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“Oh man…” Eren sighs, shifting the tray in his hands to run a hand through his hair in a mixture of frustration and gratefulness, “Thanks for the save back there, Reiner.”
“Don’t mention it! You know, you were pretty amazing.” Armin watches in slight exasperation as Reiner beams at Eren, who looks slightly sheepish but mostly proud. “What happened anyway?”
“I have no idea,” Eren growls in frustration, “One moment I was reeling myself in and the next I wasn’t. I was so close to the checkpoint, I won’t let some malfunctioning gear stop me!”
“That’s the spirit!” Reiner laughs, patting the seat beside him. “The stunt you pulled back there was really impressive. Why don’t you have a seat and tell me about it?”
“Sorry, maybe next time.” Eren jerks his head in the direction of the door, where Sasha and Marco are sitting at a nearby table. “Marco said he’d help me out with patching up my gear…”
“Ah, you gotta do what you gotta do,” Reiner shrugs good-naturedly, “But join us for a meal sometime?”
“You got it.” Eren grins, clapping Reiner on the shoulder before heading out to join the others for lunch.
One of Reiner’s hands goes up to where Eren had touched him, trying to look nonchalant and failing. “So, hypothetically,” Reiner murmurs to Armin, eyes still on Eren’s retreating back, “from the scale of one to ten, how likely is it he’s into me?”
Armin sighs; Reiner is a great friend, really, but sometimes… “Reiner, is this hypothetical, or is it ‘hypothetical’?”
“Uh – the first one, duh!” Reiner drags out a burst of too-loud laughter, eyes darting away from Eren, and Armin has known Reiner long enough to recognize the signs. “I mean. Not that I’d complain if he’s looking my way, but, you know.” The bigger boy shrugs. “He’s probably not. And I learned my lesson.” He crosses his arms defensively as Armin raises a skeptical brow at him. “I did!”
Armin remains unconvinced, and Reiner rolls his eyes, hands going to his untouched food. “Anyway. Back on topic – what’s the probability?” He tears his loaf in two and drops half of it onto Armin’s plate absent-mindedly; some part of Armin wants to remind him that they don’t have to worry about running out of food here, but he decides against it. It’s simply who Reiner is.
However, that does leave him with a loaf and a half of bread, plus a bowl of warm stew. He’s honestly not sure if he could finish it all.
“Hm.” Armin takes a bite of the bread from Reiner, chewing as he considers his answer. Honesty is what Reiner needs now, so Armin gives him that. “I’d say a one, though that is already a generous estimate.”
“Oh.” Reiner says, and Armin doesn’t need to look up to see the disappointment in his friend’s eyes – the forced levity of his tone was enough. “Heh, yeah.”
Armin picks at the loaf, watching Reiner take careful sips of the stew from the corner of his eye. “You yourself said that he’s probably not interested.” He reminds Reiner as gently as he could. Reiner may put on a boisterous front, but – contrary to Reiner’s thoughts on the subject – Armin can, in fact, tell when Reiner is upset, even if Reiner himself would rather pretend those moments didn’t exist.
“Yeah, I – Wait.” His tone is still light and teasing, but there’s a hopeful gleam in Reiner’s eyes that Armin isn’t entire sure that he likes. “So… If I take that back, does that mean I have a better chance?”
Armin winces. “That’s not how that works.” You know that, he wants to add, because Reiner’s habit of willful self-deception never ceases to confuse him.
“I was just joking!” Reiner rolls his eyes. “Man, I can’t believe you took it seriously.” He laughs a little, all wry fondness and self-depreciation laced with a faint layer of lingering disappointment. “I know I’m not as smart as you, but I’m not that dumb! Geez, give me some credit, kiddo.” He grumbles half-heartedly and reaches over to mess with Armin’s hair.
Armin lets him, wordlessly combing through the tangles when Reiner turns his attention back to lunch. He makes a face as his fingers encounter a particularly stubborn knot, and the small frustrated noise he makes catches Reiner’s attention.
“Want some help?” He asks, and before Armin can give him an answer Reiner leaves his seat to stand behind the smaller boy, thick fingers picking at the tangled strands. “I know it’s regulation length, but don’t you think it’s too long?” He fusses as he works at the knot, a hint of concern in his tone. “It’s kind of an obvious target in a brawl.”
Armin considers his friend’s suggestion and decides against it. He is rather attached to his hairstyle, and it’s not long enough to be impractical. “I don’t think I have to worry about brawls in the near future…”
“If you say so.” Reiner sighs, tone clearly skeptical. “Aha – There!” He tugs lightly at Armin’s detangled hair, “All done.”
“Thank you,” Armin smiles wryly. “Even though this wouldn’t have been a problem if you left my hair alone in the first place.”
“Oh come on,” Reiner laughs, “I fixed it, didn’t I?”
“You did,” Armin concedes, and Reiner pats him on the back before going back to his seat and attacking his bowl of stew with his usual vigor.
Armin clears his throat after a few beats. “Reiner?”
“Yeah?”
“It’s not – it’s not you. It’s him. He’s not ready.” Armin says. Maybe he’s forcing the issue with this awkward attempt at comfort, and he knows Reiner would rather they both pretend the first half of lunch never happened, but it needs to be said.
Reiner’s jaw hangs open, eyes wide with surprise. “You – wha –” He stammers and bursts into laughter. “You have no idea – ahahaha! – How clichéd that sounded!” Reiner doubles over in hysterics, loud enough to attract the attention of Hannah and Franz on the next table over. “Oh man!” He wheezes, “Please don’t tell me you’re planning on confessing to Mikasa with lame lines like those!”
Armin blinks. “What does Mikasa have to do with anything?”
“I hate to break it to you, buddy, but it’s the worst kept secret.” Reiner lays a brotherly hand on Armin’s shoulder. “You stare too much, y’know?”
“Reiner…” Armin sighs. “I do not have those kinds of feelings for Mikasa.”
“Suuuure you don’t.” Reiner drawls, sarcasm dripping from every word.
“I don’t. I just find her interesting. And even if I do have romantic inclinations towards her…” Armin hesitates – is it cruel of him to push the subject? “It’s not the discussion we’re having.”
“I wasn’t serious, alright? It’s just a stupid question.” Reiner rolls his eyes, “Just drop it.”
“… Of course.” Armin drops his gaze on the remaining piece of bread as he shreds it carefully between his fingers. “Forget I said anything.”