Shaking the guy and his drunk ramblings costed me two precious minutes I didn't have. Why was he even still talking? Wasn't it enough he'd walked in on us and ruined what was probably my only chance to kiss the boy I wanted to keep kissing for the rest of my life? The boy who was out there right now, probably heading for the nearest exit and once he'd reached it, he'd be gone.

Again.

I couldn't let that happen; I couldn't watch him walk out on me once more, and especially not after the moment we'd just shared. From the way he'd looked at me, the way he'd leaned into me, so ready for me to kiss him—so ready to be kissed—I knew. I knew we weren't over, and it was not only me who felt that way.

I'd seen it, it wasn't just my imagination playing tricks on me. He'd been right there with me, so close that I could feel his body heat through my clothes, on my skin. My bare skin. I couldn't believe I'd sat right there on the bathroom floor, shirtless, with Levi's fingers on me. He'd touched me just like he used to, and suddenly, all the days we'd spent apart meant nothing. It was as if I'd never hurt him, as if he'd never left me.

The bathroom door hit the wall with a loud thud when I dashed out into the hallway. My heart was racing in my chest, pumping blood through my veins so fast that it rushed in my ears. I stopped short, my head swinging frantically left and right in an attempt to find out which way Levi had taken. I decided on the stairway that led back to the party. Every nerve inside my body was strung tight while I made my way down, taking two steps at a time.

Where was he? Why couldn't I spot him from my vantage point on the staircase?

Was it too late?

My sneakers met the hardwood floor with a thump and then I was swallowed up by the crowd. There was no chance I'd find him in the mob down here. My heart plummeted into nothingness. It took every last ounce of strength to keep my legs from following suit. I took a second to scan every face in my close vicinity, my throat bobbing nervously when I couldn't recognize Levi anywhere. I decided to make my way to the living room where I'd seen him together with Farlan before; maybe he was looking for him to tell him he wanted to leave. Farlan surely would not hesitate to indulge Levi's wish. It took too damn long to reach my goal, but finally, I pushed through another grinding couple on the dance floor and found myself in the living room. Neither Levi nor his blonde friend were here. I bit my lip, fighting the urge to bury my hands in my hair and tug. Despairing now would get me absolutely nowhere. I knew it wouldn't. All it would do was make me lose a chance that could very well be my last. I needed to get my shit together, keep calm. This was more important than losing my head right now. So much more important.

Where could he have gone?

My eyes continued to scan the people in the room, until they landed on Jean, who was chilling on the sofa, plastic cup in hand. Jean knew what Levi looked like. Maybe he had seen him passing by, leaving, anything. I just needed a tiny little something, a glimpse of him to know where I should start looking.

My mouth was already open and prepared to speak, but before I could even form one word, I stopped dead in front of the large L-sized couch. Someone was curled into Jean, head resting on his lap. And… Jean's fingers were carding through the golden hair, eyes soft as he watched the person next to him. Or better, on him. My question died on the tip of my tongue. I'd known this head all my life, ruffled the same blonde strands Jean was running his fingers through right now.

"What… is going on here?" I blurted.

It must've been loud, because Jean's head snapped up, hazel eyes locking with mine. I could read shock in them, as well as genuine surprise and something else that almost seemed like unease.

"What do you think is going on here?" Jean shot back. He was trying to mask his shock with annoyance, but I saw right through him. "Armin passed out on me, so I'm taking care of him."

I crossed my arms, trying to make sense of what I was seeing and drawing a blank.

"Well, thank you for doing one reasonable thing in your life, but that doesn't explain why you're all snuggled up on the couch."

The blush spreading rapidly over the entirety of Jean's face spoke volumes. Just what was happening here? Had I been too caught up to… read the signs? Because this was not just a subtle feeling of Jean's been looking at Armin a tad too long over lunch, but a massive neon sign saying Jean's acting like Armin's boyfriend and loving it.

