Pink Panties

[billykins]

41.
Archie was having to skip the Tuesday lesson, because that was the only evening Patrick was free, and the following Saturday was out because of Millie’s party.  Ever since she had told him it was actually her birthday, and there would be others present, he had tried to avoid thinking about it.  The scenario was too horrifying to contemplate.  Meeting Patrick had helped, because being occupied full-time with thoughts of their relationship had left little space for worrying about other things.  So he was more than happy to focus on the issue of making himself as attractive as possible, and when Sinead suggested he get his ears pierced on the way home he agreed eagerly, endured the operation without even a squeak of discomfort, and, once the studs were in, started looking at all the accessories in the shop.
“Are you after anything in particular?” asked Patricia.
“I wanted to get some bangles to go with my new top…”
“These would be good…  Let’s get a few…  Oh, and there’s thread bangles over here, which would be great with your Goth outfit.”
“What about this?” chimed in Sarah.  “This would go with that red top.”
She was holding up a little satin choker, black with red trim.”
“Yeah…  That’s great!” cried Archie.  “Can I try it on, see if it fits?”
“It will,” said Sinead.  “It’s adjustable, and there’s elastic at the back.  Okay, I’ll get that as well.”
So by the time they left the shop, Archie had a whole selection of bodily adornments, and was as eager as the others to get home, so he could try on his new clothes.

By now Archie’s light brown hair was almost shoulder length, and he had to utilise his ears to keep it off his face.  It was easy to see how he could be mistaken for a girl: smooth unblemished skin, small but soft brown eyes with long lashes beneath neat eyebrows, a small nose, and rosebud lips.  His mother could never understand how her son, a boy with the face of an angel, could be so undisciplined and disruptive.  Maybe that was the very reason his naughtiness had gone uncorrected: she found herself continually disarmed by his sweet, innocent face.

Of all the outfits the skirt and top was his favourite – so much so, that he had refused to come out of the changing room in the shop wearing it, and now declined to try it on in front of them.
“I know it fits, sis.  But I want Patrick to be the first to see me in it.”
“Okay…”
“I’ve never ‘ad somefing…something this pretty, see?  It gives me sort of tingles when I put it on…”
“Fine.  I’m sure it’ll do the same for him, then.”
But he tried the others on eagerly.  His favourite of those was the Goth look.
“What do you fink?”
“You look…  To be honest, you look…sensational,” said Patricia.
“When I see you like this, it seems a pity you’ll have to grow up into a man,” added Sinead.  “Don’t get me wrong, but…”
“That’s okay, sis.  I know it ain’t real…”
“It looks real…” said Sarah.  “But Patrick…”
“Yeah, I know.  At some point…I’m gonna have to tell ‘im.  I should do it now, but…  I don’t wanna lose ‘im, see?  No-one’s ever looked at me that way before…  I mean, not counting you and mum, sis.  I mean any of my friends…”
“Well, it’s true, I know, he will have to find out sooner or later,” said Sinead briskly.  “So make the most of it.  If you want to show off in that cute skirt and top, you can bring him home after the restaurant and change.  I would hate him to dump you before he’d got an eyeful of that.”
Archie looked shocked.  “Could I?”
“Sure.  You can be Annabel for the evening.  We’re already colluding with your little deception, so we might as well be fully implicated.  Yes, girls?”
Patricia and Sarah nodded.  “Why don’t you come back to ours?” suggested Patricia.  “Mum’s away for a couple of days so it would be just us.  And he can stay over, maybe…  Is that possible?”
“That would be great.  Knowin’ my mum she’d let the cat out of the bag.  Is that okay, sis?” 
Sinead nodded.  “Fine with me.”
“Okay.  I’ll ring and ask him now.”  And he grabbed his phone and left the room.

He was back in less than five minutes.
“He’s fine with it.  He seemed relieved there wouldn’t be any parents there.  He can stay over.  His mum will pay for him to get a cab to school in the morning.”
“I can drive him,” said Sinead.
“You don’t have to.  His school’s out of town, see.  Anyway…you’ll get to meet him properly…”

[billykins]

42.
Tuesday afternoon Archie could barely sit still.  The class was allowed to skip normal lessons in favour of quiet revision, which only made things worse.  When the bell rang for end of school he was the first out.  He ran to the bus and fifteen minutes later alighted a few hundred yards from Mario’s.  In his rucksack were a school skirt and a pair of girls’ school shoes.  He was greeted by a waitress who expected to show him to a table, but he opted to go straight to the bathroom and change.  He was already wearing long white school socks.  He put on a little bit of subtle makeup, and was out again within ten minutes, transformed into a sweet little schoolgirl, much to the surprise of the waitress, who, having got him seated, repaired to the bar to conduct a whispered conversation with her friend, involving lots of nodding and glancing in his direction.  But he couldn’t have cared less.  He was here, changed, and soon Patrick would be with him.

