The next morning, Mizuha and Eri went to school together after bumping into each other at the road junction.
"The weather’s getting hot, isn’t it?"
"You're right. We're already at the end of spring, and we're heading into summer next week."
"Next week, we'll switch to our summer uniforms. I can't wait to see how I look in them."
Oh, I haven't even looked at how my summer uniform looks yet, Mizuha thought.
Then, they heard Shimizu calling them from behind.
"Mizuha-chan, Eri-chan, good morning."
"Oh, Shimizu, good morni—"
Mizuha froze, seeing Shimizu approaching in a feminine, polite manner, dressed just like in her dream yesterday.
"Eri-chan, can you slap my face?"
Eri hesitated. "Umm... okay..."
Slap!!
Mizuha touched her own cheeks. "Thanks...!!"
So, this isn't a dream... but why has she changed like this?
"Eri-chan, is that really Shimizu?"
"Yes, it is, but why is she dressed like that?"
Shimizu approached them politely.
"Good morning, both of you. Seems like it’s slightly hotter today, right?"
Eri then approached Shimizu and suddenly pulled her cheek. "Stretch."
"Ah, it hurts, Eri-chan, it hurts."
Mizuha was surprised. "Eh, wait, Eri-chan...!?"
Mizuha smirked. "Oh, this seems interesting. Eri-chan, not that way, try pulling her cheek this way instead."
Mizuha suddenly pulled her cheek harder than Eri had.
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Shimizu shouted normally. "It hurts so much, you know! What's wrong with you two today!?"
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Mizuha and Eri said together, "Ah, she's back to normal..."
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"What's wrong, Shimizu? You're suddenly dressed up and acting so polite. I thought I was still dreaming—like yesterday, you know."
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Shimizu sighed. "Well, actually..."
The previous day, Shimizu was reading manga in the living room. "Haha, this character is so funny, it reminds me of that Takamiya." She laughed, comparing the manga character with Hikaru.
Her mother went to talk to her suddenly.
"Ayumi, sit properly and close your legs. You act like a boy. I'm worried about you. You don't have ladylike manners."
At home, Shimizu was called by her given name, 'Ayumi', unlike at school.
"But Kaa-san, this is how I always act."
"No, you weren't this boyish before. Back then, you used to be a good girl until you suddenly changed."
"Really? Is that so?" Shimizu thought back to her past, then shook her head.
Ah, I really didn't want to remember that. During that time, I was truly weak and felt useless.
Then her mother spoke. "You need to act like a proper lady sometimes. Stay this boyish and you won't get a boyfriend when you're an adult."
Shimizu was clueless. "But how do I act like a proper lady?"
"I have an idea. Why don't you try being polite and feminine at school tomorrow? I'm sure you'll get used to it bit by bit."
"Huh!? No way!" Shimizu protested.
"If I act like that at school, my friends will laugh at me and think something's wrong with me."
"Do it, or your monthly allowance that you're supposed to get tomorrow will be cut in half."
"Alright, I'll do it... just don't cut my allowance."
Her mother had smirked. "Okay, it's settled then. We have a deal."
Shimizu muttered. "This old hag, how dare she threaten to cut my allowance?"
Her mother turned to her with a scary smile. "Did you just call me old hag, huh, A…YU…MII?"
"Wait, I didn’t actually say anything... You just heard me wrong. I promise I'll do it tomorrow." Shimizu stammered before running to her room.
"Geez, this girl…. How dare she call her young-looking mother an old hag…" her mother muttered.
"Umm, you're not young anymore, Kaa-san…" Shimizu's little brother, Takumi, said while passing by.
"Ah, just be silent, Takumi. I don't want to hear it from you…" her mother said.
In her bedroom, Shimizu wondered while lying on her bed. How do I act polite and feminine? Should I copy how Eri behaves every day and speak politely using honorifics?
Suddenly, she remembered how she had been polite in Mizuha’s dream earlier.
