Chapter Seventeen
"NO! You don't get to be all mopey and betrayed!" Armin didn't think he had ever heard Annie raise her voice before. But boy was she heated now, and she was letting Bertolt have it. "YOU ditched ME! What was I supposed to do? Sit around all night and mope, and pine after dear, darling Bertolt? Why won't he look at me?" Annie did a mock swoon.
Historia had led them outside, to try and avoid disturbing other people. Several people were gawking at them though. "I didn't expect to find you all cuddled up with Eren!" Bertolt snapped back. Armin glanced at Eren to his right, who looked rather pleased with himself, up until he let out a small ooph! Mikasa had probably elbowed him in the ribs. Somewhere from both behind and above him came a click. He looked up to see Ymir holding the camera Mrs. Jaeger had given him.
"What? How did you-" Armin patted his pockets, and felt they were empty. "Give me that!" He hissed, seizing it from her hand.
"What?' She said, feigning innocence. "I just thought that the first time any of us have seen either of them behave like normal people should be documented."
Armin stared at her incredulously. "What is wrong with you?"
"You think THIS is behaving like normal people?" Mikasa asked, joining their conversation.
"I don't have to put up with this shit! I'm not your girlfriend!" Annie yelled at Bertolt.
"Yeah, fat chance of that ever happening!" Bertolt screamed back.
"And who's fault is that? I'm not the one who ditched you after not speaking the whole way here!"
"Armin, give me the camera." Ymir said, reaching for it.
"No. Get out of here, you psychopath." He swatted her hand away.
"Yeah, well, you certainly made sure I'll never date you now!" Bertolt looked angrier than Armin had ever seen him. "I'm not sure who would want to date you, after this!"
"Well, obviously-" Eren began.
"Shut up!" Mikasa hissed, elbowing him again.
"You know what, Bertolt? You had probably better just keep fucking Reiner, because obviously, you'll never be able to please a woman!" With that, Annie turned on her heel and began walking away. Armin looked around the group, who all had various expressions of shock on their faces. Both Bertolt and Reiner's jaws had dropped open, and their faces were turning red. Armin didn't know what came over him, but he raised the camera and snapped a picture.
"And you judged me." Ymir hissed in his ear.
"I don't-I mean-where did she-that's not something…" Reiner spluttered, clearly unable to form a coherent sentence.
Bertolt's mouth moved, but he couldn't seem to get any words out. Finally, he snapped, "Where are you going?"
"Home!" Annie snapped back.
"How? I drove you here."
"I'll figure it out!"
"Annie, wait!" Historia took off running after her.
"Come on, Bert." Reiner reached a hand towards him.
"Don't touch me!" Bertolt slapped his hand away, and stalked off inside, shouldering past Connie, who was just walking outside.
"Whoa! What did I miss?" Connie asked, looking at the rest of them for an explanation.
"Shut up, Connie." Reiner grumbled, also pushing past him to follow Bertolt inside.
"Seriously, what happened?" Connie repeated, looking perplexed. Armin raised the camera and took a picture of him.
"Armin, what are you doing?" Mikasa asked.
"Being a hypocrite." Ymir grumbled. "I guess I should go after my girlfriend, seeing as I have the car keys." She sighed.
"Yes. Yes, you should." Armin replied.
"Is that my mom's camera?" Eren asked.
"Yes." Armin answered, snapping a picture of Eren.
"Stop that. What are you doing?"
"Your mom wanted me to document your first school dance." He replied, taking a picture of Mikasa.
"That's enough of that." Mikasa said, reaching for the camera.
"No." Armin stepped back out of her reach.
"Armin." Her voice held a note of warning.
"No." He repeated, dodging her next attempt to grab the camera. He took another photo of her.
"Be free, little camera man." Ymir goaded.
"Stop that." Mikasa was clearly annoyed.
"Make me." Armin retorted.
"Everyone's feeling feisty tonight." Eren said, stepping in between them.
"Why are you in a mood, Armin?" Mikasa asked with a huff.
