Kai Hiwatari was working as the assistant music teacher at Franklin High. He was grateful to have a job, especially one teaching something he loved, and was fairly excited to start his first class. It was odd for him to be feeling that way, since highschool had been so terrible when he was actually attending, but now that he was being paid, he was genuinely happy.

It was half-way through the second quarter and winter break would be starting soon, so it was an akward time to begin a job, but he was hopeful.

"Kai," said Mr. Kon, the primary music teacher, "would you mind getting me a coffee from the Teacher's Lounge before class starts?"

"No problem," said Kai, hopping up from the desk and stepping out of the room to complete his task.

He stuck his hands in the pockets of his leather jacket and walked coolly down the halls, dodging past students as he went. It was only about a minute until class started, so he doubted he'd make it back in time, but that wouldn't matter too much.

The warning bell rang and students began running off to their classes. Amidst the confusion, Kai accidentally bumped into a girl wearing a beat-up chocolate-colored leather jacket, black jeans and a white sweater. The impact caused her to drop her things, and loose papers scattered the floor.

"Dammit," she muttered. "Now I'm going to be late."

"I'm so sorry, I-" Kai stuttered, but was cut off in mid-sentance.

"Don't be," said the girl without making eye contact as she swooped down to pick up the papers; Kai did the same. "I should've gone off to class earlier." The time-to-be-in-class bell rang and the girl closed her eyes and sighed.

Kai got the papers furthest away and, with a absentminded glance, noticed that he was holding sheets of music and various sketches.

A kindred spirit, he thought.

The girl quickly snatched them away and shoved them into a folder.

"You going to music class?" Kai asked, while the girl headed off down the hallway.

"Yeah," she answered, and before Kai could say another word, she had already turned the corner.

"Sorry I'm late, Mr. Kon," apologized Clare Svental. "It won't happen again."

"It better not," scolded Mr. Kon. "Because next time it'll be detention. And I do have to mark you tarty."

"Yes, sir," she muttered, taking her seat.

"Now," Mr. Kon addressed the class, "today we're just going to continue working on the sheet music I handed out yesterday. So, you can just-" He stopped speaking as the door opened up, revealing the man that had bumped into Clare earlier, holding a cup of coffee.

"Sorry," the man muttered in apology.

"Class," Mr. Kon spoke up once again, "this is Mr.Hiwatari. He's my new assistant teacher, so if you have any questions, ask him." Then, Mr. Kon grabbed the coffee from Kai and took a seat.

As if on cue, every girl in the room, except Clare, rose their hands for help.

At first, Kai was taken aback, but he regained composure quickly and picked out a girl in back to assist. The girl that he ran into earlier was sitting right next to her, and, since he had decided that the girl was quite pretty, he would be able to ask for her name.

"Hi," said the girl who 'needed help.' "I'm Mariah." Mariah smiled flirtaciously.

"Hi," said Kai quickly. "Did you need help with something?"

He glanced over at the other girl; she was gazing at her sheet music and strumming an acoustic guitar.

"Yes," Mariah said promptly. "I actually had a question for you."

"Shoot," he said, watching the other girl intently.

"Do you have a girlfriend?" Mariah giggled.

Kai sighed and fully turned away from Mariah to the other girl. He watched her for a while, waiting for her to notice him; it took about 10 seconds.

She looked up and gave him a what-do-you-want stare. When the only answer she got out of that was a slight smirk, she made her question verbal, "What? I didn't ask forn any help... so what do you want?"

"I am a teacher," he said witha a mock-pompous tone. "You shouldn't talk to me like that."

"Talk to you like what?" she asked innocently. "I only asked you a simple question."

Kai smiled. "Fine. I'd like to know your name, since I didn't catch it earlier."

"It's Clare," she answered bluntly. "Now, Mr. Hiwatari, I think you should go over there and help out Max." She nodded to the far side of the room, where a boy was struggling over a chord, and continued, "Trust me. He needs more help than any of these idiotic girls..." she gestured around the room at the girls who were smiling and waving at Kai.

"Thanks for the advice," he said gratefully, and went over to the place that Clare had tipped him off to.

So far, Kai thought, the day is going great.

One week later, Kai had been able to talk to Clare more, learning that she was a 16 year-old Junior, who wasn't very popular. He still liked her, though. He knew he shouldn't, because he was a teacher and overage, and she was a student and underage, but he didn't care. He just had to be careful about the kind of things he said to her in class; he had to act like a teacher. He also had yet to find out if she felt anything for him, in return.

About a minute before the bell rang that Friday, Clare was still in the hallway gathering up her things for music. They were going to perform a song at the Winter Dance, so she double-checked her folder to make sure she had the music the class had been practicing so vigorously.

