Spencer walks around the mall with his friends. Only Jason and Greg knew his secret: He wished he was a girl instead of a boy. They caught him one day wearing a pair of panties and pantyhose to school. His parents didn’t even know he wished he was born a girl. They just thought he liked dressing up as a girl. For Halloween, he dressed up as a sexy anime girl from one of his favorite anime shows.

When his parents asked him what he wanted for his birthday or Christmas, he never told them the truth because he knew how they felt about people born one gender and pretending to be another gender.

His mother and father felt that the new laws being passed about drag performers and non-gender people joining the opposite gender sports were right. They thought it was unfair to genetic-born girls to have a nongenetic girl play against them. As for drag performers, they felt young kids shouldn’t be exposed to how they dressed.

It took a lot of compromising for them to let him dress up as an anime girl. But when he told them, his friends Terry and Bobby were going as his male companions. They reluctantly agree.

Three of them won first prize for their costumes. He still had the outfit at home hanging in his closet.

“What are your plans for Christmas, Spencer?” Greg looks at his friend as they walk into the mall.

“Same as last year. Midnight mass on Christmas Eve with my grandparents. Christmas Eve dinner at my grandma Ann’s place. Christmas dinner at my grandma Carol’s place.” Spencer didn’t want to go to midnight mass or his grandma’s place for Christmas Eve or dinner.

His female cousins liked showing off their new dresses and jewelry. His cousins Frank, George, Jeff, Anthony, Jacob, Jerry, and Andy love showing how manly they are. George and Jeff were on their high school wrestling team. Frank and Andy have been playing football since they were little. Anthony was brilliant and was on the honor roll every year. Jacob and his friends sat at Black Top Pool Hall and played ballads. Jerry was on the swim team, and Andy was on the track team at his private school.

His parents had him try out for football, and his coach was forced to put him in the game during his third game. He broke his left leg, and it hasn’t healed right. He had a slight limp to his walk. Sometimes, his cousins and some of the kids at his school call him gimpy.

“Man, I’m going out of town to my grandma’s Wendy’s house. Dad is talking about driving there this year instead of flying after what happened last year.”

“You mean with the TSA agent who mistakenly mistook your father as a terrorist?” Greg looks at Jason as they pass the bookstore entrance.

“Yeah. Dad asked if he had to fly again and that the TSA agent was there. He is going to punch the man in his face.” Jason knew his father meant it.

“I like road trips because you can see many places you haven’t been.” Greg liked traveling with his family.

“Not me. I always end up in the middle. Do you know what it is like to have two gorilla-size brothers?” Spencer hated sitting between his two giant brothers.

Both were defensive guards and built like Arnold Schwarzenegger. His brother Henry was dating the co-leader of the cheerleaders, and his other brother, Michael, was dating one of the female tennis players. She was beautiful and unbeatable. Everyone she went against, she beat.

“Nope, thank god I’m a single child.” Greg liked being the only child.

The three of them stop at Game Stop and browse what games they had for sale. Spencer wasn’t interested in games but liked hanging out with his friends. He watches as Greg buys two games he has been looking for. He noticed Jason didn’t have enough money to buy the game he wanted.

Spencer pulls a twenty out of his pocket and gives it to Jason.

“Here, you can pay me back later.”

Jason looks at the money. “Are you sure? I know you have been saving it for something special.”

“Yeah, I’m sure.”

“Thanks.” As Jason accepts the money.

He grabs the game, walks up to the cashier, and pays for the game. Spencer watches as his friends buy their games. Afterward, they go to the food court and have some lunch. All three combine their money and buy a medium meat lovers pizza to split between them.

They watch as the patrons walk around buying gifts and things. Several girls enter the mall, and the boys immediately spot them.

“Hey, isn’t that Tiffany and her friends from school?” Greg was sure it was Tiffany from school.

