Chapter 16: A Nice Home Dinner and a Quiet Day Overall

I awoke in a mass of naked female flesh once again, but at least we had more room this time. After we'd finished cuddling on Monday night I'd gotten my traditional late night snack, and when I got back I found most of my girls ready to join me in bed. The girls all congratulated Nikki and welcomed her officially into the family. It was nice having everyone together where they belonged. It was especially nice to be able to give Nikki a place where she felt she belonged at long last.

Before we left the next day, Tuesday, Cate made sure I continued my daily treatment on the two mice and the two rabbits. It was easy enough to do, but I felt better about what I was doing to the mice, since the rabbits weren't going to live long as a result of my actions. It was an indirect causation, but the end result for them was the same. However I didn't worry about it too much. What Cate was trying to discover was important enough for me not to get worked up about it. There really was no other way to figure this stuff out.

The day at school was actually pretty nice. There were no confrontations, and I kept getting positive feedback from the athletes about what the girls had done for them. Lunchtime was another story, though. When I got to the table everyone was already excited.

"Man, Alex, I can't wait until this evening," Ai told me in a bubbly mood. "For as much as I'm looking forward to eating some of Vietnamese food, I'm also looking forward to meeting all of your ladies and seeing how you live."

"It's really not all that—" I started to reply before I was cut off.

"Believe me, he's added a few," Kitty very unhelpfully informed them.

"Added what?"

"Ladies," Kitty explained to the other kids who started leaning in to hear more about my life which we kept so private. "He's got more than he had a couple of weeks ago. He came back from St. Louis with a college student who left her home, and he met a couple of girls from SIU who are anxious to come visit."

"Are any of them coming tonight?" Mia asked.

"The SIU girls?" Chalise asked, just to clarify who they were asking about as she jumped in for me. "No, we haven't scheduled a visit with them yet, but Nikki, the girl from St. Louis, will be there. Gail, the cop from St. Louis he met in the hospital, won't be there since she works during the week. Those are the only new ones."

"So just how many are we talking about?" Maria asked. "This is the first we heard about him going to SIU. You said he wasn't going to college next year, so what was he doing there that he'd meet so many women?"

"Well, he does have two sisters who live there," Chalise told them. "And let's see, there's Gail, Nikki, you've probably heard about Jennifer, there were two more from New Orleans up here on Sunday, then there's Diana and Molly from SIU. Molly is a professor of law, by the way. There are also about twenty girls from a new sorority who are fascinated with him, but we aren't counting any of them yet."

"Man, does he ever stop? How do you ever stand it?" Amanda asked, leaning in with her body in her eagerness to discuss the details with my girlfriends.

"Actually, he doesn't do much of anything," Kitty told them. "They all come on to him. He just helps them with, uh, some unique problems they have, and they just seem to follow him home."

"Man, if you ever figure out how to apply that talent to guys, let me know," Alex Flores told me.

"Yeah, you and me both," I told him. "So far it only seems to work with women. All the guys seem to hate me."

"Hey, a lot of them are starting to come around," Darrell corrected me. "That business with the medical attention for the athletes helped a lot. Then there's Alex, Brian and me," he added with a smile. "You certainly can't ignore someone as attractive as me, now can you?" he asked, batting his lashes. No one could resist, we all cracked up since his whole act was so completely out of character for him.

"He jokes, but I think he's right," Amanda replied. "You've turned a corner. As long as you can avoid any dark alleys you just might make it through the end of the year."

"Man, life around here just won't be the same next year after you're gone," Chalise complained.

"Hey, what do you have to complain about, at least you'll have access to him," Nancy Thorn responded. She'd joined our table ever since I'd befriended her childhood friend Mia and gotten her out of her dark Goth period.

"That's not guaranteed," Chalise informed them. "As of now, Alex hasn't made any definite plans. For all we know, he may decide he wants to start a commune in California."

"Ha, that's not likely," I told them. "Not after buying a loft in Carbondale!" As soon as I'd said it I realized what I'd done, but by then it was too late.

