I am a teacher at a girls' school in Tokyo

"..."

Even after saying all that, Shinohara Shiori still seemed to have no intention of speaking.

"Well...if you keep silent like this, even the teacher would be embarrassed."

"..."

Still no words were spoken. Now even Hirakawa Tetsufumi didn't know what to say for the time being.

The two began to stare at each other from a distance.

"..."

"..."

A quiet atmosphere spread in the corridor.

The outdoor world fell completely into darkness.

The lights overhead are brighter.

Shinohara Shiori suddenly bowed solemnly.

As the saying goes, be as quiet as a virgin and as swift as a rabbit. I was really startled by such a sudden bow.

After coming back to his senses - yes, he was distracted just now because he remembered a nursery rhyme about a rabbit - Tetsufumi Hirakawa quickly spoke.

"Shinohara-san, it's okay, get up. I just did what I was supposed to do."

"And in the end, it was Shinohara-san who convinced her mother, right? Yeah, that's it. So there's no need to thank me. Shinohara-san should thank herself."

"So, don't be so...eh...don't cry."

After the girl stood up, Hirakawa Tetsufumi saw two tear marks on her face.

"Um...Shinohara-san?"

"Hmm... This is bothering me too... I didn't bring any tissues..."

I searched my body for a long time but found nothing.

Finally, Tetsufumi Hirakawa looked at the sleeves of his teacher's uniform, thought about it, and finally stretched them out.

"This one……"

In the end, his clumsy appearance finally made Shinohara Shiori laugh.

The girl burst out laughing, as if she had seen something extremely funny, and tears flowed down her face as she laughed.

"Teacher... this is, how come there is a shortage of tissues in my house..."

"…Ah, um, sorry, I didn't expect that."

Hirakawa Tetsufumi pulled back his sleeves slightly embarrassedly.

Since I had no experience with girls crying, I was immediately at a loss as to what to do.

The only time I've ever had a girl cry in front of me was in kindergarten. What was that?

When playing house, the girl insisted on calling her "dear".

Well... an adult soul really couldn't say such words to a child, so she cried.

So in the end I gave in.

Memories that I don’t know how to evaluate.

However, after such a mess of memories passed through her mind, the girl in front of her had stopped crying.

Then he bowed solemnly again.

"Teacher, thank you."

"..."

Fine.

Although a large part of the credit is due to the system, he also contributed a lot to it. Just accept it with peace of mind.

Hirakawa Tetsufumi nodded, then became distracted again.

So next time you see a girl crying, all you have to do is recall some random memories in your mind and she will stop crying, right?

You're overthinking it, there's absolutely no connection between the two.

"Teacher Hirakawa?"

While he was complaining to himself, Shinohara Shiori had already stood up and was blinking in front of him, trying to get his attention.

"Ah, nothing much."

"Are you distracted?"

"No."

"When facing the students' thanks, I was distracted."

"Absolutely not."

"……All right."

"..."

"..."

"I should leave now." After a moment of silence, Tetsufumi Hirakawa suddenly said this.

"I'll take you out."

"sorry to bother you."

Shinohara Shiori walked in front to lead the way, and Hirakawa Tetsufumi followed silently behind her.

I have to say, Shinohara Shiori's house is really big, and we would definitely get lost without her leading the way.

Looking at the girl's obviously excited back, there was a hint of joy in her steps.

The child who had been controlled for so long finally gained... a brief moment of freedom.

Well, yeah, just briefly.

No matter how many random things I think about, I can't ignore this matter.

There is no escaping it.

In the reception room, Tetsufumi Hirakawa's instructions included this sentence: "At least this time today."

Why do we have to add this sentence?

Because Shinohara's mother's will was hard to shake. Such ordinary threats alone would not be able to make her change completely.

It was a rare opportunity for her to listen to her child's wishes for once.

after that……

Apart from the fact that there will be no interference in the affairs of the wind orchestra, everything else will probably be normal.

The problem still exists, the cage built by Shinohara's mother is as solid as ever.

