Chapter 1
They say that you can’t choose your parents, and I for one, can heartily agree with that. My own parents, Duke and Daisy Smithers, should have had a better upbringing if there had been any justice in the world. Their own two sets of parents were aging hippies, living in a commune and growing odd plants.
I’m not saying that they were bad people on the few times I had met them, merely spaced out for most of the time. I’m still not sure if my parents had actually married, but the five of us children all bore the surname of Smithers.
We lived in a nice house on Ampton Road, Birmingham, as they had done quite well for themselves when they were new to the music business and not as jaded as they now were. I have to admit that they did try to make sure that we were dressed reasonably well, and that we went to school, no doubt their rebellion against their own parents. School for us was Hallfield, being a co-educational that took you from kindergarten to the exams. It was an easy walk from home.
I was their fifth child, and, hopefully, the last. My birth wasn’t easy, so I was told, as Mum had been on drugs for some time while I was being created. It caused me to be taken, before time, as the complications were making her own life problematic. As a result, I was no sturdy lad. In fact, the first words, so they said, that Mum spoke when she saw me was, “He’s hardly there!”
Which is why I now have the name that I’m lumbered with. My siblings are, by age, Artichoke, usually called Archie. He’s your typical big brother, and I do mean big! He looks after the rest of us as if we were his herd. If the story is to be believed, he was conceived in a field of artichokes when my parents were working in the commune fields.
The oldest sister is Belisha, or Belle to us. You can guess where she was conceived, one dark night after a show. I guess that she was lucky that she didn’t get lumbered with Zebra.
Then there is Cataclysm, usually called Cat, which she does live up to, at times. She was born at a very big time for our parents, when their band, the Smithereens, was actually in the charts, even if it was the Midlands C&W Indie charts. All three of them work, but still live at home.
My other brother, just two years older than me, came about after my parents were living separate lives for some months. They were in different rehab clinics. His name is Dromedary, as it only took one hump when they got back together. We call him Drom.
Me, well, with those first words, I ended up, after much debate, as Ephemeral. Usually I’m Effy at home, and the same is my nickname in school. Which is a problem, because I’m a boy. I hoped that they stop with me, as the next one would start with F, and there’s no knowing just how that would pan out.
Being musicians, my parents rose late and played until the early hours. They had a regular spot in a Western-themed bar, of which there are a few in Birmingham. The better-known ones are Coyote Ugly and Rodeos’ BBQ, and they had played in those better places, and others, in their best days.
Now, they played in a grotty little place called Quarter Horse, which did have a quarter of a horse, in fibreglass, hanging at the main door. It tried to be a true western experience, with peanut shells on the wood floor, and wire netting to save the band from being pelted with bottles. When I say it was rough, I do mean rough.
The set-up was luckily good for us kids. Some nights, Archie would take us there, around midnight, after the band had been on for a couple of hours, and us smaller ones would duck down and walk across the front of the stage, salvaging the best of the thrown fruit and veg for stew the next day. Did I tell you that the band was well past it? That, as far as the management was concerned, was the attraction, as it led to more drinking, more rowdy behaviour, and lots of sales from the trays of throwable items. It was, as they say, entertainment.
It was summer, the one before I started my last year at school, Drom had done well enough to be going tertiary, which was a first for the family. He didn’t have to go far, just to the Birmingham City University Conservatoire. He was studying Applied Theatre, as he wanted to be an actor, rather than follow his elders. Archie was working as a motor mechanic, and both girls had gone into hairdressing, not being clever enough to take up nursing.
Me, well I really had an itch to be a train driver, belting along the rails in an easy chair and your hand on a lever. I ask you, how hard could it be? That was until I watched a documentary on the TV, on the first Saturday night of the holidays. It followed a day in the life of a train driver, with him talking about the complexities of the job, with frequent inserts of near-miss footage, as well as interviews with ex-drivers who needed psychiatric help after seeing people step out in front of them.
When I declared that my dream job was no longer a dream, Belle told me that they needed an assistant at the big salon where both sisters worked. Cat agreed that it would be a good way for me to earn some money over summer. I wasn’t keen, but something to do and getting paid was a real draw.
I was taken into town with them on the Monday morning. The girls spoke to Ruth, the owner, and she looked hard at me.
“With a little TLC, we can make him almost appear as just another teenage girl. If he does the sweeping up of hair, and general tidying, you will hardly know he was there.”
So, they gave my hair a brushing and put a salon tunic on me, then gave me a broom and a dustpan and brush. What was funny was when I looked at myself in a mirror, I saw that the tunic was so long on me, it hid the bottom of my shorts.
I have to say that it was an easy job, sweeping around as customers left and rearranging the vanity tools. One interesting aspect of the job was that I was in a constant gaggle of women and girls, some almost my age. It allowed me to observe them without anyone calling me out as a perve. I stayed quiet and kept my head down.
For lunch, I went to the café nearby with my sisters and was bought a lunch that wasn’t enough to keep a hamster alive, but they were buying so I ate it all. That set the tone of the first week, and I was given an envelope with some cash in on Friday afternoon. I joined my sisters to go in on Saturday, feeling good about this. It may be a good occupation until I go back to school.
That Saturday, one of the ladies commented, out loud, that the girl doing the cleaning looked a bit plain. The owner stood up for me, telling her that I was still at school and was a tomboy, but good at what I was employed for. That afternoon, after everyone had gone and we were cleaning up, she took me aside.
“Effy, dear. That Hargreaves lady was right. We shouldn’t have a plain person working in the salon. When you come in with your sisters on Monday, I’ll give you a brief make-over, so that you won’t stand out. It’ll be so light; you’ll hardly know it’s there.”
During Sunday, I was in two minds whether I would go to the salon on Monday. Belle sat me down in the afternoon.
“Effy, this isn’t as big a deal as you think. Just a little bit of powder, a touch of lippy, and some eyebrow pencil and you’ll look the part.”
“But sis! It’s make-up. What happens if someone who knows me comes in?”
“Who do we serve?”
“Women and girls.”
“How many have been in for their summer make-over that you go to school with this week?”
“Maybe a few, but I wasn’t wearing make-up at the time.”
“Says the one with a pink tunic that looked like a dress on you, and nicely brushed hair.”
“Did any of them say anything?”
“A stylist and her customer keep total secrecy, but I can tell you that it was all good.”
“I’ll be toast next term!”
“More like crumpet, brother dear, the way a few were looking at you. You’ve scored more than a few points by working in a salon. Most girls would prefer a boy who had some appreciation of the other side.”