God, just what was I thinking? Yeah, Jean's behavior might be way too chummy for my liking, but this was still Jean we were talking about. Jean. He wouldn't… be interested in Armin, right? I mean last I checked, he was crushing hardcore on Mikasa.

"Excuse me, we're not snuggling!" Jean's indignant voice pulled me from my internal matchmaking ramblings. "We're… we're just…" he trailed off and looked at Armin, who—as if on cue—sighed into Jean's side and nuzzled his cheek into his shirt. Seriously… a dreamy sigh of Jean on his lips and this situation would have been univocal.

Jean's eyes snapped up to me. "I don't know what this is, okay? He's just drunk off his ass and obviously, I am too and now I'm just—yeah, okay. I'm petting his hair and I have no fucking clue why. Satisfied now? Then please get lost."

I wanted to say something, be the one who got the last word in, but for the life of me, I had no idea what. So, generous person that I was, I let him win this round.

"Have you seen Levi?" I asked instead.

"Who?"

"Levi." I crossed my arms and huffed in annoyance when the name didn't seem to ring any bells. "The raven shortie?"

"Oh! Farlan's friend. Yep, I know."

"Well?"

"What?" Goddammit, maybe he was wasted. Though if he was, he was doing a fabulous job with hiding it.

"Have you seen him recently?" I pronounced every word extra carefully so there'd be no chance in hell he wouldn't understand the question.

He thought for a moment, his hand continuing to card absentmindedly through Armin's hair. It was like he couldn't help himself, which was… I shouldn't go there. Not right now, when I had more pressing matters at hand. For now, I only settled for trying not to gape at Jean and my best friend, and this weirdly intimate situation in front of me.

"Last time I saw him was in the hall with his friends. Looked like they were on their way out. Maybe getting some fresh air."

On his way out? Fuck. No, Levi wouldn't just step out for a second to get some fresh air. He'd leave, dammit.

I managed a wobbly nod at Jean before I turned on my heel and barreled my way to the front door. Maybe I could intercept him out front. Or down the street. Damn, I wouldn't mind doing a sprint all the way to his place just to catch up with him. While I was trying to break my way through the mob of people to either side of me, my elbow connected with someone. Shame on me, but I wouldn't even have noticed. My mind was focused on one thing and one thing only: my mission to find Levi. Which I'd have followed through with, if it weren't for the victim I'd just hit clinging on to me.

"Eren! Hey!"

Reluctantly, I teared my eyes away from the entrance area I was ogling to look down into hazy browns.

"Mina, I'm so sorry." I managed weakly. She probably didn't even hear me over the loud music. "You okay?"

My legs were already on the verge of propelling me forward, receiving my brain's memo that there was absolutely no time to lose. Every second mattered, but I couldn't exactly ignore her and be on my way. Especially not now that I'd hit her by accident.

Mina was still clinging to me, shooting me a bright smile. A pang of relief washed over me to find my elbow hadn't seemed to hurt her. She continued to gaze up at me, eyes wide and slightly hazy. She'd clearly been drinking. A lot.

"Eren," she screamed over the music, coming even closer. I tried to ignore the way her boobs squeezed around my arm. "Ouch."

"Uh… sorry. Listen, I'm sorry, but I'm actually–"

"Nuh uh," she said, shaking her head vehemently. "I won't let you leave again. Don't think I didn't notice how you've slipped away when Sasha and I asked you to dance. I haven't seen you all night! In fact, I haven't seen you all summer. Where have you been?"

Holed up at my place with my boyfriend for the most part, I thought.

"Dog sitting," I said.

"Dog sitting? I love dogs!" Mina gasped, pressing closer to me. Actually, she reminded me a lot of Zeke when I'd thrown a bone for him to fetch and chew on. "Maybe we can take him on a walk together sometime? Just you and me?"

She made a show of batting her fawn brown eyes at me and… things kind of clicked. Why was I lying to her? Why was I lying to everyone? Why couldn't I just be honest and tell her I'd spent all summer with my boyfriend and that he was the reason none of her carefully constructed flirting attempts would wash with me?

