Chapter 7 -- Two Player Suspension

"Wake up sleepy head." She shook Vicki gently and she opened her eyes. She smiled up at her grandmother.

"Morning Grandma. Did I over sleep?"

"No, Sweetie. I have to dilate you and then I need to talk to you."

"About what, Grandma?"

"Storms. There many kinds of storms. Bad ones and good ones. And, if you listen carefully to me today, you are going to have a good storm."

The two talked for about a half an hour and then spent another half an hour doing pretend play both in the bathroom and in her room.

Vicki's grandmother answered the door about seven forty-five. "Hello Aurelia, we are running late. Please come in and follow me." Aurelia dutifully followed her down the hallway to Vicki's room. Just then, Vicki popped out of the bathroom door and scurried into her room wearing nothing but a towel. "You just finished?! Oh dear! Come on Aurelia, let's help her get dressed quickly."

Rosemary went to the dresser and said, "Aurelia, go find your friendship dress in her closet. I have to get her panty lined while she dries off." Vicki took off her towel and started to dry off in front of Aurelia. Aurelia had never seen her naked, but there was nothing she hadn't seen before. She grabbed the dress, which was the same as hers, and held onto it while Vicki dried off. The only thing that Aurelia saw was a perfectly normal looking girl in the all together.

Rosemary handed her granddaughter panties with a liner and Vicki began to slip it on. Picking up her wall clock, she went on to say, "No wonder you are running late. You wall clock battery died. I will have to fix that later."

After watching Vicki slip her panties on, she handed her the dress. "Thank you. I'm sorry I am running late, Aurelia. Please forgive me."

Aurelia smiled back, "No problem. We won't be late. I always go early. The bell doesn't ring until eight twenty anyway."

"Then I can get a quick bite to eat before we go?" Vicki asked with pleading eyes.

"What would you like for me to bring for lunch?"

"A happy meal from Mcd's would be okay."

"Are you coming for lunch, Mrs. Martin?"

"Yes, they told me I could come spend lunch with Vicki."

"That's true. My mom comes once in a while too."

The two giggled as she ate her breakfast quickly. They were out the door and went into the school at eight ten with more than enough time to get to their class and sit down.

Miranda spit out, "Nice to see that you made it in time with your boyfriend, Aurelia." Aurelia looked very confused. "Right, Victor?" Vicki shrugged her shoulders. There was a definite cooling between both the two girls and the rest of the girls in the class. A few of the girls looked disgusted with Vicki. A few were indifferent. And, Vicki could sense a few were scared. The boys, for the most part didn't seem interested in the girls and their petty games. Most of the boys were talking video games or sports. Lucas, the boy who asked her about barrel riding the day before, turned and asked Vicki, "Do know of a place where I can learn to ride horseback? I would like to be a rodeo rider."

"No, but I will ask my daddy." Vicki was happy to see the boys weren't against her yet.

Mrs. Herrera could sense the cool attitude of the girls in the room. But, one thing was perfectly clear. Miranda had a very haughty attitude. There were two mandatory bathroom breaks during the day. And one was before Art, Music, or P.E. . Today was to be before music. P.E. was another, but that was in the mornings on Wednesday. The fifth graders had P.E. on Tuesday and Thursday because they were older, so they often shared the bathrooms at the same time.

As Mrs. Herrera commanded the class to line up to use the restrooms, she held Aurelia back to ask her about the classes' attitude that morning. "Aurelia, what is going on here?"

"I don't know Mrs. Herrera."

"Is this about Vicki? Is Miranda at the root of all of this?" Aurelia was afraid to say anything, but her silence told Mrs. Herrera everything she needed to know.

"Please, Aurelia, tell me what is going on?"

