Chapter 3: Awkward Meetings

Eren woke up in his new apartment room after getting some sleep from last night's job. He noticed that the clock on the wall was roughly around noon time. He couldn't understand the symbols of the numbers, but it was more or less the same as his own languages format. He knew the top number was noon if both hands were near it. However, he couldn't really tell what the numbers were exactly. The symbols seemed to be kind of random in comparison.

Getting out of bed, Eren cracked his back to loosen all the joints from sleeping in the unnaturally soft bed. It had been a while since he slept in a comfortable bed. Probably not since before he left his friends in Marley before he went rogue. Since then, it was either a trench in the Mid East, a rundown hospital bed, or a prison cell back on Paradis.

Eren looked around at the mostly empty house. He really only had the basics in terms of furniture. He had a single couch, a futon bed that he didn't bother to roll up, and a small kitchen table that was so low to the ground you had to sit on the floor. He had some basic kitchen supplies, but he didn't have the food to make use of them.

He went into the washroom in order to take a quick bath. The technology was similar to Marley but significantly more advanced. It also looked more futuristic, with everything being shiny and little to no exposed pipes. Then again, that may be a symptom of being an Eldian in Marley.

The bath was quick. Normally he didn't take many baths since it was a luxury in the walls prior to the retaking of wall Maria, but now he bathes every chance he can get. It was very relaxing that he would sometimes just let his mind wander to better things.

When he was done, he put on his pants and shirt before going to the mirror to look at himself. His stubble was starting to grow back, while his hair was still the same length it was when he fought the Marleyan strike-force in Shiganshina. Taking a razor that was supplies in the room, Eren began to shave the stubble to get his face smooth again. He used the hand soap that was on the sink as a way to make the razor slide along his skin and avoid cutting himself.

Eren stared at himself in the mirror. His hair was still down and damp. He looked normal again, not anything like the madman he was when he needed to push himself to fight. He seemed different though, something was off. He wasn't the rage filled youth he was after his mother died, nor was he the driven man who planned to destroy the world. Now he felt... off.

Eren went over into the main room, which was the only other room minus the small hallway that lead to the front door and looked over his new gear. The new pistol he had was on the kitchen table and completely disassembled. It worked exactly like a Marleyan pistol, complete with all the same screws and groves along the frame. The only difference was the high quality of the engravings and the ivory handle.

Eren reassembled it and took out the stripper clips he had. Each clip could hold ten of the bullets that Sergei gave him, meaning that he could shoot as many times before reloading. He took the box of ammo and loaded each round into the stripper clips until all five were ready. Once that was completed, he hand loaded the Marleyan pistol so that in total he could carry 60 rounds of ammo on his person.

Eren found a notebook and pencil that was in the apartment. It helped him study some of the number systems that Sergei mentioned. For the moment all it had on the first page was the symbols on the clock and his own languages numerical system. So far, he had what he assumed to be twelve numbers, but the translation wasn't too good.

Apparently, Japan has a lot of things written in English instead of Japanese. In this case, the numbers used English numbers since it matched what was on the Yen. However, unlike his own numbering system that has multiple symbols for numbers like two or three, this one seemed to have one symbol representing the number until it reaches ten. Ten having a unique symbol that's absent from the rest.

He would just have to memorize the symbols if he was ever going to learn how the currency works here.

Eren put the pistol in his beltline on his lower back, put on his hoodie and shoes, and put the five clips in his pocket. He decided to go get some fresh air for the time being. Before leaving, he put his hood over his head and then walked outside into the parking lot, which was mostly devoid of vehicles since most people were at their jobs and away from home. The apartment complex was relatively small and if Sergei was right, consisted of mostly people who didn't want to be traced.

Eren assumed this meant other criminals, but according to the man, they were all people who either ran from personal issues or just wanted to be left alone. In the end Eren didn't care much about it.

Right as he reached the edge of the parking lot to lean against the waist high fence, a vehicle drove into the complex. Eren glanced through the window and noticed two adult women in the car. The woman in the back had a hat and what looked like glasses with an unusually dark Lense. He could barely see two blond heads just poking up and assumed they were children. The woman in the middle seat glanced at him for a moment before turning away. She said something to the woman driving, but Eren paid little attention to them as they drove past him.

