Archive of Our Own

Armin supposed it all started when Eren decided to make a tumblr account for the first time. Eren didn't think having or running a blog was anything special or worth doing, saying blogging was for people with no life. Boy, was he wrong.

So, Armin had helped him set up his tumblr account, find a theme, follow some random blogs here and there and basically helped Eren get started on the famous website that ruined the lives of students all over the world. Armin would admit even he was guilty of scrolling through his tumblr dashboard when he was feeling a little stressed with homework and projects that he needed to work on.

Eren quickly found that he liked blogging in the end and of course, Armin was pleased and amused when the brunet would send him random tumblr posts he'd seen on his dashboard that he thought they related to or thought were funny or cute. His favorites were when Eren would send him gifsets of his favorite character from his favorite tv shows or movies and he'd nerd about them. Armin would then tease him about becoming a nerd with 'no life' who only spent their time on tumblr reblogging post after post. Eren never tried to deny it after that.

Things got interesting however when Eren said he followed a weird blog one day.

"The guy has over one-thousand followers but all he ever posts or blogs about are shit jokes, sports and tea. Like... a lot of fucking tea."

Eren was currently scrolling through the blog he mentioned before he handed his phone over to Armin so the blond could see for himself. Armin read the url name at the top: Heichous-Tea-House.tumblr.com It was a unique name, Armin would admit but it made sense considering the guy reblogged a lot of photography of tea, teacups, different types of tea leaves and at the same time he also reblogged several posts about various sports like boxing, MMA, Judo, Karate, Taekwondo. Of course, Armin came across the shit jokes Eren had mentioned and the blond couldn't help but titter at the simple and vulgar posts.

"Well, obviously he's doing something right if he's got that many followers. Maybe he's really hot. Did you search his blog for a picture of himself?"

Eren snorted incredulously through his nose, "I highly doubt it, Ar. The guy just seems... weird."

"If it bothers you so much, go to his askbox and ask him why he makes so many shit jokes."

The brunet seemed to be mulling the thought over for a bit as he continued to scroll further down the mysterious tea lover's blog but eventually he settled on Armin's suggestion.

"Alright, I asked him." Eren said putting his phone face down on the table top making Armin frown at the action.

"You're going to scratch the screen like that, Eren."

Rolling his eyes, Eren flipped the phone over so that the screen was facing up and he reclaimed his forgotten cup of coffee. They still had twenty more minutes before their next morning class but Eren had insisted on stopping by the little cafe on campus and getting a quick pick-me-up since he stayed up late playing Mass Effect again and only got four hours of sleep if even that. The two of them sat and chatted for a little while longer before Eren's phone screen lit up with a notification from Tumblr. The brunet snatched his phone up at lightening speed and slid the pad of his thumb over the screen, his large verdian green eyes darting across the screen to read whatever his notification were.

"Holy shit, Ar. He answered!" Eren all but yelled in disbelief.

"Well? What'd he say?"

Eren tapped a few things on his screen before he squinted his eyes a bit and Armin sighed as he fished through Eren's backpack to give the attractive idiot his reading glasses. Eren always made a fuss about wearing them because his glasses were rather thick and outdated if Armin was being honest but he still thought they made his friend look ridiculously cute and he was sure he wasn't the only one either.

"He said 'Because I can, shitty brat.'" frowning up at Armin who couldn't help but giggle at the response, Eren immediately started tapping away at his phone screen again.

"Uh-oh. You have that look on your face again."

"What look?"

"That look you get when you're about to do something you'll regret." Armin pointed out.

Eren flashed him a charming smirk, "When have I ever done something I've regretted?"

Armin said nothing to that and only stared at Eren dubiously as the brunet continued to tap away at his phone. Once he was done, he tapped his screen one final time and shoved his phone into the pocket of his jeans.

"Okay, we'd better get to class." Eren announced as he stood up from his seat across from Armin and began gathering his things.

"You didn't even finish your coffee, Eren."

The brunet threw out his half-full cup and slung his backpack over a shoulder as he started for the exit with a slightly confused Armin trailing after him, struggling to keep up with Eren's wide strides. The brunet was grinning from ear to ear and the blond just couldn't help but wonder why.

