Eren sits with his legs crossed on the brick wall, chin perked while he scouts his surroundings. He's sitting in a wet, empty alley adjacent to the ocean, with the only occasional passersby those familiar enough with Shiganshina's backroads to go through. He sniffs, the familiar pungent aroma of fish and salty seawater wafting into his nostrils. His eyes glaze over the bustling harbor as rowdy fishermen come and go in tiny boats next to large, colorful shipping containers. Beyond the sea of blue, Eren muses, the world melts away into the horizon.
He looks down at his watch and sighs. He's been sitting on the wall for ten minutes. He hates when clients make him wait.
As if on cue, Dot Pixis strolls into the alley, drunk and cheery as ever. Eren narrows his eyes at the two bodyguards behind him and knows they were called to make sure Eren doesn't try anything funny. Frankly, he's a tad offended.
"Eren, my favorite drug dealer," Pixis calls merrily, gruff voice echoing through the alley.
"Pixis." Eren feigns a smile, kicking his legs backwards as he launches himself off the wall. "What's with the thugs? Scared I'll run off with your money?"
The old man scratches the back of his head and opens his mouth, the stench of alcohol escaping with every word, "I hope you're not offended, Eren. After the whole, you know," he makes a fake gunshot to his head motion, "murder thing with the rat, I thought I should play it safe in these parts."
It doesn't take much for Eren to read between the lines. Since Auruo's death, his credibility has been shot. He should've known helping a cop would only mean trouble for him in the long run. Plus, the guy was actually kind of his friend. What a shame.
Eren scoffs, considering the rumor going around is that Pixis is responsible. Eren mocks Pixis' gunshot motion with a trained smile, "I heard something through the grapevine about you. Something about murder. You should watch your back, Pixis."
If ever there were ever a time for Eren to learn when to shut up, it's now.
"Oh, well." Pixis clicks his tongue. "You shouldn't believe everything you hear. Although, I can't blame someone for wanting to exterminate a rat. Wouldn't want an infestation."
"No, we wouldn't want that," Eren agrees coolly. He fishes a baggie of white powder from his pocket and flashes it in front of Pixis. Pixis' eyes shine in recognition.
"You know the drill, pay up first. Ten, right?"
He watches in disdain as Pixis' expression immediately twists into an almost lecherous one. "Fifteen, actually."
Eren narrows his eyes and nods slowly, pulling out bags from his backpack pocket. After counting fifteen bags, the two exchange a nod. Pixis grins and motions for one of his thugs to come forward. The burly man hands Eren several wads of cash and Eren takes a moment to count them.
After paying Reiner a percentage, he still has enough cash to feed himself for two weeks and keep saving up for a home.
"You know, Eren…" Pixis starts, getting dangerously close to Eren. He reaches for Eren and lightly traces his jawline. Eren pulls his hips backward, refusing to break eye contact with the man. Eren's hand discreetly hovers over the sleek metal of a gun nestled in the waistband of his pants, right on his back.
"Everything about you is pretty, except that mouth of yours." Pixis' finger flits over Eren's lip, causing the younger man to stare back in clear disgust. His nose scrunches at the smell of alcohol that lingers on Pixis' breath.
Pixis lowers his voice, "Consider this a warning not to spread such dangerous lies."
"Don't touch me, Pixis," Eren growls through his teeth as anger wells inside of him. Pixis steps back in surprise. Eren takes advantage of this moment to remove Pixis' hand from his face. With his hand still tightly gripping Pixis' wrists, he squeezes as hard as he can.
"I'm no one's toy."
Eren squeezes harder until his nails dig into the wrinkles of Pixis' skin. Pixis forcefully pulls his hand back, successfully prying himself from Eren's strong grip. Pixis laughs and sniffs the air, eyes looking Eren up and down.
"My, the boy's got some spirit!" Pixis remarks heartily.
Eren bares his teeth in anger as he backs away from the old man. "Pleasure doing business with you."
