(Eren's POV)

Petra was the first to arrive at my house. When she did I explained to her who Annie is and what we're doing. She immediately agreed.

"I know how gossip spreads around this town and what it causes isn't pretty. I think you'll need all the help you can get." She stated.

Later in the day, Thomas and Mina Carolina arrived together, both of them were filled in on what's happening by Armin. They both agreed to help as they saw that my situation is dangerous.

"Where's Levi?" Petra asked. "You did call him right?"

"Yes I did." I answered.

Noctis who was already at my place, opined saying: "Maybe he'll be late. Check on him just in case."

"Hey Levi? You there?" I called Levi.

"Yea dude. Sorry. Something came up. I can't be there."

"Oh okay."

"Good luck though!"

"Yea thanks." I hung up and informed the others that Levi isn't going to be here.

"Oh..." Petra said, her head pointing down. I could sense that she had a thing for Levi. I could sense this all the way back when we were... in middle school I guess.

"Should we go then?" Annie asked.

"Yes we shall. Armin will meet us there."

While walking. I could hear Annie, Petra and Mina engaging in conversation. I was happy to see her like this considering she hasn't any female friends that I know of.

"Hey bud. So what exactly is driving Jean to do this?" Noctis asked.

"I don't know. Spite, perhaps. He always has harbored a sort of hatred for me from when I was little. And he wants to get his dirty hands on Mikasa. And I don't want that, seeing the type of person he is."

"Makes sense. And that's why you punched him at the party."

"Yes. Exactly. He was trying to get to her head."

"If I were you I'd have done the same thing. It's not acceptable that someone tries to get into your friends' heads, especially to do harm."

"We're gonna do some harm to him."

"Do you really think he's at his place?" Thomas asked.

"Yea. He's at his stable. We'll get to him soon enough."

Finally we reached the neighborhood of Jean's house. Apparently he was already waiting for us with Connie, Marco, and a bunch of other dudes I don't know who they are.

"Hey, Yeager, long time no see. What are you doing here, eh?" Jean asked with shitty grin on his face as he sat on his entrance steps.

"I'm here to settle some business. Now come down here and face me. Jan to horse, Jeanny-Boy!"

"I won't bother and waste my time on a lowlife like you. These boys are here to do exactly that." He said right before getting up and heading to the door. Once he did he snapped his finger and his group of thugs rushed at us while he entered his house.

The first guy who reached me tried to throw a punch at me but I ducked and punched him on the side, just a few inches above the waist. I then proceeded to punch him in the head.

Noctis kicked a dude in his stomach and then grabbed him by wrapping his arm around the thug's head and throwing him away. He then proceeded to fight another thug.

The entirety of the gang was fighting members of Jean's gang of brainless goons and with an urging from Thomas I rushed inside and made my way to Jean's front door.

I kicked the door opens and proceeded inside. Jean was standing there waiting for me and smiling about it as well.

"So. You're finally here. Did Leonhart plead you to come here? Did she go on her knees and kiss your feet to come here and try to stop me? And what are you going to do? Huh? Try and fight me? You'll fail. Those guys out there were nothing. I'm the real deal."

Jean took off his shirt and stretched his bushes before snapping his neck and fingers.

"Here we go Yeager. I won't hold back!"

So the fighting started with both of us running towards one another. Our fists collided with force, causing no one to gain an advantage in the fight. I jumped back and tried to punch again, only to have my fist once again collide with his. I kicked him back and followed it up with a punch to the face and then I grabbed him by the throat and threw him over his living room couch. He grabbed the remote off the table and threw it at me which hit my face.

As I held my aching face Jean ran towards the couch, jumped on it with his right foot landing on it and then he jumped off of it, kicking me with his other foot towards a wall. He then proceeded with a number of punches to my chest and ended them with two punches to my face.

"Is that all you got, Eren? I honestly expected more!"

"Oh yea? Well I'm just getting warmed up. And like Jerry's pizza downtown, I always deliver beyond expectations!" I kicked him like a true spartan, making him fall a few feet further back I then rat at him and kicked him like a soccer ball (football for you brits) in the head.
I jumped on the couch, backflipped midair and hit his chest with my elbow.

Afterwards I got up and grabbed a chair and hit Jean with it. Jean got up a moment later and tried to punch me in the face but I grabbed his fist and blocked the other and followed all that with a knee to the stomach and a kick to the face.

