#14

  The morning sunlight streamed through the window of my small room, casting a warm glow over the scattered remnants of my breakfast – an empty bowl of cereal and a gss of milk.

  With a resigned sigh, I pushed the dishes aside and flipped open my ptop, staring at the screen filled with assignments that seemed to multiply overnight.

  The restart of the csses is coming soon, after all, and there’s still quite a considerable amount of homework piled up for me.

  Of course, I knew I didn’t need to stress about it.

  For men in this world, school was less of an academic necessity and more of a social event, a forum for meeting friends and interacting with girls, finding partners, and making love- doing each and every one of your societal duties.

  In this world, the roles were defined in a way that often left me feeling both fortunate and guilty.

  Privilege, or control, depending on how you looked at it, dictated that as a boy, I could glide through the system.

  No matter what men do in school, even if they don’t attend css or participate, they would still graduate and obtain a diploma. Of course, if they clocked in the minimum required days, they’d graduate without breaking a sweat. If not, they would need to undergo some supplementary lessons.

  On the other hand, girls are the opposite.

  Teachers are strict on them.

  The girls were burdened with the heavy expectations of grades, participation, and achievements that would determine their future.

  They would need to comply with all the requirements to graduate.

  They would even need to participate in csses, and school activities, and even do thesis and feasibility studies.

  The government or even the country is putting heavy responsibilities on their shoulders and expecting very much from them.

  I recalled Lay, my cssmate- she’s the top scorer in our grade, every day toiling relentlessly over her thesis while I strolled to the cafeteria, tossing idle jokes with my friends.

  She seems to be the type that burned the midnight oil just to secure a high score on a paper that held so much weight on her future. It was an unfair reality, yet one I had grown accustomed to witnessing. Or rather, not a single person seemed to think of it as unfair.

  Some were dissatisfied, especially if they saw men happily spending their time in css while they were toiling arduously on their assignments, but at the end of the day, they all thought it was normal. They would not delve too much into the unfairness of things and just go on with their lives.

  I guess, that’s what happens when there are so few men in the world that every single one of them is considered a national treasure. A savior for mankind to exist.

  Although the problem of popution has been, somehow alleviated.

  With the increasing number of men in the world- it was said that there is an increase of 11% in male birth, which was very good news, but still not to the point where the popution is stable.

  Men are still a valuable commodity.

  “Well, I’m not as much as of Saint to dwell on guilt or unfairness, anyway. I take this to my advantage and would surely enjoy it to the fullest,” I shrugged, tapping my fingers absently on the desk.

  “Nevertheless, it would not be bad to comply with my student duties and perform well in school. After all, this can also raise my reputation, and the better the reputation I have, the more I shine like a jewel for the women of this world. Becoming a good student is a way to increase my worth,”

  In a way, it felt selfish to revel in the ease of my academic journey while Lay and the other girls navigated through a maze of pressures. It didn’t sit right with me, but what could I do? All that I can do is just enjoy it and relish this sense of superiority.

  That sounds mean, but life itself is unfair, in the first pce.

  I opened a history assignment, determined to at least pretend to engage with my studies.

  The words blurred together in a sea of ink, and I found myself drifting off, daydreams mingling with thoughts of what the upcoming school year would hold. Perhaps a new friendship? Or even something more?

  … could I indulge myself in an erotic fantasy life with schoolgirls?

  Corrupting girls sounds very tempting~

  As I thought about my ‘future’, suddenly I heard a knock on my door.

  Thinking it was my sister again, I said, “It’s open.”

  The door opened and my mother entered.

  “Hey sweetie, how’s it going?”

  I looked at my mom, and replied,

  “Good, I’m almost done, I shouldn’t have to do any tomorrow.”

  “That’s great, but don’t stress yourself too much. Having fun is more important than studying, so don’t hurt yourself, okay?”

  I never imagined I would hear that kind of thing in my entire life. And the one who said that was my mother to boot.

