When Flowers Bloom-EreHisu fanfic

4: Frustration

The school day went by fast and as soon as the last bell rang Eren pulled out his phone to text Mikasa.

Eren: Armin n I are by the courtyard

His phone buzzed almost instantly as she texted him back. It amazed him at how lightning fast her response time was.

Mikasa: k meet y'all soon

Tucking his phone back into his pocket he caught up with Armin about their day. Eren noticed that Armin seemed half there for their conversation. Tapping his forehead with his knuckle he said, "Hey man, you in there?"
Armin blinked slapping Eren's hand away. "Yeah yeah, I was just thinking."
"About what?" Armin remained silent but Eren was persistent. "C'mon, you know you can tell me anything."
Armin fiddled with his backpack strap before answering. "I..have a class with Annie."
"Ooh." Eren chuckled as Armin bumped his elbow into his side. "I'm joking. So..do you still like her?"
Armin's face got red. "Y-Yeah, I do." He looked up at Eren. "Don't tell Mikasa, please."
Raising an eyebrow Eren asked, "Why would Mikasa care?"
"Well, Mikasa told me Annie's on the volleyball team with her so that means they'll be seeing each other frequently and if Mikasa knew I still liked Annie then she'll try to 'help me out' and she might tell Annie I like her and having someone else tell the person you like you like them is so embarrassing and it usually never helps out the person who has the crush in the first place and the whole thing-"
Eren didn't realize his simple question would result in an avalanche of overshare from his timid friend. He grabbed Armin by his shoulder to get him to stop. "Armin, Shut up for a second." He stopped babbling and looked at Eren. "I won't tell Mikasa, but even if she does find out I really don't think she'd tell Annie. You're overthinking like you always do."
Armin sighed. "You're right, I'm just so afraid of Annie finding out." He crossed his legs and cast his gaze downward. "What could she ever see in me."
Eren didn't like seeing his friend like this. "You know you're a great guy right? You're thoughtful and caring, girls love that shit."
Armin grinned. "Such wise words Eren." Eren could tell he'd helped his friend slightly.
"I mean it, Armin. Girls like guys like you." It was quiet between them for a few moments. "You should tell Annie how you feel. I don't wanna see you moping around all year because you kept your feelings to yourself. I saw enough of that last year."
Armin had eyes for Annie since the beginning of last year and twice he'd almost confessed but had backed out at the last minute. Eren had been around Annie enough to know that even if she didn't reciprocate Armin's feelings she'd let him down easy. She wasn't a monster. Realistically, Eren really thought Armin stood a chance with her.
Armin sighed. "I do want to tell her, n-not yet though! So please don't say anything."
Eren smiled at his childhood friend. "I'll keep my mouth shut, don't worry."
They both looked over as they heard approaching footsteps. Mikasa came over wearing her volleyball uniform and with her hair tied back into a bun. "Hey, I had to get changed real quick. Practice starts in 15 minutes and I didn't want to waste anytime."
Armin looked at his phone screen. "The yearbook meeting starts in 15 for me too." He stood up and stretched. "I should get going. Journalism room is halfway across the school."
A sigh left Eren as Mikasa agreed getting ready to go off to her volleyball practice. "Eren, tell mom and dad my practice is over at 6."
He frowned at the mention of his dad. "Yeah, I'll tell mom."
They said their farewells to Eren and soon he was sitting alone in the courtyard. Of course there were other people mingling about but he felt secluded. He pulled out his phone and scrolled through twitter not wanting to go home right away. Hearing the sounds of pebbles crunching he looked up and saw Christa approaching him. He straightened up as she went to sit next to him.
"Hey, Eren." She dusted some fuzz off her skirt. "Are you waiting for someone?" As usual, a gentle smile was on her face.
He shook his head. "No. I'm heading home soon." He glanced at her. "What about you? Waiting for someone?"
She brushed a stray hair out of her face as she nodded. "A good friend of mine. She should be here soon." She swung her legs as she gazed around the courtyard. He was about to tuck his phone away but she stopped him. "Can I give you my number?"
The sudden question took him off guard so he hesitated. "Sure." He handed her his phone and she typed her number in. He sent a quick 'hey' text just so she'd know it was him. "All good."
"Now we're officially friends!" He smiled at her silly statement. She held her own phone in her lap as she waited for whoever she was expecting. Her phone case was a pastel pink and glittery. Very girly but it suit her. "Oh! There she is." She gathered up her backpack and books. Eren looked across the courtyard and saw a tall girl with short brown hair looking at Christa. That must be her friend.
Before she walked off Christa turned toward Eren. "I'll see you tomorrow."
"See ya tomorrow." He said back as she hurried off to her friend.
