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WHAT HAPPENED that day was a blur in Iris' memories. After vomiting her feelings out, she passed out on the spot, according to Annie. Supposedly, after Reiner broke the inner wall, he came back to find his friends and she was conscious again.
That the four Warriors camouflaged themselves into the crowd and were evacuated by the soldiers in the city. After that, they were placed in a refugee camp, inside of the neighbor wall, Rose.
And yet, Iris couldn't seem to remember any of those events taking place. She brushes back her hair from her forehead in frustration.
"Are you sure that's all?" she asks Bertholdt.
He nods in response. "No sign of the Founding, yet."
The four kids were inside of what seemed an empty farm. They were people with them, too, and multiple sleeping bags. To her right, Annie was sleeping on the floor with a blanket over her.
Reiner and Bertholdt were sitting cross-legged behind her, watching the two girls.
"I see," mumbles Iris.
"Where are we?" Annie asks, using her arms to sit up, glancing at her surroundings.
"Inside Wall Rose," Reiner replies.
Annie keeps quite. All of the sudden, Reiner wraps his arms around all of his friends and pulls them close to him with a sigh. Annie and Bertholdt to his left , Iris to his right. Her face squished by his chest.
"Annie... Bertholdt... Iris...," he closes his eyes as he speaks, "Marcel... I promise I'll be the Warrior I should've been."
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- YEAR 847 -
Iris once thought that the sun was kind, giving life to the world. Today, she reminded herself that it burns as hell, too. She was sure that, if she placed a raw egg on her head, it cook itself from how hot it was.
She currently stood in line with 300 more people, having enlisted in the Cadet Corps, an academy that trains peoples from ages 12 and above to become part of one of the government's military branches.
To become a soldier.
How did she get here, you may ask?
After staying in the refugee camp for a few months, the group moved to the mountains, as the Wall Rose residents decided it would be best for the refugees to work and support the society.
They moved to the mountains, where it often snowed, and a man took pity of the four "orphans" and would take care of them during their work hours.
But they were all growing impatient. The King in the Walls hasn't said or done anything since they broke the wall and they needed to find the Founding. Annie figured that if they joined the military, they can find something.
And here they are, two years later.
After enlisting, they were given their uniforms. Iris wanted to run away when she tried it on. Not that it was bad, just a bit uncomfortable and confusing.
To her luck, she was told she could keep her plain black shirt, but she has to tuck it inside the fitted white pants she was given. Besides the pants, she was wearing a light brown jacket that stopped just below her chest, which had the Cadet Corps' emblem: a silver shield with two swords.
She changed her shoes for a pair of knee-high leather boots and had a set of leather straps on her.
Iris has never worn this much belts before.
The straps started on her thighs, connected with her waist, went behind her back and wrapped itself around her shoulders and chest. It was so complicated to wear, in her opinion.
And lastly, her dark hair tied in a low ponytail to keep it out of her neck.
She was starting to miss her beige uniform in Markey. A simple buttoned up jacket with trousers.
These island devils really outdid themselves with this, she thought.
Iris was required to stand with her legs slightly apart, her arms behind her back and her head held up high. It amuses her how different the Warrior Unit is from this.
She squints an eye, trying to avoid the droplet of sweat that fell down from her head to touch her eye.
When she opens it again, she almost flinches when a face appears in front of her.
Commandant Shadis, a wrinkly, tan-skinned man with absolutely no hair besides a small, thick beard on his chin, her new instructor, stares down at her with furrowed eyebrows.
"You!" he calls with a loud voice, "Who are you?"
Iris shifts into a new stance, her legs together and her right fist over her heart. She stares at him, showing no fear, as she was used to men screaming at her face.
"Iris Elvira, sir!"
"What are you here for, Elvira?!"
"To fight in humanity's favor, sir!"
Shadis nods, impressed at how the young girl didn't show any sort of fear at his intimidation, but didn't say anything about it.
"Very well, Elvira."
When he walks away, Iris relaxes her shoulders, letting out a small sigh. Beside her, someone whispers, "Gotta give you credits for thinking of something fast."
"Shut up, Annie," Iris hisses.
The blonde lets out a very subtle smile and goes back to her position.
Commandant Shadis went around the Cadets, trying to intimidate them, which made Iris wish the Opening Ceremony could finish already. He was now across her, in front of the lines of Cadets that were facing her side.
But he suddenly halts and to Iris' surprise, his voice was calm, "Oi, you there. What do you think you're doing?"
