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Jack's always been a bit different from other kids his age. It's something that's followed him for as long as he can remember.
He's never been sociable and most social cues pass him by. Silence has always been more comfortable than large groups.
But there's something deeper that separates him. All the way back in primary school, since before "Jack" was even a person.
He'd been rowdier than the girls his age and would adamantly refuse anything feminine. He didn't have the words then, but he despised when people called him a girl.
It made his skin crawl in the worst possible way. He felt disgusting being referred to like that.
He'd broken down when he told his parents, sobbing out years worth of discomfort. His parents, to their credit, were calm the entire way through and supported him in every way possible, even if they were a bit confused.
Then he just.. Buried it. As far as anyone was concerned, Jack has always been Jack. He kept it a secret from everyone he could. Not that it was hard, considering his less than stellar social life.
Until he went to NRC. Sure, he's still a loner, but he actually has a few friends. People who trust him and who he trusts in kind.
He felt guilty hiding it from them. It was awkward having to avoid questions about his childhood and countless other awkward situations.
So, he'd resolved to tell them. Except he's only come out one time in his life and that was to his parents.
A very troublesome problem indeed. He could try telling them all at once, stutter through it, and probably die of a heart attack. Maybe tell them one at a time and have whoever he told previously help tell the next person.
Or he could just tell someone who wouldn't care, then take their advice on how to tell them.
Jack ended up telling Ruggie and Leona first. He got way too chicken to tell any of his friends first and his roommate was denser than a wall, so that was out of the question.
He paces in front of Leona's room, too hesitant to walk in. He can tell Ruggie's in there from the bickering.
This was probably a horrible idea. Trans students were accepted at NRC, sure- the Headmage was surprisingly chill- but he had no idea about the students.
He'd never recover if Ruggie, or seven forbid, Leona decided being trans was the ultimate sin and kicked him out of Savanaclaw. He'd just have to drop out at that point.
The door slams open and he jumps out of his skin. Ruggie stands there, ear twitching and an eyebrow raised.
"Why the hell are you just pacin around outside?" He asks, peaking out at the hallway. Jack sweats.
"I.. Had something to say?" He can tell he sounds nervous. Ruggie just nods, practically shoving him into the room.
Well, he made his grave and now he has to lay in it. He just hopes he didn't make a horrible mistake.
Leona's lounging on the bed, head propped up on his arms. He looks like the pinnacle of relaxation. Ruggie plops himself near the foot of the bed.
"So, whaddya have to say?" Ruggie asks, swinging his feet. Jack's anxiety comes back tenfold.
He glances anywhere but the two, thinking over his word choice for the umpteenth time. Nothing sounds right but he'd rather just get this over with.
"I'm.. Uh," he internally curses himself for stuttering already. "I'm trans- uh, transgender."
Absolute silence. He still refuses to look over, staring at the wall like it personally offended him.
"Is that it?" Leona asks, yawning. Jack turns to them, noticing the complete lack of reaction.
Well, screw him then. Maybe it's his fault for assuming Leona or Ruggie would care about anything except themselves.
.. That was probably a bit harsh.
"Like, you're a girl? Might wanna tell the Headmage," Ruggie says, leaning himself onto the wall.
"No.. Like.. I was a girl and now I'm a guy."
"Oh. And we care why?" Jack sighs and walks out, slamming the door with a little more force than necessary.
That total fail did absolutely nothing for him. He got no reaction, no care beyond "you might want to tell the Headmage", and no clue on how he should tell his friends.
That's probably a sign he should give it up. Unfortunately, Jack has never been a quitter. Whether that's a good thing or not, who knows?
Jack drags Deuce away after track, ignoring the boy's protests that he can walk on his own. He has one goal in mind at the moment.
He pauses once they're near the forest. No one else is nearby. He releases Deuce's hand, turning to face him.
"What's up? You can't just drag me around, y'know," Deuce vocalizes, kicking around a rock. Jack sighs, glancing back to the school building .
"Deuce, I have something to tell you. It's.. Really important," he rubs the back of his neck, trying to shake off his nerves.
Deuce nervously sweats, tensing up. "You're not like.. Dying, right?"
"What? No, no I'm not dying."
