrived having a look of disbelief on his face.

“What on earth is going on?” he asked looking at us girls.

“I was threatened by him and I defended myself.” I told the principal.

“She lies! I just wanted to flirt with her a little bit and she viciously attacked me.” the jerk in the jersey claimed seeming to recover slowly.

“You are the liar! You blocked me when I tried to leave and said you wanted to know what is in my little panties. Well, at least you know now how my foot feels.” I said sounding a little smug.

“That is enough. I will discuss this with the both of you in my office. For now, I need you to go to the nurse's office and get you checked out and Riley, I want to talk to you first in my office. The vice-principal and your guidance counselor will be there too.” the principal said sounding determined.

Sammy and the girls walked me to his office. I was not sure how to feel. The only thing I knew was that I did the right thing to defend myself and for that I felt proud. Sure, I could have run away after I kicked him in the nuts and some people might think that it was unnecessary to kick him in the face but I could care less about that. I was so angry that I was threatened by him. I’m learning more and more how important it is to stand up for yourself. We finally arrived at the principal's office.

“You girls can go back to lunch and get ready for your next class.” the principal, Mr.Selinsky, barked at my girlfriend and friends.

“I will stay with Riley. She is my girlfriend.” Sammy demanded.

“You are her girlfriend? What kind of world do we live in? This is nuts. I must ask you to leave. You need to go to your next class.” the principal demanded sounding annoyed.

Sammy gave me a worried look and Hannah and Kaylee looked upset. I nodded towards all three of them and they left. The principal led me into his big office. I was still fired up about the incident but started to calm down. Mr. Selinsky said that he will talk to my guidance counselor and the vice principal and that they will be right back. I sat on a bench and tried to reflect on this day. Four hours ago I was still at home, picking an outfit and getting ready for school. Now I am sitting in the darn principal’s office and I am being treated like it was somehow my fault that I was attacked.

I texted my mom and dad to come to pick me up. I told them that there was an incident at school but that I am okay. They seemed alarmed and told me that they will get to school as fast as they could. Meanwhile, the principal came back followed by the vice-principal and my guidance counselor. All three of them had dark looks on their faces and seemed like they were ready to go to war. This looked really promising. Ugh!

“Riley, we talked to Mitch. The young boy who interacted with you at the lockers. He said that you assaulted him viciously while he tried to help you by carrying your books. Do you have any comments on that?” my guidance counselor, Ms. Young asked me.

“What? That is crazy. He threatened me. He blocked me from leaving and said that he wanted to see what is in my little panties. This was the only way to defend me. I was glad I was able to think and act quickly.” I said in a determined manner starting to feel exhausted though.

“Okay, Riley. I find that hard to believe. You come back to school as Riley. Before Thanksgiving break you were still Randy. The first day you are back there is trouble. I tried to be as accommodating as possible and you already are a troublemaker. Mitch is one of our best players on the Junior High football team and you injured him with your nasty attack. Why did you have to kick him in the face after he went down?” Mr. Selinsky asked me.

“Easy. I had to do that before he recovers and does god knows what to me. I needed to be sure.” I said starting to feel dizzy. The whole incident was getting to me. Where were my parents?

“Interesting version of what happened today.” the vice principal said in a matter of fact kind of way.

Three adults attacking and shouting at me, believing this smug little jerk. I wanted to go home. I wanted Mary or my mom to hold me. I needed to be protected. This was too much.

“I will not say anything else without my parents. They will be here soon.” I said feeling weak.

All three of them looked at me and then at one another. Mr.Selinsky nodded and they left without another word.

Shortly after my mom and dad opened the door and I ran into their arms and collapsed. My dad carried me to the car and gently kissed me on the forehead. My mom sat with me in the back and held me and whispered soothing things in my ear. When we arrived home my parents tucked me into bed and a few seconds later I drifted off into a deep sleep.

My alarm clock said 5:13 PM when I woke up. I was still wearing my tights and panties. My skirt was sitting on a chair carefully folded. All of the day's events popped into my head again. What a bizarre day. I did not know what to do or how to feel. I looked for my phone and found it sitting on my desk, charging. I checked my text messages and saw that I had thirteen messages from Sammy. She was extremely worried and upset.I texted her back that I was okay and that I needed to talk to my parents first but I would call her later.

I changed into a pair of pink pajamas and made my way downstairs. I found my parents sitting in the living room. They both got up right away when they saw me. We all hugged and this opened the floodgates. I started crying really hard. I could not calm down for a while. My mom held me and once all of the tears I had left my body, I felt better.

All three of us were sitting in the living room, protecting each other and simply being there for each other. I was shaken up by the incident but I knew I was going to be okay because my family was with me. After a long time of hugging, we started to talk about what happened at school.

I told my parents the honest truth about what happened. Of course, they believed me.

“Honey, I am so proud of you for defending yourself.” my mom said while squeezing my hand gently.

“Me too, sweetheart. Unfortunately, I have to tell you that the principal suspended you for three days from school.” my dad said looking very upset.

“I don’t believe it,” I said my jaw-dropping.

“This is totally unfair. I am the victim here.” I stated still in disbelief.

