A/N: I have decided to rewrite one one of my older ereri works the only one I actually still like. I thought it would be just a quick edit and I'd just update the old fic but somehow... the 2.5k words turned to this and it didn't feel right to not post it anew. What was I thinking not using speech tags, it barely made sense in places, why did people like it, it's a mystery.
Anyway.
Hope it's not only longer now but also better and a lot more enjoyable :)
It was a late Friday evening when a small group of three, exited one of the large corporate buildings that were a plenty in the city of Trost. Judging by their tired faces, well tailored suits, and important looking briefcases, they were just out of some long and gruelling meeting, seemingly more than happy to be out in the streets instead of some stuffy conference room.
"Guys, I need a drink," the woman announced to her companions as she stretched, sounding more exhausted than excited for a night out.
One of the others, a short man with black hair styled in an undercut, clicked his tongue. "Forget it, Hanji."
The woman, Hanji, gasped dramatically, drawing out a whine, "Whyyy?"
"Because you," the man growled, shooting Hanji a glare, "can't handle any amount of alcohol and are even more of an annoying shit when drunk."
"Levi, come on!" Hanji cried, throwing her hands up in exasperation.
The last one of the group, a tall, blond man spoke up then, voice calm but with a barely noticeable hint of amusement. "She's right, Levi. It's been rough two days, I think we deserve to unwind a bit."
Levi rolled his eyes, his scowl deepening as he huffed, "Fine, whatever. I'm not the one who'll have to deal with her hungover ass tomorrow in the car."
Hanji stopped in her tracks at Levi's annoyed words, clearly taken aback. "Wait, you're not returning with us?" she questioned, almost scandalized.
"My vacation's starting," Levi stated matter-of-factly, not elaborating further.
However, Hanji's frown only deepened. "That doesn't explain anything," she noted, confused and curious.
Levi was silent for a moment before he looked pointedly away from his two friends, mumbling vaguely in response, "I'm going sightseeing." A thick silence followed, all three of them acutely aware that Levi was all too obviously avoiding the question.
"Erwin," Haji finally spoke up, addressing the tall, muscular blond. "Did I hear right? Levi? Sightseeing? In the same sentence?" She was incredulous. It was unheard of that Levi would bother with something as mundane as sightseeing, voluntarily.
Erwin hummed in response, nodding his head with a thoughtful expression on his face. "Sounds very suspicious," he said after a second, a slight calculating smile on his lips as he measured his short friend.
"Shut the fuck up, both of you," Levi snapped, still avoiding both of their inquiring gazes.
"Okay, okay," Hanji conceded but narrowed her eyes at Levi dangerously. "But don't think I'll just drop it like this."
"Wouldn't dream of it," Levi said, sarcasm dripping from his voice.
Hanji huffed then, switching the topic abruptly, "Hey, I think there should be this really great bar a few minutes from here. What was the name?" she paused, thinking, as she mouthed words to herself in an effort to remember.
"Rose?" Erwin supplied after a moment, looking up from his phone. He was obviously looking up good places to hang out at while Levi and Hanji bickered.
"Yes!" Hanji cried, snapping her fingers. "We're going there."
"Wrong direction then," Erwin chuckled, pointing back the way they came.
Hanji laughed, turning on her heel suddenly looking of full of energy. "Whoops!"
"Rose? You've got to be kidding me..."
"Levi? Did you say something?" Erwin asked, looking back at his friend who still hadn't moved from where they had stopped a moment earlier.
With a shake of his head, Levi replied, "No, nothing." Then, while rubbing at his eyes, he turned around to reluctantly trail after the two.
Two hours, a light dinner, and three quarters of a cocktail glass later, and Hanji was already drunk off her ass, much to Levi's amusement and displeasure. He wasn't sure which feeling was stronger. On one hand, the fact that Hanji was a lightweight of ridiculous proportions would never cease to amaze and entertain Levi. On the other, Hanji could get incredibly annoying when drunk.
"You know what, Leeevi?" Hanji sang, intentionally drawing out Levi's name as she stared at her friend intently.
Levi was not nearly drunk enough to deal with this.
He had half a mind to ignore her but he was positive that she would continue talking regardless. There was no point trying to avoid her potentially embarrassing ramblings so he decided to humour her, responding with a resigned sigh, "What, Hanji?"
