Chapter 1

On the last day of April, second year high school student Yamamoto Sayaka of class 2-1 disappeared.

No newspaper reported it, and no police report was filed. None of her friends and family seemed to notice that she was missing; it was as if she hadn't disappeared at all.

But I was sure that Sayaka was missing, because I was the only one who noticed that she was gone.

On the last of April, I walked into class 2-1, and took attendance. I was a twenty-seven-year-old newbie teacher, and I was quite popular among the students. I think that might be because we were only about ten years apart in age, and that caused some students to see me as more of an older brother.

“Sato-san, what are you doing?”

"Sato-Sato, do you have a girlfriend?”

“Sato-kun, help me out with this test~”

I would always tell my students off when they stopped calling me ‘sensei', but they could sense that I didn’t really mind. As long as they don’t say something truly rude, there was no reason to get angry at them.

My name was Sato Seiji. I graduated from Waseda University, and I am a government worker who had accepted his duty in life. I was happy that I found a steady job in this crappy economy, which wasn't something even Tokyo University graduates could claim these days.

Anyways, on that last day of April, I took attendance like I always did, and noticed that Sayaka's desk was empty. Students taking sick days wasn't all that uncommon, especially in the spring when temperatures were changing, so I didn't think much of it.

The next day, she was still gone. I called her parents, and told her mother that Sayaka wasn’t at school.

“Really? Hmmm, well, I suppose that is certainly possible.” That was all she said, and then hung up. She didn’t sound worried at all.

Incidentally, this is also how Japanese people say, “I don’t care,” in the most polite way possible.

I asked Sayaka's friends if they had seen her. They said they hadn’t.

When I asked if they knew where Sayaka was, they said:

“I’m sure she is fine, sensei~”

“Do you want to eat lunch with us?”

“You don’t have a girlfriend, right? Do you want some of my bento?”

I ignored their remarks.

Just like the parents, they didn’t seem to care at all about Sayaka’s disappearance. Was something weird going on?

Sayaka didn't strike me as a student who came from a broken family or would run away. She had chestnut brown hair that reached her lower back. She wore her uniform properly, kept her skirt length to her knees, and her grades were in the 80th percentile. She wouldn't get into Tokyo University, but with a little effort she'd get into a good private university in Tokyo.

Sayaka had always been popular with the boys. She was cute, but not like a kogal; she was cute in her own natural wholesome way.

I remember the last time I saw Sayaka. It was one day before she disappeared.

I was sitting in my office when she came in with a notebook.

“Sato-sensei, here is the homework I forgot this morning. Sorry about that…”

She smiled slightly and scratched the back of her head as if she was embarrassed about the whole situation.

“Okay, thanks for bringing it over. Actually I can just mark it now.”

I took the notebook from her and flipped to the section with the homework. I gestured for her to sit down.

Sayaka sat down in a chair next to mine, which was usually occupied by another teacher. Her pose was tense, and she had her hands clenched together.

I quickly marked her work and handed it back to her.

“Good job,” I said. “You made a few mistakes, but you’ve improved a lot.”

“Really??” She breathed out with relief, and sunk into the chair.

“Yes, I can see that you’ve worked hard. Any reason why you’ve decided to focus more?”

“I was promised a new iP*one if I scored in the top three in my class, eh-hehehe~”

She grinned and made a peace sign.

“With this you should be able to make it into the top three,” I said.

“Yay~” She clapped her hands together. “Maybe I can even buy it this weekend.”

“Sure, that sounds nice.”

“What are you doing this weekend, Sato-sensei?”

“Hmm…” Asking personal questions wasn’t unusual for girls of Sayaka’s age, and I like to give sincere answers, but I always made sure not to reveal anything too personal.

“I think I’ll just catch up on some work and maybe watch a movie.”

“Ehh~ You don’t have any friends?”

I smiled stiffly. Sayaka was a good student, but she had a habit asking very direct questions whenever she talked to me.

