#WPTS

[dude-why-3]

Who painted the sky?

Chapter 17: Night Shenanigans

“Can we get back to what we were doing before?”

Through the dark of the night, she sees Armin’s eyes widen slightly as if he weren’t expecting it. Annie presses her lips together, for a moment wondering if he’s having the same doubts as her. But then he smiles that kind smile of his, taking her hand into his, and nudges her away from the wall and guides her inside, the warmth of his room engulfing her as soon as she steps foot in. His room, she realises as he leads her to the bed, smells of books and cinnamon.

“Are you sure?” his voice is soft, his eyes searching hers thoroughly.

Annie cups his face, bringing it closer to her own, touching her forehead to his. “I like kissing you,” she mutters, her lips so close to his she can feel his breath on her skin. 

Armin swallows visibly, his Adam's apple bobbing slightly. Annie face warms, painfully so, but she doesn’t find it in herself to close the distance. Armin brings a hand over hers and peels it away from his cheek, his smile broadening only slightly, and for a second she thinks he’s about to push her away.

He brings her hand to his lips instead, and places a kiss on the back of her hand. Her face gets warmer again, and there it is, that fluttery feeling in her chest as he turns her hand over and kisses her palm all the way to her pulse. His other hand comes around her middle and he turns them around, lying her on her back, but she regains her composure shortly, her hands cupping his faces. A little smirk makes its way to her lips when she notices the deepening blush on his complexion; she finds that she has the same effect on him as he does on her, which fills her with more pride than it probably should. 

She brings his face closer and claims his lips, pressing hers against his with such ardour. He groans at the sudden contact but doesn’t protest, kissing her back. His hands travel up her sides firmly, his knee pressing between hers, sending shivers all the way down her spine. Swallowing a sigh, she slides her tongue over his, trying to regain control over the situation, eliciting another little sound from him. They part for air, his lips soon finding her cheek, peppering kisses all the way to her jaw, his hands travelling her body and her own tangling in his hair, and–

“What are we doing?” she pushes the words out without much thought, immediately regretting it when he parts from her.

“I think this counts as making out,” he smiles, straightening himself.

Her lips arch up as she props up on her elbows. Armin draws back, and they both properly sit up. Annie pecks his cheek.

“Let’s watch a movie.”

“I like the furniture in this one,” says Hitch, propping herself up on her elbow.

Her and Reiner are sprawled into her bed, her iPad between them being the only source of light in the dark room– the fairy lights she’s hung above her bed ran out of battery, and Annie’s side is so barred of light it almost hurts. Speaking of, she hasn’t seen her roommate since dinner ended and, given the amount of bear alerts they’ve gotten since, is begging to wonder whether she was caught and feasted on by the wild animals. The only thing keeping her from going out and looking for Annie is the apartment hunting her and Reiner have engaged in.

“The furniture is nice,” he agrees, pulling her out of her thoughts. 

She looks back at the screen. The furniture fits the whole atmosphere of the place, the dark wood contrasting the white walls just right, and the caramel couch fitting just right by the bookcase. Across from it is a small TV hung on the wall, and a round table to its left, surrounded by two chairs. The kitchen has the same color palette as the living room, which looks rather overdone considering how small the kitchen is– it has no table and chairs, just the small cooking area– but she supposes it will make do. 

“Although,” Reiner says, which makes Hitch raise a curious eyebrow, “I find the place a bit small.” He clicks through the pictures again, stopping to analyze the bedroom again. 

Trying to get a better look, Hitch scoots closer, her shoulder brushing against his. She takes in the scent of his shampoo, smelling of mint and papaya, for some odd reason. The corner of his lips tug up, and Hitch can feel her face warming up. She rolls her eyes, more at herself really, for they have been doing this for years already and he still makes her feel lightheaded by just existing next to her. She averts her eyes to the iPad.

The bedroom is, indeed, small, with a king sized bed in the middle of the room and a nightstand on its right, a wardrobe not much bigger than the one in her camp room to its left, and a hideous pink rug right by the door. The bedroom would have no space for a working desk and, as both of them will be in college, having one is a must. She supposes the table in the living room could pass as a working space, but it certainly wouldn’t fit two people working at the same time. 

She sighs. Reiner is right, however much she might like the furniture. 

“And it’s pricey too, for what it has to offer,” Hitch points out, and Reiner hums in agreement.

So, they exit the page and go back to the many renting announcements on book-a-flat for what feels like the hundredth time. There was still light outside when they started looking and her excitement is starting to wear out now. Hitch yawns, and shortly after, Reiner does the same. He drops his head into the mattress, and Hitch leans closer until she gets under his arm. He smiles softly at her, a rare sight nowadays, his eyes glistening in the dim light.

“We’ll find something,” she assures him, bringing her hand up and caressing his cheek. She narrows her eyes when she feels his cheek bone under her fingers, more pronounced than it used to be. Than it should be.

Reiner’s hand comes over hers and slowly peels it away, his eyes not meeting hers, as if he knew exactly what was on her mind and refused to acknowledge it. He’s been doing it a lot lately, avoiding the subject as if whatever happened was not worth mentioning. As if losing a parent, regardless of their rotten relationship, was no big deal. 

He buries his head in the crook of her shoulder, putting his arms around her body and bringing her closer to him. Hitch sighs and closes her eyes, bringing her own arms around his shoulders, caressing his hair.

She reminds herself then that this past year hasn’t been kind on anyone, and especially not on him. She couldn’t push him, or anyone really, to talk about it when they weren’t ready.

Hitch’s eyes are blinded by a sudden light. 

Reiner draws back, the lack of his warmth suddenly making her shudder– when has it gotten so cold inside? When she opens her eyes, Hitch finds she can perfectly see his face– flushed, wide-eyed. 

The light has been turned on.

Frowning, she turns her head towards the light switch by the door, and Reiner follows suit. 

There, standing by the door with her hand frozen on the light switch, she finds her roommate. Annie is staring at the two of them with wide eyes, her face flushed a shade of red Hitch has never seen on her before, her eyes wide. Reiner hurries to sit up straight, and Hitch soon does the same, feeling her face burn. Having her roommate poke questions at her the night before was embarrassing enough, but having her catch them in the act makes her want to dig herself a ditch and drop in it. It was their thing, however complicated and messy it might have been. Theirs. They didn’t need spectators.

Annie eventually drops her hand and clears her throat. 

“I hope you didn’t fuck on my bed.”

Hitch doesn’t dare look at her roommate, and neither does Reiner. 

“We didn’t.”

“I hope you’re not planning to either.”

Hitch shakes her head.

“Where have you been anyway?” asks Reiner, and Hitch is glad for the change of subject.

It’s Annie’s turn to look away, as she decides to take an eternity with taking her shoes off instead of answering. Hitch raises an eyebrow at her roommate, taking in her appearance. Her flushed cheeks, her creased orange shirt. 

A smirk rises on Hitch’s lips. It seems like she has the upper hand

“Were you with Armin?”

Annie rolls her eyes so far back, she wonders if they could go any further, but the pink dusting her complexion gives her away. She puts her shoes away at an excruciatingly slow pace. Reiner snorts at her antics.

“She definitely was,” he chirps. 

Annie shoots him a look. “I can still beat you up, you know.”

Hitch laughs then, a loud, almost forced laugh. Annie strides to her wardrobe and retrieves a couple of clothes, then just as fast moves to the door. “I suggest you guys take your business somewhere else,” she says, not looking at either of them. “I could really use some sleep tonight.” And with that, she disappears into the bathroom, slamming the door behind her.

A beat of silence passes between the two.

“She was definitely with Armin,” Hitch says, and Reiner barks out a laugh.

She then checks the time on her iPad. 1.44. 

“We can keep looking tomorrow,” Reiner says, seeing her troubled expression. “We could both use some sleep too.”

Hitch humms lightly. She turns off her iPad and places it on the nightstand. She wished they would have found at least something decent, just to get an idea– with August just around the corner, time is ticking.

“We’ll find something,” Reiner reassures her. He lazily gets up and places a haste kiss on her lips. Then he bids his goodnight wishes and leaves, turning the light off on his way out.

Later that night, when Annie gets out of the shower, she finds Hitch already tucked in. She’s not surprised when her roommate tentatively asks where she’s been, a notch of curiosity in her voice. Annie sighs and lays down in her bed, pulling the blanket over her shoulders.

“Armin was showing me the stars,” Annie finally says.

She hears her roommate shuffle as she turns to look at her, but she keeps staring at the ceiling– not that she could see it very clearly through the dark, but she supposes it would make the conversation more bearable.

“Through his telescope?”

“Yes.” After a beat of silence, she adds, “And then he kissed me.”

“He what?!”

Annie can feel her face warm up, and she’s suddenly very grateful for the lack of light. “He kissed me.” 

Even saying it feels weird.

Kissing is an understatement. Armin did kiss her, yes, numerous times, and she also kissed him, and for a few sweet minutes she let herself enjoy it– enjoy his warmth, his touches, his hands ghosting over her sides and her back and tangling in her hair. Her own hands exploring his chest and his arms and circling his neck in an attempt to keep herself grounded. His lips on her cheek, and her jaw, and her neck, his warm breath against her skin making her shudder.

