This is my first attempt at a drabble, so let me know what you think.

Samantha

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“Jason, I can’t help that the airline lost your luggage, but because you and your sister had this silly bet to dress alike for the flight down, you are going to have to stay dressed as Elizabeth until your bags show up or we get home, which ever comes first.”

“But why can’t I wear Sarah’s jeans?”

“I would imagine that Sarah would be wearing her jeans, and making you wear the skirts...”

“Mom, you should see some of the pants that I packed.” Sarah said with a wicked grin on her face.

“What did you bring?”

“My purple capris, two pair of pink pants, a pair of hot pink capris, and I think that’s it. I’ll be more than happy to share with Lizzy.”

“Ok, then. Looks like it’s settled. I hope this teaches Lizzy a lesson that she won’t forget any time soon.”

“But Mom, Do I have to wear Sarah’s clothes until they find my suitcase?”

“Yes, and I know she packed two swimsuits, so you still get to go swimming. Now go start your bath, while your sister and I find something for you to wear to bed.” I went in the bathroom and started to run my water.

“This would look cute on Elizabeth.” Was the last thing I heard as I shut the door to strip and get in the bath.

I walked out of the bathroom of the hotel and didn’t see Mom or Sarah anywhere.

On the bed was a pair of pink camo capris and a white t-shirt with the words “My next boyfriend will be normal” on the front of it. I wasn’t sure if this was what I had heard Sarah say would be cute on me or not. After I was dressed and had brushed my hair, the door opened and in walked Sarah and Mom.

“See, Told you.” Sarah said to Mom. Sarah was still wearing the pink sleeveless dress that she had worn on the flight down.

“My next boyfriend will be normal?” I asked. “Why this shirt, and these pants?” I motioned to the clothes that I had put on.

“Because It’s actually kind of funny, not that anyone is going to know that you are a boy unless you tell them, also I didn’t bring any pants, only capris and really short shorts.”

“She’s telling the truth, it’s skirts or girly capris for you, young lady.” Mom said.

My mind fluttered back to the stupid bet that we made three days before our departure. I had bet her that I could beat her in arm wrestling. It had completely slipped my mind that she played softball and, would therefore, be stronger than me. She beat me fair and square and had spent the next two days walking around with a smile on her face. Mom knew of the bet and told me it was my fault for getting my self into the mess, and I would have to fly wearing what ever she picked out…

The three of us walked into a restaurant that was attached to the hotel.
“Just the three of you tonight?” The hostess asked. Mom smiled and nodded. We were led to a booth, where I sat next to mom on the inside. Sarah sat across from us. She had put her strawberry blonde hair up in a ponytail secured by a piece of pink ribbon. Mom had brushed out my hair and put it in pigtails. The waiter walked up.

“What can I get you ladies to drink?” He asked. Sarah smiled at me.

We were back in the hotel and getting ready for bed when I saw what was laid out for me to wear. There was a pink satin night gown laying on the bed, and a pair of pink fuzzy slippers on the floor. I shrugged and took of the tee shirt and capris and slipped the night gown over my head. There was a knock on the door. It was mom coming to tuck me in.
“I’m going to lay out your clothes for tomorrow. And then tuck you into bed.” Mom said and then got out a denim skirt and a pink tee shirt.

I had just slipped one of my sisters dresses on and had gotten it zipped up when I froze in response to hearing a sound. I was supposed to be home alone on this particular Saturday, as Mom and Rachel had gone out to do some shopping for one of Rachel’s friends birthday parties.

“Turn around, let me get a look at you.” I heard mom’s voice from behind me. I slowly turned around, figuring that mom was going to be pissed at me, instead she was smiling. “What’s your name?” This puzzled me.

“I’m Justin.” I said, confused by the question. “Am I in trouble?”

“I know what your boy name is, silly. I meant what is your name when you are wearing your sister’s dress?”

“Oh.” I replied softly, my voice almost a whisper. “Emma Michelle.”

“Ok, Emma. How long have you been dressing up?” Mom asked.

“About three years.” I looked at the floor, hoping that it would swallow me where I stood. I saw mom’s hand reach under my chin and then felt it start to rise as she lifted it up.

“Are you afraid that I’m mad at you?” She asked, crouching down to look into my grey eyes.

“Yes.” I said quietly. Mom reached down to take the brush that I was holding in my right hand. I released my grip as she moved behind me and started brushing my hair.

“Why would I be mad at you, Emma?” Mom asked, running the brush through my blonde locks of hair. This had a comforting effect on me.

“Because I’m dressed up in Rachel’s clothes. Speaking of Rachel, where is she?”

“She’s at Lizzy’s. I dropped her off and then came back here to see if my suspicions were correct. She’s been noticing that things weren’t how she left them.” Mom said, bunching my hair into a bunch on the left side of my head. I saw a white ribbon go that direction. Mom did the same thing on the right side of my head and I saw that another white ribbon head toward that side of my head. Judging by the two bunches, I now sported pigtails. Mom gently spun me around so I could see my self in the mirror. A twelve year old girl looked back at me. Rachel was ten, and I was small for my age. I blinked. Mom was standing behind me smiling. “What do you think, Emma?”

“I…” That was the last thing I remembered.

* * *

When I came to, I was in the living room, with Mom rocking me. We were sitting on the couch, and I heard some soft music that I recognized as Beethoven’s Seventh Symphony.

“What happened?” I asked softly. Mom glanced down to see that my eyes had opened.

“Well, I think you fainted. You saw how pretty you were and then it was lights out…” Mom said. I sat up and looked down toward my feet. I was still wearing the baby blue dress and white mary jane’s that I had slipped onto my feet before Mom had startled me. I pinched my arm, wincing in pain. Ok, this isn’t a dream.

“I fainted? I think that’s the first time I’ve ever done that…” I replied.

“It is. How’s your head?”

“It hurts a little bit. Was the girl in the mirror me? That’s the last thing I remember seeing. A cute girl with grey eyes and blonde hair.”

“Yes, Just-“ Mom stopped and looked at me. “Emma. That pretty girl was you. You look just like your sister, only a little older.”

“Can we try the mirror again?” I asked. “I want to get a better look at that little girl.”

“Well, I wouldn’t call her ‘little.’” Mom said with a chuckle. “She may be shorter than other girls her age, but she gets offended if someone calls her little.” I smiled at my mom, she knew me pretty well. One thing I hated was to be called little, but in this case it seemed to fit my current appearance. Mom gently took my hand and led me back upstairs to her room where she had a full length mirror. Mom stopped at the top of the steps. “Close your eyes, sweetheart.” I did as she requested and felt her lead me along the carpeted floor. I figured we were going into her room. “Open your eyes.” Mom whispered in my ear. I did as I was instructed.

“Mom, are you sure that’s me?” I asked. The mouth of the girl in the mirror moved as I spoke. I lifted my right hand and the pretty girl in the mirror lifted her right hand as well. Mom was standing behind me smiling.

“Yes, Emma. That pretty little girl is you.” Mom said.

“I’ve never looked like this when I’ve dressed up by my self. How did you do it?” Mom smiled.

“Trade secret.” Mom said chuckling. “Your sister will be home soon, unless you want her to know about Emma, you need to go get changed and transform your self back into Justin. Bring me the dress and shoes after you change.”

“Umm, Mom, I’m also wearing ah…” I let thought trail off.

“Panties?” Mom finished for me. I nodded. “Give them to me and I’ll take care of them.”

“Ok.” I said, walking into my room to change.

To be continued...

It was next Saturday morning when Rachel, mom and I were sitting in the living room. We had just eaten what mom had called a ‘Full English Breakfast.’ I think that this was the first time I had ever eaten baked beans for breakfast, but it was a full, hearty, breakfast that wouldn’t be leaving me any time soon. I figured there was a reason for this.

“Mom, I’m going to go over to Lizzy’s.” Rachel said. Mom glanced up from the catalog that she was looking at. She had been sitting in the living room flipping though catalogs all morning, marking things.

“Ok. Be back before six. We’re going out for dinner.” Rachel and I glanced at each other. Normally mom cooked at home, and we had better food than what we ever ate while we were out.

“Why are we going out for dinner?” I asked as this was different from what we normally did.

“Because by the time you and I get done today, neither one of us is going to want to cook.” Mom said with a smile. I suddenly figured out what she meant. I blinked and she slightly nodded. Rachel was slipping a pair of sandals on her feet.

“I’ll call you if any thing changes, Mom.” Rachel said, before slamming the front door as she left. It didn’t matter what her mood was doors tended to slam around her. Mom smiled at me as I relaxed on the couch, curled with a book. I had my feet tucked under me, and occasionally I would reach up and brush my shoulder blade length hair back and tuck it behind my ear. Mom never asked when I was going to get a haircut and now she knew the reason. Mom had been smiling as he had tucked the hair back while he was at home all week. At school, Justin simply put the bundle of hair in a loose ponytail, low at the base of his neck rather than high on the head like all the girls wore theirs.

“Emma, Go up and get a shower. I’ll lay something for you to wear on your bed.” Mom said. I blinked.

“Where are we going?” I asked.

“You’ll see, go get a shower.” Mom insisted. For some reason, her smile did the opposite of comforting me, it scared me. I stood and made my way upstairs, pausing long enough to strip and grab my robe before heading to the bathroom to take a shower. I heard the door open and then close as I took my shower. I didn’t think anything of it until I pulled the shower curtain back and saw Rachel’s pink robe hanging on the hook where I had left my robe. I shrugged and slipped the pink robe on and headed to my room. Mom was true to her word and laying on my bed was a pink short sleeved tee shirt with a picture of a golden retriever puppy on it and a short denim skirt. On the floor a pair of pink canvas sneakers waited for my feet. I looked at my pillow, there was a white camisole and white pair of panties laying there. I slipped them on and then pulled the shirt over my head. I stepped into the skirt and then slid my feet in the shoes. I opened the door as Mom was about to knock. I smiled and looked at her.

“Come one, Emma, Let’s get your hair done,” Mom said, taking my hand and guiding me towards her room. When we got there, she had already gotten some pink ribbon out to do the same thing that she had done to my hair the week before. Mom worked her magic and then handed me a small purse. I looked at the girl in the mirror, not fainting this time.

“Mom, she’s pretty.” I said, The girl in the mirrors lips moved.

“I know, she’s her mother’s daughter. Emma, I was thinking that we could go shopping. You need some of your own clothes.” I slowly turned to look at my mom.

“You–” I paused to figure out how I wanted to say what was going though my head. “Want me to go out dressed like this?” Mom walked to my right and then crouched, gently turning me to my right so I faced her.

“No one is going to see anything other than a mother and her daughter shopping. If I hadn’t looked at your eyes, I wouldn’t have known who you were last week.” She said, holding both of my hands in hers. “I’m not going to let anything happen to you, I promise.” We walked back downstairs and then out to into the garage. Mom opened the door on the Honda Pilot that she drove and let me get in. She smiled as I brushed the skirt underneath me as I sat, shut the door and then went around to get into the drivers side and got in. The back windows on the car were tinted, which meant that unless someone saw me from the front windows, they wouldn’t know I was here. The garage door opened and mom pulled out, pausing long enough to shut it and then we were on our way to the mall.

* * *

We had been shopping for about an hour when I heard a voice that I recognized.

“Mom!”

We had been shopping for about an hour when I heard a voice that I recognized. Mom and I each had bags that contained various pieces of my new wardrobe, and I was holding on to her hand.

“Mom!” Mom squeezed my hand and we both ignored the voice that we recognized as belonging to Rachel. “Mom, Wait up.” Rachel must have ran to catch up to us. By now we had people looking at us.

“Oh, Hi Rachel.” Mom said. “What are you doing here?”

“Lizzy’s mom thought we needed to burn off some energy, so she brought us here.” Rachel said. She glanced at me. “Mom, who’s that little girl?” It took everything in me to not respond to Rachel calling me little.

“Rachel, I’d like you to meet Emma.” Mom said to Rachel. Rachel had on a pair of denim shorts and a pink camisole. Rachel looked me up and down.

“Hi Emma.” Rachel said, with a smile. I had obviously passed muster with her and she thought I was a girl.

‘Gee wiz,’ I thought ‘Does everyone think I’m a girl.’

“Hi Rachel.” I said. Rachel turned to their mother.

“Mom, who is she? She looks like Justin.” By now Lizzy and her mom had caught up to Rachel.

“Hi Sharon.” Lizzy’s mom said to mom. Now I had Rachel and Lizzy giving me a once over. For some reason I started to get scared and moved behind mom.

“Hello Rebecca.” Mom said. She glanced around. “Let’s go back to our house so we can discuss this… I wasn’t going to tell Rachel yet, but it may be time.”

“Tell me what?” Rachel asked.

“You’ll find out soon enough.” Mom said, leading us out side. Mom, Rachel and I got into Mom’s car, and we watched as Lizzy and her mom, Rebecca got into their car which happened to be parked four spaces away. Mom backed out and drove toward the house. I looked behind us and saw that Rebecca and Lizzy were in their car following us. It looked like they were having an animated discussion. Mom backed the car in the driveway, and Rebecca pulled in, shut off her engine and got out of her car. The five of us walked into the kitchen where mom started a pot of tea. Mom looked at Rachel, Lizzy and I. “Girls, go sit in the living room, and wait for us, and please no asking Emma questions.” The three of us nodded and headed into the living room. The children sat on the couch which would hold three adults, and Mom and Rebecca sat on the love seat which seated two.

“Ok, Everyone has been wondering who Emma is. Emma is, well, Emma.” I blinked a few times. This wasn’t what I expected to happen.

“Huh?” I heard Rachel say. Being two years younger than me, I didn’t expect her to get what Mom said, never mind the fact that I didn’t understand it.

“Rachel, Emma is your sister. She is going to need our love and support for some time to come if my guess is correct.” Mom said. Rachel’s jaw dropped and she looked at me.

“Wait, Emma is Justin?” She said.

“Yes, When I got pregnant with Justin, I was majoring in Computer Sciences with a minor in psychology. I was actually thinking about switching that around when I learned that I was pregnant. One thing led to another and I ended up leaving school to raise your brother. When I left school we had just finished studying about a diagnosis called Gender Identity Disorder.” This got the three children looking at each other. “I’ve been noticing signs in Justin that have had me pouring over my notes and doing some research on my own. Emma, you have an appointment on Tuesday.” Rachel reached over and hugged me, a little tighter than I would have liked, but it was still a hug, something that Justin rarely got from Rachel.

“Mom, how long is Emma going to stay with us?”

“As long as she needs to. Rachel, you thought that Justin had been getting into your things for a while now, right?” Mom asked. Rachel and I both blushed.

“Yes, Mom.” Rachel said.

“So this has been going on for a while then. Emma, come here.” I got up and walked over to where mom was sitting on the love seat and sat on her lap where her right hand was resting. I curled up into my mother like I always did. I couldn’t believe that Mom had just told Rachel and Lizzy about Emma. I laid my head on mom’s shoulder and started sobbing. Mom stroked my hair and I calmed down. Rachel and Lizzy were looking at me, but not with hatred in their eyes, they were full of compassion.

“Emma, what do you think about sticking around for a little bit?” I lifted my head from Mom’s shoulder and looked at her.

“Emma, what do you think about sticking around for a little bit?” I lifted my head from Mom’s shoulder and looked at her.

“What do you mean?” I asked, looking into her blue eyes.

“Spend the next few days as Emma, without changing back into Justin’s clothes.” I just glanced at my mother like she had lost her mind. I was happier as Emma than I ever had been as Justin. Rachel and Lizzy both looked at me, trying to figure out what my answer was going to be.

“If I don’t like being Emma full time, can I switch back to being Justin?” I asked, quietly.

“Yes, you can. I’m not going to stop you. But I will say that you seem like you are happier as Emma. You seemed like you were sad when you took off Rachel’s dress last Saturday.” Mom kissed my forehead.

“That’s because I was.” I stated quietly. “I’m not happy being Justin. Boys don’t get to have all the fun clothes, and they can’t put their hair in pigtails, can’t have ribbons tickle their ears. Most boys don’t know what they are missing.” Mom, Rachel and Lizzy all looked looked at me as if I had just made a profound statement.

“I always thought having the ribbons tickle my ears was slightly annoying…” Rachel said.

“I actually kinda like it.” I replied. “I missed it after Mom took the pigtails out of my hair last Saturday. It kinda reminds me how to act.”

“Yeah, but you’ve always been kinda girlish in the way you act.” Rachel smiled. “When was the last time that your hair was short like most other boys?” This one I had to think about.

“It’s been a few years…” I mumbled.

“You like having long hair, don’t you?” Mom asked. The last time that she had asked me to get it cut, I threw a fit and didn’t have to.

“Yes.” I smiled, and then ran my fingers through my shoulder blade length dishwater blonde hair. “I want to grow it out and then donate it to kids with cancer…” Mom looked at me.

“That’s what you want to do with that pretty hair?” Mom asked. Lizzy and Rachel looked at each other.

“Let’s do it together.” Rachel said. Lizzy ran her hand over her mid back length strawberry blonde hair.

“Ok.” Lizzy said. Her mom looked at her, surprised.

“Is anyone hungry?” Mom asked. This is almost a trick question when you are talking to a twelve year old and two ten year olds.

“Yes.” The three of us said at once. Mom looked at Rebecca.

“Where should we go?”

“Somewhere with something the girls will eat.” Rebecca said. She knew that the three of us were picky eaters.

“What about that new pizza buffet place over at the shopping center?” Mom shrugged. Rachel and I looked at each other and smiled. We had been wanting to go there since we had heard that it opened.

“Sounds good to me. Do you want to just take your van rather than two cars?”

“Yeah, Lets take the van.” Mom said, and then she stood up. Rachel and I stood up and started to head for the door to go out and get in the van. “Woah, guys, hang on.” Rachel and I stopped and looked at Mom. “Emma, go wash your face. No daughter of mine is going to leave this house with tear stains on her face.”

“Yes, Mother.” I said, and headed for the bathroom on the first floor to wash my face. Once I had done that I rejoined the others where they standing by the back door. Mom opened the door on the van using remote and watched as we ran out and got in the back of the van. Rebecca and Mom both walked out of the house and Mom turned and locked the door, and then got in the front seats. We had already buckled our seat belts and were ready to go. Mom and Rebecca buckled their belts and Mom started the van. Ten minutes later, mom parked the van and we started to pile out. Rachel and I were used to waiting on Mom to walk with us. We all walked in to the restaurant.

“Who wants to go shopping?” Mom asked, after draining the rest of her drink. We were attempting to shop that morning when we had encountered Rebecca, Lizzy and Rachel.

“We never finished shopping for me this morning.” I said. Mom looked at me and smiled.

“Mom, Can I go back to Lizzy’s?” Rachel asked.

“Fine by me.” Rebecca shrugged.

“Ok, I’ll drop you guys at the house and then Emma and I can go continue our shopping.” Mom said, taking Rachel’s hand and starting toward the door. I followed Mom and Rachel outside and got in the van. The van was quiet on the way home and once we got there, Mom gave Rachel a kiss and then watched as the three of them got out and got in Rebecca’s Honda and drove away. Mom put the van in gear and we were off to the mall, for the second and hopefully final time today.

Mom and I went shopping for more stuff than I knew existed. When we were finally done, I now had a female wardrobe that rivaled Rachel’s and I knew that we would be able to share things between us. It was late afternoon when we pulled in the driveway.

“Emma, go put your stuff on your bed, I’ll be up in a little bit to help you put it away.”

“Yes, Mom.” I replied, taking the bags out of the back of the van and carrying them into the house. Well, it looks like being a girl isn’t going to get me out of any chores. Mom went into the kitchen and started pulling stuff out of the fridge. I sat the bags on my bed and went back down stairs, my skirt tickling the back of my legs. I walked in the kitchen and tried to figure out what Mom was cooking for dinner. You know how they say that mothers have eyes in the back of their heads? I’m convinced that they do.

“Emma, put that apron on, and you can help me make the roast that we will have tomorrow night.” Mom said without turning from the counter where she was slicing something.. I was fairly certain that I hadn’t made any noise as I came in the kitchen. I put the apron on and walked over to where mom was slicing carrots. I was already used to helping mom in the kitchen as she thought that knowing how to cook was a good skill to have. “Can you cube those potatoes for me.”

“Sure,” I said, picking up the knife and turning the potatoes that mom had already peeled into cubes. When I was done, Mom looked at me.

“Do you still have your fingers?” She asked with a chuckle. I held up both of my hands to indicate that, yes, I still had all of my digits. Mom shook her head and smiled. “Ok, bring those potatoes over and put them in with the roast.” Mom instructed. I took the bowl that I had placed the cubed potatoes in and carefully placed them around the roast that mom had already put in part of the crock pot. Mom dropped her sliced carrots into the pot and then slid the whole thing into the fridge so that she could cook it for dinner tomorrow. .

“Now what?” I asked.

“Now we call Rebecca and Lizzy and ask them to bring Rachel home in two hours and join us for dinner.” Mom said before heading to the phone and making the call. I went back up to my room to start sorting out my clothes and putting them away. I started by simply removing things from the bags and sitting them on the bed. I organized the clothes before trying to figure out where to put them On the bed was a pile of skirts, a pile of dresses, a pile of tee shirts and piles of panties and vests. The panties and vests were going to be easy, those went in the dresser. The tee shirts could go there also, but I was at a loss as where to put the other stuff. I heard a knock on my door, and turned to see mom standing there.

“What should I do with the dresses and skirts?” I asked, picking the panties and vests up and placing them in the top drawer of my dresser.

“Let me go see if your sister or I have any skirt hangers.” Mom said and then disappeared. I rearranged my top drawer and put the panties and vests in next to my boy underwear… Mom came back in carrying some hangers that I’d never seen before. They looked like they would grip the waist band of the skirt and let it hang freely in the closet. Mom picked up a pink skirt and put it in the hanger. I watched as Mom took the skirt and hung it next to my pants in the closet. Mom took care of the skirts and left one dress laying on the bed. The dress was a baby pink color, something that I don’t think that most twelve year old girls would wear that color. Rachel was a tomboy so she typically didn’t wear much in the way of dresses or skirts. I glanced at Mom.

“Why didn’t you put that dress in the closet?”

“I want you to wear it to dinner. Your sister isn’t very girly, and judging by what I caught you in last week, you are the more girly of the two of you.” Mom said. I knew that she was right. I think that I would prefer skirts over shorts, at least until the weather turned colder, and then I might have to switch to pants… “I think the color will set your eyes off. The only other color that I can think of that would set them off more is blue.” Mom said. Rachel had blue eyes, and Mom always tried to get her in a blue dress on school picture day. Mom eventually gave up on dresses and settled for blue shirts.

“Mommy, Next time we go shopping can we get me a blue dress?”

A Birthday party, and potential trouble...

Mom pulled the van into Lizzy’s driveway and shut off the engine. I was sitting in one of the two captain chairs, when the door on the passenger side of the van opened and Lizzy, Rebecca, and Rachel walked out of the house. Rachel took her usual seat behind the normally empty passenger seat and Lizzy sat in the middle of the third row. Rebecca climbed in next to Mom, she spun in the seat to look at me.

“You look like you are dressed up for a birthday party.” Rebecca said to me.

“That’s because it is Emma’s birthday.” Mom said. Rebecca and Rachel looked at mom as she backed the van out of the driveway.

“It is?” I asked quietly. I was bewildered by this. My birthday was in September. September 23rd to be exact. “My birthday is in September…”

“Justin’s birthday is in September.” Rachel said.

“I know, be we are talking about Emma, and her birthday is today, June 25th.” Rachel and I looked at each other.

“Is that why you bought me this pretty dress?” I asked, already knowing the answer.

“Yes.” Mom said, slowing at a red light. Rachel looked at me.

“You can keep the dresses, I’ll keep my pants…” She said. “In fact, you can take the dresses and skirts from my closet and dresser and put them in your room.” Mom chuckled.

“I told you that you were the girlier of my two daughters.” Mom said as the light changed. “I think it would be cute to get the two of you in matching dresses and get some pictures taken.”

“At least you have a girly daughter, I have to fight mine to wear a skirt or dress and she does that about twice a year…” Rebecca said. I glanced back at Lizzy. She was rolling her eyes.

“Mom, I hate wearing skirts. I only dress up at Christmas and on school picture day… There are some girls in my class that don’t even do that.” Lizzy said.

“Yes, but I would like you to look nice in your pictures…” Rebecca let the thought trail off.

“I fight Rachel every year for pictures… I’ve settle for blue blouses that show off her eyes.” Mom said.

“And I hate wearing them every year.” Rachel said. Mom parked the van in front of a local restaurant that was known for their sundae bar. Rachel, Lizzy and I looked at each other and grinned. A sundae bar for a girls birthday party sounded really good to me., but then again, I was the birthday girl.

“Alright, lets go in.” Mom said, shutting the engine off and opening the doors on the van. We all piled out and then walked into the restaurant.

“Good evening, just five of you tonight, three kids and two adults?” The hostess whose name tag read ‘Heather’ asked.

“Yes,” Mom said. Heather then turned around and pulled three kids menus and two adults menus from the racks behind her. She led the way to a large round table mere feet from the sundae bar. “Dinner first, and then you can have the sundae bar.” Was Mom’s response to our drooling at the sundae bar. Our server walked over and looked at the five of us seated around the table.

“Good Evening, ladies, I’m Akira, and I’ll be your server this evening. What can I start you off with to drink?" She asked. I glanced at her, and then at mom. She was wearing a white blouse, a short pleated black skirt, black tights with snow flakes and snow men on them, and a thin black tie. I idly wondered if she was warm in the tights, as she looked like she was wearing a rather thick pair.

“We’ll have diet cokes,” Mom said, pointing to her and Rebecca. “And chocolate milk for the girls.” The three of us grinned at each other. One thing that we shared was a love for chocolate milk.

“Ok, I’ll be back in a few minutes, why don’t you have a look at the menu while you wait.” Akira said, spinning on her heel and heading toward a computer to enter our drinks into the system. I watched as she walked away and saw that she was wearing some shoes that looked like the Mary Janes that I had slipped on my feet but had a fairly high heel (to me anyway, I don’t think I would walk in the shoes she had on…) Mom and Rebecca also had watched her walk away.

“I think that my feet would be killing me by the end of a shift in those shoes.” Mom said. “I don’t know how kids these days do it. I would also be burning up in what she had on…”

“Me too.” Rebecca said, turning her attention from the server and back to the menu. “Chicken fingers.” She glanced at the three of us and then at mom. The three of us were nodding.

“Looks like the girls are happy with it, a grilled chicken salad sounds good to me.” Mom sat the menu down. Akira was coming back with our drinks. We ordered our food and then Heather sat a family of four at the table next to us. One of the kids that sat down was Shane Barker, someone that picked on me at school…

Shane paid no attention to the family that sat next to the table that his family sat at. I was grateful, and honestly paid no attention to him or his family. Our food came and we ate. When we were done, Mom looked at us.

“Who wants ice cream?” Mom asked, stacking the plates that our chicken tenders had been on. Rachel, Lizzy and my self must have looked at her like she was nuts, because she started laughing. “Ok, we’ll get it as soon as our server comes back.” Almost as if she knew that she were being talked about, Akira appeared behind mom.

“Are we ready for dessert?” She asked. Mom jumped slightly, not realizing that Akira was behind her. “Sorry.” Akira said.

“Yes, we are ready for dessert.” Rebecca said as Mom recovered from having the snot scared out of her.

“For all five of you, or just the kids?” Rebecca looked at Mom.

“All five of us. Also, it’s the young lady in pinks birthday today.” Mom said. I hadn’t expected her to tell the staff that it was my birthday. Usually when the staff in a restaurant was told that it was someone’s birthday, they all came out singing… I had a feeling that I would be blushing in short order… Akira smiled.

“What’s your name, sweetheart?” Akira asked me.

“Emma.” I answered quietly…

“Happy birthday, Emma.” Akira said, “How old are you?”

“Twelve.” I said. I’m really one. I thought. Mom winked at me.

“Are we doing the sundae bar for our dessert?” Akira asked.

“Yes.” Mom said.

“Ok, you guys go help your selfs.” Akira said. I stood and felt the hem of my dress fall back to just above my knees. The white lace trim tickling the backs of my legs. I brushed a few locks of my blonde hair back behind my ear and made my way to the sundae bar and created a bowl of vanilla ice cream and sprinkles. I carried it back to the table and sat down, right as half the staff of the restaurant walked up and sang me happy birthday. Akira gently sat a small cake in front of me with a single candle on it. “Happy first birthday.” She whispered into my ear. I slowly turned and looked at her. She was smiling. I made a wish and blew the candle out and then looked at Akira. She still had the smile on her face and it was obvious that she knew more than everyone else on the staff. After the rest of the staff had gone back to working their tables, Akira remained by our table. I noticed that all of the female staff had on skirts and tights that were anything but plain.

“How did you know?” I asked her. She gave me a shy smile, and pointed at Mom.

“She told me. Welcome to the fairer sex, and enjoy every moment of it.” Akira whispered. I felt my cheeks heat up. Akira giggled, and I started eating my ice cream before it melted. Mom was smiling watching me. Akira patted my shoulder and then went to check on another of her tables. Mom was smiling at me.

“Happy birthday, sweetheart.” Mom said, pulling a small, gift wrapped box from her purse and sliding it across to me. I looked at Mom, and then at the box. “Go on, open it.” I did so. Inside was a necklace with a small pearl as a pendant. Rachel was peering over my left shoulder.

“That’s pretty.” She stated, matter-of-factly. My eyes went from the necklace to Mom.

“Thank you!” I said getting up and going around the table to give mom a hug. After our embrace ended, Mom pulled the necklace out of the box and placed it around my neck. Not used to wearing necklaces, it took me a few minutes to get used to the feeling of the gold chain around my neck. I reached up and felt the pendant.

“You’re welcome, and there is a matching set of earrings. We would need to pierce your ears for that though…” Mom said, sounding unsure of whether or not I would want them pierced.

“Do I have to decide now?” I asked.

“No. There are a lot of girls your age that don’t have pierced ears.” Mom responded. I looked at her smiled.

“I don’t know of too many one year olds that have pierced ears…” I replied with a chuckle.

“You’re not one, you look like your ten…” I heard a familiar voice say behind me.

“I don’t know of too many one year olds that have pierced ears…” I replied with a chuckle.

“You’re not one, you look like your ten…” I heard a familiar voice say behind me. I blinked at Mom once and then turned around. Standing behind me was Abby Jenkins. Abby was the daughter of one of mom’s coworkers, and someone that I knew in passing from school. “Good evening, Mrs. Fisher. How are you?” I gave Abby a quick look up and down. She had a blue tee shirt that read ‘Fun at the beach’ and a pair of jeans on. Her long strawberry blonde hair was tied back in a ponytail with a white ribbon.

“Hi Abby.” I said, Now it was Abby’s turn to blink. She hadn’t figured out who I was yet, and me speaking to her didn’t give her any ideas as to who I was. She raised her eyebrows.

“Do I know you?” She asked. Rachel giggled.

“Maybe.” I said quietly. “I’m Emma.” Abby continued to look at me, still not sure of who I was.

“Abby, you’ve met Emma, you just don’t remember her. How is your summer going?” Mom asked. Abby’s gaze shifted from me to Mom.

“It’s going well, we are leaving for the Florida Keys tomorrow. Are you sure that I’ve met Emma?” I glanced back at mom, hoping that she would come to some explanation as to who Emma was.

“Yes, I’m as sure of it as the nose on my face.” Mom said with a chuckle. I brushed a few strands of my blonde hair back out of my face. Mom had left a few strands on each side of my face loose so that they would frame my face. It was something that almost all of the girls that were in my class did with their hair, and something that I thought would be annoying. I hardly noticed, unless I moved my head in such a way that the hair fell into my eyes. Abby had moved her right hand to her chin as she thought about where she might know this little girl named Emma from. She looked at me, and then at Rachel, and then back to me and I saw a look of realization pass over her face, her sparkling green eyes widened for a second and then she smiled.

“Emma’s not a girl…” She said, a little louder than I would have liked. Shane turned his head, and realized who was sitting at the next table. He had been so engrossed in quietly picking on his six year old sister that he simply hadn’t paid attention to what was going on around him. His gaze shifted from Rachel to Lizzy, to Abby, and finally he stopped on me. He gave me a good look up and down, and then he smiled. It wasn’t a smile that I wanted to see. Mom’s eyes went from me to Shane, and back to me. She raised an eyebrow; she knew of the problems that Shane had caused for me at school.

“If Emma’s not a girl, then who is it, Abby?” he said jeeringly. He looked me up and down again, like I was a piece of meat or something.

“I’m not sure. I know that Mrs. Fisher has a son, but I don’t see him anywhere around here…” Abby let the thought trail off. I’m dead meat now. I thought. I was pretty sure that Abby knew who was standing in front of her. It was at that second that Shane figured out who I was.

“That’s because Emma is Justin.” Shane said loudly. Now several tables turned to look at this rather loud boy. I felt my cheeks turn red and then my eyes started to water. I felt a tear slip out. “Oh look the little sissy is crying. Just wait until I tell everyone I know that Justin Fisher was wearing his little sister’s dress when he went out to eat.” I ran out of the restaurant. I don’t know where I was planning on going, but I know that I ended up on the ground next to mom’s van. I was on my knees, when I felt a pair of arms around me. I knew they weren’t Rachel’s, moms, Lizzy’s, or Rebecca’s. I looked up, expecting to see Shane Barker, but I saw the very concerned face of Abby Jenkins. I heard the doors on the van click and saw the lights flash out of the corner of my eye, and the door in front of me slid open. Abby helped me up and into the van and she shut the door, locking it after it had closed. I sat in one of the captains chairs, with Abby’s arms still around me. Abby’s left hand was stroking my hair and she was gently rocking me. A few seconds later I heard the doors on the van click again and watched as Mom and Rachel came out, followed by Akira as well as a man in a tie. I sat up and looked at Abby in the light that filtered in from outside the van. She too had tears flowing down her face, almost as if she were sorry for me or something.

“Why did you come after me?” I asked as Mom opened the door on the van. She looked at me and Abby and realized that Abby had the situation under control.

“Because I’ve been in your shoes...” Was Abby’s simple, but profound statement.

“Why did you come after me?” I asked as Mom opened the door on the van. She looked at me and Abby and realized that Abby had the situation under control.

“Because I’ve been in your shoes…” Was Abby’s simple, but profound statement. I slowly glanced up at her.

“What do you mean?” I asked quietly. Mr. Barker was dragging Shane out of the restaurant by his ear and marching him toward where Abby and I sat in the van. I pointed out the window toward Shane and his father. I saw Mr. Barker stop and talk to mom, and then the door on the van slid open and Mr. Barker drug Shane to the open door.

“Miss Fisher, Shane has something he would like to say to you.” Mr. Barker said.

“I’m sorry Emma, Justin, whoever you are.” Shane said, and then looked at the ground. Abby glanced at me, Shane had never apologized to any of his victims before…

“You’ve been messing up my life for several years and the only thing you can say right now is you’re sorry? I hate to break it to you, but sorry isn’t going to cut it. I know that you were close to being expelled for your stunts at school, and I hope you are.” I said, feeling a little pissed at him.

“He won’t be returning to Emerson Elementary in September…” Mr. Barker said. Shane shuddered knowing what was coming next. “His mother and I have known for quite some time what his antics at school had been doing to the students that he tormented. Shane will be attending The Chatfield School; It’s a school for boys that are delinquents. Maybe then he will shape his act up. Until he starts school there, he is grounded, and I think dresses may be in his wardrobe in the future… Petticoat punishment worked with me…” Mr. Barker let the thought trail off. “He won’t be telling anyone about what he saw tonight, and if he does, I wouldn’t want to be him… I told your mom that if you have problems with any of his friends that he’s told, for her to let me know…”

“Thank you, Mr. Barker.” Was all that I could say. I was grateful that his parents had finally gotten fed up with his antics and were going to do something about it. Abby and I watched as Mr. Barker drug Shane toward their car. While Mr. Barker had been speaking to me, a gentlemen in a polo and slacks had approached mom and was talking to her and he kept glancing at Abby and I. I pointed him out to Abby.

“Oh, that’s my dad. He’s a lawyer so who knows what he and your mom are talking about.” She said, with a shrug. I had never met her father. He walked over and poked his head into the door of the van.

“Emma, I’m Daniel Jenkins, Abby’s dad. Would you like to come over and visit when we get back from our vacation? I would like to talk to your mom about some stuff.” Abby’s dad said. I glanced at Abby, who shrugged. “Abby, do you have everything under control in there?”

“Yes. I was just about to tell Emma my story, or at least the important parts…”Abby responded, bushing a piece of her strawberry blonde hair back behind her ear.

“Ok. I’ll have them box up what’s left of your dinner, and you can eat it later.” Mr. Jenkins said, before turning and heading back into the restaurant. Mom spoke to Mr. Jenkins for a few more moments and then he went back inside.

“What did you mean that you’ve been in my shoes?” I asked again.

“I wasn’t always Abigail Elizabeth Jenkins.” Abby began. “I was born as Andrew Edward Jenkins, and I had a condition knows as partial androgen insensitivity syndrome. It was discovered after I had complained about my chest being sore for no apparent reason. When the doctors told me that I would more than likely, regardless of which gender I decided to live as, develop as a female, I took what would be the easiest path to keep my life as normal as possible.” I interrupted Abby.

“Wait, you’re saying that you were a boy? I’ve known you for years and never knew that…” I said, my voice full of surprise.

“Yep. We only told those that needed to know. Did you ever wonder why you never hear me talk of gym class?” Abby gave a little smile. “I have been excused from gym for the foreseeable future, at dad’s request. He wants me to adjust to being a girl before he lets me get into the kind of stuff we do in gym.”

“How often do you wear skirts?” I asked out of curiosity. I preferred skirts and dresses over pants and shorts.

“I normally wear skirts. In fact, I have an ankle length pink dress to wear on the plane tomorrow. I think the only things in my luggage are skirts. I have nice legs and I think that I should show them off.” We watched as Mr. Jenkins came back out side with Abby’s little sister Nicole.

“Is Nicole a girl?” I asked watching them walk toward the van. Mom, Rebecca, Rachel, and Lizzy were sitting on a bench waiting on Abby and I to finish our conversation. Abby laughed.

“Yes, Nicole is very much a girl. I’m going to have to teach her the finer points of being a girl, though. She’s looked up to me ever since mom died.” I knew that her mother had died, but I didn’t know how she had died. “I miss mom. She never really got to see me grow up. The drunk driver has no clue what he took from us…” I reached over and hugged Abby, who hugged me back.

“I’m sorry Abby.” I said quietly. She sniffled and looked at me.

“Don’t be. Sometimes I get like this. Nicole never really knew mom, so it’s up to me to act as the ‘mom’.” Abby said.

“I know what you mean, although I don’t know my father, he ran out after Rachel was born. Said he couldn’t cope or something. I just hope that if I decide to stay as Justin, I am nothing like him.” Abby smiled.

“Can I say something without you getting mad at me?” She asked, and then bit her lip.

“Yeah.” I replied, wondering what she was going to say.

“I think you make a better girl than a boy. You’ve always been so gentle and kind. Plus for the longest time, from the back, it was very easy to picture you as a girl.” My jaw dropped, that was not what I had expected to hear…

“I think you make a better girl than a boy. You’ve always been so gentle and kind. Plus for the longest time, from the back, it was very easy to picture you as a girl.” Abby stated. My jaw dropped, that was not what I had expected to hear…

“I look like a girl?” I asked. Abby giggled.

“Yes, if you didn’t, you would have been made long before I figured out who you were with some coaxing from your mom, and you do look like you’re ten, not twelve. It’s ok for a girl to look young, but at our age we are all trying to look older.” Abby said. “Use it to your advantage, right now you have the time to figure out where you fit in this puzzle called life. If you wait a few years, you will have lost the perfect opportunity.”

“Mom is taking me to see someone on Tuesday, someone that she used to go to school with. She said that she was studying psycololgy when she got pregnant with me.”

“You mean psychology?” Abby said, with a smile. Mom pushed the button on the remote and opened the door on the van. We both looked at Mom, who smiled.

“Yeah, that.” Abby’s dad poked his head around the side of the door, scaring the living daylights out of Abby.

“Daddy!” Abby shrieked. I giggled. “You’re going to give me a heart attack one of these days…”

“I doubt that, sweetheart.” Mr. Jenkins said laughing. “We need to get home and get to bed, our plane leaves at quarter till seven, and that means that we need to be at the airport at five thirty. I’ll call Sharon when we get there and you guys can talk then. I will be corresponding with Sharon quite frequently while we are in Florida.”

“Ok. Daddy.” Abby said, climbing out of the van. I followed her out and stood next to her. Abby did something that shocked me: she turned and hugged me. I was unaccustomed to getting hugs from people. Guys didn’t do that, it’s was not manly or something stupid like that. I hugged her back. Being able to talk to her had helped me a bit. Nicole and Rachel were talking. They were about the same age, and new friends wouldn’t hurt either of them.

“Abby, Nicole, we need to get going. You girls can catch up when we get back. I’m sure that we will see more of Emma and Rachel. Sharon, call me if you have any problems with Shane or his friends.” Mom nodded. Abby turned and smiled at me. Abby’s dad was the next one to turn and look at me. “Emma, keep your chin up, and don’t let anyone stop you from being yourself.” He walked over and hugged me, giving me a kiss on the forehead. I blushed and watched as he did the same to Rachel. He just gave Lizzy a hug. We watched as the three of them walked over and got in their car.

#

I must have fallen asleep on the way back to the house because I woke to Rachel shaking me. I looked and saw that we were parked in the garage. Unbuckling my seat belt, I opened the door and got out, giving a little stretch, and made a little sound that caused mom to turn and look at me with a smile on her face.

“Emma, go upstairs and get changed into something for bed. May I suggest the baby blue satin night gown that we got for you?” I smiled sleepily and went up stairs and got out the night gown that mom suggested for me. I slipped the dress over my head and dropped it in my hamper. I looked down at the baby pink panties that I wore and then walked over to the dresser and opened the top drawer. This was where we had put all of my new undergarments. There was a pair of baby blue panties in the drawer that matched the night gown and had white lace across the butt. I still didn’t understand this. Surely the nightgown would cover my butt, right? Hooking my thumbs in the waist band of the panties that I had on, I shimmied my way out of them in the same way I thought a girl might. In my mind, my outward appearance was finally matching the way my insides were wired… I pulled the ruffled panties up to my hips and looked at my self in the mirrored closet door. I turned around and looked at the ruffles that now covered my bottom. I thought that they were really cute, but still failed to see the point of having them if no one would see them. I opened the bottom drawer of the dresser and pulled out the night gown. I slipped the cool satin over my head and instantly realized why the panties had lace on them. I could, depending on how I moved, see the lace on the backside of the panties. There was a knock on the door.

“Come in.” I said, looking at the mirror as mom walked into the room. She smiled when she saw me dressed like I was.

“We need to button the buttons on the back really quickly, but you are cute in that.”

“Is it designed to be short enough to show my panties?” I watched mom walk over and button the three little buttons on the back of the night gown. The neckline sat right at my neck, and the night gown was snug to where my breasts would be if I were old enough to have them, and then it just flared out from there. If I were to twirl, the lower portion of the night gown would have risen and revealed my panties. The short gown stopped just below the bottom of my butt, which I thought was odd. Rachel had never worn any thing like this so I had never seen any thing like it. The feeling was completely different than the boring, plain clothes I would sleep in as Justin… Mom was smiling as I took in what I looked like.

“Alright, princess, lets get you tucked into bed, and get you to bed.” I blushed at mom calling me princess, I’d never really had a pet name, and princess was the first thing she came up with. I felt like a princess as I climbed into bed. Mom pulled the covers up and gave me a kiss on the forehead. “Goodnight, Princess. Sleep well.” Mom said, heading toward the door.

“Night mommy, talk to you tomorrow.” I replied, feeling my eyelids start to drop. I don’t remember any thing after seeing the light turn off, and hearing the door close.

I awoke to the sounds of birds chirping and the light from the window. It was Tuesday morning, and I knew that at 10:30 I had an appointment to see someone that mom knew from when she was in school. I rolled out of the bed and headed for the shower. By the time that I had gotten out of the shower mom had laid two outfits on my bed. One side contained a pair of khaki slacks, a maroon polo. Laying next to the polo and slacks was a sleeveless white dress with brown butterflies embroidered into the fabric. Mom’s voice startled me.

“I want you to pick what you wear today, Emma. If you want to wear the dress, I’m going to need to help you because it buttons up the back.”

“I want to wear the dress.” I said softly. My fingers were feeling the tulle at the hem of the dress. “I don’t think that pants will feel right after the amount of time I’ve spent in a dress.”

“Ok. Get dressed, and when you need help buttoning the dress, give me a shout. Put your white sandals on, the ones with the cork bottoms.” I watched as she shut the door. I dropped my towel in the hamper and opened my top dresser drawer reaching in blindly, I removed a pair of pale pink panties; I slid them on and reached back in for the next garment I needed. I pulled out a short white slip and dropped it over my head. The slip stopped at mid thigh, which was fine as the dress looked like it would go to my knees. I looked in the mirror and smiled. I heard the front door slam and knew that Rachel was on her way to Lizzy’s and that now left Mom and I in the house. I picked the dress up and slipped it over my head, gently pulling it down so that the bodice was hanging correctly. The bodice was snug, and felt nice against the slip. I twirled in front of the mirror, causing the skirt to rise and show the pink panties. They only slightly contrasted with the white dress and slip. Mom came up and knocked on my door. “How ya doing in there, Emma?”

“I just need to put my sandals on and button the back of dress.” I sat on the edge of my bed and slipped the sandals on my feet. I fumbled with the buckles on the sandals and finally got them buckled. “Come in.” Mom opened the door and came in. I stood, and turned so that Mom could button the back of the dress. I felt the bodice gently squeeze me, almost like I was being hugged. I really liked the feeling of snugness of the dress and couldn’t comprehend why Rachel didn’t like them. They were cooler than shorts, and were much prettier. Mom smiled at me in the mirror as she finished buttoning me up.

“Can we do pigtails today?” Mom smiled behind me in the mirror.

“I was already thinking that, Emma.” Mom replied, holding up two spools of ribbon. One was brown and the other was white. Both would go with the dress. I looked at mom, my grey eyes sparkling.

“Which one do you think, Mom?” I asked. She held both spools of ribbon next to my head.

“The brown ribbon.” She said, pulling a length off the spool and cutting it with a pair of scissors. She then did the same thing again, so that she had two ribbons. It took her no time at all to put her daughter’s hair in high pigtails that sat above her ears, held in place by an elastic band, and a brown ribbon. “Lets go down and get something to eat for breakfast before we head to see Dr. Anderson. I don’t know how long we will be there.”

“Ok.” I said, turning on my heel and walking down stairs. I had never worn any kind of a heel and the one and a half inch heel on these sandals caused me to go slower than I normally would have. This caused mom to chuckle.

“A bit slow in the shoes, huh?” she asked between chuckles.

“Yes. Not used to the heels…” Mom chuckled again.

“Those aren’t anything. I have a pair that are four inches. I highly doubt you could walk in those.”

“I think I would fall flat on my face.” My feet hit the hardwood floor in the foyer and I made my way into the kitchen with more confidence than I had traversed the steps. I opened the fridge and pulled out a gallon of milk. Turning around I grabbed the box of frosted flakes out of the pantry and shut the door and saw mom watching me. She smiled and I went back to getting my breakfast. After making my bowl of cereal, I put the milk away and carefully carried the bowl to the table and sat down, smoothing my dress under me. Mom looked like she was taking notes in her head the entire time. I ate as mom drank a cup of coffee that was still sitting on the counter when we had come into the kitchen. She must have made it before she had come upstairs to help me get dressed. I finished my cereal and put my bowl in the dishwasher.

“Emma, we need to go. I told Jill that we would be there by ten so that she could talk to me before she saw you. She wants my observations on what’s going on.”

“Ok.” I opened the door to the garage and walked out, feeling the cool air against my bare legs. I got in the back of mom’s Honda and buckled my seatbelt. Mom got in and started the engine after opening the garage door. She backed out of the garage and we were on our way to the doctors office.

We left the doctors office and went to a local ice cream shop. After we had gotten our ice cream and sat down, Mom started explaining to me what Dr. Williams had come up with during our session.

“After explaining to Jill what I had observed and her actually seeing you today, she agreed with my initial assessment of gender dysphoria, although they changed the name to gender identity disorder. She will, however need to see you quite a bit more before actually passing a diagnoses and subsequent recommendations on to me about treatment.” Mom said, before scooping a spoonful of her chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream into her mouth.

“What does that mean for me?” I asked.

“Well,” Mom took another bite of the her ice cream. Rather than let mine melt, I did the same. “If she determines that a diagnoses of gender identity disorder is accurate, we could enroll you in school as Emma, and you, if you wanted to, could begin the process of officially living as Emma full time.” I must have had a large smile appear on my face, because mom had a huge grin appear as well.

#

Mom backed the Honda into the garage and shut off the engine. I opened the door and watched as Jacob Anderson walked up the driveway. Mom was already out of the car and walking down the driveway to go check the mail.

“Hello, Mrs. Fisher.” He said, stopping half way up the drive, and looking at me.

“Hey Jacob, What brings you by?”

“I was wondering if Justin wanted to come by and play some games on the Playstation.” Mom looked over Jacob’s head and looked at me. I shook my head at her.

“Justin hasn’t been feeling well the last few days and has been stuck in bed. I’ll tell him you stopped by though. Maybe in a few days he will want to go out and do something.”

“Oh. Tell him that I hope he feels better, and to swing by when he can.”

“I’ll pass that on.” Jacob finally saw me and smiled. I could have sworn my knees started shaking when he looked at me.

“Thanks, I’ll see you around, Mrs. Fisher.” Jacob smiled at me one last time and then went back the way he came. Mom walked back into the garage and hit the button to close the garage door. I stayed where I was until the garage door had closed.

“Earth to Emma…” Mom said. I was still staring at the garage door. I slowly turned my head toward her. “Oh, yeah. Jacob stopped by, said he hopes you feel better.” I giggled, as I had heard the whole conversation.

“I feel better now that I can be who I am supposed to be.” I walked around the car and into the house. “I just wonder how some people that we know will take me being Emma.” Mom sat her purse on the counter and then turned and looked at me.

“We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it. I think that you will find that most people are accepting of you, Emma. You’ll probably have a boyfriend one day, that won’t care that you were once a boy because from what I can tell you are all girl inside and have been for quite some time. You know what we should do?” I tilted my head. I had no idea what we should do.

“What should we do?”

“Paint your nails.” I blinked.

“Paint my nails?” Mom smiled and nodded.

“Yeah. If your going to show off your toes,” She pointed at my feet. My toes were sticking out of the end of my sandals. “We should paint them. Let’s go find something more casual for you to wear and then we’ll paint your nails.” Mom turned and went toward my bedroom and I followed her. She went right to the closet and pulled out a teal colored polo dress and laid it on the bed. The dress had white buttons, and white piping along the collar and the hem of the dress. Mom looked at the dress, rubbed her chin and then looked at me. “Turn around so I can unbutton you.” I turned around and Mom unbuttoned my dress. “Hang the dress back up in your closet, and put the slip in your hamper. I’ll be back in a few minutes.” I slid the dress off, and placed it on the same hanger that I had assumed that it had come off of that morning. Pulling the slip from my waist, I made a hook shot right into the hamper. I reached down and picked up the dress. It felt like the other polos I owned but seemed softer. I know that doesn’t make much sense, but it did. I pulled the dress over my head, and then buttoned up the placket the same way I would have done on my polos. I looked at my self in the mirrored closet door. The little girl from this morning was looking back at me and her eyes were shining. The brown ribbon didn’t go with the dress, but I had a feeling that mom was going to change the ribbon to white or teal. I slipped my feet back into my sandals as I had never liked running around barefoot. Mom appeared in my door way as I was getting ready to head back to the kitchen. Mom followed me to the kitchen and had me sit in one of the chairs at the table, place my hands on the table and was about to paint the nails on my left hand when the phone rang

Mom picked up the phone. “Hello?” she looked at me and smiled. “Hi Abby, hang on, here she is.” Mom handed the phone to me. “It’s Abby, and she wants to talk to you. I took the phone from mom.

“Hi Abby.” I said into the phone. I was surprised that Abby was calling me while on vacation.

“Hey Emma. I’m just calling to see how your appointment with Dr. Williams went.” Abby was calling me to find out how my doctors appointment went…

“It went ok, I guess. I’ve never been through this before, so I have nothing to compare it to…” Abby giggled.

“I understand that.” Abby said. “Did she tell you anything that you can tell me?”

“I might have something called Gender Dysporia.” I replied. Mom smiled, and Abby giggled again.

“You mean Gender Identity Disorder? They changed the name on it in the last few years. It’s going to take some time to actually get a diagnoses, but you’ll get there.”

“Yeah, that’s what mom said. I just know that I’m happier in skirts than I ever was in pants. I’m not sure I want to wear pants again.” Mom shook her head.

“Wait until it gets cold outside… You’ll probably change that tune. I know I did. When it’s warm out I’m skirts and dresses all the time, but once it gets cold out, I’m in pants…”

“Yeah, well, Rachel wears skirts about never, so I’m the girl here, and someone needs to be girly…” Abby chuckled.

“Nicole is in skirts as often as I am, but then again she has always seen me this way… She is also very modest. The shortest skirts that she wears are knee length. Now me, I have legs and I want to show them off.” Now it was my turn to giggle.

“That is something I’ve always thought about you. You do have nice legs.” There was silence on the phone for a few seconds, and I noticed mom giving me a strange look.

“Thanks.” Abby said. I could almost hear her blushing. In the background I heard her dad say ‘Abby, we are going to go to the beach.’ “Emma, we’re going to go to the beach, but I do want to say that when you get older, your mom is going to be helping you fight off boyfriends. I’ll call you tomorrow.” Now it was my turn to blush.

“Ok, I’ll talk to you tomorrow. Bye.” We both hung up the phone and mom looked at me quizzically.

“Why are you blushing?” Mom asked.

“Because Abby just told me that when I get older that you are going to be helping me fight off boyfriends.”

“Or maybe potential girl friends…” Mom said, letting a grin fill her face. I stared at her. Mom didn’t respond to my staring, but rather picked my hand up and started putting a coat of teal nail polish on my fingers. She finished with both of my hands before I spoke again.

“Girlfriends?” I asked, my voice shaky.

“Yes, girlfriends. You’re unique, and you are going to be able to tell what a woman wants, and you know how a boy should treat a woman… That will make you desirable to either gender. Personally, I see you with a girl.” I blushed again…

#

Three days later I had just walked down stairs after slipping on a white sundress when someone knocked on the door. Since I was standing there, I opened it to reveal Abby.

“Come in.” I said. Abby smiled and stepped trough the door. Her pink and white striped dress swished around her ankles. Her smile was radiant as usual. She hugged me.

“How are you, sweetie?” she asked. She was still taller than me, even with the two inch wedges I was wearing.

“I’m good. What brings you by?” I asked hugging her.

“Well, I thought that if it was alright with your mom, we could go to the park and have a little picnic and talk.”

“Let’s go find out.” I said, leading the way toward the kitchen.

“Emma, I was getting ready to make lunch, what did you…” Mom looked up from her magazine. “Oh, Hi Abby.”

“Mrs. Fisher, I was thinking that Emma and I could go and have a picnic and talk.”

“That’s fine with me, Do you have a watch, Abby?”

“No, but I do have my cell phone.” Mom’s eyebrows went up.

“You have a cell phone?” Mom asked.

“Yeah. Mom and dad thought I should have one after I transitioned. I’ve never needed it, but it’s always there. Dad always knows where I am.” Mom’s face turned to a look of confusion

“How does he do that?” In a way I was curious, but at the same time I was afraid that I would end up on the end of this type of leash…

“He enabled the parental controls features on the phone, it won’t call anyone but him or the police after ten pm. He can track the location of my phone, and it sends him a text message at certain times when something happens like I arrive or leave school, arrive or leave home. Nicole doesn’t have this yet, but she will. Dad’s extremely protective of his daughters.”

“I would say…” Mom’s eyes flicked to me, and I knew what was going through her head. “Not half a bad idea. You girls go have your picnic, Emma, be home by 7.” Abby and I smiled at each other.

“Yes, Mommy.” I said.

“Emma, I’m going to run some errands, so if you guys come home and I’m not here, I want you to stay with Abby, Ok?”

“Ok.” I smiled at her, but she had me wondering what she was up to…

Abby and I walked around the corner to her house to pick up the supplies for our picnic. After we had gathered the required supplies: sandwiches, blanket, picnic basket and some fruit, we headed off toward the park.

“Your dad tracks your phone?” I asked as we walked.

“Yes. He says he does it because he cares and has been concerned for my safety. He wants to know when I get home from school and get to school. I have to tell him that I’m going somewhere because he knows where I am. I made that mistake once. I got grounded for two weeks and my phone would only call dad…” We found a clear spot of grass and I spread the blanket out and Abby sat the picnic basket down and we sat next to it.

“You told mom that he and your mom started tracking your phone right after you transition.”

“I got the phone right after I transitioned. There had just been quite a few attacks on people like you and I out west. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I watch everybody.” Abby reached into the picnic basket and pulled out a bag of grapes. She offered me some, which I took. “Some of the attacks were bad. One of them occurred in a middle school, and we’re not that far away from being in middle school. My phone is on me all the time, if I leave the house without it, I get in trouble, if the battery dies, I get in trouble. So I make sure it’s charged and that I have it.”

“I have a feeling that I’m going to end up with a new phone some time today.” I said.

#

“Daniel, It’s Sharon. I have a question for you, if you could call me when you get this message, I’d appreciate it.” Sharon said, leaving Daniel a voice mail. She turned her attention back to her laptop where she was researching cell phones…

#

I walked over and threw the empty baggies that we had brought our lunch in into one of the many trash cans scattered around the park. As I walked back to the blanket, I noticed that Abby was watching me intently. When I sat down, Abby smiled at me.

“What?”

“You pull off being a girl better than I did last year. Your movements are graceful, you walk just like a girl does. Unless someone knew what was between your legs, you are a girl.” I blushed at the mention of parts of the human anatomy.

“I do? Have I always done that?” Abby pursed her lips together.

“Yes…”

“It would make sense, I am a girl inside…” I smiled. Abby smiled back and gave me a hug.

“I know you are. I actually wondered how long it was going to take before you finally did something about it.”

“I wasn’t planning on getting caught. It just kinda happened. I think that Mom knew though. Rachel had been complaining that someone was getting into her stuff for a while. If it wasn’t mom, then who was it.”

“I understand that. I just kinda knew and came right out and said to mom and dad that something wasn’t quite right and that I thought I should be a girl. They bought me a few dresses and that was when I started wearing dresses. They saw that I acted much more feminine than masculine. The rest is history…”

#

Abby and I walked up to her house and I stopped before we started up the driveway. Sitting in Abby’s driveway was Mom’s car.

“What’s your mom doing here?” I shrugged and started up the driveway. Abby followed me and pulled out her key so that we could enter the house. Right as Abby went to stick her key in the door, Nicole opened it.

“Hi Emma. Your mom is here.”

“I noticed.” I said holding the door open for Abby. I followed Abby and Nicole into the kitchen where mom and Mr. Jenkins were sitting.

“Hello, Mr. Jenkins.” I said, curtsying. Daniel chuckled.

“Why did you do that?” Mom asked.

“I’ve never done it and wanted to?” Abby giggled.

“Silly girls.” Daniel said. “Have a seat, girls.” Abby and I exchanged a glance and then sat at the table. “Abby, Sharon told me that you told her about your phone.” Abby glanced from me to mom to her dad.

“Did I do something wrong?”

“No. But don’t go telling just anyone that I can track you phone.”

“Yes, Daddy.” Abby said. She sounded like she was about to cry.

“Emma,” Mom said. “I had been thinking about getting you a cell phone for a few months, so today I went and got you one. Like Abby’s it can be tracked, and it will only call four people after 9 pm. It will call me, Abby, the police and Abby’s dad.”

“Abby, your phone has added Emma and Sharon.” Abby and I looked at each other. “I’m sure that Abby has told you the rules that she has to follow with her phone.”

“Those rules are the same ones you have to follow with your phone. Emma, I know that right now you don’t have any pockets, We will go get you a little purse after we get dinner.” Mom said, handing me a cell phone. I looked at it. It was bubble gum pink. I flipped it open and looked at the inside of it. It looked like the phone that mom had used before she got her Android powered phone.

“Are you girls hungry?” Abby’s dad asked. Abby and I looked at each other again. This was almost like it had been scripted…

“Yes.” Abby said.

“I am too.” It had been about four hours since Abby and I had eaten our light picnic lunch.

“Then lets go get something to eat.” Daniel said. “Where’s Rachel?” he looked at mom.

“She’s sleeping over at Lizzie’s. So it would have just been Emma and I. What did you have in mind?” Mom asked.

I rolled over and woke Monday morning to the sound of the alarm on my new phone going off. The sound was annoying enough to wake me up, which I considered to be a good thing. As I picked up the phone to figure out how to shut the alarm off, mom knocked on my door.

“Morning Emma,” Mom said. “Abby will be here at ten so the two of you can go shopping… You know, like girls do. May I pick out something for you to wear?”

“Yeah,” I mumbled, pulling the covers up to cover my head to try to block out the light from the rising sun. I groaned as mom pulled the blankets off to reveal the white shirt and pink shorts that I had slept in.

"Come on, get up and go get a shower," Mom said, a smile on her face. It's too early to be smiling… I thought to myself as I stood and rubbed the sleep from my eyes. I looked in the mirror and the face of a sleepy little girl looking back. Grabbing my white robe from the hook next to the mirror, I headed for the shower. Ten minutes later I was back in my room, still drying my hair. Mom had placed a dress with a blue paisley skirt and an almost denim colored bodice. There was a pair of white panties with little blue polka dots all over them laying on top of the dress. On the floor a pair of white sandals sat, waiting for a pair of feet to pop into them. I dressed and then looked at my self in the mirror, trying to decide if I should do something with my hair. In the end I grabbed a white headband and slipped it in my hair. It held my hair back out of my eyes, and I happened to think that I needed to get my bangs trimmed so that they hung just above my eyebrows. Leaving my room, I grabbed the little white purse that mom had hung on the door knob and slipped my phone into it. I skipped my way downstairs to the kitchen. Mom was standing in the kitchen waiting on the coffee pot to finish brewing. When my shoes clicked on the floor she turned to look at me.

“How do I look?” I asked, a smile crossing my face.

Mom smiled. “Beautiful, as always. That dress looks perfect on you and brings out your eyes.”

“Do you think that Abby will like it?”

“Yes, I do,” Mom said, pulling the pot out of the coffee maker and pouring herself a cup. I love the smell of the stuff but couldn’t stand the taste of it. I made a bowl of cereal and sat at the table to eat it. Mom brought her coffee over and sat at the table.

I paused my eating and looked up at mom. “Do you think that I could go to school as Emma?”

“I think that you should talk to Dr. Williams about it and see what she says about it.” Mom said, sipping her coffee. “I have no problems with it, but there will be some of your classmates that won’t understand.” Just at that moment the door bell rang. I smiled as I jumped up and scooted off toward the front door. I opened it to reveal Abby, standing there wearing a pair of tight jeans, a black and white striped tee shirt and a pair of sandals.

“Come in!” I said, not even trying to conceal the dimples that I knew were visible. Abby’s face turned to a smile as she saw the dimples. Abby came into the house and gave me a good look over.

“I feel over dressed…” Abby said, with a giggle.

“You look fine,” I replied, leading the way to the kitchen. “Mom felt that I should dress up a little bit.”

“No, You said I could pick out what you wore,” Mom said, a smile in her voice as Abby and I entered the kitchen. “I think you look nice.”

I smiled, but hey, a girl loves complements. “Thank you.”

“Abby, have you eaten?” Mom asked.

“Yes,” Abby replied. “Dad made waffles for Nicole and I before he would let me leave the house…”

“Ok, I wanted to make sure.” Mom said, after taking a sip of her coffee. “Emma, finish your cereal before I run you two to the mall.”

I sat down and finished my cereal, eating quickly. After I stood up, Abby held her hand out to take the empty bowl and spoon.

“Go grab a sweater or something, you’re gonna need it when we get to the mall,” Abby said, removing the bowl and spoon from my hand. I nodded dumbly and headed for Rachel’s room, knowing that I didn’t own a sweater that would go with the dress in either of my wardrobes. I knew that Rachel had a white button down cardigan hanging in her closet, or at least she did, it had been hanging next to the dress that mom had caught me wearing. After I had grabbed it, I headed back to the kitchen. I slipped my arms into the sleeves as I descended the stairs and buttoned the top button as I entered the kitchen. Abby looked at me and smiled.

