Armin woke up with a dull ache in his head and the heavy heat in the tent. The sun was shining down on the tent and caused the temperature to become unbearable inside. The blond's skin was sticky with sweat from the nightmare and the heat so when he moved against Jean's body he found that they almost stuck together almost painfully.

That's right, Jean was still holding him. His arms were still wrapped around his smaller form and he found his head tucked under his chin. Images suddenly rushed into his mind of Jean's torn body in the Titan's hands and his grip on his partner only tightened to make sure he was still in one piece next to him.

This was rewarded with a small groan and Jean nuzzling into his blond hair. "Hot." He muttered weakly and opened his eyes when the sunlight disturbed his sleep. Armin moved his head back so he could look into those silver eyes and he offered him a small smile.

"Yeah, but we can do nothing about that." Armin laughed a bit.

"That's what you think."

The smaller boy blinked a bit at the statement as he watched Jean lean up and unzip the flap so cooler air could flood the tent. Even if the air outside was still warm, it felt much better than the stuffy tent. He licked his lips nervously as Jean's chest clothed chest brushed over his own and his heart quickened for a few seconds. It was like a spark of electricity that he could not explain, but it was not bad in anyway. It was something he had not experienced before either with anyone else.

"The next check point is not too far, and I think a quick bath would do us some good."

"Bath?" Armin's cheeks flushed red.

"I have some soap in my pack for washing." Jean said as he climbed out of the tent and stretched his slowly waking body. "Three weeks without a bath sounds pretty nasty and there is another branch of the river by our destination."

A bath sounded like heaven, but no one besides Eren has ever seen Armin naked. The thought that Jean's eyes would be on his bare form caused the most delightful shivers to move up his spine, but he pushed those thoughts away. Sexuality had never been an issue for him since he had never labeled himself one way or the other. By the fall of Wall Maria, Armin thought it was useless to even try to figure out what gender he was attracted to and focus on keeping his small family together.

Now these thoughts started to reenter his mind and the blond found himself curious about Jean's body. He had to admit he had an attractive face and there was something about his presence that made the smaller boy feel safe, but his thoughts had never turned to anything of an intimate relationship. To tell the truth, Armin thought he would ever have a chance for a relationship.

Jean was standing outside the tent waiting for Armin to join him and he blushed darker when he realized how long he had been thinking to himself. He could see that the taller boy looked as if he thought he insulted his partner, but he smiled up at him and crawled out of the tent.

"As long as we have the time," He said as he stood up and pulled his t-shirt over his head, "I think a bath sounds great."

The two boys stripped their clothing off and laid them on the roof of the tent so they would not get anymore dirty then they already were before walking together towards the river. Armin's eyes gazed shyly over at Jean's form and he started to chew his bottom lip nervously afraid of being caught. Jean was built like the statues in the history books from the ancient world – well muscled arms and legs with a well defined chest. It seemed as though the training they were going through improved their bodies, but the taller boy looked like he was carved from stone.

Armin looked down at his own body and suddenly felt ashamed. Yes he was well toned from labor and the training, but he had a softer form then most boys. Even if Eren was only slightly taller than him, he had a well defined figure like most of boys of the 104th Trainees.

Jean must had felt him watching because he turned his head to look at the blond next to him and smirked a bit. "Like what you see?"

The blond looked away from his partner, but Jean could see the boy's ears turn red. "Full of yourself, aren't you?"

"Well for good reason, but you should be too. You have a very nice body."

Armin's eyes widen and he looked over at Jean with wide eyes in shock at his words.

"What?" He blinked a bit. "You don't think so?"

"Well. I-I," He stuttered shyly and stepped into the water until it reached to his knees, "No one has ever seen me like this, except for Eren. He wouldn't comment on my body like that."

"I'm kinda glad about that." Jean said as he joined Armin in the water.

"Why?"

"Uh, n-no reason really." This time it was Jean's turn to flush red with embarrassment and adverted his gaze from the blond to the river. "So soap. Here."

Armin did not understand Jean's embarrassment, but took the soap from his hands gently. Their fingers brushed together for the first time and both of them looked at each other with a mixture of surprise and desire. Their breaths were caught in their throat for just a moment before Jean pulled his hand away from him.

"Sorry." He muttered and went to the deeper parts of the river.

The water was cool and Armin was glad for it washing the two days old sweat from his skin. He scrubbed his body with the soap Jean had given to him and made sure every part of him was clean. It was refreshing and he felt human again when he was finished. He saw Jean out the corner of his eyes and watched him swim a few laps with a type of grace he had only seen when he completed the Three Dimensional Maneuver.