She now wonders if the heat rising in her face is caused by the thought of it all or the fact that she’s talking about it, or maybe it’s because she’s telling Hitch of all people. She can already feel her teasing coming.

Except, it doesn’t. Her words hang in the air for a few tense seconds.

“So, are you guys, like, together or something?” Hitch asks, and her voice sounds almost kind.

“Not… really.”

“What do you mean, not really?”

Annie toys with the blanket. “We haven’t talked about it yet.”

“Oh.” Hitch is quiet for a few seconds, and Annie wishes she would just say something, anything. “So you just made out and called it a night? Without talking about it?”

Annie sighs. It sounds worse when she words it like that. “We did watch a movie afterwards,” she admits in such a small voice, she’s surprised her roommate has even heard her.

“That makes it so much better,” Hitch sarcastically comments. 

“Do you think he wants to be with me?”

Hitch snorts. “I think you should ask him that.”

“Well, I obviously didn’t.”

She hears shuffling again. “After watching you guys pine on each other for three very painful weeks, I think he does. But again, you’ll have to ask Armin. Or wait for him to ask you, but with how awkward he usually is, it might take forever.”

“That’s the thing,” Annie murmurs. “It’s been three weeks. August is almost here, we’d only have one month.”

“And do you want to spend that month painfully pining or actually having some fun?”

Annie doesn’t answer right away. She toys with the words in her mind, trying to decide which one would be less painful, an inevitable goodbye or the ache of never knowing what could have been? The ending would be the same anyway. 

She turns her head to the side, Hitch’s green eyes already on her, glistening in the dark as she studies her closely. 

“It wouldn’t have to end when camp is over, you know,” she offers. “Long-distance relationships are a thing.”

“How would that even work?”

“It worked just fine for me and Reiner.”

Annie hmms lightly, deep in thought. She supposes it did. Before she gets a chance to ask, her roommate continues.

“He pined for so long before asking me out too.” 

A smile pulls on her lips. “Did he?”

“Two whole summers”

Annie raises an eyebrow. “Really?”

Hitch giggles lightly. “Yeah. And then he finally asked me out last year.” Annie can almost hear the smile in the other girl’s voice. “He visited every other weekend. My mom loves him now– even more than she loves me, I think. And we’re moving in together in September.”

Annie’s eyes narrow slightly, the new information seeming a bit too sudden. She didn’t even know they were a thing until two nights ago and now they’re moving in together? “How come?”

“We’ll be attending uni in the same town, so it works out fine. It feels right.”

Annie hums in understanding, and then they’re quiet again. 

Hitch clears her throat. “It’s Reiner’s birthday in a few days. And then Pieck’s. And Sasha’s. I mean, not in that order, Sasha’s first, but you get the idea.”

Annie frowns. “Really?” 

“We celebrated them last year too, don’t you remember?”

Truthfully, she doesn’t. There’s a lot of things she doesn’t remember– an aftermath of her accident. The doctors have been telling her it will all come back in time, and some of it has, but ever so often she hears stuff like this and can’t help but wonder what else she has forgotten.

“Anyway, I was thinking of throwing them a surprise thingy, and I will need your help.”

So she tells her her plan, which is in fact very detailed and involves everybody on camp– but she’s sure they’re willing to help if only she could get them out of Reiner’s earshot, which Annie offers to help with. After that’s done, all that’s left to do is buy all the things they need and attempt to make him a cake, which shouldn’t be that hard given how many they are. Keeping it a surprise would be the real challenge, even more so when it comes to Sasha and Pieck, whom she wants to involve in the making of the thing. 

“I really think you should talk to Armin about that,” Hitch says much later, her voice sounding half-asleep. “I don’t want to hear him whine about you for another year.”

Annie hums in agreement, promising that she will soon. 

And then her words sink in, and she finds herself more confused than before. But as she’s about to ask, she hears her roommate’s light snoring, signaling that she’s fast asleep. It’s probably nothing but Hitch’s nonsense, she tells herself, another one of her bluffs. She turns on her side, facing the wall, and lets sleep lure her in.

The mass hall is as busy as it gets. The children are still gathering for breakfast, all loud and cheerful, buzzing tirelessly through the canteen. 

Annie is sitting at their usual table with a sad plate of scrambled, almost burnt eggs, an empty mug in front of her. She’s keeping an eye on the door for whenever Reiner might walk in. Next to her, Hitch is nervously bouncing her leg, her sneaker squeaking slightly against the wooden floor. The sight of an anxious Hitch is so foreign it makes Annie cock an eyebrow, a little smirk curling on her lips. Pieck, wearing the same orange camp shirt as both of them and a pair of denim shirts, her hair tied loosely at the back, takes the seat in front of them. She plays with her breakfast for a short moment and grimaces.

“How did they manage to burn scrambled eggs?” she wonders out loud.

Annie shrugs her shoulders. “That’s just another one of this place’s mysteries.”

From the corner of her eye, Annie can see Floch plop on a chair at the far end of the table, a plate of rightfully burnt eggs in front of him; he pushes it to the side and drops his head on the checkered cloth, and for the first time in maybe forever she feels sorry for the guy.

The sound of a laugh she knows all too well draws her attention towards the door, and her heart skips a beat when her eyes land on a familiar face, lit up with laughter. Armin walks in with Sasha and Connie, Jean trailing shortly behind them, orange shirts on and carrying empty plates waiting to be filled in their hands. Sasha gesticulates through the air with her free hand, and Connie throws his head back with laughter. Jean adds something to Sasha’s story, a smirk forming on his face, prompting her to roll her eyes so far back, they couldn’t possibly roll any further, but her laughter is hard to compose. Between them, Armin looks from one to another, his smile not weavering once.

His hair is a bit damp at the ends, and he’s wearing his camp shirt underneath a deep green hoodie, paired with light jeans. She can almost swear his eyes flicker briefly through the glass of his spectacles when they land on hers, his face softening. Annie can feel her face warm up.

Next to her, Hitch clears her throat and knocks her knee with her own. Annie scowls at her, throwing a whispered what?! in her direction. Over the edge of her glass, Pieck raises her eyebrows at the two. Hitch gestures towards the door. Both Annie and Pieck turn their heads just as Reiner walks in, steps behind the others yet still somehow very involved in their conversation, his own camp shirt looking rather small on him– though Annie is almost sure that was intentional.

Annie draws her chair slightly closer to Hitch and whispers, “I can’t go right now.” The others wouldn’t be there to hear Hitch’s plan.

“What are you two planning?” comes Pieck’s whispered voice. 

When she turns to face her, Annie finds her stretched so far on the table, she can almost reach Hitch’s plate. Annie blinks slowly at her, exchanging a look with Hitch, who seems equally taken aback. 

“I’ll tell you in a minute,” Hitch says, “I just need the others to get here too.”

Soon enough, they approach the table, their conversation having seemingly died down. They’re all carrying full plates of scrambled-burned eggs and sausages, save for Sasha– who’s only carrying a glass of orange juice and a couple of bagels.

“I might be hungry, but I’m not that hungry,” she says, throwing a disgusted look towards the others’ eggs.

As they all take their assigned places around the table and before they get to properly sit down, Annie grabs her empty mug and jumps to her feet.

“The coffee machine is broken,” she announces, and throws Reiner a look. “Could you fix it? I don’t think I’ll get through the day without a coffee.”

The man looks momentarily puzzled, then his eyebrows draw together.

“It was working just fine yesterday,” he says as he stands.

Annie shrugs nonchalantly. “Well it’s not anymore.”

He mutters something else that she doesn’t manage to catch as he starts towards the machine. Annie throws Hitch a look, and then she’s right behind him.

Hitch looks after them for a short moment, just until they’re out of earshot. Then she slams her hands onto the table, drawing everyone’s attention– even startling Sasha, who momentarily stops munching on her bagel.

“Alright everyone, listen up.”

They spend the rest of the week sneaking around, getting everything ready. Whether Reiner truly doesn’t notice or simply doesn’t want to pop their bubble, Annie’s not sure. He seems to buy whatever lie she tells him about why Hitch isn’t there for lunch or why she’s missing  a certain activity, he doesn’t even question it–just shrugs and goes on with his day. Which works out fine for her. 

Except for the part where Hitch needs to take Armin on her endeavors, leaving Annie completely alone with the kids. She’s starting to think their only purpose there is to annoy her, for they keep disregarding everything she tells them. They seemed more interested in what Armin had to say.

On Thursday night, Annie collapses on one of the armchairs with a groan. She kicks her shoes off and stretches her legs, suppressing a yawn. Around her, the others hurry to bring everything from Armin’s car. 

Except for Hitch, who has taken it upon herself to distract Reiner while they get everything ready. Annie doesn’t even want to think about her methods.

Pieck, who she hasn’t even noticed coming downstairs, goes to sit on the couch. 

“I wouldn’t sit there if I were you,” she hurries to say, although she tries to keep her voice indifferent.

Pieck spins on her heels and faces her, raising an eyebrow. “What’s wrong with the couch?”

