Gender Reversal and the Sweet Cool Beauty Boy

With no change in expression, I closed the classroom back door I'd just opened. Then I stood blankly in the hallway, taking slow, deep breaths.

Ah, did those crazy customers yesterday wear me out too much?

Calm down, Han Do-hyun! I pulled my smartphone from my pants pocket. It took exactly three seconds to open the green app main screen and skim the real-time news headlines.

I quietly turned off the smartphone screen. Humans are animals of adaptation, they say... Or maybe it was the worn-down flexible thinking of a survival hustler working multiple part-time gigs... In just three seconds, I concluded I could adapt to this insane world.

Whether the world is upside down or genders are reversed, that's none of my business.

Anyway, today wasn't the day to buy the Elden Souls Limited Edition? No matter if the gender ratio is 15:1, to snag the all-important Elden Souls for me, I had to dash to Gukjeon—International Electronics Center—right after school for the opening rush. So at school, I needed to sleep as much as possible and conserve energy.

With my mentality ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠perfectly sorted, I reopened the back door to my classroom, Class 1-3.

In an instant, the murmuring classroom fell silent as if doused with cold water. The gazes of about thirty female students zeroed in on me standing at the back door.

...What? Why are they staring so scarily?

I clicked my tongue inwardly and walked indifferently. Toward my usual spot: the prime real estate at the very back by the window. Just heading there had the girls flinching like the parting of the Red Sea, making way for me.

I didn't exude the heavy makeup or perfume scents typical of male students in this gender-reversed world. Just a faint fabric softener aroma, bare-faced pale skin without a dab of BB cream, neatly tied necktie on my uniform. I wouldn't know since I never checked a mirror, but apparently, the guy who always napped facedown in the corner of the classroom looked strangely different to them today.

"Hey, what are you doing standing there like an idiot? You're kicking up dust. Annoying me first thing in the morning, seriously."

Then, an irritated voice erupted from the center of the classroom. It was Lee Jae-min, a male student lounging arrogantly with his legs crossed on what looked like a throne made from two desks pushed together. With his luxury belt and shirt unbuttoned two notches, he ruled the class using his handsome face and rare male status as weapons.

I paused on my way to my seat and glanced over. Near him, the neatly dressed class president was flustered, and on the floor rolled a heavy box stuffed with A4 printouts, seemingly dropped by mistake.

"S-sorry, Jae-min! I'll clean it up right now!"

She, who should normally assert herself as class president, was on her knees scrambling to pick up papers to avoid upsetting the top-tier popular guy in the school caste. Jae-min tsked at her.

"Instead of apologizing, pick up one more. Ugh, just be careful—why make more work?"

The female students held their breath, watching Jae-min's mood. As the class president struggled to lift the heavy box with a tearful face...

"Here, give it to me."

A low, calm voice slipped from my mouth.

"Huh...?"

Before the class president could even blurt out her dazed response, I snatched the heavy printout box from her hands with one arm effortlessly. I felt the subtle muscles in my forearm tense up. These were my battle-hardened, compact muscles forged from shuttling between warehouse and big-mart part-times. Yeah, that was my greatest achievement in my part-time life. Anyway, I met the eyes of the class president sitting on the floor and flashed a perfect capitalist smile, curving just right.

"It's heavy. You pick up the scattered ones. I'll put this on the teacher's desk."

"Ah... Huh?"

Was the delicate(?) male student—me, the invisible one—snatching her heavy load embarrassing her? The class president's face flushed red. I was sure I'd smiled with professional, kind capitalist charm... Soon,

I set the box lightly by the teacher's desk, then neatly aligned the scattered printouts by tapping their edges sharp— a occupational habit ingrained to my bones from straightening store shelves.

"No injuries, right?"

Casual blunt speech mixed with a professional line. From my perspective, it was just a habit from helping coworkers with heavy loads at work, a reflexive check to shut down the noisy troublemaker (Lee Jae-min) early. But the female students in the classroom started murmuring, sensing something off.

"N-no, I'm fine...! Th-thanks, Do-hyun...!"

"Yeah. Be careful."

I reverted to my expressionless face and strode straight to my seat without lingering. The classroom was dead silent, like after a storm. The girls' gazes had completely changed. From simple bewilderment before, now they burned with some inexplicable intensity.

Crazy... Was Han Do-hyun always that alluring?

Did you see that smile? Is there something up with that guy?

He carried her load for her. A guy did. Insane, that's a total slam dunk!

At the whispering reactions, Jae-min on his throne flushed red and blue with anger.

"Hey, Han Do-hyun! What the hell are you doing?"

He barked, but I was already hanging my bag on my chair, prepping to nap. I glanced at him lazily and tossed out indifferently,

"What? And I'm tired, so shut up and let me sleep."

A worn-out part-timer effortlessly deflecting the flashy male(?) show-off's challenge like taijiquan. Jae-min was speechless in disbelief, and the girls seemed shocked again by my drowsy, prickly vibe.

Ah, so tired. Gotta head to Gukjeon right after school and line up.

Blissfully unaware of the massive wildfire I'd just ignited in thirty girls' hearts, I closed my eyes, dreaming of a peaceful gaming life.

Tap tap.

"Hey. Han Do-hyun. You asleep?"

Just as sleep was pulling me under, someone lightly tapped my shoulder. I scowled and lifted my head.

