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Note: If you have not read The Summer of Bailey, I highly suggest you do before reading this story. There is a lot of background information on characters, more importantly the main character. I hope you enjoy the story, and as always, comments are more than welcome. ~Taylor

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Part 1

I tapped my pencil in a steady rhythm against the open book in front of me. Pre-algebra happened to be at the top of my list among most hated things so far that school year. Even worse, I was faced with it the first hour of every school day. I couldn't understand why anyone would choose to go into a line of work involving this heaping mix of numbers and letters. Maybe it was just to torture other people who didn't understand it.

At least I did fairly well in the rest of my subjects. Tiffany had made some wildly stereotypical suggestion that women just weren't that good at math. She happened to be doing fine with it, better than me, in fact. No, it was me. It was just something there on the list of things I couldn't do, like make new friends. I couldn't even hold onto the ones I had.

So far I had managed to lose most of my friends from elementary school. Some went to another school in the district, and out of those, I managed to stay in touch with one, Matt Turner. We didn't really see much of each other, but kept telling each other we should make plans to hang out. My closest friends, Eric Stevens and his twin brother Chris, stuck around for lack of friends on their end, but we seldom talked outside of school.

Tom, my stepfather, held true to his promise. He managed to get my name changed to Bailey after all before the start of the school year. Though it didn't go over as well as I thought it would. At school I had to defend the change. I settled on an elaborate explanation of how a family member, with the same name, had died over the summer, so my mom had it changed as a tribute to him. This sold, but I still received some odd questions about it.

Most of my problems came from a boy named Jason Coleman. On an ordinary Tuesday, from out of the blue, Jason cornered me in the boy's bathroom between classes. He used his body to invade my space until he had me blocked between two sinks. I had no problems with Jason to begin with, but for some reason he had taken a particular interest in pushing me around. Try as I might to avoid him, Jason always found some opportunity to attack when I was vulnerable.

"You are such a sissy," Jason said.

"I'm going to be late for class," I said, trying to push past him.

"You wear panties like a sissy too?" Jason asked. He reached down toward my waist, causing me to jump back in my hole.

My face must have turned beet red. Jason laughed, as he put down one hand on the edge of each sink. He had at least three inches of height on me, and quite a few more pounds. His body felt like a wall now when I tried to push against him. I could tell we weren't playing around anymore. Confined to a space no bigger than my body, I gave up trying to escape.

If Jason knew how close he had come to answering that question, he would have flipped. I honestly did have panties on. They were cute little cotton bikini briefs, white, but with pale pink trim. Jason didn't know I wore them. In fact, only Tiffany knew I chose to wear panties still. I had gotten used to the feel of panties, and I figured since I didn't have gym until the next semester, I would continue to wear them.

"Did you just come in here to insult me?" I asked.

From what I knew about Jason, he wasn't the typical bully. He liked to humiliate people by knocking books from their hands, or tripping them in the hallway. However, he never physically injured anyone, at least not yet. I heard his dad moved around a lot for his job, so Jason probably never got adjusted to any one place. It really didn't excuse his rude behavior, but I could kind of connect with him being an outsider.

"It took me awhile to figure it all out," Jason said. "At first I thought you were gay with all of those girls hanging around you." He shook his head slowly. "But then I actually saw you kissing on that one in the hall…"

"What do you want?" I asked, a bit begrudgingly.

"A date," Jason said, standing up proudly.

"Forget it," I said. "I'm not going out with you."

"Not me smartass," Jason said. "I meant with one of your friends."

I tilted my head to the left. "Who?"

Jason grinned from ear to ear. "I like Tracy." He glanced at the door to make sure nobody came in. "You're obviously good around girls, so I was wondering if you could get us together."

"I could try," I said. "She isn't with anyone."

"Yeah," Jason said. "I don't want you to do the whole 'hook up' thing though." He leaned back. "In fact, I kinda wanna make it look like a coincidence."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

Jason shrugged. "Maybe run into each other at the mall? Something like that." He straightened up, showing his height over me. "You tell anyone I asked for your help, and I swear I'll make your life miserable. I don't wanna look desperate."

"Relax," I said. "I'm not going to tell anyone."

"Good," Jason said. "Like I said, you're pretty good with girls. Like you understand them or something." The warning bell for classes rang, and he took a step forward. "You sure you aren't one?" A grin spread from ear to ear on his face.

"We done?" I asked.

"For now," Jason said. "And hey… if it doesn't work out with Tracy…" He raised his right hand to caress my cheek. "I could always make you my girlfriend." He gave me a lustful look.

I slapped Jason's hand away and pushed past him. His hand went up to comb through his bushy brown hair. He let me through, but made me brush up against him as much as possible. I could hear him laughing at me, but I didn't dare look at him. My eyes became misty. I broke free from the bathroom and rushed to my next class.

Even though none of the guys in school knew anything of my summer as a girl, they all seemed to point out that I'd be better off as one. Maybe I showed too much pain in my reaction to their teasing. Maybe I couldn't hide my feelings very well. Whatever the case was, the boys who bullied me, over my girly aspects, drove harder and harder to torture me. It usually left me running to some place where I could hide my eyes from them.

Only at the present I couldn't take the time to hide. I slid into my seat, next to Tracy Young, right as the tardy bell rang. We had the fortune of being lab partners for science class. Though we did very little lab work that year, it was a pleasant opportunity to get to know her. Our last names, mine being Walker, just happened to put us in seats next to each other. Honestly, it was nice to sit next to someone I knew.

"You okay?" Tracy asked in a whisper.

"I'm fine," I said, remembering Jason saying not to tell anyone.

"You look like you're about to cry," Tracy said.

"It's nothing… really," I said, looking at her with the best fake smile I could muster.

"You sure?" Tracy asked. "You didn't meet me and Tiffany like you usually do after homeroom."

"I hit my elbow on a locker," I said, "and went to the bathroom to check it out."

"Which elbow?" Tracy asked, now even more concerned. "Did you get cut, or bruised?"

"No," I said. I wanted to just tell her Jason liked her and get it over with. "It's fine. I swear."

"Tracy? Bailey?" the teacher said, his voice booming across the classroom. "Is there something you would like to share with the rest of the class?"

"No Mister Jackson," Tracy said.

I turned to look at Mr. Jackson, and shook my head. "No sir."

"Good," Mr. Jackson said. "Save it for between classes next time."

My head dropped. I continued to look down as I slid my science book over in front of me. Mr. Jackson told us a page to turn to, and I opened the book up. After turning to the right page, I placed my hands, palms down, on each side of the book. One of the students up front started to read through a paragraph. Tracy turned the page in her book next to me. Without even thinking about it, I turned mine to match.

I stared at my nails. Just this past Friday, as soon as I got home from school, I had painted them bright pink for the weekend. Now they were plain and ordinary. I had even clipped them short to keep up appearances of being a boy. Apparently appearances weren't good enough. With one quick glance, Jason, along with other boys, could tell I appeared to always be within one step of being a girl.

Something about me had to change. I couldn't go on having one person after another tease me that way. They would eventually find out about my secret. In fact, a few too many people knew about my secret already. I looked at Tracy sitting next to me. Tiffany had told her after the pool party, and that set about a chain reaction of eight people knowing. Tracy glanced up and gave me a concerned look.

"Could you give an example of what we just read Bailey?" Mr. Jackson asked.

Oh no! I frantically looked back at my book, and glanced up at Mr. Jackson. The look on his face was not one of amusement. He patiently waited for me to say something, but I didn't have a clue what we had just read. Why did teachers like to call someone out like that? Two could play this game.

"Which part?" I asked.

"About chain reactions," Mr. Jackson said.

"Oh…" That was an easy one. Hell, it was like we were on the same page even. "Like if you tell somebody a secret, and they tell it to someone else…" Classmates were starting to stare at me now, including Tracy. "Then that person could tell other people… causing a chain reaction."

"More of a social aspect of the topic, but good answer." Mr. Jackson raised his left eyebrow. "Sort of like one person not paying attention, and causing others to not pay attention?"

"Yes sir," I said, ignoring the other kids snickering at me.

"I'd like to see you after class Bailey," Mr. Jackson said.

"Yes sir," I said, lowering my voice and head at the same time.

Great! Now I could look forward to missing another between class break. I couldn't wait for this day to end. The problem was, I had six more hours of school to manage somehow. Hopefully it wouldn't be more with detention. I decided to make an effort to pay attention, so I wouldn't get into anymore trouble. The rest of class felt like it dragged on for hours.

"Test Thursday," Mr. Jackson said as the bell rang. "We'll go over the material tomorrow."

"I'll catch up with you at lunch," Tracy said, tugging at the sleeve of my dark green t-shirt.

The rest of the kids scurried out of the room. I looked up at Mr. Jackson, and he ushered me forward with his index finger. My book clapped shut, and I slid it, along with my notebook, across the Formica table into my left arm. I pushed the chair back, and reluctantly stood up. Then I shuffled up the aisle to the front of the classroom, and stopped in front of the teacher's desk.

"Is something bothering you today Bailey?" Mr. Jackson said.

Like I would tell him? "It's just a personal matter," I said. "Nothing big."

"Well I hope it doesn't grow into a disruption in my class."

"It won't Mister Jackson," I said. "I'm sorry about today."

"You're a bright kid," Mr. Jackson said. "I'm going to take your word for it. Just get it taken care of, okay?"

"I will Mister Jackson," I said. "Thank you."

"That's all," he said.

"See you tomorrow Mister Jackson," I said.

"Have a good day Bailey."

I turned to stroll away. As I walked down the aisle toward the door in the back, Megan Seong walked into the room. A girl named Rachel Ford gabbed about something next to her. Rachel knew a lot of the popular kids, and for some reason latched on to Megan. It did volumes to boost Megan's self-confidence, and Rachel, not knowing anything about Megan actually being a boy, helped her to fit in even more. Megan smiled at me.

"What about Bailey?" Megan asked Rachel, as she gestured toward me.

Rachel turned to look at me. "Oh, sure! Bailey can come."

"Come to what?" I asked.

"I'm having a Halloween party at my house," Rachel said, glancing around to make sure nobody else came in the room. "Costumes… and invite only."

"That means don't tell anyone else," Megan said.

"What about Tiffany?" I asked.

"Already told her," Rachel said. "She's excited about it."

"Cool," I said. "I gotta run to my next class."

"This weekend still on?" Megan asked.

"Yeah," I said. "I mean I think…" I thought about my arrangement with Jason. "I'll have to see."

"Okay," Megan said. "Well… see you later I guess."

"Later," I said.

