authors note:

Here is the next chapter of my story! It's longer than the others so I consider that a success. I wan't to thank everyone reading this story. It really means a lot to me. IF you have any requests feel free to write them in the comments because I would really appreciate them.

I've been rereading some of my previous chapters and realized that I haven't even made it through an entire day yet! I know my story is moving at an AGONIZINGLY slow pace but It'll be worth it once I bring Levi and Yuki together...in more ways then one (*blushes*).

I plan on having plenty of lemons in my story but am extremely nervous about writing them. I want to write it but I also don't want it to take away from the story. Pointless sex in stories are so annoying to me because it seems like people just write a few chapters then BANG they're fucking in a closet screaming profanities. My story will not be like that and if you are reading this waiting for my character to have her fantasies fulfilled by the great Levi Ackerman then you need to stop reading because I want my lemon, when I write it, to be heart felt and emotional. I'll make it as steamy as I can but I won't let it take away from the story just to make my readers happy. I can do one shots if you'd like though!

Have a good day,

Halikidito!

After sitting on the floor for what seemed like hours, Yuki and Levi finally made their way down the hallway and in to the kitchen. Yuki's uncle stood above the stove with his hand gripping the end of a skillet and, though they couldn't see what he was cooking, the smell alone of her uncles delicious culinary skills was enough to make her small mouth water. Startled by their sudden arrival, Kage looked at the pair through the corner of his eyes and pointed at a set of plates near the counter beside him with his free hand.

"Yuki," he began as he gave the skillet a quick shake. "Grab those plates and forks and set the table." He titled his head so that he was facing Levi then pointed towards the drawer above the kitchen sink. "Grab some cups from there," he continued while looking back at Yuki. "I have tea in the fridge. Go grab it and get it all ready." Turning back to the stove, he reached for a nearby spoon and began to slowly stir the food. "The food will be ready soon, so hurry and get all of it done okay." Nodding their heads, they proceeded to do as they were told and, within a matter of minutes, had the plates and everything else her uncle had asked for on the table and ready to go.

"Are you having a good morning?" Yuki asked as she took her seat at the table. Looking back at her, her Uncle gave her a swift nod before returning to the food.

"I'm doing all right," he said. He gave the skillet another quick shake then reached out for a container of salt on a nearby spice rack. "I should be the one asking you that question," he continued while adding the salt. "You fell asleep in a really uncomfortable position."

There was a small hint of amusement in his words as he spoke to her and, as he removed the heat from the stove, he turned his body towards the table with his arms crossed over his chest. Blushing furiously, Yuki hid her face from her uncles gaze but, in doing so, found herself showing off her embarrassment to Levi. She turned her eyes to the floor, crossed one arm over her shoulder, and silently began to whine to herself.

"You saw that," she muttered as her nails dug in to her neck. Nodding his head, her uncle grabbed the end of the skillet and, with his free hand, grabbed the spoon he'd used earlier and made his way to the table. After setting the skillet in the center of the table, he took a seat in between Yuki and Levi and erupted in to a fit of laughter as he began to reach for a fork.

"You're one hard woman to wake up," he said as he slapped her on the back. Shooting her head up, she shot him an evil glare then quickly grabbed her own fork and, while trying to calm her rising anger, she picked at the steaming contents of the skillet and took a huge bite. It was hot - extremely hot - but she didn't want to give her uncle the satisfaction of knowing he'd successfully teased her so, with her mouth closed and her eyes as wide as saucers, she gulped the food down then took a long drink of her tea.

"I guess you should've tried harder!" she shouted as she clenched the cup in her hands. Placing her cup back down, she traced her fingers around the rim then, her anger dissipating, turned towards her uncle and smiled. "Remember how hard it was to wake me up for school?"

Laughing, her uncle took a drink of his own tea before grabbing his plate and shoveling what looked like a mixture of eggs, bacon, and sausage on to it. Grabbing another plate, he did the same then placed it in front of Levi.

"How could I forget that nightmare?" he asked as he handed Levi his fork. Placing one hand on Levi's shoulder, he pointed at his niece and chuckled. "She was a really deep sleeper back in the day, so much so that it once took me and her aunt, god rest her soul, nearly forty five minutes to wake her up. We ended up having to pour a bucket of water over her head and, surely enough, that woke her up really fast." Wrinkling her nose, Yuki looked away from Levi and her uncle and scoffed. Her childhood memories weren't that clear, seeing as it had been over ten years since she'd even needed to remember them; however, she could remember that day quite clearly. She remembered how cold the water was as her uncle, nearly hysterical, dumped it all over her body.

