Mark Roth and Steve Coe had plans for the upcoming party at the big house that Gail, Kelli and Dawn shared. Gail had invited them, against the wishes of Kelli, who thought they were bad news. Unknown to them Steve had managed to procure a tablet of rohypnol, and both planned to “get lucky” at the party. This would be their first experience with it, and it seemed simple enough. Just slip it into someone’s drink and wait like twenty minutes. It didn’t even matter which of the girls they scored with. They were all good-looking, and heck, probably any other girls who showed up would be as well. The whole thing would be really easy.

The only thing Mark and Steve always failed to take into account on any of their ‘adventures’ was that they weren’t nearly as clever as they thought they were. It was a minor miracle that both were able to graduate college, and in the following three years they had both failed to turn into adults.

A late invitee to the party was Linden Masters, a rather unlikely prospect. He was a quiet little geek and knew many of those people when they were all at university. Well, perhaps knew was too strong a word – that he was acquainted with them would be a more accurate description. Linden was mostly a loner, and not by choice, but if someone had needed his help with their classwork he was always willing to lend a hand.

Kelli had always thought he was attractive, maybe even pretty (not something that bothered her in any way), and he had nice, long brown hair. But during college she couldn’t bring herself to enter into a relationship with such a short geek. No, not while they were still students among their peers. She was just a bit worried about what others might think if she was seen as being “with” him. But she did smile warmly at him now and then, and had asked for his help on a couple of occasions during university. She’d been pleased with how well he behaved. With him it was about the work, and trying to make it understandable, and not about trying to get into her panties or staring at her chest. She also liked his sense of humor, taste in books, and she simply found him interesting

Several days before the party she happened to see him in the produce section of the local supermarket. She had always been sorry she’d kept him at arm’s length during college. With this unexpected meeting she found she had a real desire to get to know him better.

“Hi Linden! I didn’t know you stayed in town! It’s great to see you. How are you?”

He looked up at her. Kelli Phillips. He’d always liked her, and she was one of the few who had treated him nicely. He smiled.

“Oh, hey Kelli. I’m good, just trying to find some vegetables I can tolerate.”

“Tolerate? You allergic?”

“No, just picky. How have you been?”

“Real good, thanks. Hey! I live with Gail and Dawn—you remember them, right?—and we’re having a party this Friday evening. You should come.”

“Oh, well, that’s very nice of you, Kelli, but I’m not much into parties, and not really part of your crowd.”

“This isn’t going to be like one of those big college parties, Linden. It shouldn’t be as wild. And we have some new friends as well as some people you probably know. C’mon, it’ll be fun.”

She could see he was weakening.

“I will make sure to spend some time with you,” she said. “You saved my butt on a couple tests and I’m still grateful.”

“Okay, I’ll, um, make an appearance. Thanks for the invite,” he said. She gave him the address and they traded numbers, then bidding each other farewell.

He ended up with romaine lettuce, the least objectionable of the greens.

-o0o-

Back at his apartment Linden thought about this party. He didn’t really want to go. He felt he had very few social graces and wouldn’t fit in. And it would be a bunch of people he had known in college – the same people who mostly ignored him unless they wanted something. But he had always had a crush on Kelli, and going to the party would mean spending some time with her, at least so she claimed. After graduation he had never expected to see her again. So maybe the plan would be to go, talk to her for a little bit, and then leave. Short and sweet.

Party night

Mark and Steve arrived at the house just a little early, in order to scope out where the drinks were and plan how best to introduce the roofie into one. The plan could change, depending on circumstances and opportunities.

The party would range all over the first floor, including living room, dining room, kitchen and den. Inevitably some people might pair off and try to find a bedroom for intimate activities, although the three housemates were not really planning for that sort of party.

By the time Linden arrived, in a nice clean button-down shirt and crisp jeans, things were already in full swing. Kelli had already had a few drinks and was a bit buzzed, but saw him come in and rushed over.

“I’m so glad you could make it! Let me take your coat and we’ll get you something to drink.”

He smiled. “Thanks, Kelli.”

She disappeared with his coat and then came back to lead him to the drinks setup in the dining room.

“Just a water for me, thanks.”

“You sure that’s all you want?”

“Yeah; I don’t drink alcohol.”

Handing him a glass of water she led him to the living room, and sat him down on the big, cushy couch, then sitting next to him. He wasn’t sure what to think. Yes, she had said she would spend some time with him, but, really, why was she paying so much attention to him? It was confusing. He was almost certain he wasn’t her Type, and she’d never made any attempt to get to know him in college. But he decided to be polite and make an effort, so they chitchatted for a while.