Pixis' men move forward to deal with the defiant Eren, but Pixis raises his arm in the air to stop them. "Let him go, he's not worth it."
Eren's muscles tense uncomfortably as he watches Pixis and his men leave. Eren kicks a crumpled can on the ground as far as he can.
Eren is far from the self-pitying type. Something about today's encounter with Pixis, however, was absolutely degrading. He's exhausted. As he saunters his way to the soup kitchen where Armin works full-time (yet they couldn't be bothered to pay him a living wage), keeping an eye out for his friend on the familiar path across town, he ponders just how he'd gotten to this point.
Eren stares up at the sky, expression twisted into a grimace. Where did things go wrong? How'd he get here?
"Eren!"
Eren turns around instantly at the sound of Armin's familiar call. Armin is waving happily, hugging a few rolls of bread wrapped in a white cloth in his arms. Armin grins, relieved to have finally found his friend. Armin is the one good thing that came out of becoming homeless. His parents kicked him out after he came out to them, and he's been in the business of being homelessness just as long as Eren has.
"I was looking everywhere for you!" Armin cries, lifting his arms to showcase the golden rolls of bread. "I brought some snacks from work. I'm on break now. Oh, and Sasha says hello."
"Oh, your coworker?"
Armin nods, basically shoving the bread in Eren's face. "Eat!"
Eren sighs dramatically, grabbing a roll at random. "Thanks, Armin. I'm beat."
Armin rolls his eyes as Eren takes a bite of the bread. "What have you been doing all day? Jean said he saw you hanging with Reiner. He's a drug dealer, Eren. He doesn't even treat you like a pers-"
"Tell Horseface to mind his own damn business." Eren sighs again, not allowing Armin a moment to defend the idiot. "I was working. Helping Hannes at the junkyard. He actually paid me decently this time."
Eren considers himself lucky he's growing his hair out, otherwise Armin would see the way his ears burn a traitorous shade of red. He hates lying to Armin, but he concluded protecting his best friend mattered more than that. Reiner is dangerous and Eren would be damned if he let Armin in on something people lose their lives for.
Armin nods and changes the subject, satisfied. "Do you think the shelter's open tonight? Wanna sleep there?"
Eren winces at the thought of the overcrowded, understaffed homeless shelter nearby. Armin seems to detect this and says softly, "Beggars can't be choosers, Eren."
Eren bites back a retort and balls his fists. The cash he made today feels heavier in his back pocket. "I'm gonna get us out of this shithole, Armin, I swear."
Armin fixes his gaze on the ocean and smiles. "We're gonna get an apartment in the city and eat from different places everyday."
"Yeah, and we'll get a car so we don't have to wander around these damn streets everyday. We can drive wherever we want," Eren continues.
Armin's grin grows even bigger and he latches his arm around Eren's. "Sounds like a plan. But first, I'd rather sleep at the shelter than on the streets."
Eren fake groans. "Fine, the shelter it is. If we see Horseface, I'm leaving."
"His family owns the place, Eren," Armin chides.
"Too bad."
The air is too salty and humid for Levi's taste. He hates the sea breeze and the fishy smell that attacks him everywhere he walks. Dragging his suitcase that's more than half his size behind him, he carries onto his new apartment.
At this point, he wishes with every fiber of his being that he could cuss Erwin out right now, the manipulative ass of a man. If he hadn't owed that man his actual life, would things be different right now?
Levi shakes his head minutely. Of course it would. He wouldn't even be on the police force considering he wasn't formally trained. Under normal circumstances, Levi wouldn't have gotten his foot in the door if it weren't for Erwin personally vouching for his abilities and adding him to his team. To this day, Levi questions if that was legal but he enjoys his job, anyway. He'll repay that Captain America lookalike no matter what it takes.
