𝔇𝔢𝔣𝔦𝔞𝔫𝔠𝔢 (𝔏𝔢𝔳𝔦 𝔵 ℜ𝔢𝔞𝔡𝔢𝔯)

XLVII - Crazy Admirer

But this place I call home feels so empty, once again.

***

I slowly sat up, the feeling of something heavy sitting on my chest made it hard to breathe. A build up of mucus was present in my throat, slowly inhaling through the pressure of invisible weight on my chest. Phlegm caught onto my throat and abruptly stopped my gradual intake of breath as I burst into a coughing fit, each burst of violently forced out air feeling more painful and dry than the last.

I feel like I got trampled by a herd of cows. Everything from my knees up aching beyond belief. I felt so dirty, so sick, my body couldn't make up if it was hot or cold. I throw the blankets off me in an attempt to even out the temperature to my liking. But it would get too cold, and if I brought the blanket back on top of me it was much too hot. Still in the midst of my coughing fit, I move to the edge of my bed, each sputter managing to jolt even further pain through every nerve present.

It was pitch black outside. When I went to sleep it must've been just before dusk. There was a candlelight outside of the door that lead to my office, slowly getting brighter as it approached. The doorknob twisted before the door slid open, Levi's silhouette peeking around the door as he gazed at me.

"Are you okay?" He whispered, further opening the door as he walked quietly into my room.

"No, don't come in here, I'll get you sick." I rasp, my face still buried in my elbow as I try to suppress each cough.

He looked at me and rolled his eyes, setting the candle on the nightstand and helping me back into the bed, back leaning up against the headboard that was cold from the night air. He pulled a bottle of water from the nightstand, bringing it to my lips as he silently insisted I drink. It instantly soothed the pain in my body, the bandages still securely wrapped around my chest and stomach.

Bandages.

My entire torso was exposed to Levi right about now, a thin layer of tightly wrapped bandages separating my body from his sight. I threw my arms around my chest, shoving aside the surge of agony and pressing my lips into a tight line, trying to ignore the coughs that so desperately wanted to erupt. I eyed him carefully, his expression unbothered and an eyebrow slightly arched up.

"What are you doing?" He asked, blank stare drilling into my own embarrassed ones.

"Look, you may not be bothered by my appearance but I am." I rasped, my voice coated in a throaty hoarseness. He looked at me in surprise, some may even mistake it for shock.

"Oh, I can leave if you-" He said slowly standing up before I stop him. I didn't want to be alone right now. I could choke to death in my sleep from loose phlegm, or maybe it was the thought of being one with the dark after such a gloomy event. Either way, being alone definitely wasn't what I wanted right now.

"No, you can stay. Can you get me a shirt please?" I mumble looking away from him at the cold fireplace that sat to the left of my bed. I sat still at the head of my bed, slowly bringing my knees to my chest to help hide myself, a faint hotness rising to my cheeks as I feel Levi gazing at me from my right.

No man's seen me like this. I didn't anticipate it'd happen anytime soon but I couldn't be any more wrong. And it had to be in front of him, the one man in the walls that the squad made bets with me about. My best friend. One of the original promises.

So far, the only promise that hasn't broken.

He shuffled across the room to the drawer that was situated beside my bathroom, hesitating as his hand hovered over each individual drawer. His back was to me but I could practically hear his confusion.