Welcome this is a blog which is dedicated to the couple that ruined our lives, Levi Ackerman and Hange Zoe. Blog run by three different people. Enjoy your stay!
So.. I wanna know if y'all have a discord server? Cuz I kinda watch aot too late.. I'm missing the warmth of the fandom, and I really wanna connect with people who ma have the same problem as me.
Oh dear. Uhh well we do have a levihan discord server. Sadly most of its members also moved on so is kind of dead. Unless there's a whole new bunch of you who feel like interacting in this space, ofc you're more than welcome to join and reactivate it!
Check out the Levihan Corner community on Discord - hang out with 117 other members and enjoy free voice and text chat.
hey there! hope you're having a great one :) i just wanted to ask you if there's a dynamic already planned/scheduled as "levihan week" or similars. because twitter fandom is very, VERY active and we want a dynamic like this to participate in, etc.
if not, we want to know if it's okay for us to organize this dynamic. we're seeing what dates would work better, and all of that.
thank you so much for your attention! <3
hi!! omg of course go on!! you guys have fun organising your events too :D the more the better. It's so kind of you to come and message about it sdjfksdfj aw, thanks for the consideration!
If you want a possible date for levihanweek this year uhhh I guess might be on july-august
Hi! So I completely forgot that Levihan is a real ship and was not in fact a figment of my imagination. So I finally realized that I could look for it on Tumblr, and lo and behold, I found myself a lovely little community.
I ended up missing the Secret Santa and I’m wondering if you’ll do another Levihan event sometime soon.
Hi!!! Welcome and thanks for joining! I see there's many people still active in this fandom too and I'm glad.
Will try to organise another event for valentines or easter
Wishing a late but heartfelt merry Christmas to @wanderlustqueen-writes ❄️🎅🏼 I was you secret santa!! Apologies for the late submission, a bunch of things I hadn't expected happened in life so I ran late finishing this. But it's here now and I hope you'll like it ☺️
Thanks to @levihanweek and @alemanriq for organising this event!! It's so good to see the fandom so active.
My search history for this fic includes:
non cringe pet names flirty assassins can use.
Structure of the odm gear
Guns that can fire two shots
How do poisons work and a short research on their types and methods of effect
Can horses gallop through snow?
Summary:
Hange has known her life in the Underground as fight, kill and survive. Accompanied by her faithful friends, she lives it wholeheartedly, while Levi has a normal (as normal as an Ackerman gets) life up on the surface. Their paths cross when Hange's entrusted with a mission by a noble: steal some valuable documents and kill Levi Ackerman and Erwin Smith on the way.
But of course, when had things ever been simple for her? Naturally, nothing goes according to plan.
----
The unmistakable wings of freedom were stitched over their jackets. The emblem of the Survey Corps. Two of them stood down, watching her. One blonde, with a thunderous gaze and large build; the other much shorter, his raven hair falling over his eyes, a deep frown digging into his skin.
Huh.
Two handsome scouts were chasing her through the streets instead of her family’s loyal dogs. Things couldn’t get any better.
Also I wanna thank @sunflowersunite for providing those hilarious but amazing guesses about poisons and assassins in the snow and what not. Their support got me through this haha
Merry Christmas @storiesofaot
I'm so sorry that your santa (me) is late to the party... I got lost (in the process). But worry not, for I HAVE COME.
No, but seriously, I'm really sorry for the delay!
I hope you like the gift!! Happy reading :)
Read it here
A huge thank you for @levihanweek and @alemanriq for organizing this event! Sending you lots of kisses!
Thank you @levihanweek and @alemanriq for putting this event together!
If there's anything Levi Ackerman hates more than rain, is rain without him having an umbrella to cover himself up from it.
"Hey!", a voice calls him from the left. Hanji Zoe, — the one who sat next to him during science class and wouldn't shut up, — he figures. They wear neon yellow rainboots and a frog-stamped raincoat to match. Droplets have damped their short braids like a cascade that weights them down. Their big, round glasses all fogged up and crooked.
They look ridiculous.
Lucky for him, though, they do have an umbrella with them.
"Levi Ackerman, right?", they offer. A wide, wide smile brightens up their features. "Wanna walk up to the school entrance?"
To that, he can't really say no.
"'Kay."
"I'm Hanji, by the way.", they extend a hand out to him, the other holding the umbrella out for the both of them.
Levi looks at them, then at the hand. He notices, they hadn't washed it before or after they played with the class’s hamster, — and so, he decides, he better not take it.
"Yeah, I know.", he tells them, instead.
Hanji shrugs. Seems to them, Levi isn't the talkative type, much. Still, they think, then, they better be the one to fill in the silence.
"So, what's your middle name?", they ask. It's not a normal question to come up with, especially when it comes to someone you've known for an hour or so. Hanji Zoe, however, has never been one to be exactly normal, anyways.
Levi stares at them for a moment. All of a sudden, he realizes, how tiny and constricted the space under the umbrella is. How confined him and Hanji are to this one shared patch of heaven. Up from where he stands, he can see the freckles that dot over their nose, almost like they're stardust. Can sense their warm, batted breath under the cool storm.
"Sebastian.", he says, then, plain and simple. He's aware, telling a middle name to a stranger is not a normal thing to do. Still, he does so, either way— as easy as it is to breathe. He's never known of normal things, much, after all.
"Sebastian!", Hanji tries it out, almost like they're testing how the sounds taste in their mouth. They like the ring of it, — Levi Sebastian Ackerman. It's elegant, fancy, expensive. Like the letters could dance. They also happen to like that he’s been frank, sincere. That he didn’t run away from them at the question, like most other boys usually tend to do.
“Yeah”, he bites the inside of his cheek. They have been walking together, slow-paced and steady, — so glued to one another, their arms can almost brush. So close, dry under the umbrella, his sneakers meet their rain-boots. “That’s what I said.”
Hanji smiles again. Levi has no idea what’s so funny, but he’s too shy to ask. He’s too shy to ask many other things, as well. Like how it is that they’re so into frogs, or what’s their favourite ice-cream flavor. He can picture it being chocolate-chip-mint, for some reason. Their middle name being Amber, or Fionna, or Grace.
“Do you live nearby?”, they go, staring back at him. Their one tooth is kinked-up when they speak. The colors of the umbrella, — all shades of the rainbow— contour the sharpness in their features. They are pretty when lit up like this, — neon bright effervescent. Cute, even. For a single moment, Levi wonders, how must they like their tea. If maybe they’d sit down with him by the treehouse and play pretend.
“In Trost district.”, he says, at last, and Hanji’s eyes crinkle when they laugh.
“Oh!”, they spin, now walking backwards, facing him. Levi’s afraid they might trip, or break a leg, or fall. He’s never been one to be spontaneous like that. “Coincidence, much?”, their voice raises underneath the storm. Feels like thunder against the pitter-patter of the droplets. “I live there too, you know!”
He nods, his lips twitching just the slightest of bits. He can now see Hanji up in better detail. Appreciate each corner and scrap that there’s to them. There are specs of golden that float and dapple in their irises. Their face framed by a lonely red pimple or two.
He wants to get to know them better, after all. Take them to his treehouse and make them tea. Mom would be happy at that, sure enough. Ever since they moved to town, he hasn’t made a single friend. Not even one. Everyone ran away from him, his crazy questions or harsh words.
“I can walk you home...”, they offer once again, as they signal up to the umbrella. “The rain’s quite daunting right now. You wouldn’t wanna catch a cold or any of that…”
To that, he can't really say no.
“’Kay”
Hanji hums. They have already reached the school’s entrance, and it seems, they’re the only two people left in there. A few bicycles pile-up by the bike-rack, dazzling wet from the downpour. The world sits quiet, as if it’s stirring in slow motion.
“Let’s go, then?”, they take a step forward. They’re all too joyful for such bleak weather. Levi notices, when they look back at him, that they’re smiling once more.
“Let’s go.”, he says. The air smells of jasmines, — the first few sings of spring after the taxing winter. He finds, that he likes it being here, — both him and Hanji sheltered from the winds. They have nothing in common but the colored-parch of fabric that lays upon their heads. An umbrella, shared, that has brought them together, — and that could be the start of something. A flower blooming, a leap of faith.
“What street is it?”, they ask him; their pupils big beneath the storm.
He smiles, too, for the first time in what seems like forever.
I'm curious, what was that question for on the entry form for the Levihan exchange, where we say whether English is our first language?
Ah is because sometimes when two ppl share more languages than just english, if op wants it may add a more personal touch to the gift.
When me or some friends would participate in exchanges for example, sometimes we would slide in inside jokes or phrases that cannot always be translated to english.
Merry Christmas, happy holidays and THANK YOU so much for organising this Levihan exchange! You guys are heroes <3
Aw merry christmas to you!!! And thank you so much to all the participants, this would have not been possible without all of you! You are the real heores hahaha
MERRY MERRY CRISIS @dont-f-with-moogles TWAS I WHO WAS YOUR SECRET SANTA ALL ALONG MWAHAHA ❄️✨️
White Berries gave me a good deal of emotional whiplash so I had to try to capture those feelings and give them right back XD Hope you enjoy and I hope that you've had a lovely holiday! 💜💚
belated birthday - SunflowerStories - Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan [Archive of Our Own]
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the
Organization for Transformative Works
Merry Christmas and a happy new year @forrealnotagain0 ! This is your Secret Santa for the Levihan exchange of @levihanweek and I wrote this festive piece for you. I hope you like it! 🎄
Thank you so much to Levihan week and to @alemanriq for organising this event!!
for levihan secret santa 2024, thanks @levihanweek for the event!
and for my giftee @itsnathateasy ♥️ i hope you enjoy! since i'm not sure you have an ao3 account, i'm putting the entire fic on here
title: Numbs (ao3 link)
word count: 6.3k
summary:
The prevalence of Numb Syndrome is inherently low, and affected individuals rarely reach adulthood; which is why not much is known about this specific trait of humanity within the Walls. One single fact is common knowledge, really: as their name indicates, they can’t feel pain —not until they come in literal contact with the other Numb fate has bound them to.
additional tags: soulmate AU, fluff, light angst, classism, ableism, a very specific kind but still, one sided moblit/hange, POV alternating, friends to soulmates, pining Hange Zoë, pining Levi Ackerman
hands divider source
Numbs.
A mystery of old times that persists in modern medicine. An off-putting and alienating characteristic for most people, an object of myths and legends in some rare secluded circles. Most importantly at its core, a potentially dangerous and lethal condition —when you can’t feel pain, you inevitably and systematically lack one of the body’s most basic and efficient signals that something might be wrong.
