The XX-Files Part 2
By Cindy Pagent

This is a story of Discovery. Part 2

(For those of you who read Part 1 before, I’ve done some slight refinements to it, and reloaded it, so you might want to re-read it! Thanks, Cindy!)

Sandy Andros, of the Aero Airplane Company, has been working at Aero for about 5 years. Being 25, and not having lots of attributes of Maleness, like a big, muscled, hairy body, or having a beard to speak of, only being 5’6” tall, and a whopping 120 lbs, looks like, and is, a Geek. In fact, he looks a lot like Gillian Anderson, Agent Dana Scully of the FBI, despite being Male!

He is asked by several of the Women of his area to go to the Firms Halloween Party as Agent Dana Scully with someone else as Agent Fox Mulder, because there is a Costume Contest, and the girls think Sandy, and a handsome Fox duplicate will win!
Sandy finds out something new from this escapade! Can you guess what?

In this Second Part, Sandy and Paul have gone to the Aero Halloween Party, they won the Couples Category, and some other things happen to the two of them! Good Things! And things are leading up to something wonderful!

Chapter 6

As soon as we arrived at his House, and he clicked to have the Garage Door open, and we moved inside from his Car, in the same fashion as he had been doing all night: Treating me as a Lady! I had not received this kind of treatment before. I had always been the Guy in the Relationship, and had always been responsible for the treatment I was now receiving. Paul was so -Gentle-, so -Kind-, so -Loving- in the way that he was treating me. If I was to attach a name to the way he has been treating me, it would be Princess, which I said before. And, that would make him a Prince. And a Prince he was! I’ve never had somebody be so attentive to me!

We moved into the House from the Garage, and he showed me into the Living Room, and he sat me down on his Couch, in front of the 70inch LCD TV. It was obvious that he had quite an Audio/Visual system to be entertained by. And Guys are always very proud of their A/V system! And he had good reason to be proud of his!

“I’ll be right back! I just want to get us some Wine, and get the Popcorn started,” Paul said, as he was helping me get my Outer Coat off, and then helped me sit. He turned the System on, and then tuned in the Local News. Paul then took our coats and put them in the hall closet. Then he went to the Kitchen to get things ready for the Movie. I just sat there and watched that grand 70inch TV.

Paul had moved into the Kitchen, and reached under the counter to his Wine Fridge, and grabbed a bottle of Roscato, and got two Glasses. He reached to an upper cabinet and grabbed a bag of Popcorn, popped it into the Microwave, and hit the Popcorn button. He was quick to get a Bowl out for the Popcorn, and took the Roscato and Glasses out to the Coffee Table in front of the TV. He poured the Wine out, and offered me one of the glasses. We clinked Glasses, and took our first drink of that Wine! Just after that, he heard the Buzzer go off on the Microwave, and headed to the Kitchen.

He returned with the Popcorn Bowl, and set it down on the table.

“What do you want to watch now?” Paul asked.

“Well, I did get the joy of choosing the last movie, the Rom-Com, so why don’t you go ahead and choose this one for us?” I said.

“Ok, let’s do something that is kind of in-between a Rom-Com and an Action Movie. Let’s go with Jason Bourne!” he said with a wink!

“Well, there is a Love Story in The Bourne Identity!” I said, with a wink back.

So, he loaded up the Bourne Identity Blu-Ray, grabbed the Remote, and sat down beside me, cuddling up close. He started up the movie, grabbed his glass of Wine, and took a drink. And I took a drink, too. Paul sat his glass down, and took mine and set it down, and wrapped his arm around my shoulders, and I cuddled up to him, even more.

We watched the first part of the movie, but it was a good thing I already knew what happened in the second part, because we were too busy smooching each other to notice what was happening on the screen, no matter how big the screen was, and how loud and wonderful the sound track. I don’t know if we were “in love”, but we certainly were ‘making love’! I’d never kissed a Guy before, but Paul was an eye-opener! I’ve never been kissed with such passion! Let’s just say, he was really into it! And, when he came up for air, so to speak, he commented, “You’re a Great Kisser!”

Well, you can imagine, that really got me going!

“You’re not too bad, yourself,” I replied!

I had never thought I would kiss a Guy, especially with such emotion, and get such emotion in return. I pulled back and looked him deep in his eyes. He really had a good cologne on! I didn’t realize it before, but I now thought of Paul as extremely Handsome! I looked, and looked, and realized Paul was something special, someone special I had never had in my life before. Someone who really cared about me for me.

“Paul, I don’t know if I’m in Love, but I’m very taken with you! I know, I know, using the ‘L’ word this early in a Relationship is usually poison to it, but even though I’ve never been in the role of a Woman in a Relationship before, I don’t feel bad about saying it as I have. You are someone very special, and I don’t know how I’ve lived these 25 years without that kind of caring, before.”

“Dana, don’t worry about using that ‘L’ word, I’m not worried,” Paul said. “I am, in fact, very much taken with you, too! And, no, I don’t think of you as that Guy I know over in ME. I think my initial thoughts were absolutely on the mark, they did hire a Gal in ME, you! And I don’t think of you in any way other than my latest Girlfriend. I know this crazy Costume Contest is the reason for us coming together, but I’m sure glad they had it, and we went to it as the X-Files Couple. Because without it, I’d never had met you, the ‘you’ that is in front of me, right now!”

“Awww!” I said, and buried my head into his shoulder, and I grabbed him around the middle, and hugged him with all my might! I looked up to him, and said, “I think this whole thing has brought something in me up to the surface. What I’m feeling for you, and the way that I’m acting, is totally fine with me. It’s something I’ve wondered about for many years. When Patty and Janice asked me to join them in ME, I didn’t have to think twice about their request. And then, we kept having Lunch together, and talking about whatever the Girls wanted to, and that seemed so natural to me, too!”

“You know, whatever you want to tell me, that’s fine with me. Whatever you’re discovering about yourself, it seems right to me. Look, I don’t want to seem like I’m bragging, but I’ve been out with plenty of Women, and I don’t see anything different about you from them. You are very Womanly, very sexy, to me!”

“Thank you for saying that, Paul. If you wouldn’t mind, I’d like to call you Dear, when we’re by ourselves,” I said. “Do you mind that?”

“Not if you don’t mind me returning it to you, Babe,” he said.

We settled back in, and tried to watch the rest of the movie. However, we had fallen asleep in each other’s arms, and awoke around 3am.

“Dana?” Paul asked. “It’s past 3am, and I know I would like to get some more sleep. Do you want to get up and have me drive you home? If not, you can sleep here, and I promise to be a Gentleman. Since I don’t have a Second Bedroom for you to sleep in, you could sleep in my bed, with me. I promise to not do anything naughty! Well, most of the time, anyway!” Paul asked me with puppy dog eyes. “And, I have some pajamas for you to wear!”

“Well, with an offer like that,” I responded, with a smile, “How can I refuse?”

You could see the Joy in Paul’s eyes. With that, we moved from the Living Room into his Bedroom. He went over to his chest of drawers, and got out two Pajama sets.

“Sorry, I only have Men’s Pajamas!” Paul sorrowfully explained. “I wish I had something more appropriate for you. However, most Women look very sexy in their Boyfriend’s PJ’s or Shirts, right? Do you want to try these on?”

“It’ll do, Pig, It’ll do,” I said, quoting the line from the movie “Babe”, smiling.

“Funny, funny!” Paul replied. “I know that movie! I’ll just lay your set out here on the bed, and I’ll change out in the Living Room. I know you’ll probably want to remove your Makeup, first. There’s some Moisturizer by the Bathroom Sink. So, let me know when you’re changed and ready, OK?”

“Sounds, good, Boss!” I said back to him.

Paul grabbed his set of PJ’s, and went out to change in the Living Room. I took the other set, and moved into his Bathroom. I didn’t have a lot of experience in getting out of my outfit, but I somehow did it. I stood there in Bra and Panties, and cleaned my face. I used the Moisturizer on my Face, and smoothed it all over. I got into the PJ’s, and went back out into his Bedroom, opened the door to the Hall, and went out to the Living Room.

I came up behind Paul, on the couch, hugged his shoulders, and kissed him on the head.

“I’m ready, Dear!” I said to Paul, who was sitting on the Couch, done with his changing. He got up, and guided me back to the Bedroom.

He pulled back the sheets for me, and I got into the Bed, and he pulled them over me. He went around, and got in himself. We ended up looking into each other’s eyes.

“Do you like to Spoon when you sleep with someone else?” Paul asked, with a little smile on his face.

“Well, yes, I do like to Spoon, but I’m usually the Spooner, not the Spoonee!” I whispered.

“If you’d lay on your Left side,” Paul whispered back, “I’ll move into you, and drape my arm over your side.”

“That sounds good to me,” I replied, and rolled over on my Left side. Paul moved up behind me, and put his arm over my side. He stroked my side for a while, and within 10 to 15 minutes, we were asleep. I was happy.

Chapter 7

About 9am, we finally woke up. I looked over at Paul, and gave him a Big Kiss. He returned my amorousness. He wrapped his arms around me, and continued the kissing! It was at least another 5 minutes until he stopped.

“Would you like me to fix us up some Breakfast? Do you have Eggs, Bacon, Sausage, and Pancake Mix?” I asked him.

“Not only do I have all of that,” Paul answered, “I even just got a Waffle Grill!”

I got out of bed, and so did he, meeting at the foot of the Bed.

“Well, if you don’t mind the ‘Little Woman’ making some Breakfast,” I enticed him, “I’ll do all of that after I get some Coffee started. Does that all sound good to you?” I wrapped my arms around his waist.

He kissed me on the head. “That sounds great!” he answered back. “Just for future info, I take my Coffee with 1 spoon of Sugar, 1-part Milk to 3 parts Coffee.”

“Well, I’m glad you told me,” I said, smiling back to him, “So that I’ll know for the next time I’m over here, if you’ll have me?”

“Yeah! Like that’s in question, now!” He swatted me on the rear, as I released him, and made my way to the Kitchen.

“Ouch! Silly Boy!” I yelled back at him. I still had his Pajama Top on. I had seen plenty of women do just this, on lots of Movies and TV shows, so I didn’t exactly feel out-of-place in wearing that for Breakfast. It was Sunday Morning, after all!

I started the Coffee, and got it brewing, and got some cups out for us. I got the Eggs, Sausage, Bacon, and finally found the Pancake Mix and the Waffle Maker. I got all of that out and started, and got the Oven going with the Bacon and Sausages on a Cookie Sheet.