“That makes the dress even cuter…” Abby said, “And you’ll stay warm when we are at the mall and the AC is trying to freeze us to death. Why do you think I’m wearing jeans?” She giggled.

Mom rinsed out her coffee cup, and sat it next to the coffee maker. “Alright, girls, if you both have your phones,” I patted the small white purse that I had carried down stairs, and Abby patted her back pocket. “Then out to the car, I’ll run you guys to the mall and will pick you up later.” Abby and I headed into garage and got in the back seat of the car. Mom came out a few minutes later and climbed into the drivers seat, opened the garage door and started the engine. She backed out and paused briefly to close the garage door and then we were off to the mall.

Mom pulled up to the front door of the mall and stopped the car. She rummaged around in her purse for a few seconds before turning back to face Abby and I. She handed me some cash. “You girls go have fun, and get some clothes. Abby, if you would be like the big sister that Emma doesn’t have and help steer her? I know that I’m her mother, but children are stubborn and don’t listen to their parents.”

Abby giggled. “Sure thing, Mrs. Fisher.” Abby glanced at me, and then back at mom. “Since you are giving her money, is there anything that you want us to pick up for her?”

“No, it’s more of a just in case,” Mom said. “Emma, anything that you don’t spend, I would like back, but if you girls get hungry, get something to eat.” Behind us, a horn honked. “You girls get going, and I’ll see you in a couple of hours.” Abby and I got out of the car and watched as mom drove away.

“Lets go shopping, sister.” Abby said, walking toward the door. With her being a little bit taller than me, I had to take large steps to catch up with her. “You’re not gonna dawdle like Nicole does when we go shopping, are you?”

“Nope,” I replied, catching up to her has she waited by the door. The warm air blowing around my legs felt nice and was still a relatively new sensation to me. “I want to find something to wear to school on the first day.” Abby stopped just inside the front door of the mall and because I was looking in a display window, I ran into the back of her.

“You’re starting school as Emma?” She asked, guiding me toward a bench.

“I don’t know,” I said, sitting. “I still need to talk to Dr. Williams about it.”

Abby glanced around the busy mall, knowing that there was a time and place for everything and this was neither for this discussion. “We should discuss this, but this is not the place for it.” Abby took my right hand in both of hers. “After I talked to Dr. Brown about possibly going to school as Abby, there was a lot of work that I had to do, and even more that daddy had to do before I could attend school as myself.” Abby paused and looked around the mall again. “What did you have in mind for your debut outfit?”

“Hmm…” I sat there in thought for a few seconds watching people walk by, “Definitely a skirt, or dress but I’m thinking a skirt and a blouse. I just don’t know what’s out there.”

“Well, lets go shopping rather than sitting here talking. Knowing you and I, we will end up getting something to eat later.” Abby said, standing, I watched as Abby turned a few heads of a group of guys that had walked by before they saw me and assumed I was her little sister. “We can a little bit then.”

“Ok,” I said, standing. My dress tickled my thighs as it fell back to my knees. I had goosebumps on my legs from the air conditioning, just as Abby had predicted, but my upper body was warm enough thanks to the cardigan that I had snatched from Rachel’s closet. “Good thinking on the sweater, Abby.”

Abby smiled. “I’ve been cold and then not been able to enjoy shopping. I guess I’m sort of your big sister, it’s my job to look out for you.” She stopped to look at map of the mall, trying to figure out our first move. Finally she looked down at me and smiled. “Follow me.” She turned and headed deeper into the mall. I stayed with her, not wanting to get lost. Finally we stopped outside of a popular shop for tween girls. In the window was a mannequin that had on a short royal blue plaid skirt and a royal blue tee shirt with the logo for the store on it. The skirt, I liked. The top, not so much…

“Hmm,” I said out loud, causing Abby to look at me. “I like the way the skirt looks, but not so much the way the top looks…” I said out loud for Abby’s benefit.

“You prefer plain tops?” Abby asked, walking through the door into the store.

I followed Abby in and gazed around the store. In one of the back corners hung a display of button down shirts. Not quite what I had in mind, but they would work. Abby followed me this time, toward the back of the store, where she finally saw the blouses. “I think a white button up top would look cute with that skirt.” I said, gazing at the choices in front of me.

“What about a plain blue tee shirt?” Abby asked, turning toward a display full of colorful tee shirts. She found a royal blue shirt, the same shade as the plaid in the skirt. Abby grabbed a skirt and held the two together on her so that I could see what the whole outfit looked like.

“Ok, we have a winner.” I said, while starting to giggle. Abby smiled and dropped the skirt and shirt over her arm. We looked around the store before finally checking out and walking toward the food court. Out of nowhere, Shane Barker and three of his friends blocked our path.

“Well if it isn’t Abby Jenkins and that little pansy Justin Fisher,” Shane sneered. Abby must have sensed something that I didn't’ because she pushed me toward a set of doors that led into the service corridor. She stopped momentarily to tear a map that listed the fire exits and various other safety features for the service corridor that we found ourselves in. Abby took my hand and then started running. As we turned the corner that would take us the same direction that we were already going, I heard the doors to the service corridor open and slam into the wall.

I had to stop. My side was aching to the point where I thought that I was going to throw up. Abby slid to a stop next to an open door to the back of a store and bolted through it, dragging me behind her and then quietly closing the door. I turned and looked right into the wide eyes of a balding man, probably in his mid thirties.

“You guys can’t be back here,” He said, his voice full of astonishment, probably not used to having two almost teenaged girls come running in the back door of his shop. There was a thud on the door behind Abby.

“Call security,” Abby said, her voice almost not audible because she was trying to catch her breath. I wasn’t as bad as Abby was. “We were being chased by four boys, who are from the sounds of it still in the corridor.”

“Open the door you pansies!” Shane shouted from the other side of the door. The shopkeeper dropped the bag of trash that he had been holding and called security. After he hung up the phone he looked at the two of us.

“Are you girls alright?” he asked.

“We will be,” Abby said, her cheeks starting to return to their normal color.

A few seconds later two mall security guards appeared, and I heard a small scuffle on the other side of the door. One of the guards, a woman in her twenties crouched in front of me. I was crouching, almost under a desk, my arms wrapped around my knees, and probably showing my panties.

“You can come out, sweetie. It’s safe now.” She said, her voice full of compassion.

I glanced at Abby, who had stood and was walking over to me. She held out her hands and helped me up. “Are you ok?”

“Twelve twelve to sixteen twelve, can you open the back door?” one of the radios warbled.

“I will be.” I said after Abby had helped me up. One of the security guards opened the door up and they escorted Shane’s three friends in, but Shane was nowhere to be found.

“Are these the young men that were harassing you two young ladies?”

“There was a fourth,” I said. “His name is Shane Barker.” I looked around for my purse. “Where’s my purse?” I was still holding the bags from the store, but my purse was no where to be found. I was pretty sure that I had it when we had entered the corridor. Abby looked at me, the floor where I had curled up under the desk, and even in the bags from the store.

“Let me call it,” Abby said, pulling out her phone. A few seconds later, someone answered my phone that was not me. Abby handed the phone to one of the security guards.

“Good Afternoon, Sir,” the guard started on the phone. “I’m Officer Jackson with Mall Security, we had a report that a young ladies phone was stolen. This is the number she gave us.” Officer Jackson pointed at his microphone that was clipped to his shirt and pointed at the floor. The other four guards turned down their radios. ‘He’s in the food court’ Officer Jackson mouthed. One of the other guards nodded and walked into the service corridor. “Ok, you just found the phone laying in the hallway by the restroom and were taking it to customer service?” The guard that walked into the corridor nodded and spoke into his phone.

“We’re gonna take these three and the two girls to the office.” Officer Jackson nodded, and gestured for Abby and I to follow him into the corridor. The two other guards were already five hundred feet ahead of us in the corridor. We had a guard in front of us, and one behind us, I felt like I was a princess or something. When we got to the security office, which turned out to be a pretty drab affair. There were several rooms, the most interesting being the one right after we had walked into the office. It must have been the command center for the mall’s security team. TV monitors showed various parts of the mall, including service corridors. I had wondered why Abby had chosen to go that route rather than just scream for help. She knew that someone would be watching and see six kids running down a corridor that they weren’t supposed to be in. The guards led Abby and I to what appeared to be a break room.

“What are your names so we can document everything in the report?”

“Abigail Lynn Jenkins” Abby said. I smiled at her. The name worked, and the guard wrote it down on her little note pad. She turned her attention to me.

“Emma Michelle Fisher.” The guard scribbled my name in her pad and smiled at the two of us.

“Do you girls need to call anyone?” she asked, tucking her pen back into the pocket on her uniform.

“We can’t,” Abby said. “My phone is with one of your people, and,” Abby tilted her head toward me. “Her phone is currently unaccounted for.”

“Right.” The guard said, smiling. “Use that phone right there, and dial nine to get out.” She pointed to a phone that was mounted on the wall. Abby had just picked up the phone when the door to the security office slammed open and three guards were carrying Shane in, carrying my now soaking wet purse.

“Put me down you rent a cops!” Shane shouted, “I’ll have your jobs…” I watched as the three guards unceremoniously dumped Shane in one of the small rooms and pulled the door shut.

“Was that this Shane Barker person?” The guard that had taken our names asked.

“Yeah,” Abby said. The guard walked over and handed Abby her phone. Abby looked at it and saw that she had missed several calls from her father and my mother. Abby looked at her phone as it rang again. “Hi Daddy.” Abby glanced at me. “Yes, we’re fine.” There was a pause, and then, “I don’ t know what happened to her phone exactly, but her purse is soaking wet. If her phone is in there, it’s cooked. Ok, I’ll call her.” Abby hung up the phone and looked at me. “Your mom is freaking out, your phone dropped off the tracking screen, and your mom is going nuts.” Abby handed me her phone. “Call her.” Before I could dial, mom was making Abby’s phone ring.

“Hello,” I said into the phone. Before I got a got a chance to say anything, mom was talking.

“Emma, Are you ok? Do you need me to come get you?”

“Abby and I are fine, we had a run in with Shane Barker, I think he stole my purse, all I know is one of the guards just carried it in the security office and it was soaking wet.”

“Ok, I’m with Daniel and we will be there shortly.” In the background I could hear Daniel on the phone, talking to someone and then car doors shut. Abby’s phone beeped and I saw that Mom had simply hung up, I presumed that she wasn’t happy. Abby and I had nothing to do but sit and wait for our parents to show up.

Abby and I were still sitting in the security office when the door opened and Shane’s dad walked in, followed by three police officers. The door had shut when it opened again and in walked mom and Abby’s dad. All six of the adults walked into the break room where we sat. Shane’s dad walked over to us and crouched down.

“Girls,” Mr. Barker said. “It does not please me to have to apologize for my son’s behavior yet again. He didn’t cause you two any harm, did he?”

Abby and I both shook our heads, and then looked at each other as Mr. Barker stood.

“Miss Fisher, May I accompany you and your daughter to a phone store, I will pay for the replacement cost of the phone.” He said. Apparently someone had told him about my phone.

#

The four of us sat around the table at Abby’s house discussing what had happened that day.

“Why did you go into the service corridor?” Mom asked.

“It appeared to be the only way to get away from Shane and his cronies.” Abby said. “I knew that there were cameras covering the service corridors. Six kids would surely attract the attention of someone…”

“You took a gamble, Abby, and it worked. This time,” Daniel said, a smile on his face, but also a look of concern. “Hopefully there won’t be a next time, but if there is just start screaming. I would imagine that people will respond to two little girls screaming bloody murder.”

“As would I,” Mom said. “You know it just so happened that I accidentally opened the application that would let me see your location in time to see the dot drop off the map. I immediately called Daniel and had him track Abby’s phone knowing you two were together. We really were concerned when Abby’s phone dropped as well. Must have been the service corridor that you two were in. I’m just glad that you two are ok.”

“I wonder if Shane’s dad is going to make him wear dresses…” I wondered aloud. Everyone looked at me like I had lost my mind.

“What are you talking about?” Mom asked, a look of bewilderment crossing her face.

“After Shane tried to out me at the restaurant, his dad hinted at putting Shane in dresses to punish him,” I replied, a smile crossing my face at the picture of Shane in a frilly pink dress. “That wouldn’t work for me…”

“How do you remember this stuff?” Mom asked. “And no, putting you in dresses wouldn’t have worked for you. I’d have to take them away.” She smiled at me. “Daniel and I do have a question for the two of you, though.”

Abby and I shared a glance, wondering what was going on.

“What’s the question?” Abby asked, her left eyebrow raised. I noticed Mr. Jenkins and mom share a look and a small smile.

“Would you two watch your sisters friday night, here at our house?” He asked. “We can make it a sleep over.”

“I don’t have a problem with that.” Abby said.

“I think it will be fun.” I said. “Are you guys going on a date?” Mom and Daniel shared a wide eyed glance and then they smiled at each other.

“Yes.” Mom said, somewhat hesitantly.

#

Abby and I were walking through the park after we had gotten permission to do so. Both of our parents were slightly on edge after the incident at the mall. It was slightly satisfying seeing Shane and his cronies taken from the security office at the mall in handcuffs.

“Does it sound like our parents are going to start dating?” I asked Abby as we found a bench and sat down.

“Yeah,” Abby said. “I think that it is good that daddy is at least looking. Plus, I think that it would be awesome to be your older sister, even if it is only by a year.”

I smiled at Abby. “I know. Mom’s done a great job of raising Rachel and I, but I think that she needs someone else, an adult.”

“I hope it works out between them,” Abby said. “Also, if you do go to school as Emma, you’re gonna need some pants. You can’t go around wearing skirts when there is four feet of snow on the ground.”

“I could, but I would have some really cold legs…” I said, a giggle escaping my lips. “I understand what you mean though. Do you think that my mom would let me wear those really tight jeans that most of the girls seem to wear?”

“Do you mean skinny jeans or jeggings?” Abby asked. My face must have shown my confusion as I wasn’t familiar with either term. “Skinny jeans are just slightly tight,” She pointed to her own jeans. “These are skinny, jeggings fit snuggly from the waist to the ankle.”

“Hmm… I don’t know,” I said. “Maybe a little bit of both?” A smile crossed my face.

“We should ask and try to find out what she says.” Abby said, standing. The sun was starting to set in the western sky, which meant that we needed to get back to Abby’s. After I had stood, Abby wrapped her arm around my shoulder and we walked in silence back to her house. When we walked into Abby’s house, our parents were sitting on the couch in the living room talking. Abby and I walked in and sat on the love seat.

“Emma, we need to go pick up Rachel and get home. You have an appointment with Dr. Williams tomorrow at nine,” Mom said.

“Ok.” I said, standing. Abby and Mr. Jenkins stood as well and I gave Abby a hug and a promise to call her when I got home from the appointment. Mom and I switched people and I gave Mr. Jenkins a hug as well, and he gave me a kiss on the forehead. It felt nice, and right at the same time…

Mom parked the car in the garage and shut off the engine. As we got out to go into the house Jacob decided that it would be a good time to stop by. This time, mom had locked the door so I had to wait on her to come over and open it.

“Hello, Mrs. Fisher.” Jacob said.

Mom turned to look at Jacob. “Oh, Hi Jacob. What brings you by?”

“Just wondering how Justin is feeling, haven’t seen him around much lately.”

“He’s actually at his Aunt Sharon’s for a few weeks, His cousin Emma is visiting though…”

Jacob looked at me and smiled. I smiled back and blushed at the same time. Now I think I knew how every girl that I had ever ogled felt. The wind started to blow and the hem on my dress started to rise. I still wasn’t sure how girls ever got used to the feeling of the wind blowing up their skirts. It made me feel vulnerable and that still scared me. I heard the phone in the house start ringing, and Mom used that as an excuse to get me into the house. I think that Mom could tell that I was getting uncomfortable. As a boy I still hadn’t started to really look closely at girls and as a girl I was uninterested in boys. I made it into the house and to the phone in time for it to stop ringing and my cell phone to start ringing. Pulling the phone out of the pocket on my dress, I saw that the caller was Abby.

“Hello.” I said into the phone, aware that my voice didn’t sound quite right.

“Hey, Emma, what’s wrong?’ Abby asked. I wasn’t sure if it was a good thing or not that Abby could just hear my voice and know that something wasn’t right.

“I think that Jacob likes me like that…” I stammered into the phone.

“Jacob Westfield?” She asked. She knew of most of the kids in my class that I may interact with.

“Yeah,” I said as Mom came in the door. “He was looking at me the same way I’ve looked at girls and it kind of made me uncomfortable. Also, Mom told him that I’m my own cousin as well, and I think that may cause problems later if Emma goes to school.”

“Hmm… I can see that causing problems. What do you mean that the way he looked at you made you uncomfortable?”

“It’s hard to explain, almost like I was prey and he was the hunter. Do you still get that feeling?”

“Yeah, I do.” Abby said. “You think that your mom would let us try to go to the mall again? Dad can take us over.” The last time we had gone to the mall, we had a run in with Shane Barker and a few of his friends. Mom had been hesitant to let me out of the house alone since then.

“I don’t know.” I said. “I can ask.”

“Ask what?” Mom said, overhearing that part of the conversation.

“If I can go to the mall with Abby.” I said, biting my lip.

“Who is taking you?” Mom asked.

“Her dad said he would run us over. We’ll be good, I promise.”

“I know you would. And it’s ok if you go, just try not to have any run ins with Shane or his cronies.”

“Thanks Mommy.” I said. I had a feeling that Abby had heard the entire conversation.

“We’ll be by in about twenty minutes to pick you up. I need to finish getting ready.”

I smiled. “Ok, I’ll be ready. See you in twenty minutes.” Mom was digging around in her purse, probably looking for money to give me. She handed me some cash and smiled.

“Maybe I can get some work for Tom done while you are gone and and Rachel is at Lizzy’s.” Mom said. “Call if you need anything.”

“I will.” I said, walking over to give Mom a hug. I had spoken to Dr. Williams about going to school as Emma, and based on what she could tell and the fact that only one person that I knew had made me at all was pretty impressive. We still needed to talk about it some more, but for the moment, I think she was leaning toward giving that a go ahead. Of course, I looked like a girl and got more ribbing for looking like on than I did a boy, but that was a different story.

“We are going to be going out with Daniel, Abby and Nicole for dinner tonight, so try not to eat anything when you two are at the mall. I’m sure that Abby will be getting told the same thing.” Mom said and then picked up the stack of papers that she had placed on the table.

“Ok.” I replied. Mom and I had eaten on the way home from Dr. Williams office, so I wasn’t that hungry right now anyway.

“I’m going to the den, if you need something before you leave, that’s where you can find me.” With that, I ran upstairs and changed out of the sandals I wore and into a pair of gladiator sandals. I figured that wearing the flat sandals would be easier on my feet than walking around in the two inch cork bottomed sandals. When I got back to the bottom of the steps, there was a knock on the door. I opened it to reveal Abby, who was smiling and wearing a knee length white skirt and a pale pink tee shirt. My own sundress was a pink plaid, and hit about the same place that her skirt did.

“Mom!” I shouted down the hall, so that Mom could hear me. “I’m leaving with Abby. See you in a few hours.”

“Ok, Have fun and be good.” Mom’s voice floated down the hall. I stepped out in to the sun, pulled the door shut and followed Abby to her dad’s Tahoe. After buckling in, we were off to the mall.

Abby’s dad pulled up to the the food court entrance of the mall and Mr. Jenkins finally said something about how quiet we had been on the drive over. Normally we were chatterboxes in the car, so I think that he knew that something was up.

“Girls, have fun,” He said. “Sharon, Nicole, Rachel and I will meet you here around four. If we are going to be late or early, I’ll call you.”

“Ok daddy.” Abby said.

“Thanks for the ride, Mr. Jenkins.” I said, opening the door to slide out. As soon as my feet hit the ground, Abby was standing there, ready to guide the way into the mall. Once we were inside, Abby led me to a smoothie shop that was generally quiet so that we could sit down and talk. Abby led me to a chair and sat me down.

“Sit.” She said, not sitting down her self “I’ll be right back.”

I nodded and watched her go. Her only stop was the counter to order us both a smoothie. She was smiling as she came back over, offering a smoothie.

“Thanks.” I said, taking the proffered smoothie. I took a sip, noting that the flavor was strawberry banana. I didn’t recall telling Abby what my favorite flavor of smoothie was, but hey, the girl knew things… Abby sat across from me and took my left hand in her right hand, which was cold from carrying the smoothies.

“So you think that Jacob Westfield has the hots for you?” She asked. Her tone wasn’t condescending or jeering; but I think she could tell how shaken up I was by his ogling.

“Well, he certainly looked at me like I was a piece of meat that he was about to go try and hunt. Do you ever get used to that feeling?”

Abby glanced around the small shop, which other than us contained two other customers, both in their mid thirties, if one were to guess. “I’ve not gotten used to it, and I don’t think that genetic girls get used to it either. I know that there have been times when Shane had given me looks up and down and that made me uncomfortable. We’ve gotten a few looks from people passing by and some of them have left me feeling uncomfortable.” She sipped her smoothie. “I think that our genetic couterparts just learn to deal with it.”

“I wonder how many of them feel uncomfortable at times?” I sipped my smoothie, savoring the strawberry banana flavor.

“Probably quite a few. I know that I tend to feel more uncomfortable when I’m wearing a skirt and the shorter it is, the worse that feeling is for me.” Abby said. “Even wearing some of the tight pants that I have makes me uncomfortable. It seems like girls clothes are designed to show off their bodies… Have you talked to your mom about pants yet?”

I shook my head and spun so my back was to the wall and I could look out into the concourse and watch people go by. “Not yet,” my attention was diverted to a gaggle of girls that was coming into the smoothie shop. The six girls that made up the gaggle were all in shorts and tank tops. “Maybe I should get some shorts for now when it’s still warm out.”

“Probably,” Abby said. “Did your mom give you any money?”

“Yeah,” I sipped my smoothie as I watched the group of girls. “She gave me forty dollars. Why, What’d you have in mind?”

Abby finished her smoothie. “We should get you some shorts or capris or something… Skirts are nice, but sometimes a little bit of variety is good.” Abby stood and I followed her lead as we walked into the concourse. Abby made a quick stop by a map of the mall and then turned to her right. When we finally stopped again, we were standing outside of a shop that catered to tweens. I took the last drink of my smoothie and dropped the cup in a trash can we passed on our way into the store. Hanging just inside the entrance was a display of pants that looked like they would stop at the shin. Abby saw my expression and leaned over to whisper in my ear. “These are capris. They are shorter than pants, and usually a little thinner. I think they are comfortable.”

I nodded and picked up a pair of denim capris. We browsed around some more before we finally decided to check out and go look at some other stores. Not seeing anything that piqued our interest, we called for Abby’s dad to come pick us up..

“You know that white short sleeved shirt that has the eyelet trim around the neckline that Rachel has?” Abby said suddenly.

“Huh?” I responded. I had been watching a pair of girls walk into the mall, amazed at how much I acted like them before I even came clean abut my dressing habits.

“There is a shirt that your mom got for Rachel near the middle of the school year that is white and has an eyelet trim around the neckline.” Abby said, watching the girls go past. “That shirt, the capris we bought and the sandals you have on now would look cute.”

“Maybe I’ll wear that for my appointment with Dr. Williams tomorrow…” I said. “Speaking of Dr. Williams, I asked her about going to school.”

Abby’s eyes lit up. Her bright green eyes had a brilliant sparkle when she was happy. “And?”

I smiled at Abby as I sat on a bench. “Well, she said we need to talk about it some more, but with hers and mom’s blessing, I might be attending school as Emma.”

Abby sat next to me and smiled. “The first day is probably going to be the hardest, but eventually, most everyone will forget about Justin and you will have always been Emma.” That was as far as the conversation got as Abby’s dad pulled up outside the doors that we sat inside of. Mom was sitting in the passenger seat, and because the back windows were down, I could tell that Nicole and Rachel were in the third row, leaving the second row open for the older sisters to sit in. Abby and I walked out, with me holding the bag from the tween shop that contained my new capris. I knew the shirt that Abby was talking about and I also knew that Rachel had worn it exactly once, it was to a company picnic a few days after mom had bought her the shirt. As we got in the SUV, Mom turned to look at us.

“What’d you guys get?”

“I bought a pair of capris. Abby seems to think that the capris, the shirt that you bought for Rachel before the company picnic last year and the sandels I’ve got on now would look good together.” Mom gave me a look up and down as I buckled my seatbelt.

“I can see that…” Mom said turning back toward the front of the car and squeezing Daniel’s hand. I watched as Daniel took a glance at mom and then smiled. Abby and I shared a glance, both of us not missing the glance that was shared between them and the squeeze of the hand.

“You can have that shirt, it’s too girly for me…” Rachel said from the back seat. She was sitting behind Abby so I was able to turn and see her. Just like I thought, she wore a pair of denim shorts and a white spaghetti strapped tank top. She had a pair of blue and white sneakers on her feet. Mom turned around and smiled at us.

“Emma, you can wear that to your appointment with Dr. Williams tomorrow.

“I don’t have an appointment with Dr. Williams tomorrow…” I said, the confusion evident in my voice.

“She called and left a message this morning after you left about wanting to see you in the morning. The appointment is at ten.” Daniel pulled the SUV into the parking lot of a restaurant and parked the car.

#

After we had been seated, and the waiter and delivered our drinks, Mom and Daniel told us something that shocked us.

“Daniel and I have been dating for about three weeks.” Mom said, looking at the four of us. It wasn't hard for her to do, as we were seated around a round table. Mom and Daniel sat next to each other and then it was Abby and I, and to my left Nicole and Rachel. Her eyes looked at Abby and I first, and then Rachel and Nicole.

“It’s about time, Dad…” Abby said suddenly, but with a hint of laughter in her voice. Daniel looked at Abby and started laughing, causing the laughter to spread around the table. Just then the server came back up and looked at us.

“Looks like we’re having a good time,” He said. “What can we get for you to eat?” He went around the table, staring with Mom and working his way around the kids before finishing with Daniel. He disappeared into the kitchen again and we settled into talk of what had happened that day. Abby reached over and took my ponytail out, letting my hair down and cascade around my shoulders. When I turned and looked at Abby, she just smiled at me.

“It was getting loose anyway,” she said, “If we had the hair ties, I’d put it in pigtails…”

I smiled at Abby and then turned to look at mom. “Any clue why Dr. Williams scheduled this appointment on such short notice?”

“Nope, but she said that she wants me there as well.” Mom said, before sipping her soda.

“Hmm…” Abby said, thoughtfully. “I’ve never had her do that… I still see her once a month for blood work to keep my levels correct.”

“Guess we’ll find out tomorrow…” Mom said. “Right now, lets eat.” She could see the kitchen from where she sat and could see our server bringing the food out to the table.

#

We had gone back to Abby’s after we had eaten and were all sitting in the living room talking. There was some classical composer playing quietly on the surround sound system that was attached to the TV that sort of blended into the background.

“Why do you think that Dr. Williams wants to see you tomorrow?” Abby asked.

“No clue, but I bet it has to do with me going to school as Emma.” I replied. Mom turned and looked at me. Apparently the whole doctor-patient privilege applied even when you were under eighteen…

“You’ve spoken to Jill about going to school as Emma?”

“Yeah.” I replied, nonchalantly. “I’m just thinking ahead.”

“Just like her mother…” Mom replied. “Just so you know, I support what ever she thinks.”

I smiled at Mom and then at Abby. This was good information to know. “I mean, I’ve only been living as Emma for the last 2 months, well, one month really.” I said, realizing that my math was slightly off. “ The first month was only after school and weekends. “Isn’t there a name for living full time as a girl when you’re a boy?”

“Real Life Transition.” Abby answered. She would know, she’d only been going though it for the last two years at least. “It’s how you know for sure that transititoning to the other gender is for you.”

“Yep,” Mom said, standing. “Emma, Rachel, we need to get going. I want Emma to be rested for this appointment.”

Abby and I stood and smiled at each other, both of us hugging. Nicole and Rachel did the same thing and Mom and Daniel hugged as well.

Mom backed the car into the parking spot outside of the building that housed Dr. Williams’ office and shut off the engine. We got out and I felt the cool air hit my legs. It was rather cool for early July and I felt small goose bumps form on my exposed legs.

“Let’s go, Emma,” Mom said, walking around the back end of the car. I had elected to wear a purple plaid skirt and white tee shirt. Something didn’t seem right about coming to this appointment wearing anything other than a skirt or dress. Mom and I walked into the building and took the stairs to the third floor. I was glad that I had worn the white ballet flats that I had rather than my sandals, both so my feet stayed somewhat warm and so that my feet weren’t hurting. When we walked into the reception area, Mallory, smiled at us.

“Emma,” She stared. “You guys can go on back, her nine o’clock canceled on her, so she’s free.” Mallory shrugged.

“Ok,” I replied heading for the door that would take me back to where Jill’s office was. “Thanks, Mallory.”

“You’re welcome sweetie,” She replied as I went though the door and headed toward Jill’s office. When we got to the door, it was closed, so I knocked.

“Come in,” I heard Jill’s voice from the other side of the door, so I opened it and mom and I walked in. “Have a seat.” She motioned to the couch. Mom and I sat, and I noticed that Jill was watching me closely. She had been watching me ever time I came into the office to see how my mannerisms were. Jill picked a bunch of paper up from her desk and walked over and sat across from the two of us.

“Why the sudden meeting, Jill?” Mom asked, glancing at her.

“What have you and Emma discussed in the last few days?” Jill asked.

“Well,” Mom started. “Emma had mentioned to Abby last night that she had spoken to you about going to school.”

I watched as Jill smiled. “Yes, Emma and I have discussed school, and that is why I asked you guys to come in on such short notice.”

“Ok,” Mom said, sounding confused. I knew that she trusted Jill, but it sounded like mom really didn’t get what was going on.

“I have some papers for you.” Jill said, turning her attention to the stack of papers that she had sat on the table. She picked the top one up and handed it to mom. “That is my determination that Emma has, in fact, been diagnosed with gender identity disorder. You can take this and, if you and Emma want to, get her name changed.”

I glanced at mom and smiled.

“The rest of these papers are for you to give to people in official positions that need to know about the fact that Emma is now Emma.” Jill turned her attention to me. “Emma, This doesn’t mean that we are done having sessions, quite the contrary.”

“Ok,” I said quietly, for some reason feeling like I was being chastised. “Does that mean that we are still meeting tomorrow?”

“Yes,” Jill said, “It does, at four thirty like usual.”

“Ok,” Mom said, nodding.

“Have you two discussed a name change?” Jill asked, looking from mom to me. I let mom answer that question.

“We have,” Mom said, “But not overly discussed it. She picked the name Emma Michelle, but I’d like some say so in her name…” She wore a strait face until she finished talking and then burst out laughing. “Actually, I like the name.”

“You would be surprised how many parents have an issue with the names that their child chooses…” Jill said. “Even if they are adults…”

* * * * *

“If it’s ok with mom,” I said into the phone as mom backed into the garage. “I will come over and talk to you about what we discussed…”

Mom glanced at me and knew that I was on the phone with Abby, So she nodded. No words were necessary.

“She said I can come over.” I said into the phone. “Let me run upstairs and get a sweater and I’ll be there in a few.” I was cold from the fact that it was cool outside and I was wearing a skirt that stopped about three inches above my knees. I grabbed a white cardigan and headed back out the front door. “I’ll be back later, Mom. I’m heading to Abby’s”

“Ok,” Mom called back from the small office that was on the first floor of the house. “Tell Daniel that I will be by later.”

“Ok!” I shouted, and headed out the door.

* * * * *

Abby and I were sitting in her room on her bed talking. “So you are going to be going to school as Emma, huh?”

“Yep,” I replied, toying with the hem of my skirt. Truth be told, I was kind of nervous about going to school as Emma, but I also had one heck of a support system in place.

“What are you going to wear on the first day of school?” Abby asked.

“I don’t know yet,” I said, smiling at Abby. “Mom said she gets to pick that until I graduate. Knowing her something cute, and probably not pants…”

“Maybe we should match…” Abby’s eyes sparkled at the idea. “Maybe even get Rachel and Nicole to match us as well…”

“Not if we are in skirts…” I chuckled “Rachel won’t wear a skirt even if you paid her…”

“I take it that your mom has tried that tactic?” Abby chuckled.

“More than once,” I replied. Abby and I heard the front door open and then heard Mom’s voice. I had relayed Mom’s message to Daniel, so he knew that she was coming over. Abby smiled at me and took my hand, and led me toward the living room. As we left Abby’s bedroom, I knew that one chapter of my life had closed and another begun.

Finis

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Author’s note: I may come back and revisit this story at some point, but right now, I’m planning on focusing on some other stories as well as focusing on school work.

In which we go shopping...

Mom, How realistic do you think it will be to primarily wear skirts to school?” I asked. Mom and I were looking at clothes for school.

“It’s pretty realistic,” Mom said. “But, do you want to actually wear nothing but skirts? I thought you liked the shorts that we got for you.”

“I do, but I almost want to start off wearing nothing but skirts, or at least more skirts than shorts or pants.” I said. Mom nodded. I pulled a teal short sleeved dress off the rack and held it up to me. It stopped just above the knee, which made it ok by the school’s dress code. I had been slowly pushing the edge when it came to my skirt length. I had amassed a small collection of skirts that hit right around mid thigh and I knew that mom wouldn’t let me wear them to school, even if I were allowed.

“That’s cute,” Mom said, with a smile. She had been browsing some skirts and held up a pink and black plaid skirt. I nodded and then went back to browsing the dresses on the rack in front of me. The cart soon contained several new items to start the school year.

After we had checked out and loaded the car, Mom looked around the parking lot. “You want to go get lunch?” she asked, squinting in the sunlight. It was warm out and there was a slight breeze. The breeze caused the hem of my ankle length turquoise gauze skirt to flutter and subsequently tickle my legs.

“Sure, what did you have in mind?” I asked, opening the door to the car and sliding in, feeling my shoulders hit the hot leather of the seat.

“Well, Daniel said that he won’t be done with Rachel and Nicole’s softball practice until sometime around four, so I was thinking about that new burger place over by the house.” Mom said, sliding into the car her self. While it was warm out, we had experienced a mild summer with the warmest it had gotten up to being around eighty-five. Mom started the car and put the windows down and opened the sunroof.

“Sounds good to me,” I replied, buckling my seat belt and feeling the ribbons on my pigtails tickle me shoulders. Mom started the car and put it in reverse, backing out of the spot. “We have a meeting next week with the principal at Ridgedale Middle, there shouldn’t be any problems because Abby started there last year so they should be decent at dealing with transgender students by now…”

“Probably…” I said, “What about gym class?”

“Doctor Williams is probably going to excuse you on medical grounds. I would; the locker rooms wouldn’t be a safe place for you.” Mom said, slowing to stop at a red light. “You’ll probably have to do something to make up for the credit, probably some sport. Anything pique your interest?” The light changed and mom eased the gas and we continued on our journey to lunch.

“Yeah…” I replied, not sure how mom would take the two sports that I had in mind. “Soccer and tennis.”

“I never took you much for a soccer player…” Mom said, trying to hide a chuckle and failing. “Why tennis though?”

“‘Cause tennis dresses are cute, duh.” I replied, and then burst into a fit of giggles. “Abby and I have been spending some time over at Redwood Park playing and I’m getting quite good at it. She said she might try out for the tennis team this year. I figured I might as well try as I’m getting better at playing…”

“Makes sense.” Mom said, slowing to turn into the parking lot of the burger place. “I wish you luck in what ever you decide to do; you’ll always have my support.” After she had parked the car she pulled her phone out of her purse and made a note. “We will need to find out if there is anything special we need to do because of your medical situation though.” Mom shut the engine off and got out of the car. As I got out and got hit with the heat of the day again I briefly wished that I was wearing a shorter skirt, although the problem was the humidity more so than the heat. After we were seated, Mom looked at me. “What have you been playing tennis in?”

“Mostly loose fitting skirts and tank tops. Kinda like a tennis dress, but not really.” I replied as the waitress walked up to the table.

“Good afternoon, I’m Sophia and I’ll be your server,” The blonde haired, blue eyed girl said. “What can I get you to drink?”

“Water, please,” I replied. It was really too hot for much anything else.

“Water as well, please,” Mom replied.

“Alright, two waters, I’ll be right back to get your order.” Sophia said, and then turned and walked away.

“What do you say we get you some actual clothes to go play tennis in?” Mom asked.

Discussions of music...

Mom backed the car in the garage and shut off the engine. I got out and walked around to the trunk to grab the five bags that were in there. I carried them up to to my room before heading back downstairs.

“What’s your plan if the school says you can’t play because of your medical issue?” Mom asked as I entered the kitchen. I opened the fridge to grab a bottle of water and looked at her.

“What would be their reasoning?” I asked, not sure where she was going with this…

“Well,” She started as I sat down at the table. “They might see you being transgender as having an unfair advantage over biological girls.” I looked at my arms, they were thinner than Rachel’s. There was little to no muscle on my arms.

“Have you seen my arms?” I asked. “I’m lucky I can pick up this bottle of water…”

Mom laughed so hard that she snorted. “I know that, but it may happen. I do like the idea of you playing a sport of some sort, but I want you to have a backup, just in case.” I thought for a second.

“I seem to have an ear for music…” I said. “Maybe try taking up playing an instrument… Clarinet or something…” Now mom looked thoughtful.

“Why not strings?” she asked.

“I think I’d do better at a clarinet than a string, but I’m willing to give it a shot…” I knew that Mom had played the violin when she was younger.

“That’s my girl,” Mom said with a smile. “I doubt your sister would take up an instrument, she’s not patient enough, besides, if you go with a stringed instrument, I can help you.”

“Hmm….” I thought for a few moments. “True. How hard would it be to get me a violin so that I can start to learn how to play.”

“Well, first off,” Mom started. “You need a slight introduction to how to read music, and probably a music teacher. Has Abby said anything about learning an instrument?”

I thought for a few moments. There was a piano in their living room, but that didn’t mean that she played. “Not that I can recall, but that doesn’t mean anything.”

“I’ll have Daniel talk to her about it.” Mom said. Inwardly I wondered how long it would be before we moved into the five bedroom home that Daniel, Abby and Nicole lived in. “Also, Daniel said something about wanting to take you girls to the zoo tomorrow. Maybe you can wear that teal dress that we got you today.”

The dress was a teal skater style dress that had metallic dragonflies on the fabric and a tie to adjust the fit. I had tried it on in the store and had fallen in love with it and had found three more dresses in a similar style, one white, one pink and a purple striped long sleeve variant of the short sleeved dress. “I wonder what Abby’s going to wear…” I let the thought trail off. Something about dressing like sisters seemed right.

“I don’t know,” Mom said. “We’re going over for dinner tonight, why don’t you ask her?”

“Good idea.” I replied. “Can I use the iPad to get on the internet and learn about various instruments and to start trying to learn how to read music?”

Mom laughed again. “Yeah. I think you’d do good on a stringed instrument. You seem to have the grace that a feminine violin player would have. I can see you playing one with ease…”

“Can I at least try the clarinet?” I asked, standing up to go get the iPad.

“You can,” Mom said with a chuckle. “Woodwinds are hard to pick up though.” I wandered into the den where the iPad was charging.

#

Abby opened the door after I had knocked, and let us into the house. Mom and I walked in and met Daniel, Nicole and Rachel in the kitchen. I glanced around the kitchen which led into the family room. The far wall had a fireplace that looked like it had seen some use. There was some soft classical music that I had heard previously heard but couldn't place. The smell of roast cooking filled the air.

“Hi Mr. Jenkins,” I said seeing him standing in the spacious kitchen.

“Emma, you can call me Daniel, it’s ok…” he said, letting the thought trail off.

Abby walked back into the kitchen after shutting the door and grabbed my arm, dragging me away from the kitchen and up to her room. “Dad said he wants to take us to the zoo tomorrow…”

“I know, mom told me earlier.” I replied, plopping down on the four poster canopy bed adorned with a pink and white checked comforter. ”I got a new dress that I think I’m going to wear tomorrow.”

“Oh?” Abby said, her eyes lighting up. “Do tell.”

“It’s a teal color with metallic dragon flies on it, hits just above the knee.” I replied, falling backwards on the bed. “Mom and I were talking about me playing soccer or tennis earlier and she suggested that I have a have a backup plan in case they don’t allow me to play on account of my ‘medical condition’”

Abby snorted as she burst out laughing. “I like the phrasing of that…” She said between giggles. “So, what is your backup plan?”

“Playing an instrument…” I replied. “I don’t know between a clarinet or something like a violin.”

“Hmm…” Abby said, raising her right hand to her chin. “I can play the piano a little bit, it’s been a while since I’ve really practiced, but I could probably pick it up again easily,\; I can also play the clarinet. I played last year in orchestra.” She looked at me for a second and then opened her closet. It was full of dresses, but on the shelf was a small black box with silver trim and latches. She pulled it out and sat it on the dresser, opening it, and starting to assemble the various pieces of the clarinet. She finished by sliding a piece of wood in the mouthpiece and then put the instrument up to her lips. She took a deep breath from her nose and went through the scale of notes from low to high. Smiling, she handed me the instrument. “You try.”

I took a deep breath and held the clarinet to my lips. Abby came over and helped me hold my hands in the correct position. I gave a blow of air through the mouthpiece and had the reed tickle my lips ever so slightly. The sensation distracted me and the only sound that came out of the clarinet was something that sounded between a duck quacking and a goose honking. Abby and I looked at each other and burst into a fit of giggles. “I’m not sure that a clarinet is the right instrument for me…”

“If you guys could put the goose outside and come down to dinner, your sisters would appreciate it!” Abby’s dad shouted up the stairs. The two of us burst out in giggles again as Abby disassembled the clarinet and placed it back in it’s case. The two of us left Abby’s room and headed down stairs to eat.

Zoo Trip and a prelude to a surprise...

“Emma,” I heard mom’s voice come through the door. “It's time to get up, Daniel wants us over at their place by 9:30. I think he wants a full day at the zoo. Make sure to wear comfortable shoes.” The mention of comfortable shoes made me sit up and grab my phone. I fired a text off to Abby. I told her I was changing up what I was wearing and was planning on now wearing my khaki shortalls and a lilac colored shirt. I figured that would be more comfortable than my legs rubbing together under my dress… I could hear Mom telling Rachel to get up as well, and from the sounds of it, Rachel didn’t want to get up. I quickly changed from the shorts and tank top that I had slept in into my clothes for the day. Slipping my feet into my white canvas sneakers, I opened the door and went down to see what mom had in mind for breakfast.

I walked into the kitchen and opened the pantry looking for something to eat for breakfast. I didn’t hear Mom come into the kitchen. “Daniel sent me a text, he wants to take us out to breakfast…” She said, reaching up to run my hair through her fingers. “Should do something with your hair…” She let the thought trail off and left the kitchen. I shrugged and closed to door; Mom reappeared with a brush and some lilac colored ribbon. She laid it on the shirt to check the color. “Sit on one of the stools…” I sat, my back to her so that she could brush my hair. She brushed and I relaxed not paying attention to what she was doing. When she was done I sported a pair of pigtails, very much like the first time that mom had done my hair. I looked the part of the older sister. Speaking of sisters, mine came down the stairs, sounding like her usual herd of elephants. She appeared at the at the entrance to the kitchen.

“Pigtails?” Rachel asked. “Too girly for me…” Her own hair was in a single pony tail hanging down her back. She wore a pair of shorts and a tank top. The girliest thing she had on was the blue canvas sneakers with white laces.

“I like pigtails,” I replied. “I can’t help it that you don’t like girlish things…”

Mom backed her car into the driveway at the home that Daniel, Abby and Nicole lived in. Abby met us at the door, she had opted for shorts and a tee shirt. Our shirts were a similar color and Abby’s hair was braided down her back.

“Come in!” She said, obviously ready to get this show on the road and get to the zoo. We walked into the house and stopped in the kitchen.

“Sharon, I was thinking we could take the Tahoe,” he said. “It would save you from paying to park and us wasting gas on running two vehicles…”

“Ok with me,” Mom said, shrugging. “I get shotgun!” she said, failing to suppress a giggle. Daniel gave a good hearty laugh.

“Nope,” he replied. “Abby rides shotgun and you can ride in the back with Nicole.” Abby and I shared a glance.

“What are you two talking about?” Abby asked, confused.

“When I was in college,” Mom started. “When you went on a road trip, the person that called shotgun rode in the passenger seat. They got to pick the music, but they also had to be able to navigate.”

“Ok…” Abby and I said at roughly the same time. We obviously didn’t understand the significance of the calling shotgun. Nicole came down the steps wearing a pair of denim shortalls and a baby pink tee shirt; her hair hung in a loose ponytail.

“Let's go…” Daniel said, rubbing his stomach. “I'm wasting away over here.”

Daniel parked the Tahoe and we all piled out. The sun was warm and it was already obvious that it was going to be a warm day. The six of us walked toward the gates that would permit us entry to the treasures of the zoo. I didn’t know what Abby’s thoughts were, but I wanted to see the aquarium. After we were inside the gates, Daniel and mom walked toward the large lake that was at the center of the zoo. Naturally, we followed them.

“Abby,” Daniel said, turning slightly to look at Abby. “You and Emma have your phones, right?”

“Yep,” we replied simultaneously while patting pockets. My phone was in the front left pocket of my shortalls, and Abby's was in her right rear pocket.

“Ok,” he said glancing around. “Take your sisters and go wander around. Abby, I gave you some cash in case you needed some. Let's meet back here at noon so we can get lunch.”

“Ok,” Abby said, pulling her phone out and setting an alarm. “We'll meet back here at noon.”

“You four run along and have fun,” Mom said. I had the feeling that there was going to be discussions about Abby and I. Abby and I shared a glance. I think she was thinking the same thing I was: our parents were trying to get rid of us for a bit.

## 4 ##

Abby, Nicole, Rachel and I were in the aquarium watching the fish in the large tank. Nicole and Rachel were near the front watching the fish swim to and fro, getting excited when they saw one they'd not seen yet.

"What do you think our parents are talking about?" I asked Abby, who turned to look at me.

"Probably what to do with all of the stuff..." Abby replied.

I glanced down at our sisters as I saw movement near the large glass wall that separated us from the fishes. "What stuff?"

"Well, we're not going to need three couches, two dining room tables, two washers and dryers, etc..." Abby smiled at me. It suddenly clicked in my head what she was talking about.

"Wait," I said, my eyes getting wide. "Are you saying what I think your saying?"

"Well," Abby giggled. "That depends on what you think I'm saying..." She gave a shy smile and then brushed a few strands of her hair back behind her ear.

"Do our sisters know?" I asked.

"I don't think so..." Abby said, glancing at Rachel and Nicole. "Pretty sure Rachel doesn't know; Nicole might depending on how much she listens to Dad's ramblings..." She stood, gave a little stretch, and then looked at me. "What do you say we go see if those two," She tipped her head toward our sisters. "Want to go see the penguins or the otters or something other than here in the dark... I'm about to fall asleep..." I stood and followed her to where our sisters sat. When we got there, Abby tapped both the younger girls on the shoulder. They both turned to look at the two of us.

* * * * *

After watching the kids walk away, Daniel and Sharon had walked around the pond to the other side, it was a slightly different view, but with less people. Daniel wanted some people around but not the amount of people that were milling around the front gate to the zoo.

"Ya know," He said, smiling at Sharon. "What are we going to do with two houses and the contents thereof?"

"Are you trying to lead the witness, councilor?" Sharon said, laughter escaping her lips.

"No, but," He dropped to one knee and reached into his pocket, Sharon's hand floated up to her mouth. "Council would like to ask the witness if she would be his wife..." He opened the box he had pulled from his pocket, exposing a ring. It wasn't a diamond set in the ring, but an opal, Sharon's favorite stone.

"Yes," Sharon said, starting to tear up. The small group of people around them all clapped. "I'll be your wife." Daniel slid the ring on Sharon's finger.

* * * * *

At eleven forty five, the alarm on Abby's phone went off. The four of them had made it through the manatee exhibit, down through the otters and penguins and finally up to the African continent and were presently looking at the large, majestic giraffes that the zoo had.

"Let's go meet our parents back at the entrance..." Abby said. "I set the alarm to give us 15 minutes to get up there. That should be enough time." And so the four of them headed toward the entrance to the zoo. When they got there they found Sharon gazing at her finger, taking in the sight of the ring on her finger. She glanced up as the four girls approached, smiling at them.

"Hi girls!" Sharon said enthusiastically. She was still excited and it showed.

Abby noticed the ring first; she shared a glance at Emma, and grinned. "Pretty ring."

Sharon beamed. "Thanks, your dad got it for me."

"Abby doesn't miss a beat, does she?" Daniel said, appearing behind Abby. "So, we have some news... Emma and Nicole, Today I asked your mom to marry me. She said..."

"Yes." Sharon said, still beaming.

Rachel and I looked at each other and grinned. Somehow I had known that this day was coming and Abby and Nicole were about to become my stepsisters... There was going to be much to do in the coming days.

We were sitting around the table that night, eating a casserole that Abby had cooked. She actually had a lot of culinary experience for someone her age, having had to look after Nicole when Daniel had to work late. She had been working on it when we arrived and it had now been brought to a point where we could eat it. I had set the table and we were all waiting on Abby to move the dish containing the casserole over to the table. Abby placed the casserole dish in the middle of the table.

"Emma, can you serve us?" Abby asked.

"Sure." I said, holding my hand out to take Nicole's plate as she was to my right. She handed me the plate and I scooped some of the casserole on it. I repeated the process with all of the plates, finally filling my plate up with foot. Abby had let me taste some of it before she had put it in the oven. Rachel poked at it with a fork; expecting it to move or something. "Try it. It's good." I said before taking a bite of mine. Rachel took a bite of the casserole and her face lit up. "I told you it was good."

"So something we are going to need to discuss is where to put things. Obviously," Daniel took a bite of his casserole, chewed and swallowed it. "I don't know what we're going to do with a second washer and dryer; but we can turn the finished basement into a media room with the second couch and the TV from your guys' living room. The basement has been unused since it was finished and it would be a nice place for us to be able to hang out... Or the girls can watch things downstairs and we can watch things upstairs."

"That sounds like a good idea." Mom said. "I still don't know what we're going to do with a second washer and dryer though..."

"There is enough space in the laundry room for both sets. We might be able to get them hooked up so we can use both..." Daniel smiled. "I'd have to call a plumber and see what it would take to get it hooked up."

"Sounds good." Mom said. "What have you thought about the bedroom situation?"

"Well, we have 4 bedrooms plus the master," Daniel said, taking a sip of his wine. "Each girl can have thier own room, Abby and Nicole are already in thier rooms, so the other two are up for grabs. I'll take the dining room as my home office.

"Is there enough room in there for both of our offices?" Mom asked, peering through the opening to the dining room.

"Depends on how elaborate your setup is, I think we can make it work." Daniel said, reaching for more casserole. "I'm pretty sure that the girls don't have anything that would require a lot of space."

"The main things that they have are thier beds, dressers and clothes." Mom said. "Although it might be time to add a computer into Emma's collection of things." She looked at me; I was sitting there with my mouth open, thankfully there was no food in it. I'd been wanting a computer for a while and here was mom, talking about getting me one now. "Might start needing one for stuff in the near future." Mom looked at the casserole dish. "Anyone want any more?" She asked; no one responded that they did and mom shrugged andput the last little bit on her plate.

"May Emma and I be excused?" Abby asked. Daniel and Mom looked at each other. "Who's gonna clean the table?"

"We will," Nicole and Rachel said.

"You may, Daniel said.

"Thank you," Abby said, standing. Once I was on my feet, Abby practically drug me up to where the bedrooms were. She opened the door next to her room. The walls were a light grey and this room had Daniel's office in it. "This is going to be your room when you guys move in. There is a connecting door behind that book shelf," She pointed at a book shelf on the wall that the two rooms shared. "I can't believe this is happening. I had a feeling that it would." I looked at the space, picturing what it would look like when I had made it mine. I'd like pink walls though...

****

When we were back at our house, I looked around my room. I really wanted a canopy bed. I loved the way the one in Abby's room looked. Mom walked by and saw me just staring off into space.

"What's on your mind?" She asked, leaning against the door frame.

"I was thinking that I would like a canopy bed." I replied, snapping out of my daydream. "It just seems like it would fitting."

"Well," Mom said, taking a step into the room. "I want to go out tomorrow and look for a computer for you, maybe we can look at beds too. Besides, you will also need a vanity and a dresser."

"Abby showed me the room that will be mine once we move everything in. the walls are grey like these, but I want pink... Wonder if we can repaint it..." I turned to look at her. She was smiling.

"Daniel had already mentioned that possibility..." Mom said, chuckling. "So, while we are out tomorrow we are going to look at paint as well. I also want you to think of other beds that you might like, such as a day bed, that can give you storage and expand to make a bigger bed if you wanted it to. It would also give you a place to curl up and read or work on homework." Mom smiled at me.

"I don't think I'vee seen a daybed before." I said, feeling confused.

"Run down and get the iPad," Mom said, "And I'll show you what they look like." I nodded and ran down to the family room where the iPad was plugged in. I unplugged it and headed back to my room. Mom was sitting on the edge of the bed. I handed her hte iPad and sat next to her. She tapped a few times and eventually pulled up an image of a white bed, that had three sides, and three drawers in the front of it. It was situated in a little girls bedroom, she was sitting on the floor playing with a toy that we couldn't really see. The bed had pink sheets on it and it looked cute enough. Mom swiped through the images and there was one of the little girl relaxing on the bed reading a book. The bed looked like it was something that I might be able to live with.

"I like that." I said, after mom had swiped through the photos. It looked more versatile than a canopy bed would be.

In Her Father's Footsteps: Chapter 1

It was something that had been brewing in thirteen year old Brandon Wolcott's body for years. He had never felt quite like a very masculine boy; never played sports, wasn't really attracted to the vast majority of girls at the middle school that he attended. Growing up in the small community of Waterford, Ohio had sent him to a school that was largely populated with students that grew up on farms... The FFA was popular in the school, and the boys were all buff and bigger than Brandon; the girls almost always opting for jeans and button down plaid shirts in lieu of dresses; something about mucking out horse stalls. He heard the front door open.

“Brandon,” He heard his dad’s voice float up to his room. “I’m home, and your mother and sister should be home soon as well. They were about twenty minutes away when I talked to them.” Brandon’s dad had picked up a shift at work with the village police department to help cover for a fellow officer that had some stuff to attend to with his own family. Brandon cringed at the use of his male name. The feelings of having something not matching between his brain and physical gender was really starting to wear him down. He stood, stretched and went down stairs. His dad stood there, hanging his coat up.

“How’s Wallick’s mom doing?” Brandon asked, genuinely concerned about the answer.

“She’s critical but stable,” Eric Wolcott replied. “She had least three strokes.” He rubbed the bridge of his nose. “It’s not looking good for her.” Brandon frowned. He knew that his friend Wyatt would take the death of his grandmother hard if she passed. “I’ll keep you updated.” He unzipped his uniform shirt, revealing his bulletproof vest. He never went on duty without it, even if he was working the Detective Bureau. You just never knew what was going to happen.

“Is there anything we can do to help?” Brandon asked, opening a cupboard and pulling out a glass to get some water.

“The doctors are doing all they can,” Eric said, giving the young man’s shoulder a squeeze. “I’m going to go change and you should get ready to go as well. We’re leaving as soon as your mom and Tia get here.” Brandon’s mom and older sister had been out doing some shopping for a baby shower of a family friend.

“Ok,” Brandon said, taking a gulp of the cup of water. It was gone in seconds. He turned and went up stairs. At the top of the stairs, he went to his room, pausing to glance into his sisters room with the sun shining in, illuminating the room in a bright pink glow. The room was neat and orderly, Tia’s makeup neatly laid out on the vanity, her desk organized. Even the closet, which stood open, was organized. Brandon could see some of her dresses, and he wished that he could put one on for their trip out to dinner that evening. They were celebrating Eric getting promoted to Lieutenant over the Patrol Bureau. He was going to be moving from heading the Detectives to leading the street units. Brandon shook his head and went into his room and pulled off the shirt he had on, replacing it with a dress shirt. He was going to have to come out, and soon, him not saying anything was beginning to cause him serious mental anguish.

## Chapter 2 ##

As the family of four walked into the restaurant, Brandon watched as the baby pink dress covered in a small flower print swayed as Tia walked in front of him and his dad. Brandon recognized the dress as being what was called a skater dress, presumably because it resembled the dresses that were worn by figure skaters. Brandon was becoming jealous of his slightly older sister and was really feeling the need to come out and say something. He had worn some of her clothes before, usually it was stuff that she had discarded in the dirty laundry hamper in the bathrooms that they shared. Other than him being a little taller than her, they were pretty close in size. What it meant in reality was that the dress that she wore now, which hit just above the knees on her, would hit mid thigh on him. ‘I wish I could walk around dressed as Cassie.’ He thought to him self. Cassandra Elizabeth was the name that he had given the girl that was inside of him. He had always pictured himself as a girl in the mirror, Cassie’s gray eyes sparkling in a way that Brandon’s didn't; his hair was shoulder length, and there were several girls at school that were jealous of his nice thick strawberry blond locks.

“Good evening, Sir,” the hostess said, a smile on her face. Her name tag read “Erin” She was petite, crossing a fraction of an inch over five foot two inches tall; three of those inches coming from the heels that she wore. “Four of you this evening?”

“Yes, Ma’am,” Eric replied, smiling at the hostess, who blushed. Brandon presumed that it was because she wasn't used to having someone call her ‘Ma’am’.

“If the four of you would follow me this way,” Erin said, after grabbing four menus. She led the four of them to a table in the corner of the dining room. Eric let his wife, Rachel slide in and sat in the corner and Eric sat next to her and Tia sat across from her mother and Brandon sat across from his father. “You guys enjoy your meal, and Elise will be with you shortly.”

“Thank you,” Eric, said, opening his menu and looking, even though he knew exactly what he wanted. Brandon looked at the menu and finally decided to order steak. He had never had bad steak from here before just like Tia and Rhonda had never received a bad chicken Cesar salad, which they were presumably going to order tonight. A brown haired, green eyed girl walked up to the table.

"Good evening," she started, "I'm Abigail, and I'll be your server this evening. What can I get you guys to drink?"

"Water," Eric said, glancing up at the girl and smiling.

"Sweet tea," Rhonda said, also looking up at the girl and smiling.

"Water," Tia said, not glancing up.

"Sweet tea," Brandon replied, glancing at the server and smiling. He finally got a good look at her. She was petite, standing maybe five foot one, tiny waist, and brilliant green eyes. The white dress shirt she wore was fitted to her small frame. Any tighter and Brandon would have guessed that she had out grown the shirt while she was at work.

"Alrighty," Abigail said, a smile on her face. "I'll be back with your drinks momentarily." Brandon watched her go, noting that even her pants were tight. He got lost in watching her rear end bounce as she walked.

"Brandon..." Tia said, before giving him a smack on the back of the head. "You like the way her butt looks?" He couldn't be truthful at the moment, but he really wanted to be her.

Allen had just gotten out of the shower and was wandering around the house naked. Normally this would have posed it's own problems, not the least of which would have been that everyone else would have been home. This was how he found him self standing in front of the large mirror in his sister's bedroom, with it's pink walls and four poster canopy bed covered in pink and white sheets and stuffed animals. His sister was fifteen, and was more girly than most of her peers. He looked around her room, very clean compared to his. Her vanity had a bunch of makeup on it, in a variety of colors, some contrasting against the white surface. Laying on her bed was the navy satin night gown that she had worn the night before. He picked it up and held it against his still damp skin. The fabric was cool as the air conditioning had been running in the house, the satin holding the ambient temperature of the room. Allen had guessed it at about seventy two in the house. The night gown would hit just below his knees if he were to put it on. Oh how he wanted to, just once. He envied his sister, getting to wear the clothing that he loved to see on her and others, but wanted to wear just like them. Allen sighed and placed the night gown back on the bed the way he had found it and went off to his own room, more upset at himself than anything for not being able to go as far as slipping on the night gown, yet again...

You see, Allen wasn't your usual thirteen year old...

---

The Beginning

Three weeks later, I was sitting in front of the TV, watching something that I thought was supposed to be a comedy, but I didn't find it funny. I switched the TV off and walked up stairs toward my room. Maybe something on the computer could hold my interest on this rainy Saturday. I almost wanted to go somewhere to wander around, burn off some energy that I had been bottling up. It had been raining for close to a week, and it was a good thing that the drainage systems in the area were as good as they were. As I waited on the computer to boot, it suddenly dawned on me that I might be able to see if these feelings that I kept having were normal. The downside would be that I would have to sift the noise from the signals and get the right answer. Once the computer was on, I connected to the internet and launched the web browser to begin my research.

#

I looked at the clock when I heard the garage door open and blinked. I had been at my research for several hours, that or lost in a day dream, I still wasn't sure which. I saved some of the stuff that I had copied into files buried deep inside the folder structure where I hoped no one would find them.

"Allen, we're home. I brought some food, your sister and I still have to go out looking for a dress for the dance coming up at school." Allen's mom, Katherine said.

"What did you bring for food?" I said, heading down the stairs. This is a good thing, I can continue my research...I thought walking into the kitchen and smelling roast beef. My mom had stopped at a national chain restaurant and gotten him my favorite: a roast beef and cheddar sandwich. I presumed that this was because her and my sister would be gone all day. My sister was a rather picky girl that was very talented and smart, although her dishwater blonde hair led to the typical jokes. Her grey eyes sparkled in the little bit of light in the kitchen. "I figured it was the least that I could do for you, we've been gone all morning, and, will probably be gone most of the evening as well. I'm just glad that we can trust you to behave when you are home alone." Mom said, grabbing a glass and getting some water from the dispenser that was built into the front of the fridge.

"I would probably be bored to tears if I had to go with you..." I replied, taking a bite of my sandwich. The truth was that I would have loved to go dress shopping. It would have made the outside of my body partially match the way the inside of my body felt. I had been feeling this way for quite some time, and was unsure how to break this feeling to my mother or father. I brushed a few pieces of my shoulder blade length blonde hair out my eyes... When I had started growing it, I had expected more of a fuss from my mom and dad, but had received surprisingly little in the way of it.

"Carly couldn't get her boyfriend to go shopping with her for that very reason..." His sister, Heather said... "It's a pity, he's really good at fashion..." I glanced over at Heather, she had on a simple heather grey tunic and black leggings. I presumed that this would be easy to remove when she was trying on dresses. She wouldn't have to remove the leggings, just the tunic and try on the dress. I offered her a potato bite, which she accepted.

"Todd whats-his-name is good at fashion?" I knew of Todd, there had been some speculation the he was actually gay, not that I cared.

"Yeah. He has a knack for it. He really should go into fashion design. There are some days that Carly lets him pick out her clothes." I blinked.

"I didn't know that." I said, finishing off my sandwich.

"Heather, we should get going. I just hope this rain lets up before we get to the mall..." Mom said. Heather picked up her purse, smiled at me, and went out to get in the car. "Be good, I. I'll call you if any thing changes." She said, and then kissed the top of my head, and went out to the car. As I finished the potato bites, I heard mom pull out of the garage and the door shut again. I tossed the bag that contained the remains of my dinner in the trash, grabbed a Pepsi from the fridge, and went back upstairs. I reopened all of the research that I had done so far and got back on the internet.

#

Around eight pm I stood up and stretched, stripped, grabbed my robe and headed for the bathroom to take a shower. Mom and Heather still weren't home yet and I predicted them to get home around nine thirty. Walking in the bathroom, I dropped my clothes in the hamper and noticed the skirt and shirt that Heather had worn the day before laying on the top. It was a black long sleeved shirt and a pink and black plaid skirt. I pulled them out and held them to my body, noticing that I was small enough, or so it seemed to wear them. I looked around the bathroom, and then locked the door. I didn't want anyone to come in on me while I was in here. The skirt had a thick black elastic waist band and every time I had seen Heather wear this skirt, she had the shirt tucked in. I slipped the shirt on, noticing that the fabric, even though it was cotton just like most of my shirts, felt softer. I picked the skirt up and looked at it. I had been having feelings for quite some time that I was supposed to be a girl, and my limited research told me that I was defiantly not alone in my feelings. I stepped into the skirt which swished around my legs as I pulled it toward my waist, pausing momentarily, I tucked the shirt into the skirt and then turned to the mirror on the back of the door. Looking back at me was a younger version of my sister, down to the dishwater blonde hair, the exception being that I had a set of dazzling blue eyes. Looking at the mirror, I realized that I needed a name, one that wasn't distinctly male, but more feminine... I could tell that I was going to be a girly girl and when I came clean with my feelings that I needed a name that shouted girly...

