Chapter 8
Eren unlocks the front door with a key he'd been wearing around his neck on a thin black rope and opens it with a flourish, gesturing for Levi to go inside first.
"After you, Sir." He says with a cheeky smile and Levi feels the sudden urge to kick him, however ridiculous it would look considering their height difference. Instead, he resolves to roll his eyes and heads through the doorway into the living room. Eren follows close behind, moving towards the adjoining kitchen and switching the kettle on to boil.
"I film everything for the channel in my bedroom, it's just through to the hall and first door on the left. You go on ahead, I'll make us some coffee." Eren says, pointing towards the kitchen exit that leads on to a darkened hallway, "No fancy coffee machine though I'm afraid, just have to do it the old-fashioned way."
Levi watches as Eren grabs two mugs from one of the kitchen cupboards and leans himself against the fridge, deciding to mess with Eren a little…
"You know, if this is your masterplan to get me into your bedroom brat, you'll need to do an awful lot better than that." Levi says teasingly, crossing his arms and smirking at Eren's confused expression.
"Haha! I knew you had a sense humour lying around somewhere!" Eren laughs.
"Just don't get used to it. And by the way, I like it strong and black." Levi says, heading in the direction of Eren's bedroom.
"Wait, what?!" Eren splutters indignantly.
"The coffee, idiot!" Levi calls from the hallway.
After around 15 minutes of searching for the camera, 45 minutes of waiting for said camera to charge, 10 minutes of adjusting the tripod and lamps, 20 minutes of Eren whining that the lighting makes him look like a ghost and numerous cups of coffee later…they're finally ready to begin.
"I'm telling you, it looks a lot lighter than when Mikasa does it. I still think it's gonna make me look half dead…" Eren grimaces.
"Well, what do you want me to do? I don't know how to do this shit. Either wait for her to come and help you, or deal with it this way for one video. Your choice." Levi shrugs and walks away from light he's been fighting a losing battle with.
"Fiiiine, let's just get this over and done with." Eren huffs as he swivels and spins on his desk chair.
Levi sits on a comfortable, green plush chair on the other side of the camera and Eren's gigantic dressing table. His job is to keep an eye on the timer and make sure that Eren remains perfectly centred in the frame. Eren himself has replaced his hat with a large headband to ensure any stray hairs are scraped back and has an array of make up laid out in front of him.
"Okay," Eren says before drinking a large gulp of coffee, "Ready to go?"
Levi nods, "Ready when you are."
Eren puts down his coffee cup, giving a thumbs up signal, and Levi presses the record button. Eren plasters on a large smile and salutes to his camera.
"S'up Jaegerbombs! It's Eren here, back at you again with another "How to" video. This week, we are continuing with our "back to basics" specials. As you all know, I can be a little heavy handed when it comes to the ole make-up brush, so I've decided to take the time to show you all some simple but effective techniques to easily enhance your everyday make-up looks!"
Levi observes as Eren picks up a small blue bag from the front of his table and begins rifling through it.
"Last week, I demonstrated how to apply liquid eyeliner, which can be very tricky if you're still new to using it so please check that out if you missed it. I'll put a link somewhere in the description for you, as now we are continuing with the eye theme! This week I'm going to show you all how to get perfect, smoky eyes."
Eren has picked a small palette of black and grey eyeshadows, two different sized brushes and a little, round pot of white glitter out of the bag. He places them in front of him and clears his space so they can be seen clearly.
"For this you will need eyeshadow, obviously, I will be using this small palette here." He picks it up and shows it to the camera, "Now unfortunately, I'm complete trash and don't throw out old make up, so this is probably like 3 years old."
"Tch, disgusting." Levi remarks from behind the camera.
Eren glowers at him, "Do you wanna make a feature in this video, because I could really do with a model right about now?"
"I think I'll pass."
"That's what I thought. Remember Levi, camera men are supposed to be seen not heard, so you just sit there and look pretty. And failing that, just make me look pretty." Eren sticks his tongue out at him.
Levi scowls but says nothing more.
"Anyway, as I was saying, this is pretty old and the name is scratched off so I can't remember exactly where I got it from. But what I will do is put a couple of links for my favourite, affordable brands in the description, or if you have your own at home feel free to use those. The eyeshadow itself doesn't have to be anything special, even a bargain brand will do the trick, but you might get a nicer blend if you want to spend a little more money."
Eren picks up the brushes and pot, rattling off descriptions and instructions, before he pulls a small, double-sided, bathroom mirror into the shot.
"Okay, so now we have all the tools we need, let's begin!"
Eren sweeps the slate grey colour shadow he'd picked out earlier over the entirety of his eyelids with his larger brush, commentating as he does so,
"I've picked this colour as my base, as it will lock in the charcoal grey that I chose for the smoke effect and the glitter white which I'll use for highlighting…"
There's something incredibly satisfying to Levi's obsessive, compulsive inner self about watching Eren work, he must admit. Minutes pass like seconds as the boy chats away with his future audience, all the while maintaining extreme precision and attention to detail as he applies his make-up.
