Rumor Me Racy, I'll Leak Your Hospital Drama

"By the way, take it easy with those breast implants too—they can burst, you know."

The moment the words left my mouth, the noisy living room fell dead silent.

The air froze, and everyone's gaze darted back and forth between me and Kelsey Randall, my cousin's so-called refined and well-mannered girlfriend.

My dad, Myron Snyder, was stunned too. His mouth hung wide open, a crab claw poised motionless in midair.

Every last trace of color drained from Kelsey's face.

She instinctively shielded her chest with her hands, a flash of panic shooting through those surgically widened eyes.

That gesture was as good as a confession.

The next second, her tears burst forth like a floodgate thrown wide open.

I had to admit, her ten-thousand-dollar double eyelid surgery wasn't wasted. When she cried, she really did look devastatingly beautiful, the kind that could melt anyone's heart.

"Jillian, I don't know why you don't like me. Is it because I come from a humble background, so you think I'm not good enough for Patrick?"

Crying so hard that her voice trembled, Kelsey shook like a leaf in the wind.

"But how could you make up such vicious lies just to humiliate me?"

She buried herself in Patrick's arms as she wept, looking as though she had suffered the greatest injustice imaginable.

"How could you accuse a pure and innocent woman like me of being transgender? How am I supposed to hold my head up after this?"

She'd played the victim card with masterful finesse.

My cousin, Patrick Snyder, had been a bit dazed. My words had carried so much information that his brain hadn't fully processed it yet.

But the moment he saw the weeping beauty in his arms, gasping as if she were about to die, whatever reason he had was completely squeezed out by those few pounds of silicone.

Then, it hit him that I had not only humiliated Kelsey but also insinuated that he was into dudes. A surge of blind rage shot straight to his head.

Patrick slammed his hand on the table with a bang, sending the plates and cutlery clattering noisily.

He jabbed a finger at my face and bellowed, "Jillian Snyder, do you have a screw loose or something? You have no decency yourself—you posted those trashy videos online, and when Kelsey recognized you, you turned around and attacked her instead?"

"And you even accused her of changing her gender? What is this, some stupid novel you're writing? I've been with Kelsey—you think I don't know if she's a woman? Who do you think you are to spout this crap?"

As soon as Patrick said that, the relatives who had been half-skeptical immediately found their anchor.

It made sense, though. In a big, traditional family like mine, admitting that a relative made adult videos was still a lot easier to swallow than admitting their nephew had brought home a transsexual.

After all, the former was a moral failing, whereas the latter would be a complete collapse of their understanding of reality.

"Patrick's right! Jillian, you can't just go around spouting nonsense like that!"

My eldest aunt, Anita Snyder, cracked a walnut and rolled her eyes.

"Young ladies these days—they'll stoop to anything. You got called out and now you're the one pointing fingers? Where are your manners? I thought that woman in the video looked like you the moment I saw it. Especially that mole—it's in the exact same spot."

My second eldest uncle's wife, Rita Britton, quickly said to my cousin, Mary Snyder, "You'd better stay far away from Jillian. Don't let her be a bad influence on you."

She was essentially adding fuel to the fire.

"Jillian's just jealous, if you ask me!" My third eldest uncle's wife, Grace Nolan, pursed her lips and looked Kelsey up and down, taking in all her designer labels.

"Kelsey is gorgeous, and she studied abroad. Of course Jilly feels threatened. She puts that trashy content out there, so it's no wonder she turns green at the sight of a real class act."

Ladies and gentlemen, I'd like you to meet my wonderful relatives.