Chapter 29

As I carried my tray to the table at lunch the next day, Donna and Lynn approached me again.

"Hi Crystal. Have you made up your mind yet?" Lynn asked.

"I don’t know, Lynn. The football season is almost half over."

"True, but basketball starts in a few months. By then you’ll be an experienced cheerleader."

"Well, I'd like to join but I have another problem."

"Like we said yesterday, 'there are no problems that are insurmountable'."

"Well this one might be. You see, my older sister, Carol, tried out for the squad two years ago and didn't make the cut. We do everything together and I couldn't join without her. She'd be heartbroken that I made it when she didn't."

Out of the corner of my eye I saw Lynn look at Donna and then both nodded.

Donna said, "I remember Carol's tryout. That was the same Spring that Lynn and I tried out. She did great. I heard that she was the last one cut when they had to get down to the right size, and that they hated to do it because she was so good. I know that we can find a place for both of you on this year's squad. So you see, 'no problem'."

I put on a big smile. "Gee, That's great. We'll both be it on the squad. Well that was the only thing that was holding me back."

Lynn smiled and said, "Great. We're so happy to have you on the squad. We have a meeting on Friday after last period in room A-37. Can you and Carol both make it?"

"We'll be there."

Donna said, "Fantastic. We're so happy to welcome you to the squad. Don't forget. Room A-37 Friday."

"Okay. I won't forget. See you later."

They both said goodbye and hurried away. No doubt they couldn't wait to tell the other squad members of their coup. I found my friends Barbara, Jenny, and Diane, and sat down.

Barbara said, "I saw the airborne twins talking to you. Any problems?"

"No. They're just pressing really hard for me to join the squad."

"You're probably the only one in this school who can refuse them and get away with it. You're popularity as a TV star and actress would do that."

"I would still be affected if they choose to turn vindictive."

"I didn't say that you wouldn't be affected. But you could weather the storm."

"I won't have to. I've decided to let them make me a member of the squad."

Barbara blinked twice and looked at me for a few seconds. "I guess that I had gotten the impression that you didn't want to be on the squad. But joining is the smart choice."

"It's the only choice. But I don't want to think about that right now. Did you do your homework for Shorthand class?"

After school I worked on my class assignments immediately. I wanted to get them out of the way before the TV show started. As before, Carol had invited Heather and Sheri over to watch with us. Aunt Jessica wouldn't be there but she could watch at home since it was a national broadcast through affiliates all over the country. This time Debbie had come over to watch with us.

At 8:30 we were all gathered in front of the television set. The opening credit's background didn't show me at all, just Oliver coming home alone to an empty house. I sank a little lower into the cushions on the couch. Oliver wandered around the house holding his head like he had an incredible headache. His eyes were bloodshot and he looked like he hadn't slept in two days. The camera followed him to the bedroom and watched as he collapsed on the bed. I noticed that there wasn't even a picture of me on the nightstand. As the show's opening broke for commercials I tried to sink even lower into the couch. They weren't even going to show my picture in the opening background. Well, so much for that job. Then I started to think about all of the people who had tuned in to watch the show because they thought that I was going to be in it.

Carol looked at me and said, "What happened? Aren't they going to show you at all? Who wants to see Oliver after he's lost you? I wanted to see you flying off into the sunset."

I said sheepishly, "I don't know. I guess that they decided to cut me out completely. It's like that sometimes. I'm sorry everybody for disappointing you all."

Mom said, "Now Crystal, the show's only beginning tonight. Maybe they'll show you as a dream sequence later on or something. And the most important thing is that you got paid even if they don't use the footage."

I was ready to turn the show off at that point, and I probably would have if I had been alone, but I also wanted to see if they talked about me at all. After the commercials, the show came back on. The camera was watching Oliver sleeping soundly on the bed. There was a banging that seemed to intensify in volume. Oliver finally woke up and groggily stumbled to the door. As he opened it the banging stopped and several guys barged in.

One of then said, "Oliver, what's going on? You're going to be late."

Oliver said, "What time is it?"

"It's 9 o'clock. You were supposed to call me at 8."

Oliver eyes opened wide. "9? Oh my God."

Then there was a flurry of activity as Oliver shaved and showered in what took 10 seconds of TV time. His friends practically carried him out the door dressing him as they went. There was a mad drive through a city and they stopped in front of a church. Running up the steps they flung the doors open and all ran into the church.

Carol said out loud, "What is this, the funeral?"

Mom said, "Shush."

The camera watched from the altar area as Oliver hurried down the aisle past dozens of people sitting in pews, apologizing for being late as he passed them. As soon as he was in his place the organist began 'Here Comes the Bride'. The camera zoomed over Oliver's and the priest's shoulders as the bride entered from the rear of the church and slowly marched down the aisle. Although a veil covered her features completely, I certainly knew that it wasn't me, even though she was wearing my wedding dress, since I had never been filmed in a church. Oliver and his new bride joined up at the altar and turned towards the priest so that the ceremony could commence. As the priest made the final pronouncements, Oliver lifted the veil and kissed his bride. The camera was moving around behind him at that moment so her face was not visible. Then Oliver's face was pressed against hers as the camera completed its arc and you couldn't make out her features. You could only tell that she had blond hair like mine. I was dying to know who had replaced me. The scene changed to outside the church again and you could see the happy couple hurrying through a shower of rice with their heads down. They climbed into an enormous white limousine and drove off into the traffic. At no point had the bride's face been visible. Then the show broke for commercials.

