A/N: *Staring at mountain of cookies* ... Oh my god. O-O
YESH! THE FINAL CHAPTER! It's been a long week. Y_Y *sobs in corner* DID YOU KNOW THAT EPISODE 25 OF SNK IS SUPPOSED TO BE THE LAST?! Do you know what this means...? ... More than likely they're making a different ending. I don't want that. They can't ruin this for me! THEY CAN'T! THEY BETTER HAVE A SEASON TWO IN MOTION RIGHT FUCKING NOW! But on the other hand, hey, final chapter! Make way for fluff and lovales~~~ XD
Alright, now I shall REALLY begin with saying thank you so much for all the of the reviews. Honestly, all of you who reviewed my story make me feel like it's definitely worth all the hard work and I put into them. You're all kind to me and I feel like you ish all meh friends. *chibi sobs* I love you all. T-T I really feel like every time I finish a fanfiction I have grown in some way, whether it's my writing or the inspiration that comes to mind. I'm glad that people give me the criticism I need to improve. Thank you all very much. :3
Now... *looks at mountain of cookies* Let's begin...
While suffering from amnesia, Armin tries to cope with the hellish word he was born into. Eren is willing to do anything to help his friend regain his memories, but at the loss of his friend, there is only so much Eren can do before he too loses his mind.
Rated: T
Couple: Eren and Armin
Anime: Shingeki No Kyojin
Amnesia
Chapter 12 (Final): Play the Day Away
The knocks on the door were a dilatory distraction. Whoever it was could wait, because they were so deep in a heavy sleep that they didn't plan on waking up any time soon.
"Armin...?" A heavenly voice called. It was his mother knocking on the door. Another set of knocks were heard, then another voice.
"Armin, please open the door." It was his father. The two waited patiently outside his door, but the young boy never came to let them in.
"You don't have to wake him up; we just need to know where Eren is." Grisha said to the two parents.
"No, Eren's here." Armin's grandfather said.
"How do you know?" Karla asked the senior. The old man came up from behind the two parents and held out a small key in his hand, the key to Armin's room.
"Armin only locks his door when Eren is here." The man said. He looked over to Mikasa who was hanging onto the end of Karla's skirt, rubbing her eyes in a tired manner and yawning. "Isn't that right, young lady?" He asked her. Mikasa nodded her head after she finished yawning.
Armin's mother took the key from her father and pushed it into the doorknob. It clicked upon turning and the door was unlocked. The group of elders and Mikasa entered the boy's room to find the two eight year olds sleeping together in Armin's bed. Eren had taken to falling asleep on top of the boy, his hands tangled in Armin's shirt and hair. His head was resting on Armin's shoulder, his face in the crook of the smaller one's neck and letting breath fan across his baby soft skin. Armin was resting comfortable under him, despite the weight on his chest. His head was turned to the side, his fingers on one hand curled up by his lips while the other hand was resting comfortably on Eren's back under his cotton over-shirt. The two were cuddled together; sleeping under Armin's heavy, light-blue blanket and at the edge of his bed was his grandfather's book.
Armin's mother bent down and picked the illegal object up to hand it to her father. She clicked her tongue, giving her father a stern look.
"I thought I told you to hide this." She said in a quiet tone so she didn't wake the two sleeping children.
"I did, but the boy keeps finding it." The older man shrugged his shoulders as he spoke. His daughter sighed as she looked over to the two sleeping children. She could hear the audible sighs from Karla and Grisha and looked over at them.
"What are we going to do, Karla?" Grisha asked while shaking his head.
"I don't know... He's not going to listen to us, even if we do separate them." Karla explained.
"You want to separate them?" Armin's father asked.
"Eren's been falling behind in his school work as chores lately. His reasons for it always have to do with Armin." Karla said.
"It's not that your son is doing anything wrong, in fact he's rather good for Eren, but we need Eren to start working harder." Grisha had seen the small look of pain go across the parents faces, like they had been insulted by Karla words, so he quickly threw that in to make sure there was an understanding.
"Oh, I see..." Armin's father mumbled.
"We don't want to take their best friend away, but we don't know what else to do." Karla said.
"I understand. We are a little worried for Armin too. He's been staying out later and later every night, like last night for example." Armin's mother said.
"They fell asleep in a barn…" Mikasa mumbled.
"Is that where they have been going?" Karla asked. Mikasa nodded her head. She was so tired that she didn't realize that she just tattled on her brother and friend, but once realizing it she knew it was too late.
"Oh lord…" Armin's mother brushed her blond hair out of her face as she muttered to herself. Thinking that her son had been in a barn half of the night disgusted her; who know what kind of things he had gotten into?
"Let's get Eren back home." Grisha suggested. "We're sorry for waking you up so early in the morning." He apologized to Armin's parents.
