AoT Guys x Male Reader AU Oneshots

Merman!Eren x Aquaphobic!Reader

So, with today being Eren's birthday, guess I'll finally get off my lazy butt and write a one-shot for him. I don't wanna do this yet. :c

Also, Aquaphobia is the fear of water.

You sat on the pier, watching the sun slowly start to set while waiting for your best friend, Eren. Every day you both met here around this time. Of course, the lower the sun got the more afraid you were that he wasn't going to show up. It wouldn't surprise you, he was one of those legendary creatures of the water, a merman. Heck, you wouldn't have met him had your so called friends not pushed you into the water last month.

When the sun finally set, you sighed. Figuring he wasn't going to show you stood, ready to leave when you heard the sound of water splashing. Looking, you saw a line of bubbles coming towards you before Eren's head popped up from the water in front of you. "I thought you weren't gonna come." You muttered, sitting back down. Eren scratched the back of his neck, smiling sheepishly. "Sorry, I got caught up with something." He chuckled before tossing something towards you. You jerked away, watching as it landed on the pier. It was a small chest-looking box.

Hesitantly you grabbed it only to gasp when you opened it. Inside was the necklace you lost last month. "How did you..." You choked, nearly crying. The necklace was a gift from your mother, who strongly believed merpeople existed. The necklace itself was a simple metal chain, but the charm was of a mermaid holding a pearl. "I remembered you mentioning it after I saved you. Since I wasn't allowed in my own home today I decided to look for it. I had to replace the pearl though, the other had gotten stuck between some coral somehow and I couldn't get it loose." Eren replied, smiling up at you.

You wanted to hug him, but your fear of water was keeping you from doing so. Your own fear was the very reason you hadn't told Eren that you'd fallen for him over the past month. That, and the fact he was a merman while you were a human. "Wait.." You said as you realized what Eren had said. "..what do you mean you couldn't go home?" You questioned. "My birthday is in a few days. I won't be allowed in my own house until they finish whatever it is they're doing. Don't worry, though! My best friend is letting me stay with him!" He replied.

"Oh, then I guess I won't be seeing you in a few days then?" You said, sadly. "No, you will! I'll show up I promise!" Eren said, hesitantly touching your leg in some form of comfort. Ever since that day he'd rarely touch you, afraid of you freaking out. He'd never admit it, but he found your fear of water rather cute seeing as you lived right next to the ocean but he was surprised as to what caused your fear.

A low groan left your mouth as you slowly opened your eyes, seeing the moon shining above you. 'What happened?' You thought. "Hey, are you okay?!" A frantic voice said from beside you. You sat up slowly due to your head hurting, only to blink and look at the person in front of you in surprise. The boy was, to you, beautiful. Brown hair, bright blue eyes with lightly tanned skin and blue scales on his tail... wait, tail? Looking again, you still couldn't believe what you were seeing. You were about to say something before you felt something cold and wet on your legs.

Nervously, you looked to see the tide was washing over your legs. Quickly, you shuffled back, out of the waters reach. The boy looked at you, a concerned look in his eyes. "Hey, it's okay!" He said quietly, reaching towards you but not moving as he kept his tail in the water. When you didn't move he put his hand back down, sighing. "My name's Eren, what's yours?" Eren asked quietly. "[Y/n]." You said, just loud enough for him to hear. Eren smiled before moving so he was sitting up more, most of his weight on his tail giving him a look of someone on their knees. "I'm glad you're okay. When I saw you trying to escape the water I was afraid I was too late, especially after you suddenly stopped hitting me." You chuckled slightly, reaching to grab your necklace only to realize it wasn't there. "My necklace!" You nearly shouted, looking down at your chest. "What necklace?" Eren said curiously. "I-It was a gift from my mom... the chain was simple, but the charm was of a mermaid holding a pearl. It was her favorite, since she always believed your kind actually existed." You said, sadness lacing your voice.

"What happened to her?" Eren cautiously asked. Sighing, you ran your fingers through your hair. "She was teaching me how to surf... it was the first time she actually brought me into the water. It was a nice day and the waves weren't too bad. But, before we actually got into the water she put her necklace around my neck, saying if something happened to keep it safe... the shark came out of nowhere. We had just wiped out and she was helping me get back on the board and it just... it grabbed her and she never came back up... I was left sitting on the board for a few hours until my dad got home and managed to get me. I've been afraid of the water ever since then, too." You said. Eren just nodded, dragging himself closer towards you.

Slowly, he placed a hand on your shoulder. Looking at him, you saw him smiling at you. "We have something in common then. I lost my mom to a shark, too... hey, how about tomorrow night we meet here again? At the end of the pier?" He questioned, sounding somewhat hopeful. You couldn't help but chuckle at how he sounded. "Okay." You responded. Eren's smile grew as he turned and dragged himself back into the water. You, on the other hand, slowly stood before running to the nearby cemetery to let your mother know what just happened.

You and Eren spent every night talking. "Hey, [Y/n]. I need to get going now before Armin comes looking. Get home safely, I'll see you in a few days." Eren chuckled, disappearing as you waved bye. Standing, you went home telling yourself you were gonna do something for Eren. You weren't sure what at first, not until you looked at a picture of you and your mother sitting on her surf board.

You decided that you were gonna get yourself over your fear and tell Eren how you felt. So, that morning, you set yourself to conquering your fear. Starting with the bathtub.

A few days later you sat on the pier, waiting for Eren. You were sitting in your favorite pair of swimming trunks, which was a gift from your father last year in hopes it would encourage you to get over your fear, with a towel next to you. You were also wearing the necklace, hoping that just by having it would help you. You had only been sitting there for about half an hour when Eren showed up, small bits of his hair braided with pearls. You couldn't help but chuckle. "Oh haha. Look at Eren, he has pearls in his hair!" Eren groaned, clearly not amused. "Sorry, it's just I never expected your hair long enough to have pearls braided into it." You said, still chuckling. Eren just rolled his eyes.

"So, what's with the lack of clothes?" Eren asked as he looked you over. "Well, uhm... this?" You squeaked as you pushed yourself off the pier and into the water. Eren was about to dive back into the water to get you when you reemerged, a look of fear on his face before it changed to one of surprise. "You're... in the water... and not freaking out?" He questioned. "Yeah... happy birthday?" You said, well, questioned. Eren hesitated before pulling you into a hug, one you quickly returned. "You got over your fear for me?" He questioned. You nodded before pulling back to look at him. "I like you, a lot. More then I should, really. I mean we're both guys and you're a merman while I'm a human an-mmph!" You had started to ramble so Eren decided to get you to stop by kissing you. He broke the kiss, staring into your eyes. "I like you a lot, too." He muttered before kissing you again.

That moment you decided not to tell him you were still afraid of the bathtub.