A/N This is a SuIce fic I've written for littleicelandthings. Human AU. I hope you'll enjoy!
Shield
Emil sighed as he closed the door to his locker and put his key in his pocket. It had only been five days but he already hated this school. As he turned around to finally go home there was an arm blocking his path.
"Hey Icey" the boy grinned and looked down on him "That's what your brother calls you right? That's adorable" His friends had gathered around him and were all laughing loudly. Emil didn't answer and slipped underneath his arm instead, trying to get away from the laughing gang. He was a freshman student just starting collage that was already on the bad side of the "populars".
"If someone asks you a question, you should answer. Don't you have any manners?" Another boy grinned and grabbed his arm, forcing him to turn around and look at them. Other students were passing them by, being sure to see everything but not see enough to know anything if someone would ask.
"It's none of your business" Emil ripped his arm out of the grip but was already surrounded and they slowly pushed him against the wall. They grinned widely and Emil thought that this could not get any worse. He was wrong.
"What are you doing?" Emil could see how all the students in the corridor quickly moved as his senior year brother Lukas rushed through. He managed to make his way through all the people and was soon standing between him and the bullies. Lukas gave him a quick glance before he turned towards the others. "Leave now if you value your lives."
"Or what pretty boy? You're clearly outnumbered"
"No, they're not!" Emil felt his face get even paler when one of Lukas closest friends, Mathias made his way through the crowd. He smiled towards the boys and added "I've known Icey all my life so he is kind of my little brother too!" People where now openly staring at the scene while whispering to each other and Emil tried his hardest to become invisible. This would not make anything better. All he wanted was to go home, do his homework and watch some movies. Who cared if he might lose his pocket money, there wasn't much anyway. The boys backed up just a bit, knowing that Mathias innocent smile was not to be trusted when it came to those he cared about. But they were still surrounding them.
"Can you really count stupid? There's seven off us and three of you!" a boy in the back shouted. Mathias rolled up his sleeves and was probably about to say something really insulting which would have started a brawl right there but before he could do that a deep voice was heard from just outside the half circle of bullies.
"Leave" They could see how all the colour from the faces of all the people within range, with three exceptions, disappeared simultaneously. Emil didn't understand what was going on until he saw someone standing there in the middle off the hallway and heard the whispers.
"It's him"
"I heard he once beat up 10 guys without receiving a single scratch"
"Well I heard he beat up this guy just because he looked at him weirdly, broke his arm and everything"
"He's probably part off a gang"
"Let's go, I don't want to risk becoming a target"
The voices faded as the hallway was quickly emptied and the only remaining people were Emil, Lukas, Mathias and this nameless big guy that was now closing in on them with a glare that would scare anyone. Except Mathias apparently.
"Ber! I had this under control!"
"You'll g't suspended if ye fight anymore" While those two continued arguing, Lukas turned towards his brother and eyed him all over. After making sure he wasn't hurt anywhere he put both of his hands on Emils shoulders and sighed.
"You're supposed to tell me if something like this happens Icey"
"I can take care of myself and don't call me Icey, I'm not a kid anymore" Since Lukas didn't seem convinced at all he decided to change the subject and nodded towards the two guys that was now holding each other by the collar "Who is that? Should we stop them?"
"Cut it out you two, Ber come over here and meet my brother" They let go of each other and straightened their shirts before walking up to the other two. "Emil this is Berwald, Berwald this is Emil". Emil took the reached out hand and shook it, noticing how big and warm it was as well as surprisingly soft. He was tall and up close like this Emil realised that he did look intimidating but probably wasn't. Berwald looked at him and seemed confused for a second but it was so fast that Emil thought that he probably just imagined it. As they let go, Berwald nodded once to each of them and shot Mathias a glare before turning around.
"I've got class" Berwald hurried away through the corridor and Emil saw how people took detours around him so they wouldn't get too close.
"Come on, I'll follow you home" Lukas pulled at Emils arm so he was forced to let go of Berwald with his eyes. Emil backed away, he was not going to walk home with Lukas. He knew that he would be questioned when they got home and that the principal most likely would be called. He didn't want to make this such a big deal. Instead he settled for a lie.
"I've got homework so I'll go study in the library." It wasn't until he promised to call Lukas so he could pick him up before he left that he was finally left alone again. He sighed and picked up his things that had fallen onto the floor during the chaos. He did actually have homework so he thought that he might as well go and do it in the library, but there was no way that he would call Lukas later. He walked into the library and was lucky enough to find an empty table. It wasn't that he was antisocial or disliked people but he had always found it hard to concentrate with others around. He took up his laptop and plugged in his earbuds, he liked listening to music while studying. He didn't know how long he sat there working on his essay for English class before a big shadow fell on him.