Patrick arrived, slightly out of breath, about ten minutes later.  He also was in uniform, a purple affair with an ostentatious badge on the jacket pocket.
“Sorry, Annabel…  Have you been here long?”  He tore his jacket off, threw it on the seat, and removed his tie.
“Just arrived.  How are you?”
“That’s better…  Great…  I’m great…  You?”
“Yes, I’m good.”  He almost said “mate”.  He needed to make sure he didn’t slip out of girl mode.  “It’s good to see you again…  I know it’s only been a couple of days, but…”
“I missed you too.  Even though we had quite a bit of time together, when I got home I kept thinking of things I wanted to say, or wished I had said.  But I couldn’t text them – they weren’t that simple….”
“I know what you mean.  I ‘ad the same problem…  You know what we were sayin’ about, you know, relationships…?  Well…”
“Can I get you some drinks while you’re looking at the menu?”
It was that waitress again.  She was taking such an intense interest in the boys that once they’d ordered their drinks and resumed their conversation she seemed to forget she had to go and fetch them.
“Can we do something for you, miss?” asked Patrick, sarcastically, bringing her back to reality.

They had a leisurely meal, and talked and talked.  It was about seven that they wandered out, hand-in-hand, and sauntered towards Sarah’s house.
“You met Sarah that first time on the bus.”
“Oh, yeah.  I have her to thank for giving me your number…”
“Yeah.  At the time I was furious…”
“And now?  Still a little angry?”
“Shuddup, Pat.”  He gave his friend a play punch.
“So…who else will be there?”
“Sarah’s sister, Patricia, and my sister, Sinead.  They’re both cool.”
“And no parents…  That’s good.”
Archie laughed.  “Ain’t it?  Isn’t it, I mean…”  He hesitated.  “I got some new clothes at the weekend.  I’m gonna change out of this stuff…”
“Can if you like…  But you look great in anything…”
“Anyway…”

Sarah opened the door, grinning all over her face and not at all nervous.
“Patrick!  Great to see you again.  Come in!”
She took it upon herself to introduce him.
“Patricia, Sinead, meet Patrick.  Patrick, this is Sinead, Annabel’s sister, and this is my sister, Patricia.”
“Hi…  Nice to meet you both…”
“And you, Patrick.  Come in and sit down.  Can I get you anything?”
“Patrick – you’re very handsome – much more handsome than my…”  Sinead almost said “than my brother”.  She froze for a second.  This wasn’t going to be easy.  “I mean, much more handsome than Annabel told us…”

The boys seated themselves side by side on the sofa, and Patricia made them small, strong Greek coffees.  Patrick soon relaxed, and told them all about his home and his little sister, and something about his parents, though he seemed reluctant to go into details.  After about half an hour, Archie stood up.
“I think I’ll go get out of these school clothes.  I promised to show Patrick one of my new outfits…”
“And us,” said Sinead.  “We’re dying to see you in it…”
“Oh!” said Patrick.  “Then so am I!”
”Be right back.  Sis…could you…?”
“Oh, sure.”  And she followed him out.

[billykins]

43.
Sinead waited outside the spare bedroom door while Archie undressed and put on his new red satin panties. 
“Okay.  You can come in now.”
She helped him into his sheer black tights (with seams) and his little black skirt.
“It’s not too short, is it, sis?”
“No.  It’s cute.  You’ve got cute stalky legs like a girl, anyway.  Are you going to wear your new shoes, or…”
“My ankle boots.  They’re more comfortable.  They’ve got a little heel, anyway.”
“I agree.  They’ll look good with this outfit.  Now lets get your top on.”
The shiny spandex top fitted snugly.  The sleeves came down over his wrists.  The neck circled the base of his neck.  Sinead stepped behind him and put on his choker, then selected half a dozen bangles.  All that remained was for her to apply a little appropriate makeup – red lipstick and eye-shadow, a touch of mascara – and paint his nails black.  In five minutes the nail polish was dry, she had dabbed some scent behind his ears and on his wrists, and he was ready to go.
“You look amazing.  Wow, Archie, I never thought of you as beautiful – cute, yes – but not…  You know, in a few years you’ll make the most gorgeous woman…  People will stop and stare at you in the street.”
“Cu’ it out, sis.  All I want today is to impress my boyfriend….”
“So you think of him as your boyfriend already…?”
“No, that wasn’t what I meant…”
“No?  It’s fine.  Come on, let’s go.  Let me go in first, then you make your grand entrance.”

They made their way downstairs.  Sinead slipped back into the lounge.  She looked around at the expectant faces, giving nothing away.
“Annabel?  Are you there?”
Archie pushed open the door, took a deep breath, and walked in with little steps.  His cheeks were flushed with excitement.  He looked straight at Patrick.  He saw the surprise on his face.  Patrick rose to his feet, wide-eyed.
“A-Annabel….!”
“Wow!” screamed Sarah.  “Archie!  You look incred……!”

[gunrunner]

OMG, 3 chapters! Thank you, thank you, thank you! 
And Sarah, what have you done....was it a slip, or did you just screw Archie/Anabell. I guess she could say it was Anabel's family's nic-name for her.
Again, thank you for continuing this story.

