A Wish, a Curse, and a Promise on New Year's Eve

The Curse (Levihan)

The Curse

Levi was angry and terrified and cold. But mostly he was angry. Angry that there were so many drunk idiots with explosives on the street, angry that he was so terrified of said explosives, angry that it was so goddamned cold. He was bundled up like an explorer about to go on a mission to the North Pole, but he was still cold. He was also angry how pretty Hanji was once she actually cleaned herself and wore a dress.

"Hey, Shitty Glasses," Levi shouted to Hanji up ahead.

"Yeah?" she turned around and started walking backwards. "What is it?"

"Gimme some of whatever the hell you're drinking."

Hanji took something from Erwin and slowed down so Levi could catch up.

"And what exactly is this?" Levi looked at the bright orange drink.

"It's an Aperol Spritz," Hanji said, taking a sip of hers.

Levi sniffed the drink and took a sip. It tasted like bitter oranges and alcohol.

Hanji started giggling. "You're like a cat!"

"No I'm not!" Levi protested. "I had to make sure you weren't poisoning me first!"

"Why would I poison you? Then I'd have nobody to annoy!"

Levi scowled, and they walked in relative silence for a while. The constant booms and bangs of the fireworks kept him on edge, but he swallowed his fear. They were just fireworks. They wouldn't hurt him.

"I can't believe its already 2016," Hanji said, gazing emptily at the explosions in the sky.

Levi checked his watch. "Not for another 13 minutes."

"You know what I mean. A year ago tonight, everything was so different," Hanji said contemplatively. "I mean, I was still so naïve, so ignorant. I even spent that night with Keith," Hanji looked down and fiddled with the plastic cup she was carrying. She looked up again and smiled brightly. "But that was last year! This year, I'm with all of my bestest friends," she threw an arm around Levi, to his short-lived protest. "And I'm really glad that everything is okay now!"

Levi knew why her smile was forced. Keith Shadis was Hanji's ex-boyfriend who had cheated on and abused Hanji for months and months and she refused to believe Erwin or Petra or even Levi that he was so horrible. Finally Levi had brought Hanji out to see Keith with another woman. Hanji was in a depressive state and wouldn't talk to anyone except Petra for three weeks after that.

"But 2016 will be better, right? Now I have you, and even the new recruits are really cool. That Armin kid is really bright," Hanji smiled softly and took a gulp of her drink.

"Yeah," Levi thought about what his life was like a year ago as well. He was such a different person then. The deaths of his friends still seemed fresh in his mind, even though it had been almost two years at that time. Now Farlan and Isabel had been dead for three years, and Levi could barely manage to think of them at all, he was so busy these days. Everything passed by so quickly it was hard to stop and think about anything other than the present.

But for some reason, Hanji always made him think. About the past, about the future, about things other than his immediate surroundings. She would read his mind like nobody ever had, and whenever something was wrong, whenever one of his soldiers died, whenever one of the higher ups stuck their nose up at him, she would know immediately and she would make it better. Levi hated how much he depended on her sometimes.

But here he was, looking at the girl he actually knew so little about. Why did she hide behind her alcohol and her smiles? Why did she seem so open and so closed at the same time?

But now they were in the main square, and there were more fireworks than anywhere here, and there were constant booms and bangs and Levi was reminded how truly dangerous fireworks were, and he was so scared he wasn't angry for once in his life. For once in his life he clutched for dear life onto Hanji's arm and clamped his eyes shut.

"Levi? What the hell are you doing?"

Levi didn't answer, but a firecracker went off behind him, and he jumped, uttering the tiniest of squeals.

Hanji started laughing. "Levi? Are you afraid of the fireworks?"

"Shut the fuck up, Shitty Glasses," Levi said to his feet.

Hanji continued laughing and attempted to pat Levi's hair with her unoccupied hand. "It's okay, widdle Wevi, I'll protect you from the scary scary fireworks."

Levi kicked the back of Hanji's leg. "If you tell anyone,"  he glared up at Hanji. "I will dissect you and feed your insides slowly to Sawney and Bean." Sawney and Bean were Hanji's dogs.

"Okay, okay," Hanji smiled. "It's actually really cute that you're scared,"

Levi blushed and let go of her arm. "Shut up."

"You know, it's almost midnight," Hanji stated, and took a sip of her drink, now that Levi had let go. She was thinking about how last year at exactly this time, she was with Keith.

"Hey," Levi put a hand on her shoulder and gave her the tiniest of smiles. "He's gone now."

Hanji grinned. "How is it that you always know what I'm thinking about and how to make me stop thinking about it?"

Levi was startled for a moment. Did he really? Well, it seemed so automatic that he could tell what she was thinking. "I don't know."

Petra and Erwin were shouting a countdown from nearby.

"Ten!"

"Nine!"

"Eight!"

"Seven!"

"Six!"

At five, a whole bunch of people, including Hanji joined in.

"Five!" Hanji was grinning and beckoning for Levi to join too.

"Four!"

"Three!"

"Two!"

"One!"

"HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!" a cacophony of fireworks went off, more than Levi had ever heard.

Everyone was kissing. Erwin and Petra, Eld and Gunther, Olou and some girl Levi had never seen before. Across the street, Levi could see some of the new recruits kissing as well; Eren and Mikasa, the short blonde and the tall freckled girl, the bald one and the girl obsessed with food, and basically every other person on the street. Hanji was whooping and taking a sloppy gulp of her drink, but Levi could tell how awkward she felt in the whole world of love around her, not to mention how much it reminded her of her own previous failed relationship.

Maybe its was out of pity, or out of sheer terror at the fireworks that were exploding around him, maybe it was out of a fundamental truth deep down that he was in love with Hanji Zoë, but regardless, Levi stepped up on his tiptoes and kissed Hanji.

She was surprised at first, that was obvious. But her arms eventually slid around Levi's neck, and her eyelashes fluttered on his cheeks. Levi could feel his stomach churning, like there was a mild shock going through his entire torso for the entirety of the kiss.

When they broke away, Hanji was solemn for once. Her eyes were glistening, and she looked at Levi full on, like she had just really noticed Levi, and that he was there. She never looked at anyone with complete attention, her attention was always at least partially on her dogs, or her experiments, her past, or her mission. She never fully thought about one thing. But now she was. And that one thing was Levi.

"To the future," Levi whispered.

"To the future," Hanji whispered back, her voice cracking.

But of course relationships between officers in their military district were strictly forbidden, and of course it was Levi's own misfortune to fall in love with his closest colleague, and someone who he had to see her every day, and live in her dormitory. Levi cursed his luck.