college life affects everyone differently - some mature, some get wilder, and some get pushed out of the nest.
summer break marks the end of y/n and her friends' freshman year, and the start of them figuring out their own lives. after a drunk, spur-of-the-moment hook-up, y/n and armin find themselves tangled in something more. they're both caught up in their own worlds before the stars seemingly align, pushing them into each other's orbit.
armin was dragged away by his frat brothers when you two made it down the stairs. his adrenaline was already pumping from being caught, mixed with alcohol and weed. he was in the moment.
they’d taken him to a chugging competition happening in the kitchen. they'd been trying to get every brother to join and armin wasn't an exception. he’d been put on the spot since he’d 'disappeared’ for a while. the crowd around him grew bigger as they watched him go up against a pledge.
as they started, the chants of ‘chug, chug, chug’ grew louder, causing armin to give it his all. the goal was to see who could finish 2 cups of floch’s jungle juice the quickest. the loser had to drink another 2. armin was already reaching his limit and didn’t want to spend the next morning sick, especially when he’d be with you.
as the cold liquid slid down his throat he held back coughs and gags at the taste. he was winning as the pledge seemed to be fighting back the urge to throw up, probably already having too much to drink. armin finished his last cup before crushing it on the kitchen counter.
the group around the two of them roared as they grabbed armin and shook him around. he was enjoying the praise. the pledge slowly realized there were 2 more cups in front of him being filled as armin was still being celebrated.
the drink seemed to be hitting armin a little faster now as he felt himself getting lighter and lighter by the second. he talked to some people as they stood around waiting for the drunk boy to finish his cups. in the midst of all the craziness, armin caught a glimpse of the trio he’d grown to see more often than he’d like.
he seemed to sober up for a second as he paused. he didn’t expect them to be here. he was surprised he hadn’t seen reiner earlier but the house was packed. he felt like the roles should’ve been reversed right now; he knew what he’d been doing all night, who he was pretending to be all night.
armin snapped out of it as he realized how his shift of energy would probably be noticed. he’d pushed the questions and feelings he had down, bringing out one of his ‘personas’. the people around him hadn't seemed to notice his lapse in character; they were too focused on getting more people to chug drinks.
armin faked checking his instagram as he quickly texted a special someone, “meet in bathroom, down the hall.” he shoved his phone into his pocket as he watched more victims be forced into the game.
as the crowd in the kitchen grew larger, as more people joined, he slipped away using the excuse of wanting to put a song on. he moved through the ocean of bodies as he headed for the bathroom instead.
walking down the hallway there were random couples kissing against the wall, getting too touchy for one's liking. others leaned, trying to steady themselves in their drunk state while fighting back the urge to throw up or fall asleep.
he slowly opened the door of the lit bathroom. she sat on the closed toilet so relaxed. armin could tell she’d already been drinking by the look she always got in her eyes when she did.
he closed and locked the door behind him as he leaned against it. he hadn’t thought this through. he was being irrational, especially with his intoxicated state, but it was too late. it was just them now. who knew when he’d get to be with her alone again?
he let out a mumbled, “didn't know you were coming.” he was someone else now. he stared at her shoes, not looking her in the eyes, too nervous to do so.
“didn’t ask.” she responded so smoothly. this meant nothing to her.
“ri- right, sorry.” he tripped over his words as he scanned her up and down. armin didn't dare look her in the eye; all he could do was bite his lip.
the muffled sound of low life by future was heard as a silence filled the cramped space. armin felt like he could hear the blood pumping in his veins. he wasn't sure if it was because of her or him not being able to come down from his prior activities.
annie’s voice cut the tension, “good party.” she took a second to really analyze armin now.
he meekly nodded his head, “yea-” it seemed unnatural. this wasn't him. he hadn't been himself the entire time. he was fronting as someone else yet again.
armin’s thought process had been cut off as annie got up and closed the space between them. her stride was smooth and quick as she pressed her lips on his. he could taste the alcohol on her breath, and so could she.
he was intoxicated from the lack of air as he traded kisses with her. he was picking up where you two had left off. he was left unsatisfied after being interrupted by jean. he couldn't help but melt into her touch, hoping to get that high he was chasing from before.
his back left the door as he leaned into annie more. his mind had gone almost completely blank since the moment he saw her. he had no plan but he knew deep inside what happens when they're alone. they both knew it; small talk was just a courtesy at this point. he plunged straight into the familiar waters that was her touch.
things seemed to pick up pace as annie's hand ran across his waist and near his belt. her other hand pulled him in deeper. armin’s hips thrusted forward as he felt himself drowning in her touch.
her hand palmed him over his jeans, teasing the length she felt growing up. he couldn't help but let his wants consume him. armin, in one swift motion, grabbed her by her thighs and lifted her to sit on the sink.
at the sudden change of position annie's back arched, causing her to move in closer. she wrapped her legs around his hips as they seemed to get drunk off each other. a few groans and gasps were let out between the two as things seemed to be leading up to a peak.
armin’s pants started to slowly unzip as annie let him attack her neck in kisses. his hands held her waist as he started unzipping hers as well. the bathroom seemed to be getting hotter by the second.
BANG BANG BANG!!
the two of them froze in their tracks. they turned their heads towards the door as a guy yelled from the other side, “yoo, open up, i need to take a leak!”
before he even finished, armin was already responding, “it's occupied.” his tone was firm but his voice didn't hold any anxiety at the thought of being caught.
that seemed to catch annie off guard. she turned her head to take a good look at who she was with right now. armin was usually a little on edge about sneaking around. he was never like that in general. his attitude was reminding her of someone she knew very well.
armin followed by letting out an annoyed groan. he was interrupted before, but being interrupted a second time? this was either a crazy coincidence or he had bad luck. he apparently can't catch a break tonight.
after the guy seemed to find another bathroom they fixed themselves. neither said a word as they knew the usual routine. annie took a little longer; she seemed thrown off. maybe the alcohol was getting to her but armin was starting to remind her of reiner.
she headed for the door, twisting the handle as she said something, “rei- armin.. i'll see you when i do.” and with that she was already slipping out the door and back to the party.
armin lingered in the bathroom a little longer as per usual. he took this as a chance for him to rinse his face, trying to keep his composure. did she also call him reiner?
he took in every second of what’s happened tonight. he looked back to how he's been acting in general. was the shift in his attitude due to being at a party hosted by his frat or something else? it couldn't be because of something else, right?
he didn’t want it to be true but he knew it was. even jean saw through him. you and annie saw through him as well. the look in your eyes when you were with him tonight was different; you were searching for something you only got when it was just you two alone. annie sensed it as well. she got to see both of the masks he tried to switch between. she saw him trying to see which one she ‘preferred’.
what was happening to him? why couldn’t he get a grip?
he dried off his face as he took one last look in the mirror. he tried to search for himself in his own reflection. he couldn't find what he was looking for, not in this state.
armin reached for the door handle, twisting it open. it felt like there was someone also twisting it as well. maybe that guy came back. he opened the door to be met with your face.
“oh my god-” he jumped back a little, spooked at your sudden appearance.
you seemed kind of thrown off but you laughed it off, “hello you.”
armin felt his heart drop for a second. if him and annie had kept at it in the bathroom you would've heard or even seen them. he silently thanked the universe for saving him from that situation.
you took in his slightly out-of-it appearance. maybe he was throwing up in the bathroom. he seemed to be reaching or already being at his limit. there was that same look on his face, the same you saw on 4th of july. you felt worried but you’d see him later. you could always ask in the morning when he was more sober.
armin seemed to come back as he let out an awkward laugh, “hi hi, sorry. you can go ahead.” he slid to the side of the bathroom. one of his hands found its way to your waist, leading you in. his eyes never looked at yours as his other hand scratched the nape of his neck.
all you could do was let out a small, “alright..” as you watched him shuffle down the hall. there it was again. that same 'switch’ that wasn’t the same guy you saw a while ago.
12:31 am
in the dining room they were playing cup pong. love me by lil wayne rang through the house as you decided to join in for the fun of it but ended up running into historia and ymir. they were from their summer long escape to the beach house. they waved you over when they spotted you. they were talking to ashley about what they did all summer.
historia changed her hair again. she had teal highlights mixed into the blonde with a black peekaboo under. that girl knew how to pick her looks and knew they would all look good.
their turn was up next and they asked you and ashley to join them. they were fiending to get a good game going and knew how competitive you all would get. people watching started trying to bet on the game and rile you all up.
historia and ymir stood at one end of the dinner table and you and ashley stood opposite. you were pretty good for now but you knew if you lost you’d be wasted beyond belief.
the couple across from you could tell the state you were in by the look in your eyes. they weren't sober either but they were slightly more sober than you. they had more of an upper hand but you two weren't gonna let that get in the way.
before the game started you pulled ashley closer to you. she looked at you before you leaned in towards her ear, “we better win or ima be fucked by the end of the night.”
she laughed you off slightly before winking at you, “don't worry you know i got this.” she acknowledged the fact that if they got a ball in you would be the one to drink all the cups. you accepted it but you didn't want to be counted indisposed for the later part of the game.
the game started and it was a back and forth. ymir and historia took turns drinking each time a ball made it into the cup. ashley seemed to be taking your ‘threat’ seriously as she tried her best to get as many balls into cups.
her efforts were nice but that didn’t stop your opponents' never faltering aim. there were a few misses every now and then but that seemed to make their aim get better.
the crowd forming around the table seemed to notice the increasing tension as white girl by shy glizzy seemed to be heightening the energy. there were people betting how many cups you had left before you threw up. with everything going on on the sidelines historia and ymir seemed to be getting distracted.
you and ashley took advantage of this as they started to miss shots more and more. ashley and you shot balls that made it into cups and got the two of them drunker by the minute.
in the end you and ashley won. you were a little drunker but it was alright. the two of you hugged and jumped around while shoving it in ymir and historia's faces. they couldn't be too salty as they found your overly dramatic celebration hilarious.
there was encouragement of a rematch but you couldn’t go through another game without probably leaving with ashley trying to keep you steady. the four of you made your way outside as you heard there was a keg. you couldn’t go to a frat party and not drink from the keg, it was almost like a rite of passage.
when you all got to the backyard you saw the keg and saw armin, eren, and guys from their chapter already surrounding it. they waved in your direction as the crowd grew louder and motioned you all over.
they were doing keg stands as they declared it was a 'tradition’. floch was coming down from being held up as he let out a scream, “lets fuckin goooo!” this seemed to rile everyone else up. they kept going on and on about how he set a record.
it was now armin and eren’s turn. eren went first as he made sure to tie back any hair that could get in his face. “yeager bomb,” was heard repeatedly chanted as he took his stance.
he got the nickname from his pledge days. one night he had the task of taking down a certain number of yeager meisters because of his last name. safe to say he didn’t disappoint as it turned into what he was known for.
he was flipped upside down as he started drinking from the keg. floch waved you guys closer and wrapped his arm around your waist. armin hadn't noticed your appearance, he was too immersed in the group.
“i told you i'd come back for you.” floch said over the crowd close to your face.
giving him a slight smirk you scoffed, “more like i came to you.” your eyes glanced towards armin. he was busy, he barely noticed more people joining the group. he seemed to be in ‘his’ element.
“hmmm, i dont think it makes much of a difference.” he playfully shrugged his shoulders as he egged on eren.
you jumped up and down next to floch joining along in the chant. armin perked up at the recognition of your voice. he searched and found you by floch's side. the way floch stared at you was so obvious. why was it so easy for others to show their real feelings towards you in the public eye but he seemed to cower at the thought.
he watched before looking away. this was his punishment. he’d be forced to watch as others got to enjoy your warmth while he only could accept it when you two weren't under any eyes.
as eren got down he wiped his mouth with a loud yell following behind. he got pats on the back as he headed to stand next to ashley before floch took him first. she laughed as some beer had escaped his mouth and left wet marks on the neck of his shirt.
armin was next. the group of boys hyped him up as they yelled out, “kent.” the name was developed as they thought armin lost his ‘nerdy’ look whenever he took off his glasses. it wasn't too far off. today he seemed to be someone else rather than the usual armin.
he got ready as they lifted him. you watched with excitement in your eyes. floch egged on armin telling him to, “just relax and swallow.” you elbowed him at the crude joke.
armin’s eyes flicked as he caught sight of the interaction. he went back to what he was doing. his eyes stayed focused on the keg as he made sure not to choke. his shirt lifted revealing his lower abdomen and showing it tensed up.
all you could do was watch as he kept drinking. he’d been there longer than eren. the boys got more hyped as they counted and it was nearing floch’s personal record. armin seemed to be trying to beat it.
he was trying to impress you or the guys in some way. the way floch was hanging all over you and the fact you were so relaxed about it made him slightly irritated. he needed to get one up on him twice in one night; beating the record and him being the one to take you home tonight.
his face turned red as he was reaching his limit. he only had to hold out a few more seconds before he had the new record. the crowd got louder as it seemed armin was going to get a new record and that he did.
when he got down he let out a loud burp while hitting a fist on his chest. everyone got wild at his lack of throwing up after all that. they surrounded him and kept chanting “kent” as armin stuck out his tongue.
he glanced over at you two only to be met with floch clapping at armin’s “achievement.” you jumped up and down next to him clapping as well. armin could tell you hadn't known that was a win in his books, you were just happy to be in the moment.
eren had reached armin with ashley in tow. he was worried at what armin was playing at. he wasn't the only one who knew how floch got around you. he wrapped his arm around his shoulders as he smiled and whispered to armin, “don’t puke.”
historia and ymir joined them as they greeted armin. everyone talked about them coming back. the two of them wanted to see the rest of the group on their way back into the house and people seemed to be spilling out. the house was full already but now it was overflowing as people were coming out the back to get away.
1:17 am
everyone somehow found their way to each other but soon parted as ymir, marco, and jean went to get drinks. they used this excuse knowing they all just didn't feel like dancing and wanted to get away from other people being on them.
that left you, ashley, connie, eren, armin, historia, and mikasa dancing. well trying to dance. it truly felt like people were on top of each other but that couldn't be helped. the lack of space was amplified as fm$ by new boys was playing. people started getting partners and yelling out the lyrics as flashes of cameras were turned on.
you and ashley danced on each other as others watched. eren and connie were dancing on the side as they both watched intently. you teased eren as you got behind ashley and smirked at him. your closeness made his eyes narrow at you, he knew what you were doing.
historia and sasha also got into it. they didn't care about others watching as they were both known for being good dancers. mikasa watched as she danced with armin. the two of them didn't really want to be in the middle of all that as everyone seemed to be grinding on someone.
armin watched the closeness between you and ashley. he kind of wished it was him as he hadn't gotten the chance at all to dance with you. eren glanced around and caught sight of armin. the entire night you two hadn't been close, either someone was with you or he was off somewhere.
towards the end of the song eren decided to be a ‘wing man.’ he cut in, taking ashley from you and telling you to go get another partner. ashley giggled at you two bickering and how “god forbid i dance a little with one of my girlfriends.”
mikasa had wandered off as well, wanting a drink and feeling slightly over-stimulated so that left armin alone. in the time that eren had left connie he had found some other girls to dance with. he was in a dream as he had them both dancing in front of him, entertaining him.
armin slowly approached you as you pouted your lips at eren dancing with ashley. he took your waist as bandz a make her dance by juicy j started playing and you went along with it. he gave eren a quick glance as he winked at him, thanking him.
the two of you danced as you took this chance to talk. you’d only seen each other when you first arrived and upstairs before getting separated. the thing that said was on your mind.
armin followed your moves as he watched you intently. you were unpredictable sometimes. it always kept him on his toes but he sometimes hated he didn't know what you were thinking. he’d seen floch on you the whole night and didn’t know if you’d actually stay at the party until it eventually got shut down.
your eyes watched him before you opened your mouth, “what were you doing in the bathroom?” it was an innocent question, there was no indication of you accusing him of anything.
he met your eyes before getting closer to your ear. his breath was warm against your skin as he let out a nervous laugh, “i was kinda throwing up my guts. the guys had me chugging alcohol and i got sick.. im pretty sure someone heard me and i got embarrassed.”
letting out an airy laugh, “so you got sick from alcohol and then when i see you again you're outside doing keg stands? you’re not real.” you hit his chest lightly at his ridiculousness. that explained why that guy heard things from the bathroom and why armin was so dazed after.
armin saw that you’d taken his excuse without question. you seemed to think he couldn't or wouldn't ever lie to you. he felt bad. how is it that you can take things with a grain of salt and not overthink? he wished he could learn your ways.
the two of you held eye contact while dancing. the sea of people seemed to fade as it was you two again. it took you both back to the night it started. the night that changed everything and it could've been for the worst but it didn't.
…
the party had shifted to outside, the house was almost bursting at its seams. at this point the party was at its peak; people were, in other words, tweaking. it was so loud you could barely hear your thoughts.
people joined in on keg stands and just wandered around the yard as they stayed away from the ledge of the pool. the talking went silent as the music was cut. some assumed it was the party being shut down but it was far from that.
a couple of people were standing on the roof of the house and were shouting about jumping into the pool. you tried to put names to faces as you recognized a few pledges, frat bros, and… marco and porco? nobody knew what they were doing up there but knowing marco he’d have to pull a stunt tonight. porco was just up to no good when he was out in public.
the people from below yelled, encouraging their risky behavior. all everyone could do was watch as some of the guys had second thoughts. porco took their hesitation as a sign for him to do something and he did. he took his shirt off before he ran off the roof and dove straight into the pool.
the people surrounding were silent as they waited for him to emerge and as soon as he did he let out a yell that made everyone join in as well. his stunt was a ripple effect as marco and the other guys followed.
jean watched while standing with pieck, colt, and the girl from before, “there he goes.” he let out a playful sigh as they watched porco and marco wrestle in the water.
before the music cut on floch made a final announcement, “if you wanna get wet, strip!! no shirt allowed in my pool!!” as soon as he finished the yard erupted with girls and guys peeling off their shirts as f**kin problems by asap rocky blasted.
people were jumping in and causing massive splashes of water. girls without shirts and some without bras were hanging off the ledge. guys enjoyed the view as they tried to show off their physiques.
you and a few of your friends had already started taking off your tops. approaching the ledge of the pool you contemplated if you should jump or just sit but that was short lived. historia and ymir both grabbed you and threw you in before you knew it. they jumped in after and the rest of the people around you did as well.
the chaos died down a little as people realized there were topless girls wandering around the house and yard. people mingled with each other and the rest stayed in the water splashing around or just having fun with randoms.
eren was spotted helping ashley float in the water as he had to fix his reputation of being a weak swimmer. they were on the other side of the pool watching pieck and porco try to see who could touch the bottom of the pool the fastest.
jean was sitting on some beach chairs with marco and colt. colt was dry while he handed towels to jean and marco to dry off. jean and colt were probably questioning how he got on the roof and who convinced him and porco to jump. they soon found out they both did it for the thrill of it.
sasha and mikasa decided to sit by the ledge as their feet dipped into the water. connie was shirtless as he brought drinks to all three of them. they were taking a moment to relax as they were probably half dead from the music and noise.
yelena, zeke, and onyakapon were spotted by the keg talking to floch. they were drinking as they laughed and joked about random stuff. they were all drying off from the pool water and slightly shivering at the cold beer and breeze.
you had no idea where historia and ymir were. they threw you in and you saw them not too long ago but they seemed to disappear. that wasn't too uncommon though, they probably ran off somewhere or left.
you had gotten tired of swimming as you sat on the ledge. your actions mimicked connie, mikasa, and sasha as you let your legs soak in the pool water while you just watched. as you people watched you saw armin swimming up to you.
he held onto the ledge next to you as he kept himself afloat in the water. he looked up at you after pushing his hair out of his face. the water made it fall in his face and made him temporarily blind.
he gave you a look as he stared into your eyes as he shyly asked, “you still coming tonight?”
you tilted your head at his tone, he seemed nervous in a way, “yea, why wouldn't i?” your leg kicked up water in his direction at the dumb question.
“i dont know.. making sure.” he turned away from the water as he let out a mumbled excuse.
“you know i’d never bail on you.” you once again kicked water at him at his, also, dumb excuse.
you giggled to yourself watching him fight the water but he retaliated. he pulled himself a little higher out of the water as he grabbed you by your arms. he pulled you back into the water causing you to let out a surprised yelp.
2:49 am, outside
you and armin had been sitting on the curb a block away from the party for a while now. the two of you waited close together for your ride to come. his arm was wrapped around your shoulders as you both watched the commotion in the streets. you held a cigarette you were smoking in your hand.
you both opted for an irish goodbye. it wasn’t that uncommon especially with a party that packed. the music and people could still be heard as the party spilled out into the streets. the police would surely soon show up. tonight was just the beginning of the school year to come.
the liquor and weed were wearing off but you both were pretty buzzed. he traced circles on your shoulder as mr. brightside by the killers echoed in the streets. your head fell on his shoulder as you watched the sky. the stars were barely visible with the bright street lights.
armin felt your breathing slow as you leaned on him. he shuffled to a more comfortable position for you before asking, “you falling asleep?”
you didn't respond as you took a hit, just shook your head lightly, “tonight was fun, im really happy right now.” his breath matched yours as you mimicked the circles he drew on your arms against his leg.
“it was fun, im sorry im taking you home so early.”
“i dont mind, im sorta happy to be leaving with you tonight.” you said it like it was nothing, there was no hesitation in your voice that showed you were nervous.
armin’s stomach did flips as he nodded his head. before he could add anything the car arrived. you put your almost finished cigarette out on the curb. he got up first, offering you his hand. you took it and got to your feet. the finished bud was thrown into a trash can nearby. neither of you let go as he opened the door and let you slide into the back seat first.
as the car took you, you rested your head against the glass window and watched the houses and trees pass you by. he sat on the other side watching the road through the windshield. both of your hands rested in the middle seat holding each other gently. you rolled down your window as a courtesy since you both didn't want to stink up the car.
his thumb traced shapes into your skin as he lowly hummed along to songs on the radio. he glanced over at you every now and then making sure you didn't look sick. the two of you had a scent of liquor, weed, and cigarettes mixed together.
armin was so different when he wasn’t around those people. you couldn't quite understand why he'd been acting different the whole night but all that mattered was he was his true self with you. that's all you cared about.
you took your eyes off the passing trees as you looked over at him. he watched the road ahead diligently as the shadows from passing lights shifted on his face. his hair was messy from the pool but it fit him so naturally. you could tell he’d had a long day from how low his eyes hung, or maybe that was a combination of weed and alcohol.
as you watched he caught you staring. his hand tightened slightly around yours as he tugged it a little, signaling you to come closer. his hand never left yours as you scooted into the middle and leaned against him once more.
you put one of your legs on his lap as you got comfortable. it was a bad habit you couldn't seem to get rid of. sometimes you figured it bothered people but some appreciated your physical display of trust.
armin’s other hand that remained empty went to your leg and held it in place. he wanted to be as close as possible. the closeness made your skin slightly sweat against each other but neither of you minded. your head rested against his shoulder as the both of you looked at one another.
your empty hand went to his face and he leaned into your touch. he closed his eyes as his face got closer to yours. you pecked the side of his mouth and followed it with a kiss on his jaw. he opened his eyes once your lips left his skin and stared at you with this look. the taste of cigarettes on your lips intoxicated him.
his eyes hung low and seemed to shine even in the dimness of the car back seat. he leaned in more causing some hair to fall in front of his eyes. you used your hand to push it back and hold onto the side of his neck. this time you deepened the kiss as you pulled him in.
your hand stayed on his neck as he pulled you more onto his lap. the kiss wasn’t like it was before, the two of you were more gentle. his hand got closer to your butt as he pulled you closer to him. armin let out low whimpers as your thumb ran up and down his adam's apple. the hum of his reaction caused it to vibrate under your touch.
the two of you were shifting closer to each other before the driver cleared his throat, “ahem, we’re here.” you both pulled apart at his voice. armin looked slightly embarrassed as he nodded his head and apologized to the man. as you and him stepped out of the car and said thank you once more the man gave a small smile before saying to stay safe.
armin’s arm wrapped around your waist as the two of you walked to the front door of his apartment building. the walk to his front door was quiet as it was late and people were asleep. he fumbled with his keys a little before finding the right one and opening the door.
he led you to his room and sat on his bed as you put your things in his dresser. you sat next to him before laying on your back. he copied your motions and laid next to you. the two of you faced each other as he kissed your neck softly. your hand buried itself in his hair as he reached for the bottom of your shirt.
he slid it off you as you laid in your bra and he went for your pants next. as he undid the buttons you took the opportunity to take his shirt off. the both of you sat up as he shimmied you out of your bottoms. he took in your body as he continued to press kisses on your burning skin.
your hands ran up and down his abs as both of you took your time. the tension was there but there was no hurry; it was just you two alone. he laid you back on the bed as he got on top. his touch was precise as he went lower and lower. he was holding onto finishing where you both left off.
10:23 am, armin's apartment
you woke up in armin's bed the next day. you were in one of his shirts with only your underwear. the light shone in through the blinds as you tossed around a little trying to adjust to the brightness. you could feel the warmth of his body radiating in the sheets next to you.
the birds chirping outside seemed to force your eyes open and come out from under the sheets. your back was facing him as you rolled onto your side to see if armin was awake yet. he came into view and was.
he was wearing his glasses as he read a book he had on his nightstand. his hair was a mess from bed head and he had no shirt. he saw you shift and watched you from his peripheral, “good morning, you're finally up.” you could still hear the morning rasp in his voice. he set his book down as he stretched in bed.
“how long have you been up?” you scooted closer to him as he rested his arms behind his head.
he wrapped one of his arms around you as you nestled into him, “like, uh, an hour? i don't know, i just stayed in bed.”
“ohh, i thought you’d be showering or something already. i know you have like a whole morning routine.”
“yeaaa, but i didn't want you to wake up to me gone from bed.”
you let out a yawn as you nodded your head. he’d waited just for you. the two of you stayed in bed for a while just talking before deciding to eat something. both of your heads were pounding and thirsty.
armin got out of bed as he headed for the kitchen to grab water bottles. you took this as a chance to fix his bed and clean up the clothes that were scattered on the floor from last night. he came back and tried to convince you he’d do it himself but you were almost done.
the two of you then headed to the bathroom to brush your teeth. armin had already had a toothbrush for you; all your friends had toothbrushes in each other's homes for sleepovers or whenever. the morning had been pretty decent with how wild floch's party was.
he asked what you wanted to eat and you didn't have a clue. all you knew was that neither of you felt like cooking so ordering was the solution. his phone was on the nightstand but it was dead so he called from your phone.
“do you think it's lowkey big to order wingstop for breakfast?” you questioned as you laid on the living room couch, arrested development played on the tv.
your legs were on armin’s lap as he laughed, “no it's like nutritious, protein and grains. this is actually healthy.”
“you're right, we deserve a nice, healthy, filling breakfast.”
the food was going to take a while to arrive so you decided to take a shower first. armin said he’d go after you since he was going to have to deal with texts and calls from guys at the frat. his disappearance would probably get him talked to but he didn't mind.
…
you had been in the shower for a while as armin went back to his room. he plugged his phone in and waited for it to charge up before he checked his notifications. after a while he started checking his messages and missed calls. his eyes landed on the name, “annie”. he had 1 missed call from her at 3:39 am.
he stood there thinking about why she’d call. she never called him anymore, she only ever texted now. he hesitated for a second but he clicked her name to return her call. it barely rang before it went straight to voicemail.
he opted to text her right after, “you called?”
her message came after, “i wanted to see you last night.” she never responded this quickly.
“sorry for not picking up.” armin sat on his bed as he watched her type. he eagerly waited for her to text back.
what followed was annie just thumbs upping his message and responding, “all chill.” that was the end of that conversation.
armin turned his phone off as he saw he hadn't gotten any verbal lashing from floch or eren yet. he thought about last night now that he was sober. he felt icky about how he was fronting the entire night. it was embarrassing to think that people witnessed him go from a typical frat bro to a wallflower. that wasn't him at all and he felt like everyone could tell, which made it worse.
he buried his hands in his face as he realized annie also almost called him reiner. that made him feel sick. he hated it but he knew that was someone he was trying to emulate. her face as she saw him ‘switch’ made him groan but what could he do. she came onto him as she saw him emulate these guys.
thinking about her and the call he thought about what could have unfolded last night. if they hadn't been interrupted in the bathroom, if he’d picked up her call, if he hadn’t asked you to come over. his head was pounding. he didn’t want to think about deciding between you or annie coming home with him last night. he didn't know what to think, he knew he couldn't decide.
he threw himself onto his bed as he tried to clear his mind. the decision still lingered in his brain alongside memories of last night. he laid there for a minute before you called from the bathroom, “armin! can i get a towel?”
he sat up before remembering you were here. you had spent the night. you were in his shower. he got to his feet before responding, “yea, i got it.”
“kk, the door's unlocked.”
he grabbed a spare towel from a small closet in the hallway before he stopped in front of the bathroom door. he could hear the water running. he opened the door and saw your figure through the curtain. he knew what your body looked like already but there was something about just a curtain being the thin barrier between you both that had an allure.
he gazed at you through the curtain for a little before he realized what he was in there for, “h-hey, i got your towel, i'll leave it here on the toilet.”
as he finished setting it down you poked your head out from behind the curtain. the both of you stared at each other as he had a flustered look on his face. armin looked down as he realized his face was heating up more, “sorry.”
you just giggled at his reaction, “dont be sorry.” you watched as he stood there looking at the floor, not knowing what to do.
“armin..” your voice sounded playful as he still didn’t look up, trying to be respectful.
“yea..”
“come here.” at your request he first hesitated before walking closer to the shower. he stood next to the sink and glanced at his face realizing his blush hadn’t settled.
“can you help me wash my back?” you watched his face as his mind processed your question.
armin pushed his hair behind his ears trying to focus, “are you sure you want me in here?” he was genuinely wondering.
“why wouldn't i? come in.”
at that he turned to take his clothes off. your head retreated back behind the curtain as he slowly took off his pants. you could hear the sound of his glasses being set down on the shelves behind the toilet.
he quietly entered through the same side your head was prior. he was shocked to be facing you face to face. it all made him nervous. you both stared at each other as he seemed to not know how to shower. you took initiative like it was natural and turned your back to him so he could help you as you asked.
he slowly rubbed soap down your skin as he hesitated to touch you in any way that could be considered inappropriate. you were squeamish from his touch that seemed to be tickling you. his touch became more relaxed as he realized you didn't mind.
the two of your bare bodies were so close. you and armin had seen each other before but only in the aspect of hooking up. this was something different. there were no touches leading into more, these were just touches of people who were comfortable and cared for each other. the closeness wrapped between you two felt warm and like a blanket.
the heat radiating off both of your bodies matched each other as you both showered like normal. you changed spots as you washed his hair for him. the two of you stared at one another as no words were exchanged. armin closed his eyes as he turned his back to you. he wanted to make it easier for you to do his hair.
as he relaxed a creeping sense of dread started to fill him. his mind still lingered on annie. he thought about the fact she never wanted or liked showering together. she always set boundaries of how close people could get to her. she really liked her space.
things were so different. why could she never let him in when they were in a relationship? you were so willing to show your emotions and display how you felt through actions. his eyes remained closed as he felt his eyes start to water.
things truly were different between you two versus him and annie. he hadn’t known someone could give him reassurance in such small ways. with her he could only gaslight himself into thinking he was being dramatic and shove his feelings deep down. armin went back to the question that was the root of it all; you or annie.
his eyes shed tears as he hated this. he hadn’t cried the entire time they've been broken up. he couldn't hide from the tsunami of emotions he forced to hide behind distractions. this wasn’t in his control right now and it made his throat grow sore.
he was so bare right now. his hair was being washed as he acknowledged and came to terms with everything. he didn't cry but this was the closest he's come. seeing people for who they were was his ultimate downfall right now. he wished for ignorance as he tried to grasp for some lingering feeling of bliss but that wasn't possible now.
the summer was over before you knew it. school was starting up again next week. to commemorate the break being over, armin and eren’s frat was throwing a party. the president, floch, was going all out, especially with having connie promote it.
armin and eren were spending the whole day at the frat house helping floch set up and organize. everyone else gathered at your house to get ready and plan. connie was jumping around, excited to be at his first rager of sophomore year.
jean was in the bathroom, currently fixating on his hair. he had a cowlick in the front that he swore decided to act up whenever he was going out. he was left alone in there while he tried his best; if he needed help he knew to call for connie and he’d use his magic touch.
marco was already setting up the pregame. he was in the kitchen, ransacking the cabinets to see what he was working with. he had a knack for making a mean jungle juice and never shared his secret to it. he was ready to give everyone a strong taste of liquid courage.
mikasa and you were getting ready in your room. the two of you worked on your hair and makeup while im not sorry by dean blasted from your tv. mikasa sat at your vanity, fixing her hair while you sat on the floor. you sometimes preferred doing your makeup on the floor since you got to sit close to the full-length mirror next to the vanity.
your room turned into the prep room as sasha raided your closet. sasha was looking for clothes and anything she’d want to borrow, showing you and mikasa pieces as well. she was deep in there, studying everything.
ashley walked into your room carrying what seemed like fifty pounds of clothes. she added to the pile by setting a ball of clothing from her closet onto your bed. sasha and her traded spots as they analyzed potential outfits for tonight.
“mika, what about this shirt?” ashley held up the top she found. mikasa looked at it through the mirror’s reflection as you and sasha also looked.
“its cute, but like i don’t wanna stretch out the shirt with my boobs, it looks like a tight fit.” she glanced down at her chest while continuing to do her eyeliner.
you took a glance at mikasa’s boobs as you gave your opinion, “it'd be an honor to have your titties stretch out my shirt, i think i'd frame it.”
“yea lowkey your boobs are like the best ive ever seen.” ashley added, also stealing a glance at mikasa while she searched for more clothes.
“you think? they’re so heavy sometimes.”
“can we all take a moment to admire mikasa and even have her offer to let us take a feel?” sasha gave mikasa a devious smirk while giggling. ashley and you nodded eagerly, joining in sasha’s giggling.
mikasa rolled her eyes playfully, scoffing, “yall are so gay.”
after searching for shirts, you and ashley switched positions. she was doing her hair at the vanity while you tried to find something to change into. mikasa was now doing sasha's eyeliner as well. they both sat at the edge of your bed, mikasa on sasha’s lap, giving their opinions on things you tried.
“oh ashley,” mikasa called to get the focused girl's attention.
she replied, now doing her makeup, “yea?”
“whats up with you and eren?”
“OH MY GOD—” you yelled excitedly as you’d been waiting for it to be brought up.
sasha joined in, “yea, what's going on?”
“aye aye aye, let's relax pleaseeee?”
“nah dont relax, you haven't told us anything.” sasha pressed ashley.
“well, me and him—”
before ashley could finish, connie barged into the room unannounced. he was followed by marco and jean as they walked around the room, taking a look at random stuff.
