My name is Odagiri Ryu. I was going to Kurogin Academy until November when they told me not to come to school anymore. Anyway, I don't want to talk about that. Not for now, at least. I work at a bar called Frentzen and I am currently in a very tricky situation. There's this woman in front of me — more like, she's in my face — in a suit, two pigtails and with an awkwardly stupid grin on her face. "I'm you're homeroom teacher, Yamaguchi Kumiko. I was hoping you'd start coming to school again." That's what she said a few seconds back. What is she, some new teacher who has no idea who I am and what I've done? Or is she here despite knowing? If she's from the school, wouldn't she know enough not to come looking for students when they're specifically asked not to come to school? I can't shake off the feeling I get from her. She doesn't seem like any other teacher I've known. Not Saruwatari Kyotou. Not anybody else. It feels like this woman can only ever be straightforward. Then again, it's not like I haven't felt that about a lot of people. In the end, every human being is conceited and only looks out for themselves. There's no such thing as purely looking out for another without wanting something in return. I'm going to test her intentions.
"You know, I was told not to come to school… So even if you tell me to go, I'm not going to believe you. I don't believe teachers. Actually, I don't believe anyone." I am really proud of my ability to talk with a straight face so the other side won't know what I'm actually thinking. Well, I'm not really lying. Not yet.
"You don't believe adults, huh?" There she goes. She's giving me those I'm an innocent baby eyes. So annoying. "Will you give me a chance, Odagiri-kun? I want to be able to have your trust."
She's so annoying. What's with Give me a chance?! I'll give you a chance, woman. Not a winning chance, though. "I want to go to school too… But I can't go until I've repaid my debt."
"Debt?" There it is again. I'm an innocent baby who doesn't know anything. "You owe them money? How much?"
"Should it even concern you?!" I snap then return to my cool. It's not like she noticed me snapping.
"I asked how much it is!"
She is so dense. I bet I could cook up a story about a dare to date a teacher and she'd actually do it. Ah, jeez. Then I'll be stuck on a date with her.
Nope.
"300,000 yen…" What? 300,000 yen? Really? Why am I even talking to her here?
"Oi oi, Ryu-chan~" I jump as a voice comes from behind my shoulder, but I know the voice. I turn around immediately and bow slightly to my boss who continues, "Don't stand out here gossiping. Get to work."
I nod and look back to her. Crap. She's probably thinking something stupid. Well, to my credit, 300,000 isn't something a teacher can make easily. I walk back inside. It's not like I'm ever going to see her again.
And she's back. It's been no more than a week or ten days since that night, but she's back with an envelope.
"Wha—" No, wait. She…doesn't even realize I'm here in the back. She's only looking at my superiors. She's throwing the envelope onto the table. Don't tell me…
"300,000," she says as I stare at the envelope in horror. Son of a gun. "There's 300,000 in that envelope. Now can you let Odagiri go so he can come back to school?"
What is wrong with you, woman?! Why would you believe such a stupid lie!?
"Hm~ 300,000 yen, huh?" My boss eyes the money as if he's a predator looking at it's prey. He's a scary man, in more ways than one. If she does something stupid, it's over for her. I have to get her out of here. My boss continues in a frightening tone, "Well, Ryu-chan? What do you think?"
I move towards the table, trying to figure out what I can say or do to get her out of this place. This is no place for an innocent, sparkling, young teacher like her. Not to mention she's a woman. I look at the money and purse my lips before grinning slightly, "Thanks for the money… I'll gratefully take it. Bye bye~" I pick up the cash and look at her. There's no way that she could be unable to see the concern on my face. She's reading through me for sure. But then it's there again. I'm innocent and I don't know how the world works. Goddammit woman. Grow up.
"Odagiri…" She's horrorstruck. She looks like she's seen a ghoul or something. "Did you trick me?"
"Hey, it's the fault of the deceived, you know?" What are you saying, Ryu? Get a hold of yourself! You're being an asshole! I don't watch as my boss and his friend, another superior of mine, drag her out. I look down at the envelope and heave a sigh of relief. She's out of here without getting involved in anything. Not that I cared either way! I just thought it would be bad for a teacher to get beat up or something. And now I have to keep that asshole act up so they don't think I'm trying to protect her. I walk over to the ramen delivery guy and pull money out from the envelope to pay him, but the man shoves the money into my chest. What?!
"Your teacher earned this money by working really hard for you. She worked at a construction site and as a volunteer to control traffic to get this money for you. I'm not taking a teacher's hard earned money from a brat who doesn't realize how much it's really worth. Pay me with your own money. Till then, I'll put it on your tab."
Hey, I tried my best, in my own way, to protect her too! But I say nothing as the man walks out on me. I feel like trash.
