The Ereri Project!

Tattoo (High School)

"Oh come on Eren," Reiner says. "You're the only on in the band who doesn't have one yet."

"Yeah, but -"

"But what?" Annie asks. "Unless you're chicken."

Eren frowns at that and looks at all three of his bandmates, each with several tattoos. "I'm no chicken."

"So get on with it already," Reiner says. "If nothing else get our band's name somewhere."

"Can I at least think about it first?"

"You have until Saturday night, then we're taking you ourselves," Annie pokes his chest for emphasis.

Eren relayed the entire conversation to his boyfriend with many exasperated gestures and expressions.

Levi, to his credit, didn't call Eren out on being crazy. He just sat and worked on his homework silently until Eren was done. "What do you want then?" Levi asks.

Eren blinks at Levi. "Huh?"

"They're clearly going to make you, so what do you want? If you don't choose yourself you'll probably end up with something you really hate."

Eren sighs and leans his head on his upturned palm. "I have no idea."

"Well," Levi says, twirling his pencil. "What speaks to you?"

"What speaks to me?"

"Metaphorically, speaking, I mean."

Eren thinks. "Music speaks to me," he replies. "But I'm not just gonna get an eighth note tattooed on me, that looks too feminine."

"So what else speaks to you?"

"I dunno," Eren groans. "Books, maybe?"

"Okay, what's your favorite book?"

"You know my favorite book, I made you read it."

"So The Gargoyle, what speaks to you about it."

"Marianne," Eren replies. After thinking for a moment he looks up at Levi. "Do you remember all of her tattoos?"

Levi makes a face, thinking. "She had a Sacred Heart on her chest, right? A rosary on her ankle, a snake on her leg, two more crosses."

"And wings on her back," Eren adds.

"You want wings?"

"Well, eventually, I guess," he says. "I'm pretty sure those would hurt a lot."

Levi nods. "They would."

"Do you think I could get one of hers?" Eren asks.

"It's all kind of religious imagery and I didn't think you were that into that."

"I'm not," Eren says. "But if instead of getting a Sacred Heart exactly, what if it were just a heart on fire?"

"Like the one on the cover of the book?"

"Yeah."

Levi shrugs. "Would you want it to look like the one on the book?"

"Yeah."

...

On Saturday night, Levi is holding Eren's hand as the tattoo artist puts a bandage on his chest. "That wasn't as bad as I expected," Eren says.

"See?" Reiner asks. "Dunno what you were so afraid of."

Eren sticks his tongue out at looks down at his chest, wishing her could see through the bandage to the ink above his heart.

Underneath is a ruby heart, flaming up to Eren's collar. He gets off the chair and watches with a grin as Levi takes his place.

He gets the same tattoo over his own heart.

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A/N: There's an actual place called Ereri.