False Positive

“Aaron McMaster, come to the principal’s office.”

The whole class went “ohh, you’re in trouble ...”

If you wanted to describe Aaron in one word, that word would be “typical”.

He was around average height, around average weight, he was neither super popular nor an outcast, neither a brain nor a jock - he was one the the kids who live in the middle and for the most part remain invisible and unknown.

But that was about to change .....

Walking into the principal’s office, he found not only the principal herself, but the school’s councillor, and both women had worried looks on their faces as he came in.

“What’s going on?”

“Aaron, .... please sit down.” The principal said.

“What did I do?”

“You’re not in trouble its just ... Maybe our school counselor Mrs. Carter can explain.”

Mrs Carter cleared her throat, and said, “Aaron, do you remember taking a gender test in the psychology part of your social studies class?”

“Sure. I remember joking what would happen if you flunked it. Wait a minute ... I couldn’t actually flunk that kind of test, could I ?”

“There was no pass or fail, Aaron. But your results were ..... unusual. According to the test, your thinking is much more feminine than masculine.”

Aaron looked at her in shock. “You’re saying I think like a girl? That’s not possible.”

“That does seem to be the result, yes. The test is very clear. Now we have to decide what to do.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, you see, thanks to the policies protecting students who are transgender, its our duty to ... encourage your transition to female.”

“You mean, be a girl? I dont want to be a girl!”

“I understand its scary. But we’ll protect you from any problems from the students, and we’ll get your family on board too.”

“You’re ... gonna tell my mom? Oh geeze ...”

‘I’m sorry, we have no choice in that. “ the principal said.

“Dont worry. Its gonna be okay.” Mrs Carter said, and gave the child a hug.

Aaron’s mother was called, and soon he was being taken home, and by this point he was crying openly. He felt like things were acting like a rollercoaster, and there was no way for him to get off. The principal had even made an announcement about trans students and the penalties for discrimination, which led to the story of his results being spread across the school, making his humiliation complete.

Once home, he tried to talk sense into his mother.

“Mom, I am not a girl. I’d know, wouldn’t I?”

“Well, to be honest, Aaron, you were .... not very butch, as a little kid. You even wore my make up and heels when you were small, and when I caught you, you just said you wanted to be as pretty as me. “

“I did? I dont remember that at all!”

“But it did happen, Aaron. Now, we got this test result, and well, the school is going to help you, and so will I.”

“Help me do what?”

“Be a girl, of course.”

“But, I dont want to be a girl. I wont be a girl!”

“You’re going to have no choice, I’m sorry.”

“What? What do you mean?”

“The school is obligated to follow the results of the test. From this point on, they will treat you as a girl.”

“But the test is wrong! Cant we fix this? I cant be a girl!”

“You’re going to have to be.”

“Doesnt what I want enter into this?”

His mother sighed, and said, “It should, but they will argue that its just shame and fear that’s holding you back. That what you need is a good nudge, and then you’ll be happy as a girl.”

“What am I gonna do, mom? Cant I take the test again, show it was a mistake?”

“Not till next year, that’s the rules, I’m afraid.”

“A year. I gotta be a girl for a year?”

“It looks that way. But look at it this way. Let’s suppose that the test is wrong, somehow, and you really aren’t a girl. You are stuck being treated as one at school for the next year, no matter what, so your attitude is going to be very important. You can make yourself miserable, and make everyone around you miserable, but they probably wont change their minds until you get a new test result. Or you can view the next year as an adventure, a chance to learn some things about girls that most guys may never know. So, the question is, which is it going to be?”

So the next day, Aaron went to school in a girl’s top and pants.

The reaction of his classmates was mixed, with some being okay with it, others not as much, but thanks to the policies the principal had put out, for the most part, Aaron was left alone. Some of his old friends left, but he gained some new ones, so overall he was about as popular as he had ever been, and he hoped that the worst was behind him.

Unfortunately, the school counselor had other ideas.

Mrs. Carter tried to get him to dress more girly, but he flatly refused, saying he was dressed exactly like most of the other girls in the school, and coming to school in heels and skirts would only increase the negative attention he received.

But one thing Mrs. Carter insisted on was that he pick a female name to be known as, and after talking with his mother, decided this wasn’t a hill he would die on, and so reluctantly agreed to be called Miriam during school hours.

As the year went on, it was clear that Mrs. Carter had definite ideas as to how a trans girl should behave, and Aaron refused to fit into the mold. Besides attempts to fem his wardrobe, the counselor tried to get him interested in Home Economics, but Aaron said Shop was just as good for a girl as a guy. She also tried to get him to wear makeup, but beyond lip balm that almost looked like gloss, he remained makeup-free.

So time wore on, and Aaron’s transition became “old news”, and he more or less went back to being nearly invisible.

Even the issue of bathrooms got settled fairly quickly, as the girl’s washrooms had stalls, he could go in, do what he needed to , and get out quickly. Fortunately, he didnt have to worry about Gym this year, as they decided to give him a study period to avoid any problems with changing in the girl’s locker room.

He even got a small group of girls who would come to him for advice on boys, as they figured that his time as one might give insights they could use.

Boys were a different story, and despite Mrs. Carter trying to get him to think of boys as dating prospects, Aaron firmly held to the concept that he would not be the first lesbian in history, and therefore he felt no obligation to date boys just to meet some hetrosexual standard of behavior.

He was unintentionally assisted in this by the boys themselves, who mostly gave him a wide berth, making sure that even if he had any interest in dating, his prospects will virtually nil.

Finally, a year had past, and he was allowed to sit down and take the gender test again.

As he sat there waiting for the test, he considered his year as a girl, and overall, it had been much less horrible than he had feared.

But he would be happy to go back to being a boy, assuming he managed to get the right result this time ....

Aaron would never know that his first test result had been because another boy had switched tests with him, being afraid of having his feminine nature being found out., and that watching Aaron naviage an unwanted change of gender with grace would give that boy the courage to take the test again, and let his inner girl shine through.

But even not knowing that he had acted as an inspiration in this way, he gained not only a deeper insight into girls, but a great compassion for the truly transgendered, so when there was another cross-gender student the following year he made sure to be as much of a help as he could be, and after he graduated he decided to go into psychology so he could one day help those who suffered with such conditions.

And as he would often remind his patients, it all started with having the right attitude ....

End