Chapter Text
He should have been incredibly happy, with this being his wedding day and all, however Eren was nothing but a bundle of uncomfortable nerves. He nervously shifted from foot to foot at the alter, every moment that ticked by feeling like a thousand as he continuously glanced around the chapel. He let out a cough and tugged at the collar of his tuxedo, almost positive that the already stiff fabric was tightening around his neck as time passed. He weakly smiled as Armin leaned forward to give his arm a reassuring squeeze, but it was a fake smile and they both knew that. Eren's fiancé was now twenty minutes late to their wedding and there was no sign that he was planning on showing up anytime soon. He knew that his relationship with Jean wasn't anywhere close to being perfect, but Eren had loved him and had been looking forward to marrying him. From where Eren was standing at the alter, he could see several guests in the audience giving him sympathetic looks, one of those people being Jean's mother, and that was the final straw for him; he simply gave up hope that his fiancé was ever going to show up and tossed his flower bouquet down, trying to tune out everyone's whispers as he ran down the aisle and back to his dressing room, wishing he could simply die right there in the chapel to avoid the misery he was now feeling.
"Eren, wait!!" Mikasa stood and followed Eren out, furious that Jean would ever think about standing her precious brother up and felt her heart break when she found the brunette back in his dressing room, kneeling on the floor and crying his eyes out. She crouched down next to him, as best as she could in a dress, and pulled Eren into a tight hug, hoping she could ease those tears, even if it was only by a little. "Oh Eren. I'm so sorry. I didn't think Jean could be so heartless."
"How c-could he do this to me? He said he loved m-me....."
"Well, he doesn't deserve someone like you. You'll find someone better."
"Whatever. Just take me home."
"Of course."
During the trip home, Eren was silent aside from a couple of sniffles and it bothered Mikasa to see her brother feeling like this, especially knowing this one situation she couldn't fix. As soon as they were home and through the front door, Eren ran straight to his bedroom and slammed the door shut. Once he was stripped down to his boxers, he buried himself under the covers, comfortably cocooned in the safety of his bed, so he could cry his heart out in peace.
~
Eren let out a disheartened sigh and turned his music up to an almost deafening level, as he continued wandering down the near empty sidewalk. He didn't really have any idea where he was going and honestly didn't really care where he finally ended up with. He had desperately needed some air, his small apartment feeling too suffocating, and decided he would go for a walk, desperately hoping that it would clear his anxious and heartbroken mind.
As he was approaching an busy intersection and the oncoming traffic, a terrible plan began forming in his mind, a way to finally put an end to all his recent pain. He took a deep breath to calm himself, as well as work up his courage, and mentally said his goodbyes to everyone as he stepped out into the street, hoping that getting hit by the oncoming black pickup wouldn't hurt for too long.
As he was slowly "crossing" the street, he could see the pickup rapidly approaching and could faintly hear them honking at him, probably hoping that he'd move so they wouldn't have to stop. Eren let out a choked gasp as someone suddenly yanked him back by the hood of his jacket, away from a sudden, vicious death. A part of Eren was disappointed that someone actually cared enough to stop him and he yanked his earbuds out, angrily whirling around to glare at his rescuer, only to find the short raven haired man that had saved him returning the same glare.
"You trying to end your miserable life, brat?"
Eren couldn't deny it when that was exactly what he'd been trying to do, so he merely shrugged in response and looked down at the ground, hoping to avoid this entire depressing conversation. "Maybe. What's it to you?"
Levi was not at all expecting that answer and, immediately caught off guard, he gave the brunette a worried look, wondering what could have possibly happened to the poor boy to make him want to commit suicide. "Hey, are you alright?"
"I'm fine."
"Come on." Without even waiting for an answer or a name, he grabbed Eren's wrist and began pulling him down the street, where he knew a plaza of nice restaurants were located.
They ended up at a small homey café, where the waitress seated them in a quiet booth and handed them menus, only a couple seconds after their arrival. Eren still wasn't sure what was going on, not quite understanding why this man had saved him and brought him to a café
"Order whatever the hell you want. Lunch is on me."
"What, no. I can't let you do that. I don't even know your name."
"Levi Ackerman. Now, what do you want for lunch?"
Eren looked over the menu a couple of times, his mouth watering and stomach growling at the thought of a nice medium rare steak. "Well, if it wouldn't be too much trouble, I'd maybe like a steak. And a soda please. And my name is Eren, by the way."
When the waitress returned several minutes later, Levi ordered a steak and soda for Eren, and a cup of tea for himself, having already eaten lunch ten minutes before he had stumbled upon Eren trying to end his life. "So, brat, you wanna tell me why you're so desperate to get run over?"
"Personal problems."
"And they're that bad?"
"They are to me, okay?" He was pissed that Levi would take his problems so lightly, considering that man didn't even know a thing about him.
"Alright, alright. Don't get so defensive." Levi could see a frown beginning to form on the brunette's face and, not wanting to rile him up further, let out a defeated sigh. "Look, brat. Whatever your problems are, they can't be worth it. You shouldn't be so reckless, okay?"
"Why do you even care?"
"My mother killed herself when I was ten, simply because she couldn't handle being broke and having a kid to raise."
A look of pity and despair flashed across Eren's face, an expression that always irritated Levi to no end, and he lowered his head, feeling horrible that he had tried to end his own life over something just as trivial. "Wow, I'm really sorry about that."
"Don't be. The past is the past and you can't change it. You can only focus on the future. And that's what you need do." As their conversation came to an end, the waitress finally returned with their drinks and Eren's food. The brunette hungrily dug in and talked with Levi about the more pleasant things in their lives.
Once they had finished, Levi paid the bill just as he said he would, then lead Eren back outside the small cafe, where pulled the brunette in for a hug, knowing Eren probably needed it. He knew his guess has been right when he pulled away to find Eren smiling down at him, looking much happier than when they'd first met. "Take care of yourself, brat."
~
"You seem in a better mood today." Mikasa looked up from where she had been dusting, something she often stopped by to do for the lazy brunette, and immediately noticed the joyful smile on her brother's face when he walked through the front door.
"Hell yeah, I am. Give me a minute and I'll tell you about it." He went to his room and shrugged his jacket off, glancing down as a small white card fell out of the pocket and fluttered to the floor. He bent down and picked it up to see some words scrawled across it in an unfamiliar loopy handwriting.
868-263-8411
Let's get lunch again soon, brat
"He....gave me his number?" Eren didn't know how to feel about it, having just gotten out a relationship that had taken such a terrible downward spiral. He definitely wanted to have lunch with Levi again, but this felt like the start of another relationship and he wasn't sure he was ready for that.