Benny had been sleeping in his underwear for a long time, and that hadn't changed when he'd become Becky. But now that winter was approaching, it was getting colder, and she dug out the oversized T-shirt she used during the colder months. It was less bulky than a proper set of pajamas, but it helped her retain more body heat. She tossed it on over her undergarments, climbed into bed, and pulled the blanket over her.
But she'd never been able to get to sleep immediately, and the events and feelings of the day were all swirling around in her head. She hadn't been joking when she told Jenny she was confused. She knew she liked Andrew as a friend, and she kind of felt like she might like him on a deeper level, but did she? She didn't even know if she liked boys, so how could she know if she felt that way about Andrew? Or was she over-thinking it? Was there there really a difference between thinking you liked someone and liking them? She wasn't sure.
She had an inkling that Andrew liked her, though. He had done his best to treat her the same way as he always had, but he wasn't especially skilled at hiding his feelings. Becky had seen how he sometimes got nervous around her, losing his train of thought mid-sentence or displaying an uncharacteristic stammer; the only time he could fully keep his concentration around her was when they were gaming. And his question this afternoon had had an undeniable subtext to it; he wanted to know if that not-quite-snuggle meant she liked him. Of course, she couldn't blame him for wondering; she had been mostly looking for comfort, but she wasn't entirely sure attraction hadn't been a factor.
This love thing was confusing. If it was love, which she still was anything but sure of, which was also confusing.
What wasn't confusing, though, was the thing with Jason. He didn't like her, that much was clear. She wasn't sure of the exact details, but he was obviously uncomfortable with being around a girl who used to be a boy. Becky briefly considered sharing her secret with him, but she doubted knowing that she hadn't got this way through surgery would make him feel any differently, even if he did believe her.
Really, Becky didn't mind terribly. She was going to need practice at ignoring the opinions of people like him, and as long as he kept it to mere verbal jackassery, he had as much right to his opinions as anyone else. But it still kind of bothered her, and she was concerned about Andrew; she didn't want to be the point of contention in a falling out, not if she could avoid it. She'd have to see if there was a way to win Jason over, but she wasn't optimistic.
And on top of all this, there was the sleepover Saturday night. This was, of course, comparatively minor, but it was still kind of strange to think about. Andrew was probably right; Laura and Ellen were undoubtedly going to try and gussy her up, probably in an attempt to test her limits. Becky figured she could handle it, at least for one night, and they seemed nice enough to where they'd probably stop if she asked, but the thing that really gave her pause was the idea that, for the first time since her change, she was going to be "just one of the girls." She really had no idea how she would handle that.
Jenny could barely stay still, lying in her bed. This had been an awesome day! First she'd gotten done with her schoolwork early, then she'd discovered the coolest secret in the whole neighborhood and gotten a mermaid for a friend, and now it sounded like her big sis might be in love! She could hardly contain her excitement.
The coolest part of the day had of course been her discovery of Michelle, and the fact that they were friends now. She was the only kid in probably the entire world who had a mermaid for a friend. Michelle was so cool; she was sleek and fast and powerful...and pretty, too. Jenny felt kind of weird when she thought about the fact that she liked girls; she thought it was cool that she was part boy, and it made sense that her boy parts meant she would like girls, but normal boys didn't start liking girls when they were eight years old, did they? Or maybe some of them did; she didn't know.
What she did know was that she got a funny feeling inside, looking at Michelle, watching her dart around the pool. And there had been that funny feeling in her penis when she'd gotten to feel Michelle's tail; was that a boys-and-girls thing? She wasn't sure; maybe Becky would know. Jenny hoped she'd get to see Michelle again soon, especially if she did get to go with the Madisons to the lake before it got too cold. But she'd have to be careful about talking about these funny feelings of hers; she didn't want to make Michelle uncomfortable like she had with Becky; it seemed like turning into a girl was harder for boys than turning into a secret boy was for girls.
Mark and Karen lay snuggled up to each other, truly happy for the first time since their change. The awkwardness was over; they were finally comfortable with each other again. Figuring out their role reversal in the bedroom had been tricky and confusing, and their experiments that afternoon had met with mixed results, but when they finally got it figured out, the pent-up desire and the sheer novelty of the sensations had been simply overwhelming. So overwhelming, in fact, that the rest of the day had pretty much passed by in a haze for both of them.
They weren't really sure what their long-term plans were. Theoretically, it was possible for Mark to get pregnant, and neither of them really had any objections to having another kid, but Mark wasn't really sure he wanted to go that far in surrendering his manhood. Having just finished his period, he shouldn't have to worry about pregnancy this time, but in the future he'd have to start keeping birth control in mind. Even if they did decide to have a baby, the potential problems were many. Mark wouldn't be able to take maternity leave or see a doctor without revealing their secret, but that would mean he'd have to work during the pregnancy and do a natural childbirth. And maybe he could pass off the pregnant belly as weight gain he'd work off afterwards, but he wasn't sure of it.
But right now wasn't really the time for worry. Karyn was pulling him into an embrace, and he joined in eagerly, kissing his wife as he took her in his arms, reveling in the passion they'd been holding back for so long. Finally, all was once again right with the world.
