A childish face, small figure radiating youthful charm, and messy brown hair, Eka Yorian yawned widely while rubbing his eyes to fend off the sleepiness.
"Maybe this is too early..." he muttered, glancing at his watch. The needle hadn't even pointed at 7 yet.
Monday morning.
The streets were already bustling with activity, and Eka was probably the only one still yawning at intervals. But what could he do? Today was his first day as a university student, and he certainly didn't want to mess it up by being late. Leaving early was definitely better choice.
"Ugh, I really need coffee..." he thought as he walked toward the supermarket on the corner.
"Oh, Professor! You're up early today!" someone greeted him.
"Huh???" Eka looked around, but the cashier was clearly talking to him.
"Are you talking to me?"
"Who else would I be talking to? Wait, is there something special today? Why are you wearing men's clothes? And did you finally dare to wear that contact lenses?"
"...?" Eka scratched his head, even though it wasn't itchy. "Sorry, I think you talking to wrong person."
Not bothered to continue the conversation, he quickly grabbed a packet of instant coffee, made his drink at the water area, and paid at the counter. The supermarket cashier, however, kept staring at him and even asked again. It left Eka really confused.
"What a strange person. Does he think I'm a trans-men?" Eka muttered under his breath as he cautiously sipped her hot coffee along the sidewalk.
The distance between his boarding house and the university was only a few hundred meters, so he didn't bother bringing his motorcycle. After all, who would want to ride when their eyes were struggling to stay open?
"Good morning, Professor!"
"Huh? Your outfit is... quite striking today!"
"Oh, Eka, finally wearing contact lenses? Auntie said they look much better than glasses, and they did!"
"Hey Eka, where's your car?"
Again and again, unfamiliar faces greeted him familiarly.
"...?" Eka truly didn't know what to say.
'Do I have some kind of evil twin or something?' he thought.
He tried to ask, but the responses were the same: everyone was calling him as a female professor at Maha Jaya University. It only made him more bewildered.
"I don't have amnesia, do I?" Of course, that was just her humor, but still... "But, uh, this woman, is she really a girl... with my face?"
Eka shuddered at the thought.
"Argh, I don't know, but this is really annoying!" he could stay calm outside, but how would he be perceived at the university? The thought of people treating him as a professor and acting respectful toward him might be funny as memorable first day, but he wasn't interested in joking around.
"Hey, mister, give me that mask."
"Hm? Oh, Eka!"
"..."
It didn't take long before Eka arrived at the university, fully awake. But it wasn't the coffee that woke him up—it was the confusion caused by people constantly greeting him.
Turns out, waking up at 7 AM was indeed too early.
"Sigh," he spent the rest of the time reading before his class starts at 8 AM.
Sitting in the front row, Eka easily struck up conversations with his new classmates. There were only 20 of them—small for a class, but what could they do? Mathematics department wasn't very popular.
"Alright, everyone, take a seat."
Five minutes into the class, a woman walked into the room. Eka quickly removed his mask, not wanting to be disrespectful.
"Let me introduce myself. My name is Ananda Eka Putri, and I will be teaching geometry."
After writing her name on the board, the woman turned around. Her expression was calm and neutral as her eyes scanned the room until—Both Ekas froze at the same time.
"…"
"…"
Seeing both their reactions, the other students stared between the two Ekas, equally shocked.
"You both have the same face!"