Homecoming

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It was a little bit strange that no one noticed the boy standing leaning on a pillar at the mall. Not that there was anything special about him. Five foot seven inches tall, not really thin but definitely not fat, nice blond hair that he had let grow almost to the shoulders. His clothes were average, neat and clean but nothing special. The family did not have that much money since Andrew’s father died. No, the reason someone might have noticed him was that for the last 20 minutes he had been standing there staring longingly at a gown in a shop window.

Andrew, that was his name, was a junior. He was two years younger than his class-mates since he had been pushed ahead due to his scholastic achievements. Now he regretted that since he felt very lonely. Looking at the dress he imagined himself in it dancing with Sam Grenholm. Sam was handsome, the school foot-ball team QB already as a junior last year, son and heir of the owner of “Prylar & Grejor”, the main employer in town (Andrew’s mother worked there), and straight A student. Just barely though and to a certain degree thanks to the coaching Andrew had given him in mathematics. Sam was not extremely bright but worked very hard. It had been pure bliss and pure hell for Andrew to sit next to Sam helping him to get through the math exercises.

Actually, thinking about it he could almost smell Sam.

“Hi, Andrew! You would look absolutely stunning in that dress.” He suddenly heard the object of his dreams say. Sam was standing next to him.

”Glgh” was Andrew’s intelligent answer.

“That color would go very well with your hair and eyes”

“Gllk?”

“Tell you what, if you agree to go to the Homecoming dance with me I’ll buy that dress for you”

“Why?” Andrew finally managed to say something intelligible.

“I saw my cousin Peter with the exactly same expression looking at another dress only a day before he did something REALLY stupid. Don’t worry I found her in time and she will get well, eventually. So, what do I call the real you?”

“Audrey” she said without realizing it.

“Audrey, would you do me the honor to go to the Homecoming dance with me”

“Yes!”

Sam gently pushed the still dizzy Audrey into the shop. When the shop attendant at first was reluctant to help Audrey Sam waved his platinum card and asked her if she had seen Pretty Woman. Well, she hadn’t but she wasn’t stupid either once she realized who Sam was. Audrey HAD seen the film and felt a bit insulted but said nothing.

They had not been mistaken. The gown could have been made for Audrey. A few small changes were necessary so they walked around the mall for a while. Sam always attentive and Audrey more and more in love. Finally it was time to go back to the shop. Leaving the shop with the gown they met Andrew’s mother. Audrey tried hiding behind Sam but Sam pushed her in front.

"Hello Mrs Wilson. May I introduce Audrey?”
“Glmp” Audrey was apparently as eloquent as Andrew had been.

“Nice to meet you finally Audrey. I knew you were around somewhere but I didn’t want to push”

Sam explained the situation to Mrs Wilson. He also mentioned that his father had made sure that the company medical insurance covered Gender Dysphoria, though not SRS. During the explanation Audrey realized that while Sam was a really nice guy he had no romantic feelings for her.

Sam saw that and told her:
“I’m sorry I can’t feel for you what you feel for me. I also know that you will have a very tough time ahead of you. Going to the dance with me will give you a good start. I know that what I do matters in school and I will help as much as I can.

And no matter what else, I will make sure that the Homecoming dance will be the best evening ever for you.”

And he was right.

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Comments

very nice guy

kinda wonder what would have happened if I had someone like him in my life as a teen ...

DogSig.png

Good story

It's too bad that there are not more people like Andrew's mother and Sam her in the world.

Homecoming, we're not there yet...

...This is a good story but I don't think it is complete. Please tell me I'm right. the homecoming dance could be great as well as challenging for both Aubrey and Sam. Is Sam because of his father beyond the ramifications of going to Homecoming with Andrew/Aubrey?

Hugs, JessieC

Jessica E. Connors

Jessica Connors

Sorry

Hi,

Sorry for not answering your comment before. The reason was that I seriously considered it. Actually, thinking about it was quite useful for me.

No, there will not be a sequel. A sequel would require a completely different and more serious angle. As opposed to many others here I do not consider myself a writer. I do not feel an urge to write, to communicate. I sometimes write because I find an idea amusing. If you have a look at my stories here you will find that they are short and based on a single idea. Characterisation and deeper thoughts are, if not completely absent, not very prominent (with one possible exception).

I did write (well, wrote the framwork of) a longer story with somewhat higher ambitions. The feedback I got from editors (to whom I'm very grateful for their work) gave me some insight in my shortcomings which I could have overcome given time and interest. At the time I had to shelf the project since working 150%, studying 50%, and taking three ballet classes a week left very little time for other things. Occasionally I return to that story to see if I should finish it. The point is that I have so much else in my life that I find rewarding that I'll leave the serious writing to others.

As to Sam. Yes, the point was to make him have an unassailable position in society, in particular the subset that a High School is. That was what the story required. Had there been a serious risk to him it would have been another story. The support he could give would not have been as secure as it is now. Looking back at it having read your comment I realize that it, not exactly dimishes him but makes him a nice guy rather than a hero. Actually, my intention wasn't to make him a hero.

Come to think about it, any sequel would have been about Sam and very little about Audrey. (One thought I had was to make him a terrible bully, remorselessly hounding and crushing anyone with only the tiniest hesitation about Audrey:))

Thank you for making me examine myself.

Bru

There are a few

nice guys out there. Thank you for introducing us to one.

T

Fence sitting

Jamie Lee's picture

Sometimes it takes a little push to get a person off the fence, to go for their dreams.

Moms' reaction was the best.

Others have feelings too.

A Subtle Hint

Daphne Xu's picture

The story had a subtle hint about Sam's cousin Peter. It's subtle enough, that I'm not sure a caution keyword is warranted.

-- Daphne Xu

-- Try saying freefloating three times rapidly.

I confess

at the time I wrote this story I was not aware of the Cautions, nor shame to say the need for them. The reference is slight but had I written the story today I wouldn't have included that passage in a lighthearted story like this and instead included some other, less dramatic, cause for Sam's understanding.