I'm crazy, I produced another chapter, I didn't study at all tonight! TT^TT I will leave this with you now, and I won't upload anything tomorrow. 3 chapters a day is enough to last a while, right? Ughhhhhh, writing this chapter was so painful. all my feels. Reviews are extremely appreciated, it helps me a lot when I know what my readers are thinking! (Time line changed since Chapter 06! One week has passed since their first 'date', it is a Monday evening right now. New readers don't need to be concerned about this! And I also changed the floor numbers because the previous one was just too much...)
-Shiragami
"Hey, Eren Jaeger! Don't you need his phone number as well-…?"
Without sticking around to even hear the last sentence, Eren already disappeared from the halls.
Well, this could get interesting…
…
Sighing into the phone, the raven spoke, not even bothered to hide his annoyed tone.
"Hanji, for the last bloody time. You WILL go and call those pigs and rearrange. I need to empty 24th and 25th at all cost."
"Buuuuuuuut, they will get very angry you know, and I won't be the only one who'll get yelled at!"
Brushing his hair back with his free hand, it took all of Levi's willpower to not smash his phone onto the ground.
"Then cancel the contracts and meeting completely! If they can't be flexible with our time, then there is no need to do business with them. One or two losses won't matter."
The other side of the line suddenly got very quiet. The president was about to yell at his secretary again before he finally spoke up.
"…Levi, not trying to get all serious on you or anything, but you sound extremely arrogant right now."
"…Excuse me? I dare you to fucking say that again."
"I SAID. You sound extremely arrogant right now! I'm disappointed, Levi, I wouldn't oppose you in your decisions, but the one you are making right now affects the entire company in a negative way!" Hanji's voice stuck him like a slap on the face. "You think letting your emotions interfere with your work is professional?! For a brat like him, are you prepared to lose the trust of your entire company?! Cool your head and get your priorities straight like the responsible adult you are, Levi."
With that, Hanji hanged up on his superior for the first time.
...Damn it all…
…
The brunette stood by the streets for a good 10 minute now, yet he couldn't catch a single cab. Cursing under his breath, he went for his bag to fish out his phone…that was when he realized that he took nothing but his jacket with his wallet inside, and the address Erwin gave him. Feeling frustrated that he couldn't even call for a taxi, he held his head between his hands as he kneeled down.
Then he also realized that he couldn't call and tell Levi that he was coming over…and that he didn't even have Levi's number to begin with.
Of course he wouldn't have given out his important contact number to just anyone…
Feeling a little bad, would it bother Levi for him to just suddenly drop by his place unannounced, without even contacting him once throughout the week? The raven barged into Eren's apartment unannounced once, but when it was the other way around, Eren felt like a criminal for intruding his place. He could have secrets he didn't want anyone to find out about. He could have a girlfriend living with him, for all I know. The thought alone was able to send extremely discomfort to Eren's chest. Grasping the fabric right above his heart, Eren wondered in confusion.
Why do I feel this way, what does my heart feel so bad? Am I getting sick?
Not giving up, he stood up once again. Pulling up the hood of the coat Levi bought him, he waved fanatically at the yellow cab approaching his way. Finally seeing it coming to a stop, Eren attacked the passenger's door and climbed in. He gave the driver the address and threw him everything he had in his wallet. At this point, he didn't care anymore. There was only one thought on his mind.
I need to see Levi. I need to solve this! I need to see him now…I want to see him...!
…
After a half an hour of ride, the brunette got out of the taxi quickly before bidding a goodbye. Standing in front of him was an approximately fifty floors tall apartment, and it seemed that Levi lived on one of the highest floors. "#50-1", as read on the paper. Entering through the automatic doors, a pair of night guards stopped him roughly.
"Hey kid, who are you and what are you doing here?" one of them asked.
In Eren's eyes, they looked like two, big bundles of pure muscles.
"We've worked here for five years, and we've never seen you before. State your name and your purpose here." said the other one.
Having a hard time to find the right words, he was so scared and nervous that one wrong word might result him in the police station.
"M-M-My name is E-Eren Jaeg-ger…Umm…I am here t-t-to see President Levi A-A-A-A-A-Ackerman…"
Eren wanted to punch himself in the face.
The guards just looked at each other, almost finding this hilarious. Not many people knew where the President of Survey Corporation lived, yet this meek looking kid knew exactly who to find and where to find them. They just brushed it off as Levi's relative or something. Finally letting Eren pass, he thanked his timid and weakness for passing by as a harmless little sheep (but you ARE one!).
If the lobby wasn't big enough already, the elevator completely blew Eren's mind. The elevator itself was decorated beautifully with expensive lights. The walls and floor just made the box look like a elegant waiting room instead. There were mirrors, there was even a window where you could see yourself go up and admire the view of the lake right behind the building.
It took a while before it reached the 50th level, which was also the top floor, Eren noted. As he got out of the elevator, he searched for room 50-1. To his surprised, there was only one door, on the highest floor. Could it be that, the entire floor is Levi's home?! Shocked to the max, Eren kneeled down in front of the entrance, it certainly read #50-1, as it was engraved onto the golden door.
