Rewind

Chapter 19

"Heichou?" Armin asked quietly, taking a step into the room. "Is there anything I can get you?"  

"No," Levi said quickly. Armin nodded sadly and went back out. No matter how many times they checked on him he was always in the same spot. His answers were all the same, no matter the question. 

The door opened again and this time, it was Hanji who entered the room. "You can lie in the bed with him," Hanji said softly. "It won't hurt him."

Levi didn't hesitate to lie down and gently pull Eren into his arms. He buried his face in Eren's hair and closed his eyes, content to be so close to his lover again. Hanji watched as Levi's breaths became more and more even. She sighed and went back out to the others.

"He's asleep," Hanji said and Erwin sighed.

"Good," Erwin said, rubbing his face. "Now if only he would eat."

"What do you mean?" Connie asked. The only ones who really knew Levi's condition were Erwin and Hanji. Sure the rest of the squad knew Levi wasn't healthy, but they didn't know how bad he actually was. 

"Levi's barely slept or ate for the past week," Hanji said. "He will only sleep for about ten to fifteen minutes at a time, and that's only when his body forces him to sleep. And as for food, he will take only a few bites if any at all."

Levi's squad looked down the hallway with solemn looks. They were all surprised that Levi cared so much about someone else that he would throw his own health out the window. He had never let his emotions for the boy show too much. So they were just now seeing the depths of his feelings.

oOoOo

Another week passed and Levi's refusal to eat or sleep was showing. He had lost a lot of weight, and the bags under his eyes had only gotten deeper. Levi went six days without sleeping. But eventually he was pulled into the abyss called sleep without his approval.

Eren slowly opened his eyes and the first thing he felt was pain. He scrunched up his face as he took in a breath and pain radiated throughout his torso. He turned his head to see Levi curled into a ball next to him. Levi was asleep with his arms wrapped around Eren's. Eren moved his hand and grasped one of Levi's, giving it a small squeeze.

In response to Eren's squeeze Levi curled up even more, and his arms tightened around Eren's.

Erwin stood outside the door with his hand on the knob. It had only been twenty minutes since he last checked on Levi. But they needed to continually check on him. He knew Levi would be pissed that he was back already. He sighed and opened the door anyways. His eyes widened with what he saw.

"Eren," Erwin breathed. Eren turned towards the commander and smiled slightly"How are you feeling?"

"My chest hurts a little," Eren whispered, trying to be quiet for Levi. "And it hurts a lot to breathe."

"When you were shot your lungs were hit," Erwin explained, moving closer to the bed. "We weren't sure that you were going to wake up. You had more of a chance to die than you did to wake up."

"How has Levi been?" Eren asked concerned, looking back over at the other inhabitant of the bed.

"Do you want the brutal answer? Or the sugar coated answer?" Erwin asked seriously.

"Brutal," Eren said, looking back up at Erwin seriously. 

"He hasn't been good," Erwin stated. "He's lost so much weight. His eyes became bloodshot and there are deep bags under his eyes. He stopped talking to us. Let him sleep as long as possible. This is the first time he's slept in six days. He's refused to sleep, eat, and leave your side. The only way he left was either to use the bathroom or shower. Eren, we were all scared that you weren't going to make it, but Levi was taking it far harder than we could have imagined."