DAY TWO

"I still can't believe that Andrew is actually going to go through with being some disgusting transvestite," Mariah lamented as she joined her parents Samuel and Delores, her older brother Eric, and her sisters Candace, Stephanie, and Therese for breakfast. Sure enough, the blonde bombshell was still none too happy about her ex dumping her and changing his gender to obtain the inheritance left by the late Evangeline Thompson and the late Theodore Coleman. And she knew, gentle reader, that she had to do whatever it took to stop things before they get worse. "I mean, this is something that Trump would never allow if he got himself re-elected if it wasn't for that Harris witch winning it."

"I agree, Mariah, but what can we do?" Samuel asked as he continued to read the paper. "The attorneys that Mark and Douglass sent by to give us the restraining order said that we are not to interfere by any means necessary or we will face harassment charges."

Delores, a former beauty queen, scoffed as she sipped on her glass of bellini. "Don't be ridiculous, Samuel," she drawled snidely. "You know that Andrew and Gianna are heading down a wrong path. And for their late relatives to place that clause in their will is too low a standard. In my book, they should've said no and left things at that."

"But Mom, you know that it would've meant that both Andrew and Gianna would've had no chance of surviving if it meant facing homelessness and without a job," Eric, a recent college graduate from Rice, remarked. "Not only that, they wouldn't be allowed to have any assistance from anyone at all- including us if Andy did refuse."

"Still, Eric, you know that Andy was promised to Mariah first," Stephanie, a college senior at TCU with Candace and Therese, rebutted before taking a sip of her orange juice. "Besides, Andy needs Mariah to keep him on the right track to God. Dad could've allowed him to work at his firm instead."

"Hardly," Samuel scoffed. "Dad never did like him. I dunno why, but maybe it wasn't for the best."

Mariah turned to her father, who sat down his newspaper. "That reminds me," she said. "Why didn't you like Andrew?"

Samuel sighed heavily. "Mariah, it's because the kid didn't match up to my kind of standards," he said. "I know that you liked him and I know he comes from a good family, but he doesn't seem like he's 'man enough' for you. You need someone who can take you places- a man who can not only be the God-fearing man that you want but also provide for you and give you all you need. And the more I think about it,  something tells me that he's better off as a female than a male. I can't place my finger on it, but something about him screams 'feminine' for my taste."

Mariah, her sisters, and their mother couldn't believe it. "Samuel, surely you don't mean that," Delores breathed.

The man glanced at his wife, his stare more apparent. "I meant every word."

"I gotta go with Uncle Sammy on this one," came the voice of Francesca Yates (Mariah's second cousin who was taken into the home after losing her parents to Hurricane Michael back in 2018) as she joined the fray dressed in her Goth-themed ensemble. "I met him a few times, and it was enough to know that he's not your type, Mariah. He's a looker and can handle himself well, but I think that he might've been better off as a woman or marrying his friend Gianna."

Mariah scowled at her teenage cousin who sat next to Eric and helped herself to some food. "Of course you'd agree with Dad."

"Why shouldn't I? He's my favorite uncle because he's not overly religious like you and your band of cackling magpies are."

"Back to the matter at hand," Delores interjected as she turned to Mariah. "Dear, I know that you're still hurting from Andrew breaking up with you, but you cannot sit back and let this...project go any further."

"Of course I'm not," Mariah replied. "This is all a sick twisted science-fiction ploy and Andrew's not meant to be some disgusting abomination. If this does turn out to be the real deal, I'd never live it down. This cannot go on."

Eric hissed a slow breath. "I don't like the sound of that," he piped up. "What are you and Mari planning to do?"

"I'm going to talk some sense ino my ex and get him to nullify the arrangement."

"No," Samuel barked. "Absolutely not. Whatever you are planning will not come to light, young lady. I will not risk losing business all because of your pettiness."

"Pettiness be damned," Candace remarked as she glanced up at her phone. To Mariah, "I just heard from Marissa at Neiman's over at Sonne Square. The Thomastons are slated to arrive around noon for a day of shopping. If I know better, they could already be on the move with whatever's going on."

"Then all the more reason for us to get there and start our campaign," Delores said as she and her daughters got up from their chairs.

"Mom, you and the girls are going overboard with this," Eric whined, his father and Francesca glaring at them as if they lost their minds. "You could end up in big trouble and risk being sued."

"Exactly," Samuel interjected. "I'm going to say this once and once alone. None of you, especially Mariah, will interfere and cause a scandal in this family. If you dare go against me, I will make sure that you five will end up in prison and will not bail you out."

