Well, I’ll be. We made it to another one. I’ll be honest, I didn’t think we’d get this far. I suppose you’re here to see how the story of Qu Yi, Yan Liang, and Wen Chou continues. Well as per usual, I am Lei Bo, your ever-present narrator and only real teacher at this establishment. However, in case you made the odd choice to pick up a book with “Volume Two” in its title and say to yourself, “Oh, this is going to be the best place to start!” I’ll do my best to summarize what you have missed while I silently judge your reading habits.

  Only child of a single mother, Qu Yi, used to be a boy named Quinton Young before being accepted with a free scholarship to Falofhan Boarding School. She came to this dimension and became a girl through the spirit magic of a mystic named Yu Ji, who created everyone in this dimension. Qu Yi is a member of Yuan Shao’s class, and while she has her own anxieties about being a girl, socializing was even harder to get used to. Still being shy and reserved, and having some hangups about her current gender, she has made a lot of friends in her brief time here and made quite a bit of progress in speaking out and trying to be friends with everyone. Her goal is to earn enough of the mystical worldly currency through doing activities here to transport all her friends she made here to her real world with her.

  Now, with that out of the way, we begin in the afternoon in Yuan Shao’s classroom on Friday. Currently, it is Qu Yi’s fifth day at Falofhan. The classroom is filled with talking and students helping those who are struggling with their weekly work packets I painstakingly made for them.

  Yuan Shao’s class is self-proclaimed to be “most noble in the school” by said class president herself. She certainly prides herself on the decorations of the classroom, which feel out of place for a school and “in of place” in an incredibly wealthy person’s study. Each desk is white with carved ornate design on all but the top, where the surface is flat for better penmanship. Each chair has a hard cushion on the round seats, following the same patterns of the desks. The two are clearly a set and were obtained at the same place. She has golden fleece curtains tied to each side of the window. A simple pull of the bow will have them block the light from outside. The white wallpaper with golden embroidery helps set the tone of the “nobility” the class president prides her class in being.

  In the right corner of the class lay five desks shaped into a table. Three desks on one side with two on the other. This is where Qu Yi and her two roommates sit. Qu Yi has her dark brown hair in curls down nearly to her waist, no doubt thanks to one of her roommate’s hair styling assistance. She wears her regular class uniform, a soft yellow top with short and somewhat puffy sleeves, a brighter yellow colored sailor collar, and a white bow in front keeping it in place. A puffy yellow skirt stopping just above her knees, tulle petticoat built in. Her classmates around her each wear the same uniform.

  On Qu Yi’s right, her tomboy roommate, Wen Chou. Her short teal neck length hair frames her deep blue eyes. She leans back, resting her neck on her hands as her elbows point outward. On Qu Yi’s left, her calming and rule-following roommate, Yan Liang. She has shoulder length black hair with upturned ends and bright blue cyan eyes. She is looking down at a paper on her desk, her face full of perplexion. Across the three desks are the identical twins, Lu Kuang and Lu Xiang, both with light green hair in side ponytails. Their only noticeable difference being which side of their head their side ponytail is fastened to.

  Qu Yi is explaining the work from the last page and trying her best to teach the problem to her neighbors. She has taken on a mentor role to the four girls at her table. Having only focused on her grades and assignments, with the lack of friends and all, she has already skipped a grade once before.

  Lu Kuang raises her hand. “Wait! Qu Yi!” Her voice rings out before being called on. Her side ponytail on the right side of her head.

  Qu Yi turns to her, pausing mid-sentence and smiles. “Yeah Lu Kuang?”

  “Shouldn’t it be pronounced pee?” Lu Kuang jabs her finger to the word on her own page. “It says right here, P-I.”

  Her twin sister nods, her voice softer and more reserved than her sister’s. “I remember distinctly learning, pie was spelled, P-I-E.”

  Qu Yi smiles replicating their nods. “Well, yeah, but this is a different kind of pie. This is Pi, which will always be three point one four.”

  Wen Chou squints at the symbol on her own paper. “Wait, how is this supposed to be three point one four? It’s just some Siamese T.”

