Is Love War?

It was supposed to be the same classroom as any other, and yet, the strange air permeating around it said otherwise. As if the atmosphere was tangible, I could feel a sense of asphyxiation choking my throat as soon as I entered this abnormal realm.

There stood six main places of gathering, with each position consisting of two desks sticking side-by-side as a center. All of them were girls, and none of them forgot to put a surgical mask on. And, completely out of my awareness, I could feel my slender fingers on my face, deeming my futile attempt of fitting in.

“Shit, you got a mask, tall girl?”

“Sorry, I didn’t know to bring one even for myself.”

Utterly disappointed, I tried to brush it off.

“Whatever, there are many people here so why do you even need an escort anyway?”

“I’m new, okay? Besides, I think I’d stand out if I stood in that line, and it’s kind of the reason why I’m here.”

As I followed her finger pointing to the teacher’s desk, that full view was finally registered fully in my perception. I tried to shift my gaze away immediately, but it was too late, it had already rented its place in my memory.

Tick Tock. And my mind wanders.

With an outline scribbled merely by chalk, the intention was made clear. Two masculine and yet pretty 2D boys were gazing, or peering, or staring, or scrutinizing?? Their face blushed with a faint red, and their mouth opened, having readied themselves to intertwine any moment now. And only then did I realize their missing top.

No.

GET OUT OF MY HEAD.

GET OUT OF MY HEAD.

GET OUT OF MY HEAD.

E-hem. First, I just want to clarify that I support gay relationships with absolutely no discrimination or ill prejudice. However, if there were to be a sexualized image that is regarded as uncomfortable to my mind and detrimental to my mental well-being, I had a right to express my complaint.

Now that that’s out of the way.

GET OUT OF MY HEAD.

“Hey, you seem a bit pale, Kiri.”

“It’s-It’s nothing. Let’s just go."

And so, we settled ourselves into the small line leading toward the teacher’s desk. Sat on the place of our destination was a girl of short and chubby stature, with round glasses that shined with a gleaming white due to the strange reflection of light surrounding her. To accompany the girl was a stack of what seemed to be drawing books and comics. Its content was obvious enough so I will not be disclosing them.

“No, Haru has to get on with Daichi. They literally touched balls.”

“What? Clearly, it’s Meg that is the one that he likes. Don’t forget Haru’s into girls too, so a femboy is his best taste!”

What the actual f-.

No, what did I expect? There were at least thirty girls minimum all in the same classroom with the same interest. No, that’s making it lightly, they all have the same passion, so how could they not converse enthusiastically about it, right?

Fuck no, I feel totally out of touch.

“Um, if this troubles you too much you don’t have to stay, Kiri. I’m sorry for doing this to you.” She told me in the middle of my nausea episode, and I was able to snap right out of it.

“No, it’s fine, really. Always up for a new experience.” I impulsively spoke with a grin I scuffled to form.

Wait, what?

Why did I just throw out my only chance of escape? I mean I don’t owe her anything, even moreso, it’s the opposite. But then I’m still standing here, doing nothing but providing the girl whom I just met yesterday some minimal comfort, meanwhile being tormented to the point of nausea from our surroundings. What was it even for?

“You’re a good friend, Kiri. Maybe too good.”

…

Well, fuck it, the girl needs me anyway.

Come to think of it, I still wasn’t aware of her name yet, so I asked.

“What’s your name, by the way, it’s weird that I haven’t known yet.”

“Elina. Nice to meet you, Kiri.”

“Elina it is then.”

And we went back in silence. To distract myself, I took another look at the girl sitting at our destination. She did not wear a uniform, so I presumed she wasn’t a part of this school. And, it made me even more baffled.

“Who even is that girl anyway? And how did she manage to gather so many students here?” I inquired.

“She’s a pretty famous member of a social group, so when word got out that she was holding a convention here every BL lover came.”

I nodded, not knowing what words to regard.

“Apparently, she’s not too far from here, Orange High is where she studies.”

Orange High…

Wait, isn’t that my-

“Attention! All you uncultured swine.”

A loud shout suddenly erupted around the room, and we all turned to gaze toward the door. And what met our stares of bewilderment were two girls, neither wearing uniform, and they had an exuberant smirk on their faces.

“What exactly do you mean? Goddamn lesbians.” As the girl with the glasses took back control of the room, so did every mask-wearer begin to cause a commotion. Regardless, the invader held their pride high, and so did their voices.

“I mean, you girls are here drooling over sweaty pigs bouncing their hard chests against each other. There’s just no elegance, no sense of subtlety and art. Am I right?”

As the girl looked back, a loud roar exploded behind her, and the swarm of boys outside the room suddenly existed in my perception.

