I quickly released his hand. The minute we were on the bike, Teacher Wang laughed and told me, "You act like my younger sister".
After hear that my earlier fire instantly quenched by his simple, familial comparison.
First, we dropped Teacher Wang home. Then, as Anin drove me, I was about to enter the gate when he spoke, keeping my helmet on his bike said teasingly, . "So...you have a crush on him."
"None of your business," I snapped, locking the gate behind me.
Two days later, I was consumed by one idea ,I had to take Teacher Wang's class before he left. The only way was to skip Chinese Level 2A and enroll directly in Level 2B, which he was scheduled to teach.
If I didn't skip, I wouldn't have him as a teacher. I had to ask.
I texted him, laying out my entire predicament: "Teacher, I'm going to bother you again. I need your help. I don't know what I should do. I want to skip Level 2A. But I talked to my Level 1 teacher, and she told me to take both classes. Every day, I wake up at 6:20 a.m. and have to take the university bus. I return home at 8:00 p.m. after finishing my classes and tutoring my students. Then, I still need to complete my homework. I don't even get weekends off. Everything feels exhausting, and I really don't have time to attend two classes simultaneously. I want to finish Level 2 soon because I need to apply to China; otherwise, I feel like I'll be completely lost. Now help me. Tell me what I should do."
His reply was simple and pragmatic, "Have you seen 2A content? Can you study 2A lessons by yourself?"
"I have bought the HSK 2 book," I replied. "But I don't know from which lesson to which lesson will be covered in Level 2A."
He immediately gave me all the details. I promised myself I would study alone. I was driven by something close to madness, but the motivation was pure: him.
Teacher Wang said I had to take an exam before he would enroll me in Level 2B. That gave me ten days to complete three months' worth of study. I dove in, and for every difficulty I encountered, I texted him. He always helped.
On January 15th, the day of the first Level 2B class, I woke up early and was studying, unsure when he would administer the exam. My friend called and asked if I'd reached the class yet.
"No," I said. "There's still an hour left."
"No, the class is starting now!" she exclaimed.
What just happened? I hadn't properly checked the time. I was right, and yet she was right; the class time had shifted. How could I be late for his first class? I called her,
She said she overslept but was still going — she had another class later.
She was taking both 2A and 2B since she wasn't enrolled in university.
I couldn't. My schedule was already full..
I got ready and arrived as early as I possibly could.
To my relief, But Teacher didn't say anything.
He continued the class normally.
Still, I couldn't focus — I was just staring at him the whole time.When class ended and I was about to leave, he suddenly said,
"Benny, come to my office."
Did he see that I was staring at him?The thought echoed in my head as I followed him.
"Are you ready to take the exam?" he asked. I took a deep breath of relief.
"Teacher, I need two days more," I admitted.
"Okay," he agreed easily. I sat down. After a few moments, he looked at me and said, "Won't you leave?"
I felt a rush of embarrassment, stood up, and was about to head for the door when he stopped me. "Benny, come here, take a look," he said, showing me his phone.
I went near and looked at the screen. It was a beautiful girl standing right next to him.
Was it his girlfriend? I couldn't ask—