A Year in My Life
Part II - 1
This summer -- like previous summers -- Kate was working as
a life guard at one of our area's lakes, and I was working
for the local park system doing all kinds of things.
I was given a kind of supervision position this summer. My
boss had put me in charge of a group of high school students
that was working for the parks. So, I assigned things that
needed to be done and made sure that they were done.
Basically it was cutting grass, pulling weeds, collecting
trash, and things like that.
Tuesday, June 12
Kate and I were looking forward to college. She had my
diamond on her finger. The one thing that Kate really
wanted to do while in college was to be on the university's
swim team, and the tryouts were today.
We both took the day off from work and drove down to State
early this morning. This time I went as Gary, and there was
no chance of us getting snowbound. I sat in the stands, and
watched. It looked to me as if Kate was doing really well,
and might even be making some friends among the other girls.
After the tryouts were over, we walked around campus a
little, and just talked. Kate was excited, and said, "I
think I did really well. The coaches really talked to me
about a lot of things, and were surprised when I told them
that our high school didn't have a swim team."
"That's great," I said, "any mention of a scholarship?"
"No, but I didn't hear them talk to anyone else about one
either."
We wandered into the student union and got something to eat.
As we were eating, Kate said, "I wish it would snow."
"In June?" I asked.
"Yeah, I want to spend another night with you."
"You are so bad."
"No, I just enjoyed that one night so much that I want it to
happen again."
I smiled at her and said, "Me too."
She was tired, and slept most of the way home.
Saturday, June 16
Kate and Gwen -- and sometimes even Wendy -- still loved to
go out. Kate had really worked with me. She had gotten me
to the point where I could do my makeup and hair. I still
wasn't as fast as Kate, but I was close. Of course, she has
always had something to start with: a very pretty feminine
face. I have this ugly male face that has to be pushed to
the limit to look feminine.
Both my parents and Kate's knew that we did this. My dad
wasn't very happy about it, but my mom was supportive. I
think Kate and my mother talked more than I knew. Kate's
mom was supportive; I think she even enjoyed having Gwen
around from time to time. Even Kate's dad had become
somewhat accepting, but I still got a few strange looks from
him when I was Gwen.
Today we were going to the park, then a movie, and then a
late dinner at Greg's Drive-In. Yesterday, after work, we
had done some shopping. I now owned a pair of girls'
shorts, and a cute sleeveless, button up top.
When we got back to the pool house today, Kate asked, "You
know something?"
"What?" I asked.
"A sleeveless top and arm hair don't go together."
"You're not saying what I think you are, are you?"
"Yes, I am."
"Aw, I'll just wear the sweater."
"Lover, it's summer, and it's just hair."
"But the guys at work will see."
"Do you take your work shirt off?"
"No. We're not allowed to. But it's short sleeve."
"So? Has anyone noticed your eyebrows?"
"No. You're going to get me to do this no matter what I
say, aren't you?"
She just smiled.
"All right," I said, shaking my head, "do your dirty work."
She crooked her finger and said, "Follow me love."
I got up and followed her into the changing room. As we
walked in, she retrieved my Speedo swim suit, handed it to
me, and said, "You know the drill."
I undressed, slipped on the Speedo, and got up on the bench.
Kate brought over the bottle of hair remover and said,
"We'll do your legs first."
She covered my legs with the lotion. A few minutes later, I
was walking out of the shower with very smooth legs. I was
going to get back up on the bench, but Kate said, "We can do
the rest without you up there."
She looked at my arms and just said, "Hmm."
"Hmm . . . what?" I asked.
"Your underarms."
"What about them?"
"They're hairy."
"So?"
"Lover, sleeveless blouse?"
"Yeah, I know. How do we do them?"
"We can use the depilatory, shave them, or wax them."
"How do you do yours?"
"Wax them."
"Ouch."
"It's really not that bad."
"Let's shave them."
"All right, I'll go get a razor and you can shave in the
shower after you get the cream off of your arms."
Half an hour later, I was sitting there in a bra and
panties, working on my makeup and hair. When Kate was happy
with my look, she helped me with the waist cincher. I put
on the shorts, sleeveless top, and my one pair of girls'
shoes. Kate handed me the wire-rim glasses and I slipped
them on. Kate smiled and said, "Gwen, love, you look good
enough to eat. But . . . "
"But . . . what?" I asked.
"You really do need some more shoes."
"More shoes?"
"You only have the running shoes."
"So?"
"What if we want to go someplace dressy?"
"I'd need more than shoes."
With her sly little smile, Kate said, "Hmm, yes you would."
I just looked at her. "You want to go shopping, don't you?"
With a grin Kate said, "Me, shopping? No, not me."
We went for a nice walk in the park, and ended up at the
waterfall. I wanted to kiss Kate so badly while we were
there, but there were others there, and I didn't think a
girl kissing a girl would go over so well.
The movie we went to was at one of those theaters that have
a dozen screens, so there were a lot of people there. I had
become almost comfortable around strangers when I was
dressed as Gwen, as long as I didn't have to talk. I'd
learned to ignore the looks from boys, and return the smile
>from women.
But today we ran into some friends from high school.
Luckily, when our friend Paula said that she thought I
looked familiar, Kate introduced me as Gary's cousin Gwen.
Kate and I were going to a different movie from the one that
our friends were seeing, so we went to our own theater. I
whispered to Kate, "That was close. Maybe we shouldn't do
this?"
"Don't worry. Paula just saw a family resemblance between
you and Gary. But there's enough difference when you're
Gwen that she didn't recognize you."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes."
After the movie we went to Greg's Drive-In for dinner. The
same group of friends was there, and someone asked where
Gary was. Kate said, "Gwen and I decided to lose the
boyfriends and just have a day to ourselves."
After we were finished at Greg's we went back to our regular
haunt, the pool house. As we were sitting there cuddled
together I said, "That was just too close today."
"What was too close?"
"Paula, seeing the resemblance between Gary and Gwen."
"Don't worry. Girls just see things boys don't, and she saw
that you and Gary look a little alike. And of course you do.
But there is enough difference that most people won't see
it. Gary is a good looking guy. Gwen is a very pretty
girl."
"If you say so."
She wrapped her arms around me, and said, "Lover, if I
thought someone would figure out that you were Gary, I
wouldn't be suggesting that we go out where people that knew
you would see you. I wouldn't do that to you."
"And apparently I have a boyfriend?"
"A pretty girl like you is going to have a boyfriend, and
probably more than one."
"But I only like girls."
"Did you want me to say that you had a girlfriend instead of
a boyfriend?"
"I guess not."
"Good, we'll keep that our secret."
She kissed me.
Wednesday, July 18
Summer was really going by quickly. Kate and I spent as
much time together as we could.
Today the crew I supervised was working in the park by the
river where the rock bluff was. After lunch my boss showed
up to check on our work. Then he said, "Gary, let's go
check the rock bluff area. I don't think anyone's been up
there for a while."
We left the work crew, and started the hike to the bluff.
