𝐃𝐎𝐍'𝐓 𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐆𝐄𝐓 𝐌𝐄 • 𝖤．𝖩𝖠𝖤𝖦𝖤𝖱 𝖪．𝖲𝖧𝖨𝖭𝖩𝖮

21 | Home.

!! TRIGGER WARNING — MATURE THEMES

Kiaran's POV:

This was home. Looking around the living room of her old house, upon entering, there were the stairs, the ones she walked down to meet Eren. His teal green eyes beamed with pride as he saw her in her prom dress.

To the right of the living room, that old recliner her father would sit in every Saturday to watch the football game. It pressed to one corner of the room and then the L-shaped couch decorated with pillows and plush blankets. The back wall was covered with a built-in bookshelf, and the TV mounted nicely in its own cubby.

An arched wall passed to the kitchen as the island counter had the same wooden stools. In that small kitchen, she remembered the first meal her father made for her, accidentally starting a small fire when he adopted her. His face was still covered with sut from the smoke as he laughed awkwardly before realizing he never cooked for a child.

Her icy blue eyes traveled to the right as there was the dining room, the one she had Thanksgiving with her uncle Nile and Pixis. The drunken laughs of the men praising her for how well she did in school, along with her father being the proudest of them all.

Walking through the dining room, a small study that was covered with a curtain now. But she remembered clear as day when her father would work late at night. She would bring him a warm meal and tea to make sure he was taken care of.

Running her fingers over the desk, looking at all the old dusted boxes piled up in it, just remembering the little things. She could still see him, half awake, his head hanging over the keyboard as she came in with the tray of food. "Daddy, you should rest... it's three in the morning,"

A tired Erwin glanced up at her before chuckling and patting the girl on the head. "Oh, don't worry about me. Go back to sleep, okay?"

Tears stung her eyes, looking at her younger self at that moment as her father would swivel in his chair just for her to climb up on his lap, covering them both with a blanket. "No, I'll stay here. You need a hug anyways,"

Kiaran sniffled, watching the memory play out before her as she clasped her hand over her mouth, her eyes tightening as the tears ran down her face. The cold band of her ring brushed against her.

"Sweetheart—?"

She turned to see her father standing in the doorway, two mugs in hand, her favorite pink mug that was now chipping away but was still functional and his, just a plain thick mug with #1 Best Dad on it, which she had gotten him for Father's day.

She took the mug for him as it was warm, Green Camille Tea. She inhaled the herbs and clasped the mug in her hands. Her father's lips brushed across her forehead as he pulled her close. His hand resting on her back, rubbing it in circles. "How are you feeling?" Erwin asked.

Kiaran pressed her lips to the rim of her mug, letting the warm tea trickle down her throat as it was just how she liked it—two cubes of sugar and a hint of honey. "I don't know, Daddy—" she said flatly.

He kissed her head once again as his fingers began combing through her hair. "I shouldn't have put all that on you at once. I was feeling a bit disappointed," Erwin said.

"Daddy— it's okay. I don't know what to do now," Kiaran said, looking into her mug. "I really love Levi. But Eren?... I love him too."

"Do you still want to marry Levi?" Erwin asked.

Kiaran paused for a moment before inhaling the steam from her tea. "I do— but... is it the right thing?" she said, looking up to him.

Erwin shrugged before caressing her back. "You will have to figure that out for yourself. I'm sure your parents would want you to be happy," he said.