。 ☆ 。 ☆。 ☆
★。 ＼ ｜ ／。 ★
PROLOGUE ━━━━━ prologue
THE heavenly scent of freshly brewed coffee drifted to your nose as you found yourself queuing up at Captain Levi's coffee shop.
Sadly, the lustful and stares in admiration being sent in your direction hadn't stopped since you reached the coffee shop. It wasn't that you didn't appreciate some teenager girls coming up to you asking where your outfit was from or what eyeliner you use, but out of all days, you couldn't get distracted. But there were also some stares that you would've rathered not witnessed with your own two eyes from older, dirty minded men.
Dressing up was simply a routine to millions, but you saw it as a hobby that you immensely enjoyed doing. Nothing felt better than feeling and looking good. Your looks varied from modern to elegant, bold to girly, and you weren't afraid to put all of the cards out and experiment.
This caught the eyes of many admirers on social media platforms across the globe. With a high following that you adored, you could blog your outfits, daily routine and finally, your new job at the magazine.
Rose Magazine Headquarters was somewhere that you had dreamed of working since you were a little girl. You remember waking up early on the last Saturday at the end of each month, grabbing your bicycle to cycle down to the local grocery store to get next month's issue before they flew off the shelves. You'd spend hours browsing through the latest fashion trends and shoots, celebrity interviews and even rip out a few pages to put in a scrapbook.
Being offered a job of a fashion editor had to be one of your biggest achievements to date. Your younger self wouldn't believe what a twenty four Y/N was working at one of the most renowned magazines that Paradis City had ever known.
Situated on the ground floor of the headquarters' building leading out onto the bustling street, Captain Levi's was your go to spot for your daily awakening of coffee.
No one brewed coffee as good as Hange, and the owner, Levi himself, made a killer cup of tea whenever you had the pleasure of sitting inside.
"Good morning, Y/N! Your usual?" Hange grinned from ear to ear at one of her favourite customers, preparing your usual order already. She was always her usual cheery and enthusiastic self, even at nine in the morning. It was an attitude that you aspired to have. It was a drag to get yourself out of your bed most mornings, especially since the other side was empty most days.
You took out your discount card out of your oversized lemon yellow handbag and smiled back. "You know it, Hange. It seems like today out of all days, I need it stronger than usual. A double shot, please."
"He still isn't home?" Hange frowned from where she dosed ground coffee with the portafilter. "I'm on it. As our motto goes; we're humanity's strongest coffee!"
The topic of your boyfriend made you all flustered since today was your two year anniversary and you hadn't heard from him yet. He was always so timely with important events as big as this, waking up early in the mornings just for you.
It didn't seem to be the case today, since he was so busy travelling for work.
To distract yourself from him, your eyes scanned the display cabinet to where you had bought a delicious raspberry and white chocolate scone the other day. To your surprise, three quarters of what was normally full was empty.
The sound of footsteps coming out from the back of the coffee shop awoke you from your little daze.
"Good morning, Y/N," Levi brushed off the remaining flour from his usual white apron. "Oh, Sasha stopped by not long ago. She was immensely excited for your first day upstairs. She nearly bought all of the whole baked goods to bring up to her office, not that today is the first time. Our biggest fan, yet I'm concerned about her maintaining a balanced diet..."
That's what you thought, it wasn't hard to figure out where Sasha had been. You had known her since your college days, being blessed with such an incredible friend as your dorm mate. You had stumbled into the dorm completely starved from your four hour car journey and she accepted you as a friend with open arms and offered you her snacks. That's all it took and the rest was history.
She was the one who told you to go for the job. It meant an eye opening opportunity for you and as for her, who wouldn't love their best friend working in the same place as them.
"Oh, Sasha," You shook your head, but in a sentimental way. "Ah, and speaking of the job, any advice on how to impress the big boss? From what I gathered from Sasha, the head editor in my department is Erwin Smith. Any pointers on how to impress him?"
It was then when Hange and Levi exchanged a look that you couldn't quite understand, but you let it pass anyways. Otherwise, Levi would comment back as sharp as ever and Hange would just laugh about it.
Oh, your favourite baristas!
Hange was the one who replied. "Levi sure knows a lot about Erwin alright. How about you tell her all you know about him?"
"It seems like it's time to shut that mouth of yours," Levi faced away from everyone, and both you and Hange could only assume he was blushing. "Get back to coffee making, brat. We can't give her a bad brew on her very first day."
"He loves me really," Hange mouthed to you, earning a chuckle from your cherry coated lips. At least the light humour was perking you up, being in their presence was always a blessing.
"To answer your question, just behave for Erwin. It's simple really, but I've heard that some people in that department don't know how to." You receive your fresh coffee from Hange, its aroma mesmerising you.
After a sip, you let out a sigh in delight. "As delicious as always, Hange. Thank you. Well, I better be off. I can't believe I got the job without having to sit an interview with the founder of the magazine. I don't even know who it is, does anyone? It's one of the world's best kept secrets."
Levi leaned his back against the grey countertop. "It's best if a secret is kept a secret, Y/N. No snooping or investigating, you hear? Otherwise as Hange said, you won't leave a good first impression on Erwin."
