THIS IS IT GUYS! IT'S BEEN FUN.

Armin had been so happy for a moment.

Looks like our jobs have been exchanged. How does it feel to be saved for a change, huh?

But when Eren spoke, his foggy mind was forced into reality.

"You can't fall asleep Armin! How will you make sure we're ok? You have to stay awake!"

It was true. Jean had been in danger in the first place because of him and he could be in danger again at any moment. He couldn't sleep now no matter how tired he was. How would he know if they were safe unless he was awake?

He fought the darkness wanting to take over his vision and forced himself to find the faces of his best friends.

"E-eren? Jean?" He had to make sure that they were there. Everything felt unreal. Only the pain was real. He could distantly feel arms underneath him, carrying him but it felt more like a dream. He could hear the echo of Eren's voice and for a moment he was afraid that his friend might be stuck in a cave or something.

That could be the only reason for the echo, no? Or maybe he's under a tunnel? Are we under a tunnel?

Weakly, he moved his head and saw Jean. There was panic in his eyes and Armin wanted to tell him to smile. When was the last time he had seen his friends smile?

Soon he felt the ground moving. Was it the ground? Something was moving. He blinked, the darkness receding a bit more, and saw strangers hovering over him and moving fast. Confused and frightened, he sought Eren and Jean and was able to find them by moving his head to the side. They looked very scared and Armin finally realized that he was dying.

He weakly stretched his hand towards them and was shocked at the amount of energy it took to do so. Without hesitating, both of them took hold of a few fingers and gave a tight squeeze. The pain was beginning to cloud his mind once more but he was able to smile.

They're ok. It's fine then.

Darkness creept around Eren and Jean. The grips on his hand tightened as they moved forward and began yelling at him but Armin couldn't hear them. The strangers around him began moving faster, like bees whose home had just been kicked. He could tell they were yelling too but it all looked and sounded like he was watching a television show with bad reception.

He looked at Eren and Jean once more before the darkness took over completely.

I love you both.

"He's not going to make it to the hospital!"

"We're driving as fast as we can!"

Eren had never felt so nerve wrecked before. Armin had been holding on quite steadily until he suddenly wasn't. Now the blonde's hand was limp in his and Jean's grip and they were both terrified.

By the time they reached the hospital, the blonde was barely breathing. Both brunettes were forced to stay in the waiting room. Jean cursed loudly. He kicked a chair then sat on the ground and held his head.

Eren's hands were shaking as he searched for his phone. He knew there was someone who needed to be informed of this.

Erwin had never skipped a red light in his life; now he had just skipped 3. He heard Eren's words in his head over and over.

"A-armin got shot…"

Armin got shot

Armin got shot

Another red light was ignored, followed by many honks of cars he nearly hit. He didn't care. He could not possibly care about anything else that was not his dying son.

Dying

He hit the accelerator, forcing the car to its limit.

"I'm coming, son." This was all his fault. He should have accepted his father's offer of caring for Armin. If he had then the boy wouldn't be in this current predicament. His life would have never been threatened. He wouldn't have ever felt lonely or ignored.

Better an absent father than a bad one.

He suddenly imagined what Armin would say to him if he knew of his thoughts. He would definitely be upset and he would tell Erwin that he understood why he had to be distant so often and that he was proud of what he stood for.

His vision began to grow blurry but he forced himself to clear it.

I can't loose him. I can't…

There goes light number 6.

Eren saw their commander run into the building. The older man immediately went to the first nurse he could find and asked for his son's condition. They had just gotten Armin's ID and other information from Eren. The green eyed boy gave Jean a light kick.

"Come." He said, voice low but firm. Jean caught sight of Erwin and Eren swore he saw his lip tremble. The boy stood up and together they made way to their commander.

"-urrently in surgery. We will let you know if anything changes."

Erwin saw the two solders walking towards him. They saluted but he just shook his head. Wordlessly the 3 of them stood together in the waiting room.

The fear was so palpable Jean felt it was suffocating. Eren could no longer stay still and began pacing. Erwin seemed to be lost in painful thoughts.

