Another month passed and things were going well! I had taken some of the clothes that Mel was holding for me and brought them home. I was still too nervous to talk to my parents about it, but when I was alone, I could dress up. I even bought some makeup! Well, “bought” might be a strong term. Let’s just say I really didn’t like my job. I would get in trouble for stupid stuff anyways, so what did it matter? I called it payment for services rendered, they didn’t pay me enough to care.

Finally, this weekend was my favorite time of the year. Not Halloween, that only lasts a day. No, this was even better! Anime con weekend! I had been going there for a few years at this point, it was always a ton of fun! A weekend full of nothing but anime and pop culture. And this year, Mel and I were going together!

Our relationship was rocky at best by this point. We had been having more arguments, mostly due to her shutting down over dumb stuff. The slightest thing could go wrong and she would instantly be depressed. That, and she nearly broke my laptop while we were cuddling one time! Though I’ll admit, that one was partially my fault for not putting it away first. Still, I was hoping spending the entire weekend together like this would help smooth things over. I didn’t wanna lose her over some stupid arguments! I wanted us to last, I really liked her!

Mel and I had our tickets ready to go. Only one question remained, what would I wear? People went all out on costumes for this. I wanted to do something special this year, finally attend in a girl’s costume! I just needed to figure out which one. Luckily, I had an advantage this time. With my sister, my girlfriend and my new friend Penny on my side, I could now actually shop for one! Though Tara couldn’t make it that day, due to work, Penny was available so she was coming along instead!

So with Mel in tow, I pulled up outside Penny’s home. It was a pretty old house, looked like it had been built a century ago and only had a few renovations since. It didn’t look bad by any means, it just showed its age. I honked the car horn and a minute or so later, Penny came out. Her longish hair was tied back in a ponytail and she was wearing sneakers, jeans and a light sweatshirt. She also had a bag with her as she hopped in the back seat.

“Hey Penny, glad you made it,” I said. “This is my girlfriend, Mel. Mel, this is my new friend Penny. I hope you two can get along. I want both of you to help me with this today.”

“Hi there Mel, nice to meet you!” Penny said, cheerfully.

“Same with you, I guess,” Mel said, seeming a bit annoyed. She didn’t like the idea of me bringing another girl along for this trip.

“Alright ladies, fasten your seatbelts. We’re headed to the mall!” I chuckled as I hit play on my MP3 player and started blasting Green Day over the car’s speakers.

This was gonna be a fun trip, at least for me. We were headed north a bit, up to New Hampshire. See stuff was cheaper to buy up there, cause they didn’t charge sales tax. So it was usually better to head up there to shop, depending on how much you were looking to spend. I figured we could make a day of it. Just two girls and a femboy, hanging out and having fun at the mall.

“So Michelle,” Penny spoke up. “I have a little gift for you. Since you’re gonna wear a girl’s costume and I just started hormones, I figured I’d give you a head start on things. It’s a set of falsies, fake breasts. I have a few of them, so I figured I could spare one for you. Don’t worry, they’re squeaky clean. I washed them twice, just to be safe. Only thing is, you’re gonna need a bra. I couldn’t do that myself, I don’t know your size. We could get you a couple while we’re at the mall!”

“Huh, thank you Penny! That was very thoughtful of you,” I said. “But, um, I don’t know what size bra to get either. I’m not exactly an expert on this stuff. I’ve never even considered this as a possibility.”

This prompted Mel to speak up. “Well if you’re gonna wear those, you’ll have to get measured for a bra. We can go to a clothing store, staff there are trained on this stuff. And most of the time they’re LGBT friendly, so you don’t have to worry about being judged. Even if you are just crossdressing.”

“I guess if that’s the only way, I’ll do it,” I said. I wasn't thrilled at the prospect of having someone measure me like that, but what choice did I have? It was the only way I’d be able to have breasts! To pass in the costume, of course…

We soon arrived at the mall. It was certainly a big place, located right on the border between New Hampshire and Massachusetts. Two floors worth of stores, covering about two acres of land, if you count the parking lots. I parked around the back, by the food court. It was the most central entrance, given almost even spacing on either side. Luckily I managed to find a decent parking spot as we made our way inside.

