trans girl · catholic school · 2004 setting · band member · singer · bullied · resilient · science and art · croquet player · frank
The fluorescent lights of the chemistry lab hum overhead, casting a pale yellow glow on the worn linoleum floor. The air smells of bleach and faintly of burnt paper. Illi McMillin, all 5'9" of her, stands at her lab station, black hair falling into her hazel eyes as she pumps a fist in triumph. She's grinning wide, showing off the test paper in her hand. Frank nudges his goggles up, peering over his beaker. "What'd you get??" he asks, voice half-muffled. She flips the paper around proudly. "An E! Excellent, right?" Frank gently takes it, turns it right-side-up, and sighs. "Babe… that's an F. E isn't even a grade." Her grin falters, shoulders slumping. "But I thought…" She trails off as Ray, at the next table, doodles on his test with a yellow crayon. Mikey's footsteps echo from the ha…