Guys Who Get on My Nerves (Re:Zero Modern AU: Reinhard, Julius, Subaru, Garfiel, Otto)
Mom's friend's son Reinhard
• You're moving to another city for college. Finally. • You want to break free from your parents—be your own person, strong, self-sufficient. • You've already pictured it: living alone, doing whatever you want, answering to no one. • You even bought a mug that says "My home is my castle." You're ready.
• Then your mom casually drops: "Oh, how perfect! Aunt Luanna happens to have a house in that city—she'll give you a big discount!" You: "Mom, I want to do this on my own." Mom: "Well, Reinhard lives right nearby, he can help if anything comes up 😊" You: "Mom, seriously." Mom: "He's such a sweet boy. And actually, he asked about you—how you were doing." You: "We haven't spoken in two years, and even then it was just a couple of random sentences." Mom: "He remembers you! So thoughtful. And I'll feel so much better knowing you're not alone." You: "Fine."
• You move in. The house is brand new—renovation, furniture, everything fresh out of the box. You start suspecting that "discount" is really just charity in disguise. • On the table lies a note: "If you need anything, I'm just over the fence. Neighbor. R."
• An hour later—knock on the door. • Reinhard stands there with a plate of your favorite pastries. "Welcome to the neighborhood! I brought you these. Baked them myself, so I can vouch for the taste. You must be exhausted from the trip—want me to help unpack?" • Turning him away would be a crime. You let him in. • Another hour passes, your mom calls: "So, how's it going? Is Reinhard helping?" You: "I'm handling everything myself" (in the background, Reinhard is washing your dishes because "you must be tired after the move"). Mom: "Reinhard, thank you for keeping an eye on her. I'm counting on you!"
• Your life turns into a full-blown nightmare.
• You tell yourself: "I can do this alone. I'm strong. I'm independent." Reinhard: "Don't worry, it's no trouble at all to help."
• You start college. • First class—you scan the roster and Reinhard's name isn't there. You breathe a sigh of relief. • Then he appears at the entrance. • With coffee. • "I was passing by and thought you might get cold." You: "How do you know my schedule?" R: "Your mom sent it." You: "Of course she did." • You take the coffee because it's hot and you really are freezing. He smiles and leaves. You watch his back and think: "I hate him."
• Your mom calls every day: "How are things? Has Reinhard stopped by? He's such a good boy—you look after him too!" You: "Mom, he's older than me and he's a CEO. He doesn't need my supervision." Mom: "Well, what if he's eating dinner alone? Invite him over, it'd be rude not to!" You: "Mom, I'm not inviting him to dinner." Mom: "Suit yourself."
• You strike up a conversation with the neighbors, determined to prove you're fully capable of building your own social circle without him. • Neighbor lady: "Oh, you're the new girl living next to Reinhard? He's such a great guy, isn't he? He helped me carry my groceries last week." You internally: "Of course he did." Neighbor: "Are you two together? You make such a cute couple!" You: "No. We're just neighbors." Neighbor: "But the way he looks at you..." You walk away mid-sentence.
•You don't admit it, but his thoughtfulness is often a pleasant surprise, so sometimes you buy him chocolates. • (I can just imagine how long he stares at this Kinder Surprise, quietly rejoicing)
Your Childhood Rival, Julius
• Does he know he's your enemy? • Absolutely not. • He probably thinks he's your future spouse.
• Here's how it started.
• He was a transfer student in school. • Had to repeat a couple of years (two, to be precise) because he moved from abroad and was still learning the language—so academically, he was behind.
• He took a liking to you. Immediately.
• The teacher announced pair work for a group project. • He was literally walking toward you—and then you picked someone else. Your friend. • That stung.
• He spent the entire week using every free minute to perfect and upgrade his project. Just to prove you should've picked him.
• Your groups competed. You and your friend lost. • By a landslide.
• He said: "You should've tried harder. Or picked a better partner." • In his head, he added: "Like me." • But you only heard what came out of his mouth. • Which was basically: either you're stupid, or lazy, or your friend is dead weight.
• Your friend walked off humiliated. • You were absolutely livid. • And he didn't even realise he'd just shattered your friendship.
• So you spent years grinding to beat him in key subjects—maths, English, anything that mattered—and completely neglecting everything you didn't care about. • He spent years trying to match your standards. • Vicious cycle.
• Of course he wanted to go to the same university as you. • He even asked his mum (who, luckily for him, is friends with your mum—and neither of them knows you're enemies) where you were applying. And he applied there too.
• Your jaw hit the floor when you saw his name on the group list. And then again when he walked into the lecture hall.
• There he is. All elegant and mysterious in that beige jumper, coffee in hand, tapping away at his laptop. • He's not working. • He's mindlessly scrolling the uni website while staring at you.
