Additional Pairings: Briefly mentioned Levi/Hanji & Connie/Sasha

Rating: T (Language)

Words: 8318

Inspired By: Drive By (Train), Holding Out For a Hero (Jennifer Sanders), All to Myself (Marianas Trench)

Notes:Basically this AU week and my 30 day of AUs is my excuse to write all the stories I've had in my head for ages. I always really liked the idea of one of them being a celebrity and the other just being so completely dense to that, unknowingly making a very good impression. I tend to make Mikasa the calm and collected one and Eren the one who fumbles a bit more so I thought it'd be fun to reverse that here ;3 Title is from "Drive By" by Train.

But That One Night Was More Than Just Right

(Day 10 – In a Band)

Great. This was just great. As if Mikasa wasn't already late to lunch with her always punctual brother and sister-in-law. As if it wasn't already like 100 degrees if she didn't take a short cut that led her through the middle of nowhere. Her car just had to break down now of all times.

Mikasa had her head against her steering wheel as she tried not to watch smoke fizzle up from under the hood of her car. She pawed over at the passenger's seat where her bag was, waiting till she felt the familiar shape of her cellphone. She lifted her head just a bit as she brought her phone to her eyes to find the nearest tow service she could and maybe call Levi and admit she'd be late. The sight nearly made her throw her phone through the windshield.

"No service? Are you fucking kidding me?" she whined a loud. This was ridiculous. What was next? A farmer with an axe coming out of the corn field she was next to and start beating on her car? Mikasa was fairly certain this day couldn't get any worse.

With a sigh she pushed open her door and stepped out in the hot and humid summer air. She pulled off the nice blouse she was wearing, leaving her in just a tank top and shorts and leaned back in the car to pop her hood. She knew approximately two things about how to fix a car and that was how to change a tire and how to change her fluids. Hell, she wasn't even sure Levi knew anything about cars, not that he was here to help or even knew where she was to look for her when she didn't show up for lunch.

Mikasa pulled open the hood and tried not to choke on all the smoke that rushed up at her when she did. She quickly propped the hood up on its stand before she tried to wave some of the smoke away. It wasn't like it was an old car. She had no idea what went wrong, but she also had zero knowledge of cars. Mikasa lifted her sunglasses to peer into the hood a little better.

Well, she saw wires and some more wires, the battery, um, transmission? She huffed and looked back up to the empty road next to her car. How far away was the last gas station she saw? Maybe she could just walk until she got service back; it's not like she was that far from the city. No one would probably steal her car out here, and if they wanted to they'd at least have to fix it first.

The sound of a car slowing down on the road had her head snapping up. It was an older looking car, maybe a refurbished one? Mikasa moved so she was standing out in front of her car and waved her hand out towards the oncoming car. If it was a refurbished car then maybe the driver knew something about cars. She'd take any help she could get, provided she didn't get murdered in a cornfield.

The car pulled off to the side of the road behind Mikasa's before coming to a full stop. Really she expected an older or middle aged man stepping out but it was a guy who looked maybe around her age. He had sunglasses over his eyes so she couldn't really tell but the messy brown hair, the slim but fit body, tanned skin poking out from his t-shirt and long shorts really didn't have her regretting having him stop.

"Hey," she called out as he walked closer to her. "Thanks for stopping."

"No worries," the guy said, a warm smile on his lips that made Mikasa feel a little faint. She could blame that on the heat though. "I take it your car doesn't seem to want to corporate, huh?"

"Must've known I was going to visit family and decided against it."

The guy snorted. "I know how that feels. Do you mind if I…?" He gestured to the hood of the car.

"Please," Mikasa nearly begged. "I have no idea what to even look for."

"It's not a problem," he said as he headed over to the front of her car. "I was just driving around anyways."

Mikasa leaned up against the side of her car as the guy lifted his sunglasses up onto his head. She really hoped he didn't hear the way her breath caught in her throat. She didn't think she had ever seen eyes that color blue before and the way they stood out on his boyish face, he was absolutely gorgeous. Did this really happen in real life? She was under the impression that the only time a beautiful man would come help a girl stuck on the side of the road was in porn.

"Are you from around here?" she asked, looking over at him as he leaned over her engine.

"Yep, born and raised out here," he answered.

Mikasa's forehead furrowed. Granted she didn't live here her whole life but it wasn't that big of a town; she would've remembered if she saw him even in passing. "Huh, I don't think I've ever seen you around before. What's your name?"

"Eren," he said looking up at her with a smile. "But don't worry, I travel a lot for work so I'm not here nearly as often as I'd like to be. Mind if I ask the same?"

"Oh, of course, Mikasa."

