Twenty Weeks - 4

 

Five weeks into his time at Greenwood Academy, four weeks into the school musical,
lots of new friends, a new found appreciation for all things girlish, a sweet boy who likes him...
what could go wrong?
Well... lots, apparently! Let's see how Deedee copes with some adversity in this installment!! Heheh!

---

 
Author's Note: Happy Chanukah, and Merry Christmas everyone! I am so sorry for my car wreck and messing up posting here. It's a huge hassle - and a nightmare!
Thank you all for the supportive comments!
Happy Holidays to everyone! ~Clara.
 
This version of Twenty Weeks - 4 has been updated with many corrections towards spelling and grammar.~Sephrena.
 
Image Credit: Image created through the use of ai at https://perchance.org/beautiful-people .~Sephrena.

---

 
 
Part 4
 

Dr Martin stared the sea of girls before her, each in the plaid jumper with the white, long puffy sleeved, small collared cotton blouse, and each looking like a perfect little doll as they filled the hallways of the school that early February afternoon. It was truly a lovely site. What she wouldn't give to be that age again. Not a real care in the world, yet everything was so important - school, friends, clothes, hair, boys... everything. The truly amazing thing about this throng of girls was that one of them was her son. She shook her head in content amazement. One month into their adventure as mother and daughter and he seemed not only content, but happy for the first time in his life.

"Hi, Amelia," a voice interrupted her reverie.

She turned and saw Robin's mother. "Oh, hi, Penny," the Chancellor smiled. "How are you?"

"I'm great, actually." She looked at the crowded hallway, too. "There's a lot of estrogen flying around out there." She chucked.

"There is," Dr Martin agreed, "but I really love looking at them. So young. So eager to achieve. I'm so happy I came here, Penny, and so thrilled that my child is a Greenwood Girl. This place is a bit of a miracle."

"I've always thought so," Penny smiled. She thought back to the day she first met the new Chancellor and her boyish daughter at the reception. "I think Deedee is thriving here, don't you?"

"She's a whole new person," Dr Martin smiled.
 

~^~
 

"Alright, ladies and gentlemen," Ms Highland said as rehearsal drew to a close that day, "today marks the end of week four of our eight week rehearsal schedule. That means three more weeks of actual rehearsals during which we will be stopping to fix things as we add scenery, props and costume pieces. That last week - Production week - or Hell week, as many call it - is just running the show in preparation for opening night. So, NOW is the time to make sure that you are memorizing your lines, working on your characters, practicing your songs and practicing your dances. If you wait till the end of the rehearsal cycle to do your homework, then you'll be THINKING instead of ACTING. Have I made myself clear?"

"Yes, Ms Highland," came the nearly unison reply from the cast.

"Ms Highland?" Came the voice of Donna Linkletter from the left side of the audience seats where the cast had been placed while the directors gave notes.

"Yes, Donna?" Ms Highland practically sighed.

"Is there anyway that we can... encourage... those cast members who only have one or two lines to actually memorize those lines instead of having to read them from a script all the time? Speaking as someone with a lot to memorize, it really throws you off, waiting for someone with a small part to get their act together." With that last phrase, she surreptitiously kicked the back of the chair in front of her where Dean was sitting.

"Knock it off, Donna," Willie snapped, looking over his shoulder at the diva.

"I will when your child-bride grows up and learns her one, little section of the show, Billy," Donna replied. She'd taken to only calling Willie 'Billy' due to his character's name.

"Enough!" Ms Highland shouted, not a common occurrence. "Donna, you are a senior with lots of experience. Now, I trusted you to not only tackle your role, but to be an example to the younger and less experienced cast members. You've been doing one of those things very well. Try harder on the other."

Then Ms Highland looked at Dean. "Deedee, I know that your speech is in Hungarian, but I do need it to be memorized. So, when we run that scene next week, you need to be off-book."

"Yes, Ms Highland," Dean said with an embarrassed nod.

"Alright, then. You are all dismissed.

They stood and as they were all grabbing their things, Donna said, "Billy, I'm having a party this Saturday night at my house. Mostly seniors and juniors from Greenwood, St John's and St Mark's. Want to come? We have an indoor pool with a hot tub. It'll be fun."

Willie looked at Dean and rolled his eyes. "Thanks, Donna, but Deedee and I have plans for Saturday."

Donna scowled at Dean. "Babysitting, huh?" She spat. "Too bad. I thought you might enjoy some time with the grownups."

Willie shook his head. "Thanks anyway, Donna."

She grunted her disapproval of his choice, turned on her heels and stormed off.

"Sorry about that," Willie said to Dean.

"Sorry about what? Did someone say something? If they did, I didn't hear it," Dean said, batting his mascara coated eyelashes in a theatrically innocent manner - a feminine gesture he'd acquired over the previous five weeks at Greenwood.

Dean smiled and put his arm around Dean's shoulders. "That's why I like you so much," he said.

"So... what are we doing on Saturday night, then?" Dean asked.

"I thought you didn't hear anything?" Willie said, looking at Dean with a theatrically confused look.

"I heard you talking to no one," Dean smiled and giggled. "I just didn't hear anyone else talking."
 

~^~
 

"Hi, Amy, it's Frank," the voice on the voicemail said. "I'm actually in Norway for a week or so. It's colder than heck here. Wow, what a change from Fiji. I didn't expect to have to come here, but the company is working with some of the oil drilling companies to minimize environmental impact caused by oil exploration... anyway. I got your email about Dean getting into the play at school. That's amazing. I know it's only the chorus, but he's only a sophomore, so if he likes it, maybe he can practice and get a bigger part next year. Anyway, tell my guy that I'm proud of him and I wish I could come to the show. Unfortunately, it looks like I'll be in the middle of a month's work in Canada at that time. I know... I'm a terrible dad. I wish things were different, but that's how things are at the moment." There was a little, sad laugh on the voicemail. "Now I'm depressing both of us. Hey, I'm going to get going. I have a lot to get done and I can't let myself get into my head right now. Love you both, Amy. Say hi to Deano for me. Bye."

Amelia shook her head. She still loved that guy, but it would always be work first, the rest of the world second and she couldn't live that way. She did feel a bit bad for him, though. He sounded sad and lonely. That was never a good thing. She typed 'What time is it in Norway' into her phone's search engine and the result was '1:32am.' Too late to call, so she wrote an email.

'Hi, Frank. Got your voicemail. You sound lonely. We'll have to talk soon. Your work is important. I understand that. I have always understood that. Dean and I miss you. Talk to you soon. Love, Amy'

Dr Martin shut her laptop, grabbed her attaché case and coat, headed out the door and walked across the campus to her home. She opened the door and, instead of the usual sound of a TV or of Dean on the phone with friend, she heard something odd coming from the living room.

"No, no," the voice said, obviously correcting something. "It's steptouch -step-cross. Hip thrust, hip thrust, hip thrust, pose. Yeah, that's it. Great!"

The Chancellor looked into the sitting room where all the furniture had been moved to the sides of the room and Robin was drilling Dean on a dance routine from the show they were both in. Rather than startle them, she just watched them practice.

"Again," Robin said, "step-touch-step-cross, hip thrust, hip thrust, hip thrust, pose. Again, step-touch-step-cross, hip thrust, hip thrust, hip thrust, pose. Good, you're getting it."

It was amazing. Here was her shy, introverted son, still in his uniform dress, practicing a dance routine with a lovely young woman and having the time of his life.