Annie presses her lips together. What will she tell her now? Hitch and Reiner haven’t seemed that eager to tell people about their… thing. Even she wouldn’t have known had she not walked up on them, she has no right to do that to them. She was lucky enough that Armin knew the other day, but she’s not sure where Pieck stands in Hitch’s eyes. 

Luckily for her, the kitchen door opens with a creek.

The girls turn in unison, catching Jean standing in the doorway. He’s changed his orange camp shirt for a green one, pairing it with a pair of black sweats.  He’s standing with his arms crossed, a scowl on his face.

“Are you guys gonna help or what?”

Annie rolls her eyes at him, and he rolls them right back–but she knows there’s no backing out now, and she doesn’t feel like dealing with him either. With a sigh, she raises to her feet. At the same moment, Pieck drops on the couch. 

“I’ll join y’all later,” she tells them with a wave of her hand. 

Annie shrugs, dragging her feet towards the kitchen. She’s about to enter when Connie and Sasha storm out laughing, almost knocking her off her feet, and run towards the shared bathroom. Pieck raises an eyebrow as she follows them with her gaze, and Jean drops his face in his hands, groaning– he’s probably beyond done with their shenanigans. Armin appears then in the doorframe, glasses sitting askew on his nose, a troubled expression on his face. He’s wearing a light blue shirt of a band she’s never heard of before, and jeans. 

“Can you guys be any louder?” 

The positive answer comes yelled at once, followed by the faucet turning on. Armin sighs and shakes his head at their antics. And that’s when he notices Annie standing near the door, a smile immediately forming on his lips.

She could swear his eyes light up when they land on her, and her face gets warmer. 

His smile boardens as he beckons her to come into the kitchen. 

Annie looks back towards the common room, expecting Jean and Pieck to be right behind her, only to see them sat on the couch, whispering back and forth as if sharing a secret. Curious, she thinks. But she lets them be. If they don’t get the whole thing done by the time midnight strikes, at least it won’t be her fault.

She takes a seat at the tall table and folds her arms on its wooden surface, resting her chin on top of it. Silently, she watches Armin empty the three bags they’ve brought from his car. He takes out a milk bottle, a flour bag and a carton of eggs, placing them idly on the table. He then proceeds to fold the bag and put it away, and begin tending to the next one.

“I’m sure he’ll like it,” Armin coos.

Annie hums lightly, not having the energy to contribute to the conversation–but he picks up on it, for he doesn’t ask any questions. He instead keeps emptying the bags. Annie closes her eyes and lets silence fall over them, only disturbed by the sound of plastic. 

She’s not sure how much time passes before the sounds stop and she hears shuffling, and when she opens her eyes she finds Armin sitting next to her, head propped up on folded arms, his eyes watching her kindly behind smudged glasses. Her lips involuntarily twitch up.

“You look tired,” he says. He brings his hand up and moves a stray strand of hair behind her ear, and she sighs when his fingers linger. 

“I couldn’t really sleep this week,” she admits, studying his expression. She wonders what’s taking the others so long, for they have left them alone in the kitchen for a while now.

Armin’s eyebrows shot up. “How so?”

She purses her lips together, her eyes not leaving his, and, as nonchalantly as she can, says, “A certain someone kept me up.”

His brows narrow slightly, and then they shot up in realization. “Me?” His face immediately reddens, his voice sounding so alarmed, Annie can’t help but snort. “I kept you up? We’ve barely been talking this week!”

“That’s the problem, I could barely get to you this week! You kissed me–” kissed is an understatement really, she tells herself, but bites back the remark– “and then we didn’t talk about it!” 

Annie can feel her own face warming up, and she can bet it’s as red as Armin’s. She doesn’t dare look at him anymore, fixing her gaze on a random spot on the floor as she chews on the inside of her cheek.

Armin blinks, once, twice, then says, “I didn’t realize it bothered you that much.”

“It didn’t bother me at all,” she mutters, still not meeting his gaze. “Quite the opposite, actually.”

“Oh.”

The girl draws a long breath in and finally looks up. Armin’s looking at her with wide eyes, his complexion dusted crimson. A dumb smile is slowly overtaking his features, making her chest flutter.

“So you did like it.”

“Shut up,” she groans, burying her face in her folded arms. Admitting it to him would be too much for her poor heart.

Armin chuckles, but says nothing else for a while. They drown in silence, a comfortable kind of silence, one that she oddly likes. She'd stay in that silence with him forever if she could.

Until he breaks it.  

“We could do it again if you’d like,” Armin offers, in an almost shy manner. “We can figure out the rest later, there’s no rush.”

Annie humms, peering her eyes open. He's giving her that kind smile of his again, the one that makes her chest flutter. She finds herself mirroring it, and she selfishly wishes it has the same effect.

"I'd like that."

His eyes widen, his smile wavers, only momentarily, and then he nods briefly. His hand reaches for hers, giving it a light squeeze. Annie leans in, almost closing the gap between them, and–

"Oh, my God, not you too!" 

Annie jolts away, her head snapping towards the door. Armin’s hand leaves hers, so hurriedly that she misses it. 

Standing in the doorway, she finds Pieck covering her face with her hands, a very perplexed Jean standing right next to her. Connie and Sasha soon crash into their backs. Pieck loses her balance, but catches on to the wall just in time not to stumble to the floor.

They have been caught in the act, Annie soon realises. She looks away before the others can see her face, which she feels hotter than ever before. Armin seems to have frozen next to her, his face so red it'd put tomatoes at shame. 

"Let's get started on that cake," comes Jean’s voice, changing the subject. 

And so, they do. Sasha and Connie are soon shooed out of the kitchen, for they keep eating the batter, and they instead vow to decorate the common room in so many colors Reiner won’t know where to look first. Pieck takes it upon herself to keep an eye on them– certainly not in an attempt to get out of baking herself. 

Jean takes over the cake, ordering Armin and Annie around. He only allows them to measure the ingredients, insisting on doing everything else himself. Not that Annie would mind, she has little to no idea how baking works anyway, she wouldn’t want to mess up the cake. She finds that, as much of a spoiled brat she thought Jean was, and as big of a perfectionist as he is, baking comes as a second nature to him. They soon have the cake in the oven. While Jean sets a timer and gets everything in order for decorating the cake, Armin gets to washing the dishes, and Annie helps him dry them all.

"You guys should come see the common room!" comes Connie's sang voice, his head poking through the door.

Annie arches an eyebrow at her and sets down the bowl she's been holding. 

The common room looks like a unicorn has vomited all over it. There are colorful balloons everywhere, pink and blue, yellow and green, just scattered around the room in no particular order. There’s a tablecloth adorned with pink unicorns on the coffee table, and a knitted blanket on the sofa. It covers the whole thing, and Annie soon realises it’s the one Pieck’s been working on all summer.

There are a few black balloons hanging on the wall, spelling out 'welcome to your 20s'. Annie can’t help but snort when she sees a wooden cane resting against the wall below them. 

“Thoughts?” Sasha chirps.

“He’s gonna love this,” says Jean with a nod of his head.

“How’s the cake?” Pieck asks, throwing a red balloon up in the air.

Jean’s alarm sounds. “It’s ready for decorating!”

They stay in theme with the cake decorations– it, too, looks like a unicorn has vomited all over it. Annie wonders what kind of prank they’re trying to pull on the poor guy, but knowing him he’ll laugh it off regardless.

As planned, 5 minutes before midnight, the bunch of them turn the lights off and take their hiding places in the common room. Jean stays behind with the cake for a moment more, making Annie wonder what more he’s got planned, but joins them in no time and leaves the circular sweet thing on the coffee table. Squinting towards it, Annnie makes out the outline of the candles, as well as two little shapes on either side that she doesn’t remember seeing earlier. She opens her mouth to ask about it, when she hears the sounds of two pairs of steps on the stairs, the wood beneath squeaking under their weight.

“I could use something to eat,” comes Reiner’s voice.

“There must be something in the kitchen.”

The clock strikes midnight.

“Man, I hope.”

He turns the lights on. 

Everyone leaves their hiding places. Jean and Connie throw confetti all around.

“Happy birthday!”

“Oh, God!” Reiner takes a step back, his mouth agape.

“What the fuck?”

It was Sasha who spoke this time. 

Looking at the cake, Annie sees the reason for Sasha’s reaction. On top of the cake, on either side of the candles, taped on toothpicks, throne two little pictures of both Reiner and Sasha.

Pieck picks up some confetti and throws it at her. The ginger bends over, erupting into laughter. 

“You, guys,” she starts, but then breaks into laughter again. 

Annie can almost swear there are tears in the corners of her eyes. Now she understands all the colors– they were always for Sasha. The surprise was for her too after all, except she was so caught up in making it a special thing for Reiner she didn’t even notice.

An idea pops into Annie’s head. She steps aside, rummaging through the desk in the corner of the room while the others share their joys. There it is, in the drawer at the bottom, where she abandoned it last week– the camp camera.

Hitch takes out her lighter, a big proud smile on her face, and lights the candles. 

Connie slaps his hands onto Sasha’s back, cheering loudly.

“What the fuck,” Sasha says again, covering her mouth. 

