Flower Curse // Shingeki no Kyojin

Ⅰ

LOVE HURT. Even more with the disease you had; some people could say it was 'poetic' and so 'romantic'. You could have thought that a long time ago; just because this curse was so rare to have or yet so slim. You had yet to find someone who had this in real life and not in some fairy tales in children's books or romantic novels for adults.

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It all began when you were alone in your office, working on some stressful paperwork Hange handed you to finish today. You were so deep in your work that the knock on the door wasn't heard at all at first— It was at the third attempt when you heard a female voice you knew to well from the other side.

"Who and why?" you irritably asked, one hand on your temple and another holding a paper not yet finished.

"Petra Ral, bringing more paperwork, sir," she answered, opening the door as you told her to come in. Sending you a gentle smile, she gave you the papers and spoke with some playfulness in her sweet voice, "It seems everybody is really busy today! Your voice scared me more than the Corporal, [Name]!"

You closed your eyes and slightly laughed, sitting more comfortably on the back of your seat. Looking at her, you smiled tiredly, "Sorry, Petra. Somehow today we have a lot of paperwork, and you know paperwork is boring as hell," you both laughed, "How is the Corporal? Is he handling this better than me?"

You knew she tried to hide her blush when speaking about her Corporal, but you were too observant to not notice it. You were always are observing every little detail about everyone, even her with no exceptions. You knew both her and you had feelings for the same person, but unlike her, nobody knew about your feelings about the Corporal. Well— just Erwin knew; the man was like a hawk. He knows everything and sees everything; just like Mike's magical nose. These two were weirdos, but great friends nevertheless.

"He's been stressed, but making him some tea relaxes him," Petra gets near to you and covers her mouth, like telling a secret she only knows about, "I think I'm making better tea lately! He's been complimenting me a lot!" this time the blush on her face was stronger, giving you a dreamy smile you always saw on other cadets when talking about their lovers, just like that Jean kid in lunch looking at Mikasa with a cheesy blushy look.

You knew loving the corporal was a bad idea. Levi wasn't that talkative about liking someone in that way. Hell, you don't even know if he loved someone in that way. Yes, you both were great friends, the two of you liked to drink tea together and talk about the present and future, about the new recruits and their skills, joking together or just stay in a comfortable silence. You treasured his friendship, so ruining it by confessing was an absolute and horrible mistake you weren't going to make. He didn't loved you that way and you were okay with that.

Until Petra came and everything began to hurt.

You wished being observant wasn't one of your skills. You wished you didn't notice the glances they gave each other when they were alone or someone wasn't looking. You wished you didn't see the sparkles on both of their eyes. You wished deep in your heart, to not notice how Petra 'accidentally' brushed her hand on his and he didn't say a word. You wished, you really did.

Lies was one of your strong skills too. If talking to the Corporal and not showing any affection or jealously when glancing at their actions wasn't like wearing a mask everyday a skill you didn't know what was. Nobody break trough your thick mask, unlike Erwin. The fucker very well knew about all of your façade, how could he not? You two were close and just to see into your eyes he knew everything.

"Is that so, Petra? It seems like you being the Corporal's wife isn't that far far away..." you grinned, making a cheesy face at her. Only to get her blushing like a tomato, covering her face with both hands.

"Don't say that THAT loud! Someone can hear you!"

"As if no one knows, little Petra. Why don't you both go in a date already? At this rate someone is going to make better tea than you... I'm just saying..." you teased her with a playful smile.

Petra was your friend, you couldn't feel bad things for her. She was really sweet and pretty. She was like a sister to you, and you were a brother to her. You didn't intended the relationship being like that, but it just kinda happened. Maybe her being in Levi's team was the key of that relationship.

"You think so?! But— but what if he doesn't like me back?"

"Petra, love, I'm sure he likes you back," you reassured her. "You really think I don't see how he looks at you? You know how he feels. I know." you thought, feeling a sharp pain in your chest that you easily ignored and faked a smile.

"Maybe I will tell him soon... Thank you, [Name]. Also, if it weren't for you, I wouldn't make good tea! Thank you again for the tips. Levi really likes it."

"You're welcome, Petra. Good luck on telling him, I'm sure he feels the same way."

Saying farewells, both of you returned to your work. When she left, your expression changed completely with a grimmer one. You didn't smile; just stared at nothing in particular. You were thinking on how they would look together, how they would hug and say each other "I love you". The thought repulsed and hurt you; sickening you. The mere idea of them sharing kisses was enough to almost make you throw up.

A pain in your chest made you snap out of it, making you cough harshly. You felt as if something wanted to get out of your throat; but it didn't feel like vomit at all. It stopped when you coughed a white petal, something that confused you completely. Did you breathe in petals by accident? That was unlikely, there weren't any flowers nearby, and you surely don't remember swallowing a flower.

But then, how did this petal got in? Something felt very wrong to you— unnerving you. Staring at the petal dumbfounded, you really didn't know what to think of it.

You just placed it next to your paper, already forgetting about it and keep busy yourself with the paperwork. You had others thing to think about.

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hanahaki disease: is a fictional disease in which the victim coughs up flower petals when they suffer from one-sided love. It ends when the beloved returns their feelings or when the victim dies. It can be cured through surgical removal, but when the infection is removed, the victim's romantic feelings for their love also disappear.

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Notes. English isn't my first language, so sorry for my mistakes. Also, sorry for how OOC some characters could be. I'm trying. ♡