The last thing Levi could recall was getting manhandled by police, cold hand cuffs choking his wrist and being thrown into a holding cell overnight. He wouldn't dare fall asleep in such filthy conditions but his body got the best of him. He had to cover up with the blankets because of shock. He didn't let the police know he was shot be cause like hell they were gonna do anything, he'll just head to hospital when he gets a chance. And as Auruo said Don't tell the police anything or you wont be seeing Eren's pretty face anymore. He wasn't going to take Auruo's softly. Better safe than sorry. Plus if he lost Eren then there will be absolutely no restraints of Levi's behalf. If anything is to happen to Eren and Auruo is the cause of it, he will kill him.
Dead.
He was confused when he woke up the next day. Absolutely disgusted when he figured out he was drooling and his head settled on the filthy bench he sat on, but he quickly dropped it once he saw Eren paying bail.
"E-eren?" He muttered, his words slurred as he spoke.
The teen only looked at him, his eyes dim. He watched the brunette with heavily lidded eyes before the officer stood up and walked over to the cell.
"It's your lucky day," the officer said, running his hand over his keys and taking the correct one, quickly shoving it into the lock and turning it.
"Now get your sorry ass out here, bub. I don't wanna see your face again."
~•~
He wished Eren knew how to drive. Because if he did they wouldn't be sitting at the bus stop waiting for a fucking bus in shitty weather. And the pain Levi was in was beyond belief. They had to walk half a mile to the bus stop first of all and the bullet was still in his leg. But he managed to stop the bleeding by tying his belt around his leg.
But that did not allievate the pain radiating from injured areas of his body. However, Levi was not the one who should be complaining right now, should he?
He looked over at Eren, who stared down mindlessly down the street waiting for the bus to arrive. He looked like he was in a deep mind of thought. Levi only glimpsed at him occasionally, trying to piece together the right words to say into a sentence.
"Hey... Eren...?"
"Hm?" He hummed acknowledging the man. Though he didn't look at him.
"Where'd you get the money to pay bail...?"
"..." Finally Eren looked at him and scratched the back of his head. He smiled awkwardly and said, "Well, funny thing about that. I kinda know where you keep a secret stash of money in the house... Not so secret anymore... Ha ha.. Ha..."
"..."
"... A-are you mad? I'm sorry..."
"No I'm not mad. Why'd you do that? And why the fuck do you know where I hide money, brat?"
"Well, I got a call around eight this morning and it said you were trespassing and they were going to hold you here until Monday night and I didn't want to wait that long and I didn't want to be alone and I know you wouldn't like it in there so I took the money and bailed you out. I promise I didn't take anything else I just didn't want you to be in there for so long."
"How do you know where I hide money?"
"Oh that? Well, the last time we had sex and when we were getting dressed the next day, while you were showering, I was looking for my next shoe and I looked underneath the bed and I saw a fair sized box and-"
"So being the nosy fuck you are, you looked in it?"
"... Yes...?" Eren drew out.
"Thanks for bailing me out. You saved the skin on my ass. How much was bail?"
"1600 dollars."
"I see."
"You're not mad?!"
"Pfft, nope. It's my money and my stupidity, why the hell would I be mad?"
"... Okay... What happened your leg? Actually," Eren turned to Levi and brought his legs up. "Tell me everything that happened. Why did you go and why are you so hurt?" Eren's fingers ran over Levi's neck, the man flinching as he did so.
"Didn't you read the note?"
"What note?"
"Looks like my questions been answered..."
"Not mine,"
Levi stayed silent for a moment. He signed heavily and said, "Petra invited me over to talk about some things. It escaladed and Auruo and I got into a fight. He pulled a gun and-"
"He pulled a gun? Why didn't you called me?! I would've came to help you!"
"How exactly? First, I'm a hundred percent sure you don't have have a license, more so, a permit. Second, you don't have my keys. And lastly, there's no way in hell I'm letting you drive my car. Wait a second-" he stood up, digging in his pocket and pulling out his car keys.
"Why the hell are we taking the bus when I can drive?! And where the hell's my car?"
Eren half smiled. "Yeaaaaah, about that... The officer said your car was towed so-"
"Are you fucking kidding me?!" Levi exclaimed. "No..."
"Jesus Christ..." He pinched the bridge of his nose. "What a pain in the ass..."
Shortly, Eren began giggling following by a muffled laughter. "Do you think this is funny, you shit?!"
Eren covered his mouth and he squeezed his eyes shut before muttering a small, "You're gonna ride the bus now."
His eyes narrowed mixing between confusion and irritation. "What are you getting at?"
"Aha! You're filthy fucking rich!" Eren smiled loopsidely, tugging st Levi's hands.