  A different world is different.

  “I will Mom,” I nodded.

  “Good, I made some snacks downstairs, if you want some, come down. Or should I bring it here for you?”

  “That would be great Mom, thank you.”

  Mom smiled happily, “Okay, wait for a minute.” with that she happily left before closing the door.

  I resumed my attention back on my homework.

  A minute ter, Mom came back, bringing me my snacks.

  As the day wore on, I pushed through the paper on ancient civilizations, the droning text somehow soothing in its monotony.

  It was fortunate that I did my research on this world, so I was able to swiftly run through my paragraph. At the same time, my understanding of this world, and its peculiarity deepens. And yeah, believe me, reality can be stranger than fiction.

  While making my history assignment, I also tried to compare it with my previous world’s history. And it was fun doing so, pointing out the difference, the changes in the gender of famous people, the shocking revetions, occurrences, and accidents that somehow defined the world as it is now, and many more.

  As I was watching a documentary on Wetube, suddenly, my phone shook and a pleasant ringtone echoed in the room.

  I grabbed my phone and saw a message reflected on the screen.

  [Love, what are you doing?]

  I frowned.

  Not because of the message, but because of the one who sent it.

  Rodrigo Silbastion.

  Yeah, he's a man.

  One of my friends in school.

  Although I didn’t hate the guy, the reason I’m frowning is the way he addressed me.

  I would think nothing of it if this was before, but I am different now.

  Thinking about a bulky, muscur man calling me love, sends a shiver down my spine.

  [Fuck you. Call me Love again and I’m going smack your ass with a metal bat!]

  I scowled.

  [Oh, dirty talk. I like that~ did you wake up on the good side of the bed today? You sound saucy~]

  I rolled my eyes.

  By the way, although he sounds like that, he’s not gay or anything. It’s just the usual sickness of men in this world. And the retionship between men is weird… like gayish kind of weird.

  [What do you want?]

  Knowing that nothing I could do about this guy’s way of texting - and yeah, he also talks like that in real life - I sighed and went to the point.

  [I know you’ve got nothing to do, so why not come over? I’ve got a party pn for today, Johnson and Mick are already here, while Ally and Erick are on the way.]

  [No, I’m busy.]

  [Oh come on, I know you’re not. It’s been a long time since we’ve seen each other, so come over here and let’s have some fun. Lay and Irish are coming, you know.]

  Lay and Irish?

  [Oh? That’s new. I thought you don’t like having parties with girls involved?]

  [Are you talking about yourself…? You do know I have a girlfriend, right? Donna wanted it. Tilly’s birthday was yesterday, and she wants to make up for that and celebrate it today. She wants it grand, so we’re throwing a party.]

  Donna was Rodrigo’s girlfriend. From what I know, there were a lot of bad rumors about that girl, but perhaps, blinded by love, Rodrigo never cared about it and still went out with her. Of course, she’s still quite a beauty, only a little bit menacing and she does reek of trouble.

  However, right now, she seemed to have settled down after being with Rodrigo.

  [...so, how about it? You in, Love?]

  I don’t want to go. But what Rodrigo said is true. Ever since awakening, I’d never left home.

  Well, aside from the neighbourhood, I had never stepped foot past our subdivision.

  One reason is that I don’t have any reason to go out at all.

  Csses have yet to start, and everything was provided for me- food, snacks, drinks, and well, the internet is the way of life.

  The second reason, I was never the type to go out unless necessary. It's not like I don't have friends in my previous life, but I prefer spending my own time. And there's always less trouble with fewer interactions with other people.

  But... probably it does not go that way in this world.

  It could be fun.

  As long as there are girls involved, of course.

  [Okay. Send me the address.]

  [Fantastico! But love, have you forgotten where I live?]

  “Err…” I dug deeper into my memory, and surprisingly, I did know where he lived. Or rather, I’ve been there two months ago.