He smiled again, his eyes brightening up. "Well, Mikasa, good news is I'm pretty sure I know what's wrong and the even better news is I just came from my mom's so I happen to have some old tools in my car. Pretty sure I can fix your car back up in no time."

"Oh my God, that would be amazing," Mikasa breathed. "My brother is already gonna kill me for being late, and you might really save my ass."

"It's what I live for," Eren said with a wink before heading back to car.

She watched him reach in to pop his trunk before he disappeared behind his car. Eren, Eren…the name sounded familiar but she couldn't place it. She didn't think she went to school with him and she knew she hadn't worked with him. She was pretty sure she'd remember that face too.

The trunk shut and Eren came back around holding a case of sorts and a few types of tools in his hands. Mikasa leaned up against the side of the car as she watched him pulling at a few types of tools that she knew absolutely nothing about.

"Did you build your car?" she asked, figuring if they were stuck here might as well make the best of it and it had nothing to do with the fact a gorgeous guy was working on her car in front of her. Not at all.

Eren nodded, wiping one of his tools on an oil stained rag. "I did when I was a little younger. I don't have too much time these days but when I used to all my time went into the car."

"With your dad?"

That one made Eren laugh. "Close, my dad is a doctor for people not cars." He leaned back over the engine starting to pull something out. "My best friend, Armin, he lived with his grandpa his whole life and at the farm next to my family's. His grandpa taught us during every summer since we were kids up until we graduated high school. Armin didn't quite like it as much as me." Eren rolled his eyes but his smile was still bright when he looked over to Mikasa. "He doesn't like getting his clothes dirty."

"I take it you don't care." She nodded towards him and his shirt and shorts that already had smudges of grease on them.

"Nah, and my mom got pretty good at getting them out of clothes after a while." Eren reached up to wipe the back of his hand against his forehead before he leaned back over her car. "So tell me, Mikasa, what do you do?"

"Oh," Mikasa said; she hadn't really been expecting him to ask about her. "I'm a teacher."

"Yeah, what kind?"

"Dance, I teach ballet."

Eren let out a low whistle. "That's impressive. That's a lot of training and discipline then to turn around and teach other people."

Mikasa tried not to let him see the way her face flushed, maybe he'd just think it was the heat. "I went through it all from four years old to sometimes still now so I figure why not pass that along to others."

"And it's a steady paycheck doing what you love, I get it don't worry." He gave her a grin before tossing his rag over his shoulder. "Loving and pursuing the arts is rough most all the time, so take it where you can get it."

"So you're a mechanic and…" She gestured for him to continue.

"Hobby mechanic, I don't do that for a living. Uhh, let's see, I do a little bit of everything."

"C'mon, you're the one messing with my car's engine for all I know you could be making it worse, I need to know a little more about you too," she teased.

"Just you wait, your car will run better than it ever has," he said pointing a wrench at her and making her laugh. "But I can play this game. If you wanna talk arts than I'm in a band."

Some kind of recognition flickered in the back of Mikasa's mind but she couldn't place what it was. "What's your part?"

"I told you, a little of everything. Singer, guitarist, pianist should we need it. I write music but not the lyrics that I got banned from."

"I thought all guitarists that double as pianists were supposed to be able to write beautiful lyrics."

"You shut your mouth."

Mikasa laughed and she watched a smile pull at his lips before he looked down to the engine. Another car drove by but even if the driver was curious as to what was going on next to the cornfield the car didn't stop. That was fine, Mikasa had all the help she needed now and he could take as long as he wanted.

"I'm sorry this is taking so long," Eren said. "Didn't you say you had to be somewhere?"

She rolled her eyes. "Yeah, just my brother and his wife."

"I take it you weren't really looking forward to the trip."

"It's not that." Mikasa crossed her arms against her chest. "I love my brother and my sister-in-law but getting together with them is very tiresome. She's a scientist who can talk a mile a minute about God knows what she's working on and he's a lawyer who will tell you what he thinks no matter what say you might want in it."

Eren made an understanding noise. "I take he tells you what he thinks of your choice of job."

"Every time. He thinks I should do something with my degree instead of working in a dance studio."

"I understand." Eren dropped whatever piece he was working on back into the engine. "I love my dad but he wasn't too pleased when I dropped out of pre-med to be able to do more with the band."

Mikasa didn't even realize she was practically leaning over the engine with him until his arm brushed against hers. "Do you guys, um, do well?"

"We do pretty well for ourselves and my dad's over it now. Granted…" He pushed himself back from the engine and wiped his hands on his rag. "That's probably because he doesn't have to pay for entertainment when him and my mom renew their vows this winter. Okay, Mikasa, why don't you try to start it up again?"

