"Man, can you believe the nerve of that kid?" Rachel spat, slamming the door to her locker shut. "Calling me a whore? What an asshole!"

Jessica patted Rachel's back with a concerned look on her face. "Don't let him get you upset, Rach. He's just trying to get under your skin."

The canine sighed angrily before allowing Jessica to hug her. "Ugh… I've just got so much shit going on I feel like the world's on my shoulders."

"I know what you mean." Jessica said, brushing her hand against Rachel's face. Just then, the school bell rang and the two girls headed off down the hallway for the lunch period. As they weaved in and out of students, Jessica's brain was in the utmost turmoil. She wanted to tell Rachel her feelings before the day was over, but how would she go about doing it? Would Rachel really accept her? Rachel told her when they started they'd just be friends with benefits, but did she share the same feelings? Nevertheless, her thoughts were broken as the two girls walked into the lunchroom where the din made it quite impossible to think straight.

"Oooh! Today's Meatball Monday." Rachel squealed, licking her lips.

"You think they put real meat in those meatballs?" Jessica joked as the two grabbed the usual plastic green trays.

"Oh, stop it, you." Rachel giggled, swatting Jessica playfully.

Indeed, the meatballs looked like they were constructed more of sewer sludge than meat. The two girls walked away with their share of noodles and dark grey balls of God only knows. Rachel jogged out ahead to take a seat at their usual table and Jessica sat down next to her with their usual clique of girls. Agatha, Charlene, and Vivian. Viv and Cherry were already busy discussing something while Agatha was busy staring at her reflection in her compact mirror, applying lipstick to her worn lips - kissing too many boys had messed up the vivacity of her lipstick.

"Hey girls." Rachel shot in, prompting greetings from the three other girls. Jessica mumbled her own greeting, but she was far too busy playing with her meatballs and thinking about how to talk to Rachel. Agatha chuckled and closed her compact mirror and let out a loud whistle. In an instant, a Freshman boy appeared with a refuse bin in hand and she tossed her eaten food in and winked at him, causing him to shiver. He bolted away shortly thereafter and Agatha folded her hands on the table with a smug grin on her face.

"So, girls." She said in her slight French accent. "Did you 'ear about Richard? He broke up with Cindy! He's free, ladies." She leaned in forward and prompted the rest of the girls to do the same. "I think I'm going to make a move on him."

"Yeah, I heard he think's your pretty cute." Cherry stated, brushing her hair to the side of her head. "Man, girl, if you get with that stud you need to tell us how it was and how big he is!" She says with a small smirk and a wanting expression on her face.

"If?" Agatha asked, staring at Cherry with a bewildered look on her face. "Oh, mon cher, you underestimate my abilities. American men always 'ave a thing for foreigners." She leaned back in her chair and motioned for the girls to look at her body, something Jessica did all too eagerly. "And 'ow can 'e resist these plump French breasts? Non, he won't. He is in the bag."

The entire table erupted into laughter, save Jessica, and Agatha wiped a tear from her face. "Aah, this is truly a great country. But I speak too much of myself. What men 'ave you ladies got your eyes on?"

Rachel smiled widely at Agatha and tapped a finger on the table. "Well, you know, that sophomore David is pretty cute… I hear it's as big as an arm…!"

"You think you can take that, girl?" Vivian asked, completely shocked.

"Babe, I'll take whatever he gives me." Rachel joked, causing the table to erupt into laughter. "What about you, Cherry? Anyone in particular?" The canine asked, resting her head on her hand to watch the tabby with great anticipation.

"Well…" She muttered, adjusting her glasses. "That one korat in David's class is pretty cute… Mike is his name?"

"Mike?" Rachel asked, frowning lightly. "Meh… not my type. What about you, Jess? Who were you looking at those suits for?"

"Jessica? Oh, please, Rachel! Don't tell me you don't know!" Agatha interrupted, cackling. "Jessica isn't looking for men, she was probably looking at those disgusting suits for herself." A confused look crossed Rachel's face while Jessica blushed, and the other girls erupted into laughter. "So you don't know!" Agatha said. "Oh, this is rich. Jessica isn't into men, sweetie. She likes the other side of the coin."

"Oh, that's not so bad." Rachel interjected, patting Jessica's back. "Well, any girl you're into, Jess?"

Again, the entire table erupted into laughter and Agatha seemed like she was going to choke. "Oh, you certainly are rather lightheaded, aren't you? She likes you, Rachel! She likes you!"

"What…? Jessica…" Rachel said, staring at her friend with a concerned expression.

"Well, uh..." Jessica stutered, unable to formulate a response. "I, uh..."

