Chapter 23: You guys were really bad

Four days had passed since Danawa and Alicia had fought.

Neither of them ever apologized to each other.

Seriously, how much do you two hate each other?

But surprisingly, since that day, they hadn’t fought again.

As someone who found it difficult to take sides, I was relieved.

Everything around us returned to peace with surprising ease.

Honestly, both Dana and Alicia have strong personalities and aren’t the type to back down easily, so I thought they’d start fighting again the moment they locked eyes—it was unexpected.

Why aren’t you two fighting?

Shouldn’t you be bickering, telling each other not to bother me and to stay away?

Not that I want that, of course.

I got curious, so I used every bit of charm I had on Dana to get her to tell me the reason.

“I don’t like her.”

“Oh, come on…”

“But I dislike seeing you alone even more.”

“R-Really?”

That’s what she said.

Since Dana wasn’t picking a fight, Alicia didn’t seem to have any intention of provoking her either.

I worried for a moment that they had decided to completely ignore each other as if the other didn’t exist, but that wasn’t it either.

Maybe they actually grew closer through all the fighting.

There was just one change.

As if keeping each other in check, they now hovered around me almost constantly whenever we were in class.

Yeah.

That was the real problem.

I need to observe the girls, but they keep distracting me…!

And it’s suffocating. Just because they aren’t fighting doesn’t mean they like each other.

I’m stuck in the middle of two people who clearly still don’t get along—what even is this situation?

And the worst part is that they’re not the only girls who bother me.

There’s also Serina.

She acts like just because I talked to her a few times, it gives her the right to do whatever she wants.

She grabs my hands whenever she wants. Ugh…

Are girls always like this? I really don’t get it…

And stop trying to shove your homemade snacks at me whenever I look like I’m about to cry. Even if they taste good…!

Those three were especially pretty, even within our class, and they always attracted attention wherever they went.

Because of them, it’s becoming harder and harder to observe natural yuri dynamics in the class like I used to.

Thanks to that, the one joy in my life was slipping away…

I’m depressed. Lil-bung is sooo depressed…!

I should’ve cut ties long ago.

Whether it was by peeing myself in class or tossing all their cookies in the trash, I should’ve done something—anything—back then.

But now it’s too late. I’ve completely missed the timing…

And so, one month into the school year,

A new group had formed in our class.

Its name: “Three Beautiful Yuri Girls (excluding me) Group.”

…Yeah, I know the name sucks. But there’s really no better way to describe it.

But today, it ends.

Because I’ve reached my limit.

At this rate, I’m going to die. My blood yuri concentration is nearing zero. If I don’t get a yuri infusion soon, I might actually die.

So I made a decision.

To get out of this ridiculous group…!

“H-Hey, guys. You don’t have to hang out with me anymore…”

When I finally tried to say it, it felt cheesy and I got nervous, so I said it really quietly—I don’t even know if they heard me.

“Hm?”

Serina, who was closest to me, must’ve heard.

“Don’t have to hang out? Why? I’m the one clinging to you. Same with Dana and Alicia.”

“But your reputation…”

“…Reputation?”

Even though I was the one who brought it up, I thought it was a pretty valid point.

Reputation matters.

Especially among girls.

It’s considered basic etiquette in our little society to befriend people of your own social tier.

It sounds ridiculous, since this is just a school—but that’s honestly how I see it.

People say boys like to establish pecking orders, but at least they can still call each other friends in the end.

Girls’ social dynamics, though, are a battlefield.

They aim silent weapons—germs, guns, and steel—at each other so subtly that you might not even notice.

But I don’t really want to talk about un-yuri stuff.

One thing is clear: I love even those kinds of girls.

Lily, the yuri-exclusive pansexual. Even I think that sounds cool…!

Ah. But that’s not the point.

My argument was that I’m ruining their reputations, so they shouldn’t hang around me.

Having thought that far, I continued.

“For one, I’m not pretty…”

“Lily? You just don’t dress up. I think you’re beautiful.”

“…T-Thanks…?”

Ah.

That’s when I realized I picked the wrong person to say this to.

Serina is endlessly kind and only sees the good in people.

Telling her this was pointless.

“Lily. Then how about we dress you up?”

“What?”

“You seemed a little down.”

“Not at all. I’m really not…”

A person can be a little unattractive—what’s the big deal about getting sulky over that?

