Promise Me | Book Three

Chapter Five

Eren's POV

"Eren, there's something I need to tell you." Mikasa's voice wakes me up.
"Woah, we fell asleep outside." I laugh, sitting up, groggily. I turn to Mikasa, who smiles, but briefly. "What do you need to tell me?"

She sighs; she seems nervous. "Mikasa?" She sits up, slowly. "We'll be getting married soon, so there are some things that you will have to know." She starts.

"Like what?" I ask.
"I'm not trustworthy." She says. "What are you talking about? Of course you are. I can trust you with any-" I begin, but she cuts me off. "But, you can't!" Mikasa insists, tucking her knees in.

"You know when I left home, and you had to find me?" Mikasa says. I nod, in response. "I didn't leave because of the dream. I left because I was blackmailed."

"What?! By who?" I ask, quickly. "The people who want us dead." I don't speak; what she just said leaves me speechless. I can't process what she is telling me.

I let her speak on.

"Gerald, that assassin you found outside; they're all a part of the same group, they all want to kill us." Mikasa informs me. "When you left, I found a note that had been slipped through the window, and the person who sent it to me said that if I didn't go, they would kill you, and probably me, also. I was so scared, and I didn't know what to do for a time, but then I decided to leave for your safety. I slowly regretted leaving you, the further away I was from you, but I knew that I had to protect you. I realise, now, that I was the bait. They knew that you would follow me, and so they could get both of us at once. Eren, the only reason I didn't tell you before was, because I was scared. I didn't want you to worry about our lives, and I just want us to live the life that we want to. I don't even know why those people are after us, and I don't know if they still are. I'm sorry for not telling you."

Mikasa still hasn't looked at me. "I hope that this doesn't change anything, and I hope that we can still live peacefully together." She tells me.

I still don't know what to say to her. She didn't run away because of me, she ran away to protect me and I don't know how to deal with that, I don't know how to deal with any of this.

"It won't change anything." I begin. "But, please promise me, that you won't hide the truth away from me again."

Mikasa nods. "I promise, Eren." She says, finally looking at me.

"Come here." I say, opening my arms. She leans towards me, and I enclose her in my arms. "I don't want you to worry about them. We're safe. You're safe." I say, reassuringly.

* * *

We make our way back to Armin's place, and we hold hands for the entire duration.

"When are we going back?" Mikasa asks. "I don't know. I still want to sort some things first." I respond. Mikasa nods.

I knock on the door; Armin takes less time opening the door, than he did previously. "I still can't believe that you managed to fall asleep outside." He says.

"It was actually very nice. Right, Mikasa?" I ask for her opinion. "Yes, it was lovely." Mikasa smiles, subtly. She looks so pretty when she smiles.

"So, Eren. How did it go?" Armin asks. "Well, it went way better than I planned." I say, in triumph.
"When will you be wed?"

"We still have many preparations to sort, so we do not know yet." Mikasa says.
"I see." Armin says.

"We should organise that today, actually." I insist. Mikasa nods. "I've got some paper." Armin says, going into another room, to get paper I assume.
I sit on the sofa, and rest my elbow on the table. Mikasa sits next to me.
"Can you believe it, though?" She asks. "Believe what?" I respond.
"That we're getting married. If we were told that we were going to marry, as kids, we'd probably think that it's absurd." She laughs.
"Yeah. I don't know what I'd think about that." I say. "But, I'm so glad that we are getting married."

Mikasa smiles, and nods. "Me too. I couldn't imagine getting married to anyone else." I feel a smile grow on my face, and I don't know why I'm feeling nervous now.
"I got it." Armin says, walking in the room and placing a few sheets of blank paper and a pen on the coffee table.

"Okay, what first?" I ask. Mikasa ponders for a moment. "Date."
We wouldn't want it too prematurely, but then yet, not too late. "How about in three months." I suggest.
"That seems fine." She says, picking up the pen and leans forward to write. "But, when exactly?"
"September fifth." I say. "The fifth is the day that we became officially engaged: June the fifth."
She writes it down.
"Venue?" I ask.
"We wouldn't want inside the walls, would we?"
Mikasa grins. "How about in that snowy village, or even on the beach?" She asks.
"I decided the date, so it's your call." I tell.
She sighs quietly, and rests the end of the pen on her bottom lip.

After long moments of thinking, she finally says, "I think that is yet to be decided."