Trans Teen Nicole Maines & Her Identical Twin Brother Share Their Family's Story

Pictured: Nicole Maines in 'Royal Pains'

Nicole Maines has done a lot for in her 18 years. She won a major transgender rights case, appeared on Royal Pains, and has now been interviewed by People magazine.

Nicole, born Wyatt, and identical twin brother, Jonas, opened up to the periodical about their youth.

"Whenever we were playing dress up she always wanted to be the girl," Jonas says. "She always played with the dolls. I never questioned it."

Ms. Maines is the subject of Becoming Nicole: The Transformation of a an American Family, a book by Pulitzer-Prize winner Amy Ellis Nutt. It tracks the Maines' journey raising Nicole and Wyatt's transition to Nicole.

Jonas protected Nicole, especially in elementary school, and in middle school Nicole went "stealth," telling no one she was trans. For years, the family feared that Nicole would be discovered as trans and bullied again.

This summer, just before beginning college, Nicole, who had taken puberty suppressants and female hormones as a teenager, had gender reassignment surgery, and Jonas was again by her side.

More about the Maines will appear in latest issue of People, on newsstands Friday.