During the remaining two weeks of summer, before school started, both Mary Elizabeth and Angelo worked diligently to develop greater masculinity in his mannerisms and demeanor. Yet, no matter how hard Angelo tried, his voice continued to maintain feminine inflections and he constantly had to remind himself not to walk in dainty steps with his hips swaying.
"Dang it, Angelo. I've told you a hundred times - Walk. Like. A. Boy." Mary Elizabeth's voice often, during this period, burst out in frustration at the boy.
She was trying so hard to get him to dump his girly ways so that he'd be acceptable among other students as a boy once school began and so that Child Protective Services wouldn't take him from her.
"I'm trying mom," Angelo would reply meekly, feeling sorry that he was disappointing his foster mother who only wanted to make life easier for him and to be able to keep him.
"I'm sorry, darling. I know you're trying, I do." Mary Elizabeth would usually apologize, knowing full well that they were facing an almost impossible task in making him the boyish person they needed him to be.
It was apparent that the latent femininity that was within Angelo all of his life had come into full bloom that summer. His gentle, sweet nature grew out of him, like a lovely flower in the springtime, full of color, lovely shapes, and daintiness.
"You're like a pretty flower," Mary Elizabeth had told Angelo one summery day, a month ago, when he came to breakfast dressed in a flowing floral skirt, white peasant blouse and peach-colored sandals, his soft and creamy complexion looking so lovely.
He had affixed yellow ribbons in his long brown hair, and in her mind's eye, she saw a flower blossoming before her, growing and developing from that quiet, shy unopened bud he was when he first came to her into the beautiful daisy she saw before her.
She knew that the fertile, positive, sunshine filled environment she was providing was exactly what he needed to nourish his growth. She saw herself as the sunshine giving him the warmth, love, and positivity, he so desperately craved. She was affording him the opportunity to blossom, free from the poor environment full of weeds and a life draining toxicity that had plagued him far too long.
On the weekend before school began, Mary Elizabeth let Angelo spend Saturday with Tanya. She warned Angelo that it was for that day, and that day only, but he could dress as a girl, and with Tanya, they could enjoy doing whatever teen girls enjoy doing.
Tanya, it turned out, had recently gotten her first boyfriend. His name was Joshua. He was a year older and attended the same high school that she did.
"I met him at the pool, Angela," she said, using Angelo's female name, as she always did.
"Is he cute?"
"Oh, I definitely think so. He's not too tall, but taller than me. Oh, he's so strong and muscular. He's a lifeguard."
Angelo was taken aback. Tanya was his only close friend, and even though they weren't going to be attending the same high school, he had hoped he would be able to spend time with her, to live his female moments with a friend. Now, a new boyfriend would interrupt that.
"You sound hot for him, Tanya?"
"Oh yes, Angela, I am. Wait 'til you see him. He's coming over soon. I thought maybe he could take us to the mall. He just turned sixteen and he's got a car."
Angelo felt sick at heart. He was losing his only friend to this macho lifeguard. But his self-pity was soon ended as he saw the joy and sparkle in Tanya's eyes when she talked about Joshua.
"Tanya, maybe I should go home," Angelo said. "I don't want to interfere with you and Joshua."
"Oh, no, Angela. I told Josh you're my best friend ever. You have to join us. Please?"
It didn't take much for Angelo to relent and agree to stay. Before long the two were lying on their stomachs on the floor, poring over teen magazines, giggling and discussing what kind of boy would be best for Angela.
One Joshua arrived, he turned out to be everything Tanya said he was and, despite all his good looks and muscles, he was not arrogant, as so many macho boys could be.
His warmth and sweetness were quickly apparent to Angelo. "You're very pretty," Joshua said as Angelo was introduced.
"Thank you. I do try. My mommy always likes me looking nice," Angelo replied with a smile.
"Angela just got admitted to the Arts," Tanya explained. "She just found out on Monday."
"That's way cool, Angela. Congrats. So what are you going into?"
