Home Creators Posts Import Register Favorites Logout

Downloads

Content

Taylor navigates the aftermath of his first kiss while discovering that sometimes the most dangerous outfit is the one you wear to make your bestie smile.

Sometimes the universe gives you everything you've ever wanted, and that's exactly the problem.

Files

Comments

Zoe Storm

HAHAHAHA EMORY I AM SCREAMING

Alyson Greaves

First: This was *amazing*. im cri Second: I know it's a real place and everything and it's a real jersey and stuff but the word TUFTS, placed where it is, feels like a comment on that girl's chest compared to Taylor's

Ellen Mellor

In the words of Dr Sam Beckett: "oh boy."

Maggie Heels

Ffffffffffffffffff... what a cliffhanger... Emory!!! ❣️❣️❣️

Kris Greg

I'll admit that I had to go back & look to see who that was in the TUFTS hoodie because it's been a while, but I love the cliffhanger. How will Alicia respond?

Robertlouis

First of all, the long-form narrative format with few illustrations really lets your prose muse fly, Emory. There are too many poetically memorable phrases and sentences in this episode to quote, but the writing is just beautiful. Secondly, once again Taylor - and it doesn’t matter if it’s he or she - shows real empathy yet again by reaching out to share and defuse Abigail’s pain: Taylor is no longer locked away in a self-made emotion free shell, but has become a genuinely caring person. And how ironic that it’s that which becomes the spur for his downfall when he meets Will, and it all starts to go wrong. However, it resolves itself in the end, and platonically. Irony on irony ensues, as Abigail congratulates him for coming down firmly on the sapphic side, while Taylor is relieved in his mind to discover that he’s “definitely” straight. Oh dear. And then his would be gf from Bloomington High appears like a bad Deus ex Machina. Ooer. You do like your cliffhangers, don’t you? Next episode is going to be a lulu, unless fate can conjure up an escape route, or Taylor can tongue tie his way round it, or Abby misconstrues the entire situation, or…. The possibilities are endless, which is why I can’t wait to see how you manage to steer our innocent abroad through this latest crisis. One of the many things that’s great about this story is that it manages to be both sweet and charming, while at the same time the issues facing Taylor - and Abigail - are all too real.

Samantha Louise

I sure hope Alicia is cool and doesn’t blow Taylor’s cover. And genders her as female. Abigail “so what was Taylor like back at high school?” “Oh she kept to herself mostly.” She sees how she’s dressing, hopefully doesn’t go “WTF are you doing dressing like that?” Maybe think Taylor is being bullied to do so? Glad Will is a good dude, if Taylor was straight or bi/pan I’d ship it but alas for Will she’s a lesbian, probably, depending on what Taylor decides for gender in the end which makes this ever so complicated and fun.

Sam May

Such a well written story

Nolwenn (edited)

Comment edits

2026-09-14 23:00 "Oula!! trouble in paradise. Abort the mission Taylor. it smell like pâté"
2025-08-24 21:44

Gemma

Another great episode Emory I particularly liked the second part of this chapter and the capturing of Taylor’s inner world and his reactions to his current dilemma’s arising from this precarious situation. The triggering of past traumatic memories of his school days as a result of snide comments of the frat boys. Taylor being more aware again of his physical experience of having breasts. I liked the way you tied Taylor’s experiences of the past leading to his heightened connection to the physical sensation of his breasts and his dissonance around ‘wearing a bra,’ and sense of ‘being a fake.’ I also was so pleased seeing the way Will handled and responded to Taylor’s anxiety attack. His actions in giving Taylor his cardigan was such a sweet gentlemanly gesture. Even the description and the visual image of the way Will’s cardigan was so large in size that it engulfed and swallowed up the much smaller frame of Taylor, this came across as so cute and romantic. I was disappointed to then learn of Taylor’s internal thoughts that alerted us all (at this time) to his clear gender attraction to women (Maya). I was hoping he would have been surprised to discover that he was equally attracted to men and women. ☹️ It was, however, pleasing to see how Will restored Taylor’s emotional equilibrium through his calmness and grounding him by talking once again about topics (science theory) that helped to restore Taylor’s sense of safety. After the drama, Abigail’s sudden reappearance allowed me to relax a little after such a drama filled episode. You caught me off guard again Emory with the cliff hanger you left us all with and the sudden reemergence of Alicia and her recognition of Taylor. A fantastic, ‘what next’ will happen dear reader, - ‘stay tuned?’

Wes Adams

Puff's is a brand of facial tissue. Tufts rhymes with Puffs Sometimes, women would/will stuff their bras with tissue to "increase" their bust size.

