When Aya was five years old, she just moved in to a suburban area at one of the big cities in Japan. She there met two kids around her age, looked like boys, they approached Aya with big smiles on their faces.
"Hello there!" One of the two boys with a short mullet and short bangs friendly lifted his hand to asked Aya a hand shake. But introverted Aya just fidgeted around with her shirt shyly.
"My name is Tetsu! What's your name?" The boy added. Aya shyly answered with a faint, stuttered voice but managed to keep her eyes locked to the boy's eyes. "M-my name is Aya."
The other boy with a little bit spiky short hair and short bangs suddenly popped up right to Aya's face with a surprised look on his face while the boy who just introduced himself as Tetsu still had his hand up, waiting for Aya's hand shake. "Aya? What a cute name." The other boy said.
The other boy looked at Tetsu with his thumb pointed at Aya's face while said, "He looks a little bit like Ryu, don't you think?" that made Tetsu look at Aya intently with many blinks.
"Hmm now that you mentioned it... He does look similar to Ryu. Does Ryu have a little brother, though?" Tetsu asked the other boy with a curious look on his face. While those two boys who just approached Aya busy talking to each other, Aya couldn't stop wondering in her mind about "Who is Ryu...?" with a very confused look on her face.
"Who is Ryu?" Aya abruptly asked those two boys with a louder voice this time to catch their attentions. Those two boys quickly looked at Aya with surprised looks, their assumptions quickly flushed down.
"So you're not Ryu's little brother, huh?" Tetsu asked. Aya shook her head with furrowed eyebrows. "I don't have a brother. I'm an only child." Aya answered.
"Ryu is one of our friends." Tetsu said to Aya. The other boy quickly apologized with a sheepish smile. "Eh, sorry about that. My name's Naoki by the way. Nice to meet you, Aya-kun." The other boy finally introduced himself to Aya.
While busy with each other, they're suddenly interrupted by a loud voice came from a distance. "Hey, you guys~!" The source of the voice slowly approached Aya, Tetsu, and Naoki.
"Hello, Hiro!" Tetsu and Naoki greeted another boy who just approached the three of them. Another boy with a neat hair looked at Aya with widened eyes. "Oh? I thought this was Ryu." The newly arrived boy said. Naoki excitedly reply to the new b"y while looked at Aya. "rig"t? Right? He looks just like Ryu!" Naoki exclaimed with a loud voice.
"We'll introduce you to Ryu later. And this one name is Hirofumi, Aya-kun." Tetsu calmly told Aya that with a gentle smile. The new boy waved his hand at Aya in a friendly manner and a big smile. "Hi there! Aya, eh? What a cute name!" Hirofumi repeated what Naoki told to Aya a few minutes ago. Aya couldn't help but think how kind and friendly those boys were to her. Thoughā¦ they mistook Aya's gender because at that time, she had her hair shorter than Tetsu, Naoki, and Hirofumi, and a boy-like voice.
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Three years later.
Aya, along with Tetsu, Naoki, Hirofumi, and Ryu were on their way to their elementary school together since they attended the same school and they're neighbors. They all walked together, until a sudden loud exclaim could be heard from the boys' voice and they all had to stop their tracks.
"EEHH?!"
"Aya-kun is a girl?!" Tetsu shouted in a shocked tone and his eyes widened in disbelief, just like Naoki's, Hirofumi's, and Ryu's.
"Say what now?" Naoki added. Hirofumi and Ryu were just speechless and couldn't say anything while their eyes remained widen.
Tetsu approached Aya and poked her cheek to check if it's true. "You mean to tell me... Aya-kun has been a girl this whole time?!"
"No way..." Ryu finally spoke with a betrayed tone while approached Aya to look at Aya closely to make sure.
"Nah!" A denial suddenly came from Naoki where he just shrugged his shoulders. "Aya-kun is a boy! He's just pranking us! Ahahahahah!" A laugh followed along after the denial while Naoki continued to walk with a devilish laugh like that. The other boys resumed their walks too to the school while Aya pouted because they didn't take Aya seriously when it's the truth.
"But it's true!" Aya shouted as she tailed them with the same pout. The boys just laughed loudly that echoed around the neighborhood. Aya grumbled and just let it go for the time being.
Four years later.
The boys in Naoki's house couldn't help but staring at Aya who just arrived at Naoki's house intently without saying anything. Naoki had his lips pursed with his chin rested on his hand, as if he's plotting something.