In line, Vicki could hear the hushed tones in the hallway. She was allowed to be near the head of the line in the girls 3rd grade line. Across from her was the head of the 5th grade line. Behind her, Miranda spied on Vicki with an evil smile. It unnerved Vicki. Although she may need to change pads, it was time, as her grandmother told her, to use the girls room for real to dispel any notion that she wasn't a girl. She could tell her grandma was right. Best get this out of the way. She turned into the bathroom when it was her turn and went into an empty stall and swung the bolt closed to lock it. Lifting her dress, she pulled her panties down to just past her knees. Then she lifted her dress again and sat down to pee. Securing as best she could her dress around her belly button, she leaned slightly forward. From her old habits she spread her legs a little wider than a girl would. She mistook the commotion outside the stall door for being normal. She relaxed and began to pee. Oh sweet relief.

Suddenly, she saw the blade of a plastic knife, the kind she used in the cafeteria, slip thru the gap in the stall door, lift the tongue of the hinged chrome part that secured the lock and the door swung open just as fast. She froze. There was Todd, the fifth grader and Aurelia's nemesis, Miranda. Standing back from the open stall door pointing between her legs. Two older girls looked between her legs at where they were pointing. Todd announced confidently as he looked at them instead of Vicki, "See, Victor's a boy. I told you! That pad I saw yesterday was hiding his dick!" Vicki let out a shriek as it dawned on her what was happening. She was still too disoriented to shut her legs as she should have.

One of the girls, who looked between her legs, scowled with disgust. Then she looked at Vicki's hurt face which further angered her. She hauled off and slapped Todd as hard as she could. Miranda then looked down towards Vicki's legs and gasped. "Oh my God, you are a girl!" Todd, the toad, turned after the slap to look at her sex too. He was stunned. Just then, Vicki heard the voice of an adult. It was Principal Torres. "What the hell is going on here! Why are you in here Todd?" By this time, Vicki, who was feeling stunned in the beginning, stopped peeing, closed her legs, and began to cry. She heard one of the older girls say to Principal Torres, "Todd and Miranda have been telling everyone that Vicki is really a boy. He said if we came in here and let him open her stall door, he could prove it Principal Torres. But all we saw was a girl."

"And that justifies you letting him do this? Mariana and Olivia, I will have a talk with you later, but right now Todd, Miranda, in my office now!" When the scene had cleared, Principal Torres came to her stall door, "Vicki, I am so sorry. When you are done, come to the office please and we'll get a statement from you, okay?"

Through tears, Vicki said, "Yy-es, Ma-a'a-am." Two days at school and it seemed like her world was falling apart already. She got up and locked back up the stall door.

As she was finishing, she heard a voice through the stall door. "Vicki, are you okay?" It was Aurelia. "Mrs. Herrera heard what happened and thought you needed a friend. Vicki wiped, stood up, pulled up her panties, opened the door, and tumbled into Aurelia's arms sobbing. Aurelia just held her friend. "What happened?"

Before she could recount her story, she thought of the words her grandmother said to her that morning, "Storms have a way of destroying things without a good foundation. Because you really are a girl on the outside now, what ever they do to you will backfire on them. Trust me. But, whatever they do, don't let it destroy you too." That seemed to calm and take the sting out of what just happened. She collected herself.

The next few minutes were a blur. But, before she knew it, her grandmother was with her in the office comforting her. She whispered in her ear. "I wasn't thinking it would be this. I expected just the girls would get you to drop your panties and Miranda would get her comeuppance that way." Vicki nodded.

Principal Torres came over and tenderly asked, "Is there anything I can get you girls. A water, Kleenex, or a blanket?"

"No thank you Ma'am." Vicki smiled weakly back at her.

"Here, come with me into to one of the conference rooms. I have called Mr. Jenson. He is on his way." She guided them to a small conference room with a window. Mrs. Torres could see across the way that a police officer was talking to whom she thought must be Miranda and the boy Todd.

On the other side of the door, she was right. Todd and Miranda sat in front of a New Mexico state patrol officer in near total silence. His black uniform was classic. He looked like something out of the Shawshank Redemption movie. It was a uniform that screamed the 40s and hadn't been updated for years. The two children had their arms folded. It was clear that they were not happy to be where they were. Every so often, the would exchange glances with each other that weren't at all friendly. The officer stood there with a clipboard filing out forms. The odd question was asked by the officer. It was either answered by the child or by the school secretary.

