CENTERED

hot

"What's wrong?" You sat up from the bed, keeping the cover over your chest while looking at his back facing you.

"The police...they found a body." He confessed after sitting there with no further movement for a moment.

"A body? A body of-"

"They think it's my mother." He interrupted chasing you to stop speaking completely and just stare before the room when completely silent.

"Will you come with me? We'd have to fly back within the hour, I know it's short notice but-"

"Yeah of course I'll go with you," you looked for your clothes to throw on and Eren stood up.

"I'll go get our suitcases." He said and you nodded and he got dressed faster than you could catch up to and left swiftly after that.

You sighed because you were worried about the "after" not how he would react if it actually was his mother that they found at the moment but what he would do after.

You didn't know how to react to these things, you didn't really talk to your parents. Their relationship only existed because they had you, other than that you grew up with both parents there physically but that was about it. You always told yourself you'd never get into a relationship where it was one-sided, your parents didn't love each other and it was obvious...because of that, you never cared much for them either.

But Eren...he cherished his mother. She was his everything and he'd already lost her, you were worried that his reaction would be something you couldn't really help him through.

—-

It already started, after you both rushed out of Vegas and made it back to accompany Eren...the entire place ride he didn't touch you or even look at you. He wasn't mad, you knew that but even in the car ride to the police station he didn't keep his hand on your thigh like usual and you knew it would only get more challenging for the both of you from here.

When you got out of the car together, you even tried grabbing his hand to hold onto while walking into the station but he wouldn't let you. He moved his hand away and walked forward, his face was straight and there was no other expression visible.

You still walked behind him but when you walked into the station you were basically invisible to him.

"Eren! We've reopened the case and the chief wants to speak to you immediately. He needs you to repeat your statement." A cop shouted; snatching Eren's attention and they both left down the hall as quickly as he came.

You were left alone, cops rushing around you like this was the equivalent to rush hour, you found your way to an available chair and sat there. You didn't know how long you'd have to sit there or how long anything would take but you knew you had to be there for all of this, willingly at that.

The police station was loud, and loads of people walking back in fourth. Some in uniform, some not but there was all one ongoing thing within each individual person here, every single one of them had some sort of goal. Some tasks at hand, they were doing something.

Sometimes when you looked at the small shared outlook you got on other people's lives, it made you feel like you were never doing enough.

Being here wasn't about you at all but being alone here...had everything to do with you. You took a year break after graduating college, that's exactly why you had so much more time to spend with Armin months back but now you felt like even though things moved forward with Eren, your life hit a stopping point. A tall brick wall you couldn't seem to get passed.

This wasn't about you and you didn't want it to be about you so you thought of something else, you exhaled loudly and looked to the side before sitting up in your chair. You crossed your leg over the other and continued to wait, hours went by of you just staring at the clock and not hearing any news or even seeing Eren.

It started to even get dark outside, it was the evening so things settled a bit but that's about it. The moment it did get dark, you saw Eren walking down the hall with his hands in his pocket and looking down at the ground by himself.

You stood up, hoping to hear some good news so you looked at him a little hopeful but he stopped walking right in front of you.

"It's her. She's dead." He said and looked the other way when speaking, he started walking again without another word or any sign of...anything really.

You walked behind him slowly, you were waiting for him to need you or want someone to lean on but that never came. You got into the car together and all he did was stare at the road ahead of him.  The car was silent, nothing else was said and he parked the car outside of your building and you both got out and headed to your place.

You didn't want to be forceful, if he wanted to talk to you he would so you left it at that but when you got inside all he did was lay down on the couch on his side, facing the couch pillows.

"If you need anything...I'm right upstairs," you announced before taking a step up the stairs.

He didn't reply but given the fact that his ears were fully functional, you assumed he heard you and you just continued on your way up the steps and headed to bed after taking a shower. Maybe space was the best and that's what you wanted to give him, not everybody wanted to be cradled and cuddled like a baby when they were sad and that was fine.

You shut the lights off and laid down, a lot had happened not just for you but for him and he needed time to process so you wouldn't get in the way of that.

"Y/n!" Your shoulder was being shaken frantically after what felt like five minutes of sleep but it had really been three hours.

"Huh?"

"Where is Eren?" Levi questioned frantically and you rubbed your eye and sat up.

"He's on the couch downstairs," you answered and groaned.

"No, he's not. I was just down there-"

"What? He laid down on the couch as soon as we got home," you assured and stood up next to Levi.

"I'll go look for him. You stay here in case he comes back." Levi suggested and you wanted to ignore his suggestion but you complied, you walked downstairs with him and waited for him on the couch in case he came back while Levi left in search for him.

You decided to call him, you didn't think he'd answer but just in case he did you wanted to give him that option to pick up.

EREN POV:

"Carlos, did you get the files on Armin?" I asked as he opened the passenger side door and sat down.

"Yep...right here," he placed them in my hand and I nodded while looking at the file name and skinny through the contents inside.

"I didn't tell your family by the way so they don't think anything, only people who think you're dead are nonfamily members of yours."

"Thank you but...may I ask why you want these files?" He questioned before getting out of my car.

"He killed my mother. I want him dead but not in the same way I want other people dead. This is different."