Blood (Levi x Reader)

34. ** Determination **

Following the standard debrief with Commander Pixis and Commander Erwin once we returned to Trost, Levi and I received a warm welcome from our Squad, inquiring anxiously about their good friend Historia. I, of course, was exhausted from our travel, while Levi bitched over the state of the barracks.

"I leave for less than a fucking week, and this whole place goes to shit. As of this moment, you're all on cleaning duty, and I don't want to see any of you brats in the Mess Hall until it's spotless. Now, go!"

I stifled a laugh, quite humored by the sight of such skilled fighters scattering so quickly in intimidation. With a sigh, I turned to make my way to my room where I desperately wanted to flop into bed and sleep. However, I was met with a rather unimpressed expression resting upon Levi's face. Slightly confused and taken aback, I began to sidestep around him, but he slid over, continuing to block my path as he began rolling up his sleeves.

"What the hell, Levi? I'm trying to get to my room."

"Did I stutter?"

"What?"

"Cleaning duty. As of fifteen seconds ago."

"Seriously!?"

"Unless you've decided to take Leave after all..."

A glare of annoyance immediately shot from my eyes as my nostrils flared with anger. Clenching my jaw, I huffed loudly as I pulled my hair back from my face and shoved my sleeves above my elbows. He was going to do everything he could to force me on Leave, but I wasn't going to let him win that easily. Turning on my heel, I made sure he noticed the eye daggers I sent straight toward him before leaving the room. I decided to align with Jean who was rapidly working through a pile of clean linens that had clearly sat untouched for days. It was something I could do while seated, and it wouldn't take too much physical effort, unlike Eren's chore of sweeping the floors or Armin's task of restocking the wood-box. Jean seemed relieved to have a partner to help him iron and fold the overflowing basket of bed sheets and blankets. Conversation was kept to a minimum as we each concentrated heavily on our duties, with a hopeful focus on eating dinner before midnight.

Although I was slower than usual with my own personal chores, we had our living quarters sparkling brighter than the sun before nightfall. Levi had inspected every corner of every room with the intent of finding the tiniest speck of dust or dirt, but we were well versed in his high standards and knew where to scrub the hardest. After scraping a fingertip along a windowsill to find it void of dust, he glanced back at Sasha who stared at him with pleading eyes.

"Seems you brats finally understand the meaning of clean. Wash up and get out of here."

I could have collapsed to the floor in relief when my ears were blessed with such words. Sasha wailed joyfully as she scampered down the hall, clutching her stomach and dragging Connie behind her. Eren, Armin, and Mikasa exited together, followed immediately by Jean who tried desperately to remain close to Mikasa. Letting my hair fall back onto my shoulders, I dusted off the front of my pants and made my way toward the door, but paused when I realized Levi had yet to move. Placing my hand on the door frame, I glanced over my shoulder to find him leaning against the windowsill with his arms crossed over his chest, staring out at the last remaining sliver of sunset. My lips had barely parted to speak when a gruff growl escaped Levi's throat.

"You're not very good at listening today, (L/N)."

My jaw dropped in surprise to hear him revert to addressing me by my last name. He had completely changed his demeanor around the other soldiers, pretending to be his cold, heartless old self so I would surrender my rank before battle. I could have stormed off and slammed the door behind me, but I straightened my posture and lifted my chin slightly before squeezing my fists over my heart and barking,

"My apologies, Captain, Sir! I'll try harder next time! Will the Captain be joining us for dinner, Sir?"

Turning to face me, wide-eyed and fighting a sneer, he charged me, stopping only millimeters away. I could feel the heat radiating from his skin as his breath fell against my cheek. His eyes searched mine for a moment as I stood strong before him, never once flinching. We were both challenging each other, resulting in an odd mixture of anger and arousal. Stuck in a very tense, silent face-off, I felt my legs begin to tremble. I was dying for him to touch me, or to at least say something, but his stare only continued to burn through me. My stubbornness was getting the best of me, as I refused to back down.

After what seemed like forever, Levi reached for the door handle, bringing the panel back to latch shut, all while keeping his eyes focused on me. Once the lock clicked firmly into place, I found myself pressed against the door-frame and wall, with Levi's hands glued directly above my shoulders. His eyes were now blazing furiously as he sandwiched me between his body and the faded wooden slats behind me. Determined to stand my ground, I fought against the urge to lock my lips with his or to cage him in a heated embrace. Instead, I noticed my core suddenly freeze over with a wave of intense hunger and absolute fatigue. An involuntary whimper escaped my throat as I winced ever so slightly. Levi noticed my inadvertent falter and promptly scooped me into his arms, threw open the door, and carried me down the hall to my room, where he gingerly placed my weary frame into bed.

"This isn't a game, (Y/N). Don't make yourself sick over your goddamn pride. You don't have to prove to me that you're a strong soldier. I already know that you're ten times more capable of fighting than most everyone in the Survey Corps, more than half of our squad! But YOU don't get to choose for just yourself anymore. You are carrying OUR child, who also happens to be MY child too, and I'm not about to lose both of you to something that can so easily be avoided."

My heart rose into my throat as I weakly stared up at Levi from the comfort of my warm bed. I couldn't deny his intense desire for my well-being anymore, as I slowly understood his passive plea. Shifting slightly, I lifted my hand to graze against his, which was still cradling my head just beneath my jaw.

"Levi..." I whispered calmly. "Once the monsters beyond the walls are no longer a threat to this child's future, I will step down and no longer fight. Until then, I will continue to give my all."

Levi stood over me for a few more seconds, silently digesting my statement. Then, he swiftly turned to leave, but not before muttering,

"Clean yourself up. I'll be back in ten minutes to accompany you to dinner. I can hear your stomach from here."