Healing Takes Time

Chapter 10

100 reads already--yay!

Okay, carry on.

--Shelby

Oh, by the way, just a heads up that the chapter is going to get really awkward.

* * *

Chapter 10

In the end, we decided to not tell our parents if they didn't ask. We were going to act as casual as possible though I wasn't even sure what casual even meant in this situation.

"How was your first day, Jean? I didn't see very much of you," Mom said.

I blinked and looked up at her. We were all crammed around the kitchen table. "It was fine." I stabbed at a piece of chicken. "Mostly hung out with Marco." That was a fucking understatement. We stayed together for most of the day decided to meet up again tomorrow.

"He seems like a really nice kid, don't you think, Levi?"

Dad looked up. "Actually, yeah."

Mom hit his arm. "Be nice."

He squinted. "I was being nice."

"Is it okay if Mikasa and I do some kayaking with Armin tomorrow?" Eren asked.

"Oh, sure, honey," Mom said.

Dad's eyebrows raised slightly. "You're going to be doing some form of physical activity?"

I looked down at my plate, trying not to smile. He did have a point.

The sound of choking made me look up. Mom was holding her hand over her mouth, trying in vain not to laugh. Dad stared at her like she'd sprouted a horn out of her forehead.

Eren looked offended.

"I'm so sorry, sweetie," she finally said.

He seemed doubtful.

"That wasn't funny." She was still laughing. "Levi, we are supposed to be the adults here, remember?"

"I don't remember agreeing to that. Show me the proof."

She flashed her wedding ring at him.

Sigh. "It was true, though," he mumbled into his glass of water.

* * *

I leaned back on the bed and put on my black framed glasses. They weren't hipster or some shit like that, but they were rectangular in shape. I only needed them to read, and I read fairly often. Not many people knew that about me. They just took one look at me and, for some reason, usually figured that I was the village idiot.

I pulled out Paper Towns and opened to the spot where my ticket stub for Insidious 3 was holding my place. I didn't get very far until I had to put my earbuds in from all the noise everybody was making downstairs. Normally, the noise didn't bother me, but sometimes it made me consider going Van Gogh.

I had read a paragraph when my phone lit up with a text. It was Marco.

Hi. (;

Good evening, Freckled Jesus, I replied. I realized that I was smiling and my lip was between my teeth.

Good evening haha (;

You're such a happy person. Like, how do you do it?

How can I not be happy when I'm talking to you?

Another chink in the proverbial wall. I looked straight in front of me at the wooden wall. It was littered with knots. Movement in the corner of my eye caught my attention. It was Eren, and his cheeks were flushed.

I pulled out a bud and looked at him, expecting him to say something. I was not disappointed. "What's a dildo?"(A/N: This is for all of the people that watched Noragami abridged.)

My eyebrows shot up into my hairline. "Come again?"

I could hear laughing from down below.

"Um... I think you should ask Mom or Dad about that."

He crossed his arms, looking kind of uncomfortable. "They told me to ask you."

What the hell? Wasn't that what parent were for? Food, internet, and explaining embarrassing things.

I cleared my throat. "Why do you ask?"

He rubbed the back of his neck. "I heard some girls talking about it today. Armin said that he knew what it was, but he swore he would never talk about it, and Mikasa is just being Mikasa."

"I'm not telling my twin brother what one of those are!" Mikasa yelled.

Eren leaned over the edge of the short wall that ended the second floor. "Why not?"

"'Cause you don't need to know!"

He groaned in frustration and turned around, giving me an expectant look.

I put my ticket stub back in my book and set it on the nightstand. I swung my legs over the side of the bed and put my elbows on my thighs. "Eren, how about we go take a walk."

He looked confused. "Uh, sure."

I rubbed my face and sighed. This was going to be a long night.

* * *

When I got outside, I texted Marco. I have to do some explaining for my younger brother. It might take a while.

He replied with, That's fine. I'll talk to you later. (:

I slid my phone into my back pocket and looked up at the sky, wondering just how I was going to explain this. I sure as hell was not looking forward to it. It was going to be embarrassing!

Maybe it'll be a bonding experience, I told myself. I snorted. Yeah, and maybe after this we can go skipping off into the sunset.

The door opened behind me and Eren stepped out onto the porch while looking as uncomfortable as I felt. "Let's get this over with," I said. "Follow me."

He did. I started walking along the edge of the highway. He walked beside me on my other side. I rubbed the back of my neck. "Okay, so you know what... masturbation is, right?" I said, cringing. Kill me now, kill me now, kill me now.

"Um. I don't think so."

I died a little bit more inside with those five words. "That's when you, you know, start doing stuff with your--"

"Okay! Okay, I know what it is."

"Right. Well, girls do it too." I cleared my throat. "And sometimes they like to use... things... that are shaped like... us."

I spared a sideways glance at him. He seemed to be comprehending my words. "I think I understand?"

"Okay, you know what? Fine. It's a giant rubber dick, okay?" I felt my ears and face grow really hot really fast.

I looked at him. His eyes were wide with shock.

"And no, I'm not explaining to you what a dick is because you are one at times and we both have one. So don't even think about it." I turned around and headed back to the cabin. I heard him follow me after a short hesitation. Neither one of us dared to say anything.

I ran upstairs when I got back to the cabin and gathered up the stuff I'd need for a shower. I saw Eren sitting on the couch, still in shock, when I descended again.

I heard Mikasa go, "I told you so," really quietly.

Mom and Dad both stared at me when I paused at the bottom of the stairs. I made sure to make eye contact with both of them before I started shaking my head. I pointed my finger at Dad, then Mom, then Dad again. "You both owe me so hard," I said and then hurried into the bathroom.

I could've sworn that I heard the both of them start laughing their asses off the second I turned the water on.