It wasn't long before Levi figured out that she was losing her memories; bit by bit. She acted as if everything was normal, putting on a mask that everyone would fall for.
Except Levi, that is.
Her head would ache at least fifty times a day; but she would smile, like nothing's wrong.
Everyone fell for it.
Except Levi, that is.
"Cadet Bell, what on earth are you doing?!" Auruo shouted, as she staggered during her training session. "You're supposed to be one of the most experienced members of the Recon Corps. Now get out of my sight until I feel like facing you." She squints; things were getting blurry. But she smiles brightly.
"I apologise for my actions!" She salutes- and leaves the training field, walking slowly. Things weren't getting much better these days; her memories were deteriorating at a fast rate. She couldn't care less, however; she knew something like this would happen. She knew that life wasn't going to be easy on her. But one thing bothered her; that she wouldn't be able to tell anyone about how she feel.
And that she wouldn't be able to remember how she felt.
Her strong, rhythmic strides ceased to a slow walk; she felt something hot rise in her eyes— she stumbled, and—
CRASH. Her body crashes into someone—someone small, but strong.
"Cadet Bell. What, may I ask, are you doing?" A cold, harsh voice rang in her head; her honey-coloured eyes widened in shock. She stood up, and saluted; her face pale from fear… and pain.
"Fo-forgive me, Lance Corporal Rivaille! I was—" Her head throbbed, and she winced in pain. Rivaille noticed; but he didn't say anything.
"Anything wrong, may I ask?"
"N-no sir! It's fine! It's just that I'm very clumsy—"
"Huh… I never knew someone clumsy could get into our Recon Corps." Her eyes widen. Rivaille continued on.
"Aren't you in the Special Operations Squad, cadet Bell?"
"Y-yes sir!"
"And do you seriously think that I will believe your saying about your 'so-called-clumsiness'?" her face redden; she looks down on the floor, her dark-chocolate hair providing a shadow for her to hide her embarrassment. Rivaille sighs; his hand reaches for her chin, and he makes her look into his eyes.
"Do not lie to me, Cadet Bell.. You cannot hide everything from everyone." Then he walked away, leaving her alone; she stayed standing, not sure of what to do. Then, she went back to her dorm; and fall asleep, with her head still ringing.
-Few weeks later-
"Corporal! The wall—" a young cadet bursts into Rivaille's room, only to find Rivaille armed and fully prepared.
"Yes, Wall Maria is breached again. I know." Rivaille said, his face expressionless.
"Get ready. We're going to have some fun today."
"Y-yes sir!" the young cadet left the room hurriedly; Rivaille follows.
"Get ready, Cadets!" Ria Bell shouted at the young cadets; she was their senior; she shouldn't be scared. Some look fearful; some look calm; some, expressionless. She sighs.
'A great day to die, I guess.' Few young cadets raised their hands; it was time to explain what was going to happen.
"You will work in a team; a group of 5 or 7 is enough. You will use your 3D Maneuver gear to navigate through those rubbles; and exterminate any titans seen. However," her head started to throb. She closes her eyes and massage the bridge of her nose.
"…retreat immediately if any deviant titans are seen. The seniors of the Recon Corps and Stationary Guards will take care of the deviant titans. If any of you gets injured during the fight—" she inhaled, feeling the cold air freeze her insides.
"—report to me ASAP. UNDERSTOOD?!" the young cadets salute; she began to assign them their own team. She could almost remember-almost-her first experience as a proper member of the Recon Corps. But things were too blurry inside her head. She then saluted to the cadets; showing them respect.
"There's no need to 'sacrifice' yourselves for humanity yet, cadets—" she shouted; her visions were getting blurry again. She squinted. "We value your lives. So live on, and try to survive." Her heart throbs painfully along with her head as she watches the young soldiers dive into the battle; she turns around, only to face the Lance Corporal.
"Corporal?"
"There's no need for you to join the battle today; get some rest." His voice, usually cold, is hinted with gentle tone. She blinked a few times, wondering what the heck the Corporal was talking about.
"Excuse me—" her protest was cut off by a sudden scream; already, one of her young cadets comes back, her eyes filled with fresh, hot tears.
"Bell Senpai— Thomas; he—" Her eyes widened in shock. He was one of the cadets that she were fond of; and already—
"Where is he, Tess?" she asked, her voice almost emotionless. Her head began to throb again, but she ignores it.
"We left him on one of the roofs of the buildings; but—" her feet leaves the ground as soon as she hears where he is. She doesn't care whether she would die or not; it doesn't matter anymore. She can hear the sound of the young girl pleading, asking Rivaille to follow her senior and protect her.
