34,000 Feet Above The Ground (Ereri)

Chapter Five

Levi grabbed his bag from the carousel, watching for Eren. He wasn't going to let another opportunity slip him by. No, this time, he would take that chance. He followed the youth out of the terminal, trying to decide what to say.

"Oh, wow, it's snowing!!" Eren's enthusiastic voice broke through Levi's thoughts. He looked at Eren, smiling to see him standing on tiptoe, craning his neck around to look at everything. His eyes shone from the city lights reflected off the snow.

Levi staggered, caught by the sheer beauty of the scene. If he had doubted before his love for the teen, he certainly couldn't now. He coughed, getting Eren's attention. "You act like you've never seen snow fall."

"I have, just not recently. And not this much this soon. Does it always snow like this in Osaka?"

"It's early this year, but yes. And it will only get worse during the night. How close is your hotel to here?"

Oh, the look of horror on Eren's face.

"You didn't book a room?" Levi asked in disbelief.

"It's my first time coming to Osaka!" Eren spluttered. "I normally fly to places that friends live, and I can stay with them. So I... kinda... forgot."

Levi felt like this opportunity had literally been handed to him. He brushed some of the snow off his arms to take the chance to collect himself. "Would you like to stay with me?"

Eren turned doe-wide eyes to him.

He's taller than me. Levi suddenly realized. Having always sat on the plane, he hadn't noticed it before. It irked him, a little. "The places work gives me to stay are always big enough for more than one person. And the sooner you say yes, the sooner we can get out of the snow."

"I... thank you."

Levi nodded and hailed a taxi. He gave the address to the driver and sat back in the back seat, noticing how woodenly Eren sat next to him. "Oi, Eren. How do you make friends if you're so tense?"

"Normally Hanji introduces me to people."

"Ah. Do you live with her?"

"With Hanji?!" Eren asked incredulously, startled into laughter. "She's friendly, but not that friendly. She used to babysit Mikasa and me when we were younger. She has her own place, a few streets over from ours. She's the one who told me about the flight attendant position."

"How long have you been a flight attendant?"

"Um... three years? Yeah, just under three years. It's hard on Mikasa, and I missed a lot of school, but I really enjoy it. I get to fly to so many places."

"Mm." Levi couldn't see any appeal in the job. Given the choice, he would never set foot on a plane. Except... he might not have met Eren, then.

There was about a minute of silence until Eren spoke again. "So, do you still hate flying?"

Levi glanced at Eren, wondering how much of the truth he should tell him. "It's tolerable when you're on the flight." He smirked with satisfaction as Eren turned pink. They arrived at their destination soon after, so Eren didn't have to give an answer. Levi paid the driver and they went into the hotel.

Once they procured the keys, Levi and Eren took the elevator to the floor Levi's room was on. He opened the door, motioning Eren inside.

"Wo~ow!" Eren exclaimed, dropping his bags on the floor.

Levi eyes the puddles they left with distaste, going in search of a hand towel. "I take it you've never been in a penthouse."

"No Sir."

"It's Levi. I told you that once before." He sighed happily when the puddles were cleaned. "Anyway, penthouses are always big. Actually, this one's a little smaller than usual." He watched Eren's eyes stray to the king-sized bed. The only bed. "If sleeping in the same bed bothers you, I can ask for another room, one with two beds."

"No, this is fine!" Eren protested hastily. "You're being so nice to me... I wouldn't want to impose."

Levi sighed and threw a clean towel at Eren. "You're a mess. Go shower. I like my roommates clean."

Eren flushed. Digging through his bag, he found a clean change of clothes and darted into the bathroom, shutting the door behind him.

That gave Levi time to sit on the edge of the bed and consider what he'd just done. He was sharing a room, a bed, with the person he liked. And Eren didn't even know Levi liked him. It was going to be a long night.

Eren emerged from the shower some time later to find Levi reading. "Levi, you have to try that shower! It has so many different settings!"

Levi snorted and looked up; the kid was easily amused. His breath caught as Eren came closer, still talking animatedly. Water droplets clung to the male's hair, and his eyes positively sparkled. Steam still rose off the skin on his arms, testament of how hot a shower he'd taken.

"Beautiful." Levi breathed.

Eren stopped mid-word. "Sorry? What was that?" His eyes widened as Levi gently pulled him closer and pressed their lips together.

The kiss only lasted a fraction of a second before Levi realized what he'd done. He pushed Eren back, wincing at the confusion on the teen's face. He had to clear his throat twice before he could speak. "I think I should go take a shower now." A cold one. He fled to the bathroom before Eren could respond.

He was surprised but happy to find Eren hadn't left while he was in the shower. It meant he hadn't destroyed their budding friendship with that kiss. The teen was even sleeping in the bed. Cautiously Levi approached, but Eren's breathing didn't change as Levi slid in next to him. It seemed he was a fairly deep sleeper.

Levi lay on his side, watching Eren sleep. That couldn't have been his first kiss, could it? He suspected Eren was a virgin, since Hanji had hinted as much. But surely he'd been kissed before? If not, this was going to frustrate Levi to no end. It meant his hot fantasies would have to wait, replaced instead by gentle teaching. Groaning, Levi rolled away from Eren and closed his eyes.