AN: This was a request from lexboss. I hope I did it justice. I'm not a very big het fan but I love Armin to death.

Annie wakes with a start, her heart pounding and breath refusing to fill her lungs. Her hands fling out, heart only calming when it comes in contact with a warm figure. The hand that comes into contact with her boyfriend clenches, squeezing not only the shirt but skin underneath. Armin groans, his face scrunching up.

"Annie," he mumbles sleepily. His large blue eyes open for a second before slipping closed, "you okay?"

"I'm fine... Just a dream," she answers him distractedly, watching the way his chest moves up and down. It helps settle her in the present. Helps her know that she isn't where she was.

Armin sits up, rubbing his eyes as he does. He takes one sleepy look at her and wraps his arm around her shoulders. She leans into him, soaking up his warmth and the comfort he gives her.

"The same one?" he asks her gently. Annie nods her head before shaking it, her hand grabbing the one of his not on her shoulder. Armin kisses the top of her head.

"Want to tell me?"

"I was the monster again. Killing people," she pauses, not quite crying. She won't allow herself to. It would be too easy to fall into tears and allow Armin to love the pain, the fear, the self-satisfaction she felt as she killed people who threatened her mission, away. The thrum to destroy all in her way is still there but as Armin presses against her, gentle words and even softer touches, the thrum dies to a buzz. She can still hear the screams, though, smell the copper in the blood, feel the sun beating down on her naked skin as she rips people apart. She can still hear the Armin from her dreams shouting.

"I found you. I picked you up," a tear escapes her eye like a traitor, "I think I was going to hurt you."

"You would never hurt me."

She pushes away from him, tries to anyway. Armin won't let her get too far away, bringing her back in for a kiss. His soft hands grip her face and he makes her stare into his eyes. She wonders what he sees. If he sees the monster she becomes in her dreams. Wonders if her eyes are as cold as the crystal she sometimes sees herself in.

"You would never hurt me. Not on purpose."

He sounds so sure. Annie slumps into him, allowing his to wrap her up in his arms. To snuggle her. She melts like a cat, her hands clutching at his shoulders. He pats her head, his long fingers combing through her hair as he rocks her.

"You aren't the monster in those dreams."

He kisses the parts of her he can reach and she loves him for it. He's always there, always kind. She's glad that he loves her.

"Keep telling me that?" she pleads. Part of her fears that if he doesn't she will turn into that monster.

"Forever and always," he promises.

They sit like that until the alarm goes off. It's six fifteen in the morning. Had she slept longer than normal or had she just not noticed how much time had passed? Armin kisses her cheek and rubs their noses together.

"Let's get some breakfast," it's whispered against her skin. A suggestion mixed with a question. He lets her choose what to do. If she wants she can keep them in bed. She can push him back and they can fuck her nightmare away. If she wants she can bury her head into his neck and he will sit there only moving when he has to pee. Control. That is what he gives her, always gives her without a thought. He doesn't know, doesn't care that in her dreams that is the last thing you want to do. Annie takes a deep breath.

"Breakfast sounds good," she agrees getting off of his lap. Together they leave the bedroom and walk the short distance to the kitchen. The one highlight of living in a tiny apartment is that there isn't much space between the bedroom and food. It's almost too bad that the biggest downfall of the apartment is the lack of space everywhere else. Armin digs around their fridge, pulling out the ingredients they have. Eggs, bacon, and pancakes are made with a soft air of comfortable silence. They sit at their small table, an end table that functions as a dining room table and a catch-all, shoulder to shoulder. Before Armin, she found couples who did the things they do disgusting. Felt that they were too intertwined. But sitting here, Armin holding up a forkful of syrupy eggs? It feels like home. She leans in and takes the bite.

Cuddling, sharing food, intimacy outside of sex, these are all things that she never thought of before she started dating Armin. And if she's being truthful, it's doubtful that she would enjoy these things with anyone else.

"Does anything good ever happen in your dreams?"

The question comes as a shock. What is even more shocking is the fact it doesn't sour her appetite.

"I meet you."

He smiles at her and her thoughts threaten to turn sappy as she looks at him. Because god does she love that smile. With a smile of her own, she pushes the plate of food away, not that it goes far but it's enough to have Armin scooting back so that she can straddle his lap. She cups his face in her hands and kisses him deeply.

"You are possibly the only good thing about those dreams," she whispers when the break apart. They undress each other, a quick glance at the windows to ensure that the blinds are down, kisses being exchanged like breaths of air. Armin's hands on her hips as they move together is an anchor in her mind. That no matter what, Armin is here, that he loves her and she loves him. That this is home and not that blood filled world.