My Half Brother - Part 15

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It's just over 140 miles from Woodley to Nottingham, on motorways almost all the way, and so the journey takes about three and a half hours, including a brief comfort break at a Service Area. Julie and I chatted together quite happily about the film, our respective jobs, and the progress of her mother's probate for the first forty-five minutes or so, and she kept an eye open for signposts and motorway exits for me. However, once we were clear of the M25 London orbital motorway and the journey involved driving north on the M1 for a hundred miles, we both lapsed into our own thoughts. I began to realize that I'd soon be taking an important step in my life, from which it would be almost impossible for me to come back. I would be moving away from my family, friends, and everything that I was comfortable with to start a new life in a different part of the country. It would be too far and too expensive for me to travel back to Bracknell more than once a term and during the vacations, so after September, I would have to make my own life with new people. From past experience, I was fairly confident that I would be alright and would probably have a good time, but the prospect was a little bit scary all the same.

I glanced across at Julie and noticed that she, too, was now deep in thought. As usual, she looked very smart with perfect makeup and not a hair out of place, but her usually serene face also looked a little apprehensive. The changes that she was beginning to undergo in her life were far more drastic and far-reaching than those in mine, and she would be facing them without the support of friends or parents. I may get exasperated with my Mum and Dad at times and am not afraid to tell them so, but deep down, I know that they will always be there for me if I should need them. Julie, on the other hand, was truly alone in the world now and would always be so.

I forced myself to start thinking of something less gloomy and then smiled to myself as I noticed my beautifully manicured and painted fingernails holding the steering wheel. I hadn't removed the extensions after a fortnight, as I'd initially intended to do, but had left them in place and was now quite used to having them. I'd even carefully renewed the lacquer on one of the nails after it had been chipped at work. There was no doubt that my attitude to my appearance had changed over the last few weeks, and I took more care with my hair and makeup. This was partly because it was expected for my job, but also partly through Julie's influence, just as Susie and I had been a calming influence on my sister's fashion sense. I doubted whether this was a permanent change on my part, though, and assumed I would gradually slip back into my old comfortable ways once the influence of my work and my sister were no longer present.

We pulled into Newport Pagnell Services to go to the loo and for a cup of coffee, which was two-thirds of the way to our destination. It was the second week in August, the height of the holiday season, and I guess some coaches had pulled up shortly before we did, as there was a long line waiting to use the toilet.

'Is there always a queue to use 'the ladies' in these places?' whispered my sister to me as we patiently waited our turn for a cubicle.'

'Welcome to the 'real world,' Julie. I'm afraid that's something you're going to have to get used to if you want to join our ranks,' I whispered in reply, first making sure that nobody else in the queue could overhear me.

She didn't answer at the time but returned to what I'd said as we drank our coffee.

'Jen, I hope you understand that my living as Julie is not so much a question of what 'I want as what I 'need to do if I am going to retain my sanity.'

'In that case, queuing for the ladies' toilet is a relatively small price to pay,' I replied, smiling.

'Yes, I suppose so.'

'There are plenty of other disadvantages to being a woman that you will discover in due course, but also many benefits,' I continued cheerfully.

'Yes, as I'm beginning to find out, I am so much happier as Julie, but again it is not really a question of advantages and disadvantages, but who I really am. Ever since I have become Julie full-time, I have known that it was right for me. Julie is who I am, and I could never now be anyone else.'

I smiled and squeezed her hand reassuringly, not knowing how else to react. There was no question in the mind of my sister as to the direction she wished to take, in spite of all the potential difficulties. I had rarely come across somebody as single-minded as she was. But then I tried to imagine myself in her situation. What would I think if I'd been born with a male body and female mind? I couldn't really conceive what it would be like. I'm happy with who I am and just hope that Julie will eventually be able to find that peace of mind.

We arrived in Nottingham at lunchtime, far too early to check in to our hotel room, and so instead of driving to the city center, we made our way out to the University campus. I'd been shown round one of the University Residences when I came up for the open day and had seen details of the remainder on the Web. The one I saw wasn't too bad and was no doubt selected to show to potential students because it was one of the better examples, but it did contain shared bathrooms and kitchens with no independent cleaners. I knew from experience that these could become pretty squalid. If the worse came to the worse, I would just have to live with it, at least for the first year, until I met someone with whom I could share a flat, but before I did, so I wanted to check out the alternatives.