She looks back and forth between all of them, her eyes glassy. Reiner finally moves then, getting to the middle of the room in two big strodes. He places a sloppy kiss on Hitch’s cheek as if to thank her, and then lifts Sasha onto his shoulders, a shit eating grin on his face– but his own eyes are getting rather glassy. The girl chortles again. The camera clicks.

Everyone gathers around, and they all sing happy birthday. But as they’re about to blow the candles, Reiner stops.

“Pieck! Get in here!”

The girl narrows her eyes. “What?”

“It’s your birthday too!”

“But I’m not twenty anymore…?”

“We did think about that,” says Armin. Smiling that big kind smile of his, he reaches into his pocket and brings out another candle– a one.

Pieck’s face lights up, her lips arching up. Armin lights the candle and places it right next to the zero, making it look like they’re all turning 201. Annie snorts at the irony, and snaps another picture.

The three of them gather around the cake, Reiner bends down so Sasha could reach from his shoulders. They briefly look at each other, such genuine smiles adorning their faces. And then they blow the candles out. Annie manages to snap another picture right when they go out.

The room erupts into cheering and laughter again. Sasha even throws her hands in the air, throwing Reiner off balance a bit, but his laughter only grows.

“We should all take a picture like this,” Jean suggests.

“On it!”

“You guys forgot to make a wish!” Hitch realises as she sits on the floor in front of the table, right next to Armin. Connie and Jean stand on either side of the birthday guys, big grins on their faces. 

Annie sets the camera up on a stray chair, then hurries to join the others as the countdown starts, kneeling next to her roommate.

Sasha’s answer comes just as the picture snaps.

“I wish this summer would never end!”

[asylumwise]

Oh that PhayuRain proposal was *cheff’s kiss* 😭 so perfect for these boys!!

I love their cameos in Wedding Plan, it almost feels natural. I want them to keep popping up in WP. I mean, Nuea needs to start planning the PhayuRain wedding, right? I can imagine Rain arriving at their first appointment with a whole folder of moodboards.

What if Wedding Plan starts with Lom attending the PrapaiSky wedding alone and ends with him taking Nuea as his date to the wedding of Phayu& Rain 😭😭

[dudewhy3]

Hey Cris! Clouds here! In WPTS (or just general modern AU) who's (not necessarily aruani) more likely to become addicted to silly mobile games? And how does the other react? (Jealous, doesn't care, gets in on it, etc)?

Hey Clouds!! Thank you for the ask! ♡

In a general modern AU, i think it would be Annie who picks them up. I think she finds them oddly relaxing and calming, they help destress and soothe her nerves. I imagine her, maybe in a College AU, curled up on Armin’s bed and playing candy crush on her phone while he works on assignments. He's intrigued at first, he doesn’t understand the appeal– until she makes him play. Then he becomes addicted

In WPTS though, I think it would be Pieck who picks them up. She’s the oldest of the pack, and is nit having that great of a time as you might have noticed, so mobile games it is– they take her mind off of things. Connie, being the jokester he is, can’t help but crack a joke or two when he finds her on the couch in the common room one morning, playing suddoku on her phone. Sasha soon joins in his teasing. I think Jean would find it oddly hot of her, while Hitch would find it curious, a bit weird if anything. Reiner would try to play as well but give up very soon, because why does he have to know so many words. Armin would be beyonx excited to know there’s someone else playing in the house. And Annie wouldn’t really see the appeal

[nofatclips]

Do My Thing by Eve Maret, live on WPTS Radio

[distortedclouds]

CLOUDS. HI. I JUST WANTED TO LET YOU KNOW THAT I'VE READ ALL THE COMMENTS YOU LEFT ON WPTS AND I'M JUST SO 🥺🥹😭

THANK YOU SO MUCH, SOSOSO MUCH 😭🫶 i'm so glad you like that lil thing 🥹🥹💛

omg HIIII!!!!! I loved reading WPTS it's just so wholesome and fluffy and ionefuiofneuofneh i love how sweet everything is with aruani and their little gang of friends!!

I saw that you got back into it and I can't WAIT to catch up!!

[wptsradio-blog]

lol we're back... funnier than ever... full of whimsy and charisma... y'all aren't ready

[the-blog-of-bill]

STop iTTT

I

C4n’t

lEAv3 me AL0nE

1’mm̵̹͍̀̎͒m̸͚̣͝ͅm̵̩̝̣̔ sOrr¥

M̴̡̡̡̧̳̹͓̟͔̟͉̘̞̯͈̘̳̫̪͗́̑̒̀́͊͋̚0̸̡̨̡̺͚̻̮̠͓̬̰̺̫̥͉̰͎̳͕͉͓͉̉̓͆͜͝ͅM̵̤̔̏̿͊̎̃̿̊̆̓̉̄͌͌̂̒͂͐̅͠?̴̡̨̢̢̥͔̼̞̰̳͕͔̜̣̥̦͑̔̉̒̔́̈̂̀͂̍̚͘̕͘͝ͅ

[texasholdem-tournament-japa-blog]

ＷＰＴ東京メインイベント

２０２３年１１月２３日から４日間開催されたＷＰＴ東京のイベントに参加してきた。

YOUTUBERやＸからの事前告知を見て大いに期待して沖縄から東京に遠征してみた。

モノレール「東京物流センター駅」改札

東京物流センターの展示会会場に準備されたポーカートーナメントでは、YouTubeの配信を目的に2台の豪華なテーブルと巨大なモニターが配置され、サイドトーナメント用に１００テーブルくらいが会場内にぎっしりと並べられ、４日間の開催がどの様に楽しめるのか ? 

結論から述べると〝ＷＰＴ東京〟のイベントは全体的に『素人が開催したお粗末なイベント』だった。

とにかく〝ＷＰＴ東京〟のイベントは、質もレベルも高校生の文化祭以下の最低最悪の大会だった。

今後の課題として問題点を先にまとめると以下の通り。

①参加者の受付動線

　イベントマニュアルを作成すろ際に極めて重要になる項目のひとつだが、ＷＰＴ東京の運営は無能だったか素人が短絡的に考えてスタートしてしまったか？

　特に、野外に並ばせる場合には対応と対策が必須。

②事前予測と準備の怠った素人主催者の甘さ。

　事前にタイムテーブルがＷＥＢで公開されていたので、その時間に合わせてプレーヤー達は集合する。

　メインに出場しない参加者には開催期間中の情報がWEBに掲載されているスケジュールのみで全く会場の状況が伝えられていない。

　一般の客はＷＰＴ東京主催者には〝参加させてやってる〟という雰囲気を与えている。

　メインのシー権を持つ参加者受付が終わらないから一般サイドの人は何時から受付できるか解らないと答えるスタッフの無能さには本当にガッカリだ。

　メインに参加するシート権を持ったプレーヤーは事前に人数を把握できてあるはずだ。

　当然、受付に並ばせるので有れば、メインとサイドとその他、３または４箇所の受付を用意する事が必要になる事は日が昇る事の用にハッキリしている。高校生のイベントでもこれくらいの対応はできて当然なのに・・・

③ＷＰＴ東京運営スタッフの対応と躾の悪さ

　４日間の開催中に様々なトラブルがあったのだが、ＷＰＴ東京運営スタッフから「すみません」などの謝罪の言葉を聞く事は１度も無かった。

　受付が混乱してモタついた対応はＷＰＴ東京運営スタッフの責任だが、忙しくて他の対応出来ないから数時間したらまた来てください。と、ハッキリ口に出して自分達を正当化する態度はあり得ない。

④強制的に売り付けるチケット制の悪行。

　サイドイベントに参加するには「参加費」を支払わなければならない。

　このシステムには違法性の臭いがする。

　参加費は様々な金額設定が用意されているのだが、問題は「ドリンクチケット千円」である。

　強制的に売りつけられる。

　拒否する事は許されないといい、この１０００円のチケットを買わないならイベントにも参加できないというのだ。

　チケットはドリンク２杯分でアルコールも含まれる。

　また、ドリンクの代わりにお弁当のこ購入にも使用できると説明された。

　１４０円から３５０円くらいのドリンク２本の引き換え券を１０００円という高額料金で強制的に売り付けるのだ。

　お弁当は４００円以下の陳腐なもので.これを何と１０００円というボッタクリ。

⑤金は取り放題の〝ＷＰＴ東京の運営〟はヤクザの仕業。

　ドリンクとお弁当との交換を約束されたチケットを強制的に売り付けた後、ドリンクのコーナーでビールと交換しようとすると『もう無い』『コーヒーか紅茶しかない。どうします ? 』と。まるで他人言の対応。

