When Levi woke, The first thing he saw was Hanji's face. He jumped a little, startled. That's when he became aware of the weight resting on his right shoulder. Memories of how he got there and what, or should he say, who, was laying on him flooded his mind as he looked at the brunette still sleeping soundly.
"What do you want, shitty glasses?" Levi growled quietly, not at all pleased with being woken up.
"We wondered where you guys had gone, Mikasa and Armin are ready to go home."
"Then let them go, Eren will be fine here." Levi didn't get why this merited waking him up.
"Levi," Hanji said sternly. "You know he can't stay here. He needs to go home with his family. Wake him up so he can go home."
"What if I don't want him to go?" Levi said softly, looking down at Eren instead of Hanji.
"Levi, you can't force him to stay. You need to at least wake him up and give him the choice." Hanji said gently. She was surprised he was being so honest with her, usually he would just say no and that would be the end of it, no explanations given. Apparently he liked Eren more than she originally thought. "Why don't you send him home tonight, and see if you can spend some time with him tomorrow? We won't be leaving for a few days anyways, so you have some time."
Levi nodded, that was the responsible thing to do. He just didn't want Eren to go back to that miserable place he called home. Sighing heavily, he turned to the sleeping boy.
"Oi, brat, wake up, it's time to go." Levi said loudly, nudging the boy with his shoulder.
Eren woke slowly, sitting up and looking around blearily. He remembered falling asleep while Levi had been talking, but he wasn't really sure what to do with that information. He looked up at Hanji, who smiled at him, and then over to Levi, who wasn't looking at him. Eren could tell he was upset. Did I offend Levi by falling asleep? Is he mad at me?
"Sorry," Eren yawned. "How long did I sleep?"
"Not long," was Levi's short reply.
"Mikasa and Armin are ready to go home, if you are." Hanji told him.
"Oh." Eren's face fell. He was hoping he could stay here with Levi. That was a stupid idea, of course the prince wouldn't want me staying here. "I guess I'm ready."
Levi saw his expression, and he felt an unfamiliar spark of hope. Did he really want to stay with me?
"If you aren't busy tomorrow, maybe you could show me around the city? This is my first visit here, I don't know where anything is." Levi asked quickly, hoping Eren would say yes.
"Oh, sure!" Eren replied enthusiastically. "I'd be glad to go with you, though there is not much to see." Eren smiled brightly. He wants to see me again.
"Alright, I'll come to your house in the morning. Be ready to go at 9." Levi said as he stood up. He then offered his hand to help Eren up, noticing the blush on Eren's face as he accepted his hand. How cute.
"Yes, sir, I'll be ready." Eren followed Hanji to the door, his demeanor visibly lighter. It seemed his entire mood had lifted in light of tomorrow's plans. Levi smiled to himself. Tomorrow is going to be a good day.
As Eren rode in the carriage with Mikasa and Armin, he couldn't stop thinking about Levi. Mikasa had questioned him thoroughly about what had happened after Eren left the table, followed shortly by Levi. It seemed Mikasa didn't trust Levi, though Eren had no idea why, besides the obvious fact that he would be required to kill Eren if he found out about his abilities. But Eren liked Levi, and defended him with how he had saved Eren and Armin, had demanded that Hanji provide medical care free of charge, paid for them to eat a good dinner for once, and even had his guards drive them home in the carriage so they wouldn't have to walk. Yes, it was dangerous for him to get close to Levi, but it wasn't like it would last. Levi would soon leave, and Eren would have to stay here, though he no longer wanted to. Mikasa was also very unhappy that Eren had agreed to spend tomorrow with Levi. Armin thought it would be fun though, as he had enjoyed spending time with Erwin. Although Eren suspected that was because Armin secretly had a crush on Erwin and just refused to admit it. Maybe tomorrow he would see if Armin could tag along to spend more time with Erwin.
But what Eren couldn't understand was why he trusted Levi so much. He had admired him ever since learning about him at school. But admiration doesn't necessarily mean you can trust someone, right? Hanji said it would be best to keep my shifting a secret, but I still don't understand why. Levi seems to really like me, would he really sentence me to death for something I was born with? It's not like I asked to be a shifter. Maybe I can ask him tomorrow, without it ruining our day together. I don't want to make him mad, which I've heard is not that hard to do, but at the same time, I have to know. There is so much I want to know about him. I've never felt this way about anyone, but with Levi, I want to know everything about him. I wish I could ask him to take me back with him, but I couldn't leave Mikasa and Armin like that, could I? No, that's ridiculous. They are my family, we have to stick together. Eren was brought out of his thoughts by arriving home. The three of them walked inside, and realizing how late it really was, they decided to just go straight to bed. They were all exhausted, and at least one of them had a big day tomorrow.