Eren heard them exit the car and glanced back for a moment as he watched them enter the room next to his. This must be that single mother Sergei mentioned. Since there were two women, he didn't know which was which. Maybe the purple haired girl since she was around his age. The other woman looked older. They carried a bunch of bags full of food from the vehicle.

His curiosity ended there. He really had no interest talking to people or getting to know his neighbors. He really had no interest in doing anything right now except rest.

Eren looked up and lamented his position here. He had nothing. No name, no history, no chance at a normal life. How could he, when everything here requires papers that he doesn't have and can't get. If he gets discovered by the authorities, they'll assume he's here illegally. He doesn't know how Japan handles crime. In Paradis before the walls fell, crossing into the interior without permission could be punishable by death. Even crossing the borders in the countries beyond their island carried some prison sentence or capital punishment. He assumed much of the same applied here.

Even then, does his survival matter? After everything he did, does he deserve anything less than this? To continue to struggle in a cruel world. What a fitting fate for the "Devil of Paradis". To live in a world with no friends, no fate, and no life.

Did he think of suicide? Surprisingly no. Eren didn't consider it at all. Because even if the world is cruel, he has a right to live in it. No matter what, Eren would not succumb to despair. He'll keep living, for no other reason than to keep drawing breath. Because he's special for being born.

Eren turned away from the fence and went back towards his apartment. The women and children were by this point in their own room and no longer there.

Right as he was about to open the door, Eren noticed a small object on the ground. It was rectangular in shape, like a playing card. He walked over to it and picked it up.

Normally he'd be surprised by the quality of the picture. A quality far exceeding that of Marley's best cameras. But he already saw the large moving pictures on the buildings when he arrived, so it was less of an impact.

It was a picture of the purple haired woman, minus the hat and weird glasses. She gave a gentle smile in the picture and faced the camera directly. There were Japanese writings all over it. The only things he recognized were some of the numbers from his studying from the clock. It was odd for a country to use multiple languages on their stuff.

Eren guessed this is what they meant by identification. He wasn't sure if it was a passport, but his best guess was that it was.

The woman must have dropped it when she exited the vehicle. Her door was right there so Eren figured it'd be best to return it. He walked up to the door before giving four loud knocks to get her to answer the door.

Eren was surprised when she gasped after seeing him standing in front of her.

A Few Minutes Prior

"Good to be home after a long day of shopping." Ai said as they were about to pull into the driveway of their apartment.

"Another successful day of hiding." Ruby said happily.

"All thanks to by big girl wearing a mask." Ai praised, hoping that by praising the behavior it might break her aversion to masks.

"It's really not that hard." Aqua grumbled from his spot.

"I think Aqua-Chan is just being grumpy." Ai laughed.

He smiled a bit at the banter but still rolled his eyes at her antics. He sure was going to grow up to be a serious boy.

"Careful when you get out Ai." Miyako said. "There's a weird guy in the parking lot."

Ai glanced over at where Miyako was saying and noticed a weird man leaning against the fence. She couldn't see his face very well, since he had a hood up and hid his face from view. He looked very suspicious just standing there, as if waiting for something.

For a moment, as the car passed them the man glanced at her and made eye contact. Her heart skipped a beat for a moment, worried that he could either be a journalist or worse. Ai did love all her fans, but she knew the dangers of being an idol. Specifically, the stalkers and crazed fans who could get violent if they felt offended. It was the whole reason she led this double life of hiding and sneaking.

"Did he look at you?" Miyako asked.

"Yea, for a moment. My sunglasses and hat are still on, so there's no way he can recognize me." She said.

"When we get there, you go straight inside with the kids. I'll handle most of the groceries." Miyako said as she began to park.

"Come now, that's not right." Ai said. "These are our groceries so we're not going to leave you alone with them."

"But if he notices to then we're screwed." Miyako said.

"Then we'll try hard not to get noticed." Ai said. "No one knows I had kids so with this disguise we'll be fine." She said.