Disappointment sunk in her stomach but she knew he had to finish eventually. She walked back to the driver's side and slid into the seat. She turned the key and sure enough the engine turned over, giving off a healthy hum. A part of her wanted it to still be broken but she supposed she should finally get to lunch. She grabbed her wallet from her bag. "Here, let me give you something for helping. I'd probably still be walking for help if it wasn't for you."

Eren waved her off as he closed her hood. "It was my pleasure. Save your money and get something good for surviving lunch."

"No, please, let me do something for you."

He paused as he was picking up his tools on the ground. "You thirsty? I have some water in my car if you want it."

"Okay." Mikasa tried to bite back her smile, but it didn't work so well. She tossed her wallet back in her car when he went to bring his stuff back to his, and quickly turned off the car so it wasn't radiating more heat.

Mikasa didn't even bother looking in a mirror, knowing she was probably a sweaty mess and there was no fixing that. When she stepped back out Eren was already walking towards her two bottles of water in his hands. He lightly tossed her one before coming to lean up against the side of her car. The water was cold and incredibly welcome as she opened it and drank down a few sips.

"Do you still dance? Or do you just teach?" Eren asked looking over at her.

"I will sometimes," Mikasa said, twisting the cap back on her water. "I'll participate in showcases and occasionally I'll audition for shows."

"Do you teach kids? Adults?"

"Why?" Mikasa said, giving him a small smile. "Looking to learn?"

"I'd look mighty fine in a leotard and tights let me tell you."

She was laughing so hard she was having a hard time breathing, though she wasn't sure if that was from the laughter or the fact Eren was standing so close to her she could feel his body heat. "I do everything. Beginners, intermediate, advanced, kids, teenagers, adults."

"But whose your favorite to teach?"

"The little ones," Mikasa said. "They're just so excited to be ballerinas and they try so hard to do all the moves correctly. It's before they understand the competition of it all, before they learn the hardships that come with the dance, everything is so innocent and genuine. They're very sweet."

Eren watched her for a moment, his bright eyes watching hers. He looked like he was gonna say something, but he just kept watching her, a smile on his lips.

"C'mon." She cleared her throat and nudged his arm with her elbow. "I wanna hear more about your band."

He snorted. "There's not too much to say. Just a band I have with my friends that we did on and off in high school and college but we all pretty much devoted ourselves to it now."

"What kinda music do you play?"

"Are you telling me that I don't look like a rock star?"

She laughed again. "Look can be deceiving."

Eren took another sip of water, that same smile on his lips. "That they can be." A comfortable sort of silence settled over them before he cleared his throat. "Hey, my band is actually playing tonight if you'd like to come by."

Mikasa felt like her heart leapt up into her throat. "Yes, I'd love to. Where're you playing?"

He was quiet for a moment as he watched her. A bashful look crossed his face and he reached one hand up behind the back of his head. "Um, The Meadows."

She blinked at him. That was a the biggest venue in town, she was about to ask if there was an event going on there they were playing at but before she could she dropped her water, both hands clasping over her lips. "Oh my God," she nearly gasped, watching him with wide eyes. The looks, the name, the band, the venue, everything finally clicked in her head where she had seen him before. "You're Eren Jaeger, you're the lead singer for Black Trash Bag."

He laughed though a little nervously now. "Yeah, sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." He leaned over to grab her water bottle, holding it back out to her.

Oh God. Holy shit. She had just spent the past half hour trying to flirt with and whining to Eren Jaeger whose band just had another number one single come out. How could she be so stupid? She reached a careful hand out to take the bottle again. "What're you doing out here? Shouldn't you be in like a limo with body guards and stuff?" She was probably just embarrassing herself worse but now she couldn't stop nervous babbling.

He snorted. "I didn't lie to you, Mikasa, I was visiting my mom. Our farm isn't too far away from here so since I was playing in our hometown we came out earlier to visit."

"I'm so sorry I didn't recognize you."

He waved her off and gave her a smile. "I'm glad you didn't. Hey, I'm sorry, I kept you from your brother for so long, but I meant it about tonight. If you want to come, I can have a ticket for you at the door."

She had no idea if he was messing with her or not. "Um, okay."

"Awesome," Eren said starting to back away to his car, that toothy grin on his lips that made her heart skip. "I'll see you then. Oh, shit, what's your full name so I know what to leave it under?"

"Oh, um." She tucked some of her hair behind her ear. "Mikasa Ackerman."

"Got it," he said as he opened his car door, still looking over at her. "Don't let your brother give you shit today, okay?"

Despite herself she had to smile. "I'll try."

