Veiled Pain | Riki Nishimura

9. Partnered Up

The teacher quickly divided them into pairs for a small assignment for the lesson. She just paired up people who sits close. "Then from the back, Ayama and Nishimura, you two pair up." She called.

Asami almost hoped anyone else than him, but what can she do that he literally sits behind her.

Well, it can't be that bad. It's just a quick assignment.

She turned around on her chair and now faced Riki. He was lazily resting on his desk, but she didn't mind it and laid her notebook on the other side of his desk.

He seemed sleepy, which he probably was, so she still decided to do it on her own. Yet he didn't sleep yet, he just seemed bored now.

His hand slowly approached Asami's pencil case and took a marker from there. She didn't really mind it, and didn't even want to tell him no, because she was afraid he'd throw a tantrum.

After focusing on their assignment for a while, she felt something on the top of her hand. She quickly pulled it away, realizing it was Riki with the marker.

"What are you doing?" She asked in confusion.

"Drawing on your hand." He said in a dull way.

"Why?"

"Ugh, you're so boring." He straightened up on his chair and soon threw the marker over her to the front of the class. Gladly, it didn't hit her head.

"Riki!" A girl grumpily yelled after the marker hit the back of her head.

"What? That wasn't me." He said calmly.

"I know it was you!" She said back.

"What is the hussle about?" Ms. Hirota questioned from her desk as she took her gaze from her papers.

"Riki just threw a pencil at me!" The girl revelaed.

"It was a marker actually." Riki cleared, being unbothered.

"Riki?! We've talked about this, do not throw things at your classmates." Ms. Hirota said calmly.

"Whatever." He muttered and laid back down on his desk.

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It was the second P.E class for Asami. It was said that they had couple dancing today, so they didn't need to change to sports clothing.

"Okay, everyone look for a partner!" Their female P.E teacher informed. The boys' teacher should come there too but he seems to be a bit late.

Many people seemed to have a partner. They well understood to take a partner of the other sex. But Asami didn't have a partner yet, because she still doesn't know her classmates well and is too shy to ask.

Riki went to sit besides the wall of the gym room, he didn't seem to want to participate in the dance. The female teacher approached him. "Are you not going to dance, Mister?"

"No, my leg hurts." He made up an excuse.

The teacher huffed with a small smile. "Nonsense." She turned around to look at the other students.

"This is crap anyway. Why can't we just play basketball or sum?" Riki complained.

"Who does not have a partner yet?" She raised her voice, ignoring Riki's complaints. Asami raised her hand and also two other students too. She was glad she wasn't the only one without a partner.

"Ms. Takayama and Mr. Saito partner up." She called out the two other students who unluckily were male and a female. "And you go to Ms. Ayama's partner." She tapped Riki's shoulder.

He sighed and stood up from the bench to approach Asami. Yep, the worst partner she could get. It's not only that it's Riki, but also that he isn't willing to dance.

The boys' P.E teacher jogged to the gym. "I apologize for being late." He said and went to stand next to the female teacher.

"Okay." The girls' P.E teacher slammed her hands together and faced all the students. "Today we will start with Waltz, am I right?" She glanced to the other teacher who nodded.

"We will show you the steps, but firstly remember that dance is exercise and also art!" She said happily. "Let's start!"

The teachers first showed the steps. They turned their backs to the students, and the male teacher stood on the left side holding the female teacher's hand and lower back while she stood on the right side and held his shoulder and hand also. They called the students to get in position and they'd firstly check that.

It was quite awkward with Riki. She didn't really dare to make the first move, because she felt shy, so Riki did it. He walked next to her and placed his right hand on her lower back.

He stretched out his other hand on the front and Jiyeon placed her hand on his like had to. So, they were holding hands.

"You have to hold my shoulder." He said to her.

"Oh, right." She remembered and then placed her left hand on his shoulder. Well, not quite there because he is so tall, but in some point of his upper arm.

The teacher walked through the row and repositioned some of the students. "Great Ms. Ayama and Mr. Nishimura." The female teacher quickly checked their position and then went back to the front.

The teacher's put on some music and made counts by themselves to practice the steps. She learned it eventually, and Riki too somehow, but his moves were messy since he wasn't so willing to learn. But what mattered to her was that he still tried and let her learn if she wanted to.

Usually boys are shy if it comes to touching girls they don't really know. Like classmates. But Riki didn't seem like it, he held her stronger than had to. He wasn't shy.

After some while they changed the dance genre. Now they weren't in pairs anymore. They were in two circles, boys in the inner circle and girls in the outer circle. During the other dances they switched partners all the time, so now Asami danced with everyone at least for a while.

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