"It's alright. I'm glad that Eren is okay." Armin's father said. Karla leaned over the side of the bed and tugged the blanket down the boy's bodies. Their legs also had been tangled together at some point in their sleep, another thing she had to untangle. She untangled Eren's hands from Armin's shirt and then carefully slipped Eren's arm from Armin's head.
Karla lifted Eren's arms over her shoulders, being careful not to wake her sleeping son. She carefully lifted him up and off of the bed, grunting when his weight plus the position she was in nearly made her fall on Armin. The sudden weight being lifted off of his chest did the job though, getting Armin to open his eyes to the dazed world around him. He felt cold all of a sudden, and the pressure against his chest was gone, along with the comfort. Where had his friend suddenly gone?
"Dear god he's getting heavy." She whispered and another grunt left her. Eren stirred around in her arms, green eyes opening to see the ground beneath him, Mikasa staring up at him and his mother's back and skirt. It took a couple of seconds to understand why it was that this was the sight he woke up to instead of his sleeping friend, but then when he remembered Armin, everything flooded his mind from yesterday, especially his parents words. He shifted in her arms again to look for Armin, seeing the boy laying in his bed and starting to shiver. He was cuddling against nothing, his arms wrapping around his body to search for warmth, warmth that only Eren could provide. Eren could scarcely see the tears dripping at the sides of his eyes and his heart broke.
"Armin…!" He cried and pried himself out of Karla's arms. After hearing his name, Armin woke up fully. He realized why it was that he was so cold; Eren's parents were taking him away. He wasn't ready for that. He hadn't said goodbye to his friend yet and he wasn't ready to say it.
"Eren!" He reached his arms out as Eren dropped from Karla's arms and came back to the bed. Eren pulled him into a heavy embrace, his arms wrapping around Armin to keep him warm and comfort him as his friend began to cry. Eren wasn't ready either, not now and probably not ever. He didn't want to say goodbye. If they had to do this, he should be given the luxury or being awake to say it to his friend. That was the least his parents could do for him.
Meanwhile, the four parents and Mikasa stood by the bed with surprise. None of them had expected them to act so… "Violently" towards the situation, especially Eren. He was a heavy sleeper, so neither Grisha nor Karla would think he would wake up at all much less than react the way he did so vibrantly. It was obvious though that he had been really affected by what they had said the night before, enough to sneak out of see Armin and try to hide.
"Eren, it's okay." Armin's mother spoke up. Eren wasn't listening to any of them. All he wanted to do was sit there and comfort his friend. Was that too much to ask for? "Eren, all your parents were doing was taking you home." She added.
"No…!" Eren whimpered into Armin's hair with a shaky voice. Armin's hands clung to Eren's shoulders as he cried, his body shaking even though Eren was there to keep him warm. Eren pulled his friend closer, Armin nearly in his lap as Eren did his best to comfort him. "P-Please don't take Armin away from me." Eren begged.
The two parents stared at the son in guilt and grief. What were they supposed to do in a situation like this? How could they pull apart two best friends, especially when they were begging for that not to happen.
"Please, mom, please. I'll be good, I promise." Eren stared up at her with his glassy green eyes that were dampened by tears as he spoke. "I'll do better in school and I'll do my chores, but please don't separate us." He pleaded. Armin's crying brought him back to looking down at his friend and trying to comfort him. He rubbed his back, patted his head and mumbled soft sayings into his ear, but the poor boy kept crying.
Karla sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose. She looked over to her husband who was doing the same thing, but he looked a little more stricken with guilt than she did. He was a true sucker for kids, that was for sure, and seeing both his son and his son's childhood friend crying and begging them not to separate them had him in near tears. Karla groaned and elbowed his side, reminding him to keep it together. He was supposed to be the adult, to be the better influence, but he wasn't doing a very good job at it.
"Alright, listen to me boys." Karla spoke up. The two weeping boys looked up from each other and to Karla. They could both feeling their stomachs turning and clenching, fear spreading through them for what she had to say. "I don't want to separate you two, but you are making it difficult for me and if I have to I will. I don't want to, but I will if you make it harder on everyone." She placed her hands on her hips as she spoke.
"However, Eren, if you start doing better in school and listen to me when I tell you to do your chores, then I won't separate you and Armin." She said. It took a minute for the words to settle in their heads, but once it did the boy's began to smile, first at her and then each other.
"Really?" Eren asked, completely elated.
"Only if you behave yourself, Eren Jaeger." Karla wagged her finger at Eren and said.
"I will! I promise I will!" He cheered. Finally Armin had stopped crying, happy to hear the news as Eren jumped on him and knocked him down to the bed. The boy's laughed hard together, but Armin's mother spoke up.
"Armin, this falls on you too, young man." She said, her mother mode engaged. "I don't want you staying out so late like you did last night. You had your father and I worried sick." She said.
