Summary: The road isn't very easy, not that any would have thought it would be. With danger all around them they really can't spend time fighting within their newly formed group too, but Eren can't quite see past that yet.

Pairing: Eren/Mikasa

Rating: M (for Language and Violence)

Notes: I missed the action last chapter so have some now! (and for here on out for the most part really). I apologize for the wait ;-; I wrote this to post on Halloween but that was also Youmacon weekend and we got a bit busy, so better late than never. Dendensushicosplay left some fabulous comments about my typos and beets getting caned instead of canned but hey, that's what I get for writing at work. I hope you guys enjoy! I'll try very hard not to take so long again ^^

The Fight

To drive back to the hospital, they needed to essentially go back the way they came. Eren's dad's workplace was back in the city closer to where they lived; though Eren did notice Jean distinctly took a route that wouldn't lead them back to where the Colonel's SUV was wrecked. Eren followed behind the new SUV, and while Jean drove faster than Armin did, Eren still kept his own speed low enough so the engine of the bike wouldn't make too much noise.

They passed Biters every now and then but provided both vehicles kept the noise level down they didn't seem too interested, at least not enough to chase. It was strange though, Eren couldn't help but think as he eyed a few bastards off in the distance of the woods, that he didn't have the protective metal barrier anymore like he had in the car; if one Biter got too close to come after him, he had no defense. He glanced out of the corner of his eye to see Mikasa staring off in the distance somewhere, her arms tight around his waist and her body warm against his back in the cool summer morning. Well, not defense a car would have at least; he was pretty sure she could handle ones that wandered too close to them but he also wasn't the biggest fan of putting her in danger like that.

Granted, Eren supposed he was putting them all in danger after he made the decision to come back out here. He wanted to think that they chose on their own free will, but Eren knew at least Mikasa and Armin would've never left if he hadn't said he was going first. Connie and Sasha seemed pretty amped to have any excuse to leave and Eren had no idea what made Jean change his mind, but it didn't change the fact that they had to somehow keep everyone safe now; they had lost one already, and it was still too many. They somehow had to survive.

He felt Mikasa move behind him, her head leaning against his and her lips close to his ear. "I think Armin told Connie and Sasha what happened with you," she said against the rush of wind around them.

Eren glanced up at the back window the SUV; sure enough Sasha was staring at him with some kind of shocked expression and Connie was giving him both thumbs up. Eren rolled his eyes at them. He supposed they had to understand what was going on since they would all be traveling together, but the less people who knew the better. There was too much uncertainty in this world now, too much danger and not just from Biters. There had to be other people still alive and Eren had seen enough movies and watched enough TV shows to know just because an apocalypse happened, doesn't mean it made everyone good people. They needed to be very careful who they trusted out here.

Mikasa leaned back into him, her chin almost resting on his shoulder. "Do you think we'll find him?"

Eren almost didn't want to answer her; everything he had was banking on his father staying put where he was in place that was probably completely overrun in moments of the outbreak. It wasn't exactly good odds but what other option did they have?

"I hope we'll find something," Eren settled on, his voice rising to reach her ears over the wind. It seemed to be good enough as she leaned back, her eyes on their surroundings. It was all still woods as far as Eren could tell, but the sun had only been risen for…he glanced down at the clock on the dashboard of the bike…a few hours at most now. They must've taken a longer route around the woods to not reach a more suburban area by now; at least more suburban than the farms they had passed. He wasn't the one who had the map though, so it was up the ones in front of him to lead to the right direction. He hoped there was a break in store for them soon because he hadn't had feeling in his ass for the past hour.

It did seemed like it was another hour before the van slowed down, signaling a stop. It looked like they were on the edge of the woods at least, houses becoming more sporadic than before; it was a good sign but also more populated areas meant more Biters.

Eren pulled to a stop behind the now parked van and kicked out the kickstand for the bike to lean on. Mikasa had already hopped off, stretching her arms over her head as Eren pulled himself off the bike. He had to instantly reach back down to it for support; not having the vibrations from the bike left him feeling more like jello than anything else. He looked up only to see Mikasa watching him, a smile pulling at her lips.

"It's not like your dad took me on cross county adventures," he grunted trying to push himself off the bike again before the others came over.

Connie was the first one out the door, taking off towards the woods more than likely to take a piss. Sasha was next stretching and inhaling the fresh air outside the car.

