Soccer Queen
by Andrew ( anr )
Chapter 9

When Gail had recovered, she picked herself up off the floor and looked at David. "You look really pretty," she said.

David's face still looked like a tomato. He ducked his head, not realising that the motion of his hair attracted attention from all the guys round them. Gail noticed, though, and decided to have another dig at her brother/sister.

"Look at her - she's a natural born flirt!"

"Gail!" protested David, as he finally looked her in the eye. The amusement he saw there caused him to duck his head again as his mother commanded "Girls! Behave yourselves!"

Gail was surprised to hear her brother referred to in the feminine, but even more surprised when he reacted as if this was normal. Could this be the solution her mother had found to her problems ? If so, it was certainly effective.

She decided that she had tormented her brother enough. She remembered the presentation at the party, and thought she knew where the idea had come from.

"Davina ?" she asked softly.

David nodded, and looked at his sister with relief. *Maybe she's had enough sport for now* he thought.

As they walked out to the car that David's mother had hired, David and his sister discussed what had happened to them over the past week. Gail described her time at camp in glowing terms, only complaining about the midges. She showed David all the bites on her arms, scratching them as she spoke.

David was embarrassed when he began talking about his week. Beginning with the first night he had arrived, he described Samantha's reaction to seeing the necklace.

Gail howled with laughter as he described all she had done to him that night, and his description of his mother's reaction just made it better. Thinking of her brother in a night gown made her feel all tingly inside. He must be *really* cute.

As David continued describing his adventures over the week, Gail continued chuckling. When he described his trip to the salon, she laughed so hard she would have fallen out of the seat if she weren't held in by the seat-belt.

But when he told her about the date he had been on, she looked really hard at him. *I wonder if he's gay* she thought. *Or if merely changing clothes changes a whole person.*

But then she realised that, dressed as he was, the situation would seem perfectly normal. *This is so confusing* she thought. *One day in Edinburgh I have a beastly brother, the next in America I have a sister, who so far seems to be rather nice.*

Their mother spoke over her shoulder to them as she drove back to Gilroy. "Have you been able to do any laundry, Gail ?" she asked.

Gail groaned, muttering something about pioneer women and washing clothes in a river. "No, mum, most of my clothes are dirty. I was just wearing jeans and a tee shirt at camp."

"Maybe Davina can lend you something until your luggage arrives, or we can get to the shops. Tell you what, we'll go to the shops after we've visited your father. I think Davina needs some more clothes, anyway."

David groaned as he heard this. He wasn't looking forward to another trip round women's clothing stores.

David and Gail returned to their conversation about their experiences of the past week. Gail could really sympathise about his experiences with heels. She had just got her first pair, and she still couldn't walk comfortably in them.

Gail did worry about their father's reaction, though. *Maybe he was drunk because he saw how David was dressed ?* she wondered.

When they turned into the hospital, Gail got really scared. She didn't want to see her father so bashed up, but at the same time she really didn't want to miss seeing him.

Walking down the corridors to his ward, Gail and David held tightly to each other's hands. The sight of her father with all the tubes and wires connecting him to monitors caused Gail to start crying. She and David held onto each other, both with tears streaming down their cheeks.

Mrs. McCall entered the room and held onto her children. Her eyes were also wet with tears as she hugged David and Gail.

"HP have agreed to meet his medical expenses," she told them. "But we need to live as well. Fortunately, they've offered me a receptionists position. It's not as good as my last job, but I'll take it so we can survive."

David and Gail stared at their mother. They knew she was a qualified interior decorator, and had had a good job back in Edinburgh.

"Why are you taking such a job, Mum ?" asked David. "When you are qualified for so much more."

"For one thing, there is the employee medical insurance I'll get from HP," she replied. "This isn't like the NHS where everything is paid for by taxes. Your father may be like this for a long time. Even if his insurance runs out, he'll still be covered by mine. That's the only way we can afford to keep him alive."

David and Gail looked appalled at the thought of needing to pay a hospital to keep someone alive. Surely that was contrary to the Hippocratic Oath.

"Why don't we return to the house now for something to eat. We can visit your father again later. I've heard that talking to someone in a coma helps. Maybe even the sound of your voice will help, Gail."

They left the hospital and drove back to their house to get something to eat. Samantha was outside playing soccer against the garage door. When she saw the car turning into the McCall's drive, she ran over.

"How's your father, Davina ? Who's this ?" She pointed at Gail, who was staring back with equal curiosity.

David made the introductions. "Have you eaten, Sam ? Mum's just making lunch, and I'm sure you could join us."

Mrs. McCall rolled her eyes as she heard this, but immediately repeated David's offer.

Samantha said "OK, but I'll have to tell Mom." She ran into her house, reappearing after several minutes.

They all went into the house, with Gail and Samantha talking a mile a minute. They were comparing life stories, with amusing descriptions of the boys they knew.

Gail was called by her mother to look at her room. She took one look at it and nearly passed out. It had a four-poster bed with pink frills all over it and a cream bedspread. The walls were painted in 3 different shades of pink in flowery patterns. *Some of this has got to go* she thought.

When Gail mentioned how nasty her brother had been, Samantha gave David a dirty look. David blushed and apologised to Gail *again* for past mistreatment.

Samantha suddenly said something about needing to speak to Mrs. McCall and left the room. David and Gail looked at each other in puzzlement until she returned with a wide grin on her face. She wouldn't say anything, however, and they were soon talking about boys and makeup again.

Samantha suggested that, since it was Friday, they go out with the boys again. Gail asked if she could come - she really wanted to see her brother/sister with a boy.

"I'll see if Jim knows anyone to take you, Gail," Samantha told her.

