The brunette was walking down the street in quite a hurry, he didn't exactly know where he was running to seeing as he walked straight into someone. "Oh my god, I'm sorry! I guess I was in a bit of a hurry..."

The man grabbed the brunette's arms to help him regain balance. A concerned look was on his face but soon turned back to his pervious, rather tired looking face. "It's okay, kid," he said with a soft voice as he let go of the man's arms. The guy never meant to crash into the stranger like that. This was so embarrassing for him, a blush creeping its way up his face. "I…I really am sorry, sir. Please forgive me!"

The black-haired man glared at the kid with cold blue grey eyes. His face looked rather uninterested, and it seemed like this look was on his face for like forever. "I said it's okay. Sheesh, don't be so worked up about it!" He glanced at the brunette and raised a brow. "What is a brat like you doing on the streets at this time?"

"I'm not going back," the teenager snapped. He crossed his arms over his chest and looked pretty sure he wasn't going back to wherever he came from. "He only needs me as his punching bag. Hitting, kicking, punching! I'm done with it! I'm not going back, never!"

"Hmm, I suppose you're talking about your home?" the man suggested. He wrapped his arms around his chest, thinking it's rather cold. He was only wearing a shirt and if the brunette didn't bump into him, he'd almost be home right now. But no, a certain brat was keeping him away from the warm safety of his house. "You should go home," he said in a cold voice. "Your parents must be worried about you."

"They're not! At least not my aunt's boyfriend!" the brunette snapped again. "He uses me as his punching bag! Last time, he even got a belt, sir!"

"Listen up, brat. I'm getting cold and I want to go home! So please be smart and get your stupid ass off the streets." His cold gaze was still staring at the teenager. There was no way he'd let him behind on the streets without being sure the kid was going back home. He himself knew the dangers of walking around the city at night as he was much older and wiser than the boy.

"But, you don't understand! I'm getting killed if I go back!" The kid tried everything to stay calm. He actually wanted to burst out in tears because he couldn't tell anyone about how horrible it was for him to be at home. "I ran away from him, hearing him yelling he'd kill me if I ever go back." He dropped his arms loose and looked down at his feet. "I don't have a home anymore, sir," he whispered.

The man could only frown. "What do you want me to do? Take you to my place and get arrested for kidnapping when your parents find out? Hm?" His cold eyes still looked at the teenager without any sign of emotions. "You know, I could just walk away and leave you behind on the streets like this. But I'm not that cruel. I know the dangers of being alone outside at night, and I don't want you to get into trouble knowing I could prevent it from happening." He ran a hand through his hair, letting go a small sigh. "Look, I can bring you back home and tell your parents nothing happened. That's the truth, isn't it?"

"I know, sir, but the truth will get me killed this time. Please, I don't want to go back, at least not tonight!"

"Tch." The black-haired man finally looked away from the brunette. "I don't even know your name, why should I take you to my place? And why should you even trust me? I'm a complete stranger and I'm old enough to be your dad. Maybe I'm a pedophile, hm?"

The kid looked up at the man with his pale green eyes. "But…you don't look like a pedophile. I mean, something about you makes me feel like I can trust you, sir." He tried to give a small smile. "And my name is Eren."

"Hmm. Well…brat." His grey blue eyes looked up, meeting the other's eyes. "You're sleeping on the sofa and tomorrow I kick you out."

A sign of hope was in Eren's eyes as he heard those words. He was so happy he didn't have to stay on the streets for the night, but on the other side he knew it was wrong to follow a stranger to his home. He could be right, maybe he really was a pedophile…or a murderer. "Thanks, sir."

The man started walking without saying a word. He didn't even look back to see if the brunette was following. He still held his arms wrapped around his chest. "It's a short walk," he mumbled, looking down at his feet hoping that keeping his head close to his chest would also warm him up a little bit more.

After about twenty minutes they arrived at a small white villa, surrounded by a simple but beautiful looking garden. The black-haired man opened the front door and walked in, not looking back at the kid who had followed him. "Close the door and don't make a mess. The living room and the kitchen are that way," he said in his eternal cold voice as he pointed to a doorway on his right side. "I'll be right back."

"O-Okay," Eren replied with a soft voice. He went immediately to the living room, trying to look relaxed, but in fact he felt awkward. The man's house was warm and amazingly clean. It felt like everything he touched immediately became really dirty or infected.

Meanwhile, upstairs in the bathroom, the house owner was taking a hot shower. It was a rather quick shower, because he hated looking at his own body. It bore the marks of his past. Cuts and burns. Things he'd rather forget. "Tch." He shrugged as he got out of the shower and quickly rubbed a towel over his muscular skin, leaving some wet spots alone. He didn't care about it because he always took showers like this.

When the man got back downstairs, Eren was already sleeping. He had nodded off to sleep on the sofa and looked peacefull asleep, so the black-haired man had no need to wake him up. Instead of waking the kid up, he went back upstairs to the extra bedroom and took a blanket from the closet.
He looked at the brunette on his sofa for a few seconds before he carefully wrapped the blanket around him, trying to let him sleep. After that, he felt like it was time for him to catch some sleep as well. Just like always in his cold and lonely bedroom.