a game of taboo makes you wonder if levi is your soulmate
content: post war levi, domestic fluff, mentions of nightmares, falco + gabi, kinda manga spoilers?, blood
Every weekend, you and Levi open up the likes of your tea shop and your home to your two favorite kids - Falco and Gabi. Not that Levi would ever tell them that. It was a tradition the four of you adopted after Reiner went out of town on a trip that you continued after he returned. The four of you enjoy each others company more than most.
Falco and Gabi always help you and Levi with the shop on Friday, granted creating more of a mess than actually helping. While you and Levi had adopted a pace to making drinks at the shop, like a well oiled machine, Falco and Gabi were anything but.
Gabi was all about speed. She wanted to make all the orders as fast as she could, not caring who or what, she had to trample over to get there. You swear the girl has nearly knocked you off your feet a few times, which earns her a scolding from Levi.
Falco was all about precision. He wanted to make all the orders as perfect as possible, not caring how long it could take. You swore he could spend an entire day steeping if he could. You’re sure the habit is no thanks to Levi, who always sends the poor kid back whenever he asks him to make his tea.
After finishing up at the shop, you and Levi close up, letting Falco and Gabi play the board games or read the books you have set out in your apartment for them. Games, from you. Books, from Levi. It goes to say that the spines of the book are in perfect state from never being opened.
On this lovely Friday, Gabi and Falco had picked out Taboo for the four of you to play. You and Falco chose to team up like you did every week, the two of you a dream team of sorts. Meanwhile, Levi and Gabi begrudgingly worked together, butting heads every time the game started. They were both used to taking charge and making the plays, which led to arguments on how they should strategize and win. Meanwhile, you and Falco worked out a system - taking turns calling the shots which fared very well for the two of you.
The game is chaotic, with Levi and Gabi aggressively trying to guess the words at the top of the card. You and Falco can’t help but laugh at their turns, the two of them arguing about the semantics of the words and scolding each other for losing out the points each time. Meanwhile, you and Falco have a civilized conversation, high fiving every time you could figure out the word together.
On your turn, you lift the card to your forehead, Falco smiling in excitement.
“This one’s easy. You and Levi.”
“Me and Levi? Is it business owners?”
“No. Think about what you guys are.”
“Adults? A couple? Short?”
Levi grabs the back of your head, turning your face towards his.
“I’ll pretend like I didn’t hear that last one, brat.”
You see Gabi and Falco laughing from your peripheral and you roll your eyes at him in response.
The buzzer rings and you remove the card from your forehead to check the word. You hear Gabi and Levi taunting you in the background, but you’re too busy staring down at the card. Gabi leans over, flipping the card from your fingers to read the word.
“The word is soulmates, Mr. Levi.”
You turn your head at Levi saying the word.
“Soulmates, Mr. Levi, are people who are made for each other. The person who balances you out, the one you’re destined to be with. You can swear you’ve met them before, your souls together in the previous life and the next too. Like you and Miss Y/N. ”
Levi turns to Falco, his gray eyes glaring at him. He turns to you, his gaze noticeably softening. You’re sure your cheeks are beet red by now and you try to divert the subject.
“I’m going to start dinner. Whose turn is it to help me?”
Your eyes widen as you turn to Levi, cursing yourself for asking in the first place.
“You guys only played a few rounds. Stay here, I can handle it this week, Lee’.”
You stand up before he can respond, basically running to the kitchen.
“But Mr. Levi, wasn’t it my turn?” asks Falco, turning his head to the side to look at Levi.
“Yes. Shut up and play the game brat.”
After dinner, you and Levi pull out the air mattress the four of you sleep on. While you used to set up the guest rooms - you and Gabi in one and Falco and Levi in your bedroom - the four of you had been sleeping together in the living room as of late.
It all started a few weeks ago, on a particularly bad night for you. Falco and Gabi ran into your room to find you screaming in your sleep, Levi hunched over you trying to pull you awake. When you came to, you held onto Levi, the tears streaming from your eyes.
