Boy//Girl

Lesson One

Asher was sitting on my bed, scrolling through my phone. I didn't really mind; there was nothing on there that I needed to hide. He looked up when he saw me and I noticed he was wearing the pyjamas I wore when I went to sleep last night.

"Ok, lesson one. Clothes."

I saw him roll his eyes.

"Stick with plain clothes." I opened my closet and pulled out a blue T-shirt and jeans. "Here put this on." I threw them at him. "Oh, and you'll need this." I held up a bra and laughed as he groaned.

He stripped out of my pyjamas while I made sure he didn't look down for too long.

"Right," he said after he'd changed. "What do you think?"

"Very nice," I said with a grin. Then I noticed my glasses sitting on my desk. "Oh and make sure you wear my glasses. Otherwise people will get suspicious."

He clicked his fingers together. "That's why everything's so blurry!" He reached across and put them on. "Much better. You know, a lot of people think that you wear them just to look smarter." My mouth dropped open. Did people really think that? "But now I know you really actually need them."

"Oh, um, right. Now – hair. Please brush it every day and wash it every second night."

I saw his expression fall. "I didn't know being a girl was so hard. How do I wash it?"

"There's shampoo and conditioner in the shower. Put a little bit of shampoo in your hand first and rub your fingers against the scalp –" I showed him with my fingers. "And then smooth in conditioner. Remember to focus on the ends of the hair rather than the scalp."

He gaped at me. "You may need to write that down."

I smirked. "That can be arranged. You're lucky I'm not like the other girls. They do a whole lot more in the shower. All I really need to do is wash my hair and body and shave my legs."

"Oh, Jesus. Shaving too?"

I nodded, suddenly relieved that I wouldn't have to go through all that. "Don't worry though. It's not that big a deal. You won't have to do it every night. If it gets too long, I'll show you how to do it."

"Right. What next?"

I spent about three hours giving him a short description of my family tree, a tour of the house (which rooms are whose and which rooms not to go in, that kind of thing). I taught him how to walk like a girl, taught him how to talk like a girl and by midday, he was so good, he nearly fooled me.

"Right, you're turn." He said when he'd finished a tuna roll. Apparently that was all he could fit in. Me on the other hand, I was so hungry I had three ham sandwiches and a pie I found in the fridge.

"Get used to it," he'd said when I belched after downing a whole can of coke. "If we really are each other, you'll want to know that I eat like a horse. Well – used to anyway."

We made our way next door to his bedroom.

"What you're wearing is good. But the hair? No. Don't ever comb it down. Don't try to flatten it. Believe me, you'll just make it worse."

I took in everything he was saying with an open mind and by the end of the day, I think I was ready to go out without totally blowing my cover.

"Ok so let's pretend Peter comes up to you. How would you greet him?" we were testing each other now to see how much we learned. God, it's like we were studying for a test or something.

"I'd say 'hey . . . man.'"

Asher laughed. "That was extremely awkward but it's good enough."

"When are your parents' home?" I asked.

He shrugged. "No idea. They left on Thursday without a word."

My mouth fell open. "Wait, they just left you on your own?"

He smirked. "Yeah. I'm perfectly capable of looking after myself you know."

"Yeah, I know, it's just . . . it seems like they don't even care if they just leave without telling you anything."

"Yeah, well. Anyway, tomorrow is all about football and school. What classes I have, who I sit with, that sort of thing."

"Right, well, I'll see you tomorrow then."

He nodded and disappeared down the hall.

I sighed and flopped back onto his bed. As much as I hoped things would go back to normal tomorrow, I couldn't help a small part of me wishing it never did. I've never ever felt popular or even liked by the people at school and – well – that's all Asher's ever known. He's always had a whole class of friends and he's admired and just popular. And if things stay as they are by Monday, I will finally feel accepted. Even if it is in a guy's body. But – hey – he's not that bad to look at.

It was then that I realised I didn't really hate him anymore. I guess spending a whole day with someone it changes your perspective of them.