Mikasa can practically hear her heart beating as she checks the time for the fifth time that evening. We agreed to meet at here seven, and it's already…She glances back to her phone, almost ten minutes past! She inhales deeply in a vain attempt to calm herself, leaning against the rough bricks walls of the Italian restaurant. Another round of agonizingly slow minutes pass by before she pushes herself off the wall and starts walking back to her car, her eyes cast on the ground. She isn't going to leave just yet, but the night air is more chilled than she anticipated and she would rather sit alone in her car than sit alone inside the restaurant. She rounds the corner that leads to the parking lot and collides into someone face first, her nose bumping against their chin.
The girl looks up for a quick apology, but falls short when she stares into a familiar set of honey colored eyes.
"Oh, sorry Mikasa!" Jean blushes, "and I'm also sorry for being late, I swear I hit every damn stoplight on the way here."
"No worries," Mikasa replies as she gently rubs the bridge of her nose.
"I was afraid you wouldn't have waited on me," he admits sheepishly, scratching the back of his head.
"I would never bail on you like that, Jean," Mikasa assures him, "if anything I would have called you first."
The blush in his cheeks deepens at her words. He looks into her eyes for several moments, not saying a word, before clearing his throat and extending his hand, brushing it against hers as he says, "I guess we should go inside, now."
Bashfully she intertwines her fingers with his, giving him a small smile as he leads her to the door, releasing her hand to hold it open for her. It is not a very busy night and they're seated quickly in one of the more private parts of the restaurant. The waiter takes their drink orders and leaves them with menus before returning to the front of the building.
"So," Jean starts, setting down his menu, "how did you end up telling everyone? What did they say?"
"Well," Mikasa shrugs, "the only ones I've told were Annie, Bertholt, and Reiner. Annie honestly didn't seem too surprised, but the boys literally chocked on their pizza." Jean laughs at this. "Who all have you told?" She asks as the waiter returns with their beverages.
"Just Marco and my parents," he answers before they each order their dishes, continuing once the waiter leaves, "Marco and my mother were really excited, but dad, uh," his blush returns and he giggles nervously, "dad wanted to see a picture of you before putting his two cents in."
"Oh," she feels her cheeks getting hot, "we can take one before we leave, I suppose."
"If it makes you uncomfortable-"
"It doesn't, I promise," she waves it off, "I haven't had the chance to tell my parents or Eren yet, but I think they'll be happy about it."
Jean feigns choking on his drink, "you think Eren will be happy about this?"
"I think once I tell him how happy this makes me," they both blush once they realize what she said, but keeps going in order to play it off, "that he'll be fine with it. Or, at least as fine as he can be."
"Your parents wont question you dating someone your brother hates?"
"Eren doesn't hate you, Jean," Mikasa insists, "he just doesn't like the fact that your batting record is better than his."
"Really now?"
"Pretty much. He prides himself over that homerun he hit last season that took you guys to the tournament." Her eyes go wide for a moment, "oh, don't tell anyone I said that." She quickly adds.
"There's no shame in it, it was a great play and the whole team loved him for it." Jean shrugs. The waiter arrives with their plates and they thank him, each picking at their food as they continue in their previous conversation.
"Are you planning on coming to the games?" Jean asks, swirling a small amount of spaghetti onto his fork and taking a bite.
"I'll come to as many as I can, but with soccer season starting around the same time and with both of us being on varsity it wont be easy." She stabs at the lettuce on her plate, coating it in the vinaigrette before putting it in her mouth.
"Yeah, I'd love to come to some of your soccer games. You're great on offense…or, is it defense?"
"I play wherever the coach needs me," Mikasa adds, "sometimes I'm a ford, sometimes I'm a defender, I even had to play goalie once when Ymir twisted her ankle."
"How'd that go?"
"Nothing got buy me, but I wouldn't want to play it again,"
As they carry on eating and talking, Mikasa has a sudden realization on how surprisingly easy it is to be open with him. He doesn't interrupt her and he looks her in the eyes when she talks. He always seems to be listening; only breaking eye contact when he spins spaghetti onto his fork or takes a sip of his drink. How did I never notice this before?
