Soccer Queen
by Andrew ( anr )
Chapter 6

David woke feeling rested and refreshed. Remembering what had happened the last time he got out of bed, he carefully swung both legs to the floor and waited until the night gown had settled round his legs before standing up.

As he was putting his slippers on, he reflected on the previous evening. Meeting the boys at the cinema had been a shock. Samantha's advice to react like a girl had been hard to follow when he was expected to kiss another guy. But, the more he did it, the easier it was. *I must be thinking like a girl now* he thought.

When he reached the bathroom, he looked in the mirror and was glad his mother had come after him last night. She had explained that leaving makeup on was bad for the skin, and had shown him how to use cold cream to remove it. He was amazed when he saw all the colour on the pieces of cotton wool his mother had used to remove the gunk from his face. After his face was clean, he had again washed Samantha's bra and panties, and had hung them up over the shower rail.

As he turned to lock the door, his mother walked into the bathroom and suggested he have a bath instead of a shower that morning. She put the plug in and turned the taps on and then, from a bottle she was carrying, poured a large amount of crystals into the bath. The water immediately started to foam, and David looked at the water with dismay. *Jeez* he thought. *I haven't had a bubble-bath since I was about five years old.*

His mother smiled at him and left the bathroom, allowing him to lock the door. Once he was alone, he stripped out of his night gown and slid into the bath.

He lay back and relaxed, thinking about all his mother and Samantha had done over the last two days. He thought he understood Samantha - she wanted him to play for her team and by making him resemble a girl she could manage that. His mother was more difficult to get a handle on though.

She seemed to be taking this thing a whole lot more seriously than he would have believed. It was almost as if she wanted to make him into another daughter. Take yesterday for example. He had been trailed round the shopping centre - mall as the Americans called it - buying *girls* clothes and shoes.

When he had washed himself, he got out of the bath and dried himself. He noticed that the plaster between his legs had come off in the water, so he cut another strip and replaced it. Looking into the bath, he spotted the old plaster, stuck in the drain. He picked it up and disposed of it down the toilet.

Returning to his room, he noticed that his mother had laid out his clothes for the morning. They consisted of a knee length skirt, one of the bra and panty sets they had bought yesterday, and his new trainers.

Sighing resignedly, he put the clothes on, remembering to put the breast forms into the cups of the bra. When he picked up the breast forms, he noticed a hairbrush and a carrier bag on the vanity. Looking in the bag, he saw Samantha's underwear and realised that he should return it today.

Remembering what the stylist had told him, he picked up the brush and started pulling it through his hair. As he was brushing, the steady rhythm gave him a relaxed feeling. *No wonder girls like having their hair brushed* he thought. He carefully brushed the inward curl at the bottom, wondering when he would have to use a curling iron, and where to get one!

His mother was waiting for him, with breakfast things spread out on the table before her. As he sat down, she told him that they were returning to the shops for some things they had forgotten the day before.

David listened with surprise, wondering what else he could possibly need. When his mother had finished speaking, he asked "Where's Dad ?"

His mother said "He had to return to work to write a report on the problems they had over the last two days. He'll be back tonight."

After finishing his breakfast, David took the carrier bag of underwear and walked round to Samantha's house. When she answered the door, he handed her the bag and asked her if she wanted to come to the mall.

Samantha jumped at the chance, and ran up to her room to drop off the carrier bag and pick up her purse. They then returned to David's house, where his mother was waiting. "I asked Sam to accompany us to the mall today, Mum," he said.

"OK, Davina," she replied, "Just don't get carried away. We aren't made of money, you know."

David laughed softly at the joke, and they walked together to the bus stop. The same two old ladies were waiting at the stop, and complimented David again on how pretty he was. They also clucked over Samantha, and David wondered if they ever stopped talking. As the bus carried them to the shopping centre, David and Samantha discussed the previous evening and giggled about the boys and what they had said last night.

At the shopping centre, their first stop was the salon where David had received a complete makeover yesterday. His mother asked to see the cosmetologist who had worked on David the previous day, and requested a list of the cosmetics she had used on her daughter the previous day.

The cosmetologist took a piece of paper and a pen and started writing. She then handed the completed list to Mrs. McCall, and they took the piece of paper to a department store in the mall.

When they showed the salesgirl at the cosmetics counter the note, she looked at David and then collected a number of bottles and tubes, which she put in a bag after scanning them for their price. David nearly had a heart-attack when the total was announced, but his mother handed over a credit card seemingly without concern.

They then walked to the leather goods department where his mother bought David a white handbag. When he saw what she was buying, David got a bit jumpy. *Now I need a HANDbag* David thought, unconsciously echoing the intonation he had heard in a film at one time.

She also selected a girl's wallet for David to replace the one he had at home.

