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Discovery "OK, Jake," I taunted while taking a defensive stance between him and the basket, "you think you can drive on me? Bring it!" Jake continued dribbling the ball just above the arc of the key. This was an old situation for the two of us. We've been best friends since fifth grade when his family moved into the neighborhood where I was living at the time. It didn't take long before the two of us hit it off and started spending almost all our time together. After a while lots of people started thinking we might be brothers, but I think we are tighter than that. Jake faked to his left and drove right, but I was ready for it and dropped back as he started his move. He tried to get behind me but wasn't going to make it, so he leaned back as he jumped and arced the ball up over my outstretched hand. The ball clanged off the edge of the rim and I was able to field the rebound. I went back to the top of the key and watched as Jake took his position grinning at me. "OK," he panted, "you got me that time, Vic, but now you have to get by me." I faked a move to the left and stepped back and let loose a long ball. It bounced off the rim but went almost straight up. The wonderful ripping sound it made as it passed back down through the net announced my victory. "Hey, you didn't even try to get by me," Jake protested as he chased the ball down. "Why should I when I can hit that shot," I bragged. "You can't hit it every time and you know it." "But I hit it that time." I threw a towel at him as he came to the risers sitting beside the court. "Yeah," he grumbled and sat down beside me. We sat in silence for a few minutes both needing to catch our breath. We had been at it, our usual Saturday game, for a little over an hour. The weather was still warm in the afternoons so we got a good workout. "What are you up to later?" I asked as I started gathering my things up. "Oh." He turned and began packing his own bag. "I don't think I have anything planned. Just going to hang out at the house." "How are you enjoying that shoebox anyway?" I asked. "Can't have taken too long to get settled, it isn't very big. I told you we could have gotten a bigger place together if we were splitting the bills." "I know, but-" He hesitated for a second. "But I just really wanted to try and be on my own, y'know?" "I guess," I answered, "but us living together wouldn't be like living with our folks." "Look, Vic, you are like my brother, and there isn't anyone else I want to hang with, but I need some time to myself too, OK?" "Yeah, fine, I'll stop bugging you about it," I relented. "Besides, you've got a lease now so you are stuck for a while." "Yup," he grinned, "at least eleven more months. And the place is too small to have anyone else live there that I'm not sleeping with. And as much as I love you, bro, I ain't sleeping with you." "You're damn straight you're not." I gave him a playful shove. We got off the bench and started walking toward our cars. "How about I come by and pick you up around 8:00?" I asked. "We'll head over to the club and throw some darts, shoot some pool, whatever. Maybe there will be some available women there tonight." "Sure, sounds good," he turned toward his car. "See you then." I tossed my bag in the back seat of my old Toyota and settled behind the wheel. I was a bit envious of Jake having a place of his own, he opted to find a full time job rather than going to school which I found confusing because he liked doing the school thing. I was still stuck living at home. I was working part time while I was finishing up some course work at the local junior college. But in a few months I'd have my associates degree and then maybe I could find some permanent work and get out on my own. Maybe by then Jake would feel like finding a place and sharing. I hope he finally figures out whatever it is that he needs to. * - 2 - * We went out that night and did our thing. We threw darts, played pool, sat and watched pieces of a couple of games on the various TV's scattered around the bar. And we drank plenty of beer. A couple of girls came in that looked like they might attend the same JC I was taking classes at and we chatted them up for a while. I didn't have a chance since I couldn't take either of them back to my parents' house, but we had a really good time talking with them anyway perhaps laying the groundwork for a future encounter. The girls decided they were leaving and we decided we'd done as much damage to our livers that night as we could stand. After paying the tab we went out to my car. Just before we got in a car pulled in behind mine and the window rolled down. "Hey, Jake," one of the girls called through the open window. "Come here a sec." Jake looked at me, shrugged, smiled, and then ambled in their direction. He bent to the window and talked for a minute, then returned to the car. "What was that about?" "Well," he got into the car, "seems we made a good impression." He held up a scrap of paper. "Their phone numbers. They said if we didn't have anything planned for next weekend to give them a call and we could all get together." "No shit!" I blurted. "Why did they just call you over? Who is interested in whom?" "Relax," he laughed. "They said they enjoyed talking with us and since we didn't try and pressure them into anything they thought we might get together again. They didn't give me any details about anything else. So, if we decide to call them, maybe we can get it sorted out then." "What do you mean if we call them?" I backed out of the space and started for Jake's house. "We are going to call them, right? You aren't bailing on this are you?" "Yeah," he snickered, "we'll call them. But we have to decide on what to do first like where we are going and all. I don't want to just go to the club and drink all night." "OK," I hated this part of planning, fortunately Jake was a lot better at it. "What do you have in mind?" "Nothing really, yet. Give me some time. We just need to call them by Wednesday if we want to go out Saturday night." "Alright," I nodded. "We can get it together by then." Jake just looked at me and snickered. He knew what I really meant was that he would have it figured out. I dropped him off at his house. "I'll give you a call when I decide on something," he told me as he got out of the car. "Cool!" I reached out with my fist toward his side of the car. He reached back in and bumped it with his own and then closed the door. I watched him walk to his door and let himself in before driving off. * - 3 - * I woke up the next morning; well technically it was still morning even though my mother said it was time for lunch. I sat and talked with my folks about different things while we ate sandwiches and bowls of soup. My mom complained to my dad that there were a few lights burnt out in the house that needed changing for a long time. I finally volunteered to go and get some bulbs for them and take care of changing them as well. I rinsed off my dishes in the sink and headed out the door. I found all the bulbs I needed as well as a small stock of extras so they could be taken care of easily next time and checked out at the register. As I started out of the parking lot I thought I would take a spin by Jake's house. It didn't sound like he was going anywhere that day and maybe he might have an idea about what we would do with the girls next weekend. I thought about giving him a call but I don't like trying to do that while I drive. I see enough idiots that can't do both without adding to the problem. I pulled up in front of Jake's and started for the door. Before I got too far I heard the top of a trash can thump down. I glanced toward the backyard and caught a glimpse of someone heading toward the back door. I started to call out but something stopped me. I quickly crossed the driveway that ran beside the house to improve my viewing angle and saw a girl walking