"You have no idea—I accidentally walked into the men's restroom today. Holy shit! It was so embarrassing!"
"Ahhh~ I just want to go back to being a lazy shut-in. Wake up whenever I want, do whatever I want, no worries at all. Unlike now…"
"Why the hell did I turn into a woman?!"
At the fried skewer shop across from the school, Chen Cheng frustratedly ruffled her hair before downing half a bottle of beer in one go. Drinking too fast on an empty stomach, her vision was already starting to blur after just one bottle.
"This is all your fault. Dragging me down with you…"
"How about a fried chicken leg?" An Yuan awkwardly smiled, offering her one. "It was an accident, okay?"
Chen Cheng hiccupped from the beer, propped her chin up with one hand, and gazed dazedly at An Yuan sitting across from her. With a sigh of envy, she muttered, "Must be nice… One night's sleep and all your troubles are gone…"
"How about you take a trip to Thailand?" She suddenly suggested, her expression turning mischievous. "You know what they say—bros share hardships together! Come be a woman with me!"
An Yuan immediately shook his head. "Yeah, no thanks."
"Screw you! We can't be bros anymore!"
Chen Cheng grumbled, cursing under her breath. Just then, she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. She froze for a moment before fishing it out and answering the call.
"Cheng Cheng! School ended half an hour ago. Where are you?"
"???"
"Who is it?" An Yuan asked, noticing her baffled expression.
Chen Cheng's lips twitched as she smoothly lied, "Mom, I forgot to take the storage room key when I left this morning. Had to go back and get it."
"You didn't end up being late, did you?"
"That's why I skipped lunch and used my lunch money for a cab. I'm almost home."
After hanging up, Chen Cheng frowned deeply and muttered in confusion, "Why is my mom suddenly keeping tabs on when I get home?"
Back in high school, she used to go straight to the internet café with An Yuan after school. Even if she stayed out gaming until past midnight, her mom never said a word.
Yet despite spending every day gaming together, An Yuan still managed to get top grades and got into a good university, while she barely scraped by with a mediocre college acceptance.
"It's late. A girl should be heading home earlier," An Yuan commented.
"Can you stop reminding me already…"
Chen Cheng lowered her eyes and silently finished off the rest of her beer.
Moments ago, she had been chattering nonstop, noisy and full of complaints. But now, her quietness was somehow even more heartbreaking.
"I'm just saying this from Auntie's perspective." An Yuan ruffled her hair, trying to comfort her. "To me, you're still a guy."
"…I'm heading back."
"Buy a bottle of water and rinse your mouth. Don't let Auntie smell the alcohol."
"She's even controlling whether I drink now…"
Rather than complaining about her mother's strictness, it felt more like she was venting about her current gender.
Walking out of the fried skewer shop, Chen Cheng plopped down on the edge of the sidewalk, casually resting her arms on her knees like a street thug.
Yeah, this posture is manly enough.
She had never thought about things like this before…
An Yuan quickly returned with a bottle of water, pulling up beside her on his bike. "Rinse your mouth and get on."
"Got it."
Hopping onto the bike, Chen Cheng gripped the frame beneath her seat and rested her head to the side, staring blankly at the passing street.
Students, couples, grandparents with their grandchildren, families of three… It was nearly ten at night, yet this small town remained lively. People strolled along, chatting and laughing, food stalls filled the air with smoke and sizzling aromas, and the dim glow of streetlights stretched their shadows long and distorted across the pavement.
Walmart, the clock tower, the public square… Everything she saw today—the people, the places—was familiar. Yet, she felt like there was an invisible, impenetrable barrier between her and this world. She could see it all, but she couldn't quite touch it.
Unlike An Yuan, who easily slipped back into this moment ten years ago, the gender-swapped Chen Cheng felt like she no longer belonged.
Chen Cheng rested her forehead against An Yuan's back.
"What, using me as a windshield?"
"What else?"
"Remember to wear an extra layer under your school uniform tomorrow," An Yuan reminded as he pedaled. "Didn't you say your period is coming soon? Keep some pads and heating pads in your bag—be prepared."
