The LGBTQ meet up was going as well as I could hope given how anxious probably-not-James was. They were trying to quietly blend into the background by the snacks and seemed plausibly fine, I had time to enact my plan. Better than taking them dress shopping was finding an actual trans person and asking them to talk to probably-not-James. After ten weeks of hanging out and video games I felt pretty confident about a few things. Firstly, they were almost certainly a girl. They'd never play boys in video games, all their favourite characters were girls, they hated any suggestion of a short haircut and they definitely got excited about things they thought, but wouldn’t admit they thought, were pretty. Secondly, they were oblivious and dense as anything, they would not spot a hint if you gouged their eyes out with it. If they are a lesbian, then they’ll be a disastrous one, in the most adorable way. Thirdly, even if they’re not my soulmate, they are the best friend I could hope for. Just effortlessly thoughtful and selfless, provided of course they actually realise there’s something to think about. Not to mention cute! Especially when you ignore their attempts to be a boy.

 

That last part is the issue though, them acting as a boy is making me and especially them, unhappy. I don’t know if there’s more to their depression than that but that can be an issue for once they’re themself, then I’ll at least be able to approach it as a girlfriend. Until then, I’ll be operating through the incredibly thin veil of non-subtle hints and forcibly exposing them to trans people. The first hurdle was finding one and if I ended up socialising in the process there were worse fates. Hedging my bets I approached the club president, who was chatting to a pretty blonde girl who was practically hanging off the arm of a gentle looking but very buff guy. 

 

“Hi, I’m Ria. It's a slightly odd question, but are there any trans girls who wouldn’t mind you pointing them out to me? I’d really appreciate-”

 

The pretty blonde girl, silent until now practically lit up “Well hi, I’m your girl! I’m Samantha, this is Joel, where are my services needed?”

 

That was easier than expected, and wow did this girl look good! Focus Ria. “So my soulmate, I think they might be trans and if they are, they definitely need help working it out and I have no idea how to do that subtly. My hope is that if I find them a trans friend they might work it out, although obviously I get it if this is too much of an imposition.” 

 

Samantha, pensively asked “What makes you so sure? That they’re trans, I mean.”

 

“Well I’m a lesbian and they’re my soulmate, that was the first giveaway. I’ve also seen them in a skyrim character creation screen, if that helps.” I’m almost certain no men had spent that long on making a character look like a female version of themself.

 

“Well, consider me convinced, I’m gonna go say hi!” Samantha practically bubbled out before almost skipping over to an increasingly anxious probably-not-James.

 

Joel, after distractedly watching his girlfriend go, introduced himself. “Hey, nice to meet you, and uh… I guess you’ve been missing out on the usual soulmate fun?”

 

“Yeah, it’s been a little frustrating but if it’s as good as everyone makes it look, it’ll be worth the wait.” That sentence had required careful enunciation to avoid gritted teeth, not being bitter was tough.

 

“It will be, yeah. Although, wait, are you living together now?” I nodded. “And you weren’t before the term started?” I nodded again. “Well, let’s hope they work it out quickly then or they’re going to be very confused, pretty soon.”

 

“Just say whatever it is I’m missing, please” He had the look of someone withholding a key detail for dramatic tension, a look I’d seen on Dad far too many times.

 

“So you know how being with your soulmate makes you healthier?” I nodded, no one had had the flu in the last three months. “‘Healthier’ is quite broad, it turns out. So I’ve been living with Samantha for 2 months now and my spots cleared up, for example.” I could see exactly where this was going but couldn’t really find the words. “For Samantha, she transitioned uh… more? She’d already transitioned when we met but in the last two months she lost an inch of height and gained a cup size. So uh… maybe prepare your soulmate for that.”

 

I had all of two seconds to process that bombshell before a spike of panic flared over my link. I knew where I was needed. “Sorry I’ve gotta go.”

 

Samantha was beckoning me towards a definitely mid-panic attack soulmate. “I don’t really know what happened, Brie introduced themself, sorta, and then they were crying a lot and then we’re now, so-”

 

All of that lined up, except for “Brie?” Brie definitely fit them better James, a name I shall hereby strike from my records. Maybe I’d have a girlfriend sooner than I expected! I wrapped them in a hug, wiped away a few tears and cycled through every synonym of ‘it’ll be okay’ that I could think of until we made it to a quiet bench outside the building.

 

Sitting quietly on a bench was working well, I could feel they’d calmed down a bit and the hyperventilating was almost down to regular levels. “So should I call you Brie? It’s a really cute name and just, tell me if I can do anything to help okay?”

