Rent or Forfeit 08

Chapter 8: As Hope Flutters Away

With Monday's interview at the forefront of his mind, Tommy faced a critical decision. He had never had long nails or work false eyelashes before, meaning he wasn't sure how easy either would be to remove. However, his decision was ultimately influenced by a memory of Ruby O'Shay, an old classmate who was never seen without her long, colourful nails. He remembered how she had once broken one, the pain evident as she nursed her finger while cursing. Not only did she look in agony, but also the nails themselves seemed firmly glued in place. Conversely, he had often seen girls sporting long, fluttering faux eyelashes, which he assumed wouldn't be so popular if they were that difficult to remove. This reasoning led him to choose the eyelashes, believing they were the safer bet.

Convinced he had picked the right option, Tommy was surprised when he was told on Saturday morning to dress warmly before being rushed out of the house towards the bus stop. Stumbling down the icy pavement in a pair of knee-high boots with four-inch heels - what Sarah called 'proper heels' - Tommy struggled to keep pace with his sisters. It wasn’t his first outing dressed as a woman, but it was certainly the coldest. The recent drop in temperature made his nylon-clad legs tingle - a bizarre and unfamiliar sensation.

Shouting ahead to Monica, he asked, "Mon, I know you said we were going out, but to where exactly?"

"To get your lashes done, Tom. You chose that option, right?" Monica responded, her tone laced with amusement.

"So, we're going to the supermarket or something?" Tommy moaned, his feet already hurting. "Couldn't we have just ordered them online?"

"Oh, Tommy, you may look cute as a button today, but you're such a boy. You have no idea what you’ve gotten yourself into, do you?" Monica teased, sharing a chuckle with Sarah.

Approaching the crowded bus stop, Tommy decided to end the conversation there, feeling self-conscious to be approaching a group of people while wearing Sarah's baby blue fur coat and matching bobble hat. The ten-minute wait for the bus seemed like an eternity as Tommy shifted his weight from one heeled foot to the other, trying to keep his head down and avoid eye contact. The last thing Tommy wanted was for someone to recognize him standing at his local bus stop, with long girly hair and wearing his sister's clothes. To make matters worse, Monica had even applied pink lipstick to his lips before they left the house, arguing that it would help him blend in. Despite her reassurances, Tommy felt anything but inconspicuous in that moment.

Upon entering the salon, Tommy initially felt a wave of relief wash over him as he escaped the bitter cold outside. However, as he stood teetering by the reception desk, the potent mix of chemical scents from hair products and nail polish filled the air, causing his anxiety to mount rapidly as the reality of his surroundings set in. Monica gently guided him towards a desk, where Sarah began conversing with the receptionist. When the cute blonde-haired woman turned to Tommy, his face flushed with embarrassment. She inquired about the style he wanted for his lashes. Caught off-guard and knowing nothing about the treatment he was about to receive, Tommy fumbled through her questions about length, thickness, and style, agreeing to suggestions he barely understood.

Minutes later, Tommy was reclining on a plush salon chair, his heart pounding as a technician instructed him to close his eyes. For the next ninety minutes, he was plunged into darkness, his anxiety mounting with each passing second. Too frightened to voice his concerns, he endured the unsettling sensation of not knowing what was happening as he felt the gentle yet persistent poking and prodding of his eyelids and lashes. Unaware that hundreds of individual lashes were being bonded to his own - now tinted black to match the extensions - the young man could only wait, tense and uneasy, his imagination running wild as he tried to envision the transformation occurring.

When he finally opened his eyes, the reality was even more shocking than he had feared. Thick, voluminous lashes sprouted dramatically from his eyelids. He blinked in disbelief, feeling them fan air onto his cheeks, their flutter almost theatrical.

A small mirror was then presented to him, revealing the full extent of the makeover. Tommy’s mouth fell open in shock at the sight of his eyes, now incredibly cute and undeniably feminine. The wispy, voluminous extensions curled elegantly past the corners while dark, doll-like lashes adorned his lower lids. At that moment, he knew he had made a grave error. With these dramatic, unmistakably feminine lashes, there was no way he would be removing them without professional help.

