RQ: Armin x Reader: Until Tomorrow Comes

You should have been asleep hours ago, but the fear and anxiety that gripped your heart kept you from closing your eyes. The blood that pumped through your body seemed too cold, sending continuous shivers up your spine despite the warm blanket that covered your body. You wanted nothing more than to curl up in a ball and let the dark engulf you in silence and stillness, hoping the sun would never rise over the compound. 

A languid sigh escaped your lips, disturbing the silence in the room. The air seemed to shift around you restlessly. You closed your eyes and let your feet slide from underneath the blanket until they hit the cold wooden floorboards. Slowly, silently, you peeled away the covers and sat up in bed, rubbing your eyes. Reaching for your jacket hanging by your bedside, you shivered and slipped it onto your shoulders. 

Your bunk mates slept on quietly as you slipped from the room, shutting the door behind you with a soft thump. 

The halls were quiet and dim as you transversed them, your bare feet hitting the floor with almost inaudible footsteps. The lamps in the hallways cast a vague silhouette of your figure against stone walls. You shivered from the cold of the castle. The entire building seemed to hold an unnatural chill in the air.

At last you reached the courtyard, where you stood barefoot and in nothing but a nightgown and your jacket staring at the moon. Tiny points of light pin pricked the sky, shining steadily down on the district, and you.

You closed your eyes and let the night breeze push your hair away from your face. The silence, the night chill, the pitch black that encased the entire Survey Corps compound seemed to lull you into a trance....

"(Name)!" A hushed whisper, yet harsh and somewhat surprised came from somewhere to your left. You opened your eyes slowly, turning in the direction of the voice in search of its owner. 

There, behind one of the columns, stood a figure clad in darkness. You couldn't make out who it was. 

"Who are you?" You asked, you voice coming out calmer than your thoughts. 

The figure hesitated for a moment, slipping back into the shadows before reappearing on the other side of the column, where a patch of moonlight rested. A flash of blonde hair and blue eyes told you exactly who was watching you.

"Armin?" You questioned in disbelief. "What are you doing out this late?" 

Armin chuckled sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head with one hand. "I would ask the same of you, but I think we have similar answers."

"Couldn't sleep?" You asked softly, walking a little closer, hugging your jacket tighter to your form. 

Armin nodded, lowering his arm and looking off to the side. "I can't place it, but I have a bad feeling. I've been trying to get to sleep for hours but I can't shake it."

You nodded, stopping a few feet in front of him. "Me too." You whispered breathlessly. "I'm afraid of what tomorrow will bring." 

There was silence between you two for a while, you staring downwards, whilst a pair of baby blue eyes locked on your figure. 

"I'm scared, Armin." You confessed, you voice a little choked. "I can't help but think: What if I don't come home tomorrow? What if I don't make it?" You looked up, brow furrowed intensely in concern. "I can't help but think that I'm going to die."

Armin regarded you silently, his eyes gazing into yours blankly. 

After a moment, you looked back down again. "I don't want to die, Armin." You whispered.

You didn't notice his footsteps until his arms were wrapped around your form, hugging you tight to his own. Your eyes widened, the tears that had begun to form in your eyes slowly ebbing away. Armin was silent as he hugged you close to him, hands bunching the material of your jacket in his fists.

"It doesn't matter what happens tomorrow." he whispered to you. "Just...stay with me here right now, and don;t worry about what happens after sunrise."

You were still and tense as he spoke, but when he finished, you felt your muscles relax and your body melt into his figure. 

"Yes." You whispered every so softly, it couldn't be heard over the breeze.

Armin nuzzled into your hair, running a hand through the (h/c) strands. 

"I'll guard you until tomorrow comes."