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Chapter Text

An irritating vibration forced Eren's tired eyes wide open. The early alarm he had set the day before now tormented him. He groaned before sitting up on his broken bed. An unpleasant nervousness weighing heavily on his chest. There was also a part of him that was extremely excited to finally begin his first seminar with his new class.

But the set up was so different to Shadis', the whole group was sent the work of two of their peers ahead of time to read and analyze, then in the seminar they would give their critical feedback.

He felt a huge relief that he was not selected, his other peers seemed much more confident than him, which was quite nerve racking. He read through the two pieces of his classmates, but that only served to make him feel even worse. They were good, excellent even... he hoped his own work could match up to the high expectation.

To make matters even worse, Mikasa was pissed with him. He had told her again and again about his first seminar. But when it was time to leave the club last night, her face had soured as if he had insulted her. He checked his phone to see if she had left any messages for him.

She had, a few drunk ones telling him how much fun he was missing out on. He signed, a little annoyed she kept pushing him to go out. It's not like he didn't want to, she had to know that he couldn't.

Sometimes, it really felt like Mikasa wanted him to feel guilty when he couldn't spend time with her and he just didn't need that to start his day. 

His eye also caught an unread message from Levi. A smile crept on his face before he even opened it. He wondered what the man would be texting him, perhaps another meeting for coffee? He tapped on his screen, eager to see what it was... 

Morning Eren,

If you still feel nervous about class, just remember you've worked too hard to doubt yourself now. 

His eyes were glued to the screen, his heart beat sped up and he simply stood in awe. An overwhelming wave of emotion swept over him, it blazed with passion within him.

But a grave memory unsettled his bliss as his guilt from last night resurfaced. Playing down his feelings for Levi in front of his friends, he couldn't have felt more pathetic if he wanted to.

When Levi gave him everything, how could be return it all with slander? But as his eyes read back over and over the text, the answer was crystal clear to him. However, stoic or difficult to read Levi may appear, his feelings were always honest and true to himself. Levi cared for him, and he didn't let anything hinder that.

But for Eren, all his thoughts and ideas were mixed up in his head. Things were just easier when he went along with others even when it betrayed his own beliefs. He let his friends influence every part of his life, he wanted to impress them, make them happy and hang around them. He needed them to like him back in return, to want his approval or happiness but it never felt like that at all. 

Miksasa was the only person he could confidently say genuinely liked him and enjoyed his company. Sasha was always kind to him but they never shared deep conversations or anything of the sort. They were more friends by association, Eren liked hanging with her but it felt as though the only thing they spoke about was the type of food she wanted to eat.

Historia and Ymir weren't exactly his best friends. He never brings up the weird way they had actually met, and Ymir would never overtly say she didn't like him to his face but he felt it either way. Historia hid her true feelings much more, but Eren knew she wasn't overly fond of him either. It felt more like they just barely tolerated him than friends with him.

And he hadn't spoken to Armin in forever. They used to keep up constantly after Armin left for Harvard. But after a while, their chat just sort of dried up. There were less and less things to exchange with one another.

It felt as though Armin had got new, much smarter friends. He was in countless academic societies and won numerous student awards, why would he need his simple-minded friend anymore? But the more rational side of Eren knew Armin wasn't like that, and he truly was just busy.

But where did that all leave him?

Well, still feeling like an idiot for the other night. But an idiot with strong determination. Levi was right like always, he had worked hard and he had just as much right to be present in class as the other students.

The smile that had solemnly dropped from his face quickly returned in a bashful manner as he began to type out his reply to Levi's message...

"The swine and I.

Eye to eye.

My heart is his...

And that was sunset."

Connie read the poem from his iPad in a workshop room under the censorious observation of all his peers and tutor. His focus uplifted from his device and scanned the silent room. His nervous, brown eyes met with mostly blank faces, but also a few critical ones. His throat began to heighten as the awkward silence continued...

Eren's eyes initially stayed on his laptop, but the uneasy tension made him look up and the first thing he focused on was Mina.

Her dead eye expression left him feeling uncomfortable, it was as if the poem had stultified her and she didn't suppress the fact that she was not at all impressed,

"I'm not sure it had the vigilance or depth that you're capable of. I just wasn't fully invested."

She declared her criticism in that condescending voice Eren recognized from when she last spoke to him.

Eren found himself fixing his gaze upon Connie, curious to how he took the Mina's judgement. He took it well, nodding along with her statement but Eren caught onto his tighten jaw and jaded eyes. He was disappointed his piece wasn't viewed more positively by his peers.

Their tutor, Rico Brzenska stood at the front of the room, just before Eren and Mina, "Interesting, Mina. How do we maintain the reader's attention? We infuse the universal with painful specificity. Or they simply turn the page."

Her words grasped Eren complete attention, it is something he struggled with in his own writing. And he wasn't the only one with an opinion on the matter.

"Exactly." Mina expressed her concordant with the tutor.