The next two classes, English and social studies, were boring beyond all compare. I didn't know a single person in either of the two classes, and nobody bothered to talk to me. By the end of September I'd grown used to it. Now it was the first full week of October, and I found myself simply concentrating on my work. The only positive that came out of any of those two classes, was that the two A grades made up for my lacking C in pre-algebra.

Lunch afterwards made up for everything third and fourth periods lacked. I got to eat lunch with Tiffany, Tracy and Danielle. Though Danielle was extremely nosey, and a bit of a gossip, she was starting to grow on me. Tiffany I always wanted to see, and Tracy had grown to be a close friend too. On a good day, I was amazed we actually ate any food between all the talking.

"So what's the deal?" Tiffany said, as she set her tray down on the table. "You avoiding us or something?"

I set my milk down on my own tray after taking a sip. "I'm sorry about earlier," I said, looking up at her. "But I'm not avoiding anyone."

"Who's avoiding who?" Danielle asked, sitting down with a sack lunch.

I sighed. "Nobody is avoiding anyone."

Tiffany sat down across from me. We found out early on it was a good idea to put the table between us. A week before, we started making out at the table, and ended up getting teased by some other kids. Afterwards Tiffany felt bad about our public display of affection. So from then on we casually played footsy under the table as we ate. Danielle usually sat next to me, and Tracy usually sat next to Tiffany.

"You bring those notes for our test next hour?" Danielle asked Tracy.

"Yeah, but I missed last Monday's," Tracy said, as she slid a notebook over to Danielle. "As long as we're not tested on that, you're golden."

"Thanks," Danielle said. She started to peruse the notes as she ate.

"You okay now?" Tracy asked me.

"Yeah," I said. "I'm fine."

"What happened?" Tiffany asked.

"She ran into a locker after homeroom," Tracy said.

Tiffany nudged Tracy with an elbow and gave her a cold stare.

"What?" Tracy asked.

"You said she," Tiffany said, in a hushed tone.

"Oh crap," Tracy said, looking at me. "Sorry…"

"I don't think anyone heard," I said, glancing around.

"You gotta be more careful of that," Danielle said, without looking up from the notebook. "Could cause a lot of trouble if someone found out."

"I'll just eat and try not to talk so much," Tracy said, picking up her fork.

"You still coming over today?" Tiffany asked.

"Huh?" I looked up at her.

"Tuesday…" Tiffany said. "We talked about it for like an hour Saturday…"

"Oh…" I looked down at my food. "Yeah. I almost forgot."

"I hope you remembered your note from home," Tiffany said.

"Yeah," I said. "I've had that in my bag since Sunday."

"Too bad you didn't want to do the lessons," Tiffany said. "I could've seen you every other day almost."

Tiffany referred to an arrangement I had agreed to with Melanie Parker, an assistant at the spa I had gone to that summer. Melanie had wanted to arrange for her and Kate, Tiffany's older sister, to give me lessons in how to be more feminine. After my visits to Rajan, and starting the treatments, I didn't think it wise to continue with those plans. Until I found out about my condition, I didn't think it would be the proper extracurricular activity.

"I still feel kind of bad about that," I said.

"That's why I keep bringing it up," Tiffany said. "You should've made it up to them somehow."

Tiffany gave me a look like her whole dream of keeping me as a girl for awhile had finally disappeared. She had to know it would end one day. I couldn't keep living a lie like that. Someone was bound to find out, and it just so happened someone came awfully close today. If someone like Jason found out, he could probably use it to ruin my life. Though Tiffany's sad look, across her innocent face, made me somewhat sad, I had to convince myself my decision was for the best.

"Well… hey," Tracy said. "We're still on for the weekend right?"

"I don't know," I said. I leaned forward and lowered my voice. "What if someone finds out about what we do every other weekend?"

"You weren't worried about it before," Danielle said, again, still not looking up.

"Yeah," Tracy said. "You act like you don't want to hang out with us now."

"It's not that," I said.

"Then what is it?" Tiffany asked.

I looked right at her. I looked right into her beautiful hazel eyes and lied. "I think I'm just getting adjusted to my treatment is all."

The truth was, the treatment didn't seem to be doing anything. I was scheduled to see Doctor Dinesh the following Monday. Rajan, as I called him, started me on testosterone replacement therapy. I'd told Tiffany to start with, but then later told everyone else who knew about my alter ego. They all seemed pretty supportive of me. I knew it had only been two months, but I expected to see some changes by now. Rajan kept telling me to wait until the end of the year. I secretly feared nothing would change by then.

"Megan told me you're going to Rachel's party," Tracy said, obviously trying to change the subject.

"Yeah," I said. "She caught me after science class."

"She's really changed huh?" Tracy asked.

"Who Megan?" Danielle asked.

"Yes," Tracy said. "I don't know who did it, but someone got her to open up more. She's like a whole new person."

"I really like the new Megan," I said.

"So what are you wearing?" Tiffany asked me.

"Huh?" I thought Tiffany was coming on to me for a second.

"To the party," Tiffany said. "It's a costume party?"

"Oh," I said. "I don't know yet."

"Can I plan your costume?" Tiffany asked, with a bit of excitement in her voice.

"I guess so," I said. "What do you have in mind?"

"I'll make it a surprise," Tiffany said. "You'll like it though. I promise."

"So what's the deal with you and Tony?" Tracy asked Danielle.

"We're just friends," Danielle said.

"Is he single?" Tracy asked.

Danielle looked up from the notebook for once. "Why?"

"Just asking," Tracy said. "Kind of cute. I was going to talk to him, unless you're into him?"

"Go ahead," Danielle said. She looked back down at Tracy's notes. "Won't bother me any."

No! I couldn't let Tracy talk to Tony. "You sure you want to do that?" I asked Tracy.

"Talk to Tony?" Tracy asked.

"Yeah," I said. "I mean…" Both Tracy and Tiffany were staring at me. "I thought you didn't like him."

"He's not as bad as I thought he was," Tracy said. "People change…"

"I just think you could do better," I said.

"With who?" Tracy asked.

"I don't know," I said. I really didn't want to mention Jason by name, but I decided to test the waters. "What about Jason Coleman?"

Tracy seemed to think about my suggestion for a moment. "He's kind of cute in an adorable kind of way," she said. "I'm just not sure he's that into me." She looked at Tiffany. "Tony, on the other hand, I already know. Think there's something there."

"What's your rush to get a boyfriend anyway?" Tiffany asked.

"Comes the question from the one with a boyfriend," Danielle said, without a glance upward.

"They are fun," Tiffany said.

Tiffany looked at me and gave me a pleasant smile. I felt her shoe against my left ankle. For a while now, we had gone back to this sort of fun and flirty attitude. I think both of us wanted more, but we were too afraid, or too young to push the envelope on our relationship. She loved me, I could feel it, and I knew I loved her dearly. It just felt like we were never going to grow up fast enough to catch our love for each other.

I wanted to be more affectionate toward Tiffany, but I just wasn't in the mood. The run in with Jason had brought me down for the day. It felt like nothing could lift my spirits. Jason really hadn't done anything to me. However, had he actually been serious about his endeavor to check if I had panties on, things would be a lot worse right now. Knowing Jason, he would've kept it between us, but used the knowledge to get whatever he wanted out of me.

"You sure everything's okay?" Tiffany asked. "You're barely eating."

"I'm just not that hungry," I said.

"You know…" Tiffany leaned forward and lowered her voice. "If medication is making you sick, it's probably not good medication."

"I swear," I said, with a chuckle. "I have one day where I'm acting a little off, and you all think I'm losing it."

"It's actually been about this time every other week," Tracy said.

"Really?" I asked.

"Yeah," Danielle said. "Seems like the week after your shot, you kind of go through this withdrawal phase."

"I haven't noticed," I said.

"That's because it probably seems normal to you," Tracy said. "You might think you're just hitting a rut."

"From our perspective," Tiffany said. "Well… we're just a little concerned is all."

"Well, I see Rajan Monday," I said. "I'll talk to him about it."

"We care about you," Tiffany said, putting her hand on mine. "Just want to see you happy."

"Yeah," Danielle said, patting my leg. "That's what it's all about."

"Mind if Rebecca and I come over today?" Tracy asked Tiffany, obviously trying to change the mood.

"Well…" Tiffany looked at me. "I'll call you when I get home. Incase Kate is doing something else." She looked at Tracy. "But yeah, it's fine with me."

I smiled at Tracy. So much for any alone time with Tiffany.

"Cool," Tracy said.

The bell rang to signal we had five minutes to clear out for the second lunch group to come in. I sighed, knowing I had an odd fifteen minute study hall ahead of me. The good thing about it was we went back to homeroom until the second lunch shift was over. This gave me a bit of an opportunity to get my pre-algebra homework somewhat done, and have my teacher right there to help with any questions.

"Guess I'll see you both later," I said.

"Yeah," Tracy said. "See you Bailey." She turned to Danielle, who was frantically trying to sneak in some last minute notes. "Come on Danielle, you got fifteen minutes to look over those."

"Alright. Fine," Danielle said. She scooted her thin frame out of the seat and looked at me. "Hope you feel better. See you later bay leaf."

"Later," I said, smiling at her newfound nickname for me.

I watched Danielle and Tracy scurry off in the direction of their homeroom. Tiffany's homeroom happened to be close to mine, so we always walked back together. It didn't give us much time at all to talk, but it was one of those things that became routine. I came around the table, and gave Tiffany a quick kiss. This was another part of lunch that became routine as well, but one I happened to enjoy.

"You sure you're okay?" Tiffany asked, as we went to put away our trays.

"I'll be fine," I said. "Hopefully this will all balance out soon."

I put my tray on a stack, and took Tiffany's hand in my right hand. She smiled at the small gesture, and joined me in a walk back to our homerooms. We strolled along the hallway in silence, trying to avoid the mess of seventh and eighth grade kids rushing to lunch. Though I was next to Tiffany, my mind was on other things entirely.

"See you in art," Tiffany said.

"See you," I said.

We shared another quick kiss, and parted ways. I watched her walk up and into her class, and then turned to go to mine. Before I could make it to the door, Jason walked past me. He made it a point to smile at me and wink. It was a subtle reminder of what we talked about. I dragged myself into homeroom. The tardy bell rang a few seconds after I slipped into my chair.

The next two classes I enjoyed for two completely different reasons. My reading teacher had this grandma-like quality to her, and a soothing voice. I didn't see my own grandmothers much, so it was sort of neat to me. Through much of the class the students would take turns reading, and we would read on our own independently. When Mrs. Fisher read, however, it felt like she brought the stories to life. She even made the boring ones interesting.

