**Hello once again! I told you you'd be seeing more of these two cuties. For those of you who don't know, Outside World is a sequel to Home and I recommend reading that before reading this, just because I won't be explaining much about what happened in Home. If you already read Home, then welcome back! Same warnings apply to this story as were applied to Home: language, violence, self-harm, mental illness, and actually some major character deaths. Keep in mind these won't be regular updates. I'm sure you guys understand the hardships of college, work, and harsh reality getting in the way.
Now let's jump into all the love, heartbreak, and feels all over again! YAHOO!**
Annie watched Armin's morning routine, just like how she used to watch him walk home from school everyday. He'd wake up to his alarm buzzing at seven AM and silence it with a groggy hand. If Annie was still sleeping, he'd gently turn over and place a careful kiss upon her head. If not (like she was today), then he'd walk over to the bathroom and take a hot shower. After that, he'd get dressed for work, brush his teeth, comb his hair, and stuff his notes and books in his bag before heading into the kitchen to grab a quick breakfast.
Annie Leonhart sat at the kitchen counter with a finished bowl of cereal shoved to the side and her sketchbook opened up in front of her, quietly drawing out the outline to some building. She kept an ear out for Armin's movements in the other room, tracking his steps and the things he shifted around, waiting for him. When she heard his footsteps exit the bedroom and come closer to the kitchen, she set down her pencil and looked at the hallway.
A smile etched on her lips when he came into view. His golden blond hair was free of any wavy strands and curved perfectly around his head. His big blue eyes were still a bit sleep-crusted and he blinked slowly in tiredness. He wore a loose-fitting white long-sleeved shirt with a black tie hanging around his neck, undone. He also wore black slacks with a narrow black belt and dark dress shoes.
Annie bit the inside of her cheek, a little giddily. He always looks so handsome like that.
When Armin lifted a fist to rub his sleepy eyes, Annie shot up from her chair and went over to him, wrapping her arms around his torso, resting her head on his right shoulder. He had grown a little in the past few years; he now had the ability to place his chin upon the top of her head without having to lift his at all. Although he was still plenty skinny and narrow like a winter tree, she still felt safe and small in his arms.
Armin chuckled lowly and hugged Annie back. "Good morning, love," he said in a drowsy voice.
"Morning." She pulled back and stood on the tips of her toes to place her lips against his forehead. "You sound really tired. When did you go to bed last night?"
He scrunched his face in thought, glancing up at the ceiling like the answer was right over her head. "Uh, around two, maybe?"
"Two?"
He shrugged and walked pass her, rounding the counter and grabbing Annie's empty bowl on the way, setting it in the sink while flipping on the faucet. "I got first day jitters. I want everything to go well today."
It was Armin's first day of teaching for the second year he's had the job of a history professor at Rose University. He taught World History and European History every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, the same as last year. He absolutely loved his job; not only did he get to teach what he loved to many young students, but he also worked along with his old professors including Doctor Hanji Zoe and Professor Erwin Smith.
Annie couldn't be any prouder of him.
"You'll do fine," she assured him. "You always do fine."
He turned off the faucet and grabbed a shiny red apple that sat next to the stove. "I wonder if I'm always gonna feel nervous on the first day of school, despite having to do it so many times."
Annie shrugged. "Maybe. But I guess that means you care about what you do if you get nervous about it every time."
Armin grinned. "I guess you're right."
For the next fifteen minutes, Armin chewed on his apple and explained to Annie what he had prepared for his students today, a passing of the class syllabus and then some sort of activity for the students to get to know each other. Annie listened, nodding her head along and adding in her own comment from time to time. When Armin glanced at his watch and announced that he'd better get going, Annie handed him his messenger bag and then assisted him with his limp tie.
As she made the final knot, she tugged down on the fabric so that Armin's neck was pulled down to her height and presented another sweet kiss to him, their lips lingering a bit longer than usual. She drew back, a faint smile on her face, and said, "I love you. You'll do great, I know it."
Armin returned the smile. "Thank you. I'll see you later." He straightened up and headed over to the front door. He turned the doorknob and was about to step through the doorway when he stopped himself and leaned back to throw a goofy grin at Annie. "Oh yeah, I almost forgot to ask you." His smile widened. "Will you marry me?"
He had asked her that many times in the last year. The first time he asked (which was much more serious than this proposal) she said no as careful as she possibly could. She told him she didn't feel ready yet; she didn't feel prepared to be called a "wife" and having to somehow carry that heavy status. Armin said he understood and told her that he would wait as long as she wanted.
But he still continued to ask her, either to remind her or just to make her laugh at his silly attempts.
Annie smirked at him, at his joyful smile and his bright eyes. "No, Armin."
Keeping his smile on his face, he shrugged obnoxiously like a cartoon character and said, "One day."
She laughed as he shut the door behind him.
