It was Friday morning. I stood in front of my horse. My luggage was on the ground beside me. Each member of the Survey Corps stood before me, except Hanji, who was already on her horse. "Alright, say your goodbyes. We need you back by the start of classes," Hanji said. 

"Oh yeah, sorry."

I walked over to the line of Corps members. I shook both Oluo and Mike's hands. Petra gave me a gentle hug. Then there was Erwin. He reached out for a handshake but I pushed it away and gave him a hug. He bent down, leveling down to my height, and held me close. "Thanks for what you said the night before," I whispered. "I don't know what you mean," he joked. I let go and smiled at him. He smiled back. I slowly walked over to my final goodbye, Levi. He looked at me, obviously upset, and hugged me tightly. "Do you have to leave?" he whined. "Yeah I do, but if I get the chance I can try to visit. Maybe you could visit me too," I said, trying to be optimistic. "Y-Yeah, we should try to visit. I'd really like that," he told me before letting go. Levi smiled at me and I smiled in return. "Never thought I'd see the day Levi smiled!" Hanji interrupted, ruining the moment. 

Levi rolled his eyes and Hanji told me it was time to go. I waved goodbye to everyone, then got on my horse. Levi handed me my bag and helped me secure it to the horse. "Thanks," I said sweetly. "Ready?" Hanji asked impatiently. I was ready. 

"Then let's go."

Hanji kicked her horse and it went off galloping. I followed close behind her. Everyone stood in the exact same spot I'd left them in and waved goodbye to me. I turned back and waved back at them. In the end, I was glad I joined them for the summer. If I hadn't, I wouldn't have met all of those amazing people. I sure was going to miss all of them. Every single one of them. 

It was about an hour before we got back to the base. Lucky for me, the breakfast bell hadn't rung yet. I untacked my horse and grabbed my bag. "Is that it?" Hanji asked. I nodded. "Alright, then I'll be going now. It was nice having you around for the summer, Y/N. We'll miss you. You're free to join us anytime. We hope to see you again, someday," Hanji declared. 

"Thanks. Tell everyone I said bye again, and that I miss them already," I insisted. 

"Will do. Well, anyway, I'm off."

Hanji kicked her horse and it ran off into the distance with her. "Bye, Y/N!" she yelled, waving back at me. I yelled a goodbye back. I watched her until she was beyond what my eyes could see. All of a sudden, the breakfast bell screeched. I'd forgotten how loud it was. I realized I'd forgotten to bring my stuff back to my cabin before breakfast and I began to panic. I ran up the hill, passing a lot of familiar faces. I bumped into many shoulders, getting a lot of angry groans and comments. All of a sudden, someone grabbed my arm. I turned back to look at who it was. It was Armin. "Y/N, you're back!" he yelled with a huge, cheery smile across his face. "Yeah, I am," I chuckled back. He reminded me, "just in time, your birthday's soon!" 

"It is?"

I thought about it for a second. That's right, my birthday was coming up soon. "Oh, I forgot. how'd you know?" I asked. 

"So you still don't remember then, do you?"

His gaze hit the ground, he stopped smiling. "You told me when we were close," he explained. 

"I'm sorry, Armin. Well anyway, I've gotta bring my bag back to my cabin. I'll see you later then, okay?"

"Sure."

I walked back up to my cabin, then up the creaky wooden steps. I opened the door and threw my bag across the room. For some reason, my bed was messy, and I didn't remember leaving it that way. Had someone been sleeping here? I didn't care, I just wanted breakfast. I left my cabin and ran down to the mess hall. I'd been in that time for exactly a year now, but I couldn't quite remember why I ever stayed in the first place. I ran into the mess hall. It was a bit surprising seeing everyone again. It felt nostalgic. 

The day went by and eventually, it was free period. I lay comfortably in my bed, thinking. I was back, but what now? There was about a week until my birthday. I wondered if I should go home after that. It wasn't like I had anyone to celebrate it with there, especially since I left the Survey Corps. But, then again, nobody was waiting for me back home. I felt like I had absolutely no place I belonged to and I wasn't sure what to do. 

A week went by quickly, and it was my birthday. I was laying in bed before the breakfast bell rang. I cozied up in my blanket, not opening my eyes even once. I listened to the relaxing sounds of nature. Eventually, I got up and got dressed. I couldn't believe I was 19 now. I didn't feel any different, it wasn't special. "Well, this is the most depressing birthday ever," mumbled. It would just be another normal day for everyone else. It was stupid of me to ever expect anything. Happy Birthday to me.