THE DEAD KID
The dead kid was late again today, and all the class knew what that meant.
When the dead kid first showed up, nobody quite knew what to do with it. Debate raged up and down the school system. Meanwhile, the dead kid kept coming every day. So finally they let it stay. By this time, the class had noticed the pattern the dead kid followed.
On good days, it came early, moved more smoothly, and acted much more, well, alive. Teachers swore they could almost see the person the dead kid had been, before it had died. But when it was late, and that meant that whatever mortician fixed it up for school had not had a good night.
And today it was the latest yet, so late they started to think it wasn’t coming at all when they heard the by now familiar clumping sound it made when it walked. Everyone shuddered as it made its way to the desk they had provided for it. On good days, all but the most sensitive kids could deal with it now.
They had figured out the dead kid wasn’t interested in eating their brains or anything like the zombies in the movies, and so they carried on like everything was normal. But not on bad days, and today was the worst yet.
On bad days, it was a walking reminder that all things rot, which might be a good lesson in theory, but difficult for a bunch of kids to deal with in practice. Bits kept falling off it, and the dead kid would simply stop and pick them up and push them back into place.
It was moving very slowly today, but it found its way to its seat and turned its eyes, such as they were to the blackboard at the front of the room. Nobody was too sure why it came to class, or if it understood what was being taught, but it did look at the teachers when they talked.
If it had been alive, they might have worried about the fact that it had no friends or playmates, but as it was, they were grateful it seemed content to watch the living play and learn. Of course, that it was content was an assumption, for nobody really knew what it was thinking and feeling, or if it really thought and felt at all.
One of the teachers said she thought that maybe the dead kid didn’t know it was dead, so went through the routine of going to school because that’s what kids do, Nobody asked the dead kid’s opinion on the subject, or any other, for that matter. It sometimes made noises, but hadn’t spoken any actual words, as far as anybody knew.
It was lunch time, when things changed,. Now, nobody was even 100 % sure what gender the dead kid was. It was dressed like a boy, but it seemed to have an indefinable feminine quality about it, especially on good days. Despite this confusion, or maybe because of it, a debate developed over what would happen if someone kissed the dead kid.
None of the boys would volunteer as long as the issue of gender was unresolved, but one of the girls decided she would risk it.
They had heard the nurse at the school say it carried no diseases that they could find, so a small kiss could not do any harm, and so she waited until just before the bell rang, quickly came up to it, and said to it, “can I give you a kiss?”
The dead kid dropped its hands to its side like it was surrendering, and she took that to mean “yes”, and leaned in, and gave a quick peck on the dead kid’s lips, and then turned and ran into the school.
Her lipstick stained the dead kids lips, the first bit of color on its face anyone had ever seen. Almost immediately, there was a difference.
The dead kid moved into the school faster than it had even on its best day, and by mid-afternoon, people could see that some of the worst flaws had somehow healed themselves.
For the first time, the teachers could tell what color eyes it had, and that feminine quality seemed overwhelming, but its actual source was still a mystery.
Sadly, the effect didn’t last, and within a week it was back to the same old routine, and the same people who had been so sure it was a girl were no longer sure.
But something had changed in the dead kid, but nobody could see it yet.
Some force, some magic in that simple kiss remained dormant inside, waiting.
Waiting for the day when the dead kid wouldn’t be dead anymore. And the secret of the dead kid wouldn’t be a secret anymore.
The Dead Kid Returns
Author's note: Consider this a teaser. No idea when more might come.
The Dead Kid Returns
Part One: Beth’s story
The dead kid didn’t show up for class again today, and nobody knew what that meant.
When the dead kid first missed a day, the debate went up and down the schoolyard as to what might have happened to it. But as days went by, and still no sign of it, people started to forget that the dead kid had ever been there.
Except one girl..
Her name was Bethany Ann Cooper, and she was there the day when the dead kid had first come to class. Like most of her classmates, she had been a bit frightened at first, until she figured out that the dead kid wouldn’t eat her brains, or anything like that. After a while, having the dead kid in her class was just - normal.
Like most people at the school, she saw the cycle that the dead kid followed, where some days, it moved very slowly and looked like it was going to fall apart, and other days where it moved much faster, and seemed almost alive. The other thing she noticed was a impression of femininity that it had, a impression that seemed strongest on its good days, and faded on its bad ones.