She turned her eyes to the class as she continued to express herself, "My worst fear, and I'm not commenting on Connie's poem per se, is not to be bad but... unremarkable." She voiced out the final word as her gaze fell on Eren's forest eyes. He turned his head away to escape her patronizing eyes, and emitted a silent sigh to himself as he waited for the lesson to finally end.

"Unremarkable. That is the fear. I hope this was helpful, Connie? I think that does it for today." Rico spoke cheerfully as if this class has been a great success, Eren certainly didn't share her sentiment as he began to pack his things.

Her fingers quickly lifted her dark, academic folder and she adjusted her glasses before reading out, "Next up is Mina and... Eren. Send a piece of your choosing to myself and your fellow classmates, and we'll review them tomorrow."

Mina only smiled, it was clear she was overly excited to finally share her work with everyone. "Okay." She joyfully voiced out as she carefully shut her device.

Her enthusiasm was not at all shared by Eren, his nerves had gotten the better of him as a heavy look took over his face.

What the fuck am I going to submit before tomorrow?

...

Eren sulked his way home, his body tense and mind disjointed. When he finally arrived at his apartment, he found the smallest little things irritating the hell out of him -- the messy dishes he forgot to clean, the pile of clothes he was suppose to wash, but most of all, it has his darn bed that toppled over as soon as he sat on it.

The sudden motion had shocked him as the broken bed forced him off its side, making him land on the floor, "Argh!" 

He exhaled a heavy sigh before a beeping sound emitted itself from his new phone. He lifted himself up to get to it, as he peered down at his screen he discovered that not all was bad in his life.

He had Levi, who was currently waiting for him outside his apartment in his car so they could pick out a new bed which he desperately needed, but he needed Levi's company more than anything.

He breathed out again, but this was a sigh of relief because everything felt okay when Levi was around.

Outside Eren's home, on the opposite side of the street was parked an old-fashioned but oddly classically-modern sleek black vehicle.

The man sat inside the warm car practically buzzing with excitement to see his angel again. Within his pining soul, he had the strongest determination to show Eren that he was the one for him.

Levi was a logical person, he never felt the particular need to suppress his emotions from himself, he refused to deny himself of the cold truths the world presented him with, even when they were wicked. 

However, he was still human and on the rare occasion he did fool himself into delusional thinking, which had always evolved around Furlan.

He loved Furlan with so much of his heart, he convinced himself that love was returned wholeheartedly from Furlan's side. He truly believed Furlan loved him, no it was more than that... he thought Furlan was deeeply in love with him. That he craved and needed Levi just as badly as Levi wanted him. But those were fairy tales he created in his own mind to deceive himself of the terrible reality of his broken relationship.

He rejected any false beliefs he may of thought of Eren, he was not going to keep falling into the same traps. This time things would he different. He had to acknowledge everything about Eren, he couldn't lie to himself. 

But Eren had lied the other night with his friends at the bar, he led them into the false idea that he was having sex with people and perhaps he downplayed his genuine feelings for Levi too? 

Levi could forgive Eren not being heads over heels for him right now, but only if one day he truly was in love with him. That dream burned within Levi's lonely heart. And it didn't have to be soon, patience was cemented into Levi from his childhood, so he could wait for Eren to love him back.

But the real Eren didn't keep him waiting outside for long. The slight distant creak of Eren's building front door opening caught Levi's attention, and his eyes focused on the beautiful brunette who strolled out...

You bound down the stairs in that lovely, creamy white blouse. Your green eyes are gleaming and your finger nails sparkling so bright in the golden sun.

Your dark locks are up in a bun with only a few stray strands coming out, and you just look so perfect.

Eren excitedly strode over to Levi and pulled open the car door as he happily exclaimed, "Oh, my God! I can't believe this is your car!"

The brunette quickly buckled in before turning to face Levi, with a feverish grin on his face, "You have no idea how much I needed a new bed." 

The engine hammered away as the pair drove to the  store, with Eren recounting every detail of his miserable seminar to Levi. The ride was a short one, and soon they were parked right outside the store.

Before heading to the bedding department, Eren asked if he could glance around the home area, so they ended up browsing through the kitchen essentials section. Levi slowly trialled behind his brunette as the boy looked at overpriced drinking glasses, although Levi's mind was drastically preoccupied.

How do I segue this from Eren browsing glassware to thinking, 'Holy shit! Levi's the one'?  

The boy in question suddenly got his interest piqued as his eyes connected with the top of a display cabinet. He stepped over to it, carefully reached up to pick up a plastic ladle, "Weird." He uttered the single word before turning and presenting what he found to Levi, "I have one just like this."

Yeah, I know all about it. Reiner told me.

Eren's eyes shifted sadly to look back down at the utensil in his dainty hands, after a few seconds he continued to explain, "It was my dad's." 

The infamous red ladle. How you like to be spanked with it. Is that what you really want, Eren? 