Because I wasn't out. Levi was the only one in the entire room who knew the real me, because I chose to keep the most important part of myself locked away from everyone else. I was so tired of lying, of keeping this a secret. If now was the right moment to come out to the entire school? I didn't know, but within a second, I decided to take it and make it right.

"Excuse me," I cut her off mid-sentence and left her behind in my proverbial dust as I made a mad dash for the living room.

My heart was pounding as I made my way through the crowd to get to my destination, with every step I took it hammered a bit more, until its frantic beat was throbbing through every inch of my body. There was this tiny voice inside my head screaming at me to stop, to turn back while I still had the chance. To abort the mission before I did something I couldn't undo. But I didn't listen. It was this stupid voice, which was so little but so oppressive at the same time, which I blamed for getting the better of me, for holding me back from being me. From holding on to the only person I wanted. The only person I'd ever want. And now, I was done. I'd get rid of it, once and for all, right here at Jean's party.

The karaoke machine was still in great demand. Some wasted freshman I'd had a class with last year was up on the coffee table, croaking a heavy metal version of what I assumed had to be some slutty Britney Spears song. I took a deep breath, or tried to, while I closed the last bit of distance between us. When I reached the makeshift stage, aka the coffee table, I tapped the guy's thigh and gestured to the mic. He stopped singing with a graceful yelp and gave me some sort of nod before he jumped to the floor, stumbled and got back up again with a dopey grin.

"You okay?" I asked. He looked okay, but you could never be too sure when alcohol was involved, right? Especially when we were talking Jean Kirschstein's alcohol.

"'m fantashtic!" he screeched in my ear, making me take two steps back to save my eardrum. Then he handed me the mic and clapped me on the shoulder. "Stage's yours, bro."

I reached out for the proffered mic, and it was only when I did that I noticed how much my hand was shaking. How much all of me was shaking, in fact. I gulped down a sudden flare of nerves and climbed up on the vacated coffee table.

More than a few pairs of eyes were already on me, and I hadn't even said a single word. Guess nobody would've pegged me for much of a singer. They'd probably be sorely disappointed to find I wasn't planning on singing. Far from it, actually.

The mic was warm in my hand. I closed my eyes for a brief moment and what I saw was what my life would be like if I took this step. I saw Levi. And when I opened my eyes and began to speak into the mic, it felt… right.

"Hey everyone. Can I have your attention for a minute please?"

Every head snapped in my direction when the simple greeting rolled off my tongue. There were excited whispers, curious stares, muffled laughter. Someone even turned the music off.

"Sorry about the sudden PA, but there's something I need to tell you. All of you. And I need to do it now." Another gulp. Another deep breath and another push to keep myself going. "This summer, I met someone. Someone special. And… knowing him made me learn a very important thing about myself, which is... that I am gay."

Breathe. You can do this, just keep going.

"I think I've been suspecting it for quite some time now, but I was never really sure. But then I met him and being with him made me sure. It wasn't a conscious decision I made or something I had any control over. It just happened. And wow, not being in control has never felt this amazing." I smiled, trying to avoid getting lost in all the memories of the summer that was so close to being over. "So, yeah. I guess… that's it. Thanks for listening. Have a great night!"

I didn't dare looking up. Couldn't bring myself to meet anyone's eyes. Dozens of different emotions were fighting for the upper hand inside me; everything from relief to wonder to fear. Relief had yet to come out on top, because that's what I was supposed to feel, right? Relieved to never, ever have to be someone I wasn't. Not anymore, because now, people knew. They knew about me, knew why I'd never seriously dated anyone up until now, knew that the reason for it was that I was into guys. Or more like, one guy. It didn't matter that Levi probably hadn't heard a thing of my very public coming out. Things were different between us now that I was out, I felt it, everything had changed in the course of those past few minutes.

