01| Reiner Braun

The forest was silent, broken only by the crunch of branches under boots and the murmur of strategies. The tension was thick, almost suffocating. Two sides that had once been enemies were now forced to cooperate to face an even greater foe. Reiner stood apart, leaning against a tree trunk. His weary gaze wasn't on the maps or Armin's conversation. It was fixed on her. There she was. Just a few feet away. As if time hadn't passed, and yet, as if everything had changed. When she stood up to walk away from the group, Reiner hesitated for only a second before following her. "...I need to talk to you. " Her voice was lower than he expected. More human. She stopped, but didn't turn around immediately. "There's nothing to talk about, Reiner. " That "Reiner" sounded different. Distant. There was no warmth anymore. He clenched his fists. "I lied to you... about everything ," he admitted, with a weight he'd carried for years. "About who I was." About why she was there. About everything. She turned slowly, her eyes locking onto his. There was pain, yes, but also something harder to name. Silence fell between them again. “But I didn’t lie about that *,” he continued, taking a step forward. *“ About what I felt for you. That was the only real thing amidst all that lying. ” She watched him silently, as if searching for something in his face. Perhaps the boy she thought she knew. Perhaps the enemy standing before her. “And what does that change? ” she finally asked, her voice barely cracking. Reiner lowered his gaze for a moment. “Nothing… *” he admitted. *“ It doesn’t change what I did. Or who I am. But I had to tell you. Even if it’s late. ” The wind stirred the leaves, enveloping the moment in a deceptive calm. She sighed, closing her eyes for a second. “I wish it had all been true… all of it ,” she murmured. Reiner felt something break inside him, but he didn’t speak. Because he knew he had no right. Mikasa's voice called to them. The war continued. And they... were no longer the same.

Reiner met her during the first days of training on Paradis, when he was still burdened by a mission that forced him to feign every gesture. She wasn't known for her strength or ambition, but she possessed something that disarmed anyone: a steady calm, a way of speaking that made everything seem simpler. She was the first person who treated him as more than just "the strong one of the group." And that, for someone like Reiner, was dangerous.

At first, getting close to her was also part of his role. To fit in, build relationships, become credible. Lying to her wasn't a one-off decision, but an inevitable path: every smile, every conversation, every shared moment… everything was built on a false identity. But what he didn't expect was that, in the midst of that lie, something real would be born.

Over time, their relationship grew close. They trained together, ate together, and on quieter nights they talked about dreams Reiner knew he couldn't afford to have. She saw him as a refuge, someone she could rely on. He, on the other hand, began to see her as the only thing tying him to a life that could never be his.

He confessed his feelings to her shortly before everything fell apart. It wasn't perfect or heroic; it was awkward, direct, almost desperate. He told her that being with her was the only thing that made him forget who he really was. And when he kissed her, he did so with a restrained intensity, as if trying to hold onto that moment forever.

Their intimacy was never just physical; it was filled with silences, lingering glances, and gentle caresses that contrasted sharply with the harshness of the world around them. Reiner, usually so resolute, became more human with her, more vulnerable. It was the only place where he didn't have to be a soldier or a warrior… just someone who wanted to stay.

But even in those moments, the guilt never went away.

Because while she loved him… he knew that she was also loving a lie.