A/N: I am SO sorry for the late update. Welcome to the penultimate chapter, team. It's been such a wild ride. But we're not finished just yet. Enjoy and I'll see you next time for the very last chapter of Eren's education. Much love!
They hadn't been sober in about three days.
All of the gang lounge now in Eren's flat on the sofas, pizza boxes open in various states of being empty.
"So round 4 tonight then, lads?" Eren dangles a slice of pizza into his mouth.
There's a collective groan.
"Definitely," Ymir is the first to pipe up. Eren grins at her.
Mikasa lifts her head out Annie's lap. "I want to die," she says dramatically, letting her head drop again for Annie to resume stroking her hair as she leans against Bertl.
"Are you and Jean supposed to be getting your results back today?" Christa asks.
Eren gulps. "Yup." He says tightly.
It's not that he'd forgotten – it's just that he was trying so very hard not to think about it.
Four days ago, Mikasa had finally handed in her dissertation after a lot of crying, late nights, and mild tantrums. Her first night back drinking ended in her being drunk within the first hour of the pre-drinks, vomiting into the second hour, and back on the vodka in the third. Miraculously she'd made it into the club propped up between Reiner and Marco, the glitter on her face distracting from her eyes which had trouble focusing.
Eren had never been so proud of his sister.
April had brought in the welcome warmer weather and sporadic showers. It felt like summer was on its way, but the knowledge that summer brought the end to university stuck in Eren's throat like a lump.
"How are you feeling?" Jean mutters to Eren when they're both in the kitchen and away from the others.
"Sick," Eren replies. "Every time my phone goes off I nearly go into cardiac arrest."
"Me too," Jean reaches over to flick the kettle on as Eren gets two mugs for them, dropping tea bag into each.
It's a wordless ritual that the two of them seem to have fallen into. Tea making.
"Awww look at them," Ymir crows. "The husbands are at it again!"
"Very cute," Reiner joins in.
Eren rolls his eyes.
The ritual has not gone unnoticed and instead has been incessantly mocked ever since.
"What time did they say the results were being released?" Eren asks.
"3pm," Jean replies.
Eren checks his watch. It's almost time.
The kettle has boiled and Jean pours. Eren fetches the milk and partway through pouring, Jean yelps and their phones both go off at the same time. Eren's hand jerks, spilling milk onto the counter.
"Fuck, Jean," he says. "Don't do that."
"Sorry," Jean absently hands him the tea towel. "The results are in." Jean is scrolling on his phone, expression anxious.
"Your results are in?" Armin repeats from the other side of the room.
Everyone else's conversations go quiet and they stare at Eren and Jean. The atmosphere is tense.
Eren grabs his phone off the counter and opens the email. He swallows hard and clicks the link to his assessment result page, holding his breath as he waits for it to load.
Jean gasps. "I GOT A FUCKING FIRST!" He says.
"WELL DONE, KIRSTEIN!" Reiner booms.
"Well done!" Everyone else choruses.
"Eren?" Mikasa says. "How did you do?"
Eren doesn't reply. He stares at the screen.
"Eren?" Jean prompts quietly. There's no response. "I'm sure you did fine no matter what you got – and remember, it isn't the be all and end all! You've done amazing this year even if this grade isn't what you –"
"I got a First," Eren whispers.
"What?"
"I, uh," Eren clears his throat. "I got a First," he says louder.
"Amazing, Eren!" Jean beams. "We did it!"
"Yeah," Eren says weakly. "Fuck, yeah, we did."
"CONGRATS, BOTH OF YOU!" Sasha announces.
"We definitely need to go out again tonight now," Annie says.
"Yeah 100%," Armin assets.
Mikasa drags herself off the sofa to hug both of the boys. "I'm so proud," she says to them, and they both grin.
"I'm gonna go and call Levi," Eren says, heading out into the hallway and to his bedroom.
Levi picks up on the second ring. "Hello there," he says.
"I got a First!" Eren says excitedly. "I know you already know this but still!"
"You did amazingly, Eren. You worked so hard for that."
"It wasn't' …" Eren struggles to get the words out.
"Go on."
Eren sighs. "I got that on my own, didn't I? You didn't just give me a good grade because we're dating?"
"Not in the slightest," Levi assures him. "I couldn't if I wanted to. Everyone's dissertation gets marked by two other people including myself. That grade is all you."
