Warning: IF YOU DON'T LIKE YAOI (BOY/BOY) DO NOT READ! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!

Title: Stay With Me
Disclaimer: I do not own Attack on Titan or any of the characters.
Rated: T(Language/Violence) [Rating will change to M in the future]
Pairings: Jean/Armin, Erwin/Levi, Eren/Armin

Chapter 3

"No!" Jean didn't have enough time to react when Armin dove feet first off the 50m high wall. Without a second thought, Jean spun back around and took off after him, jumping off the side right behind the crazy blonde. He was only grateful that he hadn't taken off his 3DMG gear.

As he neared the bottom of the wall, Armin shot out a hook from his 3DMG, preparing for the hard, jerking stop before retracting the wire and shooting out another. He swung along the side of the wall and gracefully landed on the ground, taking off into a full sprint towards the road with Jean not far behind him.

"Armin, stop!" Jean called angrily as he chased after the small blonde. What the hell had gotten into him?

Armin ignored him as he jumped into the air and shot out a wire, catching the side of a large building and pulling himself up to the rooftop and sprinting across. His sprint was cut short as he was roughly grabbed by the back of his jacket and tossed onto the snow covered rooftop.

"Have you completely lost your shit?!" Jean yelled, snatching him up quickly. He resisted the urge to shake the younger boy. "You seriously just jumped 165ft into Titan infested areas, you don't even know if she's still alive, and you have no idea how many Titans are actually awake down here stomping around. What the hell is wrong with you?!"

"We have to help her, Jean! Let go of me so we can hurry and get to her! I'm not trying to lose anyone while we're on duty," Armin snapped, pulling the front of his jacket out of Jean's grasp. He knew he wasn't an expert at fighting Titans, but he wasn't going to lose someone he knew he could save. They could grab her and make it back to the wall before the officers even got back.

"Please, Jean…"

The brunette looked skeptical, pausing for a moment to think. They were already on the ground, and he was exceptionally proficient in his 3DMG abilities. There was no reason to try and climb back up just to warn the others. By the time they made it back to the other gate guards, she could be dead.

"Fine," Jean said, still somewhat unsure of his decision. It was dangerous to try maneuvering in the dark and even more so when they knew for sure there was at least one Titan awake down there with them. Who knew how many more were up and running. "Stay close to me. The sooner we can get this idiot girl, the sooner we can get the hell out of here."

Armin nodded in agreeance, turning to send out a wire onto the nearby building. They headed towards what appeared to be a 6 meter Titan up close, that was grabbing away at the inside of the house they'd seen the girl run to.

"Get to the house and find out where she is, I'll distract it." Jean motioned for Armin to go the opposite way before he flew head on toward the Titan. He shot another wire into the side of the building the Titan was trying to reach into and landed where he could be seen. The Titan stared for a moment before swinging it's big arm to catch him. Jean jumped to the ground before the Titan could catch him and landed easily, running around the large humanlike creature.

"Alright, go! And hurry the hell up," Jean yelled once he had the Titan's attention. Armin ran right past them and into the building while Jean led the Titan further away.

Once he felt it was a safe distance away from Armin, Jean shot a wire into the building behind him and pulled himself to the rooftop before quickly turning to throw another wire into the Titan's side. He used his body weight to swing down and around the giant, propelling himself into the air above the Titan. Spinning his body around, Jean sent another hook between the Titan's shoulder blades before it had time to turn, unsheathing his blades and pulling himself down with enough force to slice to nape open with ease.

As the giant fell, Jean pulled himself to the top of one of the buildings that overlooked the smaller residential building Armin had run into, tapping his foot impatiently when the blonde didn't emerge. "C'mooooon….." He whispered to himself, gritting his teeth in frustration. Loud booming sounds from behind him caught his attention and he turned to see what the commotion was. "What the hell now…?!"

Shock set in at the sight of not one but three other Titans heading towards him. Jean felt beads of sweat rise on his forehead and his hands became clammy as he stared with wide eyes.

