Author's notes:
Sorry if i haven't editted in a while... okay, shoot me, a LOOOOOONG while... please bear with me here.. it ain't easy writing a story when your only connection to the civilized world (I mean the Internet, of course) is cut off from you for five hell-bent months.. Luckily I survived.. thanks for the reviews.. tear natch.. haha!as if!! well, here's my next installment... enjoY!!!!
Groans echoed off the walls of the sun-lit classroom, as the students looked forlornly at the long list of homework that they had to do. Surprisingly, Soi expressed a sigh as well. Normally, she would have acted nonchalant and just copied the assignment, but since she's being piled with the school board's list of requirements (she is after all, the president of the school council), she would have gladly made do without the extra work. Only a week has passed, and already she's being bombarded with tasks not even the headmaster could handle. Not that she'd complain it out loud.
While still madly scribbling, Soi felt a hard jab at her right side.
"Aw, fucking flying feces of fo-...!" she unintentionally swore aloud, as the pen in her hand slid across the page of her notebook when the tickling pain spread in her right rib. Now, there was a visible "scar" in her visibly neat, visibly sabotaged notes. She immediately covered her mouth and looked up in time to see the whole class staring at the reasonable model student who just, well, uttered a series of colorful curses. Already mustering up a glare (and fighting the incredible blush that was creeping up her cheeks), she turned to her right, and found Mei-Mei ogling her with eyes that seemed almost ready to pop out. They seemed to keep swiveling back and forth to the front of the class, then to Soi's face.
"Mei, are you having a convulsion?!" Soi asked frantically, noting that her friend's behavior was weirder than usual.
At that, Mei's eyes bugged out even more, and the redhead couldn't help but slap her hands to her forehead. For one of the smartest people in school, Soi, you are incredibly slow, Mei-mei observed inwardly.
Exasperated, she countered Soi's confused and worried look with a withering one. She shook her head and motioned for the ruby-eyed girl to look at the front. After following Mei's line of vision, Soi instantly felt dread pooling at her stomach. There, in the front row, was the ominous figure of her Physics teacher, looking cool, bored, and undeniably handsome in a gray, long-sleeved dress shirt and black slacks, and eliciting waves upon waves of drool and sighs from the female population. Her eyes narrowed, as she noticed that he, and her homeroom professor, kept glancing her way, as if their discussion involved her for some unintelligible reason. She didn't particularly dominate the talks of the faculty, since her work concerned only the adviser of the student council.
Her curiosity escalated when her homeroom professor caught her eye and signaled for her to come to the front. She moved slowly, easing out of her seat with a questioning gaze directed at Mei-Mei, who gave her a wink and a thumbs-up. She rolled her eyes heavenward, thinking that in some part of their childhood, Mei lost a few screws during their misadventures.
Making her way to the front of the class, her gaze collided with her physics teacher's, and her heart jumped painfully at the sight of the sharp, electric blue of his eyes, that seemed to cast some unknown spell and render her dumbstruck. With a great amount of will, she managed not to falter while in the midst of making her sluggish trek toward her two professors. She mentally kicked herself and tore her eyes away from the piercing stare.
Stupid hormones!! It's bad enough that he's got 599 of the female population in this campus eating at the palm of his hand; it would be stupid of me to add to his already incongruously huge ego, Soi thought frantically. She cleared her throat and was subjected to the teachers' attentions.
"Ah, Ms. Soi, have you heard of the Physics Nationals? The ones being held in Tokyo every four years?" her homeroom teacher inquired.
"Of course, Sensei. I've been meaning to ask you about it as well. Why, what's the news? Has someone already been chosen to compete?"
"Well, we thought about entering YOU in the competition."
Her eyes widened, and she was speechless for a moment, but she blinked herself back to reality. Her heart gave a big thump at the thought of Tokyo. Already, fireworks were beginning to pop in her excited, little mind.
"Me? Sensei, you of all people know that Physics isn't one of my strongest points, and that's already an understatement," she calmly asked, although still not believing the opportunity. She could hardly believe her luck!
"That's where, not surprisingly, you're WRONG again, Kaen. I've been tabulating the performance of your batch here, and you seem to have the fastest improvement rate, even though you do have a strangely hard time of digesting the concepts. You'll do, although I can't say we stand a chance against the other competing universities," the Physics teacher bit back coldly, with hardly any emotion as would a dead fish, earning an amused glance from the homeroom professor, and an icy glare from Soi. She was already practicing a habit of clenching and unclenching her hands in efforts of control whenever she was with this sorry excuse for a teacher!!
"You see, Soi? You of all people have the best chance in keeping track of as much information that you can gather in preparation for the nationals. Never mind that you don't understand half of the concepts now. You're brain can absorb more information like a sponge, rather than those who excel in the subject," the homeroom professor stated bluntly.
"So it's decided. You will be our representative. The competition will be in five months' time. Be ready by then. Ayuru-san here, will be your coach. I expect you to train everyday, after school. Good luck, Soi," the homeroom teacher finished, without letting a word in, edgewise.
"B-but sensei----"
"Hold on there, Kasegawa, I have a lot under my belt, and I don't have time to tutor a student. Besides, I wouldn't be surprised if she lost, with or without a coach," Nakago cut in sharply, eliciting a furious and impatient sigh from Soi.
"I have pending responsibilities too, Kasegawa-sensei. I don't have the time, let alone the energy to put up with the tutoring sessions. I also don't think that any coaching from Ayuru-san, here, would do me any good. A student's academic response to a subject is the result of the teacher's performance, if I may be so bold to remind you, Ayuru-san," Soi shot back.
"I couldn't care less what you think of my performance, Kaen. Out of all the students I've ever encountered, you're the only one who responded with a dead brain to my teaching techniques. Blaming the teacher. Absolute nonsense. Is this what your students have been up to Kasegawa?" Nakago inquired the much older professor.
Soi sputtered for a few moments from the insult, but reverently gained her composure.
"The only reason your subject is so popular, Ayuru-san, is mainly due to the growing disease of bad eyesight in the female population, not because of your supposedly appraised teaching techniques. Good day Sensei," she finished with a huff, giving a slight bow to Kasegawa first, before retreating to her seat.
A small, indiscernible scowl graced Nakago's features as he watched Soi with foreboding, albeit a bit of admiration. No woman has ever used his good looks against him like that, except maybe for his mother. She will regret that remark, he promised himself.
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so, what'd you guys think??? i'm all revved up to write, but i'm still missing a few pieces... yaddah!!! r&r please!!! Onegai!:)