-o0o-

Mark, who had always thought Kelli was hot, decided he’d like her to be the target for the Big Roofie Plan (or BRP, as they had named it). Steve, who almost always agreed with Mark on any plan, concurred. So Mark came strolling into the living room, walking carelessly between the coffee table and Kelli’s legs, “accidentally” knocking over both her glass and Linden’s. He realized now how easy it would be to serve Kelli the altered drink, putting the BRP into effect.

“Oops, sorry Kelli!” he grinned, totally ignoring Linden. “Don’t get up! I’ll grab a towel and get this.”

He rushed off to the kitchen while Kelli and Linden stared at each other.

“Since when was he so polite?” Kelli asked in a murmur.

Linden shrugged. Neither Mark nor his buddy, Steve, had ever spoken to him, though they had shared a couple classes.

Soon Mark was back and mopped up the mess.

“Sorry guys. Let me get you refills.”

“Water, please,” said Linden.

“Make it two,” said Kelli.

“Be right back,” said Mark.

Turning to Linden, she asked, “Don’t you find this kind of odd?”

“Yeah, I do. He never struck me as being the helpful type.”

Mark returned quickly with two glasses of water and put one down in front of each of them. He smiled at Kelli. “There you go.” And he wandered off.

They looked at each other again. The whole scene had been surreal. What had he even come in there for?

Kelli’s eyes suddenly popped open. “Oh! Linden, there’s something I wanted to show you. Come with me a minute,” she said, surprising him by grabbing his hand and leading him to a built-in bookshelf, where she pulled out an old hardcover.

“This book was here in the house when we rented it. I thought you might find it interesting.”

It was a first edition signed copy of “Stranger in a Strange Land,” by Robert Heinlein, a special favorite of Linden’s. He held it and admired the inscription. To Ned. Best Wishes, Robert Heinlein.

“Oh wow! That’s pretty cool. I can’t believe you remembered I like it. Why do you think the owner left it here?”

“I really have no idea, but I thought you’d like to see it.”

“Yeah,” he smiled. “Thanks for showing me.”

They made their way back to the couch, sitting in the opposite order they were in before. Linden reached over and drank from the glass intended for Kelli. They were both waters so it didn’t really matter which one he got.

Kelli suddenly decided she would prefer another white wine, and went to the dining room for it.

-o0o-

All Mark and Steve had to do now was wait about fifteen or twenty minutes from the time Mark had delivered the drinks and then go back in and check on Kelli. Then they could “help” her to a more private room. They were standing in the dining room, waiting until the time was up. In there they couldn’t see the living room couch, which would make it look less like they were staring at her until she suddenly lost consciousness. Mark thought it was a little odd she was already getting another drink, but he couldn’t very well ask her about the water he got her. Maybe she already drank it?

She made her way back to Linden and the two chatted more. Linden was surprised at how easy it was to talk to Kelli. She got him to open up some, and seemed interested in a lot of what he said. He was very flattered by just how much attention he was getting from her.

After about fifteen minutes Linden started to find it hard to concentrate. He decided he would just rest his eyes a little bit, and relaxed. In no time Kelli couldn’t get him to respond. She didn’t understand why he had conked out like that, having only drank a half glass of water! Then, remembering Mark spilling and then bringing them two waters, she became very suspicious. You shouldn’t have to monitor your drink in your own house! she thought. She looked around the room for Mark, and saw him and Steve just coming in. They stopped dead at the other end of the room and were both looking at her and then at the sleeping Linden. They looked disappointed and rather guilty after meeting her eye, and started moving away. Damn! She could see it all now. They had intended to drug her and probably rape her! This was why she didn’t want guys like that at the party!

If she hadn’t been feeling so relaxed herself now she would have confronted those bastards, who she could now see were slouching out of the house. Instead, she sat there with Linden. She looked at him and petted his hair as she drank. She studied his delicate features. He was pretty, with long eyelashes and a cute little nose. And he was kind of small too, not just short. During college she had thought from time to time he looked too pretty to be a boy. Now she once again wondered what would he look like as a girl. He was too small for her clothes, or for either of her housemates’. She lifted her head and scanned the room to see who was there. Misty?— no, too wide around. Joyce?— no, too tall. Oh!! There was Suellen! She was just about the same size as Linden, and she looked very nice tonight. Her dress was long-sleeved and a multicolored, rich material, with a waist, large white collar and cuffs. It came almost to her knees.

