CHAPTER 17

Author's Note

Blah, blah, blah, insert excuse for not posting last week. Life is hard okay! Lol! Anyway, we're entering the closing chapters of what I'm temporarily calling ACT 1 (maybe the halfway point of the story?) xD so that'll be fun! I promise not to miss an update until we finish said act, hehe!

~Gum

Just you and me

Poor thing

Broken

Against the world

Don't worry

You used to be

Broken man

Just you and me

He may not look the part

You used to be unstoppable

But he's pretty tough

You're a broken man Eren, just like me.

Eren woke up in a start. He found himself in a space enclosed by grey curtains, lying down in a medical bed. He looked around disoriented. The air was still. Beeping sounds hummed from a distance. A chair was next to his bed with only his clothes sitting in them.

Without a thought, he threw the white sheet aside, flinging his feet to the ground. He sat upright on the bed and went to grab his clothes. They had been washed. The green-eyed boy looked down at what he was wearing. A long white robe. He went to undo the button on the back but struggled. The teen was in the midst of fidgeting with said robe when a figure entered through a curtain.

"I see you're awake."

Eren was taken a back, eyeing the unknown man.

"Don't worry. I'm a friend of Levi's. He asked me to keep an eye on you. My name is Moblit." He stretched out a hand.

He had light brown hair parted in the middle with matching eyes. His face was long and his skin light. While not a robust man, he wasn't exactly slender either. The man wore a long white lab coat with an olive-green button up underneath and khaki pants.

Eren sluggishly stretched out his hand as well, greeting the stranger.

"Where is Levi?" The boy all but whispered.

"He's off doing some errands. He is safe and sound if that is what you're asking.

"I have a car prepared for you. It will take you home so you can rest. Levi had informed be that he believed you had fractured your skull? However, I ran some tests and fortunately, it seems it was but a good blow to the head. Nothing that won't heal in a couple of days. That being said, I believe you have a mild concussion so take it easy and if you start feeling strange in any way like nausea, headaches, confusion, dizziness please inform Levi as quickly as possible and he will bring you to me. Do you have any questions?"

Eren could hardly keep up with all the information thrown at him, "Uh, I guess not."

"Good. Well then," the man took a step forward and undid the button of the robe that Eren had been having trouble with only to immediately step back to where he was, "I'll leave you to change back into your clothes. The car will be downstairs. Please do not snoop around on your way."

Moblit smiled as he said these last words but something about his tone made Eren think that it was more of a threat than a request. He shuddered.

From one moment to the next, Eren found himself back in his apartment, no lollipop or pat on the back, no nothing. A part of him was hurt that the bodyguard hadn't been there when he woke up. For some reason, the teen had an urge to see the older man, to make sure that they were ok, and that the bodyguard wasn't too mad at the boy for having ran away. He wanted to try and explain everything to the bodyguard.

But alas, there he was, sitting on the foot of his old bed. His emerald eyes stared off into the distance, a ringing in his ears refusing to go away. Flashes of memories would come into view. Him holding onto Levi. Someone opening his eye and shining a light. Mutterings in a serious and somber tone. A snippet of Petra's voice.

"Poor thing."

Eren's phone received a text. He looked at it through the corner of an eye. A hand of his inched closer to it. It was Armin.

SO WE'LL SEE EACH OTHER AT THE MARKET LATER RIGHT? I JUST FOUND THE BEST RECIPE FOR COOKIES! :D CAN'T WAIT TO TRY IT OUT B) -Armin

"Shit." Eren muttered.

He had totally forgotten. Armin had insisted on joining Eren in a grocery shopping trip to give him a few tips on his nutrition. Apparently living off of take-out food was a big no-no. The brunet thought about cancelling the trip but the idea of sitting there looking into nothingness sounded terrifying. He needed to take his mind off of things. Hesitantly, he typed the following into the phone:

YUP. SEE YOU THERE. -Eren

The boy plopped onto the bed. Unfortunately, he still had some time before having to meet his coworker which meant he had nothing but his thoughts to accompany him till then.