　どうしますじゃねーよ。ビール無いならコンビニで買って来てでも用意すべきではないのか？お前ら昭和のヤクザか！と、ツッコミたくなる。

　ヤクザや今時のテキ屋でもこんなイカつい商売はしない。

　そして、ここでもスタッフは誰も謝罪しない。

　まるで、サービスで配ってるんだから残ったもので我慢しな！と、言わんばかり。

　じゃあお弁当でいいよ。というと、お弁当はもうとっくにないよ。と、悪びれた様子もなく平然と言い退けた。。

　コイツらはドリンクとお弁当のどちらかを選ぶ権利として契約したチケットを購入していることを知らないのか？

　食べ放題のレストランで、料金を払って入場したら『今日は大食いの人が沢山来たから余りのこないよ。仕方ないよ。余り物で我慢して』と言われたのと同じだ。

　一方的な契約不履行にもかかわら、返金もしない。謝る事すらしない。

　がっかりだ。

⑥ＷＰＴ東京 運営スタッフの人間としての最低限のマナー

　ＷＰＴ東京の運営側の失態は全て『仕方ない』で済ませて、自ら謝罪はしないという高飛車な対応とスタッフ全員の生意気な態度は、今後のポーカートーナメントによる啓蒙活動に悪影響を与え、レベルので低い人種がギャンブルをビジネスにしようとしてると言われる様になる。

　事実、初日から徐々に参加者減り続け、最終日は最も降り上がるはずが、優勝者が決定したころには会場内はガラガラという状況。

　間違いなく、イベントとしては失敗だ。

⑦Bad Taste ＆ Cheesy

　ＷＰＴ東京の「１億円のイベント」として宣伝していた割に実際の設営はハリボテのセット以下で華やかさもない。

　〝華やかさ〟と〝豪華さ〟は、賞金の金額よりも重要な要素であることを理解できない〝ＷＰＴ東京〟の運営側はイベントの主催者として素人以下ということになる。

⑧参加者に対する感謝の意

　初日の失態を反省しないＷＰＴ東京の運営スタッフに幻滅した参加者は決して少なくないと思われる。

　その事を表す様に、最終日はメインの優勝者が決定する最も盛り上げるべき場面の対策も講じてない無能な運営によって最終日参加者は日に日に激減して、初日の盛り上がりは無くなっていた。

他にも色々細かな事はあるものの、キリが無いので開催期間の様子を記載しておこう。

ＷＰＴ東京 会場

ＷＰＴ東京は『１億円』をぶら下げた告知のインパクトは大きく、初日に集まった参加者は受付の為に会場があるビルに入る迄２時間も外で待たされるいう状況からスタートした。

盛況風に捉えた人もいたかも知れないが、実際にはスタッフが全員ポンコツで要領が悪かっただけで最悪な初日のスタートになってしまっていた。

初日は運良く天気に恵まれたが、もし大雨だったら更に悲惨な事になっていただろう。

そんなお粗末な開催とは思っていないので、単純に会場が開く時間が遅れていて並んでいるのかなぁ？と思いながら何の行列に並ばされているのか全く分からず並んでいると、スタッフらしき人物が４〜５人集まって雑談していたので、行列を眺めているスタッフに状況を聞いてみると「中の事は分からないので取り敢えず並ん待って下さい」との回答。

ビル内の２階会場入口付近まで進むと、広い会場はガラガラで全く人が居ない。

受付迄辿り着くと「チケットお願いします」

と言われた。

「チケット ? 持ってないよ」と答えると

「チケットが無いと入れない」と言う。

「嘘でしょ！聞いてないよ。どこで配布してるチケット」と聞くと

「オンラインのＱＲコードからダウロードするのかなぁ ? 」と、他人事の様な対応。

その様子に別のスタッフが数人集まってきて「何、何、どうしました」と。

何の列に並ばされているのか全く説明も案内されないまま１時間も立って受付まで辿り着いたら入れないとはどうゆう事 ? 

ここから更に３０分くらいスタッフ同士の話し合いがあって、結果的には、並んでいた行列にはメインイベントに出場するシート権を持ってる人を対象に受付していると言う事で、サイドイベントの受付はその後行うので、数時間したらまた並べと言う事だった。

それなら、ビルの外で雑談しているスタッフが説明するなりカンペ出せよ！

あまりにもお粗末で無能なスタッフの対応に呆れた。

更に驚いたのは、まるで並んでいたコチラが悪いかの様に、２時間くらいしたらまた来て。と、自分達に落ち度はないからまた来い。嫌なら帰りな！と言われている様な気分になった。

並んでた意味は全くなく無意味な時間だった。

４日間参加したがスタッフ全員が最悪だった。

効率の悪いスタッフ配置と意識の低さがだだ漏れしていた。

態度も話し方も横柄で感じ悪い人間をどうしたらこれだけ集められたのか逆に不思議なくらいだ。

実際、プレーヤーとスタッフが揉めてる場面が何度もあった。

「てめぇ、舐めてんのかクソガキが！誰に口聞いてんかだコラぁ」というセリフが聞こえたので振り返ると、殴り合いが起きそうな距離感で揉めている２人がいた。

周りを見ると、５〜６m離れた位置から４人の別のスタッフが眺めている。全く止めようともしない。

スタッフを教育するマニュアルもないのだろう。運営の責任者も無能なんだなぁと残念な思いがした。

これだけの人数をポンコツばかりで集めた運営の人事もすごいなぁーと思いながらも沖縄から遠征してきていんだから参加してみた。

今度はディーラーの質と技術レベルの低さにも驚かされる。

ほとんどのディーラーが底レベルだったが、若干１人だけ際立って技術レベルの優れたディーラーも居た。聞いてみると「韓国から応援に来た」と日本語で答えてくれた。

『日本人！もっと頑張れ！』と、心で叫んだ。

[world-paradox-tournament]

"Aaaaaalright everyone! You've all waited long enough! Though I do have to thank you for your wonderful patience!" The familiar voice echoes through the Ultra Space arena, as the Blachephalon walks into view once more, just like before.

"Its time for our first ever tournament! Incredibly exciting I know! But before we can let just anyone enter, you must all be prepared with the rules for this one!" "To put it simply, our rules for the debut tournament are as follows!" "1. Submit your team of six Pokemon to our Pheromosas, and if you happen to have any crazy powerful Pokemon such as those legendary ones, or if you rudely caught one of us 'Ultra Beasts', they aren't allowed to participate! Your team that you submit will be the one you use for their entire tournament as well! Be careful~! 2. I don't want to see you copying those 'Smogon Singles' trainers you see all over, after all, seeing the same six Pokemon on every team that have the same exact strategy would be so tragically boring! We thrive on uniqueness in this world, I mean, just look at me! 3. That special gimmick that you have in Paldea, Terrastilization, will be used for this tournament! Do not worry, we will supply you with the 'Tera Orbs' needed for this as well! Please make sure your Pokemons Tera Type matches one of their types, but if you're a type specialist, you can make the tera type your specialized type if you have a Pokemon that doesn't match your type specialty! This also means that Mega Evolution, Z-Moves, and Dynamax/Gigantamax are banned! 4. And last but not least! Please just have fun, I know 'Ultra Space' can be sooooo disorienting, but don't get upset if you lose! We don't want any sore losers!"

"Now then! If everyone understands, please make your way to the nearest Pheromosa to submit your team!"

Speaking of, there's one right near you!

It hands over a form which requests the information required for the tournament!

[vnwpt]

The WPT Global Viet Nam

The World Poker Tour (WPT) is an internationally televised gaming and entertainment brand. Since 2002, the World Poker Tour has operated a series of international poker tournaments and associated television series broadcasting playdown and the final table of each tournament. Website : https://vnwpt.com/ Address : 17877 Von Karman Ave Ste 300, Irvine, California, 92614, United States. Phone : (949) 225-2600 Mail : vnwptcom@gmail.com

[dude-why-3]

Who painted the sky?

Chapter 19: Green Days Off

The one night her nightmares decided to give her some peace, Annie couldn’t sleep because of the sneezing. 

Not her sneezing. She finds its source on the couch in the common room that morning. 

Armin is wearing his camp shirt and his good shoes, his glasses sliding down his nose as he bends to tie his shoelaces. He’s sniffing constantly, a box of tissue by his side and a growing pile of used ones on the floor. 

Annie yawns. 

“Did you catch a cold?”

He looks up at her with big eyes, his lips soon forming a smile. As she goes down the last couple of stairs, she notices how red his nose is, the underside of his eyes looking more purplish than before.

“No, why?”

“You look like you caught a cold,” she shrugs. Annie grabs her own shoes from the show rack and takes the seat next to him, tactically putting them on.

“I’m fine, An–” 

Another sneeze echoes through the room, cutting him off. He bends forward from the strength of it. Annie straightens her back, facing Armin, raising her eyebrow at him. He sniffles, grabbing a tissue from the tissue box and blowing his nose. He most definitely caught a cold.

Pieck’s voice interrupts his showcase. “Who’s sick?” 

She passes by the two of them, making a face at Armin before giving Annie a questioning look, and drops on an armchair. She arranges her brown skirt a bit before raising her feet on the coffee table, revealing a pair of funky, mismatched socks– one is pink with a bunch of squirrels scattered around, and the other is a green Scooby Doo sock.

“No one’s sick,” Armin says, giving her a strained smile. And then he sneezes again.

Annie presses her lips together and turns to Pieck. “Armin caught a cold.”

“I did not!”

Hitch’s voice peaks in. “We’ve heard you all night, you definitely did.”

