Nick finally finds the courage to venture out of the house dressed as Nicole only to return to a house on fire with his parents screaming to firemen to rescue him from the burning house. Special thanks are in order to Michelle B. for editing this for me.

 
All the preparation, practice and the many hours in front of the mirror, dressing and applying makeup, had finally, in my mind, come to a conclusion. I was going to venture out of the house for the first time. It was just after midnight, I had it all planned out, I knew exactly what I was going to wear. A beautiful blue and white sheath dress, tan pantyhose and two inch blue open toe heels. I had shaved my under arms and legs in the shower before I faked going to bed.

I already had on my light blue satin panties; I then added the matching blue satin bra. I shivered as I pulled the pantyhose up my smooth legs. I slipped the dress over my head, stood at my mirror and looked at the familiar feminine figure staring back at me. Nicole stood five foot five, had long wavy brown hair that touched her shoulders, green eyes and lightly tanned skin from the summer sun. I sat at my makeshift vanity, a towel set on top of my dresser. I put on a light shade of blue eye shadow, pink lipstick, blush, black eyeliner and finally did my eye lashes.

My plan was working as I had hoped; mom and dad were in bed as well as my twelve year old sister. Once I was satisfied with my look I grabbed my shoes and carefully climbed out to the window. Once I was safely on the ground I slipped on my heels and walked quietly out the back gate.

I loved the feeling of the breeze as it tickled the fabric of the dress against my nylon covered legs; it’s such an exhilarating feeling.

I began walking down the sidewalk heading for the park three blocks away. I made it all the way and sat on one of the swings. I felt much younger than my fifteen years as I began to swing back and forth. I lost track of time since I did not have on a watch. I thought it best to get home before someone realizes I was out of the house. Besides, I did not want to be caught dressed as a girl. I knew I would tell my parents, just not yet. You know what it’s like, all the fear and anxiety.

I put my luxurious night behind me and began the three block walk home. I did not hurry as I wanted to relish in my accomplishment of getting this far. It was easy after all, no one was out and there were very few cars on the street at this time of night. I made it to the first corner and stepped out into the street to cross and I heard the loud wail of sirens from my right. I looked and saw two fire engines, a police car and an ambulance barreling past me. I didn’t think anything about it because this street was the main thoroughfare and was often used by emergency services. I once again began to casually walk the rest of the way home.

As I turned the corner to get to my street, I saw all the flashing lights of the fire, police and ambulance. I realized immediately they were fighting a blazing fire at my house. My heart leapt into my throat as I approached my panic stricken family. I saw that my dad was yelling at a fireman to rescue his son from the now engulfed house.

I looked at the faces of my sister and mom who were sobbing uncontrollably. I knew then they were crying because they thought I was asleep in my burning bedroom.

I looked around and saw that firemen were frantically pulling hoses out and watched as they began dowsing the flames with water. The thick black smoke made it hard to see the house; all I could see were bright flames breaking through the front windows and engulfing the roof. A brave fireman quickly swung a fire hose in that direction to prevent the flames from spreading to the house next door. The front door of our house was broken in by another fireman who rushed in with an axe. I was frozen in place as I tried to go and comfort my family as I struggled with being caught.

I finally found the courage and walked as quickly as I could, in my heels, to let my parents know I was ok. Slowly and fearing for my life, I walked up to my mom, as she turned and saw me. She gasped in relief as she realized I was out of the house.

“Oh my God, Nick your ok.” Mom said and gave me a hug.

I could feel her wrap her arms around me squeezing me tightly. My dad turned his head and he also breathed a sigh of relief.

“Thank God you’re safe.” He joined mom and then my sister in a group hug.

I was visually shaking in fear and pain. Not for just being caught dressed as a girl but also for watching in awe as all of our memories were being whipped away by the fire. We all just held each other for a while and then after a few minutes, we were backed away by the firemen to the opposite side of the street.

“It’s much safer on this side of the street.” The fireman said. “I’m glad to see you found your daughter and that she is safe.” He said running off and helped battle the blaze.

