Ereri Week Day 3: Caught In the Act/Catch me If You Can

It wasn't hard to jimmy the lock, surprisingly easy really, especially for a cop's house. I must be fucking insane. Robbing a cop of all people. But sometimes it was the police who least expected to be robbed. This guy was one of them, never locking his door until night fell, even leaving windows open wide enough that Levi could have easily slipped through. Idiot.

Levi eased the door open and slipped in with practiced ease. It was nearly all ruined when he bumped a container by the door and it tipped over, the umbrellas in it jostling. He lurched down and caught it, throwing one hand to the top to stop the umbrellas from hitting the floor. Fucking hell!

Only once it was righted did he release the breath he had been holding, terrified that the solid thunk from when his foot had hit the stand would have woken the cop. Only silence met him. Levi gave it another minute, partially to let his heart stop pounding so frantically, with one hand on his knife before he started to move again, slinking through the darkness to find objects of value.

The house had a decent amount of knicknacks, most of which he dropping into his bag. they might only fetch a few dollars from a pawn shop but that was still better than nothing. Every bit was desperately needed. It didn't take long to sweep the entirety of the first floor. the place was surprisingly neat, particularly for a cop living on his own. One who looked fairly messy at that. Still, Levi had learned not to expect much when it came to being inside strange houses. The inside could be completely different from what he observed on the outside.

Levi kind of admired the cleanliness though, and for more reasons than because it made his job "easy". Cleanliness is next to Godliness. Probably shouldn't be saying shit like that when I'm bound for Hell at this rate.

He ended up at the base of the stairs, staring up into the darkness and barely-visible outlines above. His bag wasn't heavy, not nearly enough anyway. He needed more to fill his bag, to sell and fence and make money. To try and keep Isabel alive. But going upstairs where a fucking cop lived was fucking asking for death. Even an idiot like this guy would have at least one gun somewhere in his bedroom. Hell, Levi had already found the gun cabinet and picked its lock. Guns were harder to sell but he had connections after so long, so at least the handguns would be filched on his way out. Still. He had to.

Unconsciously his hand fell to his pocket where he had tucked his wallet away. He had stolen that too, though he had left the credit cards and license. Call it a pathetic attempt to absolve him of some of his sins and crimes. Now it held barely forty for himself to at least get some things honesty and a picture, one of three people. His "siblings". Farlan and Izzy. Izzy with tubes behind her ears to end in her nose, a metal cannister in her lap. Farlan and Levi with tired eyes but warm smiles. I have to. For Isabel. I can't be a worthless big brother. I can't be…

His throat was threatening to close up, anxiety and panic swelling up with the potential to overwhelm but he swallowed hard and choked it all down, just barely. Farlan, bless him, worked two full time jobs and put in extra work whenever he could, but it wasn't enough. The insurance only helped so much and minimum wage only went so far, even when they were paying for a shithole of an apartment and using the bare minimum of electricity and water.

He can't do it alone. I get more money quicker. I can't be useless, not now.

Levi sucked down a deep breath and ascended, muscle taut, ready to bolt. He made it up the stairs without incidence and began his systematic search. The bathroom had a fairly expensive-looking water residing on the counter. The office had a laptop, the contents of which he could easily wipe, and a few other things. Then only the bedroom was left, the door slightly ajar. Levi hesitated outside it, on hand on the cool, slender handle.

Uncertainty threatened to turn him away.

I'm pushing my luck. Fuck it, I've pushed it so much. I shouldn't. I need to. Dammit! Dammit, dammit, dammit! Just do it! Just go in and finish it! Or do you want to be worthless? Useless? A failure again, but this time to your family?

Desperation drove him forward.

Levi slunk in and winced as the door creaked quietly but he pushed on. He was so accustomed to the darkness that it wasn't hard to make out the contents of the room. A uniform sat on a dresser beside a box, a gun resting atop the clothes. Several valuable-looking baubles dotted the various surfaces in the room. And on the far side was the bed, a length lump stretched out beneath it. It rose and fell, the soft breaths all too audible in the silence. That soothed Levi's nerves a little and he waited for a moment before moving through the room, snapping everything he could.