"Ever since we came in," a sly smile slowly appeared on her face as she talked in mock whisper, "you've been staring at the pretty bartender."
"Have not." Levi shot her a dirty look as he countered her accusation, annoyance clear in his voice as he lied through his teeth.
He had been staring and both Levi and Hanji and Erwin knew it. And judging by the shy glances here and there, the bartender in question probably knew, as well. They all knew and nothing Levi would say or do could convince either of them otherwise.
Levi cursed internally. He was sure Hanji was likely to drop it after a few minutes but Erwin would hold this against him for an eternity and he was very much not looking forward to that. But really, how was he supposed to resist that kid? With that body? That smile? Those eyes? (Those beautiful, big, expressive eyes that captivated him as soon as he saw them?)
"You so have!" Hanji said in a voice that didn't leave any room for arguments before she leaned in, shoving her face so far up Levi's personal space that he could feel her breath on his cheek and he had to remind himself that he would have to be the one to take care of her if she broke her skull after he shoved her off her bar stool. So he just pinched the bridge of his nose in an effort to summon the last bits of his patience.
A second later, Hanji continued with a Cheshire grin on her lips, "And you know what?"
"What."
If it were actually possible, Hanji's grin widened even more as she pulled back, stating triumphantly, "He's been staring at you, too!" A giggle escaped her at her own words and Levi only rolled his eyes at her excitement, picking up his drink to take a sip. Hanji was just absolutely ridiculous when she got drunk. Patting Levi on the knee in a mock-comforting fashion, she then added, "Maybe you'll finally get laid! You keep saying you're taken but I don't believe you! You're just saying that to get rid of me!" she finished with a pout and arms crossed across her chest.
Levi almost spat out his drink.
Even Erwin, who'd only been quietly observing their exchange until that point, started laughing. Trying unsuccessfully to suppress his chuckles that were making his shoulders shake, until he was forced to put down his glass before it spilled.
Levi quickly glanced over and noticed with a sinking stomach that although it appeared the fellow object of Hanji's ramblings didn't hear them as he continued on with his business, the tips of his ears turned slightly red. Cute. But Hanji was still too loud and even more than that, embarrassing.
He shot her a glare, narrowing his eyes at her dangerously while she only continued grinning at him like the maniac she was. "I think you should stop drinking and go back," he said flatly, pointedly looking at the glass she just drained.
"No," Hanji replied immediately. "I wanna stay. Excuse me?" Hanji called and waved at the boy on the opposite side of the counter.
"Yes madam?" the young bartender asked with a polite smile as soon as he walked over to the three them.
"Hanji, don't even think about it," Levi growled lowly.
Hanji, however, paid him no mind, focusing her full attention on the boy in front of her. "Cutie, what's your name?" she asked in a singsong voice.
"Cutie?" the young bartender mouthed soundlessly, brows furrowed, obviously taken aback by Hanji's pet names. A long moment passed before his eyes momentarily flickered away from staring dumbfoundedly at Hanji only to meet straight with Levi's and Levi's stomach did a flip. He was not ready to look directly into those intense greens, no matter how fleeting the moment. He would never be ready and he loved it.
As suddenly as their eyes met, the bartender looked away and back at Hanji as he finally answered with a smile, "My name's Eren. What can I do for you, madam?"
"Nothing for me!" Hanji beamed, making Eren stare at her blankly and Levi click his tongue in annoyance.
Erwin on Hanji's other side snorted, highly amused with the situation, before he looked innocently away from the death glare Levi sent his way.
Hanji ignored both of her companions, focusing on the boy before her instead as she continued, "Well, maybe another drink in a bit. But Eren! Levi here would like to ask you out; when do you get off work?" she asked with a wide, blinding smile, obviously very proud of herself.
Levi could feel heat rising to his cheeks and he could only thank whoever was listening that the lighting was so dim in the bar. "Hanji," he growled simply, a clear warning in his voice.
"Hush, Levi; I'm helping you," Hanji shushed him, not even sparing him a glace. Obviously she wasn't intimidated.
Levi could only sigh and roll his eyes, stating flatly, "You're drunk."