After we had finished the climb to the top, he wasn't happy.
It was a mess, even more of a mess than what Kate and I had
found a few weeks ago. He looked around and said, "Go back
down to my truck, and get a trash bag."
"I have one in my pocket," I said. I always kept one in my
back pocket just in case I needed it.
"Good. I can't believe some people. This is a great place,
and they do this to it."
"I know. My fiance and I love this spot. We've been up
here a few times to have a picnic. The last time we came up
here, we had to clean it up first."
"You two really make the climb up here?"
"Yeah, I brought her up here after you showed it to me. She
fell in love with it."
"Hmm, I know you didn't do this, but I'm afraid that we're
going to have to close it off. We just can't get up here
all the time to check on it."
I looked at him in a way that said that I wasn't happy with
the decision. He said, "I know. A few can ruin it for
everyone."
After we had cleaned up the mess, we started back down.
When we reached the narrow part of the trail, my boss said,
"I think this may be the best place for a gate. It would be
very difficult to get around it here."
He was right. On one side was a steep drop off, and on the
other was shear rock face. You'd have to be a rock climber
to get around a gate here.
Then when we got to the bottom of the trail, he said, "After
we get the gate installed, I'll have you and your crew put
some brush at the trail head, and put up a sign."
Later that afternoon when I picked up Kate from the lake, I
told her what had happened at the rock bluff. I thought she
was going to cry.
Friday, July 20
As I was helping my boss and the regular maintenance crew
install the gate on the trail, my crew was covering the
trail head with brush. When we'd finished installing the
gate, my boss fastened a lock on it. I was surprised when
he handed me one of the keys to the lock and said, "We still
have to check on this place every once-in-a-while, and you
might as well be the one who does it for the rest of the
summer. And if your fiance happens to be with you, that's
fine."
I looked at him questioningly and asked, "Really?"
"Hey, someone has to check on it and I don't really have the
time."
"Consider it checked."
When we got back down to the trail head, my crew had put a
lot of brush across the trail. We installed a "Trail
Closed" sign there.
When I picked Kate up from the lake, I told her that we'd
closed off the trail today. She just shook her head and
looked sad. Then I asked, "Want to go on a picnic
tomorrow?"
"Sure, but where?"
"The rock bluff."
"Don't joke about that."
I held up the key and said, "I'm not joking."
"How did you get that?"
"My boss gave it to me and said, 'We still have to check on
the area every once-in-a-while, and you might as well be the
one who does it for the rest of the summer. And if your
fiance happens to be with you, that's fine.'"
Kate got a big smile and said, "He knows we've been up there
before?"
"Yeah, I told him when he and I were up there last
Wednesday."
"But he didn't care?"
"He didn't seem to."
Needless to say Kate and I checked out the rock bluff on a
regular basis. We could tell that people had tried to jimmy
the lock, and get around the gate. But it didn't look like
anyone had succeeded.
Friday, September 7
The summer had slipped by all too quickly. We had both
celebrated our nineteenth birthdays. Gwen had been around
>from time to time. Kate had even taken Gwen shopping a few
times. I had a good start on a nice wardrobe of feminine
clothes, all stored at Kate's house.
Kate had impressed the swim team coaches, and she received a
partial athletic scholarship. Classes were to start on
Monday, September 10, but Kate had to be on campus the week
before to begin swim team practice.
One thing we figured out was that it would be impossible,
living in the dorms, for Gwen to be around except when we
went home. With Kate now on the swim team, it looked like
we wouldn't be able to make it home very often
Last Friday I had gone with Kate and her parents to move her
into her dorm. It was Labor Day weekend, but that didn't
stop the swim team from starting their practices. After
Kate had unpacked, she and I took a walk to say goodbye; it
was a very long goodbye.
Today was my turn to move into my dorm. My parents had
driven me down, and Kate met us. Talk about a greeting, she
literally wrapped herself around me and the kiss was very
long. My parents also got some great hugs.
After my parents had left, Kate and I got reacquainted. It
was like we'd been apart for months, instead of only a week.
Luckily my roommate hadn't arrived yet. Our dorm rules
allowed opposite-sex visits up to a certain time, and we
took advantage of it.
Wednesday, October 10
Katie and I settled into the college routine. I was at most
of her swim practices, and we ate most of our meals together
in the resident hall cafeteria every day.
We had one class together: just like our junior year in high
school, it was English. It was a large freshman class
without assigned seats, so Kate and I were able to sit with
each other.
We also found the lovers' areas on campus. One of our
favorites was a large pond, with a number of benches around
it. We made good use of it.
Needless to say, we didn't make it home on weekends like
we'd planned, so Gwen wasn't around. I missed her, and Kate
hadn't said much about her.
Today became the day from hell. Over the past week or so,
Kate had become quiet and a little distant. I wrote it off
to the pressures of college and the swim team practices.
After my last class I went back to my dorm to drop off my
books before meeting Kate for dinner. As I walked into the
building, I checked my mail box. There was only one
envelope in it.
I pulled the envelope out and looked at it. It just had my
name written on it, in Kate's handwriting. It felt like
there was something besides paper in the envelope.
I went to my room, and I'm glad my roommate wasn't there.
When I opened the envelope and pulled the letter out, Kate's
engagement ring fell on the floor. I can't really describe
what I felt at that moment, but I imagine it was like having
the heart ripped out of my chest.
I picked the ring up off the floor and looked at it. Then I
unfolded the letter and read it. Then I read it again. I
couldn't believe what I was reading. Kate wanted to break
off the engagement. She said that she needed some space and
time to find herself, whatever that meant.
What made me most angry was that she hadn't even had the
courtesy to tell me to my face. Then I guess it hit me: I'd
lost Kate! I fell on my bed and started crying.
I don't know how long I cried, but it was a long time.
Finally I was able to pull myself together --as much as I
could. I got cleaned up and just went walking around
campus.
I ended up at the pond that Kate and I visited on a regular
basis. I found a bench, sat down, and read her letter over
and over again.
As I was getting ready to head back to my dorm, I took the
ring out of my pocket. I just stared at it, trying to
decide if I should throw it in the pond or not.
Thursday, October 11
Kate and I had our English class today. As I walked into
the lecture hall, Kate was already sitting in her seat. I
was surprised that she'd still sit there. Since we didn't
have assigned seats, I sat in the back of the room by the
door so that I could leave quickly when class was over.
Kate kept looking around; maybe she was looking for me. But
I was sitting behind a few people so she couldn't see me.
After class I left the room quickly and headed for the
Registrar's office. I wanted to change classes if I could.
I actually wasn't sure at that point if I was going to stay
in school or not.
After my last class today, I called home and had a long talk
with my mother. She couldn't believe what I said about Kate
breaking up with me. I told her that I was going to try to
find a ride home on Friday or Saturday. She said that she
and my dad would come and get me, but I told her that I knew
of someone who drove up our way every weekend; he would
probably bring me home for the cost of gas.
Friday, October 12
As I walked in the door at home this evening, both my mother
and father met me. As we hugged, I started to cry again.
