~from (y/n)'s POV~

You coughed. "Wait, she's-"

Levi cut you a glare. "Yeah, she's gone, or did you want to examine her body?" He tch'd in disgust. "She has no pulse, (y/n). She's dead."

You could only sputter in shock. Dead? But...

But that could have been me...

You knew you were thinking selfish thoughts, but you couldn't control yourself. Fear was creeping up on you, and only the presence of Eren and Levi kept you rational.

"Are we all that's left?" you asked quietly, both a question of did anyone else die and is anyone else trapped in here.

Eren nodded, attempting a small smile. "There are a few others we ran into along the way."

You paused. "Why us? What made us so special? What do we have in common? There's got to be something."

Eren shrugged, helplessness clear in his eyes. "I wish I knew, (y/n). Right now, the only thing we're sure of is how the cell phones work." He sighed. "I know, it's not a lot to go on, but that's all we have."

You smiled back at him, appreciating his efforts to placate you. "That's all right, Eren. You guys aren't the ones who trapped us here." You sighed as you started thinking of how the world might be going on without you...

"What is it, (y/n)?" Eren asked, concerned.

You shook your head, a small smile on your lips. "Nothing. I was just thinking of how today was all messed up because of this..."

"Why were you here today, (y/n)?" Eren asked politely. "You don't have to answer if you feel like I'm prying," he added quickly.

"I was supposed to be meeting someone," you said with a shrug. "But then..." You gestured towards the wall, and Eren nodded sympathetically. "You?"

Eren winced. "I was supposed to be watching my little sister, but I looked away for a few minutes and..." He sighed, guilt etched within the shadows and crevices of his face.

Wow, he's got it so much worse than me, you realized. He has to feel awful... "I'm sure she's okay," you attempted to console him, smiling. "Maybe she got lucky and was outside the walls before we got stuck in here."

"Maybe." He didn't sound too hopeful.

Seeing as he looked like he needed a moment to himself, you turned to Levi. "Why were you here today?"

"Why don't you mind your own business?" he asked back, but when he asked a question, it sounded like an imperative command. Still, he waited a moment before answering. "I was going to meet up with my cousin. She graduated early to go off to some prestigious university of research, and she was coming back for the weekend to celebrate someone's birthday with us. She...she always liked these kinds of places, with big crowds and a million things going on at once." By his tone, you could tell that he was definitely not a fan of chaotic places but that he'd cared enough about his cousin to accompany her.

And now she was dead.

"I'm...sorry," you added after a moment, suddenly feeling extremely ashamed. Both of the boys who had taken the time to look after you and make sure you survived were already dealing with problems of their own, and they certainly didn't need you causing them trouble. Yet this entire time, you had been only focusing on yourself and how the situation affected you.

"A puddle," he murmured dully. "She was killed by a puddle."

How do you comfort someone in this situation? In a video game, the idea would be ridiculous, comical even. And yet...

This wasn't a game at the arcade. This was real. It became real the moment you couldn't leave, the moment Hanji died, the moment the electric field came up.

And suddenly, the full weight of reality fell on you.

You were stuck in here with limited resources and a precarious lifeline. What if there was a storm and the electricity blew out so you couldn't recharge? What if you lost your phone and slowly died as the battery slipped away? Even if you managed to stay charged, what would happen when the food ran out, when the loneliness set it, when you got stuck somewhere and couldn't call for help?

Call for help... You took out your cell phone and dialed 9-1-1 (or your specific emergency services number). Please, work...

A few seconds later, you slowly pulled the phone away from your ear, the incessant beeping telling you all that you needed to know.

Levi glanced over tiredly. "Won't work. Calls can't pass through that electric field. I can text or call you and vice versa, but nothing gets out of here, and nothing gets in."

Eren seemed to have shaken off his early grief and rejoined the two of you. "While we're at it, why don't we exchange numbers? That way, we can contact each other if we get lost or need help."

"Good idea," you murmured as you all swapped contact information. When both Levi and Eren's numbers were stored on your phone, you reached to slip it into your pocket when it vibrated. You looked in surprise to Eren and Levi to see if they had just sent a confirmation text.

Eren noticed your glance and shook his head, and Levi just gave you a look.

Slowly, you pulled your cell phone back out and flicked to your messages.

Boyfriend: want 2 meet up?

"But...that's not possible...texts can only be sent from within the park, right?" you asked, looking to Levi for confirmation, and he nodded.

"As far as we can tell, yeah."

"Then...that means..." That means your boyfriend is in the park, too!