“whats up?” sasha opened her eyes at their arrival.
“wanted to see what y'all were up to.” jean mumbled under his breath nonchalantly.
connie settled in against the vanity as he watched ashley curl her lashes. jean took a seat on the floor since your bed was already occupied by clothes, sasha, and mikasa. marco leaned against the closet door, taking in everyone's outfits.
“ok so we do want something.” marco let out a chuckle as you all rolled your eyes at the same time.
“oh my god i knew it.” ashley let out an exaggerated sigh to join in with the groans everyone seemed to emit. you were waiting to see what they were going to ask for.
connie rolled his eyes, “ok ok relaxxx, its deadass nothing crazy, we just need to come to a decision.”
you nodded to let them say their piece or ask for whatever it was.
after you nodded, marco, jean, and connie all started talking at once about outfits. they’d been debating who got to wear a shirt since they all wanted to. this caused the shirt to be shown, which had everyone but the trio groan.
“aint nothing special about that fuck ass shirt.” ashley said in an unamused tone.
mikasa just shook her head at the big deal they made it seem to be, “no deadass.”
“bruh” the three of them let out a monotone response.
“not gonna lie, just bring y'all's clothes here and we can all just play irl dress to impress.” you decided to invite them since they seemed to be having the same issues as you and the girls.
jean’s mouth fell into an ‘o’ shape as he put his fist in front of it, “wait, thats kinda smart.”
“bitch”
the three of them scurried out of the room to start grabbing clothes from their wardrobes. when they entered, they added onto the pile on your bed.
…
everyone soon made their way downstairs with their chosen outfits. it was pregame and plan time. it was the same as usual; scope out the scenery for a few minutes, then everyone parts, if things get crazy meet in the back, and lastly get wasted.
you all sipped marco’s jungle juice while thinking about what the first party of the semester would be like. they talked about who might be there and who they’re excited to see. you thought about armin. not having seen him all day and not being able to call him made you slightly worry about him.
rushing the frat seemed to be hell for him and eren both, especially since armin wasn’t what most would consider a frat bro. you also thought if you’d get any time with him tonight. floch might keep you entertained the whole night if you didn't manage to slip away. you wouldn't want armin seeing that.
while you all questioned marco on what he might've put into his juice, a phone ringing interrupted the conversation. everyone searched their pockets, looking for who it could be—it was mikasa. her screen flashed with the name, “elen.”
she changed eren’s contact to that a couple years ago when she heard how his mom pronounced his name with her accent. she loved it and terrorized ‘elen’ with it on the regular.
she put the phone on speaker, already knowing how loud eren would be.
“YOOOO” was heard from the other end of the phone.
a quieter, “klk klk” followed.
“KLK ARMIN PAPI” connie and sasha hollered back, dying at armin’s perfect pronunciation.
“yoo” “wassup” “hi hi” “yurrr” “halloo”
the rest of you exchanged greets as you all started asking questions about how things were going.
“yooo, it's already getting crazy, floch just gave us the craziest speech on some scream queens shit, talking about how we gotta go crazy or he’ll personally find a way to make us all wish we never joined the frat.” armin let out a small laugh after. you could all imagine it, floch promised to make his presidency something to remember and tonight he had to make his breakthrough.
marco asked, “what does that even mean?”
“i don't know but i kinda don't really wanna find out.” there was some seriousness lining eren’s words as you could hear his voice go up a pitch.
they all talked for a while, asking how soon you'll be heading out and what they’d been up to all day. as you all sipped and exchanged words, your phone vibrated with a text. it was armin.
arminnn
you excited?
yes yes you excited?
yea kinda nervous too
why dont be nervy you'll see us soon
ik im kinda like idk jittery?
is floch fear mongering yall? we can get mikasa to beat his ass yk hes lwk scared of her
no no it's alr im just nervy to see yall see you yk
awe i miss you too armin arlert
whyd you say my whole gov i dont think i miss you anymore
fuck me ig wait ew no you like that freak
i like your big heart as well
wait thats sweet wait no my heart is where my titties are freaky ahh bitch
you caught me are you mad at me mommy are you gonna hit me 🤤 noooo plssss dont punish me
you rlly know the way to my heart🥹 i'll start hitting you more often
REALLY??? anyways i miss you too i hope to at least to see you
hope? you gon be too busy?
ppl love you too much once theyre around you they dont leave you alone
__________
his final text made your eyes squint as you read it. you were listening in and out of the conversation as you heard floch suddenly yell from the other end.
“C’MON LADIES, PEOPLE ARE ALREADY AT THE DOOR!!”
everyone laughed as armin and eren went silent on the other end.
“lets go before floch flips his shit,” armin’s voice whispered with a slight hint of fear at floch’s sudden warning.
eren hurriedly followed as they could be heard shuffling downstairs where other voices and worst behavior by drake playing could be heard, “yea, we'll see yall soon, bye love yall.”
the phone hung up and you all finished your cups. the rides were being called as everyone made sure they had their stuff. everyone got the last of their business settled before heading out. you went to the bathroom, knowing you probably wouldn’t find a clean one tonight.
you hadn’t responded to armin’s last text. it was too late anyways; he’d probably be busy right now. what did he mean by that? he knew that you loved to party, but that didn't change the fact he was the one you chose to spend your time with.
he’d never mentioned that before, and it seemed like something small, but it still meant something. the mention of it reminded you of how some assumed you were ‘easy’ because you liked to have fun. was he trying to insinuate? maybe this is what he meant when he said he felt protective. you didn’t want to make him relive what annie put him through; you wanted to make him feel comfortable even if it might be at your own expense.
as you washed your hands, you looked at yourself in the mirror, analyzing your appearance. were you doing too much with hair, makeup, and outfit? you couldn't have, it's a party; everyone wants to look their best. that comment made you wonder if armin saw you as someone who fished for attention. it wasn’t your fault people seemed to linger around you. you just liked to live in the moment and enjoy it.
exiting the bathroom, you walked downstairs to see everyone spread out on the couch, waiting on you. they grabbed their things as they assured you had what you needed one final time. the seven of you headed out the door to the big minivan parked on the street.
you walked at the back of the group with jean as you whispered to him, “hey.. you think im doing too much?” motioning to your appearance.
he took in how you looked at a glance before responding, “if you’re scared of people being creeps you know i got you. if someone starts bothering you, i'll keep my arm around you the whole night.” you didn’t respond as you studied his face.
jean finally looked at you as he tilted his head towards you. he sucked his teeth as he took in the look you had on your face, “look.. dont let some bum ass bitches ruin your night just cus you look good.” you gave him a small smile as you interlocked arms with him. he rolled his eyes as he held onto you as well. he was the sweetest even when he wasn’t trying.
you all stuffed yourselves into the car as the driver looked at everyone through the rear view mirror. “that’s a lot of people. where yall headed?”
“a friend’s place.”
9:49 pm, frat house
you guys were dropped off at the corner of the block so the driver wouldn’t have a hard time driving around so many people. knowing floch’s parties, there were probably people already scattered on the sidewalk, leaking onto the street. the walk wasn’t too bad, especially since you were already running into people you all knew.
a few houses down from the frat, there was a line already formed. plain jane by asap ferg could be heard blasting from the house as the lights changed colors and voices could be heard. everyone seemed to be waiting to be let in by the frat 'security.’ it was just two freshman pledges that were put on this duty. they were taking it seriously, probably because of the fear and passion floch’s speech had invoked.
your group walked up to the door, cutting the entire line. people groaned and mumbled under their breaths at the rudeness, but it had to be done if you wanted to get in anytime soon.
the ‘security’ scanned all of you while almost only looking at you, mikasa, sasha, and ashley. the four of you stared back before connie blocked their view.
“you know us, let us in.” his voice was smooth as he demanded, with a teasing look in his eyes.
the two boys seemed to be knocked out of their daze as they begrudgingly nodded. it was that easy, especially when you know the frat president personally. they opened the front lawn gate as you all walked past the hoard of people.
the crowd groaned and complained louder as the interaction lasted less than a second and all seven of you were already on your way in. as you climbed up the stairs, you saw jean and sasha in the corner of your eye flexing on the people. they mimicked crying faces as they laughed at each other.
as soon as the front door opened, you were hit with an intense wave of liquor and bodies dancing on each other. money longer by lil uzi vert filled your ears as you all walked into the house and felt your heart rate spike a little. your body grew warmer as you greeted mutuals you passed by. parties were something you missed.
the regular group of other frat guys seemed to swarm the entire place. they greeted connie with whistles as they nodded at the rest of the group's presence. you made your way further into the house as more people passed by. sasha, you, and connie seemed to get your names said the most since you were known around campus.
everyone made it to the kitchen to meet with eren and armin as planned. they both seemed already pretty tipsy and buzzing with energy; floch sure knew how to get his chapter amped up.
eren’s hair was pulled back slightly, revealing his alcohol-flushed ears. he came in for a group hug as he pulled armin in as well. he wasn’t wearing his glasses and it seemed to change his presence in a way.
everyone talked and greeted each other while engaging in random conversation. you were all having a good time, especially with how soon school was starting. as you offered everyone cups, you poured and couldn’t help but focus on armin.
he seemed different. he was still himself but not really. he was more casual in a way. his posture was different—it was more open. he wasn't being his usual self; it was like he was someone else.
maybe it was the no glasses or even the alcohol. he seemed to be acting sort of like his frat bros in a way. that wasn't it though, this ‘mask’ of his reminded you of something, or someone. you couldn't put your finger on it exactly.
everyone's attention was soon captured by an energetic floch. he greeted you all, dapping up and hugging the boys and you while just dapping up the rest of the girls. he gave marco his usual line, “hey party animal.” marco smirked at the name. after that he found his place to stand and join the conversation.
he rested between you and eren, wrapping his arms on both of your shoulders. every so often while talking he would throw small smirks in both of your directions while talking nicely. he openly flirted with eren and you as it was in his nature with you two.
ashley couldn’t help but side-eye eren and floch. eren gave her a pleading look trying to convince her it wasn’t his doing. armin’s eyes also glanced in your direction, but nothing was said. he seemed not to care, putting the three of you out of his line of vision.
the moment interaction didn't last long as floch was waved to in the distance. he parted from you and eren while grabbing connie along with him. he said he had someone to introduce him to. with that, you all officially went onto your own activities.
10:58 pm
the party was already full of people. there was a lack of air, taken over by the heat radiating off everyone's body. these days by mike stud played loudly, making the whole house shake—or maybe it was because the house was overflowing with people. they all seemed in sync as they yelled out, “but you can have her back, she asks a million questions… like, what's next, what's that, what's up? i just wanna chill, drink, smoke, fuck cus god damn that body's goals as fuck. somehow you hot as hell but still cold as fuck. you know the deal, you know what's up. you ain't the only one, you knew that!”
there seemed to be a smoke film covering the dimmed lights, giving you a feeling of nostalgia. you hadn’t been out in a while; you’d been working almost all summer.
there was an array of people here tonight. you and your friends all drifted off to who knows where—you’d find each other eventually. people came up to you as you walked by, holding a red cup. a lot of people hadn’t seen you all break but still greeted you like they’d spent the last few months with you.
as you conversed with a few people, you felt an arm wrap gently around your waist while weight pressed against your head. you were caught slightly off guard as a head rested against your shoulder as well.
before you could fully process it, a familiar male voice came from behind you: “let's get off the poor girl. she’s gonna pee her pants, y’all are so scary.”
you looked up to see what the weight was—it was porco. he lazily looked down at you with a small smirk. turning to see whose hand was involved, you noticed it was pieck, her face pressed against your shoulder with a similarly lazy smirk.
the voice belonged to colt. he gave a slight apology for interrupting your conversation. the four of you chatted as you made your way to the kitchen, where you and porco decided to mix and match drinks. you hadn’t seen them much this summer; everyone seemed busy with their adult lives, but they were as friendly as ever.
pieck joined other people doing shots, downing them like water. she was an interesting force at a party. you’d been buzzed since arriving—marco knew how to set up a good pregame. colt mentioned wanting to smoke to unwind a little tonight. the two of you left pieck with porco, who climbed onto a counter and poured liquor into people’s mouths. it hadn’t been long, but they were already up to their usual shenanigans.
you and colt walked to the sliding door at the end of the kitchen. he kept an eye on you while you led, maneuvering you through the crowd with a loose grip on your shoulders to make sure you didn’t get shoved.
you stood outside smoking before a girl approached, clearly trying to feel out colt while he thought it was a normal conversation. snickering, you came up with an excuse, spotting armin on some lawn chairs. you shot colt a smirk and mentioned that armin was single and had a little brother he cared for a lot.
armin sat on the lawn chairs smoking alone, having escaped his frat brothers. usually, he had a smoking buddy, but tonight he was alone while others grouped up. you made yourself comfortable next to him and asked for a hit.
armin was surprised by your sudden appearance before you nudged your head in colt’s direction. his mouth made an ‘o’ shape before he snickered. the two of you shared a spliff while trying to read the lips of nearby people.
a sense of nostalgia hit both of you—it was just like connie's party, a light memory from the start of the summer. you felt a sense of deja vu. armin was different tonight. that night, he spent half the party enduring annie breaking up with him.
before she even broke up, he had seen her being touchy with bertolt and reiner. that’s why he never made it to the basement. she’d been slow to reply to calls and messages for hours, even days, and the first time he saw her, she was warmer with those two than with her own boyfriend.
armin wanted to shove those memories far away. he focused on you. it was just the two of you again. he’d been waiting to see you all day and hadn’t gotten you alone in a while. he missed your warmth.
the two of you shared a spliff. as armin went to pass it to you, he held it near your mouth instead. you took a hit, eyes locked on his, reading the neediness in them—a look you were accustomed to.
one of your fingers hooked onto a belt loop of his jeans. you pulled him slightly, signaling what you wanted. he took a hit himself, his other hand grazing your knee. you both inhaled deeply one last time before getting up.
making your way inside, armin placed his arm around your shoulders as you walked through the crowd. stick talk by future played while the two of you made your journey upstairs quietly. nobody knew what either of you were up to; he just seemed like a friend making sure you didn’t get lost in the sea of people.
he was too relaxed. his energy felt different, like he was someone else. the ease made you comfortable but also left you questioning why he seemed to flip a switch. the way he guided you upstairs felt rehearsed, like he’d studied someone else.
the two of you made it quietly to a spare room. as soon as the door closed, your arms wrapped around his shoulders, his back hitting the door with a thud as he supported both of your weight. your scent enveloped him completely. you were all he saw, all he felt, all he tasted.
being pulled together made him feel something different—beyond crossed. his eyes seemed blown out from the weed and alcohol in his system, plus the position you two were in.
as soon as the door closed your arms wrapped around his shoulders. his back hit the door with a thud as he supported both of your weight. your scent seemed to envelope him completely. you were all he saw right now, all he felt, all he tasted.
being pulled together only made him feel something different, he felt beyond crossed. his eyes seemed to be completely blown out from the weed and alcohol in his system, plus the position you two were in right now.
armin put his thigh in between your legs as your hands ran over his body. armin arm wrapped around your waist as his other hand slid under your shirt. you let out a strangled gasp as he applied pressure with his thigh.
both of your body's grinded against each other as you hands seemed to hold onto anything. one of your hands found their place in his hair pulling it every now and then while the other ran against the waist band of his pants. your hand trailed up and down his happy trail as armin let out muffled groans.
your were getting more dizzy as you ran out of air. armin seemed to as well. as the two of you caught your breaths he kept placing kisses on your jaw and neck. he forced your legs to wrap around his waist while he lifted you making the air leave your lungs again. he softly laid you on the bed as his hands trailed your waist.
armin hovered over you leaving small marks on your waist he let out a whimper, “i need you so bad, please.” you found you way to the edge of the bed and sat up as armin seemed to sigh as being pulled away.
the distance between you two closed again as you kissed down his chest and abs. you could feel his abs tensing at your touch he was taking sharp breaths as you unzipped his pants.
you pulled him closer by his belt loops as you felt him growing bigger. he moved you a little further onto the bed as he crawled on top of you. his hand unclipped your bra as the other squeezed your chest. armin didn’t know where to start but the metal on his tongue seemed to memorize your every curve. he wanted to admire how you looked. he wanted to please you any way he could.
as he placed one final kiss on lips he got off the bed. you watched him stand at the end as he pulled your legs close to the edge. he gripped your thighs as he kissed your waist. you let out soft breaths as he started to unbutton your pants.
in the middle of your moment there were three loud bangs at the door. armin let out an annoyed groan as the two of you started to scramble. you fixed his hair as he buttoned up his pants and made himself presentable. he walked towards the door as you hid behind it, hoping not to be seen.
armin opened the door slightly as he hid his lower body behind the door; it was just jean. before armin could talk, he was already talking, “where’s y/n? i seen yall together.” he didn’t seem to be investigating but more so concerned where you were. you were prone to disappearing for the night and ending up in places you probably shouldn’t be.
armin responded in the same tone he had before. he sounded more laid back and there was an unnatural bass in his voice again. “i dont know, maybe the bathroom? she wanted me to walk her there or something.”
jean went silent for a few seconds as he checked out armin. he scanned his face and his stance before asking, “are you good? what's up with you?”
armin’s persona seemed to falter for a second before he saved himself, “yea, just needed a minute, thought i was greening out.”
“are you ok? i can always stay-” jean’s voice filled with worry as he pushed the door slightly.
armin quickly cut off the idea as he kept the door firm, “nah, nah, it's fine. i just needed a minute i’ve been in this house all day.”
they both stood silent for a few seconds as jean studied armin’s face again. he let out a deep breath and let out a light, “i’ll catch you later then, make sure to drink water.” jean ruffled armin’s hair before his footsteps faded down the stairs.
armin closed the door as he placed his back on it. he let out a sigh of relief as he turned his head towards your direction. you came closer towards him, pausing to hover close to his face.
“that was kinda crazy.” you laughed softly as your hand found its place on his hair, trying to fix the mess jean made.
armin was still breathless from the interaction as he watched your concentrated face, “yea, can't be too careful.”
his hand traced down your arm as your hand found its way back to his face. there was a sense of nervousness filling the air between you now. jean came close to walking in on you two. at any moment someone else could do the same.
armin’s other hand fell on top of yours as he whispered, “come over.” the words left his mouth so smoothly they seemed rehearsed the way they rolled off his tongue. his words carried a light air; he sounded almost sober.
your other hand found its way to the collar of his shirt as you toyed with it, “what about eren? also don't you gotta stay here tonight?”
“eren’s supposed to stay as well. i'll sneak out, tell them i wasn’t feeling good.” his finger hooked onto the belt loops of your pants, pulling you a little closer.
“...kk” you pulled him by his collar, mouth hovering over his.
you two shared one last kiss. both of your lips collided as you exchanged an open-mouth exchange. he was hungry and seemed to want to stay in the moment. you knew if you stayed like this you wouldn't leave the room any time soon. pulling away left the both of you dazed. a single string of saliva held the connection between your lips. you licked yours as armin’s hand softly touched his lips.
you pushed yourself off the wall and opened the door slightly, sticking your head out to see if the coast was clear. armin watched you over his shoulder, quietly waiting to be told how long he should wait before leaving as well. nobody seemed to be lingering around so you signaled him to come. he paused for a second before nodding along.
armin had grown so accustomed to being left to find his own way back by annie. she’d always leave first, letting him sit alone after their encounters. she'd seemed to never willingly be in his presence unless she was getting something.
it was something so small. you held onto the hem so softly, but you already knew he’d stay close enough to not let you lose hold of it. you pulled him behind you by his shirt.
even with how you two wanted to maintain this private, you still held onto him. people from the outside couldn’t decipher what this meant, only you two. it wasn't a display but much rather a small link.
every mischievous glance over your shoulder was met with his eyes glued to you. once again it was you two in the sea of people. you were truly something else, otherworldly. he’d seen how people orbited around you and knew exactly why.
sometimes armin felt that if he got too close to you, the small island you two seemed to be on would dry up. you prove him wrong every time, but there's only so much time one can spend in the sun before they’re burned.
as soon as you two reached the bottom of the stairs, you were both separated. armin’s fellow frat bros kidnapped him as they loudly spoke of some tradition for tonight. he wrapped his arms around their shoulders as he laughed obnoxiously loud with them. his laugh seemed to be throatier as his energy shifted back to what it was at the beginning of the party.
you watched from afar as he disappeared into the crowd, surrounded by the drunk or high boys. as your eyes scanned the people around you, they caught onto a trio of tall people. they seemed to linger over everyone as they fooled around with beer bottles.
as you tried to push your way through the crowd, they noticed you and motioned you to come closer. onyakapon figured it'd be easier for him to get you since you’d be fighting for your life to get across the room. he parted the way as he gently held a hold of your waist, making sure to do all the pushing.
once making it back to yelena and zeke, you greeted all three of them properly.
zeke laughed loudly at your appearance, “yo, youre fucked.”
“what?” you were confused if they’d seen you come down with armin and could smell him on you.
“the look in your eye, high on adrenaline and fueled by weed and liquor, of course.” yelena laughed as well, pointing her cup in the direction of your face.
“it cant be that noticeable.”
“it really is.” onyakapon supported their observation.
“fuckkk, i think it's also all these people. i thrive off others' energy too lowkey."
“ok, edward cullen.” zeke snarked and let out a chuckle at his own words.
“i accept that. i want kristen stewart to touch me so bad.” you emphasized how badly you would want that.
“me too, shes so bad.”
“she doesn't like boys, im pretty.” onyakapon looked at zeke with his eyebrows furrowed as he laughed.
“but like my hair is a little past my shoulder, im fingering femboy territory.”
you faked a gagging noise, “im irritated right now, don't ever insult femboys like that ever again.”
“what do you know about femboys?” yelena questioned you jokingly as their eyes all landed on you.
“oh, what dont i know.”
11:42 pm
you finally made your way onto the dance floor. everyone seemed to be light-headed from the lack of air that was replaced by the smell of bodies grinding on each other. the lights didn’t help as they would send anyone into a seizure.
low life by future played loudly as you danced along with yelena. the longer you two danced, you both caught sight of mikasa and ashley dancing as well. they were not too far from pieck and floch. those two seemed to be having the time of their lives.
the four of them seemed to notice you and yelena as well and drew closer. she made sure to keep you in line, watching the way you moved; you always did know how to entertain others. the air between you two was barely there as she tried to now lose you in the sea of other dancing bodies.
as she was behind you, zeke and onyakapon spawned out of nowhere. they apologized before kidnapping yelena from the floor. they’d said they needed her for a potential three-man. you laughed as she groaned at their side plans but waved her off.
floch and pieck saw you had been dancing alone now and decided to have you join them. as the motto by drake started, the three of you were dancing on each other. pieck’s hands never left floch as his hands held onto the both of you.
in the midst of this entanglement, porco appeared off to the side dancing alone. she excused herself, leaving you with floch as she danced with him. she loved dancing and loved having different partners.
floch continued to dance with you, but even closer now. he kept you always an inch or two away from his body as he followed your lead. he always knew how to make you look better, and he was here for it. the two of you were in the moment that it seemed like everyone was watching.
the rhythm you two were in was soon interrupted by one of the boys from floch's chapter. he called his name in the crowd from afar. at first, floch thought it was just to hype him up, but the closer the boy got, the more frantic he sounded. he reached you and floch, causing you two to slightly part.
floch rolled his eyes at the interruption. in an annoyed tone he tried to brush off the kid, “you see me dancing with my people and choose to cut in.” his eyes stared down at the boy as he grew more frantic.
he hurriedly whispered in floch’s ear as you watched the interaction quietly. floch's eyes almost rolled to the back of his head as he was informed of a situation, it seemed.
his attention fell back onto you as he apologized, “im sorry i gotta go. i'll be back for you, my beautiful and lovely y/n.”
before floch left, he held you close before giving you a quick spin one last time. he kissed your hand as he held onto it before letting the boy lead the way through the crowd.
you let out a giggle at floch's nature before going back to dancing by yourself again. the solitude didn’t last long as a random guy approached you. he came too close for your comfort and caused you to take a step back.
he smelled like straight liquor and was persistent. you tried to turn him down with just a head shake of no, but it didn't work. he tried to dance closer to you as you felt your dancing mood fade away.
he got eye level with you, seeming to want to say or ask something, but you quickly cut him off, “i gotta take a piss.”
you walked past him and straight into the sea of people while looking for a bathroom. pushing your way through the crowd made you realize this was going to be a lot harder than you thought it would. you made it to the kitchen, scouring the area for a bathroom.
as you paced around looking, you walked past a frat bro you recognized. you stopped him in his tracks as you grabbed him by his shoulder, “hey, sorry, do you know where the bathroom is?”
he seemed taken aback at the sudden touch but soon relaxed. he pointed down a hall before saying, “i was just there, but im pretty sure there was people fuckin or something, i heard some things.” he offered to also walk you there, but you declined. right now you needed to get away from randoms.
school was starting up soon, and summer break was coming to an end. there were only a few more weeks left before the fall semester started, and you were all preoccupied with homework.
as a farewell to the soon-to-end summer, the theater jean and you worked at were finally performing their show. all summer, they had been working on ‘natasha, pierre, and the great comet of 1812,’ and were ready to present. the theater was packed with friends and family of all the actors and staff.
all your friends were sitting in the few front rows as you and jean stayed backstage to help out. you were still obviously needed for sound and music, while jean was helping here and there with people’s makeup. as open curtain grew closer, everyone seemed to be jumping with anxiety. another reason a few people seemed to be jumping with anxiety was because of annie, reiner, and bertolt.
earlier, during the search for a choreographer, annie had applied and gotten the position. all of you had been cordial and spoken as little as possible whenever needed. armin was the last to know about this, since nobody wanted to bring up that you and jean were almost near annie on a daily basis.
armin only found out when he spotted reiner and bertolt sitting a few seats down. when he started to read the playbook to distract himself, he stumbled upon the name ‘annie leonhart’ in the staff section. it seemed like the musical wasn't the only theatrics going on tonight.
as he read her name, he couldn't help but feel kind of proud. annie was always serious about competitive dance, and the fact that she was willing to work as a choreographer showed her passion. that’s one of the things he loves about her—she didn’t show or say it, but she could get so passionate about the things she truly cared about.
connie and ashley were well aware of the situation but didn't say much. when you and jean came home to tell them the news of annie, the two of them had mixed reactions. anybody who saw annie dancing could tell she was skilled and serious about it, so her getting hired was to be expected. they were mostly concerned about how her presence would affect you and jean, as you would all have to work together. the three of you did figure out how to deal with each other, since this was work.
sasha knew early on as well, since she was over the day the beans were spilled. she found it hilarious, since only this would happen to you guys. you and jean sometimes found yourselves in situations nobody could expect. the same way that once, when you two were leaving school late and headed to a bar to pregame, you ran into levi and his friends, hange and erwin. nobody believed you guys until mikasa received pictures of the five of you playing darts.
mikasa and eren were on guard in the theater. they had already scoped out bertolt and reiner as well and wanted to keep some distance between armin and them altogether. they were aware of annie but already knew she would likely avoid causing a scene. they just didn’t want there to be a possibility of something happening.
the show seemed to be starting as the lights in the theater dimmed. everyone got comfortable as their conversation dwindled down to mere whispers.
…
you were on sound and making sure mics were working. the whole night, you’d be in the back making sure the show ran smoothly. the thought of almost the whole show riding on you being focused kind of freaked you out, but you’d been doing this for so long it was second nature. the one thing you got to do was enjoy the show from another area. you were able to watch it without interruptions from people nearby and in your own non-crowded space.
jean was backstage helping with makeup and props. he was actually really good at doing makeup, since he treated faces like a canvas. he helped with props as well and was on hand for any malfunctions. he was excited for his sets to be shown on full display. he’d been working so hard to perfect them and was ready to see them presented as they should be.
annie was also running around backstage. she was helping with cues and prepping sequences as the acts went on. from the sound booth, you could see her scurrying around. she was good at getting actors in check, especially if they were getting nervous. the rest of your group could see glimpses of her as well. it was the first time they’d seen her since connie's party—well, not armin. he’d been seeing her pretty often now.
the three of you were in motion. right now, the issues you all had didn't matter. all that mattered was showing off your collective hard work. everyone in the theater could tell how much work production put into the play, and it showed on their faces.
armin’s eyes seemed to search for more glimpses of annie. she looked happy with what she was doing. she wasn’t the most expressive, but there were times when she let her stoic expression fall and showed her love for things. armin couldn’t help but feel his chest tighten at seeing that expression again. it wasn’t targeted at him—it hasn't been for a while. he craved to have her look at him like that again.
lately, when he did see her, it was when they would hook up. they never talked much, though. the few words that were spoken were empty, with lust coating them. the silence between them didn't hold much meaning anymore. it was filled with the warmth of their gasping breaths and blank eyes. the moments between them were fleeting, and he hated it.
armin wondered if reiner and bertolt got to see annie without her mask. was the silence between them full of the same passion he yearned for? did she save all her emotions for them while he only received her delicate touches instead? he felt so choked up by the thought of it all. she was still giving him the time of day, though. that meant something. he hoped it meant something—anything. to armin, this meant something. maybe it was everything to him.
intermission
as intermission started, people used this as a break to stretch their legs, go to the bathroom, and get snacks. people flooded the lobby as they mingled with each other and discussed the play. some of the production used it as a break as well, if they could. a few staff members wandered around as they greeted friends or family.
you and jean found a gap of time where you two could sneak off set and go talk to your friends. annie seemed to use it as well, since she was slightly lagging behind you before parting off when entering the lobby. the first to spot jean and you was ashley. she’d been getting a playbook and waved happily before coming your way. the three of you rejoined your group of friends as they gushed over the play so far.
connie and sasha had been sharing a small bag of popcorn, while eren excused himself outside for a small vape break. mikasa complimented the sets jean painted as marco proudly hyped him up. jean was acting shy at all the praise. ashley asked how everything was so organized with so many people and things going on. armin loved the play selection. he was a bit of a theater geek and was so excited once he found out it was natasha, pierre, and the great comet of 1812 being shown.
they could all tell why you and jean loved working at the theater in the summer. they saw everything everyone worked on finally being completed and put together.
as you all talked amongst yourselves, armin’s eyes naturally scanned the area. his eyes caught onto a particular trio, specifically a blonde girl. their eyes met at a glance. her eyes shifted slightly, from having that excited smile on them to their usual look. armin’s eyes couldn't help but soften at her every time. they were so different; it was almost as though they were looking at completely different people.
armin felt that pang in his chest again as he stared. it was slightly different this time. it felt the same as when they first started dating. it was a yearning. he wanted to tell her how much he admired her from afar. he felt the word vomit coming up, but everything he wanted to say kept getting stuck in his throat. that lump in his throat made it so he would only be silent and watch as others were graced with her presence. armin wanted nothing more than to be in her presence again as she expressed anything but a fleeting feeling.
annie broke eye contact easily. she went back to reiner and bertolt. the look in her eyes changed back to excited. she didn't spare armin a wave. armin didn't know why he expected it, especially with his friends around—especially with you around. he wanted some form of acknowledgement, something besides a mere distant glance.
you and jean ran backstage before getting in trouble for leaving. intermission had almost been done, with five minutes remaining. everyone was heading back soon, but armin said he had to use the bathroom. he got caught up in conversation and forgot to go earlier.
“no bueno, there’s mad people. it's gonna take you a while to get in there,” connie warned armin, looking at the long line.
armin’s eyes fell onto the line as well. he shook his head before quickly saying, “it's fine, i don't mind waiting in line. don't wait up for me, alright?” he separated from the group as he joined the line and they entered the theater.
as armin stood in line, it moved quicker than expected. it seemed like the women’s bathroom line was what made the wait seem longer. as he stood there, he people-watched. only a few lingered in the lobby. there was, of course, the bathroom line, and there were people buying snacks.
he was quick when using the bathroom, kind of hoping not to miss it before the play started. he wondered if annie had also made her way back to the stage or if she was still wandering around the lobby. he wanted to talk to her face to face today at least. he didn’t want to settle for the short texts between them. he wouldn’t call her either; those calls never came around unless it was her telling him to meet her.
armin walked a few steps around the lobby, scanning for any trace of the blonde. there was a slight desperation on his face. if he couldn’t imagine talking to her now, just to show his admiration, would they ever have a real conversation? he wanted so badly to talk to her as freely as reiner and bertolt did. what could be so good about those two that annie ruined what he and she had with them? whatever it was, armin needed it. he craved to be where they were.
in the midst of his waiting—waiting for something, anything—something came. it came in the form of small vibrations in his pocket. armin picked up his phone as it lit up. he read the name that caused his heart to skip a beat, along with those words he’d gotten so used to reading: “meet me here,” followed by the location of an empty staff room.
armin stared at the screen before turning off his phone. he stuffed it back in his pocket as he walked further down the lobby. he quietly opened a set of doors that looked like they would creak and catch everyone's attention. he closed them gently as his back faced the room he entered. as he heard the click of the door, he turned around to be met with annie.
armin was at her beck and call. he’d come to somehow look forward to these moments. moments that still seemed surrounded by the thought of reiner and bertolt. moments that seemed to question who annie truly saw, if what armin offered her would ever match up to reiner and bertolt. was he ever going to be enough to keep her entertained? he was drowning in the warm but uncharted waters that was annie.
there wasn’t an exchange of words. the only sounds to fill the room were their quiet breaths and the sound of quick movements.
…
the show looked like it was going to start soon enough. the lights started to dim again as the audience grew quieter.
“armin ain’t making it back before the curtains open again,” connie said with a slight frown. he leaned on the edge of his seat while scanning all the doors. armin seemed really excited to see the show as well.
ashley whispered a reminder to connie as she leaned forward to face him. “i mean, he did say not to wait up…”
the curtains started to open as soon as she finished. nobody spoke a word as the play was back in full force. eren and mikasa were a little sad armin would miss out, but armin had acknowledged he’d miss a few minutes. as they all focused on the play, eren and mikasa seemed to notice they hadn’t seen annie either. she wasn’t a big part, but it looked like she also wasn’t helping backstage anymore. she disappeared within that intermission.
eren gulped down the anxiety growing in his throat. he wouldn’t be that unhinged to do that. armin could be with annie right now. right? marco, sasha, ashley, and connie were immersed in the play. their eyes were glued to the stage as they soon forgot how long it had been since armin was out.
mikasa glanced over at eren next to her. his mood seemed to shift completely, his face covered in shame. she was confused for a second before eren looked at her. she could tell something was wrong from the look in his eyes. mikasa was smart and started to piece together that it had something to do with annie and armin. her face dropped as she gave eren a stern look, saying, “you’re gonna tell me after.”
eren knew he was going to break his promise to armin, but there wasn’t anything he felt he could do. he cared about armin, and so did mikasa. he was more worried about how much armin would get chewed out by her.
