Trigger warnings: Attempted robbery, violence and gun use.

"Are your feet okay?"

"They're fine, Eren."

"It's a little more of a walk, are you sure-"

Mikasa stopped in her tracks and turned to him wordlessly. She reached out and locked her arm with his, tugging him along to prove that she was able to walk perfectly fine in her three-inch heels. She laughed inwardly at how Eren and Levi underestimated her in these shoes.

"Lead the way," she urged him forward. With a smile, he continued.

The music that was once faded crescendoed upon their approach. The young woman immediately recognized the tunes playing; memories of her father strumming the guitar chords to artist's song "If It Hurts Too Much, It's Not Love" played in her mind and her heart squeezed at the memory of her father strumming and plucking to the song.

"Kim Kwang Seok," she thought out loud, facing Eren, "you took me to Kim Kwang Seok Alley." She said gently.

Eren nodded, "You mentioned it a couple times in the shop a while ago. I thought it'd be nice to take you to his memorial, you know, to relive the music."

Mikasa smiled up at him and fiddled with the maroon scarf, "Thank you Eren."

He choked. Fuck, she's gorgeous.

"I- It's no problem." Eren said sheepishly and tugged her along the paved road. Her eyes traced along the walls of the alley that were beautifully painted with portraits of the artist. Lights were strung up above them which illuminated every corner and offered a warm atmosphere to young musicians strumming their acoustic guitars. People on the sides of the street were singing along to a couple of his most famous songs, dancing with their significant other while their bodies intertwined lovingly with the music. Mikasa felt her curiosity heighten with every couple she saw together. She briefly wondered what it would feel like to be one of them, wondered what it would be like to wear her heart on her sleeve like a vast majority of girls her age did.

Eren, who seemed to pick up on her lingering eyes, pulled her aside on the dance floor and stepped in front of her. She looked up at him with bright gray eyes.

"Dance with me?" He held her palms gently. Mikasa stared blankly at the invitation. Bold, Jaeger.

"If you insist," she answered with a small smile, "but I apologize in advance if I step on your feet."

Eren chuckled but said nothing. Instead, he placed a hand on her waist and held her hand with the other. Mikasa followed him without question, for this was her first time dancing with anyone aside from her father years ago.

He began moving slowly and set the tempo with the music for the two of them. Mikasa watched curiously at their feet moving in sync, despite her stumbling here and there in the beginning.

"Are you sure this is your first dance?" He asked as they swayed to the beat, "Because you're doing surprisingly well."

"I guess I pick up on things fast," Mikasa shrugged, "and I've danced with my dad a couple times when he was still around."

"Oh," Eren dropped her hand to loop both arms around her waist, "What happened? If you don't mind me asking."

The question spiked anger throughout her body. She dug her nails into the palm of her hand, thankful that the lack of light hid her clenched jaw.

"He died in a car crash. Two years ago." She responded icily. Mikasa smirked inwardly at his reaction. He tensed a bit; it was a miniscule reaction to the average person, but Mikasa was observing him intently. "But what about you? Where'd you learn to dance?"

"Ah, my mom taught me when I was little. I used to put my feet on top of hers and try to balance while she took lead." He smiled sadly at the memory.

"You're close to your mom?" She asked as they danced.

"I was. She died last year. And frankly I don't know where my dad fucked off to after she passed."

Mikasa hummed sympathetically. Serves you fucking right. Suffer. "I was close to my mom, too." Her eyes did not speak, but her voice was soft.

"You lost both?" He looked at her sadly.

"Yeah. She was in the car with my dad when a drunk driver killed them both."

Eren's feet stuttered at the information. Her eyes narrowed, "Where did you go?" Mikasa prodded gently, the softness of her voice truly betraying the hardness of her heart. And though she already knew of the dispute going on in his head, her voice brought him back to reality. Eren released her waist solemnly and instead reached for her hand.

"Nothing, I'm sorry you had to go through that. Come on, let's grab something to eat."

"Yeah, let's." Asshole, she scowled to herself, stop playing innocent and fess up.

Mikasa never knew that there was so much to learn about coffee. There were things that existed such as an Affogato, which apparently was vanilla ice cream "drowned" in espresso. And then there was this thing called cold drip coffee that took way too long to make in her opinion, but she felt like Levi would enjoy himself. He was always the more patient sibling, anyway, just like their mother. Then she learned that the reason it was called a latte was because there was milk in it, and that an Americano was just a shot of espresso diluted in water. The young woman was never much of a coffee drinker, but when she helped herself to the occasional cup, it was the type that had you saying, "I think there's coffee in your creamer."

