Short Story I probably shouldn’t write this while at work.

Discussion in 'Community Creations' started by Gandire Alea, Jul 20, 2019.

  1. Gandire Alea

    Gandire Alea [Wicked Awesome Translator]

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    Before anyone asks, no, this wasn’t inspired by my students. It occurred to me over Christmas break. That said, working on it during my down time at work feels off. This has no editing down to it what so ever, so it will be choppy and a bit jarring. It’s also not finished

    Part 2

    Lyfi sighs at Harumi’s comment. Her bangs shift and slide across her face, but she soon sets the strands of blond hair behind an ear. Annoyance laces her tone as she says, “Back during college, I maxed out my schedule each semester. I also took the max course load allowed during summers. Combined with the AP credits from high school, I was able to graduate with two bachelor degrees after only two years. During that last year, I applied to be an english tutor for a company over in Fukuoka, was accepted, and immediately came to Japan after graduating. So yes, compared to my colleagues, I am a bit young.”

    Harumi gives a flat, “That sounds like hell.”

    “It wasn’t easy. I don’t recommend you try it.”

    “How old are you.”

    “If you must know, I just turned 20 last month.”

    Harumi smirks, “I would have guessed 16.”

    Lyfi narrows her eyes at the remark. She stares Harumi down and says, “Keep in mind that I will be your English tutor for the remainder of this year.”

    Harumi pretends to wince at her tone. Despite his carefree smile, he says, “Yes, Lyfi-sensei.”

    Lyfi nods and gestures to the pair of chairs before Harumi’s desk. She then sits down and pulls out a calendar from her bag. “Your midterms for the spring semester may have just passed, but that means we have almost a month to focus on your finals.”

    Harumi is a bit taken aback by Lyfi’s sudden switch to a business tone. He understands that she’s older than him, but up until then, she still felt like a cute, 16 year old, girl cosplaying as a business woman. Only once Lyfi smiles and asks, “Is there anything you’re worried about?” Does he snap out of his hesitation.

    He shakes his head and sits down in the seat next to her. Only then does he realizes how much smaller she is than him. He could see that she was small while he was standing, but now that they are closer, he’s able to make a proper assessment. She could rest her head on my shoulder. I could even carry her if I wanted.

    Lyfi’s then says, “I will be coming to tutor you two to three times a week. We’ll start our lessons by going over anything you didn’t understand in class. Afterwards, we will work on oral communication along with proper enunciation and pronunciation. Your mother wants that to be our focus. I believe the best way to accomplish this is through either normal conversation or by reading short English passages. Our future lessons will be shaped from our progress there.”

    “Hai.”

    “English, please.”

    “Ye- yesu.”

    “Se, not su, se.”

    “Yesu.”

    “Se.”

    “Su.”

    Lyfe stares at Harumi for a few seconds before saying. “Don’t you pull that ‘I can’t understand you’ nonsense on me.” She then pulls out a note book and draws a セ. “I’m well aware that this is pronounced as ‘se.’ Now take this seriously.”

    Harumi makes a face, but says, “Se.”

    “Now, ‘sss’.”

    “Sssu”

    “Se, sssssse. Long ‘sss’ sound.”

    “Sssssssssssu.” Harumi tries again at Lyfe’s encouragement. He repeats after her, “Se, se, se, se, se, se, se, sssssse, sssse, sssse, se, ssssse,”

    “Okay, now next, just say the, ‘ssssssssssssssss” sound.”

    “Ssssssssu- I mean, se! Sssssssse, sssssssssse, sssssssss-eh, sssssssse, sssssssss-”

    “Stop!” Harumi jumps at Lyfi’s sudden interruption, but she merely smiles and says, “There, see? You made the ‘sss’ sound without adding anything to the end. Now keep going.”

    Only after about ten minutes, with random interruptions by Lyfi, does Harumi succeed in properly pronouncing the ‘ss’ sound. Lyfi smiles as she says, “See, you got this, now say, ‘yes.’

    Harumi takes a breath and says, “Yesssu- yessse- yessssssssssssss. Yesssssss. Yesss. Yes.’

    “Great, see? You just needed a bit of practice. Okay, now, next, let’s go over what you did in class.”

    The lesson continues for rest of the hour. Most of it is simple conversation so that she can better grasp his level of English. Every now and then, she stops him to either point out that he accidentally omitted a word, correct his pronunciation, or let him know he used the wrong word.

    Once it finishes, Lyfi presents him with a smile. Harumi’s English is as she suspected, average to those his age. That, unfortunately, falls below the standard set by the Japanese government. There is a lot to cover, but she’s confident to the progress they will make. They might not reach the target by the end of the year, but it shouldn’t be too far off. She says, “There, English isn’t that scary. We still have a lot to work on, but I guarantee that your pronunciation leveled up over this lesson alone. Now, I’ll be coming again on Thursday.” She then gestures to themselves as she says, “Our lessons will be every Tuesday and Thursday. The third lesson will be as needed.”

    The two then walk down the stair and meet Yoko, Harumi’s mother, in the living room. Lyfi thanks them both for their time as she gives her farewells. “I will see you next time, Haru-chan.”

    “Yes! Until Thursday, Lyfi-sensei.”

    Yoko smiles at her son’s anticipation and once more thanks Lyfi before saying, “We look forward to having you again, Lyfi-chan.”