"Zoe." I said, looking at my reflection in the mirror. "Zoe Elizabeth" I smiled and then took off the top and skirt, and got into the shower, The image of Zoe burned in my mind for ever. As I showered, I looked down at my body and it's relative lack of hair and I briefly wondered if anyone would notice if I shaved my legs...

#

I had just laid down in my bed, a faint glow coming from the monitor of my laptop as it hadn’t fallen asleep yet and I didn’t feel like closing the lid. I tossed and turned for a little bit, trying to find the sweet spot in the mattress. What bothered me was that I couldn’t get that image of Zoe out of my head. I idly wondered what the rest of the family would say if they knew about Zoe, thinking that they would spaz and then disown me or something. Kick me out or no, they would make sure my life became a living hell, I was sure of that. Right as I fell asleep, I thought that he heard the garage door opening and mom’s car pull in. That meant that mom and Heather were home, and that meant that I needed to try to not mention Zoe to anyone…

I rolled over the next morning, still thinking about the way that Zoe looked in the mirror. I wondered how it would feel to be free enough to let the world meet Zoe, and also to wear a skirt all day long. I didn't shave the peach fuzz that grew on my legs, not that any one would notice it if i were in a skirt, it was all blonde like the hair on my head and so fine that you barley felt it as you ran your hand down my legs. I slipped on a clean pair of jeans and a tee shirt and went down toward the kitchen. As I expected, mom was there, and Heather was no where to be found, so I presumed that it was just me and mom at home.

"Morning sweetie. You want some oatmeal?" Mom asked. I just nodded, which caused mom to look at me. I hadn't slept well the night before, and apparently it showed. "You ok; you look like you didn't sleep well last night." I looked at mom and thought before I answered.

"No." I said softly. "I haven't been ok for a while." This caused mom to stop bustling around getting the oatmeal ready and just stop and examine me. Little did I know, Mom had dressed me in dresses when I was a baby to help facilitate diaper changes

"What's wrong?" She sat her coffee cup on the counter and devoted her attention to me.

"This." I replied running my hands up and down my body, as if to indicate that it was the whole body that was screwed up. "Last night when I said I would have been bored to tears going dress shopping with you, that's not quite the truth. I would have loved to gone with you guys and maybe even tried on a dress or two. Last night I tried on that black top and black and pink plaid skirt that Heather wore the other day because they were in the hamper. No one would know right? I don't have to tell you that part; but when I looked into the mirror, I saw Zoe looking back. She looked happy, I haven't looked happy for a while. I haven't been able to get the picture of her blue eyes sparkling out of my head since then..." Mom just blinked, and let me finish talking.

"Who's Zoe?" Mom asked. I blinked, not expecting that question, but rather expecting to be told to get out of the house...

"Me." I said quietly. "I am Zoe"

#
Mom had taken my hand and led me toward the living room which would be more comfortable to sit in than the kitchen. After she had led me to the couch, she sat on the love seat.

"So Zoe seemed happier than Allen's been in a while?" Mom asked.

"Yes. I can't explain it. Putting on Heather's skirt and top just felt right. For once the outside matched the inside." I responded. "It made me happy to have them both match." Mom watched as I folded my legs up on the couch, very much like Mom and Heather would do when they were reading a book. Mom smiled.

"You do act like your sister some times." Mom said, with a smile. "What do you think we should do about this?"

"I don't know. I think that talking to someone may be a good first step. I just don't know who to talk to."

"I don't know who to talk to either, and as this is Saturday, I think that talking to someone today may be kind of hard, so why don't you go get a shower, and since your sister is staying the night at Carly's, and your dad won't be home from Denver until at least Wednesday, I'm going to go find you something to wear and we can discuss this further, Ok?"

"I took a shower last night before you and Heather got home."

"I know. I want you to go take another one, use some of your sister's scented body wash this time, ok?" I nodded and went off to do as mom suggested.

#
I walked back into my bedroom after taking a shower and using the body wash. I currently smelled of lavender and, to be honest, I liked the smell. Laying on the bed was an ankle length denim skirt, pink sweater, and a matching pink polkadot bra and panty set. I looked around the room and then heard my mom on the other side of the door.

"Put everything on. I think your sister's shoes will fit you, I have a pair out here for you to put on after you get dressed." I shrugged, the panties were pretty self explanatory, the bra, however was not. I struggled with it for a few minutes, before finally getting it on correctly. I slipped the skirt on and then pulled the sweater over my head. I brushed my hair out and taking a deep breath, and then I opened the door to reveal mom standing there. She looked me up and down, and he waited for her to start laughing.

"My God, Zoe, you are beautiful." Mom said. I smiled and blushed at the same time.

"Thank you." I said in a voice that was softer than my normal voice. I watched as my mother's eyes widened in shock.

"Lets see if Heather's shoes fit you. I think that they will." She sat a pair of black mary jane wedges on the floor next to her new daughter's feet. I slipped the shoes on and were surprised to find that they fit. I crouched down and buckled the thin straps. Katherine smiled at her new daughter again. "Zoe, are you sure that you've never worn anything of your sisters before?"

"Yes. This is the first time other than the skirt and shirt from last night. It's something that I've dreamt about though..."

"Zoe, would you like to go out to breakfast? We can go across town so that we are unlikely to run into anyone that would know you."

"I think that I would like that. I am a bit nervous though."

"You'll be fine. Let me go grab you a purse. In the closet down stairs there is a grey peacoat, you can wear that. I'll be right back." Mom disappeared into Heather's room and came back with a small black purse. I went down and found the coat in the closet and slipped my arms in and buttoned the row of buttons on the coat. A few seconds later, mom appeared behind me with the purse. "Here you go, Zoe." I took the purse and opened the door to the garage.

#
I relaxed as mom drove through the city to the other side where the odds of someone knowing them were very slim.

"Mom, Why are you ok with this?"

"Why am I ok with you being happy and being you?" She chuckled. "Are you kidding me? I just want you to be happy and healthy."

"Well, At least I'm not dopey." I said, trying to make a joke. I smiled and mom chuckled some more.

"I think that you make a better happy than a dopey... Mom said. "I haven't seen you this giddy since I don't know when." Mom pulled the car into a parking spot. I looked around and took a deep breath, before opening the door and getting out of the car. I walked next to mom as we walked into a restaurant.

"Just the two of you, Ma'am?" The hostess asked. She stood about five foot one, and wore a white button down shirt and black slacks that didn't do much to flatter her, even though the shirt fit her form.

"Yes, just the two of us today." Mom replied as the hostess picked up two menus and then smiled at us.

"If you ladies would follow me please." We followed the hostess to the table and sat across from each other. She sat our menus down and then went back to the podium.

#
Mom and I had finished eating our breakfast and were sitting there talking when her cell phone rang. Mom looked at me and smiled.

"Hey Tom." Mom said. I presumed that dad was on the other end of the phone call. "Nope, no one is at home. Allen and I are out eating breakfast and Heather is over at Carly's..." Mom's statement caused an older couple that was sitting next to us to do a double take. I smiled at them, they shook their heads and mumbled something about 'kids these days...' "I know. You and I need to sit down and have a talk about Allen. No, nothings wrong, but Allen told me something about himself today that I think took an awful lot of courage to tell someone." Mom paused and looked at me. "I'm not going to get into it while I'm at a restaurant, Allen and I will call you later using the computer so we can at least talk face to face." Mom reached out and covered my right hand with her left and gave it a gentle squeeze. "I don't know how it will affect Heather, but I predict that she won't have a problem with it." Mom listened for a few minutes and then said. "Ok. I'll call your cell when we get home, I think that this is important enough that Allen would have preferred to tell both of us at once." I nodded. "Ok. I love you and I'll pass your message on to the kids." Mom dropped her phone back in her purse, and then looked at the older couple that had resumed staring at us.

"I take it he tried to call the house and no one was there?" I asked.

"Yep." Mom said, still looking at the older couple that was still staring. "I'm having breakfast with my daughter, is there something I can help you with?" Mom asked the gentleman rather pointedly. He and his wife turned a beet red and then went back to eating their prunes.

"How do you think he will take it?" I asked. Mom looked at me.

"Sweetie, your father is the head of diversity for Gillenfelter Systems... I don' think he will have a problem with it. He may know of resources that you and I don't." Mom said before finishing the last of her coffee. Mom handed me the check, thirty dollars and the car keys. "Go pay the bill and I'm going to run to the bathroom. Wait for me in the car."

"Ok." I said standing, slipping on the coat that I had worn in. I grabbed my purse and headed for where the cashier was. Almost before I got out of ear shot of the couple that was sitting across from us, I heard the woman remark to her husband: "There is no way that was a boy..." I think there may have been more, but I couldn't hear what she said.

#
Mom pulled the car into the garage and shut off the engine. We got out of the car and went into the house. I hung the coat back up in the closet and went and sat in the den. This was where we had the iMac set up so that we could talk to dad when he was away on business. Mom came in and sat next to me. She patted my leg through the skirt.

"Are you ready to introduce Zoe to your dad? Also, I watched you pay for breakfast and then walk out to the car. If I didn't know any better, I would have taken you for a girl." Mom said.

"I heard that woman that was sitting across from us say that I wasn't a boy as I went to pay for the food this morning. It made me feel good. As far as I can tell, I'm ready to introduce Zoe to dad. I kinda worry about his reaction though."

"I think he will mistake you for Heather at first. I can see the height difference, he can't do that over the video chat." Mom picked up the trackpad and keyboard and sat them in her lap. "Ready?" she asked, moving the pointer to the application that allowed us to video chat.

"As I'll ever be. I'd prefer to do this face to face, but this is the next best thing. I just hope your right about him." I responded.

"You just relax and be your self, Your father will be easy, it's Heather I'm worried about." I glanced at mom. For me it was the other way around. I was more worried about dad. "Mom double clicked on the application, and then double clicked on dad's name, connecting the two computers together over the internet so that we could have a face to face. The connection seemed like it took an eternity, when in reality it only took a few seconds.

"Katherine," Dad said, looking at the monitor on his laptop. I could see the reflection of his monitor in his glasses. "I thought you said that you were with Allen and that Heather wasn't home."

"That's right." Mom said. I could hear a smile in her voice.

"But Heather is sitting next to you." It took everything in me not to chuckle.

"No, Zoe is sitting next to me." Dad's face changed to a look of 'what-in-the-world-are-you-talking-about'. Mom had stumped dad, which was usually hard to do. "Look closely at her eyes." Mom said. Dad leaned toward his monitor.

"That's Allen!" Dad exclaimed. "So it's Zoe, huh?"

"Yes, Daddy. This morning I told mom that something's not been right with me for a while. I've felt like I should be a girl for quite some time. Last night before I got in the shower, I tried on a skirt and shirt of Heathers that was in the hamper. I saw Zoe staring back out of the mirror at me, and that image has been in my mind ever since. I'm happy right now, and I haven't been happy in a while." Dad sat back and looked at the monitor.

"What are your thoughts, Katherine?"

"I think that talking to someone that is trained in gender issues would be a good first step. Also, we are going to need to figure out how to tell Heather that she actually has a sister rather than a brother, but for right now, I think we can keep this between the three of us." Mom said. "Tom, Zoe and I went to breakfast this morning and she didn't raise a single eyebrow, except for this older couple that gave us a funny look when I told you that I was out with Allen..."

"I would have loved to have seen their faces. I bet it was priceless."

"It was." I said. "The woman even said that there was no way I was a boy... That made me feel really good."

"Ok. I'll go through the stuff I have about therapists and send you a few that are good and specialize in gender issues, Katherine make the calls Monday, and let me know about appointments. Add them to the calendar as well so they sync across everything. Zoe, welcome to the family. For right now you are going to have to go to school as Allen, but lets see what happens." I nodded. "I will probably be home Tuesday, These diversity seminars I've been running will be done Monday. I'll probably leave about 10AM, we have to make quick stop in Dallas to set someone straight, and then back home to Columbus. The Dallas stop may end up being an overnight depending on what happens. I'll let you guys know. I'm glad we charter jets for these kinds of trips, I would hate to try to do this via commercial airlines..."

"Ok. I will let you know Monday what I find out. Any objections to getting Zoe some things of her own?"

"None at all. It would be a lot easier than trying to explain why all of Heather's clothes are dirty..." Dad's cell phone rang, and he picked it up and looked at it. "It's Fred. I'll talk to you guys later. Love you both, and send my love to Heather."

"Love you Daddy." I said,

"Love you, Tom." Mom said the screen reverted back to the desktop after dad disconnected. Mom turned to me. "So, you want to go shopping?"

First things first, I would like to thank everyone that helped me get Chapters 1 and 2 fixed from my (and Zoe's) decision to change the voice of the story. Now that we have gotten past the point where the voice changed, things should be smooth sailing from here...

A small bit of forewarning, there are a few things in this chapter that are unlikely to happen in real life, but sometimes truth is stranger than fiction...

Now without further ado...

---

Shopping

Mom and I were in the car driving toward the shopping center that we had eaten breakfast so that we could engage in some retail therapy...

"So, what are we going to get me?" I asked, looking over at mom as we slowed down because traffic had stopped due to an accident.

"Some skirts and dresses, and defiantly some undergarments. You need your own as you can't keep wearing Heather's. If we want to keep this secret, we're going to have to make Zoe as self sufficient as possible. I don't know how your sister is going to take you possibly becoming her sister. Although given the way that your father and I raised you two, I don't think we have anything to worry about..."

"What about school?" I asked as we rolled about twenty feet and stopped again. A fire truck and medic rolled down the berm past us.

"Well, for now, you have to go to school as Allen. I see that changing at some point, but lets get to that point first." We rolled another twenty feet and stopped; I was getting restless in the traffic. I had always gotten restless when I was stuck in a car that wasn't moving, and that was exactly how I found my self this second. Mom looked over at me as we rolled about ten feet and stopped again. "Put the window down... Let some cold air in." That was the usual way to fix me when this happened. We rolled forward about seventy five feet and stopped again. "Would you want to go to school as Zoe?" Mom asked suddenly.

"Huh?"

"Would you want to go to school as Zoe?" Mom asked again. Traffic had started to move again and I presumed that the accident had been moved off to the side and that we might get there after all...

"Yes. My grades are good, but I think that they would be better if I could be me." We rolled past the accident, which didn't look that bad, but was bad enough to require the jaws of life... I put the window back up as we got back to highway speed. "I would love to be able to be Zoe when I'm home, I may have to suffer through being Allen at school I think I can live with that." I glanced at mom and saw her smiling.

"I would imagine that your dad will have some names for us soon." Mom's iPhone, which she had placed into a dock mounted to her vents between the front seats when we got into the car, chimed to indicate she had an email. Since I was not driving, I started to hit the icons on her phone to pull up her email. My own phone chimed from my purse. The only email mom had was from dad, and it contained a list of Doctors names, addresses and Phone numbers. Looking at the top of the email I saw that I also had a copy of the same email.

"His timing never ceases to surprise me..." I said to mom. "We have a list now..." Looking at the list on one of the computers at home would be easier than trying to do it from one of the phones. Mom glanced at the screen.

"How many, can you tell?" I scrolled the email and counted.

"Seven." I hit the bottom of the email and saw that dad had typed a small note. "He put a note at the bottom, it says 'Katherine and Zoe, Here's the list I told you I'd get. These are the doctors the company recommends to employees who have gender issues. The most recommended by the patients that have seen her is a Dr. Emily Francis. Her information is at the top of the list, and I was told that she does have Saturday hours. Also, I have an idea about how to tell Heather, so try to video conference when you get a chance. Love, Tom." I glanced at Mom.

"He has an idea on how to tell Heather... Your dad has always been good at this kind of thing..."

"What kind of thing?" I asked, as mom got off the interstate.

"Breaking odd news to people..." She said, letting the thought trail off. She pulled the car into a parking spot and shut off the engine.

#
Mom and I walked into the Apple Store, which caused me to look around. There was no clothing here, and we all had newish technology, so no reason to buy something. Mom walked right up to a twenty seven inch iMac and launched face time. The computer signed in with it's ID and password, which caused mom to sign out and then back in with her own. As the system populated her contacts, Mom looked at me.

"Do you have your headset?" I reached into my purse and pulled it out. "Plug it in." I spun the machine just enough to be able to see the ports on the back.

"It has two ports... We need a MacBook..." Mom pursed her lips and looked around. "Go to that open thirteen inch Air and sign it in to face time using your information. I'll be over in a second." I walked over to the machine and signed it out of face time, and then back in as me. As it populated my contact list, which was far less than mom's, I noticed that both Heather and Dad were on, and out of the corner of my eye, I saw mom talking to a salesman. She was pointing at the twenty seven inch iMac that we had just used, and was now pointing at the thirteen inch MacBook Air that I was now standing at. She smiled and nodded, and then walked over. I offered her an earbud, and pointed at the list. She nodded and then double clicked on dad's name. The call connected and we were looking at Dad's face, who looked confused.

"We're at the Apple Store, we figured that this would be easier than trying to do this from one of the phones." Dad nodded.

"Ok, for starters, I assume you got the email?" We both nodded. "Ok. I just talked to Heather, right before you called. I dropped some simple questions about how would she feel if someone she knew was transgender, and then she said that it would depend on who it was. This confused me a little bit, so I asked her to elaborate. She said that if she caught her bother, sister, whatever in her clothes that she would kick your ass, Zoe, but she also said that she would do everything in her power to guide you as an older sister should. I think we should just come right out and tell her."

"Really?" Mom said. Mom looked at me, and I looked back at mom, and then noticed that we were being stared at by other customers, and one salesman was using us as a demonstration on face time. From the looks of it, we had helped make a sale...

"Yeah. Katherine, we raised our kids right, and they respect the differences that we all have. Zoe, just be your self when Heather comes home. It looks like you guys are attracting a crowd so give me a call when you get home, and Katherine, buy something from there to thank them for letting you come in and take over a computer..."

"Ok, Anything in particular you think I should get?"

"Not off the top of my head." Mom nodded. "Love you guys and I'll see you Tuesday."

"Bye Tom." Mom said.

"Bye Daddy." I said. I watched as the screen went back to the list of contacts for face time and I signed out. Mom looked around at all of the people that were staring at us. I rebooted the MacBook Air, knowing that it would reset everything back to how it had been when I walked up to it. A man in shirt sleeves and a tie walked up to mom. He had an ID badge, so I presumed that he was the store manager.

"Good Morning, Ma'am, may I ask you and your daughter a question?" He asked mom.

"Sure." The crowd that we had attracted hadn't shrunk. I think they were expecting us to get chewed out for what we did.

"Who were you facetimeing with?"

"My husband. We figured that a laptop would be easier than an iPhone for the two of us to talk to him at once." The manager nodded.

"He looked like he was in a hotel room, is he away on business?"

"Yeah, he's the director of a department for Gillenfelter Systems and is currently in Denver. We try to talk to him every day when he's gone, and usually use Face Time to do it. We're a Mac Household." Mom said.

"Can you give me a rundown of the equipment you guys have, and may I trouble you to basically write down what you just told me? I would like to share it with my staff as well as send it up the chain to Steve Jobs. He loves hearing about how people use our products to keep in touch when distance keeps them apart. We've never had someone just walk into the store, take over a computer, and just start using face time before." Mom looked at him, and he turned around and looked at someone standing at the genius bar, who held up four, no make that five fingers. "We just sold five Macs because of your use of Face Time." I blinked.

"Well, we have a twenty inch iMac, My husband has a seventeen inch MacBook Pro, I have a white MacBook, and both of my children have thirteen inch MacBook Pros... I helped you guys sell five Macs?" The manager nodded.

"What are the ages on those machines, we haven't made a twenty inch iMac in a few years..." The manager, whose name tag read 'John' asked.

"It's one of the white ones, we got it and my MacBook at the same time, I think in two thousand seven... The MacBook Pros are all within a year old. My husband told me to buy something to thank you for letting me come in and take over a computer."

"Us selling five machines just because of your impromptu use of Face Time was thanks enough. Are you guys going to be in the mall for a while, I want to make a phone call and see what I can do to thank you guys." The man that had been standing at the genius bar walked over and whispered in John's ear. "Make that seven Macs..."

"Yeah, we need to do some shopping." Mom said.

"Ok, if you could give me your phone number, I will call you when I find out what I can do." Mom wrote her number down and handed it to him.

"You don't have to do anything for us. We didn't really do anything..."

"I know." He smiled. "I may not be able to do anything lets see what happens, ok?" Mom nodded. "Why don't you guys give me an hour and we'll see what happens."

#
"Tom, because we went in there and used that MacBook to call you, they sold seven Macs... They want to do something for us..." Mom paused and listened to dad on the other end of the call. "Yes, seven. He asked me what equipment we had at home and I told him. He was going to make some calls to see what he could do." Mom and I walked toward one of the anchor stores. "I don't know what he has up his sleeve. The profit alone from those sales would have been more that I would have spent on anything in the store." Mom and I walked toward the juniors department. "Zoe, look around at stuff and find stuff that you'd want to wear while I finish up talking to your dad." I nodded and wandered off on my own; as I got out of ear shot, I heard mom say "I think that he's going to try to replace my Macbook and the iMac..." I wandered for a few moments just taking in all of the options that were now available to me. I had dreamt of this and now, here I was shopping in the department that would make my outside match my inside. I grabbed a few skirts that looked like they would have been my size and also some tops. Then I saw the sweaters... I grabbed a few in various pastel shades. It was then that I realized that I needed a cart, and mom appeared with one...

"Your timing is just like dad's..." I said, offloading what was in my arms into the cart. "I think that the skirts will go with everything else."

"Looks like it." Mom said. "We should get you some pants as well. And you do need your own shoes..." I saw a blue and black plaid skirt on a hanger and grabbed one in my size. I tossed it in the cart. Mom and I made our way toward a place to check out when I spied some jeans. I looked for some in my size and tossed them in the cart as well. I looked at mom, who looked satisfied. I saw the area where the sleepwear was being displayed and headed over there to look. Satin was about the only thing that I could think of that I wanted to sleep in and I found a cute satin night gown and panty set. The only thing that concerned me was that the panty was a thong... I tossed it in the cart anyway, as I didn't have to wear the matching panty... I saw mom giving me a look.

"What?" I asked, mom just smiled and shook her head. I also grabbed some cotton sleep shirts and a few pair of sleep pants. I figured that it wouldn't hurt to have options. Mom and I walked toward the intimates department, a department that I had never entered before, and a department that I could probably get lost in... I looked around, in awe of the number of colors, not to mention the styles of undergarments that were displayed. As a boy you get a choice of three colors: white, black and grey; as a girl you get your choice of every color under the rainbow and some things that weren't part of a rainbow... That was how I found my self looking at a black and white plaid bra and panty set... I turned and looked at mom... "What size am I?"

"Your sister wears a 34C, so I'd venture a 34A probably." Mom said. I found a set that had a 34A bra and a size 6 panty. I had looked at the size of the panty when I put it on. I tossed it in the cart and then looked at a few more matched sets. The idea of having a matching panty and bra intrigued me, it also in a way made no sense as no one should see your bra and panties...

#
Mom and I carried the first round of spoils out to the car and were walking back into the mall when her phone rang. She pulled the phone out and looked at it. "It's the Apple Store." She said, and then swiped her finger across the screen to answer the call. "This is Katherine." Mom said. She tilted her head toward the Apple Store.. "Ok, John, we'll be there in a few minutes." I followed mom toward the store. When we got there, John met us at the front of the store.

"My employees all decided that since it was your direct use of Face Time that resulted in the sale of eight total machines, plus some accessories, that they are going to give you their commission. Based on the machines sold, That's a total commission of just shy of three grand." Mom looked at John, and then around at the eight members of his sales force that had sold the machines.

"You guys don't have to do this. All I did was call my husband, you guys actually made those sales. I might have helped clench them, but you guys did the leg work."

"Ma'am, I think I speak for the rest of my coworkers," A girl, whose name tag read Sarah said, stepping forward. She wore the royal blue shirt that all of the sales staff wore and had on a pair of rather snug black jeans. She had a pair of blue and black glasses on and a few strands of her brown hair framing her face. She was in the front of the group of employees because if she wasn't, all four foot ten inches or so of her would be lost behind her taller coworkers. "But every single sale we made was on the fence." She turned to look at her coworkers. "You did make those sales, albeit indirectly, but those were all you. You deserve the commission from those sales." Sarah handed her a gift card.

"I don't know what to say." Mom said.

"I'm not done yet." John said, a smile on his face. "I have been authorized by Steve Jobs himself to give you a twenty seven inch iMac and four iPads." Mom looked at him in disbelief.

"Thank you?" Mom said. I did a little bit of math in my head. Mom could replace her MacBook with the commission and then all of the Macs in the house would be less than a year old.

"You're welcome. If you want to continue your shopping and then come back and pick up the products, that is fine. If I'm not here, speak with Sarah who knows what's going on and where everything is. She will be here until we close tonight." Mom looked at me.

"Let's go finish our shopping." Mom said to me. "We will be back in a bit." Sarah nodded.

#
Mom and I walked back into the main concourse of the mall and then toward a shoe store. Mom found a place to sit down and we sat.

"I need to call your dad..." Mom said, digging her phone out of her purse. She tapped the screen a few times and then held the phone to her ear. I simply sat and watched the rest of the people in the mall go about their. "Hey Honey." Mom said into the phone. I watched as a girl that I knew from school walked by with some of her friends. "Well, the manager at the Apple Store called and said that he had received word about what he could do for us." Mom paused and looked at me, with a smile. "Yes, I know you said to buy something from them, but they are giving us something. They sold eight computers because I came in and started talking to you using Face Time." Mom paused again. "Yes eight. The sales personnel decided that since it was the direct result of my use of Face TIme that they sold those machines, that I should get the commission. That's just shy of three grand... There's more though... The manager asked me to write down how we use face time, He sent it to Steve Jobs, who authorized him to give us a twenty seven inch iMac and four iPads..." Mom glanced at me as she listened to dad. "OK, Hang on," Mom turned to me offering the phone. "Dad wants to talk to you." I held the phone to my ear.

"Hi Daddy." I said. "What's up?"

"Zoe, Accept the stuff from the Apple Store, and have your mom get a new laptop. When you guys get home, I want you to work on getting the the computers setup, data transferred etc that way I won't have to do it when I get home on Tuesday."

"Ok. What do you want me to do with the old iMac and mom's old laptop?" These were important questions, if I did say so my self.

"Put them in the den, I'll figure out what to do with them when I get home."

"Yes, Daddy. Is there anything else?"

"No, sweetheart. Hand the phone back to your mother."

"Ok, Bye Daddy. Love you." I handed the phone back to mom.

"Ok, Tom. I love you." She said and then put her phone away. "Lets go get you some shoes." Mom said, standing. As we walked, mom looked like she was in thought. "What did your dad say?"

"He said to accept the stuff from the Apple store and to make sure that you get a new laptop, and that he wants me to set them up and do the data transfers when we get home. He didn't mention the iPads... Heather is going to be surprised..." I said. Heather had been wanting an iPad for a while but couldn't justify the purchase. We walked into a shoe store. There was a sales person that smiled at us as we walked in. Mom and I walked right over to the women's shoes and started looking. I found a pair of black ballet flats and showed them to mom who nodded. She pulled out a pair of those fleece lined boots that all of the girls at school were wearing. I nodded and went back to looking. I found a pair of tennis shoes that were pink and white and showed them to mom and she nodded. I figured that I now had shoes for almost every occasion. That was until I saw a pair of black loafers with what appeared to be a two inch heel. I showed them to mom, who looked at me.

"Ok." She said... "Tell me why you think that you should have them."

"Well," I paused, formulating my argument. Mom and Dad both were good at forming an argument in such a way that it proved their point and sometimes left you with no counter argument. This was why Heather still didn't have an iPad. "Some of the clothes that we have already purchased won't work very well with the selection of shoes that we have. For instance, the ballet flats would work with the denim skirt that we got, but not as well with the pink skirt. The boots would just look funny with both, and the tennis shoes would be laughable, thus the need for a pair of shoes that are a little bit dressier."

"Add them to the pile." Mom said with a smile. That meant that my argument had convinced her of the need for the purchase of the shoes. It wasn't every day that the kids won an argument against mom or dad.

#
We took our spoils out to the car from round two when mom saw something that stopped her dead in her tracks. I had run into the back of her as I wasn't paying as much attention as I should have been. I looked in the general direction of where mom was looking and saw what caused her to stop. Sitting in the parking garage, at the end of the row that we were parked in, was Carly's car.

"We're going to have to be careful." Mom said, popping the trunk. "I'm pretty sure that Heather is with her." Mom pulled her phone out of her purse and brought up the application that would let her see where Heather's phone was. "Crap." Mom said. I glanced at the screen on the phone and saw that Heather's dot was on the mall. "Lets head to the Apple store, get the stuff and get out of here. This is not where we want to tell your sister about Zoe..." I nodded. Mom closed the trunk and then opened the back door and pulled out a sweater that she kept there, slipped it on and then locked the doors. Heather probably wouldn't have seen mom's car if she wasn't looking for it, so we had that going for us. Neither one of us wore anything that was distinct to the family or anything. Mom and I walked back into the mall and headed straight for the Apple store. Mom and I walked in and looked around. John was no where to be seen, but we did see Sarah, who was working with a customer. She saw us enter and held up a finger, and turned her customer over to another salesman and walked over to us.

"You guys ready to finish the transaction?" Sarah asked, a large smile on her face. Mom nodded. "Why don't you pick out some covers for those iPads while I go get everything together." Mom nodded again and we walked over to where the cases and covers for the iPads hung on the wall. Mom grabbed a brown and black leather cover,

"What color do you you want?" I looked at mom with a look that said 'do you really have to ask me that.' Mom reached up and grabbed two pink covers. Sarah came back out with cart that had the twenty seven inch iMac on it as well as the four iPads. Mom sat the smart covers on the cart and looked at Sarah. "Could you get me a thirteen inch MacBook Pro?" Sarah nodded, and disappeared through the door that she had come out of. She came back a few seconds later with a MacBook Pro. That was one thing that dad liked about the Apple stores. They didn't try to force accessories on you. Mom pulled the gift card out of her purse and handed it to Sarah, who started scanning stuff, looked at mom, who was looking at the little screen that showed the price, watched as mom nodded. Sarah took care of the transaction and then turned to the salesman next to her.

"David, I'm going to help them out to their car, I'll be back." The person that I presumed was David nodded and Sarah handed me the MacBook. I took it and mom gave me a look like 'Don't you dare drop that...' Mom led the way out of the store, and toward the car. I walked next to Sarah, wondering if she would be able to even pick up the box that the iMac was in. We got to the car and I assisted Sarah in picking up the box and putting it in the back seat. We sat the four boxes that contained the iPads in the floorboard and then sat the MacBook on the seat next to the iMac.

"Sarah, I want to thank you, and if you would please pass that on to John for me." Mom said.

"I will." Sarah said, "You guys have a nice day."

"You too." Mom said, I stood next to the car and watched Sarah go. "Zoe." I turned slowly. "I know her ass looked nice in those pants, but we should get out of here before Heather finds us..."

Discovery

Mom backed the car into the garage and shut the engine off. I opened the door of the car and got out. Mom opened the back door and pulled the MacBook out. "Take the iMac in and set it up... You are the one that setup the entire network..." she smiled at me. I'll put the iPads in our bedroom, and put your stuff in your room." I nodded, and slid the box out of the back of the car and carried it into the living room. I looked around the living room, knowing that the iMac that sat on the desk now would have to move somewhere else while the data transfer occurred. Both computers would be on the network, which would be wired for which ever computer sat on the desk. I could hear mom talking to someone on the phone from the kitchen, but I didn't know who.

#
I was still working in the living room, working on setting up the iMac and mom's new MacBook when I heard the front door open and then slam. I heard foot steps coming go down the hall way, a thud, and then a few more foot steps.

"Mom!" I heard Heather shout. I looked up and slowly spun around to look at my sister. Heather's hair was tied back in a pony tail with a red ribbon. The ribbon matched the red shirt she wore and the black pants provided a nice contrast. Mom walked into the living room from the dining room.

"Yes, Heather?"

"Who is that?" Heather asked pointing at me.

"That would be your sister, Zoe." Mom said. Heather made some kind of a sputtering sound, and then looked from mom to me and back to mom, and then back to me. "Go on, she won't bite..."

"This is why dad asked me the questions a little bit ago..." Heather said, walking closer to me. "He was trying to gauge my response before you guys said anything. Stand up, let me get a look at you." I stood slowly and watched as my sister approached she paused, pushing the chair in and then walked all the way around me, stopping and looking at my face. She leaned forward and looked at my face really closely. "No makeup?"

"Nope." I said, cracking a smile for the first time since she had walked in the house.

"You weren't allowed to wear any makeup until you were fifteen, Heather. Zoe will be no different." Mom said. "Zoe, I called Dr. Francis. You have an appointment Wednesday at one thirty. It's on the calendar and there is a reminder set." I nodded. Heather looked at me and then at Mom.

"Dr. Francis?" Heather asked. "Who is this Doctor?"

"Dr. Francis is a specialist in gender issues." Mom said, glancing at me. "You missed the revelations that your sister gave your father and I this morning." Heather raised an eyebrow.

"Revelations?" Heather said.I nodded slowly. I was about to tell it again...

"Yeah. Lets sit down." I said. Heather and I sat opposite each other and that was when Heather finally noticed the new iMac.

"Where did that..." She let the thought trail off while pointing at the iMac

"There's a story to that, but I'll get there..." I said. Mom looked at the two of us.

"I'll be in the kitchen if you guys need me."

"Ok." Heather replied, not taking her eyes off of me. I smiled at her, knowing full well that my dimples would show. I had tried to hide them as much as possible. I had been ribbed by male classmates over my 'girlish dimples.' Now I didn't have to hide them...

"I've been feeling like I'm in the wrong body." I paused trying to think of how I wanted to phrase this. Heather opened her mouth to speak, and I held up my hand to stop her. "Last night, when I said that I would have been bored to tears to go dress shopping with you guys, I wasn't being truthful; I wouldn't have been bored to tears, I would have probably enjoyed it. For probably close to two years now, I've felt like a girl on the inside. I expected to get a lecture when I started to grow my hair out, but no one said anything. When I told mom this morning about it. I also told her that last night I put on the black top and the pink and black plaid skirt that you wore to school Thursday." Heather's eyes narrowed a bit. "Zoe was looking back at me. Her eyes sparkled and Allen's eyes hadn't done that for some time. I knew what I had to do and I did it this morning.

"Mom told me to go take a shower and that she would get me some clothes to wear. She did, and you can see what she picked out. Before you ask, yes this stuff is yours, but mom grabbed it, not me. Her and I went to breakfast this morning and talked about this a little bit more and then we video chatted with dad and told him. He pulled a list of doctors that specialize in gender issues and sent it to us. He also asked us to video call him again. We were on our way to Tanglewood when he sent us the list, so as soon as we got there, we headed for the Apple store, where we proceeded to take over a machine and called dad with it. He told us that he thought that the best way to tell you would be what happened: to let you discover Zoe.

"While we were at the Apple store, our use of face time helped them sell eight computers, and the manager, on authorization of Steve Jobs himself, gave us the iMac. The eight sales people also gave Mom their commissions. Mom has a new MacBook, and we have a new iMac. That brings us to here, and now." I concluded. Heather looked at me.

"You do seem happier right now. I also wondered how long it would take you to finally admit that something wasn't right." She said. "They just gave you an iMac?"

"Yep." Mom said, walking in from the kitchen with the smart covers for the iPads in her hands. "You girls will want these." Heather took the smart cover, looked at it, looked at me, and then looked at mom.

"We don't have iPads." Heather said. Mom handed each of us a box containing an iPad. I did a double take at the outside of the box.

"Mom, these are sixty four gig models..." I said. Mom blinked at me.

"I noticed. I bet that Mr. Jobs was very specific in what he told John to give us." I nodded and listened as the iMac rebooted. Well, that was one machine down, I still had mom's new laptop to work on.

#
Heather and I had moved to the kitchen where I was now working on mom's new laptop. I had grabbed a cup of coffee from the coffee pot and was slowly sipping it as I worked.

"You know that stuff will stunt your growth..." Heather said, plugging her iPad into her laptop. "So, how was your first day out in a skirt?"

"My growth was stunted long ago then... My first day out as Zoe was great. There were no problems to speak of, and mom and I enjoyed a nice quiet breakfast where we confused some poor old couple by referring to me as Allen with dad on the phone. The old woman said that I was not a boy... That felt nice." Heather looked up at me and smiled.

"I've always thought that you were a little cute to be a boy..." I smiled again, to me that was a compliment, even if it wasn't' intended as one. "You've always carried your self a little bit like a girl, now we know why. And those dimples scream girl to me."

"Thanks..." I said, Heather giggled.

"I'm serious. I wondered how long it was going to take before you tried on a skirt..." I looked at her.

"How do you figure?" I clicked on the button to make the laptops start transferring data and sat back, looking at Heather.

"Well, you've always been caring and compassionate, you seem to have a small knack for fashion." She paused like she had realized something. "You guys said you were at Tanglewood. Carly and I went there to see what dresses they had on sale. We didn't' see you guys."

"I know." Mom said, "We saw Carly's car and got the heck out of there as the mall wasn't the place for you to meet Zoe." Mom left out the bit about looking to see where Heather's phone was located. "I wasn't expecting you home until later. We were going to let you meet Zoe just the way you did. We figured that it would be easier than trying to hide it from you." Heather nodded. "Your dad is the one that came up with it. Looks like he was right once again."

"Dad is like that." Heather said, standing. "I'm going to go work on some homework. I'll be in my room." Mom nodded and then watched Heather go.

"Zoe, do you have homework to do?" I glanced at Mom.

"Some. You think I should go do that while this transfers?" Mom nodded.

I rolled over on Monday morning and swatted at my alarm clock. After I swung a few times, I finally connected with the button to make it stop it's obscene racket. I sat up and looked around. The only light in the room came from the pulsating light on the MacBook that was indicating that it was asleep and the red LED's from the clock. I was not looking forward to going to school. Normally I enjoyed school, but after spending the previous two days as Zoe, I was not looking forward to putting on the clothing that was not as soft and gentle on the skin as I would have liked. I had even picked an outfit out for Zoe's first day of school, and knowing mom, she would probably be ok with her new daughters choice. I slipped on a pair of black slacks and a maroon polo. The school didn't have a uniform, but every year someone on the school board tried to implement a uniform policy., and every year the idea was shot down by the rest of the board. I was, before saturday, hoping that they never adopted uniforms, now I was kind of hoping they did, it would eventually save me the hassle of getting dressed in the morning. As I looked at the mirror and brushed my hair out, I longed for the day when I'd be able to wear a skirt to school... I left my hair down and walked out of my room, and headed for the kitchen. Heather walked out of her room, saw Allen standing there and pouted.

"I was hoping to see Zoe..." Heather said.

"Not until I get all the papers from this Dr. Francis person." I said, following Heather down the stairs. "Then the fun will really begin. I wish that I could quit being a double agent already... Maybe I should have said something before school started in September..."

"Said something about what?" Mom asked. She had been sitting living room on her laptop sipping coffee as we came down the stairs.

"About Zoe. Although she didn't have a name until Friday night." I said, pulling two bowls out of the cupboard for us to make some oatmeal.

"She didn't?" Heather asked.

"Nope. The name came to me as I looked at my self in the mirror wearing the top and skirt." I said, placing the bowls of oat meal in the microwave. I pushed a few buttons and let the microwave nuke our oatmeal. Mom looked at the two of us.

"Zoe, if you had been a girl at birth your name would have been Courtney Anne. Your dad and I selected the names ahead of time and had told everyone. Lets just say that we didn't need the second set of names..." Mom poured some more coffee into her cup.

"Courtney... That's pretty." Heather said. I pulled the bowls of oatmeal out of the microwave and handed one to Heather, who sat it on the island and we ate standing at the island. This was normal for us as we both often finished eating with a few minutes to spare on catching our bus.

"I'll take you guys to school today. I told Bob that I'd be late today and I will be leaving early on Wednesday to come pick you up, Zoe. How do you want to go to the appointment? Chelsea, her assistant said for you to come dressed the most comfortable way for you to present, so that choice is yours." I must have given mom a look that said 'How do you think I'm the most comfortable?' Mom chuckled. "Thought so. We'll come up with a way to get you changed..." I nodded, and finished the last few bites of my oatmeal, and placed the bowl in the sink, filling it with water.

"I have the perfect outfit picked out for Zoe's first day of school." Heather gave me a look, and mom's mouth dropped. "What?"

"Zoe isn't allowed to go to school yet, and you are already picking out her clothes for her first day of school?" Heather asked. I nodded.

"Um, as your mother I get to pick out what you wear on the first day of school until you graduate as I didn't have that option for the first seven years, and you only have five left..." Mom said, causing Heather to chuckle. "Alright girls, lets get going. I have to drop you both off at school. I'm glad that the schools are close to each other." Heather and I went out and got into mom's car. Heather, by right of being the older child rode up front, and I slid into the seat behind her. What my mother nor sister knew was that I had on panties under my slacks. I could feel the satin sliding against my bottom.

#
Mom pulled up outside of Tinapple High School and looked at Heather, who smiled.

"Are you picking us up or or are we taking the bus home?" She asked. Mom looked at her.

"I will be working late, so take the bus." Mom's phone showed a text message saying that Heather was at school. I chuckled. "And Heather, remember, we're keeping Zoe under the radar, so don't tell anyone about her." Heather nodded.

"I won't." Heather said. In some ways, I had a feeling that before school was out today, someone, probably Carly, would know about my alter ego...

"Learn something today." Mom said as Heather shut the door. Mom turned to look at me. "I bet Carly knows by the end of the day..."

"Probably." I said as Mom put the car in gear and started to head toward the middle school. "Carly will keep her mouth shut though." I said. Mom glanced at me in the review mirror.

"How do you know?'

"Because I've seen her do it." I paused. "She will however, want to meet Zoe as soon as possible. There won't be any way around that with me being Zoe full time at home." Mom nodded.

"Are you ready for that?" She turned the corner back on the main street.

"As ready as I'll ever be. I've been out in public around people that I don't know, I'm not sure why being around someone I know would be any different." Mom slowed for a traffic light.

"It would be different because someone who has known you for some time might say some things that could really hurt you. Who knows what Carly will say when she meets Zoe. She might be perfectly ok with it, or she could say some really hurtful things and be downright mean to you. Which do you think will happen?"

"I predict that she will be ok with Zoe." I said confidently. I knew that some of her closet friends were lesbians, and that told me that she would be accepting of my issues. Mom pulled up in front of the middle school and turned to look at me.

"You seem happier than you have been in a while, even if you are dressed as Allen..." Mom said. "I just hope you stay that way today. Just remember that no matter what happens at school, Zoe is here, probably to stay. She can come out and play after school."

"I know." I replied grabbing the handle on the door.

"Have fun at school, and learn something today." Mom and dad both insisted that we learn something every day no matter how trivial it seemed.

"I will, Mommy. See you tonight." I said as I exited the car as gracefully as I could. I shut the door and walked into the school, happier than I had been for a while.

---

Meanwhile...

---

Heather sat in her english class, itching to tell someone about Zoe. She wouldn't see Carly for another hour or so when the pair met for lunch. She knew that there was no way she'd be able to sit on this secret for long. She was really hoping to tell Carly about her new sister. It wasn't every day that your brother ended up being your sister...

#
Heather sat next to Carly in the lunch room and Carly knew instantly that something was up.

"You're excited about something." Heather nodded. One of their other friends sat across from them. "What is it?" Heather leaned over and started whispering in Carly's ear.

"Remember on Saturday when we went to Tanglewood and I thought that I saw mom's car there?" Carly nodded, remembering. "Well mom and Allen were there, but Allen wasn't presenting as Allen." Heather paused, letting her words sink in. Carly turned to look at Heather, her green eyes wide with realization...

"Who was he presenting as?" Carly whispered in Heather's ear. Heather smiled.

"Zoe." Heather watched as a large smile spread across Carly's face. "Mom said not to tell anyone, no one really knows yet, and I'm not supposed to be telling you, so don't tell anyone..." Carly shook her head.

"I won't. I promise." Carly said. "When did you find out about him, her, whatever?'

"Saturday when I went home after we had gone to the mall. She was in the living room setting up a new iMac. There is another story to that, but not here."

"When do I get to meet Zoe?" Carly asked.

"I'm not sure. You are the only person outside of the immediate family that knows, but I would imagine that a random visit might reveal Zoe to you. She has a doctors appointment Wednesday."

#
I walked out of my last period class and I had never been happier to leave the school. The day had dragged by, and I was looking forward to getting home and out of these scratchy clothes. I swung by my locker and grabbed the books that I needed to do my homework that evening and slipped them into my backpack.I walked out of the building and into the sunshine. I got on the bus and wondered how many people Heather had told about Zoe as I waited for the bus to fill up and head toward home.

#
I was the first one home so I unlocked the door and went in the house. I went to my room and took off the clothes I had on. I hung the slacks back in my closet and pulled out a turquoise long sleeved tunic, then walking over to my dresser, I pulled out the bra that matched the panties I had on and a pair of black leggings. I changed the clothes and then opened my door. I sat at my desk and started working on my homework. Ten minutes later, I heard the front door open and then slam. I knew that Heather was home.

"Zoe! I'm home." Heather shouted.

"I heard!" I hollered back. "I'm in my room, working on homework." I heard Heather coming up the stairs. She sounded like she was being chased by a head of elephants, and it was then that I realized that my sister did not move very gracefully. She poked her head into my room.

"Changed already I see?" Heather asked. "Stand up so I can get a look at you." I stood and Heather watched me spin in a circle. "Looks good, sis." Heather grinned.

"Who did you tell?" I asked her, knowing that she had told someone. She bit her lip.

"Carly." I pursed my lips. I had told mom that Heather would tell Carly, and now I just hoped that she could keep her mouth shut.

"Mom said not to tell anyone. The majority of the world doesn't need to know Zoe yet." I said, collapsing into the chair. I had expected this so it didn't really come as a surprise, rather as a confirmation that I had been right that morning.

"Zoe, we can trust Carly." I also knew this to be true. "She wants to meet you."

"She's going to meet me eventually as she's over here almost daily and Zoe is here to stay. I can't wait to be able to go to school as Zoe and not have to worry about changing clothes when I get home to be comfortable. I don't like the way that my shirts and pants feel." Heather looked sympathetic.

"I never had any clue how hard it was for you to just get up and go to school. You've always had an interest in music and the arts, and none of the 'traditional' boy stuff. You could give a hoot less about sports, I wonder how we didn't see this coming out of left field." Heather said, sitting on my bed. "You have always gotten good grades, and your handwriting is pretty, unlike most boys handwriting..." She let the thought trail off. "I'm gonna go work on my homework. Shout if you need anything."

I smiled at Heather. It was really nice to have a sister and family that was so accepting of the struggles I was going through. There were so many people that didn't get it; that didn't understand that being gay, lesbian or transgender was not a threat to anyone. I think that everyone knew that there would be struggles ahead, but as long as we kept the secret, the struggles were minimal. Once the secret was out, I was going to need all of the allies I could get. I didn't know who they would be outside of my immediate family, but I would learn that not everyone was out to get those that were different.

Lions, Tigers, and Doctors: Oh My!

Tuesday evening, I went and did something else for the first time: I shaved my legs. The fact that most of the hair that I had below the waist was very fine and blonde helped, but I still wanted to get rid of it before I went and saw Dr. Francis the next day. I wanted to look my best, as any girl would when she met someone important for the first time.

#
Tuesday night, I laid there and tossed and turned pretty much all night. I was worried about the appointment that afternoon. I swatted at the alarm clock that had just started making it's obnoxious noise. As I connected with the alarm clock, I managed to knock it off the table. I sat up and reached for the clock, made sure that it wasn't going to make its noise again and sat it back on the table. I looked around my room and decided that I might as well get up and get a shower. I hit a key on my MacBook to wake it up so that it would go check email as I went to take a shower. I grabbed my robe and headed for the bathroom. After I had shut the door and hung my robe on the hook that was next to the door. I took off my nightgown and panties, and tossed them in the hamper. I started the shower and got in, letting the warm water wake me up. There was a knock on the door and then I heard it open.

"Zoe?" Mom's voice came from the general direction of the door way.

"Yeah." I replied, pulling my head out from under the water.

"You ok, I heard a thud come from your room."

"Yeah. I knocked my alarm clock off the table." I hoped that my voice didn't give away my current state of tiredness.

"Ok. I will be at school at noon to get you so that you have time to get ready before we go see Dr. Francis. Your dad will be home tonight. He had to stay longer than planned in Dallas. He will be flying in around ten and then going right to work. He will be home around his normal time, and then we are all going to go out to dinner. He's looking forward to meeting his other daughter." I smiled. I shut the water off and listened as Mom closed the door. I drew the shower curtain back and looked at them mirror on the back of the door. I grabbed a pink towel and dried off, and then put the towel back on the towel rod. I slipped on my robe and headed for my room. As I exited the bathroom, Heather was coming out of hers.

"Morning Zoe." Heather said. "Did you leave hot water for me?"

"A little bit. Maybe enough to get wet..." I said, disappearing into my room and shutting the door.

#
I walked into the office and looked at Mrs. Chattfield. She was the head secretary for the school.

"Morning, Allen. What can I do for you?"

"My mom will be coming in around noon. I have a doctors appointment at one thirty."

"Ok, Thanks for letting me know."

"You're welcome." I said, and then headed off for homeroom. As school started for the day I had a feeling that today was going to drag on.

#
By the time lunch rolled around, It felt like I had been at school for ten hours. Mom would be at the school in fifteen minutes, so actually eating lunch at the school would be pointless. I went to the office rather than toward the cafeteria. I walked in and looked at Mrs. Chattfield.

"Yes, Allen?" She asked. I knew mom hadn't come to the school yet.

"May I get a pass to go get my homework for the classes I'm going to miss?" I asked. She smiled and nodded, filling out a pass. She handed it to me. "If mom shows up while I'm gone, tell her I'll be right back." I left the office and headed for the classes that I would be missing. Five minutes later I returned to the office, homework in hand. I had just slipped it into my backpack when mom walked through the door to the office. She had on a skirt suit, so I assumed that she had been in some meetings that morning.

"You ready?" She asked. I nodded and slipped my backpack on and watched as mom signed me out. Mrs. Chattfield looked at the clipboard and then up at mom.

"Zoe?" She asked, and looked at me. I looked at mom in horror. I hadn't expected her to make that kind of a slip up...

"Whoops." Mom said, taking the clipboard back and scratching out what she had just written. She signed me out again, this time using the name that the school had on file for me. Mrs. Chattfield looked at me and gave me a wink. I think she put two and two together and came up with four. She stood and walked around to where I was standing.

"Don't worry," She said. "It's safe with me." Mom looked at her.

"Thank you." Mom said. "I think you know what the doctors appointment is about now."

"I do, and I won't say a thing." Mrs. Chattfield said. I added her to my ally list. "I'm here if you need to talk."

"Thanks." I said. Mom and I walked out and got in her car. She looked over at me and smiled.

"I think you have a supporter." Mom said. "Did you eat?"

"No, it would have been pointless. By the time I would have gotten my lunch, you would have been at the office signing me out. Also, way to out me, mom..." I said with a smile.

"For some reason I had your name on my mind and because I was signing you out, I just wrote the name that was the person I was looking at. You're Zoe, through and through. I'm not sure that you were ever an Allen..." she chuckled as we pulled into a McDonald's drive through.

#
Mom backed the car into the garage and we both got out, and headed for the door into the house. I had eaten my burger and fries in the car on the way to the house, so all I had to do was toss the bag in the trash. Mom looked at the clock and looked at me.

"Go change. We want to be there at about a quarter after." The clock behind mom's head read that it was quarter till one. I went upstairs and pulled out the blue and black plaid skirt and a royal blue blouse. I put them on and then dug out the loafers. I hadn't practiced walking in them yet, but slipped them on my feet anyway. I walked around the room, until I felt comfortable with the shoes and then headed for the stairs. Walking on a solid flat surface in shoes you've never worn before, is easy to do, but stairs are a different issue... I slowly walked down the steps and into the kitchen. Mom looked at me.

"The blue brings out your eyes, Zoe." She said and then looked me up and down. "You look very pretty." I looked at mom and smiled.

"Thank you." I said, curtsying. Mom's eyebrows shot up.

"Where di-" She stopped herself. "No, I don't want to know." I giggled.

"I learned it from watching Heather when she took ballet a few years ago. I never really practiced it either..."

"Well, you did a decent job..." Mom said, picking up her purse. "Let's go, missy." We went back out to the car so that we could leave the house... I hadn't realized how cool it was outside until I felt the cool air on my legs. The temperature was still well above freezing but it wouldn't' be for long. After I had shut the door, mom got in the car and started it. Her car hand't lost most of the heat that was in the engine, so when she started it my cold legs were hit with a blast of warm air. Mom looked at me. "Go in the house and grab the coat you wore to the mall on Saturday." I nodded and got out of the car, walked into the house and grabbed the coat. By the time that I had gotten back out to the garage, Mom had pulled the car out of the garage and was sitting in the driveway with her foot on the brake and her finger on the button to close the garage door once I was clear of the sensors that would reopen it if something was blocking the path of the door on the way down. I went over and got back in the car, buckling my seat belt. Mom watched the garage door close and then pulled out into the street. That was when I noticed our neighbor, Mrs. Wilson looking at me strangely.

"Mom, I think Mrs. Wilson saw me." Mom bit her lip as she turned onto the road that would take us to the highway.

"Oh well, nothing we can do about it now. Let's just hope that she doesn't know exactly what she saw or we might have issues." Mom said, passing a slower moving car.

"Yeah. I know." I looked out the window as we headed toward the center of the city. Mrs. Wilson had been the nosey neighbor and the neighborhood gossip. She had once spread a rumor around the neighborhood that Heather was a lesbian. Heather's response was something to the effect of 'so what?' "Nothing she can say is going to change who I am."

"I agree, but she can still cause problems..." Mom called dad on her phone. "Hey, We might have an issue. Cheryl saw Zoe leaving the house dressed when we left for the appointment." Mom paused for a second. Dad was probably talking. "I don't know. She didn't have a chance to say any thing and we had the windows up so that Zoe stays warm." Another pause as dad talked. "Ok. We're getting close to her offices so I'll let you go. I'll give you a call when we're on our way home." Mom dropped her phone back in her purse and then looked at me. "He thinks that we shouldn't worry about her... You are going to run into people that don't accept you. We're going to have to deal with them as the come."

#
Mom backed the car into the a parking spot. She looked at me and then patted my left leg. "You ready?" I looked at her.

"Not really..." I said. I had been dreading this appointment in a way from the time that mom had scheduled it. "But I also know that it's required for me to become me. Dad said that she's the best from what he's heard?"

"Yep." Mom replied opening the door. "The best of the best." I got out and felt the cold air causing goose bumps to appear on my legs. I walked around to the front of the car and waited on mom. She walked around the front of the car and we walked next to each other toward the building that housed the office of Dr. Emily Francis. We walked into the lobby of the building and over to the elevator. Mom pushed the button and we waited for the elevator to appear. A few moments later, it appeared and I looked inside and then at mom. I shook my head. I had never liked elevators, never would as far as I could tell. I could think of no specific event that caused this fear and neither could mom or dad. I didn't know if it was because something had happened to me in an elevator, or what, but I was glad that mom and dad understood and would take the stairs. "We are going to the third floor."

#
Mom and I walked through the doorway onto the the third floor. The area that we ended up in was a lobby of sorts with some fake trees. There was a hallway that ran the length of the building and it had doors on one side and windows that looked out on the skyline of the city. Mom walked over to a board that was mounted on the wall.

"Suite 305. That way." Mom said pointing down the hallway. I followed her toward the office. When we got there Mom opened the door. On the other side of the door was a small waiting area. There were only a few chairs and a small table in the corner. The walls were painted a mauve color. Mom walked up to the little window and pushed the button on the wall that would make a bell sound somewhere in the office. I couldn't see anyone on the other side of the window. "Have a seat, Zoe." Mom said. I sat in a chair as someone walked up to the window and opened it. Her and mom spoke quietly for a few moments, and then she handed mom a clipboard with a fair amount of paper on it. Mom walked over and sat next to me. "Paperwork... Fun." Mom didn't sound like it would be that much fun. Mom had just started on the paperwork when the door opened to the left of the window opened.

"All-" the brown eyed brunette stopped when she looked at me. "Zoe. Dr. Francis will see you now." I presumed that this person was Dr. Francis' assistant, Chelsea. I stood up and mom stood as well, tucking the clipboard under her arm. Mom and I walked back through the door and followed the woman back to an office. The person we followed back to the office knocked on the door and then from inside we heard a faint 'Come'. The door was opened and we walked inside. "Doctor, I have Zoe Franks and her mother Katherine for your one thirty."

"Thank you, Chelsea." Doctor Francis said, standing. "Zoe, Katherine, please, have a seat." She nodded toward the couch and chair that sat in the corner of the room next to a window. Mom and I walked over and sat, and I noticed that Dr. Francis was watching me and seemed to be taking notes in her head as I sat and smoothed my skirt out. "Zoe, Katherine, I'm Doctor Emily Francis." She held out her hand to me first which I shook. There was that look of more notes in her head. She shook mom's hand after ward and gave both of us a smile. "So, I don't normally see adolescent patients, but I am seeing you, Zoe as a favor to your dad." I looked at Dr. Francis.

"Thank you, Doctor." I said quietly. She smiled.

"Zoe. You can call me Emily." Emily said. "From what your mom said on the phone with Chelsea on Saturday, you think that you were born in the wrong body, right?"

"Yes," I replied looking at the floor and feeling my face warm as I blushed. I saw a hand come in below my chin, it gently hit my chin and brought my eyes to look into the green eyes that Emily had. I briefly wondered if the color was natural or contacts...

"Zoe." Emily said with a disarming smile. "There is no reason to hide anything from me. I can't help you if you don't tell me what's going on."

"Yes, Ma'am." I said softly. Emily smiled again.

"How long have you felt this way?" I glanced at mom, who looked like she was curious to know the answer.

"For about three years." I said quietly.

"And why didn't you say anything before now?" This question caught me off guard. I paused to formulate my answer.

"Because I wasn't sure of how my mom and dad would respond. I know what dad does, but I presume it's different when you are talking about your own child." I paused again. "I didn't want them to think any less of me or think that they had failed as parents in some way."

"I see." Emily said, making a few notes on the pad of paper she had brought over from her desk. I glanced around the oak paneled office, there were various paintings around the room that were bathed in spotlights. "When was the first time that you wore an article of girls clothing?" I looked Emily right in the eyes, feeling pretty sure that she wouldn't believe this answer.

"Last Friday." I watched her closely, she looked shocked, blinked and then covered her reaction. "I had often dreamt about it, but had never actually done it. It was a black long sleeved top and a black and pink plaid skirt. My sister Heather had worn it on Thursday, and I figured that since it was in the hamper, no one would know. I did know and the guilt led me to come clean about everything on Saturday morning." There was a jotting of notes again.

"I see." She paused, "Who picked out the clothes that you have on right now?"

"I did." I replied. There was more scribbling of notes. "Mom said that Chelsea said for me to dress the most comfortable way for me to present. All I know for sure is that I haven't been comfortable wearing Allen's clothes to school; everything just feels wrong. When I looked at Zoe for the first time, her eyes were sparkling. Allen's eyes have looked lost and sad for quite some time." More scribbling, I had a feeling that when we were done, I could publish a book with the notes that would be collected.

"Does Zoe have a middle name?"

"Yes." I said, my chin high. "Her middle name is Elizabeth." Emily nodded.

"Who picked her name out?"

"I did. It just came to me when I saw my self in the mirror." Emily nodded again.

"Have you been out dressed as Zoe?"

"Yes. After I told mom, she suggested that we go get breakfast. She went into my sisters room and got a long denim skirt and pink sweater for me to wear. After I put them on and opened the door, she looked at me and told me I was beautiful." More notes from this statement. "That made my day. I'm already small for a guy and I don't think that I am going to grow any more. I have soft skin like my mom and sister. I am a girl with the wrong plumbing."

"What kind of reactions did you get while you were you were out?"

"Nothing remarkable, except when mom was on the phone with dad and she said that she was out with Allen. This older woman sitting across from us looked at me, and then said to her husband that I was not a boy... That was when I realized that the world saw me as a girl." Emily nodded.

"How do you feel about that?" I looked at Emily, putting my thoughts together.

"If the world sees me as a girl, and I feel like a girl, then I should present as a girl. Actually, just me feeling like a girl inside and having the outside match the inside makes me happier than I've ever been." Emily looked at me.

"Ok. You didn't answer the question though. How do you feel about that?"

"I feel alive, like I've found my self after all this time. Allen has been just going though the motions, Zoe is ready to take on the world."

"Who would you rather go to school tomorrow as: Allen or Zoe?"

"Zoe, hands down." I looked at her. "Allen has always done well in school, but I think Zoe will take what Allen has done and improve on it. In some ways I worry about the response that Zoe will receive when she goes to school, but at the same time, all I want to do is be me. I'm not harming anyone by it, even if it is different from the norm."

"Will you give up on being Zoe if people hassle you about it?" I thought long and hard about this question.

"No. Every time you hear of a major struggle that someone has for what is right, there are hardships along the way. I know I'm going to face them. More than likely when I least expect it. I have a decent support system at home, between mom, dad and Heather. I feel confident that I can get though just about anything that comes my way." There were more notes that were jotted down.

"What would you do if the school said that you couldn't attend as Zoe even if you had all of the proper paperwork do do so." Mom spoke up on this one.

"Sue them." She smiled. "With all of the proper documentation, to refuse to allow Zoe into school is discrimination based on gender. There have been precedents set on this issue in other states, and every one I've read about the court has ruled in favor of the defendant." Emily looked at mom.

"This is true." Emily said. "Zoe, could you attend school as Allen until a lawsuit were resolved?" I nodded.

"I've gone to school as Allen for the first seven years of my schooling. Finishing out the eighth year could be done. I wouldn't necessarily like it, but if I had to, I could." Emily nodded and looked from mom to me.

"Zoe, can you wait out in the hall while I talk to your mom?" I nodded and then exited the office. At the end of the hallway, there were some seats with a window that overlooked the river that ran through the city. I didn't know how long I sat there, watching a few boats go down the river, and watching traffic on the highway on the other side of the river before Emily opened the door to her office. Her and mom stepped out into the hallway and looked at me. I had curled up in the chair I was sitting in and had my feet tucked under me. My shoes sat in front of the chair. Emily and mom looked at me and smiled.

"Zoe," Mom said. "Can you come back in here with us?" I nodded, and slipped my feet back into my shoes and they both watched me walk toward them. They let me walk into the office first and then followed me in. I sat where I had been sitting before I had been asked to wait in the hallway.

"Ok, I'm going to cut right to the chase. Zoe, you meet the diagnostic criteria for someone who has gender identity disorder. Essentially, this means that your mental sex does not match that of your physical sex. I've given your mom all of the paperwork that she will need for you to start attending school as Zoe." I smiled. Emily handed me a business card. "Your mom tells me that you have a cell phone. On that card is the number to here as well as my cell phone. I want you to put me in your phone and if you ever have a situation where you are being refused something based on the fact that you are transgender, call me. Your mom also has my numbers. As far as I know, the school district where you live has not had a transgender student. This means that you are going to be the first. I will be meeting you and you mom at the school tomorrow morning." I looked on in disbelief.

"You mean I get to go to school as Zoe?" I looked at her and then at mom.

"Yes." Emily said. "I have a feeling that this is not going to be easy, but you have a support system in place." She looked at Mom. "Seven thirty at Memorial Middle School?" Mom nodded. "Ok. Make sure that Chelsea gets the address, and set an appointment up for two weeks from now, and it can be evening. I'll make exceptions for Zoe, I want her to do well in school." I looked at her.

"Thank you, Doctor." Mom said standing. I stood as well, feeling my skirt tickle the back of my legs.

"Thank you, Doctor. My life is whole now, and I don't have to hide the real me."

"Don't thank me yet, we still have a lot of stuff that we are going need to cover. It's going to take some time." I looked at her.

"What do you mean?" I asked her.

"Well, we need to have a few one one sessions, there is a lot more that we need to discuss." Emily said.