Levi mentally likens Eren's methods to a form of geometry; a beautifully complex equation and a perfect formula used to create the flawless solution. He can't but inch a little closer, eyes fixed on Eren's dexterous fingers with their light grip on the feathery brush, the arch of his eyebrow as he concentrates on sweeping the bristles over his skin, the faint fluttering of his eyelids…
"Levi, you're in my light." Eren says, not stopping his actions for even a second.
"Shit." He curses, snapping out of his daze, "Will you need to refilm all of that now if my shadow was in the way?"
"Nah it's cool, I can just cut those parts out." Eren replies, and Levi leans back in his chair, continuing with his previous job of watching the timer. They have about a quarter battery left. Eren resumes instructing his audience,
"For this next part, I would advise against using a brush. Just take the tip of your finger and dip it into your glitter or powder. Your finger can be your best friend if you know how to use it…and I'll let all of you dirty minded freaks take that in any way you want it…"
Levi rolls his eyes at the double entendre, of course the brat would.
Once Eren finishes up, he makes a pot of tea for himself and Levi to share. They sit side by side on Eren's queen-sized bed and review the footage on his laptop, there's barely a bar of battery left on the camera, but between them they managed to get enough content for Eren to filter through and make a decent video.
"I'm really surprised at how good the lighting is! It makes the colour enhancer look amazing. I think I'll keep it like this." Eren grins behind his teacup. Levi had been pleasantly surprised when Eren brought him a genuine china teacup, as he himself was currently the only person he knew to own a full china tea-set. He'd learned that Eren actually only had two of the cups left after stupidly breaking the rest. The shock horror evident on Levi's face had made Eren ugly laugh for about five minutes straight.
"The lighting is fine, but my shadow is really obvious in some frames." Levi says, frowning at the screen.
"Don't worry about it man, Mika can't sit still and usually ends up knocking things over in the middle of filming anyway. One time she picked up one of my most expensive face creams during a live stream and dropped it, so it ended up spilling all over the floor. I made a very unmanly sound that was caught on camera and shared EVERYWHERE. Drunk or not, she's definitely not the most graceful creature in the world." Eren insists.
"Oh? Is that so?" says a groggy yet rather affronted voice from behind them.
Levi's survival instincts kick in and he shoots up off the bed, grabbing the strange, tall woman standing in the doorway by the wrist and harshly twists her arm behind her back. She cries out in a mixture of surprise and pain, striking him sharply in the chest with her unrestrained elbow. With a grunt, he pulls her head back and just manages to get her in a chokehold when Eren springs into action.
"Whoa! Levi, stop! That's my sister!" Eren yells, standing in front of Levi with hands held out in a placating gesture.
"What?" Levi asks, still breathless from the intruder's jab to his ribcage, "What are you talking about, brat?!"
"It's just Mikasa, you can let her go, it's alright!" Eren is pleading, with his eyes as well as his words. Levi can feel the woman in his arms seething with anger as he slowly loosens his grip on her wrist and removes his arm from around her neck. He can't believe he did that, he hasn't panicked at somebody sneaking up on him since, since... As soon as she's freed, she lunges at him, but is held firm by Eren.
"Mika stop it! Don't give him any more reason to hurt you!" Eren warns.
"Me?! I walk in the door to my brother's house, I say one thing and I'm attacked by a member of the lollipop guild! An unprovoked attack at that!" Mikasa argues, gesturing wildly.
"Listen Mulan, if you hadn't just strolled in to the house un-announced and snuck up on us like that, I wouldn't have felt it necessary to fucking attack you!" Levi retorts angered by the insult, and not at all in the mood for being bitched at.
"What do you mean un-announced?! If anybody is a stranger around here it's you! Besides, I didn't think I needed a freaking fanfare to announce my arrival at the House of Jaeger." Mikasa rubs at her wrist and frowns, adrenaline wearing off and pain beginning to kick in.
"Well then maybe next time you'll know better."
"What did you just say, asshole?!" Mikasa growls.
"Clean out your ears, bitch." Levi spits.
"That's enough!" Eren bellows and steps between them, "I'm not having you guys fighting over a stupid misunderstanding. Levi, I know you're just doing your job, but please try and refrain from pouncing on my friends and family in future yeah?" Levi is silent but eventually nods in agreement.
"He could have killed me!" Mikasa argues ardently, Eren spins around to face her.
"Mika, you and I both know you could have gotten out of that if you really wanted to. And that key of yours is for emergencies only, we've talked about this." Eren says pointedly, giving her a half smirk.
"It was an emergency! I…. ran out of pain meds." She says quietly, looking at the floor. Levi makes a sound of derision but is ignored. For the first time, he notices her blood shot eyes, sweat pants and unbrushed hair, he thinks that she's most likely just out of bed.
