GIVE YOUR HEART, levi ackerman - book 1

chapter 37; reunion

Your frustration and grief simmer beneath the surface, as you rip yourself from his grasp. He ignores your defiance as the two of you prepare for the worst. You activate your ODM gear, the familiar hum of the gas propelling you into the air with a powerful burst of momentum. Your movements are swift and precise, every twist and turn calculated as you soar through the air.

Your heart pounds in your chest as you lock onto each target, your fury lending strength to your blows as you unleash a relentless barrage of strikes. With each swing of your blades, another Titan falls, your movements fueled by the burning desire for vengeance.

Beside you, Levi moves with a deadly grace, his movements fluid and effortless as he dispatches Titan after Titan with ruthless efficiency. His face is a mask of cold determination as he cuts through the horde.

Hatred burns in his eyes, a fire that mirrors your own. Together, you and Levi form a formidable team, a force to be reckoned with.

As the last of the Titans fall beneath your blades, your strength finally gives out, and you crash to the ground in exhaustion. Levi lands beside you, his mind still humming with unbridled rage, his breaths coming in ragged gasps. His jaw set in a grim line as he surveyed the aftermath of the battle.

As the adrenaline fades and the reality of what just transpired sinks in, you feel your strength drain away, leaving you hollow and exhausted. Tears spill from your eyes, mingling with the dust and blood that stains your cheeks, as the weight of the moment crashes down upon you.

The weight of everything—your brother's apparent betrayal, the amount of lives lost today— everything bears down on you like a crushing weight, threatening to consume you whole as you kneel against the cold ground.

"I can't do this anymore," you choke out between sobs, your voice raw with anguish. "I was better off thinking Oliver was dead. At least then I had no hope of saving him. But now... now knowing he's alive and siding with my enemy is even worse."

Turning to Levi, you fix him with accusing eyes, your pain and anger bubbling to the surface. "And you," you accuse, your voice trembling with emotion. "How could you just leave me like that? Without a goodbye?"

Levi's tired, drained form slumps beside you, the weight of the world hanging heavily on his shoulders.

"What are you talking about?" He snapped, confusion and anger laced in his voice, "You stopped writing to me," he retorts, his voice tinged with bitterness. "You're the one who left without a word."

You looked at him with an expression of hurt, "I wrote to you every day," you say, your voice barely above a whisper. "You were my lifeline in that suffocating palace. You were the only person I thought believed in me."

"And then I find out through Historia," you continue, your voice growing quieter with each word, "that you and the rest of our friends had ridden off to their deaths without so much as a word? I'm so sick of this!" you sob, your voice trembling with desperation. "I just want the truth."

Beside you, Levi seems exhausted and devoid of emotion. His eyes are hollow, empty of the warmth and understanding you once knew. "I don't know what that is anymore."

You look at him with longing in your eyes, you sobs growing quieter. Silence settled over the field as your mind reeled, "Why?" You whispered to no one, "Why does it have to be like this?"

Levi let you cry in silence as he gazed off into the distance, his mind a whirlwind of his own. You stayed there for a little while, letting your wails echo across the battlefield. Levi wanted to console you, wanted to reach for you, but he held back, his heart filled with a pain and betrayal of his own.

"Are we really all that's left of the Scouts?" You asked after you had calmed down, not wanting to know the answer.

"I don't know." He muttered. "Hange and them were on the other side of the walls, but there's no telling if they survived Bertholdt's transformation."

You looked down solemnly, already knowing that would be the answer.

"And Erwin..." he continued, "He had no other choice. It was the only way to distract the Beast Titan."

Your stomach churned at the mention of Zeke, regret and anger filling you once more. You clenched your fists, refusing to let that bastard get to you like this. You've come too far.

"What if..." You began, steadying your voice, "We go over that wall, and find that we really are all that's left?" You asked, almost rhetorically, wanting to stay in this moment of uncertainty, knowing that at least that was better than finding your friends' corpses.

Levi hesitated in silence for a moment before pushing himself off of the ground. He held out a hand to you, in which to pull you to your feet. "There's only one way to find out."