"I'm sorry, momma." Armin said, his mouth and voice muffled by Eren's chest.
"When we give you two a time to be home, that means you come home at that time. No later." Armin's father said, trying to be stern but falling to the same effect as Grisha.
"What about earlier?" Eren asked in a sarcastic tone. Armin giggled in response, trying to shush him so no one heard the mocking question and would ultimately get them into more trouble. The only one who heard it was Mikasa, but she was too tired to care (not like she cared in the first place).
"Would you like to stay over for breakfast?" Armin's mother asked Karla and Grisha. The two boys perked up to the sound of breakfast.
"Oh we can't. I was already making breakfast when Mikasa had told me that Eren was gone. It's still at home waiting." Karla said. Eren looked over at Mikasa who hadn't been paying too much attention to hear him call her a traitor, but he didn't care. He knew it wasn't really her intention, just her concern.
Eren and Armin finally got off of the bed to stretch. Grisha said that he wanted Eren to come over and eat breakfast, and knowing that this was part of his deal with his mother, he agreed, but only if he could come back to see Armin afterword's, which was agreed to. However, Armin's parents were adamant and it wasn't like they could simply put down such a nice offer. After some coaxing from his parents, Grisha and Karla agreed. The two boys couldn't have been anymore happy at that moment, but then they heard when Eren had to leave and their hearts dropped. It was another part of the deal though and they knew that, but that didn't mean that they were or had to be happy about it.
Armin shivered some more, noticing how cold it was, even when he was so close to Eren. He left his side for a moment to go to the window, wondering if he had left it cracked open.
"Mikasa, would you like stay for breakfast?" Karla looked down to the girl hanging off of her skirt as she asked. Mikasa shook her head and yawned another small yawn, her hand covering her mouth to be polite.
"No, I'm tired." She mumbled.
"Eren, look!" Armin cheered. Eren left the bedside to go to Armin by the window. Armin was frantically pointing outside the window, his mouth wide and open in a smile he could not control.
"What is it?" Eren asked as he looked past the curtain and outside the window.
"It snowed!" Armin cheered. True to his word, it had indeed snowed. The ends of his window had cracked and chipped at the edges from the dense cold, the whole ground outside was covered in at least a foot of white, untouched snow and the trees were weighed down by the heavy snow, the branches not giving but sagging.
Eren stared just as wide eyed at the sight outside the window. It had been late when he had gotten home and even later when he left. It must have snowed when he left and snowed rather hard, because this much snow in such a little amount of time was surprising.
"It must have snowed some time after Eren snuck out…" Eren could hear Karla whisper to the three other parents.
"Or during…" Armin's father mumbled.
"Can we go out to play?" Armin asked with wide and hopeful eyes.
"Yeah, can we?" Eren joined in.
"After breakfast." Armin's father said. The two both whined, but when both Eren and Armin's mothers gave them stern and frightening looks, they quickly stopped.
"Listen to your father, Armin. After breakfast." Armin's mother enforced. The boys sulked, but agreed.
"Well now that we know Eren is safe I guess it's time for us to go on home." Grisha said.
"Are you going to be okay walking in the snow?" Armin's mother asked.
"We'll be just fine," Karla assured. While the parents talked and Mikasa stood idly by Karla's side, the two boys had made their way down to the kitchen for breakfast. As eager as they could be, they were also eight; they didn't know how to cook, so all they could do was wait as patiently as an eight year old could while Armin's mother took her time with Eren's parents. They made small chitchat, Armin's father threw around some terrible jokes that none of the kids understood and the rest laughed at them. Armin's mother made sure that Eren's parents didn't want to stay for breakfast, but Karla assured them that they already had some waiting at home. Mikasa left Karla's side long enough to talk to Eren for a few minutes while the parents talked. She didn't say much, she only checked to make sure he was okay and that he wasn't hurt anywhere, which he wasn't.
"Come on, Mikasa. Let's go home and have breakfast." After ten minutes of talking Eren's parents were finally ready to go. Mikasa went back to Karla's side and the two were at the door with Grisha. Eren and Armin looked out of the door as it opened, getting a gust of wind hitting their faces as they faced the bitter and cold wonderland waiting for them. Eren laughed when seeing Armin's blue and already wide eyes get wider, his nose turning pink from the cold and his cheeks blushing with joy.
How cute of a sight it was.
Mikasa, Karla and Grisha finally left. The two boys couldn't have been happier, but it was only because they wanted to go outside more than anything. They wanted to get breakfast down into their stomachs so they could go outside and play in the winter wonderland waiting feet from them.
