Good Morning!
Thank you to everyone who has read/dropped a comment/added to favourites! It means so much!
No warnings.
Fluff?
Angst?
Who really knows anymore, just roll with it!
Levi X OC (However, easily able to self insert as with 'Flirting With Levi'.)
Rated T
Enjoy!
Xxx
Birthday's with Levi were always a fun event. You could tell, he didn't really enjoy them. You could tell they made him feel incredibly awkward, regardless of whether it was his birthday or someone else's. You hadn't even known when his birthday was, until it had came to light nearly two years after you had became a scout. And he certainly hadn't been the one to tell you. It had been Hanji, who had let the little detail slip, apparently 'happening to come across it' one day.
She made it all sound so innocent. But it wasn't. She failed to mention that she had broken into the commanders quarters, searched his entire office intently looking for Levi's file, and then had gone straight to the page that held his personal information, ignoring everything else in her path.
Levi had not been amused.
You really didn't understand why he hated them so much. It's not like Levi was bad at buying gifts. Actually if anything, he was probably one of the best. His delivery needed a bit of work, but he always seemed to know exactly what to get everyone.
Armin, a chess set.
Eren, a new weapon.
Hanji, a strange artefact.
Mikasa, leather gloves.
Erwin, books.
He was very much in tune with everyone who he brought a gift for. You couldn't remember a time he had ever brought a bad gift. You figured it probably wasn't the buying of a gift that he hated so much, but more so the giving that made him awkward or uncomfortable. He was not considered the friendliest of men, and buying a gift was not really the typical trait you would attribute with his standoffish personality.
The first year you had celebrated your birthday in the regiment, you had spent the entire evening sat at a table in the mess hall with your friends. Eren, Mikasa, Hanji, Armin, Historia, Reiner... they were all there. You had only been part of the team for about six months, but you had settled in well, made some incredibly good friends and earned the respect from everyone in the regiment. The commander had granted you special privileges for the day, meaning you got to take the day off to do as you wanted and had even supplied you and your friends with ample drinks to celebrate on the evening after everyone had finished their training.
Spirits had been high, higher than they had been in a while, and everyone seemed to be having a good time. Hanji had called Levi and the commander over, forcing them to take seats and poured them each a drink, though Levi had tried to protest.
"Come on! Have a drink with the birthday girl at least!" Hanji goaded, wrapping her arm around the shoulders of the impassive captain as she pushed the drink towards him. You had chuckled, watching how he had winced at her rowdiness and begrudgingly took the drink from her in a feeble attempt to quieten her noise.
Everyone had toasted to your birthday and that had pretty much been that.
The second year, Levi had given you a gift. Which had surprised you to no end. You had seen him give several gifts over time, but you honestly never thought you would fall into that category. You had been sketching quietly under a tree while the rest of the scouts trained until Levi had called time. You hadn't even noticed it was finished, quite engrossed in your drawing now. So engrossed in fact, they you hadn't noticed Levi approach you.
"Oi, brat." You blinked up at him, startled slightly.
"You going to sit there all day or what?" you glanced around, noticing everyone had left and mumbled a faint apology as you started gathering your pencils. Levi picked up your sketchbook, looking at your drawing with mild interest as you clambered to your feet. His eyes narrowed slightly as you stood, scrutinizing the picture.
"So you're not completely talentless then." He commented, causing you to tut at him but chuckle nonetheless.
"Thanks, I think?" he smirked, handing you your book back.
"It's the closest you will ever get to a compliment so take it." You shook your head at him. Over the months you and Levi had had multiple talks, little snippets of conversation here and there. You would say you were pretty close to him, but doubted he held the same sentiment. Which was fine as Levi was known for keeping everyone at arms length. Still, you liked him.
"Happy birthday, brat." He had said, handing you a small brown bag. Your eyes had widened slightly, eyebrows furrowing and jaw almost hitting the floor. Levi had got you a present?