Do I need to act like I did in her dream?
"Alright, I'll act like both Eri and the polite, feminine version of me from Mizuha's dream."
"Don't worry, it's just pretend…"
She let her hair down, adjusted the way she spoke to sound more polite, and practiced walking femininely.
After the first try, she was blushing while looking in the mirror. "Ah, it didn't work. I look like an idiot…. One more time…"
She repeated this over and over, training herself until midnight.
That morning, Shimizu's mom finished making breakfast. She called up to her children: "Ayumi, Takumi, breakfast is ready."
"Yes, I'm coming."
Shimizu came down from her room and greeted her mother in a polite, feminine tone. "Good morning, Oka-sama."
Her mother was so shocked she dropped her chopsticks. "Huh!? Who are you?"
"What are you saying, Oka-sama? It's me, your daughter Ayumi-chan."
"Eh...!!! Really, are you really Ayumi?" Her mother couldn't believe it was Shimizu.
"Yes, it's me, Ayumi," she said, thinking, Ah, this is so annoying.
Her mother was amazed by Shimizu's change. "That's it... that's it... Ayumi... I didn't even recognize you at first."
Her mother took out her phone and started taking photos of Shimizu from every angle.
Shimizu felt annoyed and reverted to her usual tone. "What are you doing, Kaa-san?"
Her mother felt blessed. "Finally, finally, I have a daughter..."
"Hey, have you seen me as your son all this time?"
Her brother came into the kitchen. "Oh, good morning."
Who is this cutie? Is she one of my nee-chan's friends? he wondered.
"Are you my big sister's friend? I'm Shimizu Takumi, her little brother."
Both his mother and Shimizu laughed. "Hahaha..."
Takumi was confused. "Why are both of you laughing? What's so funny?"
"What are you talking about, Takumi? That's your nee-chan."
"Huh!? You mean this cute girl is my tomboy nee-chan?"
Shimizu stood up and immediately grabbed his neck with her arm. "Who are you calling a tomboy, huh, Taku-chan?"
Takumi tried to break free. "It hurts... I give up, I give up!"
This is really her. I've been deceived, damn it, he thought.
Takumi started eating his breakfast. "You're so mean, nee-chan. How dare you trick me this morning? I almost fell for it."
Shimizu held her little brother's arm. "Eh, you almost fell for me, huh, Taku-chan? Then how about you go out with me, Takumi?"
Takumi pushed Shimizu aside. "Ah, shut up! I'll never fall for the same trick again."
Her mother looked at the clock on the wall. "Ah, both of you, eat your breakfast quickly, or you’ll be late for school."
"Ah, you're right. This is your fault, big sis, for messing around like this."
"Ayumi, don't forget what I asked you to do yesterday, or you know what will happen to your allowance."
Shimizu was about to leave the house. "Alright, I'll do it."
"That's why I'm acting like this today—to save my allowance from being cut in half."
Ah, she's actually worried about her allowance being cut, both Eri and Mizuha thought, giving Shimizu a strange look.
Meanwhile, Hikaru walked with Zul while eating bread after bumping into him earlier.
"I can't believe I woke up late today."
"It's so rare to see you late; you usually get to school earlier than me."
Then, both of them saw Mizuha and her friends in front of them and approached them.
"Good morning, you guys."
Mizuha and her friends turned around to greet them.
Shimizu approached them with her usual polite and feminine style.
"Ah, you guys, good morning~ Takamiya, Zul, tee-hee."
Both Hikaru and Zul stopped, shocked at what they saw. Hikaru even dropped the bread he was holding.
Zul turned to Hikaru. "Hey, Hikaru, you dropped your bread."
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Hikaru was still frozen in shock. "Yeah, I know."
Hikaru asked Zul to slap his face. "Sure," Zul said — and immediately slapped him.
Slap!
"Thanks, even though it hurt my face so much."
Who is that person... don't tell me... Hikaru thought, getting goosebumps.
