Chapter 6: Fleeing to a Place Without Him

Chapter 6: Fleeing to a Place Without Him

The noon sunlight was even more glaring.

The corridor was very quiet. At this moment, most students were taking their lunch break, either in classrooms or study rooms, and some had gone straight home.

After all, the tuition at this private high school was not cheap. Most of the students whose families could afford to send them here were either rich or noble.

And at this moment, in an office that should have been empty, Yamazaki Jihei sat in his seat, looking with a gentle smile at the sweet girl before him, whose head was lowered.

“Only you and I are here, so you can relax a little. I didn’t call you here for anything else. It’s only about your studies. Don’t be nervous.”

“I understand, Teacher Yamazaki.”

Kazama Sakura lowered her head, the expression on her face seeming to mix shame and guilt.

Her hands were nervously folded over her abdomen, her fingers anxiously twisting together.

Seeing her like this, Yamazaki Jihei’s smile became even gentler. In many people’s eyes, it would probably feel like a spring breeze.

No wonder he was one of the most popular teachers in this school.

He pulled his chair a little closer and could faintly smell the fragrance coming from this girl in the bloom of youth.

“You know your own grades. Compared to when school started, they’ve fallen a lot. Did something happen? Or have you been spending your attention somewhere you shouldn’t?”

Hearing this, Kazama Sakura’s face turned a little pale.

Even her lips trembled slightly.

“No... maybe I’m just having a little trouble keeping up with the current pace of study.”

She knew very clearly that this was not the truth, but she could not speak of the real situation.

Yamazaki Jihei leaned back in his chair, looking with practiced ease at this girl whose expression was clearly conflicted and who could hardly hide what was on her mind.

He first picked up his cup and took a sip of water.

Then he looked gently at the girl and said softly, “Is it because, during this period, your parents have been arguing at home, even preparing to divorce, and that has affected you?”

“How do you know that?”

Kazama Sakura looked at Yamazaki Jihei in astonishment.

Indeed, the endless day and night arguments, which had even reached the point of throwing and smashing furniture, had made a family that was already not very wealthy even worse off.

Not to mention that she also carried the expectations of this family. Her mother’s daily and nightly confessions made Kazama Sakura unable to breathe.

She almost did not want to stay in that home where everyone appeared united but was actually estranged. It was as if only by coming to this school and seeing that young man every day could she feel slightly more relaxed, without a stone pressing on her back.

Yamazaki Jihei smiled.

“You forgot, I have your parents’ contact information. I learned a little about it. Actually, I understand this sort of problem very well. Family issues affecting a child’s studies is also a common situation.”

As he said this, his gaze shifted slightly downward.

Without leaving a trace, he admired the uniquely gifted curves of this girl’s body.

Among girls her age, she was indeed an outstanding existence. What attracted him the most was probably her family background, which left him with no worries at all.

When he raised his head again and met the girl’s wavering eyes, he once more became that earnest, kindly, persuasive image.

“Although I can understand, as a teacher... with your current grades, it’s very difficult for me to put you on the subsidy list again.”

“...Subsidy? But Teacher, there shouldn’t be anyone in the class who fits that situation more than me, right?”

Shoujitsu Private High School had quite a few subsidies every year. Students with average family conditions could apply for this considerable subsidy to offset the expensive tuition.

This was very important to Kazama Sakura, because given her family’s current situation, her parents were already overwhelmed by this kind of arguing, and her mother had even told her she was preparing to work two jobs to meet the household’s expenses and her own.

Whether it was her mother’s expectations or this attitude of being willing to sacrifice everything, both instead became a weight on Kazama Sakura’s shoulders.

Under these circumstances, how could she lose the school’s subsidy? How many jobs would her mother have to work to afford this school’s tuition?!

Yet Yamazaki Jihei sighed regretfully.

“Unfortunately, that doesn’t seem to be the case. Quite a few students are still applying for this grant, so according to the school’s principles, academic performance must basically be considered... You don’t need to be discouraged either. For study-related problems, I can give you some special guidance. If you have time on weekends, I can tutor you privately.”