He timidly tried to press the doorbell, not sure what time it was anymore because he left everything in his locker back at the cafe. He prayed that Levi wasn't sleeping yet, he wanted to talk to him so bad that he rushed here without even thinking of anything else.
After a few presses with no response, Eren could only assume that Levi was still out. The poor boy wasn't even sure if the elite would come back tonight. Not wanting to get his new coat dirty, he took it off and used it as a blanket, instead of sitting on the ground with it.
…
Time passed by, yet Eren wasn't even sure what hour it was anymore. The hallway lights were constantly on, distorting his sense of natural time. He was close to dozing off, until he heard the elevator beep on the 50th floor, his floor. There could be only one person who would come all the way up here.
Levi!
As the door opened, Eren watched the man who came out, in awe and excitement. He was about to get up and call the older male's name before noticing a very scary expression worn on the other's face. That's his usually face, isn't it? There's nothing to be scared of…
"L-Levi!..."
Upon hearing a familiar voice, the well-dressed elite looked towards the direction of the said voice.
"Eren?!"
Eren hook his coat on his arm and ran towards the raven-haired man. He was about to welcome him back as a joke, since he just arrived here randomly, but little did he know that it wasn't the right time to joke around.
"What are you doing here?" His voice was so cold that it sent an awful chill down the brunette's spine. He didn't think he would ever hear Levi speak in such a cold manner. Gathering his courage and forced a little smile, he replied.
"Umm…sorry for dropping by…like this. I know you are busy and, and I just wanted to-"
Eren was then cut off by Levi's stressed out voice.
"Do you have ANY idea what time it is right now? And who gave you this address? You were NOT supposed to know where I live!" Levi yelled, his tone just a little too harsh. Eren could feel his glands burning up, vision getting slightly blurry. No, he would not back down and show his weakness like this, not in front of someone as strong as Levi.
"L-Like I said, I'm s-sorry…I didn't think before I came here…" he said, unable to look at the older man in the eyes anymore.
"Well, of course you didn't think. Do you EVER think? You acted like we were strangers the when we finally met again, and now you are SO familiar with me, you even asked for my address and came all the way here? How do you think that makes me feel?" Levi let out a huff, clearly pissed off about everyone and everything.
Eren wasn't sure what Levi was talking about, but should've known that Levi was just taking his anger out on him. Despite only getting to know him for a few days, he knew Levi wouldn't truly get angry over something as small as this.
"I don't know…and I don't understand, that's why I'm here to-"
"HUH? Care to speak louder and actually face me when you speak? I can't fucking hear you!"
This was it. This was all it took to crush the younger's courage. All the non-sense accusations were one thing, but to actually swear at him. Swearing at him only meant that Levi held no respect for Eren. Still looking down, he couldn't help but to let go of one of too many tears his lids were holding. Letting go of one, and you'd end up spilling the entire thing. Finally looking up, green orbs dulled by the big drops of tears, endlessly rolled down his face.
"I ONLY CAME HERE TO TALK TO YOU!" screamed Eren, fully crying at this stage, unable to contain the burn in his face and the pain in his chest. "I wanted to know more about you! I had SO many questions I wanted to ask!" Eren managed to chock out between sobs and hiccups. Even furiously wiping his tears with his sleeves wasn't enough to dry his eyes. "You said we were going to talk about something important, yet we never did! I didn't know how to contact you, yet I wanted to know! I wanted to know everything about you, about what you were going to tell me that day! I even wanted to know more about myself!"
Levi tried to grab Eren by the wrist to stop the boy from wiping his eyes so harsly, the skin around them were turning red from the abuse. The boy revolted from his touch and slapped his hands away.
"If you find me to be SUCH a dumbass who doesn't think with his head, and SUCH an annoyance to see hanging around your home, THEN YOU WON'T SEE ME IN YOUR LIFE AGAIN!"
With that said, Eren immediately ran off through the emergency exit. Couldn't wait for the elevator, he dashed down the stairs instead. He didn't want Levi to see anymore of his ugly side, he wanted to get out of Levi's sight and hide somewhere. He wanted to disappear…He was so ahead and full of himself that he completely ignored of Levi's feelings, and that made him feel ashamed.
The furious man just stood there in the middle of the hall of his exclusive floor, unable to comprehend what was happening around him for once. A phone call brought him back to reality. Whoever this was, they were going to receive a yelling of their life the moment Levi picks up the phone, or so did the elite thought.
"Levi? It's me, Erwin. Did you get to meet with Eren yet?"
"So YOU were the FUCKER that gave him my address?!"
"Levi, what's going on? Why are you even upset about this?! Did you meet with Eren yet or not?"
Levi just laughed hysterically at Erwin, finding everything so fucking funny right now.
"Yeah, I met him, but I complained a little and he just left." Levi almost sang the last few words.
A low gasp could be heard on the other line, Erwin couldn't believe what Levi has done. He thought that no matter how stressed out the president was, he would never ever lash it out of someone special to him.
"Levi, go find Eren, now!"
