Chapter 1

It was lunchtime at their school, and Mikasa followed Eren and Armin to the exit of the building. "Mikasa, can I speak with you for a moment?" a voice interrupted them.

Mikasa looked at the guy who spoke to her, she didn't know him. "Go ahead guys, I'll catch up in a minute." She said to Eren and Armin, following the guy to an empty corridor. She had a feeling she knew what was going to happen, but it would be rude not to give him the chance to say what he wanted to.

He was only slightly taller than her, and he made sure to take up all the space he could, taking a deep breath. "Will you be my girlfriend?" he asked.

Mikasa repressed the urge to sigh, it was another one, just as she thought. "No. Sorry, but I'm not interested."

He dropped his head. "I see." She started to turn around when he spoke again. "Then who is it that you like?"

"No one." She said flatly.

"If there's no one else you like, then why won't you go out with me?"

Mikasa did sigh this time. The persistent type. "Even if there was someone I liked, why would I tell that to someone who I've never seen before?" he opened his mouth, closed it again and left, his shoulders slumping. Mikasa sighed again and turned around, not expecting to see someone in front of her. "Leonhardt."

"Ackerman." Annie replied, her expression bored as always, hands stuffed in her hoodie pocket.

"Did you enjoy the show?" Mikasa asked.

"Hardly. I've had to turn down so many people myself, it's really a drag." Annie huffed.

Mikasa wasn't sure if Annie was serious or mocking her. "This was the third guy this week." She said, "I'm surprised you'd have so many people interested in you though."

Annie raised her hands, palms up. "Hey, I didn't come here to fight. I just happened to pass by when he asked you out." She scoffed, "And I bet those guys don't even really like you, they just like the idea of 'owning' such a strong girl. If girl is even the right word for you."

"I thought you didn't come here to fight." Mikasa countered, and started making her way to the exit. After a few seconds she noticed Annie falling in step beside her. It wasn't that strange, seeing as it was beautiful weather and almost everyone wanted to eat outside. A moment passed and she broke the silence again, "I bet they wouldn't bother us if they knew we were dating someone."

"Yeah." Annie huffed. "But where on earth would we both find someone willing to fake-date us, without having to worry about them trying to get serious."

"Where indeed." Mikasa mused. People flashed through her mind, she couldn't ask Eren or Armin, that would ruin their friendship. Definitely not any of the guys who asked her out. It wasn't likely that she'd find anyone who was willing to put up an act like that, except… She came to a halt, and Annie paused next to her, seemingly having come to the same conclusion. They looked at each other for a moment, then shook their heads. "No way." They spoke in unison.

They turned away from each other, but couldn't help locking eyes again. The idea was tempting, at least. It could solve the problem of being asked out so much, and it might get certain people to stop asking her when she'd get a date.

"Um…" Annie started. "We could, you know, think about it. I mean, those guys tend to be persistent and very annoying, plus my dad has been pestering me about getting a boyfriend too. Might get him to shut up." She shrugged.

"I guess. But we'll have to set up some rules, just so we know when to fake it and when we can hate each other."

"Yeah." Annie pulled her phone out of her pocket. "I'll give you my number and then we can meet up this weekend and see if we really want to do this."

xxx

That night Mikasa laid in her bed, staring up at the ceiling. She really wanted those guys to stop asking her out. The one earlier today, well, he was one of the nicer ones. But dating Annie? Even if it was just faking it, she didn't exactly like the girl. Her phone buzzed and she picked it up, the message was from Annie.

Meet up in the park tomorrow and see if we're really doing this? -Annie

Mikasa responded with a yes, asking what time they'd meet. It seemed that at least her Saturday would be filled. Setting her phone back down, she wondered if she should keep the truth hidden from Armin and Eren as well. If they went through with it, of course.

xxx

She saw Annie sitting on a bench in the park and joined her. "Hey."

Annie hummed in response, waiting a few seconds to turn her attention to Mikasa. "So… what do you say?"

"I'm not sure yet. Maybe we can go over the big lines and then decide?"

"Okay." Annie shrugged. "Let's see… pretend we're dating at school, thank god we don't have many classes together. And at my place when my dad's around. What about you, any place besides school?"