"Yeah, okay, big deal? And stopping pulling me, get to the fucking point. You're pissing me off."
"You can basically burn money, and now, you, Mr Levi Ackerman has to ride the bus. A community transmit. A public ride! You can finally see what it's like to be broke!"
"I'm not broke dumbass. And calm your ass down, it's just the bus, I'll disinfect you and I later."
"Ahaha, you're gonna ride the bus~" he pulled at Levi's check until the man smacked it away. "God, don't become a second Hanji. I'll drop your ass quicker than a hot pot."
He paused for a moment to see Eren's smile dying down a little but it still held that happy glow. Levi wanted to smile a little, in which he did, and ran his finger underneath Eren's eye.
"Its good to see your smiling again. I missed it."
~•~
Once Levi got home, the first thing he did was collapse on the couch. He was beyond exhausted and he felt fucking disgusting having to ride the bus. He had no problem with it. He would do it again with Eren. However, if there is another person coughing, sneezing and doing anything of the sort in such a small, enclosed area such as the bus, Levi will have to take it upon himself to correct the person, cleanse his surroundings and himself and politely or quite rudely - leave the area.
Eren closed the door and sighed heavily, bushing his hair from his eye and behind his ear. He walked around to couch to see Levi holding his leg and groaning silently to himself.
"Levi, are you alright?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just a minor wound, nothing serious." He brushed Eren's words off nonchalantly.
"... Then let me see."
"Nope."
"Why not?"
"Because I don't want you to."
"Are you sure you're okay?"
"Yes," Levi snapped. "Leave me alone, go read or something, just don't bother me."
"See, you're a liar. Because obviously something's up. You're sitting on your beyond clean couch, a couch so clean I could eat food off it, and you're all sweaty and... Bloody...? Levi, what happened?" Eren marched over and tried to move Levi's hand away from his leg but Levi pushed him away.
"Like I said before, just a stupid misunderstanding. This is nothing, I can deal with it."
Eren stood for a moment, staring at the model who refused to lock eyes with him. So, Eren raised his arm and hit Levi's leg. Not too hard but hard enough to get a pained reaction that was not something Levi would respond with.
Levi had a high tolerance for pain, so a man of Eren's muscle mass- which was about the equivalent of a fourth grader, quoted by Levi- was very unlikely and unusual for the man. "What the hell was that for?!" Eren crawled on Levi with almost no struggle at all. The man squirmed underneath him but he injury was provoking him for doing much more than he was capable of. "Get off me!"
"Let me look at the wound, please? Just to make sure you're okay. It might be a lot worse than you think... And I don't think I can handle losing you too... So for safety precautions?" He said slowly. His voice died down softly, gentle on Levi's ears.
"I fucking hate you, fuckface." He said bitterly, but a little softer than usual.
Eren smiled lightly. "I love you more."
Within a few minuets, Levi was sitting up while Eren sat on the floor settled between Levi's leg. He had to cut Levi's pants right below where his belt was wrapped tightly around his thigh to his dismay.
"Hm... Levi, scoot over," Eren climbed onto the couch once he did as told and pulled the living room table with medical supplies aka common household items closer to him.
"Okay, now flip into your stomach so I can see the wound,"
"I still think this is stupid." He said, shuffling him to follow Eren's instructions.
"Hush." the teen scolded. He pulled Levi's leg onto his lap and got to work. The first thing he did was clean up the injury, it was dried with blood and his pants managed to soak up most of it, but it still wasn't clean. So taking a cloth soaked with alcohol he cleaned around the wound with ease. The bullet, lucky, didn't lodge too deep in Levi's leg and Eren used tweezers and a pair of medical scissors, skillfully and carefully nipping away at the dead flesh and excess to clean around the bullet. Levi's flesh tore around it a little bit causing the man to groan and bite down into his hand with a calm expression.
With a small cloth dabbed with alcohol, he wiped around the wound to both cleanse and lubricate it.
He was going to have to cut away at the skin around the bullet to make a slightly bigger opening because if the bullet rubbing against the skin when he pulls it out, it would hurt Levi a lot and it would probably cause infection. So with the scissors, he cut around the bullet. He sliced away about 3 millimeters of skin away from the bullet.
He watched Levi's toes curl and he shifted a little to get more comfortable.
"Try not to move so much," Eren said. With the tweezers, he got a grip on the protruding end of the bullet and slowly tried to pull it out. He slipped up a few times, the tweezers losing grasp on the object and only causing Levi more pain.
After a few tries, he finally got a firm, solid grasp on the bullet and pulled it out.
