After Felix finished the drink given by the stranger, his head began to spin, and a strange heat slowly spread throughout his body...
At that moment, the only thing on Felix's mind was getting back home. However, right in front of him, he started seeing bizarre things, as if he were being haunted by someone. That unsettling feeling forced him to run and find a place to hide.
He looked around. There was no one there. Thinking the coast was clear, he began to step out of his hiding spot.
But just as he was about to leave, someone suddenly touched his shoulder. Felix slowly turned his head around.
The hand resting on his shoulder felt heavy. His body began to tremble as he looked back...
In sheer shock, he suddenly snapped awake from his sleep....
"Phew, gasp.... that.. was just a dream..?"
Felix slowly sat up from his bed and looked around. His gaze landed on the wall clock, which showed 04:32 AM..
However, there was a strange sensation he couldn't quite explain. He felt confused, as if experiencing a wave of déjà vu, and his body felt noticeably lighter than usual..
Felix got out of bed and walked toward the mirror. When he caught his reflection, that bizarre and confusing feeling rushed right back into his mind..
His body felt entirely different. It was as if it was slowly turning into the body of a woman.
"Is this really my body now..? It feels different and a bit lighter than before.. Wait!"
Felix began checking his body, but then...
"No way.. it's gone..?!"
A wave of panic started to set in. He tried to process it, recalling everything that had happened to him before. But no matter how hard he thought, he couldn't find any answers..
While trying to figure things out, Felix remembered the man who had given him the drink. He thought about looking for him again, but then he remembered that the man was already gone..
"Damn it.. my body is slowly changing.. how do I turn it back..?"
An hour passed just like that. Felix lay on his bed in complete despair.
"Hah.. why is this happening to me..? I didn't ask for this.. is this some kind of fate that was meant to happen to me..?"
Felix began to give up. He also noticed that his hair felt a little longer than it did yesterday.
The sky began to brighten, but his mind was still clouded with confusion. He kept dwelling on what was actually happening to him.
"If I show myself to my siblings.. they'll definitely be shocked and worry about me, right..?"
That worry kept spinning endlessly inside his head.
Felix tried to forget about everything for a moment and decided to take a shower as quickly as possible, before his siblings woke up.
He opened his bedroom door and looked around the house, which was still quiet and cold. This time, Elena hadn't woken up yet. Felix realized that his sister must have worked really hard taking care of him all night.
"Huh.. it's almost half past five.. I need to shower quickly.."
Felix immediately ran to the bathroom.
Not long after Felix went inside, Rhett stepped out of his room and noticed Felix's bedroom door was still wide open.
"Hm.. looks like he's showering."
Rhett then glanced at the dining table and saw there were still seven pieces of bread left.
"Jackpot!"
He quickly grabbed the bread and started eating while sitting on the living room sofa, waiting for Felix to finish his shower.
Meanwhile, Felix stared at his reflection in the bathroom mirror and murmured quietly to himself.
"I can't believe this is actually happening to me.. and my chest is sticking out a bit..? Damn it.. this change makes me so uncomfortable."
While showering, Felix couldn't stop overthinking what had happened to him. He chose to speed up his shower, even though he frequently lost his balance because his body felt way too light, yet felt a bit heavy on top..
Twelve minutes passed. Finally, Felix finished his shower. He peeked outside carefully, hiding behind the door to make sure everyone was still asleep. Feeling a bit relieved, he slowly walked back toward his room.
However, as he passed the living room, Rhett caught Felix's reflection in the glass. He noticed that Felix was wearing a towel and seemed to be covering his chest.
"Hey, Felix."
The sudden call startled Felix. Rhett stood up and looked at him with a serious expression.
"What exactly is going on with you, Fel?"
The tone of his voice made Felix's body tremble. Nervously, he replied that he was fine. But Rhett repeated his question, this time even more seriously.
"Be honest with me, Fel. What's really going on with you?"
"..."
