Sisters 2

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CHAPTER 2
Beginnings…

I had watched my brother so carefully all those years ago, but now I could hardly remember him. Sarah was so clearly Right Here and Now that I sometimes found false memories arriving, where she had been a young girl rather than a non-boy. That first day, in a dress; I mean, I knew she was going down the girl route, but there she was, filling my eyes in stereoscopic womanhood.

Her two friends were astonishing, so full of life that I wanted to step back to avoid sparks from the little one. Sam, though, Sam in a dress, not my sort of thing at all but still a dress, he, she was making a statement that left no room for misunderstanding. After a couple of bad jokes I sent him. Sent her off to make tea.

The calmer and taller of her two friends, Jo, smiled at me in a way that let me see how safe my sibling was.

“Suits her better than some odd male drag, Elaine. We could see her the day we first met. She just needs a bit of a push now and then”

The little one was staring at me, head cocked to one side. I stared back.

“What?”

“You know what. I may be a little under tall, but I am not stupid. What you think, Jo?”

They exchanged a glance, and Jo smiled and nodded at her partner. “Does your sister know?”

Sister. “Know what?”

Becky bounced to her feet. “Oh for god’s sake, do you play tennis?”

I was lost, and it must have shown. She ranted on, grinning away.

“Wear comfy shoes, like me and my snoggums here? Ride on the other bus? Munch on---“

Jo put a finger to Becky’s lips. “Pause for a bit, sweetheart. Elaine, she has a nose for such things”

Becky giggled. “And a tongue and lips and---“

Jo gave her e very direct look, which seemed to cut the flow, and turned back to me.

“She forgets, sometimes, how lucky we have both been. Lucky in our families, in our friends. I am sorry if we have it wrong, sorry if we are causing any offence”

I sat there, still in my leathers, and looked at the midget, who was almost vibrating with tension. Sod it. I looked down, and then just nodded once sharply. Jo reached out and took my hand.

“Nobody else knows, am I right?”

Once more, I gave a single nod, gathering my courage. Becky was almost whispering now.

“I am really sorry too if I have been rude, but, well, I like girls, and I mean I like this girl, my girl, and but well I can still spot other girls and you don’t have to hide with us and can I tell Sar?”

I shook my head. “Thanks, but this is something I should do myself, aye? She’s on the way back, I can hear the cups”

Sam, Sar, came back in with a tray of cups. Becky uncoiled.

“We’re off to the Ship tonight!”

I noticed the emphasis on ‘we’, and gave her a Look. Sam shrugged.

“Sorry, we can find somewhere else if you want, it’s the TLGB night”

I thought the little one was going to explode, as she chanted “LGBT! LGBT!” and my… sister continued.

“…and if you’d rather not go and watch a lot of benders like us we can always go into town for a Chinese and then a drink in the Union”

The midget suddenly changed her chant to “Tell her!” and I realised I did indeed need to. I had a sudden flash of empathy and understanding for my sister, living a lie so many years. I saw her now, and the lie was unsaid. Sam had been a fiction, a mask, and this was her reality. I had hidden too, but while she had known her difference from infancy, mine had only spoken to me at junior school. More forcefully, of course, in senior school, from twelve years of age onwards, in the changing rooms and showers. Every girl I had ever crushed on, everyone I had walked to the edge of the cliff of revelation over, each one had smiled at some boy rather than my way. Both of us hidden away. No more. Two of us exchanged very pointed looks, and I realised that there was some strength in my sister that I had never seen before, and with that I realised that the word ‘sister’ was the only appropriate one. She raised an eyebrow.

“Don’t you look at me like that, girl, you knew exactly what I intended to do. You knew exactly what I HAVE to do. None of this should come as a surprise, but you have one for me, I feel. Would you rather talk alone?”

I gave the girls a glance, and saw Jo’s finger to her partner’s lips.

“Ych, no. These two turned out to be the first to know, actually. That midget has a way of getting you talking.

“I’ll have you know I am well over…”

“Four feet tall, I know. Look, brawd, what do I call you?”

“Sarah. Sar for short, it was something that sort of came out on my first day here.”

“Well, Sar, I would love to go along to your LTGB night. And if you can’t work things out from that, let me just add that our parents are looking unlikely to get grand kids”

She looked absolutely shocked, her mouth opening and closing a few times. “Fuck me…”

Joanna looked her up and down, winked at me, and very drily said “Not yet, Sar”

In the end, I hauled my panniers up the stairs and got out of the leathers, changing into some neat jeans and a softer blouse. On with the heels, and sod it, that was four of us. I mean, she had her own pair, and the girls had stuffed her front with something, which rather suggested that she had at least one bra. I made a conscious decision, right then, that my inner voice would work on its pronouns. She looked good. Too skinny for my taste, but definitely all girl where it counted. The pub was a pub, and it sold beer, but the mood wasn’t that of the Oak, or even of the pubs near work, near the Station. For a start, the two blokes in front of us at the door were holding hands, and so were Becky and Jo; we were in, there was music pounding away, and a pint with my name on it. Just the one. Driving the next day, and a new sister’s back to watch. It was fun, though, especially when Sar danced, for that drove any doubts from me. I danced as well, while Sar guarded the bags, and, well, it was that sort of night. I got my bum grabbed a couple of times, but somehow it was different. There were smiles, and shy, sly glances, and they were for the right reasons, and one of the pairs of eyes caught mine, and then we were at the bar together. Becky and Jo were tangled up in each other in a corner, and my new friend was looking over to Sar.

“Girlfriend?”

“No, sister”

Door locked on Sam, firmly and forever.

“Lots of lads here tonight”

Why did I say that? My new friend smiled.

“The ones over there are all from the rugby club. They like to perve over the dykes. The rest are all gay”

I grabbed my courage, and with it probably the worst chat-up line in history.

“I quite like perving over dykes myself. Elaine”

“Cathy. So do I…”

Later that night, in my sleeping bag by Sar’s bed, I listened to her well–refreshed snores and worked through the evening, moment by moment. My first smile back from someone I fancied, and the realisation that it was mutual. My first dances, both fast and very, very slow, though I think my pulse rate was far higher during the slow ones. The very, very direct invitation to continue the evening back at Cathy’s, a suggestion that left so much of me in a state of nearly painful regret, for I had a sister to protect. The realisation that Sam’s door was indeed locked, but mine was wide open, and nothing lurked beyond it but pretty eyes and a smile.

In the morning, we took the cliff railway up, and had a cuppa at the top. I’d fitted some walking shoes into my saddle bags, as well as a pair of jeans a little looser than the pair I had squeezed into the night before. Sarah was still in the dress, still with tits. I raised an eyebrow at the mix of frock and training shoes, and she gave me a truly challenging glare.

“I’m a student, we mix and match, aye?”

I knew what she was really saying, and I understood that she was following my mental door-locking with signals of her own. I stepped forward, and hugged her to me.

“Sar, don’t need to fight, aye? This is you, this is right, and I have your back, always. Sisters, aye? Always and forever”

There were tears, of course, but my fleece took them in as her arms did me. Two other women just watched and smiled.

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Comments

Glad to have you back!

I've missed your writing. I love how you give us different points of view on this world. Thanks!

"Sisters, aye? "

yep. very nice.

DogSig.png

Elaine

She is a solid part of the stories, but as is usual with my characters the backstory is immense. The whole issue of her wife is skated over in Cold Feet, but she came from somewhere. Big hint as to the direction of this one...

Real Dialogue, Eh?

joannebarbarella's picture

You do do it....and really well, too,

Joanne