“Hey! Suellen!”

Suellen looked up and she waved her over. She made her way a bit unsteadily to the couch and plopped down.

“Hey Kelli. What’s up?”

“Will you swap clothes with Linden?” she blurted.

Suellen slowly turned her attention to Linden.

“He’s asleep.”

“Yeah, but he doesn’t look like he weighs much. I wanna see what he looks like dolled up. You’re about the same size.”

“Kinda shounds like—I mean shounds like—um… sounds like fun.”

“Will you help me get him upstairs?”

“Wait a second, I gotta better idea,” said Suellen. Looking around, she caught the eye of Matthew Stofko, a former football player who was still in great shape. She motioned him over.

“Hey Suellen, Kelli.”

“Hey Matt. Could you do ush—I mean us, a favor? Could you take our friend upstairs sho he can sleep off whatever it is he drank?”

“Sure, no problem.” So saying he picked Linden up as if he weighed nothing, slung him over his shoulder and tramped up the stairs with the young women following behind him. Kelli directed him to her room, and he dumped Linden on the bed.

Both of them thanked him profusely and made it clear he should go back down to the party.

-o0o-

“Why’sh he drunk, anyway?” asked Suellen. “He never sheemed like a drinker at college.”

“Oh, he’s not drunk. I’m pretty sure those jerks, Mark and Steve, put a roofie in my water, and Linden drank it.”

Suellen’s eyes got big.

“They planda rape you??”

“I’m pretty sure that was the plan, yeah.”

“God! I’m sho—I mean so—glad they didn’t get the chansh!”

“You and me both! So, can you help me get his pants off?”

Giggling the entire time, the two got him out of his clothes and into Suellen’s, including her lingerie and her heels. The dress somehow made him look younger than he already did. They propped him up against the pillows.

“Wooo. He already looks really sweet in that dress,” said Kelli.

“He really does. Are you gonna do his makeup too?” asked Suellen, who was now getting dressed in Linden’s clothes. She kept losing her balance each time she brought up a leg to get it into the pants, and finally sat down on the bed to accomplish that.

“Might as well, just to, y’know, see the full effect.”

Suellen had managed to get the pants and shirt on.

“Kelli, I’m jusht going to leave you to it. Have fun!” said Suellen, giving her a wink that involved both eyes. She left and closed the door behind her.

Kelli took her time doing the makeup, and though she didn’t have a completely steady hand, she managed a good job. She played with his longish hair until it was in a feminine style, and then just sat and looked at his peaceful face for a while.

“You are so pretty, Lindy!” she cooed. “I love your new look!”

She sat next to him and put her arm around him, then kissed him, giggled when she smeared his lipstick, then kissed him again, a deep kiss. It was fun, but it would have been a lot more fun if he’d been awake and responding. She put her cheek against Linden’s and took a selfie of them. She snuggled together with him for a while until she got tired of his lack of response.

By now it was after 1 a.m. and the activity combined with the alcohol had a cumulative effect. She decided her housemates could close the party down without her, and clean up. She wiped off her face, pulled off her clothes, and got into a nighty. She then pulled off Linden’s heels and lay him down in front of her, put an arm around him and snuggled in. She was soon happily asleep.

-o0o-

When Linden became conscious the next morning he had a pounding headache and felt…weak and, just, off. Since he wasn’t a drinker he was unfamiliar with hangovers, but whatever he was feeling seemed exactly like what would be found under the dictionary entry for hangover. He became aware that he was not in his own bed, and also that there was someone spooning him from behind, and with a protective arm around him. That felt nice, very pleasant.

But wait a second! What was going on? He carefully picked up the arm and rolled over to get out of bed, nearly falling out in the process. Looking back he saw it was Kelli with whom he’d been sleeping! How in the world did that happen?

And now that he was out of bed he couldn’t help noticing that he had on a dress and stockings, not to mention breasts. He shook his head to clear it, immediately regretting that action. Padding over to Kelli’s mirror he found he’d been totally made up and looked exactly like a girl. What the— And…why didn’t he remember any of this happening?

He just stood there for a while, trying to figure out what to do next. His brain didn’t seem to be functioning on all cylinders.

Wow, he really felt like crap, and was unsteady on his feet. He looked around the room for his clothes, but they simply weren’t there; the room was tidy enough for him to see that. Well, this just sucked!

