That’s How I Went On Two Christmas Dates - I (Sensei)

Summer arrived with a flourish of heat. Fall emerged with its comfortable weather and the stunning transformation of foliage into fiery oranges, reds, and browns. And winter blanketed the earth in a serene hush as snowflakes fell like petals from a flower. The world became a canvas of monochrome elegance, and the air carried a biting and chilling sensation. As I walked through a white blanket of snow that covered the path in front of me, I admired the winter wonderland that I found myself in. A snowy mantle transformed the trees; their leaves dropped from the weight of the snow, and every branch was coated with a glistening coat of white. The snowy path I trudged along made a nice crunching sound, but its thickness made it hard to walk on. Even with the thick winter gear I was wearing, I could still feel the cold bites of winter’s wind. In addition, it was almost Christmas, which meant shopping sprees and parties galore. But it also meant couples would be going out on Christmas dates.

Last night, while hanging out in my bedroom, Karou asked me a question.

“Sozen, can we go out on the twenty-fourth?”

“The twenty-fourth? Isn’t that…”

“Christmas Eve.”

December 24, otherwise known as Christmas Eve, has become associated with romantic couples activities. Couples would go exchange presents, go on romantic dates, and enjoy special meals together. It’s considered an opportunity for couples to express their affection for one another.

Why did Karou ask me if I was available then? We aren’t a couple. Was she asking me on a date?

“I don’t have any plans.”

“Then, can we?”

“Sure.”

“You promise?”

“I promise.”

But then a similar situation happened the day after. During my coffee time with Sensei, she asked me a question that I thought she would never ask me.

“Kurosawa, are you available on the twenty-fourth?”

“The twenty-fourth? Isn’t that…”

“Christmas Eve.”

But why would Sensei ask me if I was available on that specific date? Was she asking me on a date? But then I remembered the promise I made with Karou to go out with her on that day.

“Sorry, Sensei, but I already have plans then.

“I see. Then can you make time for me the day before?”

She must really want to meet up with me. “Yes. I’m not busy that day.”

“Really?” She seemed elated to hear that, but she cleared her throat and reverted back to her normal calm self. “Good. I’ll pick you up at your house then.”

December 23. I was leaving to meet with Sensei when I saw her red coupe parked outside our house. She was wearing a big furry brown coat, and it seemed like she had a little bit of makeup on (not like she needs it).

The restaurant she were going to was a bit far from our town. When we arrived, we were greeted by the staff, who kindly guided us to our reserved table.

“Wow!”

“A friend of mine recommended it to me.”

“I didn’t think you would take me to a place like this.”

“Don’t feel pressured. It’s a casual foreign restaurant, so it’s not that expensive.”

We indulged ourselves in some exotic, foreign dishes; every bite of the food took us on a delicious journey. The connection between the elegant cultural taste and our taste buds teleported us to paradise. But then the check came along—the price was reasonable, and I wanted to be a gentleman to Sensei, so I offered to pay. But when I looked for my wallet, the embarrassment was immeasurable.

“I’m sorry, Sensei. I can’t find my wallet.”

“Hey, it’s okay. I wouldn’t want a student of mine to pay for my meal anyway. Think of it as a reward.”

“A reward for what?”

“Oh—Um—A reward for—you know—almost finishing school?”

Why was that a question?

“Um, okay. But, thank you, Sensei.”

“Of course.”

As we were about to leave, I heard my family name called out. “Kurosawa, right?”

I recognised the group of boys who called me as some of my sister’s friends from her university.

“You’re Reika-chan’s brother, right? You are, aren’t you?”

“Yes. Why do you ask?” It was clear they were very drunk.

“How’s your sister doing? Is she still in rehab?”

“No, not anymore.”

“Oh really? I thought she’d take longer, to be honest. I mean, you should have seen her at the parties. She would chug bottles of alcohol one after another. She was hella fun when she was drunk. She would jump on the tables and twerk with that hot ass. Oh, your sister’s single, right? Let her know that I’m available, and also let her know I wouldn’t mind giving her something else to be addicted to.”

A surge of anger swept through me like a tidal wave. The way they spoke about my sister ignited a fierce protective fire in my eyes. I would not listen to them insult her any longer. Standing up, I stared into their souls, threatening them with my unspoken scorn.

