The Next Day: Day One
Bertholdt sat outside the front door of his house with his luggage by his side. In his hand, he held a mug filled with coffee. The tall male wasn't a morning person, by any means, but the coffee helped keep him awake for the most part. He yawned gently as he waited for Reiner to pick him up. Since Bertholdt wasn't a licensed driver, and his mother had to work soon, he couldn't get to Armin's on his own.
After a minute or two, Reiner pulled up to Bertholdt's house. He honked his car horn for a few seconds as the blond reached one hand back to adjust a suspicious pile of blankets.
Bertholdt glanced up to see Reiner's car pulling into the driveway. With a smile, he opened the front door to tell his mother he was leaving. This led to his mother nearly hugging and kissing her son to death. Thankfully, the tall beanpole escaped and made his way over to the car. After getting his luggage in the trunk, Bertholdt made his way over to the door of the passenger side and opened it. "Morning Reiner." He greeted his friend with an exhausted smile as he got into the vehicle. "You ready for-" He stopped suddenly when his eyes made their way to the backseat. "W-What's the pile of blankets for?"
The strong blond looked back and shrugged, "That's always been in the back of my car. You never noticed?"
"No actually, I-I haven't..." Bertholdt eyed the blankets up and down. "Are you sure that's always been back there? Every time I've been in here, that's never there."
Reiner smiled at Bertholdt and shook his head with a light laugh, "I guess you've never been observant enough. Silly Bertholdt."
Suddenly, the pile barked, causing the v-fringed male to jump a bit in surprise. He glanced over his shoulder towards the blankets, an eyebrow raised in confusion. The boy turned to look at his best friend, then looked back to the backseat. Carefully, he leaned forward and attempted to lift the blankets.
Reiner reached over and slapped Bertl's hand away, "Don't touch the pile! Nobody needs to touch the pile!"
"Ouch!" Bertholdt pulled his hand back, gently rubbing the place Reiner hit him. "H-Hey!"
The pile barked once again.
Reiner turned to the pile, "Shut up Ca-...Pile"
"A-Alright, that's it." Bertholdt lifted up the pile of blankets. His eyes widened in shock. There, in the backseat, was Captain Axel, Reiner's dog. The giant Saint Bernard was wearing a old fashioned looking dress and a bonnet on his head. The dog barked again and gave Bertholdt's cheek a friendly lick. The boy groaned gently as he wiped his cheek with his arm.
Reiner turned to face foward. "Bertholdt...meet my grandma." He said casually
The v-fringed male couldn't believe that Reiner was actually going to do this. He actually thought this was going to work. The younger of the two slowly turned his head towards his best friend. "S-Seriously?"
The blond nodded. "Seriously. Say hi to grandma."
Bertholdt returned to his seat, "R-Reiner, usually I'm okay with you doing these kinds of things..." He paused for a brief moment. "Sometimes....depending on the situation....but, w-what person would fall for that? W-We're going to get in trouble!"
Reiner shushed his friend, "As long as we act like nothing's wrong, GRANDMA can come with us."
"Reiner, we..." The boy sighed. "It's not going to work...Eren and Armin only won twelve tickets. E-Even if we could...um...take Captain Axel with us, we wouldn't be able to. We would have to leave him behind...You have to take us back to your house and drop him off."
Reiner offered a quick solution, "We can ditch someone. I've never been fond of Ymir. We can leave her behind and take Grandma."
"R-Reiner no!" Bertholdt exclaimed, surprised. "We can't do that!"
"We can. You just won't. Besides, like anyone would miss Ymir."
"T-There's Krista."
The blond rolled his eyes, "What about Krista? I'll be there, who else does she need?"
"W-Well, aren't she and Ymir...um...dating?"
"Why would you say such a thing?!" Reiner exclaimed, putting his hand to his chest in a shocked manner.
"I mean it's true!" The beanpole exclaimed, throwing his hands up in the air anxiously."W-We joined in on their date a month ago, r-remember!?"
Reiner continued to defend his obliviousness, "They were just gals being pals then though!"
"N-No, I'm pretty sure Krista said they were on a date."
