Whatever Next? Chapter 24 by Angharad Copyright© 2022 Angharad

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(title picture Andrea Piacquadio)

Phone calls to several salons suggested there was little they could do. The eyebrows should never have been dyed, it can cause reactions in the skin and all they could do with the eyelashes was to trim them, the risk of solvents close to the eyes was too risky. Gaby was as stuck as the eyelashes.

Carol had made the unfortunate child do some extra homework while at home, although at one point Gaby had nipped upstairs and donned a very short skirt and some heels and posed in front of the mirror. She looked about eighteen and very exotic—real jail bait. If Harry were here now he’d probably have a heart attack. She felt tempted to see what would happen when he came round, especially if she wore a slinky revealing top and her push up bra. She put on another coat of lip gloss and slowly rolled her tongue around her lips, still posing before the mirror. She was so rapt in her little fantasy that she didn’t notice Carol’s head poked around the door.

“And what aspect of homework would this come under?” Carol’s voice broke the spell and the teenager nearly died of apoplexy.

“I…um…I’ll change back and finish my essay.” Gaby was blushing like a stop light. To her increasing discomfort, Carol came in and sat on the bed and patted it for Gaby to sit beside her.

“It’s okay, I was a teenager once. We all experiment with different looks and sadly yours is a bit over the top for the next week or so. I spoke with your headmistress and she understands.”

“She knows?” Gaby gasped.

“Yes, well she would have tomorrow anyway, wouldn’t she?”

“Yeah, I s’pose—they’ll all know tomorrow and think me some sort of slag, won’t they?”

“Only if you conduct yourself like one. If you dress like that, you’ll have more male attention than you want, and I suspect Harry will be quite distraught at that, don’t you?”

“Yes, Auntie Carol.”

“What do you feel about him?”

“I like him, he makes me laugh and he comes riding with me. He’s nice and I think I’ve made him grow up a bit.”

“Girls do that to boys—make them grow up.” Gaby nodded agreement. “What’s he done to you?”

“I don’t understand, Auntie Carol,” Gaby felt flustered at the question.

“How does he make you feel? About him? About yourself?”

“Um—I don’t know—um…” Gaby blushed bright red and it felt as if it extended all the way down to her cleavage.

“You said you like him, does it make you feel good when you think about him?”

“Uh—yeah—I s’pose so; yeah it does.”

“Were you thinking of him when you were posing just now?”

Gaby looked away: “Yes,” came the reply in a very small voice.

“Did you want him to kiss you and hold you?”

Gaby nodded and felt tears running down her cheeks, she felt so ashamed. Carol hugged her and felt the tears drip on her shoulder. “Hey, it’s okay, it’s fine to feel that way about someone, it’s part of growing up.”

“I get a funny sort of pain, here sometimes when I think about him,” Gaby pointed to her lower abdomen.”

“Girls do, it’s what we call the sexual awakening.”

“But I’m a boy, Auntie Carol—I’m frightened.”

‘You were a boy, Gabs,’ she said to herself, “I can understand that, Gaby,” she told the sobbing teen. “Except things seem to have moved on somewhat, haven’t they?” Gaby nodded.

“Do you want me to try and organise you to see someone?”

“Like who, Auntie?”

“A doctor, I suppose.”

“A shrink, they’ll say I’m gay.”

“Are you?”

“I don’t know if I’m fancying boys, maybe I am?”

“Gaby, most gay boys I’ve heard of don’t spontaneously transform into beautiful young women, which is what seems to be happening to you. If your hormones are coming on line, and I’d say by the shape of your body, they must be—“

“—So why hasn’t my voice broken and I get zits and a hairy chest if my hormones are kicking in?”

“I’m no expert, kiddo, but I’d say your body produces more female ones than male.”

“Yeah, I know. Testosterone hardly gives you tits does it?”

“Not as far as I know, kiddo, nor does it make you fancy boys, but oestrogens can.”