"Yes. So what?" Hanji replied full of confidence and without missing a beat.
A quiet snicker that came from the other side of the counter interrupted their little argument, making Hanji beam once again while Levi could only stare at the laughing bartender in fascination. How dare he be so cute.
"I'm sorry," Eren said a moment later, barely suppressed laughter still audible in his voice.
"No need to apologise!" Hanji assured quickly with a wide grin. "So? When do you leave?"
"Not for a while still," the young man replied, a sheepish, apologetic half-smile on his face, all the while keeping eye-contact with his apparent suitor.
Hanji only waved her hand dismissively. "He'll wait, he doesn't mind!"
Heaving a deep sigh at both Hanji's one sided efforts at matchmaking and Erwin's obviously amused glances, Levi gave up interfering in any way. Trying to get either of them to stop would just be a waste of energy and Levi decided it wasn't worth the effort.
So he returned to his drink, praying Hanji wouldn't end up mentally scarring the man on the other side of the counter. Drunk Hanji was capable of worse things than that and as much as Levi loved her, she could be a lot to handle if you weren't prepared for a sudden declaration of "I want to try sneaking into the national museum!"
The worst part, however, was that Hanji would then go through with whatever stupidity she came up with and succeed. Levi had no idea how she did it and after the time he indirectly ended up on the news because of her with miraculously no consequences, he wasn't sure he wanted to know.
"Hey, Eren; I've been wondering," Hanji hummed after intently staring at Eren's face for a long moment while the kid poured Erwin a new shot. "I must have seen you somewhere but I can't remember where. Your pretty face is so familiar but just can't place it. Have we met before?"
"I'm sorry but I'm afraid we have not," Eren said apologetically with a shake of his head.
"He's the boy from-"
"Shut the fuck up, Erwin," Levi snapped at his blond friend, interrupting him before he could say anything unnecessary.
Erwin didn't seem intimidated in the least by the glare Levi sent him for good measure, but thankfully didn't say anything more. He only gave Levi a knowing smile that sent chills down his spine. Erwin with knowledge was a dangerous, dangerous thing and they both knew who had the upper hand right then.
"What, what? Tell me, guys! It's been bugging me the whole day," Hanji demanded, looking between her two friends in turn.
Levi dared to sneak a glance at the bartender who looked rather confused and like he was not really sure if he was still needed there or if he should rather give the trio some privacy. Turning back to Hanji, he grabbed her by her pony tail and tugged lightly, letting her know that was enough bullshit for now. "You've seen him for the first time two hours ago," he stated matter-of-factly.
"That's a tiny detail that does not matter," Hanji said with pout, now considerably calmer after Levi's warning. Then she turned to the young bartender, waved her empty glass, and sang, "By the way, Eren, gimme one more, okay?"
Eren smiled, although Levi noted he still looked a bit unsure of what was happening. "Sure madam. Same cocktail?"
Hanji opened her mouth to reply but before a single sound could leave her, Erwin quickly interfered. "No, don't. It's my car she's going to be sick in tomorrow. I'll take her back."
Levi let go of a sigh of relief. Thank fuck for Erwin and his foresight. It would just get worse for everyone involved if she had gone on unchecked.
Hanji, however, gasped dramatically, clutching at her empty glass and staring up at Erwin with eyes wide with despair, her lip quivering. "No!" she whimpered, hoping to change the blonde's mind.
"Yes," Erwin said firmly, leaving no room for argument as he pushed his mostly untouched glass of scotch towards Levi.
The other man accepted the drink with a grateful nod, wordlessly thanking the giant mass of muscle he called his friend for taking Hanji upon himself. Outwardly, Levi only clicked his tongue at Hanji's theatrics. "Yes, shitty Four Eyes. Get the hell out already and sleep it off."
Hanji pouted, not liking in the least that her fun was forcibly being taken away from her. Pointing an accusing finger at Levi, she countered, "But you're staying here, aren't you, Shorty? Having fun with innocent, under-aged cuties while I'm left out! Meanie!"
Levi groaned quietly at her words and took a breath to retort but he got interrupted by an offended cry of "Hey, I'm twenty-four!"
Turning to throw a look at the frowning bartender, Levi deadpanned, "No, you're not."
