Lights. Music. The audience roaring at the show. A young rapper girl was acting on stage, moving swiftly and signing along her partner Pokémon. Everybody was enjoying the moment, except for one person who observed the show from the backstage. From behind some metallic pillars, Brenda stared at the stage, but she couldn’t enjoy the show. Her heart beating fast and with some sweat in her forehead, she was extremely nervous. In a matter of minutes, she would be called to go on stage. She was happy and excited about her new look, but she hadn’t stopped to think about what was coming next. Thousands of eyes looking at her… what if someone spotted something weird? What if people began making comments? That thought was terrifying. She was so absent-minded that she jumped when May laid a hand on her shoulder.

“Well, it’ll be your turn soon. Are you ready”, asked May happily.

However, May only needed one brief look at Brenda’s eyes to confirm she was not okay. It was strange seeing her like that. The girl who once stood against the most powerful Pokémon in the region was nervous at coming out at an audience. But that also meant one thing: that moment, that wish was far more important for her than anything other moment of her previous adventure. It was so important that she was scared of taking that new step.

“Do… do you think… I can do it?”, asked Brenda nervously while staring at the stage. “All that people… what will they think? Will they see me as… a boy? I… I don’t want that…”.

She saw herself in the mirror. She liked being that way. And she had awesome friends that accepted and helped her. And precisely for that, Brenda’s biggest fear was losing all that because people wouldn’t accept her. May looked at her friend with pity. While her fears were understandable, she didn’t want Brenda to hold back anymore. So, touching her shoulder again, May called Brenda’s attention and pointed towards some empty seats where they sat down.

“I know you’re scared, but let me tell you: you aren’t the only one like this”, said May, making Brenda open her eyes widely. “There are more girls and women just like you, who lived a life as something they aren’t. I’ve seen them. They come here to find their true selves and show it to the world. And you know what? People don’t think bad about them. They see them as the girls and women they are”.

That thought never crossed her mind. Brenda always thought her wish was so unique and different that nobody else had it. Could it be possible? No, if it was May saying it, it had to be possible. And that made her heart fill with warmth. The idea of other girls just like her, who had that same wish and found the chance to open up and meet others who accepted them… It sounded wonderful.

“Also, there’s one thing you should remember: you are a girl, got it? It doesn’t matter what others think or say”, said May while letting her hand on Brenda’s. “What truly matters is that you can open up and be yourself. It’s time for you to live your life. You deserve it”.

May’s words were so soft as the touch from her hand. Brenda blushed, not only for not being used to touch other people. What her friend said could dissipate any fears in her mind, or at least, make the future look brighter than she initially expected.

“Really? Can I… really be myself?”, asked Brenda bashfully, making May smile.

“Of course! Just a moment ago, you showed how much you suffered for holding back. It’s not fair. But things are different now! Feel proud of yourself, go out there and show the whole world the beautiful and cute girl you are!”, exclaimed May with energy.

Pride… That’s something Brenda never thought possible. She always felt guilty for having those feelings, or rather, others made her feel guilty just for being different. But there was nothing bad for being that way. She was a girl, maybe a bit different, but a girl still. Why wouldn’t she feel proud of who she is? She felt nervous again, but that time, it was the anticipation, her body asking to go on that stage.

“And finally, let’s welcome our last contestant for the day… Brenda!”.

She heard her call. The time finally came, but her own body was a mess. Legs frozen, but her heart aching to answer the call. Suddenly, she felt something holding her hand and pulling gently: it was May.

“Come on, let’s go together!”.

With one simple gesture, the invisible shackles that restrained Brenda’s legs vanished, making her feet feel lighter than ever. In other circumstances, at some perilous situations in her past, she tired her best to do everything by herself. But at that instant, she appreciated having such a wonderful friend walking those first steps by her side. That kindness ignited her own confidence, even if just slightly, just enough for her to stand up and run towards the stage. Jumping from the shadows to the luminous platform left her blind for a few seconds. Her eyes adjusted, slowly revealing the beautiful decorations at her sides first, and then, the lines of seats with people cheering and clapping. She remained in awe, no thoughts in her mind. But then, she noticed May stepping forward and picking a microphone laying on the floor in front of them.

“Hi everybody! Thank you so much for coming here!”, greeted May, receiving a warm ovation from the audience. “I know, I know, I’m not taking part today, I promise! However, I’d like to introduce you to someone. A very special person for me”.

Then, May turned her head back to Brenda and made some gestures with her hand, inviting her to step by her side. She was still nervous, but slowly, trying to hide her trembling, she walked by May’s side and held her hand. After offering a wide smile to her friend, May looked again at the audience.

“This is my best friend ever, Brenda!”, introduced May. “It’s her first time in a contest and she’s a biiiiiit nervous. But I know, if you give her a warm welcome, she’ll feel much better. Why don’t you cheer her up?”.

With the strength of a storm, a huge roar lashed towards Brenda, her ears filled with enthusiastic cheers and happy screams.

“You can do it, Brenda!”.

“Gosh, she’s so cute!”.

“Brenda, Brenda!”.

The audience shouted her name over and over, her heartbeats synchronizing with their voices. It felt as if her past didn’t matter at all: she was Brenda and the whole world welcomed her. A few tears slipped out, but instead of crying all out, she closed her eyes and smiled, enjoying that moment.

“Say, Brenda… Are you ready for the show?”.

