Chapter Text
A ray of sunlight filtered in through the single window, effectively waking the blond man up. He was aware of himself clutching something to his chest. It was the pillow. Jean wondered how this had become a habit for him. The second thing he was conscious of was the chill. Sitting up, he sighed. It was no wonder; Marco was hoarding both the blankets. He had them wrapped around himself like a human burrito. That was, Jean thought sobering, if he even was a human.As Jean sat up, he realized he had been hogging over half the bed. Jean smirked; I guess we’re even now. He shivered, reaching for a blanket that must have fallen on the floor over the course of the night, wrapping it around his shoulders. The afternoons may be hot, but the mornings were still nippy. Reaching across to take one back, Jean realized he had to use the bathroom and once he got out of bed there was no going back.
He looked down at Marco, whose face was still peacefully relaxed in sleep. Jean, groaning, got to his feet and dressed in his day-old clothes. Finally, he managed to make it out the door without Mikasa hearing him. The cabin was built, well… God only knows when, so there was only an outhouse. To his confusion, Levi was waiting for him when he had finished with two fishing rods in hand.
“Have fun taking a shit brat?” Levi said with his usual unnerving scowl. He threw one of the fishing rods at Jean. Jean caught it out of the air with one hand. Levi turned "Let's get going, before you decide to spend another hour in there.” Jean’s eyebrow twitched. He liked Levi, most of the time, but sometimes his mannerisms were… to say the least strange. Actually rude might be a better word, and he was blunt to boot. Walking on, the young man quickly caught up to him.
“Wait, where are we going? Am I going home?”
“You’ll be leaving soon, but I need to talk with you first.” he said casually not looking back at Jean, and headed toward the large pond that Jean hadn’t noticed the day before.
"If this is about spilling your secret, don't worry. I'm not going to-" Jean started, the look on Levi’s face cutting him off.
"Not quite. Now be quiet and come on, or are you going to stand there all day horse face." Jean hadn't noticed that he'd stopped and he continued forward as he cringed from the degrading nickname Eren had given him the previous night. Levi set the rods,Thomas Chubb bait rods Jean thought, and other tackle down on a small dock. Untying a rowboat, the older man motioned for Jean to grab the equipment and take a seat.
Rowing to a deeper area, they dropped their lines and peacefully drifted in the breeze. Levi didn’t say anything. As the minutes wore on, Jean became more nervous. What in the world could Levi want? Insurance so that he wouldn’t talk? Maybe Levi wasn’t satisfied with his word. Maybe Levi wanted him to quietly disappear. He didn’t seem like a murder, but a look at that permanent scowl on his face, and he hadn’t known him for very long. Maybe-
“How do you feel about Marco?” Levi asked staring at the place where his line had gone down.
Jean hadn’t seen that one coming.
He hesitated. “Excuse me?” Jean was sure he had heard wrong.
“Marco…” Levi’s voice softened, “Marco has been having a hard time adjusting to this new lifestyle. He’s a sociable person by nature and hiding away doesn’t change that. Having you here, someone who knows the truth about us, well, Marco’s become attached to you.”
“He… what?” Jean stammered.
Levi rolled his eyes. “Dammit kid, are you that clueless? Marco hasn’t had a friend outside of our family of six in twenty-seven years. How do you think he’d react when a brat like you shows even a small amount of interest?”
“I-” Jean didn’t know how to respond.
“I’m not done yet.” Levi turned to face Jean better. “You just met him yesterday. Marco is almost a hundred and ten years old and he has lived through a bloody hell you can’t even comprehend. What made you think you could gain his wholehearted trust in what's not even a blink in his lifetime?”
The words hit Jean hard. Sure Marco was a nice guy and he had felt… something chatting with him last night. He hadn’t thought of what would happen when he left (there were a few moments where he wondered if he ever would). Would Marco still want to talk with him? According to Levi, yes.
“If it had been my choice, you would have never come here.”
Levi was giving the evil eye to the young man by the end of his rant.
