Note: I'm sorry for the wait on this. I have been so busy the last few months, since my girlfriend and I have been looking for a new place to live and packing. Plus Christmas and work and NaNoWriMo (which I sadly did not win this year.) This is currently unbeta'd except for myself, so if there are any errors I greatly apologize and I will go back and correct anything I have to. Please enjoy.

Chapter 5

Eren was waiting in his living room impatiently, walking back and forth in front of the couch as he checked his watch multiple times. He wasn't used to waiting to go somewhere, but Sasha, Mikasa, and Annie were going to a movie and Eren's car was still broken at Mikasa's dad's garage. Armin didn't mind driving though, and he still had another give minutes before he was considered late. Despite all that, Eren was incredibly anxious to get the day started.

He felt his phone ring in his pocket and quickly answered it. "Hey!"

"Hey, Eren, I'm outside!" He was out the door before Armin had a change to hang up his phone and they waved to each other before he climbed in the car. "Morning," Armin greeted with a smile and Eren grinned back. It was like everything that happened yesterday was a distant memory as he was focused right here in this moment. It was a great feeling overall, Eren decided, as he rested his arm on the back of Armin's seat.

"Morning. I hope you're ready for the best day ever," Eren laughed as he plugged in the address into the GPS on his phone. He hoped it would be the best day ever, at least.

Armin nodded. "I picked us upset some coffee too. I wasn't sure what you liked so I just got you a regular iced coffee." He motioned to the drinks in his center console and picked up Eren's to hand to him before pulling away from the curb, listening to the voice on the GPS to direct him where to go. Eren accepted the drink graciously and took a large swig through the straw, letting the delicious flavor fill his mouth.

"This is delicious," he replied happily and Armin's face lit up, obviously pleased with himself as he pulled into the highway. Their destination was only a few miles away though Armin had declined Eren's offer for gas money three times already. HE cited the fact that Eren drove last time and Eren let it drop.

Armin asked carefully, "Am I going to get a hint as to what we're doing today?"

"Nope," Eren replied nervously. "You'll see when we get there."

Armin pursed his lips slightly. "That's not fair. I could be driving into a warzone right now and be caught totally unaware." Eren laughed and Armin even let himself laugh, though he was determined to find out what they were doing. When they were finally approaching their destination, Armin inquired, "The Air and Space Museum?" He stared at Eren for a moment as they were pulling into the parking lot, and Eren turned off his GPS and slipped his phone into his pocket.

"I know you've probably been here a dozen times," Eren said before Armin could express his disappointment. "But they just finished a part of the museum that had been out of service for a couple years and today is the grand reopening!" He had done a lot of searching to find something suitable and this, he felt, was perfect.

Armin frowned, a hand to his chin as he contemplated what it possibly could be. "I haven't even been keeping up on this museum since I was so caught up in school." He chuckled and hopped out of the car, leading them to the front door he had probably been through hundreds of times. Eren had already bought their tickets in advance, and was able to bypass the counter altogether as he headed towards their attraction.

They arrived at the line and Eren handed Armin his ticket. "I hope you'll enjoy it."

Armin met his eyes for a moment and then glanced down to the ticket. "Planetarium?" he read aloud and then looked back up with a startled expression. "I have been to one since grandpa took me when I was a kid." Eren's heart dropped, wondering if he had misinterpreted Armin in the short time they had been getting to know each other. He seemed wholly uninterested in the entire idea.

"We can do something else," he said quickly, feeling disappointed that he had messed up so pathetically. "I'll see if I can exchange the tickets or—"

Armin threw his arms around Eren's shoulders and hugged him tightly, stunning him. He pulled back from the hug though left his hands on Eren's shoulders, beaming at him. "Thank you, Eren," he said in exhilaration, pushing him in the direction of the previously closed planetarium. It was a complete 180 of what Eren had been expecting and he obediently followed Armin into the planetarium, decidedly more pleased with his choice of outing. "I know where the best seats are," he whispered almost conspiratorially, ushering him to a set of two that were near the back of the theater. "This is where grandpa and I sat when we used to come."

