THE BOY IN ROOM 303: A GENDER-SWAP ROMANCE

Stephanie’s POV I remember standing in front of the mirror in my bedroom, staring at my reflection. One hand gripped some strands of my blonde hair while the other held a pair of scissors. I had to do it. I had to cut my hair. All my life I had been the girl no one wanted. To my parents I was a burden. I was from a family of four: an identical twin brother and both parents—a father and stepmother—but we were poor. Very poor. We struggled to feed, clothe ourselves, or even pay our house bills. In a situation like this, all a child needed was their parents’ love. But I got none, because I reminded Dad of Mom. Even though Graham and I looked exactly the same, my feminine features made me look exactly like her. Mother had walked out on us for a wealthier man when we could barely speak, and that caused Dad to resent her… and me. Graham had made Father proud. He was a very good hockey player who was wanted by many schools. Dad saw this as a quick way out of poverty. He held Graham on a high pedestal and didn’t hesitate to let me know my place. Worthless. But it all went down the drain when Graham was invited to Starlight High School. It was a school for the wealthy and they had one of the best hockey teams. Graham had been given a scholarship to study there because of his hockey skills. Unfortunately, on his way to school four days ago, he got into an accident. Now he has a fractured ankle and is in a hospital with Dad is struggling to pay for treatment. As always, money was difficult for him to raise. Dad was devastated. His only way to get rich had broken his ankle. He was quiet and didn’t talk much, until an hour ago when he called me and said, “You have to go to Starlight Academy. Pretend to be your brother.” My eyes grew wide in shock. I didn’t speak for a few seconds until my mouth finally opened. “I don’t understand,” I stuttered. The chair screeched as he stood from his seat and walked to me. His figure towered over mine. I looked up at him as he spoke, “This is the first time you are getting a chance to be useful to this family… if you ruin it, you’ll leave my house,” he threatened. “I cannot have a useless daughter here eating my food for free.” I knew he was serious. I knew he would really kick me out. So guess what? I said yes. Luckily, Graham had always taught me to play hockey. It was a way for him to spend time with me. Dad wouldn’t let him hang out with me for too long; he forced Graham to practice any chance he got. I still wasn’t sure if I was good enough to play hockey with boys who had trained longer than me. But I still had to obey Dad. Tears clouded my eyes. The scissors made gentle snaps as I sliced through my hair. The strands dropped to the ground. Slowly, I started to look more like Graham. The short hair made a huge difference. **Three days later,** “Get out of the way!” a boy shouted as he ran through the school’s large hall. The place was packed with students, each headed for their classrooms. I was dressed in the school’s uniform: blue pants, a white T-shirt, and a blazer. My hair was neatly styled, just like Graham’s. I gripped my pants and adjusted them. It felt weird acting as a boy. My eyes scanned the place. Some students looked at me and then looked away. Sweat gathered in my palms instantly. What if they noticed that I was a girl? What if they found out that I was impersonating Graham and kicked me out? Dad would be furious. I just knew it. I would cost Graham his career as well. It would kill me if that happened. “Did you hear what I said?” Bart tapped my shoulder. “Huh?” My head snapped up. I blinked. Bart was my tour guide. “Yes… no,” I said. He laughed. “You have hockey practice with the team now. We already know you are good, but one game with the team to test you wouldn’t hurt,” he said. “Us? Are you a part of the team?” He nodded. “Yes. That’s why I was asked to show you around,” he said. “Come on.” He began to walk. I followed closely behind him. “You know…” He looked back, still walking. “I caught a glimpse of your resume. It says you are 6’3”,” he said. I clutched my bag tightly. “S… so?” “Well, I’m 6’4”,” he said and put his hand over my head to compare heights. “You seem a lot shorter.” My lips trembled. I waited for an answer—one I didn’t have. I stumbled backwards, but a huge force slammed against my back, forcing a loud gasp out of me as I fell forward. My body slammed hard against Bart’s body. “Sorry,” the boy who had bumped into me said. He was dressed in a football uniform. Without another word he rushed away again, two more boys rushing after him. I looked up at Bart and quickly pulled away. “Sorry,” I cleared my throat. “You seem to lack a lot of stamina for a boy who has trained for most of his life,” he joked. “I was just caught off guard,” I quickly said. Soon he led me into the boys’ locker room. There were boys, half naked, changing into their hockey uniforms. I instantly looked away, my eyes fixed on the ground. Why hadn’t I thought about this? I would have to change with them. “Guys, this is Graham, our star player,” Bart introduced. They all looked my way. “Hello,” they said simultaneously. “Hello,” I responded. The place fell silent. They all stared as if they were reading my mind. What? Did they figure it out? That I was a fraud? Were my cheeks too soft? Were my breasts poking out of my shirt? My heart raced. My eyes met one of the boys. Dark hair, green eyes that burned into mine. They were dark, unfriendly… empty. “That’s Nick Greenwood, our captain,” Bart said. He continued to introduce every single one of them by name. Bart suddenly slammed his hand against my back. “Go on, change,” he said and walked past me. “That over there is your locker.” I faked a smile as I walked to the locker. I opened it and brought out a jersey. I gripped it tightly in my hand. I couldn’t change in front of them. It would give away my identity. “Come on, hurry up,” Bart said as he began to strip. I didn’t move. He noticed and stopped. “You good, man?” His brows pinched together.