Paul came up behind me, and placed a kiss on the back of my neck, and said, “Mmmm. I haven’t had a Woman making me Breakfast in a long time! Do you need me to help?” He turned me around, put his arms around my waist, and hugged me really tight.

“No, I’m fine!” I replied. “I just have to know how you want your Eggs done? And then, why don’t you go out and watch some Sunday Morning Football, or something else on that Big TV of yours?”

“I prefer my Eggs Scrambled. After I get my Coffee,” he said, “I’ll take you up on that suggestion to go watch the TV!”

He planted a kiss on my lips, and worked his way to the back of my neck, again, and waited over by the Coffee area. As soon as the Mr. Coffee finished its’ thing, and brewed the whole pot, the Sugar was already in the cups, so I poured in the Coffee, and added the Milk into both of our cups. He took his, gave me another kiss, and scooted out to the Living Room, to watch some Football.

I got the Breakfast ready, baking the Bacon and Sausages, making the Waffle Mix and making us each two Waffles, and finally, Scrambling the Eggs. He had a Pancake warmer, so I used that for our Waffles, turned off the Burner under the Scrambled Eggs, and pulled the Bacon and Sausages out of the Oven and got out some fancy plates to put those on. I found some Blueberries in the Freezer, thawed them, and put them in a bowl, and then on the Table, as topping for the Waffles. I dusted a little grated Cheese on top of the Scrambled Eggs, and had a bowl of diced Roma Tomatoes next to the plate, to put on the Eggs, if he liked that. I put the plates, and the Pancake Warmer onto the Table.

I went over to the Living Room, sat next to him on the Couch, tucking my legs underneath me, and said, “Breakfast’s Ready, My Lord!” He was obviously hungry, gave me a big Hug and a Kiss, and then pulled us both up to go into the Dining Room, and devour the Breakfast I’d made.

“It all looks so good,” Paul exclaimed! “Oh, the things I learn about you!”

“Yeah,” I smiled at him, “I’ve been told I’m a pretty good cook! My Mother made sure both of us children were taught cooking, since I didn’t have Home Economics in School!”

That being said, and another Big Kiss from him, we dug into Breakfast. I added a little Ketchup to my Eggs, which he shook his head at.

“There are sliced-up Tomatoes, to add on top,” I said, “If Ketchup isn’t to your liking!”

“I’ve never understood that!” Paul said.

“I learned it from my Mother. I think it comes from the fact that she learned it from her Mother, who had grown up during the Depression, and to make the food edible, or spice it up, they added things like Ketchup.”

“Kind of Disgusting,” he said, “but totally understandable! I’m sure there’s lots of things they did to make food more edible!”

“Yes,” I said, putting some Blueberries on my Waffles, after the Butter, “I also learned a lot of Comfort Food recipes from my Mother and my Grandma. They had to do a lot to make food edible back then.”

“Well, if your Breakfast is any clue,” Paul remarked, “you must be a Fabulous Cook! I just love your Breakfast!”

I bowed my head, and did my best to try to curtsey, in a chair. “Thank you, Sir! Your remarks are very welcomed!”

We finished up the Breakfast, and moved the dishes into the Dishwasher, and then we went out to the Living Room, and sat on the Couch, beside each other, cuddling up to each other.

“Well, this is all very Domestic!” Paul said. “I have to say, this is also very comfortable! I could get used to this!”

I looked over at him. “Yes, it’s very comfortable, and I could get very used to this, too! But I think we should probably take things slowly. There’s lots we don’t know about each other. And this is absolutely new territory for me!”

“Yeah,” he said, “But I think the most important thing has been discovered, already, don’t you think? I already know that you sleep on your Left Side!”

I grabbed a Throw Pillow that was on the Couch, and hit him over the head with it.

“Wait! Whoa!” Paul tried to get from under my assault. “Just Kidding! Just Kidding!”

I relented, and let him recover.

“Yes, I would have to say that my most ‘hidden secret’ is out in the open for us. ‘That’ has already been revealed!” I emphasized. “But the question is, what am I going to do about ‘that’? I could be wrong, but this seems like the Real Me, something I’m very comfortable with, the Natural State for Me.”

Paul turned down the volume on the Game, so that we could talk seriously, without having to talk over it.

“Yeah,” Paul said, “I could be wrong, too, but being ‘Dana’ seems like you. It seems like how you should probably live the rest of your life. I’m certainly not knowledgeable in that area, and I’d guess you aren’t either. What do you need to do, to start this process off, go talk with a Therapist?”

“I think that’s where I should probably start,” I answered, “but I think there’s also Support Groups, and Therapists, locally, who would know more of what to do, who to see, and all of that. I will probably jump on the computer and the Web, at home, to see what Resources there are here in Portland, to help me answer the questions I have. I will start Googling the information I need to start this Journey. It will certainly be a Journey, with lots of interesting ‘stops’, along the way, and lots of things to see and do! But I can’t think of a better place to be ‘different’. Between here and Seattle, we live in a very accepting community.”

“That plan sounds very smart, but don’t forget your built-in resources of Patty and Janice!” Paul reminded me. “After all, they would know what being Female is all about! Use the information you can get from those knowledgeable places where people who’ve been on that Journey before, know about it. There are probably lots of mistakes that people have made before, and those groups know how to avoid those mistakes. I must say, you take to this role very well. You are a most naturally Female person. I love the person inside this Human Being, and the scenery isn’t too bad, either! I do have to say that you seem like the person I’ve been looking for, that ‘other’ that completes me. I’ve been looking for you almost all my life, and now I’ve found you! Who knew that a Halloween Party would be the reason I found you!”

“Why, thank you, Sir,” I said, as I buried my head into his shoulder, once again.

“You are smart, funny, uninhibited, strong, and I know this might seem a bit unusual, but you seem to be yourself, without apology!”

“Can we just cuddle for a while,” I asked?

“I thought you’d never ask!” Paul said, as he grabbed me, and made me the target of his kissing attack.

After cuddling for a while, and watching Football for a bit, I gathered my things up, dressed myself appropriately, and got things together for the Garage.

“Paul, dear, I’m ready to go now,” I called out to him.

“Coming, Baby!” he answered me. He came down the hall, pulling his Sports Jacket on, and plucked his keys out of the bowl, by the front door. In his other hand, he grabbed my other things, and shooed me out of the door to the Garage.

We moved out to his 370Z, and he very Gentlemanly, opened my door and let me sit down, buckle up, and he then closed the door. He opened the back hatch, and loaded my Coat and extras in, and then moved around, sat down and punched the Garage Door Button. Then, he started the Z car, by punching the Start Button. I’m still not used to a car being started with a button!

As we zoomed down the road, I caught glimpses of the Beautiful Columbia River, and looking Southeast, I could just make out Mount Hood!

“We sure live in a Beautiful place, here in Portland, and in the Pacific Northwest. And I love the Oregon Coast!” I exclaimed. “Hey, do you want to plan a small Vacation out to the Coast, Lincoln City, or Gleneden Beach at the Salishan Resort? I love that area around Lincoln City!” Siletz Beach, the Sea Lion Caves, and Depoe Bay, which you know they shot part of “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest”.

“I’ve been out to the Lincoln City Area a bunch of times!” Paul said. “My Family always Summered out there. I’d love to set up a Vacation with you to Lincoln City, stay at Spanish Head Hotel, and up to Tillamook to see the Cheese Factory, and the Air Museum, and at Depoe Bay, across from the Lighthouse, on their Bay, that’s in that movie, is the Spouting Horn Restaurant, which has lovely Pies and great Dinners! Obviously we’ve only known each other a short time, so we may need a bit of learning of each other before that trip, a Month, or so, I think! But I think I would enjoy learning more about Dana, and what makes her tick.”

He used his right hand, and massaged my Left leg. I found this very soothing and comforting. I hadn’t ever thought I would enjoy this kind of treatment, especially by a Man. But I am finding out more and more about myself that I didn’t know, and what I now enjoy. I turned my head towards him, and smiled. He smiled back at me, and I once again felt a tingle go down my spine. And that was a feeling of Happiness, of Belonging. I didn’t belong -to- him, I belonged to a Relationship, of common Love for each other. That was something I had never felt before. And it made me very happy!

“Paul, if you don’t mind waiting for me to find My Real Self,” I said to him, “I now want to become the ‘Real Me’, the one I am now finding out about. Do you mind all of the talk that will happen with me changing, especially that you’ll get?”

Paul looked over at me as he said, “Will you be Dana, and not Sandy, when this is all over?”

“Whether I was with you, or not,” I said back, “I would be pursuing this change. I have found the ‘Real Me’, the person who has been so sad through my early years, and the loving, emotional person I have found, that is the ‘Real Me’. And I am lucky enough to have someone like you, who finds me to be someone you want to spend time with, who wants to be with me, and who really cares for me!”

“Dana, I definitely see you as a Woman,” Paul said, “the Woman I want to be with. I see you as someone I want to know, someone who ‘completes me. I can wait for all of the changes to happen, to physically complete the person you should be. I’m in love with the Woman I’ve been with this Weekend, someone who cares for me, and I care for. I haven’t met someone like you before, and I want to keep finding out more about you. Does that make sense?”

“Perfectly,” I said. “I’d have to agree with everything you said. This is a Relationship I never saw coming, but something that was very pleasing to me.

“And since this Relationship is based on a Mental connection, and not the usual Physical one, I’m much more sure of it,” Paul replied.

“I will have to talk with people in the know about this kind of change, and then, I’m sure, I’ll have to talk with HR at the company, too!” I thought, out loud. “I want to keep working at Aero, even after the change. It doesn’t seem like it’s going to be that much of a surprise to everyone, if the Party is any indication.”

We pulled into my Apartment’s parking lot, up near the door. Paul got out and got my stuff out of the back. He helped me get out of the car, and took all of my things, and we went up to my Apartment. After I had unlocked my door, and we went inside, he put all of my gear down, He grabbed me, and pulled me to him, by my waist.

“Dana,” he said, “I’m sure this week will be a lively one, and full of discovery. I’ll see ‘Sandy’ at work, but don’t feel like you have to not see me there. I understand what is going on, and so, I understand the reality of what’s going on. Keep me updated as to what you find out.”