toward the back of the house. "I'll be damned," I muttered. "One of the girls must have wanted to go home with him and he didn't want to hurt my feeling. I wonder which one it is." I slunk down and crept up close to the side of the house ducking under one of the windows. I slowly moved up to peek inside. At first I saw just an empty room with a small table with his computer on it. It was supposed to be a dining room, but Jake used it as an office. "If they are in his room, I won't be able to see them without going to the other side of the house," I thought. Then I saw a shadow pass the door, she was still in the kitchen. I waited. She came in the room and I quickly ducked back from the window. I caught enough of a glance to see she had on a white blouse and a short red plaid skirt. And she was blond. None of that helped because both girls were blond last night and neither was wearing a skirt. I dared to ease my way around to look in the window again. I was surprised because she was sitting at Jake's computer, her back to me. She must have seen a reflection in the computer screen or something because she suddenly whipped around to look right at me. I froze. She froze. Or perhaps I should say Jake froze. We were like that for what seemed like ten minutes but in actuality I think was only one or two seconds. Jake suddenly bolted from the room, skirt flying out behind him as he ran. It was then I noticed he was also wearing knee socks, a funny thing to notice. I fell back from the window and leaned against the side of the house for a moment. As my head started to clear I decided my best course of action would be to just leave. I pushed off the side of the house and walked a bit unsteadily toward my car. "We'll talk about this later," I told myself out loud. "I'm certain he has a good explanation for what that was all about. He'll call me when he wants to explain it." I was just reaching for the door handle when the front door of the house opened. "Vic," Jake called from the door, "what are you doing here?" "I, um," I was confused. I wasn't ready to talk yet, how could he be? "I ran an errand and thought I would stop by before I went home and talk about the girls. But, um, well, I, um, I think you might be busy so I'll, um, ah, just talk to you later, ok?" I started to get into the car. "Vic," he called, "Please, come in. I think we ought to talk now." "You sure?" I hesitated. "We can talk later." "I think I'd like to talk about it now," he assured me. "Please, come in." I let go of the door handle and took a deep breath and a hard swallow. I walked slowly up the driveway then the walkway and up the couple steps to the front door. Vic smiled and stepped back into the house. He was now in a sweatshirt and shorts. "I wanted to catch you before you left," he started, "but I need to go to my room for a couple more minutes. Then I'll come back and we can talk, ok?" "Yeah, sure, I'll just wait here." I moved to a chair in the corner and sat. "Be right back," I watched him walk out of the room, he still had on the knee socks. Time seemed to stretch away as I sat there. Jake didn't have a lot of things to look at in the living room. In truth he didn't have a lot in the whole house. His folks had helped him get some furniture for the place but left anything extra up to him. He hadn't put a lot of effort into that so far. "Vic," he started as soon as he entered the room, no more knee socks, "I'm sorry. I didn't expect anyone to be around today." "What does that have to do with anything?" I asked perplexed. "What were you doing? You had on a skirt and knee socks for crying out loud." "Yeah, I know," Jake seemed to be looking for something to look at other than me. He probably was wishing he had some things on the walls at this point. "Look, Vic, we've known each other a long time so I hope we can talk about this. I've actually got a lot I can tell you." "A lot, really." I was starting to feel a bit uncomfortable. I thought I knew this guy better than anyone. Now I was feeling like I didn't know him at all. I was starting to regret my choice of seats, it was the furthest from the door, but my only other choice would have been on the couch and that didn't seem like a good choice right now either. "Yeah." Vic leaned back on the couch. "Before I get started would you like something to drink? I haven't got much: water, orange juice, or beer. "Not right now," I answered, "I might like a beer in a bit though." "Yeah, maybe me too." Vic nodded. "So, let me get started. "Remember a couple months ago when I suddenly decided to find my own place and I got this place because I wanted some time to live on my own and even though you said we could share it I didn't want to?" "Of course I remember," I answered a bit more tersely than I intended. "Well my mom walked in just before that. I didn't hear her coming. She found me dressed in one of her dresses, and well it wasn't just the dress. I had on a bra, panties, pantyhose, high heels." I was unaware that my jaw had dropped and my mouth was gaping. "Well, she kinda threw a fit. She didn't give me any chance to explain until my dad got home and she told him all about it. I was at least allowed to change into my own clothes before he got home. "Anyway, I told them that I had been wearing her clothes when they weren't home ever since I was old enough to stay by myself. I tried to explain that I just like the way they feel. It feels just so liberating to me to be all dressed up and, well, depending on the dress it might feel silky, or maybe it just floats to where I can hardly feel it, or I don't know. There are so many different ways to feel." "What about the skirt you were wearing today?" I interjected. "Well, that one is very short." I could see his face redden a bit. "I feel exposed and covered at the same time. It is really quite exciting. The knee socks I had on added to that feeling because they are tight up to my knee, then nothing until I feel the hem of the skirt brushing my legs." "Uh, that might be more than I really need to hear right now," I grimaced. "Oh, sorry." Vic resettled himself on the couch. "It's just that I haven't been able to talk to anyone about this before and I was hoping we could talk, you know, I mean really talk. My folks were only interested in telling me I needed to move out once they learned it wasn't just that day." "You aren't hoping to become my girlfriend are you?" I asked uneasily. "I mean you know I lu... like you and all but I don't go that way, you know?" "Relax, Vic." He shook his head. "I can understand why you might think that way. Guy wears a dress, guy must be gay. But it really doesn't work like that. I was confused for a long time as well. I would go and put on a bunch of my mom's clothes and think about other girls and how much fun it would be to be with them. I wondered why if I wanted to be dressed up like that then why didn't I want to be some guy's girlfriend instead? I mean I know me and I couldn't make sense of it." "Good, then I'm not alone," I huffed. "Not by a long shot, Vic," he sighed. "I started researching a bunch on the web and was surprised by the things I discovered. One thing is that I am not alone. I thought I might be some kind of freak when I was younger. I tried to stop. I tried to tell myself that it was just some phase and that I would stop wanting to wear those things. But no matter how hard I tried to I just couldn't keep myself from wanting to put on some lacy underthings, or a silky dress, or.." "Yeah, I get the picture," I interrupted. I was feeling uncomfortable picturing my friend dressed up that way but the images came to my mind whether I wanted them there or not. "Sorry." He looked about again. "Are you ready for that beer? I think I am." "Yeah, I think I could use it." Vic left and went to the kitchen. I briefly played with the idea of leaving while he was gone but remained where I was. He returned and handed me