'As if he's going to follow,' she scoffs, as she rushes high into the sky; feeling the cool breeze brushing her cheek. "A great day to die, I guess." She murmurs again to herself. Soon she finds her injured junior, lying on the roof of the highest building.
"Thomas!"
"Bell Senpai…" the boy, his head bleeding, stirs; his face soaked in blood. She flinches; she hates the sight of blood. But she gulps down her fears, and cradles the bleeding boy in her arms.
"Don't say anything." She commands forcefully, fighting back tears.
"Bell Senpai…"
"Screw the formality and just stick with my first name already!" she mutters, brushing his golden locks out of his hazel eyes. "You're not going to die on me. You hear me, Thomas?" The boy nods weakly; she embraces him tightly; and activates her 3DMG.
"Hang on tight, Tommy boy." She murmurs softly into his ears; the boy tightens his grip around her. And then she realises—
there's not enough gas to carry the two of them.
"Goddamn…" She swears; Thomas, now almost unconscious; lifts his head up and faces her.
"Ria san…"
"Don't say anything."
"I trust you with my life, Ria san…"
"Be quiet…"
"I wouldn't want you to sacrifice yourself to save me…" his voice starts to fade slowly; her eyes widen.
"No. You're not dying on me, Tommy boy. Wake up. Look at me." She slaps his face gently; he responds weakly. She takes her spotless white blouse off; revealing the dark tank top that she always wear underneath. She ties the white shirt onto the boy's head; and—
"Cadet Bell!" Auruo turns up, his face scrunched up in grumpiness, as always. His eyes widens at the sight of her exposed skin. She calmly puts her jacket on, as Auruo turns around, clearing his throat. "Auruo, take this boy back to our HQ. I'll go soon." He nods; he cradles the now unconscious boy in his arms. She sighs in relief. She follows closely behind him, slashing down at any titans that threaten any harm to the boy.
"Tommy boy!" she shouts, as soon as she gets to the HQ. Tess, the girl who reported her of his injury, is seen crying. She feels uneasy; she asks the crying girl, "What happened?"
I don't want to listen… don't tell me what happened. The voice inside her head murmurs softly; She feels sick in the stomach.
"Thomas… he…"
No. Please. Don't tell me what happened.
"he's gone, senpai…" Her eyes widen. Hot liquids fill up her honey eyes and threatens to spill over. She hears more people entering the room; it's Rivaille. She wipes her eyes swiftly on to her jacket sleeve, and turn to face Rivaille. His eyes widen at the sight of her; but he soon turns away, talking to another cadet. She clenches her hands into tight fists; and gives her badge to Tess; the symbol of being the 'senior'. The girl's eyes widen, and her eyes fill up with tears again. She bursts out crying; Ria throws her jacket on the crying girl— letting her hide behind the shadows. Her pale skin protests as the cold breeze hit her; but she doesn't care. Rivaille looks at Ria with mere interest; and she ignores him. She get her swords ready at her sides; and bursts out of the room. Tess runs out, and wraps her arms around Ria's waist; she turn around, her honey eyes glowing dangerously.
"Let me go!" she screams; Rivaille exits the room, and sees Ria fighting with the little girl. He pulls the girl to him, letting her to loosen her grip on Ria. His eyes meet hers; and he nods to her. Ria blinks back tears; thankful of Rivaille. She rushes out of the HQ and activates her 3DMG; with her tears streaking down on her cheek.
"You filthy scums!" she shouts, curses and swears at the titans as she slash down at them, one by one. And then her head throbs again- at the same time, her 3DMG runs out of gas. She starts to fall down from great height; she closes her eyes, at ease.
"At last…" she murmurs to herself, happy that she will die peacefully, in one shot. No one would survive the fall from this height. But then a thought hits her;
She will never be able to tell him how she felt.
She will never remember him.
She will never remember how she felt about him.
And she find yourself crying; sorrowful as ever.
All her emotions that she kept in herself, now released; her tears fall down endlessly. She finds herself getting closer with the ground, and closes her eyes; but instead, strong arms grabs hold of her as she fall. Both Ria and her saviour crashes on to the ground; rolling on the dust and dirt. She hits her head hard on the ground as she falls; and she nearly lose her consciousness. However, she blinks several times to recover; to see her saviour. Her honey hues widen at the sight in front of her;
It's Rivaille.
"C-Corporal Rivaille!?" She stammers; she staggers to her feet, only to lose balance and—
He grabs her arms to stop her from falling. She stumbles slightly; and his piercing grey hues meet hers. Her head starts to throb again.
"W-Why did you save—" instead of listening to her question and answering it, he embraces her in his arms tightly. Her eyes widen in shock, unable to believe what's happening.
