Unity

Chapter Twenty Nine

"We've been together for 26 years, you know?" Eren nearly dropped his pizza. He looked up at me with his eyes slightly widened.

"Has it actually been that long?" I nodded. "Wow. It seems like it was just yesterday when you were curled up in my arms and sleeping right under a tree." I thought back to our high-school days. I was a big nerd and Eren was... would I call him the stereotypical rebel? Yeah, that was him. He always got into trouble and always got into fights, but opposites attract, I guess. Is that really a thing I should use, actually? We're both guys, so...

"I just want to tell you, uhm," Eren looked at me with a mouthful of pizza, but he swallowed it all in one gulp. It looked kind of painful, actually. "I'm just really happy that you came into my life when you did. I don't know what my life would have turned out to be without you." I could see Eren blush a little bit, but he smiled right at me. It was not a cheesy grin, but it was a full-hearted smile that I always felt happy to see. It was the kind that he gave me when we were having an important moment together, but I still don't see what's so important about today. I've still got that to figure out, because it feels different than all of our other dates.

"I'm glad you came into my life when you did, too." Our waiter came back over with our bill and we payed for it and left the restaurant. 

We walked around down-town, hand-in-hand, which gave us a few glances, but we couldn't care less. We were happy.

"Wanna go sit by that water fountain?" I looked where Eren was pointing to and nodded my head. Eren sat down on the side of the fountain and I sat beside him. Eren had put his arm around me sometime during that process, but I don't think I realised it when he did.

"I'm so glad that I'm here with you," Eren leaned down towards my face and kissed me softly, but it was very long and very deep. While he did this, it brought many memories of times we've done this, kissed, into my head and played them all at the same time and over and over again. There was the very first time, which was awkward and sloppy, because it was both of our firsts, so we weren't very good at it, but it was still one of the best moments of my life. I didn't realise how much that kiss meant back then, but I do now. Another important one that glowed over a lot of our other memories was our wedding kiss, because that's the one that made our connection closer. So many other moments we've had played through my mind all together. I guess that many people would say that that would be a ruckus and messy, but I found it to be very beautiful. It brought me joy just thinking about it. The same time all of these memories were playing through my head, a new memory that was similar was being created right now. Though it was similar, it was also completely different and glew from the rest of them. Since all of these memories were playing through my head whilst this memory is being created, this memory isn't just this one. It's all of them. For some reason I felt like this kiss was somehow special from all the other ones and I don't know why, but my mind was telling me to cherish it.

Eren pulled away and looked me in the eyes and held both of my hands in his. His forehead was touching mine and our eyes were locked in one place. They weren't going to leave our circle of connection, either, because both of us were too damn happy to do anything of that sort right now.

"I fucking lov--"

"I love you too," I wrapped my arms around Eren's neck and squeezed him as tight as I could possibly manage, because my mind kept telling me that this day is somehow special. Somehow I feel like this is bittersweet, but it should just be happy, right? Why does it also feel sad? Why am I getting mixed feelings from this? This should only feel happy. I feel somehow... very sad. No, I wasn't sad, I think that the day's gone too well to be this good. That's what it is. Too good to be true. It's not bittersweet, it's just so intensely blissful that I was blind to everything else.