All the cosmetics were emptied in the bag and David's mother showed him how to carry it over his shoulder. David looked at himself, and compared his looks to those of Samantha and other girls of the same age. *I now look 100% like them* he thought. *But Becky was right - I do look out of place with- out some jewellery.*

David mentioned the lack to his mother, and they walked to the jewellery department where they looked at the selection of costume jewellery. David selected some cheap bangles, a broach with a semiprecious stone set in silver-coated wire and a necklace of orange beads. He also tried the rings on, and found one that fit - it was a simple sliver-plated circle with a wire flower on top.

After paying for their purchases, David put on the ring and one of the bangles. *That looks better* he thought as he put the rest of the jewellery into his handbag.

They then wandered round the mall window-shopping. In one of the stores, they saw a dress that Samantha was drooling over. It was a three-piece, the top consisting of a sleeved tunic made from a fine-mesh net, with a green snakeskin waistcoat and a miniskirt also made from green snakeskin.

Mrs. McCall looked at Samantha's face and said "That's a bit sophisticated for you, dear. Give it a few more years."

After wandering around for a few hours, they went to the food court where they all ordered a salad for lunch. The visit to the ladies following the meal was less of an ordeal for David this time. With a full set of makeup in his bag, David set to work trying to recreate the look the cosmetologist had created the day before.

Samantha saw what he was doing, and started to laugh. When David looked round with an injured expression, she said

"That's too much for daytime. Besides, you look like a clown. Here, clean it off and I'll show you what you need. You'll need a lot of practise to be able to do your face like it was last night."

When his face had been redone, with only a touch of lipstick and eye-shadow, he had to admit that it looked more appropriate. David then turned to Samantha and asked if she would teach him how to apply makeup properly.

They returned to the bus stop, and David was glad that they didn't have as many bags as the last time his mother had brought them here.

Arriving at their houses, Samantha suggested they practise football (soccer she called it) for a while. David agreed, and went into the house to change. He quickly realised that the only appropriate clothing he had was an old Hibs strip, with "Jackson" sewn on the back. Darren Jackson had been his favourite Hibs player before the club sold him during the off-season when they were demoted.

When he tried a body-swerve, his hair flew into his eyes, so he decided that he needed something to keep his hair back. He went down the hall and asked his mum for something that would keep his hair out of his eyes. She went to her room and returned with a pink hair ribbon.

David started backing away, but it was useless. His mother caught him, and tied his hair back into a ponytail with a large bow with long ends flowing down his back. David thought he must look about seven years old, and sighed in resignation.

He met Samantha in front of the garage doors they were using as a makeshift goal. She looked at him and said "That's a nice shirt you're wearing. What team is that ?"

"Hibs. They just got promoted back into the top league, and I'm going to miss next season when they play all their old rivals again."

"At least you'll be able to get the scores on the Internet" Samantha told him.

"Hey, what a cool idea! Do you know how to find them ? Have you got a computer ? Mine won't arrive for a couple of weeks."

"Later, Davina. Let's practise soccer again and you can show me some more of your moves."

"OK," David replied. "You start."

They played for about two hours, until they were both hot and sweaty. Then Samantha offered David a drink to cool down.

When they entered Samantha's house, her mother looked up and smiled. "Hello girls, you look hot. Do you want a drink of something ?"

By this time, David was growing accustomed to being referred to in the feminine. He just sighed as Samantha said "That's what we're in for," as she led the way into the kitchen.

She grabbed a couple of cokes out of the fridge and tossed one to David. He caught it yelping "Hey, Careful! I don't want to get sprayed when I open this thing!"

Samantha laughed as she opened her own coke and took a swallow. David also laughed, having seen the funny side of the situation. He managed to open the bottle without losing any of the coke, and they sat and talked about their morning at the mall.

When they had finished the cokes, Samantha took David upstairs to her room, where she turned on her computer. After it was connected to the Web, she asked what they should search for.

After some thought, he told her "Hibs, results, current"; he reckoned that that should find what they needed. When the search was completed, he was stunned to discover that the first item on the results list was hosted by the Hibs club of the USA! He definitely needed to find that site again, so he copied down the address, intending to bookmark it when his own computer arrived.

Of course, the site currently displayed a great big "Victory" banner, in celebration of their achievement at winning the First Division championship, and being promoted to the Premier League.

Samantha laughed delightedly and said "You must support the best team!" as she closed down her computer.

David just smiled - he knew that next season would be harder, with the likes of Rangers and Celtic. Not to mention their old city rivals, Hearts.

For the next hour, Samantha proceeded to give David his firat makeup lesson. David suddenly looked at the time, and realised that his mum was expecting him back for tea. He made his excuses to Samantha and left to return to his own house.

As he walked over to his own house, he saw his dad's car in the driveway. He became frightened again, as he realised that his dad had never seen him in a skirt. He wondered what his dad was going to say.

More Soccer Queen Coming Soon!