“You okay?” Lucy asked her American friend, who paused to take several deep breaths before replying.

“Yeah,” Phoebe replied, momentarily lowering her mask to take a deep breath, but making sure to raise it back before exhaling. “I dunno if it’s the mask or not, but this is kinda harder than I remember!”

“Okay,” Kacey- the leader of the class- said as she observed the two students taking time getting their breath back. “I think that’s as good a time as any to take a break. Lucy, can I have a word please?”

“Hmm?” Lucy replied, surprised by her being singled out. “Umm, sure, what’s up?”

“Nothing’s up, I just wanted to see how you were,” Kacey replied. “We’ve not talked much since the start of the semester.”

“Yeah, things have been pretty busy,” Lucy replied. To put it mildly, the young woman thought to herself.

Following the confrontation with her grandparents at Christmas, Lucy had immersed herself in her work and her extra-curricular activities in an attempt to distract herself from the stress she felt, and the increasing feelings of discomfort she felt with her life. The confrontation has been brief- just a few minutes at most- but her grandfather had left a lasting mark on her when he’d said ‘prancing around pretending to be something you’re not’. Lucy had lived her life for over 15 months as a woman, and in all that time, she’d felt more alive than she ever had when she'd presented as a boy. She had no desire to go back to being a man, but she still felt anxious nonetheless. She was keenly aware that she was much taller and had broader shoulders than all of her friends. Every time she spoke, she had to make a conscious effort to soften and lighten her voice. And even though no one dared to confront her directly, she knew the reaction she elicited from the students who weren’t her friends. With every day that passed, Lucy found herself wondering more and more if the 'end result' was worth the extra effort she had to put into her feminine life...

“Yeah, my second year’s been pretty hectic too,” Kacey said sympathetically. “Think everyone’s has, heh. But at least we’re allowed to dance again… sort of, heh.”

“Yeah,” Lucy said, half-listening to her friend.

“Anyway,” Kacey continued, “me and the other dance societies have talked, and when the restrictions have eased enough that we can have, like, full audiences, we want to put on a proper stage performance, like a variety dance show. I thought that 'Happy' by Pharrell would be a perfect song for the circumstances and I was wondering if you’d be interested?” Huh, so I’d literally be prancing around pretending to be something I’m not, Lucy self-pityingly thought to herself.

“I- I’ll think about it,” Lucy replied with a tired-looking smile.

“Okay, well, there’s no rush, I guess,” Kacey said, smiling beneath her mask. “Even with everyone now getting vaccines it looks like covid’s going to be here for a LONG time.”

“Yep,” Lucy sighed.

“Typical that it’d be our time at uni that gets ruined by it, eh?” Kacey asked rhetorically as Lucy stealthily sighed behind her mask. “Still, I suppose all we can do is make the most of what we’ve got, heh. Speaking of, got anything planned for the rest of the evening?”

“Just hanging out with Luke,” Lucy replied. “Comparing study notes, that sort of thing. Might get on a group call with everyone later, haven’t made my mind up yet.”

“Fair enough,” Kacey said with a shrug. “Well, give my love to your brother and I’ll see you on Friday!”

“Sure!” Lucy chuckled, forcing a smile underneath her mask before walking away and reuniting with the rest of her friends.

“Hey Lucy!” Claudia said with a giggle as the tall girl approached. “What did Kacey want to talk to you about?”

“Umm, same thing I think she’s talking to everyone about,” Lucy replied. “The after covid performance thing, like.”

“Ooh, yes!” Priya giggled excitedly. “It’s been AGES since I last danced on stage. Heh, since anyone last danced or did ANYTHING on stage, I suppose. My sister was just telling me the other day that it looks like her end of year uni performance will be over Zoom again- well, ‘again’ as in her last year of further education also had a Zoom performance, like.”

“Your sister’s studying drama, isn’t she?” Phoebe asked.

“Yep,” Priya replied. “Well, 'Theatre Studies'. Didn’t I introduce you to her over Christmas?”

“You may have done, heh,” Phoebe replied. “For most of the break I was on Seattle time, so memories are kinda fuzzy, heh.”

“Heh, fair enough,” Priya chuckled, before turning to Lucy. “You remember talking to Suri at Christmas, don’t you, Lucy?”

“Hmm?” Lucy replied, having only been half-listening to the conversation. “Oh- aye, a little. Sorry, I was miles away just then, I was- I was thinking about, like, performing on stage, heh. Never done it before, so- yeah.”

“Welcome to the club,” Phoebe said with a nervous chuckle that Lucy echoed. “Heh, and it looks like we’re about to get the stink eye for hanging around too long. Catch you all on Zoom later?”

“Sure,” Lucy said, forcing yet another smile behind her facemask, before sighing and heading toward one of the university’s sports fields, where she expected to find her brother.

Just as his sister finished dancing, Luke stretched his body to cool down after a long session on the pitch with the other members of the university’s football society. Like Lucy’s dance society, Luke and the rest of his team had to maintain a two-metre distance from each other, but this hadn’t stopped them from continuing to work on and improve their skills. With fewer freshers having joined the society the previous September, and many established members choosing not to return due to covid=related concerns, Luke had found himself suddenly elevated to being one of the most senior members of the team, and in consideration for the society's 'A' team. While the prestige of the potential role excited him and motivated him to train harder, he still felt a sense of caution- firstly, that there was no guarantee he would be picked for the team; secondly, the ongoing situation meant there was a chance there would be no matches, meaning no one would be picked for the team; and thirdly, Luke remained wary of those on the team who still saw refused to see him as the man that he truly felt he was.

“Come on, you kick like a girl!” The unmistakable Yorkshire accent of James Barnes has called several times throughout the training session, and while Luke knew consciously that the jibe wasn’t directed at him, it still stung with every repetition, and he found himself feeling almost relieved when the team's captain had blown his whistle to end the session.

