Hand in Hand

3. Emotional

(Y/n) leaned back against a wall with her arms crossed, a sharp stare fixated on Levi as he slowly walked around the room inspecting the dust on every surface, occasionally looking up at her to see if her expression had changed. Pastor Nick was placed in a cell for the night and was to be questioned in the morning by Levi and the Military Police. Since neither he nor (y/n) wanted to be sleeping on a stone floor they decided it would be best to find a hotel. Due to the surplus of families fleeing to Ermich there wasn't a big selection of rooms to choose from and (y/n) thought back to how they ended up like this.

"I'm so sorry Sir but we only have one room available tonight and it's a little small but if you and your wife don't mind sharing one bed I'd be more than happy to show you to the room." An older woman with a freckled face stood before them.

"Excuse me, but I'm not his-

"We'll take it," stated Levi, unfazed.

"Hey wait a second I'm not going to-

"Wonderful news, please follow me!"

That is how they found themselves in a small square room together. A full size bed was pushed to the wall and a bare wooden desk sat opposite it. There was a small window with a view that let in minimal light from the moon and a large navy blue rug on the floor but besides all that, the room was plain and dark, the majority of the light being from candles in the hallway.

"I'll just sleep on the floor," said (y/n). "It's not a big deal."

"Yeah right," scoffed Levi. "I can only imagine Hanji's hot breath in my face, yelling at me, once you tell her I made you sleep on a rug. We'll just face opposite ends." Stripping his boots and jacket, he nodded towards her. "Are you going to sleep in your boots or what?"

"I'll be back," (y/n) mumbled.

'She's weird. She's so stiff when she's uncertain...' Levi thought to himself. 'She'd be a better soldier if she didn't always let her emotions show so easily.'

He sat down on the edge of the bed and rubbed his face vigorously. He was exhausted. The world was changing too fast and in too many ways but he had no choice other than to try and keep up. If he let himself succumb to the thoughts of giving up that resided in the back of his mind, the people relying on him would probably die. Death always seemed to catch up to the people he loved.

'I can't afford to rest right now, especially with Hanji saying there could be more damn titan shifters.'

With a slight creak of rusty hinges, the door to the room opened causing Levi to look up. "I can't sleep in pants," (y/n) muttered quietly, looking at the ground. "This was all that old lady had so it's what I'm sleeping in." She motioned to the cream colored floor length nightgown.

Levi's lips parted slightly as his dark eyes scanned her figure. The hallway candles cast a shadow that highlighted her cheekbones but also deepened the dark under her eyes. Baby blue lace that tied loosely around her chest reached up and kissed her collarbone.

"You almost remind me of my..."

"Grandma," (y/n) cut him off and laughed. "Not what I'd go for. It's old but at least it's soft. Scoot over, I'll sleep by the wall." She closed the door so that the moon was the only light in the room.

They both laid on their backs opposite each other. His legs were by her head and hers by his head. Crickets occasionally chirped and the trotting of horse hooves on cobblestone clacked from outside. Military Police were still trying to control the refugees.