Eren lets out a sigh of relief that he didn't know he'd been holding. "Thank you. I love you and I'll see you tomorrow."
"Enjoy yourself tonight, Eren. You've earnt it. And I love you too."
Eren hangs up feeling light before calling Hange.
"Hange?" He says when she answers. "I got a First!"
There's a pause from the end of the phone before Hange promptly burst into tears. "Eren! That's brilliant I'm so proud!"
"Don't cry!" Eren laughs.
"I'm sorry!" Hange laughs as she sniffs. "I knew you'd done well – you worked so hard."
"Thank you!"
They talk for a while longer before hanging up.
Eren goes back into the kitchen, triumphant. "Let's celebrate."
…
"EXCUSE ME, MR BARTENDER," Mikasa is leaning so far over the bar that her legs are dangling in the air behind her. "CAN WE HAVE 2 TEQUILA SHOTS PLEASE FOR THESE HANDSOME GENTLEMEN HERE? THEY GOT A FIRST IN THEIR DISSERTATIONS!"
"Mika, stop telling everyone we got Firsts!" Eren laughs, but he isn't really annoyed. He loves that Mikasa is so proud of him.
The man behind the bar is clearly amused by Mikasa's enthusiasm and pours out three shots of tequila with salt and lime wedges. "Congratulations," he says to Jean and Eren. "Have these on me."
"THANK YOU!" Mikasa yells, sliding back off his bar. "YOU'RE THE BEST!"
"Yeah, thank you!" Jean says.
"Much appreciated!" Eren salutes him.
They gather in a huddle, salt on their hand and lime between their fingers with the shot in their other hand.
"3! 2! 1!" Jean does a speed count down and in unison, they lick the salt trail, throw their heads back to down the shot, and bite into the lime.
"BRILLIANT," Mikasa announces enthusiastically. "LET'S DANCE!"
Mikasa pushes her way through the crowded dance floor to where the rest of the gang is huddled.
Annie is holding three VKs in one hand, alternating between each flavour whilst dancing along to the music with Mikasa and Sasha.
Ymir and Christa are making out and the boys are having an overly zealous dance off.
It's a great night and Eren has never felt so happy.
But when he looks around at the group of happy and laughing faces, he's struck by the reminder that their carefree university nights out like this are numbered. Ymir was heading off to medical school next year, Christa starting her nursing job. Bertl wanted to do a Master's and Reiner was joining a school as their rugby coach.
But Eren forces these thoughts down and makes sure to enjoy himself now.
"I LOVE YOU GUYS," he says suddenly.
"AW, YEAGER," Reiner throws a strong arm around his neck.
"WE LOVE YOU TOO!" Connie replies and they grab the girls into a group hug.
Eren feels like his heart is going to burst.
"MORE SHOTS!" Marco announces.
The rest of the night is a blur of brightly coloured lights and even brighter coloured drinks, and Eren's hand never seems to be without one. They stay at the club until it's closing at 3am and then move onto the even shitter club on the high street which doesn't officially close until 5am.
Here, they order fishbowls and dance badly to terrible grime music until they decide they're hungry and the club starts to kick people out
By the time they get down into the middle of the city, McDonald's are serving the breakfast menu, and drunk, giddy, and full of love, the 12 of them cram into the 6-people booths and cram delicious hot sausage and egg muffins into their mouths.
"Fuuuuuck," Jean groans, mouth full.
"Amazing," Armin says. "How can something so bad for you be so good?"
"I can't be bothered to go all 'food science' on you," Sasha slurs.
"Thank God," Connie mutters as he wipes tomato ketchup from her cheek. She playfully tries to bite him.
They eat in a chatter of overlapping, loud conversations and then walk home together in little groups, the girls huddling together linking arms, and the boys racing each other back to the flat.
…
The next day, Eren is nursing his hangover at Levi's, who is being surprisingly sympathetic for once.
"Why are you being so nice?" Eren croaks as Levi brings him a cup of tea.
"Because this is the one hangover where you actually deserved the night out," Levi tells him with a smile.
"Thanks," Eren says. "I think."
Levi sits next to him on the sofa and they settle down to watch Downton Abbey as Eren professed it was the only thing that would cure him.
