Broken Hearts, Severed Limbs (Levi x OC x Erwin)

|93| So Ist Es Immer

Nathalie hated lots of things. One of them might’ve been socialising. One other was having to deal with stupid people, or one other could have even been her beloved husband’s possessiveness. But what she hated the most, were cramps. Makes sense, right? All this pain, and all that god-forsaken bleeding that gives us no choice but to stay in bed and cry all day? Yeah. It sucks. It really does.

But this time, for Nathalie, it was something else. She had learned to deal with the pains that she’d usually get, but this time? This time it was unbearable. It might as well have felt like the jaws of a titan splitting her body in two. And -mind you- she knew quite well how that felt.

It was still morning when the immense cramps woke her from her sleep. Both Nathalie and Levi had settled on their separate sides on the bed. They must have drifted away from their embrace during their sleep. She could tell it was still early in the morning by the light blue, faint light that entered through the window. It was January now. The new year had entered almost two weeks ago. Nathalie had yet to step foot to those labs because her beloved husband wouldn’t let her, but for once, right now, she was grateful for that.

Nathalie bit her lip, holding back a wince. No matter how silent she’d keep herself, she knew Levi would snap out of his sleep with the tiniest of sounds. Even in his sleep, his attention was on her. Always ready to jump up and protect her should anything go wrong.

Her hands found her abdomen, and she once more cursed the biological functions beneath her lower belly. She curled herself. A desperate attempt to ease the pain, but it only got worse. It stung more and more, and she had tears in her eyes before she knew it. Dammit.

A shuddering sob escaped her mouth and she buried her face in her pillow to keep herself quiet. Her fingers clutched in the bedsheets. Another harsh wave of pain washed over her body and she winced, and that was more than enough for Levi’s eyes to snap open. He forgot all about sleeping, and he turned and looked at his wife. His ears never failed him. That familiar sound had come from her.

She had her back turned at him. Her body, folded, it almost looked like her knees were touching her chest. Her face, buried in her pillow. Another soft sound escaped her and it worried him right away. Levi shifted closer to her on the bed. He propped himself on his elbow to look down at her. Their bodies were still covered beneath their blankets and their bedsheets, but he could still tell she was clutching on her belly. It was exactly like back then, in the Hospital of Trost, after they had abducted her and she told him they had lost their child.

But this time there was no way anything like that was happening. His Nathalie was in his sight all day, every day, every hour, every week. He was with her, making sure she was safe and making sure she wasn’t trying anything dangerous. But for her to clutch like that on her belly, it could be only one thing. Levi barely knew anything on periods, and all he knew it was because of her. But he knew his Nathalie could handle the harshest of injuries. The most painful aches, she could handle it all. And now to see her like this, he just knew it hurt like hell.

“Levi…” She mumbled pleadingly. She couldn’t handle it anymore. He could tell she was crying. He hated it.

She hadn’t even noticed he was awake and staring at her in utter worry. Arms slipped around her. His chest met her back, and his lips found her exposed shoulder, pressing down warm kisses. Levi’s arms found her own on her lower belly. The warm palms snuck beneath her gown, and met the soft skin, and brought some relief. He started caressing in the gentlest strokes that he could manage.

Nathalie let out a sigh, an indication that he was doing it right. He sighed in the back of her neck. His chin found her shoulder. He lifted his face further up, to plant kisses on her cheek, her temple, her neck, her nape.