Attack on Titan by Hajime Isayama. I don't take any material advantage by writing this story.
Set after flashback at chapter 108
Warning: grammatical errors

The sky was still red when they arrived at the military barracks and got off the train. The gust of wind that touched Jean's face was still as hard as when they were on the train until it flew his hat. He turned around to take it. Instead of finding it lying on the ground, the hat was now in the hands of Mikasa who was crouching down.

Jean gulped and took a deep breath. Mikasa and himself are in a squad which makes them often spend time together. However, every close interaction like this still distracted the systems inside his body. He walked and looked as relaxed as he could. Mikasa was already standing when he was near her. The other squadmates had already entered the barracks.

"Here," said Mikasa while giving the hat to Jean.

Jean clenched his fists before accepting the hat. "Thank you."

Mikasa nodded. Since they were the only ones left outside the barracks, they walked side by side in an atmosphere that Jean felt awkward. He secretly glanced at Mikasa every now and then. His face automatically turned red when she caught his stare.

Mikasa cleared her throat. The atmosphere felt even more awkward even though they were still walking.

"You said there were many reasons I couldn't become a titan. What else besides the ones you mentioned?" asked Mikasa, breaking the awkwardness.

Jean held the cheek closest to Mikasa and faked a cough. When he said that to Mikasa earlier, what was in his mind was, "Because I love you. I want you to live long and not be burdened with being one of the nine titans. I want you to live happily, you deserve it." That could not be said because he respected Mikasa's feelings and realized that who the girl wanted was not him.

Mikasa was still waiting for his answer and Jean knew he had to give it. He took a deep breath and looked for an alternative.

"It's the same as how you felt when you found out that Eren's life was limited."

Jean immediately hid his face using the hat after putting it on. She left Mikasa standing transfixed after hearing his answer. He hoped that this would not break the friendship between them.

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