Long story short, she was very confused when Eren had brought her in front of the menu and she was put on the spot to choose off an elaborate menu. Thanks to her lack of practice in social situations, she was fumbling with her words and her face flushed a bright red until she tugged on Eren's sleeve to just order for her so she could go sink into the wall by herself. Luckily Sasha, the cashier, was nice enough to explain everything with patience and got oddly riled up when she got on the topic of dipping biscuits in coffee. Mikasa concluded that maybe they could have been friends if they were given a chance in another life.

Much to her distaste, Mikasa felt her chest ease up and the muscles in her arms and legs fell lax the more time she spent with the man. He was charming, and cute, and cared about her a lot more than she had expected. Frankly, she originally thought that that the fact that Eren wears his heart on his sleeve was inevitably going to lead to his downfall by her hand. It was funny, considering when she picked him up after his shift earlier that night, Mikasa was already armed and prepared to cut his life short thirty years. But at the end of the night, the mere thought of having to put a bullet in his head made her sick, and angry with herself for a plethora of reasons she couldn't quite put her finger on.

So when he went to the bathroom at the quaint coffee shop nuzzled in the corner of the street, Mikasa was left alone with her problematic thoughts. She had buried her face in the palms of her hand and debated. You're going to disappoint Levi, her brain reminded her, but are you really willing to kill off the only guy you brought yourself to care for? Mikasa, really think about this, her heart argued. While her insides whirred up in confusion and frustration, her physical body was left weak and vulnerable as she chewed on her lip and fumbled with her phone. Her brows met in the middle as she sent a quick text to her brother.

to: aniki

Finishing up coffee. Be home in thirty, probably.

But then Sasha was suddenly in front of her, setting down another cup of the vanilla latte she ordered twenty minutes ago with a sympathetic look on her soft face.

"You looked a little muddled, so I thought I'd bring you another cup, you know?" Sasha beamed and Mikasa was weirded out by how nice she was, "And don't worry about it! It's on the house. Just," the brunette leaned forward, "I know a first date when I see one, and I also see the way you look at each other like he's the sun to your moon- or whatever cheesy analogy floats your boat (. It's probably not my place to say anything, but don't let someone like that slip away."

Mikasa just looked at her with wide eyes and a red face. "I- uh," the raven fumbled with the money in her wallet before shoving what she thought was the appropriate amount of money into Sasha's smaller palm. "I know you said it's on the house, but I want to thank you. You have no idea how much I appreciate what you just said." Also, you're a goddess, she decided to leave out.

Sasha smiled one of the most brightest ones she's seen in awhile and bowed, leaving her to her extra cup of coffee. Mikasa opened her messages with her brother once more after he didn't respond and quickly typed another one.

to: aniki

Nevermind lol I got another cup

from: aniki

Good luck sleeping tonight.

Eren came back shortly after and eyed the cute latte art in front of her. "Wow, I didn't expect you to like this place this much. Thought you weren't that big on caffeine?" he joked. Mikasa laughed her first genuine laugh in months.

"Sasha gave it to me. She said it was on the house." Mikasa decided not to say anything about the barista helping her decide what to do during her crisis.

"Oh, I see," he jokingly put on a jealous face. "Did you tell her you were here with me tonight?"

Mikasa rolled her eyes, "Dork."

By the end of the night, her heart was beating a little faster and she couldn't tell if it was from the caffeine pumping through her system, or the fact that Eren held her hand while he walked her to the front of her hotel and was currently leaning in very very close to her face. She could feel a warm puff of air on her cheeks and her eyes fluttered shut. When he ever so gently pressed his lips against hers, Mikasa suddenly didn't know what to do with her hands and she debated pushing him away and punching him in the face, or just going with it. She ended up going with the latter.

Still, it didn't change the fact that she didn't know what the fuck to do. Mikasa kissed him back, obviously because she wasn't going to let this gorgeous green eyed man go without kissing him back, but she still remained tense. Tense enough for him to notice and pull away much to her disapproval. He rested their foreheads together.

"You okay?" He asked quietly. The street around them had suddenly gotten flushed out and quiet when he looked at her like that. She almost forgot that he killed her parents.

