Couldn't Help It - Jean Kirschtein

01. The First Day

╭──────⋆.˚ ᡣ𐭩 .𖥔˚──────╮

01. The First Day

⋆.˚ ᡣ𐭩 .𖥔˚

Word Count: 1.9k.
Warnings: None.

⋆.˚ ᡣ𐭩 .𖥔˚

        You sat anxiously in the passenger seat of a beat up 2007 Honda Civic. The white exterior beginning to rust near the wheels. It was a shitbox car, for lack of better terms, but your brother, Eren, took pride in having bought it himself. You didn't dare comment about the way the car rusted, or the way brakes squealed if pressed too abruptly, or the way the radio stopped working every couple months. He had a car and you didn't, and right now, he was driving you to your first day at Marley University.

        The currently functional radio hummed a familiar, overplayed tune as he pulled into a crowded parking lot. You thought to yourself, this is much bigger than the lot at Paradis High.

        The deafening sound of bass overshadows the hum of Eren's radio. To the left, a shiny, limousine tinted WRX had parked next to the Civic and put it to shame. The bass lowers as well as the tinted window, revealing an ash brown mullet and a pair of Ray Bans.

        "Hey Jean," Eren greeted his friend somewhat unenthusiastically.

        "Eren, Y/N," he acknowledges, drawing you into the conversation, "you ready?"

        "Not really," you admit, clinging to your bag as you step out of Eren's car and join the two boys outside. Eren ruffles your hair reverently. You immediately flatten the hair that he had misplaced.

        "You'll be fine, you only have two lectures today. I have five."

        "Poor you," Jean says, sarcasm lacing his words. The two boys' dynamic hadn't changed much since they met in middle school. They constantly bickered, the fact that they were still friends left you dumbfounded. You supposed that's why you never acted upon the way that butterflies that swarmed your stomach unwelcomed when Jean spoke to you. The way they always had. You had gotten used to the feeling, and suppressed it easily now.

        "What do you have, one lecture? Dumbass." Eren's comment snaps you out of your thoughts.

        "I have two, I'll have you know." Jean pushes his sunglasses to the top of his head, his demeanor smug. This intensifies Eren's irritation.

        By now, the three of you had walked a good distance from the parking lot and came to a stop between the main buildings on campus. Eren thought this was the perfect excuse to part ways.

        "I'll see you after classes, good luck," Eren directs his goodbye primarily to you.

        "Good luck!" You reciprocated back to him as he was walking away. This left you standing in the middle of the paved path that cut between plots of grass and trees, their foliage beginning to show hues of red, orange, yellow, and brown. A multitude of students passed by, some carrying determined expressions with their bookbags, others brooding, but you felt very much alone. Alone with Jean.

        "I'm headed this way," you pointed to the communications building knowing he wouldn't be headed in the same direction, "I'll see you around."

        "This is the first time we haven't all had classes together since middle school," he comments, something you could only describe as disappointment painting his face. His vulnerability contrasts the cocky demeanor he carried while Eren was present. "But yeah, I'll see you later."