Shortly after he left, Annie proceeded to get ready for her day, which was planned on spending time with Mina Carolina. She was scheduled to meet her friend at ten o'clock that morning at an old restaurant for brunch, so she threw on a baggy T-shirt, worn-out jeans, and her favorite pair of combat boots. She then went to brush her teeth and run some dry shampoo through her hair before pulling it back into its usual messy bun—Mina, being the graduate of a beauty school, hated when Annie put little effort into her appearance. She always told her that she possessed very fine and beautiful blonde hair, a trait she wished she had, and encouraged her to actually do something with it, but Annie would always shrug it off; she wasn't a big fashionista anyway.
Half an hour later, Annie stuffed her wallet, keys, and phone into her pockets and swallowed down her daily medication before studying the orange bottle for a moment. Sometimes Annie would bring her medicine with her if she knew she was going somewhere stressful or felt upset for whatever reason. Whenever negative emotions surpassed her, she would usually hear the Female Titan growl or hiss or scream in her head and throw horrible curses or insults at her. As of right now, she didn't feel or hear anything, but shoved the bottle in her shirt pocket anyway. Just in case.
Annie had gotten to the restaurant before Mina did and was waiting for her in a corner booth, fiddling with the leather strap of her necklace. Ever since Armin had given her this special gift to her all those years ago, Annie hadn't taken it off since (excluding showering and sleeping of course). She usually slipped the crystal and seashell part down her shirt though, not wanting people to constantly ask where she had gotten the piece of jewelry and having to explain to them that her boyfriend bought it the day she tried to kill herself.
Not a pleasant conversation to have, she believed.
These thoughts burst in her mind when she suddenly felt the tiny arms of Mina Carolina enfold around her neck, squeezing her as hard as she could (which wasn't very effective). "Annie!" she chirped in her ear before taking her place in the red booth across from her.
"Hi, Mina," Annie greeted in her monotone voice. "How was last night?"
The pig-tailed girl dramatically laid the back of her hand across her eyes, the typical pose of a damsel in distress. "Oh, it was so romantic! We went to Marie's Place and had amazing Italian food and then he took me up this trail in Trost Park that led up the mountains and found this place with a gorgeous view of the entire city and we talked the night away." She sighed contently before blushing a little and adding, "And then he spent the night at my house."
Annie smirked. Yesterday was Marco and Mina's first year anniversary of dating each other. Mina had been talking about it for the past week and Annie was a little glad that it was over so hopefully she would stop talking about it. But then again, she was happy to see her friend so in love.
Right after this, a tall blonde woman in waitress attire strolled over to the two girls and asked for their orders. Mina asked for blueberry pancakes and a lemonade while Annie requested French toast with a water. As the waitress nodded her head and was about to walk away, Mina grabbed Annie's elbows and leaned toward her in her seat, big blue eyes sparkling.
"So are you engaged yet?" she asked excitedly.
Annie huffed and pulled her arms away. "Why are you two constantly on my back about that?"
She gasped louder than necessary, causing the heads of a few other customers to glance their way. "What? Did he ask again?"
"Yes, but I told him no again."
Mina groaned pitifully like a child whose mother refused to purchase a toy for them. "But Annie! You must accept. It's true love!"
"I'm perfectly happy with how things are going now. Why does it have to change? If we're both happy, then what difference does it make if we're married or not. Besides, 'wife' makes me sound old."
Her friend glared at her and then quickly changed her expression to one of complete tiredness, like she had given up on something. "You have, like, no idea how much I want this to happen. I've known Armin for a long time and you became my best friend in just a couple months—I know a bunch of things about you guys and I swear you two are a match made in heaven. If you won't marry him for him, then do it for me. Me and my fangirl needs."
The blonde hid a chuckle behind her hand. "Like that could happen."
"It could. Also another thing you can do for me…" She stuck her finger at Annie. "Do tell that boy to grow out his hair. Like pass his shoulders or something. I think he'll look ten times hotter with long hair. He's had the same bob haircut since he was a kid. And trust me." She pointed at herself. "I know how hair works."
Annie tried to think about how Armin would look with longer hair but just couldn't see it. The dreamer was a polite and caring and intelligent human being and having long hair for a male usually required confidence or sureness in themselves, something that Armin lacked. She thought the stupid, nerdy haircut suited him just fine.
"I'll mention it to him," she assured her friend, although she had a feeling that she would forget about it sooner or later.
The girls continued to chat throughout their brunch session, but of course, it was mostly Mina doing all the talking. She spoke more of her adventures with Marco last night, crazy desires she got as a hairdresser in the nearest barber shop, and gossip about people Annie could never seem to remember who they were exactly. The bubbly girl waved her hands around and spoke in a fast pace with the octave of her voice rising and falling with each climax of the story she was telling. Mina managed to always make everything sound greater than it actually was.
"Oh, guess what else?" she heard her ask as she plopped a smashed blueberry into her mouth.
"What?" Annie sipped the last remains of her water, making a loud, sucking sound when all the liquid had finished gathering in her straw.
"I heard that the military is sending their troops back home. I don't know the exact date but it's pretty soon." Mina smiled brightly at her friend. "You know what that means, right?"
Annie dropped her straw into her cup and leaned back in her seat, eyes widened, heartbeat racing.
"We get to see them again," Mina answered for her. "After three whole years of being in the military, Eren and Mikasa are coming back home."