"Would ye mind?" Berwald looked at him from behind his glasses and pointed at the chair next to Emil. Emil shook his head so Berwald sat down next to him and took out a bunch of math supplies. Berwald glanced at him before he slowly started solving the problems in his math book. Emil felt surprisingly comfortable, Berwald was quiet and had a sort of calm surrounding him that he hadn't noticed earlier when they met in the corridor. He returned to his essay and managed to work just as good as before, maybe even better.
Berwald glanced towards Emil and saw how his fingers danced over the keyboard. He was confused, not only about the math but also about the boy next to him. When they shook hands earlier Emil hadn't even looked scared for a second. His hand had been small, with a surprisingly firm grip, and cold but he hadn't faltered for a moment. Usually, people would just ignore him and make up an excuse to leave as fast as possible but not Emil. Earlier when he had entered the library he had gotten a sinking feeling in his stomach when he noticed that all the tables were taken. Usually he would just leave since he knew that he would just make the other students leave if he sat down with them but this time he had noticed Emil sitting alone at the far end of the room. After building up his courage he had walked up to him and now he was sitting here. Emil had barely reacted when he sat down and he hadn't left either. Berwald could feel himself relax and continued to struggle with the math homework.
"Unless you multiply those two it won't work" Berwald looked up and saw how Emil pointed at the equation he was struggling with. Emil leaned in closer when he met Berwalds confused eyes and took the pen from his hand. "Here let me show you" Emil pointed and explained, drew little arrows when Berwald didn't understand and patiently helped him solve it. As they finished Emil leaned back and said "The next one is similar so try doing it yourself" Berwald looked down at his paper and smiled a little. He had never been good at mathematics and his teacher must have tried explaining this at least a million times but he had never understood it. Until now. He finished the next one almost all by himself, Emil pointed out some small mistakes he made, and he felt that he understood it better and better.
"Yer good at this" Berwald noticed an adorable blush forming on Emils cheeks as they both begun packing away their things.
"Math is my best subject" He noticed how Emil nervously looked at the clock before he looked around the room as if he was searching for someone. It took Berwald a few seconds to realise what he was searching for. Danger.
"Should I walk ye home?" Emil blinked towards him and Berwald felt like kicking himself. Of course he wouldn't want that, no matter how much it seemed like Emil didn't mind him he knew it couldn't be true. Also, he had noticed earlier that Emil didn't seem to want any protection so why would he be any different.
"Yes, thanks" Emil had already made it halfway through the library before Berwald could break out of his shock.
Emil was a bit embarrassed that he felt so relieved when Berwald had asked if he could walk him home. If it would have been Lukas he would only have gotten angry instead but that was probably because it was his brother. He waited by the entrance of the library for Berwald that had frozen in place for some reason and when he caught up they walked next to each other in a comfortable silence. Emil that was used to having to zig zag between students through the hallways since he was rarely noticed could now walk straight through crowds of people since they all moved when Berwald walked through the hallways. They got to the entrance in about half the time it usually took and they walked towards the road that led to Emils house. Berwald suddenly put out an arm in front of Emil, which forced him to stop, when they walked through a small park. Emil couldn't see any others around so he wondered why Berwald had stopped them.
"Berwald wha-"
"I can see ye" From behind a tool shed the boys from before emerged and looked at them. They had been waiting for him. Emil started shaking when he realised it. He took a frightened step back and almost tripped. Suddenly Berwald stepped in between Emil and the bullies, making neither of them able to see each other. The look Berwald was giving them would make anyone run for their lives and the group in front of them was no exception though they tried to do it with dignity. With a "We could totally take you down but we have better things to do" glance they turned and left the park. When he was sure that they were long gone he turned around and looked at Emil that was still terrified. He walked up to him and looked him in his eyes. "Are you okay?"
"If you wasn't here I- They would have- I was-" He was interrupted by Berwald putting his arms around him, pulling him in to a warm hug. First he was just surprised but then he felt the tension slowly disappearing from his body. He felt real comfort for the first time in years. Emil took a deep breath and could feel the smell of wood shavings and newly cut grass, it didn't seem like Berwald used any cologne or perfume and somehow Emil liked this smell better. All too soon Berwald released his grip and started walking again, he seemed a bit embarrassed and didn't turn around fast enough to hide his blush.
