𝔇𝔢𝔣𝔦𝔞𝔫𝔠𝔢 (𝔏𝔢𝔳𝔦 𝔵 ℜ𝔢𝔞𝔡𝔢𝔯)

LVIII - Calm Before The Storm

"Happy birthday, Mon Coeur."

***

What?

"It's my birthday?" Were the first words that came out of my mouth. It did make sense, though, I had a gut feeling that there some sort of important date which wasn't of major importance to me. Levi eyed me with a perplexed expression, a subtle shock overcoming his features as he realized I was actually completely oblivious to todays events.

"It is." He replies casually, his gaze falling back to my wrist that wore the bracelet gracefully. My actions follow his, eyes admiring the glint of the emerald in the morning light through the kitchen window.

"It's beautiful, Lee. Thank you." I say softly before putting my hand in my satchel with a small smile. "I actually got you something, too." His eyebrows twitched in surprise as he watched me bring out the necklace I had gotten from the old man. I held it up for him to observe, the pendant gleaming and emitting a visible blue aura.

Levi looked it up and down, his head tilting slightly to analyze it from a different angle. His arms remained at his side, slowly inching their way forward towards the glowing gem. A vulnerability adorned his features, a look of innocent curiosity coming from him as his hair fell gently across his forehead, a shadow cast upon his eyes.

I offered out the necklace, a silent insistent gesture urging him to take it from my fingers and observe it from the palms of his own hands. Gently, with the ghost of a touch, his fingers weaved through the thin chain and resting the jewel in his palm.

"What for?" He asked, his attention stuck on the accessory as I shrug.

"Nothing in particular. It just reminded me of you." I say bringing my hands behind my back. His eyes met mine as I give a smile, leaning forward ever so slightly. "Do you like it?" I question. He hesitated a little, mouth open in an attempted response to the question asked.

"I've never received a gift like this." He replies back quietly. I realized then that in his eyes, maybe this gift was something that truly was more valuable than I thought. Gems such as these weren't present in the Underground, maybe even now this is the first time he's even laid eyes on a sapphire. "I like it very much. Thank you, Mon Coeur."

Now that I knew what those words meant, it just didn't feel the same. The way he said it didn't feel friendly anymore, the depth behind it was much more to bear. The way the words rolled off his tongue sent a type of flutter down into my stomach, a feeling of delight, if you will. And the thing was- I liked it.

There was no way I could have some type of feelings for him, was there? It was always settled in the back of my mind, the most subtle of fondness towards him, but never had it reached this extent.

I brushed the thoughts off, giving him a grateful smile as I bring my hand up and take the necklace from his hand and unclip it, giving him a questioning nod to say 'can I?' He stepped forward and turning around to make it easier for me to do up the clasp again. I gently bring the necklace around his head, catching the slightest scent of his hair. A nice smell of shea butter with a hint of cinnamon. A comforting scent, one that numbs out the negative in the world has you in a temporary peaceful trance.

"There." I murmur, clasping the two ends of the chain together. He turned to face me, my eyes drawn to his neck adorned by the accessory, whereas his eyes were stuck on mine. I spared him a glance, humming slightly in acknowledgment as he steps forward to pace passed me, slipping his hand around my wrist and pulling me with him. He brought his other hand up from under his blazer, loosening the cravat he had around his neck slightly and tucking the jewel under his shirt before single-handedly tightening the cravat up again.