Wanderlust

Chapter 1

It was too good to be true.

The first time he read it, he thought it was a prank. Then he read it again. And again. And again. Yet the words didn't change, his computer monitor wasn't malfunctioning, he wasn't dreaming. The words were really there.

Looking for a travel partner. Male. Preferably between 20-30. Available for a 3 week trip to France. All expenses paid.

The ad could be false. It probably was fake.

What were the chances of coming across such an opportunity while searching for a cheap escape from his hometown?

But it wouldn't hurt to send an email to the address listed in the contact information, would it? And if it turned out to be a joke, then no harm done.

He was looking for a way to get out of Trost, away from his over-bearing sister, absentee father, and boring life anyway. Responding to a possibly fake listing on craigslist that could potentially be real might help him. There really was no risk to replying to the ad, it wasn't like the lister would be able to track him down into his dorm room. He had no reason not to try it.

Taking a deep breathe, Eren typed a quick message to the lister.

Hi Hanji,

I just saw your ad on craigslist and wanted to know if the offer was still available?

Thanks!

Eren Jaeger

He hesitated a second before clicking send.

Running a hand through his short brown hair, he started to turn away from his laptop, planning on making a quick sandwich before continuing his search for the cheapest, longest, farthest vacation he could. A loud ping from his computer sent his spinning back around.

He had an email.

Hello Eren!

Yes, it is! Would you mind sending me a picture of yourself, holding a sign that says "Titans don't shit"? I need to make sure that the picture you send is actually you, not some stock photo stolen off the web.

Also, I'm assuming you are male and between the ages of 20-30? You wouldn't believe how many creeps -male and female- there are trying to get a free trip to France!

-Hanji

That sure was fast. Whoever this Hanji person was had to have been checking their email just as he sent his.

Staring at the contents of the email, he mulled over his options. If he wanted to find out if this was the real deal and not a prank, he'd have to take a chance. It didn't seem like a prank though, if it had been, why would the lister reply? It was advertising a free trip, so it's not like it's a good way to scam people out of money.

His fingers toyed with the mouse, debating. Was he really going to do this? Was he going to reply with a picture of himself holding a sign - titans don't shit - really? What kind of sentence is that?-? He didn't understand how a picture could sort out creeps, some of them sure, but then again, he had no way of knowing that Hanji wasn't a creep himself. Or herself. He assumed Hanji was male, going off the ad requesting a male partner, but Hanji seemed like more of a girl's name. He supposed he should probably figure that out, if he was actually going through with this.

After momentary hesitation, before deciding that fuck it, he wanted to go to France and even if this was still a prank, he might as well, Eren grabbed a piece of paper from his printer, and a fat black marker. After scribbling the words, what the actual fuck they meant, he had no idea, he quickly opened PhotoBooth on his laptop and held up the sign.