“Does that mean you’ll let me go now?” Jean asked.
“You want to leave? Fine, but don’t get his hopes up.” Levi spoke with obvious restraint. He knew Levi had a lot more to say, but Jean got his point. They were going to be around long after he was dust in the ground. It would be like having a pet for Marco; loving something that was only going to die in a few short years and getting depressed when it did. Unless… A shout came from shore.
“Hey! Both the horses are gone!” Jean turned looked to the figure that was standing on the dock. He turned looking at Levi who, with a muttered expletive, brought his line in as fast as possible and prompted Jean to do the same. In a matter of minutes, they reached the dock. Only then did Jean know that it had been Marco who had shouted.
“I was going to feed them, but when I opened the door, they were gone!” Marco was on the verge of sounding hysterical.
“Calm down. You know one of them is Annie and Armin’s, are you sure the other-” Levi said, looking slightly agitated himself.
“Yes! I mean, I’m mostly sure. I don’t know. Maybe it’s in the pasture?” Starting to doubt himself, he looked rather sheepish. Sighing, Levi tied the boat off and said he’d check it out for himself. Jean attempted to get out too but his foot caught on the edge. The result was a very wet young man.
He brought his head out from under the water, “dammit!” Jean couldn’t be sure, there was water blurring his vision, but Levi might have smirked at his blunder as he walked away.
“Jean! Are you alright?” If he wasn’t wet and cold, Jean would have enjoyed the concerned face Marco gave him.
“Yeah, just surprised.” The water was higher than his knees and he put his hands on the dock to pull himself out. Marco extended a hand, helping Jean into a sitting position on the edge.
“Well that was a pleasant way to start the day.” Jean said with mock optimism and gesturing to his dripping self.
Marco nodded his head absently until he exclaimed, “Jean, you’re brilliant!”
“I know, but what does that-” His brain stopped responding as Marco started to untuck his shirt from his breeches and pulled it off. “Um, what are you doing?”
Marco kicked off his footwear. “Remember what you said about having fun last night?” He jumped into the water, giving Jean no time to respond. “Come on!” He tugged on Jean wrists, inviting him back into the water. He couldn’t help but notice a scar on Marco’s chest on the right side; Jean felt awkward about bringing the topic up though. He would bet anything that the scar was from a knife.
“Wait, do you mean you want to go swimming?” Jean had been slightly distracted and had to clarify.
“Is that not okay?” Marco looked crushed and Jean had a difficult time saying no to that face.
“It’s just that -don’t laugh- I don’t know how to swim.”
“That’s ok, I’ll help you.” Marco had his heart set on this, so Jean took off his own shirt and shoes. Jean was led a ways out until he could just touch the squishy pond floor with his tiptoes. The water lapped against his neck, slowly squeezing the air out of his lungs. He wanted to tell Marco that this was a bad idea, but if he opened his mouth Jean felt like the water would come rushing in.
“Jean. Don’t panic. That’s the first step.” He gave Jean a reassuring smile. “You need to be able to stay upright and above water. Move your arms like this,” he demonstrated, “and kick your legs. See? You got it.” Jean did have it. The movement almost felt natural.
By late afternoon, they were swimming and splashing each other like young children. The only reason they stopped was that Jean was becoming as red as a tomato. Marco, having darker skin, just tanned nicely. Not to mention they were both starved.
“Hey, Jean.” Marco said quietly.
“Yeah?”
“I’m glad we spent this time together.” He met Jean’s gaze and smiled brightly.
“Me too.” Jean replied, scratching his chin. He was by just how much he actually meant it.
He looked off into the distance just as a splash of water hit him in the side of the head. He turned toward Marco, reaching up to rub the water out of his eye.
“Marco what the …” Jean started but his voice slowly diminuendos when he heard Marco’s laughter. He looked at Marco who about eight feet away and was drifting backwards toward the shore with a smile wider than the one he had the day they had met.
“Last one to the shore’s a rotten egg!” He yelled to Jean.