"That makes senses. May I give you a hug?" She nodded and opened her arms. I walked over and gave her a hug. Between her and my family, I had support for what ever life would through my way in the next few weeks. After the hug ended, Mom and I headed for the little counter that was before the door that we had entered.

"What can I do for you, Mrs. Franks?" Chelsea asked.

"Dr. Francis has asked us to schedule an appointment two weeks from now and give you the address to the school that Zoe attends so that she can meet us there tomorrow morning."

Photos

Mom backed the car into the garage and shut off the engine. We went into the house and sat in the kitchen. Heather wouldn't be home for another forty five minutes or so, and dad not for another hour or two. Mom had sent dad a text message saying 'Congratulations, it's a girl!" as a little bit of a joke as we had left the doctors office. Dad had sent her a text message back, with LOL and a smiley face in it. Mom looked through the papers that Dr. Francis had given her.

"Zoe, with the paperwork I have here, we could change your name to Zoe." Mom said suddenly. I looked at her.

"Really?" I asked.

"Yep." She glanced at the clock on the microwave. "You want to go shopping or something for a little bit?" I shrugged as shopping hadn't been something that I had enjoyed as Allen, mainly because I couldn't look at the clothing that I wanted to look at without raising suspicion...

"Sure." Mom glanced at me. "We do need to get me a purse or something so I can carry my phone." Mom raised an eyebrow.

"Most girls your age just stick them in their back pocket..." Mom said. I smiled.

"Well, I'm not most girls my age..." I motioned to my body to emphasize what I was wearing. "Plus, where does a girl carry her phone when she has no pockets?" Point and counterpoint, just like we had been brought up. My logic and reasoning were sound. Mom nodded.

"Man we taught you too well. You killed off my argument before I had a chance to present it." I smiled at her as she picked up her purse. "Lets go."

"Well, if we ever get into a situation where we need to argue something, the four of us are a team that I wouldn't want to go against. I can only imagine how you are in court..." Now it was mom's turn to smile. We got back into the car. Mom pulled out of the garage and we headed for the mall that was a lot closer to the house. With school not ending for another twenty minutes at least the mall would be devoid of kids my age. It only took us about five minutes to drive over and get parked. Mom and I walked around the mall until I saw a display that had caught the corner of my eye. The store was a regional chain that catered to tweens. I had gone to their website and looked around, liking most of what I saw. This would be my first hands on experience with the store. Mom followed me into the store, wondering what had attracted my attention until I had walked up to a pair of mannequins that wore the same outfit as in the window. Mom looked at it and nodded, indicating that she liked what she saw. One mannequin wore the outfit in green and the other in red. Both of the mannequins wore a beret that matched the plaid pleated skirts that covered up their bottom halves, white blouses and knee socks that matched the color of the skirts. Slung across their bodies were little purses that were made out of the same plaid fabric as the skirts.

"Green or red?" Mom asked suddenly. I looked at her.

"I like them both." Mom smiled and started grabbing the pieces of both of the outfits. We carried all of the articles of clothing to the back of the store so that we could purchase them. After we had exited the store with the two new outfits. Mom saw a photo studio on the upstairs level.

"Follow me." Mom said, heading for the stairs. I followed her up and into the studio.

"Good afternoon, welcome to Shaeffer Studios, How can I help you today?" The blonde girl behind the counter said, standing so that she could talk to mom. She slid her blue framed glasses back up her nose, her blue eyes sparkling behind the lenses.

"Well, I'd like to get some pictures of my daughter. Today is sort of a..." Mom paused looking for the word that she wanted. "Milestone in her young life."

"Ok, what kind of picture did you have in mind?" The girl, whose name tag read 'Laura' said. There were pins attached to the name badge. She placed a binder on the counter and opened it. I could see that it contained sample photos.

"Something traditional. Kind of like what you would get out of a school portrait." Laura nodded and flipped to a section of the book.

"What are the pins on your name badge for?" I asked, curiosity getting the better of me.

"These are the backgrounds we can offer here in the studio. Was your daughter planning on wearing what she has on now or did you have another outfit in mind?" Laura turned to look at me. "The pins are where I've won an award in our parent companies internal photo competition. For the last four years, I've won the National Grand Champion award after voting from my peers." She said. She wasn't gloating, and her attitude was that of pride. She took pride in what she did, and it showed through her work. "The two years before that, I won the Chairmans Award which is even harder to win than Grand Champion." The turned to the wall behind her. There were several photos mounted on the wall, of individuals and families, including a family with their dog. "In case you are wondering, these two are the two that won the Chairmans Award, and these four won the National Grand Champion." I looked at the photos in disbelief. I knew little about photography except how to make my phone take a picture. Laura, however looked like she could get a great picture from the camera in my phone.

"Well, I was thinking some in what she's wearing, and some in the two outfits we just bought down stairs." Mom held up the bag so that Laura could see it.

"First, may I ask a question and then may I make a suggestion based on what your daughter is wearing as well as her pretty blue eyes?" Mom nodded and Laura looked at me. "What's your name, if I may call you by it?" I smiled at her.

"My name is Zoe." I replied. That felt so nice to be able to finally tell someone that my name was Zoe...

"Ok, Zoe. I'm Laura." She offered her hand, which I shook. "My suggestion is that for the photos of Zoe in the outfit she has on, we use a blue background... It will make her eyes pop..." Mom nodded.

"I was already thinking of that. What would you suggest for this and this?" Mom asked pulling the red and green skirts out of the bag. "There are matching berets that go with them." Laura looked like she was in thought for a second.

"What color shirts?"

"White." Laura stroked her chin for a second.

"An Amber background." She said after a few moments. "At least thats where I'm leaning right now. Once I get behind the camera something else may come to me that will improve the photo." Now I could see how she had won the awards that she had won. Mom nodded. Laura looked at me again. To me it looked like she was planning the upcoming photo shoot in her head. Mom looked at me and then at her.

"Sounds good to me, You seem like you have all of your ducks in a row when it comes to what you do, I will defer to your expertise." Mom said. "I'd like to go shopping for a few things for Zoe, but as a surprise, can I leave her with you and go take care of that?" Laura smiled.

"Is she older than ten?" Mom chuckled.

"Yep. And she will listen to what you tell her to do."

"Then she can stay. Zoe, are you ready?" She smiled.

"Yes." I said. Mom bent over and gave me a kiss on the top of the head.

"Zoe, be good and listen to Laura. If she has any questions, call me, ok?" I nodded and watched mom go.

"Zoe, if you would come this way..." Laura said, heading through a door that was to the right of the counter.

#
I looked at myself in the mirror. I had just changed into the red skirt and red beret and slipped the little purse over my shoulder across my body. I looked at my self in the mirror and smiled. I really liked the way the green looked on me, but the red had become a close second. I adjusted my shirt, and then opened the door to reveal Laura standing there. She smiled at me.

"Hmm. I think the green looks better but the red looks cute too." She said.

"I was just thinking that." I said, smiling back at her. I had lost count of how many pictures that we had taken already. I just knew that mom would have quite a few photos to go through when she got back from her shopping. Some of them Laura had reached over to the computer and marked somehow. I knew that there were a few that I had liked when I saw them pop up next to her on the monitor. She had come up with the idea of a photo of me in a chair in front of a 'fireplace' while I still had on the blue skirt and blouse that I really liked. I wondered if mom would buy that one. As I walked back over to where the camera and stuff were set up, I heard a chime.

"I'll be right back." Laura said, disappearing through the door back toward the front of the studio. A few moments later her and mom walked through the door. Mom looked at me.

"I like it." Mom said. "I can only imagine what the green looked like."

"Well, Laura and I agree that the green looks a lot better on me than the red, but I like them both." I said. "I was thinking of the green outfit for tomorrow." I said, mom looked at me.

"I don't know if they will let you wear the beret to school..." She said. That was one rule that I had never understood. I pouted.

"Ok, you look like your sister when you do that, and it's cute, but it hasn't worked before, and I don't think it's going to start working because everything about you has changed in the last week..." Mom said, with a chuckle. Laura looked like she didn't know whether to laugh or not, especially with her not getting the hidden meaning in the statement.

"You don't think they'll let me wear my cute beret?"

"We're going to have a hard enough fight tomorrow morning as it is. You heard what Dr. Francis said, You're the first student in the district that she's aware of." Laura looked from me to mom.

"Dr. Emily Francis?" She asked. Mom raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, do you know of her?" Mom asked.

"Know of her? I'm her daughter. If it weren't for her, I wouldn't be here..." Laura looked at me, a little closer than she did ten minutes before. "I would have never guessed, and Zoe, I can usually tell." She smiled. Another ally when I wasn't' looking for one. "I vote for the beret tomorrow. You never know, they may let you wear it..."

"I doubt it..." Mom's phone chimed, she pulled it out and looked at it.

"Heather is home." She said. "She's probably..." Mom stopped talking as Heather called her.

"Zoe, lets finish up. I know what we could do that we didn't do with the green set." She said, leading me away from where mom stood. She pulled a prop out that looked like a cement railing on the side of a foot bridge. She walked around behind it, where I would be and got down on her knees. She gently leaned on the prop, folding her hands and gently resting her chin on them. "This is what I want you to do. I'll get your head where I want it after you get in position." I nodded and then replaced her behind the prop. She walked over to the camera and looked at me. "Ok, tilt your head just a little bit to your left, ok. Eyes right here." She pointed at the lens and then I saw a bright flash of light as the lights all did their thing... She pulled a stool over and then carried the prop back to where it started. I sat on the stool, my hands in my lap and let her fuss over me for a few seconds, making sure everything was right. When she walked back to the camera, she took four pictures. One with an amber background, another with a red background, the third with a blue background, and the fourth with a grey background. Laura turned to mom.

"Mrs. Franks, are there any other photos of Zoe that you would like me to take?" Mom thought for a few seconds.

"A family portrait, but we don't have everyone here so that will have to wait, and I would need to talk to my husband about that one... Other than that, I can't think of anything." Mom said.

"Ok, Lets go back out front and we can look at all of the pictures that Zoe and I took." I looked at mom.

"Do you want me to change or should I just wear this home?" Mom looked at me.

"Just keep that on. I think it looks really good on you and your dad gets to meet you tonight." Mom said, following Laura to a small office that I had somehow missed when we walked in...

#
Mom selected four pictures of me that she liked and had a proof sheet printed out so that she could show dad and see if he wanted any additional pictures. Mom had ordered an eight by ten of the photo of me wearing the green beret and skirt to hang on the wall in place of Allen's current photo. Since she couldn't make up her mind on which photos she wanted for her desk at work and which one dad would want, she ordered the one of each of the three head and shoulders photos in each outfit and the one with my hands folded under my chin in five by sevens. She ordered wallets of me in the blue blouse as well as of me in the green beret.

"Mom, don't you think you are buying a lot of pictures?" I asked.

"Not at all. We need to put Zoe's picture in place of Allen's picture." Laura gave mea strange look.

"You don't look like an Allen..." Laura said. Mom and I looked at each other and then I started laughing.

"I've thought that for a while..." I said. Laura smiled. "It needed to change so I became Zoe." Laura nodded. Mom handed her credit card over and paid for the pictures and then we were off for more shopping…

Daddy's Little Girl

Mom backed the car into the garage. Once she had parked, we both got out of the car and went into the house. I was still trying to get used to wearing knee socks. I was used to wearing socks that stopped where the knee socks, but the knee socks fit differently they were more snug all the way up to just below my knee. Heather was in the kitchen getting a glass of water. She turned toward the door as I came though it first.

"Hell-" She stopped when she saw my complete outfit. Mom shot her a look. "Zoe, that little outfit is extremely cute on you."

"Thank you." I said, executing a curtsy. Heather blinked at me.

"Where did you learn to do that?" She asked.

"By watching you do ballet a few years ago. I practiced in my room where no one would see me... How was my curtsy?"

"Perfect..." Heather said. She made a spinning motion with her hand that indicated that she wanted me to spin around so she could see me from all sides. I obliged, not realizing that my skirt would float up as far as it did.

"Zoe, be careful doing that..." Mom said.

"I think that black panties would have worked better than pink today..." Heather said, with a chuckle. I thought I had been doing pretty well at not showing my panties to the world.

"Probably..." Mom said letting the thought trail off as her phone chimed. She pulled it out and looked at it. "Your dad will be home in about thirty minutes." She said, and then looked from me to Heather. "Heather, do you have any outfit that would compliment what your sister has on?" Heather looked at me and then at mom.

"Not really." She said, "I do have a blue plaid skirt that I haven't worn is a while. Why do you ask?"

"I was kind of thinking that you and your sister could dress similarly, but at the same time, in a way this is kind of like Zoe's birthday and I want her to feel special, if that makes any sense."

"Actually, it does. It makes a lot of sense. This is the beginning of Zoe's new life, I have a lot of stuff to teach my little sister, Tonight's about her. Lets make it special." Heather winked at me.

"Alright. Why don't you girls go work on homework until your dad gets home." Heather and I nodded, and then headed for our room. Before I entered my room, Heather stopped me.

"Zoe, when I said that you looked cute earlier, I meant it. I'm proud to have you as my sister." She hugged me and I hugged her back. we rarely hugged so this was a nice change of pace...

#
I had just finished my homework when I heard the garage door open. I stood up and left my room as I wanted to be downstairs when dad walked in the door. I walked into the kitchen and stood there. Mom walked over and stood behind me, her hands on my shoulders and Heather stood right next to me. I already had an idea of how dad was going to take this by way of our video chat, and right that second, I knew that with the support that I had that I would stand firm against what ever came my way. Allies would be vital in the coming days, more so than I realized. The door opened slowly and I waited with bated breath as Dad walked through it. It was always nice to see him after he had been on the road, but this time I was nervous about him seeing me. He walked in and I smiled. I knew that my dimples were showing, and that only added to the effect. There was a thud as laptop bag hit the floor. I knew it was padded, but I still cringed inside. He blinked twice, his jaw dropping and then shook his head as if to try to clear some cobwebs, and then smiled.

"Zoe!" Dad said, "You're beautiful. I'm sure that I could use more words to describe you, but that sums it up." He opened his arms and mom removed her hands from my shoulders and I ran to my father, embracing him in a hug and us bonding in a way that we had never bonded before: as Father and daughter. I was ecstatic at the fact that my family accepted me for me. Dad and I broke the hug, and he held me at arms length and looked at me. "How was your doctors appointment?" He looked from me to mom and back to me.

"Doctor Francis pretty much confirmed what Zoe said. Our little boy is growing up to be a beautiful young woman..." I raised an eyebrow and spun slowly to look at mom.

"Mom, that made no sense..." I said with a chuckle. Heather and dad burst out laughing and then mom smiled. Dad looked me up and down again.

"You look cute in that outfit. I never saw you as the kind of person that wears a hat though. I guess it depends on the hat..." Dad let the thought trail off. "Lets go sit in the living room, it will be more comfortable than standing here in the kitchen." He said. We all moved from the kitchen into the living room, where Heather and I sat on the couch and mom and dad sat across from us on the love seat.

"Tom, Dr Francis actually gave me a diagnoses of Gender Identity Disorder as the name for what Zoe has. I have all of the paperwork and Dr Francis will be meeting me at the middle school tomorrow at seven thirty." Heather's eyes widened.

"Zoe's going to school tomorrow?" Heather asked in disbelief. Dad looked as shocked as Heather sounded.

"Yes," Mom said. "If her doctor thinks it's time, then it's time," She paused. "Tom, she is going to be the first transgender student in the Tinapple city school district," She looked from me to dad. "We might have to fight right along side her... We might have an uphill battle before us." Dad pursed his lips and nodded, his eyes not leaving his youngest daughter: me.

"Zoe, are you ready for this?" Dad asked. "This fight could get kinda ugly." I looked at mom and dad, and then at Heather, my gaze finally returning to dad.

"As ready as I'll ever be." I said. "You guys taught us to stand up for what we believe in and what is right. I have every right to walk into that school and be educated as anyone else. I also have a right to be me. I told Emily that if push came to shove, I could keep going to school as Allen, as long as Zoe can be here the rest of the time. It won't be easy, but if there's a fight over it that's not going to be easy either. I'm going to win. I have you guys for support no matter what happens. Love conquers everything." I reached up and wiped a traitorous tear from my cheek that had escaped my right eye. Mom and dad looked at each other, eyebrows raised, with a look of proud shock crossing their faces.

"Wow..." Heather said. "Are you sure that you're only thirteen?" That caused mom to start laughing. Dad smiled and looked at Heather and I.

"I'd say we raised you guys right." Dad said. "I don't know about you three, but I'm starving. I didn't get a chance to get lunch when I got back from Dallas as I had to give reports to the board..." Dad paused and smiled at me. "Zoe, May your father escort you to dinner?" he asked. I felt tears welling up in my eyes.

"Yes, Daddy." I said, trying to keep the tears of happiness in my eyes. Lets just say I failed at the attempt.

#
Dad parked the car and shut off the engine. The four of us got out and I walked with my father who looked proud to be walking his daughter into the restaurant. Mom and Heather walked behind us, chattering on about something. I wasn't paying much attention to them, just proud in the acceptance that I had received from my family. I couldn't have asked for a better set of parents and older sister. As we walked into the restaurant, the hostess looked at the four of us and smiled. She led us to a table and we sat. Before she departed, she looked at me.

"That is a cute outfit." She said. I smiled at her.

"Thank you." I replied, smiling. I was so happy to just be me, with no pressures to conform to being something I wasn't. But, as with anything, there was some not so good news sitting on the horizon... News that would shake up the schools, news that would change some lives. I was as ready as I would ever be to take on the challenges before me. You have to stand up for what is right, for what you believe. Tomorrow morning would mark the beginning of a new chapter in my life, and the end of the previous chapter. The road that my life would travel down had yet to be paved, but it was there waiting for me to start my journey.

Running into Problems

I woke before the sun came up. I'd had yet another night of not sleeping well, again with a reason. This morning, a new beginning would occur. It would be the beginning of the life of Zoe Elizabeth Franks. I looked at the clock and saw that it was quarter till six. Fifteen full minutes earlier from when I'd normally get up, but I decided that rather than lay in the bed for those fifteen minutes, I may was well get a move on. I stood up, my pink satin night gown falling back to my knees. I stretched and looked at the hanger that hung on my closet door. I smiled, grabbed my robe and headed off for the shower. While I was in there, someone knocked on the door. I pulled my head out of the water.

"Yes?" I said.

"Zoe, I will be coming with you to the school. I talked it over with your mom and we decided that it would be better if we presented a unified front to the school. As in you are our daughter and we accept that. I also have approval from the board to tap into the resources of Gilenfelter Systems if necessary. We are a company that stands for the rights of our employees and their families." I blinked in the shower. I knew that the company that dad worked for took care of their own, but I wasn't expecting to have the resources of a multi-billion dollar company behind me. "Finish up, we have a long day ahead of us, I'm afraid."

"Ok. I'll be done and out in a few minutes." I quickly finished washing my hair, and moved on to my body. I used the lavender scented body wash that I had used on Saturday again. Now that I was clean, I got out of the shower and patted my self dry with one of the towels that hung there. They seemed like they were extra fluffy this morning. The next thing I did would have mom knocking on the door.

"Yes?" I said for the second time that morning.

"Ok, I was just making sure that you were up, you don't normally dry your hair."

"I know, but I'm going to be wearing the beret and I don't want to put it on my head with my hair wet."

"Smart girl." Mom said with a chuckle. I listened as her foot steps went back toward her rom. After my hair was brushed, I looked at myself in the mirror. Even though I had on a unisex white robe, Zoe looked back, her eyes still sparkling.

"I'm ready for this." I said, mainly talking to my reflection. "It's Zoe versus the world and Zoe is going to win." I opened the door to leave the bathroom and found Heather standing there.

"Were you just talking to your self?" She asked.

"Yep. I'm going to take on the world and win." Heather raised her eyebrows.

"I'm with you all the way, sis. I wish I were going to be there with you, I think that mom is going to be a sight to see in this regard." I looked at her.

"Dad is going to be there too. They think a unified front will help. Basically a 'this is our daughter and we accept that and nothing you can do is going to change it.' Dad thinks that today is going to be a long day..." Heather nodded.

"Probably. Will one of you guys keep me updated, please?"

"Absolutely..." I said disappearing into my room and closing the door. Once I had gotten dressed I looked at my self in the closet door, slipped the beret on my head and smiled. Zoe was here to stay.

#
After a quick breakfast of oatmeal, Mom, dad and I all left the house. Mom and Dad driving separate cars so that if I was just accepted as me and allowed to enter classes, they both could scoot on to work, and take care of their respective jobs. I rode with mom to the school, the entire drive was silent. I could see that dad was talking to someone on the phone already, presumably giving some instructions to his second in command. Mom passed him as he was driving slowly he looked over and waved as we went by. Mom parked the car and and we both got out. Dad pulled in next to us, his headset on his ear.

"Alright Robert, I'll call if anything changes, but hopefully I'll be in about eleven." He said. Mom's phone chimed and dad looked at his, which told me that his had chimed in his ear. I knew that the message was probably stating that I had arrived at school. I heard a car door open and looked to my left and saw that Emily was getting out of her car with a small briefcase in her hand. That was when I realized that mom and dad both carried theirs as well.

"Zoe, Mrs. Franks." Emily said, shaking mom's hand. She looked at dad. "Tom Franks?" She asked. Dad smiled.

"In the flesh. You must be Dr. Francis?" He asked.

"Morning Emily." I said.

"It's nice to finally meet you in person." Emily said to dad, shaking his hand. "Your employees have told me how great of a guy you are, Now I get to see it in person. I'm ready to go in when you guys are." Mom nodded and looked at us.

"Last night, Tom and I were talking and we decided that presenting a unified front, even though there was no division in it, would be in Zoe's best interest. Any division at all could be used against Zoe, that's not going to happen." Mom said. "You guys ready?" The question was more directed at me than anything.

"Yes." I said. My head held high. "Like I said last night, I have every right to an education, I also have every right to be myself. To deny me access to the school at this point is discrimination based on a medical issue. That is something they are not allowed to do. I have three of my greatest allies right here with me. I'm ready for what ever happens." Emily looked at me and then at mom and dad.

"Are you sure she's only thirteen?"

"Yes, both of our kids know to stand up for what is right, and what they believe in. After hearing Zoe last night saying basically the same thing, I'm confident that we raised our children right, and they are going to go far and accomplish many great things." Dad said. "If Zoe is ready for this, then so am I."

"Me too." Mom said, smiling. I think they were afraid that I was going to back down once we were at the school and they could see that I was still determined to win this one. I started walking toward the school, leading our small group. It only seemed fitting. Once inside, I would let them do the talking unless a question was directed toward me. Once the talking with the school started, I would be outgunned on my own, but between the four of us, I had the drive to make inroads into changing that which was not right. I walked up to the door and opened it. The building was teeming with students, that was fine with me. After we got inside the school, a friend that had come over to the house a few times, Riley, recognized mom.

"What are you doing here, Mrs. Franks? Where's Allen?" She asked, looking me up and down. Here was a girl I sat next to in quite a few classes and she was looking at me like I was a completely new face. Mom looked at her, and then at me. I didn't know how she was going to react, but the word was about to really get out. Mom looked at her again.

"Riley, can you keep a secret?" Mom asked her. Riley nodded.

"This is Zoe." Mom motioned to me. "She is going to be taking Allen's place." Riley looked at me.

"You and Allen have the same eyes." Riley said. I looked into her hazel eyes, wondering if she'd actually put two and two together. When it finally clicked, her jaw dropped. She hugged me, catching me off guard and about knocking me over. I'm glad dad was standing behind me. "I'm on your side, Zoe. If you need anything at all, shout. I love the outfit, by the way. I have it in red." I looked at her.

"Thank you, Riley." I said, trying to keep my voice level and failing. I had just been accepted by a classmate that I could add to the ally column.

"Riley, we need to go talk to some people in the office. See if you can come by tonight and I think that Zoe and you can catch up on some of what had happened." Riley nodded and went back to what ever it was that she had been working on when we walked in. She had been sitting at a table in the cafeteria with books open all around her. Once she had returned to her work, I led the way to the office. I opened the door, followed in by my parents and Dr. Francis. Mrs. Chattfield looked up and smiled at me, a look of confusion on her face until she registered mom, and then her eyes widened.

"Zoe..." She started. "If I hadn't seen your mom, I would have wondered who this new student was. Zoe, as cute as that beret is, you know you can't have it on in classes." She looked at mom. "I presume that you would like to see Mrs. Perkins?" She asked.

"Yes, we would, please." Mom said. Mrs. Chattfield nodded and picked up the phone.

"Hey Miranda, I have Mr. And Mrs. Franks to see you." She looked at us. "Ok, I'll send them back." She hung up the phone and looked at me. "Zoe, do you know where her office is?" I nodded. "Then if you would lead your group back there. You can get this over with."

#
"Come in." I heard Mrs. Perkins say after dad had knocked on the door. Dad opened it and walked through first, followed by me, and then mom and Dr. Francis. "Good morning, Mr and Mrs. Franks." She looked at me, and then at Dr Francis. I could tell that she didn't know who I was, and she definitely didn't know who Dr, Francis was. "Please, have a seat." She motioned to a couch that sat in the corner of the room. "I thought you had a son named Allen..."

"We did." Dad said, sitting on the couch. Mom sat on the other end and I sat between the two of them. Dr. Francis sat in a chair, and Mrs. Perkins rolled her desk chair over and looked at the four of us. "Mrs. Perkins, I'd like you to meet Zoe," Dad said, motioning to me, "And her Doctor, Emily Francis."

"That's your son?" Mrs. Perkins asked, giving me a look like I would bite her. "The two of you are letting your son run around in skirts?"

"Yes." Mom said. "Our son has been replaced by our new daughter Zoe. She's a girl with the exception of a few plumbing issues. Mentally, she's all girl, has been for a while, in fact. Her doctor has agreed with this assessment and has diagnosed our daughter with Gender Identity Disorder."

"See, when someone is transgender and they have to hide part of themselves, bad things tend to happen." Dad said. "When our son confessed his internal struggles to us, we took action to assist him to become who his mind is; that would be Zoe." Dad looked at me. "The light that went out in Allen's eyes returned when Zoe showed up."

"You two are crazy." Mrs. Perkins said. "I'm not letting him run around this school dressed like that. He will disrupt classes and get picked on. We have a dress code and his attire does not conform to it."

"Does your dress code address the needs of a transgender student who is in the process of transitioning and is under the care of a qualified psychiatrist?" Mom asked. Mrs. Perkins looked at her.

"What does that have to do with anything? Also, there is no way I'm letting Allen into this school dressed like that." Mrs. Perkins said. There is no way that a qualified psychiatrist would allow this to happen. It goes against human nature." Mom and Dr. Francis shared a look.

"For starters, your dress code has everything to do with it. When we walked in, I saw girls in pants, does that not go against your dress code? Also you don't have a choice in terms of letting Zoe into the school, she has every right to be here as any other pupil. Technically by law, you can't refuse her entry into the school regardless of how she's dressed." Dad said. "Your dress code is discriminatory. By refusing to admit Zoe into the population of the school, you are discriminating based on gender as well as infringing on her first amendment rights, namely, freedom of expression."

"I don't care. I'm not going to have a boy running around my school in a skirt." Mrs. Perkins said. "Children don't have rights. They are supposed to just do as their told. I'm telling you that I'm not letting him run around my school that way. If you don't like it, enroll him somewhere else."

"I should have to pay for Zoe's schooling in a private school as that's the only alternative to the city school district when I already pay for the city school district, why?" Dad asked, after being confused by Mrs Perkins logic.

"Mrs. Perkins, does the school district receive federal funds?" Mom asked. Mrs. Perkins looked confused by the question.

"I don't know and I don't know what that has to do with anything."

"A lot," Mom pulled a folder out of her briefcase. "Under title nine of the US Code of Regulations there is a prohibition of discrimination based on gender non-conformity. Zoe is also protected by the Equal Protection Clause of the fourteenth amendment of the United States Constitution which states in section one that 'Nor shall any State deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.'" Mom handed the contents of the folder to Mrs. Perkins, who glanced at them, and then promptly tore them in half, dropping them to the floor. I presumed that mom had just handed her copies of both the relevant section of Title nine, as well as a copy of the fourteenth amendment.

"Mrs. Franks, those mean nothing to me. I don't want him running around my school in a dress." Mrs. Perkins said

"Mrs. Perkins," Dr. Francis said, speaking for the first time since we had come into her office. "What is it about Zoe running around the school dressed like any other female student that you don't particularly want?"

"Allen is probably doing this so that he can get into the girls locker rooms." Mrs. Perkins stated. I cringed at the name she used, something that Dr. Francis picked up on. "Furthermore, I can't believe you two," She motioned to mom and dad, "are listening to her," she motioned Dr. Francis, "about how to dress your son." She motioned to me. I blinked and finally found my voice.

"Mrs. Perkins," I started. "Do you have any idea how hard it has been for me to keep portraying as a male that I haven't been for the last three years? I feel alive, more so than I have in three years. The portrayal on the outside finally matches how the inside feels. Between my family and friends, I will get though what ever happens. For some reason you can't get that through your head. Also, Dr. Francis isn't telling my parents how to dress me. I am perfectly capable of doing it my self. As a matter of fact, I chose my own outfit this morning and put it on without help. What she did do was ensure that I met the diagnostic criteria in the DSM fourth edition, for having Gender Identity Disorder" This caused Dr. Francis to glance at me, her eyebrows raised. "Unfortunately, I'm going to set the precedent on this. As mom said, Under Title Nine, there is a clause that prohibits discrimination based on gender non-conformity. By refusing to allow me entry into the schools' population, you are discriminating based on gender non-conformity." Mom looked impressed.

"You're just parroting what you heard your mother say," Mrs. Perkins snapped. We were beginning to lose control of this situation. "You don't understand law, you are too young."

"Actually, Mrs. Perkins, Zoe found the Title nine information on her own, and interpreted it. I just confirmed what she thought it meant and was the first to bring it up." Mom said, patting my leg. "You see, between Tom and I we are excellent researchers; We have to be, our jobs demand it. If I didn't do my job right, it could cost a client a lot of money. If Tom doesn't do his job right, it could open the company he works for to a lawsuit. If Dr. Francis doesn't do her job right, it could cost a patient their life. Tom and I raised our kids right, and taught them to stand up for what they believe in, and to fight for what is right. Zoe knows that she has the right to a public education, and that she has the right to be herself, She knows she's in the right here..." Mom let the thought trail off. Dad stood up and looked at us. I heard the five minute warning bell. It felt like we had been in this office longer than that.

"Katherine, Doctor, I think we need to take this fight to the district office." Dad said. "I'm going to call Adam Peterson and have him meet us there." It was then that I realized that this was what Dad had meant when he said that I had the resources of Gilenfelter Systems behind me. Dad walked over and opened the door and looked at Mrs. Perkins. "You had a chance to not involve legal counsel or the school board, but you have decided to be stubborn about something that you can not control. I'm afraid that you may have just made your final mistake. Makes me wonder how many others you've made." The four of us walked out of the office and past Mrs. Chattfield's desk. She knew instantly that Mrs. Perkins hadn't accepted Zoe. She walked around her desk and looked at me.

"Zoe. Keep your chin up. You'll be back soon. I know it." I knew that the fight had just begun, how long it would take would remain to be seen.

"Thank you, Mrs. Chattfield." I said, my voice calm. When we had walked into the school this morning, I knew that this outcome was the most probable one. When we walked out into the hallway, Riley was standing there. She walked over to me and gave me another hug.

"It didn't go well?" she asked. I shook my head.

"No. It didn't. Can you do me a favor?" I asked. She nodded.

"Get anything that I miss and bring it to me tonight, please." Riley smiled and nodded.

"I will. Good luck where ever you're going right now." She gave me a kiss on the cheek.

"Thank you." I said, blushing not because I had been kissed by a girl, while wearing girls clothes, but because it had happened at school. The two minute warning bell rang, and Riley looked at me.

"I have to get to class. Tell me about it later." I nodded and we walked out into the sunlight and to the cars. Dad was already on the phone. "Adam, can you meet us at the Tinapple City School District's main office?" He paused for a few seconds. "Yep, that's the address. Thank you."

"You guys know where we're going?" Mom asked. Dad nodded and got into his car, backed out and drove toward the distinct office... Mom and I got in her car, and she backed out, but waited for Emily to pull up behind her before she pulled out on to the main street to head to the district office.

#
Mom parked next to dad's car where Dad and Adam Peterson were talking, standing behind his car. Mom and I got out as Emily parked her car. Dad turned to us as Emily walked up and stood on my right.

"Guys, this is Adam Peterson, head of Gilenfelter's legal department." Dad said, before turning to Adam "This is my wife, Katherine, Dr. Emily Francis, and my daughter, Zoe." Adam nodded at mom and Dr. Francis before stopping on me. He looked at me for a few seconds...

"Zoe, if I didn't know you, I'd see you a nothing but a girl. Cute outfit, by the way." I smiled, and then curtsied.

"Thank you." I said. "Can we get this over with. I'd like to attend school." Adam looked at Dad.

"She's really good at school, wants to stay that way... I can see her following in either of our footsteps..." Dad said.

"Mrs. Franks, what do you do?"

"I'm a corporate lawyer at Tippendale. I understand what we're about to do here, but I can't do it. Conflict of interest..." Adam nodded.

"With the performance that Zoe gave at Memorial, I can see that too..." Dr. Francis said. Goose bumps had appeared on the exposed portions of my legs. "Lets go deal with the problem at hand." I let dad lead the way this time. I walked behind him, with Mom and Dr. Francis on either side of me and Adam behind me. We walked into the rather drab lobby of the building that housed the district offices. I had expected something a little more... elegant.

"What can I do for you, Sir?" The woman that sat behind the desk. Dad smiled.

"We'd like to speak to Dr. Hashburn, please." The woman looked at dad.

"Do you have an appointment?" she asked. It took everything in me to not burst out laughing...

"No, we do not." Dad said. The woman shrugged.

"Then I guess you should call and make an appointment." She said. Dad raised an eyebrow. He turned and looked at Adam, who already had his phone out. "Susan, can you have Bill Johnson, Ted Waters, Sally Cunningham, and Betty Chapman all meet me at the Tinapple City School District's offices?" he paused, and then I heard him say "Thanks."

"So you are refusing to let us see Dr. Hashburn?" She nodded. "Even though the issue could result in the school district ending up in court and costing a fair amount of money?" She nodded again. "Is Dr. Hashburn in the building?"

"I'm not going to answer that." She said. I heard Adam on the phone again. "Susan, it's me again. Can you see if you can find me a direct dial for a Dr. Hashburn, He's the superintendent of the Tinapple City Schools and we are being refused access to see him. Yep, I'll wait."

"Ok. You're gonna play hard ball. That's fine. I can play it right back." Dad pulled his phone out and called the district office. The phone on the woman's desk rang.

"Tinapple City Schools, How may I direct your call?" she said into the phone.

"Dr. Hashburn's office, please." Dad said. She looked at Dad and smiled. Behind me, it sounded like Susan had made some progress on her end. "Ok, thanks Susan, Please connect the call." Adam said.

"I'm sorry, Dr. Hashburn's in a meeting, Please try to call back later." She smiled at dad as she hung up the phone. Behind me I heard Adam talking on the phone again. "Good morning, Deborah, My name is Allen Peterson. I am standing with Mr. And Mrs. Franks, their daughter Zoe, and Zoe's Doctor, Dr. Francis in the lobby. We would like to see Dr. Hashburn, but have met some resistance in the form of the receptionist down here." The phone on the receptionist's desk rang. It was a different ring than it had made when dad had called., and I presumed that it was an internal call rather than an external call. The phone systems at Dad's work did the same thing. I watched as the color drained from the receptionists face. She slowly picked up the phone.

"Rebecca," She said. I could finally put a name on this woman.... "Ok, I'll send them up to the second floor conference room. Yes Debbie."

#
I followed mom and dad upstairs and into the conference room. There were two doors, the one that we had come through, and one to our left. Mom and dad sat at the table, and I sat between them. Another showing of that unified front thing, I assumed. A few minutes later, Adam walked in with four people, presumably the four people that he had asked his assistant for. Adam sat on dad's left, with two of his people sitting on his left, and the other two sat on Mom's right. All four of them had carried briefcases, and they all pulled out papers. Mom did the same, and I glanced over at the papers she had laid out in front of her. It was a copy of the reverent portions of Title nine and copies of the first amendment and the fourteenth amendment. A tall, older man walked through the door that was to the left of where we sat at the table. He wore shirt sleeves and a tie, and he frowned when he saw the eight of us...

"Mr and Mrs. Franks," He said, looking at mom and dad and then looking at me. "Shouldn't your daughter be in school?" Dad looked at him.

"Dr. Hashburn," Dad began, "My daughter would be in school, if Miranda Perkins, the principal at Memorial Middle School had allowed our daughter to enter into the population of the school. Before I go any further, let me actually introduce the people that sit on either side of me. I'll start with my family and work my way into the others. This is my wife Katherine, and my daughter Zoe," Mom and I nodded. "At the far right end of the table is Dr. Emily Francis, Zoe's doctor." I kept my eyes fixed on Dr. Hashburn, who looked more and more uncomfortable as he realized that the remaining five people were more than likely legal counsel. "To my left is Adam Peterson, Lead Counsel for Zoe, and to his left are Sally Cunningham, and Bill Johnson. Sitting between my wife and Dr. Francis are Betty Chapman and Ted Waters. The four of them round out the Zoe's legal team." The color drained from Dr. Hashburn's face.

"Ok, I can tell that this is a serious matter as you've brought counsel. Before we go any further, I'm going to have members of our legal department come up here." Dad looked at Adam, who nodded.

"That's fine." Dad said. It appeared that he was going to let Adam take charge here. We watched him open the door and then speak to someone. Mom slid the papers that she had over to Adam who skimmed them and then nodded to mom.

"Zoe," Mom whispered in my ear. "Let Adam do the talking, and don't speak unless you are spoken to. I don't know how much of what is about to happen you'll understand, but I'll explain it all to you." I nodded, feeling my hair tickle my ears. The door behind us opened and three people walked around the table and sat, leaving the middle chair open for Dr. Hashburn, who walked back in a few moments later.

"Ah, Good. You guys are here." Dr. Hashburn said. "May I introduce the school districts lead counsel, Gunter Hammerstein, This is Larry Rollins, and Sarah Wender." He sat between Gunter Hammerstein and Sarah Wender.

"Since the three of you weren't in here for the introductions on this side of the table, I am Adam Peterson, along with Bob Johnson, Sally Cunningham, Betty Chapman, and Ted Waters. We represent Tom Franks, his wife Katherine, and their daughter Zoe. At the far end of the table we have Zoe's Doctor, Dr. Francis." Everyone but me nodded as we were introduced.

"What ever has brought you in without an appointment has got to be important, otherwise you wouldn't be here." Dr. Hashburn stated. Sarah Wender looked at me.

"Shouldn't Zoe be in school, rather than here?" she asked. I bit my tongue and let Adam speak on my behalf.

"Ms. Wender, you're right, Zoe should be in class." Adam stated. "You see this morning, when my clients went to Memorial Middle school, and presented Zoe to the administration, they were met with some..." He thought for a second. "Resistance. The principal there didn't seem to want to allow Zoe to enter into the population of the school dressed as the female that she is. She cited a dress code, that has no provisions for a transgender student like Zoe, and attempted to defame Dr. Francis." The four people on the other side of the table shared looks of confusion. "I've looked at a copy of this dress code, and the only part of it that I could find that Zoe currently violates is the beret... When my clients walked into the school, they saw girls in jeans, which is not a violation of the dress code, so my clients are having trouble understanding how their daughter does not fit the dress code for any other girl in the school."

"What is this transgender thing that you speak of?" Ms. Wender asked. It was this moment that I presumed that these people had been living under rocks for some time.

"For that, I would like to first let Katherine tell you guys a short story, and then Dr. Francis can expand on what it all means." Adam looked at mom.

"Ok, Last Saturday, my son Allen, revealed something to me, and then subsequently my husband. The news that he said would change our lives. He felt like he was a girl on the inside, and that the night before he had tried on his sisters skirt and top. He saw Zoe looking back at him. He said that the sparkle that had left Allen's eyes had returned. I didn't see this my self until after I had allowed Zoe to wear a skirt that I saw the sparkle. After consulting with my husband, who at first thought that Zoe was her sister, Heather, we decided to seek the assistance of a person that was trained in Gender Identity Disorders. My husband, using the resources that he has at work, culled a list of doctors for us. At the top of that list was Dr. Francis, who I called that day and scheduled an appointment for yesterday. After hearing what Zoe said, and seeing how Zoe was dressed at the time which wasn't much different than she is now, Dr. Francis provided a diagnoses of Gender Identity Disorder. As far as everyone should be concerned, Zoe is a girl." Mom looked at Dr. Francis.

"I will be frank and say that I'm not sure how Allen even got along in school with the way he looks. When I first saw Miss Franks, I had a very hard time believing that the person in front of me was really a boy in a skirt. Normally, a male wearing a dress will show as much by the way they move. I didn't see any of this with Zoe. Zoe was presenting as if she had been a genetically born female, and it didn't seem to be something that she had to try to do, it just came naturally. These cases, are, in my twenty years of experience some of the easiest to diagnose. For Zoe, this wasn't a phase, or an act to 'try to get into the girls locker rooms' as Mrs. Perkins had the audacity to suggest, this was her. Her mother said that the sparkle had returned. Zoe is who Allen was supposed to be from the time of his birth." The lawyers for the school district looked at me, rather closely. "To be transgender means that one has a different mental gender than their physical gender. The mental gender is the one that determines how people act. Zoe's been hiding in there for some time, and now that she's out, I think we're going to have a hard time trying to put her back in a box that she does not belong in..."

"I see," Ms. Wender said, not looking like she really understood what had just been said. "How does that bring you all here?"

"Well, does the school district receive federal funds?" The three lawyers looked at each other.

"Yes, but what does-" Mr. Hammerstein was cut off by Adam.

"What does that have to do with it?" Adam asked. All three lawyers nodded dumbly. "Under Title nine, A school district that receives federal funds may not discriminate based on gender non-conformity." The lawyers all looked at each other again as they realized where this was headed. "Also, Zoe is simply expressing her feminine traits, which is protected by the first amendment. She is also protected by the equal protection clause of the fourteenth amendment. Oh, and by the way, Zoe found the information on the fourteenth amendment as well as the information on Title Nine...." The three of them looked at me, yet again; I was getting used to this.

"Did she understand what she read?" Mr. Hammerstein asked. "She cant' be more than twelve." Adam looked at mom and nodded.

"Yes, she did understand what she read, after she had found it and interpreted it, she asked me if that's what it meant. Also, she's a very smart thirteen year old, She is going to go far in life." Mom patted my shoulder.

"So, are we going to resolve this here and now and fix the system so that the next transgender student doesn't have to sit here and do this, or do I have to start to process a suit on behalf of my client?" The four representatives of the school district looked at one another.

"May we have a few minutes to discuss this?" Mr. Hammerstein asked.

"Certainly." Adam said. We watched the four of them all get up and exit the door that I presumed went to the superintendents office. After the door shut, Adam smiled. "I think we've won this part. Do you want me to push for the removal of Mrs. Perkins?"

"I'm going to leave that in your hands, Adam." Dad said. I trusted his judgment, and I had an idea of what Adam would do next. The only clock in the room was behind me, so I don't know how long the team from the school district deliberated before returning to the conference room. I noted that they all looked defeated when they came back in.

"Mr. Peterson," Mr. Hammerstein started. "We would like to propose some changes to some school policies as well as disciplinary action against Mrs. Perkins."

"How long will it take you to draft these changes?" Adam asked. "And what is the disciplinary action?"

"We will have the drafts done by this afternoon, do you have a number that we can fax them to?" Adam nodded and pulled a business card and slid it across the table. Mr. Hammerstein picked the card up and looked at it.

"Chief counsel for Gilenfelter Systems?" Mr. Hammerstein asked; Adam nodded. "Should figured... Your legal team is one of the best around here..."

"We take pride in our work, and we stand up for our employees and their families..." Adam said. Now it was Mr. Hammerstein's turn to nod. "Now about that disciplinary action against Mrs. Perkins?" Dr. Hashburn, looked from Adam to me, his eyes not leaving mine as he spoke.

"I'd prefer to not discuss disciplinary actions of staff members in front of students..." Dr. Hashburn replied.

"You lost that chance when this started. My client will find out one way or another about the disciplinary action, so you might as well just say it..." Adam replied. Dr. Hashburn pursed his lips and looked at me.

"She's going to be suspended for thirty days and will have to meet with the school board, and they will determine if any other actions will be taken." Dr. Hashburn said. "I'm getting ready to head over there and break the news to her. Zoe, you may come to school tomorrow dressed as you are, but without the beret. That is against the dress code..." I smiled. "If you run into problems with anyone, call my office, and find an adult at school too; but make sure I know about it. I will not stand for discrimination in my school district."

"I wanted to look my best this morning, Dr. Hashburn." I replied. "First impressions and all. Now I just have to figure out what to wear tomorrow..." Dr. Hashburn smiled for the first time since he had walked into the room that morning.

"Zoe, I'm sure that you will be beautiful in what ever you decide to wear." I blushed. " In addition, Zoe, your absences today will be excused as official as I can tell that you would have been in school otherwise. Mr. Peterson, my team will fax the proposed changes to you today, and you and your clients can look them over and submit changes. This is a time of change for our district, and is one that we will come through better on the other side."

#
We had gone out to eat after the meeting with the school district. I received a few looks as I was a child amongst adults, and under any other day would have been in school; this wasn't any other day...

"I wonder what kind of changes the school district will make..." I wondered aloud. Mom glanced at me.

"Who knows, but we've scored one small victory today." Mom looked at dad and then back at me. "Zoe, since we are four blocks from the courthouse, and I have all of the papers for us to change your name, maybe we should go drop all of this off while we're down here. It might take a month or so before everything's done, but we'll get there." Mom said. I looked at her, and then at dad.

"Really?" I asked. Looking from mom to dad.

"Really," Dad said. "I've seen the process take a month for adult, but I don't know if you being a minor changes anything; I know that both your mom and I had to sign the paperwork for it, and had to certify that we aren't doing it to hide you from someone." I must have looked shocked, because Dad chuckled. "That's what I thought until I thought about it some more, and then it made perfect sense..." Dad let the thought trail off as the waiter brought our food and then we ate in silence.

Reports From the Front Lines

Later that evening, Riley came by to drop off the homework that I had been unable to pick up because I was out of the building all day.

"Zoe!" Heather called. "Someone's here to see you." I left my laptop where it sat and got up, headed for the stairs. With the way that our house was laid out, if you were at the front door, you could see up the stairs. I looked down and watched as Riley's face lit up; like she was happy to see me.

"Hi Zoe." Riley smiled as I hit the landing. We hugged, much like we had done at school that morning. I led her toward the living room so we could sit and chat for a few minutes. Riley sat on the love seat and I sat next to her. Her hair looked like it had been freshly brushed, and the pink ribbon that decorated her brown ponytail was not there that morning when I had seen her at school. "So, there are rumors flying around school now that this new girl Zoe managed to get Mrs. Perkins fired." I smiled.

"Not quite, but it may come down to that..." I said. "The decision is actually in the hands of the school board, it appears. Tomorrow will be my first day at school. I'm not sure what to expect."

"I'm in most of your classes, so I will be next to you pretty much all day. What are you going to do about going to the bathroom and gym class?" Riley said.

"Well, for the moment, I'm exempt from gym on the basis of a medical diagnoses, and I get to use that restroom that's in the nurses office until they figure out what to do with me..." I looked into her hazel eyes and smiled. "I was thinking about wearing the outfit I had on today, but in red..." I said. Riley's eyes lit up.

"I was planning on wearing that tomorrow as well." She said. "It's too bad that we can't wear the berets... I think the outfits look better with them."

"I agree. Dr. Hashburn said that he thought I would look cute in what ever I wore tomorrow." I replied, smiling at Riley. "I think that he's right." She smiled back at me.

"So do I." She kissed me on the cheek again. "I'm not sure which will look better on you, the red or the green."

"Well, from the photo session that I had Wednesday, I think the green looks better on me than the red, but, you'll see the red tomorrow and you can tell me which one you think looks better." She smiled. Dad walked into the living room.

"Hi Riley." He said. "What brings you by?"

"I just brought Zoe's homework by so that she could stay at the head of the class." Riley said. I had no idea if I was at the head of the class or not, but I was probably up there. Dad just nodded. "What time do you need to be home by?" he asked. Riley looked at the clock that was on the cable box.

"Eight thirty." The clock read that it was half past seven. Dad nodded.

"Zoe and I will walk you home." Riley nodded.

"My mom and dad would like that." Riley said. I knew her parents didn't like her to be out alone after dark, and it had been daylight when she arrived. Riley was an only child so her parents were very protective of her. I had walked her home before by my self, but I had a feeling that the rules for me were about to change in regards to being out on my own after a certain time...

"So is Mrs. Perkins still there, or is she going to be gone for a while?" I asked.

"I don't know. Anyone who knows anything isn't saying." Riley said. "I got teased for giving you a kiss today, and got asked a lot of questions about you."

#
Mom had carried some chocolate milk into the living room, and dad had gone off to the den, leaving Riley and I alone. I knew that mom was in the kitchen, still close enough to overhear anything that was said.

"Did I upset you with the kiss at school?" Riley bit her lower lip, a move that I thought made her look extremely cute. I smiled at her, which seemed to put her a little bit more at ease.

"No. You startled me, yes. But you didn't upset me." I said. Riley smiled at me. "I had been wondering maybe you'd like to go see a movie, but I'm not sure that your parents would let us now..." I let the thought trail off. Riley leaned forward and gave me a kiss on the cheek again. I looked into her hazel eyes. "May I give you a kiss?" I asked. Riley smiled and nodded, it sounded as if she forgot to breath for a few seconds. I leaned forward and planted an extremely soft kiss on her soft, and unblemished cheek. I felt the warm air escape her mouth as my lips met her cheek. We both sort of sat back and just gazed at each other. All of the sudden her face turned red and she attempted to hide her face in my chest. I turned to look and saw mom standing there a smile on her face.

"Girls, it's twenty after eight. I know that Riley has to be home at eight thirty. Zoe, go get your shoes on, and grab your coat. Your dad will be ready in a few seconds."

"Yes, mommy." I said and headed for the front door where my shoes were and my coat hung in the closet. Dad had the closet door open and grabbed the dark grey wool peacoat, holding it out so I could slip my arms into the sleeves. I slipped my feet into the shoes, and then buttoned the coat. Mom and Riley walked down the hallway, Riley with a big grin on her face. I looked at Riley and then at mom, who smiled. What ever mom had told Riley would remain between them, for the time being. Dad looked at both of us.

"You girls ready?" He asked.

"Yes, Daddy." I said. Riley looked at me, a giggle escaping.

"Yes, Mr. Franks." She said, trying to hold the giggles in, and failing. I gave her a strange look. Now dad was giving her a strange look as well. He looked at mom, who smiled and nodded. I had a feeling that I was the only one that was not in the loop.

"Tom, They are expecting you." Now it was time for both Riley and I to look confused. Dad nodded.

"Let's go girls" Dad said, opening the front door. He let Riley and I walk out first, closing and locking the door behind him. I knew that we weren't going to get out of dad's sight so Riley and I walked toward her house, with dad out of ear shot, but not eye sight.

"What did you and mom talk about?" I asked her. I could see her smile in the moonlight.

"Us." She said, glancing over her shoulder to see how close dad was.

"Oh?"

"Yeah. She was warning me that some people may not think too highly of you and I having a relationship... Something about people having an issue with two girls being together. I don't see it myself" Riley said.

"I don't have a problem with it either." I replied, slipping my hand in hers. We walked in silence for a few moments.

"I've waited for a while to be able to hold your hand like this." She said, giving my hand a gentle squeeze. "I remember seeing the sparkle go out in your eyes. I wondered if I'd ever see it again. It's back." She reached up with her other hand to wipe a stray tear that had escaped her left eye.

"You're ok with Zoe?" I asked. Given that we were holding hands, I assumed that she would be.

"Yes." She chewed on her bottom lip again, she was about to say or ask something that made her nervous. "I've pictured you as a girl for a while, at least since you've grown your hair out."

#
Riley and I walked up the steps and onto the porch. She reached into the pocket on her jeans and struggled to pull out her key I watched in quiet amusement as she couldn't stick her hand in her pocket far enough to get to the key. I knew from looking at the pants we had purchased that the pockets weren't that deep, but they were so small that very little would fit in them.

"Maybe you should get a purse..." I said nonchalantly. Riley turned her head and looked at me, and then blew a raspberry. I smiled at her.

"Got it!" She said, pulling the key out. "Maybe you girly girls are on to something with your purses..." she said, sticking the key in the key hole and unlocking the front door. Even though she had only unlocked the door, it swung open as her dad opened it from the inside, almost like he had been expecting us.

"Riley, Zoe, Tom, Come in." Riley and I looked at each other... I racked my brain trying to figure out how her dad knew of Zoe already. She was still semi secret at this point. Riley shrugged and we stepped into the foyer. Dad and Mr. Edwards shook hands, and Riley and I looked at each other and shrugged again.

"How did he know about Zoe?" I whispered in Riley's ear.

"No idea, but we're about to find out." She whispered back.

"Have a seat, girls." Riley's dad said. Riley and I sat on the love seat and looked at her mom and dad sitting on the couch and my dad, who had taken the only chair in the room. The three adults were smiling, which I considered to be a good sign. "First of all, Zoe, I'm sure you are wondering how I know about you when you still seem to be a pretty closely guarded secret?" Riley's dad said. I nodded dumbly, letting a look of confusion cross my face. "Your dad has been in contact with me all day. I've been providing some counsel to him. But, we wanted to make sure that you guys know that there are some people out there that won't think too highly of two young girls being involved in a romantic relationship. You guys already know how a group of middle schoolers can be, and Riley, I think that you learned a little bit of that after you kissed Zoe at school." Riley blushed

"Today it was more of a 'Riley kissed a girl?' floating around all day. Not many people know that Zoe and Allen are are the same and those that do are in this room or at Zoe's house. Tomorrow will be bit different as the girl I kissed will be at school, and we're practically going to be inseparable. We have almost every class together so she's got a second set of eyes watching everything that is going on around her." Riley paused. "Honestly daddy, I don't care what others think. They need to learn to worry about them selfs and not everyone else..." Riley's dad looked at Riley and then at me, and I realized that I was nodding in agreement with Riley. Mr. Edwards and my dad looked at each other, at Riley's mom, and then at the two of us.

"I guess we raised them right..." Mr. Edwards said... "We just wanted you two to be aware that people may have an issue with you holding hands or otherwise showing affection in public." We nodded and looked at each other. We were very close friends, had been for years, nothing more, nothing less that either of us were aware of.

#
"So, Zoe," Dad began. "There are going to be some rule changes for you now." I glanced up at my father, already expecting this statement.

"Like what?" I asked.

"Well, no going out after dark by your self anymore. You're turning into a young lady and there are a lot of sick and twisted people out there that will try to harm a young girl. I don't care how old you are, you're always going to be my little girl, as is Heather. The problem is that if they try to harm you and find out your secret, they are going to be a lot worse on you because you are not an actual girl." I pursed my lips. Dad had gone to the hospital before when some of the employees of Gilenfelter had been attacked. I had never gone with him, but had heard stories... "I know that you don't leave the house without your phone, but you will be grounded if you do." This was nothing new. This rule had always been that way but I understood why dad brought it up. "I pushed some additional contacts to your phone, Adam Peterson's, as well as the rest of the legal team. If you have any problems with staff, after taking to the principal about it, make sure that Peterson finds out." We were walking up to the front door.

"Ok," I said" Dad placed his hand on my shoulder after I had taken off my coat.

"Zoe, Don't think that we're punishing you for being you. I'm just concerned for your safety. There are a lot of people out there that won't understand you, or what you're going through, Zoe." He said. "I want to try to shield you from that as much as possible. You have a big day ahead of you tomorrow. Why don't you go upstairs and get ready for bed and I'll be up shortly to tuck you in." I blinked, and dad smiled.

"Ok." I said.I climbed the stairs finally realizing how exhausted I was. It had been a long tiring day emotionally, and I was ready for bed... I went in my room and looked around. Most of the clothes that hung in the closet were not mine....They belonged to an impostor. I sighed, wondering when we were going to do something about my room as I changed into a baby pink satin nightgown that had been laying on the bed. There was a knock on the door. "Come in!" I said. Dad cracked the door.

"You dressed, Zoe?" He asked, before coming in all the way...

"Yes," I replied, taking one last look at myself in the mirror, The night gown that I now had on was longer than the skirt that I had worn that morning. Dad pushed the door open wider and stepped into my room. He smiled at me.

"You look just like your sister did at your age." Dad said, walking over and pulling the covers back on my bed. It had been years since I had been tucked in by either by mom or dad... "Your room doesn't look like it belongs to a thirteen year old girl... We should change that..." I smiled at him.

"Actually, Daddy," I replied. "I had been thinking that already. I'm not sure that I want to just throw out Allen's clothes, but they don't seem right hanging there. I was thinking about putting them all in the other bedroom tomorrow after school, We can figure out what to do with them later." Dad nodded and looked at the open closet door.

"That closet's gonna be empty after that." He chuckled. "Hop up in bed, Zoe." I climbed up in bed, and let him cover me up. I had a feeling that if there had been a teddy bear there, he would have handed it to me. He leaned over and gave me a kiss on the forehead, and brushed a few hairs out of my face. "Good night, Princess." Dad said, walking over to the door. He took one look around the room, smiled at me, turned off the light and shut the door. I turned over on my side and promptly fell asleep.

School Days

The next morning, I woke up when the alarm clock went off, and like the previous morning, in my attempt to turn it off, I knocked the thing to the floor. I grumbled, sat up, picked the clock up and then finally silenced the alarm. I got up, grabbed my robe and headed for the shower. After I had woken up a little bit, I finished washing up and then shut off the water. I got out, and patted my self dry. As the mirror cleared, I saw my blue eyes sparkling, It wasn't the normal sparkle; this sparkle was caused by tears, happy tears. I left the bathroom as mom came out of her room and she stopped and looked at me.

"You ok? You look like you've been crying." She said. I wasn't sure how she could tell, the hallway was dimly lit, with the only real light being a nightlight at the top of the stairs.

"They're happy tears. Everything is going right, my outside matches my inside, I can wear what I want now, when I want. I'm whole." Mom smiled.

"That you are. Go get dressed, I'm going to take you and Riley to school today." I raised an eyebrow.

"Why are you taking Riley and I to school?" I asked.

"Well, you because we still need fix all of your files at the school, and Riley because I thought that, perhaps you'd like to ride to school with your girlfriend..." Mom smiled. I blushed.

"I would like that." I said, going back into my room. After I had gotten dressed I went down stairs to the kitchen. I had just finished my oatmeal when there was a knock on the door, and I assumed that it was Riley, and when I opened the door, it could have been my reflection staring back at me, well with the exception of our hair and eye color being the different.

"Good Morning," Riley said. I stood there for a few seconds, just staring dumbly at her. I finally shook my head and cleared the cobwebs that had developed. She had on the same outfit that I did only she had chosen to wear her beret.

"Come in!" I said, stepping out of the doorway so that she could. Heather was coming down the stairs.

"Morning. Riley, you and Zoe look like you could be sisters..." she let the thought trail off as she stopped at the bottom of the stairs. Riley and I slipped our hands together and walked toward the kitchen. Heather walked behind us and chuckled as our hands slipped together. We walked into the kitchen, where mom had three bowls of oatmeal ready. Riley and I looked at each other and each grabbed a bowl, taking the two stools on one side of the island leaving Heather to stand and eat. Heather finished hers first and then headed out to catch the bus.

"Have fun at school, Zoe." Heather said, patting me on the head as she passed. Riley and I finished our oatmeal and I put the bowls in the sink and ran water in them. Mom looked at the clock and then at us.

"It's time to go." Mom said. Riley and I stood up and pushed the stools in. We both walked over to the front door and slipped our shoes on, and then grabbed our backpacks and headed for the door that went out to the garage. I opened the drivers side door and let Riley get in, closing it behind her and then went around and got into the car on the passenger side. Mom came out a few seconds later and got in the car... "You girls ready?" We both nodded, and mom opened the garage door and started the car. She pulled out of the garage, and drove toward the school.

#
Mom parked the car in the same parking spot that she had parked in the day before. We got out, and mom let Riley and I walk ahead of her. We walked into the relatively deserted school and headed for the office. Most of the staff was in the building already, so figuring out who we needed to talk to wouldn't be that difficult. Mrs. Chattfield looked up as we entered.

"Morning, Mrs. Franks, Zoe, Riley."

"Good Morning, Mrs. Chattfield," Mom started. "Who do I talk to about changing Zoe's files?"

"Me, actually." Mrs. Chattfield said. "Give me one second to go pull her files." Mom nodded and then looked at us and smiled. It was then that Riley and I realized that we were holding hands again. We looked at each other, not caring about the world. Mrs. Chattfield came back with a rather thick folder, and sat it on her desk. "Zoe and Riley, you girls can have a seat." Mrs. Chattfield said. Riley and I sat down and looked at each other, tuning out mom and Mrs. Chattfield.

"Did you get all of the homework I gave you done?" Riley asked. I shook my head no, as I really hadn't gotten much done.

"No, but I will get it tonight. My absence from yesterday was an official excused absence, so I have until tomorrow to get it in."

"So does that mean we can't hang out tonight?"

"No we can, I just need to make sure that I this homework done. In some ways my grades slipped because I couldn't be who I should have been." I said, glancing out the window and watching a bus load of kids depart a bus. "Now it's time to kick some butt and fix that." Riley smiled at me.

"I can help you if you like." I smiled at her.

"And I can help you if you like." I replied getting lost in her eyes yet again. I wondered if I had the same effect on her.

"Zoe, Riley." I heard mom say. I realized that we were both still looking at each other, well staring was more like it...

"Huh?" I said, mom smiled which caused both Riley and I to realize that she had been watching us. I was sure she knew what had happened and that caused me to start blushing.

"You two looked like you had gotten lost in there." Mom said, with a chuckle.

"Gotten lost in where?" I asked, trying to sound as if I didn't know where 'there' was.

"In each other's eyes. Don't worry, it's something your father and I did as well." Mom chuckled again.

#
"Girls, if you would come with me," Mrs. Chattfield said. Riley and I stood and looked at each other. "Zoe, I'm going to take you to all of your classes and try to explain this to your teachers." She chuckled. "Hopefully no one has any issues, I mean the last person that did isn't here any more..." I looked at her.

"I know that she got suspended, but what do you mean that she isn't here any more?" I asked, grabbing my backpack.

"She resigned shortly after Dr. Hashburn relieved her. Said that she couldn't handle running a school that allowed boys to run around dressed as girls..." Riley and I looked at each other.

"She quit?" I asked, astonished. I knew she had a problem with me running around the school in a skirt... Mrs. Chattfield nodded. "Isn't that a bit extreme?"

"I think so... It's a new era, things change..." Mrs. Chattfield said, opening the door so that we could go to mine and Riley's first class of the day... When we exited the office, there were three girls standing there, dressed similarly to Riley and I. One of the girls, I recognized as being in mine and Riley's classes. I had never been one that was big on the social scene in school and I had a feeling that was about to change. I knew that this girl was also in my first class of the day, so she followed the three of us to the classroom. Riley looked over her shoulder at the girl and smiled.

"Megan, meet Zoe; Zoe, meet Megan." Riley said as we walked toward the room.

"Hi." I said as we started to climb the steps to the second floor. We walked into the classroom, which caused Mrs. Stevens, our English teacher to look at us.

"Morning Mrs. Chattfield." She said, looking Riley and I both up and down. We looked like sisters with the exception of our hair and eye colors. "Morning, Riley and Megan. I don't know you though..." She pointed at me with the pencil in her hand.

"Mrs. Stevens, This is Zoe Franks. She's going to be taking Allen Franks' place in your class." Mrs. Chattfield said. Mrs. Stevens' eyebrows went up.

"What exactly do you mean 'taking' Allen's place in my class?"

"Well, Allen doesn't really exist any more. Zoe has taken his place..." This got a brief look of confusion, and then a look of understanding. I was glad that Megan had already taken her seat at the back of the room and didn't hear most of this rather awkward conversation.

"Ah ha!" Mrs. Stevens said, "I thought you looked familiar, Zoe. Will do, Mrs. Chattfield. Zoe, do we have a cover story?"