Carol said, "Crys, you never told me that they shot your wedding in a church."

"They didn't. That wasn't me. I guess that they re-shot the first episode with somebody else. They used the same bridal gown though. Well, I guess that we won't be going to California. Sorry, Carol."

"Oh, there will be other jobs. We'll get there eventually. I wonder why they didn't use you though?"

Mom said, "I'm going to call Mr. Daniels tomorrow and ask him if he knows."

As we talked the show had started again. Sheri, who was taking a sip of soda, suddenly coughed and sputtered soda from her nose, "LOOK."

We turned towards the screen in time to see Oliver carrying me, still dressed in my wedding gown, into a hotel room. I deduced immediately that they had used somebody else to add a preliminary scene to what we had shot. After that we saw practically every scene that I had been in. Many of them were tight close-ups of Oliver and I kissing. The paragliding scenes were very well done and it appeared that we were really the ones doing it. They had cut in some actual footage and it blended wonderfully. At the end of the show, there was a sunset shot of Oliver, standing on the cliffs north of San Diego where we had done the shooting, looking sadly out to sea.

More than two thirds of the show had been my scenes with Oliver. I was in shock after having felt that all of my scenes had been edited out because they hadn't used my name in the opening credits at all. As the station went to commercials, one of which was from Barrett's, my family and friends applauded, and then congratulated me. I was breathing a sigh of relief that I wouldn't have to explain to my other friends why I wasn't in the show at all.

Mom said, "Well, I guess that I won't have to call Mr. Daniels after all. And the show was wonderful, honey. You did a terrific job"

"When I saw that they didn't use my name in the opening credits, I thought for sure that I had been cut out. As it is, I can't believe how many scenes of me that they did use."

Debbie said, "They probably didn't include your name because you're an unknown and because you aren't going to be a regular on the show."

We spent the next hour picking apart the show and discussing where the story line might go now. We all agreed that they couldn't use the opening background that they had used for the first show. I was hoping that they would have to use something with me in it to maintain continuity for at least the first few episodes.

Since it was a school night, Mom put a halt to our discussion at 10 o'clock and Sheri, Heather, and Debbie all left for home. I never got a chance to say good-bye to Debbie like I wanted to because we didn't have any privacy. I again wished that she attended the same high school that I did, so that we could have more time together, but for the time being we would have to settle for telephone caressing.

At school the next day, I was the main topic again. Almost every girl told me how jealous they were of me getting to kiss 'that dreamy' Oliver, and every guy that I passed seemed to be staring at me even more than usual. There were a number of whistles and remarks after I passed different guys but I ignored all of them. One group even whistled ‘Here comes the bride’. The day passed very quickly and the talk had started to die down by the time that we left for home.

With the excitement of the premier episode of 'Oliver On Board' I had forgotten to tell Carol about the cheerleading meeting. As soon as we were home, I broke the news.

"We're both on the squad?"

"Yes. I told you that I would tell them both or none."

"I didn't actually think that they'd go along."

"Well, they did. And now we're committed. We have a squad meeting tomorrow in room A-37 after classes are over."

"I didn't actually think that they'd go along."

I smiled. "You're repeating yourself."

She giggled. "I don't know what else to say."

"Just tell me that you'll be there. I don't want to do this alone."

"Okay. I'll be there."

After my last class the next day, Carol met me in the hall and we walked together to the room where the meeting was to be held. Most of the cheerleaders were there when we arrived and we were introduced to everybody. Carol was already acquainted with all of the girls even though they traveled in different social circles. As a supposed newcomer to this school I feigned ignorance of most of their names. With introductions complete and everyone there, Donna called the meeting to order and started off by welcoming us as the newest members of the squad. Everybody applauded wildly and Lynn banged the gravel to restore order after about a minute of welcomes and small talk. Then we had a little presentation ceremony where Carol and I were given our cheerleading outfits. The meeting returned to regular business after that as Donna announced the remaining schedule of games and practices. Then the meeting went informal as everyone crowded around to pummel me with questions about my acting jobs. We broke up when the janitor came in the clean the room.

Carol and I walked to the office where Mom was just getting ready to leave. Mom was very surprised to see us carrying the cheerleading outfits.

"What's this?"

Carol said, "We were inducted into the cheerleading squad."

"When did this all come about?"

"Only since Wednesday. They wanted Crys, and she told them that they had to take both of us, so I agreed to go along."

"You make it sound like a chore. I remember that you desperately wanted to join two years ago."

"Well, I got over it since then. I'm just doing this for Crys."

Mom just smiled and said, "Uh huh."

That evening we modeled the cheerleading outfits for Mom. With Carol's help, I removed my corset, since I would need complete freedom of movement for cheerleading activities. My gaff gave me the correct look beneath my short skirt for those movements that would cause the tiny skirt to expose the matching panties that were part of the outfit. No alterations would be necessary since the top was a sweater, and the skirt and panties had elasticized waistbands.

The next day, Carol and I practiced a little in the backyard. There was a game today but we wouldn’t be attending. The squad had agreed that it would be better if we waited until they had a chance to work with us. We didn't want to look like complete fools at our first game, and we didn't want to embarrass the others. We didn't wear the outfits for our practice because we didn't want to get them dirty. Instead we wore loose shorts and sweaters. Carol showed me the routines that she had been taught for her tryouts, and we tried to do some other things such as cartwheels. I was absolutely terrible at first, which was not surprising considering my general lack of athletic talent, but with Carol's coaching I slowly began to improve. Like everything else that I did, if I was going to do it, then I wanted to do it right. I paid very close attention to the way that Carol moved and I copied her moves exactly. Boys and girls move very differently, having developed their movements and mannerisms at a very early age. I needed to jump and behave just like Carol and the other cheerleaders, so that I would fit in. After several months of living as a female, I knew that the normal movements that I had copied from the women around me had become second nature to me. As far as I knew, no one except my family and an inner circle of friends from the theatre even suspected that I had not been born a female. With any luck, I would be able to master these moves, and pass as a cheerleader now, as well.

