Suddenly dropped in on

Early the following afternoon, you were indeed still lost in daydreams about Ben and that miraculous lump dangling between his legs. You had spent the morning swanning around the house tidying things up in a loose-fitting dress which had a habit of always dangling off one shoulder or another. It was such a lovely day outside though, so soon enough you were drawn back out into the garden. That little slice of paradise you now owned was actually… more of a jungle right now. It had been sold to you as a ‘fixer-upper’, left rather wild and overgrown. The old lady who’d owned the house before had clearly had something of a green thumb, you barely recognised any of the plants which were clambering over each other up the walls and fences that comprised the far limits of your queendom. But she’d clearly grown unable to manage the tangle of green towards the end of her time here… hence the decision to move away, nearer to family. You quite liked the way the chaotic overspill of nature rose up even to climb the walls of the house itself, but were aware there was going to be a lot of work involved in learning to tame it again. Despite your more delicate sensibilities, you’d never been one to shy away from getting down and dirty when it was required of you. Gardening was just another set of skills you were determined to pick up in order to make this place perfect for you and Ben.

Just then, a clatter of feet in the alleyway out back startled you out of plans for the future and back to the present. When this was followed by the rattle of your own back fence being clambered over, and the sudden appearance of a lithe, young body nearly dropping into your lap… it was all you could do not to let out a yelp of surprise. The teenage boy who had arrived so suddenly gave a similar look of fear and confusion, but clearly had other things on his mind. For there was the unmistakable sound of multiple pursuers following along down the path behind him. With flashback memories of your own younger years popping up in your mind, you quickly waved him down into one of the many untrimmed bushes one could hide in. While heading off yourself to respond to a pounding of fists against your back gate.

What you did not expect to find when you opened said portal… was a group of quite pretty teenage girls, all about the same age as the boy. They were clearly equally put out to see you, and stepped back a pace, but all made some unabashed effort to peer past and look for their quarry. The leader was a pouting, preening thing. All ginger curls and perfectly-plucked eyebrows. She looked you up and down in what felt like a sharp, clinical assessment… before deigning to speak.

“Um, sorry… Miss... Did somebody just jump over your wall just now?”

You were still not quite used to hearing people refer to you as female… even with that slight pause. It still sent a little thrill of pride zapping through your veins. You weren’t even sure yourself yet, which pronouns best suited your new existence here. To be quite honest, it didn’t seem to matter much… as long as you were what Ben wanted you to be. The world outside could work out what it wanted to call you, itself.

“Not that I noticed…” You smiled, as sweetly as you could, looking around in false confusion. “Sorry.”

You had no idea what was going on here, and had been pretty geared up to deal with some group of gigantic thugs trying to mug the poor lad. So the adrenaline of standing there, wearing your pretty, cotton dress in front of this gaggle of schoolgirls gave little space for them to argue. The lead girl did not look convinced, but wasn’t going to push the issue. She murmured something about ‘he must have kept going…’ and then led the chase onwards, letting you close the door safely behind them.

The young man emerged from his hiding place, shaking twigs from his tomboy-cut hair. He must have been about 18, with a tall, slim build and a sort of aura of clumsy insecurity that you thought you very much recognised. Thin lines of black eyeliner were painted around his lashes, and there were tell-tale signs of light-coloured lipstick and amateur attempts with curling irons as well. It was like looking in a warped mirror from your own teenage years… seeming so long ago now.

“Errm… Thanks… for that.” He offered, shuffling nervously as he now got a good look at you. “I kinda forgot old Mrs Jacobs didn’t live here anymore. She used to let me in to help with the garden, sometimes… When I needed to get away…”