Dad, mom and Heather all looked at me with a confused look but seemed to be too emotional to ask the obvious question on their minds. Mom just gave me a look then they focused on the efforts of the firefighters. The firemen quickly had the flames under control as they worked to put out the fire. The fire was soon out and a group of firemen were hosing down the hot spots. I could see as the smoke began to clear that the firemen had cut a hole in our roof and the front of our house was completely destroyed. The only portions of the house that were spared were the back and the garage.

A tall slender firewoman wearing a white shirt walked up to us once the chaos had subsided.

“Hello, my name is Kathy Doran, and I’m the Fire Inspector for the county. We found the initial source for the fire; it was an electrical short in the front room.” She said in a monotone voice. “I will give you a full report once I complete my investigation. Here is my card; you can give it and my report number to your insurance agent… MR?” She said handing my dad a card.

“Carlson? Thank you Ms. Doran, My family and I appreciate the actions of the fire department for what they did in trying to save our home.” Dad said visibly upset.

“That is what we are here for Mr. Carlson.” She said as she shook my father’s hand. “My, don’t you have on a pretty dress.” She said looking at me. “What’s your name sweetie, were you coming home from a date?” She said trying to lighten the mood.

Mom and dad both looked at me and I swallowed hard and smiled at the fire inspector.

“I’m Nicole.” I said not knowing how to answer the second part of her question.

“You have two very lovely daughters Mr. and Mrs. Carlson.” She said sweetly. “Oh good here comes Red Cross.” She said as a white van with a red cross on the door pulled up.

I could have just died right there, she had no clue I was a boy, and to make it worse I could not tell if mom and dad were upset about how I was dressed. A nice looking lady with a Red Cross t-shirt came up and greeted us.

“Hi, my name is Samantha Thompson from Red Cross; I am here to help you, and please call me Samantha.” She said somberly.

My dad, ever strong, answered for us. “I’m James Carlson, Samantha this is my wife Karen and.” He paused for a second looking at me then at my mom.

“These are our daughters Nicole and Heather.” Mom quickly piped in saving my dad from an obvious dilemma as what to say.

“I am very sorry for the loss of your home. As the regional manager for Red Cross, I am here to help find you a place to stay, clothes to wear and food to bide you over until your insurance company takes action.” She then handed my dad a packet of information and food vouchers. “It’s good that you have two daughters. It makes it easier to find you a place to stay tonight, just give me a minute to make a few calls.” She said quickly as she made a few calls on her cell.

A fireman came over and gave each of us a blanket to keep us warm. He must have thought I was cold because I was shivering in fear of what might happen next.

Samantha quickly got off of the phone and explained what would happen next. “I’ve got a place for you at the YMCA for tonight, a room for you and your wife Mr. Carlson, and a bigger room for your daughters that can hold 15 girls.”

“You don’t have anything else were we could stay together?” Dad asked probably fearing I would be discovered as a boy.

“I’m afraid not for tonight at least, you can find a hotel tomorrow if you like. I had our phone center check and there are no vacancies for tonight. I am truly sorry for the inconvenience Mr. Carlson.”

“Don’t be, you’re doing what you can to help us and I thank you for what you are doing, and please call me James.” Dad said politely.

“No problem James. If you will come with me, I’ll take you to the YMCA and get you settled.”

The four of us piled into the van; Dad took the front passenger seat, mom took the next seat and I began to slide in next to her.

“Smooth your skirt and watch your knees honey.” Mom said calmly as I complied and sat next to her. I gave her a half smile as Heather climbed in next to me. I was surprised when mom put her arm around my shoulder and hugged me to her. “Everything will be ok, you’re very pretty.”

“Thanks. Are you mad at me?” I asked as I began to cry again.

“No I’m not mad sweetie, just disappointed you thought you couldn’t come and talk to me about this.” Mom said looking at me.

“I was afraid of what you might think.”

“We can talk about this later.”

“Ok.”