To Levi's dismay, Eren couldn't answer his questions and only placed the ladle back in its place as he stepped away from the cabinet.

Unable to discover anything particularly useful in the home ware department, the pair made their way to the display beds already made up luxury sheets and embroidered cushions to entice customers to buy more than what they came for.

Wide green eyes scanned over all the beds carefully, a perplexed expression overcame his face.

"What do you think, Levi? I can't decide, should I get the Queen size or... maybe the King?"

Your room isn't big enough to fit a King. But I definitely shouldn't know that.

"Is your place big enough for a King?"

"No, not really." The boy huffed. A ping sound from Eren's phone interrupted them, a look of grief struck the brunette's once bright face as he glanced down at the alert on his phone, "Ugh."

The young boy allowed himself to drop down on the bed closest to him to help process the information.

"What's wrong?" Levi voiced his concern as he took a few steps towards the boy.

"This girl, Mina, in workshop. She just submitted her short story..." Eren spoke distantly as his eyes appeared glazed over, completely distracted by scanning through the submission on his phone.

"And?" Levi pressed as he now stood just before Eren, who hadn't even blinked since his eyes laid sight on Mina's story.

"And I haven't even started mine, and it's due tomorrow." Only a few seconds passed but Eren had seemingly read enough before declaring his judgement, "God. Hers..." His eyes were glued wide open as he continued to read, "It's brilliant. It's about a crow that flies into a woman's house, runs into the walls and leaves blood everywhere."

"That sounds terrible."

"Read it." Eren pushed his phone into Levi's hands with a scrunched face, he barely waited a moment before he had to ask, "Well?"

Levi skimmed along the well structured sentences, filled with riveting phrases and imagery, it certainly wasn't as terrible as it sounded but he didn't want to discourage Eren. But he couldn't lie when Eren already knew it was good, so he said nothing until too long had passed and he simply voiced out, "It's... alright."

The irritated boy sighed as he fell back against the bed, "Why couldn't it of sucked?" 

Levi joined him, he laid besides Eren on the soft bedding. The older man felt doltish by the electrified delight that ran through him by fact that he was technically in bed with Eren. The filthy images he has dreamed of in his mind of this situation never failed to make him feel like a dirty, perverted old man.

But from time to time, he gave himself permission to indulge in his own prurient fantasies. As long as they were just in his mind it couldn't do any harm, that is what he told himself at least.

Avoiding Levi's gaze, the boy stared up at the high ceiling as he spoke up in a voice just above a whisper, "Can I ask you something?" 

"Anything."

The speed and promise of dedication in Levi's low voice pushed Eren to finally turn his head yet his gaze was not properly focused on Levi when he asked, "Promise to tell the truth?"

Levi raised his hand over his heart before answering, "Scout's honor." 

"Do you think..." Eren let his head fall to the side, his emerald eyes clashed with Levi's piercing silver ones, "...I'm unremarkable?"

Levi reached his sturdy arm over, using his slender fingers to sway through the beautiful hair that had fallen besides Eren face. The older man soothed the locks back a little, Eren's ocean deep eyes never leaving his as Levi quietly spoke,

"Honestly... you are without a doubt, the single most remarkable person I've ever known."

His golden emerald orbs widened even more than they were as he took in Levi's words. A feeling that he couldn't describe took over within.

Things moved so fast, Eren could barely keep up, one moment they were gazing into each others' eyes and the next Levi had him pinned against a huge room divider a few steps away from the beds, covering them from the prying eyes of the few customers in the store with them.

The older man pressed against him, his arms tightly holding onto Eren as he passionately kissed him. The young brunette felt lightheaded as Levi moved down across his face, planting little kisses against his warm, pink cheeks, his jaw and soft, tan neck.

A tremendous amount of thoughts raced through the boy's mind, he was quickly losing track of them all, his head going crazy with every little kiss Levi pressed upon his skin.

In the back of his mind, he marvelled at Levi's shocking strength, his muscular arms that held him with such ease and Eren only now discovered how well-built and powerful the older man was as his hands pulled against Levi's hard chest while he begged for more. More of anything Levi was willing to give him.

This is it, Eren. This is the moment. I'm going to show you just how remarkable you are. If you want it, then so be it...

Levi dropped on his knees, with precise and agile fingers he started undoing Eren pants...

"Wait..wait... Stop Levi! What are you doing?"

"I thought that you... that you wanted--"

"In the middle of a store? No. Why would you think that?" Eren shrieked before turning away from Levi to leave in a rush.

I guess I read that wrong. I'm a fucking idiot!

You haven't made eye contact for the past ten minutes.

Levi carried the heavy boxes containing Eren's bed to his car and carefully piled them up in his trunk. Eren helped of course but no words were exchanged between the pair.

Things couldn't get any worse right now.

But that wasn't true, as Levi would soon discover when his phone began to ring.

"Erwin?" He answered after seeing that his friend was the one calling.

