By Lina S.
The Shooting Star
The Hotel lobby got crowded, a couch just arrived from the airport. People came through the door like a liquid and occupied the reception desk. Jonah loved these situations at work. They got him occupied and left him no time to think about his life.
Back in school Jonah was just average and teachers and his parents considered him lazy. But he was smart. Very smart. And he knew something wasn't right with him. It started in early when he was little. Maybe 7 years old back in the 90s, he couldn't remember exactly. But he knew how.
It was in one of those superstores, his parents went shopping there and took him with him. While his parents were busy in the nonfood department Jonah got a glimpse of the jewelry the store had. All the earrings and bracelets were there. His eyes began to sparkle just like a pair of earrings. He started to look at them and also started to choose his favorites. He started to envy the girls who could wear such nice things all the time, got them for their birthday or Christmas. All he always got was something to build or cars. And he realized in that moment that he wanted to be a girl. Being a boy just didn't feel right to him in that moment.
"Jonah" his parents said, "come on, we want to go" They left. But Jonah took all the thoughts with him. His mind was a rollercoaster. He couldn't stop thinking about all that sparkly stuff, how he would wear it, how he would dress if he would wake a girl the next day.
He went to bed that night. His mind still racing. He wished to be a girl. He wished to be born one and no one would remember Jonah. They all should only remember .... He stopped. what would his name be when he was born a girl? He did not know. And for now, he couldn't decide.
He woke up the next day. Disappointed that his whish did not came true. He was still his old self. The thoughts stayed with him. He thought they might be leaving him one he grows.
Someday, his father brought home a magazine from a business trip. He did that basically every time he traveled around and as usual, Jonah took the magazine and browsed through it. There, in the middle of the magazine, there was an article about a someone who underwent surgery to pursue his dream and become a woman. Jonah was relieved. There were others. He wasn't alone. For the first time in ages he felt happiness. When he brought back the magazine his parents were in the living room. "Have seen that article about that freak who thinks he's a woman?" his dad asked. Jonah nodded silently and tried to escape that situation as quickly as possible. He was sad. And scared again. A freak? Does his father really think he's a freak? But finally, after all those years he had a name to it. It's called transgender.
When puberty started and Jonah still felt he was living in the wrong body he felt the urge to act manly. Maybe it would help his thoughts. He never dared to tell someone. He was scared. Scared that no one would believe him. That people would call him crazy. He was afraid that they will lock him up and tell him what's right and what is not. But he knew what was right. He just didn't know how to make things right. He thought that maybe everything goes away and he feels right once puberty was over. But it didn't. He never felt home in his body.
It made him depressed. Caused him to have bad grades in school. That's why he was called lazy. He just didn't know what to do. After community college he started working in a hotel in the outskirts of his hometown. He liked the job. With the tips it paid his bills and he decided it's time to leave the nest and move somewhere else. Somewhere where no one knew him. The invention of the internet helped him to get information. He knew that there is the possibility to take hormones and such, but he still was super scared the world would see him as a freak.
He got himself a job in one of the Airport Hotels near Los Angeles and moved to California. At first it helped him to be away from all his sorrows. But deep in him he knew that they were still haunting him. And it didn't take long until he felt envy towards the girls who were inline skating in bikini tops and daisy dukes along the boardwalk. At work he had mostly female colleagues. Some of his old friends back home always said that reception clerk is a women's job. He liked the idea, but it also felt odd to him. The male uniform was completely different than the female one. Sometimes after work he went for drinks with his coworkers, but he never felt like he belonged there. Even though he never felt like his colleagues didn't like him.
One evening when they sat at O'reillys a bar close to the hotel, he left that party for some alone time. He headed towards the beach. He loved the beach at night. It was so quiet. Almost no people were around. It felt like he could drop a bit of his heavy heart right there at the boardwalk and could walk towards the beach with much more ease.
After walking a bit in the sand, he sat in the sand and then lying on his back watching in the sky while he was listening to the surf. It was such a clear night. So many stars were visible which was rare for Los Angeles with all its light pollution. His mind was drifting of as he stared in the sky when he saw a shooting star all of the sudden. "make a wish" a voice told him. He looked around and saw no one. He thought about it and knew exactly what he should wish for. He made his wish and went home. It was late or rather early and he had to e back at work in the afternoon.
