"Pardon me?" Eren said demanded.

"Never mind," Levi said a little too quickly. He looked away so that Eren couldn't see the sudden panic and realization in his face. Levi was often quiet, but once he opened his mouth he always managed to say the wrong thing.

Eren shrugged, knowing it would be better to leave it alone... For now.

Sleeping while being handcuffed to somebody else was uncomfortably irritating because Eren moved a lot when he was asleep. Sometimes he would unknowingly tug away, only to feel a heavy weight follow it. It wasn't really sleeping at all.

Levi watched him struggling to doze off as he battled to keep his eyes opened. All the running made him exhausted and he badly wanted to smoke to kill time, but knew it would bother Eren. He could feel his ankles and thighs throb with a light pain as he shifted around. He ran very hard, which was something he wasn't very used to because he was usually gone before the cops arrived. There were many things he wanted to complain about; how cold it was, how bump their journey was going to be, but he was just glad that he escaped them.

Was Levi afraid of jail? Yes, he was. But he wasn't going to ever let it happen. When he heard the policemen, he was thinking about the fact that he had been potentially put himself in a situation where he could get dumped in jail, but he was repeating a question to himself which he asked himself on many occasions. What am I doing? and What have I done to my life?

Levi never got into college or university but if he had never decided to stay with his uncle, perhaps he would have, but now it was too late. He couldn't turn back now after everything he's done. He was smart and knew that a life with good education and a stable place to stay was much better than life on the run.

Levi only agreed with Kenny because he didn't want to disobey him. Kenny was his savior and his protector, at least, that's what he believed. If he had to be truly honest, he didn't think he did anything too bad. Sure, stealing and pick pocketing was bad, but he had never killed anyone. He injured, but never shot to kill. Just because he had done bad things didn't mean he didn't know the difference between good and bad.

It had past an hour before Levi noticed Eren's uncontrollable chattering and shivering. He rolled his eyes as he slipped out of his thin and slightly dried jacket and placed it atop of Eren's trembling body. Somehow he could still see the little boy those many years ago as he slept, like a similar image. He was still the boy with the radiant eyes and stubborn spirit. He was still his hero.

And yet he was keeping him hostage and if Levi had to be true to himself in that moment, he really didn't know what he was going to do.

---

Eren's back was sore and stiff as he gingerly lifted himself off the ground. His nose immediately wrinkled to the scent of cigarettes drifting in the air. He was just about ready to snap at Levi when he noticed the state he was in; tired looking face with darker eye circles than usual. His lips held a cigarette and his limp hands were against the floor. He was staring blankly out the opened doors. Eren almost mistook him as dead.

"Did you sleep well?" Levi said in a quiet voice, his words slurred and meshed up together.

"That's what I'd like to ask you," Eren said.

"I didn't get to sleep, I don't really have time for that anymore," he answered curtly as he blew out a puff of smoke. "But anyways, we should jump out soon. I'm positive that we're far enough."

"But I just woke up."

"I don't want any complaining," Levi said in an irritated tone of voice. He rubbed at his eyes tiredly and proceeded to toss his stubby cigarette away.

Eren quit his talking as he tossed Levi's jacket at him. "What if they find us again?"

"They won't," Levi insisted. "There's no way they could have followed us all the way here."

"You're underestimating the police."

"And you're underestimating me. We've got to go." Levi wobbled as he made it to his feet, and held on to the wall for support. "Well because I still don't trust you being alone, after everything that happened. Here, hold on to my arm."

Eren stepped toward him and placed his hand tightly on the man's right bicep. Levi was looking  down at railroad track below; it was a blur, but it was not as fast as Eren had thought it would be. That didn't make him not afraid, though. Having to jump onto the train was hard enough, but getting out was most likely going to be a horrifying experience. The wind was blowing directly on his face, stinging his eyes and make them tear up. He couldn't see well and he hoped that Levi would get them down safely.

"We will jump on the count of three, alright?"

Eren nodded.

"One."

Eren's heart was beating faster than the speed of light. Sweat was already drenching his face.

"Two."

He grasped his arm tighter.

"Three."

They jumped.

---

It was not a graceful fall, at least for Eren.

He landed on his feet hard, only to stumble onto his feet seconds later. Levi, on the other hand, rolled onto his back smoothly before getting up. The train continued to speed away, and soon it disappeared from their sight. Eren's head was spinning. The soles of his feet ached and dap grass was being pressed against the palms of his hands.

"What... What will we do now?"

"What else can we do?" Levi asked, bored. "We keep running of course, because is there any other option? There isn't."

"Run? How can we run if you're literally shaking like a leaf?" Eren blurted out.

"Don't mock me, kid. I'm fine. This happens all the time. Listen, I think I know where we are but I don't know this area too well. After buying new shit, we'll head down the road again. I don't want you fucking things up again, alright? Listen to what I tell you."

"How are we able to afford new supplies?"

Levi smirked coldly. "Well, I didn't take your wallet away for no reason, you know?"

Eren grit his teeth angrily and held his hands in fists. "Why bother taking my money if my parents will most likely pay the ransom anyway?"