My mom just held me until I stopped.
She had made my favorite dessert, and I sat down to a big
piece of apple pie with vanilla ice cream. We talked some
more. When I told my mom that Kate had never talked to me
face to face about breaking up, she couldn't believe that
Kate had treated me that way.
Saturday, October 13
I didn't sleep much, and was up and out early. I drove
around town for a while before I headed for the park with
the waterfall. I hiked to the waterfall and sat there for a
long time just thinking. I couldn't come up with any reason
why Kate would have done this.
I stopped at Greg's Drive-In, looked around, and didn't see
anyone I knew. I found an empty booth, sat down, and
ordered some fries and a Coke. I'd never felt so alone.
Sunday, October 14
I was back at school and in my dorm room late this
afternoon. My parents had talked me into staying in school,
at least for this term. When the term was over, maybe I
would transfer to a different school.
My roommate, Doug, was in our room when I got there. He
asked, "Are things any better?"
"Not really, Doug. I just don't know what the hell
happened."
Shaking his head, he just said, "Girls."
Tuesday, November 6
This evening, I was sitting in the library studying and I
heard someone softly say, "Gary?"
I didn't react right away. I knew who it was. It was Kate.
Again, I heard, "Gary?"
I didn't look at her, but just said, "What?"
"Can I sit down?" Kate asked.
"You can sit anywhere you want, it's a free country."
I heard her pull a chair out across the table from where I
was sitting. I buried my face even more deeply into the
book I was reading. She said, "Gary, please look at me."
"Why?"
"Because I want to see your face again."
"Maybe I don't want to see yours."
"Gary, please."
I slowly lowered the book and looked up at her. She was
pretty as always, but I could tell she wasn't happy. She
wasn't happy? Yeah, right.
I looked back down at my book, and she said, "Gary, please
talk to me."
I looked back up at her and asked, "Why should I? You broke
my heart and you couldn't even tell me to my face. And
what's this crap about having to find yourself?"
I saw tears slowly start to roll down her cheeks. I got up,
gathered my things, and walked away. I heard her chair move.
With a sob in her voice she said, "Gary, please!"
I stopped, turned around, and said, "Give me one good
reason!"
"Because I screwed up big time."
"No shit! I loved you! You were all I ever wanted out of
life, but you dumped me without even a good explanation!"
Just then one of the librarians walked up to us and said,
"Please quiet down. There are people trying to study."
"I'm sorry," I said, "I was just leaving."
I turned and walked toward the door. Again I heard Kate
say, "Gary, please!"
The librarian said, "Miss, you'll have to leave."
I walked quickly out the door. A few seconds later I heard
Kate follow me, saying, "Gary, please wait."
I turned and saw Kate walking after me. I stopped and said,
"Just leave me alone, you've done enough damage."
She stopped, sat on a bench, put her face in her hands, and
started really crying. I just stood there and watched her.
A guy I knew from class walked up to me and said, "Hey man,
go talk to her. It can't be that bad."
I looked at him blankly and said, "Yes it can. We were
together for a year and a half. We were engaged, but she
broke the whole thing off a month ago without talking to me
-- or even giving me a good explanation. Now she wants to
talk to me."
He said, "Hey man, I'm sorry. You take care." He walked
away shaking his head.
Kate was close enough that she heard the whole thing. She
looked up at me, her eyes pleading with me.
Then I saw Wendy walk out of the library. She had been
working there to help pay for school. She must have heard,
or heard about, the commotion. Wendy walked over to Kate,
sat down next to her, and put an arm around her.
I thought, 'Who comforted me when I got hurt? No one.' I
turned and walked away.
I had just made it back to my dorm room when my cell phone
rang. I hadn't thought to remove Kate's special ring, and
my phone was now ringing those familiar notes. I let it
ring a long time before I answered it with, "What?"
"Gary, it's Wendy."
"Yeah, what?"
"Gary, listen. I've never seen Kate like this, she's really
upset. She really wants to talk to you."
"Well, now she knows how I felt."
"Gary, I know. I don't even know why she did what she did.
She won't tell anyone."
"Then what the hell does she want to talk to me about?"
"She just keeps saying that she needs to talk to you."
"I don't know if I ever want to talk to her again."
"Gary, as a favor to me?"
I was silent as I thought for a minute.
"Gary," Wendy asked, "are you still there?"
"Yeah, I'm here," I said, "I'm just thinking."
"Okay."
"It's too late today. Have her meet me tomorrow morning
where we used to meet for breakfast."
I heard Wendy tell Kate, "He says tomorrow for breakfast."
I heard Kate in the background, saying, "Thank you, Gary."
Wendy said, "Thanks, Gary. She'll be there."
I hung up and I tried to figure out why I had agreed to meet
Kate.
Wednesday, November 7
Before our breakup we had met at seven every morning for
breakfast in one of the student cafeterias. I walked in
late today, but Kate was sitting where we had always sat
together. She saw me walk in, and her eyes followed me
through the cafeteria.
I went through the line and got my breakfast. I had noticed
that Kate didn't have any food, so I got her a large orange
juice. I walked over to the table, but instead of sitting
next to her I sat across from her.
She looked up at me, and said, "Hi."
I set the orange juice in front of her, and said, "Hi." I
began eating my breakfast.
"Gary?"
"What?"
"I . . . I screwed up big time."
"You just realized that?"
"No, I think I knew it the minute I did it."
"So why did you do it?"
"I . . . I needed to find myself."
"Don't give me that crap! Find yourself. That's no reason
to throw a relationship like ours out the window like you
did."
She looked down at the table, then back at me, and tears
were rolling down her cheeks. She finally said, "I know,
and I want to tell you what really happened. But not here."
"Then where?"
"I don't know. Maybe someplace where we can be alone."
"Alone? You want to be alone?"
"Yes."
"I don't know. I don't know if I want to be alone with you.
I don't know if you're the same Kate."
"I haven't changed. I just had something happen that I
couldn't talk about."
"Not even to me?"
"No, I had to do this myself."
"Kate, we were engaged -- engaged to be husband and wife.
We shouldn't have secrets from each other. You know all
about me."
"I know I shouldn't have done it this way. I've hurt you
terribly."
"No shit."
"Gary, please, let's go somewhere where we can be alone and
talk."
"I don't know."
"Please, away from here, away from home, away from everyone
else."
I sat there and looked at her. Then I reached across the
table, and wiped the tears away, and asked, "When?"
"The sooner, the better."
"I'll see what I can do about this weekend."
"If we need a car, I know someone who has one."
"Who?"
"Wendy."
"She's not supposed to have a car on campus. She's a
sophomore."
"It's not really on campus."
That evening I explained to my roommate, Doug, what Kate
wanted to do. He had told me earlier that his family had a
cabin on a lake about an hour east of campus, and sometimes
he'd run over there on weekends to get away.
As we talked that evening, he told me that it might be
possible for me to use the lake cabin this weekend. He made
a couple of phone calls, and as he handed me the key, he
said, "Man, after the way she hurt you, I'd really have
second thoughts about taking her back."