an open bottle of beer. I took a big swig while he retreated to the sofa again. "I'll spare you the rest of the details for now," Jake went on. "If you want to know more stuff I can tell you about it when you want to hear it." "Well, just one thing," I relented. "You said there are others out there. How many?" "Hell, I don't know how many," Jake answered. "One statistic I saw said that as many as one in ten men cross-dress for pleasure. Some of those want to be treated just like a woman when dressed that way, by a man and all. Others, like me, do it just because they enjoy the feeling it gives them. And there are lots of variations out there." "OK, Ok," I held up my beer as if it could protect me. "So, there is a lot out there. Jake, I am going to need time to process this shit." "I understand." He nodded. "It's a lot to take in. I will say you are handling it a whole lot better than my folks did though. Mom was in tears and my dad was screaming. They just didn't want to listen. One day I'm sure they will. Soon I hope." "Yeah." I could see how sad he was about it. "Look, we can talk more later. I'll leave you to do your thinking. And I will call from now on before I show up. I promise." "I don't know that it matters now." He got up from the couch and moved to the door. "You've already seen me in one outfit." "Yeah, and I don't know that I want to see that again real soon." "Oh, come on, do I look that bad?" he grinned. "I can't even answer that." I looked away but not before I saw the grin fading from his face. "Look, I'm sorry. I'm just not ready to deal with that yet." "OK, sorry." I started down the steps. "Hey," he called to me, "what about calling those girls. Do you think you are still going to be up for it?" "Yeah, I am." I was confused still. "Are you?" "Absolutely," he grinned. "Think on it all and call me by Tuesday night so we can talk about it. If you decide you don't want to do it, then I can call them and tell them we can't make it. Or I can call them and set the plan. I just don't want to be rude and not call." "OK, I can do that." I waved and walked back to my car. He was still standing in the door and I drove away. I couldn't help but wonder if he went back inside and changed back into his little outfit once I was gone. * - 4 - * I didn't sleep all that well that night. I woke several times from dreams that evaporated as soon as I opened my eyes. I finally gave up trying to sleep at 6:00 and went and showered. I went to my classes so at least my attendance counted for something. If anyone were to ask me about anything either of my teachers presented I would have been hard pressed to come up with something. My mind was totally dedicated to processing my conversation with Jake the previous day. Well, I did notice something. I went to the student union cafeteria to grab a bite between my classes and watched several of the girls wander about conducting their own business. Some were in jeans, others in dresses or skirts, but I wasn't seeing them the same. I saw Jake wearing the outfits and it left me a bit unsettled. I finished my last class and went to put in a few hours at the store. I worked doing whatever was necessary in one of those large hardware supply stores. It wasn't great but it was a paycheck, definitely not something I would be making my career doing. I got through the afternoon in the same daze but managed to not get in trouble. I went home and had dinner with my parents but didn't really talk much with them despite my mom's prodding me to talk about what was bothering me. I slept a bit better that night but I still wasn't sure what I was going to do. I had one class on Tuesdays and I had to work the later shift at work. Once I got off it was late but not too late to call. "Hey, Vic," Jake answered quickly. "Glad you called. How you doin?" "Hey, Jake. I'm doin' ok. I know I said I'd call tonight so this is me calling," I told him still uncertain of what I was calling to tell him. "OK, do you want to stop by or just tell me," Jake's voice went a little flat. "Jake, man, I'm just so, um, so I don't know what." I was almost whining and I hated the sound in my voice. "Look, yeah, I'll stop by. Be there in about five." "Great, see you then. Be careful." The line went dead. I pulled out of the parking lot and started the drive over. I had a short time to get my head around this. It should be easy, Jake has been my best friend for so long. He isn't doing anything to hurt me, to hurt anyone for that matter, but it is just weird. I pulled into the driveway and got out of the car. The door opened and Jake stepped out. Fortunately he was wearing shorts and a sweatshirt. "Hey!" I called. "Hey!" he echoed it back. We walked into the house and I grabbed a corner of the couch this time. Jake took the opposite end. "Rough day at work?" he asked. "Nah, not too bad. Bored half the time." I shrugged. "So, what are we going to tell the girls we are going to do?" "Yes!" Jake pumped his fist. "I was hoping you would still want to do it. I've been thinking about them all week. I'm thinking we ask them to an early movie, then something to eat. If everything is still going good we can head to the club. Or come back here, or maybe they have a place." "All that sounds good to me." I nodded. "Jake, you told me I am the only one you've talked to, and I am sorry I wasn't able to listen to you much, but what are your plans if you score with one of the girls? I mean, I just think something weird could happen or something. Hell, I'm still confused and don't know what I am asking." "Don't you worry about it," Jake tried to assure me. "I've been hiding this a long time. It certainly won't be something I bring up until I've been with someone a long time. Mainly I'm afraid if I told some girl and we ended up splitting, she would be blabbing to everyone about it." "OK." I shrugged. "One last thing: you told me you tried to stop but kept going back. Why?" "Compulsion?" Jake held his hands up. "That is as good as anything. You ever think about giving up chocolate? I bet you could do it for a while but then something makes you want to taste it again. You see a candy bar at the checkout, or someone at work has a birthday and there is cake. Anything that reminds you of how good it tastes and how you enjoy it." "People don't offer you dresses," I pointed out. "No, but I see women walking around every day," he explained. "And as much as I enjoy looking at them, I also wonder sometimes what it would be like to be able to wear the same clothes, to be able to walk around out in public." "That's why I saw you taking out the trash in your..." I let it drift off. "Yeah." He blushed a bit. "It was my brief time outdoors. I worry a neighbor will see me, but I really don't know any of them. Once I leave they probably won't remember me anyway." "Well, they might think a girl was here," I tried to assure him. "I thought it was a girl when I saw you. The wig really threw me." "It's a cheap one," he explained. "Looks kinda ratty up close, but it helps the illusion." "OK." I grabbed my phone. "Let's pick a couple movies and set a plan." "Good deal," Jake slid across the couch to look over my shoulder at the movie list. * - 5 - * Saturday night rolled around and I went over to Jake's. Everyone had agreed to a casual evening so I went with Dockers and a button down shirt, not too dressy but I hoped nice enough to impress. Jake answered the door in jeans and a polo shirt, though the jeans appeared to be pretty new. "You ready for this?" He grinned as we went to his car. "Oh, absolutely." I laughed. We drove over to a mall where the theater was. The girls were meeting us outside the theater entrance. We found a space and spotted them standing there as we crossed the lot. We all seemed to have an elevated idea of what casual seemed to mean. I thought Jake and I were dressed nicely, at least a lot nicer than the night we met them at the bar. Meghan