"Hey, Levi. Sorry, I know your busy but the thing is, the power's completely out here. The electrician says he thinks the system is overloaded, but he can't get to the fuse box because..." 

It's in the basement with a fucking dead body.

"...which is locked." Erwin finished.

Eren couldn't hear everything but picked up on the fact there Levi seemed to be dealing with a problem on the other side of the call.

Erwin continued, "He thinks he can pop the lock, but I just wanted to, you know--"

"No." Levi refused the offer, perhaps a little too quickly, "Just tell the electrician to go home. I'll call him later. You lock up and go home. I'll deal with it when I get back."

"All right." Levi ended the call with a face hindered with affliction that didn't slip the notice of his doe-eyed companion.

Eren stepped up besides him suddenly, uttering his first words since their little incident in the store, "Everything okay?" 

"Yes, it's fine. It's just a little problem at the shop... I should get you home." Levi spoke almost indifferently, in his usual casual but cool voice. He offered a shadow of a smile to the younger boy, to which he got a brighter one in return, though not as brazen as his usual ones. Along with a small nod of agreement, "Okay." 

While on the outside Levi appeared collected, the same couldn't be said for how he was feeling internally. But on that matter, Eren was none the wiser as he simply got into the car after Levi held open the door for him. The car ride home fell silent, as both men found they were talking to themselves into their own minds.

Eren felt a heavy burden of complete embarrassment from his actions in the store. His pink cheeks burnt as he recollected the incident, in his attempts to hide this from the older man he pretended to gaze out of the window, giving him the opportunity to turn his head away. But he couldn't avoid the voice in his head that chastised him, but what was he supposed to do in that moment? 

Levi had just called him remarkable, and he wanted to be... maybe not everyone would think he was but he needed Levi to. Because that feeling that swelled inside of him after Levi had said it, it felt like the older man was truly touching his heart, ever so gently putting it back together after being broken so many times before.

And so he just panicked when Levi tried to get into pants down. At first Eren thought it would be better to get Levi in bed at early as possible before the older man got bored of waiting but Levi wasn't into that at all. But regardless of when their first time was, Eren thought he would at least get the chance to tell Levi he was trans and that he shouldn't be expecting a penis in his underwear.

The older man just startled him because he didn't want Levi finding out like that. Now Levi must be confused and maybe even frustrated with him. Eren would have given anything to look into Levi's mind at that moment just to see what the man was thinking about him...

Levi certainly had Eren on his mind, just not in the way the boy might have expected. Of course, he was worried he had blown it in the store with Eren by pushing the young brunette too far but he also had even bigger problems running loose in his head.

I was afraid this might happen. Six humidifiers and an AC unit from the late 70s cranked to its lowest setting. Even in death, Reiner is a colossal pain in my ass.

What if Erwin had not called, just given the electrician the clear to knock the door down? I would be in prison for life and Eren?

Eren would hate me and only think of me as the creepy weirdo who stalked him for weeks.

God, he had to get rid of that fucking rotting corpse before it was too late.

Levi had dropped Eren off outside his building and rushed over to Kenny's. Upon unlocking and pulling open the basement door, he was relieved to find that Reiner's deadly odour had not spread throughout the store despite the power switching off.

But the relief was short-lived however as he only needed to take a few steps down the basement stairs before the Reiner's repulsive stink filled the dead aroma around him. His arm was quick to shelter his nose from the rotten smell as he moved forward to glare at the state of the corpse.

With the AC out deterioration speed's really picked up. Levi stood disgusted as his eyes explored the biologically dire situation of the corpse.

Reiner had to go. 

Levi held his breath before venturing over to Reiner, it was hard to see what he was doing now as the only light source came from the torch on his phone. But he managed to roll the body over in the rug that had been stained with Reiner's blood, although it was not large enough to fully cover his brawny body. Levi was lucky to be so well equipped down in the basement, he had a tough rope he needed to tie the rug around the body and durable tape to secure it in. He also found a brown sack big enough to cover Reiner at least twice over, so it wasn't long until Levi had the corpse tightly sealed up.

The only question now was how he was going to get this in the back of his car. The sun was still up high in the sky, shining its light which threatened to expose his crimes every second he was moving the body in the open if he were to do it immediately.

But Levi couldn't afford to keep the body in the basement any longer, so he was willing to take the risk. His accommodating vehicle was parked directly outside the back. He had to take the same route he fooled Reiner with in the first place, it was a little amusing to Levi as he dragged the heavy corpse through the back of the basement doors.

Levi left Reiner waiting on the last step so he could check the area was clear before he hauled the dead body to his car trunk, thankfully the streets were quiet, giving him the perfect opportunity to solve his issue. He slammed the trunk with a heavy hand and took a breath of relief, he was finally going to rid the world of this fool. But that actually had to wait until the sun went right down and others had started their own bomb fires.

