Be My Salvation (Ereri/Riren)

XII

Eren was a few people behind Levi in line to get off the train. When he stepped off and into the warm, humid air, he allowed himself a minute to stretch and reveled in the feeling, letting it and the sensation of the sun beating down momentarily distract him from his thoughts - from his dream.

"Said you had to piss?" Levi asked, peeking up from beneath his long black lashes, squinting into the light.

Eren simply nodded and let Levi lead him into what, on the inside, looked to be a large convenience store. Once he finished his business, they used one of the ten dollar bills Petra had provided them with to buy a bottle of water and a snack each. They used the rest of their time to call Petra and walk a few laps around the building, getting their blood flowing and muscles working after sitting for so long, before it was time to board once again.

Conversation picked its way back up between them once the train was moving again, Eren idly nibbling on his bag of cashews and Levi chewing on a twizzler, which he savored.

"How much longer until we're there?" Eren asked after a while.

Levi shrugged. "Few hours. Can't say for sure."

"How many more stops?"

"Think I heard someone say one more."

"Okay," Eren sighed. When Levi picked his book back up, Eren directed his attention back out the window and let his mind wander, only to be pulled back to reality not long after to an odd sound coming from his left. He swiveled his head back to find Levi to be grinning lightly, his eyes still fixed on the page in front of him.

He'd laughed. As soon as the realization hit Eren, his whole body seemed to fill with butterflies.

Eren did his best to commit that wonderful sound to memory as he returned his attention back to the window. He could only imagine what might've been in that book to elicit a laugh of all things from Levi, someone he hadn't heard produce more than a halfhearted snort of amusement in the couple months he'd known him. Whatever it was, though, Eren was thankful for it. Not only did it light his heart up a bit, but it kept his mind off of the destination ahead for a while.

~

The train made another stop countless miles down the road. This time, Eren made sure to get up and exit right behind Levi, who was already on the phone to get the call to Petra out of the way. This time, halfway through the conversation, he held the little device out to Eren, a bored look set in his features.

"Hello?" Eren mumbled into the receiver.

"Eren, hon, how is everything?"

"Everything's fine," he assured. "I'm a little stiff from sitting for so long, but we're good."

"Good. Is everything on schedule so far?"

"Yeah, as far as I know."

"Good to hear. Don't forget to call again when you make it, okay?"

"Yeah, of course."

"Can I talk to Levi again, please?"

"Sure. Bye, Petra." He extended the phone back to Levi, who took it and started wandering down the sidewalk a ways. After a few strides, Eren trailed behind.

"Mhm...No, it's pretty boring...yeah...yeah, he's fine. A little tense, but not too bad...I have been...sure...okay. Bye." He ended the call and slipped the phone back in his pocket before turning, finding Eren a few yards back with his hands in his pockets, eyes on his feet. "What's up, kid?"

"Nothing," answered Eren too quickly.

"She's just worried about you. Doesn't want you to go all mute like you were."