Jean muttered some profanity under his breath before exclaiming, “Oh, it’s on!” Having been kept within the compounds of the house grounds most of his life; Jean had nothing on the tanned boy’s muscular body and experience in the water.
The result was inevitable. Marco pulled himself out a full fourteen seconds before Jean, who was breathless and exhausted. He flopped on the ground, watching the tree leaves above. Marco, seeing Jean, walked over and bent to hang his face above the other boy’s. He beamed, announcing his victory with amusement.
“I guess that would make me the rotten egg then wouldn’t it,” replied Jean with a smirk. The older boy chuckled at that and settled down beside Jean.
“It sure does.” The bright sun had already started to dry them out.
“Hey Jean, I-“ Whatever he was going to say was cut off by a new arrival.
“We can’t find Bean,” stated Mikasa. Her face was blank, but her feet shifted nervously. It took Jean a couple of seconds to figure out what she was referring to.
“The horse?” he asked curiously. Who the hell names a ‘Bean’?
She nodded and continued, “Levi asked me to tell you that ‘unless you want to want to walk the whole damn way,’ there’s no chance of you returning today.” His mind blanked. The horse is gone, he was in the middle of nowhere, and nobody knew where he is. Would he have to wait a whole week until Armin and Annie came back? Marco must have noticed his worried expression.
“It’ll be fine Jean. I’m sure we'll figure something out.” Marco tilted his head slightly and put on a brave smile; he hadn’t thought that Jean was going to leave so soon.
“If you say so…” Jean drawled enthusiastically. Marco lightly punched his shoulder.
“I do say so.”
The sky was still dark. Birds were not even chirping yet. The chestnut colored horse trotted along and the man with the green jacket and caterpillar eyebrows was nearing his destination. He had it all figured out. The search party would never think to look for the kid way out there; only he knew the location. It’s simple: convince Mr. and Mrs. Kirstein how much danger their heir is in, and that he would tell them where he is in exchange for a small piece of land. Like the unused wood across the road.
He knocked on the door...
They passed the rest of the day doing chores. The livestock- chickens, a cow and a few pigs- needed to be fed and their pens cleaned out. Levi also insisted that Eren, Marco and Jean cut firewood and tend to the garden. Jean thought it sounded simple enough, but once again, his sheltered upbringing left him unsuited for the tasks. Eren and Marco split the wood while Jean carried as much as he could to the cabin deck. Then the garden was more like a freaking field; rows of corn, potatoes, tomatoes, cabbage and the list continued. Marco explained that they grew so much because they either canned it for the winter or sold the surplus. It took three hours to weed, water, and maintain. The watering bit especially important during the summer heat. Jean wondered how Levi and Mikasa were faring with the cleaning and cooking.
With only a few breaks for lunch, water and rest, they worked through the day. Though, ‘worked’ may not be the most accurate word. It seemed to Jean that the three of them got distracted easily. Eren had carelessly tossed a weed he pulled and it landed in Jean’s golden hair. Jean returned the favor and the situation went downhill from there. That was only one of their many antics, but Marco usually brought them back on track (when he wasn’t participating himself that is).
For the last task of the day, they were to do laundry; ‘they’ meaning Jean and Marco minus Eren, because he had slipped off somewhere. Jean found it odd that Mikasa didn’t do the washing, but Marco explained that their little family could care less about society’s ways of doing things. Levi and Mikasa usually did indoor jobs and he and Eren did outdoor work when not at the bakery. Jean also questioned him about why they were not at church; Jean’s family always went on Sunday. Marco answered his question with a question.
“Do you believe in a God, Jean?”
“Yeah, I guess,” he replied automatically. Jean couldn’t believe they still used a scrub board for washing clothes. Talk about out of date.
“Well I don’t.” Jean paused his scrubbing. “Why would any God curse us to this possibly endless existence where we can’t go to heaven or hell? Where we continue on without meaning, or purpose.” During this, the brunet's scrubbing had become more frustrated. “I’ve never gotten the answer from any church.”
