Sweater Weather
Copyright 2022 by Heather Rose Brown

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I dropped the heavy two-by-four I'd been dragging through the woods onto the pile of scrap lumber I'd been collecting, then wiped my forehead with the frizzy sleeve of my sweater. A cool breeze whispered through the trees, which brought the sweet, musty scent of fallen leaves.

I turned when I heard distant footsteps, then smiled at the sight of my friend trudging down the narrow path from his house. I waved and shouted, "Hey Stevie!"

My friend glared as he got closer, then stopped in front of me and asked, "Whatcha call me?"

I held up my hands and said, "Sorry, I meant Steve."

Steve smiled, but still sounded grumpy when he said, "That's better."

I leaned against one of the trees supporting the fort we'd been building, then asked, "You okay?"

"Not really," he said while shrugging.

I frowned and asked, "What happened?"

My friend pulled down the bottom of his sweater and said, "For starters, my mom said I gotta wear this."

I blinked a few times, then asked, "Didn't your sister used to wear that?"

Steve hung his head and said, "Ummm ... yeah."

"Sorry to hear that," I said while patting his arm. "I thought things were gettin' better."

My friend sighed, then looked up and said, "Until last night, I'd thought that too."

"What happened?" I asked.

Steve snorted, then said, "It started with Dad sayin' how tall I'd gotten, then Mom sayin' Karen's old clothes would probably fit me now. When I tried to argue about wearin' my sister's clothes, both my parents said there's nothin' wrong with me wearin' her hand-me-downs."

He clenched his jaw and kicked a small pile of leaves. When the last leaf fluttered to the ground, his shoulders drooped as he said, "They also pretty much said it's about time I got over bein' a tomboy."

"Oh jeez," I said, then wrinkled my forehead while asking, "They still think you're goin' through some kinda phase?"

"Seems like it," he said while nodding. "So ... how's things been goin' for you?"

I slid down the rough bark of the tree behind me. When my butt hit the thick mat of leaves covering the ground, I tugged my sweater back down, and said, "I dunno."

Steve sat beside me, and leaned against the tree. We looked up at almost the same time when something chittered overhead, then watched a couple of squirrels leaping from branch to branch. A minute or so later, he asked, "They still ain't got a clue 'bout how ya been feelin'?"

"I think they're at least wondering what's goin' on after I flat out refused to go to baseball camp this year." I looked down at my blue sneakers, blue jeans, and blue sweater, then said, "I think maybe the rest of my hints have been too subtle."

My friend reached behind my head and flipped up my ponytail, then asked, "Ya call this subtle?"

I pulled my legs up to my chest, then wrapped my arms around my knees and said, "I've been thinkin' maybe wearin' girl clothes might help."

There was a hint of worry in Steve's eyes when he asked, "You're ready to let your folks see what you've been hidin' in your stash?"

My stomach tightened when I said, "I dunno if I'm really ready, but I'm startin' to feel like I need to do it anyways."

"Hmmm ..." my friend said while scratching his chin. "I think I got an idea."

I stretched out my legs and asked, "What's that?"

Steve grinned and said, "We could trade sweaters!"

While my friend pulled off his sister's sweater, I asked, "Ya really think that'd help?"

After pulling down his undershirt, he held the sweater out to me and said, "It's pink. It's fluffy. It's got a bunch of butterflies all over it. If your mom and dad *still* don't see you're a girl, they'd have to be totally blind."

Even with the tingle of fear creeping down my spine, I still smiled at the thought of wearing something so pretty. I accepted the sweater with shaking hands, set it down in my lap, then started pulling off my own sweater.

While I was struggling to get both my nose and ponytail past the collar of my sweater, Steve gasped, then said, "You're ... you're wearin' it."

Once I got my sweater the rest of the way off, I straightened out my t-shirt while asking, "Wearin' what?"

He looked at my chest and said, "The ... thing ... my mom gave me, that I passed on to ya."

I crossed my arms when I realized where he was looking, then said, "Well, I *did* say I was thinkin' about wearin' girl clothes."

My friend looked up, and seemed to be trying hard to not look down again while asking, "Did your parents see you?" When I nodded, he asked, "Did they freak out?"

I uncrossed my arms, then rested my hands on both sweaters and said, "As far as I could tell, they didn't notice anything different."

"They didn't notice their 'son'," he said while making air quotes, "wearin' a training bra?"

"Well," I said as my face warmed, "my sweater's sorta loose, and a bit bulky too."

I shivered when a cold gust of air brushed across my bare arms.

"You gettin' chilly?" my friend asked.

I grinned, then said through chattering teeth, "Kinda, yeah."

Steve grinned back, then said, "Me too," before pulling the blue sweater from under my hand.

I picked up the pink sweater, and slipped it over my head. Even though my old sweater hadn't been exactly uncomfortable, it definitely wasn't as soft as what I'd just put on. I let out a breath I hadn't realized I was holding, then squealed when I looked down at what I was wearing.

"You sound happy," my friend said in a muffled voice.

His head popped through the neck hole of his new sweater when I looked up. He smiled from ear to ear when he looked at me, then gave my arm a friendly nudge while saying, "Ya look pretty in pink."

"Thanks!" I said while the warmth in my cheeks spread to my ears. "Ya look good in blue."

Steve stood up, then held out a hand to me and asked, "Ya ready to get started?"

I nodded as he helped me up, then said, "I'm ready for anything!"

"Even clueless parents?" he asked while letting go of my hand.

"Let's concentrate on our tree fort first," I said while climbing up the rickety ladder we'd built together. "Maybe we can figure out what to do with them while we're working."

My friend climbed behind me and said, "Whatever happens, I'll always be there to back you up."

I looked down and gave Steve a huge smile, then looked back up and kept climbing. Even though I didn't know if I'd be facing a storm of rage, or a fog of denial, it was a relief to know I wouldn't have to weather it alone.