"Mom?"

She gave a smile.

"What are you doing here?" he asked, slightly puzzled, but obviously delighted at seeing his mother. There was an awkward moment where Eren moved his hands for a moent, unsure of what to do. Carla pulled his hands close to her and brought him in for a hug. It was closed off, a little stiff and awkward, but it held the emotions of 19 years in its grasp.

Carla loved it.

Eren pulled away, examining her at arm's length, his emerald eyes filled with concern.

"What happened?" he asked.

"Nothing happened." Carla said, almost at once, much too quickly. She smiled. Eren smiled.

God, this was awkward.

"You look skinny." Carla said, looking her lean son up and down. "You eating okay?" Carla felt her mother instinct kick in, worried for her child who had disappeared from her life two years ago.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Eren said.

Carla gave another smiled and looked around the decrepit hallway. "Why is there so few people here in such a large building?" Carla asked, noting the absence of more souls.

"Some party downtown." Eren muttered, leaning on his door frame, crossing his arms. Carla felt her nerve dissolve.

"I should, uh, let you get back to your home." She said, lifting her suitcase up, about to turn away.

"W-wait." Eren called after her, his voice little over a hoarse whisper.

"What's with all the stuff?" he asked, a hint of hope in his voice. He wanted her to say she left his father. He wanted to know that Carla was finally out, that it was finally done.

It stayed quiet. Carla looked down, hesitating. She then looked up, setting her suitcase on the cracked title floor. "Can I stay with you for a little while?" she asked pleasantly.

"What happened?" Eren asked. He wasn't going to leave this alone.,

"Nothing happened." Carla said, assuring her son. She changed the subject again.

"Is it alright? I mean-." She stopped herself, trying to calm down. She was so nervous at seeing her son, her only child, again. "I promise I won't be in your way."

It was Eren's turn to study her now, from her blackened hair turning grey to her long yellow skirt and white blouse, her stunning brown eyes that could melt any frozen heart.

"Well, yeah, I guess."

Carla stared at him.

"Yeah, of course. Of course you can." Eren corrected himself, giving his mother the full insurance she so desperately required.

Eren looked behind him, over into apartment, and then back at his mother.

"Uh, give me a sec."

Carla nodded.

Eren opened the latch for his lock and let is rest on the frame, keeping to door opened he disappeared into his apartment.

He was proud of the little place, the kitchen being what had sold him on the apartment. One bedroom, two bathrooms, and the walls were painted this dazzling dark blue. The whole layout of the flat faced a large set of windows that let the skylight into his place. It was certainly beautiful.

But unlike his apartment, Eren was not.

"Shit!" He hissed.

The apartment was a mess. Eren sprinted, throwing old takeout containers into the trash, bunching up all of his clothes strewn over the place and dragging them into his bedroom. He shoved the clothes into his hamper and then messily threw the comforter onto his bed. His took his uh- special- magazines and threw them onto a shelf into his closet.

They were in the closet.

How fucking ironic.

His mother, the one who stood by and let his father throw him out of the house, was now at his doorstep needing a place to stay. He had called her a coward the last time they had seen one another, nearly two years ago, but he had hated the fact that it was the way they had said goodbye.

He knew that she had done a lot to keep his father away from him, directing his anger towards her. He was always grateful for that. But she was a coward.

He should shut the door in her face.

He sighed.

Eren finished straightening up his room and headed out into his slightly more presentable apartment, heading for the door, but then stopped himself. He veered back into his bedroom and grabbed off of his dresser a pack of condoms and shoved them into the drawer where he kept his socks.

That would have been bad.

He rushed back out to the door and opened it, slightly breathless from the race around his apartment. He took his mother's suitcase from her and propped the door open with his foot.

"Come in."

Carla gave a small bow and walked in, Eren following her from behind.

Carla gave the place a once over. If she was appalled by anything, she didn't show it.

Eren set the suitcase down next to the island counter, near the kitchen.

"You hungry?"


Let m explain a little bit about this fic;

For me, food has always been resounding with family. A lot of memories are made in the kitchen, and decades of family tradition can be revived through recipes. Making those recipes of our ancestors, those who came before us and those who brought us life, can be magical. I happen to think it's profoundly beautiful in all forms.

Eren's mom never really got to show how much love she had for her kids, so I think it's high time that someone showed it.

That's what this fic is about. Family, food, relationships, and love. Finding elegance among the chaos when searching for life's purpose.

On that note, I want to warn that this fic is eventual Ereri

Yeeeeeee~ 3

So, as always dear readers, I urge you to question everything.

Peace and Mist,

rlb190