Under the Skin:
Levi's POV
Yield Belova, just fucking yield, I thought, staring down into those steel blue eyes. I knew she wasn't going to budge, though. It wasn't in her nature. It wasn't in mine either. Needless to say, this complicated things. That look of raw determination she had fixed on me made me want to lean into the firm press of her knife and dare her to make another move.
It was undeniable that Uma Belova stirred something up inside me. It pissed me off to admit it, but that fact was, she had somehow gotten under my skin. I couldn't write it off as simple curiosity anymore. Not when things had gotten so far to where we were holding fucking knives at each other's throats.
I felt Uma move beneath me, subtly shrinking down into the grass as she readjusted her grip on her blade handle. I hadn't even realized till now that my face was merely inches away from hers. Hearing her breath hitch between her heavy pants, I pushed myself to my knees immediately before I could do something incredibly stupid. It was then that I felt a familiar stinging sensation on my neck. Touching it, I held out my hand to see there was a small amount blood on my fingertips. Damn. Her blade must have nicked me when I had leaned into her.
"Looks like you drew first blood," I told her, my tone far too lackluster for what had just transpired.
"It was a draw." Uma argued, having relaxed somewhat since I pulled away. She seemed just as happy about the situation as I was.
"Tch, there's no such thing." I told her before standing.
She looked at me as she sat up in the grass, her forearms resting on her knees and her knife held loosely in her hand. If what just happened the moment before unnerved her, she didn't show it. Now, it looked like she was all business.
As things stood, the smart choice would be to send her packing. Technically, I could use the draw as an excuse to say she hadn't won. That was the agreement, after all. But I knew that was bullshit. I wasn't going to take advantage of my position of authority like those MP dogs. The fact was I hadn't planned for this outcome.
"Sir?" Uma asked after a while, unconsciously fiddling with her knife. She was probably anxious to hear my answer.
Looking down at the destroyed gear lying around us, I drew in a long breath. Shit. My plan was supposed to make this decision cut and dry. But, as always, Uma managed to complicate things. I probably deserved it for trying to find an easy way out of having to make a shitty decision.
The issue was never about whether she was good or not, her skill had been obvious to me since the beginning. What it all boiled down to was trust… could I rely on her as a member of my squad?
It seemed as if I was meant to doubt her from the very beginning- from her forced probation to the revealing of her traumatic childhood. All of this was meant to convince me she was unstable and unreliable. And why? Because she was a hard-ass woman with a past? Sure, she had made some stupid mistakes out in the field. There was no doubt about that. But every soldier must make their own choices on the battlefield, whether they turn out to be good or bad. Hell, I've never been able to make a decision where the outcome was guaranteed. So, she was like every other soldier in that regard. Maybe, if I had given her my full trust from the beginning instead of treating her like a special case, we wouldn't be in this mess. Suddenly, it became obvious what I had to do.
"Clean yourself up and repair your gear. Tomorrow we begin the real work." I told her.
Uma's mouth nearly dropped open as she stared up at me, practically dumbfounded by what I had just said. It was almost worth making this choice just to see that stupid expression on her face.
"... Yes, Heichou." She answered, pushing herself off her ass.
"Also, your probation is finished." I added, knowing I was sounding unusually generous.
Uma nodded, seeming to recognize how big this actually was. "Thank you, Sir."
"Tch, just clean this shit up." I muttered before heading back in the direction of HQ.
I couldn't be certain this leap of faith I had just taken would work or even if it was a good idea, but I was compelled to take the risk.
AN: REVIEW FAVOR FOLLOW! Okay so I had such a devil of a time writing Levi's 'kiss or kill' moment with Uma. I swear I spent the last three days during my commute to work writing and rewriting this in Notes on my phone. It was going to drive me nuts until I could get to a place that I deemed acceptable. But finally, I've turned up the heat on Levi and Uma's relationship (if only a little tiny bit). Most of you are probably thinking 'thank god!' right about now considering how many chapters into the story we are. Anyway, next chapter is Uma's POV and we'll get to see how Levi and Uma spend the rest of leave time together! Small hint: Levi never takes vacations.