Mollified, I joined my sisters on Monday morning, and I was taken into a back room by Ruth, and properly ‘Molly-fied’. She brushed my hair, gave my legs a quick scrape with a safety razor, sat me in a chair and worked on my face for only a few minutes.
When I went into the customer area, all the girls smiled at me. I looked at myself in a mirror but found it hard to see what she had done, except that I looked like a girl for some reason. By the time we went home, I had completely forgotten that I may be wearing make-up, except for the odd raspberry taste when I licked my lips.
In fact, it took until evening before Cat approached me with a wet wipe to clean my face. I had been wondering why Mum had been grinning and Dad had been giving me odd looks. That set the tone for the second week, with just the face needing work in the morning. I noticed a couple of other girls from school, and they invariably smiled and greeted me with a hug, not something that had happened before.
In the third week, I was keeping the salon so clean and tidy that I had a little time on my hands. Ruth sat me at one of the chairs and got me to brush my own hair into a different style, and clean off my face to redo it myself, with her giving me tips as I worked. After that, I had to do it myself in the mornings, and never forgot to clean it off before we left.
So, by the time I was in my fourth week at the salon, I could do my own hair and make-up, making sure that I kept with the ‘hardly there’ look. On Tuesday, I was emptying the dustpan when Ruth called me over to the reception desk. Standing there was Marina, a girl in my class who I had crushed on for a couple of years.
“Effy, this customer wants to have the same look as you. She has an afternoon with her grandparents and doesn’t want to look too made-up. It seems that they’re a bit traditional. Can you take her appointment?”
What could I do, mess up this nice job by saying that I couldn’t do it? I could do my own face, so why not someone else.
“If you would care to walk this way, madam, there’s a spare seat.”
When I had her sat comfortably, I asked her what she would like.
“I want that ‘girl next door look’ that you have, Effy. My grans haven’t seen me for a while, and I’m sure that they wouldn’t appreciate the look that I normally use. I learned how to make myself totally gorgeous, but not how to keep it simple. I always do too much.”
“You do look gorgeous, Marina. Hold still while I clean all your good work off.”
I cleaned her face and did what I’d been doing for myself. This time, close up and personal with Marina, one of the most beautiful girls in school. I had been good friends with her twin brothers, who were a year ahead of me, and had started their apprenticeships this summer. As I worked, we talked, and I asked her questions about how the boys were getting on.
“They’re enjoying the work. Scott told me that it was almost like being back at school, learning the theory. Virgil really enjoys working on engines.”
I have to say, right here, that her mother was brought up in a family that had a collection of the Anderson TV cartoons. So, the boys ended up as Scott and Virgil, from Thunderbirds. Marina was actually Aqua Marina, from Stingray, but didn’t like to use the first name. Of course, with a mother called Penelope, their destiny had been set. Their father had been christened Peter, but he was known, in the area, as Parker.
When I had finished her face, she wanted me to brush her hair like mine. When she stood, she gave me a hug.
“Thanks for that Effy. If I’m asked what I call my look, I’ll tell everyone that it’s the ‘Ephemeral look’. What are you doing on Saturday evening. I’ve got a pair of tickets for ‘Pauline and the Pussycats’. Would you like to go?”
“Me, of course I would. I think that they’re fabulous.”
“Of course, you do realise that it will be a girls night out, there’s a crowd of us from school who are going. The other girls have been talking about how natural you are and want you to join us. We’ll meet you at the fast-food joint next door to the theatre. Glam up and look good. I’m sure that your sisters will help you look the part.”
With that, she went to the desk to pay her account and was out the door while I stood there, wondering what I’d got myself in for. Me, Effy Smithers, going out on a Saturday night with the gorgeous Marina! I had been crushing on her from afar and she had just hugged me! Not only just her, but there was her band of friends, the best-looking bunch that I knew, and who had been subject of some interesting personal times before sleep.
That evening, I asked Belle about going out with the girls.
“Hold it right there, Effy. That glamour-puss Marina has asked you out for a date with the rest of her friends, and she told you to ‘glam up’.”
“That’s what she said. She thinks that you and Cat will be able to help me.”
“How keen are you? It will cost you a bit of the wages that you’ve earned. We can keep the cost down by going to cheaper outlets, but you’re going to have to study hard to appear natural on Saturday evening. It’s also finding the time to shop. I’ll ask Cat.”
She went off, coming back with a big grin.
“You’re in luck. This Friday evening there’s a big late shopping event at Digbeth. There will be a lot of traders open and I’m sure that we’ll get you what you want. Come along to our room and I’ll measure you. That will save time.”
I went to the girls’ bedroom, usually a restricted area, and had to take my shirt off so that she could measure me. With things written on a notepad, she smiled.
“You’re in luck. This will cost you less than I thought. Cat and I have old things that we’ve never thrown away that will fit you. We’ll have a look and make a list of what you’ll have to buy to be your own.“
I went to bed, that night, wondering if it was going to be worth it, all this preparation for one night at a show with Marina and the girls. Still, if it gave me points that I could trade on in my last year at school, it could be a good move.
On Wednesday, I was told that I may have to take the odd customer with simple procedures, as my work yesterday had been good. I was expected to be arriving with the same look as my sisters on Monday. Until then, I was to see what I could do in that regard. Belle thought that it would be a good opportunity to try out my look for Saturday.
During our lunch time, I gave Belle the money she asked for, and she went off to get me my very first female things. She came back to the salon with a couple of bags. That evening, I had to try on the things she had bought for me. It was strange to dress in their room, with a bra that had spongy things in the cups, panties with no pee slit, a top and skirt, all stood on a pair of open-toed strappy shoes with a small heel. There were a few things that I was told to do in the morning, mainly being given a pink safety razor and told to shave my arms and armpits when I showered in the morning. I was also handed a black handbag with a long strap.
“Why do I need this?”
“Effy, dear. You know that policemen have a lot of stuff that they have to carry when they’re working, like radios, handcuffs, and a truncheon.”
“Yes, it’s what they need for their job.”
“Well, being a girl is much the same. There’s things that we have to have with us and there’s no pockets on our usual outfits.”
“So, what is it that takes a bag this size?”
“Well, there’s the make-up that you’ve been using. Then there’s your wallet, your keys, your tissues. Not forgetting spare panties and period things. You never know when a period can start. I remember when I went to Blackpool with Tony. He had an old motorbike and by the time we got there, the vibration had made me lose feeling in my feet and had shaken my insides so much that I started a period a week early. He was very upset that it had spoilt the weekend of passion that he had planned.”
“How can I have a period? I’m a boy.”
“You’re trying to look like a girl on a girls’ night out. No, self-respecting girl would go out with the crowd without carrying emergency supplies. You never know who may ask you if you have a spare tampon.”
