Chapter 6

I almost passed out and he gave me some water, still grinning.

“You don’t expect the Minister to take you around the bases without you having the basic knowledge of military life, do you? This is going to be great.”

“Great, what do you mean, great! It will be me doing all these things!”

Chapter 4

I parked at the museum, beside the OB van, and went in. Matthew was organising the set, which didn’t take long with our morning preparation. Steve was in his official uniform and there had been a sign on the main door announcing that the museum was closed until five for a private function.

Chapter 2

I waited until we had finished dinner before I told my family the news.

“I went to Sydney this morning. I had a talk with the Head of News and came home as the new presenter for the ABC. My area is from the Gong to the border.”

Pauline squealed and stood up to give me a hug.

“That’s fantastic, Mummy. I’ll be able to see you on the box and shout at you without you yelling at me to be quiet.”

“Unless I’m in the room at the time, you minx.”

And When they were Up, they were Up

Next morning, I hauled myself out of bed and did my business, had a long shower, and dressed for my lecture. It was really odd to see the dress hanging in my wardrobe, and even odder to see the cosmetics on the chest, next to the wig. I had cleansed, last night, before I went to bed, so the pillow was still clean.

Firing Blank

My name is Donald James Blank. I know, it’s a hoot, but a hoot I’ve had to live with all my life. In primary school, the teachers would often say, “Come up and write the answer on the slate, Blank’. I was given the nickname, Slate, which stuck with me through higher education and into my first employment, seeing that two of my fellow recruits to the financial company had been with me through the accountancy degree.

Chapter 9

For the Christmas and New Year shows, we had to be in a studio at Broadcast House, in London. We were put up at a very nice hotel across the road, and our partners were allowed to join us. It was an interesting experience, going live over the whole network.

For New Year, we did the show up to eleven, when one of the bigger names took over. The four of us welcomed 2024 and watched the fireworks from a higher floor window. We could see the lightshow and hear midnight strike on Big Ben, followed by something that sounded like a war zone.

Chapter 7

We had just walked in, and I was admiring the wonderful stained-glass windows. Randall was looking around.

“I used to come here with my parents as a youngster, before we moved to Bury. It hasn’t changed a bit.”

We jumped when there was a voice behind us.

“It hasn’t changed much since the thirteenth century, young Randall Chivers. Long time since you’ve been in here.”

Randall turned and shook the mans’ hand.

Chapter 5

When we went off for lunch, we both needed to buy a frame, Chris having seen a picture of herself at the desk when I was away. We had lunch at the café and then into The Rusty Trunk antique store, where Chris went to some boxes at the back. We each found a nice frame that didn’t cost a lot.

Chapter 3

When we arrived at the main gate, I had to show my station lanyard with my picture on. I was signed in and given another lanyard with ‘visitor’ on it in big red letters. From there, we did the tour. The first stop, after passing a big hotel, was the Exchange.

Anything Goes

‘In Olden days a glimpse of stocking,
Was looked on as something shocking,
Now heaven knows,
Anything goes.’

I faded out the song and introduced the show.

“Good evening, good people. This is Karol Nowak with the hour of show power. Lay back in those comfy hospital beds and sing along, but not too loudly, you may upset the nurses.”

This is something that came to me when I was reading about the new rules for F1 in 2026.

Lightning in Lilac

When I was born, my parents called me Ryan Samuel Hurst. My father, Samuel Llewellen Hurst, was the founder and CEO of Hurst Industries, an engineering company employing over a hundred tradesmen and office workers. My mother had been Rylie Sanderson, a successful model and kept her beauty as I got older and gained two sisters.

Chapter 10

When we arrived home, I let the dogs in and then got Margaret out of the car and into the house. She was aware enough to get herself undressed, ready for bed, and cleansed. I pulled her bedclothes back so that she could get in. There was snoring before I put the light out. It could have been Boobs, though.

Chapter 8

On Tuesday morning, we weren’t going out anywhere, so we stayed in our gowns and made sure the house was clean before showering and dressing. I moved the Defender, turning it around, now easy with no chicken coop, and then backed it up to make space for visitors.

Chapter 6

I must have been exhausted from the day, as I slept well until I woke needing a pee. It took me a while to get out of bed, as the nightie had become twisted around my legs, but I managed to get into the bathroom without exploding. I sat on the seat in an automatic movement, even though I wasn’t wearing the special pants. Margaret came in from the other door as I was finishing.

Chapter 4

That night, it took a long while for me to go to sleep. The morning would be two weeks since I had discovered his body, and Tom had filled the days since with his spirit. As I laid in the dark, idly scratching a dogs head, I thought about the clues that had been left. A small boy bullied and called a queer, who had grown up gay and finding love with a larger man. It all fitted a profile.

Chapter 2

She sat on the swing with me and the dogs and dabbed her eyes with a tissue.

“That’s very sad. I’ve known Tom a long time, Albert as well, since Tom brought him here. I went to school with Tom and saw how he was bullied. There are a few other girls from that time who still live around the area. I have a key to this house, in case it was needed, which I’ll give you. He had a key to mine.”

“I was just given his keys. Is it on the ring?”

I handed it over and she took a key off it.

“What are you doing, now, Tony?”

A Fickle Fortune

I had always been a good planner. Whenever we went on holiday, it was my job to organise a route, taking in as many sights as possible. I spent some years planning my own escape. It was forced on me by conversations I had with my parents, when we saw sexy girls and drag queens on the TV. I knew that me thinking that I should have been born female wouldn’t go down well.

Stoned

“Miss Harrigan, because of your age, I hereby sentence you to six months in the Secure Training Centre. Your vandalism was of the most heinous kind and will cost many pounds to repair. Take her away.”

I heard the words, trying not to cry. It was not what I had hoped, although my lawyer had told me that it was likely. Here I was, fifteen and now with a convict record. I knew that the STC I would be going to was almost worse than proper prison, as I had met several on the streets, who had been there and bore the scars.

Chapter 6

When we went back to the pool, Bertie was snuffling, a sure sign that he was starting to wake up. Jenny grinned.

“He’s a world class snorer. How do you put up with it?”

“He’s much better than he was when I first met him. He wondered why no girl would stay the night, so I told him to see a doctor to fix his deviated septum. I think that he appreciated my telling him the truth. Good earplugs help as well.”

I went to Bertie and gave him a kiss on his forehead. His eyes opened.