Finding Her

# Lockdown at Anju's

## Chapter 1: Stranded

Anu, a 22-year-old, had come to Kochi to attend a function. Halfway through, every phone in the hall buzzed at once. An emergency alert flashed on the screens: an immediate lockdown had been declared due to a pandemic, and all transport had been suspended.

For a moment, the hall went silent. Then people began rushing out, calling their families and hurrying to reach home before the roads were sealed.

Anu panicked. His house was hours away, and with no buses or trains, there was no way to get there. He stepped outside, hoping to find a taxi or an open shop, but the shutters were all down. The street was quiet, and the crowd from the function had vanished. He stood alone, clutching his phone and wondering what to do.

He scrolled through his contacts, and one name stopped him: Anju Senior. He hesitated, then pressed call.

"Anju chechi... I'm stuck in Kochi," he said, his voice shaking. He explained everything.

"Don't panic," she said calmly. "I'll send you my address. Come here. Don't worry."

Within minutes, her location appeared on his screen. He walked through the empty streets, and the unusual silence made every step feel louder. When he finally reached her flat, he took a deep breath and rang the doorbell.

## Chapter 2: Borrowed Clothes

The door opened. Anju stood there in shorts and a sleeveless T-shirt, her hair loosely tied, looking relaxed and completely at home.

"Come in," she said with a small smile.

Anu stepped inside, suddenly aware of how quiet the flat was. She had lived here alone for three years, and it showed in the neat, personal touches around the room.

"Go and freshen up," Anju said, pointing down the hallway. "The bathroom is the second door on the left. There's a clean towel on the rack."

"Okay, chechi," Anu said softly.

He went in and closed the door. The warm water felt like relief after the long, tense day. Then he remembered the sweat and dust on his clothes, so he washed them with a little soap and hung them on the rail to dry.

It was only when he reached for the towel that he realized what he had done. He had nothing else to wear.

"Chechi..." Anu called out softly from the bathroom.

Anju came down the hallway and stopped outside the door. "What happened?" she asked.

"I accidentally washed my clothes," he said. "I don't have anything else to wear."

There was a short pause, then a soft, amused laugh. "No worries," she said kindly. "Stay there. I'll bring you something to wear."

A few minutes later, Anju came back with a fresh pair of her panties, a pair of her shorts, and a floral-print pink T-shirt. She placed them on the bed and went back to the kitchen.

Anu slipped out of the bathroom, still holding the towel tightly around his waist, and saw the clothes laid out on the bed. His ears turned red.

"Chechi!" he called out loudly. "These are girls' clothes!"

"There's no one else in the flat, just the two of us," she called back from the kitchen, amusement in her voice. "You can wear them, or you can stay in the towel. Your choice."

Anu let the towel drop and slipped on the panties. The fabric was soft and fit tightly against his skin, and the unfamiliar feeling made him feel strangely feminine. He blushed even though no one was watching. Next, he pulled on the shorts, then the floral-print pink T-shirt.

That was when he noticed the problem. Anu had always been self-conscious about his chest, since he had man boobs. The thin, fitted fabric clung to him, and his chest was clearly visible, giving him the outline of a girl.

He turned toward the mirror, saw his reflection, and froze.

## Chapter 3: The Secret

He walked into the kitchen, cheeks burning. Anju turned around, looked him over, and smiled.

"It suits you, Anu," she said. "You look like a girl."

"Chechi..." he mumbled, looking down.

She was about to turn back to the stove when she stopped. "Wait," she said. "Do you have boobs?"

Anu was too ashamed to answer. He crossed his arms over his chest.

"Come to my room," she said gently.

Inside, she asked him to take off his T-shirt. He hesitated, then slowly pulled it off. Anju looked at his chest, then burst out laughing.

"Funny," she said, still smiling. "You have bigger boobs than mine!"

Anu wished the floor would swallow him, but there was no cruelty in her laugh, only warm amusement. He put the T-shirt back on, and they went to the kitchen to prepare dinner. As he walked behind her, he could feel his chest bounce softly with each step. He felt more feminine in his own body than ever before.

They sat down to eat. Over dinner they talked about his studies and his plans, and Anu slowly began to relax.

"Anu, did you ever consult a doctor about your chest?" Anju asked gently.

He nodded. "Yes, chechi. The doctor said it's normal. He gave me medicine, and he said it would reduce with time." He looked down at his plate. "But I forget to take it every time. That's why it has grown like this."

Anju listened without interrupting.

"I'm afraid to take off my shirt in front of people, even my friends," he continued softly. "I wear tight clothes to hide it, but I don't think it helps."

Anju squeezed his hand. "You don't have to hide it from me," she said kindly.

