So that's how Levi found himself in a pair of new-ish jeans and an ironed button down shirt that Isabel picked out for him. But her eyes nearly bugged out of her head when he sat down to put on his scuffed sneakers.

"You're really wearing those shoes?"

He ignored her.

She almost looked faint as he zipped up his blue hoodie - the one with a couple of old bullet holes in it. Isabel got him the jacket when they were all nothing but teenagers, still fresh-faced Titans. But that wasn't a time in his life he wanted to think about anymore. They'd been out of that gang of ghouls and in hiding for almost three years now; it was time to put those memories behind himself.

Almost an hour later, he haunted the bustling streets of downtown Tokyo. Neon lights flashed across skyscrapers. Even in the city, cherry blossom trees lined the twisting roads. Fallen petals were kicked up by cars at intersections.

Levi waited on the stairs that led up to the coffee shop he'd picked out for their date, nervous hands buried in his hoodie pockets. After 24 miserable years of life, he'd never been on a date before, and he sure as all hell would never admit to Hange that he'd never been kissed before either. His stomach was in knots.

He shifted his weight from sneaker to sneaker while he checked every face that passed him. When he saw Hange in the crowd wearing their oversized brown coat, covered in all sorts of iron-on patches, he waved them over. They wore ripped, acid-washed jeans with mismatched colorful socks pulled up to their knees. Suddenly, when their purple Converses squeaked against the pavement as they dashed over to Levi with a massive grin plastered across their freckly cheeks, relief washed over him.

Fuck, why had the butterflies threatened to get the best of him? This was Hange of all people: the only person that was almost as close to him as Farlan and Isabel. He couldn't help his half smile as they brushed back their greasy hair from their flushed face.

Yeah, this was gonna go well. Levi was sure of it.

"Let's get this over with, Four Eyes." Levi turned on his heel and headed towards the coffee shop entrance with Hange right behind him.

"You make it sound like this is gonna be like pulling teeth out."

Levi looked at them over his shoulder. They pinched their fingers together, crab-like, and winked. Huffing, he grimaced.

"Might as well be."

Anteiku was a quiet place off the main street. Levi swore up and down to Hange that they brewed the best cup of coffee in all of Tokyo, and maybe - maybe he wasn't ready to admit it to himself just yet - he was a bit excited to share his favorite hole-in-the-wall cafe with his best friend. While Hange babbled all about their day, they tucked themselves into a corner booth across from each other. Some young, purple-haired girl Levi didn't quite catch the name of showed up at their table to take their order.

After the girl scribbled their drinks on a piece of paper she summarily shoved into her apron pocket, Levi plopped his arms onto the table and leaned forward, catching Hange's wrist. They stopped talking mid-sentence, their mouth hanging open as their eyes flickered down to Levi's lips. A blush kissed their face.

"For the most part, it's safe to talk about ghoul stuff here, but you just gotta keep your voice down."

Hange nodded slowly. Then a sly smile flashed across their face as they broke Levi's grip on their wrist and laced their fingers together.

"Alright, then. That's good because I've got a million questions for you."

All Levi could do was blink dumbly, shocked.

"Obviously it's true that you guys eat people, but I always thought the people you eat have to be alive."

"Nope," Levi shook his head. "You just taste better when you're fresh."

Hange snorted and leaned over the table, getting closer to him. They looked at him over their glasses' rim, mock serious.

"Have you killed before?"

Levi rolled his eyes.

"We're supposed to be on a date, Shitty Glasses. Ask me something else."

"Fine." They pouted, sitting back in their seat. "I also read that ghouls have heightened senses in comparison to humans. Is that true too?" Hange tilted their head, unaware of how exposed their throat was.

Levi tried to ignore the smell of their pulse, the way it made his mouth water.

"Yeah," he swallowed, shrugging. "Well, maybe not. I don't think I can see better than humans, but I know I can smell and hear things better than you guys. We're also faster and stronger. I'd say our pain tolerance is higher too."

The waitress returned with mugs filled to the brim with steaming coffee. Tucking loose hair behind her ear, the waitress shared a small smile with Levi before leaving. Hange sipped their drink and coughed.

"Hot, hot, hot," they hissed.

Levi smirked, drinking deeply from his mug.

"See?" He chuckled.

Then he noticed they were still holding hands.

"O.K., but drinking stuff isn't really a great way to measure something like that. How do you know?"

Levi sat back against the booth, chewing his cheek.