Halfway through Branson's profession of love for Lady Sybil leaving Eren particularly emotional, Levi's phone rung. Eren looks at the caller ID and his eyes light up to see that its Hange.
"Put her on speakerphone!" Eren says, sitting up.
Levi answers and puts the call on loudspeaker. "What's up, Four Eyes? Eren's here with me."
"Hiiiii Hange," Eren calls.
"Hey you two! I'm glad you're both there – do you want to come over?"
Levi and Eren look at each other. Eren nods.
"Sure," Levi says.
"Great!"
"When do you want us over?"
"Uhh – now? Or whenever you're ready!"
"No worries, we'll be with you in a bit."
"See you then!"
"Bye Hange!" Eren says.
"Bye Rogue!"
The phone call ends and Levi is frowning a little.
"What's up?" Eren asks
"Did that seem a little …" Levi looks for the right word. "Odd? To you?"
Eren thinks. "Not really. She's usually fairly last minute and mildly demanding."
"I suppose so," Levi shrugs. "Anyway. We'd better get going."
They grab their coats and get in the car, making the short drive over to the house where Erwin greets them at the door.
"Eren! Congrats on the First!"
"Cheers, Erwin!" Eren grins. "I couldn't believe it."
"I could. You did great. Come on up! Hange's in the living room."
Eren leads them up to the large room where Hange stands with a smile on her face, hugging Levi and Eren each as they enter.
"Sit down, boys, sit down," Hange is being more scatty than usual as she bustles around. When neither of them do anything, she scowls. "Levi, Eren sit."
The two sit down quickly on the sofa at the same time. Hange stands and beams manically down at them. Eren gulps.
"Hange, what the hell is going on?" Levi demands.
Hange looks to Erwin and he smiles encouragingly at her. He's stood beside her but his usually calm mood seems more charged.
Hange looks ready to burst as she takes a deep breath. "We're expecting!"
Eren blinks. "You what?"
"I'm pregnant!"
"You?"
"Yes!"
"You're pregnant?" Eren stares with wide eyes at her stomach which is hidden beneath one of Erwin's old rugby shirts. "I mean – you're –"
Levi elbows him sharply. "Yes alright Eren, we get the picture."
"Holy shit!" Eren says finally. He stands and opens his arms. "Congrats!"
"Thank you!" Hange squeals and hugs Eren tight.
"Congratulations, you mad woman," Levi hugs her next. He turns to Erwin after Eren's also hugged him, and gives him a look of support. "And good luck," he mutters, gripping his best friend's hand.
Erwin laughs. "I'll need it," he says.
"But we wanted to tell you both now because we want both of you to be godfathers."
"What?" Eren's jaw has gone again.
"Are you serious?" Even Levi is surprised. "Me? Us? Being that child's moral guidance and support for the rest of its life?"
"Absolutely!" Erwin says jovially. He is beaming.
"Eren can't even make pancakes," Levi says.
"I've been practising!" Eren rounds on him indignantly.
"I'm still scraping batter off the ceiling."
"I said sorry."
Erwin, ever the mediator holds up his hands. "It was never even a discussion. We both knew we wanted you. Both of you."
Levi has suddenly gone surprisingly quiet, his face set and pale.
"Levi will you come and help me pour some drinks? Celebration is definitely in order." Erwin asks with a smile.
"Sure."
The two men head into the kitchen, the excitable chatter of Eren and Hange getting quieter from the other room.
"Are you alright?" Erwin asks carefully, heading to the fridge and pulling out a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc.
Levi frowns and is quiet for a moment before answering. "Are you sure you want me to be a godfather?" Levi asks quietly.
"I never even gave it a second thought."
Levi thinks again. The only sound is the gentle glug of the wine being poured into three glasses. Erwin opens the fridge again to replace the wine and pulls out a bottle of orange juice for the fourth wine glass.
"Can't have her feeling left out," Erwin says.
"I can't be a godfather," Levi says suddenly.
"Why not?"
Levi's mouth opens and closes a few times for words which struggle to come. "Because I'm not good enough."
"Don't be ridiculous," Erwin gives him a comforting smile. "You'll be a great godfather. And we've got it sorted between you and Eren; you're the sensible one and Eren is … well … Eren."
"Erwin, I'm terrible with children."