“I will also be calling those in the know,” I said, “And setting up appointments and probably going to some Support Groups. I’m sorry for all of the kidding that will probably happen tomorrow, at work!”

“Oh, they’re just silly!” Paul responded. “I understood the ‘consequences’ when I said ‘Yes’ to this whole thing, so don’t worry about it. You’re worth all of the hassle that’ll go on.” And with that, he planted a long, wet, romantic kiss on me. It went on for what seemed like hours! He finally let up, but kept me in his arms. And he kept looking me in the eyes.

“I know these are charged words, but I have to say it.” I said.

“And what is that, Dear?” he asked, raising an eyebrow, unsure of what would come from my lips, but smiling, nonetheless.

“I Love You!” I said, with extra meaning. And I hugged him very hard. And he hugged me back.

“And I Love You, too, Missy!” he said back to me.

With that hug, he let go of me, and he left my Apartment. It was Monday tomorrow, and we’d both be going back to work!

Chapter 8

I got ready, as usual, for work. I drove in to Aero Monday morning, worrying about what the reception would be in the Cubicle Farm, to Paul and me at the Party. I was sure there would be fallout as to what Paul and I did at the Party, and what people saw.

I parked my little Blue Stanza in the parking lot, and thanked goodness that I didn’t have to wear those Pumps from my car to the Engineering Building, because the Parking Lot was made of gravel, and even the one block walk into the Engineering building would be painful. I didn’t know how Patty and Janice did it every day. They must wear a pair of Sneakers, or something similar, for the walk in! That’s something else I should talk to them about!

I finally made my way in, and to my Desk, where I put my Lunch and things into my desk. I got my present assignments out, and started to work, Latte at my side.

Patty was the first one to come by my desk, about 30 minutes after I arrived.

“Well?” Patty said. “Are you going to tell me, or do I have to drag it out of you. Sorry for the Double Entendre!”

“Why don’t we wait for Janice to come in,” I said, “And why don’t we wait for Lunch time. I have enough to tell you two, that Lunch would be a better time to talk. Let’s just say that things went as well after the Party, as they did at it.”

“Ok. I think I can wait that long, …but just barely, with news like that!” Patty replied. “You better have some juicy stuff!” She winked at me as she said that last bit.

“Oh, I think I can measure up to that request,” I said, winking back.

“Fair enough,” Patty said! “The usual place in the Lunchroom, at 12:00.”

“See you then in the Lunchroom at 12!” I said back to her, confirming the time and place.

I walked by Paul’s desk at Early Break, to see if he had anything to say. As I walked up to his desk, I caught his eye.

“Let’s go outside,” Paul requested.

“Sounds good to me!” I replied.

Paul got his coat, and we walked by my desk, where I got my coat, and proceeded outside. We found a nice little bench to sit on, under a tree, next to the building. I had to resist wanting to hug him. New habits are hard to break, too!

“Well, have you had any reaction to us at the Party?” I asked.

“I’ve had several people from the IE area, and a couple of Engineers come by and congratulate me for winning,” he said. “They said they didn’t realize how much I looked like Duchovny until that Party.”

“And nothing about ‘us’?” I asked.

“Well, they did say they didn’t realize how much you looked like Agent Scully,” he said slyly. “And they were quite impressed at how well you pulled it off! And those who didn’t know it was you just thought you looked very nice. And the Single guys said how Sexy they thought you looked, and how lucky I was! I guess they didn’t know who you actually were.”

“And nothing about how ‘chummy’ we were?” I asked.

“Well, I did get a little kidding from Fred, over in ME. He did start to say how good-looking you were, and then gave me a hard time about our kissing, and how much PDA you were doing with me, and I didn’t seem, to him, to be objecting enough. I told him to ‘Bugger Off’! It was my Personal Business! I guess he’s one of those more ‘Toxic Masculinity’ types! I’ve been putting up with his ‘Insights’ for years, now. I didn’t tell him that I didn’t mind all of your PDA, it was quite nice!” He smiled when he finished saying that. “But I didn’t exactly advertise our actions when I got back to work, at least yet!”

“Yeah, you don’t want to poke the Sleeping Bear!” I joked.

“It all seemed very normal to most of them, I think. I have to wonder if they have always thought of you as a Female person, like I first did. When Patty and Janice revealed their plan to me, and told me that you would be my Scully, I have to admit it didn’t exactly sound that crazy! I know, I know, I was a bit thrown, at first, seeming to have a ‘Guy’ play Scully. But the more I thought about it, there is a lot about you that is Feminine, not Effeminate! Like now, the way that you’re sitting, the way you hold your hands. I don’t mean anything negative by it, but that isn’t exactly Masculine!”

“You may have something there!” I answered. “I was beat up a lot after school, like at the School Bus Stop for my neighborhood. I got forced into a lot of fights, and was called ‘Fag’, and the like, during my early school years. And come to think of it, I was even given a difficult time for the way that I carried my books! They said it was ‘Too Girlish', for most of the guys, the way I carried them! They were relentless! I didn’t ride the Bus many times because of them and their attitudes, if they were on the bus!”

“Dana,” Paul said sadly, “I never knew! If I had been there, I would have Defended you!”

“Except,” I replied, “that would only have made those idiots more mad, if you can believe it! I learned to just leave them alone, and pay no attention to their antics!”

Paul looked down at his watch. “Ok, it’s about time to go back inside,” he said. “I forgot, I wanted to ask you, is Dana doing anything this Friday night?” he asked with a smile.

“Well, I think she just might be,” I replied, with a wink. “I’ll have to ask Patty and Janice if they can help her get ready, ok?”

“That sounds good. Let me know when you know,” Paul said. “It seems to me like you might need to have some classes on how to do the makeup, and stuff, I mean if you keep going out in public, you might want to just do that getting ready yourself, instead of having to ask your two cohorts.”

“That sounds like a great idea! I’ll go to them and ask that,” I said.

Paul and I moved back inside. We split up on our way, and I went to see Patty and Janice. I had a hard time not grabbing his hand on the way back in.

“Patty? Can I get a minute or two with you?” I asked.

“Sure! What’s it about?” Patty asked. “I have the time right now to talk with you!”

I found the chair from the empty desk next to hers, and sat down. Janice wasn’t there, right then.

“What I want to talk about is that Paul has asked Dana to go out this Friday,” I said, “And I need you girls to help get me ready for that.”

“No problem,” Patty replied. “If Janice isn’t available, I can handle what you need, by myself.”

“But that points out a problem,” I said. “The problem is that I obviously haven’t acquired the knowledge and training that I need for that. I wasn’t raised as a Girl, how I would have gotten that knowledge. What I really need is to learn what I should know about makeup, and many more things Female. As Female as Paul sees me, there are some things I know I do that are very Female, but there are so many things that I don’t know.”

“I know that I’d be very honored to be your Teacher on those subjects,” Patty said, “and I’m pretty sure that Janice would be, too! I’d be very happy to help you know what you need to know that would help you be more of a member of the Sisterhood! But, you’re right, you don’t know what you should, at this point in a Woman’s Life. And you just might need some training in those areas.”

“I’d be so, so, indebted to you two, if you would help me out,” I said to Patty. “I don’t want to seem like I’m being ‘Old Fashioned’, but there is a certain set of Stereotypes that are very true, that most Women do and know. Our Society expects Women to do those things, and they are recognized as being very Female. I was raised by a Mother who also raised a Daughter, and, for the most part, we were raised exactly the same, with some extras for each of us. So Cynthia also got some training in how to be more ‘Male’, more self-assured and strong. And I got training in how to be more ‘Female’, more emotion and empathy in what I do. That is a good reason, I think, that I’ve been seen as being Female. Well, my looks are also responsible, too, I think. Looking like Gillian Anderson is more ‘acceptable’ now, than when I was growing up, especially for a young Boy. And it is still not seen as something positive, unlike for Tomboys. And I’ve always been small, for my age, which I’m now finding to my advantage!”

“I’m so sorry for what you went through in your childhood!” Patty replied. “I think you might be one of those people who had a mix-up in your Genes. It’s very obvious that you got physical Male characteristics in some of your Genes. But it’s also clear that your Gender Identity, that inner part of you, in your Brain, came out very Female. You’ve just taken to being Dana like a Duck to water!”

“It has seemed quite easy for me,” I replied. “When I’ve been with Paul, I’ve just become Dana, and he’s treated me that way. And I’m very happy with it. So, when Paul asked Dana out for this Friday, I still looked like Sandy, but that didn’t phase him. He could see beyond it. Silly as it may be, I do want to look Pretty for Paul on this date! And I don’t even know where that comment came from! There’s a bunch of things I’ve been thinking and saying that I’ve never thought of before!”

“Sandy, I think you’ve got a lot of Dana already built inside of you, so I can see how it would be so easy for you,” Patty said. “And, I’d be happy, and I’m sure Janice would be, too, in helping you learn more of what you need to know about being Dana. I don’t see this as being something that you’re going to do for a short time. I think you’re heading in this direction. And, as I said before, I think that’s one of the things that really stood out about you, and why we noticed you. Well, besides doing so well in rewriting the Plans of those Shop Orders! Let’s talk more at Lunch, ok?”

“Thank you for saying ‘Yes’ to helping me this Friday,” I thanked her. “I’ll see you and Janice at Lunch, ok? And we can talk about all of this, and the Weekend.”

“That sounds grand!” Patty replied.

With that, and a smile to her, I moved back to my Desk, and kept busy until Lunch.

Lunchtime came around, and I saw Janice and Patty were already sitting at our Table. I sat down, and got ready to eat my Lunch.

“Well, did you clue Janice in already?” I asked.

“Yes, and she said Yes.” Patty replied. “She and I would be happy to help you get ready for this weekend. I held off on talking about your other request, as it seemed like that would be more appropriate to talk about in person. And you also have other things to talk about, don’t you?”

I looked over to Janice, and said, “The first thing Patty is talking about is that even though you two will help me out this Friday, I need to learn what you’re doing, because this is more than something temporary to me. I believe being Dana is something that I will continue to pursue. And the other thing Patty is alluding to is what happened this past Weekend. Here’s what happened. After you two last saw of us, Paul wanted to go have a Celebration drink at his favorite bar, El Toro, to celebrate our win. By the way, I’ve started just calling him Paul, since this has turned out to be much more than just the Halloween Party. And, that is his ‘real’ name!”

“That makes sense!” Janice said.