This smiling while staring at his phone continued, much to Armin's chagrin. Whenever the blond would try and prompt Eren to answer his questions for as to why he kept smiling every time he got a new notification on his phone, Eren's smile would only widen but he never said anything besides 'Just something dumb I saw on tumblr.' and it irked Armin more than it should have. He was just so damn curious to know what had the brunet smiling and laughing at his phone all the time.

So one day, when Armin finally had enough, he stole Eren's phone while the brunet was sleeping and immediately began snooping through his phone. The perks of being roommates with your childhood best friend and knowing their sleeping habits by now, Armin supposed. He found nothing extraordinary in Eren's text messages, just the usual mom-texts from Mikasa asking Eren if he'd eaten properly that day, done all his homework, etc. Along with some text messages from their mutual friends like Sasha, Connie and Marco and some guys from the Soccer team Eren played with like Jean, Reiner and Bertholdt.

Armin went through Eren's phone contents with a fine-toothed comb and found nothing weird or different but then a new notification from tumblr popped up and the blond let curiosity get the better of him, opening the mobile app and seeing a new ask in Eren's ask box. In the end, Armin discovered it was just a reply to a fanmail Eren had started and the number of replies between Eren and the ever Mysterious shit-joke master Heichous-Tea-House were countless. He felt a little guilty for reading through Eren's private conversation but he'd already gone too far to turn back now.

Reading the most recent reply from this 'Levi', Armin paused in thought at the sound of the familiar name before he read the rest of the message. He and Eren had apparently been talking about their hobbies and what they liked to do during their free-time.

Levi had asked.

Armin thought on this question for a moment. So, apparently Eren hadn't given out too much information about himself which was amazing considering Eren tended to take risks whether he realized it or not. Still, judging by their conversation so far, Levi wasn't as willing to give out just any information about himself either way. Armin scrolled through their numerous replies once more and tried to figure out if he could learn anything else about the mysterious Levi but things only really clicked when Armin scrolled through his blog once more and notice a picture Levi had posted two days ago of his favorite cup of black tea at a familiar looking cafe.

There was no mistaking it. The black iron tables, the small, homey feel of the cafe in the backdrop. It was the same exact cafe as the one on Armin and Eren's campus and after going through the tags, Armin nearly jumped up with joy at his discovery. He recognized a couple of the names mentioned in the tag #Captain America and Shitty Glasses finally left me alone and Armin had to muffle his own laughter in his pillow because, dear god. He couldn't believe this was actually happening. It was like those stories you read about on tumblr about how two people become friends online and end up finding out they lived in the same apartment complex or some cheesy story like that.

Captain America was no doubt the famous Senior at their University, Erwin Smith. Armin doubted there was anyone on Campus who hadn't at least heard of Erwin by name but the blond man was often referred to as Captain America or Steve Rogers due to his uncanny resemblance. Shitty Glasses was a little harder to figure out but when he thought about it, Armin remembered that there was also a senior who was often seen with Erwin Smith who wore glasses and had a rather loud demeanor. Her name was Hanji Zoe, if Armin remembered correctly. A Science major. The more Armin pieced the puzzle together, the closer he got to figuring out who Levi was until it finally hit him.

Levi Ackerman, another famous Senior on campus. How could Armin possibly forget him? It was unthinkable. Levi was in one of the classes he shared with Eren, always sitting near the front and never interacting with anyone. He was a rather short man but what he lacked in height he made up for in presence. The man was absolutely terrifying with the permanent scowl on his face and a fierce glare that could probably tame a wild lion with just one look. He often wore a lot of black so he didn't necessarily stick out while sitting among the rest of the class but when the man was walking through Campus, people normally did their best to stay out of Levi's way.

It was almost laughable, Armin thought. That the mysterious enigmatic Heichous-Tea-House was the infamous Levi Ackerman and that somehow, Eren had managed to befriend one of the most intimidating guys on campus at Trost U. Armin knew he was probably overstepping his boundaries by doing this, but he was truly curious to know if Levi ever recognized Eren in their class at all and if he did, what did he think about the brunet? Shaking off the little pangs of guilt he felt as he tapped out a reply, Armin settled with himself that this was something he had to know for sure in order to sate his own curiosity.

