“Mrs Houston,” Nancy called to Heather while waiting for their food to arrive. Oliver wanted to ask something but was too shy to ask himself, so Nancy had to help him.

“Oliver wanted to ask if Ryan could stay over at our house tomorrow, we have already asked Conor’s mom, and she agreed,” Nancy said, looking at Ryan, who looked at his mom with his big blue eyes.

Looking into Ryan’s eyes, Heather was sure that if she was going to refuse (which was not the case here), she couldn’t say no now. How could she say no to these big cute blue, begging puppy eyes? “Of course, he can. I don’t see why not,” Heather said, much to Ryan’s joy.

Heather was comfortable with Ryan staying at the Collins’ house. The Collins’ house is just a 5-minute walk from their house, and she knew the Collins very well. She knew that the Collins would take good care of her, Ryan.
They talked for a bit while waiting for the food. Nancy’s mom talked about the plan for tomorrow with Heather. Erwin and Jeff spoke about sports while the kids mainly talked about cars.

Ryan was a speed demon, and the essential requirement in a car was how fast it would go. George wanted a motorcycle but knew his mom wouldn’t be on board with that idea. On the other hand, Nancy said she imagined herself riding as a passenger, with her arms wrapped around George. Her statement made Oliver laugh, and Nancy tried to swat him.

The waiter came with the food placing two plates in front of everyone. On one plate was something very long and thin. It seemed to Ryan that some kind of meat was on the plate. Besides this, was something that looked like small pieces of meat with some parsley sprinkled around the plate. The other plate had what looked like green leaves stuffed with something, with a lemon wedge on the side of the plate. The waiter placed two big salad bowls in the middle of the table. In front of everyone, they set a small bowl with a strange-looking bright brown sauce. He then placed a few small baskets full of bread and left.

Ryan just stared at the food, not knowing what was in front of him or how he should eat it.
Jeff began to explain to everyone how to eat dinner. He had ordered three dishes for everyone, Kofta, Kebab, and Stuffed Grape Leaves. There was also salad and bread, but that needed no explanation. All eyes were on Jeff since he was the only one who knew how to eat this food.

Jeff took his knife and fork, cutting a piece of what Ryan now knew as Kofta before dipping it in what Jeff called Tahini sauce. Seeing this, everyone started copying Jeff. Ryan moaned as the piece of Kofta entered his mouth. It tasted exquisite. Enjoying the taste, Ryan and the others started eating the food, amazed that they had never tasted anything like this before. Jeff also told them to take the lemon wedge and squeeze it over the stuffed grape leaves. Everyone enjoyed this new experience in food, and everything tasted delicious.

When they had finished eating, in Middle Eastern tradition, the waiter came and asked them if they wanted any drinks. The waiter was a boy who looked to be around 16 or 17. George couldn’t help but see that the waiter was checking Nancy out and didn’t like that. George, however, tried not to glare at him. Ryan didn’t miss this. For a 10-year-old, he didn’t miss anything.

By the time the waiter left, Ryan had begun to feel cramps in his stomach. He hated it when this happened. It started around a year ago, but it’s almost routine when his sensitive stomach wakes him up at night. He told himself that as much as he loved the food, he won’t be able to eat here a lot. He knew that tonight would be a restless night. “Mom, I am going to the restroom,” Ryan said.

The uneasy expression on her baby’s face was evident to her. She felt bad for Ryan, but there was nothing she could do as his stomach had been very sensitive for a while. It also didn’t help him to have such an extreme appetite for food. That’s why her children had more energy to use while playing sports.

When Ryan walked behind George, he stopped for a second while leaning over to whisper to him. “Ask her out, don’t be such a douche,” before walking away in a hurry.

Finding the men’s room was easy, but entering the men’s room was the issue. Men didn’t seem to like Ryan entering the men’s restroom. He just hoped he wouldn’t receive glares from anyone, especially from any older people.
“Excuse me, miss, the lady’s room is to the right,” a waiter told Ryan as he was about to enter the men’s room. He didn’t like this, but there was nothing he could do.

“I am a boy,” Ryan mumbled loud enough so the waiter could hear him. Of course, he could cut his hair short, but it still wouldn’t help. He used to earn far more weird stares when he had short hair—turning around with a blush on his face.
The unconvinced look on the waiter said he didn’t believe Ryan. The restaurant didn’t pay him to judge people. He, however, just let it go.

“I am sorry, I didn’t know,” the waiter said, leaving Ryan alone and going on with his work.