“Alright, good work everyone,” James Thorn called, applauding his team as they returned their balls to the equipment crate and headed past the changing room, still dressed in their kit.

“It still seems weird that we can’t even shower,” one of the newer members of the team- one Luke hadn't been fully acquainted with- commented. “I mean, we’re literally washing our whole bodies when we do that, aren’t we?”

“Yeah, but covid’s spread by water droplets,” Luke retorted. “So you’re literally breathing in and out steam while you shower, so- yeah.”

“Yeah, ‘cause that’s the only reason you don’t want to shower with the rest of us, isn’t it?” Another member of the team asked, making Luke frown and roll his eyes- though what angered him more were the members of the team who laughed along with the 'joke. Will this ever end? Luke angrily thought to himself.

“Shut up, Barnes,” Luke snorted, even though he knew that it wasn’t his regular tormentor who had insulted him. Luke allowed himself a sly smirk, though, when he got the reaction he expected.

“What?” Barnes protested. “I didn’t say anything!”

“Only ‘cause someone else beat you to it,” Luke retorted, allowing himself a wider smile as his jibe earned laughs from his team-mates- even if, as Luke noted, they were much quieter than the insult that had been directed at him.

Luke allowed himself to bask in his small ‘victory’ as he split off from the group and headed back toward his corridor, stopping off to shower before heading back to his room and booting up his laptop and opening up his coursework. Luke had only managed twenty minutes of work, though, before his computer beeped to notify him of an incoming Zoom call. Despite his need to focus on his coursework, Luke found himself grateful for the distraction- especially after the events of the afternoon.

“Hey Luke!” Gavin greeted his fellow Geordie. “Good training session?”

“Aye, it wasn’t bad,” Luke replied with a shrug. “Got a good sweat on, that sort of thing.”

“Cool,” Kieran said with a quiet giggle. “Are we interrupting anything? You seem kinda distracted, is everything okay?”

“Nah, I’m okay,” Luke replied. “Just got a lot of coursework, that’s all.”

“Join the club,” Gavin chuckled. “We can leave you be, if you’d like?”

“Ah- hell no,” Luke said with a wide grin. “Trust me, the distraction is more than welcome, heh.”

“Are you still getting grief from some of the other players on the team?” Kieran asked softly. “Now that you’re, like, in a more senior side?”

“Nothing I can’t handle,” Luke replied with a smirk as he remembered his earlier ‘banter’ with Barnes. “I am missing my favourite cheerleaders though, heh.”

“Oh- shut up, you,” Gavin snorted as the three friends shared a chuckle, before grinning widely as another friend joined the chat. “Hey Anthony! Didn’t think we’d see you online today?”

“Well, it’s not like I had any better offers,” the young transman replied, smirking as his friends all playfully jeered. “Seriously though, how is everyone today?”

“Good,” Luke replied with a grin. “Bit tired as just been at football practice and got a ton of coursework piling up, but glad of the distraction, heh.”

“Yeah, same here,” Anthony said. “Well, not the football, but the coursework, heh. And speaking of, I’m still convinced I’m on the wrong dose of T as I've been sweating buckets lately even without exercising, but I’m still no closer to seeing a doctor about it than I was a few months ago.”

“Have you talked to your counsellor about it?” Kieran asked, smirking as Luke and Anthony looked at him quizzically. “…What? Just ‘cause I’m not trans myself, doesn’t mean I’m not going to keep, you know, up to date on trans issues. Got to be a good ally, right?”

“I never doubted it,” Luke said with a smirk, his smile widening as he heard a knock on his door. “Just a sec, be right back.” The young man suppressed a chuckle as he opened his door to find his sister standing in front of him with an unimpressed look on her face.

“’Meet me on the field after practice’, he says,” Lucy said with a scoff as her brother squirmed. “’We’ll head back to my room together’, he says.”

“Ah- sorry…” Luke said with a grimace, before sighing and rolling his eyes as his sister giggled.

“I’ll let ya off this time,” Lucy said as she sat down on her brother’s bed and waved to their friends on-screen. “Hey fellas!”

“Hi Lucy!” Gavin said with a wave. “Ya just back from street dance?”

“Aye,” Lucy replied. “So I’m a bit sweaty as I’ve not had chance to shower yet- would apologise but one thing about Zoom calls: there’s no smell-o-vision, heh!”

“Already had that discussion with Luke and Ant, heh,” Kieran said with a smirk as Luke rejoined his sister on his bed. “Any of the other girls gonna join us on the chat?”

“What are you, straight?” Gavin teased the young man, who sighed and rolled his eyes in reply.

“Just don’t want Lucy to feel outnumbered,” Kieran replied. “I WOULD call this call a sausage fest, but let’s face it, that’s not all THAT appropriate under the circumstances.”

“Meh, I thought it was funny,” Anthony said with a quiet chuckle. “Though I’m also voting for more girls on the call.”

“Though you ARE straight,” Gavin retorts, before chuckling. “Okay, hang on, I’ll just invite everyone in…” The twins smiled happily as the faces of Claudia, Phoebe, Priya and Susie all appeared on their screen.

“Hey everyone!” Priya giggled. “Long time no see for all the other girls, heh!”

“Well, most of the other girls,” Susie retorted, smirking as Priya blushed. “It’s okay. I think I needed a break from lanthanides and actinides before my hair caught fire, heh.”

“Ugh, tell me about it,” Gavin snorted. “Obviously, if anyone needs to drop out of the call to do coursework, feel free to do so at any time.” The twins allowed themselves a giggle as a brief silence fell over the call, while no one left.

“Yeah, didn’t think so,” Kieran chuckled. “Even if second year is WAY more intense than first, heh.”

“Maybe cover your ears, Anthony,” Luke teased, smirking as his fellow trans man rolled his eyes.

