Sage and Whiskey | Levi x OC x Jean

Chapter 3

He could still remember the first time he saw her.

It was dinner time in the mess hall, the first night of their cadet training.

"Hurry up and get killed in the Scouts then, Yeager."

"At least I'd die honorably, horseface."

"Oh yeah? W—" His eye snagged on the back table. A girl he didn't recognize was talking to Sasha and Mikasa, giggling and pointing at some of the boys in the regiment. Whether they were making fun of Connie's buzz cut or spreading rumors about Captain Levi's sword size, Jean didn't care. He didn't care about Eren either or coming up with some clever retort—he just wanted to know her name.

She was petite like a fairy with a golden braid and honey-colored eyes. Despite her fair complexion, her lashes were dark and thick like black pine needles. Her face was intriguing and the more he studied it, the more beautiful she became.

"Too stunned to reply, huh?" Eren said.

Jean ignored him. He floated to the giggling table.

Her golden eyes flicked up. He had to clear his throat before words could fit in his mouth. "Um, hey. I'm Jean."

"I'm Sasha," the girl to her left said, mouth full of potato skins.

"Cool. I, uh, didn't catch your name. Hell, I didn't see you until just now. You must've been dwarfed by Sadies." Why did he have to insult her? Dammit, it just slipped out. He decided to play it off as flirty—that's how he'd meant it anyway. He crossed his arms and leaned his hip against the table.

She was just too damn pretty up close. She made him flustered.

"I didn't see you either. Must've blended in with the horses," she said.

Looks like pretty face has a mouth—dammit, that's hot. "So what was that name anyway?" Jean said.

"Don't you want to know her name too?" She gestured to the black-haired girl.

"I know Mikasa already. C'mon, you gotta have a name."

"I actually don't. Weird, huh?"

"Okay, I'll just call you shortcake."

"Don't call me that."

"Then tell me your name, shortcake."

"Fine. It's Karma."

"Karma? That's weirder than not having a name."

"Better than being a horse."

Jean had been caught off guard by Karma's sharp tongue. How the hell do you woo a girl who doesn't want to be wooed? And why did that make him want her more? Determined to strategize before his next attempt, he bumped his hip off the table and turned to leave. "Whatever, Karma. I'm going to bed."

She pointed to the opposite door. "Stables are that way."

And he was infatuated ever since.

What could he say? He liked them feisty.

Then there was the first time she really noticed him, the night Sasha died.

They'd rescued that bastard, Eren, and were retreating to the airship. Jean was mentally checking off his comrades as they returned, foot jackhammering the ground.

No sign of Karma.

He reloaded his gear and neared the edge. The wind roared and batted his face like a thousand bitch-slaps.

Jean was a moment away from diving back into Marley when beneath him, swinging like a spider on silk thread, he saw Karma. And holding onto her like some action hero on a vine was Captain Levi. Of freaking course.

Levi reeled them onto the ship, and Jean had to step back to make room.

"Thank you, Captain." Karma's voice was airy and sweet like cotton candy. She was still clinging to his neck and Levi's hands lingered around her waist.

"Don't mention it. I'd hate to see a soldier get left behind," he said, settling her to her feet.

She continued to spew her praises and thanks—anything to keep his attention a moment longer. Her hand held his elbow. Her lashes were fluttering.

It'd been painfully obvious since she met the guy that she was obsessed. Her motivation quickly shifted from killing Titans and rescuing humanity to serving Captain Levi and trying to impress him.

It made Jean frustrated. It made his heart ache. Why couldn't it be him? What was so great about this Levi guy?

Once his ego was satisfied, Captain Levi left to deal with Eren and Zeke in the back room. Karma gushed all about her damsel-hood with Sasha, who mirrored her enthusiasm.

"Did you see how he was holding me? I thought I was gonna melt."

Jean thought he was gonna puke.

"Seriously! What are the odds that he happened to find you in the middle of Marley and scoop you up? He had to be looking for you. He's definitely into you."

"God, I hope so. Not having him is killing me."

That much he could relate to.

"And the way he—"

A gunshot. Glossy, thick blood. Sasha lying in it. The little girl with the rifle loading another shot. The gun pointing at Karma.

Jean didn't think. He didn't consider the stupidity of it. He didn't consider the danger of it. He just jumped. He grabbed Karma and slammed them both against the wall. A bullet zipped to where she'd been standing and ricocheted around the room. But it sounded far away. Rapid breathing, a sheen of sweat, Karma's delicate body pressed into him—he wasn't aware of anything else.

Her eyes were round with horrified awe. They flickered all over his face, drinking him in like nectar. Her rose petal lips parted.

"Jean?"

He should've comforted her or even kissed her, but hell exploded around them. Floch and some other Scouts stormed the kids and pounded them bloody and raw. Connie screamed Sasha's name until his vocal cords snapped.

His heroic moment was over.

Karma was bent over Sasha in doctor-mode. "Bandages, rags—whatever the hell we have—I need all of it." Her hands were dark red, pressed deep into Sasha's stomach. "Stay with me, Sasha. Breathe. Hey, hey! Look at me! Shit, hurry up with those bandages!"

They couldn't save her. Sasha died.

Jean hated reliving that memory. But here it was, projected on his eyelids like a feature film because his stupid brain loved the part where Karma finally saw him as a hero. The only time she'd ever looked at him the way she looks at Levi.

And, God, it felt good.