While he was asleep, he couldn't feel any of the changes that overcame him. His frame started to shrink, leaving him at 5'3". His hair grew past his and changed color from brown to a dirty blonde. Breasts grew on his chest and his penis slowly retracted into his groin. The changes went fast. But the changes on Jonah weren't the only ones. His little studio apartment changed with him. So far it has been mostly functional and some boxes from his move he never felt like unpacking were stacked up in one corner. The boxes fused with his wardrobe, leaving the wardrobe twice the size as it was before, filling up with all sorts of clothes, shoes and purses. The plain white walls changed into a lavender color and the where he had his huge PC changed into a desk with a mirror, some led lights around for cosines, the huge old PC changed into a nice laptop leaving more space for some essentials. Along the mirror some phots appeared showing Jonah back home with a clique of girlfriends, with his or rather her parents now. Jonah slept long. When she awoke the clock shoed 10:34. She left her bed drowsy. She felt different somehow. In the bathroom she caught a glimpse of her in the mirror and startled herself. Although she did not realize it and swung around to see who was in her apartment. Only to have her hair flowing into her face "What the ..." escaped her lips, hearing her voice she looked into the mirror. She almost fainted seeing her reflection. " I must.... Must be still sleeping, what a wonderful dream" she gasped in her new soprano voice" and started smiling. She felt her breasts, and her hole changed body when she froze for a moment. She slit a hand in her pajama shorts to confirm everything changed properly. She was greeted by a moist slit and felt some weakness in her knees. How do I make sure I never wake up and keep on dreaming this dream she thought"? She looked around and saw that her apartment looked totally different. In the shower were much more hair care products, a variety of shower gels. There was a rack showing some body lotions and face lotions. She looked around and thought that home felt never so much at home in her apartment as she did now. And she remembered why she came into the bathroom, she had to relieve her bladder. Afterwards she made sure to wipe properly and felt happy.
She went into the kitchen to get some coffee. On her way it happened, she hit her toe into the kitchen table which now was differently arranged than before. The pain hit her hard. She held her foot and looked at it. Some of the nail polish had chipped because of the hard impact. And then she realized. "This might be not a dream at all. You wake up in such moments in your dream, don't you?" She asked herself. She pinched herself into her arm. It hurt, but she didn't wake up. Again. And again. No sign of waking up. She started to feel super happy. Seeing the pictures at her make up table she realized that it might be not only her and her apartment that changed. Maybe the whole world changed, maybe the mistake that she was born a boy was fixed? She her purse. And got curios. She forgot about the coffee and got her purse and peeked inside. She found a wallet which contained debit cards and an ID. She took everything out and looked closely. There it was her Name. Last name and Birthday, still the same, but her first names changed. She was now Emily Charlotte McAllister. The buzzing of her phone brought her back into (the new) reality. She looked at it, it was her Mum. Jonah never really talked much to his parents since he moved here. He needed the distance. But now seeing her mom called and seeing the little heart emoji after mom made her realize that this might be different now as well. She answered her phone "hey mom" "Hey sweetie, haven't heard anything from you in while and we wanted to make sure you're okay. You know Your dad and I don't like that you live that far way in such a big and dangerous city"
That went on for a while and after assuring her mum the she is taking care and avoiding the bad areas she said goodbye to her mum.
She thought about what to do know and got reminded of work. In all her happiness she didn't feel like going to work today. She called in sick. She needed the time to explore her new life. She felt unprepared to face to world just yet. She looked around her apartment, looking through all her new stuff. It didn't take long until her apartment was a mess. Clothes where everywhere. She didn't mind. She also forgot time and sometime in the afternoon her phone rang. She looked at it and recognized the name as one of her coworkers. "Em, I heard you called in sick today, everything alright with you?" "I'm uhm... yes, I'm okay. Just wasn't feeling to good when I got up, felt a bit nauseous." "oh, shark week? I'm sorry honey" "Uhm.... Yes..." Emily said. She hasn't thought about that yet. But yes, even that made her happy. Even though every female She met as Jonah complained about her period and always commented how lucky he was to not get periods. Jonah hated that. Even if it was uncomfortable, painful and many other nasty things, as Jonah he thought he misses out on something. "At least it means you're not pregnant" she teased. Emily wondered if she had a boyfriend. "Alight, just wanted to quick check on you, need to get back at work, see you tomorrow?" Yes, thank you" she said smiling. "See you tomorrow Alice". Alice hung up first.
Apparently, Emily had a real friend. As Jonah she got along really well with Alice, but they weren't that close to consider it as a friendship. Probably Jonah never felt to fit in.
It was already late Afternoon when Emily felt a bit hungry. She got ready, picked a t shirt and a pair of skinny jeans and some sandals, applied a bit of eye make-up while she wondered if she was a natural at make up or if it was part of the wish, she made last night and went outside.
