𝐋𝐔𝐍𝐂𝐇 𝐃𝐀𝐓𝐄 | 𝖫. 𝖠𝖼𝗄𝖾𝗋𝗆𝖺𝗇 (𝖱𝖾𝗊𝗎𝖾𝗌𝗍)
You hadn’t expected it to feel like this.
Walking up to the Scout headquarters, the building loomed larger than you remembered—stone walls worn from time and war, windows half-open to let in the afternoon air. It wasn’t your first time coming here, but it had been a while. Long enough that your chest felt tight with something between nerves and anticipation.
Still, you smoothed it over with a quiet breath and stepped forward.
Inside, the atmosphere shifted immediately.
Voices. Boots against the floor. The faint clatter of dishes somewhere deeper in the building.
Your eyes flickered around, taking it all in before settling on the first person who noticed you—a scout, maybe around your age, standing near the entrance. He blinked, clearly caught off guard.
You offered a small, polite smile.
“Hi. I’m looking for Captain Levi.”
The scout’s posture stiffened almost instantly.
“…Captain Levi?” he repeated, like he wasn’t entirely sure he heard you right.
He glanced over your shoulder like he expected someone else to be there—another soldier, maybe, or some kind of explanation for why a civilian-looking girl was casually asking for humanity’s strongest soldier like this was a normal thing.
When he looked back at you, his expression had shifted into something… cautious.
“…do you have business with him?”
You almost laughed at that.
“Yeah. I’m just here to see him.”
If anything, it made him more uneasy.
He rubbed the back of his neck, lowering his voice slightly like he didn’t want anyone else overhearing.
“…look, I don’t know what you’ve heard, but Captain Levi isn’t exactly… approachable.”
You tilted your head, still smiling—soft, patient.
“…he’s not really the type to entertain visitors.”
He hesitated again, clearly struggling between protocol and whatever instinct was telling him this was a bad idea.
“…he might not react well.”
That almost made you smile wider.
You shook your head gently.
“It’s okay. I’ll take that risk.”
There was something about the way you said it—calm, assured—that made him pause.
Like you weren’t guessing.
“…right,” he muttered, clearly unconvinced but too unsure to argue further. “Just—wait here.”
He walked off, glancing back at you once like he expected you to disappear or change your mind.
You just stood there quietly, hands folded loosely in front of you, taking in the space.
Because whispers started almost immediately.
“I don’t know—she asked for Captain Levi.”
You tried not to look, but your eyes flickered just slightly toward the source of the voices.
A group—familiar faces you’d seen before, even if you didn’t know them personally.
A boy with messy brown hair—Eren, if you remembered correctly—leaning forward like he couldn’t believe what he was hearing.
Next to him, Connie looked halfway between amused and confused.
“Why would anyone willingly go looking for him?”
“Maybe she doesn’t know,” Connie added, snorting slightly.
Sasha, chewing on something as always, tilted her head.
“She doesn’t look scared.”
“That’s the weird part,” Eren muttered.
Armin, quieter than the others, studied you more carefully.
“…I think she does know,” he said softly. “She just doesn’t seem bothered.”
That earned him a few glances.
Meanwhile, across the room—
Hange’s voice, unmistakable.
You didn’t look, but you could feel their attention shift onto you like a spotlight.
“A civilian? Asking for Levi? Oh, I have to see this—”
“Don’t,” someone muttered—Jean, probably. “You’ll scare her off before Levi even gets here.”
Hange hummed, clearly not convinced.
“Or maybe I’ll learn something.”
The energy in the room shifted again.
Like something had entered that commanded attention without needing to raise its voice.
You didn’t need to turn to know. But you did anyway.
Levi stepped into the room with that same sharp presence—eyes already narrowed, expression unreadable, like he was annoyed before he even knew why.
“…what’s all this noise?”
His voice cut clean through the murmurs.
The scout who had gone to get him stepped forward quickly.
“Sir—there’s someone here asking for you.”
Just a second— something in his expression changed.
Not dramatically. Not enough for anyone else to notice. But you saw it.
The faintest softening around his eyes.
He clicked his tongue, like the entire situation was mildly irritating—but he was already walking toward you.
Behind him, the room held its breath.
Just watched him approach like this was the most normal thing in the world.
When he stopped in front of you, there was a beat of silence.
Your lips curved slightly. “You’re not.”
“…you came all this way for lunch?”
Simple. Direct. Like always.
But the fact that he didn’t dismiss you—didn’t question you further—didn’t send you away—
That alone was enough to send a ripple through the room behind him.
Levi glanced back once, irritation flickering again.
