Author's note : oh my god you guys askdjkasjdas it's been like months since the last update! ;n; I'm so sorry, but I've been sort of busy IRL ;u; Anyways, have updates! That's right. Not one, but two! Double update, today (though it might take an hour or a couple)! This one is rated T, I guess? Well, I hope you guys enjoy it!

It had been two weeks since Marco last saw, and had an actual conversation with Jean. Two weeks, he thought to himself in disbelief. He wondered how he could even last two weeks without seeing the guy. He felt terrible and his heart ached every time when he heard the name 'Jean' mentioned, because it always did the trick; to bring him back to the memory where he decided to be a coward and run away from Jean.

Jean kissed me, he thought over and over. It would be the perfect time to admit his huge ass crush on his best friend, if not for the fear that made him not do it. The fear of losing their friendship; the fear that he might got it all wrong and ended up destroying his relationship with Jean. He got the best thing going so far, he didn't want to risk it all. It was either losing his friendship, or gaining something more. The latter excited him, but the other idea scared him.

But, wasn't a kiss a sign of… Affection? A sign that Jean was really fond of him?

But then again, if Jean really did like him, why didn't he try to contact Marco? Or was it just some sick prank that he was playing on Marco? Marco was still unsure about this. He spent days on his room, only coming out to grab something to eat and drink. His friends didn't know what happened to him and was worried about him. They tried asking Marco, trying their hardest to make Marco tell them what was wrong so they could try to comfort him.

But Marco, wasn't the type of person who would ask for help from a person; thinking that it might just made them burdened. Unless that person insisted, he would accept it. But that wasn't the case right now. This was a problem regarding him and Jean, nothing anyone else other than the two could solve. It wouldn't be that easy to solve, unlike that 'drunk kiss' problem (he had an excuse; he was drunk, so it was acceptable to Jean) he had with Jean, just a few weeks after the two met for the first time.

His phone vibrated on top of his table, Linkin Park's song coming out from its speakers.

Someone called him.

He grunted, and lazily grabbed his cellphone from his sofa. He blinked slowly, adjusting his eyes to the light of the cellphone. The name 'Connie Springer' popped up on the screen as the song continued playing on and on. In one swift motion of his finger, he ended the call.

Just when he was about to put the phone back on his table, the phone rang again.

"What the hell-", he groaned, before covering his eyes with his arm. He wasn't feeling like answering any phone calls from anyone, but he felt like he needed some company. He mentally shrugged as he tapped on his cellphone screen to answer the call.

"Hey, freckled Jesus!"

Connie sounded way too excited on the other end of the line. Marco mumbled weakly, "Yeah, hi.". He sighed, reaching over the table to grab a TV remote to switch on the TV. "What is it?". Then Connie's voice dropped into a lower tone, sounding a little bit concerned, "Oh man, don't tell me you're still in that mood.". Marco nodded, and then he realized that Connie couldn't see him. But the silence between them was long enough, that Connie took it as a yes. "Dude, whatever's keeping you down, get rid of it.", Marco could hear Connie chewing on something, probably a bag of chips he managed to snatch from Sasha's fridge. " Ya' know, if you're feeling lonely or anything, you can just, ya' know-", Connie paused to swallow, "talk about it.".

Well, Connie wasn't the best person to talk to right now. But Marco felt that he should tell someone about this. Keeping things to myself won't get me anywhere, he thought. But he felt some doubts, especially knowing Connie as someone who was loud…. And best friends with Sasha (who just couldn't keep her mouth shut and her happiness to herself).

After considering and leaving the call going silent for a few seconds, Marco sighed. "Well… Something… Happened, between me and Jean.", Marco felt his throat getting dry. He couldn't believe himself that he was going to trust Connie (imagine, of all the other less – loud mouth kind of people he could've told this to!) about this matter. He could hear Connie swallowing and something rustling from the other end of the phone, "Dude, what was it?", Connie sounded a bit serious. "Hey, I know you two had a thing going on.", Connie continued.

Marco shook his head, feeling his cheeks burn a bit, "No, we're not—not a thing.", Marco corrected him. As of now, he thought to himself, hoping that he might somehow change the situation. "Yeah, yeah.", Connie dismissed Marco's correction, staying true to his own judgement, "Whatever it is, your problem right now has got to be related to your feelings for that shit ass of a gamer.", he continued.

Marco was terrified how undeniably right Connie was.

"Connie i-", Marco paused to inhale, somehow making sure that it was audible, "I don't even know how I feel about him.". There was a pause, a little bit uncomfortable for Marco which almost led him to hung up the phone call. Luckily, Connie answered just before he did so, "Dude, being unsure won't get you hella anywhere.", he could hear Connie let out a low chuckle on the other end, "At least that was a thing I learned from Sasha.".

Marco chewed on his bottom lip, and silence accompanied the two.

"Talk to me, man.", Connie tried to encourage Marco to open up, "Tell me what's goin' on.".