  [Ah, yeah… okay, be there soon.]

  I closed the windows on my pc and turned my computer off.

  …

  In the end, I opted to take a shower first before changing. But before that, I searched for something suitable to wear.

  Upon a quick inspection, it became evident that the clothes I had worn to school the previous day were among the most comfortable I owned.

  The rest either seemed too small or appeared extremely uncomfortable. Not to mention the outrageously tiny shorts that covered even less skin than a pair of boxer shorts.

  I casually wiped off the remaining water droplets from my body and exited the shower, a persistent curiosity lingering in the back of my mind.

  Returning to my room, I nonchantly closed the door behind me.

  Without feeling the need to hurry and change my clothes, I casually discarded the towel onto the floor and started looking for some good clothes to wear.

  Suddenly, the creaking of the door made me turn around, startled.

  "Dear, do you want some apple jui-." Mom’s voice cut off abruptly as she gawked at me.

  Reacting instinctively to the sudden realization of my nakedness, my hands quickly moved to protect my crotch.

  The sight of my swift movement jolted her out of her momentary frozen state, abruptly awakening her from her daze.

  Her eyes fixed on my defensive stance, and a vivid blush spread across her cheeks like a delicate fire, painting her complexion a rosy hue. Her brown eyes flickered with fear in light of the situation we found ourselves in.

  Mom moved like lightning, and the door smmed shut.

  "I'm sorry!" she said, her voice muffled by the door.

  "I know I have to knock. Sorry!"

  It was a bit of a shock, but I pulled myself together quickly.

  It was not that much of a problem at all, anyway.

  "Don't worry, Mom! Anyway, what did you want to tell me, Mom?"

  Mom responded with a slight dey. "I was asking if you, ahm, you know, want some Apple Juice. I heard it’s good for brain function…especially if you’re studying…”

  “Ah, no, it’s fine. I’m leaving.”

  “What? Where are you going?”

  “Rodrigo invited me to go to his house to py.”

  “Oh… Rodrigo, I see. O, okay, I'll just be in the kitchen."

  I shrugged, and quickly into a shirt that I found, looking decent. The only downside was that it had a picture of a male celebrity I didn't recognize, but it bore a striking resembnce to Zayn.

  Then my eyes found some bra.

  I thought for a moment before finally deciding to pick it up. I should wear it just in case, I thought.

  Next, I chose a pair of pants that at least covered my legs, but they didn't stop my butt from feeling uncomfortably tight. However, knowing that my extremely tight butt would likely be noticeable, I grabbed a considerably rger sweatshirt.

  I felt more confident now that a roomy, loose-fitting garment concealed the rest of my body. I grabbed a bag, stashed some spare clothes, and left my room.

  In the living room, my sister, Sarah, was engrossed in watching TV, with a bowl of cereal nestled between her legs. It appeared to be a mimicry of a show from my previous world.

  When she noticed me, she offered an embarrassed wave, to which I responded with a warm smile.

  After that, she returned to watching her movie, while I made my way to the dining room, looking for Mom.

  At the brown wooden table, Mom sat while drinking her apple juice. She absentmindedly took a sip, before suddenly chuckling at whatever she was thinking.

  “Mom, I’m going,” I said.

  Her head snapped at me, surprised.

  “A, Oh, okay… y, you want me to drive you there?”

  “No, I’m fine. I’ll just take the bus.”

  “You sure, it can be uncomfortable on the bus. There are a lot of girls there.”

  “I’m fine, don’t worry.”

  Mom still looks at me worriedly. I insisted on going alone. But suddenly, Sarah seemed to hear, and said from the couch, “I’ll be driving you there.”

  “Sis, it's not that far... I can take the bus."

  “No refusal,” she said, frowning. “Wait for me, I’ll just grab my keys.”

  It seemed she was determined in her decision, so I simply shrugged in response.

  “Ok.”

  I walked toward the couch and waited for Sarah there.