"We have to wait for the parents to show up before I can proceed further." he said to the secretary. "We'll need to interview them separately too."

"We'll arrange for everything you need. Mrs. Torres is with her granddaughter now, so you can talk to her."

He nodded his head. "Best begin with them first then." The officer came into the room where Vicki and her grandmother were holding hands. Principal Torres came in as did Mrs. Herrera. Aurelia came in right after them. Vicki beckoned Aurelia over and she sat down on one side while her grandmother sat silently on the other. Vicki was asked to tell the officer what happened. There wasn't much to tell, but she kept it simple and just told what happened that morning.

When asked if Vicki knew this boy from her previous school. "He was in several grades in front of me. I didn't wear a dress back then. I liked playing with the boys. He must have just figured I was one." It was then that her grandmother took over. "A word of explanation. Vicki is short for Victoria. Because she is named after her aunt ... whom her brother and I used to call Vicki or Victoria ... anyway, the family began to call Victoria here, Victor for short so we wouldn't confuse her with her aunt Victoria. But, lately, Victor ... Vicki ... put her foot down and said she wanted to be called Vicki instead." She stroked Vicki's short hair and said, "I guess our little girl is growing up."

"Why not use her middle name?"

Vicki and her grandmother said in unison, "Maria?" That part was true. For the basque and the Hispanic community, Maria is a common middle name for a boy. His name was Victor Maria Martin. And Maria being one of the common names in a classroom meant it wouldn't help. Aurelia’s mother just chuckled.

"Gotcha." said the officer. "I can understand their confusion. But, making it physical was the wrong thing to do since that turned it into a sexual assault. It's only because the two girls they duped confronted them on their behavior that they got off. If he had been a boy, they would be in trouble too."

Principal Torres shook her head and said to the officer, "They are getting in school suspension for three days. Miranda will get alternative school for the rest of the year, and Todd is going to be expelled. At least, that is what the book says." There was a tap on the door. Principal Torres stuck her head out the door for a moment and then came back in. "Both their parents are here. You can interview them now. And, I will join you." That last part was said firmly, but the Martins were clueless as to why.

In the secret meeting at her house, this contingency was discussed. The hint that Vicki might have thought she was a boy at one time would be dropped. However, it would be made clear that a physical assault, even if they felt it was justified, would not fly with her or the school board. In this case, both Mrs. Herrera and Principal Torres had positive proof of bullying behavior on the part of Miranda prior to the bathroom assault. And, this wasn't Todd's only infraction over the last year and a half. Vicki didn't know it yet, but she was safer now than she was before.

After Principal Torres left the room, Mrs. Gonzalez showed up and came in the room. Mrs. Herrera ask Aurelia, "Is this the kind of bullying you have been receiving from Miranda since she got here?" For the next ten minutes, Aurelia related all the times she was being abused by Miranda in order to make Aurelia look bad to the other girls. Vicki held her hand as she cried recounting her side of the story. As bad as what just happened to her, Vicki came to understand that Aurelia had it far worse than Vicki.

"All right then, you two. If you want, you can be excused from school today. Go home and play. I am going to have a discussion with just the girls today about bullying. And I think it would be best if you both weren't there. Do you agree Mrs. Martin and Mrs. Gonzalez?"

