Chapter 6 -- Try Outs.

Victor awoke early. He could hear the CPAP machine working its magic. This was going to be his first day at school, he thought. Checking the time, he couldn't believe it was six in the morning. He threw on his new robe. It was nice to have pajamas again, even if they were Hello Kittys. Taking his shower, he toweled off. He couldn't really see anything, so he wiped the steam off the mirror so he could step back and see what he looked like. It was so different than before. Oddly, he found the folds where his wee wee once had been looked normal, less traumatic. Shaking away the thought, he brushed his teeth. It was getting easier to wrap the towel around him and he noticed another odd reaction. He felt more secure doing it that way.

He picked up his PJs and robe. Put on his slippers and headed to his room. He made his bed. He folded his PJs. He put a panty liner in a blue panty, took off his towel, and slipped it on. After folding his towel, he looked over his two options set aside for the day by his grandmother the night before. "I know I gotta say girl today!" he mumbled. "But how girly?" He was conflicted. The navy blue dress was less girly. But, the one with the unicorns would erase any doubt. Closing his eyes, he did the only sensible thing he could think of.

The unicorns won the day. Putting on the dress the way he had been taught was much easier. He reached back and zipped up the dress. This chore took him a minute or two as he learned to navigate female clothing. Next, he sat down and put on the plain white socks. The shoes were nicely practical and the stars on the side were a definite girl's choice. Then he stood up and checked himself in the mirror. Grabbing a hair bush, he did what Calista taught him to do. He realized that his blond hair really made the dress look nice. Then he did his treatment of his ear stud. Honestly, he thought, as he applied the alcohol treatments to his earlobes, unless someone knew he was a boy, no one he could think of could ever accuse him of being a boy. The last thing he put on was his friendship necklace. He wanted it clear at the school who he was friends with in no uncertain terms.

Pulling the desk chair into the center of the room, he practiced sitting down and standing up. He did it from the side to as though he were sitting at a desk chair like the one he had back at school in Silver City. The mirror showed him one irritating fact. He had to watch flashing his underwear. Finally, he just sat and looked at himself in his aunt's mirror. After a painful moment, he wished his hair was longer. 'Maybe,' he thought, 'I could change. I wonder how I would look in the other dresses.' Grabbing a hold of himself, he dismissed that notion. He made his choice, he would stay with it.

Having done what he needed to do, he went up front with his new backpack and made himself some breakfast. The sound of the microwave beeping must have awakened his grandmother. "Morning Sugar."

"Sugar?"

"Yeah, because you look so sweet in that dress. I wish I could send a photo of it to your mom." He didn't know why, but he blushed and smiled. 'Why,' he thought, 'doesn't that offend me?' His grandmother reassured him, "More importantly, they aren't going to think you are anything but a girl."

"Thanks Grandma." he said cautiously.

"You're welcome, Sweetie." With that, she got a bowl of cereal and sat down at the table with Victor.

Victor picked up a dog eared Zane Grey novel he brought in from his bedroom, 'The Last Trail.' "You like those books?"

"I found it in the box with aunt Vicki's other toys."

"She was big into Zane Grey because her dad was. He loved old west books. He liked to take trips up to Lincoln County with her and visit the locations that Billy the Kid and Pat Garrett traveled. The two were thick as thieves until she hit her teenage years."

"What happened?"

"Nothing really. She discovered boys. Mind you, she still doted on her dad. And he doted on her. No boy who crossed our doorstep had a chance if Manuel said no. He was the most fascinating man I ever knew. He immigrated with his parents at the end of World War Two from the Basque region of Spain and France. Didn't speak a word of English at first. My parents could understand him, but I couldn't when he spoke Basque. He refused to learn Spanish because of General Franco. How he and his folks hated that man. Mine hated him too, come to think of it. They were proud of their Basque roots. He worked as a border patrol officer in El Paso for a few years ferrying drugs and other contraband to secure facilities. Became a long haul trucker because of the movie Convoy. After marrying me, he worked securty for several businesses around here that supported truckers so he could stay close to family."

Looking at Victor, she realized something for the first time. "Vicki, you're an introvert as a girl. Not the outgoing Victor who is all over the place talking with everyone."

