Miranda isn’t sure if she is transgendered or a lesbian. When Cal, a gay boy her age comes to stay next door for the summer, they become close. Even though they are opposites, they are both outsiders, and their friendship blossoms over the summer. Could there be romance despite their differences?<br><br>Then twins Ada and Van move into the neighborhood, and Miranda finds herself torn between them. She can’t decide who she’s more attracted to -- Ada, who may be lesbian, or Van, who is transgendered. Will she find love with one of them instead?

A Rare and Beautiful Thing

We’d gone swimming in the pond, at the town pool, and hiking through the woods. We took Curly along as often as we could, because our parents thought we needed a chaperone. We went frog hunting (successfully, and I had the glorious fun of having one put down my shirt. Ugh.) We went butterfly hunting after that, at my insistence. No luck there though, but it was a great day anyway because we saw a doe and two fawns, and a skunk, and Curly found a hornet’s nest. The doe and fawns ran away from us, and we ran away from the skunk and the hornet’s nest. And now I had only memories, and they had to last me until the next time Cal could come to visit.


Chapter 4