“Wouldn’t be here if I wasn’t afraid of a little hard work,” Anthony retorted. “I WAS expecting uni life to be a little, like, ‘louder’, but there’s nothing any of us can do about that, I guess.”

“We can always make our own noise,” Kieran said with a smirk. “Though I hope for your sake- and ours, really- that we’re allowed to have face-to-face meetings of the LGBT society again before you leave uni. Now THEY were fun!”

“Absolutely,” Susie concurred. “And I know you’ve talked a lot with Livvy, right?”

“Yeah, she’s pretty cool,” Anthony replied with a grin. “As are all of you of course, heh!”

“Right answer,” Gavin said. “And you’re spending the evening with us instead of your London gang, Priya?”

“My sister and Laura are busy rehearsing for their latest Zoom performance,” Priya explained. “Three of the other girls are also at uni, one’s in the last year before uni and one’s livestreaming a dance class, so- erm, I mean, it’s not that I don’t WANT to hang out with you all, but-“

“Nah, I get it,” Lucy said. “We’re friends, but they’re- in the case of your sister, literally- family.” Luke smiled as his sister wrapped an arm around him to emphasise the word ‘family’.

“No reason you guys can’t be family too,” Priya said with a shrug. “The family you choose is always more real in a way than the family you were born with, right?”

“Ugh, tell us about it,” Luke snorted. “For starters, you can choose not to have transphobic bigots in your family.”

“Or homophobic,” Kieran interjected.

“Or racist,” Priya snorted. “Not that anyone in my biological family is racist- well, obviously- but- yeah. First year of secondary school was NOT fun, before my sister joined the following year, anyway.”

“Well, I hope we’ve all helped to make year 1 and 2 so far of uni better for you,” Gavin said, chuckling as the Indian girl smiled and nodded. “Same goes for you, Ant.”

“Oh- trust me, you have,” Anthony said with a sad chuckle. “Secondary school really was a choice between ‘pretend to be a girl’ or ‘be everyone’s punching bag’. I tried to get through it, like, slowly- I mean, I last wore a skirt to school when I was twelve, my hair hasn’t been long enough to cover my ears since I was fourteen and I’ve never worn make-up at all. That didn’t stop some of the morons shouting stuff like ‘hey lezza, show us your tits’ or stuff like that. And even worse, my parents actually used that as an argument, like, ‘do you want to be like those boys’. Well- no, no I don’t. But those boys aren’t, like, the only representatives of what it is to be male, if you get what I mean.”

“Totally,” Priya whispered. “It sounds so much like what Laura and Ashley went through at school, only they were physically assaulted as well- not that I’m saying what you went through is any better, like.”

“Nah, I get it,” Anthony said. “I’m just glad that there so much less of that shit at university, heh. Like, wearing normal clothes instead of a uniform somehow makes you more mature, I dunno.”

“And none of us have been, like, physically hurt,” Lucy said. “Also, at secondary school, there’s no, like, formal support group dedicated to making the lives of LGBT people easier, like there is here.”

“That’s why ‘informal support groups’ like us are so important,” Priya said.

“Not to mention so cool,” Kieran said to the approval of the entire call. “And no offence, but I think we’ve had enough seriousness for one night!”

“Good, ‘cause I’ve thought of tonight’s topic, hehe!” Claudia said, earning good-natured teasing from her friends as she uncharacteristically raised her voice. “What’s the weirdest dream you’ve ever had?”

“That IS a good one,” Gavin conceded. “And I’m surprised that you, Miss Chapman, came up with a topic that’s so obviously open to erotic interpretation!” The petite blonde girl blushed as her friends let out quiet, teasing chuckles.

“Obviously, don’t share anything that you don’t want to,” Claudia giggled bashfully.

“Oh- nuh-uh,” Kieran teased. “You brought it up, you go first!” The assembled young people all grinned as Claudia blushed, before speaking.

“Well- okay,” Claudia said. “It’s actually one I had last night, which is, like, why I thought of the topic. I was in my childhood home- in Coventry- and I was getting ready for school, when all of a sudden everything in my bedroom turned into soup. Like, my furniture, my bed, my TV, everything: soup. And it’s weird, ‘cause even though it was red and looked a little like blood, I instantly knew it was soup. It didn’t turn into puddles or anything, everything was the same shape as it was before, it was just made out of soup. So naturally, I was a bit confused by this, so I opened the door, went downstairs to find my parents, but instead of my living room, it was a horse stable from where I used to ride when I was younger, but instead of the pony I used to ride, instead there was-“

“Soup?” Kieran asked, giggling as the blonde girl rolled her eyes.

“No,” Claudia replied. “It was- and I have no idea why- a topless Richard Hammond cooking burgers on a barbecue. Whatever the hell THIS means, I have no idea.”

“If I had to guess,” Gavin said, “you’ve been stuck inside for too long, you’re sick of processed food, or you fancy middle-aged short blokes. Or all three. God knows I think we’ve ALL been stuck inside for too long.”

“Can’t argue with that,” Susie said with a sad sigh. “Not that it isn’t fun already, but this chat would be a lot more fun in the student bar, heh.”

“Annnnd for bringing the mood down, you’re next!” Kieran teased the ginger-haired girl, who sighed and rolled her eyes before taking a deep breath and recounting the tale of her dream.

As they listened to their friends’ stories, Luke and Lucy both mused on how such a disparate group of people had only come together and become friends because of the bond between the two of them. Luke’s friends were football fanatics who were gay and male, while Lucy’s friends didn’t care even remotely about football and were all female, cisgender and straight. And yet, to them, it never felt like there were two discrete groups interacting- it was all one, close-knit group of friends, just as Luke and Lucy had been individual, yet inexorably connected for their whole lives.

The chat continued until late evening, by which point most of the group of friends had dropped out to work on their coursework, Luke and Lucy included. The twins beavered away for over two hours until they were virtually unable to think anymore, at which point Lucy returned to her room, tired from the day’s exertions but eager to start again the following day.

