The Intern

Chapter 27

I watched Armin's chest rise and fall with the heaviness of sleep as I fought back my own exhaustion. It had been an hour since Mikasa had finished her shower and joined us on the bed, and nearly twenty minutes since they had both given in to their own fatigue and sunk into the welcoming comfort of the bed. Armin had managed to outlast Mikasa by a few minutes, determined to keep me company when I told him I wasn't tired at all. It had been a lie, of course. I was ready and willing to hit the bed like a sack of potatoes, but I had other things to do first. A conversation I needed to have before my mind would let me rest.

Because as tired as I was, I couldn't stop thinking about the fact that Levi had hid the trip from me. And even though I was keeping a secret from him as well, I couldn't help but feel betrayed by him. He had known that he was going on this trip and not once had he so much as mentioned that he would be gone for a week in some exotic place with his ex-lover. Or at least I assumed Erwin was his ex at this point. Levi and I had never discussed whether or not we were exclusive, so I could only hope that things were over between Erwin and him.

I took in a slow breath and tried to keep my eyes open, arguing against my body's constant protest for sleep. I wanted to give my other bed partners a few more minutes to slip into a deeper slumber before I crawled out of the bed. Levi was probably fast asleep in the other room, but waking him wouldn't be much of a challenge. On more than one occasion I had turned over in my sleep and dry humped Levi's ass until the both of us were wide awake and going at it. After spending a few nights in his bed I started to realize that it didn't take much to wake him up when the promise of sex was involved.

Which it would be now, if he were willing. He had done nothing but tease me since that day in the shower, and I had been in a near-constant state of arousal for days. At this point it was probably a medical issue, but he wasn't giving in. I had tried begging in every position I could think of, but none of it had been enough. I was starting to think that he was never going to have sex with me again. It was amazing he had lasted this long, considering he loved to be as physical as I was and hadn't been in weeks.

At least not with me, I reminded myself.

I tried not to linger on that thought, but it wormed its way into the depths of my mind and stayed there until I was forced to move out of the bed. As hard as it was, I took my time and tried my best to keep the mattress from jostling around too much when I slipped out of it. I turned to watch Armin and Mikasa for any signs that they were waking up, but there were none. As I stared, I couldn't stop myself from smiling at the sight of them tucked in together. Armin's hand was resting near her, clutching her blanket as if to reassure him that she was still there and hadn't crept out in the middle of the night. He had missed her more than I realized, and I felt guilty for never noticing that he was hurting, too.

I crept quietly to the door and pressed against the wood as I slowly turned the knob. It popped open immediately and I moved silently into the hall, closing the door behind me. As I walked down the hallway, I noticed a subtle glow that grew as I entered the living room. It was filled with a warm yellow light that made the normally cold white décor shine a brilliant gold. Levi had started up the fireplace sometime after we had gone to his room, and he was sitting in front of it now with a glass of wine in his hand and a book in his lap.

"You're still awake?"

He didn't jump in the slightest, so I was sure he must have heard me coming down the hallway. He set his glass on the short table beside him and turned his eyes to me, the brilliant blue turned a shade of gold with the help of the fire.

"I didn't think it would be so difficult to sleep without you," he spoke through a soft laugh. He closed the book and set it down beside the glass of wine. "I slept alone for years before you but tonight I just couldn't. Something was missing."