His Promise [Riren/Ereri Fanfic]

Chapter 24: Confessions

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Eren woke up disoriented and warm. He tried to sit up and found he was being held, quite firmly. He sighed and craned his neck to see the time, but he couldn't see his phone. The world outside his window was dark and quiet.

"It's about time, sleeping beauty."

Eren sighed and angled his head up, kissing the bottom of Levi's stubbly jaw. Levi was usually meticulous about his personal grooming and Eren felt a shiver of pleasure that he was experiencing yet another part of Levi that nobody else did. He wondered silently what a 5 o'clock-shadowed Levi looked like and made a mental note to check when the lights came on. He answered slowly, yawning into Levi's neck.

"Sorry, I haven't slept that well in...a while."

He finished weakly, glad Levi couldn't see his face in the dark. Of course, Levi knew exactly why he hadn't been sleeping well. Silence settled around them once more. Eren felt Levi's chin rub against his hair and the rise and fall of his chest as he inhaled the scent it released; if it had been anyone else, he would have teased them for being a perve, but Eren knew all too well exactly what Levi was feeling. He sensed that he and Levi were both waiting, savoring this tenuous moment of connection before they had the conversation that they both knew was coming.

Ever the first into the breach, Eren wiggled and sat up, almost disappointed when Levi reluctantly let him go. He slid out of bed and stretched, releasing his cramped muscles. Eren switched on the desk lamp and stepped into his boxers, pulling on the Navy blue Abercrombie t-shirt that was on the floor next to the bed. He was almost certain it was clean.

When Eren took a seat on the edge of the bed and turned around, Levi was sitting up against the wall with his arm resting on his bent left knee. He looked so sexy Eren almost couldn't view him directly. Sleeveless undershirts should be outlawed. Eren unconsciously glanced at Levi's right arm to see if the scar from the wound in his dream would be there. He gave himself a mental shake. Of course it isn't. I'm going crazy...
Levi spared him having to speak first.

"So... boyfriend, huh?"

Eren reached up awkwardly and ran his fingers through his unruly mass of hair, not even trying to tame it, and winced,

"About that...I'm sorry...I mean, I just wanted to fuck with that guy so badly."

Levi raised an eyebrow.

"You thought to do that by being possessive?"

"I-uh, I mean, he was so fucking sure of himse-"

"You didn't mean it?"

"No! I mean, yes. Shit. I want to mean it."

"That's kind of a weak proposal after what you put me through, brat."

Eren hung his head and then whipped it up again when his mind processed Levi's word choice; 'proposal,' rather than 'explanation.'

"I'm sorry. Seeing Rushil freaked me out and I didn't know how to handle it. I should have spoken to you before but I panicked.-"

Levi frowned at him and held his hands up in a quieting gesture.

"Wait, wait, wait. What the fuck does Rushil have to do with you ghosting me? When did you even...?"

Eren hung his head again, unable to look Levi in the eye. That hit the nail on the head; he couldn't beleive he had ghosted Levi. It made him feel like a piece of shit.

"When he visited you at the hospital I sort of...eavesdropped...on your conversation. Seeing you two together, made me...a little insecure. You just looked so good together. Then Zoe told me about how he broke your heart-"