AN: does anyone so happen to remember eren's age? i think i stated that he may be 18-20, but i can't remember. or perhaps i didn't even state his age at all. for now, i'm going to say he's 18, but if anyone knows, please tell me. i mean, i can always reread chapters, but i'm busy writing. q.q

---

Sitting there and listening to the faint buzzing was too relaxing, and almost better than talk, but they talked anyway. Levi had Eren's hand in his, stroking each finger individually and kissing the tip. Eren wanted to slap his hand away, but he didn't have the mental strength to do it. Levi almost died more than once to protect him after all, it wast he least he could do if he wasn't in the mood for blood.

"Can't you show me you've seen? I still don't trust you," Eren said. "After what you did to Mikasa and possibly my parents..."

"Oh, we're going to bring that up again, aren't we?" Levi asked with frustration. "I can't show you. That one time I showed you the moment we met took too much energy. I'll you one day, but everything you right now won't be enough for you to understand. Now, can you please stop bringing it up?"

Eren didn't reply because it wasn't necessary. He finally felt tired, but he didn't want to close his eyes. He was sure he had to leave soon, after all, hours passed quickly as hey sat on that log, sharing moments in a place they only knew.

"We should go now," Levi said to break the silence. "Armin is probably wondering where we went."

"Alright," Eren agreed and got up.

As they walked, Eren noticed the way Levi held his hand; it was as if he was holding on for dear life, or that it would evaporate and disappear form his grasp.

---

Armin brought back some mildly bruised apples and stale bread, but to Eren it was luxury.

He nearly inhaled all of them and ignored the sticky, cold juice dripping from his chin and arms. The fruit was too sweet and the bread took some effort to chew, but he devoured all of it, core even. Levi watched him in awe and Armin removed his cape and wiped the rain droplets from his forehead with his sleeve. It was odd not seeing that splash of colour on his cheeks after running.

"I apologize for taking too long to return. I went to neighbouring towns, so I had to pretend to be human by walking at normal speed. I have forgotten how slow it was," he explained. "Any luck with your arm?"

Levi took once quick glance at his arm. "Nope."

"Well, I think we should leave now," he proposed.

Levi looked away and made a small clicking sound with his tongue. He was a little upset by the way his body sunk and how he averted his eyes. He marched his way up to the small blond and gripped his collar.

"Listen here, Coconut," he started in a stern voice. He furrowed his eyebrows and stared at him with this serious glint in his steel grey eyes. "You take care of him. If you let anyone leave one scratch on him, you're fucked. I want him in perfect condition when I see him next time, got that?"

"Understood," Armin said apathetically.

Levi shoved him away and approached Eren next. "And you, don't get yourself killed."

"Hmm mmmf," Eren mumbled with his mouth stuffed with bread.

"I'm serious," he said more firmly. "I don't want you getting hurt, Eren. Do me this one favor and promise me you won't be harmed in any way, alright?"

Eren stopped his chewing and swallowed. "Okay. I will try, but I can't promise."

Levi winced once the word 'can't' exited Eren's mouth. The very thought that he would have a chance of dying was absolutely upsetting to him

"No, you don't understand. You need to promise me, Eren. I'm not letting you go until you say it. You can even lie about it," he pleaded.

The teen subconsiously let his grip loosen and didn't notice the apple core falling to the earth with a small thump. He stepped toward Levi and jabbed a finger into his chest, making sure it wasn't too hard so that he would avoid cracking the digit completely.

"So negative," he muttered under his breath and grabbed his jaw. "Listen here, you narrow-minded twit, instead of thinking of what might happen to me, look forward to something nice."

In that moment, it would be the perfect time for all of the stars in the sad universe to explode, or for Levi's heart to burst into flames, because that't what it felt. A soft pair of lips caught him off guard the way unexpected rain and clouds could ruin someone's day, only it didn't ruin anything for Levi. He loved cold weather, and Eren's mouth was all of them combined. They had this effect on him that nothing else could do to him. He was the one who stormed into villages and got himself into dirty fights because he felt like it, but fell weak to a human's kiss.

It was sour then it was sweet. He couldn't move because he was in shock. He was always the one to engage in such things when it came to Eren. Eren hated his guts and always wished death upon him, and now he was kissing him like they were old lovers. Levi loved the way apples tasted in his lips. Apples were just apples to him, but it was a whole lot better now that Eren tasted like them. Hell, despite his diet of blood, he was most likely going to devour the fruit since it would remind him of the boy. It would be like kissing him all the time. It was quite surprising for him, he couldn't even believe it was happening.

