(Name) let out a sigh as she slumped down into her chair between Lukas and Matthias, gaining curious looks from both of them.

"You okay, (Name)?" Matthias questioned carefully.

The girl nodded, sitting up without letting out a quiet grunt of pain. "More or less..." She replied softly, rubbing the sore spots on her chin.

Lukas' brows furrowed as he leaned closer to the girl in order to murmur something to her. "Did you have another run in with Gilbert?" He asked quietly.

She still wasn't used to having friends be in such close proximities, especially with Lukas' monotone and his deep gaze. She shuddered slightly before giving a slight nod, thus causing the Norwegian teen to click his tongue in annoyance.

"I swear, we're going to have to get you an escort for every class." He grumbled, looking over at Gilbert and his friends and giving them a glare.

"That isn't necessary, Lukas..." (Name) responded with a sigh, turning to Matthias, noticing the guilty look in his eyes. "...And what's wrong with you?"

"It's just..." The Dane sighed, running a hand through his spikey blond hair. "I hate the fact that I used to be one of them, and seeing what they do to you as your friend..."

(Name) gave the Danish teen a small smile before reaching over and patting his shoulder. "Don't worry about it, Matthias. It's in the past, okay? Just... Focus on the future, okay?"

The girl's words of comfort made the Dane smile at her, giving her a nod in agreement. "Right... Thanks, (Name)."

Before the girl could respond, their principal walked in to start the class. "Alright, everyone! Get out your notes, we're starting a new section! Andiamo!"

~~~

(Name) sat in her Geometry class, waiting for the teacher to arrive to begin. Yao had come over to ask about their classwork from the previous day and she was explaining it to him, just as they were interrupted by the arrival of Elizabeta.

"So? You wanna sit with me and the girls today?" Elizabeta asked her new friends as she plopped herself into the seat next to (Name).

In truth, the girl hadn't given the offer much thought. If she did take up the opportunity, she would have to text Matthew just to make sure he didn't send out a search party when she didn't show up for their usual meeting.

"W-well..." (Name) began, fiddling with the mechanical pencil in her hand.

The Hungarian teen gave her friend a small smile as she tipped her head to the side, her brown locks following the movement of her head. "I understand if you don't want to... But it could be fuuuuuun." She hummed softly, a grin forming on her face.

Yao let out a small groan as he rolled his eyes. "Honestly, Elizabeta. You shouldn't put people on the spot like that." He scolded lightly as he crossed his arms over his chest.

Elizabeta turned to him, a pout forming in place of the grin. "It's just a harmless question, Yao. Why are you butting in, eh? You want to sit with (Name) at lunch?"

The teen blushed and crossed his arms defensively. "Why would you assume such a thing?!"

"Oh please, what guy wouldn't want a pretty girl sitting with them at lunch?" Elizabeta asked, gently bumping (Name)'s shoulder with her own.

The girl was going back and forth from the two in front of her, a blush forming on her own cheeks as Elizabeta referred to her as "pretty."

"Nii-san, if you want help with the class work, I can help." Called Kiku from the front of the room, turning in his seat next to Ludwig.

The Chinese teen huffed, taking his notebook and uttering a quick "thank you" before walking back to his younger brother.

With Yao's absence, Elizabeta turned to (Name) with a bright smile. To (Name), it was really nice to see the Hungarian teen so happy, especially considering how difficult a time she was having, given the harassment she was experiencing. "So? What do you say?"

A moment after Elizabeta asked, (Name) sighed softly before returning a warm smile. "Well, I don't see why not. Just let me talk to Matthew before I sit with you guys, and then I'll be right with you guys."

Elizabeta's eyes brightened significantly before she wrapped her arms around (Name) in a tight hug. The sudden movement drew a yelp from (Name), but she returned the hug with a soft laugh. "Wonderful! They're going to love you, I just know it! Just meet us in the cafeteria"

I hope you're right, Elizabeta...

~~~

Geometry came and went too quick for (Name)'s liking, but she still made her way to find Matthew so that she could tell him that she would be having lunch with Elizabeta's friends. She wasn't going to lie, she was a little apprehensive about the prospect of spending time with girls, and only girls. She really hadn't had an experience like that for as long as she could remember... She gripped the handle of her lunchbox tightly as she moved through the halls to find her friend.

As (Name) looked out over the sea of students, she spotted the blond and wavy-haired Canadian she was looking for. Moving closer to him, their eyes soon met and Matthew made his way closer to (Name) as well.

