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You propped your face up on your hand as you listened to Jean talk, gazing at him from the opposite side of the table. You did your best to have an interested expression even as he continued to spout the same monologue as always.
“It’s all in your core, Y/N. It makes you more agile.” A chuckle. “These abs ain’t for nothing.” Jean gestured to his stomach with a flirtatious smirk on his face.
It was somewhat annoying that he felt the need to show off to you, considering you’d been dating for several months now, but you humoured him all the same. Jean was at his most obnoxious when he had something to prove, you knew. It was insecurity that made him show off, monologuing about his skills and how everyone else needed to be more like him. At first, it’d been just as annoying to you as it was to others, but over time you’d managed to find something of the real Jean underneath. Now, instead of finding his bouts of showing off annoying, they didn’t bother you. The same couldn’t be said for everyone.
“Do you ever shut up?” Eren interrupted from the table next to yours. Armin elbowed him in an effort to get him to be more polite, but Eren ignored it. “We already know how to use ODM gear, otherwise we wouldn’t be here! This is just another excuse for you to show off to everyone and your girlfriend.” You saw the muscles in Jean’s jaw tense and knew this argument wouldn’t be diffused by any outside force. The two of them were similarly stubborn when it came to the other.
“What does it matter to you, psycho?” Jean’s response was relatively tame considering Eren’s insults. The other boy didn’t hesitate before firing back.
“It’s annoying for a start. Not just to me but to everyone in the class! I’m sure even Y/N finds it annoying, and they’d tell you that if you actually spent less time paying attention to your own reflection and more time on them!” You could physically see Jean getting more and more wound up. This would get physical and there was nothing anyone could do about it. “I don’t understand how they even put up with you, i know i wouldn’t. Maybe you have some special deeply hidden redeeming quality that you’re denying the rest of us, or maybe Y/N hates you just as much as we all do!”
That was personal. Jean lunged at the other boy, merciless as he tackled him to the floor. The two of them grappled with each other, exchanging hits and blows as they shouted insults at each other. It was at this point that most of the group, including you, began to lose interest in the argument. Seeing the two of them come to physical blows wasn’t exactly unusual, no matter how much you wished otherwise. And you knew that no matter how vile and hurtful their insults got, they were both strong enough to prevent the other causing serious physical injury.
The fight lasted for several minutes before Mikasa lost her patience. She grabbed Eren by the back of his shirt, no doubt choking him, and threw him from the building. You heard his cry of protest as he fell down the steps, landing in a heap outside the mess hall.
There was a stretch of silence after that, a collective sigh of relief as the situation was diffused. You expected Jean to come back and sit down with you, as he usually did after fighting with Eren. Instead, he simply stood for a while longer, body still tense with anger, before stalking off, stepping over Eren and into the night.
You stared in surprise for several moments. Should you follow him? Although Jean might have wanted some time alone to work through his anger, he hadn’t eaten much of his food and your company might be helpful. You sat for a moment longer before deciding. After gathering up what food you could carry, haphazardly stuffing bread into your pockets, you were following him, stepping over Eren and out the door.
It didn’t take you long to find the other recruit. The perks of dating Jean meant you knew exactly where he’d go when annoyed or upset. There was a small clearing a few minutes walk away from the training ground, some old tree trunks making handy seats when you needed. When you got there, he was facing away from you, sitting with his head in his hands and looking moments away from pulling his hair out. You felt a pang of sympathy for your boyfriend, knowing exactly which bits of the argument were bothering him.
But as well as that, you also knew that Jean didn’t like talking about his feelings when asked openly. He had a tendency to bottle up negative emotions, not unlike yourself, and then have them explode forth as anger later down the line. But with time and patience Jean was getting more comfortable with you, especially since you didn’t push him to say more than he wanted. So instead of leaping into conversation, you simply took a seat next to the boy, handing him one of the small loaves of bread and eating in companionable silence.
Jean seemed to appreciate the gesture, even if his face said otherwise. He took the bread from you and ate slowly, consumed by his thoughts.
“Do you find me annoying?” He asked after several minutes. You could tell he was taking care to keep his expression and tone neutral, giving very little away about how much you knew it had to be affecting him. Sensing that he was now ready to talk a little more about what had just gone on, you put your food down and gave him your full attention.
“When you start talking like how you did back there?” Jean nodded. “That’s part of you and i don’t find you annoying, quite the opposite in fact…” You nudged him with your shoulder to cement the comment but Jean still didn’t look convinced. Instead of letting him stew in his thoughts any longer, you elaborated. “I don’t mind it, really. I know it comes from a good place, you’re only trying to help people.”
“Everyone else just thinks I’m a show off…”
“Maybe you are,” You admitted. Jean turned to you, expression shocked and betrayed, but you continued before he had the chance to speak. “You care far too much about what other people think, even if their opinions are worthless. So yes, you show off to try and gain their respect, but you don’t need to. I for one didn’t fall in love with cocky Jean, the Jean that’s really good at everything. I feel in love with someone who cares deeply about his friends, someone that doesn't give up no matter what and has high aspirations for himself and those around him. You don’t need to show off because everyone else can see that too, and we all love you for it.”
There was silence for a long time after that. Jean refused to look at you and you knew it was to hide the few stray tears that had escaped him. You gave him all the time he needed. It was important for him to get in touch with this side of himself, to help him grow and become more mature. And more than that, it was important for him to realise how valued he was, both by you and the rest of the recruits. Even Eren probably liked him to some degree, you just had to prove that to him.