Chapter 5

‘An unplanned weekend’

‘It is quite natural for someone as
attractive as you to be looked at'.

The three girls caught a tube train to Oxford Circus station and spent the afternoon visiting several department stores in both Oxford Street and Regent Street helping Sue to choose her wedding outfit. Denise was still a little anxious about being out in public in the middle of the day and in the busiest part of London, but her two friends treated her exactly as if she were a young woman. She couldn’t say that nobody in the street took a second look at her, and she did occasionally get the impression that both guys and girls of her age group appeared to be glancing at her, which was something which had never happened to Denis. For a while she wondered whether she was being ‘read’, but both Sue and Alison told her that it was not so.

‘It is quite natural for someone as attractive as you to be looked at; the guys are all imagining whether they would have any chance with you, and the girls are sizing you up as a potential competitor,’ said Alison by way of reassurance.

In spite of what she had told Samantha the previous evening, Denise had an elder sister, but they had never been particularly close and so this was her first experience of going out shopping for clothes accompanied by young women. After much discussion, and trying on several alternatives, Sue eventually bought herself a floral print dress, a white handbag, a matching pair of high-heeled shoes and hat. Alison also decided that her boyfriend should buy her a new dress in compensation for having missed her promised trip to Paris. As she looked through the racks of dresses for herself, she pointed out several items to Denise with the recommendation that they would suit her and that she should try them on. Eventually Denise agreed to try one of them on just to keep her happy. It was dark grey shot silk and looked very nice on her. For a moment she was even tempted to buy it, but ultimately declined to make a purchase since she would have no opportunity to wear it.

Once Sue and Alison had made their respective purchases, Sue suggested they had a cup of tea and a cake in the cafeteria on the top floor.

‘When you are both finished, can we go down to the food hall, I have made a list of everything that I will need for tonight’s meal?’ said Denise.

‘Alright,' said Sue, 'but first of all I am still waiting to hear from you all the details of your having fulfilled the task that Jane set you last night.’

‘Yes I did discover the answer, it is rose pink,’ said Denise. ‘In the event it was not as difficult to find out as I thought it would be — the matter has clearly been subject of some controversy between Jane and her sister.’

‘What is all this about?’ asked Alison.

Denise coloured, and she was feeling a little guilty about having taken in Samantha and also for promising to have lunch with her.

‘Sue can explain to you,’ she said, ‘I need to go to the ladies and to check that my hair and makeup are alright.’

When she returned Alison smiled and said, ‘Sue and I have decided that we would now like you to perform a task for us, whilst we go and buy the food for our meal tonight.’

‘What is that?’

‘First of all give us your shopping list,’ said Sue.

‘Alright, but I insist on paying for tonight’s food and some wine,' said Denise as she handed over the list together with three  £10 notes from her purse. ‘Now then, what is that you want me to do?’

Sue took one of the three notes and handed the other two back. ‘Here is  £20 donated by the two of us. You are going to need some clean underclothes for tomorrow morning as those in the wash won’t be dry in time. We want you to go to the lingerie department on your own and buy yourself a sexy pair of knickers, and a bra. We will see you back here in forty five minutes to check on what you have bought.’

‘And if your purchases are not sufficiently "girly" we will insist that you take them back and change them,’ added Alison.

Denise smiled, ‘alright then, but how could I buy a bra which is not "girly" enough?’

Denise took the escalator down a floor to find the lingerie department, where there was a huge range of garments on display. She did not really know what to look for except that she was size 32B. At first she felt that she would make her purchase and get out as quickly as possible, but the shop assistants were all engaged with other customers and nobody seemed to take much notice of her. She therefore had plenty of time to look around and began to marvel at the pretty garments that were there in front of her. This was a world of which she knew nothing but one which strangely attracted her and she enjoyed having to make a choice. Eventually she found a matching set of dark blue satin lingerie that would co-ordinate exactly with her party dress. The set included the necessary items together with a suspender belt and a camisole top. It was marked as having been reduced to half price in the sale but still cost  £30 and so Denise added a further  £10 from her own purse. As she took them to the counter to pay, she also added a pair of light grey stockings that she would be able to wear with the suspender belt. The shop assistant put the items into a bag and then took her money without the slightest trace of recognition that there was anything out of the ordinary about her custom.

‘Thank you madam,’ she said as she handed back the change, Denise smiled in acknowledgment and for some reason felt a warm glow as she returned to her friends.

‘You certainly took your time choosing,’ said Sue, we were about to come looking for you’.

‘Sorry, they were quite busy down there as they were having a sale.’

‘Let's see what you have bought then,’ said Alison keen to inspect her new purchases.

‘I've bought a matching set as they were half price,’ said Denise, blushing a little.

‘Oh these are really nice,’ said Alison smiling and holding them up for Sue to see.

