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By the time they arrived in the second town on their list, summer was in full, muggy force. Levi could feel the sweat sliding down his forehead, down his back, everywhere. Eren had tied his hair back in a loose ponytail and looked worse for wear.
When Levi saw that the town was buzzing, that stands were only just being dismantled from the streets, that there were signs out everywhere with directions to various shops and restaurants, he got a sinking feeling. They’d already hitched their horses at the stables, and the next town was another day’s ride away.
“Didn’t the schedule say the River Festival was supposed to have finished yesterday?” he asked Eren. A group of screaming children ran by; Levi was exhausted just looking at them. They’d been on this recruitment effort for Hanji for over a week now, and Levi was led to believe today would be a day free from crowds and conversation.
“It definitely did,” Eren was quick to assure. He looked as disappointed as Levi felt. “I checked when we stopped for lunch earlier.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out the schedule, quickly scanning it. “Yep. Definitely supposed to have ended yesterday.”
“Fucking Hanji,” Levi muttered, the heat making it harder for him to mask his irritation. “We’re going to have a hell of a time trying to find somewhere to stay tonight.”
Eren pushed his hair out of his eyes and frowned over at Levi. “I hope we can and soon. I’m starving, and I need a shower.”
“We’ll figure something out,” Levi said, a promise to himself as much as Eren.
It took several tries, but finally towards the edge of town they found an inn with a room free, just as the sun was beginning to set. The trouble was, the innkeeper told them apologetically, was that the room only had one bed. There was nothing they could do since it was so last minute. It was surprising they had anything left at all, really.
Levi waved him off. “It’s fine,” he said.
“Wait, Levi,” Eren protested, “maybe we should keep looking for somewhere with more rooms?”
It was too late, and he was too tired, for whatever nonsense this was. “We’ve been searching for hours. It’s fine.” He turned his attention back to the innkeeper. “Is your kitchen still open?”
“It is,” he said. “Tonight we’ve got vegetable stew or sausages and roast potatoes.”
“That’ll do.” Levi nodded.
Eren was still looking unhappy about the situation, and he shuffled along miserably as they walked to one of the tables in the back of the small dining room of the inn.
“I thought maybe we’d go out to dinner together tonight,” Eren said.
“We’re eating dinner out together right now.”
“Not like this,” Eren said, looking around the room with disappointment, crossing his arms over his chest.
Levi didn’t see why some splintered wooden walls, uncomfortable chairs, and wobbly tables bothered Eren so much. This place obviously wasn’t the best in town, but since when was he so fussy about these sorts of things? And at least the food sounded good.
“It smells like mildew in here,” Eren added.
“You’ve been acting like something crawled up your ass since we got here,” Levi said. “What’s wrong with you?”
“Nothing!” Eren squawked, failing to convince Levi that nothing was in fact wrong. Oh well. If Eren wasn’t going to be forthcoming, Levi wasn’t in the mood to press the issue.
“You can have the first shower,” Levi offered. He wasn’t completely heartless.
Eren shot him a relieved, grateful look. “Thanks, yeah. I’ll take you up on that.”
The food came then, sausage and potatoes covered in a thick gravy. If Hanji couldn’t even be bothered to get their schedule right, the least they could do was treat them to a decent meal. Despite the look of the place, the food was good. The gravy was rich, not too bland the way it tended to be at HQ, and the potatoes were crisp on the outside and so tender inside, practically melting on his tongue.
As they ate, they discussed their plans for the next day. They’d been given permission to set up in the town center. An ad (which Levi hated) had even been taken out in the paper announcing their arrival.
The strategy was to inspire the youth to enter basic training and keep the SC at the forefront of their minds by introducing them directly to two of its finest soldiers. Mikasa was often sent with Levi or Eren to inspire more girls to join, and she was actually better at this whole thing than either of them were.
Levi was considering this when he said, “It’s a little on the nose we were sent together this time. Don’t you think?”
Eren froze, looking as though Levi had accused him of something. “What do you mean?”
“Humanity’s Strongest, Humanity’s Hope.” Levi gestured between them. “Usually their strategy is to split us up and send us each with someone more charismatic. But now they’ve gone all in on those shitty titles.”
Levi expected Eren to laugh, but instead his frown deepened. Something was obviously wrong, but Levi couldn’t imagine his remark had offended Eren. They’d joked in the past that Eren was too intense and Levi was too withdrawn to be appropriate ambassadors for the Corps.
