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TS Syndrome… an incurable disease that changes one’s gender.
They say there’s no cure for this syndrome, so those afflicted must live with their changed gender.
That’s why many are abandoned by their families or commit suicide, I heard.
I thought such a syndrome had absolutely nothing to do with me. After all, I’m a shut-in who never goes anywhere.
But… was I just unlucky? When I woke up, my hair felt much longer.
And there was a strange, subtle swelling on my chest, so when I looked in the mirror, a silver-haired beautiful girl was staring back at me.
‘No… it can’t be, right? Surely not…’
When I pinched my cheek, just in case, it hurt so much… The beautiful girl reflected in the mirror was hurting too… Ah… I ended up getting TS Syndrome after all… Even if I stayed indoors, it seems I couldn’t avoid it…
The pajama bottoms I was already wearing became loose and fell to the floor, and my boxer briefs also slipped down, no longer fitting… Fortunately, my pajama top was larger than my newly changed body, extending down to my thighs and thankfully covering my precious parts, as I had no underwear on.
“Sejin. You need to wake… huh? Who are you?”
Ah… Mom came in… What do I do…? I’ve seen news reports where families couldn’t accept their children who contracted TS Syndrome… Hmm… For now, I’ll just tell her the truth.
She wouldn’t kick me out, would she?
“Uh… Mom, it’s me, Sejin. I think I got TS Syndrome… I woke up this morning, and I was like this.”
“What? What… They said even if you get TS Syndrome, your face might change, but your hair and eye color won’t! Who are you?!”
‘W-what… Where did that come from, about eye and hair color not changing…? Is this why I’m being kicked out…?’
“It’s Sejin, Mom! Your son!”
“This person! Get out right now! If you don’t leave, I’ll call the police!”
This must be the sorrow and fear of those afflicted with the syndrome.
I’d heard stories, like unbelievable rumors, of people being kicked out of their homes, but I never thought it would happen to me… Still, if I keep appealing, maybe she’ll believe me?
“H-h-huk… U-uh… Mom… It’s me! Sejin!”
– “Ha… This person, really! Hello? Police? There’s a strange person here who keeps claiming to be our son.”
“O-okay… I’ll leave… H-h-huk…”
“I’ve seen all sorts of strange people! Get out, now!”
Bang!
In the end, I came outside with only my pajama top and smartphone… How could Mom be so cold overnight?
My feet hurt so much because my shoes didn’t fit, and not wearing underwear was incredibly uncomfortable, and I grew scared.
I became afraid I might be kidnapped by a stranger.
I should go to a friend’s house… The only friend I could truly trust was Kim Jungwoo… but I wasn’t sure if it would be okay.
Still, if I went, I wouldn’t be turned away at the door, right?
After all… a loser like me has no other friends.
First, I decided to go to Taesu, a friend I could at least somewhat trust.
I wanted to rush straight to my best friend Jungwoo, but I thought it might be better to try another friend first, and since he lived on the first floor of the same building, I could get there quickly.
Having no other choice, I ran to Taesu’s house on the first floor, arrived at the door quickly, and pressed the doorbell without hesitation.
Ding-dong!
“Who is it?”
“Taesu… it’s me… Sejin…”
“What? Who did you say? Sejin? Your voice is different, though? Who are you?”
Ah, right… My voice had changed… No wonder he couldn’t recognize me.
Still, I had come too far to give up, so I tried again.
“It’s really me, Sejin… I got TS Syndrome, and my voice changed too…”
“Don’t lie to me this early in the morning. How much that friend hates coming out of the house, who are you trying to trick? You’d better leave before I call the police.”
“Y-yes… I’m sorry…”
As expected… everyone couldn’t believe me, changed as I was.
Well, I probably would have felt the same way.
Honestly, if someone who was a man yesterday suddenly turned into a woman and claimed to be my best friend, it would be incredibly hard to believe… Still, I couldn’t give up.
Leaving Taesu’s house, I went around to all the friends and relatives I knew.
But they all treated me like a stranger or a pitiful child, trying to send me to an orphanage, so I ran away… Hah… Now there’s only one friend left… Jungwoo… He’s the only best friend I can truly open my heart to, and I felt too sorry to go to him looking like this.
But now, I have no other choice, do I?
I immediately ran to my friend’s house without looking back.
No matter how much I thought, I couldn’t come up with any other good options.
It was obvious I’d just be kicked out again if I went back home.
Fortunately, my friend’s house was only about 30 meters away, so I could get there quickly.
Upon arriving at the door, I felt very anxious and nervous.