With a newfound vigor, Levi settles himself into his apartment, which isn't too shabby. It's even furnished for him. Whoever cleaned the room did a nightmare of a job, but Levi is always prepared for that. Just as he's searching for the disinfectant bottle and rag he packed, his new phone rings with the word "Unknown" flashing on his screen. It's specially designed against wiretapping and any sort of tracking. He fumbles with it for a little, struggling to tap the Answer button with his cleaning gloves on. He curses under his breath, tossing the gloves to the side.
Pressing the 'Speaker' button on his phone, he growls, "What do you want?"
Hange, the only one with his phone number, giggles into the phone with the excitement of a five-year-old receiving candy. Levi hears Hange's frantic breathing and the furious honking of a car as she navigates a busy-sounding street.
"Shit, almost died- Levi, you made it!"
"How do you-" Levi narrows his eyes, staring at his phone screen suspiciously as if Hange could see it. "You're tracking me on this piece of shit phone? Is that even possible?"
"No, silly!" Levi can practically hear Hange's shit-eating grin.
"Then what?" he asks flatly, picking up his cleaning supplies and proceeding to wipe down the surface of his desk.
"Oh, I totally forgot to tell you!"
"Not surprising. What is it?"
Suddenly, Levi hears a knock on the door. "I'm hanging up, shithead." After he hangs up, he looks through the door hole and immediately swings his door open. Police detective Hange stares back at him with beaming eyes and an even wider smile on her face than he imagined.
"Hi, Levi! I asked the front desk guy to let me know when you checked in. Flashed my badge and everything. Very official."
Levi is tempted to slam the door in Hange's face for dramatic effect, but decides against it due to the absolute dumbfuckery of the situation. Instead, he pulls her in by the arm and shuts the door behind them.
"What the fuck are you doing here? Aren't you compromising my identity right now?" Levi hisses through his teeth.
Hange ignores him and takes a look around the apartment, wolf-whistling. "Nice place you got here. Wow, smells like lemons. Guess who chose it for you?"
"Hey, shitty glasses." Levi tugs on Hange's collar. "I'm serious."
Hange gently pushes his hand away, smiling. "Did you think you were gonna have to contact your handler from so far away? I just got back myself, after our meeting."
"O…kay," Levi says slowly, trying to process the information. "You live here, then?"
"Not in the area, no. Just about a thirty minute drive from here. Don't worry, Erwin's not an idiot. I had to go through a background check and Erwin made sure I hadn't made any previous contact with the people written in Auruo's report. Auruo's handler was too spooked to take the job." Hange puts her hands up as if she's surrendering. "Please don't make that face, Levi. I'm just here in case anything happens."
Levi nods solemnly. "Alright, now get out before I personally kick you to the curb. You told me yourself to go find Jaeger."
"But, Levi!" Hange whines, making puppy eyes. "I have a housewarming gift for you in the car! A step stool!"
Levi's eyes shine dangerously and Hange can feel herself tense up in sore regret.
"Get. Out."
"But-!"
Levi pushes the babbling woman out of his apartment and shuts the door. He sighs and his eyes land on the case file on the kitchen counter. Eren Jaeger's photo is right on top. Levi groans before pulling on his jacket and messing up his hair, trying to appear more like someone so stressed from their job they want to buy drugs from a nineteen-year-old homeless kid. He doesn't have to do much, anyway. His dark eyes are emphasized by the shadows under them and he doesn't look like a cop in the first place.
"I swear to god, if this brat is just a dead end for me…"
The streets are easy enough to wander. Shiganshina is a small ocean city with narrow roads and clear gentrification at work. If Levi just keeps walking south, he knows he'll find Eren somewhere. Auruo's reports said he always had trouble finding the kid. It isn't much of a surprise to Levi, considering he's homeless and probably gets kicked off of properties often. Levi knows exactly how it is.
"Fucking hell, if only I had a car-" he mutters to himself as pieces of trash blow past him on the windy street.
