In Cloudy Waters (Ereri/Riren)✔️

.In These Walls.

Chapter Created By; RakaiaNovelette

"When I open my eyes, I look into the void. When I close my eyes, the void looks into me."
-
| Eren |

The man had no outstanding qualities, as well as a seriously lacking sense of time. He was all around a plain background image, yet worthy of being the background of an eloquent painting I may have seen on one of my trips with my mother to the city where street art and murals lined the high-quality market that they weren't used to at all. Instead, I'd been entranced enough to tug on my mother's sleeve, which I'd been required to keep close to anyway, pointing to him with a frown, seeing as how I couldn't place his being there, when for some reason, he clearly didn't fit in.

His clothes didn't match, his hair was unruly, no one dared approach him as though being different was contagious. While we were in a progressive time, and everyone had the freedom to express themselves with whatever they wanted, he still managed to be distasteful.

"Momma, look at him!" I gained her attention. She kept her gaze on the sidewalk ahead, preparing to take us across the road, but still registering my presence as a necessity for the time. Her face didn't change, like she didn't register my question but she answered me still.

"What about him, sweetheart? Why are you snooping around?"

"B-but, he looks like a desert man!" I argued, as though it were the reason for everything I wanted to tell her.

"He came from the desert?" she knew me so well...
"Well, yeah! He looks really tired." I couldn't really express what I thought was wrong, but he was bothering me, and I had to know why. His hair was sandy like he washed it with dirt, while his face was dark like he washed his face with mud. And yet he still looked pale, like he had no idea where he was.
My mother suddenly dropped me down into a seat, and I realized that we'd made it to the café we were heading to for our lunch, and I couldn't even see the man anymore- my memories being the only thing keeping my attention still on his features.

"Please, don't judge him," she grabbed my shoulders. "You're a strong boy, right?" she taunted me, knowing what my reaction would be.
"Of course, I am!" I jutted out my chest to show her.
"I know," she grinned back at me. "Then I know you'll listen to me and remember this. It may help you be strong later on," she sighed, and I was confused. It seemed like she wouldn't continue.

She was thinking still, and I waited semi-patiently. "The man has no clue where he is. I bet he has no one to go back to."

"..." What did that mean? "He has no family?"
She shook her head. "He doesn't know what else to do now. I'm guessing he did something wrong, but you can't just hate him for that reason alone. He's still out there, right? He's still interacting with people?"

It sounded like a question, so I nodded.
"Nobody's going to talk to him, are they?" I shook my head again.
"That's sad," I admitted.

"No!" she burst out. "Sorry, I just- don't feel bad for him. You can always be nice to him one day when you come across people like that. You can tell that they're lost, right?"

"Momma? Are you okay?"
"I'm fine, sweetie," she smiled again. "I just want you to know that he can still be important, even if nobody wants him. He's still going to be strong. Don't ever feel sorry for him, Eren. Does that make sense? Don't let anyone make you a victim, ever."