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Like Romeo and Juliet
Romance can spark in the most unexpected places between the most unexpected people. Student Hirai Momo, with a difficult incident from last year weighing on her shoulders, meets new history teacher Minatozaki Sana - a fresh face in the school determined to leave her mark. Worlds collide and feelings begin to make themselves known, but how are they ever supposed to manage?
(This story can also be found on AO3 and Wattpad under the same username)
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CHAPTER ONE - SEATING PLANS
“Part of me didn’t think you’d come back to school after... you know.” Tzuyu trails off, awkwardly motioning toward nothing in particular with her hands as the two of them enter the building. The topic wasn’t necessarily taboo, especially when it was all the entire school spoke about for the final two weeks of last term. ‘ You know’ . Momo can’t blame them for gossiping. If it hadn’t had been her on the receiving end of a slap across the face by her history teacher, she’d have been gossiping about it too. But it just had to be her, didn’t it?
“It wasn’t that bad.” Momo mumbles as she idly fidgets with the straps of her backpack.
“Tell that to yourself. You’ve had a face like a slapped ass since I met you at the bus stop.”
“It’s school, Tzu, everyone does.” Momo defends herself with a soft sigh to follow. “I just... need to get back into the swing of things. Besides, it’s a new term. New classes, new seating plans, new--”
“--Teachers?”
“Exactly. Preferably ones that can keep their hands to themselves.” Momo adds on the end to earn a laugh from Tzuyu, in which she succeeds. “Seriously though, I’m fine. It’s like a fresh start, y’know? Everyone probably forgot about it now, it’s been six weeks.” Momo leans up against the locker beside Tzuyu’s as she watches her fumble with the padlock and key.
“Who knows – maybe Dahyun will fuck up her piano performance again and replace you on the list of ‘most embarrassing school experiences’.” Tzuyu jokes about their classmate as she pulls out a few Geography textbooks from her locker. “Not that I wish that on her really, you know that.”
Momo found it amusing how Tzuyu would instantly feel guilty over making such jokes despite her knowing there was no truth to them. She had a heart of gold, it was cute. “Geography...?” Momo asks, nodding to the textbook and brushing past the previous topic at hand.
“Oh. Yeah-- I told Chaeyoung she could have my old textbooks to help her out since she’s been falling behind.” A pause, before a playful smirk finds its way to Tzuyu’s lips. “Don’t look so worried, I haven’t switched from History and abandoned you just yet. Speaking of, you didn’t show me your schedule.” She closes the locker with her forearm as Momo reaches into her own backpack, pulling out her paper class schedule for Tzuyu to take. She does, and Momo peeks over to look at it with her.
“Speak of the devil. History, first period. You better be in my class or else I’m switching.” Momo holds her hand out, palm upward and waiting to take Tzuyu’s schedule to compare the two. To her relief, they do, in fact, share the class. History, 9am with... “Miss Minatozaki?” Momo reads the name aloud. “Is she new?”
Tzuyu hums in thought as she leads the two toward their tutor room. “Maybe? I haven’t heard the name before, but it could just be because she didn’t teach our year group.” She had a point. There are teachers that have worked here for decades, and Momo wouldn’t be able to name them, simply because they only taught the older students or something.
“Maybe. I’ll kind of miss having history in the afternoon, even if it was with Miss Kim. She was fine until she wasn’t.” Momo admits, resulting in a pitiful pat on the back from Tzuyu as the two sit down at one of the desks.
“Honestly, same. But I’m also kind of glad she got kicked out; she kept pronouncing my name wrong.” Tzuyu jokes, and Momo laughs softly for the first time all morning.
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The bell rings to indicate the start of the actual school day. 8.55am, giving them 5 minutes to get to class before the second bell. Momo and Tzuyu swiftly leave their tutor room and make their way toward the humanities section of the building ready for History. Dread filled her knowing it was the same classroom as before.