I knew what a tampon was, and what it did. Living with two sisters did educate you on some odd things. At school, some of the rougher guys would joke about pulling the string to see if the girl would say ‘mama’ in a mechanical voice. I asked Cat about it one day, and she told me that any guy who tried that with her would be talking in a squeaky voice for some time afterwards.
“Oh! And you do need a couple of condoms to make the statement that you’re not just a kid. I expect that you have a few in your room, maybe Drom has a few put aside.”
Luckily, Drom was staying with friends and doing theatre things with a dramatic society, so I had my private space to do what I had to do. Thursday morning, I showered using the new products that Cat had put in the bathroom for me. I went to the salon with my sisters, in the skirt and top, and having already made up with some cosmetics that Cat had given me to use, with the bag on my shoulder, filled with all the things that I normally stuffed into pockets. At the salon, the tunic didn’t reach the skirt hem, so that I now looked more like the others.
Friday, Belle loaned me a different outfit and we all had a laugh on the way in.
“Effy, I don’t think that Mum could believe that it was you at the meal table, last night. Dad could hardly stop smiling. He always wanted girls, and with you now looking like one, we now outnumber the boys. Of course, with their own childhood and the fact that we’re a dysfunctional family, there’s no way that they would complain about what you’re doing.”
On Friday afternoon, Belle sat me at one of the salon stations and did my hair differently, adding some colour streaks, and then gave me a more glamorous make-up. I was staggered. Not only did I look girlish, but I also looked almost as good as Marina with her school face. Belle got me to follow every move as she worked. As far as I could tell, it was what I had done before, only different colours and a lot thicker application.
After dinner, Dad gave me some money.
“I’m proud of you, Effy. At last, there’s someone in this family daring to be different. All the rest have followed normal pathways, although Drom may turn up trumps with the theatre. I’m right behind you. Cat has told me what you’re doing this for, but you may want to go beyond Saturday night. When you go out, tomorrow night, I want you to be the best-looking girl in town and do the family proud.”
Archie drove us to the market, a big part of the retail area. The streets were closed with pedestrian use only. He dropped us off and told Belle to call when we were ready to leave. There I was, in a skirt and top, made up to look like a fashion model, and here to look for an outfit for an evening with the girls!
Once I had been there for half an hour without anyone laughing, I started to enjoy it. I had all the money that I’d earned, on top of what Dad had given me, and was trying to spot bargains as much as my sisters. I had a couple of skirts and tops in a bag and needed to go to the toilet. My sisters took my arms and marched me into the public loo, where they guarded my bags while I used a cubicle. While I was touching up my lipstick as my sisters were doing their own business, a lady commented on my make-up, so I told her that it had been applied at the salon. When we left the loo, Belle was laughing.
“Not only a pretty girl, but a walking advertisement for the salon. Cat and I are going to look at sexy underwear, you carry on along the street and we’ll catch up with you.”
I wandered, slowly, looking in windows and checking out the specials. I was looking at a dress in the window of a vintage shop when a reflection caught my eye. I saw my brother, Drom, standing next to a menswear shop across the street. There was a guy standing next to him, his arm across Droms’ shoulder. As I looked, they turned to face each other, and they kissed!
Marianne Gregory © 2026
Chapter 2
I waited as I was, as the other guy strode away. Drom stood for a few moments and then went to a stall selling coffee. They had some tables and chairs set out. I turned around and watched him get a drink, then he went to sit down.
I went over to the stall and got my own drink. I had been worried what Drom would say if he ever saw me in a skirt, but now that wasn’t what I wanted to talk to him about. I went over to his table.
“Do you mind if I sit here?”
“Make yourself at home, Miss.”
I sat down and put my bags on a vacant chair.
“Thank you, Drom.”
He looked surprised.
“How do you know me? Have you been to one of the theatre shows.”
“I’ve known you a lot longer than that. What I saw, just now, proves that those magazines that you keep under the mattress aren’t the body builder ones that you told me. How long have you known that you were gay, brother of mine.”
“Effy! I thought that I was the queer one in the family. How come you’re sitting there, in a skirt and looking absolutely gorgeous?”
I gave him the potted story of my summer and he laughed when I told him that I was here to get a dress for tomorrow night, as I was going out with Aqua Marina and her school friends.
“Do you mean to say that Marina The Model asked you out on a date, but only if you were in a dress. That’s so cool and out there. I was thinking that I may be the bad apple in the family and there you are, being much further out, it puts me in the shade.”
“That’s the thing, Drom. Dad even gave me some money to spend and told me that he was glad that there was one in the family willing to be different.”
“He did, did he? I was afraid to tell him that I’m gay and have known it since I was ten. Did you see Karl, earlier?”
“I did. Is he the one that you’re living with?”
“That’s right. We’re sharing a flat near the theatre. I’ve decided that I’m not coming home, so you can have the room to yourself. I’ll pop in on Sunday and clear the rest of my stuff out. If the folks have surfaced, I’ll bare my soul and hope that Dad accepts my strangeness as easily as he’s accepted you. I don’t know what our sisters will say.”
“Ask them for yourself, they’re just about to sit down with us.”
Cat and Belle had some more bags when they arrived. I stood.
“Cappo for both of you?”
“Yes, please, Effy. Hello, Drom. My, don’t you look spiffing. Have you got a date tonight?”
As I walked to the stall, I heard my brother cough, probably to give him some thought time. When I got back with the paper cups, I put them in front of the girls and sat to take another sip of my own. Belle put a hand on my arm.
“Effy, Drom has told us that he’s gay. Did you know that before?”
“No. I did know that he had some magazines with naked guys in, but he told me that they were bodybuilders. I only found out when I was looking at a cute dress in that vintage shop and saw them kissing.”
“What’s the other guy like?”
“About the size of Archie, only good looking. If I was gay, I’d fancy him myself.”
Drom gave out a hoot.
“You, a boy, sitting there in a skirt and you’re telling me that you’re not gay! Tell me that you don’t check out other guys.”
“Actually, brother, I don’t. I like girls, and if I have to wear a dress to be with the best one, then it’s no bother to wear a dress. I wear a tunic at the salon that hides my shorts. If that’s wearing a dress, then I’ve been wearing one for a month.”
“Don’t tell me that you work at the salon with your sisters!”
Belle pointed her finger at him.
“Lay off Effy! She’s one of the most industrious ones in the salon. Since she’s worked there, the place is kept spotless and tidy. The boss has been very happy, and even allowed us to use the facilities to make her look like this tonight. We’ll do the same tomorrow, to make her irresistible to Marina.”
