The next day, Monday, was pretty uneventful. You woke up, got dressed, and went to class with Sasha.

If there was one thing that strayed from the norm this time was the lack of members at the usual table during lunch. You weren't sure if it was because he didn't want to be anywhere near you considering how you ruined his last meal or if Sasha made it clear she didn't want him around her anymore.

Every time Connie brought him up at the cafeteria, she would roll her eyes or change the subject. "Anyways." She would snap. You wondered how long she was gonna to stay mad at him. Not that you even minded, it was honestly beneficial to you.

After school, you worked your shift with Sasha and then you went home and finally got a chance to talk to Hitch. You filled her in on everything that had been going on, obviously minus the Eren parts.

She praised the shit out of you for putting Jean in his place. "GIRL BOSS Y/N, GIRL BOSS Y/N!" She cheered as she marched around the living room in circles. "Is this your villain arc? Because I'm absolutely living for it." She grinned.

Once the two of you finished updating eachother about what had been going on in each other's lives, the two of you went to bed as usual.

The next day was Tuesday. You had the day off and you had completely forgotten that you had plans to go eat with Pieck today. Not willingly, of course. If Eren hadn't grabbed your phone and replied to her text saying you would go, you would've completely ignored the text.

Now you felt you had to go. Well, you didn't have to. You could honestly just ditch or leave her hanging. Or if you felt nice, just text her and say you're sick or something.

But for some reason, you were a just a tiny bit curious about what she wanted. Pieck never, ever asked you to hang out ever since the two of you became family. For good reason, of course, considering you were always unnecessarily mean to her.

The two of you had agreed to meet at Olive Garden, her favorite restaurant. Since there's no Olive Garden in Paradis, you have to go all the way to Marley.

You both decided to meet up there at 1pm so you could come back on time for class at 4pm. The time was currently 11:47am so you decide to start getting dressed.

As much as you didn't give two shits about looking good in front of your sister, you were going to your hometown where there was always a huge chance of bumping into someone you knew so its better safe than sorry.

Once you're done, you get in your car and start making your way there. The hour drive worries you a little considering your car has been making weird noises lately and you pray your car doesn't break down on the way there. Or maybe it should so you can use that as an excuse to avoid meeting her.

Finally, you make it to Olive Garden and sadly, your car did not break down so now you're parked in the parking lot debating if you should even get off right now.

Your anxiety was beating the shit out of you. You weren't scared of Pieck, you never have been. She may be older but that never intimidated you. What was causing your anxiety to trigger was the fact that you knew she was asking you to hang out for a reason and you had absolutely no idea what it could possibly be.

Did she just want to find out some dirt to gossip back home? Or was she actually worried about you like she claimed she was at the fair? None of it made sense.

You're biting on your thumbnail in deep concentration when your phone vibrates.

Pieck.
Pieck: here, you close?

Were you really doing this? You felt like you were walking into a trap that you already knew was set. What's the worst that could happen though? She asks too many questions? If anything, you can always get up and leave.

There was only one way to find out what she wanted and it was to just get your ass in there. If you leave now, it'll eat at you and you'll be up all night wondering what she wanted.

y/n: just got here. heading inside

You take a deep breath and prepare yourself. Every time you had a conversation with Pieck, it never failed she said something to irritate or annoy you.

She wasn't necessarily a rude person. She was honestly very sweet to everyone and sometimes even funny.

But she was a kiss ass with adults and always claimed she knows best. She was one of the girls who was annoying perfect at everything. Everyone seemed to love her too.

You walk inside and see the dark haired beauty sitting in the waiting area. "Hi." She smiles when she sees you. You immediately felt a sense of discomfort. "Hey." You reply, your voice monotone.

She stands up and sticks two long fingers in the air as she approaches the hostess stand. She then turns to you. "Thanks for coming."

You say nothing and follow behind her and the hostess as she takes you to your table. You take a seat across from her.

"Give me the best red wine you have, please." She smiles sweetly at the waiter when he greets the two of you. "Got it. And for you, ma'am?"

"I'll have the peach-raspberry tea." You respond. The waiter nods and walks away. Pieck pouts. "You're not gonna have a drink with me?"

You cross your arms. "No, I want to be sober when you ask me whatever it is you asked me here for." She chuckles and shakes her head. "Do I really need an excuse to hang out with my baby sister?"

"Cut the crap." You snap. You clear your throat when you see the couple beside you turn their heads and make weird faces.

Pieck laughs. "Look, I know we never really got along much but I think it's time for us to change that." She says running a hand through her hair.

"Why? Why now? I don't even live here anymore." You say. You hated how she had this sweet, innocent facade. You saw through it a long time ago. She had excellent people skills, she knew how to get any person to automatically like her. She was like a chameleon and could talk about anything with anyone.

There was one time where the two of you were arguing at the important event your parents had and she was being a complete bitch to you and then turned around and shook hands and smiled with people like nothing had happened.

You knew better. She may be amazing at winning people over but not you.

"It's never too late." She speaks. You lean forward and narrow your eyes at her. "What do you want, Pieck? I know you."

