Chapter 9 – Trapped in Conference Room 3

I somehow managed to survive the big event that was the day after I got dumped.

And so, the day after that. Tuesday.

After school today, I’m fated to be summoned to Conference Room 3.

Matsumaru-sensei has been in a strangely good mood since morning homeroom; she didn’t even complain about her ex-boyfriend in front of the students.

I have a bad feeling about this.

I had two English classes—English Communications and Logical Expression in English—but for once, I wasn’t called on a single time.

A summons from a beautiful teacher, waiting for me after school.

Souichi  shoots me an envious glance before heading off to his club activities.

“Man, lucky you, Aki. I wonder if the going-home club is popular with the girls?”

“The going-home club has nothing to do with it.”

“I’m gonna quit table tennis and join the going-home club too.”

“Whoa, Japan would be in trouble if you did that.”

I hurriedly stopped Souichi  from casually making the biggest decision of his life.

In middle school, he took second place in the nation for table tennis singles.

He’s one of Japan’s designated development players, but his idiocy is on a designated level, too. A true hope for the future.

When you think about it, it’s not just Souichi; Ryuuji  is amazing, too.

I heard he passed the Grade 1 Eiken test back when he was in the sixth grade, and he even competed in the Math Olympiad in middle school.

Shinichi  is… huh? Just a total geek.

In a way, he was starting to seem like the most normal one of the bunch.

“Alright, alright, I’m not actually gonna quit table tennis. I’ve been in top form lately. Think I can aim for the Olympics?”

How should I know? You’re asking a total amateur.

“Why not? Go for it.”

“Whoa, you were totally just winging that answer, weren’t you? That’s what I like about you, Aki.”

“Are you a masochist or something?”

“Just kidding. Anyway, if I don’t hurry, Kuriyamacchi is gonna get mad at me.”

Kuriyama is the female teacher who acts as the advisor for the table tennis club.

I’ve never had anything to do with her, so I don’t know what she’s like.

She’s coaching the idiot representing Japan, so she must be a little crazy herself. Yep, no doubt about it.

Souichi  bolted out of the classroom.

Conference Room 3 was located at the dead end of a long hallway, a short distance from the faculty office.

It was rarely used, making it the perfect spot for a secret meeting like this.

According to the rumors, Chifuyu really did come here yesterday and had a 

serious talk with Matsumaru-sensei.

The source of that rumor was Souichi, so it was probably best not to believe it.

“There you are, Akira-kun. Please, come in.”

Just as I was standing in front of the room, debating whether or not to enter, a sensual voice called out from behind me.

It seems there’s no escape now.

Under the pretext of discussing English, Matsumaru-sensei  had formally brought some English materials with her. 

I wonder if the other teachers are suspicious of her. She seems unusually wary of prying eyes…

The last thing I want is to have my virginity stolen by a teacher like her.

Of course, if that were to happen, I’d report it to the police immediately.

She gestured for me to have a seat, so after checking the chair for any weird contraptions, I slowly sat down.

Matsumaru-sensei  sat down across the desk from me, openly applying her lipstick.

Even up close, there’s no denying she’s a beautiful woman.

She smelled of peaches. Even staring from a short distance, her skin was fine and beautiful.

Which only made this situation all the more regrettable.

“Akira-kun , yesterday I heard the details of what happened from Hasebe-san.”

So they did talk.

Souichi’s  rumor was true.

“The details, you say?”

“Wanna know?”

What’s with the grade-school-level taunt?

I was part of it, so obviously I already know.

“No, I’m good. I have club activities soon, so may I be excused?”

“Oh? Club activities? Akira-kun, you’re not in any clubs, are you?”

“No, I’m a member of the going-home club.”

“The going-home club isn’t a real club, you know.”

“I don’t think that’s true.”

This is getting farcical. Can I really just go home?

“You know, I was recently dumped by my boyfriend.”

Here we go.

I didn’t ask, and I didn’t want to know. But I’d prepared myself for this the moment I came to Conference Room 3.

Matsumaru-sensei  skillfully averted her gaze from me, putting on the expression of a sweet, innocent maiden in love. 

She’s cute, sure, but that’s it.

“My days with him were so fulfilling, and I was happy every single day. You know how being a teacher can be stressful, right? He was my emotional stabilizer.”