He went back down to the basement and eradicated any evidence of Reiner ever being there, he threw all of his belongings in a spare black bag, he sprayed the place to hell and back with any bottle of air freshener and mist he could find to get the area in acceptable condition for the electrician to fix the power. He even managed to discover some old, scented candles that were not only helpful against the smell but also a much needed source of light in the dim basement. 

With the basement looking as though nothing had ever happened, Levi felt ready to call the electrician but when he opened his phone he found he had a 'Missed Call from Eren' followed by a series of texts from the boy.

To Levi:

Hey, did you fix the problem at the store?  (6:38pm)

Just wondering if you wanted to come over?  (6:43pm)

I can't find the bed intrustions in english :(  (6:50pm)

He cursed inwardly as he checked the time, which was now a few minutes past seven. The electrician could wait, because he had to get over to Eren's apartment, help him build the bed and hopefully salvage the mess he made with the younger boy earlier. 

The rare books are fine once again now their rid of Reiner and the basement is completely corpse-free. I can't burn the body in the daylight, so the least Reiner can do is wait in the car for a little while.

Levi's mind recalls the first time he saw Reiner outside Eren's apartment and now he's driving to the young boy's home with Reiner's corpse in the trunk. It's quite a crude thought he muses as he approached Eren's building.

He forgets all about the dead man in his car as Eren buzzes him in, this would be his first official time in Eren's home with his permission and with the boy actually there as well.

Eren had managed to find the English instructions and had successfully dismantled his old bed, making space for the new one. It was simple for Levi, the instructions were clear and he moved the heavy pieces of the bed quite easily to fit them together perfectly.

He would not blink an eye if Eren decided to just sit pretty while he did all the work but that wasn't really the younger boy's style, once he had a mission he wasn't going to stop until it was completed by his own hands. Levi inwardly smiled at the determination shining in his sparkling green eyes.

Eren wasn't an expert in following the written instructions, but he was exceptional at listening to Levi when he told him what to do.

Levi was quietly thrilled with giving orders to Eren, even if it was only to build his bed, but he would take whatever he could get.

The younger boy didn't seem upset with him but Levi still felt an obligation to make up for his indecent behaviour just hours prior. When they had finished the bed frame and base, they pulled over the mattress and wrapped it in the soft, new sheets Eren had also purchased. Once the bed was covered in blankets and Eren's numerous cushions, the pair sat down together.

Eren sat against the wooden headboard while Levi was closer to the end of the bed, the silence between them was broken when Eren confesses, "I'm sorry about earlier. I didn't mean to get so upset."

"Don't apologize Eren. I was the one who tried--" 

"No. It's not that I didn't want it. It's just-- well I don't want you to think of me... like that."

Like a cheap whore, that's what all the men interested in him see him as. And Eren even felt it was true sometimes but he couldn't let himself feel that way with Levi. He was so different from any man Eren had fallen for in the past, and Eren wanted so badly for things to work out with Levi.

He struggled to find a way to explain himself to the older man, he huffed out a deep breath before he spoke again,

"I like you, Levi. I really like you... And I was a little in my head, to be honest. Mina's short story kind of threw me for a loop." Eren sighed, feeling discouraged from the memory of Mina's submission and reminder the intense pressure he had to send his own story to his class.

"It's not a competition." Levi assured the younger boy, noticing the sad infliction on Eren's face.

"I know, but I wonder... Am I ever gonna write anything that amazing?"

"You're talented."

Eren gives Levi a shrewd look, he had no desire for the older man to lie to him, "You don't know that." 

Levi sat up a little more, getting closer to the insecure brunette, "I know you need to get out of your head. Forget Mina. Forget everybody. Just write what you want."

But Eren has heard that before, in many different forms so it only makes him shake his head at Levi, "You say it like it's so easy."

"I know. I know. Okay, Don't think. Just answer."

"Okay."

"What hits you like a gut punch, when you think-- The first thought." 

"My dad. Before he..." Eren cuts himself off, his answer surprising even himself. It was a topic he never spoke about with others, it held too much raw emotions for him to handle. He would have thought his answer would be centered around his mother. About the incredible loss he felt in her death. But instead, the first thing that came to his mind was his father. He had so many repressed feelings about Grisha, thoughts and emotions he never let out but maybe it was time for him to at least try.

He shut his eyes, and even though he could no longer see Levi, he still felt the burning need to put his head down as he spoke, "He was an addict. It was hard. And scary."

It was the worst time of his life, after his mother had passed and his father turned to drugs before evetually abadanoning him all together.

A sad smile gradually found its way on Eren's face as he remembered how his father had tried to look after him afterwards.

"I mean, there were good days, too. Like, I always knew it was gonna be one of those when I woke up to the smell of pancakes cooking. He used this red ladle to scoop up the batter."

Wide metallic blue eyes watched the reminiscing young boy in great wonder, a sudden deep realization finally hitting him.

This is the red ladle story?

