The Green-Eyed Maid Inn

---

I didn’t rev the bike too hard because we were still in the body shop, but as soon as I rolled out into the open parking lot, I opened it up, doing a 720 before spinning out onto the street and right in front of a cop.

“Crap,” I said to myself, slowing down as the blue lights flashed in my mirror. By some miracle, they flipped back off again. I guess it was just a warning. I rolled up to the stop sign, turned around and gave them an ‘Okay’ hand signal before waving. The cop, looking a bit smug, waved back and nodded at me as if to say ‘Just behave yourself.’

---

>

I very quickly realized something had changed after Friday night, and that as much as I wanted to pretend that I was just some girl from Boston who happened to be dating a celebrity, life wasn’t going to let me get away with that delusion for very long - completely apart from the handful of photographers snapping my picture as I departed the hotel. I’d actually gotten used to that after the red carpet event last night, if you can believe that.

It’s funny how quickly you become normalized to some things. But this? This was terrifying in the moment.

A member of the Midnight Dolls’ security detail, a woman named Cori, informed me that she would be escorting me to the station to see me home safely. That actually wasn’t the scary part, though. The scary part came before I reached the station. We were walking down the street away from the hotel when I heard someone shouting my name, sounding like they knew me.

“Riley! Oh my Gosh! Hey!” she called, and I looked around to see a young woman in an NYU sweatshirt grinning and waving at me. She had shoulder length blonde hair in a black ‘Alice’ band and a denim backpack, and I had no idea who she was, and suddenly felt very, very vulnerable.

“Friend of yours?” Cori asked as she came up beside me. I shook my head.

“I have no idea who she is,” I said. I caught a glimpse of Cori moving her hand toward her taser.

“Stay close to me,” she said. “If I tell you to run, you get back into the hotel and don’t look back, understand?”

“Yes ma’am,” I said, taking a couple of steps back as the girl came closer. Maybe it was just because I had gotten used to Nicole’s more laid back attitude where Cori took everything very, very seriously, but it really put me on edge.

“I am SO sorry for bothering you like this,” she said breathlessly. “I just saw you and my mouth engaged before my brain could kick in. You and Shannon looked SO cute together at the premiere last night!”

“Oh,” I said, relaxing a little. Cori kept her hand hovering near her taser, but relaxed a little as well. “Thanks. I’ll be totally honest with you, I’m not used to being recognized in public.

“Really? Oh gosh I’m so sorry,” she said. “Well I didn’t mean to bother you. I just wanted to say hi and how happy I am for you and Shannon. We don’t have just tons of super famous celebrities our age to look up to in the queer community. Seeing you guys just being so... Well, so natural, so real, it’s really exciting, you know?”

“I appreciate that,” I said. “Shannon is the real celebrity though. I’m just some doofus who fell head over heels before I even knew who I was falling in love with.”

The girl giggled. “Yeah I saw your interview with Vogue,” she said, and very slowly, presumably so as not to get tackled, pulled a copy of the physical magazine out of her backpack to show me. I fought back a groan as I realized the magazine had put me right on the front cover. They used Raymond’s shot of us from backstage, too.

“If I’d known I was going to actually run into you I would’ve brought a pen,” she said.

“Oh,” I said, giving her a smile. “I’ve got one.”

“Really? Could you, I mean would it be too much trouble to ask your autograph?”

I blushed a little at that, as I retrieved my plain, boring blue office pen from my camera bag. “Sure. What was your name again?” I said. I knew she hadn’t told me, but I wanted to be polite.

“Aerith.” She hesitated, seemingly embarrassed. “Yes, my well meaning parents are huge video game dorks.”

I smiled as I signed the front of the magazine, ‘To Aerith, my very first fan. - Riley,’ and handed it back to her.

“Thank you so, so much!” Aerith said, and I swear I thought Cori was going to tackle her when she hugged me. She held the magazine close to her for a moment and giggled, before excitedly continuing on her way. I looked at Cori.

“Welcome to fame, sweetie,” she said. “Now you know why I’m coming with you.”

“Thanks,” I sighed. “I guess I’m just used to being able to blend in to the background while fans gush over the girls instead of me. Is this going to become a regular thing?” I asked.

“Unfortunately,” Cori said, “At least until the trash rags find some new story to talk about. At least Vogue, Sweet Sixteen and E! Are being professional about it, but I expect that from them. It’s the British Buzz and the other British trash rags you have to watch out for.”

“I think I prefer being behind the camera,” I said dryly as we kept walking. More than once someone stopped to take a photo of me, I noticed, and once or twice I was asked for another autograph, but eventually we made it to the train.

I initially thought Cori was going to ride the Accelli with me, but when the train did finally arrive, she briefly spoke with an Amtrak employee. I heard Cori refer to me as a VIP, and that seemed to be that. I was on my way back to Boston, where I half expected more autograph hounds, but it was just business as usual by the time I’d arrived. Mom greeted me on the platform.

