If you were going into the office tomorrow as a woman, when for the last 17 years you’d been going in as a man, how would you do it? Clothes and make-up must be perfect, but what else will it take? Attitude. You’ve been working on the attitude for the last 25 years. The planning, the learning gestures and gait and posture. You’re certain that as you embraced the feminine, your colleagues pegged you as gay. You are on the “queer spectrum.” Will you be accepted? It’s “Picture Day” tomorrow. The day all the shiny new associates get their Identity badges, with photographers on site – anyone who wants to update their photos are welcome. Photos will be on the firm directory, the firm web site.
Should you wear a name tag with your new name to avoid people using your dead name? You were christened Charles Mercer Stevens. Your parents raised a boy. Decent at Track sucked at football. Fumbling experiences dating. Always feeling like something wasn’t right. Like your skin didn’t fit right. Even then, that’s not who you were. Until now you lacked the courage, strength, support to be the butterfly; to put yourself through sculpturing of your body so it would match who you see in your mind’s eye, and the long, painful recovery afterword.
When you started at this firm you would not have dreamed there’d even be a Pride Day. You literally walked the straight and narrow. You stayed in your assigned lane, within the expected box. You did work LGBTQ into your pro bono work – something you started that the firm has continued to support. They will support you, your colleagues who have been Colleagues. You and HR can work with the others.
You look in the close-up mirror and are pleased with the reflection you find there. Your face is smooth, your eyebrows expertly plucked, your make-up is applied with finesse. You move to the full mirror: smart low-heeled shoes, an A-line skirt, raincloud grey. A luscious blue silk blouse, over a pretty demi-bra. You adjust your collar, pick up your briefcase.
You must use your old ID to get in the door. Like a new employee, HR walks you to your old office, you hold your breath until you see the name plate: Janelle M. Charles, Esq. Dropping your old ID in the shred box you go to get your new ID.
— Lkai
Should you wear a name tag with your new name to avoid people using your dead name? You were christened Charles Mercer Stevens. Your parents raised a boy. Decent at Track sucked at football. Fumbling experiences dating. Always feeling like something wasn’t right. Like your skin didn’t fit right. Even then, that’s not who you were. Until now you lacked the courage, strength, support to be the butterfly; to put yourself through sculpturing of your body so it would match who you see in your mind’s eye, and the long, painful recovery afterword.
When you started at this firm you would not have dreamed there’d even be a Pride Day. You literally walked the straight and narrow. You stayed in your assigned lane, within the expected box. You did work LGBTQ into your pro bono work – something you started that the firm has continued to support. They will support you, your colleagues who have been Colleagues. You and HR can work with the others.
You look in the close-up mirror and are pleased with the reflection you find there. Your face is smooth, your eyebrows expertly plucked, your make-up is applied with finesse. You move to the full mirror: smart low-heeled shoes, an A-line skirt, raincloud grey. A luscious blue silk blouse, over a pretty demi-bra. You adjust your collar, pick up your briefcase.
You must use your old ID to get in the door. Like a new employee, HR walks you to your old office, you hold your breath until you see the name plate: Janelle M. Charles, Esq. Dropping your old ID in the shred box you go to get your new ID.
— Lkai
I view word count as just being a suggestion.
ReplyDeleteIt's hard enough to change ones identity with regard to marital status, new job etc but I can't imagine having to change so many variables at one time, and in public.
I want to hone ma craft for flash fic. I'm a stickler for word count.
DeleteI should have clarified: im trying to be exact or only a few words under with my word counts.
DeleteVery gratifying ending here. ---Macoff (P.S. I ALMOST always go way over the word count. i tell myself just a few more words, then all of a sudden there's a paragraph.) ---Macoff
ReplyDelete