Zul finished Hikaru's thought. "Calm down, dude. It’s just Shimizu being polite and feminine."
Hikaru muttered under his breath. "I knew it."
"Ara~ why are you two so stunned?"
Shimizu approached them with a forced polite smile, though she looked angry. "Do you want to say something to my face?"
Ah, she seems angry, Hikaru thought.
"No, no, we're just shocked to see you like this. It's unusual, right, Zul?"
Zul just nodded in agreement.
"I see, then I forgive you guys for that, tee-hee."
Hikaru whispered to Mizuha. "What happened to her? Did she hit her head somewhere?"
Mizuha let out a small laugh.
"Well, we were shocked too earlier." Mizuha then explained everything about Shimizu to both Hikaru and Zul.
Hikaru laughed when he heard the truth.
"Haha... you became like this to save your allowance. That's so hilarious, Shimizu."
"Ah, shut up. It’s none of your business. Do you have a problem with it?"
"No, it's nothing, but it feels off seeing you like this. You somehow look cute like this."
Shimizu blushed. "Ah, cute, you said? I don't want to hear that from someone like you."
She pushed Hikaru away from Mizuha and took his place instead.
"Let's go, Mizuha-chan. Let's ignore this pervert."
Mizuha glared at Hikaru and pouted. "Hmph!"
Is Mizuha jealous because I called Shimizu cute? Hikaru thought.
"Umm, Yuki-san... are you jealous?"
"No, it's nothing... I'm not jealous at all."
Hikaru chased after her. "Ah, please wait for me, Yuki-san."
"I feel weird after seeing Shimizu act like that," Zul said. Eri gave him a dark smile at his complaint.
Zul felt the pressure from Eri's jealousy.
"Eri, what are you doing? Let go of my hand; everyone is watching."
Afterward, the five of them arrived at school and entered their own classes.
Shimizu entered the classroom, walking like a proper lady.
All her classmates looked at her and wondered:
"Who is that?"
"Do we have someone this beautiful beside Sakamoto-san in our class?"
"Is she a new transfer student?"
"But why is she sitting at Shimizu-san's seat?"
Seriously, they didn't notice that's Shimizu, Mizuha thought.
Seeing Mizuha walking behind Shimizu, some of their classmates stopped Mizuha for a moment.
They approached her. "Hey, Yuki-san, who is that? I saw you and Sakamoto-san walking with her earlier."
"Huh? You guys didn't notice? That's Shimizu, you know."
The classmates shouted in shock, realizing that the beautiful girl they had seen earlier was actually Shimizu. "Eh...!!!! Seriously, is that you, Shimizu-san?"
"How did you turn into someone this cute?"
"What happened to you? Are you okay?"
"I'm fine, thanks for your concern."
The male classmates started talking among themselves. "Wow, she looks so different today."
"Do you think she'll agree if I ask her out?"
"Let's ask her to hang out with us."
They approached Shimizu. "Hey, Shimizu-san, do you want to hang out with us today?"
"Yeah, we're planning to go to karaoke after school. Do you want to join us?"
Ah, they are so annoying, Shimizu thought.
Shimizu pretended to be shy. "Umm.... actually.... I.... I...."
"Wow, it's so cute..." they said.
Ah, this has gotten more annoying. They really like me when I look like this. It's so irritating. I'd better make them go away, Shimizu thought.
This... this is really similar to my dream yesterday.... "Fu—" Mizuha tried her best to hold back her laughter.
Shimizu noticed Mizuha holding back her laughter and thought, Mizuha, damn you, you want to laugh at me, huh?
She dropped the shy act but maintained her polite and feminine style. She replied to the guys who had approached her, "Sorry, guys, I'm not interested. I can't join you."
"Don’t say that. Just hang out with us for today," they said.
She continued speaking in the same polite and feminine style.