"Grandma, what's an introvert?"

"Somebody who likes to be in the background. I saw it yesterday. You let us girls do all the talking in the car going over to get your ears pierced. Cindy told me that Aurelia did all the talking at Walmart and I saw it at the the beauty salon and lunch too."

Victor shrugged his shoulders, "I dunno. I'm not a girl, so I didn't think I could add anything to what was said."

"You should. You can always add something without losing who you are. And, frankly, at your age, being a girl isn't that far from being a boy. It isn't until the hormones kick in that you'll start noticing the real differences and the gaps really widen."

Victor gave her a hug. "I'll think about it. I'm going to go watch for Aurelia. She said she leaves home about ten till to go to school." As he left the kitchen, he felt a twinge knowing that he wasn't destined to get hormones until the doctors said so.

Victor stepped outside into a cool spring morning. The air was dry and the chairs weren't even wet with dew. He sat down and watched for Aurelia. His mind drifted to what those differences the hormones would have on him and, say, on Aurelia. The thought that hormones would drive a wedge between him and his friend made him sad. After a bit, he saw her door open. He got up and went up to his grandmother's short wall. Aurelia waived and scooted across the street with her science project under her arm. "Morning Vicki. You look pretty today. And you wore your friendship necklace too! How do you feel about wearing a dress? This is your third day now."

Victor was taken back. "I really look pretty?" She nodded yes and he blushed. "It is all so new to me." Victor reached out and gave her a hug. "Thank you for your help. I see you wore your necklace too. I'll be seeing you soon. Let me know what everyone says about your pierced ears and new hairdo. I wished I looked as pretty as you do." As he watched her walk away, it occurred to him he was closer to her as a girl than he ever was with Susan. It was if a wall had come down. And, he thought, that wasn't such a bad thing.

Victor went back in and helped his grandmother clean up. Then they did his dilation. Soon, another knock came at the door. "Hi. Are you Mr. Jenson?"

"Sure am. Are you Vicki?" He winked at Victor.

Sitting down in the living room, he said to Rosemary, "I have a form from the state. It simple states that you are changing the sex of Victor here from male to female. Once you sign it, he will legally be a girl. I can show it to Mrs. Torres, the principal, and then my friend at the county seat will hold onto it and grant me a temporary birth certificate for Victor with the name Vicki on it. After school ends in May, we tear everything up and it never happened."

"You sure nothing will go wrong?"

"Even if it does, his parents can change it back at anytime. It's not that big a deal. But, it does make it legal for him to be in the girl's bathroom and not the boys." She signed it and he notarized it. Placing everything he needed in a briefcase, he announced, "Let's go for a walk Vicki and Mrs. Martin. The school is so close I don't see the point to drive down."

Victor, now Vicki legally, tossed on her backpack, and they headed the short walk down to the school. She took the hands of Mr. Jenson and her grandmother. Her grandmother carried a bag with Vicki's emergency supplies and medications for the nurse. In the bag were a change of clothes, a couple pairs of panties, a box of pads, and a list of instructions from Dr. Alavarez for the school nurse.

The door to the school loomed large. Mr. Jenson pressed the button on the door for access to the building. A moment later, they heard a buzz indicating the door was being opened. He pulled the door open as soon as he heard the buzzing sound. He held the door open for Vicki and her grandmother. Crossing the threshold, she felt both crushed and elated. It was strange to her that she could feel both emotions at once. They came into a foyer with a shiny tile floor. The office was to the right. They could see in through windows built into the wall sectioning off the office from the foyer. The door to the office opened and a pleasant looking woman a little older than the age of Vicki's mother stood there smiling. She was in a brownish pantsuit with a nice beige vest. Her hair had a shock of white which framed her forehead. The way she looked at Vicki was with an understanding eye, as if she knew who Vicki was.

"Hello, may I help you?"

"Yes," said Mr. Jenson, "we have a new student for you. I brought her paperwork. This is her grandmother, by the way. She's Vicki's temporary guardian."

"Hi, I am Rosemary Martin. My two kids went here years ago. My grand ... daughter here has to stay with me for a couple of months and we were hoping to have her attend class here, if that would be possible?"