"Why do you think I want something? Why do you always assume I have some ulterior motive to everything?" She asks, brows furrowed. "Because you do!" You shout.

The waiter comes back and hands the two of you your drinks. Pieck smiles and thanks him. Then he leaves you both to look at the menu.

She sighs and holds the booklet open. "You never grew out of your childish little games." You dig your nails into your thigh. That was another thing you hated about her. She always belittled you and made you feel small and stupid. Never failed to remind she was older than you too.

"Why do you think I think this way, huh? You think I don't know how you are? You may have the entire world thinking you're this perfect angel but I know you." You respond.

Her dark eyes flick up from the menu to meet yours. "What have I ever even done to you?" You wanted to explode. You wanted to scream and cry. You wanted to hit her. AGAIN.

"You're joking, right? You always treated me like I was pathetic compared to you. Like you were too good for me. Always making me feel insignificant and stupid. You always talked down on me. Like I was just some kid who was in your way." You let out.

She sets her menu down and blinks slowly at you. Like a mother waiting for her child to stop a tantrum. You hated her. You hated her so damn much.

"Look. I'm sorry I made you feel that way. I never meant to but-" She starts. "Never meant to my ass." You hiss. Her mouth forms a straight line. "Can I finish?"

You dig you nails deeper into your thigh. It was taking everything out of you not to flip the fucking table.

"I'm sorry, okay? I know I must've made you feel like shit. But I'm the older sibling, I had to be more mature and responsible. I had to set a good example. I had to be a good role model for you. You were a mess and our parents were always depending on me to help you out and try to get you to act more like me so I would always try to make you feel stupid for the things you did. I wanted you to learn and be better." She explains.

"I'm not you though! I'm-" You start but she's the one who interrupts you now. She raises her hand up to stop you. "I know that y/n. But at the time I didn't. I was just following their orders. It was a hard time for you. Your mom cheated on your dad with mine and he killed himself for it. Then you had to come live with us. I know it must've been horrible for you. You acted out and did stupid shit and instead of being there for you, I made you feel even worse by judging you. I should've been there for you. I should've helped you. You needed someone and had nobody."

You release your nails from your skin and stare at her in silence. "You're only saying what I want to hear like you always do with people."

Pieck looks at you with sad eyes. "Is that what you want to hear? That I'm sorry? I'm saying it because I mean it. I'm older now and I realized a lot. When I saw you at the fair, you looked mature and healthy. Then I saw you with that...boy and I immediately started judging you without even knowing the full story. I realized that's what I've been doing all this time."

You say nothing. There was a knot in your throat prohibiting you from saying anything at all. You wanted to believe she was lying but she sounded too sincere. Her tone, her expression, her eyes. She's never looked at you like this. She's always looked at you like you were disgusting.

"I kept trying to be role model when I should've just been your sister." She sighs. "I'm sorry it took me so long to realize that."

She smiles gently at you and takes a sip of her wine. "But, you can't really blame me for not wanting to be around you, you know?"

"The hell is that supposed to mean?" You snap. She chuckles. "You hated me before you even met me. Before I even got a chance to say a word to you. I was the daughter of the man who caused your dads death and you hated me for it. Even though it wasn't my fault. You never even gave me a chance. You were cold and distant since the moment we met."

You stay quiet because it's true. She's right. As fucking always.

"My dad cheated on my mom with yours too. Did you know that?" She looks out the window. Your heart skips a beat. You actually didn't know that.

"No." You reply. She smiles a sad smile, still facing the window. "She was so hurt about it. She absolutely hated him for it. And since I look like my dad, she couldn't stand the sight of me. So she stopped coming around and just left me with my dad."

You felt disappointed in yourself. How did you not know any of that? How did you not know your situations were so damn similar? Minus the whole dead dad part obviously. But pretty damn close. She was right. You never even gave her the chance to even say her side of the story.

"I was so mad at my dad for it. Mad he ruined his marriage. Ruined our family. Mad he made my mom become disgusted with me. But he said he was in love with your mom and that one day when I was older, I'd understand." She keeps her eyes on a single floating cloud in the baby blue sky. "I didn't understand at the time but I wanted him to be happy. Even if it was achieved in such a shit way."

She turns to look at you. "I also was so happy to finally have a sister. I was an only child all my life and always wanted one. Not to mention we both had similarities. I was so excited to meet you and you instantly just didn't acknowledge me. You treated me like I was some monster."

"I'm sorry." You say. You look down at your feet. "I can't blame you for not being there for me when I didn't even let you near me. I know I'm not the easiest to deal with sometimes."

She laughs. "Sometimes?" You gasp and kick her under the table. "Shut up!"

The waiter comes back with breadsticks and asks if you're ready to order in which you both respond yes.

After the two of you order, the conversation continues. Pieck sets an elbow on the table and her hand rests on her cheek. "I'm glad you're doing better now. You look better at least."

You shrug. "I am better. I may not be 100% perfect, I still have my moments but I'm trying. I don't rely on drugs or alcohol anymore. I don't party every night. I don't do bad, reckless things. A lot has changed."

"I guess it helps you're not surrounded by all that anymore, huh? No offense but the people you hung out with.." She admits. You laugh. "Yeah. That's a huge part of it. I got rid of a lot of toxic people."