"Don't worry – Eren's great with kids. He can entertain it and you can just wait it out until its older."
Levi manages a laugh.
"You know what you mean to Hange and to me."
Levi manages a smile. "Congratulations, Erwin. I'm so happy for you both. You're going to be great parents." Levi holds up his wine glass to Erwin.
"Thank you."
They clink their glasses together and take a sip.
"How are you feeling?" Levi asks.
Erwin considers this for a moment. "It hasn't quite sunk in. But I'm thrilled. And nervous."
"Hange's going to be a nightmare," Levi says dryly.
"You're telling me."
They laugh.
"She seems so excited," Levi comments wistfully.
"She is," Erwin says. "She cried."
"I thought Eren was going to cry."
"Wait until the bottom of this glass and I bet there'll be some tears."
"You're not wrong."
They take another sip of their wine.
"Shall we go in?" Erwin says.
"Absolutely."
They pick up the other wine glasses and head back into the living room where Hange is sat on the sofa with Eren beside her, prodding her belly gently.
"So how pregnant are you?" Eren asks.
"13 weeks," Hange says. "I thought Levi had noticed."
"I just thought you were putting on some winter weight," Levi shrugged. "And you wear loose clothing a lot so I didn't think much about it."
"Here you go," Erwin hands Hange the wine glass of orange juice.
She smiles up at him. "Thank you, darling."
"Here," Levi hands Eren his own glass of wine.
"Thanks honeypie," Eren coos. Levi rolls his eyes with a slight smile of amusement before sitting in the armchair next to Erwin's.
"When will you start to show?" Eren asks.
"I already am a little," Hange says. She lifts up her top to show a slight rounding of her lower belly. "But it'll be a few weeks before I'm properly showing."
"You just look bloated," Eren comments.
Hange hums in agreement and runs her hand over the small bump. "I can't believe it."
"Neither can I," Eren mutters.
"We need to do something to celebrate properly," Levi says. "Shall we order in or go out?"
"Ordering in sounds great," Hange says. "But I'm more than happy to be the designated driver if you want to go out."
"I'm more than happy to order in," Erwin agrees. "What does everyone feel like?"
….
Hange was pregnant.
Eren still couldn't wrap his head around it.
All though eating their Thai takeaway, Eren had kept sneaking looks at Hange's obscured stomach. It was insane to think that she was growing a human in there. She didn't even look any different.
They were going to have a baby. An actual child.
And Eren and Levi were the moral guardians.
Now that was a frightening thought.
But there was something about the idea of Hange having a child which had really stuck with Eren. Seeing the bond between Erwin and Hange throughout that evening was touching.
"Shall we adopt?" Eren asks absentmindedly as he gets into bed. "Y'know. When we're married and living together and stuff. Should we adopt?"
Levi and Eren had been invited to stay in the guest bedroom that night as a lot of wine had been consumed in celebration and it was late when they all finally decided to head up to bed.
"Jesus, that's a loaded question," Levi replied, closing the guest room door behind him after brushing his teeth.
"Levi."
"A lot to unpack there."
"Levi."
"I don't know, Eren!" Levi says sharply. Eren drops his eyes and Levi immediately feels bad. "Sorry." He gets into bed alongside Eren and offers his arm so Eren can cuddle into his chest.
"What are we going to do after I graduate?" Eren asks.
Levi sighs. "Well. What do you want to do?"
"I considered doing a Master's."
"You did? Eren, that's wonderful."
"Yeah but I don't know whether I'm only considering it so I can stay at the university and … to stay close to you," Eren admits quietly.
"You can't make a decision based on me," Levi says. "I want you to do what you want."
Eren groans. "I don't know what I want to do."
Levi runs his fingers through Eren's hair. "Hey, don't stress. You've got time."
"You're the one who's been telling me I need a plan."
Levi shrugs. "I guess you've helped me understand that it's okay to take things as they come sometimes."
Eren twists himself to kiss Levi clumsily on the mouth. "I'm gonna go and get a glass of water – do you want anything?"
"Water would be great."
"Sure."
Eren swings his legs out of bed and heads down the stairs to the kitchen. He flips on the light and nearly jumps out of his skin.
"Hange?!" He says.
She looks up at him from where she's sat on the floor, leaning against one of the cabinets. Her knees are drawn up to her chin and her face is streaked with tears.
