As I arrived at the party, the first thing I noticed was that Max hadn’t been kidding, I expected for a college party that there’d be a smattering of costumes, but nope, everyone at the party was dressed up as something. Now there were some lazy costumes to be sure, but they were costumes nonetheless. Besides, who was I to judge someone whose costume was made up of their own clothes considering that’s what half of mine was, right? Anyway, as soon as I got inside I started looking around for Max, who I found wearing a very stylish and classic witch costume, standing near the kitchen finishing up a phone call.

“I know, I’m sorry Dana, but I’ve got to help with the party, besides, Mom said that you and Sophie can go trick or treating together. Yeah, it’ll be really fun and you can tell me all about it in the morning, okay? Have fun, love you! Bye!” Max finished the call and hung up the phone.

As she did, I walked up to her and she smiled when she saw me.

“Hey, glad you could make it!” Max said. “I don’t think I caught your name yesterday…”

“It’s Jocelyn right now, but yesterday it was Josh.” I said, hoping to see if everyone remembered me as a girl.

“Then I’m also glad you took my advice to see Tabitha, she does good work, right?” Max said, winking at me.

So Max was behind all this!

“What’s going on? Why am I a girl?” I demanded, getting in Max’s face.

“Woah, calm down, let’s talk about this outside, follow me,” Max said, grabbing my hand and leading me outside into the backyard. “So, I bet you’re really confused, right?”

“That’s an understatement, one minute I was picking up my costume and now I’m a girl with a new roommate and reality is different and…”

“Yeah, that’s my fault, normally the magic would have also worked on you, so you would have thought you’d always been a girl, but I didn’t like having my mind altered without my consent so I told Tabitha to warp reality around you, but leave the two of us intact.”

“You had your mind altered too?”

“Yeah, I met Tabitha last year and she did the same thing for me that I did for you, but there were mitigating circumstances so now that I’m her apprentice I’m bringing her magic more in line with 21st century sensibilities.”

“I’m still so confused…” I put my head in my hands.

“Right, let me start from the beginning, Tabitha is a witch and I’m a witch-in-training, and when I ran into you by the dumpster yesterday, I could tell that those weren’t really your ex-girlfriend’s clothes, so I took some initiative and decided to give you a new lease on life. Have you been enjoying it so far?”

“Enjoying it? I don’t want to be a girl!”

“Are you sure? Because you seem really comfortable right now, and trust me, I’d know, when I got transformed last year…” Max started.

“I just like to… I just like to crossdress, but I’m not trans! I swear!” I insisted, cutting Max off. “I won’t deny that it’s been nice to wear these and dress up without worrying about being discovered, but I don’t want to stay like this forever.”

“Then it’s pretty fortunate that the magic wears off at midnight, right?”

“It wears off at midnight?!” I exclaimed, feeling both relief and something else, but I couldn’t figure out what.

“Yeah, Tabitha calls it a ‘Cinderella effect’ that reverts everything back to normal when Halloween is over. If that’s what you desire, of course.”

“Of course it is!” I snapped, maybe harsher than I intended. “I’m sorry, it’s just this is…”

“Overwhelming? I completely understand, but seeing as you’ve got a few hours to kill, why not enjoy the party? But come and see me if things get too crazy, okay?”

I nodded and turned to leave, just as a girl in a zombie costume with incredibly intricate makeup walked up to Max and posed.

“Laurie, you look stunning!” Max exclaimed. “And horrifying, but mostly stunning!”

“And so do you, even if you’re wearing the exact same costume you wore last year… I don’t know why you didn’t want to even go shopping for a new one this year.” Laurie said.

“I told you, this costume is really special to me. It’s what I was wearing when we confessed our undying love for each other.” Max replied, putting her arm around Laurie.

I continued to walk away and headed back inside the house, hearing the last bit of their conversation as I crossed through the door.

“So who was that girl?” Laurie asked.

I chuckled as I wondered how Max would explain my situation, am I just another girl or is Laurie in on the whole magic thing? Entering the party, I grabbed a soda out of a cooler, I knew how these parties worked for girls when drinking was involved, and headed into the main room.

“Great costume!” one girl in a sexy nurse costume remarked as I passed her.

“Thanks, you too!” I beamed. 

It felt nice to be accepted as I was, even if before Kelsey I was a wallflower who would have never gone to a party like this. I was prepared to take my spot leaning against the wall and watching everyone else have fun when I saw her walk into the room.