Because of this confusion, she ended up being part of an argument over the gender of the dead kid, an argument that led to her being dared to give the dead kid a kiss.
So, on one of the dead kid’s worst days, she came up to the dead kid at recess and kissed it on the lips.
Everyone saw the results, although they didn’t know about the kiss - the dead kid somehow healed its worst injuries and went back to class with more vibrancy than it had ever had before.
Strangely, it didnt solve the issue of the dead kid’s gender, because although the feminine quality it sometimes had got stronger, there was still no definite source for it. Worse, after a couple of days, the effect of the kiss seemed to wear off, and the dead kid went back to its old pattern, and even Beth, who had been so sure that it was a girl, began to have doubts again.
And then one day the dead kid just didn’t come to class. And eventually, the story of the dead kid seemed to fade, and became all but forgotten.
But not by Beth, who couldn’t forget.
She felt something, some force, some magic that had been born of her kiss, was inside her and now was simply waiting.
Waiting for the day when the Dead Kid would return.
Waiting for the day when the secret of the Dead Kid wouldn’t be a secret anymore.
And the Dead Kid would finally have a chance to become alive.
The Dead Kid Returns
Part 2: The New Kid
The new kid came into the class, and almost nobody noticed. When the new kid had first shown up, there had been the usual introductions, but almost immediately after, the new kid seemed to fade into the background, forgotten.
Except one girl, who watched the new kid move, and wondered.
Her name was Bethany Ann Cooper, and she was regarded as a bit odd, because she once said that she remembered a time when a dead kid had come to the school, and even claimed to have given this dead kid a kiss.
When everyone else laughed at that idea, she retreated, but her reputation remained, and so she usually was alone.
But now that loneliness seemed to help her, as she focused on the new kid, wondering.
The first time she noticed something odd about the new kid had been three months ago, when one day, out of the blue, she looked at the new kid, and stared crying.
A sense of grief, of sadness so great she simply couldn’t contain it overwhelmed her, and all she could do was cry.
This feeling stayed with her whenever she was around the new kid for the next couple of days, and then vanished.
Odder, she found herself overlooking the new kid again, like she had before the feeling had occurred.
Until a month later, when it happened again.
This time, she fought through the grief, trying to focus on what was causing it, and when the feeling started to fade a couple of days later, she realized the feeling was familiar.
But the last time she had felt it, it had come from the dead kid, the day she kissed it.
She remembered the cycle the dead kid had followed, how sometimes it seemed more alive, and when that happened it also seemed more like a girl, despite the way it was dressed. Then the feeling would fade, and even Beth had stared to doubt the dead kid’s gender.
And now this same feeling was coming from the new kid, only this time it was strong enough to make her weep whenever she felt it.
She was sure that behind the new kid’s boy clothes and name there was the spirit of a girl, a bright shining light kept shuttered away from the world.
And the grief she had felt was that girl spirit struggling to get out of its cage, and suffering because it could not.
So now she watched the new kid carefully, and wondered.
She wondered how she could help the suffering girl inside the new kid, before it’s light went out for good.
Then she remembered one day she had shared with the dead kid, and an idea came into her mind, and heart.
And that gave her an idea how to help the new kid, if she could figure out exactly how, and when.
If she had the courage to make it work.
If she was right, if her feelings were accurate, and not just an echo from the past.
And if the new kid would let her help.
But she could only try, and see.
And then time would tell.
The Dead Kid Returns:
Chapter 3: A Quiet Beginning
Beth felt one thing for sure - Time was running out.
She could feel the spirit of the new kid, the bright female spark hidden inside a male shell getting weaker. She knew she had to act fast, if she was going to help the new kid, so she steeled her courage, and waited until classes got out.
This might be difficult enough without an audience.
She followed the new kid for a block, and then said, “Hay. Wait up!”
The new kid turned, and looked at her.
“Hi. I ... I hope you don’t mind, but I’ve noticed you’re alone a lot. I .. I just wanted to say that you dont have to be. I would like to spend time with you, if you like.”
The new kid said nothing.
“I ... I mean, we could do something together. What do you like to do?”
“I like to read.” the new kid said softly.
“Well, we could read together.”
The new kid stared at her, and then said, “Okay. if you want, I ... I have a spot nearby where I like to read.”
“Lead the way.” Beth said, with a smile.
The new kid led her to a park, went to a spot on the grass, and sat down. Then the new kid pulled a book out a backpack, and said tentatively “Do you have a book? I could lend you one.”