“I do have friends, but working adults are very busy. Some of my friends have to spend their weekend working at the office.”

“Ehhh, it sounds like your friends work for a black company. It’s a good thing that you became a teacher then. Otherwise we wouldn’t be able to talk like this.”

There was no one else in the teacher’s office, or else Sayaka’s comment would’ve made things very awkward.

“Idiot,” I gently chopped on the head. “You should have more respect for your teacher.”

“Eh-hehehe~ But I was right?”

“No comment.”

“Then you are going to spend the weekend alone? You don’t have a girlfriend?”

Her gaze changed when she said, ‘girlfriend’. Suddenly she sounded more serious.

I chopped her on the head again. “How am I supposed to get a girlfriend when I’m busy taking care of brats like you?”

“Poor Sato-sensei~”

After that she left to eat lunch with her friends.

I recalled this scene, but other than her inappropriate questions, I couldn’t think of anything out of the ordinary. Sayaka always addressed me as ‘Sato-sensei’ even though she could sometimes ask some rude questions. Simply put, she was a good student who was a little immature but worked hard.

A week passed, and Sayaka was nowhere to be seen. I repeatedly called her home and her parents didn't sound worried at all. Her friends kept having fun at school.

My students began to give me weird looks. They looked at me as if I was the weird one for always asking about Sayaka.

I wanted to shout. Why is no one worried about Sayaka?! Something clearly happened to her!

It was Friday.

After all the students had left school, I was still at the office, working through a pile of paperwork. This job might be steady, but the Ministry of Education was working people like me to death. In the two years since I've started working, I hadn't gone on a single date. I was always tired and preferred to spend the weekend sleeping. Finding a girlfriend just felt too troublesome.

I finished work by around 8pm. I was going to go straight home, but a sudden urge to check the classroom came to me.

When I entered the classroom, it was empty.

But…

There was something on Sayaka’s table.

Hmmm?

It was dark, so I stepped closer to get a better look.

It was a convenience store bag and inside was a piece of Japanese-style baumkuchen. It was still in the packaging.

Did one of the students forget about it?

Good grief — do these kids not know that food costs money, and that money is hard to come by in this economy? We're not living in the bubble era anymore, you know?

I took the bread home with me. It was Friday, so no one was going to come back for it.

My home was a regular one-person apartment with a small kitchen and a bath.

I closed the door behind me. When I first started working, I always felt lonely coming back to an empty home, but I've gotten used to it since then. Maybe this is what they call being an adult; the ability to endure your own loneliness.

I put the bread down and decided to take a bath. I filled up the tub, stripped, and jumped into the hot water.

Damn it, I forgot a towel.

I climbed out of the tub. One of the benefits of living alone is that you can walk around naked in your own apartment.

Eh?

There was someone standing in my room. It was a girl wearing a high school uniform.

I blinked. It was Yamamoto Sayaka.

She turned to me.

"Darling~ I've missed you!"

She jumped over and hugged my naked body.

What — !?

Why was my student, Yamamoto Sayaka, standing in my room? And why was she hugging me?

"Seiji! Seiji! Seiji!" She called out my name and clung to me as if her life depended on it.

I could feel something soft and warm press against me. I glanced down and saw her breasts. They were quite large for a high school girl.

A high school girl.

This isn't good.

"W-Wait a minute, I – " I tried to push her away, but she refused to let go. She buried her face in my chest.

"Seiji, Seiji, Seiji...I missed you so much. Seiji...Seiji..."

Not ‘sensei’, no honorifics, no keigo.

She used only my given name. It was as if she was my girlfriend. In fact she spoke my name with an affection that no one had ever addressed me with.

"Yamamoto-san, this is enough!" I finally managed to say.

"Eh — ?"

"Let go of me."

With her arms still around my naked body, Sayaka looked up at me.

"Why are you calling me Yamamoto-san?“ she asked.