It had slipped Jean’s mind that his new friend was immortal. The concept was just so difficult to grasp. Even though death felt like a long way off, he knew it was inevitable and Jean thought about the topic often during his darker moments. But never passing on at all? He couldn’t decide if dying or living forever would be better.
It was saddening for Jean to see someone look so frustrated, to see his wall of good humor broken down, to see the brightest smile in the world clouded by distress. The blond had thought that he had been the one in need of friend and now the tables had turned. Jean had no idea how he could ever comfort Marco, but he was damn well going to try.
The meal was a silent one. Levi and Mikasa were naturally quiet, Marco was still in a dark mood, and Eren and Jean didn’t feel like talking to each other. Jean chewed and tried not to think too much. In a perfect world he might be able to stay with this misfit family. But the world is not perfect and he had his own real family. They may get on his nerves more often than not, but he still missed them. Jean thought of his younger cousins. They didn’t visit often and when they did, he enjoyed playing with them. He thought of a million other things about his life that he never thought he’d miss.
Jean also wanted to be with Marco. Decisions had to be made though and Jean wanted to avoid them for as long as he could. There was a knock on the door and the choice was now out of his hands.
“Who in the world could that be.” Levi grumped. Jean felt Levi’s question was not a question, but more of a statement; he didn’t know what made him think that. It almost seemed as if Levi was expecting someone to knock. Eren, eager to do something since he had already finished, practically ran to the door. Opening it carefully, he peaked at the new arrival and gasped.
“What are you doing here,” Eren growled, recovering from his surprise quickly. The newcomer answered and once, Jean might have been grateful for his appearance. Now his familiar voice filled him with dread.
“Not what one might think,” began the Man with the Green Suit. “Is the Kirstein boy available?” I almost can’t believe this. How in the world did he find me?
Dinner was forgotten. Everyone rushed out; seemingly determined to keep the man out of their home. Trailing hesitantly behind, he wondered how they knew the man. Everyone but the man had filed out on to the porch, while he had been demoted to the dying grass.
“Calm down, I’m just here to make a deal.” His luscious eyebrows raised a bit as he smiled.
“We don’t want to take any part in one of your deals Smith, you bastard.” Levi’s voice was dangerously low and he looked pretty scary. More than usual, Jean thought.
The man, Smith, was completely at ease. “You might want to reconsider. The sheriff is already on his way.” He paused to let the new information sink in. Maybe Jean could plead that he came willingly, but he knew no one would believe it. “Would you rather be arrested for kidnapping or let me deal with Hannes? Either way, I still get the boy.”
“Nobody ‘gets’ me,” all eyes turn to me, “It’s my choice and I’m not going back with you.” The blond noticed a pressure on his right hand. He didn’t glance down, but Jean was sure Marco was the one holding it.
“On the contrary, I spoke with your parents. They were quite worried.”
“Then go back and tell them I’m fine, that I’m not coming back.” Smith was about to reply when Eren yelled “Bean!”
And there was the horse, standing in the open like it had never been gone. Eren brushed past Smith to Bean and began to pet it.
“You stole the horse?” Mikasa asked angrily. Erwin nodded.
“I had to make sure you couldn’t leave, that would have spoilt my arrangement.”
“Arrangement?” Levi spoke quietly. Marco still hasn’t said anything since the arrival of Smith. Again, Jean wondered what Smith had done in the past to make them so resentful of him.
“Ah, I haven't told you yet have I? We’ll, to put it shortly, Mr. and Mrs. Kirstein has offered me a chunk of land in exchange for his,” he nodded in Jean’s direction, “whereabouts.” That got Marco’s attention.
“You don’t mean…?” His brown eyes were as wide as could be.
“After years of searching, I’ve finally estimated where your little secret is.” Jean wasn’t surprised Smith knew about the spring too.
Levi began to yell, which startled the horse. At this point the blond lost interest in the argument and was more curious about the past.
“Hey, Marco? What’s up with this guy?”
