Everybody's Changing by Keane
"Welcome back, father!" I went down the steps, grinning as I went to hug him. He exhaled into the hug, kissing the top of my head, and his hands were large and gentle on my back.
"Hello, my sweetness, you seem quite cheery! Do I truly bring such delight?" His portly figure jiggled with his laughter as I chuckled.
"Hey, dad." Armin stood at the top of the steps, looking down at his own feet.
With that, father pulled away and looked up at him, sighing.
"I heard about the play." He spoke, leaving me behind as he went up the steps, casting Armin a frown and stare.
Disappointment.
"Yeah."
"I thought we spoke of this before…Surely, any girl could've done—"
"It's—It was just for the play." He muttered.
I didn't understand what was wrong.
"Father…? Armin did very well…" I told him. Sure, I may have messed up, but Armin didn't deserve to get the blame.
"He didn't mean to put me in that position." It was a lie.
Armin did force me into it, but he had apologized and said he wouldn't had if he knew.
But didn't he?
"Oh, darling," father turned back at me, beaming, "you did nothing wrong. Nothing at all! Stage fright is quite fearsome at your age! Especially for such a young lady."
He coaxed with his hand for me to follow.
"I must get all the details about the play inside! I also heard some interesting news about you, my sweetness!" He wrapped an arm around my shoulder and walked with me into the main parlor.
Armin didn't follow. Instead, he stayed out on the front steps, quiet and staring off at the front gardens.
I only saw his shoulders slump before the door closed and father brought me closer to him.
"From what I heard, you did wonderful! Armin even sent me a video! My, what a striking performance, Historia! Absolutely exquisite! If I never knew better I'd say you were the perfect Hollywood star!" Hearing his words made my heart swell, pushing away the negativity I recalled with those memories.
"I-I tried—"
"I can tell! Exquisite! Positively exquisite! Are you planning to stay in it? I heard the stage fright was too much, but you're so good at it!"
"I—I don't know," father approved so much of it… how could I tell him I didn't want to do it anymore?
"If you don't want to, dear, that's okay," he assured, smiling and sitting us down on the couch, "I used to be quite deathly afraid of the stage myself, but public speaking has changed my attitude for it. Then, again, stage isn't a becoming hobby that one can incorporate too much later!"
I was glad he didn't force me into it as I nodded and he patted himself down with his handkerchief.
"How was Japan, father?"
"Oh, it was quite wonderful, dear, but I'm afraid I missed home too much. In fact, I missed being around you the most. I feel most upset that left so abruptly after you got here. I know it was hard to get used to the place." He spoke, eyes glancing around the place and it landed on the piano where Frieda's picture frame was.
"It must've been most hard to be here," he repeated, distant.
"I-It was at first, b-but I really like it!" I spoke, trying to get his attention back.
I succeeded because he turned towards me, smiling so sweetly and kissing my forehead.
"Do you? That makes me most happy… I also saw your grades—you're doing very well! Math is improving quite steadily." He brought his pipe out along with his small kit, opening it and preparing to clean and polish it.
"Speaking of, I heard Braun's son has been coming often, yes?" He smiled, winking at me, making me bite my tongue.
"Y-Yes…" I felt my stomach twist and turn uncomfortably.
Armin or Pixis must've spoke out—I should've—
"That's very good! You're a beautiful girl, Historia, and a very smart and charismatic one! He's a bright, handsome, and good young lad from what I've heard. I think him courting you is good for our family business." He chuckled, making me flinch.
It was okay?
I was ready for him to yell or to tell me to go to my room.
Ready for him to say I didn't need boys. And if I did have a boyfriend that I was a 'good for nothing like my mothe—'
"He should come over for dinner sometime this week so I may meet him! I'd love to know more about this man." He offered and I could only nod in return as he swept the conversation along.
"Tell me about him—don't leave me hanging, Historia!" He giggled, looking up at me as he wiped his pipe with a satin cloth.
"Um, h-he's nice."
"Nice? Is that all?"
"He likes playing football."
"Ah, as does many young men!" He snorted as Pixis came in, smiling and handing him important parcels that were delivered while he was gone.
"For you, sir."
"Thank you, Pixis."
"Ah, Miss Historia," he turned towards me, producing a card from his pocket, "I believe your friend left her student I.D. here."
"Oh!" I took it and glanced at it, seeing Ymir's face.