The list of private student accommodation contained a large number of addresses in Beeston, which was once a separate small town near Nottingham but has since become engulfed into a suburb. It lay on the far edge of the campus and was clearly the chosen place of residence for many University staff and students. The area looked alright: a nice mix of architecture, a fairly cosmopolitan population, and no obvious signs of gangs, prostitution, or drug dealing. We made a few telephone calls and arranged to go and have a look at several of the advertised rooms available that were still available.

The various bedsits that we saw that afternoon weren't too bad and were somewhat cheaper than an equivalent room would have been in Reading or Bracknell, but there was nothing that really grabbed me as somewhere I would like to live for the next nine months. There were no signs of any bagpipe players in the houses we visited, although one couldn't really tell from a twenty-minute visit. We did, however, meet at least one serial killer - one of the landlords who were really creepy and seemed to be sizing both Julie and me up as we spoke, and who also had small mounds of earth in his back garden. (Julie afterward said that he was probably just growing a late crop of potatoes, but personally, I wasn't so sure.)

By the time we made our way back into the city center in the early evening, we'd looked at five possible places, three of which would probably have been alright but none truly inspiring. (I drew the line at the serial killer, not wishing to end up in his potato patch, even though his bedsit was otherwise ok.)

At six p.m., we found our hotel (thanks mainly to Satellite navigation) and checked into our room. Julie promptly unpacked our two cases, hung up the clothes, organized the bathroom, and made us both a cup of coffee before I'd even had a chance to stretch out on my chosen bed for a few minutes of recuperation after the long drive.

'We'd better find ourselves an evening meal,' I suggested, 'and then we can perhaps discuss the places we've seen so far.'

'Great,' she replied. 'I'll just need to freshen up my makeup first.'

Nottingham seemed to be quite a lively and interesting city with loads of bars and places to eat, although we had to avoid the former as Julie was underage, even if she tended to look like an eighteen-year-old these days. We eventually settled on an Italian restaurant just off Trinity Square.

'So what do you think I should do, Julie?' I asked.

'I think I'd probably go for the offer of a place in the Hall of residence for the first year, even if it is more expensive and you do have to put up with a little squalor for a while.' she said.

'Really!'

'I'll have no choice but to live on my own for the next couple of years, but given a choice, I'd always prefer to share with someone else, so long as they accepted me as I am.'

'It is a pity that you couldn't come and live in Nottingham; I'd have no problem in sharing with you,' I replied, feeling a little sad at the prospect of our going our separate ways.

She looked truly surprised by my comment.

'Do you really mean that?' she asked.

'Good heavens, yes, I'd be happy to have you as a flatmate anytime, as long as you promise to give up trying to turn me into a 'girly girl. You are quiet, tidy, industrious, and also good company. I'd also be able to keep an eye on you and make sure you do not fall prey to any fortune hunters.'

'What's there to stop me from moving to Nottingham and sharing a flat with you?' she asked tentatively.

'I don't know,' I said, beginning to think through the implications of what I had just suggested. 'I suppose I was wondering what would happen about your house in Woodley, and in any event, I thought you had arranged to go back to school in September.'

'I will be sixteen and won't have to go back to school if I choose not to. In any event, I could never go back to the same school that Julian used to attend. I've been thinking about studying at home by distance learning and perhaps going to a Further Education College once I'd become settled and found a doctor willing to oversee my transition.'

'And what about the house?'

'I want to sell it as quickly as possible and move away after the Grant of Probate. Once you've left, it will be only a matter of time before one of the neighbors begins to wonder who that girl living there really is.'

'Yes, I think you're right.'

I could put the house in the hands of an Estate Agent and perhaps reduce the price a little so that it was a bargain and didn't take too long to sell.'

'In that case, Julie, my sister, would you like to come to Nottingham with me and share a flat?'

Her face visibly began to light up as I asked.

'Oh Jenny, there's nothing I would like more.'

'It's odd that neither of us had thought about the possibility before,' I commented.

'I've thought about the possibility many times over the last few weeks but didn't feel I could ask you, as you've already been so kind to me.'

'Really? You'd have saved me an awful lot of worry and feeling guilty over the last few days if you had mentioned it,' I said, taking her hand and laughing.

Once we'd finished our meal, we returned to the hotel room and began to make plans, both to start looking for a two-bed-roomed flat to share and also for our longer-term future.

'It depends on how quickly the grant of probate comes through. I've done all the calculations and am almost ready for you to submit all the forms to the Probate Office, which we'll do when we return. If the Revenue and Customs accept my valuations of the house and its contents and my calculation of the amount of tax payable, then we should hear from them shortly after our return from Thailand,' she said.

