The Pain Made Me Strong ~ Levi x Reader

Chapter 17

Y/n’s POV-

     I woke up the next morning when the sun had just begun to shine on the horizon. The light spilled in just slightly through the window to my right and filled the room with soft, early morning light. I rubbed my eyes and stretched out on the bed a bit.

     I felt shockingly more at peace waking up this morning than normal, I took a deep breath in and smelt the vaguely familiar scent of lavender. It was in that moment that I realized my bunk in the barracks didn’t have a window to the right of it, and definitely did not smell this nice. 

    I shot up from my lying position on the bed till I was sitting up and able to look around. It took me a second to take everything in and eventually I began to remember the events of the previous night. I had come to visit Levi and he let me sleep in his bed so I wasn’t caught in the halls past curfew. 

     Finally understanding where I was and calming down, I stood from the bed and quickly made it, so the sheets weren’t left messily strewn about. I quietly opened the door leading to Levi’s office and saw Levi still sound asleep on the couch, since he was so short he seemed to be comfortably spread out on the cushions. 

     I decided he needed all the sleep he could get, so I left quietly, making sure not to wake him. Before I left I wrote a note on a plain sheet of paper on his desk that read, ‘Thanks for letting me sleep here.’ Next to the note was the bag that Levi had been using to pack for the expedition before I had come in last night. 

     That was a subtle reminder that I should probably begin packing for the expedition now instead of leaving it to the last moment. I sighed and left the room quietly to make my way back to the barracks. It was just about time for everyone to wake up, but hopefully no one was awake yet to see I was gone.

     When I got there it seemed quiet enough, so I’m pretty sure everyone else was asleep. I curled into my bed, which wasn’t quite as comforting as Levi’s, and pretended to sleep until everyone woke up.

***

     I sat on my horse, h/n, with my small bag on her side and my gear securely fastened to my belts. I was all packed for an expedition, I had flares, gas tanks, and blades, everything I should need to survive, alongside my two years of training with humanity's strongest. 

     I took a deep breath and clutched the reins tightly. Levi was to my left and Hanji was to my right, but surrounding us was a crowd of civilians wishing us good luck on our mission. It was all very nerve racking, especially because so many kept staring at my Cadet Corps uniform. 

     I begged Erwin to let me use my father’s Scout jacket, but Erwin refused, saying I needed the cadet uniform for technicalities and identification, since I still wasn’t a true graduate. Having a different uniform definitely made me stick out like a sore thumb though. 

     When I left the Training Corps for the week I would be gone, all my friends came to see me as I left. They all wished me good luck and made Levi promise to return with me alive, like I wouldn’t be able to keep myself alive. They all seemed fairly sad to see me leave for a week, but others were excited at my opportunity. 

     When I arrived at headquarters Hanji was waiting for me outside, she screamed so loud when she saw me and basically suffocated me in a hug as soon as I got off my horse. Levi just playfully scoffed and left Hanji to catch up with me. While I was talking with Hanji, a girl with orange hair seemed to be glaring at me, which was strange, considering I had never met her before.

     It was now the next day and I was officially leaving on my first expedition, and I have to admit, I was much more nervous than I previously thought I would be. I suppose I was nervous of the obvious threat of death, but I had promised Levi I would survive, so I tried not to think about that, I was more nervous for everyone else and for the results these citizens were expecting from us.