Needing Leah Ch. 03

The story so far...

18-year-old Liam Weber has been sent by his parents to Bryner academy, the only private school that accepted him on a scholarship. Only, when he arrived, he discovered it was a school for girls and that his name had been listed as Leah. With the help of his roommate Ellie, he is forced to become Leah and hide his identity for as long as it might take to get himself transferred away. Such a big secret gives Ellie great power over him, however. So far, Leah is confused as to whether Ellie is a supportive figure or someone exploitative? After dressing him in her spare clothes, she leads him on a tour around the school...

3: The Fitting Room

Ellie's tour proved to be quite a long walk. The grounds were huge. Most of it was open fields with the lake and an apple orchard by "Fred the gardener's cottage" who Ellie explained was one of the only male members of staff on site.

"He's young. Apparently, most of the girls have a crush on him, but I met him yesterday. I think he's a grumpy git." She explained as much as she could think to about Bryner Academy. At all times, I felt self-conscious. I was a boy...dressed-up like a girl...pretending to be called Leah...I don't know what scared me more: the humiliation of people finding out, or the legal consequences of it all. I'm pretending to be a girl in an all-girl's school. I have stolen someone else's scholarship. Even if it's not my fault, I need to get myself transferred as soon as possible.

My heart was beating. Even my breath was a little heavy. I felt as though strangers would emerge at any moment to point, to call me a fraud, to expose me before the school. I walked slowly, nervously. I kept my hands up close to my chest in attempt to hide my lack of breasts. Ellie was understanding...I think. In moments, it was hard to tell what she thought but she was patient with me and confessed that my nervousness was cute. I didn't know how I felt about being seen as cute in the way she meant it.

I liked the feel of the gentle, summer's breeze around my legs. The pink skirt was tight enough that there wasn't a danger of it flapping up, but I felt freer than I would've done in trousers, even with the white stockings. The black top was tight but thankfully had a high neck to cover whatever chest hair might show. Ellie was right, it wasn't the most elegant of outfits but until I had my school uniform, or until we did something about my body hair, it would have to do. The pale-red panties would take longer to get used to...they were tight in a different way. Even just noticing it again aroused me and I tried to suppress the urge.

"You walk a little like a girl, you know?" Ellie said, smiling and dabbing an index finger at the space between her bottom lip and her chin. I'd noticed she seemed to do that a lot. "Maybe it's because you're so nervous. You walk like a scared little girl."

"I'm not trying to."

"Well don't stop. It suits. Are you normally a nervous person?"

"Not normally."

"Well maybe Leah is, then?" She grinned. That thought just made me recognise how very distant I already felt from the boy I'd always been. Liam was always a confident kid.

She showed me round the main building, where the offices, the classrooms, as well as the canteen could be found. All of the buildings were old and wooden, as though this school had lived hundreds of years, and creaked like it could only live a few more. I didn't mind that. All the dark wooden beams were nice, as were the rich, pale-blue-and-white tapestries bearing the school crest; a deer between two tree trunks. She also showed me round the art block, which had its own building. She showed me round the theatre hall, the tennis courts and gym, then even the stables. There was a set of relatively modern-looking bungalows out across the field on their own, that Ellie explained were: "The meadows. I don't know why they're called that. We're not allowed in there, it's only for students in the Bryner Club."

The was one bungalow with a particularly large, red door. A bronze knocker. The curtains were drawn across all of its windows. Something about it looked imposing.

"What is the Bryner Club?" I asked, staring at the door.

"I've only been here since Wednesday, so I don't exactly know either. Some sort of elite club the best students get picked for, or the most popular students, or something. Whatever they do in the club is completely secret. With all those bungalows kept to themselves, though, I'm sure it's something wild."

'Wild' could mean something fun and exciting. Ellie didn't say it like that. She said it like it was dangerous. It unnerved me. "We're best to keep out their way, I think. Especially you, I don't think the students in there would react kindly if they found out your real name, Leah."

I didn't doubt that. What I did doubt was whether or not Ellie would keep my secret. It was evident from her tone that part of her was amused by the thought of me being exposed. We walked on. I became hard again, and had to adjust the panties this time, as I noticed I was causing a slight tent in the skirt. Ellie noticed me adjusting and asked.