"Hey, how're you two doing?" she asked, walking over.

"Better than you I take it, being locked up in a van with them." Eren had taken to just leaning on the bike instead, afraid his legs would give out.

"I'm pretty sure she was the one who was fine," Armin said, coming up behind Eren. "I never thought I'd hear the end of '99 Bottles of Beer on the Wall'." He laid the map he was holding over the bike for Eren to look over at. "We had to find a new route because we decided coming back the way we came and risking the hell hole that was our old neighborhood and school. It's gonna be bad traveling through the city where the hospital is, so if we can stay out of harm's way for that long at least it might help us." Armin pointed to the bold red line cutting through the map as Mikasa leaned in to look as well.

"This is where we are right now." He traced his finger along the line until he reached a portion that was circled, a portion that was a ways away from where they were on the line. "And here's where the hospital is. As you can probably see there're quite a few more direct ways. One is the highway which is a no go because we've no idea how many cars were abandoned leaving the road completely blocked, I'd rather not risk it. A few others involve going through other highly populated suburbs and outskirts of the city, again which're dangerous because of the road being blocked and because you know what high population means."

"Which basically leaves this roundabout long ass route, which will take us double the time to get back to the city and the hospital." Jean was leaning up against the back of the SUV; Eren didn't even hear him walk over.

"It's the best alternative we have," Armin shrugged. "It's the safest way, and where we're going, we need safety. We're gonna travel through the small towns that circle the city and eventually cut over through a less populated back route."

Eren nodded. "How much longer do you think it will take?"

Armin hesitated, clearly trying to work out the distance and the time in his head. "It's hard to say, there're too many variables to factor in."

Eren understood of course; who knows what they'd come across even just traveling the outskirts. Sure it was safer than barging right on in to the city but how much safer no one could to predict. This world was impossible to predict now.

"I can't even remember a time I traveled in a car for this long," Connie said, walking up the small hill from the woods and back onto the road with the others.

"Better get used to it," Jean said. "We aren't gonna get out any time soon."

"Optimism, Jean." Sasha slapped him on the shoulder. Eren noticed she had a bow and quiver full of arrows strapped to her back; she must've found a set back at the lab.

Jean didn't quite look like optimism was gonna do him any good which, granted, was how he normally looked but Eren also couldn't imagine what it felt like to lose his parents and best friend within days of each other.

"Looks like we're getting near more populated areas so be careful proceeding," Armin said, looking at the map one more time before folding it back up. "We'll go for a while more and see if we can find a safe place to get out for a bit until it starts to get dark."

"Sounds good to me," Connie said, clasping Armin on the back, nearly knocking him forward. "I'm glad you survived getting out of that school."

Armin snorted. "Yeah, me too."

Eren went to throw his leg over the bike again, ready to get back on the road but before he could even move, Sasha had her bow drawn. She shot an arrow out, Eren following it until it hit a Biter square in the head. It dropped to the ground, off in the foods but too close for his liking.

"I think that's our cue," she said, bow still in her hands in case others showed up.

Jean jumped back in the driver's side and started the car while Armin and Connie got into their seats, ready to go.

"Are you two okay?" Sasha asked but her eyes were watching a few other Biters coming out past the one that she had taken out.

Eren hit up the kick stand, starting up the engine as Mikasa slipped on the back; she already had one hand on her sword behind her back. "We'll be fine, go on in."

Sasha nodded before she took her own seat in the SUV. The moment she sat down, Jean started to drive back down on the road, this time at a higher speed to make sure they kept away from any incoming hordes. Mikasa had one arm wrapped around Eren, keeping a tight hold while her other arm was still behind her head. He glanced over at the few lingering Biters; they were coming after them but not enough to catch up.

He was about to breathe a sigh of relief when a movement on the other side of the road caught his attention. He didn't even have time swerve the bike around as the Biter lunged at him with so much force it would have knocked both him and Mikasa off the bike easily, that is if Mikasa hadn't already took off the bastard's sword was still extended out as the body fell to the ground, Eren leaving it far behind them as he drove.

Glancing around as much as he could from his position driving, he couldn't see any others coming at them but he kept his speed up just in case. He felt Mikasa sheath her sword, her other arm wrapping around his waist; if she felt satisfied enough to put her weapon away, he was fine with it.

