CHAPTER 01 – It Starts

"What's that Armin?" A little girl in pigtails bounced up to the boy hunched over his notebook.

Now, it was common knowledge that Armin was the boy you never asked anything. But the little girl who should have known better, didn't. Armin looked up with a twinkle in his eyes at the curious girl who hovered over his shoulder. If he recalled correctly, her name was Mina and she had just transferred to their class that Monday due to a fight with a boy in her last class. It's been a while since anyone asked him anything and he was dying to finally tell someone about his latest project.

"Hi Mina!" He exclaimed, sitting up straight. "It's actually an idea I had when I went to the beach with my parents over the summer. We were walking along the shore and my mom picked up this really shiny shell! At first I thought it was just one of the broken ones you find when you dig for hermit crabs but then she–"

"I was actually talking about your pencil," Mina interrupted albeit politely, Armin's excited expression dropped.

"Oh," The little boy replied crestfallen. "It's a four colour mechanical pencil my dad bought me from Germany."

"Cool!" Mina bounced away back into her group of friends over at the other table.

Armin hadn't looked up all recess until then but when he did, he felt a sensation of isolation. A lot of the kids were eating their lunches together, talking animatedly about the latest episode of that one cartoon that's supposed to be really good. Now Armin knows for a fact that he isn't popular and at the beginning of the semester it didn't really matter. His parents would always tell him that he was a good kid. That he would find friends on his own and they would be the best kind of friends. But every time he made an attempt, everyone seemed to push away leaving him to his books and grandiose ideas of flying cars and improved waste disposal systems.

Instead of mulling over what he didn't have however, Armin liked to keep a positive attitude. The boy took a breath and resumed his doodling, humming to himself as he went along.

Just as he was about to start labelling his masterpiece, the bell rang for the end of recess. Students filed into the classroom, once again taking their seats before their teacher walked in. Armin sat up expectantly, a smile on his face.

A chorus of chairs screeching against hard wood erupted as the kids lined up for the end of classes. Armin was the last to have his things packed. Just in time for the last kid in line to leave the room.

His homeroom teacher took the opportunity to approach him then, a gentle smile on her face, "Say Armin," he looked up at her, "could you give this letter to your parents tonight?"

She handed him a slim envelope. The school crest and headmaster's initials stamped on the top right corner concluded that it was important.

"Okay." Armin stopped to slip it neatly into his Science textbook before waving his teacher goodbye and heading home.

He ran through all the possibilities of a personal letter from the headmaster. Maybe he had missed some schoolwork, or maybe they found out about the class turtle being replaced. Either way, he held on to his bag straps a little tighter than usual, hoping for the best.

And nobody would notice. Nobody would see how his hands started sweating and his heart started pounding at the thought of being in trouble. They wouldn't see the little blonde boy making his way home with a little less of a skip in his step and an anxious expression on his face.

As Armin watched the kids walk along the pavement in groups and couples, he thought about how desperately he wished he had friends. Or how maybe things would be different if he wasn't so different himself.

NOTE: I went to a British curriculum school, so that's what I'm using as a basis for this fic. Also, this is my first time writing a full-length fic in years! So I'm hoping the process will bring me a step closer to being the kind of writer I want to be.

I appreciate any constructive criticism you may have for me!

[ peach ]