"Who said I'm in mood? Am I not allowed to want to take pictures of my girl-" He realized what he was saying. "Best friend." He added quickly. If looks could kill, the one Mikasa shot him would have had him dead on the spot. Eren didn't seem to notice.
"So, should we go back inside, or is the night ruined?"
Just then, Bertolt burst back outside, Reiner in hot pursuit. "Bert, just wait a second!"
"No, Reiner. I've told you already, I want to be left alone." Bertolt glared at Eren as he walked past.
"Thanks a lot, Eren." Reiner huffed as he passed. "I think we should talk about this, Bert." He chased Bertolt across the parking lot.
"See, you losers later." Ymir smirked, taking off after Bertolt and Reiner.
"I thought she was supposed to go after Historia." Mikasa commented.
"Do you think they're actually fu-"
"Don't even say it, Eren." Mikasa cut him off.
"What? I'm just curious!"
"It's none of our business." Armin chided. "Let's go back inside. It's freezing out here."
They were accosted by Sasha and Connie immediately upon walking inside. "What happened?' Sasha exclaimed.
"Jean won't tell us anything." Connie added.
"Well, Bertolt and Annie broke up." Eren explained.
"They weren't dating." Mikasa corrected.
"Wow! That's crazy!" Sasha proclaimed. "I can't believe I missed it."
"Why's Bert mad at Reiner, though?" Connie asked.
"Well, I'm pretty sure Bert and Reiner have been hooking-"
"Eren!" Mikasa planted an elbow right into Eren's ribs.
"Ow! What the hell, Mikasa? Stop doing that!"
Armin felt his phone go off. "What the?" he said, digging it out of his pocket.
"Who is it?" Eren asked.
"Your mom." Armin answered.
"Haha. Very funny."
"No, it actually is." He said, before answering the phone. "Hello, Mrs. Jaeger."
"Oh, thank goodness for dependable Armin. Can you ask my son why we pay for him to have a cell phone if he's not going to answer it when we call him?"
"Eren, your mom's been calling you." He said flatly.
"She has?" Eren fished his phone out of his pocket and looked at it. His face paled. "Oh no."
"How many missed calls?"
"Six."
"Jesus Christ." Armin shook his head.
"Well, why didn't she call Mikasa?" Eren demanded.
"Because she knows I didn't bring my phone." Mikas replied.
"Why didn't you?"
"Where would I put it?" Mikasa held out her arms and motioned to her dress, that clearly didn't have any pockets.
"I can think of a couple places you can shove it." Eren muttered.
"I'm gonna kick your ass." Mikasa raised a fist.
"Stop it." Armin scolded.
"Anyways, I'm supposed to be with you!" Mikasa added.
"Why would you trust me?"
"That's the issue at hand, isn't it?"
Armin sighed and tuned out the bickering siblings. "How far away are you, Mrs. Jaeger?" He slowly raised the camera and took a picture of the arguing pair, with Sasha and Connie in the background, watching them like a tennis match.
"About five minutes." Mrs. Jaeger answered.
"See you then." He hung up the phone.
"Armin, I swear to God if you take one more picture of me, I'm going to break that camera." Mikasa rounded on him.
He ignored her, putting the camera and his phone in his pocket. "We need to go outside to meet your mom."
"Fine, let's go." Eren huffed.
"Oh, you're not getting the front seat this time!" She elbowed him as they both rushed outside.
Armin sighed and looked at his other friends. "Well, this has been fun."
"Yeah, sure has." Connie grinned.
"Can I get a hug, Ar?" Sasha asked, stepping towards him.
"No. You're being punished for what you did." He replied, taking a step back from her.
"Pleeeeeeease?" She kept moving closer. "Just one?" she asked right before she lunged forward.
"No!" He darted out the door after Eren and Mikasa. Mrs. Jaeger had pulled up, and Mikasa had claimed the front seat. Eren was pouting in the backseat when Armin joined him.
"All right. Are we ready to go?" Mrs. Jaeger asked.
