Chapter 40: The Beautiful Girl Ends Her First Semester

The bicycle sped forward under the blazing summer sun.

Heat haze shimmered above the asphalt, the air so hot it felt like it was burning.
With this kind of heat, Ryoji’s dress shirt was drenched in sweat as he pedaled hard. He’d been giving me rides to and from school for the entire semester, and watching him like this made me feel guilty all over again.

"Hey, Ryoji."

"Hah… hah… what’s up?"

"Your test… that was rough, huh?"

"Aaahhh, don’t remind meee!"

Final exams.

No miracle had occurred—or maybe one had, in the most unfortunate way possible.

Togo, who’d failed English and math at midterms, studied like a madman and somehow scored above average this time, avoiding summer remedial classes entirely. He hadn’t been in danger in any of his other subjects, so as long as he studied, he could scrape by.

That much was fine. The problem was Ryoji.

He’d done solidly in math, Japanese, biology, and world history—average across the board.
But then came the final test to be returned: English. And he went down in flames.

He’d misaligned his answer sheet by one space.

The look on his face when he realized it was unforgettable. So tragic that no one could even speak. The poor guy looked ready to dive out the classroom window.

And so, Ryoji ended up stuck with English remedial classes. The worst part? His actual answers would’ve easily passed if not for that one mistake.

The remedial sessions were scheduled to start about a week into summer break.
Unfortunately, that timing clashed perfectly with our planned beach trip.

With Ryoji out, Togo also dropped out, saying, "Yeah, being the only guy among three girls is kinda awkward."

…And honestly, I get that.
When I was still a guy, I wouldn’t have had the guts to tag along with three girls in swimsuits either. It sounds fun in theory, but in practice, you’d just freeze up and crash and burn.

Not to mention being the only guy sharing a hotel room with them would be nightmare fuel.

So, the beach trip became an all-girls outing instead.
We were still deciding what to do when Moeka’s little sister, Aika, got all excited and begged to come along.

Apparently, "If Ayu-chan’s gonna wear the swimsuit I picked out, then I have to go too!"

And just like that, my sense of safety evaporated.

Since we were short a chaperone, I suggested inviting Sakurako’s older sister, Yoshino. We asked her, and she agreed right away. Perfect—Yoshino’s a college student, so she could be our responsible adult.

When the plan was finalized, Sakurako made a small grimace and muttered, "Ehh…" but oh well.

And so, the five of us—five girls—were headed for the beach.

"Dammit, I was really looking forward to that…"

"Come on, you can still join us for the camping trip."

We’d scheduled the camping trip right before the Obon holidays in August, so it wouldn’t overlap with his remedial classes. That one would just be the cooking club members.

"I just wanted to see you girls in swimsuits…"

"Whose, exactly?"

"Yours, Ayu."

"R-right."

I had no idea how to respond to that with a straight face.
Honestly, I’d have preferred if he’d said it jokingly, like he usually did.

"I’m flattered you’re curious about my swimsuit, but just to be clear—harassment’s off-limits, okay?"

"Wh—what?!"

Seriously, what’s with that shocked expression? Isn’t that just common sense?

"Anyway, Ryoji, why do you only tease me? Messing with a pseudo-girl like me isn’t exactly rewarding, you know."

"You idiot, if I did that to Aikawa or Minase, I’d get arrested!"

It’s still harassment when you do it to me, moron!
To make my point, I gave him a solid headbutt in the back.

"Huh? What’s wrong? Feeling dizzy from the heat?"

Ugh—didn’t even faze him!
For someone so dense, he’s built tough. My head hurt, but he didn’t even flinch—that’s just unfair.

The bike turned the final corner and came to a stop in front of my house.

"Fuh… we’re here."

"Yeah. Thanks for the rides every day. I’m planning to buy my own bike during summer break, so you won’t have to give me lifts next semester."

"O-oh… I see…"

Ryoji’s expression dimmed slightly.

He should’ve looked happier—after all, he’d finally be free of his daily passenger. Maybe he was just tired.

Today was the closing ceremony, so school had ended at noon.
After a short meeting with the cooking club to discuss summer plans, I’d gone straight home. Now it was midday—the hottest part of the day.

The weather guy on TV kept talking about “record-breaking heat,” so it was probably over 35 degrees again.

Riding double on a bike in that kind of heat… no matter how sturdy Ryoji was, he had to be close to passing out.

"Want to come in and cool off for a bit?"

"Huh!? Are you sure?"

"What are you talking about? You used to come over all the time back in middle school, remember?"

"O-oh… yeah, that’s true."

Without waiting for his answer, I opened the front door and stepped inside.
Then I turned and beckoned him in.

He hesitated for a moment, then finally said, "Excuse me for intruding," and stepped up into the entryway.

"Welcome home, Ayumi-chan! Oh my, Ryoji-kun, it’s been ages!"

"Welcome back, Ayu-nee! Ah, Ryoji-san, hi there!"

