Attack On Titan: Goodbyes

Eren's POV

I'm Eren Yeager. I'm 18 years old—almost 19 in a couple of months, not that it matters much when your life has already gone downhill. My life used to be perfect until that day— that day, when everything changed.

"My everything... You, Eren... You're my everything," Mikasa once told me, eyes sparkling like I was the last slice of bread in the world and I happily accepted it.

Oogway—wise old turtle— once said, "Yesterday was history, Tomorrow is mystery. But Today is a gift, that's why it's called the present."

Well, in my case, yesterday was ass, today is pain and tomorrow well I'll probably die soon so it's gonna be pain too. Don't get me wrong, I love my wife, Mikasa, and my adorable daughter, Erika, more than life itself. Words can't begin to describe my affection for them. But still…

"Ereh... Darling... Babe... Suger muffin... Wake up... Erika… I think you need to change her diaper."

Every. Single. Morning. Those words are the alarm clock to my misery.

My eyes crack open reluctantly, and there she is—Mikasa, her smile as radiant as ever, like it's fueled by the sheer joy of tormenting me.

And before I can even groan, she dives onto me like she's performing some kind of wrestling move, pinning me down with that impossible strength of hers.

It's been less than a week since Erika was born, and somehow I've already been promoted to full-time diaper-changer, house chef, and emotional support punching bag.

"Ereh..." Her voice is sweet, too sweet, and it's always accompanied by that cursed poke. She jabs me in the side—once, twice, three times—and keeps at it like she's pressing buttons on a broken vending machine.

"Mikasa... Stop... That." My voice is groggy, my patience thinner than my wallet after marrying her. But does she stop? Of course not.

Instead, I feel her grin widen as she leans closer. "Ereeeeh," she whispers into my ear, dragging out the syllables like she's casting some ancient curse on me.

Finally, I sigh, my resistance crumbling like a stale cookie. I pull her in for a kiss, and for a moment, I think I've won. But Mikasa being Mikasa, she tries to extend it, her lips chasing mine like a cat with a laser pointer.

I pull back, glaring at her with all the authority of a man who's completely lost control of his household. "Mika, just five more minutes, okay? Let me sleep for five more—"

"Nope," she interrupts, her grin stretching wider as she climbs onto me completely, wrapping me in a hug so tight I swear I hear my spine crack.

"Fine, Ereh," she coos, her voice soft now as she rests my head against her chest. "You can sleep… I'll wake my Ereh up when it's time. Kay?"

For a second, I actually believe her. Her warmth, the rhythmic beat of her heart—it's so soothing that my eyelids start to droop again. Maybe, just maybe, I can sneak in a few more—

And then I hear it.

The shrill, glass-shattering wail of Erika.

My eyes snap open, and I'm greeted by the sight of Mikasa grinning down at me like she's just won some unspoken game.

"Good luck, Daddy," she whispers, pressing a quick kiss to my forehead before sliding off me and cuddling back under the covers like nothing ever happened.

And just like that, my day begins—again—with Mikasa's lullaby humming faintly in the background, Erika's cries echoing through the room, and me dragging myself out of bed like the world's most reluctant zombie.

I stumble out of bed, my hair sticking out at angles that defied gravity, and shuffled toward Erika's crib like a man walking to his doom. The cries grew louder with each step, stabbing at my eardrums like a vengeful orchestra of chaos.

There she was, my adorable little devil, red-faced and flailing her tiny arms like she was commanding an army of invisible minions. The smell hit me before I even reached her—a scent so foul it could have peeled paint off the walls.

"Oh, god," I muttered, pinching my nose. "What have you been eating, Erika? Air? How is this possible?"

Behind me, Mikasa's muffled laughter broke through the blanket fortress she'd buried herself in. "Come on, Ereh! You're her hero, aren't you? Heroes don't back down from dirty diapers!"

Heroes also didn't gag like this, but I kept that to myself.

Grumbling under my breath, I got to work, peeling away the diaper with all the enthusiasm of a man defusing a bomb. And honestly? It was worse.

"Fuck!" I hissed, holding the diaper at arm's length like it was a radioactive artifact. "Is this... Did you actually summon a Titan in here, Erika?"

From the bed, Mikasa's voice floated over, as smug as ever. "If it's a Titan, then you should handle it, Mr. Founding and Attack Titan."

I shot her a glare, which she didn't even bother to look at. Instead, she stretched luxuriously, clearly enjoying the show. "You're doing great, Ereh," she added, her tone syrupy sweet.

"Thanks for the support," I muttered sarcastically, tossing the diaper into the trash like it might explode. Erika had quieted down now, blinking up at me with wide, innocent eyes, as if she wasn't the mastermind behind this biological warfare.

I picked her up carefully, cradling her against my chest her green eyes melting my heart. "You're so damn cute," I told her, pressing a kiss to her soft little forehead. Her tiny fingers latched onto mine, holding it with her brute strength.

But Mikasa wasn't done.

"Ereh," she called again, her tone light and teasing. "Since you're already up… maybe you could make us breakfast too?"

I turned slowly, narrowing my eyes at her. "Oh, of course, Your Highness. Anything else? Should I also build you a throne while I'm at it?"

She giggled, finally peeking out from under the blanket. "Hmm, a throne would be nice, but for now, I'll settle for an omelette. And some tea. Please?"

"Unbelievable," I muttered, shaking my head as I carried Erika with me to the kitchen. "Marry a warrior goddess, they said. She'll be low-maintenance, they said."

From the bedroom, I heard her laughing again, her voice filled with the kind of happiness that made all my grumbling worth it.

And as I stood there in the kitchen, one hand balancing a baby and the other flipping eggs, I couldn't help but smile. Yeah, it was exhausting. Yeah, it was chaotic.

Both they were mine and mine alone.

But...

Just as I started to fucking enjoy it a bit...

Life once again showed how big of a bitch it is, guys—a total bitch. Let me just fast-forward through the next couple of months and give you the highlights. they're not great. By the end of it, all I could say was, "Eh?"