"Didn't you hear what I said? I said I'm not interested. Do you want me to beat you up? Tee-hee~"
"Oh no, she's upset. Let's get back to our seats now, guys," they said, scared of Shimizu's words.
She sighed, feeling a bit tired of acting this way.
Ah, acting like this is so tiring. I just hope this day passes quickly.
It's that old hag's fault. If she hadn't threatened me earlier, I wouldn't be so tired right now, Shimizu thought, a bit upset with her mother.
Oh, she needs pictures as proof that I acted like this at school, Shimizu suddenly remembered.
"Mizuha-chan!!" Shimizu called, approaching her.
"Yes, Shimizu-chan~?" Mizuha responded, deliberately playing along with the act.
"You see, that old hag at my house wants a photo as proof that I acted like this today. Can you take my photo, please?"
"Oh, why didn't you tell me earlier? Leave it to me, okay, Shimizu-chan."
"Hey, why are you acting like me too? Are you trying to mock me?" Shimizu switched to her normal voice and whispered into Mizuha's ear.
Mizuha chuckled. "Because it's so funny to see you like this, Shimizu-chan."
"You're so mean, Mizuha-chan. How dare you do this to your close friend?" Shimizu pretended to cry. "Sob... sob."
"Stop it, Shimizu. I... I can't hold it in anymore..." Mizuha said, about to burst into laughter.
Shimizu interacted with her female classmates politely and femininely while Mizuha photographed everything.
"I think this is enough," Mizuha said after taking so many photos of Shimizu.
"Yes, this is it. These are really nice photos to show that old hag," Shimizu said.
"Thank you, Mizuha-chan," Shimizu said, still acting that way.
Mizuha sighed, too tired to laugh.
"Ah, enough with it, Shimizu."
After lunch, Shimizu said, "You guys go back first; I need to use the toilet for a moment."
"Could you bring my bento box back to class too, Mizuha-chan?"
"Yes, I'll bring it," Mizuha said lazily.
Shimizu went to the toilet after that. While washing her hands, she heard noise and chaos coming from the toilet area.
Where is that noise coming from? Shimizu wondered.
She took a peek and saw a group of girls ganging up on a lone student near the sinks.
"You just brought this to us, but it's not enough. You should bring more money for us," the group leader said.
"But this is all I have for now. I don't have more than that."
Shimizu sighed.
Is it the group of second-year girls that bullied Eri before? Geez, they haven't changed — and now they have a new victim, Shimizu thought.
"Because you failed, you'll be given a penalty for this," the bully leader said again.
This is bad. I need to save that girl before things get worse, she thought.
Shimizu rushed toward the group and walked in front of the girl being bullied, acting feminine.
"Oya Oya~ what do we have here? A group of seniors ganging up on one girl? That's unfair, you know."
"This isn't a good thing to do, you know, senpai. What would happen if teachers knew about this?"
Shimizu whispered to the girl who was being bullied. "Get out of here. Let me handle this, okay?"
"But, what about you...?" the girl said, worried about Shimizu.
"Don't worry, I will be okay, just leave now, okay?"
The girl understood what Shimizu was asking her to do.
"Understood, but please be careful," she said before running out of the toilet.
"Hey, who are you? How dare you suddenly interrupt our business!"
"Then you'll take that girl's place instead."
"Do what we ask, or we'll beat you up," the bullies said, trying to scare Shimizu.
Shimizu acted helpless and shouted. "Kyaa, so scary! Someone, please save me!!"
"Look, she's shouting like that, hahaha," the bullies laughed at Shimizu.
"If you want to be safe, just give us the money you have now, and we'll leave you untouched," the bullies' leader said.
"Alright, alright, please do not hurt me. I'll give you my money. Please wait a moment."
"Eh.... oops, I forgot I already used my money, tee-hee. All that's left in my pocket is this hair ribbon. Do you want it?" Shimizu said, showing her usual hair ribbon that she always used to tie her hair.
"Hey, please be serious with us, or you'll get a punch from me," the bullies' leader said.