I enjoyed speech class, afterward, because Megan was in my class. Speech after speech, I got to listen to her become more open. It felt almost rewarding seeing my tiny seed of suggestion start to blossom. I knew it was all her choice, but I couldn't help thinking I had a small part in her new approach to life. It also didn't hurt to mention I loved her adorable slight accent that she picked up from her Korean father.

The typical day usually ended with relaxed fun in art, at least for that semester. I got to see Tiffany at the end of every day, as she sat next to me at a round table, which sat four. Tawny Simmons and Vanessa Holmes, two more girls who knew my secret, happened to be the other two at our table. So I got to see them at least once in a typical day as well.

Tiffany looked up from her project as I sat down. After flipping her long black hair out of the way, she gave me a pleasant smile. I returned her smile, and opened my box of art supplies. Vanessa watched us for a moment, but went back to her work without a word. Tawny was too self-absorbed in her work to pay attention to anything. I noticed Tiffany had a folded up piece of paper clenched in her left hand.

"What's that?" I asked, in a hushed voice.

"I found it in my supply box," Tiffany said. "I have no idea what it is."

Tiffany gave me a strange look, and then unfolded what appeared to be a letter. For a moment I sat and watched her read it. Her pouty lips remained straight throughout the entire letter. Then her head tilted away from me, but her hazel eyes darted up to look into mine. She gave me another strange look, like she was silently asking if the letter was a joke.

"Who's it from?" I asked, again in a hushed tone.

"I have no idea," Tiffany said.

"What's it say?" I asked.

Tiffany slid the letter over between us. "I think we might have a problem," she said. She lowered her voice even more. "It's about you."

"Me?" I asked.

Tiffany pointed at lines in the letter as she relayed them to me. "I know about your secret." Her finger moved down the paper. "And here they mention the 'cute girl' at the pool party, only…" She glanced around quickly, and then turned back to me. "Not me… but you…" She lowered her voice even more as she recited another line. "It says 'the blonde girl' that you came with."

"Who the hell could've known about that?" I asked.

"It gets worse," Tiffany said, pointing at another line in the note. "They want us to meet them at the mall on Friday." She pointed to the next sentence.

"Don't forget to wear something pretty," I said, reading it from the letter.

"Get stalked much?" Tawny asked, without lifting her head from her project.

"What should we do?" Tiffany asked.

"Let me see it," Vanessa said.

Tiffany handed her the letter before turning to look at me. "Should we do what they want?" she asked. "What if it's someone out to kill us?"

"I doubt they're out to kill anyone. Obviously it's someone who goes to school here," Tawny said. "They put it in your supply box."

"This looks like a boy's handwriting," Vanessa said.

"But there were no boys at the pool party," Tiffany said to Vanessa. "Well…" She glanced at me. "Just one pretending to be a girl."

"And Kale," I said.

"Kale's in sixth grade," Tawny said. "No way it was him."

"Well…" Vanessa looked up from the letter. "Either that, or this girl has seriously bad handwriting."

"It has to be a girl," Tiffany said. "But who?"

"Maybe we should just do what the letter says," I said.

"You think?" Tiffany asked.

"If you do," Tawny said. "You'll never see the end of it. They'll use you forever."

"What's the alternative?" I asked.

"Well they don't threaten anything," Vanessa said.

"Yeah," Tiffany said. "I mean, it doesn't look like they'll do anything if we don't show up."

"Obviously they know about me," I said. "Can't hurt to just go and do it."

"If you say so…" Tawny said.

"You know something we don't?" I asked Tawny.

"Give in once and they'll never stop," Tawny said. "Just saying."

"Yeah," Tiffany whispered. "They could do that."

"We should just do it," I said. "I'm tired of hiding from everything."

"You sure you want to?" Tiffany asked. "It's a lot of pressure on you."

"If it'll get rid of them…" I said. "Then yes!"

"Okay," Tiffany said. "I'll go with you, but I don't want us to go alone."

"We'll all go," Vanessa said. "We can sit back and see who your stalker is."

"Thanks," I said, giving Vanessa one of those you're-such-a-bitch smiles.

"Settled! Now we can work in peace," Tawny said. "This project is due next Friday you know."

"Yeah really," Vanessa said with a smirk. "Enough with the drama."

Tiffany moved away from me and went back to her project. As I worked away at copying the shading from my picture to my work, I noticed Tiffany glancing at me, from the corner of my eye. She eventually got up from the table and went to sharpen her pencil. I took this opportunity to get Vanessa's attention.

"You really think it's a guy?" I asked in a whisper.

"Most likely," Vanessa said. "Handwriting is horrible."

"What if…" I glanced around. "What if he wants to like date me, or something?"

"Just take him back to Tiffany's. Maybe she can turn him into a girl too," Vanessa said. "Then some boy can bug him for dates."

Tawny giggled along with Vanessa, but they stopped when they saw I only gave them a half-hearted smile. They lowered their heads back to the projects, almost as if in shame at what they said. However, what they said happened to be an awesome idea. Only I was thinking about doing it to Jason. Maybe I could talk Tracy into dressing him up and taking pictures. Although, he'd have to be agreeable to it like I was the first time.

"Maybe I could talk him into it," I said.

"You?" Vanessa asked. "I don't think you got the whole seduction thing down yet."

"I could try to learn it," I said, trying to stay as quiet as possible.

"Think you better stick to the basics," Tawny said.

"Yeah," Vanessa said. "You still got a lot to learn."

"Who the hell else was at that pool party?" I asked.

"Maybe they weren't there at all," Tiffany said, taking her seat again.

"Yeah," Vanessa said. "Maybe their sister was there, and they found out that way."

"Could've been a neighbor," Tiffany said.

"Well whoever it is, they know about you now," Tawny said. "Can't change that fact." She looked up at me with her bright green eyes. "Let's face it. Not much about you has changed, other than your hair and clothes."

"And your hair hasn't changed that much since the roller rink either," Vanessa said.

"Too bad you didn't hit a growth spurt that weekend," Tawny said.

"This is bugging the hell out of me," I said.

"Just work on your art," Tiffany said. "We'll find out who it is."

Meanwhile, I had until Friday to think about it. I shook my head, and went back to my project. Truth be told, I was seriously falling behind on it. Perhaps I had too much fun in art class. Between talking to the three of them, and the short amount of time we had, I didn't get much accomplished the past few weeks. I'm surprised the teacher never separated us from each other.

I went over a section of my picture with a pencil. Then I came back to it and rubbed out a shadow with a blending stump. Art class always relaxed me. Even in grade school, it took my mind off of other subjects for a little while. It even managed to take my mind off of the subject of the letter for the rest of the day. Before long we were cleaning up to go home.

"Remember this Friday I'll be taking pictures of you all for your next project," Ms. Fritz said. "So wear something nice to school." She looked at the clock on the wall. "It doesn't have to be fancy, but at least look presentable."

The bell rang, and we all moved like a thunderous herd to get out of the classroom. After a visit to my locker for the books I needed, I moved along the hallway toward the front of the school. Before I could reach the door to take me outside to the busses, Jason appeared in my field of vision. He spotted me and stormed toward me.

"Did you say something to Tracy?" Jason asked.

"I might have mentioned your name," I said.

"Why?" Jason's face contorted into a beleaguered look. "I thought I told you --"

"Relax!" I said. "It's just…" I glanced around to make sure there were no familiar faces. "She was talking about liking some other boy, so I had to get her mind off of it."

"Who?"

"Tony Woods," I said. "She's been asking about him for awhile now."

"Oh…" Jason ran his hand through his hair. He seemed distraught. "What did she say about me?"

"She actually thinks you're cute," I said.

"I'm cute?" Jason asked.

"Yeah," I said. "You're cute."

I might have said it a bit too loud. A couple of girls snickered at us as they walked by. Jason glanced around, obviously not amused by what just happened. He pushed me up against the lockers, but not as hard as he usually did to people. His face lowered to mine, and I swear if he was a dog, he would be growling at me at this moment.

"You didn't tell her our plan did you?" Jason asked, in a hushed and somewhat angry voice.

"No," I said. "But…" I could see anger building in his eyes so I blurted the next part out as fast as possible. "We're all going to the mall Friday. Hopefully she'll be there."

"Really?" Jason looked surprised. He straightened his posture back out. "That could work…"

I suddenly realized I would be at the mall as a girl on Friday. "I mean…" Again, Jason gave me an angry look. "It's just going to be the girls there. You could still try to hook up with her though."

"No," Jason said. "Too much estrogen will be flying around. Need some other guy there to balance it out." He looked me over with a cruel smile. "You'll have to do."

"I don't think I can go," I said.

"You have to," Jason said. "Just do it!"

"I'll see what I can do," I said.

"See hard," Jason said with a stern look. "I gotta go catch the bus."

Jason fell back and blended into the stream of kids rushing out the front doors. I pushed away from the locker, glanced around, and then slipped into an opening to walk outside. The cool autumn air felt good. I'd grown tired of the summer heat, and winter always seemed too cold. Autumn happened to be my favorite time of the year, with the leaves changing, and the weather just right.

Outside, the busses began to start their engines down the line. I walked past my usual bus, number twenty, and found one-hundred-twelve. Tiffany had already found a seat, and was holding a spot for me. I fumbled around in my bag, and then presented a note to the bus driver, Rose. She took the note in her hand, and looked at me like I'd done something wrong.

"You ride my bus constantly Bailey," Rose said. "You don't need a note every time."

"My mother seems to think differently," I said.

Rose just smiled at me, and gestured for me to go on. I strolled down the aisle of the bus, and slid into the seat next to Tiffany. She had the note from art class in her hands. I didn't want to disturb her, so I sat there quietly. About the time the bus started moving, she looked up at me. She shook the letter with one hand.

"Who in the world put this in my art box?" Tiffany asked.

"So it's bugging you too?" I asked.

"Yes!" Her voice came out a bit loud, so she toned it down some. "I can't think of anyone it could possibly be. I'll have to talk to Tracy about it."

Tiffany dropped the hand holding the note to her lap. She turned to look out the window, obviously thinking about who gave her the letter. I glanced at the letter, and then turned to glance around the bus. Not a single face looked familiar. It couldn't have been anyone in Tiffany's neighborhood, unless they saw me leave her house. Maybe that was it?

"Maybe someone saw me leaving your house," I said, drawing Tiffany's attention away from the window.

"Or maybe coming back…" Tiffany said.

"Yeah," I said. "If they saw me arrive…"

"No," Tiffany said, shaking her head. "You came over…" She leaned over to whisper in my ear. "You were dressed in my clothes."

"Oh… right," I said. "I didn't the next day."

"True," Tiffany said.

