Transgender

                This is a story about a boy named Alex. He is the unusual type. Or so that's what his mom thought. Alex is six years old, and his parents are divorced. On Alex's birthday when he turned seven, his mom decided to take him to get his hair cut. He's been letting it grow for five years now, and it's past his shoulders. "Alex," She says. "This is not how a boy should look. We should get your hair cut." Alex backed away from her. "But mommy," He said. "I like my hair this way. It makes me feel like me." His mom was stunned by what just came out of her son's mouth. "Alex! Don't say those kinds of things. You are a boy, and a boy should not look like that." Alex still refused to get his hair cut, and his mom got used to looking at him with long hair.
The next week, it was Alex's turn to go to his dad's. He felt safer at his dad's house, because his dad truly understood him, and his problems and confusion he was feeling. "Daddy," Alex said, when he got into his dad's car. "Yes buddy?" His dad replied. "I-I feel different." His dad almost stopped the car. They drove until they got to the house. They both walked up the snow-covered driveway.

                    "Different how?" His dad asked, once they were both seated on the sofa, in front of the fireplace. Alex sighed. "I-I feel like a girl. I don't want to be a boy. I'm a girl." His dad looked stunned for a moment, but then grabbed Alex in a big hug. "I support you. Do you know what that's called? Being a girl when you were born a boy?" Alex shook his head. "That's called being Transgender. Your gender is whether you're a girl or a boy. You were born a boy, but you feel like a girl, right?" Alex smiled, and nodded. His dad DID truly understand him.

                 The next day, Alex was at his mom's house. Or should I say, HER. Her mom walked into the living room with a huge smile on her face. "Guess what? I got us tickets to an Eiffel 65 concert! Tonight!" She picked up Alex. "This is gonna be really fun, right bud?" Alex still felt uncomfortable with her mom calling her "bud". It was cute and all, but it just didn't feel right. Alex glanced away and nodded. Her mom beamed. "Good! I'll try and get us front row spots!" After that, she walked upstairs.

                     At the concert, Alex was enjoying herself. She had an IQ of about 140, so she knew all the lyrics to the songs in 5 different languages! Alex pushed her way to the front of the crowd. She sang as loud as she possibly could! One of the band members onstage even winked at her!

                     Once the concert was done, Alex's mom decided that they should go shopping. Just the two of them. Alex liked that idea, so she agreed. Alex's mom said that they should get some warmer clothes, since it was close to christmas time. Alex made her way to the Little Girls' section. Her mom pushed her right out of there. "No, buddy. Those clothes are for girls. You're not a girl. You're a boy." And they continued shopping.

                        The next day was Saturday, so it was Alex's turn to go to her dad's house. Once they got there, it was about 6:00. It was pretty dark out, but the snow on the ground lit up the sky a bit. Even though it was dark, and a weekend, Alex asked her dad if she could go to the park with him for a bit. There was a tennis court there that Alex loved to stay and sit in, just to talk to herself. Reluctantly, her dad agreed. Her dad curled her hair, and she put on a fancy white dress with pink flowers on the bottom. Once they got to the park, Alex ran over to the tennis court. She spun around a few times, breathing in the cold, winter air. "I'm a girl." She whispered to herself. "I'm a girl!" She shouted to the trees.

                            "I think this is a good place to stop for a bit," a voice said in the distance. Alex was frightened. She stood still as she watched three people walk into the tennis court. OMG! It was the three band members from the concert she went to on Friday!

                              "Hold on," The blond, tall one said. "I don't think we're alone." The shorter one with no hair walked forward. "Come out." He said. Alex walked forward a couple steps to reveal herself from out of the shadows. The last one spoke up. "Hey! You're the kid from the concert! But, aren't you a boy?" Alex burst into tears. "I don't know!" She said, as the blond one picked her up. "I feel like a girl, but I was born a boy! That's what Daddy said!" The blond one set her down on a small bench in the court. The three band members looked at each other. "Let me tell you our names first." The bald one said. "I'm Jeffery." The blond spoke up. "Gabry." He said, as he did a small wave. "I'm Maury." The last one said. "Jeffery, Gabry and Maury." Alex repeated. "Good!" Maury congratulated. "Now. Let's have a small talk." He got down on one knee. "Has your dad or mom told you about genders yet?" He asked. Alex nodded. "Yah. Daddy said I was born a boy, but inside I feel like a girl. But every time I say that to Mommy, she scolds me, and tells me I'm a boy, not a girl." The three band members looked at each other once more. "That's not right." Gabry said. Jeffery agreed. "You should listen to your heart, and be yourself. Not what other people tell you to be." Just then, Alex's dad ran into the tennis court. "Alex, who are you talking to?" He asked. Eiffel 65 turned around. Her dad looked about as if he would faint. "Eiffel 65?" He asked. Gabry nodded. Alex jumped off the park bench she was standing on. "Yeah. Gabry, Jeffery and Maury. They were telling me about how I should listen to my heart and be myself." Her dad smiled. "That's exactly right." He smiled at Eiffel. The three smiled back.

                                     Just then, snow started falling. Gabry looked up. "Wow. This is beautiful." He said and put his hands out in front of him. Maury smiled, and looked at Alex "What's your name?" He asked her. "Alex. She said. But, you can call me Allie." Jeffery smiled and walked over to the rest of the band. "That's a cute name," he said. Gabry bent down to give Allie a piggy-back ride. She happily agreed. Gabry stood up and walked over to Allie's dad and the rest of the band. "Remember Allie," He started, and looked up at the sky. Everyone joined in.

"Be who you wanna be."