He tapped the side of his door window that he was leaning up against before giving her a wave and slipping into the driver's seat. Mikasa could barely wave back as he was driving away. Her head hit the back of her car the moment he was out of the sight, her heart pounding in her chest. What the hell just happened?

Mikasa still couldn't believe she was going through this even as she parked in the huge parking lot and started walking her way up to the outdoor ticket booths with a huge crowd of people all around her. She clutched her purse in front of her as she walked, her whole body tense. This was a mistake. He probably didn't even remember her name, just some girl he was nice to for a little bit.

She could barely get through the lunch when she finally did get there, her mind replaying the scenes and conversations over and over again. She couldn't tell Levi or Hanji what happened, she couldn't even bring herself to tell Annie and she was Mikasa's roommate. What if there was no ticket? And she just had to head back to her car, stupid for thinking she was anything special to a huge celebrity. Mikasa lied when Annie asked what Mikasa was getting all dressed up for and said they had an open house at the dance studio. She just couldn't face the embarrassment if all this was a giant joke. She couldn't face that she was actually hoping it wasn't.

Now that she wasn't stuck on the side of the road she tried to make up for it but actually putting on some makeup, wearing her long hair down, and putting on a dark red summer dress with some black heels. How did she even dress for this? She had no idea if she was over dressed, if she stood out like a sore thumb in the crowd. Maybe she should just go back to the car and pretend like this never happened, but the line was moving and she was facing an attendant ripping tickets.

"Do you have your ticket, miss?" she asked, hand open and waiting.

"Um, no, I was told there would be one here for me," Mikasa breathed trying to feel every bit confident she didn't feel.

"Name?"

"Mikasa Ackerman."

The woman flipped through some envelopes and papers. Time seemed to stretch on for eternity, panic making Mikasa's stomach turn. This was a mistake. All of this was one big embarrassing mistake.

"Okay, Miss Ackerman, you can step through just stand off to the side for me."

Mikasa must've stared at the woman funny cause she had to actually gesture for Mikasa to walk through the turnstiles. With her heart still pounding she stepped through and stood in front of the ticket booth like she was directed.

"Hello?" The woman who let Mikasa through said on a phone. "I have a note to call you when a Mikasa Ackerman got here…yeah, she's in front of ticket station 2, red dress and black hair." That was it, the woman went back to taking tickets and Mikasa felt like she was gonna throw up.

She never thought she'd even be let in so naturally she didn't think about the fact Eren couldn't come out and get her, he'd be swarmed by people. Maybe security guards would come take her to her seat or maybe someone from his PR team would give her a free t-shirt or something. Would they even let her see him again? Did she want to see him again?

Mikasa kinda thought that was a silly question to even ask herself. She drove all this way on a hope, a hope to see his warm smile directed at her again. Maybe security would let her wave to him as he walked by with the band or something. She did hope that someone told him she did come though, so even if they didn't let her see him he'd know she came to his show like she said she would.

"Mikasa Ackerman?"

She looked up to find the voice that said her name. There was a man standing a little way away from her, he was dressed much nicer than most everyone else here, a large badge around his neck. "Ah, yeah, that's me."

The man smiled kindly, his blue eyes behind his glasses looking a little bit amused as walked towards her. He had his blonde hair pulled back in a ponytail making him look older but Mikasa would guess he was probably around the same age as she was too. "I'm Armin, it's nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you too," she said, shaking his outstretched hand. Armin…Eren told her about him, they were neighbors, childhood friends.

"C'mon, you can follow me."

She nodded as he started to lead her through the crowd towards the large outdoor arena.

"I hope no one gave you any trouble coming in?" Armin asked glancing over to her.

"No, the attendant was fine." She tucked some hair behind her ear trying to keep her hands from shaking.

Armin chuckled a little. "Eren wanted to come get you himself but I had to remind him that he'd probably never actually get to you if he tried to leave backstage and that I was perfectly capable of bringing you safely back."

Mikasa couldn't bite back her horribly embarrassing smile. Eren remembered her. "You grew up with, um, Eren right?"

Armin walked her past two security guards, one of whom opened the door for them, leading them someone back behind the seated section of the arena. "Please don't believe a thing he told you about me."

"He said you didn't like to get oil on your clothes."

"That's true enough," Armin laughed. There was another security check down a smaller hallway that they got by without even a question. He must've been someone important with the band to not even be asked to stop. "Well, he told me that you had some car trouble he helped you with."

They must've been getting closer to the back of the stage because there was stage crew running around everywhere, instruments and sound equipment all over the place. "Ah, yeah, he was very nice and stopped to fix my car and we just sorta talked for a while."

Armin gave her an amused grin. "He also told me he thought he gave you a heart attack when you realized who he was."