"Yeah," she said breathlessly, "that was um, that was my first kiss."

He grinned his usual shit eating grin and Mikasa pushed him away, red.

"Sorry, sorry," he pecked her cheek, "You're just too cute." Mikasa smiled and shook her head abashedly.

"I gotta go. My brother is probably looking for me," She rocked back and forth on her heels and Eren let go of her hands. "Goodnight, Eren." To his surprise, she leaned up to kiss his cheek, and turned on her heel to walk into the hotel lobby.

"Mikasa?"

She turned at her name. "Eren."

"How… how long are you staying here? Don't you have like, a real place to stay here?"

Mikasa shook her head sadly, "No, we're leaving in a month." Depends on how long it takes for me to kill you.

She turned once more and walked away before she could watch his face fall.

When she entered the elevator, Mikasa couldn't help but bury her nose into her red scarf to hide her stupid, dopey smile. But as she exited the elevator, she knew she'd get her ass whooped if Levi ever found out she had actually fallen for Eren.

The room is dark save for the lamp turned on by Levi's bed. He's sitting in bed, a plate of food in his hands as he shovels pasta in his mouth. Ungracefully he looks up from his computer after pausing his show, greeting his little sister.

"You're back," he nodded. Mikasa hummed quietly and set her purse down at the foot of her bed. She slipped into the bathroom to change to her pajamas. "And it's past midnight."

"I know," she crammed her clothes into the bag of dirty laundry, "which is why I'm wondering why you're eating so late. And in bed for that matter, since you're so anal about getting food on the sheets."

"I got home late from a hit," he explained and took another bite, "and I'm not giving you any because that Jaeger kid was supposed to feed you."

"He did. Though I'm pretty sure he's not gonna be able to spend for a while after tonight." Clad in a tank top and sweatpants, Mikasa plopped herself next to Levi and opened the laptop. "Did you know there's so much more shit to coffee than just cream and sugar?"

"Of course, I forget how high maintenance you can be," Levi rolled his eyes. "How was your hot date?"

"It was good," she chirped, "he kissed me."

"He what."

"Eren kissed me." Mikasa repeated, "He took me to Kim Kwang Seok Alley. I mentioned a couple times before that he was my favorite artist. And that dad played his music sometimes."

"Oh, so now he gives a shit about our parents." Levi quipped. Mikasa ignored him.

"We danced to 'If It Hurts Too Much, It's Not Love', and then he took me to a coffee shop and we talked. When he dropped me off at the hotel, he kissed me goodbye."

"I see you're getting pretty smitten with him, huh," he pried, glancing at her from the side.

"I guess so. But that's the goal right?" She hit the spacebar and 'Criminal Minds' played in the back while the siblings spoke.

"It is, it is." Levi assured, "But I would like him dead soon."

Mikasa hummed, uncomfortable. "Maybe I should stretch it out a little more," she suggested.

"What?"

"I mean," the young woman tried to recover, "if I can get him to become even more attached, then it'll hurt him more when he goes."

Levi eyed her warily, "You know little sister," Mikasa rolls her eyes at that, "I know when you're lying to me."

"I know, but good thing I'm not." She said quietly, "You're still trying to see through me, huh?" Levi snorted.

"Please, I don't need to try to see through you. You're an open book to me." There was a slight tint of condescension in his tone and Mikasa had to bite her tongue not to talk back and start an argument. She loved her brother dearly. He was all she had left, but it became overbearing whenever he would act like this: like he knew her inside and out. Even if she told him everything, Mikasa was a reserved person and still needed to keep somethings for herself.

"Oi, Mikasa," he nudged her out of her train of thought, "You know I trust you. I trust that you'll do the right thing and avenge mom and dad for us. I may act like an asshole sometimes-"

"Sometimes?"

"But," he dismissed her shot at him, "I do this because I care about you. Our jobs are not easy, and every day we work we put our lives on the line. You're strong, but you're not immortal. And I'm not about to lose my only sister. If that Eren kid ever tries anything-"

Mikasa clicked her tongue in annoyance and payfully shoved him away, "I know, I know, I can take care of myself." She laughed, and let her head rest on her brother's shoulder, "Thank you, Aniki."

He said nothing, only lifting a hand to ruffle her hair the way he always did.

"Hey." She interrupted the show, "Do you think we'll get caught like that one day?"