"I think we can work something out. Please, come into my office. What grade is she in?"

Jenson responded quickly, "Third. She is in third grade." He handed her Vicki's paperwork. She sat down and went through the well organized file. Her smirk didn't betray why it was so well organized. She turned to her computer and did some surprisingly quick data entry.

"I think we can assign her to Mrs. Herrera's class. She is a very nice teacher." She reached over and picked up her phone. "Selina, can you check to see when is Christine's zero hour? ... Ten o'clock. Can you tell her to come in to the office on her break, I have a new student for her class."

In a flash, Vicki was signed up and placed into the school's system. Her next visit was with the nurse. While Jenson waited in the office talking with Principal Torres, Vicki and her grandmother went into the nurse's office to discuss her needs. "Pain meds, extra clothes, panty liners, and instructions from her doctor. Looks like everything I need, Mrs. Martin." She stopped and briefly and examined the fading bruises on her face and neck. "Vicki, if you have any needs, just ask your teacher for a hall pass to come up here. I understand you leak a little pee sometimes?"

"Yes, Ma'am. Thank you for understanding."

"That is a good reason to use my bathroom too. So, I would like you to feel free to use it for the time being until you are more confident. You can still use the girls bathroom if you want, but, if you are leaking, you might need to change your panty liner and it is just easier if you come here where no one will know. Okay?"

"Yes, Ma'am." She held back a tear thinking about being found out.

"Now, by doctor's orders you are excused from P.E. and from recess. During recess, you can just relax and sit on the outside bench if you wish or come up here and sit in my office if you like. During P.E., you can come up here and study in the office." The Martins and the nurse stepped out of the office and saw Mrs. Herrera coming in.

"Hello Mrs. Herrera. I have a new student for you." the nurse said. "When you introduce her to the class, make sure they know that she had some blunt force trauma in an accident. It will be a couple of weeks before she can play normally again. And without further adieu, this is Victoria Maria Martin."

Her grandmother looked down and her and nudged her. Vicki shyly said, "Good morning Mrs. Herrera."

Rosemary introduced herself just as Mr. Jenson and Mrs. Torres came out into the office. "I don't know if you remember me, Mrs. Herrera? My daughter, Vicki's aunt, was in your fifth grade class your first year of teaching. Her name was Victoria Maria Martin too."

"Oh, yes, I most certainly do. How is your nice husband? It was unique to have a dad pick up their daughter after school."

"Yes, Manuel was very protective. Two doors down from the school and he thought she was going to get lost. Working nights gave him that privilege of picking her up from school. Sadly, he passed away when she was a senior in High School. One of the reasons, I think, she never went to college."

"That's too bad. She was one of my best and brightest students as I remember. So, this is her niece and your granddaughter."

It was then that Vicki brought up Aurelia. "Mrs. Herrera, can I sit next to Aurelia Gonzalez, please?"

"I think that can be arranged." She thought about what she just said. Principal Torres told her early that morning before class that the girls had become close friends and to place them together.

Rosemary mentioned, "Vicki will be walked home by Aurelia's mother most days, Mrs. Gonzalez. I already put her down on the form as being permissible."

"Oh, thank you Mrs. Martin. I will most certainly let her pick up Vicki then. So you have made friends with her already. She is a delightful girl." She was glad to hear it. It confirmed that Aurelia had a friend in her class. Lately, she had been worried about Aurelia.

"Aurelia says there is a new girl in the class who doesn't like her and has turned her friends against her."

"Really?! Thank you for telling me." Her comment explained so much to her.

As they exited the office, Vicki took Mrs. Herrera's and walked down the hallway to her new class. During this time, she began to size up her new teacher. She had greying hair and was a little stocky. Her hair wasn't long. It might have been at one time, but it was more like her grandmothers. Her face showed some wrinkles that had formed around her natural smile. Her brown eyes twinkled when she looked down at Vicki. Around her wrist was a wide red rubber band that had D.A.R.E. etched in with a bold white.

The other thing she observed is that she had an easy gate. Most adults made Vicki hurry when she had to follow them. But, she made following her easy. As they turned a corner, she stopped. "Now, young lady, if you need to use the restroom, this is our closest one. I have been made aware of your special needs, so this is where you and the other girls will go."