Lucy woke with her alarm the following morning, and after stretching, set about her morning routine with a smile on her face, even if said smile was partly forced. After relieving herself and showering, she returned to her room and sighed as she sat down in front of her mirror. Months of hormone treatments had finally started to have the desired effect on her body- her skin was softer, her waist was narrower, and her hips had started to widen- but there were some places where oestrogen couldn’t reach.

The shape of Lucy’s face was still unmistakably masculine, not helped by it being attached to her 5’ 11” body. What frustrated Lucy more, though, was the feeling of coarse stubble as she ran her fingers over her cheek. Lucy had discussed laser hair removal treatment with her counsellor, but covid had prevented any action from being taken, meaning Lucy still needed to shave her face regularly. Her hair had grown long, past her shoulders, but with no salons open it lacked any style or definition besides 'long', and Lucy groaned with frustration as brushing her hair only seemed to emphasise her split ends. After applying her make-up- and wincing at the feel of her liquid foundation against her freshly-shaved skin, Lucy pulled on her underwear, frowning as she performed the complicated steps to 'tuck' herself within her panties, before smiling as she felt the soft cotton of her bra touch her sensitive nipples- even if she only barely filled the A cup of the soft garment. After rolling a pair of soft, opaque black tights up her legs, Lucy stepped into a grey tank bodysuit for extra warmth before pulling on her trusty university hoodie and favourite short denim skirt.

“Looking not bad, Miss Miller,” Lucy mumbled to herself with a smile as she bent down to retrieve her dark pink converse. As she did, though, she felt a 'pop' come from her crotch, followed by the sudden feeling of the flaps of her bodysuit hanging loosely against her thighs. “…Fuck.” Lucy groaned as she lifted her skirt to reveal the separated flaps of the undergarment, before sighing as she removed her hoodie and bodysuit, discarding the latter garment on her bed and replacing it with a soft cotton camisole before pulling her hoodie back on.

“Must’ve shrunk in the wash,” Lucy mumbled as she grabbed her bag and headed out into the corridor, smirking as she saw that her brother’s door was still locked and there was no sound coming from the other side of it. “Yoo-hoo? Wakey wakey!”

“Yes, yes, I’m awake,” Luke replied from the other side of the door. “Just a sec…” Lucy stood back as Luke emerged from his room clad in his usual baggy jeans, brown walking boots and hoodie combo with his own bag slung over his shoulder. Lucy mused on how, despite his shorter stature, her brother already projected the image of a confident young man- his chest was flat- though Lucy knew this to be due to use of a chest binder- he had light, wispy hair of his own growing from his chin- which Lucy knew her brother was very reluctant to shave off- and his hair, while not ‘short’, was scruffily ‘styled’ in a masculine way. Anybody looking at Luke wouldn’t think twice about him declaring himself as male- those who weren’t in the know already, anyway.

Those ‘in the know’ included everyone on the twins’ course, but to their continuing relief and appreciation, none of their fellow students batted an eyelid as the two of them entered and took their usual seats along the row from Susie & Phoebe (social distancing preventing the four from sitting closer together). Just like all of their fellow students, they paid close attention in their lectures and worked hard in their lab work, and just like all of their fellow students, they breathed a sigh of relief when their classes ended for the day and they were able to relax for the rest of the day. As they headed back to their rooms, though, Luke and Lucy were interrupted by the sound of a familiar voice from behind.

“Hey, Luke! Lucy!” The voice of Livvy Straw- the chair of the university’s LGBT society- called out. “Have you got a sec?”

“Sure!” Lucy replied with a smile. “Didn’t think we’d see you before the meeting tonight?”

“Yeah…” Livvy replied awkwardly, confusing the twins with her demeanour. “It’s kinda why I want to talk to you, like- about the meeting. Like, not just tonight’s, but going forward.”

“Umm… okay?” Luke asked, his confusion deepening.

“Okay…” Livvy said, before taking a deep breath. “I’m just going to come out and ask: would either or both of you be interested in joining the committee for the society? Only it’s getting on for finals time, and most of the committee are in their third year, and not many guys from your year or even the freshers stepped up to replace them, so- yeah. Lots of vacancies- not that I’m saying I’m coming to you because we’re desperate, but- yeah. If you’re interested, just let me know and I’ll see what we can do?”

“Umm- well, it’s not something we’ve really thought about, to be honest with you,” Lucy replied. “I mean, we’re flattered to be asked, but- yeah.”

“We’re not really all that, like, ‘big’ on politics, if ya get me,” Luke concurred.

“Well, you don’t have to be,” Livvy retorted. “It’s not, like, a political thing, it’s more a ‘helping out others’ thing. And I know you two have been helping out Anthony a lot, and you’re always willing to lend a friendly ear to anyone else who might need one.”

“Well- aye,” Luke said with a shrug. “You can never have too many friends, right?”

“Well, that’s what I’ve heard, anyway!” Livvy giggled. “Anyways, I’ve got to go, see if I can get a few more recruits, but I’ll see you tonight at the meeting!”

“See you then!” Lucy said, smiling behind her mask and waving as her friend left.

“Ooh- actually, before I forget,” Livvy said, turning back toward the twins, “did you see which way Susie went, Susie Parker?”

“Umm, aye, she went off toward the library, I think,” Luke replied. “She’s even less ‘political’ than us, though. Very, like, overtly so, too.”

“Well- yeah, I guess,” Livvy said with a nonchalant shrug. “But, you know, it’d be rude not to ask, right? I’ll see you guys this evening.”

“Sure,” Luke said as he started to smirk.

“See you,” Lucy said with a wave, before giggling and turning to her brother. “So then, Livvy and Susie?”