Hange Zoë has, as a result, never told anyone that they belong to that enigmatic section of Humanity.
Their family noticed as they were growing up, and took necessary precautions to ensure their most troublesome heir would survive that ailment while making sure no one outside the household would ever find out. It soon turned out, however, that the child would find other ways to ruffle the aristocracy’s feathers and clash with their rigid traditions, thus tarnishing their parents’ reputation and guaranteeing a mutually beneficiary decision to cut off ties for different reasons.
Still, it’s not exactly the kind of quirk you feel like sharing with others when you’re trying to fit in. And when you go through some medical training of your own, hungry to find out more about your own condition —which they didn’t, really, because research on that topic unsurprisingly never held Sina’s most esteemed scientists’ interest— right in that sweet spot between the day you turned your back on your family and the moment you felt like joining the Survey Scouts was your true calling, it’s not something you even have to disclose to anyone: after seeing it on so many faces under your care, you can fake pain in those moment when you genuinely need an outsider's point of view to diagnose your injuries properly. And with enough determination and dedication for your work on top of that scientific knowledge, you can easily escape the medical wing after the initial examination and soothe your painless wounds by yourself anyway.
It’s not exactly something to feel ashamed of, not when Hange’s already a pariah for their identity and questionable passions, but… who knowingly has a condition that grants them a Soulmate and still joins the army, right? Who is assured since birth that there’s someone that’s literally made for them out there, and still chooses to run after giant monsters outside the safety of the Walls?
So, Hange’s kept quiet about it all those years, aware from what little data they could gather on the subject that the odds are low that they would ever meet their soulmate either way. Hell, even Moblit doesn’t know.
Well. Truth be told, Hange thinks he might suspect it, but after a drunken night where their hazy memories include their assistant tearfully asking to confirm they don’t have a Soulmate he would have to, in his words, compete with, neither of us has brought it up again —not even after Nifa joined their ranks and Moblit seemed to effectively get over one crush to fall into another, that this time turned out to be reciprocal.
So, that’s where they —are trying to— stand right now: a secret Numb, who can tell they got badly injured enough during the Expedition that they most definitely have to publicly fake the agony they know some of their fellow soldiers actually are experiencing, feeling both guilty and ludicrous at the performance they’re putting on while limping on their way into Headquarters.
“Section Commander Zoë is hurt, let me through!”
Blessed be Moblit and his anguished cry, that compells others to obey even without carrying the authority Hange would like him to develop more —but they’ll save the remarks for a later date, considering he thought he saw them plunging to their death just a few hours ago.
“Hange! What happened?” Nanaba is the first to ask, coming up on the other side to serve as their second brace while Mike walks in front, making way for them in the chaotic post-mission return crowd as he hastily fixes the makeshift bandages over his own bleeding forearm.
“Nothing serious,” Hange replies, adjusting the cheer in their tone so it doesn’t clash too obviously with the unnatural angle of their left leg with their knee and the blood that’s slowly but surely soaking through their pants around that area. “I was just testing a theory about blade placement and things… went South.”
There’s a joke in there about things going in the same direction the regiment itself was following during this expedition, except Hange’s been looked at weirdly before for choosing humor in times where normal people are in too much pain to make silly quips, so they’re going to sit on it and try and remember it tomorrow. Maybe they’ll be able to get away with it once they’re hooked to intravenous painkillers, which usually makes everyone more sensible to their sense of comedy —out of pity because they think Hange's out of it, mostly, but hey, they'll take what they can get.
Every instinct to make light of the situation disappear, however, when a shorter silhouette joins their little pack, arms crossed over his chest and an angry scowl on his face as he takes in Hange’s current state.
“I told you to stop trying to hold your blades like I do, Shitty Glasses. There’s no use changing the way you fight after so many years in the Corps, you’ll only end up hurting yourself.”
Right, hurting themself.
Because that’s something they can feel and fear, as a normal human being with no unexplained magical nerve endings whatsoever. Because they’re not cosmically bound to another social outcast out there that has most likely died of their shared condition unless they were looked after by either loving or wealthy parents, someone they’ll probably never meet whose existence Hange only started resenting so much after they met the most taciturn yet empathetic soon-to-be-promoted Captain Levi who, outside of his extraordinary combat abilities, remains a most evidently normal human being. One that Hange, considering their condition, had absolutely no business spending the last year falling in love with.
“Are you saying I’m too old to learn new tricks?” Hange gasps in mocked outrage, diverting attentions from his legitimate scolding and the perilous path their thoughts were starting to take.
He shoots them a sly smile, probably about to mention that late night —early morning, according to Erwin who found the two of them sharing a cup of tea in the kitchens during an insomnia fit of Levi's and a research-driven allnighter of Hange's— a couple of months ago when they found out that Hange was, shockingly, almost one year older than him. That discovery led to a bunch of age-related jabs that Hange finds way too funny for someone who’s their target; then again, they’ve stopped trying to rationalize their reactions when it comes to Humanity’s Strongest. But Levi takes in the way their mangled leg drags across the steps that lead to the mess hall and seems to change his mind, grimacing —see? empathetic, even when he pretends not to care about anyone— and making Hange feel eve more embarrassed that they’re lying to him specifically about being in pain.
“All I’m saying is, if you haven’t managed to master my technique in the year since I’ve joined you guys, maybe out in the field isn’t the best place to give it yet another unfruitful shot,” he settles for instead, which is still a little bit rude but, in Levi’s language, a gentler remark than whatever else he could have gone for here.
“By Sina, Levi, I hadn’t realized!” Nanaba interjects, with much more enthusiasm than Levi clearly expected. “It’s been an entire year since you’ve joined, we need to celebrate!”
Hange’s eyes meet Levi’s just as a spark seems to die in them at that —to Nanaba— promise slash —to him— threat, but all they do is smirk and shrug as much as their current position allows.
Not my fault, they silently taunt him, and they feel well within their right to do so because Levi had so little faith in them he was willing to bet they would be the one to publicly bring up the first anniversary of him joining the Scouts —which their idiotic friends would predictably make a big deal of. Now, did Hange refuse to actually place the bet back then because that theory didn’t seem too far fetched even to themself? Sure. But that’s neither here nor there now that Levi is the one who fucked it up, so they’re definitely going to gloat.
“Happy anniversary, Short Stack! Come here!” Mike warns, a millisecond before forcing him into a crushing hug.
Hange finds themself chuckling, which soon devolves in to a full bout of laughter —at Levi’s defeated sigh and exaggerated eye roll— that echoes loudly against the walls of the long corridor that leads to the medical wing that they’re currently being dragged along.
“You’re looking way too smug for someone who belongs on a gurney,” Levi notes when he’s finally being let go of, and Hange would fear their secret was discovered if he didn’t look so preciously sullen right now.
“Come on, you didn’t fight Mike on that at all,” they observe with a residual giggle. “Is the idea of physical contact growing on you, Levi?”
“Fuck, no. I’ve just given up on that animal ever respecting my boundaries.”
Mike only grins at him, unbothered by the insult, as they all settle in the queue that’s formed near the entrance to the infirmary.
“Not everyone is as understanding a friend as I am,” they offer, quickly settling against the wall to free poor Nanaba and Moblit who had to half carry them up there while having their own minor injuries to grit their teeth through.
“True,” Levi admits quietly.
He looks away then, almost awkwardly as if realizing the compliment he just paid them, and Hange feels their own cheeks blushing in reply. They mostly meant it as a joke, but it’s true that in the year they’ve known each other, no matter how close they’ve grown —by Levi’s standards, anyway, Hange likes to think— they’ve never dared to breach that famous limit of his, outside of the occasional pat over his clothed shoulder whenever they lose a fellow member of Erwin’s Squad. They have managed to make him laugh more often than anyone else they know, even if it has been more often than not at their accidental expense, and he has tolerated most of their infamous monologues at outrageously late hours without interrupting —usually, after they would give in to his nagging about eating something, but still.
So, yeah, Hange likes to think, for lack of another option they’re not even supposed to wish for considering the heavy secret they share with destiny itself, that they’re a pretty decent friend to the grumpiest soldier in their ranks, and that them surviving this past year side by side is a noteworthy event.
“Hey, Levi,” they call out softly, trying not to attract anyone else’s attention —they mainly succeed thanks to Mike’s current over-the-top moaning about his own superficial wound that keeps both Moblit and Nana focused on his antics for now.
“What?”
They hold out a trembling hand, the one that’s least covered in blood.
“Congrats on making it a full year into the Survey Scouts.”
Levi glares at their fingers, and back up at Hange’s face.
Then, he swallows thickly, like he’s about to say something much more meaningful than the casual thanks they weren’t even expecting in verbal form, and slides his palm against theirs.
Before they can hear whatever he did have to say, they’re out.
.
The room around them evaporates like it was only a dream, and all their eyes can see is thick, near impenetrable darkness all around. Somewhere in the distance shines the faint light of some kind of glowing white tree-like shape, that seems eons away from the oddly comfortable, sand-like ground they're currently lying on.
The first, irrational, ridiculous thought that pops into Hange’s head is that Levi must have changed his mind and tackled them to the floor at their unusual gesture of affection, prompting them to lose consciousness and hallucinate whatever the hell this is —because honestly, it’s not completely out of the realm of possibilities and one of the reasons they were hesitant to even try it.
But they quickly invalidate that silly hypothesis when the odd, familiar feeling of simply passing out —that they’ve had the displeasure of getting to know esevral times through hunger, fatigue or on one memorable occasion excessive blood loss from a ruptured spleen after they’d taunted a younger Mike, who was even more competitive than he is now, into an intensive close combat training session— leaves way for an entirely unprecedented mix of sensations.
Full disclosure, it’s a little hard to identify everything.
The first clear impression, they’d say, would be… stinging. Needles sting, right? That’s what patients always used to say when they stabbed them with one, it’s a sharp and acute feeling in one place that makes people hiss and groan with discomfort. That’s what they’re feeling right now, except it’s not just in one spot. It’s all over their body, like there are hundreds of thousands of tiny, microscopic blades pointing at them from every direction, cutting into their skin everywhere they can reach.
They’re not entirely sure, but Hange would say there’s also burning. Which makes no sense; fire burns, and they weren’t injured that way today. But somehow, instinctively and from their training years, that’s the word their brain comes up with: the feeling inside their chest right now, it’s not hot and warm like campfires during winter missions, it’s scorching as if literal flames had been lit up between their lungs and were now spreading everywhere, licking at the right half of their thorax and consuming it all from the inside out. It's making every single intake of breath sear through their bronchi and again as they exhale, and then again at every respiratory cycle they’re reflexively forced to take. There’s one specific spot on the right side of their rib cage that stands out by how sharply it aches, and if Hange were more lucid they’d probably be able to count the rib fractures likely responsible for that.