Levi continues walking down the street for twenty minutes. The sun is almost fully set and the streets are emptying more and more. He when he hears incessant shouting from an alleyway ahead. The back of Levi's neck prickles with anticipation and, if he were on patrol right now, he'd absolutely do something to get them to shut up. Instead, he tries to keep looking forward because Levi Ackerman is a businessman and-
Familiar green eyes shine in the darkness of the alley, catching Levi's for a split second. It's Eren, Levi concludes immediately. He could recognize that scowl, those eyes, his thick, furrowed brows from anywhere. Levi keeps walking until he's right at the corner of the alley, hidden from their view but still able to listen to and occasionally peek at what's happening.
It is absolutely Levi's lucky day.
The young man continues to shout at the other man and gives him a good shove. "Reiner, you fuck! That's not what we agreed on!"
"Eren, shut the fuck up, man! Look where we are right now!" The larger, burly man, whom Levi assumes to be Reiner, shoves Eren backwards into the wall.
Eren groans from the impact, but immediately adjusts his stance. He balls his hands into fists and looks around to make sure no one is watching (luckily, he can't see Levi). Eren lowers his voice, "Listen, man, you can't fucking take a bigger cut like that. You know I need the money. You know it."
"That's not my problem, bro," Reiner says with a shrug. "It's out of my hands. You know you have all my supply right now? Now shut the fuck up if you know what's best for you."
Eren relents, shrugging his shoulders. He purses his lips and watches with dismay as Reiner walks further into the alley to get to his car. Eren looks like he's about to cry.
Levi decides to look for Eren again tomorrow.
The next day, Levi finds Eren sitting alone near a pier after exactly two hours of searching every street near the alley from last night and finally taking a break to eat lunch. Levi neatly folds the burger wrapper ("'Twas a shitty meal indeed," he thinks) and tosses it in the trash.
Eren is sitting on a bench, looking lost in thought while eating lunch from the same burger stand nearby. His hair is tied back into a bun and he's wearing a worn, black leather jacket that makes him stand out from the flurry of light t-shirts and khakis that pass him. Levi feels lucky to find him again and wonders if he should just continue making note of the places Eren frequents or make direct contact.
"Fuck it," Levi mutters under his breath. He's just a low-level drug dealer. A pawn. Levi thinks of the debt he owes Erwin. If Erwin wants him to take down a drug operation, he'll do that. Levi won't make any progress with this case if he can't even get past the kid. First step: establish any kind of relationship with Eren.
He clears his throat, messes his hair up a bit for extra measure, and confidently walks to the bench where Eren is sitting. When he's about five steps away, Eren looks up at him from his burger, bright green eyes practically boring holes into Levi's soul. Eren furrows his brows in confusion.
Levi cocks one side of his lip upward into a smirk. "Hey, kid. You a friend of Reiner's?"
Reiner's name clicks in Eren's head and his facial expression twists from confusion to understanding and back to suspicion. "The fuck do you want, dude?"
"He told me to come find you. Told me what you look like and everything. Guess I'm lucky to find you here since I was gonna text you to set something up tonight." Levi prays that Eren can't see through his lies. He actually thinks he's doing a good job.
Eren doesn't say anything, which annoys Levi.
"Listen, you selling? I could really use something out here. My job's a pain in the ass." Levi scratches his head for extra effect.
"What are you in the market for?" Eren asks cautiously.
"What do you think?"
Eren hums in response and continues taking bites of his burger.
"Hey, brat, I'm waiting." Levi taps his foot impatiently and crosses his arms. "You've got business, so make your damn sale."
Eren just looks forward, right past Levi. Levi resists the urge to punch the kid for not having basic manners.
"He said you were short. I thought the attitude was an exaggeration, to be honest, but I guess the scowl from your picture should've been telling enough," Eren says simply and takes the last bite of his burger.
Levi takes a step backward, more confused than annoyed. "What?"
Eren slaps his hands together to get the crumbs off and stands. Eren towers over Levi, his six-foot stature almost causing the older man to gulp nervously.
"Not what, who," Eren corrects, "Auruo."
All Levi can think of is how he is now royally fucked. If he could kill Auruo a second time, he would.