Eren said, "I wonder if a lot of the show's changed since then?"

Armin shrugged. "Probably. There's been a lot of advances in technology and new discoveries since then too." Eren nodded in agreement, though he was at a loss to what those advances or new discoveries might be. Armin was practically bouncing on his seat in excitement, watching as the other patrons trickled in little by little and checked his watch impatiently. Eren was content just watching him, the shifting of his hair and the way his mouth turned into a smile everytime he glanced at the ceiling to see the faded projection of the stars in the lit room. He liked the way his hands played with anything to keep busy; the hem of his shirt, folding and bending the ticket stub until it was full of creases.

"Should be starting soon," Eren mentioned as he checked the time on his phone. It was five minutes to ten, and Armin finally settled back in his seat and rested his arms on the armrests on either side of him, still bouncing in excitement. Before Eren could say anything else, the lights dimmed and the announcer began to speak, thanking them for attending and listing off the rules of the planetarium in a dull, but pleasant female monotone. He glanced at Armin as the show finally started and he was smiling so softly at Eren that he felt himself blush, though he hope the semi-darkness covered that fact. Armin glanced away as soon as their eyes met, though, and Eren couldn't tell what he was thinking.

As the the pleasant female monotone began listing the facts in the most boring way possible, he had Armin at his ear, expanding on the facts and adding his own narrative, bringing life to the presentation by leaps and bounds. He made the entirety of space seem so much more fascinating as he pointed at constellations and told their history, named every star before the narration could. "That's Orion," he said in a whisper, as the view of the sky changed to focus on that constellation. "You probably have heard of Orion's belt, and it has three beautiful stars: Alnitak, Alnilam, and Mintaka." He pointed to each as he listed their names. "That red one represents his shoulder, and is a pretty well known star called Betelgeuse, and it was the token star of an ancient Japanese clan."

Armin pointed to the star directly across the belt from Betelgeuse, a bright star that Eren suddenly realized he already knew the name of. "Rigel, right?" he said before Armin did, causing Armin to pause and watch him in surprise. "That's three stars, even though it only looks like one, isn't it?" Armin continued to stare silently at him, and Eren suddenly felt self conscious, wondering if he was remembering incorrectly as he blurted out in a whisper, wondering if he was just digging himself a deeper grave, "It's one of the brightest stars in the sky, right...?"Armin leaned over between the armrests and pressed his mouth to Eren's without any warning. His heartrate skyrocketed and he froze in his seat, completely shocked by the course that this was currently taking.

His friend pulled back from the kiss as suddenly as he instigated it, his face terrified as he leaned as far back in his seat as he could without falling out of his chair. He whispered frantically, "I'm sorry, Eren—I, shit, I have to go—" It finally struck Eren as to why Armin was panicking and reached out to take his hands before he could rush from the planetarium, silencing all of his worries by pulling him back into a kiss. He opened his eyes and saw that Armin's eyes had started to water, though he couldn't begin to fathom why.

He tried to shush him and Armin sniffled loudly, gripping Eren's hands tightly as he swallowed. "You okay, Armin?" Eren whispered, taking the edge of his sleeve to dab at the corners of his eyes gently. He watching him with those lovely blue eyes and Eren gave him an uncertain half-smile, holding one of his hands firmly, wrapping his fingers awkwardly around Armin's until the show ended.

When they were back in the car, Armin was too embarrassed to look at him, though he did not yet start the vehicle which Eren assumed meant he wanted to talk. He didn't push him to start, though, afraid that Armin may say it was a mistake, that he was sorry, and he didn't think he could fall from a painful revelation like that without some sort of cushion. But it was difficult not to think of the sweet taste of Armin's mouth on his own and the warmth of their hands pressed together.

It was more than he ever dreamed of.