“Couldn’t really be any more obvious,” Luke said with a smirk as they headed back toward his room.

After a quick dinner, the twins spent the late afternoon doing coursework, before putting it to one side as the clock ticked over to 6:55pm. Grinning with excitement, Lucy opened up her laptop and logged on to the Zoom meeting, giggling as their arrival was met with cheers.

“Hi everyone!” Lucy said as she and Luke waved to the eight friends of theirs who were already on the call.

“Hey guys!” Livvy replied for the group. “Did you have a good afternoon?”

“Aye, same as always, I guess,” Luke replied. “Did you catch up with Susie in the end?” The twins smirked- as did many of the other students on the call- as their friend blushed.

“Yes, I did,” Livvy replied. “And no, she isn’t interested either. In- umm, in being on the committee, like. In fact, hardly anyone I’ve spoken to has been interested. Those I didn’t catch up with, on the other hand…” Luke and Lucy shared the chuckles of everyone else on the call as their Mancunian friend's face appeared on screen. “And what time do you call this, Mr Baxter?”

“Five minutes before the stated start time of the meeting,” Kieran replies, earning giggles from all present. “And I’d heard you were on the warpath- well, whatever the recruiting equivalent of a warpath is, anyway.”

“Word DID spread, then,” Livvy chuckled.

“Yep, but not quickly enough,” Kieran replied with a sly grin. “As you can count me 100% IN.”

“Ah- really?” Livvy asked.

“Sure, why not?” Kieran replied. “I’m on top- careful now- of my coursework, and outside of this society it’s not like anyone has ANY kind of social life right now, so we need each other more than ever, right?”

“Too right,” Gavin concurred. "Even if we do already spend most of our time away from the committee hanging out as well..."

"Never heard you complain before, honey," Kieran retorted, giggling along with the rest of their friends as Gavin mimed a kiss at the screen.

“Alright, we’d better get this thing started,” Livvy said as she tried to stifle her laughter. “I think everyone’s here who’s gonna be here?”

“Almost,” Lucy replied, grinning as she pinned Susie's window on her screen.

“Ah, hello Sparkler!” Livvy tease, giggling as the flame-haired girl blushed.

“I told you not to call me that in p- at all,” Susie replied, her cheeks reddening further as her friends all ‘ooh’ed. “What- what did I miss?”

“Look at you, changing the subject!” Abbey- the society’s vice-chair and one of the twins’ friends from the year above them- teased. “We haven’t even started yet, heh. Just waiting for everyone to log on.”

“Though Kieran did agree to be our ‘gang’s’ rep on the committee,” Luke said with a smug grin as the young Mancunian man blushed and giggled bashfully.

“Sweet!” Susie chuckled. “Now I know who to pester next time the bar runs out of beer. Which will probably be the next time we’re allowed in it, heh.”

“I’ll probably be the reason the bar runs out of beer,” Kieran retorted, earning laughter from everyone on the call as Livvy called the meeting to order.

Ninety minutes later, after the meeting wrapped up, the twins packed away their things and got ready to head to their respective beds, only to be suddenly interrupted.

“Who’s that?” Lucy asked as her brother’s phone chimed to let him know of an incoming video call.

“Umm… Thorny,” Luke replied, smirking as his sister frowned with confusion. “James Thorn, captain of the uni football team.”

“Ah, cool,” Lucy nonchalantly replied. “Want me to give you some privacy?”

“Nah, it’s probably just about tomorrow’s training session,” Luke replied as he answered the call. “Hi James!”

“Hi Luke!” The captain of the team replied with a smile. “I’m just ringing round everyone about tomorrow’s training session.”

“Is it- is it cancelled?” Luke asked.

“No, the opposite actually!” James chuckled. “We’re going to start doing defensive drills again, but in, like, a limited way. Basically, one player will be attacking, they have to make it past two defenders. I’m just letting you now as obviously, we’ll have to be masked for this, and it’s your choice if you want to take part in it or if you’d rather sit this one out.”

“Nope, sounds fun to me,” Luke replied with a smirk.

“Cool!” James said. “I’ll see you tomorrow, then!”

“See you!” Luke said, waving as the call ended while his sister sat back and fidgeted awkwardly.

“…Do you like him?” Lucy asked hesitantly.

“Hmm?” Luke replied. “Aye, he’s okay, I guess.”

“Ah- no, I- I mean, like, do you ‘like’ like him?” Lucy clarified.

“…What, as in- as in ‘like’ like/” Luke replied. “…I dunno. I mean, like, he’s good looking- objectively, like. Where did THAT question come from all of a sudden?”

“I dunno,” Lucy replied. “You seemed to, like, ‘like’ him, I guess. It’s just- heh. When you think about it, we spend all of our time hanging out with gay guys and straight women. And it’s not like either of us are rushing to start a relationship, and, like, I’m not sure if we would even without covid being a thing.”

“Okay…” Luke said. “Why do I get the feeling you’re trying to tell me something that you think will really offend me?”

“’Cause we’re 19 years and 11 months old and we’ve known each other for 20 years and 8 months?” Lucy replied, making her brother smirk. “I mean, though, nearly a year and a half into uni and neither of us have had, like, any dates. And while I guess you could blame covid for that, it hasn’t stopped Susie and Livvy, or Claudia and her boyfriend, like.”

“Well- I guess not,” Luke shrugged. “Luce, are you- are you feeling okay? ‘Cause this has kinda come out of nowhere, like.”

“Not really,” Lucy replied. “It’s something that’s been on my mind for ages, like.”

“Well, this is the first you’ve talked about it, though,” Luke retorted.

“I suppose,” Lucy shrugged. “But- you know? When it comes to reasons why I’m not in a relationship, Covid’s like, WAY down the list. And we both know what’s top of that list.”

“I think I do, but say it anyway,” Luke said, trying not to show his irritation at what his sister was hinting.

