Trapped (egobang trans)

Chapter 1 - New Girl

Arin sighed as she looked at herself in the mirror. She hadn't got a lot of sleep last night from worrying about today, and she could see the darkness around her eyes as evidence. First day of a new school, and she already looked terrible.

Leaning forward she moved her head around, peering closely at her upper lip and chin. Thankfully she'd never really had any trouble with a beard, but her upper lip needed shaving daily. Even now she was sure she could see some hair there...

"Arin!" Her mum's voice snapped her from her self-loathing, "We're going to be late!"

"Okay, I'm coming!" Arin called back, taking one last look at her hideous reflection before leaving the bathroom.

Picking up her bag she made her way downstairs to where her mum was waiting. Without a word to each other they left the house and walked down the drive. Arin climbed into the passenger seat of their car and placed her bag on her lap, fiddling with the strap awkwardly.

"Are you nervous?" her mum asked as they pulled away from the house.

Arin didn't know how to answer that question. How could she tell her mum that she was absolutely petrified of being misgendered, bullied or even just looked at weirdly? She was petrified of anything and everything.

"No, not at all."

They arrived at the school just before 7, when kids were already starting to show up. Arin kept her head low, sticking close to her mum the whole way inside. She avoided eye contact with everyone but the floor.

At the reception desk she vaguely heard her mum talking to the woman behind it, and out of the corner of her eye saw her filling something in. Before she knew it her mum had to leave, and she was stuck waiting on the main reception couch for her class timetable to be printed out.

It was only half 7, and she could still hear people talking in the main halls so she knew class hadn't started yet.

At some point someone else walked into the reception: a dad and what looked like his daughter. She had big hair, curly and dark, and her face was quite thin, very different from Arin's round features. She was tall and slender, though she wore loose fitting clothing which Arin thought would probably fit her. Her jeans were ripped, and Arin blinked when she saw they were from the men's section.

Now that she properly looked, she wasn't very feminine at all. Her curls weren't at all styled like you'd expect from a girl and just kind of left to do as they pleased, and she was wearing no makeup. The only real giveaway was her face and breasts, though even those weren't very noticeable under her baggy shirt.

Her dark eyes locked onto Arin and she looked away, realising she'd been staring.

She felt herself blush and was so caught up in her embarrassment that she didn't notice the girl come over to her.

"Are you new too?" she asked, which made Arin jump.

Her voice was deeper than Arin expected, though it sounded as if it was forced a little. Perhaps she had a sore throat or something? Arin looked up awkwardly.

"Uh, y-yeah. I'm just waiting for my timetable to be printed out..." she stammered.

She was used to keeping her voice high, so much so that it was natural, but sometimes it would break a bit when she got flustered. It happened now and Arin saw the girl frown slightly for a moment. She knew what was going through her head.

This guy's weird. He's got a stupid voice. Why is he wearing so much pink, he's probably gay.

The curly haired girl shrugged, plopping down next to Arin. Her dad was about to leave and came over to say goodbye. His accent was odd and Arin couldn't quite understand what he said.

"Yeah, see ya Avi," returned his daughter absently, giving a short wave before leaning back on the couch.

Arin kept her eyes glued to the floor still, hiding behind her shoulder length brown hair. She had a blonde streak in it because she thought it looked cute, but now she was sure that everyone would stare at it and think she was weird. She was sure that even now the girl beside her was judging her. Without knowing it she was shuffling further down the couch.

"Here you go," said the receptionist suddenly as she came around the desk and towards Arin.

She hadn't been paying attention again and jumped as she was handed a slip of paper. Unfolding it she saw that it was her timetable.

"Oh, uh, t-thanks."

"Where's mine?" asked the curly haired girl, slightly rudely Arin thought.

"Just printing off now," replied the receptionist, unphased as she probably had to deal with grumpy teens on a daily basis.

She walked away back behind her desk and Arin stood up, feeling uncomfortable alone with the girl and not really needing to wait there any longer since she had her timetable. Without any kind of goodbye she rushed out, checking her first lesson and deciding to go there first. Her timetable had a map so she didn't need to ask anyone for directions and let them hear her stupid voice, which she was glad about.