𝙃𝙚𝙧 𝙁𝙤𝙧𝙜𝙤𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙣 𝙋𝙖𝙨𝙩 || Eren Jaeger

𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝒶𝓇𝓂𝓈 𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝒽𝑒𝓁𝒹 𝓂𝑒

15
____________

MARLEY
2 YEARS AGO

The following morning, Eren is gone. Johanna's feeble arm stretches out only to touch cold empty space next to her. Her lips frown a little at this. She hates waking up alone.

She doesn't just hate it, she despises it. And she wasn't aware she hated it until she started waking up next to someone routinely— next to Eren. There's something melancholic about starting the first second of your day utterly alone. Perhaps— and its a struggle for her to admit— she feels most vulnerable while asleep, at the peak of dawn right before the sun coats everything in a pink and orange haze. The stillness of it... can't be withstood alone. Waking up with no one reminds her of when she really was all by her lonesome. Abandoned. Left astray to fend for herself. 

Obviously, she's not that little girl anymore. But a part of that girl lives inside her still, and sometimes... when it's least expected... her fear of abandonment leaps out quicker than she can bottle it up.

Jo's hand retracts. She snuggles further into the blanket and brings her knees in, curling up like a disgruntled cat.

"Suicidal blockhead." she mutters.

"... What did you say?"

She sits up in alarm. Who else but none other than Eren steps out of the bathroom, fully dressed and in the middle of fixing his tie.

"I thought you left." Jo says, surprised.

He seems confused by this notion. "Why wouldn't I wait for you? Here," he hands her a clean set of folded clothes.

She thanks him and takes it. The squad has to dress nice again today. In a couple minutes they'll be attending a meeting held by the Association To Protect the Subjects of Ymir. If all goes well, Hanji will work her magic to form some alliances.

Eren resumes trying to fix his tie, except he's turned it into a tangled mess around his shirt collar. Jo chuckles.

"Need help with that, big guy?" She offers.

Eren shoots her a look but obliges. He huffs and drops his hands, allowing her to help him. He can protest all he wants, but Jo knows he secretly likes being babied.

"You can smash buildings four times your size but you can't tie a tie." Jo critiques playfully.

Eren's eyes flicker to her semi-exposed body, the blankets hardly clinging onto her.

"I can smash a lot more than—"

She fastens the tie painfully tight and he chokes. She waits, a hand on her hip.

He smiles crookedly. "Sorry."

╳ ╳ ╳

The chairman bangs his fist down on the podium, his brow lined with the heavy sweat of his tenacity.

"We seek aid for the displaced subjects of Ymir scattered across nations! These refugees were never once Eldians, nor do they have anything to do with the dangerous ideologies of the Eldian empire! They are nothing more than victims who deserve compassion, forced by the Eldian Empire into creating offspring! It is only the devils of that island who deserve our hatred, now and forever! The devils who escaped to that island a hundred years ago are the ones we should abhor!"

The squad doesn't utter a word. In fact, they dare not breathe too noticeably for fear of being plucked out of the audience somehow. The nine of them exchange furtive glances that mean "oh shit" but they mask their bewilderment for the most part.