On Sunday I was a little sore from all of the practicing that we had done on Saturday. At breakfast I read through the Entertainment Section of the paper and happened across the syndicated review of the new shows. I scanned the listing until I found Oliver On Board, and read the review aloud so that Mother and Carol could hear.

"Oliver On Board is an interesting new addition to the Wednesday night line-up. The series opener was a charming story about the marriage of the series star and his subsequent honeymoon in Mexico. Oliver Addams gave an excellent performance of a young man in love, and Crystal Ramsey, a newcomer to the small screen, gave a delightful performance as his adoring teenaged bride. Their honeymoon ends abruptly when an accident sends the bride unwillingly sailing off into the sunset. I shall look forward to seeing how the series copes with the loss of Oliver's bride and his readjustment to life. If it is handled with the same sensitivity and aplomb as the first episode, then the network should enjoy a decent market share with this series."

Mom said, "That's a wonderful review. And they even mentioned your name."

"Yeah Crys, that's even better than having your name in the opening credits of the first episode. They flash by without even being recognized or remembered by most people unless you're a big name already. This way, everyone reading the reviews has a chance to see your name and remember it if they saw the show."

"I really only want the people who do the hiring to remember it. I hope that I can get some more work out of this. We still have a long way to go with our college fund."

"I have a feeling that things are about to break soon, if this review is any indication," Mom said.

During the afternoon Carol and I again practiced in the back yard in spite of being a little sore from yesterday. I started to feel a little more comfortable with the movements as we continued to work out.

On Monday, Mom left her job early and Carol and I rode with her instead of going home on the bus. Instead of going straight home Mom stopped at the hospital. She said that we had to pick something up. Carol and I followed her in, where she stopped at the information counter.

"Could you direct me to the 'Records' office, please," she said to the woman at the counter.

After getting directions she led us to the elevator, and we descended to the basement. Turning right as we exited, we followed the hallway until we came to a door marked 'Records Department'. Trying the door, Mom found it to be unlocked, and, upon walking in, we found ourselves in a large room which was divided in half by a service counter. A woman stood behind the counter sorting cards on the counter’s surface, and we walked over and waited until she looked up."

Mom said to her, "Good afternoon, I'd like to get a replacement birth certificate for my daughter."

"Date of Birth?"

Mom told her and then she turned to the computer terminal and began tapping on its keys.

"Name?"

"Ramsey. Crystal Ramsey."

The woman stopped what she was doing and looked first at Carol and then me, for the first time. "Oh, my gosh. It's you. I'm so thrilled to have you here in my office. Could I impose upon you for your autograph?"

I said, "Of course. Do you have something that I could sign?"

The woman handed me a sheet of hospital stationary.

"What's your name?"

"Norma Jankowski."

I wrote, 'To my good friend Norma, Love, Crystal Ramsey'.

When I handed it to her she began to thank me profusely and to tell me how much she had enjoyed the televised play, and the TV episode that I had been in. We spent about 15 minutes talking about my acting, and I answered a number of questions for her. Finally she said, "I'm sorry to keep you so long, what was it that you wanted again?"

Mom said, "I wanted a replacement birth certificate for Crystal."

"Oh, yes, that's right." Looking back at her computer screen she said, "I don't have a listing for a Crystal Ramsey on that date. Only a Cary Ramsey."

Mom said, "You must have a listing. Please check again. That was the date that I gave birth to Crystal."

"No, I'm sorry. The only Ramsey baby is Cary."

"What is the mother's name?"

"Let's see. Parents are William and Susan."

"That's my husband and myself. But you have Crystal's name spelled wrong."

The woman looked at me and then at Mom. "It's possible. We had a big push to get our records entered into the computer about ten years ago and they hired a lot of temporary help for the data entry. Some of them were very sloppy."

"Well there you go. Some 'temp' messed up the records."

"Do you know what happened to the original, Mrs. Ramsey?"

"No, my husband and I split up when the girls were infants. I'm afraid that many of my documents were lost back then. I need a birth certificate for Crystal now that she's working, and I haven't been able to locate hers."

"What is your other daughter's name and date of birth?" Mom told her and she began tapping on the computer keys again. "Yes, here's Carol's. That one seems to be correct. Let me print a copy for you." She tapped a few keys and the laser printer spit out a birth certificate. Taking it from the tray, she stuck one end of it into a small machine and pressed a large green button on its console. I heard an audible click and then she removed it. It now had an official seal embossed in the paper.

Mom said, "Norma, what can we do about Crystal's?"

"Well, the normal routine is to petition the hospital administrator to investigate and clear up the matter. They have to dig into the archives and find the original documents and then authorize me to make the corrections."

"How long does that take?"

"The last one took about 12 weeks."

"Oh dear, 12 weeks? If we have to wait that long then I'm afraid that Crystal will loose that big part that's she up for in Hollywood. They requested a copy of her birth certificate be forwarded immediately."

"A big part?"

