Redemption Song | Levi & Eren

Chapter 8: Should I Stay or Should I Go

      British weather was usually unforgiving regardless of whichever season had its turn to mess with nature. The cold night air surrounded Eren like a damp towel he should have dropped a long time ago.

His loose clothes with small holes in them, giving them the appearance of a miniature battlefield, provided little to no warmth. He rubbed his hands together, occasionally breathing into them deeply with hot air. The expelled warm moisture supplied a momentary heat that quickly fleeted.

Around him, every other lamp post suffered from smashed bulbs, rendering them useless. Eren's form was shrouded in darkness every four-hundred yards. The accident advantage was that he could see a greater distance around him as there weren't any powerful yellow lights being cast over his eyes.

Experience dictated his movements, resulting in constant glances. He stuck to a public pathway. It was less dangerous that the woods and less tight than the narrow pathways that were the council house mazes.

His upper half was turned behind him to assess for possible danger. In doing so, Eren's poor coordination and inability to multitask caused him to trip over his other foot, nearly tumbling to the floor.

The misfortune acted as cutting the wrong wire on a bomb, setting him off. A growl similar to that of an animal reverberated from his throat as he glared at the floor passing beneath him.

"Stupid fucking midget." the young man snarled, kicking a rock down the street and watching it skip across the concrete. "Fuck you."

An underpass presented itself in his path but Eren only saw it as an obstacle. He saw the grass to the side acting as a ramp to the top of it where he could cross over and head back down. The safer option would require more effort from his knees.

The small amount of energy he had remaining disagreed with the preferable choice even as his brain ordered him to not be an idiot.

Unsurprisingly for Eren, his laziness prevailed over his logical decision-making skills. A lump in his throat was quickly swallowed, leaving it dry. His nervous thoughts allowed him brief freedom from the cold.

By the time he'd heard an indistinct dialogue from the other end of the bridge, the three boys had already rounded the corner and started approaching Eren. One of them looked away from the group and pointed at Eren's location. Eren bowed his head but eye contact had already been made.

"Shit," he whispered.

The pounding of his heart reached his ears, muffling their impending voices. Eren lowered his hands and stuffed them into his tattered pockets. One of them stopped, conversing in his direction.

"No, sorry." returned Eren on autopilot before mumbling, "Piss off, please."

He found a tight grip latched around his arm. Quicker than his response was, Eren shrugged off the hand with a spin and released himself from the stranger's grip. He adopted a simple stance.

"Whoa, whoa." the oldest of three said in response to Eren's unexpected reaction. "Take a breath, bro. I don't wanna scare you."

"Could have fooled me." Eren checked to see if his sleeve had torn. It had.

The trio was made up of boys younger than Eren. After evaluating their pathetic amount of facial hair they attempted to sport and their thick black raincoats, Eren presumed they were high schoolers.

At first, the 'leader' didn't respond with words but rather a snort and a smirk. "Yeah, fair. Fair." he followed up with a nod before looking Eren up and down. "You got anything on you?"

Eren glimpsed around only to recognise that the trio had circled him. Eren sighed, shaking his head in disbelief. "Look at me. I just got kicked out by a middle-aged man who doesn't reach my ankles. Do I look like I got anything on me?"