Mike doesn't try to sit with Bella anymore. She only had to get up and walk away twice. Now he sits with some other friends in another corner of the cafeteria and doesn't bother her. She can sit with Angela and Angela's boyfriend and Jessica and Jessica's current boyfriend and sometimes Eric and sometimes Lauren.

"So," Jessica says. "Bella, did you know Delaney came to school in a dress?"

"Oh?" Bella says. "I wonder if he made it himself."

Jessica looks rather stunned that Bella could miss the point by so wide a margin.

[You came to school in a dress, huh?] Bella inquires.

Author: self_composed	Mike doesn't try to sit with Bella anymore. She only had to get up and walk away twice. Now he sits with some other friends in another corner of the cafeteria and doesn't bother her. She can sit with Angela and Angela's boyfriend and Jessica and Jessica's current boyfriend and sometimes Eric and sometimes Lauren. "So," Jessica says. "Bella, did you know Delaney came to school in a dress?" "Oh?" Bella says. "I wonder if he made it himself." Jessica looks rather stunned that Bella could miss the point by so wide a margin. [You came to school in a dress, huh?] Bella inquires.
Author: edgeofyourseat	[Yup,] says Alice. [Mom let me. Hilary lent me the dress. I look adorable. And nobody's even beat me up for it yet.] Sure enough, when he he walks into the lunchroom, he is wearing a cornflower blue summer dress that is totally unsuited to the weather but surprisingly suited to Alice. Whispers and giggles and surreptitious pointing follow him to the lunch line. [Want me to sit with you, or no? I have actual gingerbread I actually baked, this time.] Alice showing up at lunch with wish-baking for Bella and/or her tablemates has kind of become a thing, irregular but more than occasional.
Author: self_composed	[Dunno, do you want to put up with Jessica gawping at you and asking if you are 'a trans'?]
Author: edgeofyourseat	[That sounds hilarious,] he says, proceeds to her table, sits, and opens his Tupperware of Mystery to reveal a lot of slightly misshapen gingerbread.
Author: self_composed	"Why're you wearing a dress?" Jessica asks without preamble. But she takes a gingerbread, as do Angela and Ben and of course Bella.
Author: edgeofyourseat	"Why're you wearing that shirt?" he asks in return, taking some gingerbread for himself. (It is delicious as hell, naturally.)
Author: self_composed	"My sister borrowed my last other clean one," says Jessica, unimpressed.
Author: edgeofyourseat	"Felt like it," he says sunnily, and nibbles his gingerbread.
Author: self_composed	"But why would you feel like wearing a dress? Are you a trans?" [I haven't wished myself precog powers yet,] says Bella dryly. [I have just met Jessica.]
Author: edgeofyourseat	[I love you.] "What do you care?"
Author: self_composed	"Because it's weird!" Jessica opines.
Author: edgeofyourseat	"Keep wondering," says Alice. "Maybe you'll figure it out."
Author: self_composed	"Well, I guessed that you're a trans, but you won't even answer a simple question," pouts Jessica.
Author: edgeofyourseat	"Okay, try this one on for size," says Alice, waving his gingerbread in a shrug-like gesture. "It's not a simple question, and it's not gonna be a simple question until you stop thinking there's any good reason why I shouldn't feel like wearing a dress, and at that point you're probably gonna know the answer already."
Author: self_composed	Jessica chews that over a bit. "I'm not a trans," she offers. "That's simple. If you are one that should be simple, too. And I don't think it's like illegal or anything?" She looks at Bella. "Not illegal," Bella confirms. "But it's weird! You're a boy, unless you're a trans, so -" "I think it might be 'transgender'," Angela says softly. "Oh. A transgender. So it's weird for you to wear a dress and you must have a reason because the boys who don't have reasons don't do it," says Jessica. [Well, that was surprisingly lucid,] comments Bella.
Author: edgeofyourseat	[Yup. I'm surprised.] "Okay," he says, "so what if the reason is that there's no reason not to?"
Author: self_composed	"But there are reasons not to," Jessica says. "You might get beat up, and also that looks really cold for February, and also everyone will think it's weird, and ask you why you're doing it, and also it doesn't fit you very well!"
Author: edgeofyourseat	"Don't care," he says, "don't care, don't care, don't care, and wrong."
Author: self_composed	"Well, why don't you care?" Jessica demands. "And it - well, there's no such thing as a dress fitting on a guy, anyway." She starts to reexamine the fit before apparently deciding that would look uncomfortably like she was checking him out and breaking eye contact.
Author: edgeofyourseat	"Okay," says Alice, "I'm taking that as a challenge. And do you really need to ask me why I don't care if I get beat up?"
Author: self_composed	"Well, it doesn't make sense - I know you don't care, but I don't know why," Jessica says. "Why won't you just tell us if you're a trans or - a transgender or not?"
Author: edgeofyourseat	He takes a bite of his gingerbread. [Bella, help me out here. How do I make this stupid question not stupid so I can answer it?]
Author: self_composed	[Well, geez, I'm not clear on what you get out of wearing dresses and I can read your mind. If there's an answer you haven't been thinking of it while I've been looking.]
Author: edgeofyourseat	[So read me?] he says. The problem: he likes guy stuff and girl stuff, perhaps not equally, but both-ly. So if he says he's 'a trans' (Jessica's terminology doesn't bug him, except inasmuch as it is distractingly hilarious), that's wrong, but if he says he's not, that's also wrong. He's not a boy, but he's not a girl. Or he is a boy, and he is a girl. From where he's standing he can't really tell the difference. Also, he just really likes dresses. He thinks they look cute on him. And he is totally going to make one that fits him perfectly, just to show Jessica what that looks like.
