I feel seen tonight after reading this, in a painfully accurate way.
As a person who has never been able to fit the mold of expectations for my gender, body or presentation, this amazing work hit very close to home for me.
So terribly familiar is that compromising that goes with chasing success, acceptance, favor, affection. You've captured this experience so faithfully, with such frugality of words and contrasted with so much lavish imagery that it nearly took my breath away.
Thank you for everything you put into this; you've given so many like myself a voice through this story. It's easily one of the most potent and personal comics I've ever read.
(I've tried to be careful with my words so as not to give all of it away, but if you're in the comments because you're still making up your mind whether to read this...it's only 32 pages and worth every minute of your time.)