UNCONSCIOUS THOUGHTS

Just Now

Neither of you said anything else after that. You weren't sure how to reply or even how to interpret his words aside from how they made you feel. Soon enough, the dog had fled at the sounds of birds nearby, chasing them off on the sand and you and Eren began walking back to the car in a comfortable silence.

Things have changed, your relationship with Eren wasn't just hateful, you didn't despise him as you did months ago. You felt for him, as much as you hated to even imagine a world where you weren't alone...it was true.

"There's one more place I want to take you tonight." He blurts as you approach his parked car, you look at him with curiosity before getting in the car and he does the same.

The car ride to wherever he was taking you was silent but it wasn't awkward, you were busy trying to figure out where he was taking you while also enjoying the nightlife of Rome all around you. After half an hour, he suddenly stopped the car and parked next to the sidewalk.

He gets out and so do you, the only light is from the street lights on the sidewalk. You walk next to Eren, all the way down the sidewalk on the hill then turning around and walked down another hill for about five minutes. It was very strange, nobody else was around but even then, you didn't feel scared. You felt safe with Eren, even your body knew that was and always would protect you.

The night air is cool, on the sides of the sidewalk as you're walking down the tall hill with him there's grass and trees swaying with the occasional wind. Every time there's a breeze you get a whiff of his cologne, it is smooth, woodsy, and husky. You love it.

Eventually, you start to hear the sounds of rushing water. The water is moving fast and all at once, you can tell it's coming from ahead and the cement sidewalk turns into a stone pathway you walk along. You turn a corner and your breath is taken away from what you see, a gorgeous waterfall that is huge and right in front of you.

You thought this was it, and it was already more than enough but that wasn't all.

As you got closer, you realized that there were dim white lights behind the waterfall, the closer you got, the brighter they got. You walked until you were directly in front of the waterfall with a pool of water in front of you as well, separating you from the waterfall and the lights spelled something out.

"Happy Birthday" is what you read from the waterfall. You didn't even know that he knew it was your birthday, you never made it a big deal or told him because you never celebrated your birthday, ever. It was just a normal day for you.

"Mikasa told me you don't celebrate because of some bad memories you have on this day. I thought you should get the chance to make new ones—better ones." He says while standing next to you, you're struggling to even look away from the bright lights spelling out the words.

Your eyes swelled with tears, thinking about how every one of your birthdays was exactly the same. How your father would—...he can't do that to you anymore, you remind yourself. You're standing in one of the most beautiful cities in front of the most gorgeous waterfall, you wont let the memory of your father ruin this for you.

"I get it if you don't l—" Before he can even finish, you're wrapping your arms around his torso and pressing your head to his chest.

"It's perfect. Thank you." You muffled from your head being buried in his chest and after a few seconds, you feel his arms wrap around you too.

If you could stay like this with him forever, you would. If you could be wrapped up in his arms for the rest of your life, you'd do it without hesitation. Unfortunately, that wasn't exactly possible but what is possible is standing here in his arms until you felt like pulling away. You stayed there with him for who knows how long? You didn't care. He was so warm, you used that as your excuse for not wanting to pull away.