Vicki blushed, "Thank you, Mrs. Herrera." Vicki's politeness impressed her teacher. Most of her students weren't as polite.

"Let's take a quick detour." She walked them back a few paces back into the hallway they were just in. "See that double door down there?"

"Yes, Ma'am."

"That is the cafeteria." She produced a lanyard and a name card was attached. "This is your school I.D., Vicki. You are to carry it at all times. When you go into the cafeteria, they will scan it and the funds for your lunch will come out of the account your grandmother just set up in the office." She placed it around her neck.

Vicki fingered the plastic card hung around her neck, "What if I lose it?" She turned it over and saw in bold letters, Vicki. Under them were smaller ones, Martin.

"Just tell them your name. They will look you up on the computer. But, if you do lose it, tell me right away and we will get you a new one. The badge also lets you check out books in the library."

With a note of excitement, she asked, "Where's the library?"

She guided Vicki back into the hallway were the girls restroom was. "It is down at the end of this hallway, next to the fifth graders. We will be going there on Wednesday. Do you like to read?"

"Yes Ma'am." she said perking up. "My parents don't like me to watch television, so I read what is in the village library. Mostly Nancy Drew, The Boxcar Children, and The Magic Treehouse."

"That's wonderful. I am going to be reading Roald Dahl's 'Fantastic Mr. Fox' this week to the class."

"I like him. I've read 'James and the Giant Peach' and 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.'"

"Have you seen the movies?"

"Not yet. We only watch movies during the summer when we set them up for the villagers in the common room. I'm usually help with cleaning up something, so I only get to see about one movie a week."

"That is not so bad. I would rather you read the books."

Vicki giggled. "You sound like my mom. She loves it when I read."

"Do you miss her?" Vicki nodded yes tearfully. Mrs. Herrera patted her on the shoulder to reassure her.

"Well, here is our classroom. You ready?" She walked in with Mrs. Herrera and was startled to see no one there.

"Where is everybody?"

"In art class. They will be back in about ten minutes. You see, they give teachers a break during the day by letting the students go to a music or an art class so the teachers can have some time to relax from teaching. Sometimes as a treat, they let the teacher meet a new student." She winked at Vicki.

She walked over to a set of lockers on the side wall and pointed to one. "Here is your locker, Vicki, number twenty-four. When you first come in, you will put your backpack in there." Vickie dutifully did so. "Nicely done." She looked up at Mrs. Herrera and felt loved.

She then led Vicki to a table with chairs around it. "I just put this seat here a little while ago. Your seat here is right next to Aurelia. Now, I am trusting you both not to disrupt the class, or I will have to seperate you two." she said sternly, but with a twinkle in her eye.

Vicki took her seat. She was careful to sweep her dress underneath her first and slide her legs under the table. "Yes Ma'am. I promise. Thank you very much. It was very kind of you." she said politely. Mrs. Herrera sized up pretty quickly that she had a polite and intelligent student.

"Now, when they come back, I am not expecting you to know what we are talking about or to answer any questions. Not for a few days anyway. Okay? And, when they come back, I will be introducing you." Vicki quietly acknowledged she understood.

Mrs. Herrera then went and sat at her desk, opened a notebook, and began checking things for the next class. Vicki looked around the room. There were cork-boards with sheets of papers pinned on them, a big long white wipe-board. Over the teacher's desk, she saw a computer projector. On one side of the room were a set of windows. She could see out to the parking lot and the street. She figured that it must be the street in the very front of the school since there was a parking lot.

"Vicki?" She was startled out of looking around the room.

"Yes, Mrs. Herrera?"

"Being that it is late in the year, I'm going to let Aurelia know she can sit with you during recess. She is an active girl and I don't think she will mind."

"That would be lovely, Mrs. Herrera. Thank you again for your kindness." Again, the politeness of Vicki astounded her. She knew she was just a temporary student, but she wished she could teach her next year in fourth grade as she rotated with her students.

