A Second Chance (Levi x Reader)

Chapter 9

The room had a damp yet sweet scent to it. Little light peeked through the closed blinds, yet you found yourself navigating the floor just fine. Picking up each of the bent and snapped stems, all you did was stare at them silently, inspecting the damage before tossing them into the trash bin.

Your little outburst seemed to have calmed down on its own. Though glass still remained hidden beneath you, occasionally stinging which each movement you made, you definitely, without a doubt, felt a lot better mentally now.

You weren't going to sit around all throughout break and wonder what Eren is up to. You weren't going to second-guess or stay up at night waiting for him to call. You can be nonchalant, too; call it toxic, but you just don't care anymore.

You couldn't bring yourself to move or stand up when a knock echoed from the entrance of the room either. Maybe it was because of the glass. Maybe it was your strange sense of realization.

If there's one thing Hitch has taught you so far, it's that you need to have faith in yourself before giving it to anyone else. Much less a man.

Oh, Hitch. I wonder how she's doing, you thought. Would she be proud right now? Concerned?

"Y/N?"

Raising your eyes, you flinched when you realized a pair of hands found themselves over your shoulders. You didn't think Eren would leave the door unlocked. How nice.

You turned your head around, and to your surprise, Levi was there. As the warmth of his palms shook you back and forth, as if pulling you out from your trance like state, you could only raise your brows at him confused.

There was a sense of fear in his eyes. Though his bangs have gotten longer, concealing most of his face, his expression was one that couldn't be any more obvious.

"Levi? What brings you here?" you asked.

Each breath he took came out haggard. He only looked at you, as if surprised you even questioned his presence.

"Are you hurt?" he asks instead.

You watched as he lowered his eyes to the shards of glass, then to the streaks of blood glistening from your lap. You didn't say anything when he lifted his hands, turning his head away and looking to the wall.

Oh, right. You nearly forgot you were half naked. Though you should have been embarrassed, ashamed, even, you couldn't help but feel indifferent.

"You should cover up, it's freezing in here," he stood up. Your eyes followed as he carefully walked around the mess, heading back towards the entrance. Levi's hand remained fixed over the door handle, as if unsure on what else to say.

The room may have been dim, but the tips of his ears were a clear, vibrant red. Sitting upwards, your eyes remained glued on the silhouette of his back.

"I'll be back with some stuff, okay?"

An odd feeling in your chest began to take form. And you weren't sure what to make of it.

"Okay."

__________

You sat silently on the edge of your bed, fiddling with the ends of the hoodie you threw on earlier. You listened to the scraping of glass as Levi swept, unable to bring yourself to say anything.

You had to tried to tell him not to worry about it, that you'd take care of it on your own, but he refused to listen. So all you could do was sit there, watching as he dumped the last of the mess into a plastic bag. Finally, he turned back towards where you sat.

"Try not to move too much, alright?" he kneeled down, opening what looked to be a med kit. Pulling out a pair of tweezers, he then proceeded to look back up towards you.

"Yea, sure," you sighed, leaning slightly backwards into the palm of your hands.

He wrapped a hand behind your bare leg, leaning closer to get a better look at your wounds. You watched as he brought his other hand to the top of your knee, carefully pinching at different spots.

Sucking in a breath, you could only knaw on the inside of your cheek. You wanted to curse, to kick him away, but you only sat there, silently. You instead decided to focus on the faint sounds of his breathing, even occasionally feeling it against your skin as he continued to work.

There was an odd silence within the room, yet it didn't feel tense or awkward in any way.

Levi then proceeded to tighten his grip over your leg, pressing a damp cotton pad against your skin.

There was a sharp pain from where Levi rubbed, yet you didn't seem to mind all that much anymore.

"Do you still like me?"

You watched as the cotton pad turned a faint pink, freezing in place as Levi comprehended your sudden question. The longer he wavered, the more it stung. But you told yourself it was okay. That it was worth taking.

"I do."

His eyes dared not to move from your newly cleaned wounds. You watched as he then lifted a roll of gauze.

"Why me?"

"I don't know if we should be talking about this, Y/N."

He continued to lift your leg gently, wrapping the material around you with precision.

"But I want to know."

Truth is, you've been wanting to know for a while. Maybe it wasn't a good time, but the fact that he was here only made you all the more curious.

Levi then brought the gauze to your other knee, slowly repeating the process.

"You can be pretty stubborn," he sighed. "And annoying."

"Wow, thanks," you replied, watching as he taped down the last of the material.

"But the way you think," he paused, lifting his hands off of you. "And the way you joke about things," he looks away.

The expression he was making in that moment was hard to interpret. Was it guilt? Embarrassment?

"I just find it...you, interesting."

No, it was relief.

The warmth of Levi's touch began to fade. You brought a hand out to graze the material wrapped around both of your knees, admiring the work.

"Doesn't it bother you though?" you finally asked.

Levi brought his eyes up towards you at last. His brows, usually furrowed, remained relaxed as he took in a long, visible breath.

Neither of you had to clarify what exactly you were asking. You both knew that this was referring to him. To Eren.

You watched as he finally stood up from his kneeled position, continuing to stare at you with what looked to be sincerity.

"A little," he paused.

Gathering the tools he had brought with him, you watched as he hesitated before looking down at you once more.

A bold statement before heading towards the exit. A statement that, as guilty as it sounded, left you flustered.

"But I'm not scared, either."