I couldn't help but laugh at seeing how non-photogenic she was! It was a shame because she really was pretty in real life.
"Oh! A new friend?" Father grinned, leaning close to me to see her.
"She looks like a deer in headlights." He commented, giggling with me.
"Yeah, her name is Ymir—Ymir Langnar."
"Langnar? Never heard of her… Hm. Who's her family?" Father asked.
Being prestigious meant knowing everyone who was anyone and that meant the children of the Academy were in that upper-crust of those certain people.
"Her…um, I don't know her father… but her brother is Bertolt Hoover—"
"Oh! Baldur Hoover! He's one of the well-known surgeons at one of our hospitals!" Father nodded.
"I didn't realize he had another child," he murmured, thinking with a frown. He put the empty pipe to his lips out of habit, pittering away.
"Hm."
I watched him carefully, wondering what he thought of Ymir.
"Hm… Indeed. So, what is your Ymir friend like?"
"Oh, father, she's really funny!" I smiled and he pulled the pipe away, grinning back.
"Is she? Good humor is hard to find."
"She is very funny and very good at sports—she plays volleyball, softball, and basketball. She might play those here if her grades are good enough. She also has a sister—Oh, they're so very tall! I feel so short around them!" I told him, bringing my hand above my head to show just how different our heights are.
"I see, you seem quite fond of her."
"E-Eh?"
"Oh! It's just you speak so excitedly, sweetness! You must love her so dearly… Friendships are a beautiful thing to cherish as you grow up, love." He went back to wiping down his pipe, nodding and smiling.
I didn't realize I spoke so much about her. It made me look back to notice that comparing when he asked about Reiner that I didn't say much… but talking about friends and relationships was different.
One was embarrassing and the other was normal.
"What's her mother like?" Father asked.
"I-I don't know."
"Perhaps of darker descent," he spoke, "hm… don't see much of that around here… how do the other children treat her?"
I didn't know.
I didn't really pay attention how other people interacted with her.
I only ever cared for how she acted.
"Okay…? Though, Reiner doesn't like her much…and she hates Reiner…"
"No doubt! John Braun is a bit, hm, racist, but Bernita Braun is a doll. Hopefully the lad took more after his mother, hm?"
I didn't know whether Reiner was racist either.
I didn't think he was, because Bertolt was dark, too. Ymir was only a few shades more.
"Reiner isn't that way, father," I spoke up and he looked at me, staring at me in the eyes, and then nodding once more.
"Indeed, he probably isn't. I know Armin used to hang out with Reiner and Bertolt a lot. Especially Reiner. Bertolt is darker but a more acceptable tan. Then again, I'm a bit judgy." He chuckled.
I didn't think there was any racism at the Academy. I never saw it happen.
But, I looked down at my skin, I wasn't dark or different like Bertolt or Ymir.
"So, as I was saying earlier, "father tapped his pipe against the table and went to grab his tobacco, "you seem to be uninterested in the stage now. What club do you plan to join now?"
"Oh, um…possibly ballet…"
"Ballet is very good! You look very beautiful doing it…" a small, bitter smile came onto his face as he finished stuffing the tobacco in and then lit a match.
In moments he was puffing rings of smoke, watching them disappear lazily.
"You know, Frieda loved ballet, too… she loved it with all her heart… she loved everything she did."
-x-x-x-
Vrrt!
"Plan on ballet, huh?" Ymir had her hands stuffed in her pockets as we walked the top floor of the mall, glancing around the place.
"Yeah," I smiled, "father seemed to like the idea."
His sad eyes, his bitter smile…
It made me want to try hard for it.
And it reminded me of Papa.
I wondered how Papa was doing.
Pangs of guilt and homesickness hit me.
I wish I could call him, talk to him, see his mustache twitch before he chuckled, or to see him in the garage again, hear him whistling and shining down his 'Cuda.
I missed it so much.
"Everyone likes to do ballet," Ymir sighed, shrugging about in her coat, "but I'd rather do dance. But it's full."
"Full?"
"Yeah, the club has no room for anyone else." She grumbled, staring down at her feet and kicking a tile.
"Oh…that's too bad…but…you like dancing, right?" I remember seeing her dance like her whole body was water.
Everything was fluid and perfect in her body.
Vrrttt!
