Chapter Text
You had a love-hate relationship with Mondays. For the majority of the past week since you've become roommates with Connie, you'd been waking up around 11. You don't have as many responsibilities yet here in Rose like you did in Ragako, so you’ve been treating yourself to some much-needed sleep in days. Plus you just moved a bunch of shit, so there was no way in hell you were going to be up with the birds.
Not that you were a morning person in the first place, but you have to grow up, and getting up early is a part of that. This morning is the first day of classes so 8 in the morning with 6 1/2 hours of sleep is as good as it’ll get in terms of rest.
You rub the crust away from the inner corner of your eyes and groan then stretch. Sitting up for a second, you reach over and grab your phone from the nightstand then turn the alarm off. The light from your window poured through the thin beige curtains that protected you from the eyes of the city and shined onto the pillow next to you. That's exactly why you didn't sleep on that side, way too bright.
You had 3 texts from Mina and 1 from Connie, 4 Snapchats, and 29 likes on a picture you posted a few days ago.
After replying to Mina's 1 AM ramblings then rolling your eyes and replying the Snapchat and text from Connie asking if you had an extra lighter, you got out of bed. As soon as your feet touched the soft carpet and your legs adjust to your bodyweight again, you feel the uncomfortable urge to pee that you always feel after waking up, so you speed walk to the bathroom.
When you finish you go back to your bed and get your phone, then pad across your carpet and cold black wood floors to the bathroom again. Skincare and teeth cleanliness are an absolute priority. It's only 8:22 and your first class doesn't start until 9:30 so you can take as long as you want to pick an outfit.
You're tired but the extra time is a good thing, you know you have issues with picking outfits when it comes to timeliness. Most of the time you dress relatively nice, so today won’t be any different. Even if it feels different, you won’t let the way you feel affect the way you carry yourself.
You sit down in your fuzzy chair, in front of the vanity dresser that you and Connie struggled for 3 hours to put together last week. It was pure madness. Connie high as a rocket with a power drill is not a comforting sight. Now that it's dine though, you're thankful for the fear he put you through. Putting your hands on your lap you look down at them with a grin. You wanna match the colors of your fresh set of nails, so after 10 minutes of rummaging, you pull out a pair of brown faux leather high-waisted pants, and a mesh long sleeve brown and white crop top.
You take off your favorite sleep shirt, a long-faded red solar system shirt that reaches your mid-thigh. After balling it up you throw the shirt into the brown basket hamper next to your bathroom door, jump up and down into the pants then pull the shirt over your head. You stand up and take a few breaths, damn these pants are hard to get into.
Stepping in front of the long golden-rimmed body mirror you have propped up on the wall, you twist your body to look at your butt and it looks so good in these pants. You’d never be mad at the struggle it takes to put these on.
You grab a gold necklace and earrings to match off of your vanity and bring them into the bathroom to put on after doing a simple makeup look. Eyeliner, mascara, brow gel, and some lipgloss. You put your hair into a sleek low bun with two strands in the front and then spray on your favorite perfume.
Someone might say that you're doing too much for a Monday morning, but to that, you'd say that they've probably never done enough for themselves, no shade though. You walk out of the bathroom towards your closet and grab a cream-colored purse, you look at yourself in the mirror one more time and move your hips side to side. You look so good, it makes you feel even better. You start doing little ass shakes and eye rolls in the mirror, you'd fuck yourself if you could.
Right as you're putting your car keys in your purse and rolling your charger up around your phone, you hear the loudspeakers Connie loves to play his obnoxiously loud music with, power on. A few seconds later after you zip up your purse and put on your fuzzy bear slippers, you hear the shuffling sound of a playlist.
You walk out of your room with a little smile, close the door then lean over the metal railing that protects you from falling out onto the first floor. It’s always colder upstairs than downstairs so getting down there as soon as physically possible is the goal. As you start walking down he still hasn't noticed you, but his music starts playing.
