I Ended Up Cross-Dressing, My Secret Relationship with a Handsome Guy (BL) - Chapter 20

It had been about a month since I cut off contact with Kiryu.

Since I hadn’t received a single message from him since that day, it was safe to assume that everything was over.

On the day I ran away because I couldn’t handle it anymore, I was honestly terrified of going to school the next day.

What if Kiryu had told someone about what happened?

If that were the case, my life would turn into a living hell.

But contrary to my fears, nothing happened.

The days passed as if nothing had changed.

Even so, for about a week, I was constantly on edge, bracing myself for whatever might come.

I was so exhausted from the tension that I couldn’t even focus on my tests properly.

But time kept moving forward.

And as time passed, things that had once weighed on me slowly started to fade.

Kiryu and I had always lived in different worlds.

Now that things had ended, our relationship vanished as if it had never existed in the first place.

If I stopped looking at him, he wouldn’t be part of my world anymore.

And the same applied to him.

It was like reality itself was forcing me to accept that everything had been just a dream.

Of course, it wasn’t like I didn’t feel lonely.

It hurt.

It was painful.

But I knew this was how things were supposed to be, so it didn’t take me long to accept it.

The time I spent with Kiryu—those unrealistic days—would remain as a treasured memory in my life.

Because no matter the outcome, the fact that I got to be close to someone I liked was undeniably real.

That was enough.

At least, that’s what I thought.

Until, out of nowhere, I got dragged into something ridiculous.

“What about Saito?”

The idea for our class’s culture festival booth was a gender-swap café—simple, but sure to be a hit.

In events like these, the people chosen to take center stage were always the popular ones.

I had assumed I’d end up on the cooking or setup team—some miscellaneous, behind-the-scenes role.

So when I suddenly heard my name being called, I thought I had misheard.

The one who suggested me was some loud baseball player.

Of course, baseball players were always loud.

I prayed that he would just shut his mouth, but my wish went unheard.

And the moment I tried to protest, the entire classroom erupted in cheers.

At that moment, I decided—I hated grilled meat.

“Yukiho, let’s take off your glasses!”

Before I knew it, a flashy-looking girl had appeared beside me.

Before I could react, she plucked my glasses from my face, and my vision instantly blurred.

I felt a hand—one that smelled strangely nice—touch my face.

At that moment, I realized something.

—There was no escaping this.

There was no point in resisting.

Defying the popular girls would only lead to trouble.

Absolutely nothing good would come out of it.

And so, I resigned myself to my fate—there was no stopping them from dressing me up.

It felt like Kiryu had been watching me the whole time, but that was probably just my imagination.

The Culture Festival

At my school, the culture festival was always held on the first Sunday of November.

The two weeks before that were considered the preparation period.

During this time, club activities and committee duties were scaled back so that each class could focus on their projects.

Of course, some clubs had performances to prepare for, so students in those clubs were allowed to prioritize their activities.

But even with all that, our school’s culture festival was huge.

It was always a big event.

“The costumes are ready!”

A group of usually quiet girls entered the classroom carrying a large cardboard box.

They were members of the fashion club, and they had been working tirelessly to finish the costumes for our café.

Apparently, our school’s fashion club was on another level.

Last year’s fashion show had been incredible.

“Hey, the cooking team finished testing the menu! Someone go taste it with the teacher!”

The students in charge of cooking had spent days perfecting the recipes, and today was finally the day they got to test them.

Their eyes burned with determination.

“The construction team sent a message! Class reps, check it out!”

Our café was going to be held inside the classroom.

But a regular classroom was way too plain, so the construction team had been working hard to build walls and decorations to transform the space.

The dedication was insane.

“Alright, Yukiho, close your eyes~”

“…Okay.”

I felt something soft patting my face.

I knew that if I breathed through my nose, I’d probably inhale whatever tiny particles were floating around.

Lined up beside me were several other boys.

And in front of us—girls fully equipped with makeup tools.

Yes.

This was the makeup zone.

Somehow, I had ended up here.

And for some reason, the popular girls had started calling me Yukipi and Yukipoyo.

By mid-second year, I was now having actual conversations with girls.

“Yukipi, your skin is amazing. Do you use anything special?”

“…I put on lotion, I guess.”

“Wow, so responsible! Boys, learn from Yukipi! At the very least, shave your leg hair! And your beards! And moisturize after your shower, even if it’s cheap stuff!”

“…What’s lotion?”

“Google it.”

Being in such a lively space was unfamiliar to me.

It made me awkward, restless.

But the girls and even the sports club guys didn’t push me away.

They waited for me to get used to it.

And when I realized that, I felt like I had wasted these past few months by keeping my distance.

“…Your lashes are so long. Are you more like your mom?”

“Uh… yeah. But people say I got my eyes from my dad.”

“Seriously? That’s some top-tier genetics. Ugh, I wish I was born cuter!”

“…? But, Kusunoki, you’re already pretty.”

For a moment, everything went silent.

Even the other guys getting their makeup done stopped talking.

I didn’t have my glasses, so I couldn’t see their faces.

But I knew I had just said something that made the air freeze.

My heart pounded as nerves took over.

But before I could panic and apologize, Kusunoki exhaled softly.

“…I just felt maternal instincts kick in.”

“Same.”

“I wish my little brother was more like Yukipoyo.”

I felt their hands touch my face again.

They told me to keep my eyes closed, so I obeyed.

I could feel something being applied to my eyelids.

“What we lack is Yukiho’s honesty.”

“Even if we were honest, we wouldn’t end up like that.”

“Damn it!”

“Okay, eyes closed! Wait—why are your eyelids sunburnt?! Should we just turn you into a dark-skinned gyaru?”

“Go for it!”

From across the room, I heard the class rep checking the costumes.

Closing my eyes made my hearing sharper, and I could tell just how noisy the room was.

Last year, I had been in a dull background role—doing tasks that didn’t matter whether I was there or not.

Back then, I felt completely out of place.

But this year, even if I had been forced into it, I was part of the culture festival.

And honestly, it was fun.

For the first time, I realized—these classmates I had always seen as different from me were actually… just normal people.

Just like me.

“Yukipi, open your eyes~”

I did as I was told.

Of course, my vision was still blurry.

But even without seeing clearly, I knew—everyone looked excited.

And I couldn’t help but smile.

“Yukipi, you better get contacts before the festival!”

“…Oh. Right.”