was blond and short, just over five feet tall. She was wearing a short strapless dress. It was the type that had an elastic top and the dress part was pretty loose. I guess I see a lot of girls wearing that sort of thing when they are walking the mall, but I didn't expect her to be wearing a dress tonight. Then again, April was also wearing a dress. She was taller than Meghan by about 4 inches and she was also blond. The dress she chose was sleeveless, short and flowery. She looked really cute. We walked up and said hello. I went to the box office and bought four tickets. Once inside Jake bought four cokes and a tub of buttery popcorn. I grabbed a bunch of napkins. After the guy at the entrance tore the ticket stub off and we headed toward the theater. "We need to make a stop first." Meghan grabbed April's arm and pulled her toward the ladies' room. I was grateful for the break and wondered if they might be discussing the same thing I needed to ask Jake about. "So," I turned as soon as the door closed, "who is supposed to be with whom?" "You guess is as good as mine," Jake scowled. "Tell you what, we go into the theater and I'll head into the aisle first, whoever follows me, we can assume she is interested in me and you take the other. Unless you have a preference." "Not right now." I sighed. "They are both nice and hot lookin'." The door opened and they came out. We walked down the hall to the theater and Jake led us through the door. I noticed Meghan followed next, then April so I assumed that I was going to be with April. That worked well enough for me. Sure enough when we sat, Meghan took the seat beside Jake. When the movie finished we wandered over to a restaurant there in the mall. We had to wait about thirty minutes for a table but were finally led to a nice booth. We ordered drinks and dinner then talked about the movie we had just seen, that led to talking about other movies, then on to other things related to those movies. All around the table the conversation went. It felt more like friends who had known each other for much longer than the few hours we had actually spent together. I found myself moving a little closer to April as we waited for dessert to arrive. To my delight, she wiggled a bit to close the gap between us. Looking across the table it seemed Meghan and Jake were getting pretty cozy as well. The time finally came to leave the restaurant. We suggested a nightcap at the club but the girls declined. "I think we've had enough for the first date," Meghan informed us. April nodded in agreement. "But," April added in, "I think we would like to get together again next weekend if you guys are up for it. Next time will be our treat." "You don't need to do that," I objected, but was actually glad to hear it. My finances wouldn't hold out too long at this rate. "No, April is right," Meghan jumped back in. "This is the 21st century. We can do our part. Plus, we get to set the plan. We'll call you by Wednesday to let you know what we are going to do!" "Sounds good to me." Jake nodded. "Me, too!" I gave April a small squeeze around the waist. We all walked together out to the cars and said good night. First date or not, the kisses exchanged were long and deep. Jake and I walked to his car and climbed in. "I think that went really well," I grinned. "Yeah, you two were getting along pretty well. I think Meghan likes me well enough, and I like her quite a bit too. But, I plan on taking it slow." "You're right." The grin faded a bit. "But we have next weekend to learn a bit more. And at least you have a place to go to if you want to invite Meghan over. I can't exactly invite April to my parent's house." "Another reason to keep it slow," Jake confirmed. "Yeah, I guess." * 6 * We saw the girls quite a bit over the next couple weeks. We'd go out and meet for a movie, or dinner, or drinks, or whatever seemed to work. We really enjoyed the time we spent with them. We were doing a lot of kissing but that was as far as I was able to go. Jake was true to his word keeping things slow. I was hanging out at the club chucking some darts and drinking a beer while I was waiting to hear from Jake. We were meeting up with the girls again for another movie. "Hey, stranger," April called me as she walked up. "Hi!" I dropped the darts on the table and wrapped my arms around her. "What brings you in here today?" I asked after giving her a kiss that assured her I was happy to see her. "Meghan was up to something so I thought I would take a drive, maybe do some shopping. I spotted your car out in the parking lot so I thought I would stop in, maybe get a little extra time with you before we get together tonight." "Ooo," I grinned, "I like that. Can I get you a beer?" "Sure." She pressed her breasts against me, squeezing me a bit tighter. "But another kiss first." I obliged and I'm certain she was aware of how excited I was getting feeling her body pressed against mine. We broke the kiss and I went to the bar. Fortunately the place was almost empty and the barmaid wasn't watching my approach. She came back over after a moment and I soon returned to April with her beer. Before I could say anything Taylor Swift started singing "Shake it off" from April's purse. She quickly took a sip of the beer and then dug into her purse. "It's Meghan," she told me and put the phone to her ear. "Hey, bitch! What's going on, come to the club and have a beer with me and Vic." April listened and the smile slowly faded from her face. She started walking away from me and I could hear her interjecting questions until she was beyond my hearing. I knew better than to follow. I just hoped Meghan was alright. After about fifteen minutes April marched back to the table. "I gotta go see Meghan." April dropped her phone in her purse and took another sip from her beer. "You can have the rest of that." "What's going on? Is she alright?" I asked genuinely concerned. "She's upset." April turned back before getting too far. "Seems she decided to surprise Jake and went to his house. She was a bit suspicious because he didn't act like he was all that excited to see her but eventually he let her in. She thought someone else might have been there so when he went to the bathroom she decided to take a little look around. Imagine her surprise when she found women's clothes in the closet!" "Why was she looking through his closet?" I asked. It was apparently not the right question. April's face clouded over in anger. "Just what are you two up to? He admitted that the clothes were his, or at least that is what he is telling Meghan. Does he have a girlfriend that spends a lot of time there? Or are they his clothes?" Her eyes grew wider as if she suddenly discovered an answer. "Or perhaps they are his and maybe he dresses up for you and you two just date girls to hide the fact that you are actually a couple!" "What?! No! Wait." I looked around frantically to see who might be listening. "Look, let's walk outside and finish this." "No," she huffed, "I need to go see Meghan." I followed her toward the door. "Just give me a minute, ok?" Meghan pushed through the door but stopped on the walkway outside. I waited until the door closed. "Look." I was trying to decide just what to say. I quickly decided lying would not be the answer. "First of all Jake and I are not a couple. We've been friends forever, but we are not like that. Next, I found out about this actually the day after we met you guys. And last, yes, the clothes are his." I waited to see what her reaction would be. "Why should I believe you?" she asked. "Maybe you two have had this idea all planned out in case you get caught." "I don't think there is anything I could say to convince you one way or the other. I could tell you the truth completely, as I have been, or I could make something up and you wouldn't be able to know what is true. "When I saw Jake dressed up that time. I showed up at his house unannounced same as