Third Person P.O.V
The boy laid there, his Messy brown hair covered head laying on the pillow as he breathed in and out softly, with an air of peace and tranquillity surrounding him as he slept.
Unknown to him, a certain person just stared at his face as he dreamt as if trying to crack a code that had no answer. The man couldn't help but smile, which surprised even himself as he realized what the bright-eyed boy was doing to him.
He reminisced on how the boy would make his heart flutter, and how he would flush when he made adorable actions and said wise words. Without him realizing it, he just kept staring at his face, which was slightly squished on the pillow, and he sniffled a bit before lightly sneezing. He blushed at that too.
What's wrong with me?!
He thought to himself as he buried his face in his hands. Then he parted his fingers slightly to look at him again, and he was just as vulnerable looking as before. He then remembered the first day he met the boy.
The day he refused a direct order from him and he contemplated killing him. He was considering it even after their encounter, but something inside of him told him to wait. And now...
He stared at the boy once more before smiling....
I've never been so happy to be wrong in my life...
He thought as he shut his eyes, drifting off into sleep as he turned the dial on the oil lamp, darkness settling upon the cabin room. The only sounds were the ocean and the twos' soft breathing.
-+~•~+-
Eren P.O.V
I woke up with a small yawn, tired beyond belief for some reason, and I slowly stretched my back until I heard a satisfying set of pops. Then I swung my legs around and allowed my feet to hit the floor.
I smiled as I looked around, still on the ship, and then I looked over at Levi's king-size bed, which was empty. I frowned and seeped me hair form my eyes before grabbing my clothes and changing right there.
Thankfully, no one walked inside as I did so, making me sigh in relief, and I looked in the mirror. Because we were on a ship, I was allowed to wear whatever I wanted, but only if it was approved by Levi.
He just looked at the outfit in my hand when I showed him and nodded, but I thought it was nice. It was just black, skin-tight jeans with a green shirt under a leather jacket. The boots were designed for style and running, which made me ecstatic to finally be allowed to wear them again. They were just made of dark brown leather and had belt-like latches that held it tight to my legs, but the leather was loose fitted, allowing unconstricted movement.
I styled my messy brown hair the same as always and climbed up the ladder to get to the deck.
When I opened the door that led onto the deck, harsh winds immediately hit my face, but I appeared unaffected as my hair started blowing in the wind. I quickly shut the door behind me and looked around.
There were a few sailors talking as they fastened ropes and made sure we were going the right direction, to which I smiled at and they waved with friendly expressions. I found Levi hunkered over the railing at the back of the ship, and I stood next to him with my hands held behind my back."Do you like the view?" I asked, and he stiffened in surprise until he realized it was me. "I'm used to a sight like this, I'm just bored beyond compare." He replied, and I chuckled."I'm not the most entertained either." I said in response, and he nodded as we both just stared at the horizons side by side."Don't you have any books?" He asked, and I scoffed. "What? Do you just not want me here?" I asked in offence, and he shrugged. "Pretty much." He said, and I pouted.
We were quiet for a while, just quietly watching the ocean, the occasional dolphin making me smile."Hey," he started, and I turned to look at him "what's it like?" He asked, and I tilted my head in confusion."What do you mean?" I asked, and he shrugged. "To be in love." He clarified, and my cheeks warmed to the temperature of the sun while they turned into the colour of a ripe tomato."W-Why would you a-ask me?!" I questioned, flustered at such an odd comment."I'd just like to know." He said, and I relaxed a bit. "Well... I assume it's when you have a strong connection with someone, to the point where you'd want an intimate relationship with them-" he cut me off."Not like that, I mean what does it feel like?" He amended, and I stopped. I pondered for a moment before putting together a sentence in my mind."I think... it's like... imagine loving someone so much that just their very presence, their very self just made your heart flutter, your smile widen, and your face heat up. And you're happy around them, that's an important aspect. Also, you want to to know more about them and be with them, and just the thought of them leaving would be enough to crush you. It's also when you accept someone for who they are and even though you've seen their flaws, you still love them the very same as before, if not more. And finally... I think you truly love someone when they make you feel like you're home and that you're loved. That's what's most important." I finished and blushed. "I'm sorry, I rambled-" I turned to look at him, and he was just staring at me, seemingly in shock.
I stared back into his steel-blue eyes and flushed red as he studied my face. He was practically a statue until his face turned the smallest of reds, yet I couldn't look away. Neither could he, it seemed. We just stared for a while, the occasional blink the only difference in movement, until a small drop hit my shoulder.
It shocked me so bad that I almost tripped backwards, and I looked around before looking up. There were clouds in the distance, and they were a deep grey, and the captain was currently ushering people down into the cabins.
Levi noticed the urgency, and walked over to the captain."Something wrong?" He asked, a completely different person than the one I saw just moments ago."My sincerest of apologies your highness, but it seems that a bad storm is currently headed our way. I've ushered all of the cabin boys into the lower decks and I have only my most experienced sailors as well as myself up here. I'd also like for you to go back to your room as well, for your own safety." He said, sweat on his brow. Levi made a 'tch' sound before grabbing my hand and pulling me towards the door that led into the cabins.
