Chapter Text
“If Tomoe was a guy, I’d totally fall in love with him,” Himari declared suddenly to her friends gathered around their usual table in the corner of Hazawa coffee.
The other members of Afterglow, save Tsugumi who was hurriedly delivering drinks around the cafe, stared back at Himari in silence, each trying to figure out how exactly Himari had arrived at that conclusion from their conversation on their next live show. Tomoe broke the silence.
“But I’m a girl,” Tomoe sighed, “and you’re already in love with me. You tell me that, constantly. We’ve been dating for three years?”
“It’s just like— it’s like if you were a guy I’d fall in love with you anyway! It’s romantic! Plus you’d be a super cool, super hot guy I just know it!”
“That’s—”
“I see it~ I see it~” Moca wandered in the conversation, “Tomo instead of Tomoe.”
“Eh?”
“Yeah! Tomo!” Himari agreed excitedly, happy to have a partner for this fantasy, “He’s got cool short hair.”
“Like Tomo-chin in middle school.”
“And has tough scary eyes!”
“Like Tomo-chin right now.”
“He plays the drums and taiko!” Himari counted the Tomo’s totally original characteristics on her fingers, “He’s always nice to old people and is good at carrying heavy stuff! Plus, he’s totally in love with me!”
Ran finally joined the conversation, “You’re just describing Tomoe with male pronouns.”
“Um… he’s taller?”
Tomoe crossed her arms, “Is there really anything Tomo can do that I can’t?
“I’ve got it! Playing taiko shirtless without getting arrested!”
“That’s just disrespectful."
“Hii-chan~ Hii-chan~ you have to think deeper. If Tomoe was a guy, he’d never meet all of us and learn the magic of friendship. He’d probably fall to a life of crime,” Moca dramatically sniffed over her coffee. “Moca-chan’s heart breaks just thinking about it.”
Himari nodded, “Tomo’s a delinquent! The kind of guy always going around like ‘eh, whatchu looking at’ and spitting in the road!”
“This is no good Tomo,” Moca scolded the imaginary man, “you have to go to class, you’ll never graduate like this.”
“He just wants someone to understand him!” Tears welled up in Himari’s eyes, “so he plays taiko in the moonlight, hoping someone will hear his drum and join in!”
The friends fell silent again, Moca and Himari imagining poor Tomo’s lonely life, Tomoe wondering how long this conversation was going to last.
“Guys, this is a bit much,” Tomoe chuckled uncomfortably, “Right Ran?”
Ran nodded, “It is.”
“Exactly—”
“If Tomoe’s a guy, wouldn’t we all be guys too? We’d just be friends as boys instead of girls.”
“Of course!” Himari clapped her hands together, “Tomo will be fine! He’s still got a cute childhood friend by his side!”
“Himari as a boy...” The image of a short, adorable, plump boy with round cheeks and cropped hair passed through Tomoe’s mind.
“Tomoe, Tomoe what’s my name?”
Tomoe struggled to imagine an appropriate name for the rolly-polly in her head, “Himashi.”
“Tomoe, you’ve lost your naming privileges.”
Moca stepped in. “Hii-chan would be Hii-kun~ it’s that easy~”
“Hii-kun huh...” Tomoe’s brow furrowed. After putting far too much thought into it she sighed, “I don’t think I could fall for him.”
“Tooomooee!” Himari whined. “But you have to!”
“Even if he’s like you in every way, he’s still a guy, ya know?”
“Hii-kun can’t help being a guy!”
“Wait! If I’m Tomo then Hii-kun is definitely my type!”
Himari perked up, “That make total sense! Tomo and Hii-kun together forever!”
“Hey, Moca,” Ran tugged at Moca’s sleeve. “What would my name be?”
“Run.”
“Denied.”
Himari ran with Run, “He still spends all his time on the school roof but instead of using the stairs he totally climbs up there from a classroom window.”
“Woah!” Tomoe eyes gleamed with admiration for a fake version of her actual friend, “Run is super strong. What a cool guy!”
“Of course that means Moca would be—”
“Cappuccino,” Moca grinned.
“Cappuccino,” Ran repeated under her breath.
Moca’s ears perked. “Ran~ are you picturing Cappuccino’s hot bod? You know, he definitely has a six pack. All the bread goes riiight to his muscles.”
Ran fiddled with the edge of a napkin, blushing, “...no matter what you looked like, Moca would still be Moca… the person I love.”
“R-Ran,” Moca grabbed at her heart, “Cappuccino loves Run too!”
“Please give him another name.”
Tsugumi appeared by the side of the table, clearing their empty plates, “You guys are so lively today.”
“What about Tsugu?” Tomoe turned to the others.
“Hmm? What about me?”
The girls around the table tried to picture it.
“Tsugu is still tsuguriffic no matter what,” Moca nodded, “but I can’t picture it.”
“No! No!” Himari shook her head wildly, “I don’t want our super cute Tsugu to be a guy!”
“But then it’s four guys and one Tsugu!” Tomoe protested, “That’s not fair.”
“I’ve got it! We thought it was boys’ love but it’s actually a reverse-harem shoujo manga!”
“I’m okay with that,” Ran nodded solemnly.
“Same!” Tomoe agreed, “I’d definitely fall for Tsugu!”
“Tsugu~ please pick Cappuccino.”
Tsugumi smiled in her warm Tsuguriffic manner, “I don’t know what’s happening but I promise to do my best as the main character!”
Afterglow laughed, content in knowing somewhere out there was an alternate universe where there were four guys laughing about an alternate universe where they were all girls.
“By the way, did you guys figure out the theme for our next live?” Tsugumi asked.
The four turned to Tsugumi in unison:
“Boys band party.”