The Intern

Chapter 30

"Oh, and the Louvre. Of course we have to see that! You can't go to Paris and not see the Louvre."

"Mmf," I muttered into my pillow and buried my face deeper.

I suppose I meant the sound to be some form of an agreement, or at least something that would pass as a response. Either way I knew that Armin wasn't going to take the lack of enthusiasm for much longer. Not that he expected me to be thrilled to see a museum of any kind, but he at least wanted me conscious enough to understand his own excitement. Although I could honestly be in the depths of REM sleep and still feel how ecstatic he was to be in Paris.

I was willing to bet that all of Paris was aware of Armin's joy at this point. The attendants had barely managed to open the plane door before he went flying out of it, and he turned into a jumping bean in the limo on our way to the hotel. It was like he had a case of springs hidden in his ass and they were finally getting loose. At least that's what Levi had muttered to me as I did my best not to fall asleep on his shoulder. When he shook me awake about twenty minutes later, I knew I had failed.

That wasn't surprising, of course. I had spent the remainder of the flight trying to hide the fact that I was emotionally distressed. Erwin had returned to his seat long before Levi came back to join me, and when he finally did he was holding two drinks in his hands. I was grateful for the drink up until the point that I realized it was nothing but cranberry juice. Not that I expected him to give me alcohol, but the thought of having anything that would calm my nerves was something I desperately needed. Still, I didn't want to push for something he didn't offer.

I was a jittery wreck when we finally landed, although I managed to hide it well enough throughout the flight. I passed the time by talking to Levi, Farlan and Isabel about their favorite things in France. I tried to keep my eyes off the front of the plane, where Armin and Erwin were locked in a constant and almost flirtatious discussion. Jean, surprisingly, stayed at Armin's side throughout the flight and even joined in on their conversation after a while. It bothered me that he didn't look as disgusted with them as I wanted him to be. He was Armin's way out of a dangerous relationship, and yet he looked happy for them.

The only one who actually seemed to agree with me was Mikasa, who abandoned them after an hour and joined me at the back of the plane. She gave me a look that only I could understand and angled her head in the direction of Armin and Erwin. I sighed and shook my head, not bothering to keep the look of repulsion off my face. She frowned and flopped back in her chair, glancing over at Levi once before deciding to sleep the rest of the flight. She flipped her scarf over her face to block out the sun, and any potential conversation as well.

By the time I finally crawled out of the car, my body was exhausted down to the bones. I wasn't even sure my muscles knew they had a purpose anymore, and I relied on leaning into Levi to make it to our room. Somewhere in that short trip I remember hearing Armin gush about the architecture, but I couldn't get my mind to focus. I could barely recall escaping into the strong warmth of Levi's arms when he finally held me in our bed. His lips had brushed against my forehead and I remember him chuckling softly as he told me to sleep. Which I had been only too willing to do.

"Ereeeeeeen!"

Armin drew out my name as he tugged on the sheets, pulling me out of yet another dream. I grunted in response and tried to roll over, but his hand caught my shoulder and kept me from escaping. He huffed and pushed me onto my back, pressing his hands down on my shoulders as if that would prevent me from moving. As if I actually had enough energy to move at all.

"Ugh... do whatever you want to me, just let me sleep," I mumbled, throwing my head to the side and exposing my neck as if I were giving in to some kind of animal.