"Eren," Armin started cautiously, turning away from the steering wheel after he had brought all his thoughts together. He looked him in the eyes, his expression determined but his eyes still cowed. "I'm going to be completely honest with you, because you deserve it. But please don't think poorly of me." Eren wasn't sure what to expect at the boy sighed and pushed his hair out of his eyes, picking at a thread on his jeans. "I've liked you since you started showing up to library so often. Before you commandeered my cart and went stair surfing, believe it or not." He cracked a smile and Eren returned it, trying to find the right words to say. "I've kind of been taking advantage of all this time to get closer to you."

Eren nodded and touched Armin's soft hair and the young man seemed unsure of what was going to happen. "Armin, there's really nothing to worry about," he chuckled, shrugging. He wasn't one to go into long speeches or big admissions of affection; he was a do or die type of person and this was no exception. He liked Armin, wanted to spend his time with Armin, wanted to hold his hand and take him on dates and kiss him goodnight. All of those wishes tickled the tip of his tongue but instead he said, "I feel the same." The glowing look on his face was enough for him.

"Do you want to come to my house to hang out?" Armin asked shyly, looking at his fingers.

"Absolutely."

Armin's home was larger behind that stained glass door than he expected, with towering ornate arches to many of the rooms and the highest ceiling he had ever seen. It was all lavishly furnished and decorated tastefully and Eren wondered how long it took his parents to make it look as nice as it was. The kitchen was enormous and it took several strides to cross the room over to the fridge, and Eren watched as Armin plucked out a bottle of water from the fridge. "Help yourself," he urged as he held the door open, prompting Eren to also grab a bottle too.

"Do you live here with your parents?" he asked in awe as he examined the enormous television in the living room and the stylish black and white leather couches before it. He turned to follow Armin up the stairs, and while it was only two stories, it seemed like it was much larger than he had anticipated when looking from the outside.

"Ah, not quite," Armin replied, a nervous twinge in his voice alerting Eren to a change in atmosphere. They entered through a double door at the end of the main hall and Eren realized that it must have been the master bedroom. Armin had made it his own A large bad sat in the corner and it was only partially made, dark blue and white sheets sloppily pushed to one side. His desk sat opposite from it next to an incredibly modern looking computer that seemed to outpace Eren's own by several years. Against the window sat a telescope, large and wide though it did not seemed to have been used in some time. There were books stacked everywhere in various states of being read, sticky notes poking between the pages in several different colors.

"This is definitely you," Eren said with a smile, examining a solar system project that was a little more in depth than your average high schooler's. Armin seemed almost embarrassed, though Eren couldn't imagine why. He was pretty happy with how the situation had unfolded, and he desperately hoped that Armin hadn't changed his mind. "You okay?" he asked cautiously, taking a seat on the futon in the room.

Armin bit his lip. "Well, I never have people over because I never really tell people that I live here alone."

"Alone?" He couldn't even imagine the kind of money that would need to go into the upkeep of a house this large, in addition to the bills and food. The thought of it made his head spin because he knew Armin couldn't afford this only based on the money he made as a part time librarian. The blond young man remained silent, as if he were too afraid to say anything more on the matter. "Armin, if you don't want to talk about it you don't have to."

Armin shook his head. "No, it's okay." He sat next to Eren and the brunette took his hand, running his thumb softly over his skin as Armin's face softened. Leaning up against his arm, Armin took a deep breath and released it softly. "My parents are dead," he admitted bluntly, shrugging against Eren's shoulder in a way that spoke volumes about how many times he had said this before. "It was about ten years ago in an accident with an ambulance. The driver was the only survivor." Armin shook his head and Eren squeezed his hand comfortingly. "My parents were both doctors and after the accident I received a lot of money from their life insurance. I was only nine so my Grandpa took care of me for a while after that."

"And the house?" Eren prodded curiously, hoping that he wasn't being too nosy.

