Yourself

Strangers

The following week, Reiner did his best to omit everyone he could. Of course, he clearly knew that it's not right, and he hated himself for that, but he just wasn't ready to face it all, at least yet. He had too much in his head and couldn't bring all the thoughts together, place them on their "right place" in his head. Everything just seemed to become a mess.

Neither has he apologized to Leda. Just couldn't help himself, couldn't find this courage. Every evening he looked at the lighten windows of her house, but just couldn't force himself to get up and go to her place.

So, the whole week, Reiner spent in relative loneliness. Zeke was showing him around the whole week, introduced to some routine. Reiner felt weird about it. Zeke was... unnaturally nice, and his almost constant smirk bothered Reiner.

That's how people who know something I don't know look like - he thought every time he saw Zeke. Something was off with him and, of course, Reiner couldn't know what.

Nevertheless, the fact that Zeke was introducing Reiner to work meant that brass was still counting on Reiner and, apparently, expected him to work. And Reiner, in return, immersed himself in work and training. He spent a lot of time on the training area, making sure to be alone there - he just wanted to vent that way, not to think about the mess his life turned into, at least for a moment. The rest of the time he locked himself up in a small mouldy office, which was given to him by the command to perform some paper work. Zeke said that this "gift" was connected with the fact that Reiner, highly possibly, will get some kind of "rank" in the nearest future. The young man didn't understand why would they do that, since he was sure they wanted to substitute him, but of course he wouldn't question that decision. Mainly because he didn't care much.

Sometimes Reiner saw other Warriors as well as young candidates at the base, but usually just watched them, like some kind of creep, not daring to approach and speak. Same concerned Leda.

The atmosphere at his home was tense and heavy. Karina tried to communicate with Reiner, but even if he replied to her openly, communication ended in dead-end in 3 or 4 phrases.

The same way, Reiner avoided walking down the streets much, after at the beginning of the week he almost bumped into Bert's father. Reiner was sure Mr. Hoover noticed him, and Reiner did the worst thing possible in this situation - turned into some small dirty street to avoid direct interaction with his passed-away best friend's father. He scolded himself for such action, but Reiner had no clue what to say to Mr. Hoover. Even Reiner himself hasn't coped yet with the loss of the only person who was always there for him on Paradis and Reiner blamed himself for Bert's death. Terrible death.

That week was enough for Reiner to understand - the rest of the lifespan, he has left being a titan-shifter, would be a real torture for him. The one that was convinced he deserved.

Leda submerged herself in her work as well with an almost relentless determination, using the demands of her profession as a shield against the complexities of her personal life. Mornings turned into late nights as she immersed herself in patient care, paperwork, and the steady rhythm of the medical facility.

Her interactions with Reiner were deliberately minimized. Avoiding him became a subtle art, strategically navigating the facility to minimize the chances of crossing paths. The routine tasks offered a semblance of normalcy, a refuge where she could temporarily escape the unresolved tension of her unspoken feelings for him.In the midst of her busy week Leda found herself sharing more than one meeting with Zeke as well, who seemed perpetually curious about how Croix's and her studies regarding the new application of his spinal fluid. "Wouldn't it be great if we could find a way to synthesize the titan serum from it and figure out a solution to blend it discreetly?" he once asked her. At first she didn't paid attention to the implication of what he was saying and found in his request another excuse to keep her mind busy on something that wasn't related to her neighbour. But god only knows how hard it was. Working in the same facilities, and in close contact to the younger cadets, including Gabi, finding new subtle ways to avoid him started to become challenging.