It's not the saints that are marchin'...

MARCH - When Irish Guys Are Smilin'

 

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Part Six
 
MARCH
When Irish Guys Are Smilin'
 
"Hi sweetie!" May greeted April warmly at the door. They embraced in a warm hug.

"How are you doing?"

"I don't know May," she replied glumly. "Being a woman is so difficult."

May nodded. "Well come on in and we can talk about it."

May showed her in and they sat on the sofa. "What's wrong honey?" May asked.

"I've just been so depressed over Summer!" April started to sob. "I've been crying and crying over it. I can't seem to stop. I've been eating a lot, and now I'm gaining weight. What man will ever want me? I'm going to end up an old bag lady!"

May moved over and held her friend and let April bawl. "It's okay, baby. I know how hard it is. You just cry."

And April did.

Several tissues later April seemed consoled enough to talk some more. "It just hurts so much. Summer won't return any calls. I thought we had something special. We even...spent the night together on New Year's. It was so romantic. And now Summer's dropped me like a hot potato."

"Dear, I don't know what Summer's problem is, but you aren't to blame. Summer hasn't contacted anyone in G.I.R.L. since the first of the year. It's not just you. You are a beautiful woman, inside and outside. If you want a man in your life, you will find someone special who will love you."

"It's just so hard being a woman," April moaned.

"I know." May nodded in understanding. "We do it so well though!" She smiled.

April smiled back and then giggled.

"Actually," May said thoughtfully, "being a woman is not all that hard. If you think about it, what's hard are the changes."

April thought about that. "Yeah. You're right. Being a woman isn't so bad at all. I've become very used to it. It's all of the crap we've had to go through since then that's difficult."

May nodded. "That's right. You've lost your family, your friend, and your past among other things. It's difficult trying to deal with others who can't accept our change." May's lip quivered.

"May? What's wrong?" April asked, sensing something amiss.

"Well, it's Emma." May replied candidly. She's having difficulty with all of this and...I don't know. I'm afraid the end is near for us."

"Oh May, I'm so sorry."

And they both hugged each other for a long time.
 

 
"Chrissy! Wait up!" called Derek from down the hall as he hurried to catch up with the cute blonde teenager. Chrissy turned and waited until he caught up to her. "Well, we did it!"

They had presented their history report in front of the class during sixth period. It was well researched and their teacher had given them excellent marks.

"Yeah!" Chrissy smiled. "I'm glad it's over, but I'm almost sorry to see it end. It was one of the best assignments I've ever had."

"Me too!" agreed Derek. "Say, you want to go over to the Pizza Barn and celebrate?"

"Well, I really need to get home and study for my algebra test."

"Okay. What are you doing Saturday? I thought we could go see that new action flick with Steven Segal. Afterwards we could go to The Beat and do some dancing."

Chrissy turned and looked at him thoughtfully. "Derek, you're a nice guy, but I don't think we should date anymore."

"Oh," said Derek. He looked down at the floor. He looked up at her and asked, "Is there anything wrong? Did I do something?"

"No Derek, not at all. It's not you. It's me. I just don't feel that way about you. I wish I did. You're a really nice person, but I just...I just...don't feel that way about you. I hope we can still be friends."

"Uh, yeah. Sure." Derek sounded anything but sure right then. A long moment passed and there wasn't anything more to say. Chrissy walked on down the hall and out the door leaving Derek staring at the floor.
 

 
By the time the G.I.R.L. St. Patrick's party rolled around, April wasn't feeling well at all. She decided not to go. She had been feeling bloated and had mood swings. She was eating more and retaining water, which she could have lived with, but lately she had some strange abdominal cramps as well. She wanted to believe it was her depression over Summer, but she was finally beginning to think that there was something physically wrong with her. Cancer was her biggest concern, since her aunt had died of it. She knew she should call the doctor, but she wasn't quite ready to face the truth yet. She gave herself a few more days to see if the symptoms would go away before making an appointment.
 

 
May decided to make the best of the party. The past week had been very difficult for her with Emma withdrawn and moody. Derek was depressed too. His girlfriend Chrissy had broken up with him. With each of them in separate rooms, it was like living alone; May pretty much had the rest of the house to herself. She just wanted to be a family again. She remembered the talk she had with April. Being a woman was easy. Dealing with the aftermath of her sex change was what was so difficult. She worried that her family might not be able to hold together through the storm.
 

 
June O'Shaughnessy took another swig from his flask. Then he spritzed his mouth with breath spray. He checked his thinning red hair out in the rear view mirror and slicked down a tuft that was out of place. Dressed in a sports jacket that went well with his dark green shirt and shamrock tie, he climbed out of the car and went inside the banquet room.

The room was decorated with shamrocks and leprechauns. A rainbow arched along one wall, and where it ended sat a small pot of gold on the table. Of course it wasn't real gold; just chocolate wrapped in gold foil.

"June! It's good to see you again," greeted Sunny. She was gorgeous, but her voice was not softened enough to hide her husky masculine undertones. June could not help but wonder what he saw in her, since he knew she wasn't really a woman. Still, the illusion was very convincing. He smiled his sexiest smile at her while his eyes darted around the room in search of May.

May hadn't arrived yet, so he spent his time over in a corner talking to Sunny, where he could keep an eye on the door. When May came in, he excused himself to use the restroom, and when he came back out, moved over to where May was in a discussion with Octavia and Elly.

Biding his time, he waited for the right opportunity to get May alone. He came up with the excuse that he needed to ask her a question, but that it was too private to ask anyone else's advice other than her.

Now alone with May in the corner, he began to talk about his emotions. "I have so many feelings about the clothes. I don't want to wear them, but I just feel the need to put them on. Then I feel so ashamed. Can you understand that?"

"Yes." May nodded. "Everyone here in G.I.R.L. has gone through that, but most of us have come to terms with those feelings. We've found that there's nothing to be ashamed of."

"It's so good to have someone to confess this to. You don't know how much of a relief it is to talk to you about this."

"Believe me, I understand. We've all been there at one time. I had a similar talk with Octavia several years ago."

"Oh, you're so kind and so beautiful." June moved in for the kill. As his lips moved toward hers, May pulled back and then stood up quickly.

"If you'll excuse me, there's someone over there I who hasn't been here in a while. I really should go spend some time with the other members too." She quickly moved away, leaving June to look longingly at her ass.

He quickly recovered and saw Sunny over in another part of the room talking to another gal. Since May had given him an abrupt brush off, he didn't think that pursuing her any more tonight would prove fruitful. He got up and wandered over to Sunny.
 

 
The next morning June opened his eyes. The sleeping figure next to him was far from the beautiful woman who accompanied home last night. Sunny's delicate features were now very angular and pronounced without makeup and they were also covered with stubble. Sunny's body, in a sleek negligee, was far too masculine for June's tastes. He wondered how he could have settled for a man in a dress. Still there was something about transgendered people that aroused him.

Sunny's eyes opened slowly, and then widened as she saw that she was not alone. Then she remembered bringing June back to her apartment and relaxed.

"Good morning," she said softly.

"Morning," June mumbled.

"Thanks for last night," Sunny continued. "I really enjoyed it. I never thought I would enjoy the passive role so much. It made me feel more like a woman than I've ever felt."

"Well I think you were great, too," June lied. He got up and started to pull on his pants. "We'll have to do it again sometime. I've got to get to work now. I'll call you." With that he grabbed up the rest of his clothes and left.
 

 
Another week and still her symptoms persisted. April reluctantly picked up the phone and dialed.

"Hello, this is April Grant. I haven't been feeling well lately and I need to make an appointment with the doctor."
 
 

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End Part 6