Mikasa groaned. "He told you that?"

"Don't worry," Armin laughed, giving her a pat on the back as he led her down another hallway that was lined with doors. "Whatever happened out there you must've made quite an impression on him. I haven't seen him so much like he was in high school well since he was in high school probably." He winked at her before knocking on the door they were standing in front of, one labeled Green Room.

Mikasa could hear some guys talking, some laughter and her heart was back up in her throat.

"Hey, Eren, sorry, buddy, I went down there and she wasn't there, she must've realized you weren't as cool as you pretend to be."

"Finally someone does," someone called out in the room. "Go find that girl, Armin, I wanna meet her in that case."

"No one cares what you think, Jean." That was Eren, his voice getting closer until the door swung open and he was standing in front of her. "Hey, Mikasa," he grinned those beautiful eyes of his bright.

"Hey," she said giving him a wave, a smile pulling at her lips. He looked like he was already ready for the show with his hair slightly less messy, make up on his face, his outfit probably picked for him by the designers.

"C'mon in," he said stepping aside so Mikasa and Armin could get in the room. There were three other boys sitting down in various parts of the room all watching her but before she could get nervous Eren was standing in front of her again.

"I'm glad you made it," he said. "I honestly didn't know if you would or not."

Even though she knew he was this famous musician who was on a national tour a part of her couldn't help but feel at ease cause underneath all the glamor was still that kind person who asked her what her job was and listened to her complain about her family. "I honestly didn't know if you were just messing with me or not."

He snorted but he shook his head. "I never would've done that to you. I-" Eren was cut off when someone cleared their throat behind them. He rolled his eyes and turned around to see the three boys watching expectantly. "Alright, alright. Mikasa, that's Marco, he's the bassist."

Marco had a very kind looking face, a smile on his lips as he waved to her.

"That's Connie, he's our Animal."

Connie, who had some kinda sandwich half stuffed in his mouth, tried to say what Mikasa thought was nice to meet you.

"You met Armin already, he's our manager, and last and certainly least, is Jean who is the other guitarist and vocals. He also takes lead guitar when I take the piano."

Jean flicked off Eren first but then smiled at Mikasa. "If you ever get sick of him, you come talk to me, okay?"

Marco reached an arm over and hit Jean across the chest. "Knock it off."

"Can you see why I was doing anything but coming back to these morons today?" he said as he turned back to Mikasa but he was still smiling.

"I dunno, they seem pretty nice to me," Mikasa said, giving him a grin of her own.

"Oh, Eren," Connie said. "I like her, she can come by anytime."

Eren laughed. "There you go, guess you're in the club. That was pretty easy."

"Gentleman," a woman with a headset said popping her head in the door. "I need you down the hall for warm ups and go over stage notes please."

"Sure thing, Sash," Connie said jumping up first, with Marco and Jean following behind.

"So, um, I have to leave you in Armin's hands for a little bit, is that okay?" Eren asked, the question clear on his face.

"Of course, you're the one working not me," Mikasa said.

"Okay," he grinned. "Um, we'll go on stage shortly after we go over stuff but we'll be back when the main show band comes out, okay? Oh, help yourself to anything in the Green Room. My mom made me bring back all the food in here for everyone so have whatever you'd like and if you need anything else just ask-"

"Eren," Armin said placing his hands on Eren's shoulders. "Sasha is gonna kill you if you're late. I'll take care of her, okay?"

"Alright, thanks, buddy." Eren turned to head to the door but he quickly turned back around to Mikasa. He leaned down till his lips were close to her ear, his hand on her arm. "It really does mean a lot that you came, Mikasa. I'll see you when we're done okay?"

It was hard to breath but Mikasa managed a nod and an, "Okay."

He gave his arm a squeeze before waving and heading out the door.

"I offered to get you a ticket so you could sit in the audience to watch," Armin said, from his seat on one the chairs, gesturing for her to take a seat too. "But he said it would be too hard to find you after, and that as long as it was okay with you to see if you'd watch from backstage."

Mikasa's heart skipped as she sat down on the couch. "Um, yeah, that's completely fine."

Armin was smiling at her, like he knew something about this whole situation he wasn't letting on.

Maybe she shouldn't ask, maybe she should let it be this one night and go back to her normal life tomorrow but a part of knew she fell for the boy with the beautiful eyes the moment he offered to fix her car with no gain to himself. "May…may I ask you a question?"

"Of course, anything."

"Does Eren…does he do this often?"

