HEYO~ So I am dedicating this whole story to my friend who I greatly admire. I hope you like it friendo~ Isuckatwritingthoughwoops
DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN SHINGEKI NO KYOJIN NOR AM I AFFILIATED IN ANY WAY WITH IT. IF I WAS WE WOULD KNOW WHATS IN THE BASEMENT
I was the new kid.
"Stupid foreign punk!"
The new kid from Germany who the teachers always picked first.
"Think you're so special because you think you're better than everyone else."
I loved knowledge; to learn new things.
"We'll teach you what it is to be a good-for-nothing piece of crap just like you are."
I only had my head and not my arms...
'SMACK'
The small blond boy landed on the ground holding his breath. He couldn't let them know that they were hurting him; let them hear the whimpering that he was holding in. It sucked to be the new kid, especially when he didn't come from the same country. English wasn't his native tongue; he was German through and through.
"He probably doesn't even know what we're saying," laughed one kid, his voice squeaky and high sounding like the five year old kid he was. Like the mean five year old kid he was.
"Hey, stupid," the seemingly leader of the group of boys taunted, "don't even know what we're saying, huh, stupid!" He was a broad faced little boy, but he had the undeniable baby fat that clung to his body, making him seem more cute rather than threatening. Not to mention a haircut that was more meant for older kids and not annoying snot-nosed brats.
"Unvernünftig," the fallen boy muttered under his breath. Bright blue eyes locked onto the bleak ground in front of him, a bitter amusement tingling his dirt layered fingertips that scraped into the brown sand underneath him; and he couldn't help but think that it reminded him so much of how he was feeling: barren.
"Huh?" the wannabe kindergartner intellectually voiced. "What'dya say, punk?"
"I think he said something in a different language," the one with the squeaky voice from before suggested.
He got smacked on the back of his head by another boy in the group. The one who had hit him was a boy with a strong jaw and a full head of gray hair despite not even being out of elementary. The one who got his was a rounded boy with meaty hands and short brown hair.
"A'course he said somethin' in a different language! He ain't from around here'a." He was the one that hit the plump boy.
The leader sneered down at the boy on the ground, "Why then I 'aught to teach him a les-"
"Boys!" a female voice interrupted. It was a black-haired female who wore the tightest bun in existence on the top of her head. She was one of the teachers who was in charge of watching the students during recess. "What are you four doing over there? This area is off-limits unless you have adult supervision."
The three boys bullying the blond haired four year old all stammered out an apology before hightailing it out of there.
"And what about you, young man?" she addressed the child still on the ground.
Said boy quickly got to his feet, "Sorry, miss. I-I was just leaving."
With that said, he returned to the playground and sat at his usual spot underneath a moderate-sized tree with enough shade to house one small child.
"You still reading, nerd?"
The now seven year old blond boy sighed through his nose before bookmarking his page and shutting his book. "Do you need something?" he asked trying to mask his annoyance with a smile.
The bully scoffed, "you think you can talk to me like that?"
He didn't answer, just looked up at the boy from his seat on the ground, blue eyes wide and calculating.
"What? Ya not gonna say anythin'?" the grey haired male glared. "Fine! Then I'll do this!" He snatched the book the blond haired boy was holding and waved it in the air.
"H-Hey!" the usually quiet boy yelped and leaped to his feet to take back his book.
The leader laughed, his previous baby fat shed making him look like what he wasn't before: intimidating. He dug his foot into the reader's chest, a sneer contorting his features into something gruesome.
The boy doubled over, breath leaving him in one go and coughed trying to get air back into his lung. He looked up at them, one arm supporting him on the ground and his other holding his pained gut.
The group of bullies took pleasure in causing harm to the timid boy, always making the best out of the boy who never fought back.
The one who took his book flipped through the contents, scanning page after page with a confused look. "This is so stupid... Why would ya read 'bout nature? That's a girl thing!"
"That's because he is a girl!" jabbed the rounded boy.
He received a slap to the back of the head.
The leader of the group clicked his tongue and held out his hand to the one with the book, "Give it here."
The boy obliged and placed the book in his hand.
"So," the leader of the group said, "you like this book, huh..."
"P-Please give... please give it b-back," the blond haired boy pleaded. "My grandpa gave me that book."
"Your grandpa, huh," he chuckled. "Well I don't think he'll mind if I did this." The boy opened the book and proceeded to tear out a page.
Wide eyes looked on as he saw the hand pull at the paper, the sound of crinkling and ripping filled his ears and a panic filled his being.
They're... they're tearing my book. Why?... Why can't I be strong? Why can't I be strong and get my book back?
His bright Carolina blue eyes started glossing from tears that had yet to be shed.
