Hanji was the one who spilled the beans to me about what flight Levi was on. She confessed to me that she'd told Erwin that she'd pick Levi up, but then called me and asked if I wanted to do it instead. She said something about forgetting to water the plants.

Hell yes, I said.

So here I was, standing in the airport, waiting while a sea of passengers unloaded and walked past me. I kept hopping up to see better, eager to get a first look at him after the week since we'd been separated.

I almost mistook Levi for a kid when he came out. He looked so short, so small, next to all the other people walking out. He was dressed in jeans and a black v-neck shirt, carrying nothing with him but a small vanity bag. No doubt he had hand sanitizer, a toothbrush and toothpaste, soap, and shampoo with him. Oh and his face mask too, probably. The thought made me smile.

I waved at him, and he stopped short, still on the other side of the security door. I couldn't exactly run up and grab onto him, much though I wanted to.

The look on his face was grave, I thought. Was he mad? His eyes were unreadable. Oh crap, I hope he wasn't mad.

When he finally came to my side, he approached me slowly. When I made to hug him, he held me back with a hand planted in my chest. I stopped immediately.

"Hey," he said, looking down.

"Hey," I said back, worried. "Was your flight okay?"

He nodded, looking around. "Where's Hanji? I was told she was going to pick me up."

I wrung my hands together. "Um, she sent me instead. Is that okay?"

Levi started walking towards the exit. "Sure. Did you drive or do we cab it?"

"I drove," I said, hurrying to catch up with him.

Levi was silent the rest of the way to the car. Once we were in the parking structure, I led him to my car, and then I unlocked it. But Levi was standing a few paces away, looking at my car with a strange look on his face.

"What is that," he said finally.

I looked down at my car. "It's a 76 Pinto. Candy apple red. Fully restored." I inspected it. I thought it looked clean, I'd certainly given it the Levi Special in preparation for taking him for a ride. I'd vacuumed it, washed the windows inside and out, hand washed the outside, scrubbed the interior.I'd even hung up a vanilla-scented air freshener from the rearview mirror, the thing smelled great. "What's wrong with it?"

Levi crossed his arms over his chest. "Is that thing even safe?"

I stood back up to my full height, exasperated. "Of course it is. I mean, it doesn't have airbags or crash zones or anything like that. But it's got seat belts."

Levi scrunched up his nose. "Did you get that thing secondhand? I wonder how many asses have sat on those seats."

I literally threw my hands up in the air. "Jesus do you need the whole history of the world before you'll put your tush on any seat?" At Levi's stubborn silence, I said, "Fine. I bought it at a junkyard for 500 bucks. Back then its seats were ripped to smithereens, it had no paint on, a pathetically old set of tires, and was a pile of junk. But the engine was sound, so I called that a win.

"I then spent the next five years fixing it up with whatever spare money I had. I replaced the seats. I painted it. I replaced the panels on the a new sound system. Replaced the belts. New tires. New brakes. New suspension. Good enough for you?"

Levi's expression had gotten more and more mild as I went on, until his arms uncrossed and he tried to open his door. But of course it was still locked. I cursed and slid in my seat, and then reached out my arm to unlock his door from the inside.

When Levi finally sat down, tucking his vanity bag in his lap, he looked around the interior of the car like a dog on the scent. He even wiped his finger underneath the dashboard, but when it came out free of dust and grime, he finally grunted in the affirmative. "Not bad."

I let out an exasperated sigh and clicked on my seatbelt, then started the car. The car buzzed to life, with its typical muscle-car sound that was like music to my ears. Even if I had a million dollars tomorrow, I wouldn't trade in my old pinto for anything.

Levi leaned back in his seat, tipping his head back. After I pulled out onto the highway, I said, "So where is your place anyway? Hanji didn't tell me."

"It's on Notre Dame, sort of between downtown and Old Montreal. Just head for downtown and I'll direct you from there."

Levi closed his eyes a bit, so I had a chance to look at his profile. Then he startled, and from then on spent the whole time looking out the window. It was like he was re-memorizing the route, he was scrutinizing everything so carefully.

I wanted to reach out and touch him, to reassure myself that he was really here, but he just seemed so far away. I wanted to know what he was thinking, but it felt like it would be intruding.

Finally, to make conversation, I asked him, "How is your stomach?"

