Eren Jaeger (outsidethewalls) wrote in valarlogs, @ 2016-11-29 19:38:00 |
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Entry tags: | armin arlert, eren jaeger |
Who: Eren Jaeger and Armin Arlert
When: BACKDATED to september, before the school year started
What: running into each other. literally.
Where: campus bookstore at University of California, Irvine
Rating: PG maybe?
Status: complete
Maybe Eren should have listened to his Mom. ...okay, definitely Eren should have listened to his Mom. He hadn’t done much all summer towards getting ready to start his first year of college. He was accepted, he was enrolled into classes long before the deadline. So he figured he was golden, and he could just ...enjoy his last teenage summer vacation. Netflix and video games. And then wandering all over Sacramento once Pokemon Go was released. Things like “You need to go ahead and order your books” seemed not to be anything urgent. They had a bookstore at the school, didn’t they? He’d… just go sometime after he moved down there.
This was the second worst idea he had in his life. The first was hiding under his sister’s bed with a scary mask on and jumping out at her after a horror movie binge. This.. almost beat that. The place was entirely too crowded from other students trying to find their last minute books and supplies, from what he could tell all of the employees were on registers so he couldn’t ask them where to find anything. And even if he COULD, they couldn’t show him because there was no way down the aisles.
He took a deep breath and mentally kicked himself in the ass as he started down one of the aisles, list of books in hand. God, he wished he ordered them off the internet. And listened when his Mom and Mikasa nagged at him. And looking at the prices of the books, thank God his dad was a doctor. ‘You’ve got this, Eren’ he told himself as he turned a corner and ran smack into someone else.
***
Armin had been so busy packing and then moving, and convincing his parents to let him take Pan with him, that he just hadn’t had time to get his textbooks before now. And now as he tried to gather all his textbooks (most of them used) he was wishing he’d figured out a way to make time to get them so that he wasn’t having to deal with this chaos. He was standing up when someone turned a corner and knocked him to the ground, his books flying everywhere when he hit. “So much for good balance,” he muttered to himself as he forced himself up to his knees and started gathering all his books.
He realized after a moment that the person who’d knocked him over was still there and he glanced up, noticing first the dark hair and handsome face and then those green eyes. Just his luck - he’d been knocked over by a gorgeous guy who was just his type. His college career was getting off to a great start. “Sorry. I wasn’t paying attention to what was going on around me when I stood up.”
***
Eren froze for a moment when he realized he knocked over someone. ‘Fuck, no I don’t have this’ he thought to himself. He felt his face start to get warm with embarrassment, and then the other boy looked up with the biggest, bluest eyes he’d ever seen. Way to make yourself look like a huge jerk to a cute stranger, Jaeger. His face grew hotter and he finally snapped out of it long enough to get down to help the other boy gather up the scattered books. “No, I’m the one that wasn’t… I shouldn’t turn corners like that when I’m not looking. I’m so sorry… Are you okay?” he asked him, hoping that he didn’t accidently hurt him when he toppled over.
***
Armin blushed when the dark haired boy got down and started helping him gather up his scattered books. “I’m fine.” His flush deepened when his fingers accidentally brushed against the others when they reached for the same book. “Sorry.” He was looking around to make sure he had found all of his textbooks, not looking at the other boy. Not wanting to make an even bigger fool of himself. He swallowed hard and forced himself to look back at the other boy.
“Thanks for helping me pick them up. I really appreciate it. I’m Armin by the way,” he said, introducing himself shyly. He stood up (carefully this time) and gave him a small smile.
***
Eren blushed harder when their fingers brushed against each other’s. What a fantastic way to meet someone, but at least he hadn’t accidently hurt the other boy when he made him fall? “You’re welcome… it’s the least I could do when it was my fault.” He stood up as well and held Armin’s books back to him. “I’m Eren.. I’m really very sorry about that. I am… I left all of this to the last second. I was too busy staring at my list to even notice anyone was there.”
