Second Period: An ALT in a Boring Routine

The next day, I finished breakfast with my family as usual and left the house.

I was headed to Suishō High, my school. It was a public high school with a relatively liberal school culture, popular for being slightly above average in academic ranking.

I checked my class on the notice board near the shoe lockers and headed into the classroom.

Today was April 3rd—the first day of the new semester.

The classroom was buzzing with typical first-day talk: “We’re in the same class again,” and “I wonder who our homeroom teacher will be?”

Amidst this fresh atmosphere,

“Haaaaah...”

I sank into my seat and let out a huge sigh, gazing up at the ceiling.

The reason was the scene at the net cafe last night.

She’d forgiven me then because she was drunk, but after a night’s sleep, she wouldn’t suddenly decide to call the police, would she...?

—Just as I was worrying about that,

“What’s with the long face this early in the morning?!”

“Whoa!”

Suddenly, my friend’s face appeared over me.

“...Oh, it’s Daikatsu. Morning. Don’t sneak up on me like that...”

I sat up straight, and Daikatsu gave me a mischievous grin, saying, “Heh, morning,” before cheerfully slapping me on the shoulder.

He was six feet tall, with a muscular, well-built physique and a refreshing buzz cut.

As a second-year, he was the ace of the Suishō High basketball club.

True to his specs, he had a straightforward, cheerful personality—that was my friend, Takezuru Daikatsu.

“Seriously, same class again. That’s eleven years in a row!”

“At this point, it’s actually kinda creepy...”

We were childhood friends who had gone to the same school—elementary, middle, and high school—and had been in the same class the entire time.

I let out a yawn, and Daikatsu, for some reason, gave me a cocky grin.

“Hey, Atsuto, did you hear the news?”

“Nope.”

“Hey, at least listen!”

Daikatsu slammed his hand on my desk dramatically and widened his eyes.

“Starting today, we’re getting a new ALT teacher! And get this—she’s supposed to be super cute!”

Suishō High focused on English education, so starting in the second year, an ALT would join the regular teacher for English classes.

The ALTs were native English speakers, and the ones at Suishō High were usually from America or Canada.

“...Right. Good to see you’re energetic as always, Daikatsu.”

“That’s a weak reaction! You’re supposed to be throwing your hands up and screaming for joy!”

“You know better than anyone that’s not my style, Daikatsu.”

A super cute ALT, huh?

Honestly, I wasn’t really interested.

Whether the ALT was cute or not, it had nothing to do with my life.

—Just as I was thinking that,

“God, you guys are loud first thing on the first day.”

A female student who had just entered the classroom called out with an exasperated look.

“Yo, Benika! Same class again!”

The one giving the overly cheerful Daikatsu a cold stare was Shirashu Benika.

Like Daikatsu, Benika was an old friend I’d known since elementary school.

“Morning, Daikatsu. Unfortunately, same class.”

“ ‘Unfortunately’?!”

“Just kidding, just kidding. Morning, Atsuto. Here, the manga I borrowed from you.”

Benika brushed off Daikatsu and thrust a paper bag at me.

“Oh, finally. How was it?”

“It was the god-tier chapter where the heroine finally got together with him! I ate two bowls of rice just using the confession scene as a side dish!”

“O-Oh... You’re really fired up...”

Benika’s normally listless demeanor vanished, replaced by sparkling eyes.

She had short, reddish hair—dyed just enough not to get scolded by the school.

Pale skin, a small face with a straight nose, and a star-shaped piercing in her right ear.

Her good looks had earned her a career as a model for a teen magazine.

On the surface, Shirashu Benika was the typical popular girl, but inside, she was an otaku who loved the internet, anime, and manga.

“Anyway, it’s impossible to summarize the appeal of this in one sentence! Let’s set up a review session soon. The three of us can talk about it! Atsuto, lend it to Daikatsu too. All the volumes!”

“Huh? I have to read it? I’m busy with basketball—”

“Huh? Just read it.”

Daikatsu, overwhelmed by Benika’s pressure, nodded with a meek, “Got it...”

＊＊＊＊＊

Right after that, the chime for homeroom rang out in the classroom.

“Alright, settle down, take your seats.”

The one who entered with the chime was the English teacher, Sugawara-sensei, or Suga-sen.

He was a middle-aged male teacher popular for his clear explanations and moderately relaxed teaching style.

“I’m Sugawara, your homeroom teacher starting today. Nice to meet you all for the year. Now, let’s start with everyone’s self-introductions. First up—”

Just as all the classmates finished their introductions, the chime for the first period rang.