I was pushing through the crowd, my mind in a daze. My limbs weren't mine to control at this point, they just moved, and I was glad for it. There were so many pats and hugs and words of encouragement thrown my way, but I was so out of it that all I managed were a few weak mumbles of thank you. I needed a quiet moment to myself, a break. Fresh air. And maybe a bottle of something that would knock me out good. When I reached the glass door that led to the backyard of Jean's house, I felt like I'd aged at least ten years, physically and mentally. Every bone inside my body was dead tired and whirring with restless energy at the same time. I'd never imagined coming out would be so… exhausting.

The air outside had cooled down a bit. I shut the door behind me, closed my eyes and just stood there, enjoying the soft summer breeze dancing over my moist skin, the scent of summer in my nose. Nobody followed me out here, and I was endlessly grateful to have friends who knew when I needed time to myself and respected that. Or maybe it was just Mikasa threatening anyone who'd dare to approach that glass door.

Another minute out there on the patio, and then I headed for the wooden bench at the far corner of the small yard surrounding Jean's house, which was hidden away from view by a few large oak trees. I knew this bench so well, had spent more than one summer out here with Jean and the rest of the squad. I approached with a soft smile, running my palm over the weathered boards. I sat and stretched my legs, my head dropping back to watch the stars blanketing a clear, ink-black sky.

I tried to breathe easy. Usually, that worked whenever I wanted to tame the mess of thoughts rumbling inside my head. God, I'd really done it, hadn't I? My life would never be the same from here on out. Not that I regretted coming out to everyone at the party—the grapevine would take care of anyone who didn't know by now—but thinking of the future was still pretty terrifying. I wished I wasn't alone. Sure, I had my friends and I knew they'd be with me every step of the way, but I wanted someone else. I wanted Levi. This should've been a journey for the two of us. I wasn't weak. I'd make it through this on my own, somehow, but heavens, did I wish he was here to hold my hand right now.

When the first tear fell, I wanted to slap myself. What reason did I have to fucking bawl right now? I should be proud of myself. I was. But I was also overwhelmed and scared and lonely. What would happen to me now? I wanted Levi. I needed him.

But he was gone, and it was my fault. He owed me nothing, especially not being there for me during something monumental like my coming out. Why would he? I didn't deserve his support.

I grabbed the collar of my shirt and ran the soft cotton over my face to get rid of the tears. Thing was, I could wipe them off, but that didn't keep them from bursting from their source. Maybe this was just what I needed. A good cry; a cleansing. Maybe I would feel like myself again after that, my head cleared to think logically about what would happen next. The stars blurred when I looked up again in an attempt to focus on something else; on anything that wasn't this near-meltdown I was on the brink of having. My heart fluttered unsteadily in my chest, the blood inside my veins throbbing through my body. Long, deep breaths? Yeah, sure. I was losing it, wasn't I? Was this what it felt like to hyperventilate?

"Eren?"

Oh, sweet lord. Now, that was a great idea. I was sure that if I just pictured Levi's voice talking me through this, I'd be fine.

"Eren, hey. Are you okay? Come on, look at me."

I opened my eyes, only to feel a fierce combination of shock, relief and gratitude settle in my gut upon meeting the most beautiful set of eyes I'd ever seen on a human being. Levi was here, kneeling in front of me, his gray eyes wide with concern. His hand was on my knee, thumb rubbing soothing circles into the denim of my jeans. I felt his touch as if I wore nothing at all. I couldn't remember the last time I'd been this happy to see someone.

"H-hey," I croaked. "I... I t-thought you'd left."

My voice was a mess, which undoubtedly made it my face's perfect match. I couldn't do anything about it, and honestly, I didn't care. Levi was here, right in front of me, and that was all that mattered.

"And miss your big-time PA? Oh please," he said. Another rush of nerves twisted my insides. He'd... heard that? How much? All of it?

"You... you heard?" It was nothing more than a whisper. My throat closed up with another fit of tears before I could add anything else.

"Shh, it's okay," he said, eyes locking on mine. I held on to his gaze like a lifeline. "Here, take my hands. Deep breaths, okay? Come on, breathe with me. One, two—inhale. Hold. Exhale."