"Drama, but I also like fashion design."
"She did Ophelia for the audition," Tanya said, beaming. She seemed to take as much joy in Angelo's successes as he did. Naturally, she left out the part about his performance of Hamlet though.
The drive to the mall went smoothly. Tanya and Joshua were new friends and it was obvious Tanya wanted another girlfriend along to ward off any advances by Joshua. And Angelo, looking as pretty as any teen girl in the mall that day, filled the part to a tee.
After about an hour at the mall, they were walking through the food court and decided to order smoothies and take a break.
Once they were seated and enjoying their drinks, Tanya began to talk about some of the stores she wanted to go in next, when suddenly Angelo quickly turned his head away from the direction he had been facing before.
"What's wrong?" Tanya asked. "What are you doing?"
"I think I just saw that Jason and his friend over there."
"You mean those two boys we met the first time we were here together?"
"Yes, and I don't want him to see me," he said turning his chair so that only his back was exposed to the boy.
"Don't look now, but a guy is coming this way, with a friend," Joshua said.
"Oh crap," Angelo exclaimed, leaning down and pretending to fix his shoe.
The two boys knew that it was Angelo at that table and moved quickly towards them. "Well, if it isn't the two prettiest girls in the mall?"
It was Jason's friend, Gary, who was always so forward, that spoke. Jason seemed to hang back, and gave a tentative wave to Angelo and Tanya, as his friend talked.
"Who's this, Tanya? Introduce us to your friend," Gary said, pointing at Joshua.
"This is my boyfriend, Joshua," Tanya said firmly. "And I don't remember these two boys' names, honey."
Jason meanwhile looked at Angelo, smiling. Hesitantly he said, "I was hoping you'd call me, Angela."
Angelo dropped his head, mumbling, "I guess I lost your number." It was a lie, of course.
"Oh, that's okay. You want me to give it to you again?"
Angelo kinda felt bad for this shy boy. He was not pushy, but it was obvious he had found a connection with Angelo, and was interested in him for what he appeared to be; an attractive teen girl.
Angelo knew the boy needed an explanation. He really was nice. Angelo didn't want to hurt the boy's feelings and so he told him, "Mom says I can't go out with boys, yet. I'm sorry. You seem like a really nice guy, though. If it's any consolation, I would go out with you if I could."
"Can you at least just call me sometime? Or maybe we can message."
Reluctantly, Angelo again took the boy's number which he scribbled on a napkin, along with his Kakao Talk id, before they left. Angelo placed it in the little pink, faux leather purse he carried over his shoulder.
"Jason seems like a nice guy," Joshua said. "Too bad he's got that other jerk as a friend."
"Isn't he going to the Arts school, too, Angela?" Tanya asked.
"Yes. So he says. It's because of him that I find out about the school and applied. So I guess I should be nice to him."
Joshua beamed, "Well, you'll see him there. Who knows where that'll end up going."
"Oh, he's a junior, two years ahead of me. I probably won't see much of him."
"Well, when you're ready to date, Angela," Joshua said. "Let me know."
"Um, Josh?" Tanya interrupted.
"Angela's pretty, Tanya, but you're my girl," Joshua quickly explained. "But I bet Todd would love to take her out."
Tanya explained briefly to Joshua, that "Angela" was in foster care, and the "she" had had a tough life. Her foster mother, she said, was very sweet, but strict, hoping to protect "Angela" from disappointments that so often befall teen girls.
Once the group arrived back at Tanya's house, Joshua gave Angelo a quick friendly kiss on the cheek before turning to Tanya.
Tanya then got a long hug and a kiss on the lips, with accompanying hands caressing her back. Angelo blushed and turned away while the exhibition went on.
He wondered if he would he ever be in the arms of a strong boy like Joshua, being kissed and hugged as Angela? It seemed to him, like a far off, impossible dream, at the moment. But he knew that if it did happen, it would be a dream come true.