“That would be cool. What book is that?” Beth asked.
“The Martian Chronicles. Its a favorite of mine.”
“Then I would be honored if you let me borrow it.”
The new kid handed her the book, and Beth made herself comfortable on the grass near the new kid.
They read silently for ten minutes, and then the new kid said, “I have to go home now.”
“Okay. Can we do this again?”
“Tomorrow, if you like.”
“I’ll look forward to it.”
The next day, she did it again, and the day after as well. Part of her wanted to hurry this along, but she understood if she moved too fast, the new kid would get scared, and not let her help.
“First, I have to gain her trust.” Beth thought to herself.
On the fourth day, she handed the book back to the new kid, saying “I finished. It was a great book, thank you for lending it to me.”
“Do you have a favorite part?”
“That one story, about the automated house. It was kinda sad, but neat too.”
“Ah, yes. ‘There will come soft rains’. that’s one of my favorite parts of that book.”
“You have any other books?” Beth asked.
“Here. Isaac Asimov’s ‘Foundation’. Its the first of a series of books, and its fantastic.”
“Thanks.”
A week passed, and the one result of Beth’s time with the new kid was that the new kid seemed more ... solid in class. People seemed to have less trouble remembering her, even if they called her by a male name.
And the girl within seemed to be stronger, her bright flame shining through, especially three days a month. There was still a lot of sadness associated with that, but it was better than it had been.
Another week went by, and the girl inside the new kid was no closer to being able to break through the male shell.
Beth realized it was just about time for Phase Two .....
The Dead Kid Returns: Chapter 4: Phase Two
Beth decided that it was time for Phase two of her plan to help the new kid. One Thursday, as they read together in the park, she asked, “Could we get together on Saturday? Maybe you could come over to my house?”
“Or I could come to yours.” She added.
“I’ll ask.” the new kid said softly.
The next morning, the new kid said to her, “You can come over Saturday, if you want to.”
“I do.”
The new kid gave her the address and a phone number, and then retreated a little.
“I’ll be there.” Beth said.
Beth had gotten permission from her parents, so Saturday, she made her way to the neighborhood where the new kid lived. The house looked like all the other houses around it, right up to the point where Beth knocked on the door and the new kid let her in.
Inside, it was a different matter. The house was clean enough, but there was something in the atmosphere that almost choked Beth.
It was grief.
An appalling grief hung over the place, darkening every room and hallway. Like a thick black smoke, it had soaked into the walls, the floor, the ceiling, and the furniture.
In a desperate attempt to brighten the mood, Beth told the new kid about her funny cat.
The animal would avoid you like the plague if you tried to reach for it, but if you sat still, and pretended to be doing something else quietly, it would jump up onto your lap, purring for your attention.
Beth smiled to herself and thought, “I think I’m doing something like that right now.”
The new kid smiled back.
They had a good day together, despite the atmosphere, and when it was time for Beth to go home, she said, “Maybe next week you could come to my place.”
“That sounds good.” The new kid said, and just for a moment the girl within shone as brightly as she did three days a month.
Beth had to hold back tears as she left the house.
The week passed slowly, and then Saturday dawned. Beth got ready, and started looking at the clock, wondering if the new kid would actually come.
But, right at the appointed time, the bell rang, and it was the new kid. Beth invited the new kid inside, and they sat in the living room, and played board games.
Once they had played a couple games, Beth decided that it was time.
She sat beside the new kid on the couch, and quietly at first, began telling the story of the dead kid.
She told how it had shown up one day, how they got comfortable with it coming to class, and even how no one could quite decide if it was a boy or a girl.
Beth slid closer to the new kid, as she described the fateful day when she had decided to kiss the dead kid.
“I came up to it at recess, and asked. It let me come close, and so I gave it a kiss just ... like .. this.”
She kissed the new kid gently on the lips.
It wouldnt be totally fair to say sparks flew, but Beth felt a warmth spread from her lips down her body, pooling in her budding breasts and just below her tummy.
She opened her eyes, and looked at the new kid, who seemed to be in shock.
“You okay?”
The new kid shimmered, and for a moment, Beth was looking at the dead kid, for the first time in a long time. Then, the image faded, and it was the new kid in front of her again.
“I’d ... better go.”
Beth looked at the new kid, surprised.
“Please. Please let me go.”