Not even 24 hours ago they had been so close to rescuing Mikasa. Now, he knew nothing of her whereabouts, nor Annie's. Hell, he didn't even know what Levi was up to at the moment.

He sprung upright.

Levi. Was anyone watching him? If there wasn't, there was no way in hell he would dare to go out. Once again, he pulled the phone into view. Eren pouted. He wasn't sure how well received a call from him would be after all that had happened.

A text message. Yeah, a text message would be better.

HAVE TO SHOP FOR GROCERIES. ARE YOU OUT THERE? -Eren

He threw himself back onto the bed, holding the cellphone close to his heart. The bodyguard was quick to respond, like always.

Eren took a peek.

OLOU'S GUARDING YOU FOR THE DAY. GO GROCERY SHOPPING. HE WILL KEEP YOU SAFE. -Levi

A pit formed in the teen's stomach. Levi hadn't been at the hospital, now this. He was going to drop Eren as a client, the boy was sure of it. He turned to the side and drew his knees closer to the chest. Maybe if he closed his eyes for 5 minutes, when he would awake everything would be better.

"GRAPES, ORANGES, APPLES, STRAWBERRIES, YOU NAME IT, WE GOT IT! AND ALL THAT AT LOW, LOW PRICES! COME NOW, COME NOW-"

"FRESH PRODUCE LADIES AND GENTLEMEN. FRESH! STEP UP, TAKE A LOOK YOURSELVES. STRAIGHT FROM THE FARM-"

"WATCHU COOKIN' TODAY? FOR THE MISTER OR THE MISSUS? WE'VE GOT THE BEST IN TOWN!"

A diverse gathering of little shops covered the plaza. It was a vibrant, energetic sight with an array of oranges, greens, blues, pinks, reds and more as people walked and talked all over the place. Sellers yelled from the top of their lungs, hoping to catch the attention of the customers that strolled by with bags of food in their hands. Little kids ran circles around their moms, curiosity and happiness charging them to buzz around like flies.

Eren stood a distance away, leaning against a light pole. Some would glance nervously towards him as they would see a young man with glassy eyes and a hoodie covering his head. He had gotten there early since with every passing moment the apartment would suffocate him more and more.

He watched a little girl in a frilly pink dress and pigtails show off her baby doll- also wearing a pink dress and pigtails- to her mother. She was so excited that she jumped in place. The woman laughed heartily, watching the girl hug the toy. She scooped up the child, cuddling her in the same manner. The child giggled and kissed her mom on the cheek. The woman turned her back from where Eren was and walked away.

"You're silly!"

"Ya got me."

A familiar set of voices snapped him back to reality. A few feet away Armin walked towards him wearing a big Sunday morning hat, a white shirt with matching shoes and kaki shorts. His skinny, pale legs looked a bit strange in the baggy trunks but Armin didn't seem to care. He was too busy looking up at Jean who unfortunately accompanied him.

Eren hadn't seen Jean since the party, though Armin had mentioned in passing that the blond boy had 'explained Eren's actions of that night'. In theory, Jean had no reason to hate Eren any longer and vice versa, yet the sight of him drew a scowl on the tan boy's face.

The two lovebirds kept at their flirtatious teasing as they approached. They were so focused on each other that they hardly recognized Eren's presence.

"Alright, I'll stay here. You go do your things. We'll talk later." Armin spoke in a low tone. These were obviously words he wasn't supposed to hear.

The other boy whined, "Mmmm, I don't want tooo..."

"You have to!" The blond giggled.

"Ok, ok. We'll talk later though, you promised."

"Of course."

"Then I'll leave you here."

The tall boy leaned in for a kiss to which the shorter male responded by getting up on his tippy toes to reach the others lips. Eren rolled his eyes and turned away. It was funny really. Despite the fact that he had... done... that, he wasn't used to seeing two men kiss. It was such a strange sight, that was for sure. The reminder that he had once done that made him stomach churn.