Her and Reiner come down the stairs at once, both in their orange camp shirts, and grab their own shoes. Hitch looks like she’s gotten about as much sleep as Annie has.

Armin sneezes again. “I’m telling you, I’m fine. It’s just a little sneeze.”

“You’re gonna get the kids sick.”

“I’m not, because I’m not sick,” he argues.

“Let’s see what Hannah has to say about that,” Reiner says, phone already in hand.

Despite Armin’s protests, the host is called down to the house. She finds Armin in the same miserable state as the rest of the volunteers have.

“Absolutely not,” Hannah declares, standing in the middle of the room with a thermometer in hand, her other hand on her hip. 

“But I’m fine!”

Hannah sighs, shaking her head slowly. The volunteers are all scattered around the room, looking between the two.

“You have a fever, Armin.” Another sneeze echoes through the room. “You’re too sick to interact with the kids. Take the day off. Rest a bit.”

His fists tighten in his lap, his eyes narrowing. “But I can’t just lurk around all day and do nothing, I want to be useful.” 

Annie presses her lips together, watching the show go down. She crosses her arms over her chest, leaning against the wall– she shouldn’t have taken his raincoat. 

“Pushing yourself is not helpful,” Hannah tries to reason. “We’ll be fine without you. Annie can handle you guys’ groups on her own.” Hannah turns towards her, pinching her eyebrows together. “Right, Annie?”

“Right.”

She turns towards Armin again, smiling kindly. “See? We’ll be just fine.”

Truth is, Annie is not fine handling the group on her own. In the hideously pink room in the attic, her and the kids have been trying to come up with a little flag for their team for hours. But they couldn't come up with anything good. Their group name doesn't serve as inspiration either, as it has for the other groups- they drew ducks for the Duck Team and literal beans for The Jumpy Beans. If she were to follow the same pattern for this group, they'd end up showing with a solid blue poster, and she's pretty sure that'd get her ridiculed by her colleagues and belittled by the hosts. They need to come up with something else.

Someone clears their throat.

"So, are you and Armin, like, a thing?"

Annie freezes. She narrows her eyes, snapping her head at whoever spoke. She finds a redheaded girl staring right into her soul, eyes wide and a shit-eating grin on her face. 

Annie presses her lips together and sets her pen down. "That's none of your business."

"But you kissed the other day," comes another voice. Annie arches an eyebrow at the owner of the voice, another girl with wide green eyes.

"Kissed is an understatement, they full on made out," says a boy with pitch-black hair, grinning cheekily. Annie feels her complexion burn up. 

A girl with two twin braids speaks this time, leaning forward towards Annie. "Even better. So they must be together." 

"Guys-"

"You could just tell us," says another, a boy with a graphic tee. "We're nosy people, we'll find out anyway."

Annie sighs. Where's Armin when she needs him?

Sitting up straight, she says, "What do I get if I tell you?"

The campers look between each other, sharing confused looks. 

She leans back on her arm, feeling her lips arch up. "I mean, it's only fair that we trade. I give you what you want and you give me something back."

The kids start muttering and mumbling. Eventually, the nosy boy speaks up. "Like what?"

Annie arches an eyebrow, as if to challenge him. He swallows audibly. "What do you have to offer?"

He presses his lips together, looking back at his friends for help. The girl with the braids shrugs. 

When they don't come up with anything, an idea pops into Annie's mind. "You could do everything I say for the rest of the week. No complaints, no whining. I ask and you execute."

"Like servants?"

"If that's how you want to see it."

The kids exchange looks. "That's bullcrap."

Annie smirks, picking up her pen again. "Good luck finding out then."

"We'll just ask Armin," the boy says, grinning as if he had won the upper hand. 

"Well, you won't see him anytime soon, he's sick." 

Their faces pale. "You're joking."

She wished she was. She wished she could trade places with him so she didn't have to deal with them.

By the looks on their faces, the kids understand that she's serious. They exchange a momentarily desperate look. She almost snorts at their antics. Do these kids just live off cheap gossip?

"Hitch will tell us then." The boy nods to herself as if he had won once again.

Annie clicks her tongue. "She's my friend, she won't bulge."

"You have friends?"

Annie rolls her eyes. "You're still talking?"

The boy bites his lips, and the group finally goes quiet. Annie shakes her head, resisting the urge to sigh and just leave.

She looks down at their empty poster, and then checks the time. They have about twenty more minutes before the activity ends and they have to go to the cafeteria for lunch, and they must present the thing in the evening. They don’t have time to spare.

“If we come up with a poster, will you tell us?”

Annie arches an eyebrow. “Will you also do everything I say for the rest of the week?”

The kids look between each other, lips pressed together, heads are slowly nodded and others are shaken. Eventually, the boy looks back at her. “Sure.”

Annie smiles to herself and lets the pen down. “Then start by making some name badges.”

They execute it so fast it takes Annie aback. Had she known it’d be so easy to get them to do stuff, she would have done it sooner. Turns out, the redheaded girl’s name is Saorise, the one with the braids is Helen, the boy with black hair is Louise and the one with the graphic tee is Luke.

“Ok, now tell us,” Saorise says, her eyes gleaming.

Annie nods towards the empty poster. “Get started on that.”

“But you said–” She raises an eyebrow. Saorise sighs. “Nothing.”

Luke elbows her. “We need to be smart about this,” he scolds her. He looks back at Annie and crosses his arms over his chest. “We’re not doing anything until you tell us something.”

Annie raises an eyebrow, staring him down. The boy stares right back. Annie averts her eyes towards the phone by her side. She doesn’t have time for this. She sighs, running a hand through her hair. Armin would have known how to deflect from this. 

“Ok, fine. We’re having a summer fling. Get to work now.”

That seems to satisfy them enough, for they get started on the poster immediately. But her victory is short-lived. 

“What does that mean?” Helen inquiries as she scribbles on the paper.

“It means…” Annie presses her lips together. What does that mean? “It means that we’re sort of together for the summer. No commitments, no feelings, no strings attached.”

Louise snorts. “Yeah, sure.”

Annie shoots him a glare. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You don’t kiss like people who have no feelings for each other.”

Annie feels her face warm up. She frowns– she’s making a fool of herself in front of children. 

“Are you done with the poster?”

He immediately resumes to the task at hand.

It’s Saorise that speaks this time. “We’re just saying that it looks like there’s more to it.”

“He looks at you like you’re his whole world,” adds Helen.

Annie rolls her eyes, though she has to admit that her heart skips a beat. 

“And that’s not how you kiss someone you have no interest in,” Saorise sings.

“Your point?”

Luke looks at her with such a blank expression it creeps her out. “You love him and he loves you and you’re both too stupid to realise it.”

Her eyes widen, his words striking a nerve. 

Saorise slaps Luke’s arm. He winches. “Don’t speak to her that way!”

“Don’t hit me!”

Annie pinches the bridge of her nose and sighs. They don’t have time for this. She doesn’t have time to dwell on this. So she urges them to finish the poster instead, and they manage to come up with something decent before the kids leave for lunch.

Annie sneaks out of the cafeteria halfway through lunch, unnoticed. She strides towards the BIg House, the tips of her fingers tingling in anticipation, her heart beating faster with each step she takes. She needs to see him. If what that Luke boy told her is true, she needs to know, she needs to confront him about it. Because her side of things is pretty clear already, but she cannot allow herself to fall until she knows that it's reciprocal.

When she makes it to the house and opens the door, she finds Armin curled up on the couch, wrapped in Pieck's blanket. The puppy Sasha and Connie rescued is snuggled up next to him, and the TV is on, playing a random cartoon she's never heard of before. There's a pile of tissues on the floor, and an empty box right next to it. A book is resting upside-down on the coffee table next to an empty glass.

Armin’s face lights up when he sees her, making her heart skip a beat. Suddenly, all  the courage she’s mastered leaves her. 

"Hi." 

She finds herself mirroring his smile. They'll be just fine, she tells herself.

She leans against the wall, looking him up and down. His nose is redder than in the morning.

"Hey. Are you any better?'

Armin hums lightly and nods, but before he manages to say anything, he bends by the middle, letting a sneeze out, his hands instinctively flying to his face. Annie presses her lips together. That's enough to answer her question. 

The puppy jumps awake, looking around with wide eyes as if searching for the source of the noise, but upon not finding it, scoots closer to Armin and curls up again. 

"I was starting to feel better," he laments, petting the dog's head absentmindedly.

“You’ll get better,” she tries to reassure him. Annie shuffles on her feet, biting her lip. She needs to ask him. She needs to get this off her chest, for it’s everything she’s been thinking of since this morning. But her courage wavers. She sighs before asking, “Would you like some tea?”

Armin nods, sneezing again.

With a smile, Annie slides into the kitchen. She takes a deep breath in, fills the kettle with water, and turns it on. As the water boils, she allows herself to consider the kids’ words, to believe that he does love her back. That they could do something about it, that they wouldn’t have to part ways. For a second, she allows herself to be foolish and close her eyes and envision all of it– all the kisses and cuddles and little touches. Her visiting his hometown and meeting the two people he’s talked about so much, and him coming over and meeting her father. All the little dates and laughs and the warmth of simply being near him for more than a fleeting second. 