Armin nibbled his lower lip as he re-read over his reply several times, hoping it wouldn't sound too unlike Eren for Levi to realize it wasn't him asking this in the end. Tapping 'send' before he changed his mind, Armin waited with bated breaths for what felt like several hours as he sat in the mostly dark dorm room he shared with Eren while the brunet slept peacefully. After ten minutes or so, Eren's phone lit up again and Armin nearly dropped the device due to his own nerves.

That was Levi's cautious answer and Armin supposed he couldn't blame him for being a little suspicious but it was frustrating him just a bit. He just needed to know if it was really that Levi for sure before he tried to do anything else. Taking a deep breath, Armin tapped out another reply, feeling how hot Eren's phone was getting in his hand and glancing up at the battery to see that it was down to 11%.

Armin continued to reply with Levi back and forth like this, keeping the information about Eren vague, only telling Levi his full name and what he majored in. Surprisingly, Levi was terribly curious to know more about Eren which only made Armin smile victoriously. In the end, he ended up talking to Levi for two hours before he told the other man he (Eren) was going to bed so he wouldn't be late for classes in the morning and turned Eren's phone off before plugging it into the wall charger. Feeling a little too giddy to sleep, Armin rested his eyes and tried to figure out a way for Eren and Levi to 'accidentally' meet each other tomorrow. It was silly, trying to set his best friend up with someone he barely even knew but if their enthusiastic conversations by far were anything to go by, Eren obviously liked the guy and Levi obviously liked him.

Levi probably wouldn't have been Eren's choice in any other situation and Armin should know because he'd been there when Eren got together with his first boyfriend, Thomas. Was there when his second boyfriend, Samuel, cheated on him. Was there when Eren's third boyfriend, Mylius, stalked him even after they broke up. Eren's type leaned more toward their friend Reiner who was tall, blond and ripped and Levi was well... short, scary and a little tired looking. Still, Armin didn't deny that Levi was sometimes the topic of some of the swooning girls on Campus so there was obviously something charming about the man and whatever it was, Eren was clearly taken by him.

The next morning, a slightly tired Armin and an energized Eren walked to their first class and Armin began counting down the minutes to their next class where Levi was sure to be. The blond was determined to get Eren and Levi to meet, even if it killed him. He was now convinced that he was shipping his best friend with some random guy from their class that he met on tumblr but he just couldn't help. Thinking of how cute Eren and Levi would look together just got Armin feeling all fuzzy inside and he couldn't help but beam as they made their way over toward their second class of the morning.

Eren gave him a questioning look as they entered the room, "You've been smiling a little too much this morning. What's with you, Ar?"

"Huh? Oh! Nothing, nothing! Um, why don't you go on ahead of me and save me my usual seat, I forgot something."

Armin didn't give Eren the chance to stop him before he was darting back out of the room and pressing himself up against the hallway wall as he peeked into the room to scan for Levi. Blue eyes raked over every face in the front row but he saw no signs of the short, angry man clad in black that morning. He did however see Eren chatting up some of their other classmates and Armin was relieved that there was something distracting Eren from realizing Armin was taking a little too long to get back.

"Oi," a low, irritated voice said off to Armin's right and the blond startled slightly. Blue eyes turned to meet cool grey eyes fixed in an annoyed glare and the blond subconsciously swallowed upon coming face to face with none other than Levi Ackerman. "You're blocking the way, kid." he grumbled before shoving past Armin who tried to side-step out of Levi's way, but only just barely making it.

Once Levi was inside the classroom, Armin let out a shaky breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding and he immediately went back to peeking into the classroom to scope everything out. As usual, Levi took as seat near the front of the class with his back facing toward everyone as he pulled out his cellphone and started tapping away at the screen. Armin smiled to himself, knowing that Levi was probably going through his tumblr messages from 'Eren' from last night. Taking a quick glance back at Eren who was now checking the time on his phone and sighing, Armin decided it was now or never. He was going to set everything in motion.

