New Girl In The Family

The New Girl In the Family

"Morning Mrs. K,"

"Oh, good morning Katie, darling." She waved from her desk. Ms. K is this short, Argentinian woman in her mid-twenties, who works at a STEM high school full of gifted entitled hormonal teens who all have rich, but not rich rich parents, who work too much to pay any attention to them. My mom's parents helped me get in on a scholarship.

"Katie, if you're free can you help me set up the equipment for today's activity? We're extracting the DNA out of a strawberry." She said, I nodded and started setting up all the equipment on trays

I'm in the bathroom. Formally one of my least favorite places at school, until two years ago when I came out to my dad as transgender, he was surprisingly chill about it. Anyhow he told the school and now I'm a girl on school grounds and I can use the women's restroom, yay for me! I think... anyway the reason I'm in the bathroom.. right back to that. I've felt sick for days, I am currently hunched over on the school toilet, just threw up, super gross. It's not anything serious, I just get nervous during holidays. Especially now that I've started hormones. Out of my whole family, the only ones that know I'm a girl are my paternal grandparents and father. My mom passed away when I was 10,7½ years later, still not over that. Not that I was expected to be.

I walk into the nurse's office, feeling like I'm about to pass out, I ask for the phone to call my dad to be picked up.

"Sure thing, here you go," She turns the old landline to me because apparently, kids in the 21st century can't use their cell phones to call their parents. I dialed my dad's number, it rang once, twice, third time,

"Hello?"

"Hi, dad, um I feel sick. Would it be okay if I came home?"

"Sure kiddo, do you need me to pick you up, or are you okay to drive?" He asked.

"Picked up please..." Dang I have to miss the strawberry DNA thing.

Thursday back at school. I'd already texted my friends as to why I left randomly yesterday, however, as soon as I stepped out of my car and onto the school front lawn my best friend Meteo (well one of my only friends really) a short, pudgy Italian dude (who has an odd obsession with celery, he like studies and deeply researches celery) came up and tackled me to the ground, an impressive feat, by the way, considering I'm twice his size.

"Where were you???? You missed Me. Kortajarena's strawberry assignment!!!" He playfully shoved my arm

"Didn't I tell you? Bro I got sick in the middle of independent study yesterday."

"Oh yeah I forgot, anyway did I tell you about how Danny was talking to me yesterday and I'm seriously convinced he likes me back...."
he rambled on as we walked to class.
It's been a bit less than a week, and it is also two days till thanksgiving. My school has school until Wednesday then we get a week and a half off of school. I've been dreading tomorrow for the past month at least. I've needed an excuse to come out to my family but I'm honestly not sure if thanksgiving is it, my conservative side of the family is always so loud and annoying at thanksgiving, foods good though, that's off point I think for thanksgiving I'll just "re-boy" myself whatever I mean by that...

"Ms. K, could I talk to you about something, not science class related?" I asked reluctantly,

"Yeah what's up girl?"

"Well uh I've been kind off going back and forth in my head about coming out to my extended family this thanksgiving and I wanted to know if you had anything that could help really," then I just started rambling "IfnotitstotallyfineIgetit,itsprobablyweirdofmetoaskanyway-"

"Katie!" She cut me off "it's totally fine I'm really glad you came to me for this kind of thing, it helps me see my job as a teacher isn't useless. However I'm probably not the most qualified person to talk about this with considering I don't know the ins and outs of your family," she went on. " I think it would be a very brave thing for you to do but always remember you don't have to come out if you don't want to."