The Girls of Summer: 2

 

Hunter is facing a summer of solitude due to his condition, but maybe there is hope for attending a
different summer camp? Attending would mean some changes, though...
I am truly thrilled that you enjoyed Chapter 1. I hope that you enjoy Chapter 2 as well!

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Author's Note: *Mary Ellen's usage of the word "Hunny" is short for Hunter - not slang for honey.
Thank you all for so many positive and supportive comments! ~Clara.
 
This version of The Girls of Summer: 2 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.

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Chapter 2
 

"No. I'm just not going, dad. I'm not doing it," Hunter was adamant at the breakfast table the next morning. Bob and Joyce were surprised to see him downstairs so early during the first week of summer vacation, but Bob was glad that he had a moment to discuss baseball camp with him before leaving for work.

"I hate to see you do this, pal," Bob said as he ate his toast and drank his coffee. "I know how much you loved going last year. We can talk to the councilors and work something out, I'm sure. You're just cutting off your nose to spite your face, right now. You have a medical condition, son. That is all. People deal with their medical conditions. They don't lock themselves away and hide from the world."

Hunter was still wearing the kitty cat pj's he'd worn to bed and Bob couldn't help but sneak glances at his chest every now and then. Geez, did he get bigger over night, or was Bob just seeing things clearly for the first time? This conversation was quickly becoming moot. The more Bob looked at his son, the more he knew that the kid could never survive ten days at an all-boys-sleep-away-sports-camp. Those breasts would show unless the were bound and if they did that, his rash would never heal.

"I'm not going, dad. The other guys will eat me alive."

Bob took a deep, resigned breath and spoke on his exhale. "Alright, then. I'll call the camp this morning and tell them you won't be coming. We'll lose a pretty healthy deposit and you'll miss out on something you enjoy, but... if that's what you want, then that's what I'll do." He knew he was coming down a little hard on the boy under the
circumstances, but he felt like it was the right way to parent at the moment. A little 'tough love' so the boy might try other things this summer.

"It's not what I want, dad, but I won't go like this."

"Ok." Bob stood and grabbed his sports coat and the messenger bag he used as a briefcase and prepared to leave. He kissed his wife, then kissed the top of Hunter's head. "Do what your mother tells you, today. I don't want to hear about any fights. Remember, we're doing what the doctor said had to be done."

"Yes, sir." Hunter nodded, looking very put upon.

Bob and Joyce exchanged concerned glances and Bob left for work.

Joyce waited until Hunter finished eating his Corn Chex cereal before she spoke. After he said 'no thanks' to some toast or some fruit, Joyce got to the matter at hand. "Hunter... last night, your dad and I picked up a few things for you - to help you, that is - and this morning I'd really like it if you and I could calmly go through everything and see how everything fits. Ok?"

He nodded, sullenly.

"Good morning," Mary Ellen chirped as she entered the kitchen, already wearing her one piece bathing suit, her hair brushed beautifully and not wearing any makeup. Even without makeup, though, she had that healthy, girl-next-door look that just looked wonderful.

"Hi, sweetheart," her mother said, showing a worried smile.

"You look nice, Hunny," Mary Ellen complimented as she gave her stepbrother a hug. "Your hair's a little wild this morning, but that's probably because I brushed it so much last night." She laughed a little at his disheveled hair, then ran her fingers through it a bit in a failed attempt to tame it. "Are you going to come swimming this morning?"

Hunter shrugged and looked at Joyce who said, "Before he does anything else, I need your brother to try on some of the clothes we bought him last night."

"Oh, ok." Mary Ellen nodded, grabbing a pre-made yogurt smoothie from the fridge. "I can help if you want."

"Well... it might be easier if you let us do this privately, Mae. Some of the clothes are kind of... personal and..."

"I'd rather have Mae help me, if that's ok, mom," Hunter said, probably more abruptly than he'd intended. "I mean... if it's ok with you."

"Ok." Joyce looked at her daughter and then at Hunter. "Is there a reason you'd rather not have me help you?"

Hunter looked a little embarrassed. "I don't know, mom... it's just that... Mae is a little... cooler about these things. I mean... everything seems kind of life and death with you right now and... I'm sorry... I'm just a little more comfortable with Mae. Sorry."

That did make sense, of course. The kids were very close and Joyce supposed that she should be grateful for that at this particular moment. Although, when she thought back to Mary Ellen's frantic revelation of Hunter's condition two nights earlier and then the conversation she and Bob had had with her in their bedroom the previous night, it felt as if Mae was the one who was seeing things in life and death terms, not her. Regardless, the important thing was that they get Hunter into the supportive, moisture wicking clothing with as little drama as possible.

"Alright." She smiled at her children. "That's great. Thank you, Mary Ellen, for helping and Hunter... thank you for being honest with me." She picked up some papers from the doctor's office and reread the instructions. "Before you try on anything, though, Mae could you, maybe, take a damp wash cloth and just clean off his rash area? It says that it should be cleaned a few times a day. I think you can hold off on putting on any more cream, though - especially if he's going swimming."

"Absolutely!" Mary Ellen grinned, happy to be helping.

About ten minutes later, the two step-sibling were in Mary Ellen's room with all the bags from the night before. Mary Ellen had suggested they go into her room because, not only was it a little bigger, but also because she had a queen sized bed that would give them more room to lay everything out.

"Wow," she said as she used a moist face cloth to wipe the areas clean where Hunter's rash had been treated. "Whatever is in that cream is working really well. All the little cuts are closing up already. It looks a lot better."

Hunter could see himself in the mirror mounted on Mary Ellen's closet door and he could see that his rash was much less inflamed. But as he stood there, shirt off and arms held over his head while his stepsister wiped him clean, his eyes spent more time looking at his breasts than any other part of his body.

And for some reason, that morning he found them more fascinating than hateful.

When she was done, Mary Ellen used a dry towel to make sure Hunter was dry before applying a little flower scented powder as well. Then she began laying the articles in the bags on the bed. She could tell by the look on his face, that Hunter was having mixed feelings about trying on these items.

"Relax, Hunny. They won't bite." She pointed at the piles she'd created. "Look: these are camisole's. Just tee shirts, really, but with some extra support. These are some very plain sports bras, nothing fancy. These are running tops with built in shelf-bras that will look like regular tee shirts and these are swim tops."

"What are those?" Hunter asked, pointing at the last pile.

"Umm... bike shorts and yoga pants."

"Why did mom buy me stuff like that?" Hunter wondered aloud.

"I don't know." Mary Ellen shrugged and patted his back. "We'll try on the other stuff first, though. Ok?" She held up the simplest, least threatening cami. "Come on. Let's start with this."

He felt the slightly silky material of the garment and shook his head. "I don't know if I can, Mae. It's all so... girly."

Mary Ellen nodded and thought for a moment. "Hey... How about we play a game? For right now, you know... while we're trying on these clothes... let's just pretend that we're sisters, ok? So, instead of you being my little brother, we'll pretend that you're my little sister and I'm teaching you about clothes, the way an older sister would. How about it?"

