A Piece of Paper (Part 2)

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Ceri has to go shopping for a dress. How will he cope with this experience?

A Piece of Paper (Part 2)

by Alys


A Piece of Paper (Part 2)

We walked into the department store. I looked around to see if everyone was staring at me and pointing. I noticed a few girls my age. I wondered if one of them would know me from school and shout out, “that’s not a girl!”

“Stop trying to hide behind me,” Mum said as she used her stick to slowly make her way to the girls’ clothes section.

“You know why we’re here. The sooner we’re done the quicker you can take those clothes off.”

I’d be so glad to take off my mother’s denim skirt and flowery blouse. She’d insisted I needed to look like a girl to go shopping for something to wear for tomorrow’s appointment and unfortunately for me she managed to find something of hers that more or less fitted me.

“Sorry, Mum,” I said as I moved back to walking by her side.

I felt so exposed as my skirt swayed with my walk, while the feeling of tights on my legs was so alien. How do girls put up with them I wondered.

We reached the children’s section and Mum gratefully followed my lead to the chair and sat down.

“Thanks love,” she said, “now do you remember what size you need to look for?”

I nodded my head.

“OK, now go and choose a pretty dress for tomorrow and one that’s mostly black for the funeral.”

I turned and looked at the clothes racks. An hour ago agreeing to go along with the need to appear as a girl for the next few weeks to keep staying in the flat had seemed like an easy but nebulous decision.

Now, the reality of maintaining the subterfuge with real people around was frightening.

I hesitated and whispered, “What if someone notices?”

“Don’t be silly, you look great, even if the clothes look too old on you….and remember don’t smear your lipstick.”

Was she a mind reader? I had been so tempted to sneak into the toilets and wipe the weird stuff off my lips.

“Now, go along we don’t have very much time before the shop closes,” she said and give me a gentle push towards the clothes.

Without another word of protest I made my way to the first rack. I found the dresses with the right size and looked at my options. There was just so much choice, how could I decide?

“Hi”

I started and looked to my left, “..oh hi.”

The girl about my age smiled, “Are you going to a party too?”

I hesitated before squeaking, “Party?”

“These are party dresses, you know. My friends and I are going to a birthday party in the Star club tomorrow, we’re having a DJ and everything,” she burbled.

“Wow,” I responded, even though I had no idea what or where the Star club was.

“Yes, it’s great and we can even wear make-up. I love your lipstick, I wish my Mum would let me wear it in the day. Where’s your party?”

Felling a little overwhelmed by the verbal onslaught I responded, “Oh..I’m not going to a party, Mum said I need something to wear for the doctor.”

“You want that aisle,” she responded pointing to a collection about 2 metres away.

I thanked her and moved over to a new set of clothes and more bewildering choices. Luckily for me there didn’t seem to be too many in my size and within a few minutes I’d chosen a pretty and not too frilly dress and another darker more subdued one.

Feeling triumphant I walked back to where my Mum was sitting. Maybe there’d still be time for a knockabout later after we’d bought the clothes and as long as the traffic wasn’t too bad.

“Good choices, Ceri,” she commented as she held them both up.

I smiled at her approval and turned towards the shop sales counter.

“Where are you going?” she asked.

“Don’t we have to pay?”

“Of course.”

“Do you want me to carry them to the counter?” I asked.

She laughed, “Nice try. You have to try them on before we leave. I don’t want to have to come back tomorrow and have to change them.”

“Oh Mum,” I whinged.

As if she could read my mind and knew my hopes for the evening she continued softly, “I’m sorry Ceri, we still have to buy you some other things to wear for tomorrow, you won’t have time to see your friends tonight.”

She noticed the sad expression on my face at hearing this and reassured me that there’d be time for me to play the next day.

Two hours later, after a longer than expected journey because of various unexpected roadworks, we arrived home exhausted.

If I thought walking around the shop in girls’ clothes would be a bad enough experience. It had been nothing compared with the terror I’d felt as I’d gone to the changing rooms to try on the dresses for my mother.

Every second as I waited for a cubicle to be free I expected to be outed as a fraud. It had been such relief to finally escape into the changing room. The rest of the time in the shop had been a bit of a blur as we bought the dresses, underwear, shoes and various other items necessary for basic girlhood.

“Can you hang the dresses up, love,” Mum asked as she sat down in the kitchen with her reviving cup of coffee.

“Have a shower and go to bed after, we’ll need to get up early tomorrow, we’ll need time to get you ready.”

I didn’t protest as the shopping experience had been both mentally and physically tiring.

*****************************

“You can go in now,” the young receptionist said to Mum and I, indicating the office door to her left.

