Restyling Danny
A Short Story
By Maryanne Peters

Preface

This is a story from and idea by Erin contained in my latest anthology published by Doppler Press on Amazon (link below the story). Please remember that Doppler is a key supporter of Big Closet and buying books from their impressive stable of TG story writers is a way of supporting your favorite site.

Danny had a key to his sister’s apartment and knew that he could crash there if he missed the last train out of the city. It was not that he was late, but he had been caught out in the rain and was soaked through. He could not head home in that state, but maybe if he was able to get his clothes dry, he might just make it. On the way to Kay’s apartment, he called home to say that he would have dry off his damp clothes and may have to stay overnight. Mom seemed relaxed.

Kay was not there. He was a little surprised. Danny knew that she worked late, as a showgirl and part-time exotic dancer. She was not a prostitute, at least as far as she knew it. She had studied dance and was serious about making performance her career, or at least her career until the right man came along.

He took off his clothes and hung them on a rack by the window. He was cold, although winter was well and truly over, so he decided that he would take a hot shower.

There was moisturizing body wash that would have to do in the absence of soap. It was not a brand he recognized “Miracle Depil”-something. And the only shampoo was his sister’s too – with a floral scent and “volumizing”. The most important thing was to warm up and then dry off.

He needed to put something on, and the item with easy reach was a silk kimono. His skin seemed sensitive even against that soft fabric. He barely noticed that the body had drawn out the majority of his sparse body hair. It was the light garment that made his skin tingle. It was warm enough but the floor was cold so he borrowed a pair of her fluffy slippers too. They were a perfect fit.

He was sitting watching TV when he heard the key in the door, so he jumped up to explain everything to his sister with his well-known good-natured smile. But it was not her standing there looking surprised – it was a man.

“Well, this is a surprise,” he said. “I was looking for Kay. But by the look of you I am guessing that you might be her sister?”

“Danny,” he said. For some reason it came out of his mouth in a higher tone than was usual for him. It was so high that it sounded feminine, and as if his name was “Danni”. It was not deliberate, but it was done and seemed to cement things in place. If this was Kay’s brother, why would he be wearing a feminine kimono and smelling of flowers? The stranger seemed to accept that this was Kay’s sister. It seemed to obviate the need for a complicated explanation.

“My name is Tom,” the stranger said. “She gave me a key, but I am more her manager than her boyfriend.” He held up the key as if it was some kind of talisman of trust.

But it was for some other reason that Danny was drawn to relax. It was for the same reason (whatever that was) that he was drawn to smile, and to push his damp perfumed hair away from his face I a gesture that was not normal for him, and some might say – for any man.

“I was just going to leave her a note,” said Tom. “If she is not here then she will be working, so that’s good. But it is good news, so I came around. It is a cruise ship gig so it will take her away for a bit. I wanted to celebrate with her. I actually booked a table at a show she wanted to see. Hey, you should join us. In fact, we should get started and send Kay a message to join us.”

“I have nothing to wear,” said Danny, which was true.

“You are the same size as your sister,” he said. “I am sure that she has something to wear. Try something on and show me. I consider myself something of a stylist when it comes to my clients. I also do hair so let me do something with those lovely locks of your when you are dressed. By the way, are you are dancer too?”

“No,” said Danny, suddenly wishing that he could say yes. He had a sudden urge to do a pirouette like the hundreds he had seen Kay do as they grew up. Sometimes he would do them in the bathroom, and other moves too – just for a laugh.

“You should wear the red dress,” said Tom. “She doesn’t like it. She says it does not suit her. But with your lighter hair it would be perfect. Let me find it for you.”

He seemed to know his way around. He also seemed to know how to take control and give directions. He was her manager and her stylist. That made sense. Was a cruise ship job a good career? Danny had no idea. But there was a warmth and a directness about this man that he liked. It all seemed to come together to make Danny do exactly what was asked of him.

“You should wear this underneath,” Tom went straight to the right drawer. “Here it is. It comes with a little shaping corset, because for this red outfit you need some cleavage. Kay has everything you will need to help. And nude stockings, and these shoes will be perfect – just a little heel as I am guessing you might not be used to anything higher.”

There was nothing Danny could do but watch things being assembled on the bed.

“I’ll just wait in the living room,” said Tom. “I’ll grab a few things and warm up the curling tongs.”

Now was that chance for Danny to bail out. He could come down with something. A headache perhaps? But there was something thrilling about the clothes on the bed, and about the thought of living a little bit of his sister’s life – even only a few hours. He would catch the train to the city to visit an exhibition or research a project for school, but the city by day was all he knew, and that seemed superficial and frankly dull, after the initial impact of the scale of the place. But here was an adventure, and somebody waiting to guide him through it.

He put on the underwear first. As Tom had said it was shaping rather than skimpy. It allowed him to tuck away his male bits and to tuck padding Into the bustier to find breasts that he never knew existed. He pulled on the stockings as he knew he should – rolling them up the leg. He then stepped into the dress, then the shoes.

“Would you zip me up?” It was Danni who stood in the doorway to Kay’s room, letting Tom see the new woman and approve.

“You are a vision,” grinned Tom. “All that is needed is a little styling for that hair and some makeup, and fortunately I can do both of those, unless you would rather do it yourself?”