"Oh, hi, Dr Martin," Robin said, a bit surprised to see the Chancellor watching them. "I'm sorry if we made a mess. We'll put everything back when we're done."

"Not a problem, girls," Dean's mother chuckled. "I was enjoying watching you dance. You've learned a lot in just three weeks."

"We've learned a lot more than I can remember," Dean said, laughing. "Luckily, Robin remembers everything."

"Actually, the dance moves are pretty simple. I've taken dance since I was, like, four or so. Once you get used to remembering the sequences, it all gets easier." She looked at Dean. "Trust me, by the time the show opens, you won't even be thinking about what your feet are doing. It'll all be second nature."

"I hope so," Dean muttered, uncertain.

"Oh, Geez!" Robin said, looking at her smart watch. "I gotta run. My mom is outside with my older sister in the car. She has a class at the community college in like twenty minutes."

"Don't worry about the furniture," Dr Martin said, "Deedee and I can put it back."

Robin kissed Dean's cheek. "You did great! See you tomorrow! Love you!" She grabbed her coat and ran to the door.

"Love you, too!" Dean said just before she exited.

As he and his mother started to put the furniture back where it belonged, Dr Martin said, "I thought you were doing very well with the dance."

"Thanks. I'm really trying hard. The choreographer told me that I was looking a lot better, but I'm still having a hard time remembering what comes next as I'm doing it. Does that make sense?"

"Perfect sense," his mother smiled, "but if anyone is good at learning new skills, it's you Deedee. You'll do fine."

"What do you mean?"

Dr Martin stopped what she was doing and put a hand on each of Dean's shoulders and smiled. "Deanne... do you remember what you were like on New Year's Day when I told you that I had gotten this job and what I needed you to do so that you could attend Greenwood? That day, I was looking into the eyes of an introverted, petrified boy who kept saying that there was no way he could do what I was asking. Now... you're a completely different person. You're an outgoing, confident girl with lots of friends, and I know this is not nearly as big a deal as the other things, but you are better at doing your hair and makeup than I am. You're a phenomenon, sweetie. I am so, so, so proud of you."

Dean smiled, just a bit. "Thank you, mom."

"I'm serious, baby, and what I meant was, if you can do all of those things, then you can certainly do what you need to do for this show."

Dean's smile broadened a bit. "Wow, mom. Two compliments in one day. I think this is a first."

Dr Martin chuckled at that, then pulled him in for a hug. "Come here," she smiled. "I do love you, you know."

"Of course, I know, mom."

"Good," she smiled as she hugged him tighter and kissed his forehead.
 

~^~
 

"Hi, Amy, it's Frank. How are you?"

"I'm great, Frank. Where are you?" Amelia Wilson replied to her ex-husband. It was an odd time of day for him to be calling. He usually called in the evening, but it was not even noon yet.

"Actually, I'm in Boston," he laughed. "My flight was delayed in London and I missed my connector to Manitoba. I'm waiting for the next flight - actually, trying to work out something earlier, actually. I just thought I'd call and see how things are."

"Everything is great," she replied, happily. "Dean's very happy, he says the rehearsals for the show are going very well and his grades are excellent."

"Well, his grades were always better than either yours or mine ever were in high school," her ex laughed. "Tell him I'm proud of him though. Geez, I wish I could see that show, but from Manitoba I'm off to the wilderness. I'll be there for at least a month with only the Internet to connect me to the real world. Tell him how sorry I am about that."

And there it was... he was sorry, but unwilling to do anything to change. That was exactly why they weren't married anymore. Oh, well, no need to rehash all of that at that moment. "Ok. I'll tell him."

"Alright, Amy, I know you're working, so I'll let you go. Love you."

"Love you, too, Frank," she smiled. She truly did love him, but he sure brought a lot of baggage along with him - even when he was just calling in to check on her.

"We need to see each other, soon, Amy. I really miss you."

Ok, that was odd. Had Frank visited The Wizard and gotten a heart? "Sure, Frank," she said, knowing full well a meeting would never be arranged. "Let me know when you're available and we'll work something out."

"Alright." He sounded oddly sad and lonely. "Bye, bye."

"Bye, bye, Frank," she said and hung up the phone, but she stared at it for a solid minute, wondering what was going on with him, before she went back to her huge pile of paperwork.
 

~^~
 

"Mit keresek, enn itt? Azt mondjok, hogy lakem lefogta a ferjemet en meg lecsaptam a fejet." Dean said, passionately, as he clung to the bars of the small cell-door that was meant to indicate a prison. Each of the Cell Block Tango Girls had a similar set piece that they used in that scene. Dean stepped around it and implored the imaginary audience beyond the stage as he continued. "De nem igaz, en artatlan vagyok. Nem tudom ert mondja Uncle Sam hogy en tetten. Probaltam a rendorsegen megmagyarazni de nem ertettek meg..."

"Yeah, but did you do it?" The girl playing the role of June asked.

In his best Hungarian accent, Dean continued. "Uh uh. Not guilty."

The rest of the cast erupted in applause. It was the first time Dean had made it through the entire speech without looking at his script or calling for a line. He looked as if he knew what he was saying, which he did - he had looked up the speech online and found out what the character was saying - and he'd acted as if he was an innocent woman who was unable to plead her case due to a language barrier. It was a huge step forward in his progress as an actor.

Donna Linkletter had the next speech within the song. Instead of following her direction, she stepped forward, crossed the stage and actually pushed Dean out of the way to take center stage, nearly knocking him to the floor.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Ms Highland shouted, stopping the rehearsal. "Donna, just what the hell was that?"

"What do you mean, Ms Highland?" The senior asked innocently.

"You know your blocking, Donna," the teacher scolded, using the theatrical term of 'blocking,' meaning when and where an actor was meant to move. "Deedee ends her monologue stage center, then you start yours from stage right. Spotlight one goes out on Deedee as spotlight two comes up on you. Then, as you're speaking, she moves back as you slowly cross to stage center and finish there. Then, when the next refrain begins, the lights come up and the girls are all behind you. So - what just happened? Why were you stage center and why did you nearly knock Deedee down?"

The rich girl sighed as if the teacher's questions were a burden. "I don't know, Ms Highland. I guess that I was so shocked that little Deanne made it through her speech that I couldn't remember my blocking. Sorry."

"Don't apologize to me, Donna. Apologize to Deedee."

Donna glanced at Dean with a smirk on her face. "Sorry," she said completely unbelievably.

Dean just shook his head and looked at Ms Highland to see what she wanted to do.

"Alright," the teacher/director sighed. "Deedee, great job on the speech. Let's back it up to June's line, 'But did you do it?' then Deedee, you say your 'not guilty' line and we'll move on from there."

Dean nodded and moved back to stage center as Donna walked passed him and made a point of stepping very close to him in an intimidating way.

"Donna," Ms Highland sighed again. "Knock it off. We're all here for the same reason: to do a good show. So, join the team and start being a role model for good, rather than the this bizarre example of 'What Not To Do While In A Show' you've chosen to be recently. Have I made myself clear?"

Donna just rolled her eyes.

"I asked you a question, Donna, and I expect an answer."

"Whatever," Donna Linkletter muttered and waved off the teacher.

"That's it," Ms Highland said, slamming her hand on the stage. "I have had enough of your nonsense Miss Linkletter. Go home, Donna, and don't come back unless or until you've decided to act your age."

