Do you guys know that really shitty feeling every Monday morning, when you feel so damn tired and you don't really want to get up and get ready for another week of "learning" and bullying?
Yeah, I guess that's a pretty common thing these days.
I'm actually not that sure if there is as much of the bullying part in better schools (I used to go to school at Sina, and hardly anyone was bullied), but here in the boonies it's something unbearable. Seriously these people are so dumb and inbred, that everything and everyone different or anyone who isn't from here is to be treated like shit. Hell, I'm pretty sure they even think that the world just suddenly ends and they fall in to nothingness if they ride out of their precious little Trost.
So anyway, as you might guess, I'm not the most popular dude in this town. I used to live in Sina, until my mother got transferred here five years ago. I still don't understand why she agreed on coming here, but can't argue with the one who brings food to the table. So now I'm the weird alien thing that everyone bothers. I only understand one of the things they make fun of, which is my smile. Yeah, even I can see how horrible I look when I smile or laugh. I have this horrible huge grin that reveals my teeth and my mouth is huge as fuck, so I kinda look like a horse, and that's exactly what they're calling me. Horseface. It's not the worst of the nicknames these people give to others so I'm not complaining. I mean this one girl (I think her name was Nina or Mina...?) she is called shrubbery, and I can only guess what shrubbery they're talking about (I'll give you the same hint I got when I first heard about her. It's not the hair on her head nor in her armpits. You do the math)
But you know, to get back to the Monday morning shit, this morning was no different. I got up at (still tired as fuck), drank some black coffee, took a quick shower, got dressed and went to wait for the bus. The school busses are the worst thing about this place. It's full of annoying, loud, smelly people. They have this stupid need to take up all the seats, I mean for some reason they need two seats, one for themselves and the other for their backpack, and when you ask if you can sit next to them if there aren't any empty seats, you only get a cold look and a rude silence. And like I told you earlier, today was no exception.
Although there was this one boy who I hadn't seen before. He looked sophisticated, and he even sat next to the window, so people could sit next to him. Other than that, I didn't really give him much of a thought and continued on my way past him and many others to find myself an empty seat from the middle.
The bus smelled disgusting. Like rotten food, sweat and death. Well, it always smelled like that. The air was thick and dusty, it was incredibly warm and since the bus was a piece of trash, it didn't have any kind of air-conditioning. Every time it made a curve on the small road, all the uncomfortable seats and literally everything screeched and squeaked, like shit would go down in any second.
Apart from the noises of the bus, I could hear these sound the guys from the back of the bus made. It's hard to describe what it sounds like, but something between a dying whale and horny orangutans moaning and trying to pronounce my name. I knew immediately that it was Eren Jaeger and his stupid gang. I don't remember if it's just the people from here who think that that kind of noise is great for bothering people, or do people from other places think the same. I highly doubt the later. I mean, they just sound brain-dead
The fifteen minutes I have to spend in the bus every morning is always like this. When I finally get out of there, the fresh air without a hint of death or sweat feels great and I stretch with my hands in the air, breathing in the morning breeze.
Immediately as I stretched I realized that I had left my stomach un-protected, and like as if by magic I had an elbow showed in to my guts. I gasped as all the air escaped from my lungs and an immense pain started swelling inside of me. I fell on my knees and held my stomach as I couched. I didn't even have to look up to know it was Jaeger's stupid face that was looking down on me. I knew he was grinning and I could hear his baboon friends laughing behind him (damn those guys really do sound ridiculous) and when the bell rang seconds later, I felt something disgusting and wet on top of my head. When I finally looked up, the whole gang was slouching away and I brought my hand over my head to touch the wet substance. It was spit. Eren Jaegers fucking spit. I gagged and rubbed it away with my sleeve when I felt someone's hands wrap around my left arm and help me up.
I quickly turned to look at whoever the fucker was who touched me. My eyes met a pair of soft hazel ones. It was the sophisticated looking guys from the bus. My gaze shifted a little to see that his face was full of freckles and his lips were shaped in to a small smile. Nothing mocking, more like comforting.
"Are you okay? D-do you need to see the nurse?" His voice was small and it had the slightest ting of something foreign, like German or something.
"Nah. I'll be fine." I mumbled and wiped my pants. Shit, the dirt isn't coming off. That piece of shit Jaeger, I should just fucking take him by the nape of his neck and show his whole face in to the dirt.
The dude who helped me get up was speaking again.
"Are you sure? That person hit you pretty hard. You could um, at least get something cold so it doesn't bruise." His voice was a little bit firmer, but just a little.
"It's better that I stay out of the nurses office, since I know they'll definitely ask questions and if I as much as bring up Eren's name, it'll get turned around to as if I'd attacked him. Trust me, I know."
As I finished up talking, an awkward silence fell between us. He looked like he had something to say but didn't know how to open his mouth and checked his phone when it vibrated. I'm going to be late from class if this dude doesn't hurry it up, I thought even though I didn't really mind not going there when he suddenly said.
"Hey um… I know it's sudden and out of the topic but could you, uh… Could you please show me where class A25 is? I got a text from the principal that said that I'm late on my first day and it's not tolerable here. But I have no idea where to go. Of course if you're late from you class and don't have time, then it's okay. I'll find it myself eventually."
Looking at him fumbling with the phone and map of the school grounds, his face had the slightest shade of red from embarrassment. I sighed.
"It's okay. I can show you where it is. As you can probably see the clock is already that much over nine and I prefer being in the class from the start so I don't get too much attention. But, then I don't owe you anything about the whole helping me up and being concerned shit, okay?"
He looked back up to my face from his map and practically beamed. His smile, unlike mine was childlike and adorable.
"Okay. Although I did that to actually help you, not to get you to owe me stuff. Oh and by the way, I'm Marco! I'm going to be here for the whole year as an exchange student from Germany."
I'm incredibly bad with names, but I'm pretty sure this one I'll remember. Marco.
"I'm Jean. I will probably be here until the end of time. Nice to meet you, Marco."
He snickered. "Same to you Jean."
We started walking towards one of the school buildings.
I cleared my throat after a minute or two of silence. "So yeah, there's these four buildings, this one where we are going is A-building, the little one on the middle is C, the one on the right side of the C-building is B. Oh and that one the far end is for the sports. You'll know which building you have your classes when you check the letter in front of the class number."
I kindly informed him about small stuff while we were walking through the empty hallways. Although it didn't last long since the walk wasn't very long. When we arrived at the classrooms door, I told him one more thing.
"I need to tell you this. Since you are different, as in from a different country, you will be treated _very_ differently in here. I moved here five years ago and as you saw earlier, I'm still treated like shit."
Marco's eyebrows jumped and he looked slightly horrified.
"W-wait. They beat people up just because who they are? That's horrible!" His eyes were wide and I knew he felt regret on choosing this place for his exchange year.
"Well not exactly. I mean no one else than Annie Leonhart actually beats different people up. I've given Eren accidentally a reason to hate me more than anyone. So you don't have to worry about him. But you will probably get a weird name and you will be laughed at. But that's how it goes here in the boonies. So don't take it personally."
Marco looked at me with a thoughtful expression. Of course he wanted to know what I did. But I just shake my head and knocked on the door for him.
"I'll probably see you later then?" I said while walking away, back turned to the way I was going. "And remember, don't give a shit about what they say." I gave him a thumbs up and a small smile (although it was probably the ugly grin I can't suppress) to make him feel a bit better as his face was full of confusion and some fear, I turned my back at him and walked away before he could say anything.
I could hear the classrooms door open and his footsteps as he walked in to his very first lesson at the boonies.