Eh? I'm a girl and it's... normal?

My mom now seems almost angry.

"I know you don't really act or look like one, and I ended up cutting your hair really short and buying you boy clothes after you threw a tantrum, but you're still my daughter. So please, just tell me if you want something, okay?"

I feel really bad now. I don't actually have any memories of what happened in this timeline prior to today, so I have no idea what kind of trouble my past self caused. Seeing my mom's reaction, however, I feel my emotions burst out uncontrollably again, and I run to her for a hug as I cry.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to... I don't know what happened. I'm sorry!"

She hugs me back.

"Here, here, it's okay. I'll always be here for you."

From what I can tell, this version of me was born a girl named Andrea, and ended up preferring to look exactly like I did as a boy. In a way, that makes things easier on me, but... why did my sex change? Is a childhood friendship between Elliot and Ember somehow contingent on me being a girl and not a boy? What kind of situation is this!?

I'm back in my bedroom, going through my toys. It looks like I started acting very boyish from a young age, as the vast majority of my toys are exactly like the ones I had in the other timeline. Toy cars and trucks, knights and dragons, spaceships and trains... The only real difference I can find is my teddy bear, which now has a pink ribbon on its head. I don't mind it too much. It's kinda cute, even.

My wardrobe is a different story. I don't remember all the clothes I had as a child, but I'm absolutely certain I had no dresses. I probably wore these to more formal events and the like in this timeline, so they replace some of the clothes I had as a young boy.

I guess I don't actually have to worry about the differences much for now. I can just act like always, thanks to all the work Andrea did for me. I guess we literally are the same person, so that's not too much of a surprise, all things considered. And I even get to keep the same nickname! Although, I should probably spell it 'Andie'. That's probably what my mom had in mind when she called me that earlier, now that I think about it...

As for going back to being a boy... I guess I have to wait for Elliot to get his hands on that sculpture again and convince him to let me make the wish instead. He might agree to it if he sees what happened to me and remembers my old self. In that case, that still means 12 years of growing back up, but as a girl this time.

I curl up and grab my head as I suddenly start feeling panicked. Is that even something I can do? Sure, for the first five to seven years, it won't make much of a difference, but after that... I'm going to have to go through puberty as a girl!? I'd rather not think about that now. I'll get over that hurdle when it presents itself. For now, I'll allow myself to mostly be a boy and to enjoy this retelling of my life as best I can.

Today's the day I enter kindergarten. The school hallways are a lot bigger and longer than I remember, but that's probably just because I'm so small now. I haven't visited this place again after finishing sixth grade, but I still remember how to navigate it. Of course, it'd be weird if I admitted it, so my mom is holding my hand and guiding me to my class.

We go through a welcome event, meant to help us get used to the place we'll be spending most of our waking hours in for the next year. Every one of us is accompanied by a parent, and the teacher tries her best to explain how things will work to a crowd of five-year-olds. Nearby, I can see Elliot and his mother, who are paying absolutely no attention to me. We haven't met yet in this timeline, so maybe he's just playing along? Now's not the time to try to strike a conversation with him anyway.

The day passes, and I go back home. Starting the next day, my mom brings me to school and leaves me in the courtyard while she goes get ready for her own class. She's a teacher here, but I didn't get to be in her class the first time around because of our family relation. I expect things to play out the same way in this timeline.

I vaguely remember some of the other students here, mostly the ones I was friends with in the later years of elementary school. However... how do kids even make friends? I guess it'll sort of just happen naturally. At least, I hope... If my late teen memories cause me to mess this up, there's no telling what kind of crazy variations I'll have to try to fix. I can probably expect most things not directly involving me to play out normally, but I probably have the power to throw this timeline completely off.

At the very least, I realized during the summer that, if I don't think too hard about it, I'll just naturally act like a young kid. While the memories I have serve as a bit of an anchor through which I can hold on to who I was, I guess my brain still reverted back to being a five year old's. I'm childish and immature, as well as very emotional over things that would barely have registered when I was 17. I guess that's just how I was as a kid. The one I thing I have to remain vigilant about is the vocabulary I use. Turns out that I have a tendency to speak way too well for someone my age. To my great surprise, however, it appears that I've always been that way in this timeline. It didn't start on the day I was transported here after Elliot's wish.

I also still know how to read, count, do algebra, and a lot more. I'll have to be really careful to not make it look like I'm a genius, but... maybe I can allow myself to get higher grades here and there. That won't hurt, right?

As I'm walking around, looking at the other students, I notice something: Ember isn't here. In the other timeline, she moved from a different part of the country just in time for high school, so we met her when we were 14. If she's going to be a childhood friend this time around, however, her move will need to be much earlier. I guess it's possible it hasn't happened yet, or maybe she's attending a different elementary school and circumstances allowed or will allow Elliot to be friends with her despite that. I'll just have to pay close attention.

