The Prince(ss) & The Pauper (AOT/SNK/EreMin)

3: Other Side Of Me

3: Other Side Of Me

Eren sat in his king-sized bed, lost in thought. This would happen often when he felt himself become infatuated with somebody and this time was no different, except for the fact that he had only ever had this feeling about boys most of the time and now he was feeling this way about a girl, specifically Krista Reiss.

She surprised him in ways he never thought he could be surprised. He thought he had figured girls out long ago, but she was very different from his bias. She cared for her friend deeply and genuinely (he was amazed at how many girls would ruin a friend's life for one seemingly minuscule reason.) She liked video games and, to be fair, a lot of girls liked video games but none were as proud of being a gamer as she was. Most of all, she was interesting to talk to and Eren felt so comfortable around her. He felt like he could say anything to her and she wouldn't make him feel stupid for it.

"Thinking about Krista?" His sister, Mikasa, asked as she held a tray carrying a teapot and two mugs. "It's Earl Grey."

"Come in," Eren waved her over and took a mug off of the tray. "And yes, I'm thinking about Krista."

"I don't get a good vibe from her," Mikasa explained as she poured herself and Eren some tea. "It's like she's hiding something. Didn't her mother say she was super outgoing?"

"Maybe she's shy around new people?" Eren offered. "I know you're like that to some extent."

"Eren, there's a difference between being shy and having anxiety," Mikasa took a sip from her red mug. "Krista was described as a lover of people and would always talk to everyone when her parents had parties."

"Mikasa, I get that you're worried about me," Eren lied, he didn't get it at all. "But, I think I might like her, so can you please back off? We're not little kids anymore."

Mikasa, upset, took Eren's half-finished mug from his hands and left for her room to drink by herself, while Eren simply rolled his eyes and figured she would get over her temper tantrum within the hour and started reading something from his massive library.

Eren and Mikasa had always been close to each other ever since his parents adopted her when he was five years old. She was a month older than him though that didn't matter much to Mikasa at the time.

The two didn't have a lot of friends growing up since Eren kept his nose in a book while Mikasa was considered too weird to hang out with because she was half-Asian and always hanging off of her brother. From her perspective, Eren was the only boy that would ever love her, and then she met Jean while she was on one of her nightly walks.

She had been followed before when she went out for the night but never grabbed at by a stranger. She always knew how to handle herself and was able to fend the guy off, and when she felt a tap on her shoulder and heard a low voice, she almost took that person out too. It was only Jean, making sure she was okay but prepared to run away if things went south for him.

Jean walked her home that night and the two exchanged numbers before she went inside. Soon after, they started dating and Mikasa's world wasn't so small anymore.

Mikasa took a deep breath and returned to Eren's room and gave him back his tea. "I'm sorry, but you're my little brother and you were my only friend for the longest time. I just don't want to be forgotten when you and Krista get married in July."

Eren was aware of Mikasa having abandonment issues when she was adopted. Instead of running around stores or playgrounds as he did, Mikasa would stay with their mom and dad and would freak out any time she was falling behind or if she had to be away from their parents for even a few seconds. She would start to cry and even have panic attacks. Eren never liked seeing her freak out so he always let her hang out with him at recess. She was never left alone for anything, though Eren has always wondered if that was the right choice to make.