Levi continued to drive until the sun began to set. Eren didn't mind because it was a beautiful view, and it somehow calmed him down despite being away from home and having to listen to a stranger. The clouds looked like they were dunked in pastel pink dye, and the sky was an ombre of blue; the sky was a gorgeous mess and made Eren think of the art class' watercolour pieces that were hung up in his school's hallways when he was still in high school. It was playful and vibrant, but stung his heart when he realized that out there, his family had watched the same sky while worrying about him. He missed them more than anything.
The air in the small car was moist and warm. Eren slumped tiredly in his seat as he watched the road eventually lead to a small and empty looking town. It looked more like a ghost town with all of it's bare sidewalks and closed shops. There was many signs advertising expired local events, and the lights of the lampposts blinked repeatedly. The road was nothing but cracked cement with faded yellow and white paint. Eren suddenly had a sinking feeling in his stomach. He looked over at Levi as the car slowed down.
"Where are we?"
"I..." he trailed off and swore under his breath. "I think we're lost."
"We're what?" Eren demanded.
"We're lost," Levi repeated and sighed. He parked in the middle of the road, but it wasn't like it mattered.
"You did this on purpose, didn't you?" Eren said, blaming him.
Levi scoffed and shook his head quickly. "No, because what benefit would I get for getting us lost?"
"What are we going to do now?"
Levi leaned forward and rested his head on the steering wheel and closed his eyes for a brief moment before speaking up.
"We need to stay here for the night," he stated and he revved the engine again. "We have no choice."
"Why can't we just continue driving?"
"We can't. You're tired. I'm tired. Let's call it a night, kid."
He eventually parked in front of the nearly vacant parking lot of a run down motel. It looked less broken than the last place they stayed, which made Eren feel a bit relieved.
"Listen closely," Levi said quietly as he slumped in his seat after the engine silenced. "Don't say anything weird that might make people think something is wrong. Don't run off and don't even try to think about it. You will follow what I say. Do you understand?"
"Yes," Eren said and swallowed nervously.
"Good boy. You will walk beside me. Do not look too tense or it will cause suspicion. I won't tie you up but if you do one false move, you're going to get hurt, and it's not going to end pretty. Got it?"
"Yes," Eren repeated. He felt pathetic having to obey orders from his captor.
"Alright. Now get out and bring your stuff with you."
Eren followed his orders and walked to his side like he was supposed to. Levi was too close for comfort as they strolled into the rickety old building. The overpowering scent of old cheese and dead roses hit them like a wave, and the tacky decorations reminded the both of them of old thrift shops. There was a jar of peppermint mints sitting atop the front desk, and Eren didn't want to guess how old they must be. There were two vintage looking armchairs near the windows with the broken blinds and the person at the desk was entertaining themselves by blowing a bunch of balloons and watching them float slowly to the ground as he let them go. He was a young looking boy, perhaps only a year younger than Eren. He was almost bald, but not completely. His hair looked as if it had been just shaved a few days ago, and now tiny little hairs were starting to sprout from his head. He had thin eyebrows and had that sort of look that made scary but stupid all at the same time. A name tag with the name "Connie" scrawled on it was pinned loosely on his soda stained bowler shirt.