"And I would be laughing, singing along to songs on the radio. When everything would be right..."

The smiled dropped from Eren's face, "But then he'd go out and the ladle would go back in the drawer. I'd wait for the next good day... until there weren't any more."

Eren's voice was quiet and hoarse by the end of his words, he was visibly upset from the old memories but soon a warm hand reached out to soothe him.

Levi's comforting hand fell on Eren's thigh, it made the brunette look back up at the older man, staring deep into the kind eyes looking back at him.

Reiner was wrong about all of it. His whole red ladle story. You don't just want to be spanked. You want to be taken care of... to have someone who will make pancakes for you.

You want to feel safe. You want to be loved.

Eren shifts a little on the bed, trying to get closer to the other man and placing his own soft palm on top of the Levi's pale one on his leg. He took a deep breath in, preparing himself to finally tell Levi what he had been holding on to since they met, "There was something else I've been meaning to tell you, Levi."

Levi looked over his face expectantly, leaving Eren to huff out a little nervous laugh, "I-- umm... I don't know if you know and just don't wanna say anything or you actually just don't know... but I'm trans."

Knowing the topic would eventually come up, Levi had already decided to pretend he didn't know. So it would appear like he had just been waiting the whole time for Eren to tell him or that

But he noticed a drastic shift in Eren's demeanour, he's shaky and uncertain. He was worried about admitting the truth, as if Levi would refuse him. 

"Eren..." He turned the boy's face up to plant a delicate kiss against his lips before backing away a little.

The relieved brunette found himself smiling from Levi's reaction, "I was in my head too much. I seriously thought, I don't know... that it would change your feelings for me."

"I'm sorry the thought even crossed your mind." Levi softly spoke the words as his hand found Eren's trembling palm, "Nothing could change my feelings for you. But I'm glad you told me, I want you to know that you can tell me anything. I like learning new things about you."

Eren tightens his grip on Levi's hand, "What if you discover things you don't like?"

"I'm not expecting you to be perfect, Eren. I know I'm not, I just... really like being with you. You're..." Levi paused, gazed into the depths of Eren's gorgeous eyes before he finally finished, "I feel that you are so special."

"Really?" Eren's quiet voice shaken with uncertainty and insecurity, but his doubts were quickly soothed over when Levi moved closer and held his face in his palms.

"I told you before didn't I? I just like being with you."

Levi leaned forward to bring them together in a kiss, pushing his moon, pale fingers into Eren's midnight locks. He pressed his lips on Eren's eager mouth. 

Every touch placed on the needy brunette ignited a fiery passion inside of Eren, burning excitement raced through his veins the more Levi kissed him.

Eren gripped onto Levi's dark shirt, dragging him along as he falls back against his bed. Levi's lips never left Eren's mouth as he moved on top of the younger boy, but before anything more could happen between them--

A series of ear-breaking bangs pounded against the front door intereppting the pair.

Eren swiftly jumped up to answer it.

Upon opening the door and seeing who it was, he asked, "Is everything okay?"

"No. Thank God you're here."

The shrill, overbearing voice in response let Levi know exactly who it was. 

Mikasa. I should've known.

Levi sat up on the bed again, inwardly sighing and prepared himself for the headache of interacting with Eren's best friend.

Mikasa steered herself into the room, complaining with every step she took, "I'm having a really bad flare-up. I think I need you to take me to the emergency room."

A look of surprise fell on her face as she spotted Levi, "Oh, Lee? I didn't realize you were here."

She was dressed in something she would likely call chic but Levi thought looked ridiculous. She held her hand on her stomach as she made her way over to the couch and Eren explained, "Mikasa is really sick."

From where she sat with his legs crossed and hunched over herself as if truly in pain she continued the explanation, "This is probably more than you need to know, but I have a rare chronic bladder disease called Interstitial Cystitis. Gosh! I mean, you know, some people think I'm being uppity, but I can't have any fast food. And if I drink, it has to be a high pH, you know, like Ketel One or pear juice."

"Weren't you doing Jäger shots at your party?" Levi asked in a deadpan manner, but the question was ignored in favor of Mikasa wailing out in all her sickness. Eren was by her side right away, rubbing her back which left Levi wondering whether he was too cynical or if his boy was just naive.

"Let's get you to the hospital. Levi has a car. He can take us... Right, Levi? You can take us?" Eren asked the last part, looking at Levi with soft, sea-green eyes.

"Of course."

I mean, I've got a dead body in the trunk, but, hey, no problem, right?

It hadn't even been ten minutes since they left the apartment and got into the car before Mikasa found something else to complain about.

"This is taking forever. He took the worst street to get across town." She groaned from where she sat in the back with Eren, annoyed at the traffic on the busy roads to the hospital.

"Please, be nice." Eren quietly tried to encourage anything other than the disdain that constantly left her mouth with no luck.

