Jimmy’s world is changing fast now that Bree sees her child as Juliette. The day after the big reveal is a wild ride for Julie, and she is not in control. Unsure about where things are going, she is overwhelmed and worried. Mom trying to make up for lost time and Rachel trying to be a good best friend are a force Julie can't slow down. The day's adventures bring her clothes shopping, two photo shoots, and to a Girl Scout meeting. Is it too much for Julie to handle, or meeting her every dream? Could it be both? New questions, nervous moments, and a few truths that can’t stay hidden forever all happen in one day. A day that Juliette will never forget.

“Oh, that’s convenient. Levy Dancewear is right next to the Girl Scouts Store,” Bree expressed as she turned into a strip mall. The adult parked in an available parking spot, which happened to be in front of the dancewear store.

Julie and Rachel filed out of the car and followed Julie's Mommie into the store.

“Hello, my name's Rebecca. How can I help you?”

“My daughter has been taking ballet lessons from a friend using borrowed clothes. We want Juliette to take professional lessons.”

“I see, let's go to the ballet department. Which one of you is Juliette?”

Julie timidly raised her hand.

Rebecca looked at the other girl, “Are you also going to take ballet, young miss?”

“No, that’s more my sister’s thing.”

The two girls looked more like friends than sisters, but that didn't matter to the salesgirl. Rebecca looked the ballerina over, mentally sizing the girl, “So who was teaching you?”

It seemed like a long shot that Rebecca would know her teacher.

“My… friend Samantha. But… s-sometimes my friend Lily helped.” Julie shifted under the older girl’s stare.

“Sammie Berger and Lily Vanderbilt?”

Juliette gulped, “Y-yes, M-Ma'am.”

“Lily's my ballet student, and where Lily goes, Samantha follows. Were you wearing Sammie’s leotards?”

“Y-yes, M-Ma'am.”

Rebecca turned to the adult with the two girls, “Juliette's Mother, Ma'am, are you thinking of sending her to the same ballet school as her friends?”

“Yes, Miss… ” Bree looked at the name tag, “ … Rebecca.”

Rebecca grabbed a pink leotard and tights off the shelf, handing them to Juliette. “Now, Mistress Anastasia prefers her girl students your age to wear soft pastel color leotards for class with no skirt. What you wear to practice at home is up to you. As for tights, you will need white or ballet pink for class. I recommend the white because it goes with more colors. However, you can get away with pink leotards and ballet pink tights.” While pointing at one curtained-off room, “Go to that changing room and try these on. Leave your undergarments on while trying them.”

Julie and Rachel looked nervously at Mrs. Bowen, but Julie's Mommie wordlessly pointed at the curtain. The nervous girl changed quickly. By now, she was an expert on putting on leotards. No, what really made her nervous was the one thing that might give her away, especially with a stranger right there. She walked back to where she left her Mommie and friend, with her hands pressed protectively in front of her.

Rebecca watched as the girl returned. The leotard seemed to fit well enough, except Juliette kept her hands low in front of herself. Maybe it was uncomfortable, or riding wrong. But it didn’t look off anywhere else. Maybe she was just shy. Rebecca had seen plenty of girls like that before. Still… something didn’t quite add up. She’d have to be careful.

Rebecca directed the girl toward a mirror. “Please put your arms to your sides, Juliette.”

Julie hesitated, then slowly did as she was told. It felt safer with the older girl standing behind her.

Rebecca stepped closer, pretending to check the fit at the shoulders. Her eyes flicked downward for just a moment. She was surprised by what she saw, but kept her expression neutral, though her thoughts sharpened. She’d need to tread carefully, and find out how much they already knew about Lily. “How long have you three known Lily?”

Rachel looked confused before saying, “Since kindergarten?”

“Same with you, Juliette?”

“Y-yes, M-Ma'am.”

Rachel looked over at the adult that came in with the two girls, “And you, ma’am?”

“I've known the Vanderbilts for years.”

“I don’t mean anything by this, but, Juliette, are you like Lily was before everything changed for her?”

Juliette’s hands flew back in front of her as she lowered her head and nodded.

“I’ll be right back,” Rebecca said before walking away and returning with a package. “Go ahead and try this dance belt on under your leotard, but since it’s not yours yet, make sure it is over your undergarments. It’ll help everything look a little better.”