"Yes, there's a possible role with Leonardo coming up that Crystal is being considered for. The studio needs the birth certificate because some of the scenes will be filmed in Mexico and they will have to obtain work visas for the cast and crew."

"Leonardo? Leonardo DiCapprio?"

"Yes."

"Oh, how wonderful. I simply love him. Crystal, you are such a lucky girl. I would give my pension to work with him in a movie."

"Without a birth certificate I'm afraid that Crystal won't be able to be considered for the part. Well, it can't be helped I suppose."

Norma looked very nervously about. "We can't have Crystal losing such a wonderful part because of some foolish error by a sloppy temp. After all, she's not some illegal alien; she's one of our most prominent citizens. Let’s see, I would just have to move the A, and add an S, a T, and an L. Its not like I'm changing anyone's date of birth, and I would only wind up doing it anyway after the administrator verified the information". Norma was typing as she talked. "Oh boy, look at this… they also ckecked 'male' instead of 'female'. There… all done." Norma tapped a couple of more keys and the laser printer came to life again. Taking the printed certificate, she placed it into the embossing machine and pressed the large green button.

A minute later Mom was holding a birth certificate for Crystal Ramsey, a female child born to William and Susan Ramsey. Mom paid ten dollars to Norma for the two birth certificates and we left after thanking her for helping us. Mom promised to send her some publicity stills if I got the job with Leonardo.

As we left the building, Carol said, "Wow, Crystal. You never told me that you were being considered for a role with Leonardo."

Mom said, "Carol, there is no role, but we now have a birth certificate for Crystal. Now she can get a social security number and a passport in case we have to travel for a part. Mr. Daniels has been asking every week about the social security number. They need it for their records before they can begin making payments to Crystal for her work. We'll stop at the Social Security administration office tomorrow afternoon and take care of that little detail."

On the way home we stopped at an office supplies store and got a dozen photocopies of my birth certificate so that we would have copies to send out if needed. We also had ID pictures taken so that we are all able to apply for passports when the need arises.

We had a cheerleading practice after school on both Wednesday and Thursday. Only a few of the other girls were there to teach us since these were not regular practices, but were only for Carol’s and my benefit.

On Friday we had a full practice with the entire squad. By now Carol and I were able to do most of the cheers even if we weren’t proficient yet. After the practice several of the girls wanted to go out for pizza so we piled into two cars and drove to Jerry's Pizza Haven. We ordered pizza and drinks and then talked about the practice while we waited. Talk eventually turned to the upcoming game schedule and then to the boys on the teams. Here in the almost empty restaurant, the talk was almost as ribald as in the girls' bathroom. Carol and I giggled and laughed along with the cheerleaders as they related their adventures from last year. After an hour at the restaurant, we all decided to head for home. One of the girls, Nancy Cupos, offered us a ride home, and fifteen minutes later we were dropped off at the curb next to our driveway. We thanked Nancy for the ride and went inside.

Mom wanted to know how it went so we sat down and told her about the practice and that we had gone out for pizza with the girls. She was upset that we had ruined our appetite for dinner but understood the need for socializing with the other girls.

We got up early Saturday morning so that we could get ready to attend the football game. Nancy Cupos picked us up at nine o’clock. She had already picked up four other girls before coming to our house so her little Subaru was crowded with three in the front and four in the back once we had climbed in. The closeness of the ride and the fun that we had climbing out probably helped to alleviate the nervousness that we would have felt otherwise as we faced our first game as cheerleaders.

We all went to the girl’s locker room to finish getting ready. We fixed our makeup and talked as we waited for game time. As the kickoff time approached, Donna clapped her hands to get everyone’s attention and let us know that it was time to leave.

She said loudly, "Okay girls, time to take the field. Line up in two rows and let’s go."

She and Lynn led us out onto the field and we lined up on either side of the area where our team would enter the field. As the announcer called their names and the football players ran past us, we yelled and jumped up and down to welcome them. I received more than a couple of intense looks from the football jocks as they jogged past. When the last player had entered the field we formed a single line and hurried to our positions on the sidelines.

Our team dominated the game throughout the first half and the mood was almost festive as we ran into the school at halftime. After a quick bathroom break and a little time to pull ourselves together, it was time to hurry back out. Our team continued their onslaught of the opposition when the second half started and the final score was 35 to 6. As the horn sounded to signal the end of the game we ran off of the field behind the players. A few of the football players had hung back to talk with friends but most ran into the locker room. We ran into the girl’s locker room and plopped down to rest. Some of the girls began to strip down in preparation for taking a shower but Carol and I just sat and cooled down with some of the others. The talk centered around a victory party that was being held at Jimmy Beneker’s house that evening. The entire squad was invited, of course. After about half an hour the girls that were riding with Nancy piled into her car and she took us home. As we pulled up in front of our house and Carol and I got out, Nancy asked if we needed a ride to the party tonight. Without asking me Carol told her that we did and that we would be ready. Nancy waved and drove off.

"Carol, how could you do that without asking me? I don’t want to go to that party. Football jocks are your thing, not mine."

"Oh, Crys. You haven’t been out on a date in weeks. It’ll be good for you to get out. At least you know that you won’t be swamped with fans and autograph hounds at the party. Now say that you’ll go. Do it for me, if not for yourself. After all, I joined this squad for you."

I thought about it for a couple of seconds. Carol HAD joined the squad at my request so I guess that I owed her a favor. "Okay, I’ll do it for YOU. But I don’t promise to have fun. I have never had anything in common with sports jocks."

