a/n: FIRST AU CHAPTER! This one was inspired partially by a lovely piece of fan-art by one artist kenkenchan, from tumblr. kenkenchan dot tumblr dot com slash post/152115634742/well-this-was-supposed-to-be-nsfw-but-i-ended-up (Replace the dots with . and the slash with, well, a /. Delete all spaces!)

.04 - Half-Dressed

Wordcount: 420

Rating: PG-13

[A.U.]

Wake up and the bed is empty. Staring at the ceiling, there's not a sound except for her own, quiet breathing and distant, passing traffic. The subtle hiss of the shower reaches her ears.

Roll over to face the door — slightly ajar — gazing at the impression his body has left behind. Options, considered. She could wait. Or join him. Could throw on a shirt first. In the end, she compromises. Finds her hoodie crumpled lonely on the floor and slips it on, no bra.

Trip to the bathroom is quick, and she's in-and-out with an ease that only comes with being comfortable enough to share that kind of space.

She's already in the kitchen before the shower stops. Rifling through the fridge, she catches the return of footsteps. Annie stops and waits, long after he's actually stepped into the room.

"Morning," she says, without looking up.

"Hi," says Eren.

Close the door, turn around and he's there, in a towel and, as far as she can tell, nothing else. Their eyes meet, and he offers her a smile. Something — like a shiver but warmer — chases up her skin, leaves her tingling as she turns back to the fridge, but she always keeps him in her peripherals. The kitchen is tiny, she thinks.

His eyes stay trained on her. She's pretty sure he's only testing her, because it's not like she hasn't resorted to similar tactics in the past.

Play the waiting game; uncertainty comes not from physical touch, but the promise of it. The trick to living with someone else is that you learn them, after a while. The catch: they'll quickly learn you.

But Annie's not entirely sure she is ready to accept that level of fragility — at least, not completely. So to divert herself from that fact, she reaches up and grabs his shoulders, kissing him. His skin is warm, hair faintly damp. Eren hums, catching her waist, her hips, cupping under her ass and she's lifted, sitting on the counter, legs parted around his waist.

The towel is held-up loosely by their bodies and he leans back, one hand on her thigh and the other sneaking up her shirt and over naked flesh; a smirk crosses his mouth. Before he can comment she's kissing him again, trying to get him closer. And Eren doesn't make her wait; he presses slow against her, hauling up her shirt to lay her bare. Her mouth trails down, open against his throat as he gasps.

"C'mon," she whispers. "I can't wait."

a/n: Part I of II. ;)