"How about a collar?"

Levi choked on his tea.

"Hanji!"

"What?"

Hanji's eyes were deceptively filled with innocence, as though there was nothing wrong with the suggestion they just made. Levi gave an exasperated sigh as he scrutinised his cuffs and the area around the saucer to ensure not a single drop had stained anywhere. It had not; thank God…

"You know, you want to."

He glared daggers against Hanji's wiggling eyebrows.

"You're disgusting. This is fucking inappropriate."

Hanji's eyebrows stopped their dancing as a confused expression overtook their face; Levi simply sighed again in response, as though the matter needed explanation but apparently it did because this was Hanji and their perception of norms was fucked up… How could they think that—Did they even think—No, they did not.

"We're on the clock shitty glasses."

The honest rationale made Hanji roar with laughter so loud that Levi thought for a second his whole room was shaken by a sonic boom, instinctively holding onto his delicate teacup to ensure its safety. Teacups come first, he had learnt a long time ago.

"So that's your excuse– that's what makes it, 'inappropriate'? That we are on the clock? Oh I can't wait till we're off the clock tonight then. This is just great."

"That's—that's not all, of course."

"Weeell, that wasn't what you said though, was it?"

"Hanji, I'm not buying him a collar as a birthday present."

Despite how alluring the sight of Eren with leather around his neck was – and he had seen it once, which only added to its magnetism – discussing it out loud felt incredibly wrong. Especially when he was still at work. In his office. In his office that was mere metres away from Eren Jaeger's cubicle.

Fuck.

"But you said you won't give him a ki—"

"I'm not giving him a kitten as a birthday present either."

"The pin-up idea—"

"I'm not giving him a pin-up of my own goddamn half-naked self. How do you even come up with these?!"

"He undresses you with his eyes at least once a week so you have to admit that the last one isn't very hard to imagine at all…"

That– okay, that was fair. Maybe. Levi had to admit that he had found longing stares lingering over his form, especially in the recent weeks, more than once. The culprit though looked so thoroughly innocent and beamed so nonchalantly after the said crime, albeit with a dust of pink covering his soft cheeks and Levi just couldn't bring himself to be mad. There was also the fact that he actually felt wanted and flattered and coming from Eren these fleeting gazes… stroked his ego. In a very, very nice way.

Shit. Fuck my life.

"You're daydreaming."

He turned a murderous glare to Hanji who was grinning like a mad scientist on the brink of a major breakthrough.

"I am not buying him a birthday present."

It would only complicate things.

That wiped the smug grin off Hanji's face at the speed of light and they exhaled exaggeratedly as if they had just run a marathon, then their lips pursed into a judging pout. It was unnerving; Levi could handle various manic-happy sides of Hanji but the frustrated or sad ones? He couldn't bear them at all and often succumbed to their whims just to make it better. It just… felt wrong, seeing Hanji crestfallen.

"Why not?"

"Because it would only complicate things."

"Levi, Levi, Levi, the apple of my eye, why are you being so…"

Hanji simply sighed instead of ending the sentence; as they both knew how it ended, no need to utter the horrendous truth out loud. They shifted in the chair in front of Levi before plopping an elbow on his desk and resting their face on a fist, pointedly observing Levi who felt as though a blinding spotlight was singling him out in a crowd.

"What?" He mustered after a long sip from his tea, which was unfortunately not strong enough to calm him down. I should've gone for Assam and not Darjeeling. It's not heavy enough for this conversation, for fuck's sake...

"You don't have to be so… You know. 'So'."

"I know that. But it is complicated."

"You are making it complicated! Two adults interested in each other, pursuing—"

"Hanji, we already did that once—"

"Once. Once in the past. 'Past' Levi; I've never seen you stuck in the past before, so why are you mewling about it so stubbornly now?"

Mewling about it?! I don't—fuck, do I? Shit. Fucking brat making me do things…

"Because," he focused his eyes on the orange-golden liquid in his white porcelain cup, as if the answer to his concerns lay in somewhere there, beneath the musky deliciousness and at the bottom of the cup, "I don't want to see him disappointed again. He matters, Hanji; he really does."