I tried to punch him again but he dodged my punch and grabbed my elbow before pushing it the wrong way, and sliding his feet to sweep me off the ground. I fell but immediately rolled out of the way of his stomp and got back on my feet.

"Who do you take me for? Huh Yeager?"

"A horse with mildly interesting fighting skills!"

"Rrrgh! Are you ever gonna shut up?!" He exclaimed as he ran at me with a punch that I grabbed. I then hit him with a headbutt. And then with a punch, kick, a palm strike, another two punches to the face, and then finally a spartan kick.

Jean fell to the ground and stopped moving to catch his breath. Once he did that he got back on his feet and tried to get back into the fight but then I heard the sound of a pistol being loaded from behind him.

"Stand down, horsey-boy!" A voice said from behind Jean.
The person then swept his foot and knocked Jean off his feet.

"Levi! You're here!" I exclaimed.

"Yea I wanted to do a surprise entrance." He replied.

"Well that sure is a surprise entrance if I say so myself." I replied.
I then placed my foot on Jean's chest.

"I'm not gonna... waste any more of my efforts on you Yeager. You're a lost cause." Jean stated.

"Oh now you say that? What happened earlier when you wanted to expose this whole secret of mine and wanted to get to Mikasa and all that? Huh?!" I asked furiously.

"Mikasa? I did all that... for her, you idiot. Not to get back on you. You were only... a part of a bigger plan. You don't... deserve her, Yeager. Not even her friendship."

"Well nobody asked for your opinion."

"Heheh... smartass." Jean replied.

"What did you tell Annie? Huh? Why are you after her?"

"How is it... any of your business?"

"How can our relationship not be any of my business? Explain that to me!"

"What? What relationship?"

I got confused. What he said this instant made my entire mind just stop focusing.

"What did you say?" I asked.

"What... relationship?"

"What do you mean? Jean what did you tell Annie?!"

"So... she lied to you. She's been playing us both the whole time... What a girl..."

"WHAT DID SHE TELL YOU?!"

"Ask her... yourself."

Levi and I left Jean's house and went outside. I looked at everyone on the street. My gang was there, all but one. Annie.

"Hey Noct? Where's Annie?" I asked.

"She left. She said that she had important stuff to take care of."

"In which direction did she go?"

"To the right of me. And then to the right again."

"Thanks. Anyway Jean's inside. Go do with him whatever you want. Levi and I are gonna chase after Annie."

Levi and I then ran down the street looking for Annie. If she could be anywhere it's her place. It wasn't far from Jean's house but she must've arrived by the time I finished fighting the goons with Levi's aid.

After a short while, Levi and I arrived at her place. I made my way to the door and knocked, but didn't receive any response. I then tried my luck with the doorbell, the same thing happened, nothing. I sighed and looked through a window desperately for a sign of Annie, but I couldn't get even a glimpse of her.

"Maybe she's not here?" Levi suggested.

"Maybe. But she always leaves her house like this when she's inside. She spends most of her day in the bedroom." I explained.

"Oh yeah? Wow."

Levi then made it to the backyard and tried to look at her window to see if there was an activity. He told me that he noticed nothing strange but for the fact that the only window with curtains closed was her room.

"That's a dead giveaway. She's inside." I stated.

I pulled out my phone and dialed her number. I waited for a few seconds because she didn't answer at first. But then she did.

"Hey..." She said, I could sense sadness in her voice.

"Where are you?" I asked.

"You know where I am. Eren, I'm sorry."

"About what?"

"About this." She said, mentioning everything that had to do with Jean today.

"I don't care, it's not a problem. Just open the door so we can talk!"

"No. I can't. Not today. Please. I'll talk to you soon."

"Fine..." I sighed, giving up. "I'll talk to you later."

"So you're just going to let her go? She dragged us here for nothing!"

"No, I don't believe so. There is something. Something that I need the gang's help with." I said. Then I walked towards him and whispered in his ear. "Something about her. Now from what I can tell this is something she doesn't want to tell me, so we're gonna try and find a way to know. One, we could put this all to rest and two, the gang's time wouldn't have been wasted."

"But, is it really wasted? I mean, think about it for a second." I continued, not whispering. "We did beat the hell out of Pony over there, and what's there to lose? I did see you, finally. Am I right?"

"Yea, you do have a point." Levi replied.

"Yes, I am right. I always am. We wouldn't and we shouldn't have a gang otherwise." I stated before walking away with Levi. "Text the gang. Tell them to meet at my place for a toast of celebration. Pizza's on me."