Aya looked at them in confusion. They still hadn't said anything to her. "What? Why are you guys staring at me like that?" Aya asked. Naoki shrugged his shoulders in a nonchalant manner.
"Tetsu." Naoki suddenly called out to Tetsu with a firm tone. Tetsu quickly approached Naoki and saluted to Naoki in a playful childish way. "Yes, sir!"
Naoki with an unknown reason put a bored face. "Get me a scissor." Naoki ordered Tetsu with a voice that matched his bored face. Tetsu quickly ran toward somewhere to get the scissor that Naoki asked. "Right away, sir!"
A few minutes and a few clattered sounds later, Tetsu returned with a pair of scissor in his hands, handed it to Naoki but Naoki didn't take it. "I'm back, Sir! Here's your scissor, Sir!"
"Good job. Ryu and Hiro." Naoki called out to Ryu and Hirofumi now. Ryu and Hirofumi saluted as well just like what Tetsu did to Naoki.
"Yes, sir!"
"Hold her down." Naoki ordered Ryu and Hirofumi. They quickly grabbed each of Aya's shoulder on each side that made Aya gasped.
"Eh?!"
Naoki finally grabbed the scissor from Tetsu's hands and stood from his chair, loomed over Aya with a devilish smirk because he was about to do what he'd been plotting.
"W-what... what are you going to do to me?" Aya couldn't move, frozen in place while looked up at Naoki with a fear expression on her face. Scared and worried for what Naoki about to do to her.
"Waaahhh!!!! What are you doing to my hair?! Don't cut it! No!" Aya quickly screamed when Naoki suddenly cut her hair that grew longer than her shoulders' length. Naoki done cut her hair to his hair length, a common short hair length for boys their age that took about a few minutes, in a very messy way.
"There you go. That suit you more." Naoki said calmly while Tetsu handed Aya a mirror. "That's right! You should look at it yourself!" Tetsu handed the mirror with a big smile, showed Aya her brand new hair that has no bangs anymore. And her hair now even shorter than Naoki's hair, left Hirofumi and Ryu speechless on their spots.
Aya took the mirror from Tetsu's hand to look at her hair herself. "My hair..." That's all she could say while stared at her reflection in the mirror. Completely speechless from what the boys just did to her, especially Naoki. Hirofumi held his laugh so hard that he released a snort while Ryu comforted Aya with kind, gentle words as he patted Aya's shoulder.
"You look... good in that hair, Aya-kun." Ryu said. Aya couldn't take it anymore.
"WHY DID YOU CUT ALL OF MY HAIR?!" Aya exploded instead of crying, yelled her lungs out to the boys especially Naoki while clenched onto the mirror tightly.
"All of your hair? I didn't make you bald now did i?" Naoki responded with a nonchalant but sassy attitude while the other boys finally laughed their lungs out.
"SHUT UP! AND DON'T TOUCH MY HAIR EVER AGAIN!"
"Why? You look good in that hair."
"NO I DON'T!"
Aya and Naoki continued their bickering while the other boys witnessed them with a laugh. I guess they still didn't see Aya as a girl, but who knows?
Upon entered junior high school, they all finally wore official school uniforms. They attended the same junior high school, even the same class again even though they've been on the same class since elementary grade. Aya somehow found it difficult to blend in with the boys when they entered the junior high because she had to start wearing skirts. She felt so out of place at first because she was so used to wear boy's pants.
On their way to school together, Aya went to the school with the same short hair that Naoki just cut a few weeks ago, barely as long as Tetsu's hair who had short mullets. The boys couldn't help but teased Aya over and over again on their way.
"Aya-kun, why are you wearing a skirt?" Hirofumi asked teasingly at Aya.
"You got the wrong uniform, Aya-kun." Ryu added while brushed Aya's shoulder.
"Are you hiding something in there?" Naoki bent over to tried to look under Aya's skirts in a mischievous manner that made Aya wrap her skirts tight around her knees to prevent Naoki looked at anything.
"No, i don't! Stop it!" Aya yelled at Naoki. Tetsu just laughed at the whole scene.
"This is going to be so fun! We're all going to be in the same class again!" Tetsu said with a big, excited smile on his face. It annoyed Aya even more.
"Why are we in the same class again?!" Aya exploded at the boys.
"Eehh why not?" Ryu exclaimed.
"I need a break from you guys!" Aya replied in a loud shout while tried to shoo them away.