Capturing Them

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Twelve
~Victor~

"Victor, this is Sang." Doc says and I politely hold my hand out to Sang. She's even more beautiful up close; green eyes, pale skin, pink lips. Sang looks down at my hand for a moment before taking mine in hers. When my fingers wrap around her hand, her eyes drop to my hand, looking at them in curiosity. I want to pull my hand away, knowing she can probably feel the tougher skin, slightly more muscle in my fingers then normal. That's what happens when you've played the piano since you were in diapers and continued to play almost every day for sixteen years. Some days never being able to stop until the song is perfected.

"You two will be working close together this year..." Doc continues, causing Sang's hand to jerk in mine before releasing my hand all together. "With you not being able to speak Sang, Victor will help you with writing Japanese words if you need the help. Hell, maybe together we can both teach you how to say them and you say them in your head or when you're alone."

Sang nods her head and I look to doc, silently asking if this was a good idea. When Sang skipped her class with Mr B, it came to all of our attention that she was purposely avoiding interaction so Doc came up with this brilliant idea of me becoming her TA in this class, not that I mind, really. I'd rather sit with her and help her then some random student. Doc knew that Sang would agree to it –happy or not about the arrangement- because that's what she's like, according to Doc.

Like he knows her so well.

Dr Green waves us into the classroom and I feel Sang follow me as we take two seats at the back of the class in the corner. Doc starts his lecture as Sang removes her notebook and pen while I just sit there like a damn fool wondering what to say to her. This isn't me being rude in anyway, but what do you so to a girl that can only answer by either nodding her head or shaking it? I don't know sign language but I made Luke promise me that he would start teaching me.

Apparently either he or Kota have been asked by the others in our group to learn sign language so we've arranged a meeting tonight at Nate's house. Lucky for us, we learn fast so it should be an easy lesson.

Sang turns her head and looks at me and I realize I've been staring at her. Her eyebrow raises in silent question and I shake my head, my lips curving up into a smile as my fingers come up to play with the medallion around my neck. I try to break eye contact, but with her, I can't do it. Her eyes are watching mine in complete wonder, I want to know what she's thinking.

I finally break the connection when Doc starts addressing the class. "I want you all to make a list of all the things you know about Japan. Work with the person next to you. You have ten minutes before we discuss what you figured out, and if I see any phones out then I'll be confiscating them until the end of the school day." Groans fill the room, but Sang opens up her notebook and writes Japan at the top in a perfect scrawl.

She looks to me expectantly and I rub a palm over my forehead. I hate being put on the spot but I say the first thing that comes to mind. "Japan grows rice." Her lips twitch and she writes it down, dotting the 'I' in 'rice' with a heart. "Cute." I grin.

She keeps her head down, her hair falling around her face but something tells me she's grinning down at the paper. Off course, that has to be when the Doc comes over to us. "Victor, this is a Japanese class; when speaking with a lady, I expect you to use Japanese as much as possible and I know you know some basics of the language."

I glare at him as Sang lifts her head to look between us, her eyes flickering from me to him. He swallows hard, once, twice, before turning away and whistling as he goes, the grin he was fighting finally coming upon his ugly face. I roll my eyes and look back to Sang. She looks amused. "I'm not going to do that." I tell her and she shrugs in response.

We work together for the ten minutes, listing different things about Japan. We both do equal amounts and I'm surprised by how much she knows. The rest of the class goes by in a blur; Doc teaches the basics in the Japanese language, the ones I already knew, and I watch as Sang struggles to write and spell the words out. I feel sorry for her. Some of the words she wrote out right as Doc wrote them on the board but others he didn't. I saw her lips moving a few times, as if she was trying to say them in her head, mouthing the words as she went along.

As Doc starts going through what the rest of the lesson plan is for this week along with homework that is just learning the words we learned today, I see Sang remove her phone from her pocket. She flips to the last page in her note book, a hand writing I'm familiar with scrawled along the lines in a black ink. Sang doesn't notice me as she types in a phone number I know from the top of my head before writing out a text message.

Sang: Can you please email me a copy of the words we learned today? My email address is SangSorenson17@ gmail.com - Thank you, Dr Green.

She pockets her phone and closes her notebook. My eyes move to the Doc just as I see him move his hand to his pocket where his phone is. His eyes, slightly alert, move to mine and I narrow mine, shaking my head and he frowns. Then I tilt my head in Sang's direction and he gets the unspoken message, a grin coming across his face. I pull my own phone out.

Victor: Doc has Sang's number.

The replies are immediate and I read them just as the bell rings. Sang gets up from her seat and waves to us, rushing of to her next class.

Gabriel: Shut the fucking front door. I don't believe you.
Nathan: Seriously dude?
Luke: I need that number in my life.
North: Are you fucking kidding me?
Kota: Dr Green has her number? How do you know that?
Silas: I agree with Luke – I need that number in my life.

I shake my head, pocketing my phone. I lift my eyes to Doc who is grinning at me, holding his phone up. "I have her number."

Stalking towards the door, I shake my head. "I'm getting that number, Doc." I throw over my shoulder as I stalk out the room, his laughter ringing in my ears as I leave. How he managed to do that, I do not know but I meant what I said. I'm getting that number.