The blond stepped into the room with a little extra pep in his step, having a hard time wiping the wide smile off his face. He purposely walked in front of Levi, stopping a few steps short to shout up at Eren who had begun to doodle absently at a page in his notebook.

"Eren!!" he called a little more loudly than was necessary as he waved his friend down.

The brunet sat straight up in his seat, glancing around with wide turquoise eyes before they settled on Armin's figure down in front who was smiling and waving at him like a madman. Furrowing his brows in confusion, Eren cracked an unsure smile and waved back awkwardly at Armin who started jogging toward Eren and the empty seat next to him. The blond chanced a glance back toward Levi was now turned fully in his seat, staring up at Eren with narrowed eyes scrutinizing the brunet carefully and Armin felt pride swell in his chest. Phase one of the mission, complete!

Armin quickly took his seat next to Eren who gave him curious looks, "So, did you get whatever it is you forgot?"

"Yup!" Armin chirped happily.

"You're being so weird today, Armin. Did you get enough sleep last night?"

Armin rolled his eyes but smiled regardless, "I don't want to hear that from you of all people. Mr. Stays-up-at-all-hours-of-the-night-playing-video-games."

The brunet smiled sheepishly but shrugged with a little laugh that eventually died into an odd clearing of the throat. Now it was Armin's turn to give Eren curious stares as the brunet suddenly sank in his seat and buried his face behind his notebook.

"What's up with you all of a sudden?" Armin asked with an arched brow.

"Is it just me or is that guy with the undercut near the front row glaring at me a little too much?"

Armin tried to play it off as if he didn't know what Eren was talking about, glancing around the room a bit before his blue eyes settled on Levi who was still turned in his seat, still staring at Eren only now he wasn't squinting anymore and Armin thought he saw the tiniest of smiles on Levi's thin lips although it could have just been his imagination. He doubted it though.

"Oh, you mean Levi?" Armin sang a little too cheerfully and Eren immediately perked up at the name.

"Levi? Is that his name?"

Armin nodded with a grin, "Mhm. He's a senior. Geez, Eren. We've only had the same class with him every morning for the past three months."

Eren didn't answer Armin, instead choosing to stare straight back at Levi and it was clear that the little wheel in Eren's head was going to work as he fished his phone out of his pocket and Armin could see him opening up his tumblr app and scrolling through his messages. Armin pursed his lips together to stifle the wide smile that wanted to break out across his face and he barely succeeded as Eren tapped out a response to Heichous-Tea-House and bright teal eyes were back on Levi who was now fishing his own phone out of his pocket. Armin had a hard time keeping quiet during the whole ordeal as realization lit up on both Levi and Eren's faces.

"Eren, what's up?" Armin finally asked once he thought he could control his giddiness.

The brunet was squinting as he read whatever Levi had said to him in reply and then Armin watched with great amusement as Eren's entire face turned a lovely shade of pink and the tips of his ears reddened. The blond chanced a glance up at a very pleased looking Levi who finally turned back in his seat, his back facing them once more. This time, Eren broke out into a shy little smile as he folded his forearms on top of the table in front of him and rested his chin against one of his arms while still smiling.

"Eren?" Armin prompted while poking his best friend in the side with a tip of his finger but Eren only buried his flushed face into his arms.

"It's nothing." came his muffled voice and this time Armin allowed him to smile in victory. His plan had worked perfectly and now Levi and Eren were aware of each other's existence.

Only later would Armin find out what had made Eren flush like an innocent church girl when he snatched Eren's phone away while they were sitting in the cafe. The brunet hadn't put his phone down the entire morning after seeing Levi in their second class and he was keeping his lips sealed tightly much to Armin's frustration. Eventually, the blond got fed up and started going through Eren's phone reading the last message that was exchanged between Levi and Eren on tumblr.

Armin spent the rest of the week teasing Eren about his new boyfriend, while Mikasa kept probing Eren with endless questions about Levi and how they met in the first place since this was the first she was hearing of any of this. Eren threatened to never forgive Armin for all the taunting but Armin guessed the Brunet didn't actually mind all the teasing in the end.