The bell rings, and I head where we were instructed to go. My teacher is there, holding up a sign with a cartoon giraffe on it. Each kindergarten class has an animal assigned to it, since not all of the kids know what "class 001" means. So we're the giraffe class instead.

I spot Elliot nearby. He's still not paying any attention to me. Could it be that he also doesn't remember the wish? But he's the one who made it... so why would I remember and not him?

At least I know it wasn't all just a dream, otherwise I wouldn't have all of this additional knowledge I'm only supposed to acquire later. Still, if I'm the only one with memories of the other timeline, it might make turning back a whole lot more complicated.

As I begin worrying about my future, we enter the building for our first real day of kindergarten.

It's now been a few weeks since I've restarted school from zero. At first, the students were all a bit shy, but they've progressively warmed up to each other. We're already seeing friend groups forming, but I still haven't had an opportunity to talk to Elliot yet.

One afternoon, during a free play period, he approaches and starts playing with the same toys as me. I figure now's as good a time as any.

"Hi! What's your name?"

He looks at me for a bit, seemingly trying to figure out if he can trust me or not, before responding:

"I'm Elliot. You?"

"Call me Andie!"

He nods, then loses interest and goes back to playing by himself. I didn't remember him being this hard to approach, but that's probably because all of the memories I have of him are from after we became friends. This, at least, somewhat confirms that he doesn't actually remember me. I feel a bit hurt, but I also know it's not his fault.

I tap his shoulder, then ask:

"Hey, how about we play together?"

He stares at me again for a bit, then finally says:

"Okay."

I'm kinda glad that he becomes less awkward in a few years, but how did my old self even manage to become his friend? I really wish I remembered my early childhood better right now. Still, that's a step taken in the right direction.

The weeks turn to months, and I find myself playing with Elliot almost daily. I also make a few other friends, all boys, which leads me to think that everyone in the class sees me as one. That's not really surprising, considering the way I look, but now I'm worried about the reactions when they eventually realize that I totally have a girl's name. Guess I'll just shrug it off and ask them why they thought I was a boy, even if I already know the answer.

Soon enough, it's the summer vacations again. Elliot invites me to his place a few times, leading me to see just how massive his house is from the perspective of a six-year-old. I'm not biking here on my own, of course, I'm still too young for that, so it's usually my mom driving me over, and sometimes my dad on weekends. One time, as we're playing in Elliot's living room, I overhear my mom talking to his from the entrance:

"Thank you for taking care of Andie again today. I'm really happy to see the two kids being such good friends already."

"Elliot is very shy, so I hope he'll see continued support from your son. He made a big difference in Elliot's ability to make new friends, I believe."

"My son? Ah, I'm sorry for the confusion, but Andrea is a girl."

"Ah... he... she... what?"

I hear a short laugh from my mom.

"She has a preference for things considered 'for boys', and she keeps her hair short, but she doesn't deny her gender. Still, I understand the confusion."

"I... Well, thank you for telling me. I'll be careful to not treat her as a boy, then."

"I'm sure she would have told you herself if necessary, but I'm glad we caught this early."

It's true that things will have to be a bit different this time. In the other timeline, Elliot and I saw each other naked a few times. We were young and both boys, so we didn't think much of it, and neither did our parents. This time, however... I really don't want him to see me naked!

I suspect the incidents behind these situations will also happen in this life, but now that Elliot's mom knows I'm a girl, it's unlikely to lead to things like us sharing a bath or using the same changing room. Hopefully that's minor enough to not throw everything off-track.

As I hear the front door close, I switch my focus back to the video game we're playing on Elliot's giant television. It doesn't look like he paid any attention to the conversation, as he's swinging his Wiimote wildly trying to get his character to do something it's probably not programmed to do. My own character was removed a while ago, which is what allowed me to focus on the lobby talk.

Eventually, between two matches, I try to ask:

"Hey, do you know a girl named Ember?"

He looks at me for a moment, seemingly thinking about it, before bluntly answering:

"No."

I don't know if I should be surprised or not. Ember has been conspicuously absent from this timeline so far, despite being part of Elliot's wish. Well, I guess it's not too late yet, there isn't necessarily a strict line after which new friends stop being "childhood friends", so maybe I just need to wait a bit longer.

I say that, but I can't help but feel uneasy about the situation. The earlier things get on track for the wish to be realized, the better for me. That way, I'll know how to adapt to the changes in this timeline to make sure I get access to the wish-granting sculpture in 11 years. Until then, I feel a bit lost...