TWO DENSE POTATOES

-a fluffy fic-

Commander Pixis chose omelet over meat, a very surprising result for Jean and the rest of the Survey Corps but it was specifically heartbreaking for Sasha who had the effort of slaying a monstrous hog.

It was too much for Sasha that she knelt down in defeat. She didn't know that her opponent watched her from afar. When Jean saw how she reacted, a tiny piece of him shattered. Unconsciously, he stepped his way to the girl and offered his hand to her.

The girl's eyes went wide upon seeing his gesture. He stared into her big brown eyes and she did back. She stared into his waiting hands, both nervous and flustered. But even with those things, she held his hand and stood up with him. The moment their hands touched, electricity flowed in their veins; they stared at each other's eyes and suddenly felt nervous. There was a spark and none of them knew.

"Y-You can let go now, Jean." She said and smiled nervously. With that, the man stared at their locked hands and let go. "Oh...hehe" he awkwardly laughed and scratched the back of his neck.

"Thank you very much." Sasha, known for her politeness, said then escaped her way out.

"No problem." He replied unsure if she even heard him.

She went out alone just somewhere in their base and sat on the grass. Connie did everything he could to comfort her, he always does, but none of his actions made her feel anything strange. But with Jean Kirschstein though there's- she shook her head at the thought of him.

With her overflowing stress, she decided to eat it all up and went somewhere to find food.

She entered the place cautiously and made sure there wasn't anyone around, and then she went to the trays and checked if there were any leftovers. She searched everywhere but to her dismay, she only saw raw ones. She didn't like to cook anymore ever since the time she lost. She sat on the corner and let out an exhausted sigh.

Meanwhile, the rest of the 104th squad celebrated Jean's victory and ate more than they should. Jean was happy but felt uneasy after seeing Sasha's face earlier. So he approached Connie and asked about her whereabouts.

"Hey Connie, have you seen Sasha here?" He touched the man's shoulder who has been bragging how genius he was and who happens to be drunk.

"Do you expect her to come at your little victory party? She lost on your cooking battle, didn't she?" He replied with another question and with a pissed off tone.

"Dude, I'm just asking. And why the fuck do you sound like you don't care about her anymore?"

"She told me that she doesn't need me and that I shouldn't care." He answered flatly.

"And you just obey and leave her alone?" Jean asked with a hint of worry.

Connie silenced and his expression changed. "Because..." he paused a little. "Look if you're really worried about her she's just somewhere in the base outside. There's really no need for you to worry though I mean she's the best archer of our squad, y'know?" He said now calmly with a smile.

"Well…" He replied and smiled back. So then Connie left and went to the squad and talked loudly again.

Jean settled his self on the corner with Marco, Armin and the others and talked about things like their blurry future. But then he just had the urge to go see her and check if she's doing okay or anything. So he made up an excuse to go to the bathroom then ran for the door and rushed his way out.

Lucky for him, the moon was bright enough to see everything outside. He searched for her and there was no sign of Sasha Braus around. He walked further from the place without any hint of her. His breathing got heavier and he started to feel nervous for his friend...or was she just any friend? He walked a bit more faster now with his brow scrunched with worry. But then he suddenly heard a loud clang and he found out that it came from the kitchen.

"Shit. Of course!" He said loudly and directly went to her direction.

He opened the door quickly and found her picking up the pan. He sighed thankfully and went towards her. "I've been looking all over for you, potato girl." He said with a sense of relief on his face.

She smiled in confusion (just like the time when she was scolded by Shadis) in a cute way which was weirdly attractive for Jean. Sasha then sat on the floor because of her sudden shaking knees.

He watched as she sat on the corner and doubted if he'll sit beside her or not. But he chose to sit next to her anyway, close enough for their shoulders to touch. But he suddenly felt his face becoming hot so he scooted his way a little far from her.

"Why would the great almighty horse face look for a starved peasant?" She asked teasingly with a hint of mock at him.

"Well..." he paused momentarily and realized that he don't know the answer for it either. "A-are you hungry?" He then switched to another topic.

"Yeah. I always am, and I've become too annoying because of that." She replied with a little sigh.