It was Kelsey.

My heart started to race as I watched her gaze around the room. What if she saw me? Would she even recognize me? If I had a new roommate and everyone knew me as Joss, then what did Kelsey know me as? Oh god, I’m staring at her. She’s wearing a vampire costume, one I didn’t remember her buying. I don’t even think we were planning on going out for Halloween, we usually stayed in and had a horror movie marathon. She looked great, too. Shoot, I let my gaze linger for too long, she saw me!

I tried to run away, but she’d already crossed the room towards me.

“Hey, nice costume!” Kelsey said.

“Uh, thanks, Kesley.” I said in response.

“Do I know you?” she asked, her face puzzled.

“I’m Josh, er, Jocelyn Majors… We went to high school together?” I said, hoping that at least that remained in this new reality.

“Oh yeah, we were both in Mr. Jenkins’s class, right?” Kelsey said, smiling. “Now I remember you! I didn’t realize you went here!”

“Yeah, I mostly keep to myself, I haven’t really been to any parties yet. You look great too, by the way.”

“Thanks,” Kelsey struck a pose. “So, what brings you to the party?”

“A friend invited me.” I said. “What about you?”

“Same, one of my friends is pledging Gamma Alpha Lambda and told me their Halloween parties are legendary, so here I am!”

“I see. So, are you, uh, here with your boyfriend?”

“Nope, actually, I’m unattached at the moment.”

This had to be a sign, right? Kelsey and I could get a fresh start in this reality, sure, she’d never had any bisexual or lesbian tendencies in the old reality, but if we were crossing paths again, there had to be a reason. I was just about to open my mouth to ask when:

“Ugh, look at that freak…” Kelsey muttered, that vitriol that I’d been on the receiving end of just a day earlier returning.

“Huh?” I turned, only seeing a nervous young woman in a Rapunzel costume entering the room. Clearly store-bought, but with a purple dress and long blonde wig, it was unmistakable. “Where?”

“There!” Kelsey pointed towards the same young woman. “I have freshman seminar with him, that sissy pervert.”

My heart sank. I thought this might have been a chance for a new start with Kelsey, maybe if the circumstances were different, but she was the same person that she had been, only now the target wasn’t me, so I could see it a little more objectively, Kelsey just wasn’t the girl I thought she was. She was a vile, hateful person.

“Wh-what do you mean?” I asked her.

“What do I mean? That’s a boy who gets off by wearing panties and skirts! It’s unnatural!” Kelsey said. “I mean, do what you want in the privacy of your room, but don’t do it in front of people!”

“He’s not unnatural, but you’re a bigot!” I quickly pushed past Kelsey and headed over to where Rapunzel was standing. “Hey, are you okay?”

“Huh?” Rapunzel turned around to look at me. “Uh, no… Sort of. I’m supposed to be meeting someone here.”

“Flynn Rider?” I guessed.

“What? I mean, that’s funny, but no.” they glanced around the room nervously, scanning the faces of the partygoers.

The young woman, or young man, I suppose, was passing really well, better than I think I’d ever hoped to. Their face was delicate enough that even with the minimal makeup they had on, they didn’t have much in the way of sharp, rugged features. And with their skinny frame, the costume fit really well, even if I could tell that the bra was stuffed, knowing from experience.

“I’m Jocelyn, what’s your name?”

“Raymond… I mean, Rachel. I mean…” Raymond froze as he searched my face for a reaction.

“Don’t worry, your secret is safe with me. But while you’re passing well, one of your classmates recognizes you, so steer clear of Kesley.”

“It’s not what you think, I’m pledging, uh, a frat and I lost a bet and…” Raymond blushed furiously.

“No need to explain, whatever the reason is,” I assured Raymond. “And trust me, you’re cute enough that I probably wouldn’t have even realized if I hadn’t been told.”

“Thanks.”

“Wanna get a drink?” I motioned towards the kitchen.

“I’d like that.”

And with that, we started walking towards the cooler of drinks, I scanned the room around us and spotted Kelsey talking with another girl who I didn’t recognize, stopping only to glare at me until she returned to her conversation. I also spotted Max and Laurie dancing together, but Max spotted me and gave me a look that I recognized as one of concern, so I flashed a big thumbs up at her, which she grinned at seeing.