"Jean kissed me.", Marco internally cursed at himself for opening up so easily. But he could hear Connie gasping from the other end, which made him rethink his decision to keep this call going on. "Alright I just gotta-", "Dude! Dude, don't hang up!", Connie yelled from the other side, loud enough to made Marco flinch and set some distance between him and his phone. "Alright, I won't.", he promised to Connie, but he could feel his words shook with doubt. "Well alright, he kissed you. You two definitely have a thing going on for each other, man.", Connie laughed a bit, "So what's the problem?".

Marco, still mindlessly, switching over the channels, sighed loudly. His chest felt so heavy all of the sudden. Being swallowed up by the earth right now and never to return again, seemed like a good thing to him back then. "I'm such a coward.", he answered.

There was a pause, too long to his liking. He figured Connie might not understand what he meant. "I - I ran away.", he stuttered a bit, "At the moment where we could, y – you know—", he paused, wondering if the words that had gathered up in his mind was even a good option to begin with, "b – be a thing.".

Marco could hear Connie sighing from the other end, "Dude, you're not a coward.", he remarked. "It was just not the right moment.", he continued. Not the right moment?, Marco thought to himself. How could this guy think, that the moment that Jean had kissed Marco, was not the right moment for Marco to confess? "When the time is right, you'll defs know.", he continued, trying to cheer Marco up and encourage it. Marco felt a little better, but not much. At least he felt like it wasn't his fault not to confess during that time. Kind of.

"Yeah.", he answered shortly, nodding in agreement (though still doubting Connie).

"I'm sure you know what to do. I'm just going to let you be by yourself until you feel a bit better.", Connie continued. Some alone time was what Marco needed, to consider what he should do next and what he shouldn't do. But he also felt like he needed some company. He decided on his first judgement, anyway. "Yeah, thanks man.", he finally said before Connie hung up. Now he just hoped that Connie wouldn't tell that to anyone, especially Sasha. He should've forced him to swear not to tell anyone before telling him it.

He sat upright on his sofa, and turned off his TV. For a while, the sound of gunshots and the yelling of cowboys had been some kind of background music. Marco tapped on his phone and opened the message Hanji had sent him two weeks previously, when he was at Jean's. Slowly, he typed out a reply.

To : Hanji Zoe
I guess I'm available. So what's the offer?

Here they are at the studio again. This time, with Connie and Sasha, too. Bertholdt Fubar was apparently joining in for this photo shoot, and Reiner Braun, too. The buff blonde waved at Marco upon entering the studio, "Hey, Marco!", he grinned. Marco slid his lips into a small smile, waving back at Reiner while walking toward the group. Connie and Sasha were both holding small cups of starbucks. But from what it seemed, Sasha had probably already finished hers. Bertholdt, was as awkward as always. The tall guy kept his eyes glued to the ground, avoiding eye contact with Marco, and sometimes shooting looks at Reiner. Reiner and Bertholdt seemed like they would be in this photo shoot, since they were already wearing their respective outfits that Hanji had designed for them to wear.

The group conversed for a while. Everyone talked about their previous weeks and how it had been for them. Well everyone, except for Bertholdt. The tall guy contributed so little on the conversation. Besides that, throughout the conversation, Marco noticed that Sasha and Connie had officially became a thing, since they were both holding hands. They seemed so casual about it, though. Did it mean that Marco was the last one to know?

Marco excused himself from the group, since he needed to prepare the lights and cameras.

"Marco!", Hanji yelled from the other side of the room, coming out from the changing room. Marco, a bit surprised, waved his hand at Hanji, before coming over to her to greet her. "Got everything set up?", Hanji asked. Marco nodded, "Yeah, I guess. The flash lights seemed to be a little off, though. But I don't think it would be a huge problem.". Hanji rubbed her chin with one hand, nodding in agreement. "Well!", she snapped her fingers, "Let's get to it!", she walked over to Reiner, who seemed trying to convince Bertholdt about something. Connie and Sasha were sitting in one corner of the room, having an argument on which topping was the best for a pizza.

Half way toward Reiner, Hanji looked back at Marco, "Oh, and can you, uh, get something for me?". "I need to explain some things to Bertholdt.", she explained, fixing her glasses. Marco thought it would be something simple, so he nodded. "Thanks!", Hanji smiled at Marco, "I think I let my notes on the changing room. It's on the desk, I think.".

Marco walked over to the changing room, opened the door and closed it behind him.

"This fucking shorts, why is it so damn tight-"

Marco felt his heart stop when he heard that familiar voice. Which, belonged to none other than Jean Kirschtein. Marco could only stand his ground, not doing anything. The guy didn't seem to notice his presence, seemed like he was a bit busy with adjusting his leather shorts. Which was too tight and perfectly shaped his ass.

Just when he prayed for things not to get worse, he could hear the door being locked from behind.

And that 'click' was all it took for Jean to notice Marco's presence, and for the two to stare at each other in awkward silence. The silence had probably been so long, since Marco could hear Connie banging on the door, yelling something along the line of, "Make up, you dumb lovebirds!", and Reiner cheering on the background.

"Reiner and his sick jokes…", Jean cursed under his breath, avoiding eye contact with Marco as he kept his eyes glued to the ground. "I don't have any fucking time for this shit!", Jean yelled back.

