The Substitute

Chapter 4

The next few weeks were as calm as it got around 3-D and Yankumi. Reita was fairly sure he was the only student aware of her pregnancy, since her baggy tracksuit and unique personality masked any differences that having a baby might produce in a normal person.

There was one incident, most likely caused by the influx of hormones, that Reita found both funny and terrifying. Yankumi had returned to teaching, although there were days that Shin covered homeroom and Yankumi just came in for math.

"Good morning, everyone!" She declared as she entered the classroom. Reita slowly looked up from his nap, but the boys, however, didn't pay much mind to the fact that this was the first homeroom with Yankumi in a while. Instead, everyone was much more preoccupied with the newest edition of a magazine that interviewed local young girls about what kind of guys they liked.

Yankumi blinked a few times. "Ahem," she coughed pointedly. "Good morning, everyone!"

But the boys had gotten careless. Everyone had seen Shin as the frightening one, and Yankumi's lower than normal energy had lulled them into a false sense of security. So, Tawara turned and shouted, "What's so good about it?"

Taken aback, Yankumi took a moment, then responded, "Well, lots of things. For one, you get to spend time with your precious number one teacher, and you get to learn about math, and-"

"Math is stupid." Koji mumbled around his sticky bun.

Itsuo agreed loudly. "Yeah, it's not like we'll ever use it in real life."

As Reita looked up to hear whatever passionate speech Yankumi was preparing about the value of learning, he was surprised to see her fists clench and her eyes fill with rage. Apparently, this insult, which all math teachers heard multiple times throughout their careers, had come at exactly the wrong time.

"Of course you'll use it in real life!" Yankumi bellowed, shocking the class into dropping the magazine. "What if you become a carpenter, or building contractor? How will you make measurements? What if you become a teacher? How will you grade tests? How will you shop in the grocery store? Do your taxes? Pay your bills? Math is everywhere in real life!" And with this last fervent declaration, she brought her fist down on a nearby desk, causing the legs to buckle under and the desk to come crashing onto the floor.

Unaware of her act of vandalism, Yankumi regarded the gaping class with a look of satisfaction.

"Ah, good. You've finally learned that when teachers speak, you pay attention. Now, onto the lesson."

Turning to the board, she finally noticed Reita staring at her.

"Yankumi," he whispered.

"Yes, Saiga?"

He glanced pointedly at the destroyed desk. She followed his gaze, then looked back to him, uncomprehending. Reita waited. After a few moments, she finally realized what she had done.

"Oh! Um… hehe." She laughed nervously as she looked at her gawking students. "They, uh, don't make these things like they used to."

The boys, unconvinced and more than a little frightened, exchanged confused glances with each other.

"Um, Koji, you can use one of the spare desks in the back. Alright everyone! Let's learn some math!"

And with this clever ruse, Yankumi proceeded to explain the value of x as Reita covered his eyes and shook his head.

On the way home, Reita couldn't help but smile as he thought about the events of the day. As strange as she was, he had to admit that she was entertaining. He was so preoccupied with wondering if she had been that strong all along, or if pregnancy gave her superpowers, that it took him a moment to realize he wasn't alone in his house.