Armin saw Sasha step outside. "Quick, drive before she comes over here!"
"Who?"
"The demon." He answered.
"I don't know what that means." Mrs. Jaeger said as she pulled away from the curb. "So, did you guys have fun?"
"Eren certainly did." Mikasa replied, slouching in her seat.
"He did?" Mrs. Jaeger's brows raised in surprise.
"Oh yeah. Tell her about it, Eren."
"Why do I get the feeling this isn't good?"
"Weeeeellllll, I may have ended a relationship tonight." Eren perked up. He really was enjoying this. "But don't worry, it wasn't mine."
"What?" Mrs. Jaeger exclaimed, glancing at her son in the rearview mirror.
"They weren't IN a relationship." Mikasa huffed. Armin was almost positive she rolled her eyes. He couldn't see since he was sitting behind her, but he knew her well enough.
"They certainly aren't now." Eren smirked.
"Eren Jaeger! What did you do?"
"I didn't do anything! Not intentionally! All I did was ask Annie to dance. I didn't know Bertolt was going to blow a gasket."
"Did Annie go to the dance with Bertolt?"
"Yeah, but he ditched her as soon as they got there. She was upset and I was trying to make her feel better. I was being a good friend!"
"That doesn't account for the twisted pleasure you got out of watching them fight." Mikasa said coolly.
"What can I say? I enjoy drama." Eren shrugged.
"Drama you caused." Mikasa muttered.
"Again, I didn't know Bert was going to blow up like that."
"I don't think any of us did." Armin chimed in. "He was really upset."
They pulled into the Jaegers' driveway. "Eren, do you like this Annie girl?" Mrs. Jaeger asked as she shut the car off. "Like, maybe deep down and that's why you wanted to dance with her?"
"Ew, Mom. That's gross."
"It's not gross. It's perfectly natural. Like Armin and-"
"We should go inside!" Mikasa cut her off quickly. "Dad's probably wondering what we're doing." She climbed out of the car.
"Mikasa!" Mrs. Jaeger called after her.
"Anyway, Mom, I didn't mean liking a girl is gross. Discussing it with my mother is gross." Eren said matter-of-factly as he got out of the car.
Armin and Mrs. Jaeger sat quietly for several moments. "Armin," Mrs. Jaeger finally spoke up. "I hope your future children treat you better than mine treat me."
"They'll grow out of it." Armin shifted forward and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "I'm grateful for your mothering."
"Oh, darling." She said softly. She looked like she might cry.
"Here's your camera back." He pulled it out of his pocket and handed it to her. "I apologize if some of the pictures are…odd."
"Thank you!" She smiled at him. "Did you have a nice time?"
"I did. Mikasa and I had our first real dance."
"That's wonderful, sweetheart. I'm glad you had fun." She finally undid her seatbelt and got out of the car. Armin followed. "Let's head in for a snack."
They were greeted by Eren and Mikasa bickering when they entered the house. "Don't do that, you idiot!" Mikasa exclaimed.
"Children! It is 10pm. You need to lower your voices!" Mrs. Jaeger called up the stairs.
"I'd better get up there." Armin sighed. He quickly stripped off his coat and shoes before dashing up the stairs.
"I said, don't call her." He watched Mikasa snatch Eren's phone from his hand.
"Give it back!" Eren demanded.
"Call who?" Armin asked.
"Mikasa, give it back." Eren lunged at her, but she side stepped around him.
"Call who?" Armin exclaimed, stepping in between them.
"Annie." Mikasa replied. "He wants to call Annie."
"Why?" Armin looked at Eren. "Why do you-" He stared into Eren's face. "Do you like her?"
"What?"
"You heard me. Do you like Annie?" Armin crossed his arms.
"No!"
"Then, why do you want to call her?"
"I just want to make sure she got home okay."
Armin narrowed his eyes. "You don't even do that with me. You DO like her!"
"Look, can we not talk about this in the hallway?" he ushered them into his room. "I don't need everyone to hear."