***
Armin took the books back from him, balancing the stack carefully in his arms so that they wouldn’t go falling off as he made his way to the register. Or at least he hoped he’d get to the register. He wanted to double check his list to make sure he had all of the books on it before going to check out. He’d seen enough people have to delay things by leaving their books at the counter and running back to pick up more books from the shelves that they’d forgotten. He didn’t want to be one of those people.
He laughed a little at Eren’s comment. “I can’t really say anything about that because I did the same thing. I’m supposed to start classes on Tuesday and hadn’t even thought about getting my books until today. And I wasn’t paying attention to who was around me when I stood up. We were equally at fault?”
***
Armin probably had all the books that he needed by now, from the looks of his stack. And Eren hadn’t even really started on his list yet. He felt something twist inside him and he just. Wanted an excuse to talk to the blonde for a little longer. He didn’t know why but he just really felt like he needed to know this boy.
And it wasn’t just the wide ocean blue eyes. Although that was also a perfectly valid reason. He had eyes someone could happily drown in.
“I start Tuesday, too. And my parents had been trying to get me to order them all summer. I guess semester, I’ll actually listen to them. But right now... I have to try and track down all of these.” he said as he held up his list. “I still knocked you down, so I’m a bit more at fault. Maybe I can make it up to you? There’s a coffee shop near the campus. Even if you’re okay, I at least owe you a drink. And a pastry.” This wasn’t asking out a perfect stranger on a date. It was coffee. To make up for running over someone. Sure
***
For a second Armin just stood there, staring at him when he heard Eren ask him out for coffee. Maybe...maybe he had hit his head when he fell. But he knew he hadn’t. All that had happened when Eren bumped into him was he’d been knocked on his ass and his books had fallen. So...this gorgeous boy really was asking him out. He shook his head to clear it before nodding, his words frozen in his throat for a moment before he was able to swallow and speak. “Okay. Coffee and a pastry. If you want I could help you find your books? Pretty sure I’ve been all over the bookstore so I know where to find most of the sections.” He offered, resisting the urge to look down. Part of going away to college was to keep pushing himself out of his comfort zone, out of his shyness.
***
Eren felt nervous as he waited for the other boy’s answer, his stomach sinking when he first shook his head. He let out a sigh of relief when Armin nodded. He wasn’t sure just why, but there was something about this blonde that... he really felt like he needed to know him. He smiled as Armin agreed to coffee and a pastry and nodded at the offer. “I’d really love that, I’m… incredibly lost. I was prepared to move, it was the actual preparing for school part that slipped by me.”
***
Armin smiled at him. “Just let me get a basket to put these in. Assuming there are any…” he said. That was why he hadn’t gotten a basket when he first came in. That and he hadn’t expected to have so many books. The downfall of taking so many History and English classes this semester he guessed. Although hopefully, he’d be able to use some of them in his future classes. Or sell them back to the bookstore after classes were over. He had scholarships and his parents were sending him pocket money so he didn’t need to work and they were covering his rent and everything but...if he could sell his books back that would help make his money last a little more.
“I...think I spent more time getting ready to have my own place than getting ready for school,” he agreed, catching sight of an empty basket and grabbing it just before a girl who’d come over from the door at an almost run. He dumped his books into it, rolling his shoulder to work the kinks out of it. Those books had been heavy. “So! What’s the first section you’re looking for?”
***
Eren laughed when he saw Armin steal the basket right in front of the girl who had been running for it and looked around to see if he could find another basket to gather his own books in as they found them. There was one seemingly abandoned by a shelf with only one book in it, and he tried to look innocent as he shelved the book and nabbed the basket. Today it was all survival of the fittest. “If they really wanted that basket… they should have kept a better eye on it.” he whispered to the other boy.
“Let’s start with the history books since we’re already here? And then I probably need ones for my writing class next.” And then worry about the core classes after. “I’m studying to be a journalist. ...Hopefully college will also teach me better time management and organization before I actually start writing for a paper or anything.”