She was curvy and big-chested, unlike some other girls at school. All of them knew she didn’t stuff her bra to make her chest look more prominent. Even when she was wearing her gym clothes, her breasts caused her gym shirt to stick out.

All the guys in their gym class loved watching her do jumping jacks. Because her breasts bounced up and down, she had some nice, toned legs. Some of their male teachers loved when she wore short dresses to school.

“I heard she turned down Zack for the Winter Formal.” Greg thought about asking her out.

“Who is she going with, then?” Jason looks at Greg.

“Don’t know. She said she might not show up.” Greg knew Tiffany sometimes worked at her mother’s bridal shop.

“Man, it would be a shame. I would love to see her in a fancy dress.” Jason liked how she looked usually.

Spencer looks down at Tiffany and wishes he had her figure. He would love to look like her when he dressed up at home in private. He looked like a drag queen, except when his mom helped him with his makeup for Halloween.

“So, what do you guys want to do after lunch?” Spencer looks at his friends.

“Why don’t we catch a movie or something.” Greg looks at his friend when he mentions that.

“Count me out. I spent what money I had on the game. Spencer had to help me pay for it.” Jason looks over towards Spencer.

“I got you covered if you want to go to the movies, Jason.” Spencer didn’t mind covering for his friend.

“I’ll help too.” Greg didn’t mind either.

“Thanks guys.” Jason didn’t make as much as he thought he did.

“So, what movie do you want to see?” Greg looks towards Jason and Spencer for an answer.

“How about the new Disney movie, Wish?” Spencer wanted to see it.

“How about the new Marvel movie?” Jason wanted to see the Marvels.

“Sounds good to me. How about you, Spencer?” Greg looks towards Spencer since he wants to see the Disney movie.

“Sure, I don’t mind.” Spencer didn’t mind watching the Marvels movie.

Greg checks what time the movie starts and buys their tickets online. That way, all they had to do was let the cashier scan his phone.

“Okay, I got the tickets.”

“Here’s mine and Jason’s money.” Spencer transfers money from his account to Greg’s account.

“Thanks again, Spencer.” Jason felt terrible about having Spencer helping him out.

“Hey, don’t worry about it. I know you would do the same for me. Also, what are friends for.” Spencer has been Jason’s friend for a long time.
They have watched out for each other.

The trio roamed the mall until the movie started. A few times, they pass a store that caters to teenage girls. Spencer pretends he needs to tie his shoes to look at the display. The mannequin was wearing a nice outfit for sale. He snaps a picture of it. He’ll see how he looks wearing it on his laptop. He has a program that allows a person to see how they would look wearing clothes. He has used it a few times to see what he would look like if he were a girl wearing certain outfits.

He catches up with his friends and kills some time until the movie. When it was time to watch the film, Greg and he bought a giant bucket of popcorn to share and drinks. The movie theater allowed one free refill on their glasses.

Later, after Spencer arrives home. He plugs his cell phone into his laptop and downloads the pictures he took. He opens the program he has that would let him see what he would look like if he wore the clothes.

He had a picture of himself wearing a padded bra and hip pads stored on his computer. He uses that to see how he would look. He uses another program that would help him apply the right makeup to his face.

He had to admit that he looked good wearing the outfit he saw with the right makeup. He saves the picture and closes the program. He surfs the web for a while and visits his favorite story site to read the stories written by transgender authors.

After a while, he goes to bed. He lies there and wishes he was a girl instead of a boy. He closes his eyes and falls asleep.

The weeks leading up to the winter formal were the most significant news around school. All of Spencer’s friends managed to find dates for the dance. Jason asked Tiffany to the prom, and she said yes, which surprised everyone in their group. They were considered the nerds in the school because of their love for anime, video games, and other things most people found boring.

Jason was studying to become an engineer, and Greg was studying to become a cybersecurity expert. He already had several certifications in ethical hacking, CISSP credentials, and a few others. As for Jason, he had no idea what he wanted to do after high school or if he even wanted to go to college.