You're not, you look cute. He mentally said and then snapped from his thoughts. "I'll cook for you then."

"Really? You will? Are you GOD?! " the hardcore foodie asked enthusiastically without knowing how close her face was.

"I-I guess not." He stuttered and backed out his face from her because it was too much for him.

"THANK YOU!" she shouted politely and hugged him because of too much excitement. Then she realized hugging him was a huge mistake... or was it? Then she let go of him fast. "S-sorry.I got carried away." She apologized and looked away.

"I-It's okay." he replied nervously again and cursed on the back of his mind for stuttering like an idiot then stood up immediately to kill the awkwardness.

"What are you gonna cook?" She asked excitedly and gleamed at him.

"You'll see." he grinned at her and prepared the pan.

"What type of food is that?" she asked with a serious look.

"I said .see., dumbass." He turned to her and laughed. To his surprise, she didn't laugh along but she was rather insulted.

"I know..." she said partly convinced by what the man called her. The last part sort of struck her to the core because she often gets yelled at for acting like a dumb idiot. Not that what he said was outrageous it's just that the word is starting to sink into her being that she unconsciously hung her head low.

Upon seeing her expression,Jean then stretched his hand to touch her chin and gently adjusted it upward.

"Hey hey, don't take it seriously. I didn't know you were extremely sensitive. " he smiled at her with soft eyes which made the girl's face turn beet red then she moved her face away.

Jean then continued on with his cooking. Sasha saw how passionate he was when he did it. She stared at him unconsciously and admired him and thought that Jean wasn't that much of an asshole at all. The man noticed her stares and talked to her.

"Staring at me ain't gonna help." Jean smirked while cooking and gave her a side glance.

"Dang it." She cussed softly which made the man smile. She then came up with an excuse and went to get some plate.

She got it and put it beside the sink that is near to Jean.

"Done!" He said excitedly and Sasha then handed him the plate without saying a word.

Jean used the spatula to put the food on the plate and Sasha looked at it with anticipation.

He reached for a pair of chopsticks and handed it to her.

"Dig in." He smiled and so she started eating the special omelet made by the cooking champion, Jean.

At first bite, Sasha's eyes went wide with very obvious delight and she took her second and then filled her mouth again even without swallowing the omelet. She just kept on chewing the food to savor it and swallowed when she remembered.

Without words, she clearly was happy and Jean thought he didn't need to be thanked, seeing her enjoy the food was more than enough for him.

"You deserved it." Sasha finally talked.

"What?" Jean asked, confused.

"I mean you deserved to win, commander made the right choice. This omelet...is gold." She said and pointed her chopsticks on the now empty plate then smiled ever so brightly.

"Gee. T-Thanks! " he was taken aback by her words and her smile then he noticed the tiny omelet pieces a little around her lips.

"You got something on your..." He pouted to signal her where it is.

Sasha then raised the back of her hand (which happens to have a charcoal stain) to wipe her mouth.

"Ep. Your back hand is dirty." Jean talked fast to stop her. "Let me do it." He said and didn't even let her say a then grabbed her wrist and the next thing that happened was beyond unimaginable.

Sasha's eyes slowly went wide when he suddenly felt Jean's soft lips on hers. It was a smack but it felt rather long.

She stared on an empty place with her jaws slightly dropped. She still can't believe it and didn't know what to say, what to do, and how she's supposed to feel. Her mind is going everywhere. It was her first kiss, and so was his.

"S-Sasha?" He waved his hands in front of her eyes with worry. He thought he might've crossed her and blamed his heart for beating so fast which gave him a signal to kiss her. "I-I'm so sorry. I-" he apologized but then got cut off by Sasha.

"I-I have to go." She bowed a little and ran her way outside.

She ran fast and finally reached the girl's quarters.

She reached her room and entered it slowly. After cleaning herself up, Sasha went to bed and tried to sleep. But every time she tries to close her eyes, Jean's face would always appear. The scene where the man cleaned her lips in an unexpected way kept on replaying. She thought how handsome he looked when he cooked the omelet for her. She thought how his smiles somehow always make her heart go crazy. She wondered why she always felt nervous when they're all alone and why being with him felt especially different than hanging out with any other male cadet.

