Sensei, I Love You

Chapter 16

Sakura tapped her feet against the carpeted floor of the car as she stared at the passing view. It was a vain attempt to get her mind off the unwavering stare that were directed at her. She let out a soft sigh before turning her own gaze to her best friend. “Is there something on my face?” Sakura asked, sounding a little irritated.

“Nope!” Tomoyo answered immediately and averted her gaze. “There’s nothing on your face,” she mumbled.

Sakura narrowed her eyes on Tomoyo suspiciously. Her friend has been very quiet ever since Syaoran burst into her house and Sakura knew what was in her mind. “I know you have some questions but I’ll tell you this—there’s nothing going on between me and Li-sensei. He’s just offering me a room in his house to sleep in. Nothing more.”

Tomoyo turned slowly to face Sakura, curiosity etched on her face. “But why? He could have called for a female teacher.”

Sakura shrugged. “I don’t know. You have to ask him that for yourself.”

“And the way he looks at you… isn’t what a homeroom teacher’s supposed to be.”

“I told you—”

“There’s nothing going on between you and Li-sensei,” Tomoyo interrupted sharply, suddenly irked by Sakura’s refusal to answer her truthfully. “Yes, I understand that perfectly now. You can lie to yourself, Sakura-chan but you can’t lie to others. You know what you are feeling as well… I can see that in your eyes.”

“That’s ridiculous! Besides, Li-sensei is our homeroom teacher in case you have forgotten. Being in a relationship with his student is a taboo. It just can’t happen.”

“That’s what you are worried about?” Tomoyo asked.

“What? No! I’m not worried about anything!”

“Yeah… Yeah…” Tomoyo muttered. “Trying to lie to yourself again.”

Sakura couldn’t find a retort to that so she just remained silent. She turned her attention to the window and sighed. If only they weren’t a student and a teacher. Things would definitely be much different.

“Just so that you know, teachers won’t get that worried over their students,” Tomoyo said softly beside her. “And how Li-sensei behaved at my house definitely wasn’t how a teacher should be like.”

“He’s just worried that I disappeared without leaving a note for him.”

“You are not going to admit that you like him and he likes you back, are you?” Tomoyo asked, quirking a brow at her.

“There’s nothing to admit,” Sakura replied harshly. “I’m a student and he is my teacher. It’s that simple.”

Tomoyo rolled her eyes. “Oh come on! When did you become so old fashioned in your thinking? You are a beautiful girl and he’s a handsome and available guy. What’s stopping the two of you?”

Sakura felt heat creeping up her cheeks at the discussion. “For goodness sake, Tomoyo, could you just leave it at that?”

“I can’t! Not when my best friend is being so obstinate.”

“Fine!” Sakura exclaimed, flinging both hands in the air in exasperation. “I like him, all right? I like him so much that I’m about to die. Satisfied now?”

Tomoyo crossed her arms and eyed Sakura with a grim expression. “That’s slightly more like it.”

“So you understand why I need to distance myself,” Sakura added. Tomoyo shook her head but Sakura didn’t have the heart to explain it to her best friend. She sighed. “That’s all you need to know, Tomoyo-chan. That’s all you need to know.”