  Yan Liang is reading in her math book. “Well technically, it’s three point one four onefiveninetwosixfivethreefive-”

  “No way I’m remembering that!” Wen Chou slams her head on her desk groaning. “Ugh, thank goodness this isn’t due until this Monday. We need to thank Yuan Shu for getting class cancelled and giving us the weekend to get it done. Even if it was because she threw a tantrum for half a day.”

  Qu Yi looks to the four distinct personalities, letting out a small sigh. “L-Look it will be fine. We have the weekend to study and learn it, right? A-And besides…” She turns to Yan Liang. “Three point one four is all everyone will ever need to know. Maybe the one and five if you want to overdo it.”

  Yan Liang’s eyes sparkles hearing that. “So, I must remember up until the five! It’s always better to be safe than sorry!”

  Wen Chou raises her head to look at Yan Liang, chin positioned on her desk. “Yeah, knock yourself out with that one. Unless we’re counting up pies, I don’t think pi should be a part in math.”

  Qu Yi checks the clock up at the wall, 3:48. She smiles. “L-Let’s just stop here for now. It’s the final page, and you girls have all worked really hard today. We can finish it up over the weekend.”

  Across from Qu Yi, Lu Kuang and Lu Xiang hug each other worried. Lu Kuang speaks up. “Wha? But what about me and Xiang?”

  Qu Yi offers a reassuring smile. “I’m sure Yan Liang and Wen Chou wouldn’t mind you coming to our room on Saturday to finish things up there. Besides, it’s just the last page. I don’t think it’ll be too much.”

  Yan Liang grins to Qu Yi. “You’re an excellent tutor Qu Yi, Thank you for all the help!” She stands up and bows to Qu Yi, a common show of respect, appreciation, or apologies at Falofhan.

  Qu Yi blushes, shifting in her seat at being praised. “A-Ah, i-it’s no big deal. I just got ahead in middle school. W-We can just finish it this Saturday.”

  “Ohohoho!” Pompous laughter rings out to the right of Qu Yi. All the girls turn to face a girl with hip length large voluminous blonde ringlets. The girl is Yuan Shao, their class president, wearing a uniform similar to everyone’s but with a longer skirt and an elevated bow on the back. She fluffs her fluffy hair. “Qu Yi! I hope you haven’t forgotten what Saturday entails!” She turns to the girl behind her, a girl with glasses and dark blue hair in a braid sitting at the front of her shoulder. “Calendar, Shen Pei.”

  Shen Pei, Yuan Shao’s roommate who takes her duties as if she’s her personal assistant, nods. She quickly pulls out a tablet and opens it, reading through the details. “This Saturday you have your appointment with Ms. Qu Yi, Yan Liang, and Wen Chou, 11:00 sharp. You have reserved the limo and set aside a three fifths portion of your month’s allowance for a shopping extrusion for the nobility of a wardrobe for Qu Yi, with some to both Wen Chou and Yan Liang.”

  Qu Yi’s eyes widen. “O-Oh. R-Right!” She looks down gripping the edges of her skirt. She has completely spaced the event. After everything that happened since, the call to her mom, her panic attack, and the Yellow Scarf incident… the shopping trip she has been tied down to completely slipped her mind.

  Yuan Shao nods to Shen Pei before turning back to Qu Yi. “Don’t forget! Shen Pei and I will come pick you three up from your room, 10:30. After all, a noblewoman is always on time! For the honor of the Yuan family!” She lets out her laugh. “Ohohoho!” seemingly oblivious to the fact she was late to class earlier this week.

  Wen Chou sighs, muttering under her breath. “Dang it. I thought she might have forgotten.”

  Yan Liang lightly slaps Wen Chou’s shoulder before turning to Yuan Shao, her expression brightening. “Don’t worry, President Yuan Shao! I’ve been looking forward to it! It feels like it’s been so long since I’ve been shopping with friends. I can’t remember the last time I did.” She pauses, thinking harder. “Wait, I really can’t.”

  Yuan Shao nods approvingly in Yan Liang’s direction before focusing back to Qu Yi, “Well I look forward to it! It’s not very often that I get to take a young noblewoman at heart out!” Her expression shifts to a look of pity. “It is so unfortunate you never had the chance to be who you were always truly meant to be!” She laughs looking to Qu Yi. Not noticing Qu Yi’s subtle twinge at being called a noblewoman. “Speaking of nobility, your hair is so lovely today! I can see you try to imitate success!” She fluffs her ringlets causing them to bounce elegantly as she smiles in admiration of Qu Yi’s curls.