The brawny male shook his head. "She didn't say it to me."
"That's because you-"
Suddenly, a ringing noise interrupted the conversation. Bertholdt looked down at his pocket and pulled out his phone. "H-Hold on." He accepted the call, holding the phone to his ear. "Hello?"
"Bertholdt, where are you guys?"
"A-Annie?"
"You and Reiner were supposed to pick me up ten minutes ago!"
His eyes widened. "O-Oh my gosh! Annie, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry! We'll be there soon!"
"You better."
Before Bertholdt could say anything else, Annie had hung up. He placed the phone back in his pocket, a horrified expression on his face. His head slowly turned to Reiner, then looked forward. "We forgot Annie."
"Okay, Captain can go." Reiner concluded, a satisfied smile lacing his lips.
"Alright that's-wait what? N-No! We need to get Annie!"
Reiner scoffed, "We don't need to-"
"W-We do because I'm going to-" Bertholdt stopped mid-sentence, a faint blush appearing on his cheeks. "...you know what, never mind. J-Just...Let's go drop off the dog at your house and then go get Annie."
Reiner threw the car into drive almost as if he were throwing a tantrum, "Fine! Just separate me from the love of my life. You wouldn't separate Mikasa and Eren."
"A-Actually, we could...but um...it would be kind of hard to do.." The taller male mumbled quietly.
Reiner began to make arguments for his dog, "The Captain has never been to Disney World either!"
"Neither have I or Annie!" Bertholdt snapped suddenly. Just after he shouted, he was quiet. He was surprised at himself. He had just yelled at his best friend. Sweat poured down his face as the silence engulfed the car. The poor boy glanced down slightly, biting his bottom lip for a few seconds. "I-I'm sorry Reiner, I really am. I...um...didn't mean to yell at you..." He looked back up at his friend. "I-I just don't want to see you get in trouble..."
Reiner angrily mumbled something under his breath as he drove.
Bertholdt's features fell as he watched Reiner. The boy sighed silently as he turned to look out the window as they drove. He really did feel sorry. Deep down, he wanted to take Captain Axel with them too. Yet, he had to think about it logically. What person would fall for Reiner's little trick? No one in their right mind would think a dog was a human if it dressed as one. Bertholdt felt bad for his best friend most of all. All he wanted was for his dog to enjoy the trip too. Yet, sadly it couldn't really be done. The boy glanced over his shoulder at the Saint Bernard, more guilt filling his soul. "I'm sorry boy." He whispered.
Captain Axel just looked at the boy happily. He had absolutely no idea what was going on. All he knew was that he was going on a car ride.
Once the boys got back to the Braun residence, it was silent between them. Reiner sighed as he exited the car, walking over to the front of his house to open the door. He then began to make his way back to the car. Bertholdt watched from the passenger side, with guilt and pity washing over him like ocean waves. The boy turned back to the dog reaching over to pet him. "We'll be back in a week. Y-You be good for Mr. and Mrs. Braun while Reiner's gone, okay?"
Captain Axel barked as if he understood Bertholdt, but it was only because the tallest boy was petting him.
Reiner opened the backseat car door and pointed to the front door of the house. "C'mon Captain. Inside."
Doing as his master said, the lovable Saint Bernard jumped out of the car. He raced into the house and out of the corner of his eye, Bertholdt could see Mrs. Braun there to shut the front door.
Reiner got back in the driver's seat and started his car once more, "Alright, let's go get Annie." He said as he began to back out of his driveway.
Bertholdt looked over to him and nodded. "O-Okay."
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Meanwhile, Annie was waiting on her front porch for the boys, her patience wearing thin. "I swear if they aren't here soon, I'm going to knee them in the stomach so hard, they won't-" Before she could finish, she heard a car horn honking. She glanced up to see Reiner's car pulling into her driveway. "They are so lucky." She mumbled as she grabbed her suitcase and exited her house. Annie made her way over to the car and placed her bag in the trunk. Once that was accomplished, she entered the back seat. "About time you guys got here. What took you so long?"
"I-It's a long story..." Bertholdt stammered, feeling butterflies in his stomach.
