Dangerous Territory

Rosh Hashanah

He returned to his room, loosened up his uniform, and gazed out the window.

"I finally get the room to myself for a night," he muttered. "How boring."

Just then, he heard a faint scratching above. He ignored it, thinking it was the wind. Then he heard the noise again, a slow and rhythmic scratching. His brow tensed, and he glanced up at the attic hatch. Eren slowly walked up to the tiny door in the ceiling.

"Wer ist da?" he whispered. When no reply came, he gulped, feeling hope already bubbling up, and asked in English, "Who's there?"

A soft, deep voice replied, "It's me."

His whole body sprang with joy. Eren leaped up onto the chair and threw open the hatch. A knife was instantly at his throat.

"Levi!"

"Holy shit! Don't scare me like that." Levi pulled the blade away. "What is with you? Do you have a death wish?"

Tears of relief burning in Eren's eyes. "Is that really you?"

"No, I'm a ghost. Of course it's me, takhshet."

Hearing that old nickname, Eren let out a sudden cry.

"Oye, oye! Quiet!"

Eren grabbed his mouth to keep from shouting and disturbing the other officers.

Levi struggled against a smile at seeing Eren so overjoyed. "Can I come down?"

"Yes!"

Eren scrambled out of the way. Levi lowered the rope ladder, and Eren held onto his waist as he climbed down. Once Levi's feet were firmly on the ground, Eren did not let go. He grabbed Levi into his arms and nearly crushed him.

"Ow! Bastard, I can't breathe." Levi he felt Eren's chest shaking. He tried to look up into his face, but Eren had smothered himself into the crook of Levi's neck. "Are you crying?"

"No," Eren said, snuffling up snot. "I'm n-not crying."

"Such a little boy," he muttered, yet he hugged Eren back. Feeling those strong arms around him felt comforting, and a stiffness that had been in his shoulders all week finally loosened up.

"I was so afraid that you left regretting everything, hating me, you didn't want me anymore, didn't want my help, and I'd never be able to tell you how much ... how much I..."

Levi stroked his fingers through Eren's hair and whispered, "Chut, chut, ça va." Hush, hush, it's okay. On one hand, Levi was happy to hear just how much Eren missed him, and on the other hand, he felt guilty that he left Eren so suddenly. "You brat. Didn't I tell you before: don't regret anything you must do to live on. No regrets! Besides, you can't get rid of me that easily, and don't ever think you'll never see me again. Of course you will."

Eren laughed weakly. Of course. He had promised to meet Levi in New York.

Eren could not let go of him, holding Levi as if he could keep him there forever, always safe and protected in his arms. Everything about him, the scent of his hair, the warmth of his body, everything was what he wanted, what he missed, what he dreamed about.

He finally stepped back, and that was when he really looked at Levi. He was so different, cleaned up, his hair washed and trimmed with an undercut. Rather than the honey-brown leather jacket, he had a sleek black trench coat. He wore new clothes, a buttoned white shirt with a brown waistcoat and black trousers. Eren took a moment to simply stare at him.

"New clothes?"

Levi glanced down. "Oh, yeah. Yelena said I should fit in more. My clothes were suspicious, what with those shitty trousers and your shirt practically hanging off of me. She also said that yellow jacket made me stick out like piss in a goblet of holy water." He shrugged off a bag that had been hanging on his shoulder, and it landed heavily on the table. "Your shirt is in there, if you want it back. The jacket is back at headquarters, but I can return it if you really want it."