“So, after the El Toro,” I said, “We went to his place, and watched a Movie. It was ‘The Bourne Ultimatum,’ for those interested! And we had wine, and Popcorn. And I fell asleep in his arms, before the end of the movie.”

“You didn’t!” Janice blurted out.

“I totally did!” I said.

“This is sounding more and more sordid! Go on, go on! You have my interest!” added Patty.

“When we woke up on the Couch,” I continued, “It was 3am, and Paul didn’t exactly want to drive me home, at that time, and I didn’t feel like getting out into the cold outside, to go home. So, he suggested that I sleep-over at his place. The thing is, he only has One Bed, and One Bedroom, so he said, if he promised to be a Gentleman, would I mind sleeping in his Bed, in a pair of his PJ’s.”

“Oh, my!” Janice said. “He -is- seeing you as Female, just the way he’s acting towards you, all the time. And, he asked you to stay. Didn’t he offer to sleep on the couch?”

“Darn! I didn’t think of that! But that wouldn’t have been as much fun,” I said. “Well, you know Men! Anything to get us into their bed! (Did I really just include myself as a Woman, and excluded myself as a Man! Interesting!) I got into the PJ’s, and slipped onto his Bed, and he did, too, and he Spooned me!”

“And you didn’t mind? You thought he was still being a Gentleman?” Patty questioned.

“Well, he was very Gentlemanly in his Spooning.” I said, and smiled. “And I was the Spoonee, and he gently stroked my side, until we fell asleep.”

“Well, I don’t know if he was the ‘most’ Gentlemanly,” Janice added, “But he sounded like he was very Sexy, and Loving, in the way he treated you. And, it sounds like he was also very gentle! It does sound like he was being very proper with you, and not being too physical!”

“I thought so,” I said to them. “I know I’m new to this ‘Girl’ thing, but it seemed like he was very respectful, and yes, Loving. With that kind of treatment, when he asked me if I was doing anything this upcoming weekend, I didn’t want to say No!”

Patty looked long and hard at me. I didn’t know what she was getting at, but then, it hit me. I hadn’t gone into what happened in the bed, and the next day, Sunday. We finished up our Lunch, and she said, “So, what happened on Sunday, when you woke up next to each other?”

“Well, when we woke up next to each other,” I continued, “I have to admit, that was a new situation for me. Especially since we ended up kissing each other that Morning, for like 5 minutes! I don’t know what came over me, but it was just so natural! And he was so good at it!”

Janice and Patty both just looked at each other, and raised their eyebrows. Patty said, “Go on!”

“It was 9am on Sunday, so I asked if he would like me to make Breakfast for us. And I said something about him not minding me being the ‘Little Woman’! He didn’t mind, and even said something that made me think we would be doing this again. He told me how he wanted his Coffee, and I said that’s good to know, since it sounded like he wanted me over to his place again. And he said, ‘As if that’s in question!’, which made me feel very wanted, and then we acted like Sophomores, with him swatting me on the rear, as I left for the Kitchen, and him heading for the Couch and watching Football.

“So, I went ahead into the Kitchen and found the makings for Waffles, Eggs, Bacon, Sausage, and the Coffee, too,” I said.

“Sounds very Domestic!” Janice said.

“That’s what he said,” I emphasized! “I really felt like a Girlfriend! So, I went ahead and made Breakfast, which was very easy for me, because my Mother taught me to be a good cook. She said that I would be a Bachelor, and no one was going to make my meals when I was Single, so she thought it was a good idea. Besides, I didn’t get to take Home Economics in High School.”

“Sounds very smart to me!” Patty answered. “What else went on that Morning?”

“He was very Romantic before, and during Breakfast,” I smilingly told them, “with lots of Kissing, and he implied he could get very used to this Domesticity. That gave me a lot to think about. After we finished up with Breakfast, we watched TV for a while, Football, of course! While we were on the Couch, he assured me that my little ‘secret’ was safe with him. And being Dana seemed like the ‘Real Me’, and that I probably needed to find out who can help me with this change. He knew I should make this change! And he reminded me that I had a built-in resource, in you two. And then he said something very sweet. He said he had been looking for me, almost all of his Life, and now he’s found me. I fell into his shoulder and cried. We ended up cuddling for a while, while I finished crying. Then we got ready to go to my place, and we headed off.”

“That’s some Breakfast! And that’s some statement, about looking for you,” Patty said. “Anything else?”

“When we were headed back to my apartment, on I-84, I commented on what a beautiful place we live in, here in the Pacific Northwest, and happened to mention the Oregon Coast,” I related. “Especially the Lincoln City area, Salishan Resort, the Cheese Factory, and the Air Museum. He said his family did many of their Summer vacations out there. He said that although we’ve only known each other only a short time, after we learn a bit more about each other, we might think of a Vacation out there. Am I crazy, or does he seem like he’s falling for me?”

“I think that your Feminine Intuition is working OK,” Patty said. “Just be careful of being too optimistic about that. We Women are known to do that.”

“Yeah, you don’t want to fall into the trap of falling for him, too soon!” Janice added. “You know Men!” And she smiled, after saying that.

“It’s a good thing he’s started thinking in more of an ‘Us’ mode,” Patty said, “then thinking in a ‘Me’ mode. That’s one of the more difficult things to get Guys to accept. They’re taught to be so self-reliant, and they forget to be inclusive of others, especially loved ones. See? You’ve even got me doing it! I don’t think of you being part of the ‘opposite sex’ anymore, even with what I see in front of me! You ‘mostly’ look like Dana, anyway!”

“Thanks, I think! Now, if I’m going out with him this Friday, and probably staying at his place Friday night, and maybe Saturday night, too, I think I might need an nice outfit for Friday night, some casual ‘Girl’s’ clothes for Saturday and Sunday, and a bit of makeup for Saturday and Sunday, and how to put it on, don’t you think?”

“Oh, and don’t forget a load of undies, too, when we’re looking for your clothes!” Janice added in.

“That sounds right to me,” Patty agreed! “Janice and I can shop with you this week, and help you get the outfits you need, the undies, and makeup, too!”

“What are you doing tomorrow at 5pm?” Janice asked.

“Shopping with you?” I answered and asked.

“Splendid!” Janice enthused. “We can go to Nordstrom Rack for the outfits, and then Goodwill, if needed. And we’ll go to Target for regular clothes, some undies, and the makeup!”

“I know, I’ve been shopping with you two before,” I said, “But there’s a whole world I’ve got to learn about, for Female shopping!”

“You’ve got hold of a very nice Gentleman,” Patty said, “And we’ll do everything we can to help you keep hold of him. A loving relationship is hard enough to find, especially one this complicated, and this one is really special! And so is Paul, really special!”

“I couldn’t agree with you more!” I said, smiling! “I really feel fulfilled by this one.”

And with that, we dug into our Lunches, talked over a few more details, and when we were done, finally went back to work.

Chapter 9

Tuesday afternoon came along, and Janice came over to my desk to pick me up.

“Hey, there!” Janice said, “We might want to stop back at your place, to get you looking right for our shopping, ok?

“That sounds great!” I replied, “I think that only a little makeup, and maybe the Scully outfit will do.”

“Yeah, we don’t have a nice easy set of shoes for you, yet,” she said, “And the Scully pumps are a bit dressy, so that’s something else we need to take care of, when we’re out, ok?”

So, we went out, and got in my car, and started out for my place.

“Hey, I wear an size 7 in Men’s shoes,” I said, as I was driving. “What’s that in Women’s shoe size?”

“As I remember, that’s going to be a Size 8 ½,” Janice said. “There’s about a 1 and ½ difference between shoe sizes, the smaller size in Men’s, ends up larger in Women’s. Don’t ask me why it’s different! But I do know why our buttons are on different sides, Men and Women!”

“Why’s that,” I asked?

“Well, it goes with the whole idea of Women being the property of Men argument,” she said. “Because Women were always dressing Men, in olden times, and to make it easier for the Women, because they were in front of the Men when they buttoned their shirts, they put the opening and buttons on the opposite side, for the Women, to make it easier, so they only had to learn one way!”

“That doesn’t seem to be exactly transferable,” I said.

“Come to think of it,” Janice said, “I guess it isn’t! I just learned to do it that way for my clothes, and never questioned it. When I learned of the reason, it seemed logical, so I didn’t think about it. I guess you’re right!”

“Another of life’s mysteries solved,” I exclaimed!

“If you say so,” Janice said! “After we get you looking a bit more correct, where should we go first?”

“Let’s get the fancy outfit taken care of first,” I answered. “I guess that would mean Nordstrom Rack first, right?”

“That sounds about right, to me,” Janice replied.

With that, we were just about at my place, and were shortly pulling into my parking lot, and working our way upstairs, where I let us into my Apartment.

“You wait out here,” I said, “while I get changed into something more ‘comfortable’!” I smiled.

“Ok,” Janice replied, “I’ll just take a seat on the Couch.”

With that, I went into my Bedroom and got my Scully outfit on.

I came out, got my Purse, and transferred the ‘special’ things, and we went out to my car. I’m still not used to getting a Purse before leaving. I’ll have to concentrate on that!

Upon arriving at the Clackamas Mall, we went into the Rack, and started looking around in the Dresses area, and chose 3 outfits that we thought would look good on me, and would be appropriate for a Date. We then headed off to a Changing Room.

“I don’t know, Janice, I’ve never been in a Women’s Changing Booth,” I whispered, “Would you go in there with me?”

“Don’t worry,” Janice replied, “Women are not as worried about their friends seeing them in undergarments, so let’s find a Family-sized booth.”

“Sounds good to me!” I answered.

We found a Family booth, and went in. We hung up all of the Dresses, and I got undressed, from the Scully outfit. I stood there, in my undies, feeling exposed. Janice took the first dress of the hook, which was Red, and got it ready for me to try on. This was going to be a week of firsts, and this was an example. And this would be the first dress I would wear. I wore the pantyhose again, so my legs were fine, for a dress. The pantyhose made my legs the right color. I got the first dress on, and let Janice do up the zipper.

“Well, what do you think?” I asked Janice.

“That looks pretty good. It accentuates and nips your waist, and shows off your figure. Let me get a picture of that, in case you want to get it later, “ Janice said, as she took out her iPhone. “Let’s see how the others look on you, Okay?”

“Okay, just give a second to get out of this one,” I said. I reached back, unsuccessfully trying to undo the zipper. “Janice, could you help me again with the zipper?”

