You ran your fingers over the empty space next you, hazy eyes peeking through your lashes at the sprinkle of sunlight that broke through the curtains. Your pillow case was still damp from the tears that you had wasted crying yourself to sleep.

As you suspected, the fighting only got worse after you entered your apartment. Vulgar names thrown back and forth, insults taken a little too far... sadly, this was something the two of you had gotten used to. The two of you just didn't work anymore.

Yet, neither of you could leave the other alone. Neither of you could picture a life where the other wasn't in it.

Jean was gone, he had already left for work early in the morning as usual. You'd plan to do what you always did after the two of you had a big fight. Make him his favorite dinner, buy a six pack of his favorite beer and then pick out a movie to watch - that would no doubt end up with him fucking you deep into the plush sheets of your shared mattress.

At least that was one thing the two of you were compatible with.

Sitting up in the bed, you stretch your muscles out a bit and shuffle into the kitchen. You make yourself a cup of tea and grab your favorite book, preparing to sit outside on your balcony to enjoy a quiet morning to yourself before running your errands.

Opening the sliding glass door, the frigid air damn near smacks you in the face with a crisp blow of wind. Shit, forgot my jacket.

You quickly shut the door and retreat back to your room to grab it. As you pull it onto your body, you feel the clatter of the contents in your jacket pocket once you slip your hand inside of it.

Two lighters.

Right, Eren's lighter. You ran your thumb over the shiny green plastic, remembering how kind your neighbor was to let you use it. You smiled. Though it was a brief encounter, you recalled how happy and stress free you felt in his presence.

I should return it to him.

There was no better time like the present, right? Jean was at work and you didn't plan on leaving the house to run your errands until the afternoon. He was just across the hall, right outside your doorstep.

It's the polite thing to do.

There, it was settled. You're going to return it to him right now... well, after you primped yourself just a tiny bit. You didn't want to go over there looking like you just rolled out of bed. After changing out of your night clothes, brushing your teeth and fixing your hair, you decided you were good to go.

You didn't want to look like you were trying too hard, I mean, you were just returning his lighter for fucks sake. Not a big deal.

I don't need to impress anyone.

You kicked on your slides and headed out the door, taking about seven steps across the hall to Eren's apartment.

You waited a few seconds after tapping your knuckles against the solid wooden door. After a few more moments it swings open and you're suddenly greeted with a pair of dark, gunmetal eyes.

"Yes?" The woman spoke, her short, raven hair falling loosely onto her beautiful face as she waited for your response.

Fuck, is everyone who lives in this apartment hot?

"Um, is Eren home? I accidentally pocketed his lighter after he let me use it the other day." You chuckle, offering a friendly smile.

She looks you up and down for a moment, before softly smiling back at you with her pretty pink lips.

"Eren, door!" She calls out, turning around as Eren's tall figure approaches the wooden frame. He smirks once he sees you, clearly pleasantly surprised to see you at his doorstep.

"Couldn't get enough of me, huh?" He teases, broad body leaning against the door that he keeps propped open with his rather large foot.

"Your lighter." You say, breathily, as if the wind had been knocked out of your chest.

Why am I so nervous? Stop being a fucking weirdo.

You hold the object out to him, his deep laugh rumbles in chest as he reaches out, fingers brushing against yours as you pass it on to him.

"Can't believe you swiped my lighter." He teased, flicking the spark wheel - your eyes hypnotized by the flame burning at his fingertips.

"Yeah, sorry about that." You apologized, averting your attention back to him as he eyed your figure for a few brief seconds. You wondered what he was thinking. More importantly, you wondered what he thought about you, specifically.

"Wanna come in? I just rolled up, you're welcome to join." He offers, motioning you inside with a tilt and a nod of his head.

"Oh, I don't think so - I mean- "

"Why not? 'Fraid I'll try to kiss you or somethin' ?" He teased, still sporting that handsome smirk.