"(Name)! How have your classes been?" The Canadian asked, his ever-present smile on his lips.

"Good, actually. Really good." She answered, moving to match pace with her friend as he moved to go to his locker. "So... I decided to take up Elizabeta's offer."

Matthew turned to (Name), his brows turned up and a smile tugging at his lips. "(Name), that's wonderful!" He chirped.

The girl returned the smile, but she couldn't help but be somewhat surprised at the Canadian's happiness at her decision. She thought that he might be at least a little apprehensive about it. "...Really?" She asked.

He nodded as they reached his locker. "Of course, (Name). After all, you're branching out and meeting new people. Why wouldn't I be happy for you?"

"W-well, I wouldn't want you to be by yourself..."

The Canadian boy chuckled softly as he unlocked his locker and pulled the door open. "Please, I have Tino, Lukas, and everyone else. I've actually gotten a lot closer to them than I ever thought I would. And that's good for me to! We're both getting the chance to spend time with people and make more friends."

Sometimes, (Name) was surprised at how positive her friend could be. "...And you're sure that you're okay with this?"

With an affirming nod, Matthew smiled down at (Name), his eyes peeking up from behind his thin frames. "I promise... Just so long as you don't try to replace one of them as your best friend."

The girl couldn't help but smile as she shook her head, hooking her arm with Matthew. "Please. I don't think any of them could understand me and the shit I have going on better than you can."

With that, the Canadian teen laughed softly before leading the duo down the hall so that they could both meet their respective lunch dates. (Name) parted from Matthew in the breezeway between the auditorium building and the cafeteria building. She waved as Matthew made his way to their other five friends. Left to her own devices, (Name) inhaled to well up her courage before making her way through the doors of the cafeteria.

She didn't eat in the cafeteria for the reason that many of her former bullies, and still current, ate lunch in there. Gilbert and his friends often sat in the cafeteria near the wall west from the door. Ivan sat to the east side of the cafeteria, usually by himself unless he forced Toris, Eduard, or Ravis to sit with him, or when Alfred, Francis, Arthur, and Yao sat with him. Feliciano, Ludwig, and Kiku sat together near the center of the cafeteria, sometimes Yao or Lovino would join them. Alfred would usually surround himself with other jocks, girls, or maybe Arthur, Gilbert, or Francis.

A lot of people she recognized, none that had ever taken the time to invite her to sit with them.

"Hey! (Name)! Over here!" Called a familiar voice.

The girl turned to face the skybox that overlooked the gym- which shared the same building as the cafeteria but was separated by the large glass windows as well as the two hallways that led to the Coaches Offices. Standing at one of the several tables within the skybox was the very girl who had invited (Name) there.

Sitting with Elizabeta, (Name) could recognize several of the faces with her. One belonged to Lily, the younger sister of her classmate, Vash. Michelle, the freshman that she tutored who seemingly had a relationship of some sorts with Francis. Felix, the ever peppy and talkative friend that often hung around Toris. Her gaze then turned to the girls whom she couldn't name as easily. A girl with shoulder-length hair, some of it tied back with a green ribbon that matched her bright green eyes. Next to her sat another girl with long brown hair with deep brown eyes, her hair clipped back out of her face with a pink flower clip.

Without too much trouble, (Name) made her way to the table and sat in the empty chair between Elizabeta and Felix, trying to hide the look of uneasiness on her face.

"Glad to see you could make it, girl." Felix said with a grin, resting his chin on his palm.

"Th-thanks for having me..." She managed to stutter out.

She turned at the sound of Elizabeta giggling beside her. "(Name), allow me to introduce you to my friends- Lily, Michelle, Bella, Mei, and obviously Felix."

(Name) nodded stiffly, smiling at the four girls in front of her. "Y-yeah, I've met Lily and Michelle..."

"Mmhm, we met because of my brother." Lily responded with a small, but happy smile.

Michelle grinned at (Name). "And how could I forget my English tutor? You've helped me so much only after one session."

Smiling at the friendliness from the two girls, she turned to Mei and Bella. "S-sorry, I-I'm not very good at getting around to meet new people..."

"Oh, don't worry about it!" Bella chirped as she waved her hand passively. "Besides, being a sophomore is probably one of the busiest years of high school for us."

Mei nodded in agreement. "Really, (Name). It's fine. Elizabeta and Felix have told us a lot about you."