    Lyfi smiles despite the chan suffix. Only once she’s walking away from the house does an annoyed sigh escape her. While she might technically be an adult, she also realizes that in the eyes of someone like Yoko, I’m no different than their children.



    Chapter 2

    Lyfi smiles as Harumi stumbles in reading the first chapter from a third grade children’s book. His English is jarring, he needs help reading every word longer than 4 letters, and he most definitely doesn’t understand a thing he’s saying, but he continues to struggle ahead. His attitude is much better than she feared it would be when she first accepting the part time tutoring position. She heard many stories from school Assistant Language Teachers about how their students have no interest in learning English. In some cases, they do all that they can to keep from learning the language.

    “You did very good, Haru-chan. Now, tell me what you understood.”

    Harumi’s expression twists as he struggles to recall the plot. He glances at the books cover for some help and says, “Something about bears and a… a… water outage?” He then holds up a pinkie and winks as he adds, “The Onii-san bear wants to learn plumbing so he can impress a Kuma-chan.”

    Lyfi clears her throat to hide her chuckle. “The word was dance, not dansui. Dance means butokai.”

    Harumi collapses back in his chair with a sigh. “That makes so much more sense. Sensei, when does this stop being so hard?”

    Lyfi pats Harumi’s back. “Cheer up, you simply completing the chapter is in itself a good thing.”

    “Sensei, can’t you just disguise yourself as a student and take my English tests for me? That would be much easier.”

    Lyfi’s expression falls flat as she twirls a lock of her shoulder length hair around a finger. “Yeah, cause no one will doubt that you’ve suddenly become a cute, blond, girl.”

    Harumi doesn’t really understand what Lyfi said, but gets an idea off her tone, expression, and gestures. He leans back in his chair and glances up at the ceiling. “I’m sure it would be fine. As long as you wear a mask to cover your face, you can just say you’re wearing a wig.”

    Lyfi giggles and says, “Unfortunately, I’ll be busy with other work at that time.”

    Harumi looks towards Lyfi and says, “Say, Lyfi-sensei, why did you become a teacher?”

    “Rushing myself through college made me sick of everything. I just really, really, needed to get away from it all. Since one of my degrees is in English, I figured, what the heck, and applied to be a teacher.”

    “How’d you learn Japanese?”

    “It’s my other degree.”

    Harumi sits up and stares at Lyfi. “You got this good in only two years?”

    Lyfi nods and gives a serious, “That’s right. I’ll be expecting you to work just as hard as I did for your English.” Then, after taking in Harumi’s expression of overwhelmed shock, laughs. “Kidding, kidding. I started studying Japanese during middle school and continued it throughout high school. That foundation was critical for my time in college.”

    “That was mean, Lyfi-sensei.”

    Lyfi sticks out her tongue at him and says, “Back to our lesson.” She then flips to the beginning of the chapter Harumi read. “Let’s go over this page. Read it again. I’m going to use the rest our time today to improve your linguistic reading ability. Next lesson will revolve around helping your comprehension of the text.”

    “What does that have to do with linguistics.”

    “You’ll be able to read it better once you understand the events unfolding. Not to mention, you do have an exam coming up next week. The vocabulary might be different, but improving here will definitely help you there.”

    “Then, if I get a good score, can you give me a reward?”

    Lyfi’s interest is piked at the suggestion. With faint amusement lacing her tone, she says, “Do you have something in mind, Haru-chan?”

    A sly grin spreads across Harumi face. He stares at Lyfi and says, “If I do well, teach our following lesson in a high school uniform.”

    Lyfi bursts with laughter at the suggestion. “Seriously? I’m your teacher.” She soon stops laughing, sees Harumi’s hopeful expression, and starts up again. She eventually calms down again, and through heavy breathing, says, “Where would I even get a school uniform.”
    “You can borrow my old one, Lyfi-chan.” Yoko stands by the entrance, grinning. She overheard their conversation.

    Lyfi rests her chin on a pair of fingers as she considers the proposal. Both Harumi and Yoko very much look forward to her reply. With a sigh and a, ‘nothing to lose’ attitude, she says, “Tell you what, get a perfect score and I’ll wear it for all our remaining lessons.”

    “Yes, Lyfi-sensei!”


    Chapter 3

    Lyfi stares at the Harumi’s exam with disbelief. No matter how many times she looks over it, there isn’t a single red mark. “You didn’t make a single mistake.” She then notes his pleased grin and sighs. “Well, we made an agreement.” She passes him the book they’ve been reading and adds, “Start reading the next chapter while I’ll go get changed.”

    Despite the reluctance she showed Harumi, Lyfi is somewhat eager to try on Yoko’s high school uniform. Part of the reason she agreed to wear it was because she wanted an excuse to try on a sailor-fuku. She found them cute ever since she first saw one of her clients wearing them at her main job. Therefore, the addendum about wearing it for the rest of their lessons was only meant to encourage Harumi to study harder. She needed him to get a good grade so she could wear it.

    Yoko waits for Lyfi in her bedroom. Yoko hands her the summer version of her uniform while saying, “Here you are, Lyfi-chan. Sorry, but mine is a bit behind on the trends. Most schools now use a blazer, and vest. This one....”

    Lyfi accepts the uniform with a smile and steps into Yoko’s private bathroom. She undresses and then steps into the pleated, checkered, skirt. Afterwards, she slips on the white top and ties the red, lace, ribbon around and under the matching, checkered, sailor collar. The final touch are the small, white socks.

