Mirror Mirror - Chapter 2

Norman spent a moment wondering how he could explain his presence here in a woman’s washroom, but then he realized there was nothing he could do but apologize for the mistake.

So he started saying “I’m sorry “ when Nancy cut him off.

“You do know James likes you, right?”

Of all the things Norman expected Nancy to say, that was probably the most unexpected, so he sputtered and was unable to do much more than shake his head.

“Look,” Nancy continued, “We ... don’t know each other well. But I figured you might need a heads up about James.”

“I ... I’m not interested in him, if you want him, he’s yours.”

Nancy laughed, and said, “No way. I’ve been dating his brother for the last year.”

Norman shrugged, unsure of what to say.

“Well, we better go to class.” Nancy said, and left the washroom.

Norman looked in the bathroom mirror at the girl who had been his reflection all day. Despite not wearing makeup, and despite wearing clothes that could be best describe in fashion terms as somewhere between tomboy and outright dyke, she was rather pretty.

He shuddered, and left the washroom.

Knowing that James was interested in him made Norman so nervous it made the class awkward, but somehow Norman survived it and breathed a sigh of relief when it was over. He’d been worried that he’d find himself acting girly or even flirting with James, the way he seemed to now head for the ladies washroom without thinking about it, but as far as he could tell, this hadn’t happened.

He left the class, and headed for his last class of the day.

It was a class in psychology, and he found himself wondering if the teacher had ever heard of a case like his - seeing a reflection in the mirror that didn’t match his sense of self. He thought of asking her, but he decided to see what he could learn online when he got home.

The internet is a wonderful tool, if you know what question to ask. Trouble is, Norman wasn’t really sure just how to phrase the question in his mind. He sighed, and decided he would try his teacher after his next class with her.

Norman made Mac and Cheese for dinner, and then considered how to handle sleeping. He was used to sleeping in the nude, but seeing the girl in the mirror in that state felt all kinds of wrong, so he decided to wear a t-shirt and shorts. Once ready, he glanced at the mirror, and shook his head, making the girl in the mirror shake hers at the same time.

If she’d been his girlfriend, and was coming to share his bed looking like that, he would have been ecstatic. But as it was, it gave him a sense of ... dislocation.

Norman said to himself, “I better find some answers soon. I ... don’t know how long I can take this ...” Then he sighed, and crawled into his bed.

Eventually, he fell asleep.

The next morning, he went through his routine while trying to avoid looking at his reflection, because every time he did, it was so ... dislocating he could hardly stand it.

“I gotta find an answer soon.” He thought to himself as he rushed through breakfast before walking out the door.

Unfortunately, he knew he would have to get through his first class of the day, History of Western Civilization 101. And as he planned to be a social studies teacher, that was a class he couldn’t slack off in.

Somehow, he managed to keep his mind on his class, but he still breathed a sigh of relief when it ended.

As soon as he could get through the crowd, he ran to his psychology teacher’s office, and knocked on her door.

She answered, so he walked in, and closed the door behind him.

“I ... have a question...”