"Yeah. Back at home, I used to go to Pow-Wows with Grandma and dance in the competitions." She smiled, thinking about it.
"Oh, man, you haven't tried Indian Tacos before have you? Or Elephant Ears?" She jumped ahead, walking backwards, grinning widely.
"No," I laughed, watching her nearly trip over her own feet, "what are they?"
"Ohhhhh man! They're heaven in your mouth! You'll have to wait and—"
"YMIR! KRISTA!" A voice yelled loudly.
Ymir turned around as I went to her side, waving.
Ahead of us was Ilse and Sasha.
Ilse was even taller as she grinned, walking up to us. Sasha was bounding up left and right, giggling and hopping into a hug with me. I hugged her back, laughing.
"Sasha!"
"Oh! You're as cute and small as I remember! Oh! It's been so long!" She cried out and then went to Ymir, hugging her, too.
"I can't believe you guys go to the same fancy-schmancy school! That luck, huh?"
"That luck," Ilse repeated, coming over to me to lean down and hug me, too.
When she pulled away I got a good look at Sasha to notice that she didn't have her metal capped teeth anymore—they were all gone and now white and shiny and glowing. Her hair was just the same and she was exactly how I remembered her.
It made the back of my throat bubble into infectious smiles.
It felt so right to all be together like this again.
"Where to first?" Ymir asked, glancing around.
"Arcade!" Sasha cried.
"No, I need to get new clothes. I outgrew mine." She sighed.
"Clothes first." Ymir decided with Sasha grumbling as Ilse took the lead.
We wandered about the mall until Ilse found the store she wanted to go to—Victoria Secret.
"I thought you said new clothes."
"Underwear and bras are new clothes," Ilse blushed, scuttling inside to look at the garments.
There were a lot of girls in there with their mothers as the store employees were helping them I wasn't too interested in buying anything so I looked at the advertisements and pictures.
I left the group as Ymir teased Ilse for looking at scandalous undergarments as Sasha quipped in.
Some of the underwear and bras were actually pretty cute…
"None of these would ever fit me!" Sasha whined, looking at the bras and underwear.
"Well, yeah," Ymir snorted, "nobody have porn star boobs like yours."
"Hey!"
I chuckled under my breath as I went to my size, peering at what they had for sale by a mother and her daughter.
They were looking up at the trio.
"No, it's because she's too fat." The daughter whispered to her mother who laughed loudly.
I froze up, staring over at them as they sifted through the bins.
Did they really say that?
I looked back at Sasha, assessing her.
There was nothing wrong with her—she was happy and the same Sasha that I loved as a child.
"She should learn to stop eating." Her mother whispered back and they snickered and left with what they had.
I was left standing there, caught off guard at the rude remarks people could make.
Vrrrt!
I was stuck there.
Sasha glanced around and saw me staring at her. She waved at me, smiling.
"Krista, come here! This is a cute bra for you!" She laughed.
She was such a sweet and warm person even now.
Why would someone just see her as…
"'Kay," I walked over, forcing myself to smile, and looking at what she showed—"—Sasha!"
It was a see-through leopard print thong and bra set. I felt my cheeks redden as she barked out a laugh with Ymir and Ilse.
"You're so terrible!" I cried but ended up laughing, too, because it was silly. It really was.
In the end, we didn't buy anything and left and spent most of our time in the arcade in the basement of the mall playing mini-golf.
Well, trying to play mini-golf.
"It was so fun seeing you again! You're so pretty and cute now!" Sasha gave me another hug, pulling away to put her hands on my shoulders.
The words from that woman were replaying back in my ears.
Vrrt!
"You're as pretty and nice as I remember, too," I replied and Sasha flinched, turning bright pink as Ilse laughed as Ymir rolled her eyes, nudging Sasha away.
"Oh, you!" Sasha finally broke out, laughing, walking away, and waving to their ride.
"We'll see you again!" Ymir told them and we went walking to her car.
Vrrt!
"Jesus, Krista, who's been trying to get ahold of you?"
"Oh… Um, I think it's spam...and Reiner, I think?"
"Jesus. Tell him to give it a break." Ymir huffed.
I pulled out my phone, glancing at it.
Twenty messages.
I closed my phone.
"I will reply later."
I didn't feel like talking right now.
I was having too much fun with my friends.
A/N:
Point of View is a fun thing, isn't it?