"That was before you blossomed. Things will be different now. Come on, let’s go decide what we’re going to wear."

Mom came in as we were looking through our closets to see what we should wear. When she learned that I was going to the party she jumped right in to help with the selections. I knew that she wanted to make sure that I was suitably dressed because I would be appearing ‘in public’. We settled on a light rose colored blouse, black skirt, and shoes with 4-inch heels. As always the skirt was so tight that I could barely walk in it, and the blouse left little to the imagination.

Carol and I decided to work on our nails as Mom left to make some phone calls. We bathed right after dinner and we were ready to go when Nancy showed up to pick us up. It was only a ten-minute ride to Jimmy Beneker’s house. Jimmy was definitely born on the right side of the tracks. His folk’s home was a monstrous ranch style home in a prestigious neighborhood. I learned that his Dad was an enthusiastic supporter of the team and these parties were common at their house.

Only a few of the other girls, and about half a dozen guys had arrived when we got there, and it was one of the girls from the squad that opened the door when we rang. Mr. and Mrs. Beneker were busy setting up the food tables in the largest living room-recreation room that I had ever seen. Carol and I joined a small group of girls which expanded and contracted as others arrived and then some paired off with guys. Many of the players brought their dates with them.

At one point there were only three of us in the group, and several guys approached us. Within five minutes I had found myself paired up with one of the guys as Carol and Jenine Tomkins left to dance with the other two boys. Bradley Franklin Reese, 'Brad', was the star quarterback on our team. His 6 foot 6 inch frame towered over me since I was only 5 foot 8 inches in my heels. He asked me to dance and, as we moved around the floor, I felt like a child in his arms. His arms were almost as big around as my legs, and his body weight had to be double that of my own 115 pounds. When the song ended, Brad blocked my retreat back to where we had been standing and then engaged me in another dance when the next song started. We danced a total of three times before he maneuvered me to an isolated spot along one of the walls. There wasn’t any point in returning to where I had been standing with Carol and Jenine since they were still with the guys that they had left to dance with.

Over the coarse of the next couple of hours, I stood and talked with Brad, or danced with him. He surprised me by being able to talk about things other than football and sports. On several occasions other guys approached us to talk but they didn’t stay very long. From the corner of my eye I could see Brad glaring at them or making gestures with his head until they got the point and left. When Carol came and got me, we left to go to the powder room.

Brad said, as we started to leave, "I’ll meet you back here when you’re done."

Carol and I picked our way through the crowd until we made it to the hallway where the bathroom was located. It was unoccupied and we went in and locked the door behind us so that no boys could come in while we were there.

As soon as we were sure of our privacy, Carol said, "Crys, not bad. It looks like you have Brad Reese roped and tied."

"What do you mean. We just danced a few times."

"Oh, it’s more than that. The word is that he’s interested and all others better stay away. Have you noticed that nobody else has asked you to dance even though a lot of them would like to?"

"Well, it’s true that no one else has asked me to dance yet."

"And I don’t think that they will. Have you noticed that nobody has even talked with you very much?"

"Yeah. A few boys joined us but then left fairly soon."

"Right. Brad is putting out all of the signals to ‘stay away’. And that’s very unusual because he one of the most sociable animals on the team. And Lorrie DeBenedictus is fuming. She figured that she would be the one to attract Brad’s attention after he split up with Sheryl Michaels a week ago."

We finished up in the bathroom and walked out. Brad, and Adam Stefansky, were talking at the end of the hall that led back to the party. As we approached, they parted, and then fell in behind us. Adam was the boy that had been monopolizing Carol’s time since the party began. We joined a small group that was standing near the refreshments table. Brad came up behind me and put his hands on my shoulders. I knew that the move was not missed by the others in the group, and had probably been noticed seen by almost everybody in the room. I let him leave his hands there as we talked because it was better then having them somewhere else.

After awhile Brad wanted to dance again so I let him take my hand and lead me to the dance area. The song was just ending as we reached the area set aside for dancing so we waited until another CD loaded in the large capacity player. The new song was a slow dance and Brad wrapped his arms around me and slowly led me around the floor. I had to reach up to put my arms around his neck.

After that song there was another slow dance, and then another. I guess that the entire CD consisted of slow dance songs, and Brad wanted to dance them all. My only break was the 10 seconds or so between songs. After a few dances Brad had bent his head down next to mine and he had taken to kissing and nibbling on my ear. At the beginning of the slow dances the lights in the room had been turned way down but I’m sure that everyone was aware of Brad’s attentions. Toward the end of the fifth or sixth dance he pulled me to him and kissed me with the passion that Rick had displayed for the close-ups at the theatre. I was shocked at first, but saw no harm in a kiss. His tongue forced its way into my mouth and explored every millimeter of its interior. I heard the music end and then silence. I opened my eyes and then saw that everyone around us was staring at us. Brad became aware of it, broke off the kiss, and smiled sheepishly. He led me to a darkened corner so that we would be out of the scrutiny of most people. The next song had started and the others had returned to dancing.