Eren's eyebrow furrowed as he pulled out the bullet out and grabbed a dry cloth any placed it inside the wound to stop the bleeding. Occasionly, he changed the part of the towel when one end was soaked.
"You're doing really good so far Levi," he said softly as he dug through a bag filled with medical supplies. He pulled out a gauze, some antibiotics and some medicine to dress the wound. "Just a little bit longer, I'm almost done."
He cleaned it with alchol one last time and spread some medicine over it. The bleeding stoped, thankfully and he was able to place padding over the wound to soak up the remainder of the drainage and blood. Then he took the gauze and wrapped it around his leg tightly.
"There, you should be fine now. You can sit up."
Levi sat up while Eren removed his gloves and got up to throw them away. Levi looked at his leg, staring at the bangaging. He was surprised, he had to admit. He never knew Eren knew how to do that. He had no idea Eren was experienced in the medical field. It never seemed like something he would dabble in.
The teen walked back in with a glass of orange juice. "Here, drink this. I noticed you seem out of it and you should get your energy back up."
"Thanks..." He took the glass from Eren's hand and took a few sips. He placed the glass down and said, "I didn't know you knew how to remove a bullet. It seems out of character for you. But I will admit I am quite surprised."
"My dad was a doctor," Eren said dully, taking a seat on the couch and putting back away the supplies. "He was pretty popular back in Shiganshina. He got paid pretty well too. I always used to tag along on his medical visits and learn a few new things. There were a lot of gangs and shootings back in Shinganshina and many people couldn't afford the hospital or high end medical attention. That's where my father and I came in."
"You should become a doctor, from what you did you're pretty good at it."
Eren shrugged and zipped up. "Its not my thing."
Levi didn't respond, instead he ran his hand over the gauze. "... I'm gonna go take a shower... I have a headache. Try not to move so much on that leg for now."
"Can I come with you?" Levi asked, a small smirk forming.
"No." He snapped lightly. He took a small inhale of breath. "I need some time to myself."
~•~
While Eren showered, Levi tried his best not to doze off into slumber.
But his eyelids felt like a surfer trying to fight the gigantic ocean currents during a hurricane. And within minuets he fell asleep. A deep sleep at that.
He wasn't one who usually had dreams at night. If he was lucky, every few months or so, he would have ominous, dynamic, rather mysterious dreams that felt real. He always felt like it was his past life or something that happened in the past. It was either he dreamed of that dark, distorted universe or just a straight black void.
But never has he ever dreamed something so bright; vivid even. The dream was irenic, eloquent, very striking. Levi was never one to dream so lucidly but just for this one time he was willing to make an acception.
When he woke up, he felt like he was asleep for only a few minuets. Turns out he was asleep for nine hours. He felt more at peace than usual. His guard has been let down completely. He sat up a little bit only to see Eren hunched over with his hands on his face.
He stared at him for moment before he sat up slowly, he scooted closer to Eren. "How long have you been crying?"
"... A few hours..."
Levi pulled Eren to him, hauling the teen onto him as he laid back down. He propped his head on the arm of the couch and brushed Eren's hair behind his hair.
"I knew you were gonna cry. I wanted to shower with you to comfort you."
"I wanted to be alone." Levi brushed Eren's locks back and kissed his forehead.
"I'm not surprised to wake up to you like this."
"... Why is that?"
"I had a dream about your mom." The words came as a shock to Eren. He sat up quickly, cautious of Levi's leg. Not once in the past few weeks has Eren dreamt about Carla. He wanted too.
He was desperate to see her anyway he possibly could. So why Levi? How come Levi got to see her when Eren wanted to?
"What happened? Did she say anything? Tell me everything, I wanna know everything that you saw."
"... Well for one, I never had a dream as bright and intense like this one. Everything was very resplendent and lurid. I got to see Carla... Like I said before and she was happy. I'm not sure how dreams work and I've had some pretty fucked up dreams."
"Did... Did she anything? About me?"
"Mhm," he nodded his head slowly. "She said she's proud of you. She said she's happy and she misses you but she's watching over you."
"Is that it?"
"N-no... There's some place I want to take you."
"But you don't have your car and the buses stopped running at five thirty... Which was about forty minuets ago... Are we gonna walk there or-"
"No. Its a lengthy distance. And who the hell says I only have one car, shitface?"
"What do you mean by that? Don't you only have the musta-" Levi began to get up with an irritated groan and a roll of his eyes. Eren only sat back, watching him walking away. He was confused.
"Are you waiting for an invite to a fucking tea party? Get your ass up and follow me."
Eren was quick on his feet and following closely behind Levi. They were led to the back of the home Eren didn't know that existed or to the part Eren never bothered to look for. Connected to the living room was a hallway that lead down to two rooms: The laundry room which was most likely Levi's favorite part of his home and the garage.