***
Armin grinned at Eren’s laugh and made a point of looking the other way as the other boy shelved the book. “I saw nothing. Not a thing,” he whispered back to him. “But you’re right - they should have kept better track of their basket,” he agreed. He reached out for Eren’s arm, tugging him down the aisle gently when he noticed the basket’s previous owner come back and start looking around for it and his book, laughing softly at the look on his face. “I’m sure they’ll get a basket eventually…” he murmured, shoving the guilt down. As busy as this store was today - they should have known better than to leave their basket. First lesson of college - don’t leave your basket.
“I’m a History major. I’m hoping to be an archaeologist,” he admitted. “I wonder if we’ll have any classes together.” He could have kicked himself the minute those words were out of his mouth. He needed to be more subtle, keep it together more. Eren probably wasn’t interested at all in him that way.
***
Eren’s heart skipped as this cute boy he just met took his arm to lead him down the aisle. Seriously, he was going to wake up soon and find this had all been a dream, and he’ll have to pack all over again… He looked back at the other aisle as Armin mentioned the person looking for their basket. “If all else fails, ...maybe they can steal another abandoned basket? At least they hadn’t gotten too far with it.”
“An archeologist, huh? ...Maybe I’m going to have to call you Indy.” Eren mused, teasing the other boy gently. That was honestly a really cool career though, and he hoped the other boy made it. “I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone that wanted to be an archeologist before, though. What got you interested in it?” He looked at the list of books and tried to find the history book he was looking for. “Once we get to the safety of the coffee shop, maybe we can compare schedules?”
***
“And hopefully they’ll have learned not to leave their things unattended,” Armin murmured as they wandered far enough away that the other student wouldn’t bother coming up to them to talk. Hopefully.
He felt his face heat up at that teasing comment and looked down at the floor for a minute before glancing back up at Eren and laughing softly. “Actually...the Indiana Jones movies. I always loved them and thought he had the coolest job. Even without all the supernatural stuff his job just seemed really cool. Traveling the world and getting to find artifacts from past civilizations or just key moments in history? It would just be...amazing.” He said, his voice having a dreamy tone to it as he explained what had gotten him interested in it. “We can definitely compare schedules once we’re there.” He glanced at the book list in Eren’s hand and wandered a little ways down the aisle to grab the book Eren was looking for on that list, grabbing one used and one new since he didn’t know what the other boys budget was like.
***
Eren laughed softly at the other boy’s answer and playfully knocked his shoulder against his. “That settles it, then. I’m going to have to call you Indy for real. Maybe get you his outfit, or at least the hat, when we graduate. And it really does sound pretty amazing when you put it that way. Seeing what made the world tick?” There was something about the dreamy tone in Armin’s voice and the excited look in his eyes that felt weirdly familiar to Eren in a way that he just couldn’t place. Either way it made his heart start to beat faster. “I really would love that, and see what classes we have together. Maybe we’ll get to see each other? I think it will make things easier, settling in, if we both have someone we know in our classes. I mean, even if we just met…” Eren wasn’t sure that he was making the most sense, but he hoped the other boy understood anyway.
He watched as Armin wandered off and bit down on his lip as he continued to try to look for the next book on his list. Only for Armin to come back with two copies. He lit up a little and smiled at him. “Is it on your list, too?” he asked as he reached out for one of them, not really paying attention to which one he was grabbing.
***
Armin flushed as Eren knocked their shoulders together staring at him for a moment before dragging his eyes away. “If I only get a part of the outfit...the hat is the way to go. Although his jacket was pretty cool too. Seemed durable.” And there was the whip but that tended to take his thoughts in a completely different direction ever since he’d hit puberty. “I know what you mean. We might not know each other very well but we know each other a little better than we would anybody else in the classes.” And he really really wanted to get to know Eren a lot better.
“It is. It’s how I knew where it was. I told you - I’ve been wandering around here for a while. I wasn’t sure if you’d like used or new. I know some people are picky about it. Me - I figure if I can save money why not? And there might be useful notes scribbled in them.” He said shrugging as he set the remaining copy back on the shelf and looked at Eren over his shoulder with a small smile. “So we might be in at least one class together? I don’t know how many classes will be using the same book.” He said softly as he walked back over to him and glanced at the book list again in Eren’s hand.
