The winter vacation was a blur of nothingness, a period defined only by the glow of Chinese and Korean dramas. My entire focus was on a singular, upcoming event: New Year's Eve. I wasn't excited about the holiday; I was excited about the topic. I needed a reason to text him.
As the clock struck midnight, ushering in the new year, I immediately sent the text.
"Happy New Year, Teacher!"
It took him a moment to reply. "新年快乐!" he finally wrote.
I quickly followed up, trying to open a conversational door. "In China, the New Year is celebrated so gorgeously. Did you enjoy the New Year here? I don't think so. Was it boring for you?"
He replied, "We also celebrated it with Chinese enterprise staffs. We ate a feast and sang. It is also lively outside. They set off fireworks. What did you do?"
"That's great! Your New Year wasn't ruined," I wrote. "Nothing as usual. I've never celebrated any New Year, but I'm now at the rooftop to watch the fireworks."
A few minutes passed without a reply. I was about to give up and head downstairs when a new text popped up.
"I'm with other teachers in your area, if you want you can join us."
I nearly flew down the stairs. Without a second thought, I replied that I wanted to join. He sent the location and told me to hurry.
I ran to our floor, screaming that my Chinese teachers were waiting and I was going out right now. My father, who was drinking water, heard me, choked, and started coughing. "Look at the time! Where do you want to go?"
I showed him the location. He absolutely refused. I immediately resorted to crying, begging, and pleading with my mother to intervene. No one was budging.
Then my older sister, seeing my distress, emerged from her room. She gave me a look that said she was on my side. "Tell Anin to go with her. The matter is closed. She is already grown up. Why are you guys letting her cry in the start of the new year? Want her to cry the whole year?" she said, though with a mocking tone aimed at my dramatics. I ignored the jab.
"I'm not going to hear anyone," I declared. "I'm going out with Anin."
I called Anin, and told him to come immediately. He said he couldn't. "Okay, no need to come. I'm going by myself," I snapped, hanging up and storming to my room, slamming the door shut.
I don't know what transpired downstairs, but when I went out, no one tried to stop me. Anin was already waiting with the bike. I avoided his gaze and started walking.
"Hop on the bike," he said.
"No thanks, I can go by myself," I insisted.
"Okay," he replied, and began to turn the bike around, feigning indifference.
I instantly regretted my stubbornness. I hit his leg, forcefully snatching the helmet from his hand.
By the time we reached the location, the teachers were just preparing to leave. I quickly greeted everyone. Only Teacher Wang and a Bangladeshi male and female teacher (who were a couple) stayed back. Teacher Wang asked where we could go next.
"Ma'am," I suggested to the female teacher, "we could go to 300ft since we have two bikes." She looked at her husband, who nodded and said, "Not bad."
"OK, then let's go there!" I clapped, finalizing the decision. Teacher Wang asked what kind of place "300ft" was. "It's a big highway road where people like to go with bikes," I explained. He readily agreed.
"I don't want to go," Anin grumbled.
"You are dead if you say a single word," I hissed at him.
The seating arrangement was awkward: Teacher Wang had to sit on my brother's bike. Anin drove, I sat in the middle, and Teacher Wang sat behind me. I couldn't help but blush. He was too close. My ears felt like they were about to burst from shyness, and a dizzying storm of butterflies erupted in my stomach.
"Did you went..." Teacher Wang said. I couldn't hear him clearly over the traffic and the engine. I turned my head sharply to the right and shouted, "What did you say?"
He leaned in, bringing his mouth close to my ear. "Did you went th..."
He couldn't finish his words. Anin hit the brakes suddenly, causing Teacher Wang to slide forward. His lips just missed my ear, and his right hand immediately shot out and held my belly to steady himself..