𝐜𝐮𝐩𝐜𝐚𝐤𝐞. eren jaeger

xxix

"I'M GLAD YOU'RE QUITE okay now," trelra's ceo, armin, had greeted you once you've stepped foot into his office as a smile had graced his features. however, you had only hummed softly in response as your feet had led you to your desk near the wide glass windows of the blonde's office.

immediately setting your bag under your desk whilst plopping down on your comfy chair, you let out a small sigh, eyes looking up into the white ceiling as you allowed the cold air from the ac's to embrace your form. you wished to just keep silent until a sudden realisation had crossed your mind. "ah shoot," you spoke, anxious, instantly sitting straight up, "i'm sorry for being tardy today, armin, and for being a bitch. good morning by the way, sir."

arlert had just chuckled softly at your form, though as your friend and superior, he was deeply worried for you ー for your being and how you could've, would've coped from the shitty hell that occurred days back. but, he knew full well that speaking of such events would only worsen the situation as it is, seeing as his secretary was two times distressed than that day five months back; and was living life like she was forced to.

"i'm okay though, just a little sad about what happened," you spoke, noticing how armin was concerned over you, his cerulean orbs giving that idea right away. with that, he smiled and focused his attention back to his laptop that was in front of him.

silence.

it lasted for hours as not a single word had been exchanged between the two of you, each focusing on their respective tasks like neither of you had existed for the time being.

arlert kept silent, not being able to think of ways to ask about how you were doing without bringing that up.

and you, you kept your lips into a thin line as your fingers had typed away on the computer screen subtly shining in front of you.

piles and piles of work and a frenzy of phone calls filled your day; walking in and out of armin's office as you had volunteered to do all that he needed to ー which of, of course, you were capable of doing. and with that, the cycle had continued for the rest of the day.

and just as quickly, you had noticed that the sun had started setting.

-

you were now walking back to your apartment building with your phone in hand. you had been patiently waiting for the german to call you back, anticipating that the device would ring at any second and you would hear his voice again.

today, a decision to skip lunch and work during your lunch break had slipped into your mind, not in the mood to stand up from your seat and looked away from your piles and piles of paperwork (except those mentions of voluntary work).

turning your head to the right, you had given the cafe shop a glance as you had momentarily stopped in your tracks. memories kept rushing in your head and almost all of them had pained you. it wasn't the right time yet to reminisce such things.

holding back a tear, you continued on your way back your place. once reaching your desired destination, you pushed the doors open and walked towards the elevator that was situated near the reception area, giving a small smile with a subtle nod the ladies who were there as they did the same.

you entered the lift and pressed your floor number. checking your phone for the last time, 17:17 it read and there weren't anything from the german whom you had grown attached to.

sighing, you muttered under your breath, "it's not like he's ignoring me. i know all will be well."

-

"good afternoon sir," a woman with blonde hair greeted eren as the chimes jingled as he had entered the shop. "how may i help you?"

nearing the counter where she was, he inquired for rings ー the finest that he could find. "would you show at least three of the best here?" eren kindly requested.

with a nod from the blonde woman, she brought out three velvet boxes and opened them simultaneously, revealing the diamonds on each as they shimmered and reflected the fluorescent lights.

eren's eyes had examined each one, teal green hues looking for the perfect ring that'd match your skintone perfectly well. he was deep in thought as he had thoroughly went through each of the rings' distinctive beauty.

gold.
two-toned.
tri-color.

each of them were stunning in their own way, however the german was having a great dilemma in which to choose.

few minutes later, he had came up with the decision to purchase the two-toned one and paid for it in cash despite its price to be double digits, almost reaching a 100k. ignoring how much he had spent on it, he'd focused on the thought that you were much more worth it and that would mean that he'd be willing to go an extra mile for the h/c-haired woman he had learned to love all these months.

love never required how long you two must date. it never dictated the required number of years before the two involved would move on to the next level. everyone has their own love story, right? and it didn't have to be like how others' came out to be.

the pacing.
the years.
the actions.
were they all being restricted?

no.

love was love after all.

the feelings.
the trust.
the respect.

sometimes what you've experienced in six years could never compare to what you felt in the five months.

eren had now exited the shop with the small velvet box tucked into his pockets as he made his way towards his car. a smile had never left his prominent features ー and he was greatly aware of that ー however, didn't give a damn as his heart was racing in both excitement and worry.

fishing for his keys, he, soon, unlocked his car and hopped right in. reaching for his phone, he scrolled through his contacts and searched your name ー the name that never failed to bring a smile to his lips.

you were the rainbow after the rain.
the shining sun after a gloomy day.
the woman he'd wished to marry.

it was, again, a risk for when was love not considered one? however, taking a leap of faith and entrusting everything else to the heavens above, he had, once again, found himself loving a person ー a woman whose heart was filled purity.

ring. ring. ring.

ring. ring. ring.

ring. ring. ri-

"hello, eren," you greeted him, "finally. i thought you died," you joked, hoping to mask the underlying worry you felt in the pit of your stomach.

the german chuckled, "funny. you think that'd happen when i haven't even married you?" he joked, thinking as if he was too much of a sweet talker this time than compared to the older days. ew, too cheesy, he thought to himself as he awaited for your response.

unbeknownst to him, that was enough to awaken all the butterlies in your stomach as they had, now, danced around like crazy.

°°°