Then, the bell rang. While she began to walk, she stuffed her music back in its place. In her haste to get to class, she bumped into someone, and was knocked back into a sitting position on the floor.

"Not again," she moaned while she picked up her things. She barely noticed that she was being helped by the person she ran into until his fingers brushed hers as she picked up the final sketch that lay on the tiled floor.

"Your drawings are very nice," the person the hand belonged to said.

Her eyes met his, and she noticed that it was Mr. Hiwatari. "Uhh... thanks."

Hurridley, she started off down the hallway, but it was too late; the second bell rang before she had even been able to move four steps.

"Great!" Clare exclaimed sarcastically. "Just great! Now I have detention!" And, with that, she continued on her way to music class.

"Late, again, Miss Svental," said Mr. Kon when Clare stepped into the classroom and took her seat.

"I know, Mr. Kon," Clare said gloomily. "I'm sorry."

"Well," Mr.Kon went on, "you know the rules. Detention, tonight."

"Yes, sir," Clare replied.

"Now, class," Mr. Kon said to everyone, ignoring the entry of Mr. Hiwatari, who came in late with a coffee in his hands every day, "Rehearse our music together on three. Ready? 1, 2, 3-"

After the class was up, and everyone was walking out of the room, Mr. Kon shouted after them, "Remember: this Saturday night, be in the Auditorium by 5:00!" Then, he added to Clare, "Be in the classroom at 3:00. Kai here will be holding your detention, then."

"Hey, Mr. Hiwatari," Clare greeted half-heartedly as she stepped into the classroom occupied only by her and Kai.

"Hi," he said back. "Take a seat."

Clare sat down at the desk directly in front of Kai, but instead of looking at him, she gazed up at the ceiling.

After a few minutes' silence, Kai couldn't take the cold shoulder any longer, so he took a seat next to Clare in hopes that she'd notice.

Just as he'd anticipated, she turned to him and said very hesitantly, "Mr. Hiwatari?... Is it just me, or... or is there something... going on between us...?"

So she's caught on, thought Kai.

Kai opened his mouth to reply, but was cut of as Clare went on quickly, "Because... I don't mean to make you feel uncomfortable, or anything... it's just... the way you look at me, sometimes... And that... you're a teacher..."

Kai wondered if that meant that he was creeping her out, or if it meant she didn't want him to lose his job, or both, so he said, "There's not supposed to be anything between us... but that doesn't mean..." he braced himself for the worst and finished, "that doesn't mean I don't want there to be..."

Clare sighed.

I'm so glad he likes me back, she thought.

Then, Clare smiled slightly and nodded.

Kai took that as a good sign.

Clare woke up the next day feeling quite refreshed. Even though she lived in a shabby two room apartment with an incompetant alcoholic mother, she felt good because, as of yesterday, she knew that she had someone who cared for her.

He even told me to call him by his first name... she mused silently,Kai.

She swung her feet over the bed and headed over to the bathroom, but when she turned on the showerhead, no water came out.

"Dammit," she muttered.

She must not have paid the water bill, so now she would have to take a shower at school (on a Saturday), and have a talk with the superintendent on her way out.

By the time Clare was at school, she was feeling much better about her living situation. She had sorted out all the water problems with the Super, and had arranged for the taps to be running by the next day.

In the girls' shower room, Clare washed, dried off, and dressed quickly. Her wardrobe was very limited, so today, she was wearing her usual black jeans, her usual brown leather jacket (since it was winter), and a black sweater.

After she gathered up her belongings and stuffed them into her backpack, she stepped out of the locker room and found herself face-to-face with Kai Hiwatari.

"H-hi, Mr. Hiwatari," she stammered.

"Hi, Clare," he replied with a warm smile. "But don't you remember that I told you you could call me Kai, out of class?"

"Oh...yeah," she mumbled. "Sorry."

"You don't have to be sorry," he said quietly. After a short pause, he said, "So why are you here so early? You don't have to be here until 5:00... And why are you all wet?"

"Umm..." she began. "Well, I..." she sighed. She figured that she might as well tell him the truth, "The thing is... I'm kind of... short on money. So, today, our water was turned off, so I had to take a shower here."

She looked down at her shoes, until Kai picked her chin up.

"That's nothing to be ashamed of," he murmured consolingly.

For a few seconds, they gazed into each other's eyes, but Clare soon averted her stare off into another direction.

"C'mon," said Kai, grabbing Clare's backpack from her and putting an arm around her waist. She glanced up at him with a questioning look, so he explained, "We'll go out and get something to eat. Hell, we have five hours to kill until we actually have to be here."

Clare nodded, and allowed herself to be led out of the school in Kai's protective grasp.