"Depends. I live with Eren and his parents, and Armin comes over a lot. I'm not sure if I should tell them the truth or fake it all the way."

"Hm. I'll have to keep it from Bert and Reiner too. I don't know if Bert still has a crush on me but I doubt they'll like it if they found out I ended up fake-dating you out of all people instead of him. Might be better to keep it a secret from everyone. Not taking a risk that we get found out, you know."

"Yeah. But that basically means we'll have to act all the time, unless we're alone."

"Ugh, true horror." Annie said in an extravagating tone, slumping on the bench.

While Mikasa agreed, she couldn't help but wonder. From the moment the idea was formed, it just drew her in, and she became increasingly curious as to what it would be like. "So, are we doing this or not?" she asked.

Annie looked at her and sighed. "Yeah. Although I have a hard time believing I'm actually gonna do this."

"Okay. Let's go over our rules then?"

"Sure thing. First of all, not too much touchy-feely stuff."

"Definitely not. I guess we could just eat lunch together. Sit next to each other. What else do couples do?"

Annie didn't answer, getting up instead. "C'mon, follow me."

"Why?" Mikasa asked.

Annie gave her a look and said, "Babe, have a little faith in me."

Mikasa raised her eyebrows and followed her. "Seriously? Babe?"

"Well I sure as hell ain't calling you sweetie or stuff like that." She shuddered, leading Mikasa through a few streets without another word. She paused in front of one of the houses, opening the front door with a key. "Just drop your shoes here." She said, taking off her own and adding them to the others that were sprawled out over the floor.

Mikasa closed the door behind her and did as she was told, looking up when a man stepped into the hallway. "I haven't seen you before. Are you a friend of Annie's?" he asked.

"Dad, seriously. Why would I bring home someone I'm not friends with? Just don't bother us. C'mon Mikasa." She started up the stairs, and Mikasa smiled awkwardly at Mr. Leonhardt before following Annie to her room.

They sat down on Annie's bed, a silence hanging between them. Mikasa let her eyes wander over the interior, not at all surprised by the clothes scattered over the floor. A desk stood in front of the window, books and papers spread over it. Annie's school bag laid against the closet, keeping the door from closing completely. The shelves next to it were well organized compared to the rest of the room, except for a pink bra with black lace hanging from the handle of what appeared to be a dagger.

"So…" Annie started. "Perhaps it's best if we go over how we should act around my dad first." Mikasa nodded, waiting for Annie to elaborate. "I'd say nothing yet until I get around to tell him. I don't know how he'll react to you being a girl, but if you get shit for it, just ignore him. Aside from that… I dunno. I'd rather not spent too much time with him."

"Okay. I tend to spend more time with my family, but if you're coming over I'll have an excuse not to. So I guess it's mainly around school."

They went silent again, and Annie hopped off the bed and picked up her laptop from the mess on her desk. She set it down on her pillow and started searching through some files. "This is a movie where there are two people faking a marriage shortly after they met. We can look for tips."

Mikasa hummed, watching in silence. When they got to the point where the main characters were asked to kiss, Annie paused the video. "Fuck. We'll have to kiss." She said, as if she hadn't thought about it before. She looked at Mikasa, then back to the screen. "The people in the movie might buy such a crappy excuse for a kiss, but I know real people will see straight through that."

"Are you saying we should… practice?"

Annie nodded, "This… this isn't your first kiss, is it?"

"No. Yours?" Annie shook her head and Mikasa leaned in, pausing just before their noses touched. Their breaths mingled, gazes unsure.

A moment passed and Annie squeezed her eyes shut, muttering, "Fuck it." and pressed her lips to Mikasa's, pulling back almost immediately, and mumbled, "That could've been worse." Her eyes went wide when Mikasa leaned in again and she hissed, "Are you seriously going to kiss me again?"

"We have to look convincing, right? So we'll have to get used to a real kiss." When Annie made a face she added, "Just for today. Until we no longer look like we're eating shit." She closed her eyes and placed her lips on Annie's, slowly moving them. Her lips were soft and her response gentle, unlike the few guys who had stolen a kiss from her. It wasn't bad.