Levi arrived at Eren's at nine o'clock sharp. He was a little surprised to see Eren waiting outside, ready to go. He was sure he was going to have to wait for the boy, but his punctuality impressed him. However, he was more surprised to see Armin with him, dressed to go out as well. Levi had hoped it would just be the two of them.
"Hey brat, you ready to go?" Levi asked harshly as he stepped out of the carriage to great the boy. He really was not happy with this development.
Eren walked to the carriage, gesturing for Armin to stay there.
"Prince Levi, I hope it's not any trouble, but I was wondering if Armin could join us today?" He looked at Levi hopefully.
"And why exactly would you want that?" Levi boredly asked, fighting to appear unaffected by Eren's face. Damn brat, why do you have to look so fucking adorable?
"Well, sir," Eren leaned in, lowering his voice to just above a whisper. "I believe Armin has developed a little crush on Lord Erwin. So I thought maybe if he came with us, he could spend a little more time with him. Armin is really shy, so he would never just ask Lord Erwin to spend time together, but if he comes with us, then Lord Erwin would have to talk to him." Eren leaned back with a fox-like grin, proud of his little plot.
"Are you fucking kidding me?" Levi couldn't contain his incredulity. "What are you, a teenage girl? I can't believe you are trying to set them up on a date."
"No, no, not a date," Eren said defensively, trying to justify himself. "I don't know if Erwin likes him back or anything, but what kind of friend would I be if I didn't try and give him an opportunity to at least talk to the guy he may or may not like?"
"Sounds like a date to me, kid. Besides, what's in this for me? Unlike you, I'm not a teenage girl so I don't care about setting people up." Levi rolled his eyes, not admitting he was, in fact, a little interested in seeing what would happen. Erwin wasn't very talkative, and if this kid was as shy as Eren made him out to be, this could be very entertaining.
"Well," Eren thought hard. What could Levi get out of this? Then it hit him. "Well, if Erwin is distracted by talking to Armin, then that would leave us alone, and we would basically have the day to ourselves." Eren blushed, realizing just how forward that sounded. Fuck, I probably sound like a slut, wanting to be alone with Levi, like we are the ones on a date.
Levi stared in surprise. He honestly had not expected the brat to actually say that. Sure, that was the first thing he thought of, but he didn't want to actually say it in case it freaked Eren out. Plus, seeing the cute blush on Eren's face was definitely worth keeping his thoughts to himself. Despite this, he couldn't help but tease the boy a little more.
"So, are you suggesting this is a double date?" Levi quirked his eyebrow up slightly to hide his amusement.
"Wha-wha-what? No, that's not what I meant. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to imply that. That's what I was saying at all. I just wanted to get to know you a little, and that would be easier if there wasn't a third person listening in, but I didn't realize that would be like a date." Eren rambled on as his blush deepened dramatically, scared he just screwed everything up.
"Oh?" Levi asked. "That's a shame, cause here I was thinking that it might be nice to go on a double date with you. But since that's definitely not what you meant, I guess we don't have to." Levi trailed off, almost laughing at Eren's shocked expression.
"You, you, what? You actually want this to be a double date?" Eren asked quietly.
Levi swallowed, now feeling nervous. Did I go too far? Is he freaking out? "Fuck, kid, I was just messing with you. But if that's what you want, then fine, let's just go." Levi tried to act nonchalant, but he could feel a familiar burning in his cheeks as he refused to look Eren in the eye. Shit, I hope he doesn't notice. Why am I even blushing? It's not like it's a real date. He's just trying to help his friend, which puts us together by default. Don't get your fucking hopes up.
Eren just stared at him, trying to process everything. Does he like me like I like him? "O-okay, then." Eren said quietly, with a shy smile, his face burning crimson again.
Levi released a breathe he didn't realize he was holding.
"Alright, brat, go get your friend and lets go, we don't have all day." Levi gave him a small smile in return. Watching Eren run back to Armin, Levi climbed back into the carriage to speak to Erwin, who had been watching everything, though he couldn't hear what all was said.
"Erwin, Eren has requested to bring his friend Armin with us today. I would like for you to keep him company, so Eren and I can talk. It seems this is now a double date."
"Hmm, that is an interesting development. So Armin is my date. Very well, sir, I will do my best to keep him distracted so you can be alone with Eren." Erwin started to grin. He hadn't really thought much about the blonde, besides noting his attractiveness and quiet nature. His priority was to serve Prince Levi, and so Erwin hadn't really given much thought to anyone else. But, since it seemed Levi was now setting him up on an impromptu date with the boy, Erwin couldn't help but smile. Maybe they would hit it off.