"Good luck! We'll be cheering and rooting for you down here!" Hange waved.
"Good luck, Y/N," Levi said simply, an unrecognisable glint in his eye. After being such a regular at the coffee shop, you had gotten Levi to open up to you. You know deep down that he was a softie, you just really had to push it out of him.
"Thanks again, you two. I'll come down again during lunchtime. I hope you'll be busy today! It's always good to be."
"Y/N L/N, a pleasure to make your acquaintance. Erwin Smith, but Erwin is fine with me. We're all looking forward to having you on the team. With your incredible work ethic, I have no doubt that we'll thrive in our department this year."
"The pleasure is all mine, Erwin. Thank you for having me on the team, I won't let you down."
The sixth floor of Rose Magazine's headquarters was spectacular. A paradise in your eyes- light and spacious offices for each employee, plenty of walking room, the smell of freshly brewed coffee drifted down the corridor, and a wonderful introduction from what seemed to be your new friendly coworkers.
You and Sasha had never grinned as wide as you had. Sasha was an event manger for the magazine, but she was lucky enough to have her office located on the sixth floor.
She introduced you to some of her close colleagues. Connie, you knew from karaoke night since Sasha always tried to gather a group of friends at the end of every month. He was a freelance photographer who visited the office most days and was hired by Rose Magazine for individual shoots. The majority of the time he was at Rose Magazine, but he was also working at another magazine, Sina Weekly, too.
Connie and Sasha's words of encouragement and belief in one another was something you looked up to both of them for. Their friendship went back a little longer than yours with Sasha, but it wasn't like you were jealous. You adored Connie just as much as Sasha, you just didn't know him as well as you knew her.
"I'll leave you to get acquainted with everyone. I've assigned Sasha to show you the ropes for today, so there's no mad rush with getting straight to work." You thanked Erwin once again before he was behind closed doors in his office.
Sasha was over the moon to see you there, grabbing your hand to show you your new office. "Y/N, I've got to show you your office! You can decorate the room to your liking, but I see someone left you a little gift before you arrived. It's on your desk."
Furrowing your perfectly plucked eyebrows, you wondered who left a present for you. It couldn't have been Sasha, she was more into giving sweet edible treats as a gift to you.
The office you walked into was everything you had been dreaming of. Yet instead of being mesmerised by the view of the bustling city below, your attention was on a large bouquet of your favourite flowers on your desk.
"What's this?" You let out a gasp, taking the red card that came with the bouquet of flowers in your hand. "Oh my..."
Happy Anniversary, my love.
There'll be another surprise waiting
for you at home after work.
Good luck with your big day!
Love, Reiner x
"They're beautiful," Sasha bent down to inhale the sweet smell of your favourite bouquet of flowers, smiling in approval. "Two years together already? You guys are so perfect together!"
"T-they certainly are," You were shocked to say the least. Your heart was racing in your chest, just like when you had met him for the very first time. The bouquet was a complete surprise, of course. It just would've made you even more happier if he was in the city to give them to you face to face.
Within minutes, you had unboxed all of your things for your new office. Your new coworkers, Armin and Eren, along with Sasha, were willing to give you a helping hand.
Armin Arlert was a picture editor, who browsed pictures on the web and accompanied photographers to the shoots. He was the one who made the final decisions on which pictures were of use for the magazine. You could tell that you'd get along with him since he was always making sure you were alright in the new environment and you admired how well he planned things so precisely.
Eren Jeager was a full time photographer at the company. You'd heard so many stories about him from Sasha about how frustrated he could get at photo shoots. He had a short temper and was a perfectionist with his photography, but his talent made up for his sudden outbursts. You always admired people who had strong passions for what they were doing.
"What is this thing?" Eren held up a gigantic sparkling champagne coloured figurine of a high heel that was normally a centrepiece on your desk. "It's way bigger than my own foot size."
You closed the last cardboard box. "I was gifted it at my very first job in the industry. Certainly an eye catcher, alright, as it does take up a lot of space on my desk. It has a built in microphone and speaker in it. Great fun for office parties."
"Speaking of microphones, you know what day it is?" There was that mischievous look in Sasha's eyes that you could only recognise as one thing. "It's Saturday, and that means karaoke night! Please say you'll join Connie, Eren, Armin and I, and a few other friends, too? There's nothing better than singing at the top of your lungs with your best friends on a Saturday night!"
"We'd love to see you there, Y/N," Armin smiled sweetly. Even Eren nodded enthusiastically.
It felt like you hadn't sang karaoke with Sasha since your college days, but that wasn't the case. It was probably you thinking that your life had flown by since you were busy and your relationship with Reiner began. You remembered somewhat a singalong a few months back, your memories a little hazy from the alcohol you had consumed.
"Why not?" You shrugged. "It's not like Reiner will be home today. How about I get ready at yours?"
It was the perfect opportunity to loosen up over the fact that Reiner wouldn't be home for your two year anniversary. Plus, there was nothing better than hanging out with Sasha and Connie.
no jean yet, but he's making an appearance in the next chapter! x
please tell me you noticed the reference with the coffee shop motto and the magazine name fkdjdhshs! there's gonna be a ton.
*i'll proofread later!*