Attack On Titan: Pure Blood

🍋Chapter 20: The limited parallelism of their paths and connected hearts

"Victor," Mikasa said, looking oddly serious. "We can talk?"

The seriousness of the girl surprised him a little, but he quickly collected himself and looked urgently at her, and then at the path that led to his house where Annie was waiting for him.

"Do you need to talk to me right now?" he asked hastily.

Mikasa looked a little taken aback.

"Well... no, but..."

"So do you mind if we talk another time?" he asked, passing by her. "We can talk tomorrow when we go to the Scout HQ. It's just that I'm in a bit of a hurry right now, someone is waiting for me."

"Do you mean Annie?" Mikasa asked, in a somewhat accusing tone.

Victor remained static in his place and turned to look at her with slight surprise.

Mikasa looked serious, and maybe it was just his imagination, but he could also see that she was a bit upset.

"Well, yeah..." he admitted. "We will both part tomorrow. She will go to the Military Police, and I will go to the Scouts." He looked down and smiled slightly sadly. "We won't see each other for a while. So, I want to spend this last night with her."

Victor didn't notice the underlying meaning behind his own words, but Mikasa did, and it caused her brow to furrow a little deeper and her lips to press into a thin line. A feeling of discomfort filled her heart. An unknown feeling for her and not the least bit pleasant.

"Well, then I..."

"No," she interrupted, looking at him seriously. "Don't go with her."

Victor arched an eyebrow.

"And why wouldn't I? "

"You shouldn't do it because..." Mikasa pursed her lips with a conflicted expression. "... She will only hurt you. Annie doesn't care about anyone but herself."

If Victor had been confused before, now he was somewhat annoyed by the derogatory way Mikasa spoke of Annie.

Mikasa was an important friend to him. And now, there was the possibility that they were family too. So, he would have consideration for her.

"Look, Mikasa, I know you and Annie don't get along very well, but she's not as cold and indifferent as everyone thinks she is," he explained patiently. "I've seen what she has under that apathetic expression she always wears, and I can safely say that she is a good person. And I don't regret that I started dating her. What's more, I'm glad I did. That is the conclusion I came to after surviving the Battle of Trost. I want to live my life to the fullest. Without lies. No regrets."

Mikasa looked away with a slight frown. She couldn't blame him for having those kinds of thoughts. They had survived hell that day. And that just reminded her how much she appreciated that Armin and Eren survived. The relief she felt when she found out that Eren wasn't dead was so great that it overwhelmed her with a fervent desire to protect him from losing him again.

She couldn't blame Victor for thinking the same thing by wanting to take advantage of the time he has with his loved ones, and even more so considering that they now joined the Scouts, who were constantly in danger of death on their shoulders when leaving the walls.

But still...

"No," she shook her head stubbornly. "Annie is not good for you."

"You only believe that because you don't know her," he replied, trying to reason with her. "Maybe if you give her a chance and talk to her..."

"I don't want to talk to her," Mikasa interrupted coldly.

Again, Victor was confused. It was strange for Mikasa to act in such an irrational way. He knew she acted that way when Eren was involved, but this was something different. Mikasa not only seemed reluctant to try to meet Annie, but she also seemed to be... annoyed with her in some way.