Yumi

— We... we better get out of here, — Anna grabbed Jason’s small, delicate wrists, trying not to give in to panic. She stared at the laughing guy, who was smugly holding a strange remote in his hand.

— I’m not going anywhere until he changes me back! — Jason squeaked in his new, high-pitched voice, which sounded with a slight Asian accent. His eyes were filled with fear, but at the same time, he wasn’t about to back down easily.

— Stop it, Jay, — she whispered, desperately looking at the guy with the remote. — Don’t provoke him. We have to leave...

— Jay... hmm, no, I don’t like that name, — the guy with the remote scratched his chin thoughtfully, his gaze piercing through Jason. — Now you’ll be... — his eyes sparkled with a mocking gleam, — Yumi. Yeah, that suits a cute little Asian girl like you better, — he grinned, pressing a button on the remote.

Jason flinched, feeling yet another brief wave surge through his body. Anna watched them both in confusion, still insisting on her point.

— Yumi... are you okay? — Anna whispered, trying to understand what had happened.

— I’m not... — Yumi stopped, shaking her head as long strands of hair slipped over her shoulders. She shuddered. — I’m not Yumi! I’m...

— Ha-ha-ha, Yumi, Yumi! — the guy mocked, clapping his hands as if he had just witnessed the funniest joke of his life. — Come on, Yumi, did you really think you could just get away without consequences? — he tightened his grip on the remote, glaring at her. — You were always the one making fun of others, humiliating them, thinking you could do whatever you wanted, didn’t you?

Yumi — once Jason — froze, her eyes narrowing.

— You mean... this is all because I made a joke about you? — she exhaled, her voice trembling with horror and rage.

— A joke? — his eyes flashed with cold fury. — Are you kidding me? You ruined my reputation, Jason! You made me look like a complete fool in front of everyone, made them laugh at me!

— Who... who even are you? — Yumi interrupted him with a trembling voice, one that felt so foreign to her.

The guy with the remote frowned, his gaze turning dark for a moment, and a shadow of pain flickered across his face.

— No wonder you don’t remember, — he hissed. — I was always nothing to you, wasn’t I? Just a freak you could treat however you liked. — He took a step forward, and Yumi instinctively stepped back, feeling fear tighten around her like a vise. — But now...

He fell silent abruptly, his gaze shifting to the remote, and for a moment a smirk appeared on his face.

— You better leave before I do something worse... to your dear little friend, — he added maliciously, pressing the remote again. Yumi felt another wave, and a name suddenly surfaced in her mind: "Mason."

— Mason... — Yumi whispered involuntarily, her eyes widening in shock. — Who... who is Mason? — her voice shook, and she squinted as fragmented images flashed through her mind: touches, whispers in the dark, someone’s hot breath on her neck, and his lips trailing over her skin. Yumi gasped, her face flushed with embarrassment and indignation. It was too real, too close. But... it couldn’t be true. No way. Not for her. She was... Jason. Or...

— No, I’m not... God, stop this, I’m not... — she tried to say, but at that moment Anna decided to take more initiative and held her friend tighter.

— We’re leaving, — Anna said firmly, pulling Yumi along, whose body felt too weak from the unexpected memories crashing down on her. — Mason will deal with this jerk, — she added in a whisper, trying to encourage Yumi, who was staring wide-eyed at Anna, the girl she had thought of as her girlfriend just a few minutes ago and who now seemed to believe that Yumi was her best friend.

— Anna... — Yumi whispered, following Anna, — I... I don’t... why is everything so confusing? — She shuddered, hearing the laughter of that guy behind her.