(Song: Caroline by Amine)
"LISTEN MANNN, I HEARD YOU DEN GOT YOU A DIME PIECE MAN!" Connie yells from on top of the kitchens island in sync with the music. You're not surprised he's playing loud hype music at almost 9 in the morning. He may be annoying, but what kind of friend would you be if you didn't join him.
"IS THAT TRUE MAN, I JUST WANNA KNOW?!" You yell at the bottom of the staircase, Connie whips his head around with an open mouth smirk to look over at you from where he's standing and you jog across the warm floor over to the island.
"SHES A BAD THING" He yells and pulls you up onto the marble-topped island with him as you drop your purse down.
"FINE AS HELL" He winks and you pose.
"THICK AS FUCK, OH MY GOD!" You sing a bit out of breath and pretend to gasp as he hits your butt with his butt and makes muscle arms.
"That's my baby." You point at each other and nod. You hop off the counter to give him space for his solo performance.
You walk over to the fridge and pull out a water bottle for yourself then come back and sit at one of the spinner bar stools to watch Connie sing his heart out. This is something you're getting used to, growing up Connie was always loud and funny, but you haven’t been in the same permanent space with him since the 8th grade. It's an overwhelmingly happy feeling to know that no matter how long you haven’t seen each other, the bond is always the same. He looks at your responsibilities and doesn’t try to take them as his own, he just works to make you happy enough to handle them.
"Don't wanna hear about your horoscope or what the future holds." He's on his knees singing to the vaulted ceiling acting like he's in a 90's R&B music video. He's so dramatic it makes you laugh constantly or gets on your nerves, never in-between.
"don't wanna talk it out, can we fuck it out?" He looks at you and raises his eyebrows then stops to process for a second and scrunches his face up in disgust. He hops off the counter shaking his shoulders in jitters and turns the song off.
"Bruh I ruined it for myself, I was killing my performance then BOOM the thought of fucking you threw the whole vibe off." He shakes his head and cringes.
"Ouch? What happened to me being 'fine as hell' huh?" You put your hand on your chest and widen your eyes pretending to be offended.
"Doesn't mean I wanna fuck you y/n." He rolls his eyes sassily and opens a cabinet to grab some cheezits then comes and sits on the stool next to you and spins.
"I'm about 10 times hotter than you coco, so if I ever even considered letting you hit it'd be a privilege. Maybe you're just subconsciously fruity or something." You joke and reach over to grab some cheezits.
He sat there for a second looking like he wanted to laugh and say something but he didn't know if he should. After what felt like a minute with just the sounds of constant crunching surrounding the room, he put the box down and stood up looking like he was ready to run if he needed to.
"Well, I'm definitely not fruity because you kinda remind me of a man." He stood there and looked you in the eye for a few seconds, looking like he was gonna pass out from how hard he was trying to keep a serious expression.
He did not just......You and Connie always joked around and made fun of each other like siblings, but he did not say with a straight face that you reminded him of a man. You stood up not breaking eye contact, if he wanted to go back and forth with insults you'd stop him before he could even start.
"Now, I don't know who the hell you think you're talking to crusty crotch Connie, but I'm gonna let you know right now that today I am not the one." You tilted your head and smirked remembering how much he hated the nickname he earned in 7th grade.
"Bro ur so fucking annoying, I was itchy like what else was I supposed to do? Roll around on the floor until they finished growing? pubes coming back in are uncomfortable." He groaned and shook his head walking to the living room area and sitting on the couch.
"WHY WERE YOU SHAVING YOUR PUBES AT 12 CONNIE!?" You burst out laughing while asking. Trying not to double over while you threw away the bottle your water was in and put the cheezits away.
"YOU KNOW WHY, ASSFACE. My dad had just taught me how to shave my face and I saw this thing on Twitter called a landing strip and wanted to try it. Now go away." He pouted and turned on the tv, voice searching for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
"I don't even wanna think about what you were looking at to find that on Twitter. Make sure you wipe down this counter! No one wants to eat where your bare cheese-smelling feet were. Also, you have class at 1 o'clock, Connie, please don't miss your first class of the year." You say loudly enough for him to hear over the cartoon and grab your purse off the counter.