"Why should I? That brat just shows up as he pleases and leaves as he pleases. Turning my quiet life upside down ever since, making me feel uneasy and restless all the time, MY FUCKING MIND IS FILLED WITH HIM I CAN'T EVEN CONCENTRATE ON MY GOD DAMN WORK!"
Levi wasn't acting like himself, Erwin could tell. He was having another emotional breakdown. It only happened when stress build up for a long time, both from his work and his social life. Then, even the tiniest event could trigger the outrage and he won't be able to come back to his senses until he falls unconscious and wakes up again the next day.
Cautiously and calmly, Erwin voiced out his worries.
"Levi, you can be mad all you want, but please just listen to this."
"…"
"It is true that it was me who gave Eren the address. I felt that he was ready to talk, or at least hear you out. He even asked for your address himself, he was the one to initiate all of this."
"…"
"He was so excited to meet you again, he was curious to learn more about you. He even unintentionally left all his belongings at work today. I was going to call you right away to tell you that Eren was heading over to your place, since he obviously couldn't call you himself, but I thought a surprise visit from him would've lightened your spirit at least…"
At this point, Levi's mind was caught by Erwin's words, so he quietly listened in.
"Now I doubt he has enough money to go back home, especially considering how expensive cab fairs are. The poor kid probably spent all his cash on this taxi ride."
"…so, what are you trying to tell me?..."
It was Erwin's turn to feel frustrated, that his friend who has lost his mind could've potentially destroyed the most important thing to him.
"Eren will either find somewhere in your building to spend the night, wander around outside until he gets lost, or he will sleep outside under the harsh winter night. So hurry up and go find him already! Why did you think you lost Annie in the first place?!"
Erwin's last words were enough to snap Levi's rage in half. He hung up on Erwin, his headache felt terrible from all the yelling he did to Hanji…and to Eren…
Immediately panicking, he thought about all kinds of situations. Sleeping on the floor somewhere in the building, getting picked up by society's pigs who were also living in this building, getting a fever from sleeping outside, or ever worse, getting frost bites. He could also damage his joints and render him handicapped, if he stayed outside under this kind of weather. All kinds of worry running through his mind now, he was scared. He was afraid of losing Eren's trust, but he was even more afraid of Eren losing something permanently.
I'm such a fool, all these years of experience and training, I thought I've matured!
Cursing at himself as he darted down the stairs in a look out for Eren.
He couldn't have just picked a random floor to sleep on, no, he couldn't have.
Running down all fifty zigzagged staircases made him out of breath, panting and sweating hard at the same time. He made it to the lobby, only to realize that the boy was nowhere to be found. He immediately went to the guards and asked them if they saw a boy with brown hair and green eyes around here. They nodded and pointed a general direction outside.
Damn it!
Not even having the time or care to button up his coat, Levi ran out in the middle of night in search for Eren. He wasn't afraid to wake up the entire neighborhood with his shouting just to find the boy. Even if this gave away his location, he could always move again. But Eren was the only think he could not lose, he would never forgive himself, if as much as one hair on the boy was damaged because of him.
Yelling out his name over and over again, he searched the community park across from his apartment. The lamppost gave out some light, but he couldn't find the boy under their guidance. He ran everywhere, he made circles around the gardens, the fountains, checked all the benches, but could not find a single trace of the brunette.
Until he heard light sobbing.
Eren accidently let that out by mistake. He was holding down his breath the entire time so he wouldn't be found, but because he was crying, couldn't breathe through his nose. Just when he needed to take in another breath, a sob accidently found it's way out. Hearing footsteps running closer, hands rummaging the bushes besides him, Levi finally found the top of a person's head behind one of the bushes.
Eren was about to stand up and run away again, but Levi used all of his remaining strength to hold the boy still. The brunette was struggling hard, screaming, kicking and throwing weak punched at Levi's hand that held his wrist. Frustrated with the younger's trashing, he pulled on the other's arm and held him tight in his embrace. So tight Eren's diaphragm was squeezed to the point that it was hard to breathe.
They were silent for a minute as Levi caught on his breath and strength. His hair was drenched, yet frozen at the tip, he could barely open his eyes because beads of sweat rolled down from his forehead and over his eyelids. His previously styled hair was now messy and unkempt. Eren was so startled and scared at the same time that he has stopped crying.
Feeling that the younger's attempts to escape has stopped, he released his hold a little, but still held his arms around the brunette protectively. He rested his head on Eren's shoulder.
"Eren…"
The said boy remained silent, obviously not wanted to talk to the other male.
"Eren…"
He could feel his heart skip a beat. It wasn't fair when Levi was suddenly using such a kind, sweet voice calling out his name, in contrast to his harsh one just a while ago.
"…Eren…"
Finally giving in, the brunette asked, still clearly angry with Levi.
"…W-What do you want?"
"…Eren…Eren…"
"Like I said, what do you w-"
"Eren…Eren…Eren…"
Levi's legs lost their strength and collapsed on to the ground. The last thing he could hear was Eren's worried voice, calling out his name over and over again.
What a relief, he still cares for me…Thank God…
No information update for this one! Mainly because it's too late and I'm too tired. The next chapter will explain things in further detail anyways, so, until then~!