Misgendered

Chapter 1

"Kai, it's not too late we can leave this wretched place" Zane said to me standing in the tulip field that had just looked as if they'd blossomed but now were wilting. He opened his mouth but instead of words he made this horrible screeching sound and my eyes shot open. I turned to my nightstand to see it was just my alarm going off,

"Already 6?" I groaned. I proceeded to pull off the covers and shudder at the cold room.

"Routine, Routine, Routine" I repeated in my head while scrambling to collect my clothes and such. I checked the clock, I had only wasted 6 minutes getting dressed. Good. I brushed off my skirt nervously. Picking up my phone I dialed Zane's number. Zane had been my best friend since the second grade. We were inseparable.

"Hey Zay, I'm ready for you when you get here." I said into the phone rhythmically.

"Alright, Kai I'll be there in 10."

He said hanging up. Zane was the only person who ever called me my name. I took a deep breath enjoying it. Before sitting on the couch to play on my phone while waiting for him. The glass front door illuminated with light in the dark morning and I heard the honk of a car horn. I grabbed my school bag and walked out the door locking it. He unlocked the car for me and I stepped in.

"Morning Sleepyhead." Zane said as he ruffled my short light brown hair.

"I won't be so sleepy once I get some coffee." I replied sarcastically.

He put his hand on my knee as he drove us to the coffee shop we always went to. I've always felt so comfortable being alone with him or in his embrace, but all I could think about at this moment is the recurring dreams about him and me. It has all but engulfed my mind, I laid my head on the window considerately. As we pulled up to the school I froze.

"Kai? You okay?" Zane said, turning to me, reading my face. He could always read me, I was so lucrative to everybody but him. I was as clear as glass to him, always seeing, always knowing.

"Hey, I know it's going to be a bit difficult but i'll be here for you alright," he grabbed my hand squeezing it,

"I will be with you." I hugged him and grabbed my things getting out of the car walking inside the school.

I knew I had zoned out, not sure where I was at the moment but I knew I was comfortable. I imagined myself in Zane's arms curled up watching another horror movie he could never handle. All of the sudden I heard my name called and was forced to snap out of it.

"HARPER LEE. ARE YOU DEAF? I HAVE BEEN CALLING YOUR NAME FOR FIVE MINUTES." My first instinct was to wrap my hands around my ears and that feeling only grew with the whispering and giggling.

I flushed,

"I apologize Mrs. Koralski, what did you need?" she looked at me with a hard, sharp, piercing glare.

"Solve the problem on the board." she said tapping the white board.

I walked up ignoring the snickering and studied the problem. x+y, if: 5x+8y=67 and 2x-y=31. I took a second and started writing. I had always been exceptional in all subjects and even though I hated math it was what I was best at. I set the marker down and walked back to my desk trying my hardest not to zone out anymore. I hadn't even noticed when the bell rang until people started exiting the class. I checked my schedule, lunch hour, P.E. I groaned. And walked there I was scanning the room and to my horror.

"Babe, Babe. Just wait till after school I have class." It was my boyfriend. Making out with none other than, Bailey Darin. The girl who has tortured me since junior high. My eyes suddenly started to swell with tears. Right there in the hallway, I was losing my composure and couldn't help it. I opened my mouth to scream at him when I was swept away by someone I wasn't facing who was holding me from behind directing me to my class.

"Kai, I saw I'm sorry. If you need to skip, we can." my knight in shining armor said. I pondered the guy's statement and came to the realization, Zane was the only person who called me Kai. I swung around and hugged him tight, crying into his chest. He pulled me into an empty hallway and held me petting my hair.

"I wanna skip Zane." I spat out. I didn't see it but I knew he nodded as he led me to the courtyard sitting me against the wall.

I had zoned out laying in Zanes lap when I heard him say,

"Willam was a frickin jerk, you should be glad you finally got rid of him. And he's stupid if he thinks Bailey is gonna give him anything but a bad taste in his mouth." I giggled, Zane always knew how to make me laugh in his own way whenever I was down. "There's that smile I know and love." he said, hoisting me up despite my protests.

"Let's get back to class floofball." I smiled. It wasn't often he called me that but it always was a treat when he did and I nodded. We walked into the gym to the apparent amusement of everyone there. Luckily we hadn't missed changing into our gym clothes so I lined up with the girls, which was even more funny to everyone there. A girl turned around to me, it was Bailey.

"Shouldn't you be in the boys line Harper?" she mocked,

"Boys can't dress with girls." she laughed at her own joke. I rolled my eyes, there was no point trying to explain or reason with them because they didn't listen. I was just about to go to the back of the line when another girl said,

"If you can produce milk you can't be a guy." and, "What bathroom do you use?" These were all rhetorical questions, they all knew the answers they just wanted to torture me.

I changed as fast as I could and put my phone in my pocket, earbuds in and music playing, one of the only places I felt I could just be me. I started running on the track, I had a meet next week for track and field and I wasn't prepared to be "DNF". A girl on our team, her name was Hannah, never got to the end she would always pass out before she got the chance. After three meets everyone had proclaimed her as "DNF", and I was not going to be next. I was sweating hard in the heat when Stacy came up to me, Stacy was a classmate of mine since 8th grade, we were off and on friends.

"I heard what they were saying. I'm sorry about that." she said, trying to catch up, losing her breath. I stopped and pulled out an earbud and turned to her,

"It's not your fault Stac, and I'm fine no need to make a big deal of it." We both smiled. That smile would soon turn into fearsome rage when a bucket of ice water was poured onto my head. Girls behind me erupted into laughter among them. I could pick out Bailey, Ellie, Vanessa, and Stacy. She had just been saying she's sorry for what happened. Was this all just a plot to get me distracted while they got the bucket ready? How dare she. I put my earbud back in and sent her a sharp glare and started running, faster than my normal pace, faster than I did even in meets. All I wanted was to get out of here, out of this horrible school and town. I felt so cold and alone. God, I needed to get out of there. I was running when I ran into someone.