But really, they can’t think properly right now, not when their left leg might be the worst of it all and they’re not entirely sure anyone is supposed to survive this amount of nociceptive stimuli. Because if the constrictive sensation in their chest can be helped by inhaling smaller gulps of air, even though they rationally know that’s not a good way of pulling enough oxygen into their currently broken body that desperately needs it for a chance to heal; it doesn’t feel like anything can relieve the monstrosity that’s taken root in their limb. They have no idea how they’re meant to handle and fight against the excruciating pressure that’s coursing through their leg right now, the acute impression of being suddenly viscerally aware of every muscle cell as it’s being torn apart from its neighbor, of every bone shard that’s being ripped away from the now shattered structure of their tibia, of every ounce of flesh that’s been crushed and destroyed by the Titan they fought earlier today, which feels like years ago to their barely coherent mind. It’s a continuous, agonizing feeling that they feel like they’re going to need a while to even accept they’re now able to feel, one that’s so deeply unbearable it’s probably the very reason they passed out, actually.
Pain.
Something they’ve never felt before in their life, that they still immediately recognized on the lowest level of their awareness when they first encountered it.
When they touched their soulmate.
.
“You don’t understand, they’ve never passed out from an injury since I’ve been their assistant, not unless there was some head trauma, and it wasn’t the case here! I hear you saying their vitals aren’t that concerning, but they’re probably dying as we speak–
“I’m fine, Moblit.”
It costs everything in them to croak out those words and interrupt his tirade somewhat calmly, but they even manage to throw in a reassuring wink his way after opening their eyes.
“Hange!” Nanaba calls out, to the right of the cot they’re apparently now lying on and a little too loud to clash with the wonderful concept of headache that Hange is currently getting acquainted with. “Shit, you scared the hell out of us, honey!”
“I’m fine,” they say again, more clearly, taking in the intravenous drop that pierces their right elbow crease and is definitely responsible for alleviating some of the hurt. “I think I did hit my head on the way down before, which would explain my loss of consciousness.”
They throw a knowing look Moblit’s way, and he visibly wants to argue with them on their version of events when he was literally right next to them when it happened and most certainly saw everything —and that they didn't, in fact, suffer any kind of head trauma then. Thankfully, years of working under Hange’s command have taught him when they need him to keep silent on certain matters without asking too many questions, and he obediently shuts up for now.
“Well, there was no exterior sign of that during my examination, but I’d like to keep you under observation for the night considering this information. And I know you usually refuse to stay in, but considering the comminuted tibial fracture and three adjoining cracked ribs that could very well turn out to be bifocal lesions you’ve also suffered in that fall, I’d really like to stress that you—
“Yes, okay. You can keep me overnight,” Hange easily concedes, letting their head fall back heavily on their pillow.
There’s an odd moment of silence that makes them wonder if they’ve passed out again, until they look around and notice Nanaba, Mike, Moblit and the doctor pinning them with a similar perplexed look.
“Really?” their doctor asks, at the exact same time as Mike lets out an inappropriate whistling sound followed by and even less adequate “Damn, dude, you really are concussed.”
That tears a chuckle out of Hange’s throat —one that immediately dies when they realize it only increases the pain in their chest. Nana, as the perfect friend that she is, notices and immediately punches his arm for them, and their tallest friend winces in something Hange finally understands —Nanaba may be shorter than him, but her right hook is meaner than most Scouts’.
Hange nods at the doctor in confirmation that they will, in fact, be staying the night, and the strong-minded forty years old health professional who’s used to having to fight —physically, once, when they were still a recruit and had indeed suffered a head injury that was messing up their behavior more than usual— with Section Commander Hange Zoë for them to accept his care scratches the back of his neck in a rare show of uncertainty.
“Hum, okay, that’s… perfect, then. By the way, do you need us to up your pain medication some more? You usually don’t need much even with serious injuries, but your heart rate is much higher than I’d like without any other sign of active uncontrolled hemorrhage or pulmonary complications of your rib fractures to account for it.”
Hange bites the inside of their cheek to stop themself from demanding he pumps them full of gallons of the strongest painkiller he has on hand at once, tragically aware of how ironic it would be to let their secret out now that they finally don’t have to pretend anymore.
“Nah, I’m just embarrassed that I passed out in front of everyone, Doc. This doesn’t hurt any more than usual, I can assure you.”
The lie flows strangely effortlessly out of their mouth, but Hange can taste its bitterness on their tongue even as their friends and doctor seem to buy it —and they have to actively focus on not thinking about the one person who would see through it and who hasn’t been around since they came to.
“Alright. Then, I’ll leave you to rest.”
“Yeah, we will, too,” Nanaba agrees. “Erwin will be relieved to hear you’ve accepted to stay in the medical wing for once.”
He won’t, Hange instinctively knows. Their oldest friend in the Survey Scouts will in fact probably immediately figure out what happened, and they’ll have to deal with a suspicious look followed by an irritably accurate guess in the next couple of days.
But that’s fine by Hange, because he’s not the one they’re dreading to have a conversation with right now anyway.
Their friends say their goodbyes and Hange manages to smile, they think convincingly —even though Moblit’s careful eyes take longer than others to detach from them.
Would it be weird to organize a meeting so that every suspicious person in their surroundings get the memo on the same day, they wonder, or has the brand new access to the most atrocious type of stimuli completely made them lose their mind?
.
.
The sun set a few hours ago now, and Levi’s steps are cautiously quiet as he makes his way through the infirmary. He was supposed to leave after asking about Hange's state and flashing a disarming smile to the on call nurse that allowed him to complete the real mission he’d given himself for tonight, but of course he was never going to actually go yet. He resists the urge to roll his eyes at how easy he just got away with it and swiftly heads towards the room at the very end of the department before the young worker can notice that he hasn’t actually left the premises. Thanks to their status as Section Commander —and the low amount of injured soldier that needed to stay under observation considering most of them either died on the field or were discharged earlier— Hange’s got the luxury of privacy, which Levi reckons is the best idea considering the agony they must be going through right now when he assumes they must have refused to get knocked out by pain medication they deserve and, in their specific case tonight, need.
His Four Eyes instincts prove to be right once more when he enters the room and finds their open eyes immediately settling on him, and he walks slowly over to their bed to give them time to find and put on the glasses they left on the bedside table for the night.
There’s a sudden stiffness in their shoulders once they’re wearing them and can identify him, one that wasn’t there when he initially came in and their nearsightedness likely made them presume it was only the nurse checking up on them, and Levi feels even more uncomfortable now than he has for the past hours of introspection he just got to enjoy.
“So,” they start, looking somewhere in the space he left between himself and the bed.
“So,” he agrees quietly.
It could be said that it’s cowardly of him, to only show up now and wait for them to start the conversation.
Except Levi and Hange, for as little time as they’ve known each other in the grand scheme of things, have never had much trouble understanding one another —for reasons that are now obvious and should have been a while ago, Levi guesses— and so he knows that’s not how they’ll see it. He knows that whatever it made them feel, they must get that he had to isolate himself when the Incident happened, had to slip away while everyone focused on Hange passing out so he could be alone to experience his own share of it out of sight, and they’re not likely to hold it against him right now.
He still wishes there was a way to tear down this unfamiliar distance that’s almost palpable between them right now, to get back to the usual ease and healhty banter he’s afraid he might never get back.
“Moblit’s job just got a hell of a lot easier, now that I can feel when I’m injured,” they quip as if on cue, unsure but playful eyes meeting his own.
He smirks at them, and one of his hands goes to rummage into his pant pocket before he gets the syringe he just swiped from under the nurse's nose out and hands it to them.
“Lucky Moblit.”
Hange’s fingers carefully avoid touching his as their grab his offering, and although he understands the reason behind it seeing what happened the last time they touched, it doesn’t stop it from stinging a little.
“Did you use your charms to steal drugs for me?” They ask, half-teasing and half-impressed by the fact.
Levi shrugs to hide the slight flush that wants to travel up to his cheeks, and stumbles through a reply that comes out anything but as detached as he meant it to sound. “I figured you wouldn’t want it on record that you suddenly need more medication than you’ve never asked for before.”
The unpleasant coolness almost makes an unwelcome come back in the room at his own clumsy comment, but Hange only hums their assent as they fiddle with the IV line, hooking the syringe into the intricate installation so they can inject themself with part of the product.
“Thank you,” they whisper, sighing as it relieves some of their pain.
“No need for that,” he brushes off, “I had to take some for myself in case I need it later anyway.”
“You’re hurt?”
The concern in their voice instantly makes him feel warm in that way he’s yet to grow accustomed to when it comes to the most careless person he knows always so readily showing signs of worry about his own well being —when it most certainly isn’t their duty to do so.
“Not nearly as badly as you are,” he reassures them, knowing he failed when he notices their eyes are busy scanning him up and down and looking for a concealed injury. “It’s just, you know. Feels worse than usual.”
“Oh. Right.”
And, okay, he was willing to cut them a little bit of slack here, but come on. This really shouldn’t be so fucking awkward.
In fact, knowing Hange, he kind of expected them to brag about being Humanity’s Strongest’s Soulmate, even if that would have been annoying to deal with since it would only have revealed them not taking their situation as seriously as he wants to. After the hours he’s spent processing that bit of news in his locked room, he mostly dreaded finding them ready to ask him all sorts of questions, and he even reluctantly decided no matter what they would want to know he would let some aspects of the legends about people like them go unmentioned for tonight. Because although it’s common for Soulmates to get married in the tales he’s heard, he sure as fuck isn’t ready to dump that information on his best friend’s lap, not when it would mean romantically shackling them to someone they likely haven’t ever looked at in that light —and not when it would mean having to reveal the stupid feelings he’s been battling with for months now against his better judgment.
But Hange doesn’t look or sound curious at all, and it’s much more disconcerting than what he pictured would be waiting for him down here. Granted, they look like they’re in a lot of pain, no doubt feeling about a thousand times worse than he is right now, but the thing is, he knows them. And he can tell that under all of that…
Hange seems a little bit ashamed.
Are they disappointed by Fate’s choice of partner for them? They are the most vocal person about Levi’s abilities and they’ve never hidden their admiration of his physicality, so much so that he initially thought they saw him as nothing more than a weapon. But after they became friends and he stopped being suspicious of Hange showing signs of actually wanting to get to know him as a person and not just a freakishly strong colleague, he forgot to take into account how his low birth might look to them. He knows they’re estranged from their noble family, but he’s also aware that the environment they grew up in came with preconceived notions about, among others, the people living in the Underground, that even such an open mind as theirs might not have vanquished.
