Sylvia Sanchez (Suzume) - Monday, April 11th
I opened the sliding door to open the classroom. No one spared me a second glance as I walked inside. There was a seat in the middle next to a girl with raven black hair and a pink bow. She seemed harmless enough so I took a seat beside her. She was focused on her notebook.
My eyes wandered to the window. I could see the rose maze from up here. I hadn't gone inside it yet considering I never bothered to stay at Ouran after school so there wasn't any time for me to explore the campus. "Good afternoon everyone," Kagame-san greeted.
Everyone stopped talking and looked to the front of the classroom. "Welcome to the first meeting of the International Math and Science Competition," a female teacher said. She looked to be in her fifties and had a kind face.
"If you don't already know me, my name is Kagame-sensei. I am a math teacher for all A and B leveled homerooms here at Ouran."
"And I'm Okamoto-sensei. I teach Physics and Biology across various homerooms. I also co-run the robotics team with Akaida-sensei afterschool"
"This year will be the 25th year that the program is running. As such there are a few changes to this year's competition. Those of you that are veterans in the program know that normally there is one team from each school that answers a series of questions about science and math. The winning team earns a cash prize and all team members are typically recruited into some of the best universities across the world," Kagame-sensei began.
"The theme of this year's competition is utilizing science and math to better the world. As such, there is a new division of the competition: inventions. Schools can send one team of two students to invent a machine that will help the marginalized in society. There will be a $50,000 USD cash prize along with a guaranteed scholarship to Kyoto University, Cambridge, Stanford, and five other top universities that I can't remember the name of," Okamoto finished.
"Due to the generous prize for those who win the Invention Division we've decided to have a small panel of teachers decide who will be chosen to represent Ouran Academy. They will base it on a quick one-minute speech or video of your idea. If you are interested in taking part, sign your name on this sheet of paper by this Thursday at 4:00 pm. The partner you will be presenting and working with is going to be assigned to you so that everyone has an equal opportunity to take part," Kagame-sensei explained. Most of the students groaned at this. I drummed my fingers on my desk, lost in thought. $50,000 USD was a lot of money. I could buy a nice car.
"For those of you who participate in the regular division, we will be working each week on studying various topics of math, physics, biology, robotics, and physics to ensure that we are all at the top of our game. We will also hold occasional practice competitions."
"Thank you for coming today. You can all go and enjoy your lunch here or somewhere else. The sheet to sign up will be outside of mine and Okamoto-sensei's door," Kagame-sensei declared. He and Okamoto-sensei left the classroom.
Some of the students left after them. I decided to stay put and pulled out my bento. It was a simple lunch of bread and cheese. My mother hadn't gone food shopping again so I was living off scraps of food right now.
"Sanchez-san," a voice greeted me. I looked up to see Ootori. I felt a wave of displeasure at seeing his face again.
"Ootori-san," I returned.
"I see that Kagame-sensei has invited you to be in this year's competition," he observed.
"Yes, he did."
"And I'm sure you're fully aware of how nice of an opportunity this is for someone of your standing." My eyes narrowed at him.
"What are you getting at Ootori?"
"Nothing really, just that you should be grateful to be here."
"Is there something that you wanted?" I asked him.
"Tamaki wants me to invite you to our club this Wednesday after school for a flower viewing. The sakura trees are in full bloom and as such it's perfect to sit outside for tea."
"Thank you but…"
"I expect to see you there Sanchez. Your mother's job depends on you accepting this invitation," he told me with a sickly sweet smile. He left me without a word and I was left glaring at his back. I should have expected nothing less from a spoilt brat like Suoh Tamaki.
Marianna Lorena - Ouran Academy Monday, April 11th
"I've decided to become her mentor," I told Chairman Suoh. A huge grin etched his lips.
"I'm glad to hear it, Lorena-san," he responded. "I'll have her meet you at Elmswood Library tomorrow after school. It's only about fifteen minutes from your apartment."
"Yes, sir," I bowed. He dismissed me from his office and I took my leave. I made my way to my office in the high school building. I began to work on lesson plans when a little knock interrupted me.
"Hi Lorena-sensei," a cheery voice greeted me.
"Hello Honey," I smiled warmly. "What brings you into my office?"
"I have a gift for you," he announced. My eyes widened in shock. We had only been in school for a week now. It was a little early for me to be expecting anything. Before I could respond, he placed a small envelope in my hand.
"Can I open it?" I asked him with a grin.
"Of course," he told me. I opened the envelope and saw a small card inside. It said Doutoru.
"Is this a gift card?"