    Once dressed, she looks herself over, spins around, and checks her reflection in the mirror. Her excitement quickly turns into unease. The uniform fits her too well. “I totally look like a high schooler…”

    She then questions whether the impression would change depending on her breast size. Her small B cups don’t give much of an impression. She then undoes her hair in order to check if that would give an even more youthful image.

    Would anyone even recognize me as an adult if I went outside in this?

    She’s half tempted to stop at a movie theater with it on afterwards and ask for the student ticket. Her current location is 20 minutes away from where she lives, and 50 minutes away from where her main job is located. It is also a fairly large city. That she’d run into an acquaintance isn’t very likely.

    Lyfi twirls around before the mirror and takes a deep breath. Despite her hesitation towards her appearance, she steps out of the bathroom and presents herself to Yoko.
    Yoko clasps her hands together as she says, “You look wonderful. There’s just one thing.” She puts her hands around Lyfi’s waist and rolls up her skirt. “That’s much cuter. You have a nice set of leg, Lyfi-chan. Don’t hide them.” She then smirks and says, “By the way, some schools require their students to wear white panties. You wouldn’t happen to be breaking this regulation, would you?”

    A mischief filled smirk spreads across Lyfi’s face. “Are you going to check and discipline me if I’m not?”

    Yoko laughs while saying, “Maybe I should,” before then sending “Lefi-chan,” on her way to for the lesson.

    Lyfe knocks on Harumi’s bedroom door before, but then opens it without waiting for a response. She strides in and twirls around while flicking a hand through her hair. Confidence radiates off her smile. “How do I look?”

    Harumi can only stand in place, staring with his mouth a gap. He tries to talk, but all that escapes him are random vowels.

    Lyfe smirks as she steps closer to him. “What’s wrong? Cat got your tongue? This is what you wanted, isn’t it?”

    “Ye-yes!”

    Lyfe takes slow, deliberate, steps towards him, allowing the door to shut itself behind her. She proceeds to circle around him, staying close enough to hear his rasp breathing, but not close enough for any part of her to accidentally brush against him. “Then why don’t you say something?”

    “Ye-yes!”

    She gives a playful swat to his arm. “You know, ‘yes,’ isn’t much of a compliment.”

    “I…”

    “You?”

    “You…”

    “Me?”

    “Too amazing!”

    Lyfe laughs as she sits down on her chair. She pats then his seat so that they can start their lesson. “Well, get used to it. I’ll be wearing this from now on.”

    “Yes, sensei!”

    Watching threw a gap in the door is Yoko. Unlike what Lyfe thought, the door did not fully close behind her, earlier. As such, Yoko was able to pry it open without anyone noticing.
    Playing on Yoko’s face is a sly, insightful, smile. The scene that just played out before her was 100% reminiscent of a study date. What truly sells her that idea is how easily her son is getting wrapped around the finger of someone who appears to be a cute underclassman.
    Harumi clings to Lyfe’s every word. His eyes then almost pop from his head at Lyfe reaching across the desk to point at a mistake on the worksheet. She is so focused on the task, she fails to recognize that her arm is cutting straight through his personal space.
    Yoko then fights to keep from laughing out loud. Harumi’s expression is hardening with excitement. He seems to have caught the scent of Lyfe’s shampoo. Yoko snaps a picture with her phone and leaves to prepare dinner. Mentally, she encourages her son, stay strong against Lyfe-chan.



    Chapter 4
    Harumi says, “Say, Lyfe-sensei…?”
    “Is something wrong, Haru-kun?”
    “I entered an English competition… It’s a yearly event that happens just before summer vacation…”
    “Do you… want me to come watch?”
    Harumi blushes and shakes his head. “No, no, that’s not it. It’s just… you know… if I do well…”
    Lyfe cracks a knowing smile, “You want a reward?”
    “Yes! You know… if you don’t mind?”
    Lyfe chuckles. Amusement laces her tone as she says, “Sounds like you already have something in mind.”
    Harumi turns even redder and looks away. His reaction gives Lyfe and urge to tease him. She adopts a tone a court lady might have used back in the 1800’s and leans closer. “My, my, is anything the matter, Harumi? Do these eyes of mine deceive me, or are you caught up on your words. Could it be, is this possible, do you per chance finding yourself unable to voice your desires? Nay, pray tell, voice your inner thoughts, allow me to judge their sanctity. Should I find—”
    “Please call me senpai!”
    Lyfe blanks at what he blurbs. She tries, but is unable to figure out how he came to want such a request. In the end, her head tilts to the side with an, “Eh?”
    “Please, I really want to hear you call me senpai.”
    “Yeah, what?”
    Harumi realizes Lyfe is utterly lost and lets out a sheepish laugh. “Well, you see, you look younger than me. And in that uniform, you look like you could be an underclassmen.”
    Lyfe’s confusion grows even deeper. It etches a frown across her face. “How… how long have you been wanting this?”
    “Ever since you started wearing that uniform…”
    “…Harumi-senpai.”
    “Yes! Just like that! Can you call me that whenever you wear that outfit?”
    Lyfe glances off to the side as she imagines what future lessons might be like. “I don’t know…. Something like that just feels weird.”
    “Don’t be like that, Lyfe-chan”. Yoko cuts in from the doorway. Judging by her expression, she overheard the entire ordeal. She says, “In a situation like that, all you got to do is up the ante.”
    Lyfe says, “How so?”
    “Easy, if Haru-chan places within the top twenty, you’ll call him senpai. If not, then he needs to read a book of your choosing by the end of summer.”
    Lyfe contemplates the terms and then says, “How big of a competition is this?”
    Harumi says, “There’s usually over two hundred contestants. The prizes are pretty good, so a lot of people tend to participate.”
    “Well, make it top ten, and we have a deal.”
    “Sweet!”
    “Well, Haru-senpai, if you want to hear that again, make sure you work hard, okay?”
    “I’ll do my best! Promise!”
    Yoko laughs at her son’s excitement and says, “Lyfe-chan how about you stay for dinner tonight?”
    Lyfe says, “Oh no, I could.”
    “Please, I insist. I want to hear your thoughts towards Haru-chan’s progress.”
    Lyfe sighs and says, “Well, if you put it like that, then I graciously accept your invitation.”
    Yoko smiles and heads off to start cooking. As she walks down the hallway, she overhears Lyfe speaking to Harumi. “So, tell me, what exactly is this competition going to judge you on?”