"Annie, do you and your gue-" Mr. Leonhardt had opened the door, stopping mid-sentence when he saw what was happening.

The girls quickly broke apart and Annie shouted "Dad! Can't you fucking knock?! Get out!" he quickly left and closed the door, and Annie sighed deeply, running a hand over her face. "I guess I won't have to wonder about how I'm going to tell him anymore."

"That was awful." Mikasa said, burying her face in her scarf.

"Yeah. I guess there really is no going back anymore." She looked back at the screen, where the fake-fiancées were still frozen in their pathetic excuse for a kiss. "…Do you think that was enough practice? I really don't want to end up looking like those two."

"Let's just… forget about that for a moment and think about other things. Like…" she thought for a moment. "Like how did we get together. Who asked who out?"

"You asked me out." Annie said. "And today is our first date, obviously."

Mikasa crossed her arms. "And why would I have been the one to ask you out?" she said, not liking the tone Annie had used.

"Because you simply couldn't resist me anymore." Annie taunted. "And I sure as hell won't be asking you out."

"Couldn't resist you? I wouldn't even know what there is to resist."

"Fuck you." Annie said, shoving Mikasa's shoulder.

"Fuck you too." Mikasa shoved her harder in return, and it didn't take long before they were actually hitting each other. When slaps on the arms turned to punches, Mikasa grabbed Annie's wrists and pushed her to the wall behind her. "Will you be a good girlfriend now?" she said sarcastically, to which she received Annie's most vicious glare.

"You're the one who said there's nothing to resist to me." Her glare turned into a smug grin. "But I got you so worked up you're already pinning me to the wall on our first date. Bit eager, aren't we?"

Mikasa made a face and let her go. "I hate you."

"The feeling is mutual." Annie announced, and then became serious again. "But I guess we'll be saying the opposite a lot. Or at least too much to my liking."

"What we do to keep persistent assholes away." Mikasa sighed.

"What indeed." Annie mused, clicking the play button on her laptop.

xxx

Mikasa arrived at home, getting herself a glass of water, seeing as Annie hadn't found it necessary to offer her anything to drink she was quite thirsty. Eren and Armin were playing a videogame in the living room, Carla cooking in the kitchen. "Welcome home, Mikasa. How did your date go?"

"Good." Mikasa replied, focusing completely on her glass. Carla often asked her that question, and each time she'd say it wasn't a date. She could almost feel how Carla's mouth fell open in surprise.

"You had a date?" she said, loud enough to make the boys look up from their game.

"You went on a date?" Eren asked, standing up.

"Yeah…" Mikasa buried her face in her scarf, she didn't want to lie to them, but Annie was right. If they knew the truth it was likely they would try to talk her out of it.

"I didn't know you liked anyone." Armin said.

"Yeah, me neither." Eren said. "Who is it?"

Feeling extremely uncomfortable with the situation, Mikasa swallowed what was still in her glass, and said, "You'll see. I'm going to my room." She left before the others could ask more questions, sinking down on her bed in the safety of her room.

She sighed deeply, her mind wandering back to when they kissed, before Annie's father interrupted them. It was true that it hadn't been her first kiss, but it was the first she actually consented to. Among the guys who had asked her out, there were those who thought the best way to ask her out was by kissing her; or that she would change her mind once she knew what good kissers they were. Naturally, each of those guys ended up with a broken nose, or worse.

Annie's kiss was by far the best she had, it wasn't forceful. It almost surprised her that the usually cold girl could be so gentle. Mikasa shook her head. It wasn't a matter of being gentle. Neither of them were into the kiss, so it was only natural they went lightly about it. Besides, it probably was the best way to convince others their relationship was real if they were nice to each other. Despite her reasoning, the kiss still clung to her mind, and she ran her hand over her face. "Fuck you, Annie."

As if on cue, she received a text message.

Dad doesn't mind you being a girl, but he's sad you didn't stay for dinner. Boohoo. Wanting to get to know you n stuff. Told him he scared you off. No need to come back here anytime soon. –Annie

"As if I'd want to come back." Mikasa mumbled, typing a reply.

