To my surprise, even after the first class ended, Tsuchida still hadn’t shown up at school.

After class, I headed to Ms. Yukimura’s office.

“Huh? Tsuchida’s running a fever?!”

That was the answer I got from Ms. Yukimura.

Walking back to the classroom, I was suddenly flooded with inexplicable excitement.

—Heaven’s on my side!

I’d just learned Tsuchida’s address yesterday, and today this perfect opportunity dropped into my lap!

A gift from the heavens? Or Lady Luck smiling down?

Whatever the reason, this was undoubtedly the perfect chance to step into Tsuchida’s home.

With my current rapport with Tsuchida’s brother, plus visiting her while she’s sick? Smooth sailing. Totally reasonable.

Back at my desk, I scanned the classroom out of boredom. That’s when I noticed Shiraishi Rei in the front row turning to look at me.

I shook my head and gazed out the window.

Outside, raindrops mercilessly battered the cherry blossoms, scattering petals across the once-pristine path like a delicate carpet.

Body-swapping… I still couldn’t quite accept it. After all, being a guy for so many years, how could I *not* be curious about a girl’s body?

Any normal guy—without that straight-guy complex—would feel a sacred longing for the world of women.

What secrets lay beneath a girl’s skirt? It’s what every young boy wonders about…

——————

During lunch break, I met Koushin and Nagisa at the school cafeteria—to repay yesterday’s meal and escape the girls’ siege in our classroom.

Who could eat peacefully under so many hostile stares? Not to mention the pranks that might strike anytime.

Ever since the Student Council axed our "Operation Kamidou Chiyo," the girls’ pranks had toned down—probably thanks to the Council’s warnings too.

Guess being forced into this damn Student Council had its perks after all.

The three of us ate while chatting about typical high school boy stuff.

Then Shiraishi Rei appeared, tray in hand. She glanced at me and sat right beside me.

Silence fell over all three of us—me, Koushin, and Nagisa.

That loudmouth Nishi Koushin even dropped his chopsticks, staring blankly at the golden-haired girl.

“Hey! What’re you gawking at? Never seen a girl before?”

I waved a hand in front of his face. Nagisa, though, stayed relatively calm—he’d only known me a few days and didn’t fully grasp my girl-repelling aura yet.

But Nishi Koushin? My childhood friend knew that aura all too well.

No wonder he was losing his cool. He probably couldn’t believe a girl would willingly sit beside me.

“…Dude… pinch me. Am I dreaming? A girl actually approached you? Is it the end of the world?”

“You *are* dreaming. No need to check.” I rolled my eyes, making it up on the spot.

“Huh? So it *is* a dream? That explains why you’d be popular with girls!”

Koushin slapped his palm with a fist, suddenly enlightened.

—Wait, you actually bought that?!

I facepalmed as he swallowed my lie whole.

“Um… Chiyo-kun… didn’t you say girls hate you…?” Nagisa stammered.

“I did. But even with this curse, exceptions happen—like glitches. Get it, Nagisa?” I dodged the question vaguely.

“I see…” Nagisa—looking every bit the delicate girl—tilted her head thoughtfully. “Can you introduce us, Chiyo-kun?”

“Shiraishi Rei.”

Before I could speak, the silent girl beside me stated her name flatly.

“This is Nagisa from our class,” I quickly added, “and the guy still dreaming over there is Nishi Koushin.”

Rei nodded slightly while chewing, acknowledging them.

After that, her sudden presence thickened the air with awkwardness. We all ate in stiff silence.

When lunch ended, Rei grabbed my wrist the moment I stood up and pulled me out of the cafeteria.

“Wait!! Shiraishi, what are you—?!”

…

Inside a bathroom stall, I swallowed hard, staring at the girl before me.

“What’s this about… Shiraishi…?”

“Didn’t you say yesterday… you wanted to try?” She stepped closer slowly. “So… let’s try now…”

“…Uh… maybe not…”

Seeing her like this, I recoiled. Swapping bodies with a girl *here*, in this school? No way.

“…So you’re backing out, Chiyo-kun?”

Rei’s face darted toward mine—but I dodged sideways.

This girl was serious? So eager to swap bodies… what’s her real plan?

In that split second, I smelled a trap…

“I’m not backing out! Besides, what exactly did I say yesterday? I just said ‘let’s try’—that could mean anything!”

I defended myself after dodging her “attack.” I *never* promised a body swap. “Try” had endless interpretations!

“Chiyo-kun, I forgot to mention one thing. This is the girls’ restroom.”

Rei smiled sweetly after my dodge, dropping a bombshell.

Rushed in here, I hadn’t even noticed the surroundings.

Only now did I realize how dangerously trapped I was.

“I know about your aura. What do you think will happen if the guy who repels all girls walks out of here… in his own body?”

Rei smoothed her hair, calm as ice.

“But if you leave in *my* body? Your aura transfers to me. Problem solved, don’t you think?”