The three of us made our way inside and were immediately hit by the smells of the food court. So many different types of cuisine from many different countries, though most were Asian. Still, we weren’t just here to eat, we were here to shop as well. So we walked on through, though I made a mental note to stop by Dairy Queen on the way out. Their ice cream was always yummy.

“So, where to first?” I asked, looking around.

“It’s up to you,” Penny said. “I’ve never been here before, so I don’t know the layout. I don’t get out much, but I do appreciate you inviting me along!”

“You should get measured for a bra first, that way your costume will fit you better,” Mel suggested. “It’ll be easier that way.”

I sighed. I still wasn’t a fan of this idea, but it was for the best. At first, I was gonna go to Victoria’s Secret, but Mel warned me against it. Apparently, they didn’t carry bras in larger sizes. Instead, we went to Target. I stopped just outside the store, should I really be doing this? I mean, I still wasn’t sure exactly what I was doing. Just what did I really want out of all of this? Did I want to be a girl or was there more to it? I still didn’t know.

Mel put her hand on my shoulder, giving me a concerned look. “Are you ok Michelle? You kind of froze up there for a minute. I know you’re nervous, but I’m here for you.”

“We both are,” Penny said, nodding.

“Thanks you two,” I said. “I guess I’m just a bit scared. I don’t exactly have a lot of confidence in being feminine. But you’re right, I have to do this. If I ever wanna figure myself out, I need to take steps to be more feminine. Maybe then I can finally get these urges to stop.”

“I hate to tell you, but that’s highly unlikely,” Penny said, knowingly. “I’ve been there myself, I denied it for a long time and figured if I just buried the feelings deep down, they would just stop. They never did though, and eventually I had to accept that I was trans. But you know what? I’m better off for it! I’m much happier this way. It seems to be similar for you, even if the circumstances are a bit different. You’ll likely have to just accept that yourself.”

“Maybe you’re right,” I said. “But I don’t think I’m ready for that yet. Let’s, just focus on one thing at a time. Like getting this bra.”

I took a deep breath as the three of us went inside. We made our way over to the lingerie section and started looking around. I had never let myself actually look at stuff in this section before and it was very embarrassing. Yet, they did look pretty. After a few moments, an employee approached our small group.

“Hello there, how can I help you today?” the employee said, in a cheery voice.

Mel spoke up, “Hi, my friend here would like to get measured for a bra please.” She gestured to me.

My heart just about stopped! Did she need to be so blunt?! A touch of discretion would have been nice! The sales lady just stared at us, a bit confused herself. Was this boy trying to get a bra for himself? Definitely not something she saw every day. But she had to remain professional about it.

“I’m sorry, did you say he’s here for a bra?” she asked.

“That’s right. You got a problem with that?” Mel said accusingly.

“No, uh, not at all! I was just checking,” the employee said, defensively. “If you’ll follow me over to the changing room, I’ll be happy to measure you, um, sir.”

With that, she grabbed a tape measure and we went into a dressing room. This was absolutely humiliating, and it only got worse when she asked me to take my shirt off. My face was red as a tomato at this point, but I complied and took it off. She took the measuring tape and wrapped it around my torso, making note of the results. She did this a couple times, though for now I technically had nothing for a bra to hold up. I may have been a bit overweight, but certainly not big enough for that!

Once she was done, I put my shirt back on and we went back out to join the others. My face was still red, but at least the worst of it was over now!

“Alright,” she spoke up. “After taking your measurements, your band size would be 42 and your cup size is AA. Would you like some help finding bras in this size?”

It was Penny’s turn to speak up. “Actually, could you get some in 42C?” 

She went into her bag and pulled out a wrapped package and handed it to me, nodding. The sales lady looked at it and then over at me. I don’t think my face could have gotten much redder without exploding. Without another word, she walked off to go find some bras in that size. I was really embarrassed but at least it couldn’t get any worse from here. I just had to stick it out. Mel put a reassuring hand on my shoulder, reminding me this would be over soon.

Soon the sales lady returned with a few bras in different styles. Just like the forms, they looked fairly large. Reluctantly, I took them and the forms and went back to the changing room. Luckily, I’d had some practice with bras by now, from back when I would steal my sister’s clothes. I picked up the first bra and clasped it behind my back. It was a snug fit, though very loose in the front, for obvious reasons. 