“Actually, I asked to come with you this time,” Eren admitted. His voice was quiet and he avoided Levi’s eyes, prodding at his food without taking a bite.
“Why?” Levi asked.
Time slowed to a crawl as Eren mulled over his answer. “I thought it would be nice,” he said finally, as if that answered anything at all. “To spend more time together,” he added, with a firm nod of his head.
Levi stared at Eren, trying to understand what the hell he was talking about. They spent plenty of time together. In fact, they trained together almost every day, lead drills for the new recruits, sat at the same table at dinner night after night. Eren must have gotten sick of travelling with Mikasa.
“I’m sure you won’t feel like that after two more weeks with me,” he deflected.
Eren tilted his head at Levi. “That isn’t true at all.”
There was a particular sweetness in Eren’s tone, so guileless, that startled Levi. It was good he was nearly finished with his food anyway: he was too thrown off to continue eating. This conversation was dangerously close to tipping over into something Levi was not designed for.
The truth was, as skeptical as Levi was about why Eren would want to spend isolated stretches of time with him, he couldn’t think of anyone he’d rather do this with either. Eren’s presence was never intrusive; he seemed to intuit when Levi was in a talkative or quiet mood. Even now, he appeared content to sit in silence as he cleared his plate.
Out of the corner of his eye, Levi caught Eren sneaking glances at him. He forced himself not to let the his sausages go to waste, and once they were both finished he said, “I’m going to head up to bed.”
Eren stiffened, looking uneasy, but he followed Levi upstairs.
They’d both taken showers, but it was all for naught--the heat in the small room was stifling. Levi flung the windows open, all the while grumbling that they hadn’t even bothered to put up curtains. An intermittent breeze graced them, but the overall effect was minimal. Levi shucked off his clothes until he was only in his briefs.
Eren had a pinched, miserable expression on his face, and he was taking a suspiciously long time to get ready for bed.
“What’s wrong now?” Levi’s patience was wearing thin.
“What? Nothing,” Eren said skittishly. He looked down at the bed, just wide enough for them both to lie side by side on their backs. It could have been worse, Levi thought.
Eren seemed to have remembered how to remove his trousers and now was taking his time with his shirt, fingers nudging at the hem.
“I’ve seen you naked before,” Levi pointed out. “We can sleep however you like. Stop overthinking it.”
This didn’t seem to have the calming effect Levi had intended (though that was often the case with his words), but it did spur Eren into action, and he climbed under the thin sheets quickly, avoiding Levi’s eyes.
“Aren’t you going to be hot?”
“I’m fine!” Eren replied, back still to Levi.
To Levi’s disappointment, Eren didn’t try to make conversation like he usually would. It was late, but Levi didn’t anticipate falling asleep any time soon; the heat only made his insomnia worse. It would have been nice to lie awake and talk to Eren for a little while.
He tried not to disturb Eren with his restlessness, the bed small enough that any motion was disruptive. Eventually he managed to drift off for maybe an hour. When he woke up, Eren had thrown the covers off and was lying with an arm stretched over his head, a hand on his belly and...oh. Levi’s gaze trailed downward. Eren’s briefs weren’t leaving much to the imagination, his erection straining against the cotton.
Over the years of course he’d noticed that Eren had grown into an attractive young man, but he didn’t make a habit of dwelling on it. Now, though, he was confronted with it completely. Eren was a vision in the moonlight from the open window. Levi swallowed; he couldn’t look away. He wondered what Eren was dreaming about.
Well. At least if Levi couldn’t sleep he had this to distract him. He indulged himself, watching Eren’s chest rise and fall with heavy breaths, the way his chest glistened with sweat. Levi was admiring the way Eren’s hair was falling over his eyes when said eyes opened.
First, Eren seemed to be become aware of his own body, face reddening as he glanced down at his erection. Then he became aware of Levi’s own, and his expression shifted rapidly from embarrassment to shock to heat.
He rolled on his side so they were face to face. “Levi?” he said, voice breathy and hopeful.
Levi didn’t respond; his mouth had gone dry. He couldn’t seem to move or look away from Eren.
The bed creaked as Eren shifted closer. “Levi?” he prompted again. Until now, Levi had never noticed the color of someone’s eyes, but like everything else about Eren it was beautiful, bold and undeniable. Levi's lips parted of their own accord.
