Save Me (Levi x OC)

Chapter 38

I blushed even harder and tried to cover my face with my hands, but Liane just laughed innocently. After that, I felt myself tire out, and I lay back onto the bed, relaxing completely, and my sister sat in the chair once again, talking about anything and everything, and the whole time, she held one of my hands in her own. Liane's calming voice lulled me to sleep, and I felt my eyes close on their own. The next time I opened them, Liane was still sitting in the chair, but her arms were resting on the edge of the bed, her head resting in the crook of her elbow as she dozed off peacefully. Even in her sleep, she held my hand, almost as if to make sure that I wouldn't disappear. She must've sensed somehow that I'd woken up, because she stretched up from her spot beside me, pulling her arm behind her back to get the stiffness out.

"Oh? You're up! Great!" Liane smiled at me before jumping to her feet. "You're probably starving, aren't you? I'll go get you some food!"

I only nodded in response, grateful that I didn't even need to ask for Liane to understand what I needed. The young girl rushed out of the room, obviously happy to have something to do rather than just sit in a chair for another hour. I hope she isn't skipping training to pay me these visits... The early stages of training in the cadet corps were probably the most important, so I couldn't help but feel slightly guilty that Liane was wasting so much time to take care of me instead of to train. I tried to push the thought away, knowing that if even one of these thoughts settled in my head, the rest would come and hit me at full speed, too. 

Now that I was alone, I debated on unwrapping the bandage on my waist to see just how bad the wounds were, but I decided that it would do more harm than good. After all, if the bandage was still on, there must be a reason for it. Feeling somewhat energized from sleeping so much, I tried to sit up in my bed. The two weeks of rest had obviously done their job, because I was barely even dizzy from the sudden movement. Before I could decide whether trying to stand up would be a good idea or not, I heard footsteps echo down the hall, heading in my direction.

Is Liane back already? That sure was fast. I paused for a second, paying extra close attention. No, that's not Liane. Her footsteps are a lot faster and have more of a spring to them. Could it be- His shoes peaked out from behind the wall first, followed by his right leg and left arm, which swung forward ever-so-slightly. With another step forward, Levi now stood right in the middle of the entrance to the room, the door still open. He wore a black suit with a pinstriped button-down short instead of the usual scout uniform, with his iconic cravat and a pair of dress shoes. His hair was messier than usual, and he had the darkest bags under his eyes. Even still, as soon as he saw me, he froze in place, and tears streamed down his slightly-sunken cheeks.

For several moments, I couldn't do anything but stare at him, until he rushed forward, placing one hand under my chin and the other on the bed beside my waist, trapping me at his side, and captured my lips with his own. I could tell he was restraining himself, because even though his body seemed anxious to hold me, the kiss was soft and gentle, almost as if he was afraid he'd break me if he made any sharp movements. When he pulled away to take a breath, I gave him a meek smile, almost as if to apologize for the past two weeks. Now that he registered that I was alive and mostly well, his soft expression turned into a mixture of rage and agony. 

"How could you do that to me? You promised you'd be safe, and then you went and pulled something like that?" The captain scolded me, and I couldn't help but grin softly. He meant well - he just didn't know how to express it properly. "Do you even know how worried I was about you? You get angry at me for getting myself injured and then you almost die on me?" With a soft ha leaving his lips, he threw his head back, covering his face with his hands, almost as if he suddenly felt embarrassed, but he had no reason to be. 

From my somewhat awkward position, I tugged at the side of Levi's suit, pulling him back down, and wrapped him in a gentle hug. "I promised I'd come back alive, and here I am," I whispered into his ear. "I'm here all thanks to you. You saved me. Thank you."

Neither one of us moved for several minutes, until Levi finally pulled away, sitting down on the chair instead. Both of us were now blushing slightly, but I decided to blame that on the fact that the room was hot and stuffy.  I hadn't even noticed, but Levi was holding my hand, drawing small circles on its back with his thumb, the feeling comfortable and familiar. I wasn't sure, but it looked like he was trying to mentally prepare himself for something.

"Alex, there's something I need to tell you," he started, and although his body language hadn't changed at all, I could immediately tell that he was nervous. "I-"

"Lexi! I'm back!" Just at that moment, Liane skipped into the room, a small tray of food in her hands, a childish grin on her face. The smile immediately fell when she saw Levi next to me, who was now blushing even harder than before, and had let go of my hand. Her eyes widened as she realized that she'd walked into a private moment. "Oh. Oh. I'll just, uh, come back in a bit." With that, Liane turned on her heel and sped down the hall, and I laughed lightly before turning back to face Levi.

His face was flushed crimson, and he awkwardly scratched the back of his head, looking anywhere but at me. No matter how hard I tried to get him to look me in the eye, he wouldn't even face me. I eventually gave up on the pointless game of cat and mouse, so I forced myself onto my feet, my legs somewhat wobbly from not being used for two weeks. This immediately got Levi's attention, and he quickly reached out as if to catch me, but I took a careful step forward, and placed my hand on Levi's chin, gently forcing him to look me in my eyes.

"What did you want to tell me earlier?" I asked, my voice gentle.

He lifted his hand, placing it over mine as he leaned into my caress, but it still took him several seconds to collect himself. "I.. I wanted to say that.." Although he'd seemed so confident in himself before, he was now stuttering and stammering, and it looked as though it was taking all of his willpower to not just shut down completely.

"It's alright, it's only me here," I soothed him, trying my best to keep my voice even and comforting as I reached with my other hand to ruffle his hair. 

"That's the thing," he muttered through a pained smile. "It's you, and I don't know how to say it..."

He didn't even need to speak another word. His soft tone, his sad half-smile, the way he gently held on to me was enough to tell me everything I needed to know. 

"It's okay. I feel the same way, too," I whispered, and this time, I was the one to lean in.