"Why are you using my first name?" I replied. "Anyways, you go missing for days, and you suddenly show up in my apartment? Why are you even here?!"

"Why...?" Sayaka closed her eyes and rubbed her nose against my chest. I could feel her warm breath tickling me. She crackled with gentle laughter. She looked up at me again.

"Because I love you, I guess?"

…

…

Four years of university education, along with another two years of training, and I've been rendered speechless by this brat here.

"Hmm? Are you not happy to see me?" She tilted her head slightly.

I said nothing.

Sayaka looked down. She giggled.

"Well, somebody is happy to see me."

She wiggled her hips and —

I realized what she was rubbing against.

Shit.

I pushed her away, ran to the bathroom, slammed the door shut, and locked it.

"Seiji~ Let me wash your back."

"Stay away!"

I heard Sayaka draw a sharp breath. My tone of voice must've shocked her.

"Seiji..." I heard her sit down against the bathroom door. "Aren't you happy to see me?"

My body was still wet, and I was starting to feel cold. After making sure that the door was locked, I climbed into the bathtub again.

I let out a long breath. What the hell was going on? Yamamoto Sayaka vanishes for a whole week, no one notices that she was gone, and now all of the sudden she shows up in my apartment acting like she is my girlfriend.

"Seiji, please talk to me..." Her voice was filled with a sadness that pierced my heart.

"Stop calling me Seiji. To you I am Sato-sensei.“

"But we're married."

"We are what?"

"We are married."

“No, we’re not.”

I heard some rustling outside.

"Dear, take a look at this." She slid a sheet of paper underneath the door. I took a look. It was a marriage form with my name, her name, and our signatures and personal seals.

WHEN THE HELL DID I GET MARRIED TO MY OWN STUDENT WHO IS ALMOST TEN YEARS YOUNGER THAN ME?!

"And you should stop calling me Yamamoto-san," Sayaka said with the attitude of a wife. "I am your wife. Call me Sayaka. Sa-ya-ka! Got it?“

"W-Wait, no — "

"You are clearly confused, dear. You must be tired from working all day. You always try so hard even if it hurts yourself. I suppose that’s why I fell in love with you. Anyway, take your bath, and when you're done I will have dinner ready. I know you eat nothing but convenience store lunches when I’m not here.”

I heard Sayaka get up and leave.

What just happened? This brat just took control of the conversation.

...like she was my actual wife.

This couldn't be true. I clearly remember not getting married to anyone, let alone a student, which could end my career. In fact I clearly remember being single for the past five years. There is no way I could've gotten married.

Maybe Sayaka was right: I was overworked. Maybe this Sayaka was an illusion created by my tired subconscious.

I buried my head in the hot water and counted to sixty. I rinsed myself using the shower head, then continued with my bath. After a nice long luxurious bath I got out and found that there was a towel outside the door.

Ah — I must've put it there after running into the bathroom.

I dried myself off, and with the towel around my waist, walked into the kitchen to get myself a nice cold beer.

A high school girl was standing in the kitchen. It was Yamamoto Sayaka.

I rubbed my eyes hard and blinked several times. She was still here.

"Huh? Why are you — are you not an illusion?"

Sayaka turned to me.

"How rude,” Sayaka said and puffed up her cheeks. "I travel across dimensions, and you think that I'm not real?"

“I don't understand."

"Put on some clothes, and we will eat dinner."

For whatever reason I decided to listen to her. It felt completely natural to follow the words of a girl who was so much younger than me.

I put on my indoor clothes, then sat down at the table.

Sayaka put a bowl of rice, miso soup, grilled salmon and side dishes in front of me.

"Dear, eat before it gets cold. I think today's salmon turned out even better than last time~"

"No."

"Hmm?"

I grabbed her wrist.

"Who are you? You're not the Sayaka I teach at school."

Sayaka gave me a blank look, crackled with gentle laughter, and looked away with a slight blush.