“You’re quieter than I thought about all of this.”
Well. So much for not rocking the boat tonight, right?
He’s not really surprised by his own slip up though; it’s not like he’s ever been able to behave normally when it came to Hange.
But who could have helped it, in this situation? They’re so easily fascinated by everything new, no matter how insignificant; except, apparently, their surreal and one-in-a-million chance connection to him. So as much as he wants to understand the social class dilemma, and them being temporarily distracted by this most recent turn of events and its physical consequences, it still leaves a bad taste in his mouth that they don’t seem all that intrigued about it.
Not to mention, his own sour mood isn’t exactly helped by the fact that he’s discovered a whole new kind of pain today, as well.
But Hange looks at him, really looks, effectively seeing through his grumpy front and understanding him as well as they always have —seriously, how did this possibility not occur to him before now?
“I’m in a lot of pain, Levi,” they explain as they push on the half-empty syringe again, giving themself another dose. “It’s hard to talk with a near flail chest, no matter how much I want to. And trust me, I want to.”
“You do?”
He could slap himself for how ridiculously hopeful that sounded.
Except, one: now, he knows that it would hurt which doesn’t sound appealing at all, and two: the gentle smile that illuminates Hange’s face then, like they absolutely heard his hope as well but only found it endearing instead of annoying, efficiently erases his fear that he showed too much of his hand here.
“Of course. I’ve always been fascinated with my, well, our condition, and I didn’t want to overwhelm you. The legends aren’t very popular Above, but if I remember correctly this is a big deal where you grew up, right?”
It’s the first time he hears a fellow soldier refer to it as Above when most people don’t bother trying to see things from the perspective of someone like him, someone from the infamous and despised Underground.
“It is, yeah,” he says around clearing his throat. “Most Numbs never make it to adulthood though, so I’ve never met… Paired Numbs myself.”
Crazy Lily was the closest he'd come to it, he thinks. She used to live in him and his mother’s block and would brag to any passerby about her parents being Soulmates, would claim their love was so strong it had scared the King into banishing them and their offspring down in the Underground as punishment. But she gained the monicker from all the nonsense she used to rehash about a supposed cosmic link connecting millions of people through the Soulmates' powers, and about a global war raging on since millennia that had supposedly led to the seclusion of an entire civilization while the rest of Humanity thrived without them; so, you know. Levi, like everyone else he knew, quickly learned not to pay too much attention to her bullshit.
“Me neither. I tried researching the topic before I joined the military, which is the real reason I ever studied medicine, but it seems like no one was ever too passionate about it.”
Levi takes in that information, both honored that he now knows that, and a little bashful that, like everyone else who's met Hange in the most recent years, he ventures, he never questioned their interest in their initial career or why they eventually strayed away from it.
“No hard science to back us up here, then?”
Hange sighs, visibly saddened at that idea, and shakes their head.
“Well, if we only have myths to go off of, I may know of something that could come in handy right now,” he brings up, trying very hard not to lose his train of thoughts when subjected to the adorable sight of Hange tilting their head in barely contained curiosity. “Soul— I mean, people like us… a few fables mention that we’re supposed to make each other's pain more bareable.”
“That makes no sense,” is Hange’s quick, no-nonsense reply. “Touching you caused my pain in the first place.”
Levi frowns, unable to reign it in before Hange sees it.
“Fuck, sorry, I didn’t mean for that to sound... I don’t blame you for this, I promise.”
They sound drained, and calm in a terrifyingly uncharacteristic way. It’s like the pain is so intense it’s taking every ounce of energy they have, and Levi knows how much that usually represents.
He waves off their apology, and walks the extra step that separates them still.
“Listen, I don’t pretend to know the reason behind it, and I’m not saying it makes sense, I’m just telling you what I’ve heard. We can try, and I’ll stop if it makes it worse.”
And I’ll steal you some more medicine, says the pointed glance he throws their now empty syringe.
Hange beams up at him, eyes suddenly alight with a familiar enthusiastic glint he hates to love in there.
“Leviiiiii… Am I just high, or are you willingly offering to conduct an experiment with me?”
He rolls his eyes at the phrasing, knowing very well it’s been Hange’s dream for months to get him to participate in one of their tests. But he doesn’t bother to hide his smile anyway, because at least they’ve taken the bait and he gets to be useful to them right now.
“I guess I am, Shitty Glasses. What do you say?”
“Fuck yes!”
He shushes them harshly after that loud exclamation, throwing a glance at the door to make sure no one’s about to come and check in on the noise even as Hange unhelpfully giggles with about as much discretion as you’d expect from them.
“Alright, but be quiet about it.”
“Yes, Sir,” they singsong, at least stifling their mocking laughter this time around.
Levi tries to glare at them, which has about as little effect as usual on Hange, and shakily brings out a hand over the closest of their bare forearms. He forces himself to count backwards from three before he makes contact, wishing his anxious anticipation doesn’t make Hange nearly as self-conscious as he feels right now.
The instant their skins touch, he knows he was right.
He wasn’t in a lot of pain himself —although it’s difficult to judge from his point of view— but that simple contact between them right now is enough to completely wipe out any lingering ache in his joints, to erase the simmering inflammation in his back and thigh muscles from the strenuous workout they got today.
He’s so surprised by how efficient it is that he almost misses the small gasp Hange lets out.
When his brain does register it though, he snatches his hand away.
“Sorry, I’ll—
“No, come back!” Hange whines lowly, grabbing his wrist before he gets too far. “You were right, it is helping.”
Their eyes are closed but there’s a pleased, relaxed expression on their face that Levi doesn’t think he’s ever witnessed before, and he allows himself to get lost in his admiration of it for a while.
“Come on. You’re not spending the night standing next to me when you’re exhausted from the mission as well,” they soon suggest, tugging at his arm without waiting for his reply.
It takes a minute to adjust their posture on the mattress so he can join them without jostling their braced leg too much, especially because Hange will not fucking let go of his hand —he tries to find that irritating, he really does— in the process. Eventually they’re both settled next to each other, Levi’s hands resting respectively against their right earm that he’s lying against, and on the juncture between their neck and opposite shoulder as he holds them in a half-hug.
Hange’s content sighs turn into a chuckle, and Levi clicks his tongue at them in annoyance.
“If you say anything about how we can both fit on here because of my size, I’m leaving,” he warns.
“I wasn’t! I was going to ask you some questions actually, now that I’m feeling a little bit better.”
Levi never thought seeing an inquisitive Hange would be a relief instead of a promise of endless trouble, but then again, he didn’t expect they’d turn out to be his fucking Soulmate, either.
They still need to sleep, their injuries more serious than he’d thought —especially now that he knows they weren’t always simply bruised after expeditions in the past, but naturally able to ignore their wounds.
“Not now, Four Eyes. Get some rest, or I’m gone.”
Hange pouts, which was already a weakness of Levi’s, one he’s only more aware of now.
“Why do I have such a rude Soulmate?” they complain in a deep sigh, nuzzling into his shirt and likely minutes away from falling asleep.
They didn’t even hesitate before using the noun Levi has had so much issue even thinking about, and something warm and comfortable takes root in his chest at how easily they’ve seemed to accept him as theirs —even though they don't completely understand everything that entails yet.
“Yeah well, mine is batshit crazy,” he retorts, squeezing their shoulder in his hand to contrast with the casual insult.
Hange’s answering snort of laughter is so soft, it’s almost impossible to resist bending down to taste it.
Happy Holidays from your Secret Santa @theysangastheyslew 🧑🎄
This is my gift to you for the Levihan Secret Santa Exchange hosted by @levihanweek ❄️
This fic is set a few weeks after Belated Birthday Hope you'll like it!
Characters: Levi Ackerman x Hange Zoë, Erwin Smith
Content: Modern AU / Established relationship (they're engaged your honor) / Tooth rotting Fluff / Non-binary AFAB Hange / Swearwords
Wordcount: 6.4k approx.
A/N: English is not my usual language / Huge shout-out to my proof reader Terra @dont-f-with-moogles Thank you for your help & constant support! ilysm ❤️
Hange stopped abruptly in front of a small shop filled with colorful treats and festive pastries. They squinted at the display window before turning to Levi with a grin.
“What now, Four-Eyes?” he asked with a scowl, trying to force back the irritation in his tone.
Hange clasped their hands together, eyes wide and imploring.
“Levi, please!” they whined, fluttering their eyelashes in that ridiculously cute way they both knew he couldn’t resist.
“They sell those amazing candied chestnuts, the best in town really, and I need them to snack on tonight, you know. Could you buy me some while I... well, while I handle something else down the street?”
Levi raised a suspicious eyebrow. “What kind of ‘something else’?”
They leaned in with a playful smile. Their voice dropped to what they thought was a whisper, their breath tickling his ear. “It’s a secret!”
“Fine,” Levi muttered with a sigh. “But be back soon or I’ll leave you here.”
Hange beamed at him, kissed his cheek and, before he could protest, slipped into the crowd.
⋆⁺₊❅.
His errand quickly taken care of, Levi decided to wait for Hange by a lamppost adorned with garlands next to the candy shop.
Scattered snowflakes drifted lazily in the cold air, delicately dusting his nose and eyelashes. With the sweet scent of roasted chestnuts wafting from a stall nearby or the distant echo of Christmas carols, the holiday cheer was slowly taking over him, more than he cared to admit.
He let his eyes wander over the busy street for a while.
A young boy bundled in a thick coat tugged at his grandfather’s sleeve, pointing excitedly at a toy shop, his big blue eyes full of dreams.
A few steps away, a couple was sitting close together on a bench, sharing a red scarf and laughing softly, their cheeks flushed from the cold or from something else, Levi couldn't tell.
He fished his phone out of the back pocket of his jeans as soon as it buzzed with a call from his best friend.
Erwin: Hey Levi! How’s your weekend so far? Are you busy?
Levi: Trapped in Hange’s holiday frenzy. Shitty snow everywhere. Fucking crowded. Your boy-scout’s ass would probably love it
Erwin: So, gift shopping it is?
Levi huffed, glancing down the street where Hange had disappeared.
Levi: Dragged me around town all afternoon, then sent me to buy some fucking treats
He snorted.
Levi: Got diabetes just looking at those by the way
Erwin: Come on Levi! Don’t pretend to be pissed, we both know you’re exactly where you want to be!
Levi rolled his eyes. He could hear the smirk in his friend’s tone but decided to ignore it.