Hunter rolled his eyes. "That's stupid."

"Yeah, but it could be fun for a few minutes. Right?" He didn't say anything. He just stared at the clothes on her bed. "Come on. Let me have some fun."

"I don't know," Hunter half laughed. "Seems kinda lame."

"It's better than fighting with mom, though, isn't it?"

That made the boy laugh. "Yeah. I guess."

"Then, come on, little sister. I'm going to teach you all about bras."

Rather than start with the camisole's, Mary Ellen picked up one of the beige, fairly style-less sports bras and explained it's workings to her stepbrother. "See, the material is very stretchy, but the inside is soft against your sensitive parts. It holds your 'girls' nice and tight, though, so when you run or bounce, 'the girls' stay tight to your chest."

She had Hunter hold up his arms and she slid the stretchy garment onto him, showing him how to adjust 'the girls' into their cups. It did bother Hunter that he filled the cups quite nicely, but Mary Ellen made such a big deal over how nice his breasts looked in the bra, that he just laughed and let her have her fun.

It didn't take long for Hunter to realize that having some fun with Mary Ellen was a lot better than getting lectures from his mom. So, for the next twenty minutes, he pretended to be her little sister and even felt comfortable asking her some questions about how some of the tops looked, what situations would call for these clothes and what kind of clothes would go with the ones he was wearing.

"Hey, mom?" Mary Ellen asked when she hurried downstairs after trying on almost all of the clothes. "What are the bike shorts and yoga pants for?"

Joyce was still in the kitchen, washing up a few glasses left from breakfast and the night before. "Oh... Dr Clemente said that his rash was so bad, that she was afraid that he could have break outs in other parts of his body. So, she suggested that he wear moisture wicking material anywhere that moisture could gather - Under his breasts, his arm pits and around his groin. So, I picked those up."

"Oh, ok," her daughter nodded. "Oh, by the way - you only bought Hunter one swim top."

"No." Joyce thought for a moment. "I bought three, didn't I?"

"No, the one with the pink and blue palm trees is a swim top, but the other two are tankini's. Do you want me to just use the tops?"

"Oh." Joyce shook her head, realizing she'd have to return them. "I guess I was in a hurry. No. No, don't use it if he just needs a top. I'm sure we could get a top cheaper than the whole ensemble." She stopped her daughter as she headed back towards the stairs. "So... how is it going up there? I haven't heard any shouting."

Mary Ellen smiled. "Everything is fine. We've tried on everything except that bike shorts - and the tankini's, of course."

"Wow," Joyce muttered in mild disbelief. "That's great. Thanks, Mae."

"Not a problem." Her daughter smiled. "To tell you the truth, we're having fun. We're pretending that Hunny is my little sister and I'm teaching her the finer points of bras."

Joyce stopped what she was doing and looked at her daughter. "And that's working?"

"Yeah."

Joyce nodded and held up one finger to tell Mary Ellen to wait a moment. She hustled out of the room and returned a moment later with a small bag. "See if you can get him to try this on. The woman I spoke to in the lingerie department at Kaufman's said that this was a very popular brand of bra for younger girls because it's so comfortable."

Mary Ellen opened the bag and saw the rather standard looking bra designed for a young girl entering womanhood and she looked at her mother with a bit of skepticism. The reason for that skepticism was the very 'standard' nature of the bra. It had thin straps that looked to be fairly comfortable, a narrow, two hook-and-eye strap across the back, but the cups had a lace appliqué along the edges and there was a tiny, pink bow on the band between the two cups.

"I know," Joyce nodded, "but hear me out. I think the key to getting him wearing the underwear he needs right now is keeping everything as gender-neutral as girls' underwear can be - BUT - I think that the key to KEEPING him wearing the clothes is making him comfortable. The saleswoman said this was the most comfortable and popular bra for girls his age, so... Just see if you can get him to try it on. Please."

"Ok," Mary Ellen nodded, "I'll try, but no promises."

"I know."

When she got back to her bedroom, Mary Ellen found her stepbrother wearing a peach colored, sleeveless tee shirt with rather wide arm holes that showed off the strap of the built in bra as it passed under his arm pits. The built in bra also created a bit of a bust for him and the way that his tee shirt hung made that bust more obvious. The color was certainly not a color that she'd ever seen used in boy's clothing, either. He was looking in the mirror and, from where Mary Ellen stood, he looked like a girl with a bit of a tomboy look to her - certainly not like a boy, though - and the way he was shifting from side to side to see how his bust looked, was not a very boyish manner of inspecting one's body, either.

"You look very pretty in that, sis," she teased as she entered.

"You can see my boobs, can't you?"

She moved to his side and looked into the mirror with him. "Hunny... I think you're going to have to accept the fact that, at least for a while, you're going to have those girls on your chest, no matter what you do. So, why not just celebrate them and enjoy how they look? Like... say, 'Hey, world. Look at how good I look!' What do you say?"

He shrugged. "I'm kinda getting the feeling that the only way I'm going to be able to do anything this summer is to start dressing like this. Like a girl."

Mary Ellen wrapped her arms around Hunter's tiny shoulders. "There's a lot worse that could happen, Hunny. A girl at my school was in a car accident this year and lost her leg. A boy got some kind of cancer and had to quit school so he could have treatments. If you compare those things to having some pretty tatas and having to wear some soft, pretty, comfortable clothes, it's not that bad, is it?"

"I guess not," he sighed. "I'll still need to avoid the guys from the park, though. Maybe this will all straighten itself out before school starts."

She kissed the top of his head. "I hope so, but... until then... do you really mind being my little sister?"

Hunter looked at the smile on his sister's face and chuckled at how excited she looked. "I guess not. As long as the guys don't ever find out."

"Ok." Mary Ellen smiled and then explained why the bike pants and yoga pants had been purchased. "We can try those on later, though. Let's look at that swim top again, though, and maybe we can go swimming."

She helped Hunter out of the tee shirt and was about to pick up the swim top, but stopped and then acted as if the bag her mother had given her was an afterthought. "Umm... Hunny... mom bought you one more bra that you need to try on. Ok?"

He shrugged and she pulled out the lacy item.

"Whoa," he said and he looked scared. "That's got a lot of..."

"I know," Mary Ellen stopped him, "but no one will ever see it but you and me, and if you're going to have to wear girls' clothes, then why not wear something pretty and comfortable?"

He thought for a moment, then quietly said, "Ok. I guess."

"Ok." She smiled and helped him get the the delicate item on correctly. When it was on and adjusted, Mary Ellen asked, "That's not too bad, now is it?"

In fact, it was pretty wonderful. The elastic feel of the band was much less binding than the firm feeling of the sports bras and the very soft padding of the cups gently hugged his new and sensitive breasts much more comfortably than anything he'd tried on before. "No. It's not bad. It's kinda..." he looked at his reflection and the pretty lace bra with the adorable pink bow and he was speechless.

"Nice?" Mary Ellen asked. "Does it feel nice?"

He nodded.

"Then wear it, Hunny. No one will know and no one will care. Alright?"

He nodded.
 