“You are the stylist,” said Danni. “I have no idea how to present myself. Actually, I am a little worried that I will make a fool of myself.”

“Nonsense,” said Tom. “I will give you some guidance. Now come and sit over here and I will do your hair and makeup.”

It was the living room and there was no mirror other than the one near the door which could not be seen from that chair. Danni simply sat, and let Tom do what he did. He worked on his hair and then sprayed what he had created to keep it in place, adding a single jeweled clip. Then he worked on his face with some foundation and color and then on the eyebrows, the eyes and the lips.

“Now we are running late,” said Tom. “I have sent a message to Kay to join us, but we had better be going. I have one of her coats for you, so let me slip it on your shoulders.”

As they walked to the door, Danni caught a glimpse of their reflection in the mirror and she stopped. There she saw that couple – a handsome man and a beautiful young woman, about to take his arm. It seemed unreal, as if it was a dream – a Cinderella moment. It was somebody transformed as if by magic – an ugly and sad tramp into a sparkling princess.

“Come on Danni,” said Tom. “You can make love to your reflection later. We want to get seated before the show starts.”

It was a club in the Theater District rather than a theater. The audience sat at tables and Tom had secured a table for four people not far from the stage. Somebody took Danni’s coat at the door to reveal the striking dress, and then he led her to the table, pulling out her chair for her to sit, a little awkwardly at first given the first time in skirts.

“Is Kay coming?” Danni asked.

“No reply yet,” said Tom. “Let’s hope she does, but we can’t keep looking over our shoulders expecting her. Just enjoy the show.”

It was musical theater. It was a new play, with a group playing live allowing the cast members to oddly burst into song at various points in the narrative, sometimes at very odd times, causing the audience to sit back and smile. There was a little dancing too. Kay would have liked it, but she had not appeared and it was almost over.

Danni enjoyed the show, but not half as much as she enjoyed simply being in the city, in the evening, with a light meal on the table and a bottle of champagne in a bucket beside that. This was everything that a girl from the outer regions could ask for, and that night Danni was that girl.

After the curtain calls the audience was invited to stay on for further drinks and Tom ordered espresso martinis.

“These will keep us going,” he said.

“It tastes very nice, but I am not used to strong drinks,” said Danni, still processing the champagne. “But after this I really need to get back to Kay’s apartment. You will have to message her when we leave.”

“I will do that,” said Tom. “But let me tell you that I have really enjoyed meeting you Danni and spending the evening with you. The thing is that watching somebody like you take in this city of ours with such wide eyes is entertainment in itself. It is almost like revisiting my first night out on the town all over again, even after all these years. I have tended to get a little tired of the nightlife lately but having you with me tonight has made me appreciate it more than I have in a while.”

He reached out and took Danni’s soft hand in his own. The contact seemed weird at first, but the warm look across the table made it seem totally normal and quite pleasant.

They shared a few more words about the show before Tom rose, taking her hand again and escorting her to collect her coat.

They returned to Kay’s apartment, and Danni realized that he did not have a key. Tom escorted Dann upstairs and used his own key to open the door.

“Would it be presumptuous of me to ask for a goodnight kiss?” said Tom.

It did not seem a strange request. On this night Danni was a woman, and she had received the benefit of an evening out paid for by this man. He had really been her date – a man, just as she had been a woman. Nothing could be more natural. Danni had no personal experience of such encounters, but she had watched enough movies. She knew what was needed to be done – a soft thank you kiss, perhaps with lips a little open. Then she would smile and slip inside and the door would close on Tom and she would place her back against the door and sigh with a smile on her face.

She took his face in her hands, bristly with masculine evening whiskers. She would use her hands to keep control and to maneuver through the now open door, leaving him on the other side of the threshold.

That was the plan, but it did not happen that way. It was her first kiss but not Tom’s. She found herself with her tongue locked to his twisting in a passionate clinch inside Kay’s living room and across the floor to the sofa, where she lay with him over her, and her blond curls bouncing about her head.

I should warn you that I am underage,” said Danni. “There can be no sex.” She could barely hide the sadness in her voice. If things were different, it could easily have followed, and probably should have.

“Darling girl, I would never force myself upon you,” he whispered as he nuzzled her ear. “But no lies, please. Kay told me that her brother Dan was 18.”

“You know!?” She found herself pushing him away in horror, but all she could see was his smiling face, and his eyes sparkling in a way she had never seen before. It was a look that seemed to call for her to lock lips again, and again after that.

“Sweet thing, I deal with all types of girls in my line of work,” he said. “I have been with girls, and with girls like you. Quite a few of both, and with men too I should add. But until now I have never fallen in love with anybody.”

Love? Suddenly, Danni knew what that was.

The End

© Maryanne Peters 2024

Erin’s seed: “His big sister is an exotic dancer and also has generous boyfriends. One of the boyfriends shows up and sis isn’t there so he offers to take "little sister" out for a good time if she will put on something pretty. The kid does, so they enjoy themselves, but the kid tells boyfriend – “No sex, I'm underage”. The boyfriend laughs and admits he knew the kid was a boy to begin with. He makes another date and asks when the kid’s birthday is…”.
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Link to Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0DN8G3V87