The classroom had become unusually quiet.
Only the ticking of the wall clock echoed through the empty room.
The golden evening sunlight slipped through the windows, painting long shadows across the desks.
I slowly opened Takoru’s mathematics notebook.
The first few pages were surprisingly neat.
Then…
Everything changed.
After Chapter One…
There were only half-finished equations.
Blank pages.
Random mechanical sketches.
Motorcycle parts.
Engine diagrams.
Even tiny calculations related to gear ratios.
I blinked.
“…You really stopped after the first chapter.”
Takoru leaned back in his chair.
“I told you.”
“I wasn’t joking.”
I couldn’t help letting out a small sigh.
“No wonder Mrs.
Sharma looked worried.”
He looked toward the ceiling.
“She always does.”
For a moment…
Neither of us spoke.
I picked up my pencil.
“Okay.”
“We’re not touching today’s homework.”
Takoru frowned.
“…Why?”
“Because if I start from there…”
“You’ll get confused.”
“So we’ll begin from the beginning.”
He looked at the open notebook before quietly asking,
“…Like teaching a child?”
I smiled softly.
“No.”
“Like helping someone who missed the road.”
For the first time…
Takoru didn’t answer immediately.
Instead…
He simply watched me.
His expression remained calm.
But something inside those dark eyes shifted ever so slightly.
I drew a simple triangle on a blank page.
“Tell me.”
“What do you know about triangles?”
Takoru stared at the drawing.
“They have…”
“…three sides.”
I looked at him.
He looked back.
Then…
Without warning…
We both started laughing.
It wasn’t loud.
It wasn’t dramatic.
Just a small…
Unexpected laugh that filled the empty classroom.
Outside the door…
Nesmin froze.
“…Boss laughed.”
Stevan didn’t even stop walking.
“I heard.”
“No.”
“You don’t understand.”
“Boss.”
“Laughed.”
Stevan looked through the classroom window.
Inside…
Takoru had already gone back to his usual calm expression.
“…Looks like,” Stevan said quietly,
“he finally found someone he doesn’t have to pretend around.”
Nesmin slowly smiled.
“…About time.”
Inside the classroom…
I continued drawing another triangle.
“Fine.”
“Let’s pretend we’ve never studied geometry before.”
Takoru rested his chin on one hand.
“…Sounds accurate.”
I shook my head, trying not to laugh again.
“You’re impossible.”
“And you’re patient.”
“…I don’t know if that’s a compliment.”
“It is.”
His answer came so naturally…
That for a second…
Neither of us realized what he had just said.
The evening sunlight quietly faded outside the window.
And without either of us noticing…
Their very first study session had already begun.
The laughter slowly faded.
For a few seconds…
Neither of us spoke.
I looked down at the triangle I had drawn before writing two small letters beside it.
A
B
C
“Geometry isn’t about memorizing formulas,” I said softly.
“It’s about understanding shapes.”
“…I’m already confused.”
I sighed dramatically.
“We’ve only been studying for three minutes.”
“I know.”
“And?”
“I’m exhausted.”
I stared at him.
“You haven’t solved a single question.”
“I got mentally tired.”
I couldn’t stop myself from laughing again.
“You really are unbelievable.”
He shrugged.
“I’ve been told that.”
I picked up another pencil.
“Fine.”
“Forget formulas.”
“Tell me something you actually like.”
He answered immediately.
“Motorcycles.”
“I guessed.”
“And?”
“Everything about them.”
I thought for a second.
Then…
An idea suddenly appeared.
I turned the notebook sideways and quickly sketched a motorcycle wheel.
Takoru blinked.
“…What are you doing?”
“Teaching.”
“With a bike?”
“Exactly.”
I drew three points around the wheel and connected them with straight lines.
“Imagine these three points are connected.”
“What shape do they make?”
Takoru looked carefully.
“…A triangle.”
“Exactly.”
I smiled.
“Now imagine the wheel moves.”
“The triangle moves with it.”
“But…”
“The distance between these points never changes.”
His eyes narrowed slightly.
He leaned closer.
“So…”
“The triangle keeps its shape.”
“Right.”
“And that’s why engineers use triangles almost everywhere.”
“They’re the strongest basic shape.”