“I was going to text Jihyo to ask if she’d heard of Miss Minatozaki, but I forgot.” Tzuyu muses aloud upon their arrival. “... doesn’t look like she’s here yet though. Hey, maybe she won’t show up and we get a free period.”
“If that’s the case, I’d rather have stayed in bed.” Momo grumbles as she steps into the room, walking over to the seating plan that had been printed and stuck on the wall. Her eyes scan the piece of paper in search of her name, praying to God it wasn’t right at the front.
“Hey, you’re on the table next to me.” Tzuyu points to Momo’s name on the paper. It’s times like this that Momo is convinced the universe hates her. Sure, she’s right at the front, but it’s her exact same seat as last term. Right in front of Miss Kim’s damn desk. They haven’t even removed her name from it yet.
“Fuck...” Momo whispers to herself, pinching the bridge of her nose. “I’m seeing if I can get away with sitting at the back though. You coming?”
Tzuyu takes a second look at the paper but shakes her head soon after. “Maybe not on the very first lesson. She’ll probably notice.”
“That’s a risk I’m willing to take.” Momo’s words drip with playfulness. It’s not long before she’s sat comfortably at the table in the far-right corner of the classroom. Out of sight, out of mind. That is, until Nayeon walks through the door. Of-fucking-course she’s in this class. Nayeon has already greeted Momo with a piercing glare, to which she receives one in return. It was her fault Momo was in the chaos with Miss Kim anyway--
“Hello ~” The sound of an oddly enthusiastic voice rings through the classroom, breaking Momo from her thoughts. Her gaze flickers up to the front of the room to land on the back of a brown head of hair, who she can only assume belongs to Miss Minatozaki. Her assumptions are confirmed after she writes her name on the white board with a marker. “I’ll wait until the second bell to give any late arrivals a chance. Show them mercy on their first day.” she snickers to herself. Momo finds herself staring impatiently at the back of her head, waiting ever so curiously to see what she looked like. She’s too busy fiddling with papers and books, however.
She takes the opportunity to look over her outfit. Miss Kim always dressed like a Victorian, but not this one. Miss Minatozaki had some kind of white cardigan-sweater thing on, black slacks and neatly straightened hair. It was only when she turned that Momo noticed she had bangs too. She’s definitely not seen this teacher before; she would have remembered.
“Okay... seating plan.” The teacher mumbles to herself as she takes her copy of the printed seating plan, using a pen to tick off each student in the right seat. Momo is slightly distracted by her appearance to notice. Too busy taking in her features as though to commit them to memory. She’s pretty, anyone could see that.
“You... at the back.” Miss Minatozaki looks up from the piece of paper in her hands as a single brow raises quizzically. “It says here that table is supposed to be empty. Why aren’t you in the correct seat?”
“Because she was bitch slapped at the front by Miss Kim last term.” Nayeon interrupts, earning a quiet fit of laughter from a few of their classmates. It’s typical of the school’s most popular girl to be a total bitch. Momo doesn’t know how she’s managed to survive classes with her before. She’s intolerable.
“Fuck off, Nayeon--”
“HEY.” The sound of Miss Minatozaki’s voice cuts through the laughter like a hot knife to butter, silencing them immediately. “I won’t tolerate language like that in my classroom.” She points to Momo with the tip of her ballpoint pen, earning a scoff from Momo herself. “Be quiet, both of you, or I’ll give you lunch time detention. I’m sure you’d love to spend even more time together.” she adds sarcastically. Momo must admit, the switch up from her previously … lighthearted personality took her by surprise, but it worked. Nayeon didn’t say another word, and Momo slumped back into her seat.
