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"How does it fit, pip-squeak?"
You run your hand over your chest. You turn in the mirror, staring at the reflection as you repeat the motion. You can't believe it. It's flat. If you weren't looking for it, you'd never notice anything out of place. Your chest is flat.
Caleb knocks twice on the door to try catching your attention. "If you can't get it on, don't force it. I can always order a different size."
You should say something... Your throat feels tight with emotion. Your vision gets blurry. You cover your mouth to stifle a sob, but it squeaks out just before you can conceal it.
"Woah, hey, what's wrong?" His weight shifts off the hallway wall. The floor outside your door creaks under his feet. "I'm comin' in!"
The door swings open. Caleb purposefully keeps his eyes up, doing his best not to see anything you'd kill him for getting a glimpse of, but he quickly realizes that's not necessary. You've got one of his old button-ups on, with a few buttons undone from the top. It fits pretty good on you.
But you're wiping your eyes and sniffling like you'd just heard about the world ending in three minutes.
He's by your side in two strides, holding your shoulder and rubbing your arm. "Hey, hey, don't cry, pip-squeak. What's wrong?"
"N-Nothing," you stutter out through another sob. You look in the mirror again. He looks with you, watching as you run your hand over your chest again. "I just can't believe it."
His shoulders relax as he realizes what's going on - what he thought were tears of sorrow are actually tears of joy. He chuckles and wraps his arm around your neck, digging his knuckles into the top of your head in a familiar gesture. You laugh wetly as you try to break free.
Once you manage to escape his hold, your hair is a mess, and tears still streak down your face, but you're smiling. You're laughing, exuding so much lightheaded joy.
You flat your hands over your chest again, smoothing out your shirt and its lower hem. "How does it look?"
"It looks like I got a stylish little brother," he teases as he adjusts the collar. "I'll dig out some more of my old clothes for you. That way you don't have to steal my good shirts from my closet." When he looks back at your face, you're staring at him with wide eyes. "What's wrong?"
"Say that again..."
He frowns in confusion. "What? That I'll dig out my old clothes?"
"No, no, no - before that! What did you call me?"
You watch as realization dawns on his face for the second time today. He smiles boyishly and holds you by both shoulders as he states like an immovable fact: "I've got the coolest little brother ever."
Another wave of tears wells up in your eyes. All your life, you'd been relegated to being his little sister. Even Grandma Josephine encouraged it; a family dynamic where you and Caleb had none. And when you'd brought up no longer wanting to be a girl to her, she'd practically shut it down as you being young and confused, an idea born from being around boys for so much of your young life. To have Caleb so quickly turn around and claim you as his brother with the same ease, even going so far as to buy you a chest binder in secret - you've never felt so secure.
He wipes away your tears with a twinkle of mischief in his eyes. "Hey, if we stick gum in your hair, we can convince Grandma to get it cut short."
You laugh at the idea. "Don't you think you're a little old for pranks like that?"
"Prank? All I did was show off how far I could stretch my gum," he makes a show of stretching something invisible between his hands, "and you fell trying to turn around to look! I'm completely blameless in this - it's the carpet that made you fall!"
You shake your head and wipe the last of your tears away, before hugging him around his waist. He responds immediately, wrapping his arms tightly around your shoulders to trap you against his chest. "This is enough right now," you say quietly. "Thank you, Caleb. You're the best big brother ever."
Plans have to be laid out to keep this a secret from Josephine. You'll pack a gym bag with a change of clothes and your binder that you'll change into at school. Caleb will tell his friends that he has a little brother now, and - being so popular - that won't take long to spread like wildfire around the school. And he'll have excuses and failsafes in place just in case; ways to keep Grandma off your back.
But for right now, Caleb pulls out his phone and holds it up to you, the sound waves of a voice recording dancing on the screen. "Now, say that again - I wanna make sure I have it on record the next time you say I'm the worst."
You shove him away. "You just had to ruin it, didn't you?"
"Hm? Sorry, the best big brother ever couldn't hear you over how amazing he is. What did you say, pip-squeak?"
"Ugh, I take it back!"
"Too late! Wha- Hey! Get back here! You better not delete that!”