"You've bought a loft in Carbondale? How?" Maria asked. "I mean, unless you've come into some money of late, and I don't recall hearing about anyone winning the Lottery around here, you've always struggled just to make do."

"Look, let's not talk about it now because I really don't want anyone to know. I'll explain everything over dinner tonight. Oh, and by the way, I won't be here during the afternoon. Ryan wanted me to help out at the hospital this afternoon. Seems they've got some big operation and they want the place looking nice, so I've been volunteered to straighten up around the hospital," I teased, purposely making it sound like I had mop and broom duty today.

"I've arranged a ride for Kitty, Chalise and my sister. If any of you need a ride to my house, just let me know and I'll arrange for you to be picked up, both directions," I told them all.

Things broke up soon after, and it wasn't long after I was on my way to Carbondale. I was alone again for this trip, just like my last medical procedure with Dr. Palmer. I didn't get these moments to myself like I used to, and I figured I should appreciate them when I got them. Heck, the girls didn't even let me take walks by myself anymore. Still, it took a while to stop turning to say something to someone who wasn't there.

My part in the operation was a little simpler this time. I stood in the ready room where I washed up and watched the operation take place, even though there wasn't much to see. I recognized the patient, he was a popular action movie star by the name of Adrian Hart. He was getting a bit old for the role, but was still earning the big bucks. He hardly looked the same lying there while everyone worked on him. I knew I could earn some quick bucks by snapping a picture with my cell phone, but I wouldn't do that, either to him or to Ryan. I was here to help, not to capitalize on the event.

When it was about time, Ryan signaled me and I entered, not having to hide my identity this time. Everyone made way for me and I walked right in as Robert was putting in the last few stitches. As he was finishing up I started my own procedure, still using the atomizer because of the people watching from the gallery. I moved steadily and swiftly, finishing up just as Robert moved his hands away. I didn't have to worry about causing increased bleeding, since he was already sewn up and I was only applying the energy superficially to the skin.

"That's it? Just like that? Man, if we could bottle that," Dr. Palmer commented.

"Yep, that's it. I'll do it again in recovery and then I'll stop by tomorrow for a refresher."

"Make it tomorrow morning. We can put you up overnight if you want. I'm anxious to see what more frequent treatments will do. The studio bosses are willing to pay to get their star back, so don't be afraid of expenses."

"That won't be necessary, I've got a place to stay and I'm not doing this for the money."

"Well, that's nice to hear for a change. Me, I'm strictly in it for the money, so I'll put your share to good use," he teased.

"You do that," I said as I turned and left, not bothering to look back. Allison joined me outside and we headed to the recovery area to wait. Rebecca came by when they brought the patient out and told us to give them some time to get everything squared away. When a nurse came out and motioned us in we entered and, once again, the nurses made way for me to do my thing, which was hardly a secret from anyone in the hospital any more.

I did what I needed to just as Robert and Ryan walked in. I didn't bother with the spray bottle this time.

"Man, I can't believe he does it so quickly," Robert observed. "Normally we'd be applying creams and lotions, then there'd be extensive plastic surgery afterwards, and the results still wouldn't be as good."

Edward walked in towards the end of his speech. "Yeah, I watched some of his work earlier. I watched the whole procedure as well. You should see when he does something not cosmetics related." I looked at him, hoping to hush him up. He blushed when he realized he'd said too much. Luckily Robert didn't ask about it. Chances are he'd press the other two men when they had drinks later. Hopefully he had to get back to Chicago before then.

"I've got something planned at home," I informed them. "I'll come back and stay the night. I'll be in early so I can get back to school on time. I'll assume none of you will be here, so be sure to tell whoever is in charge I'll need access."

"Alex," Ryan told me tiredly, "everyone here knows you have access to the entire hospital. Even if you didn't, they'd let you through anyway, just so they could see what you do. You've got quite a reputation amongst the hospital staff. Most of the doctors refuse to admit you can actually do anything, but the nursing staff thinks you walk on water."