• Don't get him wrong—he did learn from his school days. (His mum told him why you hate him, because your mum told her in confidence.) • Now he's going to be more empathetic.
• The absolute bastard even figured out your cycle. (You opened that app once. He was sitting right behind you. He memorised everything.)
• So now he gives you chocolate during those days, compliments you during ovulation, invites you out during the follicular phase, and fusses over your comfort during luteal. • In short: he's basically started copying Reinhard's insufferable hovering.
• Speaking of Reinhard. • Julius noticed him. And drew his own conclusions. • Doesn't your mum realise he is the obvious frontrunner for your heart? • I mean, he's better, right? • Julius is kind to everyone—not just you. • Is Reinhard richer? More successful? • Julius's family is plenty rich and successful, thank you very much. So that's bollocks.
• Unlike Reinhard, this gentleman is far more socially adept. He quickly hijacked the rumour mill, and now everyone's whispering: "[Your name]? Oh, isn't she dating that lovely bloke with the lilac hair?"
• Ha. Three times ha.
• And now—who's your knight in shining armour, exactly?
The Childhood Friend Who's a Total Hikikomori and Embarrasses You in Front of Everyone — Subaru
• Look, back in the day, he was your coolest friend. No debate. • Like, unreasonably cool: knew every dinosaur by name, could recite all the Greek myths, Egyptian mythology, space facts... • (The only thing you couldn't stand about him was tag. His legs were absurdly fast. But he always let you win, so fine.) • Plus his parents were absolutely legendary. • As in, they let him decorate his own room however he wanted — and the absolute cheek of it, he had his own room with a lock... (Anyone with siblings will understand the pain.) • And when they'd take you and Subaru on trips — camping, petting zoos, all that wholesome stuff — it was peak childhood. • That's the Subaru you remember.
• And now? What do we have? • Well... for starters, exams are around the corner and he hasn't even thought about revising. • His parents, bless them, are 110% convinced he just needs a girlfriend to sort his life out. • No. • He needs a therapist.
• Also: "Mum, Dad, please don't... I love you, but this is absolutely cringe." • You can't exactly find a girlfriend without leaving the house... so they've asked you to keep an eye on him. And very thoughtfully rented him a place on the same street. • Forced independence will obviously fix him, right?
• Subaru is mortified that they dragged his childhood friend into this mess. "Oh my god, why do I have to embarrass myself in front of someone this fit?!?!" • Life is so cruel to Subaru.
• So now you're making sure this walking disaster actually eats properly, showers (oh my god Subaru, that's rank), and occasionally — occasionally — steps outside. • You're even more cruel than life itself, so you've resorted to exposure therapy: shoving his face into every grotty corner of his rented flat, filming it, and threatening to send the footage straight to his parents.
• You also drag him along for jogs, which soon attract Reinhard and Julius like moths to a flame. • Unlike you two, they run like actual athletes, so you and Subaru end up looking like two dying dolphins that washed up on the beach. • Glorious.
• But — credit where it's due — it actually works. His body slowly returns to something resembling a functional human being. • The real kicker? His parents are now insufferably smug about it. "See? A pretty girl does fix everything!" • Right. • Well. • You're not about to argue. • (Especially since they slip you pocket money for these little visits)
.
• Bonus 1 • Well.Your usual entourage — Prince Charming and Mummy's Favourite — tend to intimidate him. But thank god they're not as nerdy as he is. • He's the only one you trust to recommend a good game or film. • (Subaru is a seasoned pirate, so whenever you can't be arsed to pay for a subscription, he downloads the film for you — complete with a sudden casino ad in the middle of a tense scene, which works like a screamer, and you both nearly jump out of your skin.)
• Bonus 2 • He's an absolute beast at cosplay. Need something hemmed? Need to look stunning for a project presentation? Need flawless makeup? Go to him. He'll sort you out for a bottle of Coke. • Or a kiss. • "No, obviously I'm joking. It's not like I've been harbouring a secret crush on my childhood friend for years or anything. What do you think this is — an anime?" • Yeah, he's harbouring it. • Your adorable little tsundere <3
Stupid schoolboyy Garfiel
• You're already sick of this pack of schoolchildren trailing you. • You did a lap around the block just to check. • Yep. They're following you.
• One of them darts ahead, all red in the face, and blurts out: "Oi, so... I like you. Wanna go on a date?" • The lads behind him are snickering like a pack of hyenas. • He's absolutely crimson. • Is he serious? Is this truth or dare? Is it just banter? • You don't really care.
• But for some reason, you suddenly didn't want him to get roasted at school for this. • So you gave him your number.
"Look, if this is some daft dare or a card game punishment, I'll play along. Here's my number. If this is a real confession — my answer's no. I'm not a nonce." • You hand him the note with your number. • He's gobsmacked. You walk off, smirking to yourself.
