blank open eyes | reiner braun x reader

chapter six

A gentle nudge of your shoulders pulled you from your agitated sleep; the sound of your name being called out softly enough to wake you up entirely.

You blinked once, and then twice, adjusting to the brightness that the morning brought with it. Already, you could feel the stiffness in your neck from sleeping propped against the wall, your head lolling against your shoulder through the night.

Your gaze drifted up slowly, meeting the warm eyes of Reiner from under your lashes. He was kneeling close to you, retracting his hand as he watched you gather yourself into alertness. You quickly remembered where you were, and sat up straighter, your back straining from sleeping upright.

"Are we back already?" you asked tiredly, the previous night's mission flooding back to you, as well as the nausea. You rubbed a hand over your face once, trying to snap yourself into reality. "How long was I out?"

A part of you was embarrassed that you'd fallen asleep at all, but from the looks of it, so had almost everyone else.

Pieck was stretching her arms above her head, blinking wearily as if she wanted to go right back to her dreams. Opposite of her, Porco was still passed out on the floor of the aircraft, an arm flung over his forehead.

Reiner nodded, glancing over his shoulder for half a second. Behind him, Zeke was talking to another soldier that hadn't been with you on the mission. He must have ridden out from the city before you'd woken up.

"A couple hours," Reiner said, answering your previous question. "We landed at the base about twenty minutes ago. I think they're about ready to take us back to headquarters. We'll have to debrief the mission this afternoon, but at least we'll have some time to rest until then." His expression was stoic and weary, the image of a leader who was bringing his troops back from war.

"Alright," you said quietly, your voice still a bit rough with sleep. "Thanks for letting me know."

Reiner stood, nodding before walking to Zeke. It was obvious that neither of them had slept for a moment on the way back, too caught up in their own heads and conversations of battle.

You made your way over to Porco, loathing the soreness caused by the cool steel. Although you'd been roused into awareness, you hardly felt rested; you'd take just about any plush surface to sleep on, even if it was a sofa in the middle of the town square.

Porco began stirring even before you poked him awake, his dark eyes snapping open once you called out to him. Within a flash, he jerked his torso into a sitting position, registering his surroundings.

"We're just outside Liberio," you told him, and he relaxed. You scanned the bandages around his torso; it seemed like there weren't any new blood stains. His wound must have healed already. "How are you feeling?"

"Fine," Porco said dismissively, rubbing at his temple. "Told you I'd be alright."

"I can never be too sure with you." It was too early for your words to hold their usual bite. You flicked him on the forehead gently before standing, stretching out your sore joints and muscles.

Porco unwrapped the dressings, revealing skin that was as good as new. Blood that had dried and crusted still lurked around the edges, but the gash had closed completely.

You handed him his jacket when he pulled the soiled shirt back down over his torso. The red stains sharply contrasted with the white material, and you had trouble taking your gaze off the color that had bloomed over the open wound.

"This happens to at least one of us, every time," Pieck said softly, pulling your attention away from Porco. "It's like we can't go a single mission without an injury that would've killed a normal person."