"I see, I understand the situation. So you want me to make him cool and reduce his cuteness?" Karisu Maki said, folding her arms.
"Yes," Erika answered immediately. "As you can see, his face makes people misunderstand him. I need you to make it so he can go to school normally. And cool too. Can you do it?"
After laughing for a while, Erika somehow managed to explain the situation in between chuckles, though even she looked a little unsure if this request was even possible.
But Karisu Maki only smirked with confidence. "Sure, I can do it. So, Akira-kun, right? Come sit. I'll make sure you look cool."
Akira nodded stiffly and walked over to sit in the salon chair. But while he outwardly looked calm, inside his head, he was having a very serious conversation. "Hey, sister. Is she an anime character? I had a feeling she is".
Selena's voice rang in his mind after a pause. "Yes, she is Karisu Maki, a minor character from Komi-san Can't Communicate".
"Really? If so, Komi is in this world too," Akira asked.
"Yes, she is. Why? Do you want to look for her?" She asked in a curious voice.
"No, not really, I am just a bit curious," he said.
Selena chuckled. "Well, even if you two meet, nothing will come of it anyway".
"What do you mean?" Akira asked, a bit confused.
"Think about it, brother. Komi can't communicate… and neither can you". Selena said as if it were a matter of fact.
"Wait! I can talk normally!" Akira protested indignantly.
"Brother", Selena sighed. "You can only talk to someone you already know, or when someone talks to you first. Once you're comfortable, you become talkative, but you'll never take the initiative. If you and Komi were locked in a room together, I can already imagine it. You'd both just sit there silently until someone opened the door."
Akira wanted to deny it, but he couldn't. He knew she wasn't wrong. Still, he couldn't admit defeat so easily. "Fine. I'll show you I can talk to strangers".
Determined, he turned his focus back to the hairdresser in front of him.
"I… er…" he started, but in the end, he had no idea what to say. "Wait, what am I even supposed to say to her now…?"
Selena burst out laughing inside his head. "Haha, see? I told you".
"I was just caught off guard! I can talk normally", Akira argued.
"Sure. Then tell her what kind of hairstyle you want". Selena challenged him playfully.
"Right…" he thought, then froze again. "Wait. What kind of hairstyle do I even want? I don't know anything about hairstyles… what should I say?!"
Looking at Akira's awkward expression, Maki nodded to herself. "I see. I understand."
Both Akira and Erika blinked in confusion.
"But… he didn't say anything," Erika said.
"Don't worry," Maki replied smoothly. "I've had a customer like that before, so I got used to it."
Selena snickered in his mind. "See? I told you".
"But I'm not like her!" Akira screamed inwardly. "I can communicate properly!"
But it was too late. Karisu Maki had already started working on his hair, trimming and snipping with elegant precision. His long, silky white hair fell strand by strand to the floor.
Erika looked conflicted as she watched. "Such a waste… his hair is beautiful…"
But before long, Maki stepped back with a satisfied look.
The new Akira was presented in the mirror. His hair was shorter now, still longer than average, with bangs covering his eyes. His face was mostly hidden.
Akira nodded approvingly. "Yeah. I look like I can blend into the background."
But Erika tilted her head with an unsure look. "It's a bit… how should I put it…"
Selena cut in mercilessly. "Brother, you look like a hentai protagonist".
"…Well, at least I look like a mob character. I can blend in," Akira sulked. "But it's not really cool."
Without a word, Maki picked up a comb, reached over, and pushed his bangs back.
And suddenly, the room went quiet.
The reflection staring back at him wasn't the same Akira as before. With his hair pushed back, his face was fully revealed, still a bit cute, but with handsome features that carried the cool aura of an anime protagonist. He still resembled Selena, but now no one could possibly mistake him for a cute girl again.
"…This is… wow," Akira muttered in amazement.
Erika's eyes widened. "This is exactly what I thought you would look like… It's perfect."
Selena agreed. "Yep. It's cool".
Maki adjusted her glasses and said, "Most of the time, with the bangs covering your face, you'll look normal enough. But when you push it back, you will look cool. What do you think?"
Before Akira could answer, Erika leaned forward and replied firmly. "It's perfect."
Akira couldn't help but grin a little. "Yep, it's cool."
With that, the hairstyle part came to an end. Next came the quest for clothes.
After thanking Maki and saying goodbye, they left the salon and headed to a large clothing store.
"Okay, so how exactly are we going to do this?" Akira asked.
"I don't know. Maybe try different styles and see what suits you the most," Erika replied.
Selena's cheerful voice echoed in his head. "Alright, brother, it's time for your fashion show. Give it your all!"
Akira smirked. "Alright then. Let's split up, grab as many clothes as possible, and meet up at the dressing room."
"Fine." Erika sighed. "That's not exactly what I had in mind for clothes shopping together… but it's not a bad idea".
Soon after, Erika selected a neat set of outfits she thought would suit him and waited near the dressing room. That's when she saw Akira walking over with an absurd amount of clothes in his arms.
"…Why did you bring this much?" she asked flatly.
"Well, it's rare for me to even come to a clothes store. So, I wanted to try everything," Akira said without shame.
"…Just go change." Erika handed him her picks as well and hurried him into the dressing room.
As she waited, a thought crossed her mind. "Selena, can you hear me?"
"Of course I can, Erika-chan. What is it?" Selena replied immediately.
"I was just wondering… why didn't Aunt Yuki ever do anything about Akira's long hair and style?" Erika asked in confusion. She knew Akira's parents well and knew his mother had a good sense of style. In fact, when she was young, she always asked her for advice, since her brother is useless and she is not that close with her mother.
Selena giggled. "Mother liked his long hair. She likes cute things, and Akira looked cute, right? As for his style… well, let's just say it's a good thing she didn't interfere. Otherwise, she might've turned him into her personal dress-up doll."
"…Oh." Erika shivered at the mental image.
And at that moment, the dressing room door opened, and Akira stepped out.