She tilted her head to the side and saw he was talking to a girl. The girl had a reddish-brown ponytail with a layered fringe and was munching on something Iris couldn't see.
It was until Iris saw what it was.
A potato. She was eating a potato in the middle of the ceremony, not caring about the angry commandant she has in front her.
Iris scoffs in disbelief.
She watches as Shadis asks her who she is and she immediately pounds her fist over her heart, introducing herself as Sasha Braus from Dauper Village in Wall Rose. All while she keeps the potato in her hand.
Shadis asks her why she is eating a potato and Sasha keeps giving him totally different answers, asking him if he is wondering why people eat potatoes.
Somehow, the conversation shifts and now Sasha is offering a small portion of the potato she was eating to the man with a sheepish smile.
As a result, Sasha was ordered to run around the center until she drops.
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"I can't believe we have to spend three years in this hellhole," Iris
whispers to Annie.
It was the next morning and they were both getting ready in the girls' dorm. Luckily, they were the only ones left. The rest of the girls were already in the dinning hall for breakfast, except for Sasha, who was snoring soundly in her bed.
The dorm consisted of a large room with four sets of wooden bunk beds and a door leading to a big locker for all of their belongings. Annie and Iris decided to stick together and choose the same bunk bed.
"Not if we move our asses and find the Founding as fast as possible," Annie whispers back nonchalantly.
Sasha didn't seem like a threat since she was asleep but Iris and Annie were still cautious about everything. Iris was finishing to put on her boots and Annie putting on her straps.
"I guess," replies Iris, zipping up her left boot.
"I'll go ahead," Annie announces, already opening the door knob, she looks over her shoulder, "don't do anything stupid."
"Me? You sure you don't mean Reiner?" Iris asks, confused that Annie would think she is stupid.
Annie shrugs. She opens the door and leaves, closing it afterwards. Iris rolls her eyes and continues to zip up her other boot. When finished, she heads for the door, but then, she remembers.
Sasha is still sleeping.
She frowns, debating on waking her up or not.
Who was she to wake her up? She shouldn't get involve with these island devils in the first place. She should ignore her and focus on the mission, so why was she making her way to the devil's bed?
Hesitatingly, Iris taps Sasha's sleeping body, "Um... Sasha?"
The brunette lets out a big snore, scratching her cheek and then going back to her previous position. Iris groans internally.
"Sasha," she taps harder, "Sasha, wake up. There's only forty minutes left."
No response.
Then, something comes into Iris' mind.
"Sasha, wake up. Let's go get food."
And just like she thought, Sasha bats her eyes open at the word food. She quickly sits up and blinks confusedly at her surroundings. Her hair was tangled and all over her face.
"Food?"
Iris nods slowly, "Yes, food."
"Food!" Sasha gasps excitedly, jolting out of her bed, pushing Iris in the process, and sprinting to the locker.
Iris lands on the wooden floor with her eyes open wide, trying to process what just happened.
That's what I get for talking to one of them, she thinks, getting up and dusting herself.
Iris looks at the door worriedly when she hears the sound of something crashing, but doesn't push it, exiting the barrack and heading to the dinning hall.
The Cadet Corps was located in the middle of nowhere. It was a dry desert with rocky cliffs surrounding it and mountains behind it. There were multiple cabins, all forming an arc on one side of the enormous field, consisting of the dorms, the supply room, the offices, infirmary and bathrooms.
Parallel to the arc of cabins, at a far distance, was the dinning hall. She groans when she realizes how far the barracks are from it. Though, it was actually a two minute walk.
Iris was just lazy.
Soon, she walks inside the cabin. To one side, the kitchen staff was serving the Cadets and from that point until the back of the cabin, were the multiple rows of wooden tables, packed with people.
The dinning hall was big enough for all 300 Cadets and, perhaps, more.
As much she would like to deny it, a room with these much people made Iris feel uncomfortable. Anxious, even.
She approaches the kitchen and waits until they give her her breakfast. It was a simple meal. A piece of bread and a bowl of rice porridge. Practical, since there were a lot of people to feed.
Iris makes her way through the tables with her food in her hands. Many look at her, which made her uncomfortable, but she ignored them and focused on finding a seat.
She didn't look for Reiner and the others because they had all agree on not interacting in public, unless necessary, so they wouldn't bring attention.
"That fucker," she curses quietly when she sees him and Bertholdt chatting with two other people. "So much for not bringing attention."
First thing they're told, first thing they do.
She rolls her eyes and eventually sits in empty table she found, Reiner and Bertholdt two tables away to her left. She takes her spoon and digs in the porridge. As she expected, it was really bland, but it'll do the work.