Brenda looked at May by her side. There she was: cute and sparkly, just like the day before. An image she wanted to reach, an aura she wanted to envelop herself with. Something that just one day before seemed distant was no longer. She was right there, sharing the stage with her friend, and especially, she was doing it as herself, with the sparks, colors and cuteness she always wished for. That gave her the courage to exclaim:

“Yeah, let’s do it!”.

Maybe she couldn’t remember her whole choreography. Maybe her moves were a bit clumsy. However, she didn’t feel ashamed. At that moment, dancing around with May and her Grovyle, hearing the cheers of the audience, feeling liberated from all her shackles and restraints, she felt a happiness like never before. Brenda was having the time of her life. A time that felt like an eternity, but sadly, all shows come to an end. When the music stopped playing, she was exhausted, gasping nervously, but happy. But when the audience clapped and cheered again, she felt even happier. Along with May, both of them bowed and waved to the people who not only accepted her, but gave her the strength to shine on that stage.

…

A while later, Brenda was back at May’s dressing room, relaxing at the chair while looking at her own reflection in the mirror. The recent memories still flashed in her mind. Even though she didn’t win (which was obvious, since she acted along a higher-rank contestant), she enjoyed every second of that precious moment. However, alone at that place, far from the lights and the music, she felt something painful in her heart. As if feeling haunted, she looked over her shoulder to a corner in the room, where her old clothing laid thrown on a chair. Her mouth dried while her heart beat faster. She turned her head back to the mirror quickly, as if avoiding a nightmare, and took a closer look at her own image. She felt the need to admire and capture every tiny detail of herself. She didn’t want to forget. Then, May came through the door.

“Wow, that was a great show!”, exclaimed May happily. “Sorry you couldn’t win because of me, but everybody said you looked super pretty!”.

“Thanks… That means a lot”, murmured Brenda, partly absent-minded.

Hearing her sad voice, May noticed there was something worrying Brenda, but why? She was incredibly happy just a few minutes before.

“Hey, what’s wrong? Any problem?”, asked May with worried voice.

Brenda struggled to come up with the right words. Or rather, she was trying hard to keep her composure and knew she would cry the moment she talked. But she knew May meant well. After everything she did, she could trust her friend.

“Thanks a lot for doing all this for me, May. I mean it, really”, insisted Brenda. “This is… a dream come true, but… I guess it’s over now”.

“What do you mean?”, asked May confused.

“Show’s over. Now I gotta… take everything off and… go back to… that”.

As she struggled to say those words, Brenda looked askance again at her old boy clothing in the chair. The idea of looking like that again… It was too much for her. No matter how hard she tried to keep it together, she couldn’t help but sob, letting a few tears come down.

“I… I don’t want that! I don’t wanna look like that again”, said Brenda while sobbing. “I wanna stay like this forever, I… I wanna stay as a girl!”.

Unable to control herself, Brendan hugged May, resting her head on her friend’s stomach, trying to hide her face. Just like a child looking for comfort after something scared them. And May could feel how scared she was. How much she hated looking like a boy. However, instead of feeling sad towards her friend, May smiled and murmured.

“Who says this is over?”.

It took a few seconds for Brenda to process what May said, but when she did, she stopped sobbing and looked up to meet her friend’s eyes and smile. Gently, May dried some tears from her friend’s face, bent over and put her hands on Brenda’s shoulders.

“You know who you are now. You don’t need to hide it anymore. I said it before, right? It’s time for you to live your life. Your girl life. Not just on the stage, but out there as well”, said May gently.

Brenda was in shock. She assumed that her wish would only last as long as she was performing. That she could only be herself at the Contests. And still, even knowing that, she didn’t want this change to end. But slowly, she began understanding she could be like that her whole life… but that only brought up so many questions. So many things she didn’t know.

“But… how?”, simply asked Brenda, as if begging for an answer.

May was about to speak when some heavy footsteps and a strange metallic sound came from outside the room. Brenda didn’t know what it was, but those sounds made May smile.

“Seems like our reinforcements are here”, said May.

Before Brenda could ask, the door opened in a slam, revealing Lisia, or rather, a quite tired Lisia pushing a cart with some boxes within it inside the room.

“Sorry… sorry to keep you… waiting! Phew!”, said Lisia while gasping. “I thought it would be easier, but it was farther than expected”.

“What’s… all that?”, asked Brenda after recovering from the shock.

“Well, even in nature, Trainers can look stylish, ya know? And truth be told, that old clothing of yours is so boring. So I made some calls to the shopping center. They owed me one after some commercials I did for them. Feel free to take whatever you like. On the house!”, explained Lisia.

Still confused and with some doubts, Brenda stood up and approached the cases. They all had different clothing brand logos she heard sometimes before from ads, which increased her curiosity. Slowly, she opened one of them and took out the first thing she grabbed: a breathable sleeveless top in teal blue with some white flowers decorating one side. Her eyes lighted up upon inspecting that top, feeling compelled to check the other cases. Other tops, leggings, shorts and even skirts! Some of them with flashy colors, while other had more pastel dyes. There were also accessories like hair bands or gloves, or even bags. The more she looked, the more she couldn’t believe her eyes.

“This is for… me? Really?”, asked Brenda with growing happiness. “Can I really use this?”.

“Of course”, answered May with a giggle. “You can wear whatever you like and be as cute as you want. There’s nothing stopping you”.

It was so simple, but that idea made Brenda incredibly happy. That she could live her life with no bounds was something she always dreamed of. And thanks to her friends, she finally learned it was possible. She rushed to Lisia and May and hugged them with all her love. Both of them hugged her back and smiled, happy for seeing their friend embracing her true self.