Alex stared at the home he grew up in with a smile. His mom's car was still parked under the carport. When she didn't answer, he used his key to enter. "Mom, are you home?" As he explored, memories flooded back of his younger days. Walking to school with his sister. Walking his sister home until he moved on to Middle School. Watching over her in High School. He loved his little sister. A picture of his dad and him building the short concrete block wall that defined the distinction between his home and the sidewalk caused him to rub muscles that once were sore. Another muscle twinge in his back reminded him of the trees in the back yard were planted by him and his dad. And, smelling coffee in the kitchen brought to mind the barbecue he and his dad built together. It hadn't been used in years. The last memory of his dad was coming to pick him up at work in the morning and finding him lying dead on the floor in his guard shack. It brought a tear to his eye. The doctors said it happened just before he arrived. The paramedics couldn't save him. It haunted him to this day having to go tell his Mom at work that the love of her life was no more. Then there was that ghastly trip to the High School to pick up his sister. The look on her face after he had to tell her that the man who loved her so much was no longer with us was more than a young man should have to endure. He became the man of the house far too young. Working a construction job to earn money for college then became his career to support his young family. Thank God, he thought, he had his Sally to get him through those tough times. Her dad, a Baptist preacher, taught him the skills of a carpenter when he came over to spend time with her. He loved that generous man.

As he entered his room, he stroked the door he installed before he moved up to Silver City to work on expansions to the college. How fast he went from a kid to being a responsible adult. He stood in his old room which his mom started to turn it into sewing room after he left. He flashed back to how he surprised her on Mother's Day, weeks after his dad died, "Here Mom, I bought you an industrial sewing machine. I built you cabinets and cubby holes for your sewing gear. I set it up so you can do tayloring work at home in your spare time for extra money. I wish I could help you with more money, but at least you have tools that can help." His mom was a proud woman who wouldn't ask for help. His sister and he had talked about it. He turned to her room, which was now his son's, and recalled his words to his sister shortly after the funeral. "Vicki, I know she must have sold Dad's Green Bay Packer's memorabilia to pay for his funeral and just living expenses. Don't ever bring it up to her or hold it against her, please. I know it makes you very angry. But Dad didn't leave her much. Bringing it up will only hurt her pride more if she knows how you feel." He set down some books for his little Victor to enjoy. Well, his little Vicki now.

He locked the front door and checked it as he exited. He thought he would wait out front since he was early. If his mom didn't show, he would walk down to his old school and have lunch with his darling child before heading back to the village. At the same time he locked the door, the girls were walking home. The two girls held on to each other with a somber focus on each others pain. As they approached Vicki's house, she saw her dad's van out front. She looked up at her grandmother who winked at her. Just then, she saw him as he turned from exiting the front door. He turned and saw them and made a mad dash to the front wall. "Princess!" he cried.

"Daddy!" With happy tears in her eyes, she broke away form Aurelia and ran to him. Still feeling her injuries, she ran not at her usual speed. Alex more than made up for it as he swept her up into his loving arms. "Daddy, I love you." she sobbed into his ear. "What are you doing here?" If she had but looked in the far back of their van, she would have seen something would have given her a clue. It was another crib.

"Why, I came by to have lunch with my little princess at her new school." Holding her up on his forearm and shifting her to his side, he continued, "And you must be Aurelia?"

"Yes, Mr. Martin." He reached out and shook Aurelia's little hand.

"Hi, I am Maria Gonzalez, Aurelia's mom."

"Call me Alex, please." He said to Maria. "I am so pleased to meet you all at last. But, shouldn't you two girls be in school?"

"Alex, I guess you haven't heard what happened?" said his mother.

The girls filled in Alex on the events that morning and the bullying of Miranda and the treachery of Todd the toad. "I guess you want to spend some time with your daughter." Maria said dismissively.

"Yes and no. I can see the girls need each other right now. So, I could pick up pizza and when can have a picnic at Water Tower Park." He put Vicki back on the ground and ventured to Mrs. Gonzalez, "I think the girls would love that, don't you?"

His mom replied, "Oh, I love that idea too. But Vicki is still supposed to take it easy."

He mentioned, "Then they'll just enjoy the swing sets. Its a goregeous day. Why not?" A horn honked behind them. They turned to see Fred Jensen in his car.

"I just dropped off Vicki's birth certificate to Torres for the record. She needed it to handle this silly business. I don't think Miranda or Todd will be bothering either of these girls for the rest of the school year."

"That's good news!" said Mrs. Gonzalez. "I think those two have done enough damage to our girls."

Alex went over to him and shook his hand. "Thanks Fred. Any news from Silver Station Mining?"