“…stop staring and get back to work.”
Everyone scrambled—except they weren’t really working.
He turned back to you, already walking past you like he expected you to follow.
He led you to a quieter part of the building—a far corner near a window, away from most of the noise.
A small table. Two chairs. Simple. Private.
Or as private as it could get here.
You sat across from him, setting down the small bag you’d brought.
“You still don’t have decent food here?” you asked lightly.
“That’s not what I asked.”
A faint exhale left him—something almost like a sigh.
“…you didn’t need to bring anything.”
You opened the bag, pulling out containers carefully.
Something that didn’t look like it had been rationed or thrown together in a hurry.
Levi’s gaze lingered on it for a second longer than usual.
You handed him a portion, and he took it without another word. For a moment, it was quiet. Just the soft sounds of eating. The light coming in through the window. Normal. Strangely normal.
“…you look tired,” you said after a bit, watching him.
“That wasn’t a question.”
But he didn’t deny it again either.
You leaned back slightly, studying him.
“…have you been sleeping?”
“And you don’t talk enough. It balances out.”
He huffed quietly, but there was no bite to it.
“They’re just… eating,” Connie whispered.
“…yeah,” Eren muttered, frowning. “Why is that weird?”
“Because it’s him,” Jean shot back. “He doesn’t sit like that with anyone.”
“…she brought him food?” Eren repeated.
Armin’s eyes narrowed slightly.
“…and he’s eating it without complaining.”
That made them all pause. Because that— that was strange.
“…so,” you said, glancing around briefly. “you didn’t warn them about me.”
You laughed softly under your breath.
“Seems like it would’ve saved a lot of confusion.”
Because you could feel it—the way his attention stayed on you, steady, unhurried.
Like for once, he wasn’t splitting it between a hundred responsibilities.
You didn’t even need to look.
They dropped into the empty seat beside you like they’d been waiting for an invitation.
“Hi,” they said brightly, eyes already scanning you like you were something fascinating.
“…Hange,” Levi’s tone dropped instantly.
“What? I’m just saying hello.”
“You’re being intrusive.”
“I’m being curious,” they corrected, grinning. “Which is my job.”
Their attention snapped back to you.
You blinked, slightly caught off guard but not uncomfortable.
“None of your business,” Levi cut in flatly.
Hange ignored him completely.
“…we’ve known each other for a while,” you answered carefully.
“A while?” Hange leaned in. “Define a while.”
That only seemed to intrigue them more.
“Interesting. And you’re not a soldier.”
“And yet you walked in here and asked for him like it was nothing.”
“Oh, no, no—I love it. I just didn’t think anyone could.”
Levi’s patience was thinning.
“Relax,” they waved him off. “I’m almost done.”
But before they could continue—
“…we should go say hi,” Sasha whispered.
“Absolutely not,” Jean muttered.
“We’re already here,” Connie said, already halfway standing.
Armin trailed behind them, quieter but just as curious.
Your quiet little corner wasn’t quiet anymore.
“Uh—hi,” Eren said, awkward but trying.
“Hey,” Connie added, grinning like he couldn’t help himself. “Sorry—we were just curious.”
“You don’t say,” Levi muttered dryly.
Sasha leaned in slightly.
“The food smells really good.”
You couldn’t help it—you laughed softly.
Levi looked like he was about two seconds away from kicking them all out himself.
“…don’t you all have something better to do?”
“Not really,” Connie said.
They scrambled back quickly, muttering apologies—but still glancing back at you as they left.
Hange lingered just a second longer.
“…I’m not done asking questions.”
“…fine,” they sighed dramatically, standing. “But I’ll be back.”
You exhaled softly, shaking your head.
Time passed quicker than you expected. It always did. Eventually, your containers were empty. The moment lingered. Neither of you rushing to end it.
“…you should head back soon,” Levi said quietly.
You stood, gathering your things.
He always walked you out.
Outside, the air felt different. Quieter. Cooler.
You turned to face him once you reached the entrance.
For a second, neither of you spoke.
“…thanks for coming,” he said.
Simple. But it meant more coming from him.
You smiled softly. “Thanks for not scaring me away.”
That made your chest tighten just slightly.
You stepped a little closer. Not too close. Just enough, “…be safe, okay?”
His gaze softened again—just barely.
“…I’ll see you next time.”
You turned to leave— but hesitated. Just for a second. Then you reached out—light, brief— your fingers brushing against his sleeve.
“…don’t overwork yourself.”
“…he walked her out,” Eren whispered.
“…of course he did,” Armin murmured.
Hange watched from the window, grinning.
“…this is going to be fun.”