After a moment of silence, Miss Minatozaki's gaze drifts back over to Momo. “I suppose that makes you Hirai Momo. Am I correct?” Miss Minatozaki asks, eyes still glued to a frustrated Momo sitting at the back end of the classroom. She earns a small nod of confirmation. Momo supposes she’s been informed about the mishaps of last term. Just great. How is she supposed to ever move on? “C’mon...” Her slender fingers tap the table directly in front of her, indicating for Momo to move to her usual seat. Her eyes seem to have softened from before, much like her voice, and Momo notices. She isn’t in the mood to cause another scene, so she reluctantly obliges – reaching to grab her backpack from beneath her seat and walk toward the other. Collapsing into it dramatically to show her lack of care yet her eyes are avoiding the curious gaze of the teacher. “Thank you.” Miss Minatozaki begins, before taking a few steps back and toward the presentation on the board. What a terrible start.
Momo hears the familiar whisper of her friend, and the creak of her chair as she leans over to gossip. “Nayeon is such a bitch. I’d have punched her.”
“Next time, Tzuyu. Next time.”
“As I was going to say. My name is Miss Minatozaki,” The teacher points to her name on the white board off to the side, then making her way toward the smart board beside it. “You have me for history class this year. How about we go around the room and introduce ourselves?” she suggests with a mischievous glint in her eye, and upon seeing the panicked expressions on the students’ faces, she’s quick to explain her humour. ”Relax, I’m kidding. You should see your faces.” Miss Minatozaki laughs softly to herself. The sound earns a small, subconscious smile from Momo as she watches her new teacher at work. “Anyway, to cut to the chase. Our core topic for this year: The Great Plains and their native tribes.” There were a few quiet groans, and a loud one from Nayeon, but Momo remains quiet. It’s as though the teacher had reached into her brain – she loves this topic. Easy grades, perhaps...? Maybe it won’t be as bad as she thought.
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“So. Turn to the person next to you, and I want you to discuss what we covered today without looking at your books. Let’s see how good your memory is, hm?” Miss Minatozaki sets the task for the students, and they get to work immediately. All but Momo, who doesn’t share her table with anyone. She looks up to the teacher with an indescribable expression, and she’s quick to make her way over. “Momo, you can pair with me for today.” Ah. She’s relieved, but she’s sure she can feel Nayeon’s eyes burning lasers into the back of her head.
“Uhm.” Momo clears her throat as Miss Minatozaki takes a seat in the spare chair beside her and eyes her expectantly. She looks... different so close up. The same, but different. In a nice way. “Well...” Momo is usually okay with eye contact, but today, it’s failing her. Her gaze seems to dart around everywhere, only able to hold the eye contact with Miss Minatozaki for a few seconds at a time. “I think the part I find most interesting is the tribe’s use of the buffalo. How they find a way to use every part and not waste it.”
The teacher nods as she hums in thought, “Can you list a couple of the uses for me?”
“There’s... they use the skin for their tipi and the fur for clothes. The hooves for glue, and the tongue as a hairbrush. They also ate the meat, but that goes without saying.” Momo gives a little lighthearted chuckle. Miss Minatozaki has a gentle smile present, though Momo is sure she can hear Tzuyu repeating everything she’s saying to her table partner to sound smart.
“Mhh. And do you remember how they catch the buffalo?” The teacher asks, glancing down to Momo’s book to make sure it’s definitely closed.
“They herd them off the cliff edge.” She answers right away, and Miss Minatozaki begins to grin.
“I’m impressed. You take in the information well.”
“I just like this topic, that’s all.”
“I’m glad.” She pats her hand against the surface of the table before standing up and making her way back to the front. “Right,” she claps to gain the attention of the other students, “we only have a couple of minutes left, I didn’t realize, so I’d like everyone to pass their books toward the front and make a neat pile. Then you can get your stuff ready.”
“Hey. Momo...” A voice speaks from the table behind her, making her turn. “You okay? I don’t wanna pry, but you’re a lot quieter than last term.” her classmate Dahyun asks softly – almost cautiously as she packs her stuff away. It confuses Momo. She and Dahyun are more like distant acquaintances than anything, so her concern came as a surprise.
“I’m okay.” That’s all she says at first, but after a tiny sigh, she begins again. “Things are just a bit different now. I was... humbled, to say the least.” She says lightheartedly, and Dahyun snickers to herself. “I prefer this teacher anyway. She seems nice.” Momo throws a glance in the direction of Miss Minatozaki, just to find her already looking their way. Gaze quickly averted and back to Dahyun.