As I said that I looked over at my sister to try and gage how she felt seeing me all dressed up as a girl.

“I’ve known for age’s sis. You’re not very good at hiding your things. I’m not mad; I think I will love having a sister.”

I gave Heather a hug and we cried the rest of the way to the YMCA. Our emotions weren’t under control. As far as we knew we had just lost everything in our home. The next few days were going to be stressful.

We finally arrived at the YMCA and were greeted by volunteers. Each of them was very nice and tried to help us as much as they could. In the reception area we were asked a few questions. A nice woman brought us to a counter and asked mom.

“Good evening my name is Donna, what are your ages and sizes; I need those so we can get you some clothes and some pajamas for your daughter there.” She said pointing at me and smiled. “That’s a pretty dress.”

Mom spoke before I could answer, not that I could.

“Nicole she’s 15 and a size?” She looked at me because she obviously did not know my female clothes size.

“I’m a size nine.” I said quietly and mom continued.

“Heather is 12 and a size six.” Mom finished.

Donna then led us to the back room where we were able to pick out clothes for each of us. She handed me a white cotton nightie.

“This should suit you for the night. You and your sister go ahead and pick clothes to tide you over for a few days.” She led us to some shelves in the back of the room with donated clothes in each cubicle with sizes labeled on each shelf. I looked through them and found a nice pair of flared jeans and a pink t-shirt. Heather picked almost the same colors I had.

“Look, our clothes will match for tomorrow.” Heather said showing me her choices.

“I remember saying something similar to my sister when I was your age.” Donna said and handed my sister and I packages of panties, they were all white cotton. She then led us to the shoes and Heather and I picked from the pile. I picked a simple white pair of walking shoes and Heather did the same.

Donna had us gather up our things and we met back with our parents. My mom and dad both had their hands full of clothes as Donna led us to the sleeping area. Mom and dad were given a small room with two small cots and a chair. Mom still looked sad, and dad was putting on a brave front.

It took me by surprise when dad asked if he could hug us kids.

“Come here and give your dad a hug.”

Both Heather and I obliged and hugged him tight.

“I love you too more than anything; I was really scared when I thought you were trapped in the fire Nicole. I was so relieved when you showed up ok.”

Did dad just call me Nicole; He was referring to me by my female name and only after hearing it for the first time tonight.

“I love you too,” Mom said joining the hug. “Now you two get some sleep and we’ll talk in the morning, we are going to have a lot to talk about.”

“Thanks Mom, dad, I love you too.” I told them.

“I love you both too, and Nicole.” Heather said putting emphasis on my new name.

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Author’s Note: The End, or is it, you decide. Please leave feedback.

Nick woke up jittery and was worried what his parents might be truly thinking. Special thanks are in order to Michelle B. for editing this for me.

 
I woke up with jittery nerves and I was worried about how my parents would react to seeing me dressed as a girl last night. I knew dad was a man’s man and that I would probably catch hell today. Mom came in to wake us up. She saw me already awake and sitting on the edge of my bed sweating.

“What’s the matter sweetheart, aren’t you feeling well.” Mom asked with concern.

“I’m scared mom of what dad will say to me.”

Mom looked at me and then spoke in a comforting tone. “Look Nick, your father and I talked last night. While he does not understand why you were dressed as a girl he is willing to talk to you about it. We will talk while eating some breakfast.” Mom said as Heather opened her eyes.

“Mommy, was it a dream last night.” Heather said looking sad.

“No honey, unfortunately it wasn’t. Your father and I are just happy the two of you are ok. Go ahead and get dressed and then we will have a talk.”

Heather looked at me and smirked. “We’re going to talk about you being a girl I bet.”

“Yes Heather, we are going to be talking as a family about how Nick is dressed.”

“I thought her name was Nicole mom?” Heather asked mom, I could not help myself and I had to hug Heather tight.

“I love you Heather.” I said to her.

“I love you too sis.” She said back.

“Ok you two, now hurry up and get dressed. Your father is waiting.”

