Episode 3 - The Photoshoot

Abby had gone out to the local bakery and gotten bagels and coffee. After a year of living together, she knew what Casey liked: a large coffee, two creams, two sugars, and an “everything” bagel with cream cheese.

“Thanks, Abby!” he said, plopping down at the kitchen table, and pushing aside the remnants of last night’s party. Beer cans teetered in questionably stable towers alongside half-empty chip bags and discarded character sheets.

“That went well last night,” Abby said, looking over the mess on the table.

“Yeah,” Casey replied, hoping she wouldn’t mention his role-playing, crossdressing or the fact he fell asleep in her dress.

“I can have this cleaned up after breakfast,” she said, punctuated by crinkling noises as she idly rolled up the end of an open bag of chips.

Casey felt the tension in the air of the unsaid words. Abby was thinking about it, wasn’t she?

Casey didn’t want to talk about any of it. Getting into the Varia character felt like an out-of-body experience, almost as if he had blacked out after a long night of drinking. “Did I really do that last night?” he thought, a lingering sense of embarrassment settling over him as he recalled his feminine adventures. Either way, he was glad that episode was over. 

What he needed was something today that was far removed from Astra Amethyst or Varia the Cleric. Maybe he could go do some sniping on Fourteen Night Fight, if Will was around for a game? Or maybe he could see if he was available to hang out in person, find a game of pick-up soccer they could join?

Casey picked up his cellphone and texted Will. “Interested in FNF or some soccer this afternoon?”

He went to the living room and plopped himself onto the couch, scrolling through various news feeds on his phone in search of interesting things to read or watch.

Will responded. “Sorry, can’t hang out today. I’m going to my parents for the rest of the weekend for my Dad’s birthday. The whole family will be there.”

Casey sighed. So much for his plans. Now he had two choices: he could do some “adulting” and catch up on some much needed grocery shopping. Or he could go back to his computer and play Fourteen Night Fight solo. 

“Hey Casey!” Abby said, grabbing her purse from a nearby chair. “I’m heading out to the mall, wanna come with me?”

“Nah,” he said. “I’m just going to veg today.”

“If you must! Enjoy your chilling, pepper! I’ll see you when I get back,” she said, walking out and closing the door behind her.

After scrolling through random pointless reels for five minutes, he got up from the couch and walked over to his computer in his bedroom.

A minute later, Fourteen Night Fight booted up.

While Casey was busy looking for different campaigns to play, a DM appeared at the bottom of his screen ManicLexiDreamGirl.

ManicLexiDreamGirl: hey casey, it’s lex!

A warmth filled Casey as he clicked on the notification.

SniperCasey: Hi Lexi!

ManicLexiDreamGirl: what ru up to?

SniperCasey: Just ate breakfast. I was trying to decide if I wanted to go grocery shopping or play a game.

ManicLexiDreamGirl: well don’t let me keep you from refilling ur breakfast stocks! 🥚🥓

SniperCasey: I still have some food in the house. It’s not dire.

ManicLexiDreamGirl: good! since ur well fed and surrounded by grub, i wanted to invite you to that discord i was telling u about.

SniperCasey: Cool. 

A link to Discord popped up on his screen. Casey clicked it without a second thought, not even reading the title of the server.

Once he was in, he realized his mistake. The server was named “Gamer Girlz.”

“Oh no,” he mumbled to himself. A girls-only server. Would Lexi or her friends be pissed when they find out a boy has been invited?

He realized he now had two choices: come clean now and risk upsetting the girls in the server, or go along with it and quietly leave the server later.

He decided that waiting til later would avoid the most embarrassment — for both he and Lexi. Navigating to his profile settings, a blank avatar prompt stared back at him, waiting for his new temporary identity. He clicked the upload button, navigating to his usual image of a rugged, bearded soldier, his finger twitching over the mouse.

All he wanted was to be himself. For just one day. And now even that plan had backfired.

Letting out a sigh, he opened a browser and did a search for Astra Amethyst avatars. Finding a rather cute one with the magical girl winking out at the screen, he downloaded it and dragged it over into the avatar slot.

He then hovered the mouse over his username. He backspaced his original name and replaced “SniperCasey” with “CosmicJusticeCasey.”

He then saved the settings and clicked on #general.

ManicLexiDreamGirl: hey everyone, this is casey! i met her the other night playing fnf

CosmicJusticeCasey: Hi everyone!

A few random screennames — all obviously feminine — greeted him.