"Are you still hard under there?"

I nodded.

"Life here's gonna be pretty difficult if you're like that all the time."

"I'll...I'll get used to it." I said hopefully, even if I didn't feel hopeful. With luck, I'd only be here a day or two anyway.

"You haven't erm...stained my clothes, have you?" She asked, taking me aback. I shook my head.

"If you have, I won't be happy, Leah." There was that flash of fury again. It was only there a second, then it dispersed. "Let's get lunch, shall we? You can see how the other girls react to your outfit."

I stopped. "Will the canteen be busy, then?"

She giggled, but came forwards and hugged me tightly. The feel of her soft boobs against my chest. Her red hair falling down against my face. She kissed my cheek before pulling away; all with me standing there motionless, unable to react. "I'll look after you, sweetie." She said. "Don't be scared, you look cute."

"It's not obvious, is it? Do...do I sound like a boy? There's hair on my arms still, someone might notice."

She responded by clasping her right hand through my left. "You'll be fine. Your arm hair is so white, and you are quite soft spoken. We'll work on it a little but I think your accent helps disguise it. You'll be fine." She said, which did somewhat reassure me until she added. "Besides, I told you to find the fun in all this. It should be thrilling to be surrounded by hundreds of girls in a canteen, trying to blend in."

"Hundreds?"

We were still holding hands as we entered the canteen. It didn't resemble a canteen so much as the great hall from Harry Potter, or the sort of banquet halls I'd seen pictures of in Cambridge or Oxford University. It was huge, with nine rows of solid wooden tables stretched almost the entire distance. All the walls were a mix of dark wood and stone pillars, that gave it a surprisingly cosy feel, despite its size. I didn't notice that much on first viewing, however. I felt too nervous to notice much at all apart from just how many people there were. The raucous noise of different conversations, all clashing against each other. More girls than I had ever seen in my life. There must've been at least two hundred in the hall, and this was only the ones who had chosen to eat lunch in the canteen. Ellie had said a lot more students would be arriving tomorrow. Hundreds of beautiful girls who would report me or bully me or exact revenge if they found out who I was.

"There's a table for each dorm. Usually, we'll have to sit at the Selene table, but I don't think that applies until school officially begins. I've just been sitting wherever so far."

She went to walk forwards. I'd stopped, however. Still holding her hand, it pulled her back. She turned to me.

"No one's paying the blindest bit of attention. They're all too busy with their own food and their own gossip. We'll sit on our own, ok? Just follow me and act natural."

She led me forwards. I kept a tight grip on her hand, then suddenly became aware of how pathetic that must've made me look, so I let go. We walked towards the counters where they served food. I didn't pay too much attention to what I was getting and ended up with steak and kidney pie. I immediately wished I'd picked something that was easier and quicker to eat. We grabbed some apple juice and made our way over to an empty spot at the end of the third table. The meal was nice. Nervous as I was, it was a relief to eat good food and I enjoyed the chance to just talk to Ellie. She told me more about herself. Her family were from Surrey and had sent her here for the new year after a scandal had broken at her last school with some teacher-student relationships. It meant she wasn't much more used to Bryner than I was, and had spent the last few days frantically trying to learn as much as she could. "It's a relief to finally have a roommate, actually. Even if you are...you."

Her dad technically went by the title of "Sir Owen" she explained. He, and his father, had been lifelong servants to a lord who Ellie suggested owned a quarter of the land around Surrey. When the lord had died, he rewarded Ellie's father by pulling strings to get him knighted, leasing her family one of his many homes, and agreeing to pay Ellie's way through school. "It was sheer luck, really. I would say it was kind of him to do that for my family, but when you're swamped with riches and own at least twenty unoccupied homes, I'm not sure it counts as kind."

I told her about my family and how we'd ended up in a council house. She looked on me with pity about that, which I didn't like. I'd never felt too bothered about living on an estate. If anything, it meant I actually got to spend more time with my parents where, previously, my dad had always been out working and kept distant. He'd shown a vulnerable side since bankruptcy as well, in a way he'd never have done before. I know he felt shame at turning poor. He felt like he'd failed to provide for his family, which was probably why getting me a good education had been such a desperate obsession for him.

