RELUCTANT PRESS

After the women left, Shelley just looked at Helen like a sad little puppy that's just been punished.

"You know I tried to get you out of it," Helen explained to the distraught youth. "But, short of revealing your secret, there was no way to get them to change their minds. At least Cindy will be with you. Together, you should be able to manage. Cindy can help you dress, and you can bathe and sleep together. Your secret should be safe. All this means is that you REALLY must feel like a girl by Friday!"

The rest of the week sped by as Shelley threw herself into learning to be as soft and feminine as possible. With each day, it became easier to suppress the boyish outrage the indignantly of masquerading as a girl created. She was really amazed to discover that by Wednesday she had begun to think of herself as Shelley, and used the appropriate female pronouns referring to or even just thinking about herself!

Truth be told, Shelley found herself delighting in the new experiences. She discovered the peace and joy life had to offer now that she didn't feel the typical boyish need to constantly prove his masculinity.

The pretty clothes felt nice and comfortable, especially the nylon! The lace hems of the slips tickled her legs in a delightful manner. It was only the fear of being away from the safety and love of the family that put any sort of damper on the joy she felt.

Friday afternoon was hectic as the Carver household prepared for Barry's wedding. No one in the family doubted Shelley's ability to pull off her impersonation. After a light supper, they all piled into the minivan to head to the church for the rehearsal. Cindy and Shelley both carried overnight bags for the slumber party. The flower girl dress was already at the Green home.

Everyone was happy and friendly at the church as the wedding party and immediate family greeted one another. Everyone expressed sorrow and concern for Cindy, and heaped thanks and praise upon Shelley for stepping into the void.

TWO LITTLE GIRLS

By JENNIFER SUE

The only uncomfortable time was when Francis Grim and Shelley took their places for the wedding march after being given verbal instructions on what was expected of them.

By boys standards, the lad was a sissy! Sheldon's previous assessment of Francis as a sissy was not totally correct, though. Dominated by his feminist mother and older sister with no masculine influences, he had been trained away from any normal male life or interests.

The first time he ran into male expectations was when he entered kindergarten. By the end of his first week in school, he'd been labeled a sissy by his peers. During the ensuing years, his upbringing didn't change so he was still not exposed to any masculine influences.

When he headed to the back of the church to join Shelley and Cindy, Francis was his normal self.

"My word, Cindy," he said, aghast at her bruises. "Ginny said you'd been hurt in a fall, but I never thought it might be so severe! Does it hurt much?"

"It's not too bad anymore," Cindy replied. "The worst is over now. The only tough part now is not being able to open my mouth and eat real food! I guess Ginny told you about my cousin Shelley."

With that, Cindy turned toward Shelley and spoke. "Shelley, this if Francis Grim, one of my classmates. He'll be the ring bearer for the wedding."

"Hello," Shelley said with a genuine blush as she dropped into a dainty curtsy. Being dressed as a girl before this imp brought back a bit of her boyish rage over her feminization.

Now, Francis was not a swishy-type sissy, just a boy who didn't like or enjoy the normal rough and tumble boy life. After responding to Shelley's curtsy with a chivalrous bow, he took her dainty fingers in his and gallantly kissed the back of hand.

"I'm glad to see my concerns that the replacement flower girl would not be as pretty as Cindy were unfounded. Beauty

Page 32

Page 33