The bell rang, and students started gathering their bags and water bottles, heading toward the changing rooms to swap back into their uniforms for the next class.
I stayed seated, still catching my breath. Elena and my team were cheering quietly for each other. We won, sort of..? But I didn't even know if I should feel proud.
Then… footsteps approached from my side.
"Hey, Mayumi."
A little louder than usual.
I turned. It was Faye. Yeah… I should've seen this coming.
She raised an eyebrow, a small smirk tugging at her lips.
"Seriously… how did you do that? Were you secretly practicing basketball during vacation or something?"
My mind blanked. What do I even say? I don't like sports. I hate how sweat sticks to your clothes and skin.
"U-uh… well… I just… it just happened?" I shrugged, forcing an awkward smile.
Faye tilted her head, unimpressed. "What the heck… Mayu, c'mon. You're lying. I can see it. Don't try to act clueless."
Ugh… I had no idea how to answer. My words stuck somewhere between my brain and my mouth.
Then… I felt a light touch on my shoulder.
I turned my head and it was Elena.
"Hey… guys, what's going on?" she asked, calm as ever. Her gaze slid from me to Faye, unreadable.
"N-nothing!" I stammered quickly, trying to hide behind my words.
Please… don't make it worse. This was already killing me.
Faye and Elena were staring at each other a little longer than usual a subtle tension hung in the air and I could feel it from the corner where I was sitting
I felt like a human bookmark between them
This is awkward…
"Elena, right? You were amazing out there," Faye said, tilting her head, trying to sound casual.
"You should show me some of those moves sometime… Maybe even join our club. We're always open to new students."
Elena's gaze didn't waver. She shook her head slowly, a small, composed smile on her face.
"Thanks. But I don't really plan on joining any clubs right now... I just play because it's fun. That's enough for me."
Faye's smile faltered, but she tried to push on.
"Fun's great, sure… but someone like you could really impress the coach. You could play for the school team, you know?"
Elena remained steady, tilting her head slightly.
"I appreciate it, but I'm fine just enjoying high school. I don't need to turn every hobby into a career."
Faye faltered a bit and wasn't expecting Elena to answer so firmly yet politely, I swallowed hard. Sitting there, squeezed between them, I could feel the tension vibrating like static in the air.
Faye blinked, then she gave a small shrug and stepped back.
"Alright, alright," she said lightly.
"I'll leave you two to… do whatever it is you're doing."
Without another word, she turned and walked off toward the hallway, tossing a quick wave over her shoulder.
"See you later in class!"
And just like that, she was gone, leaving the space quiet again. I glanced up at Elena, who was still standing calmly behind me.
Then suddenly, she leaned close behind me, her arms sliding gently around my shoulders like a hug, just above my neck.
"Well… shall we change back into our regular uniforms, Mayumi?" she whispered, her voice soft against my ear.
I yelped, springing upright from my seat, both hands shooting to free myself from her embrace. The tickling whisper from my ear sent me squirming.
"Why—why'd you do that?!" I stammered, flustered.
Elena just smiled, as if nothing had happened. Totally unbothered.
"C'mon," she said lightly, stepping back.
"You don't want to be late for our next class, do you?"
Augh… why is everything about her so weird? Still rubbing my ear, heart racing from the closeness.
After a while, we ended up in the changing room…Alone. The others must've already finished and gone ahead.
The air felt quieter here. Too quiet.
Maybe… This was the right time.
I followed a step behind her as we walked between the lockers, my heart thudding louder with every second. Before I could lose my nerve, I spoke.
"So… earlier," I said softly. "Is there something you want to tell me?"
Elena stopped.
I swallowed and forced myself to continue, even though I couldn't bring myself to look at her.
"What happened back there?" I asked.
"You did something, didn't you? Because I know myself, I couldn't do… that on the court."
My voice wavered near the end. I hated confrontations. Hated pushing. But this… this mattered.
There was a quiet rustle of fabric.
I glanced up.
Elena was already changed into her regular uniform in an instant.
She turned and started walking toward me.
Instinctively, I stepped back. The room suddenly felt smaller and we were alone again, really alone.. and my chest tightened with unease.
She noticed immediately and stopped.
"Mayumi," she said gently, lifting her hands just a little.
"It's okay. I'm not going to do anything to you. You're safe here with me."
…Yeah. I wasn't sure about that.
She stepped closer anyway, slowly this time… and placed a hand on my shoulder. The same spot she'd touched earlier.
My breath hitched.
Is she going to do it again?
That time in the classroom, my eyes were closed. I didn't see anything… I only felt that strange air passing through me and now it felt like I was standing on the edge of something I couldn't understand.
Before I could pull away, she spoke.
"Earlier," Elena said quietly, "when you said something felt off… I guess you could say you were right."
My heart skipped.
"So I was—"
"But don't freak out," she added quickly, waving her other hand as if that alone could calm me.
That… did not help.
"Why would you say it like that?" I muttered.
She hesitated, then sighed almost like she was choosing her words carefully.
"You see," she said, "the clothes you were wearing…"
I stiffened.
"My clothes?"
"Your uniform is still there," she continued. "But the layer on top of it is… Me."
I blinked.
"…What?"
She met my eyes now. Calm. Serious.
"You've seen me change before, Mayumi," she said.
"It's the same thing, I just… Did it to your uniform instead."
My brain stalled.
Wait.