***
Eren flushed when Armin stared at him, and he hoped he hadn’t weirded the other boy out. Maybe he was being too obvious, and Armin wasn’t into guys at all. And he was blowing what could have been at least a great friendship by flirting with him right off the bat. He ran a hand through the back of his hair. “The jacket does look like it would be. Maybe you’ll end up with both. Just promise me you won’t get chased by boulders?” He smiled as Armin seemed to get what he was trying to say. “Exactly. Not like we came here together from the same high school but, we’d have a friend at least.”
Eren looked between the books again and took the used one, handing the new one back to Armin to put up. “I hadn’t really thought about the used ones maybe having useful notes in them. And I think so, or at least I hope so?” He hoped that didn’t come across too strongly. Even if the blonde boy didn’t share the attraction, he still felt like they could be very good friends. He pointed to the next book down. “I think we’re in the right spot for this one at least… Did you have this one too?” he asked as he looked over the bookshelf before finding a copy.
***
Armin bit down on his lip when he saw Eren flush. He needed to quit staring at the other boy just in case it was making him uncomfortable. It was just Eren was so good looking he was having trouble not staring. He laughed at that question, a smile spreading across his face. “I promise. I won’t get chased by any boulders on purpose. Or fall into pits filled with snakes. That’s what assistants will be for,” he teased, shoving his free hand in his pocket to resist the temptation to reach out and just push that hair out of the other boys face. “Definitely have a friend at least.” Armin would love for it to be more but they’d just met. And it was his luck - this guy would be straight.
“Don’t tell the clerk I didn’t put it back in the right spot.” He said giving him a conspiratorial wink. He blushed at that question, shifting his basket between his hands nervously. “I hope so too. Even if not since we have the same books maybe we can study together or something.” He just wanted excuses to spend more time with him. After today. He leaned in towards him, his head brushing against Eren’s shoulder as he looked at the list. “Yeah I do have that one too. There weren’t many decent used ones left when I grabbed mine. There’s a companion to it that isn’t on your list but could be helpful. If you want you could borrow mine? No sense buying a copy that you might not even open right?” They started moving to the next aisle Eren needed, Armin sneaking glances at him as they walked.
***
“And the snakes. How could I forget the snakes?” Eren asked, sighing playfully in exasperation at himself. “At least I can promise that I haven’t seen any snakes on campus. Or off campus. I’ve seen a dog, though, so hopefully those aren’t a problem?” He knew some people were afraid of them, but Zelda was tiny, round, and would slobber someone to death before she so much as growled. In fact if anyone ever broke in, Eren was sure he’d find her on her back begging the robber for belly rubs. He smiled and flushed, ducking his face down, when Armin agreed that they’d definitely have a friend at least.
Eren laughed at the wink and shook his head. “I didn’t see a thing.” he stage whispered back to Armin. “I would really like that, meeting up to study together. Are you going to be living in the dorms or off campus? I’m living in one of the nearby apartment buildings, I had to find somewhere I could bring Zelda. But we could still meet on campus if you’re in the dorms?” He shivered as Armin’s head brushed against his shoulder and he leaned instinctively closer to Armin. “I’d really like that. And if there’s anything on my list you think you could use, you can borrow it too. I really don’t mind sharing.” he murmured. He followed Armin to the next section, pushing past people to catch up with him, and his arm brushed along his as they fell in step. “Fantastic, math books. They always told me I’d be done with math after high school, and then they include it in college. I feel lied to.”
***
“The snakes are a key part of understanding Indiana Jones. It’s true. I’ll forgive you though. This time.” Armin said with a grin at him. God this boy was cute. “What kind of dog?” He asked. He liked dogs but Pan was a cat. “I haven’t seen any snakes around my place either. Just a hoodie wearing cat. Way less terrifying than snakes. More cuddly,” he added after a second.
“I’m off campus. They wouldn’t let me have Pan in the dorms so my parents got me an apartment. Maybe we live close to each other?” He asked, trying not to let himself get flustered by Eren leaning closer to him. He gave him a small smile as they walked. “Math is the bane of all students existence. I’m convinced of this. I have no use for numbers except for in dates. And then there’s no math necessary for that. Not hard math. Can you tell I hate Math? With a burning passion?” He said, glancing at him as he came to a stop. “Do you need anything from this section?”