"You can't be serious," Donna laughed, cockily, but with a bit of uncertainty.

"Leave now or I will just replace you today."

The self appointed 'star' of Greenwood Academy stood in shock for a good long moment before she spoke. "This is just because that little..." she wanted to use a harsher word, but settled on "... CHILD... is the Chancellor's kid!"

"No, Donna, this is because you have been behaving like an over privileged jerk since the auditions. As a matter of fact, I probably let this go on longer than I should have BECAUSE Deedee is the Chancellor's daughter and I didn't want to appear to be playing favorites. I kept hoping that you'd get past all this nonsense and start behaving like the intelligent, talented young woman that I know you can be. But that hasn't happened, so... just leave and come back when you've gotten your head together. Leave, now."

Donna scowled at the teacher, then at Dean before storming down the stairs on the side of the stage. She grabbed her coat and backpack, then looked at the girls in her entourage. "Well? Come on." She demanded.

The girls looked at each other, but didn't move. Finally, one of the girls said, "I'm sorry, Donna, but if I leave over this, my mom will kill me." The other girls nodded in agreement.

"Seriously!?" Donna asked, amazed that her reign as the queen bee of Greenwood Academy was coming to an end right there and then. "Fine! Stay here with all these losers, then. I'm done with all of you." She stopped for a moment and pointed at Dean. "Except you, little girl. I'm not done with you. Not by a long shot." Then she turned on her heel and stormed out, slamming every door she could as she stormed through the school.

Ms Highland took a deep breath and let it out. "Alright, ladies and gentlemen. That's over with. Now, back to rehearsal. Deedee, take it from, 'Not Guilty,' please. Stage manager, please read Velma's lines for the rest of today's rehearsal. Is everyone in their proper places? Excellent. Deedee, go ahead."

The rest of the rehearsal had a bit of a pall cast on it because of the to-do that had already occurred, so energy was low and mistakes that had never occurred before were popping up everywhere.

About an hour before the scheduled end of the rehearsal, a woman came in and spoke to Ms Highland. Dean recognized the woman as the costumer. She'd come by in the second week of rehearsals and took everyone's measurements and told them what clothing items they'd need to purchase. For Dean, his purchases included a black bra and panty set for The Cell Block Tango as well as a pair of black, heeled character shoes for most of the show and a pair of cream colored, ballet slippers for the scene in which his character, The Hunyak, is executed. That last scene is a weird moment for which the choreographer had taught Dean a little bit of ballet. He had a rope that he'd use as a prop and which would eventually be a noose. He'd do his ballet dance, which included two back-flips, and then there was a very theatrical 'hanging' of his character. It was very hard for him to conceive of how this was all going to work, but Ms Highland assured him he was doing great and the audience would love it.

Anyway - the costumer spoke to the director for a few minutes, and then Ms Highland said, "Alright, boys and girls, listen up! I think we've pretty much exhausted today's supply of energy and concentration, so I'm going to call it a day for us. Tomorrow is Friday, so no rehearsal, but we shall reconvene on Monday and pick things up from here."

There were some relieved mumbles from the cast, who were all happy to end the train wreck that the rehearsal had become.

"Now, before you go," Ms Highland continued, "I need just a few people to see our costumer, Mrs Hayes, to try on a few things. Jason, Natalie and Deedee, please meet Mrs Hayes in the costume room right now. Everyone else is free to go. Thank you, all." Then, she turned to the music director and said, "It might be prudent to have a 'swing' performer ready to step in, should Donna become an even bigger problem down the road."

"Who did you have in mind?"

"Well, Jane Elliot is a senior, she's very talented and could probably do it. We didn't consider her because she was going to be away for several weeks, but now those plans have changed. I'll talk to her."

"Well, you should probably tell her to keep quiet about it. Donna and her parents will raise holy hell if they find out you've done that."

Ms Highland snickered with an exhausted sound. "Tomorrow they'll be raising holy hell, anyway."

Dean left the stage and headed to the costume room, kissing the cheeks of Robin and Jade along the way. The thought of being with the costumer was a bit stress inducing for Dean, of course, since she was the only person other than his friends to touch him since he'd taken up his disguise and he was scared to death that he would be found out.

Dean arrived in the dressing room third. Natalie, who was in the chorus, but played the character of 'Kitty,' a new murderess, at the end of the play, was just exiting with a dress to try on as Dean entered. Jason was a freshman from St John's was playing 'Mary Sunshine,' a drag part. Mrs Hayes was handing him a dress as Dean entered. "Take it home and try it on with the bra that your mother bought you," the costumer instructed. "Have her take pictures from every angle and email them to me."

"Ok," Jason said, oddly excited at the prospect of crossdressing. Dean certainly hadn't been excited when he was first told he needed to. Of course, he wasn't just doing it for a show for a weekend.

"Oh, Deedee," Mrs Hayes smiled. "Take a look at this. What do you think? I think it's perfect."

The costumer held out a hanger from which hung a timeless looking, cream colored, high waisted, scoop neckline dress with tiny cap sleeves, an Aline skirt and built in petticoats. It also dripped with gorgeous, cream colored lace.

Dean had worn a lace dress before, in fact he'd worn it to the reception for his mother's arrival at Greenwood, but that just had a little lace, and he had no desire to wear that dress that night, but now things had changed.

Now, he had developed an appreciation of women's clothing and now... this dress looked amazing to him and now... he wanted to wear that dress and he wanted to wear it NOW!

"It's beautiful," he said in abject admiration of the dress.

"I'm glad you like it," Mrs Hayes smiled. "Go try it on and I'll meet you on stage."

Dean took the dress and hurried to the girl's dressing room, where Natalie was just leaving, now wearing the dress he'd seen her carrying while leaving the costume room. It was a blue flapper's dress with fringe all over it that bounced when she moved.

"Wow," Dean said when he saw her. "You look amazing in that."

"Thanks," Natalie smiled, happy with the compliment. "Is that your dress for Cell Block Tango?"

"No, my execution," Dean giggled at the silliness of that sentence.

"Oh," Natalie giggled too. "Well, you'll make a beautiful corpse, I guess."

"Thanks," Dean laughed some more and went into the girls' dressing room to change.

"I like it," Ms Highland was saying about Natalie's costume as Dean arrived in the audience. "It's a bold color. She'll look like a murderess. Thank you, Natalie. All set. Just get changed and leave that dress in the costume room."

As she exited the stage, Dean climbed the stairs and walked over to where Mrs Hayes was waiting.

"Oh, that is gorgeous!" Ms Highland complimented. "Deedee, you almost look like a bride in that dress. Do you like it?"

"I love it," Dean smiled, touching it. "It's beautiful."

"It is, and you look beautiful in it," Mrs Hayes said, kindly.

"You do, Deedee," Ms Highland smiled. "You look very grownup."

"Thank you," Dean gushed.

"I'll tell you what," the director said, "you've had a tough day and I bet your mom would love see you in that dress. So, I am going to let you wear it home just this one time. What do you think?"

"I think my mom would love that, Ms Highland," Dean said with a grin.

"Ok," the teacher smiled, "but no eating or drinking while wearing it and it goes on a hanger when you take it off - which is ten minutes after mom sees it."

"Yes, ma'am," Dean said with a mile-wide-smile across his face. He hurried down from the stage, grabbed his coat and backpack and was nearly to the door when Ms Highland shouted, "Don't forget your uniform!"