Levi turned the latch and opened the door. Eren, from the view of before you enter the garage, it looked like there was one car. But once he entered, his jaw nearly dropped. Who the hell needs this many cars?! First of all, his garage was gigantic, about half the size of Levi's already huge ass home. And don't even let Eren get started on the cars. If Eren miscounted, then there were a total of four cars not including Levi's mustang.
"Wha... What the hell is all this?!"
"The rest of my cars, what the fuck does it look like?"
"I know what it is... I mean... How did you-"
"I stole them," Levi said sarcastically, leaning against the door with his arms crossed. "From celebrities along the coast. They still haven't caught me."
"Yeah, maybe it's cause you were too short to be seen..." Eren mumbled, running his hand along the hood of a black car. It was smooth to the touch. He was afraid to leave even a speak of dirt on any of the cars cause like hell he had money to pay for anything in this room.
He could barely pay for himself.
"What was that, I didn't hear you. Care to speak louder, you're not talking to a mouse." Levi urged, his voice ruff.
"Are you sure about that?" Eren tried, his voice laced with humor.
"Shut up," Levi pushed himself off the wall and walked over to a rack that held keys. "Since your mouth is so confident, how about you chose which car we take?"
"What? Really?!" He speaker excitedly, a big grin on his face.
"Look at that. One moment your a cheeky, arrogant shit, the next your ears are red and you sound like a woman."
"I'm not a woman... And... I want um... Which one goes the fastest?"
"My dick." Levi said a little too monotone and overall too seriously.
"What the hell, no. And you call me cocky and arrogant."
"Alright then, let's take this one," He completely ignored Eren's last remark and walked towards a dark gray car.
Levi opened the door and got inside. Eren took his time working around the black car which from a quick glimpse at the tag was a Bently. He looked at the car Levi decided to take before he got inside. The car started up.
"You don't need keys?!"
"Does this look like I need keys?"
Inside smelled so clean and brand new. The smell of fresh leather graced his senses and it smelled like nobody had ever been inside or ever used this car. As a matter of fact, none of the cars looked like they were ever used. It was either very well kept or they had very high and unaffordable maintenance.
Levi sat for a moment, allowing his hands to grip the wheel before he clicked a button that was connected to his radio and the garage door opened. When it opened fully, he put the car in reverse, closed the garage again and they pulled out into the main street slowly. It was obvious to Eren Levi's never drove this car before. He was so used to the mustang's interior, he wanted to take this car slow first before he picked up.
Levi continued to look out the corner of his eye trying to wonder why Eren was sitting like he was in a box. He then realized, Eren was a freaking giant. A towering five foot seven being compressed into a car which height was no more than about four foot three and a half at most. It was a slightly tight fit for Levi too. But when he bought the car, he was a little shorter.
"You said you wanted a car that goes fast," Levi said.
"You're not proving it's speed when you're driving so slow. Look, that snail over there is gonna make it past the light before we do!"
"You're always finding something to complain about," Levi's hand slid over something and the windows began to roll down and within a few seconds. The top of the convertible began to come down too. And once Levi heard it snapped, he pushed down on the gas pedal and they were off.
Eren was happy he had on his seat belt. He was leaning forward before Levi actually started to drive to pass the imaginary snail. He could finally straighten out and sit up properly. How long has it been since he was not out the house? He had no idea but hell it felt good.
He felt alive, energetic... Happy even. The wind blew through his hair and he couldn't help but smile. He sat on his knees leaning out the car with his elbows propped on the door.
"Do you not know how to sit like human being in car? I might as put a dog leash on you."
"We're going so fast though!" Eren cried. His smile widening. "The bus can't do this! I like this car better than your mustang!... No offense..."
"I'm not offended. Takes a shitload more to bring me down."
"Did you know the buses roof can't go down? And, and the seats aren't leather and- look at the radio!" He sat down and leaned towards the radio, his hands roaming over every button on the system. "You have FM radio? I think the bus only has AM..."
"There's also satellite radio,"
"Even better! Can I listen to something?!"
"Knock yourself out, kid."
"I'm not a kid,"
"With the way you're acting, I beg to differ."
"Look Levi! You have a map! We can see where we are and where we're going!"
Levi's eyes narrowed in a way that said, "Isn't it fucking obvious?" However his words cane out a little more softer. "Yeah, I know. That's the point of a map."
"Its cool! The bus doesn't have-"
"I know my cars are better than the bus. That's why I drive you around."
"Haha, just you wait! When I get my license, I'll get my own car and drive myself around. And I'll get a car even better than yours!"