Levi: They're plotting something. Probably buying more junk as we speak
Erwin chuckled.
Erwin: Be nice every once in a while, I promise it won’t kill you
Levi: If “nice” means standing around in the cold carrying a shitton of paper bags like a pack mule, I’d rather not be
Erwin: Never took you for a drama queen before
Levi clicked his tongue.
Levi: Drama queen huh? Well now, all I know is that I’m freezing my ass off waiting for them to finish whatever shit they’re up to
Erwin: Same old story for years. Let me guess -you didn’t want to go out, Hange insisted, and you gave in
Levi: Easier than arguing. You know how fucking stubborn they can be
His voice softened imperceptibly.
Levi: Besides, it’s just a few gifts. And candy.
Erwin: You’ll never admit it but you’re a softie, Levi
Levi: Just…shut the fuck up, dumbass
Erwin: All right, all right! See you tomorrow at the gym then?
Levi: Yeah, see you tomorrow
Sliding his phone back into his pocket, Levi adjusted his scarf and scanned the crowd again.
His fingers clutched at the bag holding the sweetmeats, and the corners of his lips twitched upward when the thought of Hange’s happy grin crossed his mind.
He glanced down the street again, finally spotting Hange weaving through the crowd, a red bag in their hand.
“What took you so long?” he asked gruffly as they finally joined him.
Hange plucked the bag of candy from him with a wink but didn’t reply.
“Thanks, Levi. These are gonna be perfect for our Hallmark movie night.”
“Yeah, yeah. Let’s go before you get any more stupid ideas,” he muttered, falling into step beside them.
Hange looped their arm through his, chattering away about the movies they had already picked for later.
⋆⁺₊❅.
The cold bit at their cheeks as they strolled through the snowy streets, their breath fogging in the crisp air. Twinkling lights lined the rooftops and shop windows, reflecting off the icy sidewalks.
Hange clung to Levi, their boots crunching in the snow. They had forgotten their mittens back home -again- but they were bundled in their usual chaotic style -layers upon layers of mismatched clothes topped with an absurdly fluffy, reindeer-themed hat. Its floppy antlers bobbed with every enthusiastic step.
He gave their head a flat look and tugged at the ear flaps. “That crap on your head looks ridiculous.”
“You mean ridiculously warm!” Hange replied with enthusiasm. “You’re just jealous you don’t have one.”
“Over my dead body,” he deadpanned.
Hange laughed, a boisterous, cheerful sound that always stirred something warm in his chest.
His gloved hand tightened slightly around theirs, his fingers curling to shield them from the cold, his thumb brushing the ring on their finger.
“Do you think Moblit will like the sketchbook? The leather cover is so beautiful.”
“It’ll suit him,” Levi said. His tone was flat, but Hange caught the faint note of approval.
“I can’t wait to hang the ornament we picked! It’s so pretty!”
“Should stop swinging your shopping bags then for fuck’s sake, Four-Eyes. Y’gonna break it before it even makes it to the tree.”
“Ok, I'll stop, I promise, Shorty!”
They turned their face toward the glowing shop windows, cheeks and nose pink from the cold. They beamed as they took in the festive decor.
“Isn’t this the best time of year? Just look at all these lights, Levi!”
He grunted but his pace slowed to keep in step with them.
“Not bad,” he conceded.
⋆⁺₊❅.
They strolled at a leisurely pace, Hange darting from one shop window to the next, their excitement bubbling over in a string of delighted “ohs” and “ahs.” Every so often, they dragged Levi along, pointing out the displays -a miniature train circling a snowy village or dolls and plushies all dressed up for a tea party.
Levi followed, his usual grumbles shushed by their enthusiasm.
When Hange stopped in front of a window, he paused, letting them press their nose on the glass. Inside, a collection of elegant scarves and gloves were neatly arranged, one catching their attention.
“Do you think Nanaba would wear this?” Hange mused, their breath fogging up the glass. “She loves practical gifts, but this one is also stylish.”
Levi didn’t answer immediately. Instead, his gaze lingered on them -the way the soft lights danced across their face, the way the sparkle of excitement lit up their eyes. And for some reason, their ridiculous hat somehow made them look endearingly cute.
He felt something swell in his chest, a comforting warmth pushing aside the winter chill.
Hange turned abruptly, catching his gaze. They smiled, wide and unguarded. “What?”
“Nothing,” he muttered, his hand tightening slightly around theirs.
Their grin grew, but they didn’t press him further, their fingers squeezing his back.
Hange leaned in suddenly and pressed a quick, warm kiss to Levi’s cheek, the chill of the night momentarily pushed further aside.
Levi froze, his ears turning faintly pink beneath the streetlights.
“Tch. What’s that for?” he groaned, shooting them a sideway glance.
“For being adorable,” Hange teased.
“I’m not-” he started, but the words caught in his throat as Hange squeezed his hand and kissed him briefly on the lips this time, their laughter ringing softly in the frosty air.
He sighed, shaking his head, but his lips twitched ever so slightly. The warmth from their kiss lingered, spreading through his chest.
“Come on,” he said, his voice softening. “Gotta walk or we’ll freeze to death.”
Hange laughed again, their breath clouding between them, and let Levi tug them away from the window.
“I hope Erwin’s going to like the book,” Hange said. “He always had a soft spot for poetry.”
“He’d better,” Levi muttered. “You spent twenty minutes debating between that and the essay about war strategy.”
“It was a tough choice!” Hange defended, their voice rising in mock indignation. “You can’t rush picking a gift for a friend, Levi.”
“Pretty sure he’ll just squeeze it in his shelf,” Levi shot back, but there was no bite to his words.
Hange laughed, turning to face him as they walked backward, gesturing animatedly. “You’re so-”
Their words cut off abruptly as their foot caught a patch of hidden ice. They yelped, arms flailing, but before they could hit the ground, Levi moved instinctively, catching them in one swift motion.
“Hange-” Levi uttered in a breath as he steadied them against his chest, his arms wrapping protectively around their waist.
For a moment, Hange had frozen, their hand clutching at their coat near the middle of their body as they regained their balance. Their face had paled slightly, but they quickly managed a shaky laugh, brushing it off. “That was close.”
Levi’s brows furrowed with concern as he studied their face.
“I’m fine,” Hange said quickly, their voice a little too light as they straightened up. A faint, sheepish smile crossed their lips, but their usual energy seemed slightly subdued. “Guess I got distracted.”
Levi didn’t look convinced. His grip lingered for a bit longer, his concerned gaze flicking over them before he finally let go.
“Watch where you’re stepping next time, idiot,” he scolded, though his voice lacked its usual sharpness.
Hange gave a small nod, glancing away as if to gather themself. Levi’s focus shifted briefly, catching the warm glow spilling out from a nearby window.
“Look,” he said quietly, gesturing with a tilt of his head.
Hange turned, realizing they were standing directly in front of the café where their first date had taken place. Its golden light spilled out onto the snow-covered street, just as inviting as it had been back then.
“You think they still have those weird drinks on the menu?”
Hange’s eyes lit up. “You mean the one with cinnamon and hot peppers? I’m still convinced it was a prank to be honest.”
Hange laughed, their breath misting in the cold air. “Well, I’m freezing and I’m sure you too. Since we’re here, might as well go inside.”
⋆⁺₊❅.
The door jingled as they entered, welcomed by the cheerful chatter and the clink of cups. The warmth of the café enveloped them instantly. It was crowded, but not enough to stop Hange from spotting their old table near the window.
Without hesitation, they started weaving through the maze of chairs and patrons. “I call dibs on the table!”
“Wait, there are still cups on it-” Levi tried to protest.
But Hange was already sliding into the booth, grinning as they sat down. “It’s the same table, Levi. We have to sit here.”
Levi frowned, glancing at the mess of empty cups and stained napkins left by the previous customers. “Really? Looks like it’s been hit by a tornado.”
“Don’t be such a grump.” Hange grinned, shoving their paper bags under the table. “Come on, it’s the perfect spot. It’s nostalgic!”
Levi sighed, but despite his grumbling, he sat down on the chair across from them.
“Nostalgic my ass.”
Levi got rid of his coat and scarf, folding them in a neat pile beside Hange.
His eye twitched as he looked at the scattered cups, their contents long gone but the mess still there. He let out a heavy sigh and immediately started to gather the dirty cups, sliding them to the side.
“Levi, seriously? It’s not like anyone cares,” Hange said, watching him with an amused grin as he stacked the cups into a pile.
“Well, I care,” he muttered, flicking a napkin out of the way. He wrinkled his nose. “It’s disgusting.”
Hange leaned back in their seat, watching the subtle twitch of Levi’s fingers as he rearranged everything to his liking. “You’re the only person I know who would willingly clean up after strangers in a café.”
“I’m not cleaning,” he grumbled. “Just... organizing.”
Before he could finish, the waitress arrived, smiling brightly as she swept the mess away effortlessly. “I’ll get these for you,” she said, flashing them a warm look.
Levi barely glanced up, his face already in its signature scowl. “Fucking finally,” he groaned under his breath.
The waitress wiped the table down, handing them menus with a cheerful “Here you go!” before turning to leave.
Hange chuckled. “You’re such a clean freak, you know.”
“Obviously not, since I live with a slob,” Levi muttered. “Just didn’t want to sit at a garbage dump.”
Hange tugged off their ridiculous hat, letting out a satisfied sigh. But when they ran a hand through their hair, Levi couldn't help but snort.
“Now your hair looks even worse than your hat,” he muttered, leaning back in his seat.
Hange chuckled. “Hey, no need to be so mean.”
Levi just clicked his tongue in response, casting an unimpressed glance at the wild mass of hair.
Hange raised an eyebrow. “What, you don’t think it’s cute?”
Levi didn’t answer, but he stood abruptly, pushing his chair back with a scrape. Unexpectedly, he leaned over the table, reaching for their hair. With soft, careful gestures, he began to smooth out the tangles, his fingers gently carding through the tousled locks.
Hange blinked in surprise at the unusual display, but as Levi’s focused expression softened, a real smile spread across their face -genuine and bright, something that lit up their eyes.
Levi’s nose and cheeks were flushed, his ears red from the cold -though Hange couldn’t help but hope the icy weather was not the only cause. They felt a wave of affection surge through them, their heart beating a little faster as they watched him.
“You’re cute, you know that?” Hange said softly, barely a whisper, as they let their smile widen.
Levi, completely unaware of the adoration in their gaze, mumbled something that sounded like a protest but didn’t pull away.
Just as he tucked a strand of hair behind Hange’s ear, the waitress came back to their table with a bright smile.