‘Are they "girly" enough?’ asked Denise.

‘Oh yes, I can see that you enjoy wearing sexy lingerie’.

Denise blushed but did not answer.

When they got back to the flat Denise borrowed an apron and set to work preparing an evening meal for all of them, whilst Sue sorted out the washing and hung the items up to dry. Denise was a good cook but did not often have the chance to show off her skills as she lived alone. After they had eaten and completed the washing up Sue and Alison each tried on their new outfits once again. They then invited Denise to change into her new underclothes, including the stockings and suspender. Sue then loaned her friend a housecoat and proceeded to give her a second lesson on putting on makeup, this time letting her do the bulk of it herself and only intervening to rectify any small mistakes. Finally Denise put on her party dress for Alison’s benefit.

‘My goodness you look so beautiful as a woman,’ said Alison, ‘why on earth do you want to change back to being Denis’?

‘Because I don't have the right equipment and there's no way I could spend my life like this.’

'But you have enjoyed yourself so far this weekend,' said Alison.

'Yes, I suppose I have.'

‘In that case at least let us take some photographs of you, in case we want to blackmail you in the future,’ said Alison laughing. She brought out her camera and proceeded to take some photographs of Denise and Sue in various poses.

‘There's one thing that I'd like your advice about,’ said Denise.

‘What's that?’ asked Sue.

Denise told them about her conversation with Samantha, and how they had become quite friendly with one another and at the end of the evening they had exchanged telephone numbers.

‘Whatever will I say when she telephones me in a couple of week’s time. I enjoyed her company and I would hate her to think that I'd just tricked her in some way.’

‘I expect that Jane has already broken the news to her so I doubt if you'll hear from her again, unless of course you chose to ring her yourself.’

‘But what would I say if I did ring?’

‘That rather depends upon whether you want to meet her as Denise or as Denis,’ said Alison.

‘Ideally as Denis - I think - but if I did ever meet her as a man she probably would not fancy me and in any event I'd be too nervous to talk to her.’

‘In that case it'll have to be as Denise,’ said Alison. ‘All you have to do is explain what happened and tell her that you'd like to meet her again, if she's agreeable.’

‘But then I'd have to go through the whole rigmarole of getting dressed again,’ said Denise.

‘Yes, but now we’ve so successfully changed you into a woman once, I can’t see you getting away without doing it again sometime in the future,’ said Sue.

In her flat in Shepherd’s Bush, on the other side of London, Samantha checked the identity of the incoming call on her mobile phone and saw that it was from her sister.

‘Hi Jane! How are things at home?’

‘Sam, something disastrous has happened; Julie has had a car accident and has broken her leg.”

“Oh dear, is she going to be alright?”

“She's in plaster and has a black eye but is otherwise ok. However, she's not even sure she will be able to come to the wedding, let alone be my second bridesmaid’.

‘That’s not very good timing of her,’ Samantha answered. ‘Who will you get to take her place?’

‘That’s just the point, I can’t think of anyone, I have only one sister and Julie is my only cousin who isn't too old, or pregnant.’

'I know that Simon's an only child but does he have any cousins?'

“No all his cousins are much older than he is.”

‘What about asking one of your friends?’

‘To be honest I can’t really think of anyone suitable. Several of my friends don’t approve of marriage, have facial piercings, or else would refuse outright even to wear a dress.

‘How about your friend Sue from work, she'll be coming to the wedding?’ asked Samantha.

‘No, she’s too tall and is at least a size 38 bust; remember the dresses have already been made and it is too late now to get them altered. I can’t think of anybody else who is not either much older than me, far too big, or else a lesbian.’

‘I know, what about that girl I was talking to on Friday night, I think she would be about the same size as Julie, and she told me that she'd always wanted to be a bridesmaid’

‘What girl was that?’

‘The blonde girl from your work. Sue’s friend, Denise! You remember! We shared a taxi home afterwards. She and I were chatting and got on quite well whilst you two were busy getting yourselves drunk. We've agreed to have lunch together sometime’.

‘Oh Sam, didn’t you realise that Denise was really a young man in disguise?’

‘What do you mean?’

‘I'm sorry to break the news but we dressed up a lad from the office as a girl so he would not be left out of the hen night. The Denise you were talking to is really called Denis. I even gave him the task of finding out from you what you would be wearing as a bridesmaid without you realising’.

‘In that case I think you're both rotten bastard’s. I was entirely duped by him. There I was thinking that for once I'd made a friend who was genuinely interested in me, when all the time it was just a trick to make me look a fool,’ said Samantha sounding very upset.

Jane apologised profusely and for the rest of that evening felt guilty for the way she had treated her sister. However, her most immediate concern was finding a replacement bridesmaid, and she now began to wonder about one of Samantha’s suggestions.