    Two weeks later, Harumi show Lyfe a certificate ranking him at 7th place. A smirk laced with anticipation fills his face as he stares at Lyfe.
    Lyfe sighs, but soon recovers her expression with a bashful smile. “You worked quite hard, Haru-senpai. You really wanted to hear this.”
    Harumi laughs, and gives a sheepish, “I got a bit lucky with my questions.”
    Lyfe then sits down and pats the seat next to her. “Well then, Haru-senpai, let’s get started on today’s lesson. Let’s review and reflect on the competition. You said luck played a role in this? Let’s start there—” Internally, however, she reflects on his English ability. Him having scored so high isn’t so much a reflection of his fluency, but is more telling about the level of his peers.



    Chapter 5
    Lyfe knocks on the front door to Harumi’s house. She is allowed inside, greets Harumi and Yoko as she enters, and then heads to the bathroom to change into “her” uniform. Afterwards, she proceeds to Harumi’s room. Yoko is also there waiting for her.
    Lyfe says, “Is something wrong, Yoko-san?”
    “No, no, I was just hoping to make a suggestion for today’s lesson.”
    Harumi blanches at the remark. He sends Yoko a tentative glance as he says, “Mom?”
    Yoko swats his shoulder while saying, “Hush, it won’t be as bad as you think.”
    Lyfe says, “What do you have in mind?”
    “It’s summer. Staying cooped up in here just feels like a waste. So, I’d like for the two of you to just walk and talk for next two hours or so.”
    Lyfe cups her chin as she says, “Taking Haru-senpai out of his comfort zone would force him to work harder. Not to mention, a more interactive lesson like that would stick better.” She then nods and says to Harumi, “Hold up for a bit while I go and get changed.”
    “What? No! You promised. All lessons will be in that uniform.”
    Yoko nods and says, “He’s right, that was the deal.”
    Lyfe sighs as she says, “Fine, let’s go, Haru-senpai.”
    They all go back down to the living room. There, Yoko gives Harumi some money so that they can eat out once they get hungry. Lyfe tries to refuse, but Yoko insists that it might be needed.
    As they step outside, Harumi says, “I’ll show you around town.”
    “And how do you say that in English?”
    “I show you round village.”
    Lyfe laugh and says, “Town, not village. You will get a lot of strange looks if you say it like that. Now, try again.”
    “I show you round town.”
    Lyfe nods as she says, “That was better. There were two other mistakes, though. Do you know what they were?”
    Harumi repeats himself, this time chewing each word in search of his errors “I show you round town. I show you round…. I show you—”
    Lyfe holds up her hand to stop him. “Try again.
    “I show you round… show you….Ah!”
    Lyfe smiles in anticipation to what he’ll say.
    “Around, not round!”
    Lyfe laughs as she says, “Haru-senpai.”
    “I’m wrong?”
    “Pff— no, no, that was the other error. It’s just…” Lyfe laughs again and says, “Just not the one I was expecting.”
    “Oh, let me try again.”
    Lyfe watches with a faint smile on her face. She listens to him sound out his words and waits with renewed anticipation. That’s when Harumi’s expression changes from concentration to joyful surprise.
    Harumi runs ahead saying, “The park!”
    Lyfe blanks for a second before chasing after him. “Haru-senpai, hold on. You still haven’t solved this problem!”
    She reaches the park entrance and finds Harumi calling her over from the swings. Seeing him swing back and forth elicits a sigh followed by a wry smile. She walks after him while saying under her breath. “We’ll just have to come back to that later.”
    Then, as she sits in the swing next to his, she freezes. Hold on a sec, isn’t this practically a date?
    Harumi notices Lyfe’s cringe and says, “Is something wrong?”
    Lyfe shakes her head. “No, no, it’s nothing. I was just remembering the last time I was at the park. So, did you come here often growing up?”
    “A lot.”
    She starts swaying back and forth as she says, “Tell me about them.”
    “Well, back when I was nine—”
    “English.”
    “Ack, my bad…”
    Lyfe reassures herself as Harumi restarts his story. It won’t be a date if I don’t let it become a date. This is an English lesson. Besides, he’s almost four years younger than me.
    Harumi says, “…was actually around the time we moved here. Dad stayed in the city for work, although he usually comes home on the weekends.”
    “Yo, Haru-kun, your girlfriend?”
    Lyfe and Harumi turn at the call. Two boys approach from the park entrance. As they get closer, the same boy says, “You’re doing it all wrong. You should be working her from behind.”
    Lyfe rises from her swing with a sigh. She faces the two boys with a smile and says, “Good afternoon, I’m Lyfe, Haru-senpai’s english tutor.”
    The two boys exchange a look and laugh.
