Moblit watched as Nanaba slipped out the door with the incredibly tall blond contractor.

"Well, it looks like I've been bailed on."

Hange turned to look. "Ooops, oh they look like a cute couple!"

Moblit chuckled. "I think you are a hard-core romantic, Hange."

Hange clapped her hands together. "I am, I am! Romance is so so wonderful!"

"It can be hard, too, though. Is it harder for a woman?"

An expression crossed Hange's face for a moment and Moblit was sure he had misspoken. His heart plummeted into his stomach.

There was a long pause as Hange clearly chose her words carefully. Moblit waited anxiously. Had he screwed this up?

"I think you may have the wrong idea, hun," Hange said gently and surprisingly soberly. "I'm not a girl."

"You're not?"

"I'm not a guy either." They shrugged. "I'm just me."

Moblit thought seriously about it for several long moments, a tiny crease between his eyes as he thought. "Do you like girls or guys?"

Hange shrugged and tugged at a lock of her hair. "I like people."

Moblit finally nodded.

"OK."

"OK?"

"Yeah. I don't like you for your …" he blushed deeply, "...your, ah … vagina or your penis or whatever. I like you."

Hange was frankly speechless, which was such a strange thing for them that they didn't know what to do at first.

"What if I have a penis … or, say, a silicon penis and I want to fuck you?"

Moblit, if that was possible, went even redder. He cleared his throat.

"Can we deal with that when the time comes?"

Levi was getting very very drunk. He was aware that Erwin was too and yet, still, he didn't want to fuck things up. Then again he also didn't want to hide anything. "I gotta tell you something."

Erwin looked at him attentively.

Levi sighed. Big, dumb bastard. How dare he be so incredible. He picked up his glass, muttering into it. "I'm bi-sexual."

Erwin looked poleaxed. He also instinctively looked around to make sure they were not overheard.

"Thank you … thank you for telling me."

Erwin's heart was absolutely hammering in his chest and it felt hard to breathe. Oh dear god. The man was bi-sexual. Erwin's knee started to bounce in agitation.

Levi stirred his drink with the ridiculous little red straw they always put in them. He looked up, grey eyes piercing into Erwin's bright blue ones. "You OK with that?"

Erwin gulped. He seemed to have too much spit. "More than OK"

Levi's head tilted and it looked adorable. "More than?"

"Yeah," Erwin whispered. His hand found his bar napkin and he twisted it. "Are you … uhm … seeing anyone right now?"

Levi swirled his finger around the rim of his beer glass. "Thought I had found a guy," he confessed.

Erwin's heart did a hard double thump. "Yeah?"

Levi took a sip of his drink. "Yeah. Didn't work out though. He was a controlling psycho."

"I'm sorry it didn't work out."

"Yeah. He also wanted me to bottom all the time. I prefer to top."

An electric tingle ran from Erwin's chest straight to his groin.

"Yeah?" he choked out.

Levi took another long sip of his beer. "Yeah. Say ...you OK? You look like you need to take a shit."

Erwin laughed a little wildly. "No … no, I'm just commiserating. I've been on three dates in the last several months and they were all a bust."

"That sucks."

"Yes, it does."

Loud laughter rang out across the bar and both Erwin and Levi looked. It was Hange sitting across from an enthralled Moblit.

"Those two look happy," Erwin said wryly.

"As clams. I've never seen Hange into another human like this."

"Well, that's good."

"I suppose."

Levi looked as if he wanted to say more. The waiter cruised by just then. Levi grabbed his attention.

"Can I get a couple of shots of whiskey? Fuck, make it three. Erwin, you wanna do shots?"

"What? I guess. Vodka please" Jean nodded and moved off.

"Why the sudden liquor?" Erwin asked.

"Well, ya know, fuck it. I'm beginning to think that there isn't a decent man in the world for me, so fuck it. I'm gonna get drunk."

"You could go for a woman."

"I've dated plenty. Women are nice. They're soft and they smell good, but I prefer men." Levi regarded Erwin over the rim of his glass as he emptied it and Erwin was fascinated at how long and black his lashes were.

Their shots arrived and Levi held one up. "To us getting drunk!"