As for the formal, Greg asked Becky Johnson, and she said yes. Becky was Mr. Johnson’s daughter and extremely bright. She loved chemistry and had won several contests, making their high school well-known. Not that their football, wrestling, baseball, and basketball teams weren’t that bad. They held over eight state championships in various sports.

Several prestigious colleges have recruited several of their players and wrestlers. As for Spencer, he wasn’t going to the formal because he didn’t want to go. Two, he didn’t feel like getting dressed up in a monkey suit like his brothers, and three, deep down, he wanted to go as a girl instead of a guy.

Instead, he volunteered to work that night at his part-time job. He had a part-time job at his local 7-Eleven store. It was only ten minutes from his parents’ house.

His parents couldn’t believe he would rather work than join his friends at the dance. His brothers teased him because, according to them. Every girl he asked turned him down. Which was a lie, and he didn’t feel like correcting them. He didn’t bother to ask any of the girls at his school, and none of them bothered to ask him.

Spencer gets ready for work while his brothers get ready for the formal. Their father used his connections and got a stretched Hummer for his brothers to take their dates to the formal. Spencer leaves without anyone noticing for his job. His mother was having a field day taking pictures of his brothers. He knew the girls’ parents would share the images with them. They were good friends and played cards together on Friday nights.

Spencer peddles his bicycle to work and locks it. When he enters the store, he spots his coworker Ralph ringing up some customers.

“What are you doing here tonight, Spencer? Isn’t your high school having their winter formal tonight?” Ralph had a daughter that went to Spencer’s high school.

“Yeah, they are. I didn’t have a date, and I’m not interested in hanging around at the dance.” Spencer clocks in.”

“A nice young man like you didn’t couldn’t get a date? That’s hard to believe.” Ralph knew how polite Spencer was, even to entitled people who entered the store.

“It’s fine. I didn’t want to go anyway. I’ll start checking the stock and putting it away.” Spencer noticed they got their weekly stock in.

“Alright.” Ralph watches Spencer go to work, checking what they have and putting it up.

While Spencer worked putting the stock away, Ralph tended to the customers. The evening crowd was light for a Friday, which was unusual. Usually, they were swamped with lottery players and beer drinkers, just like on Saturday and Sunday.

After putting all the new stock on the shelves, Spencer heads outside and cleans up around the rumps. He changes the trash bags and refills the windshield wiper fluid. He checks the towel dispenser and fills it. By the time he finished all that, the crowd had picked up inside the store. He heads back into the store and helps Ralph with the customers. He couldn’t legally sell cigarettes or beer, so those customers had to be rung up by Ralph.

By ten o’clock, the crowd had died down. Spencer joins Ralph outside by the wood pile for sale. Spencer notices Ralph is smoking one of his favorite cigars instead of a cigarette. There was a weird scent coming from it.

“What are you smoking, Ralph?” Spencer looks at Ralph.

“One of my special cigars. Just don’t tell Noah about it.”

“Why would I do that?” Spencer had a puzzled look on his face.

Ralph smiles as he takes another puff from his cigar. Spencer watches the area as the two sit there and watch the traffic. The area the store was in wasn’t bustling. It mainly was country, and traffic died down around the area after a specific time.

The rest of the night drags on. By the time the midnight shift arrived, Spencer was ready to go home. He comes a few minutes after his brothers. They were shit face, and their suits were wrinkled and had lipstick on the collars.

“You missed one hell of a formal, Spencer.” Kevin looks at his little brother.

“Yeah, man, even your friends might have gotten laid tonight.” Jerry looks at his little brother.

“They wouldn’t know what to do. They are too nerdy to know how to handle a woman.” Kevin got to third base with his girlfriend in the girl’s locker room.

“You should have come, Spencer. There were a few girls there with no dates. You might have gotten lucky with one of them. Especially if the rumors are true about Marcy.” Jerry has heard rumors about Marcy around school and in the locker room.

