You Have Me..(levi ackerman X !depressed reader)

3

On one hand, he had some knowledge. Living in the underground of brothels and gangs, then being dragged up above to different but not lesser problems, he knew that anyone and everyone could have suicidal thoughts. Life was hard no matter where they were from, no matter their circumstances. However, he also knew that life was not meant to be given up on. Meaningless death, few things got to him more than that. Levi never blamed those who were taken: depression, anxiety, all mental illnesses should be treated like any other. It was never the victim’s fault for having a life-threatening condition, just like it was not his mother’s fault for passing from her disease, just as it was never a soldier’s fault for dying at the hands of the titans.

It was no lie. Everyone in the Scouts had some suicidal thoughts. It was part of their being. In fact, before they were even enlisted, the fact was explicitly told to them and their acknowledgment required. Erwin’s recruitment speech at graduation was unforgettable for everyone, especially those who joined him after it. For to become a Scout, it was a forced acceptance: their life may be sacrificed as fodder. If one was fine with that, they fit right into the regiment. Levi, a superior, had been surrounded by the mentality for years: those stupid enough to join us…

When it came down to it, though. He would never admit that he had an adequate understanding. He loathed death, especially senseless death, but he felt that way about everyone.

The idea of someone so wonderful, someone who could light up a room, someone so salt of the earth yet with a heart of gold. The idea that such a loveable person could ever feel so unloved. The idea of someone like you… The concepts may always be lost on him. What he did know, though, was that mental illness was a bitch. It was tough, resilient, persistent, and usually demanded its host to be the same in the fight. And if the patient ever needed backup, their captain would be there to provide.

As he was now.

In a single stride, Levi crossed your bathroom from the door to the edge of the tub. With both care and haste, he lifted your limp arm from the water and took a closer look. Among injuries he had seen, this was not objectively the worst. However, the entire scene itself was perhaps the most harrowing thing he had ever witnessed in his life – and that was saying a lot for someone like him. All of these comparisons, though, were at the far back of his mind. What mattered to him was the here and now: you were here and needed help now.

Calloused hand clamped around your arm and its cut. The other reached at the metal bar beside you - clutching and flinging the towel that draped over it. He wrapped the cotton tightly around you. The slow blotting from white to pink to red both panicked and reassured him. Bleed-outs he had witnessed before, the whole cloth would have been soaked red by now. However, he knew you were not quite in the clear.

Levi pressed his trembling palm to your cheek, noting the temperature. You were warm, and at first, he found it a relief, but he then refocused his attention and saw the thick veil of steam between you. Certainly, the sauna state was not making anyone any cooler. He himself felt a million degrees. However, he kept the door closed and the fan off, hypothermia a symptom he knew through witnessing it in others and experiencing it himself.

Too much haste for reluctance, he released his white knuckle grip on your forearm and unwrapped the towel to examine your wound. Though the bleeding had not stopped, it had slowed, leaving your physical state better than most he had seen. Once again, a good sign that failed to provide him any relief.

Levi stretched out his limbs, keeping a hand on you while one fumbled for your closet: grabbing a new towel and miraculously landing upon gauze and bandages. A position he had assumed many times, he draped your healthy arm around his shoulders, bringing you to a standing position. He held you there just long enough to wrap you in a towel, one that still smelled like detergent, before manipulating your figure entirely in his arms. In a bridal style carry, he brought you out of that bathroom and towards your bed.

As soon as he stepped out of the steam room, your temperature plummeted so drastically - he himself felt a chill. Once at the side of your bed, you shivered into his chest, making your hearts press together. Levi clenched his teeth. It took everything he had to set you down, but he would never let you go.