***
“I appreciate it, Indy. And I promise never to forget about the snakes again.” He teased the blonde lightly. “She’s a black pug, rescued from the shelter when she was still a puppy. Apparently the couple that bought her found out they were having a baby. I can’t imagine how anyone could give up their dog just because they were having a kid. Especially not such a sweet girl. My sister and I renamed her Zelda because as far as we’re concerned, she’s a princess.” Eren turned and loked at Armin curiously when he said he had a hoodie wearing cat at his place. “Sounds much more cuddly… how did you get a cat to agree to wearing a hoody?”
He grinned when Armin said maybe they live close to each other. “Maybe we do. We’ll have to figure that out later, after we’ve finished with the books. I wonder if we’ll wind up being neighbors?” He laughed at Armin’s rant and shook his head. “No, you hate math? I couldn’t tell. ...And do you have enough dates you need math to keep up with them?” Eren couldn’t help but tease the other boy. ...Flirt. He was definitely flirting. He reached out for the math book that he needed and looked down for the next item on his list. “On to creative writing. Much better than math. Have I mentioned how much I hate math?”
***
Armin flushed a little bit at that nickname. He could really really get used to hearing the other boy call him that. “She’s a pug? And they were worried that something would happen to the baby? Did they not realize that pugs stay tiny and are generally pretty chill about people? Or at least all the ones I’ve ever met have been.” He said staring at him in disbelief. “Pan...just really liked mine when he was little and curling up in them and he’d get cold so easily. One day I got him one at the pet store of his own and he didn’t want me to take it off of him. He’s got a collection of hoodies now. It keeps him warm and he looks pretty cute in them.” He said, looking down as he thought about the fact that he changed his hoodie every day.
“And after we’ve compared our schedules. I’m pretty sure that I’d have noticed you if you were my neighbor. Those eyes are pretty memorable. You’re pretty memorable,” he said, smiling at him. God he was failing at flirting and he knew it. He blushed as Eren flirted with him okay maybe his luck wasn’t totally against him today - Eren was clearly into guys. Possibly into him. Hopefully into him when Armin was honest. “Not that kind of date. I haven’t met anyone since moving down here that I wanted to go out with.” Not yet anyway. “Maybe I should have come to the campus bookstore sooner,” he teased.
“I think I might have picked up on that. Just a little bit.” He teased as they left the math section.
***
“The lady at the shelter didn’t really expand on that. She seemed pretty disgusted by it, and apologized when she realized she’d let it slip. I guess they weren’t really supposed to talk about the animals’ former humans. Maybe they didn’t have a big enough of a place for both. Or enough of a heart for both. ...I’m going with the second.” Because like most pugs, Zelda was pretty chill. He couldn’t imagine why anyone could ever think that she wasn’t safe to have around a baby. He listened as Armin talked about his own pet, smiling as he said Pan had a whole collection of them. “That sounds really adorable, actually. Do you have any pictures of him wearing them on your phone? ...Show me over coffee, and I’ll show you my girl. No hoodies for her, sadly. But she has on antlers in one.”
Eren turned bright red at that compliment and looked down, smiling. “You know, you’re pretty memorable yourself, Indy. Maybe we’ll at least be somewhere close by, though.” He didn’t think Armin was failing at flirting. At all. Quite the opposite, really. He hoped that he was as into him as he sounded. “Not that kind of date, then. I think maybe we both should have come to the bookstore a little sooner.”
Eren laughed at that comment and nudged Armin gently as they moved on to the next section. “Good. I don’t want anyone to get the wrong idea about my feelings about math.”
***
“I’m disgusted about it too even though I know she found a clearly better family. No animal deserves to be abandoned that way. Especially not as a baby. That child missed out in a good friend because of their parents. How old is Zelda anyway?” He asked curiously.
