surrender. (aot)

chapter 7

We all celebrated our success. Everybody was in the cabin holding their cups of water, celebrating. 

"All right! MP, here I come!" Somebody shouted.

"You're really going to turn your back on the MP for the Scouts?" Thomas Wagner scoffed at Eren. 

"Why in the world would you do that? You're in the top ten." One of the cadets complained. 

"The Scouts have always been my goal," Eren explained, "I don't want the easy life. Not with all the work I've put in. I trained to fight Titans."

"Are you insane?!" Thomas snapped. 

All of the cadets went silent and looked at him. 

"How many people have died?" Thomas choked, "We're talking a fifth of the population! If that doesn't paint a picture for you, I don't know what will. This is our life now. We can't beat them." 

Everybody looked down. I sighed and looked at Eren, he had an angry look on his face. 

"Yeah? So what?" Eren argued, "We buckle? Take it all lying down?" 

Thomas opened his mouth slightly wanting to say something, but then looked down. 

"Things have changed. Maybe not a hell of a lot but enough." Eren began, "They aren't the mystery they were five years ago. There's still a long way to go but we've made progress."

Eren's voice started getting louder. "Every battle we lost taught us a lesson, gave us the tiniest  inroad toward something like hope. You telling me it's better to cut our losses?"

Everybody looked at Eren. 

"LET ALL THE DEATH AND DESTRUCTION BE MEANINGLESS?!" Eren shouted, "JUST TO BALL UP AND ACCEPT? NOT ON YOUR LIFE! Humanity's future lies outside the walls, and I'm going to clear the way!" Eren clenched his fist. 

"I'm going to take back what was ours! I'll drive them out." Eren continued, "And as long as at least one of us can say that, we're not done."

I could see the anger in his eyes. Everyone went silent. Tears started forming in Eren's eyes. He shut his eyes tightly, looked down, and ran out of the room. Me, Armin, and Mikasa chased after him. 

"Eren, wait!" Armin cried. 

Me, Mikasa, and Armin saw Eren sitting down on one of the stair steps, wiping his tears with his wrist. We all stood there looking at him. He turned around and looked back at us, under his eyes were pink. We all walked up to Eren. 

"Eren." Armin began, "That was, uh, quite a speech you gave us there." Armin sat two steps below Eren and Mikasa sat three steps above Eren. I took a seat beside Eren. 

"Yeah. Most of it was yours." Eren replied, "All that stuff you used to say back in the day." 

Armin looked away. "Yeah, well I'm joining the Scout Regiment, too!" Armin announced. 

Eren gasped. "Armin! Now you're just being stupid. Come on! You're not a fighter! Your life is with books!"

"I'm through with letting other people fight for me." Armin complained. Eren leaned back and made a tiny sigh. 

"Guess it's the Scouts for me, too, then." said Mikasa. Eren turned to Mikasa angrily. 

"Oh, come on! You were top of the class! You'd be wasting your shot!" Eren shouted. 

"Understand this, Eren. Where you go, I go." Mikasa explained, "I made a promise to your mother before she died. I'm not letting you die. I've got your back whether you like it or not. So just deal with it."