Work Text:
All in all, dating an elementary school teacher isn’t such a bad experience. But to make it work, Jinsol would like to share a few tips with you.
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[1] Be careful the first time you hear her voice.
Teaching is a job under immense pressure. Demanding parents, low pay, and having to deal with thirty half-grown kids every single day. Overall, it’s not exactly a fun life.
Jinsol thinks she would lose her mind if every day of her life went like that. She can already picture herself arguing endlessly with the kids because they’re just too naughty.
She knows this because just one day of babysitting her niece for her younger brother nearly drove her insane. The happiest moment of her day was when the kid finally got shipped off to school. Now the suffering would be passed on to the respectable homeroom teacher.
In Jinsol’s imagination, that teacher had to be some fire-breathing old hag to be able to discipline her stubborn niece and her gang of close friends.
When Jinsol finished work and arrived at the school, the kid had already been dismissed for quite a while. The girl pouted at her, clearly upset. Jinsol didn’t care, she just broke into a wide grin. For someone as busy as her, being able to come pick her up at all was already a miracle.
Right then, Jinsol heard a gentle voice call out:
“Are you Bae Jinsol, Jinah’s aunt?”
She should have answered yes, that she was indeed Bae Jinsol. But when she turned around and saw the person who had spoken - aka the respectable homeroom teacher of her niece - her jaw suddenly went stiff.
That was the first time she met Seol Yoona, and also the first time she heard her warm, sweet voice.
Jinsol still remembers how clumsy she became in front of Yoona. How could she not be? Standing before her was long, smooth hair, big round eyes, a small delicate nose, and plump lips that looked like they would feel very- no, no, that’s getting way too detailed! In short, Yoona was so pretty that Jinsol felt like every organ in her body had completely shut down. And when Yoona let out a soft giggle, Jinsol knew she was done for.
The 1st tip when dating an elementary school teacher: be careful the first time you hear her voice.
Because at that moment, one million percent guaranteed, you’ll fall straight into her love trap, just like Jinsol did with Seol Yoona.
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[2] Prepare yourself for her strict daily routine.
People always say that the beginning of a relationship is nothing but fun. That saying, however, did not apply to Jinsol and Yoona at all.
Their first week of dating ran like a programmed schedule. No matter how happy they were (happy enough that even the sun couldn’t outshine Yoona’s smile), at exactly 8:30 p.m., Jinsol had to drive Yoona back to her home. And forget about goodnight texts or anything like that, because Yoona had papers to grade, lesson plans to prepare, and needed to sleep early to fight another battle the next day.
But Jinsol couldn’t get mad at her. Before agreeing to date her, Yoona had asked again and again if Jinsol was really sure. When Jinsol asked what she meant by “sure”, Yoona warned her that the future generation of the nation depended on her. If she didn’t get enough sleep, those kids would suffer, and then the Republic of South Korea would raise an uneducated generation - including Jinsol’s niece and all her little friends.
After hearing that speech, as a responsible citizen, Jinsol decided to shut her mouth.
She accepted the robot-like dating routine with Yoona. She obediently nodded whenever Yoona held up her phone and said, “It’s 8:30, Sol.” She hugged Yoona goodbye instead of pondering when to go in for their first kiss, because Yoona’s alarm reminding her to prepare lessons had already gone off. She cheerfully accepted Yoona’s good morning texts at 5 a.m. - a time when no normal human being had their eyes open. And eventually, she got used to it.
About three months passed like that. Until one rare holiday, when Jinsol’s elementary school teacher finally got a day off.
At 8:30 p.m., out of habit, Jinsol resigned herself to leaving Yoona’s place even though the movie wasn’t over yet. But strangely enough, Yoona didn’t let her stand up from the couch. She pulled Jinsol back down beside her and leaned her head on Jinsol’s shoulder.
“It’s already 8:30.” Jinsol said, eyes wide.
“The movie’s not over yet.” Yoona replied calmly.
Though she didn’t understand what was going on, since it was the first time she could stay with her girlfriend a little longer, Jinsol decided to stay still and enjoy it. Unlike her serious persona at school, Yoona at home looked so tiny, it made people want to hug her and keep her all to themselves.
