It was night, and Mikasa felt a bit uncouth, standing above Eren's bed, amongst the other sleeping recruits. She knelt down and shook his shoulder, waiting for him to open his eyes.

Mikasa sometimes had terrible, terrible nightmares in which Eren would never wake up from sleeping. She dwelled on being able to stare into those marvelous, emerald eyes, and the thought of being without them was like living in a world with no sunshine.

Mikasa looked around the room before whispering to him, "Eren… Eren, wake up."

Eren snapped awake, nearly knocking his head against hers. He knit his brows, "Mikasa? What are you doing here?"

"I want to talk to you, Eren." She replied in a hushed tone.

Eren pressed on with the questions. "Why are you in our cabin? Mikasa, isn't that against the rules?"

"Never mind the rules, Eren. Come outside with me, okay?" She asked, glancing around the dark room once more, and slipping outside, onto the grassy area in front of their barracks.

She sat down on the cold, dewy grass and watched the door, waiting for him. He finally ambled out onto the porch, brown hair mussed by sleep, clothes wrinkled from the way he restlessly tossed in turned while he slept. He stifled a yawn and joined her on the ground, sitting next to her.

"What do you want to talk about?" Eren asked Mikasa, looking at her intently.

She fixed her gaze on him, "How are you feeling? After this first week?"

"Fine," He mused, "I'm not quitting, Mikasa. You should know that by now."

Mikasa blinked her slate-gray eyes, placing her hand on top of his, "I know. But… Are you afraid?"

"Not in the slightest." Eren responded. "Are you?"

Mikasa shook her head, "I know what I'm doing, Eren."

"You're babysitting me?" Eren said, chuckling a bit.

Mikasa smiled smally to herself. Eren didn't laugh as much as he used to, and being the one to make him smile always made her heart soar. "If that's what you like to call it."

"I heard that you've been doing really well, Mikasa." Eren said, "You seem to be quite the talented babysitter."

"Doing well?" Mikasa questioned, brows knitting a bit.

"In your training, I mean." Eren stated.

Mikasa glanced away from him and up at the moon, which was nearly full, but not quite. "Who told you that?"

Eren coughed, "Just talk. The guys say things about people in training. Jean talks about you a lot."

"Jean?" Mikasa asked, turning to face him, "The one who you tried to fight?"

Eren scratched his head, "Yeah. He likes you, Mikasa."

Mikasa remained unfazed. "Nnn… And what about you, Eren?"

Eren felt his throat lock. "W-what?"

"Any girls here that you think are pretty?" Mikasa asked, never having been so prying with him before.

Eren choked on his words, "N-no. No one new."

Mikasa turned her charcoal gaze back to his, "New?"

"Forget I said anything," Eren muttered, blushing.

Mikasa smiled to herself, turning her face away from him for a moment.

"Mikasa?" Eren asked, "Why did you wake me up to ask me how I was feeling? Couldn't you have waited until morning?"

Mikasa sometimes felt the need to check up on him. It wasn't really for his benefit, but for her own peace of mind. She couldn't sleep knowing that Eren wasn't alright. And she hadn't talked to him much after dinner.

"Remember when we were kids, and I would get scared of thunder storms?" Mikasa started, looking back at him, seriously.

"Yeah," Eren said, smiling, "Yeah, I remember."

"And you would always ask me if I was okay." Mikasa informed him, "And you would let me sleep in your bed, just to make sure I was safe?"

Eren nodded, "Yeah,"

"We're in a different kind of storm now, Eren. It's my turn to visit your bed and make sure that you're alright." Mikasa whispered.

She felt her breath catch in her throat as she felt his fingers weaving through her own. He stared at their hands for a second, before returning back to her eyes.

"I'm alright, Mikasa," Eren whispered, inching closer to her. "You shouldn't be so worried about me, Mikasa."

"But, Eren…" Mikasa whispered, trying to regain some composure as she felt him leaning closer towards her. "How would you feel if you lost me?"

"I will never lose you, Mikasa," Eren murmured, his eyes flicking away from hers, down to her lips, and then back. His heart pounded away in his ears. "I swear to it."

Eren somewhat timidly moved closer still, and Mikasa let her eyes fall closed, feeling his lips touch down on hers. She had never needed him this much, and she felt so dependent on him as he grasped the scarf that was wound loosely around her neck and pulled her closer. Mikasa shyly moved her hands to his face and allowed him to kiss her more deeply.

He pulled away from her, his face merely centimeters away. "Thank you for looking out for me, Mikasa."