"Oh, alright," Deuce sighs, some of the tension leaving his shoulders. "So what's up?"
"I'm.. Transgender. I uh.. Figured I should tell you and the others."
"Oh.. Oh! Alright!" Deuce smiles, giving a thumbs up. "So like- you're a girl now? Cool! Should I-"
"I'm not a girl?!" He exclaims, Deuce immediately flinching away. He looks almost shellshocked from the outburst.
"Shoot, I am so sorry! So uh- you were a girl and now you're not?"
"Yes! You are the second person to assume I'm mtf!" Jack facepalms. This was turning out to be really exhausting for all the wrong reasons.
"I.. I mean, you pass really well. And I've seen you without a shirt on, so I just kinda assumed.."
Right. Jack has walked around without a shirt on. Perhaps his lack of foresight will be his downfall.
Deuce's face flushes after a few seconds of silence. "That's- I mean- oh my seven, that was probably perverted to say. I'm so sorry."
"Wh- no, you're okay? You were right anyway, so.."
"No! That was not okay of me to say at all!"
Despite the total panic Deuce had, Jack would say that went pretty well. Much better than telling Ace was going, at least.
"But like.. I've seen you without a shirt on. Especially during that beach thing. Where were your ti-"
"ACE do not finish that sentence!" Jack yells, face flushed. Ace giggles at his misfortune.
"I'm serious though. Like, seriously, no jokes. Is it a transformation potion or something?"
Jack sighs, putting his head in his hands. "I.. You know those trans guys online who go around shirtless because they're so built their.. Chests just look like pecs?"
Ace makes a small "oh" sound, just staring at Jack's face. He's half tempted to slap the ginger.
"That makes sense. Well uh- congrats on the transition, dude. Thanks for telling me," Ace pats him on the head, getting up and stretching. "I'm gonna go before I'm late for class."
Jack collapses onto his bed, wanting nothing more than to scream. He's told four people today, two didn't care, and the other two were just confused the entire time.
But.. Nothing horrible happened. As far as they're concerned, he's still just Jack. He sighs, preparing himself for tomorrow.
He hopes Sebek doesn't flip his shit.
"Congratulations on figuring yourself out, Howl! You shall make a lovely lady!" Sebek booms, voice practically shaking the earth. Jack almost regrets saying anything.
It took so long to even define being trans to him and now this. This has got to be a sign to give up on coming out.
"Sebek, no. I'm a man," he sighs, facepalming so hard an audible smack rings out.
Sebek just stares at him, contemplating. "At birth? Yes, but you're a woman now."
"No, Sebek. I was born a woman. I transitioned into a man. I'm on HRT for it."
"Ah, my apologies! You're a lovely lad, indeed! Congratulations on your transition thus far!" Sebek gives a proud smile, clearly not dwelling on his mistake.
If nothing else, at least Jack knows he's supportive. Even if Sebek's loud and.. Maybe a bit uninformed about.. Everything.
Jack was going to tell Epel after class, but he got too nervous. Epel had his misogyny problems and Jack was not about to deal with his reaction.
So, he went to Ramshackle to tell Yuu, the infinitely better option out of the three remaining.
And then Ortho was also there. So now he was coming out to three people anyway, if he included Grim.
"Oh, that's nice. I'm genderfluid myself, so I can get that.. Kinda," Yuu responds, giving him a small smile. Jack returns the gesture the best he can.
"Congrats on the transition! My brother's trans," Ortho claps his hands happily. Both Jack and Yuu turn to him, vaguely horrified.
"Did you just out Idia?" Yuu whispers, jaw dropped. A horrifying whirring sound instantly comes from Ortho.
"Wait! No, no, I didn't! He's really open about it- I SWEAR," he makes a lot of panicked gestures, and Jack's sure he'd be sweating if he could.
What an amazing day. He loves listening to the sound of three of his friends bickering. Especially when one is a robot and the other's a screeching cat.
Jack might crawl into a hole and die. Telling Epel did not go well. No yelling or throwing was done, which.. Great, but Epel quickly walked away and just left.
Which was totally fine. The Shaftlands, while pretty accepting in the big cities, was not very tolerant the further out in the country you got.