  Qu Yi blushes and avoids eye contact. “I-It was Yan Liang’s idea.”

  Yan Liang scratches the back of her head shyly. “W-Well you said you wanted to learn more about hair, so I thought I’d surprise you while you were sleeping and have your hair in curlers by the time you woke up. That way you could learn a bit from experience.” She begins twiddling her fingers, looking slightly nervous. “I suppose I could have woken you up to ask, but once you fall asleep it’s practically impossible to wake you up.”

  A scoff comes from Wen Chou. “If you touch my hair like that while I’m sleeping, you’ll find yours cut short.”

  Yan Liang shoots Wen Chou an annoyed look. “Yours isn’t taken care of in the first place. I wouldn’t want to touch your saliva-filled hair.”

  Yuan Shao’s left hand goes to her right cheek and on cue, her signature laugh rings out. “Ohohoho! Well, Yan Liang, if you wouldn’t mind giving Qu Yi an elegant style tomorrow for our shopping spree; we are looking for noble clothing worthy of one of her inner grace and elegance! We simply must have it bloom outwards to show the world!”

  Yan Liang’s face flushes red. “W-Wait, you’re trusting me with it?” Being given responsibility from the president herself, she knows she would have to make it special.

  Yuan Shao nods confidently. “Yes! You hold up the grace and dignity of the Yuan family well. Perhaps one day I will let you even style my own hair!”

  Yan Liang’s eyes lock onto Yuan Shao’s golden ringlets, the thick blonde curls, the natural volume, the soft yet strong roots. That idea of working with something like that is a dream come true to her. “O-Of course! I won’t let you down, President Yuan Shao!” She turns excitedly to Qu Yi.

  The class president nods in approval as she spins gracefully on her heel and walks away. “Good, good! I’ll see what you do tomorrow! I greatly anticipate our shopping trip!”

  Qu Yi’s smile fades as she watches Yan Liang, who is visibly shaking from excitement. Qu Yi can’t break it to her so she averts her gaze to the ground. While she appreciates Yan Liang’s help with her hair, these curls are far too distracting for her. It isn’t like this the previous days. Ponytails, twintails, it keeps her hair off of her mind when it is tied out of the way. This style? The curls keep rubbing up against her neck, keep bouncing with any slight movement. Qu Yi indeed know she needs to get used to dealing with her own hair, but the idea of something like this tomorrow? The thought of going out in public like this, or something even more extravagant, makes her stomach twists. She might end up with another panic attack on her hands.

  Yan Liang, however, is seemingly far too excited to notice the obvious discomfort in Qu Yi’s body language. Wen Chou takes notice immediately. She clears her throat to speak up. “Hey, Liang about that-”

  “No time to talk, Wen Chou!” Yan Liang cuts her off, standing up proudly. “Yuan Shao is relying on me to come up with a hairstyle for a shopping trip! I have no time to waste! I need to do my research!” Without waiting for a response, she hastily makes her way to the door. “I’m going to the library! I’ll head to the dorm room when I’m done, and we can get dinner together!” She quickens her pace, heading straight out of the room and running right at the hall.

  Wen Chou raises her eyebrow to the doorway, still sitting at her desk. “Okay, isn’t she supposed to be a smarter one here? How did she not catch onto you being uncomfortable with your hairstyle?” She turns to Qu Yi.

  Qu Yi jumps slightly at Wen Chou’s comment. “You did?” She asks, blinking in surprise.

  Qu Yi’s response is met with a chuckle. “You are incredibly easy to read, Newbie. You keep poking it. When you tried to help the Lu sisters you kept having to adjust it whenever you moved. You don’t seem to like the feeling of it.” Wen Chou nonchalantly shrugs.

  Across the table the twins stare at Wen Chou in shock. Lu Xiang is the first to speak up. “Wow, how did you notice all that?”

  Lu Kuang responds immediately. “It’s because she was goofing off instead of filling out her packet the correct way.”