"Hm. Maybe," he admitted, earning a look from Mikasa, "Relax, Fritz always finds a way to cover it up, make it look like an accident or whatever. Truthfully I don't know what the hell that old man does behind his desk."

"Yeah. That man smokes so much even I can almost taste the phlegm in his lungs." Levi scoffed at that, "Speaking of which, how did work go? Erwin, right?"

The older man groaned at the sound of his name, "Yeah, it was alright. I sniped him from a skyscraper across from his hotel. He was a handsome son of a bitch, such a shame he had to die. It makes me wonder what he did to piss off Fritz."

She fidgeted with the hem of her tank and bit the inside of her lip, "We all have our secrets."

It was cold. Without her scarf, at least, the past couple of weeks she had gotten used to the fabric wrapped comfortably around her neck. Mikasa laid on her stomach at the top of the building perpendicular to Eren's shop with Levi's sniper rifle snugly pressed against her shoulder. The young woman had a clear shot of him from where she was settled. She looked through the scope and took a deep breath when the center was aligned with Eren's head. Her forefinger danced around the trigger flexing and then relaxing when she felt the tension build up and almost sent a bullet flying. Mikasa inhaled long and exhaled slowly. She could end this right now. She could send the thick bullet through his skull and no one would even find out. Hell, Levi didn't even know she came out here in broad daylight. Mikasa was sent to kill him, and that's exactly what she was going to do. Because fuck emotions, right? They were useless.

The young woman sucked her bottom lip under her teeth and bit down. You follow orders, Mikasa, don't stop anytime soon. She scoffed and berated herself for her reluctance.

It became increasingly harder to grip the rifle within her calloused hands and her fingers were way too fidgety to execute this properly. She shifted the butt of the rifle to press more against her shoulder, and squeezed the grip harder nonetheless and pressed her index against the trigger. Mikasa pulled the trigger further and further until she imagined it could snap- and then stopped.

She let out a breath she didn't even know she was holding and tore her eyes away from her target, her hands losing their death grip completely as her forehead dropped to the butt of the gun.

Mikasa could end this now and avenge her parents, even make her brother proud. But at what cost? She'd lose any possible feeling in her heart she had somehow managed to salvage the past few weeks and live her life wondering if she could ever return to the life she dreamed of as a child.

Okay, maybe feelings weren't all that useless.

"Fuck." Mikasa grit out and brought herself back up to a sitting position. She unscrewed the silencer and detached the loaded magazine. Flipping the safety switch on, she placed the rifle back in its case and slammed it shut, looking at the sleek black material with a lingering thought. With a final shake of her head, she climbed down the side of the building and made her way back to her hotel.

She paid him a visit that night. When she told Levi about her whereabouts, he gave the universal grunt of approval that sent her out the door.

"Hey stranger," he smiled brightly, "you come here often?"

Mikasa rolled her eyes and chuckled. "I have a really clingy friend who works here and always asks me over."

Eren feigned offense. "Friend?" Mikasa walked behind him and squeezed his shoulder.

"We're working out a label," she retorted and plopped down onto the stool Mikasa always sat in when she was there.

Mikasa would be lying if she said it felt awkward between them. It wasn't uncomfortable or anything, but there was an elephant in the room. They haven't spoken ever since the kiss, and the fact that she was only staying in Daegu for a short amount of time lingered in the air. It's been two whole days, and frankly Eren would have thought Mikasa ditched him if another day went by without a word from her.

"Everything okay?" His question cut through the silence. Mikasa hummed in response, but he wasn't convinced. "Something's on your mind. Is that why you haven't been responding to my texts…?" The brunet leaned forward on the counter, nodding a hello to a customer that came in.

"Ah, I'm sorry, I'm not a great texter. I'm better in person," She chuckled at the misunderstanding. Mikasa's eyes darted towards the person clad in all black that had walked in not long ago. Her eyes narrowed at his hunched shoulders, bowed head, hands stuffed into his pocket; she knew that body language all too well. Mikasa's seen it in her bathroom mirror far too many times.

Something's in his pockets. He's avoiding the cameras, and he's been standing still in that aisle too long to actually be interested in purchasing something. Mikasa felt herself twitch when the masked man shifted his hand, seemingly gripping something tighter. She stood up suddenly and Eren was taken aback when she stood to her full height without any warning. Granted she was still shorter than him, but that didn't mean her aura wasn't terrifying on its own.