They continued to talk, as I sat there, finishing my drink. Whenever they mentioned me, it was as a girl. It was if the first fifteen years of my life were for nothing! That’s when a thought struck me. I was getting wrapped up in this playacting, even enjoying being looked at by girls and guys alike. Even now, there were people passing by who were spending longer looking at the three of us than was normal. I looked across the street.
“Can you look after my bags for a while? That vintage shop is calling me.”
Belle looked over the road.
“That one in the window will look great on you, Effy, if you can afford it.”
“That’s what I’ve decided to find out. I’ll be back.”
I got up and walked over to the shop and went in. A smiling lady greeted me.
“That red dress in the window. Do you have one that I can try on?”
“Of course, dear. Let me show you the changing room and you can slip that top and skirt off and I’ll bring it to you. Special occasion?”
“First date, and I want to stand out in a crowd.”
“You stand out in a crowd, dear, red dress or not.”
I went and stripped, and she brought in one of the dresses. I tried it on and looked at my reflection in the long mirror. Yep! All I could see was me as a she. The woman brought some trinkets to me that she said would go well with my colouring and the dress. I walked out of there, several pounds lighter, but with the dress, a vintage necklace, some bangles and cheap rings. I also had directions to a shoe shop that would help me get shoes that went with the outfit.
When I got back to the table, Drom had left, but his seat was taken by a girl that used to come to the house when I was several years younger. Cat was holding her hand and smiled at me.
“Effy, you must remember Bronwyn. We were great friends at school. You would have been still in primary when she left the country. She’s been working in Africa but has come home again.”
“Hello, Bronwyn. I must have been about ten when I saw you last. How are you?”
“All better having met Cat again. If I remember, the last time I saw you, you were a boy.”
“Still am, under this skirt. What are you doing here, now?”
“The NGO that I was working with have had to pull out of the area that we were in. It became a war zone, and we weren’t welcome. I’m working in the local office and was only thinking about Cat the other day. Then, hey presto, here she is.”
Cat was smiling broadly.
“Bronnie and I will go to the pub and properly catch up. Don’t wait up for me.”
They both stood, never releasing their grip, and walked off, very close together. I sat for a moment.
“Dad’s going to be happy.”
“How’s that?”
“He told me that he was happy that I was the first in the family to dare to be different. Now, I’ve found out that my brother is living with a guy in a gay relationship, and, if I’m not wrong, Cat’s had a lesbian relationship with Bronwyn, and is likely to be restarting it.”
Belle giggled.
“You do realise that we will both have a room of our own. We’ll be able to snore and fart as often as we like without being stared at.”
“Are Archie and you the only straight ones in the family?”
“That depends on what you consider straight, Effy. As far as Archie goes, why do you think that he looks after us girls so well, with you being included now?”
“I always thought that it was being a big brother.”
“Archie has a lot of girls that he knows, Effy. I’ve met a few of them, when I was working the street around the railway station. I gave that world up when I got pregnant and never went back to it after the abortion. Archie is one of the better guys around in that business. You don’t think that he was able to buy that flash car on a mechanic wage, do you?”
I sat for several moments as I processed it all in my thoughts.
“OK. So, I’m the youngest of the family. My parents are bad musicians who play in a grotty bar and probably have more drugs than corn flakes. My oldest brother is a pimp, my oldest sister is a past prostitute, and the next two siblings are a lesbian and a gay. Someone said the word ‘dysfunctional’ recently, and that really fits, now that I’m a cross dresser. There’s just one thing I have to do now.”
“What’s that, Effy?”
“I need shoes to match this dress and the nice sales lady told me about a place down the street that’s giving out two pairs of earrings if you get your ears done and buy a pair of studs.”
We picked up our bags and made our way along the street until we found the tattoo and piercing parlour with the stud plus special. I sat in his chair while the guy marked my ears, Five minutes later, I walked out with a stud in each ear and two sets of earrings in my bag. The shoe shop was good, as they gave me an extra discount for matching the shoes to the dress, telling us that the other shop would also give a discount to anyone matching a dress to the shoes. Belle called Archie, and I now knew why she had him on speed dial.
On the way home, she sat in the front with him and told him about Bronwyns’ return on the scene, and then the fact that Drom was living with a guy. He wanted to know who the guy was, so I told him the name was Karl, and if he wanted a description, just look in the mirror and smile. He nodded.
“I know about him. He looks after a couple of girls and several boys around the theatre and university district. I hope that he’s not leading Drom into working the street.”
“They certainly looked loved up when I saw them together, but Karl did look to be the dominant one. Drom said that he’ll be home on Sunday to clean out his stuff, and that the room will be mine after that.”
“I’ll have a heart to heart with him then. Thanks for the heads up, Effy. You would make a good manager when you’re older, especially the way you look now.”
When we arrived home, Archie let us out and took off again, no doubt to cruise his girls’ patches and make sure that they were all right. The folks would still be playing, so Belle decided that I needed to show her what I looked like in the red dress.
I took off the skirt and top, and put the dress on, and then added the bits of bling and the shoes, which had a higher heel than I’d been used to. Belle took some pictures on her phone, to show Cat when we saw her, and I had to practise walking up and down the upstairs corridor until I was able to do it easily.
When I went to fully undress, cleanse, and get into bed, Belle gave me an old nightie to wear, to keep up the feeling. It was sheer and slippery and the feeling that I got was more than good. In the morning, I was in the nightie with my old dressing gown on when I went into the bathroom, very early. I used all the new products that Cat had put in there and felt pretty good when I went to dress.
Among last nights’ purchases were another skirt and top, so that I wouldn’t have to wear the same things two days in a row. Belle had promised that she would cull her wardrobe to see if there were any other things I could have, especially now I was happy in a dress.
Belle and Archie came into the kitchen as I was tidying up my breakfast things, so I started getting theirs together. Belle helped, but Archie just sat down, expecting us to serve him. I mentioned that to Belle as we were going to the salon, and she told me that it was a womans’ place to look after the alpha male, and, seeing he was now the only male in the house, he had to be the alpha.
“What about Dad?”
“Our father is off with the pixies most of the time. All he’s good for is playing guitar and singing off-key. If he had ever been alpha, we would all be rocket scientists.”
Cat arrived a few minutes after us at the salon, wearing an outfit she had bought last night. We opened up and got into the Saturday rush. I was giving a girl the ‘hardly there’ look when the lady who had commented on my plain look came in. One of the other girls was looking after her hair as I finished with my client and started a round of sweeping and tidying.
When the lady went to pay, she was talking to Ruth. I was emptying the dustpan into the bin when Ruth called me over.
“Effy, dear. This lady is the one who spoke about your plain looks last month. She has just told me that she thinks that your new look is fabulous and is sorry if she had offended you.”