ManicLexiDreamGirl: finally! i was starting to think you ghosted me. how was ur friday night? u do anything fun?

Casey hesitated. He couldn't exactly tell her he’d spent the night pretending to be a girl, while wearing a pink dress could he? Casey supposed that if Lexi thought he was a girl, then it didn’t matter. But he didn’t want to get into it. Talking about the D&D game was honest enough. Well, partially honest.

CosmicJusticeCasey: I played D&D with my housemate and her friends.

ManicLexiDreamGirl: OMG, i love tabletop! what kind of character did u play?

Casey figured there was no harm in being truthful here.

CosmicJusticeCasey: I played a cleric named Varia.

ManicLexiDreamGirl: fancy! what’s she like?

CosmicJusticeCasey: A healer and protector. Lots of holy magic.

ManicLexiDreamGirl: lol, ofc she is. u have a type, don't u? cute girls with magic. first astra, now varia?

Casey’s face felt like it was getting warm. He typed quickly, trying to sound casual.

CosmicJusticeCasey: Hey, it’s just roleplay! The dice decided, not me.

ManicLexiDreamGirl: sure they do, sweetie. 😉

Casey turned red.

CosmicJusticeCasey: Umm, how about you? What did you do last night? 

ManicLexiDreamGirl: i mostly stayed home listening to podcasts. jealous u got to play tabletop last night. it’s been a while for me.

CosmicJusticeCasey: Really? What kind of podcasts?

ManicLexiDreamGirl: oh, u know… about serial killers

CosmicJusticeCasey: Umm… should I be worried?

ManicLexiDreamGirl: maaaaaaaaybe 🔪🩸

TheFlirtyEmmy: Hey girls! I have a date tonight, what do you think of this dress?

TheFlirtyEmmy: [Image Attached]

Casey looked at the TheFlirtyEmmy’s photo. She appeared to be Casey’s age, with straight chestnut hair and blue eyes. She was wearing a little black dress, with a very low-cut neckline. Casey felt guilty at looking at such an intimate image.

ManicLexiDreamGirl: cute! girl, what time is it there? u look so fabulous!

TheFlirtyEmmy: Don’t let the pixels fool you. I’m exhausted. I didn’t get to sleep until 1am last night, and I feel like shit!

ManicLexiDreamGirl: well, it’s only 10am where I’m at.

ManicLexiDreamGirl: [Image Attached]

On the screen was a selfie of Lexi, sitting at her computer desk, looking effortlessly cool with messy red hair and a gaming headset pushed up on her forehead. She was dressed casually, wearing a white t-shirt with a saying on the front he couldn’t make out. 

Casey suddenly got worried. These girls were sharing selfies. If he shared one, they’d know he was a boy.

ManicLexiDreamGirl: i feel like such a scrub. i’m wearing day-old clothes. at some point i should join the human race and shower and put on clean clothes.

Out of Casey’s periphery, he noticed Abby’s pink dress, still draped on the edge of his unmade bed where he had left it right after waking up. But that did give him an idea on relating with these girls.

CosmicJusticeCasey: lol, well I slept in my dress from last night!

ManicLexiDreamGirl: @CosmicJusticeCasey oh i’ve done that too! nearly faceplanted climbing out of bed my legs got so tangled up in it. must’ve been an epic game of D&D!

CosmicJusticeCasey: It was! I think I got to bed around two.

ManicLexiDreamGirl: @CosmicJusticeCasey now let’s see the real astra! c’mon girlie, don't be shy. 

Casey thought of a way out of this hole.

CosmicJusticeCasey: Sorry, I try not to share pictures of myself on the internet. There’s a lot of creepers out there.

ManicLexiDreamGirl: don’t we know it! no worries. this server is a safe place though, it’s invite only. but u share only if ur comfortable.

TheFlirtyEmmy: how’s this one? [Image Attached]

Another image of the same girl in a different outfit — this time a longer red dress. It reminded Casey of Abby’s pink dress, with the way the two pieces of fabric crossed over in the middle of the chest. Despite feeling a bit like a fish out of whatever, he couldn’t help but feel a moment of camaraderie.

CosmicJusticeCasey: That’s so pretty! I have a similar dress!

ManicLexiDreamGirl: @CosmicJusticeCasey i bet it looks super cute on u.

Casey could feel his cheeks getting warmer again as he felt a slight pressure to perform for these girls. The idle dress on the bed was begging for Casey’s attention. He wanted to continue chatting with these girls, to connect with them.

Casey got up from his computer and walked over to the dress. He’s already worn it all night. Another moment couldn’t hurt, could it? 

