𝐅𝐀𝐖𝐍•ᵉ ʲᵃᵉᵍᵉʳ

38

𝚏𝚛𝚒𝚍𝚊𝚢, 𝚓𝚊𝚗𝚞𝚊𝚛𝚢 𝟹𝟶𝚝𝚑

𝐈 𝐃𝐎𝐍'𝐓 𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐍 𝐊𝐍𝐎𝐖 𝐇𝐎𝐖 𝐈 𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐕𝐈𝐍𝐂𝐄𝐃 𝐄𝐑𝐄𝐍 𝐓𝐎 𝐇𝐄𝐋𝐏 𝐌𝐄 𝐆𝐋𝐈𝐓𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐁𝐎𝐌𝐁 𝐇𝐈𝐒𝐓𝐎𝐑𝐈𝐀𝐒 𝐂𝐀𝐑 . I'm still not sure if I actually forgave him yet. But after his apology—God, his apology—I felt weak. He looked so fucking vulnerable, like a kicked puppy. I almost hated how easily he could do that to me.

But this is about revenge. It's about sending a message, not about forgiveness. Not yet.

"You're lucky I'm even letting you help with this," I mutter, sliding into the passenger seat of his car. Eren's driving, his grip tight on the wheel. He keeps looking at me like I'm about to change my mind any second. Maybe he's right to think that. Maybe I will.

But not tonight.

We pull out of the parking lot, the silence between us loud and suffocating. He's so tense that I can practically hear his thoughts racing. I can't tell if he's trying to make the drive comfortable or if he's too scared to say anything. He's fucking terrified, and it's honestly kind of funny, considering this is about glitter, not some life-or-death situation.

"I can't believe we're doing this," Eren says, breaking the silence. His voice is stiff, like he's still trying to find the right words.

I glance over at him. "You should've thought about that before you kissed her."

He flinches, but I don't care. I look out the window, watching the city lights pass by. This isn't about me forgiving him. It's about something else—something that makes me feel like I have control over something for once.

"What do you even need glitter for, though?" he asks. His voice is quieter now, like he's trying to keep the mood light.

"Obviously, we're not just buying glitter, genius," I snap, my fingers tapping on the seat, trying to mask the discomfort of being in a car with him. "I'm getting some paint, some streamers, and, yeah, glitter. We're going all out."

"Got it," he says, his grip on the wheel tightening again.

I look at him from the corner of my eye. He's so different from the guy I knew back in September through November. More subdued, like something inside of him has shifted. Maybe it's guilt. Maybe it's something else. But it's there, and it's impossible to ignore.

But maybe, hopefully, I'll be able to get that boy back. If I forgive him.

I don't know if it's because I'm finally starting to get used to his presence again, or if it's just that I'm too busy thinking about the chaos we're about to cause.

But one thing's for sure. I'm not letting him off the hook yet. Not by a long shot.

"You need to let up, y'know? I don't hate you." I laugh, but it comes out sounding a little drier than I'd like, a harsh sound that's barely a laugh at all. I can feel the tension hanging in the air between us like a thick fog. Eren's hands are still gripping the wheel too tightly, his knuckles pale against the steering wheel. His jaw's clenched, and every now and then, he glances at me like he's expecting me to snap at him. I don't. I won't.

"I'm just... trying to make sure I don't screw this up," he mutters, his voice low, like it's a confession. His eyes dart to me, but quickly back to the road. "I don't want you to think I'm... playing games."