“Miss Y/N. What happened?”
You turn to your side to find Falco and Gabi crying at your side, their faces pink. You motioned for the two of them to join you and Levi on the bed, the four of you sitting criss cross to face one another.
“Nightmares, Falco. I’m okay.” you whisper.
“I get those too. Bad ones.”
The three of you look over, Gabi’s head in her hands. You move her hands, guiding her face to meet your gaze.
“Mine are always about Hange. I see them in the air, skin on fire. I try to stop them in the dream, but they’re gone by the time I get to them. They never get up, no matter how hard I try, how fast I move.….they still die in my arms every time I close my eyes.”
You feel Levi shift behind you, his hand making its way into your hair. He brushes through the tangles, attempting to fix your bedhead. You warm at the thought, Levi’s touch comforting you all together.
“I’m killing Sasha, watching her blood spill onto the floor. Or watching Eren become the Attack Titan, his skeleton spinning into the air while the walls come down.”
She pauses, the words dying in her throat.
“Falco turns into a titan, his warm eyes replaced with that lifeless, horrifying look in his eyes. He’s gone. And it’s all my fault.”
Falco reaches for her hand, the three of you squeezing your hands together.
“You didn’t tell me, Gabi.” whispers Falco, turning to face her.
“It’s embarrassing. That stuff is over but I can’t stop thinking about it.”
“It’s not over, not for us anyway. Sometimes I swear I can still see that girl, Ymir’s memories. I wake up in a cold sweat, dreaming of being her as she’s crushed in Galliard’s teeth. Or I see Colt. Him embracing me while I kill him.”
You hold your arms open, the two of them moving into your arms. You feel the two of them crying onto your shirt, as you press a kiss to the top of their heads. You turn to face Levi, his expression steely. You knew the look all too well, after being at Levi’s side for years. He felt guilty. You’re not sure what for.
Gabi and Falco turn to face Levi, shocked at his words. While you opened up to the two of them often, Gabi and Falco rarely had heart to hearts with Levi. They never hated him for it, understanding that he had every reason to be guarded, more than most. The only person he really talked to was you.
He reaches over, his hands brushing across the scars on your forehead and then your neck. You’re taken back to the moment, being nearly crushed in Zeke’s grasp as you guys stood on the Attack Titan. Levi had gotten to you in time, severing you out of Zeke’s hold, but he wasn’t fast enough to catch you before you fell down.
“My nightmare is that I killed you. Every time I close my eyes, all I see is you falling, after I cut you down. I reach you and you’re dead. No sparkling eyes looking at me, no stupid remarks when I talk to you. You’re still. Quiet. Lifeless. And it’s all my fault. I wake up every night, pressing my fingers against your neck just to make sure you’re still here.”
You reach forward, pulling him into your embrace. You place your hand on the side of his hair, the other arm still slung around Gabi and Falco. The four of you sit like that for a while, no one reaching to breaking the silence.
“Mr. Levi. Can we sleep here?” he whispers, looking up at Levi.
You and Levi move, opening up the covers for the two of them to climb in between you. Within a few minutes, the two of them are fast asleep, the tear stains now dry against their cheeks. You and Levi face each other, interlocking fingers over the two of them.
“Whatcha thinking about, Miss Y/N?”
You turn to find Falco, pulling out his pajamas near the mattress. You shake your head, throwing away the memory all together as you finish putting the bed together.
“Nothing, Falco. Levi’s in the bathroom. Go brush your teeth.”
He jumps off, retreating to your bathroom. You move towards the guest bathroom, finding Gabi brushing her teeth by the sink. You join her, the two of you making faces at each other as you finish up.
She nods, sitting up on the counter as you start brushing your fingers through her hair. You section off parts of her hair, getting to work on braiding her brown hair.
“Do you not think Levi is your soulmate?”
“It’s just that earlier, the card. You seemed uncomfortable when Falco said you guys were.”
