Chapter Text
One || Destruction
𝐄𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝟎𝟕𝟏𝟐𝟐𝟏
I push my legs forward, skipping through the tall grass around me. The grass reached up to my knees, poking my legs as I continued to skip forward. I spent my time alone like this. There wasn't many people I would hang out with, but spending my time on my own like this was enough for me. I live with my mother and she's all I'll ever need. She's the best friend that I don't have.
I slow my pace and find a spot to sit. I could feel the sun's rays shining down on my skin, making feel warm on both the inside and outside. The sight of the wall surrounding our city entered in my peripheral vision. I would constantly wonder and dream about what was on the other side. Was it just a world full of titans? What if there was another family like mine and my mother's out there? Thoughts like these kept me up for so many nights. My mother often became worried at the fact that I was surviving off of no more than 4 hours of sleep. She says other seventeen year olds get at least 8 hours of sleep. She thinks it's unhealthy for me to continue this schedule.
I lay my back down onto the grass, covering my eyes from the sun that continued to shine down on me. Why did the heat of the sun feel good on every part of me except my eyes? How does grass grow? How did the clouds get in the sky? Am I overthinking again? A growl from my stomach snapped me from my thoughts. I've been out for a couple hours now, so it makes sense that I'm starting to get hungry.
I decided now, that it is time for me to go home already. In a couple more hours, the sun will be setting. I slowly sit back up, taking one last look around the field I was sitting in. In the distance, I could barely made out the outline of two children carrying sticks on their backs. I suddenly felt a strange pang in my chest. I soon came to realize that feeling was loneliness. Of course, I was fine with my mom. But I don't think it would hurt to have a close friend.
I curled my fingers into the dirt underneath me. Slowly, I had finally made the decision to get up. My body felt heavy after laying down for so long. I took a shortcut through the field to get to town. I didn't feel like wasting much time since my stomach wouldn't stop growling. After a couple minutes of walking, my boots made contact with the same dirt path found in the city. The familiar buildings towered over me as I continued my walk. The smell from a bakery made my mouth water, only upsetting my already empty stomach. I pushed forward through the city, trying my best to ignore the emptiness in my stomach.
Soon enough, I had found myself walking up the steps of my house. I turned the cold metal knob, pushing the door forward and stepping inside. My boots let out a quiet echo as I stepped inside. The smell of meat cooking g turned my attention to the kitchen. Me and my mother didn't have very much money, so it was rare for us to eat meat. We usually had it on special occasions. I continue stepping through the house, stopping as I watched her season the food.
"What's the occasion?" I ask.
"Do I need any?" She asks, turning around a flashing me a smile. "I just thought I'd make something you like."
"Thanks, mom." I smile, taking a seat at the table.
"Hey, clean yourself up before you eat!" She laughs, pointing to a couple leaves in my hair.
"Oh, sorry." I say quietly, feeling my cheeks starting to burn from embarrassment.
I get out of my chair and quickly make my way back to my room. My brush was sitting on my nightstand. I pulled a mirror out from my drawer. I held it in front of my face, watching closely to make sure that I brushed everything out of my hair. While examining myself in the mirror, I had noticed that there was a small amount of mud sitting on my cheek. I pushed my sleeve down so it hung off of my wrist. I took the sleeve and wiped the mud from my face.
I looked down my body, examining myself to find out if there was still anything dirty on my body. I froze once I realized that I still had my boots on. I hoped that I didn't leave a trail of dirt in the house. My mother worked hard enough all ready, she doesn't need to start cleaning up the mud that I bring in. I kick the boots off of my feet, throwing them underneath my bed. I felt the cold hard ground against my toes, sending a shiver down my spine.
I didn't want to leave my mother waiting any longer, so I finally made my way down to the kitchen. When I got there, I found her pouring water into two different glasses.
"Did I keep you waiting too long?" I ask, resting my hands on the top of my chair.
"Not at all." She smiles, looking up at me. "I actually just now finished. Take a seat, I'll make your plate for you." I pulled the seat out from under the table and sat down in it, waiting for the plate to be placed in front of me.