"Fix your face and take the damn bag." He spoke testily and you obeyed, quickly reaching out and closing your mouth.
"Captain, you... thank you..." you had no idea what to say. He shook his head a little.
"If you want to show your gratitude, keep it quiet. I don't want every soldier here expecting something." You chuckled and nodded your head.
"You have my word. Thank you again." Levi gave a small nod and walked off. When he was gone, you reached into the bag and pulled out your gift. A jar of jam. You smiled happily. You had absolutely no idea how he knew you liked jam with your porridge. Jam, honey and other preserves were a rarity, considered a luxury item. However, on the two occasions you had been allowed a small spoonful, you had taken it with great delight, mixing it in with your porridge and even chopping up your apple and putting it into the mix. You were a sucker for some good preserves.
It was a small, but incredibly thoughtful gift, and so totally Levi.
You had all been sat around the dinner table one night when the subject of birthday's had been breached. It was the commanders birthday, and Eren was curious as to whose was next. After a brief discussion that Levi had actively avoided, it was concluded that Miche's birthday was next, then Petra's.
"And then Levi's." Hanji commented, offhandedly, earning incredibly shocked expressions from everyone at the table, though the captains had morphed into one of sheer anger.
"Hanji!" she blinked up at him innocently, chortling to herself at the mans mortified expression. You had not known where to look. Eventually your eyes settled on Levi.
"When is your birthday?" you asked excitedly. Levi's gaze swerved to you, eyes narrowing.
"Nome of your damn business." He shot back, fingers gripping his teacup a little too tightly.
"December 25th." Hanji had replied, forking another mouthful of food into her mouth.
"Hanji!!" she had howled with laughter, completely unaffected by Levi's inhumanly cold stare and death threats.
The first present you had given Levi had not been anything grand. Or so you had thought at the time you had decided on it. You had been working on a sketch for him for the last few weeks. It had taken you a while to decide what he might like, but finally you had decided on a drawing of his closest friends and squad members. It had taken you so long to draw it out because you were always busy with training, chores and other distractions. The picture included Erwin, Petra, Miche, Gunther, Oruo, Eld, Hanji and obviously Levi.
You had taken time on your drawing and by the time it was completed, you were incredibly proud, it was by far some of your best work. You smiled as you closed your book, ready to give the captain his gift when the time came.
However, just a week before his birthday, disaster had struck. A mission had gone horribly wrong, and most of Levi's squad had been killed. Eld, Gunther, Petra and Oruo were gone. You hadn't known what to do. You wanted so badly to go to Levi and comfort him in some way, but at the same time you didn't want to overstep. He may want some time alone.
You had left him to his own devices for two nights, and on the third night you had gone to his office, bringing him tea and some leftover dinner as he had not left his room since returning from the mission. Levi had permitted you entrance and blinked slightly when he noticed the tray in your hands. You offered a warm smile as you carefully placed it on his desk, not wanting to spill anything.
"What's this?" he asked, gesturing to the tray and you faltered slightly, worried you might have inadvertently pissed him off.
"Room service." You teased, forcing a smile. His eyes softened slightly and you began to pour his tea.
"You haven't been down for dinner, so I figured you might be hungry." He took the cup you offered him and sipped quietly.
"I seem to have lost my appetite." He replied, his voice ever as emotionless as ever and you nodded in understanding.
"I get that. But you still need to eat. Hungry or not." He scoffed.
"What are you my mother?" he spat viciously, avoiding eye contact completely as he took another sip of his tea. You understood his anger, his hurt, his defeat. You understood that he was saying things he probably didn't really mean. But still, it hurt.
There was a moment of silence, your fingers gently trailing across the edge of his desk, trying to find the right words to say.
"I miss them too you know? But I know they wouldn't want me to dwell forever." He gave a small shake of his head, resting the cup on his desk, fingers tracing the rim idly.
