Navigating the world of teaching on a low salary and high hospital bills to pay

Leap of faith

When he woke again he saw that his windowsill was filled with flowers, two large bouquets, with Karma carrying in another set.

"Are those all for me?" Koro-sensei asked curiously, making Karma turn around quickly. Then it suddenly dawned on him. "Are my beloved students worried about me!?" He suddenly went gooey-eyed. "Have I earned their love and acceptance!"

He imagined his students smiling and singing his praises on how much of an amazing teacher he was—

"I'm pretty sure they just feel bad that you broke your leg," Karma interrupted his fantasy, rolling his eyes. "Besides, only one of them is from E Class." He gestured to the smaller bouquet full of daffodils.

Koro-sensei smiled. "Ah, daffodils, a sign of respect. How lovely."

Karma gestured to the other bouquet which was full of white chrysanthemums. "Those are from the principal."

Koro-sensei smiled strained. "The symbol of death and grief for funerals...huh."

Was the principal trying to imply something!?

Karma's brow furrowed, placing the bouquet of carnations and bluebells. "These are from my parents..." He placed it on the windowsill and didn't meet Koro-sensei's eye. "They paid for the room and they're sending their lawyer, by the way, to buy you off because they heard what happened."

"Oh?" Koro-sensei raised an eyebrow and then glanced at his broken leg. "My how efficient. Though I would have preferred they come in person."

Karma scoffed, shoving his hands in his pocket while he stood by the window, keeping his distance. "Yeah right. I could be in hospital and they wouldn't cut their business trip early."

That didn't seem surprising after their phone call.

"I see," Koro-sensei replied, watching him carefully, as he noted how fidgety he seemed. On edge and not quite as confident as usual. "Did you explain to them what happened?"

"...No." Karma stared out of the window, leaning on the ledge as he poked a loose blue petal that has fallen.

"Then what did you tell the others?" Koro-sensei asked patiently.

"I didn't say anything, I just ran and got the Principal, Isogai, and Kataoka," he replied, flicking the petal. "You can tell them what happened, I don't care." His voice quickly started to grow defensive.

"I'm not telling them anything until I listen to you first," Koro-sensei replied, evenly, causing him to frown more. "Because it seems there's quite a lot going on with you."

Karma stayed silent, not looking at him. "...I was just being stupid," he replied, voice strained. "I'm not depressed or anything, I just...I don't know. I just wanted to prove you were lying."

Koro-sensei forced a strained smile. "I promise you there are easier ways to test that than jumping from a cliff."

Karma half-shrugged, expression closed off. "I guess." His brow furrowed. "Why did you even jump after me? Aren't you married or something?" He started to sound angry. "That's a pretty shitty thing to do to your wife."

Koro-sensei's chest tightened. "I know, but she'd understand once she knew I was protecting a student." A small smile slipped onto his face, staring at his hands. "She understands that will always come first. It's a teacher's duty to care and protect their students." He looked back at Karma. "You may not believe that but it's true. Your parents entrusted you in my care by allowing you to be in my class, if I hadn't stepped in and risked my own life, I would have failed as a teacher."