At that moment, Ryan couldn’t hold it anymore and rushed into the nearest empty stall. Ryan was having a tough time because of his stomach; he didn’t even realize how long he stayed inside until he heard George.

“Are you in there, kiddo?” George asked, knocking on the only closed stall door. It had been more than 10 minutes, and everyone was worried about Ryan, especially George.

In George’s mind, he wanted to be Ryan’s best friend; someone Ryan could talk to about anything when he became a teenager in a couple of years.

He wanted Ryan to trust him enough to share his deepest secrets with him. After all, George worried about Ryan, just like his parents. When he left Ryan to deal with Oscar, he wanted Ryan to prove himself and show Oscar not to mess with him.

“Just a second,” Ryan called out before finishing his business and coming out of the stall. Ryan washed his hands while George waited for him.

Unfortunately for Ryan, what he feared most was about to happen.

While Ryan was drying his hands, an older man entered the restroom. He looked in his sixties, giving Ryan a quizzical look before sighing.

“At least try to look like a boy if you want to be one,” the old man said before walking to one of the urinals.

Using urinals was something Ryan could never do, or it would be a total mess. That’s something Ryan had been hiding from everyone as he was too embarrassed to talk about it. Ryan walked out of the restroom with beet-red cheeks, with George beside him. George would have put the guy in his proper place if he wasn’t an older man, telling him to mind his own business.

While these comments were always embarrassing for Ryan, this time, he felt his eyes starting to tear up. He didn’t understand why he felt so emotional, wanting to cry this time. Ryan, however, held his tears back as he returned to the table.

As Ryan took his seat, Heather’s eyes were on him, and she could immediately tell something was wrong. She knew her baby well enough to suggest that he was distraught. While Heather knew something was wrong, she would wait when they were in the privacy of their home to ask him about it. There Heather would be able to talk to Ryan alone.
When the check arrived, Ryan finished his glass of what looked like lemonade with mint leaves, and a small argument started between Jeff and Erwin.

“I am paying for half of the food,” Erwin said, looking at the check. He knew Jeff wanted the meal to be on him, but they hadn’t discussed it beforehand, so there wasn’t any agreement about who would pay.

Jeff stared at him blankly for a second with a disbelief look in his eyes. “No, man, this one’s on me. I told everyone I was taking you all out for dinner, so it’s on me. Besides, I let you pay last time, so it’s my turn to pay, and that’s it,” Jeff said matter-of-factly. It was apparent he wouldn’t change his mind.

Seeing this and not wanting to argue with his best friend, Erwin just agreed to let Jeff pay this time.
“Alright, fine.” Erwin sighed, shaking his head. “But the next meal is on me.”

He and Jeff were now best friends, even if they had only known each other for a year. They pretty much didn’t hang out with anyone else. They would go drinking, watch football games on TV, and sometimes play golf together.
Jeff paid and was about to leave when a waiter asked them to wait. “If you can wait for a moment, the chef would like to meet you,” the waiter said before he left.

Both families looked at each other, wondering why the chef asked to meet them.

They were about to find out soon, seeing the chef approaching their table with a big smile. “Good evening, I am chef Hassan. I hope you enjoyed the food,” the chef said in a thick accent. His hair was black, with dark brown eyes, and his skin had a natural tan.

“The food was very delicious,” Ryan said to the chef before turning to his dad. “Can we come here again?”
Jeff just smiled and nodded.

“I am delighted that the beautiful young lady liked the food. You’re the first large family group outside our community to come here. I would be honored if you came again,” the chef spoke with happiness evident in his tone.

Ryan blushed again as the chef called him a young lady. He didn’t understand why everyone now thought he was a girl. Ryan was starting to believe that he may no longer be a boy. Lately, no one seemed to think he was a boy anymore, and he was beginning to wonder if they were right.

After the small talk with the chef, he insisted that both families must come back again, saying that he would give them a special entrée and VIP service if they came back.

Both families agreed that they would come back and happily left the restaurant heading home.

“Ryan,” Jeff said as they entered the car. Ryan looked at him from the back seat. “We have to talk tomorrow about what coach Damien said, alright?”

Ryan nodded with a smile; he thought this discussion was closed. He would love to go to the Olympics, he loved the competition, and there would be other top swimmers with whom he could compete.

“What’s that?” George asked, not knowing about this discussion.

“Coach Damien wants to take Ryan to the Olympics,” Jeff announced, making George grin and hold Ryan’s head with one arm using his hand to ruffle his hair.

“That’s great, buddy. You’re going to the Olympics,” George said happily, making Ryan smile.

