NEWFOUND HAPPINESS - PART 8

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Part 8: Mom’s Confession

Hallie sat down on the chair opposite Tracy. She tilted her head, looking at Tracy with a mischievous gaze, her lips curling into a smile, “Oh come on! Why are you so shy? Mom already knows, our walls are thin. You don’t have to be embarrassed, this is perfectly normal. Just forget completely about our old life. Now, I'm a woman, and has to live it to the fullest!” She stroked her hair, laughing proudly, “Mom used to suffer in the old body, but now, Mom will savor every moment. Besides, Mom is doing it with your father! It’s not a stranger, right? Don’t you want to keep our family happy?”

Tracy lowered her head, not knowing what to say. More than anyone, she understood the feeling of losing a family, the way a slow collapse could be even more painful than something sudden. But that was the old family. The current matter was a bit hard for her to accept. After all, the person sitting across from her had once been her father, a true man. Yet that father last night had enjoyed a woman’s pleasure with another man. She had heard every little bit of it, those utterly natural moans.

Tracy looked up, her large round eyes glistening as she gazed at Hallie. Her eyes were very beautiful, inheriting all the best features from the person sitting before her “at present.” It had to be emphasized with “at present” because you could never imagine, one body yet belonging to two people. At last, she forced herself to say a few words, “Mom… you’ve changed so much! I never thought you could become so feminine like this. Just the other day, you were still so masculine…”

Hallie placed her hand on Tracy’s hand, her voice gentle, “My dear, I have wanted this for so long! Living with the responsibilities placed on a man’s shoulders was truly too exhausting, combined with that ugly male body before, I could not be myself. Sometimes, I even felt jealous of your old mother. She had all the best things from birth. Really, just being born a woman is already like owning the best things in this world. Ah, don’t misunderstand me! I didn’t deceive Naya. Maybe I was wrong to make her suffer because of me, but I did not lie to her. There was a time I truly loved her, but somehow, I turned to feeling jealous of what she had. Could the pressure of being a man change a person’s true nature? I don’t even know. It’s just that, right now, I only want to be loved and spoiled by a man to the fullest. I right now am truly a woman. When becoming Hallie, I feel like I am really living! Sorry for lying to you before. From the very beginning, I already wanted to become Hallie. And you, you are changing too, aren’t you? You are also gradually accepting the life of a Tracy, aren’t you.”

It seemed that ever since her old father had changed, this was the first time the father–son, no, mother–daughter, had sat down to have such an honest conversation together. This was also the first time her mother had confided so much in her.

Tracy sighed. She did not know what attitude to take after hearing Hallie’s confessions. Why did God create the concept of “awkwardness” so that everything had become this tangled now?

That morning’s breakfast passed in silence. Hallie did not push Tracy to try to understand her situation. Basically, everything she had done was wrong. That was undeniable. Even so, if she could do it all over again, she still would not hesitate to choose this path. She knew it was selfish, absolutely selfish, but she longed to live as a true woman, a woman with a proper status, not a transgender person. She knew it would take more time for her daughter to accept it. But she did not blame Tracy. To be honest, this was exactly her daughter’s strength. Tracy possessed a kinder soul than hers. Tracy still felt guilty for taking someone else’s life, despite her own life having been in danger when the debt collectors held a knife to her throat.

This could not have turned out any other way. Everything that happened was Hallie’s fault. She knew that, so all she could do was give Tracy the love of a mother from now on, no matter how her daughter chose to receive it.

At last, Tracy finished her meal. She stood up, quietly heading toward the door. Hallie followed, seeing Tracy off just as she had seen her husband off to work earlier that morning. The door was half-closed. Standing behind the threshold, Tracy whispered as if speaking only to herself, “I’m going to school now, Mom! I still can’t fully accept it. But… I will try. Do what you think is best.”

Without waiting for Hallie to answer, the door closed completely. It was only after Tracy had gone far away that Hallie could move her body again. A tear rolled down her cheek. Tracy’s final words could be considered an unofficial acceptance. Her daughter had, in a way, accepted her as her mother. That made her happy.

◉ ◉ ◉

The road to school today seemed somehow longer. Lost in thought, when she looked up again, Tracy found herself in an unfamiliar place. Well, actually, it wasn’t all that unfamiliar. This was the neighborhood behind the mechanical workshop where she worked, a rather complicated part of town.

In the past, with a wrench in her hand, she had feared no one on the route between home and the mechanical workshop. But now, all she had was a small schoolbag. Not to mention, Tracy had yet to realize that her beauty and those alluring pantyhose were the truly deadly danger, for they attracted the kind of people who were far from good.

Why had she come here? She was supposed to be going to school. It must have been that, in a moment of distraction, Tracy had unconsciously come to her old workplace. She needed to go back quickly. Being late for class was a minor issue, if someone—

“Hey there, pretty girl!” a sudden voice called out. Sometimes, just from the sound alone, you could tell the speaker had no good intentions.

Damn it, what should I do? Tracy thought. She decided to run, but just as she made a move, a hand grabbed her arm.

She spun around sharply, “Let go! If you try anything, I’ll scream!” She told herself, “Scream,” huh, that didn’t sound very manly. But there was no helping it, that was all she could do right now. Not to mention, for some reason, the first thing that came to her mind was “scream,” rather than fighting back or anything else. Tracy didn’t realize at all that she was carrying a part of the old Tracy’s memories. It didn’t influence her thoughts in any way, it was simply what she was thinking right now. A memory is a memory, after all.

At this moment, she finally realized who the guys harassing her were. Coincidentally, they were “old acquaintances,” the kind she never wanted to see again in her entire life. Somehow, just after seeing their faces a few times, Tracy had memorized the faces of those debt collectors perfectly.

One of them sneered, “Where are you rushing off to in such a hurry? We just want to invite you to hang out for a bit! I swear on my honor, we won’t do anything to you!” A thug living in a rough neighborhood swearing on “honor.” Unless Tracy was a fool, trusting these guys would only lead to regret.

Another one rubbed his palms together, his manner utterly vile, “Why scream, pretty girl? This place is our turf. No matter how loud you scream, no one will dare say a word—”

“Excuse me! Could you please let her go?” another voice suddenly cut in on their words. This voice was somewhat timid and youthful. Tracy didn’t know the speaker’s name, but she recognized him. He was one of the male students she had seen yesterday while having lunch with Lina. Coincidentally, she and he had even locked eyes for a moment.

After seeing clearly who had interrupted, the debt collectors let go of me, all turning to look in his direction. The guy who had been interrupted spat contemptuously, and by bad luck, the spit landed right on one of his buddies. That guy was furious but didn’t want to interrupt for fear of ruining the mood.

The one who’d been interrupted said, “What the hell are you, kid?! Off to school, huh? Why aren’t you at school like a good little student instead of coming to this neighborhood to stick your nose in our business?!”

He replied, “Um… I’m… her friend! She’s a university student too! Why won’t you just leave her alone so she can go to class and—”

This time it was his turn to be interrupted, but not with words — with a punch. After that, a whole barrage of blows rained down on him. No matter how big and strong he was, it was hard to stand against three or four thugs at once.

PART 9 >>