The atmosphere suddenly fell dead silent. Felix lowered his head, his hands still tightly gripping the towel.
"I.. I—"
Before he could even finish his sentence, Felix suddenly bolted into his room and locked the door. Rhett could only stand there in silence, realizing that his suspicions from last night were indeed correct.
Behind his bedroom door, Felix leaned back while catching his heavy breath.
"No way.. Bro Rhett woke up earlier than Sis Elena.. how am I going to explain this to both of them later..?"
He slowly walked over to the mirror and stared at himself.
"Please... someday, let me go back to my original body.."
Feeling disheartened, Felix began putting on his school uniform. But as he put it on, everything felt a bit too big. Despite the discomfort, he wore it anyway.
After finishing getting ready, Felix slowly unlocked his bedroom door. He cracked it open a bit and peeked outside. He saw Rhett and Elena talking with serious expressions.
Unable to hold back his feelings any longer, Felix finally stepped out and approached them. As the conversation continued, Elena noticed Felix's presence and immediately walked over to him with a confused and worried look.
"Lix.. are you okay..? What exactly happened to you..?"
Elena held both of Felix's hands. Felix could feel his sister's hands trembling with worry. He couldn't take it anymore, and finally, he began to explain everything that had happened to him since he went to the mall yesterday afternoon.
Slowly, Felix recounted everything from the very beginning until he returned home. He told them everything honestly. Both of his siblings went dead silent, their expressions completely blank. Elena could only pray that one day Felix would return to his old self.
They brought an end to the morning's gloom. Elena then asked in a hesitant tone.
"Are you sure you want to go to school today, Fel?"
Felix hesitated for a moment, but still chose to go. Elena respected his decision, but before that, she asked another question.
"Oh right, aren't you going to try wearing a bra..?"
The question made Felix freeze on the spot, his face turning bright red. Rhett, who overheard it, was so shocked that he spat out the drink he was having.
"Huh?!"
Elena turned to Rhett with a sharp, piercing glare.
"What? Why? If Felix's condition is already like this, at least he needs some protection. And don't think about anything weird, Rhett. Or you're sleeping outside tonight."
Unable to argue back, Rhett could only comply with Elena's words.
"So? If you don't wear it now, you're gonna regret it later, Fel."
Left with no other choice, Felix finally agreed.
Elena took Felix to her room. She found something suitable for him, then turned back to Felix while giving him some words of encouragement.
"Fel, I know you can't accept this situation.. but I hope you keep fighting, okay? One day, you'll definitely be able to change back."
Felix could only stay quiet, feeling sad, yet also feeling the warmth and support from Elena, even though this was never something he wanted.
After that, Elena began helping Felix change and explained a bit about how to be a woman, along with a few things he needed to know. Even after all those explanations, Felix still didn't fully understand.
"It's okay if you still don't get it. Moving forward, I'll teach you more often. Oh right, if possible, don't go to school tomorrow. People will start noticing the changes in you. For now, just hold on."
Felix could only agree and put his clothes back on.
"Remember, Fel. Don't do anything that stands out. It's too dangerous."
Felix nodded, keeping her words in mind.
They all got ready and drove Felix to school.
Twenty minutes passed.
Felix stepped out of the car and waved to Elena and Rhett.
"Remember, be careful."
Felix gave a soft nod.
"Yeah."
Felix began walking into the school with a rather hesitant feeling, but he convinced himself to endure just this one day at school.
As Felix walked through the school hallway, he happened to bump into Alexa and greeted her.
"Alexa!"
Alexa immediately turned toward Felix and called him back. However.. she sensed something strange about Felix's body today. He felt different.
"Hey Felix. Come to class with me! Hurry up! There's something important I need to ask you."
Without knowing anything, Alexa straight up dragged him toward the classroom. At that moment, she felt Felix's hands were incredibly soft, not rough like they usually were, making her even more certain that something had happened to him.