Armin shook his head. "The other boys do on occasion, well, save for Connie, he's got a thing for our stage manager but Eren never really bothered with all the hassle of getting someone back stage. That's not to say he didn't take girls back with him sometimes but nothing all that serious. He's just…" Armin leaned forward in his chair. "Eren never really let fame taint him. He still sends most all his money home to his parents, and while he enjoys the perks he doesn't abuse them. He's still basically the kid I grew up with and I think that alone says a lot about who he is in this kinda world."

Mikasa must've just been staring at Armin because he laughed.

"Trust me, he's a good guy and I've known him for a very long time, he genuinely likes you. He wouldn't have done all this if he didn't."

Mikasa couldn't wrap her head around this, around any of this. She was a dance teacher at a medium sized studio. She wasn't anything special; just an average girl with an average family and upbringing. "But why me?"

"I don't think that's a question for me," Armin said, a smile pulling at his lips.

There was a sudden burst of cheers coming from the arena, a few guitar chords blaring through speakers. It was still distant sounding but loud enough that Mikasa felt like she could hear everything that was going on.

Armin pushed himself up to his feet. "I normally watch from the Green Room but Eren wanted me to take you backstage to watch, is that okay?"

"Oh yeah, that's fine," Mikasa said quickly following after Armin back the way they came. It got louder and louder the more they got closer to the stage. The girl Armin mentioned was the stage manager was leaning up against a post nearby, flipping through pages as she talked into her headset but it was too loud to hear what she was saying. Well, that and Mikasa's breath caught in her throat when she caught sight of Eren and the other boys playing on the stage.

She knew the song; she heard it on the radio sometimes when she'd turn it on in her car. It was just something completely different to watch them actually performing it. To see them hit all their notes and marks live and in person was nothing short of incredible. She hoped no one could actually see the awestruck look she had to have on her face.

"I can't even begin to tell you how good it is to be home," Eren said into the mic and the screams went up in the crowd. "You know I saw my first concert right here all the way back there." He was gesturing off in the distance to where Mikasa figured was the green behind the seats. When there was a bunch of more distant screams she assumed she was right.

"Yeah but did you actually pay for a ticket or did you just hop the fence?" Jean said from nearby.

"Shut up, asshole, I'd really appreciate not getting kicked outta here after all these years."

The crowd laughed and cheered again.

Eren shot Jean a grin. "Besides, wouldn't you know? Pretty sure you and Marco were with me."

"Oh yeah, real smooth, get us all kicked out and everyone can just listen to Connie play the rest of the songs."

Right on cue, Connie launched into a riff on the drums and making everyone in the crowd scream.

"Are you ever gonna play the next song or are you just gonna run your mouth?" Jean asked, his fingers starting to start in on the intro to another song.

"Only if it'll make you stop talking." Eren joined in making Jean laugh. From what Mikasa could tell that really was how they were but they must play it up more for the show.

The next song was just as good as the first and same with the one after that and the one after that. Mikasa couldn't believe just how good they sounded together. It was one thing to sound good on a recording but here they doing a live performance and sounding just as good as they did on the radio. It was crazy and she could only stare in awe at them. It was clear they loved what they did and loved sharing it with people.

Armin tugged on her elbow and leaned his mouth close to her ear so she could hear him. "This is their last song, we can catch them again in the Green Room."

Mikasa followed Armin back once more deeper backstage. It seemed like they just walked back into the room when the boys all bounded through the door still practically bouncing with energy. Jean was wiping his face on a towel as he was pushing Connie through the door, Eren and Marco laughing as they followed in.

"Good job, guys," Armin said as he reached over to grab some food off the table. "You have about 45 minutes before Sasha's gonna come grab you for the finale."

"Got it, boss," Connie gave a halfhearted salute before falling down on the couch next to Jean.

Mikasa shifted her weight as she tried to stand off to the side, a little unsure of what she should do now that Marco had sat himself too, Eren standing off to the side wiping his face on a towel. Did she say something? Did she wait for someone to talk to her? Should she tell them it was a good show? Or should she-

Eren was gesturing at her by the door, his finger up to his mouth and a smile on his lips. Mikasa walked over to where he was opening the door obviously trying to be quiet even if most all the room could see them anyway.

"You better be back before Sasha even steps foot near this door," Armin said, not looking up from the sandwich he was eating.

"Yeah, yeah, got it," Eren said waving him off before following Mikasa out the door.

It was loud again, the main act already taking the stage and the audience was going crazy. Eren nodded towards the back hallway they were in walking backwards so she knew to follow him. He led her all the way to the back of the hall, the sound of the concert getting more and more distant as they went, and past some security guards watching a door.

She felt the warm summer night air hit her body as she stepped outside. It was a fenced area of green with the parking lot and city in the distance. The grass curved back around the building to what Mikasa assumed would lead back to where the audience was.