"Just the usual. I've dealt with them before. It never looks good when a child is injured. They are probably going to make a low ball offer in the beginning. I'll see if I can get them to double it and settle out of court. In the meantime, spend some time with that cute girl of yours." he winked.

"I will." Alex couldn't help but grin. Turning back to the gang, he asked, "Well, the offer still stands. Pizza, park, and play before I have to get back to the Village? I can go get the pizza, drinks, etc. Vicki can come with me to pick it up. Then we can all meet up at Water Tower Park for lunch. That way I get a little alone time with my girl and then they can spend the rest of the day together."

"Why don't I come with you Alex and Maria can drive all back after lunch?"

Aurelia tugged at her mother's arm. "Can we Mommy? Please!"

Mrs. Gonzalez capitulated with a big grin on her face. "Okay, okay! We'll leave in about fifteen minutes. See you at Water Tower Park, right? By the covered play area and the picnic benches. We'll park on Santa Cruz."

The drive to the pizza place had Vicki behind her grandmother in the front seat. "How you holding up, Victor? I take it you don't mind being a girl for the time being?"

"It's fine, Dad. Aurelia isn't as bossy as Susan. She thinks it is the girls job to order the man around. Aurelia likes to have fun." Alex and his mom laughed.

"Susan gets that from her mom. Her mom bosses her husband around pretty good. But, they do love each other."

"Well, I do miss Susan. But, I really miss Henry. How is my boy, Daddy?"

"Your boy? Yes, I guess he is. He really loves you. He misses you right now. No one has been riding him since the accident. I have to change the subject. I need to tell you both. I don't think your mom is easily going to accept what has happened to you Vicki."

"Why Daddy?"

"She will come around. But, we have to be careful right now. When you were born, she suffered from depression for a long time. We are going to have to surround her with love. I don't know how she is going to handle finding you are more like her now than like your dad. Nevertheless, enjoy this time with Aurelia and school. Your mom will be none the wiser."

Rosemary asked, "How is she going to handle the baby then being all alone out in the boonies?"

"I don't know Mom. I suspect that she isn't going to do well. Her folks are on a mission trip to Senegal. They won't be back for another year and a half. Her sister is the wife of a pastor in Virginia with kids of her own. Vicki says she is going to see about coming down this summer with her youngest to help at the village." Rosemary winced a little at hearing this news. Her Vicki hadn't confided this information to her mom. It stung more than she let on.

"At least we have a month or so to work it out." She said to ease her son's worry.

"Daddy. It's okay. When I come back, I'll just be a boy again. After all, this is pretend time, isn't it? We will just wait until Mom is feeling better to tell her all about me." She sat back in her seat and said proudly, "After all, what I am doing is going to help save my brother or sister."

They arrived at the park with a ton of pizza, several bottles of soda, cups, ice and napkins. The gang met them and took everything to a picnic table. Alex and his mom held back so they could have a private chat.

"Mom, he doesn't seem to be bothered by this. Is he fighting it at all?" He was concerned by how well he was acting as a girl.

"No, but I suspect it is because he is so lonely living where he is. The fight went out of him the moment he found out he was going to school and he had found a friend. He is so used to playing with Susan that I think he finds Aurelia an absolute joy to be around. And for him, there is something more rewarding. He believes it is making us happy by being pretending to be a girl. And, I am letting him."

"Well, I hope this isn't too much for him. I can't tell you how much it means to me to know that he is safe and well under your care." He gave his mom a hug and a kiss on the cheek. "It is making my job easier to care for his mom. Just one last thing, it would be a good idea if I could tell Sally he was playing with a boy." She nodded. "And it is even more important now. Dr. Alvarez did a follow up at her Silver City office a week ago. We are having twins. We still don't know the sex of the twins. But, Vicki being Vicki is keeping her mom safe from losing them."

"How come you didn't find out sooner?"

"We should have gone in earlier for pre-natal care."