I unwrapped it and sure enough, it was the falsies. They were flesh tone colored and even included nipples. They were quite large, C cups from what Penny had said. I picked up the forms, they were so smooth, yet squishy. But these weren’t toys, so I opted to just put them into the bra. I had to admit, they gave a much better effect than the rolled up socks I had used before! They even moved realistically! And the cool, smooth material felt nice against my skin. I could feel myself getting aroused by this, but it was such a good feeling that I didn’t care. I put my shirt back on over it and went out to see the others.

“So, how do I look?” I asked, genuinely.

Penny squealed in delight! “Oooh! Look at you! Those forms suit you perfectly!”

“You look cute, but it feels like there’s some things missing,” Mel said. “Maybe some cute earrings to go with your new look.”

“Earrings?” I asked. “But my ears aren’t pierced. I can’t say I’ve really considered doing that before.”

“We can look into it more after this. How does your new bra feel? Is it the right size?” Mel asked.

“Seems to be, it’s a decent fit. Especially with the forms. Thanks again for these Penny, they feel really good!” I said with a smile.

“Hehe, glad you like them! They’re yours to keep now, so enjoy! I hope you get as much use out of them as I did, no matter what answer you find,” she said, also smiling.

“Well then,” the sales lady said, interrupting our little celebration. “Are we set to check out?”

I was about to nod, when I remembered to check the price tags. After all, I hadn’t grabbed these myself. I looked at them and immediately recoiled! Were bras really this expensive? Holy shit!

I gulped. “Uhh, I think I’ll just take the one I’m wearing for now. I can’t blow my whole budget on bras, I have other things to get while we’re here...”

She nodded, took the tag from the bra I was wearing and brought it over to the register. I paid for it and we left. There were plenty of other places to go while we were here and I could always get more bras later. For now, I left this on as we went to explore the rest of the mall. It was weird walking around, suddenly having a chest. Yet, at the same time, it felt so good. I kinda wished I had brought a change of clothes, so I could wear one of my more feminine outfits. I may not pass yet, but it would be a start.

“So about those earrings,” Mel said. “Wanna see if there’s a good piercing shop here? Cause we are not going to Claire’s for it, you’ll get an infection.”

“Whoa, slow down!” I said. “I never agreed to getting my ears pierced. I’m not so sure it’s a good idea. I mean, that’s gotta be painful and then you have to constantly treat it afterwards. I just don’t see the point.”

“Maybe you should keep an open mind. After all, you could get some really cute ones,” Penny said.

“Oh come on Penny, you too? Fine, I’ll think about it, ok?” I said, just trying to get them off my back. “Now can we please focus? I got the bra, now it’s time for the costume. I wanna wear something cute.”

So we made our way over to the Halloween store, which was on the other end of the mall. It didn’t get any easier walking around with boobs, and people were starting to stare. I was getting nervous, was this really a good idea? Maybe I should have put them back in the package. Typical, just as I start to do something I actually like, I chicken out. What was wrong with me? I wanted this, didn’t I? So why couldn’t I follow through? God, I was such a coward! Tears began to well up in my eyes when I felt myself being pulled into a tight hug.

“Hey now, don’t cry. It’s ok, I’m here,” Mel said, holding me. “Do you need to sit down for a minute?”

I nodded and we made our way over to a nearby bench, with Penny coming over as well. I looked up at them, still crying. “What is wrong with me? Why am I such a freak? These stupid things made me so happy, but now I’m a wreck! I look like an idiot! Just a boy with boobs, I can’t pass for a girl at all like this!”

Mel held me and let me cry on her shoulder. Penny had a look of deep thought on her face, before she spoke up. “You know, passing isn’t everything. Some cis women don’t pass at all, but they’re still women. You’re not a freak, you’re a wonderful person. This can be difficult at times, believe me. Sometimes you get so happy with this, that your mind betrays you and suddenly you become dysphoric. That’s probably what this is, gender dysphoria. Do you want to take your falsies out for now?”

