If there was one thing Levi did not want to do the next day, it was go back to work. However, the school needed him there for a three hour detention.
Throughout the entire agonizingly long session, he thought of Eren and wondered what he was supposed to do now that everything was so different. After the three hours of mostly silence and the occasional necessity to tell a loud kid to shut their trap, he had reached the conclusions that Eren would be monitored 24/7, that he would take a while off from teaching these brats to do so, and that it was necessary to make him see a psychologist as often as possible. The man sighed and waited for the last students to leave.
As soon as the last one had, he gathered up his things and locked the door behind him. Getting in his car, he made the decision to stop at Hanji's and bring Mikasa along with him to visit Eren.
She lived with Hanji now because after Eren's mother had died, Levi had, somewhat grudgingly, consented to taking in Eren, but only Eren. Hanji had later decided that she would become Mikasa's guardian.
The small gray car pulled up in front of a moderately sized brick house and Levi stepped out of it. He rang the doorbell and crossed his arms, tapping his foot softly wile he waited. The lock made a clicking noise, the handle turned, the door opened, and a raven-haired girl stepped out. She looked worried; her eyes were red, brow furrowed, tissues in hand.
"Levi," she stated upon seeing him.
"Eren would like to see you," he responded without hesitation," Are you going to come?"
She only blinked at fist, but then turned around and called to Hanji, giving her a brief explanation of where she was going. As soon as Mikasa had gotten her shoes and coat on though, Hanji rushed in, dressed in a similar fashion, a grave look displayed on her features to match. She nodded to Levi ad hurried out the door and into his car. Levi sighed quietly and followed suit, Mikasa behind him, tucking her scarf into her coat's collar as she walked.
Levi led the way to Eren's room once they all arrived at the hospital. Eren was asleep when they entered, but awoke when the door shut. Once again, he refrained from smiling; he only sat there, silently following them with his eyes.
Mikasa pushed past the other two as she rushed in and threw herself into the chair that was continually at Eren's bedside. The hospital's disallowence of more than one visitor for a solid twenty four hours had let the fear and worry pent up in her and she gently grasped Eren's hand as hot tears began to spill over her cheeks, marking her face with their burning, salty tracks.
"Mikasa," Eren murmured, "Don't. It's alright. I'm still here, aren't I?" He squeezed her hand in his own and leaned towards her. "I get out tomorrow, anyway. You'll have to see me more once I get home." The corners of his mouth stretched upwards in what he hoped was a smile; he couldn't be sure, however. It had been such a very long time since he last had worn a grin.
His half-smile-half-grimace brought a smile to Mikasa even through her tears. She nodded her head and scrubbed at her eyes with back of her hand. "I'm thankful for that, Eren," she stated in a tone laced with melancholy.
Levi cleared his throat and took a seat in the furthest corner of the room. Hanji, however, strode directly over to stand at Eren's left side.
"Can I?" she asked, nodding towards his wrist. He nodded back at her and she gingerly lifted one bandaged wrist, flipped it over slowly, examined it as she softly dragged her index finger across it, then put it back down to rest at his side. Hanji then spoke once more. "Eren," she said, "For what it's worth, I'm glad you're still here. We would all be devastated if something were to happen to you."
"You mean if I succeeded," he retorted.
"Yes. If you succeeded. This is one case in which I'm glad that you did not succeed." She ran a hand through his dark locks; she didn't appear to care that they hadn't been washed in two days. He didn't appear to care that she was even there.
An hour or so passed with Mikasa and Eren's murmured speech and Hanji occasionally joining in on the conversation. Eren was informed of everything that was going on outside the hospital. As it was, only a select few people that he was close to knew exactly why he was in the hospital.
Another half hour had passed when Hanji gave Eren one final pat on the shoulder and left. It was only a few minutes after the door had closed that it opened once more, and a blond head poked in.
"Eren?" the blond questioned.
"Hello, Armin," Eren and Mikasa chorused.
"Oh thank god. I had to ask a nurse three times where your room was before I found it. Are you alright, Eren?"
Eren simply shrugged. Armin scurried over to stand by him in Hanji's vacated space. "What have the two of you been talking about? Has Mikasa told you about things happening in school? Do you want to know the homework?"
Eren chuckled before letting out a breath and muttering, "Fuck no I don't want to know the homework. Fuckin' shitty school anyway."
At this statement, Levi glanced towards the group and instructed Eren to watch his, "filthy god damn mouth, brat," and strode out of the room. He returned a matter of minutes later, a silver laptop in his arms. He returned to the, regrettably, pea soup-colored chair he had previously resided in and opened it. The clicks of his typing took away some of the cold aura the room had about it.
Armin went back to talking with Eren and Mikasa about trivial things that he was sure were extremely important. Eren went back to vaguely absorbing at least half of the conversation. Mikasa went back to quietly holding Eren's hand and occassionally speaking. Their conversation was interrupted, however, when Levi suddenly asked, "Eren, would you rather see a male or female professional?"
All went silent for a few seconds and then Eren responded, "What do you mean, 'professional?"
"Professional help. You're going to see a psychologist."
"I don't want to."
"Tough, kid. Male or female?"
Eren didn't respond. He only crossed his arms and looked at his lap bitterly. Levi suppressed a sigh and went back to typing and clicking, breathing a, "Female it is, then."
Armin went back to chattering softly a short while later and continued in this manner until he departed. Mikasa, however, stayed with him as long as she possibly could; when she absolutely had to leave, she brushed her fingers through Eren's hair and placed a soft kiss on his forehead. "I'll be here when you get out tomorrow," she said. She then stepped away from the bed and waited by the door for Levi.
The man followed her, but only after he awkwardly stood by Eren for a bit and uttered, "Tomorrow morning I'll come pick you up. See you then."
"Bye," Eren muttered at his retreating back.
The door swung closed behind the two visitors and Eren was alone with his thoughts once more.