Meghan, and I thought I saw a girl in his yard. He saw me and explained that it was why he wanted to live alone. He tried to convince me that he wasn't gay. That he wasn't planning on making a move on me. And I can understand your disbelief. I left not sure what to believe that day. It took me a couple days to decide to believe him and I have known him since elementary school! You've only know him a couple months." April stared at me for a few seconds. "OK," she finally relented. "I'll think about it. I gotta get to Meghan. I'll call you later. And in case you haven't figured it out yet, tonight's off." "Yeah, I kinda got that." I nodded. I started to take a step toward her but she turned and walked away. No kiss, I guess I should have seen that coming. I watched as she got in her car and drove off. I dug my phone out of my pocket and called Jake. "Hello?" he answered. "Hey, what happened? April came by the club but got a call from Meghan right after she got here. Sounds like things went bad over there." "You could say that," he sighed into the phone. "She went snooping about the house and found my other clothes. I decided to be honest with her but she wasn't having any part of it. How were things on your end?" "Well, April wasn't reacting all that well either," I confessed. "But hey, remember, it took me a couple days to come to terms with everything. It will work out. Want me to come by?" "No," Jake answered after a pause, "I think I just want to sit here alone for a while. Why don't you give me a call tomorrow?" "Can do," I answered. "But if you change your mind just give me a call." "Will do," he responded. "Talk to you later." I hung up and shoved the phone back down in my pocket. I stood there a moment thinking about what I ought to do next, then I remembered I had most of two beers waiting for me back inside and decided that was a good place to start. I went back in and continued throwing at the board and sipping my beers. I was about to leave when someone came up and challenged me to a game or two. That worked for me, I didn't really want to go home, Jake was busy, April was busy. What else was I to do? So I stayed, played and drank. Hours later I was ready to head home. I had a slight buzz going but not enough to worry about. I headed to my car and right before I got in my phone went off. April. "Hey, how's things? How's Meghan?" I asked as a way of answering. "It's okay," she picked right up. "I was wondering if you could come by. Where are you?" "Still at the club, I was playing darts with a couple guys." "Are you drunk?" "No, I'm okay. I was just sipping the whole time. I actually just walked out the door and I'm standing by my car right now." April hesitated for a moment. "OK, well come on over. I'd like to talk with you for a bit." "Be there in a few," I assured her. "OK, bye." The line went dead. I got in the car and made my way over to the girl's apartment. I was careful because while I was certain I would pass a sobriety test, I didn't want to give any cops a reason to pull me over. Better safe than sorry. The door opened and April let me in walking away before I could give her a hug or a kiss. I saw Meghan on the couch as soon as I cleared the door. "Hi." I waved to both. April sat on the couch with Meghan, I took a chair. "I told Meghan what you told me," April informed me. "She's still pretty upset by it all." "I understand," I tried to console her. "I was pretty messed up for a couple days when I found out. But after a while I started thinking it's just clothes, right? I've known him a long time and I believe him that it is all. He likes you a lot. And I know he has been struggling with what he was going to do in regards to him wanting to wear women's clothes sometimes. I think you ought to settle down over the next couple days and talk to him. Let him tell you all about it." We sat there in silence for several minutes. "I don't think so," Meghan practically snarled. "How can I be with a man who doesn't want to be a man? I'm not going to be with the next Caitlyn Jenner." "Wait a minute," I pleaded, "that isn't a fair conclusion to reach without talking to Jake." "It seems fair to me," Meghan stood up and marched out of the room. I heard a bedroom door slam shut. I looked back at April, "What?" "She isn't going to buy into it," April explained. "She has always wanted the type of guy you would see on the cover of GQ, y'know, stylish, in shape. She doesn't want the guy that could be on the cover of Elle." "Oh, come on." I was disgusted. "He has been so secretive about this that I never had a clue. He isn't suddenly going to start wanting to go all around dressed up as a girl." "Do you know that?" she threw back at me. "Now that it is out, are you sure he isn't going to decide to start going further with it?" That stopped me. I hadn't thought about it in those terms. How would I feel if he suddenly started wanting us to go hang out with him in a dress and maybe even makeup and a wig? The image in my mind was disturbing. "You don't know do you?" April pressed. "No, I guess I don't," I admitted. "Well, I don't think it matters," she went on. "With Meghan not wanting to be around him it means you won't be around him either as long as we are together." "I understand that," I answered missing her meaning. "I'll just be hanging out with him when we don't have plans." "Uh, no, you won't," she shook her head. "You need to just cut ties with him. Soon Meghan will find someone else and the four of us will be hanging out. We don't need the specter of Jake hanging over our heads." "I can't do that!" I protested. "Jake is like my brother. I won't just walk out on him." "Some brother keeping secrets from you all this time," she argued. "You ought to be happy to get away from him. Look, Vic, you need to make a choice here. It is going to be either me or him, it can't be both." I stared at her sitting there, tight jeans and a loose t-shirt. She looked great. I stood up and moved to the couch. I leaned in and gave her a kiss. I stepped back and she smiled at me. "I'm sorry," I started, "but I can't be with anyone who would make me decide between them and my family. Good bye." The smile faded from her face as I walked to the door and let myself out. It was the last time I saw either Meghan or April. * 7 * Next day I called Jake and went to see him. "So, how'd things go with April?" he asked once we got settled in. "Well, in short she told me that Meghan didn't want anything to do with you, and that she didn't want to be around you, and if I wanted to keep seeing her I would have to stop hanging out with you," I explained. "I see," he sighed. "So, you guys have been really good together. I can't say I blame you." "Is that what you think of our friendship?" I accused. "That I would throw you to the curb for some girl? I kissed her, told her I couldn't be with someone who would make me choose between them and my family and told her good bye." "Really?" He looked confused. "Vic, I don't know what to say. I mean, I've kept these things from you too. And you and April were really hitting it off." "Yeah, well I was serious about making me decide. And I was serious about you being my family. How could I suddenly ditch you over a girl I've known a few months? Besides, I suddenly found myself defending you and your, uh, hobby to both of them. Meghan went straight to sex change and April just felt that we needed to expect more changes. It made me think about how I really feel about it." "And how do you feel?" Jake sat up looking directly at me. "I still don't understand it," I admitted. "But I don't see why I should have a problem with it. I mean don't get me wrong, it will be strange seeing you in a dress again. But I will deal with it when that time comes. Maybe it will take seeing it a few times for me to get used to it." "What, you want me to start dressing up for you now?" he wondered. "Well, no," I shook my head. "I just