“Ok mom,” we both said in unison.

Heather and I put on the clothes that we had picked out the night before. I could still smell the faint aroma of the perfume I had used the night prior. Heather even helped me with my clothes. Neither of us had makeup, but I was pleased that I still looked feminine as I could still see traces of mascara. Once we were done I felt a little fear as we began to walk out of the cubicle we had slept in. Heather grabbed me by the arm and dragged me along.

“Come on Nicole, you can’t hide forever you know. Daddy will still love you; he might kill you, but he still loves you.” She said with a laugh.

“That’s not very funny; I’m scared enough as it is.”

“Sorry Nicole I was just trying to make you laugh.”

Dad and Mom were waiting for us in the lobby of the YMCA; Dad was on the phone yelling at someone. He saw us come up, his face was red and the slammed his cell phone shut. Dad must have left early and picked up the car from the house. I wanted to ask about the house and if there was anything that we could save, but he looked really mad.

“Get in the car.” Dad yelled as he got into the car then slammed his door shut. “I hope you’re happy with yourself Nicole.” He screamed and threw the morning paper in my lap. I looked at it then back at my dad in confusion.

“Read the front page you fucking sissy.” He yelled.

I could not help it and I started to cry. Why he was so mad at me.? He seemed ok last night.

Mom, bless her soul, spoke up for me. “James don’t you dare call Nicole a sissy. We don’t even know why she was dressed that way last night.”

I regained my composure. “I’m sorry for hurting you; I just needed time to figure things out. That is why I dressed up last night and went out. I needed to know I could do it on my own before I talked to you about how I feel.” I said between sobbing.

“Quit your crying boy, or I’ll give you something to cry about. Now you just read that article and you will see what kind of trouble you’ve gotten all of us into.” Dad was visibly pissed at me and I felt responsible, but what could be in the paper that made it so bad.

I heard a slap and saw my dad’s head move to the left. “I already told you not to talk to her like that James; if you do that to our child one more time. I swear to GOD I will leave you and take the kids with me!” Mom said with anger and a very red face. “You can read the article when you feel like it honey. Nothing was your fault.” Mom said in a much calmer tone.

I picked up the paper and unfolded the local section dad had thrown at me. On the front page of that section there was a picture of the four of us standing in front of our burning house with a fire truck behind us. You could clearly make out our faces and who we were. I paused as my stomach became tight and read the head line.

‘Family Left Homeless After Devastating Fire.’

I also looked at the caption under the picture.

‘James Carlson and his wife Karen and their daughters Nicole and Heather are pictured standing in front of their lifelong home.’

I read the article and it had our address and it listed the house as destroyed and that nothing inside the house was salvageable, with the exception of the garage. I swallowed hard at the thought of everyone I knew would know I dressed as a girl.

“I’m sorry mom, dad. I did not mean for this to happen.”

“It’s not your fault sweetheart; we will get through this as a family.” Mom said and turned around and comforted me by rubbing my knee.

“Look son, we are going to have a rough time ahead of all of us, and I think all the stress from last night just caught up to me. I am sorry for yelling at you.” Dad said as we pulled up to a red light. “I should not have said the thing I did.”

Dad turned around to me and kind of gave me a half smile, and then I saw the love in his eyes.

“Can you forgive me for all of this?” I asked.

“Forgive you; I should be to one who is asking for forgiveness.” Dad said as the light turned green. “We will figure out as a family how to confront those who might have questions about why you are dressed as a girl.”

Dad continued driving and eventually we pulled up to our fire damaged house. The house looked bad, the whole front of the house had been charred by flames and you could see directly to the back of the house. As we all got out, I could see that the red car from the fire department was parked in the front. We were greeted once again by the same fire inspector from last night.

“Mr. Carlson, I have finished my investigation. You and your family are now allowed access to the house to see if you can find anything that you might be able to salvage. I am truly sorry for your loss.” Mrs. Doran said. “Here is a copy of my findings for your insurance adjuster.” And she handed the report to my dad.