"We've gotta get used to it - to pain - when we're real little."

"What do you mean?" Hange's brows furrowed.

"When we release our kagune, it rips through our back, and it hurts like a real bitch when you're just a kid."

"Oh." Their face fell. Hange rubbed their thumb over Levi's knuckles.

Could they feel the valleys of his scars, white with age?

"I'm sorry."

Levi shook his head.

"Don't be. It's just a part of life."

Hange nodded slowly.

"Alright then." Their voice trailed off. "What kind of kagune do you have?"

"Ukaku."

"I hear those are the ones that look kinda like feathers. Right?"

Levi nodded once, worrying his lip. His heart leapt into his throat. He tried to sip his coffee, avoiding Hange's gaze.

"Would you like to see?"

Shit. Did he really just offer that to them?

Hange's jaw dropped.

"I would love to," they whispered, awestruck.

While they walked through downtown Tokyo, Levi told Hange about his apartment. He shared it with his sister and brother, he said, but the fact that they all came from different sets of parents didn't mean anything to them. Isabel was at the hair salon where she worked as a cosmetologist. Farlan was just out. Levi wasn't sure what he was up to.

"What happened to your family?"

"Dad was killed by some rival gang. Guess he was hunting on someone else's territory. He was probably eaten because we never found his body."

Skyscrapers faded to apartments, and traffic quieted down. They came to a complex with wrought iron stairs that wrapped around the building.

"Mom tried her best to take care of me. Whored herself out for money and brought home suicide victims for me. That's how I picked up my, uh, vegetarian diet."

Levi took the steps two at a time up to the eighth floor. He rifled through his pockets for his keys as they strode down the hallway to his apartment door.

"What happened to her?"

"The Doves got her."

"Oh, God, Levi. How old were you?"

Levi jammed his keys into the lock and threw the door open.

"Eleven, maybe."

Hange felt sick. They followed him inside.

"Take your shoes off," he snapped as he kicked his sneakers off and tucked them into the corner by the front door.

Hange toed their Converses off while Levi hopped over the back of the couch. He drew the balcony blinds closed, plunging the living room into shadows. Hange shouldered their coat off and draped it over the side of the couch as they made their way to Levi. He stood in front of the blinds still, fidgeting with his hoodie strings.

"What's up with you?" Hange took a step closer to him.

"Nothing." Levi shrugged; he'd never admit he was nervous.

There was something intimate about showing his kagune to a human. It was like trusting Hange with a piece of the most precious part of who he was.

"So," he swallowed, "I'm gonna take my shirt off so it doesn't get torn up."

Eagerness made Hange buzz as Levi folded his jacket and set it on the edge of the couch. Quick fingers unbuttoned his shirt. Even in the dark, Hange was surprised to see how muscular he was. With cheeks growing pinker by the second, Levi kept his gaze low as he turned around, his back facing Hange. Silvery scars, puckered remnants of violent memories, traced the rise and fall of his shoulders, his ribs, hips. Someday, they promised themself, they would have the courage to ask about the stories behind each one.

"Stand back," he commanded.

The smooth expanse just below Levi's nape rippled before exploding. Hange gasped. Wings like they had never seen before filled the room, brushed the popcorn ceiling and dusted the carpet. They were as fluid as water, swaying with a current Hange couldn't feel. From where they were attached to his back, they were a purple so deep the color almost looked black in the shadows. As they grew, they lightened to red with pale pink tips.

Levi lowered himself to the floor. He brought his knees to his chest. Hesitantly, Hange moved around him, marveling at his kagune. Then they stood before him. He looked up at them with black eyes and red irises. Pulsing veins rose to the surface just beneath them. But Hange felt fearless as they sank to a knee across from Levi.

"You're beautiful," they murmured into the space between them, their hand reaching out to brush his bangs from his forehead.

Their fingertips traced down his cheek. His hand shot out, and he grabbed their wrist, yanking them closer. Levi felt their breath on his face as he leaned in. Then their lips met. Hange's lungs hitched. They paused, held each others' eyes before deepening the kiss. As his lids fluttered closed, Levi tasted coffee on their tongue. Their hands found his jaw, brushed over the stubble of his undercut as they pulled him closer.

Their smell overwhelmed him. His hands found their hips and traveled over the small of their back. Their jeans were rough against his fingers, but, still, he drew them against his bare chest. Levi felt Hange's pulse just beneath their soft lips.

He couldn't shake the feeling that this was exactly where both of them were meant to be.