#
By lunch time, I was known as the new girl, quiet and shy and already friends with Riley. Riley had a circle of friends that I would get to know better as time went on, but for now, I had to pretend to be this quiet girl just to not be discovered by someone that would be unsympathetic to my mental gender. After I had eaten the meal that the school called lunch, something I almost always had to supplant with a snack almost as soon as I got home Riley and I headed off toward our study hall. Mrs. Chattfield hadn't walked me to any classes since the one that morning with Mrs. Stevens, instead letting Riley handle my introduction. Once we got into the room where our study hall was held, Riley and I walked up to Mr. Jackson, who was also one of the gym teachers.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Jackson," Riley said. "This is Zoe Franks, and she will be replacing Allen Franks on your roster." Mr. Jackson looked at me in a way that made me feel uncomfortable.

"I don't want no boys dressed as girls in my classes." He said. "I don't know whose idea this little stunt of yours was, Allen," I cringed at the use of the name and the way he said it. "But I see it as you trying to get into the girls locker rooms or get out of something. You can just go to the office and tell Mrs. Chattfield that I sent you there." I felt a tear start to escape my left eye. I resolved to not cry in front of Mr. Jackson, but he saw that single tear and pounced. "Look, he's crying like the little pansy he is..." I turned and left the room, making sure I slammed the door. I was entitled to throwing a hissy fit after what it had taken me to get in the school as my self. I found a corner and slid down the wall sobbing. I didn't see Riley come out of the room and crouch next to me. She placed her hand softly on my shoulder, and I turned my head to look at her. "Riley, come back here or I'll have you assigned detention." I heard Mr. Jackson say.

"Come on, Lets to talk to Mrs. Chattfield." Riley said, offering her hands to help me up. After I was back on my own feet, Riley released my right hand, but still held onto my left hand with her right hand. We made our way to the office. I was still crying when Riley and I walked into the office. Mrs. Chattfield looked up as we entered the office and stood up behind her desk.

"What happened?" Riley led me to the chair that I had sat in that morning.

"Mr. Jackson said that he 'didn't want any boys dressed as girls' in his classes, and accused Zoe of doing this just so she could get into the girls locker rooms. She teared up and had one escape and then Mr. Jackson said something to the effect of 'Look, the little pansy's crying,' and to come down here and tell you that Zoe was down here because he had sent her down.' Zoe just lost it and left the room. He said I was going to get a detention if I didn't come back in the room, but my friend is more important, and my parents know that." Riley had, in her own way, decided to help guide me down my path to girlhood. We were alike in a lot of ways and that made it easy for us to get along.

"You won't get a detention, Riley." Mrs. Chattfield said. "Zoe, I need to report this to Mrs. Young, sit tight and I'll be right back." I nodded, and watched her go. Riley grabbed a kleenex from the table between the chairs and dabbed the tears off of my face. While she was doing that, the door opened and Brian Foley walked in, holding a piece of paper. Brian was in our study hall and I presumed that it was the detention request for Riley. He watched Riley drying my face for a few seconds.

"Faggots..." He said quietly, but not quietly enough for us not to hear it.

"Shut up, Brian." I said, looking up at him. He was taller than me when I was standing, so when I was sitting it was even worse.

"Why don't you try to make me, you pansy." I was not about to loose my cool and get into a fight. "Your girlfriend is already getting a detention because she left class, and you're getting one for the same thing." He sneered. He was looking at us and didn't see Mrs. Chattfield and Mrs. Young coming back down the hall. They pretended to not hear the conversation.

"What can I do for you Brian?" Mrs. Chattfield asked. Mrs. Young just stood there and watched.

"Mr. Jackson sent this down, It's about those two." He tilted his head toward us. Mrs. Chattfield skimmed the paper and then looked Brian in the eyes.

"Tell Mr. Jackson that he will have to hand deliver this himself." Mrs. Chattfield said, ripping the paper in half and handing it back to Brian. "Now go back to class, Mr. Foley. Expect to be down here later though. Mrs. Young and I heard what you said to Riley and Zoe." Brian's eyes grew as big as saucers and he scurried out of the office like a dog with its tail between it's legs.

"Zoe, Riley, Can you guys come back to my office, I'd like to hear what happened." Mrs. Young asked. I nodded dumbly and held out my hand for Riley to help me up I stood, feeling my skirt fall back to my just above my knees and we walked, hand in hand back toward Mrs. Young's office. Just after the door shut, I heard Mr. Jackson's voice.

"What's the deal, Cheryl, that detention form was proper and the correct response to two students leaving a classroom." Mr. Jacksons said.

"He doesn't know when to quit does he?" I asked, Riley and I sat on a couch that was similar to the one in Mrs. Perkins' office. Mrs. Young had apparently been temporally promoted after Mrs. Perkins left in a huff because of me.

"Let me worry about him." Mrs. Young said, with a confident smile. "Riley, tell me what happened."

"I just told this to Mrs. Chattfield, but, Mr. Jackson said that he 'didn't want any boys dressed as girls' in his classes, and accused Zoe of doing this just so she could get into the girls locker rooms. She teared up and had one roll down her face and then Mr. Jackson said something to the effect of 'Look, the little pansy's crying,' and to come down here and tell Mrs. Chattfield that Zoe was sent down here because he had sent her down.' Zoe just lost it and left the room. I went after her, having an idea of what his comments had done to her. He said I was going to get a detention if I didn't come back in the room, but my friend is more important, and my parents know that. I stand by my friends and when one is in need, there is little that I won't do for them." Riley looked at me and then leaned forward and gave me a kiss on the cheek. This caused me to smile, and I could smell the cherry lip gloss that she had on.

"Ok, and what did Brian Foley say to you guys?"

"He called us 'faggots' and then when I told him to shut up, He told me to 'try and make him,' calling me a pansy in the process, and then saying that my girlfriend and I were getting detentions for leaving class. I don't think he saw you guys until you had pretty much heard that..." I replied, finally getting my emotions in check. "We're not girlfriends yet, but who knows what the future holds..." I said gazing at Riley. There was a knock on the door, which caused me to jump, and then it swung open; Mr. Jackson stood there, a scowl on his face. Riley placed her left hand on my right arm.

"Susan, Those two," He pointed at us. "Deserve a detention for leaving class without permission."

"For starters, you may have been here longer than me, but don't call me by my first name in front of students, Mr. Jackson," Mrs. Young said, calmly but firmly. "Secondly, you your self told Zoe to come to the office. Your little comments have really upset the poor girl and her best friend came to her aid. Thirdly, I will not tolerate bigotry in my school. As soon as I get off the phone with Dr. Hashburn, I will guarantee you that you will have been suspended. Comments like yours from someone that a student is supposed to trust is exactly why Mrs. Perkins was relieved from her duties, and subsequently resigned. Fourth, that door was closed because I'm in a private meeting, I would think that you should close it and get out of my office, now."

"Your just standing up for Allen so that he can get into the girls locker rooms and see things that he shouldn't be seeing yet. I can't help the little pansy wants to run around wearing skirts; in my day, we simply tried to look up the girls skirts..." He said.

"That's not her name, and furthermore, she is under a psychiatrists care for this, that makes it a mental disorder, something I'm not sure that you know anything about. You may want to try to talk to someone and find out what your comments may be doing to that poor young lady. How would you feel if she committed suicide because of your comments?"

"Wouldn't be my problem." He said.

"It sure would be pretty quickly." Mrs. Young said. "I would make sure of it. Word of this is already going to be getting to the family's attorney, I'm sure, as well as Zoe's parents. You're picking fights that you don't want to even start. Now get out of my office!" Mr. Jackson scowled at Riley and I, and then left Mrs. Young's office, slamming the door behind him and causing the wall to shake. I was on the verge of tears again, but was also in awe of the way that Mrs. Young had stood up for me. "Don't worry about him. Dr. Hashburn will probably be here shortly after I get off the phone with him..." She walked over to her desk and picked up the phone.

#
Riley and I were still sitting in Mrs. Young's office when there was a much softer knock on the door. This one didn't cause me to jump like Mr. Jackson's knock did. Mrs. Young got up from sitting on my left and then opened the door. Mrs. Chattfield and Dr. Hashburn stood on the other side.

"Dr. Hashburn is here to see the three of you." Mrs. Chattfield said. Mrs. Young nodded and Dr. Hashburn walked into the room, and looked at me. He did a quick assessment of my condition.

"Mrs. Chattfield, call Zoe's parents and have them come in if possible; if not, can you have them call my office to arrange a meeting with at least them, Zoe, and I. If they would like to bring their counsel, I would completely understand that." Mrs. Chattfield nodded.

"Yes, Doctor. Will there be anything else?" He shook his head and shut the door silently. I wouldn't have to explain any thing of what had happened to Dr. Hashburn, as Mrs. Young had done that over the phone already. Dr. Hashburn sat across from Riley and I.

"You two look like sisters..." He said, letting the thought trail off. Riley and I looked at each other and grinned. We hadn't really planned on dressing alike, it just sort of happened. I knew that we both would look cuter with the berets on our heads, but we couldn't wear them in school. "There is no reason for a teacher to talk to, or treat a student like Mr. Jackson did. Zoe, he will be taken care of; I promise you that." Dr. Hashburn said. "And Zoe, I told you that you would look beautiful in whatever you decided to wear, and I was right. Who is your friend?"

"This is Riley Edwards, My new best friend." I said, not able to hide the smile in my voice. I felt Riley slip her left hand into my right and give it a gentle squeeze. This action not going unnoticed by Dr. Hashburn.

"Riley, I'm Dr. Hashburn, the superintendent of the school district." Dr. Hashburn said.

"It's nice to meet you." Riley said, offering her hand. Dr. Hashburn and Riley shook hands.

"It's nice to meet you too and I'm glad that Zoe has more than just me and Mrs. Young on her side." He smiled. There was a knock on the door, and Dr. Hashburn got up and opened it. Mrs. Chattfield stood on the other side.

"Doctor, I got ahold of Zoe's parents, They said they can't come in today, but they said they will meet you at eight on monday morning."

"Ok, can you call Debbie and make sure that she puts it on my schedule, please."

"Will do." Mrs. Chattfield said, She turned and went back down the hallway. Dr. Hashburn shut the door and returned to the seat he had been sitting in.

"I'm sure that mom and dad are wondering what that was all about..." I said quietly. "They probably think that I've done something to get into trouble." Riley, Dr. Hashburn and Mrs. Young all looked at me.

"I doubt it," Dr. Hashburn said. "In a situation like this there are going to be some problems along the way. The fact that it involves me means that you are more than likely not in trouble. Zoe, what's your next class?"

"Business applications."

"Riley, what's yours?"

"Also business applications, we're in the same class." Riley smiled at him. Several years ago, the district realized that typing classes would be good for all students, and therefore mandated that everyone took typing in the eighth grade.

"Would you girls mind if I walked you to class?" He asked. Riley and I looked at each other. I had no idea what would go though Mrs. Harper's head when we were walked into the room by Dr. Hashburn, but it would be interesting to see her face...

"Fine by me," I said with a smile. Riley smiled as well. She could smile all the time and I'd never get tired of seeing it.

"Ok with me too." It wasn't every day when you were walked to class by the guy that ran the whole school district. Riley and I stood up, and grabbed our backpacks. Dr. Hashburn opened the door of Mrs. Young's office and we walked out toward Mrs. Chattfield's desk. She smiled as we came down the hall.

"Mrs. Chattfield, can you please have Brian Foley report down here after next period starts, please?" Dr. Hashburn asked.

"Sure thing, Doctor." Mrs. Chattfield said, and then she started typing on the computer.

#
Riley and I walked into the classroom where we had typing class. Mrs. Harper looked over and smiled at Riley and I. Her jaw dropped a few seconds later when Dr. Hashburn walked in the room. He smiled at Mrs. Harper.

"Mrs. Harper," He started. This is Zoe Franks, and she's going to be taking Allen Franks' place on your roster." Mrs. Harper looked me up and down. She shrugged.

"Ok," Mrs. Harper said, with a shrug. She was indifferent to this new girl in her class. "Are you related to Allen, Zoe?"

"A little," I said quietly. Riley let out a small giggle. Mrs. Harper raised her eyebrows at Riley and then realization hit her like a ton of bricks falling from above her head.

"Girls get to your seats and we are working on what we started Wednesday. Zoe, once I get the class started, come up and you and I will cover the basics since you weren't here." I nodded and went to my usual computer and sat down. Riley sat next to me, and we both logged in to the computers so we could launch the software for the current task. I didn't know what that software was, so I stared at my desktop. Well, I guess it wasn't 'my' desktop, it was Allen's desktop. I would have to change that.. I idly wondered how long it would take the IT department to change my login info... The tardy bell rang and Mrs. Harper looked around the room. I was getting looks from my fellow classmates. Some of them had seen me at various times throughout the day, others this wast their first glimpse of the new girl, Zoe. "Class, First of all, we have a new student, her name is Zoe... Please don't bite her." There were chuckles from the class. "I want everyone working on what we started on Wednesday. Only thing I want to hear are whispers and keys clacking."

Can't I just get a break?

By Monday morning I had all but forgotten about the incident with Mr. Jackson, it was now a faint memory in the back of my mind. I was still worried about the wrong people at school finding out that the new girl Zoe wasn't all that she appeared, but that worry was slowly diminishing. I had spent most of the weekend with Riley, with us having gone shopping on Saturday and just relaxing in my room on Sunday. I had packed up all of Allen's clothes and put them in the spare bedroom. We mainly used it as storage and there really wasn't anything in there. I had taken most of the stuff that had adorned the walls down and they were now bare, and painted a light blue color, that I had never really liked.

#
The alarm clock started it's obnoxious racket at three minutes till six. By six, I had knocked the thing to the floor yet again. I was beginning to be surprised that it still worked... I sat up and looked around the room. It seemed empty and wrong, like it belonged to someone else. I stood up, the sleep shirt I wore falling back to my waist, the matching pink pants falling to my ankles and untwisting. I grabbed my robe and headed for the shower. I finished my shower and went back to my room. I had thought for a little bit the night before about what to wear today. I reached into the dresser drawer and pulled out a pair of black skinny jeans, and then went over to the closet and pulled out a baby blue and white striped turtleneck sweater. I got dressed and brushed my hair out. It was getting long enough that I might be able to put it in a pony tail soon... I went down stairs and walked into the kitchen, Where Heather had already beat me and was sitting bowls of oatmeal on the island. I took one and started eating it, and Heather gave me an odd look.

"I like that sweater, Zoe." Heather said. I smiled at her between bites.

"Does it bring out my eyes?' I asked. Heather smiled.

"Yes, it does. Say, the calendar showed a meeting between Mom, Dad, Dr. Hashburn and an Adam Peterson at eight. You know anything about it?" I nodded, taking a drink of a glass of orange juice.

"Yeah, It's to discuss some stuff about what Mr. Jackson said and did Friday..." I replied. "Stuff I'd rather forget about, quite honestly."

"Yeah, well, I'm not sure that forgetting about it would be the best thing to do." Heather said. "Remembering that it occurred will help you the next time it happens."

"I hope there isn't a next time." I said. Mom walked into the kitchen.

"A next time for what?" She asked, attacking the coffee pot and making it give up it's spoils.

"For what happened with Mr. Jackson." I replied taking the last bite of my oatmeal. I put the bowl and the sink and watched as it filled up with water.

"I hope it doesn't happen again either..." Mom said. "You two need to run out and catch your buses. Neither your dad nor I will have time to take you to school if you miss the bus..." I knew that mom's morning was pretty full between the meeting with Dr. Hashburn and then her having to fly to Chicago for a meeting that couldn't be done online. She should be home before dinner..."I have a meeting in Chicago at eleven, so I should be back by five, and your dad has to go to the Portland office and will probably be gone for the next three days." Heather and I looked at each other.

"What should we do for dinner if you aren't back by five?" Heather asked.

"Come up with something, Heather you are getting to be quite the cook..." Mom said. Heather blushed.

"Ok. I can do that," Heather said.

"You guys need to go get to your busses. I'll see you tonight." Mom kissed me on the top of the head, and then did the same thing to Heather. Heather and I then scurried out to the bus so that we wouldn't miss it.

#
Riley sat next to me on the bus, and we chatted all the way to the school.

"Did you get the project done for Mrs. Harpers class?" Riley asked me.

"Yep, I got it done Saturday after we finished shopping... I think that dad will be painting my room when he gets back from Portland. He's flying out today..." I said to Riley.

"Ah." The bus made a stop and let a few more kids on. They glared at Riley and I and I realized that they were in the study hall that Riley and I had been in Friday.

"Faggots." One of them said as he passed to go sit in the back of the bus. Riley and I sat about in the middle the bus, and we didn't have assigned seats. My phone chimed and I pulled it out and looked at it, made a face and showed it to Riley; her face showing a lack of understanding. The message I had received stated that I had received copies of the propose changes to the schools policies in regards to students that were transgender. I opened the file and attempted to read it on the tiny screen of my iPhone. After a few moments of crossing my eyes, I finally frowned and put my phone away.

"Can't read it on that screen?" She asked.

"No, I would either need my laptop or my iPad." Both would be better than the little screen on the phone. "Today is a 'B' Rotation day isn't it?" I asked, and Riley nodded. Normally I was the one keeping track of that kind of thing without much thought. I think that dealing with not being in school most of Wednesday and then missing Thursday messed me up. "So that means a whole new set of teachers..." Not exactly a true statement. Some classes, such as our English, Math and History classes were both 'A' and 'B' day classes. I pulled my phone back out and sent a text to mom and dad, as well as Adam Peterson. When I put my phone back in my purse, Riley gave me a look.

"What was that about?"

"I have a feeling that we might have problems today like we did on Friday... As soon as we get there, I do need to get to a computer. Even if it's just to get hard copies of these changes so I can review them..."

"I hope not. May I see the changes and maybe offer input?" I looked at her.

"Let me find out..." I said, pulling my phone out for the third time in about twenty minutes... I fired off a text to Adam and go an almost instant answer back. "Adam said that's fine. I'll run you copies. He said input from someone that's not directly involved wouldn't hurt." The bus pulled up to the school, and Riley and I stood so that we could get off the bus and into the school so I could get hard copies of these PDF's. "I wonder if Mrs. Smithson is here..."

#
Riley and I walked into the main office and found Mrs. Chattfield at her desk, after not having found Mrs. Smithson up in the library. She smiled at us as we walked in.

"Morning girls, What can I do for you?"

"Need to use a computer. Mr. Peterson sent me some stuff that I need to print, but Mrs. Smithson isn't here yet." She nodded. There was a spot in the office for a second secretary to sit, but after Mrs. Horn had retired right after school started, the desk had sat empty. She also knew that when I said that the mail was from Mr. Peterson, that it was important enough for her to give me access to a computer that I shouldn't have had access to... "Come over here and use this one. It prints to the printer that is between the desks." She said. I walked around the desks and into an area that few students had ever been. I tried to log in to the computer and got told that I couldn't log in here... I tried again just in case I had mistyped something. The same message appeared.

"It's not letting me in over here, Says that I'm not authorized to log on to this workstation." I said to Mrs. Chattfield. She got up and came around to the desk I sat at. She logged into the computer using her information and then went back to her desk. I logged into my email and then printed two copies of the file that Adam had sent me and then logged off of the computer. Riley stood on the other side of the wall of the cubical watching me. I sat there, waiting for the printer to finish before I got up. Mrs. Young walked in and looked at me and then at Mrs. Chattfield.

"Keep hiring them younger and younger..." She said with a chuckle. "What are you doing back there?"

"I needed to print something out and Mrs. Smithson wasn't upstairs yet." I replied. Mrs. Young nodded.

"Get your papers and get out of back there before someone that shouldn't see you on that computer does so." I nodded, grabbing my printouts and walking back around to where Riley stood. I handed her a copy of the documents that I had printed out. We sat there and skimmed them, completely missing the bell at fifteen minutes till, and five minutes till.

"Uh, Girls?" Mrs. Chattfield said. We both looked at at Mrs. Chattfield and saw the clock that sat behind her that controlled the clocks in the school.

"Whoops" I said. Mrs. Chattfield smiled.

"Here's passes, get to class. Hopefully I won't see you in tears again, Zoe." Mrs. Chattfield handed our passes toward us.

"Thank you!" we both said in unison, then we looked at each other and giggled.

"I hope I don't come down in tears again either, Mrs. Chattfield..." I said, as Riley and I left the room...

#
Mine and Riley's schedules were the same for the three classes of both 'A' and 'B' days. It was for our fourth class where we would be separated. That would be the class that I anticipated that I would have a problem.

Unfortunately, I was right...

I walked into the classroom where my Programming class was. This would be the longest that I would be without Riley in two days. I walked into the computer lab and dropped my backpack off in my chair and I heard students whispering about me. Nothing bad, but it was more of a 'that's the new girl: Zoe...' type of thing. I walked up to the teacher, an older balding gentleman who rumor had it had been around when the Einac had been developed.

"Mr. Crutchfield." I said, sounding every bit as nervous as I felt. Every other time I had been introduced as Zoe, it was by Riley or Dr. Hashburn... He looked over from the monitor that sat on his desk and looked at me. "I'm Zoe, I'm taking the place of Allen Franks on your roster." He gave me a look up and down as if he were trying to decide if he should let me take his class.

"I know who you are, Allen. I don't any boys dressed as girls in my class. Get out of here, I don't care where you go, but I don't want you in this class." I grabbed my backpack and left the room, feeling the tears start to fall I headed straight for the school office. I walked through the door and Mrs. Young and Mrs. Chattfield were standing there talking. I just collapsed in a chair, causing Mrs. Young to come over to where I sat.

"Lets go to my office." She said. I stood and started that direction. "Get Riley down here. I think that Zoe's gonna need her." Mrs. Chattfield nodded and started typing on her computer.

#
"He said that he didn't want any boys dressed as girls in his class and told me to leave. He said he didn't care where I went, but he wanted me out of his class." I paused, and blew my nose. There was a knock on the door, and Mrs. Young opened it to reveal a very concerned looking Riley. She rushed into the room, and sat next to me, embracing me in a hug. You would think that she hadn't seen me in months.

"What happened?" She asked looking from me to Mrs. Young.

"She had an incident with Mr. Crutchfield. Similar to the one that you guys experienced with Mr. Jackson. I figured that you would be the best person to help her. If you two would excuse me for a second, I'm going to call Dr. Hashburn and let him know." Riley and I both nodded and watched as she went to her desk.

"You know, this kinda thing is getting annoying." Riley said. "You're getting more flack from staff than students."

"I know, I think that it's coming though. It just hasn't sunk in yet." I replied, Riley looked at me.

"You think their still in shock?"

"Yep. And when it sinks in, that's when the gloves are going to come off and this is going to be a real challenge."

"I'll be right her when that happens." Riley said. "No matter what." We smiled at each other. Mrs. Young came back over.

"Dr. Hashburn said that he will let Mr. Peterson know, Zoe, and that he will take care of it. He also said that they hashed out the papers that you were sent this morning, but he still wants your input before he presents them to the board." She smiled. "You are the ground breaker on this, so you are making history. Someone might have an easier time next week because you've laid the groundwork. You should be proud Zoe." Mrs. Young said. Riley smiled at me.

"I am." I said. "Someone has to lay the ground work for everything. It hasn't been easy that's for sure."

"I know." Mrs. Young smiled. "I want you both to know that my door is always open." Even though both Riley and I knew what she meant, we both looked at the closed door. She chuckled. "You two are silly. I think it's almost your lunch period, so why don't you guys scoot on to lunch and if I need to talk to you about what happened, I'll send for you."

"Ok." I said, standing and feeling the tight jeans shift as I stood. Riley had worn a brown tiered skirt and white turtleneck. Perhaps we should coordinate our outfits...

#
Riley and I made it all the way to business applications before anything else worth mentioning occurred. Riley and I had both just logged into our computers when the PA system activated.

"Mrs. Harper?" Came Mrs. Chattfield's voice.

"Yes."

"Can you send Zoe Franks and Riley Edwards to the office with their stuff, please?" Mrs. Harper looked at us and nodded.

"On their way."

"Thank you." Riley and I looked at each other and then logged out of the computers. We packed up our belongings and left the classroom.

"What do you think it's about?" Riley asked as we headed for the office.

"Probably something to do with Mr. Crutchfield..." I let the thought trial off as we walked into the office.

"Go see Mrs. Young." Mrs. Chattfield said before the door to the office had even shut. We both walked back to Mrs. Young's office and I knocked on the door.

"Come in." We heard very faintly from the other side of the door. It sounded like Dr. Hashburn's voice. I opened the door and we walked in to Mrs. Young's office. I was right, Dr. Hashburn was there, and sitting in the same seat that he had sat in Friday, leaving the couch open for Riley and I.

"You guys are probably wondering why you were summoned?" Dr. Hashburn asked with a smile. Riley and I looked at each other and nodded.

"Yeah, we are." I said speaking for both of us.

"Zoe, I actually wanted just you to come down, but Mrs. Young told me that the odds of Riley just coming down with you were pretty good, and that I should have her come too just to save some paperwork and some explaining." Dr. Hashburn said. "I wanted to tell you personally, that Mr. Jackson is no longer employed by the school district, and Mr. Crutchfield had decided to take an early retirement." Riley and I looked at each other again.

"Does that mean that in less than a week I've cost three people their jobs?" I asked, alarmed.

"No. They left on their own because they couldn't handle being around someone that was different. Have you had a chance to look over the documents that Mr. Peterson emailed you this morning?" I shook my head. "Ok, I want you to look at them tonight and send me an email with your feedback. At the moment your voice is the only transgender voice in this district, what you have to say is important." I nodded. "Riley, same goes for you. You may not be transgender, but you have a unique position here. You see the way the current situation is affecting Zoe, and you are in the unique position to be able to help her out." Riley beamed. The statement was a compliment whoever it came from. Dr. Hashburn pulled out two letters. "I want to take the two of you to lunch, these are permission slips, Bring them back and we'll go somewhere Friday. The bell's about to ring, so why don't you two go catch your bus."

Nope, no breaks yet...

The next few days were quiet and allowed Riley and I a small breath of fresh air. I knew that the school district had implemented the policies that had come as a result of the initial meeting between my legal team and Dr. Hashburn's people. Riley and I were sitting at lunch when everything started to unravel again. Adam had sent me a text message asking me to call him so Riley and I were going to swing by the office so I could make the call. All of the sudden I was shoved into a wall from behind. I briefly saw stars, and then the face of Steven Volt came clearly into view.

"You got Coach Jackson fired, you little pansy." I didn't think that it'd be wise to point out that I hadn't actually done anything, but that Mr. Jackson's own actions caused his own termination. "You'd better watch your back, faggot." He said. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Riley run off, I knew where she was going: to get help. "Aww look, your girlfriend just ran away." Steven sneered. No one is going to help your sorry ass now." He pushed me back again, my head bouncing off the brick wall. More stars... I blinked to clear the stars and this time saw two faces; Steven Volt and Julius Caesar. No, I'm not joking, that's what his parents named him... I kicked out with my foot and nailed Steven in the groin. Shoulda been wearing your cup asshole... I thought as Steven crumpled to the ground. Julius started backing away, his hands in the air in surrender.

"Be cool, Girly." I glared at him. This caused his eyes to grow in size and for him to back away faster, not bothering to help Steven who was still curled up in a ball of the floor.

"My name is not Girly." I said, fiercely, you know the voice, the one that says you don't want to mess with someone... "It's Zoe, and if I were you, I wouldn't forget it..." Riley came back around the corner with Mrs. Young, and Mrs. Chattfield.

"Zoe, lets go talk in my office." Mrs. Young said. I carefully stepped over Steven and walked with Mrs. Young and Riley toward the office.

#
Mrs. Young, Riley and I sat in Mrs. Young's office. I was really beginning to think that she should redecorate the room...

"What happened?" Mrs. Young asked after Riley had helped me to a seat.

"Steven Volt pushed me into the wall as we were coming to the office so that I could call Adam. He sent me a text asking me to call him. Next thing I know, my head bounced off the wall and I was being accused of getting Mr. Jackson fired..."

"Steven will recover, and I predict that no one is going to mess with you after you put the quarterback down..." Mrs. Young said. "The entire thing was caught on camera so it's a self defense move on your part. Two much bigger and stronger guys against a little girl like you..." She smiled.

"May I call Adam really quickly and find out what he wanted?" I asked. Mrs. Young smiled.

"Yes, but could you go do it out near Mrs. Chattfield, I'm going to be bringing Mr. Volt and Mr. Caesar in here to talk to them." She winked at me, as if to say that she had my back. Riley and I went out and sat in the seats that I had decided should be ours with as much time as we had spent in them. I pulled my phone out and called Adam.

#
Adam and I had just finished our conversation when the door to the office opened and both Steven Volt and Julius Caesar shuffled into the office, looking mighty worried. They both glared at me and I glared right back.

"Go to Mrs. Young's office." Mrs. Chattfield said. "Riley and Zoe, you girls think you can make it to class without getting in any more trouble?"

"Yes, Mrs. Chattfield." Riley and I said in unison. She handed us passes for the second time that day. We both left the office and looked at each other.

"What class should we be in?" I asked Riley. Riley looked at a clock on the wall.

"Study hall, but it's almost over." She said. "Lets go take these passes up there anyway." Riley and I headed for the room where our study hall was located. We walked in the door a few minutes before the bell rang, signaling the end of the period that we were in. The new teacher looked at us and scowled.

"Nice of you girls to finally show up..." She said as we handed her the passes. She looked at them. "Oh, ok. I'll mark it accordingly." The bell rang and Riley and I headed across the school to get to our last class of the day: business applications. Riley and I walked through the door and found that Mrs. Harper was out of school that day and there was a substitute in her place. Riley and I looked at each other and shrugged. Maybe I could get some work for Adam done. He wanted me to review the most recent changes to the polices that the school district had put into effect. We were now up to revision four or something. I logged into the computer, or more specifically tried to do so. I was greeted with a message saying that I didn't have an account. I furrowed my brow and tried again. Same message. I stood and walked up to the teacher.

"I need to go see the librarian..." I said. The teacher raised an eyebrow. "I can't get my login to work, she can call someone over at central office and find out what's up." The substitute wrote me a note and handed it to me. I walked back over to my computer and picked up my bag. Riley looked at me.

"Where are you going?" She demanded.

"Up to see Mrs. Smithson. I need her to call over to the Central Office. I can't log in using the same info that I've had since they put the system in." I whispered.

"Ok. Be careful and wait for me by the front door. Dad is picking us up. I'll be by the front door if I get there first." I must have given her a funny look. "Adam told your parents about Steve and Julius. We are being ferried to and from school now. They aren't taking any chances."

"Ok. Front door. After school." I kissed her on the cheek. "Love you." I said. Riley sat there stunned and then blinked.

"I love you too." She said, blushing. "See you in a bit." I left the room and headed for the media center.

#
I walked into the library and up to the counter. Mrs. Smithson was sitting there at her computer. She turned and looked at me.

"You're a bit late for study hall. Go back to class." She said. I looked at her.

"I just came from Mrs. Harpers room and I can't log in. It's saying that I don't have an account on the system. I've had an account since they put the system in place." She looked at me.

"I've never seen you before, but what is your logon?"

"It was afranks, but they might have finally changed it." I saw the lightbulb click on.

"You must be this Zoe person that's completely disrupted the staff... " Apparently my reputation preceded me...

"One in the same..." I said. "Can you help me figure out why I can't log in?"

"Yep, Come on back." I walked into the area behind the counter. She clicked a few things on her computer and I realized that she was pulling up the tools she needed to find out a users status on the system. She typed a few things, furrowed her brow, clicked a few more things and then looked at me. "I found you. Your account was suspended because you tried to log onto a workstation that you shouldn't have been touching..." I looked at her in disbelief.

"It took them four days to suspend me? That was Monday..." She double clicked and opened my account's status page.

"Says you tried to log on to TCS-Mem-Ofc-2 which is not an authorized workstation for a student to log on to." She said, reading the screen. "It says to call Victor Chapel at the Central office to possibly get your account reactivated."

"I used that workstation with the permission of Mrs Chattfield. On Monday I need to print some stuff from my lawyer and you weren't here yet, so she let me use that workstation. Also, my username needs to be changed..." I said.

"Changed?" She asked and then that light bulb clicked back on. "Oh yeah... What should your username be?"

"Zfranks..." I said. "I think I'm the only zfranks in the district." She smiled at me, and picked up the phone to call this Victor Chapel person.

#
By the time that we had gotten my account issue sorted out, school was over for the day. I met Riley by the front door and as we walked out I saw two other football players that were glaring at Riley and I. Riley squeezed my hand as we looked for her dad's car. We didn't see it, but I knew that we were on someone's radar... The two football players walked over to us. I looked around at the staff and students that were outside. No one really seemed to be paying attention to the four of us and that made me nervous.

"We heard about what you did to Steven." One of them said. I prepared mentally to defend my self, and Riley, when I saw clenched fists. "You both had better watch your backs... We don't take too kindly to faggots walking around in our school." I saw Mrs. Young standing within earshot of the boy that was talking.

"Is that a threat? Because if it is, you probably just got suspended because of who you said it to. Oh, and by the way, you might want to turn around." I said, calmly. Mrs. Young had moved closer when she had heard the direction the conversation was going.

"I hope you two didn't plan on playing tonight..." Mrs. Young said. "I see that we need to have an assembly about tolerance... By the way, Steven's own actions caused what happened to him to happen. It wasn't something that Zoe or Riley did." I watched as both of the boys gulped. "I suggest you go get on your buses, Now." The two boys both knew that they were in some deep crap and there was no way out of it.

"Riley, your dad is parked over there." Mrs. Young said, pointing to where Riley's dad sat in a black SUV. He wasn't parked where we had expected him to be so we hadn't seen him. We walked over and got in the back seat. After we had buckled our seat belts, Mr. Edwards turned to look at us.

"What did those two boys want?"

"To threaten me, I think." I said, calmly. "They said that we'd better watch our backs... Mrs. Young was standing there and overheard them say it. That's four in one day... I think it may be a record."

"Are you girls ok?"

"Yes. I just wish people would respect that I'm me and I'm not going anywhere." I said. Riley smiled at me and squeezed my hand.

"Zoe, Transfolk have been hoping for that since the beginning of time..." Mr. Edwards said, putting the car in gear and leaving the school parking lot.

New Rules

The following Monday Riley and I had to sit through an assembly on tolerance of others, and some of the new polices that had been put in place. When I had told Adam that we were going to have to sit through this assembly, he said that we should pay attention so that we knew exactly what Mrs. Young didn't want happening in her school. That logic made sense and Riley and I walked into the auditorium together and sat near the front. Mrs. Young walked in and smiled at us. She walked up on the stage and a spotlight lit her up. The room fell silent.

"Good Morning, Memorial Middle School." She said, cheerfully. She got a variety of mumbled 'good mornings' in response. "I'm sure that everyone is wondering why we are having this assembly..." I looked around to see quite a few students nodding, not understanding why this assembly was taking place.

"There have been a few incidents in recent days with a student that has a medical condition being picked on by members of both the staff and the student body. It ends today... There have been some changes that have come down from the school board because of this. Any student, or staff member that is caught harassing a student that is Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, or Transgender will be suspended. If there is a physical altercation between a Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, or Transgender student and any other student, the party that starts the altercation will be suspended, and possibly expelled. I'm sure that we have all four types of students in the school, I know of at least one student that falls under the protected group, and I'm pretty sure that others will make them selves known as time goes on. This policy is not just in effect here. It has been enacted across the district." She paused to let that sink in. "Yes, that means that any siblings that you have anywhere in the district will be hearing this as well. Also, just in case anyone thinks that we're joking, three staff members and four students have already been suspended from these new polices. I have a feeling that more heads will roll before this is done. That's all I have, Everyone get back to class..." Mrs. Young walked off the stage, and the teachers started to round up their classes and herd them back to the rooms.

#
Riley and I walked into the cafeteria and sat at a table. The general buzz around the room was that there had been a student that was gay, lesbian, bi or transgender that had been attacked in the high school and that was what prompted the changes. I wasn't about to tell them that the student was me...

"Zoe," Megan said suddenly. "You seem distracted."

"Huh?" I glanced at Megan. I hadn't even realized she had sat down. Megan giggled.

"Told you she wasn't paying attention." Megan said to Riley, who leaned over so she could whisper in my ear.

"You ok?"

"Yeah. I'm just wondering how many people know..."

"Know what?"

"That I'm the reason for the assembly..." Riley smiled at me and give me a kiss on the cheek.

"That's irrelevant." Riley said, causing me to look at her.

"How do you figure?"

"Because you're not the only student in the district that is protected, I can assure you of that." If Megan had been a cat, her ears would have perked up.

"Zoe's protected?'" She said in a stage whisper. "How?" I must have looked horrified. "It's ok, Zoe." She placed her right hand on my left from across the table. I glanced around the cafeteria.

"Not here..." I whispered back. "Too many ears that shouldn't hear." Megan nodded and then smiled. I knew that I could trust her with the secret.

#
Megan lived a few streets over from Riley, and somehow rode a differnet bus. Today, Riley's mom was picking us up from school, and Megan would ride home with us. This would give me a chance to explain to Megan where we wouldn't be overheard by someone that shouldn't hear this. I suspected that Megan partially knew what was up, but hadn't had a chance to either say something in private or in a place where the time was right... Riley's mom pulled into the driveway and the three of us got out and went into the house. After we had all grabbed drinks, we ended up in the dining room around the table, homework spread out so that we could combine three rather smart minds.

"So, Zoe," Megan started quietly, not knowing that Riley's parents knew everything. "How are you protected by the new policies?" Riley smiled at me, and then squeezed my hand.

"I'm transgender." I said at normal volume. Megan looked shocked, but I'm not sure if it was the revelation of my condition or me speaking at normal volume. I would find out in a second though.

"You're what?" She asked.

"Transgender." I replied.

"What exactly does that mean?" Riley looked at me and smiled. I smiled back and then looked at Megan.

"You know how you were born a girl, and in your mind, you're also a girl?" I asked her. She nodded. "Ok, that means that you are what is known as a cisgender person. Your biological and mental gender match. I'm Transgender, which means that my biological gender and my mental gender are the opposite. Most people are cisgender." She looked even more confused...

"What?" she chuckled. "Try that one more time."

"Essentially, I'm a girl trapped in a boys body." Riley leaned close to my ear.

"I think the simple answers work best..."

"Oh. Ok. I get it." Megan said. I briefly wondered if I shouldn't switch my blond hair for Megan's curly blonde. I looked at Megan, trying to picture her with my hair. "What?" I shook my head, knocking the cobwebs out.

"I was trying to picture you with my hair and failing." Megan looked confused. "Some times you act more like a blonde than I do..." I said, and I watched the lightbulb click on over her head.

"Oh..." She replied and then realized what I had said and stuck her tongue out at me. The three of us giggled. "I do not act like a blonde, but when you start throwing words I've never heard at me, I get confused."

"Sure." I said with a smile, and then went back to working on my algebra homework. "That's what I say too..." I crumpled a piece of paper and tossed at her.

#
I had just finished my homework when my phone rang.I pulled it out and looked at it. Mom was calling me, which meant that she was home.

"Hello?" I asked.

"Hey, I'm home and you're not. Where are you?"

"I'm at Riley's we were working on homework."

"Ok. When are you going to be home?"

"Well, we just finished the homework that we had, so I was getting ready to come home anyway. I'll be home in five minutes."

"Ok. I'm tracking you." Mom hung up the phone and I looked at Riley.

"That was mom. I have to go." Riley smiled and then looked from me to Megan.

"Ok. I have an idea for tomorrow though..." Riley said, her eyes sparkling.

"Oh?"

"Yeah. Megan, you have the outfit that Zoe wore on her first day of school, don't you?" Megan nodded.

"Mine's green."

"Ok, Zoe, lets wear red tomorrow, and Megan can wear the green and then the three of us will look like sisters..." Megan and I looked at each other and then smiled.

"Ok. Riley I'll see you in the morning, it's my dad's turn to take us, and Megan, I'll see you in first period." I gave Riley a kiss on the cheek and hefted my bag up over my shoulder. Really need to get a new bag, Maybe a messenger style like Riley's...I thought as I walked down the street toward my house.

An Evening out…

I walked in the front door and was greeted by mom and dad.

"We have something to show you." Mom said, and then turned and went up the stairs. Dad motioned for me to follow mom up the steps and then he followed behind me. Mom stopped outside the door to my room, which was open when I had left for Riley's that morning. We had been slowly moving things out of my room and into the spare room so that we could finally turn Allen's old room into Zoe's room. Mom opened the door and my jaw dropped. The walls were now panted with pink and white vertical stripes. The dresser had been replaced with a white dresser that was larger, my desk had been replaced with a white desk that looked like it had more storage space, and there was now a vanity that contained all of my hair stuff. My bed had been replaced by a slightly larger bed. This one had four posts and a white mesh canopy. The bedspread had been replaced with a pink bedspread that had purple butterflies on it.

"What do you think, Zoe?" Mom asked.

"I like it." I said. Mom and dad smiled. I went in and laid on the bed. Looking at the canopy. I propped my self up on one elbow. "Where did all of the other stuff go?"

"We put it all in storage for now. We're going to move your dad's office downstairs into the basement. There is a second entrance to it, that way he can bring work home and not have to bring people through the house unless he needs to, and then we're going to turn the office into a spare bedroom."

#
I was sitting there, playing around on the computer at my new desk when there was a quiet knock on the door. The last time I had seen my door, it was open so I turned and looked and saw Riley standing there. She wore a baby pink v-necked sweater dress and dark grey tights, her feet encased in a pair of boots that were similar to mine.. I had a similar sweater dress, but mine was a turtleneck and was a light grey color. I still hadn't worn it, and was looking for the right opportunity to do so.

"I like what you've done to the place." She said, coming in and sitting on the bed. I walked over and sat next to her.

"Well, I didn't do it, mom and dad did, but I really like it."

"It reminds me how my room looked when I was eight." Her room hadn't changed much in five years... "You're missing something though." She said. I looked around the room trying to figure out what it was.

"What am I missing?" I asked, unsure of what was missing.

"Stuffed animals. You pretty much are an infant as far as being a girl is concerned, and you need some stuffed animals."

"Oh." I said quietly. I hadn't thought of that, and then I realized that she was right. Even at thirteen, she had a sizable collection of stuffed animals. Heck, at fifteen, Heather still had a sizable collection.

"But for the real reason why I came by..." She smiled and placed her hand on my denim covered leg. It had been cool and rainy that Saturday morning when I had gotten dressed and I had elected to wear a long sleeved shirt and jeans as I hadn't planned to go anywhere. "I was wondering if you wanted to go see a movie tonight? Mom said that if it was ok with your parents, she'd pick us up and drop us off."

"What would I wear?" I asked.

"You're such a girl..." Riley stroked her chin and then walked over and opened my closet. She looked at the contents before reaching in and pulling out the sweater dress that I had no clue where I was going to wear it. She sat it on my bed, and then turned to my dresser. It took her a few moments, but she pulled out a pair of thick black tights, and laid them on the sweater dress. She rummaged around in the bottom of my closet and pulled out my boots. "There, outfits complete..." she smiled at me. "Now lets go see if you can go to the movie tonight with me." She grabbed my hand and, practically pulled me from the bed, and then the room. We went down to the office where mom was camped out, working on some kind of brief for work. I gently knocked on the door and then heard mom's voice.

"Come in." I opened the door and Riley and I walked in and looked at mom.

"Hey Riley, what can I do for you girls?"

"Mommy," I started. Mom raised an eyebrow. I only called her mommy when I wanted something. "May Riley and I go see a movie tonight?" Mom looked from me to Riley and back.

"How are you getting there?"

"My mom said she would take us and pick us up. I also thought that maybe Zoe and I could do some window shopping." Riley said. Mom nodded and grabbed her purse. She pulled out forty dollars and handed it to me.

"Zoe, Do everything you can to be home by eleven. And you had better call if you are going to be later than that."

"Yes, Mommy.' I said a grin on my face. "Thank you."

"You're welcome. I'm going to get back to work, Your sister is staying at Carly's tonight, and with you out of the house for a few hours, I might get this done before midnight... Let me know when you leave." I nodded and Riley and I left the office so that she could continue working, and I could get ready.

#
I opened the door and let Riley back in my room. I had changed out of the jeans and shirt and put on the sweater dress, tights and boots. Riley looked at me and smiled.

"I love the way that dress looks on you." The dress hit my knees and felt like it would be warm when we went to the movies in a little bit. I grabbed a black purse out of my closet and put my phone and the money that mom had given me in it and then slung it over my shoulder. Riley smiled and took my hand. "Lets go over to my house so that mom can take us to the mall." We went down stairs and I knocked on the door to the office and then opened it. Mom was now surrounded by books that were open. She looked up at me.

"That's cute, Zoe. Did you pick it out or did Riley?"

"Riley did. I was waiting for a good time to wear it and to the movies is as good of a reason as any."

"Ok. You girls have fun." Mom said, and then buried her self back in her books. I shut the door and then helped Riley put on her coat. She returned the favor and we both stepped out in the cold world of outside. Because I hadn't been out at all that day, I didn't' realize that it was as cold as it was. The air smelled like it did before it snowed, and, given that it was early February, it was still possible that it would snow. Riley and I walked to her house at a faster pace than we would have if the weather was warmer. I hoped that her legs were encased in thick tights like mine, as if they were the normal thin ones that they sold her legs would be kind of chilled. I knew that her coat and sweater dress would keep her warm, as my upper body was a lot warmer than my legs.

"It's cold out here." I said to Riley, and making a mental note to get a hat and gloves. Riley smiled at me, her cheeks flushed. I thought the look was cute on her, and I imagined that I looked much the same.

"I know, but that flushed look is cute on you." She said. I was right, and did look much the same as her.

"It's cute on you too." I replied, giving her a peck on the cheek. We walked up to her front door and went into her warm house which smelled like cookies. Her mom poked her head out of the kitchen.

"Hey girls. I have some hot cookies and milk..." Riley and I looked at each other and smiled. Her mom always seemed to be baking something, and what ever was baked was really good. Riley and I took off our coats and hung them in the closet, and then went into the kitchen to attack the cookies.

"Hot cookies sound really good." Riley aid.. We each got some cookies and a glass of milk. I could feel the warmth returning to my cheeks and nose, and could see it happening to Riley.

"After I the cookies cool and I get them put away and everything cleaned up, I'll take you guys to the mall."

"Thank you, Mrs. Edwards." I said, after swallowing a cookie.

"You're welcome, Zoe. But it was really Riley's idea. Complete to what you have on now." I looked down at my dress, and then at Riley, who was grinning like the cat that had just eaten the canary...

"You've been looking for a reason to wear that dress. Now you have it."

"Thanks." I said quietly, but still with a smile on my face.

"I love the way the grey makes your eyes pop out. They were a brilliant blue before, and now they are just shining. I'm so glad that shine returned. I missed it when it disappeared from Allen's eyes." She reached across the table to take my hands in hers. "But I have the shine back, and I have Zoe and a new best friend." Riley and I smiled at each other. We had grown closer than we had ever been in a short time, and I think she was my girlfriend or might as well have been at least.

#
Riley's mom dropped us at one of the doors of the mall. "Call when you girls are ready to get picked up."

"Ok, Mom." Riley said, climbing out of the back seat and out into the colder air. Now it really smelled like it could start snowing at any minute.

"You girls have fun, and stay out of trouble." I heard Riley's mom say.

"We will, mom." Riley said, her cheeks already starting to flush from the cold. She shut the door and then we linked arms and went into the warmth of the mall. It wasn't the same mall that mom and I had gone shopping at, but it was a lot closer to home and had pretty much the same stores. Her mom waited until we were inside the mall before she drove away. Once inside, Riley spotted Megan, who we hadn't planned on being there.

"Riley! Zoe!" She all but shouted and jogged over to us. "You guys look nice." Riley and I looked at each other.

"Thanks." We said at the same time. Megan smiled.

"You guys are like sisters..." Megan giggled. "What brings you to the mall?"

"We were going to see a movie..." Riley said.

"And do a little bit of window shopping." I added. Megan smiled.

"I've been here for the last hour and I haven't come across anything overly interesting. I did notice that Tween Us had the outfit that we all have with the berets in blue and with short sleeved tops now. Zoe, I think that the blue would look beautiful with your eyes."

"Really?" I asked, letting the thought trail off. I grabbed Riley's hand and started dragging her toward the store. Along the way we passed a store that had a mannequin in the window that was wearing a corset.

"That looks painful..." Riley said, staring at the mannequin.

"I bet it improves your posture..." I replied to her. That was something that we both had in common, bad posture. Our parents had been trying for years to fix it in us, but we somehow always ended up slouching.

"Still looks painful." We passed a few more stores, and finally arrived at Tween Us, and I found the outfit that Megan was talking about. I pulled out my phone and snapped a picture and sent it off to mom's phone. Mom sent a message back about three minutes later saying that we would come up the next day and take a look at the whole outfit. She liked the way the blue looked... Riley and I looked around the store and I noted that even though it was cold enough to still snow, the stores were preparing for summer. They had already put out some swimwear and had several pair of shorts already on display. Most of the stuff that would be deemed winter stuff was already marked down about twenty five precent. Riley and I moved on to a few other stores, some of which had things that I wouldn't wear, and that if I were a parent, I wouldn't let my kids wear out of the house.

#
Riley and I walked out of the movie theater and noted that the mall was pretty deserted. That made sense, it was after ten and most of the shops closed at ten on a Saturday night. Riley pulled her phone out of her purse and called her mom, who said that she would be at the same door that she had dropped us off at in about twenty minutes. I sent mom a text message and told her that. Riley and I went over to the doors that we had come in. While we were waiting on her mom to show up, a security guard walked over to us and smiled.

"Good Evening, girls," She said. Her uniform did little to flatter her, but she did have some stunning green eyes... "The mall closes in twenty minutes, If you don't have a ride on the way, I'd suggest that you call for one." Riley smiled at her.

"My mom is on her way and should be here any minute." Riley said. The guard nodded.

"Ok, I would hate to have to toss you guys out in the cold while you waited for your ride to show up. I wouldn't want you girls to get sick." Riley smiled at me, knowing that I was probably warmer than I'd been in a while. I glanced at her and smiled back. Riley's phone started ringing and the sound of 'Born this Way' by Lady GaGa made us both jump. The security guard chuckled as Riley answered her phone. I looked out the window and saw that Riley's mom had pulled up. I pointed out at the car and Riley nodded, and then said "Ok, We'll be out in a second." Riley smiled.

"She's here." Riley said.

"I know..." I said. The guard chuckled.

"You girls have a good night." She said, opening the door for us. I felt the cold air blow in make my legs cold. Riley and I walked outside and got in her moms car.

"How was the movie?" Her mom asked as we buckled our seat belts.

"It was good, but I don't think it was Zoe's style. She may be a girly girl, but she likes action flicks..." Riley smiled at me.

"Hey, I liked it." I said before breaking down into fit of giggles.

"Ok, So Zoe likes almost everything out there..." Riley said, giggling.

"Do the two of you have any plans for tomorrow?" Riley and I looked at each other.

"Not that I'm aware of. Mom said something about coming over to the mall tomorrow and doing some shopping for me again. We found the skirt, beret, purse set in a blue color. Riley thinks it will set off my eyes, and apparently mom thinks so too..."

"I do, I think it would look very pretty on you." Riley said. For some reason I thought the drive home was shorter than the drive to the mall. It seemed like no time at all and we were pulling into my driveway. I gave Riley a kiss on the cheek and got out of the car.

Looking Forward

Wednesday night I sat in Dr. Francis's office. It had been four months since Zoe had showed up, and had been four months since I had started living as Zoe. This meeting was a little different as both mom and dad were in attendance. Well, Dad would have been here if he hadn't been sent to the Seattle office. We made use of face time once again for this meeting.

"Good Evening." Emily said. "I know that I've been having meetings one on one with Zoe, but this one is one that I want to bring up. I think that it may be time, with the permission of both of you, to start Zoe on hormones." Mom and dad shared a glance, well as best as they could over a video conference... Mom let dad speak first.

"Is your plan to redirect Zoe's puberty into one that will fit with how she's presenting?" Emily looked at the MacBook Air and nodded.

"Yes, it is, Tom." She looked at me, smiled and then back at the computer. "Zoe's at the perfect age to do this, and do it right. Even if she never goes though with the surgery, this is who she is and to let her body dictate which puberty she goes through would be detrimental to what we've already accomplished."

"When do you plan to start the hormones?" Mom asked.

"As soon as I get Zoe's blood work back so I know where to start. If I send it in tomorrow, I should get the results by Tuesday, and I can get everything together by the time I see Zoe Wednesday night. I need the permission in writing, I have a physical form for Katherine to sign, How do I get something for you to sign?"

"Do you have a PDF copy of the page?" Emily furrowed her brow and then walked over to her computer and started clicking. Mom picked up the form and signed it. Dad nodded on the monitor.

"Yep. You want me to email it to you?" Emily said.

"Yes please, the address is [email protected]." Dad picked up his iPad. Twenty seconds later, it made the sound that said he had a new email. He tapped the screen a few times, scribbled with his finger, tapped a few more times and then looked at the camera on his laptop. "Check you email." Emily nodded and then I heard the printer fire up. She pulled the paper off of it, and then sat it on the one that mom had signed. I saw that what dad had done was to sign the paper using his iPad.

"Ok, Zoe, I'm going to draw three vials of blood." I looked at her.

"Why three?"

"To make sure the data they get is consistent. " Emily said. "They don't like to just give you results on one vial..."

"Oh." Having had blood taken before, I knew what she was going to do, and pushed my left sleeve up as far as I could. Emily smiled and opened a drawer out of what appeared to be a solid wall. She pulled out a small box, which she carried over to the table.

#
Mom pulled her car in the garage, next to dads. He had Riley's dad run him to the airport so that he could catch his flight to Seattle. Mom patted my leg and we got out of the car and headed into the house. I knew that Heather was home, as mom's phone had told us that while we were on our way to my doctors appointment. When we walked into the house the smell of dinner cooking was really nice. Heather stood at the stove finishing what smelled and looked like some form of hamburger helper. The table was already set, and Heather turned and looked at the two of us.

"Zoe, dad said they drew blood, so this should help get your blood sugar and iron levels back up." She smiled. "Go take off your coats and come back in and have a seat. I'm Heather, and I'll be your host tonight..." She chuckled. Mom and I looked at each other and shrugged. I slipped off my coat and hung it in the closet, and then hung mom's up as well. Mom and I went back into the kitchen where Heather was just getting ready to put the food on our plates. We ate and then Heather cleared the dishes so I could go work on my homework. It was seven thirty and I usually had my homework done by now. I went up to my room, and knocked out my homework.

#
I looked at the clock as my phone rang, shocked to see that the time was now ten minutes after nine. I was pleasantly surprised to see that the caller was Riley, complete with a picture of her smiling face.

"Hello?" I said into the phone.

"Hello. I was wondering how your appointment went?" Riley said. I could hear a smile in her voice. This was a common question on nights that I had appointments with Emily.

"It went well. Emily drew blood to have some blood work done." I replied, saving the document I had open on the computer and closing the lid. I moved over to my bed.

"She drew blood, why?"

"To check my current hormone levels. Mom and dad signed off on me getting hormones tonight."

"How? Your dad is in Seattle."

"He can do something with his iPad and fill out PDF forms and sign then and send them back. That's what he did."

"Oh. Silly question, what were you planning on wearing to school tomorrow?"

"I was going to figure that out in the morning, why?"

"Would you wear your grey sweater dress for me?" I briefly pondered this. I hadn't worn it to school yet, so this would give a chance for some people that hadn't seen me wearing it to see me in it.

"I can. What were you planning on wearing?"

"My pink sweater dress. I haven't worn it to school yet..." she said.

"Ok. I can do that. Who is taking us to school?"

"I think it's your mom's turn in the rotation." The only time when the rotation was screwed up was when dad had to go somewhere for work.

"It is?" I asked. "Are you sure it's not my dad's turn?" Sometimes when dad was out on business, mom would take his place driving even if it became two days in a row.

"Doesn't matter if it is, he's not here, silly." Riley said, with a giggle.

"This is true." I said to her. "I wish I could see your face, even if it is only to tell you good night." I could have sworn I heard Riley blush.

"Zoe, that was sweet. I wish I could see you too." Through the phone, I heard her mom's voice in the background. "Riley, it's bed time..." and then I heard Riley's voice again. "I have to go. I'll see you in the morning. Goodnight Zoe and don't think of me too much until you see me." Now it was my turn to blush.

"Good night Riley. I'll see you tomorrow and I'm pretty sure that my dreams will be filled with you." I said to her, and then waited for the call to disconnect.

And now the fun begins…

Tuesday afternoon when I got home from school, my phone rang. I was surprised to find that the caller was Emily.

"Hello?" I asked after I answered the phone.

"Hi, Zoe," Emily said. "I just wanted to tell you that I got your blood work back, and it looks fine for a thirteen year old boy... I think we need to change that to be the normal levels for a thirteen year old girl. I have everything ready for you and your mom to pick up tomorrow."

"That sounds good to me." I said. Heather came in the back door and smiled at me, and then gave me a funny look. "I will see you tomorrow, Emily." Heather nodded and then smiled again. I hung up my phone and put it back into the purse that I had carried to school.

"Was that the status of your blood work?" Heather asked.

"Yep. She said it's not normal for a thirteen year old girl." I smiled and Heather chuckled.

"Are you going to fix that?"

"She is, I probably just have to take some pills..." I replied. "I wonder how long it will take for me to start to develop." Riley had already started to develop and was proud of her slowly developing figure. I was proud of my girlfriends slowly developing figure as well.

"I don't know. I think I developed at a normal rate. You may develop at a different speed." Heather shrugged. I opened the fridge and pulled out a bottle of water. I offered it to Heather and then grabbed another bottle.

"I'm going to go take care of my homework so Riley and I can hang out tonight." I knew I was close to the top of the class and darn it, I intended to stay there...

"Smart girl. Mom and dad would kill you if you let your grades slip now." Heather said, after taking a drink of the water. "You are happier than you've been in quite some time. Now you don't have an excuse to give..."

"This is true." I said to Heather. She had made her point, and countered it to the point where I wouldn't be able to argue back...

"I know." She said. "Get to it. I need to work on biology... I'm still not sure why I took that class..." Heather let the thought trail off as I went up stairs to work on my homework.

#
I had just finished my homework when my phone rang and I saw Riley's smiling face. I answered the phone with a smile in my voice.

"Hi Riley." I said, not hiding the smile in my voice.

"Hey Zoe. Is it ok if I come over now?"

"Yep. I just finished my homework, so I can have guests now." I replied, trying to sound formal and failing. Riley giggled.

"Ok. I'll be there in about five." Riley said.

"Ok, I'll see you then." I held the phone to my ear until Riley disconnected the call. I took the clothes that I had worn to school and dropped them in the hamper and looked at my self in the mirror. The white tights looked really white against the royal blue plaid jumper that I wore, and the beret matched. I had worn a pair of jeans and a heather grey sweater to school, and had gotten soaked when I fell in a puddle. The outfit I had on now was new, and Riley had never seen it before on me. I looked at my self in the mirror and noted that my eyes really sparkled. I thought about it for a few seconds and decided that this is what I wanted to wear the next day to my appointment with Dr. Francis. I went downstairs to wait for Riley's arrival. When she knocked, I opened the door and let her in, feeling the cold air from outside coming into the house. She looked me up and down.

"That's not what you wore to school..." She said as I took her coat and hung it in the closet.

"I know. I managed to fall in to a puddle on my way into the house... Maybe the blonde does suit me..."

"Either way that looks really cute on you." Riley said, giving me a hug. "It buttons up the back? How did you button it?"

"I only undid the buttons I needed to in order to put It on. I was thinking about wearing it to the appointment with Emily tomorrow."

"I think you should. Speaking of Emily, did the results of your blood work come back?" We walked into the living room and sat on the couch.

"Yeah. She said that my blood work is not normal for a thirteen year old girl..." Riley looked at me and blinked, not getting the joke.

"Huh?"

"My blood work came back as normal for a thirteen year old boy, not girl..." I said. "She said we're gonna change that..."

"Good." Riley said. "You know that research paper that we have to do for english?"

"Yeah, what about it?"

"I have an idea for you..."

"Oh?"

"Write yours on the laws that directly affect you. I'm sure that you could find quite a bit of stuff. Maybe even start to push for change...'

"Maybe. I'll think about it." Her suggestion was better than the only idea I had come up with, which was nada... Maybe I could do something to narrow it down just a bit and go forward from there. "I can't push for change, I can't even vote yet." I heard the garage door open and then shut, and then the door into the kitchen opened.

"Is anyone home?" Mom asked. She knew the answer, her phone had told her the second we had gotten home from school.

"Riley and I are in the living room." I said aloud.

"And I'm upstairs." Heather shouted down the steps. Mom walked into the living room.

"Cute!" She said, smiling. "Stand up and let me get a look at you." I stood and did the obligatory spin. "Very cute, I think you should wear it to the appointment tomorrow."

"I was already thinking that." I said. "Also, Emily called and said that my blood work came back as not normal for a thirteen year old girl. She said we're going to fix that tomorrow..." Mom raised an eyebrow and then chuckled. "Since you can't wear the beret to school, do you want me to put it in the car so you can wear it to the appointment?"

"Please?" I said. Mom nodded. "I'll put it on the island in the morning." Mom nodded again.

"Riley, your dad said he's pick Tom up and they should be here by ten, so you are welcome to stay until your dad gets here with Tom and then ride home with him. Zoe you can stay up too."

"Thank you, Mrs. Franks." Riley said.

"Thank you, mommy." I said, Riley giggled and mom smiled. Her and dad both would smile when I'd call them mommy or daddy... Although I called dad, daddy more than I called mom, mommy.

#
At nine, I excused my self really quickly to run up to my room and change into something to sleep in, returning to the living room wearing a lilac colored satin top and pants. Riley smiled at me and I walked over and sat next to her. I think we both were tired, as the last time I saw on the clock was five minutes after nine... I woke up to a flash from a camera, and saw mom's smiling face. I looked over at Riley and saw that she had dozed off as well. The clock read that it was quarter till ten. Riley did this cute little stretching thing and I noticed that someone had covered us with a blanket. Rather than get up, we just snuggled closer to each other. I think we fell asleep again, because I woke to dad laying me in my bed.

"Hey, pumpkin," Dad said. "Go back to sleep. You have a big step on your way to growing to as a woman tomorrow. I want you to be rested." He kissed me on the forehead.

"Did Riley go home?" I asked groggily.

"Yeah, She didn't stir either. Her dad just picked her up and carried her out to the car. Now you get back to sleep."

"Uh huh." I rolled over and fell asleep for the third time that evening.

#
Riley and I walked hand in hand into the school, she had elected to wear jeans, and I not really thinking about the temperature outside had chosen to wear black knee socks and my black loafers. The outfit looked great, but I got cold on the short walk from the car into the school. Somehow, Megan had beat us to the school, and was waiting on us.

"Good morning," She had a grin on her face. Riley and I looked at each other. She, like Riley had worn jeans, not that I blamed either of them, I think I was starting to be able to feel my toes again... "How are you guys today?" The three of us walked toward the cafeteria and found a place to sit in the large deserted room.

"We're good. You are awfully chipper this morning."

"I slept really well last night." Megan said. "And I had a dream where the two of you got married." Riley and I looked at each other, both of us knowing that we were too young for that...

"We got married?" I asked, feeling my cheeks warm up.

"Yep. You both were wearing beautiful white gowns, I was the maid of honor, wearing this light pink dress that was also pretty. It was a good dream." Riley and I looked at each other, the same look on our faces.

"This came out of the blue..." Riley said.

"Yeah, I know. Zoe you look really cute today." I looked down at my jumper and then up at Megan.

"Thank you. I have a beret that matches the jumper, but it's in the back seat of mom's car. I can't wear it here, otherwise I'd have it on." Megan nodded.

"The blue really brings out your eyes..." Megan said. Riley looked at me and nodded. I had some stunning blue eyes, and I loved it when they were shown off. I had heard that the eyes were the window into the soul and I knew that mine now said that I was happy.

"I love showing off my eyes." I replied. Megan looked above my head and smiled.

"Hi, Mrs. Chattfield." Megan said. I craned my neck to look behind me.

"Good Morning, Girls." She said. "Riley and Zoe, can you girls come see me in the office please?" Riley and I looked at each other and stood up, grabbing our bags and following Mrs. Chattfield to the office. When we walked in the office, Mrs. Young was there, waiting on us.