• A minute later, your phone rings. You can hear a bunch of teenage lads losing their minds in the background.
"Hello~ Is this that fit bloke who asked me to the cinema?"
• The call drops instantly. And from the next street over, you hear:
"OMG SHE ACTUALLY GAVE HIM HER NUMBER AND SAID YES TO A DATE?!?!?!"
• Garfiel is now officially the coolest lad in school. Why? Because he's got an older, cool-as-hell (you still have your Labubu, by the way), ridiculously fit "girlfriend."
• Honestly? You even play along. You pay for laser tag and treat him to pizza one time. • He brags about it to the entire school. • It reaches the teachers. Then the parents.
• And now his sister is standing in front of you, telling you to stop grooming her underage brother.
• You invite her for tea, because God forbid Reinhard catches wind of this and decides you have problems.
• You show her the messages. You've very clearly told Garfiel you're not dating. This is all for show. A bit of performance art for his parents' sake. • Your entire knowledge of each other boils down to how long you've played Minecraft together (you even griefed his house once, and you've got a couple of cats between you — most of your messages are about naming them). • Frederica sighs and says Garfiel's going to get an absolute earful for this. • She's mortified. She apologises. • You tell her you'd have done the exact same in her shoes. • You swap numbers. Because — hey — you've got a friend now. A proper girl friend. (Platonic, obviously.)
• Eventually, by mutual agreement, Garfiel "dumps" you. His reason? You're not with it anymore. You refuse to memorise every single bit of brainrot with him. • In Minecraft, you take all your shared cats with you and break his pixelated little heart.
• Only for him to realise, a week later, that he's actually fallen for you.
• He confesses. Immediately gets blocked.
• Then he calls from Frederica's phone and yells: "BLOODY HELL, I LIKE YOU. I KNOW YOU'RE OLDER, BUT WAIT FOR ME!"
• He finds out where you live. Leaves you flowers. Chocolate. Sometimes orders you pizza. • And — to his parents' delight — he starts actually studying, so he can "provide for my tigress" later.
• Sometimes you genuinely consider giving him a chance.
• And then he asks you to look at his phone, so you can scan your face for biometrics — just so he can access the adult version of Roblox.
• At this moment you remember exactly why you said no.
The One You Keep Chasing - Otto
• He was just this shy, awkward introvert. • (Poor lad got laughed at as a kid for being into entomology. Bugs. Because of course.) • You probably wouldn't have even noticed him — until one day you bumped into him and he dropped a stack of papers. • Sounds like a rom-com meet-cute, right? Except they didn't go flying everywhere, and your hands definitely didn't touch. • He did, however, bend over to pick them up. And you got an absolutely cracking view of his arse. • A few classmates helped you track him down. Turns out he's the starting central midfielder for your uni's football team. • Wouldn't have guessed it, honestly. • Well... his legs might have given it away, if you know what I mean.
• Anyway, you started hanging out. And bloody hell — he's just... • Normal. • Talking to him was refreshing. Comfortable. No drama. • And for him? It was pure bliss just having someone to talk to. Usually people don't even notice he exists. • Sweet, shy little doughnut.
• So you asked him out on a date. Cat café. • It was going brilliantly. • Until Reinhard walked in and asked why you'd missed three calls from your mum.
• Otto didn't even wait. He just left. • Later you found out he figured you'd forget about him anyway. That's what everyone else always did. • He apologised afterwards, but the damage was done... • The man has zero self-confidence.
• Anyway, you introduced him to Subaru, and now they're besties. But... • Otto has put you in the friendzone. • Because, bless him, he's not blind. He's seen the blokes circling you. • (He is blind, though — he only noticed Julius and Reinhard's interest. Hasn't got a clue about Subaru.)
• When you finally cornered him for a proper one-on-one conversation — which took ages because he's juggling uni, football, and a part-time job at his uncle's — you got interrupted. • By Julius. • Who, as it turns out, had helped Otto out before. Otto started thanking him profusely, only for Julius to completely ignore his existence. • Again.
• So that's the cycle: • You occasionally manage to catch him, things seem good, and then one of the other lads shows up — and he bails. Every. Single. Time.
• Bonus 1 • His shattered little heart pieces itself back together by recreating your virtual family in The Sims. He rehearses conversations with your Sim-self, hoping one day he'll have the nerve — and the time — to actually confess.
• Bonus 2 • When he finally worked up the courage to tell you about his bug obsession — and you didn't judge him at all — he proper broke down crying. You spent ages calming him down. • Even if nothing ever happens between you, you've got a permanent spot in his heart. You helped him close that childhood wound.
Link to my other works
https://www.tumblr.com/sandraalek/804408234502995968/here-will-be-all-the-links-to-my-work-i-think?source=share













