CENTERED

quickness

"Here are your keys. Eren bought this apartment for you uptown prior to the event this afternoon. I will be outside your door during the day, down the hall at night and someone else will take a night shift at your door," Carlos informed and placed the keys in the palm of your hand, he turned and walked out the kitchen you stood in.

"Did he know?" You huff a forced exhale and clench the keys in your hand just before Carlos walks out the door as his back is turned to you.

"Know what?"

"Did he know that Armin would report him? Did he know the cops were coming all along?" You asked, a question that weighed on you the entire drive to this apartment that so happened to be one of the apartments you were looking at about a week ago.

"I can't an-"

"Yes, you can. Tell me...did he know, is that why he gave me the bracelet randomly?!"

"I really can't answer those things but I will tell you, that's not why he gave you the bracelet. The only thing I can give you is updates when I have some...deal?" He asked and still had his backed turned to you.

"Fine." You complied but still wanted answers despite being denied them once again.

You decided to check your phone, Carlos explained to you in the car that he would transfer your stuff over so you had to check the news from your phone for now.

You wanted to see if anything had been reported about Eren's situation but it hadn't, you remember him expressing how he was able to tamper with things or evidence in the news that time that he grabbed you and your pretzeled fell.

You hoped that meant he was okay at least, Carlos didn't seem to be very panicked so you took what you could and stuck with it.

EREN POV:

"Just let us examine the wounds in your shoulders and we'll let you go. Easy peasy," Officer Brown insisted for the millionth time, I was sitting in the interrogation room and had no intention of answering anything at all.

"You guys have been trying to get something on me since I was arrested that first time. Why?"

"Don't you want to know who took your mom? Give her a proper burial? We can do that and close the case instead of it being a cold case for the next ten months and you not knowing where she is." He snapped angrily...having the audacity to get upset with me as if he had any real concern at all.

"I know where she is. I don't need your help and I don't need any wounds to be examined to lead me to her," I crossed my hands over my lap and continued to stare at the wall behind him.

"Do you now? Let me see this information then."

I chuckled and sucked my teeth while nodding, my arms folded across my chest, I put them on the table and stood up. I turned around and pulled my shirt off, the room was cold and bare and that was just supposed to be intimidating.

"What's this?" He asked; observing my back tattoo that I was willingly showing.

"My mother's location. The only reason I'm showing you this is because I know you can't figure it out,"

"I can't?" The cop chuckled and picked up the file off the table, I kept my shirt bakers up in my hand.

"No. This location is only something for me to understand as her son. Now, I'll be heading out,"

"I don't think so. We can keep you here for a maximum of forty-eight hours, that means I've got about forty-eight hours to decipher that tattoo. Sit tight bud,"

ARMIN POV:

"You know what's funny? Eren and I made this promise when we were kids that we'd always have each other's backs...and now look where we are. All because of you."