Falling in Love With My Student

Chapter 18: Return

As I sat on the same blue seat as last time and the students entered the bus, shoving each other to reach the seats they wanted, Tamika passed Aki in the line, making her way towards me and sitting by my side. I sighed. Why does she always have to be such a protector all the time? Aki looked at her, surprised, and then sat beside Chihiro.

We sat in silence side by side. She kept her hands close to her body and fidgeted with her thumbs as if she was nervous. I sighed and looked out the window. She puts up a protective wall that's even thicker than Aki's... After a while along the ride, I got up from my seat to make an announcement.

"Okay, listen up!" I called out for everyone's attention from the front of the bus as students sung, yelled, and laughed. "As you might have guessed, the winner of the camping trip is cabin number 5. It's my team, so what's to expect?" I joked conceitedly, making them all laugh. No one seemed to care much about it except for Takenaka who was avoiding eye contact with Eiko that had been sticking her tongue out at him.

"Unfortunately, only the winner team gets a prize, which is candy." Everyone groaned in jealousy as I pulled out five small bags filled with candy. Eiko drooled and Uzuki's eyes brightened to the sight of candy. I guess even she likes candy...

I gave one bag to each of the girls from my group as another teacher continued the speech, talking about how team spirit is important and how this trip was not only about the fun, but also about life lessons. There is no way anyone is listening. I handed the last bag to Tamika, who took it brusquely from my hands and looked away with a frown, stuffing her mouth with the sugary sweets. I shot up an eyebrow questioningly and sat back down next to her. I've never been so annoyed by a student. Well, at least she's not chasing me around like most other girls. She could at least make it less obvious that she hates my guts. I hide it pretty well...

Everyone enjoyed the bus ride, talking and laughing with the people around them. I looked to the side to see Tamika munching silently onto the candy. I sighed, filled with boredom and looked to the other side. I leaned to the side, sinking my head onto my hand. I can't even get a good enough visual of the clueless bag of joy to tease her...

I sighed once again, peeking to the side. Tamika's eyes widened and suddenly looked away, fixing on the window. Wha- What was she long at me for? Knowing her, she was probably planning my homicide. Wait... I grinned, turning back towards her.

As she noticed me smirking at her, Tamika stopped chewing and frowned at me with an impatient face. "What?" she asked rudely, chewing onto a handful of gummy bears.

"You know," I started, "you really shouldn't eat that much candy or you'll get fat." I smirked, curious to see what kind of reaction she would have. Most girls would drop their candy and offer them to me, starving themselves to make me notice. Aki would probably blush and then find some reason to smile about it. Tamika... Wait - Why did I just start thinking about Aki? I expelled those thoughts and kept on a grin, waiting for a witty response.

Her eyes widened and she stopped eating. Huh? I was kidding... I didn't actually expect her to take me seriously. Tamika finished chewing on the M&M in her mouth and tried tying the plastic bag discretely, pretending that she wasn't stopping because of what I said. Why would she react to something I said? What a strange character...

I turned back to face the other side, occasionally stealing glimpses from her side. Tamika squeezed onto the bag nervously and kept looking out the window and back at the candy. And I thought she was the normal one from the group...

"You know I was just joking, right?" I shot up an eyebrow. "You don't need to stop eating just because of what I--"

"I didn't stop because of you!" she interrupted me. I looked up at her face that was turning into a bright shade of red. "I stopped because I started feeling a bit sick." It's so clear that she's lying. But why? "Don't get so full of yourself because those little hens are always following you around." she pointed at a pair of girls putting on makeup while holding up pocket mirrors.

I rolled my eyes at the stubborn and prideful girl and turned back around. Jeez, good luck finding a boyfriend with that attitude.

We sat in silence during the rest of the ride and I did my best not to fall asleep next to another student. The bus stopped in front of the train station and we all got off. I counted the heads as students hopped on the train. I stayed to the end, making sure everyone was here, and entered the train last. I was just glad I didn't have to sit next to that arrogant Ms. Know It All anymore. Once the train stopped for the third time, the other teachers announced everyone to leave the train.

"Okay, are everyone's parents here?" I asked loud enough for everyone to hear.

Everyone nodded and some answered 'yes' in a chorus. One tiny head then jolted up and a pair of two glimmering eyes widened. Seriously?

"Aki?" I picked on her in front of everyone.

"S-sorry!" she answered flustered and flushed. "I forgot to call them..."

"Okay, everyone else can go as long as you point to your parents." I announced. "No pretending that a pair of strangers are your parents just so you can leave. You hear me, Eiko? Takenaka?" Both of them replied in unison, shooting death glares at each other once they realized they were speaking at the same time. I rolled my eyes. Soon, everyone was gone except for the teachers, Aki, Tamika, and I. Tamika then had to leave as her parents yelled at her for making them wait. She was probably delaying her parting just so that she could keep an eye on Aki and I.

"Are they on their way?" I asked as Aki got off the phone.

"No. They can't pick me up. I'll just walk. It's not that far from here."

"With that huge bag? I don't think so." Aki looked up at me, surprised. "Hey, girls," I called onto the other teachers, who reacted delightfully at the use of 'girls', "you can go on ahead, I'll drive Aki home." They nodded and waved, taking their leave.

Her eyes widened as I said those final words. "N-no, Sensei, It's okay. I can walk..."

"I know you can. That's how you got here the other day, wasn't it? But I won't let you this time." I ran a hand through my hair, acting conceitedly. "Seriously, what kind of an irresponsible teacher would I be to let my young student walk around alone with a bag full of clothes?" I smirked, teasing her.

"But I'd feel bad... I'm always causing trouble for you..." she blushed and looked down at her feet.

"Then you'll just have to get used to feeling like the worst person in the world because I won't stop helping you." I smiled and her eyes widened. Her expression then turned into a pout and she blushed even further. I couldn't help it and chuckled. "Let's go."

I walked her to my car, carrying both our bags as she protested. I'm glad she's finally starting to come out of her shell... But it will still take a long time for her to become completely comfortable. I opened the passenger door for her to go in and walked around the car from behind, throwing the bags onto the trunk. I then sat on the driver's seat and started the engine.

I remembered the directions to her house from last time, driving smoothly through the curves in silence. Once we got to her driveway, we both got out and I helped Aki carry her things to the front-door. Immediately after Aki's slender finger pressed lightly on the buzzer, an older, but still young girl opened the door. Her face enlivened and a grin formed as her dyed-blonde hair shined under the brightness inside the house.

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A new update after an eternity! I have no excuses but my own laziness... Thank you readers!