From VTuber♂ to VTuber♀ - Chapter 2

January 2nd — Even taking a shower had become a struggle.

The illness I had—no, can I even call suddenly turning into a little girl overnight an illness?
Anyway, whatever this was, there wasn’t a single thing I could really do about it.
The idea of checking out my changed body completely vanished the moment the discomfort from sweat and exhaustion hit me full force.

…First, let’s shower. Whether my body changed or not, I need to clean up before I think.

Even though the room was heated, the sweat was starting to cool, and a chill crept into my bones.

“Uuuuugh—”

But of course, there was another problem.
To reach the high-mounted showerhead, I had to step on a bath stool, then the toilet, and finally climb onto the sink just to barely reach it.

I thought I was gonna die.
I used to be able to reach that thing with just a stretch of my arm. What the hell happened to me?

Even just that much effort left me completely wiped out.
My legs were trembling so hard I couldn’t even climb down.
Should I feel reassured that the sink could support my full weight now, or should I be horrified that I’ve become small enough to need to climb it just to get the shower down…?

“…Finally, I can was—”

SPLAAAAASH—!!!!

“KYAAAAA?!?!!”

As I reversed the climb and made it back to the floor with a sigh, I turned on the water—and the blast of water pressure that shot from the showerhead was way more than I could handle.

I was thrown backward and landed on my butt with a thud.

The showerhead flew out of my hand and started flailing wildly, spraying cold water everywhere in total chaos.

C-Cold! S-So cold! Wh-What the hell is this?! I can’t even hold a damn showerhead anymore?! That doesn’t make any sense! How weak is this body?!

Enduring the icy water spraying all over me, I finally managed to twist the faucet and reduce the pressure.

“…Gotta be more careful from now on.”

I let out a sigh as I stared up at the ceiling, letting the drops fall freely onto my face.

Am I seriously gonna die like this?

It was painfully clear that I wasn’t in any shape to live alone like this anymore.

Just thinking about all of this made my thoughts collapse into a chaotic mess, and I kept sighing over and over.

They say sighing drives away good fortune… At this rate, I’ve probably scared off all the New Year’s luck.

SPLAAAAAASH—

“Haah…”

Does this even count as moving my body?

Letting the shower water pour down from above, my whole body felt numb.

Is this the flu?

Groaning, I dropped my butt onto the bath stool left on the floor.
I probably looked like a boxer sitting after a brutal match.

“…Okay. Let’s just wash up first. Yeah, think after cleaning up.”

The absurdly long hair made shampooing a nightmare, but I somehow managed to get clean.

Thoughts about how the body had changed? I was way too tired, irritated, overwhelmed, and sore to think about that kind of stuff.

Honestly, mourning the loss of what was gone might’ve been more productive than trying to process what was new.

Still, at least I was able to finish the shower somewhat peacefully.

“There’s obviously nothing that fits this body… Guess I’ll just throw something on.”

The fact that one oversized t-shirt was enough to cover my whole body was both ridiculous and… weirdly comforting.

If I’d transformed into a mature woman’s body, it might’ve been even more awkward. I might’ve actually died from the cringe.

Although, honestly, this was awkward enough… Ugh, whatever. I don’t even know what I’m thinking anymore.

Once I finished washing up, all the thoughts I’d been suppressing came crashing into my head.

What do I do from here?
What if no one recognizes me?
How the hell am I supposed to live like this?

“…What the hell am I supposed to do…”

It’s not like I even made a New Year’s wish. And even if I had, I definitely wouldn’t have wished for something like this.

With no purpose or direction, I collapsed onto the floor and stared blankly into space.

The New Year’s broadcast I was supposed to do had already passed. I didn’t even post a notice. I ignored my manager’s calls, barely managed to answer once, and awkwardly brushed it off.

And now, my body had turned into that of a girl I didn’t even recognize.

Come to think of it, there’s not a single thing this body shares with my old one, is there?

My original body—like a typical Korean—had black hair and brown-tinted dark eyes.
But this body had pure white hair and crimson red eyes.

Don’t tell me this is some “brain in a vat” scenario.