He shed his t-shirt and pulled the pink flowing dress over his head. Looking in the mirror, he adjusted the shoulders and smoothed out the wrinkles.

Hello Varia.

Turning back to his computer, he opened up a photo app and activated his webcam. He did a few awkward poses before settling on one where his hand was on his hip. After blurring out his head, he then uploaded it to the chat.

CosmicJusticeCasey: It’s a little wrinked. [Image Attached]

ManicLexiDreamGirl: @CosmicJusticeCasey omgggggg, you’re so cute! i love that on u!

TheFlirtyEmmy: slay, girl!

Casey’s face burned, but couldn’t help but smile from the compliments. Despite his masquerading as a girl, he couldn’t help but feel acceptance from these girls.

His computer beeped, notifying him of a DM from Lexi.

ManicLexiDreamGirl: casey! so cute!! [Image Attached]

On screen was an image of Lexi making a heart with her hands.

Casey beamed. He readjusted the camera, then stood back up and made the same motion with his hands.Making sure his face was out of frame, he took the picture and hit send.

That’s when he looked at his bedroom doorway.

Standing there, bathed in the light of the hallway, was Abby.

* * *

“She cracked!” Abby squealed.

Casey typed “g2g” to the chat, then closed Discord. “What? No. This was nothing,” Casey replied to Abby, mentally scrambling for explanations to why he was wearing her dress.

“It doesn’t look like ‘nothing’ to me” Abby said with a smirk.

“It's not what you think it is. I was chatting with a girl I met the other night.”

“In my dress?”

Casey turned red. None of the excuses running though his head made sense. “I… I’m sorry. I… I don’t know. I’m so sorry.”

“Case— it’s OK. I’m not mad. I loaned you that dress. It’s OK.”

Casey stood there, hands clenched tightly together over his stomach, not knowing what to say.

“Casey, sit down.” She walked over to Casey’s bed and sat down, patting the bed next to her.

Casey followed her and plopped down onto the bed, staring at the computer screen to avoid any eye contact with his roommate.

Abby put her hand on his knee.

He could feel the soft cotton of the dress between her hand and his skin.

Abby, in a soft tone asked, “Can I ask why you’re wearing it when talking with this girl? It looked like you were… posing.”

“I… I ummm… she think’s I’m a girl.”

“And why would she think you’re a girl?”

“Remember when I said I was playing Astra Amethyst Thursday night? That’s where I met her. She assumed I was a girl.”

“And you didn’t correct her?”

“N- no.”

“Why not?”

“I don’t know. I was enjoying chatting with her. She was nice and friendly. And I think she was flirting with me. Don't be mad. I swear I’m not some kind of creeper.”

“I’m not mad. Tell me Casey, how did you feel last night in the dress?”

Casey blinked in confusion. “Last night? What does that have to do with anything?”

“Casey,” she said, “I’m your friend. You can tell me anything.”

“I have nothing to tell. It was just a photo.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

They sat in silence for a moment. Abby let out a long sigh, a pensive look appearing on her face as if she was holding something back. She eventually said, “I have an idea.”

“What?”

“Do you want to send this girl more pictures? Better pictures? I’ll help.”

“Oh, I dunno—”

“C’mon,” Abby said, clapping her hands together. “It’ll be fun!”

“Fun?”

“If you thought last night was fun, just wait,” Abby said, pulling Casey off his bed and dragging him to her room. “Alright, tell me about your character?”

“My character?”

“Last night you were Varia. Who are you this morning? Who does this girl think you are?”

“I’m not any character.” Casey really didn’t want to play this game. “I’m just a gamer.”

“A gamer girl? That’s a start.”

Casey thought back to his interactions with Lexi. “She thinks I prefer playing girls with magic. I played a magical girl the first time we met.”

“So you like cutesy things?”

“She does. Not me.”

“Right. Sorry. She. What’s her name?”

“The girl I’m chatting with? Lexi.”

“No. Your character. What is your name?”

Casey turned red in embarrassment again. “It’s just Casey.”

Abby giggled. “OK - let’s just call her Girl Casey for now.”

Casey rolled his eyes.

“So, Girl Casey, is a gamer. She’s into cutesy, magical things. What do you think she wears? She clearly wears adorable pink dresses she borrowed from her housemate. What else?”

“I don’t know Abby. This is uncomfortable and weird.”

“I get that. This is all new to you. It’s OK to be overwhelmed. Let’s take it slow. OK — you want to send a cute picture to Lexi. Do you want to send another dress photo? Or maybe something casual like a skirt?”

