I lost my footing as the force of the Titan's fists brought the roof crashing down around me. Instinctively, I reached upward to grab hold of something, only to pierce my palm on a splintered support beam. I screamed out in pain but knew better than to let go.

Looking through the roof, I was finally able to see who had come to our aid. The speed of my savior was unmistakable. Levi zipped around the titan, slicing into its skin in a fit of rage. I struggled to rejoin the battle, but my stomach dropped when I realized I could no longer move my arm; I must have broken it in the fall. I was rendered completely useless, left only to dangle helplessly, at the mercy of Levi.

The commotion must have caught the attention of another Titan nearby. Levi had almost finished off the first one when he was swiped by a second. He was quick to recover until a third, smaller Titan jumped onto the roof next to him. Its eyes slowly peered down toward me, abandoning its initial target for a more obtainable one.

"Shit," I whispered.

I heard a heavy thud outside, knowing Levi had downed one of the two Titans he was facing. The weight of its body hitting the ground caused more of the roof to crumble, making the nimble Titan jump toward me. I screamed in agony as it caught onto my broken arm. I could feel its weight beginning to tear at my socket; the bitter taste of death engulfing my tongue.

All at once, the second Titan's corpse came crashing down from above. With a swipe of his blade, Levi sliced the small titan from my arm and grabbed my waist, pulling me away from where I hung. But even with his speed, we weren't fast enough to escape the collapsing roof as it caved in around us.

***********************************

I have no idea how long I was out. All I know is that when I woke up, my arm had been wrapped and splinted, my wounds had been wiped clean, and a few of my gashes had been roughly stitched up. I winced as I tried to sit up to take a look at my surroundings. I couldn't have been alone, but I didn't see anyone. I suddenly realized that even though I was still trapped within the wreckage of the abandoned building, I felt strangely at peace.

I could see rays of light peering in, dancing against the bricks and stone. I watched birds hopping about the ground, pecking for food daintily, before flying off from the sound of footsteps. I looked up, fully expecting to see Mari. Instead, Levi turned the corner, nursing a slight limp. I must have gasped at the sight of him because he glanced my way and sighed.

"Took you long enough to wake up."

I rubbed my head, trying to remember what had happened.

"Where's Mari?"

Levi didn't respond to me. He just slowly made his way over to the cape he had spread out beside me and plopped down on the ground with exhaustion. I knew what his silence meant, so I just hung my head in shame. I had lost my whole team, and Levi had gotten injured because of my selfishness.

"I'm sorry, Captain. I should have been able to save them myself, without getting you involved."

"Tch- you still think you can go it alone, don't you...?"

"What?"

Levi's eyes narrowed as he leaned in closer to me.

"Just fucking say thank you."

I blushed from awkward embarrassment and looked down at my lap, avoiding eye contact.

"Thank you... Captain."

Levi flopped onto his back and let out an annoyed groan. Sliding his palms up over his forehead, he pushed his hair out of his face. I could see how frustrated he was, but I wasn't fully aware of our predicament just yet.

"Where is everyone anyway?"

He glared at me, then looked away and mumbled, "They're gone. I saw the goddamn blue smoke signal right before nightfall. They had to retreat. The mission failed."

I felt my body get cold. They retreated... without us?

"Wait- then... that means... they just left me...?" I uttered slowly, as I forced back tears.

Levi sat up in bewilderment, detecting the uncharacteristic despair in my voice as it faltered. I didn't expect what would happen next, but it would open a door that I had locked years ago.

Levi abruptly pulled my face into his hands and forced me to make eye contact with him. We were so close, our noses were practically touching. My breath began to shudder, unsure of what was happening. Finally, with a flicker in his eyes, Levi spoke in a stern yet warm tone.

"I'm right here, (F/N). You haven't been abandoned. "

I couldn't move. He kept his focus on me, still close as ever. I watched his eyes shift a few times, studying my face, memorizing each detail. He backed up slightly, staring at the large scar that started at the crook of my neck and traveled down to my chest. It was usually covered by my uniform, but my shirt had been torn in the fall, no longer hiding it. Levi leaned in again, bringing his fingers down to examine it. I pulled away quickly, fearing that if he touched it, he would somehow know how I got it.

"Oi, I'm not gonna hurt you. You should know that by how much you look like a damn mummy right now."

I peered down at my bandaged limbs, then back up at him. I inhaled sharply as his warm fingertips met my skin. He gently traced my scar starting under my chin and gliding down my neck. I grabbed his hand before he could go any further.

"Levi..." I whispered.

"I'm sorry that this happened to you, (F/N)."

Suddenly, as if to vomit, my emotions unexpectedly erupted from deep inside of me, causing me to bury my face into his chest.  He had spoken as if he knew my scar had been inflicted upon me by a human and nothing else. Tears began to stream down my face as I choked back wails of pure devastation. Every memory I had once buried came rushing back to the forefront of my mind. I was flooded with an overwhelming need to die. But Levi just calmly held me close in my pathetic state. He didn't say a word. He just let me release everything I had held onto for so long, there in the safety of his arms.

For the next few days, Levi barely slept. During the day, he stood watch, looking out for Titans. During the night, he cleaned and redressed our wounds and scrounged up whatever he could find for us to eat. I felt pretty worthless, being confined to the ground. Levi had informed me that I had gotten hurt pretty bad in the fall, and how lucky I was to have only broken a few ribs and my ankle, along with my already broken arm. He eventually told me that when he found Mari's body, she had been gone for some time.

"It's true you know," Levi started, "that we're stuck here in this mess because of the choices you made-"

I began to argue back, but he spoke over me.

"--and it was your choice to risk your life for Mari. You shot off the emergency flare. You could have just run away, ensuring your own survival, but you didn't this time around, did you?"

I briefly paused what I was doing. I had almost finished rewrapping Levi's arm where he had torn off a good chunk of skin, but I stopped and looked up into his steel-grey eyes.

"You noticed that?"

"I noticed that you actually listened to me for once. I've seen hints of who you really are show up every once in a while. I never did take you for a person who would really be so egotistic."

I sat up, just plain baffled.

"What the hell? You're just gonna sit there dissecting my soul and pretending to know who I am? You wouldn't give two shits if you really knew me-"

Levi grabbed my arms, maybe a little harder than he meant to, and brought my face to his.

"Stop with this self-deprecating bullshit, brat! You think you're the only one with some kinda fucked up past!?"

He stopped himself before he could go any further. His eyes widened at his own emotional slip, as he released his grasp.

I waited a few moments before gently bringing his arm back to my knee so I could finish his bandage. We had both accidentally dropped our hardened facade before the other but had been quick to retreat behind it once again. I glanced up at him slightly to find his eyes far off in some distant memory. The moonlight seemed to hit him just right, accentuating his jawline and defining his slim, yet muscular physique. I must have been staring longer than intended because I didn't notice him turn back toward me.

"Oi, (F/N)."

I blinked a few times and shook my head.

"Sorry- I think I'm just tired," I mumbled.

"Then get some sleep. Tomorrow, we're gonna come up with a game plan to get back home."

I nodded and eased myself down onto my back. I could see the night sky through the rafters above me. The stars seemed to be shining brighter than I remembered.