Her eyes remain focused on the table as she ate, and due to that, she didn't notice when someone had sat down across her. The person suddenly exclaims, "Oh! You're the one who woke me up, right?"
Iris looks up and finds Sasha, all dressed in her uniform and ponytail, bread and porridge in her hand.
Iris blinks, unsure of how she can successfully avoid Sasha, "I just-"
Sasha gasps, cutting her off, "You are a life saver! If you hadn't woke me up, I wouldn't have eaten breakfast! I'm saved because of you, thank you so much!"
Iris' eyes grow size when Sasha suddenly bents forward, bowing to her to show her gratitude. Iris feels the looks of the people around them, and shakes her hand, "I-It's fine! You don't have to bow or anything, Sasha."
A small tint of red rises in her cheeks. Clearing her throat, Iris goes back to staring at the table.
If only she could shoot herself to avoid all the embarrassment.
Sasha sits back, tilting her head in confusion, "Oh! How do you know my name?"
"I, um, saw you in the opening ceremony. You gave Shadis a, um...," she explains but found it hard to complete. She hoped Sasha took the hint.
"Oh, yeah, that!" Sasha scratches the back of her ear, averting her chestnut eyes away from Iris' with an awkward laugh. "Well, in my defense, it was a really good potato."
"I see."
"I'm Sasha Braus," she extends her hand, smiling, "though, you already know that. What's your name?"
Iris stares at Sasha's hand with hesitation. It felt wrong for her to be socializing when the enemy. What if her accepting Sasha's hand results in something she'll regret sooner or later?
Why was her heart telling her to accept it, but her mind to ignore it?
Sasha was about to retrieve her hand, assuming the girl was refusing her gesture, but was shocked when she shook it.
"I'm Iris," she says, "Iris Elvira."
Sasha's smile gets bigger, "Nice to meet you, Iris! I hope we can get along well!"
Strangely enough, Iris' heart warmed at the devil's smile.
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And just like that, the first week had passed for the young Cadets.
They had their Aptitude Test, an evaluation used to see if they capable of hold their equilibrium when raised in the air by two wires, the basis and requirement for their future training with the ODM gear.
Those who failed were carried away from the Cadet Corps, all of their hopes to become soldiers stripped away.
Those that passed have a long way to go with their training, and Iris was one of them.
It was sure she was going to pass, given all the past Warrior training, building up her strength to surpass any enemy or obstacle. To kill.
And if Iris passed, it meant that Annie, Reiner and Bertholdt passed, as well.
The four Warriors tried their best to find a way to look for The Founding Titan, but they knew they couldn't accomplish anything in a week, so they figured that if they dig in more, they might be able to get a lead.
All they needed was time. The exact thing they fear they don't have.
They were currently in the middle of their hand-to-hand combat lesson. It has been going on for twenty-five minutes, and now they're in a ten minute break before going back to fighting for another twenty-five minutes.
Shadis made Iris switch partners three times already since they all surrendered, scared that the girl would break any of their bones if they stayed with her. He didn't know if he should be impressed at her flawless and strong techniques, or irritated at the three cowards for quitting.
She was now sitting in a bench with Sasha, hiding from the sun to gain their energy back. Reiner and Bertholdt were talking to three other Cadets she recognized as Eren, Armin and Mikasa.
Eren was a boy with brown hair, his hair parting naturally in the middle, like a curtain, and stunning green eyes. She wasn't attracted to him but, damn, his eyes were beautiful. Full of anger, too.
The boy, on the first night, was ranting about how he will kill all Titans and fight back for humanity's freedom. Iris wasn't paying attention to his speech but she felt shivers run down her spine when she overheard he was a Shiganshina survivor and about his last name.
Eren Yeager.
Yeager. There was no one else that had that last name besides her older comrade.
Zeke. Mother fucking. Yeager.
His father, Grisha Yeager, was a known Eldian Restorationist back in Marley, fighting to bring the Eldian Empire back to power. He and his group were caught and shipped off to Paradis Island to become Pure Titans.
Is it possible that Grisha Yeager, somehow, survived, got to the walls, and created a new family inside?
It was likely, given that last name isn't common. Just the thought of Eren being Zeke's brother made her feel anxious.
It made her stomach flip over and over. One more second of that thought and she could've sworn she was going to throw up right there on the spot.
Then, she found out his friends were Shiganshina, too.
