Disclaimer: I don't own the original characters or plot of Gravitation.
-o-o-o-o-
If there was one thing known to all teachers at Tokyo Arts High School (TAHS), it was the simple truth that E154 was the best classroom that you could possibly get your hands on. Upon entering the room, you see a large window running the length of the North wall that gives a lovely view of the courtyard. Everyday, sunshine pours into the room and lights up the off-white walls, giving the room a content and happy feeling. The teacher's desk is tucked cozily in the corner right next to this window, and the students' desks are all facing west toward the blackboard. And, to top it all off, the Home EC room was right down the hall, so a lingering scent of sugar and flour could always be smelled. Needless to say, it was the ideal classroom.
So, when a famous writer such as Ueseugi Eiri decided to start teaching linguistics at the school, it's no surprise that the administrators of TAHS would readily give the room to him. Astoundingly the teachers, who had been stomping each other's faces in the ground for the classroom since Mr. Kojii's (its previous owner) retirement the previous summer, were not too upset about this. At first, they were outraged. 'How dare you let the new teacher have that room!' many of them had said. However, upon finding out that the "new teacher" that had stolen what they so desired was none other then the famous novelist Ueseugi Eiri, they all immediately forgot about E154 and began focusing all their energy on the arrival of the celebrity.
There was no sighting of the so-called beautiful writer until a few weeks before the beginning of school. One teacher reported she saw him 'walking gracefully down the hall toward the principle's office,' and in fact that was exactly where he was headed. That day, Eiri had gone down to the head office to listen to the tedious lecture of his duties as a teacher and to sign a few forms. From there, he headed immediately to E154 where he was said to have spent the rest of his day tearing down the self-esteem boosting posters left by previous teachers.
And now it was the first day of school, and Eiri was striding confidently down the hallway past the many classroom doors which were still barred shut. Every second room or so, he would see a female teacher's face peering at him through the tiny window adorning each door. He ignored every stare and walked on, winding his way down the empty halls to E154 where he would spend the rest of the day.
The silent halls echoed with his agile steps, but as he neared his room they were masked by another sound. Soft at first, the sound became louder and louder as he walked down the hall, and he soon came to recognize it as the unmistakable tune of a guitar. The only thought going through his head was, 'who in the hell would be playing a guitar at 5:30 in the morning?' As he rounded the corner, now about 2 halls from his classroom, he saw one door hanging wide open from which the sweet tune seemed to be emanating. Standing in front of the room, he looked up to see a small sign reading 'Room E137.' He brought his head down from the top of the door and looked in to see a young man with layered black hair strumming a guitar drowsily as though drunk on the soft tune. He was facing sideways from Eiri, but even from this angle the blonde writer could tell the man had rather feminine features: a round face, large eyes, and a thin frame. As though he had sensed eyes on him, the man stopped playing and turned to Eiri with a curious look on his face.
"Eh?" The young teacher asked. Eiri, embarrassed to have been caught staring, simply turned and walked on towards his classroom.
By the end of first period, he had completely forgotten about the man.
-o-o-o-o-
An awkward air hung in room E154 where every eye was on one man: Ueseugi Eiri. Students sitting quietly in their desks stared intently at their teacher, waiting for him to open his perfectly shaped mouth. He stood in front of them, scanning each of the soon-to-be adults and almost gulping at their intimidating stares. Of course, Eiri was not easily scared, but he spent most of his life in the solitude of his own home. He was not used to having people staring at him as though waiting for him to jump up and down and do somersaults.
Regaining his nerve, Eiri opened his mouth and formed the words, "Good morning, class." Some of the girls in the back almost fainted. Those who had managed not to die uttered a 'Good morning, sensei' before turning to each other and giggling amongst themselves. The males of the class, though overwhelmed by the obvious affect he had on the females, were able to keep themselves under control and say the same words with a bit more confidence.
Eiri struggled not to roll his eyes at the flattering treatment he was receiving. It had happened every class since 1st period, and he was just glad this was the last one before the lunch break. 'Just this last one,' he kept thinking to himself, 'just this last one and it'll be over. For a while, anyway.'
"Okay, class, can anyone tell me the difference between polysyndeton and asyndeton?" At this, the whole class raised their hand, practically piling on top of each other to be the one to answer Eiri's question.
'Oof.'
-o-o-o-o-
"What a nightmare…" Eiri slumped in his chair, burying his head in his hands. Teaching was a bit different then he'd expected. It was overwhelming having all those eyes on you, and by the end of the first day his desk was already piled with in-class assignment that needed to be graded. Who knew teaching was going to be so difficult?
"So…" a voice sounded from the doorway, "the bare walls…are they part of your character or are you just easily distracted?"
"What…?" Eiri asked, lifting his head to see the disrupter of his thoughts: it was the guitarist. "Oh…from this morning…"
"Hey, you remembered! So, peeping is a hobby of yours, eh?" He said with a grin plastered on his mischievous-looking face.
"Oh, no. I didn't mean to be…" He said, slightly fumbling for his words.
"Hey, don't worry about it. I was only kidding. I guess it is kind-of weird to being playing guitar at 5:30 in the morning, especially when all the other teachers are locked behind their doors and silent. But, I do it every morning. It is my specialty, after all. Shindou Shuichi; I'm the guitar teacher here at TAHS." He said, reaching for Eiri's hand and shaking it lightly. "And you…are Ueseugi Eiri, famous romance novelist and dream of every female in Japan."
"Uh, yeah…to put it bluntly…" He said hesitantly. This guy certainly was strange. He acted as though they had known each other for years!
"Sorry for the informality. I must be freaking you out." Shuichi laughed and scratched the back of his head, "I have a tendency to do that. So, let's start from a less personal point…how was your first day of teaching?"
"Tiring." Eiri stated simply, mentally groaning as his mind shifted back to the thought of grading all those papers, and then going through the same annoying routine tomorrow.
"Hey, I know what you mean. It's pretty damn bad the first day, isn't it? 150 students, 300 eyes all on you. But, trust me, it gets better. If you're really passionate about your subject, you'll do fine. It's not as easy as everyone thinks it is, you know? Teaching's hard work, and for a low salary, too. But, really, it doesn't take too long to get used to how things work around here. Besides, the people around here are more interesting and creative then those at other schools. 'Tokyo Art High School,' you know? I suppose it must be different for you, though…being a celebrity and all."
Staring at the smiling man, Eiri gathered that he was rather easy-going. He seemed like the friendly type, someone you feel comfortable around, the kind that knows everyone and has a lot of friends. The kind of person it was hard not to like.
"Oh, sorry Ueseugi-san. I really must get going. I've got to see a friend tonight. It was nice meeting you, though." He said, waving as he walked out the door. Even after he was long gone, Eiri stared at the closed door. 'That was certainly very strange,' he thought, 'Are all people happy like that? I doubt it.' He looked over at the stack of papers on his desk and sighed. 'This job better be worth it…'
-o-o-o-o-
1st Yes, I made this school up. I certainly hope there is no university called 'Tokyo Arts High School.' If there is, please tell me and I will change it immediately.
2nd I don't know how to spell his last name, but I like the spelling Ueseugi. Also, he is not 'Yuki Eiri' because, in my story, the rape never occurred. However, that doesn't mean I won't include Kitazawa.
3rd I do believe that, in book 10, it states that his hair is indeed black. And, because of the choice of hair colour, I am also making his eyes black. For all those out there who think his hair is pink, I have no problem with that. But, in my story, it is black. Please do not be angry with my decision.