Armin’s voice pulls her out of her thoughts. 

“I looked over uni prospects today.”

She scoffs. “That’s how bored you got?”

Armin’s laugh echoes through the room. “Yeah!” He sits up on the couch, wrapping the blanket tighter around him, and shuffles around so he can face the chicken, watching Annie pour the tea. “There are so many I liked, too!” he continues, his smile broadening. “Like, Rose University has this really cool astronomy program, and–!”

A very loud bang interrupts his ranting. Annie’s head snaps to the main door, a shiver running down her throat. The puppy jumps to the floor and scatters under the couch, covering its face with its paws.

Before either of them gets the chance to fully figure out what’s going on, Sasha storms into the room, holding a weirdly shaped plastic bag in her arms.

Annie blinks slowly at her, watching her march all the way to the kitchen and setting the bag on the table with a thud. Annie scowls, scanning the bag. Humming, Sasha starts taking things out of the bag– some potatoes, some carrots, an onion, and… a whole chicken. 

“I’m making soup!” explains Sasha, seeing Annie’s confused expression.

Annie stares at the chicken blankly as Sasha starts rummaging through the cupboards. The more she looks at it, the clearer it becomes that the chicken is raw.

Armin appears in the doorway, scratching his nose. He frowns at the chicken, looking up at Annie with wide eyes. 

“What is all this?”

Annie presses her lips together and shrugs helplessly. Sasha sets a big pot on the stove and turns around, grinning widely at Armin.

“I’m making soup!”

Annie gestures vaguely towards the whole shebang Sasha’s set on the table. “Where did you get all that?”

“Stole it from the cook,” she sings. 

Armin gulps. “You stole from the cook to make soup?”

“It’d help with your cold.”

“But you stole from the cook.”

Sasha tilts her head. “Yeah, but… I’m making soup.”

Armin blinks repeatedly. The door slams to the wall a second time, and Hitch’s voice booms through the common room.

“How’s our boooy?” she sings, dragging out the last word. 

She quickly scans the room, her eyes landing on Armin, and jumps on his back, making him yelp. She examines his face briefly, scowling at his red nose. She steps back, holding him by the shoulders. “You look like shit.”

“I feel better,” he tries to argue, but his voice is hoarse.

“Sure.”

Hitch walks past Armin and into the kitchen, arching an eyebrow at the chicken.

“What’s all this?”

“I’m making soup! Helps with the cold!” beams Sasha. She takes out knives and cutting boards and sets them on the table. 

Hitch whistles. “Count me in then.”

The two hurry to wash their hands, Sasha soaps her all the way to the elbow before rinsing them thoroughly. As Hitch dries her hands, Sasha holds hers up, water dripping to the floor, a cheeky smile on her face. 

“Alright, everybody,” she says, barely holding back her laugh. Armin snorts, anticipating what she’s about to say. “It’s a beautiful day to save lives. Let’s have some fun!”

Hitch and Armin break into laughter as Sasha dries her hands, a satisfied grin on her lips. Annie narrows her eyes at the lot of them. 

“What are you talking about?”

“It’s this iconic line from Grey’s Anatomy.”

“Oh.”

Sasha turns to her, eyes gleaming. “Have you watched it, Annie?”

Annie presses her lips together before admitting that she hasn’t, and Sasha decides that a marathon is needed. 

Armin sneezes again, cutting their conversation short. He sniffles his nose. 

“Guys, I think I’ll take Dexter and go to my room and sleep or something.”

Annie arches an eyebrow, turning around in unison with Hitch. “Dexter?”

Armin nods thoroughly. “The puppy.”

As if on cue, the puppy emerges from between his legs, barking loudly. He jumps up on one of the high kitchen stools, looking up at the chicken with longing eyes.

Sasha turns towards Armin, frowning deeply. "You named my puppy Dexter?"

"Yeah."

"Why?"

"I thought it was a nice name," he shrugs

"It makes me think of Dexter the character."

"Yeah."

"But the puppy looks nothing like Dexter."

"He doesn't, but he joined me halfway through a Dexter marathon so I just called him that."

"But it's ugly."

“You had a Dexter marathon without me?” Hitch asks, looking just as indignated as Sasha.

Both Sasha and Armin ignore her.

"It's a name though," Armin argues.

Sasha’s frown deepens. "I think Connie and I should have named him though."

"But you didn't."

Sasha frowns at him, then huffs out a breath. "Ok, fine. He can be Dexter."

Armin smiles victoriously. He scoops up the puppy and turns around humming, leaving the kitchen. 

Annie looks down at the teas she's made. "Do you still want your tea?" 

"I forgot about it, sorry!"

"I could bring it upstairs," Annie mumbles. 

She can feel Hitch's eyes burn into her side. Rolling her eyes, Annie takes one of the mugs and hurries up the stairs to catch up to Armin. 

"How were the kids?" he asks, stealing a glance at her. 

"They kept asking about you."

They make it to their floor and find Armin's door prompted open by a stack of books. 

"And us," Annie adds, walking in and setting the tea mug on the nightstand by his bed. 

Dexter jumps from Armin's arms and onto the bed. He curls up in the middle of the duvet and looks up at them with big eyes, rocking his tail left and right.

Armin turns to Annie, his cheeks dusting pink. 

"They asked about us?"

Annie nods and averts her eyes, not daring to hold his gaze. "They were so nosy about it, too."

Armin grins sheepishly. "So kissing me in front of everyone got them curious."

Annie feels her face heating up. "It also got you sick," she says, as nonchalantly as she can manage. 

Armin shrugs, "I think it was worth it."

Her smile grows, and she takes a step closer to him. "Was it now?"

His hand comes up, ghosting over her arm. Looking up at her, Armin smiles broadly. "I'd do it again."

Annie snorts. "You'd get sick  because of me again?"

"Maybe without the sick part. But I'd kiss you again.” He smiles, the next part coming out as a whisper. “Maybe even in the rain."

Annie’s face warms even more. The questions she’s been having since the morning start popping up in her mind again, slowly taking over, threatening to spill over. Annie bites the inside of her cheek slightly, in hopes that she could swallow them back down. 

Armin frowns, his fingers gripping her arm a bit tighter. “What’s wrong?”

Annie shakes her head, forcing a smile on. “Nothing.” 

She leans over and kisses his cheek, frowning slightly at how warm his complexion is. Drawing back, Annie brings her hand to his forehead. 

“You have a fever.”

Armin sighs, taking a step back. “I’ll be as good as new by tomorrow,” he mumbles. 

Then his face grimaces, and he bends over slightly, sneezing loudly. 

“You should get in bed and drink your tea,” she says, taking his arm and guiding him towards the bed. 

Armin hums again, letting her tuck him in. Dexter scoots over and rests his head on Armin’s chest, whimpering lightly. Smiling, Armin pets his head, scratching between his ears. Annie smiles at the image– Armin making friends with a stray puppy. Who would have thought?

“I’ll go help with the soup, ok?” she kisses his forehead. “Try and get some rest.”

Without looking back again, Annie hurries to leave his room, her heart beating faster by the second. The kids’ words roam through her mind again. 

He looks at you like you’re his whole world.

She squeezes her eyes shut. If she’s his whole world, he should think again. He doesn’t want someone like her to be his whole world.

You love him and he loves you and you’re both too stupid to realise it.

That’s nothing more than wishful thinking. Nothing more than kids being as foolish as they usually get. What does that boy know anyway?

Hitch’s voice jerks her out of her thoughts.

“Are you helping, Annie?”

She hurries to join the two in the kitchen. The water for the soup is already starting to boil on the stove. Annie ignores their shit eating grins, their stares. She grabs a cutting board and a knife and gets to chopping the vegetables. Sasha rummages through the cabinets, humming some random tune. Hitch fishes her phone out of the pocket of her shorts and leans back against the table, scrolling briefly though what she believes to be spotify. Then This Is The Life starts playing. Hitch leaves her phone on the table and starts jamming around the room, pirouetting around the table.

Sasha finally finds what she was looking for. “Aha!” she exclaims, holding a knife up. 

Annie’s hand freezes mid air. She frowns at Sasha, looking from the knife in her hand to the victorious expression on her face. Even Hitch stopped her dancing momentarily, turning to look at Sasha. Beaming, the girl starts bringing down the chicken, cutting it down in pieces. 

Annie pours the veggies into the boiling water, stirring the soup twice. Hitch comes up behind her and holds out her hands, bringing her along in her dance. Annie laughs, letting her roommate spin her around. Hitch lets out a laugh herself. Annie holds up her arm and spins her around much like she did earlier. 

Then the song comes to a stop and Billy Joel comes up. Hitch bows to Annie, who finds herself mirroring the same movements. 

As Hitch pours herself a glass of tap water, Annie climbs on one of the tall stools, reaching over the table for the tea she’s forgotten about. Sasha puts the chicken into the soup, seasons the whole ordeal, and covers the pot with a lid before turning around. She grins sheepishly at Annie, her eyes bright with curiosity.

“So, you and Armin?”

Annie rolls her eyes, but can’t help the smile forming on her lips. “It’s nothing serious.”