"Oops!" Dean laughed at his own lapse of consciousness. It was just that the dress had him incredibly excited. "Thank you!" He ran to the dressing room and grabbed his uniform blouse and jumper then made a beeline for the exit.

He was nearly to the front door when someone shouted from behind him, "Deedee! Wait up!"

He turned and saw Willie jogging down the hallway to meet him. "Whew!" He breathed, exaggerating his effort. "I didn't call my mom to pick me up early because I wanted to walk you home in case Donna got it into her head to..." his words stopped as he got close enough to get a good, clear look at Dean. "Wow... Dee... you look... I mean... that dress... you're... beautiful."

Dean could tell that Willie was a little uncomfortable saying that sentence and that made the boy look even more attractive to Dean. Both of them blushed and just stared at each other for a long moment before Dean whispered, "Thanks."

They stood there another few moments before Willie cleared his throat and said, "Umm... come on. I'll walk you home."

Dean slipped his coat on and took Willie's hand.
 

~^~
 

"The goal of educational excellence is a long and cherished tradition at Greenwood Academy," The Chancellor said from the podium of the banquet hall at the local country club. She was speaking to the local Rotary Club in the hopes of engaging local businesses in supporting the school. "This tradition is only going to grow stronger under my leadership. The girls at Greenwood go on to schools like Harvard, Yale, Brown, Dartmouth and Stamford. They become leaders in the fields of science, economics, education and the arts. They defy the societal norms of 'a woman in a man's world.' They benefit their community while attending Greenwood and beyond..." she was only four minutes into a fifteen minute speech and she was getting more passionate with every breath.
 

~^~
 

Dean unlocked the door to the house and called out, "Mom!?" The lights were on, but the house was silent.

Dean dropped his backpack, coat and uniform on the deacon's bench in the hallway and continued to the kitchen, Willie following dutifully. "Mom?"

That's when he saw the note on the counter. He picked it up and read it. "Oh... my mom is at a meeting in town. I kind of wanted to surprise her with this dress, but..."

His words ended abruptly because, unexpectedly, someone had placed their warm, soft lips on his and wrapped their arms around him, tightly. Dean assumed that it was Willie, but since his eyes were closed, he wasn't one hundred percent sure. That is, until the kiss ended and he opened his eyes to see Willie's face about two inches from his own.

It was incredibly romantic for about five seconds, and then Willie suddenly looked embarrassed.

"I... I'm sorry," he said, his eyes darting around the room. "I was just... I mean... you just looked so beautiful and I've wanted to... you know... I mean... we're never, like, alone and I've really wanted to kiss you, but there's always someone, Robin, or Jade, or..."

His speech was interrupted when Dean stood on his tip toes and planted his lips firmly on Willie's.

"So you're not mad that I kissed you?" Willie asked when he could breath again.

"Not at all," Dean smiled.
 

~^~
 

"Dr Martin," an older man with very little hair and a bright red nose called out his question, "Greenwood Academy is not a public school and doesn't 'serve' the community the way a public school would. Why should the Rotarians offer financial support to a school that already receives rather exorbitant fees from the parents of their student body?"

The Chancellor was prepared for this question. "That is an excellent question, and although we are not a public school, eighty-two-percent of our students come from this community or from immediately adjourning communities. The parents of our students are your customers. The regional high school is fine, but it is a long way from Greenwood, and their graduation rate, test scores and college acceptance rate is much, much lower than ours. Your donations would give girls from the greater Greenwood community the opportunity to attend Greenwood Academy at a reduced rate, or possibly at no cost at all..." her answer went on for another three minutes or more.
 

~^~
 

'God, how do people drive on roads like this," he thought as he cautiously maneuvered through the western Massachusetts twilight. 'The trees encroach on the road everywhere and they wind so badly that I can't see around the next bend. When an oncoming car appears, it's so dark that it's headlights are blinding. Lord, I've driven through roads in the Brazilian rainforest that were better engineered than this."

"At the next stop sign, turn left," the GPS on his phone directed.

"Yes, ma'am," he replied aloud. He was used to having conversations with his phone or tablet. He was alone most of the time and figured it was better to have a machine to talk to than no one at all.

He took the left at the stop sign. "Continue on this road for three miles. Then your destination is on the left."

"Thank you, my good lady," he replied.
 

~^~
 

An excellent presentation, Dr Martin," the red nosed man exclaimed, shaking Amelia's hand briskly. "Very well done. Our financial officer will be in touch with the school about creating a scholarship or two in our name."

"That's wonderful," the Chancellor said with a broad grin. "Thank you so much."

"Not at all, not at all," red nose smiled. "Will you be staying for dinner?"

"Oh, thank you, but no," she said. She'd actually been unaware that they were having a dinner after her presentation and had not told Dean that she'd be out late. "I have to get home. I have a daughter to feed. If I leave her to her own accord, she'd eat Ramen noodles every night and end up with high blood pressure by the time she's sixteen."

Red nose laughed. "I understand. Thank you for coming and for being so well prepared. I'm sure we'll be seeing each other again very soon."
 

~^~
 

All along the route, he'd noticed the big, old houses on the sides of the road. "There must have been some real money here at some point," he said to no one. "There must still be some around just to heat these mansions," he said, again to no one.

They weren't mansions, really. They were just big old houses, and, yes, there had been a lot of money there before the state built a huge reservoir to provide water to the Boston area, cutting off the trade roads through Greenwood, and, yes, there was plenty of money there now for the people who wanted to live in a quiet, somewhat secluded, rural community. That was why there were so many private schools nearby as well. To serve these wealthier families.

"Your destination is on the left," his phone advised. He took a left into the driveway. "Arrived."

"Damn!" He said rather loudly. "This place is gorgeous. I can't wait to see it in the light of day. It looks like an Ivy League college!"

He followed the signs to 'The Chancellor's House' and found a massive Victorian structure set to the far end of the campus' buildings. "Damn, Amy, you're moving up in the world, aren't you?"

He parked his car in the driveway and got out. He grabbed his overnight bag from the backseat and walked up the steps to the front door. He was about to knock, when he noticed that the door was just slightly ajar. Cool! This would make his arrival an even bigger surprise.

He pushed the door open, quietly and walked into the house. It was a grand place with a formal entry. That was where he noticed something puzzling. There was a girl's school uniform abandoned and laying on top of a backpack on the deacon's bench in the foyer. Hmm, was his son up to a little 'no-good'?

He heard a noise in a nearby room and he peeked in to see a boy and a girl kissing passionately on a loveseat. He was relieved to see that the girl was dressed. She was wearing a very elaborate, lace dress. No wonder his son was attracted to her. Even though he couldn't see their faces, he could tell that the girl had an attractive body. Skinny, but attractive.

He thought for a moment about clearing his throat to get their attention, or maybe knocking on the door frame, but finally decided to go back outside, give them five or ten minutes to have their fun and then ring the door bell. After all, his son was well on his way to becoming a man, apparently, and later this evening, while Amy was out of the room, he could have 'the talk' with his son. Yes. That was a good plan. It was funny how the universe had gotten him to the perfect time and place to finally be a good dad.

He quietly left the foyer and went back out the front door, closing it quietly behind him.
 

~^~
 

It had been a successful evening. Many Rotary Club members were on board with scholarships and they even bought lots of full page ads in the program for the school's upcoming production of the musical, "Chicago." Dr Martin felt pretty darned good about herself. Life was good.