Eren glared at him for that remark while Levi only stared back impassively. As much as the other man tried to seem intimidating, Levi couldn't help but find his little frown and narrowed eyes adorable. He felt his lips twitch and had to bite the inside of his cheek not to smile. How pathetic would it be if he couldn't even keep his poker face up because of some pair of giant, beautiful, green eyes?
Erwin got up then, effectively getting everyone's attention. And as Levi's gaze slid to the tall man's face, he immediately wanted to wipe that shitty smirk off his face. Asshole. "Okay, we're leaving now. It was nice meeting you, Eren," Erwin said pleasantly, as if he wasn't subtly making fun of Levi with every word and move.
Eren blinked a few times, surprised by Erwin's words. What a strange way to say goodbye to a bartender. But finally, he smiled back. "Likewise."
Erwin gave them one last nod before he grabbed the struggling and whining Hanji by the arm and dragged her off.
There was a moment of silence as the air settled after the two made their exit, but then Levi sighed deeply. "I'm sorry. They can be really annoying. Didn't even pay for themselves," he added bitterly.
"I think they are interesting. Not really sure what to think about Erwin yet, but Hanji seems really fun," Eren said kindly, a lopsided grin on his lips that was simultaneously annoying and endearing to Levi.
Clicking his tongue, Levi muttered into his drink irritably, "I knew you'd say that."
Eren laughed at that, a melodic, infectious sound that made Levi's own lips twitch upwards. Grabbing the empty glass that was left after Hanji to put it away, Eren shot Levi a sly look. "So. I've certainly noticed you looking at me but I'd never think you'd actually want to ask me out!"
"You're lying about you age," Levi deadpanned, skilfully dodging the attack by counter-attacking.
Eren huffed in response, crossing his arms over his chest and glaring at Levi defiantly. "Three days," he stressed, as if that made a difference.
"You won't be saying that when you're my age," Levi noted offhandedly, smirking slightly.
Eren could only roll his eyes in response. "Yeah, right. Because you are so incredibly old."
"I am," Levi said with a shrug as if he didn't care. It was a lie; he did care. But the fact Eren was still there, willing to talk to him and keep him company helped immensely. "Brat; shouldn't you be working?"
Now it was Eren's turn to shrug. "Eh, not really. It's dead for a Friday evening and I have literally nothing to do." He paused, looking around as if searching for something. "Actually, I'm gonna ask my manager if I can leave early. I did have some overtime last week."
Levi gaped at him. Was the kid being serious? "What the fuck? You said you couldn't leave for a while."
Eren scratched at his nape sheepishly, grimacing. "I didn't feel like being forced to drink with you and your friends; I have enough alcohol just smelling it all evening. Wait here, I'll go talk to her." And he was gone.
Meanwhile, Levi was left speechless. First lying about his age (okay, maybe not really), then lying about when he could leave? When the hell did this little shit learn to lie? What happened to his young innocence?
At that thought, Levi had to pause, smirking to himself. He might have known something about that.
Not having anything better to do while he waited, Levi finished the scotch Erwin gave him before he gathered his things and went to settle the tab all three of them. He'd have to beat the money out of those fuckers later. Thinking they can get away with free drinks after all their shit? Not a chance if Levi had anything to say about it.
Just as he put his wallet away and got into his suit jacket, he noticed Eren emerging from the back room, already dressed in his casual clothes and a bright, triumphant smile on his lips as he walked straight up to Levi. "Ready to go?" he asked, sounding a little giddy.
Levi couldn't help but chuckle, shaking his head in amusement as he gestured towards the exit.
They were about to leave the bar together when one of the apparent regulars touched Eren's forearm, making them both pause and look at her.
The older woman eyed Levi suspiciously for a moment before she turned to Eren with a pout. "Eren, are you leaving with that guy?"
"Yeah, it's not fair! You belong to everyone!" her friend joined in, waving around the bar dramatically, her words making Levi narrow his eyes at her.
Eren, however, only laughed and shook his head, trying to explain, "He's actually-" He stopped speaking abruptly, jumping a little when a hand unexpectedly touched his lower back, snaking its way around his waist and making him giggle happily. A sound that obviously surprised the two women and that made something swell in Levi's chest.