~^~
 

"Mom! We'll be in the pool!" Mary Ellen called as they passed through the house and she opened the slider to go out to the patio.

"Ok." Joyce called from her desk where she did a couple of hours of billing work for a local medical office everyday.

Around eleven, she finished up her work for that day and she decided to make a cup of tea. She could hear laughter coming in through the windows, so she knew the kids were enjoying themselves in the pool. She grabbed the electric kettle and went to the sink to add water. When she looked out the window over the sink, she saw Mary Ellen on the diving board. Her daughter took a few hurried steps to the end of the board and she bounced high and did a flip before entering the water with grace.

"That was great!" Hunter applauded from the shallow end. "I'll try it again."

Joyce looked at the boy and noticed that he was not wearing the short sleeved swim top with the pink and blue palm tree print, but rather was wearing a sleeveless, dark blue top with horizontal white stripes along the side to create a somewhat slimming affect. Yes, she remembered buying the top, but Mae had said that two of the swim tops were actually two-piece swimsuits.

Then Hunter lifted himself out of the shallow end and headed for the diving board and it became very obvious that Mary Ellen had not been wrong. Her stepson was actually wearing a tankini style swimsuit - the horizontal striped blue and white top and the solid blue panty - and to tell the truth, he looked rather lovely in it.

Her first impulse was to run out and find out how this had come about, or at least tell Hunter how nice he looked, but instead, she just watched, fascinated by what she saw. Hunter, who typically just swam laps to work on strength and speed, was following Mary Ellen's instructions in order execute the kind of dive that incorporated the gymnastics that Mae had been doing for years.

And he was doing quite well.

Joyce sipped her tea and watched for a good long while, but when her cup was empty, she wandered casually out onto the patio and sat on a lounge chair with her Kindle and pretended to read and ignore her children.

Eventually, they got out of the pool and joined their mother on the patio, drying themselves with oversized, fluffy, white towels before sitting on lounge chairs as well.

"How's the water?" Joyce asked.

"Perfect." Mary Ellen grinned, waiting for her mother to bring up Hunter's suit. "You should get your suit on and come in for a little while."

"Maybe I will, a bit later," Joyce smiled, "but, of course, I would look like a dumpy old lady compared to you two."

"Yeah, right," Mary Ellen laughed. Her mother was a very fit and attractive woman.

"That's a very pretty swimsuit, Mae," Joyce said nonchalantly. "Where did you get that?"

"Oh, this?" She said, knowing where the conversation was headed. "I got it when we were at the beach last summer. I got it at that place near the fried fish place we went nearly every night. Remember?"

"Oh, yes. Now that you mention it, I do recall. That was a nice place. Lots of pretty suits."

Mary Ellen just smiled and waited.

"And Hunter," Joyce said with a casual air, "do you like your new suit?"

"I guess," Hunter said, sounding a little embarrassed. "Mae and I were kind of pretending that I was her... well... anyway, she said she'd show me how to do some of those fancy dives she can do if I wore one of the new suits so that my trunks didn't come off when I dove in - like they did last time I tried."

"That's fine," Joyce said, maternally. "Can I see how it fits?"

He sighed and stood, coming to his stepmother's chair side. Joyce inspected the way the two piece suit fit the boy. The top fit snuggly and seemed to mold his figure just a little bit femininely - of course that may have just been because it also displayed the shape of his breasts rather nicely. She also noticed that there was not a noticeable bulge where one should be. That was a little worrying. Perhaps Mary Ellen had told him to tuck it away or something.

"Turn and let me see the back," she instructed him.

Hunter turned and she inspected the way the bottom of the suit fit his rear quite nicely, too. In fact, it seemed to offer some shape and support back there and he had the beginnings of a bubble shaped bottom. Also worrying, but then again... maybe it was the shaping nature of the panty-type bottom that gave him the round bottom and smooth crotch.

She ran a finger under the hem of the elastic leg hole to feel the fit. This was a move that she'd done a hundred times to Mary Ellen. A maneuver that allowed her to see if the fit was correct, while also adjusting the bottoms to ensure that her bottom was completely covered. Mary Ellen was very familiar with her mother's hands doing things like that, but it surprised Hunter and he let out a little squeal of, "Mom! What are you doing?"

Both Mary Ellen and Joyce laughed at his reaction.

"I'm just checking that it's not too tight, Hunter," Joyce giggled. "Is the suit comfortable?"

"Yeah," Hunter replied, still sounding a bit shocked. "It's very comfortable."

"Good." Joyce smiled. "At least we've dealt with one difficult issue."
 

~^~
 

Bob came home at his usual time and parked in the driveway, noting that Joyce's car was not in its usual spot. He grabbed his work things and went into the kitchen where no food was being prepared.

"Joyce?" He called.

"On the patio!" Came a reply.

Bob went out through the slider and found his wife reading and looking very pleased with herself.

"Hey." He smiled. He sat on one of the patio chairs and looked around. "So... how was your day?"

"Better than we could have possibly expected." She smiled. "Mae took the lead and Hunter tried on everything without a single gripe. He even went a little further than we expected and tried on a few of Mae's old things that definitely fit him better than his own clothes."

"Really?" Bob nodded. "That's... excellent, I guess." He looked around. "Sooo... where are the kids?"

"Picking up dinner from the Ming Dynasty. They were both so good all day that I treated them to Chinese for supper."

"Sounds good." Bob nodded.

"We're home!" Mary Ellen called from the kitchen. "We're setting everything up in the TV room so we can watch a movie tonight! Come and get it!"

Bob stood and offered his beautiful wife a hand. Joyce stood and smiled at her husband. When she reached the slider, she said, "Before we go in...When you see Hunter, just smile and be supportive, ok? He's come a long way today."

Bob gave Joyce a confused look and then said, "Of course. When have I ever not been supportive?"

She stretched up and kissed his cheek. "Yeah... well... Take a breath. And let's go in."

When they walked into the TV room, Mary Ellen and Hunter were setting out the food and dining implements on a large table on the side of the room. Bob expected to see his son wearing one of the outfits they'd bought him the previous evening. Instead, he saw his son, his hair combed in such a way that it stuck up in messy waves. It was unkempt, but it also had more volume than usual. Besides the hair, instead of one of the tops they'd bought the night before, he was wearing a short sleeve, V necked, hooded, lightweight cotton top with matching short shorts. Both were made of lightweight cotton material, with a very pale grey background and fairly undefined, vertical lines of fairly pale purple and fuchsia. It was an outfit that Bob recognized. In fact he remembered the afternoon that Joyce and Mary Ellen had done the tie dye project that created the ensemble. Joyce was disappointed that the colors hadn't set as deeply as she'd hope, but Mary Ellen loved the final product and wore the outfit almost constantly the entire summer she was eleven years old. By the next summer, she'd out grown it. Bob had no idea that the outfit was still around. Either Joyce or Mary Ellen must have held on to it for sentimental reasons.