That is, until she started up the drive to her house. There was an unfamiliar car and her driveway and the silhouette of a man walking down her front stairs. What the hell!? Panicked because her child should be coming home - or was home - right about now, she sped up and pulled into the driveway, parking behind the intruder's vehicle so he couldn't escape.

She leapt from her car and approached the man as he walked towards his car. "Excuse me! Can I help you!? It is well past business hours and I have a strict policy about separating my work time and my home life. I do not see parents in my home and I..." she stopped, stared, shocked. "Frank?"

"Hi, Amy," the man grinned.

"Frank. Wha... what are you doing here?" The full weight of the situation suddenly landed on her shoulders. She hadn't told him and he certainly couldn't find out this way! She needed him to leave and leave now.

"I was in Boston with fifteen hours to spare, so I thought I'd come see my favorite ex-wife and my son." His smile showed no indication that he was aware of Dean's transformation. Good.

"Oh, well... that's... wonderful, Frank. Unfortunately, Dean is not at home tonight, and... Hey! Tell, you what! There's a great little restaurant in town. Jump in my car and I'll take you out for a nice dinner." She smiled as she tried to hide her panic.

Frank's face screwed up in a confused expression. "What do you mean 'Dean's not home?' I just saw him in the house."

"You saw Dean!?" She sounded almost panicked and Frank reacted as anyone would.

"Yeah. He was with a girl and I didn't want to interrupt. At least I THOUGHT it was Dean. I left pretty quickly. They were necking in your living room."

"Necking!?"

"Yeah. Making out. You know. Hey, if that's not Dean, then you have an intruder in there. Amy, call the cops. I'll go grab the two kids and hold them till the cops get here."

"Frank, wait!" She hollered, but he was running up the stairs already. She tried to catch up, but she was in a pencil skirt and wearing three inch heels. She couldn't stop him.

Frank burst through the door and into the living room shouting, "Alright you two, just what the hell do you think you..."

That's as far as he got before Dean shouted, "Dad!?" in involuntary shock, as he leapt off the loveseat and stood, looking as cute as a button in his cream colored lace dress.

"What?" Frank said, seeing a little something in the face of this little, teen girl that kind of looked like Dean did the last time Frank had seen him on a FaceTime call at Christmas time. "Dean?" he muttered. "What's going on here?"

At that point, finally, Dr Martin arrived, breathless and rushed. She surveyed the scene and looked at the two teenagers, surprised. "Deedee? What's happening here? Who is this boy?"

Dean stood in silence, looking from his father to his mother to William, not knowing what to say.

Willie jumped up and turned to face his girlfriend's parents. "Hi, Dr Martin... Mr Martin. I'm Willie." He extended his hand, but neither adult accepted it. "I... ummm... Look... We had a little bit of a... thing... happen at rehearsal and we quit a little early. I walked Deedee home, just... you know... to be sure she was ok. I guess I got... well... carried away, I guess... and I'm sorry. This was all my fault. Please... don't be mad at Deedee."

"Deedee?" Frank asked his wife, his face a mask of confusion.

Amelia looked at her ex-husband and shook her head in a 'not now' gesture. Then, to Willie, she said, "Well, Willie, thank you for walking Deedee home, but I think it's time that you left now so that we can talk."

"Yes, ma'am," the boy nodded, walking into the foyer and grabbing his coat.

"What the hell is going on here, Amy?" Frank said, but she held up her hand to stop him from speaking.

Before he walked out the door, Willie turned and looked at the three people still standing in the living room. "Dr Martin... Mr Martin... I am sorry we met this way, but... Deedee's a really special girl. I mean... she's not like any other girl I ever met and... well... she just wanted to show you that dress she's wearing in the show and the rest, well, that was my fault. I mean it. All my fault. And I'm sorry."

"Thank you, William." Dean's mother said, without much warmth. "I'm sure we will see each other soon, but for now, I think it's best that you go."

"Yes, ma'am." He nodded sadly and exited the house.

There was an uncomfortable silence in the house for about ten seconds before Frank said, "Would somebody mind telling me just what the fuck is going on?"

Amelia looked at her ex-husband and took a very authoritative tone. "Use that word in my house one more time and I will call campus security and have you escorted from the premises."

"Alright, I apologize for that," Frank said, "but you have to admit, I have a right to be upset. I walk in to find my son looking like a little girl and making out with a boy..."

"Wrong," she snapped. "You don't have a RIGHT to anything, Frank. You haven't been Deedee's FATHER for years, and when I asked you to help out for a few months so that I could take this job, you made it clear that your career was more important than your family. So, your rights as a parent are moot and have no bearing on this situation. This is between my daughter and me."

"WHAT!?" Frank burst out. "Amy, you don't have a daughter! You've dressed our son up and made him into some kind of a little doll, but he's still our son!"

"Now, just a minute..." Amelia started and continued in a raised voice.

"Don't start acting like you're my principal or something, Amy..." Frank shouted over her.

"No, I'm not," Dean said in a quiet voice, but the adults kept shouting at each other.

"No, I'm not!" He said louder while they shouted some more.

"NO, I'M NOOOOOOOT!" He shouted in a loud, sustained voice.

Both parents stopped and looked at him.

"What?" His mother asked.

"I'm not her son... or your son... or anyone's son," he said, quietly. "Not any more."

"What do you mean?" She asked.

He sat in a chair that faced them both and spoke in a steady voice, as honestly as he could. "Mom... this was all supposed to just be for a few weeks. 'One school semester,' you said. 'Just twenty weeks.' But it isn't, mom. It's turned into a lot more. It's... changed me. A lot. You even said so, more than once. I'm not the same kid I was when I got here and I don't want to go back to being that kid ever again."

"What are you saying, Deedee? Are you saying that... you're identifying as a girl, now?" His mother took a seat on the love seat.

"Oh come on!" Frank said, shaking his head. "Your mother puts you in a dress and suddenly you think you're a girl!? Dean! You're a boy. You've always been a boy. You'll always be a boy and nothing can change that. Now, from what I've seen, you're having some gay feelings, but you'll outgrow that, I'm sure. You just need to get out of this place and out of those clothes..."

"Oh, my God, will you please shut up!?" Dr Martin shouted. "Just sit and listen and don't comment on things you know nothing about."

'Oh, for Christ's sake," he said as he flopped into a chair, looking very irritated.

"Go on, honey," she said to Dean.

He nodded, "I... don't know if I identify as a girl or not, to be honest, but I do know that I'm not a boy anymore."

"Meaning?" She asked, sounding a bit too clinical, but Dean was used to that.

He sighed. "Mom... I... I... I never really felt like one of the boys, but... I love being one of the girls, and... well... part of me knows that I'm just pretending, but another part of me never wants to stop pretending."

She nodded and waited and eventually, Dean spoke some more.

"When we first got here... the idea of being a girl for just twenty weeks scared me to death, but now... I don't want to lose my friends when the school year ends. They mean too much to me."

"Yeah," Frank scoffed, "friends like that gay boy I caught you kissing? I can see why you wouldn't want to lose him."

"Willie isn't gay, dad. He thinks I'm a girl and he likes me because of that."

His father scowled some more and shook his head in disgust.

"I'm not gay either. I mean... I never really thought about girls, but I never thought about boys until I started being a girl."

"So..." his mother was cautious, "... you're feeling... attracted... to boys, now?"