"Girls if you would come with me, please." Mrs. Young said walking back toward her office, Riley and I looked at each other and then followed her back to her office

#
Riley and I sat in our usual spot in Mrs. Young's office, and watched as she sat across from us.

"Zoe, even in this bad lighting, that jumper brings out your eyes." Mrs. Young said. "But I didn't bring the two of you in here to complement you on your clothes."

"Then why?" Riley asked.

"Zoe's mom sent me an email." She turned to pick up a piece of paper. "Zoe, first of all, congratulations on the next step of this process. As of this point, we don't know if you will have to take the hormones at any point while you are here during the day, but if you do, they have to be actually administered by the nurse. You can't have them on your person while you are here. What we can do is see if Dr. Francis can write a second, smaller prescription for you to keep here, if necessary."

"Ok. I'll know more tonight and will let you know tomorrow about that." Mrs. Young nodded.

"Ok, thank you. Your mom may beat you to it though, I already outlined this to her in an email. It may be resolved by the time that you see Dr. Francis tonight. That's all I needed. You girls run along to first period."

#
Mom was sitting in the visitors parking lot when I walked out of building Riley's mom was parked next to her and they were leaning against the cars, talking when Riley and I walked up.

"Afternoon, Girls." Riley's mom said. Mom turned around and smiled, handing me my beret. It has warmed up a little bit as the wind had died down and the sun had come out. I put the beret on my head and used the mirror on the drivers side door of mom's car to adjust it so that it was sitting right on my head. Riley smiled at me.

"And now the look is complete." Riley said giving me a hug. "Call me when you get home, Ok?" I nodded. "We need to go over that stuff from Henderson's class that I didn't quite understand. I just hope that it doesn't result in us having to try to get together before class tomorrow." Riley said, Our parents looked at us. It wasn't uncommon for one of us to help the other in an area where we excelled and the other wasn't as strong. One of my strong points was the written and spoken word. Riley was decent in math and ok with the spoken word, but the written word was not a strong point with her.

"Ok. I'll call you when we are on our way home. I don't know how long this is going to take." The last two appointments had been several hours in length. Riley smiled. I got in the car and was thankful that mom had left the heat on. I watched as Riley got in her moms car and we waved as mom backed out and headed for the main road so that we could head to Dr. Francis' office.

#
Mom and I walked into Dr. Francis' office and sat in our usual spots. Emily got up and walked over from her desk.

"Good Afternoon, Zoe, Katherine."

"Afternoon, Doctor."

"Afternoon, Emily."

"This is going to be a quick appointment, unless Zoe has anything that she needs to discuss with me." I shook my head. Everything had been going well the last week. Plus if I came up with anything that I needed to discuss, I could call her.

"Alright then." She passed four pieces of paper over to mom. "I know there are four prescriptions there, one of them will need to be taken while Zoe's at school. The two of them are taken morning and night the bottles will say that. The third is the same one that we're filling a smaller prescription for the school so that Zoe doesn't have to deal with making sure that she takes the pills to school and then takes them home, etc." Mom nodded and stuck the prescriptions in her purse. "Zoe, you are going to need to make sure that you take the pills every day, otherwise there will be no point is us even going forward." I nodded. I wanted to develop so that I looked like I felt, rather than try to deal with it later in life. I would take the pills. "Zoe, if you notice anything that seems unusual, make sure you let me know as soon as you can."

"I can do that." I said, looking at Emily. "But won't some things that seem unusual to me actually be quite normal?"

"Yes, and that's why you need to let me know so I can tell you if it's an expected change, verses an unexpected change." I nodded, knowing that she would know better than I if something were awry. "Zoe, you can start by taking the first dose when you get home. No sense in waiting any longer."

#
Mom backed the car in the drive way and I got out as soon as the car was stopped. We had swung by the pharmacy and picked up my new pills and I was anxious to get started on my path to full blown girlhood. I knew the changes wouldn't happen over night, but I was looking forward to the caterpillar turning into a butterfly so to speak.

Reborn

I had been sitting at my desk, waiting on really slow web page to load, when I just happened to glance at the calendar that was hanging on the panel of cork behind my desk. The top half of the calendar showed a picture of a kitten chasing a ball of multicolored yarn on a hardwood floor, the bottom half showed the days of the month of April. As I looked at the calendar, I realized that the next day, the twenty fourth, would mark six months of Zoe being here. It would be six months since I had started down the road that had placed me where I was, sitting in my room, decorated in such a fashion that someone that casually glanced in would see nothing but the room of a girl. The only thing in the room that hadn't been replaced when it had morphed from a boys room to a girls room was the laptop and iPad. Neither seemed odd in a girls room now a days. Three months ago, the caterpillar had entered her cocoon, and she was staring to emerge, even more beautiful than she could have imagined. I briefly considered that I had two birthdays: one, my actual day of birth, on the twentieth day of July in the year 1998, and the second was the day that Zoe completely came into existence, the twenty fourth of October, in the year 2011. I considered October to be the real birthday, the day I was reborn. I briefly wondered if I could get away with two birthday parties... I gave up on this web page loading and shut down the computer, and went to bed.

#
On April twenty fourth, which just so happened to fall on a Saturday, I got out of bed and took a shower like I always did. What I didn't know was that by the time I had gotten back to my bedroom, something for me to wear would have already been laid out. I had walked back into the bedroom and saw the blue plaid skirt, blue beret, white short sleeved blouse, and black knee socks laying on my bed. I took a quick glance around, not knowing how this outfit had migrated out of the closet and onto the bed.

"Zoe," I heard mom's voice from the other side of the door. "I put the outfit I want you to wear on your bed." Ok, so that was how the outfit ended up there, but why was the more important question now. I shrugged and got dressed. It wasn't often that mom picked clothes out for me, even though she claimed the right to pick out my outfits for the first day of school, and for picture day until I graduated, but when she did, there was usually a reason for it. I got dressed and brushed my hair out. It had, ever since I had let it grow out, been in the style of a bowl cut when it was shorter, and now that it was longer, was more of a shoulder length bob. The beret looked perfect atop my head and I slid my feet into my black loafers. I opened the door and walked out into the hallway at the same time that Heather did. She was dressed just like me, except her beret and skirt were solid purple, a color that had always looked good on her. Purple didn't look as good on me, so I rarely wore it, although I wondered what the outfit I wore now would look like in a purple.

"Morning, Zoe." Heather said, looking at me. "You look nice. Did mom pick out your clothes too?" I nodded, now really trying to figure out mom's reasoning. I could see dressing Heather and I alike if we were twins, but we weren't. Riley and I were closer to twins than Heather and I. Riley's brown hair was longer than mine and was more often in a pony tail, braid or the occasional set of pigtails. I love to see Riley with her hair in a set of braided pigtails, even though that was rarer to see than her hair just flowing down her back. "I wonder what she's up too..." Heather said as she let me go down the steps first.

"It's hard saying. You know I really wish that I could actually sleep in on the weekend. I have no reason to be up this early." I said, hitting the bottom of the stairs as there was a knock on the door, which was odd at this early hour no matter what day it was.. I looked at Heather who shrugged and I opened the door to look at Riley, who was dressed like Heather and I, only she wore the matching outfit to mine in red. She seemed surprised to see that I was wearing my matching blue outfit today. "Come in." I said, stepping out of the way so that she could actually come in the house rather than us just standing there staring at each other.

"Do you know what's going on?" Riley asked after we had hugged. "Your mom called my mom last night and asked her to make sure that I was up and wearing this," She gestured to herself. "Your mom even asked my mom to make sure that my hair was in braided pigtails... My mom actually did my hair for me this morning." Her mom had even tied red ribbons around the ends of the pigtails, completing the look. I had some thoughts enter my head that a thirteen year old probably shouldn't have been thinking.

"Not a clue..." I said, closing the door and taking hold of Riley's hand as we went toward the kitchen. Mom was waiting in the kitchen for us.

"I still think that you and Riley could be twins, Zoe." Mom said with a smile. "Since I'm sure that you guys are trying to figure out what is going on, does any one know what today is?" Riley and I looked at each other, rather easy as we were both the same height. I had an idea of where mom was going with this, but only because I had actually looked at the calendar.

"Six months ago, Zoe came out to play, and three months ago, a caterpillar went into a cocoon and has started to turn into a butterfly..."Mom said, Heather and Riley looked at me. "Today we are going to have a sort of half year birthday party for Zoe. It's going to be girls only, thus the four of us for now, Riley, your mom and dad will be over tonight, and we have to pick up Zoe's dad from the airport around two thirty." Riley and I shared a look, and then smiled at each other. "Right now, I'd like to treat the three of you to breakfast." Mom smiled.

#
Riley and I were sitting on my bed, with the MacBook playing some music quietly in the background, when we heard mom holler up the stairs. I had heard the door open some time earlier and knew that Riley's parents were down stairs. When we had tried to go down stairs, and mom had turned both of us around at the bottom and sent us back upstairs.

"Zoe, Riley, close your eyes and come downstairs." Riley and I looked at each other, eyebrows raised. I slipped my hand in Riley's and we started to walk downstairs, each of us holding on to the handrail on either side of the stairwell. When we got to the bottom of the steps, mom took our joined hands and used them to lead us toward the kitchen.

"They look like they could be twins..." I heard Riley's dad say. Mom chuckled, turning to her right and led us toward the table

"Girls, have a seat." Riley and I sat, both of us smoothing our skirts.

"I would have never known that Zoe wasn't a girl if I hadn't known her before she transitioned." I smiled as Riley gave my hand a squeeze.

#
I'm not sure how long Riley and I sat there, our eyes closed before mom finally said, "Ok, girls, open your eyes." When I opened my eyes, I saw a cake with half a candle on it. I glanced at Riley, who looked as confused as I felt. I glanced at mom who smiled.

"Happy six month birthday, Zoe." Dad said with a smile on his face. His eyes sparkled like he was about to shed a tear or two.

"Happy birthday to you; happy birthday to you; happy birthday, dear Zoe; happy birthday to you..." My family and closest friends sang. I didn't know that you held a birthday party for a six month old, but hey, I wasn't your average six month old...

finis

---

This story is finished (for now.) I plan on doing a rewrite at some point in the future, but I can tell you that time is not right now. I enjoyed writing this story, and I wish to thank everyone for their comments as well as helping me get the first few chapters fixed. If you are an author and want to change the voice of the story half way through, my advice to you is: don't... It's a lot harder than it looks.

My Mistake

Copyright 2008

By Samantha Jenkins

Chapter 1: The Mistake

I looked at my sister who was looking at me.

“You look cute" was all that she said. I stammered for words here I was standing here wearing a pink pleated mini skirt and a black turtleneck sweater along with a pair of black tights. I also had on a pair of her 3 1/2 inch platforms. She had one pair that she wore to parties that could be closed with a padlock that was the pair I had on and without thinking had closed the locks not realizing she had the keys.

“What would you do if I didn’t unlock those shoes?” My eyes must've gotten really wide.

“You wouldn't do that to me, would you?”

“You know I was thinking that since it’s Halloween next week, with little makeup you make a pretty decent looking girl. Of course one thing you've got to do shave the legs" Hmm, here was my sister telling me that I’d look cute as a girl for Halloween. What she didn't know was that I was already thinking about going out to a Halloween party dressed in what I was wearing with the exception of the padlocks on her shoes.

“Come downstairs and let’s sit at the table and talk."

“Ok” I got up off of her bed and made my way downstairs, moving carefully in the platforms, even though I had already mastered walking in them. When I got to the kitchen I heard Jen on the phone,

“Katie, its Jen, Call me when you get in. I need the keys”

“You mean you don’t have them?” I asked her.

“Nope, I have the keys to her 4 inch platform boots”

“She has 4 Inch platform boots that lock?”

“Yeah, have you ever seen them?”

“No I haven’t” Just as I finished the phone rang.

“Hello?” Jen said into the handset. “Oh, Hi Mom, Yeah he’s sitting here next to me, in a skirt.” I started blushing. “I walked in and he was in my room wearing my black turtleneck sweater and the pink pleated miniskirt that you bought me.” She listened for a moment, then continued, “No my boots that lock, and we have to wait for Katie to get home for the keys” Jen looked at me and winked. I was becoming worried.

“Here, Mom wants to talk to you.”

“Yes” I spoke into the phone with a shaky voice

“Josh, I’ve told you about wearing your sister’s clothes before, you are to stay like that until I get home, your sister is in charge and you will do what she says, understood?”

“Yes, Ma’am”

“Good, you can be a girl for the weekend. Put your sister back on.”

“Jen, she wants to talk to you.” I said handing the phone to her.

“Yeah, Ok. I’ll keep the keys and give them to you when you
get home.” I was really starting to get worried now. “Ok, I’ll talk to you when you get home.” She hung up the phone. “Come on little sister, we need to make you look pretty for when mom comes home.”

“Jen, what do you mean ‘make me look pretty’?”

“Just adding a little makeup, and maybe some nail polish. I’m also going to put on a skirt. Mom told me that I have to wear skirts because you are my little sister and that is all you are going to be wearing for the weekend. Plus, I get to pick out what you wear.” She grinned at me.

“Jen, What are you going to make me wear?”

“Nothing that I wouldn’t wear.” I just looked at her. When she wore skirts they were short, meaning 16 inches or shorter. The pink one I had put on was about 14 inches long. She got in her closet and got out a black skirt, a light blue sweater, and a pair of light blue tights.

“Mom said I have to lock my pants in the chest in her room. She also said that you do too. So go get all of your pants, and I mean all of them. Take them all and put them in the chest.” I headed to my room. Mom had said that I was going to be a girl all weekend, and this was a 4 day weekend. She wasn’t going to make me dress as a girl all weekend, was she? I got all of my pants, including my dirty ones, and put them in the chest. Jennifer came in behind me and dropped all of her pants, all 6 pair, in the chest and closed the lid. “I want you to lock it. Mom said if it isn’t locked she will make us both wear skirts for a month.”

“She wouldn’t make me wear a skirt for a month” Our mom had made Jen wear skirts for a month once, just because Jen refused to help wash the dishes. Jen had learned really quickly that she should listen to mom. She had begged for 3 weeks to get her pants back, so mom had made her wear skirts for another week. I picked the lock up and breathed as if I were being led to the death chamber as I slipped the shackle of the lock in the hasp on the chest. *Click* Just like that I had sealed our fate for the weekend.

“She made me do it, so I think that she will. Come on lets go paint your nails, and do your hair” I had forgotten that I had been growing my hair long for Halloween. We went into Jen’s room, and she sat me down at her vanity. “I think we should do pigtails for today.” I looked into the mirror at my self. I did look like a girl already. Jen grabbed her brush and brushed my hair. Pulling it apart at the part, she grabbed two pieces of pink ribbon and put my hair up into pigtails. As we were sitting there the phone rang, Jen looked at the caller id on her phone,

“It’s Katie.” She said to me smiling. “Hello” she said into the air because she had put the call on speaker phone.

“I just got your message, Jen. Did you lock your boots on and need those off?”

“Actually I didn’t but Josh did.”

“Oh?” I started blushing.

“Yeah, I came home and he was in my room in my boots, a Black turtleneck, a pair of black tights, and my short pink pleated skirt”

“I’m on my way over and I’ll have the keys. I have to see this.”

“Ok, see you when you get here.”

“Bye” Jen said grinning at me. “I think we need a name for you.”

“I like Veronica.” I said.

“Too old fashioned, how ‘bout Morgan?”

“I like that.” I said nodding my head, feeling the hair that had been placed into pigtails and the ribbons on my ears and neck. Jen put some lipstick and mascara on my face and pronounced me ready to see the world. Just as she finished, the door bell rang.

“That’s probably Katie, Go get the door Morgan.” Jen said, ushering me toward the door of her room. I made my way slowly down to the front door. When I got there, I peeked through the peep hole and saw Katie on the other side wearing a white sweater and a light blue skirt. I opened the door, and hid behind it.

“Hi, Josh.”

“Hi Katie,” I said as I closed the door. I turned to face her. I had a crush on her.

“You look cute. Have you decided on a name for yourself yet?”

“Yes, I have,” I said blushing, “I decided on Morgan.”

“Cute name for a cute girl, where’s your sister Morgan?”

“Upstairs in her room.”

“Ok, come on,” she said taking my hand and leading me up the steps. Here I was holding the hand of the girl of my dreams while I was wearing a skirt. At the top of the steps she kissed me on the cheek. I really started to blush. “Jen, I found your little sister Morgan trying to sneak out of the house.”

“Morgan, were you trying to sneak out of the house?”

“No,” I replied looking at my feet in the boots that I had locked on my feet about 2 hours eariler.

“Hey, I’ve got an idea,” Katie started. “Let’s go to the mall.”

“Um, lets not.” I said

“Why not Morgan, We’ll go to one that isn’t around here” Jen Said

“I’ll get noticed, some one will know I’m a boy, not a girl.”

“You can act like a girl; I’ve seen you do it. You make believe that this is a play and you’ll do fine.”

“Do I have to wear these boots?” I looked hopefully at Katie and Jen.

“Yes,” Jen said. “Mom said you had to have them on when she gets home. Besides, Katie put the keys in the chest.” I hadn’t notice Katie slip away, she came back in the room with a grin on her face. She walked over to me.

“Your mine later,” she whispered into my ear, and then nibbled on it.

“Huh?” I replied still dealing with the way her nibbling made me feel.

“Yeah, I’m going out with you. I’ve always wanted a boyfriend that didn’t mind wearing skirts. What do you say we go see a movie later, just the two of us, both in skirts?” she said.

“Uh, uh, ok.” I said softly. Katie gave me a kiss on the cheek. I kissed her back on the lips.

“Be careful doing that, you’ll smear your lipstick” Jen said with a smile on her face.

“Will you do this on Halloween?” Katie asked me.

“Of course love,” I replied looking at the green of her eyes.

“Even at school?” Jen said, I had forgotten that our school had a dress-up day for Halloween. Last year about 5 guys dressed up as girls for the day, 4 of them didn’t pass, they were football players. Every one had a good time with the costumes.

“Yes, only if I can wear what I’ve got on now” I said after a few seconds of thought.

“Even the padlocks?” Jen inquired

“Only if my girlfriend has the keys”

“Deal.” Katie said. “Maybe I’ll leave them at home so You have to stay like that till I let you out.”

“I think she should wear my skirt just like that one that is shorter by about half an inch.”

“I think this is just fine.” Katie said. Then the phone rang. Jen picked it up.

“Hello?” she said into the phone. “Ok, mom, hang on. Morgan. Phone”

“Yeah,” I said into the handset

“You know Morgan was going to be your name if you were a girl. Have you had enough of the dressing as a girl yet?” My mother said.

“No, mom. I have a girl friend now though” I winked at Katie and Jen

“Oh, really and who is going out with my daughter?”

“Katie is. Mommy can I dress as a girl for Halloween?” I asked politely

“Actually, your going to be dressing as a girl at home for a while at least 3 months, and full time on breaks from school, and the weekends. Now put your sister back on.”

“Here Jen, she wants to talk to you again.”

“On Speaker? Ok,” Jen said as she pushed the button “Were on Speaker
mom.”

“Ok, The reason that I wanted to be on speaker is so every one knows what’s going to happen,”

“Ok,” Jen said.

“Now first, Katie I’m assuming your there?”

“Yes, Mrs. Smith”

“Where are the keys for the boots?”

“There in the chest with the girl’s pants.”

“Ok good, Now, Morgan is going to be visiting for a while. She will be here when she is not in school for at least 3 months. Jen?”

“Yes mom,”

“There’s $500 on your Debit card, Go help your sister get some clothes. Get her underwear and night gowns too. No pants or shorts.”

“Ok mom.”

“I’ll be home about 7:30 or so, I’ll have dinner when I get there. Katie you can join us if you wish. Talk to you all later” and with that she hung up.

“Three months?” Katie said. “I think I might get to liking this.”

“I think she is going to try to get me to stop dressing by making me do it for 3 months.”

“Is it going to work?” Katie asked.

“No. I’ve only been doing it for 3 years.”

“3 Years?” Katie asked wide eyed.

“Yeah, I tried on a night gown of sis’s and got hooked.” I began,

“I’ve never been outside before.”

“Ah, No wonder you didn’t want to go to the mall. Have you seen any thing of mine you like?” Jen asked me.

“Well, I like what I have on and you have on.” I said.

“Then we’ll buy you that. Have you ever seen any thing that Katie wears that you like?”

“Well,” I started. “She has a lot of dresses that I like”

“Ok, then we have your wardrobe. What kind of shoes do you want?”

“Can’t I just borrow yours and Katie’s?”

“No, you need your own.”

“In that case, shoes like I have on, with out the locks.”

“Oh, you don’t like the locks?”

“Oh I do for fun, but not for every day wear.”

“If I had the keys would you wear them every day?”

“Maybe.” I said looking at the floor

“That’s a yes maybe.”

“Katie, did you drive over?” Jen asked

“Why, yes, Jen I did”

“Pull it into the garage so we can get Morgan out with out any one seeing her”

“Ok,” Katie said getting her keys out so that she could pull the car into the garage. She left the room

“Jen, why are you having Katie pull her car into the garage, I figured that you would have made me walk to the curb where she parked.”

“I don’t’ think that my little sister is ready to be seen by her friends and neighbors yet. Besides, Mom will see to that for you.” Just then Katie honked the horn from the garage. Jen smiled at me, “Lets go sis.” She said. I sat down in the back seat of Katie’s Corolla. Actually I kind of fell.

“That was anything but graceful” Jen said aloud, “Get out and try it again.” With that I got out of the car, and sat down again, this time putting my butt on the seat them pulling my legs and feet in afterward.

“That was much better,” Katie said, smiling, and with that, we were off to our destination: The Mall.

Chapter 2: Shopping Part 1
By Samantha Jenkins

Katie put the car in gear and backed out of the garage, as she was backing out I saw a couple of my friends that were on their way over, probably to see if I wanted to hang out with them. They looked at Jen and Katie, then at me, and continued to the front door of the house and rang the bell, of course no one answered because no one was there. It was at that moment that I realized that I had passed in front of my friends at a distance.

"Jen, I just passed in front of James and Shawn."

"So I saw. I told you that no one would recognize you." I didn't exactly remember her saying that, but I was so happy that I didn't argue.

"Katie can you turn the heat on back here, I'm getting kind of cold."

"Sure thing, sweetheart." she said reaching for the knob.

"Morgan, are you looking forward to your first shopping trip as a girl?" Jen asked me. Then it hit me: I hadn't asked where we were going.

"Yeah, but what mall are we going to?"

"Were going to Easton." Easton! I thought: I was bound to run into someone I knew there.

"Jen, Easton is where every one from school hangs out. Some one will recognize me up close."

"No they won't, Morgan, now quit whining." Jen Said.

"Besides, remember the play you were in last year, the one where you played the teen aged girl?" Katie asked

"Yeah, what about it" I said. That play is what had really gotten me into skirts and I never really looked back.

"I wouldn't have known that was you unless I read the program, which I did afterward because I wanted to see if you were in the play like you said you were. Think of this as a play with the whole world as your stage."

"I never thought of it that way." I said. Jen had worked with me for months on how to act like a girl just for that play, Me dressing as one for 3 months was going to be a cinch because I had done it for the play, I realized as Katie turned on the express way. I grinned.

"What are you grinning about?" Katie asked.

"This is just going to be a play with the whole world as my stage." I said looking at Katie.

"You know if you weren't a boy, I'd be a lesbian." Katie said

"Why's that?" I asked.

"Cause I'd still go out with you, you make one hot looking girl." She replied. I think I started blushing under the make-up Jen had put on me a little bit earlier. I was used to watching girls at the mall, but I was looking at what they were wearing. If I looked as hot as Katie said I did, then I would be getting hit on.

"Guys, what do I do if I get hit on?" I asked.

"Tell them that you're taken already" Katie said

"Ok, I'll tell them I'm you're my girlfriend” I grinned. She grinned back.

"So you're a lesbian?" Jen said to me.

"For now." I said smiling. Katie looked at me and grinned.

"We're here" Katie said pulling the Corolla into the parking spot. I hadn't been paying attention, but noticed when I got out of the car, that Katie had parked out in the middle of nowhere so I would have to walk into the mall. Right as I shut my door, I noticed that Katie had pushed the lock button trapping me out side the car. "Come on girlfriend, let's go shopping" I took her hand as we walked to the mall. Jen was just grinning.

"What are you grinning about?" I asked her smiling

"You two make a cute couple" she replied

"Ok," I said before giving Katie a kiss on the cheek. A mother that was walking by with her daughter gave us a disgusted look. I really didn't care, because the woman had no idea that I was really a boy dressed in his sister's skirts. I've always hated that fact that people who didn't even know you were making assumptions about you. For instance when I was cast in the play, every one thought I was gay because I had the role of a girl in the play. When in reality I'm straight as an arrow. We walked in the door.

"Where should we start?" Katie asked.

"Let's start at the Sears end and work our way back" Jen said. Looking at the map.

"Sounds like a plan to me. Sis can I have at least 1 pair of pants?"

"No, you're wearing skirts and dresses for 3 months, according to mom. And I'm going to tell her that you asked for a pair of pants." Jen replied. I knew at that point my punishment was going to get worse. Jen looked at me and grinned. "I just thought of what kind of panties we should get you." I just looked at her.

"What are you thinking, Jen?" Katie asked.

"Oh maybe a few thongs." Jen replied with one of those grins that told you she was planning more than that. "And I'm going to try to get mom to make this punishment happen while you're at school too."

"Jen, I would get kicked out for disrupting the learning of the other students" I replied. My basis for the statement was the fact that three school years ago a freshman's sister who was a senior dared him to wear a skirt, sweater, and a pair of three inch platforms in the middle of February with no tights on. He had worn a red and black pleated skirt and a black sweater. He had walked in the shoes like he had done it before. Just like me in the boots I had on. He had gotten sent home that day and when his mom picked him up he told her it was his idea, and that his sister just went along with it. His mom flipped and got him into see a psychologist. He was later diagnosed as being Gender Dysphoric, and after a long fought battle with the school board, and a few thousand dollars in attorney's fees, he was allowed to come to school in skirts and dresses. At first every one picked on him, but after about a month or every one kind of forgot that he was a genetic male and treated him as a female.

"Do you remember Alex Johnson" Jen said back to me. Of course I remembered her, I was just thinking about her.

"Yeah." I wondered where this was going.

"He was allowed to wear skirts to school." Before I could respond to the latest in this discussion, Jen's cell phone rang. "It's mom."

"Yeah, Ok, $1000? Oh, yeah: he asked if he could have a pair of pants, only one pair. That just got him another month and her ears pierced? Ok, hang on." She handed the phone to me. She wants to talk to you.

"Morgan, just for asking your sister for a single pair of pants, I've added a month to your punishment. I've also been in touch with Mrs. Cooper at the school about this becoming a full time thing. She has been in touch with the school board and the attorney's. Part of the Johnson case stated that they had to let stuff like this happen. Don't give me a reason to make it full time every where you go. Do you understand me?" I was stunned by what had happened just because I asked for a pair of pants.

"Morgan, you have to the count of three to answer me, or you will have an additional month added to your punishment. One, Two Three." I smiled inwardly at myself. Had adding two months been that easy?

"I'm here mommy." I said into the phone.

"Good," my mother replied. "I thought I was going to have to add another month."

"No mommy, five months are enough." I was taking to this punishment like a fish to water. "Let me talk to Jen

"Jen Mom wants to talk to you." I said handing her the phone.

"Hello." Jen said into the phone. "OK. We should be home around 7ish. Ok, Bye." We walked into the upper level of Sears, which is where the jewelry was located in the store. Jen browsed the selection for a while, and then came to where Katie and I were looking at cheep necklaces. I selected a simple necklace with a butterfly pendant, and after paying for it, I put it on.

Our next stop was J.C. Penny for more clothing. I decided to see if I could get my punishment made any worse for me by trying to slip a pair of pants into the rest of the clothing when Jen or Katie weren't looking. We walked into the Juniors department, and I cast my eye on the pair of pants, well overalls really, that I was going to slip into the cart. They were black, and had silver buttons. I decided to go and grab them now.

"Morgan, just what do you think your doing?" Jen asked.

"Getting a pair of overalls?" I replied just as her cell rang again.

"Oh Hi Mom," Jen Started. "Yes she is here, attempting to get a pair of overalls." Jen said into the phone. "Morgan, Mom wants to talk to you again." Katie came around the corner with her arms full of skirts, blouses, and dresses.

"Hello" I said into the phone

"Morgan, you just made your punishment full time. I hope you enjoy the next year at school." My jaw dropped, "Give me your sister back."

"Jen, Mom wants to talk to you." I said trying to hold back a smile. I turned my attention to my girlfriend who had what would become a quarter of my new wardrobe. Katie was nice enough to get me some skirts that were ankle and knee lengths. Jen looked at Katie and smiled.

"Ok, we'll see you in a bit. Bye" Jen said before closing the phone. "Tuesday is going to be interesting for you Morgan."

"Tuesday?" Katie asked. "What is going to happen Tuesday?"

"Morgan, why don't you tell your girlfriend?" Jen asked with a wicked smile.

"Mom made my punishment full time, because I wanted a pair of overalls" Katie's Eyes got really wide, and she had this huge grin on her face. She gave me a hug.

"Remember it's a play and don't let any one pick on you." She said before kissing me on the cheek. We all turned our attention back to the pile of clothing that Katie had brought over. Jen was sorting things out. When she was done all but two of the ankle length skirts and three of the knee length skirts, all ten of the one inch above the knee and shorter skirts remained.

"Mom said she is cleaning out your room, and you are sleeping in the guest bedroom for the weekend because she is redoing your room to match your new gender." Jen said to me as we picked up the stuff that was going back on the shelf. Katie carried all of the clothing that we were going to get as we made our way to the intimate apparel department.

"Do you have on a pair of my panties right now, Morgan?"

"Yes, Jen I do" I replied in a low voice.

"Which pair?" Jen asked me.

"A black bikini in satin"

"Are you wearing a bra?" Jen prompted

"Yes, the one that matches the panties"

"Ok, so we are going to buy you a lot of satin" and with that, Jen started toward the table that had all of the satin panties on it. She grabbed a handful; some were pastel, some neon, some white and black. Mostly they were bikini cut; however some were thongs with a piece of same colored ribbon for the back side. Jen smiled at me. "You are going to love the thongs" she said. I looked at Katie, and winked. What neither one of them knew was that I had tried on Jen's thongs before and kind of liked the way they felt. After our brief stop in the intimates, we headed toward the shoes. Katie and Jen sort of got into an argument because Jen wanted me to have platforms and or heels for every day wear and Katie insisted that I have a pair of tennis shoes, and a couple of pair of flats. They agreed on the majority of my shoes being at least two inches tall, and me having 3 pair of "flat" shoes. After getting the shoes, we made our way to the checkout the cashier started eyeing me, and it was making me uncomfortable.

"So who's getting a new wardrobe?" she asked. Katie took the bait and ran with it.

"My little brother is being punished." Katie said with a smile.

"Is this your little brother?" the cashier said looking at me.

"No this is my girlfriend"

"Your girlfriend?"

"Yes My girlfriend, is there a problem with that?"

"What if I do have a problem with that?" The cashier said. It was this time that I chose to kiss Katie. The cashier got a disgusted look on her face.

"Well then you'd better keep your comments to your self." Katie said, looking at a older man that had walked up behind the cashier whose name tag read "Doris"

"Is there a problem here ma'am?" he said addressing Katie.

“Well your employee,” Katie paused, reading the name tag on the cashier “Doris, here seems to think that my girlfriend is a boy and that there is a problem with me having a girlfriend”

“Ok,” he said glaring at Doris. “My office when you're done.” Then he turned to Katie.

“Ma'am here's a 10 percent off coupon for my employee's hassle” He handed her the coupon, and gave Doris a pissed off look, and walked back to his office. Doris looked pissed off herself as she continued ringing up the clothes. When she was done, she asked” Do you want to use your coupon now,” then under her breath, but not quite low enough “You little bitch.” She didn't realize that the manager who had given the coupon to Katie had walked out of his office and was now standing within earshot.

“Doris, My office, NOW!” he said then took over her register.

“I'm terribly sorry ma'am” he said to Katie. As he took twenty percent off of the total. Jen pulled the card out of her purse and paid. The total was $200. Which Jen put on the card, leaving $800 for more clothes and accessories. There were six bags, and we each took 2 bags. On the way out there were two guys standing by the door, one of them gave a wolf whistle. I turned and winked at them. I was getting into this role very easily. When we got to Katie's car I was getting cold because the temperature had dropped into the upper thirties, and I really felt sorry for any female that had to wear a skirt in this weather. As we were walking to the car, Jen handed the two bags she was carrying, to me then said,

“You don't have anything to sleep in. Katie, you guys get in the car and meet me back up at the door.”

“Ok,” Katie said. As Katie and I walked to the car, we started talking. “Are you having fun yet?” She asked smiling at me.

“Yeah, except for that cashier.”

“Yeah she was a bitch. So what are you gong to wear tomorrow?”

“Not sure. Why do you pick it out?” Katie grinned, and I figured that may have been a mistake

“Ok, just don't hate me because of it. Will you wear the boots again?” Katie asked.

“Yeah, for you” I said, placing the bags I was carrying in the trunk. Katie and I got in the car and made our way back up to the building to get Jen. Right as we pulled up, Jen walked out the door.

“Morgan, your going to love what I got for you to sleep in” She said lowering her self into the back seat of the car. Once the door was shut, and her seat belt was on, Jen pulled what she got me to sleep in out of the bag. It was a pink nightgown with matching pink panty, however from the breast down to the hem (which I guessed would be just below the panty) was a sheer nylon. I liked it, and then she pulled 2 more out of the bag, one in blue, and one in black. And with Katie grinning her approval, she put the car in gear and headed toward home.

Chapter 3
By Samantha Jenkins

As Katie started moving the car toward the interstate to head home, I was starting to get nervous. The Last time mom and seen me dressed, I was wearing one of Jen's dresses and pretty much looked like a girl even though at the time I had shorter hair, which mom had explained away when we went to eat that I tried to cut it by my self, and screwed it up pretty badly. It was still longer than most boys’ haircuts going to my shoulders. This time I looked like a sixteen year old girl, to every one. We rode in silence for a while, and the closer we got to the house the more I started to feel faint. Katie noticed this.

"Are you alright Morgan?" she asked looking in my direction

"I don't want mom to see me like this." I stammered through rather short breaths.

"Here take my hand." Katie said offering her hand, I took it and squeezed. "Morgan, remember your mom is getting you all of your clothes, I think she knows what's best for you."

"What about church on Sunday?" I asked, finally starting to breathe normally again.

"What about it?" Jen asked.

"Am I going as a girl or a boy?"

"Well Mom did say full time, and for at least five months" Jen responded to my question, "So I'd say as a girl" Just as Jen finished her statement, Katie was turning the car into the driveway. I saw mom's car in the garage, with the trunk lid open.

"Morgan, We'll get the bags, see if there is any thing else in your mom's trunk." Katie said with a smile. I couldn't argue with her, I loved her too much.

"Ok." I said grabbing the handle of the door and stepping out. It had gotten dark out and was now in the upper twenties. I could have sworn I felt my blood cool off in my legs as I walked toward the garage. I looked in mom's trunk and picked up the only bag that was left and shut the trunk. I walked into the house and met my mom on the way out.

"Oh, Hi, Morgan", she said after about running me down. "You look pretty." I blushed.

"Thanks, Mom" I replied in a weak voice. She smiled, and then asked:

"Is that every thing from the car?"

"It's the last one and I shut the trunk." I said, still uneasy about mom seeing me in a skirt. Mom shut the garage door, and came back in the house. I was working on putting the cheese that was in the bag in the refrigerator, unaware that mom was watching me. Straightening my skirt as I stood, my mother’s voice startled me.

"I never realized how much you acted like your sister" I turned to face her.

"Mom!" I started, "I do not act like Jennifer"

"Actually you do." Mom stated, "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were a girl." I thought about that for a second. Here was my mom telling me I looked like a girl, which I probably did because I was wearing a skirt, had hair that was well taken care of, and had soft features like my sister. I skipped over to mom and gave her a hug.

"Thank you mommy." I said.

"What was that for?" She asked.

"For not kicking me out of the house when you found out what I had done."

"Do you remember when I found you in your sister’s dress after your dad died?"

"Yeah” I said looking at her. I thought she was going to flip and kick me out of the house, but she just took me in her arms and held me, it was nice being held like that but I thought she was mad at me after that. She and I just sat in the living room talking like mother and daughter for about three hours then Jen came home and I apologized to her for going in her room without her permission.

"Remember how we went out to dinner with you dressed like that?" I nodded. My hair had been as long then as it was now, and not a single person gave me a second glance when we went out and ate. We had also gone shopping and gotten me some denim skirts and a few dresses, and when I grew out of this "stage" those had gone into Jen's closet. "Well, I told Jen to put those in the guest room, which will become your room while your punishment is in effect. Now run upstairs and get changed for all four of us to go out to dinner, and you and Katie to go to the movies."

"Ok, Mom" I said, turning to go toward the stairs. Walking into the guest room, I saw Katie sitting on the bed reading a book. It looked like my copy of Left Behind, and from the looks of it, she had just started reading it. On the bed was a red sweater that had a keyhole opening right above where my sternum started, a red and black plaid pleated skirt that looked like it was shorter than the one I had on. On the floor were a pair of black boots with a five inch platform, and 3 glittering silver padlocks hanging open. I looked at Katie, who had not seen me come into the room, she was wearing an identical outfit but the sweater and plaid were white instead of black. Her boots had 2 gold colored locks and they were already locked. As she realized that I was there, she turned to me and smiled. I saw that her sweater was identical to the one that was laying on the bed, except hers had a gold padlock in the keyhole opening. I walked over to her and hugged her, then fingered the padlock.

"You like?" She asked.

"Yes I do, although I've never seen you have a gold plated lock before." I replied. I've always thought that Katie made some of her own clothes because she had all sorts of stuff that could be locked shut from pants and shorts to shirts to sweaters. I had always admired that she had the courage to lock herself in her clothes and wear them to school. She was on the Girls Tennis team at school and had even made her own skirts for the games that she could lock shut.

"The gold locks are new. Your locks are going to be silver, and I think you'll like this outfit." She said picking sitting my book down and picked the skirt up. She unzipped the zipper at the back of the skirt and I saw two locks, one at the center of the zipper, and one at the top which looked like it held a both ends of a chain that ran through the waist band. She smiled at me.

"What's the chain for?" I asked.

"To make sure you can’t' remove it." She said, unzipping her skirt to revel two gold locks and a silver chain that went through her waist band. I smiled at her then watched as she zipped her skirt back up and when she brought her arms up to hug me I thought I saw a golden reflection out of her sleeve.

"Is there a lock at your right wrist too?" I asked reaching for it.

"Yes there is," She replied holding her wrist out to me, "and you'll understand the point later tonight." That got me thinking 'what was she planning for later tonight' "Let's get you dressed" she said taking a key from the nightstand. She bent down and unlocked the lock on each boot, and unzipped them. She pushed me back until I fell on the bed, my skirt flying up and would have been showing my panties if I didn't have a pair of tights on. Katie giggled, and then pulled my boots off. I stood up and unbuttoned, and unzipped the skirt I had on, and then pulled the sweater up and over my head, dropping it on the floor with the skirt. I picked up the skirt from the bed, and stepped into it, pulling it up and holding my hand out to Katie, instead of getting a lock, which is what I wanted I got a handful of keys.

"What's this?" I asked looking at the keys.

"The keys to my outfit, there's a pouch in the front of your skirt that will hold them." I folded the waist band down and sure enough there was a zipped compartment there, with a ring at the end of it. I slipped the keys in the compartment then zipped it shut, holding my hand out again, this time getting a silver lock. Slipping the hasp of the lock through the hole on the zipper, and the through the ring, I closed it. I could have sworn that Katie purred when I did that. I went back over to the zipper and then stuck my hand out again, receiving a second lock. I slipped the hasp through the rings and closed it, sticking my hand out again. Instead of getting a lock, I got a kiss, and heard a click. I looked down and seeing Katie had closed the zipper on the skirt. I stuck my hand there and felt the outline of a lock. I picked up the sweater and slid it over my head. Katie came over and closed the two locks at the wrists. Then she handed me a lock and that was when I realized that the collar of the sweater had a chain running through it. Katie was standing over by the full length mirror in the guest room, which had become my bedroom with my punishment, brushing her hair. She tied it up in a ponytail using a white ribbon. I walked over to her at the mirror. We were the same height, and I did some real quick math in my head if I was five foot five, and she was five foot three, and my boots were five inches, that meant she had to have on her four inch platform boots.

"Katie, Hun, are those your four inch platforms?"

"Yes, Morgan, they are. You've never seen them have you?" She responded smiling.

"No, I haven't" I said looking at her boots. Some day I'd have to try those on. Katie moved behind me and started brushing my hair after taking the two ribbons that held my pigtails up. She brushed my hair out. Let me tell you, if you have never had some one else brush your hair, you should try it some time, it is one of the most relaxing things I can think of. When Katie was done brushing my hair, she tied it up with a red ribbon, then she gave my makeup a little touchup and we went downstairs to see mom and Jen.

"Were ready, Jackie" Katie said to my mom.

"Oh, good. I was about to have Jen assemble a search party and go looking for you two girls." Mom said smiling. I smiled back and took Katie's hand, as we walked out the door to Mom's car. Katie and I sat in the back seat and I was a whole lot more graceful than when I sat down the first time. Jen and mom got in up front.

“Mom, where are we going?” I asked after I buckled my seatbelt.

“Were going to the Max and Erma’s at City Center.” Mom said.

“Mom why at City Center, if there is one at South Ridge?” as we drove, I realized that we were headed toward the one in South Ridge.

“Mom you’re confusing me.” I said aloud, Jen turned and grinned at me. It was when we pulled into the lot of the Max and Erma’s in South Ridge that I realized that we were in fact going to the one where several of my classmates in different classes worked. I knew for a fact that several girls from my Pre-Calculus class worked tonight because they had been discussing schedules. Mom also knew that several girls from some of my classes worked here and she was going to make me pass in front of class mates.

“Morgan, you are a cousin that is visiting from Jacksonville for a few months and you will be attending school here, Jen, your brother went back to Jacksonville to attend to the requests of your Aunt Betty, who is Morgan’s mother by adoption and is suffering from health ailments.” I didn’t expect any one to believe this and so I said something.

“Mom, no one will buy that. I don’t even look like a Floridian.”

“Then what do you propose?” Mom had parked the car and we sat discussing this with the heat on.

“I like the cousin bit, that would explain why I look like Josh, but how bout I’m from Oakville, and our house collapsed with no one home, and my dad enlisted Josh to help with the rebuilding so I’m staying with you.”

“That will work, should any one ask. Morgan, don’t forget your manners, unless you want to be ‘read’.” Mom said. We got out of the car, and because the car was nice and toasty, it felt like it was two degrees out side. I knew it wasn’t because the multifunction computer in the car had said it was 23 degrees outside. Of course the wind was blowing, and therefore, it felt colder. As we walked in the hostess, who I recognized from her traversing with Jen in the hallways at school looked up at us and smiled at Jen. What I didn’t know was that Katie also knew her. They shared three classes together.

“Welcome to Max and Erma’s, how many in your party?” Asked the hostess, who was wearing a white button down shirt and a pair of black slacks, her long brown hair was tied up in a bun. She had a name tag pinned to whose name tag read ‘Amber’

“Four,” Mom said smiling. Amber grabbed four menus, and then Amber said to me,

“You look familiar; do you go to South Ridge High?”

“No, I go to Oakville High.” I responded as we approached the booth we were going to sit in.

“Oh, I like Katie’s and your outfits.”

“Thanks,” I said smiling. Katie sat down and scooted into the booth.

“Are the locks functional?” Amber asked staring at the lock at the collar of my sweater.

“Yes,” I said sitting and maintaining her gaze, “and the keys are at home.” I said. Amber glanced at her gold watch.

“I go on break in ten minutes, do you mind if I come back and we can chat?” she asked. I glanced at the others seated around the table, they were just smiling.

“Not at all,” I said smiling. Amber smiled as the waitress came up to greet us. One thing I have never understood about the restaurant industry was why you always get greeted to the extent of three or four times.

“Hi, I’m Erica, I’ll be your server today, and can I get you any thing to drink?” I recognized her from my lunch period. I didn’t even know she worked here.

“I’ll have water” My mom answered, it was then Jen’s turn.

“I’ll have a Sprite” Jen answered.

“I’ll have a Sprite also.” I answered.

“I’ll have water” Katie answered.

“Okay, two waters and two sprites. I’ll be back in a few to get your orders, and by the way, I like your outfits.” Erica said nodding toward Katie and I. As she walked away, I glanced at Katie who was grinning.

“What?” I asked

“Your doing this like a natural, like you’ve done this for your entire life.” Katie responded smiling. I smiled back.

“This is a play, the world is my stage.” I responded. Erica came back, carrying a tray of drinks. Erica put the drinks on the table.

“Here are your drinks. Are those locks functional?” Erica asked me.

“Yes they are. I can’t take my outfit off with out the keys which are at home.” Erica got a sudden twinkle in her eye.

“What all on your outfit is locked?” Erica asked, while flipping her papers to jot our orders down.

“My sweater, skirt, and boots.” I replied sticking my foot out so she could see my boot. She glanced down and smiled.

“I’ve always wanted a pair of shoes or boots like that. Now, what do you want for dinner?”

“I’ll have a plain burger and fries.” I replied smiling. The order sounded pretty much the same all the way around the table. I mean what more do you expect when you have four girls out to eat. I slipped my hand into Katie’s, and she smiled. I looked at Katie and she absentmindedly played with the lock in the keyhole opening of her sweater. I leaned over and kissed her on the cheek.

“Morgan,” Mom started, “Are you having fun with your punishment yet?” she asked. Jen and Katie were smiling. The look on my face must have said it all. “I can see that this is not a punishment to you. What was that about this being a play and the world as your stage?”

“Earlier when we were going to the mall, Katie reminded me of the play I was in last year, if you recall, I wore skirts and dresses around the house for three months to get ready, even going as far as wearing them out to places with you and Jen when we went some where other than where we normally shop, I replied to Katie after she told me to think of the world as my stage and this as a play, that that is exactly what it is.”

“That’s a good way to think about it. You and Katie are going to go shopping tomorrow by your selves. Katie, I want Morgan to pick out what she wants. Morgan, you can have five pair of pants. No more, they are to be obviously feminine, and you can only wear them when you ask me first. Now, what movie are you guys going to go see tonight?” I looked at Katie, who looked at me.

“What do you–-“we both started at the exact same time.

“I don’t know what’s playing” Katie said to me with a smile. “Let’s go shopping instead.” I shrugged.

“Ok,” I said smiling. Somehow I knew there was going to be a little bit more than shopping going on. “I’ll drive.” I said looking at mom after looking at Katie. Mom frowned. I had just gotten my drivers license in July, but had never driven in heels.

“No, you won’t” Mom said looking at me. “Not until you and Katie have gone to the school’s parking lot and you’ve learned how to drive in heels. Furthermore,” Mom paused looking around, “your legal documents, all have your male name on them, you’ve already been reenrolled at school as Morgan. But you can’t drive with out a driver’s license, and yours says Josh, not Morgan. So therefore you’re not driving.” Mom said. I looked at her and pouted. I liked to drive.

“But, Mom, Technically I’m still Josh; I’m pretending to be Morgan. I’ve talked to some one on the Internet who has been stopped for driving her car while she was dressed. The car was registered to the male name, and she was able to prove that she was he.” I said.

“How by lifting up her skirt?” Jen asked.

“She didn’t provide details.” I replied looking at Jen. Amber grabbed a chair and sat at the end of the booth. She had a salad in a bowl in her hands. I looked at her.

“How did you get your food already? I asked looking at the salad.

“I put my order in the computer just before Erica put yours in. She’ll be out in a second.” Just as Amber finished talking Erica popped out of the kitchen holding a tray of food. This was happening like it was scripted and that worried me. Erica sat our food down and then came back with more drinks.

“Katie, where are the keys for your locks?” Amber asked.

“They are inside the front of the waist of Morgan’s skirt that is locked shut, and her mom has the keys.”

“Where did you get the sweaters, and boots?”

“Ask her.” I said nodding my head back to Katie.

“I had them custom made.” Katie replied between bites. Amber’s eyes got wide, and a smile broke on her face.

“I want a dress that locks so I can have my boyfriend hold the keys, or I can put them in water in the freezer and then wait till it thaws to take the dress off.”

“I’ll see what I can do.” Katie replied, “Get with me sometime on Monday.”

“Ok.” She replied glancing at her watch. “I have to get back to work. Have fun.” She winked at me. I finished what I could of my food. By the time I finished every one else was done and ready to go. We got up and mom went and paid, Katie, Jen and I were back in the car with it warming up, I was shivering because it was in the lower thirties, Katie started shivering also so I cuddled up to her to combine our body heat, unfortunately, our body heat was not much of a match for the cold interior of the car. Even after the car had warmed up we stayed sitting in the back seat with me holding her in my arms. Mom walked up to the car and got in.

“Where are you guys going to go shopping?” Mom asked putting the car in gear and backing out of the parking spot.

“Probably over to Oakville to make sure that no one recognizes Morgan.” Katie said.

“Ok,” Mom started, “Are you staying over tonight?” She directed the question at Katie.

“Yes. I’ll swing by my house before we go shopping and clothes for tomorrow.” Katie said, slightly lifting her head from my chest. “Hun, you need boobs.”

“What was that?” Jen turned smiling.

“I said Morgan needs boobs” Katie said, returning the smile. I saw mom smile in the mirror.

“I’ll work on that tomorrow.” Mom responded.

“We bought B cup bras today,” I volunteered, thinking she might need that info. I knew that was needed because the school had to purchase a pair of breast forms. I wore a simple denim skirt, black sweater, white panties, bra, and tights for the play. I was self conscious for the last three weeks when I was wearing the similar outfits every day. It was weird walking among my classmates in a skirt. I got a lot of support from the girls, most of who were in pants, but they seemed to appreciate the fact that here I was a guy, and I was willing to wear a skirt, to school nonetheless, and I made a lot of friends during the eight weeks we were in practices. The first time I walked on stage wearing a skirt, I felt as if every one could see right up it. After a few days of wearing the same thing or similar on stage, I kind of started acting like a girl. Eventually, I was so confident that I started going by my stage name in all of my classes and at home because I was not wearing pants at any point. I even learned how to do makeup, although it was just the basics.

“Ok, I’ll get you a pair of B cup sized forms tomorrow. I want you two to be home by midnight, any later you both are in trouble.” Mom said making the turn into the driveway from the street.

Chapter 4: A Night with Katie
By Samantha Jenkins

Katie and I walked over and got in her car. It was 33 degrees outside according to the computer in mom’s car. We sat in her car talking while it was warming up. I glanced at the clock, it read 7:15

“Do you like your outfit?” She asked.

“Yes. Does my mom really have the keys?” Katie jingled her keys, smiling.

“I have the keys to the locks at our wrists, and you’ll figure it out when we get to Wal-mart.” She said putting the car in reverse and pulling out into the street. Ten minutes later we were in the parking lot of Wal-mart. We got out and walked into the store. I grinned at her as we walked through the store. We got a lot of funny looks, I think because of our different jewelry. Our first stop was the woman’s department. I was browsing a selection of ankle length skirts, while Katie was looking at some rather short mini skirts. She brought four over and showed them to me. All but one was plaid, the first being red and black, the second green, black and white. The third I like because it was royal blue and white plaid, which was our school colors. The fourth I liked the best because it was a simple black miniskirt. I took the royal blue and white plaid skirt and placed it in the cart. I held the black one up to my body before placing it into the cart, it was an inch shorter than the skirt I had on. I picked up some button front shirts in black, white, royal blue, light pink, light blue, and a cream color. I was still wondering about the wrist chains. Katie and I walked back to the shoe department, where Katie picked up another pair of boots and a pair of tennis shoes. From there we went over to the accessories department, pausing to look at purses, I grabbed a black one, because it matched everything, and I was going to need it to put money, and makeup in. We made our way over to the hosiery department, where I picked up a pair of white fishnet tights and a pair of royal blue tights. I was thinking put on the royal blue tights, then the white fishnets over those. That would look neat with the royal blue and white plaid skirt. I decided to wear my new outfit to school on Monday. I explained to Katie.

“Hey, I think I have my outfit for my first day of school as Morgan.” I said smiling.

“Really?” Katie asked, “I was thinking you should wear a this pink sweater,” Katie pointed to a sweater in her hand, “and that black mini that you put in the cart a few seconds ago, and the boots you have on, with me holding the keys.” I thought about that for a second. I liked the idea of her holding the keys while I was at school. I knew that she and Jen would protect me from the other guys who might try to beat me up.

“I like your idea; I’ll wear what I was going to wear on sprit day.” I said. She smiled.

“What was your outfit?” she asked.

“I was going to wear the blue and white plaid skirt, blue tights with white fishnets over those, and a white or blue shirt.” I laid the outfit out on the top of the cart.

“I like that outfit, you really should wear that on Friday, and we have a pep-rally. What are you going to do about your hair?” She asked.

“I’m not sure. Ponytail maybe?” I said.

“What about pigtails, using white and blue ribbon on each side?” She asked making mock pigtails with her own shoulder blade length strawberry blonde hair. I liked her hair, especially the color. My own hair was a light brown, and went to just below my shoulders.

“I like that idea, but I need some hair ties and ribbons and that kind of stuff.” I said laying the outfit back in the cart. We made our way up to the checkouts. After every thing was scanned and bagged the total came to just shy of $150 dollars. I dug the card out of my purse. I think that mom had handed it to me when I got out of her car, but I was not sure. I signed the receipt, and took the bags out to Katie’s car. I looked at the clock in Katie’s car. It read 8:30. I looked at her. “Let’s go to Kohls.” I said, pointing at the store, a couple hundred feet away.

“Ok.” She said, locking the doors on the car so that we’d have to walk to get there. Once we got inside, I was kind of chilly, and we headed for the juniors department. I instantly fell in love with a denim miniskirt that looked like it would come to mid thigh on me. I took it off of its rack and held it up to me. It hit mid thigh, and Katie smiled.

“I like that, and I could probably have it modified so that I can lock you in it.” I grinned at her; I liked the idea of her locking me in my clothes and having the keys. We wandered around for a bit, and I saw a short jumper that looked like overalls. Jen had a pair of overalls and I think I wore them more than she did. I took it off of the rack and held it out so Katie could see it.

“That would be cute for every day wear, speaking of which we need to get you some more skirts for daily wear. We walked over to the area where the majority of the skirts were and I picked out 4 long skirts. Katie responded to my 4 long skirts with 4 knee length skirts. I smiled, she was going to match me move for move, I picked up 2 long sleeved t-shirts, and she picked up a cardigan, and a sweater. I put the shirts and skirts in the cart, and Katie did the same. I kissed her on the cheek. We walked over to the shoes. I picked up a pair of pink canvas shoes. Katie smiled and walked around the corner of the aisle, she reappeared with a pair of black platform loafers. I guessed they were three and a half or four inches high. I nodded. We went back over to the juniors department. I started looking at sleepwear. I saw a pink satin nightgown that looked like it would show panties, around the top of the hanger, there was a pink satin thong. I was starting to try to figure out why it seemed that the only types of panties I could see were thongs. I held the nightgown up to me and Katie looked at me and winked.

“What is it with you and thongs?” She asked smiling.

“It’s not me” I replied placing the night gown in the cart. “It’s you GG’s” I said smiling at her. I knew she had no argument to that because she usually had on a thong, thus wearing the tights when she had on a skirt. We walked up to the cash registers and proceeded to pay for the items. As we were putting the items on the counter, the woman standing behind it smiled.

“You’ll like the night gown, I have 5.” I furrowed my brow. When she got done scanning the items, the total was another $150. I pulled the card out of my purse, and handed it to her. We carried the bags out to the car, and got in. Katie started the car and I looked at the clock. It read 9:30 and I looked at Katie.

“It’s time to go home.” She said. I pouted. “It’s ok, once we get changed for bed we can cuddle.” I liked the thought of cuddling with Katie. We started to drive home, I took her hand, and fifteen minutes later we were pulling in the driveway. Katie and I got out of her car and got the bags out of the back seat, and we walked in the house. Mom was standing in the kitchen, smiling.

“I see you two went shopping, how much did you spend?” she asked, looking at me.

“Just shy of $300” I replied, “and I know what I’m going to wear for my first day at school.”

“Oh?” Mom asked, surprised. I nodded.

“This sweater,” I said pulling the pink sweater out of one of the bags, “This skirt,” I said laying the skirt at the bottom of the sweater. “A pair of black or pink tights, I haven’t decided which yet, and the boots I have on, with Katie having the keys.” Mom smiled thoughtfully.

“I think you should use pink ribbon for a pony tail or maybe let me do braided pigtails.”

“I’ve always like when Jen’s hair was in braided pigtails. I think it looks cute.” I glanced at Katie, who seemed thoughtful.

“Ok,” Mom said, “Run up to your sister’s room and get some elastic bands.”

“Ok,” I said standing up and straitening my skirt. I walked up to Jen’s room and found her elastics and brought them back downstairs. I had grabbed a brand new pack that had 20 bands in it. I opened it and laid them on the table. Katie picked up the white and 2 of the black elastic bands, and mom picked up the red and the other 2 black bands. 10 minutes later, I had a pair of perfectly braided pigtails, and went upstairs to find the blue nightgown that Jen had picked up earlier that night. Right next to it, was the pink one with a piece of paper on it that simply said “Katie”. I lifted the panties of the nightgown; I hadn’t noticed earlier that they had 3 rows of lace on the back side of them. I went to change and realized that Katie was standing behind me with a container of 14 keys, and the one that would open the two new locks on my wrists.

“You’re going to need these in order to change.” She said then she picked up a four inch length of chain and two locks. “Turn around,” She commanded, “Put your hands behind your back.” I did as she commanded. I kind of liked this, and was thinking about it when I heard two clicks; I tried to pull my hands around to the front and was unable to. I finally realized what the chains in the wrists were for. She took the keys and spread them around the room, placing some high and some low. Katie sat on the bed, and watched me try to collect all of the keys. She giggled at some of my attempts; of the keys I could collect I sat them on the bed. I stopped and looked at Katie.

“How many have I picked up?” I asked. She counted.

“I count 12” she replied. “That means you need 3 more, and I know one is to your wrists.” I figured it was marked some how. I tried to remember where she had placed all of the keys. They were all higher than what I could reach. I looked at Katie, and she was grinning like a cat that had just swallowed the canary. She had placed a few keys out of my reach on purpose.

“There’s some you can’t get your hands on. More specifically the ones for the locks at your wrists, the collar of your sweater, and the waist band of your skirt.” I stood on the bed and looked around the room. I saw a key on the top of the door frame, one more on the top of the hutch of my desk. I gave Katie a close look. She had a key on a necklace and I grabbed at it. Once I had managed to open the hasp, and pulled the necklace off of her I tried the key in the locks at my wrists. It opened one, and that was all I needed. I grabbed the other two keys and then threw Katie back on the bed, smothering her with kisses. I then proceeded to unlock my outfit. I had only unlocked the necklace that was sewn into the sweater when I thought about something. I looked at Katie.

“Do you have any dresses that you can lock shut?” I asked her. She grinned.

“Yes I do,” She said still grinning. “Would you like to see one?” She pointed toward the closet, where a denim dress hung, its front facing out into the room. It had a zipper that ran up the middle of the dress, with ten padlocks hanging open, keys in the keyholes of the locks. It looked like it would be ankle length, or maybe a little bit longer, requiring heels to fit properly. I walked over to it. I reached in the closet, pulling the dress out and holding it up to me. The back of the dress looked like it had a built in corset. I felt around where the waist would be, and sure enough there was some boning for a corset there. I glanced back at Katie with a quizzical look, and then continued to examine the dress. Over the lacing of the built in corset, was a zipper with a d-ring at the top, I assumed for a lock, to lock the occupant in the corseted dress. The locks down the front had no real bearing on the occupant’s ability to remove the dress, because with the corset in place it could not be removed. I had seen Katie wear a similar dress, except the one she had worn was knee length, and was khaki. The khaki dress had only 5 locks on the front, and she had told me once that the corset reduced her waist to 24” from 29”. I looked at Katie, she was grinning. I was really beginning to think that she liked being controlled. I kind of wondered who she had that held the keys for the majority of her outfits. I know it’s no fun if you don’t have some one else to hold the key.

“Who do you have hold your keys for your outfits?” I asked

“Now I have you, and I’ll hold yours. Before I used this.” She said, reaching into her bag and pulled out a necklace. The part that went around the neck was a chain that looked like a choke collar for a dog with the open padlock. In the middle of the chain, there was a clear box that closed with a single padlock. I gave the box a really close look. It looked like an eye ring had been screwed into the Plexiglas the box was made of. The closing mechanism was a piece of metal that had 4 little metal prongs that would slip into the openings on the box, when the closing mechanism was closed a padlock could be slipped into the two rings, closing the box with it’s contents locked inside, the keys somewhere else. I toyed with it for a while, and Katie just smiled.

“Let’s try on the dress you are going to wear tomorrow.” She said tugging at my skirt. I reached down and undid the zipper; however, the locks were not unlocked. I reached over to the bed, and started picking up keys, trying each one in the locks on the skirt. Eventually I found the right one for the zipper, leaving the key in the zipper; I picked up another key and tried it in the other locks on the skirt. On the fifth key I managed to open the other lock on the zipper of the skirt. Unzipping the zipper, and letting it go, it fell to the floor. I stepped out of the skirt, and tried the keys in the other locks, finally getting the three locks on the sweater open. On the bed there were six keys, which went to the boots. I reached for them.

“I don’t think so.” She said scooping the keys up and placing all but one key and lock in the box, she put it around her neck and locked it shut. She took the single lock, and twisting the closing mechanism, locked the box, keeping my boots on my feet. I had not noticed the fact that the keys for the dress were now in the box securely locked around Katie’s neck. Katie had gone over to the closet, and pulled out the dress. Pulling the locks out of their respective d-rings and sitting them on the bed, Katie unzipped the dress and helped me put it on. As she zipped it up, snapping padlocks shut as she went up I realized that the keys were in the box locked around Katie’s neck. I had not realized that the dress had a high neck that held the final padlock.

“Where are the keys for the dress?” I asked finally finding my voice.

“Around my neck. Suck in your tummy.” She said, and I did. I felt the corset tighten around my waist. It wasn’t too uncomfortable, and then Katie started tightening it down. I felt as if my intestines were going to be squeezed out of my rear end. After it got tighter than I thought it could, I heard the zipper close and a click. It was a thrill knowing that my waist size had been reduced, and I was trapped by Katie’s hand. That kind of excited me; I wondered how she felt holding the keys, trapping me in my dress.

“How does it feel having the keys for my dress in your control?”

“I kind of like being in control.” She said grinning. I wondered briefly what the roles being reversed, with me holding the keys. Katie and I sat and talked for a while, and I got used to the corset. Katie stood and stretched. She took off her skirt, sweater, and boots, and slipped her nightgown on. She turned away and pulled her panties and tights off, and slipped the pink panties up and I saw how much the matching baby blue nightgown would show on my body. The rows of lace on the panties stood out in contrast against the baby pink of her bum. Katie unlocked the box containing the keys and let me out of the dress.

“You’ll wear that dress tomorrow, and we’ll lace it a little bit tighter. You’ll also wear the necklace, and the keys for it will be here.” I picked up the nightgown, and slipped it over my head, and then picking up the panties, I slipped them up and tucked my twig and berries away for the night. I slipped into the bed next to Katie and fell promptly asleep.

Chapter 5: Shopping part 2
by Samantha Jenkins

I woke up to being snuggled by Katie; she was warm and still asleep. She was quite cute when she was asleep. I reached over and brushed her cheek, and smiled. I had managed to get my girlfriend even though I was also wearing skirts. I glanced at the clock. It was only 3:30 AM. I put my arm around her, and pulled the blanket up over both of us, then fell back asleep. The next thing I knew Katie was shaking me awake.

“Come on sleepy head, its 8:30 and we need to get shopping!” I shook my head, and tried to roll over. Katie pulled the blanket off the bed, and I got cold. I sat up and realized that I had to go to the bathroom. I stood up and noticed that Katie was already dressed, and her dress was all locked up. She had on a shorter version of what I was going to wear, and hers was made of pink corduroy instead of denim. She spun and showed me that her dress had a built in corset like mine, but it was not laced or zipped up. My dress was hanging in the closet like it was hung up last night, and over the chair at my desk were a pair of pink tights, and a baby pink thong and bra set. Katie saw me looking and smiled evilly.