“Thank you Kathy, Is there any areas we should avoid?” Dad asked.

“Just stay clear of the kitchen area, the roof over that area was cut open by the firefighters and the ceiling in there is still soaked in water and might fall. Otherwise the rest is ok, just be careful and watch your step.”

“Thanks.” Dad said and then motioned for us to follow him in. “Let’s go, Nicole I want you to keep an eye on Heather.”

“Ok dad.” I was a little surprised he used my girl name, but I wasn’t complaining.

“Now Heather I want you to be careful and listen to your sister.”

“I will dad.” Heather said then gave me a slap on the shoulder and mouthed ‘sister’. I pinched her left arm and then smiled at her. We walked carefully into the house. There was little left to salvage. I found a few photo albums of ours that were left untouched by the fire. There was nothing left of any of my personnel stuff in my room, no clothes, books and even my computer were gone.

All of us were equally upset at how much we had lost. Dad was glad that most of the tools were spared in the garage; he had us help him put some of them in the back of the car.

“That’s enough for today; I am so sorry that we came up with so little. We will just have to start over.” Dad said trying to sound brave but doing a bad job of it. Dad then drove us back to the shelter and sat us all down.

“Please sit down Nicole, Heather, your mom and I want to talk to you.” Dad said as we sat on their bed. “It’s pretty clear that we will need to do some shopping for clothes for all of us after seeing the house today. We have all lost years of memories. We will just make new ones.” He said again.

“What we want to know from especially you Nicole is what type of clothes are we to get you.” Mom paused for a moment. “Think this through before you decide, this is your chance to be honest with us and tell us how you truly feel and how you want to spend the rest of your life. No matter what you decide your father and I will support you.”

I thought about it for a minute and decided it was time to come clean with my parents and tell them the whole truth and leave nothing out. “Mom, Dad, I have been feeling out of sorts for years, almost like I was supposed to be someone else. It is a most unusual feeling not knowing who you are. One day about a year ago I found one of Heather’s skirts in the laundry hamper. Something came over me and I had to try it on. It was certainly a bit tight but I got it on. I looked at myself in the mirror in the bathroom and everything felt right.” I paused for a second to catch my breath. “All the weird feelings I was having were gone and I found myself feeling ok for the first time in a while. It scared me a lot and I didn’t think about it for a few days until I saw another of Heathers skirts, and one again I just had to try it on. All the feelings of being different went away for a while but I was scared at what was happening to me.” I paused in case mom or dad had questions.

“I can imagine you were quite scared.” Mom said looking at me with wonder. “How did you get to look so good last night?” Mom asked.

“I’ve had a lot of practice mom. After doing some looking around the internet I found web sites with stories and articles about people like me. Many of the stories were based on magic or other stuff. I found myself identifying with the ones were the person always felt they were always girls. I also began reading your magazines. The articles had tips on all sorts of subjects, and I studied them and made notes on how to apply makeup and how to dress properly for a girl my age.” I paused again to catch my breath.

“So what you are telling me is that you feel you are a girl on the inside and want to make the outside match?” Dad asked looking at me with a strange look as if he was surprised he actually asked that.

“Yes that is what she is saying James.” Mom said sarcastically. “Go ahead and finish honey.”

“Well after I got that paper route, I started saving the money I was making. After I thought I had enough money, I went out and got clothes my size and some makeup. Once I had it, I began to practice. Last night was a big step for me. I knew it was only time before I knew I had to tell you how I felt. But I needed to know I could dress up completely and going out last night was to feel the freedom of dressing as a girl outside the confines of my room. It was an exhilarating night that is until I saw the house was on fire.”

“It sounds as if you were trying to overcome your fears. What would you like to do from here? Like I said, it is up to you as how we proceed, with the help of professionals of course.” Mom told me.

“To be honest, I would like nothing more than to live and dress as a girl from this day forward. I know I will have hurdles to overcome.”