“I don’t want to tell you that you should get used to it but women are often not believed.” my mom said sadly.

“I’m slowly beginning to understand that. It just hurts so badly. All I want is to be my authentic self. I did not provoke this boy. He all of the sudden was there and started harassing me. However, I was able to think on my feet if you know what I mean,” I said smiling.

Mom and dad laughed at my clever joke. It brightened the mood a bit. Mom suggested that I should call Mary and Sammy and tell them both what happened. I decided that this was a good idea. I went back to my room and called Sammy first.

“Hey, girl. How are you feeling?” Sammy wanted to know.

“I’m okay. You will not believe what happened in the principal's office. I was not believed and I was yelled at by two administrators plus guidance counselor. My parents told me that the principal suspended me for three days .” I told her.

“Unbelievable. That is totally unfair. However, I am not completely surprised. Girls are often not believed.” Sammy said sounding sad.

“I know. I’m beginning to understand that more and more. My mom said the same thing earlier today. Anyways, can you bring me the math homework every day?” I asked my girlfriend.

“Sure. If you behave I will even smooch you a bit.” Sammy suggested in a flirty manner.

“That sounds good. Why do you want me to behave? Don’t you like bad girls?” I asked her starting to feel flirty as well.

“OMG! You are so bad. What happened to the shy boy named Randy who turned bright red like a tomato when I caught him looking at pantyhose?” Sammy reminded me.

“Ran….dy? Never heard of him.” I told my beautiful girlfriend.

“You are a sassy girl that kicks butt and does not take crap from anyone. I love you.” Sammy declared.

“I love you too.” I replied feeling butterflies in my stomach.

“I will stop by tomorrow to bring you the homework,” Sammy said.

“Okay. I will call my big sister soon. I need to tell her what happened.” I told Sammy.

We ended our conversation. I threw myself on my bed and felt warm and fuzzy inside. I was still upset about the incident at school but nevertheless felt confident that I could master this challenge emotionally and physically. I texted Mary and we agreed to talk soon.

“Hey, sis. I love you!” I told Mary and started crying.

“Babe. Are you okay? I love you too.” Mary said sounding teary.

“Yes. I just started feeling a bit emotional. I had a crazy day. I know that mom and dad told you a little bit.” I told her wondering how Mary will respond once I gave her all the details.

“Yes, they did. Can’t wait to hear it. What happened at school?” Mary wanted to know.

I told her everything. Mary was aghast. Sometimes she expressed concern, sounded sad or perplexed.

“You really kicked him in the nuts?” she inquired.

“Yep.” I stated in a matter of fact kind of way.

“Babe. I would not want to mess with you. That was brilliant.” Mary declared sounding proud.

“I was so mad that he thought he could harass me and get away with it. I just had to defend myself.” I told her.

“You did the right thing. I still can’t believe though that the darn school suspended you for three days. Of course, they believe the football star.” Mary said sounding upset.

“I know. I’m liking this private school idea more and more. Sammy will bring me my homework while I am not in school. I am worried about how it will be when I return.” I told Mary.

“I understand. I would feel the same way. I’m sure you’ll be okay. You showed that you will stand up for yourself.” Mary assured me.

“You are right, sis. I’m so lucky I have you. Love you.” I told her feeling proud to have the best sister in the world.

“Awww, thank you baby sis. I love you too. We should talk again soon.’ Mary let me know.

I agreed and after that, we finished our talk. I made myself comfortable and read a science fiction book. After a while of reading, my mom and dad asked me to come downstairs. They wanted to discuss something with me. Once I made myself comfortable in the living room, my mom started speaking.

“Hey sweetie, your dad and I both discussed this for a while and we had the idea that you could be homeschooled by me until you would get to go to one of the private schools we discussed. Only if you want...” mom suggested

I smiled.

“I like that idea. This sounds lovely.” I said seeing my mom smile at me.

“I would have to file the paperwork with the state asap. I would send in lesson plans, tests, and notes.” my mom told me.

I walked over to my mom and gave her a hug. The more I thought about it the more I liked the idea.

“It’s decided then. I will contact the state tomorrow then and I will also inform your school.” mom said enthusiastically.

“That’s great. I will go and tell Mary and Sammy right away.” I almost yelled out.

“I am glad that you like the idea. I think that is probably the best choice. I will call both private schools and I will set something up for a visit. I think we can explain to the private school what happened regarding your suspension once we get to the admission process.” my dad pointed out.

“That’s great, dad. Thank you so much.” I told him while giving him a hug.

“Riley, you should go to bed early tonight. You need some extra rest. I talked to Sammy’s mom and she said that she will drop her off with the homework tomorrow afternoon. I was also thinking that maybe this weekend the two of us could do some Christmas shopping and we could do some shopping for a possible trip to Boston. What do you think?” mom asked me smiling.

“That sounds fantastic. I’m looking forward to it.” I told my mom while hugging her.

After discussing shopping plans some more with my mom and playing a game of chess with my dad, which I won, of course, thanks to my mentor Mary, I decided to go upstairs and ponder the upcoming days. A lot of exciting things were waiting for me.