24. Inseparable
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It's over. It's actually over. I could cry. This story meant so much to me as I was writing it. I really hope that you enjoyed it as much as I did. Thank you all for sticking with this story. And here's to somehow even better stories to tell in the new year.

Maya gave her mom and dad a long hug each on Monday morning before following Brielle out the door. At first, Brielle held onto Maya’s hand as they drove, as if afraid her sister might disappear as soon as she let go, but the togetherness made it difficult for her to focus and she let go. By the time they got parked, Maya was shaking in anticipation.

They found their friends waiting for them outside the library. As soon as they saw Maya and Brielle walking up, they ran over. Amelia was the first to reach Maya and scooped her up into a hug.

“She’s here!” Amelia cried.

“Oh my God. She does look different,” Eric muttered, earning him a punch in the arm from Brielle.

“Are you all back to normal?” Jason asked.

“I’m normal again,” Maya said, letting go of Amelia and hugging Eric next. “I’m all healed and back in my own body, for good this time.”

“Does that mean you can play with us again?” Eric asked.

Amelia added, “We need to go out shopping as soon as we can!”

“Calm down,” Maya said. She gave Jason a quick hug as well. “I just got back. We’ll figure everything out.”

“We’re just glad you’re back,” Brielle told her, resting her hand on Maya’s shoulder and bringing them back together.

I know, thank you, Maya replied. It’s just overwhelming.

If you’re not ready for this—

No, it’s fine.

Amelia interrupted them with a cough and pointed at someone nearby. Maya followed her gaze and her heart melted. Lily was standing nearby, smiling but looking like she was about to burst into tears.

Maya ran right into Lily’s arms, almost knocking her over. She didn’t have time to say anything before Lily planted her lips on Maya’s. They shared long, passionate, tearful kisses.

“I missed you so much,” Lily choked out.

“So did I.”

They continued kissing. Maya’s breathing quickened. People must have been looking at them, but she didn’t care. She’d earned this.

Finally, the two came up to breathe.

“I promise I’ll never leave you again,” Maya promised quietly.

“You’d better not,” Lily replied. “You’ve put me through so damn much, Maya. My heart can’t take it.”

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

“Don’t apologize. Just don’t ever leave me like that again.”

“Never.”

The two returned to kissing, less passionately this time.

Maya said, “Lily, I need to tell you something.”

“No,” Lily said. “No more. Nothing else is taking you away from me.”

“Not that,” Maya said. “I want to be your girlfriend. Right now. Before anything else can possibly show up to get between us again.”

“Yes. A thousand times yes.”

They kissed again, but the sharp cry of “No PDA!” from a passing teacher caused them both to jump. Maya and Lily waited until the teacher was gone, then held each other in a loose hug. Slowly, they rocked back and forth, hoping the moment would never end.

The damn bell rang anyway, and the two were forced to let go of each other. After too many promises to see each other in first period, Maya had to leave with Amelia for homeroom. Amelia couldn’t stop snickering the whole way.

When Maya finally got to English, she spotted Lily already in her seat and waiting for her. Her heart started to race and she headed for her seat, but was stopped by the teacher who wanted to tell her something. Maya walked over to his desk. She was practically bouncing in anticipation of getting to talk to Lily again.

Her teacher told her, “I just wanted to say that it’s good to see you back again. I’m glad you’re doing well.”

“Thank you,” Maya replied, honestly a little touched.

On the way to her seat, Maya couldn’t help but glance up toward the back of the room. She saw Charlie sitting there. Charlie caught her gaze for a moment, then lowered her head.

Sitting down in her seat next to Lily, she cooed, “Hey there.”

“I missed you,” Lily said, reaching out her hand.

Maya took it in her own. Once class started, they had to let go of each other, but kept finding little moments to reach back out and touch again. They couldn’t help but grin stupidly at each other.

At the front of the classroom, the teacher droned on. Maya couldn’t resist the urge to occasionally glance behind her. Every time she did, she’d briefly catch sight of Charlie looking away from her. It was clear that she was still focused on Maya. Was she still going to be a problem after everything that had happened?

“Alright, class,” the teacher said, “it’s time to split up for individual work. Do your best not to disturb your fellow students.”