“It looked pretty serious to me.”

“Well–”

Hitch slams her glass on the table. Annie’s head snaps towards her. “Sorry,” her roommate mumbles. She presses her lips into a thin line and joins Annie at the table. “You still haven’t talked about it?”

Annie sighs, dropping her head into her folded arms. “I don’t know how to.”

Hitch clears her throat. “I fancy you, let’s be a thing,” she suggests, doing her best impression of Annie’s voice.

Sasha snorts. Annie looks up at her with narrowed eyes. Hitch holds up her hands as if to defend herself.

“It doesn’t need to be anything complicated, just be honest with him.”

“There’s nothing wrong with simple confessions,” agrees Sasha.

Annie groans. How did she end up having this conversation with these two of all people?

Hitch nudges her knee playfully. “You know, I think he fancies you too.” She winks at her. Annie feels her stomach turn at the gesture.

“You  think?” Sasha peaks in. “He’s completely smitten!”

Annie buries her face into her arms, feeling her complexion warm up. How she wished the ground would open and swallow her whole right about now.

The door creaks open. 

She soon hears Pieck’s voice. “Why’s it so hot in here?”

“We’re making soup,” explains Sasha. 

“Fun.” She’s quiet for a moment, yet Annie can hear the fabric of her skirt shuffling. “Oh is this tea?”

Annie snaps her head up, just in time to see Pieck, in her orange camp shirt and long brown skirt, take her mug of tea and bring it to her lips. She grimaces. “What kind of tea is this? And why is it so cold?”

Annie shrugs. “I think it’s mint.”

Pieck raises an eyebrow, scowling at the mug. She pops it in the microwave, staring at it through the glass. Sasha palms the stray towel hanging by the sink and takes the lid off, then stirs the soup. 

The microwave starts beeping, and Pieck hurries to take the tea out. She takes another sip and hums, nodding satisfied. “Yep, it’s mint.” Pieck sits on the chair across the table from Annie, slowly sipping on the tea she’s stolen.

“Do we have any noodles?” asks Sasha, still minding her soup.

Hitch gets off her chair, saying that she remembers seeing some last week. Sure enough, she finds a whole pack in one of the drawers. They add it to their soup, the finishing touch.

But when they go to call Armin down, they find him long asleep, tucked in bed with the puppy sleeping by his side, head resting on his chest.

While he does eat his soup later that night and, admittedly, looks better in the morning, the hosts decide to give him one more day off, for he looks far from having beaten the cold. 

He spends most of the day in his room with Dexter, his door prompted open by a stack of books, reading books and going through uni prospects and watching cheap movies, just trying to make the time pass faster. 

He sighs deeply as he sits on the edge of the bed, abandoning the book he’s been reading on the nightstand. The puppy jumps off and starts doing rounds around his feet, rocking its tail back and forth, probably thinking that it’s finally time for a walk. Armin smiles sadly at him, reaching over to scratch behind his ears.

“I’m sorry, buddy, I don’t think we’ll do much walking these days.”

Dexter whimpers, his tail coming to a halt as if understanding the boy’s words, and lays on the floor, leaning his head on Armin’s foot. Ears leaned back, he looks up at Armin with pleading eyes. Armin sighs and scoops him up in his arms. Not only is he useless on camp, he also managed to make a puppy sad.

His eyes involuntarily travel to the other side of the room– the empty side of the room, so barred of life; the white sheets left untouched, collecting dust. His lips press together, a wave of sadness washing over him– it should have his side of the room, had everything worked out as they had planned. Had he not disappeared into thin air. 

Armin still remembers how his emerald eyes sparkled with excitement when he told Mikasa and him about camp, in the dim light of his room. They had gathered in the Yeagers' basement like they did every other Friday, his room warm compared to the November brisk outside. His voice had sounded so excited when he asked them to go along this time– for the whole summer, not just Open Day this time– to have one last summer together, filled with adventures, before parting ways. 

A wet something on his face pulls him out of his daydreams, making a shiver run down his spine– but he calms down when he realises it’s just Dexter licking his face. Armin shakes his head briefly and wipes his eyes, for they were getting damp. Dwelling over the past does nothing to fix it, he reminds himself.

Armin lets himself fall onto the mattress again, putting the empty side of the room out of his eyeshot. Dexter, still in his arms, starts licking his face thoroughly, wiggling his tail left and right. Armin chuckles lightly at the puppy’s sudden show of affection, and–

The door is slammed to the wall, yanking both Armin and the puppy up. When he looks up, Armin is met with a very angry Annie moving his stack of books around and closing the door just as loudly as she has opened it.

“They’re driving me crazy,” she grunts out, stomping over to the bed. 

Armin finds himself staring at her– as he often does these days, sometimes less subtly than he’d wish. His eyes travel from the purple of her socks to the top of her head, taking in her appearance, her shorts barely touching the middle of her thighs, her orange camp shirt spotted blue on the collar, the bun at the back of her head loose, barely keeping her hair from falling over her shoulders and framing her face. And the scowl on her face, that he hasn’t seen in a while. Armin frowns, the sight unsettling– what has gotten her so mad?

He was so busy admiring her mere existence that he only notices how close Annie’s gotten when she speaks, and he finds her standing over him.

“Move over.” Even her voice sounds angry, scary somehow.

Armin does as he's told and rolls over to the other side of the bed, his eyes remaining on her curiously. Without any warning, Annie slums into bed next to him and rolls on her side, bringing the blanket over her face.

Armin feels his complexion warming up. But before the thought of her in his bed settles in, another, much more terrifying one takes over. Armin sits up so suddenly it makes Dexter yelp and scurry away, hiding under the other bed.

“I’ll give you the cold if you get so close!”

Her voice comes out muffled by the blanket. “If it gets me out of counselor duties for the rest of the week, I don’t mind.”

Armin narrows his eyes. “What do you mean?” He reaches for the blanket and pulls it down. Annie is already staring at him through stormy eyes, a pout resting on her lips. Armin feels his face soften up. “What’s wrong, Annie?”

“Nothing,” she mutters.

Armin’s frown deepens. There’s something bothering her, he can tell that much, something has been bothering her since yesterday, and yet she won’t tell him. Is she angry with him? Are the kids too much to handle on her own?

The girl sighs and, under the intensity of his stare, gives in. “It’s the kids,” she finally admits.

Armin feels the ground seep from under his feet. 

“They’ve been teasing me all day,” she continues, rolling over on her back. “About us,” she adds, stealing a short glance at him.

Armin sighs, letting his shoulders relax. He lies down once again, then moves a stray strand of hair out of her face. “Is it that bad?”

“They’re being such assholes about it,” Annie groans. “Hitch too. And the others, but especially Hitch.”

Armin can’t help the smile forming on his lips. Annie doesn’t miss it either, for she frowns at him, her cheeks dusting pink. “What?”

“Nothing,” he says, though his voice sounds amused.

Her frown deepens. “You’re poking fun at me.”

“I’m not! I just–” he doesn’t dare look at her when he says, “I think it’s cute how worked up you are over it.”

“You think it’s cute?” Annie turns on her side, fully facing him. “I’m over here making a fool of myself in front of children and you think it’s cute?”

Armin tries to hold back a laugh but, seeing her pout, can’t. Laugher spills over against his will. Annie’s face picks up even more color. She grabs the pillow under her head and playfully hits him across the face, which only serves to intensify his laughter.

“I also haven’t slept in days, so be careful what you say,” she warns, still holding the pillow. 

Armin puts his hands over hers, blocking another eventual attack. He studies her face, noting all the little changes, from how small her smile is to the deeper circles under her eyes. He brings his hand to her cheek, eliciting a little sigh from her, and caresses the dark spots with his thumb.

“You haven’t been sleeping?”

Annie shakes her head, pressing her lips together. She puts the pillow back and lies on her side, bringing the blanket over both of their shoulders.

“Do you want to take a nap then? Get some rest?”

Annie hums. She scoots closer, her breath mingling with his, but as much as he’d want to put his arms around her and just hold her, he doesn't want to give her the cold. He gives her a small smile and scoots away, and Annie seems to understand, for she returns the smile and turns on her other side. 

Soon, Annie’s tiny snores indicate that she’s fast asleep. Armin closes his eyes as well, but sleep is not as kind to him, a thousand thoughts running through his mind, thoughts of the past and the future and worries of the present.

Dexter sneaks into the bed and curls up in between them, resting his head on Armin’s chest once again. Smiling, he pets the dog’s head, watching Annie’s shoulders raise and fall rhythmically. Maybe they will be okay after all.

[asylumwise]

Y’all I can’t decide

[dudewhy3]

august did indeed seep away like a bottle of wine, and my mammoth of a fic is still unfinished

[trainerseyes]

"I was honestly expecting Leon to sweep me a lot sooner than he did. Is it weird, that, despite losing twice, I still feel this sense of pride in getting this far?"

[trickshooting]

"I'd never seen a Basculegion in my life before....that was absolutely terrifying. This is why i stay on stage and not battle though...."

[chaserainbows]

"Oh, I'm going up against a champion round 1."

"Well, that kind of matchup was gonna happen sooner or later."