The Prices I Pay ((MIKE ZACHARIAS X ERWIN SMITH X OC))

Chapter 12

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An: just to be clear, I still adore Mike and his character so DONT EAT ME ALIVE FOR THIS IM SORRY.

Mike shippers are gonna hate this chapter, sorry. You've been warned.
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Silica remained in Erwin's office with Levi for some time after Erwin disappeared, and after eating as she was instructed to do, she began to pace the floor anxiously as she watched the sun setting from outside the window. He had been gone for at least an hour and a half, and she began to worry what could have happened, or what they were discussing.

Levi watched Silica from the sofa with his arms crossed. There was an agitated quirk of his brow as he did so, and he occasionally tapped the heel of his boot against the floorboards. Seeing Silica in such an anxious state was incredibly rare even for him, and he knew that the only time she got this way was when her significant other was involved. It made his blood boil so severely that his skin felt hot, and he fought the urge to hunt Mike down himself to give him a piece of his mind. God only knew what Erwin was doing.

Just as Silica felt like she was going to burst, the sound of the double doors opening elicited both her and Levi to look up to see Erwin entering the room. His usual neat blond hair was mildly ruffled, and his cheekbone was in the process of bruising. The sight of his injury alone was enough to have Silica bolting to his side, and Levi was quickly on his feet.

"What the hell happened?" Silica asked, taking hold of his forearm as he adjusted the cuff of his jacket.

"I took care of it," Erwin replied simply. He sounded off. "And now I'm going to take you home."

"Erwin —?"

"Levi," he cut her off whilst turning to his shorter companion. "There is a mess in the weight room. See to it that it gets cleaned up."

The look on Levi's face was a hard one to decipher, but he did as he was told nonetheless. Silica's gaze followed him as he left, and she quickly looked back up to Erwin, who was already looking down at her.

"What did you do?" She asked carefully. Erwin sighed whilst placing a hand on her back and guiding her out of the office.

"I took care of it." Erwin repeated stiffly. Silica eyed the bruise on his face.

"Erwin," she said sternly, and stopped walking under his guidance. He turned to offer her a look. "Where's Mike?"

Erwin's eyes closed tightly, and despite his best efforts, the look of disgust still managed to find its way onto his face.

"You need to have this discussion with Mike," he said tensely. "I —"

"Erwin, please," she plead, voice cracking. "I can't handle being lied to right now. I need you to tell me."

"Come on," he sighed in defeat. "I'll tell you on the way."

Finding his answer sufficient, Silica finally followed him into the courtyard, where a carriage already waited for them. Erwin moved to open the door for Silica, and she hastily climbed aboard, impatient to hear what her commander had to say.

Erwin sat down across from her whilst finally finding the sense to fix his disheveled hair. He leaned forward with his elbows on his knees, and it looked as if he himself was still trying to process what happened.

"Silica..." he trailed off and avoided her expectant gaze. "When I went to find Mike, my only intention was to have a word with him in regards to the situation between you two."

"And?" Silica pressed.

"And when I found him, he was in the weight room..." he continued. "At first, he appeared to be training with another soldier, but as I looked further —"