A/N: A shorter chapter but kind of emotional so... ╮(─▽─)╭

(What did I ever do to deserve you guys? ㅠoㅠ I love you; every single one of you! （´・｀ ） )

The view that presented itself to Levi was worse than he hoped, yet better than it could be. The alpha quickly slipped into the room and closed the door behind him, avoiding a pillow that came flying at his face in the process. Eren growled angrily at missing his mark.

At least he wasn't screaming and deliberately breaking things.

"Eren," he said in a stern voice, cursing himself for not knowing how to talk soothingly when he needed it most, as he stepped over pillows and blankets strewn across the floor in an attempt to get to his mate.

"What?" Eren barked back with barely held back fury.

Levi walked over slowly, ignoring Eren's burning glare while returning one of his own. "Clam the fuck down," he tried, knowing it wouldn't help any, yet not knowing what else to say.

Eren let out a hysteric giggle, running a hand through his hair. "And what?" his voice was laughing yet void of any form of amusement. "Pretend I'm alright? That I'm not angry? That's bullshit, Levi and you fucking know it!" by the end of his speech he was nearly screaming and Levi took a deep breath to keep himself from reacting the same way.

Eren snorted and made to side-step Levi to go do god knows what but Levi grabbed his wrist firmly before he could take more than two steps. "You're not angry, Eren."

The omega froze turning slowly around to look at his mate incredulously, sarcasm dripping from his words when he spoke next after a few seconds. "I'm not? Than enlighten me, oh great alpha. I think I know pretty damn well how I am feeling and it's nothing but anger!"

Levi grabbed his wrist tighter and suddenly there was a pained expression on his face. It made Eren falter but not enough to break his seething rage. "Eren, did you forget we are bonded? I can feel it, too, for fuck's sake. You feel anything but anger."

"Then tell me; why am I angry?" Eren didn't understand what Levi was saying. He only felt uncontrollable anger right now and Levi's denial only made it that much worse. Suddenly he wasn't even angry at the world or the fucker who thought it was so funny to try and get him killed; now he was only angry at his mate. Why didn't he see it? Worse yet, why wasn't he as fucking angry as Eren was? Didn't he care at all?

The omega's glare deepened at his thoughts, the until now faint glow of his eyes intensifying. He tried to free his wrist but Levi's grip was iron. He didn't let go no matter how much Eren struggled.

Levi's own voice was now getting icier as he was getting fed up with this scene. He hated it. Why couldn't they just lie next to each other in bed and go to sleep? Why did they have to fight about bullshit like this? "Because," he stressed, tugging at Eren's hand for further emphasis, "you react to everything with anger! Anger is the answer for everything to you and you never stop to consider that maybe there might be more efficient ways to dealing with what you feel!"

Eren gaped at him, and for a second it felt like his anger had evaporated, before it was back full force only a second later. He yanked his hand, making use of the element of surprise and finally breaking free from his alpha, instead shoving at his chest, growling fiercely.

"How fucking dare you, Levi! How dare you tell me shit like that when you don't even feel anything? And you call yourself my mate? The father of my child? What a fucking joke!"

Levi had to try really, really hard not to snap at Eren, not to punch him. In the end he succeeded only in one of those things. "Oh yeah?" he shouted back, pretty sure his eyes were glowing by then, too. "If you weren't so wrapped up in your supposed anger and took a minute to actually think about what you fucking feel for once in your life, you might actually realize that that boiling fury is not fucking yours! Because guess what? I want nothing more than to go to that fucking room and rip that fucker's head off, feed his body to the crows so it gets torn to tiny shreds and then toss his bones to the underground to the filthy starving dogs and put that disgusting head full of shit on a fucking display to show every fucking piece of shit out there what happens to shits who even think about hurting you! But guess fucking what? I'm not! I'm not there; I'm here, letting you scream at me! Why? Because you are my first fucking priority!"

He closed his eyes, taking fast deep breaths and massaging his temple in an effort to calm down a bit. He didn't say anything more and Eren didn't react to his blowing up either. They stood there in silence so thick they felt like it was suffocating them for a long time, both scared to be the first to break it.