“I have a lot of pictures of him. And a video of him watching his cartoons. I’ll be happy to show you pictures of him. And that sounds really adorable - Zelda with antlers.” He said, glad that the other boy thought it was cute and not sad that Armin’s cat wore clothes.
He felt his face heat up when Eren told him he was pretty memorable himself and he bumped into him with his shoulder gently. “I really hope we are,” he murmured. “And hope we didn’t miss each other coming sooner,” he added with a wink.
***
Eren grinned when he said she found a better family. “They did. Zelda is the most loving dog in the world. But she’s mine and my sister’s and I can’t say we’d want to give her up. She’s five now. Although she still thinks she’s a puppy when she sees a tennis ball.”
He didn’t think it was sad at all. Depending on where Armin was from, clothes for animals might be necessary sometimes. And if Pan loved it, it was actually kind of amazing. He’d seen pictures online of cats that looked like they hated the world simply because someone put a hat on them. “He has cartoons? That’s... really kind of awesome. What does he watch? And Zelda is the best reindog.”
Eren’s heart raced as Armin bumped him gently. “I hope that we wouldn’t. I’d like to think maybe I wouldn’t be in such a rush I’d embarrass myself in front of you and trip over you. But since it’s giving me an excuse to buy you coffee, I don’t think I really mind that part.”
***
Armin loved that grin on Eren’s face. He wanted to see it every chance he got. Especially if he was the reason behind it. “Fetch in the house? My mom would never let me get away with that. Too worried about stuff getting broken.” He said, leading him towards the registers as they got the last of Eren’s books.
“He has cartoons that he has to watch. And he will give me the most adorable disgruntled face if I interrupt them or try to change the channel while he’s watching them. I know he can’t actually see them but...I think he likes to listen to them. He’s a huge fan of Scooby-Doo. And anything on Disney Channel. And as much as I hate it - Spongebob Squarepants. I’m not sure who to blame that for. I think someone introduced him to it behind my back.” He said with a grin of his own. “Also - we watch a lot of Netflix cartoons.”
Armin flushed as Eren said that he didn’t really regret tripping over him since it was an excuse to buy him coffee. “Yeah well...I’d have said yes to coffee even if you hadn’t tripped over me. Because it would have been an excuse to get to know you better. I think even without you tripping over me...I’d have wanted to get to know you better,” he said, looking down at the floor as he flushed more.
***
Eren shook his head at that. “No, god no, Mom would have grounded me until I could pay off whatever got broken. And considering she’s also my boss, I don’t think I could just… appeal for a raise or something. Fetch is outside in the backyard, only. Or the dog park. Zelda loves the dog parks.” Eren needed to find out where the local ones were, since he didn’t have the luxury of his own back yard in the apartments.
He smiled at the thought of Armin’s cat making a disgruntled face whenever he tried to interrupt his shows. “How do you know he can’t see them? I know dog’s can’t, but cats are a different animal. But as his own radio show, that’s still really cute. ...Do you have any siblings? Maybe one of them got him into Spongebob behind your back.”
There was something about the way the other boy flushed that made Eren’s heart do happy flips. “I’m really glad, because I was mainly using it as an excuse to get to know you better. Not that I also don’t want to buy you coffee and dessert to make up for it, because I really am sorry. But I still wouldn’t want to just leave the bookstore and risk not seeing you again.”
***
“I couldn’t work for my parents. I just...know I couldn’t. I helped out in my grandfather’s book stores sometimes though. He would pay me in books,” Armin said with a grin. “There’s a dog park near my apartment I think. Or at least a dog friendly park. I know my downstairs neighbor takes his dog there to play. So...Zelda’s friendly to other animals? Or just to other dogs?” Armin asked, glancing at Eren as they waited in the long line to check out with their books.
“...That’s a good point. I just always assumed that he couldn’t because of the wavelength thing like dogs. But maybe he can see them. And my leaving music playing doesn’t hold his attention like the tv does.” He shook his head at Eren’s question about siblings. “I’m an only child. So were my parents so I don’t have any cousins I can blame for it. Maybe neighbors' kids? That or my grandfather used Pan as an excuse to watch it,” he said with a grin. “But it’s one cartoon I can put on and go in the other room to study and not be upset about missing it. If only I could train him to turn off the tv when he’s done watching.”