“Yes, that’s one thing we should also get,” she said, “It’s the curse of all Women, zippers! We need to get a zipper puller. I got my latest one on Amazon. It’s called the ‘ZipHer’, and I wouldn’t be without it. You can get it on Amazon, just like I did. For now, you’ve got me! I’ll be your ‘ZipHer’!”

“Sounds good to me,” I replied.

Janice unzipped me, and I stepped out of the dress. Janice got the Green one, and I tried that on. It was a bit more revealing, being backless.

“As I said when you picked out this dress,” I complained, “Isn’t this dress a little bit risqué?”

“Every woman should have a Backless dress,” she exclaimed. “This Green one could be your first! Anyway, you’ll need a Strapless Bodice Bra, and we’ll look for one when we’re loading you up with Bras.”

“You’re the expert, here,” I said. Janice helped me pull the dress on.

“I will be with you on Friday, if you get this dress,” Janice said. “But you need to know how to get into and out of this by yourself, right?”

“Okay, Mother,” I comically hissed back at her.

Janice dutifully took a picture, or two, of this one. She made sure to get one of my back.

“Patty will love to see these pictures,” Janice said.

We got the Green one off, and Janice got the third one, resplendent in Black, almost a velvet look to it.

“Now, every girl should have an LBD,” she said.

“I know we work in aerospace, where we use a lot of TLA’s,” I said, “but what does LBD stand for? I would guess the middle letter stands for Black, and the last one is for Dress, but what about the first one?”

“Little, Black, Dress, she spelled it out for me. “It’s supposed to be the ‘killer’ outfit every girl has in her wardrobe. It should be sexy, so that you can’t keep the guys off of you, well, at least with their eyes.”

“Now I get it!” I realized, and told her. “And the one we’ve chosen is certainly that! It’s definitely a ‘killer’.”

What little of it that there was, slipped on easily. I would need that ‘ZipHer’ if I chose to buy this dress. Janice zipped me in. We both looked at me in the mirror.

“Wow!” I exclaimed.

“Wow, indeed,” Janice seconded. “Now you understand why every girl needs one in her closet!”

“I think this one is a keeper,” I said. “But let’s not buy this to wear this weekend. I don’t want to kill the guy, this early in our dating!”

“Okay, Okay,” Janice replied, with a smile, “Don’t kill him! Don’t wear it this Friday! You should get that one, and the Green one, too. Oh, heck! With as low a price as they’re asking, why don’t you go ahead and get all three? The Red one was only $24.95, the Green backless one, $32.95, and the LBD was only $44.95, marked down from $250.”

“Double Wow,” I exclaimed. “This one is expensive! At least originally!”

“Yeah, that’s what you find at the Rack, sometimes,” Janice said. “Some Women buy a dress at Nordstrom, and return it in a week, or so, afterwards. And you get it for $44.95. Isn’t shopping at the Rack wonderful?”

“I’d say so!” I replied. “Three dresses for about $100! But that doesn’t count the shoes, and undergarments.”

“That’s true,” Janice said, “But you looked fabulous in all Three dresses! Put a price on Looking Fabulous!”

“OK, you’re right,” I replied. “I’m just getting used to the price difference. Buying clothes before was no big deal. If I needed jeans, I just went to JCPenney’s, and bought them, for $35. But I do have to say, this is much more fun, especially shopping with one of your Girlfriends!”

“Why, thank you, dear,” Janice emoted. “It’s a lot of fun for me, too! Especially with you looking so snazzy in those dresses. Now you may understand why we Women go out shopping so much!”

“Well, getting a good price on your duds isn’t too bad either,” I said.

“That’s another thing we need to work on,” Janice said. “These aren’t ‘duds’, they’re Outfits. Get it?”

“You’re so right,” I said! “These certainly aren’t! I’ll remember ‘outfits’, not duds! I especially liked the LBD!”

“Yeah, me too,” Janice said. “After we get you out of that LBD, it’s off to the Shoe Department.”

So we got the LBD off, and I put the Scully outfit back on.

“Janice, since I’m learning all this new Jargon,” I asked. “What do you call the kind of outfit I have on now?”

“That’s a Pantsuit, sweetie,” she said, smiling back at me. “Remember they were making fun of that kind of outfit with Hillary. What else was she supposed to wear? Imagine the Vice President in a Dress.”

“I’d rather not!” I said. “I don’t like him enough, already. Let’s not add ‘funny looking’ to the pile!”

“But you get the drift,” Janice said, “Don’t you?”

“Oh, yeah,” I replied, “I get the new term, and I get your point!”

“Gather your dresses up,” she said, “and off to the Shoes!”

We arrived in the shoe department, and I was just overwhelmed with the choices! Janice took it easy on me, and didn’t look for Pumps with 3” heels, except for the Black ones. We took the two pair that we’d chosen, and took a seat in the fitting area. A good-looking young Man approached us.

“My name is Steve,” he said. “May I help you Ladies with your shoe choice?”

I picked up the shoes, and presented them to him.

“I’d like to look at these,” I said, “in size 8 and one half.”

“No problem!” Steve happily said. “I’ll be right back out to you Ladies, with the full set!”

When Steve was out of earshot, I said, “The last time I was in a shoe store,” I said, “They had the women putting on some kind of little sock, right?”

“You’re right!” Janice replied. “That’s called a ‘Pedi’ or a ‘Ped’. Those are temporary socks, so you don’t have to put on shoes that somebody else wore, and might have had some foot disease.”

“Right!” I said. “You wouldn’t want to get somebody else’s foot disease” I said, teasingly.

“Right!” Janice echoed, laughing.

Steve came back, with two shoeboxes in hand, and sat down on a Fitting Stool, right in front of me. I hadn’t gone whole hog yet, so I didn’t have painted toenails. But that is a good idea! I think I’ll have to do that before I go out with Paul.

He pulled out some Pedi’s and let me slip them on. He offered the Right shoe of the Black pumps, and then he put the other on my Left foot.

“How do they feel?” Steve asked.

“They feel good, in fit, at least,” I said. “Let me try them out by walking a bit.”

“Sounds good,” Steve said, in a cheery, salesman’s tone.

I stood up, and started to walk around. I wasn’t used-to this extra height, I was a little shaky, but I still made it around my little path that I knew I would take. I came back and sat down.

“That feels good!” I replied. “Let’s try the Beige ones.”

Steve took the Back Pumps off my feet, and slipped the Beige mid-heel pumps on my feet.

“Why don’t you try your little excursion with those,” Steve said.

And so, I dutifully got up and tried the Beige pumps out. They seemed fine, too.

“Those feel good, too!” I said. “We’ll take both of them!”

Steve boxed up the two pairs of shoes, and asked, “Is there anything else I could do for you Ladies?”

“No, but Thank You for your kind help,” I said.

We gathered up the shoes, and dresses, and made our way up to the Cashier.

The young girl at the register rung up the items.

“That will be $190.40, please,” she said. “If your using your Debit card, the card reader is on the right, yes, right there!”

It was lucky that they had a Card reader, because, although I had a Nordstrom card, it was still in Sandy’s name. It still did require me to sign it, but most people don’t have a very readable signature, so I wasn’t worried! And my old First Name could be a Female’s name, too!

“Alright! That’s it Miss Andros! Have a wonderful day!”

“Thanks,” I replied, “You, too!”

And with that, we were out of there, into my little Nissan Stanza, and off to Target.

“Whew! Glad that’s over!” I said, with some relief.

“What? That was wonderful! And Fun! Didn’t you have fun?” Janice asked.

“I was having fun, except I thought everyone was staring at me,” I said. “I guess it’s just me! I’m still not having as much fun as I could, because I’m not used to being out in Public dressed as a Woman, especially in the Daylight.”

“I’m sure that it will become more and more natural for you,” Janice said. “If you could handle being out with Paul, this shouldn’t be a problem.”

“Yeah, but everyone knew I was Male there, well, most people,” I said. “They knew I was Sandy Andros, from Manufacturing Engineering.”

“Au contraire, Mon Ami,” Janice said, in French. “The way that many of them acted towards you and Paul is proof that many of them didn’t know anything about you. And if they knew, they didn’t care.”

“I guess you’re right!” I accepted. “I’m just being a bit silly, and paranoid!”

“Yes, you were,” Janice tried to be understanding, “And yes you are! But just keep acting normal, like you were just shopping with a girlfriend, and things will be alright!”

“Yes,” I replied. “And, of course you’re right. I will try to do my best and relax, and not be paranoid. It will take some time, but I’m sure I will become more relaxed.”

We arrived in the Target parking lot, and went inside. Janice had me pick-up 3 packages of Panties (that name will have to grow on me. I’ve had 20-some years of training that Panties was a ‘Bad Word’) 3 regular Bras, and a couple of packs of Sports Socks, with cute color bands. Cute. Did I say that? We even got some pantyhose, knee highs, and a Nightie. I paid for them, and we were done for the day. I would do my ‘other’ shopping with Patty.

We set off for Aero, since our shopping was done. I pulled up to Janice’s car, in the Aero parking lot. I turned to her, as she was taking off her seat belt.

“Thank you, so much! I don’t know what I would have done without you,” I said. “I needed a ‘kick in the rear’ to start the shopping, to get ready for this weekend.”

“Oh, that was nothing,” Janice said. “It was my pleasure to help you out! And don’t worry about it. I’m helping a ‘Sister’ who just needed a little help to get going! You and Janet can pick-up tomorrow, and get the Strapless Bodice Bra, some regular clothes, and some Makeup!”

I leaned over to give Janice a hug. “Thank you, thank you, thank you!” I said, as I was hugging her. Now I knew why Women hugged each other so much. It was nice, and felt good, too!

“Good bye!” I said. “See you tomorrow!”

“Good bye and Good Night sweet Dana!” Janice said, as she let go of my hug. “You were a pleasure to shop with! And you got some important clothes, for this weekend, and other times

Janice got into her car, and fired it up. She moved out, then. I just wanted to make sure that her car started before I left. I wouldn’t want her to have to wait, in this cold, for AAA to come out and rescue her. I drove home, and got into my new Nightie, and fell asleep very fast!

Chapter 10

The Alarm at 6am was loud, and too early! But, I knew I had to get up, and trundle myself off to work, after some Breakfast, and I did just that. I realized that I would have to start getting up earlier, to get Dana ready, as there was much more to getting ready, as a Female, than as a Male getting ready for Work, so I might as well get used to it.