Julie took the bag with a nude panty and went back to the changing room. She quickly opened the package and slipped the leotard back off. Once she had everything back on, with the new garment underneath, she turned toward the mirror, checking carefully. She searched for anything that might give her away. Seeing nothing, she smiled. She left the room and went back to where she had been standing in front of the shop girl like she had been instructed before.

“There, isn't that better, young girl?”

“Y-yes, M-Ma'am.”

“For class, you’ll want to wear that under your tights, Sweetie. It appears this is the correct size leotard. With class once a week, and practicing some other days in the week, you'll need enough to wear between times that the wash is done. I recommend starting with three each of short and long-sleeve leotards. You will probably want to purchase more later, for tights pick up at least five. And for your daughter's unique situation, you’ll want several of these belts as well. Five would be a good start. Now, if you three would follow me towards the shoes.”

In the shoe area, Julie looked at the rows of pointe shoes.

“Sorry, young ballerina, but you need to be a bit older for those. Usually at least eleven, and after a few years of lessons.” Rebecca expressed noticing where Julie was looking. “How long has Sammie been teaching you?”

“Just over a month.”

Rebecca decided not to mention it would be years before Juliette danced en pointe. The salesgirl directed the family to the soft ballet shoes. “Have a seat, little ballerina. What size shoes do you wear, Juliette?”

“Big kids size two.”

Rebecca slipped a size two sample shoe onto Juliette’s foot, and checked the fit. After trying a size two-and-a-half, Rebecca put the size twos back on and lacing the ribbons up, Rebecca said, “Stand up for me… third position… good. Now first… and fifth… good. Go ahead and relax and sit again.” … “Did those feel comfortable?”

“Yes, Ma'am.”

Rebecca removed the sample shoe and then put both of them in the sample collection. She handed a brand new package of shoes to Bree. “Let me grab a basket, and we’ll head back so you can pick out what you need now that we have her sizes.”

As Julie headed toward the changing area, Mommie called after her, “Keep the dance belt on so you can get used to it.”

“Yes, Mommie.”

Julie returned in her sweatshirt and set the leotard, tights, and dance belt package on the counter. Looking at the growing stack, Juliette’s eyes widened. ‘All this for me?’

“Juliette, grab a bag.” Mommie instructed.

With the bags in the trunk, Bree led the girls next door.

Pausing to glance at the clock, a college-aged woman greeted them. “Morning, how can I help you?”

“My daughter’s joining a Girl Scout troop. We found most of the uniform secondhand, but we still need a sash and a starter patch kit.”

“What troop?”

Rachel spoke, “Troop 5783.”

Typing on the computer, “I’ll need the troop leader’s name.”

“Mrs. Kane,” came from Julie this time.

“Got it. Hanna Kane's Juniors.” Directing the family to the Girl Scout area, “You’ll need these two patch sets, this vest, and these books. And go ahead and grab your troop numbers from that box.”

Almost back at the car, Bree teased her daughter, “You messed up in there, Princess.”

“I did?” Julie asked, looking confused, wondering what she did wrong.

“Yes, you let me leave a store without spending more than twenty-five dollars.”

Rachel giggled.

“Oh.” Once in the car, Juliette continued, “Seriously, who are you, and what have you done with my Mommie, who refused to buy me a girl’s costume for the last six years?”

Bree sighed and turned to face her daughter. “I’ll admit… I cared too much about what people thought instead of what made you happy.” She hesitated. “That’s… something I picked up from my Egg Donor. I’m sorry. I don’t want to be like her. I'll make the point that you didn't ask for a girl’s costume this year. I might have changed my opinion this year, maybe.”

“Your actions when I was wearing Denise's Elsa costume didn't show it.”

Sighing again, Bree responded to a very truthful statement by her daughter, “Honestly, you can thank Lily for our change of opinions… and your friends.”

“I see.”

“I guess your dad and I are trying to make up for years of hoping it would just go away.”

Julie looked towards the many bags in the trunk, “Where am I going to wear all these clothes? School?”

“You can be Julie everywhere except school for now. We’ll figure that out after you start seeing a counselor.” Bree turned and started driving to the mall down the street. “How about we stop at the Pizza Hut lunch buffet?”

“Sounds good, Mrs. Bowen.”

“Sure, Mommie.”

Rachel whispered, “Egg Donor?”

