Stars (Eren Jaeger X Reader)

Scenario: “We’re on a stargazing date, lying on the grassy field and looking up at the sky. I stare at the constellations and remark 'Wow, I’ve never seen anything so beautiful in my whole life'. You’re looking at me as you say 'Neither have I'.”

“Where exactly are we going Eren?” You inquire, readjusting yourself in the passenger seat to study the view around you. By now, the city lights of maintown Shiganshina have dimmed out and the only source of lights are the brief flicker of residential houses that are scattered about the streets around you and in the distance.

“I told you,” Eren explains, keeping both his hands on the steering wheel as his teal gaze remains fixated on the road ahead of him. “It’s a surprise.”

You turn in your seat to present him with your best set of puppy dog eyes. “What if I hate it, or it gives me anxiety and a panic attack? What if I overthink everything and start freaking out? Do you want to be wrapped with guilt the entire time because you didn’t warn me ahead of time?”

If your attempt to guilt your boyfriend into sharing his brilliant date idea with you has any effect on him, Eren doesn’t show it as his once placid expression turns into a wicked grin. “You’re being so overdramatic,” He lightly chides as he brings one of his hands over to tangle with the soft texture of your hair. “Babe, if I knew it would give you anxiety, I would have warned you way beforehand. Just trust me, okay?”

You let out a sigh, because it is true. Eren can be reckless and thoughtless when it comes to now he chooses to live certain aspects of his daily life, he knows better than to verbally trick you in something that could clearly give you panic attacks. He had to learn about that the hard way when he surprised you during their first Halloween together with a haunted house trip—which gave you so much anxiety that you had to sleep over at his apartment that evening.

Since then, he’s been a lot more diligent about dates—and you definitely appreciate that more.

The rest of the drive only lasts a few more minutes before he suddenly pulls off to the side. The smile he gives you is surprisingly shy as he unbuckles his seat belt.

“We’re here,” He announces, opening the driver’s door and beckoning you to follow him with the jerk of his head.

Still completely unsure what to expect, you follow him, immediately taking note of the blanket he has tucked underneath his arm.

The pair of them don’t stop walking until you've reached a clearing overlooking the Shiganshina skyline. The lights below them are radiant, beautiful, and breathtaking as you hold your breath in the presence of the rainbow orbs that dance beyond you.

“Is this giving you anxiety?” Eren jokingly inquires as he lays out the blanket and takes a seat on the material.

You whip around. “Eren, how did you find this place? It’s absolutely beautiful!”

Eren gestures you to sit next to him. “Armin, Mikasa, and I found this place when we were in high school and never wanted to go home.” He lays down on the blankets. “The night always seemed to go really slowly from up here. We use to lay down and count the stars of make up stories about constellations, or even just talk about things that don’t matter and things that weren’t important—except they were important to us.”

You lie down next to him. “I love that,” You gush lightly, before looking back up at the night sky. “They’re so close, I feel like I can touch all the stars.”

“Can you name the constellations?” Eren inquires, wrapping his arm around your shoulder when you move to wrap your arm around his torso. Between the two of them, you're definitely the bigger science nerd—with your obsession over strange findings such as black holes, and your deep interest in planets and the idea of parallel universes. Between the two of them, you're definitely more likely to name the constellations—or at least know the placement and history of many.

“Hm, vaguely,” You answer instead, keeping your gaze fixed rather intensely on the shapes above you.

Eren stares at you, wondering just how someone who has been hurt and burdened by all the dirty and horrible sides of Earth and mankind could still manage to look so peaceful—like the world is still full of wonder and beauty and you're desperate just to get a taste of some of it.

Immediately, you start to name some obscure constellation names and a vague wave of your hand to indicate the placement of them in the sky.
“Oh wow,” You finally exclaim after a moment of concentration on a certain set of stars. “I think that’s the Queen!” You let out a slow breath of awe. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything so beautiful in my whole life.”

Eren chooses this particular moment to memorize—remember it all. Remember the crinkle of purity in your eyes, how the corner of your eyes glimmer at the sight above you. He’s showed you a secret only known to him and close friends—friends he’s grown up with.

He’s just showed you a little piece of himself—and you still accept him. You're still in awe of what he is capable of showing you.

Which is why, with his gaze still fixated on you, he can’t help but utter: “Neither have I.”

But you just smile, as if you just know that he’s talking about you rather than the stars up above. “Do you believe in black holes?”

He blinks, then grins a little. “Perhaps. Do you?”

“Oh, of course!” You respond back without hesitation. “Space has always been so vast and unexplainable, I would have been surprised if nothing like a ripe in the space-time fabric existed. Black holes have always been so interesting to me. Of course there will probably be a time when they move away from the center of our galaxy and start swallowing up surrounding solar systems—and perhaps even ours in the mix. But I don’t know! I find that idea way more cool than terrifying.”

“Don’t you think the sun will expand to a supernova and destroy Earth before a black hole could ever get to it?”

You shrug a shoulder. “Maybe. But I think I just want to learn more about black holes. There’s only so much we know about them, and even now it’s confusing at times.”

Eren laughs. “I can’t believe you're obsessed with things millions of light years away.”

“It’s better than trying to figure out where I’m going to live twenty years from now,” You counter, the pair of you laughing at your attempt to joke about how bad the life down on Earth is. Really, it’s not just better to think about problems outside the Earth—it’s soothing.

“Hey (Name)?” He finally inquires after a few more seconds of comfortable silence.

“Hm?” You ask, still distracted by the stars up above. You're probably counting how many are within your line of sight.

“I love you.”

You stiffen a little at his statement, turning your head to look at him. Your eyes are wide and glimmer as if all the stars are in them, but you look as if you can’t believe the words that are coming out of Eren’s mouth. After all, the boy is more known for his physical displays of affection.
He’s much more romantic when it comes to showing his love and commitment to you, but it’s definitely one thing to show feelings of love rather than say it.

Suddenly overcome by a feeling you can’t exactly explain (for it feels way more stronger than love), you lean over and kiss him softly. He responds immediately, adjusting his body so he can face you more and cup your face with one of his hands in order to deepen the kiss.

“So is there something you want to say back to me?” He whispers nervously against your lips.

You exhale in a laugh, a small smile forming on your lips. “I love you too, Eren Jaeger.”

He matches your smile as his dark eyes remain fixated on your lips. “You had me going there for a second when you didn’t say it back.”

You actually laugh this time. “I kissed you, didn’t I?”

“I don’t know! You could have just done that to plan your escape route!”

You tilt your head to the side as a tender smile overtakes your lips, your hand gently running through his hair. “Who’s overthinking everything now? Seriously Eren, rest assure. I am very much in love with you.”

“Lucky me.” He leans back in again. “So can I… again…?”

“You can,” You whisper, grinning against his mouth for a moment before their worry dissipates into pure happiness.