"That's good." She takes a sip of the dark red liquid in her glass. "You have new friends now? Better ones I hope."

You pause for a moment. They definitely weren't innocent but compared to your old friends, they made these look like saints. "I guess you can say that."

"And that boy... the other Jaeger." She plucks a breadstick from the little basket in the middle of the table. "Eren, right?"

You feel yourself tense up. You had a feeling she had a lot of negative things about him to say considering she had tons to say when she saw him at the fair and you felt yourself grow defensive of him.

Why was that? Why were you so ready to snap at anyone who dissed him? Even when you know what they're saying is probably true. I mean the kid's got a reputation.

"Yes. What about him?" You say, your tone growing serious. She looks your face up and down and smirks, her mouth full of bread. "Whoa. Relax, no need to get protective."

She swallows her food and continues. "I'm guessing the two of you are very close based off that reaction."

You get flustered. "I guess. He's my friend and I don't like when people talk bad about my friends so watch what you say."

She grins. "Just a friend? Hmm, I don't know. That's not what I heard."

Your head shoots up. "What are you talking about? Who said that?"

Your heart was beating crazy fast. Where the hell is she hearing stuff like that from? Especially all the way out in Marley? Especially when you're being so careful?

She giggles and grabs another piece of bread. "I'm close to his brother." Your armpits get sweaty. What does that even mean? Did Eren say something to Zeke? And why is Zeke telling Pieck? And is he telling others too?

"Don't worry. He only told me because he knows we're related." Pieck clears up when she sees you grow frantic.

"What exactly did he say?" You twitch nervously in your seat. Your anxiety was back ten times harder. Pieck laughs and you scowl at her. "HELLO?"

"Okay! Jesus. Well, he asked me if you had a boyfriend and I automatically assumed he was just being a pervert like always and thought you were cute or something so I said yes just so he could back off." She explains but then shoves some more bread in her mouth and takes her time devouring it.

You bounce your leg impatiently. "Pieck! You know I hate that shit!" She waves her hands in the air dismissively. "Do you want me to choke on my food? Let me chew it properly!"

You roll your eyes and bounce your leg even faster. "Okay so after I said yes, he asked if it was Eren. I didn't know what to say because I had lied about you having one. I asked him why and he said because Eren has been acting weird." She finally goes on.

"Weird?" You ask. You shove a piece of bread in your mouth to try to calm your anxiousness down. She nods. "Yeah and I asked weird how and he said he wasn't being himself that every time Zeke would talk about girls with him, Eren would seem bored with the conversation. That even a group of cute girls passed them and that Zeke pointed at them and that Eren just looked irritated and uninterested."

"Huh. That's weird." You mumble, mouth full. You shove more food in your mouth. What the hell was wrong with you? Were you seriously stress eating? And for what?

"That's what I said. And I said what would that have to do anything with y/n and he responded saying that the last girl he saw Eren with was you so he assumed it was you because after that night he started acting like that." She pulls the basket further from you. "Don't eat so much bread. You're not gonna finish your food."

You yank the basket back. "What else did he say?" You pry further. She scratches her temple, trying to recall the conversation. "He said that there was one conversation where Eren had randomly asked Zeke if he and I were close and when Zeke said yes, Eren then asked if Zeke ever talked to you or saw you when you still lived over here." She lifts her glass and takes a another sip.

"And what did he say?" You rip off a piece of bread and throw it into your mouth. Pieck knits her brows together. "He said no obviously because he didn't. You and I aren't close so I never brought you around my friends. I would bring them over sometimes but you were never home. There was like one time you actually were but because you were sick so you didn't go out. That's probably the only time you would've seen them."

That's probably why he looked familiar that day at the fair. You probably have seen him in pictures with her as well. "Hm. That's weird that he asked him that."

"Yeah. He said it was out of nowhere too." She replies back. The waiter returns and sets your food down on the table.

"Weird considering you guys are 'just friends' right?" She smirks as she grabs her fork. You point yours at her. "We are just friends. You tell anyone anything other than that and I'll stab you with this."

She smiles and digs into her food. "So you don't have any feelings for him then?" You ignore her and pick at your lasagna. "I'm not gonna judge you. Starting now atleast. I know I did a lot back then."

You shove a small square of lasagna in your mouth and stare at her. Was it actually safe to tell her? I mean you guys barely made up today. Could you really trust her so quickly? Plus, what if she tells Zeke what you say.

"I care about him a lot. He's there for me when I need him. " You mumble. You felt so embarrassed saying it out loud. Even though you weren't straight up admitting any feelings, it still felt awkward. Especially to Pieck who you've never not once opened up to.

"So then he cares for you too?" She twists her fork into her shrimp pasta. You feel your face heat up and you shrink into your body. "I guess? I don't fucking know how he feels."

She looks up at you, eyebrow raised. "Why don't you ask him then?" She asks, filling up her mouth with the pasta.

"HUH? Ask him what? If he cares about me?!" You shout. She brings a finger to her lips. "Sh! Why not?"