“It’s all right, madam. I was a bit dowdy back then. I’m still in school and concentrate too much on my lessons to go out clubbing. Since I’ve worked here, I’ve come to appreciate looking good.”
“Quite so, young Effy. That’s an odd nickname?”
“I was called Ephemeral on my birth certificate. It follows the rest of my family. We were all named after where, or how, we were conceived or looked like at birth. I was a very small premmie, and Mum said that I was hardly there, so Ephemeral was my name.”
“That’s so precious. Look, I have a business making organic cosmetics for the fashion industry. I’m looking after Pauline and the Pussycats tonight, but I wonder if you can come and see me on Sunday. You do have that ‘girl next door’ look that may be what we’re looking for.”
“I’ll be at that concert tonight. I’ll be with a bunch of girls from school.”
She dug into her bag, pulled out a business card and grabbed a pen from the desk. She wrote something on it and handed it to me.
“At that theatre, when the show’s over, there’s a door to the backstage off to the right of the stage. There’ll be a guy guarding it from autograph hunters, but show him this and he’ll let you, and one friend only, in. I’ll be at the dressing room to clean the girls’ faces of stage make-up. Bring what you need to give them your look and I’ll pay you on Sunday.”
“Thank you, madam. I’ll be there!”
She left and Ruth looked at me.
“You’ve certainly left your mark there, young lady. She only comes in to get her hair looked after every month, and we do carry some of her range in house. In fact, most of what you use on your own look is from her products. I’ll give you new products to take with you, tonight. It will be great if one of my girls gets to give that band a new look.”
During our lunch break, Belle dragged me into a lingerie shop where I was urged to buy the right underwear for the red dress. I came out with a bag, containing a red bra and pant set, a red slip and a few packs of sheer black tights. Marina was in, later that afternoon, with another three girls, all booked in for a hairdo. She told me that they were meeting at six-thirty for food, and the show started at eight, so we could enjoy our meal. I told her that I would be there. It was odd, with the other three, all in my class, treating me as if they’d known me as a girl all along.
Because we had seen what their hair was looking like, Cat and Belle did something similar for me, although mine was a fair bit shorter. They had all left with a semi-upsweep with side strands dangling, and I felt weird when I got out of the chair, but it did accentuate the girl image.
Back at home, I stripped off and had a flannel wash to smell nice. Belle had loaned me some fresh-smelling underarmo and a small bottle of perfume, after showing me how little to use, and the best places to put it. I had laid out my outfit on the bed when there was a knock on the door.
I opened it to let Archie in. He gave me a small mobile phone.
“Effy, this is for you. It’s what they call a ‘burner’. It has my number programmed into the speed dial list. All you need to do is to press one, one, one. If I don’t answer, leave a short message, no passing the time of day. If you want me to pick you up, just tell me the time and place and I’ll be there. If you’re being picked up by Marinas’ parents, tell me and I won’t be worried. If they take you to her house, it’s only a short walk, and I would think that Virgil or Scott will walk you home. Here’s the charger. Keep the phone on while you’re out and keep it charged. I’ll be looking out for you from now on. You look too beautiful to be out there alone, so make sure that you don’t wander away from the others.”
I thanked him and put it in my bag with my own, not that I tended to get many calls. When he had gone, I continued my preparations, putting on the new underwear, which gave me goose bumps with the feel of it. I did my own make-up, in a ‘night out’ style, then put the dress on.
It fitted my shape and was a classic look in a red shiny material with a skirt that was generous, if a few inches over my knee. I looked in the mirror and swayed to see it swing from side to side in a way that I also enjoyed seeing on other girls. The midriff was a two-inch band of black with small beads. When I had the shoes on, I made sure that my bag had all the right things in, as well as a clear plastic bag with the cosmetics and various brushes and pencils in. With all the bling added, I took out the studs and put the small hoops in my ears. I took a selfie on my own phone. I looked hot!
I looked into the kitchen as Belle and my parents were sitting down for the evening meal. Dad got up and came over to give me a hug and a twenty-pound note, ‘for your meal’. Mum told me that I must be her most beautiful daughter, which made Belle hoot. Archie came in behind me.
“I’ll take you to the theatre, Effy. You’ll find Saturday night on the bus a bad experience with you looking like that.”
We said our cheerio’s and he sat me in his car. When he got in, we left the house.
“How are you feeling, Effy?”
“Strange. I saw myself in the mirror and all I could think of was how I would like to get me in bed.”
“I can understand that. You could make a fortune near the railway station, but I’ll fight you if you ever think about that. You’re destined for better things; I can sense it. Before summer, you were like a shadow in the background, and now you’re out there and proud.”
“Drom said that I was more out there than he was. He thought that I was looking at boys.”
“Are you?”
“No more than usual. I do notice them looking at me in the same was that they look at other girls, but some do appear creepy.”
“You hone that skill, girl. If they seem creepy, then you stay away from them. Remember, if you get caught alone with someone like that, they would not be happy to find what’s in your panties. You’ll be safer with Marina, who already knows what you have.”
When we arrived at the theatre, he stopped to let me get out, and then he drove away, leaving me standing at the kerbside, looking like jailbait. I went into the fast-food place and saw the others at a table, with all the boys looking at them. I put on my brightest smile and walked towards them, making sure that the skirt was swaying as it should.
Beth was the first to see me, and the surprise on her face alerted the others. When Marina saw me, her eyes lit up and she stood to give me a hug and a kiss on the cheek. I was led to the last seat at the table as the others regained their composure.
“Girls, you all know Effy. Effy, You know Beth, Evelyn, Josie, and Wilma. My word, when I said to glam up, I never expected you to outshine the rest of us.”
“I could never outshine you girls. You’re the prettiest group in school and have been since we went there. I’ve admired you all from afar, but not like some of the boys. I’m in admiration of your grace and intellect. Just being here, with you, is a privilege.”
When they had all stopped giggling, and we had decided on what we wanted to eat, we went up, in twos, to place our orders. I was standing in line with Marina when she took hold of my hand.
“My treat, Effy. I was the one to ask you out on a date, so I’m paying. No arguments. Mum will be waiting for me to call her after the show. She’ll pick us up and Virgil will walk the two of us to your place after we’ve been home, then he’ll walk me home again. Is that all right?”
“That will be great, Marina. This is the best Saturday night I’ve ever had, and it’s only just started. I do have a little surprise for you, after the show, but I’ll spring that before we leave the theatre.”
“Oooh! I like surprises. I’ll be trying to work out what it may be. That dress is perfect for you, where did you get it?”
