Erwin stared at the board. The class assignments were up and it wasn't looking good.
Not only was he separated from all his friends, he was going to be in the same class as the short, bad tempered and sometimes violent pixie. Otherwise know as Levi.
He'd managed to avoid him for his entire high school career so far, but now he was in his senior year, his luck had run out. Everyone in school feared and dreaded meeting him, like he was a tornado whipping through the school, chewing up students and spiting them back out again. Erwin himself, just didn't want the hassle. This year was going to be tough.
And tough it proved to be, as Erwin sat down in homeroom only to have the pixie himself burning holes in the back of his head. This was only his first day back and it already sucked.
The homeroom teacher entered the room, planting himself confidently behind his shoddy wooden desk. He smiled out kindly at his class and Erwin felt the stress leave his shoulders. His new homeroom teacher was non other than Mr Pixis. He was kind and well liked. Erwin himself respected the shit out him. He knew how to handle people and Erwin hoped he could handle the school delinquent currently sat a foot behind him. All I can do is hope. He really didn't want to get on that little guys bad side. Only one more year to go. Just one.
"Well hello kids." Pixis crooned, his voice slightly gravely. "I'll be your homeroom teacher this year, I hope we can all get along." he smiled around the room and then proceeded to make everyone introduce themselves.
Erwin groaned internally, or at least he thought he had, so he was shocked when a groan sounded in his ear. He looked up quickly to see if Pixis had noticed, but he just carried on as if nothing had happened. He probably just imagined it.
Someone stood up in the middle of the class and addressed the room. Erwin recognised him immediately and wasn't to happy to be in the same class as this guy either.
"Hey! I'm Nile Dawk." he started, his voice and pompous attitude grating on his nerves already.
He groaned internally again, or at least he thought he had? Because there was definitely a loud groan coming from somewhere.
Nile spun around, his face twisted in contempt.
"Someone got a problem?" he spat, his cheeks growing rosy.
Erwin raised an eyebrow in question and was about to defend himself when someone else spoke up.
"Whatever… Dork. Tch." Came a low voice from behind him. It made his stomach flip and a smile break out on his face. Dork… Nile Dork. That's funny.
Nile's face grew red in anger as he seethed, then his anger was suddenly directed at him.
"What about you Smith?! You got something to say?!" he hissed at him.
"No, nothing at all." he answered calmly. His face returning to it's usual stoic expression.
"You sure about that?! Cause you were grinning as if something were funny, Smith!" he bit back.
"I can assure you, you were mistaken." he drawled, laughing on the inside as Nile started to visibly shake with rage.
He was about to shout at him again when Pixis interrupted.
"Enough." he stated calmly and Nile instantly took his seat with a huff. Pixis looked at him then and smiled kindly. "So what about you two troublemakers at the back? What are your names?" he and Levi stood up behind their desks in unison.
Troublemakers? Surely he wasn't talking about him? He'd never been a troublemaker in his life. Not only that, but Mr Pixis already knew his name and he definitely knew of his good and clean reputation. Making it sound as if he and this Levi guy were a pair, a team… was totally uncalled for.
"My name is Erwin Smith and I assure you I am no troublemaker. Sir." he stated flatly as if he were talking to a superior officer in the military.
Pixis just smiled and pointed at the shorter man.
"And what about your friend?" he smirked, his moustache quirking upwards. He was enjoying himself and at his expense no less. Friend? Really? What was this man doing?
Erwin looked down at Levi, his bored expression was priceless, his cold eyes looking directly at him. He raised a brow at the shorter man and turned back to his teacher.
"I'm sure my "friend" can speak for himself. Why don't you ask him directly?" he said with false sweetness.
Suddenly everyone was whispering and trying to hide their giggles, he didn't understand what was happening. Had he done something? Had he come across as having an attitude? Even Levi's eyes seemed to brighten.
"You're right. I'm sure he can." Pixis said, looking thoroughly pleased with himself. Pixis and Levi stared at each other for a moment, until Levi seemed to decide it would be quicker just to cooperate.
"The names Levi and I don't give a shit about Dork's feelings." he said in monotone.
