Chapter 9: A Request

"You've done very well, Kita-kun." Mafuyu said. Unlike the usual poised demeanor she maintained during their study sessions, she gave him a small encouraging smile. "You're already working on physics at the university freshman level."

"Thanks," he said. His tone was even.

Mafuyu's smile dropped. Normally, he would have responded happily at a minor compliment from her, but he'd been like this since she'd come over. Calm, restrained, completely business-like. Not even her first encounter with him had been like this. He'd made wry and sarcastic comments then, he hadn't been wholly closed off like he was now.

However, the drastic change in his behavior wasn't a mystery. This was the first time they'd met since she'd helped him find his eyepiece in the park. When she'd pushed him away after a hug.

Mafuyu had expected something like this and had taken steps to rekindle a friendly relationship between the two of them. She'd suggested that they study in his apartment. When they had their sessions in his room, he tended to be more expressive and outspoken than in the library, giving her a chance to make up with him. She'd also decided to work on his favorite subject: physics. She'd even obtained a workbook which had problems that were supposed to be challenging yet could be solved with clever use of algebra and basic calculus.

Personally, she found solving physics problems dull, but the right kind of problem could get an amusing reaction from him. He was genuinely awed by some of the methods described in the answer key. In other cases, when he saw the answers after struggling for a while, he'd shake his head and say it was so obvious now and he should have realized it on his own.

Unfortunately, all of Mafuyu's efforts had failed to get him to open up for the past two hours.

"I think it's time for break," she said. "Is fifteen minutes agreeable?"

"Yeah, that's fine." He pulled out his phone and didn't spare her a glance.

Nevertheless, she would still attempt conversation. "Your eyepiece seemed rather dirty last time, is it okay now?"

"Yes."

"That's good. Have you seen anything interesting with your telescope since then?"

"Not really."

Mafuyu's hopeful expression sagged. She wasn't completely socially inept, she understood that he didn't want to talk. Yet she felt she should make at least one more attempt.

"You enjoy science fiction, correct? Are you enjoying the book you're reading now?" She actually hadn't even seen whether he'd gotten another book, but with him the assumption was almost guaranteed.

"Mhm, it's good." Even then, he didn't look up from his screen.

She gave up. They weren't going to reconcile today. Very well, she'd accept that and return his indifference with the proper formal behavior a teacher gave to a student.

They worked on English next, one of his weaker subjects. She praised him when he did well and corrected his mistakes, but her words lacked any of the warmth or familiarity she'd developed with him.

Kita-kun didn't even bat an eye at her altered demeanor. He just focused as if this were how they usually studied.

Once they finished, Mafuyu rose to her feet to quickly leave. It seemed that he preferred her absence, and her feelings regarding him were likewise.

"Goodbye, I assume I'll see you in three weeks for our next tutoring session," she said when she reached his bedroom door.

"Wait sensei. Actually, there's something important I need to talk you about."

She paused. That was the most he'd spoken to her today uninterrupted. Mafuyu turned and faced him. "What is it?"

He pressed his lips together. He was hesitant, uncertain. He was actually displaying emotion for once. "This is going to take a while to explain, but please hear me out."

"Very well, I will." Mafuyu remained standing and watched him.

Kita-kun met her eyes, contrary to his behavior for the past few hours. "I don't want you to tutor me anymore."

Her mouth was a thin line. Then, she spoke. "Why? Am I lacking as a tutor?"

"No!" His reply was so sharp that she was taken aback. "No, sensei, you're a great teacher. I'm the problem, not you."

"I don't understand. What do you mean?"

This time, he struggled to look her in the eyes. "I-" Kita-kun's voice wavered. He paused before trying again. "I like you, sensei. A lot. I don't want to say love lightly, but that's how I feel."

"O-oh." Mafuyu didn't know how to respond. She'd heard of cases like this, of course, but she'd never dealt with one herself. "Well, I'm flattered. However, Kita-kun, I'm sure you realize-

"Yeah yeah, I know. You're a teacher, I'm a student. I get it." He snorted. "Besides, even if that weren't true, it's not like you'd feel the same for someone like me anyway."

That self-deprecation, she could easily give several reasons to negate it. Kita-kun wasn't unattractive. He had been rather unkempt when she'd first met him, but he was decent-looking when he took care of himself. In addition, he was a thoughtful and driven young man, and if he wished, it shouldn't be too difficult to connect to a girl his age.

Mafuyu should have mentioned one of those reasons, any of them. She would have been able to do so with any other student who doubted himself but with Kita-kun it was different. She didn't want to encourage any feelings for her of course, but even that explanation seem to ring hollow.

He continued. "So yeah, I'm not expecting anything. I'm just telling you that's why I don't want to be tutored by you anymore."

"I'm sorry, but you still haven't explained to me how that follows."

"Yeah, I know, even I'm confused." He took a deep breath. "Okay, the thing is, I thought I'd be able to hold it in. To keep my feelings secret during our sessions. I've been doing that for a while, actually, and I even thought hiding it for years would be easy. But it's not. I realized that when I hugged you. It wasn't just because I was relieved that we found my eyepiece, it was because you were the one who did. I don't even hug Aunt Hikari that often nowadays but I wanted to hug you and I couldn't hold back.

"Sensei, I love talking with you. Even more than when I talk with Goto-sensei. You're not just kind and helpful, you're you. The amazing woman who wanted to make sure a dumb brat like me didn't ruin his chances for a future, who's a great friend to my aunt, who's usually calm and cool and hardly smiles or laughs but lights up everything when she does. I thought it'd be nice to at least get to be with you during our sessions, but it's not. It just makes it worse, and I can't do it. I don't want to have them anymore, and the only reason I'm even telling you how I feel is so you can help me convince Aunt Hikari not to make a big deal out of it. Will you?"

Mafuyu took in his confession and mulled it over. She'd never had any strong romantic feelings for a man, but she saw what he meant. It must be painful to be attracted to someone that he couldn't be with, and even more so if he spent time with that person at regular intervals.

It should be no question that she would agree to his request. The situation of a student being enamored with his teacher was uncomfortable, and this would solve the issue. His crush would likely fade soon.

Yet she didn't agree to it immediately. Not because she was considering a student-teacher relationship. No, most definitely not. The problem was that this would sever their friendship. Their study sessions were held only every few weeks, but she saw him a good deal between them when she spent time with Fujimura-san. His excited updates on his progress with his books or his self-study of physics were a joy to receive. On certain occasions, he could have impeccable comedic timing with his deadpan voice or sharp wit. Even when his jokes fell short, his embarrassment was amusing.

The only other person currently in her life who made her smile as much as him was his aunt. Even then, he gave her the most reason to laugh.

"I understand, Kita-kun. I suppose this is our last study session together. Don't worry about your aunt, I'll speak to her."

"Thank you," he said with relief. More than a little remorse was there as well. "Sorry I was an ass for the past few hours. I just . . . I really care about you, sensei, and I did that because I'm stupid and nervous about telling you how I felt."

Infatuated and nervous. He'd hidden it so well that she never would have guessed. He'd made himself an effective blank slate, but now he was an awkward emotional teenager.

Mafuyu walked forward and held out her hand. "It was good knowing you, Kita Jurou. I'll miss our conversations."

He shook her hand with a smile. "Thanks, Kirisu-sensei. I'm glad you felt that way."

"Goodbye, and make sure you study on your own. Give all subjects your attention, not just the ones you like."

"Don't worry, I will." Those were the last words she heard before she left.