'Why was Hunter wearing it?' was the question that ran through Bob's head, though. Just then, Hunter leaned across the table to grab a plate and, despite his desire not to do so, Bob caught a glimpse of the boy's bra through the V neck opening. Of course, Bob knew that Hunter needed to wear a bra for the time being, but the bra he was wearing was not one of very plain, sports bras that they'd bought. It was the lacy bra that Joyce bought him. At the time of the purchase, neither of them thought they'd ever get Hunter to wear the item. Now, barely twenty hours later, the boy was wearing the prettiest bra Joyce had bought him and that bra was making his breasts look full and perky through the top's thin material.

"Oh, hey," Bob said and he snapped his fingers, "you know what I need? Joyce, we have some low sodium soy sauce in the fridge, don't we?"

Joyce looked a little surprised, but responded. "Yeah, I'm pretty sure we do."

"Great." He nodded. "Can you give me a hand finding it?" He turned and left the room.

"Ok. Sure," Joyce replied, a bit confused. She looked at the kids and said, "We'll just be a minute."

When she got to the kitchen, Bob already had the low sodium soy sauce in his hand. "Oh, you found it," Joyce said and turned to go back, but Bob grabbed her arm.

"Why the hell is 'the boy' wearing Mary Ellen's old outfit?"

"Because he needs to get out of the house this summer and he's not going to be able to do that looking like a boy with breasts," Joyce hissed, sounding more angry than Bob expected. "'The boy' has been incredibly cooperative today and less than an hour ago I told him how proud you would be of him. Now, you listen to me, Bob... when we go back in there, the first thing you're going to do is find a way to compliment 'the boy,' and be as supportive as possible. Alright?"

Bob knew that Joyce was a strong willed woman, but she'd never used such a scolding tone with him before.

"Yeah... alright," he mumbled. Then he followed his wife back into the TV room.

When they returned to the TV room, the kids had their food on paper plates and were sitting in their usual places on the 'L' shaped, sectional sofa. Bob and Joyce went to the big table and put helpings of rice, vegetables and some protein on their plates and joined the kids.

The movie they'd chosen to watch was a superhero movie that they'd missed in the theater, but had just started streaming on a service they had. When everyone was seated, Mary Ellen started the movie and they all got into the story.

Eventually, Hunter got up to get some more food and passed his father on the way.

"That fits you well," Bob said, as casually as possible.

Hunter looked at himself and then gave his father a small smile. "Oh... Thanks."

"I always liked that outfit." He looked at Mary Ellen and said, "I remember the day that you and your mom dyed it. It was just about this time of year. I think you had an end of year field day or something and you and some of your friends wanted to make a cool outfit to all wear together. So you and your mom made a mother/daughter project of dying it. You loved the results and your mom wanted to go out and buy another plain tee-shirt-and-short-set and do it again."

Mary Ellen smiled at the story and nodded as she chewed. "I'm glad I kept it. It fits Hunny really well, now. I think I was a little taller then him when I wore it, but I think he has me beat in the boob-age department."

Joyce cleared her throat and caught her daughter's eye. Then she shook her head, warning her daughter not to bring up Hunter's chest growth in such a casual way.

Hunter plopped back down on the couch next to his stepsister and began to eat more of his rice.

"What?" Mary Ellen screwed up her face at her mother. "Hunny and I have talked about this all day. There's no shame in what's happening to him, guys. He's just got boobs. So do I. So do you. Heck, Mr Rodney, my Chemistry teacher lost a lot of weight last year and he has boobs, too. We can see them because they sag under his shirts. He should be wearing a bra, too. Hunny doesn't mind, do you Hunny?"

Hunter shrugged and swallowed the rice. "I guess that I just have to pretend that I'm Mae's little sister for a few weeks, until this goes away. Then I can go back to being me."

Bob looked at Joyce and mouthed 'A few weeks?'

Joyce shrugged in response.
 

~^~
 

"A few weeks?" Bob said to Joyce in the privacy of their bedroom a few hours later.

Joyce shrugged. "I... have no idea where he got that idea. Dr Clemente was very clear - This could last a few months or a several years, OR it might last all the way through puberty and he'd have to deal with them surgically when he was eighteen or twenty or whenever puberty ends for him. No one EVER said 'a few weeks.'"

Bob shook his head. "Maybe we should take him to another doctor to be sure." He sat on the bed and gave his face a brisk rub, then let out an exasperated sigh. "Hell, maybe we should be taking him to a psychologist or something. He seemed almost too comfortable in those clothes tonight."

Joyce sat down next to him and thought for a moment. "I don't know what the right thing to do is, Bob. If Dr Clemente is right and we make a big deal out of a few months or awkwardness, then that might do more harm than good for the boy."

"'The Boy,'" Bob shook his head. "You know, I've called him 'the boy' since the day he was born. I have to tell you, babe, I was... now, don't get me wrong, I love my son and I will always love my son, but... when I walked in and saw him in that outfit tonight... wow... I kind of freaked out inside. I really don't know how to process this."

Joyce nodded. "Then you probably shouldn't look at him in his new pj's."
 

~^~
 

It was day four in a bra and Hunter was getting used to the feeling. He'd worn one of the sports bras one time and it was fine, but... the nice bra with the lace on it was a lot more comfortable. He felt awkward asking his stepmother to buy him another bra like that, but she didn't make a big deal out of it at all. She just smiled and said, "Sure, Hunter." And later that day, several more bras like that showed up - two more in white, one in baby blue, one in beige and one in black and all with lace appliqués and a little pink bow in the middle.

Mary Ellen had helped him get dressed in another outfit and took him out to lunch at a drive up place a few towns over. He'd never been there before, but he was excited to be out for a ride with Mary Ellen and to have a hot dog with everything on it - even if he did have to wear a pair of light blue bike shorts with a pink smock-type top that kind of showed off the shape of his bra a little too well.

"Thank you," Mary Ellen said to the girl at the 'PICK UP ORDERS HERE' window. She grabbed some ketchup packets as Hunter took the tray. They both turned to head back to the car when a beautiful girl with dark skin and brilliantly bright red hair stepped in front of them.

"Hey! I thought it was you guys!" Effie said with a huge smile.

It took Hunter a moment to recognize the girl. It had been a few months since he'd seen Mary Ellen's friend and the shockingly bright red hair was new. It made her look different.

"Ef!" Mary Ellen smiled and hugged her friend. Then she spotted Hunter, who had gone pale. She grabbed the tray from him before he could drop it and she sputtered, "Oh, you know... I mean... this is..."

"Yeah, I know Hunter." Effie smiled down at the boy. "How you doing, Bud? I like the new look. Is there something I need to know, or is this just a fun thing to do on a summer day?"

Mary Ellen looked around. "Are you alone?"

"Yeah. I was driving by and saw you at the window."

"Alright, then." Mary Ellen gave a small smile and said, "Look... Hunter has developed... a medical issue, ok? Come on and sit in my mom's car with us and I'll explain, but... Ef... please don't say anything to anyone else. Alright?"
 

~^~
 

"How's it going at home... With your son, I mean?" Veronica asked, stopping by Bob's office that morning.

"Oh, hey, Ronnie," Bob said. He sat up straighter in his chair and shrugged. "Ok, I guess. I think he's adjusting better than I am. I'm doing my best to be supportive, though."