Everything felt knew and also a bit weird. She expected some people to stare at her, but everything went smooth. Of course, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. No one remembered Jonah. The little Mexican supermarket was just around the corner. Emily got some things to prepare a little salad at home. Jonah wasn't like that. Maybe he didn't care as much so he usually bought some microwave stuff, just to get rid of the hungry feeling. Emily loved that part of her, cooking, even a simple salad seemed so much more joy that just waiting for the microwave to ding. And the salad felt a lot better than just some junk food burrito. Emily couldn't remember the last time she was that happy. If ever.
Evening came and Emily got into bed. She opened a bottle of white wine she had in the fridge and went to bed with her laptop. She opened Netflix and browsed through the shows and films. She got settled with a rom com which she genuinely enjoyed. She always identified with a female character more, but this time it was different. There was way more emotions involved. She really felt what the female character went through and was genuinely happy when everything worked out towards the end of the movie. When female and male lead kissed, she felt a tingle throughout her body. She liked the way the guy kissed that woman, how the woman was holding on to that guy. He was handsome. And muscular. Emily felt the need to touch his muscular chest too. Hormones rushing through her body made her brain tingle even more.
She felt her nipples getting hard, and even while lying in bed she felt her knees getting weak. Even after that movie she could stop fantasizing about being kissed by a guy, leaning onto his muscular chest. She put the laptop away and closed her eyes. Her hands wandering around her body, finding her way towards her vagina. She started fingering herself. She felt horny all over. But still different than she did as a male. She felt that horniness was mostly centered in her groin area and her penis. Even though she wasn't very sexually active as Jonah. It never felt right to her so usually just jerked off thinking about being a girl having sex with a guy. But now the feeling spread throughout her body. From everywhere. But now in her fantasy, she doesn't even have sex. Yet. There was just her and a guy, kissing. Soon she couldn't hold it any longer and started to climax. Her whole body climaxed, and she still kept going. After climaxing three more times she felt so much more alive than ever. She felt happy. And a little bit exhausted. She got up, still a bit weak and kind of wobbly with the remaining tingle in her body. She could feel her body still glowing. She smiled when she stepped into the shower.
After the shower she got to bed, she felt tired. She dreamed about guys and exploring the world as herself. She never slept that good before and got up early feeling refreshed as she never did before. She put on some yoga pants, a pink top and her running shows. She started jogging. Luckily it wasn't that far to the beach, so she went in that direction. Jogging along the boardwalk she noticed some guys looking at her, checking her out. She even got some cat calls. And as annoying it felt to be objectified, she kind of liked the feeling. As this was now part of her life. Back as Jonah she always wanted the hole experience, good and bad, and so far, that's what she got.
Back at home she prepared a small breakfast, had some coffee and went into the shower again. After the shower she got ready for work. She met Alice in the locker rooms in the hotel. The two girls hugged, and Alice asked if Emily is better today. While working Emily noticed the guest had a more friendly attitude towards her. She also got more tips than she used to as Jonah. Which was a nice side effect. While at break she talked with Alice who asked what she was up to after work. "You here for four months now Emily it's about time you meet some more people outside of work. Maybe find a guy who is boyfriend material" Question answered, she had no boyfriend at the moment. "We are both off tomorrow, so why don't we go shopping, having a nice day, and then dinner and some drinks at that new place at the Beach".
"Sounds great" I said already looking forward. We went back to work; the day was busy so there wasn't much time to think about personal stuff. Jonah loved those days; Emily was happy to be off work. She was still getting acclimated to her new life and she felt like a robot instead of a human being.
She went home together with Alice. Both were exhausted. And tired. Emily still asked if Alice wanted to hang out a bit at her apartment. Alice said yes and they had a bit of the wine Emily opened the day before. They talked about everything. Emily had known Alice for a couple of months now, but in a different way, so she tried to gain a bit more knowledge of her friend here. Alice moved to LA 7 months ago, so she was also new in town but seemed to know the city way better than Emily. Of course, Emily only knows what Jonah experienced so far
And as he tried to be on his own as much as possible, he never really explored the city und tried to hang out or find the places to be. For him LA was never the opportunity as it was for others. But Emily regretted that now. She felt like she moved to LA just the other day.
She was super happy Alice is around and is able to bring her back to life now. To start living to be precise.
At 1am Alice went home but will be picking Emily the next at around to enjoy their day off. Emily got to bed but slept fretfully. She was too excited for the next day.
