PART 4
“Oh honey, we’re in luck! It’s still here!” Carol Bradley said excitedly to her chastened preteen. With a look of triumph, she eagerly pulled the object of her attention from a clothing rack in the secondhand shop. “I think this will work beautifully,” his mother said happily. “I’ll need to do some alterations, but it’ll be so cute on you when I’m done,” she continued. “Don’t you just love it?” she asked.
Mike was already incredibly self-conscious and subdued. His pink sneakers, girls polo, painted nails and hair clips were having the intended effects on his attitude. Although they were the sort of things that might possibly go unnoticed by a casual observer, he was painfully aware of the girlish changes to his appearance. He felt like every movement called attention to his bubblegum pink nails, and he desperately wanted to sink through the shop’s floor. There were only a few other customers, but he was constantly turning his head away from them in an effort to hide his hair clips. He tried not to look down at his girly pink sneakers, and he knew the cute Peter Pan collar on his closely fitted polo was a sure giveaway to anyone paying attention. His only saving grace was that this shop was a bit of a drive from home in a nearby town. With a bit of luck (which admittedly had been terrible so far) no one he knew would recognize him.
Now, however, he looked with fresh horror at the elaborately girly dress his mother had selected. He cringed as he knew that he would soon be wearing it. “Oh yes Mother… it’s so pretty,” he managed to croak softly as she handed him the pink monstrosity for him to carry.
Dressed as he was, Mike itched to leave quickly. It was apparent, however, that his mother was not done shopping. He knew she loved secondhand stores, and she especially enjoyed finding pretty things for Clarissa. Soon, she found another cute dress she liked and held it up against his body to check the size. This one was made of white cotton fabric with delicate purple embroidery and trim. “Let’s see… this is a girls size 14, so it’s still a bit large for you,” she said thinking out loud. “It appears to run a little small though,” she decided, “so I can take it in for now and you’ll grow into it in no time!” It always stung him to be reminded of how slight and girlish his build still was even at the age of twelve. Smiling, she breezily handed him that dress to carry too. She was in full swing now.
Next, she saw a brand new pair of yellow Mary Janes and insisted he try them on. They were near the rear of the store so he didn’t think anyone saw him, but his skin still crawled when he slipped them on. Unlike most of Clarissa’s other shoes, these had a slightly more pronounced low heel. They fit perfectly, but he felt so awkward in the unfamiliar heels.
“You’re old enough now that it’s time you started getting used to heels, Clarissa,” his mother whispered to him. “And those should go perfectly with your yellow lace party dress!” she said with a pleased look. That lemon yellow dress had rapidly become one of his mother’s favorites, and Mike grimaced helplessly as Clarissa’s wardrobe expanded right before his eyes. He couldn’t imagine many things more effeminate than shopping for his own girls clothes with his mother. He again prayed he wouldn’t see anyone he knew.
By the time they reached the checkout counter, Mike also carried a lavender skirt and a pink girls tee shirt in addition to the dresses and shoes. Embarrassed and uncomfortable, he hastily put everything on the counter and stood timidly beside his mother. As an older lady rang up all the purchases, she smiled down at the abashed young boy with the cute hair clips and pink polo. With growing curiosity, she had watched him shyly follow his mother around the girls section. Now that she had a better look at him, she also noticed the fussy ripple edge socks he wore with his pink shoes. “What pretty things, dear,” she noted in surprise, “are these all for you?”
Mike blushed and didn’t know what to say. He thrust his hands in the pockets of his slim khaki shorts and prayed that she hadn’t noticed his nail polish.
His mother chimed in, “Oh don't I wish!” she said mischievously, “How cute would that be?” Then she explained with a little smile, “But no these are just some things for his cousin Clarissa who is coming to visit us. She and Mike here are close in age and almost the same size so he’s… volunteered to help me.”
“Well… of course that explains it… obviously,” the saleslady agreed after an awkward pause. She spoke to Mike then, “It’s so sweet that you’re willing to help your mother like this. Most boys would consider it out of the question.” She continued, “I wondered what was going on when I saw you trying on those darling shoes in the back.” Then, after another moment, she added half-jokingly, “But you strike me as a ‘fashion forward’ young man who’s not afraid to be different!”
The lady then pointed to a shelf at the end of the counter, “You might like those socks over there though… they’re brand new in the package and very similar to the ones you’re wearing.” She added, “they come three pairs to the pack in different colors. I just got them and they won’t last long I’m sure!”
As Mike reddened more, his mother interjected brightly, “why yes those do look nice!” She said to the sales lady, “We’ll take a pack of those as well… he goes through his socks like crazy!” Mike watched as the lady added a package to their growing pile of purchases. He saw that the packaging clearly labelled them as girls ankle socks, and he could see pink, purple and yellow through the clear plastic.
The grinning sales lady then leaned forward in a conspiratorial tone and said, “I like your hair clips! You know, honey, it would be OK if you wanted to try on these pretty dresses too!”
Horrified, Mike looked at his mother with pleading eyes. His heart fluttered in fear as he faced the prospect of trying on dresses when the saleslady already knew he was a boy. It was obvious that his mother considered it for a moment, but then, much to Mike’s relief, she said, “Oh thank you, but I’m sure these will be fine... for Clarissa. We have a busy afternoon and we need to get going.” Then, almost as an afterthought, he heard his mother say, “Maybe another time…”
The lady looked slightly disappointed. She had clearly expected a different response, but she smiled anyway and finished ringing up all the purchases. Finishing, she chuckled and said to Mike in a friendly way, “Well dear you come back anytime, and on your next visit we’ll find some nice things for you!” Her eyes twinkled brightly in amusement. Then, to Mike’s great chagrin, she couldn’t help but add in a whisper, “I love your nails too!”
At that, Mike's face turned a deep crimson. “Th.. thank you,” he managed to sputter. That removed any doubt that she knew he was a true sissy. She obviously suspected all along that these things were for him and had just been playing along with the pretense. He was incredibly grateful when they finally left the store with all their purchases and were back in the car.
“Thank goodness they still had that dress, Clarissa!” his mother said happily as the car’s air conditioner blasted again. “You’ll look like a perfect little princess once I get the alterations done!”
Mike squirmed uncomfortably in his seat. His thoughts were consumed now by all the sissy things soon to come his way. He couldn’t help but notice how his shiny pink nails flashed so brightly in the afternoon summer sun. For what seemed like the hundredth time, he felt intense regret at how thoughtless he had been with that party invitation!
Meanwhile next to him, Mike’s mother happily envisioned how absolutely adorable he was going to look for the princess party. She thought she already had the perfect shoes for the outfit in Clarissa’s things back home. It would be a nice surprise since they were a recent purchase, and her blushing preteen hadn’t even had a chance to wear them yet. Relieved now to have secured the perfect dress, she began giving some thought to hairstyles. Her spirits were always buoyed when Clarissa was around. Notwithstanding Mike’s misbehavior, it was a treat for Clarissa to return so quickly after last month’s ballet recital.
As she turned the car onto the highway, she spoke in a much firmer tone that made Mike’s stomach jump in awful anticipation. “But now, Clarissa,” she began purposefully, “it’s well past time that we got you properly dressed.” With an obvious touch of distaste she added, “in those clothes, people will think you’re a tomboy!” Expectantly, she asked, “We can’t have that now, can we dear?”
“No Mother… of course not,” he said mousily. Mike suffered in silence as he dreaded the inevitable. Unfortunately for him, everything to this point had been merely an unhappy prelude. He knew things were about to get worse.
“Definitely not,” he heard his mother echo under her breath, “I won’t have that.”