I apologize that I did not publish this first. I didn't have a handle on picking up where I left off four years ago. Now, I realize that this was necessary. And the best part is that the Nelson kid wanted to write this

A Wildcat Summer Prologue

My story, well, it’s not a long, long time ago in a galaxy far, far away kinda story. This story is happening in the present time, like right now. It’s about me, Terry Nelson. But go back and look at that first sentence again. My life might just as well be a fairy tale. Seriously, the stuff that’s been happening to me is unbelievable. But when they make the fairy tale movie about my life, the script has to be penned in the Brothers’ Grimm style. You know, where people really die, and it’s not all a happy ending. My life ain’t no Disney flick.

I was going to end that paragraph with the phrase “shit happens” but decided not to and keep this story rated G. But readers, nothing is ever G rated. I’m just laughing over that rating ‘cause somebody dies a gristly death in this story, and they will still make it PG. But the idea of adults making love or even making out can be rated R if they’re naked. That’s in there, too.

So this is a story that has already been told in an epic called The Big Book Of Wildcats. Leslie Moore started writing stories about us long ago because she has a time machine and can pop all around the time continuum. But if you haven’t read Leslie Moore’s book, this cheater will bring you up to date without having to buy some huge volume and dedicate your life to reading it. I’m not saying it’s a snooze, but this way, we can duck around the corner and bring you up to date in A Wildcat Summer.

The opening scene of this tale takes place in last-period study hall at Allentown High School. Picture this: Winter is over, and spring break is happening. I’m sitting in my seat, leaning over and writing in my notebook, when my buddy, Don, reminds me that we’re going to Tony’s house cause he’s got a new X Box game.

Brian is sitting on my other side. Brian, Tony, Don, and I are friends, and we are gamers. Seniors get last-period study hall so the jocks can dress early for sports. The rest of us watch the clock, waiting to get out. Mr. StickUpHisButt is at the front looking at his computer. We’re trying to whisper. “Hey, whatcha doin’, man?”

“Writing a song for the Wildcats.”

“You mean your sister’s band? Man, they are such babes. You’re so lucky to be around such awesome women.” That’s Tony talking; he’s sitting behind me.

That about describes the Wildcats and what I do for Lisa’s band. I write tunes and email them out. They play them. It’s great for me because I want to go to music school to learn everything about music.

“So what’s this song called?”

“‘Two-Thirty Blues.’ It’s about our study hall.”

Fast-forward. It’s spring break, and Lisa comes home off the road after touring the South all winter. Lisa, Gina, Tiffany, and Zoe play in a punk bar band that is pretty popular on the circuit. It’s the three of us, no dad. My mom, Amy, is a nurse, and she is the greatest person I know.

So Lisa has dumped all her dirty laundry, and we’re sitting down to a family dinner. Out of nowhere, Lisa says, “Hey, Terry. You’ve got this week off. Why don’t you jam with us tomorrow?”

Did I mention that I play all sorts of instruments? I’m good cause whatever I hear stays in my head. Oh, yeah. I can sing too. But I don’t show off. Once a year, I play at the talent show each year cause the teacher, Miss Shaw, is cool.

That’s where I met my best friend, Jenn. We’ve been great friends until I found out that she liked me. That’s all it took for me to have the coolest, prettiest woman in our High School.

So after that invitation, I played with the Wildcats on that Monday. And they invited me back, and then the next day, too. Besides writing a bunch of their songs, I have an ear for arranging music, too. Those days were great for everybody. I got to play and sing with a fantastic group of women, and they got a fifth member at practice.

When we were practicing on Thursday morning, somebody lamented that it was a shame that I couldn’t play with them tonight at the Rendezvous cause I’d have fun and contribute by playing and singing.

Mark this moment down. This was when the first spell was cast. Imagine that the Wildcats are witches, and playing and singing with the band helped them trick me into wanting more. I loved it, and the idea of playing at the Rendezvous and rock club right in Allentown was awesome.

But the penalty attached to this spell was I had to look like one of the women. I didn’t mind dressing up a bit to look androgynous, and I had the most remarkable evening. Imagine being inside an adrenaline rush that was three hours long. The whole time we played, I had this embarrassing grin on my face. I was vibrating with excitement.