"Mikasa?" His eyes followed her line of sight towards the figure walking towards them now. Her gaze hardened. If looks could kill, the man would have dropped dead already. Don't touch him.

"Eren." she shifted closer to him, placing her hands on his hips that had him spluttering a combination of "what are you doing" and "here?". Mikasa managed to press his back to the wall with hers facing the potential danger.

The click of a gun caught her attention and Eren felt himself freeze as if he were a deer in headlights. Slowly, Mikasa turned around to face the gunman.

It took everything in her not to scoff. The man held the gun sideways, his grip crooked and elbow slightly bent. She had to give it to him, though, he had quite the intimidating face.

"Listen, honey. As cute as you are, I won't hesitate to pull this trigger." He swept his gun to the side in an attempt to get Mikasa to move over so he could point the muzzle at Eren. She didn't budge, and he was losing patience. "Give me your fucking money!" He bellowed, and Mikasa would have been intimidated if she hadn't already dealt with this level of immaturity.

"Are you kidding me." Her eyes would have rolled to the back of her head if she hadn't felt Eren move out from behind her. He stepped boldly in front of her, his right arm sticking out to hopefully shield her from danger.

"Mikasa, stay behind me."

She looked down at his arm with disdain and raised an eyebrow.

"You guys are cute. But if you don't empty out that cash register in ten seconds then you'll have to watch me blow a bullet in your girlfriend's brain."

"Listen, man, there's no money in the register. The day just started-"

"I don't need to hear your bullshit excuses!" The gunman straightened his grip to a proper position and Mikasa stiffened. She'll step in when she needed to. She'd let him play hero for a bit. "Open the fucking register!" He pressed the barrel against Eren's forehead. Anger flashed in the brunet's eyes.

"Okay." He slowly put his hands up, making his way around Mikasa and over to the much-desired register. "Relax, I'll get you your money."

Mikasa sighed, watching him with wary eyes. She knew what he was going to do. Eren was going to say he'd get him the money, then reach for the broom last minute and try to hit the gun out of his hands. If this guy is an amateur like I suspect, he'd panic and pull the trigger before Eren could even grab the broom. Eren would be critically injured, if not dead, and he can't afford that. But, if this guy has more experience than I give him credit for, he'd shoot me first and have Eren watch me die before shooting him and running off with whatever money was in the register. Mikasa carefully calculated the situation in her head and evaluated her options before jumping into action. No. Eren has to be my kill, not yours.

Eren did exactly what she thought he'd do. The brunet hit the masked man in the arm, taking the barrel away from his face but unfortunately not out of his hand. The intruder scoffed angrily and pointed the gun at Eren once again after regaining his lazy composure. Fortunately, however, the gunman was even more of an amateur than she expected, and fumbled with the gun before realizing that the safety was on.

Mikasa bit back a laugh before walking in front of the gun. Eren called out her name from behind her but she said nothing, merely slapping the gun out of his hands by swatting the inside of his forearm and the back of the gunman's hand in opposite directions. She twisted the firearm until it was snug in her hand, bringing a knee up to the man's gut and watched him keel over in surprise. Mikasa brought the butt of the gun down to the juncture of his neck and shoulder and he cried out in pain.

She gripped the gun firmly in her right hand and switched the safety off, pointing it towards the former gunman. "Get out, idiot."

The said man was scrambling to his feet and out the door within seconds of hearing her voice.

When it was just Eren and Mikasa again, she glanced down at the gun. It was a simple gun, a Ruger SR22. It's size wasn't too intimidating but a bullet is a bullet nonetheless. She released the magazine and saw that it was only halfway full with five bullets loaded. She clicked her tongue in annoyance and turned to face Eren, who was still too shell-shocked to say anything.

"So the idiot's lack of gun knowledge just saved your life. If he had known to turn off safety then he could have killed you before I stepped in."

Eren's brain short-circuited before he began scolding her for her "reckless behavior".

She stood there and took it as he went on a tangent, yelling various forms of "I can't lose you" and "You could have died, idiot!"

"Eren," she sighed, exasperated, "I'm fine. You're the one he was threatening, anyway. Besides, I'm a trained martial artist. I've been training with my brother since we were little, I think I know how to handle situations like that."

"Okay, but still!" Eren threw his hands up in the air, "You could have told me beforehand you're trained. You scared the shit out of me, throwing yourself in front of a gun like that! Don't pull that shit, Mikasa, don't put your life on the line for me."

