A beautiful pair of cat-like green eyes. Wonderful shiny hair that reaches the child's shoulders. Adorable cheeks.
'You have a incredibly cute daughter' , people would often say.
They bought dolls for the kid, they taught it to be well-mannered, they always said she looks just like a little porcelain angel. The little princess was, in fact, a boy. His name - Jacob was never used outside the family circle.
As time passed, he began to notice how different he is from other girls and boys. He didn't even really know which group does he belong to. If he's a girl then why does he have a male name? If he is a boy hen why does he have to act so different from other boys? His mother never seemed to want to bother with trying to answer these questions. His father was a busy man and claimed he doesn't have the time.
The child started to feel a bit lonely. The fact that it didn't know where it belongs was stopping it from interacting with other people. It would spend a lot of time in the big family garden, with its only loyal friend - a white cat called Sammy.
One day, however, something strange happened. Sammy disappeared. Jacob felt very sad 'cause of his loss. He hoped his friend would come back, but deep in side he wasn't convinced.
He spent his time on the concrete stairs which led to the house entrance. He drew all kinds of things with his set of chalks. Suddenly a shadow started lingering over him. He had a feeling that someone is watching him. He slowly looked up just in time to see a girl waving from the other side of the fence.
'Hi there!' , she said.
He looked at her, a bit confused. She had a kind face, and she seemed curious. Jacob felt lonely so he approached the fence.
'Hi.' , he replied.
He heard a 'Meow' and then for a moment the girl disappeared. Not long after, her face re-appeared, and this time he could see something in her grasp.
'Meoww' , the thing said.
'Sammy!' , Jacob exclaimed joyfully.
'That's a sweet name for a cat.' , the girl said.
Jacob looked up at her, eyes shining because of all the sudden happiness.
'Do you want to come in? ' , he asked as he opened the gate for Sammy.
'Okay'
They sat together on the stone stairs, and Jacob showed her his drawings made with chalk, and kept talking about Sammy. The girl kept that bright smile on her face the whole time. The boy was used to smiles, but different ones, ones that had no real feelings behind them, had no purpose. This smile had something special.
'What is your name?' , he finally asked.
'It's Maisie, and yours?'
'I'm... Jacob.'
The girl giggled. The boy was a bit confused.
'What? Is my name so funny?'
'No. It's just... I was sure you're a boy. My friends always said that a girl lives here.'
'I don't know what I am.'
She smiled at him.
'You're silly. Of course you're a boy.'
They hanged out for a while more before Maisie finally had to leave. She promised she would come by someday soon. When she left, Jacob felt some kind of emptiness within, a feeling so new to him, unexplainable.
'It wasn't Sammy.' , he realized finally. 'It was her.'
Maisie visited him again as she promised, and after some time Jacob found a way to explain his feelings. It turned out the girl was willing to give him a chance.
At first people thought they're two good girl-friends. But at some point Jacob adapted to the world around him, and to his role - the role of being a boy, and he cut his hair and slowly changed himself and the way he thinks.