Notes: Aaand this chapter took longer than I intended, and it's kinda boring? Maybe? I don't know. If it is I apologize. It's getting better in the next chapter though, because Eren's descent into troubled child-ness begins~.

Chapter Two:

I want to say that after being forced to move in with Levi, everything went smoothly. That everything was perfect, and I never had anything to worry about. But that's not the case. It's never the case. Because, to be honest, I was a mess before I got there. And being a teenage fuck up isn't something that can be erased in one week, or even one year. It takes more time to get over past mistakes. If you even can get over them.

Being Levi's roommate had its ups and downs. One of the downs was being kicked awake at six-thirty in the goddamn morning. And by kicked awake, I mean literally kicked out of bed. With a groan, I sat up, rubbing my forehead from where it banged against the end table and threw a harsh, half-asleep glare at the man who was responsible for my abrupt ascent into the real world.

"On what planet is that an okay way to wake someone up? I mean, seriously. What the fuck?" my voice came out like a pathetic, childish wine. And the second kick to my side only showed just how not amused Levi really was.

"My apartment, my rules. Your sister called your phone six times this morning. This, by the way, is not an acceptable way for me to wake up."

My eyes widened and I stood up a little too quickly, swaying on my feet as vertigo hit me in an annoying wave. Another groan left my lips as I finally regained my balance and glanced at Levi. His face was the usual, stony mask of indifference.

"Mikasa called?"

"Yeah, she did, and informed me that you have school today."

I gulped somewhat audibly at that statement. After all, Mikasa wasn't a liar. She snitched on me for a pack of cigarettes when we were thirteen, and of course, I whined until she gave me half the pack. We smoked it all in one sitting too.

"Yeah, I know your age kid. And there's no way you're working at a bar. I mean, Christ, you're sixteen. Did you really think you'd stand a chance at a dirty place like Maria's?"

"Hey!" My nostrils flared; something that I normally did when I was angry or upset, "I'm tougher than I look. I can handle the goddamn job Levi."

Those steel grey eyes practically burned a hole into my skull with the way he was staring at me. And frankly, I was little scared.

"The answer's no. I refuse to be responsible for an underage brat getting his ass kicked because he was in the wrong place at the wrong time. I'm already on close watch by the cops and I don't need that shit on my record." With those words said, he pulled a pack of cigarettes from his pocket, placing one at his lips to light it.

I watched, transfixed by the way his eyes closed and his entire body seemed to loosen up at the nicotine intake. It was an interesting sight to witness, because from what I'd seen, Levi was an un-emotional dick. I hadn't seen him let loose even once in the short time I'd known him. Not that I really knew him, he never told me a single thing about himself. So I never told him about me, other than the fact that my mother died and her funeral was two days ago. We were virtually strangers who just happened to be sharing an apartment.

"Quit staring brat. It's rude." Levi finally spoke, tearing me from my thoughts as I looked away with a blush. "Get your ass ready. Your annoying sister is going to be here in a half an hour."

"Mikasa, calm down. Seriously, you worry about every little thing I do, and it's way too early for this."

"Calm down? You want me to calm down? I called you six times and he answered. When the fuck was it okay to let him answer your phone? I mean, you don't even know the last thing about him. The only reason that I didn't track your phone's GPS last night was Annie telling me that you'd be okay."

A weird sound left my lips at that. I wasn't even sure it could be classified as human.

"Annie said that? Was she high again? I swear, she's more drugged up than a surgery patient half the time."

"That's beside the point Eren. What matters, is that you're living with a stranger. A twenty-four year old stranger. With a criminal record. I mean, fuck Eren, what if you get caught up in his shit of a lifestyle? That's not okay with me."

"Mikasa, you're one to talk. You spent a week in JD for sending three guys to the hospital last year. And then you spent another week there a few months ago after being suspended for selling weed on school property."

The look she sent my way was chilling, but I was used to it by now so it didn't bother me too much. When you lived with Mikasa, you kind of had to get used to her "I'll kill you with my eyes" voodoo.

"Okay, so you have a point, but still. If he hurts you, I swear to god I'll send his ass back to whatever hole it crawled out of."

"Okay, okay. Whatever. Can you just find a parking spot? I need to find Armin before class starts to get the notes for chem. Or Smith's gonna have my ass."

The first ten minutes of class, everyone was gawking at me like I'd just grown another head or something. Even Connie was staring at me. And he was the shy type.

"What? Is my face turning purple?"