"Alright boys, what would you like to have for breakfast?" Armin's mother asked. They could have cared less for what they wanted; they just wanted anything small to eat. The smaller it was the quicker they'd get to go outside. When the two didn't answer, Armin's mother put her hands on her sides with a small smile and a hint of a laugh. "Alright, I guess I'll make you some porridge then." She said.
The two boys looked at each other and Armin rolled his eyes. Eren had to hold back a snicker, but Armin's mother still heard it and chose to ignore it. She donned and apron and began her cooking.
"Armin, I forgot to mention something." Armin's mother said.
"Yes momma?" Armin looked at her as innocently as possible, as if he and Eren weren't making faces behind her back.
"I told you not to mess around with your grandfather's book. What were you doing with it last night?" His mother asked. Armin quickly went pale in the face and looked back to Eren, as if he had an answer.
"Oh, well um… I-I was just…" He looked down into his lap where his hands were tightly wound together.
"Armin, that book is forbidden. I don't need to tell you twice." Armin's mother said as she began to cook.
"I-I'm sorry, I just-"
"Let the boy read it, it's not like he's going to get an imagination from anything else around here." Armin's grandfather walked into the room with the book still tucked away under his arm. "Imagination is good; it makes the mind blossom and grow. Let the poor kids grow up with something to look forward to." He said as he sat at the table.
"Oh lord…" Armin's mother said. "Father, it's bad enough that you have that book to begin with." She continued. The two boys watched as she stirred the pot over the small flames, but then put their attention back to Armin's grandfather, who sat down at the table with a small grunt and his joints popping.
"Don't tell me what's right or wrong, young lady. I've been around for ages. I'm so old that even if they arrested me I'd be dead before the paperwork is done." Her father looked at the boys and rolled his finger around by his head. "Or I'm so crazy that I'd talk them all to death." He whispered. Armin and Eren glanced at each and giggled at Armin's crazy grandfather.
"I wouldn't doubt that…" Armin's father sat down at the table as he mumbled.
"What was that?" His grandfather asked.
"Nothing, nothing at all," Armin's father raised his hands up in the air, as if in defense.
"You better speak up sunny, I can't hear as well as I used to." His grandfather raised his voice, pretending that he couldn't hear the man. This brought more fits and giggles from Eren and Armin.
"Alright boys, that's enough of that." Armin's mother stepped away from the open flames to grab a few bowls. She placed them on the table in front of her family and Eren and went back to her cooking to get the food. She pulled the pot of porridge out of the open flame and let it sit so it could cool. A few minutes later it was served to her hungry family and friends.
The whole group sat at the table, filling their hungry bellies with the food Armin's mother had prepared. Armin stuffed his mouth as much as he could; it was all he could do to stop himself from asking his father and parents questions about the world beyond the walls. Eren was stuffing his face as well, but his reasons were to keep up with Armin who would surely be outside long before he was at this point.
"Armin, slow down. This isn't a race." Armin's mother reprimanded and smacked the back of Armin's hand with her spoon. Armin yipped with his mouth full and dropped his own spoon in his bowl in favor of rubbing the back of his hand. He quickly swallowed the food in his mouth and whined, the back of his hand turning red from the impact. Eren quickly stopped too, fearing the same result to his own hand if he didn't.
Armin's mother sighed as she pushed her blond hair from her face and tucked it behind her ear. She looked over to her husband to see that he had secretly started his own race with the two boys. Neither of them was aware that he had joined in, but one small click of the tongue and he stopped, looking up at her with his cheeks puffed out.
"Oh lord…" She mumbled and shook her head. "I need a daughter in this house…" That comment got her husband to choke on his food while trying to swallow it. She inwardly smirked.
"Momma, can we go outside now?" Armin asked. His mother looked at both of the boys to see that their bowls were practically clean. The only food left anywhere was on the edge of Eren's lips.
"Yes, go on ahead." She looked away with a sour face, waved her hand loosely and told the boys to go. The two boys were instantly elated from the news. They shot up from their chairs like they were using 3D Maneuver Gear and bolted past the family to the door. "Make sure you're both wearing jackets!" She said to them.
Armin took care of Eren first by giving him a heavy jacket and a hat. He put his own jacket on and then slipped a pair of knitted gloves from his mother onto his hands. Armin then slipped on his shoes (Eren hadn't taken his off since last night).
"I want you both in, in an hour." Armin's father called as the two pulled the door open. They heard him, but they didn't seem to care much. The two eight year olds jumped out of the door and into the first clumps of snow they saw.
With screams of joy they practically sunk into the snow as they landed in it. They trudged through it to find each other, and once back together they ran out into the backyard to play in the untouched portion of it.
"Come on, Eren!" Armin grabbed Eren's hand and pulled him along into the snow. The snow nipped at their legs where their pants or shoes didn't cover and soaked into the fabric of their pants. It turned the tips of Eren's fingers pink and for Armin's ears to turn pink as well. Upon tripping over his own two feet, Eren fell face first into the snow, his face being buried in the cold ice.