"Not unless that doctor said something." Miyako said.

For a moment, Aqua got visibly upset, like he was offended by something that was said.

"Are you ok Aqua-Chan?" She asked her son.

"Uh, no Ai. Just annoyed at that guy." He said rather quickly.

"Don't be so mean about strangers Aqua-Chan." Ai said before turning to Miyako. "Even if he does recognize me, there's no certainty that he means to hurt us. Besides, we can just go with the same story of them being your kids."

"But if he leaks something?" Miyako asked.

"I'll stay at the company until people realize that you live here, and I just visited. It's not strange to visit the wife of my boss." She reasoned.

"Unlike you, my address is public information." Miyako said. "We had to go through a lot of legal loopholes to ensure your name isn't tied to this address. It won't be long for a dedicated fan to put things together."

"Then we'll move." Ai said. "Everything will be fine, trust me." She said with a smile.

Miyako relented before getting out of the car and went to the trunk to get the bags of food.

"Aqua-Chan, Ruby-Chan, do you want to help mama with the food?" She asked.

"Yes!" Ruby yelled, running over to get a bag that maybe was too heavy for her.

"Sure." Aqua shrugged, being his normal serious self.

Ai went to get the last of the bags while Miyako opened the door. She glanced one more time at the stranger who had his back to her. No way he recognized her. Despite the potential danger, she didn't want to automatically assume every fan was a stalker, so she didn't want to judge him for just being in one spot. The fact that he hid his face was weird, but that's his business.

"Et!" She gasped as she almost lost one of the bags and had her purse fall off her shoulder and get caught by her elbow. She struggled to get to the open door but was able to make it inside.

Miyako was already busy putting away some of the food by the time Ai got the rest over to the kitchen. She placed the bags on the floor before taking her hat and glasses off and rolling up her sleeves to start putting things away.

"Do you mind if I take a bath?" Miyako asked. "I didn't get a chance this morning."

"Of course." Ai said. "I'll have a change of clothes ready for you." She said.

Since Miyako took a lot of the babysitting while Ai was practicing or going to concerts, she kept a few pairs of her own clothes here as a necessity. It made sudden calls easy to manage since she could stay a few days on short notice if absolutely needed.

"My husband will be here soon to go over some of the details of the next concert." She said. "Make sure you answer the door when he gets here."

"No problem." Ai said as she winked and held a thumbs up to the older woman, causing Miyako to sigh slightly.

After she finished, she went over to the main room where Aqua and Ruby were at. Ruby was busy typing on Ai's phone that she fished from her purse, while her son was currently watching T.V. She raised an eyebrow when she saw him click the remote right when she entered. Add to that the fact that he was very close to the T.V. and that the volume was unusually low.

"Aqua-Chan, you're not watching anything you're not allowed to, right?" Ai asked her son.

"No Ai, just switching to kids shows." He said. He sounded very convincing to Ai, but she knew he was lying.

"Well move over, let me watch with you." She smiled as she sat next to him on the floor, very close to the T.V.

One round goes to Ai for forcing him to watch age appropriate T.V. instead of whatever he wanted. Although he was a good liar, the excuse "Switching to kids shows" was a very poor lie.

Suddenly there was a knock at the door.

"Must be the president." Ai said outload. She got up and started going over to the door. "Oh wait." She said after thinking for a moment.

Ai turned back to Aqua, took the remote away from him, and took it with her. No way he was watching bad shows while she was at the door. She laughed as she heard his defeated sigh.

She placed the remote on the kitchen counter before going to the door. She opened it up expecting to see the president standing there with his usual glasses and bored look.

Instead, she gasped when she saw the man they thought was suspicious standing right at her door. Miyako may have been right.

He was tall, very tall compared to her. She had to arch her neck back just to look at his obscured face. She barely even came up to his shoulders. What was he? A mountain?

"H-hello?" She asked cautiously.

"Do you speak my language?" He asked in English.

Ai's English wasn't the best, but she was actually fairly good in it. She learned it at a young age like most children and studied harder than most. After all, there was a chance that idols had to go international and most of the world either spoke English or were proficient at it.