“I wouldn’t want that either. And I’m really hoping we have classes together.” Armin said looking up at him and biting his lower lip.
***
“I love working with Mom. I just can’t see me trying to get a raise to get out of a punishment quicker. I’ve actually learned a lot at her shop. I mean, she taught us at home how to cook, but the bakery is different. Did you like helping out in the bookshop?” Eren asked as he moved his basket from one arm to the other. They were getting closer to the register, and he was very glad that this wasn’t going to be goodbye. “You’ll have to show me sometime, maybe we can take her there together? And she’s pretty friendly to most animals, I think. Well, I mean she’s chased birds before but she’s never caught one. I don’t think she’d know what to do with one, to be honest.”
“We can look it up when we get out of here? Maybe he can though.” Eren felt a little bad for Armin, that he didn’t have siblings or cousins growing up. How lonely was that for him? “That could be it, he used Pan as an excuse. He was just being a good greatgrandfather to his grandcat? ...He’s a cat, cats do as they please. I don’t think he wants to turn the tv off.”
Eren grinned widely at Armin and leaned over to bump his shoulder softly with his own. “I really, really hope that we do.”
***
“I learned how to cook from my mom but baking...I’m still kind of trial and error there. I loved helping him out in the bookshop. He would tell me stories about when dad was little while we were unpacking boxes and I got to help with orders, make sure we were getting things in that other people would want to read. And he always let me see the new travel books first so that I could see all the places I could travel and see. And he’d tell me stories about the things he did when he was there for some of them.” Armin said, his voice softening as he talked about that time with his granddad. He loved his parents but the person he missed most being away for school was his grandfather. He’d always been closest with him growing up. “Sounds like Pan with squirrels. He likes to stalk them through the window but I don’t think he’d know what to do with one if he actually caught one. I think he’d be scared of them. And I’ll make sure to show you where it is sometime and maybe I could play fetch with her when we take her?”
“Granddad loves Pan. He thinks he’s hilarious with his little hoodies. I think most of the pictures I have of him are ones that he took for friends who didn’t believe him about my cat wearing them. ...Good point. He pretty much does what he wants. Spoiled child of mine,” he said with a grin over his shoulder as he set his basket of books on the counter so they could be rung up, reaching for his wallet as the girl gave him the amount and using his card to pay for it. His parents would ask when they saw the amount coming out of their checking account but he’d just tell them - textbooks. That was literally all he’d used it for.
He stepped over to the side, waiting for Eren to finish checking out and then gave him a small smile. “I took the bus here since I didn’t know where to park. Is the coffee shop you’re thinking about in walking distance?”
***
Eren smiled warmly as he listened to the other boy talk about his family, about his grandfather. He must have been the one to inspire Armin to want to see the world. “I guess now you get to skype him to tell him about all the places you’re learning about? And after graduation, you can tell him stories about all the places that you go.” Eren laughed at the mental image of the cat stalking squirrels, all while wearing a hoodie. “I think that she will love that.”
“Spoiled with love from the sound of it.” he said as he started moving things around in his basket to make it easier to unload, as he waited for the cashier to finish with Armin’s books. As the other boy’s transaction finished, he put his own basket on the counter. He looked over at Armin and shrugged. “With these books, maybe not. But I drove here, and I can drive you back home later?”
***
Armin flushed when Eren mentioned him telling his grandfather about his travels after graduation. “I guess I’m pretty obvious about him inspiring me,” he admitted with a shrug. He wasn’t ashamed of being close to his grandfather. He thought the old man was pretty amazing.
“I’ll have to show you pictures of him. You’ll understand why it’s so hard to tell him no about things. He’s impossible not to love I think.” He said softly. He bit down on his lip at the suggestion that Eren drive him home later, thinking about it before nodding and agreeing. It would be a few extra minutes to get to know the other boy better and he didn’t want to pass up that chance. “It’s a deal. I think I tell you how to get to my apartment from here. If not - I have google maps on my phone and can get directions that way.”