Opening the door, I am automatically assaulted by the smell of the ocean, something I have not smelled in nearly four years, when my family went camping off the coast of North Carolina. Peering past the door, I see what appears to be a shoppe of some sort, selling what appeared to be swimwear, towels, sandals and other outdoor apparel and objects. Next to me, Rei squealed, "Oh! A beach. Where I came from, it's still winter," and before I can do anything, she was moving past me and through the door.
A voice inside my mind whispered, "Now's your chance. Just close the door and choose another," and realising that it was speaking the truth, I nearly did exactly that.
But then Rei called out, "Come on Alex," and suddenly I found myself torn between what I wanted to do, shut the door, and wanting to be with Rei, and increase the risk of being found out and looking at the seaside resort, I hesitated, lost in thought as I weighed the options of being in room full of people that could discover my secret versus being at a seaside resort with only one person.
After a moment, I stepped through the door, thinking, "What will come, will come," as I pulled the door closed behind me and listened as Rei commented, "This is cute," and "Oh! So is this!" and "Do you wear a one piece or a two piece, Alex?" followed by, "I think you would look cute in a two piece."
Moving through the racks and shelves, noting as I went that there was not a single piece of swimwear for a male, and finding this to be a bit odd, I listened as Rei continued to patter on and when I finally reached her, I found her holding three different bikinis in one hand and holding a fourth in her other in front of her. Seeing me, she put all four back on the rack and grasping my hand, she pulled me to another rack and taking a child's bikini off of that rack, she held it up in front of me and commented, "I think this would bring out your eyes and complement your hair, though it is a bit short."
Unsure what to say, I shrugged and replied, "Mom says I should grow it out and that it would look more pretty. Especially as my body becomes more sure that it is female."
Nodding, barely hearing what I am saying, Rei picked out a pair of jean shorts and a white tank top with really thin straps that I thought might be called spaghetti straps. As she hands me the bikini, shorts and tank top, I asked, "Isn't this theft? I mean, how are we going to pay for this?"
Rei shrugged and the explained, "I think this place is abandoned. I don't hear any people and the counter over there," she pointed to the place where an open cash register sat, "Is covered in at least an inch of dust," as she returned to her search through the bins containing various sandals, stopping every one and a bit to try on a pair and then set them aside if they fit, telling herself, "Maybe," every so often.
Looking down at the clothes, I wondered what she wanted me to with them, thinking that maybe she wanted me to wear them, not liking the idea because it would require me to change, which could possible increase the risk of her discovering my secret.
"Aren't you going to try those on?" Rei suddenly asked, breaking my concentration. "I mean, if you are that worried about stealing, don't be. As I said, this place appears and feels abandoned."
Shrugging, I glanced down at the garments, and unable to see a way out of my situation, wishing that I had just stayed back in the white room, I mutter, "Do you know where the changing rooms are," to which Rei stopped what she was doing, looked about and then explained, "I think that they are over there," and indicating in a direction toward the back of the store, she then added, "I want to see how you look in your bikini before you put on the shorts and tank top," as she returned to her search of a rack holding several different beach towels.
Not liking the idea of parading around in front of a girl half naked and wearing a bikini, I desperately search for an excuse, but unable to come up with one, I turn away from Rei and thinking, "Let's get this over with. If she discovers my secret, then she discovers my secret," and trudging toward the changing rooms, I pushed back the curtain, entered and pulled back the curtain and then secured it with a hook bolted to the wall.
Setting the shorts and tank top down on the bench, I sat down next to the garments and looked at the bikini Rei had given me. Both the top and bottom piece were white, with pink tropical flowers on both sections and a frilly little ruff circling the waist. Taking the swim suit off the hanger, I noted that it was all one piece, but the shoulder section had been designed so that it ended in a bow, giving the illusion that it had been tied. Glancing at the tear-drop-shaped cups, I thought that somebody has a really weird sense of design if they expected a little girl, whose has not even developed breast yet, to wear such an outfit.
"Everything all right in there," Rei's voice asked, disrupting my train of thought, and answering in the same quiet voice, "Yes," I pulled the tags off the bikini and after a moment's thought, also pulled the tags off the shorts and tank top.