Marco sighed. “Nothing good… he’s been trailing us for maybe a decade now. He’s the second reason we’ve had to move around so much. Erwin Smith has always wanted the spring’s power and has made our lives very difficult.”
Eren had calmed Bean down and returned him to the stable.
“Ever since he found out that ‘fountain of youth’ is real and we knew its location, it has been even more dangerous. It would be bad enough if he got it, but imagine if he sold the water?”
There’s a moment of silence before Jean asked: “How’d he find out?”
“Did you happen to see my knife wound while we were in the pond?” Jean nodded. “That was him. Smith was shocked when I didn’t fall over and die.” Marco laughed humorously.
“That’s... rough.” He wasn’t sure how else to respond.
“Yeah but-”
At that moment we both heard an awful crack. In the time they were talking, Levi had found a piece of farming equipment and whacked Erwin-who was now lying on the ground- upside the head with it. Marco and Jean were not quite sure what had led Levi to do that, but it’s highly unfortunate because Sheriff Hannes had chosen that exact moment to show up. He rode up on an old grey mare and a mule trailing behind it. Shock was evident on his face as he stared at the inert body, Levi, and finally Marco. Mikasa had left to tell Eren what was going on.
“Marco… what happened here? Are you the ones behind Jean’s disappearance? I don’t understand….” Hannes shook his head, probably thinking he didn’t get paid enough for this. The town’s opinion of Sheriff Hannes was that he was lazy and usually drunk or just straight up incompetent. He wasn’t the best person to send out to deal with immortals that were willing to do anything to keep their secret, but it worked in their favor.
Marco and Levi were at a loss for words too. Levi couldn’t claim self-defense; besides the bribe for the land, Smith was totally within his rights. The only way to explain what had happened over the last two days would be to tell Hannes about the spring. Marco tried his best though.
“Well, you see sir…. Jean and I are good friends. His visit here was impromptu and then our horse went missing. It’s all a big misunderstanding. Levi here, he… um….” he faltered. Hannes was kneeling by Smith and checking the damage.
“Quiet, Marco.” Levi spoke, “I’ll take full responsibilities for my actions.”
“Mister…?” inquired Hannes.
“Just call me Levi.”
“Alright then, Levi. Mr. Smith’s condition is deteriorating rapidly. I might have been able to let you off the kidnapping charges, but not for attempted murder. And, if he doesn’t get medical attention soon, you will be charged with actual murder.”
Levi bowed his head. “So be it.”
The sheriff motioned for him to drop the weapon and turn around and then handcuffed him while they watched helplessly.
“Normally I’d stick around and ask a few more questions, but Mr. Smith has to get to the doctor’s. Come along, Jean.”
The next few minutes passed in a blur. Marco helped Hannes carry the unconscious man into a small cart that they hooked up to the mare. Levi was placed on the mule and Jean was expected to sit behind the sheriff. It was going to be pushing the weight limit, the horse was pretty old, but it would have to make do.
Of course, it did not go quite that smoothly. Eren had rushed out, ready to beat Hannes up over taking Levi away. Mikasa held him back and Hannes said he’d let them say their goodbyes as long as Eren promised to behave. He and Eren hugged as best they could with one of them handcuffed. Then Mikasa apologized for not telling them she had recognized Erwin on the road a couple of days ago. She had not wanted to worry them in case she had been wrong.
Jean knew it was irrational, but he couldn’t help feeling that he had caused all this. Maybe if he had not wandered off, the man in the green suit wouldn’t have found this little family in the woods. His worrying was cut short by Marco, who was squeezing him to death.
“Hey, lighten up man, I can’t breathe.”
“Please say that we’ll see each other again.” Marco whispered in his ear. Jean replied that of course they would and that he had never met anyone like him before. Then Marco gave him a kiss on the cheek so fleeting Jean thought he might have dreamed it.
The blond was slightly surprised by Marco’s actions and there was so much more he wanted to say. Like how he felt about the other and how cute his freckles looked when he was blushing. But Hannes was already yelling at them to hurry up or else Mr. Smith was going to die. From what Jean been told about him, he wasn’t too upset by that possibility.