And of course, Jinsol had to be at least ten thousand times more impressive than people. She opened her arms, pulled her small girlfriend into her embrace, and rested her chin on Yoona’s shoulder like she was being spoiled.
“What’s that about?” Yoona looked up and laughed, her smile just as bright as the first day they met.
“Nothing.” Those who know how to behave get rewarded, Jinsol had learned that lesson well.
“You look like a puppy begging for something.”
“I do not.”
“You do.”
“I really don’t. Let’s finish the movie, okay?”
Yoona didn’t do as Jinsol said. Instead, she reached for the remote and turned off the TV with a click.
“…So it’s time for me to go home now?” Jinsol asked blankly.
Instead of answering, Yoona lifted both hands to cup Jinsol’s cheeks. She smiled brightly, then leaned up and timidly brushed her lips against Jinsol’s.
When they finally pulled apart, Jinsol heard her whisper softly,
“On behalf of the nation’s future, thank you, Sol.”
The 2nd tip when dating an elementary school teacher: get used to her strict lifestyle, because the reward you receive will always be worth it.
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[3] Review a bit of your math.
Grading is an indispensable part of an elementary school teacher’s life.
Every night, while Jinsol was busy scrolling through TikTok and laughing out loud, Yoona would be hunched over her desk, facing a stack of notebooks taller than her head.
It should be added that Yoona had agreed to upgrade their relationship by moving in together. But her perfectly disciplined routine showed no intention of upgrading at all. Jinsol couldn’t even whine about it, because Yoona always made it up to her in very wonderful ways on weekends (Jinsol chose not to share details). So on weekdays, things usually went like that.
Occasionally, Yoona would break the monotony with a pleading call:
“Sol, come help me grade.”
It was very hard to refuse Yoona anything. Grading was no exception. So even while wrapped up in warm blankets, Jinsol would shuffle out to sit beside her, their heads close together over notebooks.
“It’s math, really easy. Just check the answers for me.” Yoona smiled brightly. “Stuff like 1 + 1 = 2. You can handle that, right?”
“Uh… yeah…” Jinsol nodded. She wasn’t particularly good at math, but elementary-level problems shouldn’t be an issue.
That was until she saw the question:
“A person selling eggs sells half of the eggs plus half an egg the first time. The second time, she sells half of the remaining eggs plus half an egg. The third time, she sells half of the remaining eggs plus half an egg and runs out completely. How many eggs did she have at first?”
Jinsol knew this wasn’t a particularly difficult problem. But she didn’t think an adult who rarely touched math and had just been crushed by capitalism all day would be lucid enough to sell eggs, let alone sell them on someone else’s behalf.
Beside her, Yoona graded and crossed things out rapidly. Jinsol just sat there, scratching her head.
“Hey, um…” In the end, Jinsol swallowed her pride. “What’s the answer?”
“You can’t solve elementary school math?” Yoona turned to her with wide eyes.
“…It’s hard.”
“Your niece can solve it.”
“She’s a freakishly smart kid. Don’t compare her to me.” Jinsol pouted.
Yoona giggled. She shrugged as if giving in, then answered calmly,
“The answer is 7. Go ahead and grade.”
“Why is it 7?”
“You figure it out yourself.” Yoona lightly tapped Jinsol’s forehead with her pen, teasing. “Now hurry up and grade for me!”
“Yes, ma’am…” Jinsol replied weakly.
But even after finishing the grading, Jinsol still couldn’t understand why the answer was 7. She kept thinking about it, thinking while Yoona tidied up, thinking until Yoona went to bed. Curiosity took over her mind, keeping her awake all night.
The next morning, Yoona woke up and stared in shock to find Jinsol still sitting at the desk. Hearing Yoona’s footsteps, Jinsol turned around and puffed out her chest proudly.
“I solved it!”
“…You stayed up all night just to solve it?”
“I solved it and instead of praising me, you’re scolding me.” Jinsol complained with a pout.
“Alright, alright.” To appease her, Yoona gently sat down in Jinsol’s lap, wrapping her arms around Jinsol’s neck. “So? Let’s hear it.”