You walk over to stand in front of his line of sight making sure he heard you. He nods vigorously moving his body side to side trying to see the tv around the frame of your body. He was literally like a small child you'd give an iPad to so they'd behave.
You jog upstairs and grab your MacBook and backpack then close your door again and walk back downstairs to grab your purse. You pull your phone out to check the time, 9:10, it's time to leave. You walk over to the shoe closet you and Connie share (so you don't spread outside germs into the house) and take off your bear slippers to put on your brown sandal heels. Checking your bag to make sure you have everything, you put your phone in the bag and take out your keys.
"I've gotta go, Coco, I'll see you later. Please go to the store and get some groceries, we can't order out every night, I'll send you $80. No snacks with that money only real food, also the lighter is on my dresser, but do not go through my shit and don't go to class high. Feed rainbow and change the litter. I love you, fuckface." You say in a speed run of everything you could think of to say before leaving while opening the front door.
"I'm not 10 and you're not my mom, love you too ugly." He says casually while his eyes are fully concentrated on the cartoon turtles fighting a cartoon rat. Not 10 your ass, he’s honestly pushing for 9 right about now. You walk past your neighbors' doors to the elevator and pressed P for the parking garage. The Apartment is on the 10th floor and there’s a parking garage on each floor, driving down ten loops is not very appealing so the bottom floor is ideal. You always parked as close as possible to any entrance, so when you get out of the elevator it’s less than a 15-second walk to your car.
You pull out your keys and unlock the car then sit in your clean leather seat and throw your bags to the passenger side. You love your car, it’s like a trophy. To get it you worked the hardest you'd ever worked to get anything in your life and so, proud was an understatement to how you felt. Turning the key into the ignition you start the car. You pull out your phone and connect the Bluetooth then start your 5-minute drive to campus.
You’ve only been to the campus about 3 or 4 times. First to sign some final forms for enrollment, secondly to take a quick night tour the day after you arrived, third to sign up for the last of your classes. The last time doesn't really count because you just sat in the car while Connie brought some of his moms' soup to Sasha in the campus dorms. Sasha’s someone you know casually. Not close enough to where you feel comfortable enough just walking into her dorm, but close enough to be friendly and ask how she and her family were doing. She’s an amazing girl as far as you can tell. Whenever Connie would come back to visit Ragako for a little while you would go over to Connie's and talk on Skype or FaceTime with her because Connie was.
For a while, you thought he was in love with her or vice versa, but now they make you truly believe in platonic soulmates. You and Connie had more of a family-type relationship, he and Sasha are like two sides of the same coin.
As the car takes you down the street, you feet the familiar little spin in your stomach, you’re excited but kind of scared too. Changing Universities after the first year isn't uncommon, but leaving RU which’s a small college in comparison, and coming to the biggest school in the state was a very bold move. Confidence is far from your worries, it’s the fact that you only know two people here and they’re in completely different majors than you. Even if you needed a guide to your next class and they were close by they wouldn't know how to help much.
In Ragako, you didn't have tons of friends either, but Mina made up for all the friends you could ever hope for. Her, your little brother Toran ,and Connie whenever he'd come back were all you needed there.
Here is a whole new ballpark, you know Connie has a bunch of friends, a close group of them at that, but you have yet to meet any of them. It wasn't like he was hiding them from you, more like keeping you in a 'fuzzy bubble' from them, or that's what he had told you at least. The whole week you had been officially moving into the apartment, he didn't let anyone but Sasha come over. She told you that he always had people over, so you knew he was doing it for your comfort. Today though he said after everyone's classes he'd have to give in and let them all finally meet you, so maybe after today, you'd have a few people who could guide you.