Jean felt pain gripping his heart in a way he had never felt before.

It was my fault. That bullet was for me.

He knew that there was nothing he could have done to prevent Armin from getting in the way, but If Armin died for his sake he would never forgive himself.

So this is what Armin feels all the time, huh? It really sucks.

Shrieks were suddenly heard. The 3 trained military men immediately snapped out of their thoughts and took a defensive pose.

A group of armed Titans, including the man from the video and before, entered the hospital. He chuckled when his eyes landed on Erwin.

"You actually came. We were starting to wonder if you cared about your son at all." They didn't notice how the commander was trembling or how he clenched his fist dangerously. "We finally got you where we wanted. You know, if you had just gone along with our plan then your boy wouldn't have a bullet in the che-"

In a flash, Erwin had gotten rid of the space between then and had punched him right in the face. The shock of the impact made the man lose his grip on his gun. Erwin took it but used it only to beat him savagely. Eren and Jean could do nothing but watch, actually terrified.

The other Titans were frozen on the spot as well. With their leader senseless on the ground, one or two actually snapped out of it and ran out of the hospital. The ones who were too slow to do so found themselves in a similar position. Erwin had never felt so much anger in his entire life.

He was breathing heavily by the time he was done. There were 4 men out cold on the ground and one bloody and bruised before him. He pointed the gun at him. The nurses around them gasped with dread. Erwin looked at them out of the corner of his eye before growling.

"Tell the others that if you ever target my son again I will personally kill each and every one of you." The man nodded before limping out of the building as fast as possible. Everyone seemed to give a sigh of relief once he was gone. A few people actually clapped while a few nurses were hovering around Erwin, wanting but not daring to go near the injured criminals.

Feeling suddenly drained, Erwin nodded to the medical workers as he took a seat.

"Make sure they are all handcuffed before they are treated." He murmured to Jean and Eren, who jolted before saluting and getting to work.

"That… was amazing. Terrifying… but amazing." Jean whispered to his partner with awe.

"I want to be able to beat people up like that some day." Eren said dreamily.

The adrenaline of the moment was beginning to fade away bringing reality back. Eren felt a sudden stab in his chest. He swallowed a knot in his throat.

"Jean…"

"Don't."

The taller boy's voice sounded pained but he forced himself to give a weak grin.

"Armin wouldn't want us to be upset. We can't do anything for him right now so all we gotta do is keep it together."

Eren looked away and nodded.

Police officers came to take the criminals but the doctors insisted they were all in bad condition and had to stay in the hospital for at least a day. Neither Jean nor Eren found any pity in their hearts.

It was not till hours later when a doctor came out of the surgery room.

"Armin Arlert?" Immediately, the 3 military men rose to their feet and greeted the doctor with both fear and hope in their hearts.

"How is he?" Erwin asked.

"The surgery was successful. There was a dangerous amount of blood loss and his heart stopped during the procedure but we were able to restart it. He is recovering now in room 104. He will still be under anesthesia so he probably will not awaken until tomorrow. When he does he will be in pain so please notify a nurse so she can give him some sedatives. Thank you."

Both Jean and Eren sighed in relief. Erwin, who had been completely rigid while waiting for the doctor's response, let himself relax.

"H-he's tougher than people think." Jean joked, trying to laugh off the remaining anxiety in his chest. Eren began to move towards Armin's room when a nurse stopped him.

"Only direct family is allo-"

"They are coming." Erwin's voice was firm and left no room for argument. The woman, recognizing him, gave a frightened jolt and let them through.

The moment they entered the room, both Jean and Eren immediately went to the blonde's bed, each standing at a different side. They each took hold of one of his hands and pressed it tightly.

"You're an idiot. I don't care that you try to learn 10 digits of pie every day, you are still an idiot." Jean's eyes were becoming watery. "You're ridiculous, and brave, and a self sacrificing idiot, and-" I love you. "- I'm so glad you're ok."