We sat in silence for the next several blocks. While there were only two high schools, with a third being built, there were five junior high schools. Oddly enough, I lived closer to the newest junior high school, but because of zoning I ended up going to another. The kids who rode Tiffany's bus, actually lived about ten minutes away by car. I lived about twenty minutes away by car.

Rose began stopping the bus to let kids off. Several stops later, the bus was nearly half empty. I could see Tiffany's house, a split-level ranch style, rise over the hill. The light brown siding went well with the darker brown trim and roof. Her house was nearly like my own house, with the exception of color, and mine had a half basement, while her house only had a garage and a small storage area. The dark red front door of her house seemed to be the only splash of color to it.

I noticed Melanie's pristine white Dodge Neon in the driveway. It sat behind Kate's red Honda Accord. I'd ridden in both, and preferred Melanie's Neon. Kate's car had tan vinyl interior that stuck to everything, while Melanie's Neon had gray cloth seats. I really didn't have a clue about cars beyond comfort level. I continued to stare at Tiffany's house, until the bus pulled up next to it and we got out.

"Come on," Tiffany said, pulling me to the house with her hand around my wrist. "I gotta call Tracy."

Kate pulled the door open before we even got to the top step. Oddly enough, she hid herself behind the door, and only her head poked out from the side. Her long black hair had been done up in a pony tail, and she eyed me with her gorgeous green eyes. Tiffany pulled open the glass storm door. I went in first, focusing only on Kate's pretty face.

"Hey sis," Tiffany said. "What's Melanie doing here?"

"Hi Tiff," Kate said. "Hi Bailey." She almost cooed my name seductively.

"Hi…" I said, still wondering what she was up to.

"How's my little girly girl today?" Kate asked.

"Okay," I said.

"Just okay?" Kate asked.

Kate closed the door behind Tiffany, and I suddenly knew why she hid behind the door. For some odd reason, she had her green one-piece swimsuit on. It was the same one she had worn to the pool party. I couldn't help but take the whole sight in. The bathing suit pulled her body in at all the right places. Meanwhile, every inch of her bare flesh glistened from her summer tan, and I couldn't shake her perfect body from my mind.

"Tracy and Rebecca are coming over in a bit," Tiffany said.

"Okay," Kate said. "We're just hanging around here anyway."

"Why are you dressed like that?" I asked, drawing Kate's attention.

"We've been working on my Halloween costume," Kate said. "Melanie's helping me with some adjustments."

"What are you going as? A lifeguard?" Tiffany asked.

"No," Kate said, looking at Tiffany. "Smartass. I just threw this on to wear underneath."

"Okay then," Tiffany said. "I'm going to go call Tracy before she leaves." She turned and walked off, leaving me alone with her sister.

"So did you come to hang out girly girl, or did you change your mind about the lessons?" Kate asked. A cute smile spread across her rosy lips.

"Just to hang out," I said, still a bit embarrassed at her nickname for me.

Instead of calling me sissy, Kate insisted on calling me girly girl. I honestly didn't find it as humiliating as being called a sissy. Kate had started saying it around the start of September, and since I didn't correct it then, it just stuck. She claimed she only used it because I was girly, but added the extra girl part to make it endearing, rather than insulting. Had she called me a girly boy, I probably would've been insulted.

"Too bad," Kate said. "I hope you'll come to us if you change your mind."

"You'll be the first one I call," I said, smiling.

"Why don't you come say hi to Melanie?" Kate said. "She hasn't seen you since summer." She stepped closer to me, causing me to become weak in her presence. "You can help with my costume."

"Actually," I said. "I would like to talk to you about something."

"I'm here for you," Kate said. "We can talk in my room."

"But I think…" I looked her over. "I don't know if I'd be comfortable…"

"Come on," Kate said, laughing a bit at my hesitation. "I could use your opinion. And you'll get plenty of time to ogle me. Melanie's waiting in my room."

I trudged down the hallway, and turned into Kate's room. Melanie sat on the foot of Kate's bed, and greeted me with a big smile. She had been busying herself by investigating a mess of purple material. I wanted to talk to Kate alone, but maybe both of their opinions could help. Perhaps I could even learn a technique from them that would keep me from being found out by Jason on Friday.

"Well you don't look so happy," Melanie said. "What's wrong?"

"Bad day at school," I said, now very unwilling to tell the whole truth.

"Is that what you wanted to talk about?" Kate asked, coming up behind me. "If it's important we can talk first."

"Sort of," I said. "It's not major enough to where you have to stop what you're doing though."

"It's nice to see you again Bailey," Melanie said.

"It's really nice to see you too," I said.

Kate slipped my backpack off of my shoulders, and set it in the hallway. Then she nudged me into her room. She shut the door behind us, leaving it open just a crack. I felt trapped amidst the bubbling femininity in the room. While I tried to ease myself into some formidable comfort zone, Kate sashayed around her room appearing to check on things.

I felt a bit uncomfortable and unwilling to talk at first, but I knew it would be asked of me eventually. Kate and I had talked for hours before, like she was my big sister, yet Melanie had never known many intimate details about me. I watched Kate for a moment, until she walked over close to Melanie. They whispered to each other for a bit, and then they both turned to face me.

A lingering silence filled the room. Kate stood there patiently in her swimsuit. Melanie sat with one leg crossed over the other, her foot bobbing up and down. To this day I had never seen Melanie in anything but heels. She claimed at the spa that she wore flats to school. Maybe she changed them when she got home, but I swear she always had at least three inch heels on.

With her smart, short dark brown hair, and classy apparel, it made her look several years older than seventeen. I oftentimes wondered if she dressed like this on purpose. It did seem like something she would do, as she often talked about appearances meaning something. Still, did she really go the extra mile to look older than her age, or did it come naturally with skill?

"You're okay with Bailey watching?" Melanie asked.

"It's not like I'm going to be nude," Kate said, with a smile. "Girly girl's used to being around girls anyway."

"Well then," Melanie said. "Put your stockings on."

Honestly, I had grown quite comfortable around girls in lingerie. Most of them had grown comfortable around me, once they saw me wearing lingerie. Normally I wouldn't be staring at the girls, but for some reason I couldn't keep my eyes off of Kate. Everything about her naturally drew my attention. Melanie stood gracefully, and walked over close to me. I guess she wanted to be part of the audience too.

"Obviously she's okay with being watched," Melanie said. "So I'll watch with you." She glanced at me. "If anything, you can learn how to put stockings on."

Now I knew why Kate had the swimsuit on. Parts of her costume involved undergarments, but she probably felt vulnerable wearing lingerie. The swimsuit provided a little more to her comfort level. I watched Kate slip a black lacy belt around her waist. Six ribbon-like straps cascaded down from it. Kate gave us both a nervous smile, as Melanie turned to face her.

"Incase you didn't know," Melanie said. "What Kate just put on is a garter belt. The little straps clip to the top of stockings to hold them up."

"I actually didn't know that," I said. "I've never seen one before."

"Women don't wear them much anymore," Kate said. "You want me to demonstrate?"

"Sure," Melanie said. "I think Bailey might like to know this."

Kate drew her right hand up, and casually let a black stocking cascade from it. I now noticed she had painted her fingernails the same green as her swimsuit. When I looked down, I saw her toenails were also the same forest green. Something told me these two actually planned this out to be special, and here I was oblivious to an obvious lesson.

"The first thing you do," Melanie said. Her melodic voice became increasingly distant in my mind. "Is scrunch the stocking up in both hands, like you would for each leg of your pantyhose."

I watched Kate start to draw up the nearly see-through material in her hands. It slowly rose up into a scrunched loop. Melanie continued to talk, but what she said barely sounded audible to me. I continued to stare at Kate's legs longingly, while she lifted her right foot up to meet the stocking. She pointed her toes, making her sexy calf muscle come to life, as she slipped them into the material.

"Then carefully roll the stocking a little at a time up your leg," Melanie said. "Be extremely careful with them so you don't cause any runs."

I watched Kate roll the stocking up past her calf. By that time I could have sworn I was drooling. Ever since I met Kate, I couldn't resist sneaking a peak at her legs. Her feet fascinated me too, but I seldom saw much of them. So today was like a double feature. Not only that, but I got to stare at them on purpose for the moment.

"You'll notice Kate's stockings have seams in the back," Melanie said. "I don't know if you'll ever wear seamed stockings, but I want to point out it is important to make sure the seam is straight. If you notice your seam getting a bit off, take the stocking back down your leg to that point, and then continue to roll it gently back up your leg. Do not pull or twist the stocking to line up a seam."

Seams? I didn't notice any seams. How could I? Faced with the vision of pure sexuality before me, I had very little time to notice anything. Kate had nearly finished with the first stocking, and I felt my heart racing. Her feet and legs were so amazing. I didn't know if I could contain myself.

"Once you get the stocking up to your thigh," Melanie said. "You'll want to attach the garter straps. You can have anywhere from four to twelve, though six is fine for what Kate is wearing them for." She looked to see if Kate was ready. "First, take the strap and slide the clip over the welt of stocking. That's the thicker material at the top."

Kate picked up the end of the ribbon-like strap between her green-tipped thumb and index fingers. Even her hands looked sexy doing this. I felt like I would pass out before she got the next stocking done. Melanie said something about a button and clip, but I just watched Kate. I had to say I was a visual learner. Kate looped some of the stocking over what I could only assume was the button, and slid it into the clip to lock the stocking in place.

"Do this for all straps," Melanie said, as Kate followed along. "Be sure to line up the front strap so it will appear straight when you stand up. The back strap should be lined up too, but it's a bit hard to get right." Melanie waited for Kate to finish the other strap before speaking. "I'll let Kate demonstrate with the other stocking, while I prepare her next item of clothing."

Demonstrate she did. As I watched Kate scrunch up the other stocking, Melanie became a blur in the background. Kate lifted her foot, again pointing her toes, to slip the stocking over it. Then she drew it up her leg, almost seductively, making sure to keep the seam straight. Finally, when it felt like I was about to burst from sexual tension, Kate clipped the garter straps in place, and stood up from the bed.

"Think you could do that?" Kate asked.

I nodded. "I think so, but not as sexy as you."

"You thought that was sexy?" Kate asked.

"Seriously Kate," Melanie said. "You even turned me on." She glanced back at Kate's legs. "I would so jump you right now, if we were alone."

"You could pretend I'm not here," I said, with a half smile on my face.

Both of the girls giggled. Melanie refocused her attention, and continued to fuss over something on the bed. Meanwhile, Kate walked over to me in the sexiest strut she could muster. She stood in front of me, thrusting her hips out to the right. Then she slapped her hands down on her hips, under the garter belt, and gave me a sensuous look.

"I have a job for you girly girl," Kate said. "Pretty sure you'll enjoy it too."

"What's that?" I asked, swallowing hard.

