Friday at 11:30 was the first chance any of them had gotten to take a break and meet up at the diner—all of them together.

"Other than being tired all the time, I feel great!" Nanaba said.

"Is there anything we can do to help?" Hange asked.

"Bring me food. I have had a craving for ribs!" she laughed.

"We can pick you up some from Amicks next time we come by," Moblit said.

Nanaba gripped his hand tightly. "Thank you so much, Mobes, You're a doll!" Hange grinned proudly and Mike tightened his grip on Nanaba possessively.

They all sat in their regular place except the seats had changed. Mike and Nanaba sat on one side of the booth and Hange and Moblit on the other. Levi sat a few feet away at the counter.

Hange had protested about Levi being singled out but Levi was fine with it. He got to watch Erwin.

Erwin tried very hard to keep up his normal attention to his diner and his customers but having Levi there was incredibly distracting. Erwin glanced shyly at Levi like a teenager and kept a faint blush on his cheeks so long as he was there.

Levi, on the other hand, stared with pure, undisguised lust at Erwin. So long as the man was working Levi admired his ass, his beautiful face, his strong arms. When Erwin wandered over to socialize, however, Levi was out of his element. Erwin was the talker.

Erwin drifted that way and bent over the counter onto his elbows, a position that made Levi's mind spin wishing that they were somewhere alone and that he was positioned behind him with his dick out.

"How's work been?" Erwin asked.

Levi blinked, derailing his brain from its lascivious thoughts. "Uh, just fine. Yours?"

"Not bad … now." Erwin grinned bashfully and it was Levi's turn to grow pink.

He rubbed the back of his neck. "I don't think anyone's ever been so glad to see me on a daily basis as you, you big friendly bastard."

Erwin laughed delightedly and Levi smiled his small smile.

"Say, can you tell me how to get to … A Micks?" Levi asked.

"Amicks Bar-B-Que?"

"That's it."

"I can, but Brownes is a bit better in my opinion."

"OK, give me directions."

Hange was giving a ride to Levi back to the motel.

"Say, Hans, can you take me somewhere? It's outside of town. I'll pay for your gas."

"Sure, hon. No need to pay me. Where are we going?"

"I wanna go to a, uh, Bar-B-Que place called …" he consulted a scrap of paper he'd dug out of his pocket. "Brownes."

Hange laughed. "Have you ever eaten Bar-B-Que?"

"Nope, smart ass, but I wanted to get some …" He checked his paper again, "Ribs for Nanaba and I thought I'd take some over to Erwin. Apparently, he's a big fan."

"Ahh, young love!"

"Oh shut it, asshole."

Hange cackled like a madwoman.

Hange waited in the car while Levi tapped on the door of Mike and Nanaba's cabin. Nanaba was so thrilled she threw herself into Levi's arms and he could feel the little bulge of her belly. It gave him a weird, happy feeling.

Hange dropped Levi off at the motel with a sly look on her face and sped off before Levi could start bitching. Levi opened the door, juggling the bag and a 12 pack of beer, and settled on his bed. He rang Erwin.

"Levi! Hi!"

"Hey, uh, listen, I got some Bar-B-Que when I was at Brownes and I wondered if you'd like to come over? I've got beer."

Levi heard Erwin make a strangled sound and immediately worried that he was going to get turned down.

"I'd love to! See you in a few, OK?"

"OK." Levi grinned despite himself.

It took about thirty seconds after Levi put down the phone to actually grasp what was going on. "Oh, fuck, Erwin's coming over!"

Levi sprang out of the bed and out the door to look for housekeeping.

He was back a few minutes later with fresh sheets and pillowcases and he started changing the bed. He snagged the pillow off of Hange's old bed and put a clean pillowcase on it. He arranged it carefully on his bed beside his own.

He then went over the room, dusting and arranging and then tackled the bathroom.

He was scrubbing out the tub when a hesitant knock sounded on his door.

"Fuck," Levi said with feeling. He was in his faded cleaning jeans and a white tank-style t-shirt. The knock came again.

"Fuckity, fuck, fuck, fuck!"

Levi dashed for the door and, composing himself, opened it.

Erwin, who had brought another twelve-pack of beer, sucked in his breath at the sight of Levi. The small man wore worn jeans that were slung low on his narrow hips. His tight, plain white tank top had ridden up and revealed a slice of his taut belly and the trail of black hair that disappeared into his jeans.

Erwin swallowed several times and forced his gaze upward.

"I brought more beer," he croaked.

"Come in," Levi said, fidgeting. "I need to change real quick …"

"Why?"

"Well, these are my cleaning things and they're kinda ragged."

"I think they look perfect."

Levi was so embarrassed he turned away and grabbed the ice bucket. "Be right back."

After four trips Levi had the immaculately clean sink in the bathroom filled with ice and was sticking beers in.

"You want a beer?" he called.

"Please."

"Yours or mine?"

"Yours."

Levi was acutely aware that he bought one of the cheapest beers made and Erwin had bought a high dollar popular beer. It touched him that Erwin had chosen to drink his. He looked at himself in the bathroom mirror. "Oh get hold of yourself shithead. You're acting like you're 16."

He grabbed both beers and stepped out of the bathroom. He gestured at the freshly made bed. "You wanna sit?" Setting both beers on the bedside table, Levi sat at the head of the bed, back against the headboard. He popped the tops off of both beers and held Erwin's out to him.

Erwin hesitated and Levi's brows drew together.

Oh, shit. Did I fuck this up already?

But Erwin seemed to make up his mind and, slipping off his shoes, climbed gingerly onto the bed. He mimicked Levi and put his back against the headboard and took his beer. "What are we watching?"

Levi stared at him. The pale golden hair, the bright blue eyes, the square jaw. I could watch you all night.

"Levi?"

"Oh, uh, what are you in the mood for?"

"Let's see what's on."

Levi clicked through the channels until he happened on a black and white film just starting. "Oh, man, it's Scarface!"

Erwin shook his head "Sorry, I can't stand gore and—"

"No, this is the original Scarface, 1933. It's awesome! I think you'll love it. It has George Raft in it."

"If you think so. George Raft?"

"Yeah, typical suave and cool dude of the era. Tall, dark hair slicked back."

Erwin smiled. "You sound like a real fan."

"All I can say is that if I had been around back then and he was gay I'd have been all over that ass!"

Erwin laughed delightedly.

"Man, I love that laugh," Levi said.

"Even if I'm not as handsome as Geroge Raft?" Erwin teased.

Levi punched him in the arm.

"Oww! You beast!"

"Oh, you haven't seen the beast," Levi purred, eyes hooded.

"We're go… going to miss the beginning," Erwin stuttered, face red and surreptitiously wiping his damp palms on his pants legs.

They watched the film in companionable silence, munching on Bar-B-Que and sipping beer until Levi's phone buzzed on the bedside table. He cursed vividly and apologized to erwin.

"Hans, what is it?"

"Just checking on the progress of your date!"

"It's not a … leave me alone you psychopath!"

"So have you gotten anywhere?"

"Damnit Hans! We're watching a movie."

"And cuddling?!"

"I'm hanging up now!"

Levi looked sheepishly at Erwin. "Hange's a nosy thing."

Erwin patted him on the leg. "Best friends get to be that."

Abruptly both men realized that Erwin's big warm hand was on levi's thigh. Erwin snatched his hand back and cleared his throat. "More hush puppies?"

Levi swallowed a couple of times. "Sure."