"Before your period, you might feel weird cramps. When that happens, put on a pad in advance. And after today, no more cold drinks. Also—"
Chen Cheng cut him off, "How do you know so much?"
"I had a fiancée once. Learned it while taking care of her."
"Oh? And did she take care of you?"
"..."
An Yuan paused for a second before continuing, "Eat light during your period, skip morning runs, and if the cramps are too bad, take some ibuprofen. Don't try to tough it out."
"Having a girlfriend really makes a difference…" Chen Cheng muttered.
"Didn't you date someone too?"
"I only had one serious relationship. Just a few months," Chen Cheng hummed proudly. "She was my fangirl—I almost got with a fan! But I'm a responsible man, so I held back! What a good guy I was~"
An Yuan caught an interesting detail. "Wait a minute! Don't tell me you were still a virgin before you transmigrated?"
"So what if I was? So what?!"
"I was just being pure! Unlike you, swapping girls like changing clothes!"
"I wanted to save myself for my future wife, is that so wrong?! Are you laughing at me?!"
The girl behind him suddenly lost it and started hammering his back. An Yuan struggled to hold back his laughter. "I wasn't laughing. And for the record, my personal life was quite healthy."
"Fuck! And now I've turned into a woman while still a virgin!" Chen Cheng wailed, banging her head against his back. "It's all your fault, all your fault! If you don't go to Thailand and become a woman too, I'll never forgive you!"
"We're here, stop whining."
An Yuan pulled up in front of the apartment's storage room and turned to press a hand against Chen Cheng's head, lightly pushing her off the bike. "Hurry upstairs and go home before your mom starts worrying."
"What about you?"
"Me? I'm meeting some classmates to play games."
"Traitor!"
Chen Cheng furiously kicked his bike before storming off.
Those classmates he was meeting up with were her old friends too, okay?! She wanted to game with her old buddies, not hang around with a bunch of girls!
By the time she climbed the seven flights of stairs to her apartment, the front door was already open.
Panting, she leaned on the railing and peeked inside. Her mother was sitting on the sofa, working on an embroidery piece—one that could apparently sell for a few dozen to a hundred bucks, a small supplement to their family's income.
"Cheng Cheng, you're back?"
The voice came from the other side of the sofa. It was An Yuan's mother. She lived on the fourth floor of the same building and greeted her warmly.
As upstairs-downstairs neighbors, their mothers were practically best friends. They often exchanged extra groceries, snacks, and fruit, and whenever one of them traveled, they'd bring back a small souvenir for the other.
"Auntie?"
Chen Cheng had thought that, in this world, her mother and Auntie didn't get along—after all, her mom didn't let her hang out with An Yuan.
"I heard you skipped lunch, so I brought you half a roast duck. Eat up."
"Thanks, Auntie~"
Feeling a little nervous and guilty in front of her mother, Chen Cheng took off her shoes and socks, switched to her indoor slippers, and deliberately tossed her dirty socks into the laundry sink on the balcony.
Her mother glanced at her. Normally, her daughter acted proper outside but like a wild monkey at home. But today, she was oddly well-behaved.
"Eat, then take a shower and rest. And remember to wash your hair."
Seriously? Who hates washing their hair so much that they need a reminder?
Having been used to washing her hair every night before bed, Chen Cheng found it baffling. But she obediently responded and darted past her mother, rushing into the dining room.
She couldn't let her mom smell the alcohol!
She might be twenty-seven, but she had no intention of getting spanked by her mother.
<+>
If you want to see more chapter of this story and don't mind spending $5 monthly to see till the latest chapter, please go to my Patreon[1]
Latest Chapter in Patreon: Chapter 57: Breaktime Exercise[2]
Link to the latest chapter: https://www.patreon.com/posts/128679946?collection=1362427[3]
https://www.patreon.com/collection/1362427?view=condensed[4]
[1] https://www.patreon.com/collection/1362427?view=condensed
[2] https://www.patreon.com/posts/128679946?collection=1362427
[3] https://www.patreon.com/posts/128679946?collection=1362427
[4] https://www.patreon.com/collection/1362427?view=condensed