Beth stood up, still at a loss.
“I’m sorry I...” She started
The new kid went to the door, and went outside. Beth followed, "Please" Beth said
But the new kid just kept walking away.
Beth turned around sadly and went home.
“Well, that could have gone better.” She thought.
The Dead Kid Returns; Chapter 5: Breaking Hearts
Sorry this chapter is kinda short. It was just too good a spot to make a break to pass up.
Beth was absolutely devastated. Her attempt to help the girl inside the new kid had gone horribly wrong, and now the new kid hated her. She dragged her broken heart to school the day after it happened, and the new kid wouldn’t even look at her, much less talk to her. Beth even tried waiting at their favorite reading spot, but the new kid didn’t show up.
Worse, when Beth tried to see the girl inside the new kids boy body, the pain she felt emanating from that trapped soul was torture to witness.
And every attempt to apologize or even talk to the new kid was met with silence.
Beth couldn’t sleep, couldn’t eat, and couldn’t stop blaming herself for what happened, and finally, her mom noticed.
“Sweetie, maybe you should try praying.”
Beth figured it was worth a shot.
At first, her prayers were rote, and tentative. But after a while, she began just pouring out her heart, weeping and sobbing as she prayed. And then the most amazing thing happened to her.
She felt a response.
As clear as it was in words, she felt the answer.
“Let it go. Give it to me. Let me take care of it....”
“Okay. Its yours” she thought, and then dropped off to sleep.
The sense of peace Beth felt stayed with her the next day, even though nothing had changed outwardly. The situation was exactly the same, but she felt completely different about it.
Sometimes, a change in attitude is all you really need.
The next day, while she walked by the quite place where they first read together, she saw the new kid reading.
“Hi.” she said, trying to keep the conflicting emotions out of her voice.
“Hi.” the new kid said softly.
“Are... are we good?” Beth asked.
In response, the new kid handed her a book.
“Childhood’s end, by Arthur C. Clark.” Beth read from the cover.
She sat down, and flipped through the first couple of pages, and then she said, “We’re good.”
The new kid smiled a soft smile.
The Dead Kid Returns; Chapter 6: Talking in your sleep
For the next week, things slipped back into their former routine. Every day, they would find a quiet spot, and read beside each other. The new kid never mentioned the kiss, and Beth was too happy to have her friend back to push the issue.
When Beth finished the book the new kid had given her, the new kid gave her another, and the days slipped by quietly. Beth was no closer to figuring out how to get the girl inside the new kid free, but she had felt less anxious about that since she had felt her prayers being answered.
That anxiety continued to bubble up from time to time, but she kept remembering hearing that soft voice that first night saying “Let it go. Give it to me. Let me take care of it.” and she could make herself relax.
Then one day, something really weird happened. The two of them were sitting in the library, when the new kid, whose eyes had been fluttering for several minutes, started snoring. Just when Beth decided to wake the new kid up, she heard a sweet, feminine voice say “Hey Beth. I dont have a lot of time here.”
She looked at the new kid, at it was like double vision. one was the male version of the new kid, who was asleep. The other was totally female version, who was wide awake, and grinning at her.
“What’s ... what’s going on?” Beth managed.
“Sorry, no time. Just wanted to say thanks for the kiss. I needed it. And even HE,” at this she pointed to the sleeping form below her,” enjoyed it a lot, not that he’d say so. Boys. What can you do with them?”
“Who... what are you?”
“Ah. I guess we never really did get introduced officially, even though we’ve kissed. Twice, in fact. My name is Constance, but you can call me Connie.”
“Twice?” Beth asked, but before the girl could answer, the boy form stirred, and the girl form disappeared like smoke.
Beth considered telling the new kid when they woke, but decided against it. “Why would he believe me?” she thought, and so kept quiet.
Later, after she had said her goodbyes and headed home. That night, she prayed “Help me out here. What do I do?”
And the answer came to her. “Have faith. Have patience.....”
So Beth did.
After that, “Connie” would show up and disappear at random times, but never long enough for Beth to figure her out. She’d seem giggly one time, in tears the next, sometimes she talked about the male body she was attached to with affection like “he” was her brother, other times, she seemed frustrated and angry with him.
And never did the male part show even the slightest sign that they knew “Connie” was even there.