"It smells good." I said, resting my head on my hand.
"Thank you." She says, sliding the dish in front of me. "I hope it tastes as good as it smells. I don't cook very much meat."
"I'm sure it'll taste fine." I said, holding a fork in my hand. I cut into the meat, then popping it in my mouth. "Tastes good." I smile.
My mother gave me a smile back, popping her own food into her mouth. "Glad you like it."
We spend the next couple of minutes in silence, just enjoying the food in front of us. "Sorry, but I think I'll need you to do me a quick favor. I promise it won't take long." My mother says, taking her plate and placing it in the sink. "I need for you to go into town and pick me up a couple groceries." She steps towards the counter, taking a piece of paper and handing it to me. She then reached in her pocket, taking a bit of money out and placing it on the table.
"I can do this." I said, walking my own plate to the counter. "I'll go now so I can get it over with."
"Thank you, (y/n). I really appreciate it." My mother says, wiping down the table. I take the money and a small bag placed in front of the door.
"I'll be back."
With that, I shut the door behind me and made my way into town. The place was always bustling with the sound of people talking to one another. People were laughing n and children were running through the street. I make my way closer to the market. I come to a stand of apples and pick one up. I inspect the apple in my hand. I've always seen my mother do this. No bruises were visible and it looked good enough to eat so I place it in our bag.
I continue to collect the items we needed and pay the man running the stand. I make my way back to my house but a brown-haired boy runs into me and falls to the ground.
"Are you alright?" I ask concerned. I extend my hand for him to grab.
"I'm okay!" He smiles up at me as a dark haired girl in a red scarf and a blond boy run up behind him. "I'm Eren, what's your name?" The boy asks.
"I'm Y/n." The boy looks behind him at the other two children.
"This is Mikasa and Armin!" The girl nods.
"Nice to meet you!" The blond boy smiles.
"Come on guys, they're coming!" Eren says to the other children. They nod and run through the city. Who's coming? I follow them to see soldiers on horses return into our walls. Moans and complaints were heard in the crowd. My eyes fell upon Eren. His face was bright. He looked up to these people.
I sigh and make my way back on the path to my house. I felt a small shake in the ground underneath me. The vibrations made my loose my balance. My main concerns was the bag of food that I just bought. I clasped the bag shit with my hands, making sure our money didn't go to waste. Thankfully, nothing spilled out. I look up and see a head poking over the walls. My mind flashed to something my mother had told me about. She told me one night that giant creatures called titans. Apparently, their giant man eating creatures. I grab the bag with our groceries and run back to my house.
"Mom!" I scream as I burst through the door of my house. "We need to go!" She rushes to the door.
"What happened?"
"A titan! I saw a titan over the wall." Her eyes widen and her cheery attitude vanishes. She takes my arm, leading me out of our home. She quickly leads me along the path of our city. I look over to my right side and see a titan strolling through our city. To my left, I see a small child under a log. I squirm out of my mother grasp and lift the log off of the child. I turn back around to face my mom.
"We need to keep going." She said sternly. I nod and take a step closer to my mom. Before my foot hit the ground, I see a rock collide onto the left side of my mother. I stand shocked and run after her.
"Mom!" I scream. I try to lift the boulder off of her, going as far as ripping my finger nails on the rock. I knew it was too heave for me, so I don't understand why I still tried to lift it off of her.
"Leave!" She hissed. I look back at her face with tears steaming down mine.
"I can't leave you..." I sniffle. Her energy decreases and the arm she had extended towards me falls to the ground. Her eyes close and I stare at her corpse, holding her hand in mine. I get back on the path to the gate of our city alone. There's a boat that I'm lead onto.
I look over to my right to see Eren, Mikasa, and Armin. Eren had looked like he's seen a ghost. I get up to meet with them.
"Y/n.." Mikasa whispers. I give her a weak smile. "Your eyes are puffy. Did something happen?"
"I don't really want to talk about it right now. Is Eren okay?"
"A titan got our mom." Mikasa brings her knees to her chest. I nod.
"Same happened to me." I whispered quietly. The girl pats my shoulder and turns back around to hug Eren.