I followed his instructions while I wrapped his hands in mine. We were barely touching, but it was what anchored me, what kept me from spiraling off to somewhere I had no control over myself.

Breath after breath, he held me tight, until the tension tapered off and I was finally back to relative calm.

"You okay?" he asked.

I nodded and squeezed his hands, not wanting him to let go just yet. I gave him a little tug that had him get up to his feet. "Thank you."

"Don't mention it. Can't let you die here all by yourself after all, can I? What would people do without their favorite jock?" he said, a small smile twitching in the corner of his mouth.

I laughed. It was shaky, but real. "Right... Sit with me?"

He thought for a second. "Maybe. If you let go of my hands."

Reluctantly, I unglued my hands from his and hoped he wouldn't bolt. But he took a seat on the bench right next to me, close enough for our thighs to touch. I suppressed a delicious shiver at his unexpected proximity.

I tilted my head to look at him, only to find he was already looking at me. My heart missed a beat. I'd never get over this; over him just being so drop-dead gorgeous.

"So," he began. "That was grand, huh?"

"You know me." I bumped his shoulder lightly and basked in the way he smiled in response. "Low-key isn't really my style."

"Truer words have never been spoken." His smile grew wider and then he bumped me in return.

"Levi... please don't resent me for asking, but... can I hug you? Please?" Obviously, people called me suicidal for a reason. I should've been beyond grateful Levi had agreed to sit here with me, but nope, I had to go and ask him for a hug. Suicidal, all right.

But true to form, Levi surprised me. I was expecting him to blow me off like I deserved, but he only scooted closer and wrapped his arm around my shoulders. And I just curled into him.

I buried my face against his neck, his scent—which had been a prominent memory at the forefront of my mind all this time—clouding my senses in an instant with its real, unobstructed intensity. He was everything I remembered and so much more; warmth, comfort and familiarity all wrapped up in a tiny frame of 5'2''. He felt like home.

I took a deep breath, my whole body relaxing against him with every breath I took, and melted into his side while my arms found their way around his middle to tuck him against my chest.

"Thank you," I breathed softly. "Thank you for being here."

He held me closer and placed a single, soft kiss on my hair.

It wasn't romantic. It could've been, but this was not what this was about. It was support from someone who'd been through the same thing, someone who was there for me despite everything that had happened between us. I liked to think he knew how badly I needed him right now and chose to be there not because I deserved or didn't deserve it, but because he understood.

We held each other for a long time, minutes, hours, I couldn't tell. All I knew was that it wasn't enough. If staying on this bench, in his arms, meant I'd never have to let him go, I would gladly move into Jean's backyard. Levi's fingers were brushing through my hair, and it took all I had not to purr against his neck. God, I'd missed this so much. I'd missed him. I pulled back a little, just enough to look at him. Where he'd seemed to be conflicted earlier, he was calm now, his gray eyes nothing but soft. I untangled my arms from him to bring my hands up, cupping his cheeks and brushing my thumbs along his cheekbones. He was so beautiful. Back when we met, I remembered wondering if he was getting prettier with every second that passed and damn, yes. He did. The way the moonlight kissed his pale skin and illuminated the gentle blush on his cheeks, his eyes sparkling so pretty when he looked at me like this.

"Levi," I whispered. I closed my eyes and leaned in, my forehead touching his. "Levi, I love you."

The weight of those three little words felt so beautifully right on my tongue. I had no idea how badly I'd needed to say this until I did. I just needed him to know.

Levi's breath hitched. I immediately missed his warm puffs of air on my lips, but thankfully, I didn't have to hold out long before they were back. The moment was perfect, the way he nuzzled his face into my hands, the way his thigh pressed to mine without an inch to spare, the way the soft bristles of his undercut felt against my fingertips. There was a smile on my lips from just getting the chance to be this close to him again, but that slipped into a full-blown grin when my eyes fluttered open to meet his. There was something in his gaze, something I recognized from my own whenever I looked at him.