“Yes you will and I want you to realize that most people may not like what you are doing. You will be faced with ridicule from some of those you encounter. I want you to think about taking some self defense classes so you can protect yourself.” Dad said sternly.

“Ok dad that is reasonable and sounds like a good idea.”

“That’s good; I will call my friend Mark Tyler and set up classes for you once we get settled. Now we need to get some basic clothes for each of us and find a more permanent place to stay. I say we split up, Karen you take Nicole and Heather shopping for clothes and pick me up a few things. I will look around to see if I can find us a place to stay together until our home is ready.”

Dad then drove us to the local mall and Mom, Heather and I stepped out of the car. Dad leaned over to the passenger side. “Let’s keep in touch; I’ll pick you up in a few hours, otherwise call me when you are ready.”

“Ok James and make sure you are careful by yourself today.”

“I will Karen, I love you all.” Dad said and then drove off leaving us at the mall.

I began to walk to the doors of the mall and then stopped dead in my tracks; there standing in a group of girls was Amy Reed my current girlfriend. She saw my mom and sister walk up, and then her eyes went wide when she looked at me. I thought for sure she would laugh and break up with me. She left the girls she was with behind and walked up to us.

“Hello Mrs. Carlson, Heather.” She said greeting us then whispered to me. “What’s your name?”

“Nicole.” I said and began to tremble.

“You look nice Nicole, nice to meet you.” She then gave me a friendly hug. “What are you doing, are you out shopping today?”

“Basically.” I answered, and then told her about what had happened last night as we walked into the mall. The girls she had been with had gone somewhere else. “What about your friends?” I asked.

“I am so sorry to hear about your house, please if there is anything I can do to help, ask.” She said then explained about her friends. “We were done for today, Carla’s mom was due to pick us up. I just told them I saw someone I knew and would find another way home.”

“You are more than welcome to get a ride with us later, I am sure that Nicole will want help picking out a new wardrobe.” Mom told Amy.

“I’d be happy to help her.”

We all walked into the first store and Amy began picking out clothes for me to try on. I was overwhelmed with anticipation and excitement at being able to try on girl’s clothes and use the women’s fitting room. It turned out to be a nice day for shopping and after visiting all the stores we were all loaded down with bags of new clothes and shoes. Mom gave dad a call on the cell to pick us up as we were walking towards the exit. He told mom it would take about 45 minutes to get back to the mall.

“Well that gives us time to see if we can get into the Salon.” Mom stated then led us into what had been forbidden territory for me.

“Good afternoon, what can I do for you ladies?” The nice woman at the counter asked.

"My daughters and I would like our hair and nails done, and Nicole here,” Mom put her hand on my shoulder “would like her ears pierced.”

I kind of cringed as I thought about the impending pain, but was relieved that it did not hurt at all and I had some nice new gold studs put into the new holes. Once I was told how to care for my new earrings and how to prevent the holes from closing up, I enjoyed the feeling of my new jewelry.

I must tell you the experience of the salon girl putting on the full set of nail and how it felt when she shaped and polished them was exhilarating to say the least. Amy kept smiling at me the whole time while watching. I knew that our relationship after this would be interesting to say the least.

“Now that you’re done, how are you feeling?” Mom asked as she paid the bill.

I was staring in the mirror and did not hear what she had said. “Huh, what?”

Amy came up to me and whispered in my ear. “Your mom wants to know how you feel now.”

“I feel happy and overwhelmed at the same time, I know that there is a long road ahead of me, but I know now that this is right.” I said honestly.

“I am happy for you Nicole, and I will support you, you are after all my girlfriend.” Amy paused for a second. “I have to tell you I love you more now than ever, it’s sexy seeing you dressed so pretty.” She whispered to me.

It was my turn to look at her with wide eyes, she simply smiled at me knowingly and left it at that. We all grabbed our bags and headed out to wait for dad. He was already waiting for us as we got to the side walk. He has standing by the car with a smile as we walked up.

“My don’t you all look nice. Nicole you look beautiful. Are those earrings?”