Shimizu suddenly laughed. "Hahaha, serious... with you guys? What's that?"
"What's so funny?" the bullies said, angry with her.
Shimizu tied her hair back with the hair ribbon, unbuttoned her blazer, and dropped her feminine expression for her usual tomboyish look.
"Hey, hey. Has it only been a few weeks? You guys already forgot about me? That's so mean, you know."
Shimizu stood in her usual tomboyish way. "Did you miss me already, senpai? With me acting like that today, you didn't recognize me? That's so pathetic."
"Wait, you're...!!"
"Ah, it's her, the first-year tomboyish girl that beat us up earlier."
"That was… Red Dog Shimizu!!!" they said in unison.
"Yes, that's really her. It's so bad to meet her again. But why did she act differently earlier?"
"Yeah, it's me, Red Dog Shimizu…." Shimizu sighed. "Ah, whatever…."
"You still haven't changed, have you? Maybe you need another lesson," Shimizu added, knocking her knuckles together.
"Wait, please don't... we just…" they said while slowly stepping backward.
"Just what…?" Shimizu slowly walked toward them, trapping them at the dead-end wall.
Shimizu sighed, "Huh, too many things happened today. I didn't have the energy to beat you up."
"Alright, I'll let you go this time."
"But if you do this again, you know what happens. You understand?" Shimizu gave them a glare.
They nodded while shaking. "Understood, we promise not to do that again."
"Good, now you can go…" Shimizu made way for them to leave.
The bullies ran out of the toilet, watched by the girl from earlier.
Why are they running away with such scared expressions? The girl thought.
Also, I wonder what happened to that girl who helped me earlier.
After a few minutes, Shimizu left the toilet, untied her hair, and switched back to her feminine act.
Shimizu walked to her. "You're still here? Are you okay? Did they hurt you earlier?"
"I'm okay. Nothing bad happened to me. They just asked me for money, that's all."
"By the way, what did you do to them to make them run away like that?" the girl asked.
"Ah, it's nothing, I just gave them a hard warning. Don't worry, they won't go after you anymore," Shimizu said.
"Really!? Thank you so much. I won't forget about your kindness. Then please excuse me," the girl said, bowing toward Shimizu before leaving.
She left, and Shimizu waved goodbye to her.
What a nice girl, she somehow reminds me of Mizuha and Eri.
After she left, Shimizu thought, If my mother hears how I acted, she'll cut my allowance without mercy.
I'd better return to my class and end this annoying act quickly.
Time passed, and the school day had ended. Shimizu arrived home with a tired expression.
"I'm home..." She tossed her bag aside and collapsed onto the sofa. "Huh, I'm so tired. I want to go to sleep after this…"
"Ah, welcome back! How was school? Did you do what I asked you to do?"
"Today was the worst. Everyone thinks I've lost my mind."
Her mother chuckled. "Really, that's hilarious... haha."
"Hey, this isn't funny, okay... I really look like an idiot today, you know."
Her mother held herself back from laughing further.
"Okay, okay... relax, I'm just teasing you."
Shimizu handed her phone to her mother. "Here's the proof that I acted feminine at school today."
Her mother looked at the photos and smiled.
"Ah, my cute daughter at school."
"Hey, I'm really your daughter, you know."
"So how about that, are you satisfied now?"
"Yes, good, that's good. I see you actually did what I asked. Here's your allowance for this month. As I promised, I won't cut it in half. Instead, I'll give you extra for your hard work today."
"Oh, the thing I was waiting for, finally! Thanks, Kaa-san!" Shimizu said.
"That's no problem."
Extra amount, yes! Shimizu thought. What should I buy with this money?
Her mother spoke. "Hey, how about you act like that again tomorrow? Please, Ayumi, do it again."
"Please give me a break, Kaa-san. I never want to do that again."
"Don't worry, I'm just joking with you, tee-hee."
"Oh, Kaa-san, geez!!!"
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