The following morning Denise was again the first to wake up. This time she lay in bed for some time trying to work out in her own mind what she felt about the last two days. In some respects she felt as if she had been trapped into doing something that she would not have agreed to do, but on reflection she decided that she had also enjoyed the previous two days and there was no reason why she should not do so again today. She therefore got up and showered, put on her new underclothes together with Alison’s dress and the earrings. She put on a little make up and then carefully packed away the remainder of her clothes. Finally she went to the kitchen and began to prepare some breakfast for the others.

Over breakfast, Alison and Sue discussed what they might do with their visitor for the remainder of the day. It was agreed that they could all have lunch in Covent Garden followed by a leisurely walk around the market during the afternoon.

‘Before we go let me show you one or two things you can do with your hair, now that you're to be able to put on your makeup,' said Sue. You never know when it'll come in handy to be able to do it for yourself.’

The remainder of the day was fairly relaxed. Once again Sue and Alison treated their new friend exactly as if she were female and no further reference was made to her background or true sex. They found a pleasant Italian restaurant with outside tables in the Piazza and sat and chatted in the late May sunshine. This time Denise insisted on paying the bill for lunch and brushed aside all protests from her companions. Afterwards, whilst they were looking around one of the homemade jewellery stalls, Alison decided that she would buy her new friend a pair of earrings as a thank you for the lunch and then helped her to put them in. Denise thanked her and looked at herself in the mirror.

‘In that case I'll get you some studs to wear at night,’ said Sue. ‘The holes in your lobes will have healed by now and so it is important for you to keep them open. You'll be able to wear these in bed.’

‘You both seem determined to try and keep me dressing as Denise.’

‘It is up to you what you do and what you wear,’ she answered. 'I'm just trying to give you a few more options.'

Midway through Sunday afternoon, Sue received a call on her mobile phone, and noted that it was from Jane, whom she supposed was still in Birmingham. She took a few steps away from the others so she would not be overheard.

‘Hi Jane!’

‘Sue, I need to get hold of young Denis rather urgently but he's not answering his mobile and nobody at his flat has seen him recently or has any idea where he is. Did he say anything to you about where he might be going after you left him yesterday morning?'

‘No, but if you like I can ask his friend Denise whether she knows anything of his whereabouts, she's standing only a few yards away from me,’ Sue answered smiling.

‘You mean that Denis hasn't yet changed back!’

‘That’s right. It was rather embarrassing but we neither of us had our work keys on Saturday morning and we've been unable to get in touch with anyone who could let us back into the office. Denise has therefore been staying with me and my flatmate for the weekend. She will however be changing back before work tomorrow morning.’

‘That’s brilliant news,’ said Jane, ‘how has she been getting on?’

‘Just the same as on Friday, acting as a young woman seems to come naturally to her.’

‘In that case please will you do a big favour for me and stop her from changing back until after I have spoken to her tomorrow morning? I may be a little late in for work.’

‘I’ll do my best, but she'll need some explanation,’ said Sue. ‘What is it all about?’

‘I promise to explain to you both in the morning, please trust me and do what I say.’

‘Alright then, but I think you'd better talk to her yourself first.’

‘Very well.’

Sue called over to Denise and passed her the receiver telling her it was Jane on the line.

‘Denise you were absolutely wonderful on Friday night, many congratulations. My sister had no idea about you.’

‘Thanks, I was a bit worried at the end that someone might give me away, but her sister took her home in a taxi before she did so,’ she answered laughing.

‘Yes I'm sorry about that, but I was only teasing.’

‘Don’t worry, all was fine in the end and I completed my task successfully. The answer is rose pink.’

Jane laughed. ‘What can I say? Well done! I'll have a prize for you tomorrow, but you must please promise me not to change back until I get into work, I may be half an hour or so late.’

‘I suppose I could wait, if Helen and the others don't mind. I'll have been a woman for two and a half days by then, I doubt if another half hour or so will do me any harm,’ said Denise a little surprised.

‘Thanks Denise, I'm sure the others at work won't mind and you won’t regret it. I look forward to seeing you tomorrow.’

She rang off and Denise passed the receiver back to Sue.

That Sunday evening Sue washed her hair, and then showed Denise how to do the same with hers, and to put it up in Alison’s rollers. The three friends spent some time drinking a couple of bottles of wine and chatting.

‘Thanks for your hospitality this weekend,’ said Denise. ‘It has been very different from how I’d planned to spend my time, but I must admit that I have enjoyed myself.’

‘Good! I promise you that there was no conspiracy to trap you here as a girl for the weekend,’ said Sue ‘but I'm very pleased that things have worked out in the way they have'.

‘Me too!’ said Alison, ‘I'm even pleased that my trip to Paris was postponed.’

(Next week - Denise discovers that she has to make amends for fooling Samantha.)