CENTERED

what can i do?

—

"I think you're insane for keeping your feelings from me for that long." you confess under your breath and pick up and rearrange the flowers to where you want them.

"How so?"

"I know that you think I don't like you in the same ways you like me-"

"No I just think you'll never like me as much as I like you, there's a difference." He insisted.

"You doubt yourself when it comes to me too much."  You complain and walk around him and the counter, there was a pause in the conversation before he changed the subject.

"Can we go out?"

"Like where?" You ask and he stands in the kitchen as you walk toward the stairs.

"Wanna eat?" He suggested and you yawned as you walked up the steps and nodded in his direction, he went and sat on the couch so you could go get ready.

You went upstairs and showered and got dressed, you were putting your shirt on when you could hear your phone ringing from downstairs. You hurried off and put your socks on before rushing downstairs so the call wouldn't be missed, Eren turned his head at you on the couch and you grabbed your phone off the kitchen counter.

You looked at the caller ID and hung up instantly once you saw who it was, Armin.

"Who was it?"

"Uh...nobody important," you deny and quickly put your phone back into your pocket.

He stands up from the couch and you walk over to the front door and grab your shoes off the rack and put them on. He approaches and lets you use his shoulder to hold onto as you put your last shoe on, you open the door and see Carlos standing there with a gift basket.

"Happy birthday sir!" Carlos cheers and you stare at him then whip your head around at Eren.

"It's your birthday?! Why didn't you tell me?!"

"It didn't come up, I don't celebrate my birthday either." He said, both of you stood there with the door open staring at Carlos and Eren kept his hands in the pockets of his pants while blankly looking at the both of you.

"You should still say thank you," you instruct in a whisper to Eren.

"Thank you, Carlos." Eren weakly smiles at him and takes the gift basket, Carlos looked satisfied so you both began exiting through the hall.

"What should I do with the gift basket?" He asks when you reach the elevator.

"Keep it, it's a gift,"  you respond in the elevator and he just awkwardly stands next to you with the gift basket in his hand, he turns to you and tries to hand it to you.

"Happy early birthda-"

"Stop it!" You smack his hands as he tries to give you the basket instead and the doors open on the lobby floor for the both of you to walk out together.

You walked to his car together, getting in the passenger's side and he set the basket in the backseat.

"Where are we going to eat?" You asked and he turned off from his parking spot.

"Home," he answers, you slowly turn your head and furrow your brow toward him.

"As in, I'm cooking...at my house," he clarified and you nodded and focused your attention elsewhere out the window.

Your phone started ringing again, ten minutes into the drive to his house and you glanced at your phone in your hand and saw Armin's name, you put your phone under your thigh and ignored the call. You were more worried that he would do something to Eren to hurt him, you couldn't have that. If you ignored it, things would settle itself out.