"…Are you saying—"
"Yes."
The word landed too easily.
I stared down at myself, suddenly hyper aware of the fabric against my skin and the way it hugged me. The way my movements earlier had felt too smooth. Too guided.
"…So you're saying," I whispered, "I'm basically wearing you right now?"
She nodded.
Not embarrassed. Not teasing.
Just honest.
My thoughts completely derailed.
I'm wearing part of her.
She's...on me?
Right now??
I felt like my brain had been launched straight into orbit.
I stepped back and freaked the hell out.
I grabbed at the uniform, stretching it, twisting it, like maybe if I pulled hard enough it would somehow undo it.
What the heck?!
She's basically… inside it!
Inside it!
MY BODY.
MY—oh god, my body!
I flailed, rolling across the floor like the clothes had suddenly decided to choke me. It wasn't choking me, of course. Not really.
I was just… losing it.
Because if she's inside it… then she can see everything. Everything! What my body looks like. Right now. Here. Me!
She can basically see me down to my underwear right now!
Including the stupid teddy-bear ones I've been clinging to since middle school—
I let out a yelp somewhere between horror and disbelief.
"Mayumi…!"
Her voice wavered slightly panicked, a little flustered. Almost helpless.
"Um..! c-calm down!!" she said, stepping toward me, eyes wide while taking a cautious step toward me.
I scrambled, wiggled, rolled, and twisted… like a snail that had been sprinkled with salt.
Elena froze for a second, hands half-raised, clearly unsure what to do, but moving closer carefully.
"I… I—" I gasped, eyes squeezed shut, face burning, "I can't—how… you… what—ahhh!!"
Elena blinked rapidly, still trying to stay composed, but there was definite surprise and panic flickering in her gaze.
"…Mayumi," she said finally, voice soft but shaky, "y-you're safe! I'm not… doing anything. Just breathe."
Breathe. Ha. Right. Easy to say when you're literally inside my clothes.!
I shot upright, pointing at her with shaking hands.
"I thought you had, like some kind of alien tech that could just change clothes!"
Elena blinked. Then she shrugged, lifting both hands.
"Well… I'm not exactly the kind of alien with a spaceship either, am I?"
I froze.
"…Okay. Touché," I muttered, then immediately snapped back up.
"BUT STILL! I wasn't expecting my body to be... like... piloted by you!" I jabbed a finger in her direction.
Her brows knit together slightly. "It wasn't piloting," she said.
"It's more like… guidance. I just nudged your movements in the right direction."
I stared at her.
"…That is literally controlling!" I yelled, flailing my arms.
Elena hesitated.
"…Your classmates seemed to think it was cool."
"You guided me into becoming an athlete without my consent!!"
She tilted her head, genuinely thinking about it.
"…When you put it that way, it does sound bad."
"IT IS BAD!"
Elena slowly lowered herself in front of me, not looming. Not towering. She actually knelt a little, bowing her head just enough that her black hair fell forward.
"I'm sorry," she said quietly.
"I should have told you first. I didn't mean to scare you… or cross a line."
Her voice wasn't dramatic. No excuses. No jokes. Just… sincere.
My chest tightened.
Great.
Now I feel bad… Because now my conscience is doing somersaults.
"W–wait—no!" I waved both my hands frantically in front of her face.
"Stop—don't bow like that! You're making it worse!"
She looked up, startled, clearly not expecting that reaction.
"I just—!" I groaned, rubbing my neck.
"Just… don't do something like that again, okay?"
She straightened slightly, listening.
"Something that includes you… sticking to my body," I added, flustered.
"Or changing me. Or altering me. Or—whatever that was!"
I pointed at myself for emphasis, then immediately regretted how dramatic I sounded.
Elena paused.
She blinked once. Then twice.
And then she smiled—small, gentle, almost relieved.
"…Okay," she said. "I'll remember that."
Not I'll try.
Not if necessary.
Just okay.
She hesitated, then lifted her hands slightly, palms open.
"May I?" she asked softly.
My eyes immediately snapped to her hands. Then to my uniform. Then back to her.
My throat went dry.
"Y–yeah," I muttered. "Just… do it."
Carefully, Elena placed her hand on my shoulder. The moment she did, I felt it. A shift.
Starting from the bottom of my gym shorts, something moved like a ripple traveling upward. The fabric loosened, then flowed, as if unfolding itself. My formal uniform reappeared beneath it, perfectly intact.
The strange layer, which is hers slid upward, moving against gravity like something alive returning home.
I watched, frozen, as it climbed toward her hands.
It didn't touch my skin. Didn't crawl beneath it.
And yet… I hadn't noticed it at all while it was there.
That realization sent a chill straight down my spine.
Terrifying.
…And kind of amazing.
The last of it slipped back into Elena's form, dissolving seamlessly into her arm. She pulled her hand away, stepping back to give me space.
"There," she said gently. "All gone."
I looked down at myself again. Normal… Completely normal.
My heart was still racing.
"…That was," I exhaled, "…really scary."
She nodded. "I know."
"And also," I added quietly, "…kind of cool."
Elena smiled this time with a hint of warmth.
"I'll make sure it's only cool next time," she said.
"Well… let's just… hope there won't be a next time," I said, voice dripping with sarcastic panic, trying to sound firm but mostly flustered.
Elena only smiled softly, as if she were enjoying my reaction just a little too much.