“I’m going to run to the bathroom really quick.” I said getting up and walking toward the bathroom. Upon getting there I sat down and proceeded to relieve my self. After I stood up and wiped my self, I walked back to the bedroom and kissed Katie on the cheek. I then slipped the thong and bra on then walked over to the back side of her and started lacing her corset. I tightened it down and paused.

“Do you want it tighter?” I asked her.

“Keep going, I’ll tell you when you get it tight enough.” I kept going and after I shrunk her waist by about 6 inches when she said, “Enough.” I tied the laces off and then pulled the zipper down and locked it shut. She turned around and smiled. “Your turn,” She said, slipping her hand around my waist and steering me toward the bed. I sat and she brought the pink tights over. I started slipping them up my legs and then stood up. Katie had unzipped the dress and placed all of the keys in the little box on the necklace. I had just noticed that Katie had on a necklace that looked like the one that she had just locked my keys into.

“Are the keys for the necklace in my box?” I asked; she smiled.

“Yes they are," she said placing it around my neck locking the necklace inside the box and then locking the box. She then picked up my dress and held it out so I could put it on like it was a coat. I pulled the zipper up from the bottom as Katie started locking the locks. Once I was securely locked in the dress, Katie started lacing me in from the back. I felt the dress get tighter than it did the night before. I heard the click and spun to face Katie. She was now standing by the door that was closed and had a mirror attached to the back of it. Katie had reduced my waist by 3 or so inches. I sat on the bed and picked the boots up. I unzipped them and slid my feet into them and then locked them. I stood up. My dress had zippers down the left and right sides of the skirt portion, and they both were closed and locked.

“Katie, Why are there zippers on the sides?” I asked

“So I can control the length of your step.” She said with a small grin. “And right now, you have to take short steps, and place your feet in front of one another. Let’s go down and get some breakfast.” Katie was right; I did have to take short steps. I almost tripped going down the steps to the kitchen. Jen was standing there wearing a dress like what Katie and I had on. Jen’s dress was about mid thigh, and was made out of light blue twill colored fabric. Mom walked into the kitchen a few minutes after we had sat down.

“I spend a lot of money on new clothes for you and you wear Katie’s stuff.” She said with a smile on her face. I grinned.

“I’ll wear something of mine tomorrow, Speaking of tomorrow, are we going to church?”

“Yes, we are going to go with the same story we had for the restaurant. Josh is helping to rebuild Morgan’s house. Pick something out today and make it nice, I want short sleeves and a long skirt, and it has to be white or pink.”

“Ok.” I said looking at her. I had seen the perfect dress at Kohl’s the night before.

“Also, I have decided to have Katie help you to learn how to drive in heels, of course most females will have a pair of flat shoes to drive in but with your choice in footwear,” She paused, motioning to my boots that were locked shut. “Once you put your shoes on, you can’t take them off.” Katie and I had a nutra-grain bar each and some juice. Then we were off for a day of shopping. I had to get used to taking shorter steps, and the way the corset made my body move, by the time we had gotten to Katie’s Corolla I had noticed that my hips were swaying as I walked. I sat down in the front passenger seat after opening Katie’s door on the driver’s side. As Katie backed the car out of the driveway and started for the freeway, I was watching her feet working the pedals. She was keeping the heel of her right foot on the floorboard and pivoting her toes to hit the pedals, her left foot was working the clutch in pretty much the same fashion. Katie was one of the few girls I knew who could drive a stick shift, and she did it quite well. I knew how to drive one, but it had been a while since I learned. My father taught me one day when we went over to the school parking lot and he taught me the basics of driving a stick shift. He had also said that it was like riding a bike, and you never really forgot, just got rusty. We were driving down Leppert Road, when Katie made a left turn into the school parking lot.

“What are you doing?” I asked as she slowed the car to a stop and applied the parking brake.

“You and I are going to switch spots and your going to learn how to drive in heels.” She replied shutting the car off and opening her door. I opened my door and walked around to the driver’s side, pausing to kiss Katie, and then got in. The first thing I did was set my left foot on the clutch. Ok, this is a bit different. I was not used to my heel being 4 inches off the floorboard, and I managed to stall the car a couple of times. After I had gotten used to the difference in the height of the heels, I got pretty smooth at the shifting and accelerating. I knew that if I learned how to drive a stick shift in heels, driving mom’s Camry with the automatic would be simple. I pulled the car out into traffic and started making my way to the Kohls we were at the night before. As I pulled into the parking spot and stopped the car, Katie smiled.

“You’re a natural at driving a stick.” She said giving the hand that was on the shifter a squeeze before getting out of the car. I turned the key off and pulled the parking brake up so the car would not roll away without us in it. We got out and hooked our arms together and went inside. We went strait to the dress that I had seen the night before and I picked it up. Katie was over looking at panty hose.

“You should wear panty hose to church instead of tights,” she said. “They will look more adult; tights make you look more like a young girl.”

“Ok” I said. She had been doing this her whole life; I had only been doing this for 2 days. She selected a pair and placed two packages in the cart she had appropriated when we walked in the door. I gently laid the dress in the cart and went off toward the shoes. I wandered around the shoes for a few seconds and was approached by a sales associate.

“May I help you?” She asked looking me up and down as if to figure out why my dress and boots were locked shut. I stole a glance behind her at Katie who was smiling.

“I need a pair of shoes to go with a dress I’m buying.” I replied as Katie walked up beside me.

“Ok,” she said, now looking Katie up and down. “Which dress trying to get shoes for?”

“This one,” I said pulling the dress out of the cart. “And I'd like boots with a 3 inch heel.” I replied with a smile.

“Ok,” she replied “Were you wanting loafers, boots, sandals and what is your shoe size?” She looked at my feet.

“Seven and a half and I'd like boots, similar to what I have on.” I replied picking Katie's left foot up off the ground and looking at the bottom of her boot. She supported her self on my shoulder while she was balancing on one foot.

“I’m afraid we don’t have any boots that you can lock on your feet” she replied. I was getting frustrated with this woman.

“Ma’am I don’t want a pair that will lock shut to go with this dress, if I did, I’d wear the ones I have on now.” I stated as calmly as I could because I didn’t want to give away my true gender. I noticed a man at the end of the aisle in a short sleeved shirt and tie. I correctly guessed him to be a manager. Katie saw him and smiled.

“Who holds the keys to your boots and dress?” The woman responded with a snarl.

“Um, I do.” Katie said, and then looked at the manager who was now walking up behind the employee.

“I bet it turns you on to hold the keys to your girlfriend’s clothes.”

“Katie, Hun, What seems to be the problem here?” The manager responded.

“Hi, Daddy.” The look on the employee’s face, whose name tag her hair had finally uncovered, and read Jessica, turned a bright red. I looked from Jessica to Katie’s dad to Katie. Katie just smiled.

“I know who Jessica and my daughter is, but who is this young lady Pumpkin?” Her father asked.

“Daddy,” Katie responded turning a crimson color because of her dad’s pet name for her, “I’d prefer to tell you in your office.”

“Ok honey, Jessica, Clock out and go home, I’ll deal with you tomorrow. Katie if you and your friend would follow me to my office, please.”

“Ok daddy,” Katie replied grabbing the cart with one hand and my wrist with the other. He led us through the layaway department, back into the storeroom where we finally got to an office door that read “Don Richardson, General Manager.” He fished his keys out of his pocket and let us walk into the office before him, closing the door after he entered. Before he walked to his side of the desk and sat down, he took a moment to kiss each of us on the top of the head. I sat there thinking ‘what is he going to do when he finds out I’m really a boy who is being punished for wearing his sister’s clothes.’

“So, Katie, Who is this young lady that looks an awful lot like Jen?” He asked. Katie squeezed my hand to confirm my worst fears that she was going to expose me to her father. Little did I know that he would be perfectly accepting, almost adopting me as another daughter.

“Daddy, this is actually my boyfriend” she said giving this really cute smile after she said it and the surprise must have registered on my face. Her dad was smiling at me from across the desk.

“I see she has you all locked up and under her control.” He said smiling.

“Daddy, Her name is Morgan, His name is Josh. The reason that he looks an awful lot like Jen is because he is Jen’s younger brother, and is currently being punished for wearing his sisters clothing. He has to dress like this for the next 5 months.” She giggled. “I like him regardless of what he is wearing.”

“Well, Josh,” He started, smiling at me and Katie, who had a huge grin on her face, “Normally I would not allow my daughter to be alone with a boy with out me or her mother meeting him first, I am trusting you to not do any thing stupid or to hurt my little girl.” He looked at Katie, who had turned as red as beet because of her father’s concern for her welfare.

“Mr. Richardson, I would never think of harming Katie. I love her too much, and as for our relationship, we just started going out. Although, I do worry about Tuesday, I’m not sure how I’ll be handled at school and I’m kind of nervous about it.”

“You mean you’ll have to continue your punishment while you’re at school?” he asked. I nodded.

“Daddy, do you remember Alex Johnson?” Katie asked softly.

“Yeah, what about her?” he asked with a curious look on his face, almost as if he knew something about her that we didn’t.

“What ever happened to her?”

“I’m not sure honey. I know that her father got transferred out West somewhere. I’m sure she’s fine. Now, I have to get back to work, so you two run along and play nice, And Katie, use this when you check out.” He said handing her his managers discount card. Katie’s face lit up and a huge grin appeared.

“Ok, Daddy.” Katie answered with such enthusiasm that I thought she was going to start bouncing off the walls, and it was that moment that I knew I was going to be in trouble.

“And, Morgan, you need to come over and meet Katie’s mom, and I’m trusting that you will take care of Katie, and if you guys do decide to do any thing foolish, for God’s sake, use protection.” He said to me. Katie turned as red as a Coke can.

“I’ll take care of her, sir, and as for doing any thing foolish, let’s just say that I want my wedding night to be the first time.” That brought a smile to both Katie and her dad’s face. I nodded my farewell to him as Katie dragged me out of the door, and grabbed our cart.

“I think that Daddy likes you.” Katie said with a smile as we left the way we came in. We got some weird looks as we exited through the layaway department and headed back to the shoes. I had seen the shoes that I thought would go perfectly with the dress as we had gone to her dad’s office. I picked them up. They were a light pink pump with a two or three inch heel. I showed them to Katie.

“I think that you have found your shoes. One thing you will learn is that a woman never has enough shoes or purses.”

“You’re forgetting one thing.” I said, “I live with 2 other girls...”

“Oh yeah,” She replied with a grin.

“What time is it getting to be?” I asked.

“Ten o’clock. How’s your corset feel?”

“I’ve still got it on?” I asked looking down, smiling. “I’ve gotten used to it, if that’s what your asking”

“That is what I’m asking.” She said softly while pulling a key on a necklace that I did not see her put on before we left the house that morning. Undoing the clasp on the necklace, she took the key and unlocked the zipper over the corset and started tightening the corset. The corset got tight again, and I heard a faint click. Katie placed a small lock in my hand. I eyed it with curiosity.

“Now the key for your corset is in the box around your neck.” She said with a smile. We moseyed our way up to the checkout and used her dad’s discount card. After we checked out with no problems, we loaded the bags in the car, and Katie handed me the keys. “Lets go get lunch.” She simply stated.

Chapter 6
By Samantha Jenkins

I walked around to the drivers side and sat in the drivers seat, after opening the passenger side door for Katie. I put the car into gear and backed out of the parking spot. I drove in the direction that Katie pointed. I stopped at the light and managed to stall the car.

"Restart it, Morgan, before the light changes." Katie said with a grin. I turned the key and started the car again.

"I know." I said, and as the light changed, I put the Corolla in gear and made a left turn, toward the local pizza joint. As we drove, we started talking.

"I like this dress and the way it holds me tight. I can't really forget that I have it on, but at the same time I can't take it off either." I said to Katie as I stopped at a red light, with out stalling the car this time. I glanced over at her. she looked at me and blushed, and then looked away. I saw that the light had changed, and put the car in first gear and edged ever closer to the pizza shop. I turned the car into the parking lot of the pizza shop and backed the car into a parking spot. I turned the car off and looked over at Katie. Katie had glanced my direction when I turned off the car and then when I looked over at her, and she turned her head away again, blushing.

"What's up with you?" I asked her, she turned toward me again, with a smile.

"In you I have the best of both worlds, I have another girl to dress up in my 'special' outfits, and I have a boyfriend that I've been trying to get for a while." She said, a tear rolling down her cheek. I reached up and brushed it away.

"Does that mean that we are going out now?" I asked with a grin. Katie looked at me and smiled. "How long have you been wanting to get me?" I asked. Katie blushed and turned away. "It's ok, you can tell me." I said, placing my right hand on the top of her left hand.

"Yes, I guess you could say that we're going out now, and I've only been throwing signals your way for a year or so. I'm hungry. Lets go eat and discuss this inside." She glanced at the front door of the pizza shop. I got out and walked around to her side of the car and opened Katie's door for her.

“Thank you.” Katie said, with a little curtsy, as well as she could do in an ankle length dress with a built in corset. I took her hand as we walked into the pizza shop. We walked in and sat at a table. I looked around and saw some people that Katie knew from school. I knew that Katie knew them, because I knew them too. This was the first group of people that I had run into that I might have known while dressed in a skirt. After they watched Katie and I come into the pizza shop, one of the girls of the group approached us. I watched her approach the table that we had been sat at, walking pretty damn sure of her self on a pair of three or so inch heels. She was wearing a red turtleneck sweater and a short black and red plaid miniskirt. When she got to the table, I recognized her as Kristen, one of Katie’s friends from school.

“Hey Katie,” Kristen said as she sat at the table next to Katie.

"Hey Kristen, I didn't expect to see you here" Katie said, smiling. I watched as Katie winked at me, causing me to blush ever so slightly, but not enough for Kristen to notice.

"I didn't expect to see you come in either, I was just wondering who your friend was, because I've never seen her before." I looked at Kristen. I shared a math class and an english class with her, sitting right next to her in the English class.

"Kristen, Meet Morgan, she is Josh and Jen's cousin, and she will be staying with them for a while, Josh went to their house to help build something." Katie said.

“I can’t really see Josh helping with any type of construction, he has always struck me as girlish, but I could be wrong.” I felt my cheeks get warm when all of the blood flowed there because I was blushing. Katie shot me a look that appeared to say ‘sorry.’

“Actually, Josh has been working with my dad on designing the new shed that we are building.” I said trying to defend my self with out giving my self away. This took Kristen by surprise.

“Ah.” Kristen said, and looked back at the table she had gotten up from. “I’m going to go back over and sit with Mark, It was nice meeting you Morgan, and I’ll see you on Monday Katie.” Katie and I both nodded and watched as she went back to sit with her boyfriend. Katie and I looked at each other.

“Good save, Morgan.” Katie said. I smiled at her. “I would have never thought of anything like that. I’ve seen some of the stuff that you draw, you could be an architect.” When we moved into the house that we were living in, after measuring out my bedroom, I had drawn up a basic set of blueprints to figure out how to place stuff in the room to maximize the space that I had at my disposal. I had actually done a project in which some of the other students accused me of paying an architect to draw up the floor plans to the building that housed the project. The teacher called my mom and she had verified that I had in fact done the drawings, and had not payed for them to be done for me. I took my laptop to school the next day and showed the teacher, who said that I should look into architecture as a career. I had looked into it and was seriously considering doing it.

“I have actually designed a shed for Julie’s mom and dad to hold all of their stuff. I drew it up and they built it exactly as I had drawn and the thing ended up surviving a flood.” I paused and took a drink of the glass of water I had got when we had sat down. “I’m probably going to end up spending the rest of my life doing it, It’s something that I enjoy.” I motioned to the clothes that I had on, “Kind of like this.” Katie smiled.

“That’s basically what I do when it comes to modifying the clothes so that I can put locks on every thing.” Katie said, tugging on one of the locks of her dress. I saw Katie look over my shoulder and give a little smirk. I glanced over and saw that our pizza was coming toward us, being carried by a server. Now one thing that I have to tell you, dear reader, is that Katie normally doesn’t eat pizza.

After we had eaten the pizza, Katie looked at me, and had a grin appear on her face. It was one of those looks like she was thinking about something.

“What?” I asked her, knowing the look that she was giving. I watched as she reached up and played with the simple gold stud that she had in each of her ear lobes. Katie had only had her ears pierced for just over a year, her mother refusing to have them done until she turned fifteen. I had worn clip on earrings for the play because my character had worn some dangly earrings, and if I had gotten my ears pierced just for the play, I couldn’t have worn the ear rings that my character wore because the holes would not have heeled to the point where I could. Katie looked at me sand smiled.

“We should get your ears pierced.” Kate said, after taking a drink of her Sprite that was sitting next to her. I thought about it, knowing that at the moment no part of my punishment was leaving permanent marks on any part of my body. I looked at Katie.

“I’d want to discuss it with mom first.” I said. Jen had her ears pierced at ten so I didn’t think that mom would mind, but I also knew that it would be my responsibility to maintain my newly pierced ears, and I also knew that I would be stuck with them until the holes heeled enough to take the studs out without then holes closing. Katie smiled at me.

“Ok, can I pick the ear rings that you get?” She asked, practically bouncing off of the wall.

“Mom gets to approve it, but, yes you can pick out my new ear rings.” I watched one of those grins that told me that I had just made a mistake. I seemed to be doing that a lot in the last few days, making mistakes. I took a drink of my water and then looked at Katie. “What are you thinking?” I asked. Katie smiled. I didn’t get an anwser as Katie paid for the pizza . Katie handed me the keys to the car.

“You’re driving” she said as we walked out the door and got into the car. where I got in and stated driving home. the entire ride was in silence . I caught her looking at me and when I looked at her, she looked away, smiling.
I backed the car into the driveway and set the parking brake. I shut the car off and got out and walked around to Katie's side and opened her door for her.

Chapter 7
By Samantha Jenkins

Katie, Jen, my mom and I sat around the table Sunday night eating a pot roast that I had made in the crock pot as part of my punishment.

“Mrs. Smith,” Katie said after eating a bite of potato. My mom looked at her. “I was thinking that Morgan should get her ears pierced.” Mom looked surprised.

“Why is that, Katie?” Mom asked, sitting her fork down on the table. She was obviously interested in this, and wanted all of the details. Katie had used the time today that we were not together to do some searching and pulled some papers out of her purse.

“I think it looks odd for a girl that is Morgan’s age to not have her ears pierced. I was thinking these,” Katie said, pointing to a pair of four millimeter gold studs, or at least that’s what the piece of paper said they were. Katie had printed a page that was in color on a black and white printer. they looked like a simple black dot to me. “And besides, she should just have it done anyway.”

“Why,” Mom said looking at me.

“As part of the punishment that may not actually be a punishment.” Katie paused, ate a carrot, and continued.

“I’m thinking that there may be more to this than meets the eye. How many times has Morgan gotten caught wearing girls clothes?” Mom seemed surprised at this, and had to think about it. while Mom was thinking, Katie continued her train of thought. “Jen, remember how the boots were locked when you found Morgan when you came home from school earlier than you were supposed to?” Jen nodded, and then it was like a light turned on in her head. Jackie Smith had the same thing happen at almost the same time.

“Josh, you were trying to get caught, weren’t you?” Mom said. All of the other times I had been caught, were completely by accident, this time, however, Mom hit the nail on the head. Jen looked at me.

“You knew that Katie had the keys, and you locked the boots so that you would have no way out once you were dressed the way that you wanted to be. You had been planning this for a while and was hoping that Mom would be the first one home to catch you, but I beat her too it.” All I could do was look at the floor and nod.

“Let’s finish eating and then we will go into the living room and discuss this.” Mom said. The rest of the meal was eaten in silence

#

Jen and Mom cleared away the dishes while Katie and I went into the living room and sat down to wait on them.

“There is more to this, isn’t there?” Katie asked me, after I had sat down. I just looked at her.

“I don’t know.” I started, feeling tears welling up in my eyes. I wasn’t really sure how to go about this. Mom and Jen walked in the living room, carrying a pot of coffee, cups, cream and sugar. Mom was the first one to see that I was about to start crying. I looked at Mom and Jen.

“I think I’m in the wrong body...” I said before breaking down into a ball of goo on the floor. Katie was the first one to my side, hugging me. Mom knelt down and helped me up off of the floor and sat me on her lap, dragging Katie along for the ride because she wouldn’t let go. Mom just hugged me.

“Honey, why didn’t you tell some one about this? We could have helped you sooner.” Mom said, rocking me, and Katie, because she still had a grip me, gently. I sniffled and looked at Mom.

“I don’t know, I’ve always thought that you would think of me as a failure. I’ve felt that every thing has been wrong since you caught me in Jen’s dress just after Dad died. I lobbied Mrs. Cartwright to get the girls role in the play so that I could dress as a girl for three weeks strait with out any one saying any thing. I knew Katie had the keys to the locks that Jen had on her boots because Katie had told me her self and also told me that she kept them in her jewelry box so that she would always know where they were. Mom you were supposed to be the first one home, you were supposed to be the one that found me all dressed up. I’m sorry.” I said in two breaths. Mom’s response was to simply hug me. Katie had let go about halfway through my breathless story.

“I’m going to call a psychologist tomorrow, I want to get you in to get evaluated.” Mom hugged me again.

“Katie are you staying the night?” I glanced at Katie who looked at mom.

“If you think I need to. I can.” Katie said. Mom nodded. “I’m going to call home and let mom and dad know.” she said, and left the living room.

“Morgan, I’m sorry.” Jen said, giving me a hug. This caught mom and I both by surprise.

“For what?” I sniffled.

“For teasing you without end the entire time you were practicing for your role in the play. I had no idea that this was going through your head.” Jen took my left hand in both of hers. “I am so sorry.” she said, I looked into her eyes and saw that they were just about to the point of leaking because of the tears that were welling up in them. I did the only thing I could think of: I hugged my sister. Mom just smiled at us. For once we were at peace rather than at each other’s throats like most siblings are.

“Can I expect peace and quiet now?” Mom asked with a smile. Jen and I smiled at each other, and pushed away from one another as Katie came back in the room.

“Jen, I can’t believe that you just hugged me, yuck.” I said, sticking my tongue out at her. Katie just stood there for a second, taking in the scene and then burst out laughing. Laughter is contagious, or so they say, so as a result every one started laughing.

“I let mom know that I’m staying over.” Katie said, her laughter subsiding. Mom nodded.

“I know you guys don’t have school tomorrow, but I am throwing out a vote for the three of you sleeping in here so that you can discuss things.” The three of us looked at each other. “Josh,” Mom said, using my male name. “you get to decide what you wear tomorrow. You two,” Mom said pointing at Jen and Katie. “Let him decide. Josh, if you want to wear a skirt or dress then do it, if you want to wear pants, do that instead. I’ll put your pants in your room before you go to bed.” Mom said standing. “Josh and Jen, you guys know where the sleeping bags are, go get them, and Katie if you would help me move the table out of the way so that when they get back we could just set the sleeping bags out.”

#

“So, what are you going to wear tomorrow?” Katie asked, propping her self up on her left elbow. I just looked at her and smiled.

“You’ll have to find out tomorrow.” I said to her. Jen, who was on the other side of me pouted.

“You know, Morgan,” Jen started. “We have gotten along better over the last two days than we have in the last year or so.” I rolled over and looked at her, and then smiled.

“Ya, know, you’re right.” I said to Jen. We hugged. “Lets keep it this way, regardless of what happens.” I said to her. Jen smiled at me, and then hugged me.

#

I woke up the next morning to sunlight streaming in through the window. I heard Jen and Katie’s voices from the kitchen and sat up and looked at the clock on the wall. I shook my head after reading that it was twenty minutes until ten. I hadn’t slept in that late in I wasn’t sure how long. I stood and felt the soft satin of the nightgown that I had put on before falling asleep brush against my bare legs and went into the kitchen.

“So she awakes.” I nodded and looked at Mom, who looked like she was about ready to say something, which she was.

"You have an appointment with Dr. Franklin at two this afternoon, I laid out two outfits on your bed. I want you to eat breakfast and then go get a shower. We need to leave here around twelve thirty to get there with enough time to fill out the paperwork that we will need to fill out." I looked at mom and nodded. Jen and Katie both came up to me and gave me a hug. Katie was the first to speak.

"We are going to support you no matter what the doctor says." She said, hugging me again. "You already know what you are going to wear right now even with out seeing what ever you mom laid out for you, don't you?" Katie asked. I looked at her and smiled.

"Yes, and you're going to have to wait to find out what I choose to wear." I said, eating the scrambled eggs that mom had placed on a plate for me. I finished my eggs and put the plate in the dishwasher and started it. I went upstairs and looked at the two outfits that mom had laid out on the bed. At the head of the bed, was a pair of khaki slacks and a grey polo; at the foot of the bed was the royal blue and white plaid pleated skirt and a white button down blouse. I figured that mom had a reason for selecting the two outfits, so I decided that I wouldn't mess with either one of them and wear which ever one I put on. Like Katie had said, I already knew which one I was going to wear before I even saw them. I took off all of my clothes and grabbed the baby pink robe that hung in my closet and put it on, and headed for the bathroom to take my shower. After I took my shower, and shaved what little body hair that I had off, I went back into my room and opened the drawer that contained all of my undergarments. I pulled out a pair of white panties and a white bra and put them both on. I dug around in my sock drawer for the white knee socks that I knew were in there. After finding them, I put them on and then slipped the skirt up to my waist, buttoning and zipping the side of it. I picked up the blouse and put it on, buttoning the buttons much faster than a guy should be able to do on a woman's blouse with the buttons on the 'wrong' side. I grabbed some royal blue ribbon and went back into the bathroom and brushed my hair. When I was done, I put my hair up in a ponytail and tied the ribbon in it. I went back into my room and found my mary janes with a two inch heel and put them on. Looking at my self in the mirror in the hallway, I decided that I was presentable and I walked downstairs to greet every one else. Jen was the first to see me enter the kitchen, and she just smiled. Katie who was talking to her with her back to me, saw the smile and turned around. Katie jumped up out of the chair and bounced over to where I was to give me hug. Mom heard the sound of the chair scooting back from the table and turned around to look at me. The only thing that Mom did was smile. I sat at the table and had some coffee with Jen and Katie. Mom came over and sat down with us.

"Morgan, I knew which one you would pick, and that is why I picked out that skirt and blouse." Mom said.

"That and I wanted to see how cute it was on you." She said, smiling. Mom glanced past Jen’s head and looked at the clock, which read that it was quarter after twelve. "We should get going." Mom said, standing. Jen and Katie stood.

"Call us as soon as you are you your way home and let us know what happens." Katie said, giving me a hug.

"We'll be thinking about you." Jen said hugging me. Mom walked out to the garage where her car was parked and got in and opened up the garage door. I walked out and got in, smoothing my skirt as I sat down. I saw Katie and Jen give a smile of approval, and mom was also smiling. Mom backed out of the garage and closed the door and then we were on our way to Dr. Franklin's office.

Chapter 8
By Samantha Jenkins

Mom and I were driving down the road when I started to get nervous about seeing Dr. Franklin. Mom sensed this and patted my leg.

“Don’t worry sweetie.” Mom said. "Every thing will be alright." I smiled at her. "You have such a pretty smile, I've always thought that it looked more like your father's than my own. Are you aware that you look just like me when I was your age?" Mom asked, slowing the car to a stop at a traffic light.

"No, I didn't know that." I said, feeling my cheeks get warm because I was blushing. I turned and looked out the window.

"You blush easier than your sister." Mom said, with a giggle. "What's on your mind, other than seeing Dr. Franklin?" Mom asked. I just turned and looked at mom.

"I'm not sure." I said, turning and looking back out the window as mom got on the freeway. I had seen Dr. Franklin after dad died and had gotten to know her quite well. She had helped greatly then and I hoped that she would help now. “I guess I’m just worried about what Dr. Franklin is going to say about this. I mean, she saw me after dad died, and I seemed like a normal boy then, but I’ve not been a normal boy since well before that. Do you think that she picked up on that?” I asked, feeling a tear start to fall. “I’ve felt like I’m trapped in the wrong body since I was about ten. I’m not sure why, but I just feel that I should have been born a girl.” Mom just glanced over at me.

“I know sweetheart, I just want you to be happy, if that means that you have to become a girl to do it, then so be it. Your sister and I will support you every step of the way, and so will Katie.” Mom said. I started laughing. “What?”

“If I become a girl, you know have the surgery and every thing, will that make me a lesbian?” Mom just gave me a funny look and then started laughing her self. “Well, it’s an honest question.” I said.

“I know. it’s just the thought of my daughter, who used to be my son, being a lesbian...” Mom let the thought trail off as she turned into the parking lot of the building that housed Dr. Franklin’s office. When she stopped the car and shut it off, I realized that I hadn’t brought my purse with us.

“Mom, I forgot my purse at home.” Mom just looked at me and smiled.

“Your purse should be the one thing you don’t leave the house with out, young lady.” She said as we got out of the car. “I doubt you’ll need it for any thing right now, but make it a habit to grab it when ever you leave the house.” Mom stopped and opened up the door so that we could go into the building. I walked in and then pushed the button that would take us up on the elevator, which opened, so I stepped inside and held the door open so that mom could board the elevator. Mom pushed the button for the sixth floor and the doors closed and the elevator rose to the sixth floor. When the doors opened, we stepped out and walked up to a door that was labeled ‘Julie Franklin, PH.D” I took a deep breath and opened up the door. The receptionist glanced up as the bell on the door rang when I opened it. She smiled at me, I smiled back.

“Good afternoon,” Mom said. “I’m Jackie Smith, and my son Josh has a two pm appointment with Dr. Franklin.” The receptionist looked at me and then raised her eyebrows. She looked down at the appointment book and then looked at mom, grabbed some papers and a clipboard and handed them to mom.

“I need all of this filled out and Dr. Franklin will probably take Josh back before you get it all filled out, but that’s fine.” She said. She smiled at me. “Things have changed for you since the last time I saw you, you don’t look any thing like you did then. You may even confuse Dr. Franklin.” She said with a giggle. I blushed again and smiled at her, and then went to go sit next to mom, who had started filling out the paperwork. The door that went back to where Dr. Franklin’s office was opened and Dr. Franklin looked around the waiting room.

“Jackie, I thought this appointment was for Josh.” She said. Mom and I both smiled.

“I’m here, Julie.” I said, causing Dr. Franklin to do a double take and the receptionist to giggle again. Dr. Franklin shot her receptionist a look.

“Come on back.” Julie Franklin said, sweeping her hand toward the office and consulting areas that were behind the door. Once the door going into the waiting area was closed Julie led the way to her office.

“What do you want me to call you?” She asked as we entered her office.

“Morgan.” I said, sitting down on the couch, Dr, Franklin sat in the chair that faced the couch. As I sat I smoothed my skirt, Dr. Franklin noticed and made some notes on a notepad that was sitting on her desk.

“Ok, Morgan, what seems to be going on?” She asked. “I see how your dressed and assume that has something to do with why you are here today.” I nodded and started at the beginning.

“When I was about ten, I started feeling that I was a girl trapped in a boy’s body. I tried to ignore the feelings as much as I could but it always bothered me when I would see a girl at school wearing a cute dress, or a skirt. I wished that I was her and that I could always wear a skirt with out any one saying any thing. When I was twelve, my dad died in a car accident, which you know about; well around one month after his sudden passing, I snuck a dress of Jennifer’s out of her room and put it on.” I paused and took a drink of water. Dr. Franklin stopped writing and looked at me. “Mom caught me in the dress and ‘punished’ me by making me wear the dress the next day. What mom didn’t realize was that it wasn’t a punishment, but that I enjoyed wearing the dress that day. Around a year later we had a play at school, When no girls had auditioned for the female lead role, I persuaded Mrs. Cartwright to allow me to take the lead role and do it even though I was a boy. She allowed me to do it and as a result I got to live as a girl for the month leading up to the play, That was one of the happiest months of my life. I’ve dressed up off and on since then, usually going into Jen’s closet and wearing her stuff because we are the same size, and on Friday, I decided that it was time to get caught.” I paused and took a drink of water again. Dr. Franklin just kept writing on her notepad. “Jen has a pair of boots that have some straps on them that lock shut, well I put on a pink pleated skirt, black turtleneck, a pair of black tights, and the boots. I knew that Katie had the keys to the boots so I locked them. Mom decided that I needed to be punished for wearing Jen’s clothes, yet again, so she told me that I had to dress as a girl at least for this weekend, with today ending the period that I have to dress in skirts. Mom gave Jen some money and told her to take me shopping, which she did. While we were shopping, I tried to sneak a pair of pants in with every thing that we were buying and that added time to my punishment. I’m up to spending the next five months like this, but I don’t’ want it to end after that, I don’t want to have to go back to dressing in boring boy’s clothes. I want to be a girl.” Dr. Franklin stopped writing and looked at me.

“So this is a punishment, but it’s not because you feel that you should be dressing this way anyway, right?” She said. I nodded.

“Yes, Mom told me that I could dress how I wanted to dress today. She laid out two outfits, one was a boy’s outfit consisting of a pair of khaki slacks and a grey polo, and the other a girls outfit consisting of what I’m wearing. You can see which choice I made. Give me a choice between a skirt or dress versus a pair of pants and the skirt or dress will win hands down.” I said. Dr. Franklin looked at me.

“Ok, I don’t need you to show me, but are you wearing boys or girls undergarments?” She asked. I smiled and she scribbled something else on her notepad.

“Girls, it would feel weird to wear boys underwear with a skirt.” I said.

“Tell me about your friends.” Dr. Franklin said.

“Well, I’d have to say that my best friend is Katie Richardson,” I said. “She would be the same Katie that had the keys to the locks on the boots. I learned that she has been throwing signals my way for a while, trying to let me know that she was interested in a relationship with me. I’ve thought about it before but approaching girls for that kind of relationship has never been easy for me. but I’m not attracted to guys either.” More scribbling on the notepad, and then flipping a sheet. “It seems to me that I hang out with the girls more than I do the guys. I know that all of the girls were supportive of me taking the lead female role in the play and I know more than a few that were jealous because they thought that I looked better than them. I mainly hang out with girls at lunch, and Jen and I get along more like sisters would rather than brother and sister. When I was younger I always envisioned my self as the damsel in distress.” I took another drink of water. Dr. Franklin just scribbled some more and looked up when I hadn't said any thing for a few minutes. I had never realized how distressed that I actaully was with the situation. I felt a tear roll down my cheek. Dr. Franklin handed me a tissue. I wiped the tears from my face. "I don't want to have to
go back to being a boy." I said.

"Morgan, can you go sit in consultation room two, while I look some stuff up and talk to your mom?" I nodded, thinking that Dr. Franklin knew that I was off my rocker and that she was going to have me committed. I got up and walked into the room labeled 'Consult 2,' not realizing that the room had video cameras and also contained a lot of toys. Most were for kids much younger than my self, but not all. I found a puzzle and decided that I would start putting it together. Mom and Dr. Franklin went into the room next to consult two and watched me putting the puzzle together on a video monitor. The puzzle I had selected was a ‘my little pony’ puzzle that had been in the office for quite some time.

#

“Jackie.” Dr. Franklin began, “My preliminary diagnoses is that Morgan has something called Gender Identity Disorder. I’m going to write notes for the school, so that she can attend as she is and use the girls rest rooms, locker rooms, etcetera. I want her to live full time as a girl for the next five months, and I want her to keep a diary, She is only allowed to wear girls clothing and I want to see her every two weeks for the foreseeable future.” Mom nodded and glanced at the monitor again.

Chapter 9
By Samantha Jenkins

Mom and Dr. Franklin both walked into the room where I was. I glanced up from my puzzle when they entered. Dr. Franklin was the first to speak.

“Morgan, My preliminary diagnoses is that you have something called ‘Gender Identity disorder.’ What this means for you is that you feel that you are a girl, trapped in a boy’s body.” Dr. Franklin paused, took a breath, and continued. “I told your mom that I want you to keep a diary, journal, something of that nature so that you can keep track of your feelings. I also told your mom that I want you to remain in girls clothing, and nothing else until I decide that you can have your boy’s clothes back. I want to see how serious you are about wanting to be a girl. I don’t think it’s a phase, but I want to make sure and making you do it day after day is going to do that. Your mom has notes for the school saying that you are allowed ot use the girls locker rooms, and the bathrooms.” I reached up to stop a tear that was rolling down my cheek. “Are you ok, Morgan?” She asked. I didn’t trust my self to speak so I simply nodded. I was having my outward appearance finally match the way my heart felt.

“Every thing is going to match finally.” I said, after soaking in all of what was happening. I stood up and hugged Mom, and then sat back down. Mom just smiled at me.

“I’m glad you’re happy, honey.” she said.

“I also want to see you every two weeks for a while so we can talk about how your transitioning is going. Your mom can set that up with Suzanne on the way out. Do you have any questions for me?” Dr. Franklin asked.

“No, Dr. Franklin. I’ll call you if I need any thing, and I’ll see you in two weeks.” Dr. Franklin walked us back out to the waiting room. Mom stopped to speak briefly with Suzanne about my next appointment, and then we walked back out to the car. After we both had sat down and put our seat belts on, I looked over at Mom.

“I don’t have a diary or journal or any thing like that.” I said, rolling down my window because the inside of the car was warm from the sun beating into it; I was just glad that mom’s car had cloth seats. “And I don’t know what I’m going to wear to school tomorrow, I have on what I was going to wear.” Mom glanced at me as she stopped at the stop light.

“We’ll stop and get you a diary, complete with the little lock... and you had thought far enough ahead to figure out what you were going to wear to school tomorrow?” Mom smiled. “Just like your sister. What was your back up choice?” she asked. I hadn’t thought about that.

“I didn’t have one.” I said as mom got on the interstate. I rolled up my window as mom reached over and turned on the AC so that the inside of the car would cool down. It was unseasonably warm and I was glad that I was just wearing a short skirt and a blouse rather than wearing an ankle length skirt and a sweater. Mom turned into a Borders that happened to be on the way home. “What are we doing here?” I asked. Mom just turned and looked at me.

“Getting you a diary, and I want to pick up John Grisham’s latest novel.” Mom said, pulling the car into a parking spot. we got out and walked in, and as we did, I had to learn something new: how to hold a short skirt down when the wind blew. Mom saw me trying and giggled. I was glad when we got into the vestibule and I no longer had to contend with the wind. after we got inside, I headed toward where I thought the diaries were. I ended up wandering around the store for a little bit. I had found my way into the general fiction section when I had an employee walk up to me.

“Do you need any help, Miss?” the employee whose name tag read Elizabeth asked me.

“Actually I do.” I said to her. “I’m looking for diaries, journals, that sort of thing.” I smiled, aware hat I was blushing slightly. Elizabeth smiled.

“There over here.” She said, turning and walking toward where I had started my browsing. When we got over to one aslie over from where I had started I saw a whole shelf full of journals and diaries. “Can I help you with any thing else?” she asked, with a smile.

“I think that’ll do it for right now, thanks.” I said to her. She nodded and walked away, smiling. I looked at the vast selection of bound volumes filled with blank pages trying to decide which one would hold the chronicles of my journey from boyhood to girlhood. I looked at a journal that locked that had a pink cover. I picked it up and opened it, inside were pastel pink pages that were lined in purple ink. I grabbed two of them and went off to find mom. After I had found mom I showed her the two journals that I had selected.

“Ok,” She said, placing them into the basket. “Why two of them, though?”

“I just have this odd feeling that I am going to fill one of them up pretty quickly, this way we don’t have to come back in two weeks to get another one.” Mom knew that my math on filling one of the volumes that would start chronicling my life would surely not fill up in two weeks, but it would be more like a month before I filled it up.

“Ok.” she said with a shrug, wrapping an arm around me as we walked toward the checkouts. After we had bought her books and my journals, she made an unexpected stop at the local mall.

“Umm Mom, what are we doing at the mall?” I asked. She looked at me and smiled, and then pulled up to the doors where Jen and Katie were standing.

“Hop out and go meet your sister and Kaite, but wait for me before you guys go anywhere.” I nodded and got out of the car and got attacked by Katie.

“What did the doctor say?” She asked. Jen looked interested as well.

“Lets wait for mom to get over here, I have no clue what she has up her sleeve.” I said.

“We don’t know. She called while you guys were still at Dr. Franklin’s office and told us to meet you guys here.” Katie said, crossing her arms over her chest. She had on a simple red and black plaid pleated skirt and a red long sleeved blouse. Jennifer was wearing the same pink pleated skirt and black turtleneck that I had put on when she caught me wearing it on. Both Katie and Jen had on what looked to be black patent leather mary janes. Mom walked up behind me.

“I see you girls dressed as I asked you to.” Mom said. Jen and Katie nodded. “Did one of you grab Morgan’s purse?” Katie nodded and pulled my purse off of her left arm and handed it to me. I smiled at her. “We are going to go to a store that I am choosing, and you three will tag along, and then we will go eat.” Mom walked into the mall and the three of us followed. Mom went into the mall, up the escalator, and walked into Claire’s. I glanced at Katie. Katie had this grin on her face like she knew what we were doing from the start but I don’t think that she really did, but that she just had an idea of what was going to happen.

“Welcome to Claire’s” the employee, whose name tag read Arika. “What can I do for you ladies?”

“Well, I’d like to get my daughters ears pierced." Mom said.

Chapter 10
By Samantha Jenkins

I looked at Mom, not believing what was happening. it was less than twenty four hours ago that the issue had been brought up for the first time.

“Which one is your daughter?” Arika asked, walking toward us. Mom looked at the three of us.

“The one in the blue and white plaid skirt.” Mom said.

Arika smiled at me and patted the chair where I would be sitting when I would get tortured by two little sharp pointy objects. Arika opened a drawer and pulled out a plastic container that had each of what the piercing ear rings looked like and handed it to mom who was standing next to me.

“Ok,” Arika looked at me. “What is your name, sweetie?” She asked me, after I had sat in the chair.

“My name is Morgan.” I said, taking a seat in the chair. I watched as Mom handed the container that had all of the ear rings to Katie. I watched as Mom and Katie looked over their choices.

“How many holes?” Katie asked mom. Mom glanced at me and smiled.

“How many do you think Katie?” Mom asked. Katie looked at me with a grin that told me that I was in trouble.

“I think,” Katie said, pausing and drawing out her answer. “Two in each ear.”

“Ok, since Katie is picking out the studs that are going to go in your ears, I’m going to start with some basic care instructions, you will want to clean your ears at least three times a day with the antiseptic that we will give you for the first 6 weeks. You will need to keep the piercing studs in for the first six weeks, and after that you have to keep some form of stud in for a total of six months after that. You shouldn’t wear dangly ear rings or hoops until after that six month period. Now I’m going to mark your ears so that you can see where your new ear rings will be.” Arika said, picking up a purple felt tipped pen. Katie looked over at us.

“I picked out the ones that I think would look nice.” Katie spun the plastic thing that held a single of each earring stuck through cardboard. “In one hole, the ruby birthstone studs, because ruby is Morgan’s birth stone, and in the other this one.” Katie pointed to the white gold crystal rose daisy studs that were mounted in the in the case. I just looked at Katie, who smiled. She had picked the second one mainly because it was girly.

“Ok,” Arika said pulling them out of a drawer that she unlocked with a key hanging off of her wrist.

I just kind of sat there as she prepared to pierce my ears. I watched, everything happening in slow motion and she called another employee over and they both picked up piercing guns, held one on each side of my head and counted to three. I felt a small pinch, and just like that, I had a set of newly pierced ears. I sat there and watched as Arika and her coworker reloaded the guns with the daisy studs. Once Arika and her partner in torture were back in place they started counting again. I felt the same pinching sensation and then I was handed a mirror so I could see my ears. I liked the way my new earrings looked in my ears.

Mom, Katie and Jen had all browsed the store while I was getting sharp pointy things stuck in my ears. They had selected a bunch of jewelry that I could wear after my holes had healed enough to switch out the earrings, plus some necklaces. I watched as mom paid close to $100 for every thing that had been bought, plus the piercings. I was handed the bright pink bag that said “Just got My ears Pierced!” and we walked out of the store.

Katie and Jen headed for the JC Penny store that was close to Claires. Mom and I followed, with me resisting the urge to reach up and play with my new earrings, because I didn’t want to get them infected. Jen and Katie just went into the juniors section and started looking at dresses. Mom had steered me toward the intimates department. Apparently she didn’t think I had enough in the way of bras and panties, which I probably didn’t. Mom started grabbing some plain white cotton panties when I saw the pretty colored satin panties and walked over to them. I picked up several pair in my size in various colors. Mom just looked at me and smiled.

“I like that choice,” She said. Jennifer was about sixteen when she started to wear satin panties. I remembered that because I remember taking a pair of baby pink satin panties and keeping ahold of them for quite a while before they got lost somewhere. I took my selections back over to the juniors department where Katie was pretty much hiding behind a stack of dresses in her arms.

“We found some dresses for you.” was all that she said, I still was able to hear the smile in her voice. All of the dresses that she was holding were pastel colors, my favorite being the pastel pink, blue, yellow, and green striped one that was on the top of the stack. Mom liked each one of the dresses and had me try on every one, electing to buy all of them, plus the intimates that we had selected. We walked out to the car and dropped the bags in mom’s trunk, and then went back into the mall for a late lunch.

Chapter 11
By Samantha Jenkins

Mom pulled into the garage, with Jennifer pulling up right behind her in the driveway. Mom shut off the car and popped the trunk so that I could take my spoils to my room and hang them up. After I hung the dresses up and put my new panties and bras in the top drawer of my dresser. I looked around my room, well the room that was mine now. My old room was off limits until, well who knows when. I went back downstairs to where Jen and Katie were working in the kitchen making something for dinner.

“What are you guys making?’ I asked. looking into the casserole dish that was laying on the counter, empty. on the stove there was a pan of noodles that was boiling, and on the counter there was two cans of condensed cheddar cheese soup that were unopened as well as two cans of tuna. Looking at all of the ingredients and ignoring the cook book, I decided that they were making a batch of Tuna Noodle Casserole. I had helped mom make it before so I opened the cans of tuna and drained them, and then opened up the two cans of cheddar soup. Jen took the noodles and dumped them into the strainer that was in the sink, and fogged up the window in the process.

“Tuna Noodle Casserole.” Jen replied rinsing off the noodles. “But I think you have already figured that out.”

I smiled at her. Katie was busy opening up a can of corn and some green beans. and putting those into sauce pans so that we could get them warmed up so they would be ready when the casserole came out of the oven. I started mixing the flour and butter and cheddar cheese soup together and then added the tuna as Jen poured the noodles into the bowl that I had mixed the rest of the ingredients in. after every thing was mixed really well, we dumped it into the casserole dish and put it in the oven and then cleaned up the dishes that we had made a mess of while we were mixing every thing.

Katie set the table as we waited for the food to finish cooking.

Mom came in the back door. She must have gone out while I was putting all of my new clothes up. She was carrying what looked to be a cake. I couldn’t’ figure out why Mom would have a cake. She put the cake in the freezer and looked at the three of us.

“The cake is for after dinner, no one is allowed to look at it until then.” Mom said, closing the freezer. Jen, Katie and I looked at each other and shrugged. Katie started to get dishes out to set the table, and I grabbed the silverware, the three of us working in silence. Normally, silence would have made mom wonder, but the three of us were busy getting dinner ready so that Mom didn't have to cook dinner. I took the pot of coffee out to mom and poured her a cup of coffee. Mom looked up at me smiled, and then patted the cushion next to her. I sat down, smoothing my skirt as I did, Mom looked at me and smiled again. “So,” She started. “What are you going to wear tomorrow?” She asked.

“I’m not sure, I was thinking about asking Katie and Jen their ideas, or just finding something and putting it on after I take a shower in the morning.” Mom just smiled again, and that was kind of making me worry.

“Morgan, can I lay out two outfits for you to wear tomorrow, and then you pick one out to wear?” I looked at Mom, I trusted her judgment.

“If I don’t want to wear what you lay out can I pick out my own clothes?” Mom nodded at me.

“I trust your judgment, but I reserve the right to review your outfit before you leave the house.” She said with a smile.

“Yes, Mommy.” I said. We heard a ding come from the kitchen.

“Dinner is done.” I heard Jen shout from the kitchen. I stood up and offered Mom my hand to help her stand up. Mom took my hand and stood and we walked into the kitchen together. When we walked in, Jen was scooping out casserole onto the plates that Katie had sat on the table before I went into give Mom some coffee.

“Mom, Morgan, have a seat, we are serving dinner.” Mom and I glanced at each other and then sat at the table. Katie and Jen served the food and then sat at the table. We started to eat in silence, when Jennifer looked at me and smiled.

“So what are you going to wear to school tomorrow?” Jen asked, causing Katie to stop eating for a few minutes, mainly because she wanted to hear my answer. Mom looked at both of the girls from her place at the head of the table.

“I am laying out two outfits for Morgan to wear tomorrow, she will, more than likely, wear on of them.” Mom said, Jen and Katie looked at me and then at mom, and then at me. I nodded.

“It takes the pressure off me to find something to wear.” I said with a shrug. Katie looked at me and smiled.

“I think that mom wants to dress her daughter up for her first day of school.” Katie said. “Kind of like how even when I was in the 8th grade, my mom always got out my clothes for both the first day and picture day. It was kind of nice, actually not having to worry about picking out clothes” Mom smiled.

“Katie, are you staying tonight?” Mom asked, retaining her smile. Jen saw mom’s smile and frowned.

“What are you thinking, Mom?” Jen said, having a feeling where this was heading.

“Yes, I’m staying tonight, unless you want me to leave.” Katie said. Mom wouldn’t kick her out and had told her, more than once, that our house was her house.

“I’m thinking that I’m going to pick out all three of your guys’ clothes for tomorrow, and I don’t want any complaints. Morgan,” Mom said, I watched Jen roll her eyes, and then turned my attention to Mom.

“Yes,” I said, wondering why I was being singled out.

“I want you to pick what the three of you do with your hair tomorrow, and I’ll drive you and Jen to school, as you and I need to meet with the principal.” Mom smiled again. “Oh, I forgot your diaries out in the car, you can get them while Jen and Katie clean up the kitchen.” Mom said.

The rest of our meal was eaten in silence until I got up to go out to the car to get my diaries... When I came back into the house, I was glad that we were home for the night because it was rather cold outside. Katie and Jen, who had cleaned as they cooked, had already cleared the table, and were carrying a pot of coffee toward the living room. I followed and mom smiled when she saw me walk in behind the other two with my diaries in the bag. I sat down next to mom, and Katie and Jen sat in the two chairs that sat opposite of the couch.

“Mom, why are you picking out our clothes for tomorrow?” Jen asked. Mom sat back with a little grin on her face.

“You and Morgan have never been told this, and now seems like a good time to do it, so I’m going to tell you the story of what happened the night that Jennifer was born.” Jen and I traded looks. I watched as Katie poured coffee, and then sat back.

“We’ve never been told, what, mom?” Jen said. Mom took a cup of coffee off of the table and handed it to me.

“Thanks, mom” I said to her, sipping the coffee. She picked up another cup of coffee.

“You’re welcome Morgan, and Jen, you and your sister have never been told that you had a sister, and that Jen, you were actually a twin.” Jen’s mouth dropped, as did mine and Katie's. “There were complications, you came out head down, just like Morgan, but your sister came out with the umbilical wrapped around her neck, and she was very small. They later determined that she had spun around and gotten the umbilical cord wrapped around her neck some time between the check up in the 32nd week and the time you were born at the end of the 35th week. She had somehow kinked the umbilical when she wrapped it around her neck cutting off the blood and nutrient flow for long enough for her to be still born.” Mom wiped a tear from her cheek. “They were concerned for you for a while until you started to develop normally. We were going to name her Morgan, but when they asked for a name, we decided to name her Stephanie Marie. That is why when you were born, Morgan, we had the names Joshua Paul and Morgan Elizabeth.” we all reached up to wipe a tear from our cheeks. “The reason why I’m picking out what you girls wear tomorrow is because it’s one of those things that I’ve always wanted to do for my daughters, but have never been able to because I was blessed with a son and daughter, but now,” She took a breath, “I have my two daughters, so get used to it.” Mom looked at the clock that hung on the wall. “You girls need to figure out sleeping arrangements.”

Jen, Katie, and I looked at each other and then got up and started to move the furniture around to accommodate the air mattresses and the rest of the camping gear that we had set up the night before in the same room.

Chapter 12
By Samantha Jenkins

I woke up to being gently shaken by Katie. She was already dressed, her wet hair hanging in a high ponytail.

“Wake up Morgan, you need to go get a shower. Jennifer will be out in a second. Your mom picked out some clothes for you to wear, they are on your bed.” I smiled up at her from my place on the air mattress. Katie offered her hand.

“Ok,” I said reaching up to take her had to help me get up. “What time is it?” I asked, our living room being the only room in the house with out a clock.

“It’s about ten minutes after six.” She said. Mom had picked out a simple red and black plaid pleated skirt and red turtleneck for Katie to wear. I stood up, my baby blue satin night gown falling back down to my ankles where it belonged. Katie smiled at me. “My mom would always yell at me when I was little and I’d get out of bed, and my night gown would be up around my waist...” Katie let the thought trail off. I shook my head to let my hair shake out. I followed Katie up the steps toward the bathroom. When we got there Jennifer was coming out of the bathroom wearing a pink robe.

“Morning, Morgan” Jen said.

“Morning Jen,” I said in passing. I stopped and looked at her. She had done the same thing.

“You guys have never done that before.” Mom said, suddenly appearing in her door way. Jennifer and I smiled at each other. I shrugged and went into the bathroom, where my lilac colored robe was already hanging on the robe hook. I took off my nightgown and hopped into the shower. After I took my shower I walked into my room, and saw an ankle length black skirt and a baby pink light turtleneck sweater. I heard foot steps and turned to see Katie standing there. She saw what was laying on the bed.

“I don’t remember us buying that.” She said. Sitting on the floor was a pair of black patent Mary Janes. “Or those.” She pointed at the shoes.

“That’s because you didn’t even know that they were in the house.” Mom said, startling us both and causing us to turn and look at her.

“Hi Mom.” I said, as Katie rummaged around in my dresser and pulled out a pair of
pink satin panties, a matching bra and a pair of black tights. I looked at Katie.

“Satin?” I said, picking up the panties and looking at them. They were a very low cut bikini, and I looked at both mom and Katie who seems to not be leaving and I slipped them on under my robe, once I pulled them up around my waist.

“Yes, Satin.” I must have smiled once I had gotten the panties pulled up around my waist

“See, I told you it was a good choice” Jen said appearing in the doorway.

“Will you guys go so I can get dressed?” I asked, They all nodded and left, but as mom left she looked at me.

“Come get me when you are ready for your hair to be done.” After my door had been shut, I dropped my robe on the floor, I picked up the bra and put it on, and then sat on the bed, and put the tights on. I stood up and looked at my self in the mirror. I looked like most any other girl my age, I turned back to the bed and picked up the skirt and slid it up to my waist. and then picked up the sweater that was still laying on my bed. I slipped it over my head and felt the softness against my stomach. I was slipping my feet in the Mary Janes when there was a knock on the door. I turned around and opened it, and then sat in the chair in front of the vanity, contemplating what to do with my hair. I looked in the mirror and saw Katie pick a brush up off of the dresser and start to walk toward me. Katie had a smile on her face and I saw the red ribbon that was tied at the top of her ponytail and a pair of similar length baby pink ribbons in her left hand. She grinned.

“Your sister is doing pigtails, and I’m going to change mine here in a few minutes.” Katie said, starting to brush my hair. If you’ve never had some one brush your hair, you really should try it some time. Katie brushed out my hair, and put it up in a pair of matching pony tails. I’m not sure from where, but Katie pulled two pink ribbons out and put them in my hair. Jen walked in the room wearing a baby blue turtleneck sweater and similar black ankle length skirt. She even had the matching Mary Janes on her feet.

“Are you girls almost ready?” Mom called up from down stairs. The three of us looked at each other, our pigtails bouncing.

“Yes”

“Lets get in the car. I need to meet with Mrs. Paskly before Morgan can just go into classes.

#

I held on to Katie’s hand for dear life all the way to the school. I had never been this nervous when I was going to school before and that included the time that I went dressed because of the play. Then I had a reason to be dressed like that. This time, I was being punished, a unique punishment, but a punishment none the less. As soon as I had walked out the door into the garage, the fact that outside the garage was twenty degrees, hit me and I got goose bumps from my toes to the hairs on my head. I was not really looking forward to today, but at the same time, yes I was. This was a play, and the whole world was my stage. I wondered how long it would take some of the people at school to realize that Morgan was really Josh, and I did, to an extent, worry about my safety. I knew that Katie and Jennifer would have my back and that they wouldn’t let me go anywhere alone. Mom was backing her car into a parking spot in front of the school when Katie squeezed my hand.

“Alright girls, we’re here. Lets go inside so I can talk to Mrs. Paskly.” Katie and Jen both opened their doors and I just sat there, watching as the busses pulled up. Katie opened my door for me and offered her hand to help me out of the back seat of the car. She had a smile on her face as she leaned close to me and whispered in my ear

“The world is your stage, have a little fun with this. You may never get this opportunity again.” I let her help me out of the car, looked at her, and then smiled.

Chapter 13
by Samantha Jenkins

The four of us walked into the main office. I felt like every one in the school was staring at me and knew exactly who I was. Mom walked up to Mrs. Paskly’s door and knocked. The door opened and Mrs. Paskly looked at mom, and then the three teenaged girls behind her.

“Good morning, Mrs. Smith, what can I do for you?

“Have you talked to the superintendent within the last, week or so?” Mom asked following Mrs Paskly into her office. The three of us followed mom into the office. Mrs. Paskly looked at us girls.

“Hello Jennifer, and Katie” Mrs. Paskly said, and then looked at me. “You look familiar, though I’m not sure why.”

“That would be because that is my son. The young lady’s name would be Morgan.” Mrs. Paskly had not been in the school when the verdict on the Johnson case had been handed down.

“Why is your son dressed like a girl?”

“Because his therapist thinks that it's best that he does so. Are you familiar with the case of Johnson versus the Takoma county school board?” Mom said.

“I’ve heard of it, but I’ve not read it, nor have I had any experience with what it states.” Mrs. Paskly said. Mom dug around in her bag, which I saw contained her laptop as well as several folders that were color coded. I watched as she pulled out a blue folder. She handed it across the desk to Mrs. Paskly who opened it and looked at it.

“That would be the ruling on Johnson versus the CSB, supporting the Johnson family, as well as the doctors.” Mom paused and pulled out a yellow folder and sat it in her lap. “This case, went all the way to the state Supreme Court on appeals. The lower courts ruled in favor of the school board, despite testimony from medical professionals, stating that thirteen year old Alex Johnson actually would attempt suicide if he had to continue living as a boy. All of this started some time before the day that Alex attended school dressed as his female counterpart Alexis. Alexis graduated last year and is going on to college to study psychology. That brings you up to speed on the case and now I get to the things that the school board has changed since the ruling came down.” Mrs. Paskly looked up from reading the file in front of her.

“You’ve done a lot of research on this, I can see...” Mrs. Paskly said, letting her thought trail off.

“Yes, I have. I’ve been doing research since Friday.” Mom said. “And a lot of reading.” Mom pulled out the pink folder. I had an idea what was in this folder. I had seen Mom drop it in her bag when we left Dr. Franklin’s office. “My son, Josh, is no longer to be addressed as such.” Mrs. Paskly looked at me, and then back to mom. “Morgan has come to stay for as long as she does. Her records are to be switched to indicate her new name and gender.” Mom pulled a sheet of paper out of the pink folder, and handed it to Mrs. Paskly. “That is a note from her psychologist, stating that Morgan is to attend school as a girl, and that she is allowed to use the girls locker rooms, use the girls restrooms, and in general, be treated as a girl. Her sister and Katie will watch out for her welfare, One part of the changes that the school board made was to say that if someone threatens a student, especially one whose doctor has decided that they should start the process of Real Life Transition or for some other reason the doctor has decided that they should live as the other gender, is an automatic suspension.” Mom paused. “I know that Morgan already shares almost every class with Katie. Her Doctor has also requested that she either have classes with her sister or Katie, every class so we will have to figure out how to accommodate that. If you have any questions, my information is on the emergency contact cards, Morgan is also going to have her cell phone in her purse at all times, as is Jennifer.”

“Cell phones are not allowed in school.” Mrs. Paskly said.

“Mrs. Paskly,” I began. “Are you aware that every student in the school that has a cell phone already carries it on them. They have ever since what happened at Columbine. I have been carrying mine for months with out anyone knowing it. The difference is knowing when to divulge that you have it.” Mrs. Paskly turned her attention to me.

“Miss Smith, are you admitting to me an offense that could get you suspended?” She asked, Mom looked at me, and I met Mrs. Paskly’s gaze. Mom had always taught us to tell the truth regardless of the possible consequences.

“Yes, I am, but if you suspend me for it, then you had better suspend the rest of the school as well.” I said back. That would end up looking bad on her and she knew it.

“I can’t do that, but I had better not see your phone young lady.” She said. “I’m not too fond of having a boy dressed as a girl running around my school, but it appears that I can do nothing about it.” She looked at mom. “I can’t believe that you are allowing this to occur.” Mom looked like she was about to blow a gasket.

“I’m doing the best that I can for my children. Morgan’s doctor said that this is best for her. I’m going by what a person who is trained in psychology has said is best for my child.” Mom shot back. “You have no right to say that I’m not a good parent, just as you can’t say that Morgan can’t attend school as herself. you have people that you have to answer to that have laid out rules in this instance. Right now, I want the girls to get to class so they can learn something, better than what they are learning here. I think we are still in first period.” Jennifer, Katie and my self had all picked up our bags and were turning to walk out the door when Mrs. Paskly stopped us.

“Girls, Morgan is not attending classes like that.” She said. “She is going to get laughed at, beat up, called a sissy and a faggot, and probably will end up getting suspended for causing a disturbance to learning.” Katie looked pissed.

“Joyce” Katie began. I had no clue that Katie knew Mrs. Paskly’s first name. Mrs. Paskly looked shocked at being addressed by her first name while in the school. “This is where you are wrong. Well before you came to this school, Morgan took the lead role in a play. That role was that of a female. Yeah, she got called a sissy and a faggot, but every one got used to it, and the name calling, which is not befitting of a high schooler in the first place stopped after she didn’t let it get to her. She got laughed at, until every one saw her perform in the play. Those that didn’t know that she wasn’t a girl had no clue until they were told later. This school as a whole actually embraces the fact that each one of us are different. Morgan was born into the wrong body. Who cares, Morgan is Morgan or Josh depending on how she’s dressed. You just watch her, I’m sure that she is going to prove you wrong, and that none of what you just said is going to make a difference.” Mrs. Paskly looked angry.

“Katie, I’m suspending you for disobedience.” Mrs. Paskly said.

“No, you’re not.” Mom said. “And if you do you had better suspend the three of them because these three girls will stand up for one another, they have always been that way and then you had better start looking for a new job. Are you planning on suspending her because she used your first name, Joyce? Are you shocked that a student has the nerve to address you by first name? Are you shocked that a student has the nerve to stand up for what is right?” Mom stood, she was getting heated, and I could tell. Mom didn’t give Mrs. Paskly a chance to answer. “Morgan, call Dr. Franklin and have her come over here to the school. She is expecting your call.” Mrs. Paskly looked pissed now.

“Morgan, you do that and I’m suspending you as well.” She said. “You know that phones aren’t allowed in the school.” I looked at her and pulled my phone out of my purse.

“If I need to call Dr. Franklin for something, I will do so regardless of where I am. I have a hell of a support system in place, Joyce, and you’re not going to stop it. Suspend me if you want, but I’m telling you now that it will get overturned.” Mrs. Paskly looked mad. I hit the speed dial for Dr. Franklin’s cell phone, and put the phone up to my ear. I stepped out of the office so that I could talk to Dr. Franklin.

“I guess I just won’t come to school then.” Jennifer said as the door shut behind me. I looked up to see Kaite’s mom walking in the office.

“Josh, where is Katie, and why are you dressed like that?” Katie’s Mom, Susan, asked.

“Long story, you’ll find out soon enough I’m sure. Katie is in Mrs. Paskly’s office, with my mom and Jennifer.” I said to her.

“Your mom said that she might need my assistance this morning, Who are you calling?” Susan asked

“Dr. Franklin. Mom wants her to come here.”

“Ok, I’m going in come back in when you are done.”

“Yes, Ma’am” I said as Katie’s mom disappeared into Mrs. Paskly’s office and Dr. Franklin picked up her phone.

“Yes, Morgan, what can I do for ya?” Dr. Franklin asked.

