The address Addison gave me was for a business park on Mercer Island, which was about 20 minutes away. As we approached the parking lot, I noticed something familiar about the address—it was right next to where my mother worked. Her car was parked in the lot, indicating that her insurance company had an office in a neighboring building. I wished I had time to drop in on her, but given the circumstances, it might not be the best idea to surprise her at work.
Calling my parents to update them seemed like a better option. Just as I was about to dial their numbers, there was a knock on my car window. I turned to my left and saw Kelsey peering in. Rolling down the window, I greeted him, Hey, are you ready for this?"
"No, not really. You?" Kelsey replied with evident nervousness.
Stepping out of the car, I said, "I don’t see how anyone could be fully prepared for something like this. This decision is easily the biggest and most consequential one I’ve ever had to make."
Kelsey agreed, saying, "I’ve been a guy my entire life; I have no idea how to be a woman."
"I don’t think that will be a problem. Addison assured us that we'd be given all the knowledge we needed to live as women." As we started walking toward the building, I added, "But I'm more concerned about dealing with periods and unwanted attention from guys."
Kelsey visibly shuddered at the thought of being hit on by guys. "I’d rather not think about that, but I’ll deal with it when it happens."
"Have you figured out how you’re going to tell your folks about all of this?" I asked, carefully avoiding a puddle.
"I haven’t got a clue how to break the news to them. But right now, I’m more worried about my roommate, who's a total sexist jerk." Shuddering again, Kelsey added, "If Addison thinks I’m bad, she should meet him. What about you?"
"My dad has always been the traditional macho type; I know he'll have a hard time adjusting to me being a woman." Stepping onto the sidewalk, I continued, "On the other hand, my mom will probably be thrilled; she’s always wanted a daughter."
As we reached the building’s entrance, Kelsey held the door open with a grin and said, "After you, ma’am."
Smiling back, I played along, saying, "Why, thank you, girlfriend."
We entered the building, ready to face whatever changes and challenges lay ahead.
*****************************
After checking in with the receptionist, Kelsey and I spent the next 15 minutes in a small waiting room with three other people. As we chatted, I found myself wondering why these other people were there and what transformations they were about to undergo.
Eventually, two people came to retrieve us; Kelsey went with a Hispanic woman in her mid-30s, and I followed the Asian woman down the hall. She introduced herself as Akiko Pierce, and once we reached her office, she sat at her desk and reviewed my file on her computer. I felt nervous and fidgeted in my seat during the silence.
Finally, Akiko looked up at me and said, with a slight Japanese accent, “If I were you, Matthew, I'd be running out the door.”
Confused, I replied, “Are you seriously trying to talk someone out of doing business with the people paying your salary?”
Akiko explained that she would never usually discourage someone, but my situation was unique since my potential employer had made my new job contingent on my gender transformation.
“A job's a job; as long as I'm not hurting anyone, there's no problem with what I'm willing to do to get it," I replied.
Akiko put her hand on her stomach and said, “I suppose anything is better than how I came to be like this.”
Confused, I asked, “I’m sorry; I don’t understand.”
Akiko handed me a framed photo from the shelf behind her chair and said, “That was me until 10 years ago.”
Looking at the photo, I was surprised to see a teenage American boy, not older than 14, standing at Disney World. Akiko confirmed that it was indeed her.
“Don't look so surprised; after all, that's what you're here for, isn't it?”
Embarrassed, I apologized for my reaction and asked how she went from being a boy to a pregnant Asian woman.
Akiko exchanged the photo for another one. This time, it was a picture of her wearing a wedding dress, standing on a beach next to an African American man.
“This man is my husband, Adam; next month will be our 8th anniversary. It’s not an exaggeration for me to say that I owe him my life,” Akiko said, tapping the man's face in the photo. “We have time before I need to bring you down for the procedure, so I can tell you the story if you’d like.”
Curious, I agreed to hear her story. Akiko began by telling me about her life ten years ago when she, her parents, and her were living in Yokosuka, Japan. Her father was a civilian contractor, and everything seemed perfect until tragedy struck.
"One day, my father was spotted by the Yakuza as they were executing someone in an alley. He just barely managed to get away and went to the police, begging for their help. Unfortunately, the Yakuza murdered my parents and kidnapped me before the police could act. I'm not sure how they got their hands on the technology, but my captors transformed me into a 19-year-old Japanese girl."
I was still processing the horror of Akiko's past when she mentioned the movie Taken.
"Yeah, the first one was good, but the others weren't," I replied.
Akiko revealed that she and half a dozen others were going to be sold into the sex trade. She was on the verge of despair until a dozen NCIS agents rescued them. However, they couldn't reverse the transformations, so new identities were created for all the victims.
Moved by her resilience, I said, “I'm glad you were rescued, and I’m sorry you lost your parents.”
Akiko continued her story, telling me how she and Adam fell in love when he was assigned to accompany her back to the United States. They started dating, and the rest was history. They have been married for almost 8 years, have a 5-year-old son named Eric, and she will soon give birth to a daughter.
Finally, I asked her about holding down her job without a college degree.
"I do have a college degree, Matthew," Akiko replied with a smile. "Radeon taught me what I needed to know to act like I was 19 years old. Then I went to college and got a master's degree in psychiatry."  indicates the next chapter needs to be written. |
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