“If you insist,” Lucy said. “The fact that I’m nearly six feet tall, I’ve got a torso like a rugby player, a jaw like David Coulthard, and oh yes: I have a penis.”

“Does any of that matter, though?” Luke asked. “I’m 5’ 4”, I’m not exactly well-built, and oh yes: I have a vagina.”

“And you’re as single as I am,” Lucy reminded her brother. “Ugh, I- I dunno.”

“I think I get it,” Luke said softly. “Heh, but ya have to admit, uni hasn’t gone ANYTHING like we thought it would before we started, heh. Being single is the least of our concerns right now.”

“Meh, true, I guess,” Lucy said. “Maybe it’s just the hormones giving me a kicking, heh. I- I’ll be fine. Though you- you have to admit, like, if one of us does start a relationship, it’ll be something we CAN’T do together.”

“Maybe, I guess,” Luke said with a sigh. “Though I’ll happily have you as ‘best woman’ at my wedding if you’re happy with me being your ‘gentleman of honour’, heh!”

“As if there was ever any other choice?” Lucy said, grinning as she gave her brother a hug before putting her trainers back on. “I’ll see you tomorrow, okay?”

“Of course,” Luke said. “And don’t worry too much, okay? No matter what, you’re still the most important person in my life. What we do, we do together, aye?”

“Aye, always,” Lucy said, smiling as she left the room, though for the first time, Lucy began to wonder just how long they would be able to remain together in the way that they had been their whole lives- and whether or not it was in their best interests to do so.

The following morning, though, both twins pushed such thoughts to the back of their mind as they rendezvoused for breakfast in Luke’s room, before heading together toward their first lecture of the day. However, Luke and Lucy- not to mention the rest of their class- found themselves distracted throughout the day, not because of the previous night’s discussion, but because it was Friday, and the weekend was nearly upon them.

After their final seminar of the day, Luke and Lucy rushed back to their rooms to get changed- Luke into his well-worn football kit, while Lucy exchanged the plain denim skirt and hoodie she’d worn to her classes for the tight leggings and crop top that had become as much of a uniform to her as Luke's football kit was to him. As she examined herself in her mirror, Lucy found herself musing on what she’d said the previous night.

Sure, she was tall and broad-shouldered, but she wasn’t bulky- her waist was significantly narrower than it had been twelve months earlier, while her hips were widening, and while her breasts weren’t noticeable under her baggy hoodie, there was no disguising them under her tight crop top. Her hair was long and sparkled in the light, while her skin was smooth and hair-free. Everything about her exuded ‘girl’- but she knew that for some people, that wasn't enough. For those same people, nothing would EVER be enough...

However, Lucy knew that her friends- her true friends- would unconditionally accept her as the woman that she was, which was proven true when she arrived at the dance studio and was greeted by enthusiastic waves from the other socially distanced women.

“Hey girls!” Lucy greeted Priya, Claudia and Phoebe.

“Hey girl!” Priya replied, making Lucy giggle excitedly. “Weekend starts here, woohoo!”

“Woohoo!” Lucy cheered along with her friends. “I am SO ready for some rest.”

“Rest AND finishing off that assignment we got today?” Phoebe asked, giggling as Lucy nodded.

“And the next hour isn’t going to be very ‘restful’,” Claudia reminded her friend.

“I’d better rephrase, then,” Lucy said. “I am SO ready for some FUN!” Lucy giggled as she joined in with the ‘woohoo’s of her friends as they jogged into the dance studio and took their places. Any distraction is a welcome one, Lucy thought to herself.

As Lucy and her friends were warming up, Luke jogged out to one of the university’s playing fields, where the rest of his team was waiting for him.

“Sorry I’m late,” Luke said as he swiftly exchanged his trainers for his trusty studded football boots.

“Needed to make sure your make-up was just right?” Barnes asked, laughing by himself as Luke rolled his eyes. “What colour lipstick have you got on under your mask?” You just won’t stop, will you? Luke thought to himself.

“It’s a pity your mask only stops us from seeing your mouth, and doesn’t stop us from hearing it,” Luke retorted, allowing himself a smirk behind his own mask as his jibe earned more laughter from the rest of the team than Barnes's had.

“Okay, enough,” James Thorn ordered as Barnes shot a dirty look at the young trans man. “Do I have to separate the two of you today?”

“Hey, I’m only having a little fun,” Barnes replied, not taking his eyes off of Luke.

“Very little,” Luke said, smirking as he earned another angry glare from Barnes, before wilting and nodding in a conciliatory fashion as the team’s captain looked at him sternly. As the team warmed up, though, Luke felt a sense of pride that he was once again able to bounce his nemesis's insults back at him.

“Okay,” James Thorn announced, calling a halt to the warm-up. “Like I told you all last night, we’re working on ball control today. The way this’ll work is that two of you will play as defenders, and one of you will try to get past the defenders, make it to the penalty area and take a shot on goal. Tommy- no prizes for guessing what you’re going to be doing.” The entire team chuckled as their regular goalkeeper gave his captain a thumbs up. “I want everyone to take at least one turn in attack and two turns in defence- it’s important that you get a chance to practise mixed skills today, and defence: you need to work together as a team. Okay, no time like the present, I’ll take the first turn in attack. Let’s go!” Luke nodded along with the rest of the team and stood on the sidelines as he watched his captain effortlessly dance around the defenders, only to be denied a goal by Tommy’s outstretched fingers.

Before long, it was Luke’s turn, and as he jogged out to the centre circle with the ball, he didn’t realise that one of the people he’d have to try to defeat was the boy with whom he’d earlier exchanged barbs. You really want to do this? Luke thought to himself with a smirk- he knew that while Barnes was skilled as a striker, he had less experience defending, so Luke was confident that he could dribble past him. As Luke set off dribbling the ball, he feinted away from Barnes only to immediately run in the other direction, and was ready to deal with the other defensive player when he suddenly felt a large weight slam into his side, causing him to clatter to the ground with his legs caught underneath him.