Author: self_composed	[So you're a mutant gender on top of everything else. Why am I not astonished?] Bella says. [Tell Jessica you're, I dunno, half-trans or something. I don't know why dresses are even a girl thing, they're awkward and impractical. I will go on wearing jeans or maybe motorcycle leather even after I take over the world and start affecting the use of crowns.]
Author: edgeofyourseat	[Thank you for making me think about you in motorcycle leather again,] Alice says cheerfully. [You're the best.] The crown adds a certain something to the mental image, too. "How about half," he suggests to Jessica. "Half trans."
Author: self_composed	Jessica makes a series of thoughtful faces. "Is that a thing?" "Apparently," Bella says. [No problem.]
Author: edgeofyourseat	"It is now," says Alice.
Author: self_composed	"Well, okay, that was all you had to say," says Jessica huffily. "Honestly." Bella rolls her eyes.
Author: edgeofyourseat	"Not sorry," says Alice, serenely.
Author: self_composed	"You need to work on your social skills," Jessica advises him. "Thank you for the gingerbread," Angela puts in desperately, hoping to change the subject. "It's delicious."
Author: edgeofyourseat	He grins at Angela. "You're welcome. Made it myself."
Author: self_composed	"What's in it?" Angela's boyfriend asks helpfully.
Author: edgeofyourseat	Alice rattles off a list of ingredients, many of which sound quite tasty on their own.
Author: self_composed	Eventually lunch ends. [Are you going to come to gym today?] Bella asks as she heads for bio.
Author: edgeofyourseat	[Yep.]
Author: self_composed	[Cool.] Gym arrives. The badminton nets are gone, and there is a soccer ball prominently located in the gym. "This is the game with the kicking, right?" Bella asks Ms. Finch, winking.
Author: edgeofyourseat	"You don't have to look so eager," says Ms. Finch, laughing. "Yes, this is the game with the kicking. I'd specify what exactly you'll be kicking, but then you might wink at me again."
Author: self_composed	"What are the rules exactly?"
Author: edgeofyourseat	Ms. Finch gives her the rundown. Halfway through, Alice shows up. "Nice of you to join us, Wonderland. Will you be wearing that for soccer?" Alice twirls. "I'll take that as a yes," she says, and goes right back to explaining the game to Bella.
Author: self_composed	Bella listens attentively. It sounds pretty fun. She decides to wait for about a minute into the class before pentagoning this one.
Author: edgeofyourseat	Perhaps surprisingly, no one bothers Alice about his choice of gym clothes. Class proceeds. Alice has a blast.
Author: self_composed	Bella shows off. (But she makes sure to display virtues of teamwork, where applicable - she does not make ridiculous trick shots just because she can, when there's a teammate right there to pass to.)
Author: edgeofyourseat	At the end of class, Ms. Finch approaches Bella. "You are suspiciously good at this game," she says. "And I mean that in the best possible way."
Author: self_composed	"It's fun!" Bella says. "I'm usually good at things I like, it was just never safe to apply it to sports before recently."
Author: edgeofyourseat	"Wanna join a team?"
Author: self_composed	"I would!" Bella says happily. "When is that?"
Author: edgeofyourseat	Ms. Finch grins. "Tryouts start today and go through the week," she says. "Despite rumour, I have never thrown a failed candidate into the scorpion pit." "What about the ones who don't fail?" wonders Alice. "I need those."
Author: self_composed	"Cool, I'll just stay after today then," Bella says. "How often are practices?"
Author: edgeofyourseat	"Tuesday Thursday Monday Wednesday Friday repeat," says Ms. Finch cheerfully, "because I hate you and want you to suffer." Alice giggles.
Author: self_composed	Bella giggles. "It's a good thing I don't have any other extracurriculars lined up."
Author: edgeofyourseat	"Lucky you," Ms. Finch agrees.
Author: self_composed	[Although I wonder if I should take up an instrument just to be really well-rounded. I could claim I bought it when I was fourteen and never practiced when whichever parent was home out of politeness; I think that one I'll need more backstory than "turns out I'm naturally talented". What do you think, flute? Those are easy to hide.] "Cool," Bella says. "So I'll just stick around I guess." She scoops up the ball onto her toe and starts kneeing it back and forth, left and right.
Author: edgeofyourseat	Alice parks himself on a bench, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees. [Flute sounds cool. Mmm, or clarinet. Clarinets are sexy.] "Do us all a favour and sit like a girl, Wonderland," says Ms. Finch. "No one here wants to see up that skirt." Laughing, he crosses his legs. "Better?" "Much."
Author: self_composed	[I'm going to make it flute. Not a big clarinet fan.] "If he tries out for soccer, which team would you put him on?" Bella teases aloud.
Author: edgeofyourseat	"You couldn't pay me to put that kid on a team of any kind," says Ms. Finch. Alice beams, flattered.
Author: self_composed	Bella laughs. She's been laughing a lot in recent weeks. She likes this. "What do we do in tryouts?" she inquires.
Author: edgeofyourseat	"You try," says Ms. Finch, dryly. Alice laughs.
Author: self_composed	Bella does, when everyone else there to try out arrives, and again shows off (within believable talented-highschooler range; she'll save major ridiculousness for when scouts swing by, if they ever do). Afterwards, she calls her dad - who is confused about why she didn't call an hour earlier - and goes home to add to all her applications that she plays flute and soccer. Then she submits them all, and conjures a flute and pentagons ability to operate it - and amuses herself playing it all the rest of the afternoon.
Author: edgeofyourseat	Alice amuses himself listening.