“You mean the one where she would lift her skirt for young boys to see her vagina or the one where she gave a teacher a blow job?” Kevin has heard both rumors.

“Both. I heard she used to show young boys her pussy for five dollars.” Jerry thought it was funny.

“Come on, guys, I doubt Marcy is like that. You guys are worse than Brandy and Angie at school.”

“Well, at least we have girlfriends and had a good time.” A smirk appears on Kevin’s face as he looks at his brother.

“Whatever! I’m going to bed.” As Spencer starts heading towards the stairs.

“Takes some tissue with you, Spencer. Mary and her four sisters are the only way to get any.” Jerry laughs at his younger brother.

Spencer heads towards his bedroom and changes into his PJs. He puts his cell phone in the charger by his bed and crawls under the sheets. He hates his life and wishes he had never been born as a stupid male.

The days after the formal were busy with the teachers trying to cram as much work as possible. Most of the students were looking forward to the Christmas holidays. As for Spencer, he wasn’t looking forward to it.

Things go south for Spencer during the last week of school before Christmas break. They had the gym all week, meaning they would have to change into their school-issued gym clothes. Spencer didn’t mind the gym too much, so he had no problem changing into gym clothes. Today, his gym teacher had decided to let them play dodgeball.

Spencer hated the game because he was always the first one taken out and the last to be picked for a team. As expected, he was assigned to a group, and they no longer started the game. He is hit square on in the face by a dodgeball.

The person who threw the ball battered him with the ball, and his nose broke. He is sent down to the nurse’s office by his gym teacher. The nurse manages to stop the bleeding and sends him back to class.

Spencer couldn’t believe the ball broke his nose. He goes into the locker room, changes out of his bloody shirt, and toss it into his gym bag. He gets dressed in her school clothes and returns to finish the class.

The rest of the day, the teachers push the students. During Spencer’s English class, their homework will be about their holiday and what it meant to them. When school finally lets out. Spencer heads home and soaks his gym shirt like his mother taught him. He saw her do it to some of her panties, which were heavily soiled with blood.

While his t-shirt soaks. He tosses his gym bag in his bedroom and fixes himself a snack. He hopes his relatives don’t give him a bunch of clothes or things he does not need. He’ll again give it to the church or the local thrift store like last year.

Spencer watches the rest of the Iron Man movie playing on TNT. He'll start on it after the film since it was his night to help his mother fix dinner. The meat had already been taken down from the freezer to defrost.

After the movie, Spencer enters the kitchen and plays music from his cell phone. He dances to the music as he sets the burner temperature. He takes the pork chops from their package and dips them in the breading mixture his mother taught him. He lays them down in the oil pan and fries them.

While the pork chops cook in the oil, he heats a pot of water for the instant mashed potatoes. He places the frozen bags of mixed vegetables in the microwave to stream. He opens a cookbook his mother keeps in the kitchen and makes homemade brown gravy for the mashed potatoes. He knew his father loved gravy on his chops and potatoes. He also loved applesauce as well.

Cindy arrives home and walks into the house. She could hear music playing and headed towards the kitchen. She spots Spencer shaking his ass and dancing as he stands by the stove cooking dinner. A smile appears on her face as she watches her youngest son cook.

She saw that he had the cookbook opened and was standing up. She hangs her purse on the back of a nearby chair and walks over to see how things are.

“You look like you have everything under control, sweetie.” Cindy smiles at Spencer.

“Thanks, Mom. Everything is about ready to be served. All we need now is the rest of the family.”

“Oh, don’t worry about that. They will be here soon.” Cindy smiles at her son and starts setting the table for dinner.

Everyone arrives home. Spencer hears his brothers as they enter the house. His brothers Kevin and Jerry just got done with practice and were in good spirits. They spot Spencer in the kitchen wearing one of their mother’s aprons. Jerry snaps a picture of Spencer without knowing it and posts it on the school community page.

