Shingeki no Oneshot

XIII. Dream (Rivamika)

written on — 24 Feb 2015

inspiration — Day 3 of Rivamika week, Quidam (a. exploring dreams vs. reality)

word count — 745

DREAM

The first time they met, it was in Dreamscape.

        No one truly understood Dreamscape; they knew it was the central source where every dream of every human would connect in some way, shape, or form, be it the city they wished to be in, the people they spoke to, the people they envisioned themselves with. After all, the brain remembers every face one's eyes had lain upon. Levi knew Mikasa was no different.

        Of course he didn't remember where they had crossed paths in real life, but their interaction in Dreamscape was their first. Levi knew his imagination was a vivid one, no matter how bland he may appear in reality. (Erwin may have told him that to his face once or twice; it wasn't taken to heart as heavily as expected, but it was still there.)

        They had landed beside each other on the roof of a civilian's house, their 3D Maneuver Gear ropes snapping back into place. Levi wiped his forehead, beads of sweat spotting the surface.

        "How's your ankle?"       

        Levi turned to look at the girl beside him, the one whose grey eyes were constantly surveying the area, never landing on a specific landmark or location for too long. Her black hair was cut short, framing her face, lightly touching the red scarf wrapped around her neck. Her features were delicate; had they not looked so hard, he would have thought she was defenseless. 

        "It's fine" was Levi's clipped response. That was all the time they had for conversation before three titans headed towards the two of them, closing in faster than either of them had expected. 

The second time they met, it was a brief encounter in a coffee shop not far from Levi's small condominium. He was sitting by the window — his usual seat when he sits in every Thursday — and opens his new read, leaving his coffee untouched to cool down. She had walked inside the shop in a hurry, leaving no time for the barista to greet her as she asked for her order. 

        "Is this seat taken?" 

        Levi looked up from his novel. She was standing in front of him, beside the empty chair, with questioning eyes. After a quick look around the enclosed space, he noticed that the seat across from him was the last. There was no other table she could occupy. He directed his attention back to the written word. "Help yourself." 

        She took no time sitting down, placing her drink on the table and hanging her spring jacket on the back of her chair. No words were exchanged. She held her steamy cup in both hands, looking out the window at the people passing by. Levi continued to read, except for one moment, where he looked at her cup and read Mikasa in scratchy writing. 

        She finished quickly, leaving almost immediately. Before she left the coffee shop, she stared at Levi until he met her gaze. "Thank you," she said. He nodded in acknowledgement. 

The third time they met, it was a brief moment in Mikasa's dream. 

        She was sitting on a bench in the cold, rainy weather, protected only by the bus shelter over her head. Her running shoes were soaked through and her yellow raincoat shimmered with raindrops. She was the only one for a long while, keeping her eyes peeled for the next bus. 

        He arrived with a broken umbrella in hand, eyebrows furrowed in annoyance. Mikasa bit back a smile as he took cover under her bus shelter. He dried off one of his hands and immediately directed his attention to the thin novel he had just pulled out from his laptop bag. 

        She eyed him curiously; she remembered him from the coffee shop. He had allowed her to sit across from him for a short period of time. She knew he might remember what occurred in Dreamscape had she decided to say anything to him, but she didn't. 

        The bus arrived. She sat in the back corner while he sat closer to the front, in one of the individual seats, not once taking his eyes off the book in hand. 

this is incomplete i don't know what i'm doing given that rivamika week was so long ago but hey it's ok here's my first update in like 4 months (i apologize if it's shitty)