  The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

  Wen Chou shoots Lu Kuang a quick annoyed look. “It’s because I know my roommate!” She then glances away mumbling, “but I did guess on some of those problems.” She refocuses back to Qu Yi. “Anyway, Newbie, you have to tell Yan Liang.”

  Qu Yi lowers her gaze, staring at her hands who fidget with each other. “But, she is so excited… I don’t want to make her sad.”

  Wen Chou exhales. “It would make her even more sad if she knew you were uncomfortable with it and you didn’t tell her up front! You know how Yan Liang is. She would want what’s most comfortable for you.”

  Lu Xiang speaks up, tilting her head. “But doesn’t she call you names, and you bicker a lot?”

  Wen Chou rolls her eyes at the twin. “That’s with me, and that’s because we’re basically sisters since we shared a room for so long.” She turns to Qu Yi with a gentler smile. “She is really protective of Qu Yi though. You must be firm, Newbie, like how you were with the Yellow Scarves earlier this week.”

  Looking down was all Qu Yi could muster. “I-It’s different… when you talk with someone you hardly even know, you can fake it a bit, but with someone you trust, I’m worried I will disappoint her.”

  “Figuring out roommates isn’t as tough as you think,” a voice says behind the two, causing Qu Yi to quickly turn. She observes a girl with dark emerald chin length hair with a straight and orderly cut, piercing forest green eyes, and eyelids at half-mast. She wears the same classroom uniform everyone else in the room wears. She’s half looking up, half reading the small book she has in her hands.

  Wen Chou recognizes the voice immediately. “Yeah, Newbie, listen to Ju Shou. She’s really smart.”

  Ju Shou shifts her gaze to Wen Chou, expression unchanging. “Being well educated does not inherently qualify one as smart, Wen Chou, but I will take the compliment regardless.” Her pupils turn to Qu Yi. “I haven’t introduced myself. I am Ju Shou as Wen Chou just said. What I can gather about your body language from these last five days, you’re an anxious girl who lets her doubts wrestle with her thoughts.” She turns the page in the book, her tone remaining analytical.

  Qu Yi instinctively wants to contest the claim, but ends up just looking down at her hands. She can’t exactly argue with her assessment.

  “From your avoidance, I’ll take that as confirmation.” She raises her eyes, finally meeting with Qu Yi’s. “I know telling someone not to worry only leads to the opposite effect. Plenty of times, Yan Liang is too nice for her own good. She won’t mind giving up her aspirations if it causes someone else discomfort.”

  Qu Yi shakes her head. “But I don’t want Yan Liang to give up. I’m the one who asked her if she could teach me more about hair.” She grabs her curls for emphasis. “It’s just I don’t like it like this.”

  Ju Shou returns a solemn nod. “Such a simple request will not harm your relationship in the way you fear. Transparency with your boundaries is the key to maintaining a healthy friendship. In fact, transparency is the key to friendship.”

  The word “transparency” sends a shiver through Qu Yi. Does that include admitting your current body isn’t the one you’re used to? She thinks of admitting to her two roommates how she was a boy before she was accepted here. Not only would that be embarrassing to admit, ignoring if they would react like she’s a creep, but would they even believe her? It’s still technically impossible for her body to end up how it is now from a logical point of view. Had she not experienced it firsthand, she wouldn’t believe it herself.

  Wen Chou nods before replying, breaking Qu Yi’s thought. “Anyway, I wasn’t going to let her touch it this time, Newbie. It’ll be simple to talk to her at dinner. You’ll have me to help you, remember? I’ve known Yan Liang for years.” A big grin spreads on her face. “I can pick up anywhere you get overwhelmed and help you out.”

  Qu Yi lets out a sigh of relief, she can worry about the boy thing and being transparent with that later. In comparison, talking about her hair style is tiny.

  Ju Shou glances up just enough to gauge Qu Yi’s reaction. “It appears my thought process has helped you regain control over your lizard brain. I am glad to have been of service.” She bows slightly, signaling her exit from the conversation and brings her full attention back to her book.

  Wen Chou smiles standing up. “C’mon, Newbie. Let’s head back to the dorm.

  The two twins stand up. “We should be going also,” Lu Kuang speaks up as she dusts off her skirt.

  Lu Xiang continues where her twin left off. “We have tons of catching up to do.”

