James Stone, it turned out, was the kind of person people described as "a nice guy, but. . ." He was always included in group activities, but no one thought of him as a close friend. He seemed happiest by himself, working on his carvings or at his job as a mechanic. He was too emotionally distant to have close friends or lovers, and was still a virgin at 22.
Closer inspection revealed a person with a weak sense of identity, particularly in the areas of gender and sexuality. He was born with a penis, so people expected him to be a man, so he was. He was a man, so people expected him to be interested in women, so he was. None of it came from his own core. The strongest passion of his life was his youthful crush on Michael, but when his dad got a new job and moved away he just gave up on passion.
It really wouldn't take much of an adjustment to make him into a heterosexual trans woman--and a much happier person to boot.
Michael's phone buzzed. A voice that sounded kind of familiar but he couldn't exactly place asked. "Hello, is this Michael Woods?" "Yes." "Do you remember a James Stone?" "Yeah, is he OK?" "Oh yeah, fine, but I do have some news." "What is it?" "Well, to start with, my name is Janice now."
Until that moment, Michael had thought that a heart skipping a beat was just an expression.
"Been a long time, MIchael, but I'd love to see you."