Erwin held up his shot glass. "To us."

Moblit and Hange were quiet, arms extended across the table towards each other. Not exactly holding hands but Moblit's was warm and soft on top of Hange's.

Moblit drained his drink. "Hey, you want to get out of here? Maybe go across the street and get some coffee?"

Hange's eyes lit up. "Across the street?" Their motel was across the street and Hange wasn't thinking of coffee although they knew that was literally what Moblit meant. They gazed at the man and he stared boldly (and a good bit tipsily) back at them.

"The Waffle House."

"Oh, that sounds wonderful!" Hange clapped her hands like a child and bounced in her seat. "I assume they have waffles?"

"You've never been to a Waffle House?" Moblit, like many southerners, just assumed that the ubiquitous restaurant was everywhere. How did people live without Waffle Houses? "Yeah, waffles, eggs, bacon, sausage. Good burgers and sandwiches, too. Let's go." He stood and dug in his back pocket for his wallet. Hange grabbed his wrist.

"Let me." She pulled bills out of her pocket as she stood also. Moblit shamelessly stared at her long tan thighs where her already short skirt had ridden up even further.

He hesitated though. The guy was supposed to pay. He shook his head at himself. No. He had to treat Hange like the person they were. They certainly weren't some gender stereotype.

Hange tossed down enough to cover their last drinks and a generous tip for Jean.

"Your friend is levving … leaving." Erwin said and hiccuped. He was absolutely shit-faced. Levi stared owlishly around and caught sight of Hange and Berner. He raised his glass to Hange and she grinned and waved.

"Good luck wi' that, shitty-glasses," Levi murmured.

"Bernersss a good man," Erwin said leaning heavily on the table. "Man, I'm getting a little drunk."

Levi snorted at that. "A little? You're wasted. Dude."

For some reason that struck Erwin as hilarious and he began laughing, hands gripping the edges of the table and his hair hanging in his face. This delighted levi. He loved how the man could just let loose in public like that. He reached out without realizing he was doing so and touched Erwin lightly on his bare forearm. It was the first time he'd touched him all night. Erwin, even in his inebriated state, noticed quickly. He took a deep breath, seeming to steel himself. "You wanna … you wanna get out of here, too?"

A deep heat crept down Levi's chest and straight to his dick. Oh, shit was this guy for real? Was he even suggesting what Levi thought he was suggesting? Levi really couldn't tell. He was so bad at reading people.

"Yeah," he said slowly, "yeah, let's."

They both stood at the same time and nearly fell into each other.

"Shit," Levi said, grabbing onto the seat-back. "We are both fucking wasted."

Erwin was leaning on the booth table, hair in his eyes again. It stuck to his forehead a bit with sweat. Suddenly the room seemed to spin and the flashing strobes and gyrating dancers didn't help a bit.

"You OK, dude? You look a little green." Levi had grabbed his arm.

With his other hand he threw a few bills down on the table. "Let's get the hell out of here before we fall down."

They staggered, hanging onto each other, toward the door.

The double doors of the lobby of the motel both swung outward rather violently and bounced off their rubber stops. Levi and Erwin came shakily out. It was just as oppressively hot outside as it had been inside the crowded bar and the heat seemed to weigh on them.

Erwin suddenly put his hand to his mouth.

"Hey … you … you OK?"

"Gonna … gonna …"

Levi moved surprisingly fast for someone as drunk as he was, hauling Erwin along and around the side of the building by one arm. Once there he pushed him over a trash can and Erwin immediately emptied his stomach into it, hands gripping the sides convulsively.

"Oh, god …"

"Don't move. There's probably more."

As if on cue Erwin vomited again into the bin. And again.

When he was done he stood upright letting go of the can carefully. He fished around in his pockets and extracted a handkerchief which he used to wipe his mouth. He looked sheepishly at Levi who had pulled out his phone. "Damn. Sorry. That wasn't 'tractive at all."

Levi shrugged, typing. "Yeah, cuz I've never yarked into a trash can in an alleyway behind a bar before … whass your address?"

"My address?"

"Yeah where you live. 'M getting us an Uber. 'M gon' to take you home. I think it's nighty nigh' time for you."