Casey thought about that. “Umm… maybe just jeans?”

“Well, she’s already seen you in a dress.”

Casey rolled his eyes, “Yeah, I guess.”

“Perfect,” Abby said, walking over to her closet. “I’m glad you agree. A skirt, it is!”

Casey felt déjà vu as he watched the same scene from last night play out again.

Abby’s eyes lit up as she pulled out a teal floral skirt. “Okay, if we’re doing this, we’re doing this right. Plus we don’t want you to have to shave.” She lifted the skirt up in front of her face and mumbled, “Yet.”

“Hey, I heard that!” He was about to bolt when Abby shook the skirt and held it up against Casey.

“This is going to look so cute on you!” she said, handing the skirt to Casey and walking back to the closet where she pulled out a white blouse and tossed it into Casey’s arms. “And lastly…” she added, holding up a small paper box.

“What’s that?” Casey asked.

Abby opened the box to reveal a mass of brown hair. “A wig!”

“I dunno, Abby.” Casey protested. “Maybe this is a stupid idea.”

“No it isn't,” she said. “There is a girl in that computer waiting for Girl Casey to send her cute pictures. Do you really want to disappoint her?”

“No, but—”

Just then, Abby’s phone went off. She picked it up, glancing down at the screen and answering the call. “Hey, I can’t talk right now. Trying to make an omelette with my housemate." After a few bits of fragmented conversation, Abby ended the call and tossed her phone onto the bed.

“Who was that?”

“Doesn’t matter. Now back to business! Go ahead — take that dress off and put on the skirt and blouse.”

Casey returned to his room, wearing Abby’s dress and holding a blouse and a skirt. He shut the door for privacy, wondering how everything went so wrong this morning. 

He pulled off the pink dress, and slid down his cargo shorts. He stepped into the skirt and pulled it up to his hips. Then it put his arms through the blouse.

His reflection in the mirror made him frown — he looked like a man in women’s clothes.

He walked back to Abby's room. “I don’t think this is gonna work.”

Abby looked him up and down. “You’re right. Take off that blouse.”

Casey took it off and stood there.

Abby walked up to him, grabbed the waist of the skirt and pulled it up so the waistband was over his navel. “First of all, girl waists are higher.”

She then pulled out a bra from her dresser.

“What are you doing?”

“Looking for a bra strap extender— wait, I found one. Hold out your arms.”

“I can’t—”

“How else are you going to have an ‘ample bosom?’”

“That was a joke,” Casey pleaded.

“Joke or not, it will make the top fit better. Now arms out!”

Sighing, Casey held out his arms as Abby slid the bra straps through them. She spun him around and clasped the bra. “It’s tight,” Casey said.

“It’ll do for photos, but we’ll get you a real one later.”

“Later? We’re not doing this again.”

“Case— I’m joking. Here — here’s a new top.” She handed him a white shirt.

Casey held it up skeptically; it seemed smaller than the blouse. “How is this gonna fit?”

“Don’t worry, it’s got lots of spandex. It’s stretchy.”

Casey pulled on the new top and the elastic fabric clung to every single curve — including the bra.

“OK, sit down,” Abby ordered, giving Casey a gentle push backwards onto the bed.

“Abby…” 

Casey faltered, as he watched Abby rummage through her makeup collection.

“Just pretend you’re role playing. Varia has gone to the local salon. She has a date with a cute girl.” Abby walked back across the room, sitting down on the bed while brandishing a makeup brush menacingly. “Now, turn towards me and hold your face still.”

Abby started brushing on foundation. 

It felt cool upon Casey’s skin. Despite his anxiety, he couldn’t help but find the brushing motions calming.

“Now close your eyes,” Abby murmured softly, picking up a thin black tube. She leaned in, her tongue poking out of the corner of her mouth in concentration. 

He felt the cold, precise tickle of the eyeliner wand against his lash line. He held his breath, terrified that the slightest twitch would result in either getting his eye impaled or ending up as a raccoon-eyed disaster.

“There,” she whispered, pulling back to inspect her handiwork. “Now the blush.”

“Abby, are you sure this is necessary?” Casey said,wishing he had asked minutes ago.

“You want to look good for Lexi, right?”

“I wasn’t planning on going this far with the ruse. Just the dress. Lexi is a stranger. I don’t even know where she lives.”

Abby hummed, sounding awfully satisfied as she ignored Casey’s anxiousness. “Open your eyes wide.”