"I was thirteen!" She exclaimed as she grabbed her plate and served herself some food. "I was a deep sleeper back then."

"And you aren't now?" Her uncle asked as he shoved a forkful of food in to his mouth. Shaking her head, Yuki began to stir at her food with her fork.

"I'm always on call at the hospital so I quickly got used to other people waking me up." Combing a hand through her hair, she giggled then took another bite a food. "I guess being back home really messed up the schedule I had going for me...among other things."

She could've mentioned that the lack of sleep she had the day before led to her earlier comatose state but she decided to leave that part out. Levi didn't need her to remind him of the events that led him to this table with the two of them. He only needed to focus on making the most out of today and definitely needed to take slow steps towards recovering his memories.

"Hospital?" Levi asked as he quietly ate his food. Yuki smiled and nodded her head. He had a curious look in his eyes as he asked her his question but almost felt bad for asking it when Yuki, eyes wide, turned her head down towards her plate. She knew she'd have to talk about her job but, since her job was the reason for all her strife, she honestly didn't want to delve in to those emotions just yet; however, the look on his face gave her the courage to move the conversation forward.

"I'm a registered nurse at a hospital in Osaka," she slowly began as she pushed a sausage around with her fork. "I've been working in their intensive care unit for around five months but it took years of studying and interning to make it there." Stabbing the sausage with her fork, she took a small bite out of the end, then dabbed the side of her mouth with her sleeve.

"How many years did you study?" Levi asked, still wanting to know more. Sighing, Yuki ate what was left of her sausage, placed her fork on to her plate, then propped her elbows on to the table. His curiosity was quite adorable, and the way his eyes would almost sparkle as he listened made it impossible for her to deny him an answer to any of his questions.

"I studied for twelve years," she said in response to his question. Levi's eyes widened at her response, almost as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing, and before he could ask her yet another question, she erupted in to a fit of laughter that left him quite confused.

"Studying that long isn't uncommon in my profession," she continued. She began to play with a stray hair that had fallen on her face and turned to look out the window above the sink. "After graduating high school, I got a scholarship to Tokyo University and studied there for four years before moving to Osaka to train as a nurse." She looked towards her uncle and gave him an apologetic stare, almost as if she wasn't sure how he'd respond to her next few statements. in order to save up for her nursing classes, she had to take time off from her studies and get a job. Instead of moving back home, she'd rented out an apartment and worked full-time as a waitress at a nearby bar. The money wasn't great but it was enough to help her achieve her goal.

"Everything okay Yuki?" he asked as he casually sipped at his tea. She nodded her head and looked away from him.

"Everything's fine. I just don't want to upset you with what I'm about to say." Looking at her through the corner of his eye, her uncle gave her a curt nod then released a soft chuckle before setting his cup down on the table. She honestly didn't know how her uncle would react, seeing as she never visited and rarely called him; even when she called, she always had something else to do besides talking to the only family she had left. Any negative reaction from her uncle was well deserved.

"If it's about you renting out an apartment in Osaka, then I already know about it." Yuki looked at her uncle with wide eyes, her mouth almost hanging to the floor as the revelation was made. He'd known all this time, and she'd felt so guilty for keeping that secret from him throughout the years.

"You...you knew?" she asked. He nodded his head. In one quick motion, he pushed his chair closer to hers and, throwing an arm over her shoulder, pulled her in for a hug.

"Of course I knew. I heard you talking about it with Miyako the last time you visited." Pulling Yuki's face in to his chest, he looked back to Levi, then began to ruffle his niece's hair. "She thought she was being sneaky but this ol' man has his ways." Softly pounding his chest, Yuki pulled herself away from him and helped herself up from the chair. Grabbing her plate, with half the food still left on her plate, she walked to the trash can and scraped the remaining contents in to it before discarding it in to the sink.

"You should've told me you knew," she said with her back facing away from them. Out of the corner of her eye, she gazed at Levi and saw a sad expression form on his face. She'd have to keep herself quiet on this matter for a while, at least until she could talk to her uncle about all the guilt she'd been bottling up over the years. She didn't want to draw Levi in to that mess. As it stood, he had enough to worry about on his own. Letting him in on her problems would just add to the stress he already had so, turning to face them, she gave her uncle a small smile and walked back to the table. Slowly, she walked up to her uncle so that she was standing behind his chair and, before he could react, she wrapped her arms around his neck and gave him a swift kiss on the cheek.

"We'll save that conversation for another time, mmkay?" Her uncle nodded his head and, still locked in Yuki's embrace, turned to look at Levi.

"So, what are your plans for today?" He asked.