"Are you okay?" Eren tilted his face towards where he knew her head was.

She nodded against him in response. "Yeah." Her lips were at his ear again, warm breath distinguishable from the wind rushing past them.

"Guess it was a good idea to let you ride with me."

Her laugh was soft. "That's because it was my idea."

He rolled his eyes; but it was only because she was right and he knew it.

The farther they drove the more houses Eren could count as they went by. They were still pretty sporadic but Armin was right, it was becoming more populated; they had to be getting close to some kind of town soon. He was pretty sure they had plenty of supplies between what they salvaged from the wreck and from what his mom had given them but it was hard to not want to keep hoarding everything they could just in case. Granted the last time they had stopped in a town didn't exactly go very well.

Mikasa had been quiet behind him for a while, keeping an eye out for any movement on any side of them. Connie and Sasha would turn around every now and then to make faces or trying and see how well Eren could read lips which he learned he really wasn't that good at.

He had no idea how far they had traveled so far but it wasn't nearly enough to get to the hospital; he looked down at the gas gauge on the bike, he knew it was almost enough for this gas tank at least. Out here in the freaking country he hadn't seen too many gas stations, still they were gonna need to do something soon or him and Mikasa were walking the rest of the way.

Eren waved to get Connie or Sasha's attention and when Sasha turned to look, he did his best to gesture to the bike to get his point across. It seemed work since Sasha leaned forward to talk to Armin and Jean and then gave him thumbs up. He hoped that meant they had some kind of plan; well, Armin probably did, Eren wasn't sure about the rest of them.

It was only a few more minutes before the SUV started to slow down once more, signaling a nearby stop. Instead of stopping on the road though, Jean pulled into the driveway of a large, but seemingly empty farm house. Eren followed behind them, parking the bike next to the SUV.

"What're we doing here?" Eren asked as Armin stepped out of the car, his crossbow already in his hands.

"We've been traveling for a long time today," Armin answered. "We thought while we filled up the tanks we could eat and try to relax a little before traveling again."

Eren wasn't sure if he could really relax in some strange person's house but he understood what Armin was trying to achieve; some sense of normality in this crazy place.

"I'll go look ahead," Mikasa said, jumping off the bike, her sword already in her hands. She pulled Eren's bat out of the backpack on her back and tossed it to him. He caught it after getting off the bike while Connie brought a tank of gas from the SUV and started to fill up the bike's tank.

"I'll go with you," Sasha said reaching for her bow as she followed Mikasa up the wooden steps of the house.

Eren watched them disappear out of view. He felt his chest constrict; who the hell knew what was in there, they couldn't just barge right in. He took a step forward to follow after them but a hand on his shoulder stopped him.

"It's better if we all don't go in right away." Armin said, though when Eren looked over the blond didn't look too convinced of it himself. "If there's a few Biters, Mikasa and Sasha will have no problem taking them out, if there's a lot they can easily get away to warn us."

Eren shouldered his bat as he watched the front door. He had seen the way Sasha shot, and he very well knew Mikasa could handle herself, but it didn't mean he had to like it.

"Next gas station we see, I suggest we try and see if they have any gas left," Jean said, tipping the rest of the container he was holding into the SUV. "They gave us all they had at the lab but it wasn't much."

"There's a bit left in here for emergencies," Connie capped the gas container and shook it a bit so they could hear the remaining liquid. He tossed it over to Jean to put it in the trunk with the empty on.

"At least we can bolt and manage to stay on the road if they come running back out," Eren grunted, eyeing the surrounding land for any sight of an incoming threat. There didn't seem to be any commotion coming towards them, at least not at the moment. Now if only they would come out and make the anxiety in the pit of his stomach leave. A horde would have already started enough trouble for Sasha and Mikasa in such small areas; they would've heard something outside by now. Chances are they were searching through each room, behind every door to make sure there were no surprises but it didn't make the waiting any better. He went to take a step forward again when Sasha's head popped out the door.

"All good!" she called, heading back inside.

Eren let out a breath he hadn't know he was holding as he headed up the wooden steps into the house.

"Don't take too much in just in case we have to run; just take what you need," Armin called out, of course being the responsible one.

"Were there no Biters at all?" Eren asked as he pushed open the door to see Sasha already sitting on a couch.