"Ohhh, don't piss yourself..." Levi said slyly, the car coming to a halfway stop before Levi turned and once his car straightened out, his car immediately picked up speed and in the blink of an eye, they were halfway down the street and managed to make it across the yellow light in a split second.
"That was so cool! Levi, do it again! Haha, go faster!"
"I'm already going about six miles over the speed limit."
"Pfft, old man. Don't bust a lung while you're living to the extreme. Haha, six over the speed limit, you're making me laugh. My cat's lived more dangerously!"
Levi smirked and laughed a little. His hands gripped the wheel a little tighter. Within seconds, the engine was roaring and Eren was smiling like a clown. His hair was blowing rapidly and his cheeks danced with the wind.
"Is this fast enough for you?
"... Yeah..."
"I hope you pisded yourself."
"Kinda did..."
"Are you serious?! You're cleaning that shit up, if you messed up the seat-"
"Calm down, don't kill yourself."
"Did you seriously piss yourself though?"
"A little..."
"Disgusting brat." He muttered.
"Hey, we're going towards Rose..." Eren said, looking around somewhat confused .
"Yeah, you noticed this now? Not the sharpest pencil, are you?"
"I haven't heard that one."
"Keep it in mind then."
"Why are we going to Rose?"
"Who said we're going to Rose?"
"Then where are we-"
"Just sit back and enjoy the ride for a while. Just don't break anything."
~•~
Levi took a detour which ended up adding an extra twenty minuets to the ride but if he went the usual way, they would have to drive past the remains of the shop. And cutting off a few extra minuets and miles was not worth seeing Eren in pain again.
Eren was smiling, Eren was laughing, Eren was making jokes, Eren was being Eren.
He got to have time away from stress and pain. This was the next step to him healing emotionally.
"Hey, we're not staying in Rose? I thought we were-"
"We're going into Shinganshina, alright? I'm not spoiling anymore for you. Sit back and wait. You act just like a child."
Eren raised a brow and fell silent for a moment. He then smiled a little and cooed. "But daddy-"
The car went silent. Dead silent. It took a few moments for those words to process in Levi's head. "... Excuse me?"
"You heard me. I called you daddy. You're always calling me spoiled, and a brat and a child. So what does that make you? I'm the spoiled child or brat in some cases, so you're now my daddy."
"... Are you always this cheeky?"
"I don't know, you tell me... Daddy~" Okay, now this kid's pushing his luck and Levi's buttons.
"Is this supposed to be some sexual hint or innuendo I'm supposed to figure out? Are you horny or something cause that's all I'm picking up."
"What, no!"
"I'm picking up some sexual tension. You need to calm your little boy hormones."
"Its nothing sexual, you pervert. You're my daddy and I'm your spoiled brat."
"Jesus, Eren... You make it sound like a bad porno..."
"What? Why can't I call you daddy? You call me brat and other names... So why can't I have a pet name for you?"
"Its not about having a pet name. Its about the past."
"What about it?"
"You don't want to know anything from my past. Its been said, it's been done, nothing to do about it now except forget about it."
"Come on, please? I promise I'll stop calling you daddy... Only if you give me a reason not to though." Levi knew that pose. The one where Eren would shift around to face him and bring his knees up to his chest. Then he would patiently wait for not an explanation, but a story.
He sighed heavily, easing his foot on the brakes to slow down the car a little to a reasonable speed.
"I don't like the term daddy. When we first met, I told you why I ran away from my father, do you remember?"
"N-no... Not that much... Sorry..."
"Don't fret about it. After my mom died, I started getting abused physically by my father and I ran away after a few years of abuse. He was a strong, happy man while my mother was alive. After her funeral, he started getting angerier and more aggressive. And his anger was taken out on me. I used to look up to him, I admired him."
"So why can't I call you daddy?"
"Because that's what I used to call my dad, and I had a lot of high expectations of him. After he let me down, I didn't want kids. Simply because they were going to have high expectations of me too and I don't want to let them down like my father did to me."
"Sooooo... You think if I call you daddy, I'm holding you to certain expectations?"
Levi shrugged. "I don't know. I just don't like the word."
"Do you think you're gonna let me down?"
Again, he shrugged and mumbled a quiet, "I don't know..."
Eren stared at Levi, he opened his mouths to say something but nothing came out. He let his words form in his head before he spoke slowly. "I'm still going to call you daddy. And when I call you daddy, I am going to hold to expectations and I want you to own up to them. Be the man your father should've been. Be a father to me since my dad let me down too. Okay?"
"..."
"How does that sound?" Eren asked, his words coming on strong. He wanted an answer. A simple yes or a no.