“Yes daddy, all girls my age have them.”

“I was just wondering” he paused for a second then noticed Amy “Hello Amy, how are you taking all of this.”

“Just fine Mr. Carlson, I think Nicole is very brave. I will certainly have an interesting conversation with my girlfriend later.” She answered.

“Girlfriend?” Dad looked confused “Your still dating?”

“Of course we are daddy, why wouldn’t we? The clothes I wear do not change how I feel about Amy.

“I guess you’re right. By the way I’ve found us a nice apartment to stay in while the house is being rebuilt. The insurance company will replace everything. Our coverage was good and the company is being very helpful and gave us money to live on for the time being.”

With our near future taken care of, dad helped us put all the bags in the trunk. We dropped Amy off at her house, picked up our belongings at the shelter and drove to the apartment that would take the place of our home for the time being.

Once I got the lay of the new three bedroom apartment, I put all my new things away. I was still amazed at how much I had gotten, I now had all the clothes I would need to start living as I should. As I put away my last dress in the closet, I could not help smile at my good fortune in the guise of a destructive and painful fire.

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Author’s Note: The End, or is it, you decide. Please leave feedback.

Nichole was contemplating all the things that had been happening to her and her family. She sat on her unmade bed and stared at all her new clothes and began to softly cry. Edited by STANMAN63, thank you.

 
I was contemplating all the things that had been happening to all of us as I sat on my unmade bed and stared at all my new clothes and began to softly cry. I am not sure why I was crying. I then felt a light hand on my shoulder as Heather sat on my bed next to me, “What’s the matter big sister?” Heather said looking at me then she began to cry herself.

I gave her a hug just for being there, trying to comfort the both of us. I knew the past was going to be hard to forget. The fire had destroyed our home, but seems to have given new life to our family.

“I’m not sure why I was crying Heather; it must be that I finally have time to really think about things. I miss my old room as I’m sure you miss yours too.”

Heather wiped her tears and looked at me. “Yes, I miss my room too.” Heather continued to stare at me. “You know, you’re quite pretty.”

I blushed a little at her comment, and it made me feel wonderful. “Thanks Heather.”

“So tell me, Nikki, how come you never told me about you?” Heather asked kindly.

“Scared, I guess. And I’m sorry about borrowing your stuff without asking.”

“Don’t worry, sister dear, that’s what sisters are for, sharing.”

We then I heard a knock at the apartment door, and shortly after mom yell down the hall, “Nichole, Amy is here to see you.”

“OK, mom. Can you tell her I’m in my room,” I hollered back.

Amy then came into my room and joined Heather and me in talking.

“Having a nice chat?” Nichole asked as she sat at my computer chair.

“Yes we were indeed, Nikki was explaining how she was sorry for using my makeup and why she never told me about being my sister.” Heather said with a smile.

“A nice sister to sister chat, I loved having those with Susan. Now that she is in college, I don’t’ get to talk to her as much. But, now I think it would be nice to have another girl to talk to,” Amy looked right at me and smiled. “What do you think Nichole, my dear?”

“That would be great, Amy! I’ve always wanted to do that, and now I can do that with you and with Heather,” I told her with a smile.

“I know I’ve always wanted help from an older sister, now it looks as if I’m going to be helping her,” Heather said with a laugh. “I’ll leave you two alone so you can talk. See you later, sis,” Heather said as she closed my bedroom door.

“Does all of this mean you are gay Nikki, do you want to be a girl, physically?” Amy asked as she looked at me with a soft face.

I knew these questions were coming and I could not lie to Amy. “No, Amy. I am not gay, but yes, I do feel I need to be a girl. I am one on the inside, now I just have to match the outside. I hope you understand, and I love you, Amy.”

Amy’s face changed from soft to a smile. “I understand, Nikki. But if you can still love me, and you are a girl on the inside. Well that means you are gay, well at least a lesbian. I must be honest with you Nikki, I find it a bit weird that you are a girl, but I think I can live with being with you as a girl. I do love you, very much.”