"We don't really have anything scheduled," Yuki began while playfully tugging at her uncles cheeks. "I assumed you had something planned for us, seeing as you desperately wanted us to get up." Swatting away her hands, her uncle sat himself up and headed over to the sink with his plate. After placing it in the sink, he looked out the window and noticed how beautiful it looked outside. He turned to look at the pair and shook his head.

"I just wanted to wake your lazy asses up," he began as he turned on the faucet and poured in some dish washing detergent. Scowling at her uncle, Yuki folded her arms over her chest and stuck out her tongue.

"You'd be lazy too on only four hours of sleep old man."

"I'm not that old," he chided while scrubbing away the grime on his plate. "I'll have you know, fifty is all the rage in this part of town." Yuki rolled her eyes and walked over to him with the skillet in one hand and her cup in another. After placing them in to the foamy sink, she reached out for a few of the suds, then washed away the grease that had collected on to her hands.

"Whoever told you that must've been yanking your chain dear uncle," Yuki retorted as she swatted some water in to her uncles face. Blinking away the droplets of water that had gotten in to his eyes, her uncle rolled his eyes then continued on with washing the dishes.

"You still haven't answered my question," he began as he looked over at Levi. "Since I doubt she'll come up with anything anytime soon, maybe you can help me out here."

Levi had been so caught up watching the conversation between Yuki and her uncle that he hadn't had enough time to even think about what he would do today. He honestly didn't want to think about what would take place today because, in his mind, he knew he'd have to find somewhere else to stay for the night. He didn't want to abuse their hospitality but also knew that he was entirely in the dark about what to do and where to go to find a suitable living space. Yuki's uncle, noticing that Levi had momentarily spaced out, splashed his face with some water from the sink.

"It ain't rocket science!" he exclaimed while using a towel to wipe the water off his hands. Scoffing, he threw the towel in to the sink and let out a long sigh before pulling his wallet out from his back pocket. "Seeing as the two of you can't decide on anything, I'll be the one to get this day rolling." He grabbed Yuki's wrist and placed his wallet in to her hands, a stern expression forming on his face as he looked in to her eyes. "I want you to use this to buy him some decent clothes and the cheapest futon money can buy, you hear me. If he's going to sleep in the living room, he might as well be comfortable." Not understanding her uncles words, Yuki looked over at Levi then back at her uncle then, finally getting it, she wrapped her arms tightly around her uncles waist.

"You're the best!" she exclaimed as she waved the wallet in the air for Levi to see. "We're going to have so much fun today!" Levi didn't understand what was going on, only knew that Yuki was waving her uncles wallet around and had an adorable expression on her face. Quickly, she walked over to where Levi was sitting and knelt beside him.

"What's a futon?" he whispered. Giving him a confused glare of her own, Yuki ruffled her hands through his hair and laughed.

"We're using some of my uncles money to buy you a bed silly!" She pinched the bridge of his nose and gave him a soft smile.

Finally realizing everything, Levi turned his face away from Yuki and looked down at the floor. He was honestly at a loss for words as he took everything in. These people, people who knew absolutely nothing about him, were willing to let him stay with them. It almost brought tears to his eyes but these tears were easy to hold off and, instead of allowing those tears to spill, he took Yuki's hand in his and gave it a light squeeze. He was quite thankful for their hospitality, even though he knew he probably didn't deserve it.

"Thank you," he said as he laced his fingers in to her hand. "That really means a lot to me."

"Think nothing of it." She replied as she released her hand from his. She took a moment to look at his injured side then stood herself up. "It just wouldn't feel right having you out there own your own," she continued as she stared down in to his solemn eyes. "You need a strong support system and, even though we're strangers, we're the best chance you have at getting your memories back so you're stuck with us."

He couldn't help the heat from rising on to his cheeks as he stared in to her eyes. Like a magnet, he was drawn in to her gaze and he couldn't escape. All he could do was think about this woman and how her kind spirit was calling out to him in a way he couldn't understand. A full day hadn't even passed and he'd felt many confusing emotions, feelings he knew he'd never find in his memories no matter how hard he tried. Somehow, he knew these kinds of feelings were completely new to him and, for some unknown reason, he wanted to replace these memories with the ones that had his mind torn in two. He knew he needed those memories to understand who he was and where he came from but, for now, he honestly didn't care.

"So," Yuki said as she stood in front of him. "Do you think you can handle lil ol me?" Chuckling, Levi helped himself up from the table and smiled.

"I think I'll be able to manage."

"All right then," Yuki exclaimed while clapping her hands together. "Let's go shopping!"