A/N: I've already answered the review, but in case anyone else was wondering:
Yes, Rivaille is Levi's real name. However, it is a very intimate way of referring to him and he prefers not to let most people call him that. Also, this chapter will focus mostly on side couples, but will still have Ereri in it. Needless to say, it will be pretty long. I think I may also change the description to say that it has side couples. I swear, I wasn't going to do this at first. But now I am. Ha!
I also apologize if I'm offending anyone. It's perfectly fine to be Christian! Perfectly great! (Just don't, y'know, try to condemn homosexual people for who they are.)
Armin sneezed into the crook of his elbow. He sniffled, wishing he had brought more tissues with him. He had caught a cold, and the cold weather wasn't helping. The only reason he had even went outside on a Saturday was because Jean wanted to see him.
Did you hear that? Jean wanted to see Armin! It was normally the other way around, with Armin feeling depressed and in need of some company other than Mikasa and Eren. He had actually told them about Jean on Friday.
"He'll just break your heart again." Mikasa had said, shaking her head disapprovingly.
"Go for it, Armin. If he hurts you, I'll punch him right in the face." Eren had said. He had made a slightly manly pose to prove it.
Armin smiled at the thought. Then, he glanced around nervously, just in case someone had seen him smiling. There was no one around. Armin sneezed again.
He leaned back. He was standing in front of a nice cafe, not the cosplay cafe he worked at. He suddenly remembered that Jean had worked today. Why did he want to meet him at a different cafe if he could stay at the cosplay cafe and not have to move? Armin glanced at his watch. Jean's shift should have been over. He would be on his way here.
Armin wondered if he should go inside. The cold weather was not doing his health any favors, and it was probably warmer inside. As he was thinking, he felt a hand on his shoulder.
"How long have you been out here?" asked Jean. He was wearing a hoodie and some loose jeans (ha ha) but he still looked good. Armin smiled.
"Not long." he said. Jean nodded and lead Armin into the cafe. Once they had been seated, an awkward silence settled on them. Armin fidgeted nervously. He coughed a few times into the crook of his elbow and grabbed a napkin to blow his nose into. His head was pounding, and he was so tired. He hadn't slept much these past few days.
"Have a cold?" asked Jean, raising one eyebrow. Armin remembered the "horse-face" comment Eren always said and looked at Jean. Strangely, Jean did look like a horse. A sexy one.
Jean cleared his throat. Armin blushed and nodded. "It's not bad."
"Sounds pretty bad." Jean frowned, leaning over the table to feel Armin's forehead. Armin felt more heat rush to his face. Jean's hand twitched and he pulled it back.
"Look, about Annie-" he began. He was cut off by the waiter.
"Hello!" he smiled. "I'm Legout, and I'll be your server today!" he did a double take when he saw Armin. They stared blankly at each other for some time. Armin and Legout had never heard of the other, and were both shocked to see that they had a doppelganger.
"Hey, you look like me!" Legout whistled. "I could cause all kinds of shenanigans if I wanted to." He had said it lowly, but Armin and Jean still heard. Legout took their orders and left, still thinking about all of the pranks he could pull.
Armin's head was swimming. He blinked a few times. It wasn't because of Legout. He had already been feeling woozy before he came here. He realized that this was a bad idea, coming out here to see Jean in such bad weather.
"I need to use the bathroom." Armin said, getting up. He walked into the bathroom and shut the door. He leaned against it, shutting his eyes tightly. Had Jean been saying something? He hadn't heard.
In fact, Jean had been saying something.
"I think I want to get back-" Jean had blurted out before Armin jumped up and practically ran to the bathroom. Did he not want to get back together? Sighing in frustration, Jean leaned back in his chair.
He had denied his feelings for Armin for such a long time. Even while they were dating, he had denied it, saying that he was just messing with the cute blonde. But that was the thing. He added "cute" whenever he said it. And Mikasa hadn't seemed to appealing to him anymore. At first, she was so powerful, so fiery and brilliant that Jean couldn't help but fall for her. But as he got to know Armin, Mikasa had seemed less and less interesting. And now Jean wanted to get back with Armin. For good.
But what was taking him so long? It didn't take ten minutes to take a dump. Jean knocked on the door. No answer. Jean began to panic, twisting the handle. Thank god Armin hadn't locked it. He threw the door open and gasped.
Christa smiled as she leaned into Ymir. They were watching a cheesy romance, and Christa had the feeling she would cry. Ymir had anticipated that, and brought tissues. Christa smiled gratefully up at Ymir, who leaned down and kissed her before the movie began.
A girl with long blonde hair began to sing on screen. (A/N: They're watching Tangled.) Christa's phone buzzed and she looked at it, earning a slightly annoyed look from Ymir. The blonde smiled apologetically as she looked at the text.
Your dad is back. Be careful.
A text from her mom. Christa's eyes widened and her throat seemed to close, but she put the phone away and pretended as if it were nothing. She ignored the throbbing on her back the mention of her father had summoned.
She didn't need Ymir worrying about her.
Eren barely payed attention to the conversation Mikasa and Carla were having, putting in a few "Mm-hm"s and "Yeah"s every once in a while. He noticed Mikasa looking at him with a stern expression. He almost shrank from her gaze, but didn't. He was just too excited. He flashed her a dazzling smile instead.
After dinner finally ended, Eren made a beeline for the door. Mikasa grabbed him arm.
"Are you going to see Levi-not-Rivialle?" she asked seriously. Eren sighed.
"Yes." he said. "Please don't tell Mom."
After a few long moments, Mikasa sighed and let Eren's arm go. "Fine." she said. "But don't let him do anything weird."
Eren grinned and nodded enthusiastically, running out the door and forcing himself to slow to a walk as he neared the park. It was only 7:42. What was he going to do until Levi showed up? He really couldn't do much of anything. He sat down on the bench he had previously seen Levi on and waited, watching the ducks in front of him.
His eyes began to droop, and Eren forced himself to stay awake. He slapped himself a few times. Still, he ended up letting his head fall and going into a deep sleep.
Levi arrived at the park a few minutes later, a bit too early. But hell, what was he going to do until eight? He started walking toward the bench and was surprised to find the brunette already there.
Why is he sleeping in a place like that? Levi asked himself. Eren looked peaceful, so much so that Levi didn't want to wake him up. He sighed, taking off his jacked and laying it on the sleeping teen.
He looks kind of... Levi hesitated. He didn't want to finish the sentence. He didn't want to. No.
Cute. God dammit.
Levi let himself ruffle the boy's hair. He couldn't feel it through his gloves, but he knew it was soft. He stopped cold when he saw the teen's eyelids open a fraction, then widen.
"L-Levi?"