The Best Day (Eren Jaeger X Reader)

“C’mon Eren, it’s not much further from here!”

Eren lets out a long, deep sigh as he continues to follow you deeper into the forest. “Honestly (Name), I don’t see the point of showing me a bunch of cool trees,” He retorts. “We use to dangle from them during the war. It’s not much different than how it is right now.”

You look over your shoulder and present Eren with a pout. “Don’t be such a downer Eren. We’ve finally survived the war against the titans! You can’t just stay cooped up in your room for the rest of your life. Where is that sense of freedom you desired?” Although you're trying to stay casual and light on the teasing, you still have to bite your lip from fear of stepping over the fine line regarding Eren’s condition.

It’s a condition that Armin has labeled as depression—something he explains as a demon that sucks the life and the happiness out of a person. It’s a very common occurrence with people now, especially since the war is over and people finally get to retrace the past, retrace the memories that haunt them, retrace the people who are dead and who don’t get to enjoy the sunlight or the breeze outside. Eren has been this way ever since the war ended, and ever since he’s had the time to think about his mother and all the friends who died at the hands of the titans.

There’s always a painful feeling that blossoms in your chest whenever you see Eren in such a state. You know that it’s probably only a matter of time before you allows yourself to fall down the same hole of depression—because besides Eren, you've pretty much lost everything and everyone you hold dear to your heart—but for now, you're going to be strong for the both of you.

“It’s not much further,” You say after a moment, finally stopping in your tracks when you come across the familiar pathway you had taken with Sasha earlier that week. “Okay.” You clap your hands together and turn around to smile brightly at Eren. “You ready?”

Eren raises an eyebrow. “For what?”

“It’s a surprise!” You exclaim, lowering your hand to rest them on your waist. “You have to close your eyes.”

The boy looks dubious at first, but eventually does what he is told. You come up behind him and gently rests your hands on his shoulders, where you guide him a few steps forward and through the ever-growing coverage of bushs' originally blocking their path. After a second, you finally stop, tugging on his shoulder to get him to stop walking as well.

“Okay,” You whisper gently in his ear, causing shivers to travel up his spine. “You can open your eyes now.”

Eren removes his hands and opens his eyes, taking in an endless stretch of water. He knows this is the beginning of an ocean because of the glistening the sun has against the water, the gentle noise it makes when it comes in contact with the ground. At once, his heart is in his throat, because it’s like all the memories and desires from his childhood are breaking past the surface of the anchor that kept him down ever since the war ended.

He parts his lips and lets out a slow, even breath. Despite this, he is completely in awe. Millions of questions surface in his mind—has he really been out of it long enough to miss something like this?

After a moment, he turns to face you. “How did you find this place?”

You smile. “Sasha and I went exploring earlier this week, and we saw this place and thought of you.” You pause for a moment to take in his expression. “You’ve been really out of it ever since the war ended, and I thought that perhaps this would cheer you up. Remind you that there are still things to look forward to, and that this is what everyone died for.”

Without a warning, Eren approaches you and doesn’t stop until his arms are wrapped around your waist and his nose is buried into the crook of your neck. “Thank you,” He whispers against your skin as you slowly wrap your arms around his neck.

“Are you going to be okay?” You inquire softly, bringing a hand up to gently scratch at the base of his neck—right where you know he likes it.

“I will be now.”