Driving past the large buildings and businesses near campus you see a few people getting breakfast and drinks. After all of that, you drive on the street that has big trees that arch over the road making an enclosed feeling. Through the trees, you can see the student living buildings that have at least 20 people coming out of each one. Damn this campus is a lot bigger than the one you’re used to, in comparison RU had around 8000 students and PUIE had about 60,000 students enrolled and only more to come throughout the year.
^
The parking lot that you choose to go into is so gigantic, it gives your feet phantom pains just thinking about how exhausting walking back to your car would be if you got here later in the day. You suddenly feel a newfound gratitude for the multitude of parking lots, and pull into a spot close enough to the entrance for your comfort.
Grabbing your bags and locking your car, you pull out your phone and look for the online campus map. Your first class is economics and that's in building B which thankfully you're right next to.
Following the map is a little more difficult than you expected but after 3 wrong turns and an embarrassing walk into the middle of a class that doesn't have a single thing to do with your major, you make it on time to class. You find a seat near the door that no one sat next to and put your bags in the empty seat.
This class isn't extremely interesting, but professor Erwin has a way of talking that makes it feel like he's trying to gaslight you into loving the class. There are only about 40 to 50 people in the room, so he asks everyone to say their name and their favorite part about economics as an icebreaker. You hope he'll eventually make it not feel like you’re in high school all over again or for your mind to daze over and make this hour breeze past.
"Thank you Mr.Mitabi." Erwin thanks the guy who just spoke and then looks over to the person next to him in the row of desks. He nods his head at the tan woman with dark brown hair next to the guy who just went and she looks at him with a blank stare.
it's a bit awkwardly silent and it's apparent that this man does not like silence so he speaks again. "May the class know your name and something you like about economics?" He asks with a smile that almost feels condescending if you didn't know any better.
And like she knows exactly what might piss him off she responds.
"My name is Ymir and In all honesty, I couldn't give less of a shit about economics, but I need this class for my degree, so here I am. Also why the hell would I not show up to a class I pay for?" She finishes looking at him like he had just asked her what 5+5 was.
You laugh a little under your breath. She didn't have to be so passive-aggressive, but he didn't have to push her to talk if she didn't feel like it. She’s a grown woman and if he feels disrespected then maybe he won't awkwardly force conversation.
Unexpected to the whole room- you’re sure, he laughs, and not just a short uncomfortable chuckle, he let out a loud disruptive laugh. As he sobers up he smirks and looks back at her. She still looks at him straight-lipped and unamused but that doesn’t n't stop him whatsoever.
"I like you Ymir, your honesty is greatly appreciated. Let's take our interaction and turn it into a teaching moment. So economics in the most basic of terms is the study of people, what drives people to make decisions and what choices they make when faced with success or difficulty. So knowing these patterns can help us with many careers such as facets in business, management, and even public policy, correct?" He looks around the room for head shakes of approval while pacing around and using his hands to emphasize his words.
"Absolutely, and so with what you just told me and the whole class about you attending this class solely to complete a checklist for your degree, as a businessman there are endless ways for me to profit off of that. Now in this class, I won't be teaching how to profit off of other peoples misfortune, but I will be teaching you how to have the thought process of ‘I can make a profit off of this’ and, or ‘I can help people with their problems’." He finishes with a smile and leans onto his desk.
"I know what economics are." Ymir replies as she picks at her nails. You don't even think she’s intentionally trying to be snarky or disrespectful, she just doesn't care all that much like she said before. She’s funny on accident.
Professor Erwin chuckles and asked the rest of the people who hadn't gone to introduce themselves. When it gets to you, you keep it simple and sweet, why start something for no reason? As class ends with Erwin asking everyone to check the online syllabus that you'd go over together as a class later in the week, everyone walks out with their stuff.
As you pulled up the map on your phone again, you can feel someone's eyes burning into the back of you. You turn around slowly ready to give a confused 'can I help you look'. When your body is fully facing the direction you felt the eyes on you, there's a group of about 5 guys looking at you a few feet away. Not too close to where you'd be uncomfortable, but close enough to where they can talk at a normal volume and you'll hear it. Now you need to verbally ask what you could help them with because it was weird to just be standing there in the middle of hallway traffic.