The box was filled with all sorts of jewelry, most of which was probably shit but some had to be real. Steadily he worked his way across the room until he stood beside the bed. He spared one final glance down before he slowly eased a small, ornate box off it and turned away.

He hadn't even taken a step when a sizeable hand locked around his wrist with an iron grip. A muted click froze him in place as a cold piece of metal pressed to his lower back, just beneath the backpack. All it would take was one bullet and he would probably be paralyzed. He'd bleed out, suffer internal organ damage, die. And Isabel and Farlan would never know. "What the fuck do you think you're doing?"

Levi's mouth was desert-dry, his tongue a thousand pounds. His lungs had all but ceased to function but his head went on, pounding out a frantic, terror-driven beat. I'm going to die. Or get arrested. Far, Iz… The knife slipped from his hand and clattered to the floor, his hand suddenly too weak to hold it. By some miracle he managed to hold onto the box, clutching it as if his life depended on it. Not that it did. It was stupid, holding it so tight, but he did anyway.

"Do I need to arrest you, kid?"

"'m not a kid… 'm nineteen."

"Great, that's longer jail time for you unless you've got a damn good explanation for why you would try to rob a fucking cop like an idiot."

"I… I need the money. My sister..."

His throat siezed up on him, unwilling to cooperate any longer. His eyes burned, threatening to spill traitorous tears down his cheeks. He couldn't take it anymore. Fuck, he hadn't been able to take it for months, years, ever since it had started. But he had to. For Isabel. For Farlan. To keep them afloat, to keep her alive, to get better medical care, to try and give them a life. And it wasn't fucking working. Isabel was still dying. Still had shitty medical care, exorbitant expenses that were sending them spiraling into debt before they even hit twenty, the kind they would never be able to claw their way out of.

Levi shuddered, his body betraying him, betraying the weakness he had tossed behind a wall and sealed in. Obviously not well enough. "Dying." The word was gasped out through clenched teeth, his eyes clamped shut. It couldn't stop the lone tear that dripped down his cheek. "She's… She's dying 'n we can't pay. Need the money. We-"

A strong arm circled around his waist, pulling him back down onto the bed as a soft click came, light immediately following and filling the room, illuminating the room, including the man who had pulled him down. Messy brown hair, flat on one side from where his head had been on the pillow. Bright green eyes snared Levi, locked him in place. Not that he was moving anytime soon.

Levi let go of the box in his hand, letting it hit the bed as he scrubbed at his face, frantically trying to erase the signs of weakness, to hide it behind a pathetic, flimsy shield. It was hard. After all, Isabel was still dying. There was nothing he could do. He could rob every damn house and building in the town and it wouldn't even be close to enough. She was going to die because he was incompetent. As a caregiver, a guardian, a brother. A harsh dry sob ripped through his chest and he doubled over.

It was all too fucking much. He was barely a legal adult and he was already drowning, fighting to stay afloat in responsibilities he couldn't handle. Barely able to care for them when they were healthy. Barely, barely, barely. They had told him he'd be worthless, that he'd amount to nothing. In jail before his twentieth birthday. A deadbeat loser, just like his dad. Scum of society. Looks like that was shaping up nicely. And he was dragging Farlan and Isabel down with him.

Levi didn't cry. He never did. But he was so fucking close, edging close to shattering. Tears were signs of weakness and circumstances had forced him to mature too soon, to bite them back, be strong. And now it was all crumbling apart.

He clinched when the arm around his waist moved, only for a warm hand to settle on his back, rubbing soothing circles there. The grip on his wrist loosened before disappearing altogether as the cop sat up. "How is old your sister?"

"F-fifteen."

"What does she have?"

"Leukemia. Advanced. 's not respondin' to treatment."

The cop sighed and shifted again. When Levi glanced over he was pinching the bridge of his nose, his expression torn. "I… I can't let you go, and God knows you'll be caught eventually" He sighed and looked at Levi as the hand on his back stilled. "If you give me proof of all of this, I'll help you. My father is a doctor in the best hospital in the country. But you'd have to live with me and give up stealing. If you do that… do that, I won't press charges, but if you don't..."

Levi really did start sobbing then, so hard that he barely noticed when the cop pulled him into his chest, pressing his forehead to his neck as gentle fingers stroked his back.