"Sorry," she says quickly, wiping at her eyes beneath her glasses. "I didn't mean to startle you."
"Hey … Hange, what's up?" Eren says softly and seats himself next to her. Hange sniffs as he puts his arm around her. "Why you crying?"
"Eren, I'm so scared," she whispers. Eren tightens his arm.
"Why?"
"I'm scared of … this," Hange gestures to her stomach. "What if I'm not a good mother?"
"Are you kidding? You're going to be a great mum! You've basically raised me these past three years and I turned out pretty great," Eren says. "Graduating with a 2:1 and a First for my dissertation!"
Hange gives a watery giggle. "That was all you, Eren, you smart boy."
"Nah," Eren says. "I'd definitely be a male stripper down town if it wasn't for you keeping me on the straight and narrow in second year. Not that there's anything wrong with sex workers. They're heroes."
"Don't be daft," she sniffs.
"No I'm serious," Eren insists. "I used to go to the library and study because every time I tried to sleep in or ignore how much work I knew I had to do, I just had you in my head and it was like long distance guilt? I wanted to make you proud."
Hange pulls away a little to look at him properly. Her brows are knitted. "What?"
Eren blushes a little. "Yeah," he shrugs. "You helped me more than you could know."
"Thanks," Hange rests her head on his shoulder and they sit together in a comfortable silence for a while.
"Is this only about the pregnancy?" Eren asks.
Hange sighs. "I'm just not ready. I don't think I'm ready to give up my independence or my job or … myself."
"You don't need to change anything or be different. You're already the most selfless person I know, and your job will be there after you've had the thing."
"It's a baby, Eren, not a frog."
"Same difference," Eren shrugs and Hange giggles. "But please promise me that one thing will change from now on."
"What?"
"Your driving," Eren says solemnly. "You need to drive less like a woman in a hot wheeled car chase with the police, and more like a sensible woman who is growing an actual human person in your belly."
Another giggle from Hange. "Alright," she says. "I'll see what I can do."
"Atta girl," Eren turns to kiss the top of her head. "Do you want a cup of chamomile tea?"
"Yes please."
"Right come on then," Eren stands first and then stoops, offering Hange his hands to pull her up.
"I don't need help getting up just yet," she says.
"Yeah but I thought I'd start getting some practise in," Eren winks. "Oh my God, you're going to be huge."
"Stop!" Hange laughs.
Eren takes her cheeks in his hands. He takes off her glasses and cleans them on the hem oh his shirt before wiping his eyes and handing her glasses back to her.
"You're gonna be great," he tells her seriously. "Really great. That frog is so lucky."
"Please stop calling my child a frog."
Eren laughs and sets about making two mugs of chamomile tea, and gets a cup of water to take back up to Levi.
"Anything else you want to talk about?" He asks, handing her the steaming mug.
Hange shakes her head. "I'm going to get some sleep."
"Good idea."
"Thank you for the tea. And for talking. It helped."
Eren smiles. "You're so welcome. Anytime you need me, I'm a phone call away."
They head up the stairs together and once in the hallway, they turn to each other.
"Night, Eren," Hange says, squeezing his arm gently.
"Night Hange."
They part ways and disappear into their respective bedrooms.
"When you asked if I wanted water," Levi says as Eren enter the room. "I didn't realise you were heading to the Nile for it."
"Oh behave," Eren says. "Here's your water."
"Thank you." Levi closes his book and takes the cup from Eren. "Everything okay down there?"
"Mhm," Eren hums, getting into bed whilst making sure not to spill his tea. "Hange was still up so we chatted."
"Is she alright?"
"I think so."
The two of them settle down. Levi opens his book and leans against Eren who blows the top of his tea to cool it before sipping gently.
The wine has worn off considerably by this point, but Levi knows he'd still be over the limit. And spending time at Hange and Erwin's was like a second home for both him and Eren.
Even though he was reading his book, Levi wasn't concentrating. His oldest friend was pregnant. The mere thought was terrifying. Levi was famously bad with children. They seemed to sense his discomfort and were gravitated towards him.
Eren, on the other hand, loved children. Probably because his mental aged matched them almost perfectly.
The pregnancy along with Eren's looming graduation was weight on Levi's mind. It certainly felt like everything was about to change.
