"Becca, come one! How long does it take to do your hair? It's barely longer than mine!" Bucky complained from the bottom of the stairs. That was a lie, it was so much longer than his. I could tell he was leaning against the wall – he always leaned when he was impatient. I winced slightly at the use of my deadname, but after tonight, hopefully, I wouldn't hear it again.

Bucky had gotten full custody of me nearly two years ago after our parents had been imprisoned for neglect and abuse. He'd only found out about them neglecting me a month before they were arrested once he'd got home from his tour in Afghanistan. I'd snuck out and ran to his apartment in the middle of the night once, in floods of tears because I was starving, and black and blue all over. When I'd calmed down enough to tell him what was going on, he looked ready to commit murder. Since then, I'd lived in the house with him – he'd sold the apartment and came to live in the bigger house with me.

Tonight, was Saturday night, the night where we would go out for a meal or something and just enjoy being siblings for a while, but that was going to change tonight. We shared everything, every little secret about each other with the other sibling, but what Bucky didn't know was that he had a brother, not a sister. I was transgender, I'd known since I was around seven, and now, at thirteen, I was finally going to tell him and do something about it.

I hoped he would react well, and if he didn't then he's a hypocrite as he's gay himself, but there was still that niggling feeling in the back of my mind that he might not accept me. I'd gone all out tonight, wearing a beanie, a relatively nice hoodie and jeans, topped off with my military boots. I knew I wasn't particularly dressed up like I usually was on a Saturday night, but we were going bowling tonight, so there was no need to look my best.

"Becs, come on!" He yelled.

"Coming!" I called back, tucking a last stray strand of hair into my beanie so it looked like I had a fringe. I took a deep breath to compose myself, then walked out of my room and headed down to where – like I'd thought – Bucky was leaning against the wall, looking at something on his phone. He looked up and did a double-take.

"What happened to your hair?!" He asked, incredulity in his tone.

"Relax, it's just in my hat. I thought I'd try something new tonight." I lied smoothly. He just shrugged and put his arm out. As usual, I ducked under it and he draped his left arm over my shoulder; it was so light I sometimes forgot it was there. He grabbed his keys off the hook and passed my motorcycle helmet to me.

"You'll have to lose the hat while we travel but do what you like when we get there. I'm not bothered, I don't know why you look so uptight tonight?" He explained as he put his own lid on. I took my beanie off, tucking it into my backpack, then pushed my helmet over my head. Bucky put his hand under my chin and tilted my head up so he could do up the clasp for me, then passed me my bike jacket. "Good choice of shoes by the way. I think you'll get away with those on the bike." He added as he pulled on his own bike boots, then shoved some converse in my backpack with my hat.

The wind kept my hair out of my face as we rode to the bowling alley. I loved Bucky's bike – a Harley Davidson something – but that didn't stop me from holding onto my brother's waist for dear life. When we pulled up outside the bowling alley, once Bucky had turned off the bike, he did something that he always did, but something that never failed to take me by surprise. He put his arms under my knees, that being the signal for me to reposition my arms, so they were around his neck, then he swung his leg over the bike and stood up, me now on his back in a perfect piggyback.

"You good there?" He asked, his voice still muffled by his helmet. I nodded, then he strode inside.

Once we'd gotten inside, we rented a locker for our jackets and helmets, and I waited for Bucky to change his shoes, then I disappeared into the bathroom to sort out my hair. When I emerged, I got a knowing smile from my brother, who was waiting outside with two passes for laser quest. "Looking good. You know you can tell me anything right?" He added, casually throwing his arm over my shoulders again.

"I know, I'm just waiting for the right moment," I replied, a sneaky smirk on my face. I plucked my pass from his hand and headed over to the desk to hand it in and get kitted out. He sighed and followed me, doing the same.

The place wasn't too busy, but there were enough people to make it a fun game. Bucky, thanks to his time in the military, was stealthy, and knew every single tactic in the books to keep himself hidden; however, he was unaware that I'd spent two years hiding from our parents when he wasn't there, so he hadn't noticed me sidle up next to him. "Hey, big bro," I said. He jumped and twisted to face me.

"How did you do that?" he asked, slightly shocked.

"I don't know, but I'm sorry."

"Sorry for what?"

"This." I pointed my gun at him and hit his target right in the centre. He was out for a while. I ran away laughing maniacally, leaving Bucky crouched on the ground, still trying to remain hidden until he was back in the game.

Twenty minutes later, we left the darkroom, blinking rapidly as our eyes readjusted to the lighting. "Good game, nice one with sneaking up on me!" He complimented, patting me on the back. "Let's go get some food, then we can play a round of bowling, sound good?" I nodded and followed him to the food court.

Sat at a quiet table in the corner with burgers and fries, I finally plucked up the courage to tell him. "I think you know what's going on here, but I'm gonna say it anyway." I began, taking a sip from my drink. He put a hand across the table, and I took it, needing the support; he squeezed it reassuringly.

"It's ok. Take your time. If this is what I think it is, I know it's difficult." He said gently, a comforting smile spreading across his face, softening his usually sharp features. I took a deep breath, readying myself to just spit it out.

"I'm your brother."