Levi's face fell. "The ransom was Kenny's idea, not mine. I wasn't interested in any of that, and if your precious money means so much to you, you shouldn't have been carrying it around with you in the first place."

Levi yawned before facing the direction of where the road began. It was empty, just like the last town they were in. It was still early in the morning. Eren guessed it wouldn't be busy until later on when people had to go to work or school. The sky was coloured pale yellow with the puffy clouds slowly drifting by. It was a beautiful morning, once more reminding Eren of home and his dear family.

"How are we supposed to walk around when everyone knows who we are? They know you're a threat."

"Don't look suspicious, and cover your eyes. I don't plan to do any stops here, perhaps somewhere else. This place looks fairly populated."

"Saying that, shouldn't we be on our way then?"

"You're right. I don't want anyone getting in our way-"

As if on cue, almost ironically, another voice boomed. It was full of authority and strength, and Levi knew immediately who it must be. He groaned internally.

"Stop right there!" the voice shouted.

"Eren?"

"Yeah?"

"Run."

The both of them sprinted as fast as their tired and swollen feet could manage. They slipped a few times on the moist grass but did not stop no matter what. Multiple voiced erupted from behind them. Eren was already so used to it. He felt bad, like a criminal, like Levi. Running away from the people who were supposed to help you was the last thing Eren would have expected from himself. If his parents were somehow there watching him, he was very certain that they would be scolding him and shooting him dirty looks. It was as if his life had been transformed into a "Good boy goes bad" cliche sort of story. Levi wasn't even holding his hand this time, meaning he still had the chance to get away from him, so why was he running?

He literally had the opportunity to see his friends and family again handed to him on a silver plate. It was almost as if he no longer held control of his own body. He was a smart kid,so he had no idea why he was making such a stupid decision in that moment. Eren was done with running. Everything was hurting and it took a huge toll on him. He was sure he probably lost some weight from all the moving around he had done.

They were both fast and almost managed to outrun the police once more. Their ragged breathing was the only noise that entered their ears. Levi's whole body felt like it was on fire, and each step was slightly more excruciating than the last. His arms flopped to the side and soon he appeared almost like a zombie with clumsy and slow movements. He was basically shuffling now and Eren watched in horror as he finally collapsed to the ground. He fell face-first and he appeared almost like a dead man with all his limbs in awkward angles and his back barely rising. Eren began to panic. What was supposed to do?

He had two options: run towards the police and get Levi arrested or carry Levi and run even more. Out of those two options, he chose the stupid one.

Eren gasped with effort as he knelt to the ground to retrieve his captor. He carefully placed his hands under the short man's stomach and proceeded to lift him off the ground. For his size, he was quite heavy which made things a whole lot more difficult for Eren. He carried him bridal-style as he wobbled away with all his might. Eren had to think fast because there no way he could outrun the police now. He frantically looked around him and turned as he spotted a lane of alleyways, and hoped that the police man had bad eyes.

He ducked behind one and placed himself as far away from the entrance as best as he could. Levi's mouth let out shallow breaths and he sweating like he had just run a marathon. He was deadly pale and there was no sight of colour on his face to be found. Eren flipped on his hoodie and looked down just in case anyone looked their way. He slowly backed against the wall and fell against it, positioning himself into a comfortable sitting position. His legs were too long, so he had to bend his knees in order to fit in the cramped space.

Eren had one question echoing repeatedly inside his brain. Why am I doing this? Why am I doing this? Why am I doing this? Why am I doing this? Why am I doing this? Why am I doing this? Why am I doing this? Why am I doing this? Why am I doing this? Why am I doing this?

He listened to the sound of more shouting and yelling. His heart thumped with anxiety and much to his dismay, the police was near their little hiding place. Eren held his breath as if any small sound could blow their cover. He looked down at Levi once more before lightly tapping his cheek and whispering quietly to him.

"Levi. Levi, come on. Wake up."

No response other than a bit of stirring was the only actions he managed to get out of him.

"Open your eyes, you idiot."

This time, he slapped his cheek with some force.

He mumbled a few inaudible words before his eyelids opened gradually. They fluttered closed sometimes, but eventually fully opened. He was staring right into Eren's eyes, boring into them and his soul. They almost looked lifeless.

"Tired," he mumbled softly. His head drooped to the side, away from Eren's questioning gaze. He remained silent as he took slow but steady breaths. "Why did you do that? Carrying me all the way here."

"I didn't know what to do," he muttered back.

"You just saved me, your kidnapper. Do you realize how stupid that makes you? You could have ran away," he said sternly.

"But you said you're the one who's supposed to bring me home, and you told me I had to follow your orders," Eren stated  nervously. "I only did what you told me to do-"

"But was saving me a part of the instructions I gave you?"

"No," Eren answered quickly and gritted his teeth. "But if you were caught, you wouldn't be able to bring me home."

Levi let out a tired laugh as he covered his eyes with his arm.

"I'll bring you home."

---

AN:

thank you all so much for having so much patience :^)

and thank you for reading and merry christmas!

much love, takeshi