The kiss was more careful than Levi had anticipated. He’d expected it to feel like a crash, a fire. But it was tender, soft; Eren was a good kisser. Levi wondered distantly if it was a matter of practice or a matter that Eren could do just about anything right now and he would love it.
They were still on their sides, clutching at one another like they couldn’t get close enough when Eren flipped them so he had Levi pinned to the mattress. His gaze was heated, feral, everything the kiss hadn’t been--it went straight to Levi’s dick. He didn’t know why Eren had been holding back.
He shifted his hips, thrusting against Eren, their erections rubbing against one another, still confined by their briefs. It was a hint, and Eren took it. He sat up and removed his underwear, then Levi’s. This time when he bent forward to kiss Levi, he gripped both of their cocks in his hand, squeezing them together as he moaned frantically against Levi’s lips, sucked Levi’s tongue into his mouth.
The room was impossibly hotter now, and Eren’s skin was slippery, slicked with sweat. Levi was so hard for him, the way his body gleamed in the moonlight. Their dicks were still sliding against each other in Eren’s hands, and Levi couldn’t get enough.
“Levi this is good, but I--”
“Yeah, me too,” Levi said. The way Eren was looking at him, he was too exposed. “Turn around.”
This brought Eren’s head up. “What?”
Levi motioned with his hands and said, “Turn so your legs are by my head.”
“Oh.” There was more creaking from the bed as Eren followed the instructions, breathing hard.
Levi wondered then how much experience Eren had. Not much, he suspected from the eager, dopey expression he’d caught on Eren’s face as he turned around. He didn’t love the thought, but he didn’t entirely hate it either.
“Shift closer to me.”
“Levi, ” It came out as a whine, but Eren did what he was told until his swollen cock was in Levi’s face and then, soon after, his mouth.
As he had before, Eren took the hint and followed suit, licking and kissing Levi’s length, fingers digging into Levi’s thighs, moans vibrating around Levi’s sensitive skin. He could feel Eren trying to find his rhythm, so Levi lead by example, bobbing his head at an even pace, gripping Eren at his base and moving his hand in time.
It didn’t take long for Eren to get the hang of it, and Levi could feel himself getting sloppy as he lost himself in pleasure. He lapped at the underside, around the head when he couldn’t keep his rhythm, panting at Eren’s ministrations.
Without warning, Eren stopped. “Hey,” he said, and Levi stopped too, missing the weight of Eren in his mouth right away.
He moved so he could get a better look at Eren. From this position, Levi could see his whole body was flushed.
Eren sat up at the edge of the bed, facing away from Levi, and gave his cock a squeeze, closing his eyes and breathing deep.
“You’re close,” Levi observed. “It’s fine.” He just wanted Eren. To touch him, to hold him. How they came or how long it took didn’t make a difference to him.
“You have no idea what you do to me, do you?”
Levi snorted. It sounded ridiculous.
“I’m serious,” Eren said, knuckles white as he gripped the sheets around him. “I’ve wanted this for so long...I can’t. I don’t want to waste it.”
“Do you want to fuck me?” Levi asked, curious more than anything. He’d assumed this would go the other way, but in his mind’s eye he had a flash of how it would feel to have Eren taking him, face pressed into the mattress as Eren fucked him. Letting go of everything. The vision made his cock ache.
“God yeah.” Eren took a steadying breath. “I want that so much.”
“Come here,” Levi told him, starting to turn over. “I’ll tell you what to do.”
“I know what to do.” Eren furrowed his brow. “Why are you turning around?”
“So you can fuck me. Have we been having a different conversation?”
“But I thought--I want to see you.”
The thought of Eren hovering over him in the dark, eyes piercing into his, gave Levi pause. He stayed still, though, eyes following Eren as he stood and went to retrieve something from his bag in the corner of the room. He returned with a small bottle of oil, looking sheepish when Levi raised an eyebrow at him.
Rubbing at the back of his neck, Eren said, “I brought it for me. Being around you all day has that effect.”
Levi rolled his eyes. “Fucking hell, Eren.” He stayed on his back, and though he kept his expression blank, he felt like his body had been reversed, turned inside-out. That Eren could see his bones, his blood, and his heart all out in the open.
“I mean it,” Eren insisted. “I wish you could see yourself through my eyes.”
From anyone else that would sound like a line, some practiced bullshit, but for the second time today Eren’s sincerity sliced through him, to parts of Levi he’d long thought unreachable.
