"Do you really think so? I can never decide for myself only for other people!" She giggled.

We both continued giggling as we went into the change rooms next to each other and reappeared on cue together in matching dresses. We laughed…. Our mothers commented to each other that they would never choose something that someone else was wearing! But it had quickly become a friendly, daughter versus mothers game. We both insisted on buying the dresses.

She told me her name was Sasha, I told her my name was Julie it felt good being a Julie rather than a Julian. She was really sweet. For some reason I really liked her… but wasn’t quite sure why. There was something about her smile and her eyes that made me want to know more about her. After buying the dresses we parted company. Our mothers swapped phone numbers and Sasha’s mother asked us to get together sometime. "Bye Julie, hope we meet up again!" Sasha chirped. I agreed and said goodbye with a wave and a smile.

My mother thought it was great fun. "Sasha was nice wasn’t she dear. See everyone thinks you’re a girl, it’s so lovely shopping together, are you enjoying yourself?" She asked. I had to agree, it made me feel very relaxed and sort of special in a funny way. The curious thing is that if I was dressed as Julian I would have been the odd one out and bored out of my mind! It seemed so perfectly natural and yet quite alien at the same time.

After all the shopping, browsing and laughing we were both feeling really hungry and went for some food in the food hall. By then I felt so at home being Julie that my quiet whispers became increasingly feminine well, mostly! My mother kept telling me how to sit, where to put my legs etc... It was very helpful but more than a little intrusive! We finished our meal and headed back home again.

As we drove into the garage I became overwhelmed by the intensity of it all. I was scared by how natural it all felt. How could so much have happened so quickly? I looked down at myself sitting in the car. A feminine pair of legs extended demurely from beneath my skirt… my eyes followed my legs down to my femininely clad feet. I felt a little sad for Julian but at the same time thrilled by my first day out in the world as my complete self. Like a person who had just returned after a long absence. We spent the rest of the evening talking and went to bed quite late.