"Maybe he did send you here on purpose, then?" Ellie suggested.

"I don't know."

"Have you text him yet?"

"Not yet..." I'd thought about it twice, but neither times had the courage. How would I even word it? Hi, Dad. Just checking, did you deliberately list my name as Leah and enrol me in a girl's school, or was this a strange accident? Because right now, I'm wearing my roommate's knickers and makeup. The sheer thought of it made my stomach churn.

"You should keep your legs more closed as well, Leah. Remember you're wearing a skirt."

At once, I pushed my knees together. It felt uncomfortable like that, however. It crushed my balls tight. I supposed I'd just have to put up with it.

"I'm just going to pop out to the loo quickly." Ellie said, standing up. "You finish your food, I'll only be a moment."

"Don't, don't girls normally go to the toilets together?" I asked, not wanting to be left alone. She laughed.

"Stay and eat."

I watched her go, feeling worried again. I tried to keep my head down and make sure I didn't draw any attention to myself. That, however, seemed to be exactly what did draw attention. Two girls walked past, noticing me on my own.

"Do you mind us sitting with you?" They asked. Neither of them were carrying food. They were both beautiful. One of them tall with white-blonde hair in braided pigtails, and red eye shadow that made her look fierce. The other was shorter with equally short black hair and a red bandanna she was fiddling with, wrapping and unwrapping it round her wrist.

"N-no." I said, wanting to say the complete opposite.

"I'm Anna, and this is Joanne, but she prefers Jojo." The taller, blonde girl said. "What's your name."

"Liam, um, L-Leah..." I felt my cheeks going red. I looked down awkwardly at my food and tried to distract from the moment by eating a forkful of pie.

"Awww, she's shy." Jojo said, looking to Anna. Anna kept her eyes on me, smiling, attempting to make eye contact that I was determined to avoid.

"Actually, we saw you coming in. You were holding hands with that other girl." Anna leaned in closer. "Are you two lesbians?"

"No!" I protested at once, then froze. Maybe I was now? If I was pretending to be a girl, and it's girls I was attracted to. Anna and Jojo started laughing at me. My face went even redder. It felt like I was burning.

"Why were you holding hands, then?" Anna pressed.

"Yeah, is she your sister?"

"No!" I shook my head. Why wouldn't they just leave? Already, I felt too pathetic to even look them in the eye.

"I bet you are a lesbian. Are you two roommates?"

"I don't even wanna think about what they get up to."

"Stop it." I said feebly, which made them cackle.

"Stop what, Leah? We're only pointing out the truth. You know a lot of the teachers are Christian nuts in a place like this? They don't like that sort of thing."

"Imagine what Miss Daphne would do if she found out Leah was gay."

They laughed again. "You won't like Miss Daphne. You know she keeps a cane behind her desk?" They stood up, taking my plate as they went.

"Hey, that's my food!"

"You're pretty weak, Leah." Jojo said, coming round behind me. "We're only teasing. We just wanted to see if you'd take it."

"Yeah, Leah. Stand up for yourself, Leah. What is she wearing, Jo?"

I didn't like the way kept saying my name. They kept putting emphasis on it, like it was a stupid name, like I was stupid and laughable.

"Come on, Leah. We just wanna see if you can defend yourself. There's a lot of mean people in a place like this. Not like us. I mean real bullies. You won't believe what can happen to people who don't fight back."

Before I could so much as react, my plate was tipped. Hot pie with gravy. Mash potatoes. Straight down upon my head. The heat. It had cooled enough not to burn but still hurt. My hair wet and sticking, my clothes. Ellie's clothes! What did burn was the humiliation. The sound of their laughter. I sat their unmoving as Jojo shoved me in the back. I wanted to get angry. There'd been plenty of times I'd stood up for myself in the past, but I felt paralyzed. I couldn't move. Why was I so useless? I felt tears forming, and now I was trying simply to hold them back as Jojo continued shoving me.

"Hey! Leave her alone!" Ellie had reappeared, but I couldn't look. I couldn't move my gaze up from the table in front of me.

"We were just asking her a few questions, that's all."

"Yeah, why do you two hold hands? Are you lesbians?"

I heard Ellie behind me, pushing Jojo back. "No, we are not. Not that it should matter if we were. Does it bother you both, is that it?" Ellie called at them. "You leave Leah alone!"