The evening persists and the couple finishes their meal, but remain at their seats for another hour afterward. Once nine o'clock approaches, Mikasa reluctantly says goodbye to Jean after paying for her food (she almost didn't get to, Jean offered to pay multiple times).
"Wait! Let me walk you to your car," Jean hands the cashier a wrinkled bill and tells him to keep the change before hastily opening the door for Mikasa.
"Thank you, but…" she trails off as she feels his hand in hers again. They walk leisurely to her car and she unwillingly pulls her hand from his.
"I guess I'll see you tomorrow," she smiles sadly.
"What time do you get to school?" He asks, eyes lighting up for a moment.
"Around seven thirty, you?"
"A little closer to eight, but if I get there earlier maybe we can meet up in the morning?"
Her face lights up as she nods. "I had a great time tonight, by the way," she adds, leaning in for an awkward hug. She feels his arms wrap around her torso and his lips pressing on her forehead. She tilts her head up and their noses bump against one another. She looks at his eyes and finds them closed, moments later feelings his lips on hers. After a moment she closes her eyes as well, kissing him back gently.
Mikasa's phone rings from within her back pocket. Annoyed, she pulls away and answers. "Hello?"
"Where have you been, young lady?" Eren barks into the phone, "it's almost nine thirty, and not so much as a text? Mom and dad are not going to be happy when you get home."
"I'm well aware of that, Eren," Mikasa assures him, "I was just about to leave, I'll be home in fifteen minutes. Tell them I just got-mph!" Jean suddenly kisses her again, groaning loudly against her lips.
"Uh, everything ok there, Mikasa?" Eren asks after she doesn't respond.
"Mph!" Mikasa grunts as she pushes Jean off of her, pinching him once she sees the satisfied smirk on his lips.
"Yeah, I'll be home soon," Mikasa wipes her mouth with her sleeve, "see you in a little while, Eren."
"Y-yeah,"
She clicks the end button and glares up at Jean. "Thanks a lot," she feigns anger, "he probably thinks I was just making out with Annie."
"Hah! Now that would be nice to see."
"Jean!" She swats his arm.
"Ok, ok! I'm kidding! Besides," he pulls her until their foreheads are touching, "I don't want to share you."
"You wont have to," she feels her cheeks warming up again. "I really have to go."
"What about that picture you promised?" Jean asks, pulling out his phone. He gently pulls her beside him and taps the camera icon on his screen, his smile turning into a bright beam by the time the flash goes off. He pulls the phone close and looks at the picture, his smile broadening.
"Can I see?" Mikasa asks, peering over his shoulder.
"I never knew you were so photogenic," Jean admits, turning the screen to her with a blush on his cheeks. She has to admit, it is a good picture of her. The angle is good and she's even showing her teeth in her smile, a rare thing for her to do.
"I guess I'll let you leave now," Jean sighs and tucks his phone back into his pocket, "bye, gorgeous."
XX
"Sorry I'm so late!" Mikasa announces as she walks through her front door, bags in hand, "Annie and I were watching a movie and I lost track of time."
"It's alright, honey." Her mother, Carla, says from the kitchen, "just text us next time that happens, alright?"
Mikasa nods to her and runs her things upstairs, nearly colliding with Eren as she leaves her room to rejoin her parents downstairs.
"Sorry Eren," she tries to push past him, but he grabs hold of her arm, "I have to go talk to mom." She adds, hoping he'll let her go.
"Come on," Eren pleads, "I haven't seen you all weekend!" He tugs her into his room, where she see's Armin sprawled out on Eren's bed with some sort of text book in his hands.
"What are you still doing here, Armin?" Mikasa asks.
"Helping Eren study for a history test," Armin rolls his eyes as Eren plops back down on the bed, closing the book and wrapping one of each limb around his blonde companion. "Or, trying to, at least."