Maya and Lily quickly brought their desks together. They were using Lily’s book and Maya was going to do most of the writing.

“I missed having you here to do most of the work,” Lily said.

“Oh? Is that all I am to you?” Maya asked, raising an eyebrow.

Someone cleared their throat, getting Maya’s attention. Charlie was standing at her desk, rubbing her arms nervously and not looking directly at Maya. Beside her, Maya felt Lily start to bristle.

“Hey, look,” Charlie muttered, “I just want to get this over with quickly. I’m sorry for the things I did. Brielle was right. I was being pushy and insensitive and I didn’t care about how you felt about it all. It was wrong and I hurt you and I’m sorry, okay?”

Maya was quiet. She didn’t want to look directly at Charlie right now. Truth be told, she wasn’t entirely sure how she really felt. Could she forgive Charlie after everything she did? Charlie certainly seemed genuine.

“Alright,” she muttered, earning a surprised look from Lily. “I forgive you. But I don’t think that we can be friends after everything that you did.”

“I understand,” Charlie replied. “I wish you the best, then. Congratulations on getting your body back after everything that’s happened.”

She slunk away back to her seat in the back. Maya watched her go and sit down, alone. It made her a little uncomfortable, so she turned back around to focus on her work instead. She was quieter than normal for the rest of class. Lily seemed to notice and didn’t press her for an explanation.

When class ended, Maya and Lily gathered their things and left the room. Instead of heading directly to their next classes, though, they lingered outside the door to get as much time together as possible before having to split up.

“You’re a very generous person,” Lily said. “I don’t think I would have forgiven her for everything she did.”

“She seemed sorry. I couldn’t keep holding it against her forever.”

Lily grinned a little, then leaned forward and gave Maya a quick peck on the lips.

“You’re a very kind person, Maya,” she said.

Math seemed to drudge by slowly. Maya kept thinking about what she and Brielle were planning to do next. It made her stomach turn just a little bit, but it had to be done. She kept one eye on the clock for the entirety of class.

When the bell rang, Maya collected her things and sighed deeply.

Brielle was waiting for her by the staircase where Maya expected her. As they approached each other, Maya and Brielle raised their hands and brushed them against each other. In only a few days, it had almost become second-nature to them whenever they wanted to talk about something private.

Are you ready for this? Brielle asked.

Yeah, I guess so, Maya replied. Let’s get it over with.

They started heading toward the lunch room in silence. After a few moments, Maya discreetly grabbed for Brielle’s hand to feel closer to her. Brielle led her swiftly through the crowded halls and to the cafeteria.

When they got there, they stopped and started scanning the room. It was Maya who found him first, and mentally nudged Brielle before pointing him out. They let go of each other and prepped themselves for what they needed to do.

Lucas was sitting at a table with his friends. He hadn’t seen them approaching yet and actually looked pretty happy. When Maya and Brielle stopped in front of his table and his gaze met theirs, though, his smile faded quickly.

Brielle folded her arms and asked, “Can we talk to you? In private?”

The other boys at the table began to snicker, but Lucas frowned and furled his brow. He nodded and got up from his seat, leaving his food where it lay. Brielle and Maya led him out of the cafeteria and into a more private hall where there would be less noise and no students to overhear them.

Lucas started fidgeting and playing with his hands. Maya and Brielle exchanged a look. Brielle looked a little annoyed.

“So,” Maya began, “We wanted to tell you that we accept your apology.”

After a moment, Lucas nodded, but he still looked a little tense.

“This doesn’t change things between us,” Brielle added. “We don’t want to see or hear from you anymore, and if we find out that you’ve been up to anything transphobic or arcanaphobic, then we’re going to the administration to report you for harassment.”

Lucas lowered his gaze and replied quietly, “I don’t deserve forgiveness. I treated you both pretty badly.”

“That you did,” Brielle agreed.

Maya nodded, adding, “This is more for us than for you.”

“That’s okay,” Lucas replied. “I… I don’t know if I can be redeemed. I thought I was doing the Lord’s work, but I was just hurting people. I’ll just… I’ll just stay away from the two of you from now on. It’s the least I can do.”

