Love me Sensei

Chapter 17

Chapter 17

Chaeyoung generally prided herself on being a reasonable, logical person. She was a thinker, not a feeler—when it came down to it, she was 100% positive she'd always follow her head, not her heart.

So when the weekend from hell (involving lots of crying and copious amounts of alcohol) finally ended and she had to go back to work, Chaeyoung was unprepared for the physical pain in her chest when she saw Mina  at the end of the hallway. Even the simple act of Mina  speaking to one of her classmates sent her staggering through the door of an empty classroom, sucking in ragged breaths as a bullet of heartache shot through her chest.

Whoever coined the term 'heartbreak' was wrong...something breaking implied there were sharp, clean-cut edges that would heal easily. Whatever she felt now was more like someone had grabbed ahold of her heart and was ripping it apart sinew by sinew to prolong the agony.

There was a knock on the door before Yuri poked her head in. Her brow furrowed at the sight of Chaeyoung hunched over. "Are you alright, Chaeyoung? A student said you looked like you were about to be sick."

"Fine," Chaeyoung managed to choke out, waving a hand in Yuri's general direction. "Not feeling too well this morning."

Yuri tsked sympathetically. "Are you still up for teaching this morning's class? We can postpone until you feel better."

Damn it. Chaeyoung couldn't believe she'd forgotten that Yuri was going to let her teach today's lesson, and to Mina's  class, no less. This was shaping to be a horrible day already, she could feel it.

Chaeyoung slowly straightened up and took a deep breath. "I'm fine."

Yuri looked unconvinced, but stepped back to let Chaeyoung into the hallway. "If the students seem distracted, don't take it personally. University acceptances are being released today, so everyone's anxious."

"I understand. It's an important day," Chaeyoung managed to say, falling into with Yuri as they headed to the classroom. The dread in the pit of her stomach grew heavier with each step that brought her closer to where Mina  was.

"The beginning of the rest of their lives," Yuri agreed.

____

As they entered the classroom, Chaeyoung's eyes snapped to Mina's usual seat by sheer force of habit. Her heart sank when she saw Mina  determinedly avoiding her gaze, but at the same time, she didn't know if she'd be able to handle looking at her in the eye either.

She was so preoccupied by not looking at Mina  that she nearly walked into the clipboard Yuri was holding out to her, prompting a few titters from the class. (Chaeyoung's chest ached at the thought that a week ago, Mina's laugh would've been the loudest).

Grimacing apologetically at Yuri raised eyebrow, Chaeyoung took the clipboard. The first order of business, to take attendance. She cleared her throat and called out the first name without any trouble, waiting to hear an affirmative response before marking anything down. Easy. Simple. She was doing a great job already.

Yet as she made her way down the list, closer to the last names starting with 'M' her throat began to feel tighter and tighter until she finally reached Mina's  name.

Chaeyoung kept her eyes glued to the black font, stark in contrast against the white of the paper. Myōi. Mina . . Easy enough to say. She willed her vocal cords to move.

"Myo—" Chaeyoung choked on the word. It was a tangible lump in her throat, making it hard to breathe. She coughed and tried again. "Myo--- Myōi"

That was it. She couldn't bring herself to finish the rest of the name out loud.

Seconds ticked by. Chaeyoung was sure she had at least said it loud enough, but there was no response. She took in a searing breath and said one more time: "Myōi?"