"Shh!" the command was succinct and barely audible, but had Jean snapping his mouth shut with an audible click of his teeth – which earned him a glare - Armin's eyes practically burning a hole through his forehead.
Armin shifted on the balls of his feet from where he was crouched behind a cargo box, hand pressed tightly against his side as he peered around the corner of his makeshift hideout. From there he could see light shining from under the shut door a few feet away, as well as the quickly passing shadow of someone rushing by on the other side.
"What is it?" Jean opened his mouth to say, but a quick glance at another one of Armin's fierce glare stopped him. Armin jerked his head back to the doorway and this time Jean followed his line of vision – a shadow had stopped in front of the closed doorway and it was nothing but that and yet left Jean more scared than he had ever been.
Armin raised two fingers, motioning for Jean to move further back into the room. He hesitated for a fraction of a second before quickly scrambling back and ducking behind another row of boxes, trying to keep his breath light.
Armin was just sliding next to him, a lot quieter than Jean had when the door swung open, casting a ray of light in the place they had just been. It took all of Jean's willpower to not glance past the box to see who had entered instead focusing on the sound of the person's footsteps. Armin having already done so.
"Where the fuck did you say they put it?" a gruff voice called, nearly making Jean flinch. Armin's unoccupied hand resting on his knee in a soothing gesture.
"On the the top shelf," a voice responded, this one softer and more distance as if they hadn't entered the room. There was grumbling from the person in the room before a clattering of bottles and an exclamation of, "ahh shit."
Armin's hand gripped his knee tighter, anchoring Jean in place, for without it he surely would have jumped at the sudden loud noise. He was thankful for it too because any moment now he was sure his heart would just beat right out of his chest.
"Ya idiot," the distant voice exclaimed followed by the sound of a shoe scuffing against the concrete floor and a glass bottle clattering into their line of vision.
"Fucking bitch," the voice in the room grumbled, "Ah here it is."
Silence followed for the briefest of moments before the voice was exclaiming, "I'll just clean this shit up later."
Footsteps followed shortly after, accompanied by the loud banging of the door as they let, shrouding the room in darkness once more.
Jean slowly let a breath out between his teeth, his lungs feeling like they would burst from holding his breath as Armin's hand slid off and away from his knee.
"Holy shit," he breathed, not caring if Armin would scold him or not.
They sat in silence for a while longer before Jean glanced over at Armin, who had yet to respond to him.
"Armin?" Jean whispered, eyes fliting to where Armin still had his hand pressed to his side, "Are you injured?"
"… Just a little." Was the shaky response, "You have to find a way out of here… and fast."
"I do?" Jean nearly screeched, the tension buried in his shoulders reminding him to keep his voice down.
"We know there's at least two people in the hall, if I'm right about our location than the exit isn't far from here. But there's no way we can just slip out and I can't run. So I'll distract them and you'll make a run for it."
"What?! I'm not just gonna leave you. Are you stupid or something?!" Jean demanded, biting back the urge to shake Armin by the shoulders.
Armin exhaled through his nose, clearly annoyed, "I'm not telling you to leave I'm telling you to get backup. Our comms don't work in here."
"But still you can't just expect me to-"
"I can, and I will. It's a direct order from your supervisor." Armin cut him off, though the words lacked any bite to them.
"No," Jean shook his head as he said it, voice raising ever so slightly, "I won't go on my own. I'll carry you if I have to."
"Jean," Armin whispered, the sound of his name sounding so harsh as he said it, "I promise I'll be fine. I've been doing this job for years."
Jean sucked in a breath through his teeth, resolve flickering in his chest like a candle in the wind, "… I won't go." And then louder, "I wo-"
His exclamation was cut off by soft lips pressing against his own, Armin grunting ever so audibly as he shifted.
It felt like seconds, minutes, a lifetime before Armin sat back leaving Jean sitting as if he turned to stone.
"Please go."
"You… why did you kiss me?"
"To shut you up, now go."
Jean could feel his hands trembling, "I could… I don't even know where to go."
"I'll leave and go left and once the coast is clear you'll go right and to the end of the hall," Armin took a breath, "You're listening closely yes?"
Jean could only nod his head stiffly in response.
"Right so when you read the end of the hall go left and you'll pass two intersections but keep going straight. At the third one turn right and that's you way out. Once you're out take cover in the tree line and try to contact Eren. Understand?"
"I… We could make it together," Jean offered one more time; weakly, futilely.
"We won't. We both have a better chance this way. You remember my directions right?"
"I remember." And just like that it was decided, the flickering flame of his resolve snuffed out by the very same wax the wick rested in.