"Cold!" He shot up from the snow and cried. Armin fell back into the snow, clutching his full stomach as he laughed at the sight. "I-It's not funny, Armin!" Eren shivered and his voice wavered as his teeth chattered.
"S-Sorry, Eren," Armin crawled over to his friend and pulled Eren to sit on his butt with his feet in the snow. Eren shook his head, the snow that had clumped into the ends of his hair flying off in all directions. His whole face was now red with the bitter cold, his body shivering.
"Snow is cold," Eren grumbled. Armin giggled and pulled off his gloves.
"Here, put these on." Armin said.
"No. You'll be cold." Eren pushed Armin's hands away.
"I'll be alright." Armin assured and pushed the gloves back to him.
"I said no," Eren pushed back once more. Armin huffed, his cheeks puffing out slightly with irritation. If Eren wasn't going to wear the gloves then he wasn't either. He tossed them to the side, away from both of them. "What are you doing?" Eren asked.
"If you won't wear them then I won't either." Armin said stubbornly. Eren blinked a few times, trying to process what it was that Armin had just said. The simple pause was enough for cold to seep its way into Armin's bones. He scooted closer to Eren and placed his head down on his shoulder while his hands found Eren's hands. Eren's warmth crept to his skin and helped a lot, but he could still feel the cold migrate through his skin around his legs and back. Eventually Eren got the point in his head and wrapped his arms around his back.
Armin hummed in content, the warmth coming from Eren enough to put him to sleep. He rubbed his head against the exposed part of Eren's neck and sighed.
"Are you cold?" Eren asked quietly.
"No…" Armin mumbled. Eren let his chin rest down on Armin's head, his blond hair tickling his nose. Eren smiled at the sensation and pulled Armin closer. Just as he did, the sensation of cold went down his back. Armin had dropped a snowball of snow down his shirt and jacket and Eren screeched at the sudden cold sensation.
"W-Why'd you do that?" Eren jumped out of the tender embrace they had been sharing and jumped up and down while pulling his shirt out from under the rim of his pants. "Cold, cold, cold, cold, cold!" He kept repeating it as he jumped.
By this point, Armin had fallen over on the ground and was laughing, his cheeks hurting from smiling so much. Eren looked so ridiculous jumping around like that and him screaming because of the cold snow going down his back that he just couldn't resist it.
"That wasn't funny!" Eren whined. Armin tried to tell him it was and he also tried to tell him that he was sorry, but he couldn't. He was laughing so hard that he couldn't breathe. As pay back, once the snow had been cleared from Eren's now cold and wet back, he jumped onto Armin, knocking him down and pushing him into the snow. Armin was still laughing that he could barely react; all he could do was push on Eren's shoulders and hope the boy wouldn't do to him what he did to him.
This wasn't Eren's plan. Eren's hands, which he had gotten snow on, went right for Armin's neck, effectively getting snow on them and tickling the already laughing boy. Armin wasn't sure he could laugh anymore; he was torn between screaming and begging for the boy to stop because he was tickling him or screaming and begging because Eren had snow against his neck. He was already squealing like an infant, wasn't that enough? Apparently not, because by now the poor boy felt like he was about ready to wet himself.
"S-Sorry, I'm sorry!" He cried. Eren finally let up on Armin, moving his hands to rest by his head in the snow while he panted. Armin was panting as well, the physical struggle exerting all of their energy in that one moment. Their breath came out in short, shallow breaths, the heat mixing with the cold air and creating small puffs of smoke from their mouths. Eren stared down at his friend, a big grin on his face while Armin regained his composure. Armin looked so tired now and even cuter than before.
"Now are you cold?" He asked, a small puff of fog coming from his mouth. Armin blinked a few times in a daze, his head nodding slowly. Eren laughed a little flopped down into the snow by Armin. He pulled the smaller boy into his arms and Armin instantly cuddled closer into Eren's chest.
"You won't put snow down my shirt, will you?" Armin asked, his voice muffled by Eren's chest.
"No, no. I won't do that. I'm too tired." Eren said and rubbed Armin's back. Armin sighed. "You won't do it to me again, right?" Eren asked.
"No… Too tired…" Armin mumbled. His hands held onto the ends of Eren's borrowed jacket as he breathed deeply, the cold air filling his lungs.
"That's good…" Eren mumbled. Armin sighed again as he looked up at Eren, his blue eyes staring for a moment at Eren's closed green ones. When Eren opened his eyes he saw the concentrated gaze from Armin. "What are you staring at?" He asked.
"… Thank you for keeping your promise, Eren." Armin mumbled. Eren tilted his head to the side a little.
"Which one?" Eren asked.