“Is that so.”

“And the nights were just incredible. He would—”

“I’d appreciate it if you’d skip that part.”

“…Akira-kun, are you sixteen now? Or fifteen?”

“I’m still fifteen.”

“Oh, how cute. Like I said yesterday, if you were to confess to me when you turn eighteen, we could just head straight to a hotel, how does that sound?”

Why is she assuming I’m the one who’ll be confessing?

And she’s upgraded her offer from a movie to a hotel.

If I were to record this conversation and hand it over to the police, her teaching career would be over. That said, it’s not like I particularly hate Matsumaru-sensei.

“I’m not going to confess to you. Can I go home now?”

“Such a cold fish. Anyway, getting back to my ex, it seems he’s recently started drinking black tea.”

“Huh.”

I can’t follow this at all.

“Are you listening, Akira-kun? Black tea, I said, black tea.”

“Is ‘black tea’ some kind of code word?”

“Of course not. Black tea is black tea.”

“Right.”

“You know that I like coffee, right?”

“No, this is the first I’m hearing of it.”

“Lies. We just saw each other at Starmacs the other day. I don’t go to Starmacs to chase after the new seasonal drinks, you know. The woman known as Matsumaru Ten  is no such trend-hopping teacher.”

Come to think of it, I do occasionally run into Matsumaru-sensei  at the Starmacs on Fifth Avenue.

I use it as a place to study and read, but apparently Matsumaru-sensei  goes there to genuinely enjoy the coffee.

But if she really loved coffee, wouldn’t she go to an old, established local coffee shop instead of a global cafe chain?

I guess everyone enjoys coffee in their own way.

It’s not my place to worry about it or comment on it. I just want to go home.

“So, you’re a coffee supremacist, is that it, sensei?”

“You get it, don’t you? You really are a good man, Akira-kun.”

“But sensei, you’ve studied abroad in the UK, haven’t you? In that case, wouldn’t black tea be more—”

“My study abroad in the UK was only for three days. I don’t have that much of an attachment to black tea.”

Can you really call a three-day stay ‘studying abroad’?

“Isn’t that just a trip?”

“Nuh-uh, it’s not. I properly studied for three days, so it was studying abroad. ‘Studying abroad’ just means studying something or other in a foreign country.”

“It wasn’t for a language-learning program?”

“In the UK, I primarily studied classical Chinese.”

I just can’t comprehend this person anymore.

Does that mean her good pronunciation is just the result of her practicing hard here in Japan?

She sometimes uses her ‘UK study abroad experience’ to lend authority to her words in class, but now that I know the truth, that feigned authority is just plain embarrassing.

“…I see. So, what happened when your boyfriend started liking black tea?”

“Hey, let me tell the whole story. And he’s not my boyfriend, he’s my ex-boyfriend.”

I’m sick of putting up with this ridiculous story.

“…”

“Mmmph, you’re so stubborn, Akira-kun.”

She puffs out her cheeks trying to be cute and charming, but sorry, it doesn’t work on me anymore.

I’m so disappointed in her.

“I’m a coffee supremacist, so I can’t date someone who likes black tea. It’s a matter of constitution, you see. So I forced him to drink coffee, and that’s why he dumped me.”

“How long were you two together?”

“About four days, I think?”

Four days together.

He was drinking black tea, and she tried to force her values on him by making him drink coffee.

No wonder he wanted to break up.

“That sounds rough. Well, I’ll be going now.”

I didn’t bother hiding my exasperation as I stood up from my chair.

“You can’t go yet, Akira-kun. I have something important to discuss.”

“Are you saying everything up to now was just the prologue…?”

“The warm-up act is important, too.”

As Matsumaru-sensei  stood up, the scent of peaches danced through the air.

Her long, flowing hair brushed lightly against my shoulder.

“Wait here for a moment. I’m going to the faculty office to grab some materials.”

I was about to say, ‘You should have had the materials ready from the start,’ but I held my tongue, knowing it would come out as a rude remark.

She is, for all her faults, a teacher.

And as a student, I need to treat her with the appropriate respect.

Matsumaru-sensei  smiled with her needlessly beautiful face and slid the conference room door shut.

—Click.

That sound was all I needed to sense the mischievous intent hidden in her smile.