…
annie put on her shirt and tried to iron out the wrinkles with her hands. “thanks for that.” she faced a small mirror against the wall as she tried to fix her disheveled appearance. her back was toward armin as he watched her through the reflection.
armin slowly started to pull himself together as he continued to stare at annie. “yea… ahh,” he scratched his neck as he tried to brush his hair with his fingers. “i just—i wanted to say you did a good job with the choreo. i could tell you put effort into it.”
at his compliment, annie froze a little. her movements slowed down as she glanced at armin over her shoulder shyly. she flashed him a small smile at the acknowledgment.
he smiled back fixing his glasses as his chest tightened a little. her shyness reminded him of who she used to be when they first started dating. it was a reminder that his girl still held some of the same old habits.
after a few silent minutes of both of them fixing themselves, annie placed her hand on the doorknob. “ima head out first. wait like five minutes, k?” she didn’t turn her back as she continued to check herself out while she talked. armin could only offer a low, “mhm, got it.”
annie went to turn the handle before pausing in her tracks. she turned back and gave armin a quick peck on the side of his mouth. before he had the chance to react, she was already out the door. he was certainly caught off guard. all he could do was touch the area she kissed as he mumbled a quiet bye.
armin was left in the room alone. it was empty and stuffy as he counted the seconds ticking by. annie could so easily leave him like it was nothing. it wasn’t anything new, though. she did the same when they broke up. the electricity of when they got together always seemed to fade after it was over. armin could feel so alive sometimes and feel hollow the next.
he wished the feeling could always last the same way it was dragged out of him with you. you always knew how to make him feel like he wasn’t so alone. annie’s presence was only temporary when he wished it was permanent. he wished he could be reiner or bertolt just to relive it, only for a little while. he wanted to be someone she was able to keep by her side and not toss away so easily.
why was it so easy for others to outdo him? why wasn’t he better than reiner and bertolt? there had to be something that he couldn’t see; even you saw it when you dated reiner.
what was so bad about armin that he couldn’t receive the same amount of love that he gave out? was it his personality, his hobbies, his hair, his face, his body? the hollowness ate him alive as he tried to fill it with self-reassurance that was never enough. nothing he did ever seemed like enough.
armin’s time was up. he headed back to his friends, to the audience. he left the shadows and closed doors that seemed to be the only place annie could acknowledge him.
9:58 pm, after show
the lobby and outside the theater had crowds forming as people filed out of their seats. the lobby was full of flowers and compliments from audience members. the sounds of their praise echoed through the big halls. there were people surrounding backstage members as well as the onstage actors. everyone seemed to be getting their flowers for their efforts.
you and jean were finally able to get out and were showered with questions and compliments all over again. all your friends seemed to be in awe of how good the show was. a good amount of them weren’t theater “geeks,” but they claimed their lives were changed in that room. everyone seemed to crowd around you and jean as armin was quieter than usual. he’d been the most excited to watch, but something was off.
as everyone was absorbed with jean and you, armin took a glance at the other people in the lobby. he saw reiner and bertolt standing around the doors of the theater they had exited. he knew what they were doing. they were waiting for annie with flowers. they were waiting to talk to her all about the show, how they felt about the entire thing, and ask her all the questions that would make her smile reach her eyes.
armin scanned them for a while before seeing annie emerge from the theater. she had a few people surrounding her, talking to her intently while motioning moves from the show. she had a content smile on her face as she nodded along to whatever they were saying.
as she caught sight of reiner and bertolt, her eyes lit up. she excused herself as she joined them. she gave the two of them a side hug as they handed her the flowers. they conversed a little before making their way through the crowd that grew thinner.
armin watched from afar as both reiner and bertolt followed annie, letting her pave their path instead of them pushing through as most would. their hands stayed lightly planted on her waist and shoulder. annie kept looking back every now and then, assuring they were still there. the three of them were in their own world, all accounting for each other. it was as though there was a bubble nobody could intrude on. there was no room for such a thing to happen.
in armin’s daze, three pairs of eyes met. it was only a few seconds before armin broke away. his ears flushed red and his glasses fogged up as his breath caught in his chest. something about their small interaction spoke to him. they knew. they knew about armin and annie still hooking up, but they didn’t care. their eyes told him they didn’t see him as a threat, as competition. they saw him as just a warm body.
armin stared at his slightly scuffed converses and felt winded. they didn’t see him as anything. they saw past him. was there something wrong with him to think there was a possibility annie could make enough room to keep him close to her again? there was enough room for him before. he could squeeze into the space again.
armin’s head was filled with resentment, resentment toward reiner and bertolt. he wouldn’t let those two count him out. he’d show them there was room for him. there had to be. who did they think they were?
the daze he was in was interrupted by jean waving his hand in front of armin’s face. “are you good? you look kinda sick.” everyone’s attention was on armin now.
his face shifted into a mask of normalcy. “i’m good. i think it’s just too many people. got me feeling kinda claustrophobic.” he fanned himself with his hands as your worried face studied him.
“you’re right, let’s get outta here. let’s hit waffle house to celebrate,” sasha suggested as everyone made their way toward the exit. you wrapped your arms around yourself as the cold night air hit your skin.
ashley narrowed her eyes as she questioned sasha. “i feel like you’re only recommending that cus you’re hungry.”
sasha didn’t say anything as her stomach grumbled in response. you all filed into separate cars. marco and jean rode with mikasa and sasha since they trusted her driving more. you, ashley, and connie rode with armin and eren.
ashley called shotgun, refusing to be stuck in the back with connie as he laid his sleeping body on her. armin ended up stuck between you and connie as eren drove.
eren was busy conversing with ashley in the front seat while a sleeping connie laid his head against the window. you sat next to armin as he watched the road ahead. the expression on his face was different as you studied him.
you traced lines on his hand resting on his lap. he tensed at the sudden touch but slowly eased up. he looked at you with those stress-filled eyes. maybe seeing those three tonight was too much for him. it couldn’t have been easy. he laid his head on your shoulder as he rested his eyes.
your hand found its way to his face as you softly stroked it, offering some relief. armin leaned into your touch more as you ran your hand through his hair. slipping off his glasses and placing them onto your lap you let him get more comfortable. you always knew how to make him feel at ease.
armin slowly opened his eyes as he met your gaze. your eyes held genuine concern for him, making him let out a breath that seemed to carry heavy weight with it. his head still buzzed, but for now it was quieter. your presence filled him with warmth.
your hand stayed on his face as he reached for it. his hand covered yours as he held it and gave it a soft kiss. he gave you one last glance before closing his eyes again. you brushed pieces of his hair behind his ear as you watched him breathe soft breaths. his lashes rested against his cheeks, smushed into your shoulder.
it felt like it was just you two in the back of the packed car. you felt like he’d grown comfortable being vulnerable with you. he didn’t have to say a word before you were right there, waiting for him.
12:36 am
mikasa stuck to what she had telepathically told eren. he spilled about the annie situation, but not about you. armin made him promise not to tell anybody about you, but he never said the same for annie. eren also took this as a chance to tell armin what he did.
safe to say, armin had the talking-to of his life. mikasa and eren both tried to reason with him again, but it didn’t matter. armin’s reasoning was valid, but they knew him. they had known him since they were young. they knew him through and through. they couldn’t help but let armin off for the last time. all they could hope for was that he moved on in his own way.
eren thought of you and what armin was thinking. armin had a don’t ask, don’t tell rule. it had always been his boundary, especially when dealing with stressful situations. eren could only hope armin was being smart.
today the camp mikasa and connie work at was having a festival. it was a day full of huge tournaments of games. you always attended every year since you met mikasa. her uncle, levi, was sort of a co-owner of the camp. her family had been running the camp for decades now.
the camp was huge and had multiple open areas to have different games going on. the main ones being tug of war, water balloon dodgeball, volleyball, soccer, flag football, and, the event ender, capture the flag. the day was meant to let everyone run wild before camp ended in the next few days.
you’d all been excited the days leading up to it. the group always had an issue with competitiveness but this festival always amplified it. sometimes a few of you would volunteer at the camp whenever you had time so you were all known as semi-consultors. most of the campers looked forward to the festival since your and your friends' shenanigans and competitiveness amped them up even more.
for the majority of the day you'd all been off with your own group of campers and other staff. there were a few cool down activities like painting, bracelet making, and other crafts. right now you were all called to have lunch since there were a few more games left before capture the flag.
you sat down at a table with your friends, you and mikasa were the last to join. the group you were with had taken a while to settle down since they’d played a game of flag football. mikasa had been encouraging her team to run wild and in retaliation you started smack talking her team. this started an intense game where the teams kept rage baiting each other. the game has dragged on for so long due to their hunger to break the tie.
everyone's eating and going over what games they did already. you and mikasa were the first to go since it was the reason for your late arrival.
ashley and connie were both slightly wet from the water balloon dodge ball. they were complaining though—in this heat it was heaven sent. at some point connie got hit with a water balloon square in his face by a camper of ashley’s. in retaliation he decided to dunk a big balloon on ashley’s head. safe to say ashley got the consequences for her kids actions. she wouldn’t admit it but she told the camper to aim for connie's face, she wanted that win at any means necessary.
eren’s was next since the first thing everyone noticed was that his hair was braided. connie asked eren, “yo, when did you have time to do your hair? if you wanted it braided you could’ve told me at the house, i would’ve done it.” he enjoyed playing in people's hair and was kind of sad eren didn't ask him.
eren assured him he’d always ask him when he wants his hair done but it was his campers. they were doing a break activity and making rainbow looks inside the cafeteria. some girls ended up doing each other’s hair with the small rubber bands and begged to do eren’s hair. they insisted that they all had to be matching to represent their group as a whole. eren just went along with it since his hair was starting to over heat him when they were outside before. turns out the headband armin stole from mikasa wasn’t cutting it for his longer hair length.
marco and sasha were excited to tell everyone they got back from playing volleyball again. this time they were on separate teams so they couldn’t pull any crazy stunts. the great separation didn’t stop them though, some older kids wanted to 2v2 them in a quick point game. they knew sasha played volleyball all through her school years and wanted to test her skills. marco also became a target because they assumed he was maybe average at the game and didn't keep up with the energy.
safe to say those kids left regretful of wanting to go against the two of them. sasha was moving everywhere while marco kept using his height to block and slam the ball whenever he could. after the game they kept calling the duo ninja sash and mr. bean stalk.
jean and armin had been playing soccer. there had been 2 rounds since they had to split off their campers for a game each. they’d been on the sidelines and their team could choose at any point to tap them in for 3 minutes if they wanted. those 3 minutes both times had them sore since they had to both go crazy for their campers. they wanted to win just as much as their teams wanted it.
they tried to only give assists but at some point they were both on each other either dribbling or defending. armin was tired from jean because he was unpredictable when playing. he loved to juggling the ball or shoot it from what most would consider impossible angles. jean complained about having to be careful since armin loved to collect penalties, he’d purposely throw himself and get cards called on jean. armin also had a habit of pulling out some unexpected tricks like traps shots in the middle of being surrounded.
armin loudly complained, “i hateee soccer, my legs are mad sore, ughhhhh.” he stretched his legs out under the table, flexing his muscles slightly.
“yea, well if you did hate soccer you wouldn't have been all up on my body tryna get me a red card.” jean contradicted the complaints for how he acted.
armin giggled while still stretching, “oh thats cus i wanted you to lose, i’d risk it all just for the win.” jean side eyed him as he twisted a piece of his hair in his fingers. armin was a sneaky one. he’d always been competitive and didn’t mind tiring himself out just to make it harder for his opponents.
eren watched the blond stretch out as he decided to squeeze his thigh earning a yelp from him. armin hissed as his grip locks right onto eren’s shoulder. he tightens his grasp while whimpering from the pain.
eren let go of him as he laughs at inflicting pain onto him. armin slapped his shoulder once more before saying out painfully, “you’re not funny.”
a camper, paisley, eyes your table with a confused look. she's almost studying the table as her eyes switch in between you all. she had a look of deep thought on her face as she did so.
connie had been looking through the footage on his old camera for a while now. you hadn't seen him using it since high school. he was known for having a youtube channel that was actually pretty popular.
he quit youtube after getting suspended and also having his finsta exposed alongside everything. connie’s suspension was a result of him posting videos of sasha fighting people and him rage baiting the opponents. they said he was ‘a bad example of the youth’; clearly he wasn't the worst since youtube loved him enough to never take down his videos.
the releasing of his finsta was what set everything off. he was once again exposed for being evil and trolling people from multiple platforms. connie at some point was terrorizing the school security guard on facebook. he’d been terrorizing a multitude of people and was getting away with it too.
connie was also exposed for being dl. it was a something that was brushed under the rug soon after though. he revealed he was unlabeled and everyone assumed he was straight. every now and then people pop into his dms asking if it's true he dl on the low.
while talking and eating levi comes up to your table. he’d been walking around the whole day, visiting games and observing. when he came close, eren stiffened up slightly. he straightened out his back and held a stoic look on his face.
seeing connie with a camera gave everyone a feeling of deja vu except this time he isn't terrorizing staff, he's terrorizing campers. he’d been recording everyone throughout the day. the footage he was watching had him snickering to himself while watching on the screen. he said he wasn't letting anybody see it until he edited it all later this week.
in the midst of jean trying to sneak a peak at connie's camera levi appears. he greeted a few campers as he made his way to the table, holding a box.
levi stops at the head of your table with a quick, “hey scouts.”
this nickname for your group has stuck since you all decided to join his nature scout troop. the summer after freshman year was the summer you all spent hours outside in the wilderness. this troop was what gave eren an idea of what he wanted to do with his future. he’d never admit it to levi though, he felt it was kind of embarrassing.
sasha was the first to respond as she animatedly waved at him, “hi levi!”
“hii sasha,” he responded slightly enthusiastically, well what would be considered enthusiastic for him. he switched back to his regular tone as he asked the entire table, “yall having fun?” everyone nodded while chiming in with variations of yes. ashley nods along while eyeing the box in his hands.
levi slowly started up again, “armin and jean,” the two of them perked up, looking attentively as soon as they heard the man speak.
“i saw yall during soccer, i like to see that work y'all were putting in.” levi pointed his chin at them as he acknowledged their skills.
armin and jean give a meek thanks as their ears grow slightly red. jean ran his hand through his hair as armin fumbled with the edge of his shirt. levi nodded along at their gratitude.
levi diverted his attention to his next targets now, “sasha and marco i also saw your game. you two sure know how to break a kid's spirit, i like it.”
“thanks, levi” “thank you, levi.” sasha and marco both responded nervously at his compliment. levi also nodded along at their response.
you all watched them act like shy teenage girls. they fumbled around while blushing and talking lowly. whether it was out of intimidation or whatever it was, levi seemed to have this effect on many for some reason.
“oh my god, levi go away. they’re acting all shy now cus of you.” mikasa let out an annoyed sigh as she rolled her eyes at the four of them.
levi looked at her slightly taken aback, "what'd i do? i just said they were doing good.”
there was never a real reason any of you should’ve been intimidated by levi. you’ve all known him for years now and he was intimidating in the beginning but he was chill. at time he could still come off intense and kind of scary.
levi now decided it would be a good time to present the box he was carrying. he was giving you all cookies as a gesture of his appreciation. he was always happy to have you guys participate in the camp even while attending school or working.
“awee levi, you’re so cute sometimes, you know that." you were the first to speak up. he never showed it but levi was nice, in his own ways of course.
mikasa and levi had the same expression on their faces. they were caught off guard at him of all people being described as cute.
“thank you…” levi snaps back as he does a small finger heart quickly, he switches his attention to someone else, “eren, i see your hair… it's really something.”
“oh… thank you, levi. the campers did it.” eren responded shyly as he twirled one of his braids.
“oh, i can tell. you know, kids around that age often have lice.” he snickered at the thought of it happening. as the table tried to hide their chuckles, eren’s face dropped completely.
“dont get too mad at them, kids don't know any better."
levi joked in his own way but eren tended to take his very literally. he’s known one of the few thats known levi the longest but he still nervous around him to some capacity.
“why aren’t ymir and historia here?”
everyone at the table seemed to hold their breaths at the question. if he was asking where ymir and historia are we was bound to ask where bertolt, reiner, and annie are as well. it’d been almost 3 months but still.
armin’s reaction wasn't what he expected. the pang in his chest from the thought of annie didn't hurt as much as it used to. he kind of wished she could’ve come to camp this year, she was always fun to try and keep up with. he didn’t mind too much though, he’d be seeing her soon probably.
ashley swiftly responded, “they're spending the summer at the reiss beach house, they been living it up all summer.” she drank from her water bottle as connie braided her hair.
armin glanced at everyone at the table. his eyes caught onto yours as you gave his kind of a relieved look. his face was different, he looked more nostalgic. maybe being at camp was what he needed to get out more. you usually came over to his home when you could since most days he was busy tutoring.
“oh… tell those two i hope to see them and they should come by when they can.
levi didn’t ask about the trio after that. mikasa had told him beforehand about the situation. she didn't want to make armin suffer anymore than he has at the mention. she also didn’t want to have a beach house moment part 2.
he shortly departed from the table as he had other things to do. he was going around making sure things were running smoothly and that everyone was having a good time.
eren let out a groan as he hurried his head in his hands, “bro, levi’s gotta hate me or something.”
“dont say that, he just plays around.” armin patted eren’s head softly as he held back from laughing.
“on god, he thinks ima crash out or something.”
“well…” you all couldn't help but slightly agree with the claim. he let out an even louder groan as he dragged his hands down his face.
8:07 pm
capture the flag was now being set up. the final game was ready to commence. the entire camp was currently sitting and waiting in the middle of the camp grounds. you were all being divided into different teams by group names being pulled out of a hat.
the flags were also being put into their places as well. they were being set up on opposite ends of the camps. both areas were on different ends of wooded area. the grounds were semi covered in trees and shrubbery, perfect terrain for the game.
after a few minutes the teams had been pulled and separated.
red team: eren, ashley, jean, sasha, armin
blue team: y/n, mikasa, connie, marco
eren got up in your face after the team points were accounted for, “you know, we're up by a point. yall aint winning.”
“oh yea? i think all the lice are slowly sucking all the blood from your brain for you to believe that could happen, straight bugging right now.” you get back in his face and start poking his shoulder aggressively after every word.
“yea watch out, eren, im on your ass next time i catch you.” mikasa starts sizing eren up next to you.
jean joins the conversation as he hangs off eren’s shoulder, “nah, nah, nah, me and eren tag teaming, you already know aint no way around that.” the two of them smirk down at you and mikasa.
“you saying this like you don’t already know that me and mikasa come as a package. yall don't know my body, im hawking yall ALL down.” connie chimes in while dapping mikasa up.
mikasa nods her head towards the direction of marco, “dont think i forgot about you, armin. i already got marco ready to jump on you.” he continues stretching as he waves at armin with a mischievous smirk.
“YOOO, why's it fuck me for? i aint even say anything.” armin complains as he's unwillingly dragged into what might turn into a physical free for all between consolours.
you start to get fired up for the game come already knowing how certain people move, “cus this means war, ain't nobody safe while we're on the field.”
“also, don't act like you don't be sneaking around, lurking… watching… plotting…” marco starts to call out armin’s usual tactics. he has a way of keeping the same methods but somehow switching it up every time.
“girls, let's calm down, don’t wanna start a cat fight in front of the kids.” sasha getting in the middle to intervene before you all start wrestling.
“yea, we might not be setting the best example.” ashley adds through her teeth since an audience had grown.
the seven of you freeze at the comments. you all proceed to turn and face the campers who have been watching intently for who knows how long.
“all right campers, yall know the rules!” levi’s voice cracks loudly through the air. his announcement over his megaphone silences everyone.
“first to capture the opposite teams flag wins, if you’re caught you get put in jail til you’re rescued or til the game ends!”
the teams make their way to each of the bases. campers are jumping around excited for the game to start and to get their positions. while walking through the terrain all around you is the sound of laughs and branches cracking under multiple different paces.
the sun hasn’t completely set but the huge lampshades spread through less wooded areas seem to be buzzing already. levi wouldn't start the game until those lights turned on automatically. the darkness and the environment seemed to add to the game, it caused everyone to be on their toes more than usual.
red team positions:
jean was a defender and doing mid-field support. he was naturally strategic and had good awareness. he's reliable enough to hold the ground and call out plays. he able to flow between defense and center, providing support.
sasha was also a defender. she paired well with jean in having control of their area. she had sharp instincts and was good at spotting the other team. she was surprisingly territorial.
eren was a striker. he was just straight up aggressive, he got tunnel vision when he had a motive. he would be going right for the flag only worrying about consequences later on.
ashley was a secondary striker. she paired well with eren as someone able to switch from striker to distraction; she was flexible.
armin was the runner and also recon. his mission was to secure the flag alongside ashley and eren. he was the smartest when getting it home; he focused on timing, routes, and misdirection. while everyone played, armin would also be observing any patterns, predicting the other teams defense, and feeding information to eren or jean.
blue team positions:
you were a striker, runner, and the sole rescue. the approach you took was calculated but still had a high chance of taking risks. the way you adapted and snuck around made you a good match to contrast connie. when you got the flag your team could trust your agility and knowledge of choosing the best and safest route when under pressure. you were on rescue mostly for the fact that you’d risk it all for the win and your team.
mikasa was an elite defender. nobody was ever going to get past her without a fight. she was also on rescue but only if necessary. you were quick but she was efficient to a brutal extent, she’d knock the team back into focus if you started losing numbers.
marco was a defender and did mid-field support. he was calm, observant, and good at coordination. he worked on defense and watching from all angles alongside mikasa. he anchored the center and called plays while at it. in your flag run he'd be the one to provide you any needed cover.
connie was a striker and recon. he was fast, unpredictable, and annoying enough to break any formations. his approach was speed and chaos that threw people off when compared to yours. he was perfect for probing defenses and baiting the opposite team into making mistakes.
everyone was in their positions and the game was about to start soon enough. it seemed like the air grew thicker with the anticipation of how the game would turn out. the campers were teaming with energy, you and your friends smack talking each other only amplified it.
there was a silence that took over the whole camp as the buzz of cicadas and the chirp of crickets filled it. soft breathes and whispers could be heard every now or so. they meshed in with the sound of the trees rustling softly from the cool summer breeze.
levi waited for the sun to set entirely as he blew a whistle into the loud speaker system. the game was on. the scattering of footsteps could be heard all over as the whistle rang for what seemed like a minute. different groups from either team seemed to set off in different formations.
…
the game was in full force and everyone was spread out across the camp. this gave armin the perfect chance to move around freely. the path he was taking should be empty and long, nobody would be there. he was walking through an area full of trees. he could hear branches and leaves rustling against each other as he made sure to take in the smallest noise.
he continued his journey slowly until he heard something unusual behind him. he knew well enough what nature sounded like and that wasn't it. there was something watching him, he could feel it. it could maybe be an animal but he doubted it.
he walked a few more quiet steps before freezing in place. he heard a thud behind him, it didn't sound like an acorn or branch falling on its own. someone or something was actively hunting him.
the thud was now to his left. he snapped his head in that direction to be met with a rock rolling along some tree roots. before he could fully take in what he was seeing, the trees behind him seemed to rustle unnaturally. before armin could turn back around fully he was already on his way to the ground.
you’d been hiding up in a tree for some time now. part of you figured what armin’s plan would be and hoped to catch him. if anything at least you could catch anybody coming through the path. you’d caught armin coming through it and put your plan into motion. the one thing you forgot to calculate for is the fact he’d fight back as a reflex.
as you jumped towards him from your hiding spot and tackled him to the ground the two of you rolled around for a while. it was a small scuffle as the two of you were trying to over take the other under the shadowy trees. you had finally got the upper hand as your knees found their position onto his biceps and you applied all your weight.
armin’s arms were pinned on either side of his head and you both tried to catch your breathes. this also gave him the chance to see who had been the one to catch him.
“what the fuck, you’re actually so spooky.” armin said lowly as he still tried to catch his breath.
you laughed while staring down at him, ”what? im just playing the game.”
he laughed back in response while trying to shimmy out from under you, “nah, you're so weird you genuinely hunted me.”
your eyes narrowed at him as you tilted your head, “it's all for the love of the game. i think you're just mad you got caught.” your hand found its way to his face as you pushed his hair out of it. in the process of your scuffle his bangs slipped out from under his headband.
the position you were in made armin nervous. the past times you’ve been on top of him it usually led to a more intimate form of physical touch. his breath quickened a little as flashbacks ran through his mind.
the two of you haven't been alone together in a while. all day you’ve all been running around and once the two of you find yourselves alone you're in a compromising position? armin couldn’t help but feel like a pervert. it's not like it was intentional, he just happened to miss you thats all.
he had annie but at the end of the day whenever he wanted someone to be there emotionally you were there. he couldn't put how he felt into words entirely, he didn’t want to over complicate it; instead he’d let the emotions of it fall however it did or wanted.
with you he never wanted it to be complicated. it was never meant to be complicated, it was just supposed to fall into place as it did that night. it seemed whenever your two were together the stars aligned.
his voice caught in his throat for a second before he stuttered out, “i think- i think you should let me go.”
“and why would i do that?”
“for the love of the game? imagine how boring it would be if i got taken out so soon.” he tried to bargain what seemed like a pretty good point.
you looked up as though to think on it before shaking your head, “mmmm… nah.”
“pleaseee? only you would know, nobody else is around. mmch, c’mon please." armin begged out from under you.
“since you asked sooo nicely i'll give you two options, k?”
he nodded his head at you as he attentively stared at you.
“fight or give up.”
he let out a huff, “be so foreal right now…”
“im da realest.” you snickered at your own response.
he tried to move his arms, your knees pinning him down made him hiss as he stayed planted in the position, “oh my gawdddd, ok i don't even care.”
“aweee, armin babyyy. dont hate me too much, ok?”
“whateverrr, i don't mind staying like this either. i happen to be enjoying the view a lot actually.”
this makes you get real close to his face, “oh really?"
he freezes at the sudden lack of space. he swallows hard as he forgets how to breathe for a second.
you moved from in front of his face to near his ear, “you know, i know someplace more… secure. it's not too far.” the tips of his ears flushed red.
armin didn't say anything back. his body seemed to relax again as he slowly nodded his head at the suggestion.
10:18 pm
the game had finally ended.after tallying points and cleaning up the field, everyone settled by the fires for the night. people sat around a few different fires that were scattered around the field where all the cabins were. after your suggestion to armin you ended up taking him to the small ‘jail’ area. safe to say the ‘jail’ was more secure especially since he was captured.
you found it hilarious to see his face dropped when you took him to the little cabin. armin was disappointed in himself for falling into your trap, not once but twice. whenever he was around you he seemed to not be able to think straight. to put more salt on the wound, the red team, armin’s team, lost.
as you all got comfortable ashley turned to armin with a serious look, “yo, armin what even happened?”
“literally, how’d you, of all people, get caught.” sasha chimed in as well.
jean added onto both comments as eren nodded his head in agreement, “yea, you were supposed to be lying low, lurking, you know.”
armin mumbled, “…i dont wanna talk about it.” his reply was low and quick. he shot a nasty look your way.
“armin, i told you dont be too mad. you know i cant stand to see you whineee.” you sarcastically comforted armin as your team laughed along.
…
to end off the night everyone was roasting marshmallows after they ate pizza. the night had grown colder, especially since you were in the woods. conversation followed with giggles of teens filled the air as the fire crackled. the forest didn’t seem to die down over the noises of human life.
most of the campers were wandering around the camp as some stayed near. you and your friends all surrounded one fire. you were all worn out from the long day.
levi was roaming around the camp grounds. he’s making sure campers weren't making out in the bushes. he’s known these activities now since in the past years he's caught sasha and mikasa along with armin and annie or historia and ymir a few times.
a camper from before, paisley, made her way towards your group. she looked nervous as she kept turning around to where her friends sat. when she finally reached you she started with a shaky, “hi!”
everyone simultaneously greeted her while wondering if she was looking for a specific person to talk with.
“i had a question.” she aimed her statement at no one in particular. you all just nodded your heads as an “ok” as she waited to have your full attentions.
she raised her finger in the direction of some people before saying what was on her chest, “are yall gay?”
silence filled the air between the girl and the 9 of you. all but 3 of the individuals in this moment started laughing.
paisley continued to point her finger towards armin and eren as she held intense eye contact with the two of them. both of them glanced at each other as though they were questioning it as well.
“are yall boyfriends or not? that would be cute, i can see it.”
“oh that's not…” armin covered his mouth as he glanced once again at eren.
eren did the same as he tried to also find the words, “uhhh… i dont think that's an appropriate question to ask.”
nobody knew how to respond besides laughing. armin and eren tried to be serious but their masks of ‘maturity’ were slipping.
“yea, lowkey go back to your friends.” armin dismissed her quickly while burying his head in his hands. paisley slowly walked back to her friends with a dejected look. she never got the answer to her question in the end.
sasha broke her laughter to add, “you know, she's not too far off. i kinda do see it.”
“righttttt?” ashley stifled her laughter as she agreed.
eren wrapped his arm around armin, “we would be cute wouldn't we?”
“yea, we’d be perfect.” armin followed by wrapping his arm around eren’s waist.
the two boys proceeded to give paisley a free show as they cuddled into each other.
ashley seemed to also be getting giddy at the scene they were making. she watched them while deep in thought about the potential they could have. she side eyed you as she hid her cheesing face. the two of you stuck your tongues out at each other while glancing at armin and eren.
she leaned over and whispered in your ear, “i wouldnt be too mad if i saw that…”
eren seemed to read her lips after taking a glance at ashley. he then glanced over at armin almost considering the possibility of it as well.
today everyone took the day off to do something for sasha’s birthday. she decided she wanted to go on a hike, swim, and fish. she wanted something small, intimate, and she wanted to make a day of it.
in the past few weeks armin had been juggling you and annie. ever since the 4th of july, you two have seemed to be doing well. on the other side, for armin, it's been a little bumpy.
eren caught annie leaving armin’s room to go back to her place. safe to say he wasn’t too glad about it and was disappointed. him and armin got into it over the situation. armin was trying to justify himself but eren couldn’t accept his half-assed excuses.
“you know what, you’re a grown ass man, you can do whatever, but just don't think you’re ‘in there’ with her ’cus of this.” eren did finger quotes, emphasizing armin and annie’s nonexistent label. “armin, i love you, but i don’t wanna see you get your hopes up over this.” his words were harsh, but they carried honesty that both of the boys knew to be true.
armin acknowledged eren, but it seemed like what he said went through one ear and out the other. “eren… i know you mean well but… it's just hooking up. everyone has hooked up with an ex before, it's not serious.”
“also for god’s sake, i’m single! is it wrong for me to let loose? you know better than anybody that i, out of everyone, deserve to let loose.”
eren didn’t want to argue anymore. he knew that armin did have a point. he also knew that armin, out of all people, wasn’t the type to ‘let loose.’ nothing armin did was meaningless. him and annie messing around wasn't ever going to be meaningless.
the hike was going to be at eren’s trails at the national park/conservation. he’d brought everyone to a waterfall/lake area deep in the trail before. it took a while to hike to the spot; it was deeper into the wooded area. sasha ended up loving it since it reminded her of back home with her dad.
“are we there yet?” jean asked the question as he hit his shoulder against eren’s. you’ve been hiking the mostly flat trail for a while now.
eren answers, “yo bro, you ask that one more time ima touch you.” he keeps close to jean as he pulls him by his backpack straps.
“are we—”
“you gay as hell.” marco cuts off jean’s question before they could start their touching game—and probably have it last the whole way there.
“we should take a break around now, our last one was probably like an hour ago.” ashley checks the time on her phone as the whole group seemed to be showing signs of needing a minute.
everyone agreed as you all laid your bags on a cleaner patch of dirt. the whole trail was something to take in. the trees felt like they stretched to the sky but still let in small spots of the beaming sun. the mountains and hills in the distance seemed to go on for miles, making your hike seem like it was a small walk in comparison. the constant sound of the breeze rustling against the leaves and forest critters scurrying around made you feel at ease in nature’s maze.
jean sat on top of a rock on an elevated part of the trail. he sat reviewing the pictures he took on his camera the way there. he takes more every now and then, of the scenery, of you guys, of everything. being in nature gave him inspiration and made him appreciate beauty.
sasha braided mikasa’s hair while they both sat in the shade. mikasa ended up getting hot during the hike. the two of them giggled as sasha kept blowing air on mikasa’s neck. the cooling sensation sent a shiver up her spine, causing her to curl up into a ball.
marco and connie wandered deeper into the forest. they both needed to pee and decided to be each other's bladder buddies. in the meantime, eren and ashley wandered off. eren used the excuse of showing her the spot where you could see deer from afar.
armin kept double-checking everyone’s bags. he was busy estimating how much longer until you all made it to the spot. he kept monitoring how much water was left and making sure everything was on track.
you pulled out a spliff from your bag after he made sure you didn't forget anything. while smelling it you announced, “i have a little treat for us, especially for my baby’s birthday.” you light it with the lighter in your back pocket. the four of them perked up at the sound of your announcement. sasha and mikasa said they’d smoke a little later while swimming; jean nodded along with their reasoning.
“you better have some more or eren’s gonna throw a fit…” mikasa jokes at the thought of eren always feeling left out if you guys smoke without him. he says it's bonding time even if you’re all usually together.
you dust your pants after getting up off the rock you sat on. “girl, don't even worry, i came prepared. turns out armin’s not the only planner here.” taking the spliff from your mouth, where you were holding it, you blow out a puff of smoke.
you pick armin up by the back of his shirt, stopping him from quadruple-checking everything. he gives a puppy dog look while you earn silent thanks from sasha and mikasa. the three of you had been watching him count and ‘check’ things off his list for the past 10 minutes.
armin was known for his constant preparation and checking. every side quest you went on in high school, he was always there and prepared. eren once got a bloody nose from being out all day in 10-degree weather, and armin gave him a tampon for it. this got him a lot of questions, but it was helpful.
you guys had walked off into a smaller trail. the leaves of the trees gave you two a perfectly shaded path as you walked. the spliff was being passed between you and him in a comfortable silence. it gave you a moment to take in the scenery a little more. you watched as the smoke danced in the air in swirls between the two of you.
you took a hit as you spoke up, “i kinda brought you out here cus i wanted to stalk ashley and eren.” finally revealing part of your plan for the walk. their wandering around made you curious, and also you didn't want to get caught sneaking up on them alone.
“you’ve noticed too, right? i thought i was jumping to conclusions or something.” armin snickered in response. eren had been acting all giddy since the 4th of july and never straight up said why he was. it wasn’t too hard to figure out though; those two were more obvious than they thought they were.
