Lexi got home from a very revealing discussion with her friend, Kiara, as her mom was finishing up talking to someone on the phone. She let out a large sigh as she hung up, still caught up on the conversation the two of them had that morning. “Oh, Lexi!” Karen stopped herself, realizing Lexi might not be in the mood to hear that name, but at her non-reaction, she continued. “Or, uh… well, anyways. I was just talking to Darren. He said he wanted to get to know you and Bea better, but I turned him down, so don’t worry about that-”
“I’ll go.” Karen flipped towards Lexi in shock. She’ll go? Like, she wants to spend time with Darren? “Like, I’ll go get to know Darren. If you want me to.”
“O-oh! I’ll uh… let him know then, I guess.” Karen called Darren and let him know her daughter would be alright getting to know him… a shocker for her. So, not long after, Darren stopped by to pick Lexi up. He wanted to be nice to, and get to know, Karen’s daughters better, and it was actually happening… Despite Lexi making Karen think that she absolutely wasn’t interested in him being present in their lives. Well, she was, at the time. But she promised her friend.
“Heya kiddo! So, what do you want to do today?” Lexi already knew what she wanted to do that day, Kiara had suggested to her earlier. It would be her first step into exploring a bit more of the femininity she had been repressing so much… Maybe she would like it, maybe she wouldn’t, but it would be good to find out and get a read on Darren at the same time.
“...I was thinking maybe I could go get my ears pierced? I can’t wear real earrings right now… and a manicure?” Both Darren and Karen were shocked, Bea likely would if she had been present as well.
“Oh! Well… if your Mom says it’s alright then I don’t see why not.” He deferred to Karen’s judgment.
“W-well…” Karen snapped out of her jaw-dropped gaze “I guess that would be fine… Have fun Lexi!” So, Lexi got an all-expenses paid trip to get a manicure and get her ears pierced for the first time. They started with the simpler of the two, which was more painful than she thought it would be, but the pain subsided by the time she picked out her first pair of earrings. She couldn’t take her eyes off of them as they drove to their next stop.
“So… what made you want a manicure Lexi?” Lexi looked up from her earrings, a sparkle still remaining in her eyes.
“W-well, my friends always have their nails painted and their hands soft and so cute… I guess I wanted to know what that felt like.” It was true Lexi would often find a little bit of a jealous streak in her when she saw other girls, including Bea, wearing earrings. But she often pushed it aside as childish, still set on returning to her life as a man.
“Oh, you haven’t done it before?”
“Uhhh… No, not really.” Lexi looked away. There wasn’t really any way she could explain to Darren the why of things.
“Well, I’m glad I could make it happen for you then!” He let out a pretty genuine smile. It seemed like he really was happy he could give Lexi something she wanted… It reminded Lexi of herself, just a little bit. Something crossed her mind, the bluntness of a young girl allowed her to just blurt it out and answer a question that had been on her mind for a while.
“So… Darren, do you like Mom?” Darren’s eyes went wide, for just a second.
“Well Lexi… If we’re being honest, I do like your Mom, she’s a nice woman. I think… it would be good if I gave her a little bit of time though. As I understand it, it hasn’t been that long since she lost your father… I really don’t want anything but to offer her a hand here and there.” Darren pulled into the parking lot of the beauty salon, turned around, and looked at Lexi. “So, yeah. I think she’s a great woman. She’s very strong, putting you and your sister above all else. Keep it a secret between me and you though, alright?” He winked. Lexi nodded, a lot was on her mind hearing that. It was… bold of him. But he only wanted to reassure her. “I’ll take you out to do something fun again sometime if you’ll let me.” Lexi then entered the salon, getting a manicure was really odd. It gave her a warm feeling in her chest… giving in and allowing someone to pamper her for just a little bit. Embracing this moment to focus on herself and allow others to show her care. They returned home and Darren left, Karen of course wanted to know how things went… although from the looks of it, things went well, somehow.
“So… you wanted to see what he’s like I guess… what did you think?” Lexi looked down and held out her hands, her nails painted for the first, and most definitely not the last, time in her life. It was a lot of fun… she should go out with Bea or Kiara or Mom next time.
“He’s alright.”
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