Levi spoke up a second later, addressing the two women directly. His voice calm and level, not betraying the emotions Eren was making him feel, nonetheless, his words and eyes held a clear warning. "Just so you stupid people know, this little shit is mine. Not fucking everyone's. Mine, and mine only."
A shocked silence settled between the four of them for a moment before Eren burst out laughing. Levi clicked his tongue, annoyed the kid found his possessiveness so fucking funny, before he scowled and lightly smacked Eren over his head. An action which only made Eren laugh harder. Levi could just roll his eyes at Eren before grabbing his hand and lacing their fingers together as he moved to finally drag the highly amused brat out.
It didn't take the women long to connect the dots. Before Levi and Eren could even reach the front door, one of them called after the leaving pair, "Eren, he's rude! You need to train him better!"
Tugging on Levi's hand to force him to a stop, Eren turned around with that stupid grin of his to look back at the two women, who were now giving them soft, if mischievous smiles. "Yeah, I know. I've been trying to fix that attitude for five years already and he's still a rude asshole."
Levi didn't grace that with a reply, didn't want to see the amusement on either the shitty women's faces or the shitty brat's. So he only huffed and forced Eren to a walk again, finally closing the entrance door to the bar firmly shut behind them.
Outside, Levi was immediately reminded it was only just late March and the night air was still cold as shit. Buttoning his suit jacket at least, he cursed at Hanji for dragging them out to drink on a whim. Had he known, he'd at least bring a scarf or something. As it was, he could only grumble a bit and grab Eren's hand again, hoping to leech off some of his heat.
The kid didn't seem bothered at all by the temperature as he only squeezed Levi's hand back and sighed contentedly. Setting out in a random direction, they walked in silence for a minute, taking in the serene atmosphere Trost City had at night. Soon, however, Eren couldn't contain his curiosity anymore.
"Levi, what the hell are you even doing here?" he asked, turning his head to the side to give Levi a confused and inquisitive look.
Levi huffed, letting a small smirk appear on his lips. "Business trip," he explained, finally turning to look back at Eren. "Me, Hanji, and Erwin arrived yesterday morning and had been working our asses off until right before Hanji started whining she wanted a drink a few hours ago. They're leaving tomorrow morning."
"What the hell?" Eren said, stopping his walk abruptly and letting go of Levi's hand.
Levi blinked a few times, looking at Eren questioningly. The kid was frowning, obviously upset about something. Levi was about to ask what was wrong when Eren continued, suddenly sounding angry. "So you're going back just like that? You weren't even planning to come see me?" he finished his tirade and Levi wasn't sure if those were tears glistening in his eyes or if it was just the shitty street lights playing tricks on him.
Sighing to himself, Levi took the two steps that separated them to stand right in front of his boyfriend. He looked directly into those green eyes, searching them for a bit, before quirking his lips up in what he hoped was a reassuring smile. "Do you ever listen?" he asked, wanting to sound teasing but the words coming out more fond than anything. Reaching out to grab Eren's hand again, he continued, "I said they are leaving. I'm on vacation for a week starting tomorrow." Levi watched with warmth settling somewhere in his abdomen as Eren's anger visibly dissolved, and his face slowly lit up with happiness.
"Why didn't you tell me? We were on the phone just yesterday!" he cried, a giddy kind of laughter barely contained in his voice.
"It's your birthday. Ever heard of surprise?" Levi asked, chuckling at Eren's sudden burst of excitement. "I had planned to come see you tomorrow in the dorms but then Hanji happened," he finished bitterly, reminded how his grand plans for a surprise birthday visit with a bouquet of flowers in his arms was ruined.
Eren laughed as he leaned down to give Levi a loud, wet kiss on the cheek. "Well, you definitely surprised me either way. I almost dropped the glass I was making when you came in."
The shorter man raised an eyebrow at that, eyeing Eren with a glint to his eyes than made Eren narrow his eyes at him. "I was more afraid you'd just throw it at me because I came to your workplace unannounced."
Eren huffed, tugging sharply at Levi's hand in retaliation. When Levi's only response was a laugh, he had no choice but to defend himself, "Hey, that was once!" he stressed, staring at his lover. "And I was actually really angry at you when it happened." He looked away defiantly, and Levi couldn't help but think how damn cute he was in that moment.