"You reckless idiot…" he breathes into her messy hair; not minding all the dust and dirt on her.
"C-Corporal…"
"Levi."
"Pardon?"
"Call me by my first name, Ria." his deep, resonant voice echoes in her head; she feels warm, protected, safe… and then she remembers what she needed to ask;
"Why did you come?" Her voice trembles, afraid to listen what Levi is going to tell her. His embrace tightens.
"You're so clueless… Do I have to tell you to let you know?"
"What do you—"
"I love you." Her eyes widen. And then you start to laugh weakly.
"Is this supposed to be a joke?" tears start to fill up her eyes and she blinks rapidly, fighting back. But it's no use. They end up racing down her cheek. She continues to laugh weakly as her tears continue to fall; Levi looks at her with surprised expression. She hides her face in Levi's steady chest.
"I've loved you since I met you. You were the only one who showed compassion even though you were in the middle of all this, brutal fights." he says quietly; she chokes on her sobs, trying hard to not make any sounds.
"Why did you have to tell me now…?" she asks, still crying. He doesn't answer.
"I wanted… all I wanted… was…" she sobs.
Your happiness.
"I can't love you back…" she whisper, and Levi nods. She looks up, surprised at his reaction.
"I know," he murmurs softly, nuzzling at her hair.
"You knew… that I was…?"
"Sick… huh?" he guesses; she shakes your head.
"My memories… they fade…" She sobs into Levi's chest; his eyes widen.
"You won't be able to… remember me…?" his usually expressionless face, is now reflecting the shock; the anger. His grasp on her tighten; she winces. She can feel the blood soaking through her hair, staining her dark-chocolate hair crimson.
"Why—why—" he stammers; his composure now gone; his hands tremble.
"Why couldn't you tell me earlier?" She asks, smiling despite her tear-streaked face. Levi, the prince who never shed a tear for anyone, starts to cry in silence; his warm tears drop on to her cheek, washing her dirty face.
"I was afraid… that I'll end up losing you like I lose others…" he chokes; she pats his back gently. "I've never loved anyone... and I tried to get away from you, to distance myself away from you. And it didn't work. And when I tell you now you just tell me that you're going to forget about me. What a heartbreaker." he mutters sarcastically; his usual attitude back for a short moment.
"I'm sorry that I'll hurt you, Levi—" he kisses her softly, gently; his cheek wet with fresh tears. His free hand reaches for her cheek, touching her softly; and she returns his kiss passionately.
"Never forget me…" he whispers to her ears, and kisses her again. Her head starts to empty as she kisses him; unconsciousness swallows her. Levi, who stopped crying, lowers his head as he stares into your peaceful face."Remember me forever, Ria..." and for the first time, he mourns over someone-crying silently as ever. He cradles her lifeless body to the HQ; and people pray for her, tending on her wounds. But she never wakes up.
-3 years later-
She's wearing a pure white gown; she's gotten skinnier, much skinnier than last time she was awake. It's been months since she woke up, but she hardly remember anything; but a young man, whose name is Rivaille, visits her every day, walking with her in the garden. Today, she picks a blue flower and shows it to the man.
"What's the name of this flower, Rivaille?" She asks, smiling softly. He looks hurt- he looks almost lonely, staring at the blue flower so intently.
"It's called forget-me-not." He murmurs softly. She look into his grey hues; they waver. "Do you know the meaning of this flower, Ria?"
"No… what is it?"
"It means… 'Remember me forever'." He breathes out. Her eyes widen; and a voice, same as Rivaille's, echoes in your head;
'Remember me forever, Ria...' and she winces at the following pain. And then something hits her; a realisation; but she acts like nothing happened. At the end of the day, he kisses the back of her hand, as he always does. But she holds is hands softly; and hold on to his hands tightly, feeling the warmth of his calloused hands. She sticks the little blue flower into his shirt pocket. His eyes widen.
"Forget me not, Lance Corporal Rivaille…" she whispers to him; her eyes wet with tears. He looks back at her; shocked—and he too, smiles, with tears flowing down his cheeks.
"Welcome back, Ria." He kisses you and you kiss him back, both crying;
like you did last time.
"I'm sorry I came back so late, Levi..."
A little baby-blue get-well card, with forget-me-not painted on, has a neat writing on it; lying on the table.
"Remember me forever, Ria...
And I'll wait for you.
Lance Corporal Levi Rivaille."
A.N. My first short fanfic! hope you guys liked it :3
if you liked it, please leave a review- give me a suggestion maybe? :3
I edited my fan fic because someone told me that writing in second person is not allowed. :L
Thanks to Phyari :3
Thanks! ^^