"What, you got a problem?"

Eren realized Jean was finally acknowledging him.

"Huh?" He threw his shoulders up and made a face.

"Yeah, I see you rolling your eyes. You got a problem?"

Without missing a beat, Eren said, "Oh sorry, it's just that every time I see your face I get the urge to vomit."

Armin laughed nervously, pushing Jean back a tad bit, "Alright, alright, you two calm down. We're all friends here."

Eren's eyebrow twitched upon hearing the word 'friends'.

Jean glanced down at the blond boy and gave in, "Fine, I got shit to do anyway."

The two whispered their goodbyes until eventually it was just Eren and Armin.

"Sorry about that," the coworker explained, "you know I already told him about everything but he can be a little hotheaded sometimes."

"Huh. Well good thing I'm always as cool as a cucumber." Eren shrugged.

Armin stifled a laugh. He wasn't sure if Eren was joking or not but on the off chance that he was being serious, Armin didn't want to upset Eren further.

"Ah- yes, of course... well, anyway! Let's get started shall we? How about we start with vegetables. Fiber is an important tool for a healthy digestive system..."

The boy wandered into the heart of the plaza, telling long tales of nutrition and health. Eren tried to pay attention, he really did, but his whole mindset was in a foggy ambience that day.

"Well, let's not get distracted or we'll be here all day! So let's go to-"

A delicious smell reached Eren's nostrils; that of fried meat and rich spices.

"What's that?"

The blond was puzzled, "What's what?"

"That smell. It smells so good." Eren sniffed around like a bloodhound until his eyes ultimately landed on the prize.

It was a red and white stall, quite small in fact. It was hardly anything more than a man working with fryers. Above, a sign read SEARING SHRIMP! JUST $1! A DELICACY OF SINA!

"Oh fuck yes! I've heard about these before. It's like common food here in the city right?"

Armin nodded, "Yeah, you haven't tried it yet?"

"No." Eren muttered, "I saw a guy selling these the first day I got here but uh... I was in a rush that day." The boy clapped his hands together, "But that doesn't matter anymore! I've got time now!"

Armin could do no more than trail behind the taller male as he excitedly made his way to the elderly man cooking up a new batch of shrimp. To the side of his cooking station, a bundle of skewered shrimp were hot and ready. Eren was drooling over them like a dog.

"You like these?" He asked the shorter boy.

Armin chuckled, "Who doesn't?"

"How many will you be having boy?" Said the man in a loud, jolly voice.

"Two please." Money and formalities were exchanged.

"Fun fact! Even though Searing Shrimp is considered the go-to iconic snack of Sina, it was actually first invented in Maria City near the lands of, you guessed it, Maria's Ocean. They mainly feasted on aquatic foods while Sina's population mainly feasted on land animals since there aren't that many large bodies of water around here." The boy beamed with pride.

Eren handed one of the two sticks to the shorter boy, "How do you know all these things, Armin?"

Armin unknowingly took the stick into his grasp, too entertained by the conversation, "I don't know. I guess it's like people say, there's no better company than a good book!"

"That's a saying?"

Armin laughed, "Yes! People say it all the time."

Eren sucked in his lips and raised his eyebrows, nodding his head as if he was familiar with the phrase, "Uh, yeah. Totally. Anyway, enough chitter-chatter! I've waited long enough for this. Come here, come here!"

The taller male made his way to a bench nearby, licking his lips as he examined the food.

Armin looked down in surprise, only then realizing he too was holding Searing Shrimp, "O-oh!"

Flattered by the kind gesture, he giggled and went to sit down next to the brunet. Eren chomped into the first shrimp excitedly. Armin, on the other hand, nibbled on his, taking his time in enjoying his snack.

'The weather is nice', the blond thought to himself.

Though the sun was strong, the clouds made it so it wasn't overbearing. As a result, it was a peaceful, warm day outside.