think that if you wanted to dress up for me. No, I don't mean for me, I just mean that if I am there and you wanted to. No, shit. I am screwing this all up." "Take your time, we got all day." Jake was smiling enjoying my discomfort. "I think we ought to start hunting for a place where we can live and split the rent. I graduate in three months and then I am getting a better job soon as I can," I had my eyes closed trying to see how the near future would play out. "We find a place a little bigger but cheap enough that you can go back to school. I'm still planning on working on my Bachelor. Now, I know that you have concerns about dressing up, but I am saying that I will get used to it so you will still have the freedom to do it as much as you want." I waited for a response and it came in only a couple seconds. Jake lurched across the couch and wrapped his arms around me. "Vic, I would love that. Thank you." * 8 * It took four months between graduating and finding a new job. Once I did Jake and I started looking for a place to live. We eventually found another house to rent, a two bedroom that was just a few blocks away from where he was currently living. That made it convenient to many of the places where we were accustomed to going. My mom was a bit tearful as I loaded up my car with the last of the things I was taking with me, my bed and dresser had been moved earlier in the day. It amazed me that there were so many things in my room that I thought were so necessary and then decided they were part of a childhood that I wanted to leave behind. I hugged both parents bye and assured them I would be visiting often. I was only moving a couple miles or so away. I drove off laughing to myself at how ridiculous I thought they were being. I was growing up and I needed to be on my own now, set my own schedule, do my own thing. Well, maybe not totally on my own because Jake would be there, but close enough. I spotted my new home coming up on the right and felt both a thrill and a dread pass through me. Suddenly the idea of not having my mom around to do some things for me and watch over me didn't seem like such a great idea. I pulled into the driveway and looked at the keys in my hand. One of them was the passport to my new life. I took a breath and stepped out of my car. Once the back door was open I went back and started carrying boxes into my room. Once I was finished I closed up and started unpacking. It was a strange place, and so quiet. Jake was off somewhere else, his stuff already in place. Since he was already set up we decided to just use all his furniture and I would be adding some things of my own as time passed. It only took a couple hours to unload my boxes. I looked around at my bedroom and decided it was home enough. "So now what?" I asked the empty room. I decided to explore my new place. I checked out how the living room had been set up, the dining table with the computer on it in the corner. I went to the kitchen and looked to see where Jake had put everything. It was then I realized that the refrigerator was mostly empty. I was going to have to do my own food shopping! I hunted around and found some paper and a pen. I started jotting down things I thought I would like to have. I soon realized how much I had taken things for granted at home. I left and went to the store. A couple hours later I returned with a car full of groceries and a lot less money. Hopefully most of this would last a while. When I pulled up Jake's car was in the driveway so I parked out on the street. I grabbed a couple of bags and went to the front door and gave it a kick. A moment later it opened. "Shopping?" Jake asked as he pulled it open. "Yeah, I thought eating might be something I wanted to do one day," I pushed by him toward the kitchen. I was glad to see he was in sweats. I knew I told him I would be okay with him dressing up like a girl but I wasn't really sure I was ready for it yet. Too many changes in too short a time. I started back toward the car and spotted Jake hauling a couple bags across the front yard. "Thanks," I told him as we passed. "Sure," he answered, "looks like one more trip." I grabbed the last three bags and got the car closed up. Once inside I kicked the front door closed behind me and headed for the kitchen. "Looks like you've stocked up quite a bit," Jake spoke as I entered the kitchen. He was pulling things out and moving them to various cupboards, fridge and freezer. "Well, I'm so used to having things I want around I couldn't decide if there were things I could leave out," I explained and started taking things from the bags and setting them on the table for Jake to put away. "Well, you'll learn when you have to make a choice between ice cream and paying the electric bill," he chuckled. When he saw my look of concern he went on, "But since we are splitting bills and stuff it ought to be a lot easier on us. A lot better than when I got started." "Yeah, things will be great," I confirmed. Once we got done we went to the living room and turned on the television. There was a basketball game on so we watched it. It didn't take long before we fell into a regular pattern. We had both registered for classes and because they were at different time we didn't see each other a lot. Many evenings were spent studying, others we went out to the club. We had been living together about six weeks when I realized that Jake had been in his room all evening. I had just finished reading a chapter of Chemistry and decided I needed a break so I went and lightly rapped on his bedroom door. "Hey, you awake?" I asked quietly. "Yeah, just studying," he answered. "You usually study out in the dining room." I still spoke through the door. "You okay?" "Um, yeah, I'm fine," he answered. "I just, well, you know, felt like I needed some time to myself." "Jake, I told you I'm okay with that. You don't have to lock yourself away when you feel like that." "Except for that quick peek the day you caught me, you haven't seen me like that. I thought I would spare you." "I don't want it to be that way," I felt a little unsure of myself at this point, but I quickly remembered my conversation with the girls and reaffirmed my desire to be supportive. "Look, if you are ready, come on out. If not, okay, but don't stay in there because you are afraid of what I am going to think." I stood and listened for a while but heard only silence from the other side of the door. I crept back to the living room and turned on the television. I found a movie that I hadn't seen in a while and decided to watch it. About twenty minutes later I heard Jake coming to the living room. From the sound of his footsteps he was wearing high heels, the high pitched tap-tap-tap as he walked was a dead giveaway. I put on my best poker face and prepared myself for what I had promised I'd support. As prepared as I thought I was, I wasn't prepared at all. Jake entered the room and stood there for a moment trying to look brave but I could see the worry in his eyes. His eyes, that wasn't the first thing I noticed but now I couldn't look away. He was wearing make-up, his eyelids were a dark brown fading to light tan as they progressed toward his eyebrows, which were thin. His eyelashes were thick and the black eyeliner extended just a little bit from the corner of each eye. I forced myself away and took in the rest. He had on a long straight blond wig that curled slightly at the ends, his lips were darker but not too dark, the rest of his face seemed a bit paler than normal except that I could seem to see the line of his cheek bone. He had on a white blouse that buttoned down the front. It wasn't see through, but like most white blouses women wear I could see the straps of the camisole he was wearing. The hair curling right at his breasts. His breasts? He had them! The blouse was tucked into the waistband of a gray skirt with large white flowers tinged in pink. The skirt came to