“Okay, listen. I finally realized that in the third sale, selling half the remaining eggs plus half an egg finishes everything, so that must be 1 egg. Working backward, the second sale would be (1 + 1/2) × 2 = 3 eggs. So the original number would be (3 + 1/2) × 2 = 7 eggs…”
After hearing that, Yoona could only smile softly at her.
“Well? What do you think?” Jinsol bragged, chest out. “Your girlfriend’s pretty smart too, right?”
When she said that, Jinsol expected nothing more than a compliment, since Yoona needed to get ready for school soon. But for some reason, the person in her arms suddenly pulled her down and drew her into a deep, lingering kiss.
Their lips tangled for a while before Yoona finally let her go to get ready for work. Before leaving, though, she gave Jinsol a wink and a promise that was very much worth waiting for:
“My girlfriend is really smart. I’ll reward you tonight.”
The 3rd tip when dating an elementary school teacher: review some math, because you never know when the teacher might give you a reward.
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[4] Prepare yourself for her massive army of tiny fans.
Seol Yoona is undoubtedly a teacher loved by her kids. After all, she was charming enough to knock even a parent like Jinsol off her feet at their very first meeting.
This was proven one rare day when Yoona agreed to go out on a date. Jinsol chose a shopping mall as their destination for two reasons: first, it had the spicy hotpot Yoona liked, and second, they could do grocery shopping afterward.
Hand in hand, the two wandered through the mall. To outsiders, these moments were utterly ordinary, nothing special at all. But for Jinsol, simply sharing her time with Yoona was enough to warm her heart second by second.
That peace lasted only until they passed the children’s play area, when Jinsol heard a shrill cry:
“Teacher Seol!!!”
Yoona immediately let go of Jinsol’s hand. Jinsol had no objections, she always understood and respected Yoona’s image as a model teacher.
But when she turned around and saw a whole swarm, yes, a swarm of kids charging toward them, Jinsol felt their date slipping away.
I’m done for. Why did I choose Children’s Day of all days?
Jinsol watched as Yoona was surrounded by the kids, who clung tightly to her girlfriend as if afraid Jinsol might do something to their beloved teacher. Yoona crouched down, gently patting their heads, asking questions in the sweetest voice.
“Where are you all going?”
“I’m going to play!”
“I’m with my dad!”
“My mom told me to buy vegetables! If I eat healthy, I’ll grow tall like you, Teacher Seol!”
“Teacher Seol, are you on a date?”
“I’m going to watch a movie!”
… And countless other answers.
Jinsol shook her head with a bitter smile. She had never seen so many children at once, nor heard so many of them talking all at the same time. No wonder Yoona always dressed modestly when going out. Maybe she knew there was a 99% chance of running into a kid somewhere, and she loved teaching too much to let any child lose faith in her.
Instead of feeling annoyed, Jinsol felt strangely happy. The noisy little army surrounded the person who should have been strolling with her, yet that person wore the brightest smile. Only after the children’s parents realized their teacher seemed busy did Jinsol finally get Yoona’s delicate hand back in hers.
On the way home, Yoona’s happy smile never faded once.
And that made Jinsol feel that maybe being “interrupted” like this once in a while wasn’t so bad. Because in return, Yoona would shower her with kisses as soon as they got home, whispering apologies in a spoiled tone. Or she would bury her head in Jinsol’s chest instead of saying thank you, simply because Jinsol loved her - for being someone worthy of love. Or she’d be in high spirits and cook a proper meal, wearing a smug expression with her pretty lips, making it impossible for Jinsol to hold back affectionate kisses.
Because of all that, from now on, whenever Jinsol sees Yoona asleep at her desk amid piles of lesson plans, she can no longer complain even in her head.
She can only gently carry Yoona to bed, listen to her mumbling complaints in her sleep, and smile as she asks softly,
“You’re this tired, do you still want to go to work tomorrow?”
And she’ll surely hear Yoona answer,
“Of course. I love those kids so much.”
“Really?”
“…And I love you too.”
The final tip when dating an elementary school teacher: prepare yourself for her massive army of tiny fans. Because thanks to them, you get to meet someone as lovely and precious as Seol Yoona.
And how lucky it is that this lovely person just happens to find you lovely too, sometimes even more than her lovely kids (though of course, not more than you).