Nile bristled in his chair and glared at them and Erwin had to fight to keep a chuckle down. It was safe to say, that even though the two of them were very different, when it came to their views on Nile Dawk, they were of one mind.
What a pompous shit!
"Is that so?" he cooed. "Well, I think that will be all from you pair." he smiled warmly and Erwin's gut twisted. There is was again. Pair.
They sat down in unison as they had when they were told to stand and Erwin wondered what the hell that old man was doing.
The rest of the introductions went off without a hitch and when homeroom came to an end, Erwin immediately noticed how people were reacting towards him. It was like he had the plague.
As he was leaving, Levi pushed past him and people parted for him like the red sea and continued to be parted as they looked at Erwin expectantly. Waiting for him to follow.
With an intake of breath Erwin followed the path laid out for him and looked back at Mr Pixis begrudgingly, only to see the bastard smiling at him. Seriously? What the hell is he up to?
Erwin's first class was relatively normal, but by second period things started to get weird. People where starting to whisper to themselves, looking over at Erwin cautiously every now and then. He groaned inwardly, these people were idiots. He didn't know what they were saying, but it probably had something to do with him and Levi. Except there was no him and Levi. They were two completely separate entities. Up until this morning they had never even interacted with one another. Levi was a "Bad Boy", who hung around at the back of school and smoked with his "Bad Friends" and Erwin didn't. He went to classes, he did his homework early and stayed after school for club activities and tutored others students. He was the model student. And I don't even look like a delinquent!
He didn't. He wore chinos and a sweater vest over his crisply ironed shirt and wore thick rimmed glasses, not ripped skinny jeans, death metal band t-shirts and leather jackets. He wore smart shoes, not tattered converse. His hair was neatly combed, not bed headed. He was a geek. And Levi was a… freak. Their words not mine.
He seriously didn't understand how they could even propose such a foolish idea. Erwin Smith badass?
Erwin laughed to himself, this whole situation was just ridiculous and he bet his friends would find it hilarious too.
That last statement turned out to be true as he went to join his friends for lunch and Hange started to laugh at him before he'd even had a chance to sit down.
"And may I ask what's so funny?" he asked calmly, hiding his irritation. Hange just continued to laugh, curling in on herself, snorting in-between each howl.
"It's your new reputation as a bad boy." Mike answered instead, sniffing his food before shoving it in his mouth. His expression didn't give much away, but there was a twinkle in his eyes all the same, saying he thought it was amusing too. Erwin sighed.
"What's this world coming to?" he said with a shake of his head and sat down opposite them.
"Who knows, but I have to say. I never thought it would come to this." Mike smiled. Erwin scoffed and started to pick through his food. The food at school really sucked, but he wasn't about to complain, as he knew it could be a lot worse. It could be one of Hange's home cooked meals and they were just bad. Suicide would be worth considering first, before hazarding a bite. Her poor boyfriend Moblit must have an iron stomach.
"Just how did this happen anyway?!" Hange howled, wiping tears of laughter away with her sleeve.
"I have no idea. But I'd say, it's partially Nile's fault for being an asshole…" he drawled, picking out some strange lumps from his canteen chilli.
"Well, that's a given. I can't believe you got stuck in the same class as him again this year." Mike sympathised. Erwin just nodded.
"… also it's partially due to Mr Pixis. He's messing with me. I think?" he scowled down at his food. Pixis was messing with him, but he didn't know why.
"And why do you think he's messing with you?" Mike asked, picking up on his confusion.
"I don't know?" he answered honestly. "He just is." he scowled again.
"Ooo what did he do?" Hange asked excitedly. Erwin shrugged his shoulders.
"He asked us to introduce ourselves, so that's what everyone was doing. And Nile got up and he and Levi picked a fight with each other, and somehow I got caught up in the middle of it…" he breathed. Hange and Mike just looked on, waiting for him to continue. "…Anyway, he then asked us to introduce ourselves, acting like he'd didn't even know me, which I just took as not showing favourites, you know? But then he kept referring to me and Levi as a pair and calling him my friend. Well, I didn't protest the matter, not wanting to cause anymore trouble, and acted like normal." he finished, still scowling at his food. "Oh, and he was smiling the whole time this was happening, which is why I think he's messing with me. Like he knew this would happen." he added.