"Maybe then you'd actually look attractive Jaeger." It was Jean's voice. I hated that kid more than I hated anyone. He was a complete idiot.

"Very funny horseface. You tell everyone that?" It wasn't the best comeback in the world, but it was enough to make Jean's face turn slightly red with anger.

"Shut up before you choke, cock whore." From the sound of his voice, I knew calling him horseface was pissing him off.

"Sorry Kirschtein. But I don't broadcast my sexual activities to the world unlike a certain jock I know."

Whatever smart mouthed retort the other had died in his throat as the door was shoved open, and Mr. Smith entered the room. It became so quiet you could hear a pin drop then again, with a chemistry teacher like him, it was in your best interest to not be talking when he was in the room. He was as strict as a military commander.

"I hope you all did your notes over the weekend."

With that said, all eyes turned to me. It wasn't that I was a bad student, I was just notorious for not doing my notes. Occasionally I would, but most of the time I wouldn't bother. With a gulp, and sheepish smile, I pulled out the notes I'd copied from Armin. The almost illegible scrawl signaled that they were in fact, my notes.

"I got 'em. Don't worry." My voice was calm, because unlike some people, I handled pressure pretty well. Nothing ever fazed me when it came to being called out upon.

Mr. Smith's eyes looked to the papers in my hands, his blue eyes taking on that ever present disappointed look. He knew I'd copied them, because I always did.

"Hopefully, Mr. Jaeger here will one day learn how to do his own notes. But until then, I suppose Mr. Arlert's will have to do." Everyone snickered at those words until Smith stared them down, "The test will begin shortly. You have twenty minutes to study your notes, so get to it. I expect all of you to pass. Especially you, Jaeger."

"And then he called me out like I was stupid or something! I mean, seriously. You should have seen his face Armin. It was this swirling mass of disappointment."

"Well, you do tend to not take your notes. Even when you do, you're copying mine. So in a way, I guess his disappointment is justified?"

I scowled at his words. He was right of course, he always was. But that didn't mean I wanted to hear it. I wanted someone to agree with me for a little bit.

"You aren't helping."

Armin sighed, and I knew I was probably bugging him to death. He looked up from the unidentifiable mush on his tray, and fixed me with that "I know you're an idiot, but come on" look that he always gave me when I was being stubborn. It was quite an amusing look though.

"Eren please. Can we just enjoy lunch for one day?"

"If you can even call that lunch. I mean, what is that, mashed vomit?"

"That doesn't even make sense."

"Maybe not. But that's still what it looks like."

"Shut up Eren."

"I'm back." My voice echoed throughout the apartment, and I looked around, briefly wondering if Levi was even home right now. I dismissed the curiosity with a shrug and headed off to the room I was given so I could at least start the massive amount of homework I had. There was a note on the door though.

'You're on your own for food. Make a mess, and I'll castrate you.

Levi'

What a charmer." I muttered, dropping my bag off on the bed before heading to the kitchen. I contemplated making some huge meal, but thought better of it when I saw the total lack of ingredients. "How does he even live?"

Instead, I settled for homemade chicken soup with celery and carrots. It was one of the few things he actually had the items for. Humming a little tune as I washed the vegetables, I quickly lost track of time. It was around five o'clock when I heard the door open, and I turned towards the sound.

"What the hell are you making?" Yep. Definitely Levi.

"Chicken soup. If you want some, I've made enough for two. Just get a bowl and it'll be done in a few minutes."

The look he gave me would have made me laugh, had he not seemed genuinely terrified to try my cooking.

"I'm not going to kill you. My mom taught me how to cook before she died. I inherited her talent for it." I grinned slightly, stirring the soup and waiting as Levi got two bowls. "You'll love it, trust me." I poured the soup into each bowl, and placed them on the table.

Levi looked a little skeptical, but he still took a spoonful, swishing the stuff around in his mouth to taste it before swallowing.

"Well..?"

"That was... pretty damn good. You said your mom taught you that?"

I beamed proudly; glad to have someone else to cook for besides Mikasa and Armin.

"Yeah, she did. I have a whole book of her recipes somewhere. Not that I ever used a recipe, I pretty much just wing it every time, but it's nice to have."

He didn't say anything to that, and we spent the rest of dinner in silence. It wasn't the awkward kind, the ones where no one really knows what to say. This was comfortable. And for once, I liked the silence.

Notes: Har Har. "As strict as a military commander". See what I did there~? Yes, this has been posted on my Ao3 account, so yeah. Chapter three will be worked on shortly.