Brad took advantage of my position with my back to the wall to try to kiss me again. With a wall behind me, and a human wall in front of me I had no avenue for escape so I reluctantly let him kiss me again rather than create a scene. This kiss was even more passionate than the last one, and I had to fend off his hands as he took advantage of our dark corner to try rubbing my breasts. With his frontal attack thwarted, he changed tactics and began kneading my tush, all the while rubbing his tongue on mine. I realized my mistake when I put my right arm behind me to protect my tush and he took hold of my hand and pulled it into the small of my back and held it there. With my right arm securely held out of the way, and my left arm trapped between our bodies, Brad took advantage of the situation to begin rubbing my right breast. Although he was only rubbing a silicon breast form, the sensation somehow began to affect me and I found my breathing quickening, and my own passion increasing. The feeling was reminiscent of the time up at the lake when my passion had started to take control over me. Like that time I found myself beginning to suck on the tongue that had been inserted into my mouth. Also like that time, I knew that I had to take control of the situation before I lost it. I began squirming against Brad and pushing his tongue out of my mouth.

When he pulled away slightly, I breathed as deeply as I could and said, "I have to come up for air every once in while. This corset doesn’t allow me to breathe normally."

He looked at me as his reasoning slowly took over again and said, "Why do you wear that thing anyway? It must be uncomfortable."

"It’s part of the image. It gives me an hour-glass figure. The waist in the costumes that I wore in the play was only 18 inches. Without this I would never fit into them."

"But why continue to wear it now that the play is over. Your waistline wouldn’t be more than 21 or 22 inches without it?"

"Like I said, it’s part of the image. Until I get established I have to do something to get noticed, so I wear this corset and the formfitting clothes. Once I get known then I can ease up a little bit. When you’re starting out, you need an edge."

"I think that you’re beautiful enough without it."

"Thanks, but the show business professionals see beautiful girls constantly. I need to stand out in their minds, like Marilyn Monroe, Sophia Loren, Rachel Welch, or Loni Anderson would. I want them to think of me when they’re casting a role."

"It must be working because I can't stop thinking about you."

Brad moved in again as soon as he said that and attempted to kiss me. I squirmed around and managed to break free of his grasp, telling him that I had to go to the bathroom. Carol knocked on the door a few seconds after I entered and I let her in.

She laughed and said, "God, Crys, you’re a mess. You’re lipstick is all over your face."

"Brad keeps getting carried away. I’m glad that we’re at this big party. If we were alone I might not be able to stop him. I can’t believe how strong he is."

"Sounds like you scored big. Everybody is talking about you two. That kiss on the dance floor will be the subject of gossip for the next week. It looks like Brad is totally smitten. I hope that Sean doesn’t hear about it, though, because he’ll be jealous as hell, and for good reason. Brad is a real stud, but he may be more than you can handle, Sis."

"You don’t have to tell me. I know it. He's starting to get passionate and I'm having trouble avoiding his amorous advances because he's so big and strong. Should we leave?"

"No. It would look weird if we left this early. Let’s stick it out until the party starts to break up, and if he gets too carried away just use your knee to cut him back down to size."

"My knee?"

"Yep. It's a girl's best line of defense. One quick jab and the biggest guys will crumple to the ground."

"There's two problems with that. One, I don't want to hurt him. Aside from causing a scandal, the team needs him. And two, there's no way that I could ever knee him while I'm wearing this tight skirt. I can barely raise my leg two inches. I'll just try to avoid him for the rest of the party."

"Okay, Crys, it's your call. But I can tell you that half of the girls here would trade partners with you in an instant."

I had cleaned off all the old lipstick, reapplied new, and then freshened my other makeup as well, as Carol had tended to her face. We opened the bathroom door and walked back to the party. Brad and Adam were again waiting at the end of the hall and followed behind us. Almost everyone had paired off by now but there were more guys than girls at the party so there was a small group of guys still trying to win the remaining, unpaired girls. It was to this group that we walked, and joined.

We had no sooner reached the group than Brad stepped up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist. There was no mistaking the signal that he was attempting to convey. Namely, ‘This is mine. Keep your distance or suffer the consequences.’ Adam did the same to Carol and I noticed that she permitted it. Rather than create a scene and embarrass Brad, I allowed him this expression of masculinity.

Brad, as the star quarterback, was able to enforce his claim without question. If he had not occupied the position on the team that he did, then his size would probably have guaranteed his claim anyway. Adam on the other hand was only a Tight End, and a small one at that. The other guys immediately began flirting with Carol. Adam didn’t like it, but there was little that he could do. He finally managed to get her to the dance floor and away from the advances of his teammates. Brad took that as his cue and I found myself being gently pulled to the dance floor also. It was just as well since my status as Brad's 'date' excluded me from much of the conversation. I doubted if anyone wanted to anger Brad.

Once on the dance floor it was a repeat of our earlier time there. All of the dances were slow again and it wasn’t long before Brad was showing signs of affection. After two more dances he had again guided me to a deserted spot along the darkened wall and was trying to engage me in a lip lock. I was in a quandary as to what to do. If I created a scene here, the word would be all over the school on Monday, and my name would be mud with the squad and the team. After all, we were only talking about kissing. Since Brad was so handsome, strong, and talented, I doubted that anyone would understand if I refused his advances without good reason. I could probably expect rumors that I was a lesbian to begin circulating. I couldn’t see any other alternative than to go along, using my energies to control his ardor. I knew that I would not receive any help from the rest of the team unless he got completely out of control, so I submitted to his kisses and used my hands to control his.

At 2 a.m. Mr. Beneker turned on all of the lights and announced that the party was over. Brad pulled away and began to gather himself as I did the same. I looked around and saw the same thing being done around the room. I got my purse and used my compact and a tissue to remove smeared lipstick while Brad looked on. I repaired the damage and then used a fresh tissue to clean up Brad’s face as he grinned at me.

Carol came over to me and said, "Adam is going to take us home instead of Nancy. Are you ready, Sis?"

I nodded.