Hange laughed and Mike smiled.
"So in others words you went all Erwin-ee and as usual people took it the wrong way." Hange giggled.
"I'm not sure Erwin-ee is an actual term." Mike piped up, still smiling.
"What do you mean Erwin-ee?" asked Erwin with a looked of genuine interest.
"It means you went all expressionless and spoke to them in the calm and straight forward way that you do, that means all respect and equal footing to you, but to everyone else sounds patronising and full of self worth." Hange deadpanned, then laughed loudly.
"Also, you speak to Mr Pixis as if you were talking to a commanding officer, like your some sort of soldier, and people misunderstand, thinking you're acting better than him, challenging him even." Mike droned.
Erwin looked at them in shock. Is that how people saw him? As Erwin-ee?
"Mr Pixis doesn't think like that does he?" he asked in mild panic.
"No." Mike huffed. "Mr Pixis is from a military background, he understands, and he respects you for it. You're easily his favourite student." Erwin slumped his shoulders in relief.
"Also!" Hange shouted. "The things you say sound like they have hidden meanings. Like… like… subterfuge!" she finished, proud of herself.
"Now that is something I'm perfectly aware of." he intoned.
"So you don't deny that you insult people with yer fancy words!" she accused happily.
"Now now, Hange. If you're not careful, people will start to think I'm a twofaced bitch." he said with a dramatic sigh. Mike and Hange grinned wickedly at each other.
"Hey, do you know someone called Erwin Smith?" Levi asked, trying to seem uninterested in his own question. He took a drag of his cigarette and watched as Isabel's brow creased in concentration. Not like he'd take any information from her to heart anyway. She liked gossip and rumours more than actual facts.
"Erwin Smith. Tall blonde guy with glasses?" asked Furlan, his eyebrow quirked questioningly.
"Yeah, that's him." he said, looking at the smoke rising in front of his face.
"What about him?" Furlan looked at him with awe. It wasn't everyday Levi became interested in another human being.
"He's in my class." he answered with a shrug.
Furlan huffed at his answer, he wasn't going to say anymore until Levi did. So they sat quietly for a while, lazing in the shade of the school building, hidden from the rest of the student body and the teachers.
Isabel broke the silence.
"Isn't that Erwin guy like a geek?" she asked. Furlan just shrugged his shoulders, he didn't really care, but Levi did.
"He looks like one…" Levi voiced and Furlan looked up at him from where he was squating, knowing Levi was going to say more. "… but he totally pissed off Dork and talked back to Pixis." he looked at his friends wondering what they thought.
"Wow, really?" Isabel asked excitedly. "Maybe he's not as geeky as I thought." she smiled. Levi sighed inwardly.
"He spoke back to Pixis huh?" Furlan nodded to himself in approval. Pixis was as good as a teacher could be in his eyes, but he could be a really tough bastard too. You didn't want to get on his bad side.
"Yeah and Pixis didn't even care." Levi stated, eyeing his dying cigarette.
Furlan and Isabel looked at each other then, no wonder Levi was interested in this guy, he sounded tough. So Furlan decided to give Levi the information he wanted.
"Well, I know that he's a straight A student, he's on the track team with Dork, that's probably why they don't get on, seeing as I hear Smith is quite good and he tutors for English Literature after school on Wednesdays. He super smart, but could definitely hold his own in a fight if he had to, although I think he'd try to out smart his opponents first before using force." he finished with one last drag on his cigarette, putting it out in the dirt and standing up next to Levi.
"He sounds complex." cooed Isabel, with a smile on her face.
"Yeah…" Furlan continued, dusting off his hands on the back of his black skinnnies. "… so I doubt he's going to be intimidated by our fearless leader." he smiled at Levi. Levi hummed in agreement. "Although, Levi. I have to ask… why do you want to know about him?"
They looked at each other for a moment and Isabel giggled at the tension.
