THE OTHER SIDE. aa

dreizhen.

     UNDERNEATH THE SEA, that saturday morning, armin couldn't find any reason to get up and go about in his day. his grandfather already called for him to eat breakfast multiple times but he hasn't answered and pretended to be asleep. it was only a matter of time before his grandfather storms in and drags him downstairs to eat breakfast.

     with a small groan, armin forced himself out of the comfort of his bed. he rubbed his eyes and looked around his quaint room, his blue hues squinting at the blinding sunlight peeking through his window. he stood up after a few more minutes before leaving his room, going downstairs to see his grandfather sitting quietly in their dining room with a newspaper in his hand.

     the elder looked up from the newspaper and saw armin sluggishly moving about and sitting across him, "good morning, armin. how was your sleep?" he asked with a gentle smile, sliding the plate full of delicious food towards the awaiting hungry blond.

     "it was nice..." he replied tiredly, letting out a yawn before eating his breakfast slowly.

     his grandfather let out a chuckle, "i say. i think i called you more than i could count just for you to come down."

     armin only smiled and nodded, eyes squinted with sleepiness as he continued eating in silence. the elder was a bit weirded out by his sudden quietness, as he usually talks a lot during mornings, but he guessed it was only because armin was still tired. he was about to let it go and continue reading the current news when he noticed something off about the blond.

     the young mermaid was slouching, different from his straight posture his grandfather always reminded him to do so, no matter where he sits. he wasn't eating properly as well, he was only poking the food with a frown etched across his face, completely unusual with the energetic aura he always had during quiet mornings like this.

     "are you alright, son?" he asked with concern, eyes furrowed as he placed the newspaper on the table to stare at his grandson more.

     armin looked up and sat up straight, "yup!" he replied with a forced smile, shoving one bite down his throat despite the lost appetite.

     the elder narrowed his eyes, clearly not convinced, but slowly nodded, "okay, if you say so." he shifted his attention to the newspaper and began reading again once armin showed a smile to fully get rid of his troubles.

     once his grandfather read the newspaper again, armin let out a quiet sigh and looked down on his plate. he had no idea why he was acting like that. he wasn't entirely sure but guessed it was because of his human friend and how they wouldn't be visiting each other later on, which left him feeling lonely and down despite the warm presence of his grandfather.

     he really had no idea what to do for the rest of the day. he got so used to waiting for the right time to visit you and now that he had the whole day for himself, he was lost.
perhaps he could visit his friends? it's been a while as well. he had locked himself in his room to read the books given to him that he didn't get to visit or hang out with them for a while now. they were probably wondering where he was and how he was doing.

     yep, he could hang out with his friends for the rest of the day. that might take his mind off of you, even for just a few hours.

     a bit satisfied with his sudden plans, he tried his best to finish his meal before putting the plate back in the sink along with the dirty plates. he bid his grandfather a quick goodbye and a hug before leaving his small abode to go out into the streets of their kingdom.