Even as I lay in bed, waiting to fall asleep, I can't shrug the look on Yamaguchi's face. She looked so…devastated. Actually, devastated doesn't cut it. She must be crying right now. I roll around my bed slowly and my eyes fall upon that envelope. I spent a bit on buying cigarettes. My eyes then fall on the cigarette box next to the envelope. I sit up and look at the two. For some reason, I feel so disgusted and irritated at myself. I pick up the cigarette box and take one cigarette out.
No way. This is her money.
I clench my fists and let my nails dig into the skin of my palms. I'm the worst sort of scum. I raise my arms in frustration and thrust them forward, as if throwing a punch. Somehow, my hands feel lighter as if I actually threw something just now. I stand up and walk over to the area I punched towards to find the cigarette box having been tossed into the garbage can. You know what? That's probably for the best. It was from her money and she wouldn't want me smoking. I might as well quit smoking all together. Maybe that would make her…What are you thinking, Ryu?! Why should you care about whether what you do makes her happy or not?! Shit. I can't believe she's in all of my thoughts. I need to get out of this. I roll over and hide my face in the pillow, letting the darkness into my mind. But there is no darkness! Even though I see nothing, I can see her face in the back of my head. Many facial expressions. The stupid grin on her face. The confident smile. The horrorstruck face. The almost-in-tears face. She's all over my head. What should I do?!
"I used up a little bit of it, but I'll definitely return that to you later." I hold the envelope out ad shove it towards her. As I expected, her eyes were red, but she looked normal. "Don't come close to me again."
She's looking at the envelope. I wonder what she's thinking. I hope she hates me so I don't have to deal with this again.
"Odagiri!" She calls after I've started walking away.
No.
"Is that bar really the place you feel like you belong in?"
Stop.
"Are they really your friends?"
Stop it.
"If they are, it's okay. But I don't think they are, and I think you agree. I'm sorry to say I'm not the kind of teacher who will just listen to everything a student says."
Stop it, dammit!
"I won't give up! I definitely won't give up till you come to school!"
Shut. It.
"I believe in you!"
STOP!
"I'm waiting for you!"
STOP. IT. NOW!
What is it with her?! Why is she so persistent?! Why is she always acting like that?! That's unfair! It's no wonder she's in my head all the time!
I can't believe the words coming out of my mouth right now. I'm trying to quit my job to go to school again. Well, it's good though! There's no telling what my classmates would do to that teacher! Yamaguchi would be bullied and messed around with. It's not like any of them would take a teacher seriously! And she's a woman! I have to go protect her!
"I want to quit. I want to go back to school. Thank you for everything till today."
The boss stood up. Obviously it wouldn't end so easy. I came prepared to get beaten up, maybe even killed. But if I survive and make it to school tomorrow…would she smile at seeing me?
Ow. Ow.
I feel my hair being yanked forward as they drag me somewhere. I ha shut my eyes the moment I finished talking, expecting to be punched. And because when I shut my eyes, I can see her. She'll probably never come help a person like me, who lied to and deceived her, so I can only see her in my head. I keep my eyes shut and focus on Yamaguchi's face. Her smile. Her voice. A single tear runs down my cheek as I receive, what I assume was, the millionth blow. Straight in the gut. But my thoughts are not on the punches or on the hits. They are on one being in this world. Yamaguchi Kumiko. She said she had a was it again? Yamakumi? Tomoyan? A…Yankumi. Maybe if I ever meet her again, I'll call her that. She'd be happy. Ah.. I think I just saw my life flash before my eyes. I guess this really is the end for me. I can't hold out. My body feels weak. Like…jelly or something. I see myself fall to the floor, but feel nothing. Not even a bit. I see the ground shaking under me but feel nothing. Wait…the ground is shaking? Why? Ah, it's stopped!
No, it's shaking again. What is this?
Suddenly, there's a thud and the door to the warehouse is broken down. Wow, is it a rival gang or something?
No…
There's a single figure behind all the smoke. A small, feminine figure.
Wrong again.
It's not feminine, but a female figure! A single woman broke the door down?!
Long hair and…a jersey?
Huh? If I mentally pull that hair into two pigtails, it's a familiar face. Where have I seen her before?
Let me add glasses…YAMAGUCHI?!
Good gracious, what is she doing here!? She doesn't think she stands a cha—
She's…beating them up. All those strong, scary men. All by herself. What…is she?!
A single tear rolls down my cheek without me even noticing it till it's halfway down. Another tear follows, from my other eye. B-Baka…Why are you here? Why are you saving me?! I shut my eyes and play unconscious so that she doesn't see me crying when she's done. All the sounds stop after a few quick moments. I hear her say some things but my mind is too full of other things to even make out what she's saying.