"No reason." Levi finally said and stormed off to his next class. Why did he want to know? Why did he care about some random geek? Why?
Isabel and Furlan shared a knowing look and smiled at each other. Things might just get interesting this year.
A week had past already and things had been relatively normal. Mainly due to the fact that Levi the delinquent had in fact acted like a delinquent and not shown up for class. He showed up for Homeroom once and a while, but he just stared at the back of Erwin's head making him feel slightly uncomfortable, Pixis had also been behaving and by behaving, it meant he wasn't forcing Erwin and Levi into any group activities or even into a conversation. All was well. For now anyway.
So Erwin was surprised when Levi joined them for P.E.
Today they were out on the field, ready and waiting to run laps. The sun was ridiculously hot in the afternoon, but the teachers didn't really care about the students well being enough to let them sit in the shade and drink milkshakes instead.
Mr Shadis, their teacher and also Erwin's own track coach, was barking orders and directing uninterested students to their places when Levi strolled over casually and stood close by. Mr Shadis noticed him and glared.
"Well, to what do we owe this pleasure?" he growled, eyes burning down at the new edition to the group.
Erwin watched with more interest than he would admit. Wondering what Levi would do.
"Pixis made me." he yawned, staring past Shadis as if he were unimportant. The sun gleamed dangerously off of Shadis's shiny head as if mirroring his emotions.
"Well if Pixis made you come here, then he must really want you to run some extra laps." he said with exaggerated calm. "And if that's the case, then you can run laps with the track team members instead of your other class mates." he smirked, knowing his punishment was going to be tough.
Levi stared coldly back, determined not to show his temper, but Shadis could see it all the same and grinned evilly.
"Ok brat, go join the team!" he shouted. Erwin didn't see this turning out well, already the other members of the team were beginning to whisper to themselves and Nile wasn't even whispering.
"So the school delinquent thinks he can keep up with us huh? I cant wait to see this." Nile laughed, walking around as if he were royalty.
"Shh Nile, he might hear you." another member giggled and Erwin just rolled his eyes at them. Seriously? What were they, a group of girls?
Levi just stared at them sourly and Erwin didn't blame him. They were idiots, lead by their idiot leader, Nile.
"Shut your mouth Dork, or I'll shut it for you." he deadpanned, leaving his steely gaze pointed at him.
"What'd you say?!" Nile began to hiss, then Coach Shadis shouted over them, making them jump.
"Line up ladies! Get into your positions!" he shouted at everyone. "I want the two middle lanes left open for the track team, understood?!" everybody groaned their agreement. "Oh and Levi…" he began. Levi just glared at him, much to Shadis's amusement. "…if you don't want to be throwing up by the end of class, I suggest you start sucking up to Mr Smith over there…" he pointed at Erwin and he raised a brow back in question. Me? "… he'll be setting the pace for today. So if you ask him nicely, he might not leave you in the dust, but I wouldn't bet on it." he walked away with a skip in his step, he always was one for enjoying other peoples discomfort. Damn you Pixis, I know you have something to do with this. "I want four laps from everyone! Six from the track team! Got that!" everyone moaned, but got in to place.
The team all gathered in the middle lanes, Levi positioning himself at the back of the group, whilst Erwin was at the front.
Nile chimed in…
"Say Smith, why don't we go a little faster today huh?" he smirked, peering back at Levi. Erwin suppressed a groan at his immaturity. "Weed out the weak." he sneered, still looking at Levi, who in turn looked at him with murder in his eyes.
Erwin looked around at the others trying to judge their willingness. It was safe to say, that even though they thought Nile's antics were funny, they didn't want to push themselves to hard under the afternoon sun and neither did he. Besides, did Nile really think he could make six laps at a faster pace? Idiot. Although, that made Erwin want to do it, just to put Nile through the ringer.
"No." he said finally. Some the team members seemed to relax at that and Levi looked at him perplexed. Nile was about to comment, but Erwin cut him off. "It's to hot to go so hard today and…" he turned his gaze to Nile. "… even the weak need to finish, Nile." he finished, putting extra emphasis on the use of Nile's name. Erwin turned back to face the front, but he heard a huff of approval from the back, and judging from how Nile began to hiss his resentment at Erwin's back, he knew it had come from Levi.