“Wow! You look so pretty, Tammy!” Monica exclaimed, snapping Tommy back to reality with her enthusiastic tone.

“You can admire yourself when we get home, but if we don’t hurry up, we’re going to miss the 4:10 bus,” Sarah added, the smirk on her face making it clear she enjoyed the spectacle.

“Tammy?” Tommy echoed, confusion furrowing his brow as he turned to face his sisters, who were both now grinning from ear to ear, clearly impressed by his new, fluttering lashes.

"Mon's idea. You don’t look much like a Tommy anymore,” Sarah said with a chuckle. “Come on, put your boots on,” she urged, handing Tommy the uncomfortable footwear he had a brief respite from during his lash appointment.

Tommy opened his mouth to protest but thought better of it upon noticing everyone in the salon looking his way with amused smiles. Embarrassed, he accepted the boots from his sister and tugged them up his smooth, pantyhosed legs, eager to escape the scrutinizing eyes.

Stumbling out of the salon door, Tommy was immediately assaulted by the icy wind, which swooped up the hem of his coat, briefly revealing the tiny pair of black shorts hidden beneath. Glancing over her shoulder, Sarah couldn’t help but grin as she watched her feminized little brother hobbling along behind her in the knee-high suede boots she had worn all last winter. He looked miserable and frustrated, but Sarah felt justified in her actions. She remembered the challenging years they shared under the same roof, haunted by the terrible things he had put her and Monica through. Now, she relished her chance at payback. The ultimate punishment would be to transform her good-for-nothing brother into a functioning, pleasant member of society.

Lost in thought, Tommy trudged behind his gleeful, chatting sisters, carefully navigating the cobblestones as he approached the bus stop - this time, thankfully, with far fewer people around. He stopped a good ten feet behind them, glaring with a look of anger and disbelief, trying to comprehend how he had ended up in this absurd situation. Just a few months ago, he was a typical teenage boy, his biggest concern being to outscore his best friend Henry in Call of Duty online. Now, here he was in the heart of the city on a chilly December day, cold, miserable, and unrecognizable.

Bit by bit, the old Tommy had been replaced. The removal of his body hair had left him feeling naked. Then, to add insult to injury, his eyebrows had been plucked into oblivion, leaving his face looking unfamiliar, especially without his familiar beard. The long silky hair, while not as drastic a change on its own, combined with his girly outfits and the sway imposed by high heels, created a startlingly feminine appearance. And now, he had foolishly allowed his eyelashes to be transformed into a style that no man would ever willingly select. They fluttered irritatingly with every blink, making him feel as though there was constantly something in his eye. Worse still, he knew these new lashes would not only take a lot of getting used to but would also be impossible to hide.

(See image 08)

Tommy caught the 4.10 bus that afternoon, but the overwhelming embarrassment over his dramatically transformed eyelashes meant he never made it to his interview the following Monday. Instead, he spent the day wallowing in self-pity, racking his brain for a way to escape his ever-deepening predicament.

Then, midweek, inspiration struck. Perhaps if he showed some initiative by cleaning the apartment, his sisters might recognize his efforts to improve his behaviour and give him a break. Motivated by the possibility, Tommy dedicated all day Wednesday to domestic chores, dusting, vacuuming, and scrubbing the kitchen until the entire place was immaculate.

Unfortunately, his efforts did little to alter his circumstances. Sarah and Monica were both surprised and grateful for the unexpected help with the chores, and they even expressed their thanks by cooking Tommy his favourite meal for dinner that evening. However, one act of selflessness wasn't enough to convince them that he had changed his ways. So, as Friday evening rolled around and with still no money to his name, Tommy once again faced the dreaded task of choosing a forfeit.

Reluctantly, he pulled out two slips of paper from the hat, his heart sinking as he read the first option - something he had vowed never to do: 'Wear skirts and dresses at all times from now on!' The second option was equally daunting: 'Learn to apply makeup and create a social media account. Post a makeup picture every day.'

His pretty eyelashes fluttered as he gazed at the slips, his heart heavy with the realization that, regardless of his choice, his unwanted journey toward becoming Tammy was about to worsen.