Eren flopped down on his back on the ground and gave a sigh, pushing himself up on his elbows to look at her. "So what did you think?" He was giving her such a hopeful smile it was impossible not to feel a smile on her lips.

She walked to sit down next to him, the cool grass feeling good underneath her. "It was incredible, you guys really are amazing."

He chuckled, his eyes bright as he watched her. "I never dreamed it would be like this, you know? When I was that little boy sneaking in here to see shows, I never dreamed I'd play up there someday."

Mikasa arched an eyebrow though she was trying not to laugh. "So that story was true?"

"Oh, yeah, it was completely true," he snorted. "I knew one of the security guards and he'd pretend to look the other way so we could sneak in. He'd let us back here if it was too packed so that way we could at least listen to the concert." Eren laid his head back on the ground, eyes looking up at the sky.

"Does it ever get lonely?"

He looked back over to her. "Sometimes, it's hard to be away from home so much, you know? I mean, I basically travel with all my best friends so that's not so bad but I miss having that grounded feeling of home, of…" He hesitated for a moment. "Of having someone to come home to."

Mikasa carefully laid her body down next to him just so their shoulders were touching, her eyes looking up at the starless sky. "Armin told me you send most all your money home to your parents."

"That asshole, ruining my bad boy demeanor."

She laughed and turned her head to look at him. Her breath hitched when she saw he was already watching her. "I think it's very sweet, that even with all the fame you still seem to know what things are important."

A smile pulled at his lips as he leaned in a little closer to her. "Like helping a stranger with her car?"

"Yeah, just like that," she breathed afraid her lungs were gonna stop working when she felt his breath on her lips.

His kiss was soft, fleeting, like he was afraid she was gonna vanish if he moved to fast, too hard. Mikasa rolled over on her side, her body bumping into his as she kissed him back. Her heart was pounding in her chest, her stomach fluttering as his hand reached out to her waist, her lower back, pulling her into him.

It was strange. Most girls would probably kill to be in her shoes but it wasn't like she was kissing Eren Jaeger, the lead singer of an incredibly popular band. He was just Eren, the boy who got grease on his clothes when he fixed her car.

"I want to do something for you," she murmured when he started to pull away from their kiss. "After you've done so much for me today."

"Yeah?" he said, a small smile on his lips. "What's that?"

"I haven't actually gotten that far."

Eren chuckled, his fingers running circles on her back. He looked up, his eyes on hers. "I have something."

Her breath hitched, not really know what she should expect. He was someone who could have everything he wanted, there was very little she could give him. What was the rule about sleeping with celebrities?

"Your phone number."

It was so ridiculous she almost hit him in the chest. "You want what?" she blinked at him.

"What?" he laughed, leaning in till his nose was brushing against hers, his lips tilting down to kiss her again. "Were you expecting something else?"

"I'm not sure what I was expecting," she said.

He reached a hand into his pocket and pulled out his phone, unlocking the screen and passing it to her. He propped himself up on his elbow as she stared at the screen; it was a picture of him and Armin making ridiculous faces at the camera.

"Why do you want my number?" Mikasa asked, her fingers tight on the slim phone.

"Do you not know how phones work, Mikasa?"

She did hit him in the chest that time making him laugh. She found his contacts and went to add a new contact with her name and number but she found it very hard to when her fingers kept shaking. Why was she doing this? She should just go on her way and always have the memory of a good day. "Here," she said passing the phone back to him. "But…no offence, are you even gonna remember me tomorrow?"

"Much offence taken," Eren snorted, slipping his phone back in his pocket before rolling over again to face her, arm draped over her waist. "How could I forget Mikasa Ackerman, the beautiful dance teacher who doesn't know anything about cars but was nice to a stranger who loves working on cars and doesn't get to do it that often anymore."

"Okay, that was pretty smooth," she murmured and this time she was the one leaning in to kiss him.

Eren pulled her close to him again, one hand tight on her back and the other reaching up to tangle in her hair. Her fingers twisted into his shirt as she found she never wanted to stop kissing him, she never wanted to get rid of the warmth he brought to her chest, the comfort his smile gave her.

Maybe just for this night she could pretend this could be something more than one amazing night.

Even when Armin came busting through the door, yelling at Eren because for God's sake Armin told Eren to be back when he was supposed to be, and even when she had to reluctantly had to stand back up to follow Eren back inside, he reached a hand out to help her up. He didn't let go until he had to go get in his place for the finale (not without another kiss that Mikasa thought was gonna make her melt on the spot, even if Connie was catcalling them).