"I don't know . . . I really don't know."
Friday, November 9
After our last class, Kate and I headed east in Wendy's car
-- which was actually a pickup truck. We didn't say much to
each other except for Kate reading the directions Doug had
given me.
Just a little over an hour after we'd left the university,
we were pulling up to Doug's family cabin. This was no
little cabin; it was more like a log home.
As we pulled up, Kate asked, "Are you sure this is the right
place?"
"I guess we'll know as soon as we try the key." I answered.
We walked into a large, well furnished living room. I said,
"I'm surprised that Doug's family said I could use this
place."
"Maybe Doug really likes you."
"Maybe."
"Wait, where are the directions?"
"Right here, why?"
"I need the code at the bottom to shut off the alarm
system."
It was a little cold, but I soon had a fire going to chase
away the chill. Then we unloaded the pickup. We had to
bring food, our own linens, and a few other things.
This cabin -- if you could call it that -- had four
bedrooms. There were two bedrooms on the first floor, and
two on the second. There was also a loft with bunk beds,
two full baths, and a spacious, modern country kitchen with
a large table. A central fireplace served both the living
room and kitchen.
After we had put everything away, we walked out the kitchen
door onto the patio and down toward the lake. There was a
nice dock, a couple of canoes, and a boat house. The patio
was large, with a nice grill and a fire pit. In looking at
the shoreline, we saw four other cabins like this one on the
large lake.
When we went back inside, I asked Kate, "Doug said to only
use the bedrooms upstairs, or the beds in the loft. So
which bedroom do you want?"
"Oh . . . I . . . I don't care." she said.
Later we threw together a light dinner and sat at the
kitchen table eating in silence. As we were washing dishes
I asked, "So why did we need to be alone to talk?"
"I . . . I need a little more time before we talk. Is that
all right?"
"Take as long as you need . . . until Sunday night."
As we walked back into the living room I tossed a couple
more logs on the fire, and there was a knock at the door. I
opened the door to find a security officer standing there.
I asked, "Yes sir, can I help you?"
"Good evening, I'm Officer Wiggins from Tritec Security. We
cover the homes around the lake and we're just checking to
see who's here."
"Yes sir."
"What are your names?"
"I'm Gary Cutwright and this is Kate Branson."
"Yes sir, do you have any identification?"
"Yes sir," I said as I took out my wallet and handed him my
driver's license.
"Thank you Mr. Cutwright. And you, miss?"
"I'll get my purse," Kate said as she turned and walked back
to her bedroom.
While she was gone, the officer asked, "This vehicle isn't
registered to you, is it sir?"
"No," I said, "it belongs to Kate's cousin, Wendy Branson."
"She knows you have it?"
"Yes sir."
"And if we contacted her, she'd tell us that you have
permission to have her truck?"
"Yes sir, she works at the main campus library at State, and
should be there now."
Just then Kate walked up with her driver's license and
showed it to the officer. He said, "Thank you, Miss
Branson. Everything appears to be in order. If you leave
the house, please be sure to set the alarm. Also, if you
are staying any later than Sunday evening, please call and
let us know."
He handed me a business card and said, "One last thing: no
big parties."
"No sir," I said, "it'll only be the two of us."
"Have a nice weekend."
"Thank you, officer."
After I closed the door, I said, "Private security,
interesting."
Kate asked, "Can we go out on the patio?"
"Sure," I said, "but it's getting cold."
"I know. I just want to sit outside for a little while."
We got our coats and walked out onto the patio. Kate sat on
a glider and I sat in an arm chair. She looked at me in a
way that said, 'I wish you'd sit with me,' but she didn't
actually say anything out loud. We sat there and it really
started getting cold. Finally I said, "I'm going in, it's
too cold out here."
"You're right." Kate said. She followed me into the house
and into the living room. I sat in an overstuffed arm
chair, and Kate sat on the couch. We sat there for a long
time in silence. Finally Kate said, "Gary?"
"What?" I asked.
"I . . . I'm very sorry for what I did."
"Okay."
"I had something happen that really confused me."
"And that was?"
"You know Tiff on the swim team?"
"Tiffany, sure."
"She's a lesbian."
I turned, looked at Kate, and said, "A lesbian?"
"Yeah, and . . . and she came on to me."
"She did?"
"Yes, and I accepted her advances."
I just sat there and looked at her for a long time. Then I
said, "And the two of you did . . . ?"
Tears started as she just nodded her head yes.
"So," I asked, "you tossed away everything we had for her?"
She looked at me and shook her head no.
I said, "No? But you sent me the ring."
"I . . . I know," Kate said, "she made me."
"She what?"
"She made me do it."
"How in the hell did she make you do it."
"She . . . she became very controlling."
"Why didn't you talk to me?"
"I . . . I was afraid to, and I was confused."
"Kate, when have you ever been afraid to talk to me? And
what were you confused about?"
"You're right, I've never been afraid to talk to you."
"Kate you were always the outgoing one in our relationship,
the one who wasn't afraid of anything. You never hesitated
to state your mind. What were you confused about?"
"What I was feeling."
"What you were feeling?"
"For Tiff . . . for you."
"So you weren't sure what you wanted?"
"No, not for a little while."
"A little while?"
"Within a week after I'd sent the ring, I knew that I'd made
a big mistake. I knew that I'd probably lost the most
important person in my life and Tiff was a real bitch, very
demanding. It didn't take me long to see that she was using
me."
"You knew the week after you sent me the ring that you had
screwed up. Why did it take you this long to say
something?"
"I had to get rid of Tiff, and I was afraid to talk to you.
I knew that I had hurt you, and that you were very angry. I
was worried that you might not talk to me ever again. I had
seen you around campus, and I had followed you. I was just
trying to work up the courage to talk to you, but I just
couldn't do it. When I walked into the library this past
Tuesday and saw you sitting there, I ignored my fear and
walked over to you. You know the rest."
"You'll never know how much you hurt me. So Tiff is in the
past?"
"Yes, and I wish it never happened."
"Really in the past?"
"Yes."
"And you want to get back together?"
"More than you know. If you can ever forgive me, I never,
ever, want to be apart again."
"You know I applied to transfer to another university?"
"No . . . no I didn't"
"I couldn't stand to see you on campus. It just hurt too
much. I had to get away from you."
"Oh."
I sat there and just looked at her. I was just trying to
figure out my emotions. I got up and said, "I need to go
outside for a while."
I slipped on my coat, went out the back door, and walked
down to the dock. The wind coming off the lake was cold,
but I didn't feel it. I stood there for a long time, just
looking at the water.
I finally walked back to the cabin and stood in front of the
fireplace to warm up. Kate was still sitting where I had
left her on the couch. She just looked at me.
I finally said, "I'm going to need to sleep on this."
"All right," she said.
Without another word, I checked all the doors to be sure
they were locked, set the alarm, and went up to my bedroom.
I lay there for a long time thinking about Kate, what I was
feeling, how I felt about her, how I felt about us, how I
felt about what she'd done, and what I wanted to do.
