Tug of War 73.1

Meanwhile, halfway across the country...

"Come closer, everybody, we don't have much time. Now say cheese!" the group smiled as the cell phone balanced on a guitar case immortalized the moment in a photograph.

The young blonde woman then hurried towards the phone, her high heels clicking on the asphalt, and she seemed delighted with what she saw. "Oh my gosh, it looks just perfect, guys!" she exclaimed, smiling widely. "Take a look!"

The photo showed the four of them posing in front of a flashy, multicolored van, on a remote road somewhere in the West. The splendid late afternoon summer sky just made everything even more vibrant and psychedelic, making it easy for someone who didn't know better to believe that that was an enhanced photograph of a bunch of hippies in the late sixties.

"Wow, it looks pretty good, indeed" the guy in the group commented.

"I know, right?" the blonde girl cried out, suddenly sniffling.

"What's the deal, Ti-Ti?" the red-haired girl, who was none other than Alyssa, asked, raising an eyebrow. "You seem overly sensitive today. Don't tell me your period is around the corner or something."

"Ha! Very funny, Lyss! And I don't know what you're talking about, girl. I think I'm perfectly normal."

"Are you sure, Tiff?" it was Kate's turn to ask. "'Cause now that Lyss mentioned it..."

"I think you're just trying to agree with your girlfriend!" Tiffany stated, making everyone laugh. "Seriously, guys, I'm totally fine. I just noticed this nice spot and asked Martin to stop the van so we could take a pic together."

"Well, you actually took the wheel from me to stop the van right away, you know" Martin mentioned casually, his gaze lost in the horizon. "Not the safest move, I would say."

"Even you?" Tiffany punched her boyfriend's arm, and everybody burst out laughing again.

"Really, honey" Martin started saying, hugging Tiffany and kissing her softly on the lips. "We just want to make sure you're alright."

"I appreciate it, but you guys have nothing to worry about. Everything's fine. Now we should get going. Janis and Miguel are already waiting for us. We can't be late for the concert."

The four of them returned to the van, and Martin drove towards the setting sun. The group chatted happily along the way, anticipating the night ahead of them, and Martin, Kate and Alyssa slowly forgot their worry about Tiffany, as she seemed to be acting normal again. The truth, however, was that the young woman was indeed feeling sensitive and anxious that day, although not even she herself knew the reason for that...

The last two months had been the happiest of Tiffany's life. After her graduation, a lot of things happened very quickly, in an alarming and confusing way, but in the end it all worked out. First, Tiffany had to decide what to do about Mark Turner's offer. She was fully aware that Turner was one of the most influential producers in the country, and that with his help she would certainly be a famous artist. However, she concluded she couldn't do what he expected from her. Singing pop songs wasn't what Tiffany truly wanted to do. She felt like she would be lying to herself, and she didn't want to do that – not ever again.

She then mustered up the courage to say no to Turner, even though she didn't know what to do next. However, before worrying about her music career, the girl had other matters to resolve. It was time to have a long, honest conversation with Susan, in order to fully understand what was going on about the woman and Tiffany's father.

What Susan told her was shocking, to say the least, as she confessed she had manipulated both Tiffany and Richard all along. "You see, Tiffany, honey, I have no reason to lie to you. I already got what I wanted, after all. I married your father just to get revenge for what he did to me in the past. However, I know I had no right to involve you in this mess. At first, I didn't expect it to go this far, I mean, look at you now... but you're happy, aren't you, Tiffany? Tell me the truth, please. Are you happy living as a female?"

"Yeah, I'm happy, but that's not the point here."

"I know. Regardless, I had no right to... Oh well, what's done is done. It's not like we can go back in time. Believe it or not, I've grown quite fond of you, honey. You're such a special human being... so different from your father. Everything could be different if we had met in other circumstances. For a while, you were the daughter I never had and probably never will. But I guess there are no happy endings for someone like me. You can do whatever you want with me now, Tiffany."

"What does this mean exactly?"

"Call the police if you that's the right thing to do. Tell them the whole truth. I won't deny anything. As I said, I already got what I wanted. I humiliated and destroyed Richard just like he did to me, and I doubt he will be able to go back to who he was before."