"We've been studying all weekend, Armin." Eren moans, pushing the book onto the floor. Mikasa walks over and sits on the foot of the bed, thumping the back of Eren's head.
"Listen to your boyfriend, Eren."
"But I'm tired of studying!" Eren whines, "I'm not kidding when I say he hasn't given me a break all damn weekend!"
"You need to get an A on this test, Eren, or mom and dad will take away your car keys." Mikasa pats the back of her brothers head. She knows history is his weak point, but it is also Armin's strongest.
"A little help, Mikasa?" Armin asks as Eren proceeds to wrap the blanket around them. Mikasa pinches Eren's ear, a trick she picked up from her mother, and he stops with an "ouch!"
"Give Armin ten more minutes of actually studying, then you can stop." Mikasa unwraps the blanket and rises to leave, but Eren grabs hold of her leg and pulls her back onto the bed.
"What took you so long to get home, anyway?" Eren asks as he reaches past her to pick up the book he knocked over moments earlier.
"I just lost track of time," she rises again, "now if you'll excuse me, I need to go talk to mom." She can hear Armin quizzing Eren about the Revolutionary War as she descends the stairway.
"Hey, mom, can I talk to you for a minute?" Mikasa asks as she walks into the kitchen, finding her mother washing dishes.
"Of course," Carla assures her as she loads the dishwasher.
"Well, could we maybe talk…" She notices her dad reading by the fireplace in the living room, "…alone?"
Carla pauses and looks at her out of the corner of her eyes, "is everything alright?" she asks in a hushed voice. Mikasa nods, walking over and helping her mother finish cleaning. Carla refrains from asking anymore questions until they're in the privacy of her bedroom. Mikasa lays at the foot of her parents bed as Carla closes the door.
"Mom," Mikasa wearily begins, "would you be mad if I lied about why I was late?"
Carla's brows raise. In the nearly eight years Mikasa has lived with the Jaegers, she has never told a lie. "Mikasa…"
"I wasn't doing anything you wouldn't approve of!" Mikasa says quickly, "but, I'm not sure how dad is going to feel when I tell him…" she trails off for a moment, continuing after the confused look on her mothers face remains intact, "I was out on a date, mom."
Carla's squeal startles her. "Who was it? Why didn't you tell me? I wouldn't have said anything!"
"It was Jean, and-"
"Jean?" Carla exclaims, "the boy from your brothers baseball team?"
"Yes, and I know he and Eren don't get along, but he's never been anything but nice to me and my other friends, and-"
"I know, honey," Carla interjects, "every time Eren complains about him it's got something to do with baseball, not Jean himself. Jean is a very good kid from what I've seen, and until I hear a legit complaint from you or Eren I won't think otherwise."
Mikasa smiles at this, "thanks mom," she feels a huge weight being lifted from her shoulders as her mother pulls her in for a hug, "but, can we not tell dad or Eren yet? I've never talked to dad about dating before and I'm not sure how he'll react, and I don't think I need to explain why I don't want to tell Eren…"
"I won't say anything right now, but if you plan on going out with him again you'll have to tell both of them."
"I will, eventually," Mikasa bounces off the bed and walks to the door, thanking her mother one last time before walking out and waving goodnight to her dad. As she walks down the hall she peeks into Eren's bedroom, only to find him and Armin asleep at the foot of the bed where she left them to study. Armin has rolled onto his back, knocking the text book onto the floor, and Eren rests his head on Armin's extended arm.
With an amused sigh Mikasa quietly enters the room. Using gentle and cautious movements she maneuvers Eren off of Armin, then picks up the small blonde and rests his head on one of the pillows at the head of the bed, doing the same with Eren afterward. Both boys stir in their sleep, but neither wakes completely. Mikasa pulls the comforter just below their chins, tucking it around them and setting Eren's alarm before sneaking back out and flicking off the light.
She goes to her room and changes into her nightwear and turns on her ceiling fan, plopping onto her bed with a loud "mph."
