„Hey Levi, don't you think you should cut your hair a little?"

The 14-year old Rosa sat on the ragged sofa, twiddling with a pair of scissors. Levi looked up from the table he was cleaning and simply 'tch'-ed.

"It's just hair. Why the fuck do you care?"

He resumed cleaning, the ever-resting scowl on his face softening slightly. He had known Rosa for six years now. He had saved her from human traffickers and had returned the noble girl to the Upper Grounds. Strangely though the girl regularly ventured to the Underground, solely to visit him. It warmed his cold untouched heart and he soon gave up berating her for doing so.

"It's not healthy. In the Upper Grounds, hair is cut at least once every two months."

Levi threw the teen a dark glance before dragging a cleaning rag across a counter top. Rosa noticed that she had struck a nerve. She had forgotten that Levi didn't like hearing about the Upper Grounds unless he specifically asked about it. She self-consciously looked down at the scissors in her hands. Her voice was barely above a whisper.

"I am sorry, I didn't mean it like that. It's just…"

"What? Speak up, dammit!"

"You have such a handsome face. Why not show it a little. B-besides, what if you lose a fight because you can't see properly?"

"That's stupid, I don't lose."

"I-I know, I'm just worried."

Rosa was usually calm and collected but Levi still made her all flustered. Not because of his swearing or his cold character but because of the little things she could see in him - how his brows slightly relaxed whenever he said her name, how he had to force his hand to let hers go whenever he brought her back, how his arm always lingered behind her back when they walked in the streets.

She put the scissors down in defeat. She had really thought she could convince him. Oh well.

Suddenly, Levi threw the rag into the sink, grabbed a chair, pulled it in front of where Rosa sat on the sofa and took a seat with his legs crossed.

"Levi?"

"Just cut it. Don't you dare make it look stupid."

Rosa's blue eyes widened as she stared at Levi, who watched from over his shoulder. Those steel eyes had the slightest hint of curiosity and…trust. He trusted her with this and she would not mess it up. With a beaming smile Rosa gently caressed Levi's long hair. He turned his head back to the front, feeling the calm heartbeat in his chest halt for one moment.

"You're going to love it!"

It was silent in the small room while Rosa carefully cut away single strands of his black hair. Levi was not exactly known for being patient but the occasional brush of her soft fingers against his neck or ear made up for how long she was taking. However thinking about the pieces of hair lying all over the floor made his hands twitch. It was a damn mess!

His thoughts were interrupted when Rosa's hands stroked all over his head, gathering his hair up on top of his head.

"Can you hold this, please?"

Levi wordlessly complied albeit feeling ridiculous. He next felt the cold steel of the scissors against his lower scalp. He had absolutely no idea was Rosa was up to but he trusted her. Despite being a brat (at least, age-wise) she was collected and sure of what she did. The brats in the Underground were usually collected too yet very grim. He had never met a girl like this. Determined, loyal and very sensible, especially towards him. It entranced him to the point where he would admit it.

His body tensed when he felt her warm breath dance over his skin and her fingers caress it. She continued brushing over his skin and clothes, trying to rid him of any tiny hair-ends.

"I'm almost done. You can let go now."

The clapping of the sharp edges slowed down and Rosa lightly chuckled as Levi clicked his tongue yet again. A dark veil fell in front of his eyes and he heard the girl behind him rise from her seat. She walked around him and occasionally grabbed a strand of hair to trim it until she was satisfied.

"One last check-up and I'll release you."

"About fucking time."

Rosa giggled and crouched down in front of him. He resisted smirking when he noticed the red hue adorning her cheeks. His observant eyes focused on Rosa as she corrected his fringe, cutting the strands out of his vision. She finally put the scissors down and eyed her work. With outstretched fingers, she ruffled what remained of his hair. Tiny pieces of black hair fell out and rested on either his shoulders or the floor.

"Oh, Sorry. This is such a mess, I know you hate it."

"You better clean it up once you're done."

The girl nodded obediently and brushed away whatever filth was resting on his shoulders. Levi saw her blush darkening as her hands traced down his arms and up again. He didn't move, enjoying the feeling and intrigued by her sudden boldness, and closely watched her expression.

Her blue orbs were downcast as she let her hands rest on his shoulders again. She shyly lifted her eyes to meet his steely orbs. It surprised her to evidently see affection in them, causing her own eyes to widen. She had learned to read him and by now, it came naturally to her.

Levi was tempted to lean forward but the innocence visible in her eyes stopped him. He didn't know what he would have done had he leant forward but he was sure that whatever it would have been, it would have been inappropriate. He was 7 years older than this teen. No matter how much he cared for her, he didn't dare acting on it if it meant crossing the line of protector-protégé-relationship.

"R-Right uhm… I'm sure you want to look at it!"

Rosa hastily jumped to her feet and took off into the bathroom. Her heart was a pounding mess and her face was hotter than any day in summer. There was no denying it now – to her, Levi was more than a dear person who protected her. He was the center of her life and reason behind her every action.

She grabbed the handheld mirror and looked at herself through it. Her face was glowing red and Rosa simply knew that Levi had noticed it. Nothing escaped his steely eyes. She sighed and tried to calm herself. She needed a couple moments before she returned to Levi who still sat in the chair unmoving.

"Here. What do you think?"

Levi accepted the mirror and raised it to inspect his new hairstyle. A good portion had been cut off and the lower region of his hair was as short as shaven hair. It was far more practical than his previous 'haircut' and he could see how much Rosa had focused on making it look well done.

"It's called an Undercut. I saw it one day and thought it would look good on you. What do you think?"

"Didn't know you were this good at cutting hair."

No curse, no snarky comment and sarcastic remark. Levi set down the mirror and looked up into Rosa's face. He had rarely seen her this happy and relieved. The blush had lessened but was still present, her smile reached from one ear to another and her eyes were closed in bliss.

"I'm glad!"

She didn't say what she was glad about and Levi guessed that she referred to more than just his praise. Rosa went to grab cleaning supplies but Levi caught her warm hands in his rough ones to stop her.

"I'll do it, you just sit down. You already did enough."

Rosa stared down at his hands and smiled at him again. Feeling bold, she raised her arms, bringing his hands closer to her face in the process. She pressed her lush lips on his knuckles.

"Thank you. So much."

Completely dumbstruck by the sudden affection, Levi slowly let go of her. He stared at her for a few heartbeats. One edge of his mouth quirked up in a tiny smile before he went to start cleaning. Once he was out of Rosa's earshot, he mumbled to himself.

"Stop trying to make me fucking fall for you. You're doing too damn good at it."