roll call: Mr. Oto

last march, as there is every march, there was an end of year faculty party. the party serves as a goodbye to those teachers who are not coming back in april and a welcome to those teachers who are starting in april. it was held at the fleur garden, a building shaped like a castle that has several meeting halls used for weddings and other big gatherings. everyone from the superintendent and to the cute older man and woman who clean the bathrooms to the bus drivers attends, bringing the faculty count to somewhere close to 200, i'd guess.

the fleur garden sent a charter bus to the school to pick us up. why, i don't remember, but on the way someone was holding a bunch of papers that looked like applications. i glanced at the one on top and read the person's name. i thought nothing of it at the time but later at the party, when meeting some of the incoming teachers, it came in very handy.

everyone had had a few drinks and we were joking around and a new guy said, "yeah well, then, what's my first name?" (side note: japanese people go by their last names, and rarely use their first names, even between close coworkers) and for some reason, i knew it was the guy who's name i'd read on the paper so i said, "Oto." and even explained how to write it japanese kanji. i acted like it was common knowledge. he was shocked. (heehee) he was cute and i was pleased with myself to have impressed him.

for the next several months, nothing of significance happened. he was just a new teacher. i'd see him around, but didn't chat or know much of him. sometime before summer vacation, we ran into each other at the train station and rode together until his stop. at the time, he told me he had a girlfriend and i made a mental note that he was taken.

over the last month he's been more friendly. i sometimes wondered why he seemed to be lightly flirting with me. when i stop in at the part time teachers' room (where his desk is) to chat with some of the other teachers, i say hello and sometimes we chat. but i remembered, he's unavailable.

well, his girlfriend dumped him a couple weeks ago.

and now, the ladies at the snack shop in the cafeteria think he's got his eye on me. i've been chatting with them since i started working at the school last september. they are my personal listeners, advice givers, japanese study supporters and all around wonderful ladies. they know most of my juicy gossip and can be trusted to keep it. (they'll get their own post one of these days...)

lately Oto has been coming around the snack shop too. i think he realized what a resource those two ladies are and needed someone to listen to him. so, at the snack shop, sometimes we run into each other, sometimes we don't. but the snack shop ladies told me today that he brings me up in conversation frequently. almost exactly two weeks ago, via the snack shop ladies, i found out he wanted my cell number and text address. i went straight to the part time staff room and we exchanged numbers.

needless to say, the fact that we work together complicates things a little bit. but, what's life without complications and adventures?

the snack shop ladies claim he's not bold enough to ask me out, fearing that he might be annoying me by asking or that i would just say yes because i didn't want to hurt his feelings. i told them he should just ask. i wouldn't say yes because i "should."

i'd say yes because i've kind of got my eye on him too.