Chapter 5: A Fateful Physics Lesson

I strolled to the bus stop, eyelids hardly able to keep themselves from drooping.

WHAM! Huh? What was that? My eyes fluttered open. I felt that there was a wall sort of thing in front but I saw nothing. Must be a dream.

I took another step. "OW! Get off asshole!" Now what was that sound? I looked down and saw Takeno Rika sprawled on the ground. Oh...whoops, I just stepped on her. Shucks! Did I dirty my shoe? I checked the bottom carefully and heaved a sigh of relief.

Then I realised that Rika had fallen because of me. So I reached out my hand only to be yelled at with an ungrateful, "No thanks, mister!" She slapped my hand away. "I've got my own hands and feet!" She stood up indignantly but in her haste, she slipped and fell again.

Goodness. The sight was so hilarious that I couldn't help but laugh.

"What are you laughing at, huh?" she stared into the depths of my skull.

"You," I replied bluntly.

"Haha...well, look at yourself! Your shirt's all wet! Your piss got out of control?" With that, she turned around and began her stomp to the bus stop.

I looked down at my shirt. Oh damn! It was wet with drool! I knew I had to get rid of that habit and now she'd scored a point.

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That guy desperately needs some masking tape over his mouth when he sleeps. Good thing I'd got him but I ought to have taken a shot of that look on his face. It would have raked in some profits for me. That would have taught him a lesson.

I hate Rukawa! He's the cause of all my embarrassment! Even though I'd gotten back at him, a girl's got her own dignity to uphold! I had to meet this freaking make chauvinist pig and what's more? He'll be in my class for 3 years? Sitting beside me? And he'll probably live in the same neighbourhood for longer than that! I had already taken one step into hell!

Breathe in, breathe out... Calm down, he's not gonna spoil your day, Takeno Rika.

The bus came. He flagged it and got on. I followed behind. Funny, he'd never taken the same bus as me before! The same bus driver from the first day of school. What luck.

I smiled at him sheepishly and proceeded to a seat but he said, "I see you've got yourself a trusty escort! Very effective!"

My eyes bulged out in horror. "I've got nothing to do with that guy, nothing what-so-ever!"

"I see you do, indeed," he winked.

Us? Puh-lease... YUCK! I'd rather die a million times, get run over by every type of car in the world, go to hell and back than be associated with the fox-face that could fill the entire Atlantic Ocean with his drool! Sick! Puke!

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Physics now. It's so boring. Car mechanics and Jina-sensei sounded like an automobile herself, going at 5 km/h, that is. Makes me wanna......Zzz...

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See? There he goes conking off again.

I was doodling on my notebook because I'd forgotten to bring my Physics textbook, or rather, I didn't bother to bring it at all. Well, she wouldn't care would she?

"Takeno Rika," Jina-sensei called out. "Where is your textbook?"

"I forgot to bring it, sensei," I replied.

"Take Kaede's then," she answered after scanning the classroom briefly. "I'm sure he would be kind enough to lend it to you." I rolled my eyes. The only reason why she didn't mind him sleeping in class was because it gave her a chance to have a "one-on-one" with him later.

I stretched my arm out for his book but his hand shot out. "Of course I need it, sensei," he replied and opened it to a page on light travel, appearing to be reading intently.

Jina-sensei looked slightly dismayed at the prospect of not being able to see him for an extra half hour today. However, she smiled at him sweetly, sadly revealing a row of stained teeth that'd never touched toothpaste and said, "Well, I suppose you wouldn't mind sharing it with Takeno Rika, would you?"

What? Did she just tell me to share a textbook with that guy, harmoniously?

"You heard what I said. Chop-chop, Takeno." That was that. So I moved my chair next to his but kept still kept a little distance. That mind of Jina-sensei is one hard to fathom. However, one thing I was sure of was what a bore she was. She could easily put the Tasmanian Devil to sleep. I wasn't half interested in her lesson and it didn't take long for me to lose my concentration again. He, too, slumped onto my arm, drifting back to dreamland. I yanked my arm away on impulse and his head banged onto the table.

He woke up with a start, ready to kill me. He yelled, "What the heck are you doing?" apparently forgetting he was in class.

"Hey, you're the one that started sleeping on my arm, okay? Do you think I want to touch you?"

"Takeno, I've had enough of you! Since you aren't interested in my lesson, get out!" that woman snapped.

"But neither is he! Why only me?"

"No buts! Get going!"

I was boiling mad. I stood up and marched out the door. I could hear that disgusting voice of hers become all honey-lubricated as she asked, "Kaede, you all right there?"

She's in love with that freak. From the very first Physics lesson, I could tell. "Kaede" here, "Kaede" there. On such intimate terms, eh? Her eyes would be trying to send hidden messages to him but they never were received because they would be blocked by his drooping eyelids. Yah, so sleeping in class does not equal being inattentive! That woman, I'll remember her for life!

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Whoa! I didn't expect her to be sent out of class just like that. Okay, so I slept on her arm...but that was an accident! Big deal, anyway, it's nice to have a thorn out of my flesh.

Jina-sensei's horribly weird. Somehow I don't like her way of calling me by my first name. I don't know why she does it but that's reserved for my parents thank you very much.

I watched the second-hand tick away the remnant of the lesson. "Brrrrr...ing!" Yes! Another class down! 3 more to go! Just as I was celebrating that fact, Miss Takeno Rika strode into the class and sat down on her chair with a loud thump. What a great disturber of peace and tranquility.

She started writing furiously then crushing up the paper, repeating the cycle over and over again. Screech...screech...screech...I gritted my teeth in annoyance and when the bubble had burst, I swerved my head around, prepared to order her to stop. However, she was already looking at me menacingly. She looked like a tiger ready to pounce on her prey.

We both opened our mouths to say something but closed them again. For a little moment silence reigned.

Then she slammed her pencil down hard on her desk and jumped up. I was expecting a string of curses unwinding from her foul mouth but I was mistaken. Instead, she flung a piece of paper on my desk, looked at me with an expressionless face, turned and walked out of the room

I stared at the note scrawled onto the crumpled piece of paper. "I hate you, asshole." I watched as her pencil rolled slowly off her table and hit the floor with a plonk.

My first hate note. Sleep...I need some sleep... Later, I've got to see Anzai-sensei for some unknown reason. Now, I just want some sleep.

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