He sighed. "Well, I don't heal as fast as you do, brat. But it's much better than last week. I still can't move around too much without it hurting, though, cause everything pulls those damned core muscles."

"Yeah," I said grimly. "This much I know from my physiotherapy courses. Core strength is key. You look like you might have gained a little weight back though. You seem a lot healthier."

Levi rubbed his hands on his jeans. "I guess so. I haven't had much of an appetite, but anything beats the shit they were feeding me in Mali."

He finally turned to look at me, and it was like I could feel his eyes on my face, it was magnetic. It was like his gaze got hooked there, and when he turned away, it felt like he had to force himself. "Turn here," he said.

From then on out, it was him directing me to his place. We finally pulled up in front of a high building.

"Sorry there's no guest parking around here," he said when we arrived. He clutched his vanity bag, as though indecisive about something.

"Oh," I said, trying not to sound too crestfallen. He wanted me to go, didn't he? After all this time, I'd been so excited to see him. He must have done some thinking in Germany and realized we were better off as friends, I guess. Or no, maybe he didn't even want to be friends? My stomach dropped out from under me. God, I hoped not. "Well, I'm glad you're all right," I squeaked out in a tiny voice.

Levi had his eyes shut tight, then he let out a sigh to end all sighs. "There's a lot just around the corner, if you can't find parking. It's not too expensive, only 10 bucks for the day. Do you want to come up?"

I went from zero to a hundred in two seconds flat. "Yes!"

Levi snorted, and then directed me to the lot. When it was time to pay the attendant, he shifted uncomfortably, and said, "I'd pay but I don't have my things yet… I'll need to get new cards, to take out money. I have a stash upstairs, I can pay you back."

I dished out the ten dollars, laughing. "Levi, chill. It's okay, I can afford ten bucks. It's worth it if I can spend some time with you."

Levi paused for a second, chewing on that, then he spun on his heel. I had to jog again to catch up with him.

Luckily Levi's doorman recognized him, and no awkward explanations were needed for why he was missing his fob to get in the door. He said to him, "Jerry, this is Eren. Eren, meet Jerry."

I gave him a little wave, but Levi tugged my sleeve to pull me along after him. When we got to the elevator, he pushed one of the higher floors. When we arrived at his door, I saw that he actually had a keypad instead of a lock with a key. He punched in a set of numbers, and the lock slid open.

"Handy," I whistled.

Levi shrugged. "It's not standard issue. I had it installed after I lost my keys the tenth time. Now I can come and go as I please, without needing to worry about having keys on me. Take off your shoes."

Levi had stepped out of his own shoes, and lined them up neatly on a mat near the wall. I took mine off and placed them just as neatly next to his.

Levi called out, "Hello?"

I wondered who he was talking to, but next thing I knew a bloody jungle cat came bounding around the corner. Okay, maybe not a jungle cat, but he was the biggest freaking house cat I'd ever seen. He was almost bigger than Levi when he stretched out, rolling on the floor so that Levi could scratch his belly. His belly was splattered with white, as were the tips of his paws, but the rest of him was all black.

Levi was murmuring nothings to the cat, and rubbing his belly, scratching behind his ears. When Titan butted up against him, Levi growled out, "I'm not allowed to pick you up for another five weeks. Can you believe that? But you'll have to put up with it, Titan."

The whole scene was so domestic, it was pretty much the anti-thesis of what I associated with Levi, and it made me kind of melt inside. Levi might be harsh, he might be stone-faced, but inside there was something tender in him, and it came out in moments like this, behind closed doors.

Levi finally stood back up, and when he wobbled a little I grabbed his elbow, just to steady him. He muttered thanks, and moved into the place.

He started by inspecting the place from top to bottom. He led me to the kitchen, and tsk'ed at the food scattered around the cat bowl. I found the dustpan and cleared it up for him. He checked out the flawless black marble bathroom, and opened Titan's litter box and found there were some little presents left there for him, which he promptly fished out, dumped in the toilet, and washed away. He then went to the bedroom, and I helped him pull the black sheets off a bed that looked way too big for him. I piled the sheets into the washer, and got that going. Then lastly, we went out to the living room. Levi muttered something about the whole place needing a vacuuming, and I actually managed to convince him to sit down and take a load off and let me do it.