“nah, they think they're sneaky or something.”
in the midst of your walk you hear noises from afar. they don't sound like the regular sounds one would hear on a semi-active trail. the sounds get louder, like something is charging at you and armin. twigs cracking under a steady pace put the two of you on edge. looking around and trying to detect what it could be isn't working right now; trees and shrubs are making it hard to see. the two of you hear a commotion behind you suddenly.
you turn around as the puff of smoke you inhaled escapes your lungs from the scare. armin’s quick to react as well; he turns around while quickly blocking you from whatever it was. you hold onto his shoulder and peek over as you both try to figure out what that was.
“OH MY GAWD!” “YOOO!”
marco and connie shout as they're seen pushing some branches aside, emerging from who knows where.
“what the fuck, why’d y’all do that?” staring at the duo as they catch their breath, your grip on armin loosens.
“yea, don’t run up on me like that, y’all look crazy. i would’ve taken off your head.” armin shows off his defense skills, doing a combo of punches and a spinning back kick to the air.
“mmch, boy, i WANT you to touch me.” connie responds, his breath finally being caught, as he laughs and shakes his head. connie and armin start to fake-fight and wrestle as you make your way to marco.
marco explains, laughing, “we lowkey got lost,” while he scratches the nape of his neck in embarrassment.
“be so deadass…” you let out a breathy laugh imagining how long they had been wandering around for.
marco nodded his head along as you both laughed. he took a moment to take in what you and armin were doing, his eyes falling to your hand. he looked you up and down with a smirk.
you noticed the look he gave you and laughed harder, offering it to him. “yes you can take a hit. i already knew you were gonna ask.” meanwhile, you pulled out another ‘extra’ spliff from your back pocket and handed it to him.
“thank yewwww!!”
connie and armin stopped their small wrestling match and joined you two. the four of you walked around as you and armin finished off your spliff while marco and connie shared theirs.
connie takes a hit while asking, “y’all seen ashley and eren?”
“nah, we were tryna stalk them.” armin giggles at the failed mission.
“yooo, so were we, that's actually why we got lost.” marco replied while connie passed him the spliff.
you all continued walking around trying to find them. the trail wasn’t the widest, so all of you walked almost shoulder to shoulder. marco and connie walked slightly ahead, leading the way while smoking. you and armin staggered behind them. both of your hands grazed each other more and more with every step taken.
marco let out a string of loud coughs, causing him to pause and put his hands on his knees. “i thought you never choked.” connie laughed, patting marco’s back as he tried to catch his breath.
“IT WENT DOWN THE WRONG PIPE, also you're so gay for that.” marco let out a few more coughs while he responded to connie.
“EUGHHHH, i didn’t mean it in that way. you freakyyy as hell ma.” connie recoiled away from him as he finished rubbing marco's back.
the duo's laughter and conversation faded into the noise of the woods. you could hear the leaves rustling from a slight breeze while branches and rocks emphasized every step you took. the four of you would scan the areas you passed, just to be met with patches of moss on trees and birds on branches every now and then. the smell of weed surrounded you all while leaving a disappearing trail of smoke behind you.
after armin took a hit, he held the spliff in front of you, offering it. you went to take it from his hand, but he gently held it closer to your lips. as he placed it against your lips, the look he gave you was telling you to open up.
the sweat on the two of you made your skin look like it was glistening. armin’s hair was down but pushed out of his face. he’d been putting the zig-zag headband he and jean had stolen from mikasa to great use. a few pieces of his bangs still managed to slip out and hang over his forehead. his glasses had been hanging off the tip of his nose the entire hike and he’d become too lazy to push them up anymore.
you’d been overheating for most of the hike from the sun beating on your neck. the shirt you once wore was hanging off one of your shoulders. you took it off since you had your bathing suit top under it. taking off your shirt also helped the smell of weed not stick too much to you. it wasn't too much of a concern though—you were going to go swimming anyway, and it'd be washed away by the fresh, cool water.
you inhale as armin still held the spliff to your lips. both of your hands grazed each other more from the lack of space between you two. armin watched you as you continued to stare at him. your pinkies interlocked as neither of you minded the heat radiating off one another’s body.
you liked moments like these with armin. every time you touched, it felt like it was burnt onto your skin. the pit of confusion in your stomach grew smaller and smaller as time went on. he knew how to assure and show you he was working towards the same thing you wanted. armin always knew the right things to say, the right things to do. he seemed to know you so well that it scared you sometimes. in life you knew that being uncomfortable at first was needed to feel comfortable later on.
the two of you continued to hold pinkies for a while; you felt like you couldn’t let go or the feeling would float away. the search had gone on for almost 20 minutes now. the spliff had finished a little while ago—you killed it.
connie’s voice suddenly cut through the air. “yo, we should probably start heading back soon. i don’t think we're gonna find them.”
at the sound of marco’s voice being aimed toward the two of you, armin pulled his hand away. it wasn’t intentional, but he also staggered back a little more. he created a small distance between you two as he replied, “yea, we lowkey been walking for a while, i’m also not tryna get lost like y’all were.”
it did seem like you’d all get lost trying to find them. you and armin led the way back to the rest spot. connie and marco argued they could find their way back if they tried, but neither of you wanted to risk getting lost. after circling back, eren and ashley were both already waiting with everyone else.
…
that break was the last one before you all reached your destination. it was 2 miles away, and the terrain was calm from here on out. everyone was re-energized from that break, and you, armin, connie, and marco came back appreciating the scenery a lot more.
on the way there, mikasa somehow hypnotized a random squirrel. she made a ‘wave’ motion with her arm towards it, and it came a few feet closer. eren had been freaking out at it coming that close. sasha and ashley tried to feed it some crackers from their bags; the little guy ended up taking it. jean ended up scaring it away by accidentally having his flash on as he took a picture. eren thanked him while you and mikasa tried looking for more squirrels for her to hypnotize.
almost as if karma hit, jean ended up slipping on a patch of moss. eren had been warning everyone to watch their footing when walking over tree roots. jean fell comically, almost in slow motion. he tried to shuffle his feet to balance himself but ended up doing weird dances while slipping. armin had been using jean’s camera at the time and snapped a picture of him falling.
at some point, everyone thought someone was throwing acorns at ashley, especially aiming for her head. she kept getting hit on the crown of her head and she kept complaining. you all started to realize it wasn’t any of you and she just happened to be having bad luck. it looked like that squirrel came back for revenge, but it was solely aimed at ashley for some reason.
3:06 pm, the spot
after a few miles you could see the lake along the horizon. the closer you got, the quicker you all moved. the air was growing more humid by the second.
the trail ended and led to an open area. everyone ran to a flat area of rock that wasn't too far from the lake. bags were dropped in the blink of an eye. before you knew it, everyone was kicking off their shoes and socks while simultaneously trying to rip off their shirts and pants at the same time.
sasha and connie decided to be the first ones to jump off the waterfall and climbed up the small man-made rock ladder. eren and armin raced into the water as they were nearly shoved aside by mikasa. marco and jean took hold of you and ashley as they flung you both into the lake and jumped in after. swimming around in the water cooled and refreshed everyone after the long hike.
the game of chicken first started off with sasha wanting jean to fling her off his shoulders. she always found it entertaining, and jean enjoyed seeing how far he could throw her. connie was fighting with sasha about wanting to go next, and they decided to battle it out in a game of chicken. it became a free-for-all as you all started fighting. some took advantage of the clear water and started dragging teams down into the water. ashley and connie ended up winning, but only because connie started kicking people in the knees while ashley lifted her opponent's feet and caused them to flip over.
at some point mikasa felt something around her feet and assumed it was someone trying to mess with her. she stuck her arms into the water and pulled the ‘arm’ of whoever it was. she brought her arms up to the surface only to realize it was a fish. it squirmed around in her grasp while you all freaked out at her catching a fish barehanded. she had unknowingly claimed the first catch of the day.
you and eren were the first to kick off the cannonball competition. you both started from who could make the smallest splash to the biggest. ashley was the judge since she was nervous about sinking all the way to the bottom of the lake and not being able to make it back up. eren tried reassuring her that he’d be her ariel and save her, but you butted in reminding him that he once almost drowned in 4 feet of water; safe to say he wanted to make sure you lost. you all started cannonballing into the water, causing huge waves. jean kept saying he wished he brought his boogie board to maybe try and surf the man-made waves.
everyone was off doing their own things in the water now. armin and connie kept trying to drown each other, and marco reminded them nobody would willingly give them cpr. they, in retaliation, decided they would be each other’s cpr buddies since, in their words, “you all wanna be opps.” they later decided to practice flips off the waterfall since they both learned to do flips in junior year of high school from reiner.
a game of marco polo started but ended shortly since marco was tweaking out. he couldn't tell if everyone was just playing the game or if they were calling him. his head was spinning since nobody answered him; instead, you all kept giggling and repeating, “marco, marcoo, MARCOOO.”
jean, sasha, mikasa, and eren finally decided now would be a good time to take that smoke you offered. they sat along the edge of the lake smoking while making sure to keep the spliff dry. sasha threatened everyone, even mikasa, that if they dropped it in the water eren wouldn't be the only one to throw a fit.
after their small break, sasha and jean got straight into fishing. they wanted to enjoy their high and laugh at fishes in the water. they moved down to a further part of the lake. sasha was a pro at fishing and said armin peeing in the water and marco’s water farts scared the fishes away; nobody knew if that was a real fishing fact or her just sneak dissing.
mikasa and connie were busy doing tricks under water. at the camp they worked at there was a lake, and they spent the majority of the time showing their campers how to do handstands or other things. they also used it as an excuse to have a “who can hold their breath underwater the longest” competition.
eren was forced to be the judge since he was too high to do anything else. he kept giggling at their faces underwater and losing count. at some point he joined their competition, ignoring the fact he was only supposed to be a judge.
ashley and marco were busy starting a fire to roast the fish. they were doing it further from where everyone’s stuff and water was. it was going to take a while to get started since it was kind of hard to find dry leaves and branches near a lake in the middle of summer. they both started wandering around the edges of the trail collecting things to use as fire starters and fuel.
in the meantime, while everyone was busy, you and armin were splashing around in the water. a big wave you made hit him straight in the face, blinding him temporarily. when he wiped his eyes and looked around, you had disappeared. he was confused about where you went and how you moved so quickly until you jumped up on his back.
catching him off guard caused him to get pushed straight into the water. as he sank, he saw you trying to swim back up to the surface. armin quickly took hold of you and pulled you down with him. he tried to get revenge and let you sink to the top as he swam— it was too late though. you were too quick for him and wrapped your legs around his waist, causing the two of you to resurface.
the two of you laughed, trying to catch your breaths. your legs remained wrapped around the boy as you both decided to call a truce. armin held onto your thighs as you both floated around. to steady yourself, your hand rested on his neck near his hair.
in moments like these, armin felt at ease. he didn't feel guilt riddling him as it should’ve been. he really couldn’t quit being around you. he couldn’t quit you in general. he didn't want the feelings you gave him to stop. he felt like he didn’t need to think straight with you—it always felt like it was you two in your own world.
the feeling of your legs wrapping tighter around him interrupted his thoughts. you ran your hands up and down the back of his hair, “you know… i’ve been missing you. i mean it, really.” armin’s hair ran through your fingers as your eyes stayed focused on his chest.
he placed his hand gently in front of your waist, thumb caressing your skin in slow circular motions. “i haven’t been thinking straight, but for now i’m right here. you already know i’ve missed you too.”
armin took a second to take in what everyone was doing. everyone was occupied—it was just you two in the moment right now. his hand on your waist pulled you in, closing the little distance that was there. he placed a soft kiss on your neck.
he peppered kisses on you, going from your neck to your entire face. they were gentle, almost feathering your skin. the grasp he had never faltered as he smothered you in his affection. you giggled and squirmed under his lips as he continued. in between the kisses he whispered a low, “you don’t know what you do to me.”
armin couldn't help but keep holding on. he knew how greedy it was for him to have annie and you on the side. the feeling of disgust never stopped bubbling inside him. the reality of what he was doing made him sick to his stomach. the pit of selfishness growing in him made his skin crawl, but he couldn't help it. armin couldn’t help but revel in the thought of having his cake and eating it too.
6:18 pm
you all had gotten out of the water and had been eating fish for a while now. sasha and jean caught a good amount. they had caught more than was needed and ended up releasing a good amount back into the water.
when they finally came back from their ‘hunt,’ they made a big spectacle of showing off their catches. ashley took pictures of them holding their prize-winning catches as they posed. jean and sasha made sure to do the classic white boy who caught a fish pose.
during it all, connie mockingly cried, “wow, she’s all grown up, my baby!!” he talked about sasha like he was her uncle.
ashley added on while directing them to do more poses, “they get so big so fast.” she placed her hand on her chest as she blinked back ‘tears.’
eren had said you all needed to head back soon. making the trip back when it was dark would be harder and more difficult. nobody wanted to leave just yet, but he was right. if you stayed any longer you’d probably tire yourself out and be too worn out to keep a good pace. everyone soon collected their belongings and set back on the journey home.
“i wish we could’ve stayed til it was dark. imagine how insane the sky would’ve looked.” mikasa sighed out while looking up at the sky. this made you all take in the view right now. the sun was setting little by little and the sky looked unreal.
armin glanced over at you before replying, “yea, that would’ve been something else.”
“we could’ve stayed, not gonna lie.” eren nonchalantly replied while keeping his steady pace.
“wait, actually?” “seriously?”
“yea, but then some bears would’ve came out and ate sasha. that wouldn't be a nice birthday.”
sasha jumped back away from eren, “why eat me?”
“you ate the most fish.”
everyone agreed since she ate almost a whole pound of fish by herself. it made sense why a bear would probably come after her out of everyone—bears love their fish. sasha was appalled at the thought of you all being okay with her being a bear's dinner.
her jaw hung slack before she quickly defended herself, “nuh uh, jean is the biggest though. they most DEFINITELY would’ve gotten him.”
“you’re saying this like i wouldn't have ate the bear itself, i love meat.” jean replied, sassing sasha back while rolling his eyes.
this made all of you just stare at him, smirking and snickering under your breaths.
mikasa let out a loud, “eughhh,” while her whole body shivered.
ashley was the first to say something. “you kinda walked right into that.”
armin told annie one small lie; that kiss meant everything to him. he’ll keep it to himself for now until things change. he still held onto this hope that him and annie could work in the later future.
armin and annie had parted ways as they both had to go back to their respective functions. as armin walked back to the house, he felt refreshed in a way. he moved along the shadowy streets slightly dazed, replaying what just happened.
as he looked up at the sky, he could see the moon starting to rise. he then remembered you. it’s not like he disregarded you, but he could really have something with annie in the future. for now, he’ll keep you on the back burner. he needs you there for him while he figures things out with annie.
it's not like you already weren't doing that. you were there when he needed you, and he didn't want to change that. he was also free to do anything he wanted, just like you. neither of you had a real commitment to each other.
the walk back to the house felt shorter than before. he didn't realize he was in the front yard until he heard eren and jean trying to do karaoke. they seemed to be singing—or yelling—really loudly. they were probably doing it just to do something.
armin made his way to the back as he heard everyone tell the two to shut up. connie kept complaining that their neighbors were going to call the cops. ashley was worried that people would think they were killing someone in the back. he opened the fenced door, getting everyone's attention.
armin held out his arms showing his haul, “honey, i’m home!!!” he held his arms wide open as a few came up to him.
“took you long enoughhh,” connie muttered as he grabbed some drinks from armin’s hands.
“aren’t y’all happy i’m home?” armin fake-pouted as they continued grabbing the things he bought.
“yes we are. welcome home, snookums,” jean responded in a sweet voice, ruffling the blond’s hair.
“welcome home, papi,” eren said as he gave armin a deep hug.
“yea, you ruined it, wrap it up.”
everyone went back to their activities after getting drinks. armin found his seat between eren and mikasa. the three of them watched connie and sasha work pieck and porco for their money.
jean and ashley sat opposite them. they were whispering about something. ashley kept biting back a small smile while jean kept poking at her. they stole glances at the trio sitting across from them while making sure they weren't caught.
you and marco sat nearby waiting for your turns to play. the two of you were plotting and trying to study the game. colt and pieck were inside the house cooling off for a minute. they started getting dizzy from the heat and decided to take a power nap in the living room.
armin seemed to be in a better mood. he was playing around with mikasa and eren, poking fun at them sharing the same haircut. he felt like a weight had been taken off his chest after coming back from his walk. he felt light with a clear head. he almost felt high.
you couldn't help but peek over at the three of them. armin looked like he’d cooled off from before. maybe that walk gave him some time to reflect. he had to understand that you wouldn’t purposely do something to cause him any hurt.
9:53 pm
you and ashley started setting up the fire pit. it was starting to get dark, and it would be a good way to illuminate the backyard. everyone was waiting for the other houses on the block to set off their big fireworks.
when they started, everyone sat in awe. it wasn't your first time seeing fireworks and it probably wouldn't be your last, but they always captivated you. everyone's eyes lit up from the explosions in the sky as they tried to guess the next colors.
you and connie sat wrapped up in a blanket to watch. everyone had settled in their own little pairings. even ashley and eren sat together watching the show. armin was not too far from everyone. he sat by himself watching the sky; he didn't seem to feel lonely. maybe he was getting better and healing as time went on.
when the big fireworks ended, you guys proceeded to light your own smaller ones. mikasa was excited to light them—she loved playing with fire. some of you let out screams here and there at how close the fire cracked. the loudness of something so small really took you by surprise as well.
eren, connie, and jean kept running around with the fireworks in their hands, flipping them up in the air. they were going to lose a hand one day or catch on fire.
the final thing left to light were the sparklers. sasha and mikasa were the first to light theirs and share a kiss, just to show how “patriotic” they were feeling. that caused jean and marco to follow their lead.
pieck bit her cheek while whining, “hey waittt, i feel left out.”
she proceeded to grab the side of porco’s head and bring it down to her level. she planted a playful but sloppy kiss on his cheek, exaggerating it with a loud “mwah.” colt saw this and tried to sneak away, already knowing he was going to be her next victim.
he got a few seconds head start, but she ended up catching him as well. pieck chased him down and jumped straight onto him—she knew colt wouldn’t let her fall. he caught her knowing he messed up and fell into her trap. she managed to wrap herself around him and planted a peck on his temple.
everyone’s attention was taken by the spectacle happening in front of them. in the midst of them being distracted, ashley gave eren a small peck on the cheek. eren froze up as his ears turned red. he tried to play it off as ashley laughed at his stuttering and him continuously twirling the ends of his hair.
after pieck got her final kiss, connie let out a breathy laugh, “fuck it, might as well join in.”
he turned to armin, pulling his head in and kissing him on the forehead. armin’s mouth formed an “o” shape at connie’s sudden 4th of july kiss. he fought back a laugh as connie made intense eye contact with him.
connie then moved to you as he planted a gentle kiss on your cheek. you decided to return the favor as you gave him a matching kiss as well. he kept his arm wrapped around your shoulder as you both pressed your cheeks together.
everyone continued to play around with some more sparklers as eren and ashley lit the fire pit. they went back and forth about how eren shouldn't pour all the gasoline at once. ashley threatened that she'd light his hair on fire if he didn't back up. he jumped back and decided to play with the lighter instead.
sasha, jean, and connie tried to get mikasa to record them moving the sparklers to write something out. they were motivated but kept laughing or timing it wrong. all mikasa could do was laugh as she tried to direct them.
pieck, marco, and armin started picking up some of the leftover stuff from the fireworks. they were worried it could somehow catch on fire, especially in the summer. they also collected the paper and cardboard pieces to fuel the fire.
colt and porco were in the house bringing out the goodies. earlier that day, mikasa and eren went out to buy marshmallows, graham crackers, and chocolate for s'mores. they couldn’t imagine ending the night without them.
you watched everyone enjoy themselves. ashley and eren had gotten the fire started as you claimed your seat in front of it. you shoved your legs into your hoodie as you curled into yourself for warmth. everyone started joining you around the fire sooner or later.
mikasa and jean sat on your sides as they tried to mimic the way you roasted marshmallows. they wanted to get them evenly golden but kept burning them. armin liked burnt marshmallows so they just constantly passed them to him as he sat across from you three.
sasha and eren sat crouched close to the fire. they kept pouring alcohol, that was bought not too long ago, onto the marshmallows. they kept trying to change the color of the flame while changing the taste as well. they were mostly experimenting and making weird combinations.
ashley and pieck were busy smuggling chocolate into their pockets. they wanted to have some extra treats for later. they knew they only had a small amount of time before jean tried to take it all for himself. sasha baked a lot but didn't like sweets much—she loved her savory food more.
colt and armin were the only ones really making s'mores. they were taking the marshmallows you all roasted while sneaking chocolate away from ashley and pieck. porco and connie were off somewhere in the backyard trying to catch fireflies. they were shoveling a bunch into cups and making makeshift lanterns.
marco was getting fed all of the s'mores and he wasn't complaining. nobody noticed that all the work they were doing wasn’t being given to them. he quietly ate his own helping while telling porco and connie where he saw the glow of a bug.
in the midst of everyone doing their own thing your eyes wandered across the fire to armin. you still hadn’t gotten to actually interact with him today—besides what happened when you both got food. he looked like he was glowing. his eyes were lit up from the fire reflecting in them.
porco kept laughing at armin while wiping the leftover marshmallow off the blond’s nose. porco excused himself as he went to get more graham crackers. armin wiped his own nose while pushing his glasses up. he felt lighter than he expected.
you needed to talk to him at least today. the way he reacted assured you that you guys were past a certain line. every time you were around armin he made you feel nervous, but he also made you calm. you felt calm like the ocean on a quiet day. the only thing that ever filled the space around you two was waves of static.
you didn't want that to go away. you wanted it to stay and flourish into something else, something bigger. the distance he put between you two had made you realize how badly you craved him. that was something you didn’t think could happen to you—well, not again at least. you hadn’t felt this need in a while; it was foreign. being unprepared and not knowing what could happen next scared you.
armin finished making a s'more as he looked around to offer it. everyone seemed to be absorbed in something besides you. you were looking straight at him, straight through him. he couldn't help but love the look you had on your face. it was a face you’d grown to make around him often. it wasn't different from your usual expression, but something in your eyes was different.
the fire cast shadows around you. they wrapped around your body, trying to absorb you, but the light from the fire seemed to keep you from being swallowed up. he stared at you, feeling like you could tell what he did—who he let back into his life. but he wanted her. he needed you and needed things to stay how they were.
no words were uttered as you both exchanged a knowing look. a shared look laced with guilt and realizations made, both for different reasons. it was prevalent.
there was a look in his eyes and you seemed to notice it. he broke eye contact first. he looked downward as if he knew he was guilty. he swallowed back the lump that formed in his throat before hesitantly meeting your gaze. of course you never stopped looking at him, he thought, as he gave you a pleading look. his own reflection in your eyes made him freeze like a deer in headlights.
you were concerned about what just happened. as he looked away you felt a sense of shift. this wasn't the usual armin you knew; he held eye contact as though he was searching. tilting your head, your eyes squinted in confusion. when he looked up you couldn’t help but sense something was off.
armin stared at his reflection in your eyes as you searched for something—anything—in his. his mouth hung open slightly as he untensed his jaw. he mouthed a small, “i’m sorry, it’s not you.” you couldn’t understand what he meant by that. with a face like his, you couldn’t let go.
1:37 am, armin and eren’s apartment
eren walked into his and armin’s shared home after unlocking the door and carrying tupperware in his arms. armin set down the tupperware he was also carrying and turned on the lights in the dark apartment. eren started to put away the food as armin sat at the kitchen island, tapping his fingers on the counter.
everyone had soon left the party as it got later in the night. they all made sure to claim their leftovers since sasha was ready to throw hands with eren for accidentally taking her food. marco decided to stay the night since he was too drunk to drive back. the rest got a ride or others headed to other parties.
the whole ride back to their apartment, eren seemed restless—not in an anxious way but more of a bouncing-off-the-walls way. he kept a small smile on his face the whole night after the sparklers. he hummed to himself as he put the food away.
“you look like you’re in a good mood,” armin chuckled a little as eren moved his hips to his own tune. eren finished up what he was doing as he leaned against the kitchen island.
“maybeeee… maybe just a little.” he looked away from armin as a smirk formed on his face.
“sooo, you gonna tell me or what?”
eren laughed a little before thinking, “mmm, i think no! you seemed in a better mood as well too. you seemed more like—” he couldn't find the word and instead pursed his lips as he pushed his flat hand in a steady direction.
the look eren gave armin was mischievous in a way. armin didn’t want to tell him about annie, not yet at least. he told eren everything, but he just wanted to keep this little moment to himself for now. before responding, he just quietly shook his head with a light smile.
“i don’t know, i just need to get my head on straight, you know? i feel… like, i wanna say clearer? i don’t really know, hah.” armin awkwardly tried to explain himself but failed. he couldn’t seem to find the words to talk himself out of this one.
eren didn’t question armin’s lack of explanation. he got the gist of what he thought he meant. armin was probably confused about how he was feeling towards you. this was his first time interacting with a girl that wasn't annie. it was normal to assume he wouldn't know how to handle being interested in a new girl. he was at least glad that armin seemed to be moving on from annie. it's good for him to have something new in life.
…
armin’s phone later that night lit up with a call. he didn’t hesitate to pick up on the first ring. he’d never do that whenever this call came through.
“…hi- hey.”
“sorry, is it a good time for you to talk? if not, it's cool, i can—”
“no, no, don’t worry. i wanna talk, really…” armin responded, panicked, as the words flew out of his mouth. he didn't want you to hang up.
“really?” you responded, almost relieved. it was silent on the line as you heard armin’s soft breaths.
after a few seconds of armin composing himself, he said his piece. from his tone, you could tell he mellowed out a lot compared to the last time you two talked.
“i should’ve never talked to you like that. you didn't deserve any second of it. i was out of line.” he acknowledged his ‘outburst,’ as he called it, and apologized. he asked for you to forgive him only if you truly wanted to.
“i don’t know, but i just… i felt protective. you know, of myself… of you…” he didn't need to mention annie for you to understand what it implied. the thing that rang through your mind was the last part—“of you.”
you told him it wasn’t too serious and assured him all was well. that last part also assured you that you weren’t looking too deep into things. his sense of needing to protect himself for you of all people might mean he’s starting to take it seriously.
he had some trauma, and getting involved with someone after a long-term relationship would make most feel a sense of self-preservation. you didn’t want to make him feel like he needed to hide things or be scared of you.
at historia’s was when you decided to tell ashley about whatever was happening with you and armin. you wanted insight on the vibes and you didn’t want to tell anybody else.
she was shocked but mostly at how quickly things evolved between you two. you made her swear up and down she wouldn't tell anybody. it was something just for you and armin and you didn’t want to ruin it.
that night armin had left you confused. things seemed to be going past the friendship line. it had already been crossed but now it was something different. you’d grown used to being around him more often but that didn't mean anything, right?
armin and you had been doing a lot of things that would be considered nonplatonic, but you didn’t want to jump into things. your whole situation sprouted from a drunk night out.
you were going to let things play out. no need to change things the way they are now. you're comfortable if he's comfortable. every once in a while it felt nice having someone show you they wanted you, even if it’s just for the moment. you’d entertain it even if it was temporary and wasn't real.
today the house was hosting a 4th of july barbecue. this year it was going to be just something light with a few friends. pieck, porco, and colt came over, as usual, bringing small fireworks with them.
the sky in the sun was beating on everyone's back today. there were a few clouds here and there in the sky but it didn’t do much. you were lucky it wasn’t humid; that would’ve automatically made the barbecue indoors. the only saving grace of today was the trees in the backyard that offered shade and all the cold drinks being provided.
you were all scattered around the backyard as jean handled the grill. ashley and sasha were in the kitchen busy prepping the meat to bring out. connie was controlling the music but spent most of the time at the dominos table he just brought back from home.
mikasa was looking at all the fireworks and sparklers on a table with jean. they were trying to figure out if the house would get a smoke or noise complaint if the fireworks were to all get set off simultaneously. colt and marco were busy eating. they just enjoyed watching everyone while sharing some drinks.
in the following days after historia's you all went to visit your respective families. armin had been at his grandpa’s and spent a good amount of time reading to him. connie and sasha visited dominican republic while ashley went to el salvador.
mikasa stayed and visited her parents along with eren. jean stayed a couple days with his parents. marco’s family was out of the country on vacation so he joined jean. you visited your family and basically got to laze around all day.
eren, porco, and armin sat around the table with connie betting away their money. pieck and you sat on some lawn chairs nearby, watching them play.
“connie you’re hairs growing out, it looks so cute,” pieck rubbed his head while feeling his length. connie leaned into her hand, giggling and leaning into her touch.
“why don't you grow your hair out? it’d probably look really nice.” porco added while mixing the dominos.
armin started snickering, “oof, he can’t do that as long as he lives.”
“why?” pieck questioned, both of their curiosity peaked.
“he has too many opps out there.” eren added jokingly while snickering as well.
“what does that even have to do with his hair though?” porco split the dominos as he tried to understand.
connie starts the game as he also starts the story, “ok, so boom, it's sophomore year and like i was messing around with this girl the grade above me-”
“tell it right, connie.” you interrupt connie’s explanation while pieck takes hold of your arm and traces shapes on it.
“...oh my gawd, ok fine. i was messing with 3 girls in the grade above me-”
“3 girls?! yo, you're a real dominican.” porco hypes him up as he goes to dap connie up, “man, ya tu sabe, big dominican, being a demon runs in my blood.”
connie knocks on the table to skip his turn and resumes, “around this time was when i decided to let my hair grow. gotta show off the curls, you know? but anyways, im over here being young and turnt while one of them starts bitching at me.
“tell em the reason.” armin laughs already knowing what was coming. in the midst of his laughter his eyes search for you as you’re also laughing. he glances at pieck’s touchiness as he takes a sip of his beer.
“mmch, mane… she found out about my other girls and she’s over here talking about some, ‘oh you’re a whore, you’re for everybody’ and im like ‘woah woah relax’ and she's just spazzing. i don't even know why she was tweaking like girl you know how i be moving and also you ain’t even my girlfriend. i can't blame her too much, i guess, but she was so scary. she was like genuinely crazy and had anger issues so im automatically like ‘ouu, i better make sure im extra careful’ cus im worried for my personal well being.” connie takes a break to sip his beer after his long monologue.
“connie, get to the point already.” eren takes his turn and places down a domino.
“ok, ok, jeez. she basically tried to slap me and i was like oh no no no and juked her. i guess that got her tight so she like as i tried to back away from her she snatched me by my beautiful hair. i had sash beat her ass cus i needed to get my get back.” connie laughs at the memory of high school and all his shenanigans.
pieck laughs while playing with your jewelry, “this was all sophomore year? you really were a demon.” you continue to focus on connie's story as you let her do whatever.
connie answers, now focused on the game in front of him, “yeaaa, we both got suspended though. that's why me and sash got sent back to dr the summer after. it wasn’t even a punishment i was living the live foreal.”
eren knocks on the table, while remembering, “yo, the free connie and sasha era was too funny. they were both sending us videos of random shit over there.”
“i remember you sent us a video of you drunk crying while singing.” armin also adds while sneaking a glance over to you and pieck. you didn’t notice his lingering eyes on the two of you.
pieck had always been friendly and touchy with people. it had always been her nature but this time it seems armin took extra notice. he kept glancing over to you with an unreadable expression.
it wasn't an unknown fact that you and pieck have had ‘sleepovers’ but you didn’t expect that reaction from him. pieck was just being her usual self. he couldn’t expect you to change how the two of you interacted just because there was some history.
connie places his hand on his chest while closing his eyes, “chillll, i was in my feels about that girl. she like left her mark on me, that was some real drake shit.”
the game got serious after connie’s story. he and porco ended up winning at the end. they both got up and started dancing. connie whined his hips as porco went behind him and pretended to control them. eren and armin couldn’t be mad at losing when that was the celebration dance they got to watch.
…
armin got a minute to himself after he volunteered to go in the basement and look for some cases of soda. colt subbed in for armin in the domino game to not make them wait up on him. he searched around and finally got some time to think and process certain things.
seeing pieck who’s supposedly ‘just' your friend brought some underlying resentment to the surface for armin. he couldn’t help but think of annie and how reiner and bertolt were always so openly flirty with her. he didn’t like that he was comparing you to them but he couldn’t help it.
armin felt conflicted. he didn’t feel like there was anything he could say or do. you were in it for fun just like he was but he didn’t like sharing even if you didn’t belong to him.
he couldn't stop thinking about historia's house the night yelena, onyakapon, and zeke came over. yelena’s hands seemed to always be holding onto you in some way. all while you looked like you were eating up every second of all the attention she gave.
he couldn't wrap his head around you acting like that, all touchy-feely, with yelena one night and then make out with him, like it was nothing, the next day.
with all armin’s been through, he thought he deserved some sense of trust and loyalty. he didn’t understand why he decided to expect either from you when even annie, his first love, couldn’t give it to him. was he nothing but an option to you?
armin’s most logical decision was putting some distance. he didn’t want to run the risk of acting jealous and scaring you away. he also wanted to avoid facing you in case you had something to say.
he needed to detach himself before he started expecting certain things of you. it wouldn’t be hard for him either way, it's not like anything you did could compare to how annie did them. everything you did was a reminder of her in some way.
he had to remember at the end of the day you were there just for fun. he could run around with you and do anything without having to be committed. that was just the type of girl he saw you as.
…
armin was back outside eating one of the burgers jean made. he sat around on one of the lawn chairs with porco. they sipped their drinks as they watched you guys dance.
colt switched positions with jean, giving him a break. he was grilling a few more vegetables and pieces of meat. jean and marco were in some corner of the yard having a smoke break. they didn't want the smell to stick to the food.
sasha finally got to eat and mikasa joined her. mikasa kept telling her how excited she was to play with the sparklers and fireworks. porco complimented sasha and ashley on the seasoning of the meat.
you were dancing bachata with pieck. she was surprisingly really good at it. she learned from connie just a year ago but she was a natural. the both of your bodies were close and moving in sync as the ones eating watched.
connie danced by himself holding his beer as his partner. he didn't need someone to dance with to show how good he was. he was enjoying watching pieck show off what she learned.
ashley soon joined connie as he reached his hand out to pull her. she was shyly trying to decline until everyone started egging her on.
eren finally joined everyone eating after using the bathroom. he sat next to armin as he glanced at him. he could tell armin was watching you and pieck. he couldn’t read his expression though and that had him stuck about your two’s relationship.
eren looks around seeing everyone absorbed in their own thing before lowly asking armin, “yo, you good?”
armin gives him a weird look, “yea, why wouldn’t i be?”
“cus i see you staring mad hard at those two.” eren nods his head in the direction of you and pieck dancing.
“just people watching.”
“you don't feel some typa way?”
“why would i? she’s not my girl.” armin responds a little annoyed.
eren not wanting to press the topic just purses his lips and nods his head at his answer.
“also, you know im not tryna get into anything new, i’m good with where we’re at.”