Beth tried to remain patient, but there was a growing anxiety in her prayers as she worried how long this situation could continue before something bad happened. Then, one day she saw a book called “I will fear no evil” and it seemed to call to her. She bought it, read it, and wept at the end of it. The new kid noticed her tears, and asked, “What’s wrong?”
“You have to read this one.” Beth said, and handed it to the new kid. A couple of days later, the boy side handed it back to her, but it was Connie who thanked her for the book.
“He’s ready.” She said. “I’m going to introduce myself to him. Wish me luck.”
Beth replied. “I’m praying for more than luck.”
Connie smiled, and then faded from view as the boy side woke up.
A couple of days later, when they met at their favorite reading spot the new kid said to her, “I... I think I need help. I think I’m crazy.”
“Why? What’s wrong?” Beth asked.
“I ... I think I’m a girl.”
The Dead Kid Returns; Chapter 7: “I think I’m a girl”
“I think I’m a girl.”
Beth debated how to respond to that. Should she act surprised? But that felt wrong, so she said, “I’ve... seen her in you.”
“You mean .... I’m not crazy?”
“I wouldnt say that....” Beth then looked at the expression on the new kid’s face. “I’m joking. You’re not crazy. I’ve seen her.”
“Really? But .... what do I do?”
“I .... I dont know. But I want to be your friend, regardless.”
“Thanks.” the new kid said, and then they both became silent.
Days passed, and then one day Beth saw the new kid really struggling with the girl inside him, and said, “Look. Would you want to see what you’d look like as a girl?”
“I...I’d look like a freak.”
“Maybe, maybe not. You want to try?”
“How?”
“Come to my house, and try some of my stuff on. And if you like, I could call you by a girl name, at least in private.”
“You ... you’d do that? Why?”
“Because you’re my friend, boy or girl. And you should be able to be happy.”
“Th... thank you.”
“Welcome” Now, what girl name will you use?” Beth asked, feeling sure of the answer.
“I dont know. My mom once told me I was going to be called Connie if I had been a girl.”
Beth smiled, and said, “Then Connie it is.”
The new kid glowed.
A week later, the new kid came over to Beth’s house, and with Beth’s help, tried on a skirt. And for the first time, “Connie” was visible while the new kid was aware of it. This turned out to be a mixed blessing, as afterward she really struggled with having to put on male clothes again.
Bethany promised Connie that she could come over and dress up anytime, and it was, in Connie’s words, “Enough. For now.”
So for a couple of weeks, this was the pattern - Connie would race over to Beth’s house right after school, and get dressed in girls clothes for the afternoon and evening. She would return to male clothes at the last possible moment..
Then things went bad.
Connie was playing with Bethany, when suddenly, she began to shake and twitch. Before Beth knew what was happening, she had changed.
She had become the dead kid.
The dead kid looked exactly like Beth had remembered, just on the edge of completely falling apart.
Beth reacted without thinking, and hugged the dead kid.
“Its okay. Its gonna be okay....” she soothed.
After about five minutes, The dead kid transformed back into Connie. She quickly put back on her boy clothes, and fled back home.
All Bethany could do was cry.
The Dead Kid Returns chapter 8: The House of Grief
Someone once said,”Crying is all right in its own way while it lasts. But you have to stop sooner or later, and then you still have to decide what to do.” Once Bethany had cried for a while, she realized the truth of that statement.
She resolved that no matter what it took, she’d help her friend recover from whatever had happened to her to make her what she was.
If only she could figure out how.
After school on Monday, she went to their usual quiet reading spot, and found the new kid having an argument with his female self, Connie.
“I ... I had forgotten. I had to forget. Dont make me remember, Connie!”
“I cant help it. You didnt just forget IT, you forgot me too. I was DYING inside you. I dont want to go back to that.”
“I know, I know. I dont want to hurt you. You made me. I’m supposed to be your Protector.”
“And you did as good as could be done. But we’re safe now. We even have a friend who knows about me, and likes us anyway.”
“Hi.” Beth said, coming forward.
“Beth?” Did you hear that?”
“A bit of it. Sounds like things are getting dicey inside your head.”
“I guess so. I dont know what to do, Beth.”
“Me either. I care about you, but I’m just a kid. This .... its beyond me.”
“Me too.”
“What about an adult? There has to be someone .. Hey! What about my mom? She’s a therapist.”
Connie visibly flinched at that word.
“I ... I dont know.” she said.
“It has to be better than what’s been going on.” The male self said.
