Summary
Miki feels uncomfortable as she stands before her new classmates. She assumes they won't like her, when suddenly a girl reaches out to her and suggests she wear their uniform, which might make her feel more included. Miki agrees and instantly makes a connection with her classmates, and she decides to switch her school bag the next day as well. She bonds further with her new friends as she gets to know their personal tastes, and she is very happy. They all share the same opinion, so nobody is excluded.
One day Miki is approached by her handsome classmate, Miuchi, who has come to drop off the class monitor book. The girls swoon as he leaves, and Miki becomes flustered as Yuko admits that they all have a crush on him- so nobody can make a pass at him. She asks Miki if she intends on doing it and she quickly refuses, and to ensure she is telling the truth they exchange pinky fingers. The group link arms and head to the office together.
Miki finds difficulty in keeping her promise as she realizes how much she enjoys Miuchi's company. She worries until they overhear a girl call to him outside, and they watch as he turns down the pretty girl when she makes a confession to him. Miki is concerned over how happy her friends are to hear this. Miki is surprised Miuchi would turn down a pretty girl like her, and she wonders if he could possible like someone plain and unnoticeable like herself. She takes a moment to observe her pigtails and how she blends in with her friends for wearing the same style, so she decides to try something new.
It should be fine right? She isn't changing her opinions or anything.
Miki's friends are speechless when she shows up with loose flowing hair and a modification to her uniform. She doesn't look the same anymore; but they quickly come around when Miuchi and his friend compliment her. Her friends shower her with praise after he leaves and they begin to ask for details regarding the shampoo she used, her shorter skirt length and her cardigan. Miki feels better but she wonders what happened to cause this abrupt change in reception.
From then on Miki began to closely watch her friends as they began to copy her. Not only them- but it spread to every girl in class! Whenever she read the manga Miuchi lent her they went out and bought it, anything that physically made her different they changed -even girls wearing glasses went out to get contacts- and by now Miki is sure something is wrong. On top of that, Miuchi won't notice her if everyone looks the same.
By now Miki is beginning to get frustrated with her lack of space at school. She rationalizes that as long as she gets attention from Miuchi then she can't remain herself for very long. In her hurry to visit the restroom for a moment of peace, Miki accidentally gets hurt when her hand collides with a desk. She recoils in pain and the girls check on her, then she watches in horror as they pick up various stationery items to injure their own hands.
Miki runs away in fright and bumps into Miuchi, and seeing how worked up she is, he brings her into another room. She sobs while explaining what happened, and once he calms her down, he expresses how important his own individuality is to him. Miki comes to decide that she should just be honest with the girls, and if they want to keep behaving this way then they are no friends of hers. She uses this chance to make a confession to Miuchi when suddenly, they realize the other girls have found them. The girls appear guilt-ridden, having heard the whole thing and they quickly apologize. They never meant to smother Miki like this, they just wanted to be friends. They feel really bad that she was so upset.
Miki and Miuchi are relieved by this and Miki comforts the distressed Yuko, deciding to forgive everyone. The girls reconcile and all of Miki's stress melts away as she decides to have faith in her friends and the hope that they will grow from this experience.
The following day, Miki is in the middle of changing at the shoe lockers when Miuchi meets up with her. She asks if they can speak after school and he agrees as they make their way to class; where someone informs her that she is running late. In stunned silence, she realizes that on top of all the girls resembling her to the very last detail, the boys look like Miuchi.
This is for the best, they reason. With everyone looking exactly the same they can be loved equally.
Miki attempts to back out of the room when she bumps into Miuchi- only to find out it's not actually him. She begins to panic realizing they are separated, and the others remain oblivious to her fright as they begin closing in on her.
Tropes:
- Foreshadowing: A bit of one regarding the nature of the story. Yuko was the only girl in her group of friends to wear her hair loose, but at some point the style suddenly changed into the pigtails Miki and the other girls wear.
- I Just Want to Have Friends: Miki's concern was initially this due to attending a new school.
- Irritation Is the Sincerest Form of Flattery: Miki initially saw nothing wrong with everyone being the same, since everyone fit in. But after she decided to try something new and everyone copied every things she did, she started to see if for what it was. The girls later confess that they did it to be liked by her.
- New Transfer Student: The first story featuring one.
- Yank the Dog's Chain: Miki and her friends reconcile after she tells them how she feels, happy ending right? Nope! The next day, Miki arrives to class with Miuchi to see that all of the students are exact clones of the both of them- to the point that she loses Miuchi in a sea of students and can only let out a horrified scream as they surround her.
