‘So it begins…’

 

I prepared myself mentally for a barrage of questions once I entered the classroom.

 

A short walk later and I was outside the classroom. There were still a few minutes until class began, so if I were lucky I would be able to just sneak past this and next period. Although, they are both 3 hours…

 

Maybe I could try to be quiet in the corner.

 

The door swung open and I quickly entered the class, taking a seat in a corner and hoping for the best.

 

Today’s period was divided into 2 parts and a break in the middle, meaning that I might get interrogated during the break.

 

‘Ah, the pains of being TS’d’

 

A few minutes after I entered the classroom a teacher stepped inside, he was an old man with graying hair and glasses and seemed like he would grumble at even the slightest thing. 

 

I just sat quietly and tried to focus on the teacher. 

Surprisingly not many paid that much attention to me, or was it just me who didn’t notice? In either case, I was cool with it. Eventually, it was time to do actual work and not just listen to a grumbly teacher for half an hour. 

 

That meant people might walk right up to me and start asking questions. And I was not cool with that.

 

I quietly sat in the corner and did schoolwork, trying to avoid the gazes of all the other people. I could hear chattering among the other students though, some talking about where I was and others wondering who the “new girl” was.

 

I sunk lower into the schoolbook to hide the embarrassment on my face. Out of the corner of my vision, I could see my usual friends hanging out together talking about something. 

 

If I could finish the work in front of me quickly then I would be out of here! Sadly, my plans did not match up with reality and I found myself staring at three girls. 

 

These three beauties were popular in school and probably more trouble than they were worth. But first I’ve got to clear past this challenge.

 

“C-can I help you with something?” I nervously asked them, unsure of their intentions. The middle girl looked like the boss of the three, and she was stacked. Aside from her light brown hair and brown eyes, she also had a hair clip on her left bang

 

She puffed her chin and responded in an awfully jealous voice. 

 

“Who are you? And why are you so cute?”

 

I was taken back by her question but remained calm enough to clearly think about my answer. 

 

“I’m… I’m Harumi.” I meekly responded to their curious yet kinda aggressive gazes. 

 

“Okay, I’m Yuuna, the girl beside me with the bob-cut is Nanami and this gal here is Kasiwara.” They introduced themselves and I found myself exchanging contact information for a future meetup.

 

I broke down on the table and pondered over what I’ve just done. 

 

“Ah… If I were a guy this would have never happened to me, would it? Damn… What should I do now? Fake illness? Come up with an excuse? Why did I have to go with the flow…” I quietly mumbled for myself while pondering over my life decisions until this point. 

 

“Heya- You alright?” An unknown voice asked me, and I glanced upwards. It was one… No, probably one of my best online gaming buds. 

 

“I’m fine…” I once again meekly replied, being too overwhelmed with having my best online friend next to me. 

 

What’s with all of these people checking up on me? It’s like I’m in some sort of novel or something!

 

Putting aside the sneaky suspicion of my life not being real, I tried to just get it over with for the rest of the day. I quickly snuck out during lunch and returned within the minute to avoid interaction.

 

With an exhausted sigh, I left the university, happy that I didn’t drown in questions. 

 

The bus trip home was nothing out of the ordinary, and Kanade sent me a message to buy groceries. I groaned at the thought of prolonging my already exhausting excursion outside, but buying essential goods is important. 

 

The bus rolled to a stop and I stepped outside again, taking a fresh breath of air and getting my bearings set. The local grocery was just a few minutes away. My phone pinged again and I glanced at it. Kanade had sent a list of things I needed to buy. 

 

“Couldn’t she have just bought it herself? It’s not like she’s doing anything physical at home…” 

 

Right, I’m her boyfriend and I’ve gotta go buy it. She’s making the household run after all. The walk to the store was short and uneventful, lucky me. But I always had the feeling of something staring at me, or maybe it was my paranoia. 

 

I entered the grocer and a cool breeze washed over me, taking with it some of the tropical heat. 

 

“That feeling never gets old!”

 

After speedrunning buying food I walked back into the heat. But There were a bunch of cats outside the door, with all kinds of colors, some with collars, others without.

 

“Uh… What the heck is this?!” 

 

The sea of cats just sat around me and waited. 

 

“Hnng… Considering whatever I’ve been through so far I shouldn’t get too surprised. Think logically Haru, Think! Why could they have gathered around you?”

 

The self-reflecting speech lessened my anxiety and gave me some breathing space to think. 

 

‘Okay, I’m kind of like a part cat, so maybe they want me something? Or maybe they see me as some important person? I don’t know…’

 

I tried to wade through the glaring of cats, being mindful to not step on their tails. 

 

And guess what happened? Yep, I ended up stepping on a tail. Lucky me. 

 

The cat in question shrieked a bit before scurrying off. Guess he got some different priorities now? I lightly jogged to try and get away from the crowd, but a few of the cats followed me all the way home. Creepy, innit?

 

I walked up the stairs and unlocked the door, followed by a quick slam to not let in any cats. 

 

“Kanade! Something weird has been going on!” 

 

“Oh?”

 

I placed the grocery into the fridge and started explaining. 

 

“So I just exited the bus, then I got your text to buy stuff, And then I had this feeling of being watched, but I shrugged it of as paranoia or something. After I bought all the things a huge group of cats was waiting outside, but nobody else seemed to notice it!”

 

I hugged Kanade while having a mild case of panic attack. 

 

“Idon’tknowwhyandI’mscaredAAAA!”

 

“Calm down, it’s alright.” Kanade soothed me while petting my head. I couldn’t care more about my cat ears.

 

We moved to the good ol’ couch and I got to snuggle with Kanade.