“Well, aren’t you two the cutest lovebirds,” she said, teasing, as she set a small notepad down the table.
Hange giggled at the nickname.
“Lovebirds? How sweet!” they cooed, their face lighting up.
Levi, on the other hand, was clearly annoyed.
“Lovebirds? What the hell?” He grumbled under his breath. “What are we, spotty teens?”
“Oh, sorry, I didn’t mea-,” the waitress started.
Hange kicked Levi’s ankle under the table and smiled brightly at the waitress. “Don’t mind Mr. Grumpy Pants,” they said with a chuckle. “He's a decent little dude once you get to know him.”
Levi let out an exaggerated sigh, but Hange could see the faintest hint of a smile tugging at his lips.
The waitress scribbled down their orders. “I’ll be right back with your drinks.”
As she turned and walked away, Hange and Levi locked eyes, reaching out over the table to intertwine their fingers.
It seemed it had been ages since their first date. Yet, in this very moment, in this very place, everything just felt the same as it had that day.
The golden warmth of the fall afternoon sun bathed the café in a welcoming atmosphere. Outside, the air was crisp, with a faint chill that only seemed to make the cozy place more enjoyable.
Levi had been sitting at a small table by the window for a while now, his expression unreadable, but his gaze soft as he stared outside.
Along the street, beeches and pin oaks were shedding their leaves, fiery reds, oranges, and yellows drifting down in the cold wind to the sidewalk below. A few passers-by, wrapped in their jackets, occasionally paused to admire the beautiful display of fall colors. Levi’s eyes briefly lingered on them in the same detached way he observed everything around him.
Only a few customers were scattered throughout the quiet café. The smell of freshly brewed coffee and warm pastries wafted to him from time to time.
Levi looked effortlessly handsome, in his simple but elegant outfit, his well-cut jacket fitting him just right.
He glanced at his watch for the third time since he arrived and sighed.
He leaned back in his seat and grabbed the menu, his gaze momentarily shifting to the words printed on it. He wasn’t hungry, not really, but the menu offered a distraction while he waited.
As he scanned the list, he remained blissfully unaware of the admiring glances exchanged between the waitress and the cashier girl, both of them casting furtive looks at him from behind the counter.
The café’s door swung open in a burst. Levi jolted in his seat, startled by the sudden ringing of the bell, and his eyes immediately shot up from the menu.
Hange.
A gust of cold air followed them as they stepped in with sparkling energy. A whirlwind.
Their messy hair fluffed by the wind and a wide smile on their lively face, they bounced into the café and scanned the room with excitement.
The waitress and cashier exchanged a quick, amused glance before giggling softly, their eyes trailing over Hange’s disheveled state.
Levi, however, frowned as he watched them, his eyes narrowing at the sight of Hange’s hair sticking out in every direction.
As Hange spotted Levi at the table and waved at him, their smile widening, the girls’ mouths dropped open in surprise.
Their eyes flicked between the two of them, slowly realizing that this was the person Levi had been waiting for. It hit them both at once, their expressions shifting from curiosity to astonishment as they witnessed the connection between Levi, who seemed so quiet and composed, and the exuberant person now making their way toward him.
Hange almost tripped over their own feet as they made their way to Levi’s table, narrowly catching themself before they stumbled. They plopped down dramatically into the seat across from him, speaking loudly as though the entire café needed to hear.
"Sorry I’m late! The wind’s insane today," Hange said in an animated tone.
Levi didn’t reply immediately, but a hint of disapproval flickered in his eyes as he took in their unkempt state, spotting leaves stuck in their wild hair, a tangled mess of autumn colors.
Completely oblivious to their own disarray -and to Levi’s softening gaze- Hange reached into their pocket, pulling out a heart-shaped golden leaf and holding it out to Levi with a grin.
“For you!”
Levi took the leaf, his expression neutral.
“You’re a mess,” he muttered, “and you’re late.”
"So sorry to be late but those leaves are so pretty! I had to find the perfect one for you! You see, the heart shape? This is basically nature’s way of blessing our date.”
Levi looked down at the leaf in his hand, then back up at Hange, his lips twitching ever so slightly as if he held back a smile.
The waitress joined them as he thanked Hange for their unusual gift.
Hange leaned forward to make their order. “I’ll have the pumpkin chai latte, with extra sugar and extra whipped cream, and, oh! Do you have any sprinkles?”
They looked at the waitress with wide, sparkling eyes.
Levi didn’t even blink as he ordered, “Black tea. No sugar.”
Hange raised an eyebrow. “Seriously? You're just gonna drink... sadness in a cup?”
Levi glanced at them, trying his best to suppress the slight irritation creeping into his voice. “Says the one ordering dessert instead of coffee.”
“Oh, come on! It's fall! It’s a vibe!" Hange insisted, grinning. "What’s better in life than whipped cream and sprinkles?”
Levi scoffed, shaking his head. “Not getting diabetes every time you drink coffee?”
“Just let me enjoy my dose of comfort while you sip your bland, depressing beverage,” Hange teased.
Their drinks arrived shortly and Hange started to tell one of their passionate stories, waving their arms dramatically. “Okay, so the other day I was reading this book about quantum physics and-”
Levi listened quietly, drinking in their animated features as he took a careful sip of his hot tea.
“-it’s fascinating!” Hange continued, oblivious to his lingering gaze. “So, what if we could shift our density to one similar to gas and phase through walls?”
Levi rolled his eyes. ”Who the hell would care about something that useless?”
Hange grinned widely. “Well, I find it fascinating. And fun! What about you, huh? What’s your idea of fun?”
“I don’t know… Cleaning, maybe…”
Hange chuckled, but before they could reply, Levi reached across the table, his fingers brushing through their tousled hair. “Got a leaf in your hair,” he whispered.
He gently pulled the golden leaf from the mess of hair, his touch surprisingly delicate, as though he had done this a hundred times before.
Hange froze, blinking up at him, caught off guard by the sudden attention. Their heartbeat quickened. He had never been so close to them, and this all felt somewhat… intimate.
Totally unaware of the effect his small gesture had, Levi sat back to sip his tea.
A blush crept up their neck, but before overthinking Levi’s gesture, they cleared their throat and went back to their story, gesturing wildly as if nothing had happened.
“So, yeah, imagine if we could just phase through walls! The possibilities would be endless!”
Eager to return to their usual chatter, Hange went on blabbering about physics with animated gestures until their hand, in the middle of their rambling, swept across the table, knocking their pumpkin chai latte off.
The drink toppled over, splashing onto the table and spilling across Hange’s sleeve.
“Oh, crap!” Hange grabbed a napkin and immediately started scrambling to clean up the mess, though all they were really doing was spreading the stain.
Levi sighed, pushing his tea aside, then reached into his pocket for his neatly folded handkerchief. Without a word, he slid it across the table toward them.
Hange looked at the handkerchief before meeting Levi’s eyes with a sheepish grin.
“Oh, I’m so sorry, Levi, I swear I’m not usually this clumsy-"
Clearly not convinced, Levi raised an eyebrow.
“And I don't want to ruin your handkerchief.”
“Don’t bother. You’ll probably spill something else on it anyway,” he deadpanned.
Hange chuckled nervously. "Fair enough… I’ll wash it and return it, of course."
Levi leaned back in his chair as Hange wiped their sleeve, and his gaze briefly drifted out of the window, his fingers tracing lightly the rim of his cup. He thought of Erwin, who had been so sure he would get along with Hange.
"Seriously, Levi," Erwin had said a week ago, when Levi hesitated, "I can tell you two are going to hit it off. Just say yes to the invite. You’ll be glad you did."
Levi had been annoyed by the unsolicited advice at the time, but now, as he looked at Hange across from him, he told himself that maybe… Well, maybe Erwin had been right.
His hand brushed against Hange’s briefly as they both reached for the napkins at the same time. A small spark of warmth radiated from the touch.
He glanced over at Hange, still too caught up in cleaning the last traces of whipped cream from their earlier mishap. Levi would probably never admit it aloud, but Erwin was right. He was glad he had said yes.
The conversation resumed, Hange trying to act like they weren't mortified over the spill.
When the waitress returned to clean the table, she winked at the cashier girl who stood by the counter, both of them exchanging a knowing look before focusing on their task.
They had noticed the soft way Levi and Hange’s eyes lingered on each other, the small, unspoken moments that they weren’t quite aware of -the way Levi’s hand brushed Hange’s, how Hange’s smile widened when their eyes met.
It was obvious that something was shifting between the two.
The waitress quickly cleared the last of the napkins and mugs, trying to remain professional, but a small, amused smile tugged at the corners of her lips.
When she reached the counter, the cashier girl leaned over, still watching the couple from afar. “Something’s going on, huh?” she murmured.
The waitress shook her head with a chuckle. “They don’t even know it yet.”
Hange pushed their chair back abruptly, their usual whirlwind energy somewhat coming back. “Let’s go for a walk,” they proposed, tugging at their coat. “I know a park nearby.”
“Ok,” he muttered, rising to go and pay the check.
Levi soon reached the counter and handed over the cash, his eyes drifting toward Hange as the cashier counted out his change. They were near the door, fumbling with their scarf as it caught awkwardly in their coat. However, their smile, bright and unbothered, lit up their face.
He turned away, walking a few paces to the side to slip his wallet back into his pocket.
His fingers brushed the soft edges of the leaf Hange had given him earlier. The absurdity of it -a heart-shaped leaf, of all things, really?- should have annoyed him. But instead, he felt an unfamiliar warmth bloom in his chest.
“They’re cute together,” the cashier whispered as he put on his gloves.
“Definitely mismatched,” the waitress murmured, lowering her voice. “But, somehow, it works. He’s all gruff and serious and handsome; and they’re... well...”
Levi caught enough of their comments to make his brow twitch.
The waitress smirked. “Maybe he has a thing for chaos.”
“The way he’s watching them?” the cashier continued,”Bet he doesn’t even realize he’s totally smitten.”
The word made Levi’s jaw tighten. He wrapped his scarf around his neck and turned abruptly toward the door.
He muttered something under his breath as he walked across the café, his ears burning faintly.
Hange had finally managed to get their coat on and grinned up at him, oblivious to the way he was still recovering from the girls’ words.
“All set?” they asked cheerfully, entirely unaware of his internal turmoil.
“Yeah. Let’s go.”
Levi pushed the door open for them, the sound of the two girls’ muffled giggles following them as they stepped outside.
⋆⁺₊❅.
The brisk air was refreshing. As soon as they entered the quiet park, Hange veered off the path, scanning the ground. They crouched to pick up a golden leaf, then another, holding them up to study their shape and texture.