"About my father..."

"Wait... don't tell me you're sorry for him?"

"He's my father, isn't he?"

"Oh, dear, you're too good. You know what he planned for you, right? A terrible life, full of humiliation and suffering, exactly the kind of life he has now. But you are right. He's your father indeed. I won't stop you if you want to help him."

"How did you manage to, like, do what you did to him, anyway?"

"It wasn't that hard. You know your father better than anyone. He never accepted any sign of weakness or effeminate behavior from men. When he saw the himself putting on women's clothing so submissively, his mind panicked, and came to the only possible conclusion... he wasn't a real man. Of course, this wasn't a one-day job. It took me a few months to destroy his ego, making him lose weight and become unable to perform or act like a man. You saw most of this happening. He was on the brink of collapse for a long time... and just needed a little final push."

Tiffany was silent for some time, not knowing how to process what Susan had told her. "Do you think what I did to him was a bad thing?" the older asked, noticing her step daughter's hesitation. "Didn't you spend all this time saying your dad was a monster? That he deserved to learn a lesson? Don't you think the world will be a little better place without the old Richard around?"

"Yes, the world will certainly be a better place, and I did say all these things, but..."

"But, in the end, you are feeling sorry for him?"

"I m-mean... yes" Tiffany admitted, feeling silly and foolish.

"Oh, honey, You're unbelievable! Again, you can do whatever you want now. There's just one more thing I want to discuss with you before you make you decision."

"What is it?"

"You should take a look at your bank account... Let's say your mother's wish is finally fulfilled, and you have received your inheritance."

"What?! How did you convince dad to..."

"I wouldn't say that convincing is the right term here, but a good magician never reveals their secrets, right? All you need to know is that the money is yours now. Go be happy, Tiffany. You deserve this more than anyone."

After that day, Tiffany never saw Susan again. No, she didn't report the woman to the police, but she did try to help her father. Unfortunately, however, it was to no avail. When Tiffany went to Mr. Smith's house, his father, even dressed in femme, still looked at his daughter with the same old contempt and reproach. It was clear that he still hated Tiffany as much as he hated himself in his current predicament. He flatly refused to talk to the young woman, telling her to get out of his sight.

This only confirmed what she already knew for a long time. Her father had never loved her, not even for a single day. He had just wanted a son to be an exact copy of him, and, when he didn't get it, he tried to turn his own child's life into hell. In truth, Tiffany doubted her father had ever loved anyone. Somehow, she still managed to feel sorry for him again. What a miserable existence that must be, she thought, as she faced her now sissified father one last time...

----------

Now that Tiffany had turned down Mr. Turner's offer, she concluded that her best bet, in order to make the kind of music she wanted, was to be an independent artist. She and Martin found two amazing musicians on the internet, Janis Floyd and Miguel Santana, and the four of them formed a band, The Wandering Flowery Hearts. Tiffany used some of the money she inherited from her late mother to record an album with the group, and also bought an old van so they could travel around the country looking for places to perform.

As crazy as it sounded, she thought that was a brilliant plan. She couldn't wait to leave her hometown, a place where she had felt out of place her entire life. Moreover, living on the road would likely be an amazing experience. But it wasn't time to pack her stuff yet. There were other things to do first. She then asked to talk to Kate, in order to make everything clear with the girl...

"That's okay, Tiff" it was what Kate started saying. "I always thought that you and Martin being a couple was the most likely thing to happen. I mean, you two have a long history together, and when you started your transition... well, now I see it was just a matter of time for you guys to be more than just friends."

"Kate, I never wanted to deceive you and..."

"I know, Tiff". Kate interrupted her "I would never think something like that. You are one of the sweetest people I've met."

"So, umm... what are you going to do now?" Tiffany asked, awkwardly. "In your life, I mean... going to college?"

"This is something I definitely want to do. I would love to study History and Sociology. I just don't know if I'm going to do it right now. What about you?"

"Do you remember the band that I talked about? We're going to hit the road looking for places to play and things like that."