"Yes, I do." She replied back, though she could tell she had an accent compared to his.

Now that she saw under the hood, especially with her short stature, she could now tell he was a westerner. She saw a few western fans at her concerts occasionally. Some were still as excited as many of the Japanese fans.

"You dropped this." He held out a card.

Dropped... Wait! That was her ID!

Oh no! he knew her now. Not only did he see her name, but he saw her picture as well. He clearly knew who she was now. All because of her clumsy mistake.

She knew though not to react or give him a reason to spread a controversy. So far, he did nothing wrong as was probably just a normal fan. If anything, he went out of his way to return her property. So, she should just treat him how she treats all her fans.

"Sorry, clumsy me." Ai said in a higher pitched voice, bonked her own head, and stuck her tongue out in a cute and childish fashion. Her innocent act was always expected when she met fans, so she needed to be in character.

"Right..." He said in an uncomfortable tone.

"Mama, what's taking so..." Ruby said as she came into view.

She froze when she saw the stranger. The stranger in turn, looked directly at her daughter. Ai's heart did stop now. He saw her daughter and heard her call her mama. Regardless of if his Japanese was good or bad, mama was an English word.

"Well, if that's all you needed." The stranger said as he started to turn around.

Ai in a moment of panic tried to stop him.

"Wait don't go yet." She said in a sweet tone. "I can give you an autograph. How's that sound." She said as she adopted a cute pose by tilting her head and putting two fingers over her eyes.

"I'm really fine." The stranger said.

"I insist." Ai said sweetly. "It's not every day you get to speak to an idol." She was hoping to buy his silence with and autograph or maybe even free tickets. She couldn't let him leave knowing not only where she lives, but also that she has a child.

"A what?" He asked.

Ai's composure broke for a moment. What does he mean a what? Even if he just arrived in Japan, her face was everywhere. Everyone knows what an Idol is. Especially westerners who come to Japan.

"An idol... you know." Ai tried to explain but was taken by surprise at the conversation.

"Look, I don't care." He said. He didn't seem angry or anything, just tired and wanting to leave. "I appreciate the offer, but I'm really not interested." He walked away.

Ai stood there for a moment in shock, clearly not ready for how that whole interaction played out.

He seemed creeped out by her behavior. Almost like the way she acted was unnatural to him. He didn't seem angry or offended, just creeped out. Much the same way she felt when overzealous fans acted weird or did weird things.

Ai went back inside and closed the door behind her. This never happened before. Everyone she met when not in disguise would always recognize her. Even westerners. He had her ID which has her name clearly printed. Even if he couldn't read Japanese, her face was right there. He should know who she is.

"Did he just insult you mama?!" Ruby shouted, marching cutely over to the door. "Mama is the best!" She said, intent on opening the door.

"Ruby, no." Ai said, grabbing the almost four-year-old and taking her back into the living room.

"But he insulted you mama." Ruby tried to defend.

"No, he didn't." Ai said. "If anything, I think I was the one who creeped him out."

"But you looked like he said something bad to you." Ruby said.

Oh right, she can't understand English. Not surprising given her age and the fact that she hasn't taught her children English yet. To her, it looked like he said something that offended her.

"No, he was very nice." Ai said. "He just didn't care I was an idol."

"Didn't care!?" She yelled again. Maybe that wasn't the best way to phrase that. "He should care because you're the best!" She defended.

"Yup, mama is the best." She smiled as her daughter defended her. "But it's not right to be mean to fans. No matter what they say or do. You always have to be nice to them."

"What's wrong?" Miyako said as she left the washroom. She was dressed in simple pajamas and her hair was wrapped up in a towel.

"That stranger knocked on the door." Ai said.

"What!?" Miyako screamed. "Did he see you?" She asked in a panic.

"Yes, Ruby too." Ai confirmed.

"Oh no... it's over..." Miyako looked down casted.

"He didn't know who I was." Ai said.

"That's impossible." Miyako said. "Everyone knows who you are."

"True, but he's a westerner. He doesn't know." She said.

"Then why'd he knock on the door?" Miyako asked.

