She was afraid. Afraid of falling in love. She did it once and her heart was broken. Instead of giving it another try, she became afraid. She knew that pain and she never wanted it again.

Eren Jaeger was a boy who was always searching for love. If a relationship didn't work out, he'd take some time and get over it before starting over again. He knew that there was someone for him in the world. Even if he hadn't met her yet.

He was wandering through the streets, texting Mikasa he was fine, when he bumped into someone. He immediately looked up, putting his phone away. "Oh--" he fell silent, looking at her. He was going to apologize, but she was so beautiful. He didn't know what to say. "I-I'm sorry."

"It's fine." She said before she continued walking. She found him cute, but she didn't want to know anything about him. She didn't want to fall for him. Eren was speechless. He wanted to ask her for her name or spend some time with her. He felt something, even though all he did was say two words and look at her.

He raced after her. "Wait!" The girl turned around, confused. Did she drop something? "I'm Eren Jaeger."

"I'm not interested." She replied, turning back around and walking again.

"But, I felt something!" Eren exclaimed, following her.

"What are you talking about?! Go away, you're creepy!" She yelled, not looking at him.

Eren stopped in his tracks. It was a bit creepy. But, what if he never saw her again? "What if I never see you again?" He asked her.

"Then, you don't see me again and you continue living your life!" She didn't stop walking and she didn't look at him.

--

The next day, Eren was upset. He couldn't stop thinking about the girl from yesterday and she probably didn't care. He sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Stupid, stupid, stupid girl! Why does she have to do that to me?!"

"Dude, what's wrong?" He heard a familiar voice ask. He looked to his right and saw Jean.

"Not now, Jean." He rolled his eyes, feeling angry.

"Come on, Jaeger, I'm not here to make fun of you. Well, not right now, at least. I'm genuinely concerned. So, just tell me before I make a mean comment about you." Jean replied. Eren sighed again, shaking his head.

"There's this-- There's this girl and I can't stop thinking about her. I don't even know her name, but I felt some connection, as stupid as that sounds. She's really pretty, but there's so much more. I just have to find that out. She wasn't interested, though."

"Dude, that's freaking 'Romeo and Juliet!' Except she's not interested in you." The taller male said, making Eren glare at him.

"You're not helping, horseface."

"Sorry. . . Do you know where she works? Or if she has a job?"

"I think she had a drink from 'Starbucks.'" Eren replied.

"Well, maybe she works there. . . Or she just likes it." Jean smiled. "What does she look like?"

"She has (h/l) (h/c) hair, (e/c) eyes, and she has (skin color) skin." He replied.

"Oh, well--" Jean blinked, realizing something. "She likes Starbucks and. . . Hey, Eren, I-I think I know who she is. I'm not sure, though." He cursed under his breath.

"Well, who is she?"

"I think she's (y/n) (l/n)." Jean said, running a hand through his hair. "Eren, you better not mess up your relationship with her."

"Why? Do you love her?" Eren teased. When the male didn't reply, Eren's eyes widened. "Y-You love her?"

"It's complicated. Just don't break her."

"Why not? Not that I would, I'm just curious."

Jean sighed, "Okay, fine, I'll tell you. But, I've only told Marco this so you better not tell anyone, alright?" When he saw Eren nod, he continued, "I once dated her -- your mystery girl might not be her -- and it was a great relationship. We fell in love and then I messed up. I kind of cheated on her by wanting to be with another girl. I even kissed that other girl. It was one time, but I was aware of it. I had no excuses and I didn't even try to come up with one. I loved her so much that I told her. She was willing to give me a second chance. . . But, Eren, how are you supposed to put it in the past? I told her that I couldn't be with her because of what I did. I felt guilty even if it was one kiss. So, I ended things, breaking her heart. If this girl is (y/n), then, it won't be easy. She probably doesn't want to fall in love again."

Eren nodded. "You really loved her."

"Yeah, I did. I still do, but I'm going to help you find her. I want her to be happy and I'm not going to stop you. You're a good guy, Eren." Jean gave Eren a small smile. "Let's go."

"Jean--" Eren began. The taller male looked at him. "Thank you."

--

"Just walk down this street, Eren. She'll be around here."

Eren nodded. He began walking on the sidewalk. Jean walked in front of Eren, but made sure that there was some space between himself and the dark-haired boy. He was wearing a hoodie and made sure that it was covering most of his face. (y/n) was putting her phone away before Jean bumped into her. He continued walking. Her eyes widened as she fell backwards. But, she didn't hit the ground. Eren caught her, his hands on her back. She shivered as his hands touched the part of her back that wasn't covered. His hands felt cold to her. He pulled her towards him so she was standing again. Her mouth was slightly open in surprise.

"You should be more careful." Eren said. She blinked, coming back to reality.

"Yeah, sorry." She replied as Eren removed his hands from her back. "I should get going." She walked past him but he grabbed onto her arm, making her gasp in surprise. "What are you doing?"

"Why don't you give me a chance?" Eren asked her. "Do you. . . Do you have a boyfriend? Are you in love with someone?"

She sighed, pulling her arm out of his grasp before she turned around to face him. "No, I don't have a boyfriend and I'm not in love with anyone. Why don't you give up? I'm just not interested, I guess."

"You guess?"

"Look, whatever your name is, I'm not willing to have my heart broken like you are. I fell in love once and it didn't work out, okay? People like you, they-- they look for love! I don't! I put up these walls between people like you who are interested and myself. So, if you have a problem with that, stop trying to get to know me!"

"I don't have a problem with that." Eren replied, making the girl blink in surprise.

"What?"

"I hope that eventually those walls can fall down. But, would you just give me one chance? We can go out for a cup of tea or something. That's all."

Something told the girl to accept his offer. She nodded. "Okay."

"Really?"

"Yeah. . . Let's go get a cup of tea." She smiled at him.

Jean watched the two walk away. He smiled, happy that (y/n) gave Eren a chance.

------------------------------

This was the outfit I imagined reader in for the second time they meet Eren.

I love you.