When Emily awoke, she felt ready for a day full of adventures. Although her plans with Alice seemed quite normal and nothing out of the ordinary for two young women. Emily made a cup of coffee and went to her wardrobe and inspected the contents while sipping on her coffee.
She felt like she had nothing to wear even the closet was full of clothes of all kinds. She felt like a dress. Or skirt She wore pants every day in her life now. Plus, she had a nice figure she wanted to show off. While on her second cup of coffee she settled for a plaid red dress with short sleeves, black leggings and some matching 2" heel ankle boots. In case it gets chilly she opted for a denim jacket. While she did her make-up, she heard Alice knocking on her door. Damn, she forgot time and is running late. She opened the door and greeted Alice, apologized to her and tried to hurry. Alice was dressed similar to Emily. Both wanted to draw some attention without being to obvious. They decided to go to Santa Monica and browse the stores on third street. And maybe hanging around ocean avenue or the pier.
In the stores they went to all kind of clothing. Emily enjoyed trying out dresses, jeans, shoes and looking for purses and other stuff. Everything which was forbidden for her in her previous life was now a totally normal thing. And even it might be too much of a cliché, she really liked it. Maybe also because it was new. But she didn't care. If she was a stereotype, she could live with it as it was a female stereotype. After the shopping spree they brought the bought items to Alice's car to drop them off. It was late afternoon already and they thought about what to do next. They decided for the pier and watch the sunset from there.
While they walked on the pier, which was crowded now as many people gather around the pier in the early evening to enjoy one of the best Sunsets in the LA area. It was a nice atmosphere with the music and the lights from Pacific Park. Emily realized that she mostly knows the park from TV shows and movies, but never really been here. What a shame she thought when she felt an impact on her shoulder which caused her purse to fall down. "Damn it" she said angrily. "Oh my gosh I'm so sorry" she heard a guy say while picking up her purse. "You okay?" he asked. She looked at him. He was tall. At least 6 foot. He looked athletic and has nice brown hair. He looked like he spends lots of time outside, maybe surfing. Emily couldn't help but smiling at him. "I'm okay" "I'm sorry" he replied, "I was lost in my thoughts and haven't seen you" "It's okay, I was kinda daydreaming too". "It's the atmosphere here. I'm Aaron by the way. And this is Josh" he points over to his friend who was shyly looking at Alice.
"Can we make up for the hassle and invite you for some drinks" Aaron asks. Emily's Eyes start to sparkle she looked over to Alice. Alice just nodded grinning. "Yes. Sure" she replied smiling ear to ear. "where do we go" asked Josh. "How about the beach" suggested Alice" "sounds good to me" Emily said. "So why don't you and Aaron go and find a nice place while Josh and I get some drinks" Alice said with a mischievous grin.
Aaron and Emily went down the stairs heading north on the beach. Emily felt weird, but in a good way. It was a feeling she never experienced before. Aaron introduced himself a bit more. He was working in software development and was mountain biking in his free time. Emily was afraid about talking about herself at first but soon realized that she doesn't have to worry. She said that she had been a tomboy in her childhood and had an explanation while some of the things she did in her life were more that of a stereotypical male. The more they talked to each other, the more at ease felt Emily. And comfortable. She like looking into his eyes. And even with darkness she felt like she could get lost in them.
"Hey there" they heard a familiar voice. It was Alice and Josh. "We brought beer" josh said and slid a six pack out of a drugstore bag. Alice gave Emily a promising look and just from looking at Alice she knew that she and Josh liked each other as well. They talked a bit and Emily had the time of her life. It was getting late and none of the four had dinner yet. Josh was the first to admit that he's super hungry. All others agreed. "So why don't we grab a burger up there at the pier?" "So burgers for everyone it is" Aaron said while getting up. He gave Emily a hand getting up. The feel of his hand gave her a shiver, but in a good way. "You're cold?" he asks after seeing her. "A little" "Come" he said and pressed her against his side. She could feel is warm body and part of her melted like chocolate as they went back to the pier.
Aaron paid the burger for Emily while Alice got invited by Josh. Emily really enjoyed this but part of her felt really sad this might come to an end sometime soon. She dreaded the thought of that and looked at Aaron. Now that there was some light again, she really could get lost in his eyes. When he also looked at her she started smiling and so did he. After they finished their meals they went back to the beach. Each couple sharing a bottle of beer they had left. They walked and talked, Josh and Alice falling a bit behind. Maybe a bit on purpose. Emily took Aarons hand, smiling at him. It felt good feeling his hand around hers.