Samantha asked for permission to use the phone, then called her boyfriend. After arranging for Jack to be there for David she asked him if he could think of anyone "for Davina's sister". Getting the age details, he said he thought he could.

When she hung up, she called Becky to inform her of the arrangements. Becky agreed to call her boyfriend and to meet them at the mall at seven.

With those arrangements made, everyone returned to the kitchen where Mrs. McCall had a large plate of sandwiches prepared. They all grabbed a soft drink from the fridge and helped them- selves to the sandwiches.

They discussed what they should do that afternoon. Mrs McCall told them that she had to go in to work to get everything ready for when she started on Monday. That left the three children free for the rest of the day. They agreed to practise football for a few hours, and then watch TV until it was time to go out.

Mrs. McCall looked surprised when David told her that he was meeting Jack again. She didn't think that her plans would progress so fast. "Of course you can go out with the boys tonight, Davina. Will Gail be going ?"

"Yes, Mum. Samantha's boyfriend thinks he can get her a date."

"Well, remember to be back by midnight. We wouldn't want you all turning to pumpkins."

David and Gail looked embarrassed (having heard the joke many times before) while Samantha giggled.

After lunch, they went to Samantha's yard and began playing. The addition of Gail made their game even better, as one could play in goal, while the other two tried to score.

When they had all had a couple of turns in goal, they decided to call it a day. David and Gail first returned to their house for a shower first.

After their showers, David called Gail into his room. He was already wearing his underwear, as was she. Gail looked at David's crotch and asked "Where is it ? Has it been removed ?"

David denied this, explaining his solution involving sticking a plaster between his legs. He was too embarrassed to allow her to look, although she begged to see it.

He opened his wardrobe, and offered her a choice of what to wear. Gail looked in the wardrobe and began giggling again as she saw the skirts and dresses. She picked a knee-length skirt and a brown top.

David put on a miniskirt and a black top. He also put on his high heels, explaining that he needed the practise. Picking up his handbag, he put some makeup and the keys inside. Gail looked at these actions with amazement - he looked so feminine after only a few days!

They left the house, carefully locking the door behind them. Samantha greeted them and led them to the front room where the TV was showing an afternoon soap.

Sitting down to watch, they all began criticising the wooden performances of the actors. They had been watching for about half an hour, when the doorbell rang. Samantha bounced up to answer it, and found Mrs. McCall on the step.

Inviting her in, Samantha led the way to the front room where David and Gail were still bitching about the bad plots and worse acting.

"Grab your things, girls, I've found a good place to shop," she told Gail and David. *Oh, fun* thought David. *More shopping.*

Looping the strap of his handbag over his shoulder, David led the way out of the house. Samantha decided that this was more interesting than boring daytime TV, so followed along.

Once they were all in the car, Mrs. McCall drove along U.S.101 until they reached a huge shopping centre. "The prices in here are supposed to be 'lower than retail'," she explained.

Parking in the huge lot was made more difficult by the number of cars already there. "Looks to be a busy place," Mrs. McCall commented.

After the car was parked, they walked over to the nearest clothing store. They all stared at the low prices charged, and began walking round looking at skirts and dresses. David and Gail got into a competition to see who could try on most outfits, and Gail was winning. "But you've done this more often than I have," complained David.

Samantha decided she wasn't going to be left out, so started selecting things to try on too. Even if she couldn't buy any- thing, it was fun trying the clothes on.

Both Gail and David complained to their mother that they didn't have a thing to wear that night. Mrs. McCall took pity on them and told them to select a nice dress each.

She told David and Gail to select 2 more skirts and 3 tops each. When the outfits had been selected, Mrs. McCall took them to the checkout to pay. With bags under each arm, David, Gail and Samantha followed Mrs. McCall down the row of shops to one with a sign that read "Victoria's Secret (seconds)".

Going through the lingerie, David got that funny feeling in his stomach again. *Now I get to buy fancy bras and stuff,* he thought.

He was right. His mother "treated" him and Gail to two sexy bra and panty sets each. They came with a matching garter belt, so Mrs. McCall added 2 pairs of seamed stockings to both of their piles.

They trailed round the shopping centre for the rest of the afternoon. Samantha spotted a dress similar to the one she had been drooling over earlier. This one was about half the price, though. *Still too much,* she thought. *But I can try to save up for this one with some hope that it won't be gone when I get the money.*

Returning home with their purchases, David and Gail got into a fight about who should get the first bath. Gail won, and immediately set about getting ready for the night.

After her bath, Gail selected one of her new lingerie sets and started dressing. She also pulled on her stockings, deciding to wear her own heels that night. *Damned if my brother is going to be sexier than me,* she thought.

With that thought in mind, she started doing her makeup in a more dramatic style than she normally wore. Spreading found- ation evenly on her face, she added blush and mascara before applying blue eye shadow and pink lipstick.

Pulling her new dress over her head, she walked through to David's room. He was also applying makeup in a similar drama- tic style, using two-tone eye shadow and eyeliner to create a very sexy look.

When they were both dressed, they walked through to the front room where their mother looked at them and whistled. She agreed to give them a lift to the "mall" as David had started calling the shopping centre.

They trooped over to Samantha's house to pick her up. When Samantha saw David and Gail, she suddenly felt underdressed. She had on a miniskirt and a green and white top, with green heels. Her friends seemed to have tried to outdo each other in a sexiness competition.

Seeing that their mother was willing to drive them to the mall, she called out a cheerful "See ya, Mom", and followed her friends to their car.

Although he had enjoyed the competition with his sister, David was extremely nervous about the coming evening. *Maybe I shouldn't have gone overboard to beat Gail,* he thought. *Now it looks like I am chasing Jack with one thing on my mind. Oh boy.* More Soccer Queen Coming Soon!