“Well, look at what the Cat dragged in this Morning!” Patty joyfully said.

“Who, me?” I asked. I plopped my stuff on my desk, and started to set things up for the day.

“We’re planning on going out this afternoon, aren’t we?” I asked.

“Yes, dear,” Patty said. “We have to get you all ready for this Weekend, don’t we?”

“I guess so! We need to stop off at my apartment, first, Okay?” I said.

“We’re going to a Mall, far away from here, okay” Patty asked.

“That sounds good to me!” I said. “We can go in my car, if that’s good?”

“That will work for me,” Patty said. “I know where we’re going to, so we don’t need to take my Eclipse.”

The rest of Wednesday went pretty much normal. Lots of Plans to write, lots of Research to do, and I also had a stint as the Liaison ME, where I went out to the Shop, and fixed the plans that needed fixing, of the jobs that were in work. That just about took me up to Lunch. I got my Lunch, and headed off to the Cafeteria, where I knew Patty and Janice would be waiting.

It was a different lunch than usual. The Girls were asking me what I was expecting, and what I wanted to do with Paul this Weekend, I think like they would have been asking any other Female worker of theirs the same questions. And that made me happy. That they would be accepting me, already, as a Female co-worker.

Four o’clock came around and Patty and I got our things together, and headed out to my car, and got in, and headed off to the Clackamas Town Center, South of Portland. We pulled into the Parking Lot and parked near Nordstrom, and I followed Patty, as she cut through the store to the Mall.

“Oh, no, no, no!” I said. “I’m not going in there! That’s a den of inequity, or something!”

“Don’t be a chicken about it!” Patty said. “You know you’ve got to go in there! One time, or another! Just get it over with!”

I stood there a moment, just outside the most Pink Place on Earth, Victoria’s Secret.

“I, ah, I, ah,” I stuttered, “Can you just let me hang onto your elbow?”

“Sure, thing,” said Patty, “’fraidy cat!”

“Now, now.” I said, “No reason to be mean!”

“Just wait!” said Patty, “You’ll be begging me to take you to Victoria’s Secret, in a year!”

“Maybe so,” I replied, “But right now, I’m just a bit afraid of this place!”

I grabbed Patty’s left elbow, and her arm, and we proceeded in. She focused in on the Bra section. She let me go, and then we started looking for the special Bra I would need for the Backless dress. Hunting around she picked up, and set down several Bras, before finding one that was perfect for my needs. She handed it to me, and I was a bit flummoxed.

“Waita-whoa!” I said, as I took the Bra from her. “Oh, that’s right. You already know my ‘size’, or what my size is supposed to be.

“Yes, we’ll get something nice looking,” Patty said.

“Ok, yeah, that looks good,” I said, “I guess!”

“We’ll get that,” Patty said, “and then let’s go over to the Nightwear section.”

We looked around, and finally found the Nighties. We each picked them up, and looked at them. I finally found one that I liked, called a ‘Cupro Cami & Short Set’. I found one in Red, that didn’t look too femmy.

“What do you think of this? It’s called a ‘Flounce Satin Kimono set’, and I like this light Blue. It would look better on you, than the set that you have,” Patty said.

I looked at the price tag. “Boy, it isn’t cheap being a Girl!” I exclaimed.

“You can say that, again!” Patty said. “And there’s what some call a ‘Pink Tax’ on all kinds of items, like razors, and mirrors, and such! Just because they were for a Woman, or they were Pink! It ends up being an extra $1,300 a year, just to be a Woman!”

We worked our way up to the Cashier, and put our shopping on the register shelf.

“Good Afternoon, Ladies,” the perky clerk said. “Anything else for you today? Do you have an Angel Card? No? Can I sign you up for it?”

“Not today, thanks,” I said. “I’m in a bit of a hurry, so not today!”

Once again, it was lucky I had a Debit Card in the name Sandy Andros, so they didn’t think twice about me. We were quickly doing the exchange of the card, and the payment, and we were out of there.

As we walked out of the Victoria’s Secret, Patty asked me something.

“Dana, do you want to stop in at Claire’s, and pick up a couple pairs of Earrings, and then go to Designer Shoe Warehouse?” Patty asked.

“That sounds good to me!” I said. “My Bank Account will be glad when we’re done!”

“Like I said,” Patty said, It’s not cheap being a Woman, especially all at once!”

We went into the Claire’s and found some cute earrings, and I found 4 pairs that would look good on me, I thought. Patty was in agreement. And so, next on the schedule was the Designer Shoe Warehouse.

“What do you think we need here,” I asked Patty. “Have something in mind?”

“What I had in mind was that since you and Janice got some dressy shoes, you now need some casual shoes,” Patty said. “Like some Ballet Flats, and some Sneakers.”

“Why do I need Ballet Flats?” I asked.

“That’s just the name of them,” Patty said, “and the style! When you look at them, you’ll see how much they look like Ballet Shoes.”

“Ok, if you say so!” I said.

“DSW is pretty easy,” Patty said, “because they are Self-Service, all we have to do is find what we want, the right size, make sure they fit, and then check-out.”

“Sounds pretty easy to me!” I said. “The only thing we have to choose the color!”

“Well, I’ll make that really easy,” Patty said. “We’ll only be looking for Black Ones!”

“Doesn’t sound too ‘expressive’,” I said. “Don’t I want more colors?”

“Not at this point,” Patty replied. “You need to start out with the Basics, first.”

“You’re the Expert!” I said.

So, we first found the Ballet Flats, and found a good pair. We moved on to the Sneaker area. That was a bit more difficult, but I got a pair of Reeboks, the right size, and in Black, and took them over to a seating area, to try them on.

“I think these will do. They fit pretty well, and I’m very happy with them,” I said.

“Ok, then,” Patty said. “I think we can go up to the Cashier, and get out of here!”

With that, we were done, for the night.

“Can I treat you to some Dinner, for all of the help you gave me today?” I asked Patty, as we walked out to my car.

“You sure you’re ready?” Patty asked.

“C’mon!” I exclaimed. “I’m ready. Don’t you think I’m ready?”

I opened the trunk, and we put the bags in. We got into the Stanza.

“More than ready, sweetie!” Patty said. “More than ready!”

“I saw a Shari’s on the outskirts of the Mall,” I said.

“That sounds good to me!” Patty said.

Chapter 11

With that we drove the short distance to the Shari’s. We got out, and went into the Restaurant. We went in, and the Hostess greeted us, “Hello, Ladies, I’m Bridget. A Booth or a Table for you?”

“I think we’d prefer a Booth,” I said, still with some trepidation.

“A Booth it is!” Bridget said.

We followed her in, and to a Booth, and I was still learning, so I followed what Patty did, and put my Purse in first, and then very Lady-like sat down in the Booth seating, and scooted in. Bridget gave us our menus, and said, “Stephanie will be your Server, and will be right with you. Have a good meal!”

I took a deep breath.

“This will be a good test for you,” Patty said. “Sitting here, in the lights, and full exposure!”

“Yeah, I know! This is what really scares me!” I said to Patty, letting her know how I really felt.

“You know,” Patty said, “you’re getting into things with the whole ‘Staying at Paul’s Place’, and him asking you to go out this Friday. But where do you want to go with all of this? Where do you see yourself at the end of this journey?”

“I’ve been thinking about that a lot lately,” I said. “And who would have thought that the Aero Halloween Party we just had would’ve awakened such a big change in me? I have known, all of my life, that there was something very different, maybe Female in my soul. But I didn’t know what I could do about it. The Web was still so young, and many didn’t think of it as the Go-To information resource that it is thought of today!”

“Yeah, the Web has caused many people to change the directions of their life,” I said, “because they found out something that turned them around. I’ve been looking, online, and I’ve been wondering why I’ve been having this feeling, a feeling that something was wrong with me, and I finally figured it out. It was something I had to do something about, and the Halloween Party was just an excuse to find out what that feeling meant to me.”

“Yeah, I have to say,” Patty interjected, “I noticed how natural you acted, even with 25 years of being taught to be a Male.”

“You didn’t see the first 23 years of my life,” I said, “when I struggled, when my older sister would make me feel bad for things I did that was too Feminine. I think she wanted a Male Playmate, a Brother to go out and Roughhouse with. I think she was a bit disappointed with me. I think she kinda was the opposite of me, somewhat more Masculine!”

“Not having known her,” Patty said, “I’d have to say you’ve found a very likely reason that you didn’t do anything about your ‘problem’ at an earlier age. If I had someone giving me a hard time for acting Feminine, like you must have, I don’t know that I wouldn’t have done exactly what you did! I’d say that you’ve come out very sane, considering!”

Our Server came up, and said, “Hello Ladies! I’m Stephanie, and I’ll be your Server tonight! How are you two tonight?” Stephanie was middle-aged, and looked like she had been doing this job since her teenaged years. The lines on her face told of a hard life.

“We’re doing just fine,” Patty said, “How are you doing, Dana?”

“I’m doing just fine, also! We just got done shopping at the Mall, if you can believe that!” I said, “And are my feet tired!”

“You don’t say!” Stephanie said, with a wink. She looked and sounded like she understood, especially what tired feet were like. “What can I get for you two?”

“Well, since we didn’t get any Dinner before we went shopping,” Patty said, as she looked over the Menu. “I think I’ll have the Grilled Lemon Salmon dinner.”

“And what can I get you to drink,” Stephanie asked.

“Well,” Patty replied. “I think I’ll just have water.”

“Okey doke!” Stephanie turned to me, and asked, “And you?”

“I’ll have the Slow Roasted Turkey Dinner,” I said. “That looks good!”

“That it is!” Stephanie said. “And what to drink for you?”

We handed our Menus to Stephanie, as I said, “I’ll go for the Strawberry Lemonade, please!”

“Very good!” Stephanie replied. “I’ll be right back with your drinks.”

As Stephanie walked away, Patty picked up where we had left off.

“So it sounds like you’re going to Transition,” Patty said, “all the way to becoming Female, right?

“From what I read, online,” I said, “that will take about two years. But with what I’ve had to put up with this last 25 years, that will seem like a hop, skip, and a jump! Especially if I have people like you and Janice on my side!”

“You know that Janice and I have had a strong belief in you for several years, now,” Patty said, smiling, as she reached over and grasped my hand and gave me a nice, strong squeeze.

“I don’t know what I’d do if I didn’t have you two right beside me,” I said. “You two are my Best Friends. What do they call it? BFF’s?”