Mom and Kaname came to greet me at the door, and when they saw Ryoji standing behind me, they smiled warmly.

"It’s so hot out, so I thought I’d let him cool off for a bit."

I gave Mom a quick explanation of why I’d brought Ryoji along.

Come to think of it, the last time he’d been here was… what, back in March?
When I was still a guy, he used to visit pretty often, but ever since I became a girl, he hadn’t come even once.
I wonder why.

"Since you’ve been giving Ayumi-chan rides every day, you’re more than welcome here! Oh, and if you’d like, stay for lunch too."

"Ah, sure. Thank you."

Ryoji nodded.

"Come on then, Ryoji—let’s head up to my room."

I said, walking up the stairs. He followed behind me.
And for the record—he couldn’t see anything from that angle! I’ve perfected my technique for that sort of situation.

I turned around, half-expecting to catch him sneaking a peek, but nope.
He wasn’t even trying.
Somehow, that just made me feel like the only idiot here.

He looked a little tense.
Well, I guess that’s normal when you’re visiting a friend’s house.
I felt the same way when I first went to Moeka’s or Sakurako’s place.

"It’s been a while, huh? Since you last came over."

I opened the door to my room and stepped inside.

But Ryoji didn’t follow.

"What’s wrong?"

"Uh, I dunno. Guess I just got nervous—it really feels like a girl’s room now."

…That didn’t sound like him at all. Not that I’d say it out loud.
Still, I couldn’t blame him. I’d felt the same when I first visited Moeka’s room.
But still—Ryoji, of all people?

"I mean, seriously. I didn’t expect to see stuffed animals all over your bed. Last time I came, you had game consoles gathering dust in the corner."

Yeah… my room had changed completely. The wallpaper was a soft pink, and the sheets and curtains a pale cream. There was even a full-length mirror now.
I still had all my old manga and consoles from my guy days—I still read and played them often—but now plushies were everywhere.

And, well… I’d spent so much money on those plushies that I couldn’t afford a bike, so I was still relying on Ryoji’s rides. I felt kind of guilty about that.

At first, I hadn’t cared what my room looked like.
But after seeing Moeka’s cute setup, I started thinking, “Maybe it’d be nice to have a cute room too.”
I guess I just wanted something comforting instead of plain.

"Here you go, Ayumi-chan—brought you some juice."

"Thanks, Mom."

I took the juice and handed one to Ryoji.

"So you really call her ‘Mom’ now, huh?"

"Ugh. Don’t make fun of me. She gets mad if I don’t…"

Ah, crap. Ryoji was grinning.

That was one thing I really didn’t want him teasing me about.
He’d known me since I used to call her ‘Mother,’ after all.
I’d gotten used to saying ‘Mom,’ but it was still embarrassing when someone pointed it out.

"Still… looking at you now, you really do seem like a girl. More than I expected. You sure you’re okay with that?"

"Okay with it? Hmm… Honestly, I’m not really sure. It’s not like I’m trying to act girly. I just started liking certain things, buying what I thought was nice… and I guess it turned out this way."

Ryoji watched me quietly as I gave my vague answer.

"Would it bother you," I asked, "if I kept changing more into a girl?"

"If you turned into a girl, huh… Well, honestly, it’d be weirder if you kept insisting you were a guy. Not with how you look now."

"Haha, yeah, fair point."

I couldn’t help laughing.
I used to think, “I’m still a guy!” even while looking like this, but that just didn’t hold up anymore.
Living as a girl among other girls—thinking like that just naturally faded away.

Ryoji watched me smile.

"Sometimes you’re seriously… too cute for your own good—"

"Huh? Sorry, didn’t catch that."

He’d muttered something under his breath, but I couldn’t make it out.
His face turned red, and he quickly brushed it off with, "It’s nothing."
No matter how I pressed him, he wouldn’t say another word.

Then he downed the rest of his juice in one go and let out a small sigh.
What was he so flustered about?

"Anyway, too bad about the beach trip. I was really looking forward to it… and your swimsuit. Oh, and Ayu, be careful out there—you’ll get hit on again."

"It’s not like I go out of my way to get hit on, you know."

"Yeah, I know, but still—stick with the others. If you’re alone, you’ll probably get approached every five seconds."

"That’s faster than they can even finish their first pickup line!"

We both laughed.

Yeah… maybe it’s a little disappointing that I won’t get to go to the beach with Ryoji after all.

"Then how about this, Ryoji? Let’s go to the pool together sometime."

"Seriously!? Just the two of us!?"

"With everyone!"

Geez—don’t perk up like that!
How desperate is he to see a swimsuit, anyway? He could just buy a magazine if he’s that curious.

Still, that reaction was very much like him.
He’d been acting unusually calm today, so seeing a flash of his usual energy actually put me at ease.

"Hey, Ryoji. Summer break’s gonna be fun, huh?"

"Yeah. It really is."

This summer was shaping up to be the hottest one yet—in more ways than one.