THE OTHER SIDE. aa

siebzehn.

     YOUR STOMACH FLIPPED upon seeing your blond friend patiently waiting near the shore, hunched forward with his tail often twitching against the ground. you could feel the butterflies tickling your insides and your slow walking suddenly turned to a light jog, your eyes glinting with all positive emotions mixing together in a tornado.

     armin was drawing figures on the sand and it looked like he hadn't seen you yet. you grinned and called out to the blond, waving your arm as a sign of greeting. the mermaid perked up and flashed a grin, waving with his fingers. his action was soft and small, unlike yours that was big and full of excitement. 

     you skidded to a stop once you were near and plopped down beside the mermaid who greeted you with a warm, welcoming smile. "hi y/n, how are you? any exciting events today?"

     you pondered your answer for a moment, trying to remember if there was anything important that happened or worth the day to talk about hours ago. 

     "not really." you hummed out before gasping, clicking your finger, "oh! there was a big food fight in the cafeteria that ended with the dean stepping in. needless to say, he left the building mad and drenched in spaghetti."

     armin looked perplexed for a second before slowly smiling, finally understanding some bits of humor in your story. "oh, that sounds fun!" he exclaimed, laughing a bit.

     you shrugged, nodding, before shuffling through your bag, looking for the book you borrowed to show it to your friend and get another story going. "anyways, i have this book i wanted to--"

     before you could take out the book, armin placed a gentle hand on your arm, prompting you to leave it inside your bag and look at him, speechless and somehow embarrassed. how could you not be? you finally realized your feelings for the mermaid, the simple skin-to-skin contact would obviously change for you. if he even initiated a hug, you're sure you would pass out soon to even nestle in his touch.

     the warmth in his hand caused shivers to crawl up your spine, goosebumps suddenly decorating your skin. with pinched lips, you slowly retracted your hand from your bag. "w-what is it?" you asked quietly, your voice suddenly cracking at the end.

    you had no idea why you were suddenly so shy over a simple touch. if this ever continued, he'd catch on about your feelings and would probably think you're weird. let's hope he's very oblivious...

     armin flashed a soft smile, the kind of smile that sent your stomach to a frenzy, and shook his head. "we can talk about the story tomorrow. i just want to know how you are and stuff."

     you couldn't help but reciprocate the smile, your heart suddenly warm at how kind the mermaid was. it was a simple gesture that you should've been used to as it was in his nature but shit, you feel yourself falling deeper for him. you're afraid that you wouldn't be getting out of the ditch so easily.

     freaking feelings!

     "o-oh? why?" you laughed softly, trying your hardest to smile normally, "nothing really happened interesting today except for the food fight."

     "well, you looked worried yesterday so i thought something bad happened... and you left early too." he explained, concern laced in his tone.

     you grinned, mentally squealing, and brought your hand up to ruffle his golden hair, admiring how silky and soft it was compared to your dry locks. 

     just what kind of shampoo do mermaids use? do they even take a shower? you asked yourself, almost zoning out.

     "don't worry about me armin, i just forgot something, is all."