Armin got his feet off from the lower bunk bed and yawned loudly. The smell of freshly fried hash browns entered the room, and he smirked under his nose. Got to bless Sasha's untamed love for potatoes for getting this rare, greasy treat from time to time. If not that, they would have been doomed to eat the healthy—smoothie, protein, whole grain granola bars, chia oatmeal laden—surfer breakfast Levi was so mad about, all over again.
The dawn hadn't fully broken through the night yet, and it was still murky outside. Waking up two hours early for the dawn patrol surf sesh on the schooldays was a real pain in the ass, and Armin wholeheartedly hated it sometimes. He had to admit, though, the meticulous routine Levi'd made them follow was paying off, and he felt the boost of confidence almost every day.
Connie was already out of the room and Jean, with a gloomy expression on his face, was tying his shoelaces on the opposite bunk bed. They exchanged a silent look, and Jean pointed his chin towards the upper bed, where Eren still tugged tightly in his sheets, faced the wall, and Armin couldn't really tell if he was faking it, or was he still fast asleep. Eren was not allowed to surf, so he could theoretically sleep in, but Armin sincerely doubted Levi would let that slide.
"Eren, wake up."
He rested his palm on Eren's well-outlined hip, squeezed it gently, and pulled the sheets down a little, but met firm resistance.
"Hands to yourself, you perv," Eren muttered, "Don't you know any better than to touch a guy 'there' first thing in the morning?" He turned onto his stomach and buried his face in his pillows.
Both Armin and Jean sniggered.
"Morning wood, Eren? Or wet dreams again?" Jean said, with one foot already out of the bedroom, laughing loudly.
"Fuck off, Jean!" Eren yelled after him.
"Ignore him, he is an ass," said Armin, "he wakes up with morning wood every time. Do you… do you need help with that?"
Armin realized what he'd just said, and his cheeks burned out with embarrassment.
"Sorry, I meant…. I didn't mean… just, I meant—"
"I know what you meant," said Eren, giggling, "but tell me, how do you know about Jean?"
Armin's ears burned now with the same insistent flame as his cheeks.
"I… I don't—"
"Relax, dude, I am just teasing you." Eren turned his face towards Armin and snorted. "But you look really cute, all flustered like this." He winked.
"Thanks, I guess." Armin was still embarrassed by the situation, yet a warm feeling flooded his chest when Eren'd said those words. "I am going to get breakfast. Are you joining us?"
"I will, just a second, I need… you can distract Levi and Historia for me."
They both exchanged a knowing look, and a shy but happy smile made its way to Armin's lips.
"So the dude texted you and he is asking about the surfing lesson this afternoon," Levi said to Jean when Eren walked into the kitchen.
Everyone was already there. A mixed scent of hash browns, freshly brewed tea, and coffee hung in the air. Historia, Connie, and Sasha were still at the counter seasoning the porridge and slicing tomatoes and avocados to side with the hash browns.
"Yeah, he wants to continue. Is it ok if I give that lesson?" Jean asked and took a quick sip of his orange juice, his gaze fixed on Levi.
"That's fine. We can do what we talked about yesterday after his class if you feel like it. Your punishment is over, Jean. Yours too." Levi looked at Eren. "It's enough of the punishment that you can't surf, though you could still use your spare time and repair some dings on the boards."
"Thanks, Levi. And I will," Eren said, shooting him a grateful glance. He slid into a place next to Armin and reached for a crispy, golden hash brown, taking a quick bite before Levi scolded him.
"Hey, wait for everybody to sit at the table. And use the plate and the silverware."
"I would die for some bacon with these hash browns," Eren said under his nose, but Historia taking her own place overheard him.
"Sorry, Eren. Beginning of the next month. Promise."
"Eat the veggies instead," Levi hissed from his side of the table.
Jean leaned over to get some of the hash browns and whispered with a sneer, but everybody at the table could hear him loud and clear.
"So, how are your sheets doing after last night?"
A flush of embarrassment and anger crept over Eren's face. He opened his mouth, but Armin rested his palm on his knee, and it felt kind of warm and soothing at the same time.
"Cut it off, Jean," Levi said, walking past them to get another cup of tea. He leaned closer to Eren.
"You know that's totally normal and fine, right?" he said lowering his voice; a message meant for Eren's ears only.
Eren nodded. All he could think about anyway was Armin's burning touch on his thigh.
Levi's Explorer pulled over in front of a small house at the Old Montauk Highway. He'd dropped kids at school at East Hampton High and on his way back he'd texted Petra. One thing led to another, and here he was on the porch of her house, waiting for her to let him in.