“if you say so…” eren takes armin’s without going any more deeper into it. it seemed like something that was already on his mind.
eren knew armin wasn't alright with what he saw but there wasn't much he could do. you two were doing whatever you guys wanted and who was he to butt in. he could see armin going back to how he used to be with annie.
annie was pretty and always got attention from everyone. armin had to deal with it all through their relationship and had to get his insecurities under control. instead of admitting to them right now he was shutting them out. he was going to topple over soon enough.
eren joined mikasa and sasha’s conversation shortly after. he joined porco in complimenting the food. the praise caused sasha to go on a long and detailed explanation on how the seasoning and grilled enhances the food.
armin got up to go to a small table where the food was. you took this as your chance to talk to him. you needed to get a moment to talk. you also needed to get something to eat. pieck parted to go join marco and jean for a smoke after you told you wanted to eat.
you came up behind armin with a plate in hand and greeted him in a friendly tone, “hi!”
“...wassup” he answered coldy still picking at the food.
you awkwardly laugh to ease the mood, “nothing, just wanted to say hi, feels like i haven’t gotten to talk to you all day.”
“yea, you’ve been busy all day, i guess.” armin still didn’t look at you, it's like you weren’t even there.
“what’re you on?” you were confused until you realized what he meant, “oh c’mon armin, dont be like that. you know it's not like that.” you look at him, tilting you head, with a saddened look. he doesn't meet your gaze and continues to focus on the food.
“im just pointing out an observation. im chilling, you can do whatever you want to do.” armin gave you a gentle smile before walking away.
you were left alone with the food until ashley joined you. she asked about what she just saw go down. even she could see the tension in the conversation. you didn’t understand what his problem was.
you decided to give armin the space he wanted. you stayed a distance away from him hoping he cooled down and would be more understanding later on. you didn’t like that things were like this but what could you do.
armin being jealous or feeling some way made no sense to you. you thought he was just in it to mess around but maybe he felt differently. you should’ve been more considerate of him and how he felt.
you and ashley went to join the new domino game with sasha and eren. you guys, besides eren, hadn’t gotten to play since connie was focused on keeping his winning streak. sasha was ready to show off her mikasa to watch. she had bet eren she’d win the first game so she had an even bigger motive. marco had came back and decided to watch. he egged on eren and sasha’s bet by also adding onto it.
pieck came back soon enough and started dancing with colt. she and connie focused on teaching him how to dance while porco laughed. armin sat quietly next to jean as they both talked about the fireworks. jean and mikasa had spent some time separating and organizing them into a nice sequence to light.
armin took the space you gave him as you icing him out. he didn't like that at all. he wanted you to at least explain yourself to him, he thought he deserved that much. he wanted you to chase after him and talk.
he was reminded of annie in that moment. annie did the same exact thing. she iced him out but at least she talked to him. she did that better than you. she didn’t let him talk much but she gave him the satisfaction of a conversation at least. that’s all he wanted right now. all he wanted was to talk things out.
7:43 pm
drinks ran out earlier than expected. jean was meant to buy a couple of cases for today but got busy handling the grill. armin volunteered, again, to go buy some. he had his fake id on him so it wouldn’t be a hassle for him to go. the liquor store was a few blocks away anyways. armin also wanted to get away from everyone for a little.
the streets weren’t that empty on armin’s walk. people were arriving to parties or were already drunk and hanging out on their porches. on his walk he mostly spent it waving at people that were outside or driving by. it was a little cooler than it had been earlier that day. the sun was still beating on armin’s face but it was going to set soon.
when entering the quietly liquor store, armin was greeted by the attendant, kaylee. he asked where a certain bottle, mikasa asked for, was before going straight for the cases.
the store was empty and quiet. armin tried to make some conversation with the clerk by asking her why she wasn't out and he just got back a curt, “im canadian.” he decided to leave her alone as he walked down the aisles. the lights made a low buzz that made armin’s ears ring. the sound of his shoes squeezing on the weirdly sticky floor didn't help either.
he spent some time in the aisles making sure he picked up everything that was asked for. he heard the door bell ring signaling that someone entered but he couldn't see who it was.
as he headed for the front counter to pay he spotted a certain blonde in front of him. he slowed his steps until he stopped a few feet away from her. she had noticed someone walking in her direction and had looked up, also stopping what she was doing.
“hey, you… long time no see?” she broke the silence, nonchalantly.
armin awkwardly laughed, “right… hi, annie, how you been?”
“im fine, i just wanted to say im so sor-”
“no need, i can assure you it's no need. really.”
“yea you’re right…” annie’s eyes scan armin’s person quietly before stopping, “blue razz four lokos? im assuming that's for you.”
“mhm, my signature.”
“yup,” she gave him a look, the same guilty look she gave him last time, “i know you better than anyone.”
“you really do.”
that little thing annie said. ‘i know you better than anyone.’ made armin’s breath catch in his throat. he knew she wasn’t wrong and he loved but hated the fact she knew she wasn’t either. even to the end of their relationship she knew how it had to end so they could let each other go. she knew his mind inside and out and it scared him how much trust she gained to have that knowledge.
“let me pay for some four lokos, it's the least i can do. for old times sake, you know?”
“…alright.”
the both of them head to the register as kaylee scans their things. the two of them stood there quietly as the beeps of the cash register filled the silence. making their way out the door and hearing the bell ring made them realize their time would end.
annie hesitates asking, “wanna walk?”
they walked around a few blocks watching people in the yards. everyone was in their pools or barbecuing. the sun had already started to set when armin got to the liquor store. the small talk didn’t last long since silence seemed to always find its way in between them.
armin was in his head trying to figure out if he had too much to drink or if this was real. annie was mentally cursing herself for forcing him to walk with her. there was so much to be said but they opted for quiet.
annie and armin sat down on a curb they found. it was on an empty street where a few people were partying. they both opened a can of four lokos as they sipped quietly.
he felt nostalgic in a sense, it’d been a while since he actually got to be just the two of them. silence with annie never made him feel uncomfortable. it rather made him feel at home.
their moment was interrupted by some fireworks. it seemed like this year they were starting early. it was a random house a few blocks away.
the sky had grown darker, the only lights being the fireworks and the street lights. the smell of smoke lingering in the air made their noses burn.
neither had uttered a word. the idea of the two of them watching fireworks like this felt like a sick form of deja vu. armin’s words were stuck in his throat. the only thing that would spill out would be his disappointment in her and how things turned out.
it took armin a while but he was the first to fill the silence, “do you think i hate you?” it seemed to be the only thing on his mind. annie never once reached out besides right now.
annie leaned back on hands while looking at the sky, “a little, i don’t see why you wouldn't hold some sorta resentment towards me.” her voice was light and flowed like it always did. her honesty made armin’s chest squeeze. she always preferred to tell the truth, even if it did hurt others in the process.
“dont be like that, you know i could never hate you. ever.” armin stares at her side profile, he can’t look away. his eyes always found their way to her face.
“that’s not be the best idea and you know it. you’re smarter than that.” she gave him a dry laugh.
armin leaned back resting on his hands as well, “you know me best, you said it yourself. nobody could ever compare to you.” both of their fingers touching. she never pulled away from his touch. she welcomed it as she placed her hand on top of him.
the two of them sat there quietly watching the firework show. there was so much more armin wanted to say but nothing came out. the air was full of unsettled emotions.
annie was punishing herself with making their encounter drag on. she wanted armin to hate her and curse her. if he did it wouldn’t be so hard for her to miss him. she hurt him but he still wouldn’t grant her the pleasure of being called the bad guy.
after everything went down annie still had reiner and bertolt at her side caring for her and now she had armin’s permission to come back. she felt like her punishment was a lack of consequences. guilt was riddling her and it’ll continue to consume her.
armin gave in regardless of his hurt and confusion. he wanted to reclaim the emotions and relationship annie so easily let go but it didn't happen. he didn’t realize how much he’d missed the things she did until now. he didn’t want to leave this moment with her. this could possibly be his last time feeling like this.
he wished he could punish her but it wasn’t in his nature and they both knew it. he wanted to let go of her but he wasn’t ready, not yet at least. he’d hold onto their last moments punishing himself by keeping her memory alive.
the warmth of their hands together made them feel clammy. the liquor flowing down their throat didn't help the heat their bodies radiate. annie let out a light sigh holding his hand tighter. armin just looked down at their hands entwined. neither wanted to leave the moment, they didn’t want it to be their last.
armin glanced at annie as if he was trying to take a picture of her in the moment. he didn't realize his hand had made its way to her chin, a force of habit. she never once denied his touch. she leaned into it causing her lips to hover over his.
she could smell the blue razz on his breath, drawing her in even closer. armin swallowed hard, finally sealing the kiss. their foreheads pressed to each other.
annie didn’t realize she started to sweat, maybe from the nerves or the weather, it didn’t matter. they both breathed in sync while catching their breaths as so many things went through their heads.
it only lasted a few seconds but those few seconds felt so raw. both of their quiet masks had been ripped off and they laid bare, forced to be exposed to each other.
annie was the first to talk, her voice rasped, “you know im bad for you.”
armin replied gently, staring into her eyes, “doesn’t matter to me.” he put some space between them as he tucked a piece of hair behind her ear. he caressed the side of her face as he held it close like he always did.
she held her hands on top of his again, “i don’t want anything right now, armin. i don’t wanna get your hopes up.” annie never met his eyes, her sight watched his lips.
“it's ok, it doesn’t have to be anything more than this. i just miss the way you did things.” he practically whispered the last part. he wanted to stay just like this.
“you have to promise it means nothing, i wouldn’t want to do anything that could hurt you more than i already did.” annie held out her pinky, eyes still never meeting armin’s. she knew she shouldn’t be doing this, her guilt was eating her alive. she could help that she also missed the familiarity.
armin interlocked his pinky with her, “you know i wouldn't ever lie to you.” he let out a breathy laugh at the old tradition.
they both ‘sealed’ the promise by kissing their thumbs. armin’s never left annie’s once, but her gaze was averted the entire time.
armin hadn’t felt that connection to someone in so long. maybe it was the alcohol and weather making his delusional but he never felt closer than ever to annie.
today was sunny with clear skies. it seemed like the weather knew you guys were going to be at the beach all day. you hadn’t been to the beach since that one day with armin, so you were even more excited. everyone was excited today. armin and jean were the first ones to run straight into the ocean. they had already helped set up beach chairs, blankets, and umbrellas and were finally free to run wild.
ymir yelled after them, “yo, put on sunscreen! remember, yall don’t tan, yall burn!!” they ignored her warning and continued to race while pushing each other.
mikasa had started burying connie in the sand to give him a mermaid body. he kept insisting that she made sure his body was ‘tea.’ mikasa and connie were also waiting for the perfect moment to play volleyball. they were itching to get a full game going.
eren sat under an umbrella next to ashley and complained about the sand getting everywhere. he’d grown to like the beach more because of armin, but he still hated sand. ashley took the opportunity to make eren help her apply sunscreen. even if he wasn’t complaining, it wasn’t like he was going to turn her down.
historia and marco were seated next to each other. he read a book while glancing at jean every few minutes. she was helping braid sasha’s hair before anything. ymir was already knocked out on the blanket next to you.
the two of you applied sunscreen on each other before both laying down. she couldn’t help falling asleep while she tried to tan. the sun made her fall into a coma. you enjoyed the sounds of the waves as you watched jean lift armin and slam him into the water. mikasa called everybody to look at the masterpiece she’d made. you all glanced over to connie in the sand.
“what the fuck.” “i’m crying, bro.” “what is this.”
“i think you made my body a little too realistic, mika.” he had an hourglass body but had a sand dick sitting straight up in the middle of his mermaid tail. connie had a devious smile on his face as he stuck out his tongue. he posed for the pictures historia and ashley were taking on their digital cameras.
…
armin and jean came back from the water a little while later. they returned to eat some snacks and drink water. armin’s nose and cheeks were turning slightly red from the sun while jean’s back turned a similar color. that morning they had also found mikasa’s zigzag headbands and claimed them. they were perfect for keeping their hair out of their faces while they played in the water. they were matching with their hair accessories and sunburn.
“you should’ve listened to ymir, now look at yall.” marco muttered while applying sunscreen to jean’s back aggressively.
jean wasn’t fazed as he sat in front of him and replied happily, “but like, now i get to have you put it on for me. it’s a win-win.”
“how is it a win-win?”
“you get to rub down my back.” jean looked over his shoulder, giving marco a shy smirk.
“mmch, mane, watch out.”
as marco finished applying, he slapped jean’s slightly sunburnt back with a smile. the slap caused jean to arch and scream, “ahh, stop, that hurtsss!”
you were seated in front of armin on another blanket as he sat on a chair. you applied sunscreen on armin’s face while those two had their moment. he closed his eyes as the sun shined on his face. you held his face in place with your hand to see how burnt he was. you studied his face closely in the sun as he leaned into your touch.
“you have a birthmark on your eyelid?”
you grazed it with your finger softly as you continued to apply a thick layer across his nose and cheeks.
“yea, nobody ever really sees it. let’s keep it between just you and me, alright?” he laughed softly at your observation.
“kk.” you let out a light giggle. your warm breath fanned armin’s face, causing his jaw to tense a little.
the only other people to have seen that birthmark had been his grandpa, eren, mikasa, and annie. he’d promised annie that she would be the girl in his life he’d show it to. she always kissed or grazed it lightly whenever she thought he was asleep.
armin slowly opened his eyes while exhaling deeply. he needed to stop thinking of the things she would do; he always caught himself comparing you two sometimes. everything you could do, she’d already done—probably better.
you were completely absorbed in applying an even coat to the rest of his face. he scanned your very concentrated face.
“hmm, you have really long bottom lashes.”
“nobody ever really notices them. my dark circles and fucked-up eyeliner kinda hide them.” you replied, still focused, not noticing his gaze falling onto your lips.
armin was trying hard to keep his eyes from falling onto your bathing suit, but he couldn’t help it. ever since this morning, he had been stealing peeks at you. he felt guilty about staring, but much couldn’t be done—especially when he’d seen your body undressed. while finishing up, you checked your “work” to ensure it was perfect. you caressed then lightly slapped armin’s cheek before removing your hand, “…perfect, now turn so i can do your back.”
armin turned around as you started working on his back. you shifted to sitting on your knees to be level with his back. he kept shifting as you rubbed his back. your fingers lingered on his back muscles. he was already ticklish, and your touch wasn’t helping.
“mmch… armin, stop moving or ima hit you!”
“don’t, he probably likes that, heh.” ashley interjects, cackling while putting eren’s hair into pigtails.
“ashley, shhh, stawppp it- wait, i mean, oh nooo, please don’t hit meee!!” armin giggles while looking at you over his shoulder.
“look at the bang master at work right now.” historia comments, lowering her big sunglasses. she’s lying in the sun next to ymir, still asleep.
everyone laughed while reminiscing on the name. some hadn’t heard it in forever. the name was so dumb and juvenile but would probably never die out. armin heard it prior to historia mentioning it; you teased him with it that one day.
it was the day you both went to the beach. that was the first time he’d gone back there with someone that wasn’t annie. he couldn’t focus too much on the memory. all his attention was being pulled by your working hands. he could feel you breathing on his neck and the heat radiating off your body.
you traced your nails along armin’s back, “you have a lot of freckles back here.” he shivered at the feeling.
“mhm, used to hide them for the longest time. kids used to make fun of me and say i had cooties.” armin continued making noises and squirming under your hands.
“awe, really? well, i like ‘em, they’re cute. i could probably trace my own constellations on your back.”
you continued tracing different shapes and swirls. you couldn’t keep your hands from feeling all over.
you had finished applying sunscreen on armin as mikasa and connie started asking to play volleyball. sasha shot up off her blanket excited—it’s been a while since she’d gotten to play. she’d played volleyball all her life and was good too. a few slowly agreed to play as you guys split off into teams.
ymir, historia, and ashley decided to sit the game out. the eight of you that were playing are known to not go easy. last time, marco scraped his forearms diving into a beach chair trying to get the ball back up.
team nut sandwich: mikasa, connie, jean, armin
team beluga: sasha, eren, you, marco
you guys decided to pick each other’s team names for some odd reason. the names were confusing and interesting.
“what does team beluga even stand for?” marco asked, slightly amused.
“belugas, ‘cause yall fat as hell.” mikasa responded without missing a beat.
connie snickered loudly as he peeked from behind her shoulder.
“what the fuck is nut sandwich even supposed to mean?” jean eyed your team with an unreadable expression.
“yea, not gonna lie, that’s kinda a freaky name.” armin agreed while side-eyeing you four.
with a disgusted look on your face, you caught onto what they were thinking. “oh baby, you’re sooo nasty…”
“it’s ‘cause yall are dumb nuts and idiot sandwiches, duhhh.” eren explained curtly while rolling his eyes.
“oh, alright… let’s get this game started then…” connie was suspicious of the explanation but wanted to move on.
…
the game ran shorter than expected. the volleyball ended up deflating when sasha spiked it on an extra pointy seashell. she claimed it wasn’t her fault, but everyone had spiked it on a shell and didn’t pop the ball once. she apologized and promised to buy a new ball.
the highlight of the game was marco and sasha’s random, unpracticed combo. it all started when you set the ball to sasha or marco after eren dove to pick it up. instead of getting a running start and just jumping like most people would, sasha and marco had other plans. before the game started, those two had been whispering and plotting, but nobody knew what yet. the only thing they had told you and eren was when marco was near the net to “send it realll high.”
marco yelled, “sash, go up!” as he stood near the ball you had set.
sasha got her running start and sprinted toward marco before stepping onto his hands as he launched her up for extra height. she had so much air time that all everyone could do was stand in awe while she spiked it. the sound of impact when sasha’s hand hit the ball made a loud slap! then it smacked into the ground. it popped from how hard it smashed into a shell.
“ayeee, we did that!!” “ya tu sabe!!”
marco helped sasha on her feet after she landed in a squat and rolled on the sand.
“oh my gawd!”
“are you deadass right now?!”
“how’d she even get up there?!”
historia, ymir, and ashley were the first to say anything after that stunt. marco was running around while carrying sasha. they were celebrating their newfound skill. everyone had tuned those two out while trying to figure out what they just witnessed.
“yo, that gotta be against the rules- there’s no power-ups allowed!!” connie tried to argue while still in shock at how that was even possible. as he fell backward onto the sand, trying to catch his breath, his eyes glanced over to the flattened ball, causing them to widen. “what the fawkkk, did they practice that?”
jean sat on the sand wiping sweat off his face, bewildered by what happened.
“i didn’t even think that was possible to do at all.” armin laughed at the insanity of pulling something like that off. he picked up the ball to throw it away while pocketing the shell as a souvenir.
“did you guys know they were gonna do that?” mikasa wasn’t too shocked at their shenanigans. she was more surprised that you and eren went along with their idea.
“no, they just told us to launch the ball whenever marco was near the net.” eren stood with his hands on his hips, taking deep breaths, trying to replay the play in his head.
“not gonna lie, they have my respect. that was so crazy.” you stood next to eren while rubbing your chin. there wasn’t much that could be said or done about the game now.
after that, the game wrapped up. you all decided to, instead of playing volleyball, go play in the water to cool down. it was going to be dinner time soon, and everyone would have to go back to the house to get ready.
5:49 pm, reiss’ beach house
everyone made it back to the house to quickly shower and throw on some clothes. there was a restaurant within walking distance that you guys always went to after a beach day. you could feel your stomach eating itself from how hungry you were. hunger goes away when you're having fun.
armin, marco, historia, eren, and mikasa were downstairs while waiting for the rest to finish. they were hungry too, growing hangrier by the second. the collective decided to send eren to collect the rest of the group.
you were scanned from the second floor as you were about to join them but found everybody had dispersed elsewhere. mikasa and historia were outside taking a quick smoke break to fight off the hunger. meanwhile, marco entertained himself trying to find a quick snack in the kitchen. armin was the only one in the living room. that left the entire living room to you and armin.
as you made your way down the stairs, armin watched from the couch. you got closer as you heard, “you look good, you’ve looked really good all day.” he scanned you from head to toe with a slight smile.
“you’re too sweet, i could eat you up right now.” you smile shyly at armin while biting down, making your teeth clink.
you sat down next to him and got comfortable, knowing the others would probably take thirty minutes to get out of the house. the both of you watched freaks and geeks while waiting. you laid into him more the longer you sat there. you always ran cold and had goosebumps on your arms from the AC blasting. there was a thin blanket covering just you, but it didn’t help.
“you’re literally shivering, are you good?” armin asks, seeing you balled up with the blanket wrapped around you.
“it's mad cold. literally brick city, brick dick brrr.” you crack yourself up laughing at your own answer.
“mmch… girl, be sooo foreal right now. come here.” he rolls his eyes at your laughing and opens his arms. he motions for you to lay closer for warmth. you follow his lead as you place the blanket over the both of you. the goosebumps on your arms start to disappear as your body heat starts to regulate itself.
the two of you sit there quietly as you notice the lack of distance. armin’s body slowly grew stiffer the closer you leaned into him. you put your legs over his lap to be more comfortable, and all he could feel was the pressure of them. he rested his hand on your thighs to keep you in place. you were trying to keep yourself from moving too much. you basically sat on armin's lap because of how cold you were and were not realizing how close you were.
you weren't lying when you said you could eat armin. today at the beach he was shirtless and had everything on full display. you couldn’t help but think back to the day of marco’s birthday. that was the last time you saw armin so exposed. when you put sunscreen on him, you did it slowly just to check him out. today armin looked unreal. he had a slight tan on his face from being in the sun and his hair was wavy from the salty ocean water. his hands keeping your legs in place made you feel weak in the knees. it had been a while since you felt like this.
“you good now?” armin asked in a low whisper, trying not to talk over the scene you were watching intently. armin felt slightly nervous from the lack of distance between your bodies. he wanted to be respectful, but you didn’t realize what you did to him.
“mhmm, im all warm thanks you.” you kicked your legs up and down on his lap, purposely trying to annoy him. armin nervously laughs from your movement as his ears grow hotter. he could feel his pants grow slightly tighter. you didn’t notice as your focus fell back onto the show.
…
everyone comes down soon enough as eren forces them down the stairs. the walk to the restaurant was relaxing. you could still hear the waves and the sun was setting. the air was cool and salty as the wind caused you to shiver a little.
the restaurant owner's daughter, bailey, was your server. it was a local family-run joint and they had the best fried fish you ever tasted. the place had gotten some updates since you were here last. their furniture was new and the lights were different. the big open windows were their favorite thing of yours. you could see the beach and fishing boats in the distance while you ate.
she greeted you all as she already put your group’s order in to be made. you all got seated and waited on the classic chicken tenders and fries with some fried seafood on the side. the thought of eating toddler food with all your friends made it feel like high school for a second, except connie didn't have a camera filming for his channel.
you, mikasa, jean, ashley, and ymir all sat on one side of the table while historia and connie sat on the ends. armin, sasha, eren, and marco sat across from you five. sasha sat between eren and armin because they kept poking each other.
while waiting for the food, connie asks to borrow historia's camera. he wanted to get the annual restaurant pictures. he wasn’t too sure he got himself in the frame and looked at the gallery. he was nose-deep into the camera before he started laughing. ymir looked over at what he was looking at and started laughing as well.
“no way, this is too good.” connie cackled while holding his stomach. he gave ymir the camera to show everyone what they saw. connie had zoomed in on the picture, clicking through them to see if everybody looked. he had noticed that in all the pictures eren and jean are playing footsies. in all the pictures, they were all smiles while playing with each other’s feet.
still sitting next to mikasa, jean pulled his legs up to his chest as she laughed, “what the fuck, why were yall playing footsies?”
ashley rubbed jean's back trying to comfort him from eren’s foot assault.
“jean started it,” eren answers, trying to ignore that he was slightly blushing while playing with jean.
jean argues back, “i thought you were marco,” trying to excuse it.
marco backs away from the table with a disgusted look, “yuck, ew, i don’t play with feet before i eat.” he was offended by the assumption.
ymir laughs, covering her mouth with her fist, “that was lowkey a bar, we making it out the suburbs with this one,” dapping up marco for his natural freestyle skills.
“holy fuck, this is all jean's fault,” eren crosses his arms across his chest, slouching deep into his seat.
“wait, eren, why did you keep playing with him?” your question puts eren in the hot seat.
“…i, uh” he looks down as his body sinks deeper.
sasha adds to the pressure as he looks for an answer, “who did you think it was?”
eren mutters, “i thought it was armin…” as he refuses to make eye contact with anybody.
historia states the impracticality of eren’s answer, “armin’s sitting two seats over from you.”
armin doesn’t entertain anything eren is trying to say, “yea, don’t bring me into this.”
eren gets defensive from all the questions being asked, “damn bitch, yall all up in my pussy, mind your own damn business!”
9:57 pm, the beach house
dinner ended with some free desserts, on the house of course, and no leftovers to bring back. you all were heading home soon. tonight everyone sat on the back porch while a few of you had some drinks or smoked. historia and ymir set up the fire pit to offer warmth and light while you all wind down. these were the days that made you feel like you were in high school again; just hanging out with your friends and being present.
one by one people started to head to bed. sasha and mikasa were the first to go. sasha ate so much she fell into a food coma. she was basically half asleep walking back to the house. mikasa was exhausted from swimming and playing volleyball. ymir and historia disappeared at some point. nobody knew when or how, but everybody noticed they were gone once eren said something. those two were most likely in their room. ymir would be would be reading and historia scrapbooking everything you did today.
eren and ashley looked like they were getting comfortable. you, armin, jean, connie, and marco took this as a sign to split off to give them some alone time. you all coincidentally went to do different things.
connie used the classic, “i really need to take a shit… see yall later!” he ran upstairs before anybody said anything. jean and marco said they wanted to take a stroll around the neighborhood and might pop in to see zeke, yelena, and onyakapon. yelena wanted jean’s insight on some paintings her family was looking at buying.
that left you and armin. you grabbed your pack of cigarettes from your bra and held them up while getting up, “me and armin are gonna go take a walk. i promised i’d teach him how to french.” you giggled as you shot a wink ashley's way. you reached for armin’s hand as you pulled him to follow you. he was caught off guard by what you said but let you drag him away by the hand. he grabbed the small blanket that was on the couch.
ashley stared intensely at you, already knowing what you all were doing. she replied back with a stiff smile, “have fun…” she quietly mouthed, “i'll end you both.” before turning back to eren. you give her one last exaggerated eye roll while you and armin walk along the beach.
armin followed quietly behind you as you still held onto his hand. you two walked some distance away before stopping to sit down.
“i didn’t realize i was still holding onto your hand, sorry.” you let go as his hand falls to his side. you ask him to pass you the blanket to set up. armin shook his head as he sat down next to you, leaning back on his hands. you sat with your knees close to your chest, your arms wrapped around them while resting your chin.
you both sat in silence while listening to the water. the waves were louder at night because of the moon. the wind blew stronger as well. you could see armin’s hair blowing wildly in your peripheral vision.
you started to light a cigarette, blocking the flame with your hand so the wind didn’t blow it out. armin’s eyes fell onto you for a while before he asked, “what was that you said about teaching me to french? you of all people know very well i know how to.” he was pouting at the possibility of you calling him a bad kisser or discrediting his skills.
“huh… OH, no, no, believe me i know you know how to french. i meant showing you how to french inhale,” laughing at his confusion obnoxiously, you show him your personal specialty.
“oh… ok, well now i just made a fool of myself.” armin sighs and laughs awkwardly. he covers his face with his hand as it flushes in embarrassment.
“no, you’re good-” you try to ‘comfort’ him and instead snort loudly in the midst of trying to contain your laughter, “oh my god- im so sorry.”
this causes armin to bury his face deeper into his hand, “no, go away, you're making fun of me.”
“oh, cmon! you know i can’t stand to see you upset.” you say teasingly, laughing even harder while shifting to sit on your knees. placing the cigarette in between your lips to hold, you start reaching for armin’s face. you try to remove his hand only to be met with him smiling.
you take the cigarette out of your mouth with your opposite hand, “see, that's more like it. now go ahead and show me those pearly whites, armin.” in retaliation, armin drops his head while shaking it slowly, hiding his smile.
you turn your head away from him to blow out smoke.
“show me or ima make you show me.” you laugh and roll your eyes at his lack of compliance.
still looking down, you could hear the smirk on his face, “hmmmm, i think you might have to make me.”
grabbing his face playfully, you force him to look at you. you lowly say, “yea, you’d like that, wouldn't you?” you laugh at armin’s flustered expression, letting go as you lay back on the blanket. you pull out a small pocket ashtray and flick off the ash of your cigarette into it. you continue to puff away as you catch your breath from laughing.
the void that was just filled with your playful laughter is now occupied by silence. the two of you stare at the sky in the comfortable quiet.
armin’s the first to interrupt, “you know… i wasn’t lying when i said you looked good.” he looks over at your laying figure.
taking a long hit from your cigarette, you respond, “i trust that you wouldn't ever lie to me. you’re an honest guy.” you slowly exhale, blowing o’s.
“you know that's not what i mean.” armin shifts onto his side, keeping himself steady with his forearms. he gets down to your level as he lays his hand in the space between you both.
“yea, yea, whatever you say…” laughing him off, you turn to your side, back facing him.
armin’s gaze focuses intently on your figure from the angle. he inhales sharply, feeling guilty about only being able to think about you in that way all day. his hand grips the blanket as he tries to blink away his desire. armin's tone is more firm,
“i couldn't stop staring at you today. is that fucked up?” his hand crawls slowly, waiting for your answer. you look over your shoulder at his pleading expression. you sit up, placing your hand over his, as you lean into his touch.
you look over your shoulder at his pleading expression. you sit up, placing your hand over his, leaning into his touch.
armin slowly moves closer, his hand sneaking up your shirt. “tell me when to stop, k?” his fingers settle under your chest, lightly squeezing.
nodding, you find your spot on armin’s lap as he pulls you onto him. you bring his head to your chest while you smoke. his other hand wraps around your waist, keeping you steady as you arch into him.
armin breathily whispers, “you have no idea how long i've been wanting you all day.” between kisses, he presses into your neck, soft and urgent.
you pull him back gently by his hair. inhaling some smoke, you perch your lips at armin’s, signaling him to open his mouth. his mouth hangs slightly open as you hover, sharing the smoke.
as armin breathes in, you take the chance to place a quick peck on his lips, gently swiping your leftover lip gloss off his lower lip with your thumb.
after resuming your feather-light touches, you glance down at the blanket—your phone lights up. it’s 11:24 pm.
you pout your lips while looking at armin’s lost expression. “we should start heading back. wouldn’t want them to catch us like this, right?”
he mimics your pout, murmuring, “i guess… i kinda been missing you.” his head hangs shyly as his fingers trace the waistband of your bottoms.
“oh! that’s… nice."
…
you and armin make it back to the house and quietly go to your separate rooms. you prepare to enter your shared room—and feel ashley’s wrath. walking in, you’re met with her laying on the bed, watching haikyuu on the tv.
you quickly shuffle into the bedroom’s bathroom before she can say anything and come out a while later, freshly showered. sliding into bed next to her, you shyly ask, “hey… so like, what if i tell you something crazy?”
the nightstand lamps light the room, and the ceiling fan clicks as it spins. ashley lets the show play as you fill the empty spot next to her. your sheets are white and cool against your warm skin.
“crazy how so?” she asks, head still facing the tv.
“well… crazy like maybe, i don’t know, random?” you turn on your side to face her, trying to gauge her reaction.
“you're getting me mad, just tell me already.” ashley finally faces you, sitting up straight.
you slowly sit up, fumbling with the edge of the blanket. “ok, ok, so like… me and armin have lowkey kinda been messing around… i’m like… sorta confused now.”
“are you trolling, right now?” she lets out a breathy laugh, shock evident on her face.
you start laughing along nervously. “…nooo.”
“BE SO DEAD-” ashley questions you loudly, making you swing and hit her with a pillow.
you’d all finally gotten a few days of vacation time this summer. this being said, historia and ymir thought this would be the perfect time to invite everyone to the reiss’ beach house.
the morning was spent running around the house as jean and marco woke up late and had to rush. the both of them scrambled while shoving clothes into a bag.
connie decided to stay up all night and pack, but he got distracted talking on the phone. he entertained himself by organizing his closet instead of packing.
you woke up on time but took your time as the guys scurried around. you spent your time double-checking necessities were packed for everyone.
ashley woke up late as well but was one of the first ones ready. she helped connie pack his clothes since he decided to have a fashion show. he had a serious issue with overpacking.
mikasa and sasha were also running late. mostly sasha; she didn’t want to leave the house on an empty stomach, so she made breakfast and packed snacks. mikasa didn’t have much of a worry since she knew nobody would stick to the schedule.
armin and eren were on time. armin had his things together the night before, while eren ran a strict schedule. he hated wasting time.
eren and marco’s cars were being used on the trip, so eren was busy rounding up mikasa and sasha. that morning, sasha left the house being pulled and thrown into the car by eren while armin and mikasa packed the car.
by the time the four of them arrived at the house, jean and marco were still running around, while connie was done and decided he deserved some coffee as a reward.
as everybody decided to wait on the two boys, eren took the initiative and packed for jean and marco. he already had an idea of what they would want to pack, and if they missed anything, that was on them.
everybody was packed and hit the road around 9:30 until marco noticed his tank was empty and made a pit stop. bad idea on his part. connie and sasha hopped out of the car and went straight for the freezer section.
eren was ready to take off in the next two minutes if connie and sasha didn’t get back in his car. it wouldn’t be the first time he left them on the side of the road. connie bought a bunch of monsters since he was exhausted, and sasha walked out with a variety of candy, chips, and drinks.
the drive that morning took almost three hours from traffic and pit stops. traffic hit the worst since everyone in the world decided to hit the beach today. the plan was to leave at 8 am and be there by 12 pm at the latest, but everyone else was behind schedule.
“not gonna lie, i deadass could’ve made it here by 11, but i had to wait on all of y’all,” eren complained as you all informed historia and ymir of the morning you’d had.
ashley silenced his complaints quickly. “shut up, eren.”
“i love your hair so much, historia. you literally don’t understand, i need you to dye mine soon.” you complimented historia’s hair. she cut more layers into it and changed the colors to some pastel purples, pinks, and blues.
you’d all been situated in the huge house for a while now. the road trip wasn’t the worst, but getting out the door and on the road was a hassle.
every summer since you’ve met historia, you’ve all gone to her family’s beach house. it was a small tradition that was inexpensive. last year, you guys spent almost a month there since you all wanted to get in as much time together before college.
“speaking of everyone, where’s reiner, bertolt, and annie?” ymir seemed to be genuinely wondering where those three were and why they were missing.
a mix of awkward laughs and silence ensued as everyone kind of looked anywhere but in armin’s direction.
“ymir, babe-”
“we’re not fuckin’ with them. they been moving weird.” eren figured this was the easiest way to break the news without saying too much. he has such a way with words.
everyone just stared at him—some with deadpan faces, some with confusion, and others with tight-lipped smiles.
