Why am I me?

Chapter 15

[Currently writing something new, keep an ear to the ground]

Chapter 15

'Not really but kinda Birthday plans'

To be at University on my Birthday was a God sent, my parents had asked to call but I lied and said I was busy with friends until the evening. No one here knew it was my Birthday, I had removed it from my Facebook profile shortly after joining University just to be safe. Not many of my classmates or flatmates used Facebook that often anyhow so the messages that were left on my wall by family and one or two family friends wouldn't be seen by them until later in the week if at all.

I sighed happily as I rolled over in my bed, the fact it was a Saturday made the day even more perfect. I planned to spend the day reading and watching films on my laptop though I felt I had to go out at one point since I hated lying to my parents. I could say I spent time with them and lie about how long and what we did but I had to at least go out to make it feel like it wasn't a full lie.

Pulling out my phone I left a message on my class group chat asking for drinks, shopping or beach time at some point today. Statistically coast Uni's are meant to be the worst but mine was the anomaly there, it was probably the only thing in my life of late that I had actually liked about myself.

'Shops, WAY too cold for beach'

'Busy but up for drinks later'

'I can do both'

'Shops'

Most of the class replied, four of us would go shopping and around seven would go out for drinks later. It was more than I wanted to do today but none of them knew my Birthday was today so I shrugged and got up for a shower.

****

I sat beside a boy from class while two girls sat in front. I only knew them by nickname, their birth names long forgotten. The names were amusing to most of us, we'd given them on a groupchat before we'd met so they sounded like something you'd hear from a child or an American CW teen show. Curly, named purely because himself and his dog had matching curly hair, sat a bit too close for a friendly classmate though the way the girls sat made it feel like a double date. Roy, her last name was King but someone else had that nickname and of course Kings are royalty but royalty or royal is a mouthful, sat beside Toto. Toto, originally called Twinkle Toes since she dances but no one wanted to call her that and it just generally sucked. I was King, I couldn't recall why I had been dubbed the title but I wasn't going to complain, at least I wasn't named after my hair type.

"You alright?" the question interrupted my thought and I raised an eyebrow in questioning.

"You don't really talk on the group chat or generally socialise all that much and now you kinda planned this... or initiated it" he shrugged and looked expectantly at me.

"Mum worries that I don't socialise enough" it wasn't exactly a lie, she had always worried I didn't have a social life. When I was younger they'd take me out once a month, it took me years to realise it was because I was their loneliest child and they wanted to get me out.

"Ah, got it" he looked forward awkwardly giving a tight lipped smile as I stared at the plait in Toto's hair.

"So are you coming out later too?" I nodded and looked over to him. He was pretty, I'd never looked at anyone in class. I didn't go into relationships expecting it to be short so starting something so far from home would be far from ideal. If I were to be female though, I think I'd be a lesbian. I tried to subtly look between the girls in front and the guy next to me.

He looked too much like me. Not literally, but he had stubble, a chunkier nose, solid jaw, broad shoulders. I did smile with subtle satisfaction that my hair wasn't the same, it was more like the girls really. Long enough to not be considered short for a guys hair at least. The smile disappearing as I realise where my mind had gone to. Twenty years down, hopefully less than eighty left to go...