She shook her head. "Yeah, it was strange. I would have thought at least a few were lingering around but no, not a trace of any of 'em."

Eren still wasn't about to let go of his bat; this place was pretty large, who knows what places they could have missed or looked over. He didn't want to be that person who always thought there was danger around every corner but it was hard not to. "Where's Mikasa?"

"In the kitchen, trying to see if there was anything salvageable. She already kicked me out."

Jean, Armin, and Connie came in the room, just carrying a few small bags to load things up if needed. Eren looked around the room trying to see if one of the rooms led to the kitchen; he could see a whole other room, some stairs leading upstairs, a closet maybe.

Sasha whistled catching Eren's attention. He looked up and she was pointing to the hall in the back of the room. Eren gave her a small wave of thanks and headed to the small hallway which lead to the back of the house; there were some pictures hanging crooked off the wall, a table and vase with wilted flowers. A gust of wind blew at him causing him to look up the hall and see the back door was completely busted off. He poked his head out to see if there were any Biters to take care of but the wide open field and nearby woods didn't show anything troubling right now.

He turned into the doorway leading to the kitchen where Mikasa was reaching up to open up the next cabinet. Half the kitchen was already opened, a few cans on the counter which must have been what she found so far. Her sword was on her back again but he wasn't about to risk surprising her and seeing just how sharp that thing was. He settled on rapping his knuckles against the doorway.

She turned her head to see who was there before opening the cabinet her hand was on. Once Eren was satisfied she wasn't going to mistake him for one of their undead friends he headed into the room, picking up one of the cans she had found.

"Canned beets," he read off the label. "Just what everyone wanted I'm sure." He felt her look before he even turned his head to her.

"You won't be complaining about beets when it's the last bit of food we have and means you won't starve to death." Her tone didn't quite match the smile that was pulling at her lips, throwing off the menacing look she was trying to give him.

He snorted, putting the can back down. God, he hoped it never got to that. "Find anything else interesting when you were scouting."

"No," she said shaking her head opening up the last cabinet on the upper part of the kitchen. "The place looks like it's been cleaned by either the people who lived here or other people like us. I tried to look outside to see if there was a root cellar nearby but I didn't see anything." Mikasa turned to face him. "Are the others here?"

"Yeah, there are hanging out in the other room like it's our next door neighbor's house or something."

A loud laugh that was distinctly Connie's echoed from the other room to let them know the others were just fine.

She leaned up against the counter. "I guess they need to find some normality somewhere."

Eren rolled his eyes but he was glad at least they could unwind for even just a little and when they still had the opportunity to. Mikasa opened her mouth but what she said was drowned out in some story Sasha had delved into that had Connie and what sounded like Armin in stitches.

"Well, I guess our group found the people who bring a sense of humor," Eren said. He wanted to go tell them to quiet down just in case there were any Biters nearby, but Mikasa was right, they needed to find some sense of normality with the world the way it was. "How're you doing?" he asked, causing her to look up at him from her gaze on the cans.

"I'm fine. How're your legs?" There was a slight smile on her lips telling him she was teasing.

"You're funny. Why don't you go out there and joke around with Sasha too?"

She laughed and went to speak but Eren held his hand up to her for her to stay quiet. That was definitely a creak he heard above their heads. He walked over to the door to look out in the hallway; Connie, Sasha, Armin, and Jean, they were all downstairs. He glanced back to Mikasa. "Stay here."

"Eren-" she tried but he had already left the room.

His hand was holding tight to the handle of the of the bat he still had resting on his shoulder but he didn't want to alarm the others; there was no need to panic if it was just one or if it was nothing at all.

"Hey, where are you headed to?" Armin asked, catching Eren on the first step of the stairs.

"Just gonna see if there's anything useful upstairs," he said, waving off the question so he could get up there faster. Armin didn't ask anything else so Eren figured his answer had been good enough.

There was a hall that went across the upstairs, quite a few different doors branching off. Most the doors were already open signaling that those were the places Mikasa and Sasha had already looked in. Another creak with a light bumping noise hit his ears; it was down the hallway in front of him. He held out his bat, ready to hit anything that got too close. Nothing was coming out but Eren peered into each room as he passed. There wasn't anything, no animals, no Biters.