Tim

Chapter 10 reveals two apparent truths. First, we now know that Taylor is not the least bit attracted to other males; rather, in fact, he is extremely attracted to one particular female—Maya. Second, it appears highly unlikely that Taylor is trans, or even remotely leaning in that direction. He hates having a chest universally associated with being female. That was clear when we first met him in Chapter 1 and continues to be clear through Chapter 10, when he describes having boobs as "sickening... that made him want to vomit... two alien things strapped to his body, announcing his freakishness to the world with every step." I'm not trans, so I can't speak from any experience, but I would think having womanly breasts would not be the body part a trans girl would detest so vehemently (I've got another body part in mind as a more likely candidate). So, with Taylor's sexual orientation and gender identity apparently much clearer now, in spite of (or perhaps because of) having lived a girl's life for the past few months, I don't see either of those changing anytime soon. Which leaves us with the question, which Emory has, I think, set up beautifully with Alicia's appearance at the end of Chapter 10 as the trigger—what's next for Taylor? Here's my opinion, for what it's worth: Taylor MUST be completely honest with at least (and perhaps only) three people, Alicia, Abigail and especially Maya. — Alicia was his best—maybe his only—friend in high school and she sincerely cares for him. She knows what he went through in high school because of his gynecomastia (perhaps not fully aware, until she sees him now, of how severe it was). If anyone will understand what might have driven him to present as a girl, and to support his decision, it will be Alicia. — Abigail has grown to become a confidant and a new best friend. She seems extremely open-minded and I can easily see her doing more than just accepting Taylor's explanation, but going further and actively conspiring with him to maintain his ruse until whenever, if ever, it's time for him to end the masquerade. — Maya, above all, deserves to be told the truth—and the sooner the better if there's any hope for the two to have any relationship in the future. I don't know how Maya might react. She appears to have initiated a relationship with Taylor out of "bi-curiosity," having had relationships with males before but never with someone she sees as female. She's clearly attracted to Taylor on several levels now... his being a "girl" being just one. Perhaps Taylor's DD's are something that spawned Maya's initial interest in him. More likely, it was the confident and edgy androgynous look he presented while standing in the checkout line at Target. If she was drawn to him as someone appearing in the middle of the gender continuum, would the fact that he has more in his panties than what she expected be disappointing or exciting? I don't know the answer to that, but I do know that she would find his continuing with his cardinal lie about himself to be something she could never condone after Saturday's date. — Taylor, himself, is continuously tortured by the lie he is living, and especially how this lie impacts others in his life he cares about. So, while it will be difficult and no doubt painful to confess to these three women, Taylor, more than them, will be the biggest beneficiary of any confession. As Jesus said, "The truth shall set you free" (John 8:32). Be free, Taylor—be happy!

Claire

I love this story. I love that Taylor, after being the ultimate outsider, is forming his own close group of friends... building his own family... where he feels valued, loved and protected. That's what we all hope for. Thanks Emory.

Ryan

Hmm. I agree with you about almost everything. I think Taylor has adapted deep down and is really starting to appreciate his feminine features and appearance. He's alone and with the help of his three friends, he can blossom. But he really has to tell his friends the whole truth.

Robertlouis

I agree with pretty much everything you say, Tim. And let’s remember that gender isn’t and never has been a simple binary. I certainly agree that it’s going to take something monumental, and of which we’ve seen no signs so far, for Taylor to think of himself as anything other than a straight heterosexual male. I suspect we’re going to see him reconciled in a happy relationship with Maya, but one in which he’s gradually become comfortable in presenting as female, even if it’s not full time. One last thing - the other person he needs to be honest with is himself. He’s too confused, chaotic and frantic for that right now, but it will come with time.

Crystal Peaches

this is such a joy to read. To see Taylor slowly finding themselves and opening up to others, as their inner journey continues. cannot wait for the next part!

Gemma

I’m probably not as definitive as you Tim in your assessment around Taylor ‘not being trans.’ Taylor’s negative feelings, thoughts and perceptions in relation to his breasts seem to be grounded and arisen as a result of feelings of shame, humiliation and embarrassment around beliefs and experiences he has encountered in the past around a ‘man having breasts.’ It is thus very complicated. Accordingly I wonder if these feelings are not feelings of disgust with his breasts per se as I would imagine it would be hard to seperate and totally disconnect from these past traumatic feelings of shame, humiliation he has experienced. I suspect that this would play a big part in shaping his current negative thoughts and feelings associated with his breasts. His self acceptance and learning to love his body would be hard to achieve without the processing the impacts of the past traumatic experiences he encountered at school. How they shaped his perceptions of ‘how he should be’ and what he should want. It would be interesting to revisit Taylor’s thoughts and feeling after he has processed and reconciled himself in relation to past traumatic experiences. Again Emory has left for us all a lot of deeper questions and thoughts around identity and how things might not be as straight forward and simply black or white as often can be advocated and assumed within society.