“At the vintage shop in Digbeth, last night at their market event.”
“Did you choose it yourself, or did your sisters help?”
“They were across the road having a coffee, it’s all my own work.”
“And pierced ears as well, I see. Are you making this look permanent?”
“That’s entirely up to you, sweet Marina. If you want to see me again, in a dress, then there’s a load that my sisters will be putting my way.”
“Do you like looking like this?”
“It’s growing on me, Marina. I’ll just have a cheeseburger, please, with a strawberry shake.”
Marianne Gregory © 2026
Chapter 3
It was wonderful, sitting at that table with the other girls. As we ate, the conversation turned from boys to fashions, back to boys and then what we wanted out of our last year of high school. I found out that it was possible to re-enrol as transgender and live my real-life period. While it sounded exciting, it also sounded expensive, with some of the clothing prices being bandied around.
Eventually, we all trooped off to the toilets and I found myself reworking my lipstick next to Beth.
“You really are a knockout, Effy. You rock that dress. You realise that Marina has had her eyes on you before she saw you in the salon. It’s been the fact that you’re a boy that held her back.”
“I’ll let you into a secret, Beth. I’ve crushed on Marina for years. I’d be at her house with Scott and Virgil and had to appear to be uninterested. They would have ribbed me something shocking if they had guessed the truth. It doesn’t matter so much now they’re working.”
The show was a lot of fun. The support band was a local one who were very good. After a short break, the curtains opened to show Pauline and the Pussycats. They had started out as a tribute band, doing old numbers from the cartoon series of Josie and the Pussycats, but had developed original material of their own. We were all singing along and there was a lot of screaming.
About halfway through their set, I realised that my own appreciation of them was fundamentally different. Before tonight, I had loved them for their music, as well as the fact that none of them were much older than me and were all absolute babes! I was now watching them and noting how they moved, what they were wearing, and focussing on their make-up. The faces had evolved as the band had evolved, from the ‘Cats’ look with whiskers to a much more normal, but still glamorous look.
Then I caught a glimpse of Marina with tears in her eyes and realised that she had a big crush on them. That made my surprise even more special. When the encore had finished and the curtains shut for the final time, the house lights came up and a dishevelled crowd started to leave. Beth turned to us.
“Mum will be outside to take the four of us home. We’ll see you two later.”
Marina gave her a hug.
‘I’ll call home when we’re ready. Effy doesn’t live far away. I’ll give you a call.”
We had reached the aisle, so had a group hug. The others went towards the exit, and I took Marinas’ hand and pulled her towards the stage.
“Where are we going?”
“Surprise time.”
We went to the right and found the door with a burly guy standing by it. I pulled the card out of my bag and showed it to him.
“Mrs. Hargreaves said that she wanted to see me after the show.”
“OK, ladies, just carry on down to the end of the corridor and you’ll see the dressing room with the star on the door. Have fun.”
He opened the door for us, and I pulled a very surprised Marina into backstage.
“Now, Effy, this really is a surprise!”
The door with the star was at the end of the corridor, as we had been told, and I took a deep breath as I turned the knob and we walked into the dressing room, a rather large room with all of the Pussycats sitting around sipping from bottles of water. Mrs. Hargreaves saw us come in.
“Great that you could make it, Effy. Introduce me to your equally beautiful friend.”
“Mrs. Hargreaves, this is Marina, we’re at school together.”
“OK. You two, I’m Beryl from now on. Did you bring some supplies, Effy?”
“In my bag, Beryl.”
“Right, you two. We have to make these stars look like ordinary girls. Marina, you must know how to remove make-up, so you can help to get the stage look off. There’s plenty of wet wipes. We’ll take one each, and then you and I will do the others while Effy creates her ‘girl next door’ look.”
“You’re talking about her Ephemeral look. I had it done last week and it’s a great disguise. It fooled my fuddy-duddy grandparents.”
Everyone had a laugh, and we went to work in turning the fabulous Pussycats into normal moggies. Beryl helped me pick products that worked with the different skin tones, and I learned a lot that session. By the time the band had changed, and we had finished, the two of us had been accepted into the inner circle of fans, had been given posters that had been personally signed and notice of other shows, as long as we were available to work on them after. When we all left, it was a bit like the transformation of Kiss into ordinary guys. The band went out of the stage door with most of the waiting crowd thinking that they must be usherettes or stall attendants.
We both got hugs from them before they boarded an unmarked people mover, and Beryl asked Marina if she could join me when I met up with her on Sunday. Marina, by this time, would happily follow me anywhere if it meant that she would be in the presence of famous people.
Having left by the stage door, we needed to go around to the front of the theatre. Marina rang home, while I called Archie, leaving a message on voicemail. We walked along the side of the theatre, oblivious to the other kids around us. She had her left arm over my shoulder, her right with her souvenirs, my right arm was around her waist, with my own goodies tucked under my left arm. I had the thought that it was exactly the opposite of how I had imagined the scene.
Suddenly, she stopped and pulled me around, planting her lips on mine for a while. I wasn’t complaining as we did it a few times more. Walking closely, we reached the front of the theatre and stood there to wait for our transport. The car pulled up and we got in the back, now just holding hands. Penelope asked us how we enjoyed the show, which must have finished a while, considering how few fans were out on the pavement.
Marine started telling her about the evening, from the meal to our having personalised posters and being on first name terms with the band. By the time we reached her home, Penelope had agreed to let her daughter join me when I went into the city on Sunday, as long as she took us and checked everything out. She knew, from past history, that my own parents wouldn’t be awake to take part.
At their house, we sat and spoke more about the show, unrolled the posters for everyone to admire, and look at the selfies that Marina had taken in the dressing room while I was working on the new looks. In the end, Marina on one side, Virgil on the other, we walked, arm in arm, to my house. Virgil waited while Marina and I kissed, and then Marina tapped her foot while Virgil gave me a smooch.
Although it was late, the only one in the house was Belle, who put the kettle on while I went upstairs to undress, coming back in the nightie and my old gown. She wanted to know all the details and I did my own version of the evening, showing her the posters. We split the collection in two lots, and she found some blue tac, so we went into our bedrooms and put them up.
She had a pile of clothes on her bed, which she gave me to hang in my own room. I would need something to wear on Sunday to meet Beryl. Penelope would be picking me up at around ten, so I cleansed and said goodnight to Belle. It was hard to get to sleep, thinking about our kisses. The odd one was the one that Virgil gave me, a guy that I’ve known for years. It’s marvellous what a dress can do for a guys’ brain.
On Sunday morning, I was up, showered and dressed early, before Belle or Archie had surfaced. When they did come down, I went up to my room to do my make-up in the nearly there look. Belle wanted to come with me as well, and Archie was staying at home to talk to Drom.