I thought about it for a minute. Did I want to? Just a few minutes ago, I was so happy wearing them. Was I really gonna let this get to me? No, I was stronger than this! I could do it, I wanted to wear them! I quickly wiped the tears from my eyes and stood up.

“No, I can do this! I’ll be ok, let’s keep going,” I said, hoping to sound confident.

They both looked at me. I couldn’t tell what they were thinking... Was this really for the best? “If you’re sure, then let’s go. Not too much further to the Halloween store, right?” Penny said.

I nodded once more and we started making our way off again. I tried my best to ignore the people who were staring. What did they matter? This was for me, not them! I just wanted to be happy with myself for once. Who cares what other people think of it? I was luckily pulled from my thoughts as we got to the Halloween store and made our way inside.

As usual in a place like this, there was a wide variety of props and costumes. All sorts of fun stuff to celebrate the holiday. Looking around at all the stuff in here was a good way to take my mind off my chest. I could finally relax a little.

“So Michelle, what kind of costume are you getting?” Penny asked.

I shrugged. “I’m not sure yet. All I know is that I wanna wear something cute and feminine this year. Oh and it’s gotta be cosplay, I don’t want anything generic. That wouldn’t work for the con this weekend.”

“And I want us to have matching costumes,” Mel said. “That way we can do a cute couple’s cosplay together! Now come on, let’s see what they got.”

With that, the three of us started looking around. There were so many costumes to choose from, but it needed to be just right. Nothing too generic, had to be specific. And had to be something I enjoyed. After all, this was supposed to be fun! After some searching around, I finally found something that caught my eye. A section for Pokémon based costumes! This could work!

“Hey girls, over here!” I called out.

The two of them came over and saw what I was looking at. Mel smiled at the sight of it. “This could work!” she said. “We can easily find something here for both of us. Let me take a look.”

And with that, she began looking through the costumes before I could even get another word out. I looked over at Penny and she just shrugged, even she wasn’t sure what that was about. So for the moment, she went over and started looking for her own costume. A couple minutes later, Mel finally pulled something out of the rack.

“This would be perfect for you!” she said with a big smile, as she held up the costume. 

It was Dawn’s outfit, one of Ash’s traveling companions from the Sinnoh region. I did always admire her taste in fashion, much more so than the other girls he traveled with. Her sleeveless pink and black dress was nice, along with matching boots and pink scarf. It even included her hat. Sadly, it was missing a wig for her long, blue hair. But surely, I could find that elsewhere in the store.

“I like it!” I said. “Dawn was always so pretty. I wish they had her contest outfit instead though. That pink dress is iconic to me!”

“Well her normal outfit should be fine too, right? Though we’ll have to get you something warm to wear with it. For now, why don’t you go try it on? I think I know what I’m gonna do, but I want it to be a surprise.”

So with that, I took the costume and went over to the clerk, asking to use the changing room. Luckily, he didn’t seem to pay me much mind as he let me inside. I opened up the bag and pulled out the dress, this was so exciting! I held it up to myself and looked in the mirror, it definitely looked like a decent fit, though I wouldn’t know for sure until I tried it on. 

I quickly undressed and put it on, though I kept the bra and forms on to wear under it. I pulled the dress over my head, put on the boots and wrapped the scarf around my neck. Putting the hat on, I was satisfied for now. I turned to my reflection and gasped! From the neck down, I really did look like a cute girl! A shame I wasn’t wearing any makeup, or a wig. But otherwise, the costume fit nicely and, more importantly, I was cute! I was so getting this!

I stepped out to show the others. “So? What do you think?” I did a little twirl.

“Oh my gosh!” Penny exclaimed. “You look so cute! It really suits you, especially with that big smile on your face.”

I blushed a bit and looked around for Mel. “Say, where did Mel go?” I asked.

“Oh, she went into another changing room,” Penny responded. “She picked out a costume and wanted to get it on before you saw it. Guess she really did want it to be a surprise.”

Not long after, Mel came out. I recognized her costume immediately, and had a slight chuckle. Of course she would do that.

“Ash Ketchum huh? I should have known. You look great Mel!” I said.

“Thank you Princess, you look amazing in that costume! I told you Dawn would be perfect for you. All you’re missing now is her hair!” she responded.

