Ymir's Necklace: The Secret You Hold | Levi x Reader

Grab

YOU

T

he hours had delicately folded into the fabric of the day, each moment lingering on the edge of your consciousness as you navigated the complexities of life within the camp.

The enigma of Levi Ackerman, a man whispered about, revered and feared, had brushed against your world in a moment of shared, silent connection. His reputation, a shadow that loomed large over every whispered conversation and stolen glance, seemed incongruent with the man who existed in the quiet margins of your day.

You reckoned there was a softness to the man, a softness in his expression when his eyes met yours that was so particular you could barely describe it. For many hours, you had tried to recall every detail of his face, but couldn't. It seemed as if the mere act of holding eye contat with the man had deprived you from your (historically good) memory.

It is so much more fun to observe without being observed, you thought to yourself. Just like observing a beautiful landscape, a canvas for your paintings. No feelings of vulnerability. No feelings of nakedness.

Your deliberate avoidance of Gabi, not out of disdain but rather a self-preserving distance from Levi, had marked your days at the camp. It wasn't that his presence was overbearing in its physicality; rather, it was the intensity of his quiet existence that unsettled you and had prompted you to keep your distance.

It almost felt as if you were able to tell that sharing gazes with him would crumble you, place you in a state so raw you could possibly shake.

The narratives that clung to him, tales of valor and loss, painted a picture of a man wrestling with the specter of his former self. The camp's whispers spoke of his injuries, a testament to his abrupt vulnerability, a stark contrast to the invincible hero of yesteryear.

Yet, in the fleeting instances where your paths crossed, where his existence momentarily eclipsed your carefully curated distance, you found yourself captivated.

It wasn't merely his appearance, though the scars and silver eyes spoke of battles both external and internal. It was the essence of his being, the quiet dignity with which he carried his scars, the softness with which he interacted with the world around him.

Levi Ackerman, for all the myths that surrounded him, was profoundly human.

Your avoidance was not born of fear, per se, but of a deep-seated reverence for the complexity of his existence. To be near him was to be near the eye of a storm, calm yet utterly transformative.

And despite your uncomfortableness which stemmed from your own deeply rooted shyness, his was a beauty that did not beg to be observed but commanded attention through sheer presence, like a landscape that steals the breath or a melody that seizes the heart.

But this landscape stared right back at you.

The day Jelena led you to his proximity during lunch, a silent protest died on your lips. The universe seemed intent on collapsing the spaces between you two, rendering your efforts to maintain distance futile. Really, you didn't know if you believed in the universe having a say in whatever happened in your life. Yet, the encounter felt natural. It felt true.

_________

As the evening draped its velvet cloak over the camp, you sought solace by the river's embrace, a witness to the sun's final curtsy. The beauty of the sunset, a tapestry of light bidding farewell to the day, held you in a silent reverie.

In these moments, the world seemed to pause, allowing you to breathe in the beauty unfettered by the constraints of canvas and paint. It was indeed your favorite time of the day at your favorite spot at the camp.

The symphony of lavender and cinnamon that danced on the breeze was a sensory embrace, grounding you in the present. It was a reminder of the world's simple pleasures, the earth's soft carpet beneath your feet, the gentle sigh of the river's flow.

You felt utterly connected to yourself as you slowly began focusing on your breathing, a calm sensation holding your entire being as you sat on the grass near the water. Small insects danced by your bare feet, the feeling slightly tickling you.

The crunch of grass underfoot coming from behind you shattered the evening's calm, a sudden intrusion into your solitary contemplation. You allowed yourself to turn around.

'Captain Levi'

In that instant  the distance you had so carefully maintained vanished yet again, now replaced by the immediate presence of a man who was, perhaps, just as adrift in the complexities of existence as you were. At least, that's what you liked to believe. The river, the sunset, now shared witnesses to this unexpected encounter.