He shrugged. "I'm feeling a lot, mom. A lot more than I ever felt before and it's all very confusing for me."

"Like what?"

Dean thought for a moment. "Like... I love feeling pretty, now. Like... it's really important to me to look just right everyday. I want to look pretty for myself and... my friends... and..."

"And Willie?"

He nodded. "Mostly for Willie, I guess, but... that's not all. I feel... really jealous of all the girls at school."

"Jealous because they're girls and you're not?"

He nodded. "Mom... I see them move and I see their breasts jiggle and I'm so envious of it. I hear them talking about having children when they're older and I feel like crying. I just... ache when I think that their lives will always be filled with beauty and love and flowers and softness and mine..."

He looked up and his eyes were brimming with wetness.

"... mine won't."

He stood and toyed with the skirts and petticoats of his cream lace dress, fluffing it a bit. "When I tried this dress on, all I wanted to do was show you how beautiful it was and tell you how pretty I felt in it. I had a really bad day at rehearsal and Ms Highland seemed to sense I was upset, so she let me wear it home to show you."

"And Willie?" His mother asked. "And what happened here? What about all of that?"

Dean shrugged, sighed and shook his head. "I don't know, mom. I guess... I just felt really pretty and grown up and he... he said I was... beautiful. I don't think he even meant to kiss me. He just did and... I guess I just kissed him back, and... well... then dad caught us. That's all that happened, though, I swear it. I mean..." he let out a sad, divisive laugh, "what else could have happened, anyway?"

Dr Martin nodded and let put a deep exhale. "Quite a bit, actually, and some of it might have been very bad, Deedee." She shook her head and stood. "So... to start with, I need you to promise me that you won't be doing that kind of kissing again... at least not until you're older. Ok?"

"Yes, ma'am," he nodded, looking at the floor.

"As for what you're feeling..." She thought for a moment. "I think we need to discuss all of this more fully, but we should do it when we're not all so upset."

He nodded again.

"Now... what do you mean when you say you had a bad day at rehearsal?"

Dean gave his mother a brief summary of Donna Linkletter's behavior. "So, Donna and Ms Highland got really mad at each other and Ms Linkletter sent her home. That's why we had a shorter rehearsal and why Willie walked me home - just in case Donna was waiting for me."

The Chancellor sighed. "Well, I guess I know what my day is going to be like tomorrow."

"It wasn't my fault, mom! I didn't do anything."

"I know, but I've already had meetings with the Linkletters about their precious, innocent, little, demon of a daughter. I'm sure tomorrow will be loads of fun."

"May I ask a question?" Frank finally spoke.

Amelia nodded.

"If I were to put everything on hold, right now, and took Dean home with me tonight, put him back into boys' clothes and enrolled him in a good public school in San Diego, would everyone be ok with that?"

His ex-wife felt that the offer was not only misguided, it really was a little too little and a little too late, but rather than say those things, she looked at Dean. "I'll leave that up to you."

He thought for a moment before he replied, "Dad... I'm sorry, but that's not what I want."

Dr Martin felt strangely relieved.

"What EXACTLY do you want, then?" Frank asked.

"Honestly... I don't know," Dean replied. "But I know that I want to be here... with the girls and with Willie, though."

"You can't be serious?" Frank asked, shocked by the answer.

Amelia, though, just wanted to put an end to the conversation for the moment. "Alright, I think we've discussed this as much as we can for this evening. Why don't you go get changed and I'll make you a little something for dinner."

Dean nodded and walked sadly to the stairs to go to his room. He had just put one foot on the first stair when he heard his mother say, "Oh, and Deedee..."

"Yes?"

"That is a beautiful dress and you look lovely in it."

"Thank you," he replied, a small smile appearing on his face in spite of the stress he was feeling. He went up to change.

"Goddamn it," Frank muttered. "If I'd been a better father, this would never have happened."

"Quite possibly," his ex-wife agreed.

"Oh, well, thanks," he said, shaking his head.

"Well, let's be honest, Frank. If you'd helped me out the one time I asked you to, then I never would have had to forced our son into this deception. Then he never would have explored the world from a girl's point of view, made friends of girls and found that he had feelings for a boy."

Frank nodded.

"Or..." she continued, "...had I not led him down this path, he may still have found that he had feelings for boys, not had the support of friends, not felt comfortable enough to talk to me about it and things could have gone very badly from there. We can't rewrite history, Frank. What has happened has happened and we have no choice but to move forward from here."

He shook his head. "I don't know, Amy. I just don't know. You seem to be able to just rationalize this whole... weird... situation. I don't understand how or why it happened and I am not sure that I can leave my son in the care of a woman who would allow it to happen."

Dr Martin's eyes narrowed and when she spoke, she lowered her voice so that Dean wouldn't hear what she had to say. "Now, you listen to me, Francis Martin. Fourteen years ago, you made it very clear to me that neither your infant son nor your wife were as important to you as your career. I cried and I begged for you to stay with us, but you ignored me and walked out the door. I didn't hear from you for three years, Frank. Three years! Then you called and wanted to be friends. Ok, fine. Let's be friends, but did you want to interact with your own child? No! Video chats on birthdays and Christmas and nothing else. Frank, I still have very strong feelings for you, but as someone who loves you, I have to say - you are about the shittiest excuse for a parent that I have ever seen."

"Me?" Frank looked more surprised than hurt. "At least I didn't turn my son into a gay little sissy!"

"At least I was there when he needed me, Frank. I fed him, I clothed him, I raised him and I did it alone."

"You put him in a position that required him to be a girl, Amy!"

"And YOU put ME in the position of having to do that. You're not some innocent bystander in this situation, Frank. You left me to deal with our child by myself and when I asked for a little help, you said 'no.' So, don't get all high and mighty with me." She took a step closer. "And if you EVER refer to my child as a sissy again, I will slap your face raw."

She took a breath and shook her head to calm herself. Finally, she stepped away and asked, "When does you flight leave?"

"Tomorrow at four in the afternoon."

She nodded and thought for a moment. "We have a comfortable couch if you want to use it. We're a long way from a hotel here, it's supposed to rain and I don't want you driving on unfamiliar dark roads in bad weather and in a bad mood. The couch is yours if you want it."

He nodded. "Thanks, Amy. That's very nice of you."

"Well," she sighed, "despite everything that just happened, I'd like us to be some kind of a family, Frank, and I'd really like you to get to know your child."
 

~^~
 

"No, Mrs Linkletter, I did not insult your daughter," Ms Highland said as she, Donna Linkletter's mother & father and Dean's mother all sat in The Chancellor's office before school started the next morning. "Donna was behaving very inappropriately and very aggressively towards another student, and I dealt with it in a swift and appropriate manner. I told Donna to leave and not return until she was ready to behave in a polite and constructive manner. Believe me, Mrs Linkletter, I gave her more than enough opportunities to behave correctly before taking any action."

"You ask us to believe you, Ms Highland," Donna's father said, sounding aloof and superior, "but our daughter's version of the story is very, very different than yours and, to be very honest, we're more inclined to believe her than you."

"And what is your daughter's version, Mr Linkletter?" Chancellor Martin asked.

He glanced at his wife and she took over. "Well, according to Donna, you've been giving this new girl preferential treatment because she happens to be Dr Martin's daughter and that this new girl has been disrupting rehearsal after rehearsal without your intervention. Well, of course, our Donna has worked with professional groups and she had had enough of the time wasting, so she took matters into her own hands because you were ignoring the situation."