Eren watched Armin's pale face. The boy looked like he was made of porcelain but Eren knew he was stronger than that. He lived under constant threat and had been put through almost as many terrible ordeals as any soldier. There were even some military men who would go all their lives without ever being shot.

I would give anything for this not to be your life. I just want you to be safe and happy.

Erwin stood by the door for a long time. He hadn't seen his son for almost a month and now he was in a hospital bed looking weaker and more vulnerable than he had ever been in his life. The intense amount of guilt was suddenly replaced with affection and a desperate need to be by Armin's side. Both boys, snapping out of their stupor, took a step back and allowed the man a moment with his son.

He set his hand on top of the boy's head and patted it softly. He remembered Armin used to love that when he was little.

"I'm here." He muttered. "I'm sorry I've been away so long. You don't deserve that." He leaned forward and planted a kiss on his forehead. "No one is going to hurt you now. I've made sure of it."

When Armin woke up the next day, It was his father who he first saw. the boy's eyes opened wide in disbelief.

"D-dad?" The older man gave him a fond smile and patted his head.

"Hey, kiddo."

Armin closed his eyes and basked in the rare physical sign of affection. He opened his eyes and looked around the room only to find Eren and Jean sitting to his left. He gasped and quickly sat up, flinging his arms around both of their necks. The moment he did so he felt a strong pain in his chest that forced a yelp out of him.

"Armin! You shouldn't move so much or you'll stretch you stitches!"

"Y-yeah I noticed. Just give me a minute." He hugged them as tightly as he could without whimpering in pain. "I'm so glad you're ok."

Erwin watched as the two boys held him back and buried their faces against his son's neck. He sighed in defeat and watched the scene with something close to fondness.

I'm glad he's surrounded by people who care for him.

Finally, Armin let go and slowly laid back down on the bed, hissing as he felt his injury throb.

"I'll call the nurse for some sedatives." The commander spoke.

"Yes please." He turned to leave. Without thinking Armin stretched his hand and caught his father's sleeve. Erwin turned back and looked at him. The blonde was silent but the man understood.

"I'm not going anywhere. I'm going to stay by your side until you are better."

"W-what about your work?"

"That can wait."

With wide eyes, Armin let go.

Once they were alone, the blonde turned to his friends and let out a laugh.

"I really can't believe it. We all made it out of this alive." His expression suddenly became heavy with concern. "But maybe next time we wont be so lucky. I doubt the Titans will give up." He was surprised at the smiles that appeared on his friend's faces.

"They won't be going after you again, believe us."

After the nurse sedated Armin, the boy fell asleep. The two soldiers took the opportunity to step out of the room and search for Erwin. The man was having a phone conversation. When he was done, they saluted him.

"Sir. We need to talk to you." Erwin watched them for a moment.

"I have an idea of what this is about."

The 3 sat in the waiting room where the day before they had spent the most painful and stressful hours of their lives.

"We want to ask for your permission to try and win Armin's heart." Erwin raised an eyebrow.

"What if I threaten to fire you? Will you stay away from him?" Both boys looked shocked, but the man shook his head. "I wasn't serious. I may not like the idea but I honestly don't have the right to stop you. You have both proven your affections for my son and have proven to be the best of soldiers. It is Armin's choice, in the end." He stood up and actually smiled. "Whichever of you he chooses, if any, would be a worthy man." He salute them, and startled, they saluted back.

Once Armin was discharged, Jean and Eren took him to his house. They were no longer his body guards, just friends being together: what Armin had always wanted. They walked inside silently, a nostalgic smile on the blonde's face. He looked for the book he had read to them the day they met. Together they sat down on the couch. Armin read to them about the wonders of the world until night time.

Still weak from the surgery, Armin set the book down and carefully laid his head on Jean's lap and his legs over Eren's. He quickly fell asleep and both boys watched him with love.

"I'm warning you right now that I'm not backing down from this, Jeager." Jean said seriously.

"Me neither." Eren agreed firmly.

They both continued to watch over the blonde, silently promising that even if he ended up choosing another they would still protect him.