Once Eren and Armin joined them in the carriage, each sitting by their respective "dates," Erwin motioned for Gunther to go, while they exchanged greetings and typical conversational pleasantries. They then fell into an awkward silence, which, to Eren's relief, was broken by Armin.
"So, where are we going?"
"I figured we would stop and get breakfast. Erwin said he had heard of a small bakery that has the best apple tarts around." Levi answered, and then, turning to Eren, "Do you like apple tarts?"
"Oh, uhh, well, I've never really tried one." Eren scratched his head, embarrassed.
"Seriously? Never?" Levi asked, shocked.
"Yeah, well, apples are kind of expensive, not to mention the flour and sugar needed. Even if we could afford those things, Mikasa's the only one who knows how to cook. The last time I tried to cook, I almost burnt the house down. Armin managed to put out the fire, so there wasn't much damage, but Mikasa about killed me for that." Eren chuckled a little at the memory, Armin joining him.
Levi frowned at his casual attitude. Are they really so poor that they can't afford basic cooking supplies? I can't ask, it would sound suspicious. I don't want to embarrass them. He gave Erwin a look, to which Erwin nodded.
"How expensive is that stuff nowadays? It's been so long since I've been to a market, I'm a bit out of touch." Erwin asked Armin calmly.
"Oh, its about forty cents per pound for sugar, and flour is about thirty cents. But Apples are close to two dollars for a dozen, when they are in season. We don't have any apples that grow locally, so they have to come from other towns. Pretty much all we grow here is grain." Armin replied. "But it might be different in Sina, since it's a large city."
Eren noticed the shocked look on Erwin's face. He noticed Levi's jaw tense, even though his expression didn't change. He wanted to kick himself for saying something stupid like that. Now Levi will just feel sorry for me because I'm poor. He needed to change the subject.
"What brought you to Shiganshina anyways? We are such a small town in the middle of nowhere. Did you get lost?" Eren asked, looking at Levi.
"Tch, brat. Like I would ever get lost." Levi replied coolly. Erwin coughed, earning a glare from Levi. "My father thought it would be good for me to tour the kingdom, see what kind of people I will be ruling, stupid shit like that. Thankfully, this is our last stop, and we can head home soon." Levi said, the irritation barely noticeable in his tone. But Eren heard it.
"Do you not like to travel? Or is it just because you were told you had to?" Eren asked.
Levi glared at him. "Not that it's any of your business, but a little of both."
Eren laughed, earning a raised brow from Levi.
"I would love to travel. I want to see the world. When I was in school, there were pictures in our books of mountains, deserts, and oceans. I want so badly to see the ocean. You should enjoy traveling. It's a chance to see things you don't get to see every day. Or be whoever you want to be."
Eren spoke so passionately, Levi was entranced. He could only stare at him as Eren spoke, staring unseeingly out the window, lost in his own imagination of what the rest of the world would be like. It almost made Levi feel guilty for not enjoying his trip. How could this boy who couldn't even afford basic food be so happy and passionate? He got excited over so many things, had so many emotions, it made Levi jealous. This boy had a free spirit, while Levi's spirit was being held captive and slowly suffocated by his father. He never wanted Eren to feel that way. He wanted Eren to always be free.
"Maybe one day you can. And if you do get to see the ocean, maybe you can take me with you. I believe it would be worth the trip." Levi said softly as he turned to look out the window as well, a hint of a smile playing on his lips.
Silence filled the carriage until it slowly rolled to a stop. The four young men climbed out quickly, as they were all hungry. Levi bought Eren his first apple tart, which Eren said tasted like heaven. Erwin and Armin started to feel more comfortable talking to each other, as they discovered they had read a lot of the same books. The four of them discussed what they wanted to see today, with both Erwin and Armin voting for the library, while Eren and Levi wanted to venture outside the village itself and into the woods. Eventually they agreed to explore the woods first, then come back and eat lunch in the main square, maybe look in a few of the shops, then go to the library. With a plan now set, the climbed back into the carriage and were on their way.
A/N: So sorry about the late update, this weekend has been crazy! Just so you know, I will not be updating next week, since my beta/sister decided she was going out of town for a week. and since she hasn't edited for me since chapter 5, and I don't like posting anything that hasn't been edited. I would rather you guys not know just how awful my grammar is without an editor. . So, I will give you both chapters 4 and 5 today to make up for a week or so of silence. Thanks for reading/following/favoriting! Please R&R!