“You got that right, Sister” Patty replied, blinking. “We saw great promise when you were out in the Shop. It has continued while you’ve been in ME, and now we’re both glad to do whatever we can to help you along. You are a good person, and I know Janice feels like I do, that we will do what we can to help you through this tough time of Transition, and welcome you into the Sisterhood!”

“You two are just the greatest,” I said, almost crying, well, crying a little bit. “You two have turned my life around in many ways, and always to the better.”

“You’re our friend,” she said, “of course you’re worth it!”

I scooted over so that I could give her a full body hug. It turned into a long, long hug.

At that moment, Stephanie stepped up with our drinks.

“Sorry to interrupt you two,” Stephanie said. “You looked like that was a very heartfelt hug!”

“Oh, it was!” I said. “I was just thanking Patty for the good friendship she, and a friend, Janice, were giving me through a turbulent time.”

“Well, I don’t want to intrude,” Stephanie said, as she was setting the drinks down, “But Girlfriends, like her, are just the best, and I’m glad to see when two Girls acknowledge that, between them. She directed that last statement, to me.

“I know!” I said, “I’ve found, that even as a grown woman, those Girlfriends are still so important!”

Patty grabbed my hand, again, and squeezed it, again. “Ain’t that so true, girlfriend, ain’t that so true!”

Stephanie grinned, as she started to move away, saying, “Ain’t that so true!”

Patty and I were filled with Giggles. I hadn’t giggled since I was little. And it felt so good! I looked up at Patty, and broke out in another set of Giggles!

“But, seriously, folks!” Patty tried to stop her Giggling, but wasn’t too successful at it. “I want to turn things back to you, and Paul. It would seem that you’ve successfully worked your way around something I think would be such a barrier for you, coming out with your secret. It would seem that you’ve already worked around that, and it doesn’t seem to be a big deal with him, right?”

“Yeah,” I said, “so far, Paul seems to be cool with it all. I don’t think he would have invited me into his bed, if he had any problem with it. I’ve had past relationships, but they just weren’t as intense as this one is, right now!”

“I’ve found,” Patty said, “if you are really compatible, there’s just something different about it. And you and Paul didn’t have much doing with each other before, so he didn’t have to get over what you used to be to him.”

Stephanie came walking up with our plates on her forearms, professionally balancing them, and making it look so easy.

“You had the Salmon,” Stephanie said, as she placed it in front of Patty, “and you had the Turkey, if I remember right!” as she placed it in front of me.
she said. “Anything else I can get for you two Ladies?”

“I don’t think so,” Patty said, “It all looks perfect!”

“Ok,” Stephanie said. “If there’s anything else you need, just let me know! You Ladies have been a pleasure, and I’d like to keep you satisfied!”

“Perfect!” I said.

“Salt and Pepper is at the far end of the table,” Stephanie said, and she moved away.

“Dana,” Patty said, as she was seriously looking at me, “Let me know what I can do to help you. If you need someone to accompany you to those Support Groups, just let me, or Janice, know. We’re here to support you, and help you through this change. You are our Girlfriend, and that’s all new to you, and we’re ready to help you on that journey!”

I looked down, trying to collect my feelings. “Patty,” I said as tears were forming at the corners of my eyes, “I don’t know what I did to deserve to have such good Girlfriends as you and Janice. I’ve never had anybody be as wonderful and loving as you two are.”

“You’ve never been yourself, like now,” Patty said. “When you’re being yourself, you’ll gain so many rewards! People know when you’re being true to yourself!”

“And I feel so free!” I replied. “I just don’t need to have those barriers up, all the time! I just feel so free! And I just feel so, … myself!”

“And people around you, see that!” Patty said. “You gain so many friends when you do so! Janice and I were just ‘clairvoyant’ in seeing the ‘real you’ early on! We pulled you into Manufacturing Engineering because we saw Dana, and this whole Halloween Party just seemed like the perfect way to let you out of your straightjacket. Dana is the result. And we also saw that Paul was a great guy, who we thought you would ‘fit’ with. And we were right!”

“You two are just Matchmakers, like Yenta!” I said, harkening back to Fiddler on the Roof, which I was in that play in High School. “I’m so glad I have you on my side!” I reached over and gave Patty a hug, again!

“Well, we better get to our Dinners,” Patty said, “Before they get cold!”

“Sounds good to me!” I said. And with that, we enjoyed our Dinner, together. We paid the bill, and left a nice tip for Stephanie. We made our way back out to the car, and I drove Patty back to Aero, so that she could get her car, and get back home.

Chapter 12

It was a nice Wednesday night, and I had done some good work at Aero, in the ME area. I grabbed a quick dinner at Wendy’s, and went on home. After eating the meal I bought, I went to my iMac, sat down in my comfy Office Chair, and started to search on the Web for Support Groups in the Portland area that dealt with Gender Dysphoria. I found that there were several, but the Q Center group seemed to be the one with the most good comments from the Facebook group devoted to Gender Dysphoria in the Portland area. They had a Trans-Fem* group that meets on the First and Third Wednesdays, from 7-9pm. Since the First Wednesday was coming up on the 6th, that’s when I planned to make my first trip to the Trans-Fem Support Group. It sounded like the right group to go to. As they say, I girded my Loins!

Thursday came and went, as normal, and on came Friday! And, of course, that was the night that Paul and I were supposed to go out, on a Date. I stopped by his desk in the Morning, hoping he would let me in on where he planned to take me.

“Paul,” I asked, trying not to sound sexy, “Can we take a step outside? I’d like to talk with you!”

“Give me a second,” he said, finishing something on his Computer.

We both stepped outside, to our now ‘favorite’ bench, and sat down. I focused on doing it more Lady-like.

“What can I do for you, Dear?” Paul asked me.

“Well, Mr. Bond,” I said, “Where do you plan on taking me tonight? It makes a difference if I’m dressed to the Nines, or just out for a casual date night. After all, I need to look like a Bond Girl, and that’s kinda sexy!”

“I was thinking that since this is really the First Date that Paul and Dana will be going on,” Paul said, with some amount of shyness, “it should be something special, not something like a Denny’s. I already have the place in mind, but I don’t want to tell you. I’d prefer it be a bit of a Secret.”

“Ok, but that still sounds like ‘Dressed to the Nines’, I would think,” I replied.

“And that sounds like I should be wearing something more than a T-shirt and cutoffs,” Paul replied back. “Does a fancy Sports Coat make me look enough Bond-like for you?”

“With you in it,” I said back to him, “It should do just fine. And you should look just right, Mr. Bond!

“Alright Miss Honey Rider!” Paul said. “Is that it? Anything else, or can we return inside?”

Looking at him, deep into his eyes, “You know I just want to grab you, and smother you with kisses, don’t you?”

“And the same to you, Missy!” Paul said in his Sexy Baritone voice. “That time will come, I’m sure. But right now, you’ll have to wait for tonight!”

“Should I pack for the whole Weekend,” I asked him? “Should it be enough to stay through Sunday?”

“I was hoping you would stay that long,” he said. “After going out tonight, I was thinking we could take it easy on Saturday and Sunday. That’s if you agree? I don’t want to be pushy, especially this early in the Relationship. After all, I wouldn’t want my Girlfriend to do anything she didn’t want to.”

Paul smiled. He was being extra Gentlemanly.

“That’s so sweet,” I said. “I’m very proud of you. You’re taking my feelings into account with what we’re going to do.”

“How could I do anything else,” Paul said, “with someone as beautiful as you! On the Inside and the Outside! And that’s something I’d like to discuss this weekend, if you’re up to it?”

“There’s something I’ve wanted to discuss with you, too, since the Party.” I said. “Something important happened that weekend. And I think it’s about the same thing.”

“That sounds good to me,” Paul replied. “I always want to make sure we’re in the clear about us.”

He just sat there and stared back at me. I wanted to grab his hand, to tell him I understood, and agreed. But this was the Workplace, and I knew we couldn’t do that, yet. That will come, in time, I’m sure.

With that, and smiles all around, we stood up, and walked back into the building. I wanted to wave goodbye, but thought better of it, at least for now!

The Morning and Early Afternoon seemed to drag on, and the End of the Day finally came around. Patty and Janice came over to my desk, and I stood up to talk with them.

“Ok, how do you Girls want to handle this Evening?” I asked.

Patty was the first to answer, “Since you should have everything you need at your place, we just need to come over to help you, okay?”

“That sounds great to me,” I said. “You two can help me get ready for tonight. Paul said, as we guessed, that it was going to be a Fancy Evening with him.”

“Ah, that sounds great!” Janice said. “We’re ready to get you into your Fancy Dress!”

“So, see you girls over at my place within the Half hour, okay?” I asked them.

And with that, I gathered my stuff, and the girls went to get their purses and overcoats, and we were off to my Apartment!

We rolled into my Apartment complex’s Parking Lot, and the three of us moved into my Apartment.

“You girls get comfy out here on the Couch,” I said, “and I’ll be back after a shower, and a shave, with the outfit, and dressed in the Lingerie, ok?”

“Sounds good to me,” Patty said.

“And we can get things set up out here,” Janie said. “I can see you’ve already got things out on the Dining Table, here, so it should be easy.”

I went into my Bedroom, and got the Underwear and Dress out. I got undressed, and ready for the shower. I got my new Pink razor and Shaving Cream out. After showering, I took care of my Face, Legs, Underarms, and Arms, I Shampooed and Conditioned my Hair, and used the Body Wash that they had told me to get, and was then done with the Shower. I used the towel in the new way the Girls had taught me, and patted myself dry. Finally, I towel-dried my Hair, and then Blow-Dried it, leaving it to be taken care of out there.

Going back into the Bedroom, I got the Lingerie on, tucked myself in, as I had seen on Web Sites about such things, and got my ‘Boobies’ in place, so that I looked proper! I then got my casualwear out and into my Suitcase. I also stuffed in my clean-up gear, so that I could take care of myself, properly, over at Paul’s. I knew he wanted me to stay over on Friday evening, and Saturday evening, too. I also got the extra Bras and Panties out, also. I put a bathrobe on. After filling it up, closing the suitcase up, and getting the Green Dress ready, I brought the whole kit-and-caboodle out into the Dining Room, to get ready for the Girls getting me set.

Patty and Janice were sitting in on the Couch, drinking Coffee, obviously waiting for me to get my early preparation done. They put their Coffee down, and came over to the Dining Table.