Shinohara Shiori still has to live under such control, being objectified into a possession and completely denied the existence of an independent personality.

And Hirakawa Tetsufumi is powerless and has no right to change this situation. After all, he is just a teacher.

All he could do was to exercise his duties as a teacher and solve the current problem: Shinohara Shiori wanted to stay in the wind orchestra.

That's it.

As he walked out of the Shinohara household, the girl behind him bowed to him again.

"Thank you, Mr. Hirakawa."

It is a heavy thank you.

Chapter 12 Why the lazy Mr. Hirakawa became a teacher

Just like the famous saying “If winter comes, can spring be far behind?”, apart from the philosophical meaning that extends from it, this is a very realistic statement.

After the Shinohara Shiori incident came to an end, nothing happened on campus that upset Hirakawa Tetsufumi. Time passed from February to March, deep winter and then to early spring. The third semester passed so quickly.

The third graders are about to graduate, and the first and second graders are also preparing for the final exams and spring break every day.

As for the wind orchestra, besides preparing for the exam, they were also preparing for the graduation ceremony to send off the third-year seniors. As for what the program would be... Hirakawa Tetsufumi had no idea.

Although the wind band invited him, an instructor who did not deserve the title, to attend the meeting out of respect when discussing this matter, after all, he was a person who "would always be distracted during meetings."

I hated meetings in my last life, and I hate them in this life as well. The soul also has its inertia.

Plus, he really knew nothing about these "instruments" and "music".

So at the end of the meeting, when Mr. Ogasa and the head of the wind section asked him for his opinion, he could not say anything except "that's great."

It's really miserable that the instructor has been reduced to the role of the chief member of the cheerleading team.

Just like that, the third semester comes to an end in a tense and hurried atmosphere.

The third-year students' graduation ceremony soon came to an end with the principal's congratulatory speech. Along with the blessings and farewell, the wind band's high-spirited music contained reluctance to leave, and...

"Senior, I like it! I like you the most!"

With this orange-tinged confession of love, the third-year students officially bid farewell to Moriya Private Girls' High School.

The final exam is coming up next. Speaking of the final exam...

"When it comes to final exams, I still think of the holidays."

"Hurry up and take a vacation."

“I’m so tired…”

The sound of Tetsufumi Hirakawa being lazy was heard many times in the office, causing Masaki Hisada next to him to look at him several times.

And when he had been staring at the test paper on the table in a daze for who knows how many times, Hisada Moki finally couldn't help but remind him.

"Teacher Hirakawa... stop being in a daze."

However, when Tetsufumi Hirakawa, who was immersed in his own world, turned his head and looked at the female teacher, his reaction was: "Huh? Is Mr. Hisata talking to me?"

"..."

It was this lazy look that made Hisada Masu stare at Hirakawa Tetsufumi in silence for a long time.

"Is Mr. Hirakawa the only one in the office who is so relaxed?"

It's like the tone of criticizing a student.

So the criticized Hirakawa Tetsufumi turned his head and looked around. In the office, he saw several teachers sitting at their workstations, most of them were writing furiously at their desks.

Because now is the time to mark final exams.

“I’m almost done with grading.”

Turning back, Tetsufumi Hirakawa spoke seriously to Mr. Hisata.

"Really?" The female teacher didn't believe it.

"Really." To prove his words, Hirakawa Tetsufumi sorted out the slightly messy test papers on the desk, divided them into two piles, and then held up the obviously thicker pile and said, "I have already graded so many."

"So fast?"

"of course."

"Let me see……"

"Hey, Mr. Hisata, don't check students' homework like that." Pingchang Zhewen protested.

So Hisada Masu stopped what she was doing and stared at him until he felt guilty.

Tetsufumi Hirakawa retreated under this look.

"Okay, okay, I'll confess, Mr. Hisada."

The meticulous and simple female teacher is really scary.

Hirakawa Tetsufumi thought silently and opened the stack of test papers in his hand. Then, a large pile of test papers without any traces of corrections hidden under several test papers that had been corrected on the surface were exposed to Hisata Masaki's sight.

"..."