"Dang it, heart. Won't you calm down a little?" She tapped her chest and felt the beat of her heart almost about to explode.

She sighed and buried her face on the pillow hoping that it would all go away because it's 12:00 at midnight already.

THE NEXT DAY:

The cadets fell in line for their late breakfast with most of them having unbearable headaches as an effect for drinking too much liquor last night.

Sasha woke up late for she only managed to sleep an hour or so for over thinking about what happened last night. She arrived on the cafeteria and was the last one to fall in line. (At least that's what she thought) But it turns out she wasn't actually the only one to arrive late at the cafeteria when Jean came with huge visible eye bags and a haggard-looking face but still, he managed to look handsome even with those things.

He got himself a tray for the food and queued last on the line after Sasha (of all people) which made him extremely shy again.

After Sasha got her food she sat on a table with empty seats because her friends' usual table is full and she can't possibly just shoo one of them because those seats don't have permanent owners and those seats don't have any names written on it. So here she is...all alone.

But her loner feeling didn't last long when a tall man suddenly stood in front of the empty seat on her table.

"Hi, is this seat taken?" Jean asked with a shaky voice.

She didn't even bother to look at him and just answered him (via twitter) through shaking her head which basically means 'no'.

He then sat on the chair as careful as he could and started eating quietly. Sasha no longer felt lonely, but she sure does feel awkward.

They just continued on eating and tried not to think too much.

"Look Sash..." Jean talked all of a sudden which caught her attention.

"I'm really sorry for last night. It's not like I regretted doing it but..." he paused looking straight into her unreadable eyes. "... I sort of crossed a little beyond borders." he continued unsure if she was even listening to him.

Nah, it's completely fine you freakin' good lookin' unicorn. I liked it anyway. She had those thoughts running through her mind and she was also contemplating if she was going to say it or not. But then she remembered about her father telling her to be no easy girl.

"Yeah, no shit." She simply replied with a too-cool-for-you look which was unusual because she usually wears a goofy expression.

"Here." He suddenly gave her a thing covered in cloth which she doubtingly accepted.

"What's this?" She asked staring at the wrapped thing in her hand.

"Those are your best friends." He said and smirked at the end of his sentence.

With that, she unwrap the thing and her eyes visibly widened a little because she was surprised to see three freshly-harvested potatoes in her hands.

"It's a peace offering, in case you're wondering what it is for." Jean told her and added "...you're welcome."

"So you think I'm easy because you can just bribe me with any food?"

"No not at all. I just thought I haven't seen you eat potatoes in a while and then I remembered that you were banned from the kitchen or even in the farm. So I stole it for you." He replied with pure honesty which gave Sasha a weird feeling.

She felt giddy but she didn't want to admit it.

"You didn't have to. I'm fine."

"You mean I didn't have to say sorry because the kiss was just fine?" He asked with a teasing smile.

"You little..." his expression seemed very contagious and she can't help but smile with him now.

With that, the man can no longer hold it and broke into a wide grin for finally making her smile.

"Sort of." She said which surprised him a lot.

"You're kidding," He asked but with a hopeful expression. "I was just half joking you know."

"I'm not." She simply replied.

"Really?" He said like a seven-year-old boy with such joy. "Want me to do it again?"

"I'm going to shoot you right in the head." she smirked and pointed her face to the bow and arrow hanging on her shoulder.

He raised both of his hands in defense. "Whoa whoa I was joking." He laughed. "Besides, you already shot me..." He added.

Sasha raised her brow trying to remember when she ever shot him with an arrow but then he continued.

"...in the heart."

(Pfffft... korni)

Sasha upon hearing his tease felt like she was about to explode with weird happiness.

"That's real cheesy Kirschstein." She rolled her eyes and chuckled. "I mean where did you learn that from, Captain Levi?" She said and they both snorted in unison.

"Excuse me?!" a short man with a fearful aura suddenly appeared out of nowhere and asked with a death glare.

They froze. They looked at him both wearing horrid expressions and thought that this is the day where they die.