"You threw a glass at me. That you made me pay for," Levi pointed out. "Also I'm pretty sure at that point you didn't even know what you were angry about in the first place."
"Fuck you." Any malice that might have been in Eren's proclamation was killed by the smile that was successfully fighting it's way on the young man's lips. Fond memories.
Levi gave him a mock-scandalized stare as he gasped overdramatically, "Here? On the street? I never knew you were into exhibitionism. Anything else you've never told me about?"
Eren blinked once, twice, and then he burst out laughing. "You're unbelievable."
"Thank you," Levi replied with a smirk before he decided it was time to move again. He grabbed Eren's collar to pull him towards himself and gave him a quick, chaste kiss on the lips before letting go and pulling on the brat's hand to a force him to a walk.
He pretended he couldn't see the dopey, dazed grin on Eren's face and ignored the butterflies in his stomach.
It was only after a moment of comfortable silence that Eren finally asked, "So, where exactly are we going?"
"Either your place or mine." Levi shrugged, not really sure of the answer. A shiver that ran through him, however, told him they better decide soon unless they wanted to fucking freeze to death.
Eren smirked as he questioned teasingly, "Is that a bad invitation for sex?" Levi shot him a look but Eren didn't let that deter him as he continued, "Because I have to let you know I have a strict policy of not sleeping with customers."
"You fucking better not," Levi growled in response. "And that better be extended to everyone and anyone else or I'll tell Mikasa and your brother that you're sleeping around before killing you and whatever shithead that touched you."
Eren looked at him in horror, his eyes widening so wide Levi feared they would fall out of their sockets. In a high pitched voice, Eren cried, "You wouldn't! Mikasa would murder me and bro would just-" he stopped abruptly, realization downing on him. Cocking his head to the side thoughtfully, he stared at Levi with suspicion as he inquired, "Wait. Since when are you on speaking terms with Zeke?"
"Since you decided to cheat on me," Levi said instead of making a comment about shitty monkeys who should keep to their bananas and stop obsessing about their baby brothers. Levi felt the corner of his mouth twitching at the mental image that thought conjured.
"So not yet," Eren sighed in relief. It was no secret Levi couldn't stand Eren's half-brother, the two of them making venomous jabs at each other constantly whenever they were in the same room. It was probably because they both loved Eren a bit too much and refused to share. "Thank fuck, for a second there, I was scared you were an android or something. But you don't have to worry, you know," Eren grinned, suddenly sounding way too cheeky for Levi's tastes and the older man narrowed his eyes at his boyfriend dangerously. It didn't stop Eren, though. "I belong to everyone, after all," he finished with a laugh.
Rolling his eyes, Levi only replied, "Good," before returning to the matter at hand. "So your place or the hotel?"
"Levi, I live in a dorm," Eren said flatly.
"Right. The hotel it is. Although we'll need to kick out Erwin," Levi added as an afterthought with a little groan, already dreading the amount teasing that alone was going to get them.
Eren gasped at his words, looking absolutely scandalized. "We can't do that!"
"He won't mind," Levi assured. And he knew it was true, Erwin really wouldn't mind. The fucker just wouldn't shut up about it for a month at least. But that was Levi's problem, so he only urged Eren to move it as the shorter man was still freezing.
Eren made a little sound of protest as Levi tugged at his hand sharply, but before he could even quicken his pace to match his boyfriend, Levi stopped abruptly.
"No," Levi said quickly, quietly, sounding almost panicked. "We need to go to your dorm first."
Eren shot him a confused look. What the fuck was he talking about? "Why the hell would we?" he asked, incredulous.
"You don't have a change of clothes."
A beat of silence passed between them before Eren groaned loudly. "Are you being serious?" he asked, voice full of exasperation. Levi and his obsessive need for cleanliness. "We can go first thing tomorrow, okay?"
Levi wrinkled his nose at the proposition. "Disgusting. You need clean clothes," he insisted, standing his ground.
"Levi," Eren whined in response. "The dorm is twenty goddamn minutes away in the opposite direction. Do you really want to go there and then back? It's past midnight already!" Eren really, really didn't want to have to do that. He was tired. And most importantly, he didn't want to explain to his roommate why exactly he came back from work early, only for him to pick up a some clothes and leave again. Just… no.
