Chapter Text

FIRST PILL

The car sputtered and groaned as he turned onto a side road. According to the map he was using on his phone, it would take him around the construction that was going on the main road. The piece of shit, he was currently driving, was like a gluttonous wraith on gas and it'd been making that obnoxious sound for several days now. Wishing he'd never stopped the trash that had been driving it. As he was regretting his choice, it made a loud clunking noise and jerked slightly before slowly continuing on.

“Don't you dare die on me in the middle of the woods.” He breathed in, his eyes hardening as he stared at the road. It could last a few more miles. He practically begged that it would. However, it let out a loud pop and clunked to a stop. “No.” Letting out an animalistic screech, that could put a pterodactyl to shame, he began turning the ignition. “Come on. Come On!” It only stalled over and over. It was completely dead. “Fucking-shit! God damn it all to hell and let the walls come down.” He screamed, slamming his hands repeatedly against the steering wheel. He then sat there seething in a rage at his bad luck.

For Eren Yaeger, life had been nothing but a series of bad luck. This was just 'par for the course'. He had no idea how to figure out what was wrong with a car, let alone fix it. Not to mention the surrounding area was nothing but woods-No people for miles, which was the whole reason he'd gone on this route. He would be lucky if he could find a ride to the next town to jack a new one. However, that was not optimal. If his childhood friend had lost her mind, like he knew she would have, he probably had a missing person report out on him. If anyone recognized him, then she'd be on him before he could get away.

“Fuck it,” He shouts throwing the vehicle into park and kicking the driver door open. “Only one Goddamned thing to do.” He grumbled, running his hands through his messily cropped brown locks before pulling a ball cap on.

He then proceeded to pull out a black backpack from the back seat. It only took a quick moment for him to don leather gloves, a face mask, and the other necessities for what he was about to do. All traces of himself needed to be removed from the vehicle. Being traced back to it was not going to be an option. So, he then began the tedious task of wiping and sweeping the car down. Everything from the rear view mirror to under the backseat-Even inside the trunk. There was too much invested in his mission to let anything screw it up. It took longer than he had initially planned, however, it was never bad to be thorough. Cleaning was sort of beat into him at this point in his life.

“I've never been so thankful for an OCD foster parent,” He muttered, wiping sweat from his forehead with his sleeve.

It would be bad, if it had dripped anywhere in the vehicle, after all. Not that there would be much left of the thing once he was done with it. Torching things was something that sort of became a habit. Not that he enjoyed burning things. It was just a convenient way of covering his tracks, when it was done properly. He liked doing things properly. With a few more minor spots wiped clean, he picked up one of the many gas canisters he'd pulled out of the trunk.

Meticulously, he began pouring the gas inside of the car, making sure it was properly coated. His mind kept telling him not to leave any traces, so he placed the empty canisters in the backseat. Letting out a small chuckled, he pondered if he had some tendencies to go a little overboard in that aspect. Not that it really mattered to him. It was probably the only thing stopping the others from finding him.

Once he was satisfied, he pulled out a pack of cigarettes from the side pocket of his bag. He didn't smoke often, but when he was stressed out it helped ease the tension. Placing one in his mouth, he returned the pack to where it belonged. Then he threw the bag onto his back, while reaching for the matches he kept in his pocket. It took him only a moment to strike the match and lighting the cigarette up. Taking a long drag, he looked at the vehicle with a cold gaze.

“Goodbye, you piece of shit.” He said, breathing out the smoke and tossing the burning matches into the car, watching as the gasoline burst into flames.

Casually, he walked a safe distance away, watching the fire slowly consume the car. He took his time enjoying the taste of his smoke, waiting for the flames to hit the gas tank. It blew after a while and he put out his cigarette, making sure to pick up the extinguished butt. He then turned to make his way down the road. It would be for the best for him to get as far away from the wreckage as soon as possible. However, he would have to make that distance by foot.

He walked, sometimes ran, through the woods for a good half a day. The further he got from the vehicle, before he settled down for the night, the better it would be for him and his mission. The heat, however, was making it hard to stay focused. He'd already drank his entire water supply, even though he was drinking it sparingly. If this continued, he would need to find a water source, so he could refill it. At the moment, he would be fine.

Just as he thought that, he came across a crossroads. Giving a quick glance up and down the road he caught a glimpse of a running car sitting on the side of the road. It was clear there was someone sitting in the drivers seat. Being cautious, he quickly hid in the trees, staying low to the ground. Studying the person cautiously, he could see that they seemed to be looking at a large sheet of paper.

“A map? That's a bit outdated,” Eren muttered, tilting his head trying to tell if the driver was alone or not. The distance was far enough, he felt safe to lean back and observe. It would be hard to take advantage of someone, if they weren't alone. Eren wasn't the most sociable person, either, so he didn't really want to approach the car. He was just fine taking a break in the shade-at least until he decided what to do.

Did he take the opportunity to get a ride? Or did he take the car for himself? That would entirely depend on the person inside the vehicle.

It took a few moments, but Eren watched the driver fold up the map and toss it onto the passenger side. They then seemed to shuffle around a bit, until they opened the car door. Eren was quick to study the driver. A male, around the same age as him. A shorter and with dirty blond hair that was roughly cropped to his chin, maybe slightly layered but hard to tell from the distance. He wore a simple, worn out looking, white button up and a pair of khaki pants. Other than that, Eren didn't really notice anything interesting on him. It was hard to see what he was doing as he made his way toward the back of the car. This caused Eren to straighten himself up and approach the car. Watching as the driver opened the trunk, his curiosity grew. He could hear the man's voice, however, it was far to quiet to make out what was being said.

“Maybe I should ask him for a ride,” Eren said under his breath, flinching when the man's head popped up around the side of the trunk. Their eyes instantly locked on to one another and Eren froze for a second. There was a glint in the man's eyes that put him on edge. It was an eagle-like gaze that seemed to size him up. Eren wasn't sure what to do, so he dumbly lifted his hand to wave at him. A strikingly warm smile spread across the blond's face as he disappeared behind the lid of the trunk. The lid was quickly shut and the man quickly made his way around the car, still smiling away.

“He-Hello.” His voice was soft, but firm, Eren noted. That didn't stop him from being cautious, but it did give the impression that the man was harmless. He knew to never believe that, however.

“Car trouble?” Eren asked subtly motioning to his vehicle.

“Not at all, just taking a break,” The blond said, shifting from one foot to another. There was a moment of silence before the man crossed his arms. “Do you live around here?”

“No.” He decided to elaborate, just to seem less strange. “Had some driver troubles myself. So, I'm walking to the next town.” The blond's eyes went wide at his words, even his body language couldn't hide his shock.

“You're walking to the next town? That's a two day drive from here!” He all but shouted at the top of his lungs. Once he realized that he was shouting the blond was quick to clear his throat and smile at Eren. “Would you like a ride? If you're not opposed to spending time with a stranger,” He said, a hopeful look twinkling in his eyes.

A smile itched to form on Eren's lips. He didn't even have to ask the guy and the offer was already there. The guy seemed way too innocent to be out on the road alone. They'd just give him a ride despite not knowing anything about him. It was almost suspicious as to how easy it was. He just needed to get to where he was going, so there wasn't an issue. Even if there was, he could just take the car from the guy. Either way, he would be one step closer to completing his mission.