Valedictorian | Armin Arlert

angels

A piercing ring wailed through the walls of the school, signalling the end of a long day and the beginning of a well-deserved break. You nodded in Armin's direction after he bid you goodbye and bent his lips to say, See you later!

You were content with the civility between you and Armin. That's not to say you didn't share a few friendly jabs at each other. However, your attitude toward your partnership with Armin had dramatically shifted. This noticeable difference changed your day. Unfortunately, nothing is unchanging.

Enjoying to what you formed and savoring the friendliness was all you could do. As you and Armin wrapped up the project, it was only to be speculated that the two of you would assume your regular bantering. Acting like friends would no longer be a problem, because it wouldn't be necessary. Emilia wouldn't have anything to worry about.

Speak of the devil.

A familiar head poked itself from behind a bend you were turning. Emilia had a habit of greeting you out of the blue, like that. Maybe because she knew you'd turn and run if you saw her approach.

"Emilia!" You gaped in surprise.

She held her hands up in a surrendering motion, her smile looking a little less grimace-like. Her demeanor shifted into more relaxed, sympathetic– yet still a bit tense.

"Hi, I'll make this quick," she said, "I can tell you don't like me very much."

You nearly choked. Her mentioning something like that caused you to become rather flustered, "Wh- why would you assume..."

She crossed her arms, becoming a little less friendly. Her tone was thick with sarcasm, as she nodded "Oh, how could you hate your rival's girlfriend!? That makes absolutely zero sense, you're right...!"

You paused, opening your mouth to say something but hinging it shut, tightly. You looked at her with a more respectful gaze, "I... may have misjudged you."

She nodded with a distasteful sigh, "I wanted to apologize. About earlier... in the library..."

"Apologize?" You asked, not missing a beat. A wrongful rise of bitterness collected in your throat.

Emilia looked down, "I'm new to healthy... relationships. Which, isn't an excuse, I know. I... just wanted to say I was sorry for making you uncomfortable."

You tensed your shoulders, "No, no. I get it, its okay. I should respect your boundaries. But, in honesty, there's nothing between Armin and I. There can't be."

She seemed to smile at that, "You'd be surprised, (Y/N). See you around."

"Hopefully not," You joked. She rolled her eyes with a smile as you left. A weird pang of disappointment rested in your chest. It was wrongful disappointment, just like the bitterness you felt before.

Emilia was a pretty nice person and you didn't know why it bothered you. Maybe she had strict boundaries but she cared and not just about Armin. Emilia apologized to you. And admitted her own fault. Now you saw what Sasha was going to say.

Seeing Armin with someone who doesn't deserve him would hurt you and for all the right reasons. That didn't mean it felt good when he was with someone who wasn't... how would you describe it? You? Even if the person was great and everything Armin wanted. Someone you couldn't measure up to.

Late that night, the mood fell. Everything seemed to crumble. It became dark out sooner, the cold pressing its frosty face against your house. Thankful to be home, your stomach fell as you found your father in a state of emergency.

"W- hold- hold on-" you said desperately, standing in your scrubs. You had just arrived home from volunteering after coming home early. Foolishly, you expected to spend Thanksgiving with your father. You began regretting even coming home as a rod settled deep in your chest. It wasn't the fact you were not spending the holidays with your father that angered you. No, you've gone plenty of them alone. It was something entirely different.