“Right,” I nodded. “Just need to find a wig around here that matches her hair.”

“Well you two have fun with that. I think I just found the perfect costume for myself!” Penny exclaimed, holding up her own costume. It was the Pokémon Champion from Sinnoh, Cynthia! She was practically beaming holding it, clearly excited over her choice.

“Oh Cynthia, that’s a really good one. You’re gonna rock it as her girl!” I said, happy for her. “Why don’t you try it on while I go find a wig for my outfit?”

She went off to the changing room I had just been in, with a big grin on her face. Meanwhile, I went off to look for wigs. After a quick look around the store, I found them. Now it was just a matter of choosing the right one. It had to be just the right shade of blue and the right length, in order to fit with the costume. I looked them over to see…

“Hmm, wrong color, too bright, too short, getting there…” I thought out loud as I viewed the wigs. “Ah wait, here we go!” I picked up a long, dark blue wig. It seemed to be about the right length, going down just past the shoulders. This would do nicely. I grabbed a wig cap as well, off a nearby rack. This way, my real hair wouldn’t show underneath. With that, I had everything I needed for the costume!

I went back over to meet up with Mel and Penny. Mel had changed back to her normal clothes, while Penny was currently admiring her reflection in her new costume. While it also didn’t have a wig, I had to say I was impressed. She really pulled it off!

“Hey girl, looking good!” I said as I walked over.

“Ah, hey Michelle! Thanks, I’m loving how it looks on me! I just need a good wig and it’s perfect!” Penny said, still smiling.

“Oh nice. Actually, I thought of that!” I said, pulling a blonde wig from behind my back. It was a fair bit longer than my blue one, but that’s because Cynthia had really long hair in the games.

“It’s perfect! Thanks Michelle! You’re the sweetest!” She came over and hugged me. I smiled, returning the hug. It felt nice.

“Ahem,” came a voice from behind us.

I looked back and saw Mel standing there, costume in hand and a not so happy face. “Just what do you think you’re doing?” She asked in a huffy tone.

“What?” Penny asked. “I was giving my friend a hug, that’s all. She’s such a sweetheart!”

This didn’t seem to satisfy her though. “Back off, he’s my boyfriend!”

“Hey, calm down! It was just a hug! I’m not trying to steal her from you or anything, she’s just my friend. I’m not interested in dating anyone right now, let alone someone who’s already taken.” Penny said, trying to reassure her.

“It’s not that big of a deal Mel,” I said, hoping to break the tension. “It was one hug, that’s all. You’re the one I love, no one else.”

“Yea yea, you’re just saying that,” she said, coldly. “Whatever, can we just hurry up and leave? I want to go home now.”

Here we go again, I thought. Now she’s gonna act all cold and depressed, because she’s mad. She always does this. Sweet as anything but the smallest thing goes wrong and she retreats like this! Why? Why can’t we just talk this out like normal people? No, I won’t stand for it this time!

“Mel,” I said out loud. “You can’t keep doing this! Not now, especially not in public. You have something you wanna say to me, go ahead and say it. I’m tired of these games though! We came here to have a good time, all of us! I told you I was bringing a friend along to help. You wanna leave that badly? Over a hug? Go ahead, call your mom and have her pick you up. I’m not doing this anymore! I’m done with all this drama for today!”

“Oh is that how it is? So you’re breaking up with me?” She spat back.

“No, I just don’t wanna do this right now. I came here to hang out with you and Penny, not fight over stupid shit! So if you feel THAT strongly over a hug, I can’t deal with you anymore today. Find your own way home if that’s how it’s gonna be, I’m not leaving.” I stood firmly.

By now, we were drawing a lot of attention. If things didn’t calm down soon, we’d probably get kicked out of the store, or possibly the mall itself. This was on her now though. If she couldn’t get her act together, she could just leave. I wasn’t gonna argue anymore. 

After a few moments with no answer, I looked her in the eyes. “What’s it gonna be Mel? A fun day at the mall, or finding your own way back to your dorm? It’s your choice.”

“Alright, fine. I’m sorry, ok?” she said, though her eyes still read annoyed. “I overreacted, clearly it didn’t mean anything. I apologize.”