Annie shrugged and leaned back in her seat. She glanced down to see the blankets on the floor of the car. "Do I want to know why there are blankets on the-"
"No!" Bertholdt interrupted. "I-I mean...yes! Um...I mean, just don't ask." He awkwardly chuckled.
The blonde raised an eyebrow confused at him. "Okay?"
Reiner looked back to Annie as if he were explaining the situation, "Bertholdt doesn't like to have fun, that's what happened."
"H-Hey! I like to have fun!" Bertholdt tried to defend himself, "Just...when there's no consequences involved."
Reiner went back to looking hurt and offended, "Then ya just should've let it happen. No one would've blamed you."
"Yeah, but I-I was worried for your sake. You're my best friend Reiner...and I-I didn't want to see you get in trouble..."
Reiner gave a slightly sarcastic smile, "I would've been fine. I'm charming enough to get myself out of any trouble"
Annie, who was staring out the window, rolled her eyes. "Sure you are." She said quietly.
"Look, I'm really sorry b-but um...you have to look at things like that logically..." The v-fringed male turned to look at his best friend. "Is there anyway I can make it up to you?"
Reiner turned his face away from his best friend and spoke dramatically, "I don't know. I'm sure there's irreparable damage to my sensitive little heart."
"I-I said I was sorry!" Bertholdt exclaimed, clearly upset. "I didn't mean to make you mad...or sad...or both." He groaned as he put his face into his hands, his voice muffled a bit.
The brawny teen laughed lightly and shoved his friend, "Dude, chill it's okay."
The taller male lifted his head out of his hands slowly, his eyes wide with surprise. "Y-You mean...you aren't mad at me?"
Reiner shook his head, keeping his eyes on the road. "I'm not mad at you."
"B-But I yelled at you and...other things..."
"Eh, it's fine. You were just looking out for me."
Bertholdt gave the blond a gentle, grateful and very relieved smile. What did he deserve to have such a good friend like Reiner?
"I'm sorry to interrupt your tea party, ladies, but are we almost there?" Annie said, ruining the heart-felt moment.
Reiner shrugged, "Not sure. I don't know where Armin lives."
Annie's crystal blue eyes widened as she turned to look at Reiner. "...You've got to be kidding me...."
Bertholdt felt sweat rolling down his face. "I-I thought you knew Reiner!"
"I assumed one of you knew and would tell me if I went the wrong way."
Annie narrowed her eyes angrily. "Reiner, you motherfu-"
"Don't worry guys." Bertholdt interrupted, pulling out his phone. "I um...have Armin's number. I'll call him."
Reiner gave a small nod, "Alright."
The v-fringed male dialed Armin's number and waited for an answer. Thankfully, the boy did indeed pick up and Bertholdt talked to him about directions. After a minute or so, the v-fringed male hung up the phone and placed it back in his pocket.
"Well?" Annie said, looking to the tall beanpole.
Bertholdt glanced to Annie, then to Reiner. "U-Um...we're completely lost. He told me that we actually past it a while back. T-Turn around Reiner."
Reiner nodded once again and waited until the road was clear to make a u-turn, "Gotcha. Now what?"
"U-Um, we're going straight for a few miles," He responded. "Then at this one street we make a left, then a right onto the development."
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As the trio tried to find their way, everyone else had arrived at Armin's house. They were all standing on the porch.
Armin looked over everyone's luggage briefly to make sure everyone had what they needed, but stopped right away when he got to Ymir. "Ymir, you only have one shirt! You aren't properly prepared."
Ymir dug through her bag and pulled out a pair of socks, "I also have a pair of socks."
Armin sighed, "Mikasa, give Ymir some of your shirts. She's taller than you but at least it won't be gross."
Mikasa nodded and begun to make her to the front door.
Ymir shook her head and called to the girl, "Mikasa, no. I won't wear them anyway and you'll never get them back." Mikasa didn't hear her, however, and opened the door to head inside. She had spent a lot of days at Armin's with Eren so he had a drawer were some of her clothes were.
Armin went to Sasha next, "Sasha! We can't bring outside food on the plane!"