Suddenly, I feel really light. As if I'm not on the floor anymore. Before I know what's happening, I feel like I've regained my weight. I slowly open my eyes to see Yamaguchi dabbing my wounds. I shrug her off and sit up.
"Don't touch me. Why'd you come?! I tricked you!"
"But you're still my student. My precious student." She says, unwavering, determined and unfazed by any of my actions. "Besides… You cut your ties with them yourself. You've already accepted being my student, haven't you?"
"Shut up…" I stand up and walk away before she notices my blush. Why does she have to act so frickin' cute!? Ahh it makes me mad!
I slowly walk into school the next morning. I can't put my feelings for her into words. There's no way I can tell her about the real reason I'm in school. But…the fact that I'm here has to count for something, right? Anything?
The group of teachers runs up to me and starts yelling nonsense about how I should not even be in school. It all just sounds very distant to me. Why, you ask? Because behind all those teachers is the woman I want to look at most in this world. She's the woman I want to treasure the most. She's also the reason I was able to quit smoking and cut my ties with those crooks from Frentzen. Yamaguchi Kumiko. She's smiling. Ah, the sun is a little too bright today.
"Odagiri… You came after all." She looks up into my eyes and I try to avert them, but she caught me. I can't seem to look away once she's looking at me so intently. I take a deep breath.
"It's not like I came for you, Yankumi…" I look away and then look back at her before she reacts to anything. I whisper, "Hey… See me at the rooftop during lunch. I need to talk to you about something."
After that, I seem to get into a bit of a fight with Hayato and Take seems really happy to have me back, but again, none of that seems important. It all seems dreamy even as it happens because…I think I just asked Yankumi out to a bit of a date.
Why is she so late? I told her to be here at lunch, and lunch starts at noon! What's the time…See? It's 12:02! I've been waiting here for more than ten minutes! I hear footsteps coming up the stairs and I know immediately it's hers. The light, playful, almost jumpy footsteps couldn't possibly be anybody else's in this hellish boys' school. I turn to the door and yes, it's Yankumi walking through the doorway. I rush to the door and slam it shut the moment she's on the roof. I place my arms on either side of her head, pinning her to the door while leaning dangerously close to her.
"What are you? You come into my life all sparkly and annoying. You completely invade my private life and my head is full of nothing but you. And yesterday, when I thought I was going to die, you come and save me. Why are you even that strong? What is it that makes you so weird?"
She's looking up at me with that face. It's the Odagiri-kun, what are you talking about? face and it's making me mad.
"Don't give me that face! You're so impulsive. You believe stories that normally people would never believe, then you work like crazy to earn money for me, a guy you don't even know, and then you fight against super strong and dangerous men to save my ass! What on earth are you?!"
Yankumi simply smiled, "I'm your homeroom-"
"No, don't get started. How dense are you?!"
Yankumi is just too cute when she looks up at me with big, innocent eyes only to ask, "Odagiri… Can you give me some breathing space. You're a little close."
I grin and lean even closer to her, only intending to tease her, "That's my intention."
Shit.
I only wanted to tease her but…
Being this close with her, I'm getting tempted.
It's really hard to control myself.
I can't voluntarily control myself.
It's like my brain has taken a backseat and my heart is in control.
I lean even closer to her.
Slowly.
Inch by inch.
In a few quick moments, that felt like eternity till they were over, I plant my lips on hers.
She has the softest, roundest and most delicious lips I've ever kissed.
The fact that this is my first kiss is just not going to be mentioned.
I can't move away. I lean closer and continue kissing her, bringing my left hand to her right cheek. I would have been completely ready to get tossed away. Considering her strength, she could totally destroy me right now.
However, surprisingly enough, she's…accepting my kiss. She's holding my arm and…not pushing me away.
Blood slowly moves to my face as I continue to kiss her, taking frequent pauses for air. I never in a million years expected myself — the cool and collected Odagiri Ryu — to do things on impulse. Life had taught me that doing things on impulse never ends well. But…here I am, kissing the woman who has been invading my dreams for the past few weeks completely on impulse, and she's not so much as trying to push me away.
Wait.
No.
Way.
In.
Hell.
She's…kissing me back!?
I kiss her for another moment before pulling away and looking at her in shock, pleasure and confusion.
"W-Why…are you kissing me back?! Are you mad? I'm your student! A-And I'm-!"
Yankumi peers at me and pushes me away gently, "There's three months till you graduate. Once you graduate, you're not my student. So before my student, you are a man and I am a woman."
Is she being serious? Does she even understand what she's saying?
I slowly lean back in to steal another kiss when she does push me away for good.
"Odagiri. Three months till graduation."