The feast was fantastic. Then they watched the girls play on the swing sets for a time. Alex enjoy pushing his daughter and Aurelia. Sadly, it came time for him to leave. Hugging him for all she was worth, "I love you Daddy. Thank you for today." All thoughts of what happened that morning were dissipated and erased in his embrace. They returned soon to their homes.

Principal Torres called both the ladies and told them that it would be safe to come to school the next morning. She also said that it was official that Miranda would give an apology, but would be attending an alternative school for the remainder of the year. Todd the toad had been expelled. His father, who was extremely frustrated with his behavior over the years, went and enrolled him in a local military academy hoping the discipline would correct his bad behavior. He was not to contact anyone from the school for the next four years. If he violated his parole, he would find himself in alien territory at a military school in Roswell.

The next morning, at the beginning of class, Mrs. Herrera spoke to the class, "Now most of you heard what happened yesterday. The girls and I discussed what bullying is and how it works yesterday afternoon while the boys were in a special art class. I want to clear up the rumors. You all learned when I introduced Vicki that Vicki's aunt had the same name before she got married, Victoria Maria Martin. You learned the family called her aunt Victoria or Vicki. When her niece was born, she was named Victoria Maria Martin also. So as to keep confusion in the family down, they came to call Vicki here, Victor. Apparently a fifth grader here, who had attended school with her in Silver City, thought that meant Vicki was a boy and decided to out him along with one of your classmates. That classmate has voluntarily come here to make a public apology to the class."

It must have hurt Miranda to her core to stand in front of the class knowing that after her apology, she would be attending an alternative school for the rest of the school year. Even then, she wouldn't be allowed to mingle with her friends until late summer when school started up again. The chief object of her latest disgraceful behavior sat uneasily in her chair. Next to her was a girl whom she had targeted for ridicule and scorn. Vicki felt for her as she uttered her prepared words. Aurelia was conflicted.

"I know these are prepared words, but they do not show how really sorry I am for hurting both Aurelia and Vicki. I thought the way to be popular was to tear down others. And, in taking it too far, my mother pointed out that I only tore myself down." At this point she began to cry. "If it means anything to you both, I have to get up in the morning and look at myself in the mirror for who I really am. I am truly sorry." With that, she burst into tears.

Tears rolled down Vicki's face as well as Aurelia's. Miranda had been thoroughly humiliated and brought down. Slowly, Vicki got up and went to Miranda. Vicki opened her arms. Miranda briefly flinched expecting to get hit, but quickly ascertained that all Vicki wanted to do was give her a hug. The girls fell into each others arms. Vicki said, "I won't be here when you get back. I just want you to know I forgive you."

"Why would you?" she sobbed. "After the way I treated you."

"My daddy says you don't break a horse to be mean to it. You break them so they can see how much you love them and want them to be part of your life." Vicki pulled back and looked her in the eye, "I forgive you. And, I am sorry I won't get to know you because I am going home after my mom has her baby."

Vicki turned and looked at Aurelia. With tears in her eyes, she came forward and joined the hug. Three sobbing girls called to the rest of the class. In a matter of moments, the boys in the class could only see a puddle of girls wrapped together in a sobbing mass. Principal Torres walked in to collect Miranda. Mrs. Herrera motioned to let them alone. Principal Torres put her arm around Mrs. Herrera. They too tearfully smiled at each other seeing the girls let bygones be bygones.

That afternoon, the girls sat in front of Vicki's place playing crazy eights, when one of the girls from their class walked by. "Hi Luna, want to join us?"

"Sure."

As she came in, Vicki got up. "I'm going to grab a chair from the kitchen. Be right back."

Luna sat down in the seat vacated by Vicki. "Boy did us girls get a big lecture on bullying. I'm sorry for having hurt you." she said sorrowfully.

Aurelia gave her a quick hug. "It's okay." Vicki came out with an additional chair. The three girls played for a while until Luna had to go home.

After Luna left, they went to play in Aurelia's room before dinner time. Vicki was shocked when her sister Mercedes stormed into her room half naked wearing jeans and her hair wrapped up in a towel. "Aurelia, did you run off with the hair dryer again? You're supposed to leave in the bathroom, not take it to your room and leave it there." Mercedes glanced at Vicki. "Are you the one they picked on at school?"

