SPARE

ᶜʰᵃᵖᵗᵉʳ ⁰³

CHAPTER 3
caught up

THE WALK TO THE CAFETERIA WAS unbearably quiet for Armin. Y/n wouldn't speak much with him when Eren was tagging along beside her, having Armin feel as though he was on some type of punishment listening to them mingle the whole time.

Armin took his hand out the front pockets of his slacks, and his hand was quick to delicately cover his mouth as he harshly closed his eyes for the small yawn that urged past his plump lips and into the palm of his hand.

He finally catches Y/n's attention with the dramatic scene he causes when he raises his hand out his other pocket to stretch. His shirt lifts up and she's just barely able to see his v-line that makes a small appearance before his hands fall back down by his side, and as he pries his eyes back open he only blinks away the tears that formed in his eyes.

The noise from teenagers chatting with their peers grew louder as they neared the cafeteria entrance, and it's like a natural instinct the way Armin's eyes shot over to the corner as Y/n pulled out her phone.

His eyes scour the dimly lit screen as she taps on her messages between Connie and her, her thumbs dance along her keyboard to spell out the words "Where y'all at??"

Armin, Eren and Y/n wandered around the cafeteria aimlessly pushing past the packs of kids as they try to finding their friends in the crowd, and Armin grows curious as to what's taking so long for Connie to respond until a loud voice conquers the other voices as he calls out to the group.

"OVER HERE!" Connie yells from the top of his lungs, motioning for them to follow in his direction with one hand as he leans his back up against the glass door that led to the outside lunch tables.

A bag full of Mcdonald's is in Connie's other hand and just as he sets it down on the wooden table next to Regin she's quickly snatching it up to see what's inside, prying open the big plastic bag to find a smaller paper bag with food that Connie had gotten for her.

Armin's face softens for a short moment when he hears a sudden giggle escape Y/n's mouth. Her face brightens up after spotting them and he's taking in the way she'd always hide that beautiful smile of hers with her hand when she'd laugh, but Armin's face scrunches back up soon after he sees Eren is admiring her in the same way and he walks ahead of them.

As he places his bag down on the ground, taking the open seat next to Robyn she greets him with a small, "Hey," but her gentle voice can't be heard over all the commotion so she tries repeating herself once more, this time louder. But she doesn't understand that Armin not paying any attention to her plays a small factor in that as well.

His eyes follow Y/n as she purposefully distances herself from him, passing an empty spot that he marked for her to sit at, for a seat all the way around the table beside Connie and Reign.

Y/n tries her best to ignore his blatant stares as she sits down, casually interacting with her friends the way she normally would. But as she adds to the chaos, snatching a handful of Connie's fries in a teasing manner on the inside she's scared, scared that if he can't stop boring holes deep into her skull someone will notice.

"Hey!" Armin hears Connie yelp from across the table, "That's not for you!" he continues, jerking his head in her direction as she takes her time eating them in his face, letting out a genuine laugh.

Armin's lips slowly curl into a smile that's she's enjoying herself, but the only thing that made matters worse was the fact that Eren of all people got to steal that open spot next to her, squeezing right in between Y/n and Floch as he made himself comfortable, pulling out his lunchbox from inside his bag.

But he tries not to stress it too much, although he would admit Y/n's sudden strange behavior wasn't like her, he knew Eren wouldn't be a threat, and he would make sure of that.

Armin adjusted himself in his seat, letting out a low sigh before he finally turned beside him with a warm small smile appearing on his face before finally acknowledging Robyn.

"Hey Robyn," he huffs dramatically. The palm of his hand cupping his cheek as he places his elbow on the table, and Robyn looks over to face him.

Robyn's not much of a talker, especially when it comes to people she isn't familiar with but when she sees that welcoming smile still vibrant on his face she can't help the cheesy smile that forms on her face as she tells him, "Hey,"

"How's your day been so far?" He asks, his words flowing out his mouth so gently as he tries starting up a conversation with her, but he asks in a keen manner letting her know he's genuinely interested in what she has to say next, and Y/n can't help but observe their small interaction from across the table.

Robyn looks at him with longing eyes, like she's mesmerized from just looking into his icy blue eyes alone. She's flustered just being in his presence and her heart beats a hundred miles per hour for only him.

So she analyses every small interaction they have, hoping one day their relationship could grow into something more.

It aches Y/n's heart to know her best friend has those same feelings she has for the only man she has her eyes set on, but also because she knows she's betraying Robyn.

If she knew what was going on behind her back she would literally kill Y/n, so it's best she doesn't say anything at all since she was planning on ending things with Armin anyways.