The girl perked up at this information, turning to look at the two teens who sat on either side of her. "You... You did?" She asked.

Elizabeta nodded. "Of course! You're one of the smartest girls in our grade."

"Plus, you're probably one of the only people who would ever stand up to Gilbert or Ivan." Felix laughed, causing the other girls at the table to laugh along with him. This caused (Name) to blush in slight embarrassment. "Not that there's anything wrong with that, of course. The two of them, they're assholes."

"No kidding." Elizabeta agreed with a roll of her eyes.

"But, that's not the only reason we know of you, though." Mei spoke, meeting (Name)'s gaze with a kind smile. "You helped Kiku through one of his panic attacks."

(Name)'s brows rose in surprise. "You know about that?"

Mei nodded. "Kiku and I are family, actually. Me, him, Yao, and a lot of other family members. Not all of them go to this school, though." She explained.

"And I know about you through the Vargas brothers." Bella spoke, tipping her head slightly.

"Feliciano and Lovino?" (Name) inquired.

The Belgian girl nodded in reply. "Yes. Lovino... His opinions of people can be a little misguided, but he's a good guy." She spoke, giving (Name) a sympathetic smile. "But from what I hear from Feliciano, and everyone here, you're a really nice girl, (Name)."

Getting to spend lunch with a new crowd was different, but... Good. (Name) found herself learning new things about people who she already knew. Kiku, Yao, and Mei had quite a large family, a lot of cousins who were more like siblings to them. Elizabeta and Felix had been friends for quite some time, and were very close. Bella had an older brother who went to a different school, but knew a lot of different students. Lily and Michelle were both very close, despite being in different grades. According to Lily, Vash and Roderich used to be quite close friends- Elizabeta was able to confirm that fact.

Something that Michelle said to (Name) was rather interesting, however.

"So... For as long as you've known him, Francis was never this cruel before?" (Name) mumbled.

Michelle nodded as she took a sip of her drink. "I mean, he's always been a little bit of a creep towards girls and sometimes guys, but I've never seen him be such a bully..."

Elizabeta made a noise of response as she finished her mouthful of food. "I agree. I've had to scare him away from Roddy a couple of times, but I've never seen him so mean towards anyone... Aside from you."

"So what changed, then?" (Name) inquired, furrowing her brow as she looked down at the table.

"Probably that douchebag Gilbert." Felix spoke. "I mean, you aren't his only victim. He's bullied Toris before."

(Name) looked back at the back of the cafeteria, watching as Gilbert laughed along with Francis and Antonio, all of their laughs recognizable across the cafeteria.

"You know, the same goes for Toni." Bella remarked, glancing at the three as well. "I've known him for a long time, but since being here... I dunno, being with Gilbert has changed him for the worst."

The girl grimaced, looking away from Gilbert as to make sure that she didn't make eye contact. Seems like the albino Prussian really knew how to screw up the lives of others.

Elizabeta could see the frown on (Name)'s face, and gently bumped her shoulder with her own. "Hey, you aren't the only one who he's been a douche to. You aren't alone in that fact."

Smiling at her friend's encouragement, (Name) nodded and moved to continue to eat her lunch, glad to be in a new kind of company that was actually accepting of her. It didn't take too long for everyone to finish their lunch, and conversation bounced from person to person, until Felix made a proposal.

"Hey! Why don't we all go to the mall this weekend? A Girl's Day!" He chirped happily. "Well, Girl's Day plus one boy."

The Hungarian grinned happily. "That's a great idea!" She turned to (Name), her bright grin almost blinding. "Would you come? Pleeease? You would have a lot of fun."

The girl couldn't help but laugh softly. "I dunno... I wouldn't want to intrude on you guys hanging out..."

"You wouldn't be intruding!" Mei interjected.

"Right! Besides, the more, the merrier!" Bella agreed.

"It just gives us the chance to get to know you better, (Name.)" Lily spoke, smiling at the girl.

"And how long has it been since you've actually hung out with anyone besides your guy friends, huh?" Michelle asked with a quirked brow.

(Name) was embarrassed to answer, but she had the feeling that everyone at the table already knew what she would have said. "Well... I don't see why not. I'll talk to my brother, and I'll try to make it happen."

"Here, I'll give you my number and you can text me anytime with the answer." Elizabeta spoke as she wrote down her digits on a napkin and handed it to (Name). "You'll have a lot of fun, (Name). That I can promise."

The girl smiled at her new friend, she had a feeling that she was right.