"Because that's just weird! I can't just-I can't just ask him that." You stutter. She covers her mouth and snorts into it. "Oh my god. You like him."

"WHAT?!" You yell. She slaps your arm. "Y/n! We are literally at a restaurant, stop screaming!"

You slap hers back. "Stop saying such embarrassing things!" You whisper yell. She twists her fork into the noodles and then points it at you. "It's only embarrassing because it's true. You like him."

"I really don't but okay." You deny under your breath. You angrily shove more food in your mouth. She smiles big at you. "And stop fucking looking at me like that, psychopath." You add.

"Why is it such a bad thing to like him?" She asks. You give her a stupid look. "You're kidding right? Even you know about his reputation. He literally uses girls for what he wants and then tosses them to the side when he's bored. He did it to two- no, three girls that I know."

She shrugs. "Seems like he's different with you according to Zeke." You shake your head furiously. "The girl could be anyone. There's no proof it's me."

"Well how do you explain him asking Zeke questions about you and I?" She retorts. "I don't know! That's probably just a coincidence." You argue.

She snorts. "Yeah, okay. So you guys haven't done anything? No kissing? No sex?"

You squirm in your seat. "We kissed. But! Only because Anthony showed up at the fair and Eren pretended to be my boyfriend so he could leave me alone."

"Anthony?! Anthony Anthony? The one who cheated and beat you?" She yells in a whisper tone, leaning forward and eyes bursted open. You nod. "That'd be the one, yes."

"Holy shit. Damn. That probably didn't end well at all knowing him, did it?" She shivers. "Nope. He got pissed and tried to hit Eren but Eren beat the living shit out him." You snicker.

She looks shocked. "He did? Wow. Well, good. He deserves it." You cut more pieces of your lasagna. "Yup."

"You know. Guys don't just beat up girls exes." She points out. "That usually only happens when he has feelings for her."

You shake your head. "Guy friends do when they find out said ex just slapped the shit out of you." Her eyes shoot up again. "He hit you again?"

"Yup. Eren walked up to me right after it happened and he could quite literally see through hand print on my face. Then, one thing lead to another." You sigh and take a long sip of your tea.

Pieck stares you, a sad look in her eyes. "Well, I'm glad he was there to protect and defend you." She dabs her face with a napkin. "That was the only time you guys kissed?"

Your mind immediately goes back to the night you were on the rooftop with him and you almost kissed. There was actually a lot of times the two of you teased each other but that night was different. Way different.

"Yeah." You lie. You pick at your food to avoid making eye contact with her because she eyes you suspiciously. "I don't believe you but okay."

The two of you eat without saying anything more for a good five minutes when she clears her throat. "Speaking of boys... you were right when you said there was a reason I asked you here."

Your grip tightens around your fork. You fucking knew it.

"Calm down. It's not anything bad. I did actually want to make amends with you, that wasn't planned or a lie. But I did want to ask you something." She says taking something out her purse.

She pulls out a absolutely stunning diamond ring and slips it on her ring finger. She holds out her hand in front of you. Your mouth drops open. "Porco proposed?!"

She squeals and does a little dance in her seat. "Yes! Finally!" She stares at the ring in awe and then returns her attention back to you. "Anyways, I asked you here because I want you to go to the wedding. I wanted to ask you in person."

You smile. You were actually really happy for her. You had met Porco several times since they've dated for like ever and he came over to the house a lot. Even though you were a piece of shit, he was always very nice to you. You actually thought he was pretty cool. You never understood why he was with someone as annoying as Pieck but of course that only cause you hated her at time.

"Of course. Congratulations Pieck." You grab her hand and it feels odd because the two of you have never made any form of physical contact except that one year your mom forced you to take family pictures and your shoulders touched in the portrait.

She tears up and smiles. You can tell that she's so relieved you're happy for her. You feel so horrible that now you know she wanted to be close to you this entire time but you always pushed her away.

"Well actually..." She folds her napkin and uses the corner of it to soak up the water in her eyes. "I want to ask you something else. And you can totally say no. I know you're probably busy and stuff."

"What is it?" You ask. She bites her lip nervously. Was she really that scared of you? I mean you can't blame her.

"Pieck." You glare at her, frustrated. "Okay, okay. I was going to ask if you actually wanted to be one of my bridesmaids." She plays with her hair nervously.

"Wait. Really? You want me to be one? You don't have enough friends or something?" You question. She rolls her eyes. "Please. That's not the issue. I just think would be even more special if you were one. Plus, Porco really likes you. Surprisingly. He thinks you're funny."

You cross your arms and sit back in your seat. You found it a little odd she would want you to be one considering your rocky past together but it would explain why she wanted to fix things so badly.

"Okay, fine. But you better not put me in some ugly dress!" She jumps out of her seat and hugs you tightly. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

You awkwardly pat her back. "Okay, that's enough." You pull her away. She scurries back to her seat, a huge smile planted on her face.

"It's November 7th so save the date! Make sure you request off of work or whatever." She says, finishing up the last of her wine.

"Wait. If I'm a bridesmaid, that means I'm gonna be paired upwith some groomsman, right?" You wrinkle your nose. "Yeah. Most likely one of Porco's friends. Unless you wanna ask for someone specifically." She wiggles her shoulders. "Like Eren."