 

“You’re fine Ria, and sure, Brie’s a cute name but why would anyone call me that?” Fuck, those aren’t happy trans noises.

 

“Wait, didn’t you tell Samantha to call you that?”

 

“What? Was Samantha the one who said hi? I was just trying to calm down my breathing- and-” Realisation dawned. This was incredibly silly. Damn it. Still, there was a chance here. Once I was done laughing though.

 

Mutual giggling did a lot for their nerves, as I think had me calling them Brie. I’d be a fool not to try and capitalize. “Well I could just call you Brie anyway? It’s a cute name, you’re a cute person.” They paused, awash with embarrassment, discomfort and a strong guilty happiness, they- ah fuck it, she definitely liked being called Brie. 

 

“I mean, it’s a bit of a cheesy nickname” She broke into giggles mid sentence, cutely. I took the terrible pun as a sign of approval, she’d just have to get used to being Brie now. Also she/her pronouns for her seemed increasingly right, maybe it was presumptuous or inappropriate somehow, but trying to apply rules for the wider world to my soulmate felt silly. I could feel what she felt and if she wasn’t a girl I’d eat my hat and then date them anyway. This wasn’t how I imagined finding her a name but it was a good first step in my project to uncover my hidden girlfriend. Step two I suppose would be spin class.

 

Two hours later, I’d hit a new roadblock. “Ria, for spin class, am I gonna need uh… gym clothes, that could be a problem because I uh… wasn’t really expecting actually ever going to a gym so…” Thinking of Brie as a girl made everything she did seem easily twice as cute, even when she was being a disorganised mess.

 

“Brie, if you’d told me an hour ago we could have gone shopping, as is you can just borrow some shorts and a tank top from me, it’ll be fine. We can get you your own stuff for next time.” She’d practically volunteered to wear girls clothes! This was too easy. I Just needed to stick with pushing her comfort zone, she’d not be having another panic attack if I could help it.

 

“If you’re sure, I’ll uh… give it a try” Aaaa, she was blushing! Adorable.

 

In retrospect, maybe giving her those shorts was pushing it, they were definitely girly and fairly tight cut, even if she was a bit smaller than me. I could feel how anxious she felt in the back room I’d left her to change in. “Brie, honey, you okay in there? Can I come in?”

 

“Y-yeah, although I don’t think I can go out wearing this. I look uh…” With permission granted I stepped into my bedroom and beheld for the first time Brie not in baggy clothes. 

 

Someone who didn’t have high hopes for her coming out probably would have annoyed me by calling her a twink or a femboy or something. A better description I think would be some combination of smol, cute, nerdy and tomboy. Nervously tucking her hair behind her ears sold me on her hair being in a messy bob. Biting her lip and blushing did as much to make her look feminine as makeup ever could. Her body was sufficiently small that all of my cuddle impulses were screaming at me and barely a stray body hair in sight. And her butt! How could she have been hiding such a perky delight for so long? And this was all before any transitioning? She’s just so overtly spoonable! I am a lucky woman.

 

“I look ridiculous don’t I?” Blasphemy.

 

“What? No, you look great, very cute! And you should have said you have a nice butt, congrats” That was maybe not the right thing to say, but it had made her blush more. And I knew that she’d appreciated the compliment beneath all that embarrassment.

 

“You mean I have a girly butt, that’s different.” She was pouting, damn her cheeks looked pinchable.

 

“We both know girly butts are the best butts, take the compliment, now come on, we’ve got a spin class to get to!” She pouted more but didn’t argue further and I caught a warm fuzzy undercurrent from across our link!

 

She paused anxiously at the door to our pair of rooms, clearly apprehensive at going out in my workout clothes. I gave her hand a reassuring squeeze, which did the trick to get her over the threshold and better still, she didn’t let go of my hand! We held hands all the way to the lift which would take us to the gym on our block’s top floor. If she had any idea how many happy lesbian endorphins she was flooding me with, she didn’t give indication.

 

“Hi, I’m Ria, this is Brie, are there any bikes in particular we should take or will any do?” Brie, predictably, was a little flustered by my using her name with the spin class instructor. She also didn’t correct me.

 

“Wherever is fine girls, just pick a pair of bikes and we’ll get started in a minute or two” Shit. Flustered had escalated. Engage panic attack avoidance manoeuvres. I squeezed her hand and her breathing steadied a little.

 

“Hey, it’s okay, we can leave if you’re uncomfortable, sorry if I’m being pushy.” This was much further out of her comfort zone than I’d intended.

 

“No no, it’s… well it’s not fine, but I’ll stay for the class. I just need a moment.” I gave her a reassuring nod and left her to her thoughts, hopefully happy trans ones.