Mariah squared her shoulder, staring straight into her father's eyes. "That's the chance we're willing to take," she replied, her tone brooking no argument. "And we're willing to risk it all to get back what's rightfully mine."

"WHAT?!"

"You heard her," Delores remarked. "See if we won't." And with that, she motioned for her four daughters to follow her upstairs as they would prepare for an afternoon of their hate campaign.

******************

Later...

Gentle readers, it is a known fact that a day of shopping for some can be cumbersome and frustrating unless it has something to do with getting the bare essentials. But when it comes to Alyssa Thompson and Giovanni Coleman (Formerly known as Andrew and Gianna respectively) this shopping excursion was meant to happen since they would need new clothes as well as reaffirm their new identities. "This is something else," Gio commented as he followed his betrothed and their families (alongside Lita, Tiana, and the twins) into Sonne Square Mall. "I would've been satisfied with something simpler at the Wal-Mart not far from here."

"That'll be for later, when we pick out the clothes for when you need to be incognito," Denise remarked. "We're here mainly to pick out your formal and causal clothing for other times when you need to make appearances. Not only that, you're also getting haircuts and grooming treatments."

Alyssa hummed. "And what about the prescriptions to ensure that our gender transitions are seamless?" she wanted to know.

"Those will be dropped off at a later date," her father replied. "Just remember that you two will have to keep up appearances so outsiders won't know who your true identities are. Even more so, given that the Purdues and the Stelley women will soon start snooping around."

"Taylor told me all about that," Marcus commented. "DeSean and I ran into him and his dad earlier today and we kept up the lie that was given about the year-long gap period that 'Gianna and Andrew' are taking in Europe."

Tiana hummed. "This is sounding more and more like a plot out of a spy movie," she mused. "Boy, you think that you heard everything until something new drops in your face."

"Just remember that we can't let anything go to the wayside," Estella said, her tone brooking no argument. "This project has to go without flaws and no one must know until the timing is absolutely perfect- that means keeping silent on everything until the week before the wedding."

All too soon, the caravan soon arrived at Neiman-Marcus as the group of hired stylists, salon workers, and personal shoppers greeted them. "Hello to you all," a statuesque dark-haired woman who introduced herself as Yolanda said. To Alyssa and Gio, "It's such a thrill and an honor to help you two out with getting things ready for a year of transformations. And as we've been instructed, I promise you that anonymity will be kept to the highest standards since you both are part of Evangeline and Theodore's experiment."

"Thank you," Alyssa breathed. "It's all so thrilling yet a bit scary, but Gio and I are committed to make this work."

"So you have," Yolanda said before her face got serious. "Unfortunately, one of our employees was terminated earlier since she notified Mariah Stelley of your appearance earlier. Turns out, she and the Stelleys are very close to each other. But I have notified the store managers and the worker was immediately let go without pay."

Mark nodded. "I assume that the store will be closed for the day?"

"But of course. Now, shall we get things started?"

Alyssa and Gio nodded. "Let's get to work," the latter said.

And for the next hour or so, the staffers got to work with accommodating the transgender couple. First, stylists quizzed the couple of their pending lifestyle choices that would be paired with their wardrobes before the duo were given private changing rooms as they were presented name-brand clothing for them to try on. In the meantime, it was Lita, Tiana, DeSean, and Marcus went to various hygienic and grooming stories to ensure that their faces and hair would be well-managed.

After that, it was time for the salon workers to begin their magic. Gio's team worked on cutting and washing his hair while Alyssa's team ensured that her hair would be soft, wavy, and flowy thanks to the lab-approved hair formulas that would modify their DNA. The couple also received facial treatments that would make their skin more pliable to the pending facial transformations.

"I never knew that our parents would make sure that this year-long transformation is seamless for us for the physical part," Alyssa hummed as she and Gio had their faces covered in hot towels. "It's the mental and emotional part that I'm worried about, especially with our hormonal therapy still ongoing with the shots and pills we're taking."

"That's for sure," Gio hummed underneath his towel. "As for Stelley and Purdue, we know we have to keep our true selves out of their radar."

There was a period of  silence until...

"Look, I need to find my ex-boyfriend and his family and I know that they are here! Yolanda, you know that my family and I are your best patrons and..."

"Shit!" Alyssa hissed quietly, grasping Gio's hand. "It's Mariah!"

"This is bad. This is very bad!" She heard him reply. "What do we do?"

There were a flurry of footsteps, and then...

"Excuse me, you two, but have you seen my ex-boyfriend anywhere?"

Don't even think about going anywhere just yet, my fine friends! Alyssa and Gio will have to play it cool in order to evade Hurricane Mariah and her family! Stay tuned!

Dedicating this out to Bad_at_Listening.

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