"H-Heichou." Both of them stammered and stood up from their seats and saluted to their captain with their shaky hands. "It was nothing special sir. We're very sorry. " Jean added.

"Nothing special?" He asked sternly.

"Y-yes sir." They both replied.

"Please. Anybody could see your asscrack faces go red from far away."

"We don't get what you mean sir." They stared at each other, confused and flustered and then looked at their superior again.

"That only confirms you brats are fucking dense." He then left leaving them speechless and with tomato red faces. They thought how their seemingly loveless and emotionless captain would know such thing.

They slowly returned to their seats. They were quiet for a while when Sasha started talking.

"You know... I've always thought he and Miss Petra had a connection." She said.

"Why do you say so?" Jean asked, intrigued.

"There was that time when I returned to the base from the stables, I caught Miss Petra with a cup of coffee. And to my surprise, she knocked on the captain's door then gave him the coffee and then he smiled at her. I mean can you believe that? The captain freakin' smiled! Now we don't get to see that everyday." She said with such enthusiasm that made Jean somehow amused.

"That confirms it. So that answers why the captain has been so down lately. Ever since that..." he paused, recalling the memory of Squad Levi's awful death.

Sasha nodded and exasperatedly sighed. "Love is tragic in this kind of world ... that's why I'm afraid to fall for such thing."

"But you know people should at least let their hearts be with the one they truly love before their lives end." Jean said which surprised her.

"Why do you have to be with someone when you know you will eventually get hurt?"

"You don't have to be afraid to get hurt because pain has always been there, and it always will. And we will face death no matter how strong we are. It's just up to us on how we enjoy our remaining time." He replied sincerely and added "and you know what Sash?"

"I will choose to be in pain spending my last breath with someone I love, than forever regretting a choice to be a coward: and then fail to tell her how much I love her." He said and she intently stared at his honest eyes without saying a word.

"And I think it's about time that I should be completely honest with you... "he paused and gently held her clenched hand.

"I'm in-like with you Sasha. I'm pretty sure you don't want me to go to the serious part yet. But one thing I'm really sure of is that... I would love to spend my remaining time with you."

"...Jean" she only managed to say his name and a small drop of tear escaped from her eye. Joy, that's what she felt. She was truly covered with pure happiness.

Before, she thought it was a one-sided feeling and she couldn't be happier for finally knowing that the man she's into feels the same.

Happy tears kept flowing out of control so Jean cupped her face and wiped those tears away softly with his thumbs.

"I /hick/ would love to spend my remaining /hick/ meals with you too Jean." She said in between hiccups.

The man upon hearing her, shouted internally and smiled ear-to-ear (if that's even possible) and pinched her cheeks and mentally said 'You're so beautiful...I'm the luckiest man alive.'

But after all that smiling, he quickly switched to a gloomy kind of person.

"Food again, huh?" He curved his brows in disappointment then let go of her cheeks and acted hurt and all.

"That's some terrible acting,Kirschstein." She chuckled at him. Jean continued on with his act and put his arms on his chest like a child and looked away. "Now, now.." she said softly just like a caring mom.

Then all of a sudden, Jean's expression turned to a very surprised one and his eyes widenedwhen he felt a pair of soft lips land on his right cheek. Then his ears quickly went red and with a shy smile, he turned to look at Sasha.

"Better." he said with a huge grin painted on his face.

She looked at him unbelievably and put on a fake pissed off face but then eventually chuckled. Her voice felt like music to Jean's ears, so he closed his eyes to listen to it and opened it again to see her beautiful eyes staring right back at him. He can't help but smile and stare intently at her which made Sasha's face turn to a deep shade of red. Well despite feeling extremely flustered, Sasha still managed to look back at him and flashed him the best smile she ever had. Their eyes were locked and they could go on staring at each other for a very, very long time.

Meanwhile, Captain Levi on the other table seemed to have noticed the new couple. He then raised his book on his eye level and glanced at the horse face and the potato girl and said 'Both of you owe me a lot, took you dumbasses long enough.' He put his book down and got his cup of coffee. When the rim of the cup reached his mouth, his lips slightly curved upward feeling actually happy again for the first time in a very long time. 'How I wish you were here to witness all of it, ginger head.'