"But-"
"If you really don't want me wearing the same clothes tomorrow, I can always wear some of yours," Eren tried to reason, and he could see he was wearing Levi down in the way the man deflated a little. Victory. However, he couldn't help adding something with a smirk, "If I roll up the sleeves it won't be too obvious how small they are on me."
It took Levi a minute of obvious internal struggle before he finally agreed, still very reluctantly, however. Gracefully ignoring the not-so-innocent jab at his height in the process.
"Come on then," Eren prompted with a smirk, and Levi let himself be dragged towards the hotel, shaking his head. No matter how much time they spent apart while Eren was in college, the brat was still the same and Levi still couldn't say no to those eyes.
He was fucked; had been for years, and he couldn't even say he minded.
When they arrived to Levi and Erwin's hotel room, they were surprised to see no sign of Erwin ever being there. The blond was gone, as well as all his clothes. The only thing they found was a note in elegant handwriting placed neatly on one of the beds.
Dear Levi, I went to Hanji's room for tonight so you and your precious can have your privacy. I hope you appreciate this kind gesture enough to introduce him to us properly next time.
Love,
Erwin
"Shitty fucking Eyebrows," Levi growled as he read the note over.
Eren frowned as he looked at the note from where he was resting his chin on Levi's shoulder, hugging the shorter man from behind. "Why so angry? Isn't it nice of him?"
"Because," Levi went to explain, speaking through gritted teeth. "This shit here means 'I'm making a great sacrifice so I expect you to willingly let me embarrass you in front of your boyfriend next time.' Fucking asshole, knew he wouldn't let it be."
Eren started to laugh, trying to muffle the sound in the crook of Levi's neck as his arms tightened around the smaller man's waist and despite himself, Levi could only melt into him. Whatever Erwin was planning could wait. Eren was finally next to him again, warm and solid and real and god, Levi had missed him so fucking much.
He turned around in Eren's arms, forcing the other to stand up straight and look down at him questioningly. Levi didn't say anything though, only stared back at his boyfriend silently, taking the details of his face, his hair, his eyes, his nose, his barely visible freckles, his lips. He looked exactly the same as when Levi last saw him a month ago, yet it still felt like he was looking at him for the first time.
Eren was beautiful. So goddamn beautiful and Levi was so fucking lucky to be able to call him his boyfriend. His lover.
"I missed you," Eren finally mumbled with a small, adorable blush on his cheeks when he realized Levi wasn't going to say anything.
Levi huffed, his hands travelling up to rest on Eren's shoulders. "I missed you, too, brat," he whispered, pulling Eren slowly closer and closer to his level.
Eren grinned, his eyes flashing with something akin to hunger, an emotion not dissimilar to the one Levi was feeling in that moment. Levi was hungry, hungry for those lips and the feeling of that warm skin sliding against his. He missed Eren and longed for his touch. Ached for it, even. It was a fire in his chest, constantly present no matter where he was or what he was doing but it was almost unbearable now with Eren this close. This tangible. This real.
A split second later, their lips crashed together, moans escaping them both at the feeling of finally being able to kiss properly. Not wasting a single moment, their tongues were soon sliding against each other and shirts were being pulled up as they stumbled towards the bed together, falling into the soft blankets in a heap.
Only Eren's happy giggle and Levi's sigh of, "I love you so fucking much, Eren," could be heard before they got lost in each other's touch.
There was knocking. Very loud knocking that Levi wasn't appreciative of in the least.
He groaned as he gently pulled himself away from Eren – who was clinging to him like he might disappear even in his sleep – to put on some pants before he stalked over to the entrance of the hotel room, grumbling to himself all the while.
As soon as he opened the door, he regretted ever getting out of the bed. Just seeing Hanji all energetic and with that manic grin of hers already spelled trouble.
"Morning, Levi!" she sang, her voice too loud to for this early in the morning. "We just wanted to let you know we're leaving! Aaand, more importantly," she paused to give Levi an obvious once-over, making Levi glare at her irritably. "I wanted to see if my help yesterday was worth it. Judging by the state of your chest I'd say a thank you is in order." Hanji laughed, thoroughly proud of herself.