Saturday, November 10
I wasn't sleeping; my mind was in high gear, trying to
figure things out. Then I heard the door to my room open.
I looked over at the door and Kate was standing there
wrapped in a blanket. I glanced at the bedside clock; it
was two-thirty in the morning.
Kate walked over to the bed and started to get into it. I
asked, "What are you doing?"
"I'm sorry, I thought you were sleeping. I'm freezing," she
replied, "but I'll leave."
"I was getting cold too. I guess you can stay."
She crawled into bed. I rolled over with my back to her and
felt her move close to me. We lay there for a while and I
finally asked, "Kate, are you asleep?"
"No."
"Why did you do that with Tiff?"
"I guess it was out of curiosity."
"Curiosity?"
"Of what is was like to be with a girl."
"I thought Gwen was enough girl for you?"
"She was, and is. It turns out that I don't like girls that
way. It was a bad decision on my part, and I wish it had
never happened."
"So Tiff no longer means anything to you?"
"She means nothing; she's just something that happened . . .
a bad memory."
"Are you sure?"
"Very sure."
I lay there for a while and then asked, "You're making
breakfast in the morning, right?"
"You know I will."
It was about eleven when I woke up. I remembered Kate
getting in bed with me, so I rolled over, but she was gone.
Then I figured out what had woken me: I smelled breakfast
cooking. I got out of bed, and it was cold. I got dressed
very quickly.
I walked out of the bedroom and down to the kitchen. Like I
thought, Kate was making breakfast; but she had on her coat
and mine. When she saw me she said, "Please make a fire,
I'm frozen."
As I walked toward the living room I said, "I thought you
were good at making a fire. You do so well in the pool
house."
"Yeah, all I do there is push a button."
I turned off the alarm system -- we didn't need Officer
Wiggins back -- and I started a fire. It didn't take long
for the fire to start warming the room up. I heard Kate
say, "Come and help me, please."
I walked back into the kitchen and Kate said, "I almost have
the bacon and French toast done. Will you pour two glasses
of milk?"
"Sure," I said, "it smells really good."
We sat down at the table, and enjoyed a very good breakfast.
By the time we were finished the room had warmed up. After
we had cleaned up the kitchen I asked, "Want to go for a
walk?"
"Sure, where?"
"I think we can walk along the shore of the lake. At least
it looks like we can, but it might be cold."
"I don't care. I'll be with you."
We walked in silence for a long time. When we turned to
head back to the cabin, I realized that we'd walked almost
halfway around the lake. On the way back, Kate took my hand
and I didn't stop her. By the time we were back at the
cabin, she was holding my arm.
When we were back inside I tossed a couple more logs on the
fire, and sat on the couch. Kate also sat on the couch, but
at the other end. We sat there for a little while watching
the fire. I finally asked, "Katie, why don't you come sit
next to me?"
I saw a little smile on her face for the first time this
weekend, and she moved over next to me. We just sat there
watching the fire. The longer we sat, the closer she
cuddled. Finally, I said, "Katie, I'm willing to give us
another chance, but it's going to take me some time to get
over the hurt."
"You're really willing to give us a second chance?"
"Yes, really."
She turned and kissed me. I thought, 'Boy, have I missed
those kisses.'
She said, "I'll do anything I can to help make the hurt go
away."
"Just be with me."
She cuddled in as close as she could, and I held her close.
Kate finally said, "I'm getting hungry."
"Now that you mention it, so am I."
That night neither of us got cold. In fact, we didn't get
much sleep at all. We spent a long time getting
reacquainted in many ways.
Sunday, November 11
Kate was up again before I was, making breakfast. She was
wearing both of our coats again, but it didn't take me long
to get a fire going.
As we were cleaning up after breakfast, Kate asked, "Do you
think we could spend another night?"
"Doug did say they didn't really care how long we stayed.
He said that no one from his family would be here until
Thanksgiving."
With that sly smile of hers, she said, "You mean we can stay
until Thanksgiving?"
"Yeah, right. What about classes, and the swim team?"
"Oh yeah, classes. I guess we do need to go to those don't
we?"
"That's why we're in school. And the swim team?"
"Yeah, the swim team." Kate said with a disgusted tone in
her voice.
"Katie, what about the swim team?"
"Nothing."
"Katie, what is it?"
"I quit."
"What! You quit? Why?"
"Because I did."
"Tiffany?"
"That was part of it."
"What was the rest?"
"It just wasn't what I thought it would be. I figured that
I'd make some friends, but they're all a bunch of prima
donnas."
"What about the scholarship?"
"I guess that I'll just to have to pay them back."
"But you loved it, Katie."
"Loved is the word. I love to swim, but I hate what I had
to put up with."
I saw tears in her eyes, and I just held her. She
whispered, "Lover, you don't know how much I missed you
holding me."
"No more than I've missed holding you."
She pushed back a little, looked me in the eyes, and said,
"Gary, I love you so much! I'm sorry that I made such a
mess of our relationship."
"Katie, it's over. I still love you, and I just love being
with you."
She pulled me close and held me very tightly.
I whispered, "I'd better call Doug, and check to see if we
can stay tonight."
"Don't forget to call Officer Wiggins."
"That was going to be my second call."
I made the calls. Doug was initially surprised that Kate
and I were back together, but said that there shouldn't be a
problem staying Sunday night. The security company thanked
me for calling.
Kate and I drove to the nearest town to pick up a few things
that we would need for that night and the next morning. I
was glad that the pickup truck had a bench seat, because
Kate was able to sit right next to me. On the way back to
the cabin, Kate asked, "How do you feel about Gwen?"
"Gwen? I miss her," I said.
"Really?"
"I think you really found a hidden part of me, a feminine
part."
"Honestly?"
"Yes, I love it when we bring her out. It feels good being
her."
"We?"
"She's nothing without you."
"You're sweet, but you don't have to say that."
"It's true. Gwen's nothing without you. One of the
weekends that I was home, I found some of Anne's old clothes
and tried to bring Gwen out. I got dressed and did my
makeup and hair. I even thought I looked good. But
something was missing: my mentor wasn't there. So I put
Gwen away."
She took my hand and squeezed it. I then asked, "Now, tell
me how you really feel about Gwen?"
"Like I always have."
"Which is how?"
"The first time Mary did your makeup I was shocked, very
shocked. I sat there and watched her turn my boyfriend into
a girl . . . a very pretty girl. I didn't know what I was
feeling.
"Then, as I did your makeup those few times before the
dance, I saw a new part of you. Like you said, a feminine
part. It became fun to find clothes for you and try
different looks. It was good to watch you relax and enjoy
being a girl.
"Going to the Halloween parties was really fun. I
especially liked how we dressed for Ken's. I know Ken's
party itself wasn't good for you, but I found the real Gwen:
the sexy high school girl who wanted to be seen. She didn't
like the way the boys treated her, and I don't blame her.
But watching her there, and later at Greg's, was
interesting. I think Gwen had found herself.