"Believe me, walking on water gets tiring when all you want is to take a swim occasionally," I said as I finished up. I shook everyone's hand and headed out. Allison and Rebecca came with me so I looked quizzically at them.

"This was the biggest thing happening today. Ryan was so pleased he could get you to do this, he gave us the rest of the day off," Allison told me.

"I don't need any favors," I told her.

"We certainly understand that, but it's near the end of our shift anyway. Besides, we're anxious to meet all of your friends. Cate and your girlfriends have been telling us about them, and we're interested in seeing what they all look like." I simply shook my head as we exited the building.

The girls rode home with me, with the understanding I'd bring them back later that night when I stayed at their place. Brooke, or I, would drive would drive them to work tomorrow morning so they could pick up their cars again. Seems everything was planned, like always. I don't know what I'd do without my girls always working out all the details.

"So, no one ever told me how the last guy turned out," I pointed out, "how was his scarring?"

"It worked pretty well, obviously, since they invited you back for such a big operation," Natalie informed me. "There's a lot of attention on this case. And no," she said before I had a chance to interrupt, "no one has mentioned your name. They've simply said there's a research project going on at the university, just like you told everyone. No one will think to pin this on you.

"There were actually some observers in the operating room today, observing everything in order to authorize the hospital for heart surgeries. Seems there's quite an involved procedure in getting approval." She noticed my distressed look and continued. "Don't worry, Ryan showed him the papers the patient signed authorizing an experimental procedure for cosmetic purposes. He didn't object as long as you didn't actually touch the patient, which you didn't."

I simply grunted, which they took as permission to start asking me about the girls and guys who would be waiting for us at home. I told them what I could, but they knew I wouldn't tell them anything personal without the person's permission.

When we got home there were cars all over the place, even more than we normally had. Now that the garage was taken up with Cate's lab animal pens, we didn't have any spare room in the driveway. We were also the only ones to ever have any cars parked along the street. We were lucky none of our neighbors complained, as I'm not sure we were allowed to have this many cars in our yard.

There was music playing in the house but it wasn't too loud, so I figured it wasn't getting out of hand. Yet.

When we walked in the house everyone turned to look at me.

"Hey, Alex, welcome home," someone called out.

"Yeah, how'd it go? Bring anyone new home with you?" Pepper asked.

"Nope, not this time. This time the doctors had to sew up the broken hearts I left behind," I told them with a grin. Everyone who knew the real story giggled, causing looks from those who didn't think it was that clever of a joke.

As I walked into the room, Darrell was one of the first to greet me. Gracefully receiving his big bear hug, I noted both Frank Hou and Brian were standing nearby as well, and I was glad to think I'd finally established some close male friends. Maybe not as close as my female friends, but they were certainly closer than Mike or any of my other previous friends, and I planned on making the relationships stronger, if I could. Both Kitty and Chalise made the perfect hosts, one was almost always at my side, while the other rotated around the room making sure everyone was doing well and showing them around. The one person I immediately noticed wasn't here was Julia. Apparently no one quite trusted her that much yet.

Walking through the room, saying hello to everyone, Becky brought me a soda and told me dinner would be ready soon.

"I wasn't expecting you and Melinda to be here," I told her.

"Hey, everyone is anxious to meet your friends. From what we hear, they're all more interesting than Mike ever was," Melinda said, sweeping in to give me a big hug, which I didn't read too much into. It seemed most of the trouble between her and Cate was effectively over. About time, too, Cate had kept her on the fence for a long time. "Besides," she added, "we're hoping to recruit them into the new sorority we're organizing." I groaned at that thought, but not too loudly.

"Your whole family is interesting, Alex," Mia told me. "It must run in the family." I couldn't resist yet another groan, thinking of what Cate and I shared. I just hoped nobody made a joke about incest being relative!