He stopped me only twice, telling me to put the different ends on so that I could get into those little nooks and crannies that were hard to him asking me to, I got out the all-purpose cleaner and wiped down the counters in the kitchen and the bathroom, then quickly wiped the tables down with the wood cleaner. It took only five minutes, and Levi's eyes tracked mine the whole time, but after I washed my hands and plopped down next to him on the couch, I could see he was infinitely more relaxed.

Levi was watching me, his gaze intense. I looked right back at him, deciding to try waiting it out to see if he'd give away his thoughts.

"That was really nice of you," he said finally.

I shrugged and leaned back, getting comfortable. "It's nothing. It's probably not a good idea for you to be bending over doing a lot of vacuuming right now, and I don't mind."

He pursed his lips. "I guess I won't vacuum every day. Once every 3 or 4 days should be okay."

"You normally vacuum every day?" I goggled at him.

Levi gave me a bland stare. "Why, how often do you do it?"

"Like… once a week?"

Levi snorted and crossed his arms over his chest, as though I had revealed myself to be some kind of pig or something. I could tell right away that he was a neat freak, but this was like to the nth degree. I was starting to psychoanalyze him, thinking about what it was that motivated the cleanliness. Whether it was some form of OCD brought on as a coping mechanism for the brutality of his job. But then all of a sudden my flow of thoughts was cut off when Levi scooted closer to me and tipped his thigh out so that our knees knocked together. That one point of contact burned like fire inside me.

"I wanted to explain something," he started hesitantly, then stopped.

"Go on," I urged him.

"In the airport… It's not that I wasn't excited to see you. That I'm not excited to see you," he corrected, slanting his gaze over to look at me, then away. "It's just that I'm not a fan of PDA."

"Public displays of affection?" I clarified, to be sure. When he nodded, I asked, "What constitutes PDA for you?"

"You know, the usual. Kissing, holding hands. Hugging. Touching of any kind, really."

"Hugging?" That was the first time I'd heard of someone who didn't like to hug in public. "Really?"

Levi nodded, looking down at his hands. "I know I'm weird, but I have my reasons. I don't want anyone to know what I feel for anyone else. My feelings are my own, they're private. Besides, in my job, anyone who is close to me is a liability. You could be targeted if someone thinks I like you."

Pushing past all of Levi's awkwardness, and his halting explanation, my mind zeroed in on the last bit like a hound going in for the kill. "You… like me?"

Levi flushed. His cheeks actually went a little pink, it was the first time I'd seen it, and I wanted to touch them to see if they were warm but I held back. He finally growled, "Isn't that obvious?"

I grinned. I knew I must look ridiculous, my mouth was wide enough to split my face, but I couldn't help it. I felt like I was puffed full of hot air."Well, we're not in public now, are we?" I said in a low voice. I scooted just a little closer, so our thighs were pressed together along the whole length of our legs.

Levi held me back with a hand on my chest. "Down, boy. I might have said I liked you, but I haven't decided what to do about it yet. It's still a terrible idea," he said with a grimace.

"What? Why?" I thought if I could strike down all his complaints, then just maybe he might let me kiss him. I wanted to kiss him. Oh, god, did I want to kiss him.

"Well, I'm way older than you."

I scoffed. "Well let's get that straight right now. I don't care."

Levi rolled his eyes. "You might not care right now, but…"

"Nope. Not going to happen. Not an objection. Next?"

Levi punched his own leg. "My job."

I laughed at that. "I just followed you all the way to Mali and back again, and you still think your job will bother me?"

"I'll be gone a lot. And I'll be going into dangerous situations. It won't be easy."

I reached my arm out and stretched it along the back of the couch, playing with the nape of his neck. He shivered under my touch. "Let's take it as we go. You don't know what's going to happen on that front, your job description could change, or mine could. But I'm here for you if you need me.I'd go to the ends of the world and back, if you need me."

Levi closed his eyes at that, and let out a small smile, just crinkling up the edges of his mouth. "Yeah, you would," he agreed.

"Other objections?" I asked while I started digging my fingers deeper into his neck, giving him a bit of a massage.

"Umm…. Uh, your friends… Your friends don't like me," he said, biting his lip as I found a tender spot.

"They do. They will, when they get to know you."