    Lyfe, confused at first, reflects upon her words. Crimson flushes across her face upon discovering she referred to Harumi as Haru-senpai. By that time, however, the two boys are are already speaking with Harumi.
    “So, where’d you meet this chick?”
    “Is she American?”
    Harumi, not sure on how to introduce Lyfe, keeps quiet.
    “She’s a bit small, but still hot.”
    “No duh, natural blondes are hot.”
    “I hear their wild.”
    “Haru-kun, that true?”
    Lyfe suppresses her urge to punch the two and cuts in before Harumi can say anything. “This petite blonde can understand everything your saying.”
    The two boys jump and make sheepish smiles, but make no motion of reflecting on their conduct. Lyfe again surpasses her urge to smack them and continues. “Yes, I am American. And like I said, I’m here to tutor Haru-senpai with his English. Why? Cause our parents are friends and they asked me to.”
    The two boys look to Harumi and he nods in response.
    The boy in glasses asks, “What school do you go to?”
    “How rude. Aren’t you going to introduce yourself first?”
    The boy is taken aback, but then grins. “Feisty. I’m Takashi.”
    The other boy cuts in front of him and says, “And I’m Yuya.”
    Takashi pushes Yuya aside and says, “So, what school are you from.”
    Lyfe responds with the information Harumi’s mother told her of her school. She reasons it’s far enough away that they won’t be able to do anything creepy even if they wanted to.
    Yaya clears his throat and says, “Ah, I she. Sho you are fwom America.”
    “That’s completely wrong.” Lyfe’s tone isn’t critical, but it is firm. Patience laces her tone as she says, “It isn’t a ‘shh’ sound, it’s ‘sssss’ followed by ‘eeeeee’. So is pronounced, ‘ssss’ and ‘ooooh’. And your lips don’t go out like that in English for ‘fff’ sound. You bite you upper lip the same you would for the v.”
    Takashi laughs at Yuya only to be snapped at in turn. “Don’t laugh. Yuyua-kun might have messed up, but it’s only be making mistakes and being corrected that you learn. If anything, him taking a chance like that makes him a lot more brave than you.”
    Takashi and Yuya stare at Lyfe with open mouths for a second before turning to Harumi. Harumi shakes his head, implying that she is always like that.
    Takashi then says, “Hey, how about we go get something to eat?”
    Harumi answers before Lyfe can turn them down. “Yeah, that sounds great. Come on, Lyfe-chan, my mom did give us money, after all.”
    Yuya then says, “Yeah, Lyfe-chan, I know a great curry shop.”
    Lyfe considers making up an excuse in order to reject them, but then recalls she’s currently holding a lesson with Harumi. Walking away would not look good as his teacher. She can only suppress her sigh and agree.
    Just as she’s say, “I’ve been craving a mango las-” Takashi takes her by the hand with, “Great, let’s go.”
    Lyfe is pulled along a couple steps before yanking her hand free. “I can walk along just fine, thank you.”
    Takashi sticks out his tongue and say, “So, how long have you been in Japan? You’re Japanese is really good.”
    Lyfe pauses, looks at Takashi, Yuya, and Harumi in turn, and smiles as she says, “I have been here for a few years now. I here because my father’s job relocated him to Japan. I still make mistakes when I speak Japanese, but please excuse me for them. I look forward to getting to know all of you better whenever I come to visit.” She takes in their stunned expressions and walks ahead.
    Takashi and Yuya turn to Harumi for help. Harumi’s expression is scrunched up from confusion. He barely understood half of what she said.
    As they start walking, Yuya says, “I’m pretty sure the last part was like, ‘yoroshuko onegaishimasu’.”
    Harumi says, “It was similar… that wasn’t what she said.”
    Takashi says, “I know exactly what she said.”
    Lyfe says, “Do you now?”
    “You asked me out for a date.”
    “Like hell I did. I’d rather claw my eyes out.”
    Harumi and Yuya choke on their laughs at Lyfe’s straightforward and ruthless denial.
    Takashi laughs walks steps up to her side, “Don’t be like that. I’m a great catch, you know.”
    “Then join the baseball team.”
    Harumi, getting annoyed with Takashi, forces himself between the two. “How far are we from the curry shop.”
    Yuya steps up, taking Lyfe’s other side, and says, “We’re not far. Just four more blocks. Be are arumost dhere”
    Lyfe continues walking, unfazed by the situation. She merely glances towards Yuya and says, “We, not be, we are almost there. Say it with me. Haru-senpai, you as well. ‘We.’ ‘Wwwwwww, ehhhh, iiiiiii.’”
    She waits for them to finish and gives Takashi an expectant look.
    He laughs and turns away.
    Lyfe shrugs and says to Harumi and Yuya, “Good, now put them together.” Once they finishes, she says, “See, not hard at all.”
    Takashi say, “Yeah, yeah, totally easy.”
    “You, shut up. You didn’t even bother trying.”