And then, his hand buried in my hair and he pulled me in for a kiss so perfect that my toes curled inside my Chucks. It was soft and slow at first, just a taste of what could be, and I knew, if there was a thing such as heaven, this was it. Levi inched closer, tongue dipping out to lick my bottom lip. He released a little moan while doing it too, one of those delicious noises he only ever made for me, and I was a goner. I wanted to grab his hips and pull him on my lap, but Levi beat me to it. His hands on my shoulders, lips firmly latched on to mine, he swung one leg across my waist and straddled my lap. This position had us so much closer; I could feel so much of him on me like this, and god, was I tempted to fill my palms with his gorgeous little bottom. I didn't. Instead, I curled my hands around his thighs and squeezed them until he gasped into my mouth. His behind was rubbing against my lap, but I paid it no mind. Or tried to, at least. Was I hard? Like a fucking rock, but I'd do nothing to act on it. This wasn't my call and I wasn't going to make it mine. My palms wandered from Levi's firm thighs up along his sides until they splayed on his back, pushing him closer to me and my lips. Yes, I was fucking starving for him and I'd need more than five minutes' worth of his kisses to scratch the surface of that hunger; much more.

Levi was wiggling insistently on my lap now, almost as if he wanted me to touch him. He surely was testing me, and we both knew how great I was at resisting him.

And then, he bit me. Out of the blue. He bit me, a sharp little nip at my lip, and my arousal went through the roof.

"Eren," he moaned. "Just... touch me already."

"But I am touching you..."

That earned me another bite. Holy shit, I was so damn turned on by him biting me. Which did not make this situation any easier.

"You need me to spell it out for you?" he said. I swallowed when I met the fire in his eyes and felt like burning away in bliss on the spot. "Touch. Me."

If somebody thought I was strong enough to resist such an unmistakable command from Levi himself, they didn't know me at all.

With a long sigh, I allowed my hands the slow descent down Levi's back, over his belt, until I cupped his bottom. My eyes were fixed on Levi's face to gauge every little reaction he made. As soon as my hands came to rest on his ass, he sighed in contentment, his lips slipping into a sated smile. "Mh. Yes."

"You like that?" I asked breathlessly, keeping my hands still and dying inside because of it. The prettiest little bottom was currently filling my palms, and so perfectly too, and I couldn't do more than hold. Any idea how fucking hard that was?

"Hell, yes. And you know what? I'd like it even more if you squeeze me. Just like you used to."

I smiled up at him, one eyebrow lifted. Levi smirked down at me, one finger brushing my hair behind my ear.

"Like... this?" I squeezed him, just like I used to, and laughed when he squealed in return. The squeeze was my undoing. I downright fondled him after that, because now that that was out of the way, there was no way I was going to stop.

"Eren." He pulled me close and then his mouth was back on mine, kissing me harder than he had before. It was messy and hot, his tongue licking mine, teeth nipping my lips.

He inched closer, and then he was practically sitting on my hard-on, and I knew this had to stop. Now. Until it went too far, too fast.

"Levi, hey. Baby, wait a second." I tried to push him away—gently— so we could talk, but he wouldn't have it.

"No. Keep kissing me," he murmured into my mouth before his tongue slid back in.

I got lost in his amazing kisses for another few minutes before my head cleared enough to have another shot at having this much-needed conversation.

"Levi, wait. Please?"

He just wrapped his arms around my neck and kept kissing me breathless. Why did I not just go along again? Ah yes, right. We needed to talk before we took this any further. And why was I the only one who cared about that? Goodness. Levi was the sweetest thing; it was as if he just couldn't stop kissing me, touching me, holding me and I knew exactly what that felt like. Hell, I never wanted to stop kissing him either, no matter where we were or what tomorrow would bring, but I'd messed up so many things when it came to him. This was my chance to make them right. We needed to talk about what was happening right here, preferably before we did anything Levi would regret. I got being caught in the moment and making the wrong call; I really did. And even if the wrong call in this case would be me, I didn't want this for Levi.