"And by everyone, you mean Mom, right?" Mikasa crossed her arms.
"Shut up. Whatever." Eren huffed as he closed the door.
"Answer the question."
"I don't know if I like her!" He threw his hands in the air. "Okay? I don't know! I don't know what it…" his voice grew quiet as he let his guard down. "I don't know what it feels like." He hung his head.
"You'll know it when you feel it." Mikasa responded.
"Everyone says that, but I don't! I just feel confused and that makes me feel irritated!" Eren's head shot back up.
"Do you feel happy when you think of her?" Armin asked.
"I don't-I don't know. All I know is that she smelled nice and I didn't mind it when she stood that close to me."
Armin and Mikasa locked eyes. This was shocking information. "I think that's the best love confession we'll get out of Eren, don't you think, Armin?"
"Oh, shut up. I'm not in love with her." Eren snapped.
"No. Not yet, anyway." Mikasa shrugged. "I'm going to go change." She walked out of Eren's room.
"Give me my phone back!" Eren chased after her, and Armin followed behind.
"Not until you promise not to call her."
"What does it matter to you?"
"Because no brother of mine is going to come off as desperate to that she-devil!" Mikasa spun around to face him. She was standing in the doorway of her room.
"She-devil?" Eren sounded offended.
"Or maybe I should have used the word harlot." Mikasa spit out venomously.
"How could you say that?"
"It's just one guy after the next with her. I won't let her chew you up and spit you out too."
"What are you talking about? It sounds like you're just jealous that multiple guys like her."
"One, you know damn well I could score way more men than Annie Leonhardt." Mikasa scoffed. "And two, it was only a couple of months ago that she was sucking face with Armin!"
The world seemed to come to a screeching halt. Eren's jaw dropped open as he spun around to look at Armin. "Is that true?"
"We were not sucking face. It was one kiss that SHE initiated and I broke off immediately. She asked me out and I said NO!" Armin explained.
Eren looked hurt. "So, you did kiss her. And you lied to me about it." He pushed past Armin .
"Eren, wait-"
"I can't believe you." Eren walked into his bedroom and closed the door.
Armin looked at Mikasa. He had never felt betrayed by her before, and all to win some petty argument. It hurt. A lot. "Armin-" She started.
"I keep your secrets." He said brusquely before turning on his heel and walking back into Eren's room.
"Go away." Eren said as soon as he opened the door.
"Would you let me explain myself?" Armin asked, shutting the door behind him.
"What is there to explain? That you lied to me?" Eren was sulking on his bed.
"I didn't lie to you. I just…chose not to tell you."
"But WHY?" Eren sat up. "I thought we were best friends."
"We ARE best friends." Armin sat down next to him. "But you're always so critical of the idea of me dating, that I just…I didn't know how to explain it to you in a way that wouldn't end up with my feelings hurt, so I just…decided not to explain it at all."
"You thought I would hurt your feelings?" Eren asked softly.
"Because you HAVE hurt my feelings. You always act so scandalized at the thought of me dating that it makes me feel like a leper or something. Like I'm unlovable. The unlovable orphan." Armin looked down at his lap.
"Armin, I-I never meant for it to come across that way. I guess I just never pictured you dating, or any of us really. Because that would change the way things between us. And I didn't want things to change."
"But things have already changed. It's not a bad thing. Things are supposed to change. We can't be the same as we were when we were 10."
"I guess." Eren sighed. "I think that's why I'm so confused about Annie. Because maybe I do like her…but she would change the dynamic." He paused for a moment. "I'm sorry I hurt your feelings…and made you feel like you couldn't talk to me."
"I accept your apology." They sat quietly for a couple minutes before Eren spoke up.
"Soooo, was the Annie kiss before or after you started dating Mikasa?"
Armin probably gave himself whiplash from how fast he looked at Eren. "What?"
Eren laughed. "Your eyes look like they're going to pop out of your head!"
"You know?"
"Of course I know. You're not subtle, Armin. At least not to me."