“Mom asked that you come to the school. She is having some...” I paused looking for the words that I wanted. “Issues, with Mrs. Joyce Paskly”

“Isn’t she the principal there?” Dr. Franklin asked. “I was expecting some issues...”

“Yes, Ma’am, she is.”

“I’ll be right there.” Dr. Franklin said. “10 minutes.”

“Thank you, Ma’am” I said

Chapter 14
by Samantha Jenkins

I turned to open the door as Dr. Franklin walked into the office, followed by someone I didn’t recognize.

“Hello Morgan,” The stranger said. “I’m Doctor Phillips, I’m going to help you out, as well as consult on some stuff.” Dr. Phillips offered his hand, which I shook. He looked like he was making notes in his head. I turned and opened the dark oak door that led to Mrs. Paskly’s office. Mrs. Paskly had not moved from where she was sitting at her desk. On top of the folder were two out of school suspension forms that had yet to be filled in. I had a feeling those were for Katie and I.

“Mrs. Paskly,” Susan was saying “You have no reason for the suspensions, and you also are subjecting the school district to another law suit.” Susan was leaning on the front of Mrs. Paskly’s desk. “I would encourage you to just drop this.”

“As would I,” Dr. Franklin said. “You are going to cause Morgan psychological trauma if she has to continue attending school as Josh, and at the moment, I would encourage the girls to get to class.” Mrs. Paskly scowled at Dr. Franklin.

“I don’t want Morgan to go anywhere in my school dressed like that.” Mrs. Paskly stood, her chair sliding toward the windows behind her desk. “And I’m going to suspend her for causing a disturbance.” I looked around the office.

“For starters,” Susan began, “You have to prove that she is causing a disturbance, and I haven’t seen one yet. I also doubt that she would get called any names, or cause a disturbance. The only person that is disturbed by this is you. You have her psychologist stating that it would cause trauma for her to continue to attend school as a boy. How would you feel if she committed suicide because of your actions?” Mrs. Paskly picked up the stack of paper on her desk, stood and then slammed it down on the floor.

“That wouldn’t be my problem! That would be Jackie’s problem because she let some half rate doctor tell her that her son should be a girl!” Mrs. Paskly just about shouted, I was sure that the people in the classroom above us could hear the whole thing. “I don’t wan-” Susan cut her off mid sentence.

“First of all, it would become your problem very fast, mainly because I’m acting legal counsel for Jackie, Second of all Dr. Franklin is not some half rate doctor that got her Ph.D. out of a box of Frosted Flakes; she is one of the top minds in her field, which happens to be transgender issues, and furthermore, you are about to have a suit filed against you as we speak. You think you know what you are doing, but Joyce, you are out of your league on this one. It doesn’t matter what you want or don’t want in this school. You answer to the tax payers, My daughter has already told you what would happen when Morgan walked out and into the school population dressed as she is right now. She is no different than any other girl in this school.” Susan paused to catch her breath.

“You’re not an attorney, and I control what happens in this building. If I say that Morgan can’t attend, Then she doesn’t come to school, and then she fail-”

“US Supreme court number 387498, Look me up. I’ve been doing what I do for longer than you have, and I’m better at it. I will win, I’ll make Morgan win. I’ll make my daughter win. This is a fight that you don’t want to even start, but you have chosen to.” Susan paused for breath as there was a knock on the door. I watched as Dr. Phillips reached over to open it. It was Mrs. Johnson, one of the administrative assistants.

“Every thing alright, Joyce?” She asked, seeing the 8 of us in the tiny ten foot by ten foot office.

“Yes, but would you get the SRO for me, please?” Joyce said, crouching to pick up the stack of stuff she threw on the floor. Jennifer and I looked at each other, we both knew Officer Mullin very well since dad had worked with him. He was always watching out for Jennifer and I. “Also get me whoever Joshua Smith’s Guidance counselor is and have them come to my office.”

“Will do.” Mrs. Johnson said, and turned, letting the door close behind her. Mrs. Paskly didn’t know that we knew Officer Mullin, nor that he knew us as well as he did.

“May I ask, why you are calling the School Resource Officer into this?” Dr. Franklin asked. She also knew that Officer Mullin was kind of like a father to Jennifer and I.

“Because I’m going to have the two girls and the boy arrested for truancy. They should be in class.” Katie, Jen and I looked at each other. Mom and Susan let out exasperated sighs.

“But you won’t let them go because of the way Morgan is dressed, or so you claim.” Dr. Franklin said, “So therefore you are going to have your self placed under arrest for causing the truancy, or how is this going to work?” Joyce Paskly turned red and looked like she was about to blow a gasket. There was a knock on the door, and Dr. Phillips opened it and let Officer Mullin in.

“I was summoned?” He said, glancing at mom, and then Katie and Jen. His eyes finally stopping on me, and giving me a once over. “You look familiar, young lady”

“That would be because that is Joshua Smith hiding under those clothes. I would like the three juveniles arrested for truancy, and causing a disturbance.” Mrs. Paskly said. Officer Mullin looked from her to me, back at her, then at mom, and then back at me.

“I’m assuming that this young lady is not going by Josh.” Officer Mullin said. “What is your name, sweetheart” This was not uncommon for him to refer to Jennifer this way, so it didn’t phase me when when he did the same to me.

“Morgan, Sir.” I gave a slight smile, and then looked at the worn maroon carpet on the floor.

“Morgan, Jennifer, and Katie.” Officer Mullin said. “I want the three of you to go to my office and wait for me, I’m going to give you passes to get to class.” The three of us nodded and left the room. “Joyce, they are not truant if they are in the school. I watched them walk in, I knew they were here before you did. I suggest you guys work out what ever it is that you have going on, I can tell that it affects all three of these children that I do care very much about. I’ll be back after I escort the kids to class.”

“I don’t want Morgan attending classes dressed like she is!” Joyce shouted. “If you take her to class, I will have your job, Officer.”

“Somehow I doubt that, Joyce.” Officer Mullin shot back. “I don’t know what is in your coffee but the Johnson ruling states clearly that you don’t have a choice. You have to let this happen. I would imagine that your actions so far have probably already cost you your job.” Joyce stood there, open mouthed as Officer David Mullin turned and left the office.

Chapter 15
By: Samantha Jenkins

Jennifer, Katie and my self all walked up to the office that belonged to Officer Mullin. I had Katie on my right and Jennifer on my left, and the had stayed that way since we had left the main office.

“What was Paskly’s problem?” I asked, not expecting a response as we sat on the bench outside of the office. The bell rang signaling that it was time to switch to second period. So far Katie and I had missed U.S. History, and Jennifer had missed her creative writing class.

“I have no idea.” Katie said, leaning back against the brick wall that was behind the bench. “I wouldn’t be surprised if Mom wasn’t working on some briefs to file when she got back to the office in her head. She didn’t seem to give a hoot that the Johnson ruling can’t stop her.”

#

“My first call when I get back to my office is going to be the superintendent, Joyce. You might as well start packing your desk up as soon as we leave.” Susan was saying. “You can’t stop this. I don’t understand why you are even trying. You have read the Johnson ruling, you’ve read the changes the school board has made, you’ve heard from Morgan’s Doctor, so I’m not sure where you are falling short on this.”

“I don’t want those two girls and that boy,” Mrs. Paskly practically spat, “In my school, and I want the rest of you out of the school too, or I’ll have you arrested for trespassing. I want you off of school grounds in 20 minutes or else.”

“Jackie, Lets get the girls and head to the district office.” Susan said. Jackie realized that this was legal advice as much as it was a friend helping a friend and stood. She collected her files and put them back in her bag, turned on her heel and walked out the door with out so much as a word to anyone. Dr. Franklin followed her out of the room.

“Jackie, I want Morgan to ride with me on the way over to the District office. I want to make sure that she is doing ok.”

“That’s fine. I just want her to be happy, and this is not going to make her happy.” Jackie said, walking out of the carpeted offices and on to the tile floor of the hall way.

#

I glanced down the hall to see my mother scowling coming down the hall way followed by Doctors Franklin and Phillips. Susan had just walked out of the office and was hurrying to catch up. I nudged Katie.

“What’s going on?” I asked her. She looked down the hall and shrugged.

“Not sure, but neither one of our mothers look very happy.” Katie said.

“That’s because we aren’t.” My mom said, staring out the door to her right at the bright sunny day. “We are going to the district office, Morgan, you are going to ride with Dr. Franklin, at her request. Katie and Jen, come with me.” The three of us stood and walked out.

“Are all three of us going with you to the district office, or just Morgan?” Jen asked. I guessed that she didn’t want to let me out of her sight if she could help it. Dr. Phillips held the door open as Dr.Officer Mullin walked toward us.

“She just called the radio room about you guys, and is going to try to get the folks at the district office to not hear your case. I have a strong suspicion that it’s not going to work.” Officer Mullin said.

“Well then we’d better hurry then, Jackie, I’m going to swing by my office and grab some stuff that I think we are going to need. Call ahead. Request the superintendent and the Board.” Dr. Franklin took my arm and started walking toward the door that Dr. Phillips was holding open. I glanced at Dr. Franklin as we walked. We were pretty much step in step We didn’t say a word as we walked toward a black Lexus that was sitting by it self. The lights on the car all blinked twice in the sunlight as Dr. Franklin opened up the passenger door for me. I sat down on the leather seat and smoothed my skirt out. Dr. Franklin got in the car and started the engine. She reached up and pushed the button to turn on the heated seats. I had never ridden in a car that had heated seats before.

“How are you holding up, Morgan.” Dr. Franklin asked, putting the car in gear and driving toward the main street to head to the district office.

“I’m a little pissed about Mrs. Paskly.” I said reaching over and grabbing my seat belt. After I had buckled my belt I looked over at Dr. Franklin. “Doctor, why do people have to be that way?” I asked, reaching up to wipe a tear away. Dr. Franklin reached over and patted my leg.

“I don’t know, but we are going to get this sorted out and you will be able to attend school as Morgan.” She said, turning left on Birch Street. I looked in the mirror and saw mom’s car behind us. “When I said that I thought that it would do you more harm to return to being Josh, I meant it, you would have eventually taken the only way out. I’ve seen it too many times in my career.”

“Do you really think that?” I asked, watching mom pass us. Mom was also pissed, and I could tell by the way she was driving. Mom stopped at a red light and rolled down her window.

“Morgan, we will fix this.” She said to me. I looked at her and smiled. I was happy overall, just the bull shit with Mrs. Paskly not doing what she was required by law to do, was troubling me. Maybe it was seeing me in a skirt, she had always known me as Josh. I did work in the office during my study halls, and would run and do little errands around the school for her. She didn’t seem to to even want me in her office.

“I don’t get this.” I said watching mom drive down the road in front of us. “I’m one of the best office aides that she has. She didn’t seem to even know me, she’s always been nice to me before.” I watched up the road as mom made the right hand turn into the parking lot of the building that housed the district office. Dr. Franklin slowed and made the right hand turn as well. and I could see to police cars sitting in the lot, no doubt sent by Mrs. Paskly.

“What now?” Dr. Franklin muttered pulling in next to mom’s car. A few seconds later, Susan’s tan blazer came rolling in and parked across from mom. Susan got out and looked at the police cars. Every one else piled out of the cars that they were in. I had a feeling that when this was over I would need to have a session with Dr. Franklin.

Chapter 16
By: Samantha Jenkins

Susan led the way to the front door of the District office. Mom followed, and then us three girls with Doctors Franklin and Phillips bringing up the rear. The two police officers stood on each side of the door. I heard a car coming in fast and looked over to see another cruiser pull in.

“Mrs. Richardson, we were instructed to not allow you in the building.” One of the officers said. Susan looked at the officer.

“Officer,” She peered at his name badge; “Jacobson, Do you have a restraining order that has been filed by the school district, preventing any of the members of this group from entering the building?” I glanced over at the car that had stopped behind the other two cruisers.

“No, Ma’am. We received a call from a complainant that said to not allow you access to this building.” Officer Jacobson said. Mom obviously didn’t know either of these officers. I glanced over at the car that had stopped and saw Lieutenant Chang getting out of car. Mom heard the door shut and glanced over at Lieutenant Chang.

“Jacobson. Let them in. We don’t have grounds to stop them. Complainant isn’t in this building, she’s at the high school. I have Mullin talking to her now.” Jacobson stepped aside. Susan placed her hand on the door handle to open the door.

“Jackie,” Lieutenant Chang said, walking up to her. “What the hell is going on?” Mom looked at the Lieutenant, and then at Dr. Franklin who shook her head no.

“I’ll call you later, John, I can’t get into it right now.” John Chang looked from Jackie to Dr. Franklin.

“All Right, if you need any thing, call. You have the entire department looking after you guys.” Mom smiled.

“Thanks, John.” Mom followed Susan through the door.

#

“You cant just bar people from buildings because you don’t like what they are doing.” Officer Mullin said to Joyce Paskly. “Are you aware that you could get arrested for misuse of the public safety system, interference of police business, and probably some other stuff that the prosecutor would know of that I don’t? Joyce, you are done, you have cost your self your job...” Officer Mullin let the thought trail off. Joyce looked at him.

“I’m not allowed to file a complaint because I don’t want that child in my school dressed that way, I have to accept it and go on? That’s bull shit, Officer, and you know it.” Joyce swept her arm across her desk, knocking the papers and monitor for the computer to the floor. It hit the carpet and the case cracked exposing the wiring inside. “You’re right, I should probably clean out my desk. I have probably lost my job.”

“And added a few criminal charges to the mix. You’ve screwed up today Joyce...” Officer Mullin left the room.

#

The seven of us walked up to the receptionists desk, Mom letting Susan do all the talking.

“We would like to see Mr. Gallagh, The Superintendent of the Takoma County School Board.” The Receptionist just looked at Susan.

“Do you have an appointment?” She asked. I briefly wondered how many people tried to come see the Superintendent with out an appointment.

“No, But I did just call and talk to his Administrative Assistant, Joy Phelps, who said that we could see him.” The receptionist picked up her phone and dialed a number.

“Joy did you just speak to a...” She looked at Susan.

“Susan Richardson” Susan said. I felt Katie take my hand and give it a squeeze. We were no longer playing in the minor leagues. I looked around the lobby of the District office. It was a rather drab area, with only a few fake plants.

“Susan Richardson?” I heard the receptionist ask. I glanced at her. “Meet Mr. Gallagh in the conference room on the second floor, Ok, Thanks.” She hung up the phone. “Go up the stairs to door, go through it and the conference room will be on your right.

”Thank you.“ Susan said with a smile. It was the first time that I had seen her smile since we left the school. Neither one of the mothers were very happy about the way that this was turning out. Susan turned and walked up the carpeted stairs, at the top of the stair case there was an oak door, which Susan opened and walked through, with the rest of us following. She kept walking until she got to the conference room, which she entered without knocking. Inside the room, was the Superintendent, and three other people. I wasn’t sure who the other people were but I hazarded a guess and figured that they were probably the legal team.

”Mrs. Richardson,“ Mr. Gallagh said. ”I am Dave Gallagh, Superintendent, and this is our legal team. Joe Jamski, Sally Courtright, and Thomas Jones.“ Susan shook every ones hands.

”I’m Susan Richardson, This is Jackie Smith, her son and daughter,“ she motioned to me first, ”Josh, who is now going by Morgan. and Jennifer. My daughter Katie, and Morgan’s Doctors, Julie Franklin and Robert Phillips.“ I watched the faces of the legal team when Susan had introduced me. The three of them shared a knowing glance.

”Have a seat.“ Mr. Gallagh said. We all sat at the table opposite from Mr. Gallagh, and the school district’s legal team ”I understand that this has something to do with the Johnson ruling.“ It had been Mr. Gallagh and this legal team that Susan and four other lawyers from her firm had taken on, and won.

”Yes, it does.“ Susan said, pulling some papers out of her bag. ”This morning, Jackie Smith, her son and daughter, and my own daughter went to see Mrs. Paskly at the high school with documentation from Morgan’s doctors stating that she is going to be attending school as Morgan. The resistance that Jackie Smith met this morning is very similar to what Mr. and Mrs. Johnson faced two years ago. I’m not sure how long Mrs. Paskly has been in the district, but I do know that she had absolutely no clue what we were talking about. Even after being presented with both the opinions of the judges, and the changes to policies in the school district, she still refused to allow Morgan to enter into the population of the school, even going as far as trying to get the School Resource Officer to arrest both of Jackie’s children and my daughter on Truancy charges, even though they were in the school.“ Susan paused. ”Mrs. Paskly was also informed by Morgan’s doctors that if she were to continue attending school as Josh, that it would probably end in Josh committing suicide. Mrs Paskly then went on to defame Dr. Franklin as a half rate Psychologist, and said that if Josh did commit suicide, then it would only be Jackie’s fault. I had hoped to not have to sit here like we did two years ago, but here we are. I could file another civil suit against the district on behalf of Jackie Smith, and given the precedent set by the Johnson case, we’d win. That case was bad publicity on the district, and this one would be even worse. The staff at the high school was shaken up pretty well by the last one. I think that Joyce Paskly has realized that she has probably already lost her job over this. She called the police and tried to get them to bar us entrance into the district office. I want to know what you’re going to do about her?“ Susan looked at the four people on the opposite side of the table.

”The Doctors orders are enough for Morgan to attend as Morgan, regardless of what the principal says.“ Sally Courtright said, ”She can’t stop that, regardless of the Johnson ruling.“

”You’re right. I remember sitting through the assemblies after the ruling. Mrs. Paskly said that I would get laughed at, called gay and a faggot, would get beaten up. What she didn’t realize was that I had taken the lead role in a play that the school had put on. I was a girl for that role. I walked among my classmates for pretty close to a month wearing skirts and dresses. The girls treated me as one of them, and the one boy, out of all of the boys in the school who did try something, was quickly quashed by some others, and then dealt with according to the disciplinary rules of the school district. The high school is pretty tight knit, and I would have had more than my sister and Katie to watch my back.“ I paused. ”Mrs Paskly seemed to think that I would fail, but, I’m not the kind of person to just give up when the going gets tough, and if I’m right, I won’t back down.“

”Then why is she trying?“ Mr. Gallagh said. ”I can see that you are the kind of person that won’t just stop because someone wants you to, Morgan. I can also see that you know that you are in the right here, and that is why you are sitting across from me, rather than at home crying.“ Mr. Gallagh smiled at me. ”What was the play?“ I was slightly taken aback by the question, not expecting it.

”The Wizard of Oz, I played Dorothy.“ Sally Courtright’s mouth dropped.

”You were Dorothy?“ She asked. ”I had no idea, and to be honest, if I didn’t know what was going on, I would think that you were a girl right now.“

”Yes, I was Dorothy, and I loved every minute of it. I would do it again, and as a matter of fact, I am. This is a play, and the whole world is my stage. Do you guys know what my goal in life is?“ I asked. The four of them stared at me, not knowing. ”My goal in life is to help people like me.“

”My next question,“ Susan said. ”Is are we going to resolve this here and now, or am I going to have to file these papers with the Takoma County Municipal Court Clerk?“

Chapter 17
By: Samantha Jenkins

An offer is made...

Officer Mullin sat in his office on the phone, writing out a General Case Report Form. “Deb, I need an Incident and Call for Service, Also start me two street units, I’m going to Code three the principal. She swept every thing off of her desk, including the monitor.” Officer Mullin scribbled some numbers down on a notepad. “Thanks Deb. Also, have Lieutenant Chang swing by, I want to give him and update on what is going on.”

#

“Mrs. Richardson,” Thomas Jones started. “The school district would prefer not to have a second legal fight over this issue.” He poured himself a glass of water from the pitcher that sat on the table.

“I understand that.” Susan said. “I, honestly, would prefer the same; However, Joyce Paskly’s actions may have not allowed that.” The lawyers looked at each other.

“Are you going to file?” Thomas asked, the color draining from his face. “The School Districts legal counsel would like to make an offer to prevent a lawsuit.”

“Don’t you think that is a bit premature?” Susan asked, eyebrows raised.

“Mrs. Richardson, the last time that this happened.” Sally Courtright was saying, “it ended up costing the school district around $10 Million dollars.” I suddenly realized that they were afraid of a law suit and were going to do what ever it took to keep this out of court. I looked at mom. Susan looked at Mom.

“May I speak to my client?” Susan asked the legal team.

“Certainly.” Sally Courtright said. She pulled a stack of paper out of her bag. Susan tilted her head toward the door as she tapped me, Mom and Dr. Franklin stood and the five of us walked out into the corridor.

“I think they are scared shitless.” Susan said after the door shut. “For them to suddenly place an offer on the table I think they are afraid that there is already paper on its way to the clerks office. Jackie, I would like to file a civil suit against Joyce Paskly, but that doesn’t involve the District. Jackie it’s your call on accepting their offer. I think that this is really messing with Morgan’s head, and she’s going to need to see Dr. Franklin because of all of this.” I watched Mom nod.

“Why are they doing this?” I asked, glancing from mom to Susan.

#

Lieutenant Chang pulled in and parked behind Officer Mullin’s car. He shut off the engine and got out. He walked up to the doors that would let him enter the building right next to Officer Mullin’s office. Officer Mullin looked out the window as Lieutenant Chang walked in. He motioned for him to enter the office.

“Debbie said you wanted to see me.” Lieutenant Chang said.

“Yeah, you went on the run over to the District office, right?” Officer Mullin asked, watching Lieutenant Chang nod. “You notice any thing about Jackie or her children?” Lieutenant Chang studied the drop ceiling in the room.

“Yeah, there were three girls rather than two and a boy. Katie is always running around with Jen or Josh. Who was the third girl?” Lieutenant Chang asked.

“The third girl was Josh, AKA Morgan.” Officer Mullin said. Lieutenant Chang looked at Officer Mullin.

“Wait, What, Dave?” Officer Mullin chuckled.

“Yeah. The girl in the pink over black was Josh, AKA Morgan Smith.” Lieutenant Chang looked out the window.

“Dave when she comes back to school tomorrow, Take care of that girl.” And with that Lieutenant Chang left, leaving Officer David Mullin staring at the wall.

#

“I’m going to head over to the high school and relieve Mrs. Paskly of her duties as Principal...” Mr. Gallagh said, standing. Susan was busy skimming over the proposed settlement, and was going to give her professional advice to her client.

“Jackie, may I have a word with you in the hall way?” Susan said, standing. Jackie stood and walked toward the door, leaving myself, Dr. Franklin, Katie and Jennifer all sitting at the table staring at the lawyers.

Susan let the door shut, and looked at Jackie.

“Take the deal. It will at least start Morgan through college. They want to settle out of court for ten thousand. They are running scared and trying to avoid a lawsuit that they know they will receive. Also in this Paskly looses her job for insubordination, I won’t have to fight for that.”

“Susan is that your advice as a friend or legal counsel?” Susan looked at Jackie.

“Both.” Susan said.

My Mistake
Chapter 18
By Samantha Jenkins
In which we return to the school, lunch, and a nap...

---

 
Joyce Paskly watched the five cars all pull into the school’s parking lot. She recognized the superintendent's BMW, and Jackie’s Avalon. She didn’t know who the other three cars belonged to, but she knew what this was about. She watched as two patrol cars pulled up behind the line of five cars. She stood at her window watching as every one piled out of the cars and started walking toward the front door, with Mr. Gallagh in the lead. There was a knock on the door and then it just opened.

“Joyce, Dave Gallagh is here.” Mrs. Johnson said.

“I know, and I know why he’s here. Send him in when he comes into the office.” Joyce Paskly said.

***

We walked in the school in the middle of a class switch. When several of Jen’s class mates saw her, they came over, but were stopped by Mr. Gallagh.

“Girls keep going to class. You can find out what is going on after school.” Mr. Gallagh said. Officer Dave Mullin walked up to us.

“Boy am I glad that you showed up, Mr. Gallagh, I thought that I was going to have to do this my self.” Officer Mullin looked at the two street units that had come in with the group. “I have a GCR filled out, vandalism of school property, and if I could tack general stupidity on there, I would...” Officer Mullin looked at the group.

“Alrighty. let’s do this.” Mr. Gallagh said, turning and heading toward the office. When we got to the office, Officer Mullin opened up the door so that we could all file in, and then he came in. Mr. Gallagh walked right up to Mrs. Paskly’s door and just opened it. I watched at Joyce Paskly looked up a stack of paper on her desk. She stood. “Joyce, What happened this morning?” She watched as I walked into the office behind mom.

“I don’t want that boy,” She pointed at me. “Running around my school dressed like that. He’ll cause a disruption and will eventually get kicked out of the school because of it.” Mr. Gallagh looked at her.

“Joyce, No she won’t, and besides, the Johnson ruling states that we don’t have a choice as to letting her attend as her. Not that the choice was ours before that, we learned from the Johnson ruling. I know it happened before your time, but that is no excuse for you to be ignorant of it. It’s been in all of the policy handbooks for over a year, and you just came in last year, and signed a statement indicating that you had read the handbooks.” Mr Gallagh produced a piece of paper, which I assumed was the statement stating that she had read the handbooks. I knew that most people just signed paper like that without ever actually reading it. Even the students in the school had to sign one for our student handbooks. Most of us never actually read the things, just signed the papers and got it over with.

***

Mom, Jennifer, Katie, Susan, Dr. Franklin, and I were all sitting at the table at the Max and Erma’s at City Center, waiting on our food to arrive.

“I can’t believe that Mr. Gallagh laid into Mrs. Paskly with us standing there like that.” I said. I had never seen any adult just tear into another with kids around like that.” Susan looked at me.

“Morgan, you should be lucky you haven’t seen a lot of what I’ve seen in the court system then. ”Custody battles are sometimes the worst when it comes to two adults acting like kids. I’m still trying to get my head around her thinking that she stop you from attending because you ‘Were an abomination to society and should be locked away in an institution...”

“Frankly, I’m the only one who can do that...” Dr. Franklin said. “And I don’t think that it would be in Morgan’s best interest. I think that she would be much better off attending school and then going off to college.” Dr. Franklin smiled. “Morgan, do you know how long it’s taken me to rise to being the top of my field?” I looked at her.

“25 years. if you want to get to where I am, you need to start now. Although I can’t think of a better person to become the new head of the field than someone who has gone through it.” Mom and Susan looked at Dr. Franklin after sitting their coffee cups down. I just looked at her and blinked. I could see where she was coming from, In twenty-five years I would just be on the verge of 40, and in the prime of life when my career took off.

“I’m serious about this. I had done some research on this for a paper a year ago. That is what led me on to the fact that I want to help people that are like me. I’ve known that I’m different than most boys my age for a while.” I paused when the waiter replaced my empty Sprite glass with a full one and gave me a funny look.

“You’re not a boy.” He said shaking his head and returning to the kitchen. We all watched him go and then broke out laughing.

“The world is my stage, and I’m going to have fun with it.” I said, sipping my Sprite. “I knew I wasn’t quite a boy.” I said. Dr. Franklin seemed to have a slight smile. “But at the time I didn’t think that I was a girl either. At the time I didn’t know the difference between a boy and a girl, physically, but from my research I learned that there were physiological differences between boys and girls. I knew that boys were supposed to like sports, something that I never cared for; and girls liked dolls and such. At younger ages, girls use their imaginations more, which I did. I always liked role playing, but I always tried to be the damsel in distress. I’m just not right...” I said letting the thought trail off as the waiter approached with food.

***

I walked into my room and collapsed on the bed. I was exhausted from the events of the day. I was so exhausted that as I was laying on the bed I fell asleep, and woke to Katie gently shaking me.

“Hey sleepy head.” she said, with a smile. “Your mom said that dinner is done. Come on, lets wash up.” Katie said, offering a hand and a smile. I sat up and realized that my hair was rather disheveled so I walked over to the dresser and picked up the brush and started brushing. Katie walked up behind me and took the brush out of my hand. “Do you mind?” she asked. I shook my head. Katie started to brush my hair and finished with it, leaving it down.

“Lets go eat.” Katie said, laying the brush on the dresser and taking my arm, and we left the room.

 
To Be Continued...

My Mistake
Chapter 19
By Samantha Jenkins
In Which we return to school, with better results....

---

 
I woke up to the alarm clock going off. I reached over to hit the snooze button, but realized that someone was standing there.

“Morning, Sleepyhead.” I heard Katie’s voice. I picked up the pillow and tried to swat her with it.

“What time is it?” I asked.

“6 am. You should probably get up and go get a shower.” Katie said. I heard a smile in her voice, and I wasn’t sure if I liked it or not. “I’ll have your clothes out on the bed for you when you get back.” She offered a hand and I used it to help me sit up. The sun was starting to shine through the window as I stood up, causing my night gown to fall back to my knees. I shuffled off to the bathroom, leaving Katie to get out my clothes. I walked into the bathroom and got in the shower. Ten minutes later I was standing back in my bedroom looking at what Katie had laid on the bed. Katie had laid a simple white blouse and a short pleated denim skirt. On the floor was a pair of white ballet flats. Laying next to the skirt was a pair of white panties with red and pink hearts and a matching bra. I saw Katie appear in the doorway.

“Do you know how cold it’s going to be today?” I asked her. She gave me a smile.

“Yeah, and I’m going to be wearing the same thing, but mine is going to be pink.” She replied. I shrugged and tossed a teddy bear at her. She caught it and grinned.

“Go so I can get dressed.” I said, with a smile in my voice. “How are we doing our hair?”

“I’m wearing mine down, I’m not sure about Jen. Your mom is working on cooking breakfast; something about eggs, sausage and bacon...” I spun so fast that my towel just about fell down.

“Mom is making breakfast?” I asked. Katie smiled and turned and left the doorway, closing the door. I shrugged and got dressed. After I had slipped the shoes on, I brushed my hair and went downstairs. Katie was sitting the forks on the table, dressed just like I was but in pink. She looked at me, and winked.

“Morning Sweetheart.” Mom said. “Would you like some breakfast.” Jen shuffled into the kitchen wearing an ankle length red skirt and a black sweater.

“Morning,” Jen mumbled, her shoes clunking on the floor. Katie and I looked at each other and smiled.

“Did you sleep, Jen?” Katie asked. We had all gotten our assignments from our ‘absence’ the day before and had worked through the night to get them done so that we wouldn’t be too far behind in our studies.

“I think I got four hours.” Jen said groggily. Mom knew that we had been up kind of late studying. Our homework was probably harder than the rest of our classmates because we had missed the lectures on the subjects. Mom got down some coffee cups, and sat them at the table. Jen looked at mom, and then stood and got the coffee pot and poured all of us some coffee. I rubbed my eyes right as mom sat a plate of scrambled eggs, bacon, , toast and something that caught me by surprise, baked beans on the table in front of Katie and I. Katie and I looked at each other, not knowing what to make of the baked beans.

“Baked beans?” I asked, looking at the back of Mom’s head as she prepared Jennifer and her own plates. Mom sat the plates down and then sat at the table, her coffee cup still steaming.

“Yes, baked beans,” Mom said with a smile. “This is what you would call an English breakfast, without the mushrooms, which none of us like.” Mom picked up her fork and made short work of a piece of sausage. I glanced at Katie as she started to eat. Twenty minutes later, we finished putting the dishes in the dishwasher and mom started it.

“Girls, go get your shoes on, we are going to try this school thing again.” Mom said. Katie and I looked at each other and picked up our backpacks. I wasn’t as nervous today, going out and getting into Mom’s dark blue Toyota Avalon as I was the day before. I got in the back with Katie, who reached over and patted my leg. Jen sat up front with mom. Dr. Franklin had given mom a stack of papers that she would need when she had the school change my file to indicate that I was no longer Josh, but was now Morgan. Even though the school had to let me attend as Morgan, they could still give mom a hard time with changing the paperwork. Mom turned left into the parking lot of the school and parked the car in the visitors spot, next to Katie’s mom’s car. Apparently Susan wasn’t taking any chances this morning with the folks in the school being stupid. As soon as we walked into the school, we were met by Officer Mullin who must have watched us pull in.

“Good Morning ladies.” He said, opening the door to the main office for us. “Morgan, I was told by Lieutenant Chang to keep an eye on you and take care of you. So if it seems like I’m around an awful lot today it is probably because I am. If you have any problems today come to me first.” We stopped in front of my guidance counselor's office.

“Yes, sir.” I said, flashing a smile. This was going to be an interesting day, I could tell. Officer Mullin nodded and left to go back to his office.

#

“Good Morning” Mr. Thompson said, sitting behind his grey government issued desk. All of teh desks that the staff sit behind were the same color. I think the school district got a deal on the desks. “What can I do for you girls?” He asked. Mom looked at him and then started talking.

“We need to change my daughters information in her file.” Mom said with a smile.

“And who would your daughter be so I can pull her file and we can make the changes.”

“My daughters name was Joshua Allen Smith.” Mr. Thompson did a double take, and then looked at me.

“What’s your new name, sweetheart, calling you Josh doesn’t seem to be conducive to how you are dressed.”

“My name is Morgan.” I said, flashing a smile. I had almost expected a response similar to what we had gotten out of Mrs. Paskly the day before.

In which we almost make it to our first class as Morgan...

---

Chapter 20
 
 
Mr. Thompson, Katie and I all walked up to room 212, which was Katie and mine's english classroom. We stopped out side the door. The tardy bell had rung some half an hour ago. Mr. Thompson opened the door and Mrs. Snider turned to see who happened to be interrupting her class. Mr. Thompson motioned her over toward the door. She walked over and looked at me.

“What can I do for you, Mr. Thompson?” She asked.

I toyed with the hem of my skirt unconsciously. I took a look around the room, some of the girls were whispering to each other and some of the boys looked like they were trying to figure out who I was... Katie noticed that I was playing with the hem of my skirt and smiled.

“Mrs. Snider, can you step into the hall with us for a second?” Mrs Snider turned and looked at the class.

“I want every one reading while I’m out in the hall. I will assign detention for any talking.” Mrs. Snider said. Mrs. Snider was one of the stricter teachers in the school. If she said you were going to get a detention for doing something, then by golly you got a detention for doing what ever it was that you were told that you shouldn’t do... She closed the door almost all of the way, but left it open slightly so that she could see if any one was doing anything other than reading.

“Mrs. Snider, this is Morgan. You already know Katie.” Mrs. Snider held out her hand so I could shake it.

“Morgan, you look like someone that I have in my class.” Mrs. Snider said when I shook her hand.

“Who would that be, Mrs. Snyder?” I asked, figuring I already knew the answer.

“You look like a young man in my class named Joshua Smith.” Katie and I looked at each other and smiled. Mrs. Snyder raised an eyebrow.

“Would you mind if I picked up where he left off?” I asked, with a smile. Mrs. Snyder’s eyes widened as she realized that I was Joshua Smith.

“That would be perfectly fine.” She said with a smile Mrs. Snyder could be a fuzzy bunny if she needed to be. “Since class is almost over, reading for tonight is up to the end of Chapter seven of along with a little spiel about what it was that you read, alright?”

Katie and I nodded.

I glanced at the clock that hung off the wall a few feet down the hall from Mrs. Snyder’s class room. Second period was almost over, which meant that we needed to head toward our third period class, which would be Algebra.

The beginning of Classes as Morgan

---

Chapter 21
 
 
Mr. Thompson, Katie and I walked back down stairs and toward Mr. Hopkins’ room. Katie reached over and grabbed my hand, and gave it a squeeze. I could tell that she was nervous about going to Mr. Hopkins’ class. Back when I took the lead in the play, Mr. Hopkins was the only person that gave me any kind of grief over attending classes. He said that boys shouldn’t wear skirts and dresses, but after Mrs. Jenkins had talked to him about me getting into my role so deep that I didn't come out of it even when it was time to go home. The three of us waked up to Mr. Hopkins’ door right as the bell rang. We waited on everyone that was in the classroom to exit. The room finally emptied and we walked in. Mr. Hopkins glanced up from his desk and rolled his eyes as the three of us walked in. He looked up at Mr. Thompson.
“What can I do for you, Mr. Thompson?” Mr. Hopkins said.
“Well, for starters, I saw your eyes roll when we walked in, but that’s not why I’m here.” Mr Thompson said, pausing to continue his thought and arrange his words.
“You’re here because Katie and this other person,” He paused motioning up and down with his hand at me “Will be in my class. What name are you going by this time, Josh?” Mr. Hopkins asked, peering over the tops of his glasses at me. I blinked. I was not going to be intimidated by Mr. Hopkins, just like I was not intimidated by Mrs. Paskly.
“My name is Morgan, Mr. Hopkins, It’s nice to meet you.” I said, offering my hand. Mr. Hopkins continued to peer over the top of his glasses. He finally reached up to shake my offered hand.
“Nice to meet you Morgan. Don’t expect me to be any easier on you just because you are wearing a skirt. You are just as smart as Josh, and I don’t expect any thing to have changed. You guys missed some homework from last night, get with me and I’ll make sure that you get it… Your absents was excused for yesterday. You would have been here if Mrs. Paskly hadn’t interfered.” He said, with a smile. “Get to your seats, Morgan, sit in your normal seat.” I nodded and turned around and blinked. While we were conversing with Mr. Hopkins, the entire class had come in and taken their seats. Katie reached over and squeezed my hand. We walked to our seats and I noted as we sat, that everyone in the room was watching the two of us as we sat down. The room broke out in whispers as people tried to figure out what was going on.
“Ok, Quiet down, class, meet Morgan, She will be with us for a while. Open your books to page two hundred sixteen.” Mr. Hopkins said.

Chapter 22

Five minutes before third period was over Mr. Thompson knocked on the door of Mr. Hopkins room. Mr. Hopkins poked his head in and pointed at Katie and I, and then beckoned us to the hall way. Mr. Hopkins nodded. We had already gone and spoken to Mr. Hopkins about our missing assignments from the previous day. We had some additional work that wasn’t included in the batch of homework we got the previous night. Katie and I packed our stuff up and stood. I felt as if every eye in the room was watching us go, and everyone was probably watching us go. We walked out in the hallway and Mr. Thompson smiled at us.

“How was Hopkins’ class?” Mr. Thompson asked.

“It was like algebra, kinda boring and I wonder if I will ever use it.” Mr. Thompson smiled. Officer Mullin walked down the hall. He stopped next to Mr. Thompson.

“How’s it going, Morgan?” Officer Mullin asked. I looked at him.

“Good, Sir. No problems to speak of yet, not that I am expecting any.” I said.

“Good. Let me know if you have any problems.” Officer Mullin said, gave a playful salute to Mr. Thompson, and then continued on down the hall.

“What class is next?” Mr. Thompson asked. He was relying on us to know our schedules, which was fine as they wouldn’t change for another month.

“Study hall, in the upper gym.” I replied. After study hall, we had lunch, and then Katie and I were separated for the only part of the day, which would be when I had typing. After that Katie and I would meet again for business management. I looked at Mr. Thompson “Actually,I wanted to talk to you about college. I want to go into psychiatry.”

“I’m staying with her as much as possible, so I’ll come along too.” Katie said. Mr. Hopkins nodded, and turned to head toward the stairs that would take us back down stairs so that we could go over to the upper gym and then back down to Mr. Thompson’s office. When we got to the stairs, Mr. Thompson held the door open so that Katie and I could go ahead of him down the steps. When we got to the bottom of the steps, Mr. Thompson had opened the door for us.

“Thank you, Mr. Thompson.” I said as I walked past.

“You’re thanking me for holding a door open for a lady like I was brought up to do?” He chuckled. “We should be offering classes on politeness, but somehow I don’t think that Mr. Gallagh would go for that.”

“Yeah, Probably not. It’s something that has to be taught at home, not school.” Katie said.

“True.” Mr. Thompson said. “Not that most people would take it or even use the knowledge that they gain. The doors that went up to the balcony that made up the upper gym were propped open on the fire latches. Mr. Thompson would have probably let us walk up first, but we were wearing shorter skirts so he went up first. All of the doors upstairs were propped open on the fire latches as well. We walked into the upper Gym, and I stayed away from the edge of the balcony. Two years ago when I had been a freshman, I had been down on the gym floor and had looked up to attempt to catch a ball that was flying my way when I noticed a girl that was walking on the balcony and had a glimpse up her skirt because of where she was standing. I knew I had seen her panties as they were neon pink and her skirt was black. The ball had hit me on the head, and I was pretty much laughed out of the gym class. We walked up to Mrs. Jackson, who also taught in the music department.

“Morning Mr. Thompson, Katie, new person.” She said, with a chuckle. I smiled.

“Morning Mrs. Jackson.” Katie and I said in unison.

“Josh?” She asked astonished. So far she was the first person to correctly guess who I was.

“In the flesh, but not the clothes. My name is Morgan.” I said to her, flashing a smile.

“Actually the reason that we came up was that Morgan and I were going to discuss college stuff. Katie’s going to come with us.” Mr. Thompson said. Mrs. Jackson nodded, and marked us as attending study hall. The three of exited the upper gym and headed for Mr. Thompson’s office. He let us go down the steps first, and then opened the door to the guidance office. We walked down the hall to where Mr. Thompson’s office actually was and walked in with him. Katie and I smoothed our skirts as we sat down.
“Morgan where were you wanting to go to school?” Mr. Thompson asked.

Chapter 23

“Morgan where were you wanting to go to school?” Mr. Thompson asked.

“I really haven’t given it much thought,” I said, truthfully. “I just know what I want to do. Now I need to figure out how to go about doing it.” Mr. Thompson looked at me.

“Sycamore University has a really good psychology program, as well as a world renowned medical department. They are also local, which would save money as you wouldn’t have to pay for a dorm,” Mr. Thompson said. “I would imagine that with your grades as high as they are a scholarship wouldn’t be out of the question.” I looked at him. I guess I had some research to do. I made a mental note to talk to Dr. Franklin about it.

“Hmm,” I said. “I have some research to do.” I smiled. Mr. Thompson looked at me.

“Yes, you do,” He said, chuckling. “I’m going to write you girls a pass to go see Mrs. Perkins in the library. Morgan, you at least need a new ID, you know, that matches the way you look.”

“Right.” I said. I dug in my backpack for my old one. I looked at the picture. The picture was the same one that was taken during registration for classes this year. The company that did the pictures had the equipment to print ID’s and had printed them in about thirty seconds. Mrs. Perkins had received the file that the photography company had created after we had all gone through the cameras, as well as a printer giving her the ability to reprint ID’s and add new students as the school year went on. Well as far as the school was concerned I was a new student. “You have some papers for me to give Mrs. Perkins?”

“Yeah,” Mr. Thompson said, shuffling some papers on his desk. He handed me a piece of paper that was on school letterhead. “Give that to Mrs. Perkins, and she should run you off a new ID after taking your picture.” I skimmed the paper. Mr. Thompson handed out another piece of paper, one to each of us. “Those are your passes, Get to it. Morgan, if you want some more help after you have looked at schools, and have an idea of where you want to go, come back down and see me. If you need anything you know where I am. Come back before your class after lunch.” Katie and I had lunch after our study hall period. After lunch, we had the only time during the day that we were separated. Katie and I stood. Mr. Thompson looked at me, looked at Katie and smiled. “You girls enjoy lunch.” Katie and I walked out of his office and into the outer office. There were a few people in the outer office that watched us go. Most of the students in the school weren’t even paying attention to me, which I thought was a good thing.

“Any idea what you missed yesterday in Downard’s class?” Katie asked as we walked. I opened the fire door at the bottom of the steps for us since I was the one closest to it. There was a boy and girl standing in the stairwell looking like they were doing the tongue olympics.

“Look at the lesbians.” I heard the boy say. I suddenly realized that Katie and mine’s hands had automatically joined after we had entered the stair well. Katie and I ignored them and continued up stairs. Katie was closer to the door at the top so she opened the door for us. We turned to the left and walked into the library. Mrs. Dunhaven was sitting behind the counter. She looked up at us.

“Katie, You and this new girl are going to have to go back to study hall. The bell rang ten minutes ago.” She said. Katie smiled.

“Actually Mr. Thompson sent the new girl up to get her ID. Although she isn’t exactly new.” Katie said, nudging me closer to the desk. I handed her the note that Mr. Thompson had given me. She looked at the paper, me, back to the paper, and back at me.

“Well, I never thought I’d see the day when they just let a boy run around the school in skirts,” Mrs. Dunhaven said, rather loudly. There were a few students that were sitting close enough to hear what Mrs. Dunhaven had said, and they looked in our direction. Katie looked at Mrs. Dunhaven, who stood and handed the note to Katie. “Mrs. Perkins is back in her office. Katie knows where it is.”

“Thank you.” Katie said, walking through the opening that would let us into the library proper so that we could go see Mrs. Perkins. Katie walked up to the door and knocked.

“Come in.” Katie and I heard. Katie opened the door and we both walked into the office that was as large as a classroom. Mrs. Perkins was able to claim that she had the largest office in the school. “What can I do for you girls?”

Katie and I walked into Mrs. Perkins office. Mrs. Perkins looked at Katie, and then looked at me.

“Wow. I think you are prettier than what everyone is saying you are, Morgan.” I felt my cheeks turn red. I guessed when you were the cause of the principal of a school loosing her job, people, especially the staff, who I’m sure had heard what was going on before Mr. Gallagh had even showed up to relieve Mrs. Paskley of her duties.

“What can I do for you, hun?” I handed her the note. She read it and then looked at me. “Is your student ID number staying the same or are you being re-entered into the system?” She asked. Katie and I glanced at each other. Mr. Thompson hadn’t said.

“I’m not sure, Mrs. Perkins,” I answered. She smiled and motioned for me to sit in front of a blue piece of paper that had been attached to the wall.

“Ok, Well, I’ll go ahead and take the picture for your new ID, and call down to Mr. Thompson to find out about the student ID number. While I’m doing that, go find an empty computer and log in and you can start doing the research you need for school.” I nodded and then sat on the stool, Mrs. Perkins stood behind the computer and a few seconds later, looked at me. “Smile.” She said; I did. “Go research. If you need to make any calls, Come in here to do it.” Mrs. Perkins apparently anticipated the need for me to make phone calls while doing my research. I looked at her.

“Thank you,” I said, standing to execute a slight curtsy, which elicited giggles from Katie and brought a smile to Mrs. Perkins’ face. I looked at Katie. “What?”

“Where did you learn to do that?” Katie asked.

“I learned for the play,” I said, turning to leave Mrs. Perkins’ office and walking toward . Katie followed me to a computer and sat next to me. I used my current logon and password to log into the computer. As I waited for it to display my desktop, I idly wondered how long it would take the person in charge of the computer systems at the district office to change the information.

“I don’t recall you curtseying during the play.” Katie said, after logging into the computer next to me. I double clicked on the icon to get on the internet.

“That’s because I didn’t,” I said. Katie did a double take. “Mom and Jennifer wanted to make sure that I knew how, just in case I needed to. It was kind of nice watching your faces though.”

“Why did your mom and Jennifer want to make sure you knew how to curtsy?” Katie asked, her brow furrowed. “I don’t even think I could curtsy.” She said, clicking on a link on the computer. I glanced over at her and frowned.

“I bet I could teach you.” I said, emailing my self some information Katie glanced at the clock, and then me.

“It’s almost lunch time,” She said, logging off of the computer. I glanced at the clock on the computer that I was using and saw that she was right. I logged off and stood, my knees cracking. I walked over to Mrs. Perkins’ door and knocked on it. I saw her reach over and open the door, she motioned for me to come in.

“Ok, Mr. Thompson, I’ll let her know.” Mrs. Perkins said into the phone and then placed the handset back in the cradle. She looked up at me, smiled, and then handed me my new ID. I looked at it. She must have just printed it, as the plastic card was still warm; Gave new meaning to the term ‘hot off the press’. “Mr. Thompson wants Katie and you to swing by his office as soon as you girls are done with lunch.” I nodded, and Mrs. Perkins held out her hand. “Give me the old one, Missy.” I smiled and dug my old ID out of my book bag and handed it to her. She looked at it and then looked at me. “I wondered how long it was going to take…” Mrs. Perkins said, “You girls need to get to lunch.” I smiled, executed another curtsy, and watched Mrs. Perkins smile. I left Mrs. Perkins office and then looked at my ID. I must admit I thought I looked pretty.

Katie and I were sitting at a table close to one of the exits of the commons area so that we could make a quick exit toward the office to see Mr. Thompson. I had seen Officer Mullin talking to Mr. Jackson, one of the PE teachers, and one of the football coaches. Ever since then, Mr Jackson had been kinda close to where Katie and I sat. I’m sure that there had been rumors flying around the school that I hadn’t heard, but I also knew that those would be quickly quelled by members of the schools mediation club, who would politely remind those spreading the rumors that they were subject to suspension for the content of the rumors. Kaite and I were walking toward the main office, which was on the opposite end of the school when suddenly I was grabbed from behind and shoved into the wall rather roughly. I felt my head bounce off the wall and briefly saw stars. I recognized the student as James Petry. He was on the football team and a good one hundred fifty pounds heaver than me, throw in his additional foot in height, his muscular build, and well, I was pretty much dead meat.

“You’d better watch your back, faggot,” he said menacingly. He pulled his fist back to punch me. I took his fist in the gut, which doubled me over, but it didn't’ incapacitate me like he thought it would have. With one quick, practiced move, I struck out with my right foot, catching his common peroneal. He dropped to both knees as his right leg gave out in a sympathy reaction to the impact to his left leg. He blinked a few times, and then swung his fist again. I still hadn’t come back up to a standing posture, so this hit caught me square in the jaw. I blinked twice and swung around on my left foot in a clockwise direction, I caught James in the shoulder blades with all one hundred ten pounds of force that I had and sent his body crashing to the floor, face first. I stepped on his left hand and Katie, who had finally realized that I was no longer beside her stepped on his right. I reached up and wiped a little bit of blood from my mouth. Officer Mullin came around the corner as the students in the common area finally realized that there was a fight that had happened. As Officer Mullin pulled his handcuffs out of the pouch on his belt, I let up on James’ hand. Next thing I knew I was falling backwards and landed rather roughly on the floor, skidding across to the far side of the hallway and feeling my head bounce off the wall a second time. This time the stars didn’t dissipate as quickly. I looked over at Katie, who had firmly planted her boot on the side of James’ face and was pushing down as Officer Mullin handcuffed him. Students came surging from what seemed like everywhere, as did staff. Katie rushed to my side. My brian was processing everything in slow motion.

“Morgan, Are you ok?” I looked at her.

“Why, yes, I am, beautiful,” I smiled up at her. “I have a headache now, but yes, I think other than that I’m fine.” I saw a look of relief cross Katie’s face.

“Close your legs, you are flashing half the student body.” Katie whispered in my ear. I blushed, I think, and pulled my legs together.

“Aren’t you going to arrest the faggot, Officer?” James asked. Officer Mullin shot him a look.

“No, She didn’t do anything more than defend her self.” Officer Mullin said. He reached up for his microphone.

“Twenty eight, I need an incident and CFS, also start a street unit, I have a code three on a seven. I’ll call the radio room in a few for info on the card.”

“Copy twenty eight, twelve oh six.” His radio crackled. There were murmurs from the students as they didn’t know what the codes that Officer Mullin had said over the radio were, everyone was talking trying to figure out what was said…

“That faggot hit me first.” James said from his position on the floor. He knew he was in deep shit, and was trying to get out of it. Katie stood and offered her hands. I reached up and grabbed them and winced. I slowly stood, using the wall for support. I stood, leaning against the wall for a second allowing my equilibrium to realize that it wasn’t moving any more.

“You want to argue that with a video tape, Mr. Petry?” Officer Mullin pointed at a camera that was mounted in the ceiling of the hallway. “I was coming down the hallway and saw the whole thing anyway; and, next time you pick on someone, you shouldn’t pick on a girl who’s father was a police officer who had trained his daughter in the fine art of self defense.” I saw James’ forehead hit the floor. I wiped some more blood off my lip. It felt as if everything was still intact. My lip was split, I was sure that I had a bruise on my face, and I still felt like I had been punched in the gut, mainly because I had been. Katie looked at me.

“You think you can walk to the nurses office?” She asked, I looked at her, and then at James, who had a little bit of blood trickling from his nose. I guessed it was from where he fell to the floor I felt a small twinge of satisfaction, knowing that I had at least inflicted some damage on my opponent. I really hoped that word would go forth from here that I would defend my self. We started walking toward the hallway that would take Katie and I toward the schools offices. When we got to the nurses office, the school nurse, Mrs Price, took one look at me and had me lay down on one of the two cots.

“What happened?” Mrs. Price asked, pulling a pen light out of her pocket. The school district actually paid to employ licensed RN’s rather than people that were licensed as a school nurse. Mrs. Price shone the light in my left eye, and then she moved to my right. She disappeared for a second, and then reappeared.

“James Petry tried to beat her up. I think she hit her head on the wall when she was sent flying across the hallway.” Katie said.

“Honey, do you know what your name is?” Mrs. Price asked. I blinked.

“Morgan Danielle Smith,” I said. “Formerly Joshua Allen Smith” Mrs. Price smiled.

“Do you know what day it is, Morgan?” She asked, holding her penlight in front of my face and moving it from side to side. I followed it with my eyes.

“Wednesday October twenty first.” I replied. “Can I at least sit up, I tend to fall asleep if I lay down.”

Katie and I were still in the nurses office when Officer Mullin came in. He looked at me and shook his head.

“I reviewed the tapes,” He started. “But I want you to tell me what happened, in your own words.” Officer Mullin said.

“James came up from behind me and slammed me into the wall. I felt the back of head bounce off the wall. It stunned me for a moment. He looked at me and said ‘You’d better watch your back, faggot.’ Then he punched me in the gut. When he didn’t walk away after that, I kicked out with my left foot, aiming for the common peroneal. I guess I hit it because he was down on his knees. I hadn’t gotten back to standing, and he punched me in my jaw, and busting my lip. I shook that off, spun to my right, caught his shoulder blades, knocking him flat on his face. I think that’s when his face started bleeding.” I paused. “Katie had realized what was going on by then and stood on his left wrist, I stood on his right. You walked up and pulled out your cuffs. I let up with my foot so you could cuff him and next thing I know I’m bouncing off the wall on the other side of the hallway.” I reached up to rub my temples. Officer Mullin looked at Mrs. Price.

“That’s what the video looked like, What’s your prognosis, Mrs. Price.”

“I called Jackie, she’s on her way in. I don’t think Morgan has a concussion, but I want her to get checked out anyway. Katie, you are probably going to be going with her as Morgan’s mom has the ability to sign you out too.” Jen came running into the room. She stopped and slid next to where I was sitting on the cot. She bent down to hug me. I winced as everything still hurt. Jen saw this and let go of her embrace. Lunch was one of the few times that we were separated through out the day.

“What happened?” Jen asked.

“James Petry tried to beat her up…” Katie said for me, I was too beat up to try to explain it any more… “Our Morgan is a fighter though, she knows how to defend her self. I really hope that word gets around that she will defend her self if she has to. I didn’t even know that anything was going on until I saw James hit the floor…” Katie wiped a tear away. “That was when I stood on his hand, When Officer Mullin tried to cuff James, James sent Morgan spinning across the floor, and she hit her head a second time… Jen, I’m sorry.” I could hear the tears forming in Katie’s voice. She had sworn to protect me and on my first day of school, she had failed. I saw Jen move from my left side, to my right, which was where Katie was standing. I glanced up as Mr. Thompson walked in to the room and looked at the three of us….

“Morgan, are you alright?” he asked.

“I’m a little banged up. But other than that, I’m good. Mrs. Price wants me to get checked out further and I think mom is on her way in…” I said, squeezing Katie’s hand.

“Ok, I just talked to Mr. Jackson, who is in charge in the interim while Mr. Gallagh selects a replacement for Mrs. Paskly, and Mr. Petry is getting expelled and he will be by to see you shortly. Your mom should be here shortly, as well as a Dr. Franklin and Katie’s mom.” Mr. Thompson said. I blinked, and then looked at Katie. James Petry getting expelled was a given, but I was actually wondering why Dr. Franklin and Susan were coming to the school as well… I nodded.

“Why is my mom coming?” Katie asked. Mr. Thompson shrugged…

“I have no idea. I got a call from her saying that her and Dr. Franklin were on their way over.”

“After looking at the CT scan and X-rays, nothing is broken and Morgan does not have a concussion.” Dr. Montgomery said. We were sitting in the ER of the local hospital, and Dr. Montgomery was looking at the computer monitors that showed the output of the CT scan.

“Anything we should watch out for?” Mom asked. Dr. Montgomery looked at her.

“I would wake her up every couple of hours tonight, but she should be ok to go in the morning. If any sudden headaches appear, she might want to get them checked out as soon as possible. I would bring her in here, it will be faster than trying to see your primary care doctor.” Mom nodded, and Katie squeezed my hand. Mom reached over and bushed my hair out of my face. I had been switched out of my skirt and blouse, into a hospital gown, had a CT scan and the X-rays done, and now sat back in my skirt and blouse. I had done a quick job of putting my hair in a ponytail by simply gathering it and putting a hair tie at the top. I knew I had missed some hairs, but at the moment, I didn’t care. I felt someone playing with my hair and tilted my head to look up and saw Katie playfully running my ponytail through her fingers.

“Ok, we can do that.“ Mom was saying. I felt Katie pull the hair tie out and then felt a brush brushing out my hair. I tuned out the room while my hair was being brushed.

“Morgan.” I heard Mom’s voice. “Let’s go home, honey.” I stood, feeling my skirt float back down to just above my knees. Katie took my hand and we left the exam room in the ER.

I awoke the next morning, sore all over, wearing a baby blue satin night gown that I did not recall putting on. I sat up in bed on my elbows and looked around my room. The sun was just starting to turn the sky a light pinkish color. I glanced at the clock and saw that it was 5:30 in the morning and I really didn’t need to be up that early so I rolled over and went back to bed, slipping around between the sheets as I rolled.

“Morgan, it’s time to get up.” I was being shaken gently by Katie, who, not surprising to me, was already dressed. She had on a simple white blouse and a pink and white plaid mini skirt. I looked her up and down before finally sitting up in the bed. I blinked a few times as the room was brighter than it had been an hour before.

“I want to go back to bed.” I said, wincing. I still had some residual pain from bouncing off of two different walls the day before. The doctor in the ER has said that some exterior bruising was possible, and the slight amount of pain, combined with getting woken up every two hours had not allowed me to get a lot of sleep. Katie smiled.

“We have to go to school…” Katie said. Logic suggested why I didn’t want to go to school, I had only gotten beat up the day before. Katie held out her hands for me to grab on to so that she could help me get out of bed. I took ahold of her out stretched hands and stood, feeling my night gown tickle my legs as it fell back to my thighs. Katie gently pushed me toward the door so that I could go get in a shower. I got in the shower and, and let the hot water flow over my aching body. It felt nice to just let the water flow over my skin, and if I could have done so, I would have just stood there all day. Unfortunately, as I was standing there, I felt the water start to cool off as I was the last one to take a shower this morning. I quickly washed my hair and body before I ran out of hot water, and then shut the water off. I grabbed the towel that was hanging there and dried my hair, and then patted my skin dry. I shuffled back to my bedroom to find my clothes already laid out on my bed. Laying on the bed was the same outfit that I had gotten caught in. On top of my comforter was the black turtleneck sweater and red and black pleated skirt. On the floor was a pair of black loafers with a two and a half inch heel. I got dressed and made my way downstairs. Jen had beat me down and was making coffee. Mom was pulling a bowl out of the microwave and carrying it over to the table. Jen turned around and offered me a cup of coffee. I could get used to my sister treating me very nicely. I glanced over at the bowl on the table and then back at Jen and Mom.

“Thanks for the coffee, Jen.” I said to her She smiled and then poured another cup of coffee for Katie who had just walked into the kitchen.

“Eat honey,” Mom said, pulling another bowl out of the microwave, and sitting it at the seat next to the bowl that was already on the table. Katie slid into a chair and I sat next to her. Katie and I ate in silence, and then Katie reached over and took my hand and squeezed it.

“How’s your head?” Jen asked. I turned and looked at her, not letting go of Katie’s hand.

“It still tingles, but I think it will be alright.” I said, looking past Jen at the clock on the wall. It was time to leave for school…

Katie slowed the car as we went to turn into the lot at the school. Across the street a small group of protesters was protesting, claiming that I was an abomination to God, and I was startled to see that the group was led by none other than Mrs. Paskly. Katie and I looked at each other.

“What in the hell?” She said, pulling the car into a parking spot. I refused to let Mrs. Paskly win, and wrote her off as a slight nuisance. I could live knowing that she would just be standing there, freezing her rear end off while I stayed inside the nice warm school building. I took a deep breath and opened the door, feeling the cold air invade the car that had warmed up nicely in the time it had taken us to get from the house to the school. I felt the goosebumps rise on my legs as I gracefully extracted my self from the car. My skirt fell back to my knees and my pink peacoat kept my upper body warm. Katie and I joined hands as we walked into the school, our black loafers making very little sound on the dry blacktop. I was not looking forward to making this walk in the snow, with my feet either getting soaked or having to switch from snow boots to my shoes for inside. Katie and I wore similar skirts, both a black plaid, and knee length. Under my peacoat, I had on a black turtleneck sweater, and I could see the top of Katie’s baby pink turtleneck sweater poking out of the neck line of her jacket. We walked into the school and Officer Mullin stepped out of his office.

“Did Paskly try anything?” He asked. I looked at him.

“You mean other than defamation, no. She’s just mad because her own antics cost her career and she hasn’t phased me in the least.” I said, while adding in my head ‘closed minded bitch.’

“There are some units on the way to deal with her, we checked and they don’t have a permit to be protesting, regardless where they are doing it. You girls run to class.” Mullin said. That made sense in my head as you had to have a permit for any type of protest inside the city limits. Katie and I walked into the hallway that ran down the side of the commons, when Katie looked at me with a confused look on her face.

“What was Officer Mullin talking about with the permit?” She asked.

"To protest anything inside the city limits, you need go apply for a permit." I said. "They cost about twenty bucks and they usually don't deny the permit unless there is just cause. Apparently, Paskly and her group never applied for one." We walked into our first period classroom. Several students were already there and a group of girls came over to us.

"Morgan, we are with you 100% if you need anything, just ask." Jessica said. "We think you are very brave for finding your true self and also, welcome to the 'fairer sex'" Jessica said, giving me a wink. The five minute warning bell sounded so we all shuffled off to our seats. I had noticed that Katie and I both were dressed nicer than any of the other girls and with the exception of Ashleigh the only girls in skirts. Ashleigh's mom refused to allow her daughter to wear pants, and it was rumored that she had some way of enforcing that rule. No one knew what that was, but for the time that I had known her, she had, to my knowledge not taken a P.E. Course in the three years that she had been at the school. I sat down at my desk which was right behind Katie’s desk and waited on the tardy bell to ring. I pulled my text book for the class and reached up to playfully tug on Katie’s ponytail. I then felt a tug on my own pony tail… I turned to look at Elizabeth who was sitting behind me. She had a huge grin on her face.

“I saw you do it to Katie and thought that turn about was fair play.” She said. Kaite had turned to see me looking at Elizabeth.

“Did you tug on Morgan’s pony tail, Lizzy?” Katie asked, using the nickname of everyone in the class for Elizabeth. She didn’t mind as most everyone in the school called her Lizzy. Lizzy giggled like a little girl that had been caught with her hand in the cookie jar.

“Yep.” She beamed. It had to be a bad day before you could catch Lizzy not smiling. Mrs Snyder came into the room and sat her stuff on her desk. She examined the room and shrugged, taking a sip of coffee out of her mug. Two minutes later the tardy bell rang.

“Good Morning everybody.” Mrs. Snyder said. She received a variety of mumbled good mornings back in response. She went on to talk about the research project that was due at the end of the school year, some scant six months away. I had an idea on what I was going to do mine on, but everything had to be approved by Mrs. Snyder. I would have more than enough information in short time on laws affecting transgendered people and the reasoning behind those laws, as well as the way that some of them could be changed.

The bell rang signaling the end of first period so Katie and I got up and went to our next class which was US History. Katie and I sat side by side in this class, and we both dug out our text books as well as the notebooks that were dedicated to the class and smiled at each other. Right after Mr. Anderson had started class, the PA broke into his lecture on the Civil War.

“Mr. Anderson?” Came the voice of someone in the office.

“Yes?” he said.

“Could you please send Katie Richardson and Morgan Smith down to the office, and have them bring their stuff with them, please?” Katie and I glanced at each other and looked at Mr. Anderson.

“They are on their way.” Mr. Anderson said. Most of the room was speculating that we were in trouble. Katie and I gathered our things and dropped them in our bags.

“Thank you.” Katie and I stood and walked into the hallway.

“What’s going on?” Katie asked me as we walked toward one of the stair cases to go downstairs to the main office.

“I have no idea, but I bet it has something to do with James Petry or Mrs. Paskly.” I said, pushing open the door at the top of the stair case.