While I didn’t quite believe her, she did at least apologize. I looked over at Penny, who seemed mortified over all of this. Maybe it was best to just let this go for now, but there was no way I was gonna forget about it. We’d have to talk about all of this later, this kind of jealousy was unhealthy! Maybe I could talk to my family’s psychiatrist about it? That seemed like a decent solution, she was a nice woman. I’d just leave out the part where I was dressed as a girl.

“That’s better, thank you Mel. Now can we please just enjoy the rest of the day without causing another scene?” I asked.

She nodded and everyone else went back to minding their own business. The excitement was over. I gave an apologetic look to an employee, who had been staring at us for this entire exchange. I went back to the changing room and quietly put my own clothes back on, before headed to the register to check out. Once we all paid for our costumes, we headed back out into the mall. Hopefully the rest of the day would pass without incident.

We walked around for a bit aimlessly. After all that fighting, we weren’t really sure what to do next and the tension between us was thick. Penny clearly didn’t trust Mel, and frankly I wasn’t too happy with her either. This had greatly impacted my trust in her. After all, she clearly didn’t trust me to just hug my friend. Maybe dating and trying to figure myself out at the same time was a bad idea. But I wasn’t ready to give up just yet, she was important to me!

As we wandered, we passed a place that did tattoos and piercings. Mel looked over at me, a curious look on her face. “Have you thought any more about piercing your ears? It’s right here after all and you’d look cute with earrings.”

“It’s barely been an hour,” I responded. “I haven’t really had a chance to think this through. I mean, I don’t even know how I’d look. And haven’t we bought enough already today? This is starting to get expensive…”

“What if I pay for it instead?” Penny chimed in. “I have enough money left that I can do this for you and still get lunch. If nothing else, it can’t hurt to look, right?”

“Fine, I guess I could at least look. But I make no promises!” I said, still unsure about all of this.

So the three of us made our way inside. I had never been inside one of these places before, it was surprisingly clean and well let. A heavily tattooed man stood behind the counter. “How can I help you?” He asked.

“Um, hi there. I’m thinking about getting my ears pierced, but I’ve never done it before. Could you maybe walk me through the process a bit? Are there any selections for styles?” I asked in return.

He thought for a moment. “Well, the process itself is quite simple. You sit down in one of those chairs over there, and we clean your ear with a bit of rubbing alcohol. Then we use a sterile needle to pierce your ear. After that, you put in a basic stud for about six weeks and clean it regularly. We’ll supply you with a cleaning solution. Once all that is done, you can put in whatever kind of piercing you’d like. As for styles, we don’t really offer much here. You’ll have to look elsewhere if you want more than just the basics.”

“I see, thank you for the info,” I replied. “This is all pretty new to me, and I gotta say I’m quite nervous. I’m not even really sure I want to do this.”

“It’s up to you,” he said. “We got an opening right now, you’d be done fairly quickly. No pressure though, take your time and figure out what you want.”

I thought about it. Six weeks was an awfully long time, not to mention the need to clean them multiple times a day to avoid infection. Was that really worth it? It was a difficult choice. I looked over at Penny and Mel, both seemed to be very encouraging of going through with it, but for different reasons. Though I’d also have to explain to my parents about why I did this as well. That was gonna be a fun conversation. Still, Penny did offer to pay. Who was I to turn down such a generous offer?

“Alright,” I spoke up, still unsure. “I suppose I’ll do it. But I’d better find some really cute earrings I can wear after this!”

Penny giggled as the man led over to one of the chairs. I was still nervous, but he assured me it would be over quickly. I watched him as he prepared, putting on a pair of latex gloves and pulling out the needles he would use. They were individually packaged from what I could see. Once that was done, he came over and cleaned both my earlobes with rubbing alcohol and made a small dot on both of them with a sort of pen. He showed me them in a mirror, making sure they looked to be in the right spot. I nodded, they seemed good enough. Finally, he took the first needle out of the package and punctured it right through one of my earlobes! 

Yowch! I almost let out a scream! But I had to suck it up, cause it wasn’t over yet. He repeated the process on the other side with the other needle. That time I couldn’t help but let out a yelp of pain. With that, he cleaned up my ears and placed a stud in each one. The pain died down quicker than I expected. Still sore, but not terrible. It was over now, my ears were officially pierced.

