Luisa's Journey Pt. 02

(This chapter contains transphobic language which might be triggering for some readers. Originally posted elsewhere.)

There were several things that weren't supposed to happen, and for Luisa Romero, all of them happened at once.

Her parents weren't supposed to be home.

The door wasn't supposed to be unlocked.

But most of all, she was never, ever supposed to be caught in girls' clothes.

"Get in the car," said her mom.

"No," said Luisa.

The Romeros (minus the twins, who had soccer) were gathered in the living room. Her mom stomped her foot, her cross necklace bouncing against her chest. "Antonio Romero, get in the car right now!"

"He can always go on Sunday," said her dad.

"No! This has been a long-running issue and I want him to get help ASAP."

"Long-running issue?" asked Luisa. She thought back to all the childhood dress-up games, birthday wishes and nail-painting. Oh, she thought.

"I should've never let you grow your hair out," grumbled Mrs. Romero. "Part of this is my fault. I should've been harder on you." She let out a large sigh. "I'm going to Church to pray for you," she announced. "We'll discuss your punishment when I get home. And for Christ's sake, put some pants on."

"I won't change who I am for you," Luisa said, surprising herself in the process.

"So, what? You're just going to... To cut off your manhood?" exclaimed her mother.

Tears started to form in Luisa's eyes. "When I have the money," she answered.

"Son, you don't want to be a transvestite," said her father. "It's not a good life. You deserve better."

"Is it really better if it's not who I am?"

"You're a boy! God made you a boy for a reason!" she shrieked. "How could you do this to our family?"

"It's what I want," said Luisa, softly.

Her mother checked the time. "I need to leave now if I want to make the 5:00 mass." She jabbed a finger at her daughter. "Think about what you've done in the meantime." In a huff, she snagged the keys off the counter and left the house. Luisa looked to her father who was standing there, just as dumbstruck as she was.

"You should probably change," he said, finally.

~~~

Luisa didn't think; she went upstairs and cried herself to sleep. She woke up two hours later to find her dad in her room, going through her drawers.

"Get out of there!" she said, panicked. It wasn't about them finding out because they already knew- but she was afraid they'd start throwing things out.

"Sorry for waking you. I wanted you to be all set to go when you woke up."

"To go? I'm not going to Church-"

"It's your Aunt Carmen," he said, not making eye contact. "I think it'd be best if you stayed with her awhile."

Luisa felt her heart crack. "Oh."

~~~

Luisa wiped at the tears running down her cheeks. She had changed out of her dress before leaving and was now in a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt. On the floor by her left foot was her suitcase. She was sitting on the bed in her aunt's guest room while she made a phone call downstairs. No doubt she was calling her brother and sister-in-law to demand answers. It should've been embarrassing- she always got embarrassed when someone defended her- but this time, Luisa didn't care. She wanted someone to stand up against the people who had kept her in denial for so long.

Luisa checked her phone for messages. There was one from Trevor a couple hours ago.

I found the BEST shitty movie. Can I come over?

No :( she typed.

Dots appeared almost immediately. He was always quick to respond.

Why the :(?

Luisa went back and forth between the apps on her phone. Pinterest, Tumblr, Goodreads... She opened each one without really looking.

Hello?

She bit her lip and went back to Messages.

I had a fight with my parents about religion, she typed back.

Dude, that sucks! Do you want to come over here?

Luisa felt exhausted at the thought.

How about Saturday? she asked.

Knock knock.

It was her aunt. "Can I come in?" she asked, her voice soft.

"Of course. It's your house," she said.

Aunt Carmen padded barefoot over to sit by her niece, the old bed creaking beneath her. "How're you feeling?"

She shrugged. "I'm okay, all things considered. How much did Dad tell you?"

"He told me that you came out to him as transgender. Tony, is that true?"

Luisa's throat tightened. "Yes," she said, her voice cracking.

Aunt Carmen gave her a hug. "Oh, sweetie... I'm so sorry it had to be like this."

Don't cry, don't cry...

"If this is something you're sure of, I promise to accept you. You can stay here as long as you want, okay? I'm here for you."

Luisa sniffled. "Thanks..."

Ms. Romero gave her one final squeeze before letting go. "Do you want to go by she/her?"

"Yes, please. And I go by Luisa now."

Aunt Carmen gave her a wink. "Well, Luisa, I'm ordering takeout tonight. I have a paper menu downstairs...Want me to bring it up? Or is pizza okay?"

"Just pizza is fine. Thank you so much, Auntie. I mean it."

And she did.