7 Days Till [Armin x Jean]

6 Days Till the Invasion

[TW for vomiting/ Forceful attempt at vomiting]

By the time I woke up the next day, the sun was already up in the sky. I slowly sat up and looked over at the sundial on the desk across the room. The shadow said it was almost noon already. With a groan, I laid back on the bed and thought about yesterday.

I wasn't out late with Jean last night. We had dinner together, then he walked me to my room before heading back to his shared room with Connie across the wing. Every one of us had a shared room except myself. Sasha and Mikasa, Jean and Connie, even Eren and I shared a room for a while. However, after receiving the Colossal Titan's power, I had spent the following nights crying, throwing up from fear and unease, waking up with nightmares of Bertholdt's screams. While it never bothered Eren, Levi and Hanji felt it'd be best if I received a room of my own that was down the hall from the rest of my friends. And from there on I stayed here, even after I was able to sleep throughout the night, and even after Eren left for Marley before the rest of us.

I covered my face, thinking about what happened after Jean went to his own room. The night was kind of a blur to me, and at first, I couldn't figure out why. That was until the memory hit me like a wave and I leaned over the bed in horror. I was up late last night thinking of Bertholdt, thinking of when I nearly died then gained his power, thinking of the feelings and thoughts I had the moment I realized I hadn't died, only to have had my life expanded for 13 more years. The thought kept me awake last night, and it felt as though it was back to haunt me now during the morning. While I don't remember "eating" him to gain his power, I remember his screams and pleas for help. I remember the way everyone explained his face and how they cowered in fear, not daring to help him.

I pulled a bucket out from under my bed and coughed, feeling nauseous thinking of it all. The screams, the pleas, the face of fear and defeat, the look on my friends' faces when they realized I'm a shifter, the look on Levi and Hanji's face when they came to accept the fact that I am alive and not Erwin, the look of the public once we came back and they learned I was now a shifter. I coughed again into the wooden bucket, trying hard to throw up in hopes that it would make me feel better. However, nothing was coming up. I felt my face start to sweat from the brutal actions of heaving and decided to try my last resort on throwing up. I gently stuck two fingers into my mouth and shoved them towards the back of my throat to try and force it. I gagged heavily, causing more sweat to appear on my face, but nothing came up this time either. I was about to try again, more forcefully, when there was a knock on the door.

"Armin? Are you awake yet?" A familiar voice asked.

I froze in place, staring at the door.

Jean!

I quickly took my hands from my mouth and shoved the wooden bucket back under my bed. "Y-yeah! Give me one moment!" I called out, quickly standing up. He couldn't see me like this, not this early in the morning. I wiped my fingers on my sleeve and ran my arm over my face to dry any sweat that was there. In a rush, I tucked my shirt into my pants to appear more presentable and ran my fingers through my hair. I headed over to the door before realizing Jean would ask what I was doing before he arrived. I looked over at my desk and quickly, yet quietly, walked over and pulled some papers out of the drawer, along with some ink and a writing utensil. I grabbed an open book, one about Marley that we recovered from Eren's basement, and shoved the papers into it, placing it on the desk. Once I was satisfied by the fake arrangement, I walked over to the door and opened it.

I was greeted with Jean's eyes filled with worry as he stood at the door. As soon as he saw me in one piece, unharmed from some mysterious reason, his face softened and he smiled down at me. "Good afternoon, Jean," I smiled softly, feeling bad for acting as if I wasn't feeling horrible just a few minutes ago.