You throw your napkin at her. "Shut up. No way. Just don't pair me up with some loser."

She laughs. "Okay fine. But you are allowed a plus one. So if you want to invite him..." You glare at her and she finishes, "Or anyone! You can."

You sigh. "Maybe." She looks at you confused. "Wouldn't you have fun if he went with you? Since the two of you are so 'close?'" She makes air quotes around the word close.

"I don't think Eren is the type to dance. And I love dancing. He'd probably be bored." You admit. She shrugs. "I don't know, maybe he'll dance for you if you ask him to. You can show him how. And he won't be bored if he's with you."

You frown. "How do you know that?" She chuckles. "As much as I couldn't stand you back then, I can't deny that you're fun. You know how to make people laugh. You light up rooms. You're awkward and shy sometimes but it's amusing. It makes people drawn to you."

You blink at her. You never realized she saw you that way. "Don't you have fun with him when the two of you hang out?" She asks.

You sit back and think. Every time you did hang out with him it definitely wasn't boring. Actually, yeah, it was pretty fun. The two of you could talk about literally anything. You could say anything and he wouldn't judge you, he would just carry on the conversation.

He made you laugh a lot too. Even when he wasn't even trying to be funny. He knew how to cheer you up when you were sad. You could be in the most shit mood and being around him would instantly make it all go away.

You felt comfortable and yourself around him. You weren't sure if it's cause he quite literally beat the living shit out of someone for hurting you and also protected you from Jean but you felt safe with him. Like nothing bad could ever happen because he wouldn't let it.

He made you stronger too. He was so blunt and bold. He did crazy shit like skate down water slides and act like it was no big deal. He spoke his mind with no hesitation or fear. You admired him.

If you were the person who was supposedly changing him and making him a better person, then he was doing the same to you. He helped you realize you shouldn't try to hide who you were and to just be your most authentic self and who ever doesn't like it shouldn't be in your life in the first place.

To be honest, if you had to invite anyone to be your date to the wedding. It had to be him. Sure you could invite Hitch or Sasha, but it's a wedding full of people you haven't seen in forever because you ran away from them all. You would see your mom, your stepdad and so many other people you tried to avoid. It's a night that could potentially go wrong and the only person you would want by your side is him.

He knew everything that nobody else did. He knew your whole family drama. Hitch and Sasha knew bits and pieces, little summaries you fill them in on but Eren knew the full story. He even saw it up close and personal. He's the only person who would completely understand if something happened.

And if we are on the subject of being honest, he would make it fun. Hell, you could be hanging out in a fucking dumpster and he'd make it fun somehow. Yeah maybe he wouldn't wanna dance but Pieck is right, with a little convincing and maybe even some alcohol in his system, he'd give it a shot. Plus, it would be absolutely priceless to see him attempt to dance.

"You know... you haven't stopped smiling this entire time since I asked you that. I've just been waiting here for you to answer and you're just smiling like an idiot over there." Pieck interrupts your thoughts.

You snap back awake and bring your hands to your cheeks. They ached from smiling too hard. "I wasn't."

She throws her napkin on her now empty bowl. "Yeah, okay. Why is it so hard for you to admit you like him? It's so obvious."

"Because I don't! We're just friends, my gosh. What's not clicking?" You bang in the table, causing the plates and glasses to shake.

Pieck rolls her eyes and grabs her phone, facing her screen to you. Your mouth drops when you see the picture. "I took a picture of you when you were daydreaming about Eren with a big ass smile on your face because I knew you were gonna deny it."

You try to snatch the phone away from her but she pulls it away. "Delete that right now." You hiss. She taps her chin with her index finger. "Hm, maybe I should send it to Zeke first. Or better yet, what's Eren's number?"

"PIECK. DELETE. NOW." You command. You reach over the table but she shoves the phone under her legs. "If you admit you like Eren, I will."

"I'm not going to admit that." You say arms crossed. "And why not?" She mimics your posture. "Because I don't like him!" You try to shout as quietly as possible.

"You do though." She responds. "No. I. Don't." You snap back.

She slides her phone out from under her. "Okay, I'm sending it then." She beginning tapping on the screen and you panic. "OKAY, OKAY! CHILL." You yelp, arms up in surrender.

"I-" You begin. It's not that you were afraid to admit it to Pieck, it's that you were afraid to admit to yourself. If you said it out loud right now, it makes it real.

You had never told anyone. Never said it out loud. There would be no turning back.

You hesitate. You weren't sure how you felt honestly. You were scared to admit it. You knew you cared about him more than most people. You knew you felt safe and protected around him. You knew you lit up evertime he was around and how you were disappointed each time he wasn't.

Did you like him? I mean, you know he's more than a friend but what exactly is he? There's been multiple instances where you were more than friendly. Each time you think back to the rooftop.

How he was up top of you and on the verge of kissing you but you told him not to. You told him not to because you knew it was just gonna make everything difficult. But you wanted to so badly.

How he called you out on your shit and told you to be yourself and not to worry so much about what others think. And he admitted he liked you for who you were. Was that him confessing his feelings? Or maybe even when him and Jean were arguing?