“bro, what is wrong with you?” marco deadpanned, questioning why eren had said anything if that was going to be his execution.
armin’s jaw tensed before he started. “nah, it’s fine. basically, me and an- annie broke up. they were on some challengers timing and like, yea… just odd behavior.” he awkwardly explained since eren did nothing but cause confusion.
he tried joking and making it seem like something that ‘just happened to happen.’ this was one of the few times the mention of their breakup had been brought up.
ymir’s mouth opened in shock as she covered it with her fist. “yooo, i’m so sorry, i didn’t know.” she earned a slight knock on her head from historia.
“haven’t you seen the group chats? they been kicked out, i’m pretty sure.” ashley was stating what was on everybody’s mind. those three haven’t been seen or heard from since connie’s party in may. it wouldn’t take a rocket scientist to at least grasp what’s happening.
“girl, you know i don’t check my phone.” ymir answered this while scrolling on her phone.
“you’re always on it though? you’re literally using it right now.” sasha leaned over to look at the girl’s phone while tapping on the screen.
“yea, ’cus i gotta do my pokémon pulls, duh.” she rolled her eyes while flashing the deck she was currently pulling.
armin leaned back into the couch deeper as the conversation went on. he threw his head back, jaw tensed, as he spaced out staring at the ceiling.
the mention of annie threw armin for a loop. he didn’t want to make things awkward and decided to keep the conversation moving. why ruin this summer with the past?
nobody had ever mentioned the ‘situation’ or muttered those three’s names in so long. armin was almost forgetting how sweet and easy her name used to roll off his tongue; now it just left a bitter aftertaste as it caught in his throat.
the whole trip in itself was supposed to be a vacation, but everything seemed to be making him reminisce.
this time last year, he and annie were enjoying this house together, but now that just seems to be a distant memory. he hadn’t felt this alone in a while; everybody seemed to have someone.
armin came back to when ymir randomly brought up one of those who shall not be named.
“not gonna lie, reiner always been a freak, lowkey.” ymir randomly mentioned this lingering thought. she earned another hit from historia on her shoulder at the mention of the name.
jean squinted his eyes in confusion at the statement, “bruh, what’re you even on about?”
“i been tellin’ y’all that big bitch reiner weird as hell. like, he was a whole ass junior tryna hit up our little freshman princess over here. like, boy, you can’t fuck that lil ass dog.” ymir started reminiscing on the chaos that was sophomore year.
in high school, before historia and ymir were dating, reiner tried to go for historia while she was starting to go out with ymir. ymir had a slight issue with reiner since she thought he was shady for that.
“you still holding that? i’m cryinggg.” connie started burying his head in his hands from her personal vendetta against reiner.
“am i wrong though?” she earned cackles from everybody at her persistence. “y’all think i’m joking, but i’m deadass. also, might i refresh y’all’s memory, but y/n dated that thing.” ymir nodded her head in your direction as you laid on the carpeted floor.
everyone’s eyes shifted over to you while you looked up in shock at the mention of your name.
ymir already had an issue with you being cool with him after your breakup. she lived by ‘you can’t be friends with someone you messed with.’
“aye, aye, aye, not too much on me. i was just a baby and like those titties though, how could i resist? we were cool after, he was a pretty good friend.” you sat up as you explained yourself.
“yea, goodbye, freak. y’all aren’t juno, you’re a part-time lover and full-time friend ass duo.” ashley jumped in with the strange but not too far-off comparison.
“comparing reiner to michael cera is actually insane.” mikasa was boggled. nobody ever thought they would hear those two people being lumped into the same group.
“you know what she means, like a jock and their little freak duo.” ymir sucked her teeth at nobody seeing the vision.
everyone laughed at the memory of high school. it felt like a far memory even though the majority of you graduated a year or two ago. your only worries were mainly you all sharing the same schedule or classes—it was simpler times.
ymir’s ‘jock and their little freak duo’ comment wasn’t too far off. reiner played on the varsity football team all four years of high school. he was the definition of a jock.
he was popular, athletic, loud, and good-looking. you two getting together was a shock to the majority, but not really to your friends. he was literally close friends with bertolt and annie of all people.
their trio was a combination of people most wouldn’t expect to see together, but they were best friends.
reiner was basically the school’s all-star. annie was a walking paradox. bertolt was kind of preppy and a nerd.
annie danced competitively but was still a punk. she was basically a different person when she danced; she was all glammed up at her competitions and returned to her one-day-old slept-in makeup and baggy clothes every other day.
bertolt was always at reiner’s side, and a majority of the time, the basketball coaches tried to recruit him. he turned them down every time since he had the worst coordination known to man.
in high school, you were more of a floater that everyone happened to know in some way. you were mostly trying to get through high school. you were either seen camping in the bathrooms, skipping to random teachers’ classes, terrorizing other students with security, or sleeping through your own classes.
8:02 pm
tonight there was a small get-together. that was part of the main reason you all came so early. historia wanted everybody to unpack and get comfortable before things got busy.
historia grew up always spending her summers at her family’s beach house, so she knew her neighbors and the people in the area. her neighbors were coming over—well, her neighbor’s daughter, yelena, and a couple of her friends. the three of them actually attended MNU.
the past few summers had been both groups merging and spending the break together. yelena, onyakapon, and zeke arrived around 9 with bottles and beer in hand. zeke was the first to go around and greet everyone while making sure to ‘harass’ eren a little. onyakapon split off to the kitchen where you, ashley, and historia were standing around the island.
he gave out hugs after setting down the things in his hands. he made his next rounds to mikasa, armin, ymir, and jean seated in the dining room. he settled down with connie, sasha, marco, and eren in the living room.
“yelenaaa” “lenaaa” “mommyyy”
yelena made her way to you girls in the kitchen after getting around to everybody else.
“ladies, ladies, ladies, relax. mommy missed y’all too.” she gave out hugs and kisses on cheeks, then grabbed a drink.
everyone seemed to get comfortable as quickly as they got there. the trio all seemed to unconsciously avoid the dining room. it was nothing personal, but there was something unspoken lingering. most people don’t know it, but those three might have been the ones to tell armin about the rumors on annie, bertolt, and reiner. they were trying to avoid the topic and the awkwardness of the outcome of the situation.
only a few other people knew that they were involved in the armin and annie situation. it wasn’t a topic of conversation since those three carried a sense of guilt. they didn’t do anything inherently wrong, but they still felt bad; they considered armin a friend and didn’t want to be the ones to break the news to him.
9:37 pm
i slept with someone in fall out boy and all i got was this stupid song written about me by fall out boy played lowly from the speakers as everyone was just spread around the living room, kitchen, and outside area.
last summer, the house was a little more crowded, but this year it felt like nobody noticed the difference; everyone besides armin, at least.
he was outside sitting in the gazebo. he was looking at cassiopeia, the constellation you showed him a while ago. at the beach, the sky was clear as ever. this was his and annie’s little ‘away’ spot when she wanted a break. whenever she got drunk, she always wanted a moment to recuperate herself.
if she was here, he could show her the constellation you told him about. she’d like it and would probably be surprised he knew any constellations. he knew he shouldn’t be letting the memories spoil his mood, but he just couldn’t help it. everything seemed to remind him of her.
historia, you, ashley, and yelena could be heard from the back porch. he could hear drunk giggling echo in the night. he watched in the distance as you four sat on the back porch watching yelena drag ashley to dance with her.
10:15 pm
the four of you start to head in before you excuse yourself to smoke. you tell them not to wait up as you go your separate ways.
you make your way to the gazebo for a breather. waking up early today and the long drive drained you. you’d been entertaining and talking to everybody all night. you needed a second to recharge.
when you get to the gazebo, you see a shadowy figure on their phone and slightly jump back. you almost throw your smirnoff ice at it before it looks up. armin had a scared look on his face as he caught sight of you getting ready to send your bottle straight for his head.
“what the fuck. what’s up with you and lurking? one of these days, ima actually take your head off.” you laughed as you made your way to him.
settling down next to armin, you throw your head back, letting out a deep breath. you both laugh quietly as he explains he just comes out here for a breather, the same as you.
the silence calmly rolls in as you lay back on the gazebo bench, closing your eyes. tonight felt colder because of the distance to the sea. the gazebo was dimly lit by the light of the night sky as you heard the waves in the distance.
“you know… you can see cassiopeia really well from here.” armin breaks the silence while still staring at the sky.
“you actually remembered that?” you open your eyes as you gaze at him. there was a hint of surprise in your voice. showing him a constellation was just to distract him from whatever was on his mind that night at sasha and mikasa’s.
“yea, why wouldn’t i? i’d always remember something about you, especially if you seemed really into it.”
he never turned his head to look at you. he just studied the constellation in silence, the same as you did that night.
you sat up next to him, trying to get the same view but couldn’t. you held onto the railing while leaning over him, propped up on your knees. being a little tipsy, armin held onto your waist, offering you support as you stretched over him to study the constellation.
he took you being distracted as a chance to start reaching for your beer. he looked up slightly at you for permission to finish it off, and you didn’t mind. you weren’t too crazy about beer anyway.
“the sky really is clearer out here… the view is so unreal.” you said softly as you finally got to see the same scenery as him. you never got a response as you continued to stare up at the starry sky.
armin didn’t respond as he made sure to hold onto you while he watched you. moments like these made him feel at peace and nostalgic. only you could make him feel even a sliver of the way he felt with annie.
…
the both of you did eventually make your way inside as it got colder outside. armin also might’ve wanted another drink since he finished yours off.
people were spread around the living room, some drunker than others. as you and armin made your way to the kitchen, joining yelena, zeke, and eren, armin went straight to the fridge while nodding his head at the trio as you sat on the counter next to yelena.
eren was drunker than when you last saw him and couldn’t stop giggling.
“i’m so deadass when i tell you that shit’s bad for you, you’re dyinggg.” he pointed his cup at zeke’s chest while giggling, “that won’t be too far into the future though. boy, you old as hellll.”
yelena wrapped her arms around your shoulders as you leaned into her. she kept you close to her while her fingers tapped random rhythms on your shoulder.
zeke’s glasses were almost falling off the tip of his nose as he, also drunk, looked at eren, offended.
“whaaa… first of all, i’m not even old, i’m still a kid. also, you’re saying this like you and all your little friends don’t be guzzling down coffee. if you want black, bitter, and warm in your mouth, just say that.” he latched onto eren’s shoulder and rocked him side to side.
eren tried to shrug zeke off while pouting and furrowing his brows, “yo, bro, pauseee. now you just putting words in my mouth. also, you’re saying this like coffee doesn’t come from the earth—that’s more natural than some canned energy.”
“wait, wait, wait, lemme tell you something right quick.”
“what-”
his eyes lit up, “coffee backwards is eeffoc, and i don’t give eeffoccc, ahhh!!!”
zeke freed eren from his grasp as he folded over in laughter and clutched his stomach.
you and yelena started laughing at zeke’s over-the-top reaction and eren’s lack of one. the two of you leaned on each other as you almost fell off the counter and brought yelena down with you.
armin had started to notice yelena and you were always hanging off of each other. she was so openly touchy and even flirty at times. your presence wasn’t something only him and your friends got to see. up until now, he didn’t care to acknowledge the fact that at parties someone was always lingering around you; you were friendly with everybody.
“ima put hands on you, that doesn’t make sense.” eren proceeded to threaten his brother over his confusion at why he was being laughed at.
yelena decided to add her two cents, “eren, you not jacking him no more?” you gasp for air as you can’t stop laughing, holding onto her for stability.
“yea, you not jacking me, lil bro?” zeke continues to egg on eren as he grows increasingly more confused and irritated.
armin joins the little circle as eren’s ears turn slightly red and his pout deepens. zeke had his arm wrapped around his shoulders as he kept asking him if he’s mad.
“yooo, armin, you think eren’s mad or nah?” zeke used armin as a way to annoy eren even more.
eren huffs out, “arminnn, i’m not mad. tell ’em i’m not mad.” he starts to mutter as he bites his thumbnail.
“i don’t know, he looks prettyyy mad.” yelena smirks, never missing an opportunity to instigate something between the both of them.
you also can’t help but comment, “eren, relax, don’t crash out.”
eren whines, “nooo, i’m not gonna crash out, stop saying thattt.” he looks at armin for help in this 3v1 he’s been put into.
armin hisses, rolling his eyes away from eren as they land on you, “i meannn…” you can see the smirk forming on his lips as you try to hide your smile with your hand.
the brunette throws his head back dramatically while covering his eyes with his hands, “arminnn, you’re supposed to help me, stawppp.”
…
a little later, you all found your way to the living room. most were drunk and just enjoying being there. the conversation was flowing until connie asked historia a question.
“yo, you got uno?”
that question made the entire living room go silent. that night was spent arguing over cards, rules, cheating, and teaming. connie was running a strict game because everyone in the house was known to play dirty.
cards were being passed out as onyakapon realized who he was sitting next to. he looked to his right and left with an annoyed look before throwing himself back in his seat.
“oh hell nahhhh, i’m moving. i am not sitting in between the both of y’all.” his annoyance was present in his tone as he eyed the both of them.
eren and ymir look at each other and then at him in disbelief. onyakapon started moving to the far end of the couch away from them.
“nah, you’re doing too much.” “what’d we even do?”
“why’re you both acting like y’all don’t be looking at decks and cheating?” historia states their past transgressions whenever uno has been played. it always got heated.
“we would never.” “why’re y’all saying such hurtful things about us?”
ymir and eren wrapped their arms around each other while trying to plead their case. some start snickering at their solidarity in sticking together.
“yea, the both of y’all gotta go, now split.” mikasa wanted the game to not turn into a screaming match by the end of the night.
once the cards were brought out, it was everybody for themselves.
“whyyy, that’s my gang, we can’t be separated!” “literally, that’s twin, don’t do this to us!!”
1:28 am
by the end of the night, zeke and sasha both tied with three wins out of over ten games. jean kept getting caught trying to cheat while eren failed at teaming with marco. mikasa got so drunk that she didn’t notice ashley looking over her shoulder and straight at her deck. this went on for almost every game.
yelena and historia kept crashing out whenever they got bad decks. at some point, historia caused an ‘earthquake’ and messed and mixed up all the cards on the table. ymir kept targeting armin and at some point made him pick up twenty cards. his deck always had forty cards in it at some point in the game.
you were fighting off onyakapon as he kept trying to take a look at your hand every second. as the night went on, everybody got drunker since there was a rule added: pick up four or take a shot to skip.
by the time yelena, onyakapon, and zeke left, they were all stumbling out the door while complaining about how they’re never going to play uno again.
everyone decided to have a night in at mikasa and sasha's. sasha insisted everyone come over to build a pillow fort for old times’ sake. she wanted it at her and mikasa’s place because she had everything she needed to bake.
today everyone showed up one by one to the two girls’ apartment. superbad played on the tv as people came in and out from the kitchen and living room.
mikasa and armin started to clear up some couch cushions while eren brought blankets out of the storage closet.
ashley lingered around talking to sasha but also helped out. she was one of the few people that sasha allowed in the kitchen while she was baking. connie and eren were banned; they kept dipping their fingers in everything.
it’d been getting really hot for the past few weeks. you and marco laid down on the floor to cool down as everyone else did something. you loved summer but also hated it. the weather kind of ruined it for you.
marco was overheating because he was just coming down from a cold. he was somebody who usually got sick in the summer at some point. he always got sick every year without fail.
connie and jean played mario kart. armin watched the two play until one lost and he got a turn. those three got caught up in a mini tournament instead of helping like they said they would. armin and jean both fell into the trap of playing with connie and trying to win; they were never going to win—it was useless.
mikasa and eren smoked on the balcony. they’d been the ones mostly working on the pillow fort. everyone else had been no help at all. those two never broke a sweat in the heat—they were freaks in your eyes.
you also didn’t understand how they could stand in 90-degree weather and smoke without feeling lightheaded from the heat.
it’d been a minute since everyone had hung out, but a few people were missing. ymir and historia had been missing since historia’s graduation. they’d been living it up at reiss’s vacation house; they didn’t have a worry in the world.
you decided to go join mikasa and eren outside. you were dying from the heat but you wanted a smoke. you all leaned against the balcony as they passed you a cigarette. the sky grew darker as you watched the sun set on the horizon. it was already the middle of break, school was starting soon.
you had no idea eren knew that you and armin hooked up. he promised armin he wouldn't tell anybody—not even mikasa—and armin didn’t want you to know he knew. he didn’t want to cause any weird tensions between you and eren. he didn’t want it to get out there.
if mikasa found out she’d probably get on armin about how he’s just rebounding and how he’s being selfish. he knew he was, but it’s not like you both weren’t just messing around for fun, right?
eren also thought the same but didn’t want to burden armin with anything else. he was worried about you though. you’re also eren’s friend; sometimes he couldn't stand the idea of you getting tied up in whatever was happening between you and armin.
he couldn't turn a blind eye to the fact that armin might not be in the right state to be getting involved with somebody emotionally or romantically.
eren was the only other person who knew what happened that night. you hadn’t told ashley because it was just something that happened between friends. it wasn’t completely uncommon for you or your friends to have hooked up with somebody you all knew.
you and armin had been cool this entire time. you were there for him and he was pretty nice to be around. he was sweet and always said the right stuff—how could you not like talking to him?
the three of you came in while armin and marco started ordering food. jean was in the kitchen with sasha and ashley. he got caught up being a taste tester for the brownies and cinnamon rolls sasha was making.
connie didn’t care what was being ordered as long as it came with fries. the same went for you. everyone was fine with anything and couldn’t really choose before sasha yelled from the kitchen, “taco bell!!! i really want taco bell!”
everyone agreed to sasha's request. marco ordered about $70 worth of taco bell. ashley demanded extra nacho fries while mikasa wanted two large baja blasts.
marco made sure to specifically buy sasha her own taco party pack. he didn’t want her to start stealing others’ food again. she somehow became a hunger-fueled thief.
as the food came, you and marco decided to help finish building the pillow fort. mikasa went and joined the other three in the kitchen and eren decided to join the boys’ mario kart tournament.
the apartment was alive. jean, mikasa, ashley, and sasha’s conversation could be heard; everyone’s laughter carried through the sweet smell of chocolate and cinnamon. the warmth from the kitchen floated into the living room.
the guys were bantering and shoving each other on the couch. eren was a known hitter whenever he got competitive. connie's complaints could be heard as he would sometimes shoot up from his seat. armin was busy fighting off eren; the brunette kept reaching for the blond’s controller.
everyone's spread out around the apartment while pink triangle by weezer played on some speakers in the kitchen. the sun shining through the blinds made you feel a little sleepy.
“MAMAGUEBOOO!! leave me alone please, eren you GOTTA go.” connie screamed as he started jumping up and down while being terrorized by eren. his cart was pushed out of second place by a shell as eren drove past him. eren snickered while dropping a banana and heading straight for armin next.
armin was sitting crisscross on the couch, hunched over his controller, tapping buttons aggressively. he started dropping bananas trying to delay eren. “aye eren, can we chill? PLEASE.”
“nah, that ass is MINE, armin. booty bandit hawking EVERYBODY down.”
"marco, y/n, come here! one of yall, GET EREN." he was calling for backup, for the game and eren’s behavior.
eren was terrible to play any game with since his sole purpose was to terrorize everybody. he didn't care if they won or lost; he just wanted to get reactions.
he was also starting to elbow armin since connie jumped up and continued to stand as he cussed under his breath.
the yelling earned you flinging a pillow at them since it was getting too late to make that much noise.
"gordaso, move eren- COÑO, i’m standing here, watch it!" connie screamed as he dodged the pillow and kicked it up at eren.
eren tried to avoid the pillow as he threw himself onto armin. this caused both of them to fall onto the floor and drop their controllers.
“CONSTANCE” “MIGUEL ANGEL”
"AHHH, you mad or nah?" connie snatched eren’s geek that stumbled in front of his feet as he won the game. he took a victory hit as he hit the xaviersobased emote.
you crawled into the now-complete pillow fort and lay on your stomach next to marco. "we were good as married in my mind, but married in my mind’s no good, ohh, " you continued singing along while swinging your legs into each other. "oh, pink triangle on her sleeve, let me know the truth, leeet meee knowww the truthhh."
you two started singing along while the trio commented, "get a load of these guys.." "who sings this song?" “let's play the quiet game!”
"run it back, connie. that was literally rigged, you only won cus of the pillow y/n threw." armin interrupts connie's dancing while trying to get out from under eren.
"mmcht- armin, stawppp, i wanna stay with you for a bit." eren whines while the blond tries to shuffle from out under all his weight.
armin, exhaling, gives up and accepts the cuddled session as connie decides to join them on the floor as well.
“connie lemme tap dat.”
10:51 pm
you all sat around the coffee table in the living room. the game was paused and now the great pretender was playing on the tv. the living room was dimly lit by the lamps.
mikasa and sasha sat on the love seat as they got passed their food. sasha dove into her food; she was so focused on baking she forgot to eat something. mikasa made sure to be ready to pass the hungry girl baja blast if she choked.
your back was resting on the end of the couch as you sat criss-cross. connie sat at the end of the coffee table as he manspread, preparing to feast. ashley sat against the other end of the couch.
jean and eren took up the entire couch. they spread out completely and complained about being squished together.
“boy, you big as helllll.” jean’s mouth was stuffed with his crunchwrap supreme as he laughed at the sight of eren.
eren was holding tacos in each hand, his mouth full of nacho fries. he let out a muffled, “bitch i’m petite, excuse me.”
“you takin up this whole couch. move it, ‘gordaso’ yeager.” jean manspread more, forcing eren’s legs to close slightly.
eren glared at jean as he pushed him aside. he would’ve usually fought back but he started to choke as he tried to speak. jean quickly hit eren’s back and put his dr pepper straw to the choking boy’s mouth.
eren didn’t drop his tacos once as he almost died. jean almost choked from laughing at eren. you all watched as eren ate in silence for the rest of the night. he was scared to choke and didn’t want to get told off again.
…
"bitch gimme a fry." ashley eyes your extra food while still eating her taco.
"talk to me nice?"
"bitch puh-leaseee gimme a fry."
you bless her with a few nacho fries and in return take some bites of her unopened quesadilla. as you go back to watching tv, you're interrupted by marco and armin.
"look at these fatties right here." marco comments as he's been watching the progression of wrappers piling up and they're all coming from you and ashley. "this is the greed they be talking about in the bible."
"why you mentioning the bible? god doesn't like your kind." armin responds, turning to face the freckled boy with a confused look on his face.
"why're you being shady, whatchu tryna insinuate?"
"god doesn't like gay people, duh."
marco answered in his most genuine and serious tone, "i wear socks when i eat butt so it's not gay, technically i'm just a reallyyy good friend."
everyone was now focused on the conversation. jean stopped his chewing at the interaction while nodding his head slowly.
"nah, you know what… he’s not too far off.” jean was deep in thought as he also came to agree with marco’s ideology.
"literally, you're welcome. just know, i'm down to help my boy any day." marco sends a wink and blows a kiss in jean’s direction. in a friendly way, of course.
as the kiss was on its way to jean’s couch, eren decided it was meant for him. he ‘catches’ marco's kiss, puts it into his pocket, and returns one back, looking away shyly.
marco accepts it, putting it onto his cheek with a sweet smile.
jean side-eyes the boy next to him with a disgusted look present on his face. he ‘grabs’ the kiss out of eren’s pocket and takes it for himself. he then proceeded to send marco a kiss as was intended.
“yea, that’s eren’s really good friend.” mikasa encourages marco and eren’s ‘friendly’ exchange with a light laugh.
“it’s ok, jeanie boy. there's enough of this sun-kissed, green-eyed king to go around.” eren places a hand on jean’s thigh while licking his lips and winking.
sasha mutters a low, “fuck ass puerto rican.” under her breath while jean tries to keep his composure.
armin’s eyes widen, “bro what-” he locks eyes with you and bursts out laughing before he could finish his sentence. you start laughing as you were mid-bite into your burrito and basically choked on it.
you all start laughing at jean just accepting eren’s verbal assault and sasha's comment. connie was hunched over as he tried to get jean to go back to normal.
jean remained with his eyes shut as his chin was lifted slightly. if he couldn't see eren, he couldn't acknowledge what eren just did to him.
after this ‘serious’ conversation, everyone continues eating and watching the movie like nothing happened.
ashley cuts in after a few minutes with a sudden question, “ok, so are we gonna collectively skip over the fact that marco just admitted to eating ass on the regular?”
…
by the time everyone finished up their food, the cinnamon rolls and brownies had cooled down. sasha gave the first ones to mikasa and connie—they were always her first picks. eren jumped for the pan of cinnamon rolls while jean tried to snatch them up. tonight was going to be a long night.
you all were spread out in the dimly lit living room. the time was spent talking, watching shows, and playing games. ever since break started, you’d all been busy with work or internships. this was what you all needed.
sasha was the one to recommend doing face masks but connie was the most excited. he loved to be pampered. he was always letting people play in his hair and do his nails. he liked to be prettied up.
the later part of the night was spent doing face masks and playing just dance. connie, ashley, marco, and sasha got into a heated competition after jean, armin, mikasa, and eren were benched. those four couldn’t do anything—they got competitive and started playing rough after mikasa kept winning.
instead of letting up, mikasa just riled them even more by choosing dances she already knew. their turn ended when armin got a controller to the face from eren. jean took this as a chance to shove mikasa, causing her to fly into the two other boys. safe to say mikasa and sasha were the worst upstairs neighbors.
everyone knocked out one by one. the hot weather outside drained you all. sasha was the first to fall asleep, she was exhausted from baking all day.
sasha fell asleep cuddling you in the love seat. she laid in your lap as you played cooking mama. you didn’t notice she was out cold until she stopped responding. you could tell she needed the sleep after doing so much on the supposed ‘chill’ day.
eren laid on one side of the big couch. he still wore mikasa’s hello kitty headband. he was planning on stealing it; he thought it was cute and practical.
ashley laid on the opposite end of the couch. eren was a known kicker but somehow never kicked her when she slept next to him. he had his favorites and couldn’t even hide it if he tried.
you tried to sleep but couldn’t; the position you were in was uncomfortable. you slipped out from under sasha. she wouldn’t wake up; she slept like a rock.
you’d been stuck under sasha for a while so you took this as your chance to use the much-needed bathroom trip.
walking to the bathroom you saw a lump in the middle of sasha and mikasa’s bed through the semi-open door. the lump shifted before kicking the blanket off—it was just mikasa.
mikasa was curled up in her bed. it was supposed to be a sleepover but she was a light sleeper. she couldn’t imagine dealing with the nightmare that was her friends. she enjoyed her cold, empty bed.
when you came back out you went into the pillow fort, looking at the sleeping situation.
connie had fallen asleep a while ago. he fell victim to a food coma and fell asleep wrapped around jean. jean was deep in sleep with his grip still tight around his switch.
marco laid in a corner far from everyone while he snuggled a pillow tight to his chest. he loved you guys but couldn’t stand connie’s sleep talking.
armin was missing from the fort and you didn’t remember seeing him on any of the couches. it was 1:43 am and there wasn’t anywhere else he could be. you crawled out of the fort and saw the balcony door slightly open.
you opened it quietly and slipped out to see armin smoking a spliff. he leaned on the railing and jumped a little at the sudden sound of the door sliding. he had his glasses on today. he pushed them up while letting out an awkward laugh as his face flushed slightly.
“yo, you scared me.” armin scratched the back of his neck while slightly closing his eyes, giving you a nervous smile.
you stood near the door, making sure nobody woke up. “i can tell, you almost jumped off.” you snorted, pointing off the high balcony.
he motioned you to join him with the lit spliff in his hand, “yea, yea, yea. just enjoying the view, you know.”
“you gonna share or?” you nodded your head to his hand.
“huh… ohhh- no, no, i brought it to share but like we got busy and everybody fell asleep before i could say anything.” armin quickly stuck out his hand and offered it to you.
inhaling and holding the smoke in, you studied the joint, “so you were just gonna take this straight to the face alone?” you exhaled, passing it back.
“kinda? i couldn’t sleep and didn’t think anybody was up. i was kinda planning on getting high outta my mind and crashing.”
nodding your head at armin’s response, you both continued to share the joint in the night. you both stood in silence while passing the smoke between the two of you. there wasn’t a cloud in the sky; you could even see a few stars. the moon was so full and bright tonight.
armin had been having sleeping issues lately. no matter how tired he was he couldn’t sleep. it wasn’t like he couldn’t sleep by himself—his mind kept him awake. lately he’d been busy with tutoring and hadn’t been able to do much self-relaxation.
most nights he pulled all-nighters or called you. he’d fallen into the routine of talking to someone on the phone before bed, a routine he couldn’t kick.
the old habit kept some memories alive in his mind. they brought back a time he missed and sometimes even let his memories invade his dreams.
some mornings he woke up with tears in his eyes from these dreams of déjà vu. he couldn’t help but feel like he was reliving them.
he’d been getting the haunting of his life.
you hadn’t noticed he’d been looking at you for a while. taking a hit of the almost finished spliff, you looked over at armin—he’d been a little too silent for your liking.
you met his low red eyes studying you. there wasn’t much distance between the two of you.
you whispered a question, lowly, “hey, wanna do something fun?”
armin slowly nodded in curiosity, “yea, sure.”
you took hold of the side of armin’s face, balancing on your toes as you tried to meet him face to face. his hand rested on your waist, offering you support as he slightly bent his knees.
“don’t be scary, just follow my lead, k?” you tilted your head innocently, trying to calm his nerves.
armin nodded slowly, his glasses slowly slid down his nose as he swallowed back his confusion. his eyes were watching you carefully as you took a hit. you closed the already small distance and hovered over his mouth.
his mouth hung open slightly at your closeness. you blew the smoke into his mouth slowly as he inhaled it.
you stared at him as he held the air from your lungs. his eyes never broke contact as he exhaled. he grabbed your wrist gently as he held the spliff up to his lips.
“i wanna try.”
armin inhaled the last hit before doing the same to you. he didn’t give you a chance to exhale before connecting his lips with yours. his hands crawled up your back as your mouths moved in sync. your hand reached for the back of armin’s hair.
armin wouldn’t let you catch your breath as his grip held you tighter. it felt like he was holding onto something more. your head was getting lighter by the second; the kiss was intoxicating.
when armin finally loosened his grasp, your knees felt weak. he held you up by your waist as you caught your breath. you felt higher than you ever had before.
the night and spliff had gotten to you both as a wave of sleepiness washed over you. armin still kept hold of your waist as you leaned against his chest slightly.
“wanna sleep? i’m kinda tired.” you let out a small yawn while ashing the now finished spliff in an ashtray.
“yea, i could sleep.” armin loosened his grip slightly but still kept hold of your waist as you both went inside.
you and armin crashed on the empty couch. you felt like you could fall asleep at any moment. your back faced armin as you laid next to him.
while getting comfortable, armin's fingers tapped your thigh to get your attention. you shifted to face him as your eyes grew heavier. he planted one last kiss on your lips and then your forehead.
you were out in seconds. armin soon followed suit but not before muttering out, “g’night, ann…”, in a sleepy and dream-driven haze. her name never left his mouth completely, it couldn’t. the mention of her name caught in his throat like a curse.
the two of you drifted off together, the sounds of the sleeping apartment, the warmth of the couch, and the lingering scent of smoke surrounding you.
armin just stared at eren as he stuffed his mouth. he wasn’t sure what eren was talking about or if he knew what happened the night before. he decided not to react and just figure out what he knew.
“huh, what do you mean?”
“you know…"
eren decided to let on with everything he’d observed. last night eren saw a lot of things. he noticed you and armin talking more.
he assumed it wasn’t anything out of the ordinary since armin wasn’t busy with a relationship anymore. armin had always been missing out on hanging out with everyone since most of the time he was staying in with annie.
throughout the night eren was on the balcony of the club; he felt like ghost from power. he was watching people from above as he waited for ashley to come back from the bathroom. last night eren saw armin enjoying himself for the first time in a while.
you’d also been a shoulder for armin to lean on. eren wasn’t much help, he’d been working long hours and wasn’t the best with emotions. he was glad armin had people to go to for support. he was also happy he was getting back to enjoying his free time.
later in the night eren thought it would be a good idea to head out for a quick smoke break. he opened the door to the outside and caught a glimpse of you and armin basically clawing at each other while getting into a cab.
he wasn’t sure if he was just seeing things. maybe you were too drunk and were holding onto armin for stability. you were wearing heels and could stumble if you didn’t hold onto something.
eren didn’t think much of it until he got back to the house. he noticed the forming scratch marks on armin’s back. those weren’t there recently and they definitely weren’t freckles either.
eren didn’t want to jump to conclusions too quickly but these weren’t coincidences.
that morning while eren was in ashley’s room he also might’ve heard you and armin talking. he didn’t even mean to eavesdrop; he just got bored while ashley was in the shower.
“yo, you’re so scary. why’re you everywhere? bro, you’re genuinely so weird.” armin laughed at eren’s lurking nature. he was always there whenever something happened.
“um, y’all are in public doing this? did you expect nobody to see or notice?”
“nah, you’re right, you’re right. that’s on me. i’m outside foreal.” armin stuck his lips into a pouty smile while rolling his eyes.
eren side-eyed him while laughing a little, “but what’s up with y’all? you don’t gotta tell me nothing foreal but like it’s been a month since…” he did a circle gesture with his hand, not wanting to mention any names.
“and like, is it a lonely thing or like a tryna fill the void thing? either way i’m just tryna be there for you.”
eren knew you well enough to know you weren’t taking advantage of armin and was pretty protective of his best friend. he also thought armin getting involved only a month after was too fast. this was out of character for armin as well, he didn’t really do ‘casual.’
armin munched on a few chips before answering, “i gotchu, we’re cool though. it just kinda happened, you know? we talked it out and she’ll still be there for me so that’s good.”
eren knew armin was still hurt from annie but he didn’t want to force him to tell him anything. he was worried, but armin deserved to have some fun. for the past two years he’d missed out on a lot.
armin and eren went back to playing for a while until eren turned in for the night. he had a long shift and had to be up early in the morning.
eren worked as a national park/conservation trail worker. he spent a lot of his time outside in nature. it wasn’t an easy job; he had 8-10 hour shifts but he enjoyed it.