Levi pinching the bridge of his nose, trying to gather the last bits of patience his barely awake self had left. "Your meddling was entirely unwanted and unnecessary. Now get lost, I want to go back to sleep."
At that precise moment a groggy, Eren emerged from the bedroom. Rubbing at his eyes sleepily, the young man mumbled, "What's going on? It's barely half-past seven."
Levi groaned. Why couldn't the brat stay asleep; why make everything even worse than needed be? Granted, at least he was dressed in a pair of Levi's sweatpants and an old baggy shirt, saving them the last bits of dignity they had as Levi vaguely remembered leaving a bite mark and several hickeys somewhere around Eren's hipbones and chest.
Shooting a look at Hanji, he could see her practically vibrating with excitement. Wonderful. Seeing the kid come out and looking just as fucked out as Levi surely did, Hanji probably wouldn't be able to contain herself for long.
A moment later, Levi was proved right as Hanji finally squealed, "Oh my god! He's here! He's really here!" Stopping herself from making any more barely coherent comments, she took a deep, shaky breath and started again. Although she was still smiling like the fucking maniac she was, Levi noted. "Good morning, Eren! We're just saying hi before going home," Hanji greeted, still sounding a bit too giddy.
Eren blinked a few times, taken aback by the amount of energy Hanji was emitting, but he nodded to her hesitantly. "Ah, good morning. Have a nice journey back?" Levi almost had to chuckle at the way Eren said it, making it sound like a question.
Hanji stared at Eren intently for a long moment, frowning deeply as she apparently thought hard about something, making Eren look more and more uncomfortable. Levi was about to tell her to cut it the fuck out but then she finally spoke up. "I really could swear I've seen you somewhere," she said, sounding as unhappy as Levi had ever heard her, probably because she couldn't figure it out. Huffing to herself, she crossed her arms over her chest as she addressed the person behind her, who went unnoticed until that point. "Erwin, just tell me already!"
Levi's head whipped up to glare at Erwin with a promise of pain if he says anything. But Erwin only smiled, meeting Levi's eyes head on as he clearly stated. "He's the boy from Levi's lockscreen."
"Oh my god! Yes; that's it!" Hanji cried, snapping her fingers as her eyes lit in recognition. "That's totally him! How did I not realize!? Wait, so Levi really did have a boyfriend? He wasn't just trying to get rid of me? God, I'm so sorry for trying to set you up with all those blind dates!" Hanji rambled at such a speed that the others could barely understand her, instead mostly going off of her expressions and wild gesticulation to make sense of what she was saying.
Only Levi didn't pay her any attention. He took great care to not make eye contact with anyone, especially not the brat behind him.
Suddenly, hurried steps came from behind and dread settled deep in Levi's stomach. He whipped around quickly to look inside the bedroom only to have his fears confirmed. Eren was running around the room, trying to find Levi's phone. Unfortunately, the top of the bedside table wasn't the best hiding place in the world so Levi watched in horror as Eren picked the device up only moments later.
"Eren," he tried, his voice carrying a clear warning, but the brat paid him no mind.
Instead of obediently putting the phone back down, he lit the screen up and the three in the hallway got to watch as a wide, incredibly happy grin slowly appeared on his face.
"Wow," Eren breathed before a little giggle left his lips. "The only selfie I have ever managed to take with you despite the protests and not only you didn't delete it, you put it as your lockscreen?" He fiddled with the phone for a minute before posing in front of it, his smile morphing into a cheeky smirk. "I need to take more. So you have a selection, you know?" he announced teasingly, winking in Levi's direction.
Feeling the heat creep up to his cheeks and hearing Hanji slap a hand over her mouth in a failed attempt to muffle her laughter, Levi seriously felt like he wanted to die in that moment. Or better yet, just murder them all and be done with it.
Too bad he just loved them all too much to ever do that.
So he only grumbled to himself as he stomped over to the bathroom, slamming the door shut behind himself loudly. Hopefully, by time he was done taking a shower, Hanji and Erwin would be gone and Eren would calm down and not say anything about this. Then, if he was lucky, Hanji and Erwin might forget all about it before he was back from his vacation and so he could enjoy his time with his boyfriend in peace, pretending this disaster of a morning never happened.
Yeah, sounded like a plan.