Mikasa almost laughed at the irony of the situation. The only reason she saved his life is because she wanted the kill for herself later. Maybe. Once she got over her stupid feelings, perhaps. "Okay, yes. If it eases your anxiety then you have my word." The young woman placed the gun on the counter, this time intentionally putting the safety on, before sliding it over to him. "But look, at least you have a gun now! Use it to protect this place, or whatever you macho men do."

"Macho," he repeated, "you're the one who saved my ass, Mikasa."

"Yeah, and it might not be the last time." She teased, smiling when he turned red and frowned.

"Anyway," Eren sighed and placed the gun in the drawer under the cash register, "there's this festival coming up that I've been meaning to go to for the longest time but never had money for it. I managed to save up some luxury money for it and I'd love it if you went with me."

Mikasa snorted. "Eren Jaeger, are you asking me out on another date?"

"Depends. Is it working?"

She sighed, defeated. "Yeah. When is it?" Mikasa took a step forward and looped her arms around his neck, catching him by surprise.

"September 22, the end of this month," his hands fell on her hips, "will you still be here then?"

Her mind jumped to her mission at the question.

If I go to this festival to him, I can pull him aside somewhere dark. We'll talk, and I'll have him dance with me. I can kill him then, and then go home. Miserable, but I can go home.

Her stomach churned at the thought nonetheless. She loved the guy, she really did. It sucked ass that she has to kill him. For a moment, Mikasa thought what would happen if she dropped everything, including the mission, and ran off with Eren.

"Mikasa?" He squeezed her side to bring her back to attention.

"Hm?"

"Will you still be in town by the end of this month?" He raised an eyebrow at the subtle shift in her attitude. She went from quirky and cute to distant and dull.

Mikasa let out a fake smile. "Yeah. Yeah I'll still be here by then. I think I'm leaving the day after, actually."

"Oh," his face fell, and she shuffled a little closer to him, "okay."

"Try not to look so disappointed. It won't be the last time we hang out, I promise." she lied through her teeth and suddenly she almost felt her breakfast come back up. "I have to go. I'll swing by after your shift and we can grab dinner, yeah?"

Mikasa cupped the back of his head affectionately. For a woman who killed men for a living, she was getting the hang of this whole "I kinda like you" shit.

Eren grinned his signature shit-eating grin. "Mikasa Ackerman, are you asking me on a second date?"

"Shut up." She rolled her eyes with a laugh. Mikasa pulled him down for a brief moment to press her lips against his. It lingered a second too long as if it were an apology, an 'I'm sorry for lying to you.' but she pulled away before the kiss would spill her entire story. The raven haired woman pulled herself from Eren's hold and squeezed his hand. "I'll see you later."

True to her word, she showed up again after his shift in a simple knitted white turtleneck hanging over a tight black velvet skirt that stopped mid thigh; black heeled boots hugged her legs all the way up to her knees but showed enough skin to leave the rest to his imagination. Mikasa ran a hand through her long braided hair draped across one shoulder and smiled at him expectantly.

"You ready?" His shoulders slumped.

"Mikasaaa," he whined, "you're all dressed up and I look so sloppy. Are you taking me somewhere fancy because my wallet is more of a McDonald's enthusiast."

"Eren," she laughed and rolled her eyes at the mention of his wallet, "you look fine. You kinda look like a dad with that shirt tucked into those jeans but it's not bad at all!" She waved him off jokingly, "I'm covering dinner tonight, don't worry about it."

Twenty minutes later they sat down at some fancy noodle house by the music alley they went down the other day. Eren had seen it many times before but never bothered to go inside, thinking it would hurt his bank account just by walking in.

A young waiter with kind eyes who went by the name Marco came by soon after they were seated with a plate of various appetizers and glasses.

"Can I get you two anything to drink?"

Mikasa smiled with her chin in the palm of her hands. "We'll have a bottle of Columbia Crest Cabernet Sauvignon."

"Absolutely. That'll be right out." And Marco was off.

Eren gawked at her. "I have no idea what any of those words meant but it sounded extremely expensive. I mean- sitting here alone is expensive- plus a tip! What… what do you work as? As a nineteen year old, too… Only thing that comes to mind is being a stripper."

Mikasa raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, exactly that."

The gears in Eren's brain sputtered, "Wait, really?!"

She chuckled and shook her head, "Sarcasm, sweetie."