"Your words would mean more if spoken by people who are not present." He retorted and you sighed.
"Did you not know them at all? Can you just imagine what they would say to you right now? If Oruo saw me so downtrodden, he would laugh straight in my face, telling me how I'm not a real soldier if I let every death affect me so much. Petra would shout at him, telling him to stop trying to imitate you and of course, he would deny it..." you saw the corners of Levi's lips twitch into the tiniest of smiles, and so you continued.
After you had pretty much ranted to the captain, often going off on a tangent every so often you turned to look at him, sighing in a slightly exasperated way. He had said nothing during your tirade, allowing you to talk completely freely until you were finished. You noticed how he was leaning back in a relaxed way in his chair, arms folded, nodding his head slightly and regarding you with a soft almost amused expression.
"Are you done?" he asked and you swallowed thickly, running a hand through your hair, suddenly feeling like you may have overstepped... quite a lot.
"Yeah." You nodded and he smiled, chuckling a little as he stood and walked towards you. You shifted nervously when he stood in front of you.
"Thank you."
The next morning, you had desperately tried to think of something else to get Levi for his birthday, feeling suddenly that your drawing was a tad inappropriate. You didn't want to make him upset again, bring back bad memories and reopen recent wounds. And though you really wanted to get him something, Levi had made it painfully clear to everyone he did not want anything.
You had come to realise that Levi, did not like to be made a fuss over. Attention, was something that made him very uncomfortable. And so everybody had respected his wishes, not even breathing a mention of his birthday all day. You on the other hand, was equally as stubborn as the captain.
Everybody, had Christmas day off. A decent meal was prepared for the evening and everybody celebrated. You had spent a good part of the day with your nose in your sketchbook and had kept it with you most of the day, doodling here and there when the conversation had grown tiresome.
Later that evening you went to Levi's office, smiling at him warmly as you sat down opposite him. You popped your sketchbook on your lap and dropped a brown paper bag on his desk in front of him.
"Merry Christmas." His vacant expression instantly darkened.
"I thought I'd made it clear..."
"I know, but! This isn't a birthday present. It's a Christmas present. Two totally different things." You chirped, smiling widely at him and waving a hand dismissively. His eyes narrowed and he shook his head.
"You're a bothersome brat." You just chuckled as you stood, giving a small shrug.
"I know, it's one of my many endearing qualities." He chuckled a little as he rose to see you out, presumably to lock the door behind him so nobody else would bring him surprises tonight.
"Well, I will leave you to it, captain. And happy birthday." You saw his eyes twitch in mild annoyance, but flashed him a soft smile. At that moment, your sketchbook dropped from your arms, falling open to the ground with a sharp smack. Your eyes widened in horror and you jumped to pick it up but Levi was faster.
He noticed your deer in headlights expression, and he regarded you with a curious look, seemingly trying to place your expression.
"That's peculiar, you don't normally look so terrified when you drop your book." He observed. You bit your bottom lip nervously, swallowing a little and his lips twitched, showing his amusement.
"What are you hiding?" he asked teasingly. You quickly swiped your book from him and shook your head as you looked at the floor.
"It's nothing... I just... erm..." you stuttered. You didn't want to lie to him, but you also didn't know if telling him would be a good idea. You looked into his steely grey eyes, his expression was soft and curious, a very slight hint of suspicion lurking. You sighed and gave a shrug.
"I drew a picture for you... for your birthday... but, I decided not to give it to you..." Levi, was observant. After brazenly giving him a Christmas present despite his instructions not to get him anything, he knew there was more to your story than that.
"Why?" he asked. You forced a smile and shrugged.
"Didn't think you would approve..." your voice was light and impish, jesting towards Levi's hatred towards his birthday but your smile didn't quite reach your eyes. And Levi noticed.
"Show me." He instructed, his tone more curious than demanding. Your eyes widened slightly and you shook your head, feeling far too nervous for your own liking.