Armin Arlert was a boy with blond hair touching his jaw, round face and large blue eyes. He was short, as well. The boy may seem fragile and timid, but he was smarter than everyone in their whole class.
Armin has proved himself to be incredibly intelligent in a short period of time, and Iris knew he would get far with that brilliant mind of his. He might lack the brawn, but he has the brains, and a good heart.
And then, Mikasa Ackerman.
A girl with the strength of a goddess.
Mikasa is easily the strongest of all of them, capable of squashing anyone like a tiny and defenseless bug and stepping over them, if she wanted to. She was what every military looked for. If she was in Marley, they would love her.
Iris observed her train with other Cadets. She has never seen someone fight as good as her besides Annie. It made her realize that Mikasa is what she always longed to be in the Warrior Unit.
And she is a beauty, too. She has the darkest shade of black Iris has seen for hair, cut at her chin level, beautiful pale skin and gray eyes. She also seems to have Asian characteristics in her looks.
It made Iris wonder her background.
She keeping watching Reiner cautiously until Sasha says something beside her.
"What are you thinking?" Sasha's voice brings her back to reality. The brunette's big, chestnut eyes were staring curiously at her.
Iris blinks once, taking her eyes off Reiner and Eren and his friends. She shakes her head slightly, wiping her sweat with her sleeve, "Oh, nothing, don't worry about it."
Sasha smacks her lips, a thug smile appearing in her face, "Well, I was thinking about who here has the most punchable face, and after giving it a lot of thought, I came to the conclusion that it's definitely Connie!"
"What did you say?"
They both turn to face the short boy behind them. He has a slim body. His shaved hair is light, very close to being considered gray, and his eyes were round and hazel.
It was one of Sasha's friends, as Iris has seen.
"Connie!" Sasha gasps, startled at his sudden appearance. "Hey! How ya' doin'?"
Iris raises her eyebrows in amusement at Sasha's visible panic.
Connie doesn't answer her question and only glares, "So I have the most punchable face here? You sure it's not an idiot like you?"
Sasha gasps again, "I know your baldass didn't just call me that!"
"Oh, but I did," Connie says with a smirk.
"Shit," Iris couldn't hold her laugher in anymore. She bursts out in giggles, but quickly slaps her hand over her mouth when she sees Sasha's astonished face. Her eye twitching a little.
"You're laughing, girl?"
"What-no!" Iris says, a little higher than she expected. "I just had something in my throat."
Connie snorts. His finger points at Iris, "Who's your friend? I like her! She gets my jokes, unlike you, idiot."
Iris is stunned at that, a strange sense of joy in her heart.
Sasha shakes her head, a disappointed look in her eyes, "I can't believe you fell for his jokes, Iris. I thought you were better than this."
Iris subtly smiles at Sasha, impressed by her dramatic acting. Then, an arm wraps around her shoulder. She looks at Connie with confusion.
"So, it's Iris, huh?" he gives her a big smile. He takes his other hand and extends it in front of her, "I'm Connie Springer!"
She takes it, "Nice to meet you, Connie."
Connie retreats his arm back, "So what do you say, Iris? How about we go against each other in this round? We'll get to know the other! And don't worry, I'll go easy on you."
Iris bites the inside of her cheek, trying not to laugh at him. Connie, obliviously, smirks.
"Please, Connie, humble yourself," Sasha scoffs, crossing her arms, "If you go against Iris, she'll put your baldass in your place. Though, seeing you come out crying would be a funny sight!"
"Shut up, Sasha!" Connie yells, his cheeks flushed.
Iris smiles at the two.
"Please! Even Jean can beat you up!" Sasha laughs, making Connie even more mad.
"Yeah, right!" he says, "Over my dead body will I let that asshole win me in a fight!"
Iris tilts her head, "Wait, who's Jean? Is he your friend?"
She has only seen Sasha and Connie together, along with a girl named Mina and two boys, Marco and Thomas, but she has never seen this so-called Jean. Or maybe she has but doesn't realize it.
"Only the most annoying person in the entire universe," Connie rolls his eyes, then, he sighs, "but, yes, he's our friend."
Sasha hits his arm softly, "Don't be so mean."
Iris chuckles.
Then, Commandant Shadis calls all Cadets to the field. He rapidly assigns partners, and everyone begins looking for their partner, except for Iris, who didn't hear my name called out. She goes up to Shadis.
"Sir, you didn't call me," she says.
Shadis turns around.
"That's right," he groans, pinching the top of his nose. He looks around and then yells, "Kirstein! Come here!"
In no time, a boy appears on her side.
