Chapter 1: Crashing at My Best Friend’s Place

Somehow, I managed to get into the room. Next, I’ve got to explain and make him believe me. Then, secure myself a place to stay. I want to crash here for a while, at least until I find a job and a new place to live.

My name is Toyama Nobuchika. To put it simply, I developed TS Syndrome and went from being thirty years old to sixteen. I mean, even I’d admit I’m a long-haired, big-busted beauty now. And right now, I’ve barged into the home of my best friend, Haguro Kanata.

A little earlier.

On a weekday evening, I sent Kanata a message saying I was coming over, and here I am, standing in front of his door. I rang the bell, and after a moment Kanata opened the door to greet me.

"You came, Nobu. What’s with the sudden visit—hm? …Excuse me, who are you? …We didn’t order anything."

Kanata’s face shifted from slight confusion to a completely blank look. That change was so amusing I couldn’t help but laugh.

But really, I get it. If you open the door expecting your best friend, and instead there’s some random high school-looking girl standing there, of course you’d be creeped out. Kanata isn’t the type to be into sugar daddies or call girls, so this reaction makes perfect sense.

As I laughed, Kanata moved to shut the door. Panicking, I pressed against it to keep him from closing it.

"Wait a second! It’s me, Nobuchika! Just hear me out!"
"—Hah? What the hell are you saying? Doesn’t matter, let go. Or I’m calling the cops."

He’s serious? That much he hates the idea? Well, I can’t say I don’t understand.

"Hold it! Think about this. If you call the police right now, it’ll be a thirty-year-old guy’s word versus some young girl’s. Who do you think they’ll believe? And how do you think the neighbors will see it?"

Kanata paused, looking annoyed.

"…What do you want?"

"Just listen to me. You’ll understand once you hear."

"Fine. I’ll hear you out. Talk."

"Not here, idiot. What kind of scene do you think it looks like? A girl and a grown man arguing on your doorstep? That’ll get the cops called for sure. Calm down and let me inside."

"And if I let you in, that’ll cause problems too…"

"If you don’t, I’ll make a scene right here about all sorts of things."

"Tch… fine. Get in."

With a loud, annoyed click of his tongue, Kanata let me inside, clearly reluctant.

Kanata’s place was a 1LDK with its own bath and toilet. Pretty normal for living alone. Though if I’m staying too, it’s going to feel a little cramped.

While I was looking around, Kanata handed me a floor cushion. Guess that meant "sit here." He settled into his gaming chair while I sat cross-legged on the cushion. Not a problem since I wasn’t in a skirt.

"So? What do you want?"

Ouch. Spiky. Well, I can’t blame him.

"I’m Toyama Nobuchika. About a month ago I got hit with TS Syndrome. I didn’t tell you over messages because I didn’t want you to worry."

"And why should I believe you? What makes you think I’d buy that story?"

"Just let me finish."

And so, I explained everything to Kanata: how TS Syndrome turned me into a girl, sixteen years old again; how I quit my job because it felt unbearable; how I had to leave the company dorm soon; how I hadn’t found another job or place to live yet; how I hadn’t told my parents; how I had no other friends I could rely on. And finally, how I wanted to stay here for a while.

Kanata listened silently until the end. Then he said:

"And? You expect me to just believe that? How do you prove you’re Nobuchika?"

A grin spread across my face. That’s what I’d been waiting for. Proof. My smartphone. Sure, face recognition won’t work anymore, but I can unlock it with the passcode. I pulled it out, unlocked it, and showed him.

But Kanata didn’t change expression at all. He just took the phone from me and said:

"If it wasn’t Nobuchika’s, maybe I’d believe you. But since it is his, I can do this too. See?"

"Huh!? Wait—how did you unlock it!? I never told you the code!"

He’d unlocked my phone like it was nothing. How!? I definitely hadn’t told him! Kanata waved a small scrap of paper in front of me as he explained:

"You told me before, Nobu. Your wallet-style phone case had a card slot, and you kept a memo with the passcode in it. I warned you that made having a password pointless. Anyway… you’ve slipped up. You must’ve found Nobuchika’s phone somewhere, spotted the memo, and now you’re trying to pretend you’re him."

"Eh, seriously? I said that? I totally forgot about that memo even existing!?"

This was really bad. My credibility had just tanked even further. What else could I use to prove myself…? A confession about my fetishes? Embarrassing as hell, but that might be the only way.