Someone... help. Please, someone help!
Tear after tear the blond boy had to endure. He didn't do anything, he couldn't. All that would happen is him getting beaten to the ground. He wasn't strong; he wasn't capable. He was hopeless and weak; he needed other people to fight his battles for him because he couldn't.
"Please, stop," he begged, voice shaking and a drop of water slid down from his eye and dangled on his chin. "Stop... please."
His throat hurt and his chest constricted. He could hear in between the ripping of pages and horrid cackling of the boys that harassed him everyday the sound of his heart beating.
'RIP'
'THUMP'
'HA-HA'
Someone...
'RIP'
'THUMP'
'HA-HA'
Please...
'RIP' 'THUMP' 'HA-HA'
Help me!
'RIP''THUMP''HA-HA''RIP''THUMP''HA-HA''RIP''THUMP''HA-HA'
...
'SMACK'
The blond boy looked up at the sound of flesh meeting flesh and the thump of something large hitting the ground. In front of him was a boy about his age standing with his legs apart and his fist outstretched while his other one was tucked into his body: a fighting stance. Behind the boy was a girl also around their age whose bottom half of her face was shielded off by a red scarf, but from the shape of her eyes, she looked Asian.
"W-What?" gasped one of the bullies who was kneeling by the group leader. The other one took a step back looking ready to dash.
"Get outta here before I beat you all to the ground!" growled the boy who had punched the kid that was sporting a bloody nose.
The three bullies scrambled away before the mysterious boy could actually cause them arm.
He sighed and relaxed his pose before turning to the blond on the ground. Said boy flinched as he was met with piercing green eyes and he remembered that this new boy had just punched someone.
"Are you okay?" the green-eyed boy asked kneeling down next to the frightened blond.
"Y-Yeah..." he answered hesitantly, but also relieved. "Thank you for helping me."
"It's no problem," he murmured and started picking up the loose pages from the book.
Now that he could get a better look, the blond boy studied his savior. He had short brown hair and slightly tanned skin with a softly edged face.
"The name's Eren, Eren Jaeger and that's Mikasa," the boy said handing the papers to the blond.
He blushed as he accepted what was left of his book, "A-Armin Arlert."
"Arlert? Are you German?" he asked, his eyebrows slacking giving him a confused look rather than an imposing one.
"Y-Yeah! You kind of seem German as well, but you have a different accent..." Armin said before realizing he could have offended this Eren kid. Waving his arms in front of him he stuttered out, "Not that it's bad or anything, it's just..."
Eren laughed, "Yeah, I'm German, but I came here from Japan."
"Japan? Wow, that's so cool. I think the culture is very beautiful."
"Mikasa's Japanese!" he exclaimed and grabbed her hand, pulling her down with them onto the floor with them.
Armin couldn't help but think that he was a little too rough, but the girl didn't seem to mind and just went with it.
"Oh- then why did you come to America then?"
Eren and Mikasa both grew solemn looks on their faces, their eyes darkening and the air seemed to shift into a dark awkwardness that breathed on Armin's skin. He knew then that it wasn't a good question to ask and he had tread an invisible line only seen by the two kids that sat in front of him.
"We're here to start a family," Eren said simply after a while.
"I-..." the blond haired boy didn't know what to say. Questioning further would probably only anger them, but not saying anything just made everything tense.
"Who's your teacher?" Armin asked suddenly to change the subject. He hadn't seem them earlier, but he also didn't have any new students in his class, so they probably belonged in a different one.
"Mrs. Tweetfart or something like that," Eren shrugged.
The only teacher that had a name remotely close to that was a third grade teacher whose name was Treharne, and she was an older lady with hardly any hair left and smelled of what-a-burger and bad citrus. Armin was only a second grader.
"I'm a year younger than you guys..." the blond chuckled rubbing the back of his head nervously. Armin... wanted friends, and he thought he could be friends with Eren and Mikasa, but they were older than him. Even if it was a year difference, it was still a gap that was hard to maintain, especially when they'd be separated when the time for middle school and high school came around. If they even wanted to be friends with him in the first place.
Armin didn't have friends. He knew some people here and there, but he mostly kept to himself. No one wanted to be friends with the shy German kid who knew more about their class subjects than they did.
Eren didn't acknowledge what Armin had said, but instead stood up and dusted himself off, Mikasa following after him.
They're so cool...
The blond looked on in awe at the two and couldn't help but think that even though they seemed intimidating and rough, they'd be amazing people.
Teal-green eyes suddenly locked with bright blue and a hand was lowered down just a bit above Armin's head.
"Well, come on," Eren said, urging Armin to follow him.
His blue eyes lit up with happiness as he took the offered hand.
I don't know German. At all.