“Oh I love what you did with your hair! How was your trip?” she said as we walked out to her SUV. I laughed.

“Extensions,” I said, giving the fake locks a playful toss. I was going to have them removed that afternoon, but it was nice while it lasted. “They’re going to Fedex my dress, plus a surprise for Megyn that Shannon found in a guitar shop. And, my gosh, it was exhausting, but oh my gosh it was amazing. Have you ever been to NYC?’ I asked.

“Once or twice,” she said. “It reminds me a lot of the first time I came to Boston - completely overwhelming. Still, I wouldn’t mind catching a broadway play again some day.”

“You should’ve said something,” I said. “I would’ve loved to bring you along Mom. We went to a shadowcast of Rocky Horror the other night that completely blew my mind.”

Mom laughed, “So you’re no longer a virgin, huh?” she said jokingly and grinned as she started to sing, “I remember, doin’ the time warp.”

I couldn’t resist, and joined in with her.

“Let’s do the time warp again!”

We both laughed. “Mom I had no idea you liked Rocky Horror?”

“Tim Curry is my spirit animal,” Mom cackled. “Ever since I saw him as the concierge in Home Alone 2 in the theater. The man is terrifying and fascinating in all the right ways. I didn’t know YOU were a Rocky Horror fan, Rye,” she added playfully.

“I wasn’t, until this week,” I giggled. “I’ve heard the song, Christie’s cheer team did a dance routine that incorporated it. I just never saw the movie before this. Can you drop me off at Crowley’s?” I asked. “I need to see if my bike is street legal.”

“By which you mean it won’t fall into a million pieces the moment you start it up, again?” Mom said jokingly. “Check behind my car seat.”

“Huh?” I said, reaching behind the car seat. I pulled back a brand new motorcycle helmet with a tinted visor, in gorgeous purple, the same shade as my bike. I had, and was fully expecting to find, my old helmet. “Oh my gosh, Mom!”

“Happy birthday sweetheart,” Mom said. “I knew you needed a new helmet anyway. I can’t talk you out of driving that death trap - you’re too much like your aunt Rose,” she teased. “But at least I can know your skull is protected.”

“It’s gorgeous,” I said, hugging her. “I love it! Thank you. I’ll see you back home,” I said as I got out. She smiled and waved before pulling away, and it occurred to me that this was my first time visiting Crowley’s as a girl. Part of me really, really hoped this wasn’t about to get awkward, but it turned out I had nothing to worry about.

A guy with a “Crowley’s” baseball cap that I didn’t recognize approached me as he wiped some grease off his hands. “Can I help you miss?” he asked.

“Is Lynnette here?” I asked.

“Oh yeah, she’s in the body shop,” he said, glancing at the motorcycle helmet under my arm. I just knew he was about to give me crap, but instead, he said, “Oh What?, you’re the owner of that sexy ass ZX-10R? Can I ask, do you race that thing? How’s it handle on corners?”

I blinked, and I couldn’t help the grin that crossed my lips. “I used to, yeah. I mostly took her down to the oval track on weekends and ran time trials with Lynn. She’s rock solid on turns even at high rev, but you’ve got to be confident or she’ll throw you like an angry bronco. Don’t ask me how I know,” I giggled.

He winced. “Oooh ouch. Yeah, I’ve got a 400 myself,” he said as we walked through the garage to get to the body shop. “I used to race it a little back in Portland plus the occasional not exactly legal street races, but it’s a scooter compared to your Z.”

Lynetta, I should mention, was half Mexican and half Navajo, though I think she identified more with her Latina heritage just from being raised in the Boston-Cambridge area. A couple of years older than me, she practically ran Crowley’s body shop section, although she was never afraid to get her hands dirty either. We’d actually met down at the oval, and when I got my bike, she taught me how to ride and race it safely.

She was currently waxing down my bike with a microfiber cloth by hand, so I guessed she had already finished most of it and was just buffing out swirl marks, her long, curly brown hair tied up in a bandana that covered most of the top of her head and kept the rest neatly down her back. I had to laugh, as I could hear strains of Harvest of Hearts’ metal anthem “Rockpocalypse Rising” blaring over her headphones.

She was really belting the lyrics, too, as she turned around, saw me, and squealed as she dropped the polishing cloth and tore off her headphones. “RILEEEY!” She ran forward and grabbed me in a hug. “Oh my God you look amazing!”

“Thanks,” I said, blushing as I hugged her back. “I forgot you haven’t actually seen me since I started my transition.”

“Can I ask how far along you are?” Lynn asked. I was the only person she allowed to call her ‘Lynn’ and I knew it, though I never really knew why. It was just a thing, an unspoken understanding that anyone else calling her that got the stink eye, or a hard smack, depending on the situation. “Have you seen Christie yet?” she added.

