Tutor (Ushijima Wakatoshi x Reader)

Chapter 08

A/N: Since I've received quite a few comments about this, I just wanted to clarify in front of the chapter: 

It was too challenging for me to keep writing what Wakatoshi was saying in broken English, so I decided to write what he means to say, rather than his actual words. That's why his English 'suddenly' is so good.

I hope it doesn't bother you too much m(_ _)m

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Wakatoshi was video calling you again. All at once, you remembered the weird messages he had been sending you and you doubted if you should answer...

You pressed the 'reject' button and typed a text message to him, before putting your smartphone down on the coffee table.

'Hold on, I'll call you on my laptop.' Is what you told him and you got up to take a quick look at yourself in the mirror before settling into your couch and opening your laptop. Then you put on your headset and called Ushijima. He answered after two rings and you noticed that something about him seemed a little off.

"Hey, what's up?" You asked casually,  trying hard not to think of the messages he sent you earlier. Could those be the reason he was acting a little different?

He cleared his throat and seemed to not be able to look directly at the camera. Then he bowed his head and started apologizing to you. "I'm sorry! About those messages..."

You interjected immediately, feeling a slight pang of sadness. "It's okay, you were drunk, right?"

At that, he lifted his head and shook it. "I don't drink." He stated as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

You blinked, surprised. "Oh... Then...?"

"I forgot my phone and Tendou sent those messages. It wasn't me." He told you, keeping his usual straight face.

Well... That explained. 

"Oh, I see." You said, but couldn't shake the feeling of disappointment and decided to change the subject. "Tendou is your friend right?"

"Yes, he's also my roommate. We used to play volleyball together in high school." He told you.

Again with the volleyball. You made a mental note to go visit your college's volleyball team in the coming week.

"So you were out with him?" You carried on the conversation.

"We meet up with a couple of guys from high school every now and then. We usually go out to eat and then do karaoke or something." He told you, and it kind of surprised you that a stoic guy like him would participate in such gatherings.

You noticed he stifled a yawn and realized it must be the middle of the night for him.

"I'm sorry am I keeping you up?" You apologized.

He shook his head. "I was the one who called you first." That seemed to take him back to the reason he called you in the first place.

"I'm really sorry about the messages. I would never talk to you that way. Or to anyone." He sighed.

"I know." You reassured him. "I knew something was not right."

Even though that was what you said to him, you realized that you were a teensy tiny bit disappointed. If you had to be completely honest with yourself, you would have liked it if it had been Ushijima who had told you 'I wish you were here'.

You had no idea what prompted him to say the words he said next, maybe he had noticed your slight change in behavior, maybe it was just out of courtesy, or maybe it was just a bit of small talk but his next words would be ringing in your ears for the next few days.

"Not that I would mind if you were here."

You were at a loss for words for a few moments and then praised your lucky star that you were able to think of a nice, neutral reply to that.

"I would love to visit Japan someday, it's a fascinating country." You said, trying to keep your reaction as natural as possible.

He chuckled. "You should... I'm going to turn in now, so I can get some sleep before the sun rises. I'll message you when I have time for another lesson."

Right, lessons. Just like that, you were reminded of your relationship with the Japanese guy you were currently talking with. Teacher and student seemed like an unfit description, but it was the best you could come up with.

"Oh yeah of course. Talk to you later. Goodnight!" You said and with a wave, you ended the call. 

You leaned back into your couch and mulled over the conversation you just had. You specifically focused on the way you had felt during the course of it. 

The disappointment at finding out he wasn't the one who sent that specific message. The giddy feeling you got when he told you almost the exact same thing the message had said anyway...

After thinking for a while, you picked your smartphone up from the coffee table and typed a message to Marie.

'Help, I think I might be developing a little bit of a crush.'