You sigh, twisting her hair in your fingers.
“It’s not that, Gabi. Don’t soulmates have to be reciprocal?”
“You don’t think you’re his soulmate?”
“I don’t know. He’s lost so many people but I’m unsure of how he felt about them and how he feels about me. Sometimes I wonder if they were still here, I wouldn’t be the one next to him. Maybe he would want it to be one of them instead.”
“I don’t think so, Miss Y/N. He loves you. The thing he’s most scared to lose is you.”
“That’s because I’m the only thing left, Gabi.”
Levi and Falco burst in, Falco nearly falling face first into the floor. You and Gabi turn to your side, glaring at the two of them for interrupting your conversation. You see Falco’s eyes shine at the sight of you braiding Gabi’s hair.
“Gabi! You look so pretty.”
You watch Gabi flush at his words, running out of the room to avoid making eye contact with him. He follows, screaming an apology at her.
“Brats. They’re hopeless.”
“She’s hopeless. I bet she does this everyday, because there’s no way Falco walks around without saying something like that to her.”
He nods in agreement as you clear the sink from the brushes and elastics you were using in her hair. You look into the mirror to find Levi staring at you.
“What? Do I have something on my face?”
“Then why are you staring?”
He reaches forward, crushing you in his arms. You feel his heart pounding in his chest as he holds you even harder in his arms. He lets go, running his eyes over you.
“You okay, Levi?” you whisper, staring into his gray eyes.
He’s cut off by Falco and Gabi, who barge into the room again.
“Oh, sorry. We were just going to ask when you wanted to sleep.”
Levi turns to you, giving you a smile before turning to glare at the two of them. He pushes Gabi out of the room and you sling your arm around Falco as you follow them.
“Did no one teach you brats how to knock?”
“No. My parents died in the rumbling before they could teach me that.”
“Your parents dropped you off here. You’re real funny brat.”
You wake up, a cold sweat running down the side of your back. Sasha in a pool of her own blood. You look over, Gabi and Falco are still fast asleep under the blanket. Levi is absent from the mattress and you peer around for any signs of where he went.
You spot his black hair through the window of the balcony, him sitting on the floor out there. You pull your jacket (it’s Levi’s but who’s paying attention?) and join him out there, moving to sit next to him. He tenses at the contact, before opening up his arm for you to rest against him. You lean your back against his chest, his chin resting on top of your head.
The two of you sit in silence, staring out at the neighborhood over you. You lean into his embrace, thanking whatever gods there were for letting you be the one next to Levi in this moment.
“It was always going to be you.”
“The person next to me. It was always going to be you.”
You sit up, turning your back to face him. You’re unsure what he’s talking about, confused by his admittance all together.
“I heard you talking to Gabi earlier. If they were still here, you would still be the one I want by my side.”
You feel your cheeks burning, embarrassed Levi had heard you confessing your insecurities to a twelve year old girl.
“I’m sorry, Levi. I didn’t mean it like that. I know how you feel about me.”
Hie expression pinches and you can feel him tense behind your back. You curse yourself for placing doubt in his mind after everything he did for you.
“I…loved them. They were both special to me, my best friends.”
You nod, cradling the side of his face in your hand.
“I know, Levi. You don’t need to explain.” you whisper.
“But they’re not special the way you are. It sounds bad but I don’t love them like I love you. I’d be done for if you were the one gone instead of them.”
You smile, glowing at his words. You knew Levi loved you, but he was hardly one to ever say it. Make no mistake, he showed it to you everyday - leaving tea out for you, making the dinner you like, buying flowers that remind him of you. But he was never the best at saying it, which did leave you to wonder at times.
“Me too, Levi. As weird as it is to say, sometimes I feel lucky that you and I get to do this. Run a tea shop. Have the kids come around. Walk in the markets. I mean this time last year we were cradling each other's nearly dead bodies.”
He pauses, swallowing hard before answering.
“The next life will be nicer to us. I mean the odds are fucking impossible - anything is better than this.”