She nodded. "I'm sorry, Bob. I have been thinking about Hunter a lot. I can't imagine what kind of upset this must be causing for the poor kid. How are you dealing with school in fall?"

Bob chuckled. "School in the fall? Ronnie, I don't know how we're going to get to July. I had to cancel his baseball camp, Joyce doesn't think we should take our yearly vacation at the beach... I just don't know how we're going to maintain normalcy if his... you know... grow any bigger. I mean..." he took out his phone and held up a photo of Hunter wearing his sister's tie-dyed-tee-shirt-and-shorts-set from several nights earlier. "...look."

Veronica's eyes widened as she looked at the photo. "THAT'S Hunter?" She shook her head. "Why is he dressed so girly?"

"I had the same reaction, Ronnie, but honestly, when he wears his own clothes... he kind of looks even more odd. Those breasts of his are hard to hide. That's why baseball camp is out. He says he's uncomfortable showing up with breasts and Joyce has convinced me that, with his small stature and fairly pronounced breast size, it could be dangerous for him to be among all those bigger boys overnight."

"What a shame," Veronica said. She said her goodbyes and headed down out the door. She was gone about six minutes before she came back in and said, "Hey, Bob... I was just thinking..."
 

~^~
 

"So what? You have bazzingas. Who cares?" Effie said from the backseat of Joyce's car. She was patting Hunter's shoulder through the opening between the seats. "Frankly, the more I think about it, the more I kind of like the idea of guys having to deal with breasts, too. I love mine! Have you played with your nipples, yet?"

"Come on, Ef. He's only twelve," Mary Ellen said, defensively.

"Yeah, well, my little brother is only ten and he's been pulling on his little toy for years. If he had that AND a pair of titties to play with, the kid would never leave his room."

Hunter knew what they were talking about, but he was too embarrassed to join in the conversation.

"Don't worry about it, though, Hunter," Effie laughed. "You just be you and let the world deal with it. Ok?"

"Yeah, ok." He nodded from the front seat, but he knew that Effie's sentiment was much easier said than done.

"I get why you don't want to hang with your guy friends, though," Effie continued. "Boys are such pigs about these things. Especially when they are like eleven, twelve, thirteen, fourteen... At least once they're juniors or seniors in high school they seem to have a little control. Not much, but a little."

Mary Ellen chuckled at that, but she saw how sad Hunter looked and patted his bare leg. He gave her a brave smile, but she knew he'd heard enough. "You know, Ef... I think I should get Hunter home. He's had a tough day. I'll see you later, ok?"

"Sounds cool," she said, opening the car door and getting out. She stood and looked into Hunter's window. "Don't worry, dude. I won't tell anyone your secret. Keep the faith." She stood and walked away.

"You want some ice cream for dessert?" Mary Ellen asked Hunter.

"Nah," he said, with a head shake. "I just want to go home."

"Ok." Mary Ellen smiled and turned on the car's engine.
 

~^~
 

The dinner table was strangely quiet that evening. Mary Ellen had told Joyce about the meeting they'd had with Effie and Joyce had brought Bob up to date about it, too. Hunter was a little more sullen than he had been for the last few days and they were all trying to just be quiet and supportive.

"Oh, hey, I think I might have some good news," Bob said, kind of out of the blue.

"What's that?" Joyce asked.

He got up and went to where he'd left the messenger bag he used as a brief case and returned with a trifold flier of some kind. He handed it to Hunter and said, "Here. Take a look."

"What is it?" Joyce asked, looking over Hunter's shoulder.

"It's a baseball camp," Hunter said, confused.

"Softball, actually," Bob corrected.

"Dad... this is just for girls." Hunter looked up, confused.

"Yeah, I know, but... I was thinking... under the circumstances... maybe it'd be a good camp for you. It's a day camp, so you come home every night. It's way over at that regional high school where Mae did her gymnastics competition last year, so no one would know you. And best of all, there are coaches there who specialize in helping girls... well... kids... develop their throwing, running, batting skills while the gir... kid's... breasts... I mean... bodies... are developing and, you know, messing with their athletic form. I think it might be a perfect fit for you, pal."

"Dad... I'm not a girl. I play baseball, not softball. This is SO not a perfect fit." Hunter put the flier down and Mary Ellen picked it up.

"Wait, now, think about it," Bob said. "You're pretending to be a girl all the time, anyway, right? So, I know someone who knows the woman who runs the camp and she says that her friend would be very open to having you come. You'd just have to maintain your... disguise... while you're there."

Hunter stood abruptly and stormed out of the room.

"Hunter!" Joyce called to him. "Hunter... come back baby.

He didn't and seconds later, they heard his bedroom door slam.

"What were you thinking?" Joyce said, shaking her head.

"I was THINKING that we might be able to help him salvage part of his summer. Cripes, wouldn't it be better if he was out in the fresh air doing what he loves, rather than stuck in the house or sulking by the pool all summer? I was TRYING to help."

"By calling your son a girl!? Seriously!? You think that was a good idea."

"I didn't call him a girl, Joyce. I simply offered to pay for an alternative camp that would allow MY son to do what he loves. You've already got him wearing girls' clothing. I wasn't suggesting that he do anything he isn't already doing."

"I'VE got him wearing...! Unbelievable!" Joyce balled up her napkin and slapped it onto the table as she stood.

"Where are you going?" Bob asked.

"I'm going to see OUR son and make sure he's ok."

Bob sighed. "No. I'll go up."

"Hold on," Mary Ellen said. "Mom... This camp is pretty awesome. Fifteen days working with coaches from three different top notch sports colleges, they get to play a game against another camp at a Triple-A ballpark and they work with a pitching coach from the Boston Red Sox. If it weren't for the 'pretending to be a girl' part, Hunny would be all over this."

Both parents stared, in silence, at Mary Ellen for a moment.

"See," Bob said. "It's a great opportunity."

Joyce let out a frustrated breath and sat back down. "Ok... before we discuss this... how did you find out about this place?"

"Veronica's daughter, Wanda, went last year," Bob explained.

"Wanda?" Joyce shook her head. "Wanda... who knows Hunter... Wanda would be attending this camp, too?"

Bob signed. "Yeah... she would, but that is a good thing. It's a long drive to the camp and we could alternate days with Ronnie to get the kids there and back."

"But, Bob..." Joyce shook her head. "You just promised Hunter that NO ONE would know him and then you tell me that he'd be commuting with a girl that already knows him - knows him well enough to make his life miserable if she wanted to, but not well enough for us to be one hundred percent sure that she'd keep his secret."

"Look." Bob held up both hands to calm her down. "I'm very sure that Ronnie would prep Wanda correctly and that neither of them would ever say a word. I wouldn't have suggested this unless I felt that both of them were trustworthy."

Joyce shook her head. "If you say so...."

Bob nodded and touched Joyce's arm. "Thank you." He thought for a moment, then said, "I guess I should go talk to him."

He was about to get up, but Mary Ellen stopped him by saying, "Dad. Let me."
 