"Oh, that's… comforting? I guess," Eren leaned back in his seat, "so what do you work as? Think I'm qualified for a job as well-paying as that?"

She popped a calamari in her mouth and smiled. "Please."

He looked at her, confused, before Marco came in between them. He smiled wordlessly and began filling their glasses before hastily taking the rest of their order. Which, had Eren still in disbelief at the amount of money she was spending. Marco bowed and left with a signature "The food will be out shortly," and left the wine bottle on the side.

"Loosen up, Eren. Don't worry so much about money right now." Mikasa cupped the glass from the bottom with the palm of her hand and tipped it back.

Eren opened his mouth to respond when another voice interrupted.

"Mikasa?"

Her head whipped towards the direction of the voice. There Levi stood by their table, forcing a smile and nodding a greeting towards Eren before turning his attention to his sister.

"Aniki, what are you doing here?" She frowned.

"I don't even get an introduction?" He imitated her face.

Eren's eyes darted between their identical frowns. Wow, it was almost like they were related.

Mikasa huffed and straightened up. "Levi, this is Eren, the guy I've been telling you about for a while. Eren, this is my brother, Levi."

She watched with pain in her eyes as Levi shook Eren's hand with unnecessary strength that had the younger man flinching away.

"Good to finally meet you. I've heard a lot about you."

"U-uh. You, too, sir." Eren spluttered. Levi's intimidating gaze down towards him nearly had him choking.

Mikasa cringed. She knew how much Levi didn't like being called 'sir' and before he could say anything- because she saw his posture change and his face morph- she spoke up once again.

"Levi, what are you doing here?" she repeated.

"I'm here with a client." He answered, glancing towards a table with a single woman sitting in it. She had a pixie cut; blonde hair tickling the back of her neck while she angrily spoke into the phone. Her sharp nose and glinting blue eyes matched her pricey way of dressing. She had sharp shoulders and a dramatic dip in her collarbone. Her long, pale legs that were crossed under the table ended at black stilettos. Mikasa slightly heard her conversation from where she sat, "Mike, you idiot, you had one job!"

Mikasa let out a small smirk. She knew an undercover agent when she saw one.

"So, Eren, have my sister back at the hotel by ten." And Eren was ready to fiercely nod his head yes and apologize- frankly, he didn't even know what for- but Mikasa quickly showed distaste at the curfew by shaking her head aggressively.

"That's too early, the agreement is always midnight."

Levi cocked an eyebrow. "Sorry, I didn't know you had any other plans for tonight." His eyes darted between the two. He lingered at the table and Mikasa wanted to ask 'why are you still here' but of course, he had to open his mouth once again.

"So how long have you two been having sex?"

This time, Eren really did choke.

Mikasa blanked. Too many emotions ran through her right now for her to choose one to act on.

"I don't understand the question."

"We-we're not- we're not having sex, Levi! Uh. Sir. Uh. Mr. Ackerman?" Eren flailed his arms around.

Jesus, Mikasa wanted to sink into the wall. Levi wanted to laugh at how submissive he was being. He almost understood why Mikasa wanted to draw this out so long; Eren was kind of a pathetic thing in his eyes.

"Just Levi is fine, Eren. Mr. Ackerman was my father." The use of past tense didn't slip by the younger male.

"Levi. We've just been going on dates. Now go meet with your client. Please." There was a look in her eyes that Levi was able to read, and Mikasa thanked the gods for their weird telepathic abilities.

"Fine. Midnight. I'll see you then."

The older Ackerman walked away and Mikasa let out a breath she didn't even know she was holding.

"God, I'm so sorry, Eren. He's like that sometimes."

"Don't worry about it," he dismissed her apology, heartbeat returning to a normal, healthier pace, "he's protective. I get that. He takes care of you when I can't."

His response left Mikasa wordless, so she smiled fondly at him instead. "Thank you."

"He's scary as shit, though." Mikasa laughed.

Marco had to butt in one more time with their dishes and set them in front of them accordingly, offering any more of his service before he was dismissed one more time. Mikasa sighed and made brief eye contact with Levi. His gaze was hard, almost unreadable, but Mikasa sent a transparent look that said "Just trust me."

Eren hummed in delight at the sight of the food and spread out his napkin across his lap.

"Let's eat?"

A/N: Yessss chapter three is done. My favorite chapter so far. Two more to go! I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. Leave me some love in the reviews~