Alice called out that it's getting late and the she and josh are heading home. "I should go home too" Emily said to Aaron, hating herself a little bit for bringing this to an end. "Yeah, me too" Aaron said sadly. "Let me give you a ride home" Emily smiled.
When they arrived in front of Emily apartment building Emily gave her number to Aaron. "Call me" she said. "I will" he replied while they were leaning closer and closer to each other without losing eye contact. When they met with lips Emilys right hand touched Aarons face. They deeply kissed and for both of them it seemed the world around them stopped spinning. When they parted Emily felt lightheaded and high. Smiling at Aaron and said good night, kissing him on the cheek again. He waited while she went inside and just before she closed the door she turned around giving him a last smile for the day.
Once inside she felt like in heaven. She couldn't believe it. It was such an amazing feeling. She grabbed her phone and texted a simple "OMG" to Alice. She didn't reply. Of course. She was probably doing something with Jeff.
Emily undressed, cleaned her face, getting the smeared lipstick off. She could still taste Aaron. On her lips though. She went to bed soon after sleeping as amazing as in her first night as girl. When she good up in the morning she saw that Alice replied her text.
"You go girl, hope you keep Aaron, he seems super nice" and a ton of smiling emojis.
While she got herself breakfast her phone rung. It was a unknown number. When she answered and realized it was Aaron she instantly started smiling.
"Hey" he said" I really enjoyed last night and I'm happy we bumped into each other" Yeah, it was really nice" She said, feeling butterflies in her stomach. "How about I pick you up at 5 pm and show you the most beautiful sunset of the city?" he proposed. "Sounds awesome, I'll be ready by then" Emily chirped. "What am I going to wear?" she said shocked to herself and ran to her wardrobe. She looked for something sexy. And something not too sexy, she didn't want to look like a bimbo. She found a nice green dress which looked not to formal and not too casual. And for some black pumps hoping she wouldn't regret her shoe decision later. She tried around with her make up and went for a Smokey eyes and a dark brown matt lipstick. She took her phone and texted Alice about her date. Then she took a selfie and sent it to her. Alice simply replied "Wow".
It wasn't long till Aaron rang the Doorbell. Emily almost ran to the door and then stopped. "Not too fast girl" she said.
Aaron was stunned when Emily opened the door for him. She looked beautiful. No, breathtaking. Emily could see it in his eyes they made the right choices with outfit and make up. He kissed her on the lips and opened the passenger door for her to get in. "So, where are going to take me?" "Wait till you see it" he said.
He took a northerly direction towards the Hollywood hills. After about an hour drive through the evening traffic they arrived at the Griffith Observatory which was crowded as always. Emily was surprised, she thought he'd take her somewhere less populated, more private.
"It might be pretty crowded" he said sensing her thoughts. "but you will see" "Okay" she said curios. He took her hand and took her on the balcony which overlooked the whole LA area towards the south, she could see downtown, San Pedro and Santa Monica. The sun was already quite low above the ocean. She stood there, Aaron stood behind her and put his arms around her. She felt comfortable and thought that he could have taken her to a landfill and she still would enjoy it just as much. She never felt so secure before in her life.
The sun was setting quickly and just in this moment the first light in the city was visible. And then another. "It's the best moment" he said, "Almost nothing beats the sparkle of the city when it gets dark." Almost?" she asks "Yes, almost. Only the sparkle in your eyes is even better"
"Oh my gosh", Aron she said. "I feel like I'm in the corniest soap opera ever" she said blushing. "But it's true" he said, holding her a bit tighter. Emily could have stood there forever and watched over the city. He was right the sparkle was amazing. It was hard for her to believe that she lived there for a while and never saw the beauty of it. When it was completely dark, he asked her if she was hungry and loved Mexican food. "I know just the right place" he said. They got back in the car and drove the narrow road down to the city. After a short drive they stopped in front of the El Coyote Café. "It's the oldest Mexican restaurant in the city and you haven't been to LA when you've never been here" he explained to her. They sat there enjoyed they're meal and one of the margaritas the restaurant is famous for. Emily felt the butterflies stir her stomach. She couldn't believe how lucky she was. A few days ago, she was a unhappy depressed man and now she's here. Across from her an amazing man. She's crushing hard on him. She even considered it love. But she also didn't want to label it exactly just yet. She was just happy.
After a great evening Aaron drove her home. But she decided the evening can't be over yet. "Do you wanna come upstairs?" she asked looking him deeply in the eyes. Yes, he whispered as he kisses her. She smiled. And got out of the car. She looked up in the sky on saw a shooting star. Instead of making a wish she said thank you smiling towards the sky.