Be Kind (Doctor Reader x Levi Ackerman)

Chapter 2: The New Doctor

Chapter 2: The New Doctor

Levi admits, the new doctor is pretty. Not Johanne Olbrich, but the other one.

The first time he sees her in Erwin's office during the briefing, he had his doubts about her. A doctor from Wall Sina who transferred to Rose, and now wants to join the Survey Corps? What would a sheltered doctor know about the military?

It wasn't just her that he was sceptical about, it was Erwin's entire plan on bringing in regular doctors to the corps and the gamble he's waging. What a waste it would be, for such talented doctors to die out in expeditions, all that medical knowledge and skill gone. Besides, doctors inside the Walls often rubbed him the wrong way. They were usually stuck-up and big-headed, especially high status Sina doctors.

He figures she had probably never seen a Titan before, let alone know what they looked like. That night, Levi only sighed, wondering if the newly-minted Military Doctors would even survive the harsh training.

The following day, the doctor had already gained a reputation in the Survey Corps.

That pretty doctor.

In excited murmurs and boisterous conversations, Levi has already learnt of her popularity among the Scouts, particularly the men. The program of bringing in doctors already caused quite a stir in the corps itself, and the cherry on top was having a face and personality like hers, the perfect concoction for disorder in the Survey Corps. Well, at least to Levi it is disorder.

Scouts would often make excuses to stop by the medical ward to get a glimpse of the doctors, particularly her. Others finished training earlier to see the Military Doctors' training, as if it were the most riveting entertainment they'd ever seen. Was it funny to see them fumble and fall? Or were things really that boring in the Survey Corps headquarters? Perhaps it was time for another team bonding exercise.

He caught a few experienced Scouts trying to help the doctor with ODM training at some point, only for them to get shooed away by Keith Shadis or by that blond doctor that's always tailing her.

Even his own teammates were caught in the disorder, Oluo had already made a big deal about it by cooking up a plan to impress her with his Titan kill count.

"Please don't harass the doctor, Oluo," Petra had said to him once.

"Why is it called harassing when I do it?" Oluo had retorted, earning a pinch in the ear by Petra.

To Levi's dismay, even Erwin had asked him why the Survey Corps seemed more excited than usual lately, and he had to explain to Erwin that he himself had caused this. Erwin only laughs it off and says something about how nice it was to have a fresh face and an interesting topic of interest in the corps. Another victim of the disorder.

Everyone was starting to make Levi feel like he was the only one who didn't feel the need to make a big deal about her. Sure, she was pretty, but is it really something to fuss over? There have been other objectively good-looking Scouts, but none have caused a commotion. Perhaps it was because she was a doctor, and a surgeon at that? Or perhaps it was because they had special training, and three of them were quite loud in the mess hall during meal times.

It wasn't until a few days after meeting her that Levi finally saw her again, properly.

Levi had come to the ward to check on Oluo, who had caught a bad case of food poisoning. That's when he saw her, sitting on a chair as she was skillfully stitching up a wounded Scout's arm.

A stained window lets in just the right amount of morning sunlight, illuminating her in its gentle glow. Her eyes glimmered of hope, her hands bestowing a healing touch upon her patient. She smiles, genuinely, offering words and touches of comfort to her writhing patient. Her gentle features were a stark contrast to the gory scene she's working on, gloves bloodied and stitching up skin half-open.