2:03 pm
the next day eren left early that morning. armin was home alone and had to run an errand for eren after he finished up tutoring. eren needed to return jean’s camera and sent armin to do it. he was going to be working late and would go straight home.
ashley and armin both did online tutoring. armin tutored kids in test prep and ashley did math. sasha and colt gave them a good amount of kids that needed tutoring—their younger siblings and their friends.
armin was wearing his contacts today. he mostly wore them whenever he was working because his students would call him a nerd. they weren’t far off since he was tutoring them, but he didn’t want to give them more ammo.
armin drove to the theater and made his way on stage. he saw jean on a ladder painting a new set piece. he had his headphones in and didn’t hear armin below him.
you and jean did a summer internship with theater productions. you worked backstage with sound and light production while jean helped with set designs. he painted and drew lots of backgrounds and they were often reused for other shows.
jean looked like he was finishing up soon so armin would just wait for him. he had some time to kill. there weren’t many people in the theater besides a few more crew members. armin decided to go backstage and hang around with you.
you saw armin approach you with jean’s camera. he knew where to find you. the shows at the theater were pretty good so your friends were often invited to watch performances.
eren borrowed the camera to take some pictures of the views at his job. jean and him hadn’t been able to go on any hikes recently, so eren did him the favor. jean said he wanted to practice making bigger and more detailed nature pieces.
jean sooner or later came around the corner, clothes covered in splatters of paint. he had to do some touch-ups on a set and would be staying later than expected. he wouldn’t be able to give you a ride home anymore.
armin offered to drive you instead. he also included taking you out to lunch since you both hadn’t eaten. he had nothing to do for the rest of the day, everyone was working or busy.
everyone was working so you and armin went to sasha’s job. sasha worked at a local cafe. it was a win-win—she was surrounded by food. this meant she brought around lots of pastries and baked goods after work. she would also use this as an opportunity to come up with her own combinations.
3:26 pm, the cafe
the two of you walked in to greet sasha, “hey y’all! ima be there to take your order right quick, lemme finish putting these muffins away.” she loved whenever people visited her.
sasha always gave extra goodies and sometimes even discounts. she always brought in customers since they loved her energy. the owners also loved that she was so passionate about food and the reactions it encouraged.
you and armin both got club sandwiches, fries, and coffee. sasha offered to add in some croissants and muffins. the two of you headed out to the outside seating area and waited for your food to be brought out.
you stepped away to go to the bathroom. ashley texted to remind you she’d need the house to herself for a while. she had a later tutoring session and needed silence.
you made your way back to the table as you caught sight of a girl sitting in your original seat. armin looked zoned out, his eyes widened when you came into view. you tilted your head in curiosity of the scene.
it wasn’t weird for armin to get attention; he was cute and sweet. most of the time he didn’t know what to do. as of recently he didn’t have to deal with the attention as much. most people knew annie and were scared of her—she was intimidating.
now that armin was single most people took that as free rein, and him going out more wasn’t helping the situation.
you kind of wanted to watch it play out. this was a new sight and also pretty funny. you slowed your steps as he looked at you for help that he wouldn’t be receiving.
the girl did all the talking as armin sat quietly. his form of avoiding the interaction was pretending he didn’t speak english. this was a ‘tactic’ he picked up from mikasa.
mikasa was often quiet and because of this most people jumped to the conclusion she didn’t speak english. she wasn’t against it since it meant she didn’t have to respond and would usually be left alone.
armin scratched his head while spouting off some random german. he let out, “no english,” in his fake broken english. he continued to say a few more sentences before the girl left.
“you’re so evil. i needed help.” armin held himself in his arms while ‘shivering’ at the situation. he looked at you with a fake scared and pleading expression.
taking your seat, snickering at his lack of expertise, “that’s game though. i couldn’t interrupt the bang master at work.”
in high school armin was a virgin for the longest time. you all started calling him the bang master at how much he ‘banged.’ it was the funniest thing to everyone, especially since the name didn’t drop even after he got with annie.
armin cupped his hands over his mouth while holding back a loud laugh. he was turning red at the old nickname, it’d been a while since he’d heard it.
composing himself while cheesing, he responded, “why would i do that when i have my best girl sitting right in front of me?”
“boy goodbye, stop glazing.” you rolled your eyes while shooing him away. armin was always a smooth talker. you could always count on him to talk his way out of any situation.
both of you went back and forth until the food came. the meal was spent joking around. armin was always a laughing mess when you were around.
armin’s cheeks and nose were developing a slight sunburn from being seated outside. he wasn’t wearing his glasses. his eyes, nose, and freckles weren’t hidden by them today.
while eating you told him how ashley needed the house to herself a little longer. he was glad to spend the rest of the day with you. the past few days had been the only times he’d been out this summer.
4:02 pm, the beach
you guys headed to a small beach. most of the people that went there just fished, it wasn’t really safe to swim. he always had an extra blanket in his car. you can never be too prepared.
armin always loved the beach. in high school during summer break you all took trips to the beach often. historia’s family had a beach house they would let everyone stay at.
he hadn’t been to the beach recently, it reminded him of annie. she wasn’t much of a beach person but always went with armin. she knew how much he enjoyed being there.
you walked around the beach for a while in silence. the seagulls were the only sound you could hear over the waves crashing. the cool breeze cut through the bright sun.
after walking for a while you two settled down on the blanket. armin sat back on his arms while you laid on your side. you’d been up for a while and needed to sleep. the environment around you wasn’t helping, before you knew it you were asleep.
armin saw your chest rising and falling slowly. he shifted your head onto his lap. he didn’t want to wake you, you looked so peaceful. he hadn’t enjoyed silence like this since annie.
he couldn’t help but feel guilty. he felt like he was replacing the memory of her. he didn’t want to let her go so quickly, he couldn’t let her go.
armin read a book while you slept. he missed being able to sit in silence—being in someone’s presence and not needing to talk.
it got cooler as time went on, his fingers danced on the goosebumps on your skin. he traced from the skin on your arms to ghosting over your collarbones while you slept. his gentle touch didn’t help your already visible goosebumps.
…
armin woke you up by squeezing your shoulder. he was kind of sad to disrupt your slumber but you both had to be home soon.
you opened your eyes to the sight of armin. he gave you a sweet look as you apologized for falling asleep on him. while you slept you felt his light touch on your arm. he was always comfortable to be around.
armin drove with all his windows down as the sky grew darker. the drive back was quick and traffic was light. the smell of grass and trees filled the car as he flew down streets.
he parked in front of your house. you’d been talking about the weird dream basically the entire ride. you didn’t want to keep him for too long anymore. your dream about giants that ate and terrorized people seemed too real. the conversation died down as you started to get kind of freaked out.
you both leaned in for a hug, your breath ghosting over the crook of his neck as you got a whiff of the salty sea still stuck in his hair. armin’s hands ghosted over the small of your back. the hug dragged on for a few seconds, you both didn’t let go.
you guys were friends but the night of marco’s birthday a boundary was crossed. it didn’t change things for the worst but it introduced something more intimate. there was no line that couldn’t be crossed anymore. nothing was off the table.
stepping out of the car you reminded armin to text you. you didn’t want him to be nervous to reach out. you enjoyed his company and wanted to get him used to going out more.
9:45 pm
ashley was done tutoring and she’d already eaten by the time you got home. she ordered the house food, everyone got home late. she ended up spending the rest of the night unwinding alone.
jean came back home not too long ago, he stayed later than expected. he was a perfectionist when it came to his art. he decided to spend his night smoking.
connie came back pretty tired. the campers really drained him sometimes. he was sore and needed to ease off the pain. he joined jean to smoke as well.
later in the night you got a call while getting ready for bed. you had siri pick it up without checking the caller. the call connected on speakerphone as you sat at your vanity.
“…hello?”
“hey, it’s me, armin,” his tired voice rasped through the phone, “can you talk right now?”
“yea, yea, yea, of course, what’s up?”
he slightly hesitated to respond, “i don’t know. couldn’t sleep.”
armin had been calling you every time he couldn’t sleep. he hated to admit it but most nights he missed annie. he didn’t like to acknowledge it even if he knew he did, deep down.
she was all he’d ever known, she was the only standard. annie disappeared from his life so quickly she was practically a ghost. he wished she’d haunt him forever.
she was in his dreams and nightmares, the silence when he couldn’t sleep—annie was everywhere. armin didn’t want to speak her memory into existence; he didn’t want to give life to the shipwreck she left behind.
“eren’s snoring keeping you up or something?”
“something like that,” you heard him let out a light laugh, “i just wanna hear somebody’s voice… your voice.”
annie hurt armin but at the end of the day she was everything to him. he enjoyed the company and warmth you offered. he couldn’t stop you, you were a part of his routine.
his response made you slightly pause, you came up with something quickly, “want me to tell you all about the show me and jean are working on right now?”
you were kind of half-joking. you did sound but that meant you were there for all rehearsals. you didn’t expect him to take the offer.
“you sure? i don’t wanna talk your head off.”
the worst part was you didn’t have any clue what the show actually was, you weren’t the biggest theater fan. everything he was going to hear wouldn’t make sense; it was all your very own special summarization of the show.
“yea, i wanna hear all about it.”
you went on with your story. you heard armin shifting in his bed while listening intently. he was asking questions and speculating the plot holes in the story.
some of your explanations made him laugh. he tried to guess what show you guys were helping with but you had no clue either. you basically made it your own from how odd it sounded.
you’d laid in bed as you started to question part of the plot of the play. his responses turned into muffled mhm’s as he fell asleep. you could hear armin’s breathing grow deeper on the other end of the call.
before long you grew more sleepy and ended the call. you did what you were needed for.
you were the first to wake up the morning 'after’. you woke up in armin’s shirt with a pounding headache. your stomach and legs felt slightly sore. you hopped in the shower right away, trying to wash away your hangover. flashbacks of the night before hit you.
“oh my god… OH MY GOD.” did that actually happen? holy fuck, that's kinda… crazy.
last night was something. it wasn’t like it was bad, but was it really something you should’ve encouraged? it was a spur-of-the-moment thing and you both wanted it.
i mean… if anything, maybe it was a good thing we were both drunk. just a drunken one night stand.
after stepping out of the shower, you look at yourself in the mirror. your chest is covered in hickies and a few bite marks. a deep bite mark on one of your shoulders catches your eye, along with bruises on your hips.
what the actual fuck is wrong with armin. ima kill him when i get to him.
you touch your shoulder lightly and hiss at the sting. you two are even; he should be decently marked as well.
you were always the type to sleep late and wake up early; the night was your time. making your way to the kitchen, you catch sight of armin and connie cuddled up together.
armin’s hair was braided—connie’s doing. the sun was coming through the shut blinds, so you didn’t waste time turning on the lights while making coffee. you decided to do some things while waiting for it to brew in the greca.
after your shower, you switched out armin’s shirt for connie’s hoodie and a pair of sweats. making your way to the basement to wash his clothes from last night, you hear loud snores.
outta all places to sleep, why the basement? how'd they even get down here?
you look around, searching for the source, and the only place left to check is the bathroom. after putting the clothes in to wash, you open the bathroom door. you switch on the lights and see eren, sleeping soundly in the tub, using a towel as a blanket.
you cover your mouth as you pull out your phone to record. “eren, what the fuck.” laughing at the boy, he stops snoring and starts to wake up.
“yo, turn off the lights, my head hurtsss. stoppp.” he whines, rubbing his eyes. eren tries to run his hand through his hair, but all he feels are the braids. “fuckin connie, he got me again.”
you keep recording, trying to hold back your laughter as he stands and walks out of the tub. “you know, he got armin too. they’re snuggled up on the couch right now, so cutesy.”
eren slumps, resting his arm on your shoulders. you both make your way upstairs; he wants a quick shower first. in the living room, connie and armin are still asleep.
by the time eren heads upstairs, your coffee has brewed and you’re adding milk and sugar. you feel something behind you and hear a low groan.
“aye, lemme get-”
you jump back, ready to punch whatever it is, before realizing it’s just connie. he appears whenever coffee is nearby.
“can you not do that? you’re so spooky.” you put your hands down as your heart tries to stop racing.
connie runs his hands through his short curly buzz. his hair is frizzy from last night; he looks like a chia pet. “my fault, i feel terrible. i need some coffee, real bad.” he buries his face in his hands.
he sits on the kitchen island while scrolling on his phone. me gusta natural by eladio carrion plays softly from the small kitchen tv above the counter. connie sets his phone down to charge and rests his head.
you make him a cup of coffee and sit next to him, scratching and rubbing his head. he lets out a tired breath, looking half-dead.
you and connie drink coffee as you discuss breakfast plans. options: eat now, let everyone wake up on their own, or wake everyone and eat together.
ashley might wake soon; she’s the only one not hungover. she'd probably want to eat but might not want to deal with everyone at once.
eren is already up, so you wait on him. he’s loud, whiny, and wants to eat immediately; he’s big.
armin is still knocked out on the couch. if no one wakes him, he’ll probably sleep forever. he might also feel nauseous; he has a weak stomach.
mikasa and sasha are probably still asleep. sasha is on and off with energy, often in a messy haze. mikasa wouldn’t want to talk much, which makes sasha feel slightly bad about the girl suffering in silence.
you wait for eren to come down so you can figure out the move. he’s taking too long.
ashley has been up for a while; she sent you a tiktok earlier. eren’s probably whining to her about needing advil and never drinking again. they’ll probably come down together.
you start making more coffee as the motion by drake plays. eren’s about to start whining about how terrible his morning is. he’s a full-on drama queen when hungover.
stumbling footsteps come from upstairs. mikasa carries half-asleep sasha on her back.
“good morning” “…morninnn”
you and connie look at the two girls settling into the kitchen. they raided jean’s closet last night and look like adam sandler clones this morning. sasha sits next to you as mikasa gets coffee.
sasha wears a minecraft creeper shirt with jean’s plaid pajama pants. she rolls the waistband so they don’t drag, but it doesn’t help.
mikasa wears one of jean’s tank tops, showing off her arms, and jean’s ‘precious’ track pants. she always finds his favorite clothes.
eren already decided he’ll wake everyone up—it’s like he knew your plan. he’s always one step ahead.
sasha mimics connie, laying her head down. you scratch her head to make her feel better. mikasa and sasha being up early is surprising; they usually sleep in, especially after coming in later than you and armin.
“eren needs his ass beat, he's so aggy.” mikasa groans while stretching. you let out a breathy laugh as she continues, “he literally started jumping on the bed complaining about motion sickness.” she brings two mugs to the island and leans on the edge.
sasha shifts to face mikasa and her mug, “bro he's always on some bullshit. he was awake before us but made us shower first.” she gives a small thanks and closes her eyes.
sasha’s hair is a frizzy mess. she considered dry brushing it but mikasa stopped her. she puts her hair in a quick bun; mikasa will detangle it later.
“we should probably wake armin; if eren wakes him by jumping or spinning him, armin’s gonna throw up on him again.” connie joins in, sipping coffee. he glances at armin on the couch.
you all laugh at the memory from senior year. armin was carried princess style by eren, who forgot armin’s weak stomach, causing vomit in his hair. connie got bumped while passed out on the floor. jean started dry heaving. the day was spent cleaning and icing injuries. eren hasn’t learned his lesson.
offering mikasa your seat, you make more coffee and wake armin. everyone else is too tired. you crouch next to the couch to avoid scaring him.
you rub armin’s back and call his name. no response. shaking closer to his ear doesn’t help. you tickle the back of his neck. his body squirms.
he turns on his side. “go awayyy, my tummy hurts.” he’s becomes aware of last night and that he’s shirtless. he wraps the blanket around his body while sitting up.
armin remembers last night. he doesn’t know if he should act normal, bring it up, or act like nothing happened. he cares about you and wouldn’t want to lose you.
“c’mon, sleeping beauty. i’m making coffee, get up.” you stick out your hand.
armin takes it. “you know where i left my glasses? i don't see them.” he stretches, showing his v-line.
“uh, they’re in my room, i’m pretty sure. let’s go get them, we got time.” you both head upstairs. armin greets everyone with a soft mornin. mikasa quietly drinks coffee while connie and sasha lean on her.
“mika, watch the coffee for me please.” “gotcha.”
armin follows you upstairs, wrapped in the blanket. shower running down the hall. ashley’s door slightly cracked open; eren lies on her bed in new clothes, on top of a squishmallow. his braids are still in; he secretly likes hair play.
“have you seen your hair?” you ask.
“no?” he closes the door, confused. he takes off the blanket and sets it on your bed.
reaching for his glasses, you giggle. “you and connie were cuddling on the couch.” he looks at your vanity mirror.
“… he got me… again.” he buries his face in his hands. everyone has been a victim to connie’s drunken braiding.
while armin studies his hair, you study his body. he isn’t covering himself with the blanket anymore. his jeans sag slightly from leaving his belt on your floor.
his freckled back is covered in scratches. his front shows hickies and bites too; you two are even.
you give him his glasses and offer clothes for after his shower. he sits silently as you pick out pieces.
you break the silence first. “hey… we’re cool right? no weirdness between us?” you place a human fly t-shirt and cookie monster pajama pants next to him.
“yea of course. i care about you. i wouldn’t want to lose you or have anything come between us.” he breathes a relieved laugh. “are you good though? i don’t want anything left unsaid.” he rests his hand on your knee.
he was going to bring it up, but you beat him to it. he’s willing to hear anything.
armin doesn’t want you to pull away or ice him. the whole annie situation showed him he dislikes being blindsided; he’d rather talk things out.
you tilt your head, smiling lightly. “nah i’m good. we’re close. i didn’t want to make it weird. you know i’m always here to talk.”
armin wraps his arm around your waist, pulling you in for a warm hug. he still smells like alcohol and needs a shower.
you rest your jaw on his neck and trace the marks on his back. “i gotchu good, huh?” his back shivers at your touch.
“huh, what do you mean?” he pulls back, confused.
“you haven’t looked in the mirror. you’re covered in marks. we're even.” you lift your shirt, showing your bra, pointing out dark spots and the mark he gave you on your shoulder.
“that was me?” he points at himself, eyes wide. “i didn’t think i was that rough.”
armin looks in the mirror with glasses on. his tongue sticks out the side of his mouth while he focuses. he traces purple and pink splotches on his body, then sees the scratches you gave him.
after a while, armin faceplants on the bed, remembering he’s hungover. ashley finishes her shower; he slides off your covers for a quick shower. you inform ashley and eren everyone is up and there’s coffee downstairs.
…
connie showered in the basement while you were upstairs. he had no patience for everyone else taking long. he already assumed eren would hog the bathroom and decided to get ahead.
he threw on his tiger moving ears hat, a ‘i turned off my game to be here’ shirt, baggy gym shorts, and ugg slippers. you hadn’t seen that shirt in a while; now you knew who had it.
armin took out the braids in the shower, leaving his hair wavy. he tried to brush them out, but there was only so much he could do. you let him put his hair into low pigtails.
you and armin went downstairs as yo no mañana by luis enrique played. sasha was dancing with connie while eren played with the ends of his braids. mikasa and ashley watched tiktoks together. it was decided you’d all eat at waffle house—cheap, easy, and good.
“not gon lie i forgot to ask, but how did y'all get home before us?” connie asks as you and armin join everyone.
everyone perks up in curiosity. usually you’d be the last to leave the club. you two were asleep by the time everyone else got back. they want to know how the night went; they only saw you both at the start and this morning.
armin responds quickly as everyone heads to the car. “oh, she was kinda really wasted, so i got us a cab home. it was crowded, hard to find y'all, and we were drunk anyway.” technically true—they were drunk, and finding everyone would’ve been a mission. nobody needs to know the other parts.
ashley gets in the driver’s seat as eren runs to be passenger. he says he’s too big for the back. sasha and mikasa sit down while connie spreads across both laps, wanting another nap before eating. you sit quietly on armin’s lap.
eren comes out wearing an old thrasher hoodie and panda pajama pants—ashley’s. nobody knows how she let him take them. he puts on the first shoes he finds: elf slippers. he really doesn’t care what he looks like and keeps the braids. he looks insane.
text me by dpr live plays as you rest your head on the driver’s seat in front of you. talking and moving around the whole morning finally catches up to you. the car reminds everyone (except ashley) of how terrible they feel.
everyone wears sunglasses as the sunny sky blinds them with the reality of this morning. headaches and dread wash over the group.
ashley is the only one in a decent mood. her energy contrasts everyone else’s. she made a mistake, though: letting eren sit in the front. he’ll complain the whole ride.
11:28 am, waffle house
you all slide into two separate booths as mr. brightside by the killers plays. ashley sits next to you to avoid eren. mikasa doesn’t want to deal with the triple threat of connie, sasha, and eren, so she slides across from you.
everyone abandons armin to sit with them. he realizes he got set up but doesn’t complain. if he spoke up, the trio would latch onto him, convincing him they weren’t that bad.
ashley goes ahead, ordering two pitchers of water. she doesn’t want to hear complaints.
“umm, can i get… hashbrowns and a waffle with strawberries and whipped cream. lemme also get bacon and a biscuit, and… i'll just have a coffee with cream and sugar please.”
the waitress turns to armin. “can i get hashbrowns, a plain waffle with syrup on the side, scrambled eggs, bacon, and, uhh, some orange juice?” he folds his menu closed.
mikasa nods. “just an all-star special: scrambled eggs, bacon and sausage, toast, and a waffle. i’ll add hashbrowns and black coffee. oh, and an extra waffle with strawberries, please.”
“such a gentlewoman,” you poked at her politeness. “ ‘scuse me, lemme get hashbrowns, a texas bacon egg & cheese melt, a waffle with syrup, crispy bacon, and a sprite, please.”
“y/n knows wassup with the sprite.” connie always got sprite when sick. it really helped.
sasha clears her throat, “texas bacon egg & cheese melt with hashbrowns, two waffles. make sure one has chocolate chips and the other peanut butter and syrup.” she’s serious. she gave the waitress a second to write down everything.
“…fat ass.” eren whispers to armin. sasha kicks him under the table. she excuses herself to the waitress, giving a tired smile.
“a side of biscuits and sausage gravy, bacon and sausage links, sweet tea and coke, please and thank yewww!” sasha catches her breath after the long order.
“just a quick texas bacon cheesesteak melt with hashbrowns, waffle with chocolate chips and whipped cream, and sweet tea and sprite.” connie looks up, remembering. “oh! lemme also get double bacon and extra toast.” hearing everyone order bacon made connie crave some.
armin’s face flushes; he knows whose turn it is to order. you roll your eyes as connie mutters to hurry. he’s picky and specific.
eren does calm down motions with his hands, “chill, ima boss, ima boss.” he ignores comments and turns to the waitress.
eren clasps his hands, locking on the waitress. he squints his eyes studying her name tag. “…hailey. hi, i’m eren. make sure everything i order is perfect, k?”
ashley quietly begs, “please don’t do this,” while mikasa buries her face in her hand. armin gives the waitress an apologetic look.
he orders precisely, “ok first… all-star special, scrambled eggs with cheese, bacon instead of sausage, toast swapped for biscuit.”
sasha mutters, “i hate this bitch.” sliding down in her seat. connie pulls his hat over his eyes, groaning. painful to watch.
eren pauses to ensure accuracy. “and lastly, large hashbrown, extra biscuit and gravy, plain waffle with syrup, and coffee. thanks, hailey.”
armin hands the menus to the waitress, avoiding eye contact. mikasa whispers an apology about him. once out of earshot, everyone digs in on eren.
you whisper-yell, “eren, i hope you know how annoying you are.” connie pulls his braids; he winces and tucks them behind his ear.
everyone mean-mugs him. armin adds, “your white side is taking over more and more.” eren gets mad whenever reminded of it. everyone agrees and moves on to recount last night.
eren freezes, offended. “wait, wait, wait. YOU telling ME my white side is showing is crazy. YOU’RE white! blond hair, blue eyes, button nose.” he looks around for backup—none comes.
“why’re you being racist, eren?”
“didn’t think you’d discriminate against a close friend.”
“what’s wrong with being white?”
“you’re body shaming him.”
“actually, i’m not just some white boy,” armin rolls his eyes. “i speak german.” he twirls the ends of his pigtails.
eren, half puerto rican, doesn’t speak spanish well. he understands it but rarely talks in it. his mom nags him, telling him to learn from ashley, connie, and sasha.
the wait for food is filled with eren whining about nobody being on his side. he claims when he disappears, everyone will regret treating him poorly. by the time food comes, he’s ready to eat, ignoring the drama.
everyone eats quickly, realizing how hungry they are. the meal is spent reminiscing about last night.
connie, sasha, and mikasa danced all night. mikasa wasn’t a dancer until she partnered with sasha; she realized it was fun and a good workout.
sasha and connie dance-battled everyone, drunk and thinking they were in step-up or white chicks. nobody knew when they practiced or how they synced so well.
ashley and eren were off somewhere too. eren needed someone to limit him, or he’d get white girl wasted. he also gets loud. with ashley, he drinks less, distracted by talking and flirting.
…
sasha and mikasa went home first; mikasa has work tomorrow. sasha preps meals for mikasa’s strict routine.
mikasa and connie work at a sports camp. mikasa’s super athletic, practiced martial arts her whole life. connie uses camp to learn about the human body while getting paid to play around. campers love both.
you, connie, and ashley just stayed in for the night. you guys didn’t wait up on jean since he probably wouldn't come back tonight. he’d stay at marco's until he had to go to work.
marco usually left jean early in the morning; he interns as an advertising assistant. this internship let him build up more connections in the business world. everyone has to go back to work in the following days.
eren and armin made it back to their apartment. it was gifted to armin by his grandpa as a graduation/college gift. he wanted him to be comfortable while pursuing a higher education.
armin and eren were playing video games and took a break to snack. they both stood in the kitchen eating chips before eren’s mouth opened suddenly as his eyes lit up. he seemed to have remembered something. armin curiously waited for him to speak.
the innocent question of, “what up with you and y/n?”, left eren’s mouth as he stuffed it with hot cheetos.
you ended up in the back of a cab with armin. you guys were entangled with each other. he kept you seated on his lap, forced you to arch your back as he planted kisses on your neck and chest. you couldn't keep still and fidgeted from how ticklish you were.
armin kept one of his hands on your hip tightly. it felt like he was trying to hold onto you, hold onto the moment. the other skimmed your waist and chest.
your movements weren't helping the position armin was in. you could feel him growing more impatient as time went on. all he wanted to do was taste you.
armin's hands wandered your body, finding their way to your thighs. his hand gripped your inner thigh as he gently stroked the skin near your panties. he could feel the heat radiating off your clothed pussy as he teased.
one of your hands was tangled in his hair. whenever you tugged at it, he held back a light groan. you palmed his dick through his jeans, feeling him twitch.
your other hand played with the waistband of his pants and boxers. he squirmed around under your touch. he was fighting back gasps, his hips bucking in your direction.
you buried your head in his neck, pausing and slightly out of breath. "are you sure you wanna do this?"
the million-dollar question. it was a serious inquiry.
he had initiated it, but was he ready to actually get involved with someone new? you didn't want any strings attached; he was already heartbroken, you didn't want to add to his pain, and you guys were friends.
you couldn't think straight, being drunk and all, and neither could armin. everything felt like a fleeting moment.
your breath was hot against his neck. the question caused him to inhale sharply. his voice was hoarse and ragged.
"i wouldn't be here if this wasn't what i wanted. you gonna make me beg?"
he was in a haze but knew he was exactly where he should be. his words were enough to feed the fire now lit under you.
his response made you nuzzle into his neck. he sounded so willing. you continued to grind your hips into him. he tremored and fought back a throaty grunt, head falling back.
3:11 am, the house
before stumbling out of the car, you fixed his glasses, snickering at the mess you'd made of him.
his face was flushed from drinks, breathing heavy, glasses crooked and fogged up. his lip was swollen and still covered in lip gloss; his face and neck were marked.
you'd never seen such a beautiful sight.
you were in no better condition. armin paused to take in your appearance: eye and lip makeup slightly smudged—his doing, of course. your dress climbed up your thighs, hair disheveled.
he couldn't help but eat up the way you looked at your rawest form.
you weren't worried about how you looked; all you cared about was how you felt. tonight, armin's mission was to feel and explore a new sensation.
he kept you moving as you fumbled for your keys in a drunken trance. shoes were abandoned at the door as he practically carried you upstairs. you moved as one, not allowing the fleeting moment to slip away.
he sprawled on the bed as he tried to take off his shirt. you straddled him, helping him. both of you fumbled with the piece of clothing, giggling at the struggle.
he watched intently as you started to slip off your dress in front of him. you were still in your bra and panties, but he was hypnotized the entire time. you rested on top of his clothed crotch and could feel him growing harder. he watched like you were made for this.
he propped himself up on his elbows, eyes glossed over as he stared up at you. you closed the distance, gently took off his glasses, and placed them on your nightstand.
all he could do was stare. he was in a trance with your every movement. he listened to your every word. he followed your every move. he reacted to everything. he wanted to drink in the moment.
you licked his bottom lip, telling him to let you get closer. you pulled your mouth back slightly and whispered, "open for me," using your thumb to pull down his bottom lip. you shifted back and forth as his breath caught in his throat.
he opened his mouth slightly at your command and let out a whine. you swiped your thumb on his lip as it quivered. slowly rubbing against him, you pulled him in and hovered over his mouth. you could feel him fighting back a moan; he was reeling.
your lips connected and his tongue piercing glided against your mouth. he couldn't hold himself stable on his elbows anymore. you both toppled back as one of his hands grazed your butt, the other playing with the band of your panties.
you pulled away and started to kiss down his jaw and neck. he sighed at the disconnect of your lips from his, but let out a breath as you trailed lower. you left bites on his chest as you followed his happy trail.
you could tell how badly he wanted you. his pants grew tighter the moment you started unbuckling his belt. he lifted his lower body as you slipped off his pants and dropped them to the floor.
you balanced yourself on his thighs as he sat up. you could see his chest rising more aggressively now, breath ragged. he swallowed hard as his hand rested on the side of your neck.
his thumb caressed your throat softly before pulling you in for a kiss. your arms wrapped around his neck as you rolled your hips against his aching cock. no words were exchanged, but you both knew what the other wanted.
he stretched his arms around your back and unclipped your bra. goosebumps spread across your skin as his hands fondled your chest. his tongue piercing circled your nipples, and his hand reached for the dampened area of your panties.
his arm wrapped around your waist and gripped your side, forcing you into place. his finger hovered over your opening as it circled your clit. he stimulated you against the cloth barrier.
your hips stuttered against his touch, and you whimpered at his teasing. he stroked your slit with a single finger, rubbing back and forth. his lips nipped at your chest as he watched your face.
he wanted to see you writhe under his touch. he was leaking at the sight of you right now.
"armin... ke-keep going, you're doing so good."
armin moved your panties to the side and spread you open; he finally inserted two fingers. his thumb was glued to your clit as he continued to circle it, and you clenched around his middle and ring fingers.
you looked down at him, eyes glossy and jaw slack. he was staring up at you, and you couldn't break away from his eye contact. he started to work his hand, pumping into you slowly. he wanted to explore this side of you more.
his firm grip on your waist didn't allow you to move a muscle. all you could do was take it. he sped his pace as you relaxed around him. his fingers curled into you, causing you to jolt and arch your back.
his fingers dug into your sides the more you quivered as he kept attacking your insides. your hand gripped his hair while the other scratched his back; you were trying to hold onto your thoughts.
you felt a familiar coil in your stomach as your surroundings grew fuzzy. armin pulled his hands from between your thighs. you whined at the loss of his fingers.
"s-sorry... i need you so bad."
he had intended to work you open, not get you off with just his fingers. he wanted to make you more comfortable before he got greedier. he whispered for you to take off your ruined underwear as he set you down next to him.
you slid them off and tossed them to the side as armin watched. he grabbed a condom from your nightstand and shifted further into your bed, propping himself up against your pillows. he set the condom near him.
armin's boxers were still on, precum soaking the fabric. crawling towards him, you positioned yourself on his lap. he inhaled sharply as you sat on his growing erection.
hooking your fingers on his boxers, you slid them down slowly, his dick finally freed. his pink tip glistened as it continued to leak. his hand gripped your bedsheets as you studied him.
armin covered his face while eyeing you, slightly embarrassed, the deep red flush on his face not hiding it. his dick twitched under your watch.
"you know... you're bigger than i expected."
you slowly stroked him a few times before putting the condom on. he was throbbing and biting back strangled moans at your gentle touch.
you shakily teased him with your lips before completely sitting on it. he jolted forward, rasping out a plea. you choked on a strangled cry as you adjusted to the tight fit.
"oh my god- are you ok? is it... is it too mu-much?"
he leaned back into the pillows as his fingers dug into your hips and you slowly started to bounce. you held onto his shoulder, digging your nails into it for leverage.
you rolled your hips into him as he held onto you. he filled you just right, and you could feel yourself ready to let go. his breath was ragged as he held back strangled whimpers.
you sped up your pace, arching your back, as you watched him grow noisier. armin took this as permission to grind against your hips. he wrapped an arm around your waist once again.
your hips rutted against each other as you grew more dizzy. he held onto you as he started to slam into you. he bottomed out as you kept riding against his pounding.
all that was heard between you two was the sound of moans, heavy breathing, and skin against skin. armin held both of your sweating figures together so you wouldn't slip away.
his lips ghosted over your neck as he bit down on your shoulder. the sudden pain forced you to arch into him as you clawed his back. he kept his same quick pace at your reaction.
armin could feel your heart beating against his chest, his ears buzzing. he was drowning in pleasure and felt like he could burst right now. he had lost himself in your warmth since the club.
he wasn't going to let his night end without getting a piece of you.
you let out shaky and choked sobs as he drove into you. armin was nuzzled into your neck as he muttered a string of curse words. he was seeing stars as you shook in his grasp.
your body was going limp as your eyes squeezed shut. you'd felt yourself ready to topple over for a while now. armin could feel you tighten around him as his pace grew more frantic.
he was making strangled noises as he tried to keep his focus on your face. he clenched his jaw as he watched you in awe.
you were burning up, hair sticking to your forehead, mouth open as you sobbed out pleas. he flushed at your appearance as he pulsed inside you, hips stuttering.
"you look so... pretty. ke—fuck—keep looking at me."
armin's eyes were locked on you as you tried to stay focused on him. your reactions were in sync. his groans and fast pace matched your cries and shudders.
your body started to tense as you felt yourself reach your climax. you felt the moment consuming you as your eyes shut. you moaned out a mixed string of curses and his name.
armin was blissed out watching the scene in front of him. he held back choked moans and whimpers as he came. he continued with lazy strokes, letting you ride out your high.
you both let out a deep breath as armin held you up. you were ready to fall over in bed. you both were exhausted, drunk, and sweaty.
you wrapped your arms around his shoulders while you started to feel sleepy. you melted into his body as you both cuddled. your body felt drained from exhaustion.
after a while, he pulled himself out, earning a sharp inhale from the blond. armin laid you onto the bed as he searched for a pair of boxers in your drawers; his were ruined and you were known to wear boxers as shorts.
he put his shirt on you, ensuring you weren't just lying there naked. wrapping his arms around you, he slipped under the covers with you. you curled up against his body before falling asleep.
once he felt your shallow breaths against his chest, he slipped out of your bed. he didn't want everybody to interrogate either of you. this was for the best.
he quietly threw on his pants, checking that you were still asleep. he held onto the railing as he stumbled downstairs. armin let out a deep breath before flopping face-first onto the couch. he was already asleep before he knew it.