"Why do you hold hands, then?"

"Because I look after her." I then felt Ellie's hand, gently rubbing my back. It felt nice but, again, reminded me just how very helpless I was right now. You're being fucking pathetic, Liam. What's wrong with you? You're fucking crying! The tears started spilling and I was gasping for breath.

"Do you need looking after then, little Leah? Too shy to go to the canteen by yourself? Is your girlfriend also your carer?"

"I'm neither." Ellie said, sounding stern. "I'm the bitch who'll shove your head up your own arse if you don't fuck off."

"You do sound lower class." Anna remarked, but I heard them leaving. They laughed but walked off. There was a moment of silence until I heard Ellie saying to herself. "Where the fuck are all the teachers?"

I was still crying. I closed my eyes as I felt Ellie wrap her arms round me from behind. "You're ok, Leah. Hold your tears until we get out of here. We need to clean you. Up you get."

She led me out of the canteen quickly. I tried my best to hide my face. My first interaction with anyone other than Ellie and I was being bullied. It rocked whatever confidence I had left. Was this what I was reduced to now? I felt weak. I needed a girl to protect me. What if Ellie hadn't been there? What if there were meaner people here than Anna and Jojo? What would a real bully do to me? As if I wasn't dreading the start of classes enough...

I showered and changed back into the same clothes, minus the black top that had been stained. In place of that, Ellie had allowed me wear the men's top I had arrived in. Allowed me was the right phrasing. The way she had glared when I had suggested it. The way she had considered it carefully before agreeing. I hadn't realised I needed permission to wear my own clothes.

All the same, my emotions had settled and I began to see the funny side. They had called me a lesbian! I was a boy! Why the hell had that been a thing to upset me? Why was that even something to bully someone over, anyway?

"It's an old-fashioned private school full of bitchy girls who will look for anything to attack you over. Not to mention most of them have conservative parents." Was Ellie's answer. "I won't let them mess with you again. Messing with you is my job." She said, seemingly joking but I didn't feel so sure. Once I was calmer, she took me to get properly registered, after which we visited the school tailor. She knew it was too risky letting the tailor herself, Miss Wicke, measure me, so Ellie snatched the tape measure from the counter, led me across to a fitting room, and snuck inside with me.

It was a cramped space. She knelt down to measure my legs, softly wrapping the tape around. Her elbow brushed against my skirt. That was enough. I became erect, and she brushed the skirt again as she moved to my other leg. This time, her elbow prodded against my cock. She didn't realise she'd touched it at first, until she moved her arm again and pressed harder, then she startled backwards.

"Oh, was I just...?"

"It's ok."

"You're hard again."

"Sorry, Ellie."

"I'm gonna have to measure your waist in a second."

"Sorry. I don't mean to-"

"I know." She stood up again, looking quizzical. "You liked me...erm...touching it, didn't you? You liked when I did that before."

I looked away. How could I answer that without being called a 'little pervert' again?

"Sometimes I forget you're not a girl." She continued. "There's moments where you just seem so feminine."

Again, I said nothing. There was an awkward pause as I failed to make sense of her point. Had she liked touching me, too? She had smiled, even giggled when she did so back in the dorm room. Had it turned her on...or was she just messing with me? She bent down and stretched the tape around the back of my waist. As she brought it round, I cupped my hand over the tip of my cock to try and save her from accidentally brushing it. Holding it myself, though. Feeling the tight fabric stretched against it. I wanted to squeeze it. I felt like it wouldn't take much to set me off...

"Now your chest." She said, standing up again. We were in such a tight space. I couldn't help staring into those warm, brown eyes as she inspected the measurements. Her bottom lip was curled slightly inwards. I'd never been this close to a woman, not in this way. She flicked her eyes up to me, and I had the worried sense that she'd guessed what I was thinking.

"So...you're not actually gay, are you? You like girls?"

I nodded.

"You like girls, you just also like girl's clothes?"

"I guess so. I didn't know that before."

"I wonder what else you don't yet know that you like...yet?" She wondered with a tone of voice that made me worry. "What size breasts would you like? Seeing as we can magically shape them ourselves."

"Oh. Err...what size should I have?"