I spent the rest of the night with Raymond, or rather, Rae, which he settled on so that no one else figured out that he was crossdressing, and wouldn’t accidentally blurt out his full name again. We ended up making friends with another group, a few girls and guys, one of whom I recognized from class, evidently Jocelyn’s schedule is the same as my own, and the rest of the night flew by. As midnight approached, no one was showing any signs of slowing down, and it was pretty fun watching the frat bros going crazy with drinking games. Rae and I broke off from the rest of the group to refresh our drinks and we headed out to the backyard, which was currently empty, save for us. As I handed Rae another soda, she took a deep breath.

“Uh, maybe this is too forward, but you’re really pretty and nice and I was wondering if maybe you might like to go on a date sometime?” Rae asked.

My heart sank once again, not because I was against dating a boy, especially because Rae was sort of cute, in a non-traditional way, but because thinking about dating just reminded me of Kelsey.

“Oh…” I started. “Listen, I’m not saying no because I don’t like you, but I just got out of a pretty bad relationship and I don’t think I’m ready yet. But I never say never.”

“Okay…” Rae sighed sadly.

“But… I think we’re about the same size and I’ve got a closet full of clothes. You know, if you ever lose a bet again.” I smiled.

“I’ll keep that in mind,” Rae smiled back at me. “I’m gonna head back inside, see you there?”

“Yeah, I’ll be along in a minute.” I said.

I stayed outside and looked up at the stars. As the clock ticked, and midnight wasn’t too far away, I felt a pit form in my stomach. Despite my earlier objections, it had been a fun night and I started to consider what I had to return to when the magic wore off. A vengeful ex-girlfriend with blackmail material over me, a roommate whose name I barely knew, and the one thing that truly brings me joy is something that I’m ashamed of and can only do in private. Whereas, in this new life, maybe I don’t have crossdressing, but I’ve got a great roommate in Lily, better friends, including Rae, and a feeling of acceptance that I never felt in my old life. But I couldn’t stay like this, I wasn’t trans!

Suddenly, a realization washed over me, hitting me like a ton of bricks. I *wasn’t* trans. Because right now, I was exactly who I was always supposed to be, but was too ashamed to realize. Tears started to stream down my face as the emotional catharsis set in. I checked my purse for a tissue to wipe my eyes with and glanced at my phone. Seeing the time, I realized that I only had about five minutes until midnight and I certainly didn’t have enough time to go back to Tabitha to beg her not to reverse the spell. But I knew someone I could ask for help.

I headed back inside to the party and immediately scanned the room, Max was sitting in a circle with Laurie and two guys, chatting away as I approached. Max saw me walking up and beckoned me forwards.

“Hey, Joss! Was I right or was I right?” Max asked.

“Huh?” I replied. Could Max sense what I was feeling?

“It was a fun party, right? Way better than moping back in your dorm, right?”

“Oh, yeah, totally. Listen, can we talk privately for a minute?”

“Sure,” Max stood up and grabbed my hand, leading me towards an empty bedroom.

As we entered, Max locked the door behind her.

“Okay, what’s up?” Max asked.

“Well… It’s about to be midnight.”

“And you get to change back to normal, right?”

“Exactly! But…”

“Let me guess,” Max grinned a knowing smile and started digging through her purse. “You don’t actually want to change back into a boy? Even though you swore up and down that you weren’t trans?”

As I worked up the courage to actually say the words out loud, Max found what she was looking for and pulled it out of her purse. In between her expertly manicured black fingernails was a piece of candy in an unmarked wrapper. One that I immediately recognized as coming from Tabitha’s candy bowl.

“You knew?” I asked. “How did you know? I didn’t even know until a few minutes ago!”

“I had a suspicion. You’re not the only egg that Tabitha has cracked, you know. Say, what about your friend, do they want a piece of candy too?” Max started digging for another piece.

“Oh no, I don’t think they’re ready for that yet…” I assured her.

“Maybe next year?” Max smirked.

“Maybe,” I quickly unwrapped the piece of candy and devoured it. “That’s it?”

“That’s it, now all that’s left is to enjoy the rest of this party.” Max said. “Are you ready?”

“As I’ll ever be,” I smiled.

As we stepped out of the room, I bid farewell to Max and returned to Rae and the others. To think that just twenty-four hours earlier, I thought my life was over. But it turns out that my life had only just begun.

The End