Levi's head fell forward, giving me more room. I reached out to him with both hands, and he turned his back to me, which to me was giving me permission. I worked his neck, and his traps, and I dug my fingers into the backs of his shoulder blades, but his shirt got in the way.

He groaned and said, "Why are you so good that this?"

I laughed and kissed the back of his neck, which made him go stiff. "Physiotherapist, remember?" I tugged at his shirt. "Can this come off?"

Levi tugged the hem down, holding it in place. "Probably not such a good idea, Eren. I'm not…"

I shushed him. "I know you're not fit for sex right now. Trust me, Levi, I know what a gut injury does to you. Just let me pamper you a little bit. I'll massage your back for you, get all the tension out. Then you'll sleep like a baby, I promise."

Levi didn't look at me. "Yeah? I haven't slept like a baby in… oh, I don't know how long."

I nuzzled the back of his neck. "Trust me. I'll stay with you, if you want. While you sleep. No bad intentions, I promise."

He sighed. "I need a shower," he said in a small voice.

I sighed too, and dropped my head on his back. "No, you don't. You had one before you left Germany, didn't you?"

"That was 12 hours and a plane ride ago," Levi mumbled. "Don't wanna get in bed without a shower."

I tried to hold back my frustration. I just squeezed his arm. "Okay. I'll get the sheets in the dryer while you take a shower. Do you need help?"

Levi shook his head. He stood, a little wobbly maybe, but he was on his feet. He looked back at me, and gave me a deep look, then ghosted his fingers on my arm and walked out.

I got up and put the sheets in the dryer, and fumbled around in the kitchen to get myself a glass of water. Then I went back to the couch and flopped down. At least I had taken a shower, only an hour before going to pick Levi up.

I spent the half hour browsing funny cat pictures on Tumblr. Then, when the dryer beeped to notify me the sheets were ready, I took them out and re-dressed the bed, trying carefully to get it just the way I'd seen it when I'd arrived. After the bed was made, I realized it must have been forty minutes Levi had been in the shower.

I knocked on the door of the shower, not wanting to disturb his privacy, but worried for him. "You okay in there, Levi? Just want to make sure you didn't fall asleep or anything."

The water turned off. "I'm all right," he called out. I heard a cabinet door opening, and some shuffling around, then Levi opened the door and emerged in nothing but a black towel slung low on his hips.

Levi still had water droplets clinging to his hair, and running down his neck. His skin was pale, and when I looked down, I saw his flat, pink rosebud nipples, the same colour as his lips. I wanted to reach out and touch them, lick them into my mouth, but I surged back instead, out of his way. It only gave me a better view of his taut muscles, his toned stomach and arms. He had scars here and there, but they were hardly noticeable, just divots of shinier white skin.

Levi brushed past me, stopped when he saw the bed made, then continued. He opened his drawer and pulled out a pair of boxer briefs, and with his back to me dropped the towel and slipped the briefs on. I had forgotten about Levi's total utter lack of modesty. However I wasn't going to knock it, as it gave me the ability to admire the curve of his ass, and the play of his leg muscles as he stepped into his underwear. I gulped, and felt myself harden with just the idea of being able to touch him.

I turned around quickly, berating myself internally for looking. Even if Levi was interested - which was still unclear - he was injured, right now. I was only allowed to touch him platonically. That's right, platonically. Dick, go down!

While I was still arguing with myself, Levi brushed past me again, and said, "Since I can't lie on my stomach, maybe couch is a better idea. I can prop myself up against the arm of the couch."

"Sh…sure," I mumbled, following him back into the living room.

Levi sat down on the couch, and beckoned me to sit behind him. I hoped he didn't notice my erection as I sat down. His back was to me, and his skin was like alabaster, smooth and soft over hard, unyielding muscles.

I tried to put on my professional hat as I ran my hands up his back. I let my fingers dig into his neck, like I had before. I rubbed the sides of his neck, then ran my thumbs down the back. I dug my thumbs into the meat of his traps, and he let out a little sound at that.

The sound went straight to my traitorous, juvenile dick. I looked down at it as though staring at it would force it to go back down again, but it's like it was laughing up at me.

I ran my hands around to the front of Levi's neck, and splayed my hands on his collarbones. He held a lot of tension in the front of his neck, so I worked that for a while, and Levi started to list forward, propping against the arm of the couch.