"Oh, Tiff, this sounds exciting! Really, I'm so happy for you guys!"

"Umm... I don't know if it would be, like, weird for you or something, but what you think about coming with us?"

"Wait, what?! But I'm not a musician, Tiff. I can't play anything."

"That's totally fine! We would just appreciate to have you with us, if you're comfortable with it, of course. I just thought... since you're not sure you're going to college right now... you could, like, spend some time with us and... Wait, it was very insensitive of me to suggest something like that, wasn't it? I mean, you and I..."

"Relax, Tiff. It's alright, and I promise I'll think about your offer. But if I accept it, do you think it would be okay if Alyssa went with us?"

"Lyss?! Sure, that would awesome! I just can't picture her living in a van, you know."

"You'd be surprised... Anyway, I'll give you an answer soon."

And then, a few months later, they all boarded the van towards God knows where. This was the beginning of the happiest months of Tiffany's life. Just leaving her hometown, as she had predicted, was an incredible feeling in itself... she had never felt so free before. However, it was nothing compared to the happiness of performing at small festivals here and there; knowing a new place every day; and, the best of all, spending all her time with the people she loved most in life.

And there was yet another important thing making her overjoyed...

Before the trip, to seal the beginning of her new life, Tiffany decided to have one last surgery – the surgery that would get rid of the last vestige of her masculinity. The recovery process was slow and painful, but Tiffany didn't regret it for a second. She didn't believe that what she had down there defined her gender, but she definitely felt a lot more comfortable with her body after the surgery. No more lies. She felt she had never been so honest with herself before, and the procedure also took sleeping with Martin to a whole new level. After an adaptation period, she began to love the new sensations she was now able to experience.

Kate and Alyssa had started dating again even before the trip, but now they were closer than ever, clearly in love with each other, like they had already been in the past. Away from her mother's influence, and from the town that saw and treated her as the spoiled little princess, Alyssa was more than ever becoming a new woman. Of course, her old sarcasm and irony was still there, but that was a good thing as far as Tiffany was concerned – she just couldn't imagine her friend without her sharp comments.

Now that she was in a process of self-discovery, finally admitting to the world that she was a lesbian, Alyssa was still unsure of what she was going to do in the future. But one thing was indisputable, she was enjoying the trip to the full, and looked radiant with each new experience, much to Tiffany's surprise.

Of course, a lot of it had to do with Kate, teaching her a more down-to-earth attitude. Tiffany realized that it took some time for Kate to truly give herself completely to Alyssa, certainly because she was afraid to have her heart broken by the girl one more time. However, when she realized that Alyssa was ready to have a real relationship, and wasn't going to back off, everything changed. Tiffany couldn't be more delighted to see the two girls so happy together.

They were still in contact with Chloe and Gabriella. Both of them had gone off to college and, without the old Alyssa as a constant presence, they were growing up, too. The girls promised to visit Tiffany and Alyssa on the first possible holiday.

Martin was also living his best life. Dating the woman he loved so much and traveling nonstop, it was impossible to catch him without a big smile on his face. As Tiffany knew very well, Martin was a unique person. He could be as innocent as he was eccentric, so he was definitely not cut out for a normal lifestyle with a usual job. A musician's routine (or lack of) fit him like a glove. By that time, he was as enthusiastic about playing and writing songs as Tiffany, and his new guitar, a vintage Rickenbacker one, was always around.

The other two members of the band, Janis and Miguel, were very kind and witty people, and, despite being young, already had a lot of stories to tell. Janis, who had been something of a child prodigy, finishing high school when she was only fifteen years old, gave up her academic career to dedicate herself to music, her true passion. She wanted to use art to inspire and motivate people, which made her and Tiffany become close to each other as soon as they met. Miguel was the son of an immigrant couple from El Salvador, and started playing with bands in his early teens, already being an experienced drummer. He could learn almost any song in the blink of an eye, and was very inventive with his beats and fills.

The band got along very quickly, as if they've played together all their lives. Tiffany couldn't be more satisfied about how things were going; she was learning a lot from them, and she hoped they would all grow even more as musicians going forward.