"One too many hangovers?" Eren chuckles, kisses her forehead and goes off in search of medication for his sister. Levi and Mikasa are left alone, neither of them speak, simply staring at each other.
Levi sighs and relents, "I didn't mean to hurt you, you know? You look about half dead as it is, it would just be sheer cruelty at this point." He says, expression softening a touch.
"Oh gee, thanks," She glares at him, before huffing out a breath and continuing, "I'm sorry I called you an asshole…I guess."
Eren returns with a packet of pain medication, a bottle of water and a fluffy hot water bottle, handing them off to Mikasa.
"Do you want to have a sleep on the couch?" Eren asks her, "You can crash here tonight, I'm up early for work tomorrow anyway." She nods, and heads towards the living room. Eren looks to Levi once more, and Levi feels now would be a good time to leave the brat alone for the day. It has been one hell of a long day.
"Listen kid, I'm gonna go now. It's getting late." Levi says, straightening himself up, patting invisible dust and creases out of his clothes.
"Dude, are you sure? It's only coming on to eight o'clock, I could make you some food? You must be starving." Eren offers, checking his watch.
"It's alright, honestly, i'm not all that hungry. I think I'm just going to go back to my room and get some sleep." Levi answers honestly, the events of today catching up to him at a rapid pace, he can feel his eyes start to droop just at the thought of his bed waiting for him.
"Okay, no problem man. Could you maybe pick me up tomorrow at around 9am? I have work in the morning." Eren asks, looking rather tired himself.
"Work? That's a bit early is it not?"
"No, not at the club. My actual job." Eren chuckles at Levi's confusion, "What? You didn't think I lived completely on tips did you?"
"I guess I didn't give it that much thought." Levi answers honestly, "It wasn't in your file."
"Technically I'm just helping out a friend." Eren shrugs nonchalant.
"Right well, I'll text you later. Save my number and send me the details. And I swear, if you start texting me stupid shit I will block your number and we'll have to communicate completely through Annie, and I don't wanna have to do that." Levi says, point his pale finger in Eren's face.
"Aye, aye captain!" Eren mock salutes, grinning like an idiot.
Levi shakes his head in disdain and begins to make his way out of the house and down the drive towards his car. Eren follows close behind to see him off. Levi unlocks the car and jumps into the driver's seat, rolls down the window and says,
"Just for the record kid, it's Lance Corporal." And without another word, he rolls the window back up and starts the car. He can hear Eren's laughter from the other side of the window, and a muffled "Catch you later, bro!".
And all Levi can think of as he drives back to his hotel, is that he hasn't been called "Bro" for a very, very long time.
"Levi! Are you even listening to what I'm saying?!"
The words sound muffled, but he knows they are directed at him, and there is a tanned hand waving in front of his face, yet he still can't focus. A finger flicks at his forehead, and suddenly he's transported to the small Trostian Café he's frequented since he was a teenager.
He's sitting at his usual table in the far right hand corner, at the back, a little booth enclosed from the rest of the café but with enough of a view to be able to people watch if he really wanted to. He doesn't. He's not alone at the table.
In front of him is a little, red-headed woman he hasn't laid eyes on in a long time. A woman that he hasn't thought about in what feels like a lifetime. A woman with bright eyes and the cheekiest grin he's ever seen. A woman that he misses with every fibre of his being. He reaches his own pale hand out to clutch on to the one she's waving in his face.
"Sorry Izzy." He says, "I was miles away."
She tilts her head to assess him in the way she's always done since she was a child, the way she does when she believes he's lying to her or leaving her out of a big secret. Her green eyes are wide and inquisitive, just as he remembers them, although now they remind him of something else, but he can't quite remember what.
"Are you okay Levi? You've been acting strange all day? And they say I'm the one that's supposed to be suffering from hormonal change!" She giggles, rubbing her small bump proudly. That's right, he remembers now.
"You're right, I'm sorry. I just didn't get a lot of sleep. But I'm fine now I promise, I'm 100% here and listening. You wanted to talk about the wedding. And the new house." Levi says, rubbing circles into the woman's hand that he's still clutching. Never wanting to let go. Knowing that if he does let go, he'll live to regret it for the rest of his life.
Levi wakes to the chime of his phone, alerting that he has a new text to read.
It takes him a moment or two to fully pull himself out of the dream he was having. Out of the memory he was re-living. But after a bout of rubbing his eyes and calming his breaths, he picks it up and reads it.
Eren Jaeger:
Hey Levi! Annie gave me your number. I guess you forgot to text me huh? No biggie. Anyway the address is Queen Cosmetics, 104 Scout Lane. See you in the morning!
He reads the text over, sighs and types out a reply.
Levi Ackerman:
Sorry brat, completely forgot about texting you. I fell asleep as I soon I got back to my room. I'll see you tomorrow at 9am.
Eren Jaeger:
I apologise for wearing you out Lance Corporal, I promise i'll be gentle next time ? sweet dreams Levi xx
Levi is asleep before he can even read the message.