“So my hormones make me fancy Harry?”

“Probably, all that’s missing is a period.”

“Thank God, I don’t get those.”

“No, but your behaviour definitely gets more snotty when Maddy and Jules and I, are on ours.”

“Couldn’t that be just a reaction to your snottiness, Auntie? Um—I mean, to Mad and Jules.”

“Partly, but you seem lethargic and crabby, I’ve seen you holding your breasts like they were hurting or felt larger.”

“Well they do sometimes.”

“Yeah, they do—on a period. Change yourself back into something less provocative and I’ll put the kettle on.”

“Okay;” then as Carol was leaving the room, she added, “thanks, Auntie C.”

“Well, girl, in the absence of your mother, I suppose that’s part of my job in looking after you. You could hardly speak to your dad, could you?”

“Um—not really, an’ he doesn’t know much about periods, does he?”

“Only being on the receiving end from your mum and Jules, and maybe you now as well.”

“Gee whiz, am I having periods?” Gaby stood before the mirror in the bedroom and looking at herself, asked, “Just what are you?” then noticed the tear trickle down her face.

She went into the bathroom and using loads of cold cream discovered that the false eyelashes loosened enough for her to pull them off. It hurt a bit—well, a lot actually—but not as much as the derision she would have got next day at school. Then she thought, what if it had happened up in Church Warsop? Just the dyed eyebrows and eyelashes—that hadn’t gone—but the stupid false eyelashes had. She still looked like a girl of course, but not like an underage hooker.

“That looks so much better,” Carol said as Gaby came down for the cuppa. “Oh, the eyelashes, have you trimmed them?”

“No, Auntie C, they came off with a bit of effort.”

“You pulled them off?” Carol looked horrified, “Didn’t it hurt?”

“A bit.”

“Aren’t your eyes sore?”

“No, I managed to loosen ‘em with cold cream.”

“I didn’t know it had an effect on superglue.”

“It’s greasy, it helped.”

“Ooh, I’ll bet it hurt a bit, but you still appear to have some eyelashes left, I’ll pour the teas.”

“You won’t tell the others…what we talked about, I mean.”

Carol hugged her ‘niece’, “Course not, that’s just between you an’ me.”

“Thanks, Auntie Carol,” Gaby kissed Carol on the cheek, then hugged again.

“Don’t forget to take that nail polish off before tomorrow.”

“I won’t.”

After they had drunk their tea, Carol told Gaby to get her bag and coat, they were going shopping. “What about my homework?”

“You’ve done enough today and I need to get out of this place for an hour.”

“When does Gran get back?” asked Gaby. Her grandmother had gone home to check the house and deal with any mail that had arrived in her absence.

“Aunt Josie is back on Friday, I think, then you lot will have to behave.” Gaby laughed at the thought of her grandmother laying down the law.

They bought some food at Waitrose in Dorchester, then had a flit around town, where Gaby bought the shoes she’d mentioned to her father. “You’ll find those hard work, girl,” cautioned Carol at the two-and-a-half-inch heels.

“Yeah, but I’m sick of everyone being taller than me.”

“They’re not when you’re on a bicycle, are they?”

“That’s different, Auntie Carol.”

“C’mon, let’s get back and you can get yourself ready to get a quick ride in with Harry before it gets dark.”

“I wonder if William’s got his new bike yet?”

“Was he getting one, then?”

“Yeah, he wanted me to see if I could get Matt to give him a discount.”

“He’s not backward in coming forward is he?”

That evening, William did turn up with his new bike, which they all had to admire.

“Very nice,” said Gaby, giving it the once over. “Shimano 105, eh, nice and Mavic wheels.”

“Yeah, Matt did me a special deal once he knew I was riding against Bryanston. Got it all for twelve hundred. It’s a this year’s model but he said they all change them in October, so could offer the discount.”

“Looks like we’re riding against Team Specialized,” Harry joked to Maddy.