Just as she feels her muscles beginning to relax, she hears her phone buzzing from her nightstand. She rolls over and picks it up, smiling at the message displayed on her screen.
Jean K: Tonight was perfect, I can't wait to see you in the morning. Sweet dreams
-I couldn't agree more…sleep well!
XX
"Where is your first block even at?" Jean asks, taking Mikasa's hand and filling it with his.
"Downstairs D Pod, you?"
"Upstairs D Pod,"
"That works out perfectly then," She glances up at him as they walk down the stairs that lead to one of the schools' entrances. They slow their pace and take the long route-around the cafeteria and through downstairs A Pod, neither of them wanting to let go of the other's hand. Mikasa can feel eyes on them as they make their way to class, only making her grip his hand tighter and lean into him slightly. She looks up and locks eyes with Christa, who is walking in a similar fashion with her taller girlfriend, Ymir. She can feel them watching her and Jean as they pass, whether it is in bewilderment or excitement she can't tell, for they passed each other before she gets the chance.
Finally they find themselves outside of Mikasa's first block class. She leaves Jean by the door and walks in to set her things down on her desk, joining him outside moments later.
"We still have seven more minutes," Mikasa says, "unless you leave at the five minute warning bell, then we only have two."
"I should probably do that," he frowns, "my teacher probably wouldn't like the old 'my girlfriend made me late to class' excuse." Girlfriend. She had no idea how good it felt to be called that until just now.
The five minute warning bell sounds and Jean sighs. "I'll see you at lunch," he mumbles as he kisses her cheek.
"See you then," she hugs him.
He leaves her then, and she turns into her classroom and takes her seat. As she works on her daily morning assignment she feels something hit the back of her head. Puzzled, she turns, seeing nothing but a balled up piece of paper on the desk behind her. She looks up from it and locks eyes with her quirky auburn haired friend, Sasha Bruas.
"Can I help you, Sasha?" Mikasa asks, flicking the paper back to the other girl.
"I was just wondering…" Sasha doesn't bother to block the paper as it hits her in the face, "are you and Jean…?" She wriggles her eyebrows.
"Oh," Mikasa blinks, "uh, yes?"
Sasha's eyes widen along with her smile, which she soon covers with her hands as she nearly squeals into them. Mikasa turns back to her work, only to feel the paper hit the back of her head again. "When did this happen?" Sasha begs, repeatedly bouncing the paper ball against Mikasa's head.
"Over the weekend," Mikasa reaches back and catches the ball mid-flight, tossing it into the trashcan afterward, "please calm down, the rest of the class will be here soon."
"How can I not be excited for you, Mikasa?" Sasha giggles, "it's you and Jean! People have been saying how cute you too would be together since our freshman year!"
"By people I assume you mean you and Connie teasing Jean every time I would walk by."
"Ha, yep!"
XX
"Eren's face at lunch was priceless," Jean laughs as he leans against one of the brick columns shielding the stairs, just out of view of the students heading towards the parking lot. Mikasa is standing beside him, her back against the wall and eyes on the yellowing leaves on the bushes in front of her.
"If he reacted that bad to me sitting next to you, I'd hate to see his reaction to this," he swings around and plants his lips firmly on hers, smiling when he feels her jump in alarm. She pinches his side and he pulls away with a grin.
He nods his head toward the parking lot and extends a hand, silently offering to walk her to her car. She gladly accepts the offer, but as they turn to leave they are met by a pair of bright blue eyes, wide with alarm.
"Armin-"
He shakes his head rapidly as if to bring himself out of some sort of trance. He looks up to them and his eyes dart from one to the other, a shy smile forming on his lips.
"Eren doesn't know?" Is all he asks. They both shake their heads.
"I wont say anything," he waves it off and continues towards the parking lot.
"Thank you!" Mikasa calls to him. He gives her a thumbs up without looking back.
Jean scratches the back of his head and laughs, "could that have been any more awkward?"