I turned my head away to get my mouth free for just a minute, but that only prompted Levi to attack my neck. I couldn't help moaning helplessly when his soft, wet lips began to suckle on my skin. God, he had me in the palm of his hand, right where I wanted to be.

"Levi." Somehow, I managed to get my hand in between his lips and my skin, and I didn't waste the opportunity. "Can I just say something for one minute?"

"Fine," he grumbled, eyes fixing hungrily on my way too Levi-free skin, making me fucking tremble. "You have one minute."

He leaned in to mouth at the back of my hand, which was still shielding my skin from his dizzying touch. "Time's running, ya know."

I snapped back to my senses. Or what was left of them at this point, anyway. "Levi, look at me. I'm serious."

He sighed. Then he licked a wet stripe across my hand and sat back on my thighs, arms crossed, lips damn near pouting. Jesus Christ, this boy owned all of me.

"Good enough? Or do you want me to get off of you, too? Because that won't happen."

I tried to stifle a fond chuckle and failed miserably. Obviously, I'd remembered how adorable he was, but this felt like an entirely new level of adorable.

I was toeing the line here and I knew it, but still, I put my hands lightly on top of his thighs. After I'd taken a moment to appreciate how perfect my hands looked on his slim legs, I looked up at him. I wondered how I was supposed to ignore his pink, swollen lips and the drops of moisture on them. But I managed, because finally, I had his attention.

"Levi."

"Hm?"

"What's happening here?" I asked, swallowing nervously.

"Isn't it obvious? I'm kissing your brains out."

I laughed. Was he ever. "Oh, that you are. What I mean is... do you want to kiss my brains out? Because last time I checked, I'm an irredeemable asshole and don't deserve any of this. Any of you."

Levi sighed. Then he uncrossed his arms and reached out to brush another wayward strand of hair behind my ear. "Eren... yes. You fucked up big-time. Super crazy big-time. But being apart from you these past few weeks, not being able to see you or even speak to you... It killed me. I miss you, okay? I miss you all the damn time. It's all I ever do. And the way you've acted ever since we broke up... I can see how much you mean it. How serious you are about the mistakes you made, and about wanting to be with me."

He trailed off and sucked in a sharp breath of air. I leaned in to kiss his cheek and encourage him to keep going. He interlaced my fingers with his and held me tight when he continued, "And then, tonight happened. Seeing you upstairs, talking to you like we used to, it brought back so many memories. So many amazing, beautiful memories. Memories that mean everything to me. God Eren, do you have any idea how hard it was for me to walk out of that bathroom? That was when I knew I wasn't over you. And then you just... went up there and came out in front of everyone, and I'm... I'm so proud of you, Eren. That was the bravest thing I've ever seen, and I love you for it."

I couldn't help it; I just had to lean in and kiss him, long and slow and sweet. Everything he'd just said wrapped around me like a blanket, making me feel warm and safe and loved. It was like a high I didn't know how to come off of, or if I even wanted to. And from the view of it, Levi felt the same. I brought my lips to his cheek and kissed a stray tear away.

"So... does this mean..." I took a deep breath and looked up at him. "Levi, do you want to be my boyfriend? Officially?"

Time stood still, just like that time on the back of my truck, when I told him I loved him for the first time.

Levi smiled at me, in a way that made me love him infinitely more. "Yes. I want to be your boyfriend, Eren Jeager. Officially."

We were in each other's arms faster than a flash of lighting. Our mouths were wild and messy on each other, kissing every part we could reach. Levi whimpered when I finally gathered the willpower to wrench myself away, breathing heavily when I said, "So does this mean I get to whisk you away to my place now?"

Levi brought me in for a bruising kiss, before he all but jumped gracefully off my lap and grabbed my hand to pull me to my feet. Looked like he was the one doing the whisking away, but hey, there was no chance I'd complain. Actually, there was no chance I'd ever complain about anything anymore now that the love of my life considered me his boyfriend and took me home, his hand holding mine all the way.