Another noise made his head snap up; it was like something was bumping into a wall or an object of sorts. He took a few more steps down the hall when a closed door stood out to him. It must have been locked or Mikasa and Sasha would have opened it when they looked through the house. This time he not only heard the noise but saw the reverberations of it against the closed door.

Connie's loud laugh echoed up the stairs followed closely by Jean's exclamation of "Don't you dare, Springer!"

Two arms reached through the wooden door, hands grasping at the air out into the hallway causing Eren to jump back. Another pair of arms broke through, woods splintering onto the floor.

"Shit." Eren had no idea how many had been locked in that room but with the way the two were being pushed into the breaking door, it didn't bode well at all. They had to leave. He turned on his heel and ran back down the stairs.

"Out!" he called. "Everyone get out now!"

A gun shot echoed in his ears, the noise in the room nearly deafening. He heard the door fully break upstairs, feet and groans not far behind.

"What the hell!?" Eren called out but when he looked in front of him, he saw more undead bastards tripping over each other getting in through the back hall.

Connie still had his gun in his hands, staring at the oncoming horde with wide eyes. Sasha was trying to take them out as they came in the room but there were too many already, Mikasa having to slice one down by the front door.

A groan behind Eren only reminded him it was about to get worse. He spun around and let his wooden bat collide with the first Biters head, knocking it into the railing but the others weren't far behind. He bolted down the stairs, swinging his bat at a Biter that lunged for Connie. "Run!" Eren shouted.

Jean grabbed a hold of Connie's shoulder and pulled him out the door Mikasa was keeping clear.

"Both of you go too!" Eren knocked down a Biter who was tripping down the stairs behind him. "I'll hold them off!"

An arrow shot by his head, hitting one behind him. Eren tried to get another one that was surrounding him but missed, hitting it in the shoulder. It dove at him but lost its head shortly after, Mikasa turning to slice another one going after Sasha while she was trying to get out the door.

"Mikasa, Goddammit, just go!" Eren shouted when she didn't follow Sasha but turned to cut off the head of a biter reaching out for Mikasa. He slammed his bat in the face of one that got too close to him. "Mikasa!" he called again. "I got it, just leave!"

She wouldn't stop though, her sword cutting down on a bastard that had got behind Eren again. He turned on her, ready to just drag her outside himself when he saw hands grab down on her shoulder, a mouth reaching for her neck. Her eyes went wide as she tried to swing around to cut it but the grip was too strong on her.

Eren dove for her, the top of his bat hitting the fucker in the face, the force ripping it off her. Red was all he could see as he hit his bat over and over again on its face. Another body fell near him, its head rolling away.

"Eren!" Mikasa called, her voice sounded distant but he couldn't stop swinging down until the bastard's shitty face wasn't even recognizable. "Eren!" she cried again causing him to look up. She was by the door, her sword taking out a Biter coming for her.

He jumped to his feet, just missing hands reaching for him. He grabbed onto her, talking her out the door with him, Biters following. The SUV was already on the road but it wasn't moving; they were waiting Eren jumped on the bike and started it, passing his bat to Mikasa when she slid in behind him. The moment he felt her get a grip on him he tore off down the road, sands and rocks kicking around the wheels as he moved to get on the road to follow the SUV which was already taking off.

Eren's heart was still racing, his jaw clenched as his hands gripped on the bike harder than he needed to. As if the attack was bad enough, as if her not listening to him was bad enough, she had put herself in immediate danger for no other reason but her fucking irritating desire to always protect him. The moment the Biters were long out of sight, the moment the SUV pulled to a stop in front of wide fields on either side, the moment he forcibly kicked the kickstand up, he knew he wasn't going keep it in.

"What the fuck was that," Eren snapped, pushing himself off the bike to face Mikasa. "Care to explain what the hell was going through your mind back there?"

Mikasa's arms were crossed against her chest, both sword and bat in their proper homes on her back. Her jaw was clenched and her eyes narrowed but she didn't say anything.

"Well?" he said. "Well , Mikasa? Don't have anything to say after you ignored what I was saying and put us both in danger?"

"What is going on out here?" Jean said, slamming the door of the SUV.

Eren pointed over to him. "Don't even start, Kirstein. I know you've got a hard on for her but this is none of your business."

Armin had to jump in to keep Jean from charging at Eren.