    As they enter the restaurant, Takashi calls out to a pair of girls sitting on a set on chairs. “Sorry, did we keep you waiting?”
    The girls shake their heads and one says, “No worries, we just got here.”
    Harumi snaps towards Takeshi. “You invited them?”
    Takashi grins and turns to Lyfe. He gestures to the two girls and says, “These are our classmates, Nanase and Ayumi. I invited them figuring you’d more more comfortable is we had some more girls here.”
    Lyfe’s tone is flat, “My, how thoughtful of you.” She then turns to Nanase and Ayumi, “Hello, my name is Lyfe. It’s my pleasure to meet both of you.”
    The two girls make baffled expressions and look at each other in panic.
    Lyfe chuckles and adds, “I’m Haru-senpai’s English tutor. So if I randomly say anything in English, don’t mind me, okay?”
    Ayumi sighs in relief and says, “Oh, wow, you got us there.” At Lyfe’s smirk, she adds, “But, since you’re helping Haru-kun, you mind giving me a hand too? There are a few things I’m confused with.”
    “Sure, no problem.”
    Harumi takes Lyfe’s moment of distraction to pull Takeshi aside. “What are you playing at?”
    Takashi says, “What? I’m just trying to help Lyfe-chan relax. Besides, isn’t that a good chance for you too? I mean, three of us and three of them? Yuya and Nanase are totally a thing, so that means there will be no one to keep Ayumi company.”
    A waiter appears to guide them to their table before Harumi can respond. The table they are taken to lines the wall. Lyfe, near the front of the group, enters first. Yuya, however, cuts her off by walking around the table and entering from the other side. Takeshi hurries and claims the final seat by her side.
    Nanase sits across from Yuya, Ayumi from Lyfe, and Harumi from Takeshi.
    Lyfe is the center of attention. Despite having said that she has lived in Japan for most of her life, they ask her about how she finds life in Japan. She sighs and says, “It mostly depends on where I go, really. Shopping in the major cities can be a complete pain.”
    Ayumi says, “How so?”
    “I’m speaking Japanese and you guys understand me just fine, right?”
    Yuya says, “Yeah?”
    “You don’t feel a need to just stare blankly like I’m some sort of alien?”
    Takeshi says, “Why would anyone do that?”
    “Because some people refuse to believe no one who isn’t Japanese can speak your language.”
    Ayumi says, “What do you mean.”
    “You probably won’t believe me, but I’ve had tons of experiences where I enter a store, says, ‘Excuse me, where’s the fitting room,’ and then get brushed off.”
    Nanase says, “Brushed off?”
    “The staff will stare at me for a few seconds and then walk away.”
    Takeshi says, “The hell would they do that for?”
    “Weren’t you listening? They refuse to believe I can speak Japanese. They refuse it and make themselves think they can’t understand a word I’m saying.”
    Takeshi says, “No way!”
    Lyfe glances to the side and shrugs, “See, like I said, you don’t believe me.”
    Ayumi says, “Are you positive that’s what it was? Couldn’t they have gone off to get help?”
    “Help for what?”
    Ayumi, unable to come up with a reply, looks away.
    “Besides, those people had no intention of coming back. There were many times they started helping someone else after turning the corner.”
    Takeshi says, “Seriously?”
    “It’s happened way more often than I’ve bothered to count.”
    Nanase says, “That’s horrible.”
    Ayumi says, “Have you tried shopping with a friend?”
    “Oh, they are much nicer if they see me with someone who’s Japanese. But more than that, I refuse to shop in those places ever again. If they’re going to be rude, then they won’t get my business.”
    After a few moments of silence, Yuya says, “Does anything else like that happen?”
    “Yep.”
    Takeshi says, “Where, how?”
    Lyfe opens a menu and points at a random meal. She says, “How much does this cost?”
    Everyone frowns at her sudden English. After a few moments, Ayumi says, “Eight hundred yen…”
    “I’ve been charge 5,000 yen for less.”
    Takeshi jumps from his seat, “Wait, what!?” He then remembers himself, turns around to bow in apology to the other guests, and sits back down. Once the other finish laughing at him, he adds, “How the hell do they charge 5,000 yen?”
    “Cause they think I’m a dumb, blonde, foreigner.” Lyfe then leans back against her seat and shrugs. “Honestly though, don’t worry about it so much. This is mostly in the major cities. Nothing like this happens where I live.”
    Ayumi says, “That still sucks.”
    Nanase says, “Yeah, completely.”
    Lyfe grabs the menus and passes them to everyone. “Enough of this already. Let’s get something to eat before they close. I’m absolutely getting a mango-lassi.”
    Once they’re all settled on what to order, Takeshi calls the waiter. Afterwards, Ayumi looks at Lyfe and says, “Favorite singer, who?”
    Lyfe smiles and says, “My favorite singer is Bon Jovie.”
    Nanase frowns and says, “Bun Jabie?”
    Lyfe laughs and slowly enunciates, “Bo-n Jo-v-ie.” She then pulls up It’s my Life on YouTube while adding, “He’s a rock singer.”
    As they all listen to the song, Takeshi says, “I’ve heard this song before.”
    Nanase says, “No duh, you have. Music class, last week.”
    Lyfe then turns to Ayumi, wondering towards her reaction. The girl’s eyes sparkle with anticipation. The second Ayumi notices she has Lyfe’s attention, she explodes from excitement. “I love rock and roll! What’s your number!? We should totally go see a concert together!”
    Lyfe, unable to come up with a way to turn her down, can only smile and agree. I’ll just tell her I’m busy later.
    The food arrives and everyone begins to eat. Yuya, after a few bites, says, “I did not peg you as a rock fan.”
    Lyfe says, “You didn’t?”
    Takeshi says, “I actually thought you’d be into pop.”
    Yuya says, “Yep, same.”
    Lyfe says, “Pop can be fun here and there, but I just love how they string those guitars.” She then sticks out her tongue and adds, “I’m into light metal too.”
    Takeshi leans towards Lyfe while saying, “No way.”
    “Yes, way.”
    He then slumps back against his seat and says, “You are amazing.”
    Lyfe laughs as she says, “You’re too kind, too kind.”
    He then slides a bit closer to her and sets his phone down on the table. On the screen is the T.M. Revolution fan pager.
    Lyfe whistles and says, “You’re a member? Nice. I thought their song for Ruroni Kenshin was amazing.”
    Yuya says, “You like anime?”
    “I’m not a die hard fan, but I do enjoy a good series.”
    Takeshi says, “Do you cosplay? Show me.”
    Lyfe swats his arm and says, “In your dreams.”
    Takeshi chuckles and points down at his phone. “So, I found a pair of open seats. How about we go watch—”
    Ayumi jumps to her feet, her chair almost falling due to how fast it slide back. She looks down at Lyfe and says, “I need to go to the bathroom, will you come with me?”
    Lyfe brushes Takeshi aside before even saying, “Yes.”
    Nanase also gets up and the three, together, go to the bathroom. Once the door shuts behind them, Lyfe lets out a sigh of relief and says, “Thanks.” She then clicks her tongue. “He’s trying to be all sly, but he’s completely obvious.“
    Ayumi says, “You noticed?”
    “He boxed me in.”
    Ayumi says, “You were completely calm about it.”
    “Not the first time I’ve had to deal with creeps.”
    Nanase says, “In other words, he has no chance with you?”
    “Not if he wants a bloody nose.”
    Ayumi grins and says, “What about Haru-kun?”
    Lyfe laughs and says, “No way, I’m his English tutor.”
    Nanase says, “Don’t be so hard on Takeshi-kun, though. He can come off strong, but he has his good points.”
    “Then he should start with those.”