"Just so you know, even if you spill your fetishes it won’t mean anything. A peek at your phone would tell me plenty already."

…He’s right! Still, if it’s something from our childhood, that should work, right? We’ve been best friends since grade school, so I’ve got a stockpile of stories.

"Wait! If it’s about when we were kids, that wouldn’t be on my phone, so it’d count as proof! Like that time back in middle school when you—"

I started laying out one of Kanata’s embarrassing stories—

"Enough! Stop right there!"

"Oh, finally catching on? I’ve got plenty more where that came from."

"I said enough! Fine, I get it. You’re Nobu."

At last, he seemed convinced. I let out a breath of relief.

"But still, Nobu… if you’ve really got TS Syndrome, wouldn’t it have been way faster to just bring your certificate? Why didn’t you?"

"…Huh?"

Certificate? Oh, right. Totally slipped my mind. Ever since I handed it to the company, I hadn’t thought about it once.

"…I forgot."

Kanata gave me a look of exasperation, then broke into his usual bright laugh.

"Ha! That’s so you, Nobu. Right there, that convinced me more than anything."

"Glad to hear it."

"But man, Nobu… what’s with that look?"

"What do you mean, what’s with it? Honestly, I’m pretty young and cute, right?"

The old me had been a bland, forgettable salaryman. Nothing worth mentioning. But now, I had the body of a sixteen-year-old girl—pale, smooth skin, long glossy black hair down to my back. If I stayed quiet, I probably looked like some refined young lady. Of course, the fact that it’s me on the inside ruined the whole effect.

I was wearing a baggy, oversized outfit that hid my figure. Not cute in the slightest. But with this face, the whole look still ended up working.

Kanata, on the other hand, was a natural pretty boy. He’d been popular back in school, though he never had many serious girlfriends because of his distrust of women. Even now he was tall, slim, and had legs that made me jealous back when I was still a guy.

"Your face is good, I’ll give you that… but the rest, not so much."

"Come on, it’s embarrassing to dress all girly, you know? I’m still thirty inside."

"Fair enough."

"Right? I’m an old man at heart."

"True enough… though it feels like a waste."

From there, we got to talking, swapping stories about the struggles I’d had since becoming a girl.

Alright. Time to finally ask him properly. That was the whole reason I came here today—to ask if I could stay until I found work and got my own place.

"Kanata, like I said earlier, I’ve got a favor to ask."

"You want to live here with me, right? Fine. I’ll look after you."

"You’re okay with that? Just like that? This is a pretty big deal, you know."

"Yeah, it’s fine. Since it’s you, Nobu. You’ll bring your stuff later?"

"Yeah… then I’ll be in your care."

"Right. But let me make one thing clear: I’ll help because you’re my best friend. But you know I don’t trust women. Don’t  forget that."

"Yeah, I get it. Not like anything like that would happen between us anyway."

"I know… but it’s hard not to think about when you look like that."

Kanata’s distrust of women ran deep. I could never fully understand the weight of his scars. His mother had cheated repeatedly before running off, leaving behind a divorce. His sister was a cheater too. And at twenty-five, the woman he thought he’d marry had betrayed him with an affair.

Even before that, he hadn’t trusted women. But that last one had broken him. He’d believed she was different. She wasn’t.

Back then, a bunch of us from college had gathered to console him.

And to this day, he hasn’t been in a proper relationship. Whether that’s because he’s messed up inside or just set in his ways, I couldn’t say.

"Well, I should get going for now. I’ll message you later."

"Yeah… wait. It’s dark already. I’ll walk you to the station. You’re a young woman now, like it or not."

"It’s fine, I can go alone."

"No, it’s not fine. What if something happens?"

"Alright, alright. Guess I’ll have to get used to people worrying if I go out alone. Being a girl is a pain in the ass."

"Don’t go turning into one on the inside too, got it?"

"Not planning on it."

But the doctor had told me that with TS Syndrome, the mind tended to shift along with the body. Tastes and thinking patterns changed. Most ended up dating and marrying the opposite sex from their new gender. That was considered normal.

And sure enough, I’d already started noticing I couldn’t look at women that way anymore. My period had come recently, and it really hit me then.

If things kept going like this, would I actually end up liking men? I didn’t even want to think about it.

Well… it wasn’t like I planned to freeload off Kanata forever. I’d be fine. Probably.