They were on their third lap and Levi was keeping up just fine. He was still at the back, but he was right on their heels. Erwin was impressed, although hadn't agreed to Nile's immature request to go faster, his pace definitely wasn't easy. Even the team members were breathing heavily and sweating profusely, but Levi kept going, keeping up and even though his breathing was a little ragged, he seemed to be managing ok. Nile on the other hand was bright red and looked like he was in pain. Which wasn't so unusual a sight, if he was being honest. It made Erwin smile to see him fall victim to his own stupidity.
Maybe he'd step up the pace, just to piss him off. The other's seemed to be doing fine, Levi included. Just a little faster, that's all.
He stepped off his next stride a little faster and pulled the rest of the team with him. Breaths came a little quicker now and he could hear Nile panting harshly behind him. Judging from the proximity of the sound, Nile had fallen back a few spaces. Gotcha! He smiled to himself.
This wasn't so bad. His chest felt tight and his legs were starting to burn, but it wasn't so bad. He was keeping up with them quite easily, even with the slight shift in speed a moment ago.
He also felt exceedingly smug when he noticed that Dork wasn't fairing as well as he was. And this guy's actually on the track team?
Dork had fallen back a few spaces and was only a little ways away from him. To bad for Dork, he was feeling particularly spiteful today. Levi decided to show him up, picking up his speed and moving past him, thrilling in the way Nile's face was caught between shock and anger. He smiled as he continued to move forward until he was at the front of the pack, going toe to toe with Erwin Smith. He could see the taller boy's lip quirk at the corner, in what he could only presume was a smile.
He hadn't really known this guy existed until a week ago, which was strange considering how he was so out of the ordinary. Ordinary in Levi's book being, boring assholes like Nile and that loser Woerman, but this guy was different. He didn't know how he was different, he just was. So he kept his pace and stayed by Erwin's side.
"So. When's the sprint finish?" he joked idly, his voice raspier than he would have liked. Erwin looked down at him then and smiled for real.
"That all depends…" he huffed from behind his grin.
"On what?" Levi croaked.
"… on who you're trying to beat." he finished. Levi looked up at him with amusement and then back to where he could see Nile struggling behind them.
"Well, I think I've already got Dork beat…" he pants. "… so I guess that leaves you." that made Erwin laugh, deep and loud. Levi decided he liked that laugh.
"Do you really think you can?" he asked with a sly grin. Levi narrowed his eyes, was he doubting him? Or was he just really confident?
"Yes." he said plainly. Erwin just smiled at him again, but looked at him sideways.
"Would you like to know something?" Erwin asked, and Levi looked at him with mild amusement. What's with this guy? He's so strange. He just shrugged in way of an answer.
"Smoking is bad for your health." he said flatly, as if saying it had no affect on anything. But it did affect Levi's mood. He was feeling good, but now this guy was trying to lecture him and it pissed him off. He looked at Erwin, who looked right back at him, undeterred by Levi's brand new scowl.
"What I do is none of your business!" he snapped. Erwin looked at him as if he were a child. A child who didn't understand and should be pitied. Levi didn't like it.
"I don't care what you do Levi." he said calmly, a slight smile on his face.
Levi was taken aback by that. If he didn't care then why was he going on about it? He'd also addressed him by his name, he liked the way it sounded in his deep and rich voice.
"I was just saying that smoking is bad for you. It affects your lungs and stunts your growth." he stated.
What the…? Is he making fun of me?
"Are you making fun of me?!" Levi asked, scowling deeper. Erwin looked at him as if he were appalled that he would think such a thing, Levi decided he didn't trust that face.
"Now, why would you think that?" he asked with a straight face, but his eyes twinkled with mischief. Levi's heart skipped a beat. He didn't know why, but it did. Levi tried to scowl harder to get the message that he was getting pissed across better. Erwin just smiled down at him openly and then turned to face forward again, continuing to speak. "I myself don't smoke…" he risked a glance sideways and caught Levi's confused stare. What the hell is this man on about? "… my lung capacity is above average and I'm… well, I think you get my point." he smiled, shrugging his shoulders.
