Summer With Em Chapter 27

By Julie D Cole

I was nervous because Frankie wanted to introduce me to her mum but I wasn’t comfortable about meeting her grandfather. I didn’t like that he was so prejudiced and had been so outspoken against the gay community in Manchester when the first Pride marches were being planned. In any I didn’t want him to become agitated if he had been told about me since he was just out of intensive care and he was supposed to be recovering.

I tried to explain my concerns to Frankie as we entered the lift but she insisted that she would take care and not to worry and we should carry on. She said that her mum was unlikely to care even if I had two heads since she’d hardly slept and she was still in a spin trying to come to terms with what had happened.

‘Kim you really don’t need to worry and I don’t know what can have upset you because I’ve told you what I think. It’s not important to me how you want to dress and behave. I promise it makes no difference to what I think about you. You sound like any young woman of your age and you look pretty cool whatever you wear. I guess you are not sure because you must have had a hard time at school and at college.’

‘Yes at school it was awful. It’s not as bad as it has been at college because as well as having these boobs and soft skin my voice hasn’t even broken. I tried to talk more deeply so people who don’t know me don’t think I’m a girl dressing as a boy and in fact I lose concentration so my voice goes back to normal.’

‘But you’ve got a lovely London accent unlike up here so maybe it’s the accent people notice. You sound like a news reader sometimes.’

‘Well I do get bullied so I don’t play sports or change in the male dressing rooms. I avoid the male bathrooms as much as possible because I usually get grabbed and punched yet I never do anything wrong. Boys have been know to come up from behind and fondle me. It’s awful.’

‘I don’t suppose anybody would do anything about it. I wish I’d been there with you. These idiots need sorting out before they get to think they are superior to people who are either side of what they believe is the standard male or female.’

We arrived at the security doors leading to the ward and I stopped and said to Frankie that I felt awkward meeting her mother in the current circumstances. I had left Em’s apartment without any thought of checking if I looked presentable and I ought to have got changed.

‘See what I mean? What boy would even think of that so just use the bathroom over there and I’ll wait here.’

It took me a while before I was satisfied that I looked ok and built up the courage to go back to Frankie and when I did her mother was with her. She smiled as Frankie introduced me as her girlfriend and that we had become close friends. I felt her eyes inspecting me but not in a bad way. She was nice and seemed to accept me as Frankies girlfriend and that we were in a lesbian relationship.

She had left her husbands bedside because a publicity woman from Manchester Council was visiting along with his former secretary so after a while she’d left them to it. She said they were did not seem concerned with his health just following up on the publicity in the press and keeping him in the public eye as a believer in older traditions and values. They had organised the local press to interview him and within seconds there was a reporter and a photographer by his bedside.

A doctor and a nurse were also ushered into his room as we talked and then the first responder ambulance crew who had taken over on their arrival to the poolside. Frankie and her mother were called and I ducked back into the bathroom until they’d all gone then headed back downstairs. I wanted to get away.

Frankies grandfather hadn’t recovered fully yet he just wanted publicity. Unbelieveable! I decided to head back to the apartment and contact Frankie later.

Luckily there was a cab on the rank. I didn’t want any part of being around any publicity after what the BBC had posted on their web-site. I didn’t expect the story to be of interest to anybody. They were making assumptions about me with no foundation or even talking to me.

I was lucky that the cab had a female driver so I felt comfortable and less threatened. The driver was chatty as soon as I settled into my seat and after a few minutes I’d told her more than I intended about my reason for visiting the hospital.

She told me that she knew a bit about Frankies grandfather and she made it obvious she didn’t like him. She told me that she was a member of the LGBT community and had undergone gender reassignment surgery and had been a chaffeur in the mayors office so knew him very well. She had been singled out for persecution ever since she came out.

Then when she had become involved in support of Gay Pride she had been sacked. Worse than that she had been arrested and put in a police cell overnight with rough footfall hooligans after she confronted him face to face. They had turned on her and beat her before the police intervened.

It was hard to believe that she had been born a man looking at her from the rear seat and at her eyes in the drivers mirror. She was so pretty and her make up was immaculate and I told her so. She smiled and thanked me and just said he’d done her a favour because after being sacked she had decided to live full time as a woman and her friends had supported her. She did bar work and waitressing in a club in Manchester until she was able to save enough money to have the operation and her job driving a taxi was part time for a friend.