"Jesus," Mikasa said, throwing her hands up. "What is your problem?"

"I told you. I told you to leave. Everyone else did except you. I told you I had it under control but no, Mikasa, no you couldn't trust me to just take care of myself for once and put your own life in danger."

"Well, maybe if you weren't so reckless and now even more so. You think just because you healed one time you're invincible which isn't true. We don't know what could happen if you got bit again. You aren't invincible."

"It's better than you who almost got your neck ripped out in front of my eyes. Goddammit, Mikasa, just fucking trust me for once. I'm not your little brother you feel the need to baby all the time. I can take care of myself so let me!" He could see the angry tears in her eyes and he knew he had gone too far but why didn't she understand? If she had died in front of him? Jesus. He wanted to keep her safe not have her rush into danger for him.

"Fine," Mikasa snapped, pushing herself off the bike. "Get yourself killed, Eren. Do what you want." She turned away from him, just after he could see the tears coming down on her cheeks. She stormed off towards the field, not once looking back.

"Wait, Mikasa, don't go off al-" Connie stared, but Sasha pushed him back from going after her.

Eren let out an exasperated groan before turning away from the others' eyes. He kicked at some of the rocks on the side of the road towards the field on the other side of the road.

"Do they always fight like this?" Connie asked but it sounded like someone shut him up.

Why couldn't Mikasa just see he wanted her to be safe? God, the fury and fear he had felt when he saw that bastard go after her was like nothing he had ever felt before. He could take care of her, her could protect her, he knew he could but no, miss always better at him in everything just refused to let him.

"What happened?" a soft voice asked.

Eren ran a hand through his hair, not looking over at Armin. "She just wouldn't leave no matter how many times I told her to. She almost got fucking bit in front of my eyes because she refused to let me handle it."

"What did you do?"

"I beat the shit out of it is what I did," he scoffed. "That finally seemed to get to her." Eren decided to leave out the way he had snapped, not even being able to pry himself away until Mikasa called to him a few times.

Armin was quiet for a moment. "Do you think it was because maybe she was just worried about you?"

"I can handle myself. She doesn't need to worry about me."

"That maybe true, Eren, but just because someone can take care of themselves, doesn't make that fear go away for someone they care about." Armin paused again. "She might have thought her parents could take care of themselves too."

Eren felt his heart sink, his annoyance being replaced with guilt. Shit, he hadn't even thought. She just lost them.

"I'm not trying to guilt you," Armin looked up at him. "I know you're angry because she could have been hurt that you're trying to keep her safe but she might not know that. You two aren't exactly good at always being on the same page."

Eren looked over to him. "If I had lost her there, Armin, I-"

"Don't tell me." He stepped aside. "Tell her." With a sigh, he walked away without another word.

Eren turned around to see Mikasa sitting down off in the other field. He really didn't want to, not because he was still as angry as he had been but because he really wasn't good at apologizing to her, especially when he made her cry. He grunted and crossed his arms against his chest but didn't move.

He didn't know what to say to her or even how to explain to her how he had felt when he watched her nearly get bitten. It was like something else had taken over him in that moment and all he could beat the shit out of it; it must have been what it was like for her when she did watch him get bit. Eren had come back though, he had no idea if Mikasa would, and he might've had to be the one to kill her. The thought alone had bile rising in his throat.

Eren glanced behind him, seeing Armin move to help Connie and Sasha get some food out of the trunk while Jean climbed up on the SUV, gun in hand. The area was wide open so Eren figured it was a nice place to rest or even camp for the night, provided someone kept watch at all times. Armin walked across the other field to sit by Mikasa, playing peacekeeper like normal. Eren felt a jab in his chest, knowing very well that it should be him but he couldn't get his legs to move to her, not after the things he had said.

He eventually did walk over to the car, Connie tossing him a granola bar. It was pretty clear both Connie and Sasha were trying not to feel awkward which Eren couldn't blame them; it was uncomfortable to stand by and watch people argue. He nodded his thanks and went to sit down in front of his bike. He unwrapped the bar, not really feeling all that hungry but he still bit down on it.

"We're gonna stay here for now," Armin's voice spoke from over by the SUV. "Maybe for the night depending. It's easy to keep an eye on the area and probably will be safer than getting trapped in a house again."

"I'm fine on watch for now," Jean grunted from the roof of the car.