"I... Alright. Call me daddy then. But only when it's nessessary. Don't make that my new name and don't run it into the fucking ground and into Hell. This is a privilege that I don't give to many people so don't abuse it."
"Really?!"
"Don't make me repeat myself."
"Oh, okay!" He didn't have to look at Eren to know he was smiling.
"Know," Levi began. "What are your expectations for me?"
"My... My expectations?"
"Mhm, nothing too unreasonable. And don't let your penis think for you."
"I'm not... Okay? Um... How about," he drew out. "You can't yell at me a lot. Sometimes I feel really bad when you tell at me harshly. And you have to try to be nicer to me,"
"I'm not nice." Levi said blankly.
"I-I know... But I mean, try to be a little nicer... And please hear me out when we argue. Sometimes, I can't get a word out when we fight. And... Maybe... For the last one... Please be there when I need you. Don't leave my side because I don't think I can handle that... I'm not asking for money, I'm not asking for materialist things, all I ask is for your attention and affection."
Levi smiled a little, nodding his head while he was at it. "I understand. You got yourself a deal, brat."
~•~
The sun finally went down and night had already placed it's blanket over the city. They finally pulled into their destination and Eren was quick out the car. However, his feet came to a skidded stop. Eren's heart dropped to the pit of his stomach and he froze. He backed up, looking utterly terrified as he did. He bumped into Levi and nearly tripped.
"Wh-why are we here? Why did you bring me here?!"
"Calm down, Eren. I bought you here because when I was asleep, I dreamed we were here. How long has it been since you've been here?"
"Take me home!"
"Come on,"
"No, Levi! Stop, I don't wanna go! Please, stop it, Levi!" Eren cried.
"Oi! Are you crying, brat?!" Eren only responded with quiet whimpers and soft sniffles.
Levi managed to drag him halfway down the shore before he sat down and pulled Eren down next to him. It took a few minuets for Levi go calm Eren down. He managed to do that by pulling him between his legs and placing his head to his chest and wrapping his arms around him.
"I don't like it here." Eren said bluntly.
"How about this, take a moment to look around and see what interests you."
"Nothing interest's me." He said quickly. "Before you answer, look around."
Eren groaned and looked around. He didn't find anything that caught his eye except the frightening ocean waves despite the fact at they were small and barely crashed on shore.
He scanned and looked around, trying to look for something that would catch his eye. And something certinally did.
"Levi, I want that shell."
"What shell?"
"Over there." He pointed towards the ocean and sure enough down by where the waves were crashing, there were a few shells varying in sizes, shapes and colors. Levi raised a brow and stood up.
"Come on, "
"Who, me?! I'm not going anywhere near that evil thing!"
"Oh please, the ocean's not going to hurt you."
"How do you know?!" Eren called.
Levi smirked little, pulling Eren up and draping his arms around his neck, holding him in a light headlock. "Because I'm here, shitface. And while I'm here you're not getting hurt. I'll make sure of your safety."
"I know but I don't like the-"
"You want the shells, right?"
"Yes. My mom really likes shells so I want to get those." Levi's hands unlocked from Eren's neck and slithered to his side and found purchase on Eren's hand.
He then pulled him forward and began walking. Eren was freaking out. He was acting as if he was a little girl who had just seen a gigantic tarantula. Tears were starting to roll down his cheeks and he started breathing rapidly. God, this brat was going to give himself a heart attack before he sees the light of his twentieth birthday.
"Levi, don't let me die! Please. Don't go near the-" Before he could get another word out, something cold washed upon his feet. Immediately, upon contact, he shrieked and yanked his hand from Levi, and within seconds, Eren fell back and into the water.
Eren's heart stopped for a split second and if took him a while to process what happened. "Its cold..." He mumbled. "Just like how I remember it..."
"Are you ok-" when the waves hit Levi's legs, he felt the world underneath him shattered and before he knew it, he was carried halfway with the wave.
He blinked and sat up quickly, his body shivering due to being exposed to the cold.
"Wha-" he breathed out, his words trembling. "Why the fuck did you do that?"
"You pushed me into the water... So I did it back."
"You pushed your fucking self you brat!"
"Please don't yell at me, daddy..." He cooed coyly. He looked down like he was an innocent bystander but on the inside he wanted to laugh.
"Don't fucking daddy me, I will-!"
"Daddy, please don't yell at me... You're making me feel bad..." The sentence caught Levi off guard entirely. His eyebrows let up, erasing some of the harsh shadowing on his face. Soon, he sighed and stood up slowly, his body heavy from the wet winter clothing. He walked over to Eren and extended his hand to pull him up.
Once Eren was up on his feet, Levi hugged him and whispered, "Don't think you'll get off the hook that easy, shitface."