"Before Ms Linkletter responds," the Chancellor spoke, "I'd just like to point out that the 'new girl,' my daughter, is named Deanne or Deedee. Unless there is another 'new girl,' I'd appreciate it if we used her correct name."

Mrs Linkletter looked away, scowled and gave a subtle, well rehearsed eye roll, but didn't say anything else for the time being.

"Mr and Mrs Linkletter," Ms Highland said, calmly and steadily, "as talented as Donna is, playing roles at Theater on the Lake, or at Stage Haven hardly qualifies as 'professional theater,' and I guarantee you that, if she were to behave as poorly at those rehearsals as she did in yesterday's, she would never be cast in a local production again."

"Well, I guess it's your word against Donna's," Mr Linkletter said, "and as I've already made very clear, we are more inclined to believe Donna.

The Chancellor grunted quietly as she sat forward. "Maybe we should speak to another party, then. Someone else who was there and can give us a new perspective."

"Your daughter?" Mrs Linkletter asked. "Oh, I'm sorry... Deanne?

She over pronounced the name, but Dr Martin let that pass. "No. I will have several random cast members called to to the office. Our assistant Chancellor, Mrs Olsen, will ask the cast members a few questions to clarify what happened. We will set up a phone with a video feed turned on. We'll all sit right here while Mrs Olsen speaks to the cast members in her office and we'll hear what the cast members have to say. How does that sound?"

Mrs Highland nodded her agreement while the Linkletters looked at each other . "That will be acceptable," Mr Linkletter nodded.
 

~^~
 

Dean sat at the counter in the kitchen eating a Clementine while trying to avoid getting any of the fruit's juices onto his blouse or jumper. His hair and makeup was already done, since he'd learned how to do it himself over the past several weeks, but he still expected the girls to show up soon. He'd told them to come in quietly since his father would probably still be asleep in the living room.

He needn't have sent the text, though, because as he placed a Clementine wedge into his mouth, he heard his father entering the kitchen.

"Good morning," his father said, a groggily.

"Hi," Dean replied, not overly thrilled to be having a conversation with a man he felt didn't distant from. "There's milk and orange juice in the fridge. There's bacon and eggs, too, if you want something more filling. Bread's in the breadbox if you want toast and there's cereal in that cabinet. Just Cheerios and Total."

He nodded. "How about coffee?"

"There's K cups in that little spinning thing next to the coffee maker, right behind you."

He nodded, again. He took a K cup and put it into the machine, grabbed a mug from the strainer and placed it on the platform below the machine's spout, pushed the 'brew' button, then turned and leaned against the counter while the mug filled.

"So..." Frank said, "... how is school going?"

"Great, actually," Dean shrugged. "I'm doing well in all my classes."

"Good... good," Frank nodded, feeling very uncomfortable as well. "Look, Dean..."

"Deedee," Dean corrected.

Frank took a breath and started again. "Look... Deedee... I know that we haven't had a great relationship and that last night was... awkward, to say the least, but... I am your father and I would like to be a part of your life."

Dean half shrugged and half nodded at that. "I'd like that, too, dad, but you need to accept me as I am. I'm not even sure who or what that is right now, but if you want to be my dad, then you have to be patient and let me figure that out for myself."

Frank nodded and picked up his now full coffee mug. "Ok. I can do that."

Just then, they heard the sound of quiet foot steps in the front hall and a door being pushed closed as quietly as possible.

"It's ok," Dean called from the kitchen. "He's awake."

"Oh, hi," Jade said as she entered the kitchen more tentatively than her usual explosion of energy. "You must be Dee's dad. I'm Jade. This is Robin."

Frank nodded. "Morning."

Robin looked around the kitchen. "Did your brother come, too?"

"Brother?" Frank asked, trying to follow this new intrigue.

"No," Dean answered, "just my dad, this time."

Frank just nodded and let it slide. Life was a kind of a fiction at the moment, anyway.

The two girls passed Frank and went to the side of the counter where Dean was seated. Jade sat on a stool beside him and Robin grabbed a Clementine from the fruit bowl.

"How you doing, Dee?" Jade asked, very concerned.

"Ok, I guess," he shrugged, gathering his peels together on a paper towel. "Not really looking forward to going to school, but I'm ok.

"Screw Donna Linkletter," Robin said, peeling her own fruit. "She's a bitch and she deserved to be sent home yesterday."

"Yeah, but she's a vindictive bitch," Jade pointed out.

Dean cleared his throat and glanced towards his father.

"Oh... sorry Mr Martin," Robin said. "You don't know this girl, but she is a complete... jerk."

Frank smiled. "That's ok, girls. I think I'll go take a shower. Deedee," the name just seemed so silly to him, "I won't be here when you get home, but it was great to see you. I'll... ummm... I'll be in touch," he said as he took his coffee, grabbed his overnight bag and headed up the stairs.

"I'll be in touch?" Jade said, quietly. "Boy, he's not the type to get all warm and fuzzy, is he?"
 

~^~
 

"You wanted to see me, Mrs Olsen?" The girl asked as she entered the Assistant Chancellor's office and the crowd of people in the Chancellor's office watched on a tablet."

"Yes, Gwen. Come right in," Mrs Olsen said with a warm smile.

Dr Martin had chosen three random students from the cast list to come in to give their impressions of what had happened between Donna Linkletter and Mrs Highland the day before. Gwen was a quiet junior who was just a member of the chorus for the show and not a particular friend of either Dean or Donna.

"The reason I asked you to come in is just so you could give me a bit of a review of what happened at play rehearsal yesterday between Donna Linkletter and Mrs Highland. Could you tell me that?"

Gwen thought for a moment, then said, "Well, I don't want to get anyone into trouble, but Donna was really riding that new girl, Deedee - calling her a toddler and a sixth grader, because she's pretty small, you know? Anyway, Donna wouldn't stop. She kept trying to push that girl's buttons."

"And did the new girl retaliate?"

"No, not really," Gwen shrugged. "She seemed to be trying to ignore Donna, but then Donna, like, barged right into her and almost knocked her down."

"Why did she do that?"

"I don't know. I guess you'd have to ask Donna. As far as I could tell, Deedee was following her blocking perfectly and Donna just, like, decided to go to center stage too early and plowed right into her. She pushed her pretty hard."

"And what did Ms Highland do, then?"

"Nothing, really. She just told Donna to leave and not come back until she was ready to be part of the team."

"Ok, Gwen," The Assistant Chancellor said in a friendly voice. "That's all I needed."

The second girl, a freshman, told pretty much the same story.

The third girl was a senior and part of Donna's entourage. Mr and Mrs Linkletter exchanged glances that said this story would be different - and, in a way, it was.

"Well, Donna really hates that new girl. You know... that 'Deedee' girl. She's the Chancellor's daughter."

"Yes, I know who you mean. Why does Donna dislike her."

"Well, because she's the Chancellor's daughter for one thing. Because she started mid year, which is against the rules for another. And because the boy playing Billy Flynn in the play is smoking hot and he's into Deedee instead of Donna. Not for lack of trying, of course. Donna has been flirting non-stop with that boy since auditions, but he's more interested in that sophomore than Donna. It really pisses her off."

"That's crazy," Mrs Linkletter said, her brow furrowed. "Donna has a boyfriend." Mr Linkletter nodded, but continued watching the screen of the tablet.