He decided what needed to happen was that… was that… he, um, needed to go home. Yeah, that was it: go home—excellent plan. Well, except that he’d have to go home in a dress.

He saw Kelli’s shoes and tried one on, but it was too loose and just came right off. He then found the heels by the bed, found that they fit and picked them up for lack of anything more sensible. Spotting his wallet and keys on the dresser he took them and fairly quietly and unsteadily left the bedroom. The problem was that the floor kept tilting at different angles. The house was very still, and he imagined anyone else there was asleep with the aftereffects of the party. That was good; no one would see him. Seeing a bathroom he made a quick pit stop, well, once he figured out how to deal with the pantyhose.

Downstairs it surprised him that there weren’t bodies all over the place, but maybe since they were now in their mid-twenties that kind of party was not a “thing” anymore? He looked fruitlessly for his coat. It was too cold to walk home without one, so he looked for what was available. In the front closet there was only one coat in evidence that looked like it might fit, one with a sort of deep fuzzy nap, and he wondered if it belonged to the owner of these clothes. Sitting down he put on the heels. Then he got the coat on as well as the scarf and knit hat that he found in the sleeve, and teetered out the door.

The four-block walk home was cold (especially down below) and he felt very scared and horribly conspicuous. He couldn’t know it, but all anyone would have seen would have been a pretty young woman stumbling down the street. It was pretty quiet outside, thank god, and it felt early. He seemed to lose his balance a lot, and nearly sprained an ankle several times. One of those times he actually fell down on his butt. As he went to get up a dog was suddenly next to him sniffing his face.

“Stop that, Maxie!” came from somewhere over him.

“Leave the poor girl alone! Don’t mind him, Miss. Are you okay?”

Linden looked up to see a middle-aged woman, with her hand out. He grabbed it and got to his feet.

“Thanks so much,” he whispered. “I think I might have a hangover.”

“Well, just be careful, okay?” she smiled at him, and started moving on.

He tried to smile back, and said thanks. He was mortified to be seen outside all dressed up, although, come to think of it the lady hadn’t seem to notice he wasn’t a hundred percent female.

He continued on his way and reached his apartment with no other incidents. Once inside his place he discovered it was just 8 a.m.

-o0o-

He entered his bedroom and got out of the treacherous heels. Taking another look at himself, dammit, he did look like a girl! For much of his life he’d been teased about his looks, and apparently this proved all those teasers were right…dammit. Why would anyone do this to him? Why would Kelli do this to him? And if she did, why did she then sleep with him? (Momentary flashback to very nice feeling of being cuddled by her.) It was too confusing to think about with a headache this size.

Unzipping the dress required contortions he didn’t much enjoy. And it turned out there was some kind of tiny latch at the top, so that needed to be undone as well. Hard to do without being able to look at it, and it took a lot of concentration. His muscles were a little sore and he felt uncoordinated. Was this really what a hangover felt like? Why would anyone want to drink if this was what they could expect?? Once the dress was off the rest of it wasn’t that hard to get out of. But what about all that makeup? He woke up his computer and looked up how to get makeup off. It said to start with soap and water, and then you could use mineral oil or Vaseline if there was still residue, and that’s what he did.

After a shower he felt a little better, but still weak, a bit foggy, and the headache was still there. He sat in his kitchen and had coffee and a very small bowl of cereal.

What was he going to do about this prank? He definitely wouldn’t be going to Kelli’s house again. Last night he was just beginning to think she actually liked him, but if that were the case, why would she do this to him? Get him drunk somehow? Dress him up like a girl? Dang! Just blanking the whole lot of them was the first thought coming to mind, and at the moment it seemed like the best idea.

After washing up the bowl, cup and spoon he found a cardboard box and threw all the clothes into it, sealed it and addressed it to Kelli, no return address.

Once that was shipped, that would be the end of the entire matter.

-o0o-

Kelli woke up two hours after Linden had gone. She lay there for a while trying to remember what had happened the night before. Oh yeah! Linden had been drugged instead of her, and rather than doing something intelligent about it she had taken advantage of him and turned him into a girl. Real nice, Kelli! And where was he, anyway? Hadn’t they slept together? She remembered doing his makeup and smiled fondly when she remembered kissing him. He really made a cute girl. But no!! Focus! This was serious. She should have probably taken him to the emergency room to see what kind of crap those two cretins, Mark and Steve, put in the water. Grrr!! At least it was a good sign that he’d been able to wake up and get out of bed under his own power.