  Qu Yi stands up, before turning to the two with a puzzled expression. “Catching up on what?”

  In perfect sync, the twins pull out their handheld video game systems. “Video games!” they say simultaneously.

  Qu Yi smiles slightly. “How do you two always know when to say it so you say it together?”

  The twins exchange glances, their expressions shifting in thought. Then, on perfect timing they both turn to face Qu Yi. “I dunno!” They both say in unison once again, completely unaware of how they do it.

  The two roommates soon get to their dorm room, seeing no sign of Yan Liang on their way. Wen Chou opens the door and, sure enough, Yan Liang isn’t there either. Qu Yi checks her phone, 4:30. “I guess she is really studying hair stuff at the library.” She mutters to herself. “I just hope it’s not about fluffy bouncy curls.” She sits on her bed worried.

  Wen Chou plops down on Yan Liang’s bed, which happens to be right across from Qu Yi’s, next to the door. “Don’t worry.” She says, stretching her arms behind her head. “If she is studying them, it can be good practice for Yuan Shao’s hair.”

  Something Wen Chou said earlier had struck Qu Yi as odd. Wen Chou said her and Yan Liang were like sisters; however, that would imply this dimension existed before Qu Yi got here. What memories does Wen Chou have with Yan Liang?

  Qu Yi finally speaks up. “So, Wen Chou, when did you meet Yan Liang?”

  Wen Chou laughs shifting up on the bed. “Ah, it was so long ago now. I had this room all to myself to start. That was a good few years!” She smiles as the memories visualize in her mind, causing her to reminisce. “But with each year new students came. They have this opening ceremony thing for them normally.” She points to Qu Yi. “You are the outlier, as you came mid-semester. Anyway, the school got a lot busier than it used to be. Three years ago, Mr. Lei knocked on my door and said I had to share a room. He pulled in this shy looking girl with this big yellow bow in her hair.”

  “Wait,” Qu Yi interrupts. “Yan Liang was shy?” She perks up at the thought. Imagining her calm levelheaded welcoming protector, it is hard to imagine that Yan Liang first stepped into this room the same way she did. She sits on her bed, interested to hear.

  A laugh erupts from Wen Chou as she pulls the chair from the nearby vanity and turns it around to sit on it backwards, her arms resting on the backrest. “Oh boy was she! I can remember it like it was yesterday!”

  I led a young Yan Liang to her dorm room. “Room 513,” I nodded. “Here it is, your room.” I looked down to the much shorter Yan Liang. Her hair fell midway down her back tied neatly with a large yellow bow. She wore a white blouse with a Peter Pan collar and a knee-length pleated skirt. She was desperate to make a good first impression; however, she was looking down to her feet, afraid to look up at me.

  “O-Okay.” I hear a faint mutter from her lips. I shrugged, unlocking the door then knocking lightly on it. “Hey, Wen Chou, I’m coming in.”

  A sharp voice called out from inside. “Hey! Teachers shouldn’t be peeping on students!”

  I rolled my eyes, not being paid enough for this. “I have your new roommate. Do you want to meet her, or will she get to move in while your comments get you sent to detention again?”

  The door cracked open, revealing the much shorter, scrappier, and barely thirteen version of Wen Chou. She wore the same Yuan Shao uniform, just in a smaller size, with an adhesive bandage on her nose. “Mr. Lei, are you telling me that I need to share one of my three beds?”

  I pushed the door open fully, leading the nervous Yan Liang and her luggage inside. She and I, unfortunately, had to bear witness to the mess Wen Chou made of her room. Each bed sheet was kicked off the edge of the bed and dirty clothes sprawled out all over the floor. I pinch the bridge of my nose letting out a loud and audible breath. “Not exactly making a good first impression, are you?” I sighed and turned back to hand Yan Liang the room key only for her to hastily back away into the corner of the room.

  “T-That’s okay, M-M-Mr. Lei! J-Just leave it… um… I’ll grab it! Just leave it on the floor!”

  She certainly was terrified of me even approaching her. She was practically trembling. “Oh… sure?” I set the key on the floor before scooping up the mess of sheets from the bed closest to the door.

  “Hey!” Wen Chou’s voice snapped at me. “Why are you taking my sheets?!”

