Sweet Serial Killer [ Riren ]

EIGHTY TWO

EIGHTY TWO
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Eren stayed close to his mother whilst she paid her respects, just like he promised he would. He held her hand tightly as she cried, and he made sure to rub her back reassuringly as her shoulders violently shook with each sob.

Now that she was alone, out of the view of the public, she was free to let loose her emotions. Eren didn't bat an eye as she leaned on him, completely exhausted. Her gaze was bloodshot, her hair completely disheveled as she buried her head in her hands, trying to maintain herself as she murmured a few things.

She was whispering, most likely to Grisha, or perhaps herself. Eren did his best not to listen, but it was hard not to overhear considering how extremely close they were. In his peripheral vision he saw his mother running her hand along the edge of Grisha's coffin, sniffling. It wasn't yet burrowed into the ground.

In the end, not a lot of people decided to stay to see Grisha descend six feet under. Most wanted to give the Yeagers privacy, so they left — though Eren assumed some might be waiting in their cars, waiting to see Grisha be lowered.

"Alright," Carla murmured, standing up. "I'm done. Do you want me to be here while you pay your respects?" Eren paused, considering. Eventually, he shook his head, and Carla nodded. "Okay," she murmured. "I'll wait somewhere else."

Carla started walking away, towards the funeral parlor, and Eren didn't watch her for too long. Instead, he turned his head, dipping it as he exhaled heavily. He was finally all by himself. Well, not quite. He was with Grisha's corpse.

"Why?" He at last decided to speak. He didn't care if his mother was still within earshot, he just let his feelings pour out. He was done with permanently confining them; for just a few moments, he would allow himself to be free.

"Can I even call you my father?" Eren asked the coffin. His hands clenched into fists, his nails digging painfully into his palms. "You've hurt me, you've hurt Mom, so much. You beat me until I passed out, you hit her like she was nothing more than a toy. Was that all we were to you? Puppets on your strings?"

"You built us up to be some perfect family. You spun the illusion of being the best doctor ever, a successful man and a loving husband as well as father. You're a liar, Grisha. A liar! You should be ashamed. And don't think I didn't pick up on other stuff. I know how close you were with that blonde woman!" Eren hissed the last part out through gritted teeth, scratching at his skin with his nails.

"Disgusting, you're disgusting," Eren whispered to himself.

"So why do I still love you?"

He pressed his palms, which were now stained lightly with blood, against his face, taking a deep breath. His mood was changing drastically, shifting from steady and stable to rickety and a complete mess. He was a complete mess.

"I tell myself everyday to keep fighting," Eren started to speak once more, a familiar sense of anger overriding the sadness that pulsed through his veins. "I tell myself all the time to not end everything. To not kill myself. If I can be strong, then surely you could have, too." He scowled, bitterness overwhelming him.

"Now I know I was never the weak one. You were."

Falling silent, Eren remained completely still for a while, just trying to recover from his multiple outbursts. His hands were shaking uncontrollably as he squeezed his eyes shut tight, darkness enveloping him reassuringly on all sides.

Just as he was about to stand up and walk away, a voice stopped him.

"E-excuse me . . ." 

Eyes flying open, Eren turned around, shocked. How had someone snuck up on him so effortlessly? A frown formed on his lips as he looked down, the gesture gradually dissolving as he saw just who exactly had disturbed him.

The boy from earlier, the one who was beside Grisha's blonde bitch.

"M-my name is Zeke," the boy introduced himself, stuttering slightly. He glanced around frantically, as if he were nervous. Eren swallowed past the lump forming in his throat. Zeke, he thought, testing out the name to himself. Zeke . . .

"That's a nice name," he murmured, ignoring how hoarse and scratchy his voice sounded. "I'm —" he was about to give his name when Zeke interrupted him. "You're Eren," he stated matter-of-factly. "I know." He smiled slightly.

"Oh." Eren went quiet for a moment. It was natural that Zeke would already know him. His name was probably popular amongst the people attending Grisha's funeral. Shifting around awkwardly, Eren wondered what Zeke wanted.

"Can I help you?" He inquired, trying to hide his uneasiness. Zeke just reminded him of a particular someone — of two people, more accurately. Although deep down, Eren remarked to himself that Zeke also reminded Eren of . . . Eren.

Pushing his round glasses further up onto his nose, Zeke rocked back on his heels. "Well, uh, kind of," he said, pausing to reach into his pocket, pulling out some toy. Eren's brow furrowed as he watched Zeke in blatant curiosity.

"This is what Dad got me," Zeke said. Eren did not look into how he said Dad instead of my Dad. Zeke seemed to be young, he might not know the difference.

"It was in a Happy Meal he bought me," Zeke went on, a fondness appearing in his blue gaze. "It was the first stuff animal I ever got." He hugged the tiny stuff animal close to his chest. It was like a mini Beanie Baby, but it resembled a sock monkey more than anything. Secretly, Eren thought it looked quite creepy.

"I named him Beast." Zeke smiled, and Eren couldn't stop from returning it.

"Beast has a cool name, just like you," Eren told him, and Zeke laughed softly. Eren liked the sound. Once again, he felt an eerie sense of familiarity wash over him. Zeke laughing reminded him oddly of . . . Of his own laugh . . .

"Yeah, I guess," Zeke murmured. Eren noticed how tears began to form in the boy's eyes, and he wondered what he could have done to provoke them. Soon enough Zeke started to cry. "Dad won't ever come back, though," he choked out. With a shaking finger, he pointed towards Grisha's coffin. "He's stuck in there."

Stricken, Eren froze.

Could it be . . . ?

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(A/N: if you haven't read the manga then ,, um,, Zeke is an OC?)