Levi slipped into the hospital room, habit making him move with the stealth of a criminal though he was no longer one. Quiet blips from a heart monitor and whirring from several machines met him, a familiar sound with familiar smells in a familiar place. But they were all different this time. The layout, paint job, equipment, people were completely different from the last hospital. It was better. Isabel was asleep, her bright red hair escaping her pigtails spreading across the pillow like some fiery halo. Her breaths were a little short but the familiar oxygen tubes were there to help her, to give her what she couldn't quite obtain on her own.

He sank down into the chair beside her and took her hand in his. It was cool and small but warmer than it had been in a long time. Warm enough that he smiled. She didn't stir, sleeping so peacefully despite the cancer, the chemo, and the tumors.

Only four days had passed since she had been transferred. Ten since he had made the miraculous deal with Eren Yeager, the cop he had attempted to rob. So much had changed, an extraordinary amount. From a slummy, rundown apartment to the sizeable, cozy home Eren owns. From skipping meals and rarely using power to save move to eating three meals a day and relishing the ten minute showers with blistering hot water and light.

This is… surreal. There has to be a catch. Has to be.

"Levi…?" He summoned a smile and it came easily, storing away his worries for later as he looked at Isabel. Tired green eyes fluttered for a moment before opening fully, a tiny grin tugging at her lips. "Hey."

"Hey, Izzy. How're ya feeling?"

Her lips quirked a little wider and she squeezed his hand, some of that old fire glittering in her eyes. "Better. Doesn't hurt to breathe so much right now."

"Good." He reached up and ruffled her hair, still soft beneath his touch. It was one of the few things she'd managed to hold onto after the diagnosis.

She had enough energy and strength to swat at his hand and grumble before she caught his hand, lacing their fingers together. The tired but playful air to her dissipated, turning into a seriousness she rarely possessed. "Levi… how did you manage this?"

He shook his head, smile slipping as his eyes drifted to the flowers adorning the windowsill. Some from the station, from the nurses, and the biggest bouquet from Eren. "I don't know Izzy… I really don't."

Luck. Pure dumb luck that he had found the kind of cop that would help, not hurt in that situation. Luck that he had connections and a wealthy father in the cancer research field. Lucky, lucky, lucky. But I didn't help you… Not really. I'm not the reason you're in here.

"Eren's a nice guy."

"He is." Nice in how once he had seen the condition they were living in, the state of Isabel, he had immediately pulled as many strings as he could to get them across the country to his beach-side town. Kind in how he let Levi and Farlan take the two spare bedrooms downstairs, trusting them completely. Wonderful. Absolutely fucking wonderful.

Quiet knocks pulled their heads up to the door where two people stood, Eren towering over Farlan, a bag of cookies in his hand. "Hey Isabel, Levi. I hope you guys like red velvet cookies 'cause Petra made 'em and they're fucking divine."

Isabel giggled and nodded, beckoning for them to come closer and holding her arms out. Farlan stepped into the hug, an easy smile on his face. He was still in his uniform, a delivery boy for some local pizzeria. Eren had arranged for that too, asking his manager friend there, Jean Kirstein, to find a place for him after Farlan had insisted on working.

Levi had done the same, though the only spot they had managed to find for him was at the station. And, somehow, Levi didn't think that was an accident. But he didn't care. He was working. He was making money. Isabel was getting proper medical care and while that might not guarantee her living, it certainly meant something. And that he had a debt to repay. Something even worse than the crippling debt that was being paid off by some fundraiser Eren and the rest of his station had started.

This is one I really won't be able to pay off.

He watched with dull eyes and a soft, easy expression as Farlan settled on the other side of the bed, sharing the cookies with Isabel and chattering about his day, about the college courses he was going to enroll in the next time fall came around.

I don't know what to do.

Things were going better but if anything, he was more lost. He didn't know what he was doing, where he was going. Everything had been so sudden that he was still reeling, still feeling like the fifteen year old from whom everything had been ripped from. None of it made sense.

A warm hand settled on his shoulder, pulling his gaze up to see Eren hovering at his shoulder, concern in those ocean green-blue depths. "Levi… come into the hall with me. Please." He dipped his head and turned to Isabel and Farlan who stared at them with open curiosity, tracking Eren as he left the room before their eyes snapped back to him.

