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With the scheduled time approaching, I rush back to my room to get a change of clothes but why the heck is Ayaka oh so naturally following beside me? Is she really bathing along with me?

“Seriously?”
“This is practically my only chance to bathe together, after all. You haven’t done it with Isami yet, right?”
“What yet, I don’t plan on bathing with her at all.”
“I feel bad for Isami. If I’m correct, they have a concert today, I believe.”

That’s the scary part. My current location is Kyoto. And those guys are performing in Osaka. For our itinerary, we’re going to stop by Osaka, so there’s a risk of things getting troublesome if they ever get wind of this.

“Ayaka, are you here alone?”
“I’m with my manager. I hauled her along when I debuted.”
“Oi, who did you drag with you?”

From the way she spoke, she probably got one of the caretakers from our class involved. And considering the mention of “her” and them being together in private, it’s one of the girls. Ayaka’s got a surprisingly large social circle, so it’s hard to pinpoint who.

“Ran.”
“Class Prez, rest in peace.”

Oikawa Ran. She’s the leader of the girls, being called Class Prez for some reason, and one of the head caretakers. By the way, the head caretaker of the boys is me. A head who would go wild occasionally and spin things out of control, that is.

“It’s not like I particularly caused her much trouble, you know. I haven’t done anything close to what I’ve done back then.”
“Sounds like you’ve mellowed out a lot. You were the type to take initiative when things get boring, too.
“I’m no longer in a position where I can casually mess around like in the past. I’m a working adult with responsibilities, after all. I can’t stay acting like a child forever.”

That’s the part of her that’s changed, huh. I’m glad that she’s learned to behave appropriately, but I feel like she’d occasionally go wild every now and then. After all, she’s definitely in a berserk state right now.

“Koto-chan. Sorry, but could we pass by our room first before heading to yours?”
“I don’t mind. You’re going to have Class Prez come along, right?”
“Exactly. It’s best to share the happiness in these sorts of situations.”
“You’re just getting her involved.”

I don’t have any issue with Ran joining. It’s rare for her to go out of control, after all, and she’s not the type to easily believe that I’m Souji at first meeting. She’s a completely sane individual, after all.

“Ran, let’s go to the hot spring.”
“That’s quite sudden. Thank goodness I prepared.”

Glasses and medium-length black hair. And that air of diligence of hers, hasn’t changed a bit. Still, she seems more mature now, probably from age.

“And it seems like you’ve given someone trouble.”
“Trouble? Not at all. Rather, it’s something of a reward, instead. After all, she stole my first kiss.”
“You’re the one who’s stolen my lips here!”

Don’t just make crap up. Seeing Ran sighing with a hand on her cheek, she seems used to it. Even in our school days, it was Ran’s job to clean up after her regular mess.

“With this, you can take romance-type roles now.”
“Uwaah, business as usual.”

I don’t know if I’m relieved or not about Ran being completely unchanged on the inside. Even in the past, she gave off the impression of being perfect for secretary work. If I remember, her first employment was a regular office job.

“Nonetheless, what a coincidence. To think that I’d meet the Koto-chan trending in our group.”
“Wait. Why has that become my go to nickname?”
“Because Isami’s info withheld your real name and went with Koto-chan.”

If you’re withholding it, then just withhold everything. Why did you send a picture with a portion of personal info? I can see signs of Isami trying to be considerate, but she’s obviously not doing it right.

“That damned idiot. Next time we meet, I’ll definitely smack her.”
“Isami isn’t the type to learn her lesson from just that. You can’t begin to imagine how much I had suffered with her.”
“Completely true.”

A mere warning isn’t enough to stop that fool from running amok. Even the use of force can only do so much. At worst, if she gets unrestrained, she might go even wilder. Because of that, there’s even a chance that the teachers back then would’ve been overwhelmed if there wasn’t any caretaker round.

“Actually, why are you in complete agreement, Koto-chan?”
“It’s because she’s Souji.”
“I see… Hah?”

She was convinced of Ayaka’s words for a second before questioning it, huh. To begin with, this is the proper reaction. Ayaka’s reaction was not normal. Isami would probably be an instant believer though. She’s not normal too, after all.

“No, but hasn’t Souji already passed away?”
“For some reason, he became a girl. If it wasn’t for that, there’s no way I would have given my first kiss away.”
“Nono, think rationally, that’s strange.”

I nod in agreement. Man, what’s with this sense of relief? My existence is being denied, but it feels like I’ve finally found a normal sane person.

“See, Ayaka? That’s the proper reaction.”
“You’re right. Somehow, I feel a great sense of relief.”
“Eh? No way. You’re really Souji?”
“I won’t deny it. Still, I’m actually dead for real. The one in here right now is just Kisaragi Kotone.”

It’d be a problem if the conversation continues under the assumption that Souji is alive. My life as Okita Souji has already ended. The life I should live henceforth should be that of Kisaragi Kotone’s. And yet I still desperately cling on to my male consciousness, how pathetic.

“Is that really true?”
“There’s no point lying about it, no? I don’t know how but… my soul, I guess? And stuff got transferred to Kotone’s body.”

The details, even I don’t know myself. I’ve already stopped thinking about the why & hows. After all, no matter how much I ponder about it, there’s no way for me to discover.