“I suppose I will have to explain..."

She sat down on my lap.

"Hey, what do you think you're doing?"

"Sitting down?"

"Why are you sitting on my lap?"

"Isn't this normal?"

"No, this isn't normal."

I gently pushed her away.

"Hnghh," she puffed up one cheek, but didn't offer resistance. She got up, but stood next to me while I was sitting, so that my arm was touching her skirt. A little closer and my hand would be brushing against her thigh.

I shifted away. What has gotten into her? Somehow she was completely different from the Sayaka I knew. There was a casual intensity to her that girls her age usually didn't have.

"You are Sayaka, right?" I asked, even though that question sounded stupid to me.

"Of course, I am your Sayaka," she said and laughed gently. "Dear, you are being ridiculous."

"Why are you talking like this?"

Sayaka gave me a blank look. She tilted her head a little and blinked a few times. Then she made an 'O' shape with her lips, as if she had just realized something important.

"Now I get it," she said.

"I don't get anything," I said.

She pulled out a chair on the other side of the table and sat down.

"Since we haven’t started dating in this world yet, I suppose formal introduction are needed."

"Huh?"

Sayaka bowed, placing the tips of her fingers on the table, with her thumbs touching.

"My name is Yamamoto Sayaka, and from today onwards I will be living with you as your wife. Please take good care of me."

"Get out."

“Ehhhhhhhhh, that's so mean!"

I had a hunch about what was going on. An idea buried in the back of my mind was pushing its way to the front.

"Show me your student ID."

"Ehh? Really?"

“Yes, as your teacher I must ask you to show me your ID."

Sayaka looked at me, smiled and then broke out laughing.

"Pffff, ahahahaha!"

I just stared at her as she laughed.

"Sorry, sorry," she said. "It's just that you can look so adorable when you are being serious."

"Hey — "

She sat down across the table and pulled a plastic card out of her skirt pocket.

"This is my student ID." She slid the card across the table.

I took a look at it.

It was indeed an ID issued by the school Sayaka attended and where I worked at. Her written name, picture and birthday all matched up.

But there was something off about this ID card. It's not as if this was fake because there'd be no reason for a high school girl to fake her student status. But something didn't feel right about this ID.

"Did you run away from home?" I asked.

"Eh? Why would I run away from home?"

"THEN WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!"

Without intending to, I had raised my voice. The easy smile fell from her face, and she shrunk back.

I sighed. I felt pathetic for raising my voice in front of one of my students.

"I'm sorry," I muttered.

"It's okay."

I looked at her and saw a loving expression on her face — an expression that could unconditionally forgive me for anything, like it was…true love.

Sayaka took her miso soup and drank.

"Let's eat dinner before it gets cold, and after that I will explain everything."

Without waiting for my answer, Sayaka picked up her chopsticks, said, "itadakimasu," and began to eat.

…

"Itadakimasu," I mumbled and began to eat.

It was strange how I got completely caught up in her pace, but I felt it would be stupid to continue resisting and letting the food go cold.

The salmon's seasoning was perfect, and the miso soup's saltiness was different from the instant miso soup I usually had. But something I always drank while eating dinner wasn’t here. I glanced at my fridge.

“Here.”

Sayaka slid over a can of beer.

"I know you want one, but only one can per night, okay? It's unhealthy."

I didn't know what to say in response. This brat who had forgotten to do her homework just last week was now acting like a wife.

Something was wrong.

Something was different.

I was halfway through the meal when I finally understood what had gnawed on me this entire time.

I dropped my chopsticks and took a look at her student ID again.

Ah — I think my hunch might be right.

I rushed to the entrance to get my workbag. I pulled out my laptop and spent a few minutes finding a document I hadn't opened in a long time.

It was a document containing the name, addresses and student IDs of all the students in my class.

A moment later I found Sayaka's name on the list. I looked at the ID number. It was completely different from the ID number that was on the card she gave me.