~^~
 

"No dresses or anything like that, right?" Hunter asked his stepsister. "Just... jeans and shorts and tee shirts. Right?"

"Why would you have to wear a dress?" Mary Ellen laughed. "It's a softball camp! Why would a bunch of girl-jocks who get together to play softball need to wear dresses?"

Hunter nodded. "I guess, but... what would I have to do to pass as a girl?"

Merry Ellen looked him over carefully. "Well... I think your hair is long enough so that you could get it cut a little cuter, and a hair cut is easy to fix later."

He nodded. That didn't sound too bad.

"And we should probably trim your eyebrows just a little," Mary Ellen continued. "I mean, most girls your age don't have overly plucked brows, but your brows are a little too bushy. They need a little attention, but we could make sure that it's not too drastic."

He nodded, again.

"I can bring you to the earring place and have your ears pierced, too."

"My ears?" Hunter said, a little shocked and he unconsciously covered each ear with his hands. "Do I really have to do that?"

Mary Ellen gave a shrug. "Name one girl in your class who doesn't have pierced ears."

He thought for a moment. "None, I guess."

"So, yeah... we'll need to get your ears pierced." She looked him over some more. "Your body is fine, you'll need some jeans and maybe a few other athletic things, of course, and you already have the yoga pants and bike shorts, so I think that's about it. Not too bad, right?"

Hunter thought for a long, long time before he asked, "And you'll help me, right? Teach me how to fool people into thinking I'm a girl?"

Mary Ellen smiled and gave her stepbrother a hug. "By the time I'm done with you, Hunny, you'll think you're a girl, too." She was pleased that her joke made Hunter smile. "So? Are you going to do it?"

Hunter thought about it. "I think... maybe, but... I want to think about it. I'll make up my mind in the morning."
 

~^~
 

"Just coffee, Joyce," Bob said as he tied his tie at the kitchen table. "I took too long in the shower this morning. I have to get going in a few minutes."

"Why don't I put an English muffin in the toaster and you can eat it on the way?" Joyce suggested.

"Last time I tried to eat an English muffin on the way to work, I ended up with a big butter stain on my shirt," Bob chuckled. "I'll get something from the vending machine if I'm hungry before lunch."

"Like heck you will," Joyce scolded. She grabbed something from the counter and put it on the table next to Bob's travel cup of black coffee. "Take a banana with you."

Bob smiled and took a sip of his coffee, the stood back up. "Alright. I gotta run. Love ya."

"Love you, too," Joyce said, returning Bob's kiss.

"Hey... umm... dad?"

The voice was small and nervous and came from the hallway, but it was loud enough to stop Bob. "Hey, pal." He smiled at his son, who was wearing a lace covered camisole and a pair of shorts as pajamas. "What's up?"

"Umm..." the boy looked scared. "About this softball camp... umm... if it's ok with you... and mom... umm... I think I might want to do it... if that's ok with you."

Bob hid his shock, but smiled at his wife. "You THINK you want to, pal? I need you to KNOW you want to do it before I ask my friend to call in a favor."

"Yeah..." Hunter looked at the floor, the wall, the ceiling, his hands... anything but his father. "...I... I know I want to do it, dad. If... it's ok with you."

"Well, alright then." Bob seemed very happy with his son's decision. "We'll make the call this morning, then." He enjoyed the moment a few seconds longer before he said, "Oh, Geez, I'm really late, now. Bye guys. Love you both. I'll call later." And he hustled out the door.

Joyce smiled a sad smile at her stepson and crossed the room to touch his soft, round face. "You made a very brave choice, Hunter. Are you sure you're ready to go this far? To pretend to be a girl for three weeks? In amongst a whole bunch of other girls? That's a pretty tall order. I hope you're very sure about this, because once you commit to doing this, there's no turning back until camp is over."

Hunter chewed on his bottom lip as he thought about what his stepmother said. "I'm sure, mom. I... really wanted to do the baseball camp, but I can't. This seems pretty good, though. The coaches all look great and if I can get some help with my swing from them, that would be great. That way, when I'm back to normal, I'll be an even player and maybe I can make varsity for the high school team while I'm still in middle school."

Joyce nodded. "Sit down, honey. Let's talk."

When they were seated at the kitchen table, Joyce spoke with as much delicacy as possible. "Hunter... when we talked to Dr Clemente the other day, she was very clear about your condition. She said that your chest growth may slow down or stop in as little as a couple of months or so... but that doesn't mean that your breasts will just... disappear... baby. That's going to take awhile. Your body is going to have to
redistribute... extra... weight... over time. Chances are, baby, that come the fall, you'll still have to deal with your... breasts. You do understand that, right?"

"But... I thought she meant that I'd be normal again in a few months..." Hunter muttered, visibly upset.

"Baby... you're normal now. Medical conditions like this... they are normal, honey. Sometimes... life just throws us curve balls like this and we just have to deal with them."

Hunter put an elbow on the table and his chin in his hand and he stared at the wood grain pattern on the table for a solid minute before he made any sound... and when he did make a sound... that sound was a sniffle.

"Are you ok, Hunter?" Joyce asked.

He shook his head, but his eyes stayed focused on the table. "I can't go to school in the fall wearing a bra, mom. I can't." He sniffled again. "The guys will kill me, mom. They'll... eat me alive. I can't do it. It's bad enough being the smallest kid in my grade. If they see that I'm wearing a bra... I just can't do it."

Joyce reached across and patted his shoulder. "I know it's hard, baby, but look how far you've come in just a few days. There's still a long time till school starts again. Let's just keep taking one step at a time, ok, and let's see where the summer takes us. Then... we'll figure things out." She leaned in and kissed the top of his head. "I promise you, baby... your dad and I will never put you in a dangerous position. Never. And no matter what happens, we will be right there with you to help you deal with whatever problems come up. Ok?"

He sniffled again.

"Ok?" She asked again.

Finally, he nodded, even though it was a sad nod. "Ok."
 

~^~
 

"No, Sky, I promise. He's a really great kid. He'll be well behaved and do exactly what you ask. He's just got this issue that is making it hard for him participate in the camp he intended to go to."

Veronica listened to the person on the other end of her phone call and looked at her friend, Bob, who sat nervously on the other side of her desk and waited for her to fill him in.

She nodded as she listened. "He's twelve. Kind of small for twelve, even if he was a girl, but he's a talented fielder and a pretty good batter." She listened. "Yes, that's right. He'd be in group A." She listened. "No. Never played softball except in gym class, but he's been playing baseball on his school team and last year he played in the local little league." She listened again. "Oh, Skylar, that's wonderful. Thank you. No, no no... the day you meet him, he'll look just like every other first year girl at camp. I promise." She looked at Bob and smiled. "Here. Let me pass the phone to his father and you can talk to him."
 

~^~
 

"That's great, Bob," Joyce said, breathing a sigh of relief. God, she couldn't imagine the disappointment if the camp director hadn't let Hunter go to that softball camp. Especially after they'd built it up as such a great opportunity. "I'll tell him as soon as he gets home."

