So that's why I also said:
Both the drinking and the method acting should have been major red flags that Marina would have stopped. Before this chapter, we didn't have any specifics about what went wrong back then. Now that we found out what the "incident" was, the fact that it's both alcohol and method acting related is such a direct contradiction of the earlier lines, I am personally convinced that the earlier characterization was a misstep in writing just due to how early in the story it was.
Otherwise, Marina needs to either:
1) Have helped Andrew but was somehow unaware of his drinking and his method acting.
2) Was well aware but is convinced that Andrew has it "under control".
3) Was well aware and is counting on the fact that Andrew will screw up.
The first one seems impossible given the circumstances, and we've talked at length already in this forum why the remaining two don't make sense.
As I've said before, I was originally giving it the benefit of the doubt, and was avoiding the more meta "this scene doesn't fit because it was just a writing misstep", but I think we've got enough info now that it's unavoidable. While it's a bit frustrating in a mystery story, I can forgive mistakes that happen early in the writing because this format lends itself to that happening. When you're posting a story and writing it live, with no way to edit earlier sections, then you run the risk of having something you casually wrote over a year ago contradicting something your write now.
Based on this new evidence, I find it more palatable for there to have been that mostly self contained mistake to have occurred right at the beginning, as opposed to the inverse. Because if 2 or 3 are true, then it's not just one mistake near the beginning but instead a whole bunch of way more recent scenes that make less sense.
The story doesn't say Marina helped Andrew get his life back on track. So I see a fourth option:
4. Meeting Marina made Andrew want to turn his life around.
I took the time to quickly browse through the story to see when Andrew/Elena is drinking.
1. In the very first chapter, where Andrew accepts to dress up as Elena.
2. At the business diner Andrew actively tries to avoid drinking wine, until Joel points out he isn't drinking. Then he takes a sip and heads to the toilet where he meets Joanna.
3. Joanna spikes her champagne and lets Andrew take a sip. When he returns to the table, he kisses Nikos on the cheek and feels more relaxed.
4. Joel this time straight out tells Andrew he should drink more wine. Mr. Toska says he trusts Nikos and agrees to a partnership, insisting on Joel staying around. Nikos is reluctant but Andrew happily accepts. Nikos has to explain to Andrew (who will now go by Elena) that because Joel stays around, so Elena has to stay around too.
- The transformation happens stone cold sober. That's interesting.
5. After the transformation Elena takes a bath and the twins supply her with a glass of wine. Right after the glass of white win is shown, Elena gets aroused but is unable to act upon it as she's in a chastity cage. She gets a phone call from an unknown number after trying to phone Elena. She gets annoyed and subconsciously with her mind thinking of other things, she does her skin care routine.
6. A couple of days later, when Elena is thinking back to a year prior, she's in bath with an other glass of white wine. She's only been dressing up as a woman for about a week at this point ("it's been a week since I've worn anything other than high heels", p. 356), but describes herself. They're to show how much she's changed. She describes herself as "a woman who loves and just can't live without thongs". Which is an interesting change in just a few days time. Unless of course there's a trigger that quickens the mental transformation, the embracing of the female role.
7. Elena has a glass of wine in the car, underway to Mr Seferi. He scares her, which is then used by Sophie to talk Elena into 'perfecting' her disguise.
- The surgery happens and Elena doesn't have a recollection of it due to the presumably spiked tea. Interesting enough, she does appear to panic when she sees and feels her new body. Nikos comes by and Elena doesn't like to get kissed. Nikos then claims he doesn't remember Andrew. That evening, when she's had her makeup done and wears a tight red dress she's more accepting of the kiss Nikos gives her.
When she excuses herself to go to the bathroom, Elena has to tell herself to "stay in character", but she intends to end things that night. When she and Nikos are together to walk to the gettogether, she realises she's spoken Greek without realising since she woke up.
I think alcohol plays a part in Andrews transition into the Elena character. Andrew says on p. 1436 that his behavioural change occured when he started drinking. What if that triggers him into becoming Elena, mentally. That's why he wasn't keen on drinking when dressed as Elena the first couple of times. But when that became normalised, so becomes his journey into womanhood. He panicks when he hasn't drunk in a while (post-surgery), but as soon as she has her glass of wine she's turned from a man into a thong-woman.
I don't know, I feel there's something to the alcohol. Melissa has known for a while how many chapters her story will take, so I think she's planned a lot of this out beforehand. I don't think the alcohol on the table in the first chapter is due to a mistake on her part. That's not to say it has to mean something, but I don't think it should be ignored in order for a theory to work.