## Chapter 4: A New Routine

Anu slept on the sofa that night. The next morning, Anju woke him gently. "Wake up, Anu. Come help me with breakfast. Go take a bath first."

While he was in the bathroom, she called through the door, "I've kept your clothes on the bed."

When he came out, he found a pair of panties, a short skirt, a crop top, and a bra.

"Chechi!" he called out. She came into the room. "What happened?"

"Why is there a bra?" he asked, flustered.

"Wear it," she said calmly. "It will give you support and relief." She showed him how to put it on and hooked it from the back, then went back to the kitchen.

Anu stood in front of the mirror in just the bra and panties. His chest looked like a woman's, with a soft cleavage visible. With no facial hair, he looked just like a woman. He touched his chest, and it was more sensitive than he expected. A warm shiver ran through him. He stayed there a moment longer, lost in the strange new feeling, until he caught himself and took a deep breath.

He put on the skirt and the top and walked to the kitchen.

"Do you know how to cut vegetables?" Anju asked.

"A little bit," Anu said. "Enough to manage."

She handed him onions and potatoes. "Cut these for the sambar. We'll have it with dosa. I'll come after a bath."

Anu sliced carefully at first, then faster. The kitchen smelled of fresh coconut and curry leaves. A little later, Anju came back after bathing, her hair damp, wearing a sports bra and shorts. Anu glanced up and noticed the outline of her chest through the thin fabric. He looked away quickly, but not quickly enough.

"Hey," she said, grinning. "Mine isn't much bigger than yours, Anu."

She burst out laughing, and Anu's face turned red as he bent over the onions.

Anju looked at the neatly chopped vegetables. "You cut them really well, Anu." Then she taught him how to make sambar: roasting the spices, adding the dal, dropping in the vegetables. They made dosas together and sat down to eat. For the first time since the lockdown began, Anu felt almost at home.

After they finished, Anju stacked the plates. "We have some work to do today," she said. "You have to help me."

"Okay, chechi," he said.

They spent the day cleaning the flat, sweeping, mopping, dusting, and wiping the counters. By the end, Anu was exhausted. "Go and take some rest," Anju said. He dropped onto the sofa and fell asleep almost instantly.

## Chapter 5: Evening at Home

In the evening, she woke him for tea. They chatted quietly, and then each went to take a bath. When Anu came out, he found a nightie waiting for him, along with a bra and panties. He put them on and went to the hall to watch TV.

A little later, Anju came out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around her chest. "Anu, I left my clothes to dry in the balcony," she said. "Could you bring them for me?"

"Okay, chechi."

On the balcony, he found her clothes on the line. He paused and touched her bra. It was so soft. Flustered, he gathered everything and took it to her.

She went to her room to change but didn't close the door fully. Anu glanced in by chance, and his face flushed. He quickly looked away. She didn't seem bothered, and she finished changing as if nothing had happened.

A few minutes later, Anju came out wearing a nightie and joined him in the hall to watch TV.

After a while, she stretched and glanced at the clock. "It's getting late. Let's have dinner."

They sat across from each other at the small table, eating slowly and talking about everything and nothing. Somewhere between the second chapati and the last spoonful of sambar, Anu realized he had stopped worrying about what he was wearing.

When they finished clearing the table, Anju dried her hands and turned to him with a mysterious smile. "Tomorrow," she said, "we'll try something new."

"Something new? Like what, chechi?"

"You'll see," she said, and walked off toward her room, leaving him curious and a little nervous.

## Chapter 6: The Saree

The next morning, the routine was the same. Anju woke Anu gently, and he took his bath. When he came out, a fresh set of clothes was waiting for him. He didn't call out "Chechi!" this time. He only gave a small sigh and a shy smile. He fastened the bra the way she had shown him, which was easier than the first time, and checked himself in the mirror. He was still blushing, but the panic from the first day was gone.

Anju had already prepared breakfast: hot idlis, coconut chutney, and two cups of steaming coffee.

"Chechi, what did you tell me last night?" Anu asked, unable to hold back his curiosity. "What's the something new?"

Anju took a slow sip of her coffee, clearly enjoying his impatience. "After we finish eating," she said with a playful smile. "Then we'll try it."

After breakfast, she called him to her room. A saree lay on the bed, a deep green silk with a gold border, with a blouse and a pavada folded beside it.

"Today we're going to try this," she said.

"A saree, chechi?"

"Take off your nightie," she said. He hesitated, then slowly slipped it off, standing there in his bra and panties, his arms crossed in front of him.

"Now the bra too," she said gently. "You can't wear a blouse over it."

His ears turned red, but he did as she asked, turning slightly away. She handed him the blouse and helped him with the hooks. It fit him snugly, and the soft shape of his chest showed clearly at the neckline. Anju looked at him for a moment, then gently pressed his chest with a fingertip and burst out laughing.