Eren and the band were ushered out quickly after that having to get them out before more crowds formed waiting for them and the main stage band. She did catch his eye one more time, giving him a smile and a wave. He held his hand up to his ear motioning a phone and causing her to roll her eyes. It was the last time she saw him that night and probably the last time she ever would see him. Armin offered to walk her out and she thanked him but she wanted to walk about by herself.

The whole car ride home a part of her wanted to cry that it was over, that she liked Eren far more than she should, that she didn't want it to be over. It just didn't seem fair for life to drop someone like him in front of her and then take him away. At the same time though was a memory she'd never forget, he was someone she'd never forget. He made her feel special for a night and how could it be a bad thing?

And Annie would never believe her.

Mikasa still didn't regret staying out so late last night even when she had a class for four year olds first thing at 8am, and the nearly nonstop classes until 1pm. At least during the summer she had more things to do during the day as opposed to the school year.

"Bye Miss Ackerman!" a few of the girls called and waved as they ran out of the studio, following their parents back into the lobby to leave for the day.

"Bye," Mikasa waved back wishing she would be able to enjoy the nice weather outside soon enough. She stretched her arms over her head and flipped through a few of her sheets at the music station, trying to prepare for her next class. She went over the moves in her head and reached over into her bag when her phone started to ring.

There was no caller ID that popped up but that wasn't too common when all her student's parents had her number. "Hello, this is Mikasa Ackerman," she answered, slipping her phone onto her shoulder as she kept looking through her papers.

"Hello, Mikasa Ackerman, how are you today?"

Mikasa nearly dropped the phone, she instead just dropped her papers onto the dance studio floor. Her heart leapt into her throat when she recognized the voice, it was a little groggy but she'd know it anywhere, she heard it in her dreams all last night. "Eren?"

He snorted. "Now I really am offended, you didn't think I'd call."

"No, no, well, yeah, maybe," she fumbled trying to pick up her fallen papers. "I just figured you'd be too busy."

"Nah, we're on the road so not really too busy until we get to our venue tonight." There was some distant talking in the background. "Hang on a sec. No, Jean, I really don't care how cool you think that video is. I'm not watching it I know you better than that, get out of here."

Mikasa gave up on her papers and sat down on the floor, trying to bit back her smile. He called her. He actually called her.

"Ohh," Jean said in the background, his tone highly amused. "It's the girl from last night isn't it?"

"I will break your legs if you don't get out of here."

Jean said something else but Mikasa couldn't actually quite tell what it was, just a door slamming shut.

"Sorry," Eren said. "I love them to death but being in a tour bus with five other guys all day long is kinda like being in a college dorm again. It's all stupid Youtube videos and dick jokes."

"That's okay," Mikasa said, though she was pretty sure even he could hear the grin in her voice.

"So, what's your day like today?"

"Oh, um, it's summer so I have classes almost all day today." She glanced up at the clock. "My advanced class will probably be in a few minutes."

"I called at a bad time, huh?"

"No, never, it's not your fault I work during the day and you work at night. What time is your concert tonight?"

"Oh God, um…around 8pm I think?"

Mikasa's heart skipped. "I get off at 6, are you in the same time zone still?"

"Uhh, hang on." The door creaked open again. "Armin! Where are we? Don't give me that look I just woke up, how the hell am I supposed to know where we are?"

She was pretty sure the last time her stomach fluttered this much she was still in high school. He called her right when he woke up, she was the first thing he thought about.

"Okay, yeah, same time zone," Eren said, shutting the door again. "I'll call back then, or you can call me if you think I'm gonna forget you again."

"Are you always this hilarious when you wake up?"

"Always." She could hear the grin in his voice.

"Hey, um, Eren, before you go…" Her voice trailed off. She didn't want to ask, she just wanted to live in these simple moments but at the same time what if she was hoping for something he wasn't. She never thought he'd want her at the concert but he did, and she never thought he'd call but he did. She needed to know. "What…what is all of this?"

He was quiet for a moment and horror made her stomach turn. Did she say the wrong thing? She never should've asked him that, they only just met. What was she thinking?

"Honestly, Mikasa, I don't know," he said though his voice didn't sound upset just thoughtful. "But I know I'd like to try it anyways, wouldn't you?"

Did she? Eren would never be here. He'd never be able to go out with her, she couldn't introduce him to her friends, her family. She'd have phone calls, video calls but she wouldn't hear his heartbeat, she would feel his warm arms around her until he was done with his tour and then who knew what he had to do next. She'd just have his voice and a memory of what his kiss was like.

And Mikasa found none of that mattered too much. All that mattered was this wonderful, gorgeous, kind, funny guy wanted to spend more time with her, over the phone or not. She didn't even try to bite back her smile this time.

"Yes."