'We're going to have to tell my parents about you and our plans to share a flat at some point; when we do so, we could perhaps involve my Dad. He works for a firm of Estate Agents in Bracknell and is often involved in selling empty houses, where the previous occupant has died or had to go into a nursing home.'

'How will your parents react when they learn about me?' asked Julie.

'Hmm, I'm not sure. My Mum tends to have a very narrow focus about what is 'appropriate' in life and is constantly worried about 'what the neighbors might say, but Dad is a bit more broad-minded and easygoing. We'll have to be careful how we break it to Mum, but if we can get Dad on our side, first of all, he can usually bring her round.'

'In that case, it might be better if he we deferred telling them until after I'm sixteen and have begun taking the hormones,' said Julie.

'Yes, you're probably right.'

Our second day in Nottingham was, therefore, spent looking at two-bedroomed flats in the vicinity of the University. There were fewer of them available, but generally speaking, they worked out as better value from a rental point of view. Most of those we looked at, however, had one double bedroom and a second far smaller single and so wouldn't be ideal for two girls paying an equal share of the costs. We were just leaving the third example, just off Queens Road, when Julie pointed to a block of new flats, only recently completed and with a 'For Sale sign displayed outside.

'It looks like one of them has been furnished as a 'show-house, shall we ask to see inside?'

We applied to look at a 2nd floor flat which had recently been completed and decorated. It seemed absolutely designed for us with a large living room, and a modern-looking fitted kitchen, two double bedrooms both with had fitted wardrobes, and an attractive bathroom. There was access to a garage in an adjoining block. It was also within walking distance of the University campus.

'What do you think, Jenny?' she asked as we looked around.

'It would be ideal for the pair of us if only it were available for rent.'

'It would be  £140,000 to buy; property prices here are a lot lower than in Woodley. I would be able to afford to buy it outright once the probate on my mother's estate is granted. Then you could rent a room from me,' suggested Julie.

'Would they sell a flat to a sixteen-year-old?' I asked.

'I don't know, but if not, they would certainly do so to an eighteen-year-old. Remember, you will be responsible for my finances while you are disposing of my mother's assets. That process can take up to two years. During that period, there would be nothing to stop you from buying it on my behalf, using the money in my mother's account and before we have even sold the house at Woodley.'

'Is that legal?'

'Yes, of course! I'll have to have somewhere to live once I vacate the house at Woodley.'

We went over to the site office and explained to the saleswoman Julie's situation regarding probate and our wish to move to the flat in about four or five weeks. The summer of 2010 had been a particularly slow time for new house sales, and there were several flats nearing completion, all of which were then unsold. As a result, the company bent over backward to accommodate us. After various questions and assurances regarding our current and future financial position, my own and Julie's legal status, and a phone call to Head Office, they came up with a proposition. If we left a 10% deposit (which we could easily afford), they would rent a new flat to us on an 'Assured Short-hold Tenancy'* for the duration of the academic year at  £750 per month (somewhat more than we'd originally planned). As long as our proposed purchase was completed within six months of our moving in, the rent we had paid and the deposit would count towards the purchase price. If we were unable to complete the purchase within that time, we would still have the tenancy until the following June. We came away from the flat with various brochures, promising to let them have our decision the following morning. For the rest of the day and that evening, we drove around the area, looking at such things as local shops and amenities, bus routes, etc., to ensure that it was the sort of place we would wish to live.

'So what do you think, Julie?'

'I've always intended to find somewhere to live and make a fresh start as Julie, where there was no danger that I would one day run into someone who knew Julian or my parents. I think this could be just the place and it'll be an extra bonus to share a flat with my sister. Let us go back and have another look at the flat tomorrow, and if we are both still happy with the idea, we'll go ahead with the purchase.'

'That sounds fine by me,' I replied.

Shortly after lunch on a Wednesday, we began our car journey back to Woodley, having found somewhere for us both to live and begun the process that would enable us to move into a new flat in time for the start of my University Term.

'That's a relief to know I'll have somewhere nice to live, and I won't be on my own,' I said as we began the drive back to Woodley.'

'Things are really working out well for me, as well. It's just now a question of collecting my female hormones from Thailand, and then I can forget that Julian ever existed,' said Julie happily.

'Be careful not to get over-confident; there are still things which could go wrong. Someone may recognize you, or probate may be delayed. Also, I still have to break the news that we are intending to go on holiday together to my parents over the next few days.'

'We are also due to have the results of our girliness tests tomorrow,' said Julie.

'Yes, I'd forgotten all about them.'