“Sounds good to me,” Brielle said.

“Everybody can change for the better, Lucas,” Maya said. “I was a little transphobic, too, before I realized what I wanted out of life. If you surround yourself with good people, you’ll get better too.”

Lucas nodded slowly.

“I’ll try,” he promised.

He returned to his table while Brielle and Maya headed to sit with their friends. Maya sighed in relief. Now that forgiving Lucas was behind her, it actually felt like everything was all wrapped up. She sat down with a smile on her face, happy and surrounded by friends.

That Saturday, Maya and Brielle had to help their parents prepare for a party. Despite having placed a few more restrictive rules on the girls, their parents had insisted that they should get their friends together to celebrate putting the events of the past few months behind them. Maya had readily agreed. Brielle had pretended to be indifferent, but for the past few days had been quietly bouncing in anticipation.

“Maya,” her mother said, “can you set up the tablecloth?”

“Can do.”

Brielle was helping their dad set up the speaker system with songs from her phone. Their mother was finishing up the snacks in the kitchen. Maya had spent most of the morning moving the really expensive décor into a more secluded part of the house.

“What time did you tell them?” their mother asked from the kitchen.

“From four to six!” Brielle called back. “Like you said!”

Their dad asked, “Any chance they’ll leave before eight?”

Brielle shrugged.

“If we head out for the evening, do you think that you can hold down the fort until we return?”

“We’ll be fine, Dad,” Brielle insisted.

Maya joined Brielle and her dad in the living room.

“Thank you for this,” she told her dad. “It means a lot to us.”

“Yeah,” Brielle added. “Thank you for everything. This would have been so much harder without your support.”

Their father nodded.

“Of course,” he said, grabbing them both into a hug. “As long as you're happy and healthy, that’s all that matters.”

Their mother slid into the room and added, “We’re just happy that everything is alright now. And you both definitely deserve a bit of celebration and relaxation after the ordeal that life and, to a lesser extent, the two of us put you through.”

“Well, we appreciate it,” Maya assured her.

The sound of the doorbell interrupted them. Brielle went to answer the door, and after a few moments Maya heard squeals of joy from the front room. She went to join them and found Amelia with several other girls coming inside.

More friends started arriving soon after. Eric and Jason came together. Lily and Maya stood in the doorway for almost five minutes just making out. Maya and Brielle took turns between inviting their friends inside and mingling with their guests.

Soon their parents had to go. Brielle resisted getting a hug and kiss in front of their friends, and Maya couldn’t help but blush a little in embarrassment.

“I think everyone’s here?” Brielle finally said. “Including some people we didn’t invite, of course.”

“Yeah, but there was someone else I was hoping would show up…”

Then there came another knock on the door. Maya took a deep breath and opened it up, revealing a nervous-looking Charlie. She smiled weakly at Maya and lowered her gaze as she entered the house.

After a moment, Brielle pulled Maya to the side and asked, “You invited her?”

“She seemed lonely,” Maya protested. “She doesn’t have a lot of friends, Brielle. Can’t we try to get her to socialize a bit?”

“She’s not our responsibility!” Brielle hissed.

“I know. But I want to try to help her.”

Brielle scowled, then sighed.

“You’re too kind, you know that, Maya?” she asked. “Fine. I trust you. God help any future enemies you have.”

Maya snickered and the two rejoined their party. The music was loud and everyone had to shout to be heard, but Maya was surrounded by friends. She felt a warmth she hadn’t felt in quite a long time, and a wide grin broke out when she realized that it really was all over and she was free.

Her hand found Brielle’s and a sense of togetherness came over her. She could feel her sister’s love for her over their connection. They’d come so far in the past few months, and all the hardships they’d gone through finally felt worth it. Maya had her own body, got to live as the girl she really was, and had also gained a sister she loved with all her heart.

I love you, she quietly told Brielle.

I love you too, Brielle replied.

Thank you so much for reading this story through to the end. It was a big project for me and one very close to my heart. I hope you enjoyed the journey for all it's ups and downs. If you liked what you read, please leave a comment or a review; it really helps. If you want to leave  a small tip to help support my work, you can do so here for only $3.

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