Kate lifted her hand and used her index finger to coax me to follow her over to a chair. She stopped me about a foot away from the chair, and pointed to the floor. Without even thinking about it, or questioning Kate, I lowered myself into a full kneel facing the chair. She walked away, over to Melanie, and the two whispered about something. I watched Melanie hand something to Kate, and they whispered some more.

Kate sashayed back over to me. Her hips nearly snapped from side to side. I could tell she seemed to be enjoying flaunting her sexuality in front of me. She obviously knew I wasn't a threat, as she eased down onto the edge of the chair, mere inches away from me. I stared at Kate's legs for a moment. They seemed to shine beneath the silky layer of her stockings.

"You're going to love this," Kate said.

She revealed two ultra feminine loops, and held them out to me. I took them in my hands, and observed them. Delicate black lace exploded from the tops and bottoms in gathered frilly abundance. Each one had a fancy black ribbon in the middle of one side, and they both stretched on a band of elastic wrapped in crumpled purple satin. Kate smiled at me for a moment, as I moved them around my fingers. Then she got my attention.

"Those are actual garters," Kate said. "What women used to wear to keep their stockings up." She scooted toward me, to where her right knee came into contact with the back of my hands. "I'm just going to wear them to complete the costume, but I don't really need them."

"They're really pretty," I said.

"Could you help me put them on?" Kate asked, her voice sounding like the operation somehow eluded her.

"I'd be happy to," I said.

Kate lifted her right leg. Her shin, wrapped in silky ecstasy, slid against my hands as it rose. She moved her foot toward me, inches away from touching my leg. I took one garter, and slipped it over her foot. It slid with ease over the stockings. When I passed over her heel with the garter, she rested her stocking-clad foot down onto my thigh. I glanced up to see her looking down at me with a patient, understanding gaze.

As I continued to slide the garter up Kate's leg, I tried to make as little contact as possible. It wasn't easy, as Kate kept bumping her leg from side to side. This was mainly due to the fact that her balance was very unstable on my leg. Her toes kept wiggling against my thigh as she attempted to make her foot sit flat. I finally got the garter stretched around her thigh, to where it rested over the welt of her stocking.

Instead of removing her right foot from my thigh, Kate left it there. She lifted her left foot toward me, and held the chair for support. Once again, after I slipped the other garter over her left foot, she casually let her foot down on my other thigh. I glanced back and forth between what I was doing, and her pretty eyes. Her gaze appeared to be reassuring, as I slipped the other garter into place around her thigh.

"Aw," Melanie said. "He's like your little footstool."

"Too cute for that," Kate said, smiling down at me.

I blushed, lowering my face to hide it. Looking down, I could only see Kate's lower legs and feet. The forest green nail polish on her toenails could be seen ever so slightly through the sheer material of her stockings. Her feet felt cold at first, but they were starting to warm up against my thighs. For some reason I placed my hands over them.

Kate didn't retract her feet. I honestly thought she would yank them away. She didn't seem to mind that I set my hands upon them. Although, after awhile, she flexed her toes up into the palms of my hands. This subconsciously got me to move my hands, and I started rubbing the tops of her feet. The silky feeling of the stockings felt wonderful as my hands glided over them. After a minute, Kate shifted in her chair, and I stopped to look up.

"What are you doing?" Kate asked, looking down into my eyes.

"I…" She waited patiently for my answer. "They felt cold…"

"No," Kate said. "I mean why did you stop?"

"Oh," I said. "I thought you were uncomfortable with me doing it."

"Of course not girly girl," Kate said. "I don't care if you rub my feet."

"You can rub mine when you're done," Melanie said. "If you want." She sighed. "I've been in these heels all day."

"I swear you wear those things just to complain," Kate said, looking at Melanie.

"I wear them because Steve likes it," Melanie said. "Besides, I've gotten used to them."

"Why don't you have Steve take care of your feet then?" Kate asked.

"Ha!" Melanie said. "Like that would ever happen." She looked down at me. "It takes a real man to be willing to rub a lady's feet."

I looked down at Kate's feet. "I'm not much of a man," I said.

"Hey!" Kate said, leaning toward me. "You're more guy than most of the ones I've dated." She waited until I looked up at her. "I might call you girly girl," she said, with a smile. "But most girls would kill to have a boyfriend like you."

"Jealous?" Tiffany asked, walking into the room.

"Maybe a little," Kate said, winking at me.

I had the sudden urge to get up, and move away from Kate. This was especially true in my current situation, with Tiffany in the room. However, Kate continued to lean forward. Her weight had been shifted to her feet, and they held me firmly in my kneeling position. The longer I knelt there, though, the more I realized Tiffany didn't mind. What seemed like a naughty thing to me, seemed like two girls bonding to her.

"It's kind of hard avoiding it," I said. "When I'm constantly surrounded by beautiful feet."

"Tell me about it," Melanie said. "Try being a pedicurist's assistant and having a fetish for pretty female feet."

"What is it with us?" Kate asked. "Do we all have a foot fetish, or something?"

"You like feet too?" I asked, looking up at Kate.

"I like having mine touched," Kate said. "So I guess that counts."

"I just like pretty female ones," Tiffany said. She looked down at me. "And yours, of course."

"What are you talking about?" Kate asked. "Girly girl Bailey's feet are pretty female ones."

"Wait… We all like feet?" Melanie asked.

"Just you three," Kate said. "I don't know anyone else that does."

"I do," I said.

"You do?" Melanie asked, sitting down next to Tiffany. "Who?"

"One of my brother's friends," I said. "He comments on my feet all the time."

"He?" Tiffany asked. "You never told me about this."

"It wasn't worth mentioning," I said.

"Wait… Hold on," Kate said. "You know a guy. Who's seen your feet, toenails painted and all. Plus you have him drooling all over you, giving you compliments on them." She paused to look at me. "And you say it's not worth mentioning?"

"Well no," I said. "Nothing's really come out of it."

"Who is this guy?" Melanie asked.

Tiffany flew from the bed and knelt next to me. "I'm dying to know," she said, putting her hands in her lap.

"It's not that big a deal," I said.

"Then tell us," Tiffany said.

"Yeah," Melanie said. "Tell us."

Kate wiggled her toes against my legs. "Who is it girly girl?"

"It's…" I looked down away from them all. "Nathan Riley," I said.

"Nathan Riley!?" Kate asked. "He's in my speech class!"

"Isn't he a freshman?" Melanie asked.

"Ooh," Tiffany said. "An older boy."

"Is that why you tell us you don't like boys?" Kate asked. "Because you have one on the side already?" She reached out and ran her fingers through my hair.

"No," I said. "I tell you that, because I don't like boys."

"I think I'd be a little jealous if I lost my boyfriend to a boy," Tiffany said.

"A little jealous?" Kate asked. "I'd be in a jealous rage."

"Well…" Tiffany looked at me. "I figure if he's cute enough to attract a boy, he deserves to at least go out with one."

"True," Melanie said. "But I'd be keeping a close eye on this Nathan Riley."

"Are you saying you'd let him date a boy?" Kate asked.

"I'm not going to date a boy!" I said.

"Just hypothetically," Kate said. "Would you Tiff?"

Tiffany glanced at her sister, and then looked at me. "If he wanted to," she said. "I wouldn't stop him."

The doorbell ringing brought the awkwardness of the situation to a crashing halt. We all perked up, at least physically, like we were wondering who it could be. Granted, we all knew who the visitors were, but somehow everyone acted like we'd forgotten along the way. Tiffany wrapped her arms around my neck, and gave me a big kiss on the cheek.

"That's Tracy and Rebecca," Tiffany said, standing to her feet.

"Crap," Kate said. "I'm still not dressed."

"Well have Bailey help you," Tiffany said. "She's a pretty good lady's maid." She gave me a knowing look.

"We'll go keep them busy," Melanie said, walking toward the door.

"Hey Tiff?" Kate asked.

"Yeah?" Tiffany asked, stopping at the door.

"Could you keep everyone busy for half an hour or so?" Kate asked. "Bailey said he wanted to talk about something."

"Sure," Tiffany said. "Want your door shut?"

"Please," Kate said. "And lock it too."

Tiffany clicked the lock on the door and left the room, pulling the door shut behind her. Kate sat and watched me for a moment. I hadn't stopped rubbing her feet, except for the few seconds after the doorbell rang. However, I had started in again soon after. She slid back in the chair, taking care not to catch her garters or stockings on the front.

With her weight off of her feet, she slid her left one off of my leg. I thought I was done rubbing them, until she tilted her right one up. It only took me a moment to realize she wanted me to continue with a more thorough massage. I started kneading her sole with my thumbs, as she reached over to turn on some music on her computer. Then she relaxed back in her chair and looked at me sincerely.

"What did you want to talk about girly girl?" Kate asked.

"I have a huge problem," I said. "With a boy at school."

"Is he bullying you?" Kate asked.

"Not exactly," I said. "It's a bit complicated."

"Well take your time," Kate said. "And please…" She nodded at her foot. "Take your time."

"It's this boy… Jason," I said. "He kind of bullies me, but doesn't hurt me. He sort of annoys me, I guess."

"Do you think he actually likes you?" Kate asked.

"No," I said, shaking my head. "Well… maybe. I don't know." I looked at her knees to regain my thoughts.

"You know," Kate said. "Boys sometimes pick on girls they like."

"He's never seen me as a girl," I said.

"Maybe he sees you as a girl without you being one," Kate said. "You have quite a few feminine qualities."

"It's not like that," I said, still staring at her knees. "He likes Tracy."

"Oh," Kate said. "I'm sorry. I misunderstood." She paused for a moment. "You know… you can massage higher if you want."

"What?" I asked, looking up at her.

"I know you want to touch my legs," Kate said. "It's okay." She apparently thought I was staring at her legs for another reason. "They get sore from all the running I do."

"Oh," I said.

I let my hands roam slowly up her leg. My fingers slithered over the seam of her silky stocking. Eventually I reached her calf and started to massage it. Kate actually let a suppressed moan escape her rosy lips. Her entire leg relaxed in my hand. She squirmed a bit as I continued to knead her calf muscles. I didn't know if her unusual behavior was brought about by relief of tired muscles being worked, or if this had somehow become sexual for her.

"Oh… that feels so good," Kate said. "You are such a good girly girl." She closed her eyes for a moment. "So you like Jason, but he likes Tracy?"

"Huh?" I asked, dumbfounded by her question.

"Are you saying you're interested in him, but he's not interested in you?" Kate asked.

"No!" I said.

"It's okay if you like boys," Kate said. "You can tell me." When I didn't respond, she opened her eyes and looked at me. "Do you like him?"

