name?”
“Ann.”
“Great, Ann, I’ll get you all set up. Just head back when you’re ready.”
I almost give my normal response of “perfect” but I catch myself. “Cool.”
She walks away, and I take a deep breath of relief. I make myself pick out some more things I wouldn’t normally touch, and try it all on. Because I know I have to, I buy a few things I can donate to one of the women’s shelters. Nicole thanks me with a smile, and I smile back, knowing I just passed the first part of my test.
Ted Baker is going to be trickier since it’s not as busy of a store, and also because I buy pretty much everything that comes out each season. I shop online for anything they don’t get in, and also for UK exclusives, but these people know me. Not just in the store, but at the quarterly dinner I treat them to. We meet on Sundays, when the mall closes early, and I’ve come to consider them friends.
I smile as I walk in, knowing my chin prosthetic has changed my smile a little. I bypass the women’s section, and walk to the men’s side. I’ve bought Wayne a few things, but although he wears them, I know they’re not his thing. I’ll be donating what I buy today from here, too, so I decided to indulge myself and pick out some things I like.
“Shopping for someone special today?” one of the guys asks, coming over to stand in front of me.
“Yes. I need something for my boyfriend. I already see so much he’d love.”
“Would you like me to pull some sizes for you?”
“That would be…great.”
Almost said “lovely” there, and I haven’t done that for weeks. My nerves are getting to me, and I need to shake them off, and focus on being Ann. I tell him Wayne’s size, since I don’t really know what else to choose, plus it’s another test for me. He goes off to grab things, never once looking at me strangely, or questioning who I am.
My confidence rises, and when he comes back, I have a whole conversation with him. He really does believe I’m from Portland, that I bought my outfit online, and I’ve never been in one of the shops before. If I was being “me” he’d know I’ve actually been to all of them, because my game is just that strong.
I practically skip out of the store, because I did it. I. Did. It. My bigger test is tonight, but I’m not even worried. A little nervous, but not worried. I can blend in, and be someone else when I need to be. I can be a member of the Society.
* * *
W ayne
“The DA has indicated that she won’t be offering you a plea deal. I wouldn’t have taken one before the forensics were in, but I thought you should know where we stand,” Alesha tells me as we sit at my breakfast bar, going over my case.
“I wouldn’t take one, period. I didn’t do this.”
“After your impromptu press conference the other day, the country is even more divided, which means our jury will be, too. They can say they’re impartial all they want, and most of them genuinely are, but there will always be at least one or two who have chosen a side before they were summoned to court. Sometimes, evidence, testimony, or a good lawyer can change their mind, but we have to plan for a wild card.”
“How do we plan?”
“We expect the unexpected, and we make sure we’ve looked at everything from every angle—good, bad, and ugly. If there is something, anything, they can bring up, we already know it before they bring it up, and have a response. We show no weakness, and no surprise.”
“Sounds good to me. Let’s do it.”
“So tell me your secrets, Wayne. Every last one of them.”
“My life is an open book.”
“You claim to be close to your parents, yet they’re not here with you.”
“I sent them to an island so they wouldn’t have to deal with any of this. They’re the best parents anyone could hope to have, and I don’t want them hassled.”
“That’s good. I like it.”
“Whether you like it or not, it’s what’s happening.”
“How did you
“Ann.”
“Great, Ann, I’ll get you all set up. Just head back when you’re ready.”
I almost give my normal response of “perfect” but I catch myself. “Cool.”
She walks away, and I take a deep breath of relief. I make myself pick out some more things I wouldn’t normally touch, and try it all on. Because I know I have to, I buy a few things I can donate to one of the women’s shelters. Nicole thanks me with a smile, and I smile back, knowing I just passed the first part of my test.
Ted Baker is going to be trickier since it’s not as busy of a store, and also because I buy pretty much everything that comes out each season. I shop online for anything they don’t get in, and also for UK exclusives, but these people know me. Not just in the store, but at the quarterly dinner I treat them to. We meet on Sundays, when the mall closes early, and I’ve come to consider them friends.
I smile as I walk in, knowing my chin prosthetic has changed my smile a little. I bypass the women’s section, and walk to the men’s side. I’ve bought Wayne a few things, but although he wears them, I know they’re not his thing. I’ll be donating what I buy today from here, too, so I decided to indulge myself and pick out some things I like.
“Shopping for someone special today?” one of the guys asks, coming over to stand in front of me.
“Yes. I need something for my boyfriend. I already see so much he’d love.”
“Would you like me to pull some sizes for you?”
“That would be…great.”
Almost said “lovely” there, and I haven’t done that for weeks. My nerves are getting to me, and I need to shake them off, and focus on being Ann. I tell him Wayne’s size, since I don’t really know what else to choose, plus it’s another test for me. He goes off to grab things, never once looking at me strangely, or questioning who I am.
My confidence rises, and when he comes back, I have a whole conversation with him. He really does believe I’m from Portland, that I bought my outfit online, and I’ve never been in one of the shops before. If I was being “me” he’d know I’ve actually been to all of them, because my game is just that strong.
I practically skip out of the store, because I did it. I. Did. It. My bigger test is tonight, but I’m not even worried. A little nervous, but not worried. I can blend in, and be someone else when I need to be. I can be a member of the Society.
* * *
W ayne
“The DA has indicated that she won’t be offering you a plea deal. I wouldn’t have taken one before the forensics were in, but I thought you should know where we stand,” Alesha tells me as we sit at my breakfast bar, going over my case.
“I wouldn’t take one, period. I didn’t do this.”
“After your impromptu press conference the other day, the country is even more divided, which means our jury will be, too. They can say they’re impartial all they want, and most of them genuinely are, but there will always be at least one or two who have chosen a side before they were summoned to court. Sometimes, evidence, testimony, or a good lawyer can change their mind, but we have to plan for a wild card.”
“How do we plan?”
“We expect the unexpected, and we make sure we’ve looked at everything from every angle—good, bad, and ugly. If there is something, anything, they can bring up, we already know it before they bring it up, and have a response. We show no weakness, and no surprise.”
“Sounds good to me. Let’s do it.”
“So tell me your secrets, Wayne. Every last one of them.”
“My life is an open book.”
“You claim to be close to your parents, yet they’re not here with you.”
“I sent them to an island so they wouldn’t have to deal with any of this. They’re the best parents anyone could hope to have, and I don’t want them hassled.”
“That’s good. I like it.”
“Whether you like it or not, it’s what’s happening.”
“How did you
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