Broken Hearts, Severed Limbs (Levi x OC x Erwin)

|111| Reunited

“Levi?”

His eyes snapped open at the sound of her voice, and he looked up at her. He met those eyes. Those bright blue eyes that he had so helplessly fallen in love with. And he stared at her and he recognised the pain in her eyes and it worried him. She inhaled sharply.

She shut her eyes and pressed her head back on her pillow. Her fingers clenched painfully tight around his own as if she wanted to make sure he’d stay there. As if he was going to disappear any moment. “No… you’re not here… you’re just in my head… you can’t be here-”

“I’m here,” Levi stood up from his chair and lied beside her on the bed almost hastily. His hand found her face. His thumb found her cheek and she shuddered. “I’m right here,”

She kept her eyes closed, as if she knew that when she’d open them, he’d be gone. But a firm arm slipped around her and urged her body to face his own. His thumb ran gently across her cheek and his eyes sought for her own. She still had her eyes closed, keeping the tears back. He pressed his forehead against her own.

“Nat…” He pressed a kiss on her forehead. “…open your eyes, my sweet. I’m not going anywhere,”

She kept her eyes shut for a few more seconds. This couldn’t be real. This couldn’t be happening. It had been three years. She had spent every single night imagining him there, beside her like this with his thumb on her cheek and his forehead against her own. And every single time, she’d open her eyes and he wasn’t there. She didn’t want this time to end up like all the rest. She didn’t want to open her eyes and find that he was missing. And find that it was all just her imagination. That it was all just a little dream that never happened.

She sucked in a deep breath and she finally opened her eyes and her tears were finally released to roll down her cheeks, countless and warm and salty. But he was there. Unlike any other time, he was there. He was right there, and his own eyes shined with tears. His arm was indeed around her. His other arm was indeed cupping her cheek. Those silver eyes that she had so much missed were staring back at her own with that adoration that she had always made sure to commit to memory.

There was a little bit of sorrow in those eyes too. A little bit of relief as well. A little bit of gratitude that his Nathalie was there, finally in his arms after three years of looking for her. Three years of crushing onto the walls of his office and pulling his hair out. Three years of passing out -in a drunken haze that he despised- from the exhaustion onto the floor or his desk, but never once on his bed because she wasn’t there and a peaceful sleep was never one to come to him. No. A peaceful mind was never one he could have, because he’d spent his nights, contemplating on whether his beloved Nathalie was alive. He’d spent hours stare at her precious books, her ring, that he was going to push up her finger once more any moment now.

She wept. “You’re… you’re…” Her hand reached for his face. Her fingers shook as she hesitated to cup his cheek. She was still afraid that he was going to disappear. She was terrified that this was all just some helpless, hopeless dream that her mind had come up with to help her cope with the hell that she was trapped in.

Levi leaned closer, bringing his face to her hand and she only wept just a little more. Her cold fingers shakily traced on his cheek as she finally touched him and tried to believe what was happening. He really was there. He really was holding her. He wasn’t going to disappear. He took her hand in his own and supported it on his cheek. Her thumb brushed away that silent tear that rolled down his own cheek and a giggle erupted from her throat when he turned his head and kissed the palm of her hand.

His lips were dry, but soft and warm. His fingers were warm around her own. “I’m here, my Nathalie, my love, my sweet,” He pressed his forehead against her own, and wiped her tears with his rough thumb. “I’m right here, and I’m not going anywhere,” It felt like he had to repeat it. He had to let her now that he was there now, and that she was safe because of that.