The first period was Suga-sen’s English class, following the homeroom flow.

“As I’m sure you know, starting in the second year, an ALT will join the class as an instructor for English.”

The class started buzzing right after Suga-sen’s announcement.

【...Can I come in?】

With a young woman’s voice, the classroom door slid open.

The person who appeared was—

“H-Huh?!”

I couldn’t help but let out a surprised yelp.

The person who entered was the foreigner I’d played with yesterday—Char.

“Awesome! She really is cute!”

“The rumors were true!”

“We won English class this year!”

The boys cheered loudly, and Char flinched, lowering her head.

...She must have been nervous. Coupled with her small stature, the spotless suit looked more like it was wearing her than she was wearing it.

Char took a deep breath, slapped both cheeks with a slap!, and looked up.

“Phew... Okay. M-My name is!”

“Charlotte-sensei, English only, please!”

“Ah, y-yes!”

Suga-sen stopped Char just as she was about to start her introduction. ALTs generally have a rule against speaking anything other than English.

“My name is Charlotte Flores! I’ll do my best to give you all exposure to authentic English, so please take care of me!”

Char bowed, took another deep breath, and continued.

“I’m twenty-three! My birthday is April eleventh! And, I’m from Florida!”

After finishing that much, Char bowed again and again.

Everyone applauded the now-fluent English self-introduction.

Her entire demeanor was completely different from yesterday.

Yesterday, she was bright and practically radiating an ’pay attention to me!’ aura, but today, she was stiff with tension...

I watched her anxiously, and Char pulled a large piece of paper from her suit pocket and spread it out for everyone to see. Was that a map of America?

“C-Can you find Florida? Well then—”

Her blue eyes scanned the classroom, looking for someone to call on—

“H-Hyuh?!”

Her eyes locked perfectly with mine.

It was incredibly awkward, seeing her again so soon after yesterday!

And what was with that “Hyuh?!”? She was probably thinking, “Why is Atsuto here?!” but she was drawing attention—stop it!

“A, Atsuto!”

“Y-Yes!”

In the end, since her eyes didn’t seem to meet anyone else’s, I was called on.

I stood up, and Char beckoned me over.

...Did she want me to come to the front to answer?

“Can you find Florida for me?”

Sorry, Char. I have no idea...

“Umm... H-Here?” I pointed to a random state, and Char shook her head vigorously. Wrong.

“Here?” I pointed to the neighboring state, but she shook her head again.

“...Here?”

“That’s California!”

“Here?”

“That’s Arizona!”

As we went back and forth,

“—Wrong! It’s here, see?”

“Gah!”

I suddenly heard a whisper in Japanese, and then Char gently placed her palm on my hand and guided it to a different state.

“O-Okay! This is Florida! Okay!”

Startled by the sudden contact, I instinctively pulled my hand away from the map.

“Mmm! Good!” Char winked and gave me a soft smile.

Her expression seemed to have softened a little...

As I wondered about it, I felt a sharp, hostile gaze from behind and spun around as if I’d been struck.

A wave of pure hatred seemed to be emanating from the boys.

Hey, I didn’t know she was going to grab my hand, either...

＊＊＊＊＊

The class started with that little incident.

“Well, that’s all for today.”

After Suga-sen and Char left the classroom, a relaxed, break-time atmosphere flowed into the room.

“She was so cute, just like the rumors said!”

“I love the small-animal vibe!”

“I know, right?”

Most of the chatter I heard was about Char.

Still, she was incredibly nervous.

She smiled when I went up front, but after that, she was completely stiff.

I really couldn’t believe she was the same person as the Char from yesterday—or so I thought.

“—Something’s off. It’s definitely off.”

“Gah!”

I turned around at the sudden voice to find Daikatsu and Benika standing there with serious expressions.

“Yes. It’s definitely weird.”

The two muttered the same words like a curse.

“Umm... What is?” I asked cautiously.

The two looked at each other and then, as if on cue—

““Charlotte-sensei’s affection level is way too high!””

They shouted in unison.

“H-Huh? Affection level?”

“It’s totally weird, man!” Daikatsu slammed his hand on my desk and leaned in.

“Holding hands during class is definitely not normal!”

“Everyone else is at zero affection, so why is Atsuto already at like, fifty?!” Benika pressed, radiating a dark aura. Man, the pressure is intense...

“No, we weren’t holding hands! She just put her hand on mine!”

“Something definitely happened with the teacher before class, didn’t it?”

Benika pursued the matter.

Well, something had happened.

Specifically, I was kissed and I grabbed the teacher’s chest.

But there was no way I could tell them that! It would be social suicide!