The Color of Suffering | AOT

●When Walls Crumble● part 2

Eren opened the door for us, his voice full of forced cheer. "Hey, we're home!" he called out, flashing a big smile, clearly trying to charm his way out of trouble for being late.

"Welcome back, kids!" carla's warm voice responded from the kitchen. I sighed in relief. Looks like we got lucky today-she wasn't mad.

I walked over to grisha's side, eager to show him my sketches from today. He glanced at them with a warm smile, placing his hand gently on my head, petting me in approval.

"Wow, somebody worked hard to keep us stocked in firewood for the next few days" Carla's teasing voice chimed in from behind me. I couldn't help but snicker quietly at her playful tone.

"whatever" Eren mumbled, trying to act casual so carla wouldn't catch on that he hadn't exactly been pulling his weight in gathering that firewood.

carla gently tugged on eren's left earlobe, a teasing smile on her face. "Your ears are red, which means you've got something to hide" she said knowingly. "I'm guessing mikasa helped you again, didn't she?"

"Yes" Mikasa answered, without missing a beat.

That's when I couldn't hold back any longer-I burst into laughter. The warmth of the moment, the teasing, the love between them-it was everything to me. I silently prayed, I love this family. god, please keep them safe forever. and if you can't, give me the strength to do it myself.

I sat between Eren and Grisha, enjoying Carla's delicious cooking, while Grisha started gathering his things.

"Where are you off to, Dad?" Eren asked, pausing mid-bite.

I stopped chewing and rolled my eyes. "Isn't it obvious, silly? your genius of a father is going to see a patient."

Grisha smiled gently at us. "Yes, dear penny is right. Some folks in the Interior need me. I'll be back in about a week."

"eren's thinking about joining the scouts" Mikasa blurted out.

The plate Carla had been washing slipped from her hand, shattering the moment of calm. I gripped my spoon tightly, bracing for whatever was about to come next.

Eren's eyes flared in disbelief. "Way to keep a secret, mouth!" he snapped, but before he could continue his outburst, Carla marched right up to him. Kneeling down, she gripped his shoulders firmly, her face inches from his.

"Get that ridiculous thought out of your head this instant, young man!" Her voice was sharp with worry, her grip tightening as she leaned even closer. "no son of mine is going to be fodder, do I make myself absolutely clear?!"

But Eren, always the stubborn fighter, yelled back, "Stop yelling at me!"

"It's a nightmare, eren" Grisha's calm and steady voice resonated through the room, halting the escalating tension. He leaned forward, his gaze piercing into Eren's. "The outside... you really have no idea."

Eren's expression shifted, caught between the weight of his father's warning and the fierce desire burning within him. "Yeah, I get it, okay? But it's gotta be better than this life!" He continued, passion rising in his voice. "I'm not stupid; I know it's ugly out there. I know there's death around every corner. But we can't just give up on it!"

Drawing in a deep breath, he shouted the next part with unyielding determination "Cause otherwise, this nightmare never gonna end!" The intensity of his words hung in the air, filling the room with a heavy silence as everyone absorbed the gravity of what he was saying.

Now he's done it. I thought for sure grisha was going to scold him senseless. "I see" grisha said, his tone calm, almost accepting.

Wait, what?