Jonatha made it to the door of Buffie's house, where he was the last one in. He walked in, met by Jade (even in just his underwear, he was a revelation) and Nessa.
"Wow Jade...bold move!" Jonatha chuckled. "I mean, you're gorgeous, but... You're already just wearing your underwear in front of others? It's barely been 36 hours!"
"I guess I'm adjusting extremely quickly," he giggled. "I didn't even think about it."
"You weren't exactly this outgoing before," Jonatha said.
"Neither were you."
Nessa was in a pink silk nightgown that was emblazoned with some sort of really Asian pattern. "I was lucky they let me come here, but I did have to wear this..." He looked at it, somewhat apprehensively, but appreciative of his parents' concern if nothing else.
"Oh hey boys," said another boy, whom none of them recognized but who looked a lot like Buffie. "Oh, that's my brother, Jazmyn. He's in freshwoman year." Jonatha paused a bit at the sentence but realized what it meant. "Nice to see you!" Jade thought he recognized Jazmyn from the junior varsity cheerleader squad.
"So, tonight, it's How to Be a Boy 101, I suppose, though you're adjusting a lot faster than I thought you would be."
"I'm not," Nessa said. "I'm not this person you think I am." He sighed. "You say I'm some kind of bubbly person? I don't feel bubbly. I feel...scared. Especially after today. I feel like everyone is looking at me, judging me, thinking of me as an object. I don't know how to deal with that. I don't know how suddenly Jade is embracing it."
Jade looked over. "Just stop thinking about it," he suggested.
"I can't stop thinking about having a girl almost drag me out of the arcade!"
"Are you going to let that define who you are?" Jade said.
Nessa looked at Buffie. "What do you think?" For some reason, he cared what Buffie thought. Maybe they were friends.
"I get it. You seem to have come from a world where...these concerns were not yours. I take it...boys were like girls are now? Kind of on top?"
The others nodded.
"This has been a massive adjustment, and...honestly, it must be a really massive one. You know, I still am unsure what the heck that M-R-S thing was. That must just be the tip of the iceberg."
"None of you were the sort of people I was hanging out with before," Nessa said. "You were obsessed with sports. Jade was pretty oblivious to everything. Jonatha...I don't know if I even knew you that well before...and...I wonder what happened to my other family."
"I can't imagine that my counterpart was a very nice person to be around, the way you say that..."
"But...you are pretty nice now," Nessa said. "I just wish I remembered being your friend."
Buffie went over and gave Nessa a large hug. "Maybe whatever is changing reality will make you remember at some point... And you'll be a happy boy when you finally do."
"A happy boy?" Nessa asked, finding the hug rather comforting. "I just know I don't want the old you back. I don't remember being whoever you think I am, but....I have these feelings."
"So...what's been the hardest part of getting ready so far? I'm sure it's gotta be an adjustment, going from (to me at least) being a girl to being a boy."
"I'd have to say makeup," Jonatha added.
"For sure," Nessa agreed, nodding.
"Alright, well... What is giving you the most trouble?"
"Honestly...mascara," Nessa said. "I just...how do you do that?"
"Here... Want to all come up to my room? I can help you with that." The four filed up to Buffie's bedroom, where he used his large makeup mirror to their advantage. It was like a clinic. Buffie knew exactly what he was doing, and his students were easily able to follow along.
Even if reality must be fixed someday... Can I take Buffie with me? Jonatha thought to himself.
After the makeup tutorial, the tired boys flopped on the couch and decided to watch some TV.
"What's on?" Jonatha asked, realizing that if he didn't know any songs, the TV shows were just as likely to be very different. He flipped through the program guide. Very little was recognizable, aside from news and sports, which of course would be different in their own ways. "Buffie, any advice?"
"Well... Not much is on tonight, really." Buffie took a look. "What's this on?"
"The guide description says it's Bobbi Sugar."
"Oh good gosh, the boy on that sitcom is so ditzy and shallow and...ugh. Somehow the girls eat it up though. You ever heard the famous catchphrase of the main female star, Becka?"
"No, there's nothing like it I've heard of."
"'What does a boy need brains for?'"
Jonatha, Jade and Nessa all collectively rolled their eyes. The boy was in the frilliest short skirt possible, wearing pigtails. "And this is popular?" Jade asked hesitantly.
Jazmyn chimed in. "When I was little, like, every boy wanted to look like that. Imagine a whole elementary school of first-grade boys with their hair done in 'the Sugar'. Ugh," he spat in disgust.
"Here's a show that looks interesting..." He stopped on a channel showing something called The J-Boys. "I can't say I've seen this show before." He read the description. "Three hot co-eds keep up with being gorgeous and being boys in the college jungle."
"Doesn't sound half-bad. At least these boys have brains," Nessa snarked. "Put it on." They were greeted with the sight of three boys, very obviously triplets, who dressed identically. They were shown walking around on a college campus.
"Where is this?" Jade asked.
"I think that's... Oh my gosh that's Sapphire State. It's not far from here," Jazmyn said.
"Sapphire State... Oh! That's where my older brother Crystal is a cheerleader. I wonder if he knows these boys."
As they watched Joshelle, Jacobelle and Jeremielle in their "native habitat" — general studies classes, evidently, and a couple of wild parties — Jonatha couldn't help but notice something.
"Why do these boys look familiar? Their faces... Like I've seen them somewhere..."
Eventually, after watching TV, it was time to fall asleep. "Everyone bring a sleeping bag?" Buffie asked.
"Uh... I forgot..." Nessa looked around nervously. "I just didn't want to spend a ton of time with my family and I was hurrying over here..."
"I get it... I might have some room on my bed if that's fine with you..."
After a long and trying day, more time with Buffie seemed like just the thing Nessa needed. He nodded eagerly, exhausted. "Good night," he said to Jonatha and Jade.
"Night, Nessa and Buffie!" Jade smiled at the two of them. Moments later, Nessa was asleep, cuddled in close with his new best friend.
Buffie was drifting off to sleep, but he thought he could hear Nessa murmur a bit. "...Buffie...I could get used to this..."