“Umf,” Luke grunted as the wind was knocked out of him. Before he could try to get up, though, Luke let out a scream of pure agony as what felt like an explosion went off in his right leg.

“Not so funny now, are you?” Barnes whispered into Luke’s ear before untangling their legs, eliciting another scream from the young trans man as the team gathered round.

“Stay back, stay at six feet, everyone,” James Thorn ordered as he crouched down next to Luke. “Luke, are you okay? What happened?”

“Oh, he’s fine,” Barnes replied with a dismissive snort. “Just needs to man up a bit, heh.”

“Barnes- just fuck off,” James Thorn snapped. “THAT isn’t helping! Everyone- training session over. Jake- go to the first aid room. We might need to call an ambulance as well. Luke, can you hear me?”

“Y- yeah,” Luke whispered, desperately trying not to cry despite the extreme pain he was in.

“Can you stand?” The captain asked, smiling sympathetically as Luke tried to push himself, only to fail and fall onto his back with another loud groan of pain. “Okay, just- just wait there, Jake will be back soon. Danny, can you- can you go to the dance department please, and find where the Street dance class is being taken? And go in my bag and bring me my phone, I- I should call his parents.”

“Oh, god…” Luke moaned, covering his tear-filled eyes with his forearm.

“I’m sorry, but they- they need to know,” James Thorn said softly. “Luke, I won’t lie to you, there- there’s a very good chance your leg is broken, and if it is, well, then- yeah.”

“I bet that cunt Barnes did this on purpose,” Luke groaned, shivering as shock started to fill his body.

“We- we can’t know that for certain,” James Thorn said, before sighing as Danny returned with his phone.

“I’ll go to the dance studio now,” Danny said softly as his captain sighed and dialled the emergency contact number he had saved in his phone.

A few minutes later, Luke’s teammate entered the dance studio where Lucy was practising, and when he and Kacey approached her with sombre looks on their masked faces, the young trans woman immediately knew she was about to receive bad news. After a quick nod from Kacey, Lucy rushed to the side of the room to grab her bag, hastily dialling her parents' home number as she left the studio.

“Come on, come on,” Lucy moaned, her entire body gripped with anxiety as she waited for her call to be answered.

“Lucy?” Paul asked as he answered the phone, prompting a sigh of relief from his daughter.

“D- dad,” Lucy whispered. “Have- have you heard yet about- like, Luke?”

“I have,” Paul replied with a pained sigh. “Has the ambulance got there yet?”

“They said it’s on the way,” Lucy replied. “It’s taking it’s time because of- well, yeah.”

“Yeah,” Paul whispered.

“Are you- are you going to the hospital?” Lucy asked.

“Well- I can’t,” Paul replied. “’Also ‘cause of you-know-what. He won’t even be allowed to have visitors, not even you.” Lucy felt the blood drain from her face at the news- even though subconsciously, she knew that would be the case, to hear it said out loud just served to drive it home that what Luke was about to go through, he’d have to do alone- which meant that she would be alone too.

Lucy rushed to the football field after her phone call, only to arrive in time to see her brother being put in the back of the ambulance and driven away. Lucy waved at Luke in the vain hope that she’d remind him that she’d be thinking of him, only to be greeted by the slam of the ambulance's rear doors. In a daze, Lucy returned to her room and fired off a text message to Luke, practically begging him to call her when he could. Desperate for some company- ANY company- Lucy booted up her laptop and logged into Zoom, breathing a long sigh of relief as she was immediately invited into a call.

“Lucy, thank god,” Gavin said with a concerned look on his face. “How is he? Have you heard anything?”

“Umm, no, nothing,” Lucy mumbled in reply. “I- umm, he- I saw him, like, in an ambulance…” Lucy’s friends smiled supportively as tears started flowing freely from the young woman’s eyes.

“Hang on a minute,” Kieran said as he typed into his computer. Moments later, the face of James Thorn appeared on Lucy’s screen, bringing more tears to her eyes despite her best efforts.

“Hey guys,” James said softly. “Hey Lucy, how- how are you doing?”

“…Not great,” Lucy mumbled between sobs. “I mean I- I should’ve been able to do SOMETHING, I should BE able to do something instead of just sitting here…”

“Trust me, I don’t think anything could’ve prevented this from happening,” James said in a dark voice. “You shouldn’t blame yourself.”

“The whole point of being twins is that we’re meant to look out for each other,” Lucy said as she tried to dry her eyes and compose herself. “We’re meant to do everything together. As a team.”

“Yep, I know a few things about teamwork too,” James said. “Trust me when I say that you have nothing to feel guilty about, really.”

“If you say so,” Lucy sighed. “But the fact is that he’s still hurt, and I’m not.”

“Would it make you feel better if you were hurt?” Gavin asked, making Lucy pause as she contemplated her response.

“I dunno,” the young woman mumbled. “Maybe? At least then Luke wouldn’t be going through it alone…”

“Have you texted him?” Gavin asked. “Just to let him know you’re thinking about him?”

“Of course,” Lucy replied. “He’s not texted back, though, last time I checked he hadn’t even read it yet.”

“Then when he does, he’ll know he isn’t alone,” Gavin advised. “You’ll be there with him in spirit, even if you can’t be physically.”

“…I know,” Lucy sighed. “I just- ugh, I dunno.”

“…You need someone to be with you just as much as Luke does right now?” Kieran asked softly, smiling as his friend nodded.

“Then if that’s what you need, that’s what you’ll get,” Gavin said. “We might not be able to be there in person, but we are damn sure not leaving you alone. You OR Luke.”

“…Thanks,” Lucy whispered, trying to ease her anxiety as her friends began telling her about their days to try to distract her from her anxiety about her brother- and about herself.