When Penelope arrived with Marina, the passenger door opened and Marina got out, telling Belle that she could sit in the front. The two of us sat in the back, separated with the belts on, but holding hands. Penelope had put the address into the GPS, and it led us to a reasonably large building in the industrial park at Tyseley. The sign on it proclaimed that it was the home of Hargreaves Cosmetics, proudly local and guaranteed organic.
The doors were locked, but there was an intercom with a note to press the button and wait. Penelope pressed the button and a voice asked who was here. She said that it was Effy, Marina and a couple of chaperones, so the voice said to push the door open after the click and wait in the reception.
The door clicked, we pushed it open and went in. It was an amazing space as we looked around. There were photos on the wall with beautiful faces with wonderful make-up, and a big one of the Pussycats. Otherwise, the room was a vision in pink. A door opened and Beryl came in.
“Good morning! Now, Belle I know, as she has often done my hair.”
Penelope put her hand out.
“I’m Penelope, Marinas’ mother. She spun such an amazing tale after the show that I just had to come along and see what she’s getting into.”
“I’m glad you’re here, Penelope. I’m Beryl Hargreaves, and this is my cosmetics factory. We only use organically grown plant extracts in our products. Belle and Effy use them in the salon, and I expect that you and your daughter have used them as well. This morning, and through today, I’ve got a photo shoot going for the national magazines. I want Effy to create her ‘hardly there’ look for a test. If it works as well as it did, last night with the Pussycats, I’ll be looking at calling it the Ephemeral Look and promoting it.”
I heard it but found it hard to believe. My mind was in a whirl as we were led into the building, arriving at a large room where the photos were being taken.
“This is Barry, our main photographer. This isn’t most peoples’ idea of a photo shoot. We don’t have lots of clothes, just a selection of tops for the models, as all we need are head shots against a blue screen, so we can add backgrounds. The girls can sit on a chair to make it more comfortable. Today, we have four girls that we’re working with, and Kerry, my main cosmetician, is doing the make-up. She’s working through evening looks. What I want you to do, Effy, is create the looks that you did last night, so we can see how it works. Now Belle is here, she can do something with the hair. Will that be all right?”
We all nodded. Penelope went to sit and watch, while Belle went over to talk to Kerry as she worked. I looked at Beryl.
“Mrs. Hargreaves, can we have a quiet word, please?”
“All right, dear. Is it something about payment? I did promise you something for your help last night.”
“No, it’s something else that you should know.”
We moved away from the activity, with Marina joining us.
“Now, dear, what’s on your mind?”
“It’s very simple, Mrs. Hargreaves. When you saw me and called me plain, it’s because I’m Belles’ brother, and was working in the salon as a summer job.”
“But you make such a stunning girl! I gather that you knew this, Marina, being at the same school.”
“Yes, I did. By the time I saw Effy in the salon, he had been given that ‘girl next door’ look to fit in and worked his magic on me. It’s my fault that you saw us in dresses last night. I’ve had a crush on him for ages but have had some bad experiences with other boys. When I saw him looking so girly, it allowed me to ask him out, and I suggested that he should glam up. I never expected the fashion plate that I saw when she walked in.”
“That makes things interesting, but not difficult. Effy, if what we do today leads to other things, would you consider becoming the man behind the new look? If it works well, you won’t have to miss any schooling, as most promotional activities are on weekends. Of course, if you really want to continue to live as a girl, it will still work.”
I looked at Marina, and she took my hand.
“Effy, it’s been fun with you looking like a model, but I’ve realised that it was my own fears about alpha males that was holding me back. I’ll be all right if you’re back to Effy, the boy. You’ve shown that you’re so different from other guys that I know that I’m safe with you.”
I thought about it for a few seconds.
“Look, I’ll need to continue to look like this in the salon, to fit in. It will make it easier for me to finish school as a boy, as long as you accept me as such, and your friends do as well. If you’re happy with what we do, today, I’ll be happy to be a male make-up artist, Beryl. Thank you for being so forgiving.”
“Nothing to forgive, Effy. With your looks, even as a guy, you’ll fit into this industry as if you were made for it. Now, I expect that your mother knows about this, Marina.”
“She does. Effy has been to my house a lot, as my two brothers are good friends of his.”
“OK, Let’s get working. Marina, you can help with the cleansing and stuff. I’ll pay you for your time as well.”
So, during the morning, Marina and I worked on one of the models, cleaning her face and giving her the Ephemeral Look, while Belle did things to her hair to accentuate the look of angelic innocence. As we worked with the different girls, I experimented with slight colour variations that I had picked up on as I had worked with the Pussycats. We stopped for lunch and went to the staff dining room where there were sandwiches and drinks. Beryl smiled at Barry.
“What do you think, Baz?”
“This has been an interesting session, Beryl. I’m excited with those new looks. It won’t sell as much product as usual, but I feel that it may become a popular look with many females. The ‘girl next door innocence’ is very beguiling.”
“We’ll examine the proofs during the week and experiment with a different range of backgrounds. What did you think, Kerry?”
“I watched those three working and they looked as if they’d done it for years. Can you trial them with the glam looks this afternoon. It’s time that we had some extra help, seeing that the autumn shows are coming up.”
Beryl looked at me and I nodded. She looked around.
“Right. There is something that you should know. Effy is called Ephemeral. Don’t ask how that name was chosen. The point is that Effy is a boy, a boy who can look like a girl. Belle is his sister, and Marina is his girlfriend. I’ve been told that Penelope is aware, as he’s been in her house as a friend of her sons. Now, we’ve spoken and decided that he will be the originator of the new look, should it work in the market. This afternoon, after we’ve finished the planned shots, I want us to do a set of portraits for these four, with the full service. There will be some of Effy looking like a fashion model, and some with him looking as he would be without the make-up.”
The others looked amazed, and then we got back to work. It took about an hour to complete their schedule, and then we gave Penelope a makeover and she sat for her portrait, followed by Marina and Belle, with a few taken of mother and daughter that even I could see would look great on their lounge wall.
Finally, I was given the treatment and had my own high-fashion pictures taken. With some of Marina and me, heads together. The last thing was me being totally cleansed and Belle reworking my hair into my old look. With the studs out, I was sat for the final set, with some of Marina and I in boy and girl mode. I knew that I would have one of these in my room.
I was allowed to redo my face, as it would have looked odd if I left looking like a boy in a skirt. Beryl gave Penelope her business card and made a note of her home number. She also gave Belle some cash and a card and told her that she would be in touch. She gave both me and Marina some cash and followed it with a hug.
