Tug of War 27

When Timothy turned around, he immediately recognized the person who had spoken to him. It was Mrs. Bennett, the old widow who lived next door. The woman was taking care of her garden, as she did every afternoon, when she saw someone in the neighboring backyard. 

Mrs. Bennett was short and plump, and had a friendly face with tiny blue eyes and short, curly white hair. She actually was a terrible gardener – mostly because her very poor eyesight – but despite that, she loved her flowers and took care of them as if they were her children. 

"I'm so sorry, sweetheart" the old woman said, with a sincere expression of concern on her face. "I didn't mean to scare you."

"Umm... that's okay, Ma'am. This wasn't your fault. I was just distracted for a moment" Timothy replied in a girly voice, reluctantly approaching the fence as he knew it would be unkind not to do so. He just hoped that Mrs. Bennett’s eyesight was as bad as everyone believed.

"I don't think we've been introduced before, young lady. I'm Eleanor Bennett, and I live right here" the woman intended to indicate to her house, but her finger pointed to a completely different direction. "What about you? Do you live in the neighborhood, as well?"

Timothy sighed in relief. Mrs. Bennett hadn't recognized him, and she was even convinced that he was a girl, not a boy in drag. However, at the same time that he felt relieved, he also got bothered by being mistaken for a female. It didn't matter if Mrs. Bennett was virtually blind. His male ego got shaken the same way. 

"Nice to meet you, Mrs. Bennett" the boy said, nervously rubbing his legs against each other, which once again made him shiver because of his stockings. "I’m Ti…" he started saying, but stopped suddenly, realizing he had nearly spoken his real name. 

What the hell was wrong with me? He wondered, shocked. Now he needed to think of a female name quickly, and one that started with the syllable 'ti'… "Tiffany!" he finally burst out. "My name is Tiffany, Ma'am! And I am… Umm… Susan's niece! Yes, that is it. I came here to spend the weekend with her and Uncle Richard since my cousin Timothy is out of the town." 

"Tiffany, huh? Oh, that’s a pretty name, my darling… A pretty name for a pretty girl!" Mrs. Bennett said, squeezing Timothy's cheek. "My eyes aren't the same anymore, but I still can see that you are such a beautiful young lady!" 

"T-thank you, Ma'am" Timothy stammered, blushing. He then started thinking about what he was going to do next. He knew he had to get out of there as soon as possible. What if some other neighbor came along? Someone who could see properly, and would recognize Timothy right away? But he had no idea how he would get away from the old woman, who seemed willing to have a long and pleasant conversation. 

I'll just tell her my "aunt" needs me to do her some favor, Timothy thought, satisfied that at least once his mind had worked fast under pressure. However, before he could even open his mouth, he was once again surprised… 

"Sweetie, why are you taking so long with the clothes?" he heard his stepmother asking, as she left the house looking for him. Not long after, she realized that Timothy wasn't alone.

"Oh, I'm afraid it was my fault, Susan" Mrs. Bennett said, as the other woman approached. "I was the one holding Tiffany back. I just couldn't help it but had to start a little talk with your adorable niece."

Upon hearing "Tiffany" and "niece", Susan seemed stunned for a moment, but she regained her composure pretty fast. "This is entirely understandable, Mrs. Bennett" she said, smiling. "I know very well how charming Tiffany can be" she added, casting a mischievous look at her desperate stepson. 

"She was just telling me that she came to spend the weekend with you and your husband while Timothy is out of town. I think it's a shame she's leaving so soon."

"I totally agree, Mrs. Bennett. I just love having my pretty little niece around. But who knows... perhaps she can stay with us a little longer" Susan suggested, and Timothy felt like running away. Too bad his legs were shaking so much and he was hearing high heels…

"I truly hope so" Mrs. Bennett said, excited. "I miss having some young lady in the neighborhood. Oh, I just had an amazing idea! Why don’t both of you come here at my house to have some tea? In the case you don't mind the company of an old lady, of course."

"Your company is always a pleasure, Mrs. Bennett" Susan assured her. "And we gladly accept your invitation, right, Tiffany?" she asked the sissified boy. Then, noticing his reluctance, she insisted, raising an eyebrow "Tiffany?" 

"S-sure" Timothy finally said, hardly believing he was agreeing with that. But what else could he do in such a difficult situation? "T-thanks for inviting us, Mrs. Bennett." 

"You're welcome, sweetheart. I see you’re such a polite girl, too. How precious! I expect to see you two in twenty minutes. I'll get the tea ready."

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"I'm not going… I'm not going… I'm not going!" Timothy kept saying when he and Susan where back into the house, away from Mrs. Bennett.

"What are you talking about, Tiffany? You just promised it. You can't back up now."

"I promised it because I had no choice, and you know that very well! This is crazy, Susan! You can really..." he stopped talking in the middle of the sentence and looked angry at his stepmother. "Why are you calling me Tiffany?" he cried out stridently. Timothy certainly wasn’t aware of that, but he was still talking in 'girl mode', and the angrier he got, the higher and more feminine his voice sounded.

"Well, wasn’t it you who told Mrs. Bennett that you were called Tiffany?" Susan asked calmly. 

"Yeah, but I couldn't tell her my real name, could I? She isn't here now, though."

"That’s right, honey. However, this little incident made me think of something… We can't expect your father to take seriously this story of you wanting to be a girl if we keep calling you Timothy, and using male pronouns when referring to you. This just won't do. So from now on you are Tiffany, understood? That's how you'll be treated inside the house. I have to say that you’ve made a great choice. Tiffany is such a pretty and feminine name!"

Timothy felt so outraged that he couldn't even express his indignation. Now Susan wanted to call him Tiffany all the time. Just unbelievable! Why had he thought of that damn name, anyway? He wasn’t mad just because it was a female name, oh no… In Timothy's mind, Tiffany was a girly name just suited for some kind of frivolous girl who worried a lot about fashion, makeup, stylish hairstyles… There was no way he would accept being called like that. It was absurd. However, he was once again unable to find a flaw in Susan's rationalization.

"Earth to Tiffany, are you listening to me, young lady?"

"Umm... What?"

"I was telling you we have to hurry, dear. Mrs. Bennett is waiting for us."

"But, Susan, I told you I don't want to go!"

"For the last time, you promised, Tiffany. And you saw how happy Mrs. Bennett got when you did so. I doubt she gets many visitors. Do you really want to break the heart of such a sweet old lady?"

Timothy sighed. "You're really going to make me feel bad if I don’t go, right? And you'll keep calling me Tiffany?"

"Yes and yes. Now go refresh your lipstick as I taught you come back here right away. I assure you that all this will be useful for you to defeat your father, in a way or another..."