"I dropped my ID outside and he got it back for me." She said.

"So, he's seen your face and name." She sighed.

"I don't know, he didn't seem to know Japanese." Ai stated.

"Did he seem overly excited?" Miyako asked.

"Actually, he seemed creeped out." Ai said.

"Creeped out?" Miyako asked. "How so?"

"Well, I figured I could offer him an autograph of concert tickets. So, I got into my idol character." She said. "I thought I could maybe buy his silence, but he just looked uncomfortable. Honestly, it felt like I was outside looking in." Ai laughed.

"There's no way we lucked out." Miyako said. "He has to be lying. He probably got mad at seeing Ruby and wants revenge so he's going to expose everything."

"He acted like that before he saw Ruby." Ai countered back. "Like my whole persona was just creepy to him."

"Well, odds are we'll never see him again." Miyako hoped. "But we can't have that again. I'll talk to my husband. You're banned from ever opening the door again."

"And what if I'm alone and need to answer it?" Ai asked.

"If it's not myself or my husband, you'll stay away from the door and pretend like you're not home." She ordered.

"Yes ma'am." Ai said with a salute, mocking Miyako's rules.

"Be more serious Ai. We don't know what would happen if you were stalked home. We can't risk your address getting out." She said.

"Aw, but Ruby said she'd protect me." Ai pouted as she kneeled down next to her daughter.

"Yea, I can protect mama." Ruby said proudly.

Miyako sighed and put her head in her hand. This girl was just a nightmare to deal with sometimes.

"Fine, I promise. No more opening the doors." She laughed. "I'll make sure to include shackles in my living room too." She joked.

"Laugh all you want; it could one day save your reputation." Miyako said.

Ai walked over to Aqua who was listening to the exchange very intently. She decided to just sit down with him and watch a kid show together. She had most of the opening songs memorized by now since she listens to them non-stop. Even Aqua would sing along, though he sounded bored if nothing else.

"How about we watch an animal documentary." Ai smiled at her children.

"Yea, that sounds fun." Ruby said.

"That's great and everything Ai, but you took the remote." Aqua said.

"Oh right." She laughed, remembering it was on the kitchen counter. "I'll go get it."

Eren sat down on his bed as he thought about the weird woman. When she opened the door she seemed scared at first. That didn't bother Eren so much since he was much taller than her and probably looked suspicious. What was weird though was the way she acted. She started to act childish and in a weird manner as well as offering him something he didn't understand.

Not only that, she said she was an idol. Like a religious thing? Was she worshipped or something. He had no idea.

She also got really scared and panicked slightly when the little girl showed up. He caught the word mama, so he could tell it was her daughter. Again, her nervousness was normal. It was her strange behavior that kind of annoyed him and even creeped him out. It felt so completely fake and unnatural for her to act that way.

Then again, he never met a Japanese woman before aside from the manager of that store, so maybe it was normal.

Eren could admit that she was cute though. She almost reminded him of Historia when she still went by the name Krista. The innocent act was more forced, but it felt roughly the same. Plus, they both had a very small and thin frame.

Then again, she wanted to be here to remain anonymous since most people came here for that reason. Eren knew that he would easily be able to do that since he had no intention of interacting with her. He really was in no mood to speak to anyone or try to form new friendships after what happened.

Suddenly, Eren heard a ringing of a phone. He stood up and walked over to the house phone that was connected to a wire. He picked it up and held it to his ear.

"Kid, that you?" Sergei said over the line.

"That's correct." Eren said.

"Good, like new room?" He asked.

"It's ok." Eren said.

"Did you meet single mother?" He asked.

"Yes, I did. Not interested." Eren said in annoyance.

"Ah, darn. You could use womans touch." Sergei said.

"I don't need a criminal giving me life lessons." Eren countered back.

"Fair." Sergei said. "I called because I have new job tonight. Good money."

"Sure, another gun run?" Eren asked.

"No, different. You good with gun, but are you good with fists?" Sergei asked.

"I know how to fight." Eren confirmed.