When Jean finished his wall workout, he made his way over to Armin and smiled a bit. "You look a bit chipper." He grinned. "Mind if I get myself cleaned?"

"Sure." Armin handed over the soap, but he could not look away as his partner started to scrub himself. Suddenly his body started to feel warmer and his breathing started to become heavy even to the point of panting. The way the suds rolled down his chest made Armin trembling and a pool of heat fill his groin with an overwhelming sensation. Desire was almost unknown to the blond, but he was slowly discovering what it felt like want another.

"Did you do your hair?"

"What?" Armin blinked in confusion and looked up at Jean.

"Hair? Did you wash your hair?"

"Oh. No I didn't."

"Turn around then."

Still confused, Armin did as he was told and turned his back to Jean waiting nervously. Soap and gentle fingers started to rub through his hair and he let out a small gasp of pleasure. The sensation was completely unknown to him and he did not know if he should allow this continue or not, but the way Jean's fingers worked against his scalp caused his worries to fade away. Armin mewed and trembled under his partner's hands willingly and leaned back into the touch.

"I'm gonna tip you back to rinse your hair."

"Mhm." Was the only answer the blond to respond with since all words had melted from his mind.

Jean leaned his partner back slowly and held him up by his lower back so the boy was floating on his back. It was the most relaxed he had ever felt in his life and allowing his weight to be held by Jean's hand. A soft smile spread across his face and he opened his eyes to look up at the boy holding him as if he were a treasure.

"You have a nice smile Armin." Jean almost whispered. "I hope you don't ever lose that."

Armin giggled at such sweet words coming from head strong Jean who always spoke his mind – which tend to be rash.

"My, my if the other boys find out you talk like this to me they might not take you seriously anymore."

"Not a word Blondie." Jean growled softly, but there was something playful in his threat.

"Ooo, what is Softy Jean gonna do about it?"

Before he knew it, Armin was dunked under the water.

Jean and Armin had let go of all the tension they had held inside themselves and ended up having a splashing war. It was as if Jean was a child again and it felt wonderful to let loose and let go of everything that had twisted up inside him from the Titans. Marco had been the only one who had seen this side of him and it felt nice to let Armin see this.

Once their playfulness died down, the pair broke their camp down and returned to their task of hiking to the third check point. Jean found that during their walk Armin rarely left his side and would often smile up at him even if they did not speak. He wanted to hold the blond's hand, but settled with gentle brushes of their fingers as they walked.

That night, after the broke for camp and hunted for their food, Jean found Armin looking up at him hopefully, chewing on his bottom lip. For a moment he was at a loss of what the smaller boy wanted until he realized that he was asking to be held that night. His heart softened and he offered his hand to him with a gentle smile.

"Let's go to bed." Jean said sweetly.

Armin had been nervous all day about asking to be held since he did not know how to pose the question to another boy. He didn't know if it sounded odd, but he was glad that Jean understood what he wanted. Shyly, he took his hand and followed him to the tent. His cheeks were burning red again from the feeling of the warmth of Jean's hand.

Their bedrolls were already laid out and Armin found himself pulled down into Jean's arm. His eyes closed tightly as their bodies pressed up against one another. He could feel everything – the pulse of his heat, his heart pounding against his chest and the soft shudders. It was strange, but Armin didn't pull away from his partner. He partially laid on top of the taller boy and felt his head tucked securely under his chin.

They were quiet and Armin found himself listening to the sounds of Jean's calm breathing and the feeling of his heart beat against his own. He was vaguely aware of Jean's hands rubbing circles against his lower back, but it only soothed his already calmed state for sleep.

The dreams were not horrible visions and death, but images of his childhood. Armin sat in the fields and looked up at the vast blue sky that stretched out over him. He could feel a gentle pressure and warmth pressed up against his back. He felt safe. There was no such thing as the Walls or Titans roaming the earth killing all those who came in front of them. There was a peace that Armin had never felt before, even when Wall Maria was still standing.

"You have a beautiful smile." A voice said, a tickling sensation played against his ear.

"You are the only one who has told me that, you know?" Armin answered with a giggle.

"Well it is true. You have such a beautiful smile. I don't want you to ever lose it."

"Such sweet words coming from you. I think you should be careful to who you say such things to." He turned his head to look up at a blurred figure holding him from behind. "You don't want the others to think you have a soft side, do you?"

The figure laughed and Armin felt that he had heard it before somewhere. It was so familiar and so soothing that he found himself laughing with him. He laughed happily until lips were pressed against his own earning a soft moan to rise up from his chest. Strong hands cupped Armin's face and held him there as the kiss deepened and the small blond could only grip at the figure's shirt to keep himself grounded to this place – the dream paradise he had found.

"I want to protect you, Armin."