24 --

MOTHER'S NEW DAUGHTER

To my surprise, Sidney's openness created a chemistry between us. He was very likable and before the night was up, we were joking and comparing notes about having long hair. He took me to his feminine bedroom. He had two. His mother felt that he should keep the two sides of his life separate. He pulled out his photo scrapbook and showed me pictures of himself. "Mother's been buying me girl things all my life. I didn't know I was a boy until first grade when Mother took me aside and told me that I was a boy." Seeing the pictures of Sidney and his mother in matching Easter dresses was interesting. "Every Easter, mother and I would go shopping for matching outfits----from the lingerie out! Everything from the frilly dress to the matching shoes." He pointed to a picture. "Here's the first year I was wore high heels. I felt so grown up."

I couldn't stop looking at the albums. There must have been ten of them!

Sidney pointed to a picture, "While some boys were getting their first football, here's me in my first training bra. I was learning to paint my nails while you were painting model cars."

"You always went to school as a boy, right?"

He nodded. "But mother was teaching me what I needed to know about being a girl. When I got that first bra she made me buy a box of Kotex every month."

It was so unnecessary! I had never imagined that any boy could grow up wearing dresses and make such a beautiful girl.

Seeing later pictures, I shook my head. "I would never read you as a boy. Heck, I might have even asked you out, but I knew you were the 'quarterback's girl type!"

He smiled, "Well, if you ever need a date to impress your friends..."

We began to spend a lot of time together in the coming months. Sidney was always dressed as a boy. One day I called him up to get together over the weekend. He stammered, "It's my weekend OUT."

"OUT? OH! OUT! You're going to Pat's and..." "You could join me. Actually it's lonely shopping alone, but I need to get out. Would you do me the honor of having lunch with me on Saturday at the Westside Mall?"

SANDY THOMAS ADV. -25

My heart began to pound and my palms were sweaty. It was one thing to be Sidney's friend, it was another to be seen with a guy in a dress.

"You don't have to," he added.

I whispered the words I knew he was hoping to hear, "I'd love to, thank you."

"Oh, good!" he exclaimed. "I won't embarrass you. I promise. Meet me at noon at the main entrance."

I nervously arrived at exactly noon. I stood there for a couple minutes before seeing Sidney leaving the Ladies room near the entrance. He was still checking his hair with his pink tipped fingers as he ran up to me and girlishly gave me a hug. I almost knocked the purse from his hands as I recoiled.

He was blushing, "Sorry I'm late." I could tell he had just refreshed his lipstick and primped his hair.

Sidney was wearing an eggplant-colored suede miniskirt, high-heel sandals and a brown striped halter-top---the kind that hangs from the neck. I think girls like to wear them because it makes a small bust appear bigger than other boob-holder tops.

We walked together to a little cafe. I had a hamburger and Sidney had a salad and Jell-O. "I'm watching my figure," he said shyly.

"A lot of guys are watching it too," I whispered as a young man checked him out. We knew each other pretty well now so I asked, "Don't you feel weird in a dress?"

"I've worn dresses off and on most of my life," he joked girlishly. "I guess I'm used to the breeze between the legs." He changed the subject. "What are you going to do after you graduate?"

"Get a job. I don't know."

"You'll have to cut your hair to get a job."

I nodded, "So will you."

"Maybe not," he smiled. "So," he continued, "Have you ever shopped with a girl before?"

"I guess so, with my mom?"

"That's not shopping! Shopping is having a credit card and buying sexy little things that you know you shouldn't have. I'll show you."

I didn't eat much of my lunch. All this made me very