"Let's go" Emil smiled as he ran to catch up with Berwald. They walked in silence, both a bit embarrassed and caught up in their own thoughts. Emil tried to not think about what could have happened if Berwald wasn't there but it didn't go very well. They had seemed different this time, like they would've actually hurt him. He shook his head and looked up at Berwald and saw that he was glancing down at him. Berwald quickly looked forward again and blushed. Emil smiled, he was so grateful that he was there. Not only had he protected him, he had also comforted him afterwards. Emil felt something that he didn't understand and right now he didn't really care. It wasn't a bad feeling after all.
What was he doing? Berwald was wondering why he had hugged Emil. He wasn't much of a hugger but when he saw how scared Emil was he acted without thinking. He glanced at the boy walking next to him, it looked like he was lost in thought too. Berwald saw how the light played in his hair and noticed for the first time how pretty he actually was. Just as the thought passed his mind Emil looked up at him and smiled. Getting caught looking, he blushed and focused his eyes forward. Rubbing his cheeks he thought about that he had probably blushed more during this day than he had in his whole life. All too soon they arrived at the house that Emil shared with his brother. They stood awkwardly outside the front door and looked at each other. Quickly Emil put his arms around Berwald, whispered "Thank you" and rushed inside the house. For five minutes Berwald just stood there and looked at the door before he turned around and started walking the few blocks left until he got to his house. He smiled and kicked a rock so it bounced across the road.
"No, thank you."
It became a habit to walk together home after school and soon Berwald started waiting for him in the morning as well. When winter came and it became too cold, Berwald started picking him up with his car. Sometimes Lukas joined them and sometimes it was only the two of them. Emil was surprised when one day on their way to school Berwald looked really nervous and looked like he was trying to say something over and over again. It was only the two of them since Lukas was on a trip with his class to get some field experience, he was studying to become an archaeologist. Finally Berwald looked like he had decided on something. "Could I come st'dy at yer house later?" Emil looked at him and remembered that Berwald had an upcoming math test soon that he was really nervous about. Though he didn't understand why they couldn't study in the library like they usually do. As if Berwald had read his mind he added "I need to focus"
"Yeah, sure, no problem" Emils mind was spinning. They were going to be alone in his house while sitting really close to each other, studying. Was his room clean? Was the house in order? He didn't know anymore. School went by like a flash and just like all other days Berwald stood outside the school waiting for him. They both felt nervous as they turned into Emils driveway and walked into the house. After a short showing of the house they ended up in Emils room. "Oh right, I don't have a desk" Emil sighed, he usually made his homework sitting on his bed with his laptop. "We can sit at the kitchen table instead" Emil said but Berwald had already made himself comfortable on the bed and patted next to him as an invitation.
"I can build you a desk later" Berwald said as Emil sat down next to him. Emil chuckled, he still found it a bit funny that Berwald major was furniture design considering that he didn't look like it at all. Berwald took out his supplies and they started working. It was fun, working like this, Emil thought as he saw Berwald solving another problem by himself. He had improved tremendously since that first time and was still getting better and better. Emil leaned in to get a closer look at what he was writing when Berwald suddenly turned his head and looked at him. They were really close and there was something that told Emil to close that space. He looked into Berwalds eyes and thought that he could see something there that he hadn't seen before, but he couldn't figure out what it was. Emil leaned back again.
"I'm sorry" Emil didn't know what he was apologising for, probably for the way he was feeling. He questioned himself, didn't believe that someone as amazing and caring as Berwald would ever care for him. He felt tears form in his eyes at the thought and he didn't dare to look at Berwald. He felt movement as the other changed position and felt a hand on his cheek that forced him to turn his head.
"Hey" Berwald whispered before he closed the space between them and gently pressed his lips against Emils. He couldn't think, he couldn't breathe but at the same time he couldn't feel any happier. Berwald paused for a moment to make sure Emil was okay since tears were streaming down his face. "I'm sorry I shouldn't-" Emil stopped him with a kiss of his own and tried to show all the passion he felt, the love he felt. It felt like they grew closer almost melted into one and he understood what he had seen in Berwalds eyes earlier.
It had been love.
About a week later, when the rumour of them being a couple had spread and Lukas had accepted the change, Emil was sitting in his room studying. Doing homework together had become a bit distracting so they had both agreed to study by themselves, just for tonight. "Emil! Get down here!" Emil heard Lukas shout from down stairs so he sighed and went awfully slowly down the stairs. He found Lukas standing outside on the front porch where he pointed towards the lawn. "What is this?"
"Oh my god" Emil couldn't stop laughing as he stumbled outside were not one but four different desks where standing, each wearing a small bowtie.