Crack of Sunlight (Ereri/Riren)

*~Chapter Five~*

The weather proceeded to worsen and worsen as the days drew closer to winter. It snowed on and off, leaving the streets constantly wet and in danger of being icy due to below freezing temperatures and moisture. Christmas lights were already going up; around every corner, there would be another house decorated to an extreme, expensive appearing degree.

"Mom, we should put the Christmas tree up this year," said Mikasa one night at dinner, her youthful eyes shining with mild excitement.

"Why do you want to do that?" asked Carla. Her eyes immediately clouded with sorrow and that same distance Mikasa and Eren had both seen a vast number of times in the past decade. Immediately, Eren shot his sister a warning look, which she promptly ignored to answer the question.

"I don't even remember the last time we did it," she said. "It's a tradition. Everybody does it. Why don't we?"

"You were too little to remember, Mikasa," Eren said, his voice cold. "We haven't put the Christmas tree up since you were like four."

"And? I still don't get why we don't do it."

Eren sighed heavily. "It brings back painful memories, okay? We're not going to put it up."

Mikasa dropped her fork, letting it clatter onto her plate, and crossed her arms. "Why? It's Christmas. It's supposed to be joyful and stuff, not all gloomy."

"Drop it, Mikasa," he snapped.

"No," Carla interjected. "Maybe...maybe she's right, Eren." She met her son's eyes and cracked a miniscule half-smile. "Maybe we shouldn't dwell on those memories so much that it stops us from having a normal Christmas."

"But tomorrow..."

Carla gently covered Eren's hand with her own. "I know, honey. But what do you think he would want?"

Eren dropped his eyes back to his dinner plate and violently stabbed a piece of steak. "How should I know?" he muttered.

"I knew Grisha, and we both know he wouldn't want us letting the anniversary ruin Christmas."

"Hasn't stopped it from doing just that for a decade." He sighed in frustration.

"Let's change it, then," Mikasa piped up again. "Why not? If he would want us to have Christmas, we should. I'm tired of it just being a normal day around here while everyone else is having fun with their families and stuff."

Carla turned her growing smile on her adopted daughter. "Good point, Mikasa. Let's put the Christmas tree up."

Eren removed his hand from beneath his mother's and excused himself. After cleaning his plate, he disappeared upstairs for the night to distract himself with his studies until he fell asleep.

The next day was Saturday; therefore he worked earlier than usual. It was a slippery mess to get to work and he wouldn't have been surprised if the shop was closed. He found it not to be, but it turned out that the only one inside was Levi. Immediately upon seeing the short man behind the glass of the window, Eren's heart jumped and his stomach did an awkward dance. Armin's words echoed in his head just before stepping foot in the warm air of the shop...

Honestly, Eren, my gut is telling me you shouldn't ignore this feeling you have or try to bury it like you have been. If doing so worked the first time you did it, maybe it didn't mean anything. But since the feeling persists, it must be something of significance.

Eren took a gulp of the cold air and stepped inside. He stripped off his coat and hung it neatly on the rack near the door, knowing what a stickler for cleanliness and organization Levi was and not so much in the mood for his scoldings.