WHOOOOOSH… Click-click click-clack, click-click click-clack.

The train cuts through the music playing in my ear buds, to which I tap my foot, waiting for the crossing to open again. A quick tap on my phone tells me I still have half an hour to make it to school. No problem.

As soon as the crossing is clear, I join the masses in hurrying across, holding my bag in front of me with a hand over the flap - you never know when someone’s going to try something! Thankfully nobody has actually tried to grab my bag. As long as you avoid the bad parts of town and know what kind of people to look out for, getting mugged is pretty uncommon.

Well, uncommon if you aren’t also, you know, sleeping on the streets in dark back alleyways and such. I really don’t miss that.

Speaking of watching out: I shift my weight and slip around an oncoming guy with an open cup of coffee talking on his cell. Someone’s going to wear that. A few seconds later from somewhere behind me I hear “What the fuck!?” Yep. Called it! I giggle softly as I round the corner onto Billings Street and head for the familiar café whose dumpster I pillaged for years for breakfast.

Now I just go inside. I still think the food is kinda overpriced, but… well, I work part time now, so I can afford to buy breakfast! Not that I really need to work, mom makes plenty, but I insisted on making my own money. Mom argued at first, but eventually relented and let me get a part time job. She insists that I enjoy the little things, and enjoy my life to the fullest.

“Mornin’,” Pete says as I enter.

“Good morning,” Ben says, smiling. He’s leaning subtly towards Pete, as if they had just been talking… or something… before I came in.

“Mornin’!” I toss my bag down in the booth across from him and his boyfriend, and head up to the counter to order my usual breakfast sandwich: Tuna Salad & Egg on rye. I hear you judging me over there, Karen in the expensive jacket. Look, I’m not going to say that I have an unnatural love of fish because I was part cat. But I’m also not NOT saying that. It’s really good.

I pay for the sandwich and my coffee and head back to the booth. Andi smiles and waves from her spot in line. She lives nearby too, just like Pete.

Right after taking a seat with my food and drink, a pair of arms loop loosely around my neck from behind. “Guess who?”

I grin, feeling her breath in my ear. “Mornin’.” 

“Mornin’,” she nuzzles against the side of my head for a moment before we both turn our heads to better facilitate our morning kiss. She insists that it be before I eat my “funky fish sandwich”. No idea why. Heheh…

“Get a room you two.” Pete rolls his eyes.

“Sure, as soon as we graduate,” Cassie says before giving me another quick kiss. I really can’t wait for graduation. Sure, it’s a year away, but we’re really hoping we both get accepted to our first choice college; if we do, we’re definitely going to live in on an off-campus apartment. Mom said she’d help us cover rent. She totally supports us. We’re still working on Cassie’s family. Her dad, ironically, is cool with it. The first time we told him, his response was: ‘well at least she won’t get knocked up.’ Practical guy. Her mom is still… hesitant. But we’ll get there!

Cassie finally relents and slips away to get her own breakfast about the time that Andi is rejoining us. She slides in beside Pete, rolling her eyes as Ben loops his arm around Pete’s shoulders. I roll mine too and smile. Those guys really hit it off in the last few months, and the two of them had been nearly inseparable since.

Pete finally hit his growth spurt over this past summer. I’m really glad I’m not into him anymore because he’s… well... old me never would have stood a chance against those broad shoulders and chiseled jaw. Ahem. Okay, maybe I can still admit he’s good looking. But he’s nothing compared to my beautiful girlfriend.

After that first date, everything had kinda fallen into place. I found out that I felt a lot safer being around her than I ever would trying to date some guy.

We’d even gone to the homecoming dance together this year. Her dress was gorgeous, and I wore a really nice suit. Not that I don’t still enjoy girly stuff from time to time, but I’m really a ‘comfy jeans and graphic tees” kinda girl. I look cute enough (and have the curves, hehehe) to pull off just about any look. I leave the super girly girl stuff to Cassie. She did convince me to put in a minimal amount of daily effort on hair and makeup though. ONLY eye stuff. I don’t have enough time in my life to spend it layering foundation and a bunch of other stuff. I can wing a cat eye like nobody’s business, though. It’s only appropriate.

All in all, I think life is going pretty good. When your worst complaint is your AP History teacher being a bit creepy, I think you’re doing ok. He is really creepy though.

Seriously, why does he always need to lean on me whenever he looks over to check my paper? Major shudder.

Cassie swings back into the booth beside me with a wide smile, and I return it. My phone chirps out its text notification sound for Mom, and I dig it out of my purse to reply. She wants me to cover a shift tonight. I let her know it’s no problem. Of course my part time job is at Mom’s café. Where else am I going to work? It’s an awesome place, and I happen to know management is a really cool lady.

“We’re all still on for the Halloween dance next week, right?” Andi asks as Cassie returns.

“Hell yeah,” I smile. Okay so high school hasn’t been great for my pure, innocent vocabulary… What do you want from me?

“I can’t believe you guys seriously got those costumes.” Pete rolls his eyes.

“You’re just sad Bryce beat you for Mighty Man and now you have to be Brawny Boy,” Cassie teased.

We’d all agreed to go as the “Mighty Force”, a bunch of superheroes from some team-up comic. I secretly think it’s a ploy from Bryce to get his three female friends in revealing superheroine costumes. But it means I get to see Cassie in a revealing superheroine costume… so I’m not complaining.

With mom’s text resolved, I set my phone back in my purse, which goes back into my messenger bag. I dig into my breakfast, enjoying every bite. I really freaking love tuna fish.

Shut up, it’s not weird.

Looking around the table at the four of us gathered like this, like we do every morning before school, it’s sometimes hard to believe how far I’ve come in the last year.

Sure, there’s still my ongoing therapy (the therapist assures me that we’re making great progress) and I’m still wrestling with my demons, but I think I’m doing pretty well. For a while, I kept worrying that I’d wake up different - or back to my old self. Especially as the re-gendering had come and gone again this year. Thankfully, the Bureau assured me that the event has never affected any past regens a second time, so I’m pretty secure these days in my status as Katarina Alison (my original mom’s name) Crowley.

You can just call me Kat, though. All my friends do!