Your heart stops for a moment. How could you be so fucking blind? Or maybe it's more so much that you pretended you didn't see it. Because honestly, it was obvious. He had tried to kiss you a few times already.

But is it actual feelings? Or is he messing with your head? Are you just another girl he's gonna toss away when he's bored? If only you knew what the fuck he was thinking and how he felt. Pieck was right. There is only one way to find out and it's too straight up ask him.

Why does it scare you so much to ask him though? Part of you thinks it's cause you think he'll say yes and then everything will change. There is no more being friends. Then part of you thinks it's cause it's gonna be so fucking embarrassing if he laughs in your face.

Why does it scare you so much that the answer is no? Shouldn't you be relieved? Maybe it's the feeling of being rejected or laughed that. But then again, if you didn't like him, you wouldn't care. So since you're scared that must mean...

"Oh my god." You whisper out loud.

You like Eren Jaeger. You were head over fucking heels for him. There's no other explanation. You were the happiest when he was around and the saddest when he wasn't. You wished you spent more time with him. You wished you talked more. He made you a nervous, clumsy mess. He made you feel alive.

"I like Eren Jaeger." You announce to the table. Pieck leans back in her chair, arms crossed and face proud. "I fucking like Eren Jaeger." You start laughing hysterically. "Oh my god. I like Eren. I really like him. Like a lot! I..."

Your smile drops. "Oh my god... I fucking like Eren Jaeger." You groan and slam your head on the table. The waiter returns to collect your plates and looks scared. "Is...Is she okay?"

Pieck waves her delicate hand. "She's fine. Just dramatic. You can bring me the check already." She smiles at the man.

She pokes at the top of your head. "Pst. Hey. Get up, you're embarrassing me." She taunts. You get up and cover your face with your hands.

"I am... such an idiot. How did I catch feelings? AND FOR HIM?!" You pinch the bridge of your nose. "This is gonna end so badly, holy fuck."

Pieck frowns. "Why? It doesn't have to." You do a deep inhale, hold your breath and then exhale. "Remember I told you I know three girls he tossed to the side? Well they're my friends. Well two of them are.... I don't really know what they are. They're in my friend group but I wouldn't consider them friends actually. They're kinda fake sorta. But the other girl.."

You sigh before continuing. "She's probably my favorite person in the world right now. I consider her my bestfriend. She's my roommate and I tell her everything. She hates him, Pieck. Like bad. Like gags at the sound of his name bad."

Pieck cringes. "Damn. That bad?" You nod. "He came to my place once looking for me and she slammed the door in his face."

Pieck twists her lips to the side. "Well, maybe she'll understand? She'll want you to be happy right? Have you been telling her how he is with you?"

You shrivel up. "...No." Pieck groans. "Y/n."

You stomp your foot. "Ugh I know, I know. I should tell her. But we already hung out so many times and I never told her so she's gonna be pissed I kept it from her. Maybe if I told her from the beginning, things would be different but it's too late for all that now."

Pieck scratches her head. "I think you should just be honest with her. I mean, if you do really like him, that is. If the other two girls aren't really your friends, you shouldn't be worried too much about them. Just focus on your roommate, if she loves you as much as you love her, she'll understand. Maybe be pissed for a while but she'll get over it. I mean it's not like they dated right? Just slept together."

"Yeah, you're right." You admit. She grabs the check from the waiter and pulls out her card. "Duh. I always am."

As much as you found that comment annoying, it's annoyingly true. She was always fucking right whether you liked it or not. Maybe it's a good thing she's in your life now and that you finally have someone to talk about Eren with. She'll be able to be brutally honest and give you real advice.

Pieck hands the card to the waiter and then looks at the time. "What time do you have class again?" You finish the rest of your tea. "It's at 4."

"Oh ,you still have time." She says as she smiles at the waiter when he returns and then signs her name on the paper.

"Yeah, hopefully I'll make it in time if my stupid car doesn't break down." You say standing up and grabbing your bag. Pieck frowns. "What's wrong with your car?"

"I went out to the deep, deep country side and I guess my car is not built for that shit and it fucked up. It makes weird noises when I break." You reply.

"Go to this car shop down the road. It's called Henry's. That's where I go and they do a good job. Zeke works there too so he should be able to help and give you a good deal. If he doesn't, tell him I'll kick his ass." She says heading for the door, you following beside her.

"Okay, I will. Thanks." You say pushing the exit door open. "For that and for lunch."

Pieck smiles. "No problem. I'll message you details about when we are gonna get the dresses fitted and stuff, okay?" You nod and she embraces you in a hug while you stand there awkwardly, your hands hovering on her back.

"Your mom really misses you, you know. You should go visit sometime. She always asks me about you but I never know what to tell her since I never talk to you. She'll be happy to see you're doing better." She says, arms still around you.

You stand there stunned. It didn't make sense to you that your mom would miss you considering that you two haven't gotten along for years and she never speaks to you. Why is she asking Pieck about you when she can literally ask you herself? But then again, she's a very prideful person and she also knows you well and is probably worried you'll be mad and snap at her.