"Sayaka, show me the marriage registration form again."

"Ehhh, you haven't finished your food yet."

"Just show me."

"Hmph." She pouted her lips, but she pulled out the paper and handed it to me.

My name, her name, our details, signatures and personal stamp. It didn't look like it had been forged. But there was one detail I had overlooked while I was in the bath.

The date.

The date of marriage was one year from today's date. Which meant that this form and this girl had either come from the future, or this marriage form was a high quality forgery.

"Seiji, you look like you have figured something out." Sayaka said while drinking the last of her miso soup. She looked at me and smiled with her eyes. "I know I promised to explain everything, but why don't you tell me what you've figured out?"

The way she suddenly disappeared and then showed up again. The way her personality had changed in subtle but significant ways. The way she acted around me with the attitude of a cheeky newlywed wife.

I think I finally understood the reason for all this.

"There are three possibilities," I said.

"Mhmm~ Go on?"

"You've decided to run away from home, hit your head somewhere, and your personality changed."

"Pffff — ahahahaha, oh Seiji, you are so cute."

"The second possibility is that I am in a sick and twisted reality TV show, and we are being filmed right now. This marriage form is a forgery, and you are an actress who looks like the Sayaka whom I teach."

"Hmmm, you have a good imagination. And what is your third theory?"

"I died, didn't notice that I am dead, and I am now living in an alternate reality until I realize that I'm dead."

"That last theory is interesting. But no, you are wrong."

We sat across each other. She had a relaxed look on her face. I waited for her to explain.

Sayaka put down her chopsticks, took a tissue and dabbed her lips. Then she sat upright with her hands in her lap.

"My name Yamamoto Sayaka. I am the Yamamoto Sayaka from a parallel universe, and I've come to this universe to be your wife all over again. This marriage form, even though the date doesn't match with the date in this world, is one-hundred percent authentic. Where I come from, you and I are lovers, and we also got married. That is the truth."

"A parallel universe...?"

"That's right~"

"And in your universe you and I are lovers and decided to get married?"

"Mh-hmm~"

"I don't believe you."

"Ehhhh — why?"

"I don't remember us ever being lovers. I would never go out with a student, much less get married to one. Even if it’s a Seiji in a parallel universe, I believe that I wouldn’t do something like this.”

I pointed at her. "And you clearly aren't Sayaka; the way you talk and behave is completely different from the Sayaka that I know!”

“That’s not fair! My universe is one year ahead of yours. It took some time, but I managed to seduce you!”

"Teacher and student becoming lovers and getting married is something that happens only in manga and not real life."

"Gezz, you are more stubborn than the Seiji I knew." She huffed and put her hands on her hips.

“The Seiji you knew…” I wonder if the me in a parallel universe was someone who would marry his student.

“Alright! Then I'll have to prove to you that everything I said was true."

"How will you prove it?"

Sayaka bit her lower lip and smiled. It was the smile of a woman.

She came over to my side of the table. She straddled me and wrapped her arms around my neck.

"What are you — "

She leaned down and kissed me. Her lips were warm and soft. I involuntarily breathed in her scent and felt her warmth through her uniform.

"Hnghhh!" I tried to resist, but she was stronger than I expected. She refused to move. She kissed me even harder, with a sense of desperation, and her tongue parted my lips.

"That's enough!" I pushed her off me, and she fell onto the floor.

I breathed heavily. That — that was...

"Heh-heh~ Was that your first kiss?"

I looked down at Sayaka. She was on the floor, leaning back on her hands, her legs slightly apart. I could see her pink panties.

"Did that get a reaction out of you? Do you finally believe me?" She looked me in the eyes. "We can do that, if you want. That kiss kind of put me in the mood...so..."

I got up, grabbed my shoes and left the apartment.

[1700 words for this section, 4163 words total]

I ran without a goal in mind. I only knew that I needed to get away from my apartment.