"When we went to the mall the first time, Gwen was worried
that she was going to be read as a guy, even though there
was no way that could have happened. Her look was perfect.
Those wire-rim glasses were just the right touch for her. I
think the real Gwen was born just before Ken's party.
"I love Gwen. I love her because she is a part of you. She
shares your heart and soul. That makes her very special."
As she said this, we pulled into the cabin's driveway. I
put the pickup in park, turned to her, and gave her a very
deep, long kiss.
We took our purchases into the cabin and made dinner.
Afterward, Kate said, "I have a surprise for you."
"What?" I asked.
"Go out to the pickup truck and look behind the passenger's
seat. You'll find a small suitcase. Please bring it in."
"What's in it?"
"I'll show you when you bring it in. And no fair peeking."
I did what Kate had asked, and as I walked back in the cabin
with the suit case Kate said, "Follow me."
I followed her to the kitchen and set the case on the table.
Kate said, "I brought this just in case everything worked
out with us. Everything has worked out for us, hasn't it?"
"I think so, but you have to promise me that we'll talk
about things from now on."
"I promise. I don't ever want to go through anything like
that again."
"I don't think I could survive something like that again.
So, what's in the case?"
"Don't be mad, but when I was home a few weekends ago I
brought some things back with me. I hoped beyond hope that
we'd get back together," and with a little smile she added,
"and if we did, I thought that you might like to be Gwen for
a little while."
"I'm not mad, but were you that sure we'd get back
together?"
"No, I wasn't sure at all. I was just very hopeful. And I
thought that if we did, that I could bring something that
reminded us both of happier times."
"Happier times . . . being Gwen made me happy, a lot like
being with you always used to make me happy."
"Only in the past?"
"And maybe again, in the future."
"You're still not sure, are you?"
"Katie, like I said, it's going to take some time to get
over the hurt. This weekend has really helped. Compared to
when we drove down here, I feel a lot better about us than I
did."
Kate picked up the case and said, "I shouldn't have done
this. I'll put it back." She took the case and started
walking out of the kitchen. As she walked past me I took
her shoulders and turned her to face me. She asked, "What?"
"Just this," and I kissed her. At first her arms remained
down at her sides, but then I heard the case hit the floor
as she wrapped her arms very tightly around me.
We broke the kiss. I looked at her and asked, "Why do you
want to put the case back?"
"I just think that you're not ready to do this with me," she
replied.
"Says who?"
"Are you?"
"Lets find out."
I picked up the case, took Katie's hand in mine, and headed
up to our bedroom. When we got there, I tossed the case on
the bed and asked, "So what did you have in mind?"
Kate was smiling, and she said, "Just to have my girlfriend
back."
"What did you bring?"
"Some shampoo and conditioner, so we can do something with
that mop you call hair. Your makeup, some clothes, and
shoes. And some surprises."
"Surprises?"
"Uh-huh, I thought that if we did this it was time for Gwen
to have some new feminine experiences."
"What?"
"You'll see. First, jump in the shower and wash your hair,
and we'll see what we can do with it. Use the shampoo, then
the conditioner. Leave the conditioner in your hair for
five minutes, and then rinse and just towel dry."
When I came out of the bathroom, Kate handed me the red
satin panties and I slipped them on. It had been a while
since I'd worn these, and I'd missed them.
Kate went to work on my hair with a brush and blow dryer.
By the time my hair was dry, she had worked it into a very
nice feminine style. When she finished she said, "Lover,
your hair could be a lot nicer. You really need to take
better care of it."
"Are you going to teach me?"
"Do you want me to?"
"Yes."
"Are you willing to go to a beauty shop with me?"
"Maybe, why?"
"Your hair needs professional help to get it into shape, and
I know just the person."
"When do you want to do this?"
"Maybe when we're home for Thanksgiving break?"
"We'll see."
Kate wanted to do my makeup for me, so she went to work.
The first thing she did -- which in my opinion was her
favorite thing to do -- was pluck my eyebrows. She worked
long and hard, and really had me worried.
Then it was the usual moisturizer, foundation, and
everything else. But she spent longer on my eyes than she
usually did. When she finished she handed me the wire-rim
glasses and I slipped them on. Kate got a very big smile
and said, "You look so nice."
I went to turn and look in a mirror, but Kate caught me and
said, "Can you wait until you're dressed?"
"I'll try," I said.
"Come on over to the bed and get dressed."
I walked over to the bed, but it was hard not looking in a
mirror. Kate had laid everything out on the bed. She
handed me a bra and I slipped it on. As she helped me stuff
the cups with nylons, Kate said, "We need to get you some
breasts."
"What?"
"Not real ones."
"Fake ones?"
"I don't think you want real ones, do you?"
"No."
She picked up the waist cincher and handed it to me. It was
the other one that we had purchased on our one trip to the
mall, the cincher with garters. I stepped into it and
pulled it up, she tightened it. I had almost forgotten how
much I liked the tight feeling of the cincher. Kate said,
"Run the garters down through your panties."
"Why?"
"Just in case you have to use the bathroom."
"Huh?"
"Lover, if your garters are outside the panties, you have to
undo them to pull your panties down. If they're inside, you
can pull your panties down without any problem."
"Yeah, makes sense."
"You'll learn. Now for the nylons."
"Nylons?"
"That's why your waist cincher has garters."
"Oh."
Kate handed me a pair of nylons and asked, "Think you can
get these on?"
"Sure, they're almost like pantyhose."
"Almost, but you have to attach them to the garters."
I sat on the bed and put on the first nylon. When I got it
pulled up, I looked at Kate and asked, "Now what?"
"Here," she said, "let me show you."
She showed me how to fasten the front and side garters, and
said, "You can fasten the back ones when you stand up."
I put on the other nylon and fastened the front and side
garters without a problem. Then I stood up and tried to
figure out how to reach the rear garters. I struggled to
fasten them, and watched as Kate's smile got bigger and
bigger. Finally she said, "It's a learned skill. I'll
fasten them for you."
She fastened the garters, and the feeling of the garters
pulling on the nylons was really different --not to mention
how it felt when I walked. I asked Kate, "Is this the new
experience?"
"One of them, like it?"
"It's interesting."
"I also found you a new blouse, skirt, and shoes."
"You really thought we'd get back together, didn't you?"
"Lover, I was praying that we would. I bought these things
just in case we did. Thinking that I might have you and
Gwen back helped me get up the nerve to talk to you."
Kate picked up the new blouse and, like she was trying to
teach me something about fashion, said, "This is a jacket-
style blouse, with a V-neckline, and it has a front ruffle.
The long sleeves have a slight bell sleeve."
As I was putting it on I asked, "Trying to teach me a little
about fashion?"
"Sure, don't you want to learn?"
I just smiled at her.
She handed me a jeans skirt. I stepped into it, pulled it
up, and found the zipper on the side. The skirt hit me
about halfway between the top of the nylons and my knees. I
said, "At least it's longer than the one for Ken's party."
Kate added, "And you won't have to worry about the boys
hitting on you here."