I giggled. “I’m about a month in,” I said, touching my chest. “Padding. I’m actually working with Christie now,” I added. “She got a job at the Green-Eyed Maid Inn to help make ends meet.”

“What?” Lynn said, “She should’ve told me she was struggling. Mi casa ella casa, y tu, if you ever need anything.” She motioned to the bike before taking out the keys and handing them to me. “She’s all ready. We completely rebuilt the engine, replaced the fuel line, she’s even got new tires.”

“You guys are the best, I swear,” I said. “I don’t have my checkbook with me, but I’ll get you the first installment by the end of the day.”

“Nah,” Lynn said as she shook her head. “It’s fully paid for.”

I stared at her in confusion. “What?”

“Yeah,” Lynn said. “I’m not allowed to tell you who it was though. They made me promise. Sorry,” she said.

“I don’t even know who has that kind of money besides my boss, and as generous as her and her fiancé are I don’t think they’d do something like that. My girlfriend doesn’t know where I had it being worked on since we never really talk about racing, either.”

“Well, to be fair, you haven’t raced in awhile,” Lynn said.

“Yeah, true,” I said. “I think I enjoyed the track atmosphere, and photographing sexy bikes and even sexier lady bikers than actually racing,” I said playfully. Lynn giggled.

“If you ever change your mind, you know where the track is. The old offer still stands too, if you ever get tired of just racing time trials. I’ve got a robotics genius on my crew now, girl’s an engineering master. She helped Kayleigh knock her track time down by 3 whole ass seconds with the new CF parts she 3D printed for her bike.”

“Damn,” I laughed. “That’s incredible. Tell her I said congrats. As for the offer,” I said as I slid my helmet into place, raising the visor so we could still talk while I sat down on the bike, “I appreciate it, but I don’t think the world is ready for a trans superbike racer. Besides, Shannon would kill me,” I giggled.

“Fair enough,” Lynn said. “You know Sarah Miller’s made some big waves in NASCAR though right?”

“Angel?” I said, nodding. “Yeah, I’ve heard. But she’s got the skill to back it up. Thanks again Lynn. I seriously owe you one.”

“No you don’t,” Lynn said, blowing me a kiss as I flipped my visor down and started the bike. I didn’t rev it too hard because we were still in the body shop, but as soon as I rolled out into the open parking lot, I opened it up, doing a 720 before spinning out onto the street and right in front of a cop.

“Crap,” I said to myself, slowing down as the blue lights flashed in my mirror. By some miracle, they flipped back off again. I guess it was just a warning. I rolled up to the stop sign, turned around and gave them an ‘Okay’ hand signal before waving. The cop, looking a bit smug, waved back and nodded at me as if to say ‘Just behave yourself.’

I wasn’t officially due back at work until Monday, but as I was already out and getting my bike back underneath me so to speak, since I hadn’t been able to take it out for a ride in awhile, I stopped by anyway. The two buskers I had met before were back again, entertaining tourists passing by. They weren’t actually right outside the inn, but I knew if they asked, Erika wouldn’t have a problem with them coming over onto the Inn’s property either.

“Don’t you come around here causing trouble,” Nick said jokingly as I came into the lobby. I grinned back at him, my helmet under my arm.

“What, little ole me?” I said. There were no guests in the lobby, so I felt confident in just checking in to see how things were going. “How’s it going on the homefront?” I asked, adding, “Did that other new cast prospect work out?”

“Six of one,” Nick laughed. “I thought for sure I’d get some more help at the front desk besides me and Amber, but, the new hire wasn’t GEM Inn material according to Erika.”

“Ah, damn,” I said. “Sorry to hear that. I’ll pitch in as much as I can going forward. I still don’t know exactly what she wants from me with the hostessing thing. I just know I’ve got a double shift Monday that doesn’t involve cleaning, so she really wants me to lean into being a hostess full-time.”

“She’s back in the office now if you want to ask her,” Nick said. “I mean I have a rough idea from talking with Kendra and my sister, but I wouldn’t want to lead you astray either.”

“Hey, good idea,” I said. “Thanks Nick,” I said, and added, “You know? This may be my workplace, but, it feels so good to be home.”

“I know exactly what you mean,” he laughed, nodding as I headed to the back offices.

Claire, in her uniform and faux blonde hair that we jokingly called ‘her Rapunzel hair’, was sitting in Erika’s office, chatting away when I stepped into the doorway. She looked up and grinned. “Ha! Speak of the devil and she appears,” she said jokingly as she hopped up to give me a hug. “We were just talking about next week, and what we can do to make your new job easier.”

“That’s what I wanted to come talk to Erika about,” I laughed, as Claire sat back down, and I sat next to her. “I’ve got so many questions that I should have asked sooner.”