"Who'd ever think you were involved in starting a sorority?" Maria asked. "What, you already running out of girls to bring home? You looking for more likely candidates?" Ha, little did she know just how right she was. But then again, if they all went to SIU and joined the sorority, no doubt they'd learn all the details before long.

"Has everyone gotten enough to drink, hors d'oeuvres, whatnot?" I asked, hoping to get the attention off of me.

"Everyone has been taken care of," Ai told me, taking my arm. "Now come along and tell us all about your stuff. You can start by telling us who sleeps in that huge bed of yours." I groaned again, a little louder this time.

Despite the teasing, it was actually a pleasant evening. Just a little while before dinner was to be served, Brian took me aside and led me into the bathroom, of all places. I was imagining what this might be about, but he waved away my objections.

"Alex, it's really been amazing being honest with you, and knowing all these people trust me. Can I ask you something? Would you mind if I show you my body? I need someone to tell me it isn't as ugly as I constantly tell myself it is."

"Uh, I guess. What's the objective, though? Do you need to know you look better as a guy?"

"Well, it's complicated. First of all, there's a question about the procedure. I may choose not to go through with the full thing, since the dick they give you isn't fully functional." I nodded that I understood, so he went on. "Plus, I'm kind of building up to something here." I nodded again, so he nervously started to unbutton his shirt. Pulling off his t-shirt, he then unwound the bandages holding his budding breasts in place.

I waited patiently while he did this, not saying anything the entire time, and praying I didn't get an erection while he did it. Hell, it might give him a whole new complex if I did, and that was the last thing he needed.

When he finally pulled the bandages free, I looked at him closely. His breasts were actually close to Cate's size. I didn't think I'd tell my sister that, though. It would likely give Cate her own complex.

"Frankly, Brian, you look good as either a guy or a girl. You have a nice androgynous look. The haircut plays that up as well. You've got nothing to be ashamed of as a girl. You've probably noticed my sister isn't any bigger than you are, so the size isn't really a problem, though I'm sure you'd like to freeze them right at that size. Beyond that, I'm not sure what you want me to tell you."

I had to admit to myself, though, his breasts did look good. I wouldn't mind playing with one of his nipples for a little bit, even though they were attached to a guy. Well, technically he was still a girl, but you know what I mean. I managed to develop a partial erection, but I guess it wasn't too obnoxious. But his nipples were hard as well, whether from the temperature in the tile bathroom or something else I didn't know. I sure hope my energy wasn't affecting him as well.

Although it felt weird getting an erection over a guy, I knew there was actually a woman's body under there. It was still a very strange experience, though, and I wasn't sure what I was supposed to be feeling or reacting. However he hadn't freaked out yet, so I guess I was doing OK so far.

"OK, here's the thing, how much do you trust your friends outside?" he asked.

"Well, I feel pretty secure about them. They all seem pretty decent, but I don't really know much about them yet. What are you getting at?"

"I think I'm ready to come out to them. I just want to know whether I'm liable to get in trouble for doing it," he told me. I had to stop and think about it for a second, subtly studying his breasts the entire time.

"Well, Brian, I honestly don't know them well enough to speak for each of them to guess at their possible reactions. But I'll tell you this much, whatever their response, I can assure you not a one of them will tell anyone else about your secret. That's got to count for something. Beyond that it's a matter of personal taste and individual hang-ups."

"Thanks, Alex, that means a lot to me. I think I'm ready to do it."

"I'll tell you what. Get dressed and put your bandages back on. I think you should go though the whole undressing routine for them, as it adds a dramatic flair to the proceedings. They know they should be expecting something so they prepare themselves mentally, but they'll still be caught by surprise, so you should be able to judge their initial reaction. Just don't judge them solely by those reactions, as it's how they react after they've gotten used to the idea which counts.

"Now I'm going to go out and prepare them, explaining you're going to reveal something intensely personal. I'll call out to you when we're ready for you to come out. OK?" I asked. I'd already told the girls to hold dinner for a little bit, since I knew something was up when he first invited me into the bathroom.

"OK, give me a little time, it takes a bit to get dressed."