“Soulmates. Your souls are together in the previous life and the next.”
You feel your chest warm at his words, at him calling you his soulmate. You lean forward, pressing a kiss to his soft lips.
Levi walks Gabi and Falco home the next morning, leaving you snoring in the mattress behind. Gabi and Falco press kisses to your head, telling Levi they’ll bring dessert when they come next week.
Levi returns, groceries in hand. He makes breakfast, starting a cup of tea as you pad into the kitchen. Still half asleep, you swing your arms against his torso, leaning your face against his back.
“Mhm. Dropped them off earlier. I got the apples you wanted yesterday while I was out.”
You turn to the counter, rummaging through the bag Levi brought. You take out the flowers he brought from the market - a bouquet of red tulips. You smile, setting them aside to put in a vase later.
As you look for the apples, you find a small green box. You take it out and click it open, a simple silver band in the box.
You see his expression pale, as he reaches over trying to take the box from you. You’re able to avoid his grasp for a few seconds, but he gets it back in the end.
“You’re so damn nosy, brat.”
“Why are you trying to hide it? Buy it for your secret girlfriend instead of me?” you tease.
“You get stupider as time goes on. It’s obviously yours. I was waiting to give it to you.”
You smile, holding your hands out so he can give you the box back. As he reaches out to place the box in your hands, you pause spotting an identical silver band on his ring finger.
“Yes. That’s the point, idiot.”
You look up at him, staring into his eyes. You suddenly feel nervous. Last night, Levi called you his soulmate. And today he bought you rings. Matching ones.
“What does it mean? I mean, am I really all that?” you whisper.
“It doesn’t mean anything.”
You deflate, dejected by his words. While the implication of matching rings made you nervous, nauseous even, his fast rejection made you feel even worse.
You can see the frustration rising to his face, his eyes squinting at you.
“I didn’t mean it like that. You mean everything. I just mean we don’t have to do anything. If you don’t want to. They’re just rings. We can do all that whenever we want to.”
You look up at him, smiling at his nervous expression.
“I mean everything?” you ask, smirking at him.
He prods his fingers into your forehead, pushing you back into the chair. He places the breakfast he just made in front of you along with a cup of green tea.
Falco and Gabi return the next week, accompanied with a box of mochi Reiner had bought for the two of you. As you and Levi take to make dinner, Falco and Gabi lean over the counter, whispering at the sight of you.
“They’re wearing matching rings.”
“On their ring fingers. Look.”
“They’re getting married, Falco! Does this mean I get to be a flower girl?”
You and Levi smile at each other, trying your best not to laugh at the two of them whispering (yelling) over the counter. Levi turns towards them, placing their food in front of them.
“We’re not getting married, brat. Not yet, anyways.”
You turn to join the three of them, balancing your plate and Levi’s in your hand.
“You’re not the best whisperer, Gabs. Sorry.”
“Who bought them, Miss Y/N?”
“Levi did, Falco. Last week after he dropped you off.”
“Told you he was whipped for you. He looks like a kicked dog every time you walk away from him.”
“Keep talking, brat. I can easily convince her to pick another flower girl.”
You and Levi turn to Gabi, a wide smile spreading across her face.
“Wait, so you’d actually consider me?”
“Well yeah. Who else would do it?”
She runs across the table, pulling the both of you together in a hug. Falco jumps up as well, running to join the three of you. The two of them shout in their excitement, shaking the two of you in their hold. Gabi grabs Falco’s hand, dragging him onto the balcony to look at which flowers would be best for the ceremony.
“Since when does that murderous brat like flowers? It’s sickening.”
“She’s just excited, Levi. Getting to be a part of it all and everything.”
“We aren’t even getting married yet.” he deadpans.
“What she doesn’t know won’t hurt her.”
You turn to him, interlocking your fingers with his as the two of you eat your food. You hear the two of them chattering outside and thank the gods, for keeping the other half of your soul next to you.