For the next few days, Jean wasted away in his bedroom. His parents would not let him out of the house nor tell him how Levi’s trial was going. Jean did hear that Erwin Smith had died though and was secretly happy about that. The key to immortality would be safe, for now at least.
On the morning of the third day after leaving the cabin, there was a faint tapping on the bedroom window. Low and behold there Marco was; throwing pebbles at the window. Jean was overjoyed at seeing Marco until he saw his face. His normally shining brown eyes were dull, complete with dark circles underneath. Marco looked like someone in trouble. Pushing open the window and looking down, he reflected on how unfortunate it was that the room was on the second floor.
“Jean! I need you; they’re going to hang Levi!” Marco whisper-shouts as loud as possible.
“Hold on a second!” He felt like this is going to be a long conversation that shouldn’t be announced to the world, so Jean snuck downstairs and out of the house. A servant saw him, but didn’t try to stop him. Running out the door and into the lawn, there was no one there. Suddenly, a hand grabbed Jean’s arm, pulling him behind a tree that just barely hid a body from the manor’s windows.
“Marco! What the hell?” Yelled Jean.
Marco made a ‘shh’ sound and explained the situation. Levi had been found guilty of murder and was going to be hung the next morning.
“That shouldn’t be a problem though,” Jean relaxed, “You guys are immortal right? Levi will be fine.” He couldn’t believe Marco forgot that. Hadn’t he just told him that he had survived a fatal knife attack only days ago?
“Jean, you don’t understand! This will be a public event. The whole town will witness Levi miraculously not die from a snapped neck. How do you think they’ll react?” Marco was right. It would not matter that Erwin Smith had died, people would know there was something different about them and Marco would move away. They might never meet again. Jean sighed.
“So what do you need me to do?” He would do anything to help, anything so that Marco didn’t have to leave and start his life over again. It may not be much, but he works at the bakery. He knows people there, he knows people around town. Marco knows me. To move to an entirely new place would be devastating.
“Take this.” Marco handed him a small, glass bottle filled with a clear liquid. “It’s the water.” Seeing Jean’s shocked expression, he backtracked. “You don’t have to drink it if you don’t want to…. It’s just that I don’t want to have to say goodbye forever.” The last part was barely audible. No no no no. He can’t go.
“Marco…” Jean pleaded.
“Jean, please. Just think on it. We are breaking Levi out tonight and are not sure where we are going just as long as it is far away. There will be wanted posters; we can’t return for a very long time.” Marco was staring at the ground; a single tear rolled down his cheek.
Jean looked at the bottle. It was so plain and normal looking, but to think that it could change his entire life… He made his decision instantly.
“Marco,” Jean began, more firmly this time, “I-”
Jean truly did have the worst of luck. The servant from earlier had alerted his father.
“Son! I know you’re out here, answer me!” He shouted, banging the door open. Marco never let Jean finish his sentence. He leaned closer, tilting his head downward to give Jean a chaste kiss on his forehead.
“One day I’ll return, Jean.” Quickly he ran across the lawn, vaulting over the fence. Jean hoped his father hadn’t brought out his gun and thankfully he hadn’t.
“Jean, who was that?” Head hung low; Jean replied that he was just some friend of his. To his surprise his father left it at that and questioned no further.
He wasn’t able to sleep that night, not while knowing that the jailbreak was happening. Jean wanted to go down there and help, but it would only make things harder. If he went he’d have to tell Marco goodbye. Forever. Saturday and Sunday had been an eye-opener for him and he wished it could have lasted longer. Not only did he like Marco, but also Levi, Mikasa, and even Eren. Armin and Annie seemed like nice people too. Though if he took Marco up on his offer, that’s all his life would be. And their lifestyle wasn’t all fun and games, Jean knew that now. People like Erwin Smith would always be after them.