Playing on Thursday slipped into Friday and Saturday, too. Suddenly, the costumes became more elaborate, but the rush never stopped. The curse became more complicated because my mom, and we’ll get back to her later, told me that if I was going to create a fictitious character named Tasha, she was going to be here full-time until Sunday. Doable, I thought. I’ll go back to Terry when spring break ends.

And Jenn found out and fell under the witches' spell, too. Now, back to my mom. She’s the Queen of the Witches and created this whole Tasha thing with my loving sister, Lisa. They had me dressing and acting like a girl for the whole weekend, but I totally rocked because it was all about the rush of playing my music each night.

Of course, I made up the witches thing, but everything else is true and real. I swear.

Well, two agents came from New York and heard the Wildcats play on Friday and Saturday. They liked what they heard and wanted to sign the Wildcats, but only as a five-piece band. This was the second moment to mark down. I was still under this spell. And my thinking was to help out my sister and the band, but just for the summer. You know, until they get a record deal. Being Tasha for a while wouldn’t be so bad, I thought. You know just until they sign with a big music company.

Well, talk about everything happening all at once to the Cats with me tagging along. They had a club hit, appeared on the Ellen Show, signed a big contract for big money, appeared on the Tonight Show, and suddenly the world knew all about them.

It was a total tsunami. I barely survived, but Tasha popped her head up above the waters, and five Wildcats played in Allentown, Atlanta, Los Angeles, New Orleans, and New York. Crazy stuff like clothing sponsors, makeup sponsors, and fashion shows all came the band’s way.

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that on my first night of taking Tasha out in a social setting, she attracted a predator who kidnapped her. She was rescued by Jessica Jade, a fantastic hero. This guy, Amos, subsequently broke out of the high-security mental hospital and stalked Tasha to kill her.

But back to me. I was settling in playing Tasha. It wasn’t hard, and playing live rock with eager audiences kept me charged. I lived for the adrenaline. But I was buried under boob pads, butt pads, and hip pads. That was a big deal.

I needed better camouflage. Our drummer’s sister owned a salon and hooked me up with body pads that were glued on to give me realistic, girly curves. The pads looked seamless and made Tasha a lot more real.

One problem popped up. I’d never paid much attention to my own body cause it was lame. See, I was the only twelfth grader who never had puberty. I was tall enough, but no muscles, no facial hair, and, well, my equipment was punk. Jenn still loved me, so that was good. So Isabella from the salon and I started discussing my body shape. She remarked that it had a young girl shape to it. And as we replaced the pads, it seemed like it had swollen up.

My mom made me an appointment with the doctor she worked for. He examined me and said I should go to another doctor and get some tests, which I did.

The blood tests, the MRI, the CAT scan, and lots of X-rays revealed, roll the drums, that I wasn’t a boy. I wasn’t a girl, either. I was intersex. And the great reveal also found a few girl parts inside of me. The parts that make estrogen. And now that everyone was examining my body, it turned out that I had started puberty a while back. But it was a girl's puberty.

Cool, you’re probably saying. Intersex, looking like a woman, and playing in an all-woman band didn’t work out well. Nope, nope, nope. Hit the brakes. My brain had been programmed to be me, Terry, boy. I mean, I had a girlfriend, and I should be growing muscles.

Are you still with me? I mean, I haven’t mentioned the other people in my world. I should make a list to help you along with this strange tale.

Terry Nelson - me

Lisa Nelson -sister, older, beautiful blonde who met a guy named Smith who used to be the lead singer for EBR, Eaten By Raptors
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Gina is a shapely and beautiful drummer who is deeply in love with Grace Goldman, my counselor.

Tiffany is a bass player, tall, and a gorgeous blonde. She’s got Mike.

Zoe is a red-headed lead guitar player in the band. She’s become my writing partner. Her love is Bruno.

Amy Nelson - Mom has a thing with Zoe’s dad, Conor.

Richard and Phil - our agents and producers

Warner’s Records - Bill is the boss who likes us. We signed a big contract with them.

And so our summer begins. We all live in a house out in the woods near Allentown. The first floor has a recording studio, and we’re going to finish up our record and start touring in June.

That, my friends, is where this tale should begin. Because I’m not the best writer, Leslie Moore is going to take over telling this tale.