    Once they finish eating and are outside the restaurant, Takeshi says, “Hey, how about we go watch a movie?” He makes an open question, but his gaze is locked on Lyfe.
    Harumi steps forward and says, “Sorry, but Lyfe-chan and I need to get home.” He then takes Lyfe’s hand and leads her away.
    One block later, Lyfe says, “I don’t think they can see us anymore, Haru-senpai.”
    Harumi jumps in place at her comment. He tries to apologize as he releases her, but Lyfe cuts him off. “Don’t worry so much about it. That was the fastest way to leave.” She then glances towards his face and says, “But what about you?”
    “Me?”
    “You barely said a word all dinner.”
    “Ah… sorry. I just…”
    Lyfe turns around and smirks, “Let me guess. You were so excited to be eating next to Ayumi, you had no idea what to say.”
    Harumi’s face flushes crimson. “Wha— n— no, that’s totally not it.”
    “Haru-senpai, you kept stealing glances at her every seven seconds. You are totally crushing on her, hard.”
    “I— No— That’s not—”
    “And that’s not everything. Ayumi took a liking to me, much to Takeshi’s dismay. Maybe you didn’t notice, but he kept signaling for you to distract her. He was quite frustrated by the end of dinner.”
    “Wait, what? He was totally chill.”
    “Haru-senpai, that is something called a front. Cool on the outside, raging on the inside. Either way, he totally expected you to distract Ayumi for him. That leads to a question of why. We could say it’s because you were there, but that answer is too shallow.”
    Lyfe smiles at Harumi’s confused gaze, turns around, and begins to walk.
    “Hey, Lyfe-chan.” Harumi hurries after her.
    Lyfe waits for him to reach her side before saying, “There are a few factors we need to consider. One, Takeshi called for Nanase and Ayumi to meet us there. Nanase and Yuya are totally an item. Calling Nanase more or less served the purpose of dealing with Yuya.”
    “Well, yeah. It’s actually thanks to him that they even got together.”
    Lyfe’s eyes pop open as she says, “No wonder Nanase complimented him. This actually fuels my next point too. Anyway, him doing that left you, him, and myself free. Now, your cute little crush on Ayumi is obvious, she actually might be waiting for you to say something.”
    “You think so!?”
    Lyfe laughs and says, “Absolutely, also you just admitted to having a crush.” As Harumi once more turns red, Lyfe adds, “As I was saying, he knows about your crush. Out of all the girls he could have called, and I get the feeling he could have called a lot of them, he called her.”
    Lyfe spins around and stops walking. She then leans toward Harumi and pokes him in the center of his chest. “According to my deduction, my dear Haru-senpai, Takeshi anticipated you to chatting Ayumi up. From what I’ve gathered, you don’t come off as someone who gets nervous speaking to girls. Therefore, my question to you is, why didn’t you?”
    Lyfe notes Harumi’s embarrassment and hesitation and spins back around to face front. With her hand behind herself, she steps forward while saying, “If you want something, make sure to reach for it least you regret it for the rest of your life.”
    Harumi stares at Lyfe walk away. After a few moments, he frowns and walks after her. “I feel like I’ve heard that before.”
    “It’s a pretty common phrase in anime.”
    “You’re quoting anime…?”
    “Why not? They might just be fantasy, but a lot of the lessons and advice given can apply those of us here in the real.”
    The rest of the walk is in silence. Once they reach Harumi’s home, Lyfe picks up her bag, thanks Yoko for hiring her for the day, and then turn to Harumi. “Stuff happened, but I had a lot of fun today, Harumi. We shouldn’t do this too often, but let’s do it again. See next time.”