Just like that, the voices from behind the door vanished into the thin air. Like there was no one out there to begin with. And just like that, the two fell into another awkward moment, silence between them. And now Marco thought that it would actually be much more better if Reiner and the others were banging on the door again, rather than leaving silence accompany him and Jean.

Marco felt like Jean wasn't the type who would break the silence by talking first, because until now he kept balling his fists to his sides, as if he was ready to punch anything. Not to mention, the guys outside would probably keep them in this room until they talked about it and finish it. They probably wouldn't let the two out until then. Connie, that scoundrel, Marco thought to himself, mentally cursing himself for trusting Connie.

Marco took a deep breath, before finally saying, "Jean i-". Jean lifted his head up to look at Marco's brown eyes. It was enough to make Marco even more nervous, but Marco had made a promise to himself to be brave and go on. He wouldn't make the same mistake again. He couldn't miss the chance. He couldn't forgive himself if he did.

"I'm sorry.", he sighed after ending his sentence. He felt his stomach churn after he did. Figuring out that wasn't enough, he continued, "For everything. For th – that stupid thing I – I did when I w – was drunk,", he kept stuttering, because he just couldn't keep his nervousness at bay. "—for running away w – when I was s – supposed to be grateful and shit, I—". Jean cut off his sentence, "Forget it, Marco.". Marco tried to pay more attention to Jean's expression. There, he could see a hint of hurt, and disappointment.

"I don't need your pity.", Jean continued, and Marco could see Jean's eyes were watery. Was he about to cry? "Forget I've ever kissed you—", Jean paused, "Forget I've ever existed.". With that last sentence, Marco could feel his heart crumbling into pieces. His heart ached in his chest, he felt his lungs getting squeezed so hard he couldn't breathe, and he didn't know what to do. What was he supposed to do?

"Jean! I'm not pitying you! I'm being serious!", Marco yelled. When Marco realized it, he didn't mean to yell at Jean. It was just… He was just frustrated. This guy wanted him, and Marco accepted his feelings (though it was a little late). Now he turned him down?

"Why did you run away?", Jean asked, tone serious and eyes gazing straight into Marco's, boring into his skull. Marco gulped, how was he supposed to explain it? A thousand thoughts swam in his mind and he could barely register any of them.

"I was afraid.", he paused, taking a deep breath before continuing. He prayed that things wouldn't go downhill from here, and he managed to convince Jean that he really did like him, more than a friend. "I know the risks and I wasn't ready enough to sacrifice our-", he paused, "relationship, if I fail.".

Jean didn't say anything in return, still looking at Marco, expression blank. Marco decided to take initiative. He moved forward so he was so close to Jean, and pressed his lips to Jean's. A small peck, that Jean wouldn't realized that he was being kissed unless if he opened his eyes. When Marco moved back a little, setting some space between them, the edges of his lips tugging upwards, "Believe me now, Jean?".

Jean still stood there dumbfounded, with a shocked expression; before his lips slid into a sly grin. "I might need… More convincing.", he continued as he raised his eyebrows. "Jean!", Marco laughed, punching Jean lightly on his shoulder. Jean laughed alongside Marco, before grabbing both his hands and looking at nothing else but his warm, brown eyes.

"I thought you weren't into cheesy things, like, holding hands.", Marco joked. Jean laid his forehead on Marco's shoulder as he muttered, "Shut up, you're ruining the moment.", which Marco replied with a small chuckle. "So, does this mean we're boyfriends now?", Jean continued on. Jean lifted his head, moving his face so close to Marco's, that his nose bumped with Marco's. "Probably.", Marco answered shortly, feeling his heart warmer by the second. "Connie will be such an ass about it.", Jean continued, and Marco couldn't help but to laugh at the sentence. "Says the one with the gaydar.", he joked, and Jean only let out a small growl before replying, "Shut the fuck up, dude.", leaning even closer to Marco so that his lips brushed against Marco's, continuing the kiss where they had left off. Marco slowly let go of Jean's hands, and slid them into the waistline of Jean's leather shorts. Jean, unsure where to put his hands, hung them around Marco's shoulders, pulling him closer.

And just then, Reiner unlocked and opened the door.

"I knew this would do the trick.", he grinned; as Sasha and Connie cheered behind him, Bertholdt silently feeling happy for them by smiling, and Hanji laughing like an evil scientist whose experiment seemed to have worked. Marco moved back and broke the kiss, removing his hand from Jean's shorts. The action left Jean scowling.

Marco sighed, "You guys, you planned this.".

Connie popped up next to Reiner, nodding, "Yeah, but you gotta' admit you like the plan.", he continued, still laughing alongside Sasha. "You asshole!", Jean cursed at Connie, though it didn't seem to have any effect on the boy.

In Marco's mind, he totally agreed with what Connie had just said. That was definitely the best plan ever devised.

Author's note : as you may know, none of these are beta'd. So I hope one of you guys would be my beta reader. If you're interested, please PM me! Uvu Also, you can now check for updates and such on my livejournal, .com!