"I'm in real pain!" Mikasa excused in rebuttal as she held tighter onto her stomach and turned her head away. But it wasn't long before there was something else she had to voice her opinion on.

"Lee, I'm feeling nauseated. Can you crack a window? There's a putrid aroma that keeps wafting in the back seat." A repulsed expression appearing on her face, as she made no move to open her own window. Levi and Eren lowered their own, before the brunette had to lean over Mikasa's annoyed form to open her side to let fresh air flow into the car.

 The sick girl shoved her head out of the window, breathing in the air as if she was dying, "Oh, God. I can't deal. I can't deal!" 

The car was at a standstill due the traffic, giving Mikasa the opportunity to push open the door, angrily ranting, "We'll walk. Need to get out of this."

And where Mikasa lead, his poor Eren had to follow. The alarmed brunette hurried out of the car, but before rushing to chase after his friend he came to Levi's window, "I'm so sorry."

"It's okay, Eren." Levi assured him, before Eren ran off to find Mikasa.

Levi looked up at the darkening sky...

It's time. Time to get rid of Reiner, so I can focus my undivided attention on you, Eren... On us.

You believed you deserved Reiner and his neglect. And you believe you deserve Mikasa and all of her drama. And on and on. I want to tell you, but I can't, not now at least...

All there is left to do now is to grab the supplies, drive the narcissistic cadaver, formerly known as Reiner, to his final destination, light a match, and I'm yours forever, Eren.

In a private hospital room, a nurse left Mikasa's side after affirming she could be discharged when she was ready.

Misaka sat on the hospital bed, pulling her expensive jacket back on before turning to look at her friend, "Thank you. Thanks for staying with me, Eren. Honestly, I don't know what I would've done without you." 

"You can always count on me." Eren stood to the side, a tired expression on his face.

"Thanks." Mikasa let a pleasant, genuine smile spread along her pink lips.

"So, what do you think about Levi?" Eren questioned with a small but happy smile plastered on his face.

"Uh... Yeah, you know, I like him." The uncaring tone was not only dismissive but also a dead giveaway she didn't like Levi at all.

Even Eren didn't miss the undertones of her words, but he had expected an answer like that. The next words came slowly as he built up the courage to tell her how he really felt, "I think I might really like him... I mean, I wasn't being honest before when I said he's maybe. I think he's the--"

"No! You can't be serious?" She stopped all her movement to look directly at him, with her haunting piercing gaze. "Eren! The guy works at a bookstore. Look, I know you. You don't want to spend your fifth anniversary going dutch at Katz's Deli. You need someone to take care of you. So you can write, be free, happy. Not someone like Levi and his... financial limitations."

 The smile on his face had long disappeared, "That's not fair."

"Nobody pays me to be fair." Mikasa finished on the subject with a condescending smirk on her face. She picked up her handbag, ready to leave, "Now, what do you say we get a bite to eat? I'm starving..."

Eren sighed, shaking his head as he took a step towards the door, "I think I better skip it. I'm going home... Glad you're feeling better." With that he went to leave, but he didn't make it past the door before Mikasa's voice screeched at him.

"Wait-- Eren, you know me better than anyone. You know I just want to look out for my best friend. I'm not trying to be a bitch, but I want to always be honest with you."

"That doesn't make me feel better."

"But I know what will. You need to come with us for a night out. It's banker boy's birthday, and he's having a party in some up street bar." 

"No. I've got--"

"Please, the best authors wrote their greatest works when they were blind drunk. Just one drink and I'll take you back home and watch you write myself."

"Just one?"

She raises a single finger, jazzled with expensive rings and glossy nail polish, "Just one."

...

In a crowded, warmly lit bar, Eren slammed down his fourth glass of the night. He felt loose and free, untied to all his daily worries that drained any happiness from him.

His body turned over to face Mikasa, a silly smile on his mouth, and a feverish spark of fire burnt within him to share his feelings, "Levi is so good to me."

Mikasa sat next to him with a hard smile, feeling absolutely infuriated with every mention of Levi's name. She had heard enough of that prole. She rolled her eyes in vexation, Eren too unaware to take notice of, and slid another drink to her dear friend, "Sure, whatever you need, Eren. I'm just saying and I mean this, honestly, maybe a simple life isn't so bad."

Glazed over, shiny verdant orbs eyed the drink before immediately accepting it. His grasp on reality fading away with every minute ticking by but he still attempted to deny Mikasa's claims, "No, Levi isn't simple. He's different... Complicated."

Mikasa didn't even try to hide her scorned expression, she had it with Eren talking so reverently about that loser. She much preferred when Eren was getting drunk, with tears in his eyes as he complained about Reiner.

Reiner was a loser as well, but at least he was rich one.

Soon, the gears in her scheming brain started to turn, her hard smile replaced with a cunning one before she suggested to Eren, "How about instead of speaking about Levi to me, you just speak directly to him? Call him!"

Eren's oblivious eyes widen from the idea...