When no answer came from his normally overtly noisy friend, he glanced to them only to find them staring at him with eyes dripping affection and a kind smile of empathy on their lips. He felt shy, all of a sudden, realising the brutal tenderness of his words and how truthfully and holistically they were recognised by Hanji who knew him better than anyone else, perhaps, not counting Erwin.

"You really like him." They said, not a single hint of cheeky defiance; simply an observation, a content and peaceful observation. A painfully correct observation.

Instead of answering, Levi took a sip from his tea.

"You should buy him a present," Hanji said then and Levi was about to bark back a refusal but they gave him a tough look that was intriguingly laced with loving comprehension, "you should; he gave you one, it is not a matter of exchange but it is a sign that he would not only not mind but even appreciate getting one. Don't you want to make him happy?"

Now that was a low blow.

"You don't want to see him disappointed, right? Everyone will be giving him little trinkets, and if you didn't give him anything… I think he would be sad."

Fuck. That... That actually hurt. Crafty witch.

Levi scowled in response, not trusting what his mouth would spout but then Hanji broke their challenging stare and chuckled.

"Soooo, my grumpy bestie, all packed for Paris yet? Isabel and Farlan will be ecstatic, huh?"

Relieved at the change of subject, Levi shrugged, trying to contain his own eagerness for the trip and the opportunity to see his dear friends after such a long time.

"Of course I'm packed Hanji. Not everyone packs their baggage two hours before take-off."

.

.

.

.

.

But of course the sales figures and marketing trends report were delayed. But of course they arrived the day before his trip. But of course, on top of all other prior commitments, he had to revise the timeline he submitted to upper management. A day before his trip. Twenty fucking four fucking hours fucking before the fucking trip.

Glaring daggers at the computer screen before him did little to help rewriting his projections and recommendations based on the updated data. The four cups of coffee he drank since morning provided the fake surge of energy to maintain his productivity throughout the day but also pulled on his already agitated nerves. Since the moment he entered the office till then, he had yelled at or scolded literally every single person he came across, whether it was for professional reasons such as horrifyingly late responses to emails marked as 'important', or very unprofessional reasons such as them wearing lame t-shirts. He knew he was not being fair; given his infamy, people were already wary of him and these kinds of exceedingly sour days did not help better his image. He did not particularly care about his image but he did not like to be seen as worse than he actually was, neither. Thus, he internally made plans to bring some souvenirs from Paris for everyone in the office and maybe buy some cookies or cake or something the morning he returned. For some reason these well-paid people went head over heels for any piece of free food, especially sweets, however mundane or crappy. Not that he would ever bring anything base; he wasn't a cheapskate and made it his principle that if he ever indulged people, he did it properly.

He sighed as he reviewed the meticulous notes and suggestions he had written. All that was left was writing up a summary. And adding some nice charts. They always like charts. Because they are fucking kids who do not bother to read anything longer than two hundreds words and not publishing executives who are literally earning their extravagant income by publishing texts longer than two hundred words. Overpaid shitheads.

He looked at his empty cup and thought of preparing another cup of coffee but even the mere thought piqued bile to rise in his stomach. He had never been a heavy coffee-drinker and he absolutely did not want to drink any more coffee. But he still had at least another hour to wrap up and it was already nearing 10 pm and he was exhausted and he was sleepy. Why didn't I sleep last night anyway? Oh yeah, because, insomnia. Nice. And no fucking jet lag will mean I won't be able to sleep till evening tomorrow either which will mean not just one day but one and a half day. Fuck. I'll collapse. I'll fucking collapse.

He heard a knock on his door which caught him surprised. He had to blink a few times to ensure that he was indeed hearing a knock – then he realised the figure vaguely visible from the textured glass window of his office.

Eren?

But what the fuck is he doing at the office at this hour? Did he stay late for work again? Why doesn't he just go and work from home, annoying brat… Yeah, hypocritical asshat, go ahead and call him a dipshit for doing the exact same stupid fuck you're doing. Perfect. You're a perfect asshole.

"Come in?"