He always watched Eren, and he knew he never had someone of romantic interest, but why was he so good at kissing? He even opened his mouth within the first five seconds. Levi stumbled back and let his arms fall to his sides. He could hear Armin stifle a laugh before leaving, but it didn't matter. Nothing else mattered. He wanted to pin Eren onto the wall and kiss him like there was no tomorrow, but that was when he pulled away and showed him an impish grin.

"Don't take this the wrong way. I still hate you, but there must be something that will distract you from everything horrible. If I come back safely, you can kiss me again. If I make this promise, it will teach you to look forward to the good parts instead of the bad. Got it? I'm going to leave now, and you better behave on your own," he told him.

Eren then left him alone. He stood there, bewildered but also overjoyed. It was a storm of thoughts that rampaged through his brain.

He always missed kissing him.

---

No sound escaped Armin, but his shoulders shook along with his body. He was hiding his face with his hands as Eren whacked him playfully on the back.

"You just went for it," he said in a quiet voice and laughed loudly.

"I have a chance of dying, might as well do him a favor and let him carry an oh-so special memory of me," Eren said plainly with a shrug as they walked into the night. It was almost pitch black, but he let the soft glow of his friend's eyes, the lantern, and his talking guide the way.

"Don't say that," Armin instructed and sighed. "You didn't really do that for that reason, right? You're becoming... How should I say this? Delicate? Vulnerable? At least, only towards him. I notice these kind of things, Eren, don't even try to argue with me here."

"I am not," Eren snapped, ignoring the last part of what Armin just said. "I'm always like this, it's not like I'm giving him some sort of special treatment. Don't jump to such conclusions."

Eren sensed that his friend shrugged. "Stop lying to yourself. You're a horrible liar, Eren."

"Why are you so interested in what I see in him anyways? You don't even like him, and I hate the guy. Choose one side, Armin," he said a bit too defensively.

"Alright, alright. Calm down, a few questions won't hurt you," he said with another laugh. "Listen, do you want me to carry you? I doubt you're willing to walk all the way back, right?" Armin offered.

Eren paused and thought about it for a while. His feet felt like he just walked on a thousand broken glass shards, so there was no way he could refuse.

"Sure."

Being carried by Armin was like being hugged and reminded Eren of all those times they embraced in their childhood; comforting and friendly. It was nothing like the way Levi did it. He always held him so close, like there was no such thing as personal space. Their noses would always graze one another, and sometimes the vampire's mouth touched his forehead as if he were doing it on purpose. Armin was bony which made it a little uncomfortable, but it was much better than having to walk for hours.

---

There was no home to return to.

Of course the option of staying in camp and sleeping in a tent was available, but there was something sad about that thought. Erwin and Hanji was definitely going to question him until morning, and they probably suspected him of being with vampires at some point. Eren was prepared for that scenario.

Armin promised to watch over him in the distance, but he couldn't help but feel anxious anyway. He finally knew what Petra was, and that she craved to see him die. She could jump on him anytime she wanted and disappear without a trace. Telling by what Levi told him, Petra was too powerful with all those cronies Levi mentioned. He hoped he had done the right choice by coming back.

It was still dim by the time they reached the entrance of the camp, but Eren knew it would be morning soon. A few lamps were lit and he could hear boots crunching on the twigs and fallen leaves. The air was crisp and nipped at the tip of his fingers and nose. There was a voice that called out to him once he started walking in.

"Jaeger? Is that you?"

Eren looked up and saw a worried Jean approaching him slowly.

"What the hell happened to you?" he demanded. "Jesus. Are you alright?"

"I'm fine. I just got myself into trouble," he replied with a weak smile.

"What happened?" Jean repeated.

"The vampires almost got me," he lied. "I've been running all this time, and I think I finally escaped them."

The other boy' eyes widened in terror at Eren's news. "You look awful. I'll take you to the medical tent."

He mumbled a small 'thank you' as Jean grabbed his shoulder and pulled him towards one of the biggest tents. There was a small glow of flame inside, and he could see the silhouettes of his fellow friends.

"We need to tell the commander about this," Jean murmured. "He needs to know this. It might help in the defeat of those monstrous blood suckers."

Eren's heart stung.

---

AN:

i know i said i will update more because it's summer, but i have a job now. it will be much faster than during school time though.

so sorry for the filler chapters, but i hope you liked it!

~your best friend takeshi