The sky was now a dark abyss, the new moon shining no light and not one star could be seen. In the deep, dark woods Levi had purposely driven so far out that not a soul would see him, and hopefully a place so desolate that Reiner would never be found. 

The soil was dry and rough, perfectly accommodating for a blazing fire. He gathered up small, fallen branches but just as he was about to flood them with fire starter fuel, a buzzing phone vibrated in his pocket. An irritating force in his mind told him he needed to answer it, he quickly pulled the phone out and saw who was calling him.

Eren! Oh, no. Not now.

He shoved the phone back in his pocket, how morbid would it be to speak to Eren while burning his ex-lover to ashes. Levi had to focus, to get this right so he could finally get rid of this sack of shit. He drowned the branches in the fuel, the only thing left was to drag the body to his final destination.

The only problem, his fucking phone kept going off while he was dragging Reiner to the branches. When he finally dropped the body in the right spot, the fourth call was still ringing...

Why would Eren be calling so much? Maybe something happened? Levi's wishful thinking wondered if Mikasa's shitty illness was real and perhaps she died at the hospital. Only in his dreams. He had to find out regardless, he pulled his phone out to answer it.

Okay, Eren, all right.

Immediately after he picked up, he heard Eren's soft, slurring voice, "Levi! Finally-- Levi, you know I- I called you like a million times? Why-- are you ignoring me or something?"

Levi took a second to comprehend Eren's current predicament. He noted the loud music from the bar and took a guess where his Eren was but nevertheless asked, "Eren... where are you?"

The playful, drunk brunette giggled in response, ridiculously amused by the question, "I'm, you know-- I'm celebrating with my friends." 

"And how is Mikasa? Is she with you?"

Of course Mikasa was there, all that sickness nonsense was just for show... for Eren to give all of his attention to her, Levi thought as soaked the corpse in the fuel and layered the spot with odour neutralising chemicals. 

"Oh yes, yes. Everything was fine at-- oh thanks for the ride cause the doctor said it was good we came when we did. She's here... here with me-- actually, she... she's one told me to call you."

She did? Levi raised his dark brows by the admission, but he was running out of time and couldn't take the time to understand Mikasa's motives. He couldn't let the corpse still be in form when the sun came up, it needed to be burnt to nothing.

Eren's voice still verged on playful, but now with something more wanting in his tone, "Hey, so... so why don't you meet me back at my place-- we can you know... we can pick up where we left off. What do you think?"

In his haste, Levi quickly pushed his phone between his ear and shoulder while he tugged the matches out of his pocket. An unfortunate element of being in a anxious rush is that it forces some things out that you really didn't want to slip out, "You complain about not being able to write, but then you drop everything for some medical emergency, which many believe to be fucking psychosomatic in origin."

 "What? No I- I meant about you.. coming over." Levi felt the uncomfortable sensation of his facial muscles flinching from the hurt dripping from Eren's vulnerable, quiet voice. 

With one swift strike of his wrist, Levi lit the large matchstick. The flame mutely illuminated its place in a pale hand. "Eren, you have a class in the morning, it's not a good idea." 

"Stop reminding me! I'm trying to forget about it, okay?" 

"What about your writing? Did you finish it already--" 

"God, can we just forget about my stupid class for one second?" The strained question came across as a desperate plea to Levi, who in that moment flicked the burning matchstick on the drenched corpse. The biting air was a powerful force against the thin stick with a struggling flame which ultimately vanished. Levi glared miserably at the failed attempt, before sighing into the phone.

"I'm trying to do what you want, but I can't tell what that is. I only want the best for you, Eren."

"What the fuck is that supposed to mean?" 

Levi had witnessed Eren drunk, like falling on the subway tracks level drunk, but this? He hated the belligerent undertones to every word slurred from the young boy's mouth, Levi could only assume the stress of his imminent seminar was guilty for the way Eren was acting.

"Look, you're not thinking right now because of the alcohol. But--"

"Am thinking fine not-- not drunk Levi, what the hell? I know what am doing, do you think am some idiot who can't--"

"No, I'm not saying that. Eren... I just want you to know, I'm here for you, if you needed a ride back home or--"

"I don't need any help, not from you... I have to go."

"But Eren--"

The call cut off, forcing Levi to stop talking before he could even finish his sentence.

He struck the matchstick again with new found frustrated strength, and produced a strong wild flame. He dropped it on the rotted corpse, the fire never going out on its way down as it fought against the bitter air. It landed on the fuel drenched body, immediately exploding the spot with a blazing hot fire. Savagely burning away at Reiner's corpse.

Levi stepped back from the flaring heat and sat against a fallen tree trunk. He watched the flames and dark smoke emitting from the fire.

I believe in love at first sight. I had it with you, Eren. And maybe...

The flickering sparks rose to the peak of the fire only to burn into smoky fumes. The once promising spark turning into nothing.

... just maybe, I destroyed it in the space of a single phone call.