Forever and Always

Chapter 21 - Airports

LAX at four thirty in the morning is undesirable, to say the least. It's still incredibly crowded, but everybody is a sleep deprived asshole, not just Levi. Petra drove Levi's gold Toyota SUV to drop us off at the airport. She pulled up to the curb with signs for our airline and we got out of the car. I unloaded the trunk while Petra said goodbye to Levi.

"I'm really gonna miss you," Petra wept, clinging to  my fiancee. "Promise me you'll come back. I can't have you running off on me again. That school in North Carolina was way too long to not see my best friend."

"Yeah, I know," Levi said quietly, petting her messy strawberry hair.  "I'll come back for Thanksgiving, and Christmas. Probably spring break too. You have to take care of Eren for me while I'm gone, though. I don't wanna open a can of ass whooping on either one of you. Promise me you'll take care of him." Levi pulled back and stared deep into Petra's eyes, begging her to answer him. "Promise me, please."

"Yeah! I promise," Petra smiled. "I'll take care of him for you."

"Good," Levi said, ruffling Petra's hair. "I'll beat both of your asses if he screws up. Same goes to you, Eren. You better make sure Petra keeps her shit together. You guys basically have each other out here, and Sasha and Mikasa, but they usually do their own thing. I need you to take care of each other."

"We will," I groaned, flattered by his sentiment but mildly annoyed at his hovering. "We got it, Dad. We'll be okay. Promise."

"Shut up, you little shit. Just lemme get all my ducks in a fuckin' row, thanks." Levi growled, only half kidding. "Okay. I will see you later, Petra. Hold down the fort. You're officially in charge once the semester starts. Eren, listen to Petra, unless she decides to do something really stupid. Then don't. What I'm saying is both of you need to use good judgement. I am not ready to go to jail for murder and shit. I'm too young for this."

"Okay, yeah. We'll be good," I assured him, grabbing my small suitcase and backpack, and wrapping my arms around Petra. "I'll miss you. See ya in a couple of weeks, okay?"

"Sure," Petra sniffed. "I need a fucking dog. You boys are too flighty." She stuck her hands in her Adidas sweatpants that she practically lived in when she was cold. Of course that didn't keep her from wearing crop tops. She certainly had odd style choices. Planting her forehead on my shoulder, Petra lazily wrapped her arms around my waist. She pulled back and smiled, a tired look in her soft brown eyes.

"Maybe so," Levi smirked, taking my hand with his fingers awkwardly wrapped around his bright pink cast. He gripped the handle of his large suitcase with his free hand. "See you in a couple months, kid."

"Yeah yeah. See ya, Levi. I love you guys," Petra smiled, wiping her eyes and waving us as we disappeared into the airport.

Security was a hassle, as always, but once we were through, it was relatively easy to find our gate, which Levi had made sure we had more than enough time to find before boarding the plane. We had an hour to spare before boarding even started, and I decided to use that time to nap on Levi's shoulder. He played with my hair as I drifted to sleep, comforted by the steady rise and fall of his chest in rhythm with his soft breathing.

"Baby, wake up," Levi murmured into my ear, gently shaking my shoulder. "We're gonna get on the plane now."

"Mhm," I affirmed, stretching and nodding. I picked up my luggage, and Levi his before getting in the long line of people going to Denver, Colorado. We slowly made our way onto the airplane and into our seats. Levi got the window, and I sat in the middle. Some woman, looking about twice our age took the aisle seat. I scooted towards Levi, trying as hard as I could not to invade her personal space. I fell asleep again as soon as the plane took off, happy dreams dancing around my mind. About midway through the flight, I woke up. I stayed still, hoping for a candid glimpse at my fiancee. He had earbuds in, an elbow against the window, fingers pinching the bridge of his nose. His eyes were squeezed shut, an agonized look on his face. Very quickly, to avoid detection, I lifted my head from his shoulder and kissed his cheek. His eyes shot open and he turned his head to face me, pulling out an ear bud.