Chapter 2

Eren ran a hand through his hair, glancing around the parking lot for the familiar petite blonde. He was still five minutes early from the time they'd agreed on, even after waiting outside the restaurant for at least twenty minutes (y'know… just in case), but after standing still for so long, he was getting a bit restless. He caught himself checking his watch again, even though he'd just looked at it ten seconds ago.

There was a sudden buzz in his pocket. Eren pulled his phone out, reflexively flicking it open with his thumb.

It was a text from Armin. See her yet?

Eren quickly typed back, Nope.

A moment passed. She'll be there soon.

Eren smiled at Armin's natural optimism. I know. I'll text you when we're in.

Have fun, you crazy kids!

Eren rolled his eyes good-naturedly, sticking his phone back in his pocket. Somehow, Armin always had impeccable timing with his helpful texts—

"Having fun?"

Eren jumped, halfway to an instinctual defensive stance when he realized that the voice had come from Annie Leonhardt herself.

"Annie!" Eren exclaimed. He felt his heart pounding in his chest, both from the sudden surprise, and the fact that Annie Goddamn Leonhardt was standing right here in front of him, close enough that he could smell the lemon scent of her hair and—

Annie sighed. "Hopeless."

Eren looked at her confusedly, his arms falling back to his sides. "What?"

"Your stance," Annie deadpanned. "It's a complete train wreck." She grabbed his wrists and forced them back up, until they were level with his face. She circled around him, observing all of the flaws of his posture, almost like an unimpressed drill instructor. "Your arms are too low. Keep them high, unless you want an invitation for your opponent to punch your teeth out. Spread your elbows," she instructed, kicking the back of his knees, "and bend your legs."

Eren could feel his face getting slightly red. "It was just reflexive, I wasn't trying to make an actual stance—"

Annie glared at him. "It should be second nature to you. Seeing as getting thrown on your ass comes easily enough to you, I'd hope that at least some of what I've taught you got through your thick skull."

Eren grinned. "Honestly, sensei, I think I've learned more than you might believe. Can I put my arms down now?"

Annie sighed again, tucking her bangs behind her ear. "Fine."

Eren relaxed his stance, running a hand through his hair. "So… shall we go?"

"Well, unless you want them to serve us outside…" she paused, glancing over her shoulder at him. "Pupil."

Eren's grin spread from ear to ear as he held the door open for Annie Leonhardt.

X

As they walked into the restaurant, both Eren and Annie were surprised by how unexpectedly nice the place seemed. It was larger than it appeared from the outside, with wood-paneled walls covered by red leather booths, and the tiled floor obscured by a maze of zigzagging tables. TVs were suspended around the place, each on a different channel. The menu was displayed on a screen embedded in the wall, which a short line of people waited beside to place their order at the counter. It wasn't very crowded, as most of the tables were empty, which relieved some of Eren's anxiety; they would at least be able to talk without raising their voices over other conversations.

They meandered around the tables over to the line. Annie crossed her arms and leaned against the rail as Eren stood next to her, reading over the menu. It looked pretty good, he thought, and he silently congratulated himself for choosing to eat at a place that was appearing better and better by the second. Another horrible scenario he'd worried might have happened crossed off the list.

"Know what you want?" he said to Annie, glancing over at the shorter girl.

She brushed a loose strand of hair back, not looking at him. "No. I've… never had a burger before."

Eren looked at her, surprise lighting up his face. "Really?"

"Yeah, so I'll just get what you get."

Eren looked back at the menu, processing what he'd just heard. Then, he chuckled to himself.

Annie turned to glare at him. "What?"

"I just figured, if I were a prick like Jean, I'd get something disgusting to make you suffer. Which I wouldn't do, by the way," he said with a grin, raising his hands in surrender.

Annie's eyes sparkled humorously. "If you were Jean, you'd be here with Marco, not me."

Eren laughed, not noticing the slight smirk that was on Annie's face for an instant.

"So…" he said after a moment of quiet, "you've never had a hamburger?"

"No."

"Not even once?"

"What part of 'never' escapes your understanding, Jaeger?"

Eren smiled sheepishly. "I guess I'm just curious as to why. You're not a vegetarian, or you wouldn't be in a burger place to begin with, so…"

Annie sighed. She opened her mouth to answer the question, but right as she did, the person in front of them in line finished their order.

"We're up," she said, walking over to the cashier, a very curious Eren in tow.

X

They placed their orders, Eren paying with a twenty and receiving his change and a small white tab printed with their table number.

"Where do you want to sit?" he asked.

"I don't care, you pick—"Annie started, before realizing that he'd walked over to the drink counter to grab cups. She rolled her eyes, finding and sitting in a booth along the center of the wall.

After she had sat silently for a moment, Eren slid into the seat opposite her, placing two cups of water on the table. Annie raised an eyebrow quizzically.

"For the milkshakes," he explained, placing the small tab into a metal stand near the end of the table. "You'll probably be thirsty."

Annie took one of the cups. "Well," she said, averting her eyes as she took a sip. "Aren't you thoughtful."

Eren grinned, that same stupid goofy grin that he gave her every time he managed to pull off a move correctly in their practice after school.

They sat in comfortable silence for a while, Eren quietly tapping his foot under the table to the music playing softly from the speakers above. He kept trying to think of something to say to her, but it always sounded stupid in his head. He mentally berated himself; he was normally great at small talk, but every time he glanced at Annie's cobalt eyes, his mind was completely derailed. Seriously, what the hell was wrong with him? And why couldn't he—

Suddenly, a very familiar tune started playing on the speakers, and Eren's eyes widened excitedly.

"Oh, I love this song!" he said, grinning at Annie, who looked at him as she sipped her water.

"I didn't take you for the music-lover type."

"Yeah, I'm a huge Rod Stewart fan."

Annie arched an eyebrow. "Who?"

"He's the guy who does this song," Eren replied, gesturing towards the speaker. "You've never heard of him?"

She glanced away. "Can't say that I have."

"Oh. Do you listen to much music?"

Annie was about to respond, before a girl walked up to the table, carrying their order single-handedly on a large platter.

"Here you guys go!" she said, carefully setting each plate down with her free hand. She brushed her charcoal pigtail over her shoulder, and Annie caught a glimpse of her nametag—Mina, it looked like. Or Mila. Who gives a shit, she thought.

"Can I get you guys anything else?" she said, smiling brightly at the pair.

Eren glanced at Annie, who shrugged. "…I don't think so, thanks," he said politely to their bubbly waitress.

The girl—Mina—giggled, and leaned down to whisper to Annie. "Your boyfriend's cute," she said secretively.

Annie nearly choked on her water.

X

Author's Notes:Yes, Eren has a flip phone. Huge thanks to my impeccable beta reader, DPraven, for putting up with a ship she doesn't ship, and to all of you guys who've read, favorited, followed, or reviewed this story! It really makes my day, and I hope you'll let me know what you thought of this chapter :) Happy belated St. Patrick's Day!

-Steiner