An annoying sound of a buzzing alarm disturbed my sleep as it woke me up. I couldn't help but smack that alarm hard enough it fell towards the ground. Strangely, the alarm didn't seem to have taken any considerable damage as it still worked just as well considering it had been my daily routine since middle school. 

I tried my hardest to lift my body up yet oddly it wouldn't listen at all as I kept lying down in bed. 

The clock nearby showed the time as '5 AM', giving me well enough time to prepare for school as I usually had trouble waking up. 

Yet, recently it kept getting more and more difficult for me to even get up from bed. I tried to gently touch my forehead to check my temperature. 

"I guess I won't go to school today," I murmured as I texted Yuzu and went back to sleep. 

***

A sharp yet delicious fragrance had woken me up. I looked around to see a beautiful figure holding a portion of food as she walked closer toward me. 

"Ara - ara, you're awake. I made some curry, make sure to eat well!" A smiling Ayaka-sensei appeared while wearing a cute apron. 

An unbelievable sense of worry combined with uneasiness started to invade my thoughts. Without delay, I hurriedly get closer towards the cause of my uneasy state. Standing in front of her, I stood tiptoes to gain some height so that I could directly stare at her eyes to eyes. 

However, despite my attempt, her tall figure was quite a challenge for someone with petite height like me. Ayaka-sensei understood my intention as she slightly bent down a little. 

I immediately put my forehead into hers, a moment of silence could be felt as I stood still in position in front of her. 

"Phew, so you don't have a fever."

I sighed a relief at the thought of a strange disease that suddenly made a person like Ayaka-sensei to be able to cook a perfectly delicious meal, and completely returned back to my usual self with a smile. 

Hearing this, Ayaka-sensei immediately got upset and started to cutely complain. I could only stare wordlessly at her adorable behavior with joy. 

"That's my line!" Ayaka-sensei retorted. 

I began to eat the curry she gave me. She started to stare with an uncontrollable smirk on her, patiently waiting for me to chew the entire part of the curry, while keeping her excitement in check. 

"How is it? It's tasty right?" she asked in an excited tone. 

I silently thought deeply, trying to suppress my surprise about her cooking. 

"It's actually edible, congrats Ayaka-sensei!" I sarcastically remarked that resulted with her glaring at me. 

I completely munched her cooking with a delighted expression as Ayaka-sensei stared intensely at me and smiled. She thought to herself a bit as she hesitated. 

"So, why didn't you go to school today? You had me worried, you know," Ayaka-sensei asks with a concerned expression. 

Guilt started creeping towards me as I recall this morning's event. I texted Yuzu telling her that I couldn't go to school because I was sick. However, I wasn't actually sick as it was just an excuse to not go to school today. That must've worried Ayaka-sensei greatly. 

"I… just didn't feel like going to school today," I replied as I avoided her gaze. 

"Are you… bullied or something?" asked Ayaka-sensei with a serious expression. She stared at me with a sharp gaze waiting for my answer. 

"N-no, nothing like that," I stuttered my words as if I was not able to endure this pressure. I couldn't still look at her directly. This was the second time I've seen her expression so serious like that. 

The amount of silence filled the room with a heavy atmosphere as I was on the verge of tearing up. 

I vividly heard her sigh exaggeratedly as she raised her hand and smacked my head softly. I could feel her hand rustling around my hair as she patted me. 

"You dummy, I'll listen to anything you say so you don't need to hold anything back, just tell me everything, I'm your teacher after all," she slowly embraced me as I could only stare blankly speechless. 

The bottle of emotion that compiled over the years suddenly erupted as I could no longer hold back my tears and cried at full volume. 

"I keep getting anxious every time I think about school, I don't know why I'm this way, I just… don't know what to think anymore," I kept crying while muttering everything I felt to Ayaka-sensei. 

She kept on patting me while responding "there, there" softly with a motherly aura as she assured me that everything was gonna be okay. 

A few minutes passed and my eyes had not left a single drop of tear anymore as Ayaka-sensei smiled and handed me a bag filled with homemade chocolate cookies shaped as cute tiny bunnies. 

I took one and bit it with a delighted expression as Ayaka-sensei smiled looking at me. 

"Your chocolate is always so delicious," I munched more chocolates as if its taste felt like a new refreshing emotion with cheerful expression. 

"I'm glad, did Minami-san enjoy my chocolate yesterday?" asked Ayaka-sensei. 

"Yuzu munched them so much that she got drunk from chocolate," I simply answered while munching more bunny shaped cookies, which made Ayaka-sensei somewhat filled with worry. 

I ate the last cookie with a delightful cheery expression while Ayaka-sensei was simply staring. 

"Look how cute you are when you're smiling," she teased me a little while I could only lower my head embarrassed at her remark. 

As the bag was empty, completely devoid of chocolate, Ayaka-sensei took a peek at her watch. 

"Ah, it's already this late, I need to go home," said Ayaka-sensei as she walked out of the room. However, before she was completely out of the room, I called out to her. 

"Ayaka-sensei," she turned around with a question mark expression on her face. 

I softly uttered, "Thank you for everything," in which Ayaka-sensei smiled and walked out of my room.