Love between Players

Leticia woke up to the sight of her aunt's face, shock and confusion etched across it, eyes wide with tears, her arms wrapped tightly around herself. The wave of panic surged once more as Leticia's gaze quickly shifted down, confirming her greatest fear.

"Where's my mother?" Leticia asked in a rush, her voice thick with dread. Please, God, don't let her have died from knowing the truth. Please tell me she didn't find out—she can't handle this.

"Dexter... Did you... change your body? What do they call it... Transgender?" Aunt Rita asked, her voice shaking with disbelief.

Leticia almost wanted to laugh, but the reality hit her like a ton of bricks. She looked around, realizing she was in her aunt's room—door bolted shut. That was when she knew: Her mom didn't know. Thank God. She doesn't know. She let out a breath, feeling the weight of years of pretending crush her chest, relieved to still have time before the inevitable came.

"I'm not transgender, aunty," Leticia quickly explained, but her mind was racing. "I have to get to work. Hold on—how long have I been out?"

Aunt Rita didn't respond right away, her forehead furrowed in deep thought. Leticia could feel the old woman's eyes studying her, searching for a truth she didn't know she was ready to share. Still, there was no way to hide what had already been seen. She'd feel so pitiful explaining it all, and that was the one thing she couldn't afford right now—not pity.

Then it happened.

"Right. I am transgender, aunty," Leticia said, practically on instinct. "Can we... can we talk about this later?"

"Oh, child…" Aunt Rita's hands flew to her mouth as she gasped. "Poor thing. I understand now, but it will... it will break your mother's heart. I always wondered why you never stayed in touch, why you dressed as a boy when you came to see us. I should've known." The old woman's eyes filled with sympathy, and Leticia felt something she hadn't felt in a long time—a kind of warmth and acceptance she thought she'd lost forever. "But child, your secret is safe with me. I'll love you as a boy, a girl, a dog, a chicken... however you are."

For the first time, Leticia truly laughed. She threw her arms around the woman who, despite never having given birth to her, felt more like a mother than anyone else in her life. "Thank you, aunty. Mom doesn't know, right?"

Aunt Rita sighed, tears trickling down her face, the weight of everything unfolding. "She doesn't. As soon as I noticed the swelling on your chest... I had to bring you to my room. My arms still ache from carrying you, but thank goodness I work out," she chuckled. "You've been out for four hours…"

Leticia's eyes flew wide in horror. "Four hours?!" She leapt out of bed, dressing with the speed of lightning, blowing her aunt a quick kiss before storming out.

Arriving at work a minute late, she was met by her boss standing right at the entrance, that same unsettling, charming smile on his lips as he studied her with that intensity she hated.

"I'm beginning to like you, Dexter," Justin said, his grin sharp. "You really are an opportunist. You sent the video to Elaine, just Elaine. Why didn't you send it to my father too?"

Leticia wasn't in the mood to deal with Justin's games today. The stress of Riley's drunken visit and everything weighing on her was enough. She nodded wearily, throwing a thin smile his way.

"What?"

Leticia barely contained the urge to roll her eyes. He was such a petulant child sometimes.

"Yo... Did you just roll your eyes at me? Do you forget who I am? I'm your boss and ten years older than you. Respect is important, Dexter. I'm thirty-six—old enough to be your uncle."

How petty, Leticia thought, her irritation building.

"I knew Elaine would tell him." Her voice was flat, bored even.

Justin raised an eyebrow, impressed. "Nice. Looks like we're going somewhere. You're driving."

Leticia stifled an exhausted groan. Not this again. He tossed his car keys at her chest without another word.

"Where are we going, sir?" she asked, every muscle in her body screaming for rest.

"A wedding... Elaine invited me to one. I'm her date. But before that, you're stopping at a liquor store. I need to be completely wasted," he said, the casualness in his tone sending an uneasy shiver down Leticia's spine.

Her brow furrowed, a disgusted expression crossing her face. "Don't you think you're doing too much, sir?" she blurted out before she could stop herself.

Justin turned his piercing gaze on her like she had lost her mind.

"Forgive me, sir, I just—"

"Shut up and drive."

With a deep, silent groan, Leticia started the car, her eyes heavy with exhaustion. She needed coffee—desperately.

The GPS directions led them farther away from civilization with every passing hour. The wedding, it seemed, was miles away, stretching her nerves thinner than they had ever been before.

The road felt endless. Leticia's eyelids grew heavy as exhaustion wrapped itself around her bones, and she stifled yawn after painful yawn, feeling like she might collapse at any second. Justin sat in the passenger seat, pretending to ignore everything—her fatigue, his own growing frustrations. To him, the entire thing was just... appearances. His family, Elaine's family, the charades.

Then, the car suddenly swerved to the left. The breath of fear rushed from Justin's throat like a gunshot.

"Dexter!" he shouted. "Shit. Park the damn car. I'm driving."

Leticia's heart pounded as she swerved back into her lane, the terror nearly choking her. "Oh no... oh my God, I'm so sorry... it won't happen again…"

"Dexter... Park the damn car right now!"

She did, slamming the brakes in sheer panic.

Justin practically yanked the wheel from her hand as he threw the car into park and shot out of his seat. Leticia couldn't even respond. She stood helpless beside his car as he took over, rage brewing in his every move.

She knew the place they were in. Nowhere.

"What are you doing?" Leticia demanded, but the coldness in his voice cut her off immediately.

"I'm not a monster. Get in. We're late."

Leticia stood there frozen for a moment longer than she'd planned to. But the reality of the situation hit hard.

She had no choice. Justin was insufferable, and worse, she still didn't know how to manage the slow, suffocating burn of her own identity closing in on her from all sides. She had managed to slip under her mother's radar so far—could she keep up the act?

The drive continued into the unknown.

Hours later, they reached the church, and there stood Elaine, impatient and checking her phone repeatedly, visibly agitated. She was dressed in a picture-perfect gown, ready for some kind of charade that Leticia couldn't muster any interest in.

As soon as Elaine spotted the car, her face lit up and she sprinted towards them in gleeful anticipation, her heels clicking loudly against the concrete.

"Justin! Baby!" she screamed, arms wide open, ready for a greeting as though nothing was out of place.

As soon as Justin stepped out of the car and saw Elaine, he hesitated, still adjusting his tie, checking himself in the rearview mirror. He took his time, sipping his whiskey he had luckily found in his car like he had all the time in the world.

"Hi, Elaine..." he said slowly, deliberately, while Leticia yawned in the backseat in a half-sleep stupor.

Elaine all but suffocated him in a tight hug. "You made it..."

Leticia blinked groggily, too tired to care. "Hi, Miss."

Elaine immediately looked her over, disgust clearly evident in her gaze. "Is this your P.A? He looks… Small."

Justin took the opening with a smirk. "Not right now, Elaine." He flicked his fingers dismissively before speaking to his P.A. "You can sleep in the car if you want, or we can go inside. Your choice."

Leticia nodded in a daze, still overwhelmed.

"You're giving your employee a choice?" Elaine scoffed, eyeing him with disdain.

Justin's jaw clenched. "Elaine..." he warned. The tension between them hung heavily.

Elaine's lips twisted in annoyance, but she was also seething at how Justin had just... dismissed her. He wasn't giving her the attention she so dearly craved.

Elaine threw her arms out. "Yeah, whatever. It's our wedding day. You should at least be nice."

"Our what...?"Justin's expression turned into one of annoyance.

"Our wedding!" Elaine shot back, realizing a mistake had been made, she wasn't supposed to tell him until they were in the church.