“Yeah, honestly? I always thought Miss Kim had a stick up her ass. Like... what’s so serious about Vikings--” Dahyun stops mid-sentence as Miss Minatozaki approaches the two of them.
“Sorry for interrupting ladies.” She briefly apologizes, more so to Dahyun. “Momo. Stay behind for a moment, I’d like a chat.” With that comes a sense of dread. What did she want to discuss? The only thing coming to mind is her outburst with Nayeon at the beginning of class, and—oh god.
The first bell rings. Momo says her brief goodbyes to Dahyun and tells Tzuyu to wait for her outside. As soon as the door closes behind the final student, Momo immediately bows with apology, “I’m really sorry for cursing at the start of class, Miss Minatozaki. It won’t happen again.” There’s a long silence. Momo tries to look up without breaking her bow, seeing the teacher take a step closer.
“Good... there will never be swearing in this classroom under any circumstances. I appreciate your apology,” Miss Minatozaki lightly pats Momo on the shoulder, indicating her to stand up straight again, “but that’s not why I held you back here. This incident with Miss Kim--”
“I don’t--” Momo interrupts, but she’s silenced by the simple action of Miss Minatozaki raising her hand between the two of them.
“This incident with Miss Kim, I won’t allow it to be an issue within my classroom. Do you understand?”
Momo’s expression contorts into one of confusion. “... Respectfully, it wasn’t me that brought it up. It was--”
“Nayeon, I know. Momo, this isn’t me scolding you. Allow me to rephrase.” She takes a few steps back to pick up a stack of class books from another front desk, gaze focused on the task at hand rather than Momo. “I won’t allow others to make this an issue for you. I failed today. I underestimated the power of student gossip.” Miss Minatozaki looks back up to Momo with a small smile, “But I’m hoping you’ll give me a second chance to redeem myself.” Her eyes seem to curve like crescent moons the more she smiles, and it’s difficult for Momo not to notice. How could such a sweet teacher switch up in a matter of a second the way she did earlier? It’s impressive, really.
“Oh.” Momo finally manages to get out after a moment too long of staring, trying to process Miss Minatozaki’s words. “... Thank you. Consider it a fresh start. No redeeming necessary.” Momo chuckles awkwardly and earns yet another smile from the teacher. “Really though, I appreciate it. I was hoping everyone would have forgotten by now, y’know?” She admits to which Miss Minatozaki hums in agreement.
“Likewise. The student body needs an interesting topic of conversation twenty-four hours of the day or else it will wither and die. Dramatic, I know, but I learned a thing or two from personal experience.” Personal experience...? Of course, Momo wanted to take their current conversation much further out of curiosity, but the dreaded 10am science class awaits her.
Momo clears her throat and proceeds to bow slightly toward Miss Minatozaki. “I should get going to my next class. Thanks again for...” She trails off and bows a final time before backing out of the door; there’s a tiny smile plastered on her lips. Miss Minatozaki doesn’t respond verbally but does shoot another warm smile her way with a tiny wave.
The teacher seemed to know the rundown of what happened with Miss Kim, so she can only assume the headmaster filled her in on the details. At least the elephant in the room is … no longer in the room – for history class, anyway. That’s one less thing Momo has to worry about this term.
[AUTHOR NOTES: This is my first time writing and posting a fanfic so I hope it's okay! I'm also new to Tumblr so sorry if it's laid out weird or something, I'm not sure how it works yet. I know chapter one is a bit short, it's mostly an introduction to get the basics set up. I'd appreciate the support on this story! and I hope you enjoy the future chapters too, I'm very excited about this! Also, I have avoided mentioning age because I don't know how to approach this -- I don't want things to be weird with age but I also feel like it doesn't make sense for Momo to be 18 and in high school, please let me know your thoughts in the comments/notes?]