"Okay. Maybe I will." You lie. She pulls away and holds on to your shoulders with both hands and smiles. "I'm so happy for you, y/n."

You wiggle out her grip. "Me? You're the one engaged!" You say, lifting up her left hand. She grins and wiggles her fingers in the air. "Maybe it'll be you and Eren next."

You shove her away. "Shut up! You seriously better not tell anyone, Pieck. I mean it." She rolls her eyes. "Okay fine. But only if you promise to go visit your mom sometime soon. Atleast before the wedding so it's not awkward."

She sticks her pinky out and you groan but link yours to it. "Fine, whatever." She smiles brightly and then waves goodbye. You wave bye back and then head back to your car.

Once you're in your car, you type in Henry's auto shop into google maps and get on your way. On the drive there, you're amazed by the day you've had. You admitted so much stuff to Pieck and to yourself.

You vented about how she made you feel and you learned that you made her feel just as bad. You even got asked to be her bridesmaid. Just as couple hours ago, you literally hated her.

And then you finally admitted your feeling for Eren. Which you still could not believe. You cringed so hard saying it out loud. You felt like a little kid with a crush.

The car shop literally was down the road because you're there in no time. You pull into one of the parking spots and hop out.

Car shops are so awkward. Especially when nothing but men work there and they all stare at you when you get there. And then they start talking about a whole bunch of shit you don't even understand.

You walk slow to the building. You used to always make your dad come with you so he could explain everything the mechanics would tell you and make sure they don't overprice you. This is the first time you've come without him.

You enter the building and see two cars already being worked on. You come around the side of a gorgeous red convertible to see if the mechanic working on the open hood is Zeke and once you see the golden hair, it's clear it's him.

"Hey, Zeke?" You try to say confidently but you were so nervous your voice trembled. Zeke looks up and smiles. "Hey baby brother, your girlfriend came to visit you at work." He says as he elbows the person beside him, whose face was covered by the large open hood.

You step back a little confused. But then it all makes sense when you the person he was talking to. "No fucking way." You say out loud.

[photo creds bottom left corner of pic!!]

Eren lifts up the hem of his shirt to wipe some sweat off his forehead, exposing his six pack. "Oh shit, hey. What are you doing here?"

"Me? What the hell are you doing here?" You ask. Eren leans up against the car. "I work here."

Your mouth practically falls to the floor. Eren Jaeger..has a fucking....job? When he literally is drowning in dead parents' money? And not only that, he's a fucking mechanic. A job that's actually hard work and sweaty as hell.

"How did I not know you had a job?" You stumble. He flicks your chin up. "Ask next time, sweetheart."

You scoff. "Okay, well, can one of you fix my car? It's making weird noises. I think I fucked it up on the way to Sasha's."

Eren laughs. "Yeah, that'll happen. You need to buy a better car." You give him a disgusted look. "Uh, you gonna pay for it?"

He winks. "If you behave, maybe."

Two heartbeats. Two damn heartbeats.

"Come on, let's go look at it." He says, pointing his head in the direction of your car. You follow behind him and he pops open your hood and starts doing god knows what.

"How did lunch with your sister go?" He asks, rubbing his hands through the inside of your car. "You actually remembered that was today?" You ask, leaning onto the car.

He looks up at you. "Why wouldn't I? I'm the one who told her yes remember." He says, his eyes returning back to the car. You stick your hands in your back pockets. "Right."

You felt so weird with him now that you have come to terms with how you felt. There was no denying it anymore. You definitely had feelings for him. Strong ones in fact.

You watch the boy as he checks your car throughly. Even though he was sweaty and dirty, he still looked as gorgeous as always. Actually, if anything, all the dirt and sweat made him look even hotter for some reason.

He wore the same jean overalls the rest of the workers wore except his hung off his waist, a thin gray muscle shirt hugging his damp torso. His hair was a little messier than usual, the small hairs that usually framed his face stuck to his forehead and cheeks with sweat.

"Take a picture, it will last longer." He says not even looking up. You slap his arm. "I was zoned out." You look at your now wet hand and make the ick sound.

You wipe his sweat on his shirt and he chuckles. "If you want an excuse to touch me, just say so."

You try to act unimpressed by his flirtatiousness. "Stop flirting with me and fix my damn car. I have class."

He sighs and takes off his gloves. He whistles at Zeke and the blonde approaches the car and asks what's the damage. After he tells him, Zeke turns to you. "So we can fix it but it'll take an hour or two."

"I don't have an hour or two though. I have class and my professor is going over our upcoming exam so I can't miss." You sigh.

"I'll take you. I'm off already." Eren offers. You frown. "What about my car though?"

"You can leave it here overnight and it'll be ready in the morning. We lock up the shop and have cameras so it'll be safe." Zeke assures you. You bite your lip. "Mmmm... okay."

"Just pull your car into the garage." Eren says. You do it and once you do, you grab your stuff and carry it in your arms.

"Let me just shower really quickly and we'll go." Eren says.

You twist your head in his direction. "Shower? I'm gonna be late, Jaeger."