“Okay. We’ll talk to your mom, Beth.”
A couple of days later, Beth and the new kid were sitting down with Beth’s mom, who seemed to radiate safety.
Beth explained the situation, and then left the new kid to talk to her mother.
“Help her. Please.” she prayed while she waited for them to talk.
*****
An hour later, Connie and Beth’s mom came into the Beth’s room.
“You okay, Connie?”
‘No. Beth. Because now I remember. I was the dead kid.”
“I... I thought so. What happened?”
“Something bad, Beth. It turned me into ... well a little like that house in the Ray Bradbury story. Going through a routine, but without anything inside that would actually make that routine mean anything.”
“But you’re alive now.”
“Thanks to you. I was like ... sleeping beauty. And I was woken by your kisses. First to life as the new kid, and then finally to being me.”
“I’m glad I could help. But what happens now?”
“I... I think I have to go find the person who made the dead kid in the first place. Or I’ll always have the risk of turning back into it.”
Beth took Connie’s hand. “Not alone. I’m coming with you.”
“I .... I was hoping you would.”
“Where do we go?”
“The first place we have to go is my home. I ...I still dont remember everything, but I know my mother knows something.”
“Then we’ll go to your house. The House of Grief.”
“Good name for it. Let’s go.”
******************
Connie, Beth, and Beth’s mother stood outside Connie’s house, when Connie started breathing heavily.
Beth squeezed Connie’s hand. “You okay?”
“Not really. But I got to do this.”
Connie went in, and called out, “Mom?”
“Hi hon I was getting worried ... what the heck?”
“HI mom. Sorry to have to spring this on you like this., but I’ve been through a few changes today. And I have some questions too.”
“Its .... really you? After all this time.... I thought we’d lost you forever.”
“I take it me being a girl isnt a total shock then?”
“No. But, how? And who are these people?”
“My friend Beth here woke me up, and I remembered being Connie. But that’s not all I remembered. Thanks to Beth’s mom, I remembered being the dead kid.”
Connie’s mother all but collapsed. “Oh... I’m so sorry child.”
“Call me Connie, mom. So what happened to me? I remember some of it, but not all.”
Connie’s mother wept, and then said, “Come into the kitchen, and I’ll tell you the whole story.”
They went into the kitchen, and Connie’s mother made tea. Once they had started drinking, she said, “It all started when you were very little. I had left you alone for maybe the first time, and you went into my bedroom and started helping yourself to my dresses and makeup. By the time I got back, you were looking like a clown in my shoes and dress and with your face all done up. I couldnt help but find it cute, but your father exploded. I’d never seen him so angry, calling you a sissy, and he spanked you.”
She took a sobbing breath and continued, “All the time you kept asking him what was wrong with wanting to be pretty like Mommy.”
“But what happened next?” Connie asked.
“I thought it was over, but your father decided you needed ‘help’ and took you to see a therapist. I... dont know exactly what happened, but you came back ... empty.”
“I was dead. That’s how I became the dead kid.”
“Yes. I could hardly stand it. I divorced your father, and just tried to look after what was left of you, but it felt hopeless. Nothing I did helped. Then one day, you came home more alive than I had recalled seeing you in forever, and for the first time I had hope. You acted more like a boy - maybe a very quiet and bookish one, but it was something better than what you had been.”
“That was after Beth had kissed me. It brought me back, a little.”
Beth blushed a little.
“Well, you were alive, but something was still missing. Until now.”
“Beth helped me find Connie again. And her mom helped me remember what happened.”
“Thank God. You must think I’m awful.”
“I dont blame you mom. But what are we going to do now? I ... dont want to have to pretend I’m a boy any more.”
“I .. I understand, Connie. But what other choice is there?”
Beth’s mother said, “I can help there. It wont happen overnight though, Connie. You might have to be patient and pretend for a while longer.”
“As long as the pretence will end sooner rather than later, I’ll hang on.”
“Good. Beth, we should let Connie’s mom get to know her daughter again.”
“Okay. I’ll see you at school?”
“Yes. I’ll be a tomboy for now, but I’ll be there.”
“Great.”
That night, as Beth slept, she dreamed of the future. Of Connie bit by bit being able to strip the boy disguise and be her true self. Of Both girls growing closer together though happiness and heartbreak. And of one day, a long time from then, when the two, now women, joined together as partners in love.
For life.