    Yoko waits for the door to fully close before turning to her son. He’s expression is a cross between annoyed, frustrated, and confused. She ruffles his hair and says, “Did something happen?”
    “Kinda…”
    “Kinda how? Lyfe-chan looks like she had a blast, it couldn’t have been bad.”
    “We ran into a few of my friends…”
    “Did they tease you for being a couple.”
    “No!” Harumi then frowns and says, “Well, yes, but that’s not it. It was when we went to get dinner…. Lyfe-chan…”
    “Were you embarrassed being around her?”
    “No!” Harumi clears his throat at his mother’s knowing smile and says, “It was Takeshi…. He was totally into her. He took every chance he got to get closer to her. I got so fed up thatI just grabbed Lyfe-chan’s hand and left after eating.”
    “And how did Lyfe-chan take all of that?”
    “I’m not sure… Ayumi-chan kept jumping in every time he went too far.”
    Yoko covers her mouth to hide her smile and says, “Are you upset you couldn’t be her knight in shining armor?”
    “Mom!”
    Yoko chuckles as she says, “My bad, my bad.”
    “I just, I didn’t know what to say. Every time something happened, they’d start talking and I wouldn’t be able say anything to either of them.”
    Yoko picks up on the phrase, ‘either of them’ and grins. “Harumi, if a girl really hates something, you will know.”

    Lyfe hugs her bag to herself as she sits down on the train. Her lesson with Harumi was extended much longer than usual due to their little excursion. Having already eaten dinner, she’s relieved she doesn’t have to worry about that once she gets home. Instead, she’ll take a shower, lay in bed, and prepare her lessons for the next day before going to sleep.
    “Still, today wasn’t that bad.” She then laughs upon wondering how Ayumi would react if she found out that lyfe is the older one between them. “She’d have to start calling me onee-chan.”
     
    Last edited: Aug 2, 2019
  2. 911

    911 [Officer][Official Police][Tag me when needed]

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    *is reading it*
     
  3. Daisydacrazy

    Daisydacrazy !!

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    Hahaha it’s a good story. Yeah it needs editing, but it’s still good. I think it’s one of the few that I read that use present tense instead of past tense. But it wasn’t bad so I didn’t cringe.
     
  4. Daisydacrazy

    Daisydacrazy !!

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    Wait hold up. That took me 43 minutes to read? Only 10 pages took me that long. Oh god, I need to start reading again to increase my reading speed
     
  5. Gandire Alea

    Gandire Alea [Wicked Awesome Translator]

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    Hmm, it might be closer to 14 pages??
     
  6. Daisydacrazy

    Daisydacrazy !!

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    Still took me a long time T^T)
     
  7. Gandire Alea

    Gandire Alea [Wicked Awesome Translator]

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    There there
     
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  8. One Perfect Veteran

    One Perfect Veteran [ICL] [Bureaucat] [Cereal Killer]

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    Thank you Alea, I saved this story in my bookmarks, downloaded the wep page and took several screenshots, so that even if it ever gets removed I would forever have it with me!blobmelt_thumbs:blobmelt::blobpats:

    Btw, I am planning on rereading it everyday before sleeping...:blobokhand::blob_ghost:
     
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  9. Gandire Alea

    Gandire Alea [Wicked Awesome Translator]

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    That's a bit much, don'cha think??
    I mean, it's not even finished yet
    :blobsnow::blobsnow::blobsnow:
     
  10. dhRPGamer

    dhRPGamer Well-Known Member

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    Wow, this is good.
     
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  11. One Perfect Veteran

    One Perfect Veteran [ICL] [Bureaucat] [Cereal Killer]

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    That makes it even better, I don't like it when stories come to end...
     
  12. Naruin

    Naruin [Dada's New Employee][ex-NAH owner]

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    "I couldn't"?
    nice story.. hehe cute.. ^^
     
  13. Lurking

    Lurking Do the dead suffer, or is it a sweet release?

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    Just read chapter one.

    Seems good!
     
  14. Gandire Alea

    Gandire Alea [Wicked Awesome Translator]

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    Chapter 1 is only like half a page
     
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  15. Lurking

    Lurking Do the dead suffer, or is it a sweet release?

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    *isnt particluarly good at binge reading unless there are pictures and its a manga*
     
  16. Gandire Alea

    Gandire Alea [Wicked Awesome Translator]

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    There there
     
  17. Lurking

    Lurking Do the dead suffer, or is it a sweet release?

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    It took me a few sessions to finish all 1000ish pages of Tomochan is a girl.

    I am the slow and steady type I think.
     
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  18. Gandire Alea

    Gandire Alea [Wicked Awesome Translator]

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    Hmmm
     
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  19. Donutmindme

    Donutmindme [dounut][Zodiac:Golden snake][PROcrastinator]

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    Jus’ finished it. It’s really nice.
     
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  20. Nekomeow

    Nekomeow Well-Known Member

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    I loved it Alea..i hope there's more to come..totally cute story!
     
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