With a fake pout I said, "Aw, that won't be any fun."
"Girlfriend, you just need to worry about me hitting on you.
Here, put your shoes on."
Kate handed me a pair of shoes. I had worn this style at
Halloween, I think Kate had called them Mary Janes. But the
chunky heel on these was much shorter than what I'd worn for
Halloween, maybe only two or two-and-a-half inches tall.
They were dark blue and had a strap across the instep. I
slipped them on, and they felt nice. I asked, "Are we
done?"
"Girlfriend, think jewelry. You're never finished until you
have your jewelry on. In fact, I think it's time for
different earrings."
"Different earrings?"
"Sure," Kate said as she pulled a small box out of the case,
"your ears should be healed, so it's time for some really
pretty ones."
She opened the box and took out a pair of pretty hoop
earrings. They looked like they were about two inches in
diameter, and were actually three hoops on a swivel. There
was one gold and two silver hoops. Kate had worn something
like these a couple times when she was dressed up, and they
had looked really nice on her.
Kate removed my studs and put the hoops in place. Every
time I moved my head I could feel the earrings move. I
asked Kate, "Is this one of the new experiences?"
"Could be, why?"
"Feeling these move every time I move my head is different."
"I guess I'm used to it, I don't notice any more."
"Can I look yet?"
"One last thing, a necklace."
Kate fastened the necklace with the double heart-shaped
pendant around my neck. "Now you can look."
I turned and looked in the mirror and I just stared for a
minute. Kate finally asked, "Is something wrong?"
"No . . . nothing's wrong. Unless looking in a mirror and
seeing a pretty girl looking back at you is wrong."
"So, do you like the look?"
"Yeah, very much. But I think you went a little overboard
on my eyebrows."
"Not really, it's just a little makeup magic."
"Magic?"
"If you get real close to the mirror, you can see where the
makeup covers part of your eyebrows, and I used the eyebrow
pencil to really bring out what I wanted to. This works
when you're not close to people."
"You actually changed what you do to my eyes, didn't you?"
"It's more like what a coed would wear to a party. Like
it?"
"It really brings out my blue eyes."
"Nothing sexier than a blue-eyed blonde. Is it too sexy?"
"I think if I was going anywhere, yes. But if I'm just
going to be with you, no. It's actually a fun look."
"It is a fun look. If we ever go someplace special, I think
you should wear this look. It's really cute on you."
"Someplace special?"
"A party or something like that."
"A party. Like what, Ken's Halloween party?"
"I hope not, a fun party."
"Well then, maybe."
I looked at my hands and said, "Not doing my nails?"
"I'm sorry, that's the one thing I forgot to bring."
"That's all right, next time."
With a grin, Kate asked, "Next time?"
"I told you that I missed Gwen. She's back now, and I'd
like her to come back more."
"You really did miss her, didn't you?"
"Almost as much as I missed you."
Kate walked over to me and gave me a long, soft kiss. When
we broke the kiss she whispered, "You didn't forget how to
kiss like a girl, did you?"
"I know you like Gwen to kiss that way, and I like kissing
you that way. So . . . " I kissed her again.
We spent the rest of the afternoon hanging out as two
girlfriends. I liked the feelings of the garters pulling on
the nylons and the earrings moving. As we were making
dinner I said to Kate, "I feel like I'm overdressed."
"You're not," she replied, "some girls like to keep it a
little upscale; others like to keep it simple. I see Gwen as
one of the upscale kind of girls."
"But I loved the look with the jeans and sweater."
"I know, and that's a good look on you too. But a skirt and
a blouse just say Gwen. I think she's just a very feminine
girl."
"And you're not?"
"You know I am. I love to look nice. It's fun. But there
are times when I just like to really kick back."
After dinner we sat cuddled up together in front of the
fire. Kate asked, "So, does it feel good to be Gwen again?"
"Yes, very good. Are you glad that she's back?"
Kate turned and looked at me. She said, "The only thing
that makes me happier is that we're back together. I know
you like to become Gwen. You feel good when you do, and I
think you can relax more."
"I think you're right, especially about one thing."
"What's that?"
"About being happy that we're back together."
"Are you?"
"Katie, I'm very happy that we're back together."
The kiss I received had so much feeling in it that I can't
describe it. It was amazing.
We cuddled together for a little longer. Kate finally
asked, "Why don't you check the doors?"
"Why? It's early."
"No it's not. It's late, and I want you. I want you right
now."
Monday, November 12
Kate was still asleep when I woke up. I just lay there and
watched her sleep. I thought about the past weekend, about
how I truly loved this girl. I was surprised by how easily
I had forgiven her after the way she had hurt me. But I
felt that she was very sincere in what we had talked about,
and I really couldn't stay mad at her for long. I still had
to get over her lesbian fling with Tiffany, but I thought
that time would heal even that.
I thought about Gwen, and why I really felt the way I did
when I was dressed as a girl. I didn't really have an
answer for this. I thought about Kate's interaction with
Gwen. Why was Kate so attracted to Gwen? Again, I didn't
have an answer.
But did this have anything to do with Kate's attraction to
Tiffany? Or was it like Katie had said, 'I love her (Gwen)
because she is a part of you. She shares your heart and
soul. And that makes her very special.' But what's the
attraction?
Kate started to stir and opened her eyes. She saw me
looking at her, smiled, and said, "Good morning, Lover."
I returned the smile, and said, "Good morning."
It was then that I realized that I was still wearing the
cincher and nylons. That meant that I was also still
wearing the makeup from last night. Kate said, "I really do
love waking up with you."
"Even when I look like this?"
Her smile got bigger and she said, "I don't care. Last
night was wonderful. You're here with me. I couldn't ask
for anything more."
We exchanged a very long kiss, and it was forty-five minutes
later that we finally got out of bed. I unhooked the garters
>from the nylons and Kate helped me out of the cincher. As
Kate was helping me remove my makeup she said, "I hate to
see Gwen go away."
"You really like it when I'm Gwen, don't you?"
"Lover, I like you no matter what."
After my makeup was off, we took a long shower together.
Then we helped each other make breakfast, actually lunch.
As we sat there eating, Kate asked, "When can we start doing
this all the time?"
"Eat breakfast like this?"
"That and spend every night together."
I looked at her for a moment then said, "You know, it wasn't
long ago that you got upset when anyone mentioned marriage.
What's changed?"
"I've realized that it's the next step in our relationship,
unless we just live together."
"Which do you want to do?"
"Either, but I'd rather be your wife."
I turned to her and kissed her.
After we finished eating we got busy cleaning up the cabin.
Luckily we hadn't been messy. As Kate cleaned the kitchen I
cleaned the fireplace and restocked the firewood supply on
the patio. Then we tackled the bathroom and bedrooms
together. The bedroom Kate had used the first night was
easy, but the bedroom that we shared took a little more
work.
As I was packing Gwen's things I asked Kate, "Honey, why do
you have such a strong attraction to Gwen?"
"What do you mean?" she asked.