She made a tour of the house, which was empty other than her housemates. He’d left the house! She wondered if he’d been able to find his clothes. But no, that didn’t make sense. Suellen was wearing them and would have had no way of getting hers back. So, my god, he left the house still wearing all of her clothes! Poor guy. He must have felt humiliated. Oh…and he no doubt blamed her.

She found her phone and called Linden. It went right to voicemail. “Linden, this is Kelli. I’m so sorry about what happened last night. I was drunk. Please call me, I really need to talk to you.”

-o0o-

Linden did listen to her message, but then deleted it. Drunk or not, that was no way to treat anyone.

Five days went by in which Kelli left texts and voicemail messages, none of which were returned. On the sixth day the box with Suellen’s clothing was delivered, with no note or return address. She opened it up and found the clothing just crammed in there any which way. Kelli felt terrible about how all this had turned out. All because of those bastards and their date rape plan. While she was happy no one ended up getting raped, the promising beginning to her friendship with Linden was a ship sunk before it had left the harbor.

Housemate Dawn couldn’t help notice how down Kelli was. When she asked what the problem was Kelli told her the whole story.

“And now he won’t return any of my texts or voicemails. He probably thinks I drugged him! And by now there’s probably nothing left of the drug in his system, so we can’t even have him tested so we can get Mark and Steve in the trouble they really deserve.”

“I can understand why you’d want to see him all dolled up, but I can’t believe you want to start a relationship with that little geek.”

Kelli’s mouth dropped open. “That’s what your takeaway from this is? He happens to be a very nice guy. And oh, thank you so much for being so sensitive and understanding! I am so glad I opened up to you about this!” she barked with just as much sarcasm as she could muster. She stalked away from Dawn.

Of course Dawn spoke to Gail about it, and although she felt bad for Kelli, she, also, couldn’t understand why a hot girl like Kelli would want to take up with that little squirt, of all people.

Once Kelli realized she was now living with two unsympathetic and rather judgmental housemates she wondered if she wanted to stay there. Yeah, it was nice having a big house, but if you couldn’t trust your friends… She’d really have to consider this.

-o0o-

Linden had been having dreams involving Kelli. In the dreams they were very friendly with each other and hugged and kissed, and he actually felt very warm feelings towards her. Sometimes he was dressed as a girl and sometimes he wasn’t. He didn’t know what to make of these dreams. Things felt really wonderful during the dream, and then it all fell apart when he woke up. She never, say, stabbed him in the back, the way it felt like she did here in his waking life. And dream Kelli seemed not to mind either way he was dressed.

He would have preferred not to have these dreams. They made it harder to stay unhappy with her when the two of them were having such a great time in dreamland.

-o0o-

For the next few weeks every time Kelli went out anywhere she kept an eye out for Linden. She figured he must live somewhere nearby since they shopped at the same supermarket. Even if he didn’t want anything to do with her, she felt the need to apologize and explain in person.

At the end of the third week of looking she was driving home from her gym and saw a small figure on the sidewalk. It looked like Linden from the back, and she slowed down to try and see where he was going. It was trickier to not seem like a stalker than she would have guessed. So she let him get almost a whole block ahead before she moved up.

There! He was going into a small apartment building! She parked and waited for five minutes, then got out, went up to the door and entered the vestibule. Scanning the names on the mailboxes—yes! There was L. Masters, Apt. 3A. Now maybe she could get some kind of closure.

-o0o-

That evening around 8 p.m. there was a knock on Linden’s door. Curious, since visitors for him were as rare as hen’s teeth, he got up and opened the door.

Kelli was standing there.

“Linden would you please let me explain? You really don’t know the whole story.”

He stood looking at her.

“How’d you get inside without me buzzing you in?”

“One of your neighbors was kind enough to let me in as she came in the door. You can spare me a few minutes, can’t you?”

He didn’t want to be rude, so he grudgingly stood aside and motioned her in. They went into the kitchen, she took off her coat, and they sat down next to each other.

“Look, I know you’re not happy with me, but try and keep an open mind…please.”

“I’m listening,” he said, with a skeptical expression on his face.

“Okay, do you remember at the party when Mark Roth knocked over our drinks?”

This wasn’t how he expected her to start explaining. He took a moment, thinking back, and yes, that sounded familiar. He nodded.

“And remember how we both thought it was weird how polite and helpful he was?”

He nodded again.