"Your father, he's not home?" he asked, when she opened the door, freshly out of the shower, her skin still shining and moist, and her hair wet.
"I told you, he's outta town."
"Good," he said and reached for the satin strap of her bathrobe, untying it with a swift movement.
"Levi, wait," she said, suddenly out of breath.
"Wait for what? You will be late for your shift," he said and tugged her closer to him. His hand brushed damp strands to her nape before burying his face in her neck. The fresh scent of jasmine body lotion overwhelmed him.
"You smell so nice…" he muttered against her skin and nuzzled her. His kisses traveled down her neckline, and he nibbled her collarbone. "And you taste so good…"
He licked a trail down her chest to the beginning of the cleft between her breasts. Her breathing sped up.
"Come on…"
(...) at this point you probably know what to do to get the whole scene- look me up with the same handle on ao3
"You are going to be late for work," he said already on the other side of the threshold.
"This is going to be a long, boring day," Ymir said, squeezing a soaked sponge over the leather saddle that she held on her lap. The lather splashed all over it. "And Petra is late, as usual, slacking on her job."
"Oh, come on, don't be grumpy," Historia sent her a sweet smile over her shoulder. They were sitting in front of the entrance to the stables, working through the chores of the monthly thorough tack cleaning. She sprayed the liquid soap over the back skirt of the saddle in front of her and rubbed it with a cotton rag. "We can just enjoy the quiet, basking in the sun, and talk."
Ymir snorted.
"All right my sweet Krista, let's talk." She squinted her eyes and watched Historia work for a moment. "Tell me, how are the things going with that handsome stranger?"
"He is not a stranger, his name is Erwin." A flicker of a grin warmed Historia's face, and she sighed. "And he is everything you could have wanted. Perfect gentleman, protective and romantic."
"Ah, so your date went well then."
"Very well. Simple things, excellent food, nice wine, and a walk under the moonlight," Historia said. She skipped her encounter with Kenny; Ymir didn't need to know about that, especially that she couldn't really have done anything. "And a romantic goodnight kiss."
"Romantic goodnight kiss, you say…" Ymir said with an all-knowing sneer in her voice, "you sure it was only a kiss?"
"Yes, why would you say that? I told you he is a gentleman," Historia said, irritated. What was Ymir fussing all about? She loved her best friend's ironic swagger, but she definitely didn't like to be on the receiving end of it.
"That it must have been one hell of the kiss, judging by these bite-marks on your neck," said Ymir and Historia's cheeks immediately flushed with unpleasant warmth, "unless… you don't say… that short dick again. I swear, Krista, I don't understand you sometimes. Oh, and I would cover that now," Ymir said, pointing her chin towards Petra, who was approaching them in a hurry.
Historia didn't respond to that but tried to tug up the collar of her work shirt. It didn't work, though, and Ymir shook her head in disapproval. It was too late anyway. Petra caught up to them, her cheeks all flushed from the running and her breathing shallow, and sped up.
"I am sorry, I got caught up in something," Petra shot them apologizing look, yet she couldn't stop the smile blossoming on her lips.
She grabbed her own tack to clean and settled next to them. There was something different about her, too. She was smirking under her nose, and it was a rare sight—Petra had either been sad or angry for over a month now.
"You are in a good mood," said Ymir, "what's the occasion?"
"I am," Petra said nodding, unable to fight another grin crawling upon her lips. "We made up."
"Wait, we? You don't mean…?," Ymir sneered and shook her head. "I swear, I need to screw that small dickhead myself one day. Maybe I will finally understand what the fuss is all about. Petra, have you lost your mind? There's no making up, he just wants sex. He doesn't care, he is fucking Nifa at the same time. Why, for fuck's sake, don't you date one of the other guys? Olou is crazy about you."
Petra listened to Ymir, and her cheerful expression slowly faded. Historia watched her through her eyelashes, thankful that Ymir'd left her out of the conversation this time. Not that she cared about it, but she didn't need a confrontation. At least not yet; she kind of pitied both Petra and Nifa. She and Levi had been tight friends since they'd been kids. They had known each other almost their entire lives. Levi had always been like that—oversexed, like most of the surfers; sex was nothing more than all fun and games for him and he'd never really dated anybody, not to mention any more serious relationship. It was not a secret, and she got protectively annoyed when women like Petra tried to turn Levi into someone he was not. Historia ran her thumb over her trimmed short, French manicured fingernails. She was considering showing her claws. They might have already outgrown their time as local beach girls, but she still held some unquestioned rule as a surf legend.
Her palm absentmindedly tugged on her collar again, and she caught a bemused, nothing-escaping-my-attention look Ymir gave her.