"Good, there is underground betting match tonight." Sergei said, peaking Eren's interest. "Criminals bet on fights, fighters fight, and money is lost or made. We're going to make money." Sergei explained.

"You don't even know how good I am." Eren said.

"Don't need you to be athlete, just good." Sergei said. "Fights are fixed, so you need only follow script." He explained.

"So, you want me to play along and lose a few matches on purpose." Eren deduced.

"Da, illiterate but getting a bit smarter." Eren got annoyed again. "Don't tell me you have dumb morals." He said.

Not really. Eren had no issues throwing a few fights in a betting match. It's not exactly like he was above a little manipulation. After all, he posed as a wounded Soldier for weeks after the battle of Fort Slava. Throwing a few fights wouldn't make him any less bad than he already was.

"I can throw a few fights." Eren said.

"Good, pick you up tonight." Sergei said, hanging up.

Eren didn't even get to ask when he'd arrive.

"So, he didn't seem like he would talk about Ai's location?" Aqua asked his sister after Ai went to bed. Miyako and her husband left shortly after their meeting, so they had time to speak.

"I don't think so." Ruby said.

"Do you know what he said?" Aqua asked.

"I don't know English, so no. I don't know what mama and the stranger were saying." Ruby said.

"Damn." Aqua said.

"That's a bad word." Ruby said.

"I know, it's fine." He said, not interested in being lectured by a baby.

Aqua didn't know how old Ruby was before she died and was reborn, but he assumed she was probably young since she easily adapted to being a toddler and didn't seem very well educated.

"I wish I was there, I could have heard the exchange batter." Aqua said.

"You speak English?" Ruby asked.

"Yes, why?" He asked.

"How come you never told us when mama was doing her English lessons?" She asked.

"We're already pushing it with how well we speak Japanese. Could you imagine if Ai suddenly realized her son can speak English despite never being taught?" Aqua asked.

"Oh, good point." She said. "When'd you learn?" She asked.

"Unlike most kids, I kept studying. Most kids don't do more than mandatory lessons and lose their knowledge." He explained.

"Do you think we need to do the whole Kami thing again?" Ruby asked.

"That won't work." Aqua shook his head. "we're not infants anymore so everyone would think we're pretending. That or assume we're mentally retarded." He explained.

"Well, mama said he doesn't know who she is. So, if that's the case, we should be fine." Ruby hoped.

"Even if he doesn't, he could find out." Aqua explained. "Her face is everywhere. All it would take is him telling a friend he knows her address and it spreads from there."

"So we do nothing?" Ruby asked.

"It's not like we know where he lives." Aqua said. "Unfortunately, there's nothing we can do." He shrugged.

"So we just hope everything works out fine." Ruby said in a worried tone.

"All we can do, unless some higher power helps us out. Then again, it's probably the same one that put me back in diapers." Aqua said in an annoyed tone.

"I understand." Ruby said.

"Anyway, let's get back to Ai before she wakes up and realizes we snuck off." He said.

"Sure." Ruby said. "But I get to sleep cuddled with her. It's weird if an Otaku decides to cuddle in her chest."

Aqua shook his head at Ruby. Not that he would. Even he felt that would be weird. Especially since he was literally twice his mother's age.

That's a sentence he'd never thought he'd say outside of a joke. It was one of the reasons he refused to be breast fed. Sure, she was technically his mother, but she was also a 16-year-old girl at the time. Even now that she's almost 20 it's still weird.

Fact is, she wasn't his mother. He never really had a mother. As far as Goro was concerned, he had no mother. Hoshino Aqua may have a mother, but he's burdened by memories of almost 30 years of life.

He wasn't worried about the stranger though. Even though some westerners were fans of Ai, most weren't. So, he did believe that this stranger was simply just a guy doing a decent thing by returning the ID.

Besides, it would only be weird if they ran into him again. It was likely he didn't even live here so odds are they'd never see him again.

And there's the next chapter lol.

It's actually funny, originally, I was going to have Eren act weird but my buddy recommended I make it so Eren was the one creeped out by Ai's behavior. Seems pretty fitting in my opinion lol.

Anyway, please let me know what you guys think. Criticisms and sustains are welcome.