Finally what seemed like hours later, Levi's shoulders sagged as he slowly opened his eyes and what he saw nearly broke his heart. Eren stood in front of him without moving, taking deep, measured breaths as his eyes glistered. They were not glowing anymore but the burning glare was still there, and his fists were clenched so hard Levi wouldn't be surprised to see blood.

The alpha let out a breath before he reached out to press a gentle hand to his mate's cheek. Eren flinched, looking away, but let the other touch him, slowly losing his will and energy to fight. Levi rubbed his thumb across his cheekbone as his fingers buried themselves in the thick, soft, brown hair. After a few more seconds he finally broke the quiet that settled around their room in a soft whisper, softer than he thought he would ever be capable of. "Cry, Eren. You're sad and relieved and tired and scared and yes, you're fucking pissed. So cry. You know you need it."

Levi watched as the first tear broke out of Eren's eyes, slowly trickling down his cheek. It only took a few seconds before the omega was sobbing on his knees on the floor, his head buried in the crook of Levi's neck, the alpha holding him tight with one hand tangled in his hair and the other rubbing his back slowly, letting his mate soak up his uniform with tears and snot.

It took ten minutes of intense crying for Eren to calm down and another ten until Levi was willing to let him go. Even if he was still reluctant to do so, they needed a shower before going to sleep. The alpha took in the look on Eren's face before kissing his forehead gently and getting up, leaving Eren to sit on the floor, dazed and looking like a lost child. Levi swiftly gathered the blankets and pillows from the floor, trying to rid them of dirt before carefully arranging them in a heap on one of the beds in a form of a tiny nest. It was nothing like the one Eren made for himself in Levi's bedroom back at the headquarters – what, with only two pillows and two blankets – but it was better than nothing.

Once he was satisfied with his work, he picked up the bathrobes and towels generously provided by the inn and returned to Eren who only kept looking up at him blankly. He leaned down and picked the boy up, the omega immediately snaking his arms around his neck and pressing his body tightly to the alpha's strong one. Like this they headed to the bathroom several doors down, praying no one would see them.

Levi tried to use his foot to open the door but only succeeded in making noise. Thankfully before he decided to just kick it open, the door opened from the inside. Armin had his tooth brush in his mouth with foam running down to his chin, and an expression of confusion on his face when his eyes fell on his superior carrying his best friend. However, it only took him a second to realize what was going on and made way for them to enter the tiny bathroom with a single shower stall and sink. The blond quickly rinsed his mouth and gathered his things, shooting a concerned look at his Captain before leaving as quietly as he could. Eren didn't even realize he was there, just clinging to his mate as close as he could.

Levi nodded back at Armin in reassurance and silent thanks, before the door closed behind him. He sighed, slowly putting Eren down. The omega let out a soft sound of protest but Levi managed to coax him out of his clothes and under the spray of water in a surprisingly short time. The shock of the cold wetness seemed to finally snap Eren out of the trance he was in after his breakdown and in the end he succeeded in showering by himself, an embarrassed blush slowly appearing on his face. Levi only smiled slightly in comfort, though Eren didn't see it as he was intent on avoiding looking at Levi.

Before they left the shower, Levi grabbed Eren's chin and forced him to look into his eyes. He didn't know what to say, so he only stared back, straight into those greens, hoping the omega would understand. At first the younger was shocked but after a few seconds a tiny smile appeared on his face as he nodded, and Levi let him go with a relieved sigh. They stood there for a few more seconds before they simultaneously leaned forward, kissing each other softly, lovingly, telling each other wordlessly that it was okay. They were okay.

Back in their room, clean, exhausted but not ready to fall asleep just yet, the mates curled up in their make-shift nest, each caught up in their own thoughts.

Eren's head rested on Levi's shoulder, his fingers tracing his pronounced collarbone as he stared into the darkness of the room. He tried several times to say something but every time he took a deep breath to do so, he only ended up deflating again. Each time this happened, he felt Levis hand around his shoulders squeeze him gently in a gesture saying to take his time. It only made Eren want to say it even more. Finally, on the fifth try, he managed to open him mouth to let out a soft, mumbled, "I'm sorry."

