Chapter Text
The muddy water reached little Armin to midway up his shins, where he stood in his grandfather’s flooded garden. Barefoot and content, he bounced on his heels, smiling wide and proud at the splash he had just made from jumping into a puddle. Despite the warm summer rain making him squint to see, his eyes clearly shone at his friend. “Jump in!” he exclaimed, hands open as if to catch the other.
In front of him, chubby-cheeked little Eren grinned to showcase a missing front tooth. “Right! Watch out, here I come!” He gave a joyous cry, and leapt into the air, aiming for a big, big splash – and landed right into his giggling friend’s arms, rendering them both thoroughly soaked in muddy brown water. A few drops scattered over Armin’s cheek, but neither of them saw any issue in that; it just made for an extra chuckle.
“Oh, Eren,” Armin sighed, nose red from weather and delight. He was always so impressed with his friend’s gusto; that really was an extraordinary splash, wasn’t it?
“That was awesome!” Eren obviously agreed, stomping his feet for more stir. “Just wait, next time I see those stupid-heads, I’ll splash them too!” He held onto Armin’s over-arms as he encouraged him to jump. “You can do it too! Just like this! Splash! Take this! Splash! Take that! Sploosh!” His vicarious daydream made him laugh until Armin did the same, and they continued to jump and giggle together until Eren had a mind to sit right down.
Quick to follow, Armin sat down beside him, not caring that the water was nippy – because Eren was his friend and that warmed from within. “Oh, Eren,” he repeated in his quiet way.
“Oh, Armin,” Eren replied, shaking his head at him.
They looked at each other, and Armin wondered to himself if maybe Eren had the same fire in his belly that he had. Or if Eren had ever smiled so much it had actually hurt, yet not hurt at the same time. Armin’s grandfather would always call him bright, but Armin felt more bewildered than anything, about the way Eren could make him feel utterly contradictory things. “Just like now”, he though, as Eren took his hand and smiled like he expected an answer – to what, Armin wasn’t sure. He should be cold and wet and yearning for a blanket – and to some extent he did – yet Armin had to admit to himself that sitting here, in the slimy grass, this was the perfect-est of spots in the whole entire walled world. Because Eren was here; his friend was here; the one boy who listened, the one boy who mattered.
“I bet they’d get water in their eyes and run crying home to their mommy,” Eren said softly, his rough little hands carefully lacing fingers with the other.
Something must have clicked, then; something must have reminded Eren of what his mother would have had to say about their current situation, because the mud on Armin’s cheek seemed suddenly important to him: he leaned in, and with a clumsy few swipes of his jacket sleeve, he brushed it off. Nose tips almost bumping, Armin thought he read “might as well” in Eren’s eyes just as his friend leaned the rest of the way in and gave the cheek of focus a light peck – the kind a mother would give to heal a boo-boo.
“There,” Eren said with confidence, leaning back and catching Armin’s eyes before smiling. There was something about the way he’d look at Armin when he did these things, a way that’d deflect Armin’s knee-jerk reaction to feel inferior to him; there was more than care in Eren’s eyes; it looked almost like pride. Although Armin had no idea how that could be the case, he still allowed it to wash away any fear of being pitied. At least for now it cold be ignored; as long as Eren’s eyes were right there, insisting on something else.
“Thank you,” Armin breathed and wiped his nose once he realized it had begun to run. Their dream was waiting for them, but for now he thought he’d invite Eren inside; hot tea didn’t sound too bad just now.
“You too,” was Eren’s - to Armin, somewhat bewildering - reply. His eyes still read “pride”.