Nicotine (Eremin)

Chapter 22

(A/N: Thank you all so much for your messages; asking me to update or otherwise. I've been feeling kind of unimportant lately, and when I opened the app I had 15+ messages of people wanting to know what happens next, and it really helped. Thank you so much! <3 I'll try my best to write an extra long chapter to make up for the lack of updates.)

March

Armin's POV

The bus pulled into Iowa around 7:30 in the morning. I was never so desperate for a bathroom in my life.

After I finally peed, and bought myself a granola bar, I began my search for a pay phone. They usually had one at bus stations, and I needed to call Eren.

Badly.

I found one, after a few minutes. There was a man using the phone, so I stood back and waited for him to finish. He was wearing a semi-formal suit, with a bag on the floor next to him, so I assumed he was on a business call, and I didn't bother him.

He took a few minutes to finish his call, and hung up the phone. I stepped around him to reach the phone, but I bumped into his chest with my shoulder.

"Excuse me." I said, trying to avoid looking directly at his eyes.

"Watch it, kid. I have an important meeting, and I don't want your stench sticking with me." he glared at me and walked off. I stood halfway to the phone in shock. Most people I've encountered so far had been nice, but I didn't doubt at least one person would be mean. I hadn't showered in almost a week.

I tried not to think about it too much, and reached for the phone. I had less than a dollar left, and I put everything I had into the pay phone, and dialed Eren's number.

It rang twice, and he picked up.

"Armin?!" he practically yelled. I pulled the phone slightly away from my ear in case he yelled again.

"Yeah. Hey, Eren." I said, plugging my other ear.

"So, how are you doing? Where are you?" he asked the same questions he usually did.

"I'm pretty good. I just got off a six hour bus ride into Iowa. How have you been?"

"All right. I got back from a camping trip with some friends. When you get here, do you think we could go camping?" he asked, laughing a little.

"Yeah, of course, but I think we should talk."

"Oh, uh... yeah, sure. About what?" he asked. His voice sounded nervous, and I guess I felt a little nervous too.

"About, us, I guess? If you want to I mean-" I didn't want to make him nervous or anything, so I tried to help, but frankly, I probably made it worse.

"Yeah, okay. Well I know how I feel about you. How do you feel about me?" he said.

"Well, you go first."

"Hey, I asked you first!"

"You said you knew how you felt first, so you go!"

"That's not fair!" we both laughed.

"I guess I can go first. But you can't laugh, okay?" Eren said.

"Wouldn't dream of it."

"Okay. Recently, I just started to think of you more than just a friend, but whenever I got the guts to tell you over the phone, I got cut off, and I started losing confidence. So, I still don't really know how to say this, and it might seem really awkward, but I love you, Armin." he finished. I covered my mouth with my free hand in shock. I thought that my feelings for Eren were one-sided, and he would just end up rejecting me, but I was wrong.

"I love you too."

"Wait, what?" he said. My stomach fell to the floor.

"You were kidding weren't you?" I asked, feeling tears staring to form in my eyes.

"No, no, I would never do that. I just... didn't think you would feel the same way, I guess. I din't really consider you feeling the same way, even." he sounded somehow more nervous now.

"I kinda agree with you. I wanted you to go first, because I was afraid you were going to say something like 'we should stay friends'. I was just kinda shocked when you told me." I said, relaxing my shoulders.

"Hey, on a different note, how long do you think you'll be until you get here?" he asked.

"Well, I'm totally out of money. I think I'll have to rely on walking for a while, until I can at least buy food, and have enough left over for a bus or a train. I might try stealing another wallet, but I told you about what happened with Adam, and not everyone would react the same way." I said. I looked down at the granola bar in my hand, thinking of how long I could make it last.

"Your physical health comes first, and no matter how many times I tell you this, it's still important to keep in mind. If you need to find somewhere to sleep, try to find a homeless shelter, so you're at least inside at night. I really get worried about you, you know." I've only actually been able to find a homeless shelter twice. I'd been counting on the blanket that I took with me for warmth and protection, but I didn't mention that to Eren.

"Yeah, of course. I don't think I have much time left on this call, so is there anything else we need to talk about?" I said.

"Well, we should talk about college at some point, but that can wait. Just get here as fast as you can, okay? I love you."

"I love you too."