Brad said eagerly, "I’ll take you home, Crystal. I have my new 4x4 outside."

"Thank you Brad, but I have to arrive home with my sister, so we should ride together."

"No problem. I’ll follow right behind Adam."

There didn’t appear to be any point in arguing so I said, "Okay. As long as there are no side trips." He knew what I meant.

We said good-bye to everyone and thanked Mr. and Mrs. Beneker for the party before leaving. Brad held the door open for me and tried to help me into his new Chevy 4x4. Because my skirt was so tight I couldn’t step up into the high truck, so Brad picked me up effortlessly and set me on the seat. Then he buckled my seatbelt around me before walking around to the driver’s side and getting in. He pulled into position behind Adam’s little Toyota and we arrived at the house in about ten minutes. On the trip home I had kept him busy by asking about football. Once started he talked non-stop until I was home.

Brad must have prearranged it with Adam because neither made any movement towards disembarking their passengers after parking in front of the house. Instead, Brad leaned over me and began kissing me again. Brad had been pretty much of a gentleman during the past hour, and I did like him a little so I again submitted to his kisses. In no time the windows were fogging over because of the chilly night weather. Brad’s tongue had spent almost as much time in my mouth tonight as my own. I don’t know how long we kissed but we kept it up until there was a rapping on the window. At first I was scared that it might be a policeman or a neighbor, but it turned out to only be Carol. A fact that I didn’t discover until I had rolled the window down.

Carol said, "Come on, Crys. It’s time to go in before Mom has the police out looking for us."

At the mention of the police, Brad jumped out and hurried around to my side. He opened the door and picked me up after unbuckling the seat belt. Instead of putting me down on the sidewalk, he carried me all the way to the front door. What was it about guys that made them want to carry me everywhere? Brad took time for one more kiss before saying goodnight and leaving as we went inside.

I was exhausted. After all of the exercise from the game this morning, I had had a night-long wrestling match with Brad.

Carol said, "Well done, little sister. You hooked him, played him, and landed him. He’s yours now. You only have to decide if you want to keep him, or throw him back. And you thought that you weren’t going to have a good time. Well, I’m beat. Come on. I’ll help you climb the stairs and then loosen your corset. Then I’m going to crash, hard."

I didn’t know what to say so I didn’t say anything at first. As Carol was helping me to get undressed, so that she could help me with the corset, I said, "Carol. What do I do now?"

"About what?"

"About Bradley Franklin Reese, of course," I said in a slightly agitated manner.

"Why ask me? He’s your boyfriend," she said offhandedly.

"No, he’s not. We just met tonight."

"By Monday the word will be all over the school that you’re Brad’s girl. Better get used to it. No other guy is going to mess with you now. Not if he knows what’s good for him."

"I never should have gone to that party tonight."

"Best thing that could have happened to you, Sis. You hooked the richest, best looking jock in school. He’s no Albert Einstein but he’s smart, for a jock. The unattached girls in school are going to have even more reason to hate you now."

"Great. Just what I need. Brad's a nice guy, but I wasn't looking for a boyfriend."

"Sleep on it. Things will look better in the morning."

We kissed and Carol went to her bedroom. I finished getting ready for bed and slid between the sheets. I was too tired to think about it tonight so I rolled over and fell fast asleep in minutes.

On Sunday, I intended to spend most of the day at home as I was afraid to be seen in public for fear of being recognized. Even with the dark glasses I was easy to spot as Mom continued to insist that I wear the form fitting clothes and high heels. My 'uniform' gave me away every time. I hadn’t decided what to do about Brad so I put the subject out of my mind for the present. My only intended trip out of the house was to go to the theatre to meet with Marge and Barbara. My chest had been starting to itch more and more and Mom had made an appointment to have my breast forms removed and the skin underneath cleansed before re-application.

We arrived at the theatre around 10 o'clock in the morning, and then sat with Marge and Barbara to enjoy a cup of tea in the makeup department. Both Barbara and Marge raved about my performance in the TV series premier, the hosting work, and the commercials.

"Barrett's is getting a lot of mileage from those commercials," Marge said. "They're using your current celebrity to the max. They must be running at least four commercials each evening. Good thing that they made so many or they would be getting a bit tired about now."

"They have the right to use them," I said. "They paid a lot of money to produce them and I'm sure that they want to get their money's worth. I can't complain, and I think that I get a small residual each time that they show them. My only problem is that they keep my face in front of the public and I can't seem to go anywhere without being recognized."

Mom said, "Since Crystal started acting, our college fund has increased by over 15 thousand dollars after taxes, agent's fees, and expenses. That's a wonderful start. Crystal will be able to take her pick of any college in the country at this rate."

"That's wonderful, Susan. I'm so happy for you and the girls, " Barbara said.

"This has been a dream come true for us. Without Crystal's job, they would have been lucky to complete two years at the local community college. Now we're looking at a full four years at colleges of their choice. I can't tell you how much better I sleep at night."

Barbara said, "Well, why don't we get started on the task at hand? We can talk as we go. Take off you blouse and bra, hon."

After I had bared my chest, Barbara applied the breast form solvent. As before, Barbara supported the weight of the breast with one hand and waited for the amount of time specified in the instructions. Then she lowered her hand to allow the breast form to slowly peel off of my chest and fall into her hand. Also as before, the skin underneath looked dry and peeling, but unlike before, there was more underneath than just skin. There was a definite form and mass in the area formerly hidden by the breast form.

I said excitedly, "Mom… look. Look at this. Look at it."