Meanwhile, Heather’s mind was elsewhere. She couldn’t stop thinking about her baby. She was worried about him and trying to figure a way to take him to his aunt’s clinic. The appointment was at 10 am. They should be back before noon so that Ryan can watch a movie with Oliver and Connor.

The only problem was taking him to the clinic. But what if Heather’s worst fear (and greatest dream) came true? How would she explain this to Ryan? By the time they reached home, Heather had thought up a solution to take Ryan to the clinic tomorrow without raising his suspicion.

She decided that telling Ryan the truth, but not the entire truth, would be the best course of action. She, however, didn’t know what to say to him if her worst fears came true. If that happened, then Ryan would have his life changed forever. She still hoped this wouldn’t be the case.

They entered the house, and Ryan went to change his clothes to get ready for bed. He knew he couldn’t stay up after 8:30, but sometimes there were exceptions. Ryan would do his homework that was more in-depth than average kids would do. Still, Ryan would quickly finish it. After completing his homework, he would be allowed to play video games. Usually, he was allowed two hours of playing video games. He also was required to read at least ten pages from a book Heather would choose, and then he would be allowed to do whatever he wanted. He would usually watch his favorite cartoons.

Before he could do anything today, he headed to his parent’s room since Heather had promised to help him with his tender nipples. Walking to his parents’ room in his pyjamas, Ryan stood in front of the door before knocking. Heather immediately opened the door and looked down to see Ryan standing there. She looked like she had been crying, and Jeff was standing behind her. He didn’t look too happy either.

“You need something, sweetie?” Heather asked sweetly, trying to hide her sad expression.

“You said you would help me with my chest when we came back,” Ryan said, studying her face and trying to find out if she had indeed been crying or not.

Ryan’s mom was brilliant and very good at hiding her expressions. His dad was also brilliant but couldn’t hide his expressions as well as his mom. Ryan noted that his dad had a firm expression that wasn’t easy to read either.

“Oh, right, come in,” Heather said, letting Ryan into the room. She walked to her nightstand and pulled a tube of cream that she used for her nipples sometimes. “Alright, pull up your top, this cream will feel a bit cold, but it will help you,” Heather said, getting in front of Ryan. As Ryan started to pull up his shirt, his chest became exposed. It took Jeff one glance before turning his face to the other side with embarrassment.

Heather found it amusing watching Jeff; she could only imagine that if Ryan were a girl, she would be daddy’s girl, and Jeff would do anything for his baby girl. She also knew that if Ryan were a girl, it wouldn’t be very long before discovering the power she had over her dad. Heather knew her child very well. Ryan was a good boy, well-mannered, very smart, and careful. If there ever was a perfect child, it was him, and she knew it would also be the same if he were a girl. At least she liked to think so.

Slowly and carefully, Heather applied the cream to Ryan’s nipples. Every time she touched his nipples, he yelped from the pain. It felt as if a jolt of electricity suddenly ran through his body. Ryan’s reaction made Heather more concerned, but she just decided to ignore it for now. Tomorrow she would find out if she should be worried or not.

“Alright, this will do for now. You can watch TV if you want, but don’t stay up after bedtime, ok?” Heather explained while closing the cream tube.

Ryan nodded, and she kissed his forehead before he walked out of the room and headed downstairs.
When Ryan walked out of the room, Heather stood up and turned to Jeff, who had a worried expression.

“What are we going to do now? Are you going to tell Ryan?” Jeff asked worriedly.

“I am taking him to see Lynn tomorrow for an examination. Hopefully, everything will be ok,” Heather said.
Deep down, however, she felt like she was deceiving herself. She couldn’t help as her tears rose, and Jeff reached out to embrace her in his arms.

“I’m scared, Jeff. What if something happens? What if I lost my baby boy?” Heather cried in Jeff’s arms as the mere thought of losing Ryan terrified her to the core.

Jeff understood what Heather was feeling; he couldn’t live life without one of his sons, especially Ryan, their baby. It was an unacceptable fact. “Let’s just hope for the best, ok? We will deal with whatever comes in our way together, like a family,” Jeff said while comforting Heather.

Luckily, Ryan didn’t hear anything they said or hear Heather crying. As he entered the living room, he saw George sitting in his favorite spot on the couch, going through the TV channels. “Are you watching something?” Ryan asked, taking a seat on the sofa next to George.

“Not really,” George answered with a shrug flipping through the channels. “Would you like to watch something, bud?” George asked, looking toward Ryan.

While Ryan loved watching cartoons, he knew George didn’t watch cartoons anymore. He knew that George would leave the TV for him if Ryan wanted to watch anything. Besides, George had a big screen in his room. Still, for Ryan, George was here first.