"You said you'd be there when I woke up and you were." Armin's voice dropped to a whisper, like he was telling a secret to his friend.
"Yeah, but had I not woken up I wouldn't have been." Eren scoffed a little as he spoke.
"But the point is that you were here, so thank you." Armin said. Eren smiled and strained his neck a little so he could press his forehead against Armin's.
"You don't need to thank me." Eren assured.
"I don't care… I want to say it." Armin explained. "And I'll keep saying it." He said this as he stared directly into Eren's eyes. Eren chuckled at his obvious and predictable response.
"You'll silly…" Eren mumbled as he closed his eyes.
"Hey Eren…" Armin breathed.
"Yeah…?"
"You remember… A few days ago… Do you remember what we did?" He asked hesitantly. Eren waited a moment to think about what they did. Besides playing and getting themselves into trouble, they didn't do much, except…
"Oh… Y-You mean the uh…" Eren trailed off.
"The kiss." Armin stated bluntly.
"Yeah that… Is that what you're talking about?" Eren asked while blushing, but the cold was good for covering it up.
"Yeah," Armin said.
"What about it?" Eren asked, hesitant even more.
"… I've been thinking about it, and um…" Armin's blush was more prominent and obvious that it was embarrassment causing it. "Could we uh… Could we do it again?" Armin asked.
"Again…? But why?" Eren blushed more and it was becoming even more obvious what his blush was for. Armin shifted a little in his spot, his hands tightening their grip on his jacket.
"I-I don't know really… J-Just because…" Armin trailed off. His breath got hotter, creating more of a fog that came out of his lips with the small pants he gave.
Eren swallowed down what seemed to be a dry lump in his throat. After the two boys had given their first kisses to each other, Eren made a mental promise not to go any farther than that ever again, especially with Armin. He didn't want to do anything that would put strain on their relationship, but now Armin was asking for it. Little did he know that their relationship had changed the moment they decided to go through with the kiss.
"I um…" Eren looked away for a moment before looking at his friend. He swallowed again so he could speak up. "I guess it w-wouldn't be so bad." He mumbled. Armin's eyes seemed to glow brighter from the response.
"Really..?" He asked. "Are you sure?"
'Not really…'
"I think so…" Eren answered. He felt Armin shift around in his arms again and his leg unintentionally brushed against the inside of Eren's thigh. Eren's blush darkened to the point he didn't think he could blush anymore, but he was.
"So then…" He peaked through his half-lidded eyes to see Armin blushing just as much.
Before he even realized what it was he was doing Eren was leaning forward, pressing his lips to Armin's before either of them could breathe. Their noses were scrunched together; neither knowing that simply tilting ones head to the side would relieve that annoying issue. Eren had his eyes closed, so he couldn't possibly gauge Armin's reaction, but from the startled and muffled gasp Armin let out he was surprised. After a few moments of uncertainty they finally pulled apart. Their hearts were thumping hard within their chests and Armin could feel Eren's under his jacket. Their breath, which was small, measly pants, was fogging over their faces, but they didn't care.
The two children simply sat, struck with embarrassment and a new fondness all at the same time. They were looking at everything else but each other, afraid to see what the other was doing or thinking. What were they thinking? Were they disgusted or grossed out? Were they scared or uncomfortable? They knew the only way to find out was to look.
Eventually, it was Armin who broke the awkward silence by looking at his friend. He was like a magnet and at the same time Eren looked his way. Their eyes met and for a moment it was quiet, but within a spilt second, smiles broke onto their faces. They both started to laugh, at what they weren't sure, but they were laughing. Something was funny, but they honestly didn't know what.
Eren pulled Armin up to his chest as his friend laughed, his voice muffled by Eren's neck. Armin wrapped his arms around Eren's body, just enjoying the warmth while they laughed. He closed his eyes and pressed his forehead against Eren's, his laughter being contagious and Eren laugh harder. The two sat in the snow, enjoying their laughter and presence more than the life rushing around them.
What a life it was. It was nice to have a memory of that in his head.
It was nice to have the memory at all.
Armin opened his eyes to the darkness around him. There was barely any light and it was only coming in through the faded curtains on the windows. It wasn't much, but it was enough for him to see the outline of his childhood friend hovering over him. One of Eren's hands were resting right by his head, the other was propping him up against his pillow. His green eyes seem to be glowing in the dim lighting, but Armin couldn't tell if that was the light hitting them a certain way or if his eyes were really glowing.
"Armin," He whispered with a questioning tone. Armin looked at Eren, feeling his lungs clenching and his breathing frantic. He had been so enthralled by his dream that it seemed so real. While he was grateful for it, he wasn't sure it was something he should be experiencing when he had just gotten his memories back. It was too much for his fragile mind to handle at the moment. "Why are you crying?" Eren asked.