"Yes, to my favorite bakery/coffee shop in the Yakazawa District. I have nearly all my cakes ordered from there."
"Thank you very much for this Honey. I'll be sure to go have some hot chocolate or something soon."
"You're welcome sensei." He skipped out of the office and I couldn't help but giggle to myself. It was wonderful to have such kind students.
"Lorena-san," a male voice caught my attention.
"Kagame-san," I returned. "How was your day?"
"It was fantastic. Today Okamoto-san and I had the first meeting of the International Math and Science Competition."
"That sounds impressive," I smiled.
"What about you Lorena-san?"
"My day was also fantastic. One of my students gave me a gift card to Doutoru Bakery."
"I've heard of it, they sell excellent coffee. Your students must have really taken a liking to you if they are already showering you with gifts so early in the school year."
"It was just one student," I blushed at his praise.
"One student is all it takes to make a difference," he replied.
"Very true," I nodded. "The Chairman asked me to mentor the new girl from Shinoto."
"Oh wow. She's truly a wonderful hard-working student, I'm sure you'll love her."
"I'm sure I'll like her, I'm just worried I won't connect well with her."
"I think you're thinking too hard about it," Kagame-san told me. "We all worry about if we'll connect with students, whether they'll understand what we're trying to say, but all that worry doesn't do us or the kids any good. It's better if we focus on the present and what we can control."
I nodded taking in his advice. Worrying wasn't going to solve anything which was true. "Thank you Kagame-san."
"You're very welcome Lorena-san. I'm going to work on grading some more assignments but good luck with Sanchez Suzume." We smiled at each other before Kagame-san walked away.
I turned back to my laptop and bit on my pencil. I was going through Youtube videos that would be appropriate to show for the fifth-grade elementary school students. There were a lot of very strange things on Youtube.
"Hello Lorena-san," Mishi-san waved to me.
"Hi Mishi-san," I waved back. She moved to her desk.
I groaned and decided that as a class project we'd make our own Youtube videos about recess. That would give the students an opportunity to practice using their English skills in a setting that made sense for them. I opened up a Word Document and began typing out the rules and expectations in Japanese. I glanced down at my watch and cursed. I looked over to Mishi-san's desk and saw that it was empty.
I rapidly packed up all of my belongings and sped walked out of the building. There weren't many students around the areas I passed which didn't surprise me as this week was the start of clubs. Most of the students there were aimlessly wandering about probably had a place to go now.
When I entered the staff building in the elementary campus I was relieved that the meeting hadn't started yet. I took a seat by Aki-san who gave me a little wave. "How was your day?" she asked me.
"Pretty good, you?"
"Tiring and long," she laughed. "Five kids threw the biggest temper tantrums today. I thought my head would explode from all the crying."
"Oh no," I gasped.
"Welcome everyone," greeted us. "We're still months away from Parent Teacher Conferences but Chairman Suoh wants us to go over what we as teachers should be looking out for before the conferences and how to best talk with parents." There were a few groans from the senior teachers to which Nakamura simply shrugged her shoulders.
"Is Chairman Suoh going to do anything to protect teachers from parents who think it's okay to threaten or blackmail teachers?" Seno-san asked raising her hand.
"Yeah," another teacher agreed. "I had a few parents last year who thought it was completely appropriate to indirectly tell me I'd lose my job for telling them the truth about how their child was misbehaving in class."
"Chairman Suoh and I are actively discussing that as we did deal with a few cases like that last year. Be rest assured that Chairman Suoh and I do believe that teachers should have the freedom to be honest with parents about the behavior they see in class." A pit formed in my stomach at this. I was worried about entitled parents but being threatened and blackmailed sounded like a whole different level of ridiculousness. I wouldn't have to meet with parents being an elective teacher so I was relieved.
"Oh and this year elective teachers will hold conferences by request of the parents due to a large number of parents complaining that they didn't get to meet with all of their child's teachers," Nakamura announced. I bit back a groan. So much for that. "I have a worksheet for you all."
The worksheet was passed out to everyone. I glanced down at it and sighed. "A very key thing for you all to do is to document things about students before the conferences. It shouldn't be a surprise to the parent if possible that their child is struggling in class. Most of you have newsletters/pamphlets for parents each week. One good method for elementary school-aged students is to send home a weekly report card. Good communication on our part to parents goes a long way in ensuring partnership. Discuss with a neighbor what form of communication you have established with parents."
I turned to Aki-san. "Well, I have a weekly newsletter. I break down what we did for the week and what important tips I have for the parents," she told me.