Levi watched them from a step behind, his hands shoved deep into his pockets. The cold wind didn’t bother him when a faint warmth crept up his neck as he observed their overwhelming, almost childish enthusiasm. It was chaotic, messy, yet oddly endearing.
They reached a small pond and Hange stopped, gazing at their reflection in the water with an unusual frown.
“I’m terrible at this,” they said suddenly, breaking the silence. “Dating, I mean. I’m... too much. People don’t usually stick around.”
Levi stopped beside them, glancing at their solemn expression before speaking in a gentle tone. “Maybe you just haven’t met someone who can handle it.”
Hange’s head turned toward him.
They locked eyes and silence hung in the air between them for a while.
Then, a mischievous smile curled on their lips. “Handle it, huh? Are you volunteering for the job?”
Their eyelashes fluttered playfully.
Levi rolled his eyes, but his faint smirk betrayed him. “Tch. Don’t read too much into it.”
They continued walking along the park path, the autumn leaves crunching softly under their feet. Hange slowed every so often to examine a particular leaf or to show him the different species of trees, rambling enthusiastically about them.
Levi followed silently, his hands tucked into his pockets, his gaze never leaving Hange.
They passed a vendor selling small trinkets and plush toys. Among them, a chubby titan plush caught Hange’s eye, and they froze.
“Levi!” they gasped, pointing at it with childlike excitement. “Look at this cutie! I need it.”
“A plushie, really? What are you, five?” Levi deadpanned
He glanced at the stuffed toy. Of course, it was ridiculously huge. However, he thought, he hadn’t brought flowers to his date after all. So, he couldn’t do otherwise than oblige now, could he?
When he handed the plush to a beaming Hange, they hugged it like it was the most precious treasure in the world.
“This will go perfectly with my collection!” Hange exclaimed.
Levi raised an eyebrow. “Collection of what? Ugly monsters?”
“Hey! It’s cute,” they protested, holding the plush protectively. “And you got it for me, which makes it extra special.”
Levi scoffed but glanced away, embarrassed by the warmth creeping up his cheeks.
He cleared his throat before speaking again. “We should go, it’s getting dark out here.”
They crossed the park at a leisurely pace.
“You know, when I told Eyebrows I was asking you out, he gave me this weird smirk, like he’d predicted it or something,” Hange blurted out after a while.
Levi side-eyed them, hands fidgeting in his pockets. “Sounds like him.”
“Actually, he told me, ‘Levi would enjoy your company more than he lets on.’ I think he oversold it.”
Levi chuckled.
“Did he bribe you to say yes?” Hange asked.
“All he said was that you were tolerable,” Levi replied with a smirk, his tone deadpan. “He left out the part where you’d try to drown the table in chai latte.”
“So he did scheme!” Hange exclaimed. “I knew it! Not that I’m complaining though…”
Levi glanced sideways at them again, noticing the faint flush on their cheeks.
They had reached the edge of the park when Hange stopped suddenly at the corner where they had to part ways.
“Thanks for walking me,” Hange said. “I’m this way.”
They gestured toward their street, their hand lingering mid-air as if unsure whether to wave or stay still.
Levi shifted his weight, smoothing down the golden leaf still tucked in his pocket.
“You’d probably have tripped and stumbled in the mud otherwise.”
Hange laughed, their voice warm. “Sounds like something I could do, yeah.”
The street felt quiet for a moment. Hange looked at Levi, their usual confidence shifting into something hesitant, almost shy.
“Well…” They tilted their head, a small, nervous smile forming.
Before Levi could think it through, his hand moved, reaching out to brush a stray strand of hair away from their forehead. The gesture was brief but tender, catching Hange off guard. Their eyes widened slightly, their cheeks warming as they stood frozen for a second.
Levi pulled his hand back, his expression unreadable except for the faintest hint of something soft in his gaze. “Your hair’s a fucking mess, Four-Eyes.”
The tension just vanished and they both laughed softly.
As Levi was about to turn to leave, Hange surprised him, leaning in and brushing the lightest, most hesitant kiss against his cheek.
“Thanks for today,” they said quietly, stepping back before Levi could reply.
Levi stared at them, momentarily at a loss for words.
His face burned, whether from the cold or something else entirely, he couldn’t say.
“Just don’t be late next time,” he replied, walking away before Hange could see the faint smile tugging at the corner of his lips.
Hange watched him go before turning and heading home, their smile never fading.
Levi and Hange were lost in their own small world at the corner table, the humming of conversations and the occasional clink of porcelain blurred in the background. Steam curled up from their drinks, warming their cold hands and flushing their cheeks.
Hange took a generous sip of their overly sweet concoction and sighed contentedly.
“This really takes me back,” they said, their voice tinged with nostalgia. “It feels like nothing’s changed here.”
Levi hummed quietly in agreement, his black tea cooling in front of him. His eyes drifted to Hange’s hand resting on the table, fingers drumming absently against the wood. Without thinking, his own hand shifted closer, brushing against theirs in a fleeting touch.
Hange glanced up, surprised by the uncharacteristic gesture, but Levi kept his gaze fixed on his cup. “I still have it, you know,” he confessed, his voice low, almost reluctant.
“Have what?” Hange tilted their head, their curiosity piqued.
“The leaf,” Levi said simply, his thumb lightly grazing over Hange’s knuckles now. “The one you gave me that day. Pressed it in a book.” He paused, feeling the heat rise to his face. “Still there.”
Hange blinked, their expression softening into something unmistakably tender. “You’re kidding.”
“Do I look like I’m joking?” Levi grumbled, finally meeting their gaze.
Hange’s face broke into a radiant smile, one that made Levi’s chest tighten in that familiar, inexplicable way. “Levi Ackerman, you always surprise me,” they teased.
“Tch. Don’t get used to it,” he deadpanned. However, he didn’t pull his hand away, his thumb slightly brushing their ring instead.
Hange hesitated, their fingers curling around the edge of their mug as they shifted slightly in their seat. Their eyes flickered between Levi’s face and the steam rising from their drink before finally settling on the view outside the window..
“That first date. I still think about it often.”
Levi watched them quietly, his brow furrowing slightly at their uncharacteristic hesitation. “You do?” he asked softly, as though he wasn’t sure if he should press.
Hange nodded, their gaze dropping for a moment before they bit their lip, a faint smile playing at the corners of their mouth.
“Yeah. Especially…” Their voice trailed off as they glanced again toward the window to watch the soft snow falling outside. “The plushie you got me.”
Levi’s lips tugged upward as he thought about the ugly stuffed toy sitting in Hange’s office. “Don’t know why you’ve kept that thing all this time.”
“It’s sentimental,” they add in a whisper. “You got it for me and I love it.”
They fell silent, the weight of their words hanging in the air for a while.
Levi gently squeezed their hand and their eyes met.
Then suddenly, as though deciding something, Hange leaned down, fumbling among the paper bags resting by their feet. They picked up the red one, their fingers tightening on the handles as they placed it on the table in front of Levi.
He blinked at the bag, then at Hange, who was now watching him with a nervous expression.
“What’s this?” he asked, narrowing his eyes slightly.
“I was going to wait until Christmas,” Hange began quickly, their words tumbling over one another. “But this… this just feels like the right moment.”
Levi raised a skeptical eyebrow but pulled the bag toward him, carefully lifting out the contents. His movements stilled when he realized what it was: a soft, absurdly detailed titan onesie.
For a moment, Levi said nothing, simply staring at the tiny outfit in his hands. His thumb brushed over the fabric, lingering on the little details -the ridiculous hood, the tiny mittens. Then his eyes flicked up to meet Hange’s.
Their heart pounded as they studied his face for any reaction, their own nerves fraying with each passing second. “It’s, uh, a little… symbolic,” they started, biting their lip again.
His lips parted slightly, and for a fleeting second, Hange swore they saw a flicker of emotion in his usually composed expression.
He cleared his throat.
“You… You’re serious?” he asked, almost breathless.
Hange simply nodded, their nervous smile giving way to something warmer, more certain.
Levi’s gaze dropped back to the onesie in his hands. He clicked his tongue, but the corners of his mouth turned upward, the faintest hint of a smile breaking through.
“A titan onesie. Of course you had to make it weird, Four-Eyes.”
Hange laughed, their shoulders relaxing as relief and joy washed over them. “Would you expect anything less from me?”
Levi didn’t answer, but smiled instead, his eyes still on the onesie as his fingers brushed over it again, this time more gently.
The room was quiet, save for the soft ticking of the clock on the bedside table. The flickering glow of the street lights peeked through a crack in the curtain, painting patterns and shadows on the walls.
Levi lay behind Hange, his arm draped protectively over their side. They were sound asleep, their breathing slow and even, their hair a messy halo over the pillow.
He could feel the gentle rise and fall of their chest beneath his arm, a steady rhythm that usually lulled him to sleep.
But tonight Levi’s eyes remained open, his gaze fixed on the ceiling. His mind raced with a muddle of thoughts he couldn’t quite organize.
A dad. He was going to be a dad.
The thought alone sent an odd mix of feelings coursing through him -anticipation, fear, uncertainty. What the hell did he know about being a father? Could he even do this?
His chest tightened, but before the doubts could spiral further, he shifted closer to Hange, burying his nose in the crook of their neck. The faint earthy scent of their skin and the warmth of their body slowly shushed his anxious thoughts.
His hand brushed gently over their belly. He let out a quiet breath, and started to whisper in the dark as if the baby could somehow hear him.
“Oi, brat. Hope you get the color of their eyes. Or their brains. Or maybe their enthusiasm, I don’t fucking know…. Whatever, you’ll be amazing like them anyway.” He chuckled. “Don’t tell them or Four-Eyes will never let me hear the end of it.”
He pressed a kiss to the back of Hange’s neck, soft and lingering.
“Don’t know how that works but I’ll do my best. We’ll do our best. And I’ll love you just as much as I love them. I promise.”
As he kissed their warm skin again, Hange stirred faintly, letting out a quiet sigh before settling back into sleep. Levi closed his eyes, letting their presence soothe him.
For now, he would let the worry go.
For now, he would just hold them and cherish this moment.
Merry Christmas! This is my gift to my lovely friend and secret santa @youre-ackermine. I hope you like it Val ❤️🎁
@levihanweek thanks for organizing this event!
Meet Cute (But Make It Scary)
Pairing: Levi Ackerman/Hange Zöe (Attack on Titan)
Ratings: SFW.
Warnings: Swearing; Well-meaning tackling (?)