Armin reached his hand up to touch his face. His cheeks were damp with tears that were still fresh and falling and his nose was red and hard to breathe through. His eyes widened as realization dawned on him, but he never broke his gaze from Eren's, which he now noticed was worried and frightened.
"Did you have a nightmare?" Eren asked in another whisper. Armin shook his head, a small smile slowly taking its place over the frown on his lips.
"I had a dream…" He whispered. "Not just a dream, but a memory…" Armin's voice was shaking so badly that Eren wasn't sure if Armin had a nightmare or not, but then he continued. "It was of us…" He added.
Eren finally let his worried gaze fall and be replaced with a small, content smile. He reached a hesitant hand out and touched Armin's cheek and when seeing no movements to stop him, his thumb grazed his pale skin, wiping away at the fresh and falling tears.
"You shouldn't cry over something like that." Eren mumbled.
"I can't help it." Armin held Eren's hand within his own as he began to rub his eyes. "I-I'm just happy…"
Eren pulled Armin to sit up within the bed. The blanket covering the two of them slid down Eren's back as he pulled Armin into a tender embrace, holding him steady to comfort him. Armin covered his face within Eren's chest so he wouldn't wake up the other cadets in the barrack with them. Eren's soothing touches were comforting, but it somehow brought on an on slaughter of tears. He couldn't stop crying, whether he rubbed his back or ran his fingers through his blond hair.
"Come on, stop crying." Eren murmured gently to him. Armin nodded his head, but that was easier said than done. He rubbed his eyes against Eren's shirt, trying to stop like he said. After minutes and minutes of his happy tears, he had finally cried all that he had to cry. The tears stopped, only leaving him to whimper and gasp for the breath missing from his body.
He was exhausted, mentally and physically. He wasn't sure how long he had been asleep, but it obviously wasn't long enough. He felt he could go right back to sleep now if it weren't for Eren suddenly shifting around him.
"Are you okay now?" Eren asked. Armin looked up to him with his puffy and red eyes and nodded his head.
"Y-Yeah, I'm okay now…" He huffed a little, his breath hitting Eren's face, but his friend didn't seem to mind. Armin looked around the room, watching the others around them sleep peacefully, none disturbed by his crying. He looked over to the closest window to look outside. It was still early, the sun barely peaking over the mountains or trees to create any relative shadows. "What time is it?" He asked quietly.
"It's still early." Eren mumbled. Armin looked up to Eren for a moment, his eyes slowly blinking the tears away.
"How long were we asleep?" He asked quietly.
"Not for long. You were out for a few hours." Eren pressed a warm palm against Armin's cheek.
"What about you?" He asked in a quieter tone than before.
"I didn't fall asleep." Eren whispered. A cadet in the bed near them shifter and the two stiffened and went silent, fearing they woke someone up, but the man simply rolled onto his side and continued sleeping.
"Why didn't you fall asleep?" Armin leaned closer to Eren's ear so he could drop his voice. The shuffling of someone in their sleep was louder than their voices.
"I was thinking too much." Eren whispered. Armin leaned his head against Eren's shoulder.
"You should try to sleep." He suggested.
"No, I'm okay. I don't feel very tired honestly." He said. "Besides, Commander Shadis will be coming in here soon." Eren muttered. The blond felt Eren's grip tighten on his back, but he chose to ignore it. He knew what was on Eren's mind and he wouldn't lie and say that he wasn't a bit nervous too, because he was.
What if Shadis really did decide for Armin to leave, even if he had his memories? Was that something he would do? Armin hadn't heard much of what Shadis had said, he had only gotten outside in time to stop Eren from punching Shadis's lights out, but that was it. He hadn't heard much of their conversation (which consisted of yelling).
"Hey, I have an idea." Eren whispered. Armin looked back to Eren and tilted his head.
"What is it?" He asked.
"Let's get dressed and go to the dining hall early; that way we can get first dibs in line and we won't have to listen to Shadis yelling at everyone." Eren suggested. Armin smiled at his idea.
"Okay," He agreed. Eren left his side to grab at some clothes that weren't his sleeping attire. Eren had to slip over to his own bed to get to his clothes. His bed was cold and unforgiving, the warmth from last night only residing with Armin and imprinted into his own bed. He was quick to put his clothes on so he didn't have to feel the bitter cold hit his body, but it did against his will.
He tossed on a pair of soft, cotton pants and his usual green, laced shirt. He tucked his key firmly away under the color of his shirt and looked over to Armin to see him still dressing. It was still dark, but not so much that he couldn't see the contours of his body or the muscles that moved under his skin as he put on his new clothes. Armin was aware that Eren was staring and though it had him blushing, it was another thing he let slide. He simply went about putting on his clothes, adding a sweater to keep himself warm.