"Where is he?" Bob asked, a little surprised that he'd gone out without Joyce.

"Right now, I think he's at the mall with Mae getting his ears pierced so they're healed in time to go to camp. Then they're going over to see that girl, Effie. Her mom runs that beauty salon over by the high school. The one where Mae got her hair done for my sister's wedding. She offered to give Hunter a more appropriate hair cut. Something appropriate for a sporty sixth grade girl that a sixth grade boy could wear as well."

"Ears pierced, huh?" Bob chuckled. "Twelve years ago, when I found out I had a son, I never saw that coming."

Joyce didn't laugh at that. "He's going through a lot, Bob. Try not to make a big deal out of the earrings when you see them. Ok?"

"Yeah, sure. I won't." Bob sounded contrite. "Hey. Ronnie wants to talk for a minute. Hang on."

That was odd. Joyce knew Veronica, but they'd never really talked on the phone before.

"Hi, Joyce, it's Ronnie," the voice on the phone said.

"Hi, Veronica," Joyce replied. She'd never really gotten into the habit of calling her 'Ronnie.'

"Joyce, I was just thinking... Maybe it'd be a good idea if we got Wanda and Hunter together for lunch at some point in the next few days. It would probably help both of them if they were to know each other a little better before camp started. And to... you know... get them both used to the new Hunter. What do you think?"

"Ok, sure," Joyce agreed. "Tomorrow's Saturday. How about tomorrow? Would you like to come here?"

"You know," Veronica said in that professional voice of hers, "I think it might be best if we went to a restaurant."

Joyce sighed. "Gee, Veronica, I'm not really sure if that's a great idea. Hunter is still pretty shy about being in public looking how he does."

"Yes. That's my point," Veronica agreed. "If this is going to work, he can't be shy. How about Crowley's at eleven, before there's a crowd? It's downtown, in the business district, so it's not that crowded on a weekend, anyway."

Even though she'd phrased it as a question, Veronica was establishing the date and time and she expected an agreement, not a conversation.

"Oh... ok," Joyce replied.

"Great. See you then," Veronica said, then disconnected.

"Ok... bye," Joyce said to the dead air, shaking her head. "Saturday at eleven it is, I guess. Nice talking to you..."
 

~^~
 

The piercing hadn't hurt nearly as much as Hunter had anticipated. In fact, it really hadn't hurt a all. There was a momentary pressure on his earlobe and the sound of a 'snap' from the piercing tool and that was it. Then his ear had a small, pink stone decorating it. Mary Ellen had bought him three more pairs of stud earrings to wear when he was allowed to change earrings, and she bought herself several pairs, too. It was fun shopping with her. She asked his opinion about everything and discussed fashion and colors and... everything... with him. He'd never felt so included in his whole life.

Then they drove over to pick up Effie and went to her mother's salon. That was a new experience for Hunter. He kind of expected the place to look more or less like the barber shop he visited a couple of times a year, but it was very different. There was a lot more talking and the women who worked there seemed to fuss over their customers endlessly, rather than the 'Next!' attitude at the barber shop.

"He's going to be going to a softball camp in a couple of weeks, mom, and he needs to look like any of the other girls there," Effie explained.

Her mom, Gloria, nodded and looked at Hunter's face very closely. "Is this a permanent change or just for the summer?"

"Just for the summer," Mary Ellen answered.

Gloria nodded. "Well... he's got a cute face. We'll thin the eyebrows just a little. He's too young for makeup, but a little, light pink lip gloss is pretty common for girls his age, so that might help. Maybe get a lip gloss that plumps up a little." She pondered a moment. "Well, we have a little length to work with, that's good. I'm thinking just some bangs and we trim it in a nice, neat shape that covers his ears and comes to the base of his neck. Lots of possibilities from there if he decides to grow it out and easy to cut if he goes back to being a boy at some point."

Hunter was about to say that he was still a boy, but Gloria focused her attention on Mary Ellen. "If I show you how to brush it out everyday, will you be able to help him maintain the look?"

"Of course," Mary Ellen beamed, happy to be helpful.

Gloria looked some more. "I don't love the color." It was said more to herself than anyone else. "It's too mousy. I was thinking highlights, but now that I look at it more... I'm thinking... something really playful... like... electric blue."

"Ooh," Mary Ellen said. "I think I need to check with my mom about that."

Joyce was not in favor of something quite so shocking, but she did approve a natural brownish-red that Mary Ellen told her was very natural looking and wouldn't attract an undo amount of attention.

When Gloria was done, Hunter's eyebrows had been trimmed to a nice, neat shape that wouldn't look too out of place on a boy, his shaggy, mousy hair had been dyed a natural russet color and it had been layered and brushed into a full and quite cute bob with playful bangs that framed his face in an adorably feminine way. Between his new figure and the improvements to his ears, face and hair made that day, Hunter looked completely different from the boy who'd been in sixth grade just a week earlier.

"So, what do you think?" Gloria asked Hunter as she allowed him to look into the mirror for the first time.

"I hardly look like me," Hunter said, fascinated by the reflection.

"That's a good thing, right?" Mary Ellen asked. "I mean, you don't want to have people recognize you, so... this is a good thing."

"Yeah, but... it's like I'm a different person, now."

Effie patted his shoulder. "Now, you can make a new start, Hunter. Be a different person. That's something most people never get to do. Enjoy a different life for a while. Enjoy being a girl."

He shook his head as he stared and listened. "I can't believe I look so... real. Like, a real girl."
 

~^~
 

When Bob came home that evening, he found a stranger helping out in his kitchen emptying the dishwasher with Mary Ellen. A girl of twelve or thirteen years old wearing a sage colored pull over shirt with puffy little balls for sleeves that barely covered the tops of her thin arms. She had russet colored hair that was cut into a playfully messy bob, bright pink earrings that peeked out from under that hair at times, and she was wearing a very short pair of denim shorts that exposed her thin legs that traveled down to a pair of yellow flip flops.

He looked around for his wife, who wasn't in the kitchen or living room. He stuck his head into the back office and found Joyce there, doing some work on her computer.

"Hey." He smiled at the sight of her. "How's it going?"

Joyce stood and accepted a hug from the man she loved. "It's going pretty well, actually. Everyday I expect a huge fight and, so far, no fight has come. So... everything is going pretty well."

"That's great." Bob smiled and hugged her again. "So... who's Mary Ellen's friend?"

Joyce stepped back and looked in the direction of the kitchen, which was not in her sight line. "Friend? I didn't know that she had a friend over. Is it Effie? They were with her earlier."

Bob shook his head. "No. Not Effie. This is a younger girl. Reddish hair... about 'yay high"..."

Joyce giggled. "That... is our son. He had his cut and dyed today."

Bob looked unsteady and sat down in Joyce's desk chair. "THAT was Hunter!?" He nearly gasped the words. "Jesus, Joyce, I didn't even recognize him! How is that possible?"

Joyce gave him a warning, "Shh," as she closed the office door. "Keep your voice down, Robert."

Bob ran his hands through his hair and took a deep breath. "Joyce... this is going too far... That didn't even look like a boy, let alone Hunter."