This was not good. No. This was really really really not good. The Titans ranged from 10 to 14 meters tall and they were moving fast. This could not be happening… How this many Titans function after dark?! Not to mention the past few days had been cloudy and stormy, hiding the sun away which he had thought was their main source of energy.

"Armin!" Jean called, turning back to face the building Armin had went inside. There was no answer. And the Titans were coming straight for him now, only a few meters away… Shit, he had to time to waste. He threw out his wires, racing between buildings to lead the group away from Armin. This was insane.

Jean successfully led them a few houses down before he threw out a hook that decided not to connect with the wall. Anxiety rose in his chest as he quickly tried to pull himself together in time to toss another wire out, swinging up to land on the roof of a smaller house. Underneath the snow, the roof shingles were completely frozen, making the surface slippery and Jean lost his footing, sliding down the side and clinging to the loose, unsturdy gutter that broke under his weight, sending him to the ground.

It hadn't been a far fall, but Jean had fallen straight on his back and it was enough to knock the wind out of him, causing him temporary paralysis as he tried to gasp for air. Using every bit of will and strength he had, he forced himself to push his head back and he watched the Titans come closer while he tried to catch his breath.

Oh god. This was it. This was his end wasn't it? There was no way he could recover in time to get away. As his lungs finally allowed air in and his body slightly relaxed, he rolled over slowly onto his stomach as the Titan stepped closer and waited for it to reach down and pick him up. But nothing happened. Instead, the Titan turned and started walking away from him, making Jean look up curiously.

Armin had circled around the 13m Titan, landing on the edge of the building across from the one Jean had fallen from. "Are you alright?!" He called, worry laced in his voice. Seeing the brunette laying there made him feel sick to his stomach. He knew if Jean didn't get up soon, he would either get squished by the giants or one of them would turn their attention back to him.

Jean finally caught his breath and stood weakly, his hands on his knees as he took deep breaths. He watched as Armin swung to another building, avoiding the Titan that kept grabbing at him. Jean tried to get his 3DMG up and running, but falling on his back had caused him to crush the fan section that made the whole device run in the first place. Crap… Now he was on the ground, there were Titans everywhere AND his gear was busted.

Just as he looked up, he saw one of the Titans reach out and grab Armin's wire mid air, pulling down and causing Armin to be flung up and against a building. Trying not to panic, Armin spun around so that his feet would connect with the side of the building and he could push off, cut the wire and toss another one to get away.

But instead of hitting a flat surface, his left leg grazed against a piece of metal that was sticking out of the damaged building, ripping through his long boots and cutting deep enough to cause a gash from his ankle to his knee.

Armin screamed from the intense pain in his leg, reaching down to grab the wound as he was swung back in front of the 13m Titan that was holding him upside down by his wire. In a quick decision between life or limb, he released his bleeding leg and pulled out a blade with lightning speed, cutting himself free. What he wasn't expecting was that cutting his wire meant he'd be falling from 40 feet in the air.

Jean had already picked up speed, running toward both the Titan and Armin as the blonde fell, but he hadn't been close enough. Armin hit the ground hard, rolling a few times before laying limp only a few feet from the massive beast.

If Armin was dead, Jean had no time to check. He made it to Armin's side, picked the boy up and hauled him over his shoulder before running in between the buildings next to them right before the Titan's large hand come crashing down, missing them by inches. They started tearing down the building in an attempt to follow him, but found themselves trapped. And after running in between seven or eight buildings, Jean had finally lost them.

That didn't stop him from running though. He'd never been more terrified in his life. There had been several times where he'd been close to dying. Even the time when both him and Armin almost lost their lives to Annie's Titan form. But for some reason this had scared him the most. Hearing Armin shrieking in pain, seeing him fall from almost four stories high, and the current uncertainty if the boy was even alive scared the shit out of him.