"Le-"

"It's fine," he interjected, pulling on a false smile, "I'll be back in a moment. Probably just wants to talk about work." They seemed to accept that, though they didn't seem to fully believe him. Levi let them believe what they wanted and slipped out into the hallway, stomach heavy with dread and a blockage in his throat. Eren was waiting patiently on him, leaning against the wall and sipping at a travel mug of coffee. Levi cleared his throat, tugging Eren's gaze toward him. "What do you want?"

A sigh came in return, quiet and heavy. "Levi… do you feel like you owe me something?" His mouth opened but no words escaped him. SIlver eyes widened instead before he clamped his mouth shut, schooling his face into an expressionless facade. He didn't bother to give Eren a response. Too much could be revealed all too easily, though in the last ten days he had learned that Eren was far more perceptive than originally thought.

"Levi, you don't owe me anything. I know I took you guys in, but that doesn't mean anything. I'm doing what someone else should have done. You two shouldn't have been left to deal with this on your own. It's cruel. I'm just trying to be a good person. I don't want anything back. From either of you. I just… I want you three to make good life choices. To rise above this shit and succeed."

He reached out, hesitating for a moment before touching Levi's shoulder. "My dad had the same problems. Well, kinda. His mom took off when he was ten and at thirteen his dad got liver cancer. He had to work double shifts. Dropped out of high school so he could work enough. His dad still died. His aunt took him in, but she was a piece of shit. So he put himself through school practically on his own and managed to get his doctoral by thirty. Now he's the smartest man I know and the most renowned in his field. You and Farlan still have that chance. What you two've done is amazing, especially on your own, but now you need to lean on someone else. So just work. Sign up for college. Don't worry about debts or anything like that."

Levi huffed and shrugged Eren's hand off, eyes narrowing. "I don't care. I'll do it anyway. I'll pay you 'n your dad back. I'll go to fucking college. Might as well, I already owe you my soul basically, why not add a bit more. But don't treat me like a fucking kid. I'm fully capable of making my own damn decisions."

Eren watched him for a moment before he shook his head. Another heavy sigh came, accompanied by a strange gleam in those entrancing eyes. Disappointment maybe. Frustration? Acceptance? Levi wasn't sure. He didn't care.

"Thanks anyway." With that he turned his back to Eren and ducked back into the room, Eren following a moment later. We'll leave as soon as she's better, as soon as we pay him back.

The house was completely empty. Farlan was going to be at work until seven, Eren until ten, and Isabel was still at the hospital recovering from her surgery. He had five hours to kill until one of them came back. A long time to kill. Levi did it in the way he knew best - cleaning.

He still wasn't used to being able to clean. For nearly two years he had been on the move, breaking into homes, robbing them blind, and sending the money back as he slept under bridges or occasionally stayed in some roach hotel for a night. It was strange, staying in one place so long, especially one that wasn't infested with filth and disease.

Cleaning had been something he had immensely enjoyed before everything had fallen apart. He still enjoyed it. Despite the disgusting things - dirt, dust, human filth in general - it was extraordinarily soothing. A great way to clear the mind and focus on things that he couldn't give time to at any other point. Truly, it was a godsend. Levi started downstairs first, a pattern he had developed in the first month. Now, sixteen months later, it was easy. He cleaned two, three times a week, even if the house didn't need it, moving systematically from room to room.

Sweeping came first, just to get the initial filth from the floor. Then dusting. It knocked dust on the floor, but he vacuumed and mopped at the very end so it really didn't matter. The windows were wiped down until it was like they weren't even there at all. Surfaces were run over with furniture polish. The couches and chairs in the living room were run over with a lint roller, pulling up all the little brown and blonde hairs that Eren and Farlan dropped everywhere. Had Levi not known better, he would have said they owned a cat.

Stripping their beds came next, throwing the sheets in the wash and straightening the laundry room until it was time to put them in the dryer. He vacuumed and mopped downstairs before he trekked upstairs to repeat the process, meticulously going over every room. Except one.

Eren's.

For some reason, he always left that til last. No, he knew why he left it until last. It was a reminder of who he had been. What he had done. How kindly he had been treated even though the bag on his back had been laden with Eren's possession. I'm glad he caught me.