Vicki nodded yes. She was stunned. Here she was, just barely being a girl, and she was looking at another girl and her boobs. Vicki turned her attention to the Barbie doll she was dressing. "I'm glad things have gotten better for you sis. Girls can be such bitches to each other at times." She grabbed the hair dryer as her mother walked by.

"Mercedes! Why are you walking around half naked?"

"Chill, Mom. Dad's still at work. Nobody here but us girls." She headed to the bathroom while her mother shook her head and went on with what she was doing.

Aurelia laughed. "Mercedes is rather proud of her boobs. I can't wait to have them. Lola has already started to grow them. How about you? Do you wonder too what they will feel like?"

"I guess so." Vicki answered nonchalantly. But, it stirred inside her a genuine curiosity about what it would be like.

When Vicki got back home, she found Cindy talking to her grandmother. "Here is a replacement prescription of Estrace in patch form. It should last your three months and won't give you the upset the pills did. Plus, you won't have to break the pill in half and take it without any food. Let us know if you find the other bottle and the pill breaker. But, we are hoping the patches should help delay the onset of dementia too. Hey Vicki, ready for your treatment?"

During the treatment, Vicki asked. "Is Grandma okay?"

"Oh she is fine. It is just a little hormone supplement the doctor gave her. As women age, they sometimes need a little extra girl hormone in order to keep their body healthy. We don't need a whole lot of hormones in our body. So, a little goes a long way for your grandmother. Actually, her dosage isn't much different than what you would be needing for a girl your age."

"So, she is okay?"

"Yup. Anyway, you are excused from school on Friday. Dr. Smith will be back in town and he is going to do a follow up surgery on you in the office. And, it looks like you won't need to do dilation but once a week or so until you grow up."

After dinner, Vicki did her chores while her grandmother took a nap. She cleaned the kitchen, then the living room. When she pushed the couch aside so she could sweep underneath it, she spotted an orange plastic bottle in a plastic zip lock bag. It said Estrace and gibberish on it. It was filled with pills. Also in the bag was the pill spliter. She thought about telling her grandmother right away. But then she thought about Mercedes boobs' and how interesting they looked. Maybe she should try the pills.

She carefully stashed the pills in her room in her aunt's closet. 'Maybe,' she wondered, 'if these pills would help her act more like a girl too.' She went to take a shower to get the dirt off of her from the park. But, this time, she wiped the mirror and looked at her chest. Lola did stand out. She had seen her bumps during class. 'Well, if I looked like I was growing boobs, no one would have attacked me.' she said to herself. 'One bottle of pills won't do much, would it?'

Going back to her room to get dressed for bed, she pulled out the bottle, unscrewed the cap. That was easy to do since the cap was not in the child proof mode. The pills were an oval blue. She took out one pill and put it into the pill spliter. She tried to cut the pill. It was hard. She placed it on the ground and pushed it down with her foot. It snapped. She found two half pills in the chamber now. She put the spliter with its pills and the bottle away.

As she dressed for bed in her Hello Kitty pajamas, she turned her side to the mirror and took one of her socks, rolled it into a ball and stuck it in under her pajama top on top just over her nipple. It didn't look real. A wave of regret enveloped her for a moment and she felt like crying. "No, I am a boy." she said sadly. "Boys don't want boobs. Right?"

Later that night, after her grandmother tucked her in for the night and they said 'I love you' to each other,' Vicki said to the doll her grandmother gave her. "This will be just our little secret, okay? But, it might be fun to have boobs like a real girl. Aurelia is going to be a real girl and have them. Then, when they get boobs, all the cool friends I am making now won’t want me around anymore."

She closed her eyes. “Of course, they won’t need to open a door to learn I’m not a real girl. They’ll look at my chest and know I am not real.”

A few tears dropped on her pillow as she fell asleep.

Copyright © 2020 by AuP reviner