"What do you think? Did you like it?" Armin turned to Eren, still nibbling on the first shrimp.

Eren sat there with wide eyes, looking up at nothing.

"E-Eren?"

"This shrimp... it tastes likes a hug from the Mother Goddess... I have never in my 18 years of life eaten something so delicious."

The blond bursted out laughing. Eren, however, was too busy enjoying heaven itself to notice as he immediately devoured the second and third skewered shrimp.

Meow.

A little whimper took hold of Eren's attention. He looked down at his feet, then the right and finally behind the bench. A tiny black kitten was set in the shadows. He gazed up at Eren with big, glimmering, green eyes.

"Armin, look!" He nudged the boy a bit too aggressively, "A lil kitty!"

The blond whipped his head around, finding the same small animal inquisitively staring at the pair. He meowed again.

"Awwww!" Eren squealed, "He's so damn cute! You know, I always wanted a cat but my dad never let me have a pet!"

Armin snickered, "He probably wants some of your snack."

The taller male looked down at his Searing Shrimp. He tore off a small piece and threw it in the cat's direction. The animal cautiously walked towards it, took three, four sniffs and then took a bite. When all was said and done he sat down on the floor, waiting for another piece to be thrown.

"He liked it! Here little buddy, let's do this. One for me, one for you!" Eren declared.

The tan boy would take a bite of his food, then give the kitten a tiny piece of meat and so forth. With every slice eaten, the kitten would inch closer and closer until he landed next to Eren's foot. Eventually, they finished the entirety of the snack this way.

"Sorry bud, we're all out!" Eren explained.

But the cat wasn't having it. He rubbed against the boy's leg, anxiously waiting for more food. When that didn't work he sat right in front of the boy, his tail swinging from one side to the other.

Armin took the chance to stand up from the bench and tell Eren, "We should probably get a move on or we'll be here all day." He threw the remaining skewer stick in a trash can nearby.

The brunet stood up as well, happy to see that the cat would follow as they walked towards the stands. The way Eren's eyes were to the brim with joy was sweet, so sweet in fact that Armin silently decided to go to the stands in the outer circle of the plaza so there would be less people that could potentially scare off the cute kitten.

"Alright. Where were we...? Vegetables! Right so..." Armin went into one of his notorious intricate speeches with complex words and confusing subjects. The taller male wandered behind the blond, occasionally humming in agreement or shaking his head.

The blond explained the importance of vegetables and their placement in the nutritional value in the body. Armin ended up buying a handful of carrots, potatoes and onions with a woman that recognized him from all his trips to the plaza. The blond then walked off to a stand a few feet away where he would always buy the broccoli because-

"It's always the freshest here! I know a lot of people don't like broccoli... but honestly I think that comes from all the bad press it gets in cartoons. Broccoli is delicious! But if you see it as this gross, stinky food in cartoons when you're a kid and have an impressionable mind, chances are you're gonna hate it, ya know?"

"Uh-huh."

Armin swiveled around to find Eren being a hundred percent unaware of whatever it was his coworker was saying. At some point, he had found a string that he had attached to the skewer stick and was having fun watching the kitten flutter around trying to catch it.

The blond squinted his eyes, "So as I was saying, broccoli is gross..."

"100%..."

"I mean broccoli is all purple and gooey."

"Yup..."

"The only good thing is that it gives you super powers you know? If you eat enough you'll be able to shoot lasers out of your eyes and breath underwater!" Armin said in an over-the-top happy tone.

"Totally..."

Armin snorted, "Eren."

"Yeah..."

"Eren!"

The teen hastened into an upright position. The cat, also startled, jumped three feet into the air.

"Wh-What now?" Eren stammered.

Armin facepalmed, though the brunet could see it was all in good fun as a smirk traversed the shorter boys face.

"Eren! I'm trying to explain something to you?"