Amy then leaned over to me and kissed me lightly on the lips. Her kiss felt apprehensive at first then she kissed me harder and I responded and kissed her back, “Wow that was incredible. I never realized kissing another girl would be that nice.” Amy said with a smile. “I know we have kissed in the past, but this was much better.”

“I know, it felt so natural and gave me the chills. I think you are right when you said I am just a lesbian trapped in a boy’s body. Now that everyone knows who I really am, I can freely admit it.”

“What are you going to do for school when summer is over?” Amy asked, concerned.

“Just go back to school like nothing happened. Some people will recognize me from the paper and try belittling me. But I will just hold my head high and smile.”

“Well good for you Nikki and I will support you.”

“Thanks, Amy. you’re the best girlfriend a girl could have.” I told her, smiling big. “Care to give me a hand and help me make my bed?”

“Sure,” Amy said without hesitation.

We had the bed made in a short time and a few minutes later mom called me down for dinner. Amy turned to me as we stepped out of my smaller new bedroom. "Will you go to the movies with me, tomorrow?" She asked with a smile.

"As a date?" I asked a little confused.

"Of course, silly. You are my girlfriend."

"Yes, I will go with you, Amy." I said then gave her a warm hug.

Mom saw us enter the kitchen and smiled.

"Amy, are you still OK with all of this?" Mom asked as we sat at the table.

"I'm OK with it, Mrs. Carlson. In fact I was just telling Nikki how nice it will be to have another girl my age to talk to."

"I know that from experience a good girlfriend to talk to is nice to have."

Dad joined us at the table and we sat quietly for a few moments.

"Mom, Dad, is it ok if I take Amy to the movies tomorrow for a date?" I asked it this way to let my parents know that we were still dating and to see what my dad would say. I got to see his reaction, he spit out his milk all over his shirt and wiped is chin off.

"A date?" he simply said trying to think of something to say.

"Of course a date, honey. They are still a couple and I for one will not stand in the way of true love." Mom said to dad, he still had a dumbfounded look on his face. I think he had it in his mind that I would be dating boys.

"Thank god for that, at least you still like girls." He said without realizing what he was implying.

"Honey, that means Nikki and Amy will be seen as lesbians," Mom said and then laughed, Amy and I could not help but laugh ourselves even Heather was laughing.

Oh, that is funny." Heather said

While dad just sat there and stared at the four of us girls with a stern look then his expression changed to a smile.

"I give up, you can have a relationship with whomever you want, boy, girl, or whatever. That goes for you too, Heather, when you are older of course. I think at least this way I will go gray a lot slower if I just go with the flow."

We all got up and gave my dad a hug.

"You are a wonderful husband and father, I am so lucky to have you," Mom said with a huge smile.

We all then sat back down and finished dinner.

"That was a very nice dinner, Mrs. Carlson," Amy said hugging my mom goodbye "Thanks for inviting me, Mr. Carlson." Amy said.

Dad then turned bright red as we all realized that dad had asked her over. I when straight over to him, he flinched for a second, probably thinking I was mad. I just hugged him tight and told him that I loved him, "I love you, Daddy. I love you, Mom." I said with a tear in my eye. "Thanks for understanding.

"For my new daughter, I would do anything. I realized the love you have for Amy and that you will need support from her now and when you return to school in September."

"Thank you, Daddy." I said as I squeezed the hug harder.

"You're welcome sweetie."

As I broke the hug, I gave Amy a hug and a little kiss goodbye, "I will see you tomorrow and Amy what will you tell your mom about us?"

"I haven't thought about it yet, I'll think of something. Don't worry." Amy said as she kissed me on the lips.

"MMM." I let slip at we parted and Amy left.

"It's so refreshing to see to young people in love," Mom said as we went into the kitchen to clean up.

I helped mom and Heather clean up, nothing new there. I then took a shower and slipped into my new nightie and was soon asleep.

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Author’s Note: To be continued, and as always please leave comments.