"E-Eren?" She choked, tears still streaming down her face. In a split second, she was reeled in and landed on top of him.
"E-Eren?" She stared straight into his emerald orbs, which were steeled, but she noticed something else inside them, something she couldn't recognize.
"Tell me." Eren ordered as he let go of her wrist.
She slumped to his side and clenched her teeth to stop the crying. Once she regained her composure, she directed her gaze onto him.
She noticed tears were still sliding down her face, but she didn't stop. "I love you, Eren."
He took in a sharp breath, clearly not expecting her to say that.
"I love you and I need you. You've been pushing me so far away, it feels like it can't ever reach you anymore. The scarf isn't enough anymore. I know that you don't want me around, but I can't handle that. You might not need me, but I need you. Please, Eren, I'll do whatever it takes, just don't leave me alone and cold." Mikasa did not divert her eyes, they remained glued on his.
Mikasa studied Eren's expression, he had been listening to her confession and didn't say a word, he just stared at her. This had been the first time she had broken down, the first time she lost her legendary composure so drastically.
There were a few seconds of painful silence, before Eren spoke up. "Is that why you keep trying to protect me?"
"Yes." She rubbed her swollen eyes.
"Not because you feel indebted to me?"
"No!" Mikasa replied a little too loudly, but she was surprised; was this what Eren was thinking the entire time? For all these years? She didn't have time to think before Eren began speaking again.
"It's because you l-love me?"
"Yes, more than I can handle." Her body was shaking, she couldn't believe how deeply she had fallen for this boy.
Mikasa released a gasp as Eren pulled her into his chest. A burst of warmth engulfed her and her ears listened to the tempo of his heartbeat. She couldn't think, it was all just Eren.
"I don't want you around because you always risk your life for me. If something happens to you, and it was because of me, I don't know what I'd do."
"Eren?" She glanced up at his piercing eyes.
He cut her off again. "I always got angry at you when you mothered me because I thought you saw me as a brother you had to protect and you owed. I thought you didn't see me as a man, and that's why I got angry. Because, -" He swallowed and hesitated. Then, he mumbled so faintly that it took Mikasa's full attention to hear, "... because I love you, too, Mikasa."
That was it, it was all she needed. Mikasa threw her lips onto his once again, and melted when he kissed her back. They were inexperienced, but that didn't matter. Warmth pumped through her veins like adrenaline as she dug her nails in his hair.
They broke the kiss to breathe, releasing hot puffs of air onto each other.
Mikasa decided now was a good time to ask.
"Eren?"
"Yeah?" He was out of breath.
"Will you be mine?"
He paused. "As long as you're mine."
She smiled and pecked him on the lips. "I'll always be yours."
Chapter 1
Start from the beginning