A middle aged man in a pinstripe suit looked up as we walked into the large, fairly spartan office.

“Good morning Ms Jones,” said Mr Smithers my great aunt’s solicitor, “please have a seat.”

As we sat he turned to me, “You must be Ceri, your great aunt often talked about you. I’m pleased to me you”

I smiled and wasn’t sure what to say in response. Fortunately he turned to Mum and continued.

“Thank you for coming in this morning. As I mentioned we have rather a difficult situation regarding the will. I’m hoping we can agree a resolution today so that everything is settled before the funeral on Saturday.”

“What exactly is the problem Mr Smithers?” my mother asked guardedly.

Mr Smithers glanced at me before replying, ”Ms Jones, as you are aware your great aunt was diagnosed as suffering from dementia for the last two years of her life. After her diagnosis she arranged that I would have power of attorney in case she became incapacitated”

“Yes I understand all this but why does this affect the will……”
“Please Ms Jones let me explain…”

At this stage I had began to zone out. I wasn’t sure how all this discussion would affect me. I was much more aware of how exposed I felt in the the short dress, how weird the makeup felt on my face and how my new shoes were pinching. I just wanted to get this nightmare over and return to normal. I was still hoping that I could salvage the rest of the weeks with my mates.

I heard my name and focused on the conversation again.

“.......therefore I arranged for an interview for Ceri with the headteacher of Ysgol Santes Dwynwen* for next week. Clearly I’ll need to cancel now.”

“And why is that Mr Smithers? Asked Mum

Again he glanced at me, this time a rather probing and embarrassing stare.

“Ms Jones, I was misled by your great aunt regarding Ceri’s gender when she drew up the will. I’m sorry but despite Ceri looking very fetching in HIS new dress this morning I’m afraid he’s not a GIRL and this is an all girls’ school.”

*****************************

*Saint Dwynwen school (Saint Dwynwen is the Welsh patron saint of love - see wikipedia)


To Be Continued

End of Part 2

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Comments

Santes

A female saint at that!

Wow O_O

Saved by the smarmy lawyer? Really? Holy cupcakes it's like I'm in the twilight zone. A lawyer not just doing whatever he can to get money? I'm super lost, am I on outer limits? Is this bizarro world?

I know who I am, I am me, and I like me ^^
Transgender, Gamer, Little, Princess, Therian and proud :D

Heh!

Daphne Xu's picture

I remember your comment on FM about one of my stories that featured a lawyer.

-- Daphne Xu

-- Try saying freefloating three times rapidly.

Waiting

for the other shoe to drop.

an escape clause?

giggles, why do I feel like he is not gonna escape going to the school that easily ?

DogSig.png

Yes, Why?

Daphne Xu's picture

My guess that this is a TG story site. On the other hand, it would make a nice twist if Ceri did manage to escape that fate.

Now, off to part three...

-- Daphne Xu

-- Try saying freefloating three times rapidly.

OOPS! Rats, its all out in

OOPS! Rats, its all out in the open now eh? Wonder how this is going go on, as the solicitor knows the "dark secret"?

I really like this! I'm

BrokenFox's picture

I really like this! I'm looking forward to the next chapters ^_^

Not a fox

Think fast

Podracer's picture

"But she's always, desperately, wanted to be a real girl... I've only recently come to terms with it.." - or something. Hm, maybe too honest to go that way.
Anyhow, thermonuclear blushing detected in the office right about now. Good luck kid.

"Reach for the sun."

A Way Out?

Daphne Xu's picture

On the one hand, Ceri must be mortified to be recognized as a boy in a dress, disguised as a girl. And okay, he's not a GIRL.

On the other hand, the attorney appears to have the authority to revise the will to allow the boy to inherit, perhaps in a way that reflects Great-Aunt's desires as close as possible.

-- Daphne Xu

-- Try saying freefloating three times rapidly.

I'd think that her confusion

Brooke Erickson's picture

I'd think that her confusion about Ceri's gender is enough to demonstrate that she wasn't "of sound mind and body". Which would throw the whole will into into doubt.

Brooke brooke at shadowgard dot com
http://brooke.shadowgard.com/
Girls will be boys, and boys will be girls
It's a mixed up, muddled up, shook up world
"Lola", the Kinks

Logical

Elsbeth's picture

Well, trying to think of this logically isn't going to really work. A little suspension of disbelief is necessary. With that, I imagine he is concerned for his mother and his own well being. If he doesn't follow through, they would be kicked out of their home and he would be placed into Foster Care. So, it all depends on how he takes this going forward.

-Elsbeth

Is fearr Gaeilge briste, ná Béarla clíste.

Broken Irish is better than clever English.