"No," I said. "Not at all!" I shook my head, trying to bring some sanity back to the conversation. Between her questions, and feeling her legs, I had somehow lost reasoning. "He wants me to hook him up with Tracy."

"Oh!" Kate said. Her face turned red with a blush. "I completely misunderstood the entire situation." She let loose in a fit of nervous laughter. "It's just your hands feel so amazing." She tried to contain herself. "I'm sorry. I'll try to concentrate better."

"He's going to meet us at the mall Friday," I said.

"So what's problem?" Kate asked. "Just drag Tracy to the mall. She practically lives there."

"The problem," I said. "Is that Tiffany got a letter today, with the person stating they know about me."

"What do they know?" Kate asked. She took a moment to realize what I was talking about. "Oh! You mean they know about your girly girl side…"

"Yes," I said. "And they said in the letter to meet them at the mall, also on Friday."

"Dressed?" Kate asked.

I nodded.

"Okay," Kate said. "Now I see the problem." She pursed her lips and sat in silence for a moment. "I don't have a clue how to fix it though."

"Great…" I said. "I thought maybe you'd have an idea."

"Well…" Kate said. "Jason asking you to hook him up with Tracy is a simple abuse of your relationship with her, but nothing to call the cops on." She tapped her fingers on her desk. "But the letter… that's actually blackmail."

"What can I do?" I asked.

"Unless you want a quick coming out party," Kate said. "I would suggest not letting Jason see you as your girly girl self." She looked down at me with a half frown. "However, who knows what this other creep might do if you don't show up."

We both fell silent. The only sound in the room came from the soft music on her computer. When the song ended, Kate switched legs, and I started from her foot up, again, massaging her through the silky stocking. She sat back and enjoyed the moment, closing her soft eyelids over her bliss-filled eyes. I continued to knead her stiff muscles as a somewhat long song played from the CD in her computer.

"Tiffany is so lucky," Kate said. "You're like a natural at this." She let out a long sigh. "I should have you do this once a week."

"I wouldn't mind," I said.

Kate opened her eyes and looked down at me. "I'm sure you wouldn't," she said. "I think I know how to solve your problem though."

"How?"

"It'll be tricky," Kate said, "but you'll just have to split the two events up."

"Like have Tracy run into Jason on her own?"

"Yes," Kate said. "Then you and Tiff meet this mystery person who sent the letter." She leaned forward, her foot pressing against my thigh. "I can go with you if you want?"

"I don't want to burden you," I said.

"It's no problem," Kate said. "Besides… it's a lot better than having your mom drag you there."

"I guess that's true," I said. "But Jason actually wants me around, to balance out all the girls going to be there."

"If it's just him and Tracy, that's perfectly balanced," Kate said. "I would be more concerned with this other person anyway."

"I am more concerned with them…" I said. "Vanessa thinks it's another boy."

"Would you help me with my boots?" Kate asked. "They're right behind you."

I reached back and pulled her boots to me. After fidgeting with the laces on the left boot, I helped her slip her foot into it. The boot slid up her leg for a brief moment, before the top came to rest directly beneath her calf. They looked really nice on her; the black kid leather contrasting with the barely there black of her stocking. The four or more inch heel forced her foot down into a rounded point at the toe.

The music stopped. I started to tighten the laces, and had the first boot tied before the next song came on. As I worked on the right boot, I stole glances of Kate. She busied herself checking things on her computer. Before long I had her other boot on. I tightened the laces and tied them. Only then did Kate look down at my completed task.

Kate slipped her now booted foot from my hand, and placed both of her feet firmly on the floor. Then she stood gracefully, and towered over my still kneeling little body. I remember having to tilt my neck back to view her face. Kate reached out with both hands, and I slipped mine into them. She pulled me to my feet, and we stood awkwardly close together. It felt like one of those moments in a movie, where the two people end up realizing they're made for each other and kiss. Only we didn't kiss, and I soon felt her dropping my hands from her own.

"Why don't you sit and talk to me while I finish?" Kate asked.

"Sure…" I said, hoping she didn't catch on to what I had been thinking.

I eased myself onto the chair, sitting off of the side of it to face the bed where Kate had gone. She didn't seem to mind me sitting there, staring at her legs like a pervert. In fact, I think she purposefully tried to drag things out. Several times she sashayed over to her dresser, acting as if she'd forgotten something important. Then she would sashay back to the bed with whatever it was, and mess with her costume.

"What did you want to talk about?" I asked.

"I don't know," Kate said. "Anything."

I thought about it for a moment, before giving up in a huff. "I don't know what to talk about," I said.

"How's school?" Kate asked. "Aside from Jason."

"It's kind of hard," I said. "Not like elementary at all."

"Just wait until high school," Kate said.

"I actually wish I was already there," I said. "I think the next two years are going to be hell."

I watched Kate wrap a short flared skirt around her waist. Once she had buttoned it closed, I noticed the dark purple garment covered very little. The black lace at the hem of the skirt failed to stretch to the tops of her stockings. I could plainly see her garter straps as she stood straight. She picked up a purple bodice, trimmed in black lace, and adjusted the black laces which held it closed in the front.

"I'm not even sure this treatment is working," I said. "I haven't even noticed any side effects he mentioned."

"Well I'm sure it will take some time," Kate said, as she slipped her arms through the straps of the bodice.

"That's what the doctor keeps saying," I said. "I just want to feel normal."

"Normal is a matter of perception," Kate said. She started to lace up the bodice.

"I want to fit in," I said.

Kate stopped lacing the bodice for a moment to look at me. "I know this probably won't mean anything to you right now," she said. "But you're a very special person Bailey. You have a lot to offer." She went back to lacing her bodice. "You have a lot of people close to you, who love you for all that you are." She looked up once more. "If others can't realize that, then they're not worth your time."

I couldn't take my eyes off of Kate, as she finished lacing the bodice. She pulled at the laces and pushed her breasts up and together. Then she pulled a little more, pushing her perfect softball sized mounds together, before tying the bodice shut. She looked up to notice me staring at her breasts.

"So you like those too huh?"

"What?" I asked, coming out of my daze. "Yeah… I mean no."

"No?" Kate asked, feigning a pout.

"I mean… I do like them," I said. "I'm just sorry for staring."

Kate snickered. "It's okay," she said, stepping over to the bed again. "I ordered a blouse to go under this, but it hasn't gotten here yet." She picked up something lacy and black from the bed. "Hopefully it'll get here in time for me to alter it. Could you help me for a minute?"

"Sure," I said.

I uncrossed my legs, noticing I had subconsciously crossed them like a lady. Things like this worried me, causing me to be afraid I'd make some kind of slip around people who didn't know my other side. Kate happened to be one of many who would never point these sorts of things out, usually encouraging me to do the opposite of boyish things. She handed me the lacy article of clothing, and I noticed it was a glove. Once I had it in my hands, she held her arm out.

"I might have you dress me if you're over here on Halloween," Kate said. "You're a good lady's maid." She winked at me, and then grinned. "Hey! Maybe you could be a maid for Halloween?"

I shook my head laughing. "Don't give Tiffany any ideas," I said. "She's already planning my costume."

"You know she's going to pick something to doll you up in," Kate said.

"I figured as much," I said, holding the glove open for her. "I don't mind, as long as she doesn't go crazy with it."

"Well…" Kate said, as she slid her hand into the glove. "You want it to kind of be over the top."

"I do?"

"Yeah," Kate said. "If it's too plain, like a normal outfit, people will think you just like dressing as a girl."

"Well I do like it from time to time," I said.

"I know," Kate said, "but you don't want others to know that."

Kate's hand came through the end of the glove, like a hand reaching out slowly from the shadows. She showed me a loop that slipped over the middle finger, and I helped her adjust it properly. Then I pulled it on the rest of the way. It slipped past her elbow to the middle of her upper arm, and ended in a lacy frill, which folded down over the elastic holding it up. When she turned her hand over, palm down, only her green-tipped fingers stuck through the end.

"What are you going to do if you find out you miss dressing?" Kate asked, as she handed me the other glove.

"Miss it?" I asked.

"Well you're taking hormones now to become a guy," Kate said. "What if you find out it's not what you want?"

"I've actually thought about it a lot," I said, slipping the glove over her hand. "I figure my mind will change along with my body."

"That could happen," Kate said. "Especially if your mind sees your body changing and accepts it." She wiggled her fingers through the end of the glove. "Or it could be the exact opposite."

"Why are you telling me this?" I asked, fixing the lace at the top of the glove.

"I'm not trying to scare you," Kate said. "It's just…" She looked in my eyes. "Sometimes you have to ignore your body and your mind, and listen to your heart."

"Well my heart," I said, "is telling me to be a boy again."

"Okay," Kate said, moving back to the bed. "As long as nobody else is telling you what to do." She held up a long purple cloth, decorated with excessive black lace. "As long as you aren't neglecting your own happiness for someone else to be happy."

I stared at Kate, as she affixed the cloth to her costume. It happened to be a trail, designed to cover her backside. She could bring it up in the front and clip it, giving her front the appearance of a curtain being pulled away from her legs. Once she finished with the trail, she picked up another item from the bed. She walked to the mirror, and kept an eye on me as she affixed a lacy black and purple choker. It matched her garters.

"I'm going to have Pam do my hair," Kate said. "Probably in a bunch of curls."

If anyone could do hair, it was Pam, Melanie's mother. She had done mine over the summer at the spa. When I went back to see her before school, she actually fixed my hair back to something a bit more masculine for free. Though her idea of masculine actually fell along the edge of androgyny. If I fluffed it out a bit, I'd look totally feminine, but if I combed it down, I looked like a boy into the punk or skater look.

Thinking back, on what Kate had said, made me consider the feelings in my own heart. The truth was, I hadn't been doing what I did for myself. I mean, I did want to fit in as a boy, but that paled in comparison to the expectancies my parents had for me. I began to realize I was trying to repair my male side for them. Everyone else, including myself, seemed to be okay with me being a girl, and I actually enjoyed it.

"Do you like it?" Kate asked. She had turned around, and was posing with her hip thrust out to the right, with her fist resting upon it.

I nodded. "I do," I said. "I'm just not sure what you're supposed to be."

"A saloon girl, silly," Kate said. "Don't you ever watch westerns?"

"I will now," I said. "If all the women dress like that."

Kate laughed. "Unfortunately, most of the girls in old westerns are ugly."

"Well you look beautiful," I said.

"Thanks," Kate said. "Should we show the others, or did you want to talk some more?"

"They're probably wondering about us," I said.

"Probably right," Kate said.