below his knees, beneath that he had on a black and white high heeled shoe. He looked amazing! If I hadn't known it was Jake I would probably want to buy her a drink. "Well?" Jake asked nervously. "You look amazing," I echoed the thought that first occurred to me. He walked over to a chair and gracefully took a seat. "Are you sure you are going to be okay with this?" "Jake-" I swallowed. "I said I will be. I meant it. Honestly, I thought you would be running around in a really short skirt and, well, I don't know, big fake boobs, and horrible make-up maybe. You look like someone I would like to date." "Well, I do have some short skirts, and dresses for that matter." He crossed his legs and adjusted his skirt. "But I thought for the first time this might be a bit better, a bit more conservative. And I'm sorry, but I am still not interested in dating you." A grin crept onto his face. "Yeah." I laughed a bit uncomfortably, "I didn't mean I would date you, just that you looked like, never mind." I realized he was just having fun at my expense. "Anyway, this won't be a problem." "OK," his smile fully opened up, "you really don't know just how much this means to me, Vic. Thanks." I just nodded and smiled not knowing just what to say. Jake got up and went to get his books, I watched him leave the room unable to take my eyes off him. We settled into a routine and I started really enjoying being in my own place. I started learning a lot about taking care of myself, and a lot about myself in general. Jake often wore dresses and such around the house, and some mornings when Jake didn't need to be anywhere I would sometimes see him in a nightgown get something from the kitchen and head back to his room. We didn't talk about it anymore. He didn't ask me about my opinion on anything he wore and I was glad for that. I found it a little unsettling when one afternoon I was reading and he came through in a pretty short pleated skirt. It wasn't a big deal until he remembered something he'd forgotten and leaned over the table to pick it up. I realized I was trying to peek up his skirt! I quickly looked back to my book but it bothered me for a while. About a month after I started my new classes I began dating Jennifer. Jen was the real girl next door type, didn't use a lot of make-up, dressed comfortably, a real low maintenance girl. We hit it off and started going out to movies, concerts, dinners, whatever we could fit into our busy schedules between work and school. After dating for about a month we were in my room cramming for an exam. I had been putting in a lot of hours at work the last week and we had been at it for a couple hours when I just needed to rest my eyes. I lay back on the bed and closed them for a minute. When I opened them daylight was flooding the room! I hadn't just rested them, I had completely passed out for about ten hours. I looked about and decided that Jen must have slipped out rather than wake me because I was alone. That was alright because Jake and I hadn't discussed how I would let him know if someone was spending the night yet, something I was sure I would need to talk to him soon. I was just starting to relax when I saw a pair of jeans laying over the back of a chair and I knew they weren't mine. My door opened at the same time I sat up. "Ah, you're awake." Jen came in holding two cups of coffee. "I thought I might need to wake you." "Hey, sorry I passed out on you last night." I took one of the cups. "No problem, you were obviously spent." She plopped down one the bed and pulled the t-shirt she was wearing down a bit to maintain her dignity. But it was a black t-shirt of mine so it was just barely long enough to keep her covered when she was standing, and her panties were a bright pink so they flashed wonderfully. I sipped at the coffee and was almost completely awake when she said, "So, I just had a nice conversation with Jake. He makes a really attractive girl." I sputtered the coffee back into the cup fortunately. "Huh?" "Yeah." She leaned back, crossed her legs Indian fashion and pulled the t-shirt back down again. "I went out to get the coffee and he was in the kitchen dressed up like he was heading for a party. Really pretty dress, though a bit much for this early in the day, but he looked really good. Obviously he was surprised to see me." "Um, yeah, I bet he was," I stammered. "This is why you never let me spend the night before, wasn't it?" "Yeah." I set the cup down on the bedside table. "Jake and I haven't discussed how we should let each other know if we have overnight guests yet. I was actually just thinking about it." "Cat's out of the bag now." She sipped some more. "What did you talk about?" I needed to know how far everything had gone and what might need clarification. "Actually, I think I exaggerated the conversation part," she admitted, "I walked into the kitchen, a bit surprised by seeing a girl in a black party dress, but who am I to talk, then I realized it was Jake. I said good morning, he practically jumped out of his dress but said good morning back. I got the coffee said maybe we could all sit down and talk in a few minutes and came back here. So, that is what I think, I think we go back out there and talk about just what is going on." "Jen, look," I started. "No," she interrupted. "All together. I'm not sure what is up yet but I want you both together when I hear it." She got off the bed and headed for the door. "Don't you want to put your pants on?" I asked. "I'm okay." She left the room. I grabbed my coffee and went to the living room. Jen had already made herself comfortable on the couch leaning against one of the arms with her legs tucked up under her. Damn she looked good in my t-shirt. I sat on the couch near her and waited to see what Jake would look like when he joined us. He didn't wait long, and he hadn't bothered to change either. He did look like he was ready to head out to some swanky party: short black dress with a full skirt, sheer at the shoulders, black stockings and a very high heeled sandal. "I decided not to change," he spoke softly as he took a seat and carefully arranged his dress. "Damage already done." "I already told Vic I thought you looked terrific," Jen started. "I just would like to know what sort of thing I got myself in the middle of. Are you two an item?" "What?" I asked. "Huh," Jake uttered. "No, we've been friends for a long time. That's all. Vic just found out about this a few months before we moved in together. And I've been doing it since I was about ten years old or so." I proceeded to tell her about going out with Meghan and April and how that came to an end and that in defending him to them resulted in him trusting me enough to be able to handle it that we could get this place together and about learning to deal with it and eventually getting to the point where it was just a normal part of our lives. "OK." She nodded. "I believe that, I really do. Vic, do you ever join in and put on a dress?" "Huh, no!" I protested. "I would never do that. Jake has always wanted to wear dresses, I never have. I never will." "Really." Her mouth turned up a bit at the corner. "So if there was a costume party and I wanted to go as a man, and have you dress up as a woman and wear a dress you wouldn't do it?" "I think we could probably think of something better to go as than that." I was beginning to sweat. "But if I told you I wanted to be able to reach up under your dress and tickle you when nobody was looking, or while we were in the car..." "Uh," Jake squeeked. We both turned to look at him. "Sorry, it's just that you've described one of my fantasies to a tee." Jen nodded and smiled, then looked back at me. "Would you do it then?" I swallowed and licked my lips. Images of what she might do flashed through my brain. "Well." I hesitated. "Yeah, ok, I guess you might talk me into it." "Good, then don't say never unless you know you are so totally against