Eren groaned softly, gazing up at the ceiling through blurry vision. He knew his fever had spiked again, t felt as though a fire had ignited inside him. His stomach churned and ached as a result of having been emptied. He was grateful that Levi wasn't there to see it.

"Feeling better," Hanji asked, replacing the cool compress on Eren's forehead.

"Worse." The titan shifter replied weakly. Hanji scribbled a few notes into the file with a heavy sigh.

"I know these tests were hard on you. I'll do everything I can to make it all worth it. You're tolerating it better than everyone else if it helps."

"It doesn't."

"I need you to try some water," Hanji informed him.

"I can't take anything right now. It'll just come back up." Eren turned his head from her, coughing harshly. He winced at the stabbing pain that filled his body.

"Try to relax. Hanji instructed. "I'm sorry I can't give you something to make you more comfortable. For now, the most I can offer is cool compresses for your fever until Levi gets here. I was hoping to get more tests done today, but it looks like you could use the rest of the day off. We still a lot of work ahead of us."Eren could have sworn he saw a hint of a gleeful grin appear on Hanji's face.

"Bet you're loving that." He said softly.

"What?"

"Nothing." the titan shifter groaned. Hanji shot him a skeptical glance.

"Anyway, you're going to be stuck with me until Levi gets back. He asked me to keep a close eye on you."

"Of course he did," Eren grumbled.

"I warned you," Hanji pointed out. "When it comes to Levi, he might seem harsh, but he has his reasons. He cares about you. He wants you to be okay. This situation has really been difficult and stressful for everyone. Levi has a lot on his shoulders, he might not show it, but it's hard for him to see you sick like this. He wants the best for you."

"I know he does," Eren said, clearly exhausted by his illness. "I never said or felt like he didn't. I'm just...tired. Being poked and prodded doesn't help either."

"I understand your frustration. Being stuck in bed all the time isn't the greatest thing in the world. We'll get you back to normal as soon as we can. Try to rest, Eren. We'll try eating some soup later."

Eren needed no further encouragement. He allowed himself to drift into a much-needed sleep, leaving Hanji to her notes.

"Come on, Eren. A lot of people are counting on you to get through this and help us figure it out." She replaced the compress once more before gathering her files and leaving her patient to rest undisturbed.

Hanji lowered herself onto the chair behind her desk with a heavy sigh. She had to be missing something. The sound of her door creaking open and the sudden blast of winter air caught her attention. Armin lowered his hood, his cheeks red from the biting wind, pushing the door closed behind him. He pulled a stack of papers from under his cloak and approached her, offering the salute.

"What do you have for me today?" He asked taking the papers and looking over them.

"We lost two more just now." He announced. "That makes four counting the two from the morning shift. Amy Rosenberg and her sister Sarah. Amy couldn't focus when we spoke to her. Her fever spiked rapidly and she started to vomit blood, complaining of sharp stomach pains just an hour ago. Sarah gave us a small list of new symptoms to watch for. I think it's forming other strains. We've documented all of this in those files." He paused for a moment before clear his throat.

"How's Eren?" He asked.

"Exhausted. The dark-haired woman replied. "He's been through a lot today and he's resting now. The fever spiked and he's not eating or drinking as much as he should be. He's been up since Levi left early this morning."Armin bowed his head.
"Do you think Eren can fight it? I mean with his titan abilities and healing-"

"That's the hope. So far, it doesn't seem to have helped much. If anything it may have slowed the progression, but I haven't noticed any significant changes for the better.

"Can I see him? I won't stay long. "

"Go on. Before you go back there, who took over at the infirmary?"

"Connie. I'm going right back after this, he's starting to show signs. I don't think he'll be on active duty much longer. We're just so short on people to help out and most of the patients are too sick and weak to pull themselves out of bed. We needed to do something.

"Damn it!" Hanji cursed, placing her head in her hands. "We just can't catch a break, can we?" Armin frowned as he crossed the short distance to the room where Eren now slept. He moved to the chair beside his friend's bedside and sat down.

"Hey," He said softly. "I just wanted to stop and see if you're doing okay. You and Mikasa have always been there for me. She went out with Captain Levi by the way, in case you haven't heard about it. C-can I just ask you to do one thing for me? Can you just...live, please? You're stronger than this, Eren. We need you." Armin sat back against the chair, watching his friend. He was at a loss. "I can't stay long." He continued. "It's Connie's turn and, we think he's sick too. I was just hoping you'd be doing better. At least something would've gone right today." He sighed once more, deciding to stay just a few minutes more before returning to the infirmary to relieve his friend of duty.