"No I don't think that..."
"Show me." He repeated, his voice hardening at your resistance. You sighed heavily, opening up your book to the appropriate page and handed it to him. He took the book and his eyes scanned the picture.
There were so many mixed emotions running through his eyes at that moment it made you feel sick. Surprise, hurt, happiness, confusion, anger, sadness.
"I finished it about a month or so ago... but... I didn't think... I mean I... I thought it would be inappropriate... considering..." Levi was silent for a moment longer, clearly understanding your hesitance though he did not comment on it, eyes taking in every intricate detail you had managed to capture in the drawing. You felt uneasy in the silence.
"It's amazing, Illyria." His voice was soft, eyes not leaving the page. You blinked at his high praise but remained silent. He handed you the book back.
"Give it to me." He instructed and you felt your face flush as you blinked away your confusion.
"Sir?"
"The drawing, I want it." You were beyond shocked but you carefully ripped the sheet from your book and handed it to him. He took it and smiled softly at you.
"This, means more now, than it did a month ago. Thank you." You flushed, recognising his sentiment and nodded your head as you quietly made your leave from his office.
The third year, your birthday had not been anywhere near as joyous. The scouts had just returned from yet another failed mission. There had been many casualties, and nobody, not even you, was even thinking about your birthday, yet alone contemplating celebrating at a time like this.
Two of your close friends had been slain today. One of which you had known since childhood. They had joined almost ten months ago, and you had been thrilled to see them again. Now you wished they had never joined at all.
You sat on the steps of the courtyard, staring out in to space, watching the sun set in the distance. Your heart hurt. But you felt numb. Almost empty. You had seen death plenty of times since joining the survey corps, but this was something else. Though you had loved everybody you had lost over your time here, this was different.
You had been so lost in your own quiet despair you hadn't noticed Levi standing beside you.
"Beating yourself up won't bring them back you know?" You jumped slightly, his voice ripping you out of your daze and you looked up at him. He looked down at you coldly, arms folded and no real emotion behind his eyes. Your gaze fell to the floor.
"I know." You didn't know what else to say. Levi sat down beside you. You took a deep breath, trying to control your emotions but it was difficult.
"What were they like? As you were growing up?" his comment was benevolent, tone soft and gentle. You closed your eyes, hearing him so tender ripping into your emotional state even more. You swallowed thickly.
"I'm not sure I can do this right now." You whispered honestly, keeping your eyes shut to hold back the tears stinging the corners of your eyes.
Levi's hand moved to rest in the back of your hair, fingers scratching gently in a comforting and soothing way. The completely unexpected action making you take a deep breath and open your eyes.
"I know, but you know you have to."
Levi stayed by your side, listening to you retell memories from your past, sometimes smiling and laughing through your tears. And when the grief finally replaced the shock, he pulled you into a strong embrace, letting you cry on his shoulder.
You were thankful for his presence. Thankful for his rare show of compassion. It was what you needed right now, and he knew it. He didn't say anything as you wept, just kept his arm wrapped around your back as you leaned your head on his shoulder, his fingers burying in the back of your hair.
When your tears stopped falling, he waited, waiting for you to pull away. A part of you really didn't want to leave his warmth, but you knew sooner or later you would have to. When you did pull away he regarded you quietly, trying to figure out if you were actually alright. You smiled at him.
"I'm okay... sorry.." You whispered and he shook his head.
"You don't need to apologise." You shook your head, wiping your eyes with the back of your hand.
"I feel like an idiot." You said, chuckling through another small sob and Levi gave a faint smile.
"You look like a mess." You laughed at him, smacking his arm and shook your head.
"Jesus Levi, thanks. Remind me to come to you if I'm ever feeling depressed in the future!" You joked, nudging him with your shoulder. You heard him chuckle.
"Please don't." You laughed again and finally turned to look at him. He smiled and reached out to take your wrist.