"You know you told me to knock and wait but if I'm going to wait five minutes every ti—Holy shit. Levi?! Are you alright?"

Eren Jaeger stood before him, holding a paper cup with too many tissues and both hands. When he first entered his eyes were focused on the cup he was holding, obviously uncertain in his abilities to hold the damn thing without spilling – why is this kid always so clumsy? But the moment his eyes had fallen on Levi's face, he came to a halt in what seemed to be horror.

"Yeah?"

"You look like shit!"

Levi raised a challenging eyebrow at the remark though he was 100% sure that he indeed looked like shit.

"Gee, thanks for the compliment. I truly needed it."

"Um, I—I didn't mean to—I mean you just… You look very tired. Like you haven't slept. Or ate."

"Both of those things are true."

"Damn. Do you want me to go grab you something to eat? The panini place across the street should still be open?"

"Nah, it's fine, I'll eat at home. My stomach feels like a disaster zone right now; I don't think I could eat anything. What is this by the way?"

Levi pointed the paper cup now placed in front of him with his glare – as though referring to an intruder. Eren nervously laughed and scratched his nape.

"I got up to get myself a cup of coffee but then saw that you were still around too… So I thought you could use a cup of tea? Didn't really see you out of your office all afternoon…"

"Yeah, I've been swamped with work…" Levi confirmed absentmindedly as he took the cup in his hands and smelled the little opening on the lid, "Cinnamon? You used the 'Hot Cinnamon Spice' box?"

"Yeah, it's a black tea blend right? I can't really brew loose tea properly so I used the – what are they called again? They're like teabags but not really but kind of, like tiny see-through bags and not paper?"

"Sachets. We don't have teabags in the cafeteria anyway."

"I know! Which is very weird… I mean that we have loose tea and some of those sachet things but no teabags. Isn't it supposed to be the other way around?"

"It is not weird because 'teabags' are heinous criminals and sachets are the lowest bar of tea drinking I'll allow in this work environment."

"God, you're fussy."

Levi shrugged as he took a sip. He couldn't help his eyes haze for a moment as the warm, velvety liquid conquered his mouth and arousing aroma of the spices caressed his spirit. This was one of his favourite blends from Harney & Sons. When he finally lifted his gaze up and cleared his vision after a blink, he found Eren smiling at him, enamoured and delighted.

"What?"

"Nothing. Did you like it?"

"Hmm… 's not bad."

Eren grinned; "Good then, you sure you don't need me to go grab something to eat for you?"

"Eren, you're not my PA."

"I know… but it's really unhealthy you skip lunch like that. You should take better care of yourself."

Levi rolled his eyes rather petulantly and took another large gulp from his cup of heaven – it was good, even though it was made with a sachet. Or maybe he had been parched for tea.

"Wow. I just realised that I just admonished you for not taking care of your health and eating properly."

"Yeah, not the best way to approach your boss."

"No, I mean, I never thought this day would actually come! I still remember how much you nagged me about eating properly back then…"

The memories brought a smirk to Levi's lips.

"To be honest I was kind of a hypocritical ass then too."

"What do you mean?"

"I often skipped breakfast and lunch when I was pressed for time during grading or depressed over my thesis."

"You—you must be kidding…"

"Nope."

"Ugh. I can't believe it… And I thought it was just another fact asserting how much of a brat I was and how… 'mature' you were. All the while you played me!"

"You were a brat and I was mature, because I was able to fool you into thinking I was 'mature' – that's the real sign of adulthood; not not-skipping-meals."

Eren giggled. A genuine, joyed, carefree giggle. Something very alien to Levi's world. Something that enveloped him with a fuzzy feeling that was equally alien but welcome. Something Levi would really, really like to have in his world.

"Guess so… Well, I should go and work on my stuff. You wouldn't believe how uptight my boss is about deadlines."

"Can't even imagine… What an asshole for being a responsible manager and all."

Before turning to leave Eren smiled; sheepish, happy, and a bit smug. And there and then, Levi thought the smile he was so generously given was somehow more warming than the delicious, hot tea he was drinking.

That smile, he would really, really like to have in his world.