Before you can even start talking the shortest one in the group walks closer and beats you to it.
"You know you are such a sexy woman, sweetheart. let me hit?" he says a little louder than necessary.
You don't know how to react at first, but as his friends laugh and dap each other up, you can feel the disrespect hit you full force. He couldn't pull you to the side or something? He wants to make you uncomfortable or put you on the spot, it was so awkward and completely unnecessary. So You're about to embarrass him in front of all his friends worse than he disrespected you.
"I know. I'm surprised you saw first, what are you like 5'4? It's probably a lot harder for you to see than it is for your friends. Wait, your friends, that must be why? Do you feel inferior to them because you're tiny, so to make up for it you use all that big boy testosterone to objectify women? You spoke first because that makes you feel like the leader? Please do let me know. And to answer your question, the height limit on this ride is 6'0...Wait let me be nice, 5'9." You ask like you were genuinely curious what the ass had to say then smile politely at him.
His face drops gradually the longer you speak and his friends get more and more silent. When you’re finished his face morphs into disgust.
"Nobody wants you bitch, you just look easy." He sucks his teeth and walks away from you in between his friends.
"Thanks for the input." You nod as he walks past his friends slightly faster.
One thing you never have a problem with is arguing, especially when it comes to being hurtful. You can always usually tell from just a few seconds of talking to someone and watching their body language what might hurt and what they could be thinking, you prefer for them to overanalyze themselves in a bad way instead of simply insulting them and then they get super angry and want to hurt you back physically.
It's not that you can't fight, you're just way too pretty and pay way too much to mess up your hair or nails. Fighting also meant you cared a lot which you usually don't. You're also way too petty to be the bigger person when it came to certain situations.
As the guy and his friends disperse you turn around to start your walk to the next class in your schedule. Business model canvas. Before you get on the map website you see someone sitting in a chair in your direction from the corner of your eye. You look over. Ymir, the girl from class is looking at you and you could tell she was entertained.
Yikes if she heard you she probably thinks you're a bitch now, but you don't regret saying what you did to him.
"That was kinda mean, don't you think?" Ymir asks with a laugh at the end, the kind where you blow air out your nose but don't make much sound. You turn your whole body now to face her.
"Maybe but he brought that upon himself." you shrugged and did the same laugh as her. Her facial expression looks so serious, but the way her eyelids lowered you could tell you'd amused her.
"True, but I think if you left it at 'like 5'4?' That would've stung him almost as bad. Men are really sensitive about that. I can barely stand being friends with a tall man so imagine." She replies, one side of her lips tilting up into a slightly playful smile.
"Keyword, almost. Go above and beyond with the creeps who're bold enough to try it in such a public space. He probably rubs his hands together and then fondles his balls to keep them warm in winter. Also, that is very true, but they can be oblivious and cute sometimes." You reply and smile a little.
"Cute? more like insufferable, even if I was straight, hell no." She cringes and stands up from her seat.
"It's usually a balance of the two." You laugh and readjust your bag on your shoulder.
"Yeah. Well, I guess I'll see you around....?" she asks and stands still in her spot.
You nod and she still stands there. It took you a few seconds to realize she's asking for your name, as soon as that fact set in you feel a little embarrassed. Also, the fact that you know her name but she doesn't remember yours stings for a second until you also remember that she was the only one who had an introduction longer than 15 seconds.
"Oh, it's Y/n." you laugh a little to hide the embarrassment you felt.
"Cool, see ya." She nods and walks away.
Damn you could have asked her for directions to your next class, but she walks so fast that you sneeze and she's so far that all you can see are the colors of her outfit. Online map it is. It's 10:20 and this class was on the other side of building B which you're already in, on the 3rd floor. Thankfully you have a 15-minute break between the classes and talking to Ymir only took 2 minutes so you have plenty of time to make directional mistakes.