Besides, I don’t even think I’m ugly. Just average.

No, actually, compared to you three, almost any girl would look like a scrub.

Try to understand the feelings of an average girl stuck between yuri geniuses. And if possible, throw in a TS girl too.

“Dress up?”

“What’s going on?”

Don’t just suddenly pounce like that on the word “dress up” when you two were ignoring everything and locked in a silent battle a second ago…

I felt like I wanted to breathe fire from my mouth.

KRAAAAH…!

“No, that’s not what I meant…”

“Lily wants to get pretty!”

“No I don’t?!”

What good is a TS girl becoming pretty, anyway? I like myself just as I am now.

I’m supposed to vanish like a ninja and secretly observe any girls who might be doing shady stuff behind the school—not stand out with flashy looks.

Hey, stop. Don’t bring out weird makeup or anything…!

“So, like, it’s because your reputation drops when you’re with me, okay? I even heard rumors that people say you’re using me as some kind of servant. Ugh… I just don’t want to be caught between you two anymore… Are you listening…?”

“Yeah. You’ve gotta get pretty, Lily!”

It’s hopeless.

They’re not listening at all…

…

…

…

“You should’ve said so earlier. I thought you didn’t care.”

“Isn’t your hair annoying, covering your forehead? You look gloomy.”

“It’s okay. Lily’s still cute even if she’s gloomy.”

“W-Wait, so I am gloomy…?”

“Let’s cut it, yeah? Or maybe sweep it to the side, that might be cute.”

“I saw you show up when I was doing my nails the other day, too.”

“You need makeup, too.”

Makeup, my butt.

How is this different from those gaudy cross-dressing gays who slap color all over their face?

Fine, I’ll grant you the skincare. But eyeshadow? Shading? Manicure? You’ve gone too far.

Are you trying to make me not a TS girl, but a full-on cross-dressing clown?

And also, look—

That cliché of “you’ll be pretty if you try” might taste sweet, sure.

But when it comes to me, I seriously doubt it. It’s probably meaningless. You’re just wasting your time.

Use that energy to flirt with each other or something, please.

“Stop moving your lips. The makeup won’t stick.”

“Danaaah, why you too…”

“I don’t like to make a fuss either. But you should at least look human.”

“I-I was that bad…?”

“Yeah. Ever since you grew your hair back.”

BOOM.

Lilbung has been living as something less than human…

“You should at least look human”
“You should at least look human”
“You should at least look human”
“You should at least look human”…

Dana’s words echoed in my ears like a curse.

My will to resist was completely broken, and I couldn’t even twitch as I was treated like a doll…

…

…

…

And so, what they finished was—

“Wait, hold on, is this for real…?”

“Cute.”

“Cute.”

“…Cute.”

Don’t team up and all agree unanimously over something stupid like this.

I looked into the mirror they handed me after the makeover.

And I was literally horrified.

A dumb-looking girl with a face that makes you want to punch it was staring back at me.

Fine, I’ll accept the face.

But the hair—no, the hairstyle—was the real problem…

“What’s with the handles…?”

What am I, a magical girl? Twin tails? Seriously?

I’ve never had such an embarrassing hairstyle, not even as a kid…!

“Don’t untie it. Or you’ll get in trouble.”

“…B-But still…”

Twin tails on a pink-haired, flat-chested girl?

That’s basically announcing to the world, “Hi, I’m a trashy yuri-themed escort girl!”

This is the kind of hairstyle only a shameless, submissive masochist would wear—someone who likes being spoken to in a lewd tone and gets off on it.

There’s no yuri-consistent reason to do your hair like this unless you’re inviting people to grab those “handles” and… well, you know. Gross.

Since my hair had only recently grown out just enough to barely brush the nape of my neck, forcing it into twin tails made them super short, and that made it even more humiliating.

Let me die. I’ll bite my tongue and die. This is so embarrassing.

Can’t you see the other girls are laughing at me?!

Wait… don’t tell me you planned this—to humiliate me on purpose…?!

“You, you guys… you’re so mean…”

From my throat, dampened by shame, came a slightly wilted voice.

Don’t look at my tearful face like it makes you want to tease me more…

I felt like I’d pass out from the overwhelming embarrassment.

Actually, I did faint. Bonk.