When the waves came crashing back, he dived into the water, pulling Eren down with him. He held Eren tightly, making sure not to lose him to the current. The water was dark but he could tell Eren was frightened.
He and Eren both broke the surface. Eren was looking around frantically and his legs were kicking back and forth trying to find the ocean floor.
"...L-Le...vi..." He breathed out, his voice hitching in his throat. Levi felt Eren clawing at the back of his shirt, trying to keep a firm grip on him. "Calm down Eren, I got you."
"Why d-did you do that?!"
Levi shrugged nonchalantly, looking around at the dark ocean. "I wanted to get you wet too, and to show you the ocean isn't really a bad thing. I want you to face your fear a little."
"... That's what she said..." Eren mumbled, a small giggle forming.
"Excuse me?"
"You wanted to get me wet too. Does this mean I got you wet first?" He teased, his hands finally getting a good grip. This however, did not stop Eren from kicking his feet like a madman.
"I will not hesitate to let you go and let you defend on your own for that stupid and immature remark."
"You wouldn't let me drown, daddy."
"Wanna bet?"
"No." He said quickly.
"Is the water still so bad?" Levi asked. "We're a few feet away from the shore."
"I still don't like it..." He admitted.
"Eren, let me ask something. What are you studying in college again?"
"Marine Biology."
"Okay, now define your career choice to me in your own words."
"Hm... Well... Marine Biology is the study of life in the oceans and other saltwater environments such as estuaries and wetlands." He explained slowly.
"Ok, now, think about it. The study of life in the oceans and other saltwater environments," Levi stressed. "You're going to be working with the ocean and you're terrified of it. Did you think about that when you signed up for the course?"
"I thought about it. I was going to do partner work with my friend Armin,"
"Isn't Armin the one with the shitty freckles?"
"N-no! That's Marco and he's in the hospital you bat! Don't talk about him like that!"
"Alright, alright, sorry, I guess... Continue."
"I was going to do partner work with Armin. I would stay back on the shore while Armin would go out into the sea. That's how my job would work."
"Ok, but what if you and Armin can't work together on certain jobs or school assignments? What if its a solo job? What if Armin gets sick, huh? There are endless possibilities on what could go wrong."
"Well then... I don't know... I'm make up some type of excuse."
"That's taking the easy way out, brat. And you're boss or professor won't take an excuse. You'll either get fired or a failing grade."
"..."
"I don't want to be so hard on you, but I'm opening your mind up to reality. Cause let me tell you something, life is a bitch."
"I know..."
"Do you know how to swim?" Levi asked out of nowhere. His eyes focused on Eren.
"No, not really." He admitted.
Levi let Eren go and wiggled out of Eren's grasp. On instinct, he starred to splash around until Levi grabbed his hands and began to guide him through the water.
"Stop kicking your feet so much! You're making a mess!"
"A mess how?! We're surrounded by water!" The teen exclaimed, his hands holding onto Levi's hand tighter.
They went on like this until Eren's excessive kicking calmed down. "Do you think you know how to do this now?"
"No!"
"I'm letting go."
"Levi- ah!" His one source of surviving let down and swam back a little to give Eren space to freely maneuver on his own. Eren wailed around and Levi didn't help him until his head was under water and bubbles floated to the surface. But once they were at the top and he made sure Eren was alright, he let him go again. This time only giving him advice to keep himself afloat.
"Eren, first of all, calm down and stop splashing around, that's why you're drowning." Eren took in a large inhale of breath to calm himself and reached out for Levi who took his hand.
"See, I'm not gonna let your drown. Once your head goes below the surface, I'll come to help you. Now that you've calmed down, use both your arms and legs. Make sure to stay upright and keep your breathing normal. I'm gonna let you go now,"
Eren closed his eyes for a second and opened them when he felt Levi's hands holding his waist lightly.
"Move your arms horizontally."
Eren did as told, tilting his head up as he started to sink below. "Oi," Levi said. "Just because you're using your arms doesn't mean you can stop using your feet."
"Okay..."
Once Eren started to float on his own and Levi saw he was starting to get it, he told him he was going to let him go one last time before he Eren threaded the water. He managed to stay above for a few moments. At first Eren was confused when he was doing it on his own but then it twisted into a smile.
"Levi..."
Levi smirked lightly. It wasn't really a smirk. It leaned more into a smile. "Is the ocean still bad?"
"Yes," he answered. "Just because I can kinda do this, it doesn't change my feelings on the ocean..."
"That's fine." Levi shrugged. "Hey, Levi?"
"What?"
Water splashed in his face followed by laughter. "So you think since you know how to swim you're gonna get cocky?" Levi threw water on Eren.
