Venus and Rose

Chapter Nine: Goodbyes

[Jean's POV]

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Jean stayed by your side after Reiner rejoined Bertholdt and Annie. Even with everything going on around them, he couldn't help but feel a surge of jealousy when he saw Reiner speaking to you so closely. Jean knew Reiner had feelings for you, even though he hid them so well. So, it annoyed Jean to no end whenever he saw Reiner at your side. What's worse, you seemed to reciprocate Reiner's feelings. Jean didn't know what else he could do. Although he flirted with you whenever he had the opportunity, you never took him seriously and he was losing hope that you would look at him the way he wanted you to.

"How are you?" Jean asked concernedly; it was rare to see you without warmth and light behind your eyes.

"Oh I'm fine, thanks," you replied with an obviously fake grin.

Jean couldn't help but keep glancing at your bandaged hands. You still hadn't told them what had happened to your squad, and he was too nervous to ask outright. He didn't want to force you from your state of shock. If it was the same as he had felt after realizing that Eren was the massive titan fighting against other titans, he needed that time alone with his thoughts to recover after what he had seen. Even with the gag order held over him, he had an overwhelming urge to confide in you; receive some ounce of comfort from you. Yet the thought was dashed away when he looked back at your silent form. He couldn't bear the thought of putting more pressure on you.

Sasha was sitting on your other side, rocking back and forth clutching her stomach.

"Oi, Sasha. Quite faking it! We will not count you as one of the wounded; you can't get out of this!" Connie suddenly yelled at her. Sasha gasped, and they argued loudly while you stayed quiet.

Jean jumped as a cannon exploded from inside the wall. Jean stared at the smoke rising steadily over the tops of the distant buildings. "Is that, titan vapour," he asked aloud. Screams and panicked voices quickly arose from the surrounding cadets and Jean felt your bandaged hands clutch his forearm.

"What is it?" you asked fearfully.

Jean tried to mask his own fear, to ease yours. "I'll go, you all stay here."

Following Reiner, who had instantly shot onto the rooftops, Jean sped away from you. At the base of the wall was a sickening sight. A titan's mutilated body was barely visible through the thick steam coming from it; a grizzly mass of bones and muscle tissue. Landing beside Reiner on top of a roof overlooking the square, Jean, Annie, and Bertholdt watched the surrounding soldiers pointing their weapons at the steaming titan.

"What the hell is going on?" Reiner muttered.

Jean stared in shock, also unable to fully comprehend what was happening.

After a few minutes, a figure dashed out of the smoke and Jean recognized Armin. "Eren is not a foe of humanity!" Armin yelled with his arms raised in surrender. Armin tried to explain the situation, but the garrison captain ignored him. Jean remembered how Eren's titan fought the others, and how they in turn attacked him. If it could be believed, Jean realized that Armin was right.

However, Captain Woermann seemed too hysterical to comprehend what Armin was saying. Just as Captain Woermann raised his arm to signal for the firing squad, an older man grabbed his arm. Too focused on Armin and Captain Woermann, Jean hadn't noticed the newcomers' approach. Jean couldn't hear what was said, but soon Commander Pyxis directed Armin, Eren, and Mikasa to follow him up the wall, leaving everyone on the ground in a dumbfounded silence.

Jean rubbed his forehead and groaned. Trying to process everything was giving him a headache. Without speaking to the others beside him on the rooftop, Jean turned away from the crowd of soldiers; his only thought was to get back to you.