The Only One I See

More than just Tutors

"3x+9=24," Eren read aloud as he transferred the problem from his text book to his paper. He stared at it for a minute before his face grew red from frustration. He pushed his notebook and pencils from the desk in a rage quit. "How am I even supposed to know that 3x+9=24 if they don't even tell me x it?!"

"I think that's the point of the assignment," Mikasa said calmly pointing to the directions in the book, "to find x."

"Well how am I supposed to do that?" Eren huffed.

"Calm down, Eren. It isn't our fault we transferred half way into the year. We just need some help. How about we ask someone upperclassmen to tutor us? I have about a half hour after school before volleyball practice starts, maybe they'd be willing to help for a few minutes."

Eren sunk into his chair and pouted. Mikasa didn't need a tutor, she was already half way done with her work and he was still on the first problem. Eren was almost jealous of her at times. Mikasa was so outgoing and smart and popular. At our last school someone would almost inevitably confess their undying love for her each week. She turned them all down. All anyone ever confessed to Eren was how much of a "faggot" or a "queer" he was. As if he didn't already know.

"Yeah whatever," he sighed, rolling his eyes. Despite his reaction, he was actually somewhat looking forward to having an upperclassmen tutor him. He knew this sounded selfish but maybe having an older friend would raise his social standing and the jocks would quit picking on him so much.

...

It was Eren's job to find Mikasa and him a Language Arts and Science tutor. He would have choose Armin over anyone to tutor him, but he felt embarrassed to ask his best friend and the smartest freshman in school for help on the simplest things like slope intercept from. He was afraid that Armin would look down on him.

Eren had a very interesting time finding a science tutor. He had found a girl named Hange who seemed oddly happy to see him. She kept rambling on about lunch and angels and music and some guy named Levi. He had tuned out for most of that. Then she would randomly point out a "fascinating" physical trait of Eren's, almost as if she wanted to run experiments on him just to see if he was real. She was a little crazy but apparently she was the biggest science nerd in school, and that was good enough for Eren.

Finding a Language Arts tutor was not such a fun time. As soon as he walked into the teachers room he was automatically pelted with a spit ball, almost like crossing the invisible wire between the hallway and the classroom activated a wet, slimy booby trap. He looked around for the culprit. Sure enough, there was Jean, laughing hysterically.

Ignoring him, he went to ask the teacher for a tutor.

"He's not a strait A student but he does need tutoring hours," said the teacher. Please don't say it Eren thought. Don't say Jean. Don't say Jean. Don't say, "Jean! How would you feel about tutoring Eren, here?" Jean first looked surprised, then his faced morphed into a Grinch-like smirk.

"No problem," hummed Jean, taking Eren by the shoulders, "I'll take good care of him."

It was times like this when Eren really wished that he had joined track with Mikasa because he had booked it out of that room fast enough to win himself a first place medal. The tutoring was still on, sadly enough, but at least he didn't have to meet with him until next week. Eren made his way to Mr. Pixis's room where Mikasa said to meet her. He was curious to see who she had found to tutor them in algebra. He hoped it wasn't another wing-nut.

He opened the door and his eyes shot strait to the floor. One look of him was enough to get Eren blushing. There was the boy from lunch, the one whose rippling muscles were wrapped tight in a black t-shirt and jeans. His hair was as dismantled and lovely as it was just a few hours ago, his eyes just as mysterious. He continued to stare at the ground.

"Hey Eren! This is..." Mikasa paused, turning to the raven boy, "I'm sorry. What did you say your name was?"

"Levi," his voice was and was not exactly what Eren expected it to be. He knew it would be low but he didn't know that it would send chills up his spine. Eren could feel his eyes burning into him. He wished he had listened to more of what Hange had said about him.

"Levi is going to tutor us," Mikasa said happily. Eren shifted his weight from foot to foot awkwardly. He tried not to think of the horrible things Levi probably knew him as. Faggot. Queer. Worthless. Bastard.

"We start after school," Levi said matter-of-factly, "Bring your books."

For once, Eren was not excited for school to end.