He reluctantly obliged, as she swiped mascara over his lashes. Grabbing his hips, she turned him and stretched the wig over his head. She tugged and adjusted it, humming happily as she ran her fingers through the artificial hair. “Done.” She then turned him towards the mirror. “Take a look.”

Casey was floored at the reflection staring back at him. Only a few minutes ago, he looked like nothing more than an awkward boy, nothing more than a mockery of a woman. But now… gone was the boxy figure, hidden by the curves of the bra, and the flare of the skirt. Also gone was Casey’s boyish face, replaced by a soft femininity from the makeup Abby painted on him. His short hair was replaced by the brown wig that sat atop his head with curled strands that elegantly framed his face.

“Ready?” Abby asked.

“Ready?” Casey asked, confused, unable to tear his gaze away from the mirror.

“For your pictures!” Abby held up her phone, waving it back and forth.

“Right… photos.” Casey murmured, the reason for getting dressed up slowly trickling back into his head. “But not your phone. Mine.” He handed her his phone. The last thing he needed was Abby keeping these photos and teasing him with them later.

“Fine. The lighting in this room sucks though. We need natural light.” She snapped her fingers. “Backyard, now!”

She skipped ahead, Casey trudging behind her, catching glimpses of his shocked face in any reflective surface he could find.. They marched out the back doors and onto the patio. Thankfully the backyard was hidden from the street by a hill and none of their neighbors were ever outside. Thanks to their landlord’s neglectful lawn maintenance, it was mostly overgrown with tall grass and wildflowers.

Casey felt ridiculous, although he had to admit that the breeze swirling up his skirt felt awfully nice on a sunny day like today.

Abby coughed, breaking him out of his reverie. “Don't just stand there,” Abby said. “Pose.”

Casey stood there with his arms to the side and smiled.

“You look like a deer caught in the headlights.! Stop standing so stiffly — try turning your back to me and look over your shoulder.”

Casey spun around, and gazed back at Abby, the wig tickling his neck.

Abby took a few pictures. “Pout a little.”

Casey pursed his lips.

“Now stand on your left leg, bending your right leg at the knee. And give me a peace sign!”

Casey followed her instructions, wobbling and starting to feel like he was playing a game of Twister.

"Perfect! Now, play with the skirt. I want to see the fabric move. Lift it just a tiny bit, like you’re showing off the pattern," she instructed.

"Abby, really?" Casey hesitated.

"Do you want Lexi to think you're a model or a statue? Twist your body!"

He complied, feeling his cheeks burn. He twisted, hand on his hip, the skirt flaring around his legs.

She made a shooing motion at him. “Now step into the grass.”

“What? It's not mowed.”

“Who cares? There’s wildflowers here. It’ll be pretty.”

Casey stepped backwards, the wild grass tickling his bare feet.

“Now sit.”

“Are you sure? This is your skirt.”

Abby waved her hand dismissively. “Eh, this picture will be worth the grass stains.”

Casey compiled, sitting down and pulling his skirt-covered knees against his fake bosom.

Pointing to a flower next to him, Abby said, “Pick that dandelion puff.”

Casey snapped the flower off.

“Now look at me and give it a big blow.”

Casey pursed his lips and blew, dandelion seeds floating around his face.

"Yes! That’s it!" Abby snapped the photo. "Now, one more — drop that stem and clasp your hands under your chin, looking up at the sky and giving me wide eyes. Smile, and make it look innocent. That’s the key."

Casey felt foolish but oddly locked into the rhythm of her commands. He tilted his head, framing his face with his hands. 

Abby finally lowered the phone, grinning from ear to ear.

Casey stood back up and walked back to the patio where Abby was flipping through his phone’s photo gallery. Casey was stunned. The person in the photos didn't look like Casey the guy. No, she looked like Casey the Gamer Girl. Like the kind of girl who knew exactly how to capture an angle. He felt a weird, fluttery tension in his chest — part dread, part thrill.

“Abby these are… wow.”

“I minored in photography in college. But the best photos are because of the best subjects.”

Casey turned red in embarrassment. Was she serious or was she taunting him? He didn’t want to prolong this any more than he had to. “Can I have that back? I want to send these to Lexi.”

He logged onto Discord on his phone and walked back into the house, uploading the best pictures directly to Lexi.

* * *

Abby smirked to herself at how excited Casey looked as she watched him walk back into the house.

She pulled out her phone and called the last caller. “Yeah, I was with Casey. We had a wonderful photoshoot.”