“You’ve been busy,” Erika said. “It’s completely understandable. But, please ask away.”

“Thanks,” I said. “Well, I guess I’m mainly just wondering what, exactly, my new duties are going to be going forward. At first I figured i’d just wing it, but the more I’ve had time to think about it, I kind of want to take it more seriously than that. I mean, that’s the whole reason you promoted me, because I take my duties here seriously - and didn’t run the other way at the offer,” I added, shooting Claire a grin. She burst out laughing.

“Better you than me, girl. I love working here, but I can’t take that kind of pressure.”

“Meet and greet, primarily,” Erika said. “I want you to be available to talk with guests, pose for selfies, offer whatever insights you think they might find interesting - basically what you’ve already been doing. If you’d like, we can even schedule proper tours of the GEM. I can provide you with any historical information.”

“Claire’s been a big help with that part already,” I added, causing Claire to beam. “She even gave me the history behind some of the artifacts in our little museum. When I first started I didn’t even know we had a museum,” I added. Claire giggled.

“Yeah, it’s a bit tucked away. Not that many people find it interesting enough to visit, but I just love history. That’s the only reason I’m actually here. I mean, besides wanting to help aunt Erika and aunt Evie.”

“You should pick Nick’s brain, too,” Emily spoke up, leaning in the doorway with a big grin on her face as well.

“I completely forgot he’s a reenactor,” I laughed. “Yeah, I’ll definitely do that,” I said. “So... Meet and greet, selfies, scheduled tours... Anything else?”I asked.

“No, I think that about covers it for now,” Erika said. “I want to get something else off the ground with you later, but if I’m being honest, I’m still trying to feel out how exactly to best handle it. I want to do something with the tea room, you know?”

“Like a tea party?” I asked. Erika’s face lit up like a Christmas tree.

“Yes! Exactly! Like a Colonial or Victorian era tea party, something like my ancestor would have hosted - just, you know, allowing mixed company. She famously would not let men in her tea room,” she laughed. “Not that she didn’t like men, she just felt they had plenty of taverns and public houses already, and that their wives needed a place to feel welcomed and comfortable, too.”

“That sounds like fun,” I said. “We could make it a weekly event at first, and if it turns out super popular, maybe more than one day a week. I’ll talk with Evan about it, and see if the kitchen staff mind a tiny bit of extra work making up some pastries, or if we need to source them elsewhere.”

“Oh,” Erika said, “I’m sure he’ll be thrilled to whip something period specific together!” She beamed now. “I’m so glad you stopped by, Rye. You’re just a little ray of sunshine around here.”

I blushed. “Thanks. I try.”

“Hey, Rye,” Erika said, picking up a piece of paper. “Could you do me a big, huge favor and give this to Cassidhe and Dylan? They’re the street buskers hanging out near the Inn. It’s an official permit to play on GEM property if they’d like.”

“They’ve been so good for business,” Claire giggled. “Even if they’re not exactly period.”

“Oh sure!” I said. “Did Megyn ever apply? I asked. “She’s been low key hinting that she’s thinking about it part time.”

“She did,” Erika said.

“Oh no, she’s not the one who wasn’t GEM inn material was she?” I asked hesitantly. Erika giggled and shook her head.

“Oh no, not at all dear. You actually just missed her.”

“Lacey’s teaching her how to make a bed the GEM Inn way,” Emily giggled as I stood.

“Oh good,” I laughed. “I’m glad she’s found a family here like I have. Thank you all so much for looking after her while I’ve been out of town.”

“Hey, it’s like you said,” Emily said, stretching her arm out to hug me as I approached her, “We’re family here.”

After stepping outside, I found the two buskers just packing up their instruments, and approached them, waving. Cassidhe smiled brightly back at me and Dylan waved lazily.
“Oh, hi Riley!” she said excitedly. “We saw you on E! This morning,” she giggled.

“What’s up?” Dylan asked, noticing the paper.

“Ms. Van Laderman asked me to give you guys this. It’s a permit to play right on the Green-Eyed Maid Inn property if you ever want to use it, or if anyone ever hassles you.”

“Oh my Gosh,” Cassidhe’s eyes lit up. “Really?” I nodded.

“Wow,” Dylan said. “Thanks. This is awesome.”We’ve got a Cambridge Arts license, but we try not to get too close to private businesses.”

“Yeah, they get real touchy about modern music near some of the historic places,” Cassidhe sighed. “I’m legit shocked Ms. Van Laderman says it’s okay for us to play right on the Inn property.” She hugged me. “Thank you so much!”

“No problem,” I said, smiling back at them. “I’m just the messenger,” I said, and put my helmet back on as I walked to my bike. This time, I decided to forego the showing off in the parking lot just in case another of Boston or Cambridge’s finest happened to be watching.