"Jessica..." The canine repeated. "You can tell me anything. Come on."

"Yes. It's true..." Jessica blurted out, figuring it was now or never. "I, uh... really do like you, Rachel... a lot..."

Rachel was stunned for a few moments before a sympathetic frown crossed her face. "I… uh, I'm sorry, Jess… I just don't like girls the way you do. I mean, I'd date you if you were a man, but… I just don't feel the same way. I'm sorry, Jess."

"Oh, this is rich!" Agatha shrieked, holding her sides and struggling to breathe. That was the final straw for Jessica. She was blushing heavily and a low growl was emanating from inside of her throat. As the girls continued to guffaw, Jessica stood up from the table and threw her spaghetti onto Agatha's face, covering the girl in meatballs and marina sauce. Agatha gasped loudly and screamed as Jessica stormed past her and out of the cafeteria into the girls bathroom, where she locked herself into a stall. After a few minutes of staring at the door, Jessica erupted into tears.

"I… I knew it…" She whispered, burying her face into her hands. "She… She doesn't love me…"

As Jessica continued to sob into her hands, Rachel's words floated around in her head. "I'd date you if you were a man… if you were a man… if you…" Just then, it seemed like the final piece of the puzzle had fallen into place. All the years Jessica had felt uncomfortable looking at herself naked, how she hated her cleavage and tried to hide it, her interest in girls… it suddenly all made sense. What if she did want to be a man? However, Jessica was irrational and not thinking straight, and quickly dismissed it as emotional babble. Just then, the school bell rang signaling the end of the half a day. Jessica quickly ran from the school building, not stopping by her locker or looking for Rachel. She needed to run, to get away, to hide herself. She tore around the corner and ran into the first store she could find. The smell of expensive cloth entered her nose and she opened her eyes to find herself back in that store for men.

It was almost heaven. The handsome pin-stripe suits and ties lined the walls, coupled with shined shoes and cologne. It awakened a part inside Jessica she'd never felt before and without much thought she decided to peruse the section of suits before her. When she ran her hand over them she couldn't help but smile; they felt so good! Without much thought, she scooped up a few items and ran towards a dressing room, scaring an aide nearby. She had picked out a fairly handsome outfit; it was a navy blue suit with a stark-white dress shirt and matching tie, with jeweled cuff-links and shined shoes. The smell was so intoxicating Jessica thought she would faint. She'd never tried on boy's clothes before, but her mother often told her stories of her childhood when she would play with boy's toys and wear caps. Her father had none of that and threw them all away, effectively 'feminizing' her room. Regardless, after a few minutes of struggling, Jessica managed to slip into the masculine suit and took a good look at herself in the mirror. For the first time in a long time, she smiled and actually liked how she looked. She decided on an impulse she'd buy said suit, but the moment she changed and carried the outfit back out, she bumped into the chest of an aide, who was staring angrily down at her.

"Ma'am. You do know this is a store for men, don't you?" He asked, not moving.

"Well, I, uh… yeah…" She replied meekly, scared by the large canine. He snarled at her and took the clothes from her hands, next ushering her towards the door.

"We don't serve your fetishist kind here, miss. I am going to have to ask you to leave lest I be forced to call security."

Before she knew it, Jessica was thrust out the door and it shut behind her. Angry, Jessica flipped the man the bird through the window and set off towards home. She walked in her front door exactly thirty minutes late and her father was already waiting for her. She frowned and turned her head away from him, knowing what would happen next.

"Why are you late coming home, Jessica?" He asked, crossing his arms. "And why is your blouse all dirty and scratched? What were you doing?"

"I got into a fight…" She said, it being the first thing that came to her mind.

Her father frowned and shook his head. "May I ask what this fight was about?"

"…A boy."

"Jessica, I am ashamed. After all I've taught you, after I've struggled to bring you up right, you do this? I am ashamed of you. I want you to go up to your room and pray until I come and fetch you for a talk. Is this understood?"

"Yes, father…"

"Sometimes I wonder what we're going to do with you, Jessica. You're nothing but trouble at times. You're dismissed."

Tears rolled down Jessica's cheeks as she walked up the stairs. She looked over her shoulder to see her father with his face in his hands and her mother comforting him. Quickly, she bolted upstairs to her room, past her parent's room. But as she walked past, she noticed it was one of the rare times where their door was open. She peeked into the room to find a suit laid freshly out on the bed. It was her father's work suit. She wiped away a few tears from her eyes and stepped into the room, shutting the door behind her and letting her eyes fall on the suit. She needed a little cheering up…