“I’ll come and see you and Belle in the salon when we have some pictures that we’re happy with. Thank you for your work today, as well as your bravery to be a girl for your loved one. On top of that, thank you for your honesty. I realise, now, that I was being a bit bitchy when I called you plain. It’s just that I never thought that a boy would be doing the cleaning up in a salon. You, Effy, are one of a kind, in that you don’t allow others to dictate what you can or can’t do.”
When we left, Penelope said that she had really enjoyed the different day that she had experienced and took us to a restaurant for a meal. We ate well and talked about the day. Belle was really happy to have helped out on a proper photo shoot, as it had been something she had dreamed about. Marina and I were the quietest, having discovered that the feelings that we had went a lot further than childish crushes.
Belle and I were dropped off first, and Marina got out of the car to hug us both and gave me a quick kiss.
“I’ll pop into the café to see you at lunch. Love you, Effy.”
“I love you, Marina. I always have, but never had the nerve to say it.”
“From now on, Effy, you’ll be able to find that nerve whenever you need it.”
Archie was still home when we arrived, and he got the three of us in my room.
“I’ve talked to Drom while he was here. You’ll notice that you have a lot more room now, Effy. He’s totally in love with Karl, but I’ve made him understand what Karl does to make money. He’ll be still staying with him but will be more aware of the dangers. Cat and Bronwyn were also here while you were out. Cat says that she’ll see you at the salon but she’s moving in with Bronwyn. Mum and Dad spoke to both of them and were very understanding. They did tell the three of us that this would be their last year of playing. It seems that Mum had a lucid moment while they were performing last night, and realised how much of a joke they were. So, things will be changing in a few months. I’ll probably get a place of my own. I can afford it now.”
Belle gave him a hug.
“We’ll miss you, brother.”
I gave him a hug.
“We will. You know, you would make a good manager. You care for your staff and go out of the way to keep them safe. You should open up a legal escort service. You have the girls already. If you charged enough to give you a wage, the girls could add a service if they want to and take all the money offered. It would put you on the right side of the law.”
He looked hard at me.
“That’s an idea I’ll think about. I know that the law may come down on me like a ton of bricks if any of my girls get injured by a client. Now, you two, I can see that things have happened today, so tell me your story.”
We told him about our day, and he left us to sort out our rooms. That evening, I hung away all my girl things and changed into a tee and jeans to sit with my parents watching mindless shows on the box. Belle was having a good time in her room, shifting things around and clearing out unwanted stuff. Dad didn’t ask me what was happening, as he was going to wait for us to sort ourselves out.
On Monday, I was back in a skirt for work, and caught up with Cats’ intentions. Ruth wanted to know what had happened over the weekend, so I told her about Saturday evening and Belle told her about Sunday. During the lunch, Marina joined us at the café and asked me to pop over to her home in the evening, in boy mode.
That evening, I walked to her house, where Penelope let me in and told me that Marina was in her room. I went up the stairs and knocked on her door. She let me in and then enveloped me in a strong hug that was, somehow, more than a hug. We kissed, properly, a man and woman, several times.
“Thank you, Effy, for all the joy that you brought me on the weekend.”
“Thank you for being there, my darling. I really do love you. It’s as if we’re two hearts in one body.”
“I love you, too. Mum has seen how much we love each other, and that’s why you’re allowed in here with the door closed. I want to talk, quietly, about us, and our immediate future.”
We sat on her bed, holding hands and having the occasional kiss, as we spoke about our last year at school, the possible situation with the cosmetics company, and the small detail of us being boyfriend and girlfriend. She had a phone call from Beth, which turned into a group video discussion with all of the others, where they saw me as I now looked and were told about our relationship.
On Thursday, Beryl came in and gave me a big folder of pictures.
“That’s the best of the shoot, as well as portraits for you to pass around. The Pussycats want you to do the stage make up and removal on their next few shows that end the short tour. Saturday is in Leeds, and I’ll send a car to your house to pick you up, then collect Marina on the way. I’ll put the kit in the car, and it will let me concentrate on other things.”
After that, she spoke to Ruth and Belle joined them for an intense discussion. Belle came over to me when Beryl had left.
“Effy, you’ll never guess. Beryl wants me to start work with her to help Kerry out. I’ll be here another two weeks to see out my notice. She told me to join you and Marina for the Pussycats show on Saturday night and to take some hairdressing things.”
I grinned.
“I believe that someone once said that the only constant in life is change. This is one hell of a summer.”
We had an enjoyable lunch, going through the file of pictures. Marina took hers and her mothers’ when she left us, heading for a hardware store to buy some frames. The one with the pair of us was stunning. Saturday was good, Belle and I glammed up and Marina was looking good when she joined us. Belle was added to the crew, that evening, and we watched the show from the wings, new ‘Access all Areas’ lanyards around our necks.
By the end of the tour, we had worked on the girls enough for others to notice. Belle left the salon and went to work with Beryl. Marina and I had advanced our relationship, with her feeling safe enough to allow me to explore parts of her, and also safe enough to explore parts of me, knowing that I wouldn’t take advantage. At the end of the summer holidays, we went back to school, with me as Effy, the boy.
I was able to relate well with the girls, with it now common knowledge that I had tested the other side with success. My rating with the boys had risen, being so well in with the girls, and I wasn’t ‘hardly there’ any longer. Beryl tested the market with the Ephemeral Look, and it worked well enough that I was put on the books as a casual. She also enrolled both me and Marina into night school to study cosmetics.
When our last year of high school ended, neither Marina nor I needed to talk to vocational councillors. We were working for Beryl, spending a lot of evenings at various theatres, working on performers, while our days were spent going around salons, demonstrating the Ephemeral Look. I had been announced as the creator of the Look and had been in several interviews. Between us, we were paid enough to rent somewhere to live, together, and took our relationship to the ultimate level, intending to marry soon. She now sometimes wore the red dress that I had bought, and much better than I ever did.
Belle met one of the performers who she had met in her short, earlier career , and they hit it off again, with her moving out of home to live with him. Archie had followed my advice, and set up a legal escort agency, so separating his business from the sexual side of things. Cat had married Bronwyn in a civil ceremony. Drom and Karl stayed together with Drom scoring a role in one of the day-time soaps and, with the house now empty, Dad announced that they had bought a smallholding, and were selling the house to set up a commune, where they could grow strange crops and lay about all day.
As the wise man said, change really is the only constant. I still have the name, but now wear it in full, and with pride. Marina and I swore to call our first-born by one of the traditional names. I had made my mark in the world, I even had my own office at the cosmetic business, but I was so busy I was ‘hardly there’.
Marianne Gregory © 2026