So, he wasn't expecting Epel to have a good reaction. He doesn't blame him, nor was he expecting a lot of support.
That doesn't mean his feelings weren't hurt. Still, he'd power through it. Maybe try to talk to Epel in a week to see if they're still good.
... Yeah, he was definitely not doing that.
The rest of the week passed by pretty normally, until Friday. Epel had dragged him out into an abandoned hallway.
He almost died of a heart attack from the shock. He doubted Epel would try to fight him (hopefully, you never know with Epel), but be was definitely ready to throw punches if need be.
Epel shifts awkwardly, digging something out from his pockets. He shuffles it around in his hands, eyes darting around the hallway.
"I'm.. Sorry for walkin away. It was wrong of me. I.. Never really met someone like ya," he mumbles. Totally fair, like Jack said, the country side wasn't the most accepting place.
"But.. I support ya, and yer not any less of a man. So uh.. Yeah, here," he quickly shoves the item into Jack's hand, not waiting for a response.
It's a horribly made bracelet in the colors of the trans flag. It looks two seconds away from falling apart. Jack's pretty sure his sister could do a better job, and she's seven years old.
Still, the sentiment is nice. He slides it on, ignoring the way he can feel the knot already loosening. The thing will probably break within the day.
"Thanks, Epel. And it's alright, I get it," he offers a smile, clapping Epel on the shoulder. Epel sighs and smiles back, looking a lot less nervous.
"What the fuck is that," Jack asks, staring at the abomination in front of him. Only Deuce has the decency to look embarrassed.
"It's a cake!" Ortho cheers, proudly showing off what's definitely not a cake. Epel barely contains laughter.
"That thing is not a cake. Why is it gooey."
"Oven broke," Ace shrugs. "Be grateful, we made it for you."
"Why in the name of the seven would you make me a cake? Especially one that looks like.. That," he gestures to the now bubbling concoction they dubbed a cake.
"Cause yer, uhh.. Transcendant or whatever," Epel replies, shoving the cake into Jack's hands. It smells burnt and kind of like cinnamon.
"Epel, the word is transsexual!" Sebek replies, hands on his hips. Yuu makes a sound like a choking cat.
"Whatever! Take the damn cake!" Jack would rather die than eat that monstrosity. Still, his friends made a cake to celebrate him coming out..
He grabs a fork and hesitantly takes a scoop from it. The smell of citrus hits him and he refrains from flinching.
Deciding to just bite the bullet, he shoves it into his mouth and chews it as quickly as possible.
Deuce pats him on the back, probably feeling guilty. Jack sits up straight and shoves the cake onto the table.
"That is NOT a cake. It tastes like a battery. PLEASE throw it out," Ace and Epel break out laughing and Deuce sighs, putting his head in his hands.
"I told you guys the recipe didn't need citrus extract, it's a strawberry cake," he sighs, shaking his head. Jack does a double take. Why the hell was citrus in a strawberry cake?
"But he likes pears. So, pear flavoring," Yuu says, tapping their chin. Jack snaps his head to them.
"PEARS ARE NOT CITRUS!" He yells, making Yuu jump.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, I'm sure?! Why would a PEAR be CITRUSY?" He pauses, remembering Deuce said the cake was allegedly strawberry. "And why would you mix citrus and strawberry?!"
Ortho snatches a slice of the cake, whisking it off to feed to Grim. He almost pities the poor cat.
"Because you like pears.." They say, twiddling their fingers. Epel and Ace are still laughing, borderline crying at this point.
Sebek grabs his own fork, poking at the remaining remnants of the cake. It shakes like jello.
Lovely. The smell of that "cake" lingers in the air, and the culprit is still bubbling on the table. The thing didn't even taste or smell like strawberry.
"This reminds me of something Lilia-sama would make.." Sebek mumbles, taking his own bite of it. Jack winces. "Tastes like it too."
"Great! Take that thing back to Diasomnia!" Deuce says, springing up out of his seat. "I'll go.. Buy an actual cake while you do that."
Without another word, Deuce books it out of Ramshackle. Yuu shrugs as the door slams, nudging Jack's arm.
"Wanna watch TV? I think I found a show you might like," he nods, desperate to leave that wretched cake and the two maniacs still laughing about it.