Pastry Hearts /ereri/

Chap. 1 - The Beginning

Chapter 1 - The Beginning

"What's up, Eren? How's mom?" the dark-haired girl asked over the phone, all the way in California.

"We're both great, Mikasa," the boy replied, sitting on a stool behind the counter of a noble bakery, ten and a half hours away.

Mikasa smiled at the sound of her little brother's voice. "Any new costumers?"

Eren thought before answering. "Not really. The usual, I guess," he said before sighing to himself. "What about you? How's the shoot?"

Mikasa had moved away from her family a couple months before to pursue her childhood dream of becoming an actress. International phone calls were expensive, so Eren didn't get much news from her, but the siblings did try to talk at least once a month.

"The shoot? It's superb, actually." Mikasa beamed into the receiver. "The producer's name is Erwin Smith, and the other actors are really friendly. I've had a hard time getting used to being so away from you guys," she admitted with a sad smile, "... But I'm really glad to finally be over here."

"That's great," Eren said, trying his best to sound interested. He knew how much this all meant to Mikasa, but he didn't really like movies. He found them pointless, almost. No matter what type; horror, action, romance... They got him so bored he'd often nod off halfway.

"We're shooting this thing called "Attack on Titan". Have you heard about it?" Mikasa continued. Her voice rose when she started talking about something she loved.

Eren frowned. "Um, no, I haven't. I'll go see it when it comes out, though." he added absent-mindedly.

"Yeah, right." Mikasa smirked. "You wouldn't go see a movie if someone paid you to." she laughed, teasing Eren the way older sisters always do. "Anyways, the movie is about some titans breaking into a city, and this boy decides to avenge his mother's death by vowing to kill all the titan- Eren!" Mikasa yelled into the phone, thinking she heard Eren snore. "Are you even listening to me?"

"Oh, um," Eren cringed. "Of course I am, Mikasa... Continue."

"Anyways, the main character's name is Eren, just like you," she said. "Come to think of it, he also shares your quick temper..." she mocked.

"Shut up, Mikasa." he spat. Eren had his hands balled up into fists. "I hope you got the worst role," he said with an evil grin.

Mikasa shrugged. "I'm playing this girl named Sasha. She isn't a main character, but I sure do get to eat a lot!" she laughed.

Eren frowned. "What?"

The girl sighed to herself. "Never mind. You should really check out the plot when you have a chance," she suggested, rushing her words slightly. "I have to go now, Eren. Talk to you later."

"Sure," Eren replied, resting the phone onto his ear as Mikasa hung up. He slowly brought the phone away from his own ear and placed it into its cradle.

Eren looked up across the sun-lit shop, holding his head in his hands. The room was pretty small for a bakery, but the black-and-white tiled floors and the huge windows up in front made it feel like a home away from home to him. Cakes were held on display in the windows, and the sun was melting the frosting at a quick pace.

"Ugh. I'll have to replace those cakes," Eren thought to himself. He had enough on his mind at the moment. Having to pick up the phone and take orders was already a lot, but he also had to clean up the shop... Which is something he hated. "At least if someone would sweep the floors for me..." he thought longingly.

Suddenly a tall, middle aged woman walked out from behind him, carrying a pie in each of her hands. "Hey, Eren." she said as she passed him by, smiling like always. She had a light yellow dress on and a white apron that went from her chest to the hems of her dress. The apron's strings were tied up into a tight bow and there were a couple colored stains on the front. Her dark hair was tied up into a neat side pony-tail, and her eyes were a brilliant hazel color. She was scurrying towards the door, as if in a hurry.

"What are those?" Eren said, nodding towards the pies in her hands.

Carla Jaeger stopped at the door to answer her son. "Raspberry and blueberry. They're for the Arlerts," she added, grinning widely. "I'm going to deliver them by foot... They don't live too far away."

"Cool. Make sure to say hi to Armin," the boy replied to his mother, waving goodbye

"Hey, isn't that your job?" she chuckled, stepping out the door. "See you in five, Eren." Carla added, shutting the door with her toes and rushing down the street to Armin's house

That's part of the reason why Eren loved the bakery. He and his mother would deliver in person, which made for a more "homemade" and "intimate" delivery.

The bakery was situated on the side of a tall hill, so the street was literally paved at an angle. Oddly enough the street was very busy; shops were very popular there and houses and apartments were huddled very close together containing many people. Children played in the street all the time; but that's alright because no one in that area owned any cars. The only modes of transportation were by foot or by bicycle. Most people didn't have a lot of money so they all had jobs. Shingashina town was a very old fashioned one, and so were its citizens.

Eren Jaeger descended from the brown stool he had been sitting on all day and walked out the door. It was evening; slightly after supper. The sun slowly dipped down the tip of the mountain and the people of Shingashina were squeezing all the time out of the dim sunlight left. Eren leaned his back against the warm stone wall of the bakery. He loved this life; quiet, peaceful... Beautiful.