"No, I'm not quite sure I do." he seethed. He's calling me short. He's definitely calling me short!
"My point is this…" he looked down at Levi with a smug smile. "… now that you're aware of your handicaps, do you still think you can beat me?" his smug smile grew wider and he upped his pace.
Levi huffed out a small giggle, not that he would ever admit that he giggled, this guy was different. The things he said were made to sound like one thing, but meant something entirely different. He insulted him, and he was definitely insulting him, but it didn't feel harsh or hurtful, it felt like a affectionate jibe between two friends.
Levi quickened his pace to get himself back level with Erwin and grinned at him.
"I think I can do it." he stated confidently.
"Ok then." he chuckled. "When we reach the next bend, we'll sprint to the finish." he looked down at Levi and they nodded their agreement.
They stayed quiet for the next few moments, steeling themselves for the final show down. Their hearts began to beat louder in their ears and their muscles tightened in anticipation.
Suddenly the turn was upon them and they shot forward, leaving the rest of the team behind to watch them in bewilderment.
Erwin pumped his arms and long legs, controlling his breathing as he ran as fast as he could. Most of the class had finished their laps and dawdled idly round the side of the track, watching in amusement as he and Levi sprinted towards the finish line. And it was he and Levi, as the little guy ran as fast as he could, his short legs going at a mile a minute. He was really fast and Erwin had to fight to keep down a laugh as the little pixie put him through his paces.
They were nearing the finish line now and Erwin could see Coach Shadis watching them with confusion and a hint of a smile. Damn that Pixis!
Still, Erwin didn't want to lose, so he called on the last of his energy, forcing his legs to go just that bit faster, and in no time at all, he pulled away from Levi and crossed the finish line first.
Once he'd stopped and tried to catch his breath, he could hear the clapping and the cheers as the rest of the world came back into focus. He huffed in exhaustion and smiled. His increased heart rate was absolutely from the physical excursion and not from the thrill of the fight.
He looked around to see what happened to Levi. He was squatting at the side of the track, breathing in heavily. He really should quit smoking.
Soon the rest of the team were crossing the line, they too were panting heavily but that didn't stop a red faced Nile from trying to reprimanded him for his actions.
"What the…" wheeze. "… hell was that?!" wheeze.
Erwin rolled his eyes, not caring if Nile got offended.
"Just wanted to see what he was made of." Erwin answered calmly. It was the truth anyway, so what did it matter.
Nile was about to shout at him again, when the coach honed in on them.
"And tell me Mr Smith, what do you think of our resident delinquent?" he asked smugly.
Erwin peered over at Levi and he was staring right back, looking almost desperate to hear his answer.
"He's good…" he said keeping eye contact. "… but he still lost." he smiled. Levi scoffed at him, his eyes twinkling with hidden pride.
"Tch, whatever you say Beanpole." he chided. Erwin laughed then, that deep loud laugh, that made Levi's stomach feel funny.
"Right back at you Short stack." he grinned and continued to grin even when their class started to whisper and stare. Really, what was so bad about interacting with Levi? It didn't mean he was suddenly going to start smoking and skipping school.
Coach Shadis called an end to the lesson and told everyone to hit showers. As they all shuffled back to the changing rooms, Levi fell into step with him, wiping the sweat from his face, looking at his hands in disgust.
"You're good too by the way." Levi mumbled.
Erwin raised his brow at him. Was he trying to compliment him?
"I know." he stated cockily.
"Tch, modest much?" he huffed.
"I try to be, but the winner gets bragging rights." he said in singsong.
"Whatever." he grimaced, wiping more sweat from the face. "I feel disgusting." Levi spat, like sweating was the most vile thing on the planet and with that he picked up his pace and left Erwin behind.
Erwin shook his head and smiled. Levi wasn't so bad once you got to know him. Not that he knew him. Yet. He didn't know him yet. But he wanted too.