Standing, I reach down and grasp the hem of the shirt I am wearing and pulling it up, I pulled it over my head. Standing in just the yellow pants, I reached over to the bench and picking up the bikini top, I slid it slowly on and then began to adjust it, making sure that it was snug enough to stay in place, but also to cover the right areas of my body and receiving a strange prickling sensation at one point as I did so, which figured was just nerves.
Next I kicked off my socks and after a few minutes deliberation, I pushed down on both the pants and underwear and setting them aside, holding my legs closed all the while so that my penis and testicles remain tucked back, I then picked up the bottom part of the swimwear and pulled it on, again receiving a prickling sensation as I adjusted it and made sure that my penis and testicles could not be seen, nor did I have any strange bumps that a girl was not supposed to have. Satisfied, but feeling slightly embarrassed, I undid the hook and stepped out.
On the other side of the curtain, Rei was waiting, wearing what appeared to be a sarong, and the moment she saw me, she squealed out, "Oh! You are so adorable," and when I muttered, "I feel kind of exposed," she just waved her hand and answered back with, "Don't worry. Every girl feels that way when she first wears a bikini. You'll get used to it."
Nodding, I hugged myself and turning about, I heading back into the changing stall, were I collected the shorts, tank top and the clothes I had been wearing, but before I could take a step, Rei told, "Just leave those here. We'll come back for them after we're done swimming. Besides, you need some type of pyjamas for tonight," and unsure what I should do, I dropped the purple shirt and yellow Lycra-Spandex pants back on the bench, hesitated for a moment, and then began to pull on the white tank top and the jean shorts, which I thought were kind of small because of how high up they sat.
Back outside of the stall, Rei took my hand and led me back through the store and handing me a pair of white sandals with pink tropical flowers printed on both the top and bottoms, she explained, "These will go great with your bikini," and then handing me a towel, she commented, "Come on," and then walked briskly out of the store, stopping once to grab what looked like a bottle of sun-block lotion.
Still feeling unsure, I sighed and asked myself, "How worse can this get," as I followed Rei out of the store, slipping on the sandals and flipping the towel over my shoulder as I left.
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Turned out Rei was correct that there was nobody else here and after a bit, I eventually relaxed as I realised that Rei was not going to discover my secret any time soon and passed the afternoon walking and talking with Rei, swimming, applying sun-block to the girl, which she did the same to me, and otherwise having a good time, despite how I was dressed.
But not everything turned out in such a positive manner, as I soon discovered as the sun slowly sank and I excused myself to the bathroom, making sure to choose the woman's toilet in case Rei was watching.
Inside, I sat down on the toilet and as my bladder emptied into the toilet, I thought about the ways I could just quietly sneak away, coming up with nothing as I sat there, peeing and absently rubbing my chest, which for some reason suddenly felt tender and a bit sore, something I unconsciously came to the conclusion must be a reaction to something I encountered outside.
Outside the stall, I heard the door open to the restroom open and close and then the Rei's voice could be heard echoing through the bathroom as she asked, "Everything all right?"
"Yeah," I answered and then asked, "Why wouldn't it be?"
Rei didn't say anything at first and then casually said, "No reason. It just a girl notices certain things and if you ever need an understanding, I'm here for you."
Unsure what she was talking about, I was just about to ask her for clarification when I heard the door to the woman's toilets open and then close and figuring Rei must have left, I figured that enough fooling around and it was time to tell her the truth as I slid off the toilet, pulled up my bikini, my penis and testicles still tucked between my legs, and flushing, I stepped out of the stall and toward the sinks and mirrors.
As I began to wash my hands, I happened to glance up at the mirror for a second and then away, but then looked back as I thought something was off. Turning off the sink, I reached for a bit of paper toweling and still looking in the mirror, I dried my hands as I attempted to figure out what was off.
After a couple seconds, I turned sideways, thinking that the way the bikini top was bunching up, it gave me the appearance of my chest starting to stick out. Dropping the paper toweling in the trash, I returned to the mirror and after a bit more of staring at my reflection, I lifted up on the bottom of the bikini top and stared at my erect nipples, thinking that the area just past the nipples looked at little raised, all most like a button.
Pulling back down my bikini top and readjusting it, finding this be a bit uncomfortable, forgetting for the moment my plan to tell Rei the truth, I instead stared at my reflection a bit longer before finally turning away and exiting the woman's toilet, where I found Rei holding my towel, shorts and tank top.