Non-Abstract learning

Akiko's apology, or at least that's what he supposed he just received, confused Benjiro, but he supposed it could be a good sign. She hadn't actually said that she was sorry, but she had shown that she was willing to bury the incident. It was a relief that she wasn't angry and that she was willing to continue working with him, but another part of him still felt unsettled. There was the fact that she was acting dismissive of how he was acting.

'Ah, what do I care anyway? It's not like I'd actually tell her anything, even if she did have suspicions.'

However, a small weight felt lifted, or at least enough of one that he could finish his sandwich. Looking back at the still open piano, he figured it was only right to play something a little more fitting. Taking songs from their original form and transcribing them into something he could play on the piano wasn't something he did often, but Benjiro found it was something he had a knack for. Committing the tune and arrangement to memory was usually a cinch. Mashi Mashi was a little more high energy than he was used to but he didn't want to dwell on his conversation with Inei too much. Besides, he figured a song about working up your courage was fitting for psyching himself up to teach his lesson for Haruoka.

As the happy little notes bounced around the room, he found himself in a different kind of familiar place. One where he saw himself on a stage in front of countless faces, all of them going wild as they chanted his name. If a fan stuck their hand out, he'd give it a quick high five and see that person freak out that their hero had touched their hand before launching back into whatever song he was playing. Unfortunately, the bell rang, breaking him out of his on stage dream. 'Although, it's probably a good thing I brok out of that before I did a stage dive in real life', he grinned to himself.

The rest of the school day passed without incident, save for the Domon Battalion's creepy grins at him having to teach Haruoka. Hiromi for her own part, regarded him as she did most people, with that ladylike air of being unable to tell whether she was happy, indifferent or annoyed. 'I really should get to writing that poem', he reminded himself,' That thing is due at the end of this week.'

Following the familiar path to the library, the possibilities weren't looking good, no matter which way he sliced it. At best Haruoka wouldn't care and when Benjiro pictured the worst, a tingle ran down his spine. He arrived at their usual table where the tomboy was sitting in her usual seat, getting nowhere with her studies as usual. This time, he wasn't just going to silently get into his seat and whip out his phone to look at memes ad other stuff. 'Steel yourself, man! You've been preparing for this all weekend long. And unlike what happened with Higaki, this is strictly business. You got this! HOOOAAAH!'

Finished with mentally psyching himself up, Benjiro cleared his throat. Compared to being treated like he didn't exist, her eyes filled with disinterest, her mouth not even bothering to form a proper frown and a single lazily raised eyebrow, hurt more than if she had been angry. "What do you want, you retarded scarecrow", she drawled, "Can't you see I'm busy trying to study here, or can you not even recognize that?"

Benjiro's lips slightly tightened hearing her insults. She had a way of making even the most simple things sound hurtful. 'No! This is no time to be intimidated. Remember what it said in the teaching book: When dealing with an aggressive student, maintain a calm and composed attitude. Speak clearly and confidently and do not break eye contact. If you still do not feel safe, calmly exit and find a helper.

Obviously, Benjiro didn't feel like running, and trying to run from someone who had legs that looked like they could crush a coconut, he didn't consider his chances to be optimal. The urge to avert his gaze was strong, but he willed himself not to look away. "If y-you wouldn't mind c-coming with me, th-there's something I need to sh-show you."

"Huh?", she was beginning to look more annoyed than indifferent.

"I-I said, would you m-mind coming with me?"

"I heard you the first time, dumbass. I was just wondering why you suddenly decided to grow a pair, only to waste it?"

This next part needed to be handled sensitively, which unfortunately, wasn't exactly in Benjiro's wheelhouse, "I n-noticed you don't st-study well. I tried to c-come up with someth-thing that even you m-might be able to understand."

It was only after the words were out of his mouth that he realized what he just said. His fight or flight reflex kicked in seeing Daitan slowly turn her head and snap her book shut. Raising herself up, she go t right into Benjiro's face and whispered, "You have five seconds to explain yourself before I make you start squealing and break the library's "No Loud Noises" rule."

Benjiro's heart felt like it was beating fast enough to do a drumroll, but he still maintained eye contact, and stood his ground. Although the latter action was more likely due to the fact that he was too scared to move.

"Y-You have trouble m-memorizing English w-words and ph-phrases, right?"

She didn't look any less scary, but she did raise her one eyebrow again, as though her interest had been piqued.