She sashayed over to the door and unlocked it. It took a lot out of me to not stare at her, as we left the room and walked down the hallway. Melanie saw us first, and started clapping when Kate walked in. Rebecca turned to see, and actually whistled. Tracy showed her approval by running over and gushing over the ensemble. I noticed Tiffany, however, showed only a vague bit of interest in the situation, but still gave her approval of the costume with a half smile.

I walked around Kate as Melanie and Rebecca rushed over to mess with her costume. Tiffany sat on one side of their couch, slumped against the pillowed arm. She appeared to be either mad at something, or deeply thinking about other things than her sister's costume. I flopped down next to her, and pulled her feet up into my lap. This didn't even break her concentration.

Tiffany had cute light pink and lavender striped socks covering her feet, and they ran way up under her boot cut jeans. I only knew this, because I had seen her socks before, and they went up to her knees. She didn't like me to take them off, as they were a pain to get back on, but she didn't mind it when I started to rub her feet. I thought it would only be fair, since I spent so much time taking care of her sister.

Still, Tiffany wasn't distracted. She seemed to be in deep contemplation, probably about who put the letter in her art box at school. Meanwhile, the other four girls in the room were alive and kicking. They continued to hem and haw over Kate's costume. Kate saw her sister's slump, and tried to get her involved in the action.

"You were right Tiff," Kate said. "Girly girl Bailey here did a wonderful job as a lady's maid."

"Bailey's here?!"

The voice I heard sounded nearly like a squeal from the kitchen. Before I knew it, I heard the excited footsteps of someone running across the kitchen floor. Every single one of the girls had a look of terror on their face. Kate's looked like she had just revealed top-secret information to the enemy. Soon enough, Kale, Rebecca and Tracy's little brother, flew into the living room from the kitchen. He froze when he saw me, a juice box nearly slipping from his hand.

Kale had the most confused look I'd ever seen strewn across his face. "Why are you dressed like a boy?" he asked. His intense hazel eyes nearly fell out of his skull.

Nobody in the room knew what to do. Normally I was never recognized. However, this observant little sixth grader, who had seen me only once before, somehow recognized me. Maybe he had been so infatuated with me at Tracy's birthday party, that he memorized my face. Of course, he had never seen me with my old look. So maybe he didn't see anything else when he looked at me.

"What are you talking about?" Rebecca asked, trying an obvious attempt to cover for me.

"Bailey's dressed like a boy," Kale said. "She had a dress on at the party."

"How do you know it's the same Bailey?" Tracy asked, trying to get a wrangle hold on her brother as he walked closer to me.

"Yeah," Tiffany said. "You might be confused."

"No," Kale said, shaking his head defiantly. "I recognize her eyes. They're the same color blue as my bike!"

By now, my jaw had dropped. My pretty little mouth, framed by my pouty lips, gaped open in shock. Before anyone could muster up any sort of cover for me, I saw Kale's face fill with even more questions. He managed to get away from his sister, and walk over closer to me. Everyone looked on in a weird frozen state, as Kale observed my features. His head tilted to the side when he looked at my head.

"Your hair is shorter," Kale said. "But still pretty."

"Think you can keep a big secret Kale?" Tiffany asked.

Kale looked at her and nodded. Tiffany slid her legs off of my lap, and sat Indian style with her back against the arm of the couch. She patted the couch cushion in front of her, the area between her and I, offering Kale a place to sit. It didn't take long at all for Kale to accept, and I soon felt his little hand on my thigh as he shifted to a comfortable spot. He looked back and forth between us with a strained sense of wonderment.

"Bailey is actually a boy," Tiffany said.

Kale immediately looked at me. "But she… he wore a dress," he said.

"Yes, we know," Tiffany said, looking over his head into my eyes. "Bailey's a special boy who likes to dress as a girl."

"Why?" Kale asked, looking back at Tiffany.

"Because," I said, drawing his attention. "I like the different clothes girls wear."

"Oh," Kale said, looking a bit more confused. "What do they feel like?"

"It's kind of hard to explain," I said, looking into his eyes. "They just feel different."

"Could I try it?" Kale asked.

"Are you serious?" Rebecca asked, stepping over in front of us.

Kale looked up at his sister and nodded. Everyone in the room had their eyes glued to Kale now, like he had lost his mind. I looked past Kale to Tiffany, and could tell her mind had been kicked into overdrive. She obviously was seeing what I saw when I looked at Kale. We both saw an adventurous new body to play dress up with.

I looked at Kale more closely. He had a few feminine features, but not nearly as many as I did. His lips weren't as pouty, and his jaw line seemed a bit more square. These two features didn't overly compensate for what he did have. Kale was short, shorter than me a year ago. From his brow to his nose he appeared extremely feminine, with a small button nose, thin eyebrows and eyes that seemed larger than what most boys had.

"He's actually about our size," Tiffany said.

"You think so?" I asked.

"Maybe a bit smaller," Tiffany said, "but I could find some old stuff that would fit him."

"You sure you want to do this?" Rebecca asked, stooping down in front of Kale.

"Yes!" Kale said, nearly screaming from excitement.

Rebecca glanced at me, and then looked at Tiffany. "He's all yours then," she said.

"I'm so in this time," Tracy said. "I missed Bailey's first time dressing."

"Speaking of which," Tiffany said, looking at me. "Tracy brought over something I need you to try on."

"What is it?" I asked.

"It's part of your Halloween costume," Tiffany said. "It's on my bed. Go slip it on, please."

"Okay," I said, removing myself from the couch.

I looked back to see Tracy taking my place. Her and Tiffany started fawning over Kale, discussing what they wanted to try with him. Either Kale really wanted to try this, or he knew it would warrant him some much wanted attention from the girls. At any rate, I now had a task to complete. Kate, Melanie and Rebecca followed me down the hallway. Before I could turn into Tiffany's room, Kate grabbed my arm.

"Why don't you come to my room after you change?" Kate asked, only it seemed hardly a question.

I nodded, and Kate smiled as she released my arm. She continued down the hall, and I slipped into Tiffany's room. Tiffany had really changed the look of her room over the past month. She had always been a bit on the tomboy side, with her room decorated to match this aspect of her personality. Recently, however, I had watched her video games and small collection of sports gear diminish.

Tiffany used to love playing soccer at one point. She quit her local team before the summer, and slowly her shin guards and cleats disappeared. The only thing that remained was a small trophy given to her team from winning third in some tournament. Video games, especially sport titles, soon vanished from the house as well. They were replaced with board games like Clue and Twister, along with trivia cards.

Tiffany's room had also lost its once neutral colors. She replaced her white curtains with lavender. Her bedding became riddled with pinks and purples, while her bedspread had large pink and lavender tulips spread across it. The wall opposite of her closet had been painted light pink and deemed as her art wall. She literally had dozens of drawings and paintings littered about it, and randomly strewn across her room in general. The cart, where her Nintendo had been, had been replaced with a new art desk.

I closed the door to Tiffany's room. On her bed laid a navy blue dress. As I walked over to the bed, I kicked my sneakers off and over to the side. I honestly didn't feel like dressing as a girl that day, in fact I hadn't felt like it a lot recently, but I figured it would be okay to check it for size. The dress seemed more inviting as I drew closer to it.

I picked up the skirt of the dress in my hand, and instantly fell in love with the velvet material. A gold line of trim, half an inch wide, ran completely around the bottom just above the hemline. Altogether, the dress seemed pretty plain, but because of the material, I had to put it on. I found myself dropping my jeans to the floor, and yanking my shirt off at the same time.

It only took me a minute to find one of Tiffany's white padded bras, and have it hooked closed around me. Tiffany and I actually shared clothes all of the time, being close to the same size. Our undergarments fit each other perfectly, and though I never had any of my lingerie at her place, I was welcome to use hers. She even set aside favorites that she liked seeing me in.

Eventually Tiffany's mother found out about me, through random discovery. She had come home early from work and found me dressed in Tiffany's things. This brought up the fact I had spent the night in Tiffany's bed supposedly as a girl. After some carefully worded lies, we avoided some tough questions, and Kate vouched for us that nothing had happened. Kate knew very well something had happened, and promised us both we would make up for it.

I don't think Tiffany's mother really thought much of me after that, and she perhaps was the driving force behind Tiffany's drastic change toward more feminine things. She probably assumed Tiffany had started to show lesbian tendencies, and wanted to steer her away from tomboyish things. Truth be told, Tiffany did have lesbian tendencies, and steering her toward more femininity helped build those tendencies.

In essence, my relationship with Tiffany could be construed, by some, like that of a couple of lipstick lesbians. My androgynous appearance (as Rajan described it) left me far out of the ranks of a butch. Tiffany could've fallen into the femme side, but she desired more feminine looks in others. This fact, coupled with the fact she wore skirts more than jeans, gave the lipstick lesbian classification more credence.

Tiffany's affinity for feminine looks reflected strongly on me. While I dressed from time to time in whatever I wanted to at home, Tiffany liked me to be in the most feminine attire around her. This usually meant skirts and dresses for me. Weather permitting, she pleaded for me to wear shoes that revealed my toenails; usually decorated in a feminine color. She also got me used to wearing lipstick, which she claimed she loved the taste of when we kissed.

For many reasons I didn't mind doing these things for Tiffany. Dressing as feminine as possible kept my chances of being found out as a boy super low. Doing the little extra things got me plenty of attention from her. We probably had the most intimate relationship of anyone we knew. Though we never had sex, our make out sessions were sultry and charged with passion.

I started to wonder how it would feel being rubbed up against with this velvet dress on. It only took that thought to have me slipping the dress on over my head. Before I could even get the dress down all of the way, the door opened. I quickly poked my head through the plunging V neckline, to see Tiffany coming into the room. She shut the door behind her, and walked right to me.

"It might be a tight fit in some places," Tiffany said. "She wore it for a dance recital over a year ago."

"Actually it's a little…"

Tiffany put her finger over my lips. I didn't know why she stopped me from talking, until I saw a little rebellious glint in her eye. Before I could respond, she replaced her finger with her own lips. They were soft and sticky, and as her tongue passed over them, parting mine, I detected the faint taste of bubble gum. The intrusion of her tongue awakened mine, and soon they were twirling, pushing against each other.

Down my abdomen I could feel Tiffany's nails scrape gently against my skin. They reached the waistband of my panties, and played there for awhile. I could feel her fingers probing, slipping in behind the waistband and then quickly slipping back out. A few times she pulled the waistband out, letting it snap gently back into place. Tiffany broke the kiss to let her left cheek slide back against mine.

"You probably shouldn't wear these to school," she said in a whisper.

Before I could say anything, she moved her lips back over mine. We kissed for a moment more, until she slid her right cheek against mine in the same fashion as before. I felt her breath flow past my ear, and it sent a chill down my spine. Soon her hands slid into my panties in the back. The warmth of her hands on my bare bottom stopped the chill in its tracks.