The door jerked as it opened to the classroom, Mrs. Garcia ushered in the students who filed in. Aurelia, seeing Vicki, rushed past the others. Vicki got up and the two hugged. "Now ladies." came a gentle reprimand from Mrs. Herrera. "Sorry, Mrs. Herrera." came a unified response. They joined the rest of the students and sat in their places. Everyone noticed the new student. Quite a few realized they had their ears pierced with the same looped studs.

"Class, we have a new student today. Everyone say hello to Vicki."

A discordant "Hello Vicki" rumbled through the classroom.

"Vicki has joined us because she is staying with her grandmother due to her injuries. She was in an accident recently and they had to cut her out of the vehicle. They also, I have heard, had to cut off her hair in order to get her out of the car. Vicki, why don't you stand for us please?"

"Yes, Mrs. Herrera." she stood obediently.

"What is your full name, Vicki?"

"I am Victor ... I mean Victoria Maria Martin. Vicki for short." The class giggled. “I am named after an uncle who was killed in the bombing of Guernica in 1937.”

"Now, now. Vicki has an aunt by the name of Victoria Maria Martin. I know because I taught her during my first year teaching here at Monument. I hear the family took to calling Vicki here Victor when she was younger because of the confusion. However, she doesn't like that so her name is Vicki, not Victor. Vicki, is here with us till the end of the school year. Then she is going up north back to her home. Where is home, Vicki?"

"Near a small town call Buckhorn. I live on a kind of big ranch we call the village."

"Tell us what you like to do when you are home."

Excitedly, "I love to ride my horse around the trails that surround our home. My horse's name is Henry. He is a handsome Morgan horse. He is my friend and I love him. I have to feed him, give him baths, and take care of him too. He's a teddy bear." The girls in the class all giggled and were smiling dreaming of owning a horse themselves. That is, all but one. One boy asked, "Do you barrel ride?"

"No, but I want to learn to do dressage. My daddy says Henry has to be trained for English saddle for that. And I will have to learn English saddle too. And we don't have the proper tack for English. But, Henry is so pretty." The boy laughed at her suggestion. "Boys can be pretty too!" she admonished the boy and sat down like a lady.

Mrs. Herrera asked the students to say their names. The list was long and she was clearly having trouble associating names with faces. But, the one who was frowning was named Miranda. When the students had finished, Aurelia leaned over and said, "Miranda is the one who didn't ask me to her birthday party." Vicki nodded to indicate she understood.

The class then began to discuss geography. "Now we are basically done with what you need to learn for third grade. Next year, you will learn new things about New Mexico. Has anyone here heard of biomes?" Mrs. Herrera swept the map of New Mexico on the wall with her pointer.

Nobody raised their hands, but Vicki finally did. "You have?" She was impressed. Biomes had just been added to the fourth grade curriculum.

Vicki demurely answered, "Yes, Ma'am. New Mexico has four different biomes. Forest, grasslands, desert, and aquatic. It is the fifth largests state in the United States. It has six of seven life zones. Lower Sonoran, Upper Sonaran, Transition, Canadian, Hud-sonian, and Artic-Alpine."

"Very good. Where did you learn that?"

"My daddy took me to Carlsbad Caverns to see the bats and visit the caves. We stopped at a Guadalupe Peak in Texas at a national park and he bought me a book on New Mexico." The look that Miranda gave Vicki for knowing that could chill an active volcano.

Soon, they all were in line for lunch. Aurelia was showing Vicki all the ropes. The other students were enjoying meeting her too. They talked about Aurelia's pretty hair and pierced ears. Vicki was quickly becoming the new curiosity as they talked about how Calista gave her a feminine cut too. Miranda felt left out and pouted in her seat. She was no longer the new attraction in town. Vicki held on to Aurelia and the two sat at a table near the fifth grade students. As lunch ended, Vicki and Aurelia volunteered to stay behind and clean the tables. Mrs. Herrera led the others out to recess. As all the third graders left, the two girls enjoyed working together cleaning the tables. Miranda was the last to leave for recess. Before she left, one of the boys from the other table of students looked at Vicki and said, "Victor, is that you?"

"Excuse me," she said as she pushed past him. "My name is Vicki!" she added curtly and continued to wipe down tables.

