The sheer power of the transformation sent a shockwave through the air that slammed into all of us. my body was hurled far backward on the wall, I couldn't even see where eren had fallen from the wall, my vision blurred, my mind spinning.
Then, I felt arms wrapping around me, pulling me close, steadying me. I didn't know who it was, and I didn't care. I couldn't focus on the chaos around me, the people around. none of it mattered.
all I could do was sink into the storm of memories flooding me.
My mind refused to stop replaying every moment reiner and I had shared. every quiet conversation, every glance, every touch. it all played on a loop, twisting into something darker with every passing second.
Reiner was always going to betray us. It wasn't a moment of weakness, or some sudden change of heart. he had always been the armored titan, the one who helped destroy shiganshina, the one who had brought ruin to our world. this wasn't some mistake or misunderstanding, this was who he was.
Which meant every moment we shared, every word he said, every promise, it was all a lie.
He confessed his love for me, that memory cut deeper than the rest. did he enjoy how stupid I was for believing him? for trusting him?
Our connection, our bond, was another piece of his lies.
The sound of movement broke through my thoughts. I saw reiner's hand closed around eren, gripping him, and my stomach turned. bertholdt's colossal hand reached, grabbing unconscious ymir as if she weighed nothing at all.
But even that didn't fully snap me out of it. I just kept thinking about the memories that now felt tainted and cruel, all of it was poisoned now.
reiner skidded downward the wall, eren with him, and I felt my body sag further into the arms holding me. I didn't even register who it was, my mind too clouded to care. but then, through the haze, I heard his voice, soft, insistent, and unmistakably armin's.
his words barely registered. I couldn't bring myself to move, couldn't muster the strength to react. my chest felt like it was collapsing in on itself. Is this what heartbreak felt like? this hollow, suffocating ache that left you paralyzed?
Through the blur of my emotions, I caught a flicker of light. bright, electric, and unmistakable. my heart lurched as my gaze shifted to where reiner was skidding downward. and I knew, It was eren.