“Okay, good. So he brought back our drinks and set them down in front of us. Then, before either of us took a drink I wanted to show you that Heinlein book and we got up. When we came back to the couch, you sat where I was sitting and I sat in your seat. You see where I’m going with this?”

“No, not exactly.”

“Mark put a roofie into my drink! But when we sat down again you drank mine and so you got the drug instead of me. He and Steve wanted to rape me!”

His eyes got wide.

“So that’s why I didn’t remember anything, even though I hadn’t had alcohol! Jeez.”

“Yes!!”

He looked at her with less hostility.

“I’m really glad you weren’t raped, Kelli, and I’m sorry I blamed you. But that doesn’t explain why I ended up in a dress.”

Kelli marshaled her thoughts about this.

“Have you ever gotten drunk, Linden?”

“No, I never felt the need.”

“Well, not everyone is as strong as you are. Being drunk can take your inhibitions away, and you do things you would never ever think of doing while sober. All sorts of moronic things suddenly seem like a great idea. The truth is,” she bravely plowed ahead, “in college I always liked you, but I was afraid of what my friends would say. And to be brutally honest with you, I always loved your looks, and I wondered more than once what you’d look like as a girl. Being drunk and having the opportunity meant I had no qualms about trying it, and for that I am very, very sorry. I never meant to hurt you. Can you forgive me?”

He had to think about this. On the one hand she liked him, but on the other hand she was embarrassed to be seen with him. Or at least she had been in college. Anyhow, she seemed very sincere, not to mention she was looking at him with big puppy-dog eyes, breaking down his resistance even more. And she hadn’t actually hurt him…

“Yeah, okay. I guess I understand.”

Putting her hand on his arm, she softly said, “thank you, Linden.”

“Those two jerks are really going to go to jail one of these days.”

“The sooner the better, I say,” said Kelli. “If I’d been thinking straight I would have taken you to the ER instead of to my bedroom.”

He squirmed a little bit and then said, “I did enjoy waking up in bed with you, I mean, until I realized what had happened to me.”

Kelli smiled. “I enjoyed it too. I thought we fit together very nicely.”

“But I couldn’t understand why you’d want to sleep with me looking like that.”

“Oh, Linden, Linden… I just like what I like, and I really liked you like that.

She put on her serious face.

“Will you give me another chance to get to know you?”

“Ahhh… as long as you stay away from alcohol!”

Holding up three fingers, she declared, “Scout’s honor!”

She slowly leaned over and gave him a gentle kiss.

“Thank you,” she said softly.

He blushed and smiled. “Is there anything else I should know?”

Guiltily she met his eyes.

“Uh oh. Now what?”

“While you were asleep I took a selfie of us together. And don’t worry! I didn’t show it to anyone, but I love it. Maybe you won’t agree.”

She pulled out her phone and showed him. He studied it. Kelli did look very happy in it, and he had to admit that the girl with her was cute too, in spite of looking so out of it.

“You look really happy.”

“I was. I loved being alone with you, and you looked so pretty,” she smiled. She wasn’t sure exactly how far along this line of thought she could go with him. But her thoughts were interrupted when Linden leaned over and gave her a kiss. She reached over and pulled him onto her lap and he put an arm around her shoulders.

“In college I always had a crush on you, Kelli,” he told her, looking right into her eyes.

She laughed. “Sounds like we had a mutual admiration society going on. It took us both a long time to act on our feelings.

“So tell me, how awful was it to be dressed up like that?”

“Um, well, it’s not that it was so awful, but it was done without my permission, and was kind of a really weird and confusing way to wake up.”

“Well, sorry about that, but wow, you did look great. I kissed you a few times and I was really frustrated that you weren’t awake to kiss me back.”

“Well now I wish I had been awake!” he smiled. “You know, Kelli,” he said, shifting gears, “I put up with a lot of crap all my life for being short and looking girly. To have those accusations confirmed was a blow to my self-esteem.”

“Linden, you need to try and see things from a different perspective. There’s really nothing wrong with looking like a girl, especially these days. In fact, as a pretty, short girl people will find you cute. As a short, girly-looking guy, you kind of stand out. It’s not fair, but it is what it is. I dig you either way, but, I’m sorry, it really was a lot of fun to get you dressed up. I loved how you looked.”

Linden’s cheeks and ears turned a beautiful tomato-like color. Kelli squeezed him and smiled. She could foresee a very nice relationship unfolding with him, and if she could possibly convince him to dress up every so often, that would certainly be the icing on the cake!

The End