Once In A While

Chapter 15: Memories

It's times like this one, when I reminisce about the past; how my friendship with all these people came to be. And to be completely transparent, it didn't start out as glamorous or optimistic as one may have thought.

Being as awkward as any other twelve year old with no particular experience in friendship, having lived in a remote area for my entire life, I wasn't one to spark people's interests. I wasn't special, like Eren and his friends, who experienced the fall of Maria first hand; I wasn't as tall, muscular and impressive like Reiner was. I was just...average. One with the crowd, one might say. But I was fine with that.

With that being said, I wasn't a recluse. Sure, the first few nights spend at the dormitory, where social interaction was unavoidable, I felt a bit out of place, but as time went on, I started getting along with my fellow trainees. I was incredibly fond of Sasha for some odd reason, maybe it was her personality, her food addiction being a comedic relief from time to time. She was fun to be around, and so, I looked forward to chatting with her before bed -not so much during meals, she would stuff her mouth with food and barely talked because of that-.

It was during an academic lesson when I made another acquaintance, who would soon be a familiar face amidst the soldiers; Marco.

My abilities when it comes to academics weren't that bad, but I was extremely confused with a concept the lecturer presented us with; I just couldn't get the hang of it.

"It's not that hard to understand! I could help you, if you'd like that!" He had told me, with an ever so slight smile on his face.

I just stared at him, unable to process how someone would be willing to help a stranger with their own will. Maybe not everyone was unapproachable, I thought to myself.

"Thank you, I would appreciate it." I replied, admist other things that I cannot recall, and that was how I was able to pinpoint his face in the crowd from then on.

At first, we didn't interact that much; we would acknowledge each other's presence with a wave, maybe a 'hello' on his part, but for a while, that was it. I would have liked to maybe strike up a conversation with him during dinner, but that other boy, with the two toned hair made me extremely nervous; the guy would always manage to get into fights with Eren. That being said, there was always this thought that maybe he'd find me annoying. So, I kept to myself.

Talking about that boy -Jean was his name, as I soon found out- the way we met, or became aware of each other's existence, that is, wasn't that special either; I wasn't the one to be swooned over by him, like Mikasa with her jet black hair that he so evidently adored.

Sasha was forbidden from having dinner that night, having goofed around with Connie during training earlier that day, earning cleaning duty as a punishment in the process.

And so, there I was, standing alone in the mess hall, unsure of what to do; I usually sat with them during meals, and I didn't want to seem invasive by joining someone else's table.

"Hey (Y/n)! Come sit with us." Marco beckoned from his own table, which he shared with none other than Jean and a few others.

I walked towards them and I sat down across from the two boys.

"Is this ok? I don't mind to intrude..." I hastily apologized.

"It's totally fine! Seems like Sasha and Connie received another punishment, didn't they?" Marco smiled at me, while his friend looked unamused, staring at nothing in particular.

"Yeah... I've told Sasha not to play around during training, since Shadis isn't fond of that, but she just doesn't listen..." I explained as I started eating.