Untitled Story

"I'm not like other girls, I have autism. I'm not like other girls, I have intrusive thoughts. I'm not like other girls, I'm not a girl." Their voice rang through the school hall, louder than they'd ever spoken. "I'm not a boy, either" they continued, "I'm nonbinary. I exist outside of the traditions, gender roles, and societal norms the previous generation forced on us. I am special."
Sage hated public speaking. They hated the attention it gave them, having to be loud enough for everyone to hear, and the noises the microphone makes. But it was the only way to come out to everyone at once. They had already come out to a few supportive friends and their dad. No one else knew, until today.
"My life isn't pure bliss, though. I could get hatecrimed at any time because of who I am. People expect me to conform to their ridiculous standards of who a person can be. They believe this despite the scientific studies and multiple cultures that prove that more than 2 genders exist. They say that gender is a social construct, which is true, and then shut down anyone that defies that social construct." They were interrupted by an audience member.
"What are your pronouns?" It was Jay, Sage's partner and best friend. He was reminding Sage to fully introduce themselves.
"My name is Sage and I use they/fae/bee pronouns. Thank you for asking. If you have any questions about my pronouns, please talk to me after. I love answering questions about this stuff. Are there any other nonbinary people here?" Six people stood up. "Stay standing for a second. Are there any transgender people here?" Another 13 people stood up. "Thank you. 20 people were standing just then. Out of 1200 students, that's less than 1% of people. 1% is the amount of asexual people in the world. 11% is how many LGBTQ+ people are in Australia. It may not seem like a lot, but that equates to about