Takoru slowly looked from the drawing…
To me.
“…Seriously?”
I nodded.
“Bridges.”
“Buildings.”
“Bike frames.”
“Even racing chassis.”
“They all use geometry.”
For the first time since we’d started studying…
He reached for the pencil himself.
“So…”
“If I understand motorcycles…”
“I can understand this too?”
I smiled.
“Exactly.”
“You were never bad at learning.”
“You were just learning in the wrong language.”
Silence.
Takoru looked at the notebook again.
Then quietly whispered,
“…Nobody explained it like that before.”
Something inside my chest tightened.
How many teachers had simply assumed he didn’t care?
How many people had mistaken confusion for laziness?
I slid the notebook back toward him.
“Try Question One again.”
This time…
He didn’t complain.
He carefully read the problem.
His eyebrows slowly knitted together.
He drew another triangle.
Erased it.
Drew it again.
Five minutes passed.
Then…
He circled an answer.
“I think…”
“…this is right.”
I checked the solution.
A smile slowly spread across my face.
“You solved it.”
He frowned.
“…Really?”
“Really.”
He looked almost suspicious.
“You’re not just encouraging me?”
I shook my head.
“No.”
“You actually solved it.” Read this novel at g.com for the best experience.
For a brief moment…
The confident leader everyone admired disappeared.
In his place…
Was a boy quietly staring at one correct answer as if it were something impossible.
“…Huh.”
That single word somehow carried more emotion than an entire speech.
Outside the classroom…
Nesmin peeked through the small window in the door.
His jaw dropped.
“…Boss is writing.”
Stevan calmly folded his arms.
“I can see.”
“No.”
“Actually writing.”
“He even erased something.”
Stevan nodded once.
“That means he’s thinking.”
Nesmin dramatically clutched his chest.
“I’ve waited two years to witness this miracle.”
Stevan couldn’t stop the tiny smile that escaped.
“I told you.”
“He never needed someone to force him.”
“He needed someone who understood him.”
Inside…
Neither Rubi nor Takoru noticed they were being watched.
Another twenty minutes passed.
The empty pages slowly filled with numbers.
Small calculations.
Simple diagrams.
Mistakes…
Then corrections.
Finally…
Mrs.
Sharma quietly walked past the classroom on her way to the staff room.
She paused.
Through the glass…
She saw Takoru solving another question while Rubi patiently explained each step beside him.
A gentle smile appeared on her face.
“So…”
She whispered to herself.
“I wasn’t wrong.”
Without disturbing them…
She continued walking.
The evening sky outside had already turned orange.
Rubi finally closed the notebook.
“Enough for today.”
Takoru stretched his arms.
“My brain hurts.”
She giggled.
“That’s called studying.”
“I don’t like it.”
“You solved four questions.”
“…Only because your motorcycle trick worked.”
She smiled proudly.
“I’ll use it again tomorrow.”
Takoru quietly packed his notebook into his bag.
Before standing…
He hesitated.
“…Rubi.”
She looked up.
“Hm?”
There was another small silence.
Then…
In the calmest voice possible…
He asked,
“…Same time tomorrow?”
Rubi blinked.
For reasons she couldn’t explain…
That simple question made her smile.
She gave a small nod.
“Same time tomorrow.”
Takoru adjusted his backpack before walking toward the classroom door.
Just before leaving…
He looked back once.
Only for a second.
“…Thanks.”
Then he disappeared into the hallway.
Rubi remained standing beside the window.
Looking at the notebook lying on the desk.
The first page…
That had once been blank…
Now held four solved questions.
They weren’t perfect.
But they were no longer empty.
And somehow…
That tiny change felt much bigger than mathematics.
It felt like…
The beginning of hope.
To Be Continued…
Welcome to Chapter 17!
Thank you so much for reading and supporting this story.
Every vote, comment, and review means the world to me!
Today’s chapter was a small but important step for Rubi and Takoru.
Now I have a few questions for you…
Did Rubi find the perfect way to teach Takoru?
Do you think Takoru has always been smart, but no one ever understood how he learns?
And…
what do you think that little “Same time tomorrow?” really meant?
I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments!
Thank you for staying on this journey with Rubi and Takoru.
See you soon in the next chapter!