"But I think it's so sexy that you do," she said, again in a whisper.

Tiffany moved her lips back to mine. She started giving me short little kisses. Her sticky lip gloss tugged ever so slightly at my lips as she pulled away. With each kiss she pulled back a little further, causing me to eventually go after them. Eventually she had me go so far for one of her kisses, that I started to lose my balance. I put my arms over her shoulders to compensate.

Our lips locked together, our tongues darting across them and plunging in and out of each other's mouths. I felt my bottom spread apart as Tiffany pulled at each cheek. After a lingering moment she broke our kiss, and pulled her head back. She had a satisfied smile on her face. I figured her satisfaction came from reaching the height of our sexual escapades at our age. We both wanted more, yet we couldn't bring ourselves to repeating our act the morning after the pool party.

"You are such a girl," Tiffany said.

"What?"

"Look at the way you're standing."

I looked down to evaluate myself. Tiffany and I were the same height, but because I was in my socks, and stood toe-to-toe with her wedge shoes, I found myself standing on my tiptoes to reach her. Not only that, but the way my arms were on her shoulder, they reminded me of one of those old black and white movies where the girl falls helplessly into the man's arms. Her elbows are usually on the man's shoulders, and crossed daintily at the wrists behind him.

"You even kicked your foot up at one point," Tiffany said.

"Well that wouldn't have happened if you didn't make me lose my balance," I said, trying my best to fake being offended.

"Let's face it," Tiffany said. "You love being a girl around me."

"Can you blame me?"

Tiffany smiled as she shook her head. We shared another long kiss. Her hands moved beneath my panties, sliding across my hips and ending right next to my penis. She had only touched it once before, but several times since then she had come teasingly close to it. Tiffany passed it over this time as well, pulling her hands from my panties as we ended our kiss.

After a moment, I felt her tugging down at the hem of Tracy's dress. It slid with ease down my torso, and over my hips. Tiffany tugged at the hem, getting it to go down as much as possible. The bell skirt of the dress finally ended up at about mid-thigh, and the dress itself seemed to be loose in the midsection. Tiffany took my arms from her shoulders, and stepped back to look at me.

"Maybe Kate can bring it in a bit," Tiffany said. "I love the way it looks though."

I'd grown quite accustomed to short sleeves that barely covered the shoulder. In all honesty, they were a lot more comfortable to me. With my small frame, most of my brother's hand-me-down t-shirts had sleeves that fell past my elbow. They were aggravating and I constantly had to keep rolling them up. Therefore, I found sleeveless, cap-sleeved and even short short-sleeved, like on this dress, to be less of a hindrance.

"Do you have white tights to go with it?" Tiffany asked. "If not you can wear some of mine."

"No," I said. "I mean… I do."

"Great!" Tiffany said, before walking over to open her door. "You can come in now," she yelled down the hallway.

Moments later, Kale came through Tiffany's door. Tracy patiently nudged him along from behind. Kale's eyes fell on me, and took in every detail. I don't know whether he found me fascinating, because I walked the edge of the gender line, or if he had some sort of crush on me. His eyes lit up when they looked into mine, and a smile spread across his face.

"You don't mind if we alter this?" Tiffany asked.

"No," Tracy said. "It's all yours. I don't need it anymore."

"Okay," Tiffany said. "Well… you get Kale started, and I'll be back to help."

I felt Tiffany's hand in mine as she dragged me out of her room. We crossed the hallway and she knocked a few times before opening Kate's door. Once Tiffany had pulled me into the middle of the room, the girls all exploded into unintelligible conversation. I felt at least six hands on me, as they looked over the dress and explained what they could do with it. They agreed and disagreed, but ultimately came to one final conclusion, which Melanie voiced quite readily.

"It'll work."

"How are you Bailey?" Rebecca asked. "Haven't seen you since we went roller skating."

"I've been okay," I said. "We should all do that again some time."

"I'd like to," Rebecca said, "but it's just so hard to plan. Getting everyone together is a pain."

"Yeah," Melanie said. "Maybe over the summer we can do more?"

"I hope so," Kate said. "It might be the last summer we have together."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Silly…" Melanie said. "We all graduate in spring!"

"Oh…" I said.

My gaze fell to the floor. I hadn't really thought about people leaving after graduation. Even Justin would be off to college in two years. I was pretty sure he would get a full ride with a football scholarship. The pressure of time now weighed heavily on my mind. There were so precious few moments we could share now. Kate lifted my chin with her hand.

"Why the sad face?" Kate asked.

"I was just thinking about you all going away to college," I said.

"Well…" Kate said. "We're not all going away."

"Yeah," Melanie said. "I'm staying here for a couple of years to go to junior college."

"Same here," Kate said. "We're thinking about getting a place together."

"You two are the lucky ones," Rebecca said. "I'll be stuck with some random roommate at college."

"Well still," I said. "It's pretty sad we're all splitting up."

"We still got the year!" Tiffany said, obviously trying to sound positive.

"Indeed," Kate said. "But like Rebecca said, we all have busy schedules."

"Tiffany!" Tracy called from the hallway. "Come help pick an outfit!"

"I'll be back," Tiffany said, before rushing out the door.

"I'm going to put a few pins in this," Melanie said, while tugging at my borrowed dress. "I think we can turn it into what Tiffany requested."

"I swear," Kate said. "With her artistic nature, Tiff should be learning to alter her own clothes."

"We could make her help," Melanie said.

"Sounds good to me," Kate said.

"Tiffany give you any ideas what your costume is Bailey?" Rebecca asked.

"She didn't say," I said, "and I don't have a clue."

"I'm sure you'll love it," Melanie said.

Melanie began to pin the dress in various spots, particularly around the midsection. As she worked away, Kate started to slip out of her costume. She claimed she didn't want it to get ruined, but why she waited until I was there seemed like no mystery to me. Kate always liked to tease me with her sexiness. It was obvious to everyone, even Tiffany. Why Tiffany allowed it though, seemed to be the biggest mystery.

Seconds turned into minutes, as Melanie pinned away at the navy blue dress. I started to get a sense of what dress models went through. Rebecca began to talk to Kate about her own costume ideas. I wanted to eavesdrop, but Melanie started humming a popular song of the time. Eventually she got so loud with it, that Rebecca asked her to stop. Melanie slipped one last pin in the back of the dress.

"There we go," Melanie said. "Be careful when you take it off."

"Okay," I said.

"You're taking it in quite a bit," Kate said.

"Yeah," Melanie said. "I figure she won't grow much in the next three weeks."

"You better watch what you eat girly girl," Kate said.

"I'm off to my other project," Melanie said, grabbing Kate's makeup bag before leaving the room.

"We should really get you out of that," Kate said. "I don't want you to get stuck with a pin."

I felt Kate behind me. Her hands slid in between my arms and my sides, and nudged me to lift my arms in the air. Then I felt the dress being pulled upward, slowly and carefully. Kate did everything in her power to keep the alteration markers in place. Finally the dress slid over my head, and I stood there in my panties, bra and ankle socks.

"Let me get a hanger for this," Kate said.

My hands dropped to my body, trying to find some way to cover myself. Though Kate had seen me in less than what I had on, Rebecca had never seen me in anything less than a one-piece swimsuit. I felt a little embarrassed about the situation. Rebecca hardly looked at me, but it still felt uncomfortable. Kate noticed instantly when she turned back around.

"I should probably get you something to wear," Kate said.

"You want a blanket?" Rebecca asked.

"No," I said. "I'll just wait for some clothes."

Kate left the room, as I turned to face Rebecca. She and I shared a pleasant smile. I felt awkward being alone with Rebecca. We didn't really know each other well enough to call each other friends. She knew me as a friend of her sister, and I knew her as an older sister to a friend. That was about the extent of our relationship with each other. Though I felt bad about it, I never knew what to say to her.

"So how's school?" Rebecca asked.

"Pretty good," I said. "Except for pre-algebra."

"Oh I hated math," Rebecca said. "This is the first year I didn't have to take any."

"I don't have a problem with the numbers," I said. "Just when the letters are added, it gets sort of tricky."

"I was the same way," Rebecca said.

This tiny little thing we had in common, made me feel a bit more comfortable. I slowly let my guard down, letting my arms fall freely about. What was I thinking anyway? Rebecca was a girl, and probably thought of me as one too. We were just two girls standing in another girl's room and talking. What was so weird about that?

"Are you finding it easy to adjust to junior high?" Rebecca asked.

"Not hardly," I said. "I mean… having seven teachers a day is different from one, and having a locker is strange." I looked at the floor. "It's just school though."

"I lost a lot of my friends switching schools," Rebecca said. "How are you doing in that department?"

"I get to see all of the girls at least once a day," I said. "But I don't talk to many of my boy friends anymore."

"Ooh," Kate said, coming through the door. "So my girly girl has more than one boyfriend?"

"No!" I said. "I mean… I don't have any boyfriends. I meant boys who are friends."

"I'm just teasing you," Kate said. "Relax girly girl." She held up the clothes I discarded in Tiffany's room. "Got your clothes back."

I took my jeans from Kate and stumbled into them. By the time I got them fastened around my waist, Kate was holding out my shirt. Kate smiled as I started to put it on over the bra. After I realized what was amusing her so much, I removed the bra and handed it over to her. She seemed disappointed that I gave it up, but at the moment I wasn't into the whole dressing thing.

"Wow…" Rebecca said, as I got the shirt pulled down.

I looked up and saw she was looking at something behind me. So I turned around, and that was when I beheld the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. Kale stood in the doorway, wearing a pale lavender dress. It flipped out into a bell skirt around his knees, which were encased in white tights. The dress hung from his small shoulders with inch-wide straps, and dipped down into a square neckline ending over his small, perky breasts.

Only they weren't breasts. I knew, from multiple times seeing myself in one, that Kale wore one of Tiffany's padded bras. Yet it looked so natural on him. He actually looked like a girl. Underneath the masterful makeup done by Melanie, with the ensemble picked by Tiffany and Tracy, Kale actually looked more girl than anyone in the room. I had to take it all in again just to be sure of it myself.

My gaze fell on his feet, and Tiffany's white strappy dress heels appeared to be too big for him. He actually had smaller feet than I did! I found this fascinating, as I thought it to be an anomaly that I wore the same size as most of my female friends. Kale looked so pretty, so innocent. He ultimately stole the show, in a manner of speaking. Everyone was speechless, except for Melanie.

"Ladies…" Melanie looked at me. "Gentleman…" She held out her hands toward Kale. "May I present Kayla!"

---

 
 
To Be Continued...