He was quite tall. He had short, ash-blond hair styled in an undercut, it's shaved portion being darker. He wore an olive button up shirt with his uniform.
His brown eyes were on Shadis, but for a moment, they shift to Iris, widening a little before returning to the Commandant.
"Sir!" the young man replies.
Iris looks at him for a second, then back to Shadis.
"You two will be partners. And if I see you messing around, you'll get 50 laps around the camp. Am I clear?" Shadis orders with his typical scowl. "Especially you, Kirstein."
The boy, Kirstein, and Iris salute him, their fists over their hearts, "Yes, sir!"
Once Shadis leaves, the boy turns to Iris. He watches her position a leg before the other, bend her knees a little, and bring her fists up to her eye level, showing she's ready to begin.
"If you want me to go soft on you, I can do it," he says, copying her stance.
She could feel the arrogance and kindness in his voice, but didn't give him what he wanted. Instead, she says, "That won't be necessary."
He is taken back and Iris takes the chance to attack.
She jolts forward and sends her fist to his chin, rapidly. He staggers back from the impact and groans loudly.
"Hey! I wasn't ready-"
Iris doesn't let him finish and elbows his stomach, making him fall to the ground. He holds his stomach in pain, glaring at the girl, who just stares at him calmly.
He rises to his feet and sends his fist out, aiming for her face, but Iris is much quicker than he is, ducking down and kicking him from the back. He lands on his knees, cursing at the pain.
From a far, Shadis yells, "Kristein, what the hell are you doing?! Get up and fight, idiot!"
"Sorry if it was too much," Iris says. She didn't feel sorry for him but figured it would be inconsiderate of her not to apologize for kicking him that hard. "Get up. Let's try again."
As Iris fought with him, she analyzed his techniques.
His strikes were predictable, his reflexes were good but there were times where they were slow, his strength was there but he needed more. He also tends to lose his cool easily, letting Iris know he definitely turns to anger quickly.
Nonetheless, he was the only Cadet that has lasted this long with her so far.
She saw his potential.
Iris stares at the boy worriedly. He looked like he was on the verge of passing out on the spot. He was breathing heavily, hair drenched in sweat, a trail of blood running down his nose, and had small cuts all over his face.
And he looked mad.
He was desperate to win. The girl has been kicking his ass for what felt like eternity and she was still collected, only having two minor bruises, one in her cheek and the other in her lips. As if this was nothing to her.
He couldn't let this go on anymore. Shadis would kick him out of the Cadets if he sees him on the floor
doing nothing.
What did they feed this girl?, he thought.
Struggling, the boy stands up and raises his fists to his eye level. He looks at Iris with determined eyes.
"I'm not giving up," he pants, "I still haven't won."
Iris' concern washes away. She knew that if he kept pushing himself, he would faint. She wanted to tell him that but she saw the look in his face. He wasn't backing out.
She sighs, wanting to end the fight already and take a shower, "All right then. Your turn to attack."
He launches forward and strikes with a punch. She ducks. He strikes again. She blocks.
And he continues doing it, but all his attempts to hit Iris were useless. The boy couldn't fight against someone as fast as her, making him grow even more desperate.
"Shit!" he curses, gripping his hair, frustrated.
But Iris was still human. She was feeling tired, too. At least her scratches would heal by themselves later. Big advantage of being a Titan Shifter.
She rans her hand across her forehead, lifting her bangs to wipe her sweat. She takes a deep breath.
"Your attacks are too predictable. If you keep doing that, your enemy will easily defeat you," Iris says, nonchalantly, "It's my turn to attack."
The boy doesn't move. "How are you so good at this? You're so fast that I can't keep up. I've never seen anyone fight like you do."
Iris sucks in a breath. She opens her mouth but no words come out. If only he knew what she has done to get where she is.
Then, Shadis announces training is finished and all Cadets are dismissed. Everyone starts to walk away, and yet, Iris' eyes remain on the boy, just like his do on hers.
But his eyes start flutter, his head lowering slowly. Iris snaps out and approaches him, touching his shoulder, "Hey, are you okay?"
He blinks, opening his eyes to remain awake but his head was spinning too much. "I need to... go to the infirmary. I'll be fine. I can handle myself."
He dismisses her with a harsh attitude, making Iris furrow her eyebrows. She nods once, "Yeah, right."
The boy starts to walk away from her, but anyone could see he was limping. Iris rolls her eyes, knowing she will regret butting in to help these devils later, and catches up with him, taking him by surprise when she takes his arm and wraps it around her neck, holding him steady by her arm around his waist.