Or maybe a mad scientist removed my brain while I was sleeping and stuck it into this body?

“…No way. That’s straight out of a movie. Cough, cough cough.”

I shook my head—and a few small coughs slipped out.

None of this makes any sense.
But then again, does this body change make sense either?

I’m not an expert in illnesses, but I’ve never heard of any disease that changes your entire body overnight.

If such a thing existed, the world would know about it. It’d be a once-in-a-billion ultra-rare condition or something.

“Maybe my ID photo changed too…? Yeah, no way. That’d be too convenient. I guess I should go to a hospital, huh?”

I didn’t even know where to start.

In fiction, maybe your ID photo would change too. But no. Nothing magical happened here.

Only my body changed. Exactly that—and only that.
Wait, isn’t that also something you’d only see in fiction?

Maybe I should go to the hospital after all.
At the very least, doctors know about the human body. Maybe they could help.

If there’s no answer, then fine—but I can’t just keep living like this not knowing anything.

“Alright. Let’s go to the hospital first. I need to hear something. And figure out if I can go back.”

Forcing my worn-out body into motion, I grabbed a padded jacket from the closet.

It felt heavier than I remembered—was it always this heavy?
Still, I couldn’t just go out in light clothes or I’d freeze to death instantly.

Look at that—the weather app says it’s -11°C.

I thought about grabbing a scarf, but once I put on the jacket, I didn’t have the energy to take it off again. I’d just go without it.

“But… what kind of hospital do I even go to for this?”

Internal medicine?
I mean, my insides probably changed too, but my outside is completely different now.

Or… since I look so young, do I go to pediatrics? Definitely not ENT…

I decided to go to a hospital, but I had no clue which one I should go to.

So, so, so—

Ugh, forget it. I’ll just go anywhere.
Once I talk to someone, they’ll probably direct me somewhere else.

“…I’m heading out.”

I thought, It’s not like things could get any worse now, but—
I didn’t know it at the time.

That exact thought was the beginning of things getting worse.

---

[Hey, the boss posted an announcement.]
[Well, technically, the agency posted it. Says he’s sick and couldn’t stream.]

ㄴ[Maybe he caught a cold? There’s a flu going around these days.]
ㄴ[But didn’t he say he got his flu shot not long ago?]
ㄴ[If it’s not the flu, what else could knock him out like that? What, did he catch some off-season COVID? lol]
ㄴ[Probably just an excuse. I bet he overslept.]
ㄴ[If it was just oversleeping, he would’ve streamed later. Or posted a notice himself.]
ㄴ[So he is really sick, then?]
ㄴ[He didn’t seem weird at all during the last stream, though. Is he actually sick?]
ㄴ[You never know with people. Just gotta trust for now.]

[So when’s the boss coming back?]
[The notice doesn’t say what’s wrong or when he’ll stream again. Just says he’s sick. What the heck is that? Did he just decide to slack off for the new year or what?]

ㄴ[Why are you so mad?]
ㄴ[The notice just went up a few hours ago. Chill out.]
ㄴ[If he’s suddenly sick, maybe he went to the ER. It’s not like he ever slacked off before. Give him some time.]
ㄴ[People like this are just trolls, lol. Probably don’t even watch the streams. Just using this as an excuse to stir up crap.]
ㄴ[If you’re a real fan, you’d be wishing him a speedy recovery instead.]
ㄴ[Honestly, if you wanna see the New Year’s stream ASAP, smash that like button lol.]
ㄴ[LIKE BUTTON LMAO]

[Boss… I still haven’t eaten my chicken…]
[It’s cold now… I wanted to eat it with you…]

ㄴ[Cozime?]
ㄴ[(plop)]
ㄴ[Just eat it, dude.]
ㄴ[Eat now, then order more when he’s back.]
ㄴ[Maybe this was all part of the boss’s plan to get us to eat two chickens.]
ㄴ[If only, lol.]
ㄴ[If you stream now and toss us chicken and burgers, we’ll forgive you—OPEN UP, BOSS!!!!]
ㄴ[Seriously though… I hope it’s nothing too bad.]