I exited the room, being careful not to reveal him in the process. Everyone was curious what I'd been doing with Brian in there, but no one wanted to say anything.

"Hey, Alex, my brother wants to know if he missed his chance, and if you need a few minutes before you're ready for him," Maria Flores called out. Well, no one said anything until she spoke up. Luckily Alex was as embarrassed as I felt. But I couldn't waste time being embarrassed. I had the responsibility for a friend that would affect his life for the next several years.

"Look guys, gather around, I've got something important to tell you all." Everyone gathered around, including my sisters who stood in the background. My girls stayed in the other room, since they knew better than to stand around watching, plus they knew I'd show them anything they needed to see.

"OK, Brian has a secret which he's very embarrassed about. He's never told anyone about it, and he's really afraid of how you'll react. But you've managed to make him feel so welcome he feels he can finally reveal it. Now, I'm not telling you how to react, as that's up to each of you. All I'm asking is that you be honest with him. If you're upset or repulsed, let him know, in as gentle a manner as you can. He respects each of you, so he deserves your honest opinion."

They each took me very seriously and stopped all their teasing. After I looked each of them over to gauge their reactions, I called out to him. It took a moment, but he slowly opened the door and walked out. He glanced at me and I simply nodded at him. At that point he started unbuttoning his shirt, and everyone watched silently as he took off his undershirt and started unwrapping his bandages. I'm sure everyone was sure he was going to reveal an ugly scar, so I stood back so I could watch everyone's responses.

When he reached the end, he paused before finally pulling the cloth free. He glanced at me again, and I once again nodded for him to continue. He did, pulling the bandages free revealing his feminine breasts. At first there was simply no sound, then suddenly someone gasped as what they were seeing hit them. Then it was like a chain reaction, as one person after another responded to what they were all watching, but were only slowly seeing. One girl asked "What's the deal? I don't understand." Someone else whispered in her ear and her eyes got big and she replied, "Oh shit!" It took a while, but finally everyone figured out what was going on.

"I knew I was different from the other kids when I was only three years old," Brian explained to everyone around him. "I knew I had the wrong body and I didn't want anything to do with being female. I used to use my Barbie dolls as toy guns. I'd try to destroy all of my dresses so I wouldn't be forced to wear them. I set fire to a baby doll at one point. I was simply never happy with having a girl's body.

"I refused to play with the other girls and would only wear jeans and cowboy boots. My parents went along with that simply because I never gave them much of a choice. My father finally let me have a cowboy hat when I showed him pictures of girls wearing them too. Every time my mother tried to pretty me up with a new hair style I'd take a pair of scissors to it. I never wanted the body God gave me. I knew I was supposed to be a boy and that God had gotten confused and stuck me in the wrong body.

"I finally convinced my mother I was serious about being a boy, although my father fought it every time I tried to pass myself off as a guy. Things came to a head when he found out Mom was helping me change my gender. She had me talk to a counselor on what it would entail, hoping they'd scare me straight, but I took to it like a sponge. When I found out you could reassign your gender I was ecstatic. When my father found out Mom was helping me, he stormed out. That's when we moved here so I could start reestablishing myself as a guy. I could only do it because I had the gender reassignment counselor and a doctor's blessings, but I still didn't have my father's approval to begin the hormone treatments I'd need to stop my breasts from developing."

At this point Brain stopped talking, since he'd been mostly talking simply to fill the silence. He took in the assembled faces before him and simply waited for a response.

No one recoiled, but they were all clearly surprised. Brian stood there, unsure, but acting very brave about what was happening. I felt proud of him, as if I had anything to do with it. Despite everyone's shocked reactions, no one said anything until Alex finally broke the silence.

"Personally, I like the change. I think it's a move in the right direction. Personally, I think all you girls should try it as well," he told everyone. That effectively broke the silence, as everyone laughed.