"You mean Hunter, the boy with the plump breasts on his chest? Bob, Hunter hasn't looked like a boy for months. He just hid it from us."

"Yeah, Joyce, but... God Almighty, have you looked at him? This is crazy!"

Joyce folded her arms and looked irritated. "Alright... now, I'm confused. YOU wanted Hunter to go to this softball camp, right? YOU wanted him to blend in, right? Well, guess what, Bob... the reason he looks like a girl is so he WILL blend in. That's what YOU wanted. Now, explain to me why your so freaked out by this."

Bob shook his head to clear it. "You... just couldn't understand, Joyce. I'm his father. He's my SON for crying out loud and I let him get transformed into... what?... a little girl, I guess. That's not what I intended."

"Yes, it is, Bob. That's exactly what you intended. If you wanted him to fit in at a camp with a lot of other little girls, then you intended for him to look just like any of them."

He shook his head. "Joyce... I can't explain how shocking that was for me. I mean... he's not YOUR son..."

"NOT MY SON!?" Joyce snapped, somehow yelling and whispering simultaneously.

Bob's head snapped up to look at his wife. "Well... you know what I mean..."

"No. I don't know what you mean, actually. Look, Bob, I was at the hospital with you and Kate the day that Hunter was born and aside from you, NO ONE mourned Kate's death more than me. For crying out loud, Bob - I TAUGHT YOU how to take care of that child when you were nearly comatose with grief. That boy spent more time with Mary Ellen and me in the first year of his life than he spent with you! Maybe he didn't come out of my womb, but Hunter is every bit as much MY CHILD as Mary Ellen is and I am at least as concerned about his well being as you - Maybe even more so, now that I think about it."

"Ok, that came out wrong..."

"No, Bob, it didn't. This is not the first time that you've thrown the sainted memory of Kate at me in one way or another."

"I didn't even mention, Kate!" Bob was less quiet than Joyce.

"No - you just said that I'M NOT HIS MOTHER!" Joyce fumed. "Tell you what, Bob. You go show Hunter a photograph of Kate and a photograph of me and ask him which one raised him, which one changed his diapers, which one held him when he had a bad dream, which one has told him how much she loves him every goddamned day of his life, Bob, and see what his answer is."

"Come on, hon." Bob shook his head. "You know that I didn't mean it to come out that way. I know how much you love Hunter. I only meant..."

"That I'm not his mother. Yeah. I get it." She turned and gripped the door handle, but stopped and turned to face him once more. "You know, Bob... if you had your way, Hunter would be headed to an all boys, sleep over camp in a week, where I guarantee you he'd be at least sexually harassed and quite possibly worse. Now, when I've tried to help him fit in with your new cockamamie idea, you thank me by saying the cruelest thing possible to me. I'm fed up, Bob. I really am. Now, I'm going to smile and go be with MY kids. MY SON AND YOUR DAUGHTER - no one's step children, just OUR children. I suggest that you sit here until you get your shit together, then you plaster a smile on your face, come out to the kitchen and either tell OUR son how pretty he looks, OR you say nothing at all, because I promise you, if you say anything negative to him, I am telling you that the next few months will be a lot more difficult for him AND, so help me God, if things are miserable for him because of you, I will see to it that your life is miserable, too. Have I made myself very clear?"

He nodded. "I'm sorry."

She shook her head, so disappointed in him. "I'm sure you are. Now, don't make it any worse for Hunter." She took a deep breath and wiped her watery eyes. "Don't come out until you're ready to be a good father to MY son." She opened the door, smiled, and left Bob to think."
 

~^~
 

"So, after dinner, I'm taking Hunny shopping to get him something to wear to lunch tomorrow," Mary Ellen said as she cut into the large chicken pie that sat in middle of the table. She passed her stepfather a piece, then set about getting a piece onto her mother's plate. "Nothing expensive. We'll go to Target or something like that. I think he needs a more grown up look than my old clothes give him. After all, I was only ten or eleven when I wore the clothes he's wearing now, and those are five or six years out of style, too."

Joyce took her plate of chicken pie from her daughter and nodded. "Ok, but don't go crazy. We've spent a lot of money lately. Let's just be careful about how much is going onto my credit card."

"Ok," Mary Ellen said with a smile, "but look at the results of today's expenses!" She squeezed Hunters cheeks in her right hand. "Suddenly, my little brother is the cutest little sister in the neighborhood."

Hunter blushed and Joyce looked at Bob, who had been fairly quiet since coming out of the office.

"Ummm... yeah..." Bob said. "Hunter, you look very nice."

"Thanks, dad," the boy said, still looking embarrassed.

When the conversation stopped there, Joyce looked at her husband and raised her eyebrows high. Bob knew what that meant. He had to do some more work to calm things down that evening. "Did you..." he started, but stopped, not sure what to say. So, he went with the first thing he could think of. "Umm... did you enjoy your trip to the hair salon?"

That seemed like an odd question to Hunter. "I guess... I mean... all the ladies were really nice and I think they did a good job of making me look different."

"They certainly did," Bob smirked, but realized that his reaction might irritate his wife. "Tell you what." He pulled out his wallet and pulled out a bunch of twenty dollar bills. "Put away your mother's credit card and use this tonight. Buy whatever you need and get something fun for each of you to enjoy, ok."

Mary Ellen took the money, still smiling. "Thanks, dad. I'll bring you the change."

"That's ok," Bob smiled. "You guys have fun."
 

~^~
 

"This is nice!" Mary Ellen bubbled, picking up a rose colored top. It was sleeveless and looked like it would fit Hunter beautifully. "And it's on sale! Bonus!"

"It's got lace on the shoulders," Hunter said, looking at the garment as if it would bite him.

"'It's got lace on it,'" Mary Ellen teased in a funny voice meant to badly mimic Hunter. "It's got a teeny tiny bit of lace on each shoulder. It's not a bridal gown. Besides, you're a girl now. Lace is pretty. Enjoy it."

"I don't know," he hemmed and hawed a bit.

"At least try it on. I've got two other tops, too, and three pairs of shorts. This pair with the little stars all over it, these with the vertical, beige stripes and these with the rainbow stripes. Ready to try everything on?"

"Can't I get a regular pair of jean shorts?" He asked.

"Sure!" Mary Ellen smiled. "I'll grab a pair on the way to the changing room."

They went to the jean-shorts area and Mary Ellen grabbed a pair, which, to Hunter's despair, also had lace on the leg openings. When he groused about the decorations, Mary Ellen put her arm around his shoulder and guided him towards the changing rooms singing an old ska song she'd heard on a playlist.

"'Cause I'm just a girl.
Oh, little ole me.
Well don't let me out of your site.
Oh, I'm just a girl.
Pretty and petite.
So, don't let me have any rights."

"God, you're so weird," Hunter said, shaking his head, but smiling at his stepsisters silliness.

"Yeah, I'M the weird one," Mary Ellen laughed. "I have a little brother pretending to be a girl, but, yeah, I'M the weird one."
 
 
To Be Continued...