"They already owned it. While the life insurance money pays for the bills and the upkeep, I have my own job to help me cover food and anything I might want. It'll keep me stable until I graduate at least." He was quiet again and Eren was unsure of what to say, hoping that he was able to comfort him somehow but had no idea what he could even do. He pressed a kiss to Armin's forehead, knowing it was the least he could do and Armin turned to face him, his eyes watering but a smile on his lips. "I never really told anyone the whole story before," he admitted, using the back of his free hand to wipe his tears before they fell.

Eren smiled. "I'm glad you did. I lost my dad when I was little, and Mikasa lost her mom. So we both know a little bit how you feel."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Armin said genuinely, touching Eren's face gently with the tips of his fingers.

"Thank you, but it's okay. It's been a while, and I barely knew him." It was true. Grisha Jaeger was only a memory in photographs and John Ackerman was the only father he really ever knew. He loved the man and respected him, and saw him as his father. His mother was happy, and Eren would never want to have it any other way.

Armin smiled at him. "I'm glad you're happy." Eren leaned down to kiss him, the feeling sending warmth down his spine as Armin pressed his hand to his cheek, kissing him back. They backed away from each other and Eren felt a goofy grin spread across his lips as if this were the best day of his life. Armin smiled brightly back and snuggled into Eren's side. He asked quietly, "So is this a thing? Like an official thing?"

Eren paused to contemplate the question, brushing his fingers through Armin's hair. It was everything he had dared to hope for and more since he had first set eyes on the quiet, intelligent librarian. He was thoughtful and kind, enthusiastic and caring, and Eren couldn't find a single reason why this couldn't be the best thing that ever happened to him. "Yeah. Yeah it is. This is a thing." Armin was flushing brightly and Eren thought it was the most attractive, adorable thing he had ever seen. He pressed his face in embarrassment into Eren's chest.

Eren never felt better.

The rest of the day was spent in Armin's living room playing video games, which Eren was delighted to see that he had. They cycled through new and classic games and Armin ordered a pizza for them to share, which they ate until they were full to bursting and drank soda until they were laughing so hard at some of the online players they couldn't breathe. It wasn't until Eren's mother texted him at nearly ten o'clock that night that he realized how late it had gotten.

"Shit," he murmured when he checked his text messages, reading the words to himself and then stuffing his phone back into his pocket. "Mom's wondering when I'll be home," he grumbled, running a hand through his hair as Armin shrugged.

"I've had you all day, go home. I can see you tomorrow." Eren nodded and followed suit as Armin began to put his shoes on. He grabbed his keys from the rack and motioned Eren out the door first. He locked it behind them and ushered Eren into his car, hopping into the driver's seat with more energy than Eren could ever remember him displaying. The drive back was uneventful and over much more quickly than Eren would have liked, and he frowned as he turned to Armin.

"If you're free tomorrow, you're welcome to come back over," he mentioned with a shy smile as they pulled up to Eren's house. The shades were draw, though he could tell that the lights were still on inside. He was sure his mother had stayed up to wait for him to return home like she usually did, and he couldn't help but smile.

That answer was more than obvious, Eren mused. "I'll see you tomorrow then." He leaned over across the center console and kissed Armin goodbye, the gesture a little more passionate than he had intended but Armin was more than receptive. When he pulled back, Armin waved goodbye and Eren climbed out of the car, his head swimming and his heart pounding from the exhilaration of the idea that he could now do that whenever he pleased.

"Eren!" His mother turned from the counter in the kitchen where she had been talking with Mikasa and hurried across the living room to him. "Where have you been? I texted you."

He hugged her tightly in his way of apologizing. "Sorry mom. I was out with a friend and I lost track of the time." She sighed and nodded, checking surreptitiously to make sure he truly was all right. She resigned herself to accepting his explanation and shook her head. Mikasa was smiling at him knowingly over his mother's shoulder and he chose to ignore her, instead focusing on the light frown his mom was sporting.

"Let me know next time. I was worried." He agreed that he would, hugged his sister and went to bed. It had been a long day, longer than he realized, but it was a great one. A happy one. Before he allowed himself to sleep he checked his phone and sent Armin a text with a goodnight attached and then closed his eyes.