Things had calmed. At first, it was awkward. It had to be. They had been on the verge of dying; Mikasa had been ready to give up everything. Which of course, the last moment confession made things strange.

It was hard. They had witnessed the last adult figure from their childhood be slaughtered whilst they had at least a semi-normal moment as teenagers: Mikasa's real feelings towards Eren finally being confessed. It was hard to juggle the emotions. On one hand, it was an end, but a beginning of another.

The death of Hannes was very saddening, yes. Yet, the two teens seemed relieved with finally coming clean of their feelings for one another. This would have to help them move on; people die and it is something that cannot be helped. They would move on from it. They could still be sad and it would hurt for a while, but things would get better; they knew that. They had gone through deaths before and this would be no different. It was something they would continue to go through in the future. It was just a cold, hard face.

Mikasa had not realized that Eren had felt something for her as well, though. She had always wished and hoped, but in the end, it was always just that: wishing and hoping. He pushed her away on many occasions. She still kept at him. She would not give up on her love for him.

Her love ran deep. It was a love like no other. She supposed it had always been there, starting as a tiny little flame that cold night he had saved her back when they were ten. It grew and grew as she doted on him for the following years. She had been young, but she had known what she wanted. Ever since she had seen her mother and father slaughtered before her very eyes, she longed to once again be part of a family.

It was a somewhat childish thought—that of a daydreaming young child—that she wished to have a family with Eren. They could have children and she would share the sign of her clan with them. They would have a peaceful life. Maybe they could have a little house in the middle of nowhere, away from everyone, just like the one in which she had spent the beginning of her life. They would need no one but the other, living out their lives peacefully.

Those dreams all washed away when Eren had been set on joining the Scouting Legion, though. They sat in the back of her mind, but they no longer seemed so reachable. She would do anything for Eren, regardless if her own wants were met as well; she wanted him to be safe, secure, and happy all above her own wants and needs. He had saved her life so long ago and felt it was the least she could do in return.

She just had never thought that he would return her feelings for him.

She had wished; she had hoped; she had prayed. She knew him better than anyone else in the world, and yet, she could never know what he was truly thinking. He had done many careless things and she could never find the reasoning behind any of those. That is why she never knew that he had pushed her away because ihe/i wanted to be the one to protect iher/i. She never knew those words his mother had told him long ago haunted him. She never knew he wanted to be considered a man in his mother's eyes—even after her death—and do as she had wanted for him: protect Mikasa.

Both had suffered injuries after that mission. Hers had been on the battlefield and his as recoil to his exerts. He was up and at it again sooner than she was, though. (His Titan shifter abilities had that effect after all.) She had not been so lucky.

It was a bit difficult. She had not seen him directly after coming back to headquarters. They had been together on the journey back to the walls and it had been awkward. Neither quite knew what to say to one another after she had been so sure they both were going to lose their lives. They had been separated after returning as well. They both were sent in different directions in the infirmary to check on their statuses.

He had healed not long after return and Levi had work for him. She, on the other hand, was left in the infirmary to rest up, even after insisting she was fine. Check-ups showed otherwise.

It had been a few days before Eren had finally gotten to visit her. He sat at the edge of the bed and told her about his uneventful adventures in cleaning with Levi. She scowled, cursing the "short evil man." He laughed in response. It was all a cover for the topic that was on both of their minds.

As he spoke, she tugged at her scarf in embarrassment. She tried listening to him, but the event from days ago plagued her thoughts. Adding input was easy as she heard him groan about Levi multiple times.

Suddenly, his expression changed to a serious one. He clasped a hand over the one on her scarf. "I wasn't lying when I said I'd wrap it around as many times as you like."

It was on his mind as well. It was obvious now. It had to have been one of the main reasons he had come that day. It was the moment she been waiting. The whole mess that day could finally come to light and they could settle what they really felt for one another.

"I would like that," She replied. Her tone had not changed, but she still was able to convey the message that was meant.

"I really care a lot for you, Mikasa."

She pulled her scarf over her mouth and hid the smile forming on her lips. He pulled it back down, smiling with her. "I want to protect you. You don't have to protect me all the time."

"I care about-"

"I know you do," He frowned, "But I can hold my own and I want to protect you from time to time."

She was silent. She stared down at his hand over hers. She was speechless. She was not sure on how to respond to that. The past five years she had been so devoted to protecting him and the thought of him doing it for her instead was hard to swallow. She was accustomed to protecting him, not vice versa.

Over time, they could learn to compromise and protect one another when it was necessary. It would take to time to get used to it, but they could do it, just like they had done everything else.

He laughed—interrupting her thoughts—leaning up against the wall the bed was situated against. "One day, we won't even need to protect each other. Once I kill all the Titans, we can live outside and we won't need protection because there won't be anything to protect against." His face lit up light it used to, before he had seen the horrors outside.

She smiled softly; she imagined the thought. They could have a nice, little house by the sea, the ones Armin had told of in his books. They would not have to worry about Titans; they could just worry about each other and she liked that thought. She enjoyed the idea of them living out their lives together, without worrying about Titans.

Before she realized, she was reaching out towards him, wanting to do what she had planned days ago. He shook his head, gently pushing her back against the back wall, and crawled over her. His knees were on either side of her legs, his hands by her hips. He extended forward and brushed his lips against hers and before either knew, her hands rested upon his chest as their kiss deepened.

"Eren, I," She whispered during a breath, "I care a lot for you."

"Me too."

Despite all the troubles going on in the cruel, cruel world outside, she felt a little piece of happiness, of peace at that moment. Everything that she had wanted may not come true, but it could be on track. Eren returned her feelings and at the moment, that was all she could have wanted.