"Oh! Yeah, totally. Sorry I got distracted. Hey! How about we do all this vegetable stuff later and buy some meat? Yeah, let's do meat first like fish and stuff."

Armin was no fool, "You want to buy the cat more food don't you?"

"What? Noooooo."

The blond laughed.

Eren caught a glimpse of something, "Look! Let's go there, that guy sales meat."

Upon seeing what the green-eyed boy was looking at, Armin clutched Eren's arm with force, "Noooo, not there. That place is food poisoning on wheels. Trust me."

Upon closer inspection, Eren noticed the meats riddled with flies. They were already a strange color despite the fact that right beside them was a sign that read FRESH.

"I buy my meat at a store nearby. Let's go, it won't take more than 5 minutes."

They made their way to the sidewalk, walking slowly so the kitty could catch up. Eren turned to the left, then the right and when there were no cars coming he crossed the road expecting the kitten to be right behind. Nonetheless, when Eren was already on the other side, he saw that the kitten had remained static.

"Come on little kitty, come on!" He made kissy sounds in an attempt to lure the cat in but the black ball of fur just looked back at the boy like he was an idiot.

"Maybe he's scared?" Armin suggested.

When the kissy sounds failed, the teen decided it was best to carry the kitten to the other side. However, his desperation got the best of him as without a second thought he stepped onto the street, trying to woo the cat with words of love and kindness.

"Eren, wait!"

A honking sound startled the boy. As he realized a red car was coming his way, he leapt forward to get out of its way. The abrupt chaos of movement and sound frightened the kitten, causing him to run away at full velocity.

"Hey!" Eren took no hesitation in running after the animal, leaving behind a shell-shocked Armin and an angry driver. The blond gave a brief apology to the irritated gentlemen and chased after the two with bags of vegetables and everything.

The brunet pursued the black kitten through people, streets and cars. People would curse him out or huff angrily but he would pay no attention. At some point Eren lost track of his location, only knowing that when he turned a corner he landed in the back alley between two apartment complexes.

Eren inspected the area. There was a large amount of trash in that alley, probably from the people living inside the grey buildings. Above were a series of windowsills, each pertaining to an apartment. Some had flowers on it, others ashtrays but one in particular was adorned with a smug furball looking down at the inferior human being.

"Eren!" Armin panted, "Ah! Finally you..." He bent over, putting the bags on the ground and his hands on his knees, "Damnyou'refast... finally you stopped running." Through painful gasps of air he said, "The kitten is long gone. It just- It just wasn't meant to be."

"There." The tall boy pointed upward. "He's there."

The blond laughed when he saw how high up the animal was, "Oh well, there's no way in hell we can get him now. Let's call it a day Eren."

The brunet was appalled, "What?! No! We can't leave him all alone! Don't you see? He's terrified up there."

But all Armin saw was nature's dare devil looking down at them with its signature look of superiority, "I dunno, he looks fine to me."

The tall boy inspected the jagged rocks that made up the buildings. He squinted his eyes. He could climb that.

"What. What are you doing." The words suggested a question but Armin's tone was as deadpanned as it could get.

"I'll go get him."

"Eren there's no way you can climb all the way up there. Plus, what if one of the residents sees you and thinks you're breaking and entering. This is just asking for trouble."

"Come on Armin, be a man." He said confidently as he was already a foot above ground.

"What does 'being a man' mean according to you? Doing incredibly stupid things?"

Eren wiggled to the left to align himself perfectly with the window sill where the kitten was placed, "It's fiiiine."

"No, it's not. It's dangerous and you're gonna get yourself killed."

He was about three feet off the ground, "It's not dangero-uh-OH-OH!"

Losing grip, he was able to push himself off the building in time to land on his feet. It would've been a slick move if it weren't because he landed right on a slippery cloth that took his traction right from him, causing the boy to fall square on his ass.

"Ah-ah-OOOW!" Eren complained.

The blond shrugged, "Told you so."