I then let my hands drift to his arms. I squeezed his deltoids, kneading the tops of his shoulders. I found a pressure point in the front of his shoulders, and worked it gently until he let out another sound. Then I squeezed his arms, down his triceps, his forearms, until I ran my hands over his hands, my front pressing into his back as I did so.

That momentary contact was electrifying, so I jerked back and took a deep breath. Levi turned his head to glance back at me, his eyes looked me up and down, and I'm sure he knew what I was thinking about when he raised an eyebrow at me.

"Sorry," I muttered. I adjusted myself, like that would help, and then I ran my hands down his back again, this time all the way down to his lower back, finding out the knots along the way. I worked out as many as I could find, taking my time, and sure enough, Levi's body went lax. Like I had promised him, he would be so loose tonight he was bound to sleep like a baby.

I just wanted one little touch, I told myself. Just one, to take home with me. I hooked my arms under his shoulders, and pulled him back so he was resting on my completely. He tilted his eyes lazily up at me, and I looked down at him, my eyes blazing. I was careful to avoid pulling his front, but I did ghost my hand up his stomach, to palm his pectoral in my hand, and squeezed. His eyes drifted shut as his head lolled on my shoulder, and he leaned in to press his lips against my neck.

At that small touch of his lips, my cock flared to life harder than ever, and I knew it was jabbing Levi in the backside but he didn't seem to care. I let my fingers drift over his nipple, and when they brushed over it, it perked up and tightened. I gently pinched it between my fingers, and Levi let out a soft groan.

"Is this part of your normal professional massage?" Levi asked, half-asleep.

I rolled the nub between my fingers, and inhaled the fresh apple scent of his hair. I then couldn't help rolling my hips, just a little. "No," I murmured.

Levi sat up slowly, clutching his side with his hand. Then he turned to look at me, and his pupils were blown, his hair mussed. His lips were red where he'd bitten them. "Eren," he said warningly.

"Yeah?" I breathed out.

"Fuck it," he growled, and snapped forward.

I wasn't expecting it when Levi reached out a hand, and twisted it painfully into my hair, tilting my head back and exposing my throat. He leaned in and kissed me there, his mouth nibbling, and he inhaled the scent on my skin. Then he took my head in both his hands, crawled fully into my lap, sliding his legs on either side of my hips. He looked down at me, and I drowned in his gaze as he closed the distance between us.

Levi brought our lips together roughly, his breath harsh against mine. He sunk onto me, his body falling into me, as our mouths melded as though they were meant to fit together.

I clutched his hips in my hands, to hold him steady, as he nipped at my lips, and sucked my bottom lip into his mouth. When I was about dying of frustration, he finally opened up, and touched his tongue to mine.

Oh, God, yes. However much I'd dreamed of kissing Levi, doing it was so much better. His tongue slanted against mine, teasingly, then he'd pull back and kiss my lips. Then his tongue would be back again, and each time our tongues rubbed together, it was like liquid velvet in my mouth. He played this game, chasing me, then pulling back, then he'd chase me again. I moaned, but he caught the sound, and I could feel him smiling against my mouth.

Finally he pulled back, and then he slumped against me fully, his arms around my neck, his legs around my hips. He kissed the shell of my ear and said, "I'm tired, Eren."

I ignored my throbbing erection, and shot to my feet, with him still in my arms. I carried him like that, back into his bedroom. He was heavier than he looked, but I managed. When I made it to the bed, I put him down slowly, carefully, not wanting to tear his stitches.

When he was safely tucked into the bed, I stood next to him uncertainly. I brushed the hair back from his face, but his eyes were closed already. He looked peaceful.

I turned to go, but before I'd taken my first step, Levi grabbed me around my wrist. His grip was so powerful, I knew it would be impossible to shake it.

"Stay," Levi murmured.

I mumbled my acquiescence, and he let me go long enough for me to shrug out of my jeans and shirt, folding them neatly on the floor. I crawled into the bed next to him. I wanted to wrap my body around his, but I knew it wouldn't be comfortable for him to lie on his side just now. So I just lay next to him.

Levi scooted closer to me, so that the length of my body was pressed up against his. He found my arm, and draped it over his chest, and tucked his head in close to mine, sharing my pillow. "Thank you, Eren," he whispered.

He was asleep before I could say "You're welcome."