“I see that you’re bringing your Suitcase along,” Janice said. “Planning for a long weekend?”

“Paul said he’d like for me to stay the whole weekend,” I said, “We don’t have any plans after going out. I think we’ll take it easy for the rest of the weekend.”

“Paul is seeing you more and more as Dana,” Patty said. “And he seems to be treating you that way, too!”

“You would be correct,” I replied, with a smile! “I guess that’s an indication that we’re already somewhat friendly, don’t you think?”

“Since you know each other, a bit more than a couple that has just met,” Janice said, “that’s ok with you driving over. But, if you were not so ‘chummy’, that wouldn’t be so good. You know Guys usually pick the Girl up, but you two started out a bit differently, in many ways!”

I sat down in the chair that was obviously set for me to get their Makeover.

“OK, I’m ready for you,” I said!

First thing, they put a Hairband on me, so that my Hair would be out of the way while they did their work. And over the next 20 minutes they worked on me, once again. What was different this time, as they went along, they explained what they were doing and why, including the color usage. The coloring was different, not because we were going out at night, as I had done before. No, this was explained to me that my outfit was a different color, being Green, and some of the different colorings would look better.

Patty worked on my makeup, and Janice sat and looked on. Patty concentrated on my Foundation first, and then worked on my Eyes, doing the shadow, and then my lashes. She told me what she was doing as she went along. I was beginning to understand what they did, and why. I had wondered how Women did their makeup, and looked so good, for many years. Being someone who is into detail and process, it started to explain why certain things were done, when Women were going out, even when they were just going to work.

“One thing that you could do, that would help you learn this skill,” Patty explained, “is for you to subscribe to several Women’s Magazines so that you have an idea of what is going on, and is popular, with Makeup and Fashion Looks. Every Woman doesn’t always know all the current styles, for Hair, Makeup, and Fashion. In fact, one of the things you can do now, that Janice and I couldn’t do when we were learning, is take advantage of YouTube, and the videos that are available for Makeup and Hair Styling. However, you didn’t get the decade or so of training that we, and all other Girls and Women had. Learning those things will make you smarter and look more natural in your presentation as a Woman!”

“Those sound like excellent ideas,” I replied. “I think I’ll also get some books from Amazon on Makeup and Hair Styles, and will start looking at YouTube. I know I have a long way to go to catch-up with you Girls, but I need to start!”

“I’d get Cosmo, Allure, and Vogue, to start with,” Janice added. “And, to help you start to speak more like a Woman, you might get some Romance Novels, written by Women! Learning the words that they use would be a good start in modifying your language. It’s not just the Pitch that Women use that’s the difference, it’s the words they use, and how they use them. I’m no Vocal Coach, but I can tell you that much!”

“And don’t forget,” Patty added in, “that Women have a lilting sentence sound. Listen to TV shows, and you’ll see what I mean! Oh, and we also use our hands more, like this,” and she demonstrated moving her hands around, as she spoke.

“I see what you mean!” I said. “There is so much to learn, but if it will make my journey easier, I’m willing to do it! I know I’ve seen what can happen to Men when they do anything that is construed as Feminine. Men can be so cruel to each other! The fear that is instilled in Men surrounding this can be truly affecting, so much so that there can be a backlash if one is seen acting Effeminate. That is one of the all-time No-No’s for Men.”

“Yes, I have seen that!” Janice said. “It’s alright for a Woman to be more ‘Manish’, like being a Tom Boy is seen as something that is very accepted. The worst thing that can happen, is Men can call them ‘Butch’, and a ‘Lesbian’ for those activities, but those usually are only given to Grown Women, not Girls. But Boys are teased, just as bad as Grown Men, especially from Peers! And when the Coach or PE Coach says to not be so Girly, Man-up!”

“Oh, don’t I know that!” I said. “That’s part of what I hadn’t told you about my life, growing up. As a little Kid, I suffered a lot from ridicule from my Peers. I was teased in School, and at School Bus Stops, and I was even challenged to fight some Boys. I never could understand why they did that. I had those thoughts of feeling more Feminine, at that time. But I didn’t have the thoughts that many Trans Women seem to have, of being Female, from their earliest memories.”

And when the makeup was done, they concentrated on my Hair. They teased and combed it to their likes, to fit the look of a Woman more than a Guy. I already had a very Feminine color to my Hair, so it was more about me looking good, and right, with my shoulder-length Hair, with the person I was about to be, again!

Now that I had my Makeup and Hair done and ready, it was time to add the special Green Backless Dress, so that I’d be complete, and be a Vision, and to look like a Princess again! It fit so well, and made me feel so Feminine! It was a nice shimmering Green material, and made me look so Delicate! To that we added a pair of 2 inch heeled Green Pumps. Again, they didn’t want to be cruel to me and give me any higher of heels, but give me something Sexy to wear with the knee-length Backless Green Dress. There was a nice little slit in the back of the skirt, that allowed the wearer to have a little more Mobility. And, it didn’t hurt that it was also very Sexy!

With my Hair and Makeup in place, it was time for the Earrings and Perfume! Patty went over to her Purse, and got out a package containing a little box. In it were the most exquisite Diamond Earrings! She delicately put them into each Earlobe. She gave me a Handheld Mirror, so that I could see the Complete Package. I was just Gobsmacked! I couldn’t believe I saw Me staring back in the Handheld Mirror! I was a Babe!

Janice came over and sprayed me on the Neck with what she used before, Charley White Eau de Parfum, on what she called my ‘Pulse Points’ on my Wrists, and on my inside elbow areas. It’s quickly becoming my favorite scent!

“That will let the Perfume escape from your Skin, and overwhelm Paul, if he gets close enough to you!” Janice said with some authority. “If -you- let him get close enough to you. And the way you two have been, I think you’ll be letting him get close.”

I pulled my right wrist up to me, and smelled the Parfum. It was exquisite! And Floral! It was wonderful, and sexy!

“Here’s a little one, 1.5 oz, to put in your Purse. You never know when you’ll need a little refreshing!” Janice said. She was an expert in applying the Perfume!

“You did kind of stick-out to us,” Patty said. “When we did Liaison ME, Janice and I would see the Shop Orders that you would correct, and we would talk with you, then Janice and I would talk to each other, after that, realizing that you seemed different to us, as in how you were presenting yourself. We discussed how we just didn’t see you as a Male.”

“For as long as I could remember,” I said, “I have tried to ‘fit-in’ as a Male. That started when I was in Elementary School, and has continued all of the way into Aero. I even still get teased here! I wonder how things will be after I Transition to Dana. By the way, I know that I will be going all the way, and having Surgery, to complete myself physically, as a Woman.”

“We know you’ve worked with a lot of Women out in the Shop, and you always seemed to ‘fit-in’ there, more than would be expected for any Guy working out there. And that convinced us that we should talk to you, about coming to work in the ME area. That was one way we thought we could get more Women in ME, hiring you! But, of course, it didn’t hurt your chances that you were really competent in being able to write plans. But we didn’t expect you would be changing Sex!”

“Well, before the Halloween Party,” I said, “I didn’t think I would be doing that, either!

So, we sat around and talked about Work, and the other things that Patty and Janice wanted to talk about. Again, we also talked about Women’s Issues, as we had some Coffee and Tea. It was so nice, and natural, to be talking with them about that. It just ‘seemed right’! And that was one thing that told me I was doing the right thing!

“You know,” Patty said, “I have some outfits that are Classic, but don’t fit me anymore, that I’d be happy to ‘gift’ to you, Dana. Would you like for me to bring them over some afternoon, and see if you like them?”

“That’s awfully kind of you, Patty,” I thanked her. “You really don’t have to do that!”

“I know I don’t have to,” Patty said, “But if I can’t give it to my ‘Little Sister’, who can I give it to, Goodwill? (She winked at me!) And, besides, it makes me feel really good to do this! I’m just a couple of inches taller than you, so they should fit, pretty close! Besides, if they don’t fit, you can start to learn about Sewing, and alter them to your needs!”

“That sounds pretty good! But, I guess I better get going,” I said. “I need to get out to Paul’s place, so that he can surprise me with the night’s Entertainment, and Food! As usual, Mr. Bond hasn’t told me where he’s going to take me, tonight! I just know that it will be someplace nice, and so I’d better wear that nice Backless Gown!”

I got up, and so did Patty and Janice. I went over to each of them, and gave them a Big Hug! I whispered in each of their Ears, “Thank You!”, and gave each of them a light kiss on the cheek! “I’d be lost, without you!”

“No problem, Sister,” Janice said. “We just want you to have Fun tonight, and catch that Man who sees something special in you, like we do!”

“And know that we’re awfully proud of you,” Patty added. “You’re having an almost Cinderella story, and of course, we’re jealous!” She smiled really big, and I knew that this was very special to them, and they really were proud of me! I really felt the Love from these two special Ladies!

“I’ve got everything packed up,” I said, “and with these Cosmetics I’m putting in my Purse, I should be ready to go! I just need to grab my Suitcase on the way out, and I’m ready for the Weekend!”

“Ok, dearie,” Patty said, tearfully! “We’re glad to be part of this Special Night, for you. I didn’t have a Little Sister, until you!”

“Yes, I’m right in line with Patty on this,” Janice added. “You look so beautiful! And you’re my Little Sister, too! I am so proud of you!”

“Here,” Patty offered, “I’ll grab your other things, and we’ll follow you out to your car, Okay?”

“That sounds great to me!” I said. “I just have to get hold of my Nerves! I need to be all ready for this weekend with Paul!”

“You’re ready, you’re ready,” Patty said, to calm my nerves.

“You’re more ready than I was,” Janice said, encouragingly, “more ready than I was for my first night-over with my First Boyfriend!”

I turned around and hugged the girls, again!

“I’ll call you two Sunday night, around 9pm,” I said, “and let you know how things went!”

We moved into the Hall, I locked the door, and we walked out to my car. When there, we loaded the Suitcase and other bags in the Trunk. I hugged them, once more.

“Bye, Girls!” I said, emotionally.

Janice, then Patty said, “Bye Dana!”

I got into my little Stanza, waved, and drove off. All the way over to Paul’s, I was a Nervous Nelly! I pulled into his driveway, turned off the car, and walked up to his Door. I hit the button and waited. I could hear his footsteps, as he walked up to the door. And it opened up, to reveal Paul.

(Continued in Part 3)