"Well, our regular sex life is fantastic but when we start
out with me dressed as Gwen it just seems more intense."
Kate got quiet for a minute then said, "I don't know. I
just feel a very strong sexual attraction to Gwen."
"It's not like what you had with Tiff, is it?"
She looked at me and I thought she was going to cry. But
instead of crying she said, "God no, Lover. I never did
feel any love with her. With you, Gary or Gwen, it's deep
love. Gwen brings something out in me but I don't know
why."
"So there was no love between you and Tiff?"
"Why are you bringing her up? I want to forget her."
"Katie, the more we talk about this, the more I'll
understand . . . and the better you may feel about it."
Kate sat down on the bed, and said, "There wasn't ever any
real love between Tiff and me. I don't know why I accepted
it when she came on to me. I was going to stop after the
one time and walk away, but she had a way about her. She
became very controlling. It was like she was almost forcing
me to do things."
"I just don't understand how she could control you that way.
You're a very strong person."
"There was just something about her; I can't explain it. I
just want to forget it."
I sat down next to her, put my arm around her, and said,
"Katie, I may never understand this but I still love you
very much. It's in the past."
She looked at me and said, "Gary, you are so special to me.
I figured that I'd lost you forever and didn't have a chance
of winning you back. But when you agreed to go away for a
weekend, I knew we had a chance. I promise you from the
bottom of my heart that I'll never do anything to hurt you,
or our relationship, again."
I held her close for a long time then said, "We'd better get
moving. We've already missed our Monday classes. If we sit
here any longer we'll miss our Tuesday classes, too."
"I could do that so easily. But you're right, we need to
get back."
We finished cleaning and I called the security company to
tell them that we were leaving. We were back on campus in
time for dinner and we picked up our old routine by eating
together.
When I found my roommate, Doug, I handed him the key and
thanked him for the use of the cabin. He said that his
family only uses it in the summer and for holidays so it
wasn't a problem. But he was really surprised that Kate and
I were really back together. When I told him that love
could conquer all, he just shook his head and said, "Yeah,
and it's blind."
Wednesday, November 21
It was the beginning of the long Thanksgiving weekend, so
there weren't any classes after Noon today. We drove home
with Wendy. She dropped us off at my house and my mother
met us at the door with big hugs. The same thing happened
at Kate's house when I took her home after dinner.
Thursday, November 22
Today was Thanksgiving, and we did something that I figured
would probably become an annual occurrence. We ate two big
dinners, one at my house, and one at Kate's house. We were
both so full that after the dinner at Kate's we went to the
pool house, started a fire, and fell asleep. It was a good
hour later that I woke up to find Kate still asleep with her
head in my lap. I thought, 'I guess when we settle down
that we're going to have to find a home with a fireplace.'
Saturday, November 24
My cell phone ringing, at about ten-thirty in the morning,
woke me up. It was Kate's special ring. So I answered it,
"Morning, Love."
"Good morning sleepy head."
"I've got to catch up on my sleep when I get a chance. You
sure don't give me a chance to sleep much when we're
together."
"You know it, Lover. Are you ready for today?"
"Today? What's today?"
"Did you forget? You get your hair done at two."
"At two?"
"Do you want to go as Gary or Gwen?"
"Uh . . . do I have too?"
"Lover, did you forget what we talked about at the cabin?"
"Something about keeping my hair nice?"
"Yeah, and I got you an appointment."
"At a beauty shop?"
"More like a beauty salon. They can do all kinds of
things."
"Alright, I'll go to keep you happy."
"Lover, it's not for me. It's for you. You like your hair
long and it needs to be kept nice. This is the first step."
"As usual you're right. What do you think, Gwen or me?"
"It depends if you want to see what they do to your hair in
a feminine way or a male way."
"I'll still be able to wear it either way?"
"I told them that we need to be able to put it in a feminine
style or a masculine style."
"They know about Gwen?"
"Jill, the girl who does my hair, does. I had to tell her
so she knew that you normally wear your hair in a man's pony
tail."
"And what did she say?"
"That it wasn't a problem. Why don't you come over for
lunch, then Gwen can go with me to the salon?"
"I'd do anything for one of your meals."
"Anything?"
"Sure."
Just before two, we were getting out of the car in front of
Eddie's Salon de Beauty. I was nervous as I walked in the
door with Kate. I was Gwen, dressed in a pair of jeans, my
pink sweater, and running shoes.
It appeared that the salon was like old home to Kate. The
receptionist knew her by name, as did a couple of the girls
who happened to walk up to the front of the shop. Kate told
the receptionist, "This is Gwen; she has an appointment with
Jill at two."
The receptionist said, "Have a seat, I'll let Jill know that
you're here."
I whispered to Kate, "What kinds of things do they do here?"
"Almost everything. Of course hair, but they also do
makeup, body waxing, eyebrow waxing, tanning, and stuff like
that."
Just then a pretty black girl walked into the reception
area, and greeted Kate like a long lost sister. Kate
introduced the two of us. Jill looked me over, and said,
"We'll get her hair looking really nice. Come on with me."
When we got back to Jill's work station she had me sit in
her chair. She wrapped a protective sheet around my neck
and took my glasses off. She asked, "What did we have in
mind, Gwen?"
I looked at Kate, and Kate said, "I think we need to get rid
of the split ends, maybe add some highlights. Then a cute
cut that can also be put into a guys pony tail."
"So," Jill said, looking at me, "Kate tells me there's
really a guy under there. There's no way someone this cute
can be a guy."
Kate said, "We have fun dressing him up as girl and going
out as two girl friends."
Jill looked back at me, smiled, and said, "Fun dressing as a
girl. Girl, there should be a law."
"A law?" I whispered.
"No guy should be allowed to look as cute as you do as a
girl."
Kate laughed and said, "No, I don't want a law to keep her
>from looking so good. We'd be breaking it all the time."
"And you want her to look cuter than this?" Jill asked.
"The cuter the better."
Jill started looking at my hair and said, "I'll try."
A while later as we were paying the bill, Jill said, "Gwen,
the only additional thing that I'd do is wax your eyebrows."
Kate looked at me and said, "Maybe next time."
I looked at Kate with a look that said, 'No way!'
Jill then said, "Don't worry honey, it doesn't hurt that
much. Anyway, you come back and see us anytime."
Kate, with a grin, said, "She will."
As we were getting in the car Kate asked, "Want to go
somewhere?"
"Why?"
"You look so good that we need to show you off."
"I don't know if I want to be put on display."
"Lover, every time a cute girl goes out she's on display.
That's why we always try to look our best."
"Aren't we starting to push the envelope on this a little
too far?"
"I don't think so. But if you do, we can go back to doing
it when we're alone. I just think it's fun to go out with
you."
I sat there and thought for a minute. I asked, "Where do
you want to go?"
Kate smiled and said, "How about to Towne Center?"
"Towne Center?" It was a very upscale shopping area, with
all high-end shops. In other words, very expensive.
"Sure, they have a lot of shops with cute clothes."
"And