“It’s the not-nice nickname Mommie uses for my closed-minded Grandma Burroughs. The one I wanted to avoid when we walked around the block in the flower girl dress. She's no longer her Mother, she is Mommie’s egg donor.”

“Oh. Family drama?”

“Very much so.”

Bree parked by the Pizza Hut, near one of the mall entrances. Once in the pizza place, she told the hostess, “Three for the buffet, please. The girls are both ten.”

“A booth or table?”

Bree looked at the girls. Both shrugged. “Either one's fine.”

The hostess sat them at a booth, “Help yourselves to the buffet. Your server will be by in a minute for drinks.”

“That was a good lunch, girls. We need to head to Macy’s on the other side of the mall. We’ve got a few more things to pick up, and we’ll probably make some stops along the way. The mall will be packed today. I want you two to hold hands and stay close to me.”

Bree looked at the crowds in Build-A-Bear, weighing whether she wanted to brave it for the girls. Looking in a full-to-the-brim toy store, ‘Absolutely Not!’ "It's too busy, girls, maybe another day.” Instead, she directed the girls into the line for Santa.

“Mommie, we are ten!” Juliette exclaimed.

“If you keep complaining, we can see just how well you pull off that kindergarten look.. I’m sure I can find something very cute in your sizes.”

Rachel decided she wasn't going to complain, and Juliette slammed her mouth shut.

Twenty-five minutes later, they finally reached the front of the line, and an elf walked up to them, “Hello, ladies, would you like the girls together or separately?”

“Separately, please, Miss Elf.”

“OK, you are up, young lady,” the Elf said, directing Rachel to Santa.

Rachel sat next to Santa.

“Ho. Ho. Ho. What's your name, Sweetie?”

“Rachel.”

“Have you been a good girl for your parents?”

“Yes, Santa.”

“What do you want for Christmas?”

“A computer of my own and a bike, please.”

“I'll see what I can do. Can you smile at my elf with the camera, please?”

After the camera flash, Juliette replaced Rachel next to Santa.

“Ho. Ho. Ho. What's your name, Sweetie?”

“Juliette.”

“Have you been a good girl for your parents?”

“I… try to be good, Santa.”

“What do you want for Christmas?”

“An American Girl doll, ballet lessons, and… “ Julie hesitated, then whispered in Santa's ear, “Th-the… ability to be myself permanently.”

Santa hesitated for just a moment before continuing, “I’ll see what I can do. Can you smile at my elf with the camera, please?”

After the camera flash, Juliette rejoined her Mommie, who was paying for the pictures.
While they waited for Julie’s picture to finish printing, Bree smiled at the girls, who had clearly enjoyed the visit despite their earlier complaints. “Here are your coats, girls.”

Bree led the girls into a sparsely decorated storefront. Juliette looked at the sign outside as she walked inside, ‘Mrs. Claus's Closet Photo Studio.’

As Bree studied the prices displayed, the lady behind the counter said on the phone, “You realize you will forfeit the deposit, Sir?” …

“I'll process your cancellation.” …

“Goodbye.” The lady hung up the phone.

The two girls were looking at the selection of pictures hanging on the walls.

“Hello, ma’am, do you have time for at least two costumes for the girls?”

“I just had a cancellation for a ninety-minute block starting at one o’clock today. If the girls follow directions, we might even fit in more costumes.”

Looking at the clock, Bree thought, ‘That’s in forty-five minutes.’ Turning back at the receptionist, “That's fine.”

"I’ll need a fifty-dollar deposit to hold the slot.”

As Bree was about to hand over the money, Christina warned, “Because it’s so close to Christmas, Mrs. Claus’s elves can’t guarantee your photo backgrounds will be ready today. They have up to two business days to do them. That will be the end of the day on Tuesday next week. If that timing doesn’t work, we can use standard backgrounds instead of the green screen.”
“We’ll go with the special green screen backgrounds. It’s okay if we don’t have the pictures on Christmas day.” Bree responded. After exchanging information, the group headed back into the mall.

“Ring” …

“Mrs. Claus’s Closet Photo Studio, Christina speaking.” …

“I’m sorry, I just booked our last available time.” …

“We close for the season today at this location.” …

“Yes, our Riverville store will reopen on Monday the fourth.” …

“This mall location won’t reopen until Black Friday next year.”