"Yes, if Eren had been with him," the thought makes her shudder. She pulls out her phone and checks the time, "I need to get going. I have to be at work in thirty minutes." Jean only nods as they resume their previous pace towards the parking lot. It has cleared out for the most part, making it easier to get to her car.
"Thank you for walking with me," Mikasa smiles, "I'll text you when I get home." The taller boy nods and leans in for a hug, planting a kiss into her hair.
XX
Mikasa opens the door to the library as quietly as she can, not wanting to disturb the customers who may be reading or using the computers. Seeing the building empty, she allows the door to shut and walks into her boss's office. He's sitting at his desk, scribbling his signature on some sort of important looking document.
"You're late," he chastises without so much as looking at her.
"I'm five minutes early," she retorts, looking up at the clock.
"True, but you're always here at least fifteen minutes earlier," he finishes writing and places the paper neatly on top another, "what kept you?"
"The parking lot was more crowded then normal," she blinks, doing her best not to break contact with his cold blue eyes.
"Don't lie to me, Ms. Ackerman," he stares at her for several more moments before continuing, "you're not being punished and I'm not angry, this is just very unusual behavior."
"Alright, Levi, fair enough," Mikasa sighs, "I was with my boyfriend."
She hears him whisper something along the lines of "this really is unusual behavior," as he stands and motions her to follow him as he leaves his office. He leads her to a cart with rows with several books.
"These were all returned while you were at school. I need you to put them back where they belong." He pushes the cart to her, "and don't let this boyfriend of yours make you late again." He adds as he turns.
"I wasn't late." She grumbles in a hushed voice with a slight blush, picking up one of the books and checking the label.
"Don't mumble, Ackerman."
She bites her tongue and heatedly pushes the cart down the isles, cursing him in her head. Levi is a decent boss; he doesn't overwork her and works around her schedule during the school year and sports season, but he has a way of getting under her skin unlike anyone else. He knows just when and how to push her buttons to her breaking point, then pulling away as if nothing happened. It drives her crazy, and he knows it.
XX
"Do you live here now, Armin?" Mikasa teases as she walks into Eren's room.
"He may as well," Eren grins, wriggling his eyebrows at Armin, earning him a pinch in his side from the shorter blonde.
"I actually need to get going," Armin sighs, rolling off of Eren's bed before grabbing his backpack, "I'll see you guys tomorrow."
"Aw, ok." Eren pouts, "bye."
As Armin walks out of the room Mikasa follows and taps his shoulder gently. "You didn't mention…anything, to Eren, did you?" She whispers. Armin shakes his head and she sighs in relief.
"Thank you, Armin. Have a good evening." She says the last part at her normal volume. The light haired boy smiles brightly and descends the stairs, thanking her parents and wishing them a good evening as he exits. From her bedroom she hears her phone vibrate on her dresser, followed by the heavy footsteps of her brother.
"I wonder who is texting Mikasa…" Eren hums teasingly as he cuts in front of his sister and struts into her room, pausing by her bed to look for her phone.
"Eren, get out of my room," Mikasa says coolly, walking around him and swiftly tucking her phone into one of her drawers, "I have to change into my pajamas."
He continues to search her room until her phone buzzes again from within her drawer. He smirks and reaches behind her to grab her drawer handle, only to have her grab his hand and turn it back at a painful angle.
"Ah!" He grimaces, "why are you hiding your phone from me?" He laughs through gritted teeth.
"You don't see me going through your phone," she turns him around and kicks him softly, causing him to stumble, "now please get out, I need to get ready for bed."
"Fine," he pouts, rubbing his wrist. Mikasa waits until she hears the faint click of her door shutting to pull out her phone.
Jean K: How was work?
She doesn't hesitate to respond.
-As good as it could be…how was your math homework?
She has time to change into her sleepwear before he messages back.
Jean K: Don't get me started…I'm exhausted so I'll probably go to bed soon, I just wanted to text you first.
-Me too, I guess I'll see you in the morning. Same time?
Jean K: Of course. Goodnight!
-Night