"Chechi!" he squeaked, going red from his neck to his forehead.

"Sorry, sorry," she said, still giggling. "It's just so funny, it fits you better than it fits me."

Next she brought the pavada and tied it at his waist. Then she picked up the saree, tucked one end in, and began draping it around him, folding the pleats carefully with practiced hands. "Stand straight. Don't move."

Anu stood still, hardly daring to breathe, as the silk wrapped around him layer by layer.

When she finished, she stepped back with a satisfied nod. "Perfect. Now it's my turn."

She changed quickly and casually, as if she were alone, while Anu stared hard at the curtains, his heart pounding. When he finally peeked, she was already in a fitted red blouse and reaching for her saree. Her hands moved fast and sure. She tucked in one end, gathered the pleats in a neat fold, swung the pallu over her shoulder, and pinned it. In less than two minutes she was completely draped.

"You did that so quickly," he said softly.

"Years of practice," she said with a wink. "Don't worry, Anu. You'll become an expert too."

"Me, chechi? I can't even stand properly in this."

"That's only because it's your first day. Walk a little. Let the saree settle."

He took a few careful steps across the room. The silk rustled softly with every move, and the swish around his legs made him blush. For a moment, he caught himself smiling in the mirror.

"Today we'll wear the sarees all day," Anju said. "We'll do the household work in them. We can change at night."

"Even for cooking and cleaning?"

"Even for cooking and cleaning," she said, laughing. "That's how you learn."

In the kitchen, she showed him how to tuck the pleats at his waist so they wouldn't drag on the floor. He swept the hall carefully at first, then more steadily, and by the time he reached the balcony he was moving without thinking about the fabric at all.

That evening, after his bath, he stood in front of the mirror with a towel wrapped around him, his hair damp. He thought back over the day. For the first time, he hadn't felt like he was pretending. He had simply lived the whole day as a woman would, and it had felt natural.

He studied his reflection for a long moment: the smooth face, the soft shoulders, the gentle shape of his chest. He had spent years hiding all of it, and now he looked at it with curiosity instead of shame.

"Maybe this has always been a part of me," he whispered, "and I just never gave it a chance."

## Chapter 7: Becoming

The days passed one by one, and each morning Anu woke to a fresh set of clothes: sarees, kurtis, skirts, and nighties. He stopped being embarrassed and began to enjoy trying them on.

Slowly, his body began to change. His hips grew wider and his thighs softened and filled out. His chest grew fuller. His hair grew past his ears and settled at his shoulders, and Anju showed him how to oil it, comb it, and tie it in a braid.

One morning, Anu stepped out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist, humming softly. Anju looked up from her phone and raised an eyebrow.

"Anu, why are you wearing the towel around your waist? We're girls. We cover our chest."

He looked down at himself, and his cheeks turned pink. "Oh... sorry, chechi. I forgot."

"It's okay," she said, smiling. "It's a habit, like everything else." She handed him a fresh towel. "Wrap it under your arms, like this. Tuck the end in at the side."

He followed her instructions, and it held neatly from chest to knees.

"There," she said, nodding approvingly. "Now you look like a proper girl."

As the weeks went by, Anu changed completely. He sat down to pee now, the way Anju did, and it no longer felt strange. His voice had softened, and one morning he caught himself humming a Malayalam song in a light, sweet tone he didn't recognize as his own. His walk was different, with small, graceful steps and a gentle sway in his hips.

Even his thoughts had changed. He talked about "us girls" without a second thought. One evening, while folding clothes with Anju, he realized he couldn't remember the last time he had thought of himself as a boy.

"What happened?" Anju asked, noticing his stillness.

"Nothing, chechi," he said, smiling. "I just forgot something. I think it wasn't important."

## Chapter 8: The End of the Lockdown

The lockdown dragged on, week after week, and Anu's womanhood only grew stronger with each passing day. Mornings began with sarees and coffee, afternoons with cooking and cleaning, and evenings with TV and quiet talks on the balcony. He no longer felt like a guest in Anju's flat. It felt like home.

Then one evening the announcement came: the lockdown would be lifted the next morning.

Anu stood at the balcony railing, watching the streets below. The shops were reopening, and the first buses were rumbling past. The city he had once found frighteningly silent was coming back to life.

"You're quiet," Anju said, joining him.

"Just thinking," he said softly. His hair was braided over his shoulder, and the pallu of his saree fluttered in the evening breeze. "When I came here, I was scared and lost. Now... I don't know who I would have become without you, chechi."

Anju smiled and took his hand. "You were always this person, Anu. The lockdown only gave you the time to find her."

They stood together as the lights of Kochi flickered on one by one, and neither of them said what both were thinking: that this was the end of the lockdown, but only the beginning of something new.

**The End**