"I'm not cocky," he swam closer to Levi, it was slow but once he got there he returned the same gesutre.
"If you're not cocky, quit acting like a brat."
Eren smiled and pushed Levi back into the water, pinning him down and smiling quickly pinning his lips onto Levi's and running his hands over Levi's jawline. They came up for air after about forty five seconds of intimacy.
~•~
They sat on the beach, huddling next to each other trying to kindle any kind of warmth to beat out the cold air. They shivered next to each other. Going into the water was such a stupid idea but they had one hell of a good time.
Levi hasn't been to the beach in years. The last time he was near the ocean, a few months later Isabel and Farlan were gone. So it felt good to be here with somebody again. He was actually having fun with Eren. Even though now he was struggling to keep his ass from freezing off but he felt good.
He didn't want to inside the car because there was no way in hell he was going to mess up his leather seats.
Eren was silent for the most part much to Levi's surprise. He could feel Eren shivering and his body occasionally jerked due to the cold. But he seemed preoccupied by the many shells in his hand which he found interesting earlier. When they came out the water, Eren and Levi- more Eren than Levi- walked along the beach collecting many different seashells. This was one of the elements that made their relationship continue to function and clash perfectly with each other.
Levi was the serious one while Eren's child-like behavior clashed with Levi's making the model a muchsofter, easy going person while it molded Eren into a mature adult.
It was only a few minuets before what was on Eren's mind murmured on his lips. "What are we gonna do for my mom's funeral?"
Completely unexpected, but not a strange question.
Levi had to think about that for a second. "It's not up to me. Now is it?"
"No. I-I mean, I don't know... I'll need the help though."
"I'll be right here to help you. Did your mother leave a will?"
"Yes. This morning, while I was on my way to bail you out, I got a call from somebody who called me in for nine fifteen appointment to sort out my mother's will... And I'm not sure what I'm gonna get... And I need to plan out her funeral after I get her inheritance. That's why I'm so quite."
It's not that easy hearing someone say that. "Well.. Where was Carla's favorite place to go?"
"She really liked quiet places. Places that are really pretty and serene. I want to release her ashes at sunset. That's her favorite time of day."
"Is that why you swoon over sunsets?"
Eren shrugged. "I have my reasons. You're just not sentimental, so you wouldn't understand."
The model rolled his eyes and curled his toes as wind blew against him. He held Eren tighter trying to gather more warmth. "I thought we were gonna bury her?"
"Hm? Oh, I thought about it... But then I thought my mother's always been kinda restricted and held back so I asked the doctors to reincarnate her so I could release her ashes to let her go free."
Levi nodded softly. "You know, you've been through a lot. I'm sorry this happened."
"Don't worry about it..." Eren mumbled. "I want everyone to wear white though,"
"Eh? How come?"
"Because, it means renewal and rebirth... I looked it up and I'd rather everybody wear white. And maybe one thing that's black."
"But isn't white for weddings?"
Eren nodded. "Mhm. But on my wedding day, I'm going to splash in red. So it'll be red, white, and ... Black."
"..." Levi's eyebrow narrowed a little. "Explain those colors to me."
"Well, red means warmth, love, boldness, excitement, strength, energy, determination, desire, passion, courage and socialism. While black means elegance, sophistication, formality, power, strength, illegality, morbidity, and of course death. So I just thought about throwing in a few colors. It'll also give it something untraditional and a little different."
"Do you not want a traditional wedding?"
"No, not really, sorry. I want something that I'll remember and untraditional. I hate following the crowd. But I don't want something too over the top. Simple yet memorable."
"I see..."
"Levi, can we go home now? I have a long day tomorrow..." Levi nodded and stood up. He then sneezed. "... We should be dry enough now. Plus I have to change the bandaging on my wound."
"Oh yeah! I forgot about that! We should've never went inside the water. We have to shower and I have to disinfect it again and apply ointment..."
"I think we should be more concerned about you,"
"Why?"
Levi ran his thumb under Eren's eye and said, "Your eyes are red and dark. And it looks a little swollen."
"It's just irritated, I told you the ocean's evil."
Levi snickered and laughed a little, he wrapped his arm around Eren's waist and tugged him close.
"Tch, whatever brat."
A.N: Thank you everybody for all the reviews, follows and favorites as always. This chapter was a little harder to write because I had a writers block and I had some help writing this from a close friend of mine (she mostly wrote the bullet removal part) so thank you to her. I'll review next chapter, I'm so sorry I can't do it in this one. I had to play soccer in the rain so I'm literally soaked right now xD but thanks again for all the positive support from everybody. Till next time?