"How long have you known?"
"I've had my suspicions for awhile now, but seeing you two at the dance tonight really confirmed it."
Armin shook his head. "I can't believe you already know. I just can't believe it. She's had me sneaking around, walking on egg shells for months, and you already know!"
Eren laughed. "You can't keep secrets from me, Armin."
"I've wanted to tell you so badly, I felt like I could burst at times."
"I've had an idea."
"What kind of idea?"
"I want to play a fun little game."
Armin became suspicious. "What kind of game?" He asked hesitantly.
"Don't tell her."
"Don't tell her what?" Armin didn't like where this was going.
"That I know."
Armin raised his eyebrows. "You want me to lie to my girlfriend? My girlfriend that is MIKASA?"
"No, not lie. Just keep a secret."
"This is a terrible idea."
"No, it's a great idea. She wants to keep secrets from me. Fine. Let's keep her paranoia going."
Armin shook his head. "This can only end in disaster."
"A beautiful disaster." Eren grinned.
Armin let out a huff. "Fine, whatever. I won't tell her. But I'm letting you take all the blame when this comes out."
"Attaboy!" Eren leapt to his feet. "Now, I'm getting out of this stupid outfit!" he yanked off his tie. He had just started unbuttoning his shirt when there was a knock at the door.
"Eren? Can I come in?" Mikasa called.
"No!" Eren yelled back.
"I just want to give you your stupid phone back!" She started to open the door.
"Get out of here! We're naked! Armin doesn't want you to see his slight, pale, virgin frame! No woman has ever seen it!"
"Shut up!" Armin chucked a pillow, which bounced off Eren's head. "I'm still dressed."
Mikasa walked inside. "What is wrong with you?" She stared at Eren, who was in the process of throwing the pillow back at Armin. Armin caught it in his hands.
"What?" Eren asked, taking off his shirt and beginning to undo his belt.
"You're just going to take off your pants right in front of me?" She raised an eyebrow.
"Look, you came into my room after I told you not to. You brought this on yourself." He pulled his belt off. "Besides, I have boxers on." He dropped his trousers to reveal said boxers. "It's not like I was going to be showing Armin my dick."
"I don't know what you two do in your free time." Mikasa turned to look at Armin while Eren pulled on his sweatpants.
"Well, we don't wave our dicks around." Armin said flatly.
"Apparently, Reiner and Bertolt do." Eren grinned.
"We don't know that Annie didn't make that up just to hurt Bert." Mikasa scolded.
Armin raised an eyebrow. "Did you see how they were after she said it?"
"They're absolutely fucking." Eren pulled on a t-shirt. "Now give me my phone back."
"Once you agree not to call Annie."
"Seriously?"
"How about we agree on a nice text message?" Armin suggested. He noticed Mikasa was already in her pajamas.
"Fine." Mikasa handed Eren the phone back.
"Thank you." Eren huffed, shoving it in his pocket.
Mikasa looked at Armin. "Are you going to sleep in that?"
"No, I'm going to go change in the bathroom like a normal person." He stood up and grabbed the overnight bag he had stashed earlier.
"Well, I'll leave you to it, then." She walked out of the room as quickly as she had entered, shutting the door behind her.
"So, you never answered my question." Eren looked at Armin.
"What question?" Armin sighed.
"Was the Annie kiss before or after you two started making out? Because I'm thinking maybe that's why she doesn't like Annie."
"She's never liked Annie."
"Yeah, but she's only been hostile since the two of you started making eyes at each other. That's it, isn't it? She doesn't like another woman making moves on her man. She's jealous."
Armin sighed again. "It was after. Mikasa saw it."
"I knew it!" Eren exclaimed. "That had to be awkward for you."
"Especially since we had to go back to the house and pretend like nothing had happened in front of you." Armin answered.
Eren was quiet for a moment. "So, is she a good kisser? Annie I mean. I'm just asking for a reference-"
"Shut up, Eren." Armin walked out of the room towards the bathroom. It had been a long day.