it that you would rather lose everything than do it. An open mind is a good thing to have." "So," Jake started, "you are okay with this?" "Your life," she shrugged. "It isn't hurting me at all. It just bugs me that I think you might be prettier than me." "Make-up." Jake smiled. We all laughed. After that Jen started spending a lot more nights at our place. She and Jake got along great, they became regular girlfriends discussing clothes and things. This turned out great for me because it turned out that Jen liked dressing up on occasion and I never seemed to want to but now I knew and we started making plans for nice dinners out after final exams were done. Life was getting better by the moment. * 9 * The semester came to an end, all our cramming paid off and we all passed. We took to enjoying the break over the holidays. Jen looked amazing when she dressed up for our dinner out. As pretty as she is when she doesn't make any effort, she made me feel like I was escorting a super model that night. Things were so good between us that we spent Christmas splitting the day between my family and hers. Jake also joined us since he parents still weren't talking to him but that was ok, because even when Jake wasn't all dolled up, he and Jen got along like two girls. A real twist came at New Years. Jen found a masquerade ball that was going on. It was black tie and everyone would have some sort of mask, either something of a Zorro, or Mardi Gras mask, or one on a stick that would be held in front of the face. That was how she convinced Jake to go with us, and to go in a dress. The two of then went dress shopping together and found beautiful floor length gowns to wear. I got to wear a tux. I was afraid that Jen was going to try and convince me to wear a dress too but she wanted us all to attend in the roles we were most comfortable in. She didn't force Jake to go in a dress, she just questioned him enough to make him admit that he would want to go that way. So I walked into the ball with my Zorro mask covering the upper part of my face dressed in a black tux, I had joked about wanting to have a cape. On my left arm was Jen, dressed in a long black, strapless gown that swept around as she walked. Her shoulders were bare, her arms in long black gloves that went to the elbow, her eyes covered in a sparkly black mask on a stick with black feathers that sprouted from it. On my right arm, Jake, now Jackie for the evening. He had a death grip on my arm terrified that he would be found out but excited at the prospect of being among all these people in his beautiful green sequined gown. Green formal gloves held the silver mask with peacock feathers. We didn't recognize anyone but that didn't stop many of the gentlemen from asking both ladies with me to dance. They turned down all offers, except mine. Slow dances were reserved for Jen and I, and we danced a few of the faster numbers all three together. Several times other men came up and started dancing to Jen or Jackie, but when the song ended we would return to our table and leave them standing there. Jen and I kissed at midnight, Jackie timed a visit to the ladies room to coincide so as not to feel to awkward being left out and discourage any of the men from trying to comfort her being a third wheel. We left the party shortly after that. Jen and I wanted to go to a diner and have some coffee before heading home but Jackie was still leery about being seen in bright light without the comfort of his mask. So we went home instead. The new semester was scheduled to start two weeks later, and after a brief discussion, Jen moved in before it began. Three weeks into the new semester Jen came to Jake and I. "I met someone in one of my classes," she announced. My heart dropped and I think Jake's face actually went pale. "NO!" she almost screamed and then laughed. "I met a girl in one of my classes. She is terrific. I want to invite her over." I think Jake and I both nearly fell down in relief. "You can invite friends over," I told her. "This is your place too." "Yeah, I just need to know so, you know," Jake added. "Well, that's the thing," she kind of ducked away, "see, I think she would be great for Jake." "Huh?" I asked. "Jen, I appreciate it," Jake went on. "But things didn't work out too well last time for me and I don't know if I am ready to trust anyone with Jackie yet." "I understand." Jen nodded, "but how about if I invite her over and we'll just see how things go. I won't say anything about setting her up with you. We'll just see how it goes." "Fine, just friends," Jake nodded. A week later Jen came home with Theresa. T, as we came to call her, was more the make-up and nice clothes kind of girl. I wondered if she ever just got comfortable because she seemed like she had to jump out of bed and do her make-up. When she came in that first day I thought Jen had told her about setting her up with Jake because she was dressed in a blouse and skirt, hair fixed and make-up. Turned out, that is just T. We sat down and had dinner and talked about classes, talked about New Years (Jake said he stayed home while Jen and I went to the party), covered lots of topics. The evening flew by. We were just about at the end of the evening when T started talking about the masquerade ball again. "Those balls sound like so much fun," she started. "I like dressing up and having a mask like that would be so much fun. If they do it again next year I hope we are still all hanging out so we can go together." "Oh, it was fun," Jen answered. "I think the funny thing about it though was that I think a couple of the men and a few of the women weren't actually what they were pretending to be." "What do you mean?" T asked. "Well, I think there were women in tuxes and men in gowns," she stated matter-of-factly. "No," T laughed. "That would be so fun! Could you imagine! If I had been going to things like that it would be fun to break up the routine. I mean send the guys out dress shopping and all." "Oh, I don't know." I could see Jen was really feeling her out. She was set on getting T and Jake together. "Sending them out like that might be too much. I mean I couldn't picture these two walking into a dress shop and telling the salesperson that they needed to find dresses for a ball." "Yeah, you're right," T sighed. "I think it would be fun to figure out a way to do it. Oh, guys, I'm sorry. I just met you both and here I am trying to dress you up as girls for a party." "No problem." I shrugged. "Pam talked about a regular costume party with me once suggesting it. I'm beginning to think she just wants to get me in a dress once." "I had a boyfriend in high school that I caught dressing up once," she admitted. "Really," Jake leaned in. "What did you do?" "I helped him get his make-up right," she laughed. "We did a few things together with him dressed up as my girlfriend and it was cool. But eventually he started wanting to go places and hit on guys with me. I decided I wasn't comfortable with that. One thing to fool everyone into thinking we were a couple of girls but some poor guy finds out he is making out with another boy and it could end up badly for someone. And the idea of him wanting to be with someone other than me? Well, I don't think I want to share." "Oh, yeah, I see what you mean," I winced. "What if he wasn't interested in boys, do you think you'd still be dating him?" Jen asked. "Maybe," T answered. "We got along well enough in all the other areas. But, hey, that was years ago now. People change so much during these years." "I hear that," I agreed. T got up and headed for the door. "I really like you all," she told us before she left. "Jen, thanks for inviting me over. You were right, these guys are special. Good night." "Wait," Jake called, "let me walk you to the car." He pushed past Jen and I and held the door for T. Jen and I just looked at each other. The door closed with them on the outside. "I give it ten