Bad Faith | Eren x Reader

Chapter 3

It was morning when the train finally arrived in Liberio. Both you and Colt had sobered up but were accompanied by two wicked headaches. You felt like you needed to throw up and the morning sun's light just burned your eyes. You were still sitting on the cargo box that you fell asleep on however Colt was no longer next to you. Someone had taken his place next to you. You feel this person throw your arm around their shoulder standing up, making you stand up too. You looked up to see the person assisting you was Zeke Jaeger.

You have known Zeke since you could remember. Your mom told you that she used to help out Zeke's grandmother all the time when she was little. So, since you were born, she would bring you over their house. Since you were there a lot, you gained an interest in pursuing medicine because of Zeke's grandfather who was a doctor. Now you are a doctor and, from time to time, you take care of Zeke's grandfather at the hospital that you work at part-time. He wasn't a full-time patient, but sometimes the trauma of losing his daughter would creep up on him and he would need to be admitted for a couple of days. Zeke appreciated that you were looking out for his grandfather. To you, Zeke was an older brother and you were grateful to have him.

"You know, you went way overboard last night."

"Ya, ya, I know I did. I never want to drink ever again. This sucks," you groaned.

"If I remember correctly, the last time you got this drunk you said the exact same thing," he said teasingly.

"I mean it this time!"

"Sure you do," he says with a laugh while squeezing you in a side hug.

"I am being serious. I did something stupid this time," you say as he leads you through the gates of Liberio where dozens of families are waiting to greet their returning soldiers. You really wanted to tell him about what just happened between you and Colt a couple of hours prior but you knew right now wasn't the time to. "I'll tell you later though."

You both walk over to Zeke's family. He lets you go so he could hug his grandparents, which you also did after him.

"Woah, (Y/N), you don't look too good. What's wrong sweetie?" Zeke's grandmother asks you with a worried expression after seeing your flushed complexion.

"I am okay," you reply. "I just feel a little —."

"She is very hungover grandma," Zeke tells her laughing. "You should have seen her. She was more drunk that at banquet we attended last year." You elbow him to shut up to which he just chuckles, patting your head.

You hear someone call your name and see that it is Mrs. Grice waving you over. You excuse yourself from the Jaeger family making sure to tell them that you will be visiting sometime soon.

As you walk over to the Grice family, you notice Colt looking away from you. This is so awkward, you thought. You greet his parents with a hug and big smile.

"Wow, you look so grown up dear. You're a beautiful young woman," Mrs. Grice tells you while holding your hands in hers. "Hey Colt, when are you going to finally make a move. A girl like her definitely has many guys after her so you better hurry." You feel your face heat up after hearing her words. You look over at Colt and see that he is also a blushing mess. She laughs after seeing how flustered we both are. "Anyways, why don't you join us for dinner tonight dear?"

You look over at Colt who is just looking at the ground too embarrassed to even look at you. You wondered if he wanted you there. You didn't want to make him uncomfortable in his own house, but you also don't want to lose your best friend. You decide just to suck it up and go over. "Of course, I will be there. I have missed your cooking so much. Just thinking about it makes my mouth water. You wouldn't believe what they were feeding us out there. Poor Falco got sick the first time he ate it."

"Don't tell them that," he pleads while waving his hand in front of him. You giggle before ruffling his hair.

"Anyways dear, be there for seven," Mrs. Grice tells you before turning to walk home. You on the other hand didn't go home, you still had work to do. Even if you wanted to go home, it would take a couple days to get there. Your mom and dad live in the capital since your dad got a promotion around the same time you decided to apprentice as a doctor for the Warrior unit. Now you live here alone, but you didn't mind. It was your home. Plus, you had the Jaeger and Grice family constantly looking out for you.

You walk over to the line of soldiers that Mr. Koslow was rounding up. He screams out of nowhere causing all of the soldiers to fall over, to which he laughs at. This made you beyond angry. You quickly help the soldiers up. As you were helping the last one up, you notice that it is Eren. You lean over whispering in ear the words nice acting which gifts you a small chuckle from him.

You load the group of soldiers in a nearby van before driving off to the hospital to get them all situated. After everyone is settled in you made sure to go check up on Eren. You grab two bowls of cut up fruit and two plastic forks before making your way to his room. Hopefully Eren likes fruit.

You knock on the door leading to Eren's room waiting for a response before entering. When you do, you see him sitting on the hospital bed looking out window. The room was very plain, all white, with only a bed, table, and a single armchair. Connected to the room was a simple bathroom that was super small but got the job done.

"How are you doing Eren? I thought you might be hungry so I sneaked you a fruit cup", you say as you hand him his cup and a form. He gladly accepts it with a smile, thanking you quickly taking a chunk of watermelon and shoving it into his mouth.

"I am doing as well as I can be", he says after swallowing the piece of watermelon. "Thank you again for doing all of this for me. I really appreciate it."

"Of course, if you ever need anything at all do not be afraid to ask me, okay? I promise to look out for you."

You look down at the watch on your wrist seeing that it is almost six o'clock. You still needed to shower and get ready before heading to the Grice household. You dismiss yourself from Eren's room quickly heading to the hospital pharmacy picking up a morning after pill before heading home to get ready. Hopefully this isn't too awkward.

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