Mom said, "I see it, dear."

"What is it? I mean… why is it like that? It shouldn’t be like that, should it?"

"I don't know dear. Let me feel it."

Mom started to feel and squeeze the fleshy mass. As she did, the nipple started to harden, and my breathing started to quicken. I began to feel uneasy in my belly.

Barbara noticed my reaction and stopped Mom. "Crystal's skin has been deprived of any contact for a number of weeks. Your handling is affecting her."

"Mom, what do you think. Is there something wrong. Why is it like that?"

"Well dear, I'm not sure."

"Do you think that wearing the corset may have caused my body to store fat in other than the normal place around my torso? My hips, tush, and thighs have also been getting a little beefier."

"I don't know. I remember Barbara mentioning, the last time that we did this, that the weight of the breast forms may have stretched the skin. That may have provided an easy place for your body to store fat as it fought the stretching. Of course, since I have no medical training I can't say that with any certainty. I'll have to ask Dr. Danvers."

I said, "Let's see if the other side is different. Come on Barbara, do the other side, please. Hurry."

Barbara used the solvent to remove the other breast form and as soon as it was uncovered we saw that that side of my chest matched the first. While we were talking Marge had been cleaning the forms in preparation for reattaching them. Barbara took the milky white solution that Mom had gotten from Dr. Danvers, and swabbed my chest. The gray skin gave way to a pale pink color as the dead skin cells, and old adhesive, were removed. She dried me off once I was clean.

I said, "Look how big they are. What do you think, Mom? "

"I think that they are approaching an A cup size, honey."

"That's not what I meant, but that might explain why my bras have seemed so tight lately. What should I do? Should I continue to wear the breast forms?"

"I think that you have to, unless you want to stop being Crystal and return to being Cary."

I thought about it as everyone looked at me in silence. "No. I can't do that. We still have a long way to go in building the college fund. If I stop now then we're back to community college as the only alternative, and even at that we'll need the maximum loans available. I have to continue."

"Are you absolutely sure?"

I nodded solemnly, and said, "Yes."

Mom looked at Barbara. "Okay Barbara."

Barbara proceeded to reapply the breast forms to my chest. After being firmly attached, Marge worked her magic with the permanent makeup, and once again they appeared to be part of me.

When the makeup was dry I put on my bra. Mom looked closely and said, "I see what you mean. We'll have to get you a larger size. Or perhaps we should look into getting smaller breast forms so that you can remain a 36C."

"We can't do anything for over a month now. It will be that long before the glue starts to break down enough so that they can be removed."

"True. But it will take a week or more to get them after we order them so perhaps we should start. Barbara, can you give me the phone number of the company?"

"Of course, Susan. I'll get it for you."

Barbara got the phone number of the company, and then we sat with Barbara and Marge for a while longer before it was time for us to leave. We walked to the car and headed for home.

"You're awfully quiet, dear?"

"Just thinking, Mom. I was a bit surprised by my new developments."

"How do you feel about them?"

"Confused. I know that I been playing this role to the hilt, but I didn't expect this. Is it possible that feeling like a woman can cause your body to develop like one?"

"I don't think so. When I was a young girl I wanted my breasts to grow quickly, but I just had to be patient and let nature take its course. Willing them to grow didn't seem to make any difference." After a very brief pause she added, " Do you?"

"Do I what?"

"Feel like a woman?"

I looked at her for a few seconds. "Yes. I've been immersed in this role for about four months now. I originally copied my movements and mannerisms from the women around me, mainly you, Carol, and Aunt Jessica, but now… they're a part of me. I feel more like a woman with each passing day. I don’t think that I could help it, living the role as I do. To be believable in the role I had to keep telling myself that I was a woman and had to act like one, so I've tried my best to behave like any other teenaged girl. I've spent a lot more time kissing boys than I ever did kissing girls when I was Cary. And now I'm starting to grow breasts. If I didn't feel like a woman before, I certainly would now. Cary seems like just a distant memory... I’m going to have to learn how to be a boy again when the time comes to switch back."

"Well, first things first. We'll try to find out what's causing your new development as soon as possible. For right now, we should get you some new bras."

We drove to the Mall and managed to walk quietly to the lingerie department in Barrett's without my being recognized. As Mom and I looked at the bras, someone identified me and approached for an autograph. This had the effect of calling attention to my presence and before I knew it, a small crowd started to develop. Store security showed up and tried to hold the crowd at bay as we took our selections to the dressing room so that I could try them.

When we had made the selections Mom spoke to one of the security men. They crowded around me and protected me as I signed autographs, while Mom took the bras and went to the checkout counter to pay for them. I signed autographs for everyone who wanted them but the crowd didn't disperse, so I waved to them and the security people escorted me to the rear of the store. We lost the crowd as we entered the employee tunnel that led to the offices, and the rear exit. Mom was waiting in the car as we emerged behind the store. I thanked the security people and hopped into the car. I breathed a sigh of relief as we approached our house.

 

(continued in Chapter 30)

I want to express my grateful appreciation to Lynn Jennings for proofreading this story and all of the others in this series, and also to Lynn and J.B. for their editing help and suggestions. 

 

 

 

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© 1999 by Crystal Sprite. All Rights Reserved. These documents (including, without limitation, all articles, text, images, logos, compilation design) may printed for personal use only. No portion of these documents may be stored electronically, distributed electronically, or otherwise made available without express written consent of the copyright holder.
Anyone wishing to make comments is welcome to e-mail me at crystal@storysite.org