Upon arriving in class, Alexa immediately whispered and asked what was going on with Felix. Felix tried to lie, saying that he was completely fine. But Alexa caught on and asked him seriously.
"Since when did you become this short, and your skin this smooth overnight, Felix? I'm sure something happened after we split up yesterday, right?"
Since Alexa had already figured it out, Felix couldn't hide anything anymore. He finally told her what had happened to him.
Their conversation turned dead serious.
As Felix explained everything that had happened to him, Alexa was completely shocked and couldn't believe it. She couldn't accept that Felix had suddenly turned into a girl.. She couldn't accept it at all.. Tears streamed down Alexa's eyes as she asked him,
"Someday.. you're going to change back, right..?"
With a chaotic mess of feelings in his heart, Felix comforted her and drew her into a hug.
"I'm sure.. one day I'll get back to my original self.. Alexa."
Feeling a bit relieved, Alexa slowly began to accept it, even though her heart was still struggling with a reality she couldn't fully take in yet.
The bell rang, signaling the start of the first period. Everyone entered the classroom and continued their school activities like usual.
After a few hours passed, the first recess finally arrived. Alexa invited Felix to eat together at the cafeteria, and he accepted.
They walked out of the classroom and headed toward the cafeteria together, joking and laughing just like they always did. Once they arrived, they ordered their usual—ramen.
While waiting for the food, they talked about the assignments they needed to work on. Before long, Felix informed Alexa that he wouldn't be coming to school tomorrow. If he kept hiding his identity, people might start getting suspicious.
Of course, Alexa was the only friend at school who knew about Felix's change. She understood and told Felix to keep it a secret for now.
Right in the middle of their conversation, their orders arrived. Just as Felix was about to eat, he suddenly felt the urge to use the restroom. In a rush, he told Alexa that he was going to the toilet and asked her to watch his food.
Felix ran off in a hurry. While running, he didn't notice someone standing right in front of him and crashed right into them. Felix tumbled down, but the other person didn't budge.
"Are you alright? Need a hand getting up?"
When Felix looked up, he realized that the person he had bumped into was Alder—the exact same guy he had bumped into yesterday.
Unable to hold it in any longer, Felix accepted Alder's help and thanked him. At that exact moment, Alder noticed something bizarre about him.
His hands feel so soft.. and his body looks smaller.. this isn't the Felix I know. Something is definitely strange with him.
Alder then followed Felix and watched him run toward the restroom. He kept his distance, keeping a careful eye on his surroundings so he wouldn't get caught.
If he changed like that.. I need to find out. I'll ask him later why he changed.
Aside from Alexa, Alder had also noticed the change in Felix. But Alder had his own reasons for investigating what had happened last night.
After some time, Felix finally came out of the toilet. Alder hid himself, maintaining his distance.
Felix then returned to Alexa.
Alexa asked him, "You didn't accidentally walk into the girls' bathroom, did you, Fel?"
Quickly, Felix replied, "No. Honestly, looking at my physical appearance.. I still look like a guy."
Satisfied with the answer, Alexa nodded.
From afar, Alder continued to observe and recalled what had happened yesterday. But he decided to hold back and investigate further after school was over.
For now.. this change is too bizarre. I'll look into it later. I just hope he isn't the person my father was talking about..
Some time passed, and the dismissal bell finally rang. Many students headed home, while a few still stayed behind at school.
"Fel, I have another student council meeting today, so I'll be heading back a bit late. You go ahead and head home first, okay? I'll go home later with Ms. Erista."
"Alright, I get it. Take care, Alexa. Don't push yourself too hard!"
Alexa smiled and waved at Felix.
As Felix walked out through the school gates, Elena was already there to pick him up.
"Wow, looks like today went smoothly, huh, Fel?"
Felix gave a small smile.
"Yeah.. everything was fine."
Since Elena was already there, they headed back home.
But.. on the other side, Alder..
—To Be Continued—