At once, Kazama Sakura sensed that something was wrong.

She discovered that at some point, Yamazaki Jihei had already moved his chair very close to her.

She instinctively took a step back.

“Tutor me privately? That doesn’t seem too good, Teacher Yamazaki... Besides, my family probably can’t afford the tutoring fees...”

Yamazaki Jihei saw her step back.

He was not worried that she would have some extreme reaction. He understood her situation very clearly. Moreover, he was not that impatient either.

So he calmly picked up his cup and took another sip, moistening his throat, then said with a smile,

“As a teacher, helping a student is only natural. How could I charge you tutoring fees? And I said that academic performance is one part of the subsidy consideration. The most important thing... is still your attitude, isn’t it?”

Attitude?

What exactly this so-called attitude meant seemed to be a very mysterious question.

But Kazama Sakura had never been excessively naive. A decline in grades did not mean a lack of intelligence.

She saw the desire hidden deep within his seemingly kind eyes.

His words were vague and ambiguous, as if it would be easy to misunderstand his meaning, but relying on a girl’s intuition, as well as her sense for covetousness, she felt that she understood what he meant.

An indescribable anger surged up within Kazama Sakura.

“Teacher Yamazaki, are you hinting at something to me?”

“Hinting? Nothing of the sort.”

Yamazaki Jihei smiled. The girl’s reaction was all within his expectations.

He was very experienced at dealing with girls like this. Of course, as a male teacher who had been able to enter this private high school at such a young age, he also had enough confidence to deal with any possible counterattack from her.

“I only have expectations for you. You mustn’t misunderstand your teacher’s meaning, and you mustn’t go around talking about our conversation either. After all... slandering a teacher is a very serious incident. I imagine your father, and your mother who has such high expectations of you, wouldn’t want to see you expelled because of something like this.”

“...Expelled? Are you threatening me?”

Kazama Sakura’s face flushed red as she clenched her fists.

But Yamazaki Jihei only calmly took a sip of water and glanced at her lightly.

“Alright, if there’s nothing else, you can leave first. Think over what I said earlier, whether it’s tutoring or your grant. Think it over properly. Your teacher will be waiting for your reply at any time.”

“Of course, if you lose the scholarship, can’t afford the tuition, and change schools, your teacher will also support you. It’s just that your mother seems to have many expectations for you... hehe.”

When Kazama Sakura walked out of the office in a daze.

She felt as though the glaring sunlight outside had turned grey.

As if she had lost all her strength, whether to fight reality or muster courage.

She was very certain that everything Yamazaki Jihei had just said in the office was hinting at something, but how could she deal with it?

Yamazaki Jihei was not an ordinary male teacher. The fact that he could enter this school as a teacher already said many things, and with him being so young, it said even more about how complicated his background was.

And since he dared to hint at such things to her, it was very obvious that this was not the first time he had done something like this, and that he had enough confidence not to make any mistakes.

She could certainly pretend not to see it and turn a deaf ear to such hints.

But what would the result be?

The grant would definitely be impossible to keep, and staying in this school would become a fantasy.

Could she only leave this school, leave this kind of threat behind?

But in that case, her parents’ expectations, their hopes for her... and the young man she wanted to see every day too...

A deep sense of powerlessness surged into her heart. Even her steps became like those of a walking corpse that had lost its direction.

She felt that her life seemed to be rotting away bit by bit, from the inside out.

Yet she was completely powerless against such a change, until she saw those eyes.

“Huh... Y, Yatsuno?”

When that familiar, handsome young man leaned against the edge of the corridor and calmly looked at her.

It was as if strength returned to her body.

But the current her could not approach him at all. There were too many words she wanted to say, but they could only clog her throat.

Yatsuno Gen walked toward her, but at this moment, she wanted to flee.

Slap.

All at once, Yatsuno Gen caught her wrist, leaving her no choice but to stand before him.

The young man smiled.

“I’m right here. Where could you run to and still feel safe?”

Kazama Sakura raised her head in astonishment and stared blankly at him.

Until pearls with broken strings slipped down from her eyes without any feeling at all.