Eren supposed he should make sure he didn't get "accidentally" shot by their watchman; if there was one thing Eren was good at, it was pissing people off. He rolled his head back against the bike, staring up at the sky as he chewed the dry granola.

Connie and Sasha were talking amongst themselves but that was all he could hear; nothing else near or far. It was a good thing; they were safe for now at least. If only the nauseating feeling in the pit of his stomach would go away but he knew it only would if he went and talked to her. His mom told him once he was stubborn to the point of pushing everyone away and one day they wouldn't stick around. He tried to tell himself this was different, that he had every right to be mad; she was the one was risking her life for no reason. It still didn't stop Armin's words from echoing in his head and making his guilt worse.

"Did you have plans for today?" Connie's voice asked from by the van. "I mean, before all this happened."

"Uhh," Sasha thought. "School probably. It's weird how everything changed so fast when just last week it was like any other day…hey, want a granola bar, Mikasa?"

Eren tilted his head over at her name but no one was really looking at him. She shook her head, sitting down on the edge of the field where he couldn't see her anymore. It got quiet again, tense; like no one knew what to say or wanted to say anything.

The sun was starting to get lower in the sky which surprised him; he had no idea it had gotten so late already.

"Jean, you're falling asleep." Armin called, having Eren look up again. "I'll watch for now."

Jean grumbled something but Armin was already climbing on the car, crossbow in hand. Eren probably should have felt safer as he watched Jean slide of the roof and onto the pavement but Eren was pretty sure Armin wanted to shoot him right now too.

Jean disappeared into the car, the door shutting behind him.

"You know, I think I'll go rest too," Sasha yawned but it was pretty fake. Nice try, Sasha. Connie must have followed her though because there were two doors shutting as opposed to one leaving Eren with just Armin keeping watch and Mikasa sitting alone.

His chest felt tight, constricted; he couldn't keep this up for much longer. It wasn't fair to Mikasa who was visibly upset or the others who had nowhere else to go but be forced around them. He tossed his half eaten granola bar away and pushed himself to his feet.

She was still sitting down at the edge of the road, her fingers pulling at the grass from the field. She didn't look up when he made him way over to her nor did she when he sat down next to her.

Sitting here didn't make him think of anything to say but he knew she wasn't gonna say anything until he did; she could be just as stubborn as he was. He just wanted to get up and leave, to just forget about it, let her stay mad if she wanted to be but he couldn't. It wasn't worth it, not when there was life threatening danger around every corner.

"It's not easy," he said glancing over at her. "Is it?"

"What isn't," Mikasa said but without looking over at him.

"Watching someone close to you almost die in front of you."

Her eyes met his this time. "I don't care what you think, Eren, you're not invincible. Not before you got bit and not after."

"I healed though, obviously there's something else going on here." He gestured vaguely to himself.

"You don't know that. We don't know that. Yeah, it happened once but no one knows if it could happen again. You can't go into fights thinking you're always gonna be okay, you can't."

"Neither can you." Eren saw the flicker of surprise cross her face. "You can handle yourself. You're a better fighter than all of us, I know, but I-we almost lost you today. You can't do that." He sighed dropping his eyes down to the ground. "I won't say you're wrong though. All of us will die if we don't work as a team."

It was quiet for a moment, not tense or awkward, more like the tension leaving between them. Mikasa let her head fall against his shoulder, her hair slightly rubbing into his face. "Don't do that to me," he mumbled, his cheek lightly resting in her head.

"Don't start it then."

Eren snorted but he could see the smile on her lips as he looked down at her; much better.

"Are you two done now?"

Eren looked up at the SUV, feeling Mikasa do the same, only to see Armin rolling his eyes at them from his spot on the roof. Eren chose to ignore him. "Are we staying here for the night then?"

Armin nodded. "I think it might be safer from here on out. We've seen how bad it can get in small spaces so camping out where we can easily pack up and go might be better."

"I'm not sleeping in a car with those three." Eren pointed to the car. "We better raid a camping store or something." It was a good plan though; while they were out in the open and at more of a risk that way, they were at less of a risk of getting trapped and surrounded which would mean almost certain death. Provided Eren didn't fall asleep on watch again. "I'm pretty sure we'd all be dead without you, buddy."

Armin laughed. "Nah, just maybe a little lost."