Thinking fast, Ryan decided on a series of movies that he and George liked. Ryan hadn’t yet watched the latest film in a series. “Maybe Ultimate Street Racer 3?” Ryan asked, making George smile.

“Sure thing. Should I get some popcorn?” George suggested. He liked this series, and so did Ryan. Neither of them had watched the third movie, so it was a good suggestion.

“No, I will make it,” Ryan said, jumping from his seat and heading toward the kitchen. Ryan was familiar with the kitchen since he usually helped his mom cook. While George helped Heather around the house, he didn’t know anything about cooking. George helped move furniture and cut the grass but stayed away from the kitchen since he could burn water.
On the other hand, Ryan always helped his mom around the kitchen. Heather never allowed Ryan to use the stove or knives unless she was present, but Ryan was always a great help to her.

Quickly, Ryan retrieved the popcorn maker and started to make popcorn for him and George. He took a couple of drinks into the living room while the popcorn was popping. Ryan returned to the kitchen and filled two bowls with popcorn, returning to the living room with them. George had already cued the movie and had paused it.

Ryan handed George a popcorn-filled bowl and took a seat on the couch beside George. “Thanks, buddy,” George said, starting the movie.

A short while later, Jeff came downstairs, walking directly to the living room. He saw George sitting on the couch with a bowl of popcorn beside him. Ryan had his head on George’s lap and was lying on his back with a popcorn bowl on his stomach. It was a familiar sight for Jeff, yet he dreaded what might come.

George was such a great role model for Ryan. He knew how much Ryan admired George. Besides, George was like a local hero in their neighborhood. After saving a girl two years younger than him from being raped by a group of delinquent boys (and all ended up in the hospital after George was through with them). Everyone living around them had heard the story and showed respect for George. The girl’s parents came to thank him personally for saving their daughter.

More importantly, George was able to earn the respect of Nancy’s dad. At first, Erwin wasn’t very comfortable about how close his daughter was with a boy, but he didn’t say anything, as George seemed to be a good boy. Then after he heard what George did, he knew that his daughter was safe with him, and he could trust George to keep his daughter safe.

Jeff feared Ryan would never become the image of a son that he wanted in the future. He wasn’t sure how Ryan would take such news. How would it affect him, knowing that the fate awaiting him wasn’t what he expected?

“What are you boys watching?” Jeff asked, approaching his sons.
George turned his head to look beside him.

“Oh, we’re watching Ultimate Street Racer 3,” George said before turning back to look at the screen. “You can join us, but I am afraid there is no more popcorn, and I don’t feel like sharing today,” George joked before looking at Ryan. “What about you, bud?”

“Not really,” Ryan said before grabbing a handful of popcorn and stuffing his mouth with it.

“Ultimate Street Racer? Isn’t that just a cheap copy of Fast and Furious?” Jeff asked.

Immediately George paused the movie and looked at Jeff as if he had three heads. Ryan placed the popcorn beside him and sat up, giving Jeff the same look as George. “Dad, seriously? It’s not a copy. They are not even close,” George said, defending the movie.

“Whatever you say, boss, you boys enjoy,” Jeff said. Turning to the TV stand, he opened a drawer where he kept his multiple-screen laptop. It was a custom-made laptop for programmers. It was also his company’s product, one he had helped design.

“Go straight to bed after the movie. We are going jogging early tomorrow,” Jeff said before walking out of the living room to his office.

They were a family of athletes that enjoyed staying in shape. Being an active family, they always went out for a morning run if the weather was good. In the summer, they took their mountain bikes for a good ride.

As the movie came to an end, Ryan was having a hard time keeping his eyes open. He was already tired and needed a day or two to restore his usual energy level. Despite this, Ryan could still walk the stairs up to his bathroom to brush his teeth. After brushing his teeth, he gave his mom a good-night kiss.

Walking to the room, Ryan saw the door open but still knocked before entering. Heather was sitting on the bed with Jeff beside her. It seemed he had already finished the work he wanted, and both were watching TV.

Ryan walked over to his mom, kissing her. “Goodnight, Mom,” Ryan said as Heather gave him a small hug.

“Did you take your medicine?” Heather inquired. Ryan simply shook his head. “Ok, let’s go,” Heather said, standing up and walking with Ryan to his room.

After ensuring that Ryan took his medicine, Heather tucked him in bed, pulling the covers over him. “Good night, sweetheart,” Heather said, planting another kiss on Ryan’s forehead before walking out of the room and closing the door behind her.

•••••••••••••

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