  I refused to look her direction. “I’m going to clean them, so Yan Liang has fresh bed sheets to start her school experience.”

  “You can’t do that! That’s my favorite bed! Give her the bed in the corner!”

  “If you had only picked one bed like you were supposed to, I wouldn’t be doing this. You get the corner one.” I wrap all the sheets into one big ball as I hold them in front of me. “Sorry about the inconvenience, Yan Liang. I’ll get this sorted and you’ll have sheets before tonight.” I am one foot out the door as I said this when suddenly Yan Liang is trying to close the door on me.

  “O-Okay bye!” she blurted out before successfully closing it.

  I stood out in the hall staring at the closed door for a moment before sighing, “All this wasn’t in the contract.”

  Inside the room, Wen Chou eyed her new roommate distrustfully. Still sore about the bed near the doorway being taken by her.

  Yan Liang kept her gaze low, hesitating she slowly grabbed the keys. She purposely avoided eye contact with Wen Chou as she looked at her hands demurely in front of her.

  Wen Chou folded her arms looking at her new roommate up and down, unsure what to make of this new roommate. “Your name is Yan Liang?”

  Yan Liang peeked up to Wen Chou’s face slowly before nodding. “I-I just got accepted. I was at the entrance ceremony, a-and this girl with gorgeous hair approached me.” Her eyes sparkled as she envisioned her, President Yuan Shao. “She asked me if I wanted to join her class, s-so I said yes.”

  Wen Chou continues to scan her quiet new roommate. “So, do you… like baseball?” She smiled a large grin at her.

  Qu Yi can’t help but snicker as she sits on her bed staring at Wen Chou.

  Wen Chou perks up at Qu Yi’s sound. “Hey Newbie, what’s so funny?” happy to have relieved some stress.

  “So every time you meet someone new do you ask if they like baseball?” She chuckles. “You did the same thing to me when I came in!”

  A laugh is returned. “Well it’s the best way to relate to someone! Thankfully she did admit to playing it when she was younger and being really good at it, so, I was happy to have someone who helped me practice batting-”

  The door to the room unlocks and opens, causing the two girls to turn their heads in its direction. Yan Liang walks in, a beaming smile on her face, as she has a piece of paper with printed instructions in her hands. “Qu Yi! I think I found the perfect style for you tomorrow!” Yan Liang heads straight to Qu Yi, as she pulls out her phone.

  Qu Yi stops and takes in a deep breath. “Y-Y-Yan Liang,” she stutters out before taking a moment to control herself. “I know you have been super excited to help me with my hair and such, but I have to tell you, this style…” She points to her hair in the curls. “I-I don’t like how it feels. I, well, I don’t want anything like this again.”

  Yan Liang stares at Qu Yi for a moment before giving a smile and nodding. “Yeah, I assumed so.”

  Qu Yi stares blankly back at her for a few seconds before finally responding. “Huh??”

  Yan Liang chuckles as a smile spreads on her face. “Yeah! You were constantly playing with it. It was kind of cute! But it was obvious you weren’t the biggest fan of it.” She averts her eyes. “While it is cute on you, I think you should be able to feel comfortable first and foremost! Her eyes return to Qu Yi “I’ve only known you for five days now, Qu Yi, but you’re a bit of an open book.”

  Qu Yi blinks a few times before snickering to herself. “I-I guess I really had nothing to worry about telling you…” She cocks her head slightly. “Wait, but what hair styles were you studying in the library?”

  The question causes Yan Liang to perk up, “Oh! So, I was thinking of what hairstyles we tried that you liked!” She sits on Qu Yi’s bed next to her. “So far we’ve tried a few, you were fine with your hair straightened, like how it was the day you arrived. You liked it in a curled ponytail we did on Tuesday! Wednesday you had twintails that you liked. Thursday you enjoyed the high ponytail! Today, we tried curls which you don’t like. My research has determined you like your hair being up!”

  Qu Yi blinks a few times in confusion, still unaware of much terminology of being a girl. “Up?” She imagines her hair defying gravity. “I think gravity prevents that from happening?”

  Yan Liang can’t help but snicker. “Good one, but you know what I mean.”

  Qu Yi looks down at her hands shyly. “A-Actually, I don’t...”

