Silver Lining | ʟᴇᴠɪ ᴀᴄᴋᴇʀᴍᴀɴɴ

Chapter 24

The rain had stopped by the time I woke up. I'm still in Levi's bed, still in his arms, still happy. When he realizes I'm awake, he kisses the top of me head and I smile. The room is still dark, there's only a candle flickering on his desk. Levi must have gotten up to light it, but I didn't notice, which is curious because I usually wake up at every single shift of Historia in the bunk above me.

"What time is it?" I ask, my voice still hoarse and quiet from sleeping. It was the best night of sleep I've had in ages.

I feel the captain shrug, and he runs his fingers through the length of my hair. "The others aren't up yet, but I think they will be soon."

I sigh, exhausted, and close my eyes again, internally protesting against what I have to do. "Then I guess I should go back to my room before they notice I'm gone," I mumble against my better judgment.

Levi's grip around my body tightens, and I chuckle against his skin. "Can't we just lie here a little longer?" he asks.

There's a grin on my face that hurts my cheeks, but I can't possibly turn this feeling of absolute happiness off. There's so many emotions inside of me, all of them wanting to escape in some way, but I force down my tears and kiss the captain's chest. I lift myself onto my elbow and kiss him on the mouth, then linger against his lips for a little while simply because I can't bear to pull away yet.

"I have to," I whisper, and Levi's disgruntled sound makes me pull away to get a better look at him. He looks so sulky that it melts my heart. "Unless you would rather explain to the rest of the squad why we're leaving your room together first thing in the morning when they're gathering for breakfast."

He scrunches his nose, and the expression is so adorable and so uncharacteristic for him that I almost smile. "Fine," he says, sounding annoyed. "Go, go. And don't you dare look beautiful at breakfast."

With all the strength in my heart, I get dressed and throw my hair over my shoulder in a dramatic way, smiling at Captain Levi. "I'll try my best."

His chuckle is the last thing I hear before I check the hallway and then slip out of his room. It takes me ages to get to my own room, it seems, and when I lie down, I immediately miss his warm arms and the sound of his breathing. He's only a few doors away, but not being able to see him and touch him whenever I want to makes this whole thing so much harder. So close yet so far.

I press my face into my pillow and try to fall asleep again. Maybe if I sleep now, I won't be tired later today, even though I have slept for maybe two or three hours. And I'm going to have to train today because Erwin wants us to go beyond the wall again soon. I sigh and relax my whole body, letting memories of kisses and caresses take over my mind.

Sasha wakes me with a poke in the ribs. "Come on, we have to get to breakfast."

Right, breakfast. I tell her to go on without me, and she does, but not before asking if I'm alright. I shoo her out of the room, then get dressed in blissful silence. I leave my jacket on my bed because I won't need it yet, then head to the bathroom. I'm dreading a look in the mirror, not wanting to see the dark circles under my eyes. Washing my face with cold water, then drying it. I braid my long hair again, remembering the feeling of Levi's fingers in it.

He's in the kitchen already when I enter it. Levi's eyes wander away from Gunther's face while he's talking to him, and he looks at me. My cheeks flush without me being able to stop it, and I have to fight the corners of my mouth to stay down. I incline my head a little, and the captain nods back.

"Did you sleep well?" Jean asks when I sit down next to him.

All eyes are on me when my face turns red and I stammer something like, "Oh, uh, what? Why?"

Jean lets out a weird laugh and raises his eyebrows. There's something off about this look, but I don't ask. "Because we met in the common room in the middle of the night?" he says as if that's exactly what he meant before.

I laugh nervously and nod. "Oh, yes." I swallow. "Yes, I did sleep well." I conceal the information about where and with whom I slept.

When we're done with breakfast, Petra takes us outside to look after our horses. We follow her in a chattering group, all discussing yesterday's storm and the nice day we had thanks to it. And thanks to Levi, but I don't mention that to anyone.

He catches up with me just as the group splits up, everyone going to their own horse. Levi hooks his finger in my belt and stops me. I'm startled for only a second before I turn to face him, and the confusion on my face melts into adoration. I have to bite my lip to stop from grinning in case anyone is looking.

But it seems as if the captain doesn't care if anyone is watching. He leans in, his lips close to my ear, and whispers, "I told you not to look good."

I let out a soft chuckle, but I have no idea how to reply to this. He's playing an unfair game, and I think he knows it. Fine. He wants unfair, I'll give him unfair. I put on the sweetest smile I can manage, bat my eyelashes, and look up at Levi with as much innocence as my face allows.

"I'm sorry, Captain," I say. Levi's eyebrows fly up at my shockingly seductive voice. I didn't even know I had it in me. "I hope this won't get me in trouble."

Levi takes a step back from me as if burnt, then another smaller step just to create more space between us. He narrows his eyes at me, making my heart sink a little. Did I go too far?

"Come with me," the captain says, but so loud that everyone else at the stables turns their head to us. "Right now." Okay, his captain-voice is really hot but also so fucking intimidating, I don't know what to feel.

I don't know what to feel when he turns on his heel and walks back toward the castle. I don't know what to feel when I glance around at the faces of my friends, all looking pitiful and sorry. I don't know what to feel when Petra tells me I should better follow him because he seems mad.

Petra is always a voice of reason around here; someone so genuinely nice it sometimes scares me. Not that this isn't true for the rest of the Squad, but I feel like I could talk to Petra about anything and not have to fear to be judged. So if she tells me to follow him, I follow him.

Jean gives me a nod of encouragement before I hurry after Captain Levi. I catch up with him just as he enters the castle, but he doesn't say a word. He doesn't look at me, doesn't speak, doesn't acknowledge my presence in any other way.

Oruo come out of the common room and says hi, but I only wave back as I follow Levi upstairs. Shit, I really messed up this time. He heads straight for his room, and suddenly I'm not sure I'm supposed to be following him anymore. Did he say he wants me to come to his room with him? I don't remember anything except for the look in his eyes and the strict tone in his voice.

I'm immediately transported back to the fist night I met him; when he woke me and Jean with such a rude attitude. I seem to keep forgetting that he's actually still my captain and that I should still behave around him. I should show him respect, not mess around. On the other hand, he told me not to hold back with him and to talk to him like I do to my friends... I'm confused.

I'm not any less confused when Levi opens the door to his room, signals with his hand for me to come in, and closes the door behind me again. There's something in his eyes that I can't make out. Is it anger? Frustration? Irritation?

"You can't say something like that to me while looking at me like that," Levi says, hard, icy, stern. I look at my hands. "Not if you want me to be able to focus on something other than you."

--- CW: the next chapter starts off a bit... mature ---