"So, what happened at rehearsal?" Mrs Olsen asked.

"Well..." the girl seemed happy to dish with anyone. "Deedee, she's got this long speech in another language... Russian or Albanian or something... and she's been struggling with it, but yesterday, she said it perfectly and right in time with the music, too. So the whole cast applauded for her. I even clapped. It's a hard speech and, you know, she nailed it."

"So...?"

"So, Donna... I could see that she was burning mad about that girl getting all the attention. So, when we continued to run the scene, Donna walks over and slams into Deedee, really hard. I'm surprised that the little girl didn't fall. That's how hard she hit her. Anyway - Donna's like grinning about how she put Deedee in her place and Ms Highland told her to knock it off or go home. Donna got all diva about it and wanted me and Angela to leave with her, but neither of us would. Besides of the fact that my mother would kill me if you guys called her in for a meeting over something like that, and I thought Ms Highland was being pretty cool about the whole thing. She didn't get really mad or anything, she just sent her home."

"Alright," Mrs Olsen smiled. "That's all I needed to know. Thank you so much for your help."

The girl left and Dr Martin shut off the iPad. "Well, I think we have a good idea about what happened yesterday, don't you?"

"This is all just the gossip of jealous teenaged girls," Mrs Linkletter began, but her husband stood and cleared his throat.

"Yes. We shall have a talk with Donna before the next rehearsal. I'm sorry to have wasted your time, Dr Martin. Ms Highland, thank you for all of your hard work. In the future, I would appreciate it if you would call me and let me know if Donna misbehaves. Here is my card, come on, dear. We've wasted enough of these women's valuable time." He picked up his wife's coat and held it open for her to slide into.

"I'm not done here," Mrs Linkletter said, surprised that her husband had given up.

"Yes, we are, dear. Come. Let's go."

Mrs Linkletter choked down her anger and embarrassment and stood, silently and angrily putting her arms into the coat's sleeves. "You will be hearing..." she began before her husband spoke over her.

"Thank you Dr Martin, Ms Highland. Have a good day. I will be in touch." They exited quickly.

"Thank God that's over," Dr Martin sighed.

"Oh, you think it's over?" Ms Highland chortled. "Trust me... it is not over. It is very far from over."
 

~^~
 

"Hey, how did you make out last night?" Willie's voice came through Dean's phone.

"Not too badly," Dean replied. "At first it was pretty bad, but once everyone calmed down, it ended up ok."

"Dee, I really sorry that happened. I don't know what came over me. I just got carried away, I guess."

"Hey, it happens all the time," Dean teased.

"Yeah, I bet."

"No, I'm serious. Boys are always stopping me and kissing me. When you're as incredibly gorgeous as I am, you just get used to it." He laughed as he spoke that last part.

"I bet you do," Willie laughed as well. "So... after I got you in trouble last night, do you think there's any chance that your mom would let you go out on Saturday?"

Dean felt a tingle run down his spine. "I can ask. She'll want to know where we'd be going and what time I'd be coming home, things like that."

"I was thinking that we could get something to eat together, then there's a movie theater in Greenwood that shows old movies, and they're showing the original Star Wars movie, you know, 'A New Hope.' Would you like to see that on the big screen?"

"Sure, I'd love that!" Dean bubbled. He had watched Episode IV dozens of times, but always on a TV or computer. It would be great to see it on the big screen. "I'd need to ask my mom if she could drive me, so what time and where?"

"No worries," Willie said, proudly, since he'd planned this all out already. "My mother would like to meet you and your mother. She'll drive me to your house. Hopefully your mom will be able to say 'hi' to mine and then she'll drive us into town. We can get something to eat at the diner, then walk down the street to the movie theater. How does that sound?"

"Perfect," Dean said, nearly swooning from the idea of a romantic dinner and stroll. "I'll talk to my mom this afternoon and text you after."

"Sounds like a plan," Willie seemed happy. "Bye."
 

~^~
 

"Oh, my God, we have to go shopping!" was the first thing out of Robin's mouth when Dean told his friends that Willie was taking him to dinner and an old movie.

"Why?" Dean asked.

"WHY!?" Robin exclaimed, shocked by the foolishness of the question. "WHY!? What planet are you from!? Who raised you!? Don't they have other girls in San Diego!? You have a date! That means a new dress. End of story."

"I hate to take sides, Dee," Jade said as they sat in the cafeteria having their lunch, "but Robin is right. You can't wear what you wore the last time and most of the other stuff you bought the last time we went shopping is too formal for a movie date. We need to go shopping."

"Maybe my mom will take us," Robin suggested. "She's the most 'handsoff' when it comes to shopping. We could find something that makes you look like a fifteen year old out on a date, rather than a fifteen year old at a business meeting."

"Hey!" Dean protested, but Robin was busy texting her mother.

"Ok, I sent her a text and..." her phone chimed and she looked at it. "Oh, cool. My oldest sister, Dove, is picking me up today. She's twenty three. Mom's with her right now. Dove's cool and she'll take us to the boutique." She smiled at Dean. "Now all you need is money."

"Or permission to use your mom's credit card,"Jade said. "I always prefer that."

Robin laughed, but Dean was caught up on something that had been said that caught him off guard.

"Wait..." he said. "... your sister is named Dove?"

"Yeah, why?" Robin asked, looking at Jade to see what the big deal was.

"Because your name is Robin. I just assumed that Robin was just a normal name, but if your sister is named Dove, then... what?... you're both named after birds?"

Robin realized that this part of her life had not come up since Dean had arrive. "We're all named after birds."

Dean was surprised. He'd never met a family with a theme for their names. "How many?"

"Five sisters. Dove's the oldest and I'm the youngest."

"And... what are your other sister's names?"

"Oh, Dove, Raven, Phoenix, Swan and me, Robin. All birds."

"That's amazing!" Dean was shocked.

"It's only amazing if you think it's cool to treat your kids like an arts and craft project," Jade laughed.

"Says the girl named after a rock," Robin snapped.

"It's a pretty rock, though," Jade laughed. "AND it was my mother's mother's name, so the gem stone never came into it."

"It's not a gem stone," Robin laughed. "It's just a rock."

"Six of one..." Jade ended a conversation they'd had a few times before.

"Ok, so Dove will take us," Robin returned to the matter at hand. "You should talk to your mom after lunch so we can go right after school."

'Ok."
 

~^~
 

"Her sister's name is Dove?" Dean's mother chuckled. "Funny, her mother never impressed me as a hippy."

"I thought is was odd, too," Dean smiled, "but all the sisters are named for birds."

"You know, after living in California for decades, you assume you've heard every unusual name imaginable, but naming all of your kids after birds... I think that takes the cake."

Dean smiled. "So... can I go?"

His mother smiled. "Of course you can go. I'll call the boutique and tell them to call me with the total and I'll settle the bill over the phone."

"And the date with Willie?"

She nodded, but Dean wasn't sure if she was saying 'yes' or just thinking. Finally, she said, "Yes. You can go on the date, but we need to have a chat tomorrow, at some point before you go. Alright?"

"Mom," he said, a little embarrassed, "we're not going to do anything, and besides, I know all about the birds and the bees."

"Yes, but you only know about it from the bee's point of view. A lot more can go wrong for a bird. Especially a bird like you. We'll talk about it at home, tomorrow, though. Ok?"

He nodded. "Ok."
 
 
To Be Continued...