The chat lasted long into the night, until almost 1am, with Priya, Phoebe, Claudia and Susie also eagerly volunteering to keep the distraught trans woman company. Eventually, though, all of the students became too tired to even talk any more- none more than Lucy, who despite her anxiety, found herself falling asleep almost immediately after her head hit her pillow.

However, she was woken mere hours later by the sound of her phone ringing, and when she saw the caller ID, she immediately became awake and alert.

“Luke?” Lucy said into the phone in a state of near panic. “Where are you? How are you?”

“Well, there’s good news and bad news,” Luke replied in a tired, almost dazed voice. “The good news: I’ve got a LOT of morphine in me right now, heh. The bad news: my leg’s definitely broken, and I’m going to need some screws putting in it and a cast for, like, ages. The good news: they can do that tomorrow morning. The bad news: I’m going to be in for a few days afterward so they can keep an eye on me. The good news: more morphine!”

“Heh,” Lucy chuckled as she tried to keep her emotions in check.

“More good news: I’m in my own room,” Luke continued. “The bad news: that’s because we don’t have our gender recognition certificates yet, and as such, they had to initially put me on a ward with several old women who kinda took issue with me being there.”

“Ugh,” Lucy spat. “So sorry you had to go through that. Well- all of this really. Though they’d probably have more of an issue with me being there than with you.”

“Yeah, well, it’s not a competition,” Luke sighed. “Even when I had my binding vest removed, they weren’t any happier.”

“Please tell me the nurses didn’t take that off in front of everyone?” Lucy asked, sighing with relief as her brother laughed. “And why did you need to take it off? You didn’t hurt your ribs, did you?”

“It’s not the most comfortable thing to sleep in,” Luke snorted. “Then again, neither is having everything flapping loose in front of me. Reckon I can ask them to cut my tits off when they fix my leg? Like, two for the price of one?”

“Given that you’re in an NHS hospital and the price for fixing your leg is zero, you might be pushing it a bit,” Lucy reminded her brother, who laughed again.

“Yeah, just means I’m gonna be waiting ages before they finally get done,” Luke sighed. “They’d probably make me wait ages to fix my leg if it wasn’t, like, I can’t walk without it. Fucking covid…”

“Couldn’t they have put you on an all-male ward, though?” Lucy asked.

“Not according to the nurses,” Luke sighed. “Something about safeguarding, again because I don’t have this magic certificate that says I actually am a man. They probably think that any guy would see ‘person with a vagina who can’t run away’ as an invitation to do whatever they wanted, I dunno.”

“I’ll have to make sure I never need the hospital, then,” Lucy whispered as she shuddered at the thought of herself being in an all-male ward.

“Meh, if you do, let me know and I’ll beat them with a crutch or whatever,” Luke said in a tired, slurred voice. “Think the morphine’s starting to do its thing again so I’m gonna ring off now, let you get breakfast or whatever.”

“It’s 4:40am,” Lucy reminded her brother.

“Right, well, I’ll call you again when I’m awake,” Luke mumbled. “G’night, sis…”

“Goodnight,” Lucy whispered, sighing and weeping as she ended the call. Happy that Luke was at least okay, and would be on the mend soon, she laid back in bed and tried to get back to sleep. However, the fact that they would be apart for days weighed on her mind throughout the night.

Lucy woke up the following morning and went about her Saturday almost in autopilot, barely touching her breakfast or lunch and unable to concentrate on her coursework as she waited for Luke’s call- though she didn't have to wait long.

“Luke, hi,” Lucy said into her phone a mere two seconds after it had started ringing. “Are you out of surgery? How did it go?”

“Well…” Luke said hesitantly, causing his sister’s nerves to jangle.

“Let me guess,” Lucy sighed. “You’re on lots of morphine and you have good news and bad news?”

“Oh, definitely,” Luke replied. “The good news is that the surgery was a success, my leg’s all pinned back together, the cast is in place, and I should make a full recovery.”

“…And the bad news?” Lucy asked.

“I’m gonna be in hospital for another couple of weeks, while I wait for my sense of taste and smell to return,” Luke replied with a loud sigh.

“Oh- oh god, you-“ Lucy moaned, tears forming in her eyes once again.

“Yep,” Luke sighed. “Two lines on the test, though at least the nurses had enough tact to not ask me if I was hoping for a boy or a girl, heh.”

“God…” Lucy moaned. “So it’s gonna be ages before you’re back at uni?”

“Maybe even longer,” Luke sighed. “The doctors, they’re saying- they’re saying that it’d be better- when I get out, like- for me to- to attend classes virtually. Like, from home. To avoid putting too much stress on my leg, and to avoid, like, getting covid again, sort of thing.”

“…Oh,” Lucy said, her heart sinking as she suddenly found herself feeling more alone than ever. “Will you- will you be alright?”

“Well- aye, the doctors say I’ll make a full recovery,” Luke replied, making his sister sigh.

“That’s not what I meant,” Lucy moaned.

“I- yeah, I know,” Luke sighed. “But I’ll be okay. Mam’s already said they can set up, like, a workstation for me in the living room, and as dad mostly works from home anyway, there’ll always be someone on hand to, like, do all the running around for me. And Steve has said he’ll do me extra sessions to help me catch up with what I’ll miss. Heh, I’ll be back before you even have the chance to miss me.” I doubt it, Lucy ruefully thought to herself.

“Well- that doesn’t mean I’m not going to worry,” Lucy said. “And I- I already miss you.”

“Yeah, I miss you too,” Luke sighed. “But hey, ya know? Whatever we do, we do together, right? Even if we’re, like, physically separated?”

“…I used to think so,” Lucy mumbled as tears started to form in her eyes.

“…Yeah, me too,” Luke sighed as both twins wondered when their lives would get back to normal- or even if their lives would ever get back to normal…