Rivals (OC X Levi Ackerman)

Chapter 15

The cold wraps around me like a suffocating blanket, numbing every part of my body. I'm not sure where I'm going, or how long I've been walking, but I can't stop. My head feels heavy, like it's floating somewhere far away from the rest of me. The wind cuts through me, biting at my skin, but it barely registers. The pounding in my head is worse.

I stumble, and the world tilts sideways. Before I hit the ground, hands grab me, steadying me, pulling me back from the edge of the snow.

"Freyja! What are you doing out here?" The voice sounds far away, distant, but it's familiar. Two soldiers hold me up, their hands gripping my arms as they try to keep me from collapsing into the snow.

I want to say something, explain why I'm out here, but the words are stuck in my throat. My teeth are chattering too hard to speak, and the cold has seeped so deeply into me that I can barely feel my legs anymore.

"She's freezing," one of the soldiers says urgently. "We need to get her back inside."

They try to pull me forward, but my feet feel like they're made of stone. I don't even know where we're going. My vision is starting to blur, and the snow is falling faster, swirling around me like I'm trapped in a snow globe.

"Captain Levi!" one of them shouts, and my heart stumbles in my chest. Levi.

Through the haze of snow and pain, I see him. He's striding toward us, his face set in that hard, unmovable expression. His eyes are burning with something, and before I know what's happening, he's grabbing me, pulling me roughly away from the soldiers.

"What the hell were you thinking?" His voice is sharp, cutting through the storm like a knife. His hands are firm on my arms, dragging me closer to him. He's angry-really angry-but there's something else too. His eyes flicker with frustration and something deeper, something I can't quite grasp through the haze in my head.

I try to answer him, but my teeth are still chattering, and I can't form any words. Everything feels so distant, like it's happening to someone else. The snow is everywhere, and I can't stop shaking.

Levi curses under his breath, yanking off his cloak and wrapping it tightly around me. His hands move quickly, almost angrily, as he tucks it close to my body. I sink into the warmth, the scent of him surrounding me, and for the first time in what feels like hours, I can breathe again.

"You're freezing," he mutters, his voice low but still edged with anger. "Damn idiot."

He pulls me against him, his arm wrapping tightly around me as he hauls me toward the barracks. My legs don't work anymore, but Levi keeps me upright, practically carrying me as we move through the snow. His body heat seeps through the cloak, and even though he's furious, I can feel the way his grip tightens protectively around me.

When we finally reach the barracks, Levi doesn't stop in the main room. He pushes past the soldiers, taking me straight to a door at the back of the barracks. His private quarters. He kicks the door open, and the warmth of the room washes over me. I'm still shivering, my teeth still chattering as the cold lingers in my bones.

Levi doesn't waste time. He drags me toward his bed, throwing back the blankets and practically shoving me down onto the mattress. My body collapses onto the bed, my legs giving out beneath me. I'm too cold to fight it. Too tired.

He pulls the blankets over me, tucking them around me tightly. The warmth of the bed and the weight of the blankets help, but I'm still shaking uncontrollably. Levi's hands keep moving, adjusting the blankets, making sure I'm wrapped up tight, his anger clear in every movement.

"You're going to stay here," Levi snaps, his voice full of frustration as he tucks the blankets in tightly around me. "If you even think about getting up again, I'll tie you to the damn bed."

I try to focus on his words, but everything's blurry. My head is spinning, and my teeth are still chattering too hard for me to respond. "Levi..." I manage to whisper, my voice weak.

"What the hell were you thinking?" he growls, leaning over me, his face inches from mine. "You've got a head injury. You shouldn't even be out of bed, and instead, you go wandering off into a snowstorm. Are you trying to die?"

"You never listen. Your head's messed up, and instead of resting like you're supposed to, you decide to go off and do something reckless."

His words sting, but there's something else beneath the sharpness. His hands are still tucking the blankets around me, making sure I'm warm, making sure I'm safe. He's furious, but it's more than that. He's scared. I scared him.

I don't know what I'm thinking. I don't know if I'm thinking at all. My head is a mess, and all I can focus on is him. How close he is. How his hands linger on the blankets, how his eyes are flickering with something beneath the anger.

Before I can stop myself, I grab the front of his jacket and pull him down to me. My lips meet his, and for a moment, the world stops spinning. The warmth of him fills me, and I forget the cold that's been gripping my chest.

For a second, Levi freezes. His body goes rigid, but he doesn't pull away. He doesn't kiss me back either. He just stays there, hovering over me, his hands still gripping the blanket, his body tense.

When I pull back, breathless, I search his face. My heart is pounding in my chest, but I can't read his expression. His eyes are hard, his jaw clenched tight.

"Freyja," he says quietly, his voice low but steady. "You hit your head."

"I know, but.." I whisper, my fingers still clutching his jacket. "I know what I'm doing."

Levi shakes his head, his eyes narrowing. "No, you don't." His hands move to my wrists, prying my fingers away from his jacket, his grip firm but not rough. "You've got a head injury. You don't want to do that."

The tears well up in my eyes, and I try to blink them away, but I can't stop them. I feel like I'm slipping away again, like the world is spinning out of control, and I can't hold on.

"Stop," Levi says firmly, his voice cutting through the haze. "Go to sleep."

His grip on my wrists loosens, and he pulls the blankets tighter around me, his movements brisk and efficient. "You'll feel differently when your head clears," he mutters, stepping back from the bed.

I want to argue, to tell him he's wrong, but my head feels heavy, and the warmth of the bed is pulling me down. My eyelids flutter closed, and I can still feel the weight of Levi's words pressing down on me.