Bittersweet ~ Eremin ~ Modern AU

Chapter 11 - Wildfire

Warning(s): Discrimination, slurs, abuse
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Armin Arlert (16)
Fall of Junior Year
Tuesday, October 13th, 9:17am

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Everyone is staring at me. More than usual. I haven't felt this attacked since 7th grade. Sneering smiles and chuckles echoed around me, making me walk a bit faster through the lobby towards the empty hall way to the gym.

The center of the school is where everything happens. On one side of the school was the art classes, the other side had our gymnasiums. The front hall way to the gymnasiums had windows that stretched up to the second story, allowing the beautiful sunlight to go straight through the wall way into the center courtyard where most had their lunch.

I already checked myself out on my phone. I blew my nose, wiped my face down, fixed my hair, I checked that nothing was on my backpack or back. I looked fine. I looked average. So what was going on?

And then a pit formed in my stomach...

Hesitantly, I walked into the gym locker room, guys hollering and howling to each other. Mocking laughers echoed off the compact walls, sounds of lockers opening and slamming. What seemed to be the usual chaos.

As I walked in, I looked around to see most of the guys already dressed in their toxic clothes. The reek of B.O. was too much. It was even worse after gym.

They all started to fall silent as more eyes turned to me. Of course, not all of them gave a crap about me. But enough eyes to give me the chills. "Hey, faggot." One of them called, snickering softly. They seriously think name calling has an effect on me anymore? (Well maybe not directly...)

The coach wasn't in his office, so there was no threat of a teacher overhearing.

I simply narrowed my eyes at them and kept walking. I was used to the name calling. But this moment especially gives me chills.

I walked into the row of lockers Eren and I were in. Eren was just finishing dressing, tugging a dark navy tank top over his head.

"Hey-" I began, but the brunet just turned around and walked past me, ignoring me completely. He had no facial expression on his face. It was like I wasn't even there...

"Eren..?" I breathed, turning around to see him walking over to the two other jocks in our class. He just stood there, stagnant as the other guys leaned on him, pestering him and cackling along as they looked at their phones. Their eyes glanced over to me occasionally.

I held my breath for a second and placed my things down on the bench, still looking at the brunet. How could he just ignore me like that? I haven't even done anything wrong. He was totally fine yesterday. Taking to me like he didn't have a care in the world!

"Eren, what the heck?" I raised my voice at him, my brows slightly furrowing. His head just lowered a bit, looking down at his phone. Okay. No. That's not acceptable. He's actually ignoring me.

"Can you use your words and just tell me what's wrong instead of being rude?" I stepped closer, grabbing on to his shoulder to try and win his attention back.

"Hey, take it easy there, fag. Don't get too excited with him." One of the jocks pressed on my chest, making me stumble back. "Okay, gross. And yes, I'm a fag. Thank you for pointing that reoccurring fact out." I hissed lowly, passive aggressively smiling.

Eren turned around, hand rubbing at his mouth as he looked down at the floor.

"Wanna know how I know?" The jock stepped closer, getting in my face. My body quivered in fear as I took a step back, though I went no further.

"Because I was outed in 7th grade involuntarily. It's old news. It's unhealthy to keep dwelling on the past like that. It's better to just keep moving on." I kept my chin up. The jock smirked at me despite the anger building up in his eyes. Without moving a muscle, I braced myself for a hit. A slap. A punch. Anything. I was ready.

After a couple second stare down, he turned around to his friends and snapped "Give me it", holding his hand out to receive something that crinkled in his palm.

He turned back around to me, sticking what he was given right in my face. A piece of crumpled, folded paper... One of the flaps fell down. Two boys, hugging and smiling together was revealed along with my hand writing. "This is unmistakably your hand writing. I know from all the essays I made you write for me. Am I correct?"

My heart dropped, seeing the exact letter I was searching for last night... I gasped and tried to grab for the letter, but it was ripped away from me soon after. Phones started flying up with the camera facing me.

   "No no no... No! This can not be happening!" I thought to myself, shaking my head in complete and utter disbelief. My heart was crashing against my chest, my throat swelling.

"You have no right to read that! How did you even get that?!" I desperately tried grabbing for the paper, receiving a foot to the stomach that knocked the wind out of me. I collapsed right on my tail bone, groaning as I held my stomach and arched my back. "Back the fuck up off me. It's mine now. It was laying on your lunch table. Also, didn't you already see? Your beautiful, poetic love note to Eren is already on Insta, Snap chat, and god knows where. Don't you know why we like to do things digitally now? Honestly. I couldn't find you anywhere on social media! This isn't the 80's any more. Like, seriously... Passing notes it's like signing your soul to the devil."

His voice started to drain me, zoning me out into this feeling of helplessness and distress.

"Oh god... It's been in that jacket all that time?"

   "That thing is super old! H-How does this even concern the whole school?! Hngg! Aghh..." I groaned in agony, the feeling that the yelling effected where I was kicked. "E-Eren, help!" I cried out, gasping in pain. My stomach was on fire!

The coach soon called in, beckoning everyone out of the gym. Eren gave me a frightened look and quickly snatched the note away from his friends. He hesitated and looked at me one last time before running out. Alarmed, the jocks stormed after the brunet. They followed like ducklings, practically stampeding over me.

"N-No... E-Eren!"

Eren just left me there... I couldn't believe it. God damnit! I should of thrown the note out when I had a chance!

Wheezing, I let out a couple hushed cries and held onto my stomach, rolling around a bit. I stared at the grout in the tiled floor, soon letting myself break down in this ugly, sobbing mess. He'd usually be here right beside me to console me... "Idiot..! Y-You idiot! Y-You didn't even stand a chance!" I croaked, not even attempting to get up off the ground.

About a minute passed and I could hear coach Zacharius calling out my name during role call. I could hear the locker room door creak open, footsteps echoing off the wall till they stopped at my feet. He was baffled to see me sprawled on the ground. "Holy sh-" coach Zacharius hissed, kneeling down to me. "Arlert? You okay?"

   I closed my eyes and squirmed uncomfortably, still clutching my stomach. "I-I... E-Eren..."

   "Let's get you to the nurse." He hastily said, scowling when he heard Eren's name.