[gunrunner]

I'm going to take a chance and say; pretty please, continue this story!
You can't leave us hanging; we want to know if they make it to Texas is the recital is a big hit, Is Annabel going to be a regular, is Annabel going to Texas. Please continue.

[billykins]

You sure are impatient, gunrunner!  Some of us have to spend the occasional day or two making a living, too.  Anyway, calm down.  Further chapters are on the way, and everything will be resolved in time, just like in life...

[billykins]

44.
There was a brief, horrible silence.  For a moment no-one moved.  Sarah looked wide-eyed from Patricia to Sinead and back again.  She began to try to retrieve the situation – “I-I mean, Annabel…” -  but it was too late.  Patrick was staring at Archie, whose eyes had filled with tears.  With a faint cry he turned and dashed from the room.  His footsteps pounded on the stairs, and then the bedroom door slammed shut.
Sinead made a move towards Patrick.
“Patrick…”
But he was already out of the room, and following Archie upstairs, leaving the girls rooted to the spot.
“I…  I’m sorry,” blurted Sarah, bursting into tears.  “It just…sort of came out…”
Patricia put her arms around her sister.
“It’s okay…it’s okay, darling.  He had to find out soon, anyway.  Don’t cry…”
“She’s right, Sarah,” said Sinead.  “This is for the best.  There’s no way this could have gone on…”
“I was so stupid…!”
“No, dear,” said Sinead, “not at all.  I already nearly spilled the beans earlier.  So don’t feel guilty.  It had to happen.”

Upstairs, Patrick knocked softly at the bedroom door.
“Annabel…Archie…whatever.  Can I come in?”
The only reply was faint sobbing.  He turned the handle, opened the door slowly, and slipped in.  Archie was face down on the bed, one arm across his eyes, crying in regular chokes, his little skirt half way up his bum.  Patrick approached and sat down next to him on the bed.  Archie prepared himself for an angry tirade – or even a blow.   But…
“Don’t cry, idiot…” Patrick said, gently.
Archie waited.  But as Patrick said nothing more, but placed a comforting hand on his shoulder, and patted it slowly, he peeped up from his wet sleeve.
“I-I’m s-sorry, P-Patrick…so s-sorry…  I didn’t mean to deceive you…  I just…I just didn’t want you t-to go away…”
“It’s okay.  It’s fine.  Stop crying.  I’m not going anywhere, and I hope neither are you.”
Archie shifted onto his side, and blinked at him through his tears.
Patrick smiled.  “You know why I was immediately attracted to you, that day on the bus?  Well, partly – mainly, I guess – because you had such appealing eyes and such an honest face.  And then because you looked startled at my interest in you, like someone who had never been admired or – I don’t know if I should say this – properly loved.  But also, I have to say, because I found you stunningly physically attractive.  And part of that attraction – I realised this later that day – was that there was a striking ambiguity about you.  There you were, to all intents and purposes a girl, yet there was something quite boyish about you – now I know just how boyish!  For me, that tension between the genders was very exciting.  Something in my psychology, I guess.  It doesn’t matter why…
“But…”
“Then when we met in the park I began to be suspicious.  It was too easy to talk to you.  I’ve never felt that relaxed with a girl.  And the way you walked …  Just a tad too uninhibited, too energetic…”
“Oh…  Yes, I guess I sor’ of forgot to act properly girlish…”
“And then in the restaurant, you in your uniform and tie…  I was thinking, well, if this girl is a girl…then I think I really like her best in boys’ clothes!”
“An’ now…?”
“Now I’m glad I know the truth.  It doesn’t make any difference to me…Archie?  I’d better call you that now.  None at all.  Except…”
Archie had propped himself up on one elbow, and his tears were drying on his cheeks.  “Yes?”
“You look so great in girls’ stuff.  The ambiguity is simply reversed.  So…I mean, would you go on dressing as a girl for me…?  Not all the time, but maybe…”
Archie gave a gasp of relief, and threw his arms around his friend.  “Course, Patrick!  Any time you want.  All the time, if you want!”
“Well, not all the time – that may make your life a little difficult.  But some of the time.  This outfit, for one…you look amazing in it…”
“You like it?  I’m so glad.  I love it too.  I feel so good in it.  Sometimes I feel ugly in my boy clothes, but as soon as I put on these pretty fings…”
“So you’ll still be my girlfriend…?”
“For as long as you want….”
“Give me a hug…”

Downstairs the atmosphere was fragile.  The girls sat around saying little, and trying to interpret the silence above. 
“Sarah – stop biting your nails.”
“Okay sis, only…  What do you think…?”
“No idea.  Just wait.”

They had to wait about forty minutes.  Then they heard steps coming down the stairs.  They all sat bolt upright.
“Both of them,” hissed Sinead.
They entered, hand-in-hand, big smiles on their faces.  The girls stared, no-one prepared to ask a question.
“We’re fine,” said Patrick.  “Archie’s still my girlfriend – boyfriend, whatever.  We’ve talked it all through.  For now at least, gender…”
“Ain’t an issue!” said Archie, ecstatically.  “An’ I still want all my girl stuff, sis!”