3:58 am
a little later that night, connie, ashley, eren, mikasa, and sasha made their way back home. they already knew you and armin were home; they had your locations.
they stumbled through the door to find a shirtless armin lying on his stomach, passed out on the couch. he didn't wake up to any of their commotion.
ashley seemed to be the only one who noticed the faded scratches on his back. maybe they were leftover marks from hazing. his frat did have them constantly going through it.
connie took this as a chance to drunkenly cover the blond with a blanket. eren and mikasa proceeded to pet his head and gush over "how cute he looked when he snored."
ashley watched, slightly concerned, from the kitchen island as she noticed sasha cooking a "quick" pot of spaghetti and meatballs. pretty impressive for a drunk girl, right? ashley made her way upstairs to check on you, grabbing some water and advil.
she entered your room and saw you asleep under your bed sheets. ashley spotted your dress bunched up and tossed on the floor as she made her way through.
armin's glasses were resting neatly on your nightstand. she set the bottles down as you shifted, moving your sheets slightly down. her eyes glanced at you in his shirt. you had some barely noticeable splotches on your neck.
armin's glasses? he probably helped you into bed and set them down in the process. he was always polite, but a little clumsy when drunk.
his shirt? you had a habit of taking and wearing other people's clothing. you probably got uncomfortable in your dress, wanted something looser, and armin offered his shirt.
he was always a gentleman, that one.
ashley made her way downstairs and walked in on a fascinating scene. sasha was still cooking, and the other three were stacking pillows on armin's back. how'd they go from doting on him to building on him in the span of a few minutes?
she didn't stop them, she just returned to her seat at the kitchen island. armin slept through it all; everyone seemed to always see what they could get away with while he slept. he was one of the heaviest sleepers you knew.
by the time sasha finished cooking, the others got bored of playing with armin and had joined ashley. they all inhaled the food while fighting to stay awake. it was 4:25 am and everyone was ready to knock out.
the hangover was going to be insane.
connie had passed out on the couch while trying to braid armin's hair. he did a pretty good job, especially since he did the blonde's whole head.
eren fell asleep in the bathtub in the basement bathroom. nobody knew how he ended up in there. you were all pretty convinced he was a sleepwalker, always waking up elsewhere than where he was last.
his hair was braided into two; connie must've gotten to him at some point.
sasha and mikasa stayed in jean's room. he let friends stay there as long as they didn't mess around with his art supplies. both of the girls took this as an opportunity to raid his closet and drawers for clothes.
ashley returned to her room after making sure everyone was down for the night. she didn't want to think about having to deal with everyone and their complaints in the morning.
author's note- i would like to note this is lwk my first time ever writing smut and like idk😭😭😭 im not too sure that it's the best out there but at least it's smth 🥹🫰🏽
connie's party was truly something to remember. everything that night seemed to blow up; so many people came, cops pulled up, and drama. it was found out the next day that annie and armin were no longer together.
the two blondes spent almost the majority of the night going back and forth. they'd been rocky for the past few months, with rumors armin had caught wind of and annie’s lack of interest.
she at least did the noble thing and broke up with armin face-to-face, but it didn’t stop the hurt he felt.
eren and mikasa were the ones to find armin that night. they ended up tracking him down a little before the cops came. they didn't know what happened until armin muttered, “we’re done. she… they- annie broke up with me.”
if they all weren't sober at that point, after hearing armin they definitely were.
it isn't too clear why, but the premise was that annie had been cheating. she just didn’t want a relationship right now. college was meant to have new experiences and grow as a person. i guess she had outgrown armin.
he noticed she was icing him out a few months back but wanted to make it work. armin tried to talk it out, but there was nothing annie wanted to talk about. in the end, they both knew he'd talk his way into making her stay. all she could do was walk away that night.
she still cared and knew him the best. annie was his first love, his first everything.
what caused the boy the most hurt was that she’d cheated with reiner and bertolt. they’d all been friends, and he trusted them dearly.
that night caused a rift in the group. nobody could support what those three did—they betrayed a sense of trust. everyone decided to take a break from those three while things mellow out.
today wasn’t the day to reminisce on the events of that night. today is marco's birthday. everyone's here to have fun.
tonight's mission was to get ready, head out to the club, get white girl wasted, and celebrate marco’s 19th.
you, connie, and ashley gathered at marco's apartment. jean had been there since yesterday; they had a home date. mikasa and sasha were making their way upstairs in the elevator. you were waiting on two more people.
eren and armin were on their way. this was going to be armin’s first night out being single. everyone wanted to make it memorable.
as soon as armin and eren walked in, they were handed shots. high high by gd&top played in the background, setting the mood for tonight. you were getting hyped up for marco tonight.
everyone besides ashley had been doing shots to pregame. ashley doesn’t drink or smoke; you all packed into her car excitedly.
all 8 of you couldn’t fit in ashley's car. you had already called shotgun and got comfortable in the passenger seat. mikasa sat on sasha's lap, connie on marco, and armin on eren’s. jean, being the tallest, got forced to sit in the trunk. everyone was now situated.
11:32 pm, the club
security let you in without a hassle; they already knew you. you would dj here on the weekends or whenever you were free. you were greeted at the door with a hug and a kiss on the cheek. the club was your second home.
“what the fuck?” “oh my god?”
everyone was freaking out about the fact that you all got allowed in—no id check, no wait. you all promised marco the night of his ‘teenage’ life, and this is how you'll contribute.
you all settled into a section reserved for you. the group got even more hyped. everyone settled into their seats as luxury by azealia banks played. you ordered drinks and waited for them before going to dance.
marco was in awe of the ‘vip' treatment he was getting today. his ears were flushed as he looked around and fidgeted with jean’s hand, “holy fuck, how're you doing all this? this is literally too much.” his thanks were evident on his face.
“why’re you one-upping us? ain’t nobody topping this gift,” eren jokingly called you out.
you kind of were one-upping any gift the others would offer. who else would be able to get into a club—no wait, have a section whenever they asked, and drinks on the house?
your face heated from the praise, “this is the least i could do. we gotta go all out, just for marco.” you’d do anything to give a friend the night of their lives.
everyone got their drinks as shots arrived at the table as well. you spent some time scoping out the scenery before joining the crowded floor.
it was expected that you wouldn’t see each other by the time the night came to an end. the club was so crowded—too many people and faces to keep track of all at once.
you all took down your shots before being set free. the liquor warmed your body as you joined the even warmer crowd. the swarm of people swallowed you in, and it felt like they wouldn't let go.
the plan had already been talked about before eren and armin arrived, but it was to keep armin busy. marco and jean were going home together. the rest would either meet up together or find their own way back.
you grabbed armin by the hand and strayed from the group. being around all those couples would probably make him feel awkward. you were one of the few people who didn't remind him of the betrayal.
12:54 am
the slow lights and bass that made your bones vibrate drew you to the dance floor. work by rihanna played louder, and you lost yourself in the crowd. you had no idea where your friends were at this point, but you didn’t care.
you were feeling the drinks as they warmed your chest. your throat burned more and more; you couldn't help but love the feeling. you felt yourself get looser and looser.
armin was beside you, matching your pace. he was already slightly flushed; he couldn't hide that the drinks were hitting him. he kept sticking out his tongue from the dizziness—tongue piercing on full display, and you couldn't help but stare.
you took this as an opportunity to check on him. he should be relaxed. the atmosphere eased up compared to when he first arrived at marco’s.
“how you feeling tonight?”
“good. i’m feeling good. the people here must love you.” he pointed around at the club, stating his newfound discovery, “everybody knows you here.”
“i do what i can, this place is like home to me.” giggling at his shock and amusement, one dance by drake started to play as you guys stood at the bar with finished drinks, “you wanna dance? i really wanna dance, come dance. let's go dance.”
you took the boy by the hand and pulled him into the crowd. it looked like they parted as you walked between them. your figure guided the way as armin watched you navigate the floor.
for the past few weeks, you’d been there to support armin. you’d been there to listen to him talk without the constant negative comments about annie, bertolt, or reiner. he needed somebody to listen without commentary but was also able to offer advice.
he's always liked that you could be so open to so many perspectives. you were perfect to have on standby. you were always there regardless of the situation or person.
you were in your element right now. the only reminder of reality was armin dancing with you. his gaze kept fixed on you as you immersed yourself in the music. the blond’s dancing kind of set him apart from the regulars; it wasn’t the best.
you grabbed his hand and placed it on your hips. he took this as an invitation to let his hand wander to your butt. he matched your rhythm; you were both in sync. his eyes had been practically focused on you the whole night; his vision never faltering.
your faces were inches apart, and you could see his face flush even more. your chest felt tighter as he got behind you; his breath shuddered down your neck. you could smell his cologne on him and the smell of vodka on his breath.
he was confused about what was happening right now. he thought you were pretty, but you're friends. he is single, so it wasn't necessarily too bad. also, it technically isn't wrong for friends to just dance.
when you stared at him like that, how could he not be mesmerized? you were in charge right now, and he liked to follow instructions.
1:45 am
armin excused himself to the bathroom. the atmosphere and drinks were hitting him more than he expected. he felt like his head was spinning as he stumbled down the hallway to the bathrooms.
the bathroom was dimly lit with a purple light bulb. there were guys passed out, some in stalls and others on the floor. the humidity trapped in the cramped space was thick.
armin tried to sober up in the bathroom, get a grip. he held onto the sink as he stared at himself in the mirror. his hair was sticking to his forehead, his face flushed and slightly sweaty, glasses slightly crooked. the scent of your perfume lingered on him.
heartbeat by childish gambino muffled through the walls; jagged, pulsing, almost like his own heartbeat, matching the spinning thoughts in his head.
he wasn't thinking too clearly. your being was inviting him to get closer. you were teasing him. he didn't know if it was the drinks talking, but he couldn't think straight.
2:08 am
song: house of balloons/glass table girls by the weeknd
he saw you in the distance, dancing between a girl and floch. they were all over you; you were in sync. they didn’t need to learn how to match your energy—they already knew how.
the girl in front of you had fingers tucked behind your neck, and in return, your hand skimmed over the small of her back. your leg was between hers as you circled your hips. floch’s hips followed your lead as his hands kneaded your hips. your other hand rested on his as you teased him to go down the front of your thighs.
it was like watching a scene from afar. he was on the outside watching you in your world. he’d never seen you like this.
there was so much he didn’t know about you and the others. he’d missed out on so many things because he’d been worried about annie.
maybe he could find out, make up for the missed time. he wanted to know what your world was like, what it felt like.
this could be something for him to focus on, shift his attention. he always did want to know more about the world. why not get a closer look at yours?
he wanted to study you, get to know you, and didn't want any distractions while doing it.
you spotted him in the crowd; he was there watching. how long had he been there? you stared at him and mouthed, ‘come here’ as you kept dancing.
you slipped out from between your partners and approached the boy. armin kept staring. pyramids by frank ocean was playing. he initiated first. he put his hand on your shoulder but let you lead.
he leaned down in your ear, “you’re really in your zone here, huh?” laughing softly, he tried to play off his astonishment.
“i love it here, the club is home.”
you’ve been friends with armin since high school freshman year, but most people didn’t know what you did. everyone in your circle went out a lot in the past few years, but armin wasn’t always present. he’d become engrossed in his first serious relationship.
tonight was a reminder for armin of how little he knew. did he only know you on the surface? he couldn't help but want to know more. he needed to know more.
you excused yourself for a smoke break. as you walked away from him, he stared at your figure. you glanced over your shoulder once. he didn’t know or understand what you were doing to him; he couldn't help but continue to follow your lead.
2:25 am, outside
you shuffled your way through the swarm of people at the bar to a hallway. you made your way down the dimly lit hall until you reached three doors. you ducked out a door next to the bathrooms.
the music was muffled outside. you could still feel the bass as way back by travis scott blasted from the club. you needed a quick break. you pulled out a sterling blue cigarette from your bra as you stood in the smoke area. you leaned on the wall as you lit the butt. there weren't many people standing outside.
you were trying to give armin a good time, but you didn't know if you were doing too much. he wasn't as used to club life as the others were. he was experiencing his newly single life, and you were only showing him some fun.
jean happened to join you outside. he sat down on the benches next to you. you or armin hadn't seen anybody from your group all night. everyone was off doing their own thing.
“taking a break?”
“yeah, been in there all night.”
“can i take a hit off you?”
“mhm, you don't gotta ask.”
“armin good? i haven't seen him once.”
you snickered at the question, “he’s amazing. i got him dancing and taking shots. you should see the look on his face.” jean could already imagine what armin looked like at this point. he'd seen it before, and it was truly a sight.
“how’s marco feeling? he having fun or what?”
“night of his freakin life, bro. he’s off one, going crazy. i wish you could see him.” he started keeling over at the mention of the birthday boy. laughing along with his reaction, you already knew the sight you were missing out on.
marco was studying business administration. he was serious and no-nonsense when it came to his field, but he had a switch. when he let loose, he was a party animal. one wouldn’t imagine marco having a persona until you saw it yourself.
“i'll catch you again, right?”
“that's if we see each other after.”
“you right. i'll see you back home later. night.”
“night.”
jean left you to keep smoking as he had to go back to marco. you wanted to finish your cigarette before going inside—they're expensive in this economy.
2:49 am
you heard somebody slightly stumble out the door while ashing your now-done cigarette on the bottom of your shoe. looking over your shoulder, you saw the same boy you were dancing with before.
shifting your side, your back completely to the wall, “i was gonna head back and find you. you didn't need to come out here.” you faced armin’s direction.
he stepped in front of your leaning figure, “i didn’t want to lose you again.” he leaned down a little closer to your height. it wasn’t easy to hear you with the music and sounds of cars.
“again?”
“when i walked away and you were already dancing with floch and some girl.”
you laughed breathily at his response, rolling your eyes, “possessive much? sharing is caring, you know.”
“i’m not into sharing. i don't wanna, not right now.”
armin caught you off guard. you couldn’t tell if he was just playing along with you. he was drunk but not dumb. he wouldn’t say something meaningless to someone he cares about.
you both stood there staring at each other for a while. not being able to read his face, you couldn't tell what he was thinking. the air felt thick after that answer.
his face was still flushed from the drinks. the cool summer night made you shiver slightly as you kept at this staring ‘game’.
you interrupted the ‘game’ with a laugh at the way armin looked and stared at you; you couldn’t help it. the hills by the weeknd started to play inside. you pushed yourself off the wall and got in his face.
“let's go back, i love this song.” tilting your head, letting out a playful smile. you continued to stare at him, waiting for his response.
armin looked down at you, your faces closer. his glasses were fogging up from the warmth of his body. you could smell the alcohol on him from the lack of distance.
he stared down at your lips as you stared into his eyes, waiting for a response. you couldn't say anything either; you wouldn’t. you waited for him.
you smelled like cigarettes, but it only made him inhale your scent even more. you could feel the air grow heavy around you. the scent of his cologne mixed with your perfume.
it was just you two right now.
you’d been together the whole night, but there was noise. he saw you in your element. you got to show and introduce him to something different.
the sound of streetcars and music felt like it faded into the background. the only sounds heard were both of your breathing, in sync. his eyes searched for something, but there was only silence.
tonight he had to see you with the rest of the world, but right now it was truly just you two. no people, no loudness, no interruptions. just you and him.
you were glowing right now, radiating. under the dim street lights, you looked unreal to him. something had been pulling him toward you, and it still was.
he licked the side of his mouth and bit the corner of his lip. he opened his mouth slightly, almost as though he was about to say something. his breath hitched, voice not escaping.
his throat was hoarse as he struggled to speak. you broke your line of vision from his eyes to his throat as he swallowed, adam's apple bobbing.
you felt like you couldn't breathe. the lack of air made you feel light, foggy. your face heated up, and your pulse quickened. all you could hear was your heart and breathing.
your eyes shifted up to his mouth, his jaw slack. they were slightly redder than usual and swollen. there was an apparent blush on his face as his ears turned redder by the minute.
his glasses had slid down his nose. you went in to fix them for him. he stood there, not flinching at your sudden touch. he embraced it as you pushed hair out of his face.
“armin, use your words.”
he placed his hand softly on your wrist as it rested on his jaw. you were even closer than before, seeing and feeling his jaw clench. you stroked his jaw as he was now eye level, looking at you.
his response never came, but he made his move.
he melted into your touch, lips hovering over yours. there was a second of hesitation. your lips connected for a while. it was soft, gentle, nervous in a way.
the taste of his negroni mixed in with the aftertaste of your sterling blues. he whined at the bitter taste you introduced to him. armin was holding himself back; he wanted more.
he was the first to pull away. you and he both stood there. you stared at each other's eyes, thinking and searching for something.
you both got a little taste, but armin had been developing a craving all night; he wanted to go deeper, closer. he leaned back in and closed the little space that was there before.
his lips crashed into yours, but more feverishly now. you didn’t fight it; you wanted it as well. you stumbled back slightly, and his hand was already behind your head. you were stuck, his body in front of you and the wall supporting you both.
your hand moved to the collar of his shirt, and the other made its way to his hair. his other arm wrapped around your waist, holding you up. his knee was wedged in between your legs.
this time it was electric, no more hesitation or nervousness. your mouths moved in sync as everything became rougher. your back was sliding up the wall.
armin was burning up, but his touch sent shivers down your spine. you weren’t cold anymore; you felt yourself grow warm. your core ached from the pressure his knee applied.
he made his way from your mouth to your jaw. his knee lifted you slightly above him as he yearned for more. he peppered a mix of kisses and bites down your neck to your chest.
armin left a path of slight bite marks and, soon-to-be-formed hickeys. you leaned your head back onto the wall as your eyes shut. you formed a tighter grip on his hair, trying to hold onto some sense of reality.
with his need to be drunk off your kisses, he found his way back to your mouth. the taste of cigarettes on your breath intoxicated him further than he already was.
you pulled him closer by his collar as you continued trading open-mouth kisses. you bit his lip, and he let out a small whimper.
you pulled his hair slightly to get some air. you were both out of breath. a string of saliva was left when separated, one of the physical indicators of your situation at hand. armin licked his lips; your lip gloss was smudged on them. he didn't want to stop.
“sorry,” he let out a breath. “can- can we do that again?” he asked shyly while his ears flushed a deep red, voice barely audible, “please?”
last night you went to bed late and ended up waking up late as well. that morning was a blur of people constantly coming in and out. you, ashley, and jean spent the day cleaning up the house and putting away the fragiles.
“no way, your dms have been blowing up with reposts of your fuck-ass party poster!” jean cries out laughing while looking at connie's phone. he continues scrolling through the boy's phone while marco sits, looking over his shoulder as well.
connie looks over at jean and marco, splitting gummy worms and swiping through his phone. “aye, don't scroll too much. you might see something you won't like.” he giggles as marco turns off the phone before jean can go any deeper.
jean pouts and rolls his eyes, exhaling, “i wanted to see that. what's wrong with being a little curious?”
connie dealt with getting beer and liquor. you and ashley went on a store run; you bought cups while jean grabbed cases of soda. by the time you had some alone time, it was already late.
you and ashley shuffled into the bathroom to clean up your hair and makeup. at that moment you felt light. your stomach felt empty but you weren't hungry. you felt good about tonight. really good.
ashley shifts slightly as she focuses on her eye makeup. “you excited to see anybody specific tonight?” she asks, trying to get a feel for any ‘plotting.’
“nah, not really… actually, maybe ymir? it's been a minute since i saw her, and lowkey i wanna ask her what she's been up to, you know?” you don’t expect much to happen tonight besides catching up with friends—the usual.
“oh yea, i haven't seen her in forever. yooo, you know who else i haven't seen in a while? annie, reiner, and bertolt. have you heard anything about annie from armin?”
“not really? i mean they’re both busy. annie's a sophomore at MNU, and armin’s in a frat. reiner, bertolt, and annie have always been tight, so i don't think there's much to worry about.”
a thought—or rather, a specific person—pops into your head. “i know you're excited to see a specific someone tonighttt.” you tease, shoving ashley lightly.
“girl, miss me with that. i’m just tryna have some fun tonight.”
“yea, and you always end up having fun with the same guy. y'all always run off to the roof.”
“ok? god forbid a girl enjoy two beautiful views.”
you cringe as she tries to write off her alone time with her little ‘friend.’ sneaking off together is basically a tradition for those two. nobody really notices since they've never been caught, but you live with ashley. you could tell.
8:36 pm
you and the boys pregamed before people started arriving. jean sets his dr. pepper on the table and pulls out a little bag of gummies from his cargo pants pocket.
“yo, this better not end like the last party. we might actually get the cops called on us,” you say, giving connie a nasty look as he reminisces and cackles at the memory.
“i'm not gon hold you, i didn’t even know that was gonna happen. it's not my faulttt.”
“what did you think was gonna happen when you yelled out, ‘rep your set!’ at a party?” marco asks, trying to understand connie's thought process.
“i dead wanted to see what would happen. what’s wrong with being a little curious?” the three of you stare at connie in disbelief at the lack of thought behind his actions.
it’s been decided, through past experiences, that connie will make no public announcements tonight.
10:48 pm
as people get closer to the sound of music blasting, the house comes into view. people are on the porch smoking while empty beer bottles litter the lawn.
jean leads people inside while greeting them and those he passes. you hear a constant line of “yoo,” “wassup,” “wasgood.” meanwhile, connie’s already getting loud; you hear “klk klk” and “dimelo papi” from another part of the house.
the house feels hot and humid from the constant movement of bodies. the low led lights set the ‘party’ mood. the atmosphere is thick with smoke and the smell of alcohol.
the intro of bean (kobe) by lil uzi vert blasts from the speakers in the living room and backyard. you hear the muffled singing of people shouting, “in my triple cup, that's two times two! man, this shit darker than a wonton soup, ayy! yeah, my eyes red, but i’m no damu. if you don't run it up, that's all on you!!”
this whole scene feels like a hazy dream; your high’s already hitting.
you make your way from the kitchen, stopping for a drink, to the back porch—that's where the ‘stoners’ reside. you greeted annie earlier; low red eyes, already in the kitchen, babysitting a beer between bertolt and reiner.
you catch a glance of jean sprawled out on a couch. marco’s hand rests on his thigh while they talk to sasha and colt. they’re getting into it about reviving their minecraft world. sasha blames colt for not being a good farmer while he complains she has too many pets.
you see ymir and historia dancing in the distance with people recording them. historia’s hair had bubblegum pink raccoon stripes added to the mix of blonde. she still isn’t attending MU yet, but she’s already so popular. she’s going to love freshman year.
you see ashley in the distance getting hit on by eren. you can’t even try to imagine what’s happening over there—you’ll maybe ask her about that later.
you sit down next to mikasa and pieck; they greet you with a slight nod. a group of people outside are already sparking up. pieck and porco continue their conversation while mikasa comments every so often.
spliffs are being passed around alongside light-up cigarettes. you can barely make anybody out with how much smoke is surrounding you.
you take a couple hits from the spliff and start to ease up even more. time seems to slow as you feel like you've been sitting outside for 20 minutes already.
you feel a figure stand behind you and shift to the open spot on your left. you catch a glimpse of him as he holds a newly lit joint—it’s armin.
“you good? you look fried.” he laughs, staring at your bloodshot eyes and holding the joint to your mouth. you inhale while glaring at him, “really? i didn’t know weed did that to you.” you sarcastically reply as he passes it to the next, reaching past your head.
you both get comfortable quickly, and you shift closer to him. your back rests against the armrest of the couch while your legs drape over his lap. you catch up a little. most people have left the little 'smoking’ area and moved to different parts of the house.
you notice him staring into the house, sort of analyzing something. he looks down to ‘reset’ his vision, making sure his eyes aren’t playing tricks on him.
you try to peek at what he's concentrating on but can’t get a clear angle. “what's wrong? i can’t see, i wanna watch too.”
he snaps out of his trance. “nah, it's nothing. i was just watching sasha and connie drag porco and colt in cup pong.” he gives you a light smile while scratching the nape of his neck.
“ouu, i feel bad for them. they have no idea how competitive those two are.” sasha and connie are the worst people to go up against in any drinking game.
you check your phone for the first time in a while and see it's 12:05 am. you’ve been outside the entire time, and it seems like it’s time to head to the basement.
armin lags slightly behind you, typing away on his phone. you step inside, waiting for him, but he says quickly, “ima make my way downstairs, i gotta catch up with some people i just saw. don't wait up for me, alright?”
“it's cool. i’m crossed, i could get kidnapped, you know?” he rolls his eyes and feigns annoyance at your comment. you part ways with him as he continues typing and calling someone.
12:09 am
you make your way through the house and greet some people you hadn't seen. the hallways feel even more crowded than they did before you went outside.
you’ve just been floating around in and out of it. the sound of el farlsante remix by ozuna brings your attention back as you enter the hazy basement. you see everyone sitting around a coffee table. a few people are missing.
you settle down next to mikasa and rest your head on her shoulder as she rests hers on top of yours. she continues talking with historia and ymir as they sit across from you.
eren continues to scroll away on twitter while eavesdropping. he's multitasking all while holding his geek in his mouth. what a talented young man.
sasha and connie keep porco entertained near the little bar area as he goes on a tangent. sasha has a firm grip on a bag of popcorn. nobody knows where she got it from; it just spawned in her hand.
pieck and colt are seen near the trio, mixing drinks and seeing who can take a shot with no reaction. it looks like pieck is winning based on how colt flushes red every time he takes a shot. you couldn’t imagine ever out-smoking or out-drinking that girl.
jean and marco interrogate ashley while they play pool. they’ve grown to notice eren and her coincidentally disappearing at the same time. she tries to deny any suspicions while the boys side-eye her.
everyone takes some time to get away from the crowded upstairs and hang out. you laugh at the sight of all the boys flocking to eren for his miami mint. you don’t miss the opportunity to hit when offered.
“you were talking to armin outside, right? where'd he go?” mikasa asks, noticing a few people still aren’t there.
the basement is slightly packed with people. everyone, even pieck, colt, and porco, is spread out somewhere in the basement. armin and a few others seem to be missing. maybe he got caught up talking.
you close your eyes, trying to remember what he said he was going to do or where he went, but nothing comes up. you’re beyond the point of remembering the details.
eren joins in, twirling a strand of his hair as he sits up straight. ashley happens to look over at the couches, her eyes drawn to eren. you shudder at the sight of your friend blushing while a grown man plays with his hair.
“i kinda don't remember, he said he was like gonna say wassup to some people.”
“i'll lowkey just track him. if anything, he won't be hard to find. he don't even know i got him bugged.” eren adds, smirking, flashing his screen showing armin’s location.
1:27 am
everyone heads back upstairs to dance and get back to the party. on your way to the living room, you hear te bote by nio garcia and start dancing with connie.
you feel the crowd moving to the music. you and connie move in sync while he keeps the other guys from getting near you.
other people are dancing too, recording the moment to remember. the living room has turned into a wave of people moving to the music.
you turn your back to connie as you continue to dance on him. you see ashley and eren sitting on a couch getting close. you make eye contact with her, and she smirks.
you mutter, “ah hell nah bruh.” you lose sight of her in the crowd.
you catch sight of reiner and bertolt passing in the crowd. they’re both trying to listen to something on reiner’s phone. they disappear before you finish your thought, looking slightly frantic.
1:42 am
you decide you need a drink and leave connie—you saw a girl eyeing him while dancing. you watch the scene unfold. jean lingers in the kitchen before taking off to smoke.
you sit on the kitchen counter and open instagram. scrolling through stories, you see people posting about the party.
after some time, sasha joins you in the kitchen. she stands between your legs while looking down at your phone. she makes small talk and checks up on you.
the night hasn’t slowed down at all. the house has been jumping with music and people for hours.
in the span of those hours, you haven’t gotten to talk to the guys from MNU. you saw them once in passing, then they disappeared. they might’ve taken off—they’ve got a lot to do for their junior year.
blasé by ty dolla $ign blasting is suddenly interrupted by connie screaming, “yo, cops pulled up! everybody get the fuck out!” as the music cuts, people scramble like bugs.
people rush to leave the house; some out the front, some the back, others jumping from windows and the second story. it's pure madness. nobody is in the right state of mind to process the scene.
the streets flood. cops mix with the crowd of college students, trying to detain some as they run.
flashing police lights and flashlights create a semi-blinding effect. this doesn’t slow people down—it encourages them to run like their lives depend on it.
the sound of heavy breathing, footsteps, shouting, and walkie-talkies fills the air. street lights and moonlight make it easier to blend into the night as people sneak past cops and sleeping families.
2:27 am
the night comes to an end. all that’s left are empty bottles and full ashtrays. the mourning after by mac miller plays lowly as everyone winds down. tonight will be remembered—it’s certainly a way to celebrate the end and beginning.
you’re fading in and out. it’s almost 3 am, and most people have left. the only ones staying behind are a few friends from MU.
a few people in the living room are passed out while others are still awake. you stumble around, trying to find a place to rest. you can’t be bothered to go to your room. tomorrow, you’ll feel terrible.
upstairs
multiple voices come from connie's room. through the slightly cracked door, armin, eren, and mikasa can be seen. they ended up tracking down armin.
their hushed voices carry as they sit at the end of the bed.
eren aggressively types and calls someone on his phone. he runs his hand through his hair, nibbling on his thumb, trying to find something to do with his hands. he mutters angrily while keeping his eyes on the blond.
mikasa crouches in front of armin, running her hands through his hair. she talks to him slowly as she studies his face. she offers him water but gets no response.
armin hunches over on the bed bench, hands in his hair. he looks frozen in place, not even glancing at mikasa. his expression is blank, unreadable.
this party was supposed to celebrate the start of summer, but it welcomed another end.
freshman year was officially over. you had finished your finals and basically crawled your way home. you had been one of the few students waiting to get them over with early.
all you could think about was sleeping for three days, but one of your roommates had other plans. he had been waiting for you to finish the last of your finals. he wanted to celebrate officially surviving the first year at mitras university.
freshman year had come and gone a lot quicker than you expected. it was definitely a change of pace compared to high school. it was a bigger world with many new experiences.
college life had been good to you. being a campus radio dj was really fun—it opened a new and different way to get familiarized with people. you were semi-popular and known, since most enjoyed your station; it made talking to people easier because they already knew of you.
music was your world and your future.
all connie could think about was how he was going to throw the last rager of freshman year. it was all anyone could talk about for the last week. his reputation had grown from the multiple parties he'd thrown.
it wasn't completely his fault; lots of people would show up, especially friends of friends. these parties were known to start crazily. the night always ended with people talking; either they enjoyed their time or regretted their experience.
these parties became memories of their own. they made you want to come back for more. your house was off-campus, and there was no campus security to shut it down.
these parties were a come-all; they even invited people from the opposing school, marley national university. the various people and connections that made appearances at these parties drew even more attention. you couldn't ever imagine missing a connie party.
you walked home as the sky shifted to night. you were pretty sure tonight would be a rest day—some calm before the madness that would be unleashed tomorrow.
the walk back made you feel at ease. it was cool outside, with clear skies to match. you reached your street and saw the house in the distance.
you rummaged for your keys, already catching a glimpse of the scenes unfolding through the open blinds.
everything was visible thanks to the tv and lamps illuminating the room. connie and jean were wrestling in the living room. ashley sat off to the side on a sofa, not batting an eye at the boys. you could hear them yelling and giggling, with a muffled comment here and there from ashley, as you got closer to your lawn.
you opened the door, and as it clicked, you had a clear view of the full scene. ashley greeted you with a small hi and a "how did your finals go?" as she paused whatever she was watching on tv.
connie was now on top of jean, pinning his arms down. "wassup, guess what tomorrow night is?!" he greeted you excitedly as he froze mid-pin.
jean froze alongside him while answering, "one of your parties. everyone already knows. you've literally been talking about it for the past week." he rolled his eyes and shifted positions with connie, putting him into a headlock while both knelt on the ground.
"yo! can you guys stop? today is supposed to be just us chilling before one of connie's 'diddy' parties. y/n just finished her finals." ashley put an end to their wrestling match as she picked up the goldfish they seemed to be fighting over.
jean snickered at the diddy party comment while freeing connie's head. connie furrowed his brows from both the pain and the 'hurtful' remark.
ain't no party like a connie party.
you continued to leave your shoes at the door and set down your keys as you chimed in, "ashley's lowkey right, i'm mad tireddd. i just wanna chill with y'all tonight."
you excused yourself to the upstairs bathroom as you walked past them. all you could think about as you stepped into your room was what you'd be doing the whole break before school started back up in august.
you grabbed things for a quick shower as you tried to imagine what tomorrow night would be like; you'd be seeing everyone again.
it had been so long since you'd all seen each other at the same time. ever since graduating high school, you guys had kind of split up.
you had connie, jean, and ashley, and you all decided to move into connie's house since you wanted to be more independent. none of you would admit it, but the move-in wasn't just for 'learned responsibility.'
sasha was planning to move out. connie seemed lonely in his house, so the three of you decided to join him. this led to many late-night missions and a house that never slept.
marco was around often since he and jean tried to spend as much time together as possible. the sight of them being couple-y and cuddly on your shared couch made you sick. yuck.
armin and eren had their frat life. it was pretty insane to think about, but they did most things together. nothing out of the ordinary there. they were busy with hazing and side quests.
mikasa and sasha were going steady. they even lived together. they also made you sick with their pda. double yuck.
sasha, and sometimes mikasa, came around often though. she and connie were cousins and also connected at the hip. if she didn't make an appearance at least once a week, something was wrong.
ymir came around sometimes but spent all her free time in her apartment with historia. historia was finally coming to MU next semester. they'd been together for the past three years; they were basically married. triple yuck.
annie, reiner, and bertolt all went to marley national university. they were 'traitors' as everyone bashed them for the last two months before graduating. one would think armin would join annie at MNU. they'd been going steady for the past year or two, but he decided to go with mitras university. 'not wanting to be a distraction' was brought up, among other reasons. at least annie wasn't alone; she had reiner and bertolt at her side.
the past year had been a transition period. sophomore year was near, and you could feel the anxiety of another year.
you could feel that the next few months were going to be full of exploration and experiences.
everyone was being reunited. you couldn't decide if you were more excited or nervous to see them all. that didn't matter right now; that was a thought for tomorrow. tonight was a day of rest.
you made your way back downstairs to the living room in one of marco's t-shirts and some baggy gym shorts. ashley was bringing more blankets when she came into view.
you helped her bring more snacks before deciding to join the boys' last-minute smoke session. you went outside on the back porch as they smoked. you all sat in silence as the night grew darker. there was nothing but the butt of the joint left before you all made your way inside.
you all got comfortable on the couch as your highs settled in. you felt warm between ashley and connie. empire records started to play, and you could already feel jean dozing off. tonight was the end of freshman year, but tomorrow would be the official start of break.