When their father gets home from work, he joins everyone at the dining room table. He asks each boy how their day went and what happened at school. Cindy did notice that Spencer hurt his nose and asked him about it.

He was thankful it wasn’t broken; he was just sore from being hit. His brothers look at him. “You need to learn how to duck, little brother.”

“I’ll remember that next time.” Spencer eats his meal.

After dinner, he helps his mother put away everything. There was enough left over for his father to take to work. After Spencer helps his mother clean up the kitchen. He heads upstairs to his bedroom and looks at the maid outfit in his closet.

He liked wearing it and wants to wear it again. He still had the French stocking he wore with the outfit and the garter belt as well. Everything he wore that night he still had, including the wig. He shuts his bedroom door, goes to his desktop computer, and plays a few games online. His character was a badass female assassin.

Another person played on the same site as he did, and the person was dressed like a carnival fool. The player was pretty good; sometimes, the two would team up and adventure together. According to the information, Spencer managed to learn about the person. The player was female and lived on the East Coast somewhere. They wouldn’t give their exact location because of the type of work they did.

He also learned that the person used to be like him until she made a wish. It had been at a fountain that granted wishes. She said that whatever wish you wish for, you must be willing to pay the price for the wish. Also, she suggests you use a gold coin. It doesn’t have to be a real gold coin, but a Sacagawea Dollar coin would work.

Spencer had taken her advice and managed to get his hands on about five dollars worth of them. He always kept one with him if he encountered the magical wishing well. He was skeptical about the well, but his friend reassured him that it was real.

The next day, since Spencer didn’t have to be at school or work. He goes to the mall and does some Christmas shopping. He still needed to buy Christmas gifts for his brothers and parents. He already bought his friends their Christmas gifts.

His mother was easy to buy for. She liked a specific type of perfume and jewelry. Spencer already knew what scent he was getting her. Spencer is selecting his mother’s favorite. He tests a few that he might want as his own smelled. He finds one that is perfect for him. It had a hint of lilac with a floral undertone.

He purchases a small bottle since he knows he’ll never get a chance to wear it much. As for his brothers, he knew what they liked and bought it for them. His father loved gadgets, and he knew the perfect device for his father.

After purchasing the gifts, he walks around the mall exploring different stores. He saw so many different outfits and makeup kits he would love to purchase. The problem was, he couldn’t keep them secret at the house. He stands there and wishes he was a woman and could buy them.

“They are beautiful, aren’t they?”

“Yes, they are.” Spencer hears the sound of a female voice coming from beside him. He turns to face whoever just spoke to him.

A young woman with shoulder-length red hair was dressed in a green dress. There was a twinkle in her eyes, and whatever perfume she wore smelled like freshly baked sugar cookies. She also had little silver bells hanging from her ear lobes.

“Hi, my name is Justine.” As Justine holds her hand out to Spencer.

“Spencer.” As he shakes her hand. He noticed she had a warm hand.

“I take it that you wish you were wearing one right now?” A friendly smile appears on Justine’s face.

“How did you know?” Spencer was curious how she knew how he felt.

“Because when I was your age. I had the same feelings.” Justine looks into Spencer’s hazel eyes.

“Did you have parents that didn’t like transgender people or drag queens?”

“No, my father hated that his only son wanted to be a girl. As for my mother, she died protecting me.” When Justine was taken from the Christmas lot years ago, she saw her mother.

Her mother told her that she was very proud of the young woman she had become. Her mother knew she would become something more one day because of how good her heart was. She had been surprised as well.

Justine thought she had died, but in reality, she had been selected by the spirit of Saint Nicholas to become one of his elves. She had shown how much Christmas spirit she had helping the people she did without asking or expecting anything in return.

“I’m sorry to hear that about your mother. As much as I disagree with my parent's beliefs, I still love them.”

“I know, and that is why I’m here speaking to you now. Walk with me, please.” Justine starts walking away from the store they are standing in front of.