.

.

.

.

.

.

He never liked shopping.

But as Isabel ran around from shop to shop, crowding his hands with more bags to carry, chortling despite the cool breezes not so gently slapping them now and then, he thought that this was… nice. It had been a long time since he last saw Isabel and Farlan and he had missed them. He did not have many friends but the few he had, he cherished absolutely and deeply. They were close – especially so with these two for he had known them before anyone else. They were his… first friends, in a sense. A family too, over the time, they had become; however unconventional. Maybe I should listen to Isabel and spend a Christmas with them, like next year? Could get Farlan to prepare turkey with chestnut stuffing… God, how long has it been since we spent Christmas together?

Years. It's been years.

Perhaps it was the fact that he was uncharacteristically and needlessly swirling in sentimentality, or perhaps it was the random remembrance of Christmas; regardless, the moment his eyes came across the sparkling globes his feet took him towards that particular shop's window on auto-pilot. He stared at the items, each standing on beautifully embellished outerbases, differing yet equally intricate and well-crafted miniature sceneries inside... He recalled a memory from the past, around the Christmas time, of Eren showing his small collection of snow globes, of Eren admitting that his mother liked them a lot and they always reminded him of her, of Eren thinking aloud about how wonderful it would be to travel around the world and get a snow globe from every place he visited… Not fully a man, not fully a boy, something in between, youthful features, hopeful eyes, fierce determination, and a goddamn wanderlust. Eren fuckin Jaeger had taken his breath away and fondled his heart in a way nobody could or would afterwards. He had gotten over him though, he honestly had, but the brat had to come back into his life, come back and wreak havoc with his amusing clumsiness and incredible enthusiasm and unnecessary kindness.

"You like them?"

Isabel's soft voice woke him from his achingly sweet thoughts and yearning. Eren fucking Jaeger. He sighed.

"You were looking at them all love-struck; never knew you liked snow globes..."

"I don't," Levi answered sincerely, "not particularly at least…"

Isabel's arm snaked over his shoulders then.

"So perhaps it was something, or someone they reminded?"

God. This little shit. Her intuition was vicious.

"Whatever."

He tore his sight away and was about to walk away too when Isabel's strong grip on his shoulder stopped him.

"What?"

"These are expensive stuff y'know? Handmade ones. But since it's past the season they are 50% off."

"So?"

Isabel smirked slyly and moved her grasp from his shoulder to his forearm before dragging him towards the shop's door.

"No!" He said, emphasising the single vowel as much as his larynx could allow.

"Yes!" She responded, the single syllable vibrating with cheer.

He couldn't insist otherwise when she acted like this… And perhaps he did not want to insist otherwise.

Five minutes into the shop, examining carefully each and every one of the exquisite pieces before him, his eyes fell on one that was relatively small and more minimalistic than others yet no less charming or elegant. A small replica of the Eiffel was inside – he never found the tower aesthetic, in fact his relation to it was no better than Maupassant's. He remembered though how Eren was fond of the iconic structure. Was he still? Had his wanderlust ebbed over time? Levi did not know. Levi was not sure. And Levi did not like that: he did not like that he did not know. He wanted to know. He wanted to know all the ways Eren had stayed the same and all the ways Eren had changed. He wanted to know new hobbies of Eren and the old ones he still enjoyed. He wanted to know which foods Eren still liked and which ones he did not anymore or which ones he came to like. He wanted—

He wanted to get to know Eren, again, better. The Eren who came to office on time every morning despite his yawning and droopy eyes. The Eren who had a sense of responsibility better than half the company. The Eren who sucked at flirting and blurted his thoughts without much filtering. The Eren who worked hard and never shied from owning any mistakes. The Eren who made silly jokes while eating at the cafeteria. The Eren who was relentlessly idealist as before but not utopian anymore. The Eren who made him tea at 10 pm simply out of thoughtfulness. The Eren who he had loved once and the Eren who he came to be fond of, once again – same and different, at once.

He took the lovely item in his hands carefully and walked over to the cash without any words under the gleeful watch of Isabel's pretty eyes.