"And what about it? Do you feel sorry for me? Do you think I'm stupid? Because I'm not looking for pity. Whatever you're selling, I don't want it."

'When an initial peace offering is rejected, it always helps to appeal to reason', Benjiro quoted from Teaching For Dummies.

"N-No, but I d-do know why y-you're struggling, and I th-thought of a way I c-could help."

"OK, first off, you're breath stinks. You should really brush every morning or carry some mints with you", Daitan pointed out, making Benjiro feel self conscious before continuing, "And second, what makes you think that you know what's going on with me?"

He turned aside for a hot second to test his breath. After getting a quick whiff, he made a mental note to restock his mouthwash. Turning back, he tried to present his case, "I kn-know because I h-had the same issue. You r-read the vocab words, and the sent-tences, but n-no matter how m-much you try to c-commit them to m-memory, it just d-doesn't stick f-for more th-than a few minutes. As s-soon as you go f-from English to g-gym class, you've alr-ready forgotten. Sound right?"

Daitan knew the problems she had weren't uncommon, but it still made her feel put off how the wiry boy in front of her was accurately describing her thought process. But, even if he could relate, that didn't mean she felt like playing ball, "You have that poor of a memory? Damn kid, maybe in your next life you should ask your mother not to drop you on your head so many times while you're a baby."

The look of barely contained nervousness was replaced by one of anger, which made Daitan triumphantly think she finally struck a nerve, "What? Are you mad because I talked bad about your mommy? Aww, why don't you go run to her so you can suck on her boob and comfort you until you feel better?"

Benjiro's voice took on a serious edge, "I hated my mother, so you can badmouth her all you like. And, don't call me kid. You're only a year older than me, so you can drop the big girl act."

Daitain was still contemptuously smiling at him, but he took a silent breath, 'If the student tries verbally attacking you, do not respond to their insults. Instead, take a deep breath and calmly continue with your lesson. If the verbal abuse continues, you may send the student to the principal's office.'

"Regardless, if y-you'd come with me, I'll sh-show you wh-what I have in m-mind."

Benjiro began walking towards the library exit and gestured for Daitan to follow. Figuring she'd follow him, if only to relentlessly mock him for whatever he dreamed up, if not morbid curiosity, she followed along. The wiry boy led her down a hallway she wasn't familiar with and opened the door to what appeared to be a little music room. Benjiro felt a sense of comfort from being in his hideaway so soon, albeit, slightly disturbed at having an unwanted guest. Since she was a soccer player, Daitan was used to fresh air and wide open spaces, so the cramped space made her feel slightly claustrophobic. Benjiro grunted as he waved his hand towards the piano bench, which she took to mean he wanted her to sit, 'I wish I had brought some popcorn', Daitan thought, 'That way I'd have something to eat and something to throw at him if he bores me.'

She wasn't sure what he was up to when he nearly tripped himself trying to pull a sheet stand and a rotating stool over. After he made a few adjustments, he walked over to a large case she hadn't noticed before and took out a guitar. There was a few minutes of fiddling with the knobs and strumming the string. It made Daitan grin, seeing Benjiro stick his tongue out a little, as he tried to find the right tune. When the satisfactory sound was achieved, Benjiro turned his full attention onto the bored girl in front of him. A small knot, similar to the one he felt when he read his poem to the class, was in his gut. This time, he didn't think there would be applause of any sort.

"OK, wh-when I had trouble w-with learning stuff I d-didn't like, s-some people t-taught me through song. Th-they made up little d-ditties about wh-whatever I was learning, and the s-songs were so catchy that I ended up l-learning almost by ac-cident."

Daitan wasn't interested in the backstory, but her interest was growing at his antics. Benjiro continued explaining, "I g-got a copy of y-your vocab sh-sheet and c-came up with a s-song-"

'Yeah, just something I randomly threw together last night before I went to bed. Please let this work!'

"And a f-few other methods that aren't so abstrac-ct. I f-found that when a lesson d-doesn't feel like a lesson, you learn b-better. Especially if y-you surround it w-with something y-you like. Isn't th-that why you took to s-soccer so m-much?"

Daitan crossed her arms, but remained silent listening to him, 'Whatever, may as well suffer through this until he's done. I'll tear him a new one later.'

Benjiro took a deep breath, began strumming and silently praying, 'Oh, please let this work and don't let my voice crack in the middle of this.'