"Remember me, Todd. From Sally Ride Elementary school in Silver City?" Aurelia was carrying some trays to the far end of the cafeteria to be washed, so she couldn't rely on her for support. Vicki did remember him, he was one of the boys who played football with his friends during recess. He and his friends would watch. Sometimes, they were invited to play. Vicki wasn't because she was too small.

"Maybe. I don't know. It's been a long time." She didn't realize that she had just affirmed she was the boy whom he had remembered. She headed for to a garbage can to throw away trash from the table. As she walked away, she heard him say to Miranda as she was leaving, "But, he's a boy, not a girl. Why is he calling himself Vicki now? And why is he in a dress? You sure he's a girl?"

The last thing Vicki saw as Miranda left the room was a smirk on her face as she shrugged her shoulders in response to his question. Which only spelled trouble for Vicki. Thankfully, she heard his fifth grade teacher call him out to recess.

After they were done, the two headed down the hall to the restroom. Aurelia asked, "What did that bully say to you?"

"He asked if he knew me."

"Stay away from him, he is mean. Came here last year and everyone stays away from him."

Vicki stopped before going into the girl's room with Aurelia. "I have to use the nurse's bathroom. Aurelia. Don't tell anyone, but, because of the accident, I leak a little. I wear a pad and have to replace it."

After doing their duties, they met up on a bench outside. The two watched everyone play. Aurelia pointed out who was who running around. At one point, Todd came running by to get a drink of water. Just then, a breeze came and blew up Vicki's dress. As Todd drank water, he could see her panties and realized she was wearing a thick square pad, which only confirmed to him that Vicki was a boy after all. He concluded she was hiding her penis.

The day went pretty much uneventfully afterwards. Vicki sat quietly in class and gave her full attention to the teacher. Much of the material she knew from her studies. And, on a few occasions delighted her teacher by being one of the few students to answer a question correctly. During a community bathroom break, it was noted that she went up to the nurses office to user her bathroom.

When the day ended, Aurelia and Vicki were greeted by Aurelia's mother. Looking around at the other students who were leaving or just waiting to be picked up, Vicki caught sight of Miranda talking to Todd. Chills went down her spine. Was her secret out even before she started school. Was she destined to go home in disgrace in the next few days. She held onto Aurelia's hand even tighter.

"You okay?"

"Yeah, I just think that Miranda doesn't like the new kid." she said pointing to herself.

Aurelia turned to look back at Miranda who was now sitting down waiting for her mother to show up. She looked happy. "Looks like it is just going to be us. I was hoping things would be a bit different."

"So was I." Vicki said feeling angst. Then her mood brightened. "But, at least we have each other." The two played the rest of the day and forgot all their troubles. Vicki felt more joy playing with Aurelia than she ever had with Susan.

Before she went to bed, she finally told her grandmother all about Todd and Miranda. Her grandmother listened patiently and asked a few questions. "Honey, the solution is simple. You just use the girls room tomorrow. Trust me, girls have ways of finding out you are for real. I think it will backfire on them in the end. And they, not you, will be the outcasts."

Her grandmother walked her to her bedroom. "But, I'm not for real."

"Yes you are. Physically, I can't tell you from another girl right now."

"You sure?"

She helped Vicki into bed and pulled the sheets over her tucking her in. "You can bet on it." She bent over her and gave her a kiss. "Look, trust me. All you need to do is to use the girl's room. The girls will know." she said confidently. She then reached over and took one of the dolls her daughter had growing up and handed it to Vicki. Without thinking, Vicki took the doll and held on to the doll tightly. "Thank you Grandma, I love you." She turned to her side, and closed her eyes.

"I love you too, Sweetie. Sleep well and don't let the bed bugs bite."

As her grandmother turned off the light, Vicki felt something stir in her. As her thoughts came to a peaceful conclusion for the day, she realized, "I feel hope."

All thoughts of the storm that was coming the next day disappeared in the sleeping eye of her peaceful slumber. But would she have knowing how the storm around her had formed that afternoon in numerous phone calls orchestrated by Miranda after talking with Todd?

Instead, she dreamed that Henry was now a magical unicorn.

Copyright © 2020 by AuP reviner