To top it all off, Jean did not want to hurt Marco. Like Levi had told him, Marco obviously felt something for him. Unfortunately for Marco the feelings were not entirely reciprocated. He was a great guy, but they had known each other for a few days. Jean couldn’t imagine basing his future on someone he barely knew He felt bad about the day Marco would come back. Maybe he’d be over Jean by then.
Sleep never found him that night.
The late September air was cool and damp; it had rained the day previously in Trost. A young man with a leather jacket and his dark brown hair tied back into a small ponytail was racing along on a motorcycle that he had kept running since the end of World War II. He reflected on how the town had changed between the years 1908 and 2005. Trost had grown in size; there were more buildings, businesses and people. The roads had been paved and where there had been forest were fields.
Down a certain road, the old mansions were still standing. Far down and to the right was a mansion familiar to him. The trees had grown and the wrought iron fence was rusty and crooked, but Marco could fool himself into thinking that maybe it hadn’t been ninety-some years since then. Since he had been named an accomplice to the murder of Erwin Smith and had traveled across the country under a fake id. Since he had left his love behind, hoping that one day they might meet again. That chance was becoming slimmer by the minute as he realized that Jean would have had to gone into hiding as well. The cabin was long gone and so was the spring, the only place Marco could think to check was the mansion. Perhaps Jean had left a message or the current knew generally where he had gone.
The motorcycle parked, he headed toward the first person he saw who appeared to be a gardener in his late 50’s.
“Hello sir! May I ask you a question?” Marco called across the grounds. The man looked up from his pruning.
“Sure! Come on in.” The gate squeaked as it opened and they met halfway. “My name’s Connie.”
“Marco.”
“Nice to meet you.” They shook hands. “What’s your question?”
“Does the name Jean Kirstein mean anything to you?”
“Mhm. I was just a teenager when I began working here. Mr. and Mrs. Kirstein were wonderful people. Unfortunately, they passed away, oh, forty years ago.” Marco’s heart sunk. He knew that this had always been a possibility, but it still hurt. “You ok, Marco? You don’t look so good.”
“No, no I’m fine. Do you know where I could find him now?”
“First go that way,” Connie pointed in the direction Marco had come from, “take a left on Maria and a right on Rose. Can’t miss it.”
Five minutes later, he was standing in a cemetery. The gravestone he was looking for took some time to find, but he managed.
Jean Kirstein
1893-1966
Loving husband and father
Marco didn’t feel as sad as he thought he would have. Seeing Jean again would have been amazing, but he was glad Jean had moved on and made a life for himself. A grave next to his suggested that a woman named Sasha had been his wife. She had died not two years after him.
At the very bottom of the headstone was a quote, he almost missed it.
“I never forgot you Freckles”
“I never forgot you either, Horseface.” Marco chuckled; Eren still used that nickname to refer to Jean. Leave it to Jean to get the last word in, even after death, Marco thought. He sat on the stone, finding it preferable to the soggy grass. “You don’t mind do you?” There was no one else visiting at the moment, though they probably wouldn’t have questioned his one-sided conversation. “I’m glad you didn’t wait for me. I wouldn’t wish this life on even my enemies and I’m sure you had a lovely time with Sasha.”
There was a lull to the monologue. The cemetery was in total silence other than Marco’s shuffling feet. “I’m two-hundred and seven now. Just in case you were wondering.” He never let the lack of a response discourage him. With all of time until the end of the world to spend, a day talking to the open air was nothing. He spoke of everything he had done in the past; starting with the day he left. From being drafted in World War I to traveling abroad, Marco remembered it all. Levi, Eren and Mikasa were mentioned too.
When the sun was setting at the end of the day, he resolved that it was time to leave Trost once again. Marco stood up, brushing non-existent dirt off his pants to stall his departure. What happened next was straight out of a romance genre film in his opinion. A breeze had picked up, but it seemed to be localized. Rustling just his clothes and chilling his cheeks before it dissipated. Though Marco did not believe in ghosts, he smiled nonetheless.
It was time for him to move on.