‘What if he doesn’t accept me…? What if he pretends to accept me but then sells me somewhere else…?’ My head felt like it would explode with these random thoughts, but I had no other choice, did I?
Ding-dong!
The dice had already been cast.
Now, the result would be important, right…? I just hoped to avoid the worst… If the worst came even here… I would have nowhere left to go… I’d either be kidnapped by someone or commit suicide… I didn’t want that.
Ah! Jungwoo’s voice came from the speaker!
I was so nervous, but I calmed myself down and started to speak as I had prepared.
“Who is it?”
“Jungwoo… it’s me, Sejin…”
“Huh? Sejin? Your voice is strange… Is it really you?”
I already knew that my changed voice would make it hard for him to believe me, but I still felt a pang of disappointment… Would the worst hand be played after all…?
I had no other friends I could trust… Still, I felt I couldn’t stop.
I couldn’t back down anymore!
“Yes… it’s me, Sejin… I think I got TS Syndrome and turned into a girl… Please… can’t you at least believe me…?”
“Whew… Alright. I’ll come out for now.”
Was that at least a good sign?
The fact that he was coming out to open the door made me feel a little relieved, but what would he do when he saw me…?
Would he truly accept me…? Or would he kick me out…?
Please, I hoped he would accept me…
How long did I wait?
The door opened, and the face of my closest best friend appeared.
I saw his gaze looking down at me.
I had shrunk in height, so I had to look up, but if he accepted me like this, then this much was nothing.
“Haa… It really is Sejin, alright. How did even you end up getting TS Syndrome? Are you okay? Seeing you here, you must have been kicked out of your house, right?”
“Uh… I was kicked out just because my hair and eye color were different… My voice being different probably made it worse… But how did you recognize me instantly? Even Mom didn’t recognize me…”
How could Jungwoo recognize me when even Mom, Taesu who lived in the same building, and my relatives couldn’t?
As I looked at Jungwoo with a purely curious expression, he ruffled my hair and gave me a bright smile.
No one had ever ruffled my hair except my parents… Still, having a trustworthy friend do it made me feel good.
“Your unique taste is something you won’t find anywhere else in the world except for you.”
“Unique taste…? What do you mean by that…?”
“What else? You were the only guy who covered his glasses in cubic zirconia. Only someone as eccentric as you would come out wearing those glasses. You don’t even wear them at home. Since you just wear normal glasses, it’s understandable your parents wouldn’t know.”
He truly was my best friend, after all.
At home, I just wore ordinary glasses, so my parents had never seen the cubic zirconia glasses I designed.
That’s probably why they suspected me even more.
Or… maybe they just didn’t want to see their son who had contracted TS Syndrome.
It was a family that wanted a son, after all…
“Still… how can you believe I’m Sejin just because I came wearing these?”
“Hmm…? If I didn’t believe you and kicked you out of here? Someone would turn up dead the next day, right? And if that someone was my best friend Sejin…? I’d probably go crazy with guilt, so that’s why.”
“H-h-huk… Thank you…”
“Thank you for what? Come here. Let me hug my shrunken best friend.”
“W-waaah! Jungwoo… Thank you for believing in me… H-h-huk… Thank you… W-waaah!”
“Oh, come on… Alright. Just cry it all out. Cry until you feel better…”
“W-waaah!”
It truly was a relief… If Jungwoo hadn’t accepted me… I don’t know where I would have been dragged off to… or if I would have ended up committing suicide… I hope this happy time lasts until the very end, at least for today.
How long did I cry?
Jungwoo’s clothes were soaked with my tears… I felt so sorry, but then he picked me up in a princess carry, didn’t he?
Perhaps because I was a man just yesterday, it felt incredibly embarrassing.
“J-Jungwoo…? Do you have to carry me like that? I’m so embarrassed, I could die…”
“Then what? You don’t know how small you are right now, do you?”
“I-I don’t… Still, can’t you give me a piggyback ride?”
“Hey… You’re not even wearing underwear right now. Isn’t it a bit much to ask for a piggyback ride like that? Shouldn’t we go home, get you properly dressed in anything, report your TS Syndrome, and buy some clothes?”
“Huh? U-uh… Yes… Thank you…”
“Enough chitchat, let’s go to my place first. My mom will help, I’m sure. Don’t worry.”
Ah? Jungwoo said his mother was home… What should I do? Is it really okay to go in this state…?
The adventure continues! If you loved this chapter, My Online Romance with the Ice-Cold Professor Crashed is a must-read. Click here to start!
Read : My Online Romance with the Ice-Cold Professor Crashed