I quickly looked at my reflection in the mirror once more. Two silver colored studs, one in each ear. This was a new experience, and something I’d need to get used to. I walked over to my friends to show them my new look.

“So, what do you think?” I asked, looking at both of them.

“They look so cute!” Mel exclaimed. “See? I told you that you’d look fabulous with earrings. We should find you some proper ones to wear later on though.”

Penny nodded. “For once, I agree. They do look cute on her, but she’d be even cuter with different styles!”

I blushed, I’d never gotten compliments like this before. Let alone so many in one day! It felt nice honestly. So many new experiences, it was crazy! But in the best way possible at the same time. My brain was swimming in all the good feelings, briefly overshadowing the fight I’d just had with Mel. I didn’t want to think about it at that moment, I just wanted to be happy.

So with that, Penny paid for the piercings and I got the care solution and instructions. After that, we made our way back out into the mall proper. Looking at my phone, we still had a few hours to kill before we needed to head back. My stomach rumbled, it was lunch time at this point and I’d barely eaten anything before we came. With that, we made our way back to the food court, so we could figure out what to eat.

_________________

A few hours later, we made our way back to my car. After lunch, we’d just wandered around for a while and picked up a few more small things. I even found some earrings that looked like Umbreon! One of my favorite Eevee evolutions. I’d grabbed those, along with a couple volumes of manga. I wanted to buy more clothes, but my wallet said no. So with that, we got back in the car and headed for home. It had been a long day and clearly all of us were tired. Still, it had been a good day, mostly.

About an hour later, I dropped Penny off at her home. We shared a big hug and said we’d text each other later. Now it was just Mel and me in the car. I looked over at her, wondering if I should say something about our fight earlier. Yes she had apologized, but I still didn’t think she meant it. This would just become a bigger issue if I didn’t address it now, so it was time to rip off the bandage.

“Mel, can we talk about earlier?” I asked sincerely.

She looked over at me, “What, you mean about the fight? I apologized, didn’t I? Isn’t that the end of it?”

“No, it's not. I gotta ask, what the hell was that about? Am I not allowed to hug other girls? Penny and I are just friends, I don’t see her like that. I haven’t even known her as long as I have you. So why did you have to get so upset about it?” I needed to know this, as her answer would impact how I handled things with her going forward.

“I get it, ok? I screwed up. I was jealous. I’m sorry, now can we please just move on?” She sounded like she was in a hurry to get home.

“I need you to reassure me this won’t happen again. I love you, you know I do. But I’m allowed to have other friends, even female ones. I dealt with these kinds of issues before with Amanda, I don’t wanna go through this again,” mentioning that brought up some less than pleasant memories. Amanda had been my last girlfriend before Mel, and despite ending badly, we had made up and were good friends. Still, she had been very jealous of me supposedly looking at other girls, so I didn’t wanna deal with that crap again.

“You’re right, I got too hung up on the fact that she’s a trans girl. I’m sorry for getting so mad about it, I promise it won’t happen again. Ok?” She sounded much more sincere this time, but I still had my reservations over her attitude.

“Alright, I forgive you,” I said, just trying to move on. “Let’s just make sure that doesn’t happen again. That sound good?”

Mel nodded and soon we were pulling up at her dorm. I walked her up to the front door, where we exchanged one last hug and a kiss. We bid farewell and she went inside. Now it was just me. What a day! I was exhausted after all this excitement, and I still had a bit to go before I’d be home. Still, this gave me time to think about everything. Was I doing the right thing, giving her another chance like this? I hoped so, I really wanted to make it work with her. She was the first person who really accepted me for who I was. I didn’t wanna lose that!

I continued to think it over as I drove home, still listening to my music. It was a long drive, and I collapsed in bed when I got home. I must have fallen asleep, because the next thing I knew my mom was waking me up to come down for dinner. As expected, I had to explain to her and my dad why I had gotten my ears pierced. I gave some excuse about Mel thinking I’d look cute that way, and they seemed to buy it. So the rest of the night passed peacefully. Little did I know, this would be the beginning of the end for a lot of things…

Chapter 9 End