I basically told them I'm dating someone, and to Eren and Armin that they'll see who. Monday is going to be awful. –Mikasa

No shit. Meet up at the vending machines at ground floor during breaks? –Annie

In the mornings too? –Mikasa

Bitch please, I don't do mornings. Don't bother waiting for me. It's bad enough that I have to spend all my breaks with you, I'm NOT getting up early for you. –Annie

And I bet that's why you had to redo second year. –Mikasa

Fuck you. Stop texting me, I'll see you Monday. –Annie

"Yeah, fuck you too, bitch." Mikasa tossed her phone to the side, resting her eyes for a moment. This was going to be one hell of a week.

xxx

Mikasa had ignored Eren's endless amount of questions as she sat next to him in class, taking notes as best she could with him hissing in her ear. She glanced at the clock on the wall, five more minutes until the first break. She sighed in an attempt to calm down, with every minute that passed she grew more anxious. For the first time in her life, she wished class would never end.

All too soon the bell rang, and Mikasa decided to take a detour to the restroom to postpone meeting with Annie, as well as shorten the amount of time they'd have to spend together.

She easily found Annie standing across from the vending machines, back towards her, talking with a guy. As she got closer she could hear her say, "Dude, how many times do I have to break your fucking nose before you leave me the fuck alone?"

"Hey, no need to be so shy, I like that tough side of you, it makes you even cuter." He replied, and Mikasa had to admire his courage to say something like that to the already pissed blonde.

"Don't you fucking call me cute, I'm gonna fucking kill you, motherfucker!" Annie shifted her feet to her fighting stance, and Mikasa knew she had only one chance to step in before things got ugly.

"Hey babe!" she called before slipping her arm around Annie's waist, knowing that if she didn't give some sort of warning she'd be the one to get hit.

Annie looked at her in surprise and said, "Mind if I kick that asshole's ass first?"

"How far away are you from getting suspended?" Mikasa asked, knowing Annie had quite a reputation in the school's files.

"Oh. Right." She dropped her stance and fully turned to Mikasa. "How was class?"

"The usual." Mikasa said, it felt weird to talk so casually with Annie, especially with an arm around her. But couples didn't feel the need to retreat their touches, right? "Miss Ral getting all excited over English, as if we haven't had that since the day we started school."

"Miss Ral? Oh, you mean Petree."

"Petree?" Mikasa asked, furrowing her brow.

"Her first name is Petra and she's a tree hugger, she once talked about it in class and now we call her Petree. That was back when I still was in Reiner and Bert's class." Annie explained.

"Hey, Annie. Why are you ignoring me?" The guy she had almost punched earlier placed a hand on her shoulder. In the blink of an eye Annie had grabbed and twisted his wrist, forcing him to kneel on the floor.

"Don't fucking interrupt me when I'm talking to my girlfriend." She hissed, voice filled with venom.

"You two are dating?" he exclaimed, voice strained with pain, getting the attention of everyone in the corridor.

Mikasa crossed her arms. "Yes, we are. So stop trying to hit on my girl and get lost, you ass."

Annie released him, and he scrambled to his feet, staring at them for a moment before turning around and disappearing into the crowd. "Thanks." Annie said, looking up at Mikasa. "That guy was the worst. He used to be in my class and when he found out I had to redo a year he claimed he couldn't live without seeing me so much."

"Wow. That's over three years."

"Yeah." Annie sighed. The bell rang and she looked hesitantly at Mikasa, then leaned up to peck her cheek. "I'll see you at lunch." She picked up her bag and headed for her next class. Mikasa sighed, wondering if that kiss was really necessary. But when she looked up and saw how many people were still looking at her, she realized it was for the best after all.

xxxxxxxxxx

I hope you enjoyed the first chapter of 'Fake Girlfriends'!

I'm not sure how frequently I'll update since I still have a bit more to write on this story, but it is one of my favorites to work on. I'm guessing there will be at least 5 chapters, and my aim is to have them all at least 3000 words each, so it'll be worth the wait.

Don't forget to leave a review, it'll fire me up to write more and maybe post the next chapter a bit sooner.