Stopping in front of a brick residential building, Jean stared for only a moment before he decided it might be sturdy enough to hide inside. He didn't have a lot of time to make decisions, so he rushed into the abandoned house and ran across the open family room looking area. Creaking from the flooring made Jean come to a stop and he scanned the ground quickly.

Maybe there was a trap door? Gently, he laid Armin against the dust covered carpet and pressed against the wood flooring again, trying to dig his fingers into the cracks of the floor.

"Yes!" Jean grinned as he found the opening to the basement. Most residential houses had hidden basement doors, even within Wall Sina, so this was no surprise. He was just happy that he had found it as quickly as he did.

Jean crawled over the Armin, the smile fading from his face as he stared down at the motionless blonde. "Armin…" He whispered, crawling closer to him. He reached out his hand hesitantly. If Armin had no pulse, Jean honestly didn't know what he'd do. He was an asshole for a reason… So that he wouldn't get close to anyone. But somehow Armin had found a way to get to him. He prayed this wasn't another Marco incident. He didn't think his heart could take it the second time around.

He brought his hand up and laid two fingers against Armin's neck. And then waited. And waited some more. It seemed like he was waiting forever… But it was there. It was faint, but his heart was beating and Jean released the breath he hadn't realized he was holding. Thank God…

Jean reached underneath Armin and pulled the boy against his chest. The basement stairs were steep and it was going to be extremely difficult to get Armin inside without slipping or missing a step, making them both fall to the bottom. He didn't know how far down it was, but Jean was positive Armin wouldn't be able to handle anymore falls tonight.

Taking it slowly, step-by-step, Jean carried the small boy carefully in his arms to the bottom of the basement cellar. It had taken longer than Jean had wanted but they were both safe. He found a flat surface on the ground to lay Armin down before looking around the small basement for source of light. This was almost impossible considering it was dark outside and everything in the basement was pitch black. The basement door was the only small amount of light he had and it was a very small amount, at that.

This was not going to be easy. His 3DMG was broken and he had no idea what condition Armin's was in after that fall. But there was no way he could attempt a sprint to the gate while carrying Armin's unconscious form, while Titans were in the area, and without the use of their maneuvering gear.

Jean climbed back up the stairs and out of the basement. If they were going to survive, he'd have to scour the place looking for supplies. If he couldn't fix his gear, or at least get Armin's up and running before daytime, they may not have a chance of making it back to the wall alive.

Armin groaned softly as he tried to force his eyes to open. His head felt fuzzy and his entire body was sore, as if he'd been training for days non stop. What the hell had happened to him? His head felt like it was on fire and his shoulder and leg were killing him. The pain was enough to bring tears to his still closed eyes.

After several attempts, Armin finally brought his eyes open slowly, squinting through tears as he glanced around the dim lit room. The air was cold and humid, making his hands feel sticky when he closed them into a fist to make sure he could still move them.

In the corner of the dark room, a few feet away from him, Armin could see Jean sitting at what looked to be a workbench, tinkering away at something in front of him. There was a small lit candle inside a glass case next to the brunette, providing him a small amount of light while he worked.

Blinking slowly a few times as he tried to gather his bearings, Armin rolled onto his left side to try and prop himself up and get a better look at his surroundings, only to gasp, hissing in pain from rolling onto his wounded leg.

Jean turned when he heard the small blonde's painful cries from the corner, quickly jumping up from the table and abandoning the tools he was working with. He knelt down next to Armin, gently touching the blonde's left shoulder to let the boy know he was there.

"Relax, you're busted up badly," Jean said, glancing down at the gash on Armin's leg. He had removed the ripped boot earlier and attempted to wrap it as secure as he could with his green cloak to stop the bleeding and hold the wound closed. The blood had still seeped through the thin cloth, but only a little, letting Jean know that the bleeding had either slowed or completely stopped.

Armin breathed heavily as he opened his eyes to look up at older Scout next to him, "Where...are we…?" He asked as he tried to control his breathing while Jean laid his on his head to check his temperature. "Jean…? What happened?"

