Chapter Text
"What's going on?" Sasha asked around a mouthful of god knows what as she strolled up to her friends, who were all huddled with their ears pressed against the Principal's door.
"Shhhhhh!" Jean hissed, motioning frantically with his finger against his lips."We're getting a new teacher in place of Mrs. Ral."
Sasha's eyes widened curiously at this and she skidded in line behind Connie, using his waist as leverage in order to lean close to the door.
The deep of voice of Mr. Ackerman was a little muffled but still audible as he spoke on the phone."Yes, for about a year and a half. With specific qualifications, though." A pause."I understand that this isn't the time of year, but this is an emergency, with the Olympiad coming in less than a month." Another pause as the other person on the phone spoke."I'm looking for someone experienced, at least thirty of age, and with a clean history. I don't want some fob idiot coming straight out of college."
"Aw, lame. Aren't younger teachers supposed to be brighter and shit and therefore more qualified?" Connie drawled with displeasure. Reiner nudged him to get him to shut up.
"No, excuse you, I am not being picky, I simply care for my students. I'm coming to the department myself anyway."
Everyone flinched when the phone was clicked back in place, scrambling to get up and making it a foot away before the door swung open. They sheepishly turned around and stuttered greetings or excuses.
"What are you all doing here? Get back to your classes." They scurried away obediently before he decided to vent out on them.
"Found one yet, Levi?"
Why of all people he was lounging around in Levi's way was beyond him. Grinding his teeth together, he only paused on his way out to get him to shut up."Not yet. Will be soon."
"You know, if you didn't raise the bar so high a teacher would've been available more easily." Nile was the Principal of Levi's rivaling school, who was third but still was trying to climb it's way through underhandedly.
"If I kept the bar low, like people yourself, then I'd never progress."
"Says the one who nearly lost to us in the Olympiad last year." The brunet's smile twitched when Levi stalked over to him, realizing that this conversation shouldn't have occurred while he was leaning against the railing of the third story.
"The only reason we 'nearly' lost last year was because some older fuckers were messing around with the students before the contest and making them question everything they knew about the subject, but we still won."
Nile knew he was pushing his luck but couldn't really keep his mouth closed."This year it won't just be a close call if you continue setting conditions like this."
He smirked when Levi swiveled around and strode back into the department, his mini mission accomplished.
"Teacher with a maximum two year contract at Trost High, by tomorrow." Levi all but demanded from the front desk.
There were was a quick knock on the door, and Levi sighed through his nose."Come in."
Hanji, the Vice Principal poked her head inside."The new Chem teacher's here."
"Bring them in." He ended a call with a parent as the said teacher stepped inside, looking up and blinking at the figure standing by the door blankly."What the hell are you doing here? I asked for a teacher, not a student."
The brunet seemed confused for a second, eyebrow twitching in annoyance as he seemed to be restraining himself from something."I am the teacher. Mr. Ackerman, I presume? You came to the department yesterday."
Levi inwardly groaned at the accuracy of the information, debating how much time it would cost if he rejected him straight off the bat. In the end he just motioned to the chair by his desk."Close the door and come take a seat."
He set his documents down and they had a small talk, in which Levi concludes his name is Eren Jaeger, he's twenty six, has taught two years before at Nile's, has features way too boyish and sometimes explodes into small angry fits that show his professionalism was forced, and also asides from being able to teach Chemistry was in no way qualified for the job.
But did he have a choice? He had the mind to beat up Auruo for fucking shit up and getting Petra pregnant, if he knew it would get him anywhere. With a resigned sigh, he made his decision."You begin the job starting from tomorrow."
Tomorrow came, and the Chem 20 students were all excitedly babbling in the few minutes before class. Then the teacher strolled in, and they all went quiet and admired the sight. He was too good looking for his own good, and obviously unaware of their inner musings as he gave the class a charming and oblivious grin.
"Good morning. I'm the new Chem teacher, if you didn't know already, and I'll be here to fill in for Mrs.Ral. Looking forward to spend the rest of the year with you." He took the class's silence as mere obedience and as a bunch disciplined as he set his things down on his desk, before walking back to the board."My name's Mr. Jaeger, and I don't appreciate being called Mr. J because honestly, if you're not competent enough to memorize a name then you're in the wrong place."
Some snickered, others rolled their eyes. A girl in the back in blond curls shot her hand up.
"Yes?"
"Are you single?"
Eren's hand twitched, and by some miracle only did he resist slapping his forehead. The class was all attentive suddenly instead of cracking up, and Eren knew then why the younger teachers were either fired or ran away of their own will quickly from this school.
"Please limit your questions to only what's relevant to the subject." He never even tried concealing his tone of annoyance as he turned to the whiteboard and scrawled a header."But since it matters so much for some reason, yeah I am."
He heard a squeal and turned around just in time to see the girl nudging the brunet beside her suggestively, and until the entire middle row of girls had nudged each other and giggled.
Fuck. He thought.