"Ugh, who..."

"It's me, dude. What's up with you this morning? Eat something bad?"

Perched on the chair in front of me was the guy who'd been snickering from the back when Jae-min was throwing his weight around earlier—Kang Eun-ho. Unlike Jae-min, plastered in luxury brands and caked makeup, Eun-ho just had his shirt sleeves rolled up, exuding effortless chill in his natural style. He seemed popular with guys and girls alike.

He wouldn't usually bother ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠me, the guy who only slept at school, but curiosity burned in ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠his eyes now.

"What was that earlier? You into the class president?"

"What? I just cleared the dust. No big deal."

I yawned lazily in annoyance. It was just a work habit popping out—no deeper meaning. But Eun-ho choked back a laugh, shaking his head.

"You lunatic. You think that wasn't flirting?"

"Consideration. Manners. You don't know?" This guy doesn't even know the basic British gentleman teaching that manners maketh man? ...Or is it lady here?

"Heh... Don't go sprinkling that around without meaning it. The place is blowing up right now, you know?"

"Blowing up how?"

"Check this out."

Eun-ho shoved his smartphone screen in my face. At the top: Seong-eun High Anonymous Gallery. Our school's exclusive community. And there was a steaming hot post racking up recommendations in real time.

"......?"

My face stiffened as I scrolled through the post. Rom-com filter? Gap moe? Cool beauty boy? Gibberish danced across the screen, incomprehensible to my common sense. And it had already hit the gallery mere minutes after I helped with the box?

"Haa..."

I let out a deep sigh and rubbed my dry face. I'd just helped with a heavy load and recited the "customer safety check" line from the part-time manual. Yet in this mad 15:1 female-dominated world, it translated to "fatal flirting" and set the school community ablaze.

Do all the women in this world have flower gardens for brains...?

Whether I muttered in despair or not, Eun-ho clutched his stomach laughing and slapped my shoulder.

"Dude, you see our classmates' eyes? Watch out in PE today. They looked ready to pounce."

"...So damn tired. Ah, suddenly wide awake. Wanna hit the vending machine?"

I ignored Eun-ho's fussing and stood up. Planning to escape the stuffy classroom, grab a warm sweet drink, and crash hard. But the moment I opened the back door to the hallway, I realized my thinking was too shallow.

"Gasp, it's him? Han Do-hyun, Class 1-3's sweet cool beauty boy?"

"Omg, look at that flawless pale skin. No-makeup makeup is the best..."

The Red Sea parted again. Girls from other classes wandering the hall flinched at my appearance, splitting aside like the waves. Overt stares poured in.

Feels like a monkey in the zoo.

I sighed deeply and bought a warm honey water from the vending machine at the hall's end. As the sweet, warm liquid slid down my throat, my sleep-fogged eyelids grew even heavier. Casually tossing the empty can in the trash, I turned to head back—

Then, from the opposite hall, someone approached. The surrounding girls slyly made way; it wasn't ordinary.

...What's that?

I lifted my drowsy eyes, then froze.

An overwhelming presence filled my view. Over her uniform shirt hung a loose red tracksuit top with white accents, intense and oversized. Baggy red gym shorts hit just above the knee, revealing smooth, toned bronze legs sculpted by sports, stretching sleekly. With each step, calf muscles subtly flexed.

Her shirt unbuttoned boldly to the chest from the heat revealed heavy volume straining the fabric, teasing from the shadows.

Fresh from exercise, sweat-dampened brown hair strands clung to her nape and cheeks. Between them, languid yet fiercely upturned cat-like eyes gleamed sharply. A straight nose that seemed sculpted, lips pressed indifferently—

She radiated a delinquent, dangerous wild horse aura, like she'd bite if you got close. Raw, overwhelming, violent beauty that devoured her intimidation.

Whoa. She's insanely pretty.

For the first time, a pure teenage boyish admiration flitted through my mind, which had only seen gender-reversed girls as "beasts" or "troublemakers."

Swoosh—

In a brief moment, the curvaceous beauty in the red tracksuit brushed past me. Not sour sweat or guys' harsh perfume, but a refreshing cool water scent mixed with pleasant skin smell wafted by. She glanced sideways at me as she passed but soon turned away indifferently, vanishing among the girls.

"Hey, Do-hyun. See that girl? That's Kang Ha-ri, our school's top athlete..."

"Dunno, not interested. I'm gonna sleep, so leave me alone."

Eun-ho tried hyping from beside me, but I had zero interest in names or specs. Honey water down, now just perfect sleep remained.

I opened the classroom back door. Heading to my usual spot—the back window prime seat—my steps halted abruptly.

Huh?

The tracksuit beauty from the hall, Kang Ha-ri, was lounging there with her long legs stretched out. My front-row seat. She propped her chin on the desk, our eyes meeting briefly as I entered. Her drowsy, feral cat eyes pierced my bare face.

Oh. She's in our class too.

I swallowed a short exclamation inwardly. But that was it. Super beauty or whatever, priority one was conserving energy for the Elden Souls Limited Edition at Gukjeon today. As if nothing happened, I eyed the back of Ha-ri's round head, pulled out my chair, sat, and immediately facedown on the desk, eyes shut.

My modest dream of peacefully gaming in a trouble-free world. That dream was set to shatter for real on this Friday morning, alongside the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠beauty in the seat ahead.