Jean pulled his thick, gray winter jacket off and laid it over Armin's legs to help warm him up since the blonde's jackets was already covering his top. Armin's forehead felt cold and damp, his skin was a pasty, sickly color of white and pale green, and Armin was shivering slightly from the cold air in the basement. "We're stuck in the abandoned village in front of the gate. Our 3DMG is broken so we can't get out of here without being chased down by the Titans outside."

Jean sighed heavily, staring at the blonde with a thoughtful and worried look. Armin was hurt pretty badly. As far as he could tell just by looking, Armin had a deep gash on his left leg, he had a wound on the side of his head, his right shoulder was either broken or fractured from the fall, and he was going into shock from the loss of blood. And that was only the problems on the surface.

"Everything hurts..." Armin whispered, trying to lift his arms to bring them to his head only to realize his hurt shoulder too late. He let out a small yelp from the pain, bringing his good arm over to clutch his shoulder.

"You fell from about three or four stories high... Try not to move too much, I can't tell what else is messed up," Jean brushed a few strands of blonde hair away from Armin's face, "You passed out from the fall after a Titan caught your wire. Can you remember everything well enough?"

Armin rubbed the tears out of his eyes and tried to think. Why were they on the ground in the first place? Weren't they… On guard duty? "I think so… We came down… For a girl?"

Jean nodded. Now that he thought about it, what the hell happened to that idiot they had risked their life for anyways? Why hadn't she been with Armin and where the hell could she have disappeared to? He'd have to wait to ask those questions though, they weren't as important as getting back to work on the gear, making sure Armin didn't overdo it by trying to answer questions, and getting them both out of there.

"Just try to rest for now… I'm going to keep working on the maneuvering devices. If I can get at least one of them working, we should be fine and I can just carry you with me." As Jean stood, Armin reached out and grabbed his wrist weakly, shaking his head.

"You should...make a run for it. To the gate...while it's still dark. There's barely any Titans and… I'll just slow you down," Speaking was incredibly hard considering the massive headache Armin had. Every heart beat was like a punch to the brain, and words felt like a million knives stabbing him in the head with each syllable.

Armin had to convince Jean to get out of there though. Get to the gate when there were fewer Titans since it was still night and get help, then come back to get him. Armin was terrified to death of being left alone defenseless in an area where Titans were wondering, but it was the smartest way for both of them to stay alive…

Jean could only smile. He knew Armin was trying to think logically. And of course him leaving to get help would be the more logical choice, and normally logic and being realistic were his main areas of expertise. But he wasn't leaving. Maybe it was how much he cared for the blonde that he felt the need to stay, fix the gear and get them both out at the same time. Or maybe it was Eren's quoted words from Levi that he'd told Jean one night while they all sat around a bonfire.

"No matter what kind of wisdom dictates you the option you should pick, no one will be able to tell if it's right or wrong till you arrive to some sort of outcome resulting from your choice. The only thing we are allowed to do is to believe that we won't regret the choice we made."

Jean didn't know what the outcome would be if he stayed or he left to get help. But he put trust in his own decision.

"I'm not going anywhere. We're going to get out of this together. Didn't I tell you I would stay with you?" Jean gave the boy a soft smile as Armin's fingers slowly unwrapped from around his wrist, allowing him to stand. He watched as Armin sighed heavily and closed his eyes to rest, his blonde eyebrows knit together as he struggled to calm his mind from the pain.

Jean returned to his and Armin's gears on the stone table he had been working on and sat down, taking in a deep breath and exhaling slowly. He had to work fast. He was racing against the clock; racing to beat the sunrise and there was no way to tell how much time Armin had, or if his body might give out all together. But he knew that leaving was a choice he'd regret.

He'd get them both out safely. He made the promise then and there as he diligently tinkered with their maneuvering gear. And he didn't break promises easily.

=To Be Continued=