“Nah, Will hasn’t got the right shirt for that and he’s too big to borrow Gab’s spare one.”

“I’ve got one on order from the net, it’s red with a big white S on it, and some shorts to match.”

“Ooh, get her,” said Harry and Maddy in unison and in a silly voice.

Then it was out on the road and a training ride. Gaby took them out along the time trial circuit at Morton and back. The return was at speed and although Harry tried gamely, she wasn’t pushed very hard by either of them. Maddy had come as well but her lack of practice meant she was left behind at one point until Gaby noticed and turned around to bring her back to the group.

“Pleased with it?” Gaby asked William about his new bike.

“Yeah, but it’s hard work compared to the mountain bike gears.”

“You’ll get used to it, although you could find it hard work on hills. If you do, see if Matt can convert it to a triple chainset.”

“I’d prefer to get used to it,” William smiled, his white teeth contrasting with his red face. He’d been nearly as fast as Harry, although Gaby wondered how hard Harry had been trying—just enough to keep ahead of William, who was watching out for Maddy half the time.

“I don’t think I’ll bother anymore,” she puffed.

“Aw c’mon, Mad, a couple of rides an’ you’ll be back to fitness.”

Back at the cottage and having a drink and biscuit, Harry noticed the dark eyelashes and brows. “Hmm, dunno if I like them or not.”

“What?” asked Gaby.

“The eyebrows, a bit dark, makes it look as if you aren’t a natural blonde.”

“She could prove she is,” laughed Maddy.

“I will if you will,” challenged Gaby.

“Will what?” asked Carol coming to see what all the laughing was about.

“Gabs was just about to show us something,” said Maddy to the embarrassment of her cousin.

“Um, yes, um, my new shoes.” She ran off to her bedroom before any of the others could react. Then came back with them in her hand.

“Don’t put them on the table, it’s unlucky,” said Carol going back to her television programme.

The four teens hadn’t heard that particular superstition and joked amongst themselves, almost daring Gaby to put the shoes on the table to see what would happen.

Gaby, however, feeling a new kinship with Carol after their little chat that lunchtime, respected her aunt’s feelings and didn’t let them goad her into testing the theory.

“Lemme see,” said Maddy and pretended to examine the shoes. She’d seen them before when Gaby had first tried them on. “You got them then?”

“Yeah, Daddy put some money in my account, he told me last night.”

“Lucky you,” Maddy said, with a tinge of jealousy in her voice, “I haven’t had any new shoes since—“

“—The term started,” called Carol from the lounge, and Maddy blushed, then turned around and mimed some cheek back at her mother. “I heard that,” came the reply and everyone laughed.

“Well, I’d better go,” said Harry giving his beloved a hug and a long lingering kiss.

“Me too,” added William, and Maddy pouted at him and opened her arms for a hug. He obliged and she kissed him on the mouth. His astonishment was soon overcome and he kissed her again.

The phone rang and Gaby went to answer it. “Hello?”

“’ello, Barbie, keepin’ well I hope…ha ha. Be seein’ you.” The line went dead and Gaby nearly dropped the phone. She started to tremble and felt herself going very cold.

“Who was that?” asked Carol coming out from the lounge. “Gaby, are you alright?”

“Meadows,” Gaby managed to whisper before collapsing into Carol’s arms.

“Come and sit down,” she helped the shocked teen into the kitchen. “Put the kettle on Madeline.”

“What’s happened?” gasped Maddy.

“I think Mr Meadows just phoned.” She glanced at Maddy and her gaze fell upon the table. “Who put those there, I told you not to.” She knocked the shoes to the floor.

“I’m sorry, Mummy, I didn’t think there was anything in it.”

“Well now you know differently, you stupid girl,” Carol snapped back. Maddy dissolved into tears and went to run to her room, except Carol called her back. “Here, look after Gaby for a moment, while I call the police.”