"You're going to be alright." He whispered and you nodded your head, smiling back at him.
"I know. Thank you."
Levi hadn't given you your present for a couple of months. You had figured he hadn't actually brought you anything, not that it was expected at all. But you had returned to your room one evening and been greeted with a brown bag in your bed. Inside, was an array of small items, like a little gift set or hamper, full of your favourite things. There was soap, scented candles, body butters, moisturisers, oils, perfume, all of a high end quality, along with a little note attached to the outside.
Happy Birthday, brat.
Levi
Your face lit up. He hadn't forgotten after all. You were overwhelmed by the extravagant gift, wondering how on earth he knew you liked this stuff. You headed straight to his office. You and Levi had become much closer over time. He had even recently admitted you were one of the lesser annoying people to be around, which was apparently high praise. You entered his office excitedly, still thrilled about his beautiful gift.
He was standing in front of his desk as his head lifted to look at you, you bounded over and eagerly threw your arms around him, almost knocking him off his feet in the process. He clicked his tongue at you, expressing his annoyance but before he could say or do anything else you interrupted him.
"Thank you for the gift, Levi." Your ecstatic mood must have quelled his underlying irritation because he just scoffed, not replying to your gratitude but patted the top of your head lightly. You pulled away and smiled up at him and he returned the gesture, rolling his eyes slightly.
You started to slowly release him from your crushing embrace when he rested his hands at the base of your spine, making you cease your actions. His previous slightly amused expression was gone, now replaced with a look you had not seen before. He seemed to be contemplating something, mulling it over in his head. He took a deep breath, releasing it slowly as he spoke.
"There was something else, I wanted to give you." You smiled softly, feeling your heart flutter the longer he held you like this.
You had long ago realised your attraction to the captain, and recently it had been harder to maintain your air of indifference. Sometimes when you looked at him, your pulse would quicken. There had been a couple of occasions where the tension between you had become too much, and you had had to make a quick getaway. He often sat beside you at dinner and you would talk amongst yourselves... but sometimes, your raging hormones would get the better of you and you would take something he said and twist it into something filthy. Sometimes you would trick yourself into thinking he was looking at you in a suggestive way. And during those times you had to get away. And fast.
"Don't you think you've given me enough?" you asked, putting on a teasing smile and his eyes narrowed just slightly, though his smile remained. You had to grit your teeth. You were tricking yourself again.
"Not quite. One more thing, and then if you want to go, you can go." You gave him a dubious look and rolled your eyes.
"Okay Levi, is it?" you asked, noticing your hands had been nervously fidgeting with the straps to his harness. He hadn't commented though, maybe he actually hadn't realised. Levi placed one of the hands that was at your back to the back of your head, fingers gently tangling in the silky strands before he leaned forward and pressed his lips to yours, totally committed to the act.
Your body practically exploded from the unforeseen kiss, fingers tightening in his shirt and eyes shooting open for a second before you relaxed into the kiss and closed your eyes. Levi's lips moved against yours, pulling you out of your state of shock and reminding you that you needed to breathe, yet you responded instantly.
When Levi looked at you again, his eyes were clouded with lust, and this time, you weren't imagining it. The room was quiet for a moment, thick with tension. He removed his hand from your hair, brushing some stray strands behind your ear as he fought to compose himself again.
"Alright, now you're free to go." He said, his voice husky and you couldn't deny it was the sexiest thing you had ever heard. You took a shaky breath in, still reeling from what had just happened.
"What if I don't want to go?" you asked, eyes searching his. He smirked at you, eyes glinting with a mischievous glimmer you had never seen before.
"Then you can stay."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
It's my birthday now so I thought this would be a fitting chapter to upload!
Drop a Read and Review if you liked it!
Also, check out my other stories!
Follow me on Wattpad!
Raven1869
Also feel free to drop me a message if you have a request, they are still open!
All the love
Xxxxxx