"Hey-what are you doing?" he asks, his cheeks furiously red.
"Taking you to the medical wing," she says, "If you go alone, you'll pass out on the ground."
The boy wanted to protest against her, but he knew better. What's strange is how his heart was speeding up as they walked together, though, he wasn't sure it if it was due to all the fighting or something else.
"Ay, por dios," Iris mumbles.
The two Cadets stare at the medical wing with open mouths. It was packed with people, nurses running all over the place, giving Cadets pain relievers, treating their wounds and making sure they don't faint or anything. Iris' eyes scan the room, soon, finding an empty corner with a chair.
"Go to that chair, I'll come back in a minute," she tells the boy next to her, unwrapping herself from him.
He follows her gaze and nods, not daring to meet her eyes again, "Okay."
Iris leaves him and goes around the sun recollecting whatever she thought would be needed. Alcohol, bandages, oil for wounds, scissors, ice packet and pain relievers she found on a desk.
"I'm back," she says, finding him sitting with his head facing the ceiling, eyes closed and legs spread apart. She noticed his eyebrows were scrunched, making a silent chuckle escape her lips.
He sits up at the sound of her voice. He watchers her place everything on a table next to them and awkwardly clears his throat, "Um, it's fine. You can leave everything there."
Iris raises an eyebrow, "You know how treat your wounds?"
He is quiet.
"I figured. Here," Iris gives him a small cloth damp with water, "for the blood on your face."
"Oh, thanks."
Iris washes her hands as he cleans his face and the blood around a cut in his forehead and nose, then she takes a small piece cotton with the scissors and wets it with alcohol.
She comes closer to him, noticing how he gulps and looks down.
"Can I look at it?"
The boy looks up, confused, but understands once he sees the scissors, "Huh? Oh, yeah, you can."
Iris gently moves his hair to the side and places her hand on his head to keep it steady. The cut has stopped bleeding, thankfully.
"This is going to sting a little," she warns.
"Got it."
Then, she gently pats the cut with the cotton, just slightly, when suddenly, the boy hisses, jumping up in his seat.
"MOTHERFUCKING-"
Iris flinches back, staring at him with wide eyes. Her chest pumping up and down. She closes her eyes and sighs, "You scared me."
He realizes what he did and quickly apologizes, heat rising up his neck, "Oh, my god! I'm sorry! I just wasn't expecting it to sting that much!"
Iris feels herself turning red, too.
"I-It's fine! Let's just get this over with, yes," she grunts, leaning in at him with more precaution in case he reacts aggressively.
To her luck, he didn't lash out as she cleaned his wound. He would occasionally grunt or hiss at the small pats but he remained still. Then, she placed a healing cream on it and a lastly, a bandage.
There was another cut in his hand so she treated it, as well. He drank some pain relievers and had an ice packet placed on his cheek.
Iris takes his hand holding the ice and moves it away from his cheek, nodding, "It's looks better. Just keep it like that for a while and hope tomorrow it's better."
She couldn't believe she was helping a stranger with no conditions. Iris knew she shouldn't let her emotions get in the way of her mission, and if she keeps sympathizing with the enemy, she will compromise everything.
She couldn't let that happen. She couldn't let her guard down around these devils, no matter how kind they may appear.
And so, in that very moment, she promised herself it would be the last time she gets involved with them.
"Wait!"
Iris was making her way out of the medical wing, but stops when she feels a hand on her shoulder. She looks over it, seeing the same boy standing behind her.
She faces him.
He takes back his hands and mumbles something she couldn't hear, irritating Iris, who only wanted to throw her body on her bed.
Annoyed, she says, "I can't hear you. Do you need something?"
The ashy-blond boy gathers up his courage as his cheeks redden, "I-I said your hair is very pretty!"
Iris could've sworn she could hear her own heart beat, pounding hard against her chest and in her ears. His sudden compliment made her feel nervous and a bit embarrassed.
Unconsciously, she swallows down her now dry throat.
"O-Oh... thank you...," Iris still didn't know his name, her sentence lingering in the air.
"Jean," he says, "My name is Jean Kirstein."
Her eyes grow in surprise. He must be the one Sasha and Connie were talking about in training. Connie described Jean as the most annoying person ever, making Iris wonder what led him to think that.
Not that she cared.
It's Jean's turn to ask, "And you are?"
"Iris Elvira."
His nervous expression disappears in an instant, replaced by a smirk. Jean extends his hand out.
"Wanna be friends, Iris Elvira?"
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