Jean was laying in bed after another grueling day of training at the camp. His muscles cramped up from practicing with the Tri-Dimensional Maneuver Gear for at least half the day, not to forget the numerous bruises he had gotten from learning new hand-to-hand combat moves with the others. The showers that followed, were not only cold, but also hectic and short-lasting due to the horde of dirty teenagers who were eager to wash off the sweat and grim of the day. No, it wasn't until after showers and supper had passed that one could finally relax a little. In the sleeping quarters, the mattresses of the bunk beds were not that comfortable, but at the end of a long day, any rest was welcome.

The teenager got lost in thought. He often imagined what the future held for him. After two years of training, it had become quite obvious to him that he would make it into the top 10 graduates. Although legitimately talented, Jean did have a certain cockiness to him. It's entirely possible that he would have held the same belief even if he had been a mediocre trainee. No matter, he knew he would realize his dream of serving into the Military Police. The knowledge of this had made him feel somewhat resentful of the amount of time and training dedicated to the mastery of the 3DMG ever since. When would he ever face the Titans? If they (those pieces of shit) ever made it all the way through Wall Sina, then humanity's fate would almost certainly be sealed already anyway, would it not?

The young man stretched his fatigued muscles slowly, enjoying the soft feeling of the sheets on his bare chest. He stopped thinking about the future and let himself fall into his more...primal instincts. A man's got to relax sometimes, after all. He subtly slid a hand under the covers and into the elastic band of his pants. The lights were dimmed, and while a few other trainees were already sleeping, reading, or laying in bed writing letters to their relatives, most were still in the common area, socializing. Jean took advantage of the room's quietness and began rubbing himself discretely. He closed his eyes shut, attempting to picture a naked Mikasa Ackerman as he fondled himself softly. "Haah- yeah...She's so fine...hmm."

He could not form a clear image of the girl's body in his mind, however, and he caught himself fantasizing more and more about the satisfaction he would get if he were to sleep with her. That is, the satisfaction he would get from stealing what he figured was Eren Jeager's girlfriend.

"Aaah, that suicidal little fucker. Fucking hate you. Nngh." He grumbled inwardly, his dick softening as all he could visualize now was that face he wanted to punch into so badly. "What would you do if I took Mikasa away from you, huh!?" The images of Mikasa disappeared as fast as they had come, and all he could think about was Eren's dumb expressions staring him down. "You wouldn't act so tough then, wouldn't you…yeah you wouldn't, you fucker." He let go of his cock and turned to his side, now completely turned off as he sighed to himself: "Whatever, screw it."

-"Did you say anything, Jean?"

He hadn't noticed Marco walking into the sleeping quarters.

"Haah? N-no." Jean scoffed as he sat up. Him and his friend shared a bunk, Jean at the top, Marco at the bottom. The pale haired teen checked between his legs quickly to make sure there was no awkward surprise poking through the fabric, but the images of his rival in his mind has already taken care of that. "So, what's up?" He casually blurted.

Jean didn't even notice at first, how his eyes followed Marco's arms as he pulled his shirt over his head. His gray eyes jumping from Marco's abs, to the soft trail of hair on his stomach. To his tan, freckled skin, to his lean, but fit build.

"Not much..." The freckled boy replied as he threw the piece of clothing over on his own mattress. "Maaan, I'm sore." He groaned as he lifted his arms one by one over his head, tilting his neck to each side and then in a circular motion. Eyes closed, he was completely oblivious to the stares of his best friend. Marco was built similarly to Jean, albeit he was slightly taller and thinner than him. They had both strong, muscled arms and shoulders, but both shared a certain youthful finesse as well. After all, using the 3DMG was not only a matter of brute force; it required as much agility as it required strength. After two years of six days of training a week, the recruits had all bulked up. Training to become a soldier was arduous, ungrateful work. Even Jeager's pocket dog, Armin Arlert , the weakest person in the 104th training squad, had grown some muscle up over the last year, if only a little.

Jean finally caught himself starring and quickly adverted his gaze, colors filling his pale face in seconds. "What the fuck, Jean. What the fuck. What the fuck!?" Perhaps this would have been simple curiosity, an odd, single moment of confusion amidst the raging hormones of a teenage boy, something quickly forgotten. Perhaps it would have been, if Marco had not jumped and lifted himself up swiftly on Jean's bunk. He sat cross legged at Jean's feet, barefoot, his dark brown hair disheveled. "That new move with the 3DMG is really hard… I'm hurting everywhere." He sighed.

"Y-yeah!" Jean gulped, forcing himself to get a grip of himself. He replied casually: "I'm getting tired of spending so much time on it, really. You and I will probably never even use one again after we graduate. It's bullshit." He lifted his hands up in a careless shrug.

Marco Bott, the voice of reason, smiled softly. He learned forward and squeezed his friend's leg through the sheets. "Aaw come on Jean, you know you can't think like that." Jean felt his body tensing up like a rock; he prayed the fire he suddenly felt in his cheeks did not show in the dim light of the oil lamps. Marco, if he noticed at all, acted as normally as ever. "You never know when the Colossal Titan might come back, you don't know what could happen. If the Titans make it into Wall Sina, it's going to be our job to stop them." His brows furrowed slightly, his brown eyes taking on a deeper, complex expression as he stared into Jean's. "We have to take this seriously, you understand?"

The younger teenager froze for a second before shifting his gaze away, frowning as he crossed his arms over his naked chest. "Don't be stupid, y-you think I don't know that?!" He shifted his legs under the covers and finally noticed his erection poking through the white sheets. He slowly dared a look at Marco, gulping nervously, sweat dripping down his back, hands shaking.

Marco had surely noticed by now, because his freckled cheeks had reddened as much as his darker complexion would allow, and Jean could see his chest rising up and down faster. He swore he could almost hear him breath from across the bed, but that might have been his own heavy respiration too. They both stared at each other in silence, for what felt forever.

-"…"

-"…"

Someone closed a book loudly across the room and shifted in their own bed. "Well, g'night Berth, I'm ready to pass out." Reiner snuffed the lamp on his bed post and laid down, the wood under the mattress creaking under his heavy frame as he moved. "G'night guys." He said louder to the rest of the squad. Jean and Marco suddenly both emerged of their trance, startled, eyes wide like those of trapped animals.

Marco scratched his nose nervously. "Yep, me too! Good night!" He slid off Jean's bunk in seconds, without taking another look at his friend, leaving him staring straight ahead, his light grey eyes still wide opened. He took another look at the tent between his legs, before laying back down. He could not tell how long it took for his heart to stop beating against his chest. All he knew is that the racing thoughts in his mind kept him awake for most of the night. He wondered about the young man sleeping a few feet away from him. Or…did he spend the night awake too?

End of chapter 1