"A-Are you ready?" Eren asked. He mentally cursed himself for stuttering. Armin looked over his shoulder to his friend and nodded. He hopped off of the bed and Eren join him by his side. The two snuck out of the cabin quickly so they wouldn't wake anyone else up (And so no one would catch on to their idea either).
The cold morning air was bitter and biting at their nose, but it was nothing compared to the air in Armin's memories. It was nippy and there was a slight breeze that brushed past them, running through their hair and stealing their breath away. The trees were rustling with the small breeze, a few leaves being swept across the ground and by their feet. It was still so early and not a soul was in sight. It was just the two boys.
Eren took Armin's hand within his own and started leading Armin away from the barrack and to the dining hall. The two were silent as they walked, but that changed when Armin spoke up.
"Hey, Eren?" He said quietly. Eren looked back at his friend as they walked, a small smile on his lips as he lead Armin around.
"Yes…?"
"I wanted to say thank you." Armin mumbled. Eren helped him up the stairs to the dining hall while simultaneously giving him an odd look.
"Thank you for what?" He asked. The two stopped at the top of the stairs to wait outside the closed doors. They had to wait until the doors were opened, which wouldn't be too long from now.
"For everything," Armin said. "Especially for keeping your promise to me." He added. Eren chuckled quietly as he leaned over the railing.
"Which one?" He asked. Armin pressed a hand on Eren's back, making the boy look at him.
"You promised that you would stay by my side and you did." Armin looked directly into his eyes as he spoke. Eren looked away, a blush dusting his cheeks as he rubbed the back of his neck.
"That's not important, Armin. You don't have to thank me for that." He laughed a little more. Armin gave a small tug on the back of Eren's shirt as a punishment and reprimand.
"I want to say it." He made it sound so grave and serious as he spoke. "So thank you." Eren laughed again. He turned on his side and pulled Armin close. He had felt Armin shivering a long time ago.
"Armin, you don't need to thank me. I'm glad you remember me and that's all the thanks I want." Eren assured while brushing some of Armin's bangs from his face and tucking them behind his ear. Armin smiled a genuine smile.
Eren looked away for a moment, his body leaning against the railing as he looked over the Training Corps grounds. He snickered to himself and elbowed Armin's arm.
"Hey look," He motioned forward with his head and Armin looked in the direction he was pointing to. Armin could see Shadis walking toward the cabin they had just left. "I bet you my soup that from here we can hear him holler." Eren scoffed. Armin covered his mouth to hide his laughing.
They didn't know how, but somehow that one little sound was enough to catch Shadis's attention. He saw the two boys from the corner of his dead eyes and stopped in his tracks.
"Arlert," He called out. Armin jumped in response at looked at him. Shadis lifted his hand and gestured for him to go to him.
"I knew you well, Armin." Eren joked and playfully punched Armin's arm. Armin played it off as if it was nothing, but he was mentally panicking.
This was it. This was the deciding factor, the deciding moment.
Armin swallowed the cold air into his lungs as he left Eren's side to go to Shadis. He jumped off of the patio and hesitantly walked to Shadis. With each step his heart pounded faster within his chest. Seeing the man eyeing him with such dead eyes and intensive stare made him shiver. He couldn't help but place his hands near his legs and pull on his fingers.
"Yes sir?" He questioned once he was fully stopped mere feet from the man. Shadis straightened up and placed his hands behind his back.
"Well Arlert, what's the word?" He asked. Armin looked back at Eren for a moment, but Eren seemed busy staring off at something else.
"I'm sorry, sir, but I don't understand what you mean." Armin mumbled.
"I mean, will you be staying with us for the rest of your training days, or will you be leaving us?" Shadis asked bluntly. Armin heard the chatter of people behind him and he turned around to see the dining hall doors open. Eren turned back to Armin and waved a hand at him, beckoning for him to come back so they could have breakfast. Armin smiled a wide smile before turning back to his commander.
"I'm sorry for answering your question with a question, Commander, but what made you think I would ever leave in the first place?" Armin asked. Without another word, he turned back and headed back to Eren.
Shadis watched closely as Armin went back to stand by Eren's side, and for a moment, just a brief moment, he smiled at the two of them.
A/N: *mountain of cookies is gone*
And that is the end my friends! Please remember to review and tell me all of your thoughts on not only this chapter, but all of the others. Your criticism is greatly appreciated! Also, please remember that if you like my stories and you want to see more SNK stuffles then please follow me. I have many other stories in progress regarding not only this couple but many others. Please follow me so you can read those too.It would mean a great deal to me if you did that, because as of right now I have my own stories (self written ones) that I am working on and I have lots to learn. Thank you for all of the reviews and comments! It means a whole lot to me! *more chibi sobs* Thank you all again!
ありがと ございます!
じゃね!
-Misty