Eren shot the boy a death glare but it was hard to be intimidating when you were rubbing your butt. As he slowly got up, he examined what it was that had made the boy slip. He took a hold of it, displaying the sheet that had played such a cruel trick on him. On it, was a painting of Mother Goddess Ymir. She was in her standard form of a blond child with a ribbon in her hair and closed eyes. Her hands were on her stomach that would one day give life to the Gods and Goddesses that would serve and protect humanity.

"Ugh. Why would anyone throw this away so carelessly? No respect." He folded up the cloth, dirtying his hands with icky substances in the process. The brunet neatly put it on top of a garbage bin nearby, knowing there was nothing that could save the old and beaten cloth now.

Armin raised his eyebrows in surprise, "Didn't you know you were the religious type."

Eren put hands to his hips, facing away from the blond, "Eh. It's complicated... my dad really went nuts over that stuff." He bit his lip, "Are you not? You look the type."

'All goody two shoes and what not.' He thought but dared not say.

Armin chuckled, "Not really. You ought to know about how people always say that since 'Mother Goddess Ymir married human King Fritz to give life to our protectors, man and woman are the only true forms of love'. A lot of people that follow the Old Religion don't exactly agree with... my life style."

"Well that hasn't stopped you anyway." Eren said, still irked by the burn in his tail bone.

The blond made a face, "What do you mean?"

The tall boy shrugged, still having his back towards Armin, "I dunno... you walk around holding hands and kissing Jean like it's a normal thing."

Armin was taken aback, "Well, yeah. It is a normal thing. Homosexuality is nothing new. It's been present throughout all history but time and time again its documentation has been repressed."

Eren shook his head, a wave of exhaustion washing over him, "Whatever, whatever. Let's simply get the cat."

"No, no! Say what you have to say Eren, I wanna hear it."

The brunet faced Armin, shocked to see an angry Armin for the first time. His eyes wandered around, not really sure what to say. His own irritation pooled in his stomach.

Finally, he vomited whatever came to mind, "I don't know Armin! Don't fuckin' pay attention to me. I don't know what I'm saying half the time." He threw his arms upwards.

"What? Do you believe it?"

Eren rolled his eyes, "Believe what?"

"That homosexuality is bad. That what I am is sooo offensive and disgusting to society."

Eren felt like a deer in the headlights, "Wh- How did we even get to this topic?"

"Just answer the question!"

"I don't know!" Eren exploded, "I don't know what I think Armin! And not just about this, about EVERYTHING! My dad told me a lot of stuff during my lifetime and it turns out that a lot of those things are lies so yeah, you could say I'm a bit confused. I'm not like you, I don't have an encyclopedia in my brain! All I have is bad feelings and even shittier thoughts so sorry if I haven't figured out how to stop being such a dumbass!" Eren forced his lips into a straight line. His breaths long and deep.

They both looked at each other without daring to speak a word.

Armin opened his mouth then closed it again. His blue eyes fell to the floor, then to the sides and then on Eren again. Lastly, he shook his head.

"Eren... you're right. How did we even get to this? Let's calm down."

Eren lowered his head. A part of him wanted to apologize for yelling but his pride wouldn't let him.

A window opened. Both boys looked up to see who it was. A young woman had lifted the window where the black kitten still sat. She gave the kitty a quick pet before walking away. A much larger cat jumped on top of it and sniffed the tiny baby. It was black as well with equal emerald eyes. By the way she began licking the kitten it was obvious that she was the mother. The mother took her baby by the scruff and jumped inside the apartment, away from the two boys looking up at them.

Eren laughed, but there was no joy behind it. He rose a hand to his face.

"Armin?"

"Huh?"

"Let's go home."

"Ok, Eren."

Fun fact, this chapter was supposed to be a soft filler episode because the next ones are kinda intense but things went off the rails between Armin and Eren and I ended up feeling so saaad for Eren at the end ;_; why do I write things that make me suffer? XD Anyway, see you guys next week!