The neighborhood streets were empty. Everyone was at home, preparing to go to sleep, watching TV or doing whatever they needed to do to relax at the end of the day.

Usually I’d be drinking an ice cold beer and eating dinner alone. Then I'd watch a TV show on my computer or play a game. But instead I was running outside, because if I didn't run, I don't think I would've been able to control myself when she was saying things like that.

Eventually I stopped at a local playground, the kind of playground with just a swing and a slide and a sandpit that hadn’t been touched by anyone in ages. The street lights were dim and few moths accompanied the lonely lights.

I sat down at the end of a slide, and buried my face in my hands.

"Ugh..."

The image of Sayaka on the floor, her skirt riding up her thighs, her panties fully visible — and that look she gave me, and those words she said.

"We can do that, if you want." She said she was in the mood after the kiss.

She was in her uniform, still a brat, but her words and expression were that of a woman. She somehow reminded me of the only girlfriend I had before, when I was still in university, even though they were nothing alike.

Would I have I accepted her offer if I didn’t run away? Would be doing that right now?

Did she really mean it? Was she really in that kind of mood?

"Shit..." I mumbled.

I always thought of myself as an upstanding adult, a good tax-paying member of society with a spotless record; the fact that I worked as a teacher exemplified this. I always felt disgusted when I saw news reports about adults having illicit relations with high school students.

And I almost became one of them.

Even when my female students teased me and sat in careless poses around the classroom, I never felt so much as an inkling of attraction. In my eyes they were just brats.

But this Sayaka was not a brat.

"What the hell am I even thinking.”

Sayaka said she was from a parallel universe, and that we were married.

Assuming that was true, did that mean that some version of me in a parallel universe decided to go out with a student, even going as far as living together and signing a marriage form?

Living together…did that mean we’ve already done that together? Based on how she behaved, it was certainly possible.

I thought back to the last 'normal' conversation I had with Sayaka before she disappeared for a week; was there any chance of a romantic relationship developing from that?

No, I don't think so.

But based on how this Sayaka behaved, she clearly considered herself to be my girlfriend, my lover, my wife.

I sighed.

My head hurt. This was too much.

The evening breeze blew across the playground, and I felt a chill. I wore only a T-Shirt and shorts. It was early May, and it was still cool enough at night to feel a little chill.

"I better go back."

I went home and found the door was unlocked.

Part of me hoped that everything had gone back to normal, but this hope was dashed when I found Sayaka sleeping on my bed.

She was lying on the bed in her uniform, her knees raised to her chest and her hands drawn in. Her top shirt buttons were undone and her red ribbon was loose around her neck. She was breathing softly.

Good grief, did she never learn not to leave herself exposed like this in a man's apartment?

...or maybe she did this on purpose?

I sighed.

With her legs drawn up like that, I could see her full thighs, her skirt just barely hiding her panties.

“What a brat.”

All of the sudden she didn't look like a young wife commanding me; she had returned to being the brat that she was.

I wanted to wake her up to ask her more questions, but I couldn't bring myself to disturb this peaceful sleeping expression.

Instead I pulled the blanket over her.

"Hmmngh~" She smiled gently.

Was she dreaming about something nice?

There was still an unfinished can of beer on the table. I decided to finish it because it would be a waste otherwise. It would go well with the baumkuchen bread I found in the classroom today.

Japanese baumkuchen was sweet and gentle in its flavor. It wasn't the perfect drinking snack, but I liked it.

Hmm?

The bread I had put down in the living room was gone. I clearly remember putting it on the table.

How strange.

I finished the can of beer, and then brushed my teeth. I got out a spare blanket and fell asleep on the floor next to my bed, the bed where Sayaka was sleeping in.

Actually there was enough space on the bed for two people (Sayaka didn't take up much space), but I couldn't just jump into bed with a high school girl...

With those thoughts, I gradually fell asleep.