He wanted to try. To give something back to Eren. “I prefer my view.” Levi regretted it the instant he said it. This was why he never said shit like this. Strictly speaking it was accurate - the moonlight was again casting a glow around Eren, his body statuesque, cock hard against his belly - but he wished the words had never left his mouth.
At least until the wide grin broke out on Eren’s face. Levi didn’t understand it, but he felt as though he’d somehow given a precious gift.
Levi cleared his throat. “What are you waiting for? Hurry up.”
Eren pinned him to the mattress then, kissing him heatedly. He had Levi’s wrists in his hands, pressing them into the pillow above his head. Levi was impressed. More so when Eren kept him in place with one hand after slicking his other in oil, sliding a finger into Levi.
He hadn’t done this with anyone in a long time, and when he had he’d never watched his partner’s face with such careful interest. The way Eren’s eyes hooded with desire as Levi opened for him, how he looked so desperate for him, how he almost sobbed with relief when he finally began to fuck Levi.
Levi didn’t realise how badly he needed this, his head spun as he watched Eren move above him. He matched Eren’s pace, tilting his hips up to meet his thrusts.
“You feel so fucking good,” Levi said. He didn’t know why this came as such a surprise.
Eren bit his bottom lip, and Levi felt him shaking.
“What do you want, Eren?”
His thrusts slowed. “I want you to come on me,” he panted, face red.
Levi could feel how close he was, the effort he was exerting to restrain himself. “Me too,” he said. He wanted it badly, to see himself all over Eren.
Eren’s thrusts stayed slow, controlled, but he stroked Levi with firm, quick jerks of his wrist, moaning as Levi came on his chest in hot, sticky bursts. Seeing this undid Eren. He gave it to Levi hard. Deep thrusts that lacked any finesse, but Levi didn’t care.
“Harder, Eren,” he urged, clenching his legs tighter and leaning up so he could suck and bite Eren’s nipples until he was crying out, Levi’s name on his lips as he came.
As they lay there together, sweat cooling their skin against the lingering heat, Levi stroked Eren’s hair; he was running his fingers through the silky strands when he asked, “Eren, why did you really ask Hanji to send us out together?”
“It kind of seems like you already know.”
“Don’t be a brat.”
“Well...” Eren started, then paused to think. “I asked them because you and I aren’t usually alone together. And I thought if you felt the same...we’d actually have some privacy for awhile. To do this every night if we wanted.” He smiled at Levi then, the joy in his face made Levi’s chest ache. He’d never seen that look on Eren’s face before, and it felt like now he’d been waiting for it all the years he’d known him.
“Yeah. I want that too.” Levi cleared his throat, before things could get too soppy. “Hanji’s going to be suspicious when they see how much less we spent on accommodation than planned.”
Eren didn’t say anything.
Levi scowled. “Don’t fucking tell me Hanji knows what you were planning.”
“I’m definitely not going to tell you that.”
Levi sighed, and tried to tell himself there were worse things than Hanji finding out he was carrying on with Eren. Not many, but some. “What exactly were you planning? You looked like you’d shit your pants when we had to share the room.”
Eren covered his face for a minute. When he dropped his hand, his face was still red, and really Levi should have given more consideration to the question because he was not prepared for Eren’s speech.
“I was just disappointed when we had to share the room because I’d finally worked up the courage to...ask you to go to dinner with me, you know, like a date.”
Levi’s heart was battering against his chest. No one had ever spoken to him like this before. Eren was, quite possibly, the most overwhelming person to have ever entered Levi’s life. And he wasn’t even finished speaking. Levi wanted him to shut up, wanted him to never stop.
“I didn’t know how you’d feel about it. I thought if you didn’t feel the same way, at least we’d try to go back to normal the next day. What you say doesn’t always come out right, but you’ve always been so kind to me. I...I knew that wouldn’t change. I’ve wanted to tell you for a long time.”
Levi knew then that he was done for. There was no coming back from this for him. Eren had been a punch to the gut from the moment he’d met him.
This time, he rolled on top of Eren, igniting them both again.
Levi stayed awake all night. Long after Eren had fallen asleep, a small smile on his face, Levi watched him, wanting to preserve something from tonight. Nothing had ever lasted for him; he’d grown to accept that as an everlasting truth about his life and this world. But for the first time that he could remember, something akin to wonder, to hope, blossomed inside of him. It was dangerous, and thrilling, and undeniable.