"Well, I must say I'm certainly surprised," Pepper said. "I never would have guessed. You're not a big or tall guy, but you did nothing to give it away. Personally I'm impressed you think enough of us to confide in us. I'm not sure about the others, but I feel confident most of them will agree with me that we'll support you however you want to handle it. I won't tell anyone about it unless you tell me it's OK, but it doesn't change how I view you."

They all agreed with that sentiment, although Nancy and Mia looked a little hesitant. But they both agreed with everyone else as well.

"The only reason why I finally came out now was because you are the only people I've ever felt might accept me. You don't seem to be preoccupied with roles and stereotypes. You've all been very accepting and I think I can trust you. At least Alex does, and I think I can trust Alex's judgment here."

"So, Brian, do you mind if I ask what your orientation is?" Maria asked him. "I mean, do you plan on being straight now, or gay?" I figured she'd likely be one of the first to respond, since she was somewhat used to gender identity questions from her experiences with her brother.

"Actually, I'm a little mixed about that. I still find myself looking at guys, but I definitely like girls, and I'm trying to break the habit of checking out the guys. I'm not real sure where I'm going to end up, though."

"That's perfectly natural at your age," Becky informed him. "You're at the stage you need to define yourself, and you need to see what turns you on and what doesn't."

"What about, uh, your junk?" Pepper asked. "I mean, from what I hear, you can either get a penis you can pee with, or one you can stick something in so you can have intercourse. What's your preference?" Frankly, I was surprised they knew as much about the subject as they seemed to. But I guess in the new internet age everyone had the information only a few clicks away, and teenagers do tend to be curious.

"Well, I was talking to Alex about that. The female-to-male operation isn't as successful as the male-to-female one, so most people in my situation keep their privates intact. I'll have to have the breasts lopped off, of course, but I'm thinking I'll keep my vagina intact. I'm not real happy with it, as it reminds me of everything I hate about my current body, but I'm not sure I like the options available. I'm hoping maybe they'll eventually figure out how to fashion a functioning penis. Either way, my lovers are going to know what my story is."

"Yeah, I figure a lesbian might be a little more understanding about that than a straight guy would," Chalise said, speaking up for the first time.

"I'll tell you what, if you're going to get rid of your breasts, could I borrow them?" Cate asked jokingly. "I figure I might make it to a B-cup if I combine both our breasts together." After that everyone finally relaxed and started conversing about it normally. At this point Anh came out and announced dinner was served, so we kept the conversation going during dinner as if it was the usual dinnertime topic. No one asked why my girls didn't need any explanations, but my parents both did. I guess they'd been prepped, because neither gave anything away, but I figured Dad might have some problems with it. But he hid it well.

Everyone thoroughly enjoyed Anh's ethnic dishes and made a big deal about complimenting her on it. Many of the girls, like Ai and others, asked her about the preparations, while the others simply enjoyed seconds. The previous conversation about Brian's sexuality went on for a while, as everyone was interested in hearing all about it, but eventually the talk moved on. Finally, the inevitable question came up.

"Kitty, can you honestly tell me how you do it? I mean, how can you not have a problem with jealousy, with everyone else fooling around with Alex? Doesn't it drive you crazy?"

Kitty sat and looked at her seriously, no longer joking or teasing. "It's interesting. None of these women are threatening us or what we share. Instead they support Alex and help him tremendously. They also support us as well. If it weren't for them, we'd never be a part of Alex's life. For that matter, if it wasn't for them, each of you likely wouldn't be here either.

"But more than that, Alex is bigger than simple questions of jealousy. He's aiming at some big things, and he doesn't have time to worry about a couple of little girls who can't cope with his unusual life style. Both Chalise and I want to be a part of that world, to have a chance to jump on this passing train of history. It's not a chance you get very often, so both our mothers advised us to grab on with both hands and not let go. Regardless of what hurdles it might entail."

"Yeah, about that," Ai commented. "We've all figured there's a lot more to Alex than he's willing to admit, and we get this 'part of history' bit, even if we don't understand just what it is. We understand he doesn't quite trust us yet, but we'd like to help out however we can as well."