He didn't let go until we were in our room, which I will admit, made climbing the ladder a bit difficult, but he didn't seem to care. Then he slowly let go, and I almost pouted at the sudden cold that covered my hand when his warmth left it.
I blushed at the thought and walked over to my bed before sitting down, my legs held against my chest as he sat down at the bay window, overlooking the ocean.
While half of the sky was a bright blue, the one on the left was a murky grey, lightning shooting out of the clouds every once in a while, and the waves were more violent as well. I sighed and took off my jacket since it was too hot.
Levi heard the rustle of movement and turned to look at me. He stared at me for less than a second before I watched as he quickly looked back out the window. I flopped back on the bed and stared at the ceiling, boredom making its way into my mind again.
I sighed in exasperation and sat back up before grabbing the book in my bag. 'Love is War' was the title, and I flipped to my bookmarked page before starting to read and losing all touch with reality as I imagined the scenes in my mind.
It was quiet until Levi spoke. "I read the book you gave me." He said, still looking out the window. "What did you think?" I asked with eagerness. I watched as his reflection smiled, and he continued, "It was as fascinating as you described it. I'm just a little angry that that's the only book in the series and that in the end, he died. Other than that, it was amazing."My smile widened and I chuckled.
"I understand you're frustrated. I'm just upset that in the end, he never got to tell her how he felt." I said, and he nodded."Understandable. But I'm a little more pissed at the fact that she never even got to see what the guy looked like, you know since he was cursed and all." He said, referring to the main characters love interest. "For all she knew, he could've been as ugly as you." He finished, and I choked on the air."Rude!" I exclaimed as I threw a pillow at him, to which he whipped around and caught before gently setting it down beside him.
We were quiet and the smile didn't leave my face, even when I was back into my alternate reality. It was pretty normal for about thirty minutes before I felt the ship tipping. I set the book down and looked out the window.
Levi was watching with determination in his eyes as he watched the storm."This happens all the time. We'll be fine." He reassured me, and I gulped before nodding. Then we tiled once again, more aggressively this time, and I stumbled a bit before using one of the bedposts for balance.
At this point, Levi himself seemed a bit unsure of the situation. Then we tilted once again, and Levi fell backwards from the sudden force, and my bed slid around, making me trip on my own feet. Then we tilted the other direction, and I slid across the room before stopping right beside Levi."We'll be fine." He said, but even I could hear the uneasiness that clouded his words.
I held onto a nearby table in an attempt to stand, and Levi did the same beside me. Then, a harsh tilt sent us stumbling backwards until we collided onto the floor. I rolled for a moment before hitting something soft and getting on all fours to stand up, but when I looked at the floor to focus, I froze.
I'm not looking at wooden planks...
With my messy brown hair covering my line of vision, I realized I was staring down at Levi, and my heartbeat skyrocketed, and I just imagined a thermometer's mercury shooting out of the top of the glass container to represent the temperature of my face.
He seemed to be in the same boat as me and flushed from under my body but I was too shocked and embarrassed to move.
But it's not like I want to...
SHUT UP!
We stared at each other in awkward silence until the ship tilted once more, sending us rolling to the other side of the room. I didn't hit something soft this time, and I felt a piece of furniture fall on my body.
I squeezed my eyelids shut at the crushing sensation before it suddenly lifted and I opened my eyes. Again, I saw steel blue ones, and my face flushed even redder than before, which shouldn't have even been possible. He was just kind of on top of my flustered body, his forearms on both sides of my head to keep him from crushing me, and his legs were a scrambled mess around my own.
Not to mention how close his face was to mine, and that was probably the most blush-inducing aspect of this whole situation. We both just kind of stared at each other, not moving. It was as if we had just looked Medusa in the eye and turned to stone, the only movement being the occasional blink.
I couldn't move since I was frozen in shock, and Levi seemed to be frozen as well as he looked down at me. Then something flashed in his eyes, and I've seen those eyes before.
He's holding back from doing something... but what? What is he holding back?
I furrowed my brow, but my flustered features barely moved. Then it was almost as if a button had been pushed because we both scrambled away from each other, flustered and all. The ship tilted again, and I fell back against him, again. He was just leaned against the wall, and I was slouched against him, my body in between his legs and my back pressed against his chest.
I felt the ship tilting again, but instead of the familiar sensation of rolling around, I felt a strong pair of arms wrap around my waist as the ship tilted, yet I didn't slide with it. I looked to the side a little, and Levi was pressing his foot against a bookshelf that was nailed to the floor to push against the force of the tilts and thus keeping us from rolling around on the teetering floor.
We both waited out the storm in silence as he held me against his body rapidly breathing all the while.
The storm lasted late into the night, and when it calmed down and we were just lightly tilting, my eyes drooped from exhaustion. Then, I just couldn't help it, and my eyes shut, flooding my vision in darkness and blurring reality. I fell asleep rather quickly, the only thing I remember was Levi's rising chest moving against my back and his rapid breathing on the top of my head.
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