Sunrise ~ An Eremika Story

Chapter 9

"No. Way." Sasha said in disbelief. 

"It's true! Mikasa, tell her!" Eren exclaimed. 

Mikasa chuckled, "He did. He beat me, once." she announced. 

"It's gonna happen more than once, so be prepared Ackerman." Eren mumbled. The rest of the table laughed, not entirely convinced by Eren's threat. He rolled his eyes, but couldn't help but laugh along as well. 

Jean tapped Mikasa on the shoulder, and tilted his head towards the door. "Follow me." he whispered, while the rest of the table was still distracted. She was confused, but followed him out anyway. 

He brought her out to the deck, and began studying the stars. 

"What did you need?" Mikasa asked, taking the spot beside him. 

"You." he said casually, keeping his eyes glued on the sky. 

She gave him a puzzled expression, and waited for him to elaborate. 

"I like you Mikasa. A lot." he explained, meeting her eye contact. Mikasa stayed quiet, as she felt her stomach turn uncomfortably. 

"We always have fun together, I want it to be like that all the time. I want to be with you..." he began, placing a hand on her shoulder. She flinched at the touch, but remained speechless. 

"Jean, I-"

 "Imagine Mikasa..." he interrupted. "Imagine us ten years from now, shit, make it five years. We'll have a nice home, and we'll have lots of money. I'll wake up every morning to make you an omelet, and I'll treat you to a candle lit dinner every night." he told her, waiting for her face to light up. 

She thought about his sentiment for a moment, but it still didn't sound right. 

"Jean-" 

"Oh! And I just know we'll have enough money to buy a home for your parents too. They can live in the house next to ours, they'll grow old together there." he added. 

Her mind raced at his suggestion, and she felt the floor crumbling beneath her feet. 

Could this simple decision... Dramatically affect my parents lives? I'm being offered a comfortable lifestyle right here and now... Why am I not ecstatic? Why does it sound so... wrong? No. I'm being selfish. My parents. What could this mean for my parents... 

"I... I want to be with you to, Jean." Mikasa muttered. The statement was pathetic and carried no emotion, yet he believed every word. 

He grinned and took Mikasa's hand, rushing them back inside. He stopped in front of the table full of their friends, and caught their attention. 

"Guys..." he began, holding onto Mikasa's hand tight. "This is my girlfriend. Mikasa Ackerman." he introduced her as if she hadn't been friends with them first. 

The table remained speechless for a few moments, and Mikasa cringed from the awkwardness of it all.

 "Well... Congrats!" Connie finally exclaimed, raising his glass of water. Armin joined him, "Yeah! Good for you guys!" he added half heartedly. Sasha offered Jean a hesitant smile, and then exchanged a look of confusion with Mikasa. 

Eren didn't say a word, nor did he look up from his plate. Something told him not to look, perhaps because he might lose his shit if he did. 

Jean sat back down with Mikasa, and joined in on the awkward silence. 

"So! We got an expedition coming up." Connie said, trying to instigate a normal conversation. 

"Oh yeah! That might be fun." Armin added. 

Jean scoffed, "Fun? Carrying heavy supplies through a forest for hours on end doesn't really spark the word 'fun' for me." he remarked. 

While those three continued their conversation, Sasha shared a puzzled glance with Mikasa. Mikasa read the look as 'What where and when the actual fuck?', but she decided to address that later.

 She looked across the table at Eren, who silently poked at his food. He wore an agitated expression, one that he wasn't wearing before. But he wasn't just annoyed, he looked a little disappointed almost. 

But considering the rest of the table's reactions, they were all a little disappointed. They all liked Jean (excluding Eren), and they all liked Mikasa, so what was the issue? 

Mikasa and Sasha said goodnight to the boys, and made their way back to the girls cabin. The second they stepped into the cabin, Sasha released everything that was on her mind. "Ok so first off, what where and when the fuck?" she exclaimed. 

Mikasa called it. 

Mikasa sighed, and looked around the room. All the other girls had their eyes on them due to Sasha's outburst. "Let's... talk outside." Mikasa muttered. 

Once they stepped out, Sasha crossed her arms and waited for an explanation. 

Mikasa sighed, "He just kind of asked out of nowhere... And I don't know, I kind of like him." 

"You kind of like him?" 

"Yes! So what's the problem?" Mikasa asked, now crossing her own arms. 

Sasha sighed, "I don't know. You guys don't really click you know?" 

Mikasa shook her head, "No, I don't. What do you mean click?" 

"I mean, you guys have nothing in common. Jean's very... how do I put this, simple? While you're very complex." Sasha explained. "So? Why's that a bad thing?" Mikasa asked. 

"It's not bad, I just think that maybe you would be better off with someone who's constantly getting you to challenge yourself, not just some yes man." 

Mikasa frowned, "Jean's... nice. And we both have the same life goals." 

"Is that what this is about?" Sasha asked. 

Mikasa didn't reply, she didn't exactly know how to. Is that what this is about? 

Sasha sighed, "Mika, you seem to always be unsure. But if you want to be with Jean, I support you." 

Mikasa gave her a small smile, "Thank you Sasha... And yes. I do." Sasha returned the soft smile, "Then that's all that matters."