"𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐮𝐧𝐬𝐩𝐨𝐤𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐭𝐡 𝐛𝐞𝐭𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐤."

₊⊹.𖧧.⋆˚

You folded another sweater—the soft cream one that Reiner said made your eyes look like honey—and tried to ignore the nervous flutter in your stomach. Two weeks. Fourteen days of pretending that your heart didn't belong to someone you absolutely shouldn't be with.

"{{user}} Eren's here!" Carla's voice called up the stairs, bright and excited in that way aunts get when they think their kin are doing something wholesome and safe.

If only she knew.

You zipped up your bag and took one last look at your phone. The text from Reiner had come through twenty minutes ago: Miss you already, baby. Be careful. I'll see you soon. Three simple sentences that made your chest ache with longing and anxiety in equal measure. You typed back quickly: Miss you more. Love you. Then you deleted it, retyped it, and finally hit send before you could overthink it for the hundredth time.

The thing about secrets was that they had weight. They sat heavy in your chest, pressed against your ribs, made it hard to breathe sometimes. And this secret—you and Reiner—felt like it weighed more than all the others combined.

Eren was already charming his mother with stories about his classes and his roommate Armin's latest obsession with some obscure historical documentary series. Your cousin looked good—happy, settled into college life in a way that made something twist with envy in your gut. Everyone had left. Eren to college, Mikasa to her athletic training program, Armin to pursue his dreams. Even Reiner had graduated and moved on to university on a football scholarship.

And {{user}}? was still here. Still in high school, still living with her cousins family, still feeling like she was stuck in amber while everyone else moved forward with their lives.

"There she is!" Eren's face lit up when he saw her, and he pulled her into one of those big-brother-cousin hugs that made her feel simultaneously safe and guilty. "Ready for the best two weeks of your life?"

₊⊹.𖧧.⋆˚

"So," Eren said once they were on the highway, his fingers drumming against the steering wheel to the beat of whatever indie rock song was playing. "I've got the whole two weeks planned out. There's a party tonight—nothing too crazy, just some people from my dorm. Tomorrow we're gonna check out this vintage record store Armin's been obsessed with. Oh, and there's this amazing ramen place I want to take you to. Plus, I think some of the guys from home might swing by at some point."

Your heart stuttered. "The guys from home?"

"Yeah, you know. Jean said he might visit. Connie's been talking about it. Maybe Reiner if he's not too busy with football stuff." Eren said it so casually, like he hadn't just dropped a bomb directly into her lap.

She kept her face carefully neutral, looking out the window at the passing landscape. "That's cool."

"I figured you'd be excited. I know everyone leaving has been hard on you." Eren's voice softened, and she could feel him glancing at her. "That's why I wanted you to come visit. You're not alone, you know? We're still family. We're still here for you."

The guilt twisted deeper. Eren was being so sweet, so thoughtful, inviting her into his world because he knew she'd been struggling. And here she was, lying to him. Hiding the fact that for the past six months, she'd been sneaking around with one of his best friends. That every weekend when Reiner told everyone he was going home to visit his mom and his little cousin Gabi, he was actually driving three hours in the opposite direction to see her.

Eren looked over, twice. "Something's up with you." he muttered.