Then she said she recognised me from a conversation she’d had with friends who showed her the web-site photo and the article and that she hoped I was OK. She said I’d done a brave thing but it was a pity it had to be to save the life of the man she most despised. She passed me a card for the club where she worked and told me to visit and look out for her or to call her any time and she’d be sure to be around.

Was she just being nice or making a pass? Did she think I was transgender? I stayed quiet and just smiled politely putting the card in my bag. I would ask Em if she knew the bar and the club. As I got out of the cab she smiled and said the ride was on her and hoped to see me again.

Once upstairs in the apartment I switched my phone back on. I saw I’d had several missed calls from Frankie and a few text messages. I rang her and she picked up immediately.

‘ Thank God. At last, where are you? Why did you suddenly disappear? What got into you?’

‘Sorry I didn’t want to interfere and there were too many people around. I didn’t realise the press were going to be visiting and I thought your grandfather was ill.’

‘Kimmy why didn’t you tell me that it was you who dived in and saved his life?’

‘I never had chance. Who told you that anyway?’

’The ambulance crew you ninny. The saw you in the corridor and they assumed you were there for the publicity like them. Mum was so grateful and wants you to still come with us. Will you because she wants to thank you personally.?’

‘I don’t want any fuss. I just did my best and I’m glad it worked out. I got him out of the water and did what I was trained to do. It was the first time ever.’

‘Kimmy even though my grandfather and I fell out big time he is still my grandfather and I just hope he reflects on what happened and it changes his opinions a bit. He was lucky to survive and he owes his life to you.’

‘I just happened to be there. Others could have done what I did.’

‘Yes but they didn’t. It was you. Can I call and pick you up?’

‘OK I’ll just freshen up and change and put some bits in my overnight bag.’

‘Don’t be long then I’m almost there.’

‘Was your mum listening?’

‘She’s sleeping in the back. I’m driving her car we left hers at my place so there was room for three of us. It’s the first chance she’s had to shut her eyes.’

I removed my work gear and put on some leggings and a top and tidied my hair. I packed some fresh underwear and some night clothes along with my cosmetic bag. I felt better as I headed downstairs but just a little nervous to be staying overnight since I’d be close to Frankie but somehow it excited me.

Frankie jumped out of the car and gave me a big hug. ‘Kim you saved my grandfathers life. How can we every repay you?’

I just got embarrassed and was speechless. ‘Kim I don’t have the greatest relationship with my grandfather but he’s my mums dad. He’s family even though he is bigoted and very prejudiced against the LBGT community. We all can choose friends but unfortunately not family.’

‘I’m sorry to hear that. I never really had relationships with my grandparents. I often wish that I had.’

‘Well you’ve missed nothing with him. On the other hnd I’d love to take you to Italy one day to meet my father and his family. His parents are fantastic.’

‘Well I can’t afford anything like that I’m just about breaking even and I will have student loans to repay.’

‘I invited you. I can afford to treat you if you’d come.’

‘Maybe.’

Frankies mum woke up and was so nice to me. She said her father had been sitting up and chatting and soaking up al the attention and was grateful to everybody. Then she said she hadn’t realised her daughter had a new girlfriend and that she was pleased that she was moving on. I wasn’t sure if she was happy that her daughter was a lesbian bt in truth as far as I was aware that wasn’t true.I just hoped I wasn’t being a temporary substitute.

The journey didn’t seem to take long and soon we were pulling into the driveway of an old farmhouse type cottage. It was like a postcard scene. We even had to drive across a small stream to get to the front of the house.

Once inside Frankies mum insisted on preparing something to eat since she’d not eaten for long time. Frankie showed me around the house incluing her bedroom that was always ready for her to stay. I put my bags in the guest room next door and her mums was along the corridor. The windows were quite small and the ceilings quite low. Lucky that none of us were very tall.

As I put my bag down on the bed Frankie took me in her arms and kissed me fully on the lips. It was a shock at first but then I just relaxed. Her hand touched my right breast that seemed to respond instantly so I tried to step back without seeming ungrateful or disrespectful. If my friends at college could see me now I don’t know what I’d have said.

We returned to the kitchen to help Frankies mum prepare the food. Nothing too exotic just some Bolognese sauce she’d prepared earlier and put in the freezer that was quickly de-frosted. We had some anti-pasta as a starter and Frankie opened a bottle of red wine. It went to my head since I wasn’t much of a drinker but luckily we all wanted an early night. We cleared away and Frankies mum went up to bed.

Frankie wanted to talk to me and insisted we relax on the sofa. She’d been told about the article on i-player and the suggestion that I as transgender.

I’d no idea how to respond.