  Wen Chou sits up. “You know, like when my head is up from bedhead!” she snickers.

  Yan Liang turns to Wen Chou with a look of annoyance. “No.” She turns back to Qu Yi, her scowl from Wen Chou instantly gone. “You know for real, right?”

  A long silence greets the three roommates, as Qu Yi slowly shakes her head. Yan Liang stares for a bit in confusion at her before chuckling. “I would think being a mother’s girl you would have had these conversations with her at some point.” She smiles. “It’s kind of cute that you don’t know it though! It’s like having a brand-new little sister!”

  Qu Yi feels the words thrust into her, as sharp as arrows. Her masculinity pride takes a hit over being called a little sister. “U-Uh, sorry, I’m just not good on the terminology.”

  “Well, pretty much, your hair being ‘up’ is talking about your hair being ‘pinned up’ or held up! So, something like a ponytail!”

  Qu Yi nods. “Oh, I guess that makes sense.” She thinks to herself. She has noticed when her hair is up, she doesn’t feel it as often and the sensory difference doesn’t bother her as much. It’s like night and day compared to the curls she has now.

  “So, there are plenty of ways to make having your hair up be more, as Yuan Shao would put it, ‘elegant.’ In fact, you might even like it more!” She sets down her paper, revealing a how to tutorial on how to do a bun hairstyle.

  Qu Yi looks at the step by step pictures. “Wait, so all my hair, is going to end up. In one big bundle?” She thinks, “Isn’t that how Cao Cao has her hair?” She envisions Cao Cao with her dark brown high bun.

  Wen Chou sneers. “Why you trying to get our awesome roommate to look like Cao Cao, Liang?”

  Yan Liang rapidly turns around to Wen Chou. “I’m not!” She quickly returns focus to Qu Yi. “Well, yeah she does have it, but the thing about it is it’s often seems as an elegant refined style, while also able to be casual at the same time!” She claps excitedly.

  Qu Yi looks at it. “I-It sounds a bit weird… Having all this piled onto my head?” She grabs the side of her hair for emphasis. “Won’t it be heavy and squish my neck down?”

  Yan Liang giggles at Qu Yi. “No, no, no. It’s fine. We’ll try it in the morning and if you don’t like how it feels, we can swap to the curled ponytail. Right, Yi?”

  Qu Yi stares at the paper. “A-All right. I trust you, Yan Liang.” She pauses for a moment. “Wait, did you just call me by just my… Given name?” This is something that Qu Yi learned that only close friends at Falofhan will do, as it’s a less formal way of talking to someone.

  Yan Liang blushes and covers her mouth. “A-Ah was it too soon? I can stop if you don’t want-”

  “No!” Qu Yi smiles to herself looking in her lap. While having a given name last is something new to her in this school, she knows it means having closeness with someone to only refer to them as that without their family name. “It makes me feel, happy.”

  Yan Liang blinks and then smiles, “Well you’re free to call me just Liang sometimes if you want!”

  Qu Yi blinks a few times, before trying. “Okay, um, Liang.”

  “Heeey!” Wen Chou jolts up suddenly. She had started to daydream, but hearing Qu Yi call her roommate by just her given name got her out of it. “That’s not fair Newbie! You should call me by just my given name if you’re going to call Liang by hers!”

  “Oh, um, sure! If that’s okay, Chou?”

  Wen Chou gets a dumb grin on her face. “Heeeeh! Yeah! Like that!”

  Yan Liang’s face shifts to pout. “Hey Chou! You don’t even call Yi by just her given name either!”

  Wen Chou looks annoyed to Yan Liang. “Well, I have given her a nickname! That’s already very personal! Right Newbie?”

  Qu Yi sits up. “Well, I don’t mind it, but I do wish there was a way you could also call me by my given name. That way we could all be together with it.”

  Wen Chou snaps her fingers. “I got it! NewbYi!” She looks back and forth between Yan Liang and Qu Yi. “Eh? Eh? Pretty good, right?”

  Silence fills the room for a bit, the three girls sharing glances between each other until Qu Yi begins snickering. As she snickers, Wen Chou can’t help but bite her tongue and laugh, which causes Qu Yi to snicker more. Yan Liang tries to stay straight-faced but can’t help but smile and begins giggling herself.