“Kurosawa—“

“Woah. We have a strong guy over here. What? Are you gonna fight us?”

My hand formed a fist of rage, ready to impound him into the ground. But it was quickly calmed down by a delicate touch. Sensei stood up from her seat and faced the boys.

“Step away.”

“Who the hell are you supposed to be? Who do you think you are, you bit—“

Tired of their arrogance, Sensei slapped the leader across the face. He tried to attack her, but I splashed some of the hot tea she had ordered in their faces. I grabbed Sensei’s hand and ushered her away from the scene.

“Let’s go.” I turned to the rest of the customers and the staff. “Sorry, everyone! Enjoy your dinner.”

Leaving behind our payment, we ran out of the restaurant, but the boys gave chase. Hand in hand, we continued to run until we entered a park. Thinking quickly, Sensei dragged me behind a tree. We listened as our pursuers failed to find us and swiftly move on. Once the coast was clear, we both let out a huge sigh of relief, which then turned to a fit of laughter as we could not believe what we had just done.

In the cold embrace of winter’s night, we sat down by the river, the moonlight illuminating the surface of the water.

“I can’t believe we just did that.”

“Neither can I. That slap was awesome, Sensei.”

“Speak for yourself. Throwing that tea in their faces was some quick thinking.”

“Yeah. We should probably go back there one day and apologise properly to the staff, especially since they were so polite.”

“Yes. I agree.”

Beneath the winter moonlight’s soft glow, our eyes met. Time momentarily froze, the winter wonderland fading to a mere backdrop for this tender moment. We found ourselves drawn to each other by an unspoken longing. Our breaths mingled in the frosty air, each tense exhale visible. The tips of our fingers were almost touching. I could see Sensei’s soft skin, her cheeks dyed red, and her eyes glistening like diamonds in the sky. Our lips were mere heartbeats away from each other. But we dared not succumb to the magnetic pull. Sensei looked down, self-conscious about what she was about to do.

“Ah, so I guess it’s like that, huh?”

“What?”

“Nothing. I’ll tell you one day.” She stood up and turned to me. “Shall we go?”

“O-okay.”

That was the end of our thrilling date. I returned home exhausted.

“Where have you been?” Karou inquire. “It’s almost eleven in the night.”

“Sorry.”

“Whose car was that anyway?”

I didn’t want to tell her that I was with Sensei, so I lied. “It was Yoshi’s mum. She offered to drop me off.”

“When did you say you were going to meet Yoshi-kun?”

“Oh, he told me.” I looked up at the stairs to see my sister standing there. “I forgot to tell you, Karou. Sorry.”

“Oh, I see. Well, you should probably take a bath since you came from the cold.”

“I will.”

Karou returned to her bedroom, leaving my sister and I alone. She walked up to me.

“That was that Sensei, wasn’t it?”

“Yes.”

“So are you two dating?”

“No! We’re student and teacher.”

“Even if you aren’t dating, you should be careful when you go out with her. You don’t want a scandal to start.”

“I know.”

“As long as you’re aware, then that’s fine. Now go take a shower.”

Before I went to the bathroom, I quickly hugged my sister.

“What is this?”

“I just want you to know I love you, Onee-san.”

“I love you too.”

After taking a nice, warm shower, I laid down on my bed and looked at my phone. I noticed I had a message from Sensei, so I opened it.

“Thank you for the good day. I hope we can do something like this another time.”

“I should be the one thanking you for the delicious food.”

“It’s all good. Have a good night.”

“You too. Good night.”

Today was an odd day. Sensei and I went on what one would call a date; we ate at a nice restaurant, and we got into a hustle with some university students. But the moment that I reflected on most was the moment at the river. What was that attraction I felt towards Sensei? It was like I wanted to give into a desire, even if I knew it was wrong. Sensei didn’t mention it after that, but I can’t help but wonder what she was thinking at that moment. And she said something that made me curious. Is there something she wanted to say at that moment? My mind was filled with theories as to what Sensei implied when she said she’d tell me something another time.

Suddenly, Karou knocked on my door.

“Come in.”

“Hey, Sozen. I know you’re a bit tired, but I just wanted to check if we were okay for tomorrow.”

“Ah, yeah. I’m good for tomorrow.”

“Great! Well, I’ll let you sleep. Good night.”

“Good night.”

With that, I was reminded that I was going out with Karou the next day.