Chapter Text
Chapter 1
Armin slowly pushed open the bedroom door. The room’s lights were off and curtains still closed. He peered inside, scanning the dark room until finally he noticed from where he stood, the faint outline of a person laying down in the bed.
Eren was still asleep.
With hands now firmly planted on his hips, Armin strolled through the doors. He make his way over the heaps of dirty clothes and mounds of old, stale food that had accumulated in Eren’s room over the last couple weeks.
“For God sake, Eren. You really needs to clean this up.” Armin muttered half to himself as he crossed the room. He sighed as he kicked aside an empty soda can from his path. “Levi would die if he saw all of this.”
Armin found himself stopping at the foot of the bed. He paused.. His irritated expression quickly softened as he took a moment to appreciate the sight in front of him.
Eren was sound asleep, curled up comfortably in his bed. His covers were practically swallowing him whole, leaving only his face exposed. Armin scanned his brother’s features. The soft curl of his long eyelashes. Eren’s strong, prominent facial features. Tan, sun-kissed skin...
Armin could already feel his face heat up involuntarily. It was rare to see Eren like this. He looked so peaceful and calm. Innocent. To be honest, most of the time Eren’s face was pulled into a grimace or twisted into a scowl. He was always up-in-arms and always oversensitive. But here-- in his sleep-- Eren looked so... defenseless.
"Eren, wake up." Armin finally said, after taking a couple needed seconds to calm the redness in his cheeks. He turned towards the room’s windows and leaned over in order tear open the curtains.
The sunlight hit Eren’s face and he shifted, pulling his cover completely over his head, whining for more sleep.
Armin sighed, pulling the cover away from his brother’s face. "Come on, Eren. Get up. You already overslept! We have to leave in less than fifteen minutes!"
Eren slowly cracked open his emerald colored eyes. It was the morning. Daylight flooded through his window sill; its beams warmed his face as he struggled to shift positions. He looked up, noticing his blonde brother standing beside his bed.
He yawned, groggy from sleep. His eyes still droopy. "What do you want Armin?" He rubbed his eyes with the palm of his hand.
Armin noticed a little bit of dry drool right on the corner his brother’s lips and had to fight the eager to wipe it off. He smiled. 'He's such a kid.'
"We have to go." Armin said again, more gently this time, shaking Eren's shoulder once more to urge him to get out of bed. " I don't want us to be late on our first day."
Eren weakly swatted at his brother’s hand." Five more minutes…" He mumbled, moving to pull his covers back up over his head.
Armin stared down at his sibling in disbelief. As usually it was taking forever to wake up his brother. That left only one option.
Armin, careful not to step on Eren, climbed into the bed. He placed his slender arms on either side of his younger brothers head, centering himself over his body. The bed dipped and groaned from the extra weight. Eren, noticing this, opened one of his eyes again only to find his brother now hovering directly above him.
'’What are yo—?" he started to ask, startled. Armin, moving fast, leaned down so his face was directly positioned near Eren’s ear. His lips gently brushed against it.
"If you don't get up, Eren, I'll kiss you." Armin whispered. He bit down on his brother’s earlobe, using the of tip of his tongue to glide over it slowly.
Eren propelled himself off the bed.
"What the hell, Armin!" He yelped, grasping his violated ear. His face was completely red. Eren was more than aware that his brother was serious about his threat. He knew all too well just how serious his siblings could get. His mind wandered back to a just few weeks ago when Jean had tried to get him out of bed. He shuddered at the thought.
"Eren, you're being over-dramatic." Armin pouted, slightly disappointed by his brother's reaction.
Eren only scowled at him.
Armin, not minding him, quick lifted himself from the bed. He turned to the dresser and pulled out some clothing for Eren, stretching out his hand in order to handing them over to him.
"Here." He said. Eren, still grumbling from what had just happened, muttered a quiet thanks before finally grabbing them. He set the clothes down on his bed and stood up. His hands drifted down to lift the hem of his pajama top. He looked up and paused. Armin was still there, staring hopeful at his brother.
Eren stared back.
"What?" Armin questioned, realizing Eren wasn’t changing.
Eren eyed his brother, pursing his lips." Privacy, please."
Armin’s cheeks immediately started to turn red. "What? Why? We are both guys..." Armin said, smiling bashfully. "So it's ok ,right?"
"No." Eren exhaled. " No, it’s not ok. You guys always stare me when I'm changing." He scratched his cheek self-consciously before continuing. "It's… uncomfortable." " He didn't mean to sound rude but it was embarrassing the way his sibling ogled at him whenever he put on his clothes, sometimes even attempting to go farther than just looking.
Armin cheeks reddened. " I-I um-I don't-" he stuttered, fumbling with his fingers. "I've never done that!"
Eren raised his eyebrow. He wondered how this same person that had only just a few minutes ago had been so bold about climbing into his bed was stumbling over his own words. " Never, huh?"
Armin averted his eyes, squeezing his hand together. " Ok, maybe like once…"
Eren looked at him unconvinced.
Armin's cheeks became an even deeper shade of red. "Or twice."
"…"
"A few times, but I—!"
Eren sighed, suddenly feeling really tired. His brother was so easy to read. "Please, Armin." he said, raising his hand in order to motion to the door, " Just go."
Armin's hand dropped in disappointment once he realized he wasn't going to win this. He nodded solemnly and slowly turned to leave; a light coat of pink still dusting his cheeks. Before he retreated from the room, however, Armin called over his shoulder.
"Don't take too long, ok?" Armin reminded him. " We don't want Mikasa getting worried and break down your door again."
"Haha…Yeah," Eren chuckled uneasily. "You don't have to remind me."
Armin threw him one last reassuring look before finally taking his leave. When the door final clicked shut Eren sat back on his bed, placing his head between his hands and sighed. He pinched the bridge of nose, already feeling the beginnings of a migraine forming.
" Why can't I just have a normal family?"