Sasha looked up from her popcorn, her face shocked. "We can't?! Why not!?
"It's against the rules!" Armin explained.
"That's not fair!" The girl whined as she shoved another handful of the popcorn in her mouth.
Armin frowned lightly. "Just eat it before you get on the plane."
The brunette opened her mouth to say something, but nothing came out. She couldn't argue with him. With a sigh, she nodded. "Okay."
Just then, Mikasa came back outside. She was carrying a few t-shirts in her hands. "It's a good thing I kept these here." She handed them to Ymir. "They're old so I don't mind if I don't get these back."
Ymir took them and shoved them in her bag. "Still not gonna wear 'em." She muttered.
"Just think of how much fun we're all gonna have!" Marco cheered excitedly to Jean. "There's so much to do! There's the Magic Kingdom, EPCOT, Hollywood Studios, Animal Kingdom..." The boy continued to ramble on and on.
Jean added as Marco spoke, "All the hot girls"
"Yeah! All the hot-" The slightly taller boy stopped. "Wait a minute..."
"And guys..." Jean added mindlessly. He paused for a brief moment. "...I mean I'm straight."
Marco looked at him for a few seconds in silence, his eyebrows raised in confusion. He brushed it off and continued, "Anyway, and think of the parades!"
Jean nodded awkwardly adjusting his suitcase in his hands, "Yep totally and I'm straight. If you didn't know."
Krista stood near her luggage, a big smile was on her face. She was nearly jumping up and down from how excited she was. "I can't believe we're actually going! This must be a dream! It has to be! It's too good to be true!"
Ymir yawned and lifted her arms above her head stretching, "I can't wait to sleep in a different place other than my bed."
"Imagine what our hotel will look like! I bet it looks beautiful!" The little blonde sighed dreamily.
The tall freckled girl laughed lightly, "I bet the bed is really soft."
"Armin told me that the hotel has a pool too!"
Ymir let her arms fall back to her sides , "Can we bring floats? I can sleep in the pool."
"I think we can bring floats...but you aren't sleeping in the pool. I won't allow that." Krista answered.
Ymir looked to her girlfriend and smirked, "You won't allow it?"
Before Krista could answer, Armin made his way to the front and faced all of his friends. "Okay guys! We should really get our plane tickets and figure out who's rooming with who. It's two or three to a room."
Marco nodded in agreement. "Good idea Armin!"
"Wait a second!" Sasha cried out, "What about Reiner, Bertholdt and Annie?"
Armin smiled softly, "They said they were on their way. Reiner got lost."
As soon as he said that, Reiner pulled up the driveway. The three of them got out of the car.
"And another thing Annie," Reiner said as they all got out of the car,"Dogs don't claw your face off like cats. Dogs are better."
Annie only rolled her eyes and went to the trunk to grab all the luggage, with Bertholdt's help of course.
"I-I just hope we aren't late." Bertholdt said with a worried tone, as the three of them made their way to the front porch.
Reiner grinned, "Of course not! Everyone else is just early."
Armin glanced up his smile falling slightly, "No. You're late."
"I'm sorry we're late Armin." Bertholdt said quietly, "Reiner and I were having...um...a bit of a problem. Then we had to go pick up Annie."
"Not to mention I had to sit through their make-up session." Annie piped up, crossing her arms over her chest and rolled her eyes. "I felt like I was in an episode of Full House or something."
Krista looked over to them and gave a happy smile. "Well you guys are here now, and that's all that matters!"
Armin nodded smiling politely at Bertholdt before continuing, "Yeah, now I assume Krista and Ymir will want to sit together on the plane... And room together."
Ymir makes finger guns of approval towards Armin.
Armin continued to list the assumed pairs, "Reiner and Bertholdt will want to sit together. So would Eren and Mikasa....Sasha and Connie too...Jean and Marco. That leaves...me and Annie." The boy whispered, "Dear God Help me."
Annie shrugged, "I guess I'm fine with that."
"Alright then. Here are our plane tickets." Armin passed out the tickets, "Alright guys! To the bus stop!"
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Next chapter's going to be fun! XD