Swing Life Away [Ereri/Riren]

Unsteady - Part 4

Upon waking the next morning, Levi felt calmer and more rested than he had in weeks. For just that tiny moment of ignorance while his brain was still pulling itself out of sleep mode, all seemed right in the world, like the past six months never happened. Even still, when his mind began to make sense of the room around him - beige curtains instead of gray, fan blades carved out of oak instead of red cedar, plain white cotton sheets instead of deep burgundy satin ones against his skin...

Yet still beside him was the sound of soft breathing and the warmth of another human being.

Eren...he stayed with me all night...

His heart squeezed in a way he'd forgotten it could.

As Levi was sitting up, Eren's eyes were pulling open, a little dazed by his surroundings much the same way Levi had been until the memory of the previous night resurfaced. Swallowing dryly, Eren sat up as well, keeping his distance from the other as much as something within him didn't want to.

Feeling the weight shift on the bed, Levi turned as he ran a hand through his hair. "Hey," he mumbled sleepily at the other.

"Hey," Eren murmured. "Feel any better?"

"A little," Levi admitted. He turned back around, staring down at his hands in his lap where it was still beneath the blankets. "What...about you?"

"Me?" Eren frowned.

"No, the other brat in the room," Levi muttered.

"Oh. Uhm. I'm...fine," he managed as his heart squeezed painfully. With Levi looking away, he kept his own gaze on him as much as he could, a terrible feeling of longing constricted in his chest.

"Somehow I don't believe that."

"It's okay. Don't worry about me."

He couldn't be sure, but Eren swore he heard something of a sarcastic huff from the raven, who swiveled around to see the time. 8:56.

"Anyway, I'm gonna go see if Charlotte is up...get breakfast started..." Levi was saying as he tossed the blankets off and stood. "Anything in particular you want?"

"Oh, um, you don't...have to make me anything," Eren said quietly. It was rare Levi actually cooked breakfast anymore, even on Sundays; they would all simply scrounge for themselves. That was how it was for most meals anymore, though.

"I want to," Levi responded. "We should give Charlotte at least one last family meal."

Eren's heart squeezed painfully; tears stung behind his eyes. "Right. Okay. Anything is fine."

Levi nodded, stretching before heading toward the door. Eren was just slipping out of bed in preparation to make it when Levi stopped halfway through the doorway.

"Eren?" he asked without turning around.

"Yeah?"

"Thank you. For staying with me last night, I mean."

Again Eren's response came without thought or hesitation. "Of course, Levi."

That same evening, a few hours after the sun found its nest below the horizon once again, Eren found himself standing outside the door to Levi's workroom staring down at his bare feet. He stood several feet away, contemplating and tired, a conflict battling itself out in his head.

The day had been one of the easier ones, miraculously, in a long time. After sleeping beside Levi again, Eren felt better rested than he had in months; it still wasn't great, he'd only gotten about three hour's sleep, but it was better.