Spencer follows the young woman when she starts walking. He wonders what she was and why she was here.

“What will you sacrifice to make your dream come true?”

“What do you mean?” Spencer looks at the young woman as they walk.

“What I mean is, are you willing to give up your safe life to have the life you want? Because, you know, the rules are different for women and sometimes dangerous. There will be men who will try to take advantage of you. They will try to pass laws telling you what you can or can’t do with your body.” Justine didn’t like the path lawmakers were heading down.

“How about my family and friends? Will I lose them?” Spencer was worried about his family and friends.

“Yes and no. I can’t tell you exactly what will happen, but you will have a rough time. It will take time for you to have a normal life again.” Justine knows the choice Spencer makes will affect him and everyone around him.

“Are you offering to give me what I want?” Spencer wonders what the deal was with Justine.

“I don’t have that ability. I’m here to see if this is what you want. Whenever you are forced to do something, I know that goes against your feelings. You wish either that you were dead or that you had been born a girl. A little piece inside of you dies. Right now, you still hope your wish will come true.” A smile appears on Justine’s face.

Spencer looks at Justine with conflicting emotions. He knew she was right and that he wanted to be a woman.

“Can I think about this?”

A smile appears on Justine’s face. “I would be worried if you didn’t. Let me see one of those coins you are carrying.”

Spencer digs one of the coins out he always carries with him. He hands the coin to Justine. “Here you go.”

Justine accepts the coin and closes her hand around it. She concentrates and channels the energies she is given into the coin. She feels her hand become warm as the energies fill the coin.

After a few seconds, Justine opens her hand. “Take this coin. And toss it into the well when it appears. Make your wish and go home afterward.”

Spencer accepts the coin. He noticed it felt warm in his hand. He looks at Justine. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. Just ensure this is what you want because your life will change in ways you never imagined.” Justine winks at Spencer just before she disappears.

Spencer is shocked when Justine just ups and disappears. In her place was a cloud of gold glitter drifting down to the floor. He stands there watching as the cloud falls to the floor and disappears.

Spencer starts walking towards the entrance of the mall. As he steps outside, he notices a fountain someone has set up to collect donations. He walks over to it and tosses the coin Justine gave him into it. He wants to be a woman and hopes his wish will come true one day.

When the coin hits the water, a cool breeze blows by his face, like it was caressing his cheek. He places his hand on his cheek and feels how warm it feels. A smile appears as he catches the bus back to his house.

Christmas Eve:
On Christmas Eve, everything Spencer told his friends happened. He goes to midnight mass with his parents and grandparents. He has dinner at one of his grandparent's houses, where he is disappointed at the gifts he receives. He is jealous of the ones his female cousins get instead.

Later, after mass, he heads home and tosses the gifts he received into his closet. He’ll take them to the Goodwill after Christmas with the other gifts he’ll receive.

During the night, his body starts changing. It changes into the way Spencer has always seen himself to be. The gifts that he received also changed as well.

Christmas Morning:
There’s a knocking on Spencer’s door. “Come on, sis, Mom and Dad are waiting on you.”

Spencer moans as she turns around to face her cell phone. Her shoulder-length brown hair covered half her face. Her eyes go wide when she notices her hair.

“What the!” As Spencer sits upright in bed.

The PJs she put on last night were the same, but everything else about her has changed. She tosses the covers aside and stumbles out of bed. She nearly falls face-first towards her floor.

Spencer looked at her reflection in the mirror and couldn’t believe how she looked. Her perky pear shape breasts were poking against her top. Her eyes were still hazel, but her brown hair was shoulder-length and messy.

Her waist was small, and her hips had widened. She was also shorter than she used to be. Spencer couldn’t believe how she looked. She turned sideways and liked how plump her ass looked.

“Sweetie, come on down and open your gifts.”

“Coming, Mom.” Spencer puts her feet into her house slippers as a smile appears.

The one Christmas gift she wanted has come true.