"I pretty much only sent out a welcome letter to all the parents. Some of the other teachers have said they want me to post something in their newsletters so for those teachers I give them a small paragraph to put it," I said.
"Oh that's such a smart idea," Aki-san gushed. "I didn't think to let the elective teachers have their own section. You need to write a blurb for us and maybe even add pictures. I saw those puppets that you had the kindergarteners and first graders do. So cute!"
"Yeah I can do that for you," I smiled at her.
"Wonderful, this Friday afternoon send me a paragraph and I'll put it in the newsletter. I'll cc you in the email chain from now on."
"Okay, so I'm sure you all have communicated in one way or another with parents. It's crucial we maintain these relationships so that every student here has the best education possible," Nakamura droned on. "I have another meeting to attend but I wanted to really highlight that part. Most of the issues between parents and teachers could have been avoided with good clear and concise communication."
Sylvia Sanchez (Suzume) - Yakazawa District Monday, April 11th
I held the gun gingerly in my hand, inspecting it for any flaws. I had the diagram laid out on my desk so I could reference it at any given point. Satisfied that everything was perfect, I put the gun back in its case.
"Scar, is it done?" Big G asked me.
"Yeah," I nodded. I shoved the case in his direction. He held the weapon up to the light and examined it.
"Looks good. Take it over to Yinyin for me," he ordered. I gulped at that. The last person I wanted to see was Yinyin.
"Can I take Hiro with me?" I asked him.
"No, I can't spare any more hands here in the shop." I visibly made a face of discomfort which I think he noticed because he said, "Don't worry. I told him I needed you back quickly."
"Okay," I muttered with no emotion in my voice. I couldn't show any fear or weakness. I had to be strong. I walked down the driveway of the auto shop and made my way towards Hiro's car. I turned on the ignition and felt the car come to life. I pulled onto the street and started driving down to the east side of the Yakazawa District.
My fingers were slowly turning white from my tight grip on the steering wheel. I closed my eyes and sighed. When I was in front of Yinyin's mansion I parked and got out of the car. I approached the big black doors and rang on the doorbell. After a few moments, the door was opened by a woman in a traditional maid outfit.
"Can I help you?" the woman asked bowing.
"I'm here to deliver something to Yinyin," I informed her with a bow.
"Right this way. I will let the master know you are here," she declared. She led me to a green chair in the middle of the living room. I glanced at the fireplace which was covered with ornate decorations.
I heard the clacking of footsteps and felt my shoulders tense with anxiety. Yinyin entered the room with a predatory smile. Behind him were two muscular men. "Scar, you have my new weapon correct?"
"Yes," I told him, holding the box out to him. He snapped his fingers and the two men moved to either side of me. My fingers formed fists subconsciously and my eyes were fixed on Yinyin.
He opened the box and pulled out the gun. "Absolutely beautiful," he complimented. He took a step towards me with the gun pointed right at me. I resisted the temptation to take a step back. The smile on his face never faded as he took one step after another.
Before I could register what was happening he was a mere few inches from my face. I made a move to slap him but the man to my right roughly grabbed my hand and shoved it behind my back. I hissed in pain and squirmed. Yinyin let out a hearty laugh and roughly yanked my jaw towards him. "You better behave in my house little girl."
"GG wants me back at the auto shop," I said. I was surprised by how calm I managed to sound despite the rapid beat of my heart.
"I have a proposition for you Scar," Yinyin purred. The man who had my arm behind my back pushed me down and my butt plopped back into the green chair. I glared at Yinyin who seemed unfazed by my severe look. "You are a rare beauty and when you graduate from high school I want you to work under Snake. I'd buy you and spoil you in luxury."
"Why would I want to become a useless prostitute when I can make my own money and be independent as a drug dealer?" I huffed.
"Women have no place in gangs, the Yakuza don't allow women to join the way you are involved with Kalyuga. Women are only wives to members," he lectured. "And besides…," his hands slid down my chest. "Females are always in want of the physical touch and pleasure of a man."
"I won't repeat myself again. I refuse to sell my body when I can earn money through other means. I have to go back to work with GG. He won't be happy to know you've been keeping me longer than necessary."
A look of anger flashed across Yinyin's face before a fake smile graced his lips again. "You will, of course, do me the honor of considering what I said to you. I will ask you one more time and I expect a more favorable answer." I didn't say anything and although the silence was awkward I made no attempt to fix it. "Gentlemen, escort the lady out."
The two men hauled me up by my arms and practically dragged me out of the mansion. They thrust me outside and shut the door. I glanced back and trudged back to my car. I didn't like to think about what Yinyin would do to me the next time he asked me to be his personal sex slave.