Thomas was just coming up to seventeen. Recently he'd been having the weirdest idea: what would it be like to be a girl?

Thomas was just coming up to seventeen. Recently he'd been having the weirdest idea: what would it be like to be a girl? Thomas knew it was ludicrous, but he honestly began to feel that he could have been born the wrong sex, an idea completely without merit for the captain of the school football team.

Nevertheless, it would not let Thomas alone. It niggled and nagged, struggling to obtain a place in his identity until he despaired. He did not have any sisters, and it was not as though there was much female influence in his life, or props to try it out - the whole thing was crazy.

Then, during a summer visit to his Aunt Jessica, he at last confided in someone. He trusted his aunt and knew she would not tell on him. They had just finished breakfast when Thomas took a deep breath.

"Sometimes," he sighed, "I wish I could be a girl, even if only on a trial basis. If I didn't like it, I could always be a boy again."

Jessica smiled. "Nothing like covering all your options and having a get-out clause," she said.

It was no surprise to Thomas that his aunt was not shocked or taken aback - nothing seemed to knock her out of her stride. Yet he was somewhat disappointed that she had nothing more to offer than sympathy and a fresh cup of tea. Soon after, Thomas returned to his own home.

It was dusk, the evening was heavy with humidity, the sky blood red and he knew a storm was pending. He looked at his reflection in the bathroom mirror - he had just started shaving and how he hated it. He slung the razor down. How he wished he could tell his parents or his brothers, but he was sensible enough to realise that they would never understand.

He looked out of the window. The sky had turned black as the night closed in. The odd flash of lightning was followed by the rumble of thunder, rain began to beat a tattoo against the window. Water ran from a broken gutter and splashed onto the concrete patio below like a mini waterfall, and the sound of the wind made Thomas glad he was in the warm confines of his house.