“Unintellectual opinion from a single-minded person, the usual. All right, fine, how about we find out which one’s truly superior then? If you’re not too scared to admit the truth, that is.”

“Sure, outside, the one who attracts more screams wins.”

As the two leaders both agreed on war, everyone followed the procedure and went out of the classroom. Baffled, and somewhat curious, I and the tall girl walked alongside them.

***

“When you talk about Boy’s Love, people often think straight about self-discovery and the challenge toward societal norms. Men have always had trouble expressing themselves, they always had to put on a tough act, all because it was considered normal. But it doesn’t have to be that way, it is when men can love men that they begin to truly live as themselves, for they are the one who knows their partner’s struggles. BL isn’t just about romance or smut, it’s about the human nature to limitlessly find happiness in being themselves. Gay!”

As the girl with the glasses grasped a piece of the sky, every girl behind her went shrieking. Pictures of art were raised and thrown around, depicting men expressing their true desires. Fuck, there was even a flag???

However, as if their fortress held a power no enemy could pierce even a millimeter through, the two girls leading the army of boys did not waver, if anything, they were even more motivated.

And so, as they stood facing each other, sparkles and war fire flying about, it was time for the girls to love.

“Oh, please, if we’re talking about breaking societal norms, you would have to think about Girl’s Love. You all should know that people still expect you girls to be a mother and a wife who cares for your husband and family when you grow up. But it’s too boring, too unfulfilling, it’s not fair that those men could do whatever they want while our only existence is to provide for them. And so, we revolt, we break out of that belief, and we seek refuge within ourselves. All the elegance, beauty, and most important, bravery, we girls stand with each other, we heal each other, and we love each other. That is the pinnacle of human striving. Girls Love everyone!”

As unironic as it might have been, a war cry erupted throughout the air, and a masculine and bold cheer from none other than boys could be heard.

And yet, they were not done, evident by the two girls starting to strike a double post. As one girl stood there with a shy face, the other wrapped her hand around her shoulders, and her face closed in to share breath with the embraced girl’s neck.

“H-Hey, why the hell are you girls blushing?!”

As the BL leader turned around, she noticed the beginning of the fall of her empire. Her knights had begun to switch sides, both metaphorically and physically.

“I’m sorry BL queen, it’s just that their speech really hit us. They’re speaking nothing but facts.”

“She’s right, they are just like us!”

And so, albeit hesitantly, several girls began to walk to the other army.

“Fuck!” The BL queen shouted. “Guess you’ll leave me no choice but to use my trump card.”

As drum beats resounded through the smoky air, in an instant, two boys made their step toward the BL queen, excreting an intimidating aura around them with each stomp. However, what bothered me even more was their look of familiarity.

Wait, those two are those harassers from yesterday.

But before I could muster up my questions for them, an all-powerful cheer flared up the atmosphere, and there was no longer anything to cover those boys’ tops.

However, it wasn’t enough, and the two struck a double pose. Although similar to the girls, one of the boys raised their arms up to even express more of themselves.

“Where the hell do you think you are going, pigs?”

Betrayal had shown up upon the GL army, but as much as their leader screamed in agony, the boys had already had their epiphany.

“We’re sorry. But to just be naked and have no worries of expressing themselves, all while having so many eyes upon them, and not to even mention their raging masculine pride, that’s just the pinnacle of beauty and purity for us men.”

“What about the elegance of the girls? Fine! Fuck off I don’t need you, you swine don’t understand shit about GL anyway.”

But the GL girls became instantly regretful just after her words were spoken, for a large number of boys had shifted sides, and the insufferable leaders could do nothing but scream in vain once more.

“Shit, we’re losing, we need reinforcements!”

As the bloodshed and war cry continued to invade the atmosphere, no signs of a halt were present.

Somewhere in the BL crowd, Elina was suddenly seen cheering half shyly but half enthusiastically, and I could only smile at that fact. However, it did not last long, and a chuckle began to fill the clamor, albeit lightly.

Haha.

Hahaha.

What the hell?

As my throat and mouth became a being of their own, the laughter began to flood out with no end. It was too ridiculous, too baffling, and yet, too amusing, and I could do nothing other than enjoy this moment with an expression of joy.

When was the last time something half as crazy as this had happened?

Shit, I can’t even remember.

The uproar had not faded, and still, my lungs had already been fatigued, my throat parched, and small tears began to form in my eyes.

And all in the midst of this lunacy, a voice appeared clear and out of place.

“I miss that laugh so much, Kiri.”

As the sound of my name echoed in my ears, I looked up with surprise, which then turned into shock. Even if all the events that were spiraling around me were all insane, never did I anticipate this.

“Huh? Alice?!”