Trapped (egobang trans)

Chapter 35 - Slow

< Danny's POV >

Danny leaned against one of the cubicles, trying to look calm and hope that the actual feeling would follow. He heard Brian and Arin say something to each other outside, but he was too busy psyching himself up. This was a big thing. Brian had been his first friend here, it felt wrong to keep him in the dark.

"So, what is it you wanted to tell me?"

Danny looked up with a start. Brian was staring at him with his calculating blue eyes, probably not meaning to look intimidating but freaking Danny out all the same. He took a last deep breath before speaking.

"You remember when you first asked me what my name was? At the end of math?"

"Yeah...?" Brian seemed confused as to where this was going.

"What was my answer?"

"Dani. What are you-"

"How would you spell it? D-A-N-I, I'm guessing. Like a nickname, right?"

"Well, yeah. I don't understand. What're you getting at, Dani?"

Danny sighed.

"I don't really know how else to say this, Brian. It's not a nickname, and it's not spelled like that. It's D-A-N-N-Y. I'm... I'm a guy."

Just like with Debbie, an uncomfortable silence descended between them. Danny almost smiled amusedly as he watched Brian look him up and down, probably surveying his quite obviously female body. He frowned in confusion and opened his mouth to say something before he pieced it together. His mouth stayed open, now in a surprised jaw-drop.

"Ooooh," he said in realisation.

"Now you see why I'm in the boys bathroom?"

He let through a smile and a chuckle, lightening the mood now that the secret was out. Brian laughed in response, shaking his head.

"It all makes sense now."

"You okay with it? Like, you don't think I'm a weirdo?" Danny ventured just to make sure.

"No, of course not, though I do wonder why you didn't tell me sooner. It's been... two months or something since we became friends."

"Sorry man, you're only the fourth person I've told, ever. Besides Arin and my parents. I was too scared to before, but I guess I just got tired of being something I'm not."

"It's fine. Just to be clear though, what pronouns should I use?"

Danny didn't answer straight away. He wanted his friends to know, definitely, but was he ready for the rest of the world?

"Um, I'm not sure, as weird as that sounds," he answered truthfully, "I want more than anything to be called by male pronouns, but the idea of going from no one knowing to like a whole school is super scary."

"Are you telling TWRP too?"

"Yeah, at practice later probably. That's why I wanted to tell you now."

"Well, we could take it slow. If tomorrow and onwards we use male pronouns, eventually people will catch on, but it's not like you have to make a public announcement about it," Brian suggested with a shrug.

Danny hummed as he thought about it. The thought of others knowing was no less petrifying, but a slow transition took the edge off of that. He smiled slightly.

"Okay, we can do that I guess."

A/N: sorry kind of short, next one will be longer this is just kind of to document this one conversation between Danny and Brian, putting any other scenes in didn't feel right :/

Also this song is so uplifting for me, my moods are super influenced by music for some reason and stuff like this just gives me hope and makes me happier about myself :) just thought I'd share this lol, maybe it'll have the effect on someone reading this???