He turns to look at you. "I'll be quick. Besides, you know I drive fast." He winks. You roll your eyes and watch the boy walk inside.

"So," Zeke says, slapping his gloves off, "What's up with you and my little brother?" You act oblivious. "What do you mean?"

He laughs and leans up against one of the walls, drinking out a styrofoam cup filled with water. "You mean to tell me there's nothing going on between you two?"

"Nope." You rock back and forth on your heels. "Hm. I don't think that's what he thinks." He shrugs. You stop rocking. "What do you mean?"

"Oh, nothing. If you say there's not, then there's not. My baby brother can be a little delusional sometimes." He tosses the cup in a trash bin after crumbling it up. "Well, what does he say?" You pry.

He places a hand on your shoulder. "Well I can't expose him, can I?" You pout and look away. "Fine. I don't care anyways."

"All I'm gonna say is," He leans in closer to you, "that kid never stops talking about you."

You smile. "Liar." He throws his hands up in the air. "I'm a lot of things and is a liar one of them? Maybe. But I'm not lying about this."

You laugh. "That's exactly what a liar would say." He looks up at the roof, his fingers running through his beard. "Hm. I guess you're right."

Eren walks out, hair down and dripping wet and in a different set of clothes. He had blue jeans on and a plain white t shirt. He holds out his fist and Zeke fist bumps him. "Later."

He walks up to a rack and grabs his black leather jacket that he wore the day at the fair. He swings it around his shoulders and slides into it. He grabs the dark blue scrunchie you gave him out his pocket and ties up his hair. You smile to yourself when you see he still has it.

"Ready?" He asks tossing you a helmet. You stare at the helmet in confusion. "What?"

He points to a shiny, black motorcycle parked off to the side. You blink at him. "You...have a motorcycle." He blinks back at you. "....Yes."

You take a deep breath and shove the helmet on your head. "Of course you do." You follow behind him and because you aren't used to having massive helmets on your head, you bump right into a wall. "Oop."

Eren stares at you. "I swear." He grabs your hand and intertwines his fingers with yours. "Come here."

You always felt nervous when he grabbed your hand but this time it was much more different. You felt your palm grow sweaty from the nerves and you prayed he wouldn't notice.

He leads you to the bike and points at the seat. "Sit. And try not to fall and die, please." You yank your hand away. "Don't say that idiot. You'll jinx me."

You hop on the bike and he sticks his helmet on. "It's not jinxing when it's very possible of happening. Especially knowing you." He says bluntly.

You glare at him but there's no point cause he can't really see your face. "I'm surprised you're even wearing a helmet." You fight back.

"Why?" He ask starting the bike. "Because you don't seem like the type to. You're like... a suicidal maniac." You tease.

"I rode my skateboard down one slide and now you're traumatized for life." He teases back. "One slide? It was several and not just any slides. Water slides! Rusty, abandoned water slides!" You argue.

He laughs. "I'm only gonna be this young once. Might as well have fun while I can. What's the point of life if you're not always risking it all the time?"

You stay quiet for a moment. "You just proved my point. You really are a suicidal maniac." He turns back to look at you. "Better hold on then cause this suicidal maniac is your ride home and we don't have seatbelts."

[play Little Bit by Lykke Li, thank me later]

You gulp and wrap your arms around his waist. He chuckles. "That's what I thought."

He takes off and you squeeze your eyes shut but open them after a while once you got used to it. He wasn't kidding. He definitely did drive fast.

He was driving so fast that the wind was blowing hard and made your head feel too heavy to hold up, the massive helmet adding even more weight and not helping at all.

You lay your head on his back and you smile when you realize you're hugging him from the behind. You snuggle up closer to him and for moments here and there you get whiffs of his cologne through the cracks of your helmet.

You couldn't even begin to describe the sense of comfort it brought you to hold him. The two you hardly ever hugged which honestly made you kind of sad.

The first time he hugged you was when you were sobbing your eyes out at the fair after you begged him to stop hitting Anthony and it never really happened after that again.

The closest you got to hugging again was last Sunday in the pool when he was swinging you around in the water and carried you in his lap. You wish you would hug more because it was probably one of your favorite feelings. Would feel ten times better if this big ass helmet wasn't in the way.

Your head still resting on his back, you look at the streetlights and the view as you cross the bridge to Paradis. The transition from the city to the country was so satisfying to watch. Watching the tall buildings disappear and get replaced by trees.

You smile as you watch the ocean under the bridge glisten in the sunlight. It was an extra beautiful day today and you were so glad your car was being a piece of shit because then this would've never happened.

You close your eyes and hug Eren tighter. You don't know when the next time you'll get to hold him like this, especially if you plan to admit your feelings to him. You have no idea what the outcome with be. Everything could change. So right now, you're gonna just sit here and enjoy the moment.

You weren't scared to admit your feelings anymore. You liked him. Way too much. You don't think it was love. No way. Well...

Maybe just a little bit.

—

💿 spotify playlist is finally ready! it's up on my conversations board on my profile!! i'll be updating it everytime i include a new song in the story <3

🎥 also here's part two to the inside jokes meme shit enjoy:

[There should be a GIF or video here. Update the app now to see it.]