"No!" You say, eyes widened and panicked, almost as if he had read your exact thoughts. "I just have a lot of stuff to do today, so I should probably get going."

"You sure? Shouldn't take too long." He pressed on. You had to admit that the offer was extremely tempting.

"Well- "

"Great, come on in." He said abruptly, gripping your hand and firmly pulling you inside. "Hurry, it's cold."

He kept a tight hold on the fingers that he had interlocked within his own, as he led you through his home. Even just doing this seemed wrong. You knew Jean would have a fit if he found out that you were in another man's apartment, let alone holding his hand.

Yet, something about the idea of getting caught you.

"Be gentle with this one, Eren." The raven haired woman called out from the kitchen, shaking her head as she chuckled to herself before taking a bite of her food.

The inside of Eren's room wasn't what you had expected. It was surprisingly spotless - his bed was neatly made, the walls were adorned with haunting abstract artwork, lit up by neon LED lighting.

You stopped in-front of a particular painting, a nude woman kneeling in-front of a cross with a gun to her head.

"Where did you find this?" You ask, intrigued.

"My brain." He chuckled. "I painted it."

"Oh." You respond, as you glance around at the other works of art proudly displayed, which you could only assume were more of his creations. "These are really beautiful."

"Thanks." He said calmly, plopping down onto his bed. "Beautiful isn't what most people would call it though, my art can be a bit... dark."

He wasn't wrong. A few of the other paintings were far more intense than the one you were standing in front of. Depictions of suicide, gore, murder, horror... dark may have been an understatement.

Still, you were being honest with your compliment. Every brush stroke was beautifully placed, every color choice was carefully thought out and flowed beautifully within each piece. He was definitely talented.

Turning back around to face him, you noticed that he had made himself comfortable - back resting up against the headboard, long legs bent and spread as he lit the blunt between his lips. You stood there awkwardly and watched him, not sure if you should join him on the bed or not.

If anything wasn't wrong before you got to this point, now would be the line not to cross. You surely wouldn't feel too good knowing that Jean was in another girl's bed, so... why couldn't you stop yourself from doing the same?

I should go home...

"You gonna come?" He asks, a puff of smoke leaving his lips, punctuating each word that he spoke. "Don't be scared, I won't bite."

I'm over thinking it. Just smoking with a new friend, that's all.

You smile, nodding your head 'yes' as you make your way over to the bed, taking a seat next to him. He passes you the blunt, to which you take a hit, inhaling the thick smoke into your lungs.

"Hope you don't mind, I didn't have anymore papers." He says apologeticly, not that it even mattered to you. You were happy to just enjoy the opportunity at hand.

"It's alright." You squeak out after exhaling. God, you were embarrassing yourself. Blaming it in your nerves for acting so skittish seemed feasible - thankfully you knew your high would soon subside any awkwardness that you were feeling.

"Cute." Eren smirks as the blunt leaves his lips once more.

"What?"

"You. You're cute." He reiterates, scooting closer to get a better reach for passing.

You were sitting pretty far away, not knowing how close was too close, though Eren quickly closed the distance between the two of you as he lays his head in your lap, long brown hair pulled out of his bun and sprawled over your plush thighs.

"This okay?" He looks up at you from below, big green eyes becoming reddened and hazy.

"Y-yeah. It's fine."

Oof. Wrong answer. Definitely should've said no.

Still, that didn't stop you from absentmindedly running your fingers through his silky brown tresses, all inhibitions long gone out the window as the weed took you to new heights.

So soft.

Eren lets out a low hum, basking in the feeling of your pretty fingers playing with his hair as his eyes begin to flutter shut, the heaviness of his lids becoming too much to bear.

"Feels good."

... and with that, his breathing slows into a smooth, steady rhythm, falling fast asleep on the comfort of your pillowy thighs.

You're not too far behind, as you lean back against the pillows that prop up your figure. Your eyes feel just as heavy, your better judgment now dancing in a cloud of smoke as you succumb to your enervation.