Levi's hand that was tracing absentminded circles on his forearm stilled before the alpha let out a huff. "I should be the one saying that. I shouldn't have said those things."

Eren shook his head as well as he could in his position. "No, I needed to hear it," he muttered, nuzzling closer to his mate. "But I shouldn't have shouted at you. Moreover I said worse things to you than you did to me. I should have known you were stressed just as much as me."

Levi kissed his temple firmly. "It's okay; I know you didn't mean it."

"I'm still sorry."

"So am I."

They fell silent again for a while before Eren propped himself up on his elbow staring down at Levi with a complicated expression on his face. "I love you."

"I love you, too," Levi returned the sentiment in a clear voice, as his lips stretched into a small, crooked smile before he pulled Eren down to press his lips against the other's.

"We should sleep," Eren murmured, their lips still touching.

"I can't," Levi groaned back full of frustration and Eren smirked, throwing one of his legs over his alpha's waist.

"Then we better make the best of it, no?" he grinned before leaning down to nip on the other's neck, right where his mating mark sat proudly.

Hanji sat with Armin in the inn's dining room, each nursing a cup of tea and chatting with the owner while waiting for Eren and Levi to come down. The others were long gone as it was nearing noon and the two were still asleep. Not that they were surprised or blaming them. The two deserved some actual rest after the events of the past two days.

Hanji wasn't even about to tease them over the fact that she went to check up on them after breakfast only to find them both passed out, naked, Levi's dick still in Eren's ass. She just smiled fondly before covering them with a blanket and left quietly, careful not to wake them.

Finally they heard a door upstairs slam shut and a few minutes later the two of them came down, Levi's hand hovering over the small of Eren's back. Hanji almost squealed. They were just so cute together; she couldn't believe it took her so long to notice. Thank the walls Erwin wasn't there to see it though, as he would only scold them for being too obvious. However, Hanji thought it was only natural for Levi to be a bit more protective right then. There shouldn't be anything to be afraid of, anyway.

"Good morning," Armin said with teasing undertone to his voice.

Levi rolled his eyes at both Armin and Hanji's grins while a blush spread across Eren's cheeks as he smiled and rubbed his neck sheepishly. "Good morning."

"Good morning," said the owner with a kind smile as she got up from the table. "Shall we serve lunch now?"

"L-lunch?" Eren stuttered in shock. He looked at Armin for confirmation and only got another grin in response.

"Yes, lunch, dear," the elderly woman laughed.

Levi nodded, sitting down at the table opposite of Hanji. "Yes, thank you. Could we get some tea as well?"

"Of course, Captain Levi," the owner smiled before disappearing in the kitchen.

Levi grumbled over being recognized but relaxed when he felt Eren's hand brush his shoulder as he passed him to sit down as well.

A few minutes later the owner came back along with a young girl, who seemed like she was helping in the kitchen. They were carrying trays with food and a pot of fresh tea along with two clean cups.

Each of them got a plate with so much food it was ridiculous, but Eren's was the fullest. As the owner put it in front of the young omega, she winked at him in reply to his questioning glance. "An extra large portion for the expecting father."

Eren took a sharp intake of breath just as Levi shot up and two shocked voices cried out.

The owner only chuckled, patting Eren's head and Levi's cheek. "I have three children and seven grandchildren. You can't fool me."

Eren couldn't find his voice. He just stared at the woman smiling kindly down at him before shooting a panicked look at Levi. His mate only stared back, obviously lost for what to do.

"Please..." came Hanji's quiet voice a minute later. "Please, don't tell anyone."

The owner ran a contemplative look over their pleading faces before sighing and smiling again. "I don't know what your circumstances are but if you are so desperate to hide it, I guess it's serious. You have my word; this information won't leave this inn."

The four of them let out a collective sigh of relief, thanking the woman purposefully. She only waved them off, with assurances that a child is always a blessing, no matter whose, and it was her duty to make sure it was safe.

They ate while listening to the owner telling them stories about when her children and grandchildren were young and about her inn and life in Stohess, not quite believing they could get this lucky in their misfortune, yet seeing no reason not to trust this woman.

Well, it wasn't like they had a choice right then anyway.