Now that Christa had gone Eren figured he should head home too. Part of him wished his house was a little further from the school. He just wanted more time to think. Noticing the extra car in the driveway he stopped in his tracks. His dad was actually home on time for once. Lately he'd not gotten along well with his father. Between him always coming home late and then having to get the Arlert family to help them, it made Eren's blood boil. His mother needed his father more than ever and to Eren it didn't even seem like his father cared. He stood silent on the driveway contemplating whether he should enter his house or not. Sighing he decided there'd be no use in stalling any longer.
As he stepped inside the first thing he heard was his father's voice. He sounded like he was in the kitchen. Hopefully Eren could just sneak by and avoid him altogether. He gently shut the front door behind him and tried to walk past him. Unfortunately his mom noticed.
"Eren, you're home! How was your first day back?"
He grit his teeth and turned to greet his mom putting an unbothered facade on. "It was good." She was sitting at the table beside Armin's mom. They both were sipping tea. "Hello, Mrs. Arlert." Eren said sheepishly. He had forgotten she was coming over today. "Armin is at his after school journalism class, if you were wondering."
Armin's mom smiled warmly at Eren. "Thanks for letting me know, that kid of mine always forgets to text me."
Turning back to his mom he added, "And Mikasa said her volleyball practice ends at 6."
His dad finally noticed his presence coming around the corner to greet him. "Eren, why aren't you at soccer practice?"
Eren crossed his arms. "I already told you, I didn't sign up this year." It came as no surprise to Eren that his father hadn't remembered. With him barely around at all he half expected him to forget his name.
His father wasn't completely dense. He seemed to notice Eren's sudden foul mood. Eren's mom and Mrs. Arlert went back to chitchatting as his father came around the corner to properly talk to Eren. Eren looked away as his dad stood in front of him.
"Eren, you know I'm very busy. Even though I hate to admit it sometimes things slip my mind." He chuckled slightly attempting to ease the tension. "Just the other day I locked my keys in the car. The look on your mother's face when she caught me trying to break into my own car was priceless."
Eren remained silent. He didn't want to talk. He wanted to be anywhere but here. He looked up at his father as he felt his hand on his shoulder. "Eren. I know things haven't been easy for you. I just want you to know I'm proud of you." He smiled sincerely at Eren. "You've really taken great care of this family when I'm gone."
Angered, Eren pushed his dad's hand off his shoulder. "I shouldn't have to. You're supposed to take care of us, not me!" Hurt flashed across his dad's face and for a moment Eren considered apologizing. But he decided against it. "You're never here anymore. This is the first time in weeks you've even spoken to me. You should be here for mom but you never are!"
His dad reached out for him but he backed away. "Eren-"
He turned and marched up the stairs ignoring what his dad had to say. He didn't try following him up. Eren slammed his bedroom door shut behind him and threw his backpack across the room. Pacing around his room he felt like screaming out his frustrations. It made him sick that his father wasn't here for his family. Almost every night Mikasa and Eren had to cook and clean because their mother just couldn't take care of everything by herself. They all needed his father. And that seemed to frustrate Eren the most. Just having to depend so heavily on one person. His anger built up so fast he felt like he was going to explode. His judgment gone in his moment of rage he stomped over to the nearest wall and swung his fist into it. It hurt but the satisfaction covered up the pain. Until he realized the hole he'd made.
Reason came flooding back and he stepped away from the wall. "Shit." He muttered to himself. Examining the hole he'd made he suddenly noticed the pain in his right hand. He gingerly moved each finger wincing slightly. He sighed thankful that it wasn't broken. He had broken the skin across his knuckles and blood slowly oozed out. It wasn't a lot so he didn't bother bandaging it.
"You're gonna get it now, dumbass." He mumbled as he laid back on his bed. He struggled to believe he'd let his anger completely take over him. There had been times where he had been equally angry as he was just now, but he'd never actually considered punching an inanimate object. It was stupid and didn't solve anything. He felt stupid, that's for sure. What would his parents do when they found out about the hole in his wall? He groaned as he rubbed his forehead in frustration. "Dumbass." He muttered one last time.
His phone buzzed in his pocket and he gently pulled it out careful to not further injure his hand. A text from Christa. Sitting up he hesitated to open the message. Why was he so nervous all of a sudden? Taking a breath to steady himself he opened the message.