Levi preferred not to think of where he would be had Eren not. Probably would have succumbed to the lure of prostitution for money. Drugs too. Jail by twenty, just like so many had predicted would happen. I showed them wrong. He was twenty now and hadn't seen a lick of jail time. He, and Farlan, were enrolled in college courses for the fall. He had a respectable job at the police department, even if he was just organizing papers and files and answering the phone. It was still something, legal at that. And that made it so fucking important.

Levi pushed the door to Eren's room open and slipped in, pausing for a moment to breathe in that familiar scent. One of the ocean, salty but fresh, and body wash, cool and kind of fruity. A strangely appealing mix. One that always sent his heart beating faster. Too fast. It wasn't supposed to turn out like this.

He was supposed to rob him and get out. He was supposed to tolerate him and work at the police station to pay him back and bid his time until Isabel was cured. He wasn't supposed to fall in love. Definitely not.

Levi set the cleaning supplies aside and crossed the room, hesitating only for a moment before he knelt beside the bed and pressed his nose into it. The smell was so strong there, nearly overwhelming but in a pleasant way. Eren… "Shit."

He didn't know when it had happened. Perhaps sometime between the delicious home-cooked meals that Eren made for them with a radiant smile, the kind words and open ears that didn't just bear but listened, the gentle touches and warm hugs, the warmth that always radiated off of Eren no matter what was when it had happened. When frustration had turned to acceptance, acceptance to friendship, friendship to a one-sided crush, love even, that had slammed into him when they were at the dinner table, all four of them, and Eren had laughed, loud and clear and beautiful that Levi jackknifed up with the realization, so sudden that he had bashed his knee against the underside of the table.

He'd been torn between avoiding Eren and watching him, studying his lithe form as it slipped into the ocean that butted up against the property or stretched in form-fitting uniform or as he moved around the kitchen with fluid grace. Watching how his brow scrunched or his mouth quirked or his eyes brightened. Things that- "Levi?"

The young man jolted up, tearing his face away from the soft duvet atop Eren's bed as he whipped around, eyes wide and face already burning bright, a deep red he couldn't possibly hide. Eren stood awkwardly in the doorway, one hand on his neck and the other dangling by his side, fingers twitching as though he didn't know what to do with it. "E-Eren, I-"

"Levi… it's okay. I figured as much. You weren't exactly being subtle." He shrank in on himself as Eren shot him a comforting smile before he crossed the room and crouched down before him. "Honestly, did you expect me not to notice?"

"Um… kinda?"

A sizeable, warm hand settled atop his head and ruffled his hair before Eren leaned a little closer, the gap small enough that Levi could smell the bitter coffee on his breath mixed with chewing gum. He chuckled, a rich sound that had Levi's heart fluttering as his hands tightened by his side, clenching hard enough that it almost hurt. "You know what?" Eren murmured as his hand moved, rising up to cup Levi's cheek as his lips quirked up in an easy smile.

"What?"

And, fuck if he wasn't breathless, his heart jackhammering in his chest and unable to stop, practically vibrating as he knelt there with Eren's scent filling his nose, his warm touch everywhere. "I've really wanted to kiss you for a long time."

That was all the invitation Levi needed to crush their mouths together without a second thought, fingers threading through that silken chestnut hair as he tugged Eren closer. His heart took off to new speeds, practically taking flight borne on wings of elation that sent all of his nerves tingling, his mind soaring as his eyes fluttered shut. I want to stay. Here. With him.

They pulled apart with gasps, cheeks flushed and eyes a little dazed as they sat back and stared at each other for a moment, an easy silence wreathing through the air between them before Levi spoke up. "Eren… aren't you supposed to be at work?"

"Ah, Petra said she'd let me leave early so I could make dinner if I brought her leftovers tomorrow."

"Typical."

"Pretty much. Gotta love her though. I'll have to thank her more than usual tomorrow."

Levi shook his head as he hooked an arm around Eren's neck and tugged him closer, this time to bury his face into that sweet-smelling neck. "... Thank her for me too." He got a soft chuckle in return, one that brought a smile to his lips and a warm fuzzy feeling to his chest. Stupid cop.