Genre: Fluff
Additional tags: Attack on School Castes AU
Wordcount: 2,1k
Summary: Levi Ackerman gets locked inside the School one night, completely alone. Or so he thinks...
Once again, Levi Ackerman was the last person to leave the workplace. The new hire of Paradis High stood in the employee’s locker room as the world outside ended in deluge. The noise of heavy rain filled the empty room, and the droplets hit the egress window so fast that it was nearly impossible to discern anything through the glass.
The image of the other janitors stranded in a bar waiting for the water to stop invaded his mind. He told them it was going to rain…
Except he’d just lucked out with that prediction. The sky could have been clear and still, he would find an excuse to go home. Alone. It was just the way he was.
Levi started to zip down his janitor uniform with one hand, bringing the other one inside his locker to feel for his umbrella.
“Shit” he mumbled under his breath when he came up short.
As if on cue, a blue light descended from the sky. The whole room was engulfed in black.
“Shit!” Levi slammed the metal door, only to jump out a second later when the reverberating rumble of the thunder finally hit.
It was starting to feel like the setup for a bad horror movie.
Levi cursed Flagon, one of his chummier colleagues, for telling him those stories about the school.
Don’t take too long to leave after you clock out, Levi. This place is full of ghosts, especially at night. Did I ever tell you the story of the student who died in…
“Asshole” Levi mumbled.
***
The cleaning crew had used a flashlight to work on a darker section of the school’s basement the week before, and that’s what Levi was crossing the corridor to retrieve. The path wasn’t pitch black, as the emergency lighting had kicked in, but it was still far from ideal. The lamps barely illuminated the narrow space, creating an eerie atmosphere.
When he reached his destination, the room was so dark it didn’t matter if his eyes were open. Levi closed the door behind him with a click.
“Who is there?” a hesitant voice called from the darkness ahead of him.
Levi froze. His blood felt like liquid ice and his heart started pounding hard inside his chest in the second of silence that followed the question. His breathing picked up.
It wasn’t his imagination.
He shut his eyes hard, taking in a deep breath as quietly as he possibly could, though he was sure his heart could be heard from a mile away. Levi slowly backed up with his hands behind him, until he felt the light pressure of the wall against his fingers. His movements were silent and calculated. He slid his body to the side, always slow, hands always lightly on the wall, until he was met with harsh resistance. He felt around the edge of the desk, lowering his digits when he found the drawer.
Levi cringed at the light noise of wood sliding against wood as he carefully pulled on the handle. From the opposite side of the table, came a choked gasp.
Fuck caution! Levi reached inside the drawer, but the only thing he felt was cold fingers wrapping around his.
“AAARGHH!!” they yelled in unison.
The hands repelled each other immediately! Levi opened the door wide and sprinted through it, stumbling on his own feet. Suddenly a dancing yellow beam revealed the corridor before him. Levi took the opportunity to run faster, no longer hindered by the low lighting.
But the ring of light kept moving forward too. In fact, it seemed to be going faster than him. And the sound of steps he thought were just from him now seemed to also belong to someone else, someone close.
“Wait!” the voice called from close behind him. He looked back for a split second. White clothes. Brown hair all over the place. Crazy wide eyes. Fuck. Levi boosted again.
“Slow down!”
“The fuck I will!”
“I swear, I won’t hurt you!”
He didn’t respond, all his energy on his feet. Running. Running. Run-
He crashed flat on the ground like a starfish, crushed by the weight of whoever tackled him. Levi struggled like a bull trying to knock over a cowboy, to no avail. The weight lifted off of him for one second, enough for Levi to turn over and face his assailant. He was met with a blinding light.
“Who are you?” the voice sounded more composed now. It was low and rich, Levi tried to free himself again. The person above him sighed.
“I’m Hange. I work here." The flashlight turned 180º. Through the yellow stains in his vision, left behind by the light, Levi got a look at the person straddling his hips. Strands of brown hair were glued to their face. Ghosts don’t sweat, right? And the white clothing he got a quick look at before was a lab coat. “I’m the chemistry teacher. And you are a janitor, I assume?”
Levi remained silent.
“I’m sorry I tackled you.” Hange began explaining “It’s just that you were running in the dark and the doors of this corridor are locked” then pointed the light at the double doors not 3 meters before him “Good thing I stopped you, or It would’ve been bye bye to this perfect face.” Hange booped his nose.
“Tch. Get off of me” he struggled under the strange teacher again.
“If you tell me your name.”
He grunted.
“Levi.”
Hange smiled, finally de-straddling him. Levi staggered up to his feet, moving towards the corridor doors.
“It’s locked.” Hange warned. Still, he tried to push them open.
“Told you.”
Levi clicked his tongue and began walking in the other direction.
“I’ve tried that one too. We’re stuck here.”
“Huh?” He frowned.
“It happens sometimes to workaholic idiots who don’t know when to clock out,” Hange sighed.
Levi’s head was spinning. It was all too much. He stumbled back.
“Are you okay?” Hange was up in a second, hands all over him, lifting his arms, patting his sides and his face, searching for injuries. Levi flinched when two fingers simultaneously pressed on sore spots on his cheek and forehead.
The light was on his face again.
“Oh, you hit this side pretty hard.” Hange muttered, “This one is going to leave a nasty bump.”
Levi pushed the hand that held the flashlight away but allowed the other to rest gently on his cheek. “There’s a fridge in the teacher’s lounge, we can get you some ice! Come on!”
Several seconds of silence passed, but Levi eventually sighed in defeat.
***
“Voilá” Hange opened the door in an exaggeratedly cordial movement. “Mi casa es su casa.”
“Does su casa have any food?” Levi let his body fall on the two-person loveseat that occupied one corner of the room. Hange approached him moments later, bearing gifts.
“Iced tea and soufflé cake or ice cream?”
Levi reached for the right, grabbing the bottle with one hand and the small Tupperware and fork with the other.
“Don't these belong to someone?”
“The power is out, so it’s our moral imperative to save this food from waste!”
Levi shrugged, leaning in to take a bite out of the treat.
“I think Nanaba has some candles in here from the rising water experiment her class did last week!”
Levi took a few sips of his drink as the strange teacher jumped from cupboard to cupboard, fleshlight in hand. Soon, the room was covered in dancing shadows cast by candlelight. The heavy rain outside created a soothing symphony. Levi crossed his legs, supporting the cake on one of his thighs. Hange sat next to him, with a few ice cubes wrapped in a dishcloth.
“Is this clean?”
“Of course! Fresh out of the cupboard.”
Hange laid the improvised cold pack gently on his cheek, then on his forehead.
“You think we’ll be in trouble for staying in?” He took a sip of his drink, looking at his new acquaintance out of the corner of his eyes.
“Only if we get caught” the reply was casual “I usually hide in the teacher’s bathroom when I hear someone coming. Then I just have to wait a few minutes and make sure no one else is in the room before I exit. The timing is tricky though, no room for errors.”
He almost choked on his iced tea.
“How many times have you done this?”
“Don’t know. Lost count.” Hange shrugged.
“Why?”
“The lab is my favorite place in the world. Well, that and this lovely room right here” Hange joked but something vulnerable lurked behind the feigned chuckle. Levi turned to face the teacher, who continued “I also don’t have much else going on in other parts of my life. This is the closest thing I had to a date in… I don’t know… a year and a half?”
Levi’s cheeks felt warm, and he was grateful for the warm tones of the lighting in the room. To his surprise, he found himself saying:
“Eight months.”
He tilted his bottle to touch Hange’s ice cream cup.
Hange laughed, sincerely this time. The sound was low, bubbly, irregular. It was the weirdest combination of strange and familiar that made something resonate deep within him.
“What a couple of losers we are.”
“Yeah,” Levi replied, still stunned by the feeling.
***
“We should try and get some sleep.” Levi proposed, as the rain died out, and Hange nodded.
Except they didn’t. For some reason, whenever one of them stopped talking, the other broke the silence. Hange talked excitedly about the experiments the class did that day. Then Levi complained about the mess of the students and how some of the staff half-assed the cleaning. Hange nearly died laughing when Levi explained he ran because he thought he was being chased by a ghost but, for some reason, he didn’t mind. He liked it.
***
“I guess we won’t be needing these anymore.” The chemistry teacher blew the candles on the little center table before them, as the morning light entered the room, filtered by the blinds.
“I guess we won’t.”
“So, we’ll be out of here soon,” Hange commented.
“Yeah, I guess we will.” Levi turned to face his newfound friend. Now that the sun was up, he could see Hange’s features clearly. Smooth light skin. Strong, slightly convex nose. Brown chaotic hair that somehow fit the whole picture. Deep brown eyes one could get lost in and lips so full, so soft looking.
He averted his gaze when he realized he was staring, but it was too late. There was already a strange charge in the room, hovering over them. It was slightly uncomfortable but also exhilarating. The tension that precedes a leap into the unknown. Levi gulped, creating the courage to look at Hange again. Brown eyes stared right back at him. His heart picked up the pace as he moved forward. Hange moved too, tongue peeking out to moisten those lips. He could feel the heat emanating from them. Any second now.
A loud clanking outside made them jump in surprise.
“It’s the doorman!” Hange whispered. They both ran for the window. As one man unlatched the gate, another stood behind him.
“That’s Erwin, the history teacher!” Hange whispered as though they could hear them talking from that distance. “He always comes here first thing in the morning! Quick! Hide!”
They ran to the bathroom, hiding behind the partially closed door.
There was a creek. Then slow steps. Then the sound of a refrigerator door opening. Then silence.
“Is he gone?” Levi mouthed.
The chem teacher peeked through the crack and nodded negatively. Then frowned.
“What is it?”
There was a moment of silence. Then, in what can only be described as an oopsie face, Hange mouthed “I think he’s looking for his souffle cake”.
Levi caught the laughter last minute, letting out only a strangled snicker. Meanwhile, Hange was all silent open mouthed-chuckles, which intensified when Erwin rested his chin on his hand in a stoic pose while examining the empty fridge.
By the time the room was clear, they were both out of breath. Levi and Hange stepped out of the bathroom, looking each other in the eyes. The moment was gone, but there was a tinge of promise in the air. Hange spoke first.
“So, I’ll be bumping into you from now on?”
Levi shrugged. “if you’re lucky.”
Hange laughed and, once again, they ran out of words. Levi moved towards the door, but as he took a step out, he heard the teacher speak again.
“Hey, Levi!” He turned back to find Hange with the fingers of both hands crossed. “See you around!”
“See ya.” Levi stepped out this time, a smirk hiding on the corner of his lips. Maybe socializing with his coworkers wouldn't be so bad, after all.