Robertlouis

Tufts is a private university based in Boston. Not as well known as Harvard, MIT or Boston College, but every bit as prestigious.

Emory Ahlberg

Thank you, Alyson!!! Yeah, poor Alicia was probably always a lil (very) jealous ☺️

Emory Ahlberg

Thank you, Ellen! And, oh my God, I loved Quantum Leap so much as a kid 💕

Emory Ahlberg

Thank you, Kris! Poor Taylor... this is his worst nightmare come true!

Emory Ahlberg

Thank you so much for this comment, Robert! It's so thoughtful. And I'm so happy you're enjoying the prose! Writing will always be my first love. That growth in Taylor's empathy means a heck of a lot. His entire world before MIT was about self-preservation, building walls, and just surviving. He's never really been in a position to care for someone else because he's been in a constant state of defense. Now, with Abigail, he's experiencing this reciprocal friendship for the first time. He's learning how to show up for someone. And you're so right about the irony. He's trying to be this new, confident person, but the muscle memory of being a target is still so strong. The moment those frat boys looked at him, that was an echo of every single bully from his past, and it just shattered him. His internal world is such a mess right now. He's clinging to the label "straight" because it's one of the only stable data points he has left. Everything else about his identity is in flux. He's a boy, but he's living as a girl. He's attracted to a girl, but he's also forming this incredibly deep, non-romantic bond with a guy. His brain, which loves order, is just trying to find a box to put himself in so he doesn't spin out completely!

Emory Ahlberg

Thank you, Samantha! Alicia's the ultimate wild card, isn't she? She's the only person from Taylor's old life who saw past the surface and was genuinely kind to him. Her perception of this moment is going to be filtered through her memory of the quiet, bullied boy she knew. And I love your idea that she might think he's being bullied into this. It's a completely valid conclusion for someone who knows his history...

Emory Ahlberg

Thank you so much for this wonderful comment, Gemma! For years, Taylor's body has been the source of his pain, something to be hidden and ignored. The bra, the makeup, etc started as a disguise, but they're forcing him to engage with his body in a way he never has before. The snide comments from the frat boys weren't just random insults... they were a direct activation of that primal fear. He's not just embarrassed, he's transported right back to being that terrified kid in the locker room. And Will... oh, Will. I'm so happy you liked that moment with the cardigan. It was so important for me to show that gesture as purely protective. Taylor has never experienced masculinity as a source of comfort before. It's always been a threat. So this is the first time a man has seen his vulnerability and responded with kindness instead of cruelty.

Emory Ahlberg

Thank you, Tim! As always, you're really helping me think even more about the core of what I'm trying to do with this story, and I love it. You're right that acceptance based on a lie is hollow. It's not real acceptance. But Taylor is still in the terrified stage. The tragedy for him right now is that he can't see a path where the truth doesn't lead to rejection from the people he's starting to care about. His prison is his own conviction that he's unworthy of being loved as he is. Yeah, the distinction between my transition and Taylor's situation is really important. I chose this (kinda sorta). He had it thrust upon him. And while my transition was about aligning my body with my soul, his is different. Your idea that Maya could be the one to help him re-contextualize his body is beautiful. What happens when something you hate becomes the reason someone you adore touches you with love? 💕That'll really force him to confront whether his hatred is truly his own, or if it's just an echo of the bullies from his past. But, yes, this is exactly the kind of journey I want for him. It's not about him "becoming a woman," but about him discovering what parts of womanhood, and manhood, and just personhood, actually fit him when he's finally free from the judgment.

Emory Ahlberg

Thanks so much, Claire! I love that for him, too. For so many of us, especially in the trans community, the families we build are the ones that truly save us. Taylor's entire life